Mantrid
Context
LEXX was a TV series that aired from 1997 to 2002. It was a quirky, messy, less-than-serious science-fiction show with oddball characters.
It seems to have been a “love it or hate it” deal with the public.
Advertisement
Background
- Real Name: Unrevealed.
- Marital Status: Deceased.
- Known Relatives: None.
- Group Affiliation: None, ex-member of Order of His Divine Shadow.
- Base Of Operations: Mobile.
- Height: Variable Weight: Unrevealed.
- Eyes: Brown Hair: Bald
Powers and Abilities
Mantrid was a legendary biovizier, and so his expertise was in biotechnology.
He apparently also had rudimentary knowledge in space travel, as well as astrophysics. For example, the first galaxies he destroyed were those whose matter kept the dimensional portals running. Thus, closing the doors meant that there would be no escape to other universes for anyone. Still, after his transformation, he made some fatal physics miscalculations.
At first, he was barely capable of constructing a functioning starship to carry his own consciousness. And his drone arms technology was actually from his greatest rival.
However, the drone arms technology was vastly improved once Mantrid became a hybrid. More generally, his remade psyche gained new purpose, focus and resolve. His later designs were fantastic technological creations. In DC Heroes terms he might have acquired the Genius Advantage.
Advertisement
History
Mantrid, when he appears in LEXX, is a resurrected hybrid of insect, man and machine. His sole goal is to destroy mankind and the universe. His method is to have swarms of drone arms grab most matters in the universe to build more drone arms. Humans aren’t normally converted, but left to float in space after their world was converted into drone arms.
The first apparent effect was whole galaxies disappearing. That such an effect was even visible in the first place would suggest that light in the light universe moves much faster than in our universe, the dark universe.
(Science facts: either light in the light universe normally reaches a viewer in another galaxy in just a matter of days, or the light universe is actually a very small universe with short distances).
In the end, after months of work, the universe consisted of nothing but drone arms and near-vacuum. However, Mantrid was tricked by Kai into pulling together all existing drone arms, meaning all existing matter in the universe, to one point.
This resulted in a Big Crunch that collapsed the entire reality of the light universe. Meanwhile the Lexx and its crew escaped into the dark universe.
Many have boasted about destroying everything, but none had managed it before Mantrid.
Description
The original Mantrid was a floating cyborg with four external flying drone arms. The upgraded Mantrid was a consciousness inside a holographic box.
Personality
No one ever had a more insatiable lust for knowledge and science than Mantrid. And yet, his twisted mind was filled with hatred and contempt. Mantrid’s entire will and genius had been bent toward staying alive at all cost. At the same time, he never spoke of any motivation that might have driven him to such unnatural extremes.
Mantrid’s motivations over the millennia seem to be the gaining of knowledge and winning the game. He never expressed a shred of remorse over those motivations causing nothing but death and destruction for everyone else.
It just wasn’t in Mantrid’s nature to help anyone else but himself. And of course that made him useless to anyone he came in contact with. He was so useless that he was aggressively anti-useful.
His Shadow found him useful for deeds of horror committed on the human race. But even he eventually had to dispose of Mantrid to get him out of the way before Mantrid made a move for his power.
Cruel…
Part of Mantrid’s inquisitive nature was cruelly toying with human emotions.
For instance, the last prisoner sent to him at the outpost was a malicious pedophile named Vigl who came to worship of Mantrid. Vigl did all he was told while Mantrid taunted his sexual hunger for children. Then Vigl would beg Mantrid to kill him while Mantrid lectured him on what a contemptible human being he was.
Naturally, Mantrid gloats a lot.
His excessive ego makes it so that he can’t refuse a challenge from someone, for example, an invitation to a game. From his past he had a scientific rival, namely his mentor, Supreme Biovizier Brizon. According to Brizon Mantrid was his best student – but lacked imagination, stole his designs and was insufferable.
Brizon is, in fact, responsible for creating the LEXX ship, and keeping the assassins of the Divine Order, such as Kai, running.
Expect any dialogue between the two to be a gloating competition, followed by the execution of lethal actions, plans and backup plans. Apparently, he cannot be reasoned with in a rational fashion. He follows rigidly set goals with excessive determination. Nothing is allowed to interfere with those plans, even if they were to reveal flaws later.
… and unusual
As a hybrid he felt that he had some functions human, was more of a robot, and was guided by his insect part. His new instincts told him to destroy mankind. Since mankind exists throughout the universe, the whole universe had to be destroyed.
