wcw43921

Re: If Champions didn't exist...

. . .Then Wheaties would have to be "The Breakfast Of Second-Place Finishers."

:D :D

Thank You--I'm here all week. . .

Re: Theme music

This is the theme song I came up with for my character Captain Wonder. The idea is that he wanted to be Captain Wonder ever since he was very little, and created a costume design and theme song for himself in anticipation of becoming a superhero. (He sings the theme to himself before and during a battle to keep himself psyched.)

The melody is my own, and since I'm not musically literate, you'll have to figure it from the lyrics as best you can. My apologies.

And now, without further ado--

CAPTAIN WONDER--AWAAAY!!!

Captain Wonder--Away!

Fighting With His Might To Save The Day!

When It's All On The Line,

He'll Save Your Life And Mine,

Captain Wonder--Away!

Captain Wonder--Away!

Look Out, Bad Guys, 'Cause He's Here To Stay!

When There's A Wrong To Right,

He's There To Win The Fight,

Captain Wonder--Away!

His Fists Strike As Hard And Fast As Lightning,

Evil-Doers Fall Before Their Might,

When Other People Find The Villains Frightening,

He Will Charge On In And Win The Fight!

All The People Cheer For Captain Wonder,

They Think He's The Greatest In The Land,

And When He Tears The Villains' Plans Asunder,

They Do All Give Him A Great Big Hand!

Captain Wonder--Away!

And Evil Will Never Ever Have Its Way!

When Villains Come To Town,

He's There To Bring Them Down,

When Evil Bears Its Claws,

He's There To Win Our Cause,

When Villains Threaten Us,

He'll Fight For All Of Us,

Captain Wonder--Away!

Captain Wonder--Away!

CAPTAIN WONDER--AWAAAY!!!

(Copyright 2004 by the author)

Re: Jeff Wayne's War of the World's meets Champions

However, one interesting thing that Hyde pointed out that is very valid in a superhero game is - Tripods are a very stupid design. You take out one leg, and they fall over.

The same can be said of any "Walker" vehicle--from two-legged vehicles like Gundam Mobile Suits (and just about any other fighting robot) to the AT-ATs from Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. Even eight-legged "spider-walkers" would have problems functioning if it lost even one of its legs.*

This is why I remain less-than-convinced of the viability of anthropomorphic or zoomorphic vehicles as weapons of war. As storytelling devices, however, they work really well.

*Now a "centipede-walker" with a hundred or more legs, might be able to sustain the loss of one or more legs without a critical loss of functionality. Perhaps Foxbat was right all along.

Now there's a thought. . . :shudder:

Re: The Incredibles -- WITH SPOILERS

I was wondering what happened to all the supervillains when the heroes were forced into retirement--were they all supposed to be in jail by then, or something? Because usually when the heroes are incapacitated or otherwise out of the picture, that's the time the bad guys really go on a spree--

BANK ROBBERS: "This is great! With the Mighty Rocket out of town, there's no one to stop us!"

THE MIGHTY ROCKET: "Who said I was out of town?"

BANK ROBBERS: "Oh---fudge. . ."

Now I could see Syndrome recruiting the villains the same way he "recruited" all those heroes--but I thought there should have been some mention of it in the movie.

That being said, it did not diminish my enjoyment of the movie one bit. The Incredibles is quite possibly the best original superhero movie ever--EVER--and I plan to see it once more, at least, and support it in any way I can.

Re: New Character Background - Opinions Welcome

To be honest, I hadn't thought of any of those points. I'm still fairly new at creating superhero origin stories.

Could have fooled me. That's a great origin. Well done.

The name lacks a little "oomph" if you'll pardon my saying so. May I humbly suggest:

Super-Swift

Lightning Swift

Speed Star (if that isn't already taken)

Lightspeeder

I look forward to your next character.

Re: must keep topic alive!

