Favorite Champions Villain(s)

[Dominique]

New to the site, but an old time Champions player ( I still have my well worn copy of the 1st edition). Just taking a poll to see who's your favorite Villain(s) are.

My personal favs are Firewing and Eurostar.

[Killer Shrike]

Teleios

[Tim]

Foxbat and Dr. D

[Enforcer84]

Firewing and the Geodesics. and Amradillo

[Crusader108]

I've gotta give up to the Big D...Dr Destroyer. My players have always been afraid (very afraid) of him....

with good reason!!! :D

[Lord Liaden]

I've long been fond of Firewing, although I preferred the version from Classic Enemies, with his near-tragic background and internal conflict between honor and glory, to the more ruthless villain from CKC. I also enjoy Dark Seraph: he just looks so impressive, and you can stomp on this vile monster without a twinge of guilt.

And of course, you can't not have fun when Foxbat shows up. :D

[megaplayboy]

Black Enchantress from Coriolis Effect.
The 7 Horsemen--scary.
Herr Doktor from GAC 1st ed.
Viperia--if she had heroic psych lims, she'd be a perfect
low-level Galactic Champions PC :D

[Dominique]

For some reason I've never liked Dr. D. Not sure why though. Foxbat, on the other hand, is great for getting on players nerves, ecspecially if you have a player that tends to fly off the handle when his character is "picked on":D .

Yeah, I know it's mean but this guy was a constant pain in th butt when he played so I went out of my way to make things difficult for his character. If he planned a picnic, it would rain; his NPC dependents were constantly being kidnapped, mugged, fired from their jobs. (damn the bad luck...he he he).

A few more old stand bys, like Howler, Pulsar, and Lady Blue showed up a lot. The rest of my villains were usually my creation.

Almost forgot about PSI, and the VOICE. I really never got into Viper, Demon, or Genocide.

I still need to pick up CKC, and compair them with my old copy of Classic Enemies.

[Doug McCrae]

I rather like CLOWN

[OddHat]

I have very mixed feelings about most of the Uber-Villains (esp. Takofanes and Doctor Destroyer) from CKC.
Takofanes has a fantastic background, but is absurdly overpowered, to the point where achieving his goal of wiping out all life on Earth should come down to waking up one morning and declaring "Doh! 1d6RKA Penetrating Continuous Uncontrolled Megascale O-End Transdimensional! There, that's done. Time for a nice cup of tea." He's great for the threat "out there", but almost un-useable in play.
Destroyer is similarly ovepowered, and his goal of taking over the world in the least practical manner possible is just silly. "Political manipulation? Building up support among the people followed by a series of millitary victories and coups until I hold power? No, better to pose, posture, randomly blow up a city, hide for a decade and then declare that it was all part of my Master Plan." He'd be a fun Doctor Doom knock off if he were powered down to the point where a hero group could reasonably chase him off, but as written he's only useable as a background character or as part of an NPC dominated campaign ender.

I'm a big fan of Demon. A few tweaks to make them an Aum Divine Truth Mystic-Religious cult and they can be truly scary without being unplayable. I usually incorporated almost all the magic-oriented villain groups into Demon.
Invictus was a great NPC, especially if you played up his political folk hero aspect before the PCs realized just how corrupt he was.
I liked most of the villain teams, tweaked appropriately, especially PSI. The newest version of PSI is quite good.

[Tempuswolf]

A slightly customized Roadkill:

Heavy Metal- a-hole lead singer
Screech- nebbish keyboardist
Axeman- psycho killer guitarist
Ted- zombie drummer
Boomer- redeemable bassist
Screech- redeemable girlfriend

A fun group to GM because though they all lived for the ego gratification of the stage, they all had different motivations for being there and to some degree all of them had secret agendas. Running a group of supervillains not bent on world domination but on, among other things, destroying boy bands for aesthetic reasons, is more fun than should be allowed this side of paradise. They were such a great foil to my PCs. I know some of you might think this is a corny concept but there is a verisimilitude that their rather mundane goals have that grand evil archvillain's bombastic super-schemes lack.

