CaptnStrawberry

(The Tribble never does anything half-way does he?)

We're through being cool
We're through being cool
 
Eliminate the ninnies and the twits
Going to bang some heads
Going to beat some butts
Time to show those evil spuds what's what
 
If you live in a small town
You might meet a dozen or two
Young alien types who step out
And dare to declare:
 
We're through being cool
We're through being cool

After nine days I let the horse run free
'Cause the desert had turned to sea
There were plants and birds and rocks and things
there was sand and hills and rings
The ocean is a desert with its life underground
And a perfect disguise above
Under the cities lies a heart made of ground
But the humans will give no love
 
You see I've been through the desert on a horse with no name
It felt good to be out of the rain
In the desert, you can remember your name
'Cause there ain't no one for to give you no pain
La la, la, La, la la la  . . .

 

My week:
 
Two-day business trip to Baltimore + lack of sleep in strange bed + whirlwind tour of every frickin' elementary school and community center in the city + cramped flight cabin, turbulence and sinus pressure + mental stress of catching up on work when I get back + additional mental stress of bailing out a friend about to have her car repossessed = a cold, and a weekend evidently going to be spent recovering at home.
 
Now that I see the complete formula, the result makes sense.

I really don't do much superhero art anymore.  Been really working in the fantasy genre more..  
 
My long time patron Death Tribble gave me the challenge of doing Medusa as a super heroine.  Seemed like fun and it was.  I gave her a jaunty pose and smile.  He asked for a long, slinky outfit, but I felt that was kinda in the vein of a villain, so I gave her a skirt, semi-grecian, instead.  Hope he doesn’t mind.  What do y’all think?

Next are a couple of images from Green Ronin’s Cosmic Handbook.  Got to trout out my Kirby homage and my love of sword and planet motifs.  I went with some super vibrant colors on these both, trying for “alien and cosmic” after looking at a lot of what Kirby did back in the day.
 

Somehow I think one of our regulars will approve.

I don't know about you guys, but a Toymaker-style villain who could control Troll dolls would scare the bejeezus out of me!!

The defensive end is a mysterious man called Armored Soul. He appears to be an animated football uniform with nothing inside it. This is not exactly true. The ghost of former teammate Armored Wall is inside the uniform. When he was alive, he used his armored football uniform to protect himself and his teammates. He was killed in battle, but refused to leave, taking resident in his spare uniform. He can do some ghostly things (like go through earth to tackle someone, or animate inanimate objects by 'possession'). And as an undead, is hard to put down. His only weakness? He can be temporarily exercised from his uniform, if one knows the ways to do it.

Next up, media hog and faux hero Hercules.  Although he fights crime in Greece, he's basically just a guy out for a buck.  Very low powered compared to the rest of the competitors in the tourney, he's the Ray Jackson (from Bloodsport) of the fight.  Big muscular guy that gets trashed by the first contestant he meets.
 
HERCULES   Val Char Cost  35 STR    25  19 DEX    18  25 CON   15  10 INT      0  10 EGO    0  18 PRE     8   6  OCV   15   6  DCV   15   3  OMCV   0   3  DMCV   0  15 PD       3          Resistant PD: 10  12 ED       0          Resistant ED: 10   5  SPD   30  12 REC    8  50 END    6  20 BOD  10  52 STN  16   12m RUN   0   4m SWIM 0 14m LEAP  5 Characteristics Cost: 174   Cost Power  30    Toughness: Resistant Protection (10 PD/10 ED) Powers Cost: 30   Cost Pankration Maneuver   4     Bend Joint:  1/2 Phase, -1 OCV, +1 DCV, 2d6 NND   4     Break Bone:  1/2 Phase, -2 OCV, +0 DCV, HKA 3d6   4     Crush:  1/2 Phase, +0 OCV, +0 DCV, 11d6 Crush, Must Follow Grab   4     Escape:  1/2 Phase, +0 OCV, +0 DCV, 50 STR vs. Grabs   3     Grab:  1/2 Phase, -1 OCV, -1 DCV, Grab Two Limbs, 45 STR for holding on   3     Kick/Punch:  1/2 Phase, +1 OCV, +0 DCV,  Strike   3     Legsweep:  1/2 Phase, +2 OCV, -1 DCV, 8d6 Strike, Target Falls   3     Sacrifice Throw:  1/2 Phase, +2 OCV, +1 DCV, 7d6 Strike; You Fall, Target Falls Martial Arts Cost: 28   Cost Skill   3     +1 with Pankration   2     KS: Pankration 11-   0     Language:  Greek (idiomatic) (4 Active Points)   2     Language:  English (fluent conversation)   3     High Society 13-   3     Oratory 13- Skills Cost: 13   Total Character Cost: 245   Pts. Complication  15   Enraged:  Made to look bad in public or thwarted in a fight (Uncommon), go 11-, recover 11-   5    Hunted:  Media Frequently (Less Pow; NCI; Watching)  10   Hunted:  Malachite Infrequently (Mo Pow; NCI; Watching)  15   Psychological Complication:  False hero, in it for money and fame (Common; Strong)   5    Rivalry:  Professional (Anyone getting more and better publicity than he; Rival is Less Powerful; Rival is a Player Character; Seek to Outdo, Embarrass, or Humiliate Rival; Rival Aware of Rivalry)  10   Social Complication:  Secret Identity Infrequently, Major  20   Vulnerability:  2 x Effect Drugs and poisons (Common)  10   Vulnerability:  2 x Effect Mind Control (Uncommon) Complication Points: 90   Hercules.hdc

