How they Compare: Baron Fairweather (Changeling: The Lost)

 

(Apologies for lack of pictures but there is only one canonical picture of Baron Fairweather)

Tales have long been told that humans abducted into that mysterious other world of dreams, the fae realm. These poor souls when they have returned are changed forever by that experience. With time they may heal, but it's hard when their former captors send Huntsmen to recapture them. Even that however is not the worst possibility. There are many kinds of fae creatures one can encounter even on Earth but perhaps scariest is if one of THEM, The Gentry, The Kindly Ones, the Old Gods show up in the mortal world themselves. Baron Fairweather is a fae creature but not just any, for he is, in reality... one of the True Fae themselves, the captors. 

For Centuries, a strange and eccentric businessman has showed up, one with a perfect and handsome appearance but a devious smile and smoldering eyes. He has gone by many names but his current title is one Baron Keith Fairweather, business consultant of MaxMart. He has integrated himself into human society, growing his pet business to slowly encompass the entire world economy. He presents himself as a good businessman whose business will improve the local conditions with jobs and good product at good prices. However it is slowly indebting people and making them his dependents. The True Fae are captors who take people for theirs. Baron Fairweather's form of this is slowly making people indebting themselves to him until he can literally take them as his property. He was historically associated with the Slave Trade and still seeks to take others for his, especially if they do it to themselves. 

Of course the humanoid form is not Baron Fairweather's true form. The Lost who can see Mien, one's true soul self see his true is a Dragonlike Reptillian Monster, something his disguise always has a slight hint to, and which he can take the form of at will. Like a Dragon, he is an embodiment of greed, taking all he can for his hoard, taking people as his slaves. Who might his Captives be? Captured Princesses Fairests, Wizened Accountants made to count his riches over and over, Musclebound Ogre slaves to move it, Elementals that were people literally turned to gold statues. He is called the Free Market Dragon, for he is the Modern Dragon, the ruthless lord resting on his reaches, his horror being at once the fear of being a small person looking into the predatory eyes of a dragon, and being of the poor and indebted looking into the predatory eyes of a ruthless deal-maker. 

In terms of stats: in all stats: physical, mental, and social Baron Fairweather is rated between 4 and 6 which is the range of "exceptional human" to superhuman. As a True Fae and a particularly powerful True Fae at that, Baron Fairweather even in the mortal world would have very powerful magic likely at least comparable to the most powerful of Changeling Contracts. It is stated that "The Mightiest of Contracts can level mountains" in a section specifically about how Changeling Contracts pale in comparison to the power of the True Fae. This is consistent with how other powerful spellcasters in the setting can do things like create large storms including both Mages and Mummies that are not at the apex of their power. In terms of speed, Baron Fairweather has 6 Speed and 3 Athletics giving a decent chance at dodging bullets at close range (Difficulty 9-10). This is consistent as Vampires with even a single dot of Celerity have an increased chance of dodging bullets and a True Fae should probably be comparable to the lowest Vampires. Granted he's probably not AS fast as bullets, but subsonic speed is probably pretty fair. 

As a True Fae, Baron Fairweather naturally has access to all the basic Fae abilities that are essentially watered down versions of what the True Fae do. He can absorb glamour, the energy of wonder and horror from nearby individuals, and if need can be forcibly take it from them. He can induce emotions, primarily fear and freed for Baron Fairweather himself. He can perceive and communicate with conceptual things and in the Hedge, the boundary realm surrounding the material he can form objects through the technique of Hedge-spinning. He can open and close boundaries with some extension to the Hedge at will. He can also use glamour to make himself seem even more visually appealing, is completely immune to non-lethal damage due to his immoral Fae flesh, and has a supernatural willpower tied to his greed. It's also suggested he could have widescale brain manipulation as it's stated that the MegaMart don't use any kind of supernatural persuasion to addict people to their products... unless the storyteller wants Baron Fairweather to use such. 

Outside of these, Baron Fairweather also has contracts, agreements with various concepts to grant him powers just as the Changeling do however Baron Fairweather's contracts are all at the maximum power:

His contract with Dreams allows him the ability to enter into dreams and shape them to his will, pull objects from dreams into the physical realm, and gain information about the local hedge at will.

