TEXT: ISSUE #6   THE ROBOT MASTER - REVEALED!
  GAME MODERATOR ONLY
  
  1
  First Things First
   
  This is the final issue! The GM should run this issue 
  for the players after all of the other issues have 
  already been completed. The events of this issue rely 
  heavily on the heroes having dealt with everything 
  leading up to this point. 
  Issue Background
  Baron Blade has been presumed dead for quite some 
  time. However, as the heroes have most likely deduced 
  over the course of the previous five issues, Baron 
  Blade seems to have returned and is in the process 
  of launching an assault on the partially-rebuilt city of 
  Megalopolis! With the cosmic threat passed, the mad 
  baron has been planning his newest scheme: to harvest 
  the unlimited power of the Akash’Flora tree and use it to 
  power an endless army of robots. Baron Blade hoped to 
  turn the post-OblivAeon chaos into opportunity while 
  many of the world’s heroes were scattered, missing, or 
  worse, and called in a few favors to keep the heroes 
  off-balance. While the Freedom Five were cleaning up all 
  the messes he created, he planned to strike again at the 
  tree. What he didn’t count on was the Prime Wardens 
  coming back together thanks to the Freedom Five and 
  protecting Akash’Flora while the Freedom Five take the 
  fight directly to Blade’s offshore underwater base!
  Issue Structure
  The heroes review everything they’ve encountered in 
  the previous issues, and possibly put together that the 
  mastermind behind everything is Baron Blade… just in 
  time for his renewed assault against the Akash’Flora tree 
  in the heart of Megalopolis. The newly regrouped Prime 
  Wardens can handle the defense—freeing the Freedom 
  Five to take the fight to Baron Blade.
   Using the salvaged clues from the previous issues 
  and by following the signal that controls the robots 
  now attacking Megalopolis, the heroes locate a hidden 
  underwater base off the U.S. East Coast. They assault 
  the base, either by stealth or force, and make their way 
  inside. There, they have a final confrontation against 
  Baron Blade and part of his robot army. 
   Depending on how well the heroes do, and if they 
  can take advantage of what they’ve learned in previous 
  issues, they'll capture Baron Blade, foil his latest plan, or 
  else find themselves sinking to the bottom of the ocean 
  in an exploding base full of killer robots… 
   And now, Issue #6: Freedom Five #803!
  Baron Blade
  The villainous Ivan Ramonat has fought his entire life 
  against the hero Legacy and his allies. After the death 
  of Ivan’s father at the hands of the previous generation’s 
  Legacy, Ivan grew up to take over his father’s work: 
  inventing and building military marvels and doomsday 
  devices. Not content making weapons for others, he 
  took on the villainous identity of Baron Blade! His early 
  defeat of Legacy led to the creation of the hero team 
  known as the Freedom Four, which later became the 
  Freedom Five. Over the years, he fought the heroes time 
  and time again, with rare success and frequent defeat. 
   When OblivAeon came to Earth and threatened to 
  end all existence, Ivan Ramonat took on a new role. 
  Under the name Luminary, he fought side-by-side with 
  the heroes that he so hated. After all, no cosmic threat 
  from beyond the stars was going to take out his nemesis, 
  Legacy. That glory was his alone! However, during the 
  battle, Luminary was killed by OblivAeon itself.
   ...or so he would have the heroes believe! With the 
  battle now turned in the heroes' favor, Ramonat faked 
  his death. He has been hiding his existence and amassing 
  power in the form of inventions and robotics for many 
  months. Now, he is ready to once again leave his mark 
  on this world, by taking over the city that the Freedom 
  Five call home: Megalopolis!
  
  2
  Return to Megalopolis
  The Situation
  Having just completed the missions they were sent on 
  by Visionary, the Freedom Five are now traveling back to 
  Megalopolis. The events of the previous issues were not 
  merely random disturbances: something larger is going 
  on. Let the heroes start to put the pieces together. If the 
  players aren’t coming up with answers on their own, they 
  can call upon their powers, qualities, and principles to 
  recall and deduce the following information:
   •  The Akash’Flora tree was the first target, and 
  seemingly had the most resources devoted to it.
   •  Something is disturbing the spirit world, as evidenced 
  by the problems with The Void, which could be 
  caused by attempting to harness spirits in a new way.
   •  Insula Primalis featured attempts to merge nature 
  with technology, which would be incredibly powerful 
  if used on the Akash’Flora tree.
   •  Many of the parts harvested from the Russian power 
  plant could be used in power distribution and flow.
   •  The “Tomb of Anubis” was populated by advanced 
  robotics, which is not usually Miss Information’s style.
   •  Only a brilliant yet twisted inventor could create all 
  the robots and inventions the heroes have faced.
   •  Blade had access to all the robotic technologies 
  previously seen during his brief team up with the 
  heroes in the events of OblivAeon, and so he might 
  have stolen those components to give himself vastly 
  improved robots.
   • But isn’t Baron Blade supposed to be dead?
   •  Either the mad Baron faked his own death, or there 
  is a copycat villain out there.
  Megalopolis Under Siege
  As they’re putting clues together, they get a call from 
  Argent Adept, who is currently fighting even more robots 
  at the Akash’Flora tree in downtown Megalopolis! He is 
  aided by heroes the players met in previous issues. They 
  are working together to protect the city and the tree, and 
  to drive the robots back. However, these robots keep 
  coming from somewhere, and they must be stopped! 
   Argent Adept and his allies can keep up the fight in 
  Megalopolis, but the Freedom Five will need to find the 
  source of these robots and put a stop to them… and 
  whatever larger scheme is behind them!
  Figuring out where to go next
  At this point, the way the heroes hunt down the source 
  of the robots is up to you and your players. Ultimately, 
  they need to learn of the existence of an underwater 
  base and pinpoint its location. The proposed elements of 
  Scene 1 provide a straight-forward method for doing so, 
  but if your players want to take a different approach, run 
  with it! Encourage the players to think back over what 
  they already know, leveraging that information to lead 
  them to the robot source.
  The Fight at the Tree: Reprise
  When the heroes arrive at the site of the Akash’Flora 
  tree in Megalopolis, they find many of the heroes they’ve 
  encountered over the last few issues fighting together 
  against hordes of spider robots. If the Freedom Five 
  want to engage the spiders, they can, but the waves are 
  seemingly infinite. It is important to protect the city and 
  the tree, but the heroes need to do more than punch 
  robots to ultimately stop them all.
  Scene 1
  
