Avenger Assembled

"Hey, you! Fritz!" Fearlessly, Edge walked to the edge of the roof, turning so he could take in all the Nazis nearby, and all the ones as far away as the river. "I want you guys to all hear something! My name is Lucky Strike, and I'm an American superhero. I've always wondered what I could do if I was some place where I didn't need to hold back, against people where it doesn't matter what happens to them. My name is Lucky Strike, and you're about to GO TO WAR!" And with that, there was an explosion everywhere as the world seemed to go mad: Nazi guns jamming and exploding, tanks backfiring and colliding, and at least one giant robot actually punched itself in the face as an explosion of pure controlled chaos erupted again and again from Mark Lucas.

Edge seizes initiative (1 HP) He nukes every Nazi he can see (every visible Nazi within a 6000 foot radius of his head) with an Area Burst Blast 12. DC 22 Reflex, DC 27 Tou. Remember that minions suffer the maximum possible result of failed rolls.

Daww! thought Mark, watching the lovers embrace. Those two are so cute together! He was distracted by Daisy, tugging at his sleeve, and looked away as he continued laying brickwork up behind what looked like bulletproof glass in the painted over windows. "What do you need?" He asked her, giving her a level look. She looked so much like his Daisy, but she also looked so sad, and scared, neither of which were expressions he'd ever thought to see on the girl he knew. "You have a way back, right?" she asked frantically, her big eyes very wide. "A way back to where you're from? Because unless you're planning to take on the whole Syndicate, you can't stay here! You know what they do to kids who run off or are expelled, much less ones who attack their teachers and don't get away with it! That's what...what happened to me," she said, looking away from him suddenly. "After they ppp...unished me, I was going to be taken away, but then Hex said he could help me out if I could...help him out." "I'm sorry," said Mark, feeling an obvious surge of guilt at her words. "It'll be all right. We'll get out of here, and we'll take you with us. No one should have to live in this horrible place, no matter what they've done, or what's happened to them. We can get you counseling, get you a place to live...it'll be great. All will be well." -- Outside, the Fens were...well, pretty awful! The worst neighborhood in Trevor's Freedom City was surprisingly quiet here, and for good reason: the buildings all around him looked long abandoned. There were signs of old violence in places, marks of bullet holes and power blasts, but it was a ghost town now. He did find one old homeless man with a heavy beard who, when approached by the Blank, was willing to spill his guts about everything. "I don't know!" he shouted. "The district's crawling with who knows what! And they could be anywhere! There are sewers down below, but they're full of...well, you know! Look, I'm loyal! I've always been loyal! I just lost my card because I couldn't afford Lady Sin's pills anymore, please..."

The concept here, as with the Oddball of the same name, is that this is an emancipated Omegadrone acting as a superhero. I went with the internal armor (erupting to the surface on command) because I thought it looked cooler.

Abilities: 22 pp STR: 30/24/16 (+10/+7/+3) DEX: 16 (+3) CON: 30/16 (+10/+3) INT: 10 (+0) WIS: 14 (+2) CHA: 10 (+0) Combat: 24 pp ATK: +6 (+8 Melee/Pike blast) DEF: +8 (+3 flat-footed) Init: +7 Grapple: +19 Saves: 6 pp TOU +12 (+10 Con, +2 Density) (+9 Imp w/Armor) FORT +10 (+10 Con) REF +5 (+3 Reflex, +2) WILL +6 (+2 Wis, +4) Skills: 12 pp=48 r Knowledge: Physical Sciences 4 (+4) Knowledge: Technology 4 (+4) Intimidate 15 (+15) Notice 8 (+10) Search 5 (+5) Sense Motive 8 (+10) Survival 4 (+6) Feats: 13 pp All-Out Attack, Attack Focus: Melee 2, Dodge Focus 2, Improved Initiative, Luck, Move-By Action, Power Attack, Quick Draw [Draw], Startle, Takedown Attack, Uncanny Dodge (auditory) Powers: 79 pp Alternate Form 5 (Omega Armor) [25 pp] -Flight 3 (50 MPH) [6 pp] -Immunity 9 (life support) [9 pp] -Impervious TOU 7 [7 pp] -Super-Senses 3 (Darkvision, Radio) [3 pp] Density 4 (Extra: Duration [Permanent] (+0) ) (PFs: Innate, Subtle) [14 pp] (+8 STR, 1 Immovable, 1 Super-Strength [Heavy Load: 1.5 tons], x3 mass [weighs about 600 lbs]) Device 6 (Power Pike) (PFs: Restricted (Omegadrones), Subtle [collapsible]) [18+2=20 pp] -Blast 12 (PF: Accurate) [25 pp] -AP: Strike 2 (PFs: Extended Reach, Improved Crit 2, Incurable, Mighty, Precise, Variable Descriptor 2 [any technological]) (Extras: Autofire 12, Penetrating 2) {24} Enhanced CON 14 [14 pp] Enhanced STR 6 [6 pp] Drawbacks: -6 pp Vulnerable (Magnetics) (uncommon, major) (-3) Vulnerable (Power Drains) (uncommon, major) (-3) CODE: SELECT ALL DC Block Unarmed DC 25 TOU (bruised/injured) Staff Strike DC 27 TOU (bruised/injured) Staff Blast DC 27 TOU (bruised/injured) costs abilities 22 + combat 24 + saves 6 + skills 12/48 + feats 13 + powers 79 - Drawbacks 6 = 150 pts

