Punisher Anti-Hero
Real Name: Franklin Castle.
Occupation: Vigilante; former police officer, former soldier.
Identity: Publicly known.
Legal Status: Citizen of the United States with no known criminal record, wanted for various crimes by the FBI and several state law enforcement agencies across the United States.
Other Aliases: None known.
Place of Birth: Queens, New York.
Marital Status: Widower.
Known Relatives: Wife (name unrevealed, deceased), son (name unrevealed, deceased), daughter (name unrevealed, deceased).
Group Affiliation: None; receives equipment from the international organization called the Punishers.
Base of Operations: Mobile.
First Post-Reboot Appearance: MARVEL COMICS PRESENTS.
History: In 1989, Frank Castle enlisted in the United States Marine Corps straight out of high school. When the Gulf War happened in 1990-91, his unit was one of the first sent over, and performed beyond expectations, remaining active over in Kuwait and Iraq throughout the entire war.
After twenty years of service, including a few years as a drill sergeant, Frank, now holding the rank of Gunnery Sergeant, retired from the Marines and moved with his wife and two children to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he joined the city police force. In his first year on the force, he was approached by men representing one of the city's crime lords, who attempted to recruit him into their ranks. Flatly refusing their offer, Frank found his attempts to bring their boss to justice hampered by officers on the force that were already on the crime lord's payroll.
Frank made a large enough nuisance to the city's organized criminals that attempts on his life were made. The last and most disastrous was a car bomb meant to kill him but instead killed his wife and children. Following their funeral, Frank resigned from the police force, which the crime lords believed would bring his crusade to a halt.
They were wrong.
One week after the funeral, Castle was visited at his home by a woman who explained that Castle's crusade and recent loss had drawn the attention of her organization. She claimed that this organization, which she left unnamed, would help provide him with the tools and support that would let him punish those who had taken his loved ones from him. She presented him with a gift as a sign of good faith: a shirt made from lightweight ballistic fabric with a white skull pattern on it.
Castle then began by walking into the mansion of the crime lord who had ordered his death and killing everyone present, save the maids and the crime lord's young son. Since then, Castle has become known in the press and law enforcement circles as the Punisher, as he has continued his crusade against organized crime by moving from city to city and killing the local crime lords, while leaving the spouses and children unharmed. It has recently been revealed that the organization supplying him is known as the Punishers, and may have leaked the name 'Punisher' to the press for Castle. Castle himself is currently unaware of the organization's name, though he has begun to investigate reports of other folks with the Punishers' trademark skull-print shirt.
Age: 40.
Height: 6' 1".
Weight: 200 lbs.
Eyes: Brown.
Hair: Black.
Uniform: Black bodyshirt with a white skull pattern, black pants, black belt with white buckle in the form of a skull, boots; often wears a black trenchcoat.
Strength Level: Frank Castle possesses the normal human strength of a man his age, height, and build who engages in intensive regular exercise.
Known Superhuman Powers: None.
Other Abilities: As a war veteran Castle possesses the typical skills of a soldier of his exceptional caliber. He is an expert marksman with all conventional weaponry and a skilled hand to hand combatant. His time in the police has honed his investigative ability.
Weapons: Frank normally carries a pair of machine pistols, a pump-action police shotgun, and a large bowie knife. He has been known to use a wide variety of weaponry from pistols and assault rifles to anti-tank rockets, depending on the situation and what he can get ahold of.
Paraphernalia: Frank's bodyshirt is made from an advanced lightweight ballistic fabric that resembles normal cloth until it is struck by bullets, at which point it hardens. This shirt is the same fabric developed by AIM and Stark Industries for superhuman and police SWAT armors. The Punisher also occasionally wears a heavier ballistic fabric vest painted with the same white skull.
Vehicles: The Punisher owns a large van which operates as his mobile command center. This van has had its sides reinforced with additional armor. He also has a motorcycle he uses when the van will be too obvious.
