Heroes of Industry is about the universe that acts as the setting for my super-hero campaigns. The "Industryverse" is constructed along the lines of Kurt Busiek's "Astro City":
- Based upon a mash-up of classic comic-book worlds;
- A version of the "real world", with real-word cities, history, etc.;
- Yet centered upon an entirely fictional city that encompasses within itself the hsitory of comic-book super-heroes.
A Gazetteer of the Industryverse
A
Ambuscade. Teleporting villain.
Amorphous Man. Super-hero shot to death when cornered by racketeers in the early 1950’s.
Archangel. Recognized as the first super-hero, premiering January 6, 1938 in New York City, by saving crowds from crumbling pieces of the Empire State Building. Also known as “the Eight Wonder of the World” and “the Man of Miracles”.
Beginning in the 1950’s, the Archangel became to mysteriously vanish from public view. These absences were quite short at first, only notable to residents of New York City who had come to rely on the hero as their city’s protector. But the disappearances grew in length over time. By the late-50’s, he was gone for weeks at a time; by the mid-60’s for months. The Archangel has not been reliably sighted since 1971.
Astral League. A spiritual brotherhood of sentient beings who have been selected by the Benevolence to recieve a Star-Gem. All of those chosen for the Host have, in some fashion, sought to reach their full, existential potential and demonstrated a sincere commitment to helping others do the same. These few experience a psychic "call" from the depths of space and must find soem way to to travel. There, beyond the known reaches of the universe, they come into contact with the mysterious Benevolence and accept a Star-Gem, which is implantd into their brow, for all to see.
The Star-Gem grants it's wielder extensive psychic power. Common effects include telekinesis (including telekinetic flight and force fields), telepathy (including mental manipulation), and a psychic blast called "Astral Fire". The Star-Gem itself can never be disguised or hidden, no matter what the wearer attempts. Although there is no formal organization or leadership, all members of the Astral Host are in full telepathic communion with each other and recognize a sort of "spiritual aristocracy".
The Astral Host are dedicated to allowing al sentient beigns realize their full potentail and, in so doing, allow the cosmos itself to evolve into its highest state. How each member goes about that is his own decision to make: some of the Host act as cosmic policemen or guardians, while others dedicate themselves to helping the suffering, serving as interstellar peace-makers, or compilers of wisdom. The individual bearer of the Star-Gem is, in fact, given a radcial freedom to do as he sees fit and thismay be the greatest burden one can bear.
Very few beings are aware of the Astral Host's existence, although there is no formal policy of secrecy. Each memebr of the Host must decide whether or not to reveal his origins to other beings. Those few cultures who do know of the Host almost universally hold them in the highest regard; indeed, some beigns have been known to regard the the Astral Host as a body of divine beings. Among the few who are aware of the Astral Host are the Dark-Lords, who serve as as sort of inverted reflection of the Host.
Atom-Master. Villain from the 1950’s.
Aviatrix. Golden Age hero and the first female super-hero. Based in Philadelphia. Premiered June 1938.
B
Benevolence. The unknowable organzing pricipal behind the Astral Host. No one knows if the Benevolence is a single entity, a group, a race, or even soem abstract cosmic force.
Black Dynamite. Hero from Industry City's slum, Asch Flats.
C
Crimson King. Mystical entity of immense power whose very existence threatens reality. Worshiped by degenerate cults, whose blasphemous doctrines were recorded in the infamous Drama of the Crimson King.
D
Dark-Lords. The self-styled Lords of the Outer Dark are the chosen of the Malevolence. How the Malevo;ence chooses it's lords is unknown and seemingly random: the only common thread is that only those who have no regard for the fulfillment of others are called. These anti-champions are given the Dark-Heart, implanted into their chest.
Doctor Eclipse. Golden Age hero based in New Orleans. Premiered in later part of 1938.
Doctor Yoga. 1930’s mystery man who fought crime with “the mystical powers of the East”. Much later, mentor to Empower.
Drama of the Crimson King. A play of such decadence that anyone reading it or seeing it perform is corrupted and/or maddened.
E
Eldritch Host.
