Baron Blitzkrieg

Here's a WW II super-villain for all you MP fans. He was a re-occurring foe of the All-Star Squadron. Note that most of his super-abilities, including his attacks and his defenses, are part of a Multi-Ability structure so that only one ability may be active at a time.



Baron Blitzkrieg is a trademark owned by DC Comics

Batman

Here's my Bronze-Age, Mighty Protectors version of Batman and the Batmobile. I should point out that his suit and cowl have a lot of linked abilities, including: Adaptation, Armor, Communicators, Heightened Senses, and a Vox Changer, which is just an ability that I made-up. It functions like Illusions, disguising his voice so that no one can tell he's really Bruce Wayne.

His Base includes Wayne Manor and the "Bat Cave" below it. The base would provide the necessary garages and hangar space for his Batmobile, Batcycle, Batcopter, and Bat Boat, along with his computer and crime labs.

I didn't give Batman any additional languages, although I'm sure there are times when he is shown speaking a foreign tongue.

I should also point out something about two of the arsenal slots, the "flashbang" devices: they are linked to one another so that the two slots essentially become 1 slot, with 3 total charges. He throws one of the flashbangs and it both blinds and deafens the targets in the area diameter (assuming they fail their EN saves, 'natch). Linking two Arsenal slots may not be technically allowed, but I felt that even if it isn't totally kosher, it was a small price to pay to get the effect I wanted.

Batman Sheet (PDF)

Batman Arsenal (Link)

Note: the 2nd column says "Spell". Ignore this typo; each slot is a device. Because Slot #4 is such a low CP ability, it could (and probably should) be "split" to allow for additional device slots. These lower CP slots could contain things like fingerprint detection, infrared beam detection, etc.

Batmobile Sheet (PDF)

Notes: The "super-leap" ability a means of modeling the batmobile's ejection seats. The integral Invulnerability to sharp kinetic damage is to make it "bullet-proof".



Batman is a trademark owned by DC Comics

Superman

Here's my late Bronze-Age, post-Crisis on Infinite Earths, Mighty Protectors version of the Man of Steel. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not much of an authority on Superman, seeing as how I never collected the comic book. This write-up is more of an interpretation of his stats and abilities from reading about what his powers were like in that bronze-age time-period. He's far less powerful than the Golden/Silver Age where he was sometimes shown dragging planets around, but he's still super-powerful, especially from a Mighty Protectors point of view, where he stretches, but doesn't break, the boundaries of what is possible.

Superman Character Sheet (PDF)

Notes

I made him strong enough to lift a battleship (which typically weigh about 115 million pounds). If he were to use a battleship as a weapon, i.e., pick it up and swing it down on a foe, he would do about 4d10+3d12+1 points of blunt kinetic damage. He could certainly have more than this level of Strength.

I  gave him Invulnerability to Kinetic and Energy damage types. This is on top of his already formidable level of Armor. However, one could argue that he should also have invulnerability to the Bio and Entropy damage types. I didn't do that because, like I said, I'm not an expert and wasn't sure if he was indeed "invulnerable" to those types of damage.

His "super breath" has two abilities: Ice Blast and Repulsion Blast; he has to pick which one he is using. To figure out the size of the 'cone' area effect, make the end of the cone up to 19" long and draw lines from each edge to the square where he is standing.

Using his Super Speed, he can fly or run at about Mach 5. I gave his Flight the Hyper-Flight modifier because I believe he has been depicted as flying in space at faster-than-light speeds.

Superman's Fortress of Solitude would contain the Bottled City of Kandor, a "zoo" of interplanetary creatures, various science laboratories, and an arsenal of weapons that he has confiscated over the decades.

Superman has other weaknesses that are not listed because he gets no points for them. They include: Personal Problem - Dependents Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen; Susceptibility to Red Kryptonite (causes bizarre changes in his body and/or mind); and a Weakness that deprives Superman of his powers the longer he is removed from the solar radiation of Earth's yellow sun.

