by Charles Phipps » Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:13 am
Canada in Halt Evil Doer!
Disclaimer: Here's an official web-supplement to the Halt Evil Doer! setting. The material included within is to be considered canonical. The characters within are the property of Phipps Gaming Studios with the exception of Avro Arrow, who is a joint property of Phipps Gaming Studios and Mike Lafferty.
Canada
Canada is the third most populous country in the world in terms of superhumans. The first country, the United States of America, is riddled with crime as most of its superhumans are forced by prejudice or circumstance to become enemies of the state. The second most populous country, Genesis Island, is a racist "Genetopia" where the humans and metamen are locked in a constant struggle for power.
Canada is significantly different from its predecessors in terms of its superhuman-human relations. For the most part, the Metaman population of Canada attempts to live in harmony with the rest of the populous as a whole. They have developed their own sub-cultures and attempted to fit into society at large. This relationship is rocky as the government is pressured by outside forces to be harsher with Metamen criminals while outside aggitators attempt to turn superhumans against the government.
Due to the problem of alien invasion, superhuman crime, and various international terrorists; Canada has been forced to become slightly more militant in its pursuit of solutions to its internal problems. The Foundation for World Harmony's branch in Canada, Red Department, is one of the most efficient and dangerous in the world.
Threats to Canada
Aliens: Canada is as vulnerable to alien invasion like the Thran and Tsavong as any other nation in the world. As such, the Canadian government has made extensive preparations to deal with the possibilities of alien attack or infiltration. Leftover stragglers from previous invasions occasionally raise troubles in the north.
Criminals: The Gene Nation and the International Crime League do not restrict their recruiting efforts to the United States. The ample superhuman population of Canada is a prime recruiting ground for possible super powered operatives. While Canada's crime rate as compared to the United States is relatively low, that does not mean its nonexistent. Also, plenty of superhumans just wander in and start wrecking things. It's then up to Hero Force One and the Foundation to put them down.
Mad Science: Mad Science is a constant problem in Canada. The dread Pharmaceutical corporation of GenesisTech International is constantly producing everything from zombies to mutant monstrosities while hiding behind its vast fortunes to protect itself. Project: Icarus also has many of its bases in the Great White North. This has prevented them from being shut down since the wilderness is very hard to comb for escaped laboratory monsters. So far, the Canadian government has shut down three of Icarus' laboratories but hasn't yet been able to determine if that's made a real dent in their operations.
Mystical: Canada is a focus for a larger number of ley-lines than the United States by a factor of ten. As such, a surprisingly large number of fairy gates and spiritual invaders are frequent problems within Canada. These include monsters like the Wendigo, Nunnehi spirits, and the occasional elemental that assaults the cities of the country. Bizarrely, Jotuns and other Nordic monsters are also frequent invaders.
Terrorists: Surprisingly, terrorism is a big concern in Canada. The House of Serpents has fostered many militia movements in Alberta, Canada and has its own private recruiting efforts for individuals who want to go out and see the world (along with killing people). Rather than risk doing their business in the United States, General Venom keeps most of his personal investments across the border. Many of Canada's most thriving technologies industries and medical companies are secretly owned by the patriotic super villain. Bizarrely, Canada is much more proactive against fighting the House of Serpents than the United States has been in decades. Hero Force One and the Canadian military have been involved in numerous dust-ups that often ends up with heavy property damage though few casualties.
So far, PHANTOM has taken a 'wait and see' approach with Canada. It may soon decide that the country is worth making a major effort to take over.
Red Department
Red Department is the Canadian branch of the Foundation for World Harmony. In general, Red Department takes an extremely proactive stance against rooting out threats before they become major issues. Red Department, unlike the United States' branch of the Foundation, is largely 100% free of corruption. As such, they do not have nearly the same problem getting authorization to go after supervillain threats. Many Canadians have a somewhat mixed view regarding Red Department's activities since they're viewed as extremely gung-ho. However, given the nation did suffer some serious damage in both the Tsavong Invasion and Orkus' attacks, they are being given a fairly large latitude in their pursuit of potential threats.
Red Department has a surprisingly friendly relationship with the Tomorrow Society. Unlike the rest of the planet, the Canadian government doesn't view them as a group of outlaws. Several schools for developing Metamen are officially sanctioned by the government and taught by Tomorrow Society members. Indeed, many Metamen have been 'smuggled' from their repressive homelands into Canada as refugees. Red Department attempts to recruit the militarily useful ones as best they can but seems to be genuinely interested in helping them.
The current leader of Red Department is the retired superhero, Mapleleaf. The Living Spirit of Canada, Mapleleaf fought against United States revolutionaries during the Revolutionary War and joined the fight against the Nazis during World War 2. A nature elemental, Mapleleaf is currently merged with Major Jim Sternman. While he misses the days that he could use his nature bending powers against super villains, he is a capable leader that most Prime Ministers would trust with their life.
Unfortunately, recently, Mapleleaf's son was revealed to be a member of the House of Serpents known as Red Cobra. This event has left him emotionally devastated.