547 points
| ST: 12 [20] | HP: 15 [6] | Speed: 7.00 [5] |
| DX: 13 [60] | Will: 13 [5] | Move: 7 [0] |
| IQ: 12 [40] | Per: 14 [10] | |
| HT: 14 [40] | FP: 14 [0] | SM: 0 |
| Dmg: 2d-1/3d+1 | BL: 29 lbs. | |
| Dodge: 12 | Parry: 12 | DR: 18/6* (uniform) |
Languages: English (Native) (Native Language) [0].
Cultural Familiarities: Middle Eastern [1]; Western (Native) [0].
Advantages: Ambidexterity [5]; Born Soldier 2 [10]; Combat Reflexes [15]; Danger Sense [15]; Enhanced Dodge 1 [15]; Foresight 1 [10]; Foresight (Ambushes) 1 [5]; Gunslinger [25]; Hard to Kill 2 [4]; Hard to Subdue 2 [4]; High Pain Threshold [10]; Patron (The Punishers; Equipment: No More Than Starting Wealth, +50%) (9) [30]; Resistant to Poisons/Toxins (+3) [5]; Single-Minded [5]; Striking ST +7 [35]; Temperature Tolerance 1 [1]; Unfazeable [15]; Very Fit [15]; Very Rapid Healing [15]; Wealth (Comfortable) [10].
Perks: Armorer's Gift (Rifle) [1]; Armorer's Gift (SMG) [1]; Cool Under Fire [1]; Courtesy Military Rank 2 [2]; Cross-Trained (Pistols) [1]; Cross-Trained (Rifles) [1]; Cross-Trained (SMGs) [1]; Improvised Weapons (Brawling) [1]; Infinite Ammunition (Quasi-Realistic Ammo) [1]; Off-Screen Reload [1]; Off-Hand Weapon Training (Pistols) [1]; Off-Hand Weapon Training (SMGs) [1]; One-Armed Bandit (Shotgun) [1]; Pistol-Fist [1]; Special Exercises (Striking ST +7) [7]; Style Familiarity: MCMAP [1]; Sure-Footed (Uneven) [1]; Tap-Rack-Bang (Rifle) [1]; Tap-Rack-Bang (Shotgun) [1]; Tap-Rack-Bang (SMG) [1]; Wall o' Lead (Rifle) [1]; Wall o' Lead (SMG) [1].
Disadvantages: Code of Honor (Soldier's) [-10]; Enemy (Law-Enforcement Agencies) (9) [-20]; Enemy (Organized Criminal Cartels) (12) [-40]; Obsession (Eliminate Organized Crime) (6) [-20]; On the Edge (12) [-15]; Pacifism (Cannot Harm Innocents) [-10]; Stubbornness [-5].
Quirks: Bloody Mess [-1]; Loner By Choice [-1]; Quick and Efficient [-1]; Scruffy-Looking [-1]; Stop Having Fun, Guys! [-1].
Skills: Body Language (Human) (A) Per+0 [2] – 14; Brawling (E) DX+3 [8] – 16; Breath Control (H) HT-1 [2] – 13; Camouflage (E) IQ+1 [1] – 13*; Climbing (A) DX+0 [2] – 13; Criminology/TL8 (A) IQ-1 [1] – 11; Current Affairs/TL8 (Headline News) (E) IQ+2 [4] – 14; Current Affairs/TL8 (People) (E) IQ+2 [4] – 14; Detect Lies (H) Per+0 [4] – 14; Driving/TL8 (Motorcycle) (A) DX-1 [1] – 12; Explosives/TL8 (Demolition) (A) IQ+1 [4] – 13; Fast-Draw (Ammo) (E) DX+1 [1] – 14†; Fast-Draw (Knife) (E) DX+1 [1] – 14; First Aid/TL8 (Human) (E) IQ+3 [8] – 15; Forced Entry (E) DX+1 [2] – 14; Gunner/TL8 (Machine Gun) (E) DX+1 [2] – 14; Guns/TL8 (Grenade Launcher) (E) DX+2 [2] – 15‡; Guns/TL8 (Light Anti-Armor Weapon) (E) DX+2 [2] – 15‡; Guns/TL8 (Light Machine Gun) (E) DX+4 [4] – 17‡; Guns/TL8 (Pistol) (E) DX+4 [4] – 17‡; Guns/TL8 (Rifle) (E) DX+5 [8] – 18‡; Guns/TL8 (Shotgun) (E) DX+5 [8] – 18‡; Guns/TL8 (Submachine Gun) (E) DX+5 [16] – 18; Hiking (A) HT+0 [2] – 14; Intelligence Analysis/TL8 (H) IQ-1 [2] – 12; Intimidation (A) Will+2 [8] – 15; Judo (H) DX+1 [8] – 14; Jumping (E) DX+1 [2] – 14; Knife (E) DX+1 [2] – 14; Law (Philadelphia Criminal) (H) IQ-1 [2] – 11; Leadership (A) IQ+1 [1] – 13§; Lifting (A) HT+0 [2] – 14; Lip Reading (A) Per-1 [1] – 13; NBC Suit/TL8 (A) DX+0 [2] – 13; Observation (A) Per+0 [2] – 14; Parachuting/TL8 (E) DX+0 [1] – 13; Psychology (Human) (H) IQ+1 [8] – 13; Public Speaking (A) IQ+0 [2] – 12; Research/TL8 (A) IQ+0 [2] – 12; Running (A) HT+0 [2] – 14; Savoir-Faire (Military) (E) IQ+3 [2] – 15§; Savoir-Faire (Police) (E) IQ+0 [1] – 12; Scrounging (E) Per+2 [1] – 16§; Shadowing (A) IQ+1 [4] – 13; Soldier/TL8 (A) IQ+4 [8] – 16; Stealth (A) DX+1 [4] – 14; Strategy (Land) (H) IQ+0 [4] – 12; Streetwise (A) IQ+1 [4] – 13; Survival (Desert) (A) Per+0 [2] – 14; Survival (Mountain) (A) Per-1 [1] – 13; Survival (Woodlands) (A) Per-1 [1] – 13; Swimming (E) HT+0 [1] – 14; Tactics (H) IQ+2 [4] – 14§; Teaching (A) IQ+0 [2] – 12; Throwing (A) DX+1 [4] – 14; Tracking (A) Per+0 [2] – 14; Traps/TL8 (A) IQ+1 [4] – 13; Weather Sense (A) IQ+0 [2] – 12; Wrestling (A) DX+1 [4] – 14.
Techniques: Double-Loading (Fast-Draw (Ammo)) (A) def+2 [2] – 14; Dual-Weapon Attack (Guns (SMG)) (H) def+4 [5] – 18; Elbow Strike (Brawling) (A) def+2 [2] – 16; Knee Strike (Brawling) (A) def+1 [1] – 16.
Starting Spending Money: $20,000 (50% of Starting Wealth).
* Defaulted from Survival (Desert).
† Includes +1 from Combat Reflexes.
‡ Defaulted from Guns (SMG).
§ Includes +2 from Born Soldier.
Role-Playing Notes:
Frank is a man driven to avenge the deaths of his wife and children by waging a war on organized crime. He knows what he's doing is likely to be the death of him, and he knows he's gotta be at least a little messed up in the head to do what he does. He doesn't care, though, as he figures one day he'll be reunited with his loved ones.
Design Notes:
1. I got some flack when writing this up for not making the Punisher a Vietnam veteran like his mainstream counterpart. Note, however, that a 'Nam veteran in 2010 would probably be pushing 70. Making him a Desert Storm veteran at least keeps him, in the timeframe of the Reboot, around 40, which isn't a bad age for a veteran, although he's likely to be slowing down as age hits him.
2. The organization, the Punishers, providing Frank with his initial gear as well as additional gear and intelligence as needed was inspired by a pic of an Asian woman cosplaying as Lynn Michaels, the "Lady Punisher". (I may one day stat her up, too.)
3. Part of me wanted to just give him Gun! (DX/WC) or condense the Guns skills to just "Light Anti-Armor Weapons", "Pistols", and "Rifles", as per the one Pyramid article. I decided not to do the latter due to not really knowing how the various Perks from Gun-Fu being condensed would have worked, particularly for the machine pistols.