Puppet Master Villain
Real Name: Phillip Masters (his legal name since immigrating to the United States; his birth name is unrevealed).
Occupation: Sculptor, professional criminal, former biologist.
Identity: Known to the authorities.
Legal Status: Naturalized citizen of the United States with no criminal record.
Other Aliases: None.
Place of Birth: Dragonin, Transia.
Marital Status: Widowed.
Known Relatives: Marcia (wife, deceased), Alicia (step-daughter).
Group Affiliation: None.
Base of Operations: New York City.
First Post-Reboot Appearance: FANTASTIC FOUR #
History: Phillip Masters was born in the small Balkan nation of Transia, which at one point was part of the nation of Yugoslavia, and spent his early childhood on the slopes of Mount Wundagore, which sits on the border between Transia, Romania, and Latveria (see Doctor Doom). For unknown reasons, the clay and wood from the trees found on this mountain appear to have mystical properties. As a child, Masters and his parents, ethnic Serbs, immigrated to the United States to avoid one of the many "ethnic cleansings" that were sweeping through the Balkans since the collapse of Soviet oversight; Masters brought along a sizable amount of Wundagore's clay. As a child, his cultural differences and personality made him a social outcast.
As an adult, Masters pursued a degree in biology. While in college, he met Jacob Reiss and Marcia Deaton, who became his first real friends. Reiss and Deaton soon married, and Masters was the best man at their wedding. Masters and Reiss pooled their resources after graduating to establish a small biochemical research firm. Over time, however, Masters became jealous of his friend's success at life, and came to desire everything Reiss had for himself, including Marcia and young daughter Alicia. To this end, Masters arranged for an accident to occur in the lab. Unfortunately, Marcia and Alicia happened to be visiting at the time the lab exploded, robbing Alicia of her sight and poisoning Marcia. Feeling guilty over his part in the accident, Masters married Marcia and adopted Alicia, and gave up his interest in biology to return to his first passion, sculpture. Moving to New York City, Masters opened an art studio in Greenwich Village and enrolled Alicia in schools for the blind; Marcia died of cancer a few years later.
Lost in his art, Masters recently discovered that by shaping his Wundagore clay into the form of a being, he could control their actions. As a test of this power, to see if he could force someone to do something they normally would not, he used the clay to force a cab driver to walk to his death off the Brooklyn Bridge. The cab driver was saved by the Human Torch, and could not remember anything about the incident before the Torch had saved him. Curious about the Fantastic Four, he took control of another member of the team, the Thing, and used him to attack the rest of the team. Alicia, however, had previously met the Thing at one of her art showings and confronted her father about his manipulation of the Thing; she was horrified to hear him refer to himself as the Puppet Master. Alicia knocked the figure of the Thing from his hand, breaking his control over the other man. Masters was arrested, but soon released due to a lack of admissible evidence.
Since then, the Puppet Master has come into conflict with the Fantastic Four on one other occasion, and has assisted them – without their knowledge – against the Dragon Man, who was then being controlled by the Wizard; the latter incident was to save Alicia's life.
Age: 41.
Height: 5' 6".
Weight: 150 lbs.
Eyes: Brown.
Hair: Bald; brown facial hair.
Uniform: None.
Strength Level: The Puppet Master possesses the normal human strength of a man his age, height, and build who engages in no regular exercise.
Known Superhuman Powers: All of the Puppet Master's so-called powers derive from the special magical clay collected from Mount Wundagore. This clay possesses a minute fraction of the magic of a powerful, currently unnamed demonic entity, enabling the Puppet Master to take mental control over whoever the models look like while he holds them. (The Puppet Master himself attributes the clay's powers not to magic but to radioactivity. However, as many biophysicists would point out, "radiation does not work like that"; any scientist who studies the clay will look for another answer, though most will reject the concept of magic.)
While holding and concentrating on the effigy in his hand, the Puppet Master is able to see and hear what his subject does, from the subject's point of view. There is apparently no limit to the range of the control.
