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

Where in all of your character write ups will go.
Jabroniville
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Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Doctor Volkh

Post by Jabroniville »

Image
Image

DOCTOR VOLKH (Doctor Vladimir Orekhov)
Created By:
Roy & Dann Thomas, David Ross
First Appearance: The Avengers West Coast #87 (Oct. 1992)
Role: Stretchy Guy
Group Affiliations: The Bogatyri
PL 9 (121)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 3
INTELLIGENCE 4 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Deception 3 (+5)
Expertise (History) 2 (+6)
Expertise (Science) 6 (+10)
Expertise (Cosmonaut) 6 (+10)
Insight 4 (+6)
Intimidation 3 (+5)
Perception 3 (+5)
Persuasion 3 (+5)
Technology 6 (+10)

Advantages:
Ranged Attack 5

Powers:
"Elastic Body"
Elongation 4 (100 feet) [4]
Immunity 5 (Falling Damage) [5]
Protection 4 [4]
Impervious Toughness 10 (Flaws: Limited to vs. Bludgeoning Impacts) [5]

"Elongation Tricks"
"Malleable Form" Insubstantial 1 (Feats: Precise) (6) -- [9]
  • AE: "Form Shapes" Morph (Shapes) 2 (Flaws: Limited to Simple Shapes) (Quirk: Retains Colours -1) (4)
  • AE: "Flat Sheet" Flight 2 (Flaws: Gliding) (2)
  • AE: "Hammer/Ball Fists" Strength-Damage +4 (4)
Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Hammer Fists +10 (+6 Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +7, Fortitude +5, Will +4

Complications:
Motivation (Soviet Russia)- Doctor Volkh was a loyal Communist, and has little to fight for now that his government has fallen.

Total: Abilities: 58 / Skills: 36--18 / Advantages: 5 / Powers: 29 / Defenses: 11 (121)

-Dr. Volkh is basically "Reed Richards Lite", gaining similar powers in a similar way (though his were apparently due to prolonged, repeated exposure to cosmic rays, as he was one of Russia's first Cosmonauts). He was the group's leader for the most part, but has disappeared. He is PL 8 on offense, PL 9 on defense- some of the few images I've seen show him fighting Wolverine, shrugging off his attacks, and doing a lot of grappling and "Hammer Fist" stuff.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 11, 2022 8:47 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Re: Jab's Builds! (Blink! Black Tom Cassidy! The Beast! Pacific Overlords!)

Post by Jabroniville »

So the Bogatyri here are all-new builds, aside from Morning Star, who I read about in the finale of the "Pacific Overlords" arc. I'd somehow missed them before, and didn't want to bother when I got to them on the "B" guys I just did... but realizing that I needed to kill a day and read the finale of Invincible (it's quite good!) before starting those builds, I figured I'd take a shot at them.
Shock
Posts: 2978
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Location: Connecticut USA

Re: Morning Star

Post by Shock »

Jabroniville wrote: Thu Feb 15, 2018 6:09 am Image
Have we become so used to revealing costumes that this one doesn't even get a mention? Because this one... damn
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Woodclaw
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Joined: Fri Sep 08, 2017 8:05 pm
Location: Como, Italy

Re: Morning Star

Post by Woodclaw »

Shock wrote: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:23 pm
Jabroniville wrote: Thu Feb 15, 2018 6:09 am Image
Have we become so used to revealing costumes that this one doesn't even get a mention? Because this one... damn
Back in those days I was a big fan of the WCA and I can tell you she could have worn even less, but she had such a flat personality that nobody would have noticed.
"You're right. Sorry. Holy shit," I breathed, "heckhounds.”

WareHouse W (main build thread for M&M)
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Spam
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Joined: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:17 am

Re: Morning Star

Post by Spam »

Shock wrote: Thu Feb 15, 2018 12:23 pm
Jabroniville wrote: Thu Feb 15, 2018 6:09 am Image
Have we become so used to revealing costumes that this one doesn't even get a mention? Because this one... damn
Isn't that how every 100 year old Russian woman dresses?
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Re: Morning Star

Post by Jabroniville »

Spam wrote: Thu Feb 15, 2018 6:08 pm Isn't that how every 100 year old Russian woman dresses?
Only in my drea-- I mean no, SILLY.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Golubev

Post by Jabroniville »

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GOLUBEV (Mikula Golubev)
Created By:
Roy & Dann Thomas, David Ross
First Appearance: The Avengers West Coast #87 (Oct. 1992)
Role: Psionic Guy
Group Affiliations: The Bogatyri
PL 8 (98)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA 3 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 7 DEXTERITY 3
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Deception 3 (+5)
Expertise (History) 2 (+4)
Expertise (Science) 2 (+4)
Insight 2 (+4)
Intimidation 2 (+4)
Perception 2 (+4)
Persuasion 2 (+4)
Technology 3 (+5)

Advantages:
Ranged Attack 3

Powers:
"Mutant Powers: Psionics"
"Telepathy" Mind-Reading 6 & Communication (Mental) 2 (Feats: Dynamic) (20) -- [24]
  • AE: "Telekinesis" Move Object 8 (Feats: Dynamic) (17)
  • AE: Force Field 6 (Feats: Dynamic) (Extras: Affects Others) (13)
"Levitation" Flight 2 [4]
Senses 2 (Mental Detection- Ranged) [2]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Hammer Fists +10 (+6 Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +3

Defenses:
Dodge +7 (DC 17), Parry +7 (DC 17), Toughness +3 (+9 Force Field), Fortitude +5, Will +4

Complications:
Motivation (Soviet Russia)- Mikula was a loyal Communist, and has little to fight for now that his government has fallen.

Total: Abilities: 48 / Skills: 18--9 / Advantages: 3 / Powers: 30 / Defenses: 8 (98)

-Mikula was born with psychic powers, and was named aver a Slavic mythological character by his parents as a result. The only pic I can find of him fighting shows him deflecting U.S.Agent's shield with ease, and apparently he could lift a bulldozer. He was a bit of a Team Prankster as well, despite taking up the "Invisible Woman" role.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 11, 2022 8:47 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Svyatagor

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

SVYATAGOR (Sasha Pokryshkin)
Created By:
Roy & Dann Thomas, David Ross
First Appearance: The Avengers West Coast #87 (Oct. 1992)
Role: Psionic Guy
Group Affiliations: The Bogatyri
PL 8 (118)
STRENGTH
9 STAMINA 7 AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 7 DEXTERITY 2
INTELLIGENCE 2 AWARENESS 2 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Deception 3 (+5)
Expertise (History) 2 (+4)
Expertise (Science) 2 (+4)
Insight 2 (+4)
Intimidation 2 (+4)
Perception 2 (+4)
Persuasion 2 (+4)
Technology 3 (+5)

Advantages:
Ranged Attack 7

Powers:
"Right Hand- Firearm" Blast 6 (Extras: Multiattack) [18]
"Body Armor" Protection 2 (Extras: Impervious 11) [13]

Offense:
Unarmed +7 (+9 Damage, DC 24)
Firearm +9 (+6 Ranged Damage, DC 21)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +7 (DC 17), Parry +7 (DC 17), Toughness +9 (+6 Impervious), Fortitude +7, Will +4

Complications:
Motivation (Soviet Russia)- Svyatagor was a loyal Communist, and has little to fight for now that his government has fallen.