His contract with Fire allows him to manipulate and shape fire, summon it to him, or turn into fire with him often turning into a fiery serpent in combat

His contract with Reptiles allows him to regain his reptilian form with enhanced senses and claws and horns and fangs, and he can also communicate with and command reptiles. 

His contract with Mirror allows him to shape his own body how pleases, which can be broadly used for disguises. 

His contact with Beauty/Vainglory allows him to bolster his charisma to supernatural levels, able to alter minds and memories with his presence or to inspire great fear

Moreover, Baron Fairweather as someone connected to the Wyrd like all True Fae he can make new contracts with any aspect of reality. The Source books are clear that any aspect of reality from things like Fate and Time to things like Fire or Birds can be made a contract with though generally will require finding a physical thing acting as representative and giving a service or good in exchange. While for a Changeling this process could take years and doing it more then once is the stuff of Legends, a True Fae can make a new Contract with an Aspect of Reality "with a thought" if they make an oath upon their Title or their Name. 

Finally killing Baron Fairweather is a fool's errand. Because what appears to be Baron Fairweather is not. If "killed" the Baron will reappear with time, as he is part of something greater. You see all mentioned prior is far from his best. One of the biggest weakness of the True Fae is arguably that when outside their realm of Arcadia, they are far weaker. Baron Fairweather is the True Fae...but he's also not. He is the manifestation of something greater...some deeper and more ancient in the distant fae realm

When a Changeling is first kidnapped and dragged away from this mortal realm, they go to the other side... a world beyond the Hedge and beyond human imagination. It is a world of wonders and horrors and things beyond words, Arcadia. And no one KNOWs if what was seen in Arcadia even was Arcadia or just a limited mortal perception of it. Arcadia is the land of the True Fae and it IS the True Fae. There in Arcadia are the domains of the True Fae, the worlds described as a shifting kaleidoscope made of the pure energy of possibility. Each domain is made by a True Fae and sometimes simply IS the True Fae. This entire world pulsates with the strange Fae Magic know as the Wyrd. It in this place that the incomprehensible True Fae play their games with each other, creating a world made out of negotiated contracts with each other and stories of conflicts with each other rather then any such arbitrary thing like reality.

Baron Fairweather is the manifestation of the True Fae Title Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams, basically the Cloistered Baron dipping a small part of itself into the material world. As part of the True Fae's games, the Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams has sworn to take the Title of Lord of the Material World this greed is manifesting as the manifestation of pure greed Baron Fairweather. While a True Fae in the Material World is powerful, a strong Motley of Changelings can beat them. But even great Archmages don't dare fight a True Fae in their own domain. 

A True Fae has total and complete control over their domain with things like space, time, physics, and nature being suggestions. They can easily make it infinite, infinitely spatially looping, make it so time moves at a glacial rate inside, can shift it into a world where water instantly kills but lava refreshes, deserts with Two Suns comparable to Hell, an icy vastness where fires will not start, a giant ocean that can be breathed like air etc. 

The True Fae in their own realm is so powerful that it's part of their narrative that their actions are fueled in trying to find a limit, going on The Hunt to other realms, or battling with each other for their titles in narrative battles called Legends. They are known to manipulate both Form and Stories in their Legend Battle, that their Realms can have their own Myth-Cycles, metafictional narratives that govern them. There is NO natural law in Arcadia, for the laws there are the laws of Dream and Story, and they can fashion things from reality and unreality with equal ease. It is explicitly said that the limit to their power is the one they choose in order to exist and conflict. 

The Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams like all True Fae can take on one of four forms to interact with others. 

-An Actor is appearing as a person such as Baron Fairweather though obviously in his realm of Arcadia he is far more powerful.

-A Prop is appearing as an object of relevance to them. This object is invulnerable save for one specific weakness unique to it. 

-A Realm is appearing as his domain itself, a world capable of containing its populace, rules, and stories

-A Wisp is appearing as a group of something, such as when they used to visit the human realm as groups of house elves and hearth Gods. A group of "servants" or an "army" of the Fae, may truly just be him in another face. 