  3
  Scene 1
  SOLDIER SPIDER BOTS
   Minions (3 per Hero)
  Description 
  These spider robots look and act like the ones that 
  were attacking the tree before, except they don't come 
  from a spider mothership. Their controlling signal must 
  be coming from somewhere else! They endlessly stream 
  from the shore and up out of the sewers.
  Ability
  Spider Webs: +1 to Hinder when making webs.
  Tactics
  Each bot squad adopts these tactics when they act:
   •  One bot Boosts another bot with cover fire, or
   • Hinders their target with webs, or
   • Attacks their target.
   
   Whenever an Attacking robot gets destroyed, it is 
  replaced by any bot left without a valid target. If none 
  are available, a spider bot taking Boost or Hinder actions 
  switches to Attacking instead.
   After these bots act, roll a 
   for each non-player 
  character hero in the scene and destroy that many 
  soldier spider bots. 
  SPIDER BOT SNIPERS
   Minions (1 per Hero)
  Description 
  Some bots sought out high ground in and all around the 
  park (building facade, park walls, on statues). They then 
  created thick, protective web cocoons, reconfiguring 
  themselves into fixed laser batteries. 
   This time, there isn’t a spider mothership, so the 
  signal that’s controlling these bots must be coming from 
  somewhere else!
  Ability 
  Cover: Spider bot snipers have a +2 cover bonus to 
  their minion save roll due to their superior positions and 
  protective web cocoons.
   A successful Overcome action to remove or destroy 
  the web cocoons can nullify this ability.
  Tactics 
  Spider bot snipers Attack large or well-defended heroes, 
  providing fire support for the soldier spider bots.
   On their turn, if their Cover ability has been nullified, 
  they can spend their turn rebuilding their web cocoons 
  instead of Attacking.
  
  4
  HORDE  OF HARVESTERS
  Description 
  Scores of spider bots swarm all over the Akash'Flora 
  tree, cutting into it. Clearing them is a overwhelming task 
  as the bots keep appearing in seemingly infinite waves. 
  Unlike the hordes from Issue #1, these spider robots 
  cannot be stopped by destroying the mothership, as 
  their signal is coming from some other source.
  Action 
  Spider bots harvesting the tree do not attack heroes. 
   Whenever the horde of harvesters takes a turn, mark 
  a box on the scene tracker. Then add more soldier spider 
  bots to the scene until there are 3 for each hero.
  Resolution 
  There are too many robots to deal with in single combat. 
  The non-player heroes are holding against the robots as 
  best as they can, but for how much longer?
   To save the tree, their allies, and the entire city of 
  Megalopolis, the heroes need to:
   
     Locate the signal (The Signal challenge to the right)
    Follow the signal underwater (Scene 2 on page 5)
    Defeat what they find there (Scene 3 on page 7)
  THE SIGNAL
  Description
  The heroes know that there’s some sort of signal 
  controlling the robots. If they can trace that signal, they 
  could pinpoint a source signal for all the robots.
  Resolution
  The heroes need three successes in this multipart 
  challenge. If they come up with things to do on their 
  own, go with that, or you can use the challenges below 
  or make up your own.
    
   Dismantle and dissect a spider robot: Overcome
    
   Locate robot transponder beacon: Overcome
    
   Trace command signal: Overcome
  Outcome
  When the Freedom Five pinpoint a source signal for 
  all the robots, they discover the location of the hidden 
  underwater base submerged off the coast. Now, they 
  can move on to Scene 2 whenever they wish.
   The heroes are able to find a basic underwater vehicle 
  for getting there, or spend their hero point bonuses to 
  make something more elaborate. If they do, feel free to 
  make the bonuses persistent for the entirety of Scene 2, 
  if somehow applicable.
  Scene 1
  