Superman is a trademark of DC Comics, Mighty Protectors is a trademark owned by Monkey House Games

Robotman

Origin

Dr. Robert Crane was a brilliant scientist who, along with his skilled assistant Chuck Grayson, had created a metallic humanoid robot and the means to transfer a living human brain into the robot's body.

When armed hoodlums arrived at his estate they thought they could steal one or more "gadgets" that would be worth thousands. Instead, all they found was the inert body of the robot, which they thought was worthless junk. When Dr. Crane tried to stop them he was shot. The hoods quickly ran away but the damage was done and Robert Crane was dying. Chuck Grayson then hit on the idea to transfer Dr. Crane's still-living brain into the robot.

The hoodlums, fearing that Grayson would finger them for the murder of Dr. Grayson, called the police and told them that Chuck Grayson had killed his boss. When the police showed-up, they found the lifeless, and brainless, body of Dr. Crane. Grayson feared that if he told the officers the truth about what happened they would examine the robot and possibly kill Dr. Grayson's brain. So he said nothing and went quietly with the police who take him away.

Dr. Crane eventually wakes-up in his new robot body. After marveling at his new powers, he retrieves the newspaper from his front porch. He is shocked when he reads the headline "Young scientist Dr. Robert Crane murdered by his assistant, Chuck Grayson."

Using his newfound super-abilities, he tracks down one of the hoodlums who shot him. He threatens to harm the thug, who eventually relents and agrees to testify. Robotman takes the hoodlum to the Governor's mansion where he tells the truth about what happened. The Governor then agrees to pardon Chuck Grayson.

After clearing his friend's name he decides that with his new powers he can do a great deal of good by fighting crime. He first joins the Justice Society of America and then later joins the All-Star Squadron.

Robotman Character Sheet (PDF)

MP Ability Notes

Robotman is strong (he hauls in a Nazi U-boat in one issue) but he doesn't have super leap. He has other abilities one would attribute to a robot, such as adaptation and armor. I model his vulnerability to head strikes (due to his human brain) with the Vulnerability weakness. I model his hidden chest compartment with a made-up Trivial ability; he often hides his disguises in this space.

In his origin issue, Robotman talks about how his senses are better than human: he can hear people talking inside their cars, he can see in the infrared spectrum and at telescopic range with his "photo-electric" eyes. In an early All-Star Squadron issue, he catches up to a cab, thus the Speed ability. In the comics it is stated that he weighs 500 lbs., thus I gave him a modified version of Density Increase so that it is always on.

Lastly, Robotman is extremely good at disguising his robot frame, so good that he easily fools people into thinking that he is lawyer "Paul Dennis." Thus, I gave him the Knowledge ability of disguise.

Additional Notes

Robotman originally appeared in Star-Spangled Comics #7-82 from 1942-48 and Detective Comics #138-202 (except #155) from 1948-53. He appears in various issues of All-Star Squadron #1-67 from 1981 to 1987.

This Robotman is no relation to Cliff Steele of the old Doom Patrol and he also never met the Paul Dennis/Robotman of Earth-One.

Robotman is a trademark owned by DC Comics

Liberty Belle

Origin

Libby Lawrence was a famous radio news reporter in the late 1930's. When Poland is invaded by the Nazis in September 1939, her father is killed by an exploding bomb that was dropped by a Luftwaffe fighter. She becomes a fierce opponent of the Nazis, using her radio news broadcasts to inform the world of their atrocities. At one point, she is trapped by the Nazis in France, but she manages to escape their grasp by swimming the English Channel all the way back to England.

Once back in the United States, she meets with and befriends Tom Revere, the guard at the Philadelphia Courthouse where the Liberty Bell is kept. He gives her a tiny replica of the bell which she clips onto her belt.  Later she learns that when the bell is rung, she gains a rush of strength and speed.

She describes her origin in the comic panels below:



In All-Star Squadron #46, she gains a new super ability: a sort of sonic telekinesis. You can see her using her newfound ability against the Nazi supervillain Baron Blitzkrieg below:



Liberty Belle is not terribly powerful. As such, I've constructed her stats and abilities using a "Low Power" level, with a total of 100 CPs.

