AKA: Men In Black, The Black Hats, Suits
You'll dress only in attire specially sanctioned by MiB special services. You'll conform to the identity we give you, eat where we tell you, live where we tell you. From now on you'll have no identifying marks of any kind. You'll not stand out in any way. Your entire image is crafted to leave no lasting memory with anyone you encounter. You're a rumor, recognizable only as deja vu and dismissed just as quickly. You don't exist; you were never even born. Anonymity is your name. Silence your native tongue. You're no longer part of the System. You're above the System. Over it. Beyond it. We're "them." We're "they." We are The Agency.
History and General Description
The Agency is a loyal arm of Government. It exists mostly because enough people believe that it should. Some say that it coalesced into being within days of the Kennedy Assassination.
The Agency has been fairly static ever since its inception. Although it's tools and toys have grown with the times, its outlook and philosophy has stayed the same: "We Always Get Our Entity." Recently hit movies such as Men In Black and The Matrix have increased public perception of the power of the Suits, and in turn their actual power. Government is currently undergoing negotiations with Media in an attempt to revitalize those franchises or create new ones with similar, but more Legalistic, bents.
Location
The Agency's main base is incredibly well hidden. Some say it is buried miles beneath the White House, while others say it is under NORAD. Still others believe it to be secreted away under the rubble of the World Trade Center. The Agency isn't telling, and so far no Scion has managed to track them to their base. It may be that they've learned from modern terror cells and no longer have a central tactical repository. Wherever their primary headquarters is, The Agency has branch offices in every major city in America. Most of those offices are in secret and/or restricted floors in other government agencies, but some are in the back rooms of churches, elevators under a convenience store's walk-in refridgerator, or other equally unlikely places. One rumor has it that a trailer park in Fort Worth, Texas contains a single wide that's larger on the inside than on the out, and that this is a key building for The Agency.Size and Makeup
Agents are almost invariably middle-aged white males, although there are exceptions. They usually travel in pairs, reporting to a single superior. When added manpower is needed, they draw from whatever local law enforcement resources are available.The number of agents is unknown, but it is not believed to be many. Their pyramid-like organizational structure and need for secrecy limits how many operatives they can deploy at any one time. Senior operatives, all of which are adopted Scions, are also very hard to come by. Mr. World, head of The Agency, has recently implemented a "Lean and Mean" policy, limiting the number of agents available, but heightening their training. This excess training has kept many of them out of the field of late, but Mr. World assures Government that the added benefits will pay major dividends in the future.
Structure and Leadership
The Agency operates under a four tiered system. Agents are given code names depending upon their layer. Except for the uppermost office, each code name is of the form "Mr. <word>" where the form of the word denotes the layer. The four layers, and their respective naming schema are (from highest rank to lowest):For example, at the top of the chain we have Mr. World. Below him at the Person level is Mr. Driver. Under him is Mr. Library. Finally, at the bottom of the rung, Mr. House and Mr. Tree work for Mr. Library. The names tend to denote a speciality, but this is not always the case.
Additionally, each tier also tends to denote an agent's tie to the supernatural. Agents at the noun level are often standard mortals with no knowledge of the supernatural beyond what is necessary to perform their jobs. Despite this, they tend to have a little supernatual ability of their own, often in the form of minor technilogical relics. Above them are the Places, who are frequently minor supernatual beings themselves, or mortals augmented by the so-called Super Serum (see below). Agents at the Person level are full-blown Scions, either corrupted or adopted from other pantheons.
Finally at the top is Mr. World. Who or what he is is unsure to anyone except perhaps Government. But whoever he is, it's plain that he's powerful. He may be a corrupted God or an old and strong Scion.
| Super Serum (Relic •••) Super-Serum works much like Giant Blood and Jotunblut. Indeed, it is created by draining the blood from the appropriate entities and processing it via technological rituals. When injected into a mortal it has the following effects:
Each dose of serum from the same batch will affect the same attributes, but different batches exist. With enough time (usually a week for new recipes, or a day to realign equipment to reproduce an old one), any set of physical and mental attributes can theoretically be modified, but the availability may be limited by the supply of apprpriately aspected ichor or eitr. To allow for the application of attributes and epic attributes, the ichor used in the refinement process must come from either a Scion whose parent favors those abilities, or a Titanspawn whose base race has those epic traits. The actual Scion or donor need not have the traits. For example, a Scion of Odin's ichor can be used to create Super Serum that will grant a dot of Epic Charisama even if the Scion has no dots of his own. Super Serum has no effect on creatures with a Legend of 2 or higher. |
Symbolism
The image of the Agency is a wired globe. It symbolizes the Agency's goals of an Ordered World. The motto is "Ordo Est Veritas," which means Order is Truth.The badges carried by the agents are specially crafted and psychomorphic, but their true form is shown here.
|
Agency Badge (Relic ••) The badges born by Agents are psychomorphic. This means that when viewed, they take on the form of a badge either the viewer expects to see, or which is being actively projected by the Agent. This effect is automatic against any viewer whose Legend is equal to or lower than the bearer's Legend. Those of higher Legend can see through to the badge's true form if they win an opposed test between the Agent's (Manipulation + Empathy) and the target's (Perception + Occult). Special Agents (those of Person rank) carry upgraded versions of this bade. These models count as Relic •••• and also grant access to the Law, and War purviews, as well as granting a +1 bonus to any social rolls made in a scene where the badge has been overtly displayed. |
Goals and Methods
Above all, The Agency seeks Order. Laws are made to be followed, and the population is to be protected from Chaos. That isn't to say that an Agent will never jaywalk, or even engage in "questionable interrogation techniques." If it is avoidable it will be avoided, but if some eggs need to be broken for the omelette, that is the price of Freedom.Chaos must be avoided, and the most blatant acts of chaos today come from the hands of the supernatural: uncontrolled Scions, renegade Gods, and even unlicensed UFOs or Sasquatches can be targetted.
The second goal of the Agency, which is tied deeply to the first, is Secrecy. Stories of these renegades leak out, but are dsquelched as quickly as they can be, and the leakers discredited twice as fast.
Last but not least is the protection of the Government. Without Government, there is no Law. Without Law there is no Order. Even a bad president is better than no president at all.
The Agency's methodology is very regimented. They have procedues in place for almost everything, and these procedures have worked and been refined for decades. Every Agent is expected to memorize the Handbook and Procedures Manual, but it is not uncommon to find a neophyte Noun having to look something up in his PDA. Above that level though, you'll be hard pressed to trip an Agent up on a procedural note.
The key part of the procedures, and why they've worked for so long, is their flexibility. Agents who find themselves is a situation not covered by precedent, or against a foe for whose the previous tactics are failing, is expected to improvise. These impovisations, if they succeed, will often be incorporated into the procedures themselves. Having your deeds added to the Manual is a great honor within the culture of the Agency.
Allies And Enemies
The Agency is the arm of Government, and as such, it holds the same enemies and allies.Of primary note amongst the enemies, however, is one that not even The Agency knows it has. Mr. World has recently been replaced by Odin's errant son, Loki. What his plans are for them is currently unknown, although it's doubtful that even he can be too openly disuptive without the Agents' conditioning slipping in and them launching an internal investigation.