Absolute Zero

Real Name: Leon Boskowicz
Villain Name: Absolute Zero
Title:
Alignment: Evil
Age: 130
Gender: Male
Race: Human
Hair: White
Eyes: Black
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 175 lbs.

Costume Description: A light blue jump suit with a black hammer & sickle emblem on the chest. His boots and gloves are black and unadorned.

Personality: Leon is fiercely loyal to the ideals of Lenin and Marx. Since the fall of the Soviet Union he has striven to bring about the fall of Capitalism by spearheading Communist revolutions in states with teetering economies. He finds himself morally right to be spreading Communism and doesn't see himself as a villain. The problem with that is that most Capitalist nations, ironically, don't approve of the stealing of wealth. He will always try to persuade his enemies to his cause before engaging in open aggression. Due to his advanced age is can be very nostalgic at times. This can lead to bouts of depression as he slowly outlives everyone he's ever cared about due to his powers.

History: Leon Boskowicz was born on May 5, 1897 into the family of a peasant farmer on the outskirts of St. Petersburg, Russia. When he was old enough, he left home to work in the factories of the city. When Europe was plunged into WWI, he was conscripted into the Russian Army. While fighting in Austria, his brothers-in-arms introduced him to the economic theories of Karl Marx and when Russia withdrew from the war he was quick to join the Bolshevik Revolution. Once Lenin and the Communists took over the nation and founded the United Soviet Socialists Republic, Boskowicz was tested and found to have an aptitude for science. It was during his formal education as a physicist and chemist that he met and married his true love, Ingrid. Even though Boskowicz didn't agreed with Stalin's policies he was able to survive the great purges by keeping his mouth shut and doing his job. Towards the beginning of 1946, at almost 50 years old, he was assigned to a project to develop a device to neutralize the Atomic Bomb. He determined that the way to stop the reaction of nuclear fission would be to force the reaction to temperatures approaching -273ºC (Absolute Zero). It was during a test of this device against an overloading prototype nuclear reactor that he gained his powers. Although the device succeeded in preventing an explosion it did not stop copious amounts of radiation from leaking which he (the sole engineer due to the danger inherent to the test) was inadvertently exposed to due to the poor understanding of radiation everyone had at the time. The radiation changed him so that he took on the functionality of his own device, thus becoming Absolute Zero. Despite this, his experiment was deemed a failure and he was labeled as a threat to Stalin's power. He escaped with his wife Ingrid before they could be purged. They lived in secret exile for decades where he trained his mind, body and powers. He became fluent in English, German, and French on top of his native Russian and has a working knowledge of Chinese, Korean, and Japanese. Over this time he also discovered that the exposure that had granted his powers had also slowed down his aging process substantially, though leaving him sterile. Much to his dismay, he could not do the same for his beloved Ingrid. She passed away in 1991, weeks before the collapse of the Soviet Union. Strengthening his resolve, Leon refined his powers and created his costume truly becoming Absolute Zero, a symbol behind which he could rally support for the eventual fall of capitalism.

Powers: Absolute Zero is a bit of a misnomer, as it is physically impossible to achieve such a temperature so long as there exists matter and energy. What he can do is chill his body to a degree asymptotically close to absolute zero and, through means not quite understood, maintain it despite the laws of thermodynamics. He can vary the degree to which he chills to anywhere between his base body temperature and the trough of temperature. A side effect of the extreme temperatures can be a drop in air pressure in small systems. This effect along with the cold can create a layer of ice around him from ambient water vapor which slightly adds to his durability, though severely hampering mobility. Due to the nature of heat, only his body can maintain his minimum temperature, therefore, his surroundings get exponentially warmer the further away from him you get. In a system of standard temperature and pressure (outside) the air around him can warm to 0ºC at 2 meters away with the temperature gradually increasing back to standard at greater distances. He is already gifted in intelligence but this boon increases as his temperature decreases by turning his neuronal pathways, and by extension his entire nervous system, into a superconductor, allowing him to think and react far faster than normal. His reaction time combined with the slowing down of molecules around him makes it easier for him to dodge incoming attacks, however, his physical speed can not compensate for his mental speed so that even if he can react quickly his body may not be fast enough to follow through. The temperatures he can create have slowed his aging process dramatically and it is very difficult for disease to flourish in such extreme cold. His fighting skill is above average due to his stint with the Russian Army in WWI and his time on the front lines of the Russian Revolution.

Power Grid:
STR: 2
SPD: 2
END: 2
INT: 6
EP: 6 (His only power is his control of his body temperature and all necessary sub-powers; ie. immunity to cold. All the applications of this power, such as those listed in the powers section, are not different powers and thus should not be subject to different EP ratings.)
FS: 4

Character Description: Leon Boskowicz is a slender man of medium build. Although he is 130 years old he appears to be in his middle 50's since he gained his powers relatively late in life. His hair went white back in WWII and he keeps it at medium length for a man. He speaks with a light Russian accent that he's been able to diminish with time. He has some charisma which he tries to invoke when appealing to the proletariat.

Roleplay Sample:

Japan is the perfect illustration of a capitalist nation on the verge of economic collapse. Even as the disparity in wealth increases the corporations cut back more and more on the impoverished working class. The decline of the formerly ubiquitous practice of lifetime employment has left capable workers without means with which to provide for themselves. It's time someone showed them how to overthrow the bourgeoisie and reclaim their country.

Bringing a sudden chill with him, Absolute Zero walked unarmed into the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The security guards, recognizing a wanted criminal, ordered him to stop. Their target unresponsive, the guards unleashed their tasers and fired. The ample current ran harmlessly through his body to the ground, his powers granting his body no electrical resistance whatsoever. Quickly removing the electrodes from his body, Absolute Zero took a fighting stance. Although he did not have exceptional strength or speed, his heavy hand-to-hand combat training from the Russian Army during the onset of WWI proved to be enough to swiftly dispatch the guards.

It would be much harder to pull this off in a place like New York. At least there the police actually carry guns!

As Absolute Zero entered the main trading room all the brokers moved to avoid him; he was chilling the room to an icy -30°C. He uploaded a malicious computer virus of his own design to the central computer which destroyed trillions of Japanese Yen within minutes.

Turning to his hostages he gave them a cold smile and mocked in articulate Japanese, "Consider your assets - frozen."

I suggest more personality...? And i think that the RP sample will probably be necessary... :/

Just updated the application with the suggested additions, as well as a few tweaks to the history so the character would be able to operate internationally as originally intended (not very useful if he only speaks Russian).

Sorry it took so long in editing this, I had a problem with my laptop's power supply and it took some time for me to get a new one shipped.