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

Where in all of your character write ups will go.
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Ares
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Re: The Promise

Post by Ares »

Jabroniville wrote: Wed Mar 06, 2019 2:59 am Image

THE PROMISE
Created By:
John Byrne
First Appearance: X-Men- The Hidden Years #15 (Sept. 2001)
Role: Secret Society of Mutants
Now I've got this song stuck in my head: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMZL9pd4Q8M
"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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Paradox

Post by Jabroniville »

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In before the horrendous Ken joke about there being a duo of medical professionals.

Also, HAHAAHAHAHA, THAT OUTFIT!!


PARADOX (Mark Esterhase)
Created By:
Bill Mantlo & Val Mayerik
First Appearance: Marvel Preview #24 (Winter 1980)
Role: Forgotten Character, Future Rebel Leader
Group Affiliations: The ISA (Interplanetary Security Agency)
PL 8 (167)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 9 DEXTERITY 5
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 4

Skills:
Athletics 4 (+6, +11 Jovian)
Deception 4 (+8)
Expertise (Space Cop) 7 (+10)
Expertise (Space Bounty Hunter) 2 (+5)
Expertise (Antigravity Danseur- Space Ballet) 4 (+8)
Insight 5 (+8)
Intimidation 0 (+4, +10 Jovian)
Investigation 5 (+8)
Perception 4 (+7)
Persuasion 4 (+8)
Stealth 3 (+7)
Technology 4 (+7)

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Equipment 3 (Wristlaser- Blast 6 Multiattack), Power Attack, Ranged Attack 5

Powers:
"Gene-Spliced With The Colonial Species"
Morph 3 (Colonial Species Forms) [15]
"Mind Closed to Telepaths" Immunity 5 (Mind-Reading) [5]
Shapeshift (Colonial Species Forms) 5 [40]
-- (Jovian: ST 7, STA 7, Dodge & Parry -1, Intimidation +6, Immunity to Poison; Lunan: ST 5, STA 5, Intimidation +4; Mercurians: Heat Aura 6, Immune to Suffocation & Drowning, Heat & Fire Damage)

Offense:
Unarmed +9 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Lunan Form +9 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Jovian Form +9 (+7 Damage, DC 22)
Heat Aura +9 (+6 Damage, DC 21)
Guns +10 (+6 Ranged Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +3 (+7 Jovian Form), Fortitude +4 (+8 Jovian Form), Will +6

Complications:
Responsibility (Rebellion)- Paradox eventually sees Terran domination of the colonies as unjust, and fights against his old masters.

Total: Abilities: 66 / Skills: 46--23 / Advantages: 9 / Powers: 60 / Defenses: 9 (167)

-This strange character hails from Marvel Preview of all things- a book meant to showcase potential future books. Paradox comes from an Alternate Earth, with a future ruled by Terrans who've colonized the rest of our solar system. Badly injured in the line of duty, this space cop was rebuilt using "parahuman" parts, turning him into a superhuman himself. He thus became a SUPER Space Cop, working for his father (who thought his son had died), and altering his shape into various "off-Earth" human offshoots in order to survive various hazards and disguise himself. He ended up fighting off his father, who was a drug-addict who soon flamed out and died. And then his own ISA superiors try to have him killed; he fights them off and convinces the ISA he's better as an ally. But the seeds are sown for rebellion.

-Six issues later, Paradox falls in love with a female rebel, and she's cruelly skinned alive by government agents- this convinces him to secretly rebel against his own people, finding them merciless to the "Servant Species". He's recruited to bring down some rabble-rousing on Saturn, but turns on his teammates (killing one of them), then throws the Emperor of Terra to his death, leaving them to form a new society on that world. There is said to be much rejoicing throughout the colonies. The character is thus forgotten in 1980.

-HOWEVER, nineteen years later, another writer brought the character back, having him come through "The Fault"- a crack in space-time. He shows up on Marvel Earth meeting Wolverine in a side book of his. He hooks up with another Fault refugee, and they are now bounty hunters searching for "Techno-Necrotic" stuff. The three of them fight a guy named Contagion, who beats them until the girl, Monark, frees Wolverine, at which point the X-Men arrive. This strange five-issue arc appears to leave Paradox & Monark free as "Space Bounty-Hunters", but they do not appear again. This is a REALLY, REALLY weird throwback, as the writer (Charlie Hunter) must have read that old (very Heavy Metal-ish, minus the porn, actually) sci-fi story and ran with it.... but completely changed the setting and the character's purpose (now he's just a bounty hunter because he's a refugee with nowhere else to go).