  5
  Breaching Blade’s Base 
  SCENE TRACKER
  The Situation
  With the underwater base pinpointed, the heroes can 
  leave the newly assembled Prime Wardens to protect 
  Megalopolis and its newest and largest tree from the 
  seemingly endless waves of robotic spiders. Now, the 
  Freedom Five have to figure out how to get to the 
  underwater base and then make their way inside. The 
  good news is that Baron Blade doesn’t know that the 
  heroes are on their way. The bad news is that the base 
  isn’t exactly defenseless. 
   The base is massive, and uses advanced stealth 
  technology. The heroes can't get any kind of readings 
  from a distance: they’ll have to get up close and personal 
  to find an entrance they can use.
  Who is in the base?
  If the players have figured out that Baron Blade is behind 
  this, they’ll know that this is Baron Blade’s hidden base! 
  However, if they don’t, they’ll still be able to figure out 
  that the hidden base is the source of the signal, even if 
  they don’t know who is behind this whole thing. Though, 
  in that case, Baron Blade will have the drop on them in 
  the upcoming fight in Scene 3!
   There are two approaches to the underwater base: 
  either by trying to find a way aboard without being 
  detected, or by taking the direct brute force approach. 
  Both are listed as multi-part challenges to the right. 
  While the environment will be spitting out threats and 
  challenges to harass the heroes, the scene ends when 
  the heroes successfully make it inside the base, not when 
  every threat is defeated. When twists come up, lean 
  towards using environment ones.
   If the scene tracker reaches the end, the heroes arrive 
  at the base, but Baron Blade has watched their approach 
  and has prepared for their arrival. In this case, mark off 
  the first box in Scene 3's scene tracker.
  THE STEALTHY APPROACH
  Description
  Sneaking up to the underwater base is much more 
  difficult, but could result in the heroes accessing the base 
  without being noticed.
  Resolution
    
   Navigate the rushing waters silently: Overcome
    
   Investigate the base exterior: Overcome
    
   Disengage security measures: Overcome
    Stealthily open entrance: 3 Overcome actions
  		Reseal the entrance to avoid alarms: Overcome
  Outcome
  If the heroes succeed before the scene tracker runs 
  out, they can make their way through the underwater 
  complex, dispatching the guards and patrols and avoiding 
  alarms as they make their way to Baron Blade.
   This outcome will alter Scene 3, turning it into a mobile 
  room-by-room fight where the heroes run the risk of a 
  foe raising the alarm and bringing the whole base down 
  on their heads, but they don't have to deal with every 
  threat the underwater base has to offer simultaneously.
  THE DIRECT APPROACH
  Description
  Evil-doers, beware! This team of heroes is heading right 
  at you! But they’re being pretty obvious about it.
  Resolution
  		Get to the base: Overcome
     Open entrance: 3 Overcome actions
  Outcome
  The heroes enter the base, loud and proud. There, they 
  find an impressive army of robot spiders, bionic soldiers, 
  and threats from the last few issues. They all stand before 
  Baron Blade himself, who has been waiting for the heroes. 
  It’s time to fight!
  Scene 2
  START
  END
  GREEN ZONE
  YELLOW ZONE
  RED ZONE
  
  6
  Scene 2
  Environment: Under the Sea
  Since the focus of this scene is the heroes navigating the 
  exterior of the base—either stealthily or directly—the 
  environment twists and threats are here to hamper the 
  heroes. The heroes are on the clock in this scene, and 
  defeating the sharks, squids, and twists will not win the 
  day. As a result, the threats focus on the heroes who 
  are most easily succeeding on the Overcome actions 
  necessary to get into the base.
  Under the Sea
  Shark Infested 
  Mysteries of the Deep 
  Cold & Uncaring Waters 
  Green 
  Minor Twists
  Current Events: A strangely localized current grabs a 
  hero. Roll the environment's dice pool. Hinder one hero 
  with the Mid die. That hero is separated from the rest of 
  the group. 
  With Much Porpoise: A flock of mischievous and fearless 
  dolphins zeroes in on the area, pestering heroes and 
  minions alike before fleeing with self-satisfied squeaks 
  and chirps. Roll the environment's dice pool. Hinder all 
  heroes and minions with the Min die.
  Major Twists
  Underwater Whirlpool: An artificial whirlpool catches 
  a hero in its grip. Roll the environment's dice pool. 
  Hinder one hero with the Mid die. The resulting penalty 
  is persistent. Additionally, due to the disorientating effect 
  of the whirlpool, another hero must make an Overcome 
  check to free the caught hero from it. 
  Yellow
  Minor Twists
  Tiny Bubbles: The breathing apparatus of one of the 
  heroes sports a major leak, draining oxygen rapidly and 
  creating a massive cloud of bubbles. Roll the environment's 
  dice pool. Hinder one hero with the Max die and anyone 
  near that hero with the Min die. A sufficient Boost or an 
  Overcome action can solve the problem. 
  Playing Chicken (of the Sea): A panicked school of large 
  fish barrels into a hero. Roll the environment’s dice pool. 
  Attack one hero with the Max die. The startled fish 
  scatter and flee.
  Major Twists
  Jellied: An immense flock of extremely acidic jelly fish 
  travels slowly through the area. Roll the environment’s 
  dice pool. Use the Mid die to Attack any character 
  performing an action until a character succeeds at an 
  Overcome action (after taking the damage) to disperse 
  the flock around them.
  Red 
  Minor Twists
  Tentacle Takedown: A new robo-squid minion rockets 
  into the area and makes a Hinder action immediately. 
  Torpedo Salvo: Two torpedoes hone in and explode 
  in proximity of the two heroes who’ve taken the least 
  damage so far. Roll the environment’s dice pool. Attack 
  two heroes with the Max die.
  Major Twists
  Sonic Mines: A well-hidden mine detonates, sending 
  powerful shockwaves over a large range. Roll the 
  environment's dice pool. Hinder all targets in the area 
  with the Max die. Attack all targets caught in the blast 
  with the Mid die. The detonation also attracts a number 
  of laser shark minions equal to the Min die.
  Under the Sea Threats
  Whenever the environment's turn comes up in the 
  action order, if there are no minions in the scene, add 
  one of these environmental threats.
  Laser Sharks
  3  Minions
  Description
  These cybernetic sharks wear bulky harnesses that 
  power and house automated laser-cannons.
  Ability
  Frickin’ Lasers: +2 to Attack a hero not in a power suit.
  Tactics
  Laser sharks prefer to Attack the slowest targets, circling 
  their foe a time or two to soften them up with laser 
  blasts before going in for a bitey kill.
  Robo-Squid
  1  Minion
  DescriptioN
  A powerful squid-like robot with powerful grasping 
  tentacles made of reinforced rubber and steel.
  Ability
  Tentacular: Can Hinder two heroes with one action.
  If Hindering just one target, has +2 to Hinder. 
  Tactics
  While it certainly can make Attacks, a robo-squid is more 
  likely to grab and Hinder as many heroes as possible, 
  especially those nearest the underwater base.
  