Yes' date=' originally it was a stylized "S." Byrne made it official when he did "Man of Steel" and showed how and why he and Jonathon Kent designed it the way they did. When they made the movie the Donner and Mankewitz came up with the idea to have all Kryptonian families have symbols that resembled letters (makes you wonder how the Phoenicians got all the way out to Krypton ). So the idea that the symbol came from Krypton, not Clark's imagination, caught on with others --like Bruce Timm. Now since Waid did "Superman: Birthright" it's become official DC canon. I think it's really stupid, and is probably the result of executive interference, but there it is.[/quote']

 

I think in Smallville it'll be a combination of both--the pentagonal shield will come from the Krypto-glyphs, and the "S" will come from Smallville High. They've often shown in the background the official Smallville High emblem, which has a shield with a "S" on it, and their mascot is a cartoon crow carrying the shield and wearing a red cape tied around its neck.

Re: An Alternate Superman

Elseworlds Rant! Why is it that in every elseworlds were Batman is the main character, Superman is played as the villain (or a tragically mis-guided character)?

I think this goes back to Frank Miller's first Dark Knight series, when Batman was very much against the Establishment and Superman was taking orders from it. You see this attitude in almost all the DC comics, where Superman is out there doing what he thinks is right, and Batman sort of hangs back like he's waiting for Superman to screw up.

That's what it looks like to me, anyway.

Re: Need help with names!

Okay, I'm running a Champs game and have come up with a cool idea for a trio of villains called "The Technophiles" (Basically they are hi-tech villains).

 

I need names for each of the three.. and I don't wanna wind up taking a name already used. So here they are:

 

GunBunny (name I might use) - Uses hi-tech guns, and has a teleportation mechanism inside her coat to bring her weapons from an automated storage system (a computer controlled Van) but she must be within 1 KM of the Van for it to work.

I agree that Gunbunny's too facetious--I'd go with:

Fire Control

Weaponeer

Cover Fire

Blaster

Glider type - Somewhat of a GreenGoblin/Hobgoblin adaptation. Basically he flies around on a Glider (bought as a Vehical that only he can pilot). He also carries a variety of bombs, and has a Staff that can fire various energy blasts (MP with OAF).

Buld the glider with inverted gull wings, and you can call him Stuka.

Airstriker and Airpower are also good, too.

Tentacle/Powered Armor (Inspired by Doc Oc from Spiderman two) - this guy built a powered armor with Tentacles bearing various toys. He has 4 in the back with various toys (a la Doc Oc), plus each of his arms have two retractable whip-like Tentacles.

I like the Shiva the Destroyer suggestion, especially if you give him energy blasters built into his tentacles.

Hope that helps

Re: Team HQs

If you can get your hands on a copy of Challenges For Champions, there's a floor plan for a superhero base in there that you might find useful.

What is this? I have never heard of it.

It's a 4th Edition product that was released shortly after Classic ENEMIES, and included about a dozen adventure scenarios. The HQ was in the first scenario about a grandfater clock with a demon inside that came out at midnight--it was supposed to go on a rampage in the heroes' base, and if the heroes didn't have a base, the adventure thoughtfully provided one.

Re: Team HQs

If you can get your hands on a copy of Challenges For Champions, there's a floor plan for a superhero base in there that you might find useful.

Also, most Villains & Vigilantes adventures have a supervillain base you might be able to convert with a minimum of effort.

Re: "Grond smash!" and other Grond plots

Here's a couple--

*Grond somehow regains the mind of Sydney Potter, and he remembers the incident with Teleios' Grond-clones (assuming it happened in your campaign). He manages to track down Teleios, and threatens him with death and destruction unless he can restore his humanity--he wants to be Sydney Potter again. The PCs catch up with Grond, and he tells them what he wants and asks their help in making Teleios do what he wants. Will the PCs agree, and if they do, how will they ensure Teleios doesn't have a trick up his sleeve?

