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Snake-Eyes
Powers: * Arashikage Mind-Set: a rare and potent meditation technique, this mind-set allows one so trained in it, once he makes eye contact, to instantly free a body from any sort of brainwashing or other mind control power. This ability works at intensity 15. * Psychic Link: Snake-Eyes has been shown to share a mental bond with his sword-brother, Tommy Arashikage, otherwise known as Storm Shadow. This bond works on a global level, and likely works at intensity 20, allowing one to sense when the other is in trouble, etc...
Equipment: Blowgun (v3): at one time, Snake-Eyes made use of a two foot long blowgun, allowing him to fire darts at an opponent. These darts can be tipped with knock-out drugs or a potent toxin, both functioning at intensity 10; the darts themselves are only +1 weapons. Body Armor: most versions of Snake-Eyes' costume seem to incorporate some level of protection from injury, mostly in the form of kevlar of some sort or another. This protection should be considered +2 in nature - enough to stop most regular bullets (in conjunction with his standard defense). Claws (v5, v6): used in his latter years, these strap-on claw gauntlets allow Snake-Eyes to inflict deadly damage on an opponent with a punch, as opposed to the usual, non-lethal harm. They are likely of at least 10 material strength, and are essentially +2 weapons. Eyewear: all of Snake-Eyes costumes incorporate some manner of eye cover, whether they be darkened goggles, a gridded visor, or even a nifty face plate or full helmet. Either way, these items offer him +5 protected senses (on his eyes). Grappling Hook (v4): on some missions, Snake-Eyes has used a gun that fires a grappling hook. This thing is capable of shooting a hook about ten stories high, and penetrating any surface of up to 10 material strength (kinda like the animated Bat-Man's). Of course, as a further refinement of this gear, Snake-Eyes adopted the use of a new grappling hook late in the year 2001. This wrist-mounted hook has a 100 foot range, allowing Snake-Eyes to hook any surface within firing distance, which lets him climb up just about any surface - or across wide open spaces. Grenades: regardless of his costume (and he's had many), Snake-Eyes is typically armed with several grenades, of either incendiary or fragmentation type. Either will do damage at intensity 10, the first inflicting fiery damage and the latter inflicting edged weapon damage (like a burst of sharp things). Either way, these grenades affect everybody within striking distance of their target. Inviso-Power Suit (v6): an upgrade to his fifth costume, this uniform is equipped with specialized optic devices that act to effectively render its wearer invisible, at intensity 10. The origin of this experimental technology is as of yet unknown, but it may be based on Zartan's designs... the Joe-Com *: 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 an intensity 6 - 250 mile - range, is equipped with a G.P.S. system, a heart monitor, and can store up to a terabyte of raw data - not bad, eh? Of course, this device also stores a variety of nutrients it can use to supplement activity, which are absorbed directly into one's pores (think of this as intensity 1 life support, where food is concerned). So, not only is the thing a nice, high tech video phone, but it can also save one's life in a pinch! Knives: in addition to his twin swords, Snake-Eyes usually carries at least one knife on his person. He can use this in melee or as a thrown weapon as a +2 weapon; if thrown, the knife uses Snake-Eyes' Agility for a trump instead of Strength, and can be used at up to firing distance. Nunchaku (v3, v9, v12, v15): Snake-Eyes has, on occasion, made use of a special, three piece nunchaku. Linked by chain, these three hard wooden sticks can be used to reach a target about five feet away from Snakes, and act as particularly painful +3 weapons. Shuriken: Snakes often has several throwing weapons on him, and if they aren't knives, they'll invariably be throwing stars. He can use these as +2 weapons against his foes, striking anybody within firing distance with the deadly things. Survival Gear: Snake-Eyes usually has a backpack full of useful survival gear, and what he doesn't have there, he carries on accessory belts. Such gear includes a compass, flashlight, nightvision goggles, emergency rations, and various maps to help him complete a mission. Uzi 9mm: Snake-Eyes usually has one of these on him as well, a small and efficient hand-cannon that acts as a +4 weapon with a single shot, a +5 weapon with a small burst, or a +6 weapon upon expending a full clip on a hapless target. Alternately, he's wielded a similar gun equipped with a silencer, which allows him to fire a gun without alerting everybody within the immediate area that gunplay is taking place. This silencer dampens his gunfire with intensity 3 ability. * The Joe-Com is something that the Joes started using in their new (as of 2001) comic, and hasn't been featured on a Snake-Eyes action figure... yet. The same goes for Snake-Eyes' new wrist-mounted grappling hook, too.
