Villain Theme Teams

[Nuclear Fridge]

Recent mentions of the Destruction Company started me thinking about ‘themed’ teams of bad guys in general. Something a bit more involved than ‘collection of random mercenaries for the heroes to whale on this week’.

 

· CY-Force from High Tech Enemies is one that jumps to mind; a group of ‘improved’ people led by their saviour who’s out to control/suppress super-technology.

· GRAB is another. A band of thieves who prefer not to fight (or even get found out).

 

Has anyone tried building their own ‘theme groups’ from scratch? Or put together a team from different Enemies book villains? Maybe you’ve been glancing through a few CKC entries and bang, inspiration strikes.

[Utech]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

I'm afraid I don't have groups ready to go to offer. I hope you won't mind my jamming on the idea, though.

 

Some possible themed groups (from the obvious to the maybe not so much):

 

1. Elementals 1: Fire, Water, Earth, Air
   
2. Elementals 2: Fire, Water, Earth, Air, Void
   
3. Elementals 3: Fire, Water, Earth, Metal, Wood
   
4. Elementals 4: Hydrogen, Helium, Lithium, Beryllium, etc.
   
5. Chakras: Thought/Space, Light/Dark, Ether/Sound, Air, Fire, Water, Earth
   
6. Apex Predators: Python, Cheetah, Wolf, Grizzly Bear, Hawk, Alligator, Shark, etc.
   
7. Direct Action: Politically motivated group of villains specializing in sabotage, vandalism, assault, and murder. (heroes first encounter this group sympathetically as they engage in non-violent, though illegal, protest)
   
8. The Furies: Unceasing, Grudging, and Avenging Murder. Three female chaotic agents of vengeance. Punish those who break oaths. Avenge the dead.
   

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

Among published Champions "villain theme teams," I'm also partial to the Destruction Company and Cy-Force. Another favorite would be the Four Sons of the Dragon, skilled martial artists who serve Dr. Yin Wu, detailed for 4E in Watchers of the Dragon and for 5E in The Dragon Mandarin. They're designed to be particularly effective as a team, and each has his own distinctive weapon/gimmick but with a common "metal" theme: Copper Spear, Golden Axe, Iron Whirlwind, and Silver Hand.

 

A while back I planned to run a high-powered mini-campaign using a collection of villains drawn from several published 5E Champions source books, but unfortunately I had to cancel it due to player unavailability. The concept wasn't so much a team as a loose alliance. Seven of the most powerful, destructive demonic entities abiding on the Earth band together to advance their mutual goals. Said goals aren't exactly subtle: the spreading of large-scale terror, chaos, death and destruction. While their goals aren't subtle, several of these demons are very devious and possess powers well suited to deception and manipulation, to complement their tremendous collective force.

 

I intended to use demonic beings gathered from around the world, from many regional traditions. This is the lineup I chose, with the sourcebook each monster appears in for anyone unfamiliar with them and curious:

 

From the British Isles, Samhain, who spreads and feeds on terror and suffering (Champions Universe and Evil Unleashed). Samhain is the most subtle and charismatic of these demons, and is the one who has gathered and is "leading" them, although with creatures as evil and arrogant as these, it's all even Samhain can do to keep them going in the same direction;

 

From Egypt, The Living Sphinx, a cunning and ferocious predator who consumes the spirits of the slain, particularly savoring those who wield magic (Champions Worldwide);

 

From India, Survalesh, an asura from the Hindu hells who delights in tormenting the living as he once punished the dead (Champions Worldwide);

 

From China, Li Chun The Destroyer, driven by lust for devastation, with the blood of Chinese superheroes already on his hands (Champions Worldwide);

 

From Australia, Marmoo, master of insect hordes from the Dreamtime, who desires the destruction of everything of beauty in the world (Hidden Lands);

 

From South America, Eclipsar, wielder of terrible powers of darkness, who dreams of extinguishing the Sun and ending life on Earth (Champions Worldwide);

 

From the United States, Baykok, Chippewa demon-god who hunts humans for sport, but most relishes slaying heroic warriors (Champions Universe: News Of The World).