Total: Abilities: 62 / Skills: 18--9 / Advantages: 7 / Powers: 31 / Defenses: 9 (118)

-Svyatagor was badly injured in an accident at a power plant, and was turned into a cyborg, because this was the early '90s. Named for the mightiest of the Slavic heroes, he joined the Bogatyri. His body is durable enough to withstand attacks from Wonder Man and Wolverine, but he's still only PL 8.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 11, 2022 8:48 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Invinci-Builds

Post by Jabroniville »

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And now, for a universe I haven't touched upon once since June of friggin' 2009 (eight and a half years ago!)...

INVINCIBLE:
-Invincible started off as a very typical Teen Hero Comic. Written by Robert Kirkman (before The Walking Dead made him an even bigger name), it was a "Coming of age" tale featuring Mark Grayson, a young man in his last year of High School, finally gaining the super-powers he'd believed would be his birthright. His father as Omni-Man- the world's most powerful super-hero- and he soon gained Flying Brick powers of his very own. Mark fights crooks wearing a silly home-made outfit at first, and is then taken to a super-tailor who creates an "iconic" costume for him. He messes about with his best friend William, quits his BurgerWorld-type job, meets a teen superhero team (called, creatively, "The Teen Team") and partners up with Atom Eve, then gets an ordinary girlfriend. Things look pretty sweet and typical.

And then his father murders the world's top superhero team and reveals that he's been sent to Earth to conquer it. And beats Mark half to death, in one of the goriest scenes ever seen (until... well, any other Invincible issue) before suddenly abandoning his plan and flying off into space, leaving Mark behind to pick up the pieces of his shattered life.

Invincible hit that big "twist" VERY quickly, and it completely reversed course on the book. No more "typical" stuff, it was now a highly-dramatic series with the entire world at stake. And it was ADDICTIVE- I bought the first trade casually, and IMMEDIATELY went out to get the second. Then the third. Then the fourth. While breezy reads, they were ENJOYABLE to the point where within a month I'd read every issue there was, and had to wait eagerly for the next trades. The warnings of others that the book was habit-forming were definitely proven true. With original artist Cory Walker bailing on the monthly grind early, it was soon taken over by Ryan Ottley, who put his stamp on the visual designs, to the point where very few would say it wasn't a good decision. With Kirkman's "World-Building" going into overdrive, they create a fascinating world with some recurring villains, great interpersonal stuff in the supporting cast, and the terrifying, over-arching threat of an entire army of super-powered beings way out of Invincible's league.

The comic became a rather big hit, and was the only survivor of this era of Image's new superhero books. At it's gone from 2007 until early this year, as Kirkman finally gave up the ghost and realized he didn't want Invincible to live past him, after all.

The Plot:
-So Mark learns the truth- his father isn't from some kind-hearted "World Betterment Committee" at all- he's part of The Viltrumite Empire, which is a genocidal empire bent on world domination. Opposed only by the Coalition of Planets, the Viltrumites wish to conquer the universe, and their overwhelming power (even one Viltrumite can level an entire city with ease) makes this easy when they're pressed. Only diminished numbers keep them from simply taking everything.

When Omni-Man refuses to kill his son and flees Earth, Mark is then recruited by Cecil Stedman to take Omni-Man's place as the "on-call" defender of Earth- Mark thus gets frequent calls to take on monsters and super-villains all over the world. Cecil is also handy for exposition and the like. Mark and his girlfriend Amber have a tricky go of it thanks to the whole "secret identity" thing, but eventually fall in love and get much closer... much to the chagrin of Atom Eve, who'd fallen for him.

The dead Guardians of the Globe are replaced by the Teen Team, but soon become led by a resurrected Immortal. Their roster expands and contracts a bit as the series goes on.

Eventually, Mark encounters his father once more- living on a planet of Mantis People and remarrying (even siring a son, Oliver). Sadly, three Viltrumites attack this world, killing millions and reminding Mark of just how under-powered he is compared to adult Viltrumites- Nolan is badly injured and taken away. Two more Viltrumite agents threaten Mark on Earth, pointing out that he MUST take over the world by himself. In the meantime, he & Eve become a couple, he turns his back on Cecil's growing evil actions, Nolan escapes the Viltrumites and joins a growing army from the Coalition of Planets, and we go to war with the Viltrumites (who it turns out number less than fifty).

Mark eventually returns to Earth and gets into more shenanigans, usually dealing with Eve or his role as the planet's defender. The Guardians mostly quit when Mark splits with Cecil, but they reform with barely a word when things get rough on Earth again. Eventually, they get a spin-off series that lasts less than two years, while Robot & Monster Girl spend months in an alien world, and return aged and experienced. Things often go vastly wrong, as Mark's recklessness and Eve's mental issues cause problems, and finally multiple baddies enact their plans in the final years of the series. Robot takes over the world, Thragg builds his army, and many characters die in the process.

Overall:
-By far the most memorable aspect of Invincible to casual readers is the violence and gore- Writer Robert Kirkman and artist Ryan Ottley REALLY REALLY love blood, gore, brain-splattering and violence, and it shows. There is TONS of it. While it was initially shocking to see so much blood in a colorful superhero book, pretty soon we'd see fists flying through heads on a casual basis, brilliantly-drawn spirals of blood fluming out of impaled torsos, crushed brains, torn-off jaws, severed limbs, ripped-out intestines, smashed-in faces and people reduced to floating piles of organs. Ryan Ottley does EXQUISITELY detailed gore, but this eventually gets so common that it overwhelms the series. The creators insist at various points that "we don't want this to become a GORE book!" but... it's a Gore Book. No two ways around it. It's an orgiastic celebration of disgusting, organ-pulping violence. Now, I'm pretty far outside the Mortal Kombat era of my childhood, so I don't get my rocks off on that anymore, but they certainly are fans of showing just how messy comic books fights could be without "No-Kill Physics" place.

The comic was one of the most addictive things I've ever read back in the day, and really each issue was a "must-read right away" book until the very end. The best compliment I can give it is that it's never PREDICTABLE- the comic has a tendency to go off on rails every now and then, and it always keeps you guessing. I mean, at one point, Mark gets stuck in an alternate reality where he gets the chance to fix everything, then things go through a time-skip. He spends a HUGE chunk of the series living on an alien world after abandoning Earth to his old ally Robot, who's now taken it over. There is a TON of Character Development (especially between Robot & Monster Girl), and a lot of changeover in the cast, as the body count gets tremendously high. Hell, they even geared up towards the finale by annihilating even the GOOD characters- beloved people like Oliver, Battle Beast and more go the way of the dodo.

Ottley is AMAZING on art, too. Several issues are JUST TALKING, and he keeps them interesting. Few artists are better with expressions. It helps that he's a bit cartoonish (especially with people sticking their lips out when emoting). Ottley's style is very, very cartoonish- characters stick their lower jaws out when speaking, everyone has peglike teeth that lean inwards, and the hands have big and meaty sausage-fingers. But it's expressive, dynamic, well-posed, and brilliantly-characterful. Very, very few artists get "expression" like Ottley. His art comes and goes in quality depending on who's working with him- Cliff Rathburn on inks makes his stuff look way better than Ottley himself can (his own inking is rather sketchy). A John Rauch on colors actually adds shadow and "weight" to Ottley's rather "flat" people, but that huge jump in quality leaves when Rauch does.

The Flaws:
However... there are flaws. A good bunch of them. 

Supporting Characters Don't Get Squat:
* You like a supporting character? Well if it's not Eve or a Viltrumite, then too bad- they usually get casually murdered and are barely dwelled on. Major supporters like William and Amber go from "every issue" appearances to never being in the book again after a point. It's quite funny, because it's both a positive and a negative that Invincible feels like you're reading one-quarter of an entire Comic Book Universe, and they just aren't releasing the other 3/4.

