Jab’s Builds! (Miss Piggy! The Swedish Chef! Sweetums! Gonzo!)

Where in all of your character write ups will go.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24694
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Shiklah

Post by Jabroniville »

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SHIKLAH
Created By:
Brian Posehn, Gerry Duggan & Reilly Brown
First Appearance: Deadpool: The Gauntlet #3 (Jan. 2014)
Role: Vampire Chick, Deadpool's Wife
Group Affiliations: None
PL 10 (186)
STRENGTH
6 STAMINA 6 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 12 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 4

Skills:
Deception 2 (+6)
Expertise (History) 7 (+8)
Insight 2 (+5)
Intimidation 3 (+7)
Investigation 5 (+8)
Perception 3 (+6)
Ranged Combat (Fire) 4 (+12)
Stealth 2 (+6)

Advantages:
Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Initiative, Ranged Attack 4, Startle

Powers:
"Super-Strong Monster Queen"
Immunity 11 (Aging, Life Support) [11]
Regeneration 10 (Feats: Regrow Limbs) [11]
Speed 4 (30 mph) [4]
Senses 3 (Low-Light Vision, Acute & Extended Scent) [3]
"Giant Shapeshifting Demon Form" Morph 1 (Feats: Metamorph) [6]

Mind Control 8 (32) -- [36]
  • AE: "Ethereal Flame" Blast 8 (Feats: Affects Insubstantial) (17)
  • AE: Movement 3 (Dimensional Travel) (6)
  • AE: "See Through Familiar's Eyes" Remote Sensing (Vision) 12 (Flaws: Limited to Through Familiar) (12)
  • AE: "Drain Life" Weaken Strength 12 (Feats: Improved Critical 2) (Extras: Alternate Save- Strength) (Inaccurate -2) (6)
Offense:
Unarmed +12 (+6 Damage, DC 21)
Mind Control -- (+8 Perception-Ranged Affliction, DC 18)
Ethereal Flame +12 (+8 Ranged Damage, DC 23)
Drain Life +8 (+12 Weaken, DC 22)
Initiative +8

Defenses:
Dodge +13 (DC 23), Parry +13 (DC 23), Toughness +6, Fortitude +7, Will +6

Complications:
Relationship (Deadpool)- Shiklah and Deadpool are in love and lust with each other, bonding over their mutual dark natures. When Wade slips over to the side of good, she leaves him, taunting "When was the last time you killed someone?!" She still cares for Wade, but finds him too good-natured now.
Relationship (Dracula)- The two started off as enemies, warring alongside their armies (the Monsters and the Vampires). However, eventually Dracula proposed, and she accepted- leaving Deadpool.
Responsibility (Queen of Monsters)- The ruler of a race of Monsters, Shiklah eventually leaves them, feeling they no longer want or need her around.

Total: Abilities: 80 / Skills: 28--14 / Advantages: 7 / Powers: 71 / Defenses: 14 (186)

-Shiklah is a newly-introduced character, and was requested a short while ago by Anthanatos, who unfortunately seems to have been one of those posters who only makes a couple of comments and then disappears (unless he just doesn't check his e-mail)- he/she never responded to my PM. Oh well- Shiklah here is apparently a Queen of Monsters of sorts- one that ruled over Earth before mankind came to be. Vampires attempted to overthrow these monsters as humans came to be, and Shiklah was sealed on a coffin for millennia by her father, in order to protect her until she could be wed. Thus, in modern times, Deadpool is hired by Dracula to bring Shiklah to him for the planned ceremony, which will unite Vampires & Monsters.

-She & Deadpool eventually have a thing, and the two start saving each other's lives quite frequently. The two have a whirlwind romance that leads to their MARRIAGE, complete with Nightcrawler officiating over the ceremony- then immediately warring with Dracula's forces. However, almost immediately there are issues- she declares him "one of my husbands", and starts arguing with him while he's out of town on Avengers business (his writer, Gerry Duggan, also handles The Uncanny Avengers, which eventually put Wade on as a member). Eventually, she leaves him when he turns over a new leaf and becomes a good guy, marrying Dracula. She & Wade sleep together one last time, parting on a more pleasant note. I would bet money she's one of those random "Creator's Pet" characters that vanishes as soon as her creator (Duggan) leaves the "Deadpool" money-making franchise.

-Shiklah is powerful and versatile, being a PL 10 Scrapper/Mind Controller with some random Magic Powers thrown in.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed Mar 16, 2022 12:57 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24694
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Re: Jab's Builds! (Vampires! Morbius! Werewolf! Nightstalkers!)

Post by Jabroniville »

Man, reading the Thunderbolts series in trades is excellent. I'm on the trade that has the end of Busiek's run, and the beginning of Fabian Nicieza's, and it's got so much neat stuff in it:

* The new Citizen V hunting the T-Bolts, but repeatedly getting involved in their heroics, because she herself is a good person and wants to save lives.

* Atlas being the "team screw-up", packing tons of power, but being completely unsure of what to do.
* Graviton being the perfect example of a high-powered threat who doesn't really have the personality to back it up. Like, they actually make that the plot-point with him.

