GestaltBennie

Re: Is patriotism a disadvantage?

If Cap runs into a burning building to rescue a US flag, it's a disad. :-)

Scott Bennie

Re: What are these Ages exactly?

My own inclination is to start the Iron Age at Daredevil 181 myself (the death of Elektra); it was one of the first books that I remember the code refusing to approve, it felt like a groundbreaker at the time, and certainly much of the graphic violence that followed seemed to draw on that issue as its inspiration.

LUCK

I know they’re the rage in some systems, but I’m not fond of “cinematic†systems. I’m a simulationist at heart, and just can’t wrap my head around the metagame that goes with cinema points systems.

On the other hand, when there’s an in-game justification that goes beyond “characters in movies don’t die or fail very oftenâ€, my objections are greatly reduced; the idea that a character is luckier than others is a genre shtick that doesn’t blow my suspension of disbelief. Therefore this Luck system was created as a middle ground to port elements of those systems into Hero without overwhelming the simulationist feel of the system.

This system was developed for a Star Trek/Star Hero campaign, but it may have more universal application. Luck produces Luck points. Roll your Luck dice at the beginning of each session. The sum of this roll is your Luck Pool. Points from the pool are spent to affect rolls during the game.

Luck points can be saved over the course of a session: the maximum number of points in the Luck pool at a time is the maximum that could be rolled on the character’s Luck dice (eg. for 5d6, the maximum is 30 points).

Luck points may be spent during the course of the session in the following ways:

OCV/DCV

For 1 Luck point, you may:

* increase your OCV or DCV by +1 before a roll is made.

* add a +2 DCV penalty if they’re doing a called shot on you, before the roll is made.

* add a +2 Penalty Skill Level to Range Penalties with an attack, before the roll is made.

For 2 Luck points, you may:

* increase your OCV or DCV by +1 after a roll is made.

* increase another character’s OCV or DCV by +1 before a roll is made.

Foe 3 Luck points, you may:

* increase another character’s OCV or DCV by +1 after a roll is made.

Skills

For 1 Luck point, you may:

* increase a skill roll by +1 before a roll is made.

* increase a Characteristic roll by +1 before a roll is made.

For 2 Luck points, you may:

* increase a skill roll by +1 after a roll is made.

* increase a characteristic roll by +1 after a roll is made.

* increase another character’s skill roll by +1 after a roll is made.

For 3 Luck points, you may:

* increase another character’s skill roll by +1 after a roll is made.

Damage

For 1 Luck point, you may:

* add +1 STUN to damage before the damage is rolled.

For 4 Luck points, you may:

* add +1 BODY to a killing attack before the damage is rolled (this will affect the Stun from the Stun Multiplier as well.

Other Uses

* You can transform Luck into a recovery you can take at any time as a full phase action (even when unconscious). It costs 2 Luck points per 1 REC when at 0 STUN or above, and 5 Luck points to take a recovery when unconscious..

* You can transform 3 points of Luck into +1†Running.

* You can purchase temporary Damage Reduction against a single attack after you’ve been hit. For 3 points, you can purchase ¼ resistant Damage Reduction; for 6 points you can purchase ½ resistant Damage Reduction, and for 9 points you can purchase ¾ resistant Damage Reduction.

[Note: The Damage Rediction option is only appropriate for very cinematic games (ie. games where you want player character death to be as difficult as possible). If you want a grittier game, drop this particular ability.]

Variant Luck Talents

Subtalents is a specialized form of Luck that only applies in certain situations: essentially giving a character a special boost in circumstances that fit his dramatic schtick.

Regular Luck points may be added to luck from subtalent pools, but not vice versa.

AVENGER

This talent gives a character a pool of Luck points that they can use against someone who defeated them in a previous battle. They may only use the Luck against that character, and once they’ve defeated them, they can no longer use the pool against them (until defeated again by them).

Cost: 2 points for 1d6 (specialized) Luck

COMEBACK KID

This talent gives a character a pool of Luck points, only usable in a fight, after they’ve been knocked unconscious. When they regain consciousness, they have access to the Luck pool. They cannot use this Luck after the battle is over.

Cost: 2 points for 1d6 (specialized) Luck

HOME DEFENDER

This talent gives a character a pool of Luck points, but it’s only usable on home soil (ie. a 500†radius of some point in a home neighborhood) or a very limited set of locations (churches, cemeteries, family property, magical nexus points).

Cost: 2 points for 1d6 (specialized) Luck

POWER CHAMPION

This talent gives a character a pool of Luck points, that’s usable when they’re waging a Power vs. Power contest (two people using their Power skill to manipulate the same special effect, or two people involved in a Strength vs. Strength contest). The Luck pool can only be used to affect rolls against the other person (eg. a brick can increase damage when wrestling another brick, but they can’t increase their DCV against someone who’s blasting them that’s not involved in the contest).

Cost: 3 points for 2d6 (specialized) Luck

PROTECTOR

This person is preternaturally gifted at protecting people. This talent gives people a Luck pool that they can use to help other people’s rolls, bowever, they can never use it to affect their rolls or any rolls made against themselves.

Cost: 2 points for 1d6 (specialized) Luck

STUNTS

This talent gives a character a pool of Luck points, but they have to define one specialty maneuver (one particular attack maneuver, any attack that follows a successful PRE attack, any attack that’s pushed, etc ) that they have to perform before they can activate this Luck. Furthermore, they may only use this pool once per turn.

Cost: 3 points for 2d6 (specialized) Luck

SWASHBUCKLER

This archetype is particularly given to being lucky and performing fancy cinematic moves, so people who perform swashbuckling maneuvers: acrobatics, swinging, fighting with improvised weapons or surprise maneuvers, gets a lucky bonus. However, they must describe the maneuver in colorful, cinematic terms, to qualify.

Cost: 2 points for 1d6 (specialized) Luck

New Adder

Opportunist

Luck points are normally rolled once in a game session, but the opportunist has extra opportunities to roll. This adder is particularly appropriate for Tragedian players: whenever an Opportunist suffers a serious setback (they’re knocked unconscious, forced to surrender or a plot twist brings on major difficulties), they immediately get to roll for Luck and add to their Luck pool.

Cost: 5 points

Option: The Very Cinematic Game

If you’re playing a very cinematic game, every character starts each session with 10 Luck points, and Luck dice give people additional Luck points.

Re: Just picked up 5th ed.

I've been experimenting with Luck in my Hell Trek game to perform the equivalent of cinematic tricks. I've got some idea for some "limited luck" talents based on the character archetypes to give a boost in the character's area of expertise (a Strongman talent might give bonus luck points when performing a feat of strength, a Swashbuckler talent might give bonuses when performing acrobatics or fighting with improvised weapons), etc.

I'll see if I can find some time tomorrow to write them up and post them in a separate thread.

Re: The EVILLLL That is... Gentleman Jim?

Yeah, I like Gentleman Jim villains, and his creepy little brother, Mr. Impeccable Manners, too. :-)

Re: Your Dream Ultimate

Ultimate Alpha Flight.

Scott Bennie

Re: The Case for Doctor Destroyer

This discussion reminds me of Byrne and Claremont's debate over who was a more "noble" villain, Doom or Magneto.

 

I just have to say. I like 5th edition and I'm enjoying the new CU but I wish you had a stronger hand in it.

Well, I'd never refuse a chance to mess around in a fun campaign setting, but I'm glad at the opportunities I've had (I'm quite happy with the brackground of VIPER 5e, particularly the revamp of Viperia). And I think Steve and company have done a great job with the world in general.

As for high powered iconics, when Gestalt eventually sees print most of Columbia runs at the 650-750 point level (though they're not the most likable bunch). But high end iconics tend to be despised by gamers who've had their PCs overshadowed by high powered NPCs ("when did Elminster get a cape and tights) so I can well understand Hero's reluctance to go that route.

Re: The Case for Doctor Destroyer

A great thread, and one which interests me for obvious reasons.

My take on Destroyer (which is different than George MacDonald's, who pretty much saw him as Doom and made no apologies for it and probably different than Steve's approach in 5e) is that Destroyer was Doom with a lot of the pretensions stripped away. Doom had the veneer of a nobleman, and could certainly play the part to perfection. He had a sense of noblesse oblige toward Latveria (even though that's an extension of his ego; he really didn't care about them as people and doesn't give their interests a passing thought), and in his calmer moments, he can conduct himself with a sense of nobility which allows him to play the part of the noble leader. But if he's seriously threatened, nine times out of ten, he'll cast off the veneer of nobility and return to being an angry gypsy kid with the instincts and manners of a street fighter.

Destroyer, on the other hand, is always the street fighter, the ugly boy from Munich who played with dolls because no one wanted to be around him; the young scientist who received sneers behind his back from his colleagues, who stayed in the lab while others took credit for his work and was lauded at lavish parties; the lab worker for the Reich who watched Nazi party favorites get the limelight and who wasn't allowed to conduct research in the areas that most interested him for absurd, racist reasons. He has no Latveria to serve as his sandbox to cultivate the pretense of higher emotions, nor does he have a royal pedigree. Doom's origin is laced with tragedy and a just (if misplaced) anger that's reminiscent of a Romantic anti-hero. Destroyer doesn't even have that - his hurts aren't focused on any particular incident (except perhaps his burning); he's someone who's died a death of a thousand cuts that's crafted a particularly mean-spirited view of humanity.

Doom would take humanity and "elevate" it, solely to boost his ego and prove his superiority. As far as Destroyer's concerned, humanity doesn't even have that use - to him, mankind is a toy. "Day of the Destroyer" wasn't a serious plot on Destroyer's behalf - he'd have tried to implement the 90% solution years earlier if he seriously believed in it. "Day" isn't really about a world-threatening plan; it 's about Zerstoiten toying with someone who annoyed him and ridiculed him, transforming him into the object of his ridicule. Conquering the world may be amusing, but emotionally breaking an obnoxious twit who reminded him of his old tormentors (in the most humiliating manner possible) is far more fun and satisfying. And if Destroyer is willing to threaten the destruction of the world just to humiliate one loudmouth who should be beneath his notice; well, hopefully it'll give the PCs a few shudders and makes their next encounter with Destroyer something to be anticipated.

Scott Bennie

Re: What genre is Champions really about?

Geek will eat itself.

 

One-true-way-ism has been an unfortunate byblow of RPGs since the earliest home-brews. As the rules became more sophisticated and people gravitated towards fandom of a particular system, system snobbery gave way to genre snobbery.

 

Such snobbery is bad form, though, IMHO.

Absolutely.

The Hero System is a toolkit. Initially, Champions reflected the style of the 1970s Marvel team books that George MacDonald and his friends loved (X-Men, Avengers, Defenders) and will always have trace elements of that style imbedded in the system. But it's very easy to tweak Champions to reflect a lot of widely variant genre styles, and that's one of the great things about the system.

Scott Bennie

Re: Code VS Killing Poll

It depends on the character. I've played them all, and I'm comfortable with everyone except Number 5. And I have no problem playing someone without a CaK who still gets freaked out when it happens.

Scott Bennie

Re: Omlevex Universe

Just a quick note:

 

Omlevex has been nominated for three Ennie awards -- Best Art (Interior), Best Art (Cover), and Best Campaign Setting.

 

I would like to thank all of you who have contributed to Omlevex, either by doing work on it or by supporting it. We owe you one.

Congratulations Cynthia. I hope the recognition translates into increased sales.

Scott Bennie

Re: Cool Names for a Superman Tribute Character?

The one in Gestalt is the Titan (originally "the Spartan", but changed to avoid confusion with the Wildstorm character). There's also an African Supes tribute character named Umsipha, and there was an evil Superman (now deceased) known as the Vandal.

If you want something more explicit. I like "the Tomorrow Knight".

Scott Bennie

Re: Spiderman Vs. Firelord

I think that Batman vs. Cap arguments are the modern day equivalent of "how many angels can dance on the head of a pin" debates. This one will go on until the end of time without a satisfying resolution.

Though I can't agree about *everyone* in Cap's Rogue's Gallery being second rate. By developing the "why fight fair?" strategy against the Avengers in "Siege on Avengers Mansion" (years befoe Bane pulled the same trick) and the concept behind the Thunderbolt deception, Baron Zemo's at least as cunning as anyone in Bats' Rogues Gallery. There's a lot to be said fo old-fashioned practicality. :-)

Scott Bennie

Re: Spiderman Vs. Firelord

I liked the Punisher when he was written well, and in small doses.

I loved Wolverine for years, until my long romance with the X-Men came to an end around issues 190-205. But I liked Jackman's portryal in the films.

Batman remains a favorite when he's written well. If nothing else, the animated series and his subsequent DCAU appearances (even if he's sometimes written as Batgod in JL) seals the deal for me.

And I remain unconvinced that Spidey has any legitimate chance against Firelord as I would be in a Spidey/Superman fight without any of Supes' weaknesses in play (or 250 pt. Seeker vs. Firewing :-)). A herald of Galactus is simply in a whole different league. Spider-Man can use his speed, senses, and Firelord's own arrogance to play with him for a bit, but the power cosmic is simply too versatile. Captain America, on the other hand... :-)

KK

Re: Spiderman Vs. Firelord

No, I thought it was a really silly story.

 

If we want to show Spidey's heroism and true grit, slugging it out against a vastly superior foe for hours on end with nothing to show for it...

 

... then don't murder the suspension of disbelief at the end, 'kay?

 

Anybody here remember "Daredevil vs. Namor" from the original DAREDEVIL #7?

 

Now that, by God, is how it's *supposed* to be done.

Absolutely. Or the Spider-Man vs. Juggernaut story arc around ASM #230 is anothersuperb high powered villain vs. low powered hero story. Good stuff.

Powerwise, Spidey's always been a problematic character for the writers. The Firelord/Spidey scenario was just as ridiculous as the Jackal (middle aged college professsor with no powers) vs. Spidey. He should have had as much of a chance to last thirty seconds in a fight with Spidey as I would in a fight against Brock Lesnar. :-) Though the Jackal's just one in a long list of Spidey villains who shouldn't have lasted ten seconds even if he does pull his punches; it's arguable that one solid blow on Doc Ock's kisser would land him in the hospital for months. Usually they have to retcon it later (as they explicitly did for the Vulture) that the process that gave them their powers also toughened them.

I'm afraid these writers wouldn't last five minutes in my campaign. :-)

Scott Bennie

Re: Hell Trek

The place where I posted the original files, the Taldren forums, are down while their contents are being outsourced to South Korea (I kid you not).

If they don't survive the move (or the Taldren Fan Fiction boards aren't back up in a week or so), I'll repost the Hell Trek files in a convenient place and send you folks a working link. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Scott Bennie

Links to entries for my variant Star Trek game (titled Hell Trek) are available at:

http://forums.taldren.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=321419&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1

Scott Bennie

Re: Suggestions? Telepathic PCs just captured VIPER agent

There's been some interesting suggestions in this thread. You might also want to check out VIPER, Coils of the Serpent, p. 163. Some advice is offered that covers this exact situation.

I'd probably let the PC telepath enjoy a few early successes, and then adjust the Nest's tactics so they take the PC's capabiliities into account.

Scott Bennie

Re: Oh, those pesky politicans-Who are they anyways in your campaign?

Because I have very fond memories of the Penguin Mayoral Race episode from the Adam West Batman series, I've designated "Vote Holocaust For Mayor (Or Else)" (a superhero mayoral race scenario) as an "if I have space" scenario for Villainy Amok.

It probably doesn't have the highest utility value of the scenarios in the book, but it should be fun to write and offer good role-play opportunities. (And no, Holocaust really won't be running for mayor).

Scott Bennie

Re: Harmons Harmons Everywhere. . .

I concur! BRING ON HAR-MON THE DEFENDER!!!!!!!

For some reason, I'm picturing Cheezy Cartoon Champions and "Har-Mon and the Masters of the Universe".

Need sleep bad.

Scott Bennie

Re: Why does Nighthawk always get depicted getting the crap kicked out of him?

Every comic book hero gets beaten up on the cover. I'm sure if you look hard enough, you can find an issue of Superman where he's beaten to a bloody pulp, and the Prankster's standing over him with his foot on his chest. And inevitably, it has nothing to do with what's in the actual book. Champions honors this glorious tradition of Silver Age comics whose covers are an outright lie.

(Unless it depicts Dr. Destroyer laying on the beating, in which case it's probably sugarcoating the bloodbath. :-)

See VIPER, Coils of the Serpent, p. 17-18 for a truer perpective on Nighthawk and what a combat with him is *really* like.

Scott Bennie

Re: [Fifth Ed Conversion] Villainy Unbound: Phobos and Deimos

Glad you enjoyed the rewrite. Prowler was far too much fun to be relegated to the ranks of a 3rd string villain.

Scott Bennie

Re: Origins Award Nomination

Didn't you do Testament?

 

Congrats on that big ole feather.

Thanks. There's always controversy to these things, but I'm still very pleased to be nominated (after twenty-three fricking years in this hobby. :-))

Scott Bennie

Re: Origins Award Nomination

We're happy to announce that Champions Battlegrounds has been nominated for an Origins Award for "Best RPG Adventure." Congrats to all involved, especially Allen, Jason, Derek, Andy, Keith, Chris, Nate, Storn, Bob, Scott, Eric and Greg. Hopefully this is only the first of many for us.

 

Alas, Fantasy Hero, Digital Hero and Hero Designer did not make it to the final round in their respective categories. All wuz in fact robbed. dw

Wahoo! Finally! Congrats to all involved!

Scott Bennie

Re: [Fifth Ed Conversion] Villainy Unbound: Phobos and Deimos

Dark Prowler

Player:

Total Character Cost: 420

Disadvantage Points: 125

Base Points: 200

Experience Required: 95

Total Experience Available: 95

Experience Unspent: 0

Background: Scene: Eight years ago, the head oddice of Duchess Industries, Monarch City.

The Duchess Henrietta Van Drotte sat back in her chair and barely suppressed a laugh. Her best bodyguards were unconscious on the floor - and Lord knows how many he'd knocked out before he made it to the office - but the Duchess instinctively knew that she was not in any serious danger. "Why Crusader," she addressed the veteran vigilante, holding the pictures that he had just thrown on her desk, pictures that showed two Duchess Industries guards were knocked unconscious - while transporting some illegal African blood diamonds. "Are you saying that I have a discipline problem among my personnel?" she purred demurely.

"Your men are getting sloppy, Duchess," Crusader replied. "It's arrogance. You think that there's nothing you can't do after dark, but you're wrong. I rule the darkness, Henrietta."

"Do you really?"

"Test me," Crusader said, as he opened a window and propelled himself off a swing line.

The Duchess watched the departing hero and smiled. She liked a challenge. She pushed a button on her phone system, and calmly said: "Manny, contact the technical division. I have a job for them."

###

Eleven weeks later, Crusader again burst into the Duchess's office. He tossed several badges and pieces of computer circuitry onto her desk. "You're losing your touch, Duchess," he sneered. "Did you think that Russian stealth technology theft would go unnoticed? All it accomplished was to make your agents more overconfident and careless."

"More internal corruption. I had nothing to do with it, of course." the Duchess dismissed the charge. "Have you ever considered cleaning up politics?"

"You already own half the politicians in this town," Crusader replied.

"Only half?" the Duchess wondered. "I need to increase the budget. Good day, vigilante."

Unable to tie her directly to the crime, Crusader departed. Sometimes it was better to be an irritant than to strike the killing blow. And certainly the Duchess now considered him an irritant. She tapped her fingers on her desk for a few minutes, and picked up her phone again. "Cassandra, I need to speak to Special Operations," she said.

####

Four weeks later, Crusader returned to the Duchess's office once again. "You've made a big mistake this time, Duchess," he declared. "The government doesn't look kindly on the illegal transport of experimental pathogens. You may be able to avoid prison time, but I expect the fine to be in the millions. Even in *this* adminstration."

The Duchess sighed. "What mistake did I supposedly make *this* time?" she asked.

"You thought by attuning those holograms to the ultraviolet spectrum, you could keep me from noticing your operation. Holograms always look *too* perfect, Duchess. I could tell what you were doing at a glance. Big mistake."

"Of course it was," the Duchess's eyes narrowed slightly. "After all, you rule the night."

The Crusader might have agreed with the assessment, had he not already departed from the scene, leaving behind an open window and a wind that flapped the curtains like a flag. The Duchess, one fist clenched, banged on her speaker phone.

"Get me Stroessen!" she barked.

"But your grace," the recipient replied. "You said that you'd rather be dead than be forced to work with 'that preening egotistical maggot' again..."

"The number..." Henrietta Van Drotte said, snarling slightly. "Now!"

####

"He is, I must note, a true mongrel," Telios explained, pointing out the naked figure on the slab. "Many superhuman anamolies were needed to encode his gene sequence with the unusual specifications you requested."

"I suppose it could not be helped," the Duchess replied.

"I did not use 'Mongrel' as a perjorative," Telios replied. "Purity is highly imperfect. Trust someone who knows. As alloys make superior metals, mongrels make superior animals. They adapt. They are the foundation of the superior species."

"My father would have had a fit if he heard someone say that in the old days," the Duchess replied. She had not thought about the old Nazi in a long time - and any thoughts of those days were a sentimental waste. Even if they were watching the birth of his father's genetic grandson. The industrialist turned her attention to that superhuman, her progeny, who lay stretched out before them. "How does he work? This odd scientific lycanthrope of yours?"

Telios never allowed a smile to crease the perfection of his face, but the question pleased him. He began to explain the inner workings of his creation. "That is a poor choice of words, your grace. Lycanthropy implies magic, but there is none at play here. I suspected that I might have to taint him with demonic influences, but fortunately I managed to come across a very interesting non-magical genetic specimen. The Scavenger's powers are neither photocentric nor magiogenic in nature, but attuned to the day/night cycle of the Earth."

"So *he* will rule the night?" the Duchess asked. Telios shook his head.

"I thought you had a scientific mind," he said. "Such melodrama is unworthy of a trained intellect."

"So speaks the perfect man?" the Duchess gently mocked.

Telios turned around, hands behind his back, not bothering to hide the irritation he felt. "I did as you instructed. I deliver to you one superhuman, attuned to the planet's night cycle, using a superhuman male and your own DNA as its baseline. I take no responsiblilty for the weaknesses given to him either through inferior training he is about to receive, or the genetic imperfections of his mother. Let us hope, for example, that he is not given to mocking those who have helped him."

###

Scene: Six years later. Imperial City, the Wharf District, shortly after midnight.

"Don't you clowns ever learn?' Crusader asked, shaking his fist slightly to get rid of the sting. It was a foolish question - he should have inquired about it before he knocked out two of the Duchess Industries security guards. Nobody's perfect, he told himself, then he sensed someone behind him, pivoted, and performed a perfect shield block. "Another clown," he stated, refusing to acknowledge that whoever his attacker was, he'd gotten more of a drop on him than anyone had in years - another second, and Crusader would have been caught with his guard down.

"The name is Scavenger." the masked agent replied gruffly. "And I know who you are. You're Cru-sadist."

"Not yet, I haven't even gotten started. the veteran hero replied, ignoring the opponent's attempt to rattle him. From the reaction time, he could tell that "Scavenger" was clearly a superhuman, which meant that he didn't need to hold back. He caught the Duchess Industries enforcer with a perfect legsweep. His opponent performed a deft somersault and immediately sprang back to his feet.

"Lucky shot," Scavenger sneered. "But by the time I'm finished bashing your brains in, they're going to be calling you Drool-sader..." Crusader said nothing, but caught him in his solar plexus with the point of his shield, then followed up with a solid uppercut to the chin. Scavenger's knees buckled, and Crusader finished him off with a knockout gas pellet.

"You got the order wrong, kid." he remarked. "First you fight, then you talk."

####

The Duchess sat in her chair, staring at the Scavenger's mask in pure fury. She had given her DNA to Telios so she would have a direct bearing in Scavenger's victory over Crusader. The possibility that her "son" would fail had never occurred to her. Worse, it had been Crusader who had thrown the mask in her face, while her son rotted in prison.

"He is still young," the commander informed her. "With a little more training, we'll see a different outcome, I promise."

The Duchess continued to stare at the mask and finally shook her head. "We've coddled him," she stated. "The environment in which he's been training is too antiseptic, too controlled. That's not the way to turn someone into a man."

"With all due respect your grace," the commander said. "He's proven extremely dificult to control. He mocks us constantly, is always sneakng around the facility, stealing anything that looks like it might be even remotely valuable..."

The Duchess silenced her subordinate with a glance. She was not known for her bad temper, but this was the last straw as far as she was concerned. Her son couldn't have made such a brutally stupid error.

She couldn't have lost to the man they'd spent years training him to fight, not without a good reason.

"We've coddled him!" she finally exclaimed, inoring the commander's protest. She slammed a fist on her desk. "That ends now. The Scavenger needs to grow, and experience real risk. He needs to face the real world."

"How shall it be done?" the subordinate asked.

"We'll hire a telepath to remove his memories," the Duchess said. "Once he's purged of his previous training, we'll send a team to hunt him down. He will survive on instinct, and grow as a natural man."

"But your grace!" the commander protested.

"No 'buts'. My son needs to learn about life and death," the Duchess declared. "He must suffer as I have suffered, and grow as I have grown. Only adversity will hone him into an instrument that will destroy the Crusader."

####

Scavenger escaped from prison, only to be hunted down and mind-wiped by the best telepath that Duchess Industries could hire. Teams of agents hunted the Scavenger - or Dark Prowler, as he now called himself - and made his life a constant game of cat and mouse.

In between chases, he stole items. He liked stealing things/ It was a natural impulse. And he mocked anyone he met, friend or foe, called them childish names, laughed at them when they were down. That was a natural impulse too.

When he stole jewels from a newspaper magnate's wife, he suddenly grabbed all the headlines: "Dark Prowler, Threat or Menace?" "Dark Prowler, Public Enemy Number One". He decided to mock that too. Under the name "Peter Palmer" Prowler worked as a freelance photographer for that magnate's flagship paper, spying on him so Dark Prowler could play tricks on him. He got the idea from a comic book.

Prowler's education from the school of hard knocks was certainly better than anything he'd received from Duchess; unfortunately he also discovered there was one problem with learning from the school of hard knocks - the hard knocks. Dark Prowler was never killed by that Duchess Industries attack squad that hunted him, but his life was hardly a picnic: agents hunted him, superheroes beat on him and lectured him, rival supervillains tried to kill him, and he was sent to prison so many times that he lost count. While Prowler always managed to escaped, eventually he tired of being treated like the world's most despicable human being. Eventurally Prowler decided to take a break from his criminal identity, so he forged a new identity as a superhero... the Blue Phantom!

It was both a career change, and a statement about the corniness of classic superheroes.

Yet somehow Blue Phantom managed to defeat many of the opponents who had pummelled Dark Prowler, and won the respect of the community that despised Dark Prowler so completely. Unfortunately, life as a superhero put a serious cramp iin his larcenous style. He *liked* being a burglar, he enjoyed climbing the walls of tall buildings and stealing treasures, and surrounding himself with beautiful things, and mercilessly mocking anyone ho got in his way. So Prowler bounced back and forth between identities, both public and secret. Increasingly he became embroiled in the conflicts of the local superhero community. He made many enemies (including Green Dragon) and many rivals (including the supervillain team PLUNDER). However, his most dangerous enemy was a man named William Donaldson, known to many as the supervillain Silencer.

Silencer was an assassin, but a perverse one. He liked to destroy people's lives before he delivered the final shot. And now Silencer had been assigned by the Duchess to lead the team that was hunting Prowler down and make his life a living hell. Prowler was Silencer's masterpiece - he transformed the persecution of his quarry into an artform and began to piant with Rembrandtian strokes.

After his "collection" had been stolen for the fifth time and his apartment blown to smithereens (again), Dark Prowler had finally had enough of William Donaldson. He wanted him dead. So did most of the local heroes, who had been caught in the crossfire of Silencer's battle with Prowler (even the ones who'd sorn never to take a life). Some guys just get under your skin.

