“Yes, We Can!”
Some time next week, I’m relaunching my Patreon site as a support platform for The Four Color Hack. I’ll be writing up new villains, new heroes, new Elements, city details, situations that can be used for adventures for your game’s heroes, et cetera. All of this will revolve around Penance, Texas. What is Penance, Texas, you ask? Read on.
Welcome to Penance, Texas. Penance with its population of 455,000 sits on the Gulf Coast in the South Texas region. Penance’s history reaches back to the early 16th century, but long before the Spanish settled the area, the Kómaháyika lived in the area. Little is known of these people except that they had an evil reputation among both the Karankawa and the Spanish. Long-time residents of Penance say that whatever the Kómaháyika did must have cursed the ground the city stands on, for it seems as if Penance’s yesterday and today have always been caught in a struggle between evil and good….
As a setting, Penance, Texas, combines superheroics with elements from genres closer to true crime and Lovecraftian horror. Material released via Patreon will fall into the categories of The City, The Supers, The Scenarios, and The Rules. Patrons can choose from three tiers: $1 a month to be a Defender, $3 a month to be an Avenger, and $5 a month to be a League Member. Each tier includes Patron-only access to PDFs written specifically for the Patreon site. In short, Defenders get The Supers PDFs, Defenders get that and The Scenarios PDFs, and League Members get everything, plus other perks, such as getting me to write specially requested villains, et cetera.
Speaking of The Rules for TFCH, the ones for creating villains don’t have to be used for just villains. They can be used to create just about anyone or anything that the heroes may encounter, and that includes heroic allies.
The Builder
Level 3 Heroic Ally
Quote: “Can we fix it?”
Real Name: Bob (last name unknown)
Identity: Secret
Place of Birth: Somewhere in the United Kingdom
Height: 4 ft. 8 in.
Weight: 90 lb.
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown
Hit Points: 16 (3 Vigor)
Base Damage: d6
Powers: Machine Control d10, Telekinetic Drill d8, Tool Belt d8
Background: Little is known about Bob’s background. Based on his accent, he’s probably from somewhere in the United Kingdom, mostly likely from Birmingham, England. He’s been an active superhero for a few years, which is remarkable primarily because of his age. Bob can’t be much more than 10 or 11 years old. Who his parents are, where he goes to school, et cetera, are questions about which there is much speculation, but no definitive answers. The media took to calling Bob “The Builder” early on in his heroic career, and the name stuck. As the Builder, Bob does not operate as a traditional crime fighter, although he has tangled with criminals on more than one occasion. Most of the time, the Builder uses his powers to aid first responders in emergency situations.
Powers: The Builder’s main power is his ability to control machines. This ability appears to be psionic in nature, but it could be the effect of super-technology. With Machine Control, Bob can control the movement and operation of mechanical devices. He can even “program” a machine to operate semi-independently by splitting his Machine Control die to create a lasting effect, such as a Debris-Clearing Tractor d8. So far, the Builder has no shown the ability to change the form or function of a machine. He cannot, for example, make a pick-up truck fly like an airplane. The Builder uses a variety of tools, the most prominent being his Telekinetic Drill. With it, he can manipulate up to 5 tons of material within 80 feet. The Builder has used his Telekinetic Drill to repair damaged objects and to jury rig structures, as he did that the time he manipulated a load of PVC pipes to trap an aggressive dog in a PVC Cage d6. The Builder’s Tool Belt holds an assortment of high-tech devices, such as his Climbing Spike Screwdrivers d6 that he uses to scale buildings.