Afro-Vulcan Abilities: [38 pp] STR: 18 (+4) DEX: 18 (+4) CON: 18 (+4) INT: 10 (+0) WIS: 18 (+4) CHA: 16 (+3) Combat: [24 pp] ATK: +6 (+10 Electrical Control/Melee) DEF: +10 (+3 flat-footed) Init: +8 Grapple: +10 Saves: [9 pp] TOU: +10 (+4 Con, +6 Protection) FORT: +7 (+4 Con, +3) REF: +7 (+4 Ref, +3) WILL: +7 (4 Will, +3) Skills: [20 pp] Acrobatics 8 (+12) Bluff 7 (+10) Diplomacy 7 (+10) Intimidate 7 (+10) Knowledge: History 5 (+5) Knowledge: Physical Sciences 5 (+5) Knowledge: Streetwise 5 (+5) Knowledge: Tactics 10 (+10) Languages 2 (Spanish, Vietnamese) (Base: English) Notice 4 (+8) Sense Motive 6 (+10) Feats: [19 pp] Acrobatic Bluff Attack Focus: Melee 4 Dodge Focus 4 Evasion Fast Overrun Improved Overrun Improved Initiative Master Plan 2 Move-By Action Startle Taunt Uncanny Dodge (auditory) Powers: [40 pp] Black Power Array [24+2=26 pp] Electrical Control 10 (PFs: Accurate 2) AP: Strike 6 (PFs: Improved Crit 2, Incurable, Knocback 4, Mighty, Penetrating 6) AP: Stun 10 (PFs:Extended Reach 2, Improved Crit 2) Flight 3 (50 MPH) (Flaw: Platform) [3 pp] Immunity 5 (electrical damage) [5 pp] Protection 6 [6 pp] ----- Here's a generic African-American superhero with electrical powers; a common character archetype. The assumption here is that he's a former pro-athlete turned ghetto schoolteacher, ready to defend his home neighborhood from the dealers, bangers, and hoodlums who are making it an unsafe place for kids to grow up. And at some point along the way, he acquired electrical powers to get the job done! I figure he's probably their football and/or track coach, which is why he's got the particular combat skills and feats he has. He's got a decent-sized array, perfect for power-stunting, and is immune to all damage from electricity. I figure his Protection is some sort of crazy "electro-skin" underneath his regular skin that makes him super-tough even when he's not paying attention. Note that he's not immune to electrical _effects_, so he can still be blinded/drained/stunned, or whatever. He can punch for damage, or hit someone with a stunning jolt of his own. This archetype is something of a cliche given that it was such a Bronze Age staple, but it survives today because there still are inner-city schools that need teachers, African-American superheroes need more exposure, and because electrical powers look really cool visually, and fit in decently well with a street-level hero like this guy. (He's supposed to fight mostly thugs and skells, so no Power Attack on him. That comes later, when the Mob starts hiring supervillains to bring him down...)

