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4th String Villians Yeah!


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Re: 4th String Villians Yeah!

 

madcapcap2.jpg

 

Madcap. He dressed funny, and he carried a gun that blew soap bubbles.

 

He had two powers -- regeneration, and mind control only to make you do goofy stuff.

 

He was a lot of fun. The late great Jack Monroe/Nomad tangled with him in most of his appearances that I saw.

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Re: 4th String Villians Yeah!

 

I'm secretly a big fan of Sleepwalker*. If there is one thing that Sleepwalker did right' date=' it was generate a fair sized rogue's gallery full of low level villains. Of these, 8-Ball was my favorite. I like how simple he was. Classic.

 

8ball1k.jpg

 

8-Ball was an engineer that designed missile propulsion systems. He was also a skilled gymnast & an expert pool player.

 

He invented a super cue stick that turns objects of opportunity into potentially lethal missiles. He used everything from tires to dumpsters to cars as weapons in this manner.

 

8-Ball also used explosive grenades and fireworks, a hovercraft, and flying miniature cameras, all painted to resemble billiard balls.

 

8ballandgang.jpg

 

The members of 8-Ball's gang were 6-Ball, 9-Ball and 11-Ball. Their weapons included exploding billiard balls.

 

8ballhoverrack.jpg

 

The Hover Rack reminds me of Power Girl for some reason. :o

 

 

*Everyone but me hates Sleepwalker.

 

I always was going to make a villian named the Bowler. A guy who has tk and uses it in the form of a bowing ball, and having armor/costume in the form of a bowling pin. I must now make him!

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Re: 4th String Villians Yeah!

 

I always was going to make a villian named the Bowler. A guy who has tk and uses it in the form of a bowing ball' date=' and having armor/costume in the form of a bowling pin. I must now make him![/quote']

I would check out the Mystery Men for some inspiration if you have not seen the movie.

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Re: 4th String Villians Yeah!

 

Has anyone here delibertly created a 4th string villian for there campain? If so' date=' how did it go?[/quote']

 

 

I built The Revenge Syndicate out of public domain villains: the Black Rat, Dr. Riddle, the Hyena, Madam Serpina, the Murder Prophet, and the Weeper. The players loved 'em. The Weeper actually appeared in a B&B episode.

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Re: 4th String Villians Yeah!

 

Geodesics were my favorite and with the exception of Green Knight' date=' I liked most of Enemies III other than the fact that Mechassassin and Power Crusher looked like they vomited their costume choices.[/quote']

 

As I recall, half of them had weird Kirby-esque goggles going on. I thought I'd fallen into a 1970s Jimmy Olsen comic.

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As I recall' date=' half of them had weird Kirby-esque goggles going on. I thought I'd fallen into a 1970s Jimmy Olsen comic.[/quote']

 

I wish I had gotten that vibe from them. I'd have enjoyed them a lot more.

 

As they are, I think they're a decent group for inexperienced players to meet early.

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Re: 4th String Villians Yeah!

 

Of the "classic" Enemies to make it through all the Editions of Champions, I would say Ogre is the best example of a 4th-stringer. He always seemed like "Grond-Lite"--a muscle-bound single-minded rage machine that the players actually had a chance of defeating. I remember the BBB's example of a Champions/HERO combat--it took only two heroes, Crusader and Starburst, to beat him.

 

The same can be said of Bulldozer, whom I never could regard as much of a threat alone. I always figured the way to handle him was for the rest of the hero team to set up a containment perimeter, then send in the team's brick to subdue him one-on-one. Now if he followed my suggestion and recruited his own all-male team of villains (which would be called AIM--the Alliance of Indomitable Men), he could stand more than a wafer-slim chance of winning a fight, and maybe even gain a better reputation for himself.

 

As for Enemies III, don't forget that Dark Seraph and Mechassassin were originally presented there, as was Beamline who was a favorite of mine. I would say that Red Rapier and The Amazing Darkon were the resident 4th-stringers. Heck, Bulldozer was smarter than Darkon, if only by one point. And while Red Rapier might win one fight against a hero, he wouldn't win the rematch.

 

As for more recent 4th-stringers--Buzzsaw (Villains, Vandals & Vermin, pg. 64-65) is the one that comes immediately to mind. Take away his buzzsaw-shooters, and what have you got? A guy with 2D6 Luck, but that won't save him from being one-punched by a brave and able hero. I was also thinking that Lodestone (Conquerors, Killers & Crooks, pg. 170-171) could be considered a 4th-stringer--sure, he has power, but doesn't really seem to have much in the way of ambition or charisma. I figure if an arrangement could be made by which he were paid to not commit crimes, he'd be just as happy to sit at home and count the money coming in. (That could be a unique modus operandi for a Filthy Rich hero. Just saying. ;))

 

Now if you want a 5th or 6th-string villain, there's always The Slaughterizer, from the Champions adventure Zip-Zap Guns (Adventurers Club #20, pg. 11-17). Basically a disturbed guy in a costume and packing a rapid-fire laser pistol (that was more likely to explode with each use), he barely rated a paragraph in the article, let alone an illustration or a character sheet. Still, there's something about the name. . .

 

Of course, that's a good way to build a 4th or 5th-stringer--take a Normal (or even a Competent Normal) and give him one of the items from the Gadgets & Gear book, some of which are powerful enough on their own to present a credible threat in the wrong hands. The Neurohelm on page 96 comes to mind--some guy finds that and before you know it, he christens himself--"Controllo, The Mesmeratic Man!" Or any of the items in the Miscellaneous Gadgets section (pg. 141) could be found or invented by someone ambitious or vengeful enough to use them for sinister purposes.

 

Just my thoughts on the subject--take them as you will. Have fun.

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