Jab's Builds: 2nd Edition Stuff (Kept in Reserve)

[FuzzyBoots]

LOCKJAW
Role in Team: The Team Pet
PL 9 (138)
...
Super-Strength 3 (Flaws: Limited to Grapples) [3]

Rather than flawed Super-Strength, wouldn't it make more sense to give him ranks of Attack Specialization (Grapple)? I did the same thing with a build of mine. The Specialization gives you a bonus of two for every point spent. The flawed Super-Strength, only one.

[catsi563]

actually the attack specilization only applies to the roll to hit and initiate the grapple.

the super strength applies to the grapple roll it self. at a bonus of +1 per rank of super strength.

[kenseido]

Thats interesting because I always saw it different. I understood it to be Attack Specialist: Unarmed added to your attack roll to hit and initiate the grapple, Attack Specialist: Grappling added to your Grappling roll.

[FuzzyBoots]

actually the attack specilization only applies to the roll to hit and initiate the grapple.

the super strength applies to the grapple roll it self. at a bonus of +1 per rank of super strength.

Common mistake.

[catsi563]

I stand corrected but the super strength still stands though.

[Jabroniville]

Weird, I never even considered that. It seems counter-intuitive that a Specialization Feat wouldn't apply to accuracy, but a grapple check. Would that Feat affect Lockjaw's caps at all?

[Jabroniville]

KARNAK
Role in Team: The Meditator, The Melee Fighter
PL 11 (160)
ST 26 (+8) DEX 22 (+6) CON 26 (+8) INT 16 (+3) WIS 18 (+4) CHA 10

Skills:
Acrobatics 2 (+8)
Bluff 4 (+4)
Concentration 10 (+14)
Diplomacy 1 (+1)
Escape Artist 5 (+11)
Handle Animal 2 (+2)
Intimidate 4 (+4)
Investigate 4 (+8)
Knowledge (Tactics) 6 (+9)
Notice 6 (+10)
Search 5 (+9)
Sense Motive 8 (+12)
Stealth 3 (+9)
Survival 4 (+8)

Feats:
Accurate Attack, All-Out Attack, Ambidexterity, Assessment, Attack Focus (Melee) 4, Damaging Escape, Dodge Focus 3, Improved Block, Improved Disarm, Improved Sunder, Improved Trip, Power Attack, Takedown Attack 2, Teamwork 2, Trance, Veteran Fighter, Weapon Break

Powers:
"Inhuman Physiology" Super-Strength 1 (Feats: Groundstrike) [3]

"Monastery-Learned Powers: Sensing Weaknesses"
Super-Senses 4 (Detect Weakness, Ranged, Acute, Analytical) [4]
"Weakness-Finding Strike"
ESP (Visual) 1 [2]
Strike +3 (Feats: Mighty, Improved Critical 5) (Extras: Penetrating 12) (Drawbacks: Power Loss- Requires Assessment) [21]

Saves:
Toughness +8, Fortitude +9, Reflex +8, Will +8

Combat:
Attack +7 (+11 Melee), Damage +8 (+11 Strike), Defense +8 (+11 Dodge), Initiative +6

Drawbacks:
Weakness (Pollutants & Toxins Without Serum- Common, Major) [-4]

Complications:
Responsibility (Attilan, The Royal Family)

Abilities: 58 / Skills: 64--16 / Feats: 24 / Powers: 29 / Saves: 7 / Combat: 30 / Drawbacks: -4 (160)

-Karnak is a pretty goofy-looking character most of the time, and this has hurt the rep of what should be one of the more legendary martial artists in comic books. I mean, Batman & Black Canary are good, and Lady Shiva is awesome, but this guy can knock The Thing on his ass, chop down brick walls with one shot, and can generally knock out ANYBODY. But that big, Ovoid-like melon of his... it's just too goofy to take seriously. And that little moustache as well- I've seen some cool pics of him by Jae Lee (who could make just about ANY idiotic character design look great) with the tattoos and such, but most of the time, he looks like a macroencephalatic (look it up) buffoon in a lame outfit.

