Villain ideas. [Related to Golden Age thread.]

[Twilight]

Alright, since you fine people are helping me out so much with the Golden Age Campaign thread of mine I thought I'd get your thoughts and opinions on my concept for one of the villians of that campaign. After all, I need him to be his villianous best when he faces the heroes. ^_^

His name is Dr. Gustav Vonderhagen, perhaps better known to some [eventually anyway] as Professor Peril! Gustav wasn't always a villain however, at one point he was a nice boy. Like many patriotic Germans, Gustav was shocked when his country was defeated in World War One. It was made all the worse for Gustav however as his beloved father Felix Vonderhagen was killed by an American soldier. At his father's grave Gustav vowed to avenge his death and bring the countries that had defeated his beloved Fatherland, and by extention killed his father, to thier knees particularly the Americans. Since his family was rich, Gustav was able to devote his life to training himself and his household in his goals of revenge. Outwardly though he seemed to be a normal member of the aristocracy. Secretly he was training in the art of terror and warfare, trained by the masters of such crafts, including the legendary Fantomas!

As the Nazi's took power Gustav was declared Ambassador to the United States, a perfect platform from which to start his plans of revenge. He chuckled as he played the stockmarkets, using his knowledge of finances in attempts to cause the Great Depression that was so hindering the Americans to be worse. As he did that he donned the cowl of Professor Peril, pretending to be an American Criminal Mastermind as he made contacts amongst the underworld. Soon, soon revenge would be his!

So....what do you think? Like him, don't like him? How can he be improved?

[Hermit]

I like anything that reminds me of "Revenge of the Fluffy Bunnies" :)

And it's classic Golden Age. 5th Column type in misleading traps so he can fool the underbelly of America into doing his work for him. Very nice.

Perhaps he should have either a right hand man who seems totally loyal (But might not remain that way if he finds out about the full ideals/goals of the Prof.) or a beautiful assistant/daughter/sister, who might fall for a handsome American square jawed hero?

[Twilight]

Originally posted by Hermit
I like anything that reminds me of "Revenge of the Fluffy Bunnies" :)

And it's classic Golden Age. 5th Column type in misleading traps so he can fool the underbelly of America into doing his work for him. Very nice.

Perhaps he should have either a right hand man who seems totally loyal (But might not remain that way if he finds out about the full ideals/goals of the Prof.) or a beautiful assistant/daughter/sister, who might fall for a handsome American square jawed hero?

Ahh yes, how could I have forgotten the beautiful assistant/daughter/sister? ^^

*frantically takes notes*

I'll work in that idea somehow. Also, I'm glad you like the villain so much. ^^

[Pol Rua]

Yup, Professor Peril is an excellent character!
I do echo Hermit's idea of a retinue, though. The Prof doesn't appear to be a toe-to-toe fighter, so it might be a nice idea to give the heroes some operatives to manfully sock in the jaw.
The female assistant's good... could I recommend Catherine Zeta-Jones' Valkyrie-esque (Old Villain from 40's 'Airboy' Comics) Aviatrix as a template?

Mrowwr!

__________________________________
Pol.

[Twilight]

Originally posted by Pol Rua
Yup, Professor Peril is an excellent character!
I do echo Hermit's idea of a retinue, though. The Prof doesn't appear to be a toe-to-toe fighter, so it might be a nice idea to give the heroes some operatives to manfully sock in the jaw.
The female assistant's good... could I recommend Catherine Zeta-Jones' Valkyrie-esque (Old Villain from 40's 'Airboy' Comics) Aviatrix as a template?

Mrowwr!

__________________________________
Pol.


Good plan! I'm glad you like the character Pol, it's very gratifying to me and you can be sure that the not so good Professor does have a retinue to help him out. After all, he was training not just himself but his entire household for his schemes of revenge. However, the sexy Aviatrix will DEFINETLY be a template for one of them [was their ever really any doubt? ;) ]

Of course, if anybody would like to suggest specific members of Prof. Peril's retinue [as opposed to the mooks kept around for heroic jaw punching purposes] feel free to do so.

[ProfessorM@ss]

Originally posted by Twilight
So....what do you think? Like him, don't like him? How can he be improved?