As I write this I am thinking about bringing these guys into 5th Ed and ... {evil laughter} Simon Cowell.

[bcholmes]

Originally posted by Tempuswolf
A fun group to GM because though they all lived for the ego gratification of the stage, they all had different motivations for being there and to some degree all of them had secret agendas. Running a group of supervillains not bent on world domination but on, among other things, destroying boy bands for aesthetic reasons, is more fun than should be allowed this side of paradise. They were such a great foil to my PCs. I know some of you might think this is a corny concept but there is a verisimilitude that their rather mundane goals have that grand evil archvillain's bombastic super-schemes lack.

Oh, I'm with you on that. I just picked up a second-hand copy of that module, and I'm really looking forward to running the adventure. Boomer and Screech seem a little too pop for a band that's otherwise very punk/industrial, but all in all this is an innovative group.


As I write this I am thinking about bringing these guys into 5th Ed ...

Cool. I, for one, would love to hear about your conversions.

[Dominique]

Originally posted by megaplayboy
Black Enchantress from Coriolis Effect.
The 7 Horsemen--scary.
low-level Galactic Champions PC :D

The Coriolis Effect was a good module. The 7 Horsemen were fun to run against a heros whos egos had got a litle to big. especially one who were used to mopping the floor with villains NPC goon squads. Another thing I lked was that it looks like they actually did a little research on Norway's special forces units.

[Boll Weevil]

Deathstroke and The Conquerors.
The Conquerors have been enjoyed the most recurring roles in my games. They have gone through many personnel changes but have been the best villain team for roleplaying. First, I ditched all non-mutant members. Sorry Ankylosaur, but this team is the foil of enocide (or IHA, whichever you prefer).

After a couple of "stop the warehouse robbery" scenarios, the Conquerors came to demand a certain respect from my players. The PC's know these guys, some socially, but share different goals and beliefs which often put them on opposite sides of the hexmap. Like Professor X and Magneto (with no coincidence), the Conquerors and my past hero teams(s) coexist, often fighting together vs common enemies and prejudice. The Conquerors are stamped from the same archetype pool as the many Champions teams, representing a diverse and dangerous mix of powers and character conceptions.

[Lord Mhoram]

The best villians I've had have been more because of character interaction with them, then the actual write ups...

Golden Avenger from the original primus and Demon. My world was the first wave of hypernormals and so I switched his hatred of mutants to hatred of hypernormals, and that was enough to sent him into villianhood. When primus was absorbed into the Marshall's office, he went rogue with a bunch of equipment, and about a third of the agency. He was a thorn in the side of the heroes for years, and ended up being the black kings knight in Genocide (which didn't show up till near the end of the game).

PSI - I introduced them for one reason, a supervillian team that the PCs could deal with on a permanent basis, because they were so nasty they could not be dealt with any other way. Thier stuff ran for 5 years, and when the final confrontation happened most of PSI were killed or lobotomized. The players told me that is was one of the best plots that they had played in.

I've always had a fondness for Foxbat, Muerte and Terror inc too.

[Dr. MID-Nite]

Hard to pick just one. Among the Master Villain types, I like Menton. yeah he's tough to use as a standard threat, but he's great for background plot. I also like Malachite from 4th edition. He's playing a majpr part in my current campaign. Anklosaur, PSI, Eurostar, and utility also get my votes.

Rob

[Redmenace]

Despite the fact that he is a simple black and white villain, I've always liked Dark Seraph. Most of my home villains are morally complex and I suspect that the overt evil of Dark Seraph always made for a refreshingly clear cut adventure.

Runners up would be Terror Inc. Dark Enchantress and Overlord from Strikeforce.

[Glen Sprigg]

My favorite villains...