-And yeah, Karnak's so bad-ass he's basically a walking plot device character. His somewhat-vague "Able to find the weakness in anything" ability is through training (he never underwent the Terrigenesis like the others- his parents feared what would happen to him after his brother Triton got hit by the Weaksauce Weakness Stick HARD during his own process- which is really an unusually-ignored plot hook for The Inhumans- what IF Karnak underwent the process today?), and he uses it rather effectively. With a bit of assessment, he can basically run up to just about anyone and nail them six ways from Sunday with a super-powerful blow. Hell, in his most insane showing EVER, he actually knocked the SILVER SURFER down with a chunk of brick (this has since gone down as one of those "They were smoking crack when writing this" instances, alongside Cap throwing his Shield over a mile straight up, and Spider-Man beating Firelord in a fight, but still). He occasionally gets props, but his power is such a potential Game-Breaker that he never really gets used to his absolute peak.

-Karnak is a near PC-level PL 11 super-martial artist type with a few modifications. Kinda like the Iron Fist, he has a Penetrating Strike that can dish out tons of damage, alongside the Detect Weakness power (which I didn't realize was even in the book- I saw it while searching for other stuff). Said Strike also features FIVE ranks of Improved Critical, which is insane (15-20 is a Crit) and probably should be kept out of players' grasp- but it's an accurate reflection of his power. He has to study the target a bit first, so he couldn't do it in the dark, or in the very first round of combat unless he'd seen the guy first, but after Round One, he's good. I figure that's enough for a 1-point Drawback. He also has a little-seen ESP power that I only got by searching for Respect Threads featuring him (which is a handy way to figure out guys you haven't read many issues of- Wikipedia has always been oddly low on Feats & stats), so I tossed that in so he could make points.

-Aside from the Strike, he's a standard Martial Artist with lots of Feats (especially cap-altering ones), and an Inhuman's advanced stats (basically between Spidey & Cap). He's elite, but not a God (and is only PL 9.5 defensively- he's nowhere near as elite that way). He mostly just slaps down Goons, and killed a Smasher from the Imperial Guard one time (but almost anyone can kill those replaceable losers). Oh, and he once owned Vision by vibrating his hand JUST right (a one-time thing, so not Affects Insubstantial for him).

[Jabroniville]

MEDUSA (Medusalith Amaquelin-Boltagon)
Role in Team: The Queen, The New Boss
PL 11 (160)
ST 18 (+4) DEX 19 (+4) CON 18 (+4) INT 14 (+2) WIS 16 (+3) CHA 18 (+4)

Skills:
Bluff 2 (+6)
Diplomacy 6 (+10)
Disable Device 5 (+7)
Handle Animal 2 (+6)
Intimidate 4 (+8)
Knowledge (Civics) 6 (+8)
Notice 4 (+7)
Profession (Head of State) 8 (+10)
Sense Motive 4 (+7)
Stealth 3 (+7)

Feats:
All-Out Attack, Attack Specialization (Snare), Attractive 2, Defensive Roll, Dodge Focus 2, Improved Critical (Hair Snare), Improved Disarm, Improved Trip, Power Attack, Startle, Teamwork

Powers:
"Terrigen Mist-Given Powers: Prehensile Hair"
Prehensile Hair 6 (5 Additional Limbs, 20-Foot Elongation) [6]
"Hair Strength" Super-Strength 2 (Feats: Bracing, Super-Breath) [6]
Super-Movement 2 (Sure-Footed, Wall-Crawling) [4]

"Multi-Snare" Snare 11 (Feats: Chokehold, Obscure Vision, Reversible, Tether, Improved Initiative) (Extras: Targetted Area-Shapeable, Engulf +0) (Drawbacks: Reduced Range -2: 22 Feet) (36) -- [39]
AP: "Hair-Lash" Strike 10 (Feats: Extended Reach 5) (15)
AP: "Hair-Catcher" Deflect (Slow Projectiles) 8 (8)
AP: "Defensive Wall" Protection 3 (3)

Saves:
Toughness +4 (+5 D.Roll, +8 Defensive Wall), Fortitude +7, Reflex +5, Will +7

Combat:
Attack +9 (+11 Snare), Damage +7 (+10 Lash, +11 Snare), Defense +8 (+10 Dodge), Initiative +8

Complications:
Responsibility (Attilan, The Royal Family)
Responsibility (Black Bolt & Ahura)

Abilities: 43 / Skills: 44--11 / Feats: 13 / Powers: 55 / Saves: 5 / Combat: 34 (160)

-Medusa has a bizarre history, even going as far back as the Sixties. Introduced as a Super-Villian, she joined The Wizard's first incarnation of The Frightful Four (alongside The Sandman & Paste-Pot Pete/The Trapster) as a troublesome little minx, who was SUPER-effective (likely their most powerful member), but it turned out she was actually an amnesiac royal family member of some weird secret society of outcasts... not quite a retcon (as her origin was mysterious), but it still was an odd plot twist when I read it in the Essentials collection (which is really worth getting in the Lee/Kirby era- modern storytelling has NOTHING on the speed those two tossed out the craziest plot twists ever). So it turns out she's in love with Black Bolt, and they truly understand each other, and she becomes the Inhumans' Queen, and kinda lords over Crystal and lectures her all the time, coming across like a fuddy-duddy when she was supposed to be the most blazing hot woman ever ("She makes Raquel Welch look like a BOY!" is a passer-by's response- and this was the Seventies, mind you).

