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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Mephisto, Yama, Proteus, Black Tiger

Post by Woodclaw »

Jabroniville wrote: Mon Jan 14, 2019 11:11 am Interesting guys!


So many of Tex's opponents seem to be more mental opponents than physical ones, so Ruby is interesting as a direct opponent. His look- animal-print jackets and such, combined with his name, gives me the impression he's more of a "dandy" or effeminate character, but the way he fights seems to imply the opposite.

What happened with him? Did Tex kill him?
Yeah, Ruby didn't survive. Tex, still wounded and pretty much staying upright only thanks to some kind of stimulant, went after Ruby, who was so shocked by seeing what looked like the ghost of his opponent that lost his cool and was mercylessly gunned down.
the interesting part of the tale came later, when Ruby's girlfriend arrived in town, still hoping to prevent the showdown. After seeing her belowed killed she found the man that payed Ruby to go after Tex and killed him in an act of "indian revenge". This started a chain of event that eventually led to the, very convenient, suicide of the old town boss. As I said Silver Bell was very much a filler story.
Jabroniville wrote: Mon Jan 14, 2019 11:11 am The mad scientist guy is a unique kind of weirdo- Tex seems so down-to-earth and not fantastical that I forget sometimes that super-unrealistic things still happen. I mean, one of his opponents is a WIZARD, after all.

The giant cougars reminds me of how weird animals are in superhero stories as well- technically, a very large animal isn't more dangerous than a lot of superheroes (who are seen dispatching very powerful enemies at times)- but for some reason, writers always need to make the animals out to be REALLY DANGEROUS THREATS, so the heroes have to fight them by cheating. I mean... is a buffalo-sized cougar immune to gunfire? Buffalo sure aren't.
Vindex is pretty much unique. There were a few more stories that dealt with mad scientist (Andrew Liddel, the Master, was one), but never to such an extent.
About the cougars, they were not bulletproof, but they were extremely hard to kill. Apparently the increase in size also provided them with a level un unnatural vitality, they were able to soak multiple rifle bullets and, while clearly in pair, still going for the kill.
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#42 Bonelli - Jim Brandon

Post by Woodclaw »

After a couple of week of accidents and illness I'm back.
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Jim Brandon
Lieutenant Colonel James P. Brandon of the North-West Mounted Police

Power Level: 7; Power Points: 125; Hero Points: 3

STR: +2 (14), DEX: +2 (14), CON: +2 (14), INT: +3 (16), WIS: +3 (16), CHA: +4 (18)

Skills: Athletics 3 (+5), Deception 2 (+6/+10 [Attractive]), Expertise (CHA, lawman) 4 (+8), Expertise (WIS, survival) 3 (+6), Insight 5 (+8/+12 [Dedication]), Intimidation 3 (+7), Investigation 4 (+7), Language 2 (native: English; French, 3 dialects of the Great Lakes tribes), Medicine 1 (+4), Perception 2 (+5), Persuasion 4 (+8/+12 [Attractive]), Stealth 3 (+5)

Feats: Attractive 1, Benefit 1 (Law Enforcement), Benefit 1 (organizational ties: Tribes of the Great Lakes), Benefit 4 (rank: Lieutenant Colonel), Connected, Dedication 1(Law & Order), Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll 3, Diehard, Dodge Focus 4, Equipment 2, Fascinate 1 (Diplomacy), Improved Aim, Inspire (+1), Interpose, Last Stand, Luck 2, Minions 4 (horse), Power Attack, Prone Fighting, Second Chance 1 (surprise), Set-Up, Stunning Attack, Teamwork 2, Track

Equipment: Badge
  • Colt .45 (+4 ballistic damage [lethal, full power]; crit 20; 40')
  • Winchester (+5 ballistic damage [lethal, full power]; crit 20; 50')
  • Knife (+1 piercing damage; crit 19; conceable)
Combat: Attack +9 (grapple: +11); Defense +9 (+3 Flat-footed); Initiative +2

Saves: Toughness +5 (+2 Flat-footed), Fortitude +5, Reflex +4, Will +6/+10 [Dedication]

Totals: Abilities 32 + Skills 18 (36 ranks) + Feats 39 + Powers 0 + Combat 28 + Saves 8 + Drawbacks 0 = 125

Complications:
  • Fame (one good cop): Jim is often considered that one man that must be taken out by whoever is going to try anything funny in the great North-West.
  • Honor (by the book): while he's often more than willing to stretch the law a bit Jim is a model officier, compared to Tex or Carson.
  • Reputation (problem cop): Jim willingness to overstep the bounduaries of his authority and his popularity among the ranks of the Mounties caused a number of problems and political friction over the years.
  • Responsibility (to the Mounties): Jim is an extremely dedicated officier of the North-West Mounted Police.