-Paradox is a "Space Cop" build with a solid amount of Shapeshift attached to him- he can take the forms of Lunans, Jovians, Mercurians, Saturnians, Pluvians, Martians & Uranians, but only the first three are given any kind of detail in terms of powers, while the last one is mere conjecture and is never mentioned. This makes him very pricey and capable, but he's still only PL 8- his typical tactics involve taking different forms to throw off the enemy, or surprise them with a Heat Aura.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed Jun 29, 2022 3:45 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Polaris! Pyro! Post! Professor Xavier!)

Post by KorokoMystia »

One interesting thing that I found out is that it wasn’t just the injuries that threatened Paradox’s life- It was radiation poisoning which necessitated the gene-splicing. His Terran form is still radiation poisoned and may eventually kill him, but switching forms allows him to keep it at bay.

Also, some additions: Mercurians have very high tolerance for extremely high temperatures and don’t require oxygen.
Last edited by KorokoMystia on Thu Mar 07, 2019 12:19 am, edited 1 time in total.
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The ISA

Post by Jabroniville »

THE ISA STRIKE SQUAD
Created By:
Bill Mantlo & Mike Vosburg
First Appearance: Bizarre Adventures #30 (Feb. 1982)
Role: Racist Space Cops
Group Affiliations: The ISA (Interplanetary Security Agency)
PL 6 (70)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 2 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Athletics 3 (+5)
Deception 2 (+4)
Expertise (Space Cop) 5 (+7)
Insight 2 (+4)
Intimidation 2 (+4)
Investigation 4 (+6)
Perception 3 (+5)
Stealth 2 (+5)
Technology 3 (+5)

Advantages:
Equipment 3 (Wristlaser- Blast 6 Multiattack), Ranged Attack 2

Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Guns +6 (+6 Ranged Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +7 (DC 17), Parry +6 (DC 16), Toughness +2, Fortitude +3, Will +3

Complications:
Responsibility (The ISA)

Total: Abilities: 46 / Skills: 26--13 / Advantages: 5 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 6 (70)

-These three characters were Paradox's partners in one mission, where they fight to uncover a mole in the ISA. Of course, that mole is PARADOX, who kills Fire & Razor after Ice is slain by rebels.

The Roster:

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FIRE- PL 6 (84): STA +1, Fire Blast 6 [14]
-Fire boasted of a super-hot Blast coming out of his hand, and seemed rather racist to colonists, calling the Saturnians "Carriots!" and the like. He is a bit tougher than his allies, but is shocked when Paradox reveals that HE is the mole, and shoots Fire through the chest.

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ICE- PL 6 (73): Mind-Reading 4, Communication (Mental) 1, Senses 2 (Blindsight, Detect Minds- Ranged) [13]
-Ice was an eyeless female telepath who kept out of physical situations, being pained by the agony of others. She saw herself as "both alien and human", being modified genetically like that, but her senses were numbed by technology, and a rebel agent shot her in the back.

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RAZOR- PL 6 (79): FIGHTING +2, Eyeblasts 6, Claws +2 (Split) [19]
-Razor saw things through a "warrior's lens", being scrappy warrior. She was in love with Ice (a rare lesbian partnership in a Marvel comic), because she had no eyes at all, and thus it was all philosophical and junk. When Paradox shoots Fire, Razor attacks, but Paradox takes her form before killing Razor dead. He thus convinces the others present that HE is Razor, and was the victor over "Paradox". It is in this form that Paradox slays most of his fellow ISA agents and betrays the Emperor.
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Polaris! Pyro! Post! Professor Xavier!)

