Diablo Villain
Real Name: Esteban Diablo.
Occupation: Alchemist.
Identity: Publicly known.
Legal Status: Citizen of Romania, criminal record in the United States.
Other Aliases: None.
Place of Birth: An unnamed village in Iberia, near what is now Saragossa, Spain.
Marital Status: Single.
Known Relatives: None.
Group Affiliation: None.
Base of Operations: Mobile; formerly a castle in Romania.
First Post-Reboot Appearance: FANTASTIC FOUR #
History: Esteban Diablo was born in a small Iberian village (what is now Spain) during the early Ninth Century. Leaving home at fourteen, he apprenticed himself to a traveling alchemist, whose travels took them to Paris, Venice, and Constantinople. Diablo's skill at alchemy soon far surpassed his master's, and he quickly became known as one of medieval Europe's most successful (and notorious) alchemists. His work led, directly or indirectly, to the production of Greek fire and gunpowder during the later Crusades.
What Diablo kept a secret for a long time was that the more magical aspects of alchemy he discovered tended to be temporary. Eventually, however, the Byzantine Emperor learned the truth and declared him a fraud. Seeking to escape, Diablo traveled north into what later became Transylvania (and even more recently Romania), seeking many of its secrets. Diablo was already using his alchemy to extend his lifespan, and settled into a castle near the Borgo Pass (though not the one attributed to Vlad III Dracula) to continue perfecting his art.
Around the time that Constantinople fell to the Turks, Diablo was sentenced to life imprisonment in his castle by Prince Vlad of Wallachia for various offenses, including but not limited to experimentation on local peasants who were nominally under the Prince's protection. (This may seem unusually generous of Vlad the Impaler, but Diablo has stated that he suspected Vlad would torch the castle and had it alchemically treated to avoid such a fate.) Diablo retained access to his youth elixir, and had it not been for Prince Vlad's transformation into a vampire he would have been content to outlive his jailer. (Ironically, Dracula has forgotten Diablo's existence completely, having been more focused on other concerns.)
Diablo remained imprisoned in his castle through the centuries, as regimes rose and fell around him. In the 19th and 20th Centuries, the Ottomans, Nazis, and Soviets all investigated rumors of the "immortal devil", as he became known; many of those who investigated lost their minds.
Recently, Diablo was visited by the Fantastic Four, who were seeking a cure for their friend Alicia Masters, who had lost her eyesight several years back. Diablo was able to temporarily restore her eyesight, but was incensed when she chose to remain blind rather than remain in his castle so he could continue to give her treatments, and unsuccessfully fought the Fantastic Four. Following that defeat, Diablo decided to travel the world in order to learn more about it beyond the Carpathians he'd lived in for centuries.
Somehow, he learned of the artificial being later known as the Dragon Man that was created by Professor Gregory Gilbert of Columbia University, and convinced the doctor to let him use his alchemy to bring the creature to life. Diablo used the Dragon Man as a pawn to gain revenge on the Fantastic Four, but was defeated once again.
Diablo was last seen participating in the mass prison breakout led by the Rhino. Where he will appear next is anyone's guess.
Age: over 1200.
Height: 6' 3".
Weight: 190 lbs.
Eyes: Brown.
Hair: Black.
Uniform: Royal purple shirt, black pants, green gloves, black boots, royal purple cloak, green and black cowl, belt and bandolier with a number of pouches containing alchemical reagents and elixirs.
Strength Level: Diablo possesses the normal human strength of a man his physical age, height, and build who engages in no exercise.
Known Superhuman Powers: Diablo has extended his lifespan by several centuries through his alchemical elixirs. Ever since Dracula was turned into a vampire, Diablo has also been taking an elixir that prevents his body from rising as a vampire should Dracula ever manage to slay him.
Other Abilities: Diablo is the world's foremost expert in alchemy. Having lived for over a thousand years, Diablo is not unfamiliar with modern technology, and is quite capable of combining his alchemy with regular technology.
Weapons: Diablo has access to any number of alchemical elixirs, carrying several on him at any one time. With a few exceptions, however, his elixirs tend to be transitory, enabling their effects for only a limited duration. While many of his elixirs take the form of potions, he is also known to use them in the forms of powders, incense, pastilles, and oils.
At present, Diablo is the only living alchemist capable of producing the legendary lapis philosophorum (Philosopher's Stone), a semi-precious gemstone which acts as an alchemical catalyst.
