Public Domain Super Heroes

[Lucius]

http://pdsh.wikia.com/wiki/Public_Domain_Super_Heroes


I stumbled across this by accident, and immediately thought of sharing it here.



Public Domain Super Heroes is a collaborative website about comic book characters in the Public Domain. The wiki format allows anyone to create or edit any article, so we can all work together to create the site. Check out the FAQ to help you get started!

After Action Comics #1 gave the world Superman in 1938, there was an explosion of costumed heroes in comics. New publishers and characters sprang up everywhere. After World War II, these type of characters fell out of favor with readers. This caused many publishers to go out of business and many characters were lost. Those comics and their stars have since fallen into the public domain. This enables anyone to use those characters and those classic stories any way they wish. Over the years many publishers have taken advantage of this, including AC Comics (FemForce, Men of Mystery), Malibu (The Protectors), America's Best (Terra Obscura), and - most recently - Dynamite (Project Superpowers), and Image Comics (Next Issue Project) among others.

This is intended to be an online encyclopedia of these characters, providing pertinent information to fans who want to learn about their history, as well as creators who may want to use them. Unless otherwise noted, all images and information are believed to be in the Public Domain. The information and images presented are intended to give a brief overview of the characters and provide a visual reference.

Enjoy.


A few things I noticed:

There are a surprising number of public domain characters who have the same names or similar names as privately held characters - like Doc Strange and Daredevil.

Most of the listed characters seem to date from the forties. A few are from the thirties. A bare handful are from later, either from works that fell into public domain due to odd circumstance or that were originally created to be public domain characters.

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary suspects that Lucius is going to try writing some of them up.

[Teflon Billy]

Uh, just because a publisher goes out of business does not mean that their intellectual property falls into the Public Domain.

I'd be very dubious as to whether any IP from post WWII is public domain yet.

TB

[lemming]

I think there was a time before the mouse extended it further that works that were not renewed fell out of copyright. But I'm betting it's few and far between.

[sinanju]

Uh, just because a publisher goes out of business does not mean that their intellectual property falls into the Public Domain.

I'd be very dubious as to whether any IP from post WWII is public domain yet.

TB

Well...the TRADEMARKS (if any) on these characters are probably long since defunct. Trademarks have to be used regularly and defended or they're lost.

But copyrights? There was a time when copyright was good for 26 years, and could be renewed for another 26 years--but if you failed to renew, the copyrighted work fell into the public domain. I don't remember when that changed, but I'd agree that most characters from the 40s or later are still under copyright.

The copyright owners may not know (or care) that they still own copyright to mostly worthless characters from decades ago. But if someone picked one up and started making money with it, that would probably chagne in a hurry.

[lemming]

Copyright office stuff (http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html)

Looks like changes happened Jan 1, 1978

[Dr Archeville]

Public Domain Characters (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PublicDomainCharacter)

and

Public Domain Artifacts (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PublicDomainArtifact)

[Lucius]

Well, I wrote one up. I may or may not decide to do more.


Scarab
Val Char Cost Roll Notes
15/30 STR 5 12- / 15- Lift 200.0kg/1600.0kg; 3d6/6d6 [1/2]
14/24 DEX 12 12- / 14- OCV: 5/8/DCV: 5/8
15/18 CON 10 12- / 13-
10 BODY 0 11-
13 INT 3 12- PER Roll 12-
14 EGO 8 12- ECV: 5
15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6
10 COM 0 11-

11/20 PD 2 Total: 11/20 PD (6/12 rPD)
11/21 ED 2 Total: 11/21 ED (6/12 rED)
3/4 SPD 6 Phases: 4, 8, 12/3, 6, 9, 12
6/10 REC 0
30/36 END 0
26/36 STUN 0 Total Characteristic Cost: 49

Movement:
Running: 5"/10"
Flight: 11"/44"
Leaping: 2"/4"
Swimming: 1"/2"

Cost Powers END
14 Scarab's Protection: Armor (6 PD/6 ED) (18 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
1 Scarab's Protection: Mental Defense (5 points total) (2 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4), Limited Power Not against someone knowing his secret identity (-1/4)
3 Scarab's Protection: Power Defense (5 points) (5 Active Points); Limited Power Not against someone knowing his secret identity (-1/4), Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
4 Scarab's Protection: +10 PD (10 Active Points); Limited Power Only applies to STUN, and only if BOD damage not taken (-1), Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
26 Scarab's Unseen Wings: Flight 11", Position Shift, x4 Noncombat (32 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4) 3
Scarab's Gifts (characteristics), all slots Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
12 1) +15 STR (15 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4) 1
5 2) +3 CON (6 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
2 3) +3 ED (3 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
24 4) +10 DEX (30 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
10 Far Memory: Retrocognitive Clairsentience (Sight Group And Normal Hearing) (45 Active Points); No Conscious Control (-2), Retrocognition Only (-1), Only Through The Senses Of Previous Incarnations (-1/2) 4
Notes: In either secret or heroic identity, Scarab sometimes has glimpses of past incarnations, especially of being a priest of Ra. These can be full fledged "visions" of a past life, or sudden flashes of insight or special knowledge - "This way! The fourth duke built a secret tunnel in case of seige, it may still be there." "I thought you had never been in this castle before?" "Not in this life...."

Skills
3 Scientist
2 1) SS: Archeology 12-
2 2) SS: Architecture 12-
2 3) SS: Egyptology 12-
2 4) SS: Linguistics 12-
3 Linguist
0 1) Native: Language: English (idiomatic; literate)
2 2) Language: Ancient Egyptian (completely fluent; literate)
1 3) Language: Arabic (fluent conversation; literate)
1 4) Language: Coptic (completely fluent; literate)
1 5) Language: German (completely fluent; literate)
3 Traveler
3 1) AK: Egypt 13-
2 2) AK: Egyptian Archeological sites 12-
2 3) CuK: Ancient Egypt 12-
2 4) CuK: Modern Egypt 12-
3 One cannot work in Egypt without handling horses, asses, and camels: Animal Handler (Camels, Equines) 12-
3 One cannot work in Egypt without handling horse's asses and camel's: Bureaucratics 12-
3 Baksheesh, they call it: Bribery 12-
3 Nothing is hidden from the Eye of Ra: Concealment 12-
3 Dead men do tell tales, even after thousands of years: Forensic Medicine 12-
3 I can read hieroglyphs, I should be able to decypher this: Cryptography 12-
1 I am not so easily fooled: Forgery (Other Antiquities) 13- (3 Active Points); Limited Power Only to identify fakes (-1)
3 The sun and stars always know where they are going. Follow them. : Navigation (Land, Marine) 12-
7 TF: Common Motorized Ground Vehicles, Riding Animals, Rafts, Small Rowed Boats, Small Wind-Powered Boats
3 May Bast be with me: Stealth 12- (14-)
3 Do not even go to a souk, unless resolved to be both careful and stubborn: Trading 12-
3 Have you seen a scarab at work?: Hoist 12-
2 The desert is harsh, but the Gods provide. : Survival (Desert) 12-

Talents
12 Combat Luck (6 PD/6 ED)
10 Turn Undead (12 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
3 Bump Of Direction
3 Absolute Time Sense
5 Rapid Healing
10 Divine Favor

Perks
10 Contact: Bast (Contact has significant Contacts of her own, Contact has useful Skills or resources, Good relationship with Contact), Spirit Contact (x2) (10 Active Points) 11-
6 Contact: Ra (Contact has significant Contacts of her own, Contact has useful Skills or resources), Spirit Contact (x2) (6 Active Points) 8-

Total Cost: 280

200+ Disadvantages
5 Dependent NPC: Akh-Tu-Men (A talking cat) 11- (Slightly Less Powerful than the PC; Useful Noncombat Position or Skills)
15 Hunted: Bast (and Ra and the rest of the pantheon) 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, PC has a Public ID or is otherwise very easy to find, Watching)
10 Psychological Limitation - Priestly purity: Must shave face, head, and body, wear clean linens, normally be moderate in food and drink, etc. (Uncommon, Strong)
15 Psychological Limitation: Heroic - must combat evil and injustice, uphold virtue, etc. (Common, Strong)
15 Psychological Limitation: Priestly duties - greeting the Sun at dawn, offerings on holy days, etc (Common, Strong)
5 Social Limitation: Religious minority (Occasionally, Minor)
15 Social Limitation: Secret ID (Frequently, Major)

Total Disadvantage Points: 80

Background/History: From the Public Domain Superheroes Database: "Peter Ward is an Egyptologist who discovers he’s the reincarnation of an ancient Egyptian priest of the sun god Ra. Given a mystic scarab ring by the cat goddess Bast, Ward touches the ring and becomes the Scarab. The ring grants him great powers, and Ward uses them to combat evil and injustice. He is accompanied on his many adventures by an intelligent cat named Akh-Tu-Men."



