Gunhawk
(Liam Hawkleigh)
Context
Gunhawk is a minor DC Comics character who primarily appeared in Batman and Batman-related books during the second half of the 1990s. He is an elite Marine sniper who now works as a costumed assassin.
Like many DC Comics villains created by Chuck Dixon during his heydays, he’s particularly convenient and easy-to-use for role-players. Alas, these characters tended not to be used by other writers and became rather obscure.
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Background
- Real Name: Liam Hawkleigh.
- Marital Status: Unrevealed.
- Known Relatives: None.
- Group Affiliation: Former member of the USMC Force Recon.
- Base Of Operations: Mobile.
- Height: 6’ Weight: 170 lbs.
- Eyes: Brown Hair: Blond (sometimes coloured brown).
Powers and Abilities
Gunhawk has 20/10 vision, and is an extraordinary long-range sniper. When in top form, he has a 90%+ hit ratio on human targets a mile away. He has proven able to hit human targets half a mile away without a scope.
Having graduated at the top of his class at Marine Sniper School, he’s very experienced with the maths involved in sniper work. He’s an excellent commando and amphibious operator, and intensively trained with a very wide range of small arms.
Gunhawk is in top physical condition, and seems to have specifically trained for the niche of a costumed operator – his acrobatic ability is certainly not a part of his military training.
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History
Gunnery Sergeant Liam Hawkleigh is a veteran of the USMC and the Force Recon units. He was one of the very best snipers in the Corps, and specifically trained with special purpose high-caliber weapons.
He was, however, a discipline problem – often making unauthorized kills, sometimes solely to prove his prowess to his comrades if challenged.
This led, among other things, to an ugly incident in Lebanon. He shot what he thought was a Hezbollah soldier from more than a mile away. The man wasn’t an hostile – he was a key informer that Special Forces officer Slade Wilson was bringing back to the US lines.
The snake-eater chewed the jarhead, and swore to have his head sooner or later.
Mercenary sharpshooter
Hawkleigh was eventually discharged from the Corps, and became a freelance assassin under the name and costume of Gunhawk. This soon became a duo with his girlfriend who, as Gunbunny, was his spotter and partner.
In Gotham, the pair made a successful hit against a businessman. Gunhawk then decided he absolutely had to get a one-of-a-kind machinegun prototype. They invaded a gun show to steal it, but the situation went out of control.
Batman (Jean-Paul Valley) intervened, and Gunbunny was wounded by gunfire from the patrons. Gunhawk rushed her to a hospital and had her operated on while keeping the docs at gunpoint.
Batman soon caught up with him, and eventually defeated him. It was during this encounter that Azbats started wearing an heavier body armour than his previous model, to ward off Gunhawk’s gunfire.
From that point on, Gunhawk started slipping down. His next 3 hits didn’t go very well – his accuracy was down, he was drinking too much beer and he was becoming slightly depressive. When he actually missed his next mark, Gunbunny dumped him.
From Splitsville to Blackgate
Gunhawk was devastated, and swore to get her back by demonstrating that he was still a top sniper. He took an extremely lucrative contract in Gotham.
However he failed again – his first target, Lucius Fox, escaped death. Part of the problem was that he and another sniper had opened fire at the exact same moment. Furthermore the other assassin, Slade Wilson, recognized him.
At this point Gunhawk was desperate to show Bunny that he still had the stones, and decided to hit his next target up close. He successfully assaulted the yacht where the target was, but Wilson was covering the boat with a scoped rifle from the shore, intending to kill him.
Batman (Bruce Wayne) managed to take down Wilson. The Caped Crusader was then forced to use Wilson’s rifle to shoot the guns out of Gunhawk’s hands before he could kill Sarah Essen-Gordon and her partner. Both cops then arrested Gunhawk, who went to Blackgate.
A contractor’s life
Gunhawk was next seen in the Karrocan Emirate, where he was part of the successful small strike force (along with Deadline, Hatchet and NKVDemon) which defeated the General’s forces.
In 1999, he was hired to hit the New York City mayoral campaign of Selina Kyle, a.k.a. Catwoman. Kyle spotted him at the last second in a reflection and dodged, though the bullet hit one of her campaign advisors.