Stiff-Arm, NYRVB's Full-back, does in fact have a prosthetic arm, but this is no ordinary appendage.  Found in the medlab of an abandoned alien starship, the Arm can absorb and project back kinetic energy - the faster someone is going, the more damage is inflicted.  The Arm maintains a psychic link with its owner - it can detach, walk on extended fingers, and trip or throttle anyone who gets in Stiff-Arm's way!

And now the final member of Spectrum, the woeful, bitter Slime.  She's just 3 feet long and very unhappy with her life, everyone around her, and what happened to her as she once was an oscar winning actress.
 
SLIME   Val Char Cost   8  STR     -2  23 DEX    26  15 CON    5  10 INT      0   7  EGO   -3   8  PRE    -2   8  OCV   25  10 DCV   35   2  OMCV -3   2  DMCV -3  22 PD     20  23 ED     21   5  SPD  30  10 REC   6  70 END  10   8  BOD  -2  28 STN   4   20m RUN   8   4m SWIM 0   3m LEAP  0 Characteristics Cost: 175   Cost Power  10    Sticky: Clinging (normal STR)  10    Life Support  (Self-Contained Breathing)  55    Damage Shield (hateful, miserable aura): Mental Blast 3d6, Area Of Effect (1m Surface; +1/4), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +1/2), Constant (+1/2), Attack Versus Alternate Defense (MD; All Or Nothing; +1/2) (82 Active Points); No Range (-1/2)    40    Slime Powers: Multipower, 40-point reserve  3f    1)  Slime Touch: Drain DEX 4d6 (40 Active Points); No Range (-1/2)  3f    2)  Slime Touch: Drain ED 4d6 (40 Active Points); No Range (-1/2)  3f    3)  Slime Touch: Drain PD 4d6 (40 Active Points); No Range (-1/2)  3f    4)  Slime Touch: Drain Resistant Protection 4d6 (40 Active Points); No Range (-1/2)  3f    5)  Slime Touch: Drain STR 4d6 (40 Active Points); No Range (-1/2)  4f    6)  Venom Spit: Blast 4d6, Attack Versus Alternate Defense (Life Support vs poison; All Or Nothing; +1) (40 Active Points)  4f    7)  Sticky: Entangle 4d6, 4 PD/4 ED (40 Active Points)  3f    8)  Fast Healing: Regeneration (2 BODY per Turn) (32 Active Points)  4f    9)  Phasing: Desolidification  (40 Active Points)  4f   10) Acid Slime: Tunneling 16m through 12 PD material (40 Active Points) Powers Cost: 149   Cost Skill   9     Acting 14-   3     Concealment 11-   3     AK: Hollywood 12-   3     KS: Famous actors and directors 12-   6     +2 with concealment and stealth   3     Stealth 14- Skills Cost: 27   Total Character Cost: 351   Pts. Complication  25   Enraged:  Insulted about looks (Common), go 14-, recover 11-  20   Distinctive Features:  Small, slimy, and gruesome (Not Concealable; Always Noticed and Causes Major Reaction; Detectable By Commonly-Used Senses)  10   Physical Complication:  Small (half human size) (Infrequently; Slightly Impairing)  10   Physical Complication:  No legs (Infrequently; Slightly Impairing)  20   Psychological Complication:  Hates and fears Prism (Very Common; Strong)  15   Psychological Complication:  Hatred of beauty (Common; Strong)  15   Psychological Complication:  Fear of fire (Common; Strong)  10   Unluck: 2d6  15   Social Complication:  Keeps past life secret (Frequently; Major)   5    Vulnerability:  1 1/2 x Effect Knockback (Uncommon)  15   Vulnerability:  1 1/2 x STUN Heat attacks (Very Common) Complication Points: 160   Slime.hdc

I actually used Prince as a visual reference for his look

Beautiful coloring - like the little flairs you are putting in the generic background shapes!
 
Hotshot definitely looks conceited.