Flying Bricks R Us:
* Like unusual and clever powers? TOO BAD- Flying Bricks are the only heroes that can compete in this world. Even the MINOR characters are Flying Bricks! Kirkman uses this power set on almost every major character with powers- there are almost NO Blasters in this book aside from Atom Eve and Rex Splode. That the main Viltrumites have this power-set wouldn't be so bad if the book didn't already have Immortal, Black Samson & Bulletproof as members of THE SAME TEAM. It gets to the point where Monster Girl gets points for NOT being able to fly, and Brit gets them for ONLY being invulnerable! You never see Magical Powers, Telepathy, Telekinesis or anything. It's VERY weirdly-limited, like he has no imagination for anything but hitting.

Forgotten Subplots & Characters as Cannon Fodder:
* Various subplots are done with VERY quickly (Debbie's alcoholism; Debbie & Nolan's reunion; the Guardians splitting from Cecil before casually rejoining after the Invincible War; the fallout from Anissa raping Mark). And any superhero on Earth who ISN'T a Viltrumite just isn't worth worrying about- Bulletproof and Black Samson are given only the most temporary bouts of credibility before they're beaten up as afterthoughts, usually going down off-panel (to Battle Beast, to the Mauler Twins, to Evil Invincibles, etc.)- it's like being a non-Saiyan in Dragon Ball Z- you're just living Cannon Fodder.

GORE! GORE! GORE!:
The shock value with the violence and subject matter is so overwhelming that the book is more or less impossible to really take seriously after a point- not only is the gore omnipresent, but various things like Bulletproof and his wife manslaughtering his father, the deaths of major & minor characters, genocide and rape all being shot out one after the other... it wears on you to the point where you don't care any longer.

Infodumps & Clumsy Exposition:
* Characters speak a bit too much in "Exposition-Ese" at times. There are MANY issues where it's literally just one character going on and on about something, explaining the new status quo. The first issue with Cecil, after Omni-Man abandons Earth, is literally just "okay, this is my history with your father; this was his job; this is what your life is like now; this is what we're going to do". Really, the comic is just FULL of infodumps- Nolan explaining the "World Betterment Committee" to his young son. Nolan revealing the TRUTH behind the Viltrumites to Mark. Cecil explaining his purpose to Mark, and his guilt at the revelation that Nolan is evil. Cecil explaining that someone leaked Nolan & Mark's conversation to the public. Nolan explaining his personality to Mark on his new home planet. It's a testament to Ryan Ottley's skill that this remains interesting, as many issues devolve into talking heads, but rather than be Bendis-style (ie. xeroxing pages), the heads are always changing, making different expressions, reacting in unique ways... Ottley does the best with it.

Shit's Too Easy:
* This one's arguably the biggest flaw of the series- nobody is that bright, and almost every possible problem that CAN'T be solved with punching is done away with very quickly. The Viltrumites appear to be an unstoppable Army of Gods? SURPRISE! There's actually less than fifty of them! And a handful can be one-shotted by Space Racer, Allen and Ragnar monsters!
* Mark is all alone after his father leaves? SURPRISE! Turns out a government organization can lead him everywhere he needs to be, and also deal with his family's financial future in a heartbeat!
* Various infants are born, and have to be written into the plots, while it's established that Mark only gained super-strength in his late teens? SURPRISE! His half-brother is from a super-aging race so he gains powers in childhood, and all future Half-Viltrumites inexplicably gain powers in their adolescent years! Mark's daughter even ages up as part of a timeskip! Wasn't THAT easy?
* Allen the Alien is popular, but was made too weak to harm the villains? SURPRISE! Getting nearly-killed actually makes him stronger, and then he stays at that same power level forever!
* Eve is dead, breaking the hearts of fans? SURPRISE! She has super-resurrection powers! She even does this to herself and MARK later- she's basically like how Dragon Ball Z utterly lacks any drama because the characters can just be brought back no matter what.
* Mark's facing a variety of super-genius opponents like Angstrom Levy, Robot, and Cecil, along with enemies MUCH stronger than him, like Thragg & Conquest? SURPRISE! Every one of these people can be easily defeated with MOAR PUNCHING.
* All of these potentially genocidal villains? SURPRISE! Most of them are easily-forgiven once people see their remorse, even if someone like Omni-Man has killed thousands of people.

It's actually a weird contrast. Mark can suffer all manner of personal calamity, and supporting characters can die in droves, but nearly every ACTUAL problem is done away with in moments, usually by either Deux Ex Machina or MOAR PUNCHING. Mark almost never outsmarts his foes- he just gets angry and punches them to death. Most of the villains who get built up over a dozen or so issues (Levy, The Sequids, The Reanimen) actually get defeated in an issue or two.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 11, 2022 8:48 am, edited 4 times in total.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Invincible

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

Easily the most iconic image of Mark.

INVINCIBLE:
-Obviously, I'll start out with Mark Grayson himself. As the main character, he's obviously had the most to do, starting out as a young newbie hero and learning the ropes with his dad, then the massive "Wham Episode" featuring his dad revealing that he's been a sleeper agent, meaning to knock over the Earth for his masters after all this time. The resulting battle leads to a whole new era, with more friends gained, friends killed, and other mass-murder and mayhem in one of the bloodiest series I'd ever read (luckily, they'd create about a thousand more than were worse!).

-As Invincible, Mark pretty steadily escalates into being the most powerful hero on Earth (most of the rest are mere cannon fodder). When his father leaves Earth, he's made a part of Cecil Stedman's shadow-organization, which helpfully makes everythine easy for him- pointing Mark in the right direction and lets him fight he bad guys. Mark is actually rather easily led- he simply goes along with what other people want him to do, believes the best in people, and can be rather naiive. As a lot of his allies turn out to be antagonists, it's a recurring problem that reality is always kicking his ass for.

-Mark's "ordinary life" is soon barely a memory- curious, since the comic served the same "Hero Grows Up/Coming Of Age" story that Spider-Man and so many others do. His attempt at college is a joke- constantly interrupted by monster fights and space travel. Eventually, his once-best friend William disappears from the book completely. Supporting characters disappear (remember how Principal Winslow, humourously inspired by Carl from Family Matters- Mark's High School is literally named "Reginald Veljohnson High" after Carl's actor, promised to take Mark under his wing and get him going to classes again? Never happened! By the 40th issue, Mark is a literal full-time superhero, only doing that.

-Mark can also be thick-headed, impulsive and brash- this is stated to be a Viltrumite bloodline trait, as even mature types like Thaedus & Omni-Man suffer from it- if someone truly pisses Mark off, he'll gladly take them by the throat and threaten their lives, slam them into something, and more. He tries to restrain this, but after fighting several dangerous villains on numerous occasions, he confesses to his new brother Oliver that "next time", he'll kill any villain he can. The book actually treats this realistically- Mark drawing a line in the sand and making a big change (he'd only killed in the past by accident)... but ultimately shrinking back from it after he realizes the full weight of his actions- executing the Sequids' host (the innocent Rus Livingston) shocked some of the assembled heroes (especially Robot, who was disgusted), and caused Mark to shrink back from it. I felt that to be a very "human" moment- it came off rather realistic and natural that somebody could go all "NO MORE!" and then go "holy crap" at the realization of what they're doing. It can come off as inconsistent writing, but... humans are inconsistent beings, y'know?

