Name: THE SHADOW (radio version)-HERO System

Val Char Cost
15 STR 5
15 DEX 15
18 CON 16
13 BODY 6
20 INT 10
25 EGO 30
35 PRE 25
14 COM 2
8 PD 5
4 ED
3 SPD 5
7 REC
36 END
30 STUN

Characteristic Rolls: STR: 12-, DEX: 12-, CON: 13-, INT: 13-, EGO: 14-, PER: 13-
Run: 10″, Swim: 2″, Jump: 3″, Lift: 200kg

Cost Powers END/Roll
8 +4″ Running (Total 10″)
15 Mental Defense 20
20 Invisibility to Normal Sight, No Fringe, -1/2 Limit, Can Be Dispelled
By Successful EGO vs. EGO Roll
17 Elemental Control: Hindu Mysticism
17 7D6 Mind Control
17 7D6 Telepathy

Cost Skills, Talents, Perks Roll
Martial Manuevers
5 Boxing Jab (Defensive Strike), +1 OCV, +3 DCV, STR Strike
5 Boxing Hook (Offensive Strike), -2 OCV, +1 DCV, STR+4D6, Strike
4 Boxing Block (Martial Block), +2 OCV, +2 DCV, Block, Abort
3 Wrestling Slam (Martial Throw), +1 DCV, STR+v/5; opponent falls
3 Wrestling Take Down (Sacrifice Throw), +2 OCV, +1 DCV, STR; you fall,
opponent falls
4 Wrestling Escape (Martial Escape), +15 STR vs. Grabs
3 Wrestling Hold (Martial Grab), Grab, +10 STR for hold only

3 Acting 16-
3 Breakfall 12-
3 Bureaucratics 16-
3 Bugging (Eavesdropping) 13-
3 Climbing 12-
3 Concealment 13-
3 Conversation 16-
3 Criminology 13-
3 Deduction 13-
3 Forensic Medicine 13-
3 High Society 16-
3 Interrogation 16-
2 LS: Hindi, fluent
2 LS: Tamil, fluent
2 LS: Cantonese, fluent
3 Oratory 16-
3 Paramedic 13-
3 Persuasion 16-
5 Shadowing 12-
3 Sleight of Hand 12-
3 Stealth 12-
3 Systems Operation: Radio 13-
9 Ventriloquism 16-
2 CK: New York City 11-
2 KS: Criminal Underworld 11-
2 KS: The Occult 11-
2 PS: Hypnostist (INT-based) 13-
5 Talent: Resistance
10 Perk: Wealthy

100+ Disadvantages
10 DNPC 11-: Margo Lane, girlfriend; normal, useful skills
15 Secret ID: Lamont Cranston, playboy and amateur detective
10 Watched 11-: The Police (as Cranston)
20 Hunted 11-: Evil Mystics, more powerful
20 Can’t Pass Up a Mystery, total
15 Protective of Margo Lane, common, strong
15 Reputation 14-: Mysterious Avenger
20 Sinister Laugh, concealable with effort, causes extreme terror
112 He Knows What Evil Lurks bonus

OCV: 5; DCV: 5; ECV: 8; Mental Def.: 20; Phases: 4, 8, 12
PD/rPD: 8/0 ; ED/rED: 4/0

Costs: Char.: 119 Disad.: 125
Powers: + 218 Base: + 100
Exp.: + 112
Total: = 337 Total: = 337

Source: “The Street & Smith Dectective Story Magazine Hour,” 1931 (it became “The Shadow” radio show, which continued until 1954).

Background:

Superman wasn’t the first hero to rescue a plucky female sidekick named Lane. The Shadow spent much of his on-air career getting “friend and companion” Margo Lane out of scrapes. Unlike Lois Lane, Margo usually wasn’t responsible for getting herself into trouble.

The Shadow began as the host of radio dramatizations of Street & Smith Publications’ detective stories. He’d start off each episode with a cheerful comment such as, “The weed of crime bears bitter fruit. Crime does not pay. The Shadow knows!” His scary voice and sardonic laughter so excited listeners’ imaginations that he began taking a greater and greater role in these stories
and eventually took over the show. His success on the air encouraged the publishing house to issue The Shadow magazine, featuring adventures in which the character took center stage. The Shadow developed into two related but distinct crime fighters, although both are masters of stealth, misdirection and ventriloquism

On the radio, The Shadow is hypnotist and amateur criminologist Lamont Cranston, who has learned from the Hindu yogis of India the ability to cloud men’s minds so they cannot not see him. He uses intimidation and mind control rather than gunplay to thwart a diverse cadre of gangsters, madmen, and spies. Although he’s capable of giving the bad guys a well-deserved sock in the jaw,
he rarely has to. His opponents frequently become so rattled by his unseen presence that they destroy themselves while trying to kill him.