330 points
| ST: 9 [-10] | HP: 11 [4] | Speed:5.50 [0] |
| DX: 11 [20] | Will: 14 [0] | Move: 5 [0] |
| IQ: 14 [80] | Per: 12 [-10] | |
| HT: 11 [10] | FP: 11 [0] | SM: 0 |
| Dmg: 1d-2/1d-1 | BL: 16 lbs. | |
| Dodge: 8 | Parry: 8 | DR: 0 |
Languages: English (Accented) [4]; Greek (Native) [6]; Latin (Native) [6]; Old Spanish (Native) (Native Language) [0]; Romanian (Native) [6].
Cultural Familiarities: Eastern European [1]; Medieval Iberian (Native) [0].
Advantages: Elder Gift 4 [20]; Gadgeteer (Quick) [50]; Gizmo 3 (Accessibility: Alchemical Potions Only, -10%) [14]; High Manual Dexterity 3 [15]; Natural Scientist 2 [20]; Resistant to Metabolic Hazards (+8) [15]; Unaging (Chemical, -10%) [14]; Wealth (Wealthy) [20].
Perks: Covenant of Rest [1]; Secret Knowledge (Alchemy).
Disadvantages: Low Pain Threshold [-10]; Obsession (Perfect His Alchemy) (12) [-10]; Overweight [-1]; Pacifism (Reluctant Killer) [-5]; Selfish (9) [-7]; Social Stigma (Criminal Record) [-5]; Stubbornness [-5].
Quirks: Addiction (Chocolate) [-1]; Atheist [-1]; Hides the Transient Nature of His Alchemy [-1]; Not Until My First Cup! [-1]; Uncongenial [-1].
Skills: Alchemy/TL8 (VH) IQ+11 [36] – 25*; Astronomy/TL8 (Observational) (A) IQ+1 [1] – 15†; Biology/TL8 (Earthlike) (VH) IQ+0 [1] – 13†; Blowpipe (H) DX-1 [2] – 10; Chemistry/TL8 (H) IQ+8 [4] – 21†‡; Esoteric Medicine (H) Per+0 [4] – 12; Expert Skill (Natural Philosophy (H) IQ+1 [2] – 15†; Explosives/TL8 (Fireworks) (A) IQ+4 [4] – 17#; Fast-Draw (Alchemical Elixir) (E) DX+2 [4] – 13; Fast-Talk (A) IQ-1 [1] – 13; First Aid/TL7 (Human) (E) IQ+0 [1] – 14; Hazardous Materials/TL8 (Chemical) (A) IQ+0 [2] – 14; Holdout (A) IQ-1 [1] – 13; Liquid Projector/TL8 (Sprayer) (E) DX+0 [1] – 11; Mathematics/TL8 (Applied) (H) IQ+0 [1] – 14†; Metallurgy/TL8 (H) IQ+3 [4] – 17†#; Occultism (A) IQ+3 [1] – 17*; Poisons/TL8 (H) IQ+2 [8] – 16#; Savoir-Faire (High Society) (E) IQ+0 [1] – 14; Scrounging (E) Per+2 [4] – 14; Thaumatology (VH) IQ+1 [1] – 15*; Throwing (A) DX+0 [2] – 11.
Alchemical Elixirs: Hybridization (H) def+1 [2] – 22; Universal Antidote (H) def+1 [2] – 24; Youth (H) def+1 [2] – 17.
Starting Spending Money: $20,000 (20% of Starting Wealth).
* Includes +4 from Elder Gift.
† Includes +2 from Natural Scientist.
‡ Defaulted from Alchemy.
# Defaulted from Chemistry.
Role-Playing Notes:
Diablo is concerned with two things: increasing his alchemical knowledge, and vengeance upon the Fantastic Four.
While his alchemy tends to be transient, critical successes, like the one involved in Dragon Man's creation, can have more permanent effects.
| DX | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TL | Weapon | Damage | Reach | Parry | Cost | Weight | ST | Notes |
| – | Punch | 1d-3 cr | C | 8 | – | – | 9 | |
| – | Kick | 1d-2 cr | C, 1 | n/a | – | – | 9 | |
Design Notes
1. Diablo has lived for over 1,000 years, gaining scientific knowledge as it became available. Hence, he raised his own TL as it advanced, from his native TL3 to the current TL8.