Jab’s Builds! (Beaker! Sam Eagle! Miss Piggy! The Swedish Chef!)

Where in all of your character write ups will go.
greycrusader
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Collective Man! Peregrine! Defensor! Red Ronin!)

Post by greycrusader »

Heh. It's as if they felt they couldn't name a character "Bantam" without putting him in a rooster costume; why not just call the poor guy Bantamweight, or Contender, or Fisticuffs or something? Because once he got showed into a chicken suit, no one is ever taking him seriously again. Just like the Trapster ALWAYS gets relegated to Jobber-ville because Marvel writers can't resist the "Paste-Pot Pete" reference; so a villain with one of the most effective snare guns in comics (and the smarts to use it in all sorts of ways) along with (at times) an arsenal of other fairly decent weapons is treated like he's the Ringer or Stilt-Man instead.

All my best.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Cheetah

Post by Jabroniville »

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THE CHEETAH (Esteban Carracus, aka El Gato)
Created By:
Gerry Conway & Al Milgrom
First Appearance: Captain Marvel #48 (Jan. 1977)
Role: One-Shot Villain, Animalistic Guy, Thief-Turned-Revolutionary
Group Affiliations: None
PL 7 (100)
STRENGTH
7 STAMINA 6 AGILITY 5
FIGHTING 7 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 1

Skills: 
Acrobatics 4 (+9)
Athletics 2 (+9)
Deception 5 (+6)
Expertise (Mexican Thief/Revolutionary) 6 (+7)
Insight 2 (+4)
Intimidation 5 (+6)
Perception 5 (+7)
Stealth 3 (+8)

Advantages: 
Accurate Attack, Great Endurance, Improved Initiative, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 5, Seize Initiative

Powers:
"Animal Physiology"
Power Lifting 1 (6 tons) [1]
Speed 5 (60 mph) [5]
Leaping 1 (15 feet) [1]
"Animal Senses" Senses 3 (Low-Light Vision, Acute & Extended Scent) [3]

Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+7 Damage, DC 22)
Initiative +9

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +6, Fortitude +7, Will +2

Complications:
Motivation (Greed, then Revolution)- Carracus, a petty thief, also hates the United States, and seeks to destroy their Capitalist hold over the world.

Total: Abilities: 58 / Skills: 32--16 / Advantages: 10 / Powers: 10 / Defenses: 6 (100)

-Man, that is a TERRIBLE Super-Villain design! No wonder they killed Captain Mar-Vell if this is what his villains looked like. I mean, Spidey fought crap-ass villains all the time, but at least he also had Doc Ock & Electro waiting in the wings. Basically a big, fuzzy guy with a fur mustache in the most garish yellow & green tights imaginable, The Cheetah was named "The Jaguar" in a blurb before the book came out, but then they realized that another Latino with that name debuted in Daredevil years before- coincidentally (or not- both guys ABSOLUTELY SUCK) both were offed by the Scourge of the Underworld in the exact same issue and place, and so he got a new name. Not that either makes sense- he looks more like a fuzzy man-dog to me, and he has no spots in either case.

-The Cheetah was a petty thief who got his powers when Kree Sentry 459 blasted him, and the two went around being revolutionaries for a bit before Captain Marvel arrived and kicked some ass. This was all to be a distraction on behalf of Ronan the Accuser, who himself was beaten. He was de-powered after that point, but ended up at "The Bar With No Name" in full regalia anyways, and was gunned down. He was later among the seventeen criminals revived in the pages of The Punisher, sent by The Hood against Frank Castle. He was meant to be the team's "feral animal" and wild card, but was killed by Castle while impersonating The Beast.

