[Character] Captain Zero

[SKJAM!]

From the 1949 story, "City of Deadly Sleep" by G.T. Fleming-Roberts.Captain ZeroPlayer: NPC

Val	Char	Cost
15	STR	5
12	DEX	6
15	CON	10
12	BODY	4
10	INT	0
12	EGO	4
10	PRE	0
10	COM	0
6	PD	3
3	ED	0
3	SPD	8
6	REC	0
30	END	0
28	STUN	0

6" RUN02" SWIM03" LEAP0Characteristics Cost: 40

Cost	Power	END
16	Invisible Body: Invisibility to Sight Group , Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Persistent (+1/2) (40 Active Points); Limited Power Power loses about half of its effectiveness (Only and always functions from midnight to dawn; -1), Limited Power Power loses about a third of its effectiveness (Does not affect carried objects; -1/2)	0
9	Keenly Observant: +3 PER with all Sense Groups	0

Powers Cost: 25

Cost	Skill
7	Acting 13-
7	Deduction 13-
3	Streetwise 11-
2	KS: Botany 11-
2	KS: Human anatomy 11-
2	KS: Poisons 11-
2	PS: Reporter 11-
1	WF: Handguns
0	Language: English (idiomatic) (4 Active Points)
1	Language: Braille literacy (basic conversation)

Skills Cost: 27

Cost	Perk
5	Follower [Notes: Seeing eye dog]
3	Contact: Police Chief Ed Cavanaugh (Contact has useful Skills or resources) 11-

Perks Cost: 8

Val	Disadvantages
10	Dependent NPC: Doro Kelly 8- (Normal; Useful Noncombat Position or Skills; Unaware of character's adventuring career/Secret ID)
5	Physical Limitation: Poor vision, must wear eyeglasses or contacts (Infrequently, Slightly Impairing)
10	Rivalry: Romantic, With Ed Cavanaugh, Rival is More Powerful, Seek to Outdo, Embarrass, or Humiliate Rival, Rival Aware of Rivalry
10	Psychological Limitation: Constantly underestimates his own intelligence (Common, Moderate)
15	Social Limitation: Secret Identlty (Lee Allyn) (Frequently, Major)

Disadvantage Points: 50

Base Points: 50Experience Required: 0Total Experience Available: 0Experience Unspent: 0Total Character Cost: 100

Height: 1.70 m	Hair: Blond
Weight: 70.00 kg	Eyes: Pale blue

Appearance: Lee Allyn was a small, thin man with blond hair and pale blue eyes. He habitually wore horn-rimmed glasses and conservative suits. In his Captain Zero idenity, Lee switched to contact lenses, and wore skin-tight wool clothing; white t-shirt, trunks and stockings with thin rawhide soles. Naturally, the idea was not to be seen while wearing these.Personality: Lee Allyn cultivated a mild-mannered appearance, which concealed his inner strength of will. His major character flaw was a lack of confidence in his own intellectual skills, which caused him to hesitate too often when his hunches were in fact correct. Lee has an unrequited crush on his co-worker Doro, and a light-hearted rivalry with Chief Cavanaugh.Quote:"I don't mind not being believed in, Ivy, but let me assure you, I'm several biological notches above a cat."Background: Lee Allyn was the son of a fruit store owner in Chicago. Under circumstances yet to be revealed, he became blind in childhood and remained that way for twelve years. After his father died, Lee sold the store for money enough to pay for a risky operation. While it didn't fully restore his vision to normal, Lee was now able to get around like a "normal" person.

 

At this point, World War Two was raging. Patriotically, Lee volunteered for service, but his poor vision made him 4-F. Instead, the young man became an experimental subject for various medical treatments. It is unknown which, if any, of the experiments triggered Lee's unique affliction. The most recent experiment before he noticed the effect wa a dose of radioactive arsenic.

 

Much to Lee's surprise, at exactly midnight each night, his flesh would turn invisible, and remain so until the coming of dawn. He concealed this from the doctors by omission, and no one noticed.

 

After the war was over, Lee's lack of work experience or a formal education caused him to be rejected from employment nearly anywhere. Finally, he was able to secure a job as a reporter for Pendleville's Daily World newspaper. After three months, the grateful Lee revealed his secret to Daily World editor/publisher/owner Steve Rice.

 

Rice came up with the scheme of using Lee's abilities to fight crime and corruption in Pendleville under the name "Captain Zero." Unfortunately, in the course of their very first adventure, Steve Rice was killed for possessing vital evidence of the town's corruption. Captain Zero was forced to finish the case alone, eventually learning the true identity of the city's crimelord.

 

He continued to fight crime with the aid of his allies, seeing dog Blackie, girl reporter Doro Kelly and police captain Ed Cavanaugh.

Powers/Tactics: Captain Zero's flesh, and any animal product next to his skin, turned invisible between midnight and dawn. (The "fringe effect" for Cap's invisibility is the glint of the contacts he wears.)

 

In addition, all of Lee Allyn's senses had been sharpened by his years of blindness, causing Lee to become extremely observant.

 

Captain Zero was, to be honest, not very good at stealth, relying heavily on his not being seen. He was also well-read and a decent hand-to-hand combatant. His preferred tactic was to walk around invisibly, observing carefully, and using his unseen status to freak people out. If pressed, he would resort to fisticuffs, or even shooting.

Campaign Use: Lee is a low-powered pulp-hero, though late in the period. He'd be suitable for a player character in very low-powered campaigns. To boost his power level/effectiveness, change Zero's invisibility so that he can turn it on at will, but only at night, and add a few hand-to-hand levels. As an NPC, Zero's one-trick-pony status will usually send him to the sidelines except for very specific cases. He will not Hunt player characters unless they've committed crimes in his city.

 

Plot Seeds:

 

"When Midnight Strikes": If one of the player characters is a medical or bio-sciences whiz, Lee approches him to find out just why his condition always and only starts at midnight. What about Daylight Savings Time? What happens if he crosses the International Date Line?

 

"Mad Dogs and Englishmen": A series of daring daylight bank robberies has paralyzed Pendleville. Captain Zero is working on the case, but has had little luck as the gang lies low once the sun goes down. It's time to call in some allies.

Thoughts, questions, comments?SKJAM!

[FenrisUlf]

Re: [Character] Captain Zero

 

Pretty good job of covering the last of the great pulp heroes.