Ugly Ghost Squad #24 recap
Sep. 30th, 2016 10:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jkcarrierUgly Ghost Squad #24
"The Scales of Injustice"
Played 9/24/2016
Roll Call:
Black Panther
Captain America
Hulk
Martian Manhunter
Thanatos
Experience Level: 9
Enemies Fought:
Libra and the Injustice Gang of the World:
Bag O'Bones
Blackrock
Brain Storm
Catwoman
Copperhead
Dr. Polaris
Giganta
Ibac
Killer Moth
Matter Master
Moon Man
Mr. Freeze
Rainbow Archer
Scarecrow
Shark
Silver Swan
Spinner
World-Beater
Other NPCs:
Mayor Field
Adventure Modules Used:
DC Heroes: "King of Crime" by Jeff O'Hare
Synopsis:
The Ugly Ghost Squad responded to a call for aid from Mayor Field of Central City. The city's resident superhero, the Flash, had disappeared, and a mob of supervillains were running amuck all over town.
As the heroes consulted with the mayor, they received an anonymous note, daring them to try and stop the next wave of crimes planned across the city. The note contained a series of cryptic clues, pointing to where the crimes would take place.
The first clue, "Ice Cold Drinks", led the team to the Central City reservoir, source of the city's drinking water. There, they thwarted a plot to freeze the reservoir solid by the chilling Mr. Freeze, the psychic Brain Storm, the slippery Copperhead, the vicious Shark, and the sonic-screaming Silver Swan. It was a protracted battle, but the heroes prevailed.
Clue number two, "Diamonds", referred to the baseball diamond at Central City Stadium. Matter Master levitated the stadium with his mentachem wand, while his allies the electric-powered Blackrock, magnetic Dr. Polaris, mammoth Giganta, telekinetic Moon Man, and bow-wielding Rainbow Archer took on the heroes. Thanatos drained Matter Master's power to the point where he dropped the stadium. All of the heroes and most of the villains were able to remain aloft, but poor Giganta went "down with the ship"...she survived, but was knocked out. The rest of the villains were soon dispatched as well.
The third clue, "Money Shortage", pointed towards a good old-fashioned bank robbery. Killer Moth led a team of robbers consisting of the electrified skeleton Bag O'Bones, whip-wielding Catwoman, brutish Ibac, terrifying Scarecrow, and the buzz-saw-armored Spinner. The repeated battles were beginning to take their toll on the weary Ghost Squad, but they pulled out a victory.
Back at police headquarters, the apprehended villains began showing signs of sickness and extreme fatigue...all except Catwoman. She smugly advised the heroes that all of her fellow thugs had agreed to get special tattoos as a sign of solidarity, but she had refused. Those tattoos were now rapidly draining the life out of them. The tattoo was a pair of scales...the sign of Libra.
The heroes tracked Libra down to his lair in a downtown skyscraper. There they found the missing Flash, likewise drained to within an inch of his life. The energy from Flash and the villains had been transferred to a massive android called the World Beater, which came to life and attacked. The multi-powered creature was able to absorb enormous amounts of punishment, and dish it out in return, but the Ghost Squad finally managed to wear it down. As it deactivated, the stolen powers went back to their rightful owners. The Flash would soon be racing the streets of Central City once more.
Memorable Quotes:
"He's a gay guy who shoots arrows. How was I supposed to know he'd have laser powers?" Black Panther on Rainbow Archer
Sources and References:
Flash:
When a lightning bolt struck inside a police laboratory, the combination of electricity and chemicals gave scientist Barry Allen the power to run at incredible speeds. He became the Flash, fleet-footed nemesis of crime. The Flash is often often credited with kicking off the renewed popularity of superhero comics in the late 1950s, the so-called "Silver Age". Now, of course, he's a big tv star (not to mention the upcoming Justice League movie...).
http://comicvine.gamespot.com/barry-allen/4005-22804/
Libra and his Injustice Gang are making a return appearance from way back in issue #2, so see that recap for their origins. A few new members have been added to the ranks:
Catwoman:
The original comics femme fatale, Batman's favorite enemy-with-benefits. Our version here favors Michelle Pfeiffer's portrayal from the movie "Batman Returns".
http://comicvine.gamespot.com/catwoman/4005-1698/
Giganta:
(see recap for issue #8)
Ibac:
A classic enemy of Captain Marvel. His name spells out the list of historical scumbags who granted him his superhuman strength and durablility: I for Ivan the Terrible, B for Cesar Borgia, A for Attila the Hun, and C for Caligula.
