While on the “low” end of one of his mood swings, Halfjack hears a report about a doctor who’s developed revolu- tionary new procedures in organ cloning and tissue regeneration. He kidnaps the doctor and demands that he replace his (Halfjack’s) cybernetic half with flesh. The heroes have to rush to find the two of them before Halfjack becomes frustrated and kills the doctor. Mechanon regards Halfjack as an abomina- tion; how dare he sully technology with his putrid flesh? He decides to teach VIPER a lesson by killing Halfjack and destroying a few Nests to boot. The heroes may sit back and gleefully watch... until Mecha- non’s methods begin racking up a body count of innocent civilians. He’s got to be stopped! Interface decides he needs an ally for his next scheme, and that Halfjack would be per- fect. He uses a mind control ray to turn Halfjack away from VIPER. The heroes have to try to stop the two cyborgs’ scheme while dealing with the fact that VIPER’s tearing the city apart looking for its wayward supervillain.
Talents
17 Onboard Computer: Absolute Range Sense, Absolute Time Sense, Bump of Direction, Eidetic Memory, and Lightning Calculator 3 Resistance (3 points) Skills 20 +2 Overall 3 Combat Driving 14- 3 Combat Piloting 14- 3 Electronics 12-
3 Fast Draw (Small Arms) 13- 3 Interrogation 13-
2 KS: The Superhuman World 11- 2 KS: VIPER 11- 3 Paramedics 12- 2 PS: VIPER Agent 11- 5 SS: Chemistry 14- 3 SS: Cybernetics 12- 3 Stealth 13- 3 Streetwise 13- 2 Survival (Tropical) 12- 3 Tactics 12- 3 Teamwork 12-
3 WF: Blades, Small Arms Total Powers & Skills Cost: 331 Total Cost: 498
200+ Disadvantages
25 Hunted: UNTIL 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Capture) 25 Hunted: Champions 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Capture) 15 Hunted: VIPER 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Watching) 5 Physical Limitation: always weighs 3,200 kg
(Infrequently, Slightly Impairing) 15 Psychological Limitation: Loves/Hates
Cybernetic Half Of His Body (Common, Strong)
20 Psychological Limitation: Casual Killer (Very Common, Strong)
15 Reputation: VIPER supercriminal, 11- (Extreme)
20 Social Limitation: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major)
15 Social Limitation: Public Identity (James “Jack” Smith) (Frequently, Major) 10 Vulnerability: 2x STUN from Electrical
Attacks (Uncommon)
5 Vulnerability: 1½x BODY from Electrical Attacks (Uncommon)
128 Experience Points Total Disadvantage Points: 498
Background/History: There was a time when Jack Smith was just another VIPER agent — an Elite agent, sure, highly trained and extremely compe- tent, but still just an agent. He had a reputation for brutality, but in VIPER that’s not really a drawback.
Then came the day when he ran left when he should have run right. An overzealous super- hero hit the right side of his body with a powerful energy blast, nearly killing him. His comrades managed to escape with his body; they figured they were taking it back to the Nest for burial.
But Jack was stronger and more stubborn than that. Despite the agonizing pain, he clung to life, passing in and out of consciousness. When VIPER’s doctors saw him, they realized the right half of his body was virtually destroyed. It was a miracle he had survived this long, and he wouldn’t last the night if they didn’t take drastic measures. They made a fateful decision: call in the cybernetics experts.
The cyberneticists cut away the dead flesh and replaced Jack’s right-side skeletal structure with carbon steel, using the same substance to reinforce his remaining bones to handle the load. Then they attached other systems to mimic the organs he had lost, a robotic arm and leg, and other pieces. It took almost a week of non-stop work, but Jack lived through it and didn’t reject the new parts due to massive doses of special anti-rejection drugs.