Hero Force One
Hero Force One is Canada's official super hero team and probably the most famous on Heroic Earth after the Patriots and the Tomorrow Society. They've been at the forefront of every battle against the forces of evil and have managed to prove themselves multiple times against the worst that the universe has to offer. Unfortunately, these victories have not come without cost. Hero Force One has lost close to nine members in the struggle against darkness. One of the incarnations of the team was wiped out completely by the Red King.
Whatever the case, Hero Force One refuses to bow down before the adversity that assails it and have only grown stronger as years past. Even if the current team would be wiped out to the man, Canada would merely raise another group even stronger than before. This is the nature of Red Department's perservering spirit.
Agent 7: Andrew Shephardson is Agent 7. Andrew is one of the thirteen "Super Agents" employed by the Foundation. While not as prestigious as Agent 13, License to Kill, Agent 7 is unquestionably Canada's greatest spy. Agent 7 is an amiable and pleasant enough chap that is officially just their liason. He spends much of his time abroad eliminating threats to international security and no one ever knows when or where the skilled soldier really will be next time. A rather unseemly reputation hangs over Agent 7 for needless carnage and bloody retribution. No one can ever say that someone Agent 7 has killed didn't deserve it, but many wonder if he takes too much pleasure in his kills.
The truth is that he's largely revolted by what he does but he's a man dealing with a dread curse. A former member of the Foundation's Anti-Supernatural division, he ended up being bitten by a Werewolf in the wilds of the Canadian north. Unlike most werewolf bites, the strain was particularly virulent and transformed him into a particularly brutal example of his kind. This is due to the fact that the werewolf was none other than the Fenris wolf itself. Agent 7 eventually got control over himself with the assistance of Ymir and Merlin (who attempted to enslave him but ultimately failed). He's since adopted his "furry self" as a weapon against Canada's enemies.
Andrew privately desires some way to rid himself of the dread curse of Lycanthropy but hasn't yet found any magic that can divest himself of a god's curse. He's started studying shamanism as a way to compensate but it hasn't yielded him anything but further control over his form. Agent 7 has a "thing" for Avro Arrow but has yet to win her away from her feelings towards Ymir.
Avro Arrow: Avro Arrow is unquestionably Canada's greatest super hero. The granddaughter of Golden Age super hero, the Red Arrow, Avro Arrow draws her powers from arguably the world's greatest battle suit design. Unfortunately, not long before the fall of the Soviet Union, the twenty-something Avro Arrow ended up doing battle with the corrupted spirit of the Northern Frost that was part of Odin's plan to cover the entire world in an eternal winter. She successfully defeated the creature but was presumed K.I.A. Instead, she just ended up getting lost for several moments and was finally resulted when a suitable portal opened, about fifteen years later in real time.
Avro is taking some time to adjust to the Post-Communism world and the fact that Michael Jackson is a freak of nature, the Russians are our allies, and America was nearly overthrown by renegade super heroes. Thankfully, her closest friend and occasional love interest, Ymir was there to help her adjust to the new world. Unfortunately, she's still not quite adjusted to the new world and is struggling to catch up.
The modern Avro Arrow Suit functions comparatively well against the Steel Commando's battle suit but favors super-speed over super strength. It's less durable but almost impossible to hit. Canada has an entire team of Arrow Super-Soldiers but only Katherine "Kitty" Richardson is functional on a full-time basis. She holds a dual rank in both Red Department and the Canadian Air Force (where she is a Colonel).
Currently, Avro Arrow is the leader of Hero Force One due to Lawman's eccentricities.
Dreadmaster: The Lord of Fright. Dreadmaster prowls the streets of Canada's greatest cities, looking for the man who killed his young son in a drug deal gone bad. While Canada has little street crime compared to the United States, Dreadmaster doesn't restrict himself to simply one city to patrol and has a far more effective means of dealing with his opponents. His fear swords inflict cuts that cause an individual to relive the terror and fear that they inflicted on their victims. He is particularly vicious on spouse and child abusers since the loss of his only family is what drives him on. He will follow a single killer for years if he believes it will lead him to a guilty part. Obsessive isn't the word for him.
Dreadmaster's Swords of Fear are the product of the Otherworld, where they were constructed by Dwarves at the instigation of Loge. Dreadmaster has been considered a supervillain as well as a superhero by the public at large. Ymir, especially, has tried to get him to abandon the mystical swords that only feed his paranoia and self-loathing for failing his child. Dreadmaster has honestly forgotten his original name, though Canadian records say he was Heath Levenstone. A former RCMP Staff Sergeant. Agent 7 is Dreadmaster's only friend on the team and most believe that Andrew knew him before he went insane.
Gerard Saint Croix: Gerard Saint Croix is a French-Canadian heart-throb that is a guest star on numerous American television programs and has his own albums out every few years. Bluntly, women seem to love him both young and old to the point that anything he touches turns to gold. He'd be a huge movie star or pop sensation if he bothered pursuing his fame any further. The fact that he's a member of Hero Force One is public knowledge but few people actually know what his powers are. There's some speculation he has super strength, super speed, or even shapeshifting abilities. Oh and he can turn into mist plus control minds. Yeah, if you absolutely wanted to know what Gerard is, then you should read Dracula.