The crew of the LEXX was partly responsible for his resurrection. Thus, Mantrid decided that they should be the last in the universe to die as his thanks. And so, he commenced his insane plan, which, in the end, impossibly, destroyed the entire light universe. The plan was then to also destroy the dark universe, after which he would rest.
Quotes
“Should snake venom swell your limbs to bursting, should spider poison cause your brain to explode, should your bodily fluids slowly drain out through pustulent sores, none of this is enough – you deserve worse, far, far worse.”
Mantrid: “Brizon !”
Brizon: “Who else ? You self-loving pretender !”
Mantrid: “Who else, indeed ? Are you here to worship me ? To kneel before my achievement ?”
Brizon: “You prion. Gaze into the eyes of Brizon, and know that you were always, always second-best !”
Mantrid: “Second best ? You deluded flatulent farce ! You should be grateful to have crawled behind me, and suckled my shit !”
Brizon: “My accomplishments exceeded yours at every turn, you stole what you are from me !”
Mantrid: “I stole nothing, I created all !”
Brizon: “Liar ! I am the greatest repository of Man’s intellect ! The supreme sorcerer in nature ! The ultimate devisor of things known and unknown !”
Mantrid: Blithering interloper ! I am the greatest Bio-Vizier of all times ! That ever was, and all that will ever be !”
Brizon: “You, my friend, are the collected sewage of ten billion dynasties ! Your legacy has been flushed out !”
Mantrid: “You, my friend, are a leaking boil on the anus of a cancerous rodent, squeaking from a damp corner of oblivion !”
Brizon: “Gas bag !”
Mantrid: “Phlegm sack !”
Brizon: “Sycophant !”
Mantrid: “Midget !”
Mantrid: “Of course I notice the primitive little bug he placed in an early version of the machine I’ve become. His death has given me particular pleasure, as your soon will.”
Kai: “Your drone-arms have already eaten most of this Universe. Is that not enough ? Do you have to destroy everything ?”
Mantrid: “You’re trying to reason with me, but I’m a machine, and will not respond in kind. I tell you that part of my programming comes from my insect in me, so I get satisfaction in the destruction of humans and their habitat, but my satisfaction will not be complete, until I’ve destroyed you, Last of the Brunnen-G.”
Kai: “Then what are you waiting for ? Here I am, why don’t you come and destroy me now ?”
Mantrid: “Because I’m enjoying the game. The game will end when you, the very last thing in this universe, succumb to me. You will not have to wait long ; our game is almost at its end. Toodle-loo.”
Kai: “I know I’m dead, but you believe you are alive, and you should know that life is always full of surprises.”
Mantrid: “I’m not listening. I’ve seen it all, and it all comes to nothing.”
Mantrid: [With a voice gradually getting more shrill] “I destroyed a Universe ! I destroyed a Universe ! I destroyed a Universe ! I destroyed a Universe ! I destroyed a Universe ! I destroyed a Universe ! I destroyed a Universe ! I destroyed a Universe !”
Xev Bellringer: “And we destroyed you !” (squashes Mantrid under her boot)
DC Universe History
The LEXX and its crew, it would seem, would fit well in the Vegan Galaxy, taking parts in the adventures set around the Omega Men.
Also, given the high technology level, the LEXX with crew fits well in the Legion of Super-Heroes era. Or even better, directly after one the major world wars to have preceded that era had ended. This era was until then ruled by the tyrannical Shadow, ruling many of the planets to later form the United Planets network.
Mantrid might be a weird offspring of the original Brainiac, of Computo or from the Cyborg Superman. Mantrid should be a hybrid to keep his messed up motivation intact.
Game Stats — DC Heroes RPG
Tell me more about the game stats
Mantrid
| Dex: 02 | Str: 03 | Bod: 03 | Motivation: Psychopath, later Nihilist |
| Int: 09 | Wil: 09 | Min: 10 | Occupation: Ex-Bio Vizier, Destroyer of the universe |
| Inf: 07 | Aur: 06 | Spi: 08 | Resources {or Wealth}: N/A |
| Init: 019 | HP: 050 |
Powers:
Flight: 05, Interface: 12, Invulnerability: 06, Self Link (Gadgetry): 12
Bonuses and Limitations:
- Interface only functions to communicate with his flying arms (-2).
- SL: Gadgetry is Always On, making Mantrid into a cyborg (-1).
Skills:
Charisma: 07, Gadgetry: 07, Scientist: 09
Advantages:
Expertise (Astronavigation), Genus, Henchman (Vigl, earlier only), Near-Immortal, Scholar (Biochemistry), Sharp Eye.