With the second Gunbunny
It was perhaps during the mid-2000s that Gunhawk recruited a new Gunbunny – also a sniper, and who seems to be his lover. Almost nothing is known about her. She wears the red costume once used by her predecessor, but has black hair.
In 2008, Gunhawk and the new Gunbunny were hired by one Mr. Jardine as extra security in French Guyana. The other 2 mercenaries were Militia and Camorouge.
As Jardine thought, Batman and a new team of Outsiders were coming to prevent the space launch he had bought and defeat his plans. While Gunhawk and Gunbunny were drawing beads on Batman, they were possessed by the spirits of Ralph and Sue Dibny.
The Dibnys took some time to make out, then opened fire on the European guards to force them to stay under cover. When the 2 spirits left, the snipers recovered their consciousness only to find themselves under copious fire for no perceptible reason. Gunhawk and Gunbunny were forced to retreat.
Description
See illustration.
Personality
Hawkleigh is definitely a jarhead, and keeps his military cowboy-like demeanour from his days in the corps. He’s the boasting type, very proud of his skills.
He’s also a gun nut, with an impressive collection and an almost child-like desire to collect more and more interesting guns.
His relationship with Gun Bunny (now Pistolera, of the Ravens) was and still is extremely important to him. He’d do anything to impress her so she’ll come back to him.
He was very dejected and intense about it – almost suicidal at one point. He seems to have depressive tendencies – at least when he starts losing his edge, since he’s otherwise very confident and almost flamboyant.
Gunhawk is rather charismatic in a relaxed, professional star soldier sort of way. Like many jarheads, he can get very intense when fighting. He often calls people he doesn’t like “hoss” or “pogue”.
Interestingly, he didn’t seem willing to shoot down the tac team of the GCPD – he probably retains USMC loyalty, and will not open fire on men who might be former Marines.
Quotes
“Gotta go down fighting… Bunny loves a fighter…”
“Nice weapon, hoss. But mine’s bigger. MINE’S BIGGER !”
“Single tap lethal. From one eight hundred. Center shot, Bunny. A money shot. Let’s go home and celebrate.”
“Operate on her, damnit ! Save her ! Or this emergency room is gonna need an emergency room !”
Game Stats — DC Heroes RPG
Tell me more about the game stats
Gunhawk
| Dex: 05 | Str: 04 | Bod: 05 | Motivation: Mercenary |
| Int: 04 | Wil: 04 | Min: 05 | Occupation: Mercenary |
| Inf: 04 | Aur: 03 | Spi: 03 | Resources {or Wealth}: 006 |
| Init: 013 | HP: 025 |
Powers:
Telescopic vision: 02
Bonuses and Limitations:
Telescopic Vision is Form Function.
Skills:
Acrobatics (Athletics, climbing): 05, Military science: 05, Thief (Stealth): 04, Vehicles (Land, sea): 05, Weaponry (Firearms): 07, Weaponry (Sniper): 08
Advantages:
Expertise (firearms lore), Schtick (paired firearms).
Connections:
Underworld (Low).
Drawbacks:
SIA toward Pistolera.
Equipment:
- Gunhawk always carries a pair of high-quality .45 ACP pistols [BODY 04, Projectile weapon: 04, Ammo: 08, R#02].
- His COSTUME [BODY 06, Skin armour: 02, Limitation : Skin armour only vs bullets and blades, Partial (Long Coat)] includes a VISOR [BODY 04, Radio communications: 05, Shade: 02, Note: the Radio is compatible with US cell phone networks].
- He also has a Combat knife [BODY 05, EV 03 (05 w/STR)] along his boot.
- If he’s working long-range, his rifle will usually be a High-Powered Sniper Rifle [BODY 01, Projectile weapon: 07, Range: 09, Telescopic vision: 04, Ammo: 06, R#02. Limitation: Projectile weapon has No Range – use the Range given next instead].