-She got put through a lot of weird stuff in recent decades, as The Inhumans got dealth with awesomely and poorly in variation. She was so minor that when they finally had her & Black Bolt pop out an offspring... Marvel forgot about it! That's right- so little was thought of The Inhumans as a concept that they HAD A BABY and it was completely ignored/forgotten by writers for years. Modern times finally brought Asura out of the mothballs, but he hasn't done ANYTHING in "War of Kings", etc. in the cosmic scene- essentially being window-dressing while the adults do stuff. Poor kid. Currently, with Blackagar dead, Medusa's stuck as the mourning Queen, and being a real berk about it, too- all grumpy-looking and lashing out at people who displease her.

-Medusa was one of the first Inhumans I realized almost had to be PL 11. She doesn't SEEM like a huge bad-ass, especially with that weird power of hers, but she is EXTREMELY lethal, especially in the early years, and even has mass-group-disabling tactics in modern times as well. At Black Bolt's funeral, she snared a HUGE group of Inhumans and Imperial Guardsmen alike simultaneously, showing that her Snare effect is very strong.

-The full breadth of her Prehensile Hair is quite impressive- many Feats are attached to it's Snare- Obscure Vision for blinding people, Choking guys, it's Reversible AND a Tether to her Super-Strength. It has a Shapeable Area (though reduced in range to 22 feet) that she can target, and is Engulfing (it's part of her, and it can be broken once she's Stunned). Her hair can lift things that her body never could, once it's braced. She can whip it around like a fan (Super-Breath), climb up things, and avoid being thrown about (Super-Movement). For the base Prehensile Hair power, she's got 6 ranks- 3 for Additional Limbs, and 3 for Extending 20 feet. As Alternate Powers, she can Lash people (Strike 10), Deflect Arrows & stuff, and even protect herself. Physically, she's no push-over either. She's not an elite (PL 10.5 offensively only), but she's quite powerful, and can easily handle herself in a fight.

[FuzzyBoots]

Weird, I never even considered that. It seems counter-intuitive that a Specialization Feat wouldn't apply to accuracy, but a grapple check. Would that Feat affect Lockjaw's caps at all?

Grapple bonuses aren't capped, so no.

[Horsenhero]

One to go...the big bad...and I'll say it again. These Inhumans builds Rock! Like a lot of Lee/Kirby creations, they are just a little wacky, but...the masters themselves never handled them poorly and in the hands of thoughtful writers, all these characters have and have sometimes shown massive potential.

Too bad they killed off BLack Bolt (sort of) during War of Kings, but they did leave themselves enough wiggle room to bring him and the latest "Ultimate X Villain"...the numbnuts Summers Brother (didn't they have a TV show?)back, should they so desire.

[Jabroniville]

MAXIMUS (Maximus Boltagon)
Role in Team: The Prince John, The Manipulator
PL 11 (162)
ST 18 (+4) DEX 14 (+2) CON 18 (+4) INT 28 (+9) WIS 14 (+2) CHA 14 (+2)

Skills:
Bluff 8 (+10)
Computers 5 (+14)
Concentration 5 (+7)
Craft (Electronic) 4 (+13)
Craft (Mechanical) 8 (+17)
Diplomacy 4 (+6)
Intimidate 2 (+4)
Knowledge (Life Sciences) 6 (+15)
Knowledge (Physical Sciences) 7 (+16)
Knowledge (Technology) 9 (+18)
Notice 4 (+6)
Sense Motive 2 (+4)

Feats:
Distract (Bluff), Dodge Focus 2, Fascinate (Bluff), Equipment 10 (Laboratory)

Powers:
"Terrigen Mist-Given Powers: Telepathy"
Mind Control 11 (Feats: Mental Link, Subtle) (Extras: Sustained) (Drawbacks: Reduced Range -2) (33) -- [37]
AP: Mental Blast 8 (Drawbacks: Reduced Range -2) (30)
AP: "Mental Stun" Stun 8 (Extras: Perception Range) (Drawbacks: Reduced Range -2) (30)
AP: "Brainwash" Transform (Personality) 8 (Extras: Will Save) (Drawbacks: Reduced Range -2) (30)
AP: Mind Switch 8 (16)