Unlike his magazine counterpart, this Cranston really is a wealthy young playboy, and he’s allowed one other person — Lane — to know his true identity. As such, he’s a much more human and sympathetic hero. He and Margo are clearly lovers, but he’s too busy battling bad guys to propose marriage. The radio Shadow lacks a network of agents; instead he and Lane are driven
around New York City by talkative cabbie Moe “Shrevie” Shrevnitz. He works more closely with the police (they can’t see him to arrest him), although they still resent his interference. Somehow Cranston manages to be on hand whenever Police Commissioner Ralph Weston arrives to investigate a crime scene. Weston, who knows Cranston and Lane socially, regards Lamont’s amateur sleuthing as a sometimes amusing annoyance. He would be even more annoyed if he knew that Cranston is the eerie voice that keeps second-guessing his deductions.

Powers and Abilities:

The Shadow’s invisibility doesn’t quite translate into the conventional Champions power. He’s not truly invisible in the sense that he’s bending the laws of physics. Instead, he’s using a sort of passive area effect Mind Control to prevent people from perceiving him with any of their senses unless he wants them to. He doesn’t often have to worry about the usual Invisible Man giveaways such as footprints, mist or splashed paint. If a clever villain were to splash paint on him, The Shadow could prevent the crook from perceiving the paint, too. On the other hand, persons with strong enough EGOs or with the appropriate training can perceive him normally. The Shadow has encountered such individuals more than once during his long career but they typically perish in their own deathtraps or at the hands of their associates before they can reveal his secret to the world.

GM’s Note: This type of occult invisibility works quite well in the 1930s and ’40s. It would become more problematic in a contemporary campaign where security cameras and other concealed remote electronic sensory devices are common. The Shadow could elude human guards only to be cornered by robots or heat-seeking weaponry. Of course, that would give the player characters a chance to come to his rescue.

In addition, The Shadow also possesses standard Mind Control and Telepathy powers, is a masterful orator and competent detective. It’s easy to be a keen observer when you can literally look over people’s shoulders, but Cranston has developed the true detective’s knack for noticing little details that others miss.

Cranston’s usual tactic is to confront a suspect in an isolated place, appearing only as a disembodied voice, to scare useful information out of him. If that doesn’t work, The Shadow will keep hanging around, eavesdropping and attempting to startle the villain into a rash act that will undo his schemes. In addition to making himself invisible, The Shadow routinely throws his voice to another portion of the room. That way, he’ll be out of harm’s way if the crook starts shooting or throwing things or otherwise trying to locate him. While he will intervene physically to protect himself or an innocent, The Shadow’s most powerful weapon remains his voice.

Disadvantages:

If you listen to enough episodes of the radio show, it appears there is some sort of Delhi diaspora going on during the Great Depression. Although his powers are supposed to be unique, The Shadow encounters a number of east Indian emigres (and Westerners who have studied the occult in India) who are familiar with how his abilities work and who can sometimes match them.
Invariably, these people are on the opposite side of the law. Since they can often see him, they don’t have too much trouble figuring out his secret identity. While this is a bad thing — without his powers The Shadow is merely a public-spirited citizen — it also keeps him honest and on his toes. His encounters with evil mystics are a constant reminder of what he could become if he doesn’t restrain himself.

Also, Lamont Cranston possesses an eagerness to investigate all the suspicious circumstances he encounters, even when doing so isn’t in his best interests. He’ll go to that interview with a suspect even though he knows it is a trap. He’ll have to check out that lighted window in the storm-drenched abandoned house, even though he and Margo would be safer (and drier) if he were to pass it up.

Height: cm ( ‘ “), Weight: kg ( lbs), Sex: Male, Race: Caucasian

Appearance:

Are you kidding? “No man sees The Shadow! Heh, heh, heh, ha, ha, ha, haaaa!”

