WWII Prebuilt characters

[NN1]

I've been playing in a 5th ed revised WWII Champions game (sort of co-GMing in that I know the system better than the GM, allowing me to help give the GM resources and help new players navigate the complex would of Hero System character creation) and was wondering if there was any good sources of pre-built characters/equipment for supers in that age either in official publications or in someone's home-brew collection. I've looked at Pulp Hero already and while it is very useful for mundane equipment, the weird science stuff seems to be going in a direction that doesn't seem to fit in with the progression to modern tech in the setting (why doesn't Viper have the 8d6 NND WWII disintegrator in modern times?) 

One interesting thing I saw in Champions Worldwide was the supervillain Panzer. One line stuck out to me:

"After several years of effort, he created the Panzermensch Mark XI battle armor, a direct descendant from the earliest WWII-era designs used by der Totenkopf’s henchmen to battle the Allies."

Of course the power level of this suit is far above anything you'd put in a relatively low-powered WWII Champions game (40+ PD/ED is more than the party can handle) and the tech is obviously too advanced (microfusion batteries when fission is young plus force fields and lasers), but the line suggests that not only did the Nazis have power armor, but they had a fair number of suits. I wonder what the Mark I was like.

If I don't have a published source to work from, I'm thinking of looking at a henchmen-level suit of power armor (from Book of Destroyer, UNTIL, or Viper) and replace any blasters with period firearms and generally low-tech equipment (portable radio communication was only just becoming practical). I'll use Panzer's suit as an upper-bound and take some hints from that. Flight will probably be replaced by leaping (jump-jets) since metalurgy and cost-restrictions might restrict the availability of light-but-strong materials. There could still be a better version where no expense was spared for a main villain, but it did say der Totenkopf's HENCHMEN used the suits.

[TheQuestionMan]

GURPS WWII Weird War

 

Creature Commandos

 

Return to Castle Falkenstein

[Christopher R Taylor]

For one thing, the Panzer I would be huge and bulky, almost mecha.  Ten feet all and massive, for all the gears and power core.  They could have a radio, machine guns, grenade launchers, even stuff like radar and short range jump jets with limited uses (basically superleap with charges).  It could look pretty good, but wouldn't be sleek and stylish like Iron Man.

[NN1]

For one thing, the Panzer I would be huge and bulky, almost mecha.  Ten feet all and massive, for all the gears and power core.  They could have a radio, machine guns, grenade launchers, even stuff like radar and short range jump jets with limited uses (basically superleap with charges).  It could look pretty good, but wouldn't be sleek and stylish like Iron Man.

 

Yeah, I was thinking Ironman Mk 1 at best (the beefy metal one). I'm looking at Destroyer's Black Talon mook armor and the Panzer armors as absolute caps on characteristic boosts and defenses. Any end reserve would be low, but it looks like most of the mods will work on charges (strength wouldn't, but moving the mech will be tiring and I'm not going more than +15, like destroyer's mook-mech). Both suits have +dex and +speed, but I'm thinking that mk 1 at least would be lucky not to slow down their users rather than speed them up, so no boosting that until Mk 2 or later.

 

Panzermensch Mk1 rough draft

 

+15 str (no fig characteristics, OIF)

+5 con (no fig characteristics, OIF)

Armor 12 PD / 12 ED (?) (OIF)

Jump jets: leaping +10", (16 charges, OIF)

Radio communication: radio perception/transmission, (OIF, affected as sight and hearing, 1.5 km max range -0)*

spotlight: sight group images (only to create light, OIF) (details to be decided) ??

Weapons systems: 60 point multipower (all slots OIF)

- Machine gun: 2d6 rka, 64 charges, autofire 5, beam, no kb

- Flamethrower 2d6 rka, AoE cone, no kb, 8 (?) charges

- Anti-armor micro-missile 3d6-1 Armor piercing, 4 (?) charges

- Punch with a metal fist: +3d6 HA (?) 0-end

 

*We're early in the war, so the GM has been a bit stingy about convenient portable radios for non-gadgeteers so the radios might be excluded initially

 

Add-ons that could/would quickly be added might be a gas mask (ls: expanded breathing for filtering, or expanded breathing for air tanks), 5 points of hearing and/or sight flash defense, different weapon loadouts (blades, rubber science lightning magigs, etc.). Longer term augmentations might involve dex/spd boosts or increased running. Highly limited flight might come eventually (maybe with suits with less armor). Expanding LS for underwater operations (+ some swimming adaptations) or high radiation might be on the agenda. 