Hindrances: Physically Diabled - Mute: Snake-Eyes, thanks to the injuries that have scarred him so, lacks the ability to speak. When he attempts to do so, he usually inflicts extreme pain on himself, and the sound usually comes out as an unintelligible gurgle or scream. That's why he usually just uses sign language...
Skills: Espionage: ever the stealthy, commando type, Snake-Eyes is good at this kind of work. Surveillance missions, information gathering operations, and even old-fashioned, hard-boiled detective work is his cup of tea. He can even tell when others are using this skill against him! Flinging: though he's about the deadliest man on the planet up close, Snake-Eyes can still kill a man all too easily from a distance, even if he doesn't have a gun. Though he prefers knives and shuriken, the man can use virtually anything as a deadly projectile - anything. Knives: while his sword-brother may be the best bowman on earth, Snake-Eyes is nonetheless one of the best knife fighters on the planet. In fact, while using a short blade, Snake-Eyes is allowed the use of an autotrump in combat, making him a virtual killing machine with one of these in hand! Marksmanship: though instructed in the ninja arts, Snake-Eyes was combat trained in the wilds of Vietnam, and as such, his military training has given him the ability to use any gun - regular, semi-automatic, or fully automatic - at one difficulty level lower than is normally required. Martial Arts: Snake-Eyes is a master ninja, one who would've inherited control of the Arashikage ninja clan if not for Zartan's evil actions. In addition to the standard benefits of this skill, Snake-Eyes receives the benefit of an autotrump while engaged in unarmed melee combat. Martial Arts Weapons: while he naturally prefers a sword or knife in combat, Snake-Eyes is well-versed in the use of virtually all oriental weapons, be they nunchaku, sais, or whatever. He wields these items at one difficulty level lower than is normally required. Military: Snake-Eyes began his life of mystery as an enlisted man, spending at least one tour in Vietnam. As such, he knows military protocol like the back of his hands, and can easily interpret military plans and give soldiers effective commands. Resist Domination: a portion of Snake-Eyes' ninja training involved his learning how to control his mind as well as his body. As such, attempts to control Snake-Eyes' mind are made at one difficulty level higher than would otherwise be required. Swords: while Snake-Eyes is one of the best knife-fighters in the world, bar none, his skill with the sword is only slightly less pronounced. He has taken out entire platoons of people with his swords, usually all at once, and makes attacks with such weapons at one difficulty level lower than is normally necessary. Survival: more than anything else, Snake-Eyes is truly skilled at keeping himself alive. Regardless of the environment, situation, or even what appears to be his obvious destruction, Snake-Eyes always comes out on top. He's creepy that way. Trance: Snake-Eyes has the ability to slow down his metabolic processes to the point that he appears dead. If he passes an average intensity Willpower action, opposed by a person's Intellect, said person will believe him to be deceased. While in such a trance, Snake-Eyes needs little or no air or food to survive.