-I almost made The Cheetah PL 7.5, but no, he deserves PL 7 since he only appeared ONE TIME and it took him AND a Kree Sentry (which are really powerful things if I recall- whole Avengers squads have to beat them down) to take out Captain Mar-Vell. He's very balanced overall, but he can modify his accuracy & attack power as part of his super-strength and speed. He's a half-decent Thief/Revolutionary as well, but nothing around what a good dictator should be. He's a generic "Animalistic Guy" build, but not a particularly good one.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 04, 2022 1:24 am, edited 2 times in total.
Jabroniville
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Shang-Chi

Post by Jabroniville »

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SHANG-CHI, MASTER OF KUNG FU
Created By:
Steve Englehart & Jim Starlin
First Appearance: Special Marvel Edition #15 (Dec. 1973)
Role: Bruce Lee Clone, Martial Arts Master
Country of Origin: China
Group Affiliations: The Heroes For Hire, MI-6, The Marvel Knights
PL 10 (160)
STRENGTH
3 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 6
FIGHTING 14 DEXTERITY 3
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 1

Skills:
Acrobatics 8 (+14)
Athletics 5 (+8)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 3 (+17)
Deception 5 (+6)
Expertise (Martial Arts Lore) 10 (+12)
Insight 4 (+7)
Intimidation 7 (+8)
Perception 6 (+9)
Sleight of Hand 2 (+5)
Stealth 3 (+9)
Treatment 3 (+5)

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Agile Feint, All-Out Attack, Assessment, Benefit (Cunning Fighter- Uses Attack To Bluff), Benefit (Defensive Throw, +2 to Throws If Opponent Missed Last Turn), Chokehold, Daze (Agile Feint), Defensive Attack, Diehard, Evasion, Extraordinary Effort, Fast Grab, Grab Finesse, Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed) 4, Improved Defense, Improved Disarm, Improved Initiative 2, Improved Hold, Improved Trip, Instant Up, Jack-of-All-Trades, Last Stand (Ignores All Damage For 1 Round w/ HP Spent), Move-By Action, Power Attack, Precise Attack (Close/Concealment), Ranged Attack 3, Seize Initiative, Takedown 2, Trance, Uncanny Dodge

Offense:
Unarmed +17 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Initiative +14

Defenses:
Dodge +15 (DC 25), Parry +16 (DC 16), Toughness +4, Fortitude +7, Will +9

Complications:
Enemy (Fu Manchu)- Shang-Chi's father raised him to be an agent of his will, but upon discover Fu Manchu's evil nature, Shang rejected him. Fu Manchu was defeated, and has been missing for years. Then it turned out it was a psuedonym for an immortal sorcerer.
Enemy (The Cat)
Relationship (Leiko Wu)- Leiko is the love of Shang-Chi's life.
Responsibility (MI-6)
Relationship (Denis Nayland Smith)- When Shang-Chi learned that his father was an evil man, he teamed up with one of the top British agents to stop him.

Total: Abilities: 74 / Skills: 54--27 / Advantages: 39 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 20 (160)

Shang-Chi- Comics' Biggest Bruce Lee Clone:
-Shang-Chi is just one of those characters that fits a certain era PERFECTLY, but has never really maintained a following outside of it. Debuting in 1973 as the son of Fu Manchu (Marvel had bought the rights to tell his stories), Shang-Chi discovered the true nature of his father's evil from Sir Denis Nayland Smith, and joined a Rag-Tag Band of Misfits on their path to unravel the old man's empire. Shang was also a take-off of the Kung Fu series (which Marvel had been disallowed to produce in comic form, as DC's owner Time Warner also owned the show), and the Bruce Lee movies popular at the time, capitalizing on a western fascination with the Asian martial arts. All of this combined to make a very dark, personal story (Shang dealt with his own personal demons, as well as lethal rivals) in a ten-year run, ending in 1983. Doug Moench was generally the writer, and made the book his baby, which is probably why we don't see much more of Shang-Chi.

Post-Moench Shang-Chi:
-Upon the series' cancellation, however, Shang-Chi would vanish, and only show up in VERY minor back-stories, or failed Heroes For Hire reboots. He'd also train Spider-Man in kung fu after Spidey lost his Spider-Sense for a bit. Marvel would eventually lose the rights to the Fu Manchu stuff, so Shang-Chi would only refer vaguely to his evil father. It would later turn out that his father was an immortal sorcerer using the "Fu Manchu" name as a disguise.