I've only got one issue with the good Professor...much of the criminal underground during WWII actively helped the government against fifth columnists and other such nastiness. If the Professor is ever found out...yikes. It could get very nasty for him, very quickly.

You can find more information on the criminal underground in WWII here:

http://www.drugtext.org/library/books/McCoy/book/08.htm

http://history.acusd.edu/gen/WW2Timeline/luciano.html

I'm sure there's more out there...

--->M@ss

[Hermit]

Originally posted by ProfessorM@ss
I've only got one issue with the good Professor...much of the criminal underground during WWII actively helped the government against fifth columnists and other such nastiness. If the Professor is ever found out...yikes. It could get very nasty for him, very quickly.

Actually, That's one thing I like about the set up. It reminds me of the Rocketeer where our main villain is revealed as a Nazi spy, and the thugs that have been working with him turn on him. :)

This potiential "Achelies Heel" is a nice one.

[winterhawk]

Originally posted by Hermit
Actually, That's one thing I like about the set up. It reminds me of the Rocketeer where our main villain is revealed as a Nazi spy, and the thugs that have been working with him turn on him. :)

This potiential "Achelies Heel" is a nice one.

Didn't Paul Sorvino say something like "I might be a crook, but I'm an American Crook!" when he discovered Tim Dalton was a Nazi? That was a cool line.

Professor Peril is a great Golden Age flavored name BTW.

[Kevin Scrivner]

Since Peril is a behind-the-scenes type who never gets his hair or his hands mussed until the final chapter, he needs some goons to do his bloodletting for him. The sexy assistant/daughter is a nice touch. But he also needs a big brute of a henchman capable of slapping around the PCs. The brute need not be stupid, in fact he should be smart enough to spy on and occasionally thwart the heroes on his own account. But he leaves the intricate planning to the boss.

You can do this in a couple of ways. One is to give the Professor one super-capable assistant, like Lothar in the Rocketeer movie. This guy can do it all: pack a pair of automatics, scale sheer walls, move as noiselessly as a cat, crack a safe, etc. The PCs will have to get through him to finally get a crack at Peril himself. The other approach is to supply the Professor with a group of henchmen, each a specialist of some type: a driver, a sharpshooter, a burglar, a pugilist, a slimey private detective, and so on. In the latter scenario, the PCs might encounter, be thwarted by, or defeat the henchmen one at a time without knowing what Peril has to throw at them next.

Also keep in mind that while masterminds of this type often had a core group of three or four henchmen as their main assistants, they also had a horde of lesser minions scattered in the most unlikely of places. The governor's pert secretary, the old man who runs the news stand on the corner, workers at any factory or construction site the PCs visit could all be on Professor Peril's payroll. The tough part of role-playing this is to make the players suspcious without having them become paranoid of every NPC they encounter. But if they chase down a clue, there should always be three to six minor goons there waiting for them.

[Trebuchet]

Besides, every pulp-era hero should get the chance to utter the immortal line:

Nazis. I hate these guys!

It was of course first used by Dr. Henry Jones, Jr. during his crusade to recover the Holy Grail. :)

[Twilight]

Trebuchet I'm actually gonna do my best to make that line the slogan of the campaign. ^_^

Kevin, you're right about the assistants and mooks of course. Since I want the Professor to be a recurring villain in this campaign I think he needs both a super capable assistant [one he will not hesitate to pin all his crimes on should it come to that] and the group of henchmen.

So without further ado, some of the henchmen employed by the not so good Professor. Feel free to make suggestions for these guys as well. ^_^

Jaeger: He was the Professor's groundskeeper and huntsman back on the family estate. He's a big bear of a man, Andre the Giant size. He's an excellent wrestler and boxer and knows everything there is to know about hunting. Sort of a cross between Kraven the Hunter and Fezzik from the Princess Bride. When the Professor needs muscle, this is the guy he calls in.

Herr Morderin: Literal translation, Mr. Murder. He's the Professor's valet and is also an expert sharpshooter, gunfighter, knifefighter and about a dozen other weapons you could name. Believed to have been trained by the best killers the Professor could hire and proved his skill by slaying those who taught him. He's the most likely guy to be framed for Professor Peril's crimes should that become neccesary.