 

I planned to introduce these demons to the PC heroes gradually in the early game sessions, starting with encounters with individual demons, then in twos and threes, until the PCs understood the full scope of what they were up against. I also wanted to foreshadow their coming through dreams and visions visited upon the heroes and mystics around the world. The heroes would also encounter human cultists who anticipated the demons' gathering and sought to propitiate and assist them, in the (mistaken) belief that the demons would reward them.

[Nuclear Fridge]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

This is just the sort of thing I was hoping for, guys. Sometimes it just takes a different viewpoint to get the ball rolling.

I've never used the Ultimates in either 4E or 5E... mainly because Binder just doesn't intrigue me: "angry nerd gets his face melted off, blames his employers, invents hyper-crazy-glue formula, goes paranoid, begins crime career". Meh.

 

Momentum (V, V, & V) does, though. I can design up some loyal mutant followers for him a la

X-Men: The Last Stand. Say a cyberkinetic with the 'Legion of Steel Doom' power out of USPD... and they decide to assault Stronghold in New Mexico. All those lovely security robots, automated defences, and sentry guns. Taxpayer-funded raw materials...

[Escafarc]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

The Zodiac from the module.

And I also use a group based on the TAROT.

 

Both groups have had changes in both membership and leadership over the years to keep the PCs on their toes.

[SKJAM!]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

Years ago I developed a European team for an alternate Earth scenario--Let's see how much of it I remember--Grand Guignol and the Theatre of Horrors.

 

Grand Guignol: A French scientist who was studying metahumans, and realized that most had their powers triggered by extreme stressful/dangerous circumstances. So he (and later his team) create horrific disasters in hopes of triggering origin stories, and add them to the group's power. GG has the ability to transfer to himself "natural" powers, growing in proportion to how much power he's absorbed, and hypnotic mind control.

 

Zerstorung: German youth with explosive powers.

 

Gift: Swedish depressive whose touch is poisonous.

 

'Atim: British-Egyptian fellow with darkness-related powers.

 

Incubo: Italian illusion master.

 

Fleurette: Underage French plant manipulator.

 

Their group Psychological Complication is Cruelty. They enjoy hurting people and causing mass suffering--on the other hand, they often don't finish off opponents because that would be merciful. To quote from the group description: "The Theatre of Horrors never makes threats. If one of the members wants to hurt or kill someone, they go ahead and do it."

[phydaux]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

Royal Flush Gang

 

Ace - Brick

 

King - Power Projector

 

Queen - Gadgiteer

 

Jack - Matrial Artist

 

Ten - Plot Hook

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

I've never used the Ultimates in either 4E or 5E... mainly because Binder just doesn't intrigue me: "angry nerd gets his face melted off' date=' blames his employers, invents hyper-crazy-glue formula, goes paranoid, begins crime career". Meh.[/quote']

 

Kind of a lower-case Doctor Doom meets the Trapster -- yeah, that version of the Ultimates never grabbed me either. Ever see the update/modification to the Ultimates in Enemies Assemble, though? Much cooler team IMHO. Binder experiences an intellect-expanding accident involving Plasmoid and becomes the Ultimate Mastermind, developing far more sophisticated weaponry; and several other members receive "upgrades" of a sort. The group becomes much more focussed on developing or stealing cutting-edge technology, which gives them a stronger theme.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

The Zodiac from the module.

 

There was a lot I liked about The Zodiac Conspiracy -- several villain concepts are intriguing, their base is very impressive, and Taurus has one of the grand villain origins IMHO -- but what bothered me was that for a group with such a long history and grand plans of world domination, they had very little in the way of a support network "on the ground" to help them carry out their plans. In my own games I dealt with that by making several members of the Zodiac prominent and influential in their own rights. For example, Pisces usurped the throne of Atlantis. Scorpio took control of his ninja clan. Leo built his band's success into a multimedia empire. Cancer led an army of less-powerful duplicates of himself, grown from the fragments of his crashed ship. Gemini founded a prestigious law firm. Scorpio used her modeling agency as a front for an elite escort service, whose escorts extracted secrets from powerful individuals. And Taurus used disguising magic to take the role of scientific or political advisor to several world leaders.