:arrow: According to Washington Irving, Canada is the other half of the "great American adventure", so it was kind of inevitable for Tex to move north every now and then and live some adventures in the great north. The first one these, oftne long, stories came in issue #10 (The Red Hand), alongside two characters that would accompany almost all of the rangers escapades beyond the Great Lakes: Jim Brandon and Gros-Jean.

:arrow: Although G.L. Bonelli was huge fan of Jack London, the piece that inspired the creation of Jim (and Gros-Jean) was Cecille B. DeMille's North West Mounted Police, a 1940 movie often considered one of the worst westerns ever made :P Movie quality aside, the sergeant played by Preston Foster struck a cord in bonelli's overactive imagination and he decided to model Brandon after him.

Image

:arrow: Jim has the distinct honor of being one of the few characters in the history of Tex that has strong and very present ties with a specific organization. Officially Carson has a U.S.Army commission as Scout officier (major), but the old buffalo pretty much retired a long time ago. Brandon first appeared as Sergeant during the Red Hand storyline, was briefly mentioned being Lieutenant in the special story for #100, was promoted Captain in the Great Revolt storyline in #118 and became lieutenant-colonel in issue #203. This has been a bit of a problem in the long run, since it forced the writers to create some really contrived situation to justify why Colonel Brandon would be able to leave his post and ride alongside his friends.

:arrow: His life-long dedication to the Mounties has been at the base of many stories, but in recent years this has been put into question. Jim is pretty much the opposite number of Tex among the Mounties, when ever there is a big and steamy pile of shit about to hit the fan, he's the one who gets it. This has made him immensely popular among the rank and file, but also a bit of a political hot-potato. His opponents know that they can't take him down directly, which led to him being transfered to the worst hellholes in the entire Canada or to be falsely accused of disertion in two different occasions.

:arrow: In game terms Jim is one of those characters that is really fun to play, but boring as hell to stat. His main point is that he's often the straight man and a stickler to the rules, which is great foil for Tex's much more gun-blazing style of justice, but laos makes him the less "outlandish" among the allies of Tex. Aside from that, Jim often jumps in front of bullets aimed for someone else (during the Red Hand storyline he took one for a 5 years old Kit Willer), making him a bit of human shield and often a massive user of the Last Stand feat.
Last edited by Woodclaw on Sun Jan 27, 2019 4:18 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Mephisto, Yama, Proteus, Black Tiger

Post by Jabroniville »

Heh, interesting- you don't see a lot of Canadian characters pop up in Westerns, even though the Yukon Gold Rush is in Canadian territory. That Tex has a straight-arrow Canadian friend is cute to me :). I like how that's our big stereotype- polite following of the rules at all times, lol.

I see what you mean about "boring to stat", though- a very straight-edged guy who's good at lots of stuff and doesn't specialize.
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Mephisto, Yama, Proteus, Black Tiger

Post by Woodclaw »

Jabroniville wrote: Tue Jan 22, 2019 2:25 pm Heh, interesting- you don't see a lot of Canadian characters pop up in Westerns, even though the Yukon Gold Rush is in Canadian territory. That Tex has a straight-arrow Canadian friend is cute to me :). I like how that's our big stereotype- polite following of the rules at all times, lol.

I see what you mean about "boring to stat", though- a very straight-edged guy who's good at lots of stuff and doesn't specialize.
The Yukon gold rush was featured on a couple of storyline, most notably Storm Over Skagway #323.
This actually led to a series on interesting "crossover" connections a few years later. I'm planning a rather complex post on the issue of Bonelli crossovers, so I'm keeping these for later.
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#43 Bonelli - Gros-Jean

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Gros-Jean

Power Level: 7; Power Points: 118; Hero Points: 3

STR: +5 (20), DEX: +1 (12), CON: +5 (20), INT: +2 (14), WIS: +8 (18), CHA: +2 (14)

Skills: Athletics 5 (+10), Expertise (WIS; Trapper) 4 (+8), Intimidation 2 (+7), Language 3 (+3), Medicine 3 (+5), Perception 4 (+8), Stealth 6 (+7), Vehicles 2 (+3/+7 [Sleds])

Feats: Accurate Attack, Benefit (Bruiser; Intimidate based on Strength), Benefit 5 (organizational ties: every First Nations tribe south of Anchorage), Connected, Defensive Roll 2, Diehard, Dodge Focus 2, Environmental Adaptation 2 (snow & forests), Equipment 3, Improved Grab, Improved Grapple, Improved Pin, Improvised Weapons 2, Luck, Minions 4 (pack of sled dogs), Power Attack, Stunning Attack, Sweeping Strike, Task Focus (Sleds, Vehicles) (+4), Track, Ultimate Fortitude

