Cast of Characters

[Charles Warren]

BROTHER VOODOO
Real Name: Jericho Drumm
Affiliation: Voodoo Priest
Powers: Numerous mystical and quasi-physical powers

The legacy of Brother Voodoo dates back to the 17th century when a former slave named Laurent gained the power of the Loa. Empowered by the Voodoo god Legba with assistance from the earth goddess Gaea, Laurent used a spell to bind the spirit of his dead brother Alexandre to his own soul, transforming him into the Lord of the Loa to oppose zombies. Allied with French freebooter Captain Tyger, Laurent’s legend would grow over the centuries, inspiring later successors, many of whom were known as Brother Voodoo. An early 18th century Brother Voodoo encountered the sorcerer Cagliostro.

In the modern era, Jericho Drumm grew up in an environment immersed in the occult. While his brother Daniel embraced the local Voodoo (or Voudoun) legends, Jericho rejected this as superstitious nonsense. He eventually journeyed to the U.S.A. and became a prosperous psychologist. Twelve years after leaving Haiti, he was summoned back home to see his dying brother, who had been struck down by a Zobop (a false god) claiming to be Damballah, the Snake Spirit of Voodoo lore; in reality, this Damballah was a man possessed by the demon spawn of the Elder God Set, which was also named Damballah. Daniel asked his brother to study under Papa Jambo as he had done and became the new Brother Voodoo, but Jericho gave in to his rage and confronted the Zobop, who nearly killed him. Papa Jambo then tutored Jericho in the ancient ways of their people, culminating a ritual which summoned forth the Loa (or spirit) of his brother Daniel and bound it to Jericho. Confident that he had found a truly worthy heir in Jericho, Papa Jambo allowed himself to die. Jericho then confronted the false Damballah and his Council Supreme, a union of leaders of dark cults across the globe. Jericho defeated him, tearing off the wangal (amulet) that gave him his powers, causing the villain to be killed by his own serpents. The Zobop’s former servant Bambu swore allegiance to Jericho, recognizing that he was truly Lord of the Loa.

Brother Voodoo and Bambu took up residence in a mansion near Louisiana’s French Quarter. Jericho was soon called back to Haiti to battle Baron Samedi, who had worked with Advanced Idea Mechanics (A.I.M.) to create pseudo-zombies called Zuvembies. The majority of the Zuvembies were innocent men and women, stolen in the dead of night while paying respects of their loved ones in local cemeteries. Unlike true zombies, Zuvembies were not actually dead. A device created by Samedi and A.I.M. drained their minds but not their souls. Samdedi hoped to use the device on Brother Voodoo himself, making him the vanguard of the Zuvembi forces. Jericho, however, summoned a lizard that chewed through the device’s power cable. Voodoo made short work of Samedi and restored the Zuvembies to their natural state.

Soon after, Voodoo saved the life of Loralee Tate, the daughter of New Orleans chief of detectives Samuel Tate. Loralee had been targeted by Worshippers of the Black Rooster, but Jericho’s attempts to protect her drew the wrath of her father, who temporarily issued an arrest warrant for the hero. With the aid of local priestess Mama Limbo, Brother Voodoo tracked down the nowmissing girl and rescued her from the group’s leader, the Black Talon. A houngan named Dramabu later revived Papa Jambo, using him as a zombie servant in a failed bid to destroy Brother Voodoo.

Jericho’s activities began to attract the notice of other heroes, and he soon found himself aiding them whenever voodoo entered their lives. Trailing a malevolent Loa named Moondog, Jericho visited New York City and helped Spider-Man halt the attempted slaying of young actress Gail Paris. Brother Voodoo then traveled to Brazil to help vampire hunter Frank Drake overcome a trap laid for him by Dracula. Drake, who had been suffering through a prolonged period of self-doubt, drew inspiration from Jericho and rededicated himself to hunting Dracula after their encounter. Months later, Jericho aided the Werewolf (Jack Russell) and his empathic ally Topaz against the evil machinations of Dr. Glitternight. Jericho was able to ease Russell’s tortured existence by temporarily sharing his brother Daniel’s spirit with the Werewolf. While Daniel inhabited Russell’s body, Russell could control the Werewolf’s transformations and actions. After a harrowing battle with a zombie horde, the Werewolf entered the so-called Black Egg, which housed Glitternight’s power. Within the Egg, Daniel lived once more, and physically assisted the Werewolf in defeating their mutual enemy. In the end, Daniel returned to his spirit state and once more occupied a spot within his brother’s soul.