-Shang-Chi really SHOULDN'T be that dated (the '90s had their OWN massive Martial Arts boom, and now we've got an MMA craze to deal with), but his red pyjamas look is hard to hide (and any other look makes him appear to be "Just Some Chinese Guy In Kung Fu Gear"), and he's still typecast as a background character- he remains a minor character on Hickman's Uber-Avengers team (true story: I forgot he was even ON THE TEAM until the tenth or so issue). Truth be told, I find him to be a bit of a blank slate- I've almost never seen him in a story, and when he IS there, he's basically Generic Wise Asian and doesn't get anything done.

Should Shang-Chi Use Chi Attacks?:
-This got brought up by Ares from time to time, and it's an interesting thing to note. If Shang-Chi had been created TODAY, there's a good chance he'd have Street Fighter-like Chi attacks- energy attacks comprised of his own spiritual energy or whatever. But when he was created in the 1970s, he was more of a direct "Bruce Lee" thing, and Chi Attacks were never a big thing- certainly not as omnipresent in "Martial Arts Fiction" as they are now. So of course, no comic book martial artists had them. Oddly enough, for the most part they STILL don't- Iron Fist is an exception, and HIS powers come from a very specific non-training-based source. This means that in Marvel, you cannot simply train to shoot out Chi. Magic-users can train to shoot out energy, but not martial artists. Just isn't a thing.

-But what if they ADDED it? Well personally, I think it's almost too late- you add stuff like that in NOW, and people ask "well, why can't anyone ELSE do it?" Certainly guys like Iron Fist train just as hard as Shang-Chi does. If he does it and other guys don't, you have to answer that for EVERY GUY, too. It's almost something you need to define from the beginning of your universe, and establish ground rules. That said... explaining it away as "Magic" might work. If Stephen Strange can learn to use the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak through nothing but study, then a martial artist could do the same, but via a different source.

-Now... is it RIGHT for Shang-Chi? I mean, his comic was a Super-Spy/Martial Arts Thriller- not Street Fighter II. I'm not a big enough fan either way to tell, but it seems thematically inappropriate for the original incarnation of the character... but since that one's been dead since the mid-80s, it might be time for something new.

Shang-Chi's Fists of Fury:
-Pretty much the ultimate "baseline" martial artist, Shang-Chi is as good as Iron Fist, perhaps a bit more Advantage-heavy, but lacks the Chi-based Super Punch. This puts him in a rare category of guys above even Steve Rogers in melee accuracy, but it totally fits for a guy who's supposed to be THE BEST. Cap still has the advantage thanks to his added strength and the Shield (PL 12 vs. PL 10), but Shang would put up one hell of a fight against almost anybody. He's given both Spider-Man & The Thing trouble (though it was more of the "impossible to hit because he's got +16 to parry" trouble in the latter case), and can easily take down metahuman opponents if he needs to. This is basically a Hong Kong Movie Martial Artist personified, upgraded to a PL 10 Super-Hero status.

-The only issue is that comparing him against others is tough, because he did fairly-little interacting with other super-heroes after a point. He would team up with a bunch of guys, but rarely oppose big-name competition. In the Avengers series, exposure to radiation gave him the ability to create multiple duplicates of himself, which would REALLY crank up his threat-level and points-cost (Summon 11, with God knows what Extras).