Post by KorokoMystia »

Saturnians seemed to be described as plant-like, hence them being referred to as "vegetables" or "carrots" by the Terrans.
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Proteus

Post by Jabroniville »

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PROTEUS (Kevin MacTaggert, aka Mutant X)
Created By:
Chris Claremont & John Byrne
First Appearance: The Uncanny X-Men #125 (Dec. 1979)
Role: All-Powerful Menace
Group Affiliations: None
PL 18 (344)
STRENGTH
-- STAMINA -- AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS 0 PRESENCE -1

Skills:
Intimidation 8 (+7)
Perception 6 (+6)

Advantages:
Eidetic Memory

Powers:
“Living Energy”
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
Protection 20 [20]
Insubstantial 3 [15]
Immunity 20 (Mental Effects) (Flaws: Limited to Half-Effect) [10]

“Vampiric Possession”
Mind Control 18 (Flaws: Touch Range, Possession) Linked to Weaken Stamina 18 (Extras: Progressive +2) (Flaws: Limited to 1 Rank Per Round, Permanent) [54]
Mind-Reading 14 (Flaws: Limited to Possessed Subjects) [14]

“Reality Warping”
Transform (Anything to Anything Else) 20 (Extras: Perception-Ranged +2, Affects Corporeal) (160) -- [165]
  • AE: “Warp Space Around Beings” Affliction 14 (Will; Dazed/Stunned/Incapacitated) (Extras: Affects Corporeal, Area- 60ft. Burst +2) (56)
  • AE: “Transform People” Affliction 18 (Fort; Dazed & Impaired/Stunned & Disabled/Transformed & Paralyzed) (Extras: Affects Corporeal, Perception-Ranged +2) Linked to Damage 14 (Extras: Perception-Ranged +2, Affects Corporeal) (138)
  • AE: Nullify All Powers 18 (Extras: Affects Corporeal, Perception-Ranged, Broad, Simultaneous) (72)
  • AE: “Turn Things Into Summons” Summon 10 (Extras: Active) (Flaws: Requires Objects) (20)
  • AE: “Reverse Gravity” Move Object 18 (Extras: Affects Corporeal, Perception-Ranged) (72)
Offense:
Unarmed +0 (-- Damage, DC --)
Warp Space +14 Area (+14 Affliction, DC 24)
Transform -- (+18 Perception-Ranged Affliction & +14 Damage, DC 28 & 29)
Nullify Powers -- (+18 Nullify, DC 28)
Initiative +4

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

Complications:
Disabled (Burning Out)- Proteus' energy powers are so great that he will burn out the husks of whomever he is possessing at a rapid pace- uses of his power will only make this worse. As the bodies burn out, he loses focus and power.
Vulnerable (Metals)- Proteus has a violent aversion to metal- even bullets can send him off. He cannot possess Wolverine due to the Adamantium in his skeleton, and he is "dispersed" by the metallic hero Colossus. The touch is painful and effective while possessing another- it’s fatal when he’s in Energy Form.
Motivation (Switchings Hosts)- Kevin wishes for stronger and more durable hosts for his energy form.

Total: Abilities: 6 / Skills: 14--7 / Advantages: 1 / Powers: 308 / Defenses: 22 (344)

Mutant X- The First Uber-God Mutant:
-Proteus was a great, semi-early sign of the greatness of the Claremont/Byrne era of X-Men- we'd only recently been introduced to Moira MacTaggert, an ex-girlfriend of Charley's who was an expert geneticist. And now it turned out that she had a Mutant SON who was being kept in containment due to his dangerous powers. Annnnnnnnnd of course we discover this because in ANOTHER story, the X-Men had saved the day, but accidentally damaged whatever was keeping Kevin MacTaggert contained. And so he frees himself- this trapped, forced-into-seclusion young boy- and immediately goes on a rampage. And Proteus is CRAZY-powerful- so much so that Wolverine himself is left emotionally-shattered by the reality warps Proteus unleashes, and can't bring himself to continue the fight. Kevin possesses numerous people before settling on his rotten, wife-abusing father Joseph. In the end, his "anathema" to metal (he flees from it frequently during the battle, being all-powerful otherwise) is his undoing, as he burns out his father's corpse, and is struck by the metal-formed Colossus, which disperses him into the atmosphere- a fatal blow.

-This story was more used as Character Development for the other X-People than anything for Proteus, who was a rather one-note "Destroyer of Worlds" (being trapped in a cell for a huge chunk of his life had basically left him a little crazy). From him we learned that Moira MacTaggert carried a tremendous sense of failure, and a raison-d'etre for her existence: she was an expert on Mutants because her SON was one, and she'd failed to cure him of his condition. She always felt terrible beacuse she'd failed her son, both as a doctor and as a mother (she was forced to trap him for his own good, but the seclusion drove him insane)- this sense of darkness informs a lot of her later decisions, and her sense of duty. Killing Proteus forced the peaceful farmboy Colossus to sort of realize just what he'd recently gotten himself into- though it had to be done (Proteus was MUCH too dangerous to be allowed to live one more minute), it's a bit of a rude awakening for the gentle soul. And it was a great character moment for Wolverine, who was usually a smirking jackass until this point- his terror and shock and being turned inside-out by the reality-warper kind of humanized him a bit.

-Best moment, however, was when Cyclops, realizing that his team was falling apart mentally at the idea of fighting Proteus, basically decided to act like the LEADER he was supposed to be, and so he snapped them all back into shape. Watching a shuddering Logan, he insulted the teammate who'd been annoying him for months, calling him a coward, and taunting him to do something about it. When the other X-Men interjected, Scott allowed things to devolve into a full-on BRAWL- but that was the IDEA. Logan, now "killin' mad", unfurls the claws and goes in for a fatality, but Cyke effortlessly-trounces him (in MELEE, too!), then starts bouncing Optic Blasts around, knocking the whole team for a loop. The result? Everyone snaps back to reality and gets back into fighting shape rather than quaking in their boots. Even Logan is impressed- complimenting Cyke for getting them back on track. Great moment for the team.

The Return of Proteus:
-Proteus would go on to appear in a couple more stories- in my first introduction to reading X-Books, A.I.M. attempts to recreate him using Harness and her son Piecemeal- they absorb the dispersed energy, but Piecemeal (himself an abused child) cannot hold all that power, and explodes- merging together with Proteus. And so the two lost boys combined power and “re-make” reality in a big cross-over involving numerous teams (it ran during the New Warriors, New Mutants, Uncanny X-Men and X-Factor Annuals one summer- featuring the New Warriors, the newly-rechristened X-Force, X-Factor, and Moira’s “Muir Island X-Men” of assorted un-used characters). Eventually, the two are convinced by Jean Grey (and, surprisingly, Cable- who to this point had never seemed so sentimental or philosophical- Fabian Nicieza was working hard to give the guy some personality sans-Liefeld) to give up their mission of revenge against their mothers, and told to leave reality alone. Proteus & Piecemeal then voluntarily dispersed themselves again, “committing suicide”, leaving the world safe, but nobody feeling any better- the X-Men trademark.

-Proteus would return in and odd way- during the House of M Alternate Reality Cross-Over, we’re shown that in the reality ruled by Magneto, Kevin had never been killed, and instead becomes a serial killer. Here, he is confronted by the reality-hopping Exiles during the point when I stopped caring about that book. Realizing that they hold the secret to true freedom, Proteus becomes a REALITY-HOPPING serial killer, blowing through different realities. In Exiles, he manages to kill off long-time fan-favorite Mimic, and isn’t stopped until he takes over the body of MORPH- a Mind-Controlling Collar allows Morph to reassert control (sort of; Kevin now thinks he IS Morph, and acts accordingly), and the day is saved.

-Later, Morph is able to reassert control, and finds the good in Proteus, who accepts the pair working together in harmony inside the same body. In the Claremont era of Exiles, he went nuts again, merging with Destiny (YUP, CLAREMONT WAS WRITING ALRIGHT), possessing a whole squad of X-Men at once, and more- Magneto successfuly disperses him this time. He returns in Agent X, being used as a power source by the Shadow King in his psychic war with the deceased Charles Xavier. Eventually freed, Kevin acts like he's reformed, but tries to turn the world into the world of the Psychic Plane- the X-Men disperse him once more after a fierce battle, with Psylocke and Xavier setting things right.

Reality Warping- The Ultimate Game-Breaker:
-Proteus is essentially an unkillable form of Energy, though can be successfully dispersed, generally by metals. His main thing is to warp reality around his enemies, alter their forms (which is painful as well as disconcerting), turn cars into bees, etc. He’s got Affects Corporeal on EVERYTHING, is Insubstantial (his Host Bodies can be damaged, but this only renders him more vulnerable to metals), and more. Oh, and he can “turn off” your Mutant Powers at-will, and easily-possess anybody who comes to close, slowly destroying their body over time. In-all, he’s a PL 18 terror, and generally has to be beaten by figuring out his weakness and how to exploit it (making him one of the more easily-handled Reality Warpers in comics, actually).
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed Jun 29, 2022 3:47 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Polaris! Pyro! Post! Professor Xavier!)

Post by KorokoMystia »

Proteus is odd to me in that I've only kind of read an issue that has an appearance of him. I had a trade where one of the issues ended with teasing the introduction of Proteus, where Angus McWhirter, some boat captain who was angry with the x-men for getting the boat he'd rented them destroyed (this happened in an earlier issue, as a helpful editor's note stated), and inadvertently released "Mutant X" from his cell, but I wasn't familar with the character, so I didn't know that it was Proteus.
Last edited by KorokoMystia on Thu Mar 07, 2019 3:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Polaris! Pyro! Post! Professor Xavier!)

Post by Ares »

Proteus is a good example of a couple of things, first and foremost being why you shouldn't re-visit a concept too often, as the character's menace got diluted the more he was used. It likely would have been better to have people try to re-create Proteus' power than constantly bringing the guy back.

It kind of makes you wonder why Mr. Sinister didn't work on figuring out what it had been in Moria's genes that created such a godlike mutant. Granted, Proteus' father was dead at that point, but Proteus makes way more sense to study than the Summers family.

Proteus was one of the first of several mutants whose powers were basically "warp the very fabric of reality". Proteus, Franklin Richards, at least one interpretation of Wanda's powers, it kind of makes a strong case for mutants being feared when they can just randomly produce someone who is unto a small god.
"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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The Pitiful One

Post by Jabroniville »

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THE PITIFUL ONE (Real Name Unknown)
Created By:
Peter Milligan & Mike Allred
First Appearance: X-Statix Presents Dead Girl #1 (March 2006)
Role: Mystery Villain
Group Affiliations: Hell

-The Pitiful One is the villain of Dead Girl's solo Limited Series, said to be a forgotten, dead Jobber Villain, humiliated by Daredevil and Thor back in the day. He returns leading an army of super-people from Hell, demanding a resurrection of his own. He is eventually undone by Dead Girl and Dr. Strange, despite using a reanimated Ancient One as an advisor/helper. The heroes "discover" his real face and identity in a dramatic reveal... that the fans can't see, because of how the panel is composed. Marvunapp suggests that the "mystery villain" may be Dr. Carlo Strange, a predecessor to Dr. STEPHEN Strange, who had fallen into disuse back in the Silver Age.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed Jun 29, 2022 3:50 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Polaris! Pyro! Post! Professor Xavier!)

Post by Jabroniville »

Ares wrote: Thu Mar 07, 2019 3:03 am Proteus is a good example of a couple of things, first and foremost being why you shouldn't re-visit a concept too often, as the character's menace got diluted the more he was used. It likely would have been better to have people try to re-create Proteus' power than constantly bringing the guy back.

It kind of makes you wonder why Mr. Sinister didn't work on figuring out what it had been in Moria's genes that created such a godlike mutant. Granted, Proteus' father was dead at that point, but Proteus makes way more sense to study than the Summers family.

Proteus was one of the first of several mutants whose powers were basically "warp the very fabric of reality". Proteus, Franklin Richards, at least one interpretation of Wanda's powers, it kind of makes a strong case for mutants being feared when they can just randomly produce someone who is unto a small god.
What's weird is that Claremont used it twice in succession- Proteus and Jamie Braddock (who himself seems like a knockoff of Mad Jim Jaspers, also a Captain Britain foe).

The fact that Marvel still trots out the "Mutant who wakes up one day with the power to destroy the Earth" reallllllllllllly doesn't help the case that Mutants are unfairly feared and guarded against.
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Polaris! Pyro! Post! Professor Xavier!)

Post by Jabroniville »

KorokoMystia wrote: Wed Mar 06, 2019 9:56 pm One interesting thing that I found out is that it wasn’t just the injuries that threatened Paradox’s life- It was radiation poisoning which necessitated the gene-splicing. His Terran form is still radiation poisoned and may eventually kill him, but switching forms allows him to keep it at bay.

Also, some additions: Mercurians have very high tolerance for extremely high temperatures and don’t require oxygen.
Cool- added! Where did you read that? A bio-book? Much of The List is compiled from Spectrum's, and you've mentioned having read a few featuring more than one recent character in them.

One last guy, and then we're done with the Letter "P" for Marvel! After that... Mega Man 11!
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Paladin

Post by Jabroniville »

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LOL WTF is that original outfit?

PALADIN (Real Name Unknown)
Created By:
Jim Shooter & Carmine Infantino
b]First Appearance:[/b] Daredevil #150 (Jan. 1978)
Role: Man-Whore, Skillmonkey
Group Affiliations: S.H.I.E.L.D. Paranormal Containment Unit, Shock Troop, The Legion of Monsters, The Thunderbolts
PL 9 (142)
STRENGTH
6 STAMINA 6 AGILITY 5
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 4

Skills:
Acrobatics 4 (+9)
Athletics 3 (+9)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 1 (+11)
Deception 5 (+9)
Expertise (Mercenary) 7 (+9)
Insight 4 (+6)
Intimidation 2 (+6)
Investigation 5 (+7)
Perception 4 (+6)
Persuasion 2 (+6)
Sleight of Hand 4 (+8)
Stealth 3 (+8)
Technology 4 (+6)
Vehicles 4 (+8)

Advantages:
Accurate Attack, Beginner's Luck, Defensive Attack, Diehard, Great Endurance, Equipment 7, Improved Aim, Jack-of-All-Trades, Luck, Ranged Attack 7, Taunt, Tracking

Equipment:
"Costume" Protection 1 (Extras: Impervious 8) (Flaws: Impervious Limited to Ballistics) (5)
"Spy Gear" (Rebreather, Infra-vision, etc.) (7)
"Stun Pistol" Affliction 7 (Fort; Dazed/Stunned/Incapacitated) (Extras: Ranged, Cumulative) (21)

Offense:
Unarmed +11 (+6 Damage, DC 21)
Stun Pistol +11 (+7 Ranged Affliction, DC 17)
Initiative +5

Defenses:
Dodge +11 (DC 21), Parry +11 (DC 21), Toughness +6 (+7 Costume), Fortitude +8, Will +5

Complications:
Motivation (Greed)
Reputation (Roguish Bounty Hunter, Man-Whore)
Responsibility (Honor)- Paladin doesn't have A LOT of it, but he will not do outright evil acts. He even helped out some rebels he was hired to stop, refusing to kill them. Another time, he willingly hid an Asgardian Spear Norman Osborn wanted, because he realized that Osborn was way too evil to be trusted with such a thing.

Total: Abilities: 78 / Skills: 56--28 / Advantages: 24 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 12 (142)

Paladin in The Superia Stratagem:
-Paladin's a guy who I've only read a few appearances of, but they've always been pretty good. He's a classic rogueish, Han Solo-type bounty hunter/man-whore who flirts with everything in a skirt, which made him a PERFECT partner for Captain America. The whole Superia Stratagem storyline was REALLY goofy, and a lot of fans make fun of it nowadays, but I loved it: It's got everything I love about comics in it: A Buddy Comedy story with the ultra-serious Boy Scout teaming up with Captain Douchebag to rescue a mutual ex-girlfriend from a giant head with arms & legs and a seven-foot-tall female Dr. Doom wannabe. They end up on a cruise ship full of every D-league female villain in comic book history (seriously, ION AND PINK PEARL?!? When Arclight & Quicksand make up the "well-known names section" of the roster, you know you're reading a Mark Gruenwald comic), get captured, and the villain tries to give them a gift by TURNING THEM INTO WOMEN. Then she tries to sterilize the entire human race except for the super-women in her base (to get money and power in order to create Femizonia on Earth centuries early). Then Cap & Paladin escape thanks to borrowing Bad Girls' Inc.'s costumes, and Cap beats Superia while in-drag.

-One of my favourite moments in it is when some dancing chick who can hypnotize people with her movements tries to force Cap to explain why he & Paladin are there. Cap resists with his overwhelming willpower, shocking the girl. She offers to try again, and REALLY push it this time, but the doctor just tells her to try it on Paladin instead. She does, and Paladin immediately gives away their entire plan :).

Paladin's History:
-Paladin actually debuted in Daredevil, facing the hero twice during situations involving the Purple Man, who he'd been hired to stop. A mercenary, Paladin could thus take part in numerous assignments, either with or against a hero. A minor guy, he nonetheless dated The Wasp for a bit (after helping the Avengers fight the Masters of Evil), and found Spider-Man's willingness to banter during combat and to work FOR FREE completely astounding. He takes ten million dollars to assassinate the Punisher, but U.S. Agent breaks both of his legs during that one-off. He later teamed with Spider-Man to investigate a traitor in Symkaria (the home of Silver Sable), and gets hired by Diamondback to raid the Serpent Society's HQ- he gets captured and rescued by Captain America. This is what leads to his appearance in The Superia Stratagem, though that fails to make the character take off. In fact, he doesn't appear again until Generation-X, getting the kids to help him on a mission for Adrienne Frost.