Liberty Belle Character Sheet (PDF)

Notes

Libby Lawrence was created by Jack Kirby and first appeared December 1st, 1942 in issue #1 of Boy Commandos.

I gave Belle the Companion ability to simulate her friendship with Tom Revere, who is basically just there to ring the Liberty Bell when she needs her "adrenal" powers activated.

Libby only gains her sonic abilities after her friend Tom Revere is killed. So if you want to give her the optional Telekinesis/Sonic Blast multi-ability, you should also get rid of her Companion. Similarly, she no longer requires the Liberty Bell to be rung to activate her "Adrenal" powers... so get rid of the "Special Requirement" modifier and replace it with the Linked modifier.

Liberty Belle is a trademark owned by DC Comics

Shining Knight

Origin

Sir Justin, who later comes to be known as the Shining Knight, was once a member of the Knights of the Round Table in King Arthur's Court. He was one of many knights who witnessed the death of Sir Fallon, Queen Guinevere's cousin, at the hands of an ogre named Blunderbore. Sir Justin then vowed to avenge Sir Fallon's death and began a quest to hunt down the ogre.

While on his quest  he came across the wizard Merlin who was trapped in a tree by a witch. Sir Justin freed the wizard who then thanked the knight by casting various enchantments. His rusty armor and weapons were turned golden and made "invulnerable." His sword was made so powerful it could "cut through anything" as well as remove any magical enchantment. Merlin then enchanted Sir Justin's horse Victory, so that it grew giant feathered wings, enabling him to fly.

Sir Justin left Merlin and continued on his quest to the northern lands. He eventually locates Blunderbore -- and defeats the monster in combat. Before dying, however, the ogre caused an avalanche that buried himself, Sir Justin,  and his horse Winged Victory. Neither Sir Justin nor his steed were killed, however. Instead, they spent the next 1500 years in suspended animation, only being discovered and re-awakened by a museum curator in the year 1941.

Realizing that he must now live in the modern age, Sir Justin decides to use his knightly skills and enchanted abilities to become a crime-fighter. He eventually meets heroes like the Crimson Avenger and Vigilante and others who form the Seven Soldiers of Victory. Later, he is invited to join the All-Star Squadron.

Shining Knight (PDF)

Winged Victory (PDF)

Notes

Sir Justin's enchanted suit of chain mail has some protection against damage, but it also has Invulnerability to the Sharp Kinetic damage type. Arrows, swords, bullets, or any other sharp kinetic damage is reduced to 1/4 of its total after armor protection is applied. His Heightened Defense ability is how I am representing is unbreakable shield. It is not gear, per se, as it cannot be broken, but it requires some room to use and it can be taken from him. Likewise, his enchanted sword has the Not Gear modifier, making it unbreakable (but it can be taken away). His sword also has the Negation ability, able to negate almost any ability as long as that ability is magical in nature.

Shining Knight, Winged Victory, All-Star Squadron are trademarks owned by DC Comics

Johnny Quick

Intro

It is December 7th, 1941 and in issue #1 of the All-Star Squadron, the reader learns that the members of the Justice Society of America have all been defeated by the various super-powered minions of Per Degaton. The various soon-to-be All-Stars make their way to Washington, D.C. (if they aren't already there*) because they have been summoned there by President Roosevelt.

Johnny Chambers, a.k.a. Johnny Quick, literally turns around a corner in D.C. and runs into Libby Lawrence, a.k.a. Liberty Belle. Both make their introductions to each other and then try to enter the White House grounds, only to be rebuffed by a soldier. Thwarted in their secret identities, the two heroes don their superhero costumes. Johnny Quick then picks-up Liberty Belle and uses his super-speed to run past the guards, who mistake the speedster for the Flash, and into the White House.



The two heroes go on to meet the other superheroes as well as the President who informs all of them about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He also asks all of them, except for Plastic Man, to form the All-Star Squadron. The President tells Plastic Man that he will serve as the F.B.I. liaison.

The President then asks the heroes to fly out to the West Coast, to San Francisco, and to be ready in case of another Japanese sneak attack.