Powers

Powerhouse (Super-strength 1 [heavy load: 800 lbs]; Flaw: Distracting; 1pp)

Equipment: Fur clothes (1ep)
  • Colt .45 (+4 ballistic damage [lethal, full power]; crit 20; 40')
  • Bear Rifle (+6 ballistic damage [lethal, full power]; crit 20; 60')
  • Tomahawk or Really Large Knife (+2 slashing damage; crit 20; 10' [thrown])
Combat: Attack +7 (grapple: +13); Defense +7 (+3 Flat-footed); Initiative +1

Saves: Toughness +7 (+5 Flat-footed), Fortitude +7, Reflex +3, Will +6

Totals: Abilities 38 + Skills 15 (30 ranks) + Feats 35 + Powers 1 + Combat 24 + Saves 5 + Drawbacks 0 = 118

Complications:
  • Enemy (the Hudson's Bay Company): Gros-Jean is a free spirit that does all he can to remain an indipendent trapper, which often lead to him butting heads with the Hudson's Bay Company.
  • Fame (the great hunter): Gros-Jean is something of a legend among the Native Canadians.
  • Hatred (equines): After a rather embarasing accident with a mule and a trough, Gros-Jean harbours a deep mistrust for all equines, as a result he tend to travel on foot or with a dog sled in winter. He only use a horse in case of extremely long journeys.
  • Naive: Gros-Jen isn't stupid (a trait that doesn't allow for survival in the wilderness), but tend to be a very trusting soul.
  • One Girl in every Village: Gros-Jean often brags that in his heyday he had a girlfriend in every village south of Anchorage, which appears to be true and often force him to some rather undignified retreats.



:arrow: The other Canadian buddy of Tex, Gros-Jean was introduced just a few pages after Jim Brandon and the two characters often appear together in many stories. Contrary to Jim, Gros-Jean was initially introduced as an enemy. At the time Tex was looking for a group of weapon smugglers that killed another Ranger and they had joined a Native revolutionary group called the Red Hand. Informed of his arrival, these men sent the massive trapper to kill Tex. A few pages, and a gunfight, later it turned out that Gros-Jean joined the Red Hand because his mother was a Blackfeet (while his father was a Frenchman from Quebec). This first accident highlighted one of his key personality traits: an incredible idealist that turned into a rather naive streak over the years.

:arrow: Gros-Jean was also the first attempt from Bonelli senior to sketch a Little John style figure as Tex's pard (at the time Carson was little more than an occasional help) as he had done with many other characters before. The result was somewhat mixed, while Gros-Jean worked as a character, his presence was a bit too situational and, after the Red Hand storyline, it took a while for him to return. His next outing established a long time rivalry with many representative of the Hudson's Bay Company (or another stand-in).

:arrow: The main element of Gros-Jean is his incredible size and strength. He's usually portrayed as as tall as Tex and Carson (roughly 1.83, a tad short of 6 feet) and twice as large, capable of swinging small trees like clubs -- shocking even the usually unflappable Tiger Jack -- usually his prefered weapons against groups of opponents. Despite his size (and girth), Gros-Jean is a supremely skilled hunter and trapper.
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#44 Bonelli - Pat MacRyan

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Pat MacRyan
Patrick MacRyan, a.k.a. The Irish Mastiff

Power Level: 7; Power Points: 118; Hero Points: 3

STR: +6 (22), DEX: +1 (12), CON: +6 (22), INT: +0 (10), WIS: +2 (14), CHA: +2 (14)

Skills: Athletics 4 (+10), Expertise (CHA; showman) 6 (+8), Insight 2 (+4/+8 [Dedication]), Intimidation 2 (+8), Language 1 (English; Native: Irish Gaelic), Perception 3 (+5), Persuasion 2 (+4), Stealth 3 (+4), Vehicles 5 (+6)

Feats: All-Out Attack, Attack Focus 5 (melee), Attack Specialization 1 (revolvers), Benefit 1 (Bruiser), Benefit 1 (organizational ties: Clan na Gael), Crushing Pin, Damaging Escape, Dedication (Friends), Diehard, Dodge Focus 3, Equipment 2, Improved Block 1, Improved Critical 1 (punches), Improved Grab, Improved Grapple, Improved Pin, Improvised Weapons 2, Luck 2, Power Attack, Rage 1 (5 rounds), Takedown Attack 2, Teamwork 2, Ultimate Strength, Withstand Damage

Powers

Inured to Pain (Impervious Toughness 4; Flaw: Limited 3 [bludgeon damage]; 1pp)
Powerhouse (Super-strength 1 [heavy load: 1000 lbs]; Flaw: Distracting; 1pp)

