Eld's builds:Thomas Rhymer, Morph Fiend, Low Blow

[Arthur Eld]

I upped his Deception and Persuasion a bit more over the offical Lex Luthor, and they're pretty high. Luthor still works as an excellent manipulator. Part of what helps him is that he's usually the one holding all the cards. He makes very decent routine checks, though, and his fame benefit helps him-everybody knows Luthor's a great guy and a force for good. At this point, he doesn't have to go far to convince them.

I will raise his Presence to 5, and bump up his stats a little, so he can make DC 25 Deception and Persuasion checks with routine checks. Luthor is definitely one of the most charismatic people in the country, and the world.

[Dureign]

I agree, I always loved Luthor as the charming, charismatic schemer who is ALSO the arrogant sum-of-a-batch.

The arrogant Luthor in the animated All Star Superman, and of course Clancy Brown's DCAU Luthor, are pretty fun.

[Arthur Eld]

One of my personal favorite incarnations is Red Son Lex Luthor.

Salvation Run wasn't a great series, but the part where Luthor arrives on the planet and gets the various bad guys on his side with one stirring speech was a definite high point. Natural 20 on his Persuasion check if I've ever seen one.

[Yeoman]

I always liked the more charismatic Luthor, but for my money, my favorite Luthor scene always goes back to Final Night. Where he not only manages to keep up with Brainiac 5 intellectually through a combination of actual smarts and Creativity, and, when it's revealed whoever uses what they came up with is likely going to die, Luthor screams, "I DID THIS SO THAT I COULD LIVE!"

That's Luthor to me, Calculating, Brilliant, always willing to play the humanitarian, but as soon as he's up against the wall, it's all about him, to the point of self destruction.

[Arthur Eld]

Yeah, in Luthor's mind, its all about him. One of the many faults of Smallville (which I still enjoyed, warts and all), is the oft-repeated 'I am the villain of the story' line. Luthor is the villain, no question.

But not in his mind. Luthor isn't the villain, he's the main character, he's the hero. Justice was a pretty good story in general, but I liked its take on Luthor as well. At one point, I'm not sure if its someone's thoughts or just a narrative caption, but its said that Luthor's greatest flaw is that he refuses to be humbled.

He's far and away Superman's greatest foe, and one of my favorite comics baddies.

[Yeoman]

But not in his mind. Luthor isn't the villain, he's the main character, he's the hero. Justice was a pretty good story in general, but I liked its take on Luthor as well. At one point, I'm not sure if its someone's thoughts or just a narrative caption, but its said that Luthor's greatest flaw is that he refuses to be humbled.

One of the best parts of Cornells Excellent Luthor centric Action Comics run is his run in with Death. After realizing he can't bargin, trick or cojole his way out, he pretty much just says, "Screw this. Whatever. Send me to the afterlife. I'll just take over Hell or something."

Lex refuses to let being DEAD stop him. Yeah, when he's written well, Luthor is always a favorite.

[Arthur Eld]

Yeah, classic Lex. The quote may predate him by some centuries, but its a sure thing he agrees with 'better to reign in hell than serve in heaven.'

For those of you enjoying the rebooted DC builds, the next one will be some time in coming. My 800th build will take some time to stat up, as I usually save better known builds (as opposed to the more obscure builds I usually do, or the simple 2E stuff conversions) for ever hundredth build or so.

[Arthur Eld]

Shūkurō Tsukishima
PL 16 223

Abilities
Strength 2, Stamina 7, Agility 6, Dexterity 4, Fighting 8, Intellect 3, Awareness 3, Presence 3

Powers
Book of the End (Easily Removable, Feature-bookmark transforms into sword) 64
Cutting through history Affliction 20 (Dazed/Compelled/Transformed-mental transformation of memories, Continuous, Quirk-Fades if Tsukushima dies, Resisted by Will, Reversible, Precise, Inaccurate) Linked to Strength-based Damage 8, Improved Critical, Penetrating 10
•Insert Presence Affliction 20 (Dazed/Compelled/Transformed-mental transformation of memories, Continuous, Quirk-Fades if Tsukushima dies, Resisted by Will, Reversible, Precise, Inaccurate)
•Cutting through anything Strength-based Damage 8, Improved Critical, Penetrating 10, Accurate
Altered History Enhanced Advantages 3: Beginner's Luck, Favored Environment (anywhere he's altered the environment with Book of the End), Favored Foe-targets hit with Book of the End, Senses 4 (Postcognition, Limited to that which he's cut)