* Moonstone's slowly, gradual slide towards goodness, as she finds herself doing things that she never would have done- acting selflessly or taking the hard road (like when she contemplates pleading for mercy to Graviton, or going along with the Crimson Cowl). Too bad most of that got messed up when Marvel decided to amplify her evil to the extreme again. I also liked how her plan on "vamping" Hawkeye was thrown into disarray when it turned out he was actually attracted to her because she was smart and awesome in fights, which kind of stunned her- being appreciated as a PERSON and what-have-you.

* Songbird, whom Hawkeye points out "is used to relating to a guy in only one kind of way" losing it without "My Abe", trying to hook up with Hawkeye, and him pulling off THE MOST COLOSSAL WILL SAVE OF ALL TIME, rebuffing her and talking her down.

* Angel teaming up with the squad, throwing out callbacks to The Champions of all things, and the later-era Defenders. And in so doing, Busiek gives this multi-page love-letter to the character and his capabilities, as he flies rings around Songbird & Moonstone, both of whom have no chance against him in close quarters flight. And then when he gets too cocky, Hawkeye nails him with a Snare Arrow, pointing out that while ANGEL's been training in flight his whole adult life, Hawkeye was doing the same in order to "never miss!"

* The Crimson Cowl and her massive army of jobbers- numerous enough to be dangerous, but individually weak. The best part is the Man-Ape going on about his own plans to betray the Cowl, take over Wakanda, etc... and then he's immediately KO'd by the T-Bolts.

Mark Bagley is just KILLING IT on art at this point, too- possibly his best stuff. Though his Moonstone hovers between "Most Fanservicey Character Ever to Wear a Full Body-Suit" and "too hot to be real", as her bulbous breasts, huge thighs and painted-on-tights butt are contrasted by the most itty-bitty wasp-waist ever, making her look almost surreal. But while I can see his point about Songbird (he based her off of a young niece, so he doesn't find the character hot), she's basically the cutest thing ever, and notably older than the ACTUAL teenager on the team (Jolt), so she doesn't set off the Creeper Alarm.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24694
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Frankenstein's Monster

Post by Jabroniville »

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FRANKENSTEIN'S MONSTER (aka Frankenstein, Adam)
Created By:
Mary Shelly (original), Stan Lee & Joe Maneely (Atlas), Stan Lee & John Buscema (Marvel)
First Appearance: Frankenstein/The Modern Prometheus (1818- original), Menace #7 (Sept. 1953- Atlas), Silver Surfer #7 (Aug. 1969- Marvel)
Role: The Classic Monster Story, Innocent Victim
Group Affiliations: The Legion of the Unliving, The First Line, The Fearsome Four, The Howling Commandos
PL 9 (81)
STRENGTH
8 STAMINA 8 AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE -1 AWARENESS -1 PRESENCE -2

Skills:
Close Combat (Unarmed) 2 (+10)
Intimidation 10 (+8)
Perception 4 (+3)

Advantages:
Chokehold, Diehard, Extraordinary Effort, Fast Grab, Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Power Attack, Startle

Powers:
Regeneration 4 [4]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+8 Damage, DC 23)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +8, Fortitude +10, Will +6

Complications:
Phobia ("Fire BAD!!")- The Monster suffers from an irrational fear of fire.
Involuntary Transformation (Suspended Animation)- The Monster will go into a state of suspended animation if placed in an extremely cold environment.

Total: Abilities: 40 / Skills: 16--8 / Advantages: 10 / Powers: 4 / Defenses: 19 (81)

-Naturally, a Public Domain creature like Frankenstein's Monster show up in regular comic books (there's nobody to pay for the idea! And the artist's descendants don't try to bring you to court!), and in this case, it sorta happened on a few occasions. He appeared in a 1950s Atlas Comics horror book (it was a HUGE genre back then, before Dr. Wertham killed it with The Seduction of the Innocent), and again in a Silver Surfer story, but appeared for SERIOUS in the 1970s, when Marvel tried the Horror Books in earnest. Initially taking place back in the 19th Century, the Monster was brought into modern times so that he could cross over with the other characters of the Marvel Universe (this was something the writers hated). Roy Thomas later pointed out that after a strong start, sales quickly dropped off, and it ran out of steam after eighteen issues. The creature has appeared a handful of times since then, though mostly in one-offs (I've certainly never read one of them).

-He shares an origin with his literary predecessor- a monster built from corpses by Victor Frankenstein. Unable to fit in with humanity, he kills several people and escapes to the arctic, where his creator dies. The creature is thought-dead... but Marvel brings him out of suspended animation in the 1890s, where he encounters Victor's descendent Vincent, who dies fighting him. Going into suspended animation again, the creature then revives in modern times- here, he is aided by VICTORIA Frankenstein. Here, he became a bit of a superhero, teaming up with the likes of Spider-Man & Iron Man, and fighting bad guys like the Dreadknight and Dracula himself. He also became an ally of Ulysses Bloodstone on several missions.