Equipment: Boxing Gloves (1ep)
  • Colt .45 (+4 ballistic damage [lethal, full power]; crit 20; 40')
Combat: Attack +3 (+8 melee, +5 with revolver; grapple: +15); Defense +8 (+3 Flat-footed); Initiative +1

Saves: Toughness +6, Fortitude +8, Reflex +3, Will +4/+8 [Dedication]

Totals: Abilities 34 + Skills 14 (28 ranks) + Feats 35 + Powers 2 + Combat 16 + Saves 6 + Drawbacks 0 = 107

Complications:
  • Accident Prone: Pat often forget how strong he is and causes a lto on uninteded damage.
  • Can't Hold His Liquor: Pat's father was a very strict Catholich and never allowed his son to drink, after becoming a pugilist Pat never drink any alcohol due to the training regime; as a result, despite his size, he can't hold even a single beer.
  • Fame (the Irish Mastiff): Pat is a pretty well know pugilist and former heavy-weight champion.
  • Reputation (Goofy): While he's far from stupid, Pat is very slow at understanding things and might be suffering from the earliest stages of the Punch Drunk Syndrome.
  • Responsibility (Fenian): Although he's not a member of the Clan na Gael, Pat often feel obliged to help his fellow Irishmen.
  • Soft Spot (girls and kids): Under his thick pugilist skin, Pat has a really soft spot for girls, kids and anyone that can't defend himself



:arrow: If there ever was a character in over 70 years of stories, whose physicality could outshine Gros-Jean it's Pat MacRyan. Introduced in issue #33, Pat has the distinct honro of being the only secondary ally of Tex that became a constant presence for a while, aiding Tex and Carson in a series of short stories. Even after disappearing he remained a favorite among the fans and the writers, appearing in 14 different storylines and in annual #1, twice the number of appearences of Gros-Jean or Jim Brandon.

:arrow: In spite of this spectacular record, for a long time Pat remained a rather undeveloped character. It took the help of Mauro Boselli (already responsible for the Carson's Past storyline) to take full advantage of the possible background links of the Irish behemoth. Pat was born in Ireland shortly before the Great Famine in a rather poor family. When the Famine stroke, his father sent him to some relatives in the U.S.A. Years later, after a brief time with the Clan na Gael, Pat left for the West and his prodigious size caught the eye of a boxing manager, who started promoting him as "Heavy-weight champion of Ireland".

:arrow: Pat has done a number of jobs over the years (opposite to most of Tex allies that are rather consistent) including lumberjack, miner, railroad worker and, above all, circus performer. Bonelli senior loved the circus and in a couple of occasions took the chance to put his characters under the big top. Pat, of course, played the "strongman" act.

:arrow: Pat is a rather impressive opponent, with a strength bordering the superhuman. He has consistantly portrayed as strong enough to toss a full grown man trought a wooden wall with just one hand or twist a horseshoe as a corkscrew. He towers over Tex head and shoulders! His intelligence, on the other hand is a bit of a mess: more often than not Pat seem to be unbelievably slow and goofy, the classic dumb brute, but in many other occasions he seem to be actually competent (the entire special story for #400 was based on a group of thieves underestimating Pat).
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Jim Brandon, Gros-Jean, Pat MacRyan

Post by Jabroniville »

Interesting- a pair of super-strong guys? Always an interesting thing, particularly in 2nd Edition, where there's a lot more variance in human strength, so a guy with ST 22 can hit nearly as hard as Spider-Man does.

Interesting that the Irish guy is depicted as thick-headed and stupid, but doesn't have any negatives to any of his stats. Is that more of a Complication thing at times, or just inexact writing from multiple different writers messing things up?
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Jim Brandon, Gros-Jean, Pat MacRyan

Post by Woodclaw »

Jabroniville wrote: Mon Jan 28, 2019 10:58 am Interesting- a pair of super-strong guys? Always an interesting thing, particularly in 2nd Edition, where there's a lot more variance in human strength, so a guy with ST 22 can hit nearly as hard as Spider-Man does.

Interesting that the Irish guy is depicted as thick-headed and stupid, but doesn't have any negatives to any of his stats. Is that more of a Complication thing at times, or just inexact writing from multiple different writers messing things up?
Pat went through a lot in terms of characterization. Originally Bonelli senior wrote him as really thick-headed, almost borderline idiotic, and played it for laughs. In later stories this traits were progressively reduced, up to the point that in #400 (written by the old man himself) the entire story revolved around Pat being forced to enlist with the U.S.Army (after destroying part of a fort during a brawl) and actually proving himself to be an excellent soldier, later a group of robbers tried to frame him for stealing and he actually managed to avoid them long enough to call in the Pards, despite having a broken leg. As a result Nizzi and Boselli wrote him in a way very similar to Caramon from Dragonlance, Pat is slow, often goofy, but far from deserving a negative score in any mental stat.
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#45 Bonelli - Montales