Thanks to the doctors’ work, the new Jack was stronger, faster, and more durable than any normal human. But his powers came a price: the right half of his body was now cold, unfeeling metal and silicon. Alternately fascinated and repulsed by his current state, Jack somehow resigned himself to his fate and went back to work for VIPER — but this time as part of the prestigious Dragon Branch. Personality/Motivation: Halfjack’s psyche is a con- fused mass of thoughts and emotions, mostly relat- ing to his half-robotic body. Sometimes he loves his
cybernetic parts — they grant him great strength and agility, not to mention the functional equiva- lent of superpowers, and have brought him wealth untold. But at other times he loathes them, realizing all too well how they separate him from humanity and make him a freak. This quasi-bipolar disorder, coupled with his natural violent tendencies and temper, have made him sociopathic. He thinks nothing about murdering a few cops, or a couple of innocent bystanders, or a hostage or agent who simply looks at him wrong. His VIPER disciplinary record is filled with instances of his having casually murdered someone the organization desperately wanted to ransom, or brainwash, or obtain infor- mation from.
Quote: “My robotic parts make me perfect. Your flesh makes you weak.”
Powers/Tactics: Halfjack’s superhuman abilities derive from his half-cyborg body. VIPER’s doctors replaced the badly injured right half of his body with robotic parts, which VIPER has, over the years, upgraded. His implants and attachments include several different types of weapons (an ionic blaster, a high-powered laser, and energy beams which stun, weaken, and blind his foes), various sensory enhance- ments, servos and micro-motors which grant him prodigious strength and enhanced reflexes, and an onboard computer that serves a variety of functions.
Early in his career, Halfjack suffered from the fact that armor protected only half of his body. Super- heroes and cops quickly learned to target the left half of his body, often laying him low before a battle had barely begun. Several years ago, the Supreme Serpent ordered VIPER’s technicians to install a force field generator in Halfjack’s cyborg frame. Now protected all over (though still weaker on his left side), Halfjack has become a much more formidable opponent.
In combat, Halfjack prefers to rely on his cyber- netic weapons, keeping his opponents at range until his attacks weaken or injure them. If his ionic blaster and laser won’t do the trick, or if he wants to take an enemy alive, he switches to the more exotic weapons
like the stun ray and paralysis ray. After blasting an enemy a few times, he often likes to close in to use his strength to beat them into unconsciousness. If goaded into losing his temper, he may eschew his blasters for hand-to-hand combat.
Halfjack’s powers are not bought as Foci because they’re so thoroughly integrated into his body that they’re effectively the same as innate superpowers. Removing his cybernetic and robotic parts would require hours of complicated surgery using highly specialized tools.
Campaign Use: Compared to most members of the Dragon Branch, Halfjack is mentally unstable. Some- times filled with self-loathing, sometimes an overly prideful showoff, he takes out his anger through violence and murder. He might be the “weak link” a group of heroes looking to take down Dragon Branch needs.
To make Halfjack more powerful, increase a few of his Characteristics and/or give him more built-in weapons and abilities. If you want, he could become a veritable walking arsenal, with any of the blasters in Chapter Five as a cybernetic weapon. To weaken him, reduce his physical Characteristics and get rid of some of his weapons (or drastically reduce the number of Charges on most of them), and/or reduce or remove his Force Field.
Halfjack does not Hunt heroes on his own. He only does so when VIPER orders him to, how it orders him to.
Appearance: Halfjack’s bizarre appearance has turned the stomach of more than one policeman or television viewer. The right half of his body no longer consists of flesh; instead, cybernetic and robotic parts have replaced what was once there with machines. The left half of his body retains a regular appearance. The result is a hideous caricature of a human being that subtly disturbs even those who have known Jack a long time. Halfjack covers the left side of his body with a red or green half-bodysuit that attaches to clips on his cybernetic body. He does not wear a mask.