Johnny Quick Bio



Johnny Quick Mighty Protectors Sheet (PDF)



Notes

Johnny is the proto-typical speedster hero, i.e., he can run super-fast, has superhuman agility, and can perform other "tricks" using his powers. Using his Super Speed ability, his running tops out at 1536" per Round, or about 524 mph. His various tricks include: running so fast he can't be seen (invisibility), running up the sides of buildings (wall-crawling), creating artificial updrafts (AE TK), and the ability to do hundreds of mundane things instantaneously** -- like when he repairs the crumbling Statue of Liberty or disassembles in seconds an airborne Japanese fighter plane.

All of his super-speed abilities are predicated upon him uttering the secret phrase "3X2(9YZ)4A." This is modeled in the Mighty Protectors rules by using the Linked modifier: it takes 1" of his movement to utter the phrase thereby turning on his super-speed abilities.

*  The Atom, Dr. Mid-Nite, and Robotman are already in Washington D.C. watching a football game.

** Click here to see nlmcdonald's write-up of "Super Speed B"

Johnny  Quick and the other All-Star Squadron members listed here are trademarks owned by DC Comics

Hawkgirl

In the retroactive continuity of Roy Thomas's All-Star Squadron, Shiera Sanders is already Hawkgirl and is also the fiancée of Carter Hall. In issue #5, she is awaiting him in Merida, Mexico. But unknown to Mr. Hall is the fact that she has been kidnapped by the Nazis and being held prisoner in a jail cell of an ancient Mayan temple, located somewhere in the Yucatan peninsula. She is to be sacrificed by Kukulkan, a supervillain in league with the Germans.

Hawkman and his fellow All-Star Squadron companions (including: Atom, Dr. Mid-Nite, Firebrand, Johnny Quick, Liberty Belle, Robotman, and Shining Knight) don their civilian identities and fly down to Mexico (on a commercial plane). Once in Merida, they quickly learn that Shiera is not at the hotel. They suspect foul-play and in a short amount of time discover the Nazi plot. They track down the location of the Mayan temple, fight against Nazi guards, but are knocked-out by the big, bad super-villain named Kukulkan.

In issue #6, the All-Stars escape from their Nazi captors and prevent Kukulkan from sacrificing Shiera, who quickly dons her Hawkgirl costume and helps her fellow heroes thwart the villains' plans.

Shiera and the rest of the All-Star Squadron members return to the United States. Carter Hall then takes his leave of the team as he has joined the Army Air-Corp. Shiera, as Hawkgirl, takes his place, joining the All-Star Squadron.

Hawkgirl (PDF)

The All-Stars, triumphant in Mexico



Hawkgirl and the other All-Star heroes are trademarks of DC Comics.

Firebrand

Comicvine has a good write-up of Danette Reilly's origin.

Firebrand (PDF)

Firebrand and All-Star Squadron are trademarks owned by DC Comics.

Commander Steel

Commander Steel History

There is an excellent write-up of Steel's origin at comicvine. Alternatively, you can just read the comic book panels below, taken from All-Star Squadron #8.

Stats

Hank Heywood is one of those typical golden age characters who is drawn as tall, handsome, and very athletic. So I gave him base physical stats to reflect that. But he's also a Princeton college student who helped Professor Giles invent the "bioretardent" formula, so he's also really smart.

Abilities

Originally Steel, whose name is changed to "Commander Steel" in issue #8, was said to be able to lift "1000" pounds. Later, in the All-Star Squadron, he is described as having "super strength" and is shown crushing a pistol into so much junk. I assumed he would need to be able to average at least 9 points of damage to break a pistol, so I gave him enough strength to do that (the average of 2d8 is 9).

Steel wears a "steel-mesh" suit, that provides him with protection from at least small arms fire (pistols, rifles, etc.). But the suit is incredibly heavy, slowing him down and even heavy enough to put cracks into a concrete surface that he is standing upon. Thus, I built his Armor the way I did. Without his suit, he is subject to being damaged by bullets, as he is in issue #9 when he is knocked unconscious by Nazi guards.

He carries a "flare pistol" capable of blinding his opponents. I built it using Flash Control B, with range, gear, and charges modifiers.