-Mark eventually goes off to The Viltrumite War after dealing with some evil alternate versions of himself. Here, he's one of the lesser-powered heroes, and stands as a bystander to much of what goes on- he ultimately cops to Grand Regent Thragg's plan to station Viltrumites on Earth to breed with the local populace. Mark screws up royally when he helps Dinosaurus fix the environment- this causes the deaths of at last a million people, turning Mark into a "Public Enemy #1". His reckless plan to go hunting after Angstrom Levy gets him trapped somewhere AGAIN (and, given that his girlfriend/fiance Eve is pathologically obsessed with him, this is a bad thing). When his friend Robot turns out to have gone obsessive and he takes over the world, Mark even ALLOWS this to happen, abandoning Earth so that he can have space adventures for a couple of years' worth of stories. He honestly seems to get DUMBER as the book goes on, being taken by surprise again and again by the manipulations of others, flying off the handle and kicking the asses of former allies before being calmed down and having this explained to him. Honestly, Mark by the Series Finale almost seems dumber than Teen Mark sometimes.

-This is thankfully righted a bit by the Grand Finale, with Mark leading the Viltrumites into what Nolan had only PRETENDED they'd been doing- creating an almost literal World Betterment Committee.

Mark's Stats:
-So Mark is a very combat-focused hero, lacking alot of the Skills normally necessary for a solo hero. It makes sense, though- he's skipped out on school to a huge degree to focus on world-saving, he's diplomatic but no master at any social skills, relatively easy to fool, even by those closest to him, and he hasn't any real technical skills. Figuring out his PL throughout the eras (because yes, there are differing levels- this series takes a LOT from Dragon Ball Z in the way that he hero grows in strength over time) is kinda tough, but I just settled on a fairly low-accuracy guy who's a monster-powerhouse. By #60, Mark is capable of tearing a building apart with his bare hands, but he's no martial artist. And apparently he can't really use his super-speed to hit people dozens of times, because he's never done it, ever. 

-The issue of Regeneration in my opinion comes up because the series has one of the largest cases of "Hero Battle Damage" I've ever seen, and it's established that they recover real fast. Hell, one Viltrumite has his guts torn out, and he survives to reappear later. Mark is DISEMBOWELED at one point; his spine also torn in half, and he recovers over a period of months just by having his body held together by a cape. Impalement, limb-tearing and anything short of shredding someone's torso or shattering/tearing off their heads is nothing serious to a Viltrumite.

-All things considered, Mark is pretty much just a Flying Brick of high power, especially later on in the series, kept in check PL-wise by relatively low accuracy. He's good enough too, that 90% of his villains roster hasn't a hope against him in combat: He's pummelled the second-string villain squad senseless numerous times, and it took DOZENS of super-strong Mauler Twins clones to threaten his life.

Image

INVINCIBLE (Mark Grayson)- ROOKIE HERO
Role:
The Hero, Teen-Hero-Grown-Up, Flying Brick, Impulsive Moron
PL 9 (122)
STRENGTH
11 STAMINA 10 AGILITY 2
FIGHTING 7 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Expertise (Pop Culture) 4 (+5)
Insight 2 (+3)
Intimidation 3 (+6)
Perception 3 (+4)
Persuasion 4 (+7)

Advantages:
All-Out Attack, Fast Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Interpose, Move-By Action, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 2

Powers:
"Viltrumite Physiology"
"Flying Brick"
Flight 7 (250 mph) [14]
"That Super-Speed Stuff They Eventually Started Ignoring" Quickness 2 [2]

"Flies In Space"
Immunity 3 (Heat, Cold, Pressure) [3]
Movement 1 (Space Travel) [2]

"Hard To Kill"
Immunity 4 (Aging, Suffocation, Radiation, Disease) (Flaws: Limited to Half-Effect) [2]
Regeneration 2 [2]

Offense:
Unarmed +7 (+11 Damage, DC 26)
Initiative +6

Defenses:
Dodge +7 (DC 17), Parry +7 (DC 17), Toughness +10, Fortitude +10, Will +7

Complications: 
Relationship (William)- Mark & William were old High School buddies, but William is growing increasingly annoyed and distant from his college roomie, believing him to be ignoring their missing friend, Rick Sheridan.
Relationship (Atom Eve)- Eve is Mark's best friend, and his partner in crime-fighting. The two communicate like no one else in his life. He's all but blind to her true feelings, however.
Relationship (Omni-Man- Father)- Mark deeply respected his father for years, and was devastated upon finding out he'd been a villain all long. He refused to fight his father and nearly died, then tried to pick up the pieces of his life.
Relationship (Debbie Grayson- Mother)- Mark gets extremely violent if his mother is threatened, but often has little time for her.
---
Enemy (The Viltrumite Empire)- Mark has been charged to become the Viltrumite Agent on Earth- if he does not enact a Viltrumite overthrow of the planet, he will be executed for treason.
Responsibility (Viltrumite Rage)- All Viltrumites get angry very quickly, and restraining themselves in times of anger is extremely difficult.
Enemy (Angstrom Levy)- Angstrom believes that Mark is responsible for his deformities, and now seeks to use his Dimension Hopping powers to punish the hero, whose identity he knows.
Relationship (Cecil Stedman)- Cecil is Mark's eyes and ears on the planet Earth, directing him towards where he needs to be.
Weakness (High-Level Sonics)- Viltrumites require inner-ear stability in order to fly, and can be incapacitated by certain degrees of sonic pulses.

Total: Abilities: 70 / Skills: 16--8 / Advantages: 9 / Powers: 25 / Defenses: 10 (122)

-Mark in his rookie year is still better than most of the heroes on the planet, and can easily defeat villains like The Elephant, Furnace, Magmaniac and Titan. However, going up against his PL 14 FATHER is an entirely different matter...

Image

The 924th most-bloody scene in "Invincible" history.

INVINCIBLE (Mark Grayson)- ON THE MANTIS PLANET
Role:
The Hero, Teen-Hero-Grown-Up, Flying Brick, Impulsive Moron
PL 10 (134)
STRENGTH
12 STAMINA 11 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 8 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Expertise (Pop Culture) 4 (+5)
Insight 2 (+3)
Intimidation 3 (+6)
Perception 3 (+4)
Persuasion 4 (+7)

Advantages:
All-Out Attack, Fast Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Interpose, Move-By Action, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 2

Powers:
"Viltrumite Physiology"
"Flying Brick"
Flight 8 (500 mph) [16]
"That Super-Speed Stuff They Eventually Started Ignoring" Quickness 2 [2]

"Flies In Space"
Immunity 3 (Heat, Cold, Pressure) [3]
Movement 1 (Space Travel) [2]

"Hard To Kill"
Immunity 4 (Aging, Suffocation, Radiation, Disease) (Flaws: Limited to Half-Effect) [2]
Regeneration 3 [3]

Offense:
Unarmed +8 (+12 Damage, DC 27)
Initiative +7

Defenses:
Dodge +8 (DC 18), Parry +8 (DC 18), Toughness +11, Fortitude +11, Will +7

Complications: 
Relationship (Amber)- Mark is deeply in love with Amber, though he fears he is breaking her heart by constantly leaving Earth for weeks at a time.
Relationship (Atom Eve)- Eve is Mark's best friend, and his partner in crime-fighting. The two communicate like no one else in his life. He's all but blind to her true feelings, however.
Relationship (William)- Mark & William were old High School buddies, but William is growing increasingly annoyed and distant from his college roomie, believing him to be ignoring their missing friend, Rick Sheridan.
Relationship (Omni-Man- Father)- Mark deeply respected his father for years, and was devastated upon finding out he'd been a villain all long. He refused to fight his father and nearly died, then tried to pick up the pieces of his life. Eventually, the two truly bonded.
Relationship (Debbie Grayson- Mother)- Mark gets extremely violent if his mother is threatened, but often has little time for her.
---
Enemy (The Viltrumite Empire)- Mark has been charged to become the Viltrumite Agent on Earth- if he does not enact a Viltrumite overthrow of the planet, he will be executed for treason.
Responsibility (Viltrumite Rage)- All Viltrumites get angry very quickly, and restraining themselves in times of anger is extremely difficult.
Enemy (Angstrom Levy)- Angstrom believes that Mark is responsible for his deformities, and now seeks to use his Dimension Hopping powers to punish the hero, whose identity he knows.
Relationship (Cecil Stedman)- Cecil is Mark's eyes and ears on the planet Earth, directing him towards where he needs to be.
Weakness (High-Level Sonics)- Viltrumites require inner-ear stability in order to fly, and can be incapacitated by certain degrees of sonic pulses.

