Pittsburgh: City of Champions

[steriaca]

What FIST stands for, if anything, is up to whoever is writing this. Technically One is the leader of FIST, but he acts as the contact between The Few (those who actually hire FIST to commit crimes for their benefit) and The Many (the ones who actually do the dirty work). They all have rules that The Few must follow before One accept the job.

 

1) They will not accept jobs for murder. They can (and sometimes do) kill, but they are not assassins.

 

2) They do not get involved in the drug trade, nor deal with human trafficking. 

 

3) They are not intrested in world conquest, state conquest, city conquest, etc. They are not VIPER after all. 

 

3.2) They will not knowingly do the dirty work of other criminal/paramilitary groups. They don't want to be the fall guys. 

 

One treats The Many well. He us, after all, a job provider, and the Many are his employees. As a "criminal union", the Many does pay "union fees", but they have a grantee paycheck and quality equipment (well, quality considering their equipment are hand-me-downs from abandoned VIPER bases and what they can buy from ARGENT).

[dmjalund]

4 minutes ago, steriaca said:

The Few (those who actually hire FIST to commit crimes for their benefit) and The Many (the ones who actually do the dirty work).

These are their stories. DUN DUNNN1

[Mark Rand]

It has been announced that Heinz Field is going to be renamed Acrisure Stadium.  Fans already hate the new name.

[Steve]

10 hours ago, Mark Rand said:

It has been announced that Heinz Field is going to be renamed Acrisure Stadium.  Fans already hate the new name.

Perhaps a rich superhero or superteam buys the naming rights in a Champions universe.

[steriaca]

7 hours ago, Steve said:

Perhaps a rich superhero or superteam buys the naming rights in a Champions universe.

Prehaps the biggest insult of all...

A super team from outside the Pittsburgh area buys the naming rights to the stadium. 

[Spark]

The problem with naming something like that is that Acrisure Stadium will be in the news. The name will eventually be accepted and brought into the culture. Then, this gaming module will be outdated or at least out-of-sync.

 

Besides, naming it after the local hero group would be better since the stadium would become a target for supervillains...not that it hasn't already been a target in the past.

 

Oh, and as an interesting note, it was called Gotham City Stadium in that movie.

[Spark]

All that being said, I can see a fictional company sponsoring the stadium. Given the city's high tech focus (medical, AI, robotics, etc) it is conceivable that one of the local, very successful tech companies sponsors the stadium. For exmaple, the following may be a good company to use (yes, I just made it up) since it would ALSO provide a reason for super-villians to be in town ("Gotta steal...I mean, PICK-UP the new ultra-gamma-ray-blaster"). How's this for a marketing slick?

 

REACT (Research, Engineering, Advanced Concepts, and Technology) is a weapon's manufacturer and think tank, specializing in theoretical research, high tech gadgets, gizmos, weapons, armor, and even vehicles. REACT is the most trusted gadget supplier of the super powered community. Do you want to...

• tweak your armor for better comfort?
• increase the power of your Transduction Ray?
• trick out your super-mobile?
• need an X-Ray unmogrifier?

Well, REACT is your one stop shopping. Our engineers can help you resolve your own design issues, manufacture your designs, and can even create new gadgets for which you have only the vaguest of concepts.

 

Instead of the catsup bottle pouring after each score (touchdown or field goal) at "Heinz Field" (where both the Steelers and Univerisy of Pittsburgh play), for the NEW sponsor, it would be changed to a "ladle" (the actual name of the bucket) pouring molten iron. Sound effects (sizzling) could even be added). This imagery would not only be good for our fictional REACT (if that is the direction we go), but it would be PERFECT for the real world and whatever it is that the new stadium sponsors call themselves, but in that case it would be a peace offering to the people of Pittsburgh.

 

And as a bonus, here is a Pittsburgh overview for your viewing pleasure: 

 

[Mark Rand]

Great ideas, Spark.  Heinz may still be involved as an associate sponsor, so the catsup bottles might stay.  I loved the video and saved it to my computer.

 

One other idea is that the Pittsburgh Penguins new majority owner is, instead of Fenway Sports Group, a local woman who is also a member Penguins Ice Crew who likes to sit on the bench with her team when she can.

[Steve]

In a superhero universe, perhaps the mascot of the Pittsburgh Penguins is a human-sized anthropomorphic penguin, either from another world or another universe.

 

Think Howard the Duck, only a penguin.

[Mark Rand]

15 minutes ago, Steve said:

In a superhero universe, perhaps the mascot of the Pittsburgh Penguins is a human-sized anthropomorphic penguin, either from another world or another universe.

 

Think Howard the Duck, only a penguin.

Okay.  He might even be comfortable in a larger range of temperatures than an Earthly penguin.