Appearance: First Appearance : Startling Comics #34 (Jul 1945) Publisher: Nedor

According to Public Domain Superheroes, the creator of this character is unknown and the character is in the public domain.

Character sheet by Lucius Alexander

Copyright Palindromedary Enterprises

[Lucius]

Working on The Amazing Man.

It's kind of frustrating when the available resources say things like

Weakness: Can be trapped in green mist form

And give no clue HOW!

But I suppose that gives me the chance to make up something that makes sense to me.

Lucius Alexander

Trapped in palindromedary form

[Balabanto]

Well, you might want to ask Joe Linehan about All Thrills Comics, Lucius. The game has been running at Gencon for 6 years now. It's wonderful.

[Clonus]

Working on The Amazing Man.

It's kind of frustrating when the available resources say things like

Weakness: Can be trapped in green mist form

And give no clue HOW!


With a Handy-vac!

[Greywind]

Anything with an air-tight seal.

[BobGreenwade]

Working on The Amazing Man.

It's kind of frustrating when the available resources say things like

Weakness: Can be trapped in green mist form

And give no clue HOW!

But I suppose that gives me the chance to make up something that makes sense to me.There's a link at the site where you can download PDFs of the comics (also Public Domain) in which the characters appeared. If you can track down The Amazing Man's stories, then you may be able to find out!

On a separate note, upon seeing this I keep wanting to write out something like the Marvel/DC or JLA/Avengers crossovers, but using the Fox and Nedor heroes.

[Clonus]

Copyright office stuff (http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap3.html)

Looks like changes happened Jan 1, 1978

Uh-hunh. Back then they had to do special oneshots for fallow characters to try to protect them from falling into public domain.

[Susano]

Well, I wrote one up. I may or may not decide to do more.


Scarab
Val Char Cost Roll Notes
15/30 STR 5 12- / 15- Lift 200.0kg/1600.0kg; 3d6/6d6 [1/2]
14/24 DEX 12 12- / 14- OCV: 5/8/DCV: 5/8
15/18 CON 10 12- / 13-
10 BODY 0 11-
13 INT 3 12- PER Roll 12-
14 EGO 8 12- ECV: 5
15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6
10 COM 0 11-

11/20 PD 2 Total: 11/20 PD (6/12 rPD)
11/21 ED 2 Total: 11/21 ED (6/12 rED)
3/4 SPD 6 Phases: 4, 8, 12/3, 6, 9, 12
6/10 REC 0
30/36 END 0
26/36 STUN 0 Total Characteristic Cost: 49

Movement:
Running: 5"/10"
Flight: 11"/44"
Leaping: 2"/4"
Swimming: 1"/2"

Cost Powers END
14 Scarab's Protection: Armor (6 PD/6 ED) (18 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
1 Scarab's Protection: Mental Defense (5 points total) (2 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4), Limited Power Not against someone knowing his secret identity (-1/4)
3 Scarab's Protection: Power Defense (5 points) (5 Active Points); Limited Power Not against someone knowing his secret identity (-1/4), Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
4 Scarab's Protection: +10 PD (10 Active Points); Limited Power Only applies to STUN, and only if BOD damage not taken (-1), Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
26 Scarab's Unseen Wings: Flight 11", Position Shift, x4 Noncombat (32 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4) 3
Scarab's Gifts (characteristics), all slots Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
12 1) +15 STR (15 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4) 1
5 2) +3 CON (6 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
2 3) +3 ED (3 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
24 4) +10 DEX (30 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
10 Far Memory: Retrocognitive Clairsentience (Sight Group And Normal Hearing) (45 Active Points); No Conscious Control (-2), Retrocognition Only (-1), Only Through The Senses Of Previous Incarnations (-1/2) 4
Notes: In either secret or heroic identity, Scarab sometimes has glimpses of past incarnations, especially of being a priest of Ra. These can be full fledged "visions" of a past life, or sudden flashes of insight or special knowledge - "This way! The fourth duke built a secret tunnel in case of seige, it may still be there." "I thought you had never been in this castle before?" "Not in this life...."

Skills
3 Scientist
2 1) SS: Archeology 12-
2 2) SS: Architecture 12-
2 3) SS: Egyptology 12-
2 4) SS: Linguistics 12-
3 Linguist
0 1) Native: Language: English (idiomatic; literate)
2 2) Language: Ancient Egyptian (completely fluent; literate)
1 3) Language: Arabic (fluent conversation; literate)
1 4) Language: Coptic (completely fluent; literate)
1 5) Language: German (completely fluent; literate)
3 Traveler
3 1) AK: Egypt 13-
2 2) AK: Egyptian Archeological sites (3 Active Points) 12-
2 3) CuK: Ancient Egypt (3 Active Points) 12-
2 4) CuK: Modern Egypt (3 Active Points) 12-
3 One cannot work in Egypt without handling horses, asses, and camels: Animal Handler (Camels, Equines) 12-
3 One cannot work in Egypt without handling horse's asses and camel's: Bureaucratics 12-
3 Baksheesh, they call it: Bribery 12-
3 Nothing is hidden from the Eye of Ra: Concealment 12-
3 Dead men do tell tales, even after thousands of years: Forensic Medicine 12-
3 I can read hieroglyphs, I should be able to decypher this: Cryptography 12-
1 I am not so easily fooled: Forgery (Other Antiquities) 13- (3 Active Points); Limited Power Only to identify fakes (-1)
3 The sun and stars always know where they are going. Follow them. : Navigation (Land, Marine) 12-
7 TF: Common Motorized Ground Vehicles, Riding Animals, Rafts, Small Rowed Boats, Small Wind-Powered Boats
3 May Bast be with me: Stealth 12- (14-)
3 Do not even go to a souk, unless resolved to be both careful and stubborn: Trading 12-
3 Have you seen a scarab at work?: Hoist 12-
2 The desert is harsh, but the Gods provide. : Survival (Desert) 12-

Talents
12 Combat Luck (6 PD/6 ED)
10 Turn Undead (12 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)
3 Bump Of Direction
3 Absolute Time Sense
5 Rapid Healing
10 Divine Favor

Perks
10 Contact: Bast (Contact has significant Contacts of her own, Contact has useful Skills or resources, Good relationship with Contact), Spirit Contact (x2) (10 Active Points) 11-
6 Contact: Ra (Contact has significant Contacts of her own, Contact has useful Skills or resources), Spirit Contact (x2) (6 Active Points) 8-

Total Cost: 280

200+ Disadvantages
5 Dependent NPC: Akh-Tu-Men (A talking cat) 11- (Slightly Less Powerful than the PC; Useful Noncombat Position or Skills)
15 Hunted: Bast (and Ra and the rest of the pantheon) 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, PC has a Public ID or is otherwise very easy to find, Watching)
10 Psychological Limitation - Priestly purity: Must shave face, head, and body, wear clean linens, normally be moderate in food and drink, etc. (Uncommon, Strong)
15 Psychological Limitation: Heroic - must combat evil and injustice, uphold virtue, etc. (Common, Strong)
15 Psychological Limitation: Priestly duties - greeting the Sun at dawn, offerings on holy days, etc (Common, Strong)
5 Social Limitation: Religious minority (Occasionally, Minor)
15 Social Limitation: Secret ID (Frequently, Major)

Total Disadvantage Points: 80

Background/History: From the Public Domain Superheroes Database: "Peter Ward is an Egyptologist who discovers he’s the reincarnation of an ancient Egyptian priest of the sun god Ra. Given a mystic scarab ring by the cat goddess Bast, Ward touches the ring and becomes the Scarab. The ring grants him great powers, and Ward uses them to combat evil and injustice. He is accompanied on his many adventures by an intelligent cat named Akh-Tu-Men."



Appearance: First Appearance : Startling Comics #34 (Jul 1945) Publisher: Nedor

According to Public Domain Superheroes, the creator of this character is unknown and the character is in the public domain.