-He really doesn't appear much between the mid-70s and the past decade, where he's seen helping out Ulysses's daughter Elsa (though he's just called "Adam", it's pretty clear who it's supposed to be), then a clone of his joined S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Paranormal Containment Unit in another failed series, The Howling Commandos. He joined the Fearsome Four during Fear Itself, alongside Howard the Duck, Nighthawk & She-Hulk, stopping the Man-Thing's rampage. Having properly flogged the Giant-Sized Man-Thing, he is next seen attacking the Hellfire Club, after realizing that Victor Frankenstein's descendant lives on in the Club (who has created a large army of Monsters). Naturally, there is a SPECTACULAR amount of stuff online over just how much of this "counts", is the real Monster, or is just a clone (he appears on the First Line in The Lost Generation, for example, but isn't named).

-Frankenstein's Monster is a pretty simple PL 9 build- a super-strong grappler with little in the way of skills or non-fighting capabilities.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed Mar 16, 2022 12:58 am, edited 1 time in total.
Horsenhero
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Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 9:01 pm

Re: Jab's Builds! (Vampires! Morbius! Werewolf! Nightstalkers!)

Post by Horsenhero »

Well, if you want "mook" vampires you can always go with the Japanese version. There's a reason why anime' always turns to western vampire archetypes when vampires are presented. Japanese vampires are dull-witted, almost zombie stupid, they are confused by crossroads...seriously, they freeze in indecision when confronted with an intersection. On top of that, they are notoriously OCD. By legend if you scatter a handfull of rice on the ground, they are compelled to count the grains before continuing on with...whatever. Japanese vampires are full-on Sesame Street when it comes to counting.

So as bad as the vampire mooks in popular western urban horror fiction are...they could be worse. Except for those sparkly emo pukes from Twilight. There is nothing worse than that.
Jabroniville
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Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Lilith, Daughter of Dracula

Post by Jabroniville »

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LILITH II (Lilith Dracul)
Created By:
Marv Wolfman & Gene Colan
First Appearance: Giant-Size Chillers Featuring The Curse of Dracula #1 (June 1974)
Role: Daughter of Dracula
Group Affiliations: S.H.I.E.L.D.
PL 10 (225)
STRENGTH
7 STAMINA -- AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Deception 4 (+7)
Expertise (History) 6 (+8)
Investigation 4 (+7)
Intimidation 3 (+6)
Perception 3 (+6)

Advantages:
Daze (Intimidation), Startle

Powers:
"Super-Strong Vampire"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
Protection 8 [8]
Impervious Toughness 14 (Flaws: Not versus Wood, Fire, Silver or Holy Weapons) [7]
Regeneration 8 (Feats: Regrow Limbs) (Flaws: Source- Blood) [5]
Immortality 4 (Flaws: Not if Staked, Beheaded or Dealt With in Mystical Ways) [4]
Speed 3 (16 mph) [3]
Senses 2 (Low-Light Vision, Acute Scent) [2]

"Mesmerism" Mind Control 12 (48) -- [52]
  • AE: "Command Vermin" Mind Control 4 (Extras: Area- 250ft. Burst +4, Sustained +2) (Flaws: Touch Range -2, Limited to Animals, Limited to Rodents, Bats & Wolves) (24)
  • AE: "Possession" Mind Control 10 (Extras: Merge With Subject) (Flaws: Touch Range -2) (30)
  • AE: Shapeshift 4 (Flaws: Limited to Wolves, Bats, Mist) (28)
  • AE: "Weather Control" Environment 5 (Visibility) (5)
"The Vampire's Bite" Strength-Damage +1 Linked to Weaken Stamina 8 (Flaws: Grab-Based, Limited to 1 Rank Per Minute) Linked to Affliction 8 (Fort; Entranced/Compelled/Transformed to Vampire) (Extras: Cumulative, Progressive +2) (Flaws: Grab-Based, Limited to Drained Victims) [18]

"Always To Haunt Dracula" Immortality 10 (So Long As Dracula Lives) [20]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+7 Damage, DC 22)
Vampire's Bite +10 (+8 Damage, Weaken & Affliction, DC 27, 22 & 22)
Possession +10 (+10 Affliction, DC 20)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +8, Fortitude --, Will +5

Complications:
Enemy (Dracula)- Lilith was turned into a pseudo-vampire in order to vex Dracula for all of his days.
Power Loss- Lilith is actually incapable of directly killing her father.
Weakness (Lack of Blood)- Lilith is less-affected by this than other vampires.
Quirk (No Reflection)- Vampires do not cast reflections in any mirrored surface.

Total: Abilities: 56 / Skills: 20--10 / Advantages: 2 / Powers: 149 / Defenses: 8 (225)

-A member of the semi-early Dracula cast was the first character to be called Lilith- the Daughter of Dracula. She was born to Dracula's first wife (upon whom he had forced himself)- she was raised by Gypsies after her mother's suicide (Dracula had booted them from his castle), and one of them, Gretchin, cast a spell upon her: when Dracula murdered Gretchin's son, she turned Lilith into a different kind of vampire- one not affected by sunlight or holy symbols. As part of this curse, she would haunt Dracula, ever opposing him, until Dracula was destroyed. Whenever she was "killed", she would reappear by taking over the body of an innocent woman who hated her father and wished for his death.