[steriaca]

29 minutes ago, Steve said:

In a superhero universe, perhaps the mascot of the Pittsburgh Penguins is a human-sized anthropomorphic penguin, either from another world or another universe.

 

Think Howard the Duck, only a penguin.

Reminds me of PenPen from Neon Genesis Evangelion. The mascot of the series and hot weather penguin (relatively speaking...he has a sleeping quarters inside a for him walk in freezer).

[dmjalund]

reminds me of the Villain from Wallace and Gromit

[SCUBA Hero]

45 minutes ago, Steve said:

In a superhero universe, perhaps the mascot of the Pittsburgh Penguins is a human-sized anthropomorphic penguin, either from another world or another universe.

 

Think Howard the Duck, only a penguin.

 

Nice!

 

Another option is to make him/her a Phillippe Moreau creation... ties in with the CU.

[Steve]

Even without powers, there could be “weird events” he/she participates in.

 

Personally, I just find the idea of an anthropomorphic penguin slouched at a bar somewhere in Pittsburgh and grousing about life in between performing at sports games or Scooby-like weird event adventures to be funny.

[Mark Rand]

52 minutes ago, Steve said:

Even without powers, there could be “weird events” he/she participates in.

 

Personally, I just find the idea of an anthropomorphic penguin slouched at a bar somewhere in Pittsburgh and grousing about life in between performing at sports games or Scooby-like weird event adventures to be funny.

Perhaps he/she goes to the alien bar on West Carson Street in McKees Rocks. 

 

There are a few questions that should be answered.  Does he/she drive himself/herself or get rides from someone, maybe someone the team pays to serve as an escort/bodyguard/driver/PR person?  Where does he/she come from, another planet or another universe?  How did he/she get here?

[Steve]

1 minute ago, Mark Rand said:

Perhaps he/she goes to the alien bar on West Carson Street in McKees Rocks. 

 

There are a few questions that should be answered.  Does he/she drive himself/herself or get rides from someone, maybe someone the team pays to serve as an escort/bodyguard/driver/PR person?  Where does he/she come from, another planet or another universe?  How did he/she get here?

Yes, an escort/bodyguard/driver could be fun. Perhaps the humanoid penguin has an unusual talent for solving crimes and keeps stumbling across murders, or less lethal Scooby-like mysteries. The human assistant could be a less than willing helper (“Tracking down weirdos and criminals isn’t in my job description. I’m just supposed to drive you around and get you to games.”)

[Mark Rand]

Based on the above the penguin from either outer space or another world might be an intelligent male who can stand warm temperatures and wears a box on his chest that converts his noises to human speech.  The lady who drives him is a member of the Penguins Ice Crew.  She uses a team-owned SUV to drive him to official events. 

[Spark]

31 minutes ago, Mark Rand said:

Based on the above the penguin from either outer space or another world might be an intelligent male who can stand warm temperatures and wears a box on his chest that converts his noises to human speech.  The lady who drives him is a member of the Penguins Ice Crew.  She uses a team-owned SUV to drive him to official events. 

 

I don't know aobut the box or anything else, but I can't get images of Bloom County out of my head.

[Mark Rand]

24 minutes ago, Spark said:

 

I don't know aobut the box or anything else, but I can't get images of Bloom County out of my head.

Opus the Penguin

[Mark Rand]

On 7/13/2022 at 3:30 PM, Spark said:

All that being said, I can see a fictional company sponsoring the stadium. Given the city's high tech focus (medical, AI, robotics, etc) it is conceivable that one of the local, very successful tech companies sponsors the stadium. For exmaple, the following may be a good company to use (yes, I just made it up) since it would ALSO provide a reason for super-villians to be in town ("Gotta steal...I mean, PICK-UP the new ultra-gamma-ray-blaster"). How's this for a marketing slick?

 

REACT (Research, Engineering, Advanced Concepts, and Technology) is a weapon's manufacturer and think tank, specializing in theoretical research, high tech gadgets, gizmos, weapons, armor, and even vehicles. REACT is the most trusted gadget supplier of the super powered community. Do you want to...

• tweak your armor for better comfort?
• increase the power of your Transduction Ray?
• trick out your super-mobile?
• need an X-Ray unmogrifier?

Well, REACT is your one stop shopping. Our engineers can help you resolve your own design issues, manufacture your designs, and can even create new gadgets for which you have only the vaguest of concepts.

 

Instead of the catsup bottle pouring after each score (touchdown or field goal) at "Heinz Field" (where both the Steelers and Univerisy of Pittsburgh play), for the NEW sponsor, it would be changed to a "ladle" (the actual name of the bucket) pouring molten iron. Sound effects (sizzling) could even be added). This imagery would not only be good for our fictional REACT (if that is the direction we go), but it would be PERFECT for the real world and whatever it is that the new stadium sponsors call themselves, but in that case it would be a peace offering to the people of Pittsburgh.