  7
  Scene 3
  The Deepest Cut
  SCENE TRACKER
   
  Note: this climatic scene uses a different scene tracker. 
  The Situation
  Baron Blade remotely commands his army of robot 
  spiders laying siege to the Akash’Flora tree with his 
  power-channeling reactor in his underwater base. Can 
  the heroes stop him before the Prime Wardens are 
  overwhelmed and the city is overrun?
   This scene culminates in one big battle against Baron 
  Blade wearing an elaborate power armor mech-suit and 
  supported by waves of reinforcements of numerous 
  types of robots. The heroes win by knocking out Baron 
  Blade and disabling his power source device. 
   If the heroes successfully snuck into the base, give them 
  several compartments to fight through, each with a few 
  threats, leading up to a major battle with Baron Blade 
  with only a few robotic allies. However, if they failed to 
  approach sneakily, or just chose the direct approach, 
  they enter a large chamber with numerous adjoining 
  rooms full of opponents and Baron Blade himself, who 
  proceeds to mock them before attacking. Throughout 
  the fight, Baron Blade should be arrogant and very vocal 
  about it. This is Blade in his element, after all.
   This scene features a full villain with several upgrades, 
  an environment, and a group of other threats. 
  START
  END
  GREEN ZONE
  YELLOW ZONE
  RED ZONE
  
  8
  Environment: The Underwater Base
  Baron Blade built this base knowing that it was highly 
  likely to be the site of a major fight against a team of 
  heroes. This isn't his first rodeo. As a result, the twists are 
  mostly traps and failsafes that Baron Blade has prepared 
  for the heroes. All the threats on pages 9 & 10 work 
  for and have been built by Baron Blade, and other than 
  Red zone twists—when the base is in real structural 
  trouble—the elements of this scene have been crafted 
  to work to Baron's Blade's advantage.
   Each of the twists on this page can only be activated 
  once in this scene. Additionally, the power source 
  challenge on page 10 can also activate or disable the self-
  destruct twists, depending on how the heroes interact 
  with the power source.
   The Underwater Base 
  Automated tech 
  Redundant Design 
  Cybernetic Defenses 
  Green
  Minor Twists
  Cracked Windows: A particularly powerful impact or 
  blast damages one of the base’s window ports. Freezing 
  water sprays everywhere. Unless a hero performs an 
  Overcome action to resolve the issue, the next minor 
  twist must be Lockdown!
  Lockdown!: Several automated hatches slam down from 
  the ceiling, isolating each hero in a separate chamber. 
  Each sealed hatch requires an Overcome action to force 
  it back open.
  Opportunistic Strike: If he is in the scene at this point, 
  Baron Blade takes advantages of the situation, making a 
  free out of turn Attack now.
  Spider Bot Deployment: With a clatter, another spidery 
  robot rushes across the ceiling to join the fray. Add one 
  spider bot minion (page 9) to the scene.
  Major Twists
  Patrolling Battalion: A trio of Bionic Blade Battalion 
  soldiers round the corner and take up combat positions, 
  ready to take on the heroes! Add 3 Bionic Blade Battalion 
  minions (page 9) to the scene.
  Self-Destruct Sequence: The base’s self-destruct 
  sequence initiates! If you reach the end of the scene 
  tracker, the whole base explodes, with dire consequences 
  for everyone in it. The self-destruct system can be 
  disabled with two Overcome actions, or by destroying 
  the power source (page 10).
  Yellow 
  Minor Twists
  Rattle Them Bones: A rickety prototype version of the 
  robotic skeletons you fought in the fake Tomb of Anubis 
  pulls itself free from a webbing harness affixed to a 
  wall and advances on the heroes. Add one prototype 
  skeletron minion (see page 9) to the scene.
  Steamed: A blast of superheated steam from a broken 
  pipe hits a hero. Roll the environment's dice pool. Attack 
  the Hero who most recently moved with the Mid die. 
  Webbed: An automated web sprayer from spider bot 
  manufacturing hits a hero with a web grenade. Roll the 
  environment's dice pool. Hinder one hero who is not in 
  melee range of Baron Blade with the Mid die.
  Wrathful Reaction: If he is in the scene at this point, 
  Baron Blade makes the most of a hero's fumble, taking a 
  free out of turn action now.
  Major Twists
  ALARM!: The whole area goes on high alert. Roll the 
  environment's dice pool. Boost minions and villains with 
  the Mid die. That bonus persists until a hero succeeds at 
  an Overcome action to shut it down.
  Red 
  Minor Twists
  Leaking Room: A chamber of the base has sprung a leak, 
  and the water flooding into the room is making a mess 
  of an already dangerous situation. Anyone in this room 
  has a -2 penalty to all actions until someone succeeds at 
  an action to plug the leak.
  Spirited Away: The base’s power source sends a gigantic 
  energy pulse through the base. Roll the environment's 
  dice pool. Boost all minions with the Mid die. Attack 
  all heroes with the Max die. If the bound tree spirit 
  lieutenant (page 10) is in the scene, it increases one die 
  size (if able). 
  Temporary Blackout: The power momentarily fails in 
  the base, resulting in disaster. Roll the environment's dice 
  pool. Attack everyone in the scene with the Min die, 
  Hinder everyone in the scene with the Max die. 
  Major Twists
  Decoy Baron: It turns out, the Baron Blade you've been 
  fighting all this time was a robot duplicate! Turn the 
  current Baron Blade in the scene into a 
   minion with 
  all of the Mech abilities of Baron Blade. Then, add a new, 
  undamaged Baron Blade to the action order.
  Self-Destruct Glitch: If the self-destruct sequence hasn’t 
  been initiated, it does so now. Otherwise, a system glitch 
  shortens the countdown, marking off a box on the scene 
  tracker. 
  Scene 3
  