 

One of our board colleagues, Ghost-Archer, modified the Zodiac for his own campaign, with several new or changed members intended to more closely match the characteristics of their signs: http://the-wild-hunt.org/villains/zodiac/index.html

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

Perhaps not so much a "team" as an organization, but with a distinctive theme and motivation -- my remake and "superization" of the classic Champs/Dark Champs org RAVEN for the Fifth Edition Champions Universe: http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php/47975-Storytime-Birth-of-RAVEN

[Aventar]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

I love the concept of themed villian groups. Essentially all you need to do is look at anything that has a distinct tie to culture and history that could be used. The Plagues of egypt, Pantheons (has been done to death but is an example), a genre of something such as a fantasy based group (warrior and wizard and rogue, etc), Horror based gimmicks (vampire, werewolf, etc.) like the Aesineos(sp?) with a little reflavoring and changes. I used them as horror based group with the Main becoming part of his suite as a frankenstine like character, and playing up ocelot as a werecreature and the mosquito as "The Fly" more than anything.

[Certified]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

Early on in Metahumans Rising I put the team up against HAAD (Humans Against Altered Dictatorships) mostly shock troops but they had one powered armored villain working with them called Cure who used inhibitor collars to shut down super powers.

[Escafarc]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

There was a lot I liked about The Zodiac Conspiracy -- several villain concepts are intriguing, their base is very impressive, and Taurus has one of the grand villain origins IMHO -- but what bothered me was that for a group with such a long history and grand plans of world domination, they had very little in the way of a support network "on the ground" to help them carry out their plans. In my own games I dealt with that by making several members of the Zodiac prominent and influential in their own rights. For example, Pisces usurped the throne of Atlantis. Scorpio took control of his ninja clan. Leo built his band's success into a multimedia empire. Cancer led an army of less-powerful duplicates of himself, grown from the fragments of his crashed ship. Gemini founded a prestigious law firm. Scorpio used her modeling agency as a front for an elite escort service, whose escorts extracted secrets from powerful individuals. And Taurus used disguising magic to take the role of scientific or political advisor to several world leaders.

 

One of our board colleagues, Ghost-Archer, modified the Zodiac for his own campaign, with several new or changed members intended to more closely match the characteristics of their signs: http://the-wild-hunt.org/villains/zodiac/index.html

 

In my campain Aries along with The Fool (from TAROT) along with a number of other "2nd in command" types in a large number of villian/secret agentcies/groups were all the same guy who was the advance wave of an extra-dimentional invasion. He pulled the strings to create as much confusion as he could before the main invasion. One of the PCs was also part of the plan but he changed sides. Of course there was a mass battle with the heroes and villians teamed up to defeat the common foe.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

Horror based gimmicks (vampire' date=' werewolf, etc.) like the Aesineos(sp?) with a little reflavoring and changes. I used them as horror based group with the Main becoming part of his suite as a frankenstine like character, and playing up ocelot as a werecreature and the mosquito as "The Fly" more than anything.[/quote']

 

Can't believe I forgot about the Asesinos! Supernatural assassins from Latin America and vicinity -- whatever you might think of specific characters, it's a very distinctive concept. And with what's happening on the Mexican/American border these days, they'd have even more employment opportunities.

[BoloOfEarth]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

As to published groups, there's always The Choir from Digital Hero #24 (I believe the creation of our very own Hermit; if I'm wrong, my apologies). All music/sound related, and very well-written.

 

I've created or assembled numerous theme teams myself.

 

ADEPT, a group of high-tech thieves: Artificer, Beamline, Dr. Discus, Fractal, Psyche (tech-based mentalist), ROVer, and Soundwave. Of course, Beamline is from published material, Soundwave was adapted from another game system (Heroes Unlimited?), and Dr. Discus was created by a friend.

 

The Windy City Sportsmen: Iron Mike (Ditka look-alike), The Bear, The Bull, Blackhawk, Cubbie, and Infierno (Fire), after most of the pro sports teams for Chicago.

 

Gamesmen: Checkmate, Checkerboard, Ping/Pong, Pente, Needler (darts), Bankshot (pool/billiards), Roleplayer (RPGs), and Hackmaster (MMOs), all [obviously] based on various games.

 

Vermin: Cockroach, Flea, Gopher, Maus, Mink, Pigeon, Weasel, and Willard (rats) -- all rejects of society, banded together because nobody else wants them.