Master swordsman Enhanced Active Defenses 4, Limited-requires a sword 4
Spirtual Awareness Senses 3 (Ranged Detect Reiatsu, Radius) 3
Bringer Light Flight 4, Enhanced Advantage-Evasion 9

Advantages: Agile Feint, Assessment, Defensive Attack, Defensive Roll 2, Eidetic Memory, Fearless, Improved Critical (sword), Improved Initiative, Improved Smash, Luck, Move-by Action, Quick Draw, Power Attack, Precise Attack (close, cover), Ranged Attack 2, Seize Initiative, Taunt, Weapon Break

Skills: Acrobatics 8 (+14), Athletics 4 (+6), Close Combat (sword) 4 (+12), Deception 7 (+10), Expertise (history) 4 (+7), Expertise (Spirit realm) 2 (+5), Insight 8 (+11), Intimidation 5 (+8), Investigation 4 (+7), Perception 7 (+10), Persuasion 4 (+7), Stealth 8 (+14)

Offense
Initiative +10
Cutting through history +12 Affliction 20 & Damage 10
Insert Presence +12 Affliction 20
Sword Slash +14 Damage 10

Defense
Dodge 17/13 (7), Parry 17/13 (5)
Toughness 9/6, Fortitude 7, Will 10 (7)

Abilities 72+Powers 80+Advantages 19+Skills 34+Defenses 19=223

Complications
Relationship Ginjo
Enemy Soul Society
Power Loss Tsukushima's powers work on inserting himself into other people's pasts. If they come up with a new tactic, it'll often catch him unawares.

•Tsukushima is one of the two Big Bad's of the most recent Bleach Arc, a Fullbringer (a human born to a woman attacked by a Hollow with Hollow spiritual energy) with the ability to rewrite history in people's memories. His Fullbring, Book of the End, lets him turn his bookmark into a sword that can cut through anything-including ephermal things like the past and memories.

•I was gonna do Aizen for build 800, but Aizen is kind of a pain to build, and there's something similar he shares with Tsukushima's ability, which is the fact that no one has been shown to resist it. So you can really just call it a plot device, but I decided to write it up as a rank 20 effect, so its almost the equivalent of Darkseid's Omega effects. The beauty of his Affliction is that he can always alter his target's memories so that they don't even realize they were cut more than once. So he's a PL 13 on Defense, a PL 16 with his Affliction, and a PL 12 with his cutting blade. Dangerous, but not unbeatable. He has used both the damage and the affliction together, but also separately, so he has a Linked version as well as two AEs to use them separately.

[Arthur Eld]

My aim is only to move forward.

Afro Samurai
PL 12 162

Abilities
Strength 4, Stamina 6, Agility 7, Dexterity 5, Fighting 15, Intellect 1, Awareness 3, Presence 0

Powers
Arobatic Leaping 1, Speed 1 2

Advantages: Agile Feint, Assessment, Defensive Roll 2, Equipment, Extraordinary Effort, Fearless, Improved Critical (swords) 2, Improved Critical (unarmed), Improved Defense, Improved Grab, Improved Initiative, Improved Smash, Luck 2, Move-by Action, Quick Draw, Precise Attack 2 (close, cover & concealment), Ranged Attack, Seize Initiative, Takedown 2, Uncanny Dodge, Weapon Break

Equipment: Katana (Strength-based Damage 3, Improved Critical)

Skills: Acrobatics 9 (+16), Athletics 8 (+12), Close Combat (katana) 4 (+17), Expertise (current events) 4 (+5), Insight 12 (+14), Investigation 4 (+5), Intimidate 9 (+9), Perception 9 (+11), Sleight of Hand 5 (+10), Stealth 2 (+9)

Offense
Initiative +11
Katana +17 Damage 7
Unarmed +13 Damage 4

Defense
Dodge 16 (9), Parry 16 (1)
Toughness 8/7, Fortitude 9 (3), Will 11 (8)

Abilities 82+Powers 2+Advantages 24+Skills 33+Defenses 21=162

Complications
Enemy Justice, Empty Seven Clan.
Motivation Afro will stop at nothing to reach Justice and take his revenge.
Reputation Afro is known as the number 2, and a cold-blooded demon killer.
Hunted As holder of the number headband, Afro has a lot of people trying to kill him and take it, from bands of bandits and assassins, and pretty much anyone who wants the glory and power of the number one.