SHANG-CHI, MASTER OF KUNG FU (1970s & '80s Version)
Created By:
Steve Englehart & Jim Starlin
First Appearance: Special Marvel Edition #15 (Dec. 1973)
Role: Bruce Lee Clone, Martial Arts Master
Country of Origin: China
Group Affiliations: The Heroes For Hire, MI-6, The Marvel Knights
PL 9 (153)
STRENGTH
3 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 6
FIGHTING 12 DEXTERITY 3
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 1

Skills:
Acrobatics 8 (+14)
Athletics 5 (+8)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 3 (+15)
Deception 5 (+6)
Expertise (Martial Arts Lore) 8 (+10)
Insight 4 (+7)
Intimidation 7 (+8)
Perception 6 (+9)
Sleight of Hand 2 (+5)
Stealth 3 (+9)
Treatment 3 (+5)

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Agile Feint, All-Out Attack, Assessment, Benefit (Cunning Fighter- Uses Attack To Bluff), Benefit (Defensive Throw, +2 to Throws If Opponent Missed Last Turn), Chokehold, Daze (Agile Feint), Defensive Attack, Diehard, Evasion, Extraordinary Effort, Fast Grab, Grab Finesse, Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed) 4, Improved Defense, Improved Disarm, Improved Initiative 2, Improved Hold, Improved Trip, Instant Up, Jack-of-All-Trades, Last Stand (Ignores All Damage For 1 Round w/ HP Spent), Move-By Action, Power Attack, Precise Attack (Close/Concealment), Ranged Attack 3, Seize Initiative, Takedown 2, Trance, Uncanny Dodge

Offense:
Unarmed +15 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Initiative +14

Defenses:
Dodge +13 (DC 23), Parry +14 (DC 14), Toughness +4, Fortitude +7, Will +9

Complications:
Enemy (Fu Manchu)- Shang-Chi's father raised him to be an agent of his will, but upon discover Fu Manchu's evil nature, Shang rejected him. Fu Manchu was defeated, and has been missing for years. Then it turned out it was a psuedonym for an immortal sorcerer.
Enemy (The Cat)
Relationship (Leiko Wu)- Leiko is the love of Shang-Chi's life.
Responsibility (MI-6)
Relationship (Denis Nayland Smith)- When Shang-Chi learned that his father was an evil man, he teamed up with one of the top British agents to stop him.

Total: Abilities: 70 / Skills: 52--26 / Advantages: 39 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 18 (153)

-Shang-Chi in the "Doug Moench" era was probably closer to a very expensive PL 9- martial artists in those days tended to almost be realistic in their capabilites, and couldn't just mow down all the bad guys.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 04, 2022 1:25 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Defensor! Red Ronin! Latino Heroes! Shang-Chi!)

Post by Jabroniville »

SHANG-CHI ALLIES & VILLAINS:

-... I dunno. A bunch of martial arts guys, I guess. Since his book has mostly vanished for the ages (the rights over Fu Manchu went elsewhere, and so I don't think you can publish most of them), and Shang himself became "just some guy" who ends up in group scenes or talked about like he's great without actually doing anything, most of his baddies aren't big names. But I can think of at least a small handful, and Marvunapp helped with others. So the next batch is actually a mini-"Shang-Chi" run, as his supporting cast and some villains get write-ups.
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Defensor! Red Ronin! Latino Heroes! Shang-Chi!)

Post by Yojimbo »

I like Shang-Chi, even though I've never really read any of his adventures. I dig the bad ass normals. This is a guy who would be top tier at DC and probably fighting Shiva on a regular basis, hanging out with Batman and fighting Ra's al Ghul on occasion.

At Marvel though, where Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Luke Cage qualify as "street level," Shang-Chi kind of gets lost in the shuffle.
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Denis Neyland Smith

Post by Jabroniville »

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SIR DENIS NAYLAND SMITH
Created By:
Sax Rohmer
First Appearance: The Mystery of Dr. Fu-Manchu (1913)
Role: Sherlock Holmes Rip-Off
PL 5 (70)
STRENGTH
1 STAMINA 2 AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 4 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Deception 6 (+8)
Expertise (Scotland Yard) 5 (+8)
Insight 4 (+7)
Investigation 7 (+10)
Perception 3 (+6)
Persuasion 5 (+7)
Stealth 4 (+4)

Advantages:
Benefit 1 (Clearance- Scotland Yard), Daze (Deception), Equipment 2 (Pistol +4), Ranged Attack 2, Well-Informed

Offense:
Unarmed +4 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Gun +6 (+4 Ranged Damage, DC 19)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +4 (DC 14), Parry +4 (DC 14), Toughness +2, Fortitude +2, Will +7

Complications:
Motivation (Justice)
Enemy (Fu Manchu)
Relationship (Dr. Petrie, Shang-Chi)- Smith has had many partners over the years.