Character sheet by Lucius Alexander

Copyright Palindromedary Enterprises

Lucius, feel free to sumbit this and anyone else you create to my website!

[Lucius]

Lucius, feel free to submit this and anyone else you create to my website!

Thanks. I forgot to post the file.

32345

Anything in particular you'd like to see?

I'm working on Amazing Man

Lucius Alexander

And an Amazing Palindromedary

[wcw43921]

http://pdsh.wikia.com/wiki/Public_Domain_Super_Heroes

A few things I noticed:

There are a surprising number of public domain characters who have the same names or similar names as privately held characters - like Doc Strange and Daredevil.



Not to mention the Green Dragon (http://pdsh.wikia.com/wiki/Green_Dragon). I imagine the CU version would pitch a screaming temper tantrum if he ever found out about that one.

I also noticed how many of these heroes had careers so short you could count their appearances on the fingers of one hand. Must have been heck on the writers and artists--

:cool:: "I just got word--Captain Fist has been canceled. The boss wants a new hero--a speedster. Apparently his kid got a hold of some Flash comics and is eating them up."

:smoke:: "But I just finished drawing this month's story? I gotta throw out twenty pages of art because the boss changed his mind?"

:cool:: "No--no, we'll call him--Captain Fleet! Just tell Glennis in coloring to change the colors around on his costume, and maybe you could add little wings to his boots. I'll re-write the dialogue to explain it all. It'll be fine."

:smoke:: "It better--I'm already behind on this month's Morty Mouse And His Furry Friends."

:cool:: "Didn't you hear? That got canceled too. The boss wants a new comic about a talking moose and a flying squirrel."

:smoke:: "Is he NUTS?!? Who'd want to read about that?"


Speaking of noticing things--did anyone notice the trailer for the Scarab movie at the bottom of the home page? Not too bad for a low budget effort. I particularly like the scene where the minions were cheering on the master villain--you could tell the guns they were shaking in the air were Airsoft weapons. I would have preferred that the Black Terror had had a cape instead of a trenchcoat--he looked more like a Punisher knock-off, rather than the Superman-Batman knock off he's traditionally been. :D

Anyway, an excellent site. My thanks to you, Lucius, and the palindromedary.

[Susano]

Thanks. I forgot to post the file.

32345

Anything in particular you'd like to see?

I'm working on Amazing Man

Lucius Alexander

And an Amazing Palindromedary

I don't know any PD Heroes well enough to ask.

[BobGreenwade]

If we're after write-ups, I'd rather see villains like Green Dragon, the Claw, etc.

[Lucius]

If we're after write-ups, I'd rather see villains like Green Dragon, the Claw, etc.

After Amazing Man, I'll look into some villains.

Assuming I have any points left.

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary drily observes that it looks like Amazing Man may require all the points there are.

[Balabanto]

Joe Linehan actually built the Claw. :) He was tough. It hurt a lot.

[IndianaJoe3]

Weakness: Can be trapped in green mist form

And give no clue HOW!


Tupperware.

[Lucius]

Joe Linehan actually built the Claw. :) He was tough. It hurt a lot.

I looked at Claw, but got to the vehicle, and decided it was boring.

Lucius Alexander

Okay, I started the Claw but then the palindromedary ate it.

[Lucius]

You asked for it, you got it.

Green Dragon (Golden Age)
Val Char Cost Roll Notes
15 STR 5 12- Lift 200.0kg; 3d6 [1]
18 DEX 24 13- OCV: 6/DCV: 6
25 CON 30 14-
10 BODY 0 11-
18 INT 8 13- PER Roll 13-
18 EGO 16 13- ECV: 6
15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6
10 COM 0 11-

10/20 PD 2 Total: 10/20 PD (5/15 rPD)
10/20 ED 0 Total: 10/20 ED (5/15 rED)
5 SPD 22 Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 12
10 REC 4
50 END 0
30 STUN -1 Total Characteristic Cost: 118

Movement:
Running: 7"/14"
Flight: 11"/44"
Leaping: 3"/6"
Swimming: 3"/6"

Cost Powers END
No Longer Human
15 1) Armor (5 PD/5 ED)
46 2) Life Support (Eating: Character only has to eat once per week; Immunity All terrestrial poisons and chemical warfare agents; Immunity: All terrestrial diseases and biowarfare agents; Longevity: 1600 Years; Safe Environment: Zero Gravity; Safe in High Pressure; Safe in High Radiation; Safe in Intense Cold; Safe in Intense Heat; Safe in Low Pressure/Vacuum; Self-Contained Breathing; Sleeping: Character only has to sleep 8 hours per week)
5 3) Rapid Healing
6 4) Mental Defense (15 points total)

10 Luck 5d6 (25 Active Points); Limited Power Only when already defeated and trying to escape (-1 1/2)

Sorcery
96 1) Animal Forms: Multiform (400 Character Points in the most expensive form) (Instant Change, x128 Number Of Forms) (120 Active Points); Nonpersistent (-1/4)
Notes: Assume he can take the form of any animal within the point limits. On other planets, maybe he can take the form of local wildlife there, too.
21 2) All the tongues of man: Universal Translator 14-
15 3) Or beast: Beast Speech
17 4) Create Minions: Major Transform 2d6 (Living things to living things), Personal Immunity (+1/4), Improved Results Group (+1/2), Area Of Effect (5" Radius; +1) (82 Active Points); Extra Time (1 Hour, -3), No Range (-1/2), Limited Target (Living Things) (-1/4) 8
37 5) Spells of Assault: Killing Attack - Hand-To-Hand 2d6-1 (2d6+1 w/STR), Variable Special Effects (Any SFX; +1/2) (37 Active Points) 4
71 6) Modify Spell: Variable Advantage (+2 1/2 Advantages; +5) for up to 25 Active Points of Spells of Assault (125 Active Points); Requires A Skill Roll (No Active Point penalty to Skill Roll, RSR Skill is subject to Skill vs. Skill contests (any other magician can roll their skill to cast a counterspell); -1/4), Incantations (-1/4), Gestures (-1/4) 12
40 7) Spells of motion: Flight 11", Position Shift, x4 Noncombat, Usable As Swimming (+1/4) (40 Active Points) 4
4 8) Cross the Abyss of Space: MegaScale (1" = 1 km; +1/4) for up to 32 Active Points of Flight (8 Active Points); Conditional Power Only outside atmosphere (-1) 1
40 9) Apotropaic Spells: Force Field (10 PD/10 ED/5 Mental Defense/5 Power Defense) (Protect Carried Items) 4

Perks
0 Master Villain. He's got a base on Mars, a base on Jupiter, minions out the ying yang, etc : Details as per your scenario

Talents
20 Animal Friendship

Skills
5 Magic: Power 14-
3 Interrogation 12-
5 Navigation (Air, Land, Marine, Space) 13-
3 Traveler
1 1) AK: Atlantis (2 Active Points) 11-
2 2) AK: Jupiter (3 Active Points) 13-
2 3) AK: Mars (3 Active Points) 13-
2 4) AK: The Far East (3 Active Points) 13-
2 5) AK: The Solar System (3 Active Points) 13-
3 Scholar
2 1) KS: Artifacts of power (3 Active Points) 13-
2 2) KS: Legendary Treasures (3 Active Points) 13-
2 3) KS: Nature Lore (3 Active Points) 13-

Total Powers & Skill Cost: 477
Total Cost: 595

500+ Disadvantages
10 Distinctive Features: Sharp fangs and pointed ears (Concealable; Noticed and Recognizable; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses)
5 Reputation: Shape shifting sorcerer, 8-
5 Psychological Limitation: Doesn't want to hurt old men (Uncommon, Moderate)
10 Psychological Limitation: Prefers to hurt young women (Common, Moderate)
15 Psychological Limitation: Always looking for more power - wealth, minions, artifacts, knowledge..... (Common, Strong)
10 Psychological Limitation: Coward - will flee when the battle turns against him (Common, Moderate)
15 Unluck: 3d6
10 Hunted: Those pesky interfering heroes! 11- (As Pow, Limited Geographical Area (From Green Dragon's point of view....he can always go to another planet), Capture)
5 Rivalry: Professional (Other magicicians), Rival is As Powerful, Seek to Outdo, Embarrass, or Humiliate Rival, Rival Aware of Rivalry
10 Accidental Change to random form: If hit with transformative magic, or a large Dispel ("large" must be defined as per campaign, if magical Dispels are rare perhaps any Dispel counts as "large") 11- (Uncommon)

Total Disadvantage Points: 95

Background/History: Born on Earth (probably in the East) centuries ago, Green Dragon has long since ceased to be fully Human. After some unknown time spent exploring the solar system and establishing bases of some sort on other planets, he has recently returned to plague the world of his birth. It is suspected that his intention is to acquire ancient artifacts that would enhance his powers, or perhaps having dwelt elsewhere he simply decided he likes Earth well enough that he wants to conquer it, or part of it.