-Lilith thus appeared in the modern era, taking over the body of Angel O'Hara, who wanted her father dead (he had killed Angel's husband after they'd eloped)- she murdered the man, but allowed Angel to live out her life separately- eventually, they were permanently-separated by a direct descendant of Gretchin. Along the way, she appeared to murder criminals, but also slew a bunch of innocent people, because I guess she's also pretty evil. Eventually, she and Dracula reached an agreement to avoid each other, but this broke down when she refused to restore his vampiric powers near the end of the series. Finally, both Lilith and Dracula were destroyed when Dr. Strange used the Darkhold's "Montesi Formula" to wipe out all the vampires on Earth.

-Lilith lasted about seven years before being killed, returning in the late '90s for a small handful of stories (by this point, another Lilith had appeared as one of the Midnight Sons' arch-enemies), then became one of those characters that Marvel consistently ignored, popping up only in Witches, Howling Commandos and a Morbius one-shot. She remains a very minor character (one I had forgot existed- I KNOW I've read that "X-Men vs. Dracula" story, and she apparently possesses Shadowcat in it). And she's technically "Lilith II" because the Ghost Rider character goes back to Biblical times, and that's how the number-coding works.

-Lilith is fairly powerful as a Vampire, carrying all of the usual powers, few of the weaknesses, and being able to possess people for a length of time and resurrect so long as Dracula (who's near-unkillable) un-lives. She's a PL 9 fighter, but PL 10 with her Possession power.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Sun Jan 21, 2024 8:17 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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HalloweenJack
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Vampires! Morbius! Werewolf! Nightstalkers!)

Post by HalloweenJack »

I gotta admit, I always dug Frankie the best of the classic monsters. Picked up the Essential Monster of Frankenstein years ago and love it to this day

and it's in black and white....which is a good thing when it comes to classic monsters
Jabroniville
Posts: 24694
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Dracula

Post by Jabroniville »

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Yes, he looks like that now. Cuz video games and anime, I guess.

DRACULA (Vlad Tepes Dracula)
Created By:
Gerry Conway & Gene Colan
First Appearance: Tomb of Dracula #1 (April 1972)
Role: Mega-Villain, Master Manipulator
Group Affiliations: The Legion of Unliving, Vampires Everywhere
PL 13 (304)
STRENGTH
11 STAMINA -- AGILITY 6
FIGHTING 12 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 4 AWARENESS 6 PRESENCE 6

Skills:
Athletics 4 (+12)
Deception 8 (+14)
Expertise (History) 5 (+9)
Expertise (Nobleman King) 5 (+9)
Insight 6 (+12)
Intimidation 8 (+14)
Investigation 2 (+8)
Perception 8 (+14)
Persuasion 6 (+12)
Sleight of Hand 2 (+6)
Stealth 8 (+14)

Advantages: 
All-Out Attack, Benefit 4 (Wealth), Chokehold, Daze (Intimidation), Extraordinary Effort, Fast Grab, Fearless, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Grab, Improved Initiative 2, Improved Hold, Languages (Various), Power Attack, Precise Attack (Close/Concealment), Ranged Attack 3, Startle, Takedown, Taunt, Trance, Well-Informed

Powers:
"Super-Strong Vampire"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
Protection 10 [10]
Impervious Toughness 14 (Flaws: Not versus Wood, Fire, Silver or Holy Weapons) [7]
Regeneration 10 (Feats: Regrow Limbs) (Flaws: Source- Blood) [6]
Immortality 4 (Flaws: Not if Staked, Beheaded or Dealt With in Mystical Ways) [4]
Speed 5 (60 mph) [5]
Senses (Low-Light Vision, Acute Scent) [2]

"Mesmerism" Mind Control 12 (48) -- [53]
  • AE: "Command Vermin" Mind Control 4 (Extras: Area- 250ft. Burst +4, Sustained +2) (Flaws: Touch Range -2, Limited to Animals, Limited to Rodents, Bats & Wolves) (24)
  • AE: "Control Those Bitten" Mind Control 14 (Extras: Progressive +2) (Flaws: Touch Range -2, Grab-Based, Limited to Those Bitten) (28)
  • AE: "Hypnosis" Mind Control 13 (Extras: Area- Visual Perception) (Flaws: Touch Range -2) (39)
  • AE: Shapeshift 4 (Flaws: Limited to Wolves, Bats, Mist) (28)
  • AE: "Weather Control" Environment 8 (Visibility) (8)
"The Vampire's Bite" Strength-Damage +1 Linked to Weaken Stamina 12 (Flaws: Grab-Based, Limited to 1 Rank Per Minute) Linked to Affliction 12 (Fort; Entranced/Compelled/Transformed to Vampire) (Extras: Cumulative, Progressive +2) (Flaws: Grab-Based, Limited to Drained Victims) [27]