Total: Abilities: 38 / Skills: 34--17 / Advantages: 7 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 8 (70)

-Fu Manchu is the title character of the debut novel in the series, but the protagonist is Denis Nayland Smith, a Sherlock Holmes rip-off (complete with his own "Watson", Dr. Petrie) sent to fight the villain. When Sax Roehmer continued the Fu Manchu novels in the 1930s, Smith had been knighted. In Marvel's continuity, the villain crushed his legs, crippling him for life, and led to him allying with Shang-Chi, the son of the bad guy. Dr. Petrie by this point had apparently been killed, but Smith convinced Shang-Chi of his father's evil nature. In their next meeting, the hero convinced Smith that his paralysis was psychosomatic, allowing him to walk again. The two became an adventuring group, alongside a handful of other characters. Smith was aged, but still managed to survive quite a few scraps, like when Petrie returned and tried to kill him while under the influence of mind control. Eventually, Smith retired after the seeming death of Fu Manchu.

-Smith's best days are far behind him, but he remains a capable detective and adventurer, though more in the "Pulp Adventure" genre than the superheroic one. He was a Holmes rip-off, but certainly lacked Sherlock's mental acquity.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 04, 2022 1:25 am, edited 1 time in total.
Thorpocalypse
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Re: Bantam

Post by Thorpocalypse »

Jabroniville wrote: Mon Dec 04, 2017 11:02 pm Image

I love how Marvel has like FOUR GUYS who dress like giant cocks.
Wait..,Bantam, Gamecock, Black Talon...who’s the fourth?!?!?
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Ken
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Defensor! Red Ronin! Latino Heroes! Shang-Chi!)

Post by Ken »

Bantam... What would have happened if Bruce Wayne was dyslexic.
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L-Space
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Defensor! Red Ronin! Latino Heroes! Shang-Chi!)

Post by L-Space »

Ken wrote: Tue Dec 05, 2017 9:32 pm Bantam... What would have happened if Bruce Wayne was dyslexic.
Maybe Bruce Wayne meant to be Bantam all along, but Alfred misheard him when making the costume. "Yea bats are scary, but have you ever seen a chicken attack a mouse?!" *shudder*
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Re: Bantam

Post by Jabroniville »

Thorpocalypse wrote: Tue Dec 05, 2017 9:24 pm
Jabroniville wrote: Mon Dec 04, 2017 11:02 pm Image

I love how Marvel has like FOUR GUYS who dress like giant cocks.
Wait..,Bantam, Gamecock, Black Talon...who’s the fourth?!?!?
There are TWO or THREE Black Talons, believe it or not. Now why THAT GUY has Legacy Characters, I have no idea :).
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Defensor! Red Ronin! Latino Heroes! Shang-Chi!)

Post by Ken »

Look at a chicken's foot, you'll see several talons.
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Re: Shang-Chi

Post by Ares »

Jabroniville wrote: Tue Dec 05, 2017 6:00 am ImageImage

SHANG-CHI, MASTER OF KUNG FU
Created By:
Steve Englehart & Jim Starlin
First Appearance: Special Marvel Edition #15 (Dec. 1973)
Role: Bruce Lee Clone, Martial Arts Master
I always liked Shang Chi. What's interesting is that despite his Chinese origins, he spent the vast majority of his career in Britain, to the point that I'd say that any new Excalibur-style team would actually benefit from his presence. Capt. Britain, Union Jack, Shang Chi, Meggan and a few others? Could be pretty cool.