Quote: My dear Garol, I have no intention of torturing you! I never hurt old men! Bring in the princess!

Appearance: Green Dragon's one and only published appearance was in Dime Comics number 1, in 1945.

In "human" form he appears to be a middle aged bald Asian man whose face is marred by inhumanly pointed ears and noticeable fangs.This could be an effect of having spent so much time in the form of predatory animals, or the mark of some dark bargain he struck to gain his first foothold of occult power.



Fish Man
Val Char Cost Roll Notes
15 STR 5 12- Lift 200.0kg; 3d6 [1]
14 DEX 12 12- OCV: 5/DCV: 5
8 CON -4 11-
8 BODY -4 11-
8 INT -2 11- PER Roll 11-
11 EGO 2 11- ECV: 4
15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6
10 COM 0 11-

6 PD 0 Total: 6 PD (3 rPD)
6 ED 1 Total: 6 ED (3 rED)
3 SPD 6 Phases: 4, 8, 12
5 REC 0
16 END 0
20 STUN 0 Total Characteristic Cost: 24

Movement:
Running: 5"/10"
Leaping: 3"/6"
Swimming: 7"/14"

Cost Powers END
0 Aquatic: Life Support, breathes water but not air
9 Scales: Armor (3 PD/3 ED)
60 Fish Forms: Multiform (200 Character Points in the most expensive form) (Instant Change, x64 Number Of Forms) (75 Active Points); Nonpersistent (-1/4)
Notes: Assume it can take the form of any aquatic animal within the point limits.
11 Spears/Tridents: Killing Attack - Hand-To-Hand 2d6-1 (3d6 - 1 w/STR) (25 Active Points); OAF (-1), Real Weapon (-1/4) 2
10 Nets: Entangle 3d6, 4 DEF (35 Active Points); 1 Recoverable Charge (-1 1/4), OAF (-1), Real Weapon (-1/4) [1 rc]

Talents
10 Beast Speech (15 Active Points); Conditional Power Aquatic Only (-1/2)
2 Eidetic Memory (5 Active Points); Limited Power Only to remember and follow orders (-1)

Skills
3 Concealment 11-
3 Stealth 12-
2 Survival (Marine Underwater) 11-
3 Teamwork 12-
3 Shadowing 11-

Total Powers & Skill Cost: 116
Total Cost: 140

75+ Disadvantages
15 Accidental Change - back into whatever species of fish it was before being Transformed: Negative BOD 14- (Uncommon)
10 Distinctive Features: Fish Man (Concealable; Noticed and Recognizable; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses)
25 Psychological Limitation: Loyal to Green Dragon (Very Common, Total)
15 Hunted: Enemies of Green Dragon 8- (Mo Pow, Harshly Punish)

Total Disadvantage Points: 65

Background/History: Created from magically transformed fish, the Fish Man is an example of the kind of minion Green Dragon can create. He had a small army of such creatures when he attacked Atlantis.

Personality/Motivation: None to speak of. Their Master created them, they obey him, and that is all they know.

Quote: Glub!

Campaign Use: Expendable cannon fodder.

Appearance: Their one and only published appearance was in Dime Comics number 1, in 1945.



The Fish Men were created by Green Dragon, and according to the Public Domain Super Heroes website Green Dragon was created by Fran Hopper and published by Lev Gleason, and is in Public Domain.

These character sheets created by Lucius Alexander

Copyright Palindromedary Enterprises

3236032361

[wcw43921]

I looked at Claw, but got to the vehicle, and decided it was boring.


So, you weren't digging it, then. ;)

I thought the Claw was rather nifty, myself. Monstrous appearance, razor-sharp claws (back before they were a good-guy accessory) and he could grow to gigantic size. It's like a Dick Tracy villain on steroids and acid. And maybe crystal meth. What's not to like?

Well, there are those who might have an issue with him being a racist stereotype (and the Green Dragon isn't?)--but the way I read the origin, he was some sort of human-demon hybrid, which can explain both his appearance and his powers. I don't see him as being meant as a "typical" Asian, or even a stereotypical one.

That's what I was thinking, anyway.

[Lucius]

I looked at Claw, but got to the vehicle, and decided it was boring.



So, you weren't digging it, then. ;)

Not a hole lot.


I thought the Claw was rather nifty, myself. Monstrous appearance, razor-sharp claws (back before they were a good-guy accessory) and he could grow to gigantic size. It's like a Dick Tracy villain on steroids and acid. And maybe crystal meth. What's not to like?

Well, there are those who might have an issue with him being a racist stereotype (and the Green Dragon isn't?)--but the way I read the origin, he was some sort of human-demon hybrid, which can explain both his appearance and his powers. I don't see him as being meant as a "typical" Asian, or even a stereotypical one.

That's what I was thinking, anyway.

I'm sure one could run into racist stereotypes in this period.

Not always negative ones. Tibet in particular seems to have been viewed as the Font of Wisdom.

I have been working on Amazing Man, and will probably post him later

Lucius Alexander

Assuming the palindromedary doesn't eat my work.

[SKJAM!]

And then there's Stardust the Super Wizard. Unfreezing him in the modern day might be very scary for the player characters.

[BobGreenwade]

I had much the same thoughts on The Claw as wcw43921. I also figure him for a good chief villain for a Reality Storm-like adventure.

Two others that have struck my fancy are Black Dragon and Dr. Doom. I really wish I could get more information on the latter.

[SKJAM!]

And then there's Stardust the Super Wizard. Unfreezing him in the modern day might be very scary for the player characters.

[wcw43921]

I think there's an echo in here. :)

[Lucius]

:nonp:

And in one case, the writer apparently thought Tibet was downstream from China.

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary thinks Escher should have been the artist on that one

[Lucius]

Amazing Man, AKA The Green Mist
Secret ID John Aman

Val Char Cost Roll Notes
25/35 STR 15 14- / 16- Lift 800.0kg/3200.0kg; 5d6/7d6 [2/3]
18/23 DEX 24 13- / 14- OCV: 6/8/DCV: 6/8
23/33 CON 26 14- / 16-
13 BODY 6 12-
18 INT 8 13- PER Roll 13-
18/23 EGO 16 13- / 14- ECV: 6/8
20 PRE 10 13- PRE Attack: 4d6
10 COM 0 11-

11/23 PD 0 Total: 11/23 PD (6/11 rPD)
11/23 ED 0 Total: 11/23 ED (6/11 rED)
4 SPD 12 Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12
10/14 REC 0
46/66 END 0
38/48 STUN 0 Total Characteristic Cost: 121

Movement:
Running: 7"/14"
Flight: 11"/22"
Leaping: 6"/12"
Swimming: 3"/6"

Cost Powers END
Amazing Power Skills
5 1) Amazing Strength: Power 15- (17-)
5 2) Amazing Reflexes and Coordination: Power 14- (15-)
5 3) Amazing Intellect: Power 14-
5 4) Amazing Willpower: Power 14- (15-)
5 5) Amazing Hardihood: Power 15- (17-)
5 6) +1 with Amazing Power Skills

The Tests (These are challenges Aman faced as part of his origin story.)

34 1) The First Test: To restrain a rampaging elephant: Suppress STR plus Any One Movement :Power 7 1/2d6, STR plus any Movement Power simultaneously (+1/2), Reduced Endurance (1/2 END; +1/4), Damage Shield (Offensive (use with Grabs); +3/4) (95 Active Points); Limited Power Only Usable with Grab (-1), Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV; -1/2), Only When In Contact With The Ground (-1/4) 4
Notes: The idea is that if Amazing Man grabs something, it's not going anywhere. This works only if in Amazing Man form and standing on the ground. Breaking the Grab cancels the effect.

