Southwestern Pennsylvania Avengers

[Mark Rand]

The Avengers are Marvel's best-known and well-respected teams. By a vote of the United nations, they are also a world power.

Besides their main team in New York City, they have teams or individual heroes in trouble spots in various places.

Assume one team, based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (my home town), covers southwestern Pennsylvania. What would cause a team to be placed here?

Does the Marvel Universe have its own versions of PRIMUS and UNTIL?

What is the Marvel version of VIPER, HYDRA or AIM?

Please assume this is the mainstream Marvel Universe.

[Bengal]

Considering how god the UN is at messing up, I thin it's even probable that they have a team in Pittsburg. It would be equally likely that they would place a team in my home town of Providence, RI.

[Mark Rand]

I think the Avengers themselves decide where to set up a team, not the UN.

[freakboy6117]

Well the easiest answer would be that threes a sudden inrush of supercrime and paranormal activity centered on the Pittsburgh Ohio area. And the New York based avengers are too busy with the paranormal weirdness that happens their and their global charter to deal with it. So they set up a regional office staffed by new recruits an experienced commander and maybe a few reservists.

 

Alternatively the avengers decide to create a number of sub bases nationally or even internationally to offer rapid response superhuman forces. though why set up in Pittsburgh instead of Washington or Philadelphia escapes me unless of course there is a hell mouth in Cleveland or something as well as some meta human explosion say an release of mutagenic compounds in Pittsburgh.

 

So you end up with

 

West coast avengers based in LA responsible for California

 

The northwestern avengers based in Seattle responsible for Washington Oregon Idaho Montana and Wyoming

 

Southwest avengers based in Las Vegas responsible for Nevada Utah Arizona new Mexico Colorado lots of action there between the mob super crime the aftermath of gamma bomb tests and the Roswell incident to name but a few.

 

Texas avengers because Texas wouldn’t be happy without its own branch. They also cover Oklahoma

 

Southern avengers based out of Miami with responsibility for Florida Georgia Alabama Tennessee Arkansas Mississippi and the Carolinas

 

The great Plaines avengers have responsibility for the middle ground they cover a lot of area based in Minneapolis they patrol north Dakota south Dakota Nebraska Kansas Missouri Idaho and Minnesota

The great lakes avengers are based in Chicago

And serve Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Indiana.

 

The Pittsburgh team has responsibility for Pennsylvania, Ohio, Delaware (but not Washington DC) Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia and technically the northern parts of Tennessee but they mostly leave that to the southern avengers by default.

 

The avengers in new York handle most of new England and New Jersey but are considering passing on the responsibilities to a local team either based in providence Rhode island or Boston Massachusetts’s, New York state is a lot of responsibility without there global status

 

Then you have the DC avengers a smaller team mainly concerned with protecting the capital and liaising with the united states government and other nations its a small team but can expect backup from there others including the national team at times of crisis the team tends not to be heavy hitters but espionage and security specialist mixed with diplomats and linguist there the team that gets called in to deal with alien first contacts for instance.

 

Other small teams are the Hawaiian team and the Alaskan avengers.

[Mark Rand]

Wonderful idea, freakboy6117. Thank you.

Anyone know where I can find good illos of Avengers air vehicles on the web?

[Guest Champsguy]

Given how fast the Quinjets fly, they really don't need more than the New York team.

 

Of course Marvel has a version of UNTIL and PRIMUS. It's called SHIELD (what UNTIL and PRIMUS were based on).

 

A Marvel version of Viper, HYDRA, and AIM? Yes. The Marvel versions of HYDRA and AIM are HYDRA and AIM.

[caris]

Originally posted by Mark Rand

Wonderful idea, freakboy6117. Thank you.

Anyone know where I can find good illos of Avengers air vehicles on the web?

 

here are a couple I found through Google

 

http://valstuff.members.easyspace.com/quinjet.jpg

 

http://www.paratime.ca/v_and_v/pics/avengers_quinjet.jpg

 

http://www.amherst.edu/~jaalves/avengers/quinjet.jpg

[Mark Rand]

I'll rephrase the question. Is HYDRA the Marvel version of VIPER or is AIM?

[caris]

Originally posted by Mark Rand

I'll rephrase the question. Is HYDRA the Marvel version of VIPER or is AIM?

 

I would say that HYDRA was more the inspiration for Viper, than AIM was.

 

AIM probably fed more into ARGENT.

[freakboy6117]

AIM is an offshoot of HYDRA AIM was originally there science division when HYDRA was percieved to eb destroyed by SHIELD AIM went off on there own.