Connections:
None.
Drawbacks:
CPR (Mantrid is only a head attached to a flying bio-block, and has no limbs).
Equipment:
Drone Arm (x4) [DEX 02, STR 04, BODY 03, Flight 05, Laser Beam 04, Gadgetry 06, Misc.: These have all been programmed with a shutdown code by their creator, Brizon, unknown to Mantrid, Notes: These are used by Mantrid to physically interact with the world. They are very often used for building things, or attack opponents, the instructions which he mentally sends during any such action.].
Mantrid upgraded: the insect-man-machine hybrid
After his resurrection at the hands of Vigl, his henchman, Mantdrid’s consciousness was transferred to a small, prototype machine cube. This was placed into a spaceship, around which he later constructed a fortress. As such he was capable of roaming freely through space, followed by his drone arms.
Due to the circumstances of his resurrection that turned him into a spaceship his abilities were enhanced. But he lacked a physical body (no DEX, STR, Flight or Invulnerability), and could only manifest as an hologram within a small metal box.
Mantrid seems to immediately have upgraded his drone arms into an exceedingly lethal weapon. Upgraded Mantrid and the drones have the following additions/alterations (Advantages, Mental and Mystical Stats were the same, while he kept Charisma, got increased Gadgetry of 09 and reduced Scientist of 07):
Upgraded Mantdrid-in-a-box
[DEX 00 STR 00 BODY 02, Radio Communications: 35, SL: Gadgetry: 35, Interface (Drone arms only): 25, Miniaturization, CIA (Destroying Mankind), Limitation: SL: Gadgetry is Always On, making Mantrid into a machine/human/insect hybrid (-1), Motivation: Nihilist.]
Mantrid can receive information / data from any of his upgraded drone arms at will, Mantrid resides as a box inside a lab in his flying space fortress, the spaceship built around him would have STR 10 and BODY 12, as well as Flight 49 and Sealed Systems 25, and be surrounded by millions of drone arms v2.03.
Drone Arms v2.03
[DEX 02 STR 04 BODY 03 INT 01 WILL 01 Flight: 49, Laser Beam: 04, Life Sense: 01, Matter Manipulation: 08, Recall: 06, Gadgetry: 06, Bonus: Matter Manipulation is also useful with gases and organic matter (+1), Limitation: Matter Manipulation can only remake matter into building blocks useful in the production of further drone arms (-2)].
The shutdown code from the previous version is removed completely. The arms are usually programmed to take any matter they encounter and remold it into building blocks. They’ll then use such building blocks to build a new drone arm. This means their number is exponentially increasing fast, very fast.
Arms are usually ordered to destroy any living thing. It will usually attempt to do so by strangling the victim, after which they will be converted to building materials.
Somehow the drones are capable of traveling much faster than light speed, and imbuing any copy they make of themselves with this same ability. The results of a large mass of drone arms will eventually start to have visible and strong gravitational effects on the surroundings. At least, until everything in the universe is drone arms.
Unexpected opposition
To protect the crew of the LEXX, the android 790 rebuilt one of the drone arms v2.03. He improved on its design, reprogrammed it, and sent it against Mantrid’s army of drone arms. The AI is slightly improved as are the combat capabilities. And like the originals these rebuild matter into copies of itself.
As such, the drone arms v790 were capable of destroying Mantrid’s v2.03 drones. This reduced Mantrid’s control and provided further protection to the crew of the LEXX. These arms, the v790, have the followings improved stats:
Drone Arms v790
[DEX 06 STR 04 BODY 03 INT 02 WILL 02 Flight: 49, Laser Beam: 04, Life Sense: 01, Matter Manipulation: 08, Recall: 06, Gadgetry: 06, Bonus: Matter Manipulation is also useful with gases and organic matter (+1), Limitation: Matter Manipulation can only remake matter into building blocks useful in the production of further drone arms (-2)].
The v790 drones were identical in appearance to the standard Mantrid drone arms except for a red drone head on top of the arm identical to the android head of 790. Their processing capability is upgraded and one v790 drone is capable of combating up to six standard Mantrid drones at a time.
They have all been programmed to protect the crew of the LEXX and destroy and rebuild any Mantrid drones they find. Any defeated Mantrid drone arms could immediately be rebuilt into new arms since their parts are almost identical, they would normally enter combat with the battle-cry “We fight for Xev!”
Source of Character: Lexx TV-series, Character played by Dieter Laser.
Helper(s): Adam Fuqua, Gareth Lewis, wikipedia.org, tv.com .