To kill such a being may be impossible, but even if it was possible, you might not want to... there's a reason I have referred to the Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams as a "Title"

From time to time a section of the Wyrd makes the first and ultimate contract: The Contract of Life, the Contract of Being where they come into being from will and negotiation with reality. Birth is the hardest of Contracts, a challenge of Will against the pure chaos of Being. But existence requires duality, a self and other, so in order to come into being requires the formation of limits. Thus is the birth of a True Fae. All True Fae possess a willpower great enough to bring themselves into being. But existence is not guaranteed to them as it is to mortals so they must define themselves, make it clear what their boundary is. This is the reason for the Legends and Hunts and why the True Fae collect identities, definitions of who they are.

True Fae hold anywhere from one to five Titles at once which is how they rank themselves in power. The Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams is but one of four Titles of the True Fae who holds it, one of four selves he inhabits. To lose a Title is painful for a True Fae and while it weakens them, if one were to destroy somehow the Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams, they would be under the scorn of Three Fae Beings on his power who seem to be separate entities but are actually the same being. What is this being? What is this being's name? If I knew that...

I'd have control over him.

The Nameless True Fae behind the Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams is a four-selved being, a being of Pure Wyrd with Four Conceptual Selves it controls at all times. Actually killing this entity, requires destroying every one of his Title and then gaining power over or destroying his True Name. 

The True Fae itself beyond its title is natively Trandual and beyond conceptual limitations as it requires setting said limitations to achieve duality and existence. 

For how incredibly powerful they are, the True Fae actually have a bunch of weaknesses. There are roughly three groups. First among them is that they are native to Arcadia and leaving it makes them vastly weaker and more vulnerable. If a Title or even the True Name fully leaves Arcadia and is destroyed in the Mortal Realm, it is destroyed fully and permanently. For this reason, the True Fae usually only manifest a small part of a Title in the Mortal Realm at once. 

Second the True Fae are bound to the strange fairy laws of the Wyrd. Even they don't know all the rules but some things are clear. Cold Iron is immune to the magic of the Wyrd and kills all things of Arcadia. When a True Fae makes an oath on their Title it is binding and breaking it destroys their Title. And one of the few ways to actually kill a True Fae fully is to trick them into breaking the most powerful Oath they can make, an Oath on their True Name. True Fae must follow the dictates of their story as it is the bound they accepted in taking Form and Title. Baron Fairweather has several such weaknesses: he can never refuse gifts as an expression of greed, he must sleep with gold under his pillow or it damages him as does contact with spoiled milk.

Finally, True Fae lack one entirely one of the greatest strengths of humanity, the major reason Changelings even have a chance of escaping and hiding from them. The True Fae lack humanity's imagination and creativity. They are sterile both physically and mentally. The True Fae are almighty idiots, they know everything related to their domain and stories and literally nothing else. Baron Fairweather is incredible at manipulating the greed of others but he literally cannot conceive of someone acting generous or resisting greed. The story of Baron Fairweather is the despair of being enslaved to greed and debt and the Horror of those predatory consuming eyes from those who have what you need. But it's possible for a Changeling to escape his grasp if they don't act by the dictates of his story, if they are able break their slavery to greed. 

Name: Baron Fairweather, The Free-Market Dragon, The New Robber Baron | The Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams | ???

Origin: Chronicles of Darkness

Powers and Abilities: Supernatural Stats and Senses, Immortality, Shapeshifting, Regeneration (Mid-Godly, dependent on his Title in Arcadia), Supernatural Charisma, Supernatural Willpower, Fire Manipulation, Emotional Manipulation, Mind Manipulation, Memory Manipulation, Dream Manipulation, Summoning/Creation, Portal Creation (to the Hedge), Immunity to Bashing Damage, Power Acquisition (Can Create new Contracts if need be), Resistance to some Fae Abilities | All of the Prior, Infinite Conceptual Reality-Warping, Plot Manipulation (Can create Myth-Cycles in his domain, and can create Legends with other True Fae), Law Manipulation (True Fae can create laws for their Domains), Can interact with things like possibility and unreality | All the Prior, Transduality, Infinite Metaconceptual Reality-Warping, Has Four Conceptual Selves