16 2) The Second Test: To slay a cobra while bound hand and foot.: (Total: 20 Active Cost, 16 Real Cost) Environmental Movement (no penalties if bound) (Real Cost: 4) plus Contortionist 13- (14-) (Real Cost: 3) plus Acrobatics 13- (14-) (Real Cost: 3) plus Breakfall 13- (14-) (Real Cost: 3) plus Double Jointed (4 Active Points); Requires Amazing Reflexes Skill Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 5 Active Points; -1) (Real Cost: 2) plus Lightning Reflexes: +2 DEX to act first with All Actions (3 Active Points); Requires Amazing Reflexes Skill Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 5 Active Points; -1) (Real Cost: 1)
Notes: He BIT it. Like a mongoose.

35 3) The Third Test: To endure wounds unmoved by pain or fear.: (Total: 50 Active Cost, 35 Real Cost) Fearless (Real Cost: 14) plus Combat Luck (6 PD/6 ED) (Real Cost: 12) plus Resistance (3 points) (Real Cost: 3) plus Rapid Healing (5 Active Points); Requires Amazing Hardihood Skill Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 5 Active Points; -1) (Real Cost: 2) plus +8 PD (8 Active Points); Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (0 DCV; -1), Limited Power Only against attacks he is aware of and prepared for (-1/2), Limited Power STUN only (-1/2), Requires Amazing Willpower Skill Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 20 Active Points; -1/4) (Real Cost: 2) plus +8 ED (8 Active Points); Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (0 DCV; -1), Limited Power Only against attacks he is aware of and prepared for (-1/2), Limited Power STUN only (-1/2), Requires Amazing Willpower Skill Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 20 Active Points; -1/4) (Real Cost: 2)
Notes: After taking a knife wound to the chest and to the throat, Amazing Man removed the blades himself and described the pain as "not unbearable."

54 4) The Fourth Test: To answer a thousand questions, each in a different tongue: (Total: 72 Active Cost, 54 Real Cost) Universal Translator 16- (23 Active Points); Limited Power Only known, human languages. (-1/4) (Real Cost: 18) plus Eidetic Memory (5 Active Points); Requires Amazing Intellect Skill Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 5 Active Points; -1) (Real Cost: 2) plus Speed Reading (x100) (Real Cost: 6) plus Speed Listening (x100) (6 Active Points); Limited Power Only to mentally review information being "played back" by Eidetic Memory (-1/2) (Real Cost: 4) plus Deduction 14- (Real Cost: 5) plus Cramming , Trigger (Activating the Trigger requires a Zero Phase Action, Trigger requires a Turn or more to reset; Amazing Man always seems to know what he needs to know; +1/4) (6 Active Points) (Real Cost: 6) plus Cramming , Trigger (Activating the Trigger requires a Zero Phase Action, Trigger requires a Turn or more to reset; Amazing Man always seems to know what he needs to know; +1/4) (6 Active Points) (Real Cost: 6) plus Cramming (5 Active Points); Requires Amazing Intellect Skill Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 5 Active Points; -1) (Real Cost: 2) plus Lightning Calculator (3 Active Points); Requires Amazing Intellect Skill Roll (-1/2), Side Effects (If roll is missed by more than one, a WRONG answer is given - usually a number equal to the right answer, plus 4 ; -1/4) (Real Cost: 2) plus Life Support (Eating: Character only has to eat once per week; Sleeping: Character only has to sleep 8 hours per week; it doesn't say they gave him any breaks during that test!) (Real Cost: 2) plus Computer Link (5 Active Points); Requires Amazing Intellect Skill Roll (Active Point penalty to Skill Roll is -1 per 5 Active Points; -1), Extra Time (1 Turn (Post-Segment 12), Only to Activate, -3/4), Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV; Has to think about it; -1/2) (Real Cost: 1)
Notes: Some notes on the powers: Amazing Man is reported to have "passed easily" a test on "all subjects." Rather than buy KS: Everything at <=30, I chose to annotate his encyclopedic knowledge as a "computer link." to represent the library in his mind. This, combined with Eidetic Memory, Speed Reading, Speed Listening (in a single Turn he can mentally review an hour and a half lecture) and three slots of Cramming mean that he can get an <=8 roll in almost anything (by consulting his Eidetic Memory, and speed-studying it.) Note, however, that he is not omniscient (even he can't read every book and every newspaper and attend every lecture on every subject!) nor is his information perfect; even if he remembers a text, article, or conversation perfectly, the source may be incomplete, outdated, or just plain wrong.

Purified by Fire
Notes: Six months after the first four Tests, Amazing Man was summoned by the Seven to a purification by fire.
2 1) Life Support (Safe in Intense Heat)
4 2) Life Support (Self-Contained Breathing) (10 Active Points); Fuel Dependent (fuel is Very Common (Oxygen); must refuel Once per Hour; -1), Nonpersistent (-1/4)
3 3) Sight Group Flash Defense (3 points)
1 4) It worked for Ayesha....: Life Support (Longevity: 200 Years)
4 5) Fireproofed: Armor (0 PD/6 ED) (9 Active Points); Limited Power Only against fire/heat (-1)
6 6) Fireproof: +13 ED (13 Active Points); Limited Power Only against fire/heat (-1)

Empowered by the Council of Seven, all slots Only When Serving The Council's Purposes (Powers may be withdrawn at the Council's discretion; -1/2)
Notes: "Go now and fight for good against evil - for the weak against the strong! Good luck to you."
7 1) +10 STR (10 Active Points); Only When Serving The Council's Purposes (Powers may be withdrawn at the Council's discretion; -1/2) 1
10 2) +5 DEX (15 Active Points); Only When Serving The Council's Purposes (Powers may be withdrawn at the Council's discretion; -1/2)
13 3) +10 CON (20 Active Points); Only When Serving The Council's Purposes (Powers may be withdrawn at the Council's discretion; -1/2)
7 4) +1 Overall (10 Active Points); Only When Serving The Council's Purposes (Powers may be withdrawn at the Council's discretion; -1/2)
18 5) Flight 11", Position Shift (27 Active Points); Only When Serving The Council's Purposes (Powers may be withdrawn at the Council's discretion; -1/2) 3
10 6) Luck 3d6 (15 Active Points); Only When Serving The Council's Purposes (Powers may be withdrawn at the Council's discretion; -1/2)

68 Amazing Man/ Green Mist: Multipower, 120-point reserve, (120 Active Points); all slots Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4)
Notes: When changing forms (changing from one slot to the other) roll for the "Jammed" Limitation. Failure means Amazing Man is for some reason stuck in one form or the other for the time being.
6u 1) Green Mist Form: (Total: 120 Active Cost, 61 Real Cost) Desolidification , Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (60 Active Points); Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4), Cannot Pass Through Airtight Barriers (-1/2) (Real Cost: 27) plus Affects Physical World (+2); Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4) for up to 30 Active Points of STR (34 Active Points) (Real Cost: 34) 6
5u 2) Amazing Man Form: (Total: 95 Active Cost, 54 Real Cost) Physical Damage Reduction, Resistant, 50% (30 Active Points); Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4) (Real Cost: 17) plus Energy Damage Reduction, Resistant, 50% (30 Active Points); Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4) (Real Cost: 17) plus Armor (5 PD/5 ED) (15 Active Points); Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4) (Real Cost: 8) plus +5 PD (5 Active Points); Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4) (Real Cost: 3) plus +5 ED (5 Active Points); Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4) (Real Cost: 3) plus +5 EGO (10 Active Points); Activation Roll 15-, Jammed (Roll to Change Forms; -3/4) (Real Cost: 6)
41 Mist Size Change: Multipower, 62-point reserve, (62 Active Points); all slots Linked to Green Mist Form (-1/2)
4u 1) Can fit into a test tube: Shrinking (0.0625 m tall, 0.0031 kg mass, -10 PER Rolls to perceive character, +10 DCV, takes +15" KB), Costs END Only To Activate (+1/4) (62 Active Points); Linked to Green Mist Form (-1/2) 5
3u 2) Can fill the room: Growth (+8 STUN, -8" KB, 25,600 kg, -5 DCV, +5 PER Rolls to perceive character, 12.7 m tall, 6.3 m wide), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2) (60 Active Points); Limited Power Does not add to STR or BOD (-1/2), Linked to Green Mist Form (-1/2)