Total: Abilities: 78 / Skills: 16--8 / Advantages: 9 / Powers: 28 / Defenses: 11 (134)

-Mark by the time he arrives on the Mantis People's planet and reunites with his father is still very strong, and a capable hero. But when three Viltrumites touch down on the planet, he realizes just how much he still has to learn. One single adult male Viltrumite easily defeats him, outpaces him, and would have easily killed him had Mark's father not intervened, eventually taking a crippling blow. Mark, nearly crippled, is left on the planet and put in charge of taking over Earth.

Image

INVINCIBLE (Mark Grayson)- CIRCA FIFTY ISSUES IN
Role:
The Hero, Teen-Hero-Grown-Up, Flying Brick, Impulsive Moron
PL 11 (143)
STRENGTH
13 STAMINA 12 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 9 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Expertise (Pop Culture) 4 (+5)
Insight 2 (+3)
Intimidation 5 (+8)
Perception 3 (+4)
Persuasion 6 (+9)

Advantages:
All-Out Attack, Fast Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Interpose, Move-By Action, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 2

Powers:
"Viltrumite Physiology"
"Flying Brick"
Flight 8 (500 mph) [16]
"That Super-Speed Stuff They Eventually Started Ignoring" Quickness 2 [2]

"Flies In Space"
Immunity 3 (Heat, Cold, Pressure) [3]
Movement 1 (Space Travel) [2]

"Hard To Kill"
Immunity 4 (Aging, Suffocation, Radiation, Disease) (Flaws: Limited to Half-Effect) [2]
Regeneration 3 [3]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+14 Damage, DC 29)
Initiative +7

Defenses:
Dodge +9 (DC 19), Parry +9 (DC 19), Toughness +12, Fortitude +12, Will +7

Complications: 
Relationship (Atom Eve)- Mark is deeply in love with Atom Eve, frequently feeling guilt over how much she suffers due to him.
Relationship (William)- Mark & William were old High School buddies, but William is growing increasingly annoyed and distant from his college roomie, believing him to be ignoring their missing friend, Rick Sheridan.
Relationship (Omni-Man- Father)- Mark deeply respected his father for years, and was devastated upon finding out he'd been a villain all long. He refused to fight his father and nearly died, then tried to pick up the pieces of his life. Eventually, the two truly bonded.
Relationship (Debbie Grayson- Mother)- Mark gets extremely violent if his mother is threatened, but often has little time for her.
Relationship (Oliver- Brother)- Mark doesn't get along that well with Oliver at times- he's too impulsive, violent and inhuman at times. But he reacts poorly when Oliver is hurt, and was protective over him for a long time.
---
Enemy (The Viltrumite Empire)- Mark has been charged to become the Viltrumite Agent on Earth- if he does not enact a Viltrumite overthrow of the planet, he will be executed for treason.
Responsibility (Viltrumite Rage)- All Viltrumites get angry very quickly, and restraining themselves in times of anger is extremely difficult.
Enemy (Angstrom Levy)- Angstrom believes that Mark is responsible for his deformities, and now seeks to use his Dimension Hopping powers to punish the hero, whose identity he knows.
Relationship (Cecil Stedman)- Cecil is Mark's eyes and ears on the planet Earth, directing him towards where he needs to be.
Weakness (High-Level Sonics)- Viltrumites require inner-ear stability in order to fly, and can be incapacitated by certain degrees of sonic pulses.

Total: Abilities: 84 / Skills: 20--10 / Advantages: 9 / Powers: 28 / Defenses: 12 (143)

-Mark at this point is quite powerful, but still inexperienced. Full-grown, pure-blooded Viltrumites are a bit beyond him still.

Image

INVINCIBLE (Mark Grayson)- THE INVINCIBLE/VILTRUMITE WARS
Role:
The Hero, Teen-Hero-Grown-Up, Flying Brick, Impulsive Moron
PL 12 (160)
STRENGTH
14 STAMINA 13 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Expertise (Pop Culture) 4 (+5)
Insight 2 (+3)
Intimidation 5 (+8)
Perception 3 (+4)
Persuasion 6 (+9)

Advantages:
All-Out Attack, Chokehold, Fast Grab, Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative 2, Interpose, Last Stand (Ignores All Damage For 1 Round w/ HP Spent), Move-By Action, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 2

Powers:
"Viltrumite Physiology"
"Flying Brick"
Flight 10 (2,000 mph) [20]
"That Super-Speed Stuff They Eventually Started Ignoring" Quickness 2 [2]

"Flies In Space"
Immunity 3 (Heat, Cold, Pressure) [3]
Movement 1 (Space Travel) [2]

"Hard To Kill"
Immunity 4 (Aging, Suffocation, Radiation, Disease) (Flaws: Limited to Half-Effect) [2]
Regeneration 5 [5]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+14 Damage, DC 29)
Initiative +11

Defenses:
Dodge +9 (DC 19), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +13, Fortitude +13, Will +8

Complications: 
Relationship (Atom Eve)- Mark is deeply in love with Atom Eve, frequently feeling guilt over how much she suffers due to him.
Relationship (Omni-Man- Father)- Mark deeply respected his father for years, and was devastated upon finding out he'd been a villain all long. He refused to fight his father and nearly died, then tried to pick up the pieces of his life. Eventually, the two truly bonded.
Relationship (Debbie Grayson- Mother)- Mark gets extremely violent if his mother is threatened, but often has little time for her.
Relationship (Oliver- Brother)- Mark doesn't get along that well with Oliver at times- he's too impulsive, violent and inhuman at times. But he reacts poorly when Oliver is hurt, and was protective over him for a long time.
---
Enemy (Thragg, The Viltrumite Empire)- The Grand Regent of the Viltrumites wishes to extinguish the heirs to the bloodline of the throne, and rule the universe.
Responsibility (Viltrumite Rage)- All Viltrumites get angry very quickly, and restraining themselves in times of anger is extremely difficult.
Enemy (Angstrom Levy)- Angstrom believes that Mark is responsible for his deformities, and now seeks to use his Dimension Hopping powers to punish the hero, whose identity he knows. He even leads a dozen Evil Invincibles from parallel Earths to Mark's home planet, demolishing much of it.
Rivalry (Cecil Stedman)- Cecil directs superhuman activities over much of the Earth, but does some highly-questionable things to keep the planet safe. This jibes strongly against Mark's sense of right and wrong, and he finally turns on Cecil before the "Invincible War", assaulting him for hiring on lunatics like the second Darkwing, and D.A. Sinclair.
Weakness (High-Level Sonics)- Viltrumites require inner-ear stability in order to fly, and can be incapacitated by certain degrees of sonic pulses.