Weaknesses: Limited by his Story and Lacks Human Creativity, Fae Weaknesses to things like Cold Iron, Much Weaker outside Arcadia

Attack Potency: Likely City Level (Should be comparable to the strongest of Changeling Contracts as a Four Title True Fae, which can Level Mountains) | Infinite Conceptual Power (Has complete control over his domain on a conceptual level and can change its dimensions as he pleases) | Infinite Metaconceptual Power (Beyond Duality, Has to define a limit for himself)

Range: Likely National or Planetary (It's suggested his mind manipulation can extend over the scope of MegaMart which is slowly taking of the global economy)

Speed: Subsonic | Infinite | Irrelevant

Durability: Human Level, Immune to Bashing Damage (Brute Force Damage) | Infinite Conceptual Durability | Infinite Metaconceptual Durability

Stamina: Peak Human Level (Has a 5 in Stamina) | Infinite | Irrelevant

Intelligence: Knows everything about his Domain and Story. Knows literally nothing else

Key: Baron Fairweather | The Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams | The True Name

So what if the Free Market Dragon set up shop in other series?

 

In DC Comics, Baron Fairweather would be a substantive disadvantage against most actual superheroes and supervillains in that DC has much higher speed scaling with even lower tiered vigilantes able to dodge bullets. With that said his actual powers would be quite potent, not necessarily in the overall scale of which he's affected but things like being able to form Contracts with actual concepts and having a Mid Godly Regen. He would essentially be like the emanation of a Godsphere level entity, albeit a weaker one. His mind manipulation would be relatively potent in the DC Universe with most psychics not being able to defeat that level of power and if he gains a foothold in the collective unconscious he could actually become a much larger threat, however DC Magic Users are VERY well trained in dealing with Fey Entities and would know how to stop him. 

The Actual True Fae though is a different story. Arcadia is roughly the equivalent of Dream and Nightmare in DC and in comparison to them, the True Fae would be an entity that would rival Dream of the Endless himself, with His Titles being comparable to Dream's various selves like Morpheus or Daniel Hall and the True Name being comparable to the real Dream, having infinite conceptual and metaconceptual power respectively. This would make The Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams a real powerhouse in the Godsphere as Morpheus is a very powerful entity. However if you compare them directly, while Dream was initially bound by his rules and stories his character development in part was developing past that while the True Fae is still bound by his. Also Dream has had many interactions with very powerful Fae like Oberon and Titania and would understand how to deal with a Godly Fae entity. Plus while this Fae has four Titles, Dream has infinite versions of himself. So that's a plus for him. He'd still be obviously a major threat and would likely to take control of DC's version of Faerie from Oberon and Titania, making Faerie a much much nightmarish place. The Lords of the other Godsphere Realms, people like Zeus and Odin for Skyland or Darkseid and Highfather for Apokolips and New Genesis could probably repel The Cloisted Baron of Impossible Dreams from taking their realms though it would take entities that strong unless he is actually tricked into leaving Dream himself where he'd presumably be not as strong.

 The actual True Fae Name while it could hang around the Godsphere could also enter into the higher dimensions of the Fifth Dimensional Realm and the Sixth Dimensional Realm much like Dream of the Endless' true self. There he would probably be delighted to find entire races of ridiculously powerful entities to define himself against such as the Monitors, the Imps, The Hands, and so forth. 

What if you put Baron Fairweather in one of the other big two Horror verses, the Dark Tower-verse? The Symbolic and Narrative powers of the Fae would be well familiar to the verse where narrative in the form of Ka, the principle of the verse representing story. Baron's level of power would be extremely high to those people in Low-Time, the mundane characters as most only get into the building ranges, though not entirely unheard of. Pennywise was a magical entity creating of creating a large earthquake and the strongest psychics from the decayed Old Ones empire were capable of creating power comparable to nuclear power. So he wouldn't be untouchable, but he would be one of the most powerful normal magical entities one could run into albeit with his fair share of weaknesses physical and psychological. A battle between him and Pennywise would likely be very entertaining though as both just the slightest part of a much stronger cosmic entity, neither could kill each other permanently. 