OCULON
Val Char Cost Roll Notes
15 STR 5 12- Lift 200 kg; 3d6 [1] 20 DEX 30 13- OCV: 7/DCV: 7 23 CON 26 14-
11 BODY 2 11-
18 INT 8 13- PER Roll 13- 12 EGO 4 11- ECV: 4
20 PRE 10 13- PRE Attack: 4d6 10 COM 0 11- 8 PD 5 Total: 17 PD (9 rPD) 12 ED 7 Total: 21 ED (9 rED) 5 SPD 20 Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 12 10 REC 4 66 END 10
35 STUN 4 Total Characteristics Cost: 135 Movement: Running: 6”/12”
Cost Powers END
100 Eyebeams: Multipower, 100-point reserve 7u 1) Power Blast: Energy Blast 20d6;
Increased Endurance Cost (x2 END; -½) 20 9u 2) Standard Blast: Energy Blast 12d6,
Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½) 0 9u 3) Concentrated Blast: Energy Blast 12d6,
Armor Piercing (+½) 9
9u 4) Wide Blast: Energy Blast 12d6, Area Of Effect (One Hex; +½) 9 7u 5) Cone Blast: Energy Blast 10d6, Area
Of Effect (21” Cone; +1); No Range (-½) 10 7u 6) Focused Blast: RKA 3d6, Armor
Piercing (+½) 7
9u 7) Blinding Blast: Sight Group Flash 12d6, Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½) 0 Martial Arts: VIPER Brawling
Maneuver OCV DCV Notes 4 Block +2 +2 Block, Abort 4 Dodge — +5 Dodge, Affects
All Attacks, Abort 4 Punch +0 +2 5d6 Strike 3 Throw +0 +1 3d6 + v/5;
Target Falls 18 Armored Costume: Armor
(9 PD/9 ED); OIF (-½) 0 20 Alien Eyes: Sight Group Flash Defense
(20 points) 0
5 Alien Eyes: Infrared Perception
(Sight Group) 0
5 Alien Eyes: Ultraviolet Perception
(Sight Group) 0
10 Alien Eyes: N-Ray Perception (Sight Group; cannot see through force fields,
lead, or gold) 0
12 Alien Eyes: +8 versus Range Modifier for
Sight Group 0
Perk
5 Fringe Benefit: Membership (Dragon Branch)
Skills
15 +5 with Eyebeams Multipower 2 Animal Handler (Snakes) 13- 3 Bugging 13-
3 Computer Programming 13-
3 Electronics 13-
2 KS: The Superhuman World 11- 2 KS: VIPER 11- 2 PS: VIPER Agent 11- 3 SS: Astronomy 13- 2 SS: Physics 11- 3 Stealth 13- 3 Streetwise 13- 3 Tactics 13- 3 Teamwork 13-
3 WF: Small Arms, Blades Total Powers & Skills Cost: 299 Total Cost: 434
200+ Disadvantages
5 Distinctive Feature: Alien Eyes (Easily Con- cealed; Noticed And Recognizable)
20 Hunted: UNTIL 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Capture) 20 Hunted: Champions 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Capture) 10 Hunted: VIPER 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Watching) 15 Psychological Limitation: Arrogant Showoff
(Common, Strong)
15 Psychological Limitation: Fear Of Losing His Sight In Any Way (Common, Strong) 10 Psychological Limitation: Claustrophobia
(Uncommon, Strong)
15 Reputation: VIPER supercriminal, 11- (Extreme)
20 Social Limitation: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major)
15 Social Limitation: Secret Identity (Kevin Calhoun) (Frequently, Major)
89 Experience Points Total Disadvantage Points: 434
Background/History: From the journals of Dr. Phil- lippe Moreau:
The serendipitous coincidences of life never cease to amaze me.
Shortly after being liberated by my now-col- leagues at VIPER, I was brought to the United States and stationed at one of their “Nests” so that I might continue my work uninterrupted by the prudish and ignorant “authorities.” But when one works for VIPER, sometimes interruptions of a far more interesting nature occur.
One evening two agents arrived in my labora- tory well past midnight. One of them was carrying- dragging the other, who had suffered a facial injury of some sort.
“Ya gotta help him, Doc!” the conscious one said. “An acetylene torch blew up in his face, I think it hurt his eyes.” As he talked, we hoisted him onto the table, and I began an examination. The explosion, if that’s really what hurt him, had done extensive damage to the face, lacerating the cheeks and jaw — and, most significantly, destroying the man’s eyes. There was nothing left there, just gaping, bloody pits.
“All right, I’ll take care of him. Leave me to my work.”