Total: Abilities: 90 / Skills: 20--10 / Advantages: 13 / Powers: 34 / Defenses: 13 (160)

-Mark circa The Invincible War is incredibly powerful, but beat-able. A dozen Evil Parallel Invincibles from other worlds can still lay waste to entire cities, and maim entire superhuman teams, but are beatable with great effort- one is slain by Pitt, Rex Splode kills one in a suicide attack, and one is killed when all of the Reanimen, Donald and everyone else at the Pentagon dogpile him, at great cost ot themselves. This is one of those bits where it's oddly clear where a hero lies, because Invincible is the most powerful hero on the planet, but it's clear that he COULD be stopped- just with a lot of casualties. Darkwing & Rex are KIA, while Atom Eve nearly loses her legs, and Bulletproof loses a hand. When The Viltrumite War happens, Mark is around the same level- it's clear that the villainous Conquest is MUCH stronger than Mark is, and Mark only wins by Limit Breaking and beating the villain while he's nearly crippled. He's also maimed horribly in their SECOND clash, strangling the guy to death while he disembowels Mark.

Image

INVINCIBLE (Mark Grayson)- PRE-ABANDONING EARTH
Role:
The Hero, Teen-Hero-Grown-Up, Flying Brick, Impulsive Moron
PL 13 (172)
STRENGTH
16 STAMINA 15 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Expertise (Pop Culture) 4 (+5)
Insight 2 (+3)
Intimidation 5 (+8)
Perception 3 (+4)
Persuasion 6 (+9)

Advantages:
All-Out Attack, Chokehold, Fast Grab, Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative 2, Interpose, Last Stand (Ignores All Damage For 1 Round w/ HP Spent), Move-By Action, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 2

Powers:
"Viltrumite Physiology"
"Flying Brick"
Flight 12 (8,000 mph) [24]
"That Super-Speed Stuff They Eventually Started Ignoring" Quickness 2 [2]

"Flies In Space"
Immunity 3 (Heat, Cold, Pressure) [3]
Movement 1 (Space Travel) [2]

"Hard To Kill"
Immunity 4 (Aging, Suffocation, Radiation, Disease) (Flaws: Limited to Half-Effect) [2]
Regeneration 5 [5]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+16 Damage, DC 31)
Initiative +11

Defenses:
Dodge +9 (DC 19), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +15, Fortitude +15, Will +8

Complications: 
Relationship (Atom Eve)- Mark is deeply in love with Atom Eve, frequently feeling guilt over how much she suffers due to him.
Relationship (Terra- Daughter)- Mark loves his daughter so much, he cost the lives of millions to go back to his real timeline instead of fixing the Earth and preventing many tragedies from occurring. Missing out on her youth shattered him emotionally.
Relationship (Omni-Man- Father)- Mark deeply respected his father for years, and was devastated upon finding out he'd been a villain all long. He refused to fight his father and nearly died, then tried to pick up the pieces of his life. Eventually, the two truly bonded.
Relationship (Debbie Grayson- Mother)- Mark gets extremely violent if his mother is threatened, but often has little time for her.
Relationship (Oliver- Brother)- Mark doesn't get along that well with Oliver at times- he's too impulsive, violent and inhuman at times. But he reacts poorly when Oliver is hurt, and was protective over him for a long time.
---
Responsibility (The Viltrumite Empire)- Mark is heir to the Viltrumite throne, and now the people are his responsibility.
Enemy (Thragg)- The Grand Regent of the Viltrumites wishes to extinguish the heirs to the bloodline of the throne, and rule the universe.
Enemy (Robot)- Robot took over the entire Earth, and seems perfectly willing to exile or kill Mark in order to maintain power.
Responsibility (Viltrumite Rage)- All Viltrumites get angry very quickly, and restraining themselves in times of anger is extremely difficult.
Reputation (Villain)- Mark is blamed for causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people when Dinosaurus enacted his revolutionary environmental plans.
Responsibility (Raped by Anissa)- The evil Viltrumite got aggressive with Mark, decided to mate with him, and didn't take his refusal kindly. Mark now gets a bit jumpy in sexual situations, and Anissa taunting him about their Snu-Snu only makes it worse.
Weakness (High-Level Sonics)- Viltrumites require inner-ear stability in order to fly, and can be incapacitated by certain degrees of sonic pulses.

Total: Abilities: 98 / Skills: 20--10 / Advantages: 13 / Powers: 38 / Defenses: 13 (172)

-Mark, around the time he was held down and taken against his will by Anissa, is quite powerful, but has limits against the more powerful Viltrumites, such as Anissa, his father and Grand Regent Thragg. And yes, I used that as a power barometer for both characters. IT'S USEFUL STATISTICAL INFORMATION, OKAY?

Image

INVINCIBLE (Mark Grayson)- SERIES END
Role:
The Hero, Teen-Hero-Grown-Up, Flying Brick, Impulsive Moron
PL 14 (179)
STRENGTH
18 STAMINA 16 AGILITY 3
FIGHTING 10 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Expertise (Pop Culture) 4 (+5)
Insight 2 (+3)
Intimidation 5 (+8)
Perception 3 (+4)
Persuasion 6 (+9)

Advantages:
All-Out Attack, Chokehold, Fast Grab, Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative 2, Interpose, Last Stand (Ignores All Damage For 1 Round w/ HP Spent), Move-By Action, Power Attack, Ranged Attack 2

Powers:
"Viltrumite Physiology"
"Flying Brick"
Flight 12 (8,000 mph) [24]
"That Super-Speed Stuff They Eventually Started Ignoring" Quickness 2 [2]

"Flies In Space"
Immunity 3 (Heat, Cold, Pressure) [3]
Movement 1 (Space Travel) [2]

"Hard To Kill"
Immunity 4 (Aging, Suffocation, Radiation, Disease) (Flaws: Limited to Half-Effect) [2]
Regeneration 5 [5]

Offense:
Unarmed +10 (+18 Damage, DC 33)
Initiative +11

Defenses:
Dodge +10 (DC 20), Parry +10 (DC 20), Toughness +16, Fortitude +16, Will +8

Complications: 
Relationship (Atom Eve)- Mark is deeply in love with Atom Eve, frequently feeling guilt over how much she suffers due to him.
Relationship (Terra- Daughter)- Mark loves his daughter so much, he cost the lives of millions to go back to his real timeline instead of fixing the Earth and preventing many tragedies from occurring. Missing out on her youth shattered him emotionally.
Relationship (Omni-Man- Father)- Mark deeply respected his father for years, and was devastated upon finding out he'd been a villain all long. He refused to fight his father and nearly died, then tried to pick up the pieces of his life. Eventually, the two truly bonded.
Relationship (Debbie Grayson- Mother)- Mark gets extremely violent if his mother is threatened, but often has little time for her.
Relationship (Oliver- Brother)- Mark doesn't get along that well with Oliver at times- he's too impulsive, violent and inhuman at times. But he reacts poorly when Oliver is hurt, and was protective over him for a long time.
---
Responsibility (The Viltrumite Empire)- Mark is heir to the Viltrumite throne, and now the people are his responsibility.
Enemy (Thragg)- The Grand Regent of the Viltrumites wishes to extinguish the heirs to the bloodline of the throne, and rule the universe.
Enemy (Robot)- Robot took over the entire Earth, and seems perfectly willing to exile or kill Mark in order to maintain power.
Reputation (Villain)- Mark is blamed for causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people when Dinosaurus enacted his revolutionary environmental plans.
Responsibility (Viltrumite Rage)- All Viltrumites get angry very quickly, and restraining themselves in times of anger is extremely difficult.
Weakness (High-Level Sonics)- Viltrumites require inner-ear stability in order to fly, and can be incapacitated by certain degrees of sonic pulses.