And he's very much the "introspective martial artist" who questions the need for violence, meditates and contemplates his place in the world, as well as the true righteousness of his actions. At the same time, they also have added little things to his personality as he grew to appreciate the world outside of his father's secluded compounds. For instance, he likes pizza, was shown to be a fan of fiction (he enjoyed "Star Wars" and thought "A Clockwork Orange" was an . . . interesting read), and he also enjoyed working on motorcycles. He had some humanizing elements that made him more than just another "inscrutable Asian", at least when writers remember to do so. He also developed a wry sense of humor, as when facing a biker leader (who was secretly a dragon), the guy proclaimed "Feed this f***er his balls!", Shang merely smirked and thought "His turn of phrase is . . . amusing" before he proceeded to beat the tar out of everyone there.

Shang is definitely an elite combatant, and would be someone to beat in Marvel or DC. He's actually had a sparring match with Steve Rogers where they were portrayed as equal, he's traded wins with Wolverine, Iron Fist considers him a peer, etc. And it is a shame that they really don't do that much with him. Martial arts heroes have never really gone out of fashion, especially in action movies, and super-spy stuff is still popular. Shang could easily fit in on a superhero team as their "unarmed non-powered ass-kicker" or he could be doing "Agents of SHIELD" type stuff. It's a shame that Hickman only brought him onto the team to be a Karate Kid stand-in, and largely did nothing with him.
Should Shang-Chi Use Chi Attacks?:
This is something I mull over from time to time. Chi abilities are just handled very weird in Marvel, since like magic there's very little consistency. Shang Chi is the greatest master of kung fu, but he's only displayed maybe a dozen true "chi abilities" over his almost 50 year lifespan. Danny Rand is the Iron Fist, with the chi of a dragon burning inside of him, but for the longest time that was limited to a super-punch and being able to heal himself. Meanwhile someone like Elektra, who had far less training, had chi-based psychic powers, the Hand frequently had guys with Iron Fist like abilities, the Mandarin and Temujin could use extensive chi techniques, so on and so forth. It seems weird that it took until the Immortal Iron Fist series that Danny really gained some unique chi abilities.

There is the question of why guys like Steve Rogers doesn't have chi, but that's something easily solved. Chi would one part "muscle" and two parts "magic", where it takes years to build up your chi like a muscle to the point that you can use it, and then years more to develop the techniques to use it properly. Something where it takes roughly a decade of studying in isolation to be able to use chi, a dedication many people aren't willing to make. This would also be the same reason why Steve Rogers doesn't go to Dr. Strange to learn magic.

So that you could have plenty of dedicated martial artists with chi techniques, while the Immortal Weapons like Iron Fist would be the martial artist equivalents of the Sorcerer Supreme, the uncontested masters of martial arts and chi.

In my own homebrew setting, I basically have Technology/Science, Magic and Martial Arts/Chi as being roughly equal forms of power, and the top users of each in the setting are all roughly around Iron Man in terms of power and effectiveness. This would actually mean that, using just their standard abilities, the masters of these arts are not and will not be as powerful as the Superman/Thor types of said setting. If the most powerful magician on my setting just got into a Dragon Ball Z style beam-struggle with a Thor or Superman type, the latter heroes would eventually win. But these guys aren't suppose to win through raw power and application of their "standard" abilities. These guys beat the Thor and Superman types via skill and preparation. If the super-smart armor hero is going to fight a Superman-type, he isn't going to do so in his standard armor. He's going to spend weeks tricking out some special suit with abilities tailor made to take the Supes-analog down. Likewise, the Dr. Strange type isn't going to try and hammer the Thor-hero into submission, he has spells prepared that absorb the initial attacks and use them to power some serious counter attack. Same with martial artists and chi masters.

As for Shang himself, I'd say "yes" to him having Chi techniques, but I'd also make it to where they weren't "flashy" techniques. Folks like Iron Fist are the guys who have glowing hands that sunder bullet trains and the like. Shang's chi-abilities would be more subtle and low-key. Enhanced acrobatics, healing meditation trances, exaggerated nerve strikes, precise senses and reflexes, enhanced "judo"-style defensive throws and locks, and when he needs to, a focused strike at weak points to shatter objects and damage opponents. Basically, if Iron Fist is very "Street Fighter", then Shang Chi is more "Tekken".