http://shazam.wikia.com/wiki/Ibac
Killer Moth:
A criminal who decided he would become Batman's opposite: instead of helping the police, he would come to the aid of his fellow crooks whenever they were about to be arrested. He created a whole arsenal of "moth-weapons", including a Moth-mobile, a Moth-Signal, and a Moth-Cave to hold it all in. Needless to say, he never quite lived up to his inspiration.
http://batman.wikia.com/wiki/Killer_Moth
Matter Master:
Scientist Mark Mandrill discovered "mentachem", a material that gave him mental control over natural substances. Naturally, he decided to put on a tall, pointy hat and use his discovery for crime. He was a longtime foe of Hawkman.
http://comicvine.gamespot.com/matter-master/4005-31128/
Moon Man:
(see recap for issue #5)
Rainbow Archer:
After Green Arrow broke up his counterfeiting operation, Albrecht Raines swore vengeance. He decided to commit crimes using arrows of every color of the rainbow *except* green, as a way to show his contempt for the man who'd put him in prison.
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Albrecht_Raines_(Earth-One)
Scarecrow:
Psychology professor Jonathan Crane was shunned by his peers for his unconventional theories, and mocked for his scrawny frame and shabby clothes -- they called him "Scarecrow". Fed up with their abuse, he turned against society and took on the guise of a Scarecrow, using fear-inducing chemicals to commit crime.
http://batman.wikia.com/wiki/Scarecrow
Silver Swan:
Helen Alexandros was a talented ballerina, but her plain appearance kept her from becoming a big success. The evil god Mars offered to make her beautiful (and give her super-powers) in exchange for her killing Wonder Woman. She eagerly agreed, but even with super-strength and a powerful sonic scream, she was no match for Wonder Woman.
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Helen_Alexandros_(Earth-One)
World Beater:
In the comics, this giant android was created by an alien scientist named Dr. Indrom. Indrom captured supervillains from many worlds and disintegrated them, transferring all their powers into the World Beater. He sent the World Beater to Earth, where he managed to defeat the Super Friends and most of the other heroes. The World Beater was finally defeated when the Junior Super Friends, Wendy and Marvin, figured out that he not only had all the villians' powers, but their weaknesses as well.
http://comicvine.gamespot.com/super-friends-3/4000-17159/
"The Scales of Injustice"
Played 9/24/2016
Roll Call:
Black Panther
Captain America
Hulk
Martian Manhunter
Thanatos
Experience Level: 9
Enemies Fought:
Libra and the Injustice Gang of the World:
Bag O'Bones
Blackrock
Brain Storm
Catwoman
Copperhead
Dr. Polaris
Giganta
Ibac
Killer Moth
Matter Master
Moon Man
Mr. Freeze
Rainbow Archer
Scarecrow
Shark
Silver Swan
Spinner
World-Beater
Other NPCs:
Mayor Field
Adventure Modules Used:
DC Heroes: "King of Crime" by Jeff O'Hare
Synopsis:
The Ugly Ghost Squad responded to a call for aid from Mayor Field of Central City. The city's resident superhero, the Flash, had disappeared, and a mob of supervillains were running amuck all over town.
As the heroes consulted with the mayor, they received an anonymous note, daring them to try and stop the next wave of crimes planned across the city. The note contained a series of cryptic clues, pointing to where the crimes would take place.
The first clue, "Ice Cold Drinks", led the team to the Central City reservoir, source of the city's drinking water. There, they thwarted a plot to freeze the reservoir solid by the chilling Mr. Freeze, the psychic Brain Storm, the slippery Copperhead, the vicious Shark, and the sonic-screaming Silver Swan. It was a protracted battle, but the heroes prevailed.
Clue number two, "Diamonds", referred to the baseball diamond at Central City Stadium. Matter Master levitated the stadium with his mentachem wand, while his allies the electric-powered Blackrock, magnetic Dr. Polaris, mammoth Giganta, telekinetic Moon Man, and bow-wielding Rainbow Archer took on the heroes. Thanatos drained Matter Master's power to the point where he dropped the stadium. All of the heroes and most of the villains were able to remain aloft, but poor Giganta went "down with the ship"...she survived, but was knocked out. The rest of the villains were soon dispatched as well.
The third clue, "Money Shortage", pointed towards a good old-fashioned bank robbery. Killer Moth led a team of robbers consisting of the electrified skeleton Bag O'Bones, whip-wielding Catwoman, brutish Ibac, terrifying Scarecrow, and the buzz-saw-armored Spinner. The repeated battles were beginning to take their toll on the weary Ghost Squad, but they pulled out a victory.