Post by Woodclaw »

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Montales

Power Level: 6; Power Points: 110; Hero Points: 3

STR: +1 (12), DEX: +2 (14), CON: +2 (14), INT: +4 (18), WIS: +3 (16), CHA: +3 (16)

Skills: Athletics 3 (+4), Deception 2 (+5/+9 [Cult Hero]), Expertise (INT politics) 3 (+7), Insight 5 (+8/+12 [Dedication]), Investigation 4 (+8), Language 1 (English, Frech; native: Spanish), Perception 4 (+7), Persuasion 5 (+8/+12 [Cult Hero]), Stealth 5 (+7)

Feats: Beginner's Luck, Benefit 1 (organizational ties: Franciscans Monks), Benefit 1 (president right hand man),Benefit 2 (wealth), Connected, Conspiracy Theorist, Contacts, Cult Hero (Campesinos), Dedication (the people of Mexico), Deep Ties (no friend left behind), Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll 3, Dodge Focus 2, Equipment 2, Luck 2, Minions 4 (horse), Rallying Cry, Set-Up, Skill Mastery 1 (Investigation, Persuasion), Teamwork 2, Ultimate Connections, Well-Informed, Well-Known

Equipment: Diplomatic Pouch
  • Colt .45 (+4 ballistic damage [lethal, full power]; crit 20; 40')
  • Winchester (+5 ballistic damage [lethal, full power]; crit 20; 50')
  • Knife (+1 piercing damage; crit 19; conceable)
Combat: Attack +7 (grapple: +8); Defense +7 (+3 Flat-footed); Initiative +2

Saves: Toughness +5 (+2 Flat-footed), Fortitude +4, Reflex +3, Will +6/+10 [Dedication]

Totals: Abilities 30 + Skills 16 (32 ranks) + Feats 33 + Powers 0 + Combat 24 + Saves 7 + Drawbacks 0 = 110

Complications:
  • Enemies (a lot): Over the years, Montales has ammassed quite a collection of enemies, especially corrupted politicians and abitious military officiers that aim to start a revolution and become the next big man in Mexico.
  • Fame (hero of Mexico): Montales has fought in almost every Mexican revolution and war since the late 1840s, always on the side of the common folk.
  • Honor (no friend lef behind): Montales would rather cut his own arm off, rather than leaving a friend in need.
  • Responbility (to the President of Mexico): Although he doesn't have an official position Montales has worked as "special advisor" for at least three Mexican presidents, usually trying to puch for reforms aimed ai improving the lives of the campesinos.
  • Responsibility (to the people of Mexico): Despite his many successes, Montales still consider his duty to help the common folk of Mexico.



:arrow: If Canada is the other side of the great American adventure, so is Mexico and, of course, Bonelli couldn't pass the opportunity to add some friends and allies on other side of the Rio Bravo.

:arrow: Montales was introduced extremely early, predating even Jim Brandon and Gros-Jean by over a year. The Mexican revolutionary first appeared in issue #3, during the same storyline that gave us Steve "Mephisto" Dickart. After Tex was accused of killing a U.S.Army officier and Carson masterminded his escape, our hero fled over the border witha group of smugglers that introduced him to a young desperado named Montales. It turned out that Montales was a small ranchero forced to flee after the goverment troops tried to arrest him and his people. Taking advantage of their similar height and built, Tex and Montales donned identical black costumes (very reminescent of the original Zorro costume envisioned by Johnston McCulley) creating the legend of a superhuman revolutionary fighter capable of striking all across the Sonora province. Their success caught the eye of one Manuel Perez, a politician, and together they managed to take down the military dictatorship. Perez became president and kept Montales as personal advisor, but he didn't last long. Roughly 6 months after, Perez was assassinated by some leftovers of the old regime and Montales incarcerated. The former desperado managed to send a message to Tex, who saved him.

:arrow: After these two stories Montales disappeared until issue #137 (appropriately titled The Return of Montales) where he sported a completely new look. Gone was the old rail-thin desperado, Montales was once again a rather respectable ranchero and sported a head of grey hair that made him look like a contemporary of Carson (later stories would reveal that he's actually a bit older). At least that was the official story... the truth was that Montales was still working for the Mexican goverment as some sort of secret agent, gathering informations on some worrying event in the province of Sonora. This became a recurring theme: Montales didn't occupy any official position in the Mexican goverment, but at least three different presidents used him as their "advisor" in matters to delicate to handle through official channels.