•Main character of the eponymous manga and anime mini-series, Afro Samurai is a man whose father was the number one warrior in the world. Then he was killed by a man named Justice, holder of the number 2 headband, the only one who could challenge number one. Since then, Afro has been on a lifelong quest to take vengeance for his father.

•Significantly underpointed, Afro is nonetheless a badass killing machine. He doesn't have a lot of frills to him, although he does still have plenty of options in combat. An excellent mook-sweeper, he can also go toe to toe with just about any non-powered adversary (and a lot of superhumans as well) with a good shot at victory.

[Arthur Eld]

Huntress
PL 9 147

Abilities
Strength 3, Stamina 3, Agility 4, Dexterity 4, Fighting 12, Intellect 2, Awareness 3, Presence 2

Advantages: All-out Attack, Defensive Attack, Equipment 6, Improved Aim, Improved Critical (unarmed), Improved Initiative, Instant Up, Precise Attack (ranged, cover), Quick Draw, Ranged Attack 7

Equipment Crossbow (Blast 3, Improved Critical, Subtle)
Collapsible sword Strength-based Damage 3, Improved crit
Grapple gun Movement 1 (swinging)
Costume Subtle Protection 3, Enhanced Advantage (Second Change-toughness saves against bludgeoning damage)
Goggles Night vision, infravision

Skills: Acrobatics 9 (+13), Athletics 9 (+12), Close Combat (unarmed) 2 (+14), Deception 7 (+9), Expertise (streetwise) 6 (+8), Insight 6 (+9), Intimidation 8 (+10), Investigation 8 (+10), Perception 7 (+10), Persuasion 2 (+4), Ranged Combat (crossbow) 4 (+15) Sleight of Hand 6 (+10), Stealth 9 (+13), Vehicles 4 (+8)

Offense
Initiative +8
Sword +12 Damage 6
Unarmed +14 Damage 3
Crossbow +15 Damage 3

Defense
Dodge 12 (8), Parry 12
Toughness 6/3, Fortitude 7 (4), Will 8 (5)

Abilities 66+Advantages 20 +Skills 44+Defenses 17=147

•Diaz's Huntress is pretty close to the source material -Helena Bertinelli was the daughter of a Gotham crime boss and her family was killed during a gang war. She grew to hate organized crime especially, and wished to work with her idol, Batman, as Batgirl. But Batman was upset by her violent methods, and so she was left alone. determined to be useful, to prove her worth to Batman and herself, she created the Huntress, a vigilante persona that seemed more villainous. Her plan was to infiltrate the Secret Society of Supervillians and determine who their financial backer was.

•Huntress here isn't too different from the DCA version-minor tweaks to equipment here and there. I toyed with the idea of making her a PL 10, but 9 still works for me. She's a dangerous combatant, and definitely more than a match for anyone other than superhumans and exceptionally well-trained normals. Really dig that costume too.

[Arthur Eld]

Parasite
PL 13 252

Abilities
Strength 0, Stamina 5, Agility 1, Dexterity 1, Fighting 8, Intellect 3, Awareness 3, Presence 2

Powers
Immortal Immunity 2 (starvation & thirst, aging) 2
Energy Absorption and Reflection Immunity 20 (energy descriptor, Reflect, Redirect, Sustained) 40
•Power Drain Cumulative Affliction 18 (resisted by Fortitude, Powers Impaired/Powers Disabled/Tansformed) 36
•Life Drain Weaken Stamina 18 (resisted by Fortitude) 1
Absorbed Abilities Variable 14 (enhanced abilities and drained powers, Free Action, Limited, has to successfuly use her draining abilities, Limited-powers are lost when target recovers from Power Drain) 98

Advantages: Beginner's Luck, Defensive Roll 2, Improved Grab, Improved Hold, Improved Initiative, Languages 3, Ranged Attack 7, Seize Initiative, Well-Informed