Tyrannon the Conqueror (please, PLEASE update him to 5th)
The Idiot King (not quite the Joker, but a great foil for super-detectives)
Ogre (we all need a dumb brick to pummel now and then)
Red Tide (from Atlantis; I love that sourcebook)
VIPER-Force 2 (they're just cooler than VF-1)

Glen

[JmOz]

I'm going to give props to Merry Andrew,

But that might be because I used him as a reformed (sorta) villain helping out the hero team as there tech-guru

[ChuckB]

The favorites I've recurringly used include Black Paladin , the Ultimates and the trio of Pulsar , Dragonfly and Ogre (for mundane crimes like bank-heists and liquor-store robberies).

Like the Corruptors Of All from Enemies III , but never used em.

[proditor]

Eurostar, circa 4th Ed. My players in a very long running and high powered campaign had a running fued with them. From the attempt to create their own island to the assassination attempt on the president, they were a constant and respected problem.

[hybris]

Originally posted by Glen Sprigg
Tyrannon the Conqueror (please, PLEASE update him to 5th) Looks like they will, but you'll need a little patience: :)


The Mystic World: Lurking in the shadows of the Champions Universe is a mysterious world of magic, sorcery, and terrifying threats from beyond this plane of existence. The Mystic World takes you into this exotic realm, describing the nature of arcane powers in the Champions Universe and providing full write-ups for dozens of mystic places and villains — including the immensely powerful dimensional conqueror Tyrannon, the corrupt but magically powerful Vandaleur family, and evil African warlord Joseph Otanga.
Author: Dean Shomshak
Tentative Release Date: Mid 2004
Tentative Size: 208 pages

[Magmarock]

And because no one mentioned Grond, he's about to go berserk on all your butts! ;)





"GROND NOT HAPPY!!!"
(At least, that's the quote he always uses in my games....)

[Magmarock]

Malice (from the old CHAMPIONS comics) now in league with DEMON in my campaign.

[Jeff T.]

Mechassassin - the ultimate professional
Doctor Destroyer - pure megalomania
Teleios - 50 INT!
Ripper (VIPER villain, I've seen the playtest) - pure smashing machine
Oculon (VIPER villain, I've seen the playtest) - no longer a scaredy-cat

[Hermit]

Foxbat- Foxbat rocks, in any edition. :)

CLOWN- Really, if you use them to poke fun at society and not the PCs, they're great!

Firewing- Okay, I read too much Silver Surfer when younger... but I like the warrior of Malva.

Terror Inc- Pr Muerte was the Poor man's Doctor Destroyer, and I used his crew in more adventures than I could count.

Takofanes- He's turning into a great behind the scenes villain.

Dr. Destroyer- Give the guy his props, he started out as a doomesque standard mastermind, but in the hands of such folks as Scott Bennie and others has turned into THE Face of Evil in the Champions Universe.

The Ultimates- A tight villain group that can use tactics and teamwork to great effect.

Heck, there's too many more to list. I'm rather fond of many of them.

[Benzini]

In my game, I played Talisman as irrevocably evil, and said lines like, " I will eat your children" then, when she was knocked out, one of my players shot her through the hand to make sure she couldn't gesture (he wasn't taking any chances) then the speedster of the group ran with her unconscious form and slammed her at terminal velocity into a wall outside MARS. I think based on this reaction, I either over played her evil-ness, or I have psychos playing in my game....( I am leaning towards the latter) Imagine the fright when she came back!!! ( I don't have to give reasons.....:o )

[Wolven]

Firewing
Plasmoid
Grond
Foxbat
Mechanon
Shamrock
Corolis (the big bad ass chick from the Corolis effect. I think thats her name)

[levi]

New Terror Inc
Muerte, Giganto, Shamrock & Leech
Even though he was left out of CKC Muerte has found new life in my gaming group, literally. Scorpia & Feurmacher's trechery has been repaid as DEMON/Takofanes/Mysterious Magical Bad Guys have reincarnated the former Professor and infused him with an Incan/Mayan Death God. (Think Dark Seraph with a 100 pt VPP - Death Powers - lots of BODY Drains and Transformation Attacks) Destroyer has been looking after Giganto and Shamrock since the betrayal and they both have expanded powers (Earth Control and Luck Powers from the USPD). Muerte's pet, the Leech rounds out my group's new Terror Inc. and the players love to hate these guys.