 

Not sure if they really count as a Theme team, but I also have the Alexandrian Order, all characters whose powers come from magical items (Codex with scrolls and wondrous items, Alkahest with potions, Bauble with rings and other jewelry, Torg with magic plate mail and sword, Seer with a crystal ball and spirit totems, and Wanda the witch with wand and broomstick). Their goal is to stop DEMON, apparently by taking away all of their magical toys.

[BoloOfEarth]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

I also imagine PSI counts as a theme team (all mentalist-types). I've recreated them in my game, each specializing in one psionic power type and all named after Greek letters: Alpha (naturally the leader, a psionic mimic with only minimal powers alone), Gamma (mental blasts), Delta (defenses), Iota (illusions), Omicron (mind control), Pi (cyberkinetic), Sigma (scanner), Tau (telekinetic), Theta (telepath), Zeta (ECV-based teleportation -- yeah, I'm stretching the definition of 'mentalist'), and Omega (precognitive).

[Nuclear Fridge]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

I don't have a name for them yet, but I'm developing a band of telepathic 'one-trick ponies' from the 4E VIPER sourcebook. They're genetic 'augments' from a research project in Copenhagen.

So I have a phobic manipulator, a psychic 'vampire' who drains a foe's EGO then zaps them with mind blasts, and so on. None of the generic Telepathic Multipower/ TK Elemental Control power sets.

They have to rely on VIPER grunts for support and firepower. Why are they not more powerful? Simple. VIPER doesn't want them so powerful they start getting ideas about defecting (a point raised by my brother). But get them together with a little Teamwork, and they're bloody dangerous...

[Hermit]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

As to published groups' date=' there's always The Choir from Digital Hero #24 (I believe the creation of our very own Hermit; if I'm wrong, my apologies). All music/sound related, and very well-written.[/quote']

 

Ah shucks, you remembered Glad you liked them.

 

I love theme teams myself, and have tried a few others have already mentioned (Done a Tarot theme team once for example, much like Escafarc).

 

I seem to recall a Totemic style villain team from 4th ed, but can't remember the details.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

As to published groups' date=' there's always The Choir from Digital Hero #24 (I believe the creation of our very own Hermit; if I'm wrong, my apologies). All music/sound related, and very well-written.[/quote']

 

I was leaving the Choir for Hermit to take credit for, but at least he showed up for a bow. Yes, Bridge, Caterwaul, Crescendo, Dirge, Duet, Songbird, Soprano, and Virtuoso are a very interesting and diverse group with a strong unifying theme (pun inevitable).

 

Here are free samples from the article of two members of the Choir, Duet and Dirge.

 

Speaking of musical "theme" teams, if you can get your hands on the 5E HERO version of The Algernon Files by BlackWyrm Games (an overall excellent character sourcebook for Champions), you'll find full write-ups for an all-female superpowered punk/goth rock band known as Hell's Belles.

 

Going back to the aforementioned High-Tech Enemies, I just recalled a group from that book called the Anti-Tech League, made up of villains with powers especially effective against advanced technology, motivated to eradicate all the world's modern gadgetry to return it to a "simpler" state.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

I seem to recall a Totemic style villain team from 4th ed' date=' but can't remember the details.[/quote']

 

Ah yes, that would be (appropriately enough) The Totems, from Creatures of the Night. The group was made up of Native Americans acting as terrorists, trying to drive the white people out of North America. Four of the villains possessed the supernatural power of native totem spirits: Bear, Rattlesnake, Coyote, and Thunderbird. They were led by an undead shaman, a Manitou.

[Lord Liaden]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

Speaking of Rattlesnake, I should probably also mention the snake-themed villain teams in Champions history -- there's been a few, most prominently the 4E and 5E versions of King Cobra's organization, COIL. 4E VIPER also maintained a couple of serpentine "staff supervillain" teams, the Serpent Syndicate and the Snake Pack

[Nuclear Fridge]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

4E VIPER also maintained a couple of serpentine "staff supervillain" teams' date=' the [b']Serpent Syndicate[/b] and the Snake Pack

(shudder) I took a look at them the other day, first time in years.