"Oh, Charlie and Lois have been great," said Joan, pacing the room as her tentacles began lashing around her feet, moving back and forth without actually touching anything. "I mean sure, it was tough at first, when I was in the tank, but once I was out of it...things got a lot better. I mean, it must have been so hard for them, watching me just degenerate like that." She gave a little shudder. "But they take to it well. I can even pat Lois with my extra arms, or hug Charlie. I couldn't always do that."

"We're superheroes," said Fusion decisively. "We can make it work. And even if not...well, I have ways of getting into places." As it turned out, though, they didn't need much subterfuge to get into see Red Bolt, aka Nelson Fletcher. Fusion told the prison staff that they were there to talk to the fallen hero because someone was using his old rants again, and the thought of a copycat supervillain was sufficiently frightening to let the Blackstone guards escort them into the psychiatric wing of the mostly underground complex. Fusion kept her tentacles close around her midsection, listening as the guards explained Fletcher's stay: he was technically insane, but the magnitude of his crimes had kept him out of Providence under pressure from the authorities. He was coming up on twenty-five years in the same cell, where he'd probably spend the rest of his natural life. His doctors weren’t sure whether “the Shepherd” was a new identity for Red Bolt, an invisible friend, a fragmented personality, or someone else entirely. They met Nelson in his cell, the former hero needing to be called to get their attention. The formerly trim, vigorous young champion was now a whispery old man, an Old Testament beard down to his chest, with a bizarre cell. Shelves crammed with books filled one wall, while another wall was covered with a strange mural that seemed to bear closer inspection. Upon being summoned by the guard, Nelson Fletcher shuffled to the front of his cell and whispered, "Okay. I'm here. What do you need?"

The teens made a mad dive for the building from the air, a moment before the helicopter behind them suddenly exploded in a flash of eerily quiet light as the security systems the Blank had installed against sabotage (the ones necessitating a certain code word and his hand on the rudder) activated. Rift, Wander, Edge, and their passenger Daisy, the only people on the chopper, went spiralling downward towards the Fens below, the grimmest neighborhood in the city looking not too different at night from the air.

"Oh no, you poor little kids!" Edge didn't know much about poverty, but he knew it was really bad! Especially for poor little Victorian orphan kids in open-toed shoes with cloth hats. "Here, let me help!" As if from nothing, and indeed from nothing, he produced two gigantic ham and pimento cheese sandwiches wrapped in wax paper and handed one each to the kids. "Here's some food. It's a gift from AMERICA!" He made an expansive gesture at that.

'Lucky Strike' took a moment to let his ally take stock of the situation before he put his hand on Cannonade's arm. He'd fought Nazis before, and he knew exactly what you had to do. "I can't hit them if I can't see them, and my swingline's no good to me with a smashed skyline. If you've got his powers, pick me up and jump us towards the battlefield. We can make them proud, and we can clean this place up. Do it for family, man." Visions of his own ancestors swum in the back of his mind. "This isn't the time for thinking. This is the time for _doing_."

"They thought about calling in the Centurion, but Superior staged a raid on the Atlantic shipping channels, so they were stuck with the people on the ground..." He climbed up after Cannonade, and as they stood together he put his hand on the other man's arm. "Whatever happens, we can't worry about altering history here. We're heroes, we're in a very dark place in a very dark time. Are you with me, Cannonade?"

"Certainly," said Jack, briefly distracted. "Erin, if you'll put him down?" Jack Jr. was in a squirmy mood, and would probably do his usual "fuss-fuss-fuss-comatose" sleeping routine before actually getting in his nap that night. "I'll check in on him later." Erin was a great sitter, but as usual he felt a soft pang of guilt seeing his little boy go off with someone else. "Night night, little hunter," he said with a big smile at the baby.

"It's been tried with some success," Avenger conceded. "Truthfully, much of the supply you give me goes to supporting my people. If you can arrange to have more sent my way, I think many of Freedom's vampires can be removed from a permanent relationship with human blood." He frowned, studying the doctor. "What are you injecting him with, again?"

