SSgt Baloo Posted January 30, 2010 Report Share Posted January 30, 2010 Mostly in older comics, the Mad/Evil Scientist's plan is to rule the city. I've always thought this was kind of a stupid goal for a villain, since the county, state, and federal governments might object to some despot deciding to wrest control of even a small community from the citizens thereof. How could a clever villain with low expectations make this work? I've always thought that a smart villain would just subvert the local government to his own ends, thus flying under the radar of public scruitiny. Have you ever had such a local threat in your campaigns? How did you handle them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoloOfEarth Posted January 30, 2010 Report Share Posted January 30, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? Mostly in older comics' date=' the Mad/Evil Scientist's plan is to rule the city. I've always thought this was kind of a stupid goal for a villain, since the county, state, and federal governments might object to some despot deciding to wrest control of even a small community from the citizens thereof. How could a clever villain with low expectations make this work? I've always thought that a [i']smart[/i] villain would just subvert the local government to his own ends, thus flying under the radar of public scruitiny. Have you ever had such a local threat in your campaigns? How did you handle them? I only had one villain actually try and take over the city overtly, and that was Foxbat. So I can't really say it was a serious, well-thought-out plan. Other than that, yeah, it's all been done covertly. VIPER tried subverting a pro-hero city councilman (kidnapping his son and holding him at a VIPER prep school), and I think I did a mind-control plot way long ago. Other than that, though, I don't have the villains try and take over the city. Wait, let me correct that. I had an Egyptian super transform Millennium City into ancient Egypt once, with him as Pharaoh and the Champions as his honor guard. That doesn't really count, either, because he was gathering power to turn the whole country into ancient Egypt as well, and the city was just a starting point. But that was kinda overt, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pinecone Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? Not one I use, but if the plan includes weapons of mass destruction. Then coming in andbusting him might not be as likely. I always figured that any "ruling" would be covert...sort of lets keep it a secret...or else! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Liaden Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? Wait' date=' let me correct that. I had an Egyptian super transform Millennium City into ancient Egypt once, with him as Pharaoh and the Champions as his honor guard. That doesn't really count, either, because he was gathering power to turn the whole country into ancient Egypt as well, and the city was just a starting point. But that was [u']kinda[/u] overt, too. See, there's the thing. When you're dealing with comic-book mad scientists, sorcerors, aliens, gods, etc. there are plenty of ways to take over a city that don't require you to directly buck heads with regional authorities. The most popular precedent is putting the city out of reach of its home country in some way: slapping an impenetrable force field over it, moving it out of time-synch with the rest of the world, transplanting it to another time/world/dimension, and so forth. Another means to ruling it is via some gimmick that normal authorities can't counter directly. A mind-control field that affects everyone within X distance of the city center is a classic, as is the lethal contagious disease or radiation that kills anyone not given regular doses of the antidote by the villain. Plots like these are tailor-made for the supers, whose special powers or sophisticated knowledge often allow them (typically, only them) to penetrate whatever's keeping the city in thrall, discover exactly what it is, and counter it... after a climactic show-down with the main villain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Holck Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? indeed I had a demon of envy take up residence in Boston all sots of acts of theft and vandalism we're being exercised by the populous Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Querysphinx Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? A long long time ago in a gamingverse far far away, I had a group of sorcerers who were steadily possessing various city officials with demons. The heroes would sometimes "rescue" these victims after they had been possessed, and their new "friends" would do all sorts of favors for them and feed them all sorts of "useful" information which usually led them to by somewhere else when the cabal was doing a major working. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywind Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? In an Avengers issue, believe it was early 150's, Beast was talking to Dr. Doom. Doom was monologuing and Beast interrupted: "...and ruuuulle the world! The only problem is, you guys keep trying and none of you have any idea what you'd do with it if you succeeded." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kahuna's bro Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? there was an episode of thev flass where after his powers catapulted him tenyears into the future flas leaned that a crimina,pikehad taken control of central city in his absence the ENTIRE CITY Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Mackinder Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? In an Avengers issue' date=' believe it was early 150's, Beast was talking to Dr. Doom. Doom was monologuing and Beast interrupted: "...and ruuuulle the world! The only problem is, you guys keep trying and none of you have any idea what you'd do with it if you succeeded."[/quote'] I recall a long-ago Marvel graphic novel called (I think) 'Emperor Doom', where Doc plugs the Purple Man into a device, then uses his mojo to mind-control the entire world. Everybody (well, almost) accepts Doc Doom as the world's rightful ruler, etc. He eventually finds the whole thing a big drag. Delegation of authority has always been a weak point with Doomsie, and once you've taken a few bows and solved all the big problems, then all that is left is the paperwork - examining and approving the new 6th grade school cirriculum, looking over quarterly production reports from wherever, etc.. A group of Avengers manage to get together and stop the whole deal, and Doom winds up letting them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LoresLost Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? I recall a long-ago Marvel graphic novel called (I think) 'Emperor Doom', where Doc plugs the Purple Man into a device, then uses his mojo to mind-control the entire world. Everybody (well, almost) accepts Doc Doom as the world's rightful ruler, etc. He eventually finds the whole thing a big drag. Delegation of authority has always been a weak point with Doomsie, and once you've taken a few bows and solved all the big problems, then all that is left is the paperwork - examining and approving the new 6th grade school cirriculum, looking over quarterly production reports from wherever, etc.. A group of Avengers manage to get together and stop the whole deal, and Doom winds up letting them. This reminds me of this page from Girl Genius. The Baron just hates too rule, but he sees no one else to do t he job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clonus Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? Mostly in older comics' date=' the Mad/Evil Scientist's plan is to rule the city. [/quote'] Thinking back, I don't recall a lot of that except for things like Graviton's decision to surround New York with an impenetrable forcefield and move it a mile up into the air. And even there he wasn't exactly out to run the city. The Kingpin once tried to take over the city administration but that wouldn't have been open domination. Then there was GENOM's approach which was to devastate the city with a deniable catastrophe and then take over by being the one organization with the capability of rebuilding it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywind Posted January 31, 2010 Report Share Posted January 31, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? Which Graviton appearance was that? His first time out, he lifted the research facility that he'd taken over when he gained his powers, and moved it over NYC. Then later with a wild burst, he pulled the entire mass of earth and buildings into himself, making a massive ball that the strongest heroes available had to catch and toss into the bay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Liaden Posted February 1, 2010 Report Share Posted February 1, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? What Clonus describes sounds like a stunt Terrax the Tamer pulled during John Byrne's run on Fantastic Four -- ripping Manhatten Island off the Earth and carrying it into orbit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balabanto Posted February 1, 2010 Report Share Posted February 1, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? Well, taking over the city does have it's benefits. I mean, it would be easier to take over Monaco. Then you'd have money, resorts, and babes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSgt Baloo Posted February 1, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2010 Re: "Now I will RULE the CITY!!!" How does that work? indeed I had a demon of envy take up residence in Boston all sots of acts of theft and vandalism we're being exercised by the populous [Emphasis added] I'm so sorry, but that word in that context is like fingernails on a chalkboard to me (nothing personal intended). The word you wanted wasn't the adjective: populous, but the noun: populace.[/rant] Actually, apart from that, pretty good idea. Last night I watched a Superman: the Animated Series episode (Unity) where an alien used a cult as part of its plan to take over the minds of Smallville inhabitants. Alien parasites infected the Smallvillians' brain stems, allowing the alien to control them. Superman and Supergirl were able to destroy the parasites because they (the parasites) were vulnerable to X-ray vision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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