Self Mastery "I am my own master."
4 1) Simulate Death (+1 to roll)
11 2) Mental Defense (15/16 points total)
15 3) Power Defense (15 points)
10 4) +10 EGO (20 Active Points); Limited Power Only against Mind Control or Mental Transform (-1)
5 5) Mental Awareness
5 6) +1 with Mental Combat

Superlatively gifted, rigorously trained
10 1) Missile Deflection (Arrows, Slings, Outrageous Fortune, Etc.)
6 2) Ambidexterity (no Off Hand penalty) (9 Active Points); Requires Amazing Reflexes Skill Roll (-1/2)
15 3) Combat Sense 13-
7 4) Life Support (Immunity: All terrestrial diseases and biowarfare agents) (10 Active Points); Requires Amazing Hardihood Skill Roll (-1/2)
7 5) Life Support (Immunity: All terrestrial poisons and chemical warfare agents) (10 Active Points); Requires Amazing Hardihood Skill Roll (-1/2)
6 6) Clinging (normal STR) (10 Active Points); Requires Amazing Strength Skill Roll (-1/2), Cannot Resist Knockback (-1/4)
3 7) Concealment 13-
10 8) Defense Maneuver I-IV
3 9) Navigation (Land, Marine) 13-
3 10) Stealth 13- (14-)
3 11) Shadowing 13-
4 12) Survival (Temperate/Subtropical, Mountain) 13-
3 13) Tactics 13-
3 14) Tracking 13-
20 15) +2 Overall

Amazing Martial Techniques "As described by the narrator!"
Maneuver OCV DCV Notes
4 Amazing Dodge "Our hero evades this dastardly attack" -- +5 Dodge, Affects All Attacks, Abort
4 Amazing Parry "Amazing Man declares 'I think not' and catches the thrusting blade between the palms of his bare hands! " +2 +2 Block, Abort
5 Seize Weapon "As quickly as he says 'let me take that before you hurt someone' he disarms the villain" +0 +0 Grab Weapon, 45 STR / 55 STR to take weapon away
5 Amazing Knockdown/Throw/Trip "See how lesser men fall before Amazing Man!" +0 +0 7d6 / 9d6 +v/5; Target Falls; FMove
5 Amazing Moves (Passing Strike) "Amazing Man deals with this foe without breaking stride." +1 +0 7d6 / 9d6 +v/5; FMove
3 Amazing Wrestling Holds "In vain the villain struggles to escape the powerful grip" -1 -1 Grab Two Limbs, 45 STR / 55 STR for holding on
4 Amazing Escape "Who can hope to hold this man called The Green Mist?" +0 +0 50 STR / 60 STR vs. Grabs
4 Irresistable Force "Surprised, the guard staggers back helplessly" +0 +0 50 STR / 60 STR to Shove
4 Immovable Object "The arrogant thug tries to force this unwanted inruder back out through the door, and finds that Amazing Man is not so easily pushed around." +0 +0 50 STR / 60 STR to resist Shove; Block, Abort
8 +2 HTH Damage Classes "To teach them a lesson!"
6 Weapon Element: Chain & Rope Weapons, Clubs, Default Element - Bare Hand, Homemade Weapons, Missile Deflection Power, Off Hand, Staves

Total Powers & Skill Cost: 586
Total Cost: 707

200+ Disadvantages
15 Hunted: The Council of Seven 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, PC has a Public ID or is otherwise very easy to find, Watching)
25 Hunted: The Great Question 11- (As Pow, NCI, PC has a Public ID or is otherwise very easy to find, Harshly Punish)
10 Psychological Limitation: Loyal to the Council of Seven (Uncommon, Strong)
15 Psychological Limitation: Heroic - "fights for good against evil, for the weak against the strong." (Common, Strong)
10 Psychological Limitation: Protective of children, especially orphans (Uncommon, Strong)
10 Dependent NPC: Zona Henderson or Tommy Henderson 11- (Slightly Less Powerful than the PC)
15 Enraged: Berserk if surprised. (Dangerously honed reflexes) (Uncommon), go 8-, recover 14-
10 Vulnerability: 2 x Effect Mind Scan (Unique mental signature) (Uncommon)
10 Unluck: 2d6
10 Vulnerability: 1 1/2 x Effect PRE attacks involving threats to innocents (Common)
379 Amazing Bonus

Total Disadvantage Points: 509

Background/History: The secret Tibetan Council of Seven clairvoyantly oversee a global network of benevolence, including support for orphanages on all continents. John Aman was an orphan who stood out among his peers in physical development, mental acuity, and integrity of character. Nika, perhaps the most forward looking among the Council, named him "Prince of Orphans" and the Council agreed to bring this amazing child from America to Tibet to oversee his education closely, with an eye to empowering him as their champion, the forceful and proactive agent for good that they expected the world to sorely need in the years of strife and evil they foresaw.

Unfortunately, the Council did not yet see the evil lurking in their own midst - The Great Question, a powerful telepath who acted as their chief interrogator, had created his own web of crime and villainy, seduced by the lure of power for its own sake. Eventually frustrated in the hope of controlling Amazing Man directly, The Great Question sends minions to initiate various plots and manipulates the hero's loyalty to the Council. Eventually his evil is exposed and he is subtracted from the Seven, but that can only multiply his enmity towards John Aman....

Powers/Tactics: Amazing Man has the standard Golden Age, Superman Wannabe power suite - Flight, Super Strength, and Invulnerability. This write up is based on only the most readily available information, and geared towards the minimum necessary to meet the superlative descriptions. The inclusion of five SEPERATE Power Skills - based on STR, DEX, INT, EGO, and CON - is meant to cover whatever amazing feats related to those traits are not already on the character sheet. So if, in order to save a life, Amazing Man must lift more than his STR 30 can normally manage, he can make an Amazing STR roll to perform an Amazing Push, or to be allowed to "Haymaker" his STR even if it's not in combat, per se.

If you are familiar with Amazing Man's exploits, feel free to modify this version as needed, or contact me with suggestions.

Campaign Use: As a heroic NPC, Amazing Man is an obvious Superman-like choice for a "Deus ex machina" to rescue the heroes. Conversely, he may have been captured or neutralized somehow and the player characters must rescue HIM.

If The Great Question can arrange it, it is quite possible that Amazing Man and the player characters can come into conflict - anything from a "brute force" application of Mental Illusions to subtle and byzantine plots with multiple layers of deception can put Amazing Man and the player heroes on a collision course. If you want to rewrite comic book "history" the player characters may even prove to be responsible for The Great Question's unmasking and exposure to the Council of Seven!

Appearance: Amazing Man's first appearance was in 1939 in Amazing Man Comics #5. There were no Amazing Man Comics numbered 1 to 4. The Fifth was really the First. At the time, publishers would number comics this way to create the impression the character had already existed for a few months - so many titles folded after just one issue that buyers were reluctant to purchase an issue #1 and read about a character they might never see again.

According to Public Domain Superheroes, Amazing Man was created by Bill Everett, published by Centaur, and the character is in the public domain.

Character sheet by

Lucius Alexander

Copyright Palindromedary Enterprises

32376

[BobGreenwade]

When I worked as an Information Specialist for the USFS, I earned the nickname of The Ferret for my ability to "ferret out" information. I actually threatened at one point to come to work one Halloween in a superhero costume under that name. Imagine my surprise when I found that there's an actual superhero under that name in the PDSH database. So, just for giggles, I went into Fabrica to make his costume (at least, the closest I could manage).

I may or may not work up a projected character sheet at a later date.

[Lord Fyre]

Do all of Lucius's character sheets in this thread need to be updated now? :(

[Lucius]

When I worked as an Information Specialist for the USFS, I earned the nickname of The Ferret for my ability to "ferret out" information. I actually threatened at one point to come to work one Halloween in a superhero costume under that name. Imagine my surprise when I found that there's an actual superhero under that name in the PDSH database. So, just for giggles, I went into Fabrica to make his costume (at least, the closest I could manage).

I may or may not work up a projected character sheet at a later date.

So if you're planning to do the Golden Age Ferret, you'd rather I didn't?

Lucius Alexander

1991-2002, the Golden Age of Palindromedaries

[BobGreenwade]

So if you're planning to do the Golden Age Ferret, you'd rather I didn't?

Lucius Alexander

1991-2002, the Golden Age of PalindromedariesActually it would save me the work. Go ahead and include my pic on it, too, if you want to.