Telepathy 11 [23]
AP: Telelocation 12 (12)

Saves:
Toughness +4, Fortitude +6, Reflex +4, Will +4

Combat:
Attack +6, Damage +4 (+8-11 Mental Attacks), Defense +6 (+8 Dodge), Initiative +2

Drawbacks:
Weakness (Pollutants & Toxins Without Serum- Common, Major) [-4]

Complications:
Reputation (Madman)
Obsession (Gaining Power)
Obsession (Medusa)

Abilities: 46 / Skills: 64--16 / Feats: 14 / Powers: 60 / Saves: 6 / Combat: 24 / Drawbacks: -4 (162)

-Maximus is a weird, crazy villain, but ultimately falls kind of short. The story's always exactly the same: Maximus goes insane and is submissive to his brother Black Bolt, then betrays him, takes control of Attilan and does something stupid, then gets beaten by the Inhumans allying with some hero (usually the FF or the Hulk), then he goes back to being crazy and useless. That's happened about six or seven times. He's just not that great. "War of Kings" used him as an amusing character, being quite nuts, but now an ally of the Royal Family, seemingly being 'cured' from his evil tendencies (though they've teased an evil turn here and there, it's always turned out that he was doing what Medusa/Black Bolt wanted).

-Maximus at full power is quite dangerous, but often seems to lose them, forget he has them, etc., all because he's so crazy. At his current state in the comics, he's basically a Genius Inventor and leaves the mental powers aside. For Skills, he's sorta like Reed Richards Lite- a genius in nearly all fields (especially Technology/Mechanics), just a notch or two under the MEGA-geniuses of Marvel Comics. In combat though, he's kind of a wussy, totally dependent on his Mental Powers (all of which have shorter range than Perception- I figure it's about 50 feet or so maximum- good enough for -2 since he still doesn't actually need to roll to hit).

[Jabroniville]

Word of advice to aspiring super-villains: If he opens his mouth- RUN.

BLACK BOLT (Blackagar Boltagon)
Role in Team: The King, The Powerhouse
PL 13 (228), PL 16 (228) with Sonic Voice
ST 32 (+11) DEX 18 (+4) CON 26 (+8) INT 16 (+3) WIS 20 (+5) CHA 16 (+3)

Skills:
Concentration 3 (+8)
Handle Animal 2 (+5)
Intimidate 8 (+11)
Knowledge (Current Events) 8 (+11)
Notice 4 (+9)
Sense Motive 5 (+10)
Survival 2 (+7)

Feats:
Accurate Attack, All-Out Attack, Attack Focus (Melee), Benefit (King of The Inhumans), Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll, Diehard, Dodge Focus 2, Endurance, Improved Throw, Inspire, Leadership, Lionheart, Power Attack, Takedown Attack, Teamwork

Powers:
"Terrigen Mist-Given Powers: Sonic Voice & Physical Might"
"Sonic Voice" Blast 16 (Feats: Improved Range 6) (Extras: Penetrating, Area-Burst) (Flaws: Touch Range) (Drawbacks: Full Power, Power Loss- Must Speak) [55]
AP: "Sonic Voice" Blast 16 (Feats: Improved Range 6) (Extras: Penetrating, Area-Cone) (Flaws: Touch Range) (Drawbacks: Full Power, Power Loss- Must Speak)
AP: "Held Back Scream" Blast 13 (Extras: Penetrating, Targetted Area-Cone) (Drawbacks: Full Power, Power Loss- Must Speak) (37)
AP: "Whisper" Stun 12 (Extras: Ranged) (Drawbacks: Full Power) (35)

"Tuning Fork" Device 5 (hard to lose) (Feats: Restricted 2) [22]
Immunity 9 (Life Support) (Extras: Affects Others) (18)
Space Travel 1 (1)
Five Alternate Powers to Sonic Voice: (5)
AP: "Concussive Energy" Blast 11 (22)
AP: Force Field 5 (Extras: Affects Others) (Flaws: Distracting) (5)
AP: "Master Blow" Strike +4 (Feats: Mighty, Improved Critical) (Extras: Penetrating 8) (Flaws: Tiring) (10)
AP: "Force Constructs" Create Object 10 (Extras: Moveable) (30)
AP: Nullify Electronics 10 (Extras: Area-Burst) (Flaws: Touch Range) (20)