Offense:
Unarmed +12 (+4 Damage, DC 19)
Vampire's Bite +12 (+12 Damage, Weaken & Affliction, DC 27, 22 & 22)
Mesmerism -- (+12 Perception-Ranged Affliction, DC 22)
Control the Bitten +12 (+14 Affliction, DC 24)
Hypnosis +13 Area (+13 Affliction, DC 23)
Initiative +14

Defenses:
Dodge +13 (DC 23), Parry +13 (DC 23), Toughness +10 (+7 Impervious), Fortitude --, Will +13

Complications:
Motivation (Power)
Enemy (The Van Helsings & Harkers)- The families of Abraham van Helsing & Jonathan Harker still hunt Dracula through the ages, ever since the 19th Century. Rachel van Helsing currently hunts him.
Enemy (Frank Drake, Doctor Strange, Cagliostro & Solomon Kane)- In modern times, Dracula has other such enemies.
Prejudice (Muslims)- His Transylvanian homeland invaded by Turks numerous times, Vlad Dracula still has a great deal of hate for the believers of the teachings of Muhammed.
Weakness (Garlic, Sunlight)- Both are anathema to vampires, and will cause horrible pain. Direct sunlight will kill a vampire of any power level.
Weakness (Holy Symbols)- Witnessing or touching a Holy Symbol is painful to vampires, but only if the wearer belives. Wolverine wielding a cross caused Dracula no pain, but Nightcrawler definitely did. Kitty Pryde's Star of David also burned his had when he grabbed her.
Weakness (Lack of Blood, Home Soil)- Though Immune to Fortitude Effects, Dracula can effectively starve to death if deprived of blood- he is even addicted to the substance. Dracula must also spend some amount of time in contact with his native soil.
Quirk (No Reflection)- Vampires do not cast reflections in any mirrored surface.

Total: Abilities: 88 / Skills: 62--31 / Advantages: 26 / Powers: 144 / Defenses: 15 (304)

-Dracula was added to the Marvel Universe as sort of the crown jewel of their new "Horror" line, which came about as a result of the Comics Code (which was forged in the 1950s to prevent comics from destroying young boys' minds with sexiness, blood and homosexuality) loosening its rules over the use of horror creatures like Werewolves, Vampires and Zombies in stories. This is why Werewolf By Night, Man-Wolf, Dracula, Blade and Zombie all came out at approximately the same time. Tomb of Dracula  was Gerry Conway & Gene Colan's baby, as both loved the whole gothic concept, and it was apparently a pretty good series. Me, I've never really been into the whole Horror genre (way too simplistic and derivative most of the time... and I read COMICS, so keep that in mind), and I REALLY detest Vampires as a concept (I just do not get the appeal whatsoever), so I never read it.

-Dracula started life as the ruler of Wallachia (modern-day Transylvania), and warred with the Turks (like his infamous real-world basis). However, an injured Dracula was brought to a gypsy named Lianda to be healed- in revenge for his persecution of her people, Dracula was killed and transformed into a Vampire. Dracula responded by murdering the Turk who brought him there (Turac, whose daughter Elianna became a minor character). Eventually, he became the ruler of Earth's vampires after defeating the vampire Nimrod (hee hee) in a battle. In the 19th century, he was defeated by Abraham Van Helsing & Jonathan Harker, setting the basis for the novel Dracula.

-Dracula is resurrected by accident thanks to his descendent, Frank Drake. Thus, Dracula goes to war with Drake, Rachel Van Helsing and Quincy Harker- the descendents of Dracula's primary cast. After Tomb of Dracula ended, 99% of its cast vanished into Marvel Limbo- there was really nothing for them to do, especially once the Horror Craze died out in comics. Dracula himself has made a few rare appearances over time (it's still funny how a book was titled after it's main villain) fighting more mainstream superheroes than Harkers and Van Helsings (The X-Men, Doctor Strange, Captain Britain). He's generally given as very powerful and a great manipulator, but he never quite maintained the legs or the badass aura of the Doctor Dooms of the comic book world. His last BIG run was in Captain Britain & M.I.-13, which was pretty bitching (largely due to Doom completely owning him. And also Drac firing Vampire Missiles from the Moon). He did some damage on his own, but was one-shotted by Faiza Hussain, the new wielder of Excalibur. He un-dies somehow (well he IS a Vampire- and returning from death was a cliche for him even by comics standards LONG before this), is slain by his son Xarus, and is then resurrected by the X-Men (REALLY?) in order to fight Xarus. Then he gets involved in a Hulk story during Fear Itself, marries Deadpool's ex-wife Shiklah, and then faces Old Man Logan, who rescues Jubilee from his thrall by decapitating the Lord of Vampires and having his head thrown into the son.

-Dracula is a powerful PL 13 character, enough to challenge and defeat almost any hero, turning some of them into Vampires (Storm almost got caught with this once- she became Bloodstorm in the "Mutant X" Universe because of it), mesmerizing others, etc. He's PRICEY too, having a ton of Skills, Advantages and Powers- this combines to make him one of the most dangerous villains on Marvel Earth. Vampiric Turning isn't that efficient for the most part, but considering most of his victims straight-up DIE, it doesn't need to be.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed Mar 16, 2022 1:01 am, edited 1 time in total.
greycrusader
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Werewolf! Nightstalkers! Lilith! Dracula!)

Post by greycrusader »

Massive power-up in the Modern Era for Vlad Tepes...and though I'm a bit of a "traditionalist", I rather like it; the problem with the Classic Monsters in the MU is how limited they are compared to four-color superhumans and alien invaders. Traditional Dracula was great facing off against Quincy Harker, Blader, and Co., along with perhaps the occasionally street level vigilante, but against Iron Man? the Hulk? Thor? Curb-stomp against Drac. Hell, the Thor thing happened, and the Odinson essentially treated the Vampire Lord like so much easily discarded trash. Dr. Strange went up against him and basically destroyed all vampire kind until editorial...uh, I mean an powerful occult ritual brought them back into existence. Dr. Doom, Magneto, Thanos, and even Apocalypse all would pawn the Count.

But the new version-immortal, undead, warrior king with fighting prowess enough to match Captain America, coupled with Namor-level strength and reflexes, along with mystic knowledge? Yeah, that works in a world full of Avengers battalions and X-Men legions. I even think his arc in Avengers Assemble was pretty impressive, though it assumes a world where Stoker never wrote the novel.

Oh, and Jab-yes, Busiek and Nicieza's runs on Thunderbolts were terrific, some of the best comics in the era. The characterization, "slow burn" story lines, crowning moments of awesome for each main character...I could go on and on. Hell, even minor leaguers like the Great Lakes Avengers and the Elements of Doom were used to great effect, with the writers making the most out of concepts others treated as disposable jokes. The shame of it is how Marvel just basically allowed it all to wash away-the Thunderbolts should be BIG, instead of being this little cult classic of the 1990s. Pity that.

All my best.
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Ares
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Re: Dracula

Post by Ares »

Jabroniville wrote: Sun Jul 30, 2017 1:07 am Image

Yes, he looks like that now. Cuz video games and anime, I guess.
This comes from the Avengers Assemble animated series, which is . . . . not impressive most of the time. The Hulk and Thor bromance can be fun, Captain America comes off well, but Iron Man and Hawkeye are unlikable douche's most of the time (and not in the fun entertaining way), Black Widow may as well not exist most of the time, and the Falcon comes off as a naive dork who loses his backpack every other episode. The series will frequently toy with being genuinely good, but most often squander any potential and be a below average, annoying mess of a series. A good rule of thumb is that if any members of the Squadron Supreme are in the episode, it'll probably be fun. But if they aren't, don't get your hopes up.

The series re-imagined Dracula as this kind of barbarian warrior king, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it's not my preference. Dracula could have worked beforehand, given he did things like catch a punch from Colossus, defeated the Black Knight in a sword duel, etc. Him being powerful and skilled was something he was always capable of, and didn't need to go around like a Conan knock off to do so.

But that is the issue with bringing horror characters into a superhero setting, as we've discussed. Horror creatures generally are opposed by normal men and women who survive by their wits. The terror comes from the real danger they're in. If the monsters are capable of fighting superheroes, then they're too much for regular folks unless said folks are turned into superhero-capable individuals. Which might not be a bad thing, where any vampire or monster hunter worth his salt has to be at least on a level with the average non-powered superhero.
"My heart is as light as a child's, a feeling I'd nearly forgotten. And by helping those in need, I will be able to keep that feeling alive."
- Captain Marvel SHAZAM! : Power of Hope (2000)

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Voltron64
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Post by Voltron64 »

Ares wrote: Sat Jul 29, 2017 3:17 am
Yeah, the Blade movies worked a lot better for different reasons, partially due to the vampire craze of the era (Buffy, Angel and Vampire: TM were all pretty big at the time) and vampires being a lot more threatening when there's no superheroes around. Then again, in those movies vampires got nerfed pretty hard as well, given that their powers basically consisted of "never gets old", "really fast, kind of strong", and "will eventually heal from non-weakness related deaths". Blade was more geared towards the Buffy / Underworld level of vampires than anything.

It again goes back to my thinking that in comics, vampires work better as more the Castlevania type, where Dracula basically became a demon and his entire castle is some Lovecraftian Horror he's beaten into submission to act as his home, and every actual vampire is a boss monster. Having "clans" of vampires and "mook" vampires just waters them down, ironically enough. Then again, Castlevania Dracula and Strahd from Ravenloft are two big sources for vampires to me. But vampire mythology is so convoluted you can basically do anything with it.

It actually makes me wonder if werewolves wouldn't work better as the more wide-spread monster type. The idea of clans fits them a little better due to the pack structure of actual wolves, and their more limited abilities (strong, fast, regen and super senses) make them a better "mook" type as well. And unlike vampires, werewolves have a fairly consistent mythology and weaknesses.
I admit it does give me an idea for a campaign with Dracula included to have over a dozen children, each with unique powers and all at around PL 10-11 with him at PL 12-13.