Like most villains of this sort, he also employs a mad scientist, though I can't think of a good name for one at the moment. I could also use a good name for his beautiful daughter/assistant as well. Of course, given the timeline, she might end up the beautiful sister/assistant.

[Syberdwarf2]

Maybe I'm beatin' a dead horse here, I assume this Golden Age campaign is set in the Champs Universe? If so do you have any plans to use VIPER? VIPER, IIRC, got its start sometime after WWI or WWII. Anyhow, say this guy is sucessful, at least to the degree that he doesnt get 'outted'. He could be one of the driving forces behind that organizations inception. After all, VIPER was started by international corporate types....(again, IIRC)

[/dead horse mode OFF]

[Pol Rua]

Man, if I didn't live in Australia, and you didn't live in Mississippi, I'd be all over this game...

I love the idea of his Household. Okay, you've got a groundskeeper, a butler/valet and a mad scientist (I don't have my German dictionary to hand so I can't help you with the name, sorry)...

Howabout a driver? Maybe a mechanical genius who supes up the car and builds robots in his spare time... this might be a good role for a simian-looking monkeyguy (a literal 'grease monkey).

Japanese houseboy/martial artist. Could be a super-ninja/assassin in his spare time.


__________________________________________
Pol.

[Twilight]

Originally posted by Syberdwarf2
Maybe I'm beatin' a dead horse here, I assume this Golden Age campaign is set in the Champs Universe? If so do you have any plans to use VIPER? VIPER, IIRC, got its start sometime after WWI or WWII. Anyhow, say this guy is sucessful, at least to the degree that he doesnt get 'outted'. He could be one of the driving forces behind that organizations inception. After all, VIPER was started by international corporate types....(again, IIRC)

[/dead horse mode OFF]

While those are very good points Syberdwarf, at the moment they're a little bit beyond the scope of my campaign as of right now. At the moment I kinda have to focus on the here and now of the character so as to give my players the thrills and chills they deserve. So while he very well could end up forming VIPER at a later date [even if his identity is exposed, wouldn't be the first time shady business types have done business with a known supervillain after all] that will only come up in my campaign when and if it gets to the closing days of WW2 in game.

[Twilight]

Originally posted by Pol Rua
Man, if I didn't live in Australia, and you didn't live in Mississippi, I'd be all over this game...

I love the idea of his Household. Okay, you've got a groundskeeper, a butler/valet and a mad scientist (I don't have my German dictionary to hand so I can't help you with the name, sorry)...

Howabout a driver? Maybe a mechanical genius who supes up the car and builds robots in his spare time... this might be a good role for a simian-looking monkeyguy (a literal 'grease monkey).

Japanese houseboy/martial artist. Could be a super-ninja/assassin in his spare time.


__________________________________________
Pol.

Yes of course! How could I possibly have forgotten the hunchbacked assistant? ^_^ Seriously the pilot/driver is a very good idea. The family chauffeur, trained by the best drivers and pilots in all of Europe in order to become the best pilot the Luftwaffe and possibly the world had ever seen. He is the Iron Eagle!

Since the Japanese will have thier own villains to menace our heroes I'm thinking no on the Japanese houseboy, though it is a cool idea. However, rest assured there will be plans involving super-ninja/assassins and the good Professor. Most notably a far superior version of the old Marvel villain Agent Axis.

Hmmmm. Perhaps a personal astrologer who's also a sorceress?

[ProfessorM@ss]

Originally posted by Twilight
Like most villains of this sort, he also employs a mad scientist, though I can't think of a good name for one at the moment. I could also use a good name for his beautiful daughter/assistant as well. Of course, given the timeline, she might end up the beautiful sister/assistant.

Hrm. How will the German-named villains go over with his Yankee mobster accomplices, me wonders?

By the by...a one-liner I've worked into any Golden Age campaign I've ever been in...

"I vas just followink orders!"

Yeah, baby, the famous last words of the cowering Nazi villain!

--->M@ss

[Doug McCrae]

Some Golden Age villain websites:

The Golden Age Super-Villain Fact File (http://my.execpc.com/~icicle/GAVILLCHK.html) - DC villains only. Includes lengthy bios and quite a few I hadn't heard of.

Cash Gorman's Golden Age Villains Encyclopedia (http://www.geocities.com/cash_gorman/) - Exhaustive though only covers non-DC, non-Marvel bad guys. Obscure or what?