 

Pilot will probably be something akin to the "experienced/tough" soldier generic npc from "Predators" perhaps slightly improved (15 str, etc) and set to the period. The guys are mooks, but you try to give power armor to the GOOD mooks.

[massey]

I dunno, that's the sort of thing we come up with today when we try to come up with something 1940s-ish.  I don't know that that is what they would have created at the time. Remember that they had death rays and stuff in fiction back then, and somebody building an Iron Man suit in the 40s is really no more far-fetched than someone building one today.

 

 

[assault]

Fleischer Superman cartoons:

 

The Bulleteers. A bunch of guys with a supercar.

The Mechanical Monsters. Robots.

[Pattern Ghost]

Remember the Maine?

 

I think he has a good look for a WW II power armor.

[Scott Anderson]

Remember the Maine?

 

I think he has a good look for a WW II power armor.

Can't "Like" this but it's 100% true.

 

There was a Punisher story years ago where he was chasing down an old suit of Iron Man Mk II armor.  Big and bulky, painted gold.  It was portrayed as being ten feet tall and very slow, but that's probably just storytelling.  It did seem perfect for a WWII era suit of armor.

 

 

Is the OP looking for any WWII characters, or just the armored suit kind?

[NN1]

Can't "Like" this but it's 100% true.

 

There was a Punisher story years ago where he was chasing down an old suit of Iron Man Mk II armor.  Big and bulky, painted gold.  It was portrayed as being ten feet tall and very slow, but that's probably just storytelling.  It did seem perfect for a WWII era suit of armor.

 

 

Is the OP looking for any WWII characters, or just the armored suit kind?

 

Iron man and the mk 1 (grey) and mk 2 (gold) armors came out in the 1963 during the cold war, so it wasn't WWII so it is a little newer than WWII, but it WAS far from sleek. Think the improvised metal monstrosity that Stark made in a cave in the Iron Man movie. That was an homage to the original mk 1 and the mk 2 was a slightly updated and recolored version of the mk 1. 

 

I'm looking for WWII superhero characters in general, but the panzermensch armor was an interesting tidbit. A thread that I seized on, especially since it suggested more. 

[Netzilla]

I always enjoyed the Freedom Force games, which had Sky King in the sequel

http://freedomforce.wikia.com/wiki/Sky_King

 

He's kind of an homage to the Rocketeer.

[Scott Anderson]

Apologies for the formatting, I don't have any software or anything.

 

FIGHTING EAGLE                                              JAMES JOHNS

 

 

 

Cost         CHA       Value       Roll         Notes

10            STR         20        13-           Lift: 400 kg

48            DEX       26          14-           OCV: 9 /DCV 9:

20            CON       20           13-

6              BODY    13           12-

0              INT         10        11-           PER Roll 11-

2              EGO       11          11-           ECV: 4 

10            PRE        20           13-           PRE Attack: 4d6

4              COM      18           13-

10            PD           14                            Total: 14  PD

10            ED          14                            Total: 14  ED

24            SPD         6                              Phases:

0              REC        8

0              END       40

1              STUN     34                            4d6 Base HTH Damage

 

145          Total Characteristics Cost

105          Total Abilities Cost

250          Total Character Cost

0              Unspent XP

 

Movement:              Running:  12”/96”

                                Swimming: 2”/4”

                                Leaping:   4”/2” upwards         

 

Cost         Abilities

 

(40)         Skills

 

3              Acrobatics 14-

3              Breakfall 14-

3              Climbing 14-

3              Stealth 14-

3              Teamwork 14-

 

Martial Arts

4              Kick                       +0 +2  8d6 Strike

5              Chop                      -2  -1  1d6 HKA (2d6 w/STR)

4              Martial Disarm                      40 STR

4              Martial Block          +2  +2  Abort

8              +2 Damage Class (figured in)

 