The True Fae would stronger and it gets rather esoteric where it would fit in the Cosmology. But above Low Time are the layers of the Dark Tower, the layers of Long Time, each one being a reality that views the one below it as fiction, an illusory mirage. The Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams in Arcadia would be equivalent to the First Layer of the Tower with the specific weakness of being unable to interact with the beings of Low Time without weakening himself. He would be very versatile and powerful among them but no threat to the beings of the next layer up. 

The True Name is different and more interpretative as he is described as being beyond duality and having to create his own limits above hierarchies. This would make him more equivalent to the Cosmic Entities that exist outside the Hierarchies of the Tower itself like Maturin and the Deadlights who are similarly transdual and can't be understood linearly. I would need to do a lot more analysis and assessment of the verse to say how would compare to entities like this specifically. 

What about if Baron Fairweather was in the OTHER of the other Big 2 Horror verses, The Cthulhu Mythos? Baron Fairweather would be odd in terms of powers by most things within the primary universe of the Cthulhu Mythos. His raw power level would be above most alien species that exist in the verse, and for once his hax LEVEL would be fairly normal with low tier Mythos characters having comparably broken powers, he would honestly just be more of a threat due to his hax VERSATILITY. Like the Mythos characters with some very broken powers even on the low tiers like Witches that can BFR someone to the Void but most of them only have that power while the Baron has multiple broken kinds of offenses, various defenses, as well the ability to just gain powers he needs to via Contracts. The best fight for him I think would be one of the Avatars of Nyaralthotep who are described as having similar power and hax as well as somewhat similar versatility. Both would also once again have the thing where neither can permanently kill each other as they are both just tiny parts of a Cosmic Entity that is far beyond them. 

The Actual True Fae just based on what it is would almost certainly be a Dreamlands entity. It would be conceptually similar to a Dreamer only with even less sense and even more power, enough that most of the Dream Beasts would not be a threat. The Gods of Earth reside there, and it's likely these would be the most similar entities to someone like the Cloistered Baron of Impossible Dreams. This would be ideal for him, to battle them and define itself in causing Chaos in the Dream Realms from him. 

However the True Fae should be wary of trying to rise to high, for if it tries to go past the gates as Hypnos did, it would suffer a similar fate. The True Fae's power is incomprehensible, self-defined. But it explicitly does not participate in the Ultimate Reality. Beyond the Ultimate Gate lies the Ultimate Gods of which broke the mind of Hypnos and would do similar to a True Fae. The True Fae can be lord of its own reality fine, can seek the material universe or the cities and forests of Dream, but True Fae are creatures still of stories and shouldn't wander into the world where story and word cannot speak of.  

World of Darkness is easily one of the biggest Tabletop RPGs so what if you took Baron Fairweather and put him in the BIGGEST Tabletop RPG, Dungeons and Dragons? In terms of power, Baron Fairweather would be around the strength of the strongest non Epic Level characters with high level magic being able to do effects similar to that of powerful magic users and the most potent Contracts in World of Darkness such as shifting the environment with earthquakes or raw heat such as the Elemental Prince of Fire, large storms and weather changing, etc.  He would be much more sinister then most Fae in the Material Universe but not that dissimilar to an Unseelie. His ability to form Contracts would be potent in versatility but similar to what's done by spellcasters like Warlocks. He'd be a relatively strong spellcaster and his power depends on which material sphere he'd be on, being a normal strong evil in a world like Faerun, the main world of adventure, but honestly probably an overall boon on a world like Dark Sun ruled by Evil Sorcerer-Kings. Adding a powerful Unseelie to most Crystal Spheres the powerful of an Adult Dragon is in a powerful local to regional threat, but can be as a big a threat as a worldwide threat or even a small boon when a sphere is ruled by powers more actively malicious then Baron Fairweather. 

In terms of the Baron within Arcadia he is of much greater power comparable to the Deities themselves, though even the Greater Deities who are concepts that passively affect the entire multiverse are moreso akin in Changeling terms to the Elemental Forces that the Fae make Contracts with and below the power of the actual True Fae who simply decide the conceptual reality of their dimension. Granted they are still in the same tier and given that D&D Deities are much smarter and more creative, tricking the Baron out of Arcadia wouldn't be impossible. Still he would be considered an Enigmatic Far Realms entities in the same range of power of the strongest deities, and that's just the one Title.