:arrow: For a character that was almost forgotten for over 10 years, Montales had a number of appearences, just one less than Pat MacRyan, and he had become a much more important presence from 1995 onward. The biggest problem with Montales is that his presence in the stories set in Mexico is less automatic than that of Jim Brandon or Gros-Jean in Canada. Whenever Tex travel to the Great North either or both his friends are present, but in Mexico... the ranger crosses the Rio Bravo so often that Montales is rarely involved and sometimes acts as the "quest-giver", although he had often show that he can handle things pretty damn well.

:arrow: What makes Montales extremely interesting to build is that he's a pretty big departure from the rest of Tex's allies, although the old desperado is still a force to be reckoned with, he's not primarily a fighter. Instead he often act as a sort of spymaster supreme of Mexico. While he held no official position in the goverment (except for a brief stint a governor of Chihuahua) he has friends (and enemies) at every level of the Mexican society, allies in every village or bandit hideout from the Rio Bravo to Panama.
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Jim Brandon, Gros-Jean, Pat MacRyan, Montales

Post by Woodclaw »

Image

El Morisco
Doctor Ahmed Jamal

Power Level: 4 (3 combatwise); Power Points: 89; Hero Points: 3

STR: -1 (8), DEX: -1 (8), CON: +0 (10), INT: +6 (22), WIS: +3 (16), CHA: +1 (12)

Skills: Expertise (INT, arcane) 4 (+10), Expertise (INT, biology) 6 (+12), Expertise (INT, chemistry) 4 (+10), Expertise (INT, history) 4 (+10), Insight 3 (+6), Investigation 2 (+8), Language 3 (Arabic, English, Spanish, 3 meso-america dialects; native: Egyptian), Medicine 3 (+9), Perception 4 (+7), Persuasion 5 (+6), Technology 1 (+7), Vehicles 5 (+4)

Feats: Artificer, Attack Specialization 1 (Revolver), Beginner's Luck, Defensive Roll 3, Dodge Focus 3, Eidetic Memory, Equipment 2, Improvised Tools, Low Profile 2, Luck 2, Ritualist, Sidekick 15 (Eusebio), Skill Mastery 2 (all the Expertises), Ultimate Memory, Well-Informed

Equipment: Doctor Bag
  • .38 revolver (+3 ballistic damage [lethal, full power]; crit 20; 30')
Image

HQ: Mansion in Pilares (Medium [building size]; Toughness: +10; Features: Infirmary, Laboratory, Library, Living Space)
Combat: Attack +1 (+3 with revolvers, grapple: +0); Defense +3 (+0 Flat-footed); Initiative -1

Saves: Toughness +3 (+0 Flat-footed), Fortitude +3, Reflex +2, Will +9

Totals: Abilities 18 + Skills 22 (44 ranks) + Feats 36 + Powers 1 + Combat 2 + Saves 12 + Drawbacks 0 = 89

Complications:
  • Naive: El Morisco is far from stupid but he seem to implicitly trust others to be open and honest with him
  • Obsession (knowledge): over the years El Morisco made a number of staggering discoveries, many extremely dangerous, but he's convinced that humanity deserve to know about them.
  • Reputation (brujo): despite his peaceful demeanor and willingness to help others the inhabitants of Pilares are absolutely convinced that El Morisco is some kind of dark magician.
  • Responsibility (informers): El Morisco maintains several contacts with wandering shepreds, paying them to bring him unusual plants or animals from the sierras of Mexico.
  • Secret (actually a real wizard): in a rather interesting twist of fate after years of being accused of being a dark magician, El Morisco revealed to Tex and Carson that he actually studied white magic.



:arrow: The most unusual and most fascinating among Tex's allies is El Morisco, an Egyptian scholar that moved to Mexico to investigate the flora and fauna of the Sonora Desert. Despite being absolutely useless in any action situation (the above stats are extremely generous) doctor Ahmed Jamal proved to be one an invaluable ally for the rangers whenever things seemed to get out of control. Although labelled a warlock since his first appearence by the ignorant inhabitants of Pilares (the Mexican village where he lives), El Morisco turned out to be a true mental polymath, a world-class naturalist, expert in biology, chemistry and physics, as well as one of the greatest experts in the pre-colombian civilizations of Central America.

:arrow: Despite this rather "normal" background all the stories involving El Morisco had a touch of supernatural. Rather than being the "magical mystery tour" of Mephisto and Yama, they had a rather... X-Files feeling, where the shock and awe of the rangers was heavily counterbalanced by the calm and methodical scientific method of El Morisco, who tried to explain every weirdness and paranormal phenomenon by ascribing it to a level of scientific explanation.

:arrow: The most unusual of these was the Meteor Crater storyline, which is (quite possibly) the most successful sci-fi insertion in the entire history of Tex. The story revolved around a strange "plant", similar to a giant green sea-urchin found around the Meteor Crater in Arizona and a series of strange deaths in the area. After the pards were called in to investigate, they took one of the "green spiky balls" (as Carson called them) to El Morisco, who discovered that they were in fact an alien organism that fed on blood.