Total: Abilities: 104 / Skills: 20--10 / Advantages: 13 / Powers: 38 / Defenses: 14 (179)

-Mark's statline really indicates how poorly well-rounded he is as a superhero. Powerful as a god, but almost no Deception, Investigation, Expertise or anything- he leans on other people to point out crimes for him, can't tell when people are lying to him, gets tricked repeatedly, and he's often kind of an idiot. And only twelve Advantages for a hero who's been around for this long?

-Mark by the end of the series is fully PL 14, having spent some time away, built up his powers, and been healing back by Atom Eve, STRONGER than before. Because of course in this series power-ups come easy.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 11, 2022 8:49 am, edited 3 times in total.
DominusExMachina
Posts: 37
Joined: Wed Aug 16, 2017 11:37 pm

Re: Jab's Builds!

Post by DominusExMachina »

Some long-overdue stuff I need to get out in the open first:
bsdigitalq wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 5:33 pm
DominusExMachina wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 4:10 pmWell, the DC Comics Database isn't the only place to look up info on DC's characters: there's Comicvine, among others.
I don't think there's any real point in statting up the League of Ancients in any fashion. The Joe Kelly JLA run is one of my favorites, and apart from Rama Khan, Manitou Raven, and Gammanae, they're basically all just cool-looking background characters. The ridiculously light bios for them online are pretty accurate in showing how much of a non-entity these characters are.
"Cool-looking" would be an understatement, Jab: someone able to create hard-light weaponry without needing to use a power ring would make for an unusual opponent, as would someone clad in indestructible ancient armor (albeit armor that needed to be ritualistically oiled with the blood of its wearer's victims, which would make for a pretty morbid Complication)...

But then again, to say their bios are light on information would be an understatement in its own right...
Jabroniville wrote: Fri Jan 12, 2018 7:43 am
DominusExMachina wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 4:10 pmWell, the DC Comics Database isn't the only place to look up info on DC's characters: there's Comicvine, among others.
Oh yeah, I'm quite familiar with ComicVine- that's where I get all my pictures from :)! And much of the biographical info for anyone who isn't on Wikipedia. It's usually step #2, followed by Marvunapp (which has more info, but is often a slog to read, especially as they don't let you copy their text for the most part). Alas, DC fans just aren't good about putting information online. The multiple reboots of the line probably don't help.
No argument there, Jab...and yeah, DC's continuity has more holes in it than Swiss cheese...
Jabroniville wrote: Fri Jan 12, 2018 7:43 am
DominusExMachina wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2018 4:10 pmSpeaking of the lovely Maj. Kusanagi & Co., have you ever thought about doing any Ghost in the Shell builds?
I've thought about it, but I find the series dreadfully boring and pretentious, so I'd probably just annoy (read: ROYALLY piss off) the fans if I did :). The first movie is beautifully-shot and scored, though.
You'd probably annoy (again, read: ROYALLY piss off) fans even more if you didn't...
Ken wrote: Fri Jan 12, 2018 11:44 pmSo, since Overwatch is a first person shooter, can one, when using Tracer, adjust the view so that her golden buttocks are always on screen? 'Cause that would give people even more to complain about.
That'll never happen, Ken...that'll NEVER happen.
Jabroniville wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2018 2:18 am
DominusExMachina wrote: Thu Jan 18, 2018 11:38 pm
Ken wrote: Thu Jan 18, 2018 9:49 pmFunny, I thought Hanzo would be a sword guy. " If you're gonna compare a Hanzo sword, you compare it to every sword ever made -- wasn't made by Hattori Hanzo."
Mmmm....Kill Bill reference...nice.

Hmmm...(strokes Pai Mei-esque beard)...makes me wonder if Jab should do some Kill Bill character builds in the future...
I was gonna be all "UGH- another request?", but then I remembered I needed a handful of builds to push back the Black Panther set until February, because I realized that was Black History Month and the timing was perfect :).
Well, I saw your Kill Bill builds, Jab, and they were simply to die for.
Jabroniville wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2018 2:18 am
HalloweenJack wrote: Fri Jan 19, 2018 1:15 amI tried once to get him to do Tarantino characters as a whole and he said they were basically like Ennis characters and just left it at that
?? I don't remember that. I just haven't seen that many of his movies.
Neither have I, Jab: the only Tarantino films I've seen (in their entirety) are Kill Bill: Vol 1 & 2 (2003 & 2004, respectively), Inglourious Basterds (2009), and Django Unchained (2012).

Now that all that's out of the way, Jab:

Your Overwatch builds: I loved them (your comments on how to "Comic Book-ize" each character being of particular interest)
Your real-life dinosaur builds: I loved them (the builds for Indomius Rex and Ultimasaurus notwithstanding).
Your Dino-Riders builds: not really my cup of tea (mainly on account of the fact that I've never seen the show on TV or the products in stores).
Your Kill Bill builds: as I said, I loved them all...TO DEATH!

(DominusExMachina coughs and quietly assumes John Cleese-esque British accent) And now for something completely different...
Jabroniville wrote: Wed Feb 14, 2018 11:52 am Image

WHERE IS YOUR GOD NOW???

F*@#ING TERRIFYING CHOCOLATE MAN
Created By:
Satan (by way of Unilever Corp.)
Role: Soulless Abomination, One-Off Product Mascot
PL 10 (136)
STRENGTH
2 STAMINA -- AGILITY 2
FIGHTING 4 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 1 AWARENESS 1 PRESENCE 2

Skills:
Insight 4 (+5)
Perception 2 (+3)
Persuasion 4 (+6)

Advantages:
Daze (Deception)

Powers:
"Chocolate Man Form"
Immunity 30 (Fortitude Effects) [30]
Protection 2 [2]
Regeneration 6 (Feats: Regrows Limbs) (Flaws: Source- Chocolate) [4]

"Irresistable To Women" Affliction 10 (Fort; Entranced/Compelled/Controlled) (Extras: Area- Scent Perception, Reaction +3) (Flaws: Limited to Lust, Limited to Women) [30]
"Terrifying to Men" Affliction 10 (Fort; Entranced/Compelled/Controlled) (Extras: Area- Scent Perception, Reaction +3) (Flaws: Limited to Mortal F*@#*ing Terror, Limited to Men) [30]
Weaken Stamina 6 (Extras: Progressive +2) (Flaws: Limited to Dogs, Limited to When Consumed) [6]

Offense:
Unarmed +4 (+2 Damage, DC 17)
Afflictions +10 Area (+10 Affliction, DC 20)
Initiative +2

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

Complications:
Vulnerable (Heat)- The F*@#ing Terrifying Chocolate Man will melt in direct sunlight, or from heat-based attacks.
Normal Identity (Human)- Regular applications of Axe Body Spray are required for the F*@#ing Terrifying Chocolate Man to maintain his powers.