Calling:
Costume: His second costume was also a black spandex bodysuit, and was adorned with gray leather straps that hosted a gun holster, grenades, various other odds and ends, a sword holster, and a holster for his uzi. It also had a gridded, 'v' shaped visor over his eyes. Snake-Eyes' third suit resembled his first more, save for it had added kevlar padding, as well as twin knives strapped on the front, silver goggles, arm bracers, and a silver accessory belt. It may've been less stealthy, but it was more protective. His fourth costume changed this mold considerably, adding a blue kevlar jacket over the black bodysuit, as well as blue boots and blue stripes down the sides of his legs. He also had a gray accessory-laden vest on, night vision goggles, and an unpainted steel face plate. Snake-Eyes' fifth costume reverted to a primarily black suit, with only a dark blue belt, holsters, accessory straps, and arm pads standing out from the dull black fabric of his kevlar skinweave. Also, he added a tight black face-mask / helmet, similar to Destro's. His sixth uniform bore essentially the same look; however, in addition to its features, it added special, experimental 'inviso-power' devices that allowed Snake-Eyes to essentially become invisible. It is believed that these devices were based in part on Zartan's optic technology. Snake-Eyes' seventh / eighth uniform ditched all the excess ninja equipment and reverted to its original form, that of a black spandex bodysuit, covering him from head to toe, and adorned with black leather straps holding grenades and other accessories. It also had black goggles and a black metal mouth plate. His ninth Joe uniform saw Snakes adopting a variant of his third. It was a primarily black body suit, covered by a black kevlar vest which had twin blades strapped onto the front. He had various blue accessories throughout the suit (belt, shoulder / hip pouches, goggles, and wrist bands) and a Joe logo on his right leg. Only two years later, Snake-Eyes adopted his tenth on-the-job costume. This suit is also a black body suit (sans Joe logo), black leather boots with silver toe guards, black leather gloves, blue ankle and wrist guards, a gray leather belt, gray webbing for his gear, a black visor over his eyes, and black sword holsters. His eleventh uniform, used occasionally, is a variation on his tenth. This suit, like the tenth, includes a black body suit, black leather boots with silver toe guards, and black leather gloves, but he changed the ankle and wrists guards to an emerald green hue, and changed the gray components to brown. Snake-Eyes' twelfth uniform is like his ninth, really, which is itself based on his third. It is a black body suit with a G.I. Joe logo on the left leg, accessorized with a kevlar vest (with two blades sheathed on the front), black boots, black gloves, black webbing, a mirrored visor, a gold belt, and gold wrist bands. His thirteenth uniform is a new design. It is a gray, skin-tight body suit, adorned with black boots, purple thigh pads, a black leather belt, purple gloves, black wrist pads, black webbing, various black gear pouches, a purple (left) shoulder pad under his webbing, a silver visor, and a black sword sheath. Snake-Eyes' whirlwind 2002 fashion show ended with a variation on his thirteenth uniform. This outfit is basically a 'stealth' version of his previous one, with everything changed to black. All save, of course, for his silver knee pads, various silver buckles, his gray (left) shoulder pad, and his silver visor. In '04, Snake-Eyes adopted a new field uniform. This once consists of a gray pair of loose-fitting trousers, black leather boots, a gray jacket with a blue collar with side fasteners instead of a zipper, gray leather gloves, black wrist guards, black leather belts and webbing to hold his equipment, and a gray face mask.
Personality:
Real Name: unrevealed / classified
Height: 6' 1"
Story: During this time, the Vietnam War was raging in Asia, and as such, Snake-Eyes found himself there. On one such mission, he (along with Tommy Arashikage and Lonzo Wilkinson) were in Saigon when their jeep driver was killed by two Vietnamese men on a motorcycle. Following the murderers, the three men found they'd struck again, killing the visiting Baron Eugen DeCobray in a nearby warehouse. It turned out that these two guys were North Vietnamese agents, and Snake-Eyes did away with them. However, the Baron's daughter discovered her father dead, and Snake-Eyes standing over the body, and assumed that he was responsible, even after arms dealer James McCullen Destro the 23rd proved his innocence at the scene of the crime. This would come back to haunt him later. Later, while on long range recon patrol with Tommy, Lonzo, Wade Collins, and two other men, Snake-Eyes uncovered an encampment of N.V.A. soldiers, and a terrible firefight ensued. After Collins and the other two men were apparently killed, Snake-Eyes, Tommy, and Lonzo fled to their extraction point, though during this trek Snake-Eyes was downed by enemy gunfire. Though Lonzo assumed him a goner, Tommy went back and, defying all probability, managed to dodge each and every burst of gunfire intended to kill him and, once he'd picked his friend up, Snake-Eyes. Thanks to deft gunplay by Lonzo and the men in the helicopter that