:arrow: It took 6 appearences before El Morisco actually showcased a new set of skill. It turned out that during his youth in Menphis and Cairo he was trained in the Egyptian white magic and later started researching also the European Hermetic tradition and Atzec magic. During this 7th appearence, he forged four protective rings for the pards to replace the missing silver bracelets and gave them a fighting chance against Yama. The most interesting, but sadly unexplored, part of this storyline is that El Morisco doesn't display any of the mental powers that are staple of most of Bonelli's magic users and all his abilities seem to come from his studies. Although he faced Yama on almost equal terms in this story, later appearences downplayed El Morisco's powers, implying that he's either unable or unwilling to rely on magic.

:arrow: El Morisco has an absolutely faithful apprentice/butler called Eusebio that, aside from being a much better fighter than the Egyptian scholar (PL5 with a machete), is of Atzec blood and seem to possess an uncanny danger sense, which actually made him rather wary of Tex and Carson. According to Eusebio, Death follows in the pards footsteps.

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Re: #45 Bonelli - Montales

Post by Jabroniville »

Woodclaw wrote: Sun Feb 03, 2019 10:51 am Image
Damn, that pic is REALLY good. A hell of a lot of style and characterization just in a profile shot.

It's funny, looking at him I was expecting "Mexican Tex" but from what you indicate, he's more of a clever spymaster, despite dressing more like a Romantic Hero like your everyday John Wayne or Zorro. One of those things that shows you that charisma & connections are more important than any other number of the "juicy" skills.

Using Mexico is a natural for Western stories, given how much closer it is to the American Southwest- it's why I was so surprised to see a Canadian hero posted first. Many stories, like The Magnificent Seven, use Mexicans as the stand-in for "Easily-Victimized Poor Folk" out there.
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Jim Brandon, Gros-Jean, Pat MacRyan, Montales

Post by Jabroniville »

Woodclaw wrote: Sun Feb 03, 2019 5:27 pm El Morisco
Now THAT's interesting and unexpected- a brilliant Egyptian arcanologist/scholar in the Wild West stories of Tex?

It seems like they downgraded his powers, perhaps not wanting him for a combat role. Also, being so mighty would raise a LOT of uncomfortable questions, like "Why doesn't El Morisco just defeat the villains himself?". So all his stuff coming from the Artificer traits makes sense, as he has to study and build stuff in a lab in order to get the most out of magic, rather than just wave his hands around and win.

I forgot to mention that the Mountie character reminds me a bit of Sam Steele, one of Canada's few "Notable Men of Adventure" heroes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Steele
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Jim Brandon, Gros-Jean, Pat MacRyan, Montales

Post by Woodclaw »

Jabroniville wrote: Mon Feb 04, 2019 7:43 am I forgot to mention that the Mountie character reminds me a bit of Sam Steele, one of Canada's few "Notable Men of Adventure" heroes: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Steele
I was about to get to Sam Steele in one of my next posts, linked to the possibility that all the bonelli heroes shared a single narrative universe. While the character never appeared in Tex, he and a young Jack London appeared in a flashback in Martin Mystere.
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Jim Brandon, Gros-Jean, Pat MacRyan, Montales, El Morisco

Post by Woodclaw »

So, having finished with the big names among the allies of Tex, here we have a few of the occasional friends.

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Hutch, Rod and "Damned" Dick

:arrow: A long time before Tex even imagend of becoming a ranger or a chieftain of the Navajos he was just a young cow-boy working at his father's ranch. At that time his best friends were a trio of hotheaded cow-boys: Rod Vergil, “Damned” Dick Dayton, Clarence "Hutch" Hutchenrider. Many years later the ranger described them as "for all their flaws, they had the heart in the right place and I couldn't ask for anything else".

:arrow: The stories about these three are still a work in progess. While Rod and Dick were created by Bonelli senior for Between Two Flags, the storyline outining Tex's exploits during the American Civil War, Hutch was added by Mauro Boselli for the Nueces Valley special (cover above)... which sadly I don't have (especially because that story finally lift the veil around the identity of Tex's mother).

:arrow: From what I was able to see from other stories Hutch was more or less the asshole of the group, pairing a caustic sense of humor with a certain racist streak that often put him at odds with Tex and Dick. Nonetheless he had enough common sense to shut the hell up when the situation required. Hutch was also the most fidgety, he rarely stopped in any place for more than a few months and roamed the frontier for many years on his own.