Back at police headquarters, the apprehended villains began showing signs of sickness and extreme fatigue...all except Catwoman. She smugly advised the heroes that all of her fellow thugs had agreed to get special tattoos as a sign of solidarity, but she had refused. Those tattoos were now rapidly draining the life out of them. The tattoo was a pair of scales...the sign of Libra.
The heroes tracked Libra down to his lair in a downtown skyscraper. There they found the missing Flash, likewise drained to within an inch of his life. The energy from Flash and the villains had been transferred to a massive android called the World Beater, which came to life and attacked. The multi-powered creature was able to absorb enormous amounts of punishment, and dish it out in return, but the Ghost Squad finally managed to wear it down. As it deactivated, the stolen powers went back to their rightful owners. The Flash would soon be racing the streets of Central City once more.
Memorable Quotes:
"He's a gay guy who shoots arrows. How was I supposed to know he'd have laser powers?" Black Panther on Rainbow Archer
Sources and References:
Flash:
When a lightning bolt struck inside a police laboratory, the combination of electricity and chemicals gave scientist Barry Allen the power to run at incredible speeds. He became the Flash, fleet-footed nemesis of crime. The Flash is often often credited with kicking off the renewed popularity of superhero comics in the late 1950s, the so-called "Silver Age". Now, of course, he's a big tv star (not to mention the upcoming Justice League movie...).
http://comicvine.gamespot.com/barry-allen/4005-22804/
Libra and his Injustice Gang are making a return appearance from way back in issue #2, so see that recap for their origins. A few new members have been added to the ranks:
Catwoman:
The original comics femme fatale, Batman's favorite enemy-with-benefits. Our version here favors Michelle Pfeiffer's portrayal from the movie "Batman Returns".
http://comicvine.gamespot.com/catwoman/4005-1698/
Giganta:
(see recap for issue #8)
Ibac:
A classic enemy of Captain Marvel. His name spells out the list of historical scumbags who granted him his superhuman strength and durablility: I for Ivan the Terrible, B for Cesar Borgia, A for Attila the Hun, and C for Caligula.
http://shazam.wikia.com/wiki/Ibac
Killer Moth:
A criminal who decided he would become Batman's opposite: instead of helping the police, he would come to the aid of his fellow crooks whenever they were about to be arrested. He created a whole arsenal of "moth-weapons", including a Moth-mobile, a Moth-Signal, and a Moth-Cave to hold it all in. Needless to say, he never quite lived up to his inspiration.
http://batman.wikia.com/wiki/Killer_Moth
Matter Master:
Scientist Mark Mandrill discovered "mentachem", a material that gave him mental control over natural substances. Naturally, he decided to put on a tall, pointy hat and use his discovery for crime. He was a longtime foe of Hawkman.
http://comicvine.gamespot.com/matter-master/4005-31128/
Moon Man:
(see recap for issue #5)
Rainbow Archer:
After Green Arrow broke up his counterfeiting operation, Albrecht Raines swore vengeance. He decided to commit crimes using arrows of every color of the rainbow *except* green, as a way to show his contempt for the man who'd put him in prison.
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Albrecht_Raines_(Earth-One)
Scarecrow:
Psychology professor Jonathan Crane was shunned by his peers for his unconventional theories, and mocked for his scrawny frame and shabby clothes -- they called him "Scarecrow". Fed up with their abuse, he turned against society and took on the guise of a Scarecrow, using fear-inducing chemicals to commit crime.
http://batman.wikia.com/wiki/Scarecrow
Silver Swan:
Helen Alexandros was a talented ballerina, but her plain appearance kept her from becoming a big success. The evil god Mars offered to make her beautiful (and give her super-powers) in exchange for her killing Wonder Woman. She eagerly agreed, but even with super-strength and a powerful sonic scream, she was no match for Wonder Woman.
http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Helen_Alexandros_(Earth-One)
World Beater:
In the comics, this giant android was created by an alien scientist named Dr. Indrom. Indrom captured supervillains from many worlds and disintegrated them, transferring all their powers into the World Beater. He sent the World Beater to Earth, where he managed to defeat the Super Friends and most of the other heroes. The World Beater was finally defeated when the Junior Super Friends, Wendy and Marvin, figured out that he not only had all the villians' powers, but their weaknesses as well.
http://comicvine.gamespot.com/super-friends-3/4000-17159/