[Mutant for Hire]

There should be a cadre of top level minions.

1. A good second in command who is almost as effective as the leader in terms of brains and tends to command out in the field for any serious operation involving more than one high level minion. Often wants the boss' job. Is usually set up as a 'hero in everything but morality' type.
2. The strong guy. Strong as an ox, tough as an ox, almost as bright as an ox. Usually always stays near the master villain as personal bodyguard.
3. A really good thief with good stealth, disguise, and thieving skills. Tends to be a gutless coward with no fighting skills but very slippery to hold onto.
4. The master driver/sailor/pilot. May have poor hand to hand skills but is a whiz with a vehicle. Often pilots the getaway vehicle.
5. If the top figure is not a scientist, then you need one scientific lunatic who is inventing all sorts of crazed devices.
6. The seductive woman. A mistress of disguise and having a full set of dirty tricks concealed in her makeup kit.

Another possibility is the animal trainer type. Someone who keeps a kennel of animals of all types. Might have a good scar collection and maybe an eyepatch to indicate the sheer lethality of the charges.

[Twilight]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by ProfessorM@ss
[B]Hrm. How will the German-named villains go over with his Yankee mobster accomplices, me wonders?

Not a problem as each of his henchmen have code names that have English translations. Jaeger translates as Hunter and Herr Morderin translates as Mr. Murder. He simply refers to them by the English translations of thier names should it become neccesary.

[Kevin Scrivner]

Also, if you're emulating the serials, the PCs should have some contact with Professor Peril in one of his other guises. It won't be his German one, of course. Maybe he teaches one of the heroes' college course on European history; maybe he's dad's old business partner (or is standing in for dad's old business partner, whom the heroes have never personally met); maybe he's the friendly bank president that loaned the good guys the money for their new base. In any event, he'll be someone they trust and consult with. "Gee. It always seems as if Professor Peril knows what our next step is."

Several good old movies about German spies in hiding in plain sight include: "The 39 Steps," also a great novel; "The Lady Vanishes," early Alfred Hitchcock; and "The Stranger," with Orson Wells as the bad guy in question.

[Twilight]

bump

[Kevin Scrivner]

The Wizard -- He's stolen a device capable of shutting down or remote controlling all vehicles in a metropolitan area -- cars, trains, planes, boats. The equipment, consisting of enough vacuum-tube packed black boxes to fill your garage, can even pinpoint a specific vehicle, such as the car the PC heroes are driving. If he adjusts the frequencies just right, it can also turn the Wizard invisible. The machine's weakness is that it requires lots of power and generates lots of heat, so it can't be operated for long periods without burning out. The Wizard himself is a black-robed figure with black cloak and hood. He has a commanding presence, minor hypnotic abilities, and lots of electronics expertise.

[Twilight]

Just a further update on my Golden Age Campaign. I've found a spot in Professor Peril's household for the Mad Scientist. At the moment said mad scientist is either going to be the not so good Professor's Uncle or Grandfather.

Feel free to discuss amongst yourselves. ;)

[BlackCobra]

I don't know what direction you're going in with Professor Peril, but my favorite Nazi supervillains are always the ones with mystical connections -- ties in nicely with the rest of the sinister group. Even if you don't have that in mind for the good (evil?) Professor right away, it might be something only vaguely hinted at or revealed a bit more when he's defeated. It would also give him some good get-out-of-jail tricks when all his henchmen run out.

Just a thought. It sounds like you've got things pretty well in hand here.

And a thought on the asian bodygaurd (or whatever position is) -- he'd make a good plant or contant with the Japanese conspiracy you're planning on separately. Keep in mind that there were (historically) very early ties between the Nazi party and the Japanese; meeting took place between high-level advisors and the Japanese government even before Hitler took power. One of these was a Professor (no, really!) of History who helped (reportedly) write Mein Kampf.

Isn't the Discovery Channel wonderful for these odd tidbits? :)

[Twilight]

Excellent. Black Cobra you have had some excellent ideas. ^_^

As a matter of fact, I was planning on having Professor Peril be the sort who dabbles in magic as well as technology. It was part of his training you see, though at the moment he relies more on his technical abilities as he assertains wether or not America has powerful mages who can catch him at cursing his enemies and such. It's something he keeps in reserve to surprise the heroes with if he gets cornered.

