Frank Lamb
Context
Lamb was in Division 13, which in turn was part of Dark Horse’s early 1990s brand-new super-hero setting.
The book was apparently intended as mysterious, surreal, slow-burn horror mixed with super-heroes. But since the Dark Horse Heroes line was destroyed by the collapse of the comic books collecting bubble, it never had time to go anywhere.
Since the Vortex plays a critical role in the story, you should first read the Man from the Vortex character profile for context.
Background
- Real Name: Presumably Frank Lamb
- Marital Status: Single
- Known Relatives: None
- Group Affiliation: Division 13
- Base Of Operations: Cinnabar area, Nevada desert
- Height: 5’11” Weight: 197 lbs
- Eyes: Blue Hair: Brown
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Powers and Abilities
Lamb seems stronger than he should be, and to have some kind of paranormal perception ability.
He also seems to be a gifted fighter and commando, with good smarts and willpower.
Betty
Lamb is in frequent radio contact with one Betty. Who or what is “Betty” is quite unclear. It has a human or human-like intelligence, and seems to have a lot of information. But sometimes she goes incommunicado for a few hours or a few days.
Betty has never been showed to *do* much. But she was able to hack the automated defenses of Block 13 when Division 13 infiltrated it. She also warned Lamb of gunships taking off from the Cinnibar base. So it seems likely she’s on the base, either in the human part or the alien part. She might be akin to Zero.
History
Frank Lamb may have been a beat cop in the Nevada town of Cinnibar, who collided with a fleeing youth while making a routine arrest. The youth was apparently a carrier for some disease, and was pursued with a military team. They shot him dead and took everyone who had been touched by the youth with them to the Cinnabar Flats military base.
Lamb was apparently Vortex-touched. He escaped from the Block 13 detention centre, along with Flux and Axe-Grinder. He organized them in a small group called Division 13, whose aim was to free the Vortex mutants and give them a chance at life and freedom.
Lamb also was obsessed with freeing his fiancée, Carolyn Forsters. She was another victim of Vortex experiment.
When the alien Seekers attacked Cinnibar Flats, Division 13 was busy infiltrating the complex to rescue Carolyn. But Flux stalled after seeing whom was in the cell. She then lied, telling Lamb that the explosives intended to open the cell didn’t work. What was in the cell was freed by the explosives, which had actually detonated.
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Reality dysfunction
A few weeks after that, a fight between Titan, Grace and the Man from the Vortex allowed many more Block 13 inmates to make a run for it. They fled in the surrounding desert before the decimated military could move back and secure the area.
Division 13 sought escaped mutants, reasoning with those who could think and talk. They rescued two mutants named Voxx and Optic, and a sort of three-headed hellhound Optic could talk to. They also encountered Law, the first escapee of Block 13. But he and Lamb couldn’t agree on their respective goals.
Division 13 disappeared in unclear circumstances, shortly after having met Law. Axe-Grinder became deathly afraid of something in his axe. It biodegraded a few days later, leaving him in a quasi-autistic state. The rift between Lamb and Flux grew. Optic and the dog disappeared.
Some notes left by Lamb refer to large memory losses, terrible new lifeforms in the desert and “it” not allowing them to leave the area.
Description
See illustration.
Personality
Frank Lamb is a professional, with a military behaviour and strong authority. His speech his short and to the point, without much padding.
He is self-conscious about being a leader, and clear about the fact that they are here to help the mutants, no matter how hostile they might appear. He’s willing to take huge risks, attempting to talk to obviously violently hostile monsters to give them a chance and using violence against them only as a last resort.
His long-term goals aren’t clear, probably because they are clouded by his all-consuming obsession of finding Carolyn Forsters. However, what he intended to do once he had gathered a large band of mutants wasn’t apparently too altruistic.
Quotes
“That’s the Army’s attitude ! Not ours ! Try to keep in mind who the victims are here !”
DC Universe History
The Cinnibar theme was quite close to the later video game Half Life, and might seem to modern players to be a rip-off of that game. If that is not an obstacle, a GM may wish to incorporate its numerous elements of pervasive horror, covert action, government coverup and moral ambiguity in his campaign.
In the last few weeks, after the second breakout from the Cinnibar base, the desert and the town had become steadily more horrific, with terribly warped monsters lurking around and overt and covert military units hunting them or being hunted by them. It had something of a Stephen King vs. X-Files vs. Predator ambience that was interesting.
In such a dangerous context, the idea of a small force seeking out monsters to *talk* with them, help them and rehabilitate them has potential – and could be reused in your campaign.
Game Stats — DC Heroes RPG
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Frank Lamb
| Dex: 07 | Str: 05 | Bod: 05 | Motivation: Unclear |
| Int: 07 | Wil: 06 | Min: 05 | Occupation: Leader of Division 13 |
| Inf: 05 | Aur: 04 | Spi: 04 | Resources {or Wealth}: 001 |
| Init: 021 | HP: 040 |
Powers:
True sight: 05
Bonuses and Limitations:
True sight’s applications are a bit vague. It also seems to allow Lamb to perceive the true nature of a subject he can interact with for a few minutes (+2).
Skills:
Acrobatics (climbing): 05, Detective (police procedures): 04, Martial artist: 08, Military science: 06, Thief (security systems, stealth): 06, Vehicles (land): 06, Weaponry (firearms): 08
Advantages:
None demonstrated.
Connections:
Division 13 (High).
Drawbacks:
CIA (finding Carolyn), Mistrust.
Equipment:
- Beretta 92 [BODY 03, Projectile weapons: 04, Ammo: 15, R#2].
- H&K MP5 [BODY 04, Projectile weapons: 05, Ammo: 07, R#03, Advantage : Autofire]. Lamb is an expert at hitting people with the butt end of the SMG when it’s empty, so you can add [Enhance (EV): 01 (cap is 06), Descriptor: Blunt].
- LIGHT VEST [BODY 06, Skin armour: 02, Limitation: Skin armour only vs blades and bullets, Skin armour is Partial (vest)].
- Shades [BODY 03, Shade: 02].
- Combat knife [BODY 05, Enhance (EV): 01 (Cap is 06), Descriptor: Piercing, Slashing].
- Cell phone [BODY 02, Radio communications: 05, Misc: Allows for communication with Betty].
Source of Character: Dark Horse’s CGW.