  9
  Scene 2
  Underwater Base Threats
  On each environment turn in the action order, if there 
  are fewer enemy targets (counting minions, lieutenants, 
  and Baron Blade) than heroes, add one of these threats 
  to the scene
  Spider Bots
   Minions (1 per hero)
  Description
  Even more of the spider-like robots! These bots seem 
  particularly suited to operating within the metal hull of 
  this base. The magnets on the tips of their spindly legs 
  allow them to swarm across walls and ceilings.
   If the heroes took the stealthy approach in Scene 2, 
  the spider bots descend when the scene turns Yellow. 
  Otherwise, they begin in the scene, crawling around on 
  the ceiling.
  Ability
  Web Download: Whenever the last spider bot is 
  destroyed, don’t remove it from the action order. Instead, 
  on their turn, they replenish up to the number of heroes. 
  The heroes can use a callback to Issue #1 to learn how 
  to disrupt their programming, or an Overcome action 
  while there are no more remaining to stop the process.
  Tactics
  As they are essentially infinite in number until their 
  programming has been disrupted, spider bots attempt 
  to overwhelm the heroes, specifically targeting isolated 
  heroes, if any.
  Prototype Skeletrons
  2  Minions
  Description 
  With a metallic clanking and clacking, these clearly 
  robotic skeletons approach the heroes, their fake bone 
  fingers clenching into metallic fists.
  Ability
  Work in Progress: After a prototype skeletron takes a 
  turn in the action order, if its die is smaller than a 
  , 
  restore it to a 
  .
   A hero can call back to the finished state of the 
  skeletrons in Tome of the Bizarre #86 when dealing 
  damage to a prototype skeletron. Doing so disables that 
  prototype skeletron's Work in Progress ability.
  Tactics
  Prototype skeletrons each attempt to subdue any heroes 
  that are far from spider bots or Baron Blade.
  Bionic Blade Battalion
   Minions  (1 per hero)
  Description
  These robotic soldiers are more metal than man. They 
  wield fearsome bionic weapons built into their forms.
   If the heroes took the stealthy approach in Scene 2, the 
  Bionic Blade Battalion show up in the action order the 
  round following when the spider bots arrive. Otherwise, 
  they begin already in the scene, guarding Baron Blade. 
  Ability
  Battalion Powers: When Hindering a hero, or Attacking 
  a hero with a penalty from another minion, roll their die 
  twice and use the higher result. 
   The robots are powered by barely stable mini-reactors 
  that are clearly inspired by what the heroes saw in the 
  Yakutsk power plant in Justice Comics #740. If a hero 
  calls back to that issue when fighting these soldiers, they 
  can downgrade all of this minion type in the scene by 
  one step, and any subsequent Bionic Blade Battalions 
  introduced start at 
  . 
  Tactics
  Each Bionic Blade Battalion attempts to engage and 
  isolate a hero, making them easy prey for the spider bots.
  
