Crankcase (deceased)

Powers:

(none)

Equipment:

the A.W.E. Striker (i): the original driver of this versatile off-road vehicle, Elwood has truly put the All Weather / Environment Striker through its paces - all in an effort to prove whether or not its name applies - and it does! The A.W.E. Striker is described in its own vehicular entry.

Helmet (s): because he drives like a maniac (and he knows it), Elwood always wears a helmet whenever he's with the Gi Joe team; he's rolled more vehicles than he can count. This head gear provides him +2 protection from non-face physical attacks that strike him in the head.

Knife (s): a useful tool for a soldier in the field, this sharp implement is handy whenever Elwood needs to cut through something - or someone - while in the perpetration of a mission. It can be used to cut through items of m.s. 12, or to inflict his Strength +2 damage in melee.

Rifle (a): though he usually prefers the recoil-less rifle on his A.W.E. Striker, Elwood will resort to this weapon if circumstances require it. He can fire this weapon to inflict his Agility +5 damage in a short burst, raised to +6 damage in a fully automatic spread.

Semi-automatic Pistol (a): in the event that all his other hardware fails him, Elwood still has at least one firearm to depend on. He can wield this hand cannon to inflict his Agility +4 damage in a single shot, raised to his Agility +5 in a semi-automatic burst of lead.

Hindrances:

(none)

Skills:

Boxing (s): one talent picked up while in his basic training, this skill describes Elwood's ability to defend himself should he find himself without a weapon. He may divide his pre-cardplay action score between two attacks, the last of which will occur as a contingent action.

Driving (s): a builder and driver of muscle cars since well before he was legally allowed to drive, Elwood is naturally at home with this skill. Whenever he's behind the wheel of a car or other ground-based vehicle, he makes driving actions at a reduced difficulty.

Marksmanship (a): another talent he learned as a general matter of course during his basic training, this skill allows Elwood to handle most guns with ease. Whether he's firing a standard, semi-automatic or fully automatic rifle or pistol, he may do so at a reduced difficulty.

Military / United States (w): both a talent and an origin, this skill details how Elwood got to be where he is in life - and also serves as a handy source of income, too. Elwood has an inherent understanding of the S.O.P., and gained most of his other skills thanks to his time in the service.

Repair (a): having been working on muscle car engines for as long as he can remember, Elwood is very, very good with all things mechanical - especially if they're loud and powerful. He benefits from a reduced difficulty on any attempt to repair or build mechanical devices.

Survival (w): a graduate of both Ranger School and the Desert Warfare School, Elwood is quite competent in fights around the world. Furthermore, should he be stranded with only the clothes on his back, Elwood has the skills necessary to survive - if not thrive - almost anywhere on earth.

Vehicular Combat (a): loaned out to the Special Air Service Tactical Driving School, Elwood is more than capable of using his already considerable driving skills in the execution of a battle. He should receive a reduced difficulty on applicable actions attempted while fighting in a vehicle.

Calling:

Thrill-Seeker: there's no two ways about it, Elwood fits this calling to a 'T'. Growing up in rural Kansas has made him impatient if life isn't rushing at him with reckless speed - or vice versa. Whenever he gets bored or stands still for too long, he actually gets cranky!

Costume:

While active on the Gi Joe team, Elwood wears a relatively simple uniform. It consists of a collared green T shirt beneath brown leather gear webbing, tan trousers, brown leather boots, a brown leather belt, black leather gloves, a black holster for his pistol, and a gray crash helmet.

Personality:

Growing fed up with the slow pace of life in rural Kansas, Elwood has matured into an incredibly impatient person. He gets jittery if things are going slow around him (which is almost always the case in his mind), and he's always cranky unless he's behind the wheel and driving recklessly.

Real Name: Elwood G. Indiana, Grade E-4
Occupation: motor vehicular combatant, armor specialist
Legal Status: citizen of the United States with a possible criminal record
Marital Status: single
Alias(es), if any: none
Group Affiliation: Gi Joe

Height: 5' 9"
Hair: red
Eyes: blue
Weight: 180 lbs
Other Distinguishing Characteristics: Elwood wears a moustache, occasionally coupled with a tightly trimmed beard.

Story:

Elwood grew up in Lawrence, Kansas, and quickly grew impatient with the terminally slow pace of life there. This irritation eventually redirected itself into a fondness for really fast cars, and by the time he was thirteen, Elwood was building his own, custom racing engines.

By the time he was sixteen, he was street racing - but it was never enough. Ever reaching for faster and more dangerous pursuits, Elwood worked the race car circuits for years, always pushing himself further until the boredom struck him like a sledge hammer - and he needed a change.

Convinced he was in for a life of speed and glory, Elwood was talked into a four year enlistment by a clever recruiting Sergeant. Before he knew it, Elwood was working his way through one specialty school after another, even hitting some special schools thanks to a military exchange program.

Seeing some great potential in the man, the powers that be pushed to get Elwood signed up with the Gi Joe team - they always have need of more vehicular combatants, after all. Easily passing most of the entrance exams, all Elwood had to do was prove his mettle in a field exercise.

Doing this with fellow new Joes Airtight, Bazooka and Heavy Metal, Elwood saw things go awry when they and their exercise leader, Lady Jaye, were captured by strange Cobra robots wielding even stranger Cobra plant spores. Though initially flat-footed, Elwood and company won out in the end.

Once he was a full member of the team, Elwood got to put his special equipment through its paces. Assigned an A.W.E. Striker, Elwood was continually tinkering with it and pushing it ever farther, wanting to get all the mileage he could from this all terrain vehicle.

He served on the team with distinction despite his generally grumpy attitude, at least until a fateful mission in the desert nation of Trucial Abysmia. There, on a supposed milk run of a mission, he and several other Joes were captured by Cobra operatives waiting in ambush for them.

While some of his fellows got away, Elwood was gunned down in cold blood by one of Cobra's S.A.W. Vipers while he sat unarmed in a hole with several other Joe prisoners. Though killed in the line of duty, Elwood was at least given a hero's burial in the Arlington national cemetery.

Extra Goodies:

Gi Joe directories featuring a version of Crankcase: