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

Where in all of your character write ups will go.
Spectrum
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Gogo! O-Ren Ishii! Elle Driver! Bill! Pai Mei! The Black Panther!)

Post by Spectrum »

At some point the heart shaped herb was said to be an element of the Captain America super soldier program. Was that a quick flash in the pan and quickly forgotten?

While working on The List, one of the things that stand out about Achebe- that isn't a puppet on his hand, that is his hand. *ewwww*
We rise from the ashes so that new legends can be born.
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Ares
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Gogo! O-Ren Ishii! Elle Driver! Bill! Pai Mei! The Black Panther!)

Post by Ares »

T'Challa unfortunately suffers from that I call "2nd Tier Rogues Gallery Sydrome", something that afflicts a lot of good but not A-List heroes like Iron Fist, Green Arrow, etc. They have one, maybe two good villains that usually wind up as Journeyman Bad Guys, and most attempts to add to their villains gallery fails. It's a crappy position to be in, and a hard rut to break out of.
"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."
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Jabroniville
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Erik Killmonger

Post by Jabroniville »

Image
Image
Image

ERIK KILLMONGER (N'Jadaka)
Created By:
Don McGregor & Rich Buckler
First Appearance: Jungle Action #6 (Sept. 1973)
Role: Mirror Image Villain
Group Affiliations: Wakanda
PL 10 (136)
STRENGTH
5 STAMINA 5 AGILITY 5
FIGHTING 13 DEXTERITY 5
INTELLIGENCE 4 AWARENESS 4 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Athletics 7 (+12)
Close Combat (Unarmed) 2 (+15)
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Science) 3 (+7)
Expertise (Survival) 4 (+8)
Insight 2 (+6)
Intimidation 3 (+6)
Perception 3 (+7)
Persuasion 3 (+6)
Stealth 2 (+7)
Technology 4 (+8)

Advantages: 
Beginner's Luck, Chokehold, Diehard, Equipment 2 (Poisons), Extraordinary Effort, Fast Grab, Improved Critical (Unarmed) 2, Improved Hold, Improved Trip, Ranged Attack 4, Tracking

Offense:
Unarmed +15 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Initiative +5

Defenses:
Dodge +13 (DC 23), Parry +14 (DC 24), Toughness +5, Fortitude +8, Will +6

Complications:
Enemy (T'Challa)- Killmonger's family was exiled by the Panther for their link to Ulysses Klaw- Killmonger has sworn revenge.
Motivation (The Old Ways)- Killmonger wishes to return Wakanda to its more traditional roots.

Total: Abilities: 88 / Skills: 36--18 / Advantages: 16 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 14 (136)

-Erik Killmonger is pretty much the closest thing to the Black Panther's "Arch-Nemesis" in comics- he's resurrected during each T'Challa push, acts as a "Mirror Image Villain" of sorts (wanting to usurp the Wakanda throne), and has similar capabilities. He's even going to be the villain of the Black Panther film, played by Michael B. Jordan of Creed fame.
-N'Jadaka was the child of one of Ulysses Klaw's minions (he was, in fact, press-ganged into joining Klaw's group), and was exiled upon Klaw's defeat by The Black Panther- he grew up with a hatred of both men as a result. He changed his named to Erik Killmonger and went to a good school in an attempt to get revenge. He attempted to rid Wakanda of its "white colonialist" ways and return it to the old ways (a rare instance where the "old ways" are seen as a BAD THING- most of the time you'll see the "old ways" being promoted by a wise old master or something, with the clueless modernists being swayed by story's end). He staged a coup d'etat when T'Challa was off doing Avengers stuff, but was soon defeated & killed, being knocked off a cliff by a young kid as he prepared to make a final blow on the Panther. The Mandarin resurrected him, and he threatened the Panther, Iron Man & James Rhodes, died when Mandarin took back his "Resurrection"-focused Ring, and was resurrected again by his followers.

-During Christopher Priest's run, he finally defeated T'Challa in ritual combat to become the new Black Panther (one of the most advanced nations on Earth, and it settles political debates by RITUAL COMBAT?), but went comatose for a while when he tried to injest the fabled "heart-shaped herb" that was added to the Panther's origin story by Jack Kirby. Killmonger was doomed to die, but T'Challa chose to spare his life, keeping him alive (and comatose), even though it would have been much more convenient to let him die.

-Killmonger would return and attempt to manipulate Kasper Cole, getting him to drop the mantle of Black Panther and become his "White Tiger", but Cole used the power-boost Killmonger gave him to avoid owing him a favor. Killmonger later turns up ruling Niganda, a country neighboring Wakanda- he is killed by Monica Rambeau after he captured her. Killmonger's son is then seen swearing vengeance against the Panther, the same way T'Challa once did after the death of his own father.

-Killmonger is actually a pretty big deal in combat if he's able to defeat T'Challa in a fair fight even in modern times (most villains turn into more Jobbery types as time goes on)- he's a full PL 10, using his elite fighting skills in combination with borderline-superhuman physical stats. He was also known to use Baron Macabre (a charlatan pretending to raise zombies) and Madam Slay (a woman who had a bunch of trained/controlled leopards) as minions way back in the '70s.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Mon May 09, 2022 11:45 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Ares
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Gogo! O-Ren Ishii! Elle Driver! Bill! Pai Mei! The Black Panther!)

Post by Ares »

Was Kilmonger the guy in Priests run who at some point was drawn like he was a Jack Kirby character? I remember seeing that and not knowing what the Hell was going on.
"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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Jabroniville
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Baron Macabre

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

BARON MACABRE
Created By:
Don McGregor & Gil Kane
First Appearance: Jungle Action #9 (May 1974)
Role: Zombie Master
Group Affiliations: Killmonger's Agents
PL 8 (107)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 7 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 3 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Athletics 3 (+5)
Deception 5 (+8)
Expertise (Magic) 2 (+5)
Insight 2 (+5)
Intimidation 2 (+5)
Perception 2 (+5)

Advantages:
Ranged Attack 4, Startle

Powers:
Summon Zombie 2 (Extras: Horde, 16 Minions +8) (Flaws: Requires Dead Bodies) [20]

"Blaster Bracelets" (Flaws: Removable) [12]
Blast 7 (14 points)

Offense:
Unarmed +13 (+5 Damage, DC 20)
Blaster Bracelets +8 (+7 Ranged Damage, DC 22)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +7 (DC 17), Toughness +3, Fortitude +3, Will +4

Complications:
Secret (Didn't Really Resurrect The Dead)- Baron Macabre used to be a charlatan before he gained real Zombie powers.

Total: Abilities: 56 / Skills: 16--8 / Advantages: 5 / Powers: 32 / Defenses: 6 (107)

-Baron Macabre used to pretend that he could raise the dead, but exposure to The Resurrection Altar gave him the powers for realz. He isn't exactly tough- T'Challa could one-punch him, and that's before they Retconned him into having borderline Superhuman Strength.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Mon May 09, 2022 11:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Gogo! O-Ren Ishii! Elle Driver! Bill! Pai Mei! The Black Panther!)

Post by Jabroniville »

Ares wrote: Sat Feb 03, 2018 2:17 am Was Kilmonger the guy in Priests run who at some point was drawn like he was a Jack Kirby character? I remember seeing that and not knowing what the Hell was going on.
Not as far as I could tell.
Jabroniville
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Gogo! O-Ren Ishii! Elle Driver! Bill! Pai Mei! The Black Panther!)

Post by Jabroniville »

Ares wrote: Sat Feb 03, 2018 1:59 am T'Challa unfortunately suffers from that I call "2nd Tier Rogues Gallery Sydrome", something that afflicts a lot of good but not A-List heroes like Iron Fist, Green Arrow, etc. They have one, maybe two good villains that usually wind up as Journeyman Bad Guys, and most attempts to add to their villains gallery fails. It's a crappy position to be in, and a hard rut to break out of.
Oh yeah- good villains are REALLY hard to come by, and if you weren't created with them, you're more or less screwed. Almost every new character created after the 1970s fails, so you get stuff like Daredevil swiping a Spider-Man baddie so he doesn't have to fight Bullseye every week, and Iron Fist having his mythos reimagined every time. Black Panther is stuck with Killmonger and KLAW of all people being his worst enemies.