  10
  Epilogue
  SPIDER MOTHERSHIP
  1  Lieutenant 
  Description
  Oh no! Another spider mothership! This towering spider 
  robot takes up a lot of space in the underwater base. 
  And if you leave it alone for too long, it lays more eggs!
  Ability
  Webmaster: When the spider mothership Hinders, apply 
  that Hinder to all nearby heroes. Then, the mothership 
  may move to another location in the scene.
  A Metallic Clutch: On the spider mothership's turn in 
  the action order, if there are no heroes nearby, it creates 
   of clutch of metal eggs challenges. A successful 
  Overcome action can destroy a single clutch of eggs.
   On the spider mothership's turn, any clutches of metal 
  eggs turn into 3 spider bots.
  Tactics
  During its turn, the mothership attempts to lay eggs. 
  However, if there are heroes nearby, it Hinders and then 
  moves away, seeking a quiet corner to lay more eggs.
  When the spider mothership has been reduced to a 
  , it switches to Hindering on its turn, as its egg-laying 
  capabilities have been destroyed.
  Bound Tree Spirit
  1 
   Lieutenant 
  Description
  Somehow, Baron Blade has captured a tree spirit, like 
  the ones the heroes faced on Insula Primalis. He must 
  have been there just before you were. This tree spirit is 
  shackled by arcs of electricity that project from control 
  panels in each room.
  Ability
  Limited Space: Whenever the bound tree spirit attacks, 
  if it rolls maximum damage, the environment takes an 
  immediate extra turn. If it rolls minimum damage, it 
  immediately rerolls.
   If the heroes managed to quiet the violent tree spirits 
  on Insula Primalis by planting the sliver of the VoidHeart 
  in Prime Wardens #67, bound tree spirits in this scene 
  are minions, rather than lieutenants.
  Tactics
  The tree spirit attacks the largest hero near it, focusing 
  on whatever seems easiest to hit.
  THE POWER SOURCE
  Description
  Baron Blade's underwater base has been constructed 
  around an elaborate device that not only powers the 
  base, but also serves as a conduit for when the robot 
  invaders tap into the Akash’Flora tree. Baron Blade is 
  hoping to tap into the energy that sustains the huge tree, 
  and use that energy to power a vast army of robotic 
  minions. Disabling the power device is crucial, though if 
  Baron Blade himself is not also stopped, he’ll just be able 
  to repair or rebuild it.
  Resolution
  This is a major multipart challenge with numerous steps. 
  If the heroes are too preoccupied with the fight against 
  Baron Blade and the many robots, point out to the 
  heroes that the power source seems to be growing in 
  power and energy as the fight continues.
   Also, feel free to let the heroes know that their 
  experiences in the last few issues have prepared them 
  for this challenge. There is a lot going on in this scene, but 
  the power source is a product of Baron Blade's research 
  in all the locations the heroes visited, so the Freedom 
  Five is uniquely qualified to shut this machine down.
  	Disable protective force fields: Overcomes
    
   Remove psychic conduit. If a hero calls back to 
  how Visionary sent them into the Void in Issue 
  #2, this step automatically succeeds.
    
   Shut down atomic power converters. If a hero 
  calls back to what they learned about the power 
  plant operations from Justice Comics #740, this 
  step automatically succeeds.
     Wreck the machine. If the scene is in the Red 
  zone, any twist that comes up as a result of 
  Overcome actions on this challenge triggers the 
  self-destruct sequence environment twist. 
  Outcome
  When the power source is disabled, the base is plunged 
  into darkness. Then, with a flicker, emergency lighting 
  flares to life and loud klaxons sound throughout the base.
   The self-destruct twists are all no longer options 
  and any currently acting are immediately resolved. 
  Baron Blade's robot minions and lieutenants all cease 
  operations, and the panels that control the bound tree 
  spirit go dark. The tree spirit disappears, and Baron Blade 
  is left alone to fight the heroes. But he's still a threatening 
  foe, all on his own!
   If Baron Blade was already incapacitated by the time 
  this challenge is defeated, the heroes prevail! Otherwise, 
  they've still got a fight on their hands, albeit a much less 
  chaotic one against a single foe.
  