[assault]

What's particularly interesting are the Fawcett and Quality characters that are allegedly public domain. Of course, most modern readers will know them through their most recent incarnations, which aren't public domain, but they are still at least somewhat familiar to the hopelessly geeky.

Bulletman is probably my favourite amongst the characters on the site. He makes a perfect Champions character too - his power set expanded, but not too greatly, and his initial powers are nicely within the range of a starting Champions character. And Bulletgirl and Bulletdog(!) are just plain neat.

I started a writeup months ago. I might dig it out. Either way, he started as a pretty standard brick with high intelligence and a hat that gives him flight. And possibly armour. It's not clear initially that it's the hat that makes him bulletproof, although that is a logical interpretation. Later he gets telescopic vision, and he should probably be immune to disease.

In general, though, I'd be really interested to know which Australian Golden Age characters are public domain. A lot have been "revived" over the years, but not always by their original owners.

At least one early Australian character was a "visual swipe" of Bulletman - so I could always take a Bulletman writeup, and change the name.

I notice the Phantom Lady is on the list three times. :thumbup: Headlights!

[Lucius]

Actually it would save me the work. Go ahead and include my pic on it, too, if you want to.

As you wish.

Ferret (Golden Age)
Val Char Cost Roll Notes
20 STR 10 13- Lift 400.0kg; 4d6 [2]
18 DEX 24 13- OCV: 6/DCV: 6
13 CON 6 12-
11 BODY 2 11-
18 INT 8 13- PER Roll 13-
14 EGO 8 12- ECV: 5
15 PRE 5 12- PRE Attack: 3d6
10 COM 0 11-

5/15 PD 1 Total: 5/15 PD (0/5 rPD)
5/10 ED 2 Total: 5/10 ED (0/5 rED)
3 SPD 2 Phases: 4, 8, 12
7 REC 0
26 END 0
28 STUN 0 Total Characteristic Cost: 66

Movement:
Running: 5"/10"
Flight: 11"/22"
Leaping: 4"/8"
Swimming: 2"/4"
Swinging: 11"/22"

Cost Powers END
He's going to need it
5 1) Luck 1d6
Ferret Fighting
Maneuver OCV DCV Notes
5 Can't catch the Ferret! -- +4 Dodge All Attacks, Abort; FMove
4 Can't hold the Ferret! +0 +0 35 STR vs. Grabs
5 Hit 'em where it hurts -2 +1 8d6 Strike
5 Gangway! +0 +0 4d6 +v/5; Target Falls; FMove
2 Weapon Element: Clubs, Default Element - bare hands, Homemade Weapons

Talents
6 Combat Luck (3 PD/3 ED)

Skills
3 Acrobatics 13-
3 Breakfall 13-
3 Bugging 13-
3 Bureaucratics 12-
3 Climbing 13-
3 Concealment 13-
3 Conversation 12-
3 Criminology 13-
1 Cryptography 8-
3 Deduction 13-
3 Interrogation 12-
3 Security Systems 13-
3 Shadowing 13-
3 Stealth 13-
3 Streetwise 12-
3 Tracking 13-
1 WF: Handguns
5 +1 with HTH Combat

Total Powers & Skill Cost: 84

Equipment

Costume, all slots Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)

Armor (5 PD/5 ED) (15 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4), Limited Power Doesn't protect from called shots to hands and head (-1/4)

+5 PD (5 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)

+3 with Concealment, Stealth, Shadowing (9 Active Points); Only In Heroic Identity (-1/4)

Swingline (thin but strong, black, hard to spot): Multipower, 22-point reserve, (22 Active Points); all slots IAF (-1/2), Activation Roll 14-, Burnout (-1/4), Side Effects (If the Burnout roll fails, the line broke; -1/4)

Flight 11" (22 Active Points); Levitation (-1/2), Concentration, Must Concentrate throughout use of Constant Power (1/2 DCV just dangling ; -1/2), IAF (-1/2), Activation Roll 14-, Burnout (-1/4), Side Effects (If the Burnout roll fails, the line broke; -1/4)

Swinging 11" (11 Active Points); IAF (-1/2), Activation Roll 14-, Burnout (-1/4), Side Effects (If the Burnout roll fails, the line broke; -1/4)

Total Cost: 150

75+ Disadvantages
15 Psychological Limitation: Frustrated with the limitations of police work; will break the rules to "get" the criminals (Common, Strong)
5 Reputation: Vigilante, 8-
5 Hunted: Local Police 8- (Less Pow (largely because he controls them...), Capture
15 Social Limitation: Secret ID (Occasionally, Severe)
10 Enraged: Fighting a criminal who has previously escaped justice (Uncommon), go 11-, recover 14-
5 Hunted: The Press 11- (Less Pow, NCI, Watching)
10 Hunted: Organized Crime 8- (As Pow, Harshly Punish)
10 Psychological Limitation: Stubborn (Common, Moderate)

Total Disadvantage Points: 75

Background/History: From the Public Domain Superheroes Website:
"Police commissioner Calvin Dalton felt unsatisfied with his job, so he became a costumed vigilante to "ferret" out the criminals that eluded the police. His powers included the skills of a ferret and the ability to fly. He also had great and possibly superhuman strength, and either he or his costume was bulletproof."

Campaign Use: By fudging a few things (such as assuming "flight" meant the use of a concealed swingline, making it look to witnesses as if the Ferret flew; "bulletproof" means a couple of shots failed to penetrated a lightly armored costume) I was able to write the Ferret up as a standard heroic level character of 75 points pluse 75 Disadvantages. He can be played as a Pulp Hero character as is, but is lacking in combat effectiveness. The Ferret is not meant to fight toe to toe with supervillains; he's meant to sneak in and lurk about, overhear a couple of thugs talking about who they're going to shake down the next day, and arrange for a couple of cops to walk in just as they're threatening the shopkeeper.

Appearance:

32400

Ferret's one and only appearance was in Man of War Comics #2 in 1942.

According to Public Domain Superheroes, Ferret's creator is unknown and his adventure was published by Centaur, and the character is in public domain.

Bob Greenwade's likeness used at his suggestion.

This character sheet by

Lucius Alexander

Copyright Palindromedary Enterprises

[Susano]

Been formatting these for my website. Any images to go with the characters?

[SKJAM!]

Interestingly enough, the Ferret was not the first police commissioner to assume a second identity to fight crime outside the limits of the law. That honor goes to James "Wildcat" Gordon, aka the Whisperer.

Wait, you say, Commissioner Gordon? Yep. The Batman character was named after him, though not fully so until the Fifties when it was safe to reveal his full name.

[assault]

The Gorilla with a Human Brain (http://pdsh.wikia.com/wiki/Gorilla_with_a_Human_Brain) would be pretty easy - basically a cut and paste from the Bestiary, boost his intelligence and a few other characteristics, add some combat luck, a few skills and you're good to go.

Make sure the mad scientist's niece is there to try to stop the PCs from hurting him, of course.

EDIT: I don't think I'm going to bother writing up Bulletman. He's actually quite trivial. 250 points would cover him well enough. 350 with padding.

Standard superhero characteristics, with 60 STR and 28 INT. Telescopic vision. Life Support - Immunity to Disease (I'm inferring that from his origin.) Science skills. Helmet (OIF): pretty good Flight. Helmet (OIF or IIF): pretty average Armour "bulletproof". A small gadget pool and other super-intelligence thingies might be appropriate if you have the points to spare.

The core stuff is his brick-grade strength, his high INT, his flight and defences. Everything else can be left out of a starting version.

Disads:
DNPCs - Susan Kent (later Bulletgirl), Sergeant Kent (her father).
Psych Limitations - standard Golden Age stuff.
Secret ID - Jim "Bullet" Barr, science geek.
Hunted - Initially Blackmask. Probably a Rogues Gallery later.

[bubba smith]

The Gorilla with a Human Brain (http://pdsh.wikia.com/wiki/Gorilla_with_a_Human_Brain) would be pretty easy - basically a cut and paste from the Bestiary, boost his intelligence and a few other characteristics, add some combat luck, a few skills and you're good to go.

Make sure the mad scientist's niece is there to try to stop the PCs from hurting him, of course.

EDIT: I don't think I'm going to bother writing up Bulletman. He's actually quite trivial. 250 points would cover him well enough. 350 with padding.