-Paladin actually got a fair bit of use in modern times- he shoots Daredevil with a sniper rifle (something supervillains largely don't do out of genre conventions, as it'd be a bit TOO effective in most cases), and works in the Heroes For Hire books Marvel was pushing in the 2000s. He manages to take down Captain America with some knock-out gas, but Shang-Chi uses Kung Fu Breath-Holding to withstand the attack, and beats down Paladin instead. Despite being kind of obscure in a few ways, he was ALL OVER the Dark Reign stuff, being a frequent Thunderbolts member, and he was the "go to" guy for someone to mess with human-level opponents (Captain America, Daredevil, Elektra) and try to arrest them for Osborn- he gets choked out be Elektra (using her own loosened tooth as an implement) and begs for his life. Ultimately, he's sent to steal the Spear of Odin from Asgard, but turns on his teammates and allows the weapon to be returned- only Ant-Man is able to save him from his fellow T-Bolts. When he was last seen, he was working for Misty Knight's Heroes For Hire again, and realizes she's under the control of the Puppet Master- he rescues her and suggests they rebuild the team under their own terms.

-So Paladin's kind of a rogue, and kind of a jerk at times (he helped capture Captain America, and nearly beat the crap out of Elektra), but ultimately seems to have a code of honor (though sometimes he's just seen as a generic Super-Hitman, going after Daredevil & The Punisher with guns). His silly purple outfit is actually somewhat iconic to him- remove it and he's Some Generic Guy, so it can stay... even though it'll prevent him from every really being taken seriously. But sometimes you just need guys like this. And better Paladin- a goof with man-whorish tendencies and with green as his primary motivator- an actual CHARACTER, than Some Generic Mercenary.

Paladin's Abilities:
-Paladin's a quite-good, over-pointed PL 9 guy with some remarkable strength & toughness (apparently superhuman, though it's never quite explained how he got it, and I can't recall ever seeing proof of it). He's got a ton of Skills, some Advantages, a good Stun Gun that only works for him, and he's all-around a Jack of All Trades. His exact fighting capabilities are pretty obviously in that "PL 9" zone, as he can only beat major heroes with prep-time and gadgets, and otherwise has been housed in fair fights by U.S. Agent (who shattered Paladin's legs), Elektra (who choked him with her own loosened tooth and made him beg for his life) and Daredevil.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed Jun 29, 2022 3:51 am, edited 1 time in total.
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drkrash
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Pyro! Professor Xavier! Paradox! Proteus! Paladin!)

Post by drkrash »

Paladin is a pretty fun character, though I don't think he has a very consistent personality, as you mention, Jab. Sometimes he's *just* outside the law and sometimes he's no different than any other villain.

In either case, though, the name doesn't really fit, no matter who you interpret the term "paladin." It could have been used for a much different character. I would imagine Ares agrees with me on this point.
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Pyro! Professor Xavier! Paradox! Proteus! Paladin!)

Post by Ares »

drkrash wrote: Thu Mar 07, 2019 7:34 pm In either case, though, the name doesn't really fit, no matter who you interpret the term "paladin." It could have been used for a much different character. I would imagine Ares agrees with me on this point.
You'd be 100% right. Much as I think Paladin is an entertaining, morally ambiguous jackass who is fun to contrast against the heroes, he's really got no business calling himself Paladin. Whether you want to go with the chivalric knights of history or the divine champions of fantasy, it's a poor fit for a lighter shades of grey mercenary character.

I'd be tempted to create a new Paladin hero for Marvel, and then have the old Paladin challenge him for the name, and after some initial refusal from the newer, nobler hero, the fight ends with old Paladin beaten but being a good sport about it, mugging for the camera as he gives up the title.

Only to then reveal that old Paladin actually has a dozen super-mercenary identities that he uses, each one geared towards different jobs and clients. He figures he'll have to either create a new "charming, semi-heroic rogue" identity, or have to have one of his other ones claim to have reformed and turned over a new leaf. People love redemption stories, after all. In the mean time he puts on the costume of another super mercenary and takes on a much more morally grey job.
"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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drkrash
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Re: Jab’s Builds (Pyro! Professor Xavier! Paradox! Proteus! Paladin!)

Post by drkrash »

Fun ideas, Ares. I usually find your ideas more interesting than what is actually being produced.
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