Super-Strength 6 (heavy load: 50 tons) [12]
Flight 4 [8]

Saves:
Toughness +8 (+9 D.Roll, +13 Force Field), Fortitude +10, Reflex +6, Will +9

Combat:
Attack +10 (+11 Melee), Damage +11 (+13 Holding Back, +14 Master Blow, +16 Sonic Voice), Defense +8 (+10 Dodge), Initiative +4

Drawbacks:
Weakness (Pollutants & Toxins Without Serum- Common, Major) [-4]
Disability (Mute, Unless Using Power) [-3]

Complications:
Responsibility (Attilan, The Royal Family)
Responsibility (Medusa & Ahura)
Responsibility (Cannot Speak to Anyone)

Abilities: 68 / Skills: 32--8 / Feats: 18 / Powers: 97 / Saves: 8 / Combat: 36 / Drawbacks: -7 (228)

-Black Bolt is The Inhumans' King, and fits the role, being a classic case of Stan Lee's 1960s storytelling: An ultimately tragic hero. He's a great, noble and wise king, but is struggling with first & foremost the fact that he can't speak to anyone, ever, without the power of his voice vaporizing them, and then the fact that his brother is insane and is constantly striving to murder him and take charge. Black Bolt's been all over the Marvel Universe with his charges, but has virtually no instances of bad jobbing to his name: He's bad-ass, and everyone knows it. In his very first appearance, he fights The Thing to a stand-still, and nearly KOs him with his Master Blow. His Voice is considered one of the absolute most powerful weapons in all existence, surpassing even some of Galactus' Heralds for sheer power. Even to this day, everyone goes all "Oh Sh*t" when Black Bolt shows up, like in World War Hulk, where his loss (actually a Skrull's) to the Jade Giant is the first salvo of the battle.

-Black Bolt is one of the tougher people to stat up properly, as he's powerful in his BASE form, but also packs a ludicrously-powerful damaging Sonic Voice, and has a ton of APs to boot, including one-off powers and random stuff that you almost never see in stories featuring him. The Sonic Voice is basically a really long-range Cone or Burst-Area Blast (6 ranks of Improved Range means that the Blast can effectively cover 8,000 feet of area- a small estimate considering he's blown up CITIES with it, but let's call that Extra Effort, shall we?) that has the Full Power & Power Loss (must be un-gagged/choking) Drawbacks on it- he really can't help but Burst out in all directions (or the Cone) if he yells, making it a nigh-impossible team tactic, or anything he can use safely around innocents or buildings he doesn't want to tear apart. An alternative is a Targetted Cone that's lower-level, but that's as far as it goes.

-There's also his weird set of APs. I chose to stat them up as Feats bestowed by his Tuning Fork costume that only he can really use- otherwise it's like a 34-point Device costing 28 pp, which is way too much for something he usually does OTHER THAN his major power. He can Nullify Electronics, Blast normally (a standard +11 Blast this time), create Force Constructs, throw a Force Field around things, or use his popular "Master Blow", a Tiring punch that's shaken Ben Grimm, among others. Aside from that, he's a mini-Flying Brick, capable of Flight & Super-Strength, and quite the World Leader as well.

-Used normally and effectively, he's PL 11 in melee and PL 10.5 at range- essentially making him the equal of The Thing or Colossus at hand-to-hand (which fits his showings). With his Master Blow (which should be used sparingly, with that glaring weakness), he's PL 12.5, and his Voice makes him PL 16 overall. But of course that can almost never be used in concert with any of his allies, lest he blow them apart.

-Oh yeah, and flipping through old New Warriors comics reveals him flying around in space, extending an Immunity (Life Support) effect to others, so apparently he can do that, too.

[catsi563]

Nice BB.

yeah that master strike is just brutal. Hes knocked the hulk for a loop with it, and the fact that the one warhulk beat was a skrull was probably the only thing that kept him from getting hurt again.

one of the neat things was also when he appeared to rescue his people whod invaded a us base. he whispered and flattend half the avengers and all of the soldiers.

[Horsenhero]

Oops...I forgot Maximus. That's o.k., he's forgettable really. Not much of an arch-villain, even though that's what Kirby/Lee originally created him to be. Love the Black Bolt build. It was everything I was hoping for from our tragic, yet uber powerful, monarch.

[Mistwolf]

For some strange reason, I have a fondness for the Inhumans, Karnak in particular. Great builds, Jab!