Empower. A shallow, rich girl who, through wild coincidence, came to study with the famed, yogic master (and 30's mystery man) called "Dr. Yoga" in the press. Her studies opened up her vast, psychic potential. Thereupon, the girl felt the oppression and suffering of those around her and took up the mantle of Empower (Mental Power, or M-Power) to improve the lives of the common man. Empower possess a wide array of psychic powers, notably telepathy and telekinesis. She is less interested in fighting crime than in helping civilians in need and teaching others to improve themselves.
E.R.A. The Eternal Revolutionary Army is a violent paramilitary organization dedicated to the overthrow of all governments and the "international brotherhood of man". Led by the mysterious Grand Anarchist.
F
Flare. Female energy-projector. Partner of Skyrocket.
Force. A mutant who's body seethes with pure, kinetic force. Only his iron self-will allows Force to contain his energies or direct them in a controlled manner. He can direct the energy in many ways, including a booster-rocket projection to fly. But any slip of attention means that the kinetic force comes pouring out, destroying all in it's path. Force is either utterly still or a blaze of energy and motion.
Furor. Villain.
G
Genesis, the Primal Man.
Gilgamesh. The First King was snatched by the War-Gods of Mars and may have been the first colonist of their Battle World, which occupies a different vibrational-dimension on the Red Planet than that which we know. There, men abducted from across the eons wage eternal war against each other in the pure practice of the martial arts, using the wonders of the Valhalla Machine to be resurrected after each death. Gilgamesh ruled his Battle-Complex for millenia, until betrayed by the traitorous Ganelon, precipitating his flight to Earth. Gilgamesh is a master of all forms of combat and possesses immense physical strength and stamina, loving nothing more than wrestling his foe and then throwing him into another. He's a commanding and powerful figure, but subject to fits of temper when his honor is impugned.
Grand Anarchist. Unknown leader of the E.R.A. It may be that more than one man has worn the hood of the Grand Anarchist over the years, but that is just speculation based upon his otherwise miraculous ability to survive certain death on multiple occasions.
H
Harbinger.
I
Imhotep the Immortal. Sorcerous villain from ancient Egypt and eternal foe of the White Falcon. Imhotep’s magics permanently attached his ka spirit to his body with the result that he cannot permanently die. If subjected to trauma that results in death, Imhotep’s ka journey’s throughout the mundane and mystical dimensions in order to have the body repaired. Once restored to a point where life if possible, the ka reenters and Imhoptep returns to life. His body can be destroyed (and has been several times over the millennia), but if it can be reassembled, Imhotep will rise again.
Ironside. Armoured villain.
L
Leopard. Villainous were-leopard.
Logos the Lost. Exiled Ultra from Europa. Logos was born on Europa, a son of the great Regnos. Tricked and betrayed by his uncle Okkultos into helping him in a failed bid for power, Logos fled from Europa to pursue Okkultos to earth. Upon the earth, he found himself in possession of the full teleuric powers of the Ultra, but remains untrained in their use. Logos is grossly ignorant of earth and utterly bewildered by his surroundings. Fortunately, he has been taken in by Empower and attempts to understand both his powers and his home-wlrd, while searching for his uncle.
M
Mr. Mist. Villain.
Ms. Anthrope. Villain with the power to shrink while retaining her mass and increasing her density, giving her super-strength and resistance to harm.
Marion Scheckter had a hard life. A small, frail girl, she grew up with an abusive father who made her feel even smaller. At seventeen she married an abusive husband and went from one hell to another. The more she was abused, the smaller she felt. One day, her husband noticed that she was, in fact, smaller. As time went on, she grew tinier and tinier, which prompted more and more abuse. Then she snapped. The next time her husband hit her, he broke his hand on her remarkably dense flesh. Laughing, Marion beat him nearly to death and then vanished, only to reappear as “Ms. Anthrope”, the Feminist Avenger.
Ms. Anthrope isn't a subtle opponent. She likes to come flying into the scene like a human rocket with her Super-Leaping and smash into the toughest-looking male she can find. Thereafter she tends to slug it out, taunting her foe all the while. Her small-size makes it hard to hit her and fighting her has been likened to fighting a swarm of angry, super-strong bees that just keep buzzing about. Ms. Anthrope may try to convince female heroes to liberate themselves from "the Andrarchy" and join her.