  11
  Disabling the Suit
  Baron Blade’s mech-suit can be sabotaged, instead of 
  attacking him directly. Each Overcome success disables 
  a Mech ability, making it no longer function. Baron Blade 
  can use an Overcome action on his turn to restore 
  function to one of his Mech abilities, or to uncheck 
  one of the multipart steps of the Power Source 
  challenge. However, when all three of Baron 
  Blade's Mech abilities are disabled, they are 
  permanently destroyed and cannot be 
  recovered or restored in this scene.
  		Armored
   	Repair Nanites
   	Slash and Burn
   Upon destroying the mech-suit, a slightly 
  singed Baron Blade emerges from the suit. He 
  immediately gets a free, out of turn action, and while 
  doing that action, he monologues about how he still 
  holds the upper hand and the heroes will never truly 
  defeat him. Then, the fight continues!
  When Baron Blade's mech-suit is disabled (see Disabling 
  the Suit below), set his Health to 30. With ominous 
  maniacal laughter, Baron Blade emerges from his power 
  suit to take the heroes on, face-to-face.
  *Baron Blade is dependent upon preparation and 
  inventions to keep him on even-footing with the heroes. 
  Count the number of bonuses and penalties in play that 
  Baron Blade has created with Inventions and/or Science, 
  along with any inventions (including any applicable 
  minions, lieutenants, or twists) deployed in the scene 
  that haven’t been disabled.
  Abilities
  Hasten Doom (Action): Blade exploits his knowledge 
  of a hero’s weakness. Attack one hero using Science. 
  Hinder all heroes using your Max die. 
  Behold My Genius! (Action): Baron Blade uses his 
  advanced weaponry against the heroes, unleashing the 
  plans and plots he's made. Attack using Weaponry and a 
  bonus. If Blade has multiple bonuses, he may also Attack 
  another target using his Min die and a different bonus, 
  and may also Attack another target using his Max die 
  and a different bonus. 
  Alert Status Alpha (Action): Baron Blade calls for 
  reinforcements from elsewhere in the base. Replenish 
  the Bionic Blade Battalion up to the number of heroes. 
  Powered Forcefield (Reaction): Baron Blade’s personal 
  forcefield draws power from his devices to operate. 
  Discard a bonus made with Inventions to Defend against 
  all Attacks against the Baron until his next turn, using that 
  bonus value as the Defense value. 
  Powers
  qualities
  Intuition 
  Inventions 
  Metal Blade-Tech Arm 
  Mech-Suit Offenses 
   [Mech]
  Power Suit 
   [Mech]
  Flight 
   [Mech]
  Alertness 
  Close Combat 
  Ranged Combat 
  Leadership 
  Science 
  Ruler of Mordengrad 
  Status*
  4+ Invention Bonuses/Penalties 
  2-3 Invention Bonuses/Penalties 
  1 Invention Bonus/Penalty 
  0 Invention Bonuses/Penalties 
  BARON BLADE MECH-SUIT
  Starting Health: 70
                                   Current Health: 
  Turn the Tables (Reaction): The Baron always seems 
  to have the right tool for the job, and uses them to 
  give himself the upper hand in any engagement. 
  When Attacked, Baron Blade may Boost to create an 
  appropriate invention using the attacker’s Max die. 
  Principle of the Mad Scientist (Inherent): As long as he 
  has access to materials, Baron Blade can automatically 
  succeed when Overcoming a challenge by using scientific 
  principles and inventions.
  Mech Abilities
  Armored (Inherent): Reduce damage dealt to Baron 
  Blade by 2 in the Green zone, 3 in the Yellow zone, and 
  4 in the Red zone. 
  Repair Nanites (Action): Advanced nanotech repairs 
  the mech-suit's system and increases efficiency. Baron 
  Blade Boosts himself with Inventions using his Max die, 
  and Recovers using his Mid die. 
  Slash and Burn (Action): The mech-suit's onboard 
  weaponry is brought to bear with terrible results. Attack 
  with Mech-Suit Offenses against one target using Baron 
  Blade's Max+Min die, and against another target using 
  his Mid+Min die. 
  
  12
  Fighting Baron Blade Alone
  When the Power Source challenge (page 10) has been 
  resolved, Baron Blade no longer has any minions or 
  lieutenants to help him out in this fight. However, he's 
  still a significant threat!
   His mech-suit has its own independent power source, 
  so disabling the Power Source challenge doesn't slow 
  down Baron Blade himself. And once the mech-suit has 
  been destroyed, the Baron himself is no slouch. Between 
  his metal arm, his inventions, and his familiarity with the 
  heroes, he cannot be discounted as an opponent.
  Conclusion
  The scene can end in multiple ways, and also has multiple 
  possible endings that relate to how the heroes handled 
  the final scene of this entire collection of issues:
  Flawless Victory
  In this case, the heroes have managed to completely foil 
  Baron Blade’s plans, and have captured Blade himself. 
   The heroes defeated Baron Blade, disabled his power 
  source, and all escaped from the underwater base 
  successfully. Congratulations, heroes! Megalopolis and 
  all of its inhabitants—humans and trees alike—
  are safer because of your valiant efforts.
   Victory, But At What Cost?
   Alternatively, the heroes defeated Baron 
  Blade, but either didn’t manage to disable 
  the power source device, or have issues 
  escaping the base. It turns out that, although 
  the heroes thought they were fighting the real 
  Baron Blade, they were actually locked in combat 
  with a highly realistic Baron Blade replica robot. 
   The heroes manage to shut down the power 
  source reactor and exit the base, but the added 
  complications allows the real Blade to escape and 
  plot his revenge. This is the most likely result if the 
  heroes did not uncover the identity of their foe 
  before entering the base.
  Victory is Mine At Last!
  This is no victory for the heroes! Baron Blade and 
  his forces defeated the heroes, either by knocking 
  them all out, or by the scene tracker running 
  down to the end. 
   
  If this unfortunate outcome occurs, 
  the new Prime Wardens arrive at the base to 
  rescue the Freedom Five, saving them from the 
  mad Baron but not shutting down the power source. 
  To save the Freedom Five, the Prime Wardens had to 
  stop defending the Akash’Flora tree.
    The tree takes massive damage from Baron Blade's 
  spider bot army, and the mad Baron is able to harvest a 
  significant amount of energy from the tree. Akash'Flora 
  may never be the same. Baron Blade and his robot 
  army abandon the now-compromised underwater 
  base. It's a fair bet that this won't be the last you 
  hear of Baron Blade, especially now that he's gotten 
  exactly what he wanted from the tree.
  