“But doc, I wanna wait here and see if he pulls....” “Out!” I said forcefully. I dislike having others
OCULON
PLOT SEEDS
The Warlord sees a picture of Oculon and realizes he’s got Blueboy eyes. Deciding Oculon might also have some Blueboy technology, the Warlord decides to kidnap him, taking as many of his personal possessions in the pro- cess as he can, and then dissect him. Naturally, VIPER’s not going to let Oculon go without a fight, and innocent people might get caught in the crossfire.... When VIPER recovers another Hzeel body, Dr. Moreau wants to transplant parts of it into Oculon’s body, but Oculon refuses to coop- erate. The evil doctor decides to trick the PCs into capturing Oculon so he can then arrange to “rescue” him without VIPER’s knowledge and perform his experi- ments. He’s certain Oculon will thank him when after he wakes up. Oculon begins to develop blindingly painful headaches ema- nating from his eyes. Fearing that he may be dying, or that the eyes have somehow begun to “transform” him, he turns to VIPER’s doctors for help, but they can do nothing. He decides to seek the PCs’ help — but VIPER’s not exactly going to let him go over to the enemy quietly.
watch me work. He scurried away.
For a moment I stood silent, unable to believe my good fortune. Then I went into the back, to the “cold room,” and opened drawer number two.
The corpse looking up at me from the tray was clearly not human. The skin tone, shape of the head and frame, and four fingers on each hand proved that. But what drew me to it now were its eyes — large, red orbs, dimmed by death but perhaps not wholly dead themselves. What would happen, I wondered, were I to graft these eyes into poor Agent Calhoun’s ravaged sockets?
Removing the alien’s eyes was tricky work. Even on humans, eye surgery requires a delicate touch, such as only I and a few other men in the world possess, and alien physiology only made the job more difficult. But of course I accomplished the task. Then began the even more strenuous work of transplanting the eyes into Calhoun. Many hours of work later, I was finished.
I kept Calhoun in my makeshift “clinic” for several weeks as he healed, monitoring his prog- ress closely and administering massive doses of anti-rejection drugs. At last the day came when, with exquisite care, I removed the bandages from his face. The alien eyes, now filled with the strange fire of hybrid life, had given Kevin Calhoun back his sight, and much more. We soon discovered he could see spectra beyond what human eyes could perceive. Even more amazing was the revelation of his ability to emit destructive eyebeams! I had suc- ceeded beyond my wildest dreams.
VIPER brought me that alien body thinking I might use it to develop biological weapons for them. I believe that I have, though not of the sort they had in mind....
Personality/Motivation: Kevin Calhoun, once noth- ing but a Basic Agent in VIPER, was transformed in more than physical ways when Dr. Moreau gave him the eyes of a member of the alien Hzeel race to replace his own ruined ones. The alien orbs inter- acted strangely with his human physiology, appar- ently vastly increasing his intelligence. Although a high school dropout, he began studying science, eventually becoming as accomplished in that field as many with far more formal education than he.
But with greater intellect also came greater pride, greater arrogance, and a greater tendency to show off. Oculon has power, and he knows it; he wants everyone else to know it, too. He never wearies of bragging about it, particularly the time his eyebeams rocked Dr. Destroyer. In combat he frequently soliloquizes and exults in his triumphs. But if things start to go against him too much, he’s likely to withdraw and regroup. If the unthinkable happens — he loses his ability to see, even tempo- rarily — he may panic and flee.
Quote: “My eyebeams can stop Destroyer himself. You’ll be no problem....”
Powers/Tactics: Oculon’s powers derive entirely from his alien eyes, which due to the mingling of human and Hzeel biosubstances have the ability
to project powerful energy beams. Oculon can vary the width and intensity of his eyebeams, giving him offen- sive versatility beyond that of many energy projectors. His eyes also provide him with various vision-related powers.
In combat Oculon usu- ally opens with his Standard Blast or Blinding Blast, or perhaps his Cone Blast if mul- tiple targets group together appropriately. If his enemies can withstand his lower-pow- ered attacks, he’ll shift to his Concentrated, Focused, and Power Blasts. Although he’s got great offensive power, he also has quite a few weak- nesses. His defenses are low, making it easy to take him out of the fight. He lacks Move- ment Powers, so he may have trouble keeping up with a fast- moving battle. If necessary, he can equip himself with VIPER gadgets to overcome these deficiencies, such as force field belts and jumpboots.