N
Nemesis of Crime (I). First super-hero of Industry City, arguably having begun operating clandestinely prior to the premiere of the Archangel. Public premier in April 1938. Also known as “the Dark Guardian”. Special foe of organized crime and renowned for having taken apart the infamous “Murder Consortium” of Johnny Valentine.
The original Nemesis was a mystery-man who battled organized crime in Depression-Era Industry City; a time, much like the 70's, when corruption was rampant and the mobs effectively ran the place. The original Nemesis was officially deemed a criminal by a corrupt I.C.P.D. That Nemesis retired in the late 50's, semi-content that the gangs had been substantially reduced in power.
Nemesis of Crime (II). A legacy hero, an ex-gangster who was "recruited" into the SPARTES Project, a top-secret pseudo-Pentagon program engineered by the Think Tank to create bionic soldiers. Critically injured, his limbs have been replaced with bionic parts, as well as his eyes. He operated for a brief while under his Think Tank handlers before escaping and finding refuge with the original Nemesis. The current Nemesis uses the mystique of the original, perpetuating the myth of the immortal Nemesis of Crime. Like the original, he has been extensively trained in Kung Fu, which he backs up with bionically-powered limbs.
Nethermen. Although the majority of the Ultra left Earth some 25,000 years ago, a sizable party elected to remain, unwilling to believe the theories of Orakle or to give up their domain. Under the leadership of Tartaros, this group initially enjoyed their dominance in the wake of the Ultra exile. However, the wise Orakle’s predictions prove true and the forces unleashed by the Ultra’s own powers produced violent distortions in the telluric energies which the Ultra constantly absorbed. Many of Tartaros’ followers were killed, but a small percentage survived, though horribly mutated both physically and mentally. Changed in a virtual flash from gods to demons, these Ultra slunk away to remote places to hide themselves. Tartaros, his sanity damaged in the cataclysm, began to blame the exiles for stranding him on earth. He swore that his followers would no more even look at the sky to whence the Ultra had fled.
And so Tartaros led his followers to the sunless lands under the earth. There, they began to call themselves "the Nethermen". The Nethermen have constructed several cities the underworld over the millennia. They are crude and unpleasant places. So too are the Nethermen themselves. There is no such thing as a “typical” Netherman as their genetic make-up has become inconceivably unstable. They are, however, almost always ugly to normal humans and physically threatening. It is thought that the Nethermen may be responsible for human legends of goblins and ogres.
The Nethermen have bred a race of servitors from captured humans called the Sub-Men. The Sub-Men are a wretched slave race whom the Nethermen use to perform all menial labour in the cities. There the Nethermen while away their time in court intrigues, blood sports, and the occasional plan to wipe out humanity and/or conquer it.
Nowhere-Man. Villain. A thief with a Spatial Distortion Device that allows him to phase and to achieve virtual invisibility (although a slight warping of the light is visible).
O
Okkultos the Exilarch. Renegade Callistan who has returned to Earth believing his people are it’s rightful masters.
Omnicrime. International criminal syndicate, envisioned as the cirminal couter-part of Interpol.
Osirans. The Osirans arrived on earth some six milennia ago and established contact with the humans inhabiting what would become Egypt.
P
PAX. The paramilitary forces of the Shadow Cabinet.
Poltergeist. Golden Age hero based in St. Louis. Premiered in later part of 1938.
Presence. The dream of a man who will not accept his own non-existence. Reduced to a pure mental reality by a high-speed particle accident, the Presence projects a pseudo-body into the world of men and fights the good fight in the attempt to forget his true status. Although the Presence generally appears as an empty hood and cloak, it can be reshaped in almost any way imaginable and relocated in an eye-blink from one continent to another or even beyond.
Promethean Flame. The Eldritch Host arrived upon the earth uncounted aeons ago. Before they left, they ignited the Promethean Flame, which allows sentient beings to reshape reality through their wills.