So for these Panther builds, T'Challa more or less has an entirely new bio, along with a build of his "Pre-Priest" era, where he wasn't quite so "Super". Many of his bad guys have more information about them- Killmonger & Klaw have much longer bios, for example. The jobbers who never show up, like Venomm & Baron Macabre, are pretty much unchanged since the last time I posted them (in the Ronin Army era, back when I was doing "Avengers Villains" as a set).

There'll also be a new build of a villainess Femme Fatale I'd never heard of before. And those patented "New Character Bios" that describe villains from recent arcs, who do stuff but give no indication of power or level, because of how modern comics are written. Man, going through "The List" and more intensive looks at guys' Rogues Galleries really produces a lot of those kinds of situations where I post bios without builds :).
Jabroniville
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stuff

Post by Jabroniville »

here's an old quote by Skavenger in 2014, regarding some of these guys:
From my understanding, the herb only works for members of the Panther Tribe, which T'Challa happens to be the head of. It just so happens that the Panther tribe (probably thanks to having an actual GOD backing them) also rules Wakanda. There are lots of other tribes in Wakanda as well, such as the one that Man-Ape is part of, the one that all of the secret police come from, and all the ones who send nubile teenage girls to act as the Black Panther's bodyguards and "brides." Though they made it clear that the Black Panther never does anything illicit with them, since to favor one would cause the tribes to go to war over theirs being "rejected." Malice was already kinda nuts, but it intensified when Black Panther was tricked into making out with her under Mephisto's spell.

Mephisto does some really weird stuff to people, man.

Also, some additional information on Killmonger. There's a great issue in Priest's run where he and the Panther are pretty much in a duel to the death. They fight for a while until one gets tired, take a break, fight for a while, take a break, talk, fight, break...the fight took over a day to conclude, and did with Killmonger winning.

I don't know what happened in Hudlin's run, but up until that point at least the Panther had -never- beat Killmonger in a straight-up fight.

The guy also punched out a rampaging bull elephant once to save Ross's life. Granted, it was an old elephant, but still a charging bull elephant. He also had a pet leopard for a while who was his best friend, until a lunatic named Achebe killed it.

As for White Wolf, he's not as good at politics and combat as the Panther, but he usually has some of the other secret police guys around to back him up. Reading their dynamic was always fun, because for all his faults, White Wolf was always loyal to the throne and willing to do anything to save Wakanda, but he sure hated T'Challa and would often do things to help the country in ways that would intentionally upset the Panther. Like assassinations, torture, that sort of thing. You know, the way T'Challa's father always had it done.

Man, reading back through Priest's run and pulling up his old blog posts about what it was like writing the series, I have to give him credit, he managed to make extremely complex plots come together even when he never knew if or when the book was being cancelled. Also, the use of Ross as the "token white man" who had no idea what life was like for the Black Panter ("he'll hang at Avengers Mansion, order up some ribs..."). I always wished they could go back in time and pull a Spin City Michael J Fox into the present to play Ross in a BP movie.
Jabroniville
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The Supremacists

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

THE SUPREMACISTS:
-The Supremacists are a gang of white Super-Villains who specialize in picking on native Africans- a general silly comic-booky commentary on the South African conflict, back when it was still ruled by a white minority who picked on the black majority. These guys are actually from "Azania", which borders Wakanda, and are generally the kind of one-note super-racists that a weaker write would reduce the conflict to. When Black Panther is thought to have killed some Azanian citizens, these guys go after him as a kind of metahuman Hit Squad. They reign havoc over Wakanda, forcing T'Challa to take them out one-by-one, throwing Hungyr into two of them, draining their powers. They later appear in Night Thrasher's solo book, as he's forced to head into Azania to rescue a U.S. Ambassador by Nick Fury.

-Ya know what was rad about this set of builds, for me? This was the second of THREE TIMES in succession where looking up a character revealed an ENTIRE TEAM of Jobbers!
Last edited by Jabroniville on Mon May 09, 2022 11:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Woodclaw
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Gogo! O-Ren Ishii! Elle Driver! Bill! Pai Mei! The Black Panther!)

Post by Woodclaw »

Ares wrote: Sat Feb 03, 2018 1:59 am T'Challa unfortunately suffers from that I call "2nd Tier Rogues Gallery Sydrome", something that afflicts a lot of good but not A-List heroes like Iron Fist, Green Arrow, etc. They have one, maybe two good villains that usually wind up as Journeyman Bad Guys, and most attempts to add to their villains gallery fails. It's a crappy position to be in, and a hard rut to break out of.
One of the most interesting panels of Green Arrow: Archer Quest (i.e. the issues immediately after the Kevin Smith run) was when Ollie noted that Barry and Hal often joked about the fact that his entire rogue gallery was made of c-lister at best, but he admited to himself that he didn't need better opponents because he was his own worst enemy. In my book, that's how you turn a joke into good food for thought.
"You're right. Sorry. Holy shit," I breathed, "heckhounds.”

WareHouse W (main build thread for M&M)
Jabroniville
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Voortrekker

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

VOORTREKKER (Rutger Van Bokhoven)
Created By:
Peter B. Gillis & Denys Cowan
First Appearance: The Black Panther #2 (Aug. 1988)
Role: Racist Super-Villain
Group Affiliations: The Supremacists
PL 7 (91)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 4 AGILITY 4
FIGHTING 9 DEXTERITY 5
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 3 PRESENCE 0

Skills:
Athletics 9 (+11)
Deception 3 (+3)
Expertise (Hunter & Tracker) 8 (+10)
Intimidation 4 (+4)
Investigation 3 (+6)
Perception 5 (+8)
Stealth 4 (+8)

Advantages:
Equipment 3 (Hunting Gear), Improved Critical (Rifle), Ranged Attack 3

Equipment:
"Hunting Rifle" Blast 6 (Feats: Increased Range) (13)

Offense:
Unarmed +9 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Hunting Rifle +8 (+6 Ranged Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +4

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +4, Fortitude +5, Will +3

Complications:
Motivation (Money)- Voortrekker simply works for money- he doesn't care to dally and murder innocent civilians like his teammates do.

Total: Abilities: 58 / Skills: 36--18 / Advantages: 7 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 8 (91)

-I only had heard of Voortrekker before- he's casually mentioned in the Superia Stratagem arc of Captain America, as one of the guys that Impala had fought. I'd always remembered the name as interesting (I had a Created Wrestler called "Sam Votreker" because of it), but had never heard of, nor seen the guy before. Now, I recognize it as a clearly Dutch-inspired name (meaning that, in the comics world, it was South African), especially after my sister married a guy from a Dutch family- the entire family name list at their church basically consists of either "Van _____" or a name with a double-vowel in it somewhere.

-Voortrekker wasn't normally affiliated with the group, as the Panther had heard of him, and wondered why he was teaming up with these "racist thugs". He gets beaten when T'Challa shoves him in front of Harrier's Knock-Out Darts, and basically never appears again. He doesn't show any superhuman power, but is a master tracker ("Voortrekker" means "Pioneer" in Afrikaans).
Last edited by Jabroniville on Mon May 09, 2022 11:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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danelsan
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Elle Driver! Bill! Pai Mei! The Black Panther! Killmonger!)

Post by danelsan »

Over the years I have softened my position about Wakanda as a "Mary Sue nation". At the time it as created (and even now still) black people had a dearth of power fantasies aimed at them. It still doesn't make sense that it is how it is, but that is true of many such power fantasies, and many things in comics.

The one thing I can't get over regarding Wakanda, though, is the idea of the (apparently absolutist) ruler of the most advanced nation on earth being chosen by combat. How the hell did that not result over the centuries in a number of kings that were amazing at violence and total shit at, you know, administrating a scientifically advanced nation? Also, for a nation that wants to remain isolated, surely choosing to have warriors only as kings is too much of a risk that said warrior will want to use their superior technology to turn Wakanda into a conquering empire?
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Harrier (Haff)

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

HARRIER I (Johannes Haff)
Created By:
Peter B. Gillis & Denys Cowan
First Appearance: The Black Panther #2 (Aug. 1988)
Role: Racist Super-Villain, The Rookie
Group Affiliations: The Supremacists
PL 7 (79)
STRENGTH
1 STAMINA 2 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 0 AWARENESS 0 PRESENCE 0

Skills:
Deception 2 (+2)
Expertise (Soldier) 2 (+2)

Advantages:
Ranged Attack 3

Powers:
"Harrier Costume" (Flaws: Removable) [29]
Flight 6 (120 mph) (12)
Protection 2 (2)