arrived to collect them, the men made their way to safety and, thanks to his wounds, Snake-Eyes was returned to America. However, things were not to be as happy as were planned. When Snake-Eyes' family came to pick him up, they were struck by a disturbed, drunken Vietnam vet on the road, and killed. Having nothing to keep him in America, Snake-Eyes took seriously an offer Tommy had made him back in Vietnam, an offer concerning his family business and, after packing up his things, made his way to Japan. Once he arrived, however, Snake-Eyes found that his friend's 'family business' was, in fact, the Arashikage ninja clan! Deeming him worthy of their training, the ninja clan made him as one of their own, and spent over three years training Snake-Eyes in their martial ways. Snake-Eyes was so proficient in his training, in fact, that the leader of the clan, the Hard Master, had plans for him. Plans to make him the heir of the family business, despite the fact that Tommy was currently in that position. This never came to be, though, as enemies were moving against Snake-Eyes even then. You see, the brother of that veteran who killed Snake-Eyes' family was sort of funny in the head, and decided that somebody had to be to blame for his brother's death - and that somebody was Snake-Eyes. In order to get his personal, irrational justice, this man hired two assassins - Firefly and Zartan - to deal with Snake-Eyes personally. Firefly failed to properly infiltrate the ninja clan - or so he said - and passed the buck on to Zartan, who (after a year of preparation) disguised himself as Tommy and, while the Hard Master demonstrated a technique called the 'cloak of the chameleon', Zartan fired on him. Having been deceived by the cloak, Zartan thought that the Hard Master was Snake-Eyes - because he was imitating the sounds and mannerisms of the war hero while teaching said technique. While it appeared that Tommy was the killer of the Hard Master, the ninja lord himself cleared Tommy of the crime before his death, though nobody believed this - after all, it was Tommy's arrow that killed him. You see, Zartan had stolen an arrow Tommy had used earlier in the day, while he practiced his use of the 'ear that sees', and used it in his attempt to kill Snake-Eyes. Being disguised as Tommy, he was seen leaving the scene of the crime, which was the exact time that Tommy himself disappeared from the Arashikage compound. That was, of course, because he was pursuing the Hard Master's killer. Having lost another family, Snake-Eyes returned to the States, holing up in solitude in a cabin in the High Sierras with no one to keep him company but a wolf, Timber, who sort of adopted him. His sullen retreat was eventually interrupted when his old Army buddy, Lonzo, showed up with one Colonel Abernathy, and tried to recruit him into a special force being assembled by the military. This force, the nascent G.I.Joe team, currently consisted of thirteen experts in various aspects of the United States military, and was designed to combat various terrorist threats, up to and including those who made use of nuclear weapons. As the team trained for its many duties, Snake-Eyes grew close to another team member, Scarlett, who was fascinated by his cool mystique and force of personality. On the team's first actual mission, an attempt to rescue one George Strawhacker from middle eastern terrorists, Snake-Eyes was terribly burned thanks to a helicopter crash en route, his face and vocal chords mangled virtually beyond repair. However, Snake-Eyes insisted that the mission continue as planned, even though Scarlett herself was down for the count (having received a concussion in the crash). Upon arriving, Snake-Eyes, Lonzo (under his new code-name, Stalker), Grunt, and Rock 'n Roll found out that the 'middle-eastern terrorists' were, in fact, agents of the terrorist group calling itself Cobra! Though this was a rather unpleasant surprise, the team didn't let this stop them (despite several gunshot wounds to the contrary), and managed to save Strawhacker from an untimely end. It turns out that Snake-Eyes insisted on continuing the mission because Strawhacker was his sister's former fiance. At any rate, having at least made some peace with his past thanks to this, Snake-Eyes stayed on with the Joe team despite his injuries. Of course, since he didn't want to show his mangled self to the general public, he took to wearing a black mask while on duty, and a rubber face mask otherwise. The next significant mission that Snake-Eyes took part in was the rescue of Dr. Burkhart from Cobra, an operation that began a conflict between G.I.Joe and Cobra that has lasted since 1982 until the present day. During this time, Snake-Eyes has seen action in countless missions against Cobra and various other, minor terrorist outfits, several of which have had a deep impact on his life. You see, after a few years, Snake-Eyes encountered the Cobra ninja calling himself Storm Shadow. It turns out that his name directly translates into Arashikage in Japanese, and investigating this, Snake-Eyes found out that Storm Shadow was, in fact, his sword-brother, Tommy! Tommy had apparently joined Cobra to discover the identity of the Hard Master's killer. Some time later, Snake-Eyes and Scarlett found themselves attacked by several of