R
Raptor. The Raptor is Prince Varex of the Bird-Men of Zouar, a city hidden within the Transantarctic Mountains. Varex displayed his family’s ancestry from an early age: the previous Princes of his line had all been longer-lived and stronger than the average Zouarian who are, themselves, su-per-strong compared to normal humans). He grew to manhood during the early part of the 20th century, isolated like all his kind from events in the outside world.
Varex left his hidden world in the early 1950's to investigate the strange energy readings his people had made for some years. These energies turned out to be atomic testing being carried out by the United States. Varex came to America and quickly found out what was occurring. Fearing for his people’s safetyand that of the world he launched a one-man war against the U.S. Army for some years after his attempts at negotiations were unsuccessful. During this time, he adopted the name Raptor. As the Raptor, Varex was considered a super-villain and came into frequent conflict with the few super-heroes operating at the time. He occasionally team-up with super-villains such the Atom-Master, but such alliances never lasted long as Varex's old-fashioned sense of honor was generally at odds with such criminals' methods.
The Raptor's war ended in 1954 not because of the United States or it's heroes, but due to his own people. In Varex's long absence, a vicious power struggle had occurred back in Zouar. Eventually, Varex's cousin Zoran emerged as the power. He was convinced that Varex's actions would eventually cause the United States to search for and found Zouar. Thus, he issued an order that Varex was to be captured and brought back to the hidden city.
Varex spent many years in imprisonment in Zouar. During that time, Zoran began to succumb to madness. Unknown to all, he had acquired a copy of The Drama of the Crimson King which contains the blasphemous and mad rituals related to the worship of that reality-destroying elder being. Prince Varex was eventually freed and retook his throne. Since that time, he has made his home in Zouar, but has made repeated trips to the rest of the world, establishing himself as envoy to the land-bound humans and a passionate advocate of nuclear disarmament. In this capacity, he has had occasion to act as a super-hero to protect the world from disasters. The Raptor has also had occasion to carry out unilateral attacks upon nations who he fears could upset global peace. This ensures that his reputation will never remain simple.
S
Saber-jet. Armoured hero.
Shadow Cabinet. A conspiracy of businessmen and politicians to run the world in secret. The origins of the Shadow Cabinet are unknown. Originally, this group appeared to be specified to the United States of America, with the leader being styled as ‘The Shadow President”. However, it subsequently came to light that the Shadow President was only the leader of the American branch of the Shadow Cabinet and the existence of a British “Shadow Prime Minster” and Russian “Shadow Tsar” seem to be verified. It may be that Shadow Cabinet extends globally, but that too is unknown.
SPARTES Project.
Star Chamber.
STRIKER. Villain with powered armour giving him enhanced strength, jet-powered flight, protection from harm, a “power cannon”, and a “sonic cannon” that causes pain and dizziness.
Tony Hecht was an engineer at Alpha Industries, a large electronics firm in Industry City. He was erratic in his work—occasional flashes of genuine invention followed by long periods of lackluster performance. When he was assigned to the team working on the STRIKER project-a powered battle-suit commissioned by the Think Tank-he found himself inspired and contributed some key ideas. But he grew increasingly frustrated when he felt his moderate contributions went unnoted and unrewarded and he wanted to patent certain ideas that AI legally owned. In the end, he stole the STRIKER prototype and declared war on Capitalism, which he felt ground down the contributions of men such as himself.
As STRIKER, Hecht feels that he is a cross between Robin Hood and Lev Trotsky, fighting the bourgeois power structure, using the tools of industry to destroy industry. Hecht has demonstrated an erratic ability to come up with new devices for his STRIKER suit, although these are mostly temporary.
Stunt-master. Once "the world's greatets daredevil", he was fisgraced when it was discovered that he had been rigging his spectacles as he grew older. Dtermined to show the world that he is still the greatest, he has assumed the identity of the Stunt-master to tackle the greatest trick of all: the battle against super-powered criminals.
Sutehk the Destroyer. Villainous member of the Osirans.
T
Tarteros the Tyrant. Ruler of the Nethermen and implacable enemy of mankind. Although Tarteros has disappeared numerous times throughout the millenia, allowing others to claim his throne, and even been overthrown once or twice by ambitious subordinates, the ancient Ultra has always returned to power sooner or later.