Skills: Deception 8 (+10), Expertise (history) 8 (+11), Insight 8 (+11), Intimidation 4 (+6), Investigation 4 (+7), Perception 8 (+11), Stealth 6 (+6), Persuasion 6 (+8)

Offense
Initiative +4
Unarmed +8 Weaken 18 or Affliction 18

Defense
Dodge 8 (7), Parry 8
Toughness 7/5, Fortitude 7 (5), Will 11 (8)


Abilities 46+Powers 142+Advantages 18+Skills 26+Defenses 20=252


Complications
Power Loss If Parasite goes too long without feeding, she loses her Immunities and will eventually wither and die.
Motivation The Parasite has joined the Secret Society in return for Grodd researching a cure for her hunger. Ideally, she wants to keep her powers and remove the need to drain others to death.

•Diaz Parasite is a mix of a Vandal Savage origin story (she was experimented on by Kryptonians a long time ago, at the dawn of humanity) and Parasite's powers. She needs to feed to live, and gains strength from those she feeds. Like a junkie chasing a fix, the interval between feedings has shortened with time, and she needs to completely drain someone to death in order to maintain her almost immortality. She's been aroudn for at least a thousand years, and despite appearances, is the Society's big gun.

•I like pretty much all of Diaz's redesigns, but this one is one of my favorites. The two character elements of Savage and Parasite go together really well, and I like the idea of the Society's most dangerous member being a little old lady. She skulks and schemes in the shadows until the time is right to strike. In combat, she's damn dangerous, and can kill most normal foes with just a touch or two. Absorbing a normal person's life energy will boost her physical abilities (and probably make her look younger, like Michelle Pfeiffer in Stardust), and she can leech superhuman's powers as well. In addition, by concentrating and getting ready for an attack, she can absorb non-bio energy and redirect it as needed. Diaz didn't make mention of it, but she probably gets a boost from this as well-I can see her getting stronger from a bolt of lightning instead of just reflecting it at others.

[Dureign]

Love the Huntress and Parasite builds (not familiar with Tsukushima or Afro Samurai, but they look cool too). I agree with Parasite; the Vandal Savage/Parasite mashup is awesome, and getting your powers drained by a little old lady who is now as strong as Superman is just too cool.

[Arthur Eld]

If you like revenge stories or combat anime at all, I would highly recommend Afro Samurai. I was kind of skeptical when I first heard about it, but having recently sat down and watched the whole mini series, I can say its really, really good. Plus, you can watch the whole thing for free on Hulu-not to sound like Will Arnett.

Tsukushima's from Bleach, which is a pretty good shonen series, if you're into that sort of thing.

Now that I have Heroes and Villains 2, I'll whip through the rest of Diaz's reboots pretty quickly. Then a few more Afro Samurai characters (AfroDroid, Justice, maybe even the Empty Seven clan cause I think they're so cool).

Not sure what I'll focus on after that. Any thoughts?

[Arthur Eld]

Livewire
PL 11 124

Abilities
Strength 1, Stamina 2, Agility 1, Dexterity 1, Fighting 3, Intellect 1, Awareness 0, Presence 3

Powers
Gauntlets and Helmet Removable 41
Bolt of Lightning Blast 11 (Shapeable Area)
•Lightning Blasts Blast 12, Accurate 2, Improved Critical
•Magnetism Perception Move Object 11 (Limited to metal objects)
EM Force Field Sustained Protection 4, Enhanced Active Defenses 6

Advantages: Attractive, Benefit (Fame), Daze (Deception), Defensive Roll 3, Skill Mastery (Persuasion), Power Attack, Ranged Attack 5, Taunt

Skills: Acrobatics 2 (+3), Athletics 3 (+4), Deception 9 (+12/+14), Expertise (science) 2 (+3), Expertise (pop cultre) 7 (+8), Insight 7 (+7), Perception 4 (+4), Persuasion 6 (+9/+11), Stealth 4 (+5), Technology 2 (+3)

Offense
Initiative +5
Lightning Blasts +10 Damage 12

Defense
Dodge 13/7 (6), Parry 13/7 (5)
Toughness 9/7, Fortitude 6 (4), Will 7 (7)

Abilities 24+Powers 41+Advantages 14+Skills 23+Defenses 22=124

Complications
Fame Being a celebrity is a double-edged sword.
Identity Leslie Willis dual identity as the villain Livewire is well-known.