Other Abilities: The Puppet Master is a master sculptor and a skilled, though uninspired, biologist.
Weapons: The Puppet Master has a number of models made from a clay found on Mount Wundagore in the Balkans.
134 points
| ST: 9 [-10] | HP: 9 [0] | Speed: 4.50 [0] |
| DX: 9 [-20] | Will: 15 [15] | Move: 5 [5] |
| IQ: 12 [40] | Per: 12 [0] | |
| HT: 9 [-10] | FP: 9 [0] | SM: 0 |
| Dmg: 1d-2/1d-1 | BL: 16 lbs. | |
| Dodge: 7 | Parry: 7 | DR: 0 |
Languages: English (Native) (Native Language) [6]; Serbian (Native) (Native Language) [0].
Cultural Familiarities: Eastern European (Native) [0]; Western [1].
Advantages: Gifted Artist 3 [15]; High Manual Dexterity 4 [20]; Mind Control (Cosmic: Does Not Need To See Target, +50%; Gadget/Breakable: DR 0, -20%; Gadget/Breakable: SM -5, -10%; Gadget/Can Be Stolen: Thief Must Win a Quick Contest of DX or ST, -30%; Link (w/ Mind Reading; Can Be Used Separately), +20%; Long-Range 2, +100%; No Memory, +10%; Preparation Required: 1 hour, -50%; Puppet, -40%; Reliable +5, +25%; Requires Concentrate, -15%; Magical, -10%) [65]; Mind Reading (Gadget/Breakable: DR 0, -20%; Gadget/Breakable: SM -5, -10%; Gadget/Can Be Stolen: Thief Must Win a Quick Contest of DX or ST, -30%; Link (w/ Mind Control, Must Be Used Together), +10%; Long-Range 2, +100%; Preparation Required: 1 hour, -50%; Sensory Only, -20%; Magical, -10%) [21].
Perks: Doodad 3 [3]; Efficient (Artist (Sculpting)) [1].
Disadvantages: Appearance (Unattractive) [-4]; Bad Back (Mild) [-15]; Jealousy [-10]; Loner (12) [-5]; Pacifism (Reluctant Killer) [-5]; Sense of Duty (Alicia, stepdaughter) [-2].
Quirks: Careful [-1]; Chauvinistic [-1]; Crotchety Old Man [-1]; Delusion (Radiation is responsible for the clay's properties) [-1]; Dual Identity [-1].
Skills: Area Knowledge (Greenwich Village) (E) IQ+1 [2] – 13; Artist (Drawing) (H) IQ+2 [2] – 14*; Artist (Sculpting) (D) IQ+4 [8] – 16*; Artist (Woodworking) (H) IQ+3 [4] – 15*; Biology/TL8 (Earth) (VH) IQ+0 [8] – 12; Jeweler/TL8 (H) IQ+2 [2] – 14*; Photography/TL8 (A) IQ+2 [1] – 14*; Puppeteer (H) Will+2 [12] – 17; Sewing/TL8 (E) DX+3 [1] – 12*.
Starting Spending Money: $4,000 (20% of Starting Wealth).
* Includes +3 from Gifted Artist.
Role-Playing Notes:
Masters is a lonely, bitter man who only wants what he feels is best for his adopted daughter. However, his ideas and her ideas about what is "best" for her vary significantly. Masters doesn't realize that the clay has part of the essence of a powerful demonic entity, who has been subtly influencing his thoughts.
The Puppet Master is normally encountered as a mastermind, manipulating people and events through his collection of clay models. If threatened with violence, he will attempt to escape or, should that not be an option, surrender and beg for mercy.
Design Notes:
1. The Puppeteer (Will/H) skill is the skill he uses rather than his base Will for controlling people via his puppets. The listed skill level does not include the Reliable +5 from the Mind Control advantage, which would normally be added on.