 

And as a bonus, here is a Pittsburgh overview for your viewing pleasure: 

 

REACT might be something like one of Tony Stark's companies.  I could see it headquartered in an area industrial park instead of right in the city.

[Steve]

On 7/13/2022 at 3:26 PM, Mark Rand said:

Perhaps he/she goes to the alien bar on West Carson Street in McKees Rocks. 

 

There are a few questions that should be answered.  Does he/she drive himself/herself or get rides from someone, maybe someone the team pays to serve as an escort/bodyguard/driver/PR person?  Where does he/she come from, another planet or another universe?  How did he/she get here?

Where does the humanoid Penguin come from? I would vote for an alternate Earth where penguins became the dominant species and evolved into humanoids. It could be a world very similar to the CU with human history mirrored by this penguinoid species.

 

Sone kind of lab accident could have brought him here, perhaps a company like REACT doing some sort of experiment that went awry, as such things frequently do in the comics.

[Spark]

8 hours ago, Mark Rand said:

REACT might be something like one of Tony Stark's companies.  I could see it headquartered in an area industrial park instead of right in the city.

 

There were, of course, a number of influences including Stark AND on Edna (from the Incredibles) who those writers were trying to make into a sort of Q from James Bond (but styled her on a costume designer).

 

However, I've used things like this before (although not acronymned REACT since I came up with that this week). Essentially you have a need in super hero games for an armorer. This fills that niche. AND, in our case, it really fits into the city of Pittsburgh as a modern day technical/medical hub.

[Steve]

The Boom Boys (along with nearly as many Boom Girls) are members of a growing network of teenaged street gangs that have somehow acquired a mutagenic serum called “Boom Juice” that awakens superpowers in a very few of those who receive it (in the 200-300 point range for less than 1% of recipients).
 

Nothing much seems to happen to most recipients (90% have a mild improvement no better than a typical VIPER agent), and some die in various horrible ways after taking it (9%). For some reason, it has no effect on anyone too old (over 19) or too young (under 13), so seems to be affected by hormone levels found during puberty.

 

Boomers are a new addition to the street scene and it is unknown if any of them will keep their powers into adulthood or they will fade away as their hormone levels change. It is unknown who is supplying the Boom Juice. Most of them do smash and grab robberies or muggings to get cash.

 

The vast majority of Boomers are physically enhanced types, so tend to be Bricks and Martial Artists along with a few low-level Speedsters. Animal-like powers have also been observed. Some possess energy-based powers with special effects like electricity, fire or cold. None seem to have any mental abilities other than varying degrees of Mental Defense.

 

The gang members are intended to be a low-level villain group for teenaged superheroes to fight. As the superpowered members of the gang gain experience with their abilities, this opposition could continue into adulthood, with some of the gang members becoming full-fledged supervillains.

[Mark Rand]

2 hours ago, Steve said:

The Boom Boys (along with nearly as many Boom Girls) are members of a growing network of teenaged street gangs that have somehow acquired a mutagenic serum called “Boom Juice” that awakens superpowers in a very few of those who receive it (in the 200-300 point range for less than 1% of recipients).
 

Nothing much seems to happen to most recipients (90% have a mild improvement no better than a typical VIPER agent), and some die in various horrible ways after taking it (9%). For some reason, it has no effect on anyone too old (over 19) or too young (under 13), so seems to be affected by hormone levels found during puberty.

 

Boomers are a new addition to the street scene and it is unknown if any of them will keep their powers into adulthood or they will fade away as their hormone levels change. It is unknown who is supplying the Boom Juice. Most of them do smash and grab robberies or muggings to get cash.

 

The vast majority of Boomers are physically enhanced types, so tend to be Bricks and Martial Artists along with a few low-level Speedsters. Animal-like powers have also been observed. Some possess energy-based powers with special effects like electricity, fire or cold. None seem to have any mental abilities other than varying degrees of Mental Defense.

 

The gang members are intended to be a low-level villain group for teenaged superheroes to fight. As the superpowered members of the gang gain experience with their abilities, this opposition could continue into adulthood, with some of the gang members becoming full-fledged supervillains.

Nice.

 

From the alien bar's windows, the Ohio River, CSX railroad tracks, and electrical transmission lines are clearly visible.  The West End Bridge is in the distance upstream and the Ohio Connecting Railroad Bridge, which carries Norfolk Southern's Fort Wayne Line, is close by downstream.

[Steve]

Grunt is one of the more physically powerful Boom Boys with a simplistic powerset rather similar to Bulldozer’s. He is illiterate and not very smart, so crime is an easy way for him to make money. He will do simple smash and grabs, once breaking open an ATM for the cash inside, and mugging people.