At one point, in issue #8 I believe, he talks about how he can push his micro-motors to achieve a speed of 50 mph. Thus, I gave him the  Speed ability. Note that even while slowed down by his heavy steel-mesh armored suit, he can run at a top speed of 29 mph, or 58 mph if he "pushes".

The Heightened Expertise and the Weakness of having a reduced sense of Touch round out his character and put him at exactly 150 CPs.

Commander Steel (PDF)

Commander Steel is a trademark owned by DC Comics

All-Star Squadron

While researching material for my War Heroes book, I ended up getting a really good deal on the entire run of Roy Thomas's All-Star Squadron.  Although it was first published in 1981, the comic is set during World War II, and featured many Golden Age superheroes, including: Atom, Commander Steel, Dr. Mid-Nite, Hawkgirl, Hawkman, Johnny Quick, Liberty Belle, Firebrand, Pastic Man, Robotman, Shining Knight and the Tarrantula.

I plan on eventually writing-up most of these All-Star characters using the Mighty Protectors rules, but first up to the plate is Al Pratt -- the original Atom.

1. Atom (PDF)

At this point in his super-heroic career (at least from the retconned All-Star Squadron perspective) the Atom has no true super powers -- he's athletic and has been trained to fight by boxing champ Joe Morgan. He's a sophomore in college but at some point he joins the Army, becoming a tank driver. Because he's basically a normal guy with no real super-abilities I am treating him as a Low Power character, built on 100 total CPs.


The first Golden-Age appearance of the Atom was in All-American Comics #19, 1940. He appeared in more Justice Society stories than any hero except Hawkman.

2. Commander Steel (PDF)

Commander Steel History

There is an excellent write-up of Steel's origin at comicvine. Alternatively, you can just read the comic book panels below, taken from All-Star Squadron #8.

Stats

Hank Heywood is one of those typical golden age characters who is drawn as tall, handsome, and very athletic. So I gave him base physical stats to reflect that. But he's also a Princeton college student who helped Professor Giles invent the "bioretardent" formula, so he's also really smart.

Abilities

Originally Steel, whose name is changed to "Commander Steel" in issue #8, was said to be able to lift "1000" pounds. Later, in the All-Star Squadron, he is described as having "super strength" and is shown crushing a pistol into so much junk. I assumed he would need to be able to average at least 9 points of damage to break a pistol, so I gave him enough strength to do that (the average of 2d8 is 9).

Steel wears a "steel-mesh" suit, that provides him with protection from at least small arms fire (pistols, rifles, etc.). But the suit is incredibly heavy, slowing him down and even heavy enough to put cracks into a concrete surface that he is standing upon. Thus, I built his Armor the way I did. Without his suit, he is subject to being damaged by bullets, as he is in issue #9 when he is knocked unconscious by Nazi guards.

He carries a "flare pistol" capable of blinding his opponents. I built it using Flash Control B, with range, gear, and charges modifiers.

At one point, in issue #8 I believe, he talks about how he can push his micro-motors to achieve a speed of 50 mph. Thus, I gave him the  Speed ability. Note that even while slowed down by his heavy steel-mesh armored suit, he can run at a top speed of 29 mph, or 58 mph if he "pushes".

The Heightened Expertise and the Weakness of having a reduced sense of Touch round out his character and put him at exactly 150 CPs.

Atom, Commander Steel and All-Star Squadron are trademarks of DC Comics.

Area Effect: Line

This modifier causes an Ability to affect all targets within a 1" wide area of variable length. Use the Line Area Effect table to determine the area's length:



Note: I never play-tested this modifier. So, it may be too cheap... or too expensive for what it does. This modifier would be useful for simulating certain things, e.g. a flame-thrower.

Tesla Roadster

... and here's my Mighty Protectors vehicle write-up of Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster. Elon had his car put inside the payload of the Falcon Heavy rocket that launched on February 6th, 2018!

2-8-18 Edit: I changed this vehicle a little bit. I gave it 2.5 CPs of High Tech, lowered the Armor, and increased its Automation (Agility) score. The overall cost of 23 CPs stays the same but the car's Power score increases by 3 points and its Handling score goes up by 1 point.