Aided by the Thing, Jericho later uncovered a plot to kidnap prominent members of the black community. Entering a small African nation bordering Uganda Jericho encountered the Voodoo priest W’Sulli, who had enslaved a vampire and transformed it into a form of zombie. W’Sulli was working with Dr. Kinji Obatu, who sought revenge against those who had wronged him. Jericho and the Thing defeated Obatu and W’Sulli, rescuing several notable celebrities, including the Black Panther. Jericho later tried to increase his own power through his enemy Damballah’s wangal, and was possessed by the Set-spawn Damballah, but Dr. Strange freed Jericho and re-imprisoned the demon within the wangal. When the Grandmaster challenged Death to a Contest of Champions, Brother Voodoo found himself a part of the proceeding. He joined the hero Moon Knight against the Grand Bios, a terrorist who had been raising Zombies in Haiti. Brother Voodoo was later ambushed in Haiti by agents of Doctor Friday, who used the Zhambi Concombre potion to place Jericho in a mindless, tractable, zombie-like state, intending to use him as a pawn. Jericho escaped and fought off the drug with the help of Moon Knight, and the two brought down Friday and his alliance with mobster Brutale.

Earth’s Sorcerer Supreme Dr. Strange secured Jericho’s aid when Marie Laveau sought to revive the world’s vampires; during this time, Bambu sacrificed his life to save Morganna Blessing, and his spirit played and unwilling role in resurrecting the vampire Varnae. Following this, Loralee spurned a desperately lonely Jericho, who had Daniel’s spirit possess her so that she would love him. Finally overcome with guilt, Jericho removed Daniel, and Loralee left him. Seeking to regain his focus, Jericho wrote a book, “Do You Voodoo, I Do!,” and went on a tour promoting it, sometimes resorting to publicity stunts such as hiring an actress to play his alleged partner, “Sister Voodoo” (not to mention her son, “Voodoo Chile”).

For a time, Jericho abandoned the Brother Voodoo identity because he had “given up on brotherhood.” Jericho investigated the zombie Nathaniel “Nat” Mare, whom Ellery Snow was using to avenge Mare’s decades-old murder. Jericho also worked with Dracula’s daughter, Lilith, helping her control her raging bloodlust while hunting vampires and other undead beings. The duo fought alongside the Dan Ketch Ghost Rider against the Scarecrow (Ebenezer Laughton). Back in New Orleans, Jericho united with the vampire hunter Blade to defeat an alliance between Marie Laveau and Deacon Frost, and Jericho turned the true Damballah against Laveau.

Jericho’s old friend Bambi Arbogast called Voodoo in to help revive Iron First, who had spent his life-force saving Luke Cage. Sensing a rift developing between the worlds of the living and the dead cause by the resurrection of Erik Killmonger, Jericho journeyed to the side of the Black Panther, sending Moon Knight into the Realm of the Dead to retrieve the Panter’s spirit after he had been slain by Killmonger. This led Panther into conflict with Nightmare, but in the end, T’Challa was restored to life and Jericho returned home. By this time, Jericho had developed a sense of protective about New Orleans, Eagerly identifying himself as its local super hero. Jericho cautiously observed the plots involving the mystic Inficio Aquilus, the first tarot card deck, and later helped the X-Men’s Gambit against the zombie army raised by Antoinelle Arcenaux. Jericho helped Gambit overcome his reluctance to fight a zombieversion of an old friend, Dan Down, and later led Gambit in laying the zombies to rest. Brother Voodoo remains an active defender of not just New Orleans but of the entire world.

Brother Voodoo was part of a magical taskforce gathered by Amanda Sefton to rescue Doctor Strange from Nightmare.

STRENGTH LEVEL: Unless augmented by his brother's spirit Brother Voodoo possesses the normal human strength of a man of his age, height, and build who engages in moderate regular exercise.

SUPERHUMAN POWERS: Brother Voodoo possesses numerous mystical and quasi-physical powers derived from the Loa, the spirit-gods of voodoo, a faith originated and practiced in Haiti. Brother Voodoo can effortlessly enter a trance-like state in which he is immune to fire. Not only does he not feel the heat of the flame, but also his skin becomes mystically impervious to burning. Brother Voodoo cannot create flame, but he can control it. He can, for example, cause a matchstick to blaze like a bonfire or douse a raging wall of flame simply by concentrating on it.

Brother Voodoo can mystically create smoke at will. This smoke serves to cover his movements, and is always accompanied by the sound of voodoo drums. He can mystically see through smoke as if it were not there. The incessant pounding of the voodoo drums has a disorienting, unnerving effect on those who hear it.

Brother Voodoo also has the ability to command certain living things by a mystic sort of hypnotism. His degree of control over a creature is determined by the creature's level of intelligence. Human beings are least affected by his mystical hypnotism. Generally, he cannot command them to do much more than to stop what they are doing. He has greatest control over animals: snakes, dogs, birds, frogs and so forth, will do his bidding within the parameters of their own physical and mental capacities. Even plants will obey his mystic coercion, although their immobility tends to limit their usefulness. The two major limitations on this power are that the being under control must be alive (zombies and rocks are unaffected by his power), and he can only command one creature at a time (if be wore attacked by a pack of dogs, he would have to order them to back off one at a time). Unless Brother Voodoo keeps asserting control over a given creature, it will revert to its prior frame of mind immediately upon completion of its appointed task.

