Let's Read Champions 1e (pg 54)

Okay, we're just about through this puppy. Today we'll cover the last two actual supervillains in the book. The first one is Pulsar. Another no-name Secret ID type, Pulsar was a VIPER agent (more on them next time) who was a volunteer for an experiment that went south. In the explosion, he became Pulsar and turned on VIPER for turning him into a supervillain. You would think he'd be grateful; I imagine the perks of being a supervillain working for an international criminal organization would be way better than being a rank-and-file agent, aka superhero cannon fodder. But some people just don't handle change well.

Pulsar is quick, tough, and difficult to bring down. He's got a powerful NND Energy Blast for 7D6 that is only stopped by Force Fields, and he's quite proficient with it (½ END, +3 levels). He's also a trained hand-to-hand fighter with Martial Arts, and can switch between villain and civilian identities instantly. He's ridiculously overconfident, and does not handle insults well at all; he might even go berserk if you hit him with a particularly good zinger. VIPER is hunting him, of course, and so is UNTIL for his work as a VIPER agent. He takes double damage from physical attacks, and suffers from a spate of bad luck (3D6 Unluck).

Pulsar is another one of those classic villains who has definitely been in every edition of the game. He's a natural skunk that players will love taking down. And in this version, he's actually pretty vulnerable; he doesn't yet have the Force Field power he would have in later editions, and with his vulnerability he's going to do down hard from being punched in the face. Still, every campaign needs a Pulsar.

Our last villain(ess) is the notorious Shrinker. This time we do have a Secret ID: Diana Whitworth. Another experimental transformation in a lab, she gained the power to shrink, and she can both fly and fire energy bolts when she's shrunken down. In a neat little twist, she used to be a hero and part of a New York-based team. The team had issues and temporarily broke up, and she fell into difficulties until she turned to crime to get out of her various jams. Now she enjoys making a fool out of heroes, especially the ones who used to be her teammates. Needless to say, she is hunted by that team as well as the FBI. She's very vulnerable to poison and chemical attacks due to her unique biochemistry, but it's almost impossible to even find her when she doesn't want to be seen. Her Shrinking is 5 levels, meaning she's at -10 to be spotted and +10 DCV. Her physical stats aren't all that impressive, but if you ever saw the Ant-Man movie and the stuff both Scott and Hank Pym could do, you'll know just how dangerous she can be.

So, that's our list of stock villains. Including the sample characters, there's Ogre, Armadillo, Dragonfly, Green Dragon, Howler, Icicle, Mechanon, Pulsar, and Shrinker. That's nine villains plus two heroes (Crusader and Starburst) to help get a campaign started. Not a bad place to begin, I think.

Okay, there are two pages left, and I'll cover both of them next time. Until then, keep the faith, True Believers!