As for the asian bodyguard. Well he'd be less of a bodyguard and more of an ammbasador from the Black Dragon Society to Vonderhagen's group. A show of good will between the two agencys since they are both allied with the Axis after all.

Speaking of the Black Dragon Society, do you mind if I use you handle as the name of a supervillain in my campaign Black Cobra?

[BlackCobra]

Originally posted by Twilight
Excellent. Black Cobra you have had some excellent ideas. ^_^

As a matter of fact, I was planning on having Professor Peril be the sort who dabbles in magic as well as technology. It was part of his training you see, though at the moment he relies more on his technical abilities as he assertains wether or not America has powerful mages who can catch him at cursing his enemies and such. It's something he keeps in reserve to surprise the heroes with if he gets cornered.

As for the asian bodyguard. Well he'd be less of a bodyguard and more of an ammbasador from the Black Dragon Society to Vonderhagen's group. A show of good will between the two agencys since they are both allied with the Axis after all.

Speaking of the Black Dragon Society, do you mind if I use you handle as the name of a supervillain in my campaign Black Cobra?

Thanks!

See, I knew you had things well in hand with the mystical side -- I hadn't considered the local-mystics factor! Good planning ahead, Herr Professor.

Feel free to use BlackCobra -- just try not to live up to the name. You don't want a bumbling villain who regenerates falling all over the place, foiling heroes by soaking up attacks! (He was my first Champs character I had made myself, based LOOSELY on Spiderman. Yikes!)

Keep us posted on the procedings.

[Twilight]

No, no I don't, especially when I already have bumbling villains for comedy purposes. ;)

Seriously, I was thinking of a martial arts assasin type of character for the Black Cobra. Uses blades coated with snake venom and what not. The Black Dragon Society needs some villains on thier side after all, they can't all be ninja cannon fodder [though Black Dragon is a ninja, though higher powered].

[RevHooligan]

What about Vendetta, Mussellini's own super assassin? Are all the plots going to be on the homefront, or will there be European settings? It seems the homefront is more "Black Mask" pulp hero and Europe and Asia might be more Invaders/All Star Squadron style. Players would probably enjoy a mix of both.

PS: I hope your players don't read the boards. That would be a big spoiler for them.

[Twilight]

To the best of my knowledge they don't. However, I have plenty of stuff that I haven't posted on the boards that can be used to surprise them, so it's good. ;)

As for the campaign, it won't be just the homefront. They'll be going abroad quite a bit. By the time I'm finished, they'll feel as if they've travelled the world over. :)

As for the Italian guy, I have a plan for one concerning the not so good Professor's plans in the US.

[Twilight]

It has been awhile since I mentioned my Golden Age game, but with Pulp Hero coming out soon and Fires of War: The Algernon Files being released along side it it seems like a good idea to revisit it. Professor Peril and Co are dusting off thier work togs and the Professor is polishing his saber, gleefully awaiting the reinforcements Fires of War shall provide them.

Soon, soon my players shall quiver in terror at what I might unleash upon them. :D

[Southern Cross]

Does Professor Peril know the German style of Fencing? Given his background (German aristocracy) and the saber reference,I'm assuming he does.

[Twilight]

Does Professor Peril know the German style of Fencing? Given his background (German aristocracy) and the saber reference,I'm assuming he does.

You assume correctly. It's pretty much the only time he becomes physically involved in the action, otherwise he's the type of mastermind who never gets his hands dirty if he can help it. However he has an ego about his fencing skills so a PC with similar skills could draw him out that way.

[Brandi]

Perhaps he should have a duelling scar, if it won't give away the game too early (is he trying to pass as American?)-- the Schmiss was considered something of a badge of honor.

[Twilight]

Perhaps he should have a duelling scar, if it won't give away the game too early (is he trying to pass as American?)-- the Schmiss was considered something of a badge of honor.

Oh he'll have the scar because he appears in public as the German Ambassador to the US, when he's doing the mastermind thing he always makes sure his face is covered and uses his acting skills to cover his accent. He's tricky like that.

[Twilight]

Anybody know if Pulp Hero and Fires of War are out yet?