Standard superhero characteristics, with 60 STR and 28 INT. Telescopic vision. Life Support - Immunity to Disease (I'm inferring that from his origin.) Science skills. Helmet (OIF): pretty good Flight. Helmet (OIF or IIF): pretty average Armour "bulletproof". A small gadget pool and other super-intelligence thingies might be appropriate if you have the points to spare.

The core stuff is his brick-grade strength, his high INT, his flight and defences. Everything else can be left out of a starting version.

Disads:
DNPCs - Susan Kent (later Bulletgirl), Sergeant Kent (her father).
Psych Limitations - standard Golden Age stuff.
Secret ID - Jim "Bullet" Barr, science geek.
Hunted - Initially Blackmask. Probably a Rogues Gallery later.
thanks for cluing me in of this wiki

[Lucius]

Been formatting these for my website. Any images to go with the characters?

Well, Bob Greenwade has volunteered his likeness for Ferret.

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary notes that the Public Domain Superheroes website has images for the characters, but Lucius may want to contribute others he dug up researching them. At least for Amazing Man.

[Susano]

Yeah, the character sheet for Amazing Man is pretty whack.

[BobGreenwade]

Well, Bob Greenwade has volunteered his likeness for Ferret.Actually, I was volunteering the pic I did on Fabrica.

http://www.herogames.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=32378&d=1251726653

[Lucius]

Yeah, the character sheet for Amazing Man is pretty whack.

Disclaimer: I am not the comics fan that many people on this board are, nor do I claim to have studied the subject in great depth. That said...

The "Golden Age" of comics was the age of the solo hero, such as Superman or Batman. The "Silver Age" of comics was the age of the team, such as Fantastic Four or X-Men.

A member of a team can be a specialist. Everyone brings something unique to contribute. A solo hero must be a generalist, because there is no one to back him up. Even if there is a sidekick, as there often is, the relationship is that of master and apprentice, not one where the junior partner provides knowledge or abilities that the senior partner lacks.

The "Pulp Age" - by which I mean the action/adventure stories with contemporary settings that are more or less directly ancestral to comic books, not the fantasy, western, or other kinds of pulp fiction - was an age of the "star with a supporting cast" such as Doc Savage or the Shadow, heroes who often worked alone but did have people they could count on, a network of contacts or agents or a group of followers.

Of course, as I said, I'm not a superfan, so I'm probably just reporting what most of you already know and sounding like Captain Obvious.

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary thinks Lucius Alexander's real secret identity is Captain Oblivious

[Susano]

I was just commenting on the sheer number of powers and abilities. he was very much like Doc Savage in his apparently ability to do anything and everything.

[DocSamson]

Good stuff, thx!

[Susano]

I've uploaded some of the PD supers to my website.

[Lucius]

This site has a lot of information about Amazing Man, including copies of about three covers.

http://www.majorspoilers.com/archives/3832.htm/


Here is the cover of Amazing Man #5, the first one. I understand this image to be clearly Public Domain.

32515

This is a more recent image from one of the publishers who have taken advantage of the fact that the character is in the public domain, which means this image is NOT public domain although I believe my use of it here constitutes Fair Use. This is from Dynamite Entertainment's Project Super Powers

32516

Here's a good one for character illustration purposes I think, #15 of the original series and therefore public.

32517

Here's the only image of Ferret that I have, taken from the Public Domain Superheroes database.

32518

And here is their sole image of Scarab

32519

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary notes that we can probably find more images of some of the other characters.

[Theron]

Amazing Man recently turned up in the pages of Marvel's "Immortal Iron Fist" as John Aman, one of the champions of the Seven Immortal Cities of Heaven. Of course, they don't actually SAY he's Amazing Man, but it's pretty obvious.

Also, for those interested in public domain Golden Age heroes, Ken Hite's Adventures Into Darkness (http://atomicovermind.com/blog/?page_id=350) makes use of quite a few. He takes the characters and spins for them a fictional publishing history under the helm of none other than H. P. Lovecraft. It's pretty crazy stuff.

[Susano]

Amazing Man recently turned up in the pages of Marvel's "Immortal Iron Fist" as John Aman, one of the champions of the Seven Immortal Cities of Heaven. Of course, they don't actually SAY he's Amazing Man, but it's pretty obvious.

Also, for those interested in public domain Golden Age heroes, Ken Hite's Adventures Into Darkness (http://atomicovermind.com/blog/?page_id=350) makes use of quite a few. He takes the characters and spins for them a fictional publishing history under the helm of none other than H. P. Lovecraft. It's pretty crazy stuff.

But it's a great source for Pulp/Golden Age supers and ideas.

[Lucius]

I was just commenting on the sheer number of powers and abilities. he was very much like Doc Savage in his apparently ability to do anything and everything.

and better than anyone else!

Lucius Alexander

and a privately held palindromedary

[Lucius]

Well, there are those who might have an issue with him being a racist stereotype

Here's some information on the Green Lama that shows how racist and bigoted one comic book of the period WASN'T.

http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090628/COLUMNISTS58/306289992

Some highlights:



For example, a full-page house ad in "Green Lama" No. 2 (February 1945) makes a plea – no, a demand – for tolerance. Under a stark image of a U.S. helmet next to a battlefield grave marker with no name, the text reads in part, "Let's put an end to the foul prejudice fanned by our enemies . . . When you find anyone – yourself included – thinking, speaking, acting with racial or religious prejudice – STOP IT! If Smith, Kelly, Cohen or Svoboda is good enough to die for us, he's good enough to live with us . . . as an equal. Be American!"



Spark Publications began receiving hate mail, of course. But the publisher didn't back down – in fact, they turned it up a notch. In "Green Lama" No. 6, they published a real letter from an anti-Semite on the first page of the hero's adventure. In "An American Story," the Lama goes to Texas (where the letter was from) to confront the writer (fictionalized), whom he shows the error of his ways – as he breaks up a KKK-like hate group, complete with white hoods.

Unfortunately, the comic book was canceled a couple of issues later - perhaps they had alienated too many customers. Even the combined powers of mystic mantras and radioactive salts could not cure the malignancy of bigotry.

Almost everywhere the Green Lama is mentioned online, the treatment of Buddhism comes up. Wikipedia actually takes him to task for presenting Buddhism more from a Theraveda perspective than the Tibetan Buddhism the character supposedly practices - but if that's the worst that can be said of a character first published in a pulp magazine in 1940 I'd consider that practically a miracle.

The character was created by Kendall Foster Crossen under the pen name Richard Foster. When asked about his attention to detail on the Buddhist belief and practice, he said he had decided to do a character who practiced Tibetan Buddhism, so he did the research to make sure he got it right.

I wonder if anyone ever said, "It's great, Mr. Crossen, that you did the research and got the facts straight about your character's religious and philosophical perspective. Now, about this business of getting superpowers from 'radioactive salts....'"

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary wonders if Lucius is going to tackle the Green Lama next....or bone up on Six Ed and sign up for the updated Hero Designer before doing any more characters.

[SKJAM!]

I did a write-up for the pulp version of Green Lama some time back--searching the site should turn it up.

[Lucius]

I did a write-up for the pulp version of Green Lama some time back--searching the site should turn it up.

If I find it, would you mind if I crosspost it here?

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary wants to write up the Green Llama

[Susano]

It's on my site.

http://surbrook.devermore.net/adaptationsbook/green_lama.html

If he's actually a comics character, as opposed to a pulp magazine character, I'll move him to the comics section.

[Lucius]

It's on my site.

http://surbrook.devermore.net/adaptationsbook/green_lama.html

If he's actually a comics character, as opposed to a pulp magazine character, I'll move him to the comics section.

He's both - started in pulps and moved to comics and even had a radio show at one point.

Probably alright to leave him where he is.

Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary loves to browse Surbrook's Stuff.

[Susano]

BTW -- I added an image to Amazing Man.

[SKJAM!]

The comic book Green Lama is way more powerful than the pulp magazine version, starting with that whole "can fly" thing.

[Lucius]

The comic book Green Lama is way more powerful than the pulp magazine version, starting with that whole "can fly" thing.

Yeah....I'm sure you've seen the cover where he's flying at the head of a whole squadron of bombers in formation....


Lucius Alexander

The palindromedary busily writes an origin story for the Green Llama featuring radioactive pepper....