*Grond has been reported battling mystical supervillianous elements--he's wrecked several DEMON-hames, sent Zorran the Artificer fleeing for his life, and even forced Temblor of the Crowns of Krim to retreat. No one can explain it until an archeological expedition to an ancient temple discovers a sealed room with a staute of Grond in it that is found to be several thousand years old. Inscriptions on tablets found in the room speak of a "demon-slayer demon" --a monster invoked for the purpose of fighting other monsters. Perhaps Grond is more--much more--than a mere freak of science. . .

Re: Disads for "Cheese Champions!"

Psychological Limitation: It's not a costume, it's a part of me!

 

This person has given up the illusion of normalcy. He or she has a human form and could easily change clothes, but their costume has become a second skin. Theoretically, they take the clothes off for washing and sleeping but it is rarely proven. If taken at Strong, they will need EGO rolls to try and fight out of costume. If taken at Total, they cannot fight out of costume unless another a stronger psychological limitation occurs.

 

"But, then, I wouldn't be THE CARPETED MAN!"

That can also be a Physical Limitation. . .

HERO: "Egad!!! The zipper's stuck!!! I'm trapped inside my costume!!! I can't--I CAN'T GET IT OFF!!!"

PASSER-BY (Who only heard the last part): "Hey, bud, I know a girl who can help with that little problem--she charges fifty bucks, though. . ."

Re: What cities could Batman call home?

Well, remember, Batman relies on swinging on his Batrope to get around as much as he does on the Batmobile, the same way Spider-Man relies on his weblines. That means Batman would need a city with lots of skyscrapers, like New York or Chicago. Anywhere else and he'd need a flying vehicle, especially in Los Angeles.

Re: Villains, Vandals, and Vermin: Who should be in it?

For myself, I'd like to see Beamline restored to the Champions universe--I always thought he had one of the more interesting motivations for being a villain, as well as one of the more nifty origins. (Also, I liked Patrick Zircher's drawing of Beamline in Classic ENEMIES, and I figure that if there's ever a Champions TV series, they could get Robert Picardo to play the part--or at least do the voice if it's an animated series.)

Other than that, I have no problem with all-new characters. Go to town, Steve.

I'm in the process of building a rifle-propelled grenade, in which the grenade is loaded into the muzzle of the weapon, and a propellant charge is loaded into the breech. This to me sounds like the Extra Time (Full Phase) limitation, but once it's loaded all you need to do is pull the trigger--which is where the Delayed Effect advantage comes in.

It occurred to me as I was writing this up that this combination of Advantage and Limitation could be used to simulate just about any muzzle-loaded weapon, from pistol to cannon (with cannons, of course taking longer than a Full Phase), as well as most, if not all forms of heavy artillery. While it may take time to load the weapon, once it is loaded you can hold your fire as long as is necessary.

My apologies if I'm stating the obvious, but I wanted to "check my work" before committing it to a character write-up. Feedback would be most definitely appreciated.

Re: FoxbatsMasterPlan.Com

dear mistr foxbat,

 

my name is timmy im six years old

 

if i start a foxbat fan club can i get a rid in yore centapeedmobeel?

 

my daddy thinks yore a loon but i think yore cool

 

timmy

Hey, Timmy--thank you very, very much for writing in. Little kids like you are what make my career as the Greatest Villain Of All Time worthwhile. It gladdens my heart and brightens my day to know that a small, innocent child holds me up as his idol as I commit dastardly deeds and plot the next step in my Master Plan.

Timmy, if you think my Centipede-Mobile was great, wait 'til you see what's coming next! (I'll give you a hint--I downloaded the ROBOT WARRIORS pdf to help me build it.)

Let me know how the fan club goes, Timmy--and to get you started, have yourself a well-earned Non-Prize--and I'm sure I won't need to remind you to. . .

FIGHT FOR FOXBAT!!!