Think Tank. The Think Tank began in the 1950’s as a government project to establish American scientific-and thus, ultimately, military-superiority over the Soviet Union. Under the aegis of the Department of Defense, the leading minds in government, industry, and academia were brought together at an obscure California office building as the Think Tank. This new organization was given extensive funding and virtually no oversight in pursuit of their mission. Unfortunately, this allowed things to run out of hand with no one the wiser.
The Director of the Think Tank was Dr. Augustus Rand, a wunderkind who had been involved in the Manhattan Project. It was whispered that Rand was with Oppenheimer during the first test of “the Gadget” (as the first atomic device was called) and that it was Rand who verbally quoted the famous passage from the Bhagavad-Gita (“Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds”), which Oppenheimer latter misremembered as just something that played in his mind. In any case, as the extent of the Think Tank’s carte blanche became clear, Rand began to exceed his mission. As he saw it, the only hope for America was to establish a Technarchy, a rule by experts and the Think Tank was the obvious leading contender for the role.
The Think Tank’s dual-life-performing service for the American government and simultaneously seeking to co-opt it-continued for some years. Many on staff were unaware of Rand’s ambitions; those who were in the know were sometime known as “The S.O.B.’s” , probably in reference to Kenneth Bainbridge’s remark upon seeing the first atomic test (“Now we are all sons of bitches”). The S.O.B.’s took orthodox work and created a number of startling devices with which they intended to destroy the enemies of America and to usurp the role of government. In this regard, they often ran “test missions” which occasionally fell afoul of super-heroes: the Omegabot which attacked Los Angeles was one and the Distortional Field Generator used by the Nowhere Man was another.
In the mid 1960’s, the Department of Defense attempted to shut down the Think Tank after Doctor Eclipse revealed it’s criminal activities. For some while, it was thought that in closing the group’s office, cutting it’s funding, and officially disbanding it, the Think Tank had been eliminated. Unfortunately, Rand and some colleagues had prepared for such an eventuality. They faked their own deaths and went underground into bases previously prepared. Although they operated under the radar for a few years, it was eventually realized that the Think Tank continued to exist.
The new Think Tank abandoned it plans for political power and became a research development facility for cutting-edge devices, for sale to the various villains and governments of the world. Dr. Rand had disappeared and the Think Tank is now run by an anonymous individual known only as the Director.
Thunderstrike. Master of Kung Fu, possessor of the mystic thunderbolt of Shiva, and implacable enemy of the fiendish Dr. Samsara.
U
Ultra. Approximately 30,000 years ago, a population of early humans migrated into an area off of modern day India, an area which was long since submerged by the ending of the Ice Ages, but which is dimly recalled by the myth of sunken Kumari Kandam. There they found an unusually powerful spot of mystical energy. This energy has been known by various names through the millennia ("earth prana"; "dragon qi"), but which the Ultra have commonly called it "telluric energy" in the modern age. By bathing themselves in telluric energies, these proto-Ultra were able to significantly improve their physical development; all Ultra possess remarkable strength, stamina, and resistance to injury and ageing. Additionally, they learned to use telluric energy to manipulate the earth itself, building habitations and even cities from the ground up with their wills, creating lush gardens in the midst of deserts, and the like.
The early Ultra remained a small, isolated community worshiped as gods by the local mainstream humans. Intermarriage between the groups saw few Ultra born, but the population remained stable. However, their amazing abilities allowed the development of technology the like of which would not be seen until the modern day. And, as time went on, the Ultra began to develop their cities more and more, utilizing greater quantities of telluric energy. Eventually, an Ultra called Orakle was able to detect the growing disturbance within the earth's telluric currents and realized that within a century, the energy-field would be so mutated that it would kill or energetically mutilate the majority of the Ultra. This precipitated great debate among the Ultra, but eventually two parties formed: the first determined to leave the Earth for a safer planet while the second determined to remain and live out the disaster. Under the leadership of Orakle’s older brother, Regnos, a large contingent of Ultra dedicated themselves to creating a Space Ark. The second group, under the leadership of a prince named Tartaros, defiantly stayed put.
The exodus group initially headed toward the planet Mars, which had seemed an ideal location from which to ride out the planetary devastation on Earth. However, as the Red Planet came nearer, Orakle realized that the telluric energies of Mars were of such a violent nature that he feared their for their effects on the Ultra. After an-other debate, the group split once again: one group descended to Mars, braving the effects of the martian energy, while the second continued searching for a new home. Those who went to Mars were, in fact, terribly distorted by that planet’s influence. Eventually, they renamed themselves the War-Gods and began their program of abducting human warriors to create the ultimate army.
The group journeying onward eventually found a home on the Jovian moon of Europa. There, the Ultra found that they were much less able to tap into the planetary energy. Those who had been born on Earth retained their remarkable physical prowess, but were greatly reduced in capacity to otherwise manipulate energy. Those few native Europan Ultras were still physically superior to mainstream humans, but less so than the earth-born forbearers.
Under the leadership of Regnos, the Ultra of Europa set about creating a new, quasi-monastic society of enlightened philosophers, dedicated to peace and individual illumination. They seek to avoid the hubris that forced them out of their original world. Most Europans have left behind any thoughts of returning to earth; however, this is not a universal sentiment. A small party calling themselves “the Exiles” advocate for a return to the Home-World and reclamation of their former divine status. This party was, until lately, led by Regnos’ younger brother, Okkultos. After failing in a plot to supplant Regnos and lead an army back to earth, the usurper fled the moon and re-turned to earth alone. There, calling himself “Okkultos the Exilarch”, he has set about attempting to claim his domain. He was pursued by his nephew, Logos, who has established himself as a super-hero in Industry City.
Umbra. Supervillain who animates and controls shadows. “The Shadow-Master”.
V
Valentine, Johnny. Real name Gianni Valentino. Came to America as a small boy in the early 1920’s. Created the Murder Consortium after the war, using vets. Unlike the typical mob triggermen, the members of the Murder Consortium were highly training and specialized: snipers, explosive experts, and commandos. The success of the Murder Consortium allows Valentine to dominate organized crime in Industry City. The original Nemesis spent several years dismantling the Consortium and breaking Valentine’s power. By 1950, Valentine fled back to his native Calabria fleeing federal warrants and ambitious criminals.
Although he appeared to have vanished into obscurity, Valentine was plotting again….
W
War-Gods. The War-Gods are the warped descendants of those emigrant Ultra who could not bear the idea of the long voyage into space and who left the Space Ark to settle upon the planet Mars. As predicted by Orakle, the native energies of the Red Planet prove so different from those telluric currents with which the Ultra had been familiar, that the martian colony quickly found themselves changing. Unlike the Ultra who remained on Earth and mutated into the hideous Underfolk, the Martian Ultra remained physically stable, but were changed into violent beings. The strange martian energies had also had a peculiar vibratory quality which eventually shifted the Ultra into another dimension of being.
Renaming their dimensional version of Mars “the War-World” and themselves “the War Gods”, the few remaining Martian colonists were each beings of immense power. By and large, their existence revolves around the domination of their fellows: each War God dreams of the day that he can dominate the Battle-World and, from there, conquer the universe. However, no single War God has been able to achieve such power for very long.
The most successful attempt was made some 5,000 terran years ago. Under the brief leadership of the Grand Warlord Dominus, the martian plan developed upon the perfection of two technologies. The first was the “Immanence Machine” , which allowed the conversion of objects from the normal dimension into that of the martian energies and vice-versa. This allowed the Ultra to return to our dimension and bring others into theirs.
The second invention was the infamous “Valhalla Device”. This device was capable of physically resurrecting dead beings and granting them near-immortality. The Martians then began the creation of their Grand Army of Universal Domination. Prizing mastery of the fighting arts above all else, the War Gods began to spy upon the Earth, seeking the finest warriors produced there. Once a target had been chosen, the emissaries of the War Gods would seek out the individual for transport to the War-World and rebirth in the Valhalla Machine. It has been suggested that the Sumerian ruler Gilgamesh was the first recipient of that process and he held high office among the War Gods until his eventual flight to earth.
Outside of their program of abduction, the War-Gods have had minimal contact with the earth since their exodus. Known War-Gods include Lord Dominus, Lord Skull, and Lord Venom.
Watchman. The Watchman appeared in Industry City in early 1974. He appeared to have taken up the mantle of the original Nemesis of Crime, specifically targeting the city’s organized crime. For some months, he led a one-man crusade against the gangs, nearly crippling their operations. He was shockingly brutal-using firearms and killing his foes-but this seemed to fit the mood of the city . It was eventually revealed that the Watchman was employed by an out-of-town syndicate to create chaos amongst the criminals of Industry City and thus allow a new group to taken over operations. The Watchman was killed while being apprehended by the I.C.P.D. The resulting disillusionment is credited with paving the way for the creation of the Extraordinary Situation Response Division (E.S.R.D.) and poisoning the city’s relationship with masked heroes.
The Watchman used a variety of simple devices, including guns, and had elevated physical abilities due to the use of a drug invented by the Think Tank called “Ultrasoma”, but which is more often known as “Superman Sauce”. Ultrasoma is extremely addictive and users generally destroy their system in short order.
White Falcon (I). Golden Age hero based in Boston. Premiered in later part of 1938.
Possibly the reincarnation of the god Horus or perhaps the spirit of Horus possessing a normal man, the White Falcon appears when a jewel called the Eye of Horus is grasped; in a flash of blinding light, the Falcon is there. The White Falcon controls a mystical energy that resembles golden sunlight, which he forms into weapons and other constructs. He came to Boston in pursuit of his immortal foe, the mummified sorcerer Imhotep the Immortal.
White Falcon (II). It is unknown whether or not the White Falcon who premiered in 1973 is the same being as that who operated in the 1930’s and 40’s.
X
X-Squad. The common name for Industry City’s elite police division, designed to combat super-human threats. The official name is the "Extraordinary Situation Response Squad" and all official vehicles bear the inscription E.S.R.S.
The X-Squad was created in 1974 in response to wide-spread public feelings of helplessness and anger concerning the state of crime. Specifically, the revelation that the Watchman, heretofore scourge of organized crime, was, in fact, a paid operative of an out-of-town syndicate whose actions were intended to weaken local criminal organizations so that they could be taken over. In the wake of damage caused by the police’s attempted arrest of the Watchman, the I.C.P.D. put together a plan for a highly-trained, specially-equipped squad of officers who could deal with super-powered threats.
The man chosen to lead the Extraordinary Situation Response Squad was Captain A. Edwin Eversole, a tough war veteran known as “Excess” Eversole among his men.
Z
Zouar. Hidden city located in the Transantarctic Mountains. The current residents of Zouar are the Bird-Men, a race of winged semi-humans. They have inhabited the city for uncounted thousands of years, but did not build it. It was long empty when they discovered it. It appears that Zouar was built by some elder, non-human race that subsequently disappeared. Events surrounding the madness of Prince Zoran, indicate some connection between the builders of Zouar and the being known as the Crimson King.
The Bird-Men themselves have no clear records of when and why they moved into the city. There is some reason to believe that the Bird-Men are descended from the remnant of the Ultra who remained on earth after the planetary exodus of the majority of that race some 25,000 years ago. If so, then the Bird-Men would be an off-shoot of the Underfolk and perhaps migrated to Antarctica in an effort to avoid the degenerative effects of the telluric disturbances that so warped those others. The Bird-Men share with the Ultra a super-human degree of physical ability, although not nearly to the same extent. They do not appear to have any facility for manipulating the telluric power that was the Ultras most notable ability. This non-receptivity to telluric power may be a result of efforts to stave off the mutating effects that created the Underfolk.
The Bird-Men of Zouar have a culture roughly analogous to Bronze Age Mediterraneans. Indeed, "Flying Myceneans" has been used on occasion to describe them. They are proud race that values both physical and intellectual accomplishments. At the same time, they have a keen facility for magic. Their culture is permeated by sorcery and their arcane devices have allowed to remain safe and hidden for millenia.