And note that I would base those children off him directly off the 13 Clans from VtM.
bsdigitalq
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Werewolf! Nightstalkers! Lilith! Dracula!)

Post by bsdigitalq »

greycrusader wrote: Sun Jul 30, 2017 3:04 amDr. Doom, Magneto, Thanos, and even Apocalypse all would pawn the Count.
What's hilarious about this is that there was an "X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula" miniseries from a while back that essentially portrayed them as being comparable opponents. Though Apocalypse won in the end of the story, it was quite an amusing story.
Ares wrote: Sun Jul 30, 2017 4:26 amThis comes from the Avengers Assemble animated series,
Dracula had been this way for a few years before the show. The new look and persona first appeared in 2010 in the one-shot story "Death of Dracula" that led into the "Curse of the Mutants" storyline in X-Men.
Jabroniville
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Werewolf! Nightstalkers! Lilith! Dracula!)

Post by Jabroniville »

greycrusader wrote: Sun Jul 30, 2017 3:04 am Massive power-up in the Modern Era for Vlad Tepes...and though I'm a bit of a "traditionalist", I rather like it; the problem with the Classic Monsters in the MU is how limited they are compared to four-color superhumans and alien invaders. Traditional Dracula was great facing off against Quincy Harker, Blader, and Co., along with perhaps the occasionally street level vigilante, but against Iron Man? the Hulk? Thor? Curb-stomp against Drac. Hell, the Thor thing happened, and the Odinson essentially treated the Vampire Lord like so much easily discarded trash. Dr. Strange went up against him and basically destroyed all vampire kind until editorial...uh, I mean an powerful occult ritual brought them back into existence. Dr. Doom, Magneto, Thanos, and even Apocalypse all would pawn the Count.

But the new version-immortal, undead, warrior king with fighting prowess enough to match Captain America, coupled with Namor-level strength and reflexes, along with mystic knowledge? Yeah, that works in a world full of Avengers battalions and X-Men legions. I even think his arc in Avengers Assemble was pretty impressive, though it assumes a world where Stoker never wrote the novel.
Yeah, I was thinking he must have been a bit weaker back in the day, if Harker, Van Helsing & Drake could hunt him anywhere near successfully. Though fighting Thor on ANY kind of a level is pretty impressive, that assumes his modern Power Level, which is enormous compared to what he was like in the '70s (where Mr. Hyde or The Wrecker could be a reasonable opponent).
Oh, and Jab-yes, Busiek and Nicieza's runs on Thunderbolts were terrific, some of the best comics in the era. The characterization, "slow burn" story lines, crowning moments of awesome for each main character...I could go on and on. Hell, even minor leaguers like the Great Lakes Avengers and the Elements of Doom were used to great effect, with the writers making the most out of concepts others treated as disposable jokes. The shame of it is how Marvel just basically allowed it all to wash away-the Thunderbolts should be BIG, instead of being this little cult classic of the 1990s. Pity that.

All my best.
Yeah, it's too bad how that series turned out... the characters ended up not getting pushes from it. Zemo kind of vanished into weird Cosmic Stuff before reverting back to villainy in Captain America (to be fair, he's like Cap's ONLY OTHER VILLAIN; the T-Bolts writers really had no business running away with him like that :)). Moonstone quickly reverted back to villainy in a BIG, BIG way, though seemed to be getting a push out of it, until that derailed and she's now vanished. Jolt & Charcoal fell into Comics Limbo (the latter never to return). Atlas has basically vanished. And Songbird, as the "Signature character" of Thunderbolts, was held back by it, as it started becoming a lower and lower-tier book, ultimately leading her to be a bit forgotten. She was a cool part of the recent Al Ewing AIMvengers book (a good old-fashioned Triple Agent, weird as it is to see ROBERTO DaCOSTA use foresight), but she's since left that for another series.

One of the oddest bits is that Busiek left Nicieza a HELL of a lot of stuff when he left the book; in his final issue, Techno returns and replaces the Ogre, going undercover in the T-Bolts again. Atlas still has his thing where he knows where Man-Killer is holed up. MACH-I is now working for the government. USAgent is still hunting the T-Bolts, as is Citizen V. The Royalist Forces of America are set up as the new Secret Empire, with Zemo backing them.

It's a really, really far cry from the way writers leave books today; capping off their stories and giving everything a "final" feel.
Jabroniville
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Re:

Post by Jabroniville »

Voltron64 wrote: Sun Jul 30, 2017 4:51 am
Ares wrote: Sat Jul 29, 2017 3:17 am
Yeah, the Blade movies worked a lot better for different reasons, partially due to the vampire craze of the era (Buffy, Angel and Vampire: TM were all pretty big at the time) and vampires being a lot more threatening when there's no superheroes around. Then again, in those movies vampires got nerfed pretty hard as well, given that their powers basically consisted of "never gets old", "really fast, kind of strong", and "will eventually heal from non-weakness related deaths". Blade was more geared towards the Buffy / Underworld level of vampires than anything.