Re: FoxbatsMasterPlan.Com

Er' date=' Foxbat, you may want to check your character sheet again. I think that Code Versus Killing (Common, Total) is going to be a bit of a hinderance. Perhaps a plot involving Mind Control would be better suited to your Psychological Limitations.[/quote']

 

Fedifensor, I suggest you check my character sheet again. It says I have a Code Versus Killing. It says nothing about a Code Versus Destroying.

 

As for Mind Control plots--well, if you'd been following the updates, you would have seen how the last one worked out.

 

I'm afraid that despite your best efforts, you haven't earned a Non-Prize--better luck next time. And until then. . .

 

 

FIGHT FOR FOXBAT!!!

Re: FoxbatsMasterPlan.Com

Dear Foxbat,

 

Do you have an evil twin?

 

 

Sincerely,

 

Seeing Double in Millenium City

Hey, Seeing Double--cool name, by the way. What are your superpowers? Are you a clone that can see things no one else can? (That'd be my guess, anyway.)

Now about that "evil twin"--I'm glad you brought him up. For he is not an "evil twin," but an evil impostor who seeks to undermine my villainous reputation by committing senseless crimes which are then blamed on me.

"The HORROR!!!" you say. To which I reply, "It's TRUE!!!" He holds up liquor stores, knick-knack and bric-a-brac shops, and even takes twelve items through the express lane, when it specifically says TEN ITEMS OR LESS!!! Why, this fiend doesn't even--he doesn't even have a Master Plan!!!

(Let me give you a moment to get over the shock.)

I tell you, my frenzied Foxbat-followers, this effrontery must be confronted and dealt with once and for all! If you see this impostor anywhere around the city, no matter what time of day or night, inform me IMMEDIATELY at one of these e-mail addys:

fxbtizleet @ foxbatsmasterplan-dot-com

fxbtizkoole @ foxbatsmasterplan-dot-com

fxbtizduope @ foxbatsmasterplan-dot-com

Together we can bring this scourge down and restore my name and my position as the Greatest Villain Of All Time. Double, you've earned yourself a Non-Prize--and always remember. . .

FIGHT FOR FOXBAT!!!

Lo, There Shall Be. . .an Update!!!

They thought they could imprison me--they thought I'd never see the light of day again--but HERE I AM!!! FREE!!! No one can keep the Great and Powerful Foxbat caged for long! Of course, it was their mistake to ship me to a mere super-maximum security mental hospital, instead of Stronghold! That'll teach them to underestimate me! And when the inevitable success of my Master Plan inevitably comes to pass, they will truly regret their mistake! And their regrettance shall be sweet music to my Foxbat-ears!!!

Allow me a moment while I enjoy a hearty villianous laugh. . .

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, that was a good one. Okay, on to business. . .

I would've gotten back to you guys sooner, but I've been busy knocking over ATMs in preparation for implementing the first phase of my new Master Plan. You may have heard that the Omega-Mega-Billions Spectacular, the richest lottery drawing ever, is near 900 million dollars in prize money. I need to steal enough money to cover the first 10,951,338 most likely number combinations--and once I've won the Big Prize, I'll have more than enough funds to cover the implementation of the rest of the Master Plan!

"But Glorious and Magnficent Foxbat," I can hear you saying, "how, even with your incalculable Foxbat-Intellect, can you hope to cover all the possible number combinations? It's hopeless--HOPELESS!!!"

Well, my Foxbat-Fans and friends, let me tell you that NOTHING is Hopeless! NOTHING! Just so long as you have a dream--and a Master Plan!

But this time, I also have an edge. An edge named Dwayne. He's the captain of his school's sixth-grade mathletes team, and knows more about numbers and probabilities than Nighthawk knows about brooding on rooftops. He'll tell me what numbers to play for the Omega-Mega-Billions drawing, and in return I'll let him be my sidekick! He'll live in the same mansion as my good friend Freddy Foswell, be waited on by French maids in French maid outfits (it only makes sense after all) and never have to eat Brussel sprouts again! (I haven't touched a Brussel sprout since I was seven years old, and I don't miss 'em a bit!)