Name: The Shadow (magazine version)

Val Char Cost
23 STR 13
18 DEX 24
15 CON 10
18 BODY 16
18 INT 8
18 EGO 16
25 PRE 15
14 COM 2
10 PD 5
8 ED 5
4 SPD 12
10 REC 4
30 END
39 STUN

Characteristic Rolls: STR: 14-, DEX: 13-, CON: 12-, INT: 13-, EGO: 13-, PER: 13-
Run: 10″, Swim: 2″, Jump: 4 1/2″, Lift: 600 kg

Cost Powers END/Roll
8 +4″ Running (10″ Total)
11 Mental Defense 15
10 25% Physical Damage Reduction vs. Normal Damage

Cost Skills, Talents, Perks Roll
Martial Manuevers
5 Boxing Jab (Defensive Strike), +1 OCV, +3 DCV, STR Strike
5 Boxing Hook (Offensive Strike), -2 OCV, +1 DCV, STR+4D6, Strike
4 Boxing Block (Martial Block), +2 OCV, +2 DCV, Block, Abort
3 Wrestling Slam (Martial Throw), +1 DCV, STR+v/5; opponent falls
3 Wrestling Take Down (Sacrifice Throw), +2 OCV, +1 DCV, STR; you fall,
opponent falls
4 Wrestling Escape (Martial Escape), +15 STR vs. Grabs
3 Wrestling Hold (Martial Grab), Grab, +10 STR for hold only

3 Acting 14-
3 Acrobatics 13-
3 Breakfall 13-
3 Bugging 13-
3 Concealment 13-
3 Climbing 13-
3 Combat Pilot: All Aircraft 13-
3 Cryptography 13-
3 Contortionist 13-
3 Criminology 13-
9 Disguise 14-
3 High Society 14-
3 Interrogation 14-
3 LS: Russian, fluent with accent
2 LS: Hindi, fluent
2 LS: Tamil, fluent
2 LS: Cantonese, fluent
3 Lipreading 11-
3 Lockpicking 13-
3 Oratory 14-
3 Persuasion 14-
7 Shadowing 13-
3 Sleight of Hand 13-
3 Stealth 13-
3 Streetwise 14-
3 Systems Operation: Radio Broadcasting, Audio Engineering 13-
9 Ventriloquism 14-
2 CK: New York City 11-
2 KS: Criminal Underworld 11-
2 PS: Hypnotist 13- (INT-based)
2 Familiar with Small Arms
2 Familiar with Common Melee Weapons
9 +3 with Pistols
6 +3 with Ranged Combat (Pistols)
3 Transport Familiarity: All Air Vehicles
3 Talent: Ambidexterity
3 Talent: Combat Sense 13-
5 Talent: Defense Maneuver
3 Talent: Double Jointed
3 Talent: Fast Draw 13-
5 Talent: Resistance

100+ Disadvantages

10 DNPC 11-: Any of his various agents, normal, useful skills
20 Hunted 11-: The Police, more powerful
20 Hunted 11-: The Mob, more powerful
20 Hunts Criminals, total
20 Mysterious and Scary, total
15 Secret IDs: Lamont Cranston, playboy; Kent Allard, pilot; Lin Chang,
curio dealer
20 Extreme Reputation 14-: Murderous Vigilante/Mysterious Avenger
20 Sinister Laugh, concealable with effort, causes terror
85 Master of Darkness bonus

OCV: 6 (9 with Pistols); DCV: 6; ECV: 6; Mental Def.: 15; Phases: 3, 6, 9, 12
PD/rPD: 10/0; ED/rED: 8/0

Costs: Char.: 130 Disad.: 145
Powers: + 200 Base: + 100
Exp.: + 85
Total: = 330 Total: = 330

Source: Maxwell Grant (Walter B. Gibson), “The Living Shadow,” 1931, first
in a series of pulp novels originally published in “The Shadow — A Detective
Magazine.” The magazine continued until 1949.

Background:

Ask a modern comic book reader who the cloaked avenger of the night is and
you’ll probably get the answer “Batman.” However, Bruce Wayne borrowed much
of his schtick from an earlier “wealthy young man about town,” Lamont
Cranston alias The Shadow.

The Shadow began as the host of radio dramatizations of Street & Smith
Publications’ detective stories. However, his scary voice and sardonic
laughter so excited listeners’ imaginations that he began taking a greater
and greater role in these stories and eventually took over the show. His
success on the air encouraged the publishing house to issue “The Shadow”
magazine, featuring adventures in which the character took center stage. The
Shadow developed into two related but distinct crime fighters, although both
are masters of stealth, misdirection and ventriloquism

On the printed page, The Shadow is a mysterious gun-toting vigilante for whom
“Lamont Cranston” is merely one of several secret identities. The real
Lamont Cranston, whose big-nosed profile closely resembles the crime
fighter’s, left for Europe after giving The Shadow permission to use his name
and fortune. Although there have been hints that he might be former World
War I flying ace Kent Allard, readers have never really found out who The
Shadow is or what motivates him to scare the bejabbers out of miscreants. He
simply exists, melting out of the shadows to spare the life of an innocent or
to take the life of an evildoer. In addition to plenty of hot lead, he uses
stealth, trickery, and a network of skilled informants to baffle both the
police and the mobsters who are his prey. Lacking body armor and overt
superhuman abilities (unless you count his uncanny marksmanship), The Shadow
needs his magician’s bag of tricks to survive in a world where all hands are
against him. He makes occasional use of gadgets but is much less dependent
on them than Batman or the Green Hornet. Eerie and unpredictable, he is as
scary to his friends as he is to his foes.

