Cannonball

Powers:

(none)

Equipment:

Helmet (s): John usually wears this sturdy head gear while at work - after all, he wrecks his rides a lot more than most Joes! It provides John +2 protection against head-based physical attacks - at least, those that don't actually strike him in the face.

the Joe-Com (i): this is a new device given to all Joes since the group's reactivation. This high-tech wristband functions as an audio/video transceiver with various other goodies built in to help a soldier on the go, and is described in greater detail in its own equipment entry.

the R.H.I.N.O. (i): the Rapid Heli-Integrated Neutralizing Offensive Vehicle, or R.H.I.N.O., is a powerful ride with a helicopter built in - another in a long line of two-in-one Joe vehicles. This powerful multi-mode ride is described more fully in its own vehicular entry.

Semi-automatic Pistol (a): a handy back-up should his ride fail him, John carries this small hand cannon on him at all time. John can fire this weapon to inflict his Agility +4 damage in a single shot, or his Agility +5 damage in a semi-automatic burst.

Hindrances:

(none)

Skills:

Boxing (s): an ability that everyone learns in their Basic training, John can easily defend himself should he find himself without weapons. He may divide his pre-cardplay action score between two unarmed attacks, the last of which will occur as a contingent action.

Marksmanship (a): a skill everyone picks up in the military these days, John can easily operate most conventional firearms. Whether he's handling a standard, semi-automatic or fully automatic rifle or pistol, John may do so at a reduced difficulty.

Military / United States (w): serving as an origin of sorts for John, this talent is the source of almost all his other skills. It describes how he knows the S.O.P. like the back of his hand, and how he can effortlessly function in a military environment.

Piloting (a): though his primary skill lies in the operation of ground-based vehicles, John has been taught how to fly as well, in order to operate his R.H.I.N.O. to its fullest. While piloting any air vehicle, he may attempt related actions at a reduced difficulty.

Repair (a): the skill he acquired before joining the military, this talent describes John's ability to fix most anything mechanical - handy when you break as much gear as he does. John should receive a reduced difficulty on efforts to repair or modify an existing item.

Vehicular Combat (a): while John was a pretty good mechanic and driver before enlisting, the Army has made him a truly spectacular vehicular combatant. When engaged in battle while behind the wheel, John can reduce the difficulty of any related combat actions.

Calling:

Thrill-seeker: like a lot of the Gi Joe vehicular combatants, Cannonball is something of an adrenaline junkie. He lives for the excitement of spectacularly wrecking an automobile or other ground vehicle, and goes out of his way to do so - and often!

Costume:

John's Gi Joe uniform is somewhat practical, somewhat flashy. It includes a pair of light gray trousers with dark gray padding on the crotch, a white buttoned shirt, dark gray leather boots, gloves and knee pads, yellow webbing for his gear, and a yellow bandana under a black helmet.

Personality:

John is out of control. The man lives to push a vehicle to its absolute limits - and possibly beyond - usually just to see what it's got. He's simply not happy unless he's behind the wheel of a screaming vehicle, the wind in his face as his engines creep into the red...

Real Name: John Warden, Grade E-4
Occupation: infantry, transport
Legal Status: citizen of the United States with no known criminal record
Marital Status: single
Alias(es), if any: none
Group Affiliation: Gi joe

Height: 6'
Hair: brown
Eyes: brown
Weight: 200 lbs.
Other Distinguishing Characteristics: John wears a tightly trimmed beard and moustache.

Story:

John has never been able to live his life slowly. He's always rushing from one place to another, thrilling at the rush he gets from moving as quickly as possible. The danger also tends to alleviate the boredom he feels on long stretches of road - it keeps him pumped!

Instead of using this tendency destructively in life, John has somehow managed to turn it into a vocation. He got a job test driving various trucks from numerous manufacturers, mostly to determine just what they were capable of. And John did the job well... perhaps too well!

The vehicles he was given to test were invariably returned to their manufacturer on tow trucks, or in boxes of destroyed parts - when John tests a ride, he tests it to destruction! When the civilian market stopped giving him work, John decided to enlist in the Army.

There he continued his fine tradition of wrecking every vehicle he could get his hands on, helping the military to test out its equipment in the harshest manner possible. When he grew too expensive for conventional service, John was 'recommended' to the Gi Joe team.

Once he was able to prove he had what it takes to be a Joe, the team gave him the code name of Cannonball, the rumor being that John also worked in a circus as a human cannonball for a time. They then got him advanced piloting training to go with his vehicular ability.

With that done, John was given his very own R.H.I.N.O. This large vehicle is like many such Gi Joe devices, in that it houses a second ride inside. The R.H.I.N.O. features a 'secret' helicopter, and John has taken to testing both parts of his gear out... roughly.

He's gone through one or two of the experimental devices, but John now knows exactly what a R.H.I.N.O. is capable of, and can push it to the absolute limits while in the field with his fellow Joes. And he does... regularly - whenever they need a madman behind the wheel, the Joes call on Cannonball!

Extra Goodies:

Gi Joe directories featuring a version of Cannonball: