| Introduction
|
|
xxxxxOriginally from the Pacific Northwest of the United States, Stefan is a veritable virtuoso, exceedingly talented with the cello, piano, and guitar. He is also very good at writing arrangements and occasionally dabbles in composing, and enjoys teaching others about music, as well. An incredibly laid back individual, at first glance many might dismiss him as a slug or incredibly lazy; that is, until they see him play. Then, he's practically on fire, pouring a distilled passion into his music that can last hours without him realizing.
|
|
| History
|
|
xxxxxStefan experienced a lot of ear infections as a toddler. Despite this, however, he excelled with music at an extremely early age, and learned first piano, then cello, and then guitar. Music was absolutely everything to him growing up, spending hours straight at an instrument while other kids his age ran around outside or stayed in to watch TV. His family indulged him, occasionally reminding him about things like school work and eating.
When he hit puberty, the ear infections came back with a vengeance. Stefan suffered four hellish months of pain, while his hearing flip-flopped between nil and being overly sensitive. When he got out of woods, so to speak, his hearing remained ridiculously acute; he could hear things nobody else around him could hear, things much too quiet or not even in the usual range of human hearing, like dog whistles. Everything was too loud, too much. His family remained supportive, though, and his doctor supplied him with ear plugs to help.
After high school, he attended the prestigious Juilliard School for music, where he was practically in heaven. Upon graduating, Stefan remained in the Big Apple, playing gigs solo, with a band, and with the New York City Pops Orchestra, as well as giving private music lessons. Rumors travel fast, though, and people started to talk about his talents, and his exceptional hearing (which he has never really tried to hide), but just when things started to dip into being dire, a chance encounter after a concert with a Professor Charles Xavier and Dr. Henry McCoy has led the musician to a teaching position at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.
|
|
| Powers
|
|
It Goes to 11:
xxxxxStefan’s hearing is so acute that it is literally off the charts. Not only is he able to pick out and identify average-level sounds (60-70 dB) from as far as a full mile away, but he can also hear infrasonic and ultrasonic sounds that the average person cannot. He is also able to determine perfect pitch, and the resonance of objects ranging from as small as a pin to as large as a skyscraper, as long as he is close enough (maximum distance varies based on the size of the object, ranging from 1-100 yards).
Unfortunately for Stefan, he lacks volume adjustment; there’s no dialing back how much he can hear. Loud sounds and high-pitched noises cause him considerable pain, and it can be difficult for him to concentrate on specific sounds over a long period of time. Because of this, he has to wear earplugs to get by on the daily grind (he has a regular set, and a heavy duty set for when he knows he’s going into a particularly loud situation, like a rock concert).
Sound Wave Manipulation:
xxxxxStefan is also able to manipulate the sound waves created when he claps his hands a specific way. Thanks to his ability to determine the resonance of objects, he can create a sound wave that's at the perfect frequency for a targeted object, causing it to shatter or otherwise explode. The more complex a material and/or larger it is, the more Stefan has to concentrate and the more difficult it is to shatter.
He is also able to create a type of sonic boom by clapping, which causes an intense shockwave that can knock unprepared people off of their feet and blow out all of the windows of a 30ft by 30ft room. It is incredibly loud and attention-getting, to say the very least.
|
| Connections
|
|
Major Chords
Sour Notes
And everything in between
|
|
| Gallery
|
|
|
|
| Stefan Soames
|
|
|
| Codename
|
Decibel
|
| Birthdate
|
1987-10-22
|
| Species
|
Mutant
|
| Affiliation
|
Xavier's
|
| Alignment
|
Leisurely good
|
| Powers
|
Superhuman hearing, sound wave manipulation
|
| Occupation
|
Music teacher
|
|
| RP Hooks
|
| Xavier's - Stefan is the music teacher at Xavier's. Anyone at the school wanting to learn an instrument, or just learn about music in general, can definitely talk to him.
|
| New York Music Scene - Though no doubt cutting back on performances drastically now that he's working at Xavier's, Stefan still definitely keeps his finger on the pulse of the city music scene, and heads in often to catch performances or sit in for ones of his own.
|
| Juilliard - There are only about 800 students attending Juilliard at any given time, so it's a small community where people tend to know each other.
|
| Pacific Northwest - Originally from Portland, Oregon, Stefan can no doubt relate to anyone else from the area.
|
|