GRAB
The newest incarnation is great! Cheshire Cat is a rival for my PC's teleporter (except for that stupid Vuln) and the women make great Role-Playing opportunities.

[Vanguard00]

I'll cast a vote for Terror, Inc, as well. Always a favorite of mine to use and to see in action. They've been the primary focus of my FtF games a few times in the past.

Eurostar, because they're the one's to beat.

LadyBlue, because she has one of my gamers wrapped around her little finger.

Mechassassin, because I treat him like Deathstroke (from DC Comics) and half the time my players didn't know if he was there to help or kill one of 'em.

A homemade duo by the name of "Hammer" and "Anvil", two bricks with attitude that were a lot of fun to play. They were my "Wrecking Crew" types, there to cause mayhem for no particular reason, but always good for witty banter and a mean left hook.

The home-made team of Howler, Wyvern, Anklyosaurus, Pulsar and Shamrock. Refused to have a team name so the press dubbed them the "Fearsome Five". That particular news channel was attacked the next day, and they were never given another team name again.

[Lord Liaden]

Originally posted by Wolven
Corolis (the big bad ass chick from the Corolis effect. I think thats her name)

Coriolis was actually a NPC hero in that adventure. The "bad ass chick" was the Black Enchantress, half-human, half extra-dimensional goddess, and a true bad seed: born sadistic and conscienceless and with the power to bend anyone to her will.

Since we're going back beyond the current Champions Universe, I can cite a few other faves:

Lung Hung from VOICE of Doom. Oriental master villain with a fascinating background and goals subtly different from all the world-conquerors: not to rule the world, but to keep it in chaos so that his part of it remains secure.

Invictus from Enemies: Villainy Unbound. A mask of heroism, patriotism and traditional American values over a corrupt and ruthless monster. Says a lot about the power of image in our society.

The Mind Master Complex from Creatures of the Night. Great paranoia inducer. Functioned a lot like the current version of Menton, except that not only could anyone be under its control and not know it; anyone could be a super-villain under its control and not know it.

Tyrannon the Conqueror from Mystic Masters. I'm really looking forward to seeing how this uber-villain is redone for 5E. One of the most original concepts yet published in a Hero book.

The Baron from The Mutant File. Stylish depiction of the power and mindset of a true Gothic vampire of great age.

Taurus from The Zodiac Conspiracy. Demigod who raised himself up over millennia from mindless beast to world-threatening genius.

Dr. Yin Wu from Watchers of the Dragon. Another 5E update I'm looking forward to. Mastermind in the Fu Manchu mold, but instead a master of Oriental sorcery distinctly different from typical Western styles.

[Jhamin]

-Mechanon, more crazy yet diabolical schemes than you can shake a transistor at. And lots and lots of killer robots.

-The Destruction Company from High Tech Enemies , They looked and fought like a team, and you could throw them into almost any adventure as hired muscle

-Bullet (with my GI-Joeisnpired version of the Raiders), in my game, he was the conssumate professional. Mechassasin, Laser, and the rest were just eating the scraps from his table. His team was rivaled only by....

-Viper Force 2 from Viper All the comradare of a hero team, all the greed of Viper.

-The Ultimates - 5th Edition Lots of imaginative powers, lots of Psych Lims, and the IQs to do some serious damage with their plots.

- Hell Rider from Creatures of the Night, Tragic, yet beyond redemption

[bcholmes]

Originally posted by Dominique
New to the site, but an old time Champions player ( I still have my well worn copy of the 1st edition). Just taking a poll to see who's your favorite Villain(s) are.

I'm rilly rilly fond of Captain Chronos.

I'm also keenly interested in figuring out how to use Sludge and Leviathan.

[Siberian Tiger]

Villains that I've used and enjoyed:
VIPER - always a good opportunity for my players to remember how to use their powers and skills in bashing a few green and yellow heads.

White Lightning (from one of the Dark Champions books) - made him into an annoying whelp who drifted from serving one criminal enterprise to another. I remember my dear friend George Mcleod's character Retribution cutting short Lightning's plea for mercy with a short "Shut it" followed by a punch to the head.