- If his sniping spot allows for the deployment of a 30lbs weapon (and to evac with it), he’ll use an Anti-Materiel Rifle [BODY 02, Projectile weapons: 08, Range: 11, Telescopic vision: 05, Ammo: 11, R#02, Recommended STR: 05 (03 when using a bipod and the Bracing Bonus), Limitation: Projectile weapons has No Range, use the Range given next].
- If he’s going to work up close, he’ll instead pack a pair of MAC-10 Machine Pistol [BODY 03, Projectile weapons: 05, Ammo: 06, R#03, Advantage : Autofire] and 4 extra clips.
- For the rare battlefield assignment, he seems to wield a customized, scoped M16A3 [BODY 04, Projectile weapons: 06, Ammo: 08, Telescopic vision: 02, R#02, Advantage : Autofire].
Game Stats — DC Adventures RPG
Tell me more about the game stats
Gunhawk — Averaged PL 7
| STR | STA | AGL | DEX | FGT | INT | AWE | PRE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02 | 03 | 03 | 04 | 03 | 01 | 01 | 01 |
Powers
40/20 eyesight ● 1 point ● Descriptor: Natural
Senses 1 (Extended visual), Quirk 1 (“magnification” is x3-ish, not x10).
Expert sniper ● 3 point (Easily Removable (Must use a precision firearm), Activation (Move action)) ● Descriptor: Skill
Enhanced Advantages (Accurate attack, All-out attack, Improved Aim, Improved Critical 1, Power attack, Skill Mastery (Ranged Combat)).
Devices
Gunhawk costume and visor ● 10 points (Removable) ● Descriptor: Ballistic cloth
– Costume — Protection 4 (Limited 2 to Sharp Impact), Subtle.
– Visor — Protection 4 (Limited 3 to Bright Lights), Communication (radio) 2 (Feature 1 – compatible with US cell networks).
Combat Advantages
Defensive Roll 2, plus various Advantages when aiming a precision firearm.
Other Advantages
Benefit 1 (Ambidextrous), Equipment 5.
Skills
Acrobatics 4 (+7), Athletics 5 (+7), Close combat (Unarmed) 4 (+7), Deception 1 (+2), Expertise (USMC sniper) 9 (+10), Expertise (Firearms lore) 5 (+6), Insight 2 (+3), Perception 3 (+4), Ranged combat (Firearms) 7 (+11), Stealth 2 (+5), Vehicles 3 (+7) (Limited 1 to common Sea and Land vehicles).
Equipment
Light pistol Feature – 1 extra pistol ● 7 points.
Knife ● 2 points.
High-powered sniper rifle — Ranged Ballistic Damage 6, Improved Range 1, Improved Critical 1, Senses 1 (Extended visual 1), Quirk 1 (Fragile) ● 14 points.
More – depending upon the mission he may change his equipment pool to include an anti-materiel rifle, a pair of machine pistols or a scoped assault rifle.
Offense
| Initiative +3 |
| Unarmed +7, Close, Damage 2 |
| Firearms +11, Close, Damage variable by weapon |
Defence
| Dodge | 09 | Fortitude | 07 |
| Parry | 07 | Toughness | 03*/05 |
| Will | 04 |
* Without Defensive Roll
Complications
- Obsession Fascinated by high-performance and/or rare firearms, gotta catch ’em all.
- Obsession Extremely invested in his relationships, liable to become irrational and/or severely depressed if his love life goes sour.
- Buck fever When he’s depressed, Gunhawk’s accuracy becomes that of a good sniper, not a cinematic one. The first casualty is his Skill Mastery Advantage – in fact his whole Expert Sniper Power will likely go offline as he can’t focus, drinks too much, sleeps poorly, etc..
- Semper fi Very reluctant to shoot marines, ex-marines or people who look like they might have been USMC (such as many police SWAT officers).
Powers Levels
- Trade-off areas. Attack/Effect PL 9, Dodge/Toughness PL 7, Parry/Toughness PL 6, Fort/Will PL 6.
- Points total 97. Abilities 36, Defences 17, Skills 22, Powers 4, Devices 10, Advantages 8. Equiv. PL 7.
Source of Character: Batman comics.
Helper(s): Ethan Roe, Darci, Pawsplay.