A two-century old Canadian Fur Trapper's son, Gerard is not particularly vicious by vampire standards. He prefers to snack on beautiful women in small amounts rather than gorge himself on blood like most Nosferatu. As he states "There's hardly a surplus of lovely mademoiselles. So I cannot waste them." The advent of the modern era has allowed him to use cloned blood produced by the Raven Foundation so he only drinks from the living for recreational purposes now. Unlike most vampires, Gerard is merely irritated and sleepy during the day. He is still vulnerable to holy items and silver but pretends to be irreligious to avoid this problem.
Gerard has tried to seduce Avro Arrow several times but finds her immune to his charms. He has little attraction to Snowflake and is currently waiting for her to 'ripen.' Gerard has the most antagonistic relationship on the team with Agent 7 due to Andrew's wolfish loathing of the unnatural.
Lawman: The Lawman is a bit of a sore spot in Canadian-American relations. A heroic, intelligent, and honorable man. The Lawman fought with the Liberty Men against the Nazis and is considered one of the greatest heroes of Canada. The Lawman draws his power from a meteorite that crashed down in the wilds of Canada in the 19th century. This meteorite bestowed upon him super-strength, super-speed, and limited invulnerability plus an immunity to aging. With such an impressive resume, why would he be a sore spot?
Bluntly, the Lawman has a temper. A big one. He doesn't brook insults to his dignity very well and that's MUCH better than he brooks insults to his team. The Lawman has gotten into several high profile brawls with numerous American super heroes to prove that Canadian heroes are every bit as talented as them despite getting less publicity (and usually wins, though he's never managed to beat Divinos-who finds the whole idea mystifying since he's unaware that people consider him an American super-hero).
The Lawman's costume would be easy to make fun of, if not for the fact that he looks like a walking brick wall. The Lawman's wears the uniform of a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, despite having been retired for some time. He is one of the few heroes who fights crime in his spare time away from the team. The Lawman is 2nd in command of the team after being removed from command for his lack of perspective on international relations. Most of the team have immense respect for him but are exasperated by his behavior.
The Lawman, real name: Percy Dukes, has a rather extended family with more than half of the children and grandchildren having powers of their own. He is currently married to his seventh wife.
Snowflake: Snowflake is the team's newest member. The 21 year old Amanda Kieler from New Foundland won a Gold medal at the Bejing Olympics in swimming only to have it taken away from her when she was discovered to be a Metaman. The fact that Snowflake's powers are over weather, wind, and ice instead of something that could reasonably give her an advantage in swimming is something that burns her to this day. Snowflake is something of the team's mascot as few people can take her appearance seriously. She is cute as can be with blonde hair, a petite frame, and a button nose.
Snowflake's biggest issue is that she really isn't all that heroic right now. While she's a decent person who will help those in need, Amanda hasn't adjusted to the idea that she's not an Olympian. Thus, Snowflake is known as the "Kraft Dinner Girl" and numerous other endorsements. Snowflake figure skates are especially popular due to her wearing them on a couple of missions. Avro Arrow is exasperated with the young girl but lets her get away with it since her powers are proving to be nearly limitless.
Sportsman: Cue your hockey jokes here. The Sportsman is not really 'there' in terms of sanity. The exact nature of the Sportsman's powers are unclear but seem to boil down to the fact that he can turn everything he touches into a lethal weapon and posses a kinetic field that allows him to knock away everything from bullets to death rays. Despite the fact that he's most famous for his Goalie attire that makes him resemble Jason Voorhees, the Sportsman actually loves all sports that are played in Canada. In fact, if you ask him, he actually prefers Lacrosse.
No one knows where the Sportsman comes from or what his real name is. He literally just showed up one day at the Hero Force One headquarters and started joining in battles. His own memories aren't too clear on his origins and include such fanciful stories as being bitten by a radioactive moose and being granted his powers by the Living Spirit of Beer. The only real confirmed things about the man are that he has a gymn bag that leads to its own dimension and his powers are magical in nature.
In fact, the Sportsman was given his powers from Mister Hoppy. Why the Devil Bunny gave him super powers is anyone's guess.
Ymir the Radioactive Viking: The actual founder of Hero Force One after the end of the Cold War, Ymir is now an auxiliary member since moving to Los Dios in order to fight the Norse Gods present and become a movie stunt man. Many on Hero Force One have taken this personally and desire him to return to his homeland so that he can continue defending it from various threats. Ymir is proud to be Canadian and has no intention of abandoning his homeland but thinks he can do more good with the Tomorrow Society at present.
When situations are too much for Hero Force One, they routinely call upon Canada's greatest champion.
Last edited by
Charles Phipps on Thu Jun 18, 2009 1:27 pm, edited 2 times in total.
