Swashbuckler

Background

Powers and Abilities

Swashbuckler is tremendously fast, acrobatic and agile. He also is a world-class fencer with lightweight blades. He seems to be almost on par with Nightwing himself in terms of speed and precision. Swashbuckler could perform such amazing trick shots as slashing Nightwing’s mask away from his face without even scratching mister Grayson.

He’s also smart and perceptive in combat, with superior initiative and adaptability. He’s a competent adventurer.

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He seems to have a certain familiarity with superhuman and anti-superhuman tactics, terminology and technology. For instance he could eyeball energy/reality manifestations around TVM and tell what was going on. In DC Heroes RPG terms, that was tentatively coded as Scientist.

He was also oddly familiar with the Amazons and their extensive body of lore.

Flashing blades

Swashbuckler carries a pair of energy swords. These seem to be somewhere between a fencing épée, some of the lighter Chinese jians, and a Star Wars lightsabre.

These blue energy blades could cleave right through one of Nightwing’s fighting sticks, which are made of a shatterproof polymer. But couldn’t get through a N^th Metal-enhanced shield, and other measures against energy attacks might defeat them.

There might be a stun mode and the swords might be able to Block projectiles. But neither is actually demonstrated – just implied. The swords can also be used as potent glow-sticks by decohering the output.

Swashbuckler prefers to challenge himself by using just one sword. But when hard-pressed (or attempting a difficult feat) will fire up the second sword to get his Paired Weapons bonus.

History

Swashbuckler is the most mysterious of the Dreambound, and their de facto leader.

Prior to that he was dead and buried, complete with tombstone, in a cemetery outside of a major city. Nothing is known about his past, but he once pointed at a huge scar around his neck. He was apparently executed via hanging, or perhaps he was decapitated.

Given Kurt Busiek’s style, it is very likely that Swashbuckler used to be an obscure DCU character under a different name before his death.

Dreambound

Swashbuckler was recruited by the “Dark Trinity” (Morgaine, Enigma and Despero) as part of a team of minor agents. All four recruits were, in their way, expending their life in the pursuit of nigh-impossible dreams. They were thus called the Dreambound.

The quartet was empowered by the Dark Trinity’s Cosmic Egg. They were promised that their dreams would be made true by the Dark Trinity as part of their reordering of the universe.

They were first detailed to stealing a variety of items symbolically tied to the real Trinity (Wonder Woman, Superman, Batman). Though they were successful, disaster nearly struck as one of their own, Sun-Chained-In-Ink, was forced to release the star inside him. The other three were arrested.

Reality shifts

As they were held in special facilities, the reality was rewritten. On this new version of Earth, they recruited the Tattooed Man III (Mark Richards) to become the new Sun-Chained-In-Ink. But though they escaped from prison, they were drafted anew by Morgaine. This time, they were to assemble an army for her.

This army of super-villains, called the Dark Arcana, ended up conquering this recreated Earth. That was despite the opposition of the global forces of the Justice Society International.

However, the three original Dreambounds (Primat, TVM and Swashbuckler) resented their conditions as slaves and grunts for Morgaine. Their drab existence was anything but the dream world they had been promised.

After confronting JSI spy the Atom, the trio allied with S.P.H.E.R.E., a construct holding the consciousness of Enigma’s daughter. S.P.H.E.R.E. resented the Dark Trinity’s reign just as they did. There was also tension with Richards, who considered the other three to be weaklings and idiots.

We won’t get fooled again

As the godlike Trinity came to confront the Dark Trinity, the previous reality started re-asserting itself.

Thus, the original Sun-Chained-In-Ink emerged from Richards’s tattoos as he was restored. Happy to be reunited with him, and seeing the empire of the Dark Trinity catastrophically crumble, the Dreambound fled the scene. To their dismay they were forced to abandon S.P.H.E.R.E. as they ran.

Though they tried to hide, the Dreambound realised that they had to do something. They recruited Konvikt, a fallen member of a previous version of the Dark Trinity. The Dreambound and Konvikt attacked Despero and Morgaine at a critical moment. Later on, Sun-Chained-In-Ink was a key component of the spell that brought Krona down.

Though the Dreambound were eventually swept aside by Morgaine, and the Earth briefly destroyed, the situation was soon put right.

Reality is back from lunch

The Dreambound located the unconscious Sun-Chained-In-Ink in New Zealand, reanimating him and making sure that he was okay. Though they were soon arrested, the various heroes present at the final battle testified that the Dreambound had valorously helped and only served Morgaine under duress.

Thanks to these testimonies, the bizarre quartet was soon freed to find its way in the now-restored world.

The further adventures of the Dreambound have yet to be chronicled.

Description

See illustrations.

Personality

Swashbuckler goes for, well, a swashbuckling persona. Yet it seems to be an act to cover more serious issues, such as having been dead.

He likes challenging opponents, demonstrating his skills and agility, making flamboyant statements of intent, wittily poking fun at his opponents, etc.. A recurrent theme in his combat banter is how good he is.

There are various hints that Swashbuckler is actually a more sombre, goal-oriented man with a clear professionalism in the field. He may have been some sort of soldier, policeman or talented and experienced criminal before he died. His apparent familiarity with super-stuff hints at him having been some sort of adventurer or agent before his death.

While on an operation he knows what he’s doing, gives sensible orders and knows better than to push for pointless risk-taking. He’s definitely a pragmatic, experienced man. He seems occasionally prone to feeling bluesy and curt, though Primat will usually cheer him up.

One remark of his implies that he was less than benign in his previous life. There was a further implication that he’s trying to make up for that in his second life.

Quotes

“I salute you, noble opponent. You may call me the Swashbuckler !”

“Oh, understood. But let me warn you, in turn… I’m a *lot* better than you think.”

Primat: “Hi ! How’ve you been ? We want to escape, but we need your help. You’re the only normal one out of all us.”
Swashbuckler (hinting at his hanging scar): “Yeah. And isn’t that either pathetic or terrifying… when *I* am the normal one…?”

“We’ll get a few miles away before T.V.M. warps us out, so Morgaine can’t easily track the power use.”

By Sébastien Andrivet.

Source of Character: DC Universe.

Writeup completed on the 11^th of June, 2010.