Brother Voodoo's most unusual talent is the ability to summon the specter of his deceased brother Daniel from its dwelling place within his own body. By calling upon his brother's spirit, he is able to double his physical strength, making him strong enough to lift approximately 500 pounds. He is able to send his brother's spirit forth to temporarily "possess" other people's bodies and totally control their actions. Though somewhat similar to his mystichypnotic control over people, spiritual possession is far more effective. Through his hypnotic power, he can influence a person to perform but one simple act before relinquishing control. Through possession, the person's body and mind is a virtual slave, capable of performing any number of complex activities for the duration of the possession. The only major limitation of me power is that the person possessed must be alive and cannot already be possessed by a foreign spirit. Once Brother Voodoo sends forth his brother's spirit to possess someone, the spirit becomes autonomous enough in its activity that Brother Voodoo does not have to consciously exert control over his second self. The spirit of Daniel Drumm becomes an invisible accomplice attuned to his brother's intents and needs. As yet, there is no known limit to the time in which Daniel can remain outside his brother's host-body. When Daniel ceases possession of a person, the dispossessed generally suffers disorientation, nausea or even trauma.

www.marveldirectory.com/individuals/b/brothervoodoo.htm

[Charles Warren]

CLEA
Real Name: Clea
Affiliation: Princess of the Dark Dimension
Powers: Magic

Clea is the daughter of Umar, a member of the extradimensional Faltinian race. And of Prince Orini, the son of Olnar, former ruler of the Dark Dimension. (The Dark Dimension is a small "pocket" universe in a dimension other that Earth's, in which the laws of reality are different from those in the Earth dimension.) Exiles from their native dimension, Umar and her brother Dormammu had allied themselves with Olnar. Olnar was killed by the savage beings called the Mindless Ones, leaving a son, Orini, who could not yet succeed his father as ruler since he was an infant. Dormammu was declared regent since he and Umar had saved the people of the Dark Dimension from the Mindless Ones, and he raised Orini as his ward. Dormammu did not surrender the throne to Orini when the latter reached adulthood; instead, Orini became Dormammu's leading disciple. Upon becoming an adult, Orini first met Umar, and fell deeply in love with her; However, Umar was disgusted by her affair with Orini and has since treated him contemptuously. After Clea's birth, she gave Clea to Orini to rise, and until recently, only Umar and Orini knew that Umar was Clea's mother.

Clea befriended and aided Dr Stephen Strange on his first journeys into the Dark Dimension to do battle with Dormammu, who has long sought to conquer Earth. As a result of these encounters, Doctor Strange and Clea fell in love with each other. After Dormammu became trapped in another pocket dimension as a result of a clash with Eternity, Umar escaped the pocket universe to which Dormammu had exiled her. Umar took over the throne of the Dark Dimension and, determined to avenge her brothers defeat by Strange, used Clea as her hostage to induce Strange to return to the Dark Dimension to battle her. Strange rescued Clea from Umar's attempt to kill her, but, in order to safeguard Clea from further attack, was forced to allow his mentor, the Ancient One to send her into yet another pocket dimension, from which it was thought Clea might never return.

It turned out that Clea had gone to the same pocket cosmos to which Dormammu had been exiled. Eventually, Doctor Strange found his way there, just as Dormammu was preparing his long-awaited escape. Strange freed Clea from her exile there, and Clea came to live on Earth in New York City. She soon moved into Dr. Strange's House, and spent several years there as his lover and disciple in the mystic arts. During this time Clea developed a great deal of her mystical potential as her knowledge of magic increased.

With Dormammu's most recent disappearance, Umar assumed the throne of the Dark Dimension. Clea returned to the Dark Dimension to lead the forces of rebellion there in their attempt to overthrow her. Clea was joined there by Dr. Strange, who mystically probed Orini's mind, thus learned the Umar was Clea's mother, and told Clea. Clea finally defeated Umar in personal combat. Umar and Orini, who remains loyal to her, were placed in suspended animation within mystic capsules which were sent adrift in another pocket dimension. Clea is now ruler of the Dark Dimension

Clea was part of a magical taskforce assembled by Amanda Sefton to rescue Doctor Strange from Nightmare.

Strength Level: Since Clea is the daughter of Umar, a member of the extradimensional Faltine race, her physical strength is greater by an unknown amount than that of an Earth woman of the same height, build, and physical age.

Known Superhuman Powers: Clea possesses formidable abilities for manipulating mystical forces for various purposes, due to her training by Dr. Strange and her Faltine descent. At this point, Clea is Sorceress Supreme of the Dark Dimension, and her power equals that of Umar at Umar's peak. Clea finally achieved this high level of power in her battle with Umar that led to Clea's becoming ruler of the Dark Dimension. At that point, the "flames of regency," that by Dormammu's spell appears about the head of the ruler of the Dark Dimension, surrounded Clea's head. The flames, which do not harm Clea, will remain about her head as long as she is ruler. It is believed that the flames themselves may have increased Clea's power. Whenever Dormammu has been deposed and Umar succeeded him, the flames appeared about her head , and her power increased.