Mark took the pilot's seat when Trevor realized that his double was evidently better-trained than he was behind the stick. Mark had to exaggerate his own training a bit to get there, but luckily he took to the controls of the Blankcopter like a champion! He headed straight for open water, figuring it was the safest direction to go. "We'd better drop down fast," he said worriedly, shooting a glance at the school behind them. "I bet you anything Evil Megastar flies a lot faster than this thing. No offense. Trevor, if you were evil, where would you put a landing pad?"

Jack winced, shooting the Doktor a look. Well, surely getting one little tap on the knee couldn't hurt. "Okay, little man, just one more little poke, and then the doctor will be gone and you'll be back in bed." He kissed the baby's soft little head and added, "Tucked in with your little stuffed dragon, chewing on the foam again..." He set the baby down; Jack Jr. responding by turning his head to peer at Dr. Archeville. His toothy smile and red eyes suggested a very tired baby.

Mark looked appalled at the woman's story of dimensional turmoil. "Well, we'll do all we can to help you out!" He thought for a minute at her words, then said, "Do you need more ice than that?" He hadn't quite understood all the technical talk, but then he usually didn't. At a gesture from him, amid a cloud of inky dots like a cheap CGI effect all the more unreal for their odd nature, a block of ice as high as his waist and as thick around as a tree stump appeared next to him. "Is that enough? I can make several hundred pounds more if you need it. As for the English way, uh...well, we have lots of friends in the United Kingdom. Like the superheroine Britannia! And Arrowhawk; he's like the Scottish Bowman."

At Erin's words, a green mist began pouring from the walls, an acrid scent coming from it like Satan's pool. "Oh crap, that's chlorine!" said Edge, automatically pulling Daisy close as he concentrated on the air around him. A diaphanous, shimmering ball of clear air formed around him as the poison gas filled the room, a space big enough to encapsulate all the others if they stood carefully. "That must be the backup plan to bring us down!" He looked at the others and exclaimed "If any of you know a way out of here, now's the time!"

But they never had come, not in any real numbers. Mark knew that from his family history well enough. Memories of the loss of the Freedom Brigade had kept the Liberty League stateside for most of the war, leaving the fighting to be done by the undermanned, underpowered Allies of Freedom. And they'd died of it, most of them, fighting to liberate this land from the evil Nazis. Jimmy Lucas had always regretted that, but he was a loyal Leaguer and never complained. Temporal logic said get out of here; hide out till it was done, so history wasn't altered. But Mark was never one for logic. These people needed saving. "" he said, following Cannonade up the ladder.

"His mother and I agree that we want to keep him breast-fed as long as possible," said Jack, gently stroking the fussy baby's fuzzy little head, the caring father a second after being the hissing monster. "It's healthier for him to stick with natural products, especially when he's at this age." He shot a look at Archeville and said, "It's not that we're rejecting your supplement, mind. I'm certainly taking it myself with Phantom out of the house so much. But this is our baby, and we want to make sure he grows up healthy. Come here, little guy." He scooped the baby up for a moment, gently bouncing him up and down. "You're usually more awake at night, little man!"

"" said Mark without hesitation, spinning a story he'd told in his mind a thousand times already. "" Would he have picked his name if some hero of World War II had fought under it? He remembered his grandfather's favorite brand of cigarette, the same brand his father had smoked before quitting after his grandfather's death. "" He added without humor, looking around. He remembered Erde, and a world overrun with German machinery. "" he added, giving a significant nod to Cannonade. "" Getting home would just come naturally as part of that process, he was sure.

Edge spends an HP to be able to speak French (and German, and Russian, and Italian) via Beginner's Luck for the scene.

A normal teenage hero might have balked at this occasion, but Mark Lucas knew how to deal with insane shifts in perspective and dimension as if he'd been born to them. And if you looked at his story, maybe he had. If Mark Lucas knew anything, it was history: especially where superheroes and history came together. He's got an M3. No one's carried those since..."Nous sommes des héros américains! Nous sommes là pour vous aider!" Mark suddenly exclaimed, calling on his ancient French lessons as if he'd never forgotten any of them.