Grant Tinkerton was once known as Gigantor, for he could grow to 25 times his normal height.  His size and strength went to his head, and he went on a crime spree that, not surprisingly, ended in his capture.  Unfortunately, the authorities don't have prison cells 150 feet tall, and Grant refused to shrink down to go into a normal cell.  Finally, a gadgeteer hero built a shrinking ray to force him back down to size.  Trying to avoid getting hit, Grant began to reduce his height at the same moment that the shrinking ray hit him.  And shrink he did, all the way down to 3 inches high. 
 
This allowed him to escape, but he's mad as heck about his new height.  Oh, he can still grow -- allowing him to become about 6 feet tall, with the strength of a moderate-level brick.  But his normal height makes him a midget even to Maestro.    Worse yet, a TV news reporter called him Tiny Giant, and despite his efforts to be known by practically any other name, that moniker has stuck.

Continuing the all female theme:
 
WINTER LaGrange is a petite French woman with albino skin and hair.   Her meta gene is the opposite of Summer's: the less ambient light in her environment, the stronger and more durable she gets.  With concentration, she is able to physically slow opponents down at the molecular level as their subatomic structure approaches Absolute Zero.  At peak power in pitch blackness, even light and sound stop functioning in her vicinity!  Her catchphrase: "L'Hiver est arrivant!"
 
***
 
If I get to pick the next theme?  Then:
 
New Team: The Microoks
 
A group of five pint-sized reprobates who are able to infiltrate even the most heavily guarded facility. (animate toys, interdimensional imps, intelligent animals and traditional shrinkers are thematic examples).

So much more awesome than the goth/punk look they ended up with for Wanda in Avengers 2.   [sigh]

The Red Widow, a Chinese woman who has modeled herself after the infamous Ching Shih, the pirate queen, is a master martial artist who imbibes opiates in order to peel back the future's curtain.  This both helps her team identify potential loot, and in personal combat allows her to predict an opponent's moves.
 

She reminds of Madame Rouge. You don't see many "serious" stretching types. Her multipower has a really nice suite of power stunts. A very flexible character...

Blackjack
 
Val   Char   Cost    Roll     Notes
  13    STR       3       12-      Lift 151.6kg; 2 ½d6 [1]
  26    DEX     32      14-      OCV:  9/DCV:  9
  20    CON     10      13-
  20    INT      10      13-      PER Roll 13-
  20    EGO     10      13-      ECV:  3 - 7
  25    PRE      15      14-      PRE Attack:  5d6
 
   9     OCV     30     
   9     DCV     30     
   3     OMCV  0      
   7     DMCV 12     
   5     SPD      30                  Phases:  3, 5, 8, 10, 12
 
  20    PD          4                   Total:  20 PD (14 rPD)
  20    ED         4                   Total:  20 ED (14 rED)
   8     REC      4
  30    END      2
  15    BODY   5
  50    STUN   15      Total Characteristic Cost:  216
 
Movement:    Running:  20m/40m
                         Flight:  20m/40m
                         Leaping:  4m/8m
                         Swimming:  4m/8m
 
Cost   Powers                                                                                
40      Trick Playing Cards:  Multipower, 80-point reserve,  (80 Active Points); all slots OAF (-1)     
2f       1)  Spray of Cards:  Darkness to Sight Group 8m radius, Personal Immunity (+¼) (50 Active Points); 4 Charges (-1), OAF (-1)         [4 Charges]
2f       2)  Blinding Cards:  Sight Group Flash 8d6, Area Of Effect Accurate (1m Radius; +½) (60 Active Points); 4 Charges (-1), OAF (-1)    [4 Charges]
3f       3)  Entangling Cards:  Entangle 4d6, 4 PD/4 ED, Area Of Effect Accurate (1m Radius; +½), Sticky (+½) (80 Active Points); 4 Charges (-1), OAF (-1)       [4 Charges]
3f       4)  Blast of Cards:  Blast 8d6, Area Of Effect Accurate (1m Radius; +½), Double Knockback (+½) (80 Active Points); 4 Charges (-1), OAF (-1)      [4 Charges]
                                                                                                                   
60      Knows When To Hold 'Em, Knows When To Fold Them:  Luck 12d6 
8         Swift Runner:  Running +8m (20m total)                   END              2
16      Armored Costume:  Resistant Protection (8 PD/8 ED) (24 Active Points); OIF (-½)   
8         Glider Vanes In Suit:  Flight 20m (20 Active Points); Gliding (-1), OIF (-½) 0
7         Hand And Knee Pads:  Clinging (normal STR) (10 Active Points); OIF (-½)               
3         Costume Goggles:  Infrared Perception (Sight Group) (5 Active Points); OIF (-½)     
 
           Talents
12      Combat Luck (6 PD/6 ED)
34      Danger Sense (immediate vicinity, any danger, Function as a Sense) 15-
6         +2/+2d6 Striking Appearance (vs. all characters)
 