  13
  Finale
  With the defeat of Baron Blade, Megalopolis and the 
  Akash’Flora tree are safe, and the new Prime Wardens 
  have easily mopped up the rest of the spider robots by 
  the time the Freedom Five make it back up to the city. 
   If the heroes managed to apprehend Baron Blade, they 
  can turn him over to the authorities at G.L.O.B.A.L.’s new 
  super-security prison. Well done, heroes! He surely won’t 
  be bothering the people of Earth again any time soon.
   Argent Adept informs the heroes that the Akash’Flora 
  tree has entered a state of symbiosis with the city of 
  Megalopolis. While the Freedom Five were dealing 
  with the threats of other issues and sending additional 
  allies to Argent Adept’s side, the rescue workers in 
  Megalopolis found shoots of plant-material running to 
  their equipment, powering their tools and vehicles better 
  than any battery. Additionally, roots have begun to thread 
  through the foundations of all of the nearby buildings, 
  both reinforcing the structures and also providing 
  energy to the grid! With this new energy and assistance, 
  rebuilding the city will go much more smoothly. 
   Now, with this new source of power, the new Freedom 
  Five headquarters—Freedom Plaza—is certainly a 
  possibility. Though, much like the Akash'Flora tree, the 
  hero team is also experiencing some growing…
  Epilogue
  In the months after this issue ends, many changes come 
  to the world of Sentinel Comics.
   In light of what the heroes saw in these issues, they 
  know the world will continue to need protecting, and 
  likely in a greater way than even they can provide. Paul 
  Parsons hangs up his cape, passing his hero name and 
  responsibilities on to his daughter, Pauline Felicia Parsons. 
  She will be Legacy in this new era.
   Unity had fun working with her old allies. However, she 
  once again left the company of the Freedom Five and 
  returned to her job with RevoCorp, heading up their 
  new hero team: The Paradigms.
   Tempest leads the G.L.O.B.A.L. team—Geocentric 
  Limited Operations for the Benefit of Advanced 
  Lifeforms—acting as super-heroic ambassadors across 
  the planet and even beyond this solar system.
   Argent Adept, Visionary, Fanatic, Anubis, and Haka are the 
  new Prime Wardens, fighting colossal threats and dealing 
  with foes from beyond our realm, all while learning more 
  of themselves and each other.
   As for the Freedom Five itself, its focus is changing 
  as well. Rather than taking on every foe themselves, 
  they establish their headquarters as a beacon for all 
  potential heroes. Freedom Plaza is a place of training 
  and cooperation for heroes. There, the team are joined 
  by their former leader Paul Parsons, who now holds an 
  administrative role at Freedom Plaza under the name 
  Heritage. And the team is called the Freedom Five 
  no longer—now, they are the Sentinels of Freedom! 
  Defenders of justice, and teachers of a new generation 
  of heroes. Heroes that you, dear players, will bring to the 
  world of Sentinel Comics!
  
  14
  Several potential story hooks were dropped in the 
  other issues. If you want, you may make your own issues 
  and continue your campaign. If your players 
  want to make their own 
  heroes, and you want 
  plenty more characters, 
  environments, 
  minions, 
  villains, and advanced rules, 
  pick up the core rulebook 
  for Sentinel Comics: 
  the Roleplaying Game!
  Continuing Your 
  Hero's Story
  If any of the players are 
  continuing their heroics into 
  further adventures with the 
  same hero, they can now 
  customize that hero in one of 
  the following ways:
   •  Swap one power for a 
  different power of the same 
  die size. Update all abilities 
  that used your previous 
  power to the new one.
   •  Swap one quality for a 
  different quality of the same 
  die size. Update all abilities that 
  used your previous quality to 
  the new one.
   •  Swap one principle for a 
  different principle. Update your 
  related Green ability.
   •  Swap one ability of the same 
  zone (G, Y, or R) out for another, 
  using the same power or quality.
  Collection
  Additionally, all players who keep 
  playing the same hero can add an 
  additional Collection to their sheet 
  called “Sentinels of Freedom Vol. 1.”  
  Congratulations!
  You've successfully led a group of players 
  through a story from the pages of Sentinel 
  Comics! GMs are the real heroes!
  Your Adventures Continue...
  
  THE ROBOT MASTER - REVEALED!
  Writers
  Christopher Badell, Dave Chalker, & Philippe-Antoine Ménard
  Artist
  Adam Rebottaro
  Graphic Designer
  Jennifer Closson
  Editor
  Amanda Valentine
  Developer
  Dave Chalker
  Producer
  Cam Banks
  Editor-in-Chief
  Christopher Badell
  Publisher
  Paul Bender
  Sentinel Comics created by
  Christopher Badell and Adam Rebottaro
  © 2017 Greater Than Games, LLC. All rights reserved. 
  All characters in this issue and the distinctive names 
  and likenesses thereof, and all related indicia are 
  property of Sentinel Comics. No similarity between 
  any of the names, characters, persons, and/or 
  institutions in this issue with those of any living or 
  dead person or institution is intended, and any such 
  similarity which may exist is purely coincidental.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Sentinel Comics RPG/Issues/SC - Issue 6 - Freedom Five #803.pdf