The True Fae himself would be beyond even further more akin to Overdeity type characters like Ao or the Lady of Pain although with vastly greater weaknesses then them. As such it would be an immense shift to the Multiverse's balance if he appeared, though not one that couldn't be stopped by Ao, the Overdeity in charge of the Great Wheel.

Finally, how would Baron Fairweather do in another verse known for OP Fairies? Well physically Baron Fairweather would be WAY outclassed by even normal humans as the entire verse benefits from toonforce physical stats beyond most of Earth's supernaturals in Chronicles of Darkness. On the other hand, the characters in this verse are comically idiotic with even the smartest characters in terms of general cognition is average human level. Baron Fairweather is mentally highly proficient. He is not very creative due to his fae nature, but he is very good at manipulating the greed of others, something he could do to gradually gain power not even including his brainwashing and dream manipulation. Even if found out his regen would let him just return while his disguise abilities would let him appear in new form. Some people here would do especially well in combat from Timmy with his magic proof cloak or Dragons that are immune to fae magic but being even better in direct combat wouldn't especially help when Baron Fairweather would become a threat from manipulation. The best counter strategy would be Mr. Turner using his mind-reading to tell Baron's true nature and Mandie trapping him in stasis as she did to Cosmo and Wanda, though that's a highly specific counter that is likely temporary at best. 

Of course a Godkid with fairies can win with them but that brings up the true battle, what would happen if the strongest horror fairies encountered the strongest cartoon fairies? Assuming it's in Arcadia and the Fairies have fully charged wands, both can be arbitrarily at any level of power they want, have whatever powers they want, and have whatever resistances they want. Both are bound to an unknown extent to an arcane and strange set of rules and have a good number other weaknesses as well. In terms of general cognition, The FOP Fairies are a race of complete idiots across the board while a True Fae is nigh-omniscient in their specific domain and story, but know literally nothing at all outside of it and have zero creativity. The True Fae would never think to trap them in a butterfly net, nor would he be able to get to Fairy World to disrupt the Big Wand as True Fae are far weaker outside Arcadia and he would never risk it. On the other hand the FOP Fairies are never going to be able to trick him into breaking an Oath or know his weakness is Cold Iron. The FOP Fairies were aware of it, they could even change the True Fae's name to depower him, though this is something they would never think of. I initially thought the True Fae's Plot Manipulation might win due to the rarity of metafictional powers in Nickelodeon however Jorgan has shown Plot Manipulation via Fairy Magic in Timmy the Barbarian. Both have also affected things with non-existent physiology as well, the two are definitely a good match for each other. At the moment I think it might go either way, though one thing I think the Fairies might have as an advantage is numbers, not just in that there are worlds of fairies and fairy like entities in FOP vs 1 True Fae, but True Fae seem to have problems duplicating on a Title Level. The reason Actor and Wisps are different is they are inhabiting a number of forms instead of just one, and the Wisps are consequently weaker, with the beings inhabiting a realm form being weaker then even Wisp forms. At most the True Fae has access to Four Titles at once while a Fairy can create duplicates enough to fill a planet seemingly without dividing themselves at all. On the other hand it is plausible scenario to imagine The Baron selling the Fairies some object in exchange for their wand that they could have just conjured with their wand. It fits both the story of the Baron's dark irony as well the Absurdist Humor of FOP and for the True Fae things that fit stories meant they have more likeliness to happen. 

Outside the fairies themselves, the verse has other entities of similar power that are threats like Genies which are similarly powerful but more akin to a human in intelligence, even if sealed and Eliminators, Robot Assassins designed to hunt down Fairies and can resist their magic which if you translate to being able to resist the True Fae's magic would be absolutely insane. And above this even more is their master the Darkness, which just absorbs any magic used against it. Of course someone with a human heart could try to show it love in return, but True Fae don't really know anything about that unless it's part of their story so the True Fae would likely just be consumed by the Darkness.