It again goes back to my thinking that in comics, vampires work better as more the Castlevania type, where Dracula basically became a demon and his entire castle is some Lovecraftian Horror he's beaten into submission to act as his home, and every actual vampire is a boss monster. Having "clans" of vampires and "mook" vampires just waters them down, ironically enough. Then again, Castlevania Dracula and Strahd from Ravenloft are two big sources for vampires to me. But vampire mythology is so convoluted you can basically do anything with it.

It actually makes me wonder if werewolves wouldn't work better as the more wide-spread monster type. The idea of clans fits them a little better due to the pack structure of actual wolves, and their more limited abilities (strong, fast, regen and super senses) make them a better "mook" type as well. And unlike vampires, werewolves have a fairly consistent mythology and weaknesses.
I admit it does give me an idea for a campaign with Dracula included to have over a dozen children, each with unique powers and all at around PL 10-11 with him at PL 12-13.

And note that I would base those children off him directly off the 13 Clans from VtM.
Would one of them be "That clan that everyone plays like they're annoying" :)?
Jabroniville
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Zombie

Post by Jabroniville »

Image
Image

"IN MAH HEEAAA-EEEAAADDD! IN MAH HEEAAA-EAAA-EAAAADDD!! ZO-OM-BEH! ZO-OM-BEH! ZO-OM-BEH-EH-EH-EH-OH-OWOH-OWOH-OH!!"

ZOMBIE (Simon William Garth)
Created By:
Stan Lee & Bill Everett
First Appearance: Menace #5 (July 1953)
Role: Monster
Group Affiliations: The Howling Commandos
PL 9 (75)
STRENGTH
7 STAMINA -- AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE -2 AWARENESS -2 PRESENCE -3

Skills:
Close Combat (Unarmed) 4 (+10)
Intimidation 12 (+9)

Advantages:
Fast Grab, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Improved Hold, Startle

Powers:
"The Undead"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
Protection 8 [8]
Regeneration 6 (Feats: Regrows Limbs) [7]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+7 Damage, DC 22)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +8, Fortitude --, Will +4

Complications:
Relationship (Layla & Papa Doc Kabel)- The two Kabels controlled Garth in his initial Zombie state, and he remained loyal to them.
Weakness (The Amulet of Damballah)- The wielder of the amulet (he wears a duplicate around his neck) can usually control the Zombie's actions. Only extreme commands (such as killing his loved ones) can break the Amulet's control over him.

Total: Abilities: 2 / Skills: 16--8 / Advantages: 4 / Powers: 45 / Defenses: 16 (75)

-The Zombie was a Horror Comic character from Marvel's "Atlas Comics" days in the 1950s, before the Comics Code came about and wiped Horror Comics from the map. He was an unlikely character to be revamped, but sure enough, the 1970s "Second Horror Boom" saw Tales of the Zombie released in 1973. Roy Thomas and Steve Gerber co-scripted the first issue, and Gerber took over the series, so of course it was probably at least pretty-good, in addition to VERY weird. The book only lasted nine issues over the course of two years, as the "Horror Boom" really wasn't THAT big of a deal overall, and the character largely vanished into obscurity. His appearances are few and far between, typically separated by many years.

-Simon Garth was a workaholic Coffee Executive who was sacrificed by a gardener that he had fired, in a voodoo ritual. However, Layla Kabel, the priestess preciding over the ceremony recognized him as the man she was in love with, and, unable to rescue him, casts a DIFFERENT ritual- one that binds his will to that of the holder of a magical amulet. Garth's corpse is thus transformed into a semi-mindless, undead zombie... but a different KIND of one. Finally sent to his resting place after Layla and her father allow him one day as a normal man to see his daughter married and his life set in order, Garth dies.

-Except he's later revived by Calypso (of Kraven/Spider-Man fame), and she attempts to control him. However, he is able to resist, and fights her in order to save the soul of Papa Doc Kabel. After this, he appears in a smattering of books, and features in Marvel Zombies 4, where the Earth-616 Garth attempts to fight the zombie plague of the "Zombies" Earth, and he later join's Agent Coulson's "Howling Commandos". A few stories featuring a similar character are under the Marvel: MAX imprint as well, but are out of continuity.

-The Zombie is a low-end Mini-Powerhouse type of hero- a near-mindless grappler who probably can't take out many super-heroes. His mindlessness, and the simplicity of his power-set, makes for a VERY cheap PL 9 build.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed Mar 16, 2022 1:04 am, edited 1 time in total.
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danelsan
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Re: Re:

Post by danelsan »

Jabroniville wrote: Sun Jul 30, 2017 6:44 am Would one of them be "That clan that everyone plays like they're annoying" :)?
Urgh, fishmalks. Even people like me, who never really played vampire the masquerade in the intended tone of the game was annoyed by those types.
Vampire: The Masquerade glossary wrote:
Fishmalk is a term used to refer to a stereotypically wacky Malkavian, the type who hits someone in the face with a fish and runs away hooting. Since Malkavians are all insane, the clan tends to attract a type of player who wants to be wacky or otherwise "chaotic neutral"
I wonder if this type of player is the reason I can't stand Deadpool now...
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