Making MHR Characters ANOHotMU:U #2: Crimson Dynamo

I had an odd choice to make here.

Of all the designs, this is my
favourite.

The Crimson Dynamo has been an enemy of Iron Man since the early 60s, and while he's consistently lost to old Shellhead, their relationship has been a dynamic one, in part because while the armour has remained constant - well, in that it's red and stuffed with Soviet goodness - but the actual pilot and the abilities of the armour have changed a great deal over time. Sometimes it's lumbering and slow, other times nimble, other times possessed of unique or at least induplicable abilities.

And there's no stat block in the actual handbook so, based on the terms of my agreement with myself this time around*, I really shouldn't be building up an entry on the Crimson Dynamo armour anyway. So, what to do?

Well, a while back I'd bought a comic off of Marvel Online and with it came access to this giant back catalogue of stuff. Digging through, I found the appearance of the first Crimson Dynamo, Anton Vanko. He's a fantastic inventor, an amazing engineer and a scientist par excellence, dedicated to promoting the excellence of the Soviets. In a few panels, he shows himself to be highly intelligent, dedicated and keenly interested in technology, and sick and tired of contesting against America's showboating Iron Man, who's basically a jerk.

So, he builds a suit that almost takes out Iron Man until Stark picks him up and flies over a lake, threatening to drop him into the water which will short out his armour and likely kill him. Our frickin' hero.

Anyhow, later Stark dupes him into defecting to the United States where he's eventually blown up. End of story.

Ugh, that's awful. I mean, I get that he's supposed to be a bad guy, but you can't make him more sympathetic than the hero and expect me to cheer when the good guy threatens to electrocute him, and then fools him into abandoning the cause he'd dedicated his life to. So, I'm statting up Anton Venko. He's back, and he's angry.

* If there's a stat block, stat it up as a character, if there isn't one, make it into something else.

Anton Vanko

Solo    1d8

Buddy 1d4

Team   1d6

Distinctions

"Curse You, Iron Man!"

Mad Engineer

Still A Communist

Vanko Suit

Energy Blasts               1d8

Superhuman Durability 1d10

Vanko Generator          1d8

SFX: Absorption - On a successful reaction against an electrical attack action, convert your opponent's effect die into a Vanko Suit stunt or step up a Vanko Suit power by +1 for your next action. Spend a die from the doom pool to use this power even is your opponent succeeds.

SFX: Anti-Armor Capabilities - When you succeed on an attack against an opponent in a powered armour suit and are creating a complication, step up the effect die by +1 . Spend a die from the doom pool to also inflict stress on the target.

SFX: Area Effect - Add a 1d6 and keep an additional effect die for each additional target.

Limit: Gear - Add a die to the doom pool and shut down Vanko Suit. Activate an opportunity to recover.