Gotta go now--there are a few ATMs I haven't knocked over yet, and I need to steal an autographed photo of Hilary Duff--er, it's something I promised Dwayne. . .

Take care, my superlative supporters, and remember. . .

FIGHT FOR FOXBAT!!!

Re: Wanted: The Amazing Spider Gun

For a moment I thought you were talking about a gun that shoots spiders, like the bee rifle from Bradbury's Martian Chronicles.

It's Updatin' Time!!!

(As you look on at the webcam image, you feel a swell of pity for those who only have dial-up--but it quickly passes as the secne unfolds. Your hero, Foxbat, carries the limp form of a dark-haired woman and places her in the chair under the Neural Neutralizer. He goes up to the nearest camera and smiles giddily into it. . .)

Hey there, all you villany lovers! Glad you could be here today! I want to thank you for making Foxbat's Master Plan Dot-Com the tremendous success that it is! I get ten times as many hits as the Champions get on their site--and without a server crash! If that isn't a sure omen of the ultimate success of my Master Plan, I don't know what is! I will be Victorious, you hear! VICTORIOUS!!!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!

And now--the moment you've been waiting for--when I reveal the first (but certainly not the last!) recruit to the FFFFFF, otherwise known as the Sextuple-F, otherwise knowm as--

FOXBAT'S

FURIOUSLY

FEARLESS

FEMININE

FIGHTING

FORCE!!!

(Picks up the webcam and moves it in for a Close-Up. The image, while shaky, is still recognizable.)

Look! It's LUCY LIU!!!

Wasn't she great in those Charlie's Angels movies? And those movies with Keanu, where they're in a computer-generated--wait a minute, that wasn't Lucy Liu. Okay, that girl's next--but anyway, Lucy's really hot, and being an attorney on that other show, she'll help me out of any legal challenges to the Master Plan!

Who would've thought a Master Plan would be so much FUN!?!?!?!?!?!? Okay, it's almost time to get started on the brainwashing, but first. . .

(Holds up a little black bag.)

We're gonna go through her purse!

(Opens the purse, dumps out the contents.)

Haven't you ever wanted to go through a celebrity's personal items? Let's see--lipstick (my favorite shade!), credit cards (I know a video arcade that'll take these!), cell phone (we'll make some prank calls later!), breath mints--Hmm. Now that I think of it, my mouth does feel less than fresh. . .

(Pops a mint into his mouth, sucks on it apprasingly--then bites into it and jumps in shock, spitting it out.)

AAACK!!! What was that?! I've heard of mints making a spark when you bite into them but that's ridiculous!

(Looks at the mint, which now has a tiny circuit board sticking out of it.)

If I didn't know better, I'd say that's a tracking device--but that's impossible! I mean, you guys are great and all, but not even you could guess who I was going to kidnap first, and if you couldn't figure out my Master Plan, then there's no way those humdrum heroes. . .

(Suddenly, from off camera you hear the sound of a wall caving in. Foxbat looks toward the sound in shock and despair, and we hear a voice say "Give it up, Foxbat! Conscious or otherwise, you're coming with us!")

NEVER!!!!! You'll never take me alive, you fascists!!! REMEMBER THE ALAMO!!! REMEMBER THE MAINE!!! AUGUSTA'S THE CAPITAL!!! KILL BILL!!! KILL BIIILLLL!!!!!!

(Foxbat draws his ping-pong gun and fires wildly in all directions--then an electro-bolo wraps around his legs, and he's struck simultaneously by a sapphire energy beam and a witchfire blast. From off-camera Nighthawk charges in and nails Foxbat in the chest with a flying kick, which sends him reeling into the arms of Ironclad, who locks Foxbat in a full nelson. Beaten and immobilized, Foxbat flails his arms about uselessly.)

No Fair!! I was winning!!! I WAS WINNING!!!

(That's when the image goes blank. . .)