Presumably Clea generates great mystical energy within her own body as Dormammu and Umar do, and can draw upon it. It remains to be seen what Clea can do with her newly increased power. While she was a student of Dr. Strange and removed from the Dark Dimension, her magic, like his seemed to be derived from three major sources: personal power of the soul/mind/body (such as mesmerismand thought casting), power gained by tapping the ambient magical energy of the universe she inhabits and employing it for special effects (such as illusion-casting and energy projection), and finally, powers gained through the tapping of mystical energy from other dimensions by invoking entities of objects of power existing in those dimensions. The latter means of power is usually gained by the recitation of spells, either ritualized ones found in various mystical text or original spells invoking extradimensional assistance.

The full range of Clea's mystical abilities have yet to be seen. However, it has been theorized the Clea, ay least potentially, can now perform any magical feat that her mentor Dr. Strange or her mother Umar can. Clea's abilities are, however, limited by her amount of training and experience. It is known that Clea can form and hurl magical energy bolts with a high degree of potemcy and skill. She can use local magical energy for the conjuration of at least physical objects or for unusual luminescent effects. She has an extensive knowledge of sorcerous spells and incantations which were taught her by Dr. Strange and which invoke the names and aspects of various extradimensional power sources for very specific effects without taxing her own personal abilities.

As the daughter of Umar, a member of the extradimensional race Faltine race, Clea has a body whose density is somewhat greater than that of an Earth human. As a result, she weighs more than an Earth woman of the same height and build would.

The rate at which Clea ages is unknown. Her father has aged very slowly over the centuries, and her mother has apparently not aged at all over this same amount of time. It has been speculated that Clea is thousands of years old; however, physically, she remains a young woman.

Other Abilities: Clea received intensive training in hand-to-hand combat and various athletic skills as part of her studies with Dr. Strange.

www.marveldirectory.com/individuals/c/clea.htm

[Charles Warren]

DOCTOR DRUID
Real Name: Anthony Sebastian Druid
Affiliation: Independant
Powers: Magic

Anthony Druid got his medical degree from Harvard, then went on to study psychiatry. He retired from his psychiatric practice after several years to devote more time to his growing interest in the occult. He supported himself by writing popular books on psychology and related matters and by lecturing. In the midst of his research for a second book on the occult, Druid was summoned by an ailing Tibetan lama apparently in need of medical aid. The lama put Druid through a series of bizarre mystic and spiritual tests to ascertain Druid's worthiness. Finding him worthy, the dying lama opened Druid's mind to its hidden powers and taught him the mastery of certain mystic arts. He has thus become a practioner of the occult arts.

Druid had remained in seclusion for several years, investigating occult matters personally and in secret. At one point, he teamed up with other clandestine "monster-hunters", including Bloodstone and the Eternal Makkari, in stopping a threat from the Deviants. Soon, the Fantastic Four appeared, ushering in Earth's Age of Marvels, and later, Druid would find himself aiding the hero team Avengers against the Celtic monsters known as the Fomor.

Doctor Druid was instrumental in freeing Avengers Mansion from its occupation by the fourth Masters of Evil, and he applied successfully for Avengers membership shortly thereafter. Not long after joining, Druid fell under the mental control of Ravonna (then called Nebula, later Terminatrix), who used Druid's mental powers to manipulate the Avengers into aiding her search for an ultimate weapon. Druid manipulated the other Avengers into electing him chairman to this end, but the Avengers soon discovered the plotters and opposed them in a conflict that ended with Druid and Ravonna being lost in the time stream.

Druid eventually escaped, free of Ravonna's influence, rejuvenated into a younger version of himself, and with a renewed purpose. He renewed his association with the Avengers as an occasional inactive reservist in hopes of mending fences with the group. For a time, he led the occult adventurers called the Shock Troop and later served with the Secret Defenders as the team's puppet leader under the auspices of Doctor Strange.

Recently, he embarked on an obsessive quest to augment his magical powers, one which eventually led to his death at the hands of his then-lover, the villainous Nekra.

Doctor Druid was a member of the magical taskforce assembled by Amanda Sefton to rescue Doctor Strange from Nightmare.

Strength Level: Doctor Druid possesses the normal human strength of a man of his age, height, and build who engages in intensive regular exercise.

Known Superhuman Powers: Doctor Druid is a master of certain special disciplines of the mystical arts. His abilities are derived from two major sources: personal powers of the body and mind developed under the tutelage of the Tibetan lama, and the employment of the arcane lore of his Celtic forefathers. Because he does not manipulate ambient and extradimensional magical energy, Druid cannot be considered a sorcerer. His use of ritualistic Celtic Earth magic does qualify him as a mystic, however.