:arrow: Rod was very similar to Hutch in many ways (the two often teamed-up against Tex and Dick), but a lot less vocal. Shortly before the beginning of the Civil War he, Tex and Dick tried and failed to create a horse ranch in Texas. As they were moving north to sell their remaining animals, Rod decided to enlist with the Confederate Army (he was pretty on Texan pride), while his friends continued north and ended up enlisting as scouts with the Union. This lead Rod to an untimely death on the Battle of Shiloh (or Pittsburg Landing) in Tennesse. Tex and Dick found him dying in the field and were just able to rekindle their friendship and curse the war one last time.

:arrow: Dick was the most visually unique: a giant in the same size category of Pat MacRyan -- although not even close in terms of strength -- with thin moustace and a bald head. Dick was the most stalwarth companion of the young Tex, sharing many of his anti-racist ideas (it was implied that Dick had lived with natives for a while). He was often praised as an excellet shot with a rifle, but a terrible medic (he described himself as "barely a butcher").

:arrow: Rod and Hutch are probably your run-of-the-mill PL5 gunslingers, Dick is PL6 mostly by virtue of his strength and aim. Keep in mind that young Tex was probably PL6 himself.

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The Frisco Gang
Juan "Lefty" Potrero, "Bingo", Angelo & Captain Tom Devlin

:arrow: Out of all the great American Cities, San Francisco is the one that Tex visited the most and it had been the theater of two drammatic confrontation with the Black Tiger and the Master. Of course this lead to the pards making a number of friends in Frisco.

:arrow: Lefty is a gigantic half-spanish former pugilist now of the "Hercules Gym", where he works alongside his assistant and former sparring partner Bingo.

:arrow: In terms of stats, Lefty and Bingo are pretty much a pallete swaps of Pat MacRyan and during their first appearence (the Barbary Coast storyline) they filled exactly the same role, alongside a number of other unnamed pugilists recruited to trash the joints of the crimp gang lead by one John "Shangai" Kelly. This was quite ironic because in the first Master storyline, Pat and Lefty faced each other in the ring.

:arrow: Lefty and Bingo are often played for laughs outside of combat ever since Claudio Nizzi introduced their respective wives. Whereas Lefty's is married to a rather normal looking girl, Bingo's wife is a 6' and something amazon perfectly capable beating any man into submission without breaking a sweat. Both ladies are prominent members of the Salvation Army and had imposed a strict no-alcohol regimen to all the patrons of the "Hercules".

:arrow: Angelo is kind of the "odd-man", despite training at "Hercules", he's short, rail thin and apparently inoffensive. Despite his nerdy appearence he's an expert fencer and use his walking cane in a way vaguely reminiscent of Bartitsu. He's also the king of all the poker players in a 100 miles radius.

:arrow: Thomas "Tom" Delvin is the chief of police of San Francisco and an old friend of Tex and Carson. He often acts just as the quest-giver, calling the rangers to help him in case of emergecies. In a few situation Devlin showcased to be an excellent fighter (for example saving Tex from the Black Tiger) and he has quite a number of friends in high places (including one John Sutter).


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General Philip Davis

:arrow: One of the few, if not the only, top military brass that Tex respect. Apparently they saved each other's life several times when Davis was only a lowly captain. General Philip Davis is often mentioned but appeared only in the final part of the Messenger of Death storyline. Despite this meager curriculum the character was portrayed as Tex's wild card to get the right information to the right person in Washington D.C. This has lead many readers to disregard him as a simple deus ex-machina, until Claudio Nizzi finally gave him a face and a personality.

:arrow: Davis is a career military man, who climbed the ranks from private to general without any inside help. His impressive resume provides him with a pretty big leverage with the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Indian Affairs. Over the years he has been resposible for stopping and demoting a number of ambitious officier that aimed to make a career by killing natives and actually tried to pioneer a more respectful treatment oif the various nations.

:arrow: Despite being in his late 50s, Davies is still a pretty solid PL5 cavalry soldier and shrwed politician.


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MacParland

:arrow: Barely 5' tall and always wearing his signature tweed jacket and bowler hat, MacParland looks like pretty much like the stereotypical travelling salesman, instead he's one of the most shrwed detectives of the U.S.A. and the right hand man of Allan Pinkerton.

:arrow: Despite being created by Bonelli senior, MacParland was often used only as a quest-giver, proving a good excuse to pit Tex and the pards to go after some real world criminal, like the Dalton Gang or the Wild Bunch. It took Claudio Nizzi, a notorious fan of mystery and police procedural novels, to fully flesh out the narrative possibilities of the character.

:arrow: MacParland is, by his own admission, not much of a fighter (probably PL4), but a hell of a detective.

:arrow: The character was actually inspired by a real Pinkerton agent James McParland.
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Re: Warehouse W - Bonelli Comics: Jim Brandon, Gros-Jean, Pat MacRyan, Montales, El Morisco

Post by Jabroniville »

Interesting guys! But now I demand pictures of Bingo’s wife :).
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