The Armor increase probably needs to be explained as I did not pay any System Spaces for it. What I did was to change the default armor coverage from total to heavy, in essence freeing-up 5 CPs of additional Armor, or 2.5 CPs of additional Armor after Integral is applied.

Tesla Roadster (PDF)

Falcon Heavy

Space-X launched their Falcon Heavy rocket yesterday. It's payload included Elon Musk's midnight cherry red Tesla Roadster and a spacesuit-wearing mannequin named "Starman" sitting in the driver's seat. The 'trans-Mars insertion' burn happened, but an error occurred, as the roadster was supposed to end up in a long orbit around both Earth and Mars. Instead, it overshot and will end up somewhere in the asteroid belt.

If you want to use the Falcon Heavy rocket as part of a Mighty Protectors adventure, you're in luck because I've translated it's stats into the vehicle rules for you!

A few notes about the write-up:

1. The three main rocket engines are all linked, activating at the same time.


2. The Power Blast systems are supposed to be the rocket exhaust of each engine. I made them integral, which is a bit clunky, but it works. Each system is linked to an engine and only work while the engine is active.


3. The "Robot Brain" is just a way of letting the vehicle land and/or maneuver itself.


4. In order to get close to its real-world top speed, I had to extend the Flight chart to 60 CPs.


5. I simulated the maneuvering thruster (B2) as Flight that uses the vehicle's overall Power as fuel, although at the steep rate of 1 PR per 1 Round.

Falcon Heavy Sheet (PDF)

Armor

The Mighty Protectors Armor ability is fairly straightforward: spend some CPs and get protection from damaging attacks. But if you dive down into the rules you’ll find that there are some nuances to the ability. Coupled with some of the Ability Modifiers shown in section 2.2.4, a player or GM can simulate a wide range of armored heroes or villains.

First off, Armor is a Continual ability (see 2.2.2), meaning that it is 'always on' and can never be 'deactivated', but it can be 'held back' (see 4.14.6). The best example I can think of for 'holding back' Armor is Iron-Man's armor: he can raise his face-plate, or take off a gauntlet, exposing his skin.

Secondly, Armor, like all MP Abilities, is obvious. According to the Unobvious (see p. 95) modifier: "By default, using an Ability generates bright lights, loud sounds, distinctive smells, gestures, etc. (pick two effects that can be detected by default senses -- see Heightened Senses) when used, automatically alerting everyone in the immediate vicinity unless they lack the necessary sense."

For Armor, this means that it is obvious to at least two default senses. For example, the Thing who is orange and rocky, has Armor that is both visually and tactilely obvious.

Lastly, by applying one or more modifiers to Armor, you can simulate a large number of comic book characters. These modifiers include: Requires Activation, Can’t Hold Back, Gear, Partial Coverage, and Unobvious.

Detailed below are several examples of armored superheroes, each of whom have a slightly different, modified version of Armor.

Example #1: The Thing has Armor that is Continual with the Can’t Hold Back modifier. His armor is also obvious: anyone can see that it is orange and rocky and if touched feels different than human skin.

Example #2: Iron-Man has Armor with the Activation Required modifier, turning his Armor from a Continual Ability into a Persistent Ability (and also requiring 1” of movement to activate as well as preventing him from resting while the Armor is active). His armor is also obvious: everyone can see that he’s wearing a suit of armor and if it is touched, it feels like metal and not like human skin. He can also 'hold back' some of his armor, should the need arise.

Example #3: The Punisher has Armor that is Continual, with the Gear and Partial Coverage modifiers. In other words: he wears a “bullet-proof” vest. One could, depending upon the source material, also make his armor Unobvious: detectable only by Touch (+2.5). This is for those times when he wears his vest underneath a jacket or shirt.

Example #4: Superman has Armor that is Continual, with the Can’t Hold Back modifier. If Superman ever needed an operation to save his life, it would take a kryptonite-coated saw to cut into his skin. His armor also has the Unobvious modifier: you can’t tell by looking at him, or touching him, that he has armored skin.

Mighty Protectors is a trademark of Monkey House Games.