Re: What?? Bruce Wayne isn't Batman???

This concept puts me in mind of the limited series Superman: Secret Identities, by Kurt Busiek and Sturart Immomen. In a world just like this one, where Superman is a ficticious character, a young man with the name Clark Kent--yes, his parents named him that--wakes up in the middle of the night to discover he has all the powers.

Yes--Clark Kent is Superman. And while he uses the powers to secretly do good deeds, he does them while wearing a Superman costume--for while people might believe that a super-strong flying man is out there saving people's lives, who would believe there really is a Superman?

And that's all I'll say about the story, except that you should go and read it. Go now.

Re: Take the 5e Solo villains, and make a team out of them

Here's an idea--Bulldozer gets his clock cleaned by an all-female hero gathering (one of those "Girls' Night Out" episodes they like to do in comics). To avoid a repeat of such an incident he forms AIM--the Alliance of Indomitable Men. Their current membership includes Armadillo, Gargantua, Thunderbolt II, Stormfront, and occasionally Devastator. (Blowtorch was originally a member, but he was kicked out after burning down their first headquarters.)

While they love to get together and plan grandiose schemes for major robberies or taking over the city, they're just as likely to spend their meetings drinking stolen beer, then going out to steal some more. Among their most famous exploits (it made every national news program) was the time they took over a HOOTERS restaurant to watch the Daytona 500. When the race was over they made a break for it, with Bulldozer following Armadillo through his tunnel.

The formation of AIM has surprised everyone in law enforcement familiar with Bulldozer--many believed that not only did he lack the necessary charisma or leadership skills, but that he was incapable of pronouncing--let alone defining, or even spelling--the word Indomitable.

Re: Things We'd Like To See:PRIMUS

I'd like to second who ever wanted the "Iron Guard" in the 5e PRIMUS. Be it in the form of a brand new division, or old hat. I just can't believe that with all the super villains in Power armor that have been captured, that PRIMUS wouldn't have plenty of rough blue prints to pick from so they could develop their own.

That was me, and as popular as power armor has been throughout CHAMPIONS history, (remember the TURTLE suits?) it would be a serious omission if the Iron Guard were to be left out of 5th Ed continuity--especially since now that only the Avengers get Cyberline enhancements, PRIMUS isn't what it used to be. (Not to mention the fact that "Iron Guard" is a really cool name for a combat force.)

Like Hermit, I was also thinking that PRIMUS might try to engineer captured supervillain technology for its own use--I once envisioned a character called Sky Marshal, who was a Silver Avenger equipped with a re-engineered version of Red Raptor's (Challenges For Champions, 4th Ed) antigravity harness. I could also envision PRIMUS salivating at the chance to capture Lazer, Mechassassin or Steel Commando, just to get their hands on their particular toys.

Re: FoxbatsMasterPlan.Com

Dear Foxbat,

 

I'm an aspiring super hero looking to make a name for myself. I've heard that one thing that all great heroes must have is an archnemesis. Would you be interested in being my archnemesis for a while?

 

Sincerely yours,

 

The Hound

Hey, Hound--Sorry not to have responded sooner; I've been busy with the Master Plan. To answer your question--every hero is my Arch-Nemesis, whether they can manipulate reality with a twitch of their nose, or all they've got going for them is a rocket pack and a bandolier full of stun grenades. If you choose to uphold and defend the status quo, and stand in the way of the rightful success of my ultimately successful Master Plan, then you must deal with the undealable--the undefeatable--

FOXBAT!!! Dah-dah-DAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!

Quaking in your skintight super-boots yet? Ready to pack it in and whimper off with your cape between your legs? Well I don't blame you--there are few with the solid brass industrial-grade cojones to take on the greatest villain of all time. You gave it your best shot, bub--but it was all futile from the moment you put on the mask.

Here ya go, kid--have yourself a consolation Non-Prize. Maybe next time you'll remember to. . .

FIGHT FOR FOXBAT!!!