           Skills
10      +2 with Trick Playing Cards
6         +1 with all Agility Skills
 
3         Acrobatics 14-
3         Acting 14-
3         AK: Monaco 13-
3         Breakfall 14-
3         Bugging 13-
3         Charm 14-
3         Climbing 14-
3         Combat Driving 14-
3         Concealment 13-
3         Contortionist 14-
3         Conversation 14-
3         Disguise 13-
3         Electronics 13-
3         Fast Draw:  Trick Playing Cards 14-
6         Gambling (Card Games) 15-
3         High Society 14-
2         Inventor 14- (Only to Make Trick Playing Cards, -½)
4         KS: Casinos 14-
0         Language:  French (idiomatic) (4 Active Points)
2         Language:  English (fluent conversation)
2         Language:  Italian (fluent conversation)
3         Lockpicking 14-
3         Persuasion 14-
3         Power: Gadgeteering 13-
3         Security Systems 13-
3         Shadowing 13-
3         Sleight Of Hand 14-
3         Stealth 14-
 
2         TF:  Common Motorized Ground Vehicles, Two-Wheeled Motorized Ground Vehicles
 
Total Powers & Skill Cost:  304
Total Cost:  520
 
Pts Complications
10      Hunted:  the Napoleon of Crime, Infrequently (As Pow; NCI; Limited Geographical Area; Capture;)
20      Hunted:  UNTIL; Infrequently (Mo Pow; NCI; Capture)
20      Psychological Complication:  Compulsive Gambler; (Very Common; Strong)
15      Psychological Complication:  Leaves Behind Playing Cards as a Sign; (Common; Strong)
15      Psychological Complication:  Thrillseeker; (Common; Strong)
15      Psychological Complication:  Overconfident (Common; Strong)
5         Rivalry:  Professional, with other super-thieves, Rival is As Powerful, Seek to Outdo, Embarrass, or Humiliate Rival, Rival Aware of Rivalry
15      Social Complication:  Secret ID; Frequently, Major
115    Complication Points
 
Total Experience Points:  520
 

While we wait - and because you demanded it! - a few more Grooisms.  In the end, the match I was hoping for, Black Adam vs. Groo, turned out to be against Ms. Martian.  But imho, it would have been even more hilarious the other way and some of the reasons I came up with to vote for our favorite cheese dip gourmand are below.
You have to admit, a lot more men look like Groo than Black Adam.  He’s a Groo of the people!  Black Adam rules a small, fictional country.  Groo has single-handedly destroyed several. Despite all the steroids and nutritional supplements Black Adam is obviously taking, Groo still has bigger biceps. The Rock is preparing to play Black Adam.  To date, no actor has been found worthy to play Groo. Khandaq is literally full of mendicants. Black Adam’s hairline -– receding.  Groo’s hairline – advancing!

While we wait - and because you demanded it! - a few more Grooisms.  In the end, the match I was hoping for, Black Adam vs. Groo, turned out to be against Ms. Martian.  But imho, it would have been even more hilarious the other way and some of the reasons I came up with to vote for our favorite cheese dip gourmand are below.
You have to admit, a lot more men look like Groo than Black Adam.  He’s a Groo of the people!  Black Adam rules a small, fictional country.  Groo has single-handedly destroyed several. Despite all the steroids and nutritional supplements Black Adam is obviously taking, Groo still has bigger biceps. The Rock is preparing to play Black Adam.  To date, no actor has been found worthy to play Groo. Khandaq is literally full of mendicants. Black Adam’s hairline -– receding.  Groo’s hairline – advancing!

While we wait - and because you demanded it! - a few more Grooisms.  In the end, the match I was hoping for, Black Adam vs. Groo, turned out to be against Ms. Martian.  But imho, it would have been even more hilarious the other way and some of the reasons I came up with to vote for our favorite cheese dip gourmand are below.
You have to admit, a lot more men look like Groo than Black Adam.  He’s a Groo of the people!  Black Adam rules a small, fictional country.  Groo has single-handedly destroyed several. Despite all the steroids and nutritional supplements Black Adam is obviously taking, Groo still has bigger biceps. The Rock is preparing to play Black Adam.  To date, no actor has been found worthy to play Groo. Khandaq is literally full of mendicants. Black Adam’s hairline -– receding.  Groo’s hairline – advancing!

Big Hero 6
Ultraman 80
King Kong Escapes

In honor of the upcoming finals, here are the relevant BBB and LAUGH team members from my chess collection:
 

 
This would make a great tag-team match, methinks!
 
GA and Hawkeye are pawns, Thor a Bishop, and Aquaman a Rook; chesswise, LAUGH has the advantage.
 
May the evil D12 look kindly upon you both!