Those friends include Burbank, who acts as The Shadow’s radio dispatcher;
Clyde Burk, a crime reporter; Cliff Marsland, an underworld insider; Harry
Vincent, The Shadow’s chief investigator; and Tapper, an expert on locks and
safecracking. There are many others whom The Shadow calls upon periodically
to provide specific expertise. Many of them are people whose lives he has
saved. Margo Lane, The Shadow’s lover, migrated from the radio show to the
novels but plays a much smaller role in his published adventures. Although
these agents respect their boss and provide important services for him, they
(except for Lane) don’t have any sort of personal relationship with him.
Most of the time they get their orders second hand from Burbank. Why do they
obey him? Would you want to defy a guy who cackles like a maniac and packs a
pair of .45 automatics?

The agents and most of The Shadow’s alter egos are based in New York City,
the world’s largest metropolis in the 1930s. While he finds ample adventure
at home, The Shadow battles felons around the globe. In one instance, he
traveled to Moscow to crush the backers of a Russian spy ring operating in
the United States.

Powers and Abilities:

The radio show presented a character with the occult ability to render
himself invisible. The literary Shadow manages to project himself into
places where he isn’t physically present by a variety of means. In addition
to being able to throw his voice, he is a master of audio recording and
broadcasting. Hidden loudspeakers and microphones, unauthorized telephone
lines, concealed phonographs and radio receivers enable The Shadow to
remotely instruct his agents and give cryptic warnings to both authorities
and lawbreakers. His agents usually install these devices, but he also does
the work himself.

The Shadow’s mastery of escape rivals that of Harry Houdini, and his skill at
disguise that of Lon Chaney, Sr. He lacks the mystic mental abilities of
his radio counterpart but is a competent hypnotist and persuasive speaker.
Gunplay is his forte. The Shadow lurks in the darkness watching for the
muzzle flashes of his opponents’ weapons, using them to accurately fire his
own shots. He rarely misses. Another favorite tactic is to sneak away
through the ranks of his enemies so that they end up shooting at each other.
The Shadow’s methods are lethal but no more so than those of Dick Tracy,
another famous crime fighter who launched his career in 1931.

Disadvantages:

Unlike Tracy, who has an entire police force to back him up, The Shadow is on
his own. Both the good guys and the bad guys are out to get him, everyone
from the local beat cop to the Bolshevik army. Although his aides
occasionally rescue him, more often he’s the one bailing them out of
trouble. And he has no comfortable, permanent secret identity to relax in.
His alter egos, even that of Lamont Cranston, are merely tools to enable him
to gather information. On his days off — if he takes days off — he is
still The Shadow.

Height: cm (5’10”), Weight: kg (140 lbs), Sex: Male, Race: Caucasian

Appearance:

Most people who have encountered The Shadow recall only his piercing,
hypnotic gaze and mocking laugh. Those rare individuals who have actually
seen him describe a tall, thin, hawk-nosed figure swathed in a great black
cloak and slouch hat, the lower portion of his face concealed by a tall
collar or long scarf. He carries a bulky pair of .45 automatics. The Shadow
wears black gloves when the occasion demands it. More often, his pallid,
spidery hands are exposed, revealing a magnificent fire opal ring on his left
hand. The ring was originally one of the crown jewels of Russia’s Romanov
dynasty. How he acquired it is yet another unexplained mystery surrounding
The Shadow.

Other Appearances

In addition to radio and magazines, The Shadow has also appeared multiple
times in movies and comic books. He was featured in “The Shadow Strikes,”
Grand National Pictures, 1937; “International Crime,” Grand National
Pictures, 1938; “The Shadow,” Columbia Pictures, 1940, a 15-chapter serial;
“The Shadow Returns,” “Behind the Mask,” and “The Missing Lady,” Monogram
Pictures, 1946; “Invisible Avenger,” Republic Pictures, 1958; and
“The Shadow,” Universal Studios, 1994.

Street & Smith published a Shadow comic book from1940 to 1947. Archie Comics
did a version from 1964 to1965. The Shadow returned in 1973 via DC Comics
and appeared in various limited series and graphic novels through 1992. That
year, Dark Horse Comics picked up the torch and did various limited series
and graphic novels until 1995. The Shadow also appeared in a 1988 Marvel
graphic novel.