Name: The Spider Val Char Cost 20 STR 10 18 DEX 24 15 CON 10 15 BODY 10 15 INT 5 18 EGO 16 20 PRE 10 16 COM 3 8 PD 4 8 ED 5 4 SPD 12 10 REC 6 30 END 33 STUN Characteristic Rolls: STR: 13-, DEX: 13-, CON: 12-, INT: 12-, EGO: 13 -, PER: 12- Run: 9", Swim: 5", Jump: 4", Lift: 400 kg Cost Powers END/Roll 6 +3" Running (9" Total) 3 +3" Swimming (5" Total) 5 Swinging 10", -1 limit OAF Silken Rope "Web" 3 +4D6 HA with Punch, -1/2 limit IAF Concealed Blackjack, -2 limit Independent 12 8D6 EB, +1 adv NND (stopped by Resistant Defenses), -1/2 limit IAF Hypodermic Ring, -2 limit One Charge, -2 limit Independent Cost Skills, Talents, Perks Roll Martial Maneuvers 4 Punch (Martial Strike), +2 DCV, STR + 2D6, Strike 4 Martial Throw, +1 DCV, STR + v/5; opponent falls 3 Tackle (Sacrifice Throw), +2 OCV, +1 DCV, STR; you fall, opponent falls 5 Choke Hold, -2 OCV, Grab, 2D6 NND 4 Nerve Strike, -1 OCV, +1 DCV, 2D6 NND 4 Martial Escape, +15 STR vs. Grabs 4 Martial Block, +2 OCV, +2 DCV, Block, Abort 3 Acrobatics 13- 3 Acting 13- 3 Breakfall 13- 3 Bureacratics 13- 3 Climbing 13- 3 Concealment 12- 3 Conversation 13- 3 Combat Driving 13- 3 Combat Piloting 13- 3 Criminology 12- 3 Deduction 12- 9 Disguise 14- 3 Forensic Medicine 12- 3 Interrogation 13- 2 CK: New York City 11- 2 KS: Knots and Ropes 11- 2 KS: Rappeling 11- 2 LS: Hindustani, fluent 3 Lockpicking 13- 5 Mimicry 12- 3 Oratory 13- 3 Persuasion 13- 5 Shadowing 12- 3 Stealth 13- 3 Streetwise 13- 3 Tactics 12- 2 Familiar with Small Arms 2 Familiar with Common Melee Weapons 1 Familiar with Lariat 6 + 2 levels with Pistols 4 + 2 levels with Lariat 10 Perk: Wealthy 1 Perk: Police Pass 3 Well-Connected 3 Contact 13-: Stanley Kirkpatrick, Commissioner NYPD 1 Contact 11-: Police Commissioner, Philadelphia 1 Contact 11-: Police Commissioner, Chicago 100+ Disadvantages 15 Secret ID: Richard Wentworth, wealthy social reformer; Blinky McQuade, small-time hood 10 Reputation 11-: Law and Order Crusader (as Wentworth) 15 Reputation 11-: Mad Slayer (as the Spider), extreme 15 Loves Nita van Sloan 20 Code of Honor (protects innocents, won't harm police, won't kill until suspect's guilt proven, loyal to comrades) 20 Hunted 11-: The Police, more powerful 20 Hunted 11-: The Underworld, more powerful 20 Distinctive Looks: Hairy, Goggle-Eyed Hunchback (as the Spider), concealable, extreme reaction 20 Normal Characteristics Maximums 35 Master of Men Bonus OCV: 6(8 w/Pistols/Lariat); DCV: 6; ECV: 6; Mental Def.: 0; Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12 PD/rPD: 8/0; ED/rED: 8/0 Costs: Char.: 115 Disad.: 155 Powers: + 175 Base: + 100 Exp.: + 35 Total: = 290 Total: = 290 Source: "The Spider Magazine," Popular Publications, 1933-1943 Height: cm (6' 1"), Weight: kg (215 lbs), Sex: Male, Race: Caucasian Appearance: The Spider is a hunched, hook-nosed figure in a black slouch hat and flowing black cape. Magazine covers depict him with either a hideous fanged face or a black domino mask. Depending on the circumstances, Wentworth uses either elaborate theatrical make up or a steel-lined mask to transform himself. In a pinch, he will tackle crooks in evening clothes and a black silk mask. He changes his voice, walk and posture to complete the effect. As Wentworth, he is a handsome, athletic man in his early to mid-thirties with black hair, blue-gray eyes, and a scar on his left temple. Although he's capable of playful humor with Nita van Sloan, his demeanor is typically rather grim for a wealthy young man who apparently has everything going for him. As either the Spider or as Wentworth, he carries a pair of automatic pistols -- a .45 caliber and a .38 caliber -- in hostlers beneath his armpits. His rope is either wrapped around his waist or coiled in a slim case strapped to his forearm. As Blinky McQuade, he is a gray-haired, sloppily dressed man apparently in his fifties with thick hornrim spectacles and a stiff leg that causes him to limp. McQuade has a sour smile, always has money to flash around, and loves to boast about what a big spender he is. Because McQuade has a reputation as a convicted safe-cracker, he never carries a gun lest it be found if police should pick him up for questioning. Background: Although neither of them would approve of his methods, both Batman and Spiderman owe a debt to an earlier costumed crime-fighter who blazed the trail for other rope-swinging urban vigilantes. Richard Wentworth scaled buildings and swung down to wreak vengeance upon evildoers as the Spider six years before Bruce Wayne donned his cowl. In fact, in 1935 he slaughtered an arch fiend who styled himself the Bat Man. Unlike Wayne or Lamont Cranston, wealthy Wentworth is not one of the idle rich but an active campaigner for law and order. Wentworth was grieved by the human depravity he witnessed during the Great War as a major in the U.S. Marines. Upon his return to New York City, he was not content to merely encourage