Smasher
(John Peahl)
Context
Smasher is a super-strong giant and an obscure Marvel Comics villain. He fought Daredevil and the Ghost Rider in 1976.
He is handy in stories as a mercenary super-strongman. Since he’s so… generic.
Background
- Real Name: John Peahl.
- Marital Status: Unrevealed.
- Known Relatives: None.
- Base Of Operations: Los Angeles.
- Group Affiliation: None known.
- Height: About 9’ Weight: About 700lbs.
- Eyes: Unrevealed Hair: Unrevealed
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Powers and Abilities
Smasher is :
- Superhumanly big.
- Superhumanly strong (“Class 20” or so).
- All-too-humanly dumb.
- Able to take Daredevil’s best blows without much effect.
Vibrating men are the best kind
The punches of Smasher had… odd properties. In DC Heroes RPG terms, we’ll use the Vibe Power to model them.
Here are two examples of what he did :
- Smashing loose the front door of a safe by punching the rear. The vibrations reverberated through the body of the safe and mechanically attacked the weakest point.
- When Smasher’s fist brushed against Daredevil, DD felt that he had been hammered by a earthquake (though the effect wasn’t strong enough to harm him) and some sort of shockwave was present.
It may just have been a slightly unusual depiction of super-strength. But let’s play it safe. Plus, the Smasher delivered both “vibration” strikes and “normal” superhuman blows.
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History
The Smasher seems to be a professional thug hailing from Los Angeles. He once seemingly worked for Death’s Head (Paxton Page). What he did not realise was that “Death’s Head” was actually a disguised Death-Stalker (Philip Sterling).
The faux Death’s Head sent Smasher to the Los Angeles Science Institute to steal scientific equipment. Smasher busted his way in, and punched the intervening Daredevil out. He then brought back the loot and Daredevil to “Death’s Head”.
After Daredevil and the Ghost Rider (Johnny Blaze) clashed with “Death’s Head”, Smasher was sent to kidnap Karen Page. As a result, he again clashed with Daredevil.
As “Death’s Head” melodramatically took off his glove to expose his cybernetic deathgrip, Daredevil performed a sacrifice throw and flipped Smasher into “Death’s Head”. Annoyed, Death-Stalker brushed Smasher aside with his death touch, apparently killing him on the spot.
Description
See illustrations.
Personality
Overconfident, dumb-as-bag-of-decks brute. He had to talk to himself, loudly, to make sure he didn’t forget something in a plan involving going into a room, opening a safe and taking a box marked “private” from it.
Smasher was quite afraid of his boss. He had seen him kill people with a touch.
Quotes
“I wuz told to watch out fer you by Death’s Head ! But I don’t know why ! The way I see things, yer gonna be a pushover ! ‘Cause the Smasher’s gonna pulverize ya right into the ground !”
“Done yet, punk ? I’m gettin’ tired of you tryin’ to hurt me !”
“Bah ! I beat you inta the ground the last time we fought, an’ I’ll do it again ! The Smasher can smash anyone !”
Game Stats — DC Heroes RPG
Tell me more about the game stats
Smasher
| Dex: 06 | Str: 11 | Bod: 07 | Motivation: Mercenary |
| Int: 02 | Wil: 02 | Min: 03 | Occupation: Henchman |
| Inf: 03 | Aur: 02 | Spi: 03 | Resources {or Wealth}: 004 |
| Init: 011 | HP: 015 |
Powers:
Growth: 02, Skin armour: 06, Vibe: 14
Bonuses and Limitations:
- Growth seems Always On and is already factored in (-1).
- Vibe has No Range and has no AV (use the normal AV for unarmed attacks).
Skills:
None demonstrated.
Advantages:
None demonstrated.
Connections:
Underworld (Low).
Drawbacks:
None demonstrated.
Game Stats — DC Adventures RPG
Tell me more about the game stats
Smasher — Averaged PL 9.6
| STR | STA | AGL | DEX | FGT | INT | AWE | PRE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 03 (10) | 03 (09) | 01 | 00 | 04 | 00 | 00 | 00 |
Powers
Vibration punch ● 13 points
Damage 13 ● Descriptor: Vibration.
Stature ● 51 points (Permanent)
– Growth 2 (Already Factored In).
– Superstrength — Enhanced Strength 5.
– Super-durability — Enhanced Stamina 4, Impervious Toughness 8, Impervious Fortitude 8.
– Steel-hard body — Protection 4 (Limited 1 to Physical Impact).
– Reach and mass advantage — Strength Based Damage 1 w/Reach 1 ; All-Out Attack, Close attack 4, Improved grab, Improved defense.
– Towering — Intimidation 3 (+4).
Combat Advantages
All-Out Attack, Close attack 4, Improved grab, Improved defense.
Other Advantages
None demonstrated.
Skills
Close combat (Unarmed) 1 (+9), Intimidation 3 (+4), Perception 1 (+1).
Offense
| Initiative +1 |
| Unarmed +9, Close, Damage 11 |
| Vibration punch +8, Close, Damage 13 |
Defense
| Dodge | 8 | Fortitude | 10 |
| Parry | 10 | Toughness | 13 |
| Will | 2 |
Complications
- Disability Very limited intellect.
- Disability Superhumanly large and heavy.
Power levels
- Trade-off areas Attack & Effect PL 11, Dodge/Toughness PL 11, Parry/Toughness PL 12, Fort & Will PL 6.
- Point total 108. Abilities 22, Defences 18, Skills 1, Powers 64, Devices 0, Advantages 0. Equiv. PL 8.
Source of Character: Daredevil v1 #138 and Ghost Rider v1 #20.