Bulldozer - just for the benefit of the females in my gaming group

Villains that I've liked but never had a chance to use

Dr Yin Wu
Eurostar
The Card Shark organisation

[loraxxx]

once played in a campaign where our party came up against "the slug" as he was attempting to resurrect his masters aka the elder wyrm--man was it brutal!!

the gm tricked him up so that he had this "sensory deprivation" entangle--i still have nightmares....

[Supreme Serpent]

Destroyers/Deathstroke - Deathsinger, Frost, Death Commando, Arrowhead, Stinger!

Ultimates - Binder, Plasmoid, Blackstar, Charger, Slick

Anklyosaur

VIPER

DEMON as an idea, not really how they were written up.

old school Dr. Destroyer - the bada** in blue.

[Theron]

Malachite (after Scott took the time to 'splain him to me).
Coatlicue (from "To Serve and Protect")
Overlord (from "Strike Force")
and if I can include one from San Angelo, Shatter, a character that rewards deviousness like none other.

[hybris]

I'm rather fond of:

Dr. Destroyer
Firewing
VIPER
Foxbat

[Richard Logue]

I like Los Asesinos... but only AFTER I revised them. They have basically the same crew and outlook as they did, but I made them hoopy.

Richard

[GrooveD70]

My old early 90's campaign used Mechanon, who I thought was fun. But my group recently got spanked by eclipse from the Crowns of Krim..... that was fun:D

[Supreme Serpent]

Oh, and PULSAR! Great villain sorta in the Electro mold. Drunk with his own power, etc. Fun to run, fun to play against.

Once had a character in secret ID distract him by asking for his autograph - half DCV and no force field anyone? :D

[Acroyear II]

Originally posted by Hermit

Firewing- Okay, I read too much Silver Surfer when younger... but I like the warrior of Malva.

Terror Inc- Pr Muerte was the Poor man's Doctor Destroyer, and I used his crew in more adventures than I could count.

Takofanes- He's turning into a great behind the scenes villain.

The Ultimates- A tight villain group that can use tactics and teamwork to great effect.



Would you be willing to share with us some of the plots and scenarios you've run with the villains listed above? I liked to use Firewing, Terror Inc., and the Ultimates again in my campaign, but have run dry on ideas. Also, I'd be interested to hear how you have utilized Takofanes as a behind the scenes villan.

Thanks in advance,

Acroyear II

[Lord Liaden]

You might get some use out of this link to a PDF compiling plot seeds for many current Champions villains contributed by numerous board members:
http://www.herogames.com/FreeStuff/freedocs.htm

The link to the original thread that's included has even more seeds on it. (Wonder if Nato will ever get the chance to add them to his PDF, hint hint?) ;)

[Hermit]

Originally posted by Acroyear II
Would you be willing to share with us some of the plots and scenarios you've run with the villains listed above? I liked to use Firewing, Terror Inc., and the Ultimates again in my campaign, but have run dry on ideas. Also, I'd be interested to hear how you have utilized Takofanes as a behind the scenes villan.

Thanks in advance,

Acroyear II

Well, I was going to recomend this thread for ideas, but Firewing only has one listed.. .hm I still recomend looking at it as some good ideas came up and which villain you use can often be changed:

http://www.herogames.com/FreeStuff/freedocs/PlotSeeds.pdf

(Hmm I see Lord Liaden beat me to it, this long post knocked my cookies out)

For Firewing, depending on 'when' you have him arriving on Earth, the fun thing to remember is he's likely no more versed than Ironclad or any other alien. One scenerio I had him in was a simple one... there was a variation of a 'King of the Cage' TV show going on. Firewing assumes that these must be Earth's battle arenas, and goes to show his dominance. Of course, he's used to his fights being no holds barred and his first 'testing' attack puts a confused wrestler in critical condition.

Firewing realizes this whole thing is a farce, and demands "A true champion, or I shall incinerate each and everyone of these frauds!"