public support for law enforcement but took an active role in tracking down crooks himself until irate mobsters burned his mansion. This experience and his frustration at seeing justice hampered by the very laws he was trying to uphold caused Wentworth to adopt other tactics. He settled in a midtown penthouse apartment, surrounded himself with like-minded comrades, and began a personal war on crime. To strike terror into the hearts of his foes, he disguised himself as a black-cloaked hunchback whom the press dubbed the Spider because of his penchant for dangling from rooftops by a sturdy silk rope. Wentworth accepted the monicker, and police began finding slain gangsters with the emblem of a spider branded on their foreheads. Like The Shadow, the Spider is an elusive marksman with an eerie laugh who is feared by the underworld and hunted by the very police department he's trying to assist. Two years after the Spider's debut, rewards offered by public and private sources for his capture, dead or alive, totalled $60,000 -- a small fortune during the Great Depression. Less wealthy than Batman, the Spider has fewer gadgets and gimmicks but makes up for it with sheer ferocity and a seemingly endless supply of firearms. Wentworth is the type of guy who makes the Punisher seem soft on crime. While he provides the police with plenty of tips, he never turns over a live crook for arrest. Once he's persuaded of a suspect's guilt, he shoots to kill. The Spider doesn't have a rogue's gallery of enemies; most foes don't survive their first encounter with him. To be fair, his opponents rarely give him the option of humane capture. The Bat Man threatened the nation with swarms of insatiable vampire bats and an army of dart-blowing pygmies. The Iron Man confronted the very human Spider with a squad of giant bullet-proof robots capable of knocking over apartment buildings with a shrug. (It looked like a job for Superman, but he wasn't around yet.) The Faceless One doused New York with clouds of acid gas that ate away his victims' faces. Wentworth feels justified in slaying such mass murderers that the police are unable to stop. Send them to Akham Asylum indeed! He is aided by fiancee Nita van Sloan, chauffeur Ronald Jackson, and Sikh manservant Ram Singh. Sloan, a sultry socialite, is almost as lethal as Wentworth and frequently dons the Spider's cloak to protect his identity or to carry on the Spider's work when he is incapacitated. She's devoted to him despite his reluctance to marry; Wentworth fears that a family would give malefactors a weapon to use against the Spider. Jackson was a Marine troublemaker destined for military prison until Wentworth knocked some discipline into him. They saved each other's lives on the battlefield, and Jackson still refers to his boss as "major." Brawny and ruggedly handsome, Jackson's chief weakness is his tendancy to fall for the villain's lovely henchwoman. Like van Sloan, he occasionally fills in as the Spider. Ram Singh is a knife-wielding warrior who nearly worships Wentworth because of his courage. In addition to acting as Wentworth's valet and bodyguard, he drives the limousine when Jackson is occupied by other duties. Powers and Abilities: Gimmicks include the "web," a versatile silken rope the Spider uses to scale buildings or (as a lariat) to jerk thugs off their feet; a black Daimler limousine whose cushions conceal the Spider's wardrobe and make up kit; and a special cigarette lighter he uses to burn the emblem of a spider on the foreheads of criminals he has slain. He has a blackjack concealed in each sleeve. Another frequently used tool is a ring concealing a miniature hypodermic syringe that contains a sleep-inducing narcotic. The Spider is an excellent climber, brawler, and marksman. His fighting style is described as Jiu-jitsu in the pulps, but it's actually closer to Commando Training in game terms. He's made a thorough study of criminology and police methods. He's also a masterful actor and make up artist. As Wentworth, he's cultivated working relationships with police officials in several major cities. They dislike his interfering in their cases but they've learned to trust his tips and hunches. Disadvantages: The Spider's code of honor won't allow him to harm law enforcement officers or suspects he hasn't proven guilty, even though they're trying to kill him. As Wentworth, his zeal in pursuing suspects and tendancy to insert himself into police business frequently land him in jail. Only his wealth and political influence keep him out of prison. Wentworth's secret identity is rather weak since he'll go gunning for a bad guy whether he's in costume or not, and he's a vocal defender of the Spider's unlawful activities. The criminals usually figure it out, but somehow the cops can never prove that Wentworth and the Spider are the same man. ====================== Hero System write-up by Kevin Scrivner