Cobra's Crimson Guardsmen, led by a man who turned out to be Wade Collins - one of his fellor L.R.R.P. men thought to be long dead! The man tried to kill Snake-Eyes and Scarlett, but failed miserably. Undaunted, of course, he came back to plague Snake-Eyes and Stalker several months later. You see, while visiting the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington D.C., the two Joes discovered that Wade's name wasn't on the list of the dead, at which point he showed up out of nowhere and pulled a gun on them. Explaining what'd happened to him, he gained the sympathy of the two Joes, who convinced him to leave Cobra and to finally live for himself - a generally happy ending. Several years later, with Snake-Eyes' help, Tommy discovered that the Hard Master's killer was Zartan, thanks to direct threats on Cobra Commander's life - though the Commander didn't bother to mention that it was him who hired the assassin to kill Snake-Eyes to begin with. The two ninjas then tried to kill the mercenary shape-shifter, though he escaped at the last minute to fight another day. Having failed to gain vengeance, Snake-Eyes and Storm Shadow then tried to escape from Cobra Island (where Zartan was hiding out), but Storm Shadow was gunned down in cold blood by the Baroness. Before he could die, Storm Shadow entered a special trance that allowed him to slow down his metabolic processes, in the hope that he could somehow be revived by Snake-Eyes at a later date. He was revived, of course, but not by Snake-Eyes. You see, the insane Doctor Mindbender used Storm Shadow's body as one of the ingredients in his genetic cocktail to create the perfect Cobra soldier - Serpentor! Being so used managed to revive Storm Shadow, though he'd lost touch with his general humanity, and had the memories of earth's greatest conquerors swimming around in his head. Needing help in sorting this out, Storm Shadow came to Snake-Eyes for help, and his friend gave him the keys to his (now wrecked) cabin in order to let him take the time he needed. Glad that the two were true friends again, Storm Shadow left for the time being, hoping to get his head back together eventually. While he did so, Snake-Eyes continued on with the Joe team. Eventually, Snake-Eyes tried to get his face rebuilt via plastic surgery. However, the Baroness found out that he was the man she'd blamed for her father's death long ago, and attacked the hospital he was in while he was being operated on. During the attack she shot Scarlett in the head and tried to make off with Snake-Eyes, but he escaped capture while Destro proved again that the man was innocent. Placated, the Baroness ended her assault, though the damage was done - Scarlett had been rendered comatose by her attack. Scared to lose yet another friend, Snake-Eyes couldn't leave her side, though Storm Shadow returned to get his mind off things, mostly by dragging him off to perform another mission in the eastern European nation of Borovia. His face was mangled yet again around this time. Returning from Borovia, Snake-Eyes found Scarlett to be okay, and was (needless to say) very happy about this turn of events. He and his love stayed on with the Joe team for several more years, until things simply started to wear the two down, and after a mission that got them mixed up with both Cobra forces and the evil Cybertronian known as Megatron, the two martial artists took a break. Returning to Snake-Eyes' cabin, he and Scarlett stayed there until Storm Shadow was captured and brainwashed by Cobra Commander and Doctor Mindbender. Sensing that his sword-brother was in trouble thanks to his psychic link with the man, Snake-Eyes then returned to action, without Scarlett, in order to rescue him. This turned out to be trickier than he thought. You see, in order to replenish his ranks, Cobra Commander had in fact brainwashed Billy (his own son), the Baroness, Destro, Storm Shadow, and Zartan to be on his side once again, thanks to Doctor Mindbender's Brainwave Scanner, and these folks (minus Zartan and Destro) managed to fight Snake-Eyes off - though he still beat the snot out of Cobra Commander for his troubles. Though the G.I.Joe team was decommissioned for a time shortly after this, the threat that Cobra represents worldwide eventually required that it be reformed yet again. When Hawk began to reassemble the Joes, Snake-Eyes was among the first to return to the fold, with Scarlett right behind him - even if the duo had come to an impasse in their relationship over the years. It is assumed that, to this very day, they continue the battle the forces of evil and tyranny! Timber
Snake-Eyes' sort of adopted 'pet', this wolf is pretty much savage to anybody but Snake-Eyes, Hawk, Scarlet, Stalker, Spirit, and Storm Shadow. Timber possesses +3 Teeth, which he uses to lethal effect if necessary, and can naturally make use of the Tracking talent, thanks to his enhanced sense of smell and hearing (compared to normal folks). Extra Goodies:
Return to the 1982 G.I. Joe main page! Other G.I. Joe directories featuring a version of Snake-Eyes:
* Note: 1997 saw two versions of Snake-Eyes (Versions 7 and 8), while 2002 saw five (count 'em) different versions (Versions 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14). |
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