I'll say one thing tho. Chi techniques would make WAY more sense that suddenly gaining radiation-based duplication powers. That's just stupid.
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Black Jack Tarr

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

"BLACK" JACK TARR
Created By:
Steve Englehart & Jim Starlin
First Appearance: Special Marvel Edition #15 (Dec. 1973)
Role: James Bond Clone
Country of Origin: England
Group Affiliations: MI-6
PL 8 (108)
STRENGTH
4 STAMINA 5 AGILITY 2
FIGHTING 11 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills: 
Athletics 2 (+7)
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Soldier) 5 (+8)
Insight 5 (+8)
Intimidation 5 (+8)
Investigation 5 (+8)
Perception 4 (+7)
Sleight of Hand 3 (+5)
Stealth 4 (+6)
Vehicles 2 (+4)

Advantages: 
Benefit (MI-6 Clearance), Daze (Intimidation), Fast Grab, Improved Critical (Unarmed), Ranged Attack 5, Takedown

Offense:
Unarmed +11 (+4 Damage, DC 19)
Initiative +2

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +11 (DC 21), Toughness +5, Fortitude +6, Will +7

Complications: 
Responsibility (MI-6)

Total: Abilities: 66 / Skills: 38--19 / Advantages: 10 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 13 (108)

-Black Jack Tarr is the big, strong aide-de-camp of Sir Denis Nayland Smith. After Fu Manchu was defeated, he chose to stay on the island, eventually becoming the leader of Freelance Restorations when Smith retires. His backstory is pretty small, actually- he just kind of pops up here and there, and isn't a major character.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 04, 2022 1:26 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
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Clive Reston

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

CLIVE RESTON
Created By:
Doug Moench & Paul Gulacy
First Appearance: Giant-Size Master of Kung Fu #3 (1974)
Role: James Bond Clone
Country of Origin: England
Group Affiliations: MI-6
PL 8 (131)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 6
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 4 PRESENCE 4

Skills: 
Athletics 5 (+7)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 2 (+12)
Deception 8 (+12)
Expertise (Spy) 9 (+12)
Insight 6 (+10)
Intimidation 1 (+5)
Investigation 6 (+10)
Perception 6 (+10)
Sleight of Hand 3 (+9)
Stealth 6 (+10)
Vehicles 4 (+10)

Advantages: 
Benefit (MI-6 Clearance), Daze (Deception), Equipment 2 (ASP 9mm Handgun +4), Improved Aim, Improved Critical (Pistol), Improved Defense, Jack-Of-All-Trades, Precise Attack (Cover/Ranged), Quick Draw, Ranged Attack 4, Takedown, Well-Informed

Offense:
Unarmed +17 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Initiative +14

Defenses:
Dodge +12 (DC 22), Parry +11 (DC 21), Toughness +4, Fortitude +5, Will +7

Complications: 
Relationship (Melissa Greville)- Eventually he left her, but she continues to love him.
Relationship (Leiko Wu)- Leiko & Clive were once together.
Responsibility (MI-6)

Total: Abilities: 74 / Skills: 56--28 / Advantages: 16 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 13 (131)

-Clive Reston (another ancient name on "The List" I've always been curious about) is an obvious riff on James Bond (and takes a bit from Roper from Enter The Dragon- a Bruce Lee film and heavy inspiration to the "Shang-Chi" stories). An agent of MI-6, he's loyal to Denis Nayland Smith & Shang-Chi. Reston's father was intended to be James Bond, and his granduncle Sherlock Holmes, but neither was specifically said in-story. He had a give & take relationship with Shang-Chi, using wisecracks on his more stoic partner. Reston disappears after Master of Kung Fu is done, only showing up in a MAX imprint Wisdom mini-series, teaming up with Pete Wisdom.