Doctor Druid possesses a number of yogic physical powers. He has control over the involuntary functions of his body, such as his heartbeat, respiration, bleeding, and reaction to pain. He has also developed certain mental powers generally classified as psionic (utilizing an unknown form of energy generated by the mind). Druid has great telepathic capacity, enabling him to broadcast and receive thoughts. He is able to scan virtually any mind or project his thoughts to anyone on Earth, provided he knows where to reach the mind he seeks. He also possesses the ability to mesmerize people to his will, controlling what they see, hear, or do. This mental domination is only possible over those minds who are less adept than his own. His control over a person (or persons) persists until such time as the subject completes the task he or she was given, until Druid willfully releases him or her, or until the effect of the hypnosis loses its potency (generally a matter of hours for most minds). By means of hypnosis, Druid is able to achieve a number of illusory effects: invisibility, power-bolts, transformation, sudden materialization, etc. He also has certain psychokinetic powers, enabling him to levitate objects at will. The maximum weight he can lift with his mind is equivalent to the weight he can lift with his body, approximately 300 pounds. He can even levitate himself off the ground while in meditation, but he does not have sufficient skill to use this levitation to fly to any real extent.

Possessing the racial memories of his Celtic ancestors, Doctor Druid employs the knowledge and skills of the ancient Druids after whom he was named. These skills are those of the natural or earth variety, employing candles, potions, mystic symbols, chants, runes, and other elaborate preparations. By such rituals, Druid is able to accomplish any number of specific magical feats, although the lengthy preparations required generally prohibit their more frequent use. Earth magic is designed to tap the inherent mystical energy in natural objects and materials, and is not as efficient as the tapping of the ambient mystical energy in the environment as a whole.

Druid's other ancestrally derived knowledge is that of astrology. By a mystic awareness of the stars' and planets' positions, Druid has limited precognitive insights as well as a sensitivity to the balance of mystic forces. He can sense the presence of recent use of all forms of magic (even those he cannot employ) and trace them to their source.

Limitations: Druid's Druidic powers have a special vulnerability to iron, as did that of his ancestors. Iron tends to act as a "lightning rod" for the magical forces he employs, sometimes disrupting its effects.

www.marveldirectory.com/individuals/d/drdruid.htm

[Charles Warren]

SLEEPWALKER
Real Name: Rick Sheridan
Affiliation: Guardian of the Mindscape
Powers: Warp Gaze, Levitation, Enhanced Strength

The Mindscape: the dimension which borders on the minds of all sentient creatures. The evil Mindscape entities often seek to enter the minds of sentient beings and drive them mad. Protection comes from the Sleepwalkers, other entities of the Mindscape sworn to prevent the evil beings from entering the minds of innocents. Sleepwalkers are guardians of the Mindscape-- they apprehended beings that invade the sleeping minds of humans. One of these guardians was tricked by his long time foe known as Cobweb into entering the mind of one individual, New York college student Rick Sheridan. The two fought within Sheridan's dreams, but when Cobweb left, the Sleepwalker found himself trapped.
As the Sleepwalker tried to leave Sheridan's mind, he found himself appearing in Sheridan's dreams, or, alternatively, into Earth when Sheridan was asleep. At first, Sheridan believed that the Sleepwalker was just a character in his dreams, until watching the evening news and seeing a report about an attempted robbery. The robbery had been broken up by someone who, according to a police sketch drawn from the description given to them by eyewitnesses, looked exactly like the being in Sheridan's dreams. Sheridan decided to avoid sleep as long as possible, in order to avoid releasing the being again.

When he finally dreamt, Sheridan fought this strangely-dressed, haunting figure. Rick reacted by tearing off Sleepwalker's Imaginator (a badge-like device worn by Sleepwalkers used to teleport around the Mindscape.) This resulted in an odd situation, further trapping the two together: when Rick slept, Sleepwalker could materialize in reality or he could stay in Rick's mind and converse with him via his dreams. It was through these conversations that Sleepwalker was able to dispel Rick's initial fears that he was a malicious entity that wished him harm and work out agreeable terms of cohabitation.

The Sleepwalker learned that Earth was a place full of those who preyed upon the innocent, just like Cobweb and the malevolent entities of the Mindscape. He became a crimefighter, fighting against costumed villains such as 8-Ball, Bookworm, the Chain Gang, and Lullaby. He also teamed up with several of New York's heroes. Once, he joined Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, and a half-dozen others to defeat the Sinister Six when the villains were backed by the supernatural Gog. Another time, the Sleepwalker became one of Doctor Strange's Secret Defenders against the demonic Roadkill.

It was later revealed that Sleepwalker's race was not one dedicated to protecting Earth but in fact secretly planned to conquer it. When the race tried to invade the world, Sleepwalker decided to rebel. This turned out to be a plot by Sleepwalker's old foe Cobweb to spread mass insanity and thereby gain more power. Cobweb transformed his own minions to appear as the Sleepwalker race and sent them to Earth using Sleepwalker's long lost Imaginator. After reclaiming the Imaginator, Sleepwalker disappeared into the subconscious of his host, Rick.

Sleepwalker was a member of the magical taskforce assembled by Amanda Sefton to rescue Doctor Strange from Nightmare.

Sleepwalker possesses super-strength and flotation-like flight. Sleepwalker's only offensive power is his warp gaze. With this vision-based power, Sleepwalker can alter the shape of physical objects and twist them to his purposes. Sleepwalker initially demonstrated this power by using it to distort a sidewalk to capture a criminal. He also used this ability once on air molecules to create a wind tunnel for faster aerial travel.

More on Marvel.com: marvel.com/universe/Sleepwalker#ixzz4pGl5QeK8

[Charles Warren]

THE PRESS GANG
The Press Gang is a group of mutant enforcers working for the government of Genosha. The mutant residents on the island nation are enslaved by the law, and were genetically altered by the Genegineer into Genoshan Mutates, who are devoid of free will. They perform any task needed from hard labor to soldiers. The Press Gang was created to retrieve mutants who attempt leave and defect to other countries, as this action is not recognized by Genoshan law. The Press Gang is an official branch of the Genoshan police force known as the Magistrates, The Press Gang is comprised mostly of mutants working voluntarily for the government, rather than being enslaved Mutates.
Bullet was being groomed for the Press Gang before he escaped from Genosha.


COMMANDER TAM ANDERSON
Real Name: Tamara Anderson
Affiliation: The Press Gang
Powers: None

Tam was Bullet’s drill instructor, who trained him to be a child sniper. She was also his commander of Bullet’s Sniper Squad. Tam makes no qualms about the fact that muties are a sub-race and the property of the Genoshan government. But those who distinguish themselves on the Press Gang have her respect and she would go to any lengths for them. In her mind they are the exceptions to the rule. Bullet would think that his escape would be a sore point for Tam. She would view it as a betrayal and as a black mark on her record. Something she’d like to fix.


PIPELINE
Real Name: Cormic Grimshaw
Affiliation: The Press Gang
Powers: Digital Teleportation

Cormic Grimshaw - As a member of the Press Gang, Pipeline was exempt from the mutate process that his fellow mutants were subjected to, and served his country faithfully. His talents for digital teleportation were frequently used by the Magistrates, especially when invading foreign lands. Pipeline has the mutant ability to transport living matter through telephone and computer lines. Those being transported were digitized and sent through the lines to a connected location. Bullet has worked with him, but does not know him well.



WIPEOUT
Real Name: Unknown
Affiliation: The Press Gang
Powers: Power Nullification

Wipeout was used by the Genoshan Magistrates to control the island's mutant slaves. His power negation made the mutants incapable of resisting when chosen for the Mutate bonding process Wipeout was capable of removing a mutant's superhuman powers by creating a self-perpetuating energy "block" in their system that prevented bio-genetic power from properly traveling from their "X-factor" gene to the rest of their system. This power block lasted indefinitely and required no concentration to maintain "wiped" mutants stayed powerless even after Wipeout fell asleep and after he was killed. He could mentally remove these blocks at will if he chose to. When he first tried to use his powers on a non-mutant it had the effect of disruption rather than total removal. Bullet knows of him.



Flashback, Hawkshaw and Bronze

Flashback
Real Name: Si Chen
Affiliation: The Press Gang
Powers: Temporal Dislocation

Si Chen was inducted into military service at the same time as Bullet. She grew quite fond of him and considered Bullet her best friend. At first she resisted military service, but slowly she began to grow fond of it. Especially the privileged life it offered her if she volunteered for the Press Gang. As her opinions began to differ from Bullet’s, they grew apart. But she would still like to have her friend back. Flashback is a mutant who can throw herself back in time for a few seconds. This causes two of her to be present at once for a few moments: one with the foreknowledge of what is about to happen and how to react to it.


Hawkshaw
Real Name: John Hawkshaw
Affiliation: The Press Gang
Powers: Psionic Detection

Hawkshaw accompanied Bullet on many missions in the past. He is very loyal to his fellow Press Gang members. He doesn’t see things as Pro-mutant or Anti-mutant. He sees things as Pro-Genosha and Anti-Genosha. Smart mutants volunteer for state service. Stupid mutants get what they deserve. Hawkshaw respected Bullet and treated him like a comrade. Now, he’s torn. He remembers Bullet as a highly skilled asset. But if Bullet is now against Genosha, that puts him in a different category. Hawkshaw could psionically detect living being across entire continents, and was able to use his ability to track any animal, human, or mutant. He could recognize mutants by their psionic signatures.


Bronze
Real Name: Unknown
Affiliation: The Press Gang
Powers: Unknown



Punchout and Cord

PUNCHOUT
Real Name: Unknown
Affiliation: The Press Gang
Powers: Energy Control

Punchout never got along with Bullet. There was always tension between. Maybe because their personalities were so similar. Maybe because she didn’t trust telepaths. Punchout is a mutant who can generate an energy field around her body that augments the strength of her punches and her durability.


CORD
Real Name: Unknown
Affiliation: The Press Gang
Powers: Unknown

[Charles Warren]

HAVOK
Real Name: Alexander Summers
Affiliation: The Press Gang, formerly the X-Men
Powers: Cosmic Energy Generation

Alexander Summers is the younger of the two sons of Christopher Summers, a United States Air Force Major and test pilot, and his wife Katherine Anne. Alex and his mother and older brother Scott were flying back from a vacation in Christopher's vintage airplane when the plane crashed into a scout ship of the Shi'ar Empire, setting the wooden plane ablaze. Katherine Anne Summers pushed Scott and Alex out of the burning plane with the only available parachute. Thus the two boys escaped the Shi'ar while their parents did not. Scott and Alex both believed their parents had been killed until as adults they were reunited with their father, who had since become Corsair, leader of the Starjammers, a starfaring band of adventurers. The two boys were hospitalized for injuries they sustained during their landing, since their overburdened parachute had been unable to slow their decent safely enough. Scott and Alex both suffered traumatic amnesia regarding the plane incident. Alex left the hospital after two weeks and was placed in an orphanage in Omaha, Nebraska. Soon adopted, Alex had little or no contact with Scott until years later.

Alex was unaware of Scott's developing mutant power or his identity as Cyclops of the X-Men until after the younger Summers had graduated from college. It was at that time that Alex first became aware of his own mutant abilities. A professor of archeology named Ahmet Abdol, also a mutant, had discovered a psychic link between himself and Summers. While both of them had the latent mutant power to absorb and transform cosmic radiation, Abdol's ability to exercise the power was jammed in an unknown manner by Summers' body. The Living Pharoah, as this mutant was calling himself, captured the youth and took him to his laboratory in Egypt. Abdol found a way to screen Summers' body from ambient cosmic radiation, permitting his own body to attain its latent potential. Abdol was transformed into the Living Monolith, a gigantic mutant with vast cosmic power. The Monolith was defeated while in combat with the X-Men when Summers' latent mutant powers surfaced under the stress of entombment within the mechanism designed to screen him from cosmic radiation.

Incapable of controlling the shock waves his body emanated, Summers chose to remain in the Egyptian desert rather than accompany the X-Men back to America.

Summers was soon captured by one of the mutant-hunting robotic Sentinels and brought to the headquarters of Larry Trask, the son of the Sentinels' inventor. Trask gave Summers the codename Havok and a costume whose chest display monitored the build-up of cosmic energy within him. When the X-Men finally freed Trask's captive mutants, Summers accompanied his brother and his teammates back to civilization where he began training to help him keep his energy in check. Eventually Havok gained enough mastery over his power that he would release it only when he wished to do so, and could wield his power skillfully enough to become a formidable opponent in battle.

Havok fell in love with Lorna Dane, the mutant now known as Polaris. They both served for a time in the X-Men helping to repel the invasion by the alien Z'nox. Neither Havok nor Polaris wished to lead a life as an adventurer, but they discovered that they had a mutual interest in geophysics. Hence, they began doing doctoral research in that subject in the Diablo mountain range in Arizona.

The plan to stay out of the affairs of the outside world did not last long. Havok and Polaris found themselves hunted by the Marauders. Polaris was now under the mental control of Malice. Polaris was forced to attack the X-Men as the leader of the Marauders. Havok, now a member of the X-Men, had to fight his lover. Polaris was eventually freed from Malice's control, but was captured by the mutant named Zaladane, who claimed to be her sister and stole her powers. For a short while, Polaris gained new superhuman powers.

Havok was among the missing X-Men after the Reaver attack on Muir Island. When the X-Men, the New Mutants and the Hellions invaded Guantanamo Bay to destroy a Sentinel Factory and a mutant detention center, they encountered the Genoshan Press Gang. Havok was working with them.

[Charles Warren]

JUBILEE
Real Name: Jubilation Lee
Age: 15
Affiliation: Muir Island New Mutants
Calling: Youthful Exuberance
Powers: Pyrotechnic Energy Plasmoid Generation

Born the daughter of prosperous Chinese immigrants, young Jubilation "Jubilee" Lee was sent to an exclusive Beverly Hills school, where her talent for gymnastics was discovered. Jubilee spent much of her time rollerblading with friends at the local mall, but ultimately ran afoul of mall security. Facing juvenile detention if caught, Jubilee panicked and first manifested her mutant ability to generate explosive energy.

Soon after, her parents were mistakenly killed by hitmen. Jubilee fled to the only home she had left - the mall. She survived as a petty thief and street performer, but mall security eventually tired of her eluding capture and called in a team of novice mutant hunters, the M-Squad. That same day, the mall was visited by the female members of the X-Men. When the M-Squad attacked Jubilee, the X-Men came to her aid and then left via a portal created by Gateway.

Intrigued, Jubilee followed them through and arrived at the X-Men's base in outback Australia. She lived in the tunnels beneath the town until the X-Men disappeared, after which their former member Wolverine returned to the town and was ambushed by the cyborg Reavers, who crucified him. Jubilee helped him to escape and stayed by his side while he recovered from his ordeal, forming a close bond. The two travelled across the continents together until they arrived at Muir Island.

[Charles Warren]

CHANGELING
Real Name: May'lani of the Kelium Patriarchal Configuration
Age: 15
Affiliation: Muir Island New Mutants
Calling: Explorer
Powers: Shapeshifting (Natural Alien Ability); Flight (Mutant Ability)

May'lani is the adopted daughter of Imperial Guard Candidate Thermo of the Kelium Patriarchal Configuration. No other members of her species are known to exist. Always feeling out of place, among her adopted people, she heard of a Xavier's School for the Gifted, where outsiders and people who were different were accepted. She ran away from home when her father enrolled her at the university on Sarium Five, and came to Earth hoping to join the X-Men. Her father pursued her with soldiers, where they encountered the Muir Island New Mutants. Thermo told her that the New Mutants would never accept her if they saw her true form: a non-humanoid tentacloid formation. But Joule offered her a place at Muir Island and she wholeheartedly accepted.

May'lani is a shapeshifter, but there is always a flaw in her new form, revealing a tentacle of some kind.

[Charles Warren]

SKEW
Real Name: John Bender
Age: 16
Affiliation: Muir Island New Mutants
Calling: Outcast
Powers: Living tear in the fabric of space.

Born in Tusla, Oklahoma, John was a juvenile delinquent from a broken home and a high-school drop-out. When his powers manifested, his life became even worse. His body became a living tear in the fabric of space, causing him to cut anything he touches.

The player characters rescued him from a research center where he had was about to be experimented on by a scientist whose daughter had been severely injured in an accident. John was to be harvested for his body and his powers.

[Charles Warren]

SUNGODDESS
Real Name: Princess Taiyo
Age: 16
Affiliation: Muir Island New Mutants
Calling: Majesty
Powers: Energy Manipulation (Heat and Force), Flight, Immortality.

Because of the danger posed to mutants by the world-wide Reaver attacks, Emperor Akihito of Japan, decided that his mutant niece would be safest on Muir Island. Taiyo is a Japanese princess, a Shinto priestess, and widely believed by the Imperial family to be directly descended from the goddess Ameratsu. She can control a energy field that acts like fire, but produces physical force as well as heat.

Japanese hero and former X-Man Sunfire has come to Muir Island with her at the Emperor's behest to insure her safety. Taiyo has two teenage handmaidens, Miho and Yuka.

[Charles Warren]

WISP
Real Name: Ben Needham
Age: 6
Affiliation: The Warpies
Calling: Youthful Exuberance
Powers: Intangibility, Flight

Wisp was one of Jasper's Warps, or Warpies, who had the uncontrollable power of floating and phasing. No matter how hard the nursing staff tried to keep in in the Warpie Ward, he always managed to escape and turn up in the most inconvenient places.

[Charles Warren]

PUDDLES
Real Name: Ben Needham
Age: 8
Affiliation: The Warpies
Calling: Youthful Exuberance
Powers: Water Generation

Puddles was a Warpie who had the uncontrollable power of producing water. She commonly walked around, forming puddles wherever she went.

[Charles Warren]

WEIRD HAPPENINGS ORGANIZATION

The Weird Happenings Organisation is a British Military organisation set up by the twins Alistaire and Alysdane Stuart. W.H.O’s mission is to investigate people, places, things and events that occur outside the normal realms of possibility, and to deal with them if needed.

The Muir Island New Mutants met representatives of W.H.O. when they visited the island in an attempt to relocated the Warpies to a more secure government facility.

[Charles Warren]

BRIGADIER ALYSANDE STUART
Real Name: Alysande Stuart
Affiliation: Weird Happenings Organization
Powers: None

Brigadier Alysande Stuart and her twin brother, professor Alistaire Stuart, were the founders of the Weird Happenings Organization (W.H.O.), a group created to replace the Resources Control Executive (R.C.X.) as Britain's primary organization for the investigation of supernatural and superhuman incidents.

The Muir Island New Mutants met Stuart when she came to the island to demand that the Warpies be transferred into her custody.

[Charles Warren]

PROFESSOR ALISTAIRE STUART
Real Name: Alistaire Stuart
Affiliation: Weird Happenings Organization
Powers: None

Doctor Alistaire Stuart and his sister, Brigadier Alysande Stuart, were the founders of the Weird Happenings Organization (W.H.O.), a group that investigated paranormal activity

Stuart accompanied his sister when she came to Muir Island to demand that the Warpies be transferred into her custody.