Enter the PCs.

That one is a bit simplistic, I admit.

Terror Inc- You can go with this two ways. Officially, Muerte is dead in 5th Ed, but if you're instead assuming the group is alive and well... then what I often did was take the "Poor Man's Dr. Destroyer" thing into account. I had him attempt to emulate Doctor Destroyer, but of course, he did not succeed as often.
Take any adventure from Doc D, water it down, and it worked surprisingly well for Terror Inc.

Now, if Professor Muerte were alive I'd have him attempt to destroy Millennium City, just as Doctor Destroyer did so with Detroit. Because Muerte does not have access to his own laser satilites, he's going to have to procure some.

Now, assuming Muerte is dead... ala 5th, well, he might still come back (Lord Liaden had some great ideas on how) or he might have an offspring, a son ready to take up his father's mantle. A major priority would be to kill the two who betrayed Terror Inc...who now happen to be in Eurostar. Have Professor Muerte attempt to track Eurostar, and trick the PCs and Eurostar into an encounter. In the confusion (or better yet fight), he can abduct one or both of the Fuermacher/Scorpia set.

As for Takofanes? I really thought he was way too powerful for the PCs to fight, and he is ... but when I noticed his ability to create up to 800 pt undead... I realized I had his henchmen. I decided to give him two sorts of undead lackey, 'the Infused' and 'the Bound'. The infused are corpses filled with demonic/infernal essence to motivate them. They vary from near mindless to the inhumanely cunning. The Bound are a sorry lot.... they are still mortal souls not allowed to leave the body, forced to use their old skills, powers, and experience to serve Takofanes. They are, in short, in a walking cage of their own dead flesh.

Have some fallen NPC who was close to the PCs or admired by them become one of Takofanes' "Bound" and you have a great motivator. Recently, one PC hero, Nightbringer, found an man she had cared for greatly had been bound so...and he was a super hero in his time so no easy fight. She freed his soul, but it took his physical distruction.

She wants to grow powerful enough to take out Takofanes VERY badly... and it's going to be a long road before she does so.

[TheQuestionMan]

Malichite/Teleios - the best villian any Gm could hope for and good looking too . ( Cloned one of the heroes who died heroicly in mind and body , but with new secret Physic / Psych Lims ... heh heh heh ... god that was fun )

Firewing - our group looked forward to battles with him . Both with trepidation and eagerness . Always challenging .

VIPER - the boys and girls in Green and Yellow could always be relied on to shake things up . Never the same thing twice .

VIPER Force-2 - a strong rivalry existed between our group and this team . We only learned of their team leaders True Idenity years later and it was great .

Doctor Destroyer - funniest thing you ever saw . Dr.D makes presence attack and heroes flee for their lives every damn time 8) .

Mechanon - time after time . A recuring villian with a new power or defense every time he was defeated . Anoying and fun at the same time .

[aylwin13]

1) Eurostar, the old and new versions
2) Dr. Destroyer
3) Black Enchantress

[Isaiah_26_4]

Chello!

I had a plot going one time where I had Dark Seraph, Black Paladin, and the Tombstone Kid plotting to take over DEMON. sounds silly, but the PCs were not amused at all.

That said, I also like Grond and, for some reason that escapes all reason, Thok.

And of course....

the ultimate villian....

the master of mahem...

the virtuoso of "Stooge Fu"...

FOXBAT!!!!!!!!

:D

Tony

[Azimer the Mad]

Everybody loves Foxbat. One of the few villains I get requests for.

I love Mechanon. I wanted to make him cooler then Ultron, and I decided that the typical robot voice bores me.

So, after watching an SNL Celebrity Jeopardy skit, I gave him the voice and mannerisms of Sean Connery.

Until you've seen a smart-mouthed Mechanon with a scottish accent crack-wise during a killing spree, you haven't lived.

Actor wise, Jeremy Irons also works as a great Fiacho.

GRAB, Bulldozer, and Oculon are also mood lighners. But I can't wait to see them meet the NEW Oculon. Heh heh he.