0              Acting 8-

0              AK: The City 8-

0              CuK: Native Culture 11-

0              Deduction 8-

0              KS: Fly Fishing 8-

0              KS: Play the Souzaphone and Tuba 8-

0              KS: General Knowledge 11-

0              English (native)

0              Persuasion 8-

0              PS: Classical Musician 8-

0              PS: Perform Basic Chores And Menial Tasks 11-

0              TF: Small Motorized Watercraft

0              TF: Small Motorized Ground Vehicles

 

(65)         Powers

 

7              Thanks, Eagle!: Missile Deflection, All Missiles, From the Front Only (-1), Not vs. Heavy Missiles (-1/4), OIF (chest emblem which resembles a golden eagle-rampant, -1/2).

13            Swinglines Often Appear: Swinging 17” x2 NCV, Physical Manifestation (-1/4).

7              Glide Suit: Gliding 10” x2 NCV, OIF (glider suit, -1/2).

15            The Eagle Cycle: 12” Running x8 NCV, Turn Mode (-1/4), Does not add to base Running (-1/4), OIF Bulky (Motorcycle, -3/4).

 

8              Fleet: 10” Running x2NCV

 

15            American Ingenuity: Find Weakness with Chop, 12-

 

105          Total Powers & Abilities Cost

 

150+        Disadvantages

 

15            Reputation: Nobody’s THAT Square! 14-

10            Psychological Limitation: Actually that Square

20            Psychological Limitation: Code vs. Killing

20            Psychological Limitation: Four-Color Code

10            Physical Limitation: Always using inappropriate words, phrases and double entendres, but inadvertently.

15            Social Limitation: Secret ID

10            Social Limitation: Has a fan club (Frequently, Minor)

 

100          Total Disadvantages

 

[massey]

In the actual Golden Age, you had a lot of two-fisted adventurers who would have a gimmick or two.  That's not to say all heroes were that way, but you had a lot of guys where you could file the serial numbers off of them and they'd all look the same.  The Fighting Eagle above would be a pretty good representation of those types.  Sometimes they'd have a rocket pack, sometimes they'd have smoke bombs that only they could see through, sometimes they had a tiny radio that they could crack Nazi codes with or listen in on the plans of criminals, whatever.  They'd usually have one or two gimmicks like that, and they'd be strong enough to beat up a room full of guys.  You could do a good version of most of these on 250.

 

In addition to those types, you also had your Superman ripoffs.  A lot of these guys would only last for a few issues before they got cancelled and/or the publisher got sued, but there were probably just as many superstrong/fast/invulnerable guys from a distant land as there were two-fisted adventurers.  Likely you wouldn't want quite that many in your own campaign.  These guys probably need 350 to 450 points to cover all the stuff they could do.

 

And then you've got the more unique characters, like Green Lantern, the Flash, the Human Bomb, etc.  Those guys are gonna be all over the place, power-wise.  The Human Bomb you could probably do for 300-350, but Flash and GL could be really expensive.

[Ninja-Bear]

How about the Dreadnaught from Classic Enemies. It was even built during WWII. Though it was towards the end of the war. So-rewrite!

[eepjr24]

For next steps on the armor you could probably switch the leaping charges to boostable fuel charges. Flares are another possibility. Maybe a night vision visor? 

 

- E

[wcw43921]

I always enjoyed the Freedom Force games, which had Sky King in the sequel

http://freedomforce.wikia.com/wiki/Sky_King

 

He's kind of an homage to the Rocketeer.

 

This is the Sky King that I remember.

 

Yes, I'm old.

[Kharis2000]

IIRC, Michael Surbrook has write-ups for the Original Freedom Force characters on his site, which might give you some good ideas/starting points.

[Steve]

I think one of the Golden Age books for Hero way back in the day had a villain called Battlesuit Potemkin. Does anyone else remember this character?

[TheQuestionMan]

Deviant Art inspiration! 

http://caananwhite.deviantart.com/gallery/6768140/WW2-Art-Work   

 

Uber by Avatar Press 

http://comicvine.gamespot.com/uber/4050-72599/

 

Godlike: Superhero Roleplaying in a World on Fire, 1936-1946  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godlike_(role-playing_game)