Total: Abilities: 14 / Skills: 10--5 / Advantages: 10 / Powers: 102 / Defenses: 5 (136)

-Okay, so way, WAY back, all the way to March 2009, I interrupted my Legion of Super-Heroes builds with this insane creation- something from one of many clever commercials AXE Body Spray released. These commercials were rather amazing in their simplicity- they advertised to young men, promising that women would immediately begin to try and rape them if they tried the product (Bill Hicks predicts that the ads of the future will simply just be naked women with the words "Drink Coke" next to them). And since they were targeting YOUNG MEN, these "Sex For Product" ads were horrifyingly effective, and AXE soon began selling like wildfire (of course, *I* never tried all of the various scents...), along with competitors like TAG. I know plenty of women who claimed to like it, but the sprays eventually gained the reputation of being something only used by young, immature males, usually to excess. To the point where I think the "Body Spray" fad ended up dying.

-But still, some of the commercials were hilarious. This one featured a man spraying himself with a "chocolate" scent and turning into the very embodiment of the Uncanny Valley, which led to him being repeatedly chased down and bitten by women, one of whom tore off his arm in a drive-by molesting. The commercial was designed to be off-putting and humorous all at the same time... but I'm not sure if anybody ever actually wanted to smell like chocolate.

-Relatively unskilled and unweidly in combat, the Chocolate Man can nonetheless mess with your emotions something FIERCE, terrifying the men and enrapturing the women. And, as evidenced by the "AXE" ads, he suffers very little from women eating his body, even to the point of tearing LIMBS off! Truly a horrific opponent. Plus, he's poisonous to dogs.
I remember the commercial this..."guy"...was in...and even after all this time, it's still just as off-putting.

I could easily see M&M 3E taking something like this and running with it...possibly making it a minion of some "Silver Age"-centric, gimmick-based villain called the Chocolatier...

Wait a minute...M&M...Chocolatier...(DominusExMachina's head explodes in grisly Scanners-esque display)...

Anyhoo, I see you've started with your Invincible builds, so here's hoping the Super Sons aren't far behind...
Last edited by DominusExMachina on Fri Feb 16, 2018 6:37 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Ares
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Re: Jab's Builds! (Black Tom! The Beast! Pacific Overlords! INVINCIBLE!)

Post by Ares »

You know, Mark could actually be the perfect example of why superheroes NEED a secret identity and a normal life. Mark basically focused on being a superhero to the exclusion of all else, he spent most of his career being told by other people what to do, and his style of combat is exclusively about using overwhelming force. That works out in his version of the Invincible-Image-verse, but in the DC or Marvel universes I imagine he'd be in a lot more trouble.

Basically, since he never really had to spend time as a normal guy, he never got good at making up superhero excuses, thinking on his feet, or developing a supporting cast that helped keep him grounded. He also was just too happy to be led around by his dad, not-Nick Fury, Alan, Robot, Eve, and Dinosaurus, and when he rebelled against them, he often acted incredibly impulsive. And it wasn't like these people were mentoring him on how to be a proper superhero, they were just telling him what to do, and usually he did it. So he neither got actual training in superheroing from an experienced hero, nor was he mostly on his own and figuring stuff out for himself.

He also only ever fought guys on his level every once in a while, and since all of them were just different flavors of brick, he just traded blows with them until someone stopped moving. He never really had to develop any clever combat tactics, unique uses for his superpowers, brick tricks, etc. The only thing that saved him was that he was a Sayian-style alien (get a lot stronger with training and near death power-ups) in a superhero setting where every non-Viltrumite not named Alan tended to have static power-levels. If he'd been forced to stick with his original power level or grow into his power more slowly, he'd have had to become a much more balanced and clever superhero.

To give Mark some credit, he did spend some time trying to solve problems without violence. He talked one gadget criminal into using his science to help people, he talked down some interdimensional super alien into not draining the Earth of all its power, he talked down that one guy with the lightning powers who kept trying to kill him, etc. When he tried to be diplomatic he could often do some genuine good. The problem was that the series increasingly rewarded him for just beating the tar out of stuff, so he stopped trying to use diplomacy as much.

In essence, Mark should be a cautionary tale for other superheroes. He demonstrates why traditional superhero tropes exist.
"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
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Re: Jab's Builds! (Black Tom! The Beast! Pacific Overlords! INVINCIBLE!)

Post by Jabroniville »

Oh, and here's the link to my "as I read it" summation of the entire series, in a thread Ares made after the book's ending was announced: viewtopic.php?f=18&t=601

For this set, I should point out that MANY of the supporting characters do so little fighting that they're not worth statting. Even named superheroes that show up in a few issues don't really earn it. So a handful of these will just be minor notes on the character, with some indication of what they can do. Anyone who can be will be statted, however.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Art

Post by Jabroniville »

Image

ART THE TAILOR (Full Name Unknown)
Role:
Background Character, The Practical Guy
Group Affiliations: None
PL 1 (29), PL 3 (29) Saves
STRENGTH
0 STAMINA 1 AGILITY 0
FIGHTING 0 DEXTERITY 0
INTELLIGENCE 4 AWARENESS 4 PRESENCE 3

Skills:
Deception 3 (+6)
Expertise (Super-Costuming) 6 (+10)
Insight 1 (+5)

Offense:
Unarmed +0 (+0 Damage, DC 10)
Initiative +0

Defenses:
Dodge +0 (DC 10), Parry +0 (DC 10), Toughness +1, Fortitude +1, Will +4

Complications:
Relationship (Omni-Man)- Art considered Nolan a good friend, and was shattered at the revelation of Nolan's evil nature.
Relationship (The Graysons)- Following Nolan's betrayal and abandonment of Earth, Art takes Mark & Debbie under his wing, talking them through the aftermath and forming strong bonds with them both.
Motivation (Costuming Super-Heroes)- Art does the costumes for most super-heroes, and takes pride in his work. He once gave Shrinking Ray a freebie costume because "I felt bad about that last one- it was just a Fantastic Four uniform with the Four replaced with an R". He's once annoyed when Shapesmith merely adopts the costume Art had designed as part of his morphing capabilities. "You're not going to pay me, are you?" "For what?" *smiles and runs off*

Total: Abilities: 24 / Skills: 10--5 / Advantages: 0 / Powers: 0 / Defenses: 0 (29)

-I really liked Art- both conceptually and as a character. He really fits the "Little Things" aspect of comics the way Mark Gruenwald used to, answering just WHERE these heroes go to get all this gear. The Incredibles does the same thing with the scene-stealing Edna Mode, but Art is a more practical, down-to-Earth sort of guy, and has some pretty interesting comments here and there. When Mark is getting his first costume, he can't quite verbalize his desires, using the word "iconic", and Art immediately goes into a thing about how "Everyone wants ICONIC, but nobody can quite tell what that means- I get it".

-Art and Omni-Man were quite good friends, and so after the revelation that Nolan wants to take over Earth, Art is hurt, but has to help Mark and Debbie deal with his betrayal as well. So after this point, he gives a lot of practical advice, but is mostly just a shoulder to lean on- having been betrayed by Nolan as well, he can see where they're coming from.

-Art's last major appearance of note is right before The Viltrumite War, giving Mark his original costume back (a year-long stint in a black & blue one didn't go over so well with fans), albeit with some modifications here and there. We see him one final time in the end, creating one more "iconic" costume.
Last edited by Jabroniville on Wed May 11, 2022 8:51 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jabroniville
Posts: 24689
Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:05 pm

Re: Jab's Builds! (Black Tom! The Beast! Pacific Overlords! INVINCIBLE!)

Post by Jabroniville »

OMG, new Incredibles 2 trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBpdL9hSac4

Thank God they didn't reduce the size of Helen's a-- I mean, this looks like an inventive new look at their world, with many new astute observations about modern life.
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