Their problem - in fact, the problem King Cobra's group has in Champions Presents 2 - is what I call the Encyclopedia Problem. Look up 'Snakes'. Copy out some names. Create 2 or 3 villains with suitable powers...

 

Get stuck. Really stuck.

Start chucking in a few reptile types. Hand out lots & lots & lots of 'Berserks while Awake', 'Casual Killer in the Presence of Electricity' and so on. Whack in power sets that don't seem to have a lot to do with snakes or reptiles, because you've already got those 2 or 3 decent villains...

[BlueCloud2k2]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

One I stole and adapted from Gargoyles (Disney Cartoon Series):

 

The Pack - a group of actors from around the world that are all martial artists, and in the TV show are constantly attacked by ninjas (Pesky Ninjas). They are also a group of criminals and thrill seekers, and later on receive upgrades from Xanatos. My version of the Pack is as follows (wolf is the only one I've fleshed out fully and did a write-up on, but that was LONG ago):

 

Wolf - formerly a Pro-Wrestler named Peter McTavert (sp?), one of his ancestors was a were-wolf. The virus causing lycanthropy bonded to the ancestor's DNA and was passed on in dormant form from generation to generation. McTavert was offered an experimental steroid called Human Potential. The steroid unlocks the lycanthropy gene, transforming McTavert into a human-wolf hybrid. (McTavert is not actually a werewolf, but the Serum unlocks the wolf-abilities). He is currently serving time in Stronghold.

 

Jackal - no one knows who the Jackal is, but his Powered Armor has every bell and whistle you can imagine. He is savage in combat, and enjoys killing innocents. Based on his actions, many specialists have commented that his is a total sociopath. Coyote is the only one he listens to. (In reality, he is a cyborg)

 

Hyena - the daughter of an Egyptologist from Cairo (never did find a name for her), she found a magical artifact that transforms her into an animal-headed creature similar to those worshiped by ancient Egyptians. She now searches out other magical artifacts to increase her powers.

 

Fox - a master thief and dare-devil, Sofia LaRuse traveled the world looking for the most secure vaults to crack. She is also a mutant with stealth and agility based powers, and is a master of disguise. Fox serves as the teams intrusion and infiltration expert. She boasts that she has broken into Stronghold to see Wolf.

 

Dingo - a hardened criminal from Australia, Dingo is a gadgeteer who loves to tinker. It is thought that many of Jackal's upgrades to his suit were the result of Dingo joining the Pack.

 

Coyote - Coyote is the newest member of the pack, and took over as Leader after Wolf was inprisoned. He is also a powered armor user.

 

I may flesh these out more later when I have time. If anyone is interested, let me know.

[Hermit]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

(shudder) I took a look at them the other day, first time in years.

Their problem - in fact, the problem King Cobra's group has in Champions Presents 2 - is what I call the Encyclopedia Problem. Look up 'Snakes'. Copy out some names. Create 2 or 3 villains with suitable powers...

 

Get stuck. Really stuck.

Start chucking in a few reptile types. Hand out lots & lots & lots of 'Berserks while Awake', 'Casual Killer in the Presence of Electricity' and so on. Whack in power sets that don't seem to have a lot to do with snakes or reptiles, because you've already got those 2 or 3 decent villains...

 

*L* Well, that was almost a problem when I made "The Spider Syndicate" for my campaigns long ago (haven't used them in awhile). They were a homage to Marvel's Serpent Society. They contained Trapdoor, Red Widow, Fiddler and Recluse (Twins), Jumper and Wolf and one or two more than I can't recall at this time.

 

I really ought to write them up in 6th Ed versions, because with fewer disadvantages/complications required, you can avoid the whole 'Beserks at the sight of lidded jars'

syndrome

[BoloOfEarth]

Re: Villain Theme Teams

 

For that matter, one could add the remake of Muerte (from Digital Hero #44) as another theme group, with necromancy being the word of the day. Muerte, Seraphina, El General, and Khemset, as well as the Blood Hounds and the Hands of Death. I've used them to great effect in my game, most recently with Muerte teaming up with a powerful supernatural supervillain (Ravager) to attempt to retrieve two powerful magical coins from the PC heroes.

 

(steps aside to let the author take a bow)