 

The problem with SHIELD is unlike UNTIL or PRIMUS, SHIELD is entirely a super agent group they have low level supers only no cosmic powerhouses. They exist to deal with similar super agent type groups like AIM and HYDRA. The avengers have empowered by The UN and the United States government as an extra-normal intervention group they exist to deal with alien invasions rogue superhuman and natural disasters.

 

With this expanded mandate the new York prime team may well organize smaller sub teams to deal with the group of criminals with super weapons in Nebraska whilst there off saving the universe for the second time this week.

 

Of course the regional groups are a great choice for superheroes who want to get bigger being an avenger has a lot of prestige and there's always the possibility that if you excel you may become part of the prime team but even if you don’t you can still help your local community with the greater powers and resources at your disposal.

[Doug McCrae]

VIPER are pretty much Hydra with a bit of the Serpent Society thrown in.

[rayoman]

So Kentucky gets left out? or were they covered under Great Plains?

 

That's ok. The Kentucky Avengers will be formed.

 

Dave M.

Ray R. (aka: RayOMan)

KA

Jason Dour lives here (hopefully still). For those who don't know him he created/converted all of the 4th edition powers over to Fuzion and created Heroic Abilities Plug-in.

 

That's a good core of Avengers.

 

KY might be in sad shape.

 

Originally posted by freakboy6117

Other small teams are the Hawaiian team and the Alaskan avengers.

[freakboy6117]

Oops I missed it out doh

 

Kentucky is in the Pittsburgh teams patrol area nominally but as its adjoined by three teams areas they sort of share especially as its equidistant between Pittsburgh and Chicago.

 

By the way can anyone think of a better regional term for the Pittsburgh patrol area?

 

All teams are 6 strong (as set out in the avengers charter) except Washington DC Hawaii and Alaska, which are 3-4(though often swelled by members of other teams on sabbatical).

 

Each team has a chairman elected by vote of all members though the first is selected by avengers prime when they set up the team usually a respected reservist. There are a lot of arguments over who gets Alaska and Hawaii. Teams are recruiters locally usually by recommendation but there is an audition as well.

 

Each team has a couple of Quinn jets often modified for prevalent local situations the southern avengers Quinn jet is designed for piloting swamp land etc. south western has specialty mountain rescue gear etc.

 

A fully equipped base of operations also reflection the location the south western team base is built under the strip upstairs is a theme restraint one of the most popular eating places on the strip.

 

A local law enforcement liason is assigned to each team who helps the team deal with local police and emergency srevices provides intelligence briefings and helps coordinate the teams activities. each team also has an Stark foundation staffer who organises public apperances, organizational costs etc.

[Mark Rand]

More wonderful ideas, freakboy6117. Thank you.

What about Mid Atlantic Avengers for the team name?

The Stark Foundation staffer sounds like a combination of a PR agent and an administrator. Would the other members of the support staff (maid, butler, doctor, nurse, computer expert, electronics engineer, secretary, communications staff and security staff) be Stark Foundation employees, too?

Would either the UN or the federal government send liaisons to the various teams? If so, would the be bureaucrats or field agents?

I'm thinking of having a mage as one of the heroes. Would his house, a fastness, be suitable as an Avengers headquarters?

[freakboy6117]

Yeah the stark foundation staffers are administrator PR and legal representative. The team has to have an annual evaluation and performance review with stark foundation representatives who discuss whether they screwed up in the field or not legal ramifications etc.

 

The law enforcement liaison is a federal employee (has to be for security clearance) nominally a bureaucrat but usually with field experience there in charge of disseminating classified material etc to the avengers and try to have good contacts across the spectrum of local government law enforcement, emergency service, military and civilian groups.

 

The liaison coordinates intelligence and is the main point of contact with the various local groups I.E. if the police need Meta human assistance they will call the liaison. It's a high-pressure job but it has a lot of prestige and is an excellent career move even if it will kill a normal home life. The liaison is also responsible for field reports debriefing and organizing mission logs rogues galleries and such.

 

Any other staff the team needs can be hired but it requires stark foundation approval or for it to be funded out of the teams own pockets though there is a large discretionary fund available to each team.

 

The Las Vegas team restaurant funds both there large support staff and a community outreach programmed.

 

The DC team has a larger support staff including a team diplomat a number of lobbyists on superhuman affairs etc.

[Mark Rand]

Could the federal law enforcement liaison bring an assistant with him?

[Bengal]

Sure. This is the government- why send one guy when you can send two at twice the price?