•Leslie Willis was on the reality show I'm a Superhero Get me out of Here, and given a suit to grant her powers, like all the others, living together for the show. Learning that her popularity was declining to audiences, and that she would soon be kicked off, she decided to abandon the superhero role and become a villain-people love a bad girl. So she killed the other cast members, and the crew, and soon joined the Secret Society to remain high-profile and famous. If things ever go south, she plans to betray the other villains and go back to the side of the good guys-because people love a redemption story, too.

•Livewire's a pretty simple character, in mechanics and concept, but that's fine by me. She's decent muscle in combat, although not one of the heavies of the Society, and doesn't match up too well against the Justice Leage. The one complaint I have about Diaz's reboots is that too many of his Society members are Superman villains. I gave Leslie decent Persuasion because as fickle as she is, she probably had to do some major talking to get accepted into the Society (the outfit probably didn't hurt, either), even though the others are probably wary of her. I can see her having Metallo more or less whipped, though.

[Arthur Eld]

Giganta
PL 13 173

Abilities
Strength 12/8, Stamina 12/8, Agility 2, Dexterity 2, Fighting 10, Intellect 2, Awareness 4, Presence 2

Powers
Armor of Ares Removable 51
Arsenal of Areopagus Strength-based Damage 4, Improved Critical 2, Reach, Precise, Variable Descriptor (any melee weapon)
Fueled by Rage Growth 4 (Limited to being activated one rank per round), Linked to Enhanced Active Defenses 2, Limited to being activated one rank per round 6
Divine Protection Protection 3, Impervious Toughness 13
Power of a God Enhanced Strength 5 & Enhanced Stamina 4, Continuous, Power Lifting 5

Advantages: Accurate Attack, Assessment, Chokehold, Defensive Attack, Fearless, Improved Defense, Improved Critical (guns), Improved Grab, Language 2 (Chinese, German), Power Attack, Precise Attack (close, cover), Ranged Attack 6, Startle, Takedown

Skills: Acrobatics 4 (+6), Athletics 7 (+15/+19), Deception 4 (+6), Expertise (current events) 4 (+6), Expertise (mercenary) 9 (+11), Expertise (tactics) 7 (+9), Insight 4 (+8), Intimidation 9 (+11/+13), Investigation 5 (+7), Perception 7 (+11), Stealth 4 (+6), Vehicles 4 (+6)

Offense
Initiative +6
Divine Weapons +10 Damage 16

Defense
Dodge 12, Parry 12
Toughness 15/11, Fortitude 16/12 (4), Will 9 (5)

Abilities 58+Powers 52+Advantages 20+Skills 34+Defenses 9=173

Complications
Enemy Wonder Woman
Motivation As a career mercenary, Giganta is driven to find money and violence.
Divine copilot Wearing the armor of Ares as long as Doris has could have some unforeseen consequences.

•Doris Zeul was a mercenary, a modern day adventurer who had spilled blood in over a dozen countries and participated in countless wars and conflicts. She had a code of behavior, but not exactly one of ethics. When word spread of the island of Themyscira, and the treasures that might be contained there, she traveled with a team of cutthroat archaelogists and fellow adventurers to recover and sell the treasure. They were the only group able to reach the island, but one by one, they perished at the hands of Amazonian death-traps, except for Doris. She found a suit of armor that her last living scholar friend identified as containing the power of Ares, right before he died. She took the armor, but decided not to sell it once she discovered its powers. Still, she was able to parley that into greater wealth-with her own years of skill and the power of a god, she was now far and away the most in demand mercenary in the world. She set her own prices, and the highest bidder proved to be Lex Luthor, acting through the Secret Society.

•While Giganta still grows in this incarnation, its not nearly to the same heights. Which actually makes her more awesome, cause the idea of a 10 foot tall warrior woman battling the living statue that is Diaz's Wonder Woman with ancient Greek weapons is pretty sweet. Her armor grants her greater strength and power, as well as the ability to summon weapons to her hand, any kind of ancient armament the Greeks might have used. While this might theoretically include ranged weapons such as bows or throwing spears, Giganta has not yet manifested such power. Luthor has theorized its a mental block-Ares was the more physical, domineering side of war, and while Giganta retains her knowledge of tactics and skilled maneuvers, she tends to just charge and smash whatever gets in her way.