Prowler tried to eliminate Silencer, but every time he tried, it backfired. After months of frustration, Telios approached Prowler with an unusual offer - Donaldson, as the supervillain Silencer, had stolen some genetic research from Telios for the Duchess. Telios wanted to get revenge by blowing Silencer to bits. He handed Prowler a bomb, and informed him that he could eliminate him by plantinv it on an airliner which Silencer was about to board.

Prowler agreed. He hated Donaldson *that* much. However, a few minutes after he placed the explosive, Prowler suddenly wondered what the hell he had just done. The regretful superhero he sprinted back to the airport to undo his action. Telios, who figured Prowler would recant, detonated the bomb a few minutes earlier than scheduled. Nearly a hundred people died, including Donaldson - along with Prowler's sometime ally, a local superhero named Guardian.

Prowler had dealt with previous defeats through denial and mentally rewriting history until he was sure he'd won. This time, however, he couldn't "spin doctor" his guilt away. It profoundly affected him to the point where a new identity emerged, a cynical, amoral identity, one which didn't care much about life, riches, or witty rejoinders: he was a simple mercenary for hire.

For reasons Prowler didn't understand, this persona called itself "the Scavenger".

When he first became Blue Phantom, Dark Prowler was still in control of his life, but now the multiple identities were taking their toll. He bounced back and forth between the three personas; unable to cope with any unexpected setback or failure, whenever Prowler suffered a defeat which he couldn't explain away, out came one of the other identities.

It's a development that his mother finds most fascinating, and worthy of further study.

Personality: Dark Prowler's personality depends on which persona drives him. The Dark Prowler persona is the most dominant; he's a greedy, annoying, self-aggrandizing jerk who never shuts up and is either mocking other people or congratulating himself on being so clever and good at everything. No insult is too low for Prowler, even if often he sounds like an adult trying to imitate a six year old on the playground. However Prowler does have a social conscience, and doesn't like to physically hurt people (with the notable exception of the Donaldson incident), and he has a soft spot for people in need.

Blue Phantom is a deliberate parody of a classic Silver Age superhero. Many people who know him well find him almost as annoying as Prowler, though he often does a lot of good.

Scavenger is a quiet, brooding, amoral creep - almost the exact opposite of Prowler. He's not a senseless killer - and doesn't take assassination missions - but he has even less regard for the suffering his actions cause.

Overall, however, Prowler's personalities are driven by a fear of failure. The idea that he can never fail in his mission has been driven so deeply into his psyche that he's developed a lot of defense mechanisms to try to cope with any possibility of failure, from the merciless, almost desperate mocking of his opponents, to his multiple personality disorder.

Quote: "Hi, I'm Dark Prowler, and you're not! That's too bad for you, but at least you get to watch a superior being in action! I'm sure you'll find it instructive the next time you're having trouble beating up a twelve year old!"

Powers/Tactics: Technically, Dark Prowler's a mutant. He's a genetic composite of a number of superheroes who are active at night, a talent which transforms him from a capable normal to a true human after sunset.

In combat, Prowler likes to use his wall-climbing skills (his clinging) to his advantage. If forced into a fight, he'll try to eliminate light sources and fight his opponent in pitch darkness. If it's obvious he's in a tough fight, Prowler will run away. The other personas are much less cowardly.

The identity of Prowler's genetic father is deliberately being kept a mystery. Find someone suitable in your campaign, and have fun.

Appearance: Both Prowler and Scavenger wear black bodysuits, though Prowler's has dull yellow-brown trim. Blue Phantom wears a blue bodysuit with a short blue cape and "BP" in a shield on his chest. Prowler is 5'11", an athletic 160 lbs., with short dark brown hair and brown eyes.

Notes: This writeup is actually a simplification of an already mangled origin, (with several names replaced with characters who are more familiar to fans of the Champions Universe). Thanks to Alex Palmer, Prowler's player, for the character; and to Steve Sloane, Prowler's other GM (the twisted mind behind Silencer and Guardian) for his valuable contribution to the Prowler mythos.