"Darts" Affliction 7 (Fort; Fatigued/Exhausted/Asleep) (Extras: Ranged, Multiattack) (21) -- (22)
  • AE: "Tasers" Affliction 7 (Strength; Dazed/Stunned/Incapacitated) (Feats: Reach 3) (10)
-- (36 points)

Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+1 Damage, DC 16)
Tasers +6 (+7 Affliction, DC 17)
Darts +7 (+7 Ranged Affliction, DC 17)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +9 (DC 19), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +2 (+4 Costume), Fortitude +4, Will +3

Complications:
Motivation (Approval)- Harrier wishes for the approval and compliments of his teammates.
Responsibility (Azanian Agent)
Prejudice (Black People)- South African stand-ins like The Supremacists typically don't prefer those of darker hue.

Total: Abilities: 32 / Skills: 4--2 / Advantages: 3 / Powers: 29 / Defenses: 13 (79)

-Harrier is the "Team Rookie", and wants their approval. After T'Challa knocks him out with a thrown rock, he never appears again. A female, Katrina von Gerber, replaces him in the next story, and is more of a generic Soldier-type.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Mon May 09, 2022 11:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
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Barricade

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

BARRICADE (Alistair Koch)
Created By:
Peter B. Gillis & Denys Cowan
First Appearance: The Black Panther #2 (Aug. 1988)
Role: Racist Super-Villain, Powerhouse
Group Affiliations: The Supremacists
PL 7 (80)
STRENGTH
3/8 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 1
FIGHTING 6 DEXTERITY 3
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Deception 1 (+3)
Expertise (Soldier) 1 (+3)

Advantages:
Interpose, Ranged Attack 2, Withstand Damage (Trade Defenses For Toughness)

Powers:
"Force Fields"
Force Field 5 (Extras: Impervious 7) [12]
Enhanced Strength 5 (10) -- [11]
  • AE: Deflect 8 (8)
Offense:
Unarmed +6 (+3 Damage, DC 18)
Force Fields Over Fists +6 (+8 Damage, DC 23)
Initiative +1

Defenses:
Dodge +6 (DC 16), Parry +6 (DC 16), Toughness +3 (+8 Force Field), Fortitude +5, Will +3

Complications:
Responsibility (Azanian Agent)
Prejudice (Black People)- South African stand-ins like The Supremacists typically don't prefer those of darker hue.

Total: Abilities: 44 / Skills: 2--1 / Advantages: 4 / Powers: 23 / Defenses: 8 (80)

-Hilariously, when I was a kid, *I* created a supervillain called Barricade, and -- get this-- he ALSO had a "B" logo on his plain singlet costume! Bizarre coincidence, considering I've just how heard of this guy. Barricade is less of a jerk than his teammates, but is apparently completely depowered when The Black Panther throws Hungyr into him. His powers are actually kind of unique- special Force Fields around his hands that let him do things, generally Deflect, Enhanced Strength, and your standard Protection ability.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Mon May 09, 2022 11:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
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Captain Blaze

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

CAPTAIN BLAZE (Conrad Fassbinder)
Created By:
Peter B. Gillis & Denys Cowan
First Appearance: The Black Panther #2 (Aug. 1988)
Role: Racist Super-Villain, Blaster
Group Affiliations: The Supremacists
PL 8 (82)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 4
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Deception 1 (+3)
Expertise (Soldier) 2 (+4)
Ranged Combat (Fire) 3 (+8)

Advantages:
Improved Smash, Ranged Attack

Powers:
Fire Blast 8 [16]

Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Fire Blast +8 (+8 Ranged Damage, DC 23)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +9 (DC 19), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +3, Fortitude +5, Will +3

Complications:
Responsibility (Azanian Agent)
Prejudice (Black People)- Captain Blaze seems even more racist than his more-pragmatic teammates.

Total: Abilities: 52 / Skills: 6--3 / Advantages: 2 / Powers: 16 / Defenses: 9 (82)

-Captain Blaze seemed even more racist than his partners, and held his own with Night Thrasher for a time (including melting one of his thrown weapons in mid-flight), but was soon grabbed by Black Panther (no Flame Aura on this guy, I guess), and KO'd by Thrash.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Mon May 09, 2022 11:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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