Campaign Use: As one of the leaders of the Dragon Branch, Oculon has consider-
able influence within VIPER. He enjoys using his power and prestige and living the high life; it’s not likely he’d betray the organization casually. But ulti- mately he’s loyal to himself, not VIPER, and might jump ship for a better deal if he thought he could get away with it. VIPER would undoubtedly want revenge....
To make Oculon more powerful, give him some gadgets to overcome his weaknesses (see above), add some slots to his Multipower (a No Range Modifier or Penetrating slot, for example), or give him some other abilities so he’s less of a one- trick pony. To decrease his power, reduce his Multi- power reserve and perhaps get rid of a slot or three. Oculon does not Hunt heroes on his own. He only does so when VIPER orders him to, how it orders him to.
Appearance: Oculon is a white male 5’10” tall. He wears a royal blue bodysuit with gold gloves, boots, belt, chest design, and highlights. The suit covers his head (his hair fell out after he got the Hzeel eyes) but leaves his face open. His alien eyes are large and red-gold, and strange lights seem to play within them when he becomes angry, upset, or passionate.
RIPPER
Val Char Cost Roll Notes
70 STR 60 23- Lift 400 tons; 14d6 [7] 18 DEX 24 13- OCV: 6/DCV: 6 35 CON 50 16-
25 BODY 30 14-
8 INT -2 11- PER Roll 11- 10 EGO 0 11- ECV: 3
28 PRE 18 15- PRE Attack: 5d6 2 COM -4 9- 20 PD 6 Total: 40 PD (20 rPD) 20 ED 13 Total: 40 ED (20 rED) 5 SPD 22 Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 12 25 REC 8 70 END 0
80 STUN 2 Total Characteristics Cost: 227 Movement: Running: 6”/12”
Leaping: 24”/48”
Cost Powers END
15 Omicron Chemistry: +30 STR; No Figured Characteristics (-½), 4 Charges lasting 1 Turn each (stopped by any Drain of any Characteristic; -½) [4 x 1 Turn] 45 Rip ’Em In Two: HKA 3d6 (6d6 with STR),
Penetrating (+½); Must Follow A Grab Made With Both Hands (-½) 4 14 Omicron Healing: Healing BODY 2d6
(Regeneration; 2 BODY per Turn), Reduced Endurance (0 END; +½), Persistent (+½); Extra Time (1 Turn; -1¼), Self Only (-½) 0 50 Omicron Armor Plating: Armor (20 PD/
20 ED), Hardened (+¼); Activation Roll
14- (-½) 0
120 Tough Body: Physical and Energy Damage Reduction, Resistant, 75% 0 10 Internal Oxygen Supply: Life Support (Self-
Contained Breathing) 0
5 Super-Physiology: Life Support (Safe Envi- ronments: Low Pressure/Vacuum, High Pressure, High Radiation) 0 10 Super-Strong Legs: Leaping +10” (24” for-
ward, 12” upward) 1
Perk
5 Fringe Benefit: Membership (Dragon Branch)
Skills
25 +5 HTH
Total Powers & Skills Cost: 299 Total Cost: 526
200+ Disadvantages
25 Distinctive Features: purplish flesh, grafted armor, ten feet tall, etc. (Not Concealable; Causes Horror)
35 Enraged: Berserk in combat or when using Omicron Chemistry power (Very Common), go 11-, recover 11-
25 Hunted: UNTIL 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Capture) 25 Hunted: Champions 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Capture) 15 Hunted: VIPER 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Watching) 5 Physical Limitation: always 2.98 meters tall,
always weighs 1,600 kg (Infrequently, Slightly Impairing)
20 Psychological Limitation: Loves To Fight (Very Common, Strong)
15 Reputation: incredibly destructive super- criminal, 11- (extreme)
20 Social Limitation: Subject To Orders (Very Frequently, Major)
15 Social Limitation: Public Identity (James Allison)
126 Experience Points Total Disadvantage Points: 526
Background/History: From the journals of Dr. Phil- lippe Moreau:
I so dislike being awakened in the middle of the night. But I suppose that it’s inevitable given the line of work the jealousy and narrow-mindedness of others has forced me to adopt.