[freakboy6117]

lol bengal

 

actually that makes a lot of sense covers sick days and holidays for one thing. also means you can have someone on call 24/7 in staggered shifts

 

and a couple of liasion officers is the least the goverment can do just think how much money the avengers save them on emergency managment and federal bank insurance pay outs alone. All it would take is for the team to foil 4 bank robberies a year and the feds are paid for (assuming average bank robbery nets $20k).

[Mark Rand]

The idea I'm running with is that one liaison is a one liaison is a bureaucrat. His assistant is a former CIA agent specializing in black bag jobs. She and the team's electronics engineer, a kunoichi, or female ninja, get along great together.

As to why the federal government would make a former black bag jobs expert an Avengers liaison, neither knows. The orders came from the head of whatever agency provides the liaisons.

Of course, it could have something to do with the fact that she assisted the DEA on a raid that netted millions of dollars in drugs and cash, illegal weapons and evidence against several high-level politicians.

[freakboy6117]

the kunoichi is part of the actual team or one of the base support staff? either way sounds like an intreasting origin story.

 

strictly speaking I dont think you could have a CIA agent as the liason as the CIA is forbidden from operating within US borders strictly speaking shes just in an advisory capacity but some oen will wraise a stink. NSA, DEA,SHIELD or militray intelligence on the other hand are possibilities. You could always have her be seconded to another agency.

 

soudns like a good combination what department is your pencil pusher from? anyway godo combo you ahve soem one to work of intelligence gathering and anaylisi strategic planning etc and also some oen who can handle federal paperwork inter agency cooperation fileing that sort of thing.

[Mark Rand]

I'd like the lady ninja to be a support staff member who goes out with the team only when the chairman asks her to do so. Would that make her a reservist?

The pencil pusher's partner was in the CIA until she was downsized and whatever agency, maybe the NSC, that provides the federal liaison recruted her.

[Supreme Serpent]

If this is set in a world closely following the "real world" (ie Sept. 11th and events following occurred) and these Avengers are largely (as it's looking like) US-based and operating in the US, then some special sub-unit of the Dept of Homeland Security would likely be providing their liasons.

[freakboy6117]

Yeah probably a reservist I’m just imagining the origin story

 

Trained by the ninjas from birth to be a legendary warrior a perfect warrior of death and shadows but she rebels escaping from the hidden mountain stronghold of her clan she arrives in Tokyo and discovers for the first time modern technology it fascinates her and so she gets a job in an electronics factory working there her love develops so by day she works in eth factory by night she studies electrical engineering and hones her martial skills for the inevitable day when her clan comes to reclaim her. Eventually she attains a degree in electrical engineering. Then the ninjas come for her she bests many but realties she must flee if she wants to avoid her fate.

 

She heads to Boston enrolling at MIT and gains her Masters and is head hunted into stark industries R&D department. until one day the ninjas arrive and attempt to take her from her offices there she fights valiantly but is almost defeated. until Tony stark turns up in the guise of iron man and rescues her she relates her story and for her safety Tony recommend that she become the technical advisor to the mid Atlantic avengers. Her amazing martial arts prowess is unknown to most of the rest of the staff but the team is secretly training her to one day become a full member.

 

She fight with a specially designed bokken and a range of non lethal weapons Tazer shuriken net bombs etc. think Elektra with a total code versus killing.

 

One idea is to have an interdepartmental agency called say the federal department of extra normal affairs drawing from all the government branches they assign liaisons with super teams have representatives of the CDC and the health departments who analyze the dangers of alien disease and advise hospitals on dealing with meta-human crisis and patients. ATF weapon technicians who assess super weaponry etc. DEA and FDA representatives who work on super drugs etc.

[Mark Rand]

Interesting idea you came up with for the ninja/techie's origin, freakboy6117. I have my own ideas, too. Although she's not Japanese and wasn't trained in Japan, she does have clan enemies. Since, as a heroine, she calls herself Black Scorpion, I'll post her origin on that thread this weekend.

The support staff, at this point, has three nurses, a mother and her two daughters, all Japanese-Americans.

Since the team has a lady mage, who Dr. Strange suggested, would it be reasonable for Avengers Mansion Pittsburgh to be her family's mansion. The required renovations could've been completed before she cast the spells to strengthen the mansion's structure and create additional rooms.

Two new threads will be popping up soon that relate to this one. One will be a discussion of the city itself. The other will have to do with a genius fan of Voltron Defender of the Universe that created a suit of armor that does most of the stuff the Lion Force Voltron does.

[Mark Rand]

The Voltron thread has been started. The Black Scorpion's origin story will be posted and the Pittsburgh thread will be started as soon as I find my notes.