Armored Ruler PL: 10 (150) Abilities: 28 pp STR 30/14 (+10/+2) DEX 14 (+2) CON 16 (+3) INT 16 (+3) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 14 (+2) Combat: 28 pp ATK: +6 (+10 Unarmed/+12 Blast) DEF: +10 (+4 flat-footed) Init: +6 Grapple: +8/+16 Saves: 10 pp TOU +10 (+3 Con, +7 Armor) FORT +6 (+3 Con, +3) REF +5 (+2 Dex, +3) WILL +13/+6 (+2 Wis, +4) Skills: 21 pp=84 r Bluff 8 (+10) Craft: Mechanical 8 (+11) Craft: Electronic 8 (+11) Diplomacy 8 (+10) Intimidate 8 (+10) Knowledge: Arcane Lore 8 (+11) Knowledge: Civics 8 (+11) Knowledge: Technology 8 (+11) Languages 4 (English, German, Romany, Russian) Notice 8 (+10) Sense Motive 8 (+10) Feats: 20 pp Attack Specialization: Unarmed (2) Beginner’s Luck Benefit (4) (Diplomatic Immunity, Status, Wealth 2) Dodge Focus (2) Eidetic Memory Improved Initiative Inventor Jack-of-All-Trades Luck Move-By Action Power Attack Skill Mastery (Craft: Electronic, Knowledge: Arcane Lore, Knowledge: Civics, Knowledge: Technology) Ritualist Ultimate Save (Will) Uncanny Dodge (auditory) Powers: 48 pp Device 12 (Armor) (hard to lose) [48 pp] Enhanced STR 16 and Super-Strength 2 {18+1=19 pp} AP: Blast 8 (PFs: Accurate 3) Enhanced Will Save 7 [7 pp] Flight 3 (50 MPH) [6 pp] Immunity 9 (life support) {9 pp} Protection 7 {7 pp} Drawbacks: [5 pp] Normal Identity (free action) (-3) Vulnerable (magnetics) (uncommon, moderate) (-2) costs abilities 28 + combat 28 + saves 10 + skills 21/84 + feats 20 + powers 52 - drawback 5 = 150 pts --- Design Notes: A familiar archetype, though usually a villainous one. This fine fellow is an Eastern European head of state turned superhero, wearing a powerful battlesuit of his own design. Most of his Wealth is tied up in the motherland, as is his cool castle headquarters. Save up the PP to buy those when you take a trip home, or jigger the points around to get them now. He's as good with his magic as he is his science, though he keeps the former in reserve for people who think he's abandoned his nation's old ways for pure science. (Spoiler: he has not!) He's a dangerous opponent, whether on the field or off it, and a man likely to hold a grudge if sufficiently crossed. (Maybe with that stretchy guy I have a little upthread?) He suffers a bit from being a generalist, but ideally this sort of character will stick to beating up less powerful foes as long as he can, then head into battle against the real bad guys with some powerful allies at his side. He can pull off spur-of-the-moment Rituals and Inventions, or longer ones if your GM actually gives you the time to do it. He's a likely candidate to buy off that Normal ID drawback if you decide he spends all his time in that armor: maybe he's got scars he's covering up, or maybe he's just hella shy, daww! He makes a good secondary gadgeteer or face-guy if you need them; maybe he's not outstanding in any one area, but his ability to juggle many hats makes him very useful. And hey, it's fun when you get to go home to your native country and everyone likes you there! Look at the cheering crowds! Play a Fish Out of Water plot if you want, having your usually slightly befuddled character knock the socks off his American allies when they find themselves back in Blavatskyia, or whatever corner of the Balkans you hail from.

Edge gave Midnight a grateful look, patting his standoffish friend on the arm as he went to dress Daisy. She flinched at his approach, but at his reassurances she held still as he formed up a blue and white jumpsuit on her that matched his usual costume. Wild surmise crossed her face at Trevor's words as she said suddenly, "You're from the other dimension, aren't you? That sissy dimension Hex has been trying to visit! I knew he wasn't as smart as he thought he was!" she exulted, folding her arms over her chest in self-protection even know that she was dressed. "We're...we're going to get you out of here," Mark spontaneously promised as he saw the real joy on the battered girl's face. Churning at the back of his mind were the fantasies he'd always had about Daisy, about how she'd be really hot if she'd just shut up and did whatever he said. His double had acted on those fantasies, and the result left him wanting to puke. But if he could make things better for her, for one person in this awful place, maybe it would be all right. "I don't know where, but we'll figure it out!"