-Reston is essentially James Bond Lite in every way- an equivalent agent, still very capable. Marvel has about a thousand guys at his level, however.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 04, 2022 1:26 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Mordillo

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

MORDILLO (Simon Bretnor)
Created By:
Doug Moench & Paul Gulacy
First Appearance: Master of Kung Fu #33 (Oct. 1975)
Role: Mad Scientist/Martial Artist
PL 8 (146)
STRENGTH
3 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 6
FIGHTING 11 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 6 AWARENESS 0 PRESENCE 0

Skills: 
Acrobatics 6 (+12)
Athletics 5 (+8)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 2 (+13)
Deception 5 (+5)
Expertise (Assassin) 3 (+9)
Expertise (Science) 4 (+10)
Intimidation 5 (+5)
Perception 5 (+5)
Stealth 3 (+9)
Technology 8 (+14)

Advantages: 
Accurate Attack, Agile Feint, All-Out Attack, Chokehold, Equipment 8 (Assorted Gear, Flying Ship), Fast Grab, Grab Finesse, Great Endurance, Improved Critical (Unarmed) 2, Improved Defense, Improved Initiative, Improved Hold, Improved Trip, Instant Up, Move-By Action, Precise Attack (Close/Concealment), Ranged Attack 6, Takedown 2

Powers:
"Death-Hand" (Flaws: Removable) [11]
Fire Blast 6 (Feats: Variable- Air Blast) (13 points)

Offense:
Unarmed +13 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Death-Hand +10 (+6 Ranged Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +10

Defenses:
Dodge +12 (DC 22), Parry +12 (DC 22), Toughness +4, Fortitude +5, Will +4

Complications: 
Enemy (Shang-Chi)
Responsibility (Insane)
Relationship (Leiko Wu)- The two were once lovers, but she left him for Clive Reston.

Total: Abilities: 68 / Skills: 46--23 / Advantages: 32 / Powers: 11 / Defenses: 12 (146)

-Mordillo is an odd sort of opponent- a great fighter and an assassin of great skill... but completely insane AND a brilliant inventor! How often do you see all those archetypes together in one guy? He used to work for MI-6, and loved fellow agent Leiko Wu, until she left him for Clive Reston- another ally. His sanity eventually left him, and he started building robots to help him with his freelance assassin work, keeping them on his island. During a three-issue arc of Master of Kung Fu, he put Leiko in a deathtrap and tried to destroy the ozone layer with his "Solar Chute" suborbital craft, but was vaporized into a skeleton when Shang-Chi knocked him in the way of the Chute's blasts. His skeleton was later seen numerous times, "giving orders" to his robotic servant Brynocki, who eventually lost the skeleton in quicksand after he fought some Spaceknights in Rom.

-Marvunapp indicates that Mordillo is obviously supposed to be Scaramanga from The Man With The Golden Gun- fitting, since Clive Reston was implied to be the son of James Bond. Mordillo may also take his name from a South American fairy tale artist of some repute, as he himself has an appreciate for fairy tales.

-Mordillo is basically a high-end, PL 8 Fighter/Blaster with a lot of smarts, making him quite expensive despite his "1970s-Era Martial Artist" build.

Image

BRYNOCKI
Created By:
Doug Moench & Paul Gulacy
First Appearance: Master of Kung Fu #33 (Oct. 1975)
Role: Robot Buddy

-Brynocki is a tiny, sentient robot created by Mordillo, an insane assassin who wanted some comic relief in his mechanical assistant. Brynocki can alter his clothing to reflect his emotional state, and eventually leaves when Mordillo is killed trying to blow up Shang-Chi. Brynocki simply decides it's time to find a new friend. He reappears years later in Iron Man, being employed by Arcade, but Iron Man finds and reprograms Brynocki into helping him against the assassin. Brynocki eventually blew himself up after being defeated by Moon Knight & Shang-Chi, thinking that Mordillo was still giving him the orders.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 04, 2022 1:26 am, edited 3 times in total.
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