The original home of the G.I. Joe team, this facility is an underground base five stories deep, one that is secreted within the Fort Wadsworth Chaplains Assistant school on Staten Island. The facility itself is top secret in nature - nobody but the most highly placed members of the government even knowing it exists, much less where it is. Though this was almost not the case, save for Hawk's craftiness.

You see, Cobra had determined the Pit's location, and knowing they'd come, Hawk set up one of the team's pre-fab bases to serve as a convenient 'headquarters' to destroy. This conflict preserved the Pit's true nature for several more years, but nonetheless caused severe damage to the facility. When repaired, it was better than new, and now is equipped with the following rooms and features:

Armory: down on level four, the Pit has a very large assortment of personal arms for the Joe team to use while fighting evil. This armory stores all of the Joes varied gear, from flame throwers to laser rifles to rocket launchers. Furthermore, it's got a bevy of spare ordinance and firearms, should new Joes be assigned to the team without signature gear, or combat occur within the facility.

Backup Power: in addition to the main generator hard-wired into the Pit's foundations on level 5, the Joes have installed a backup generator with which to keep their systems up and running in the event of a catastrophic failure of the main power plant. This backup generator has the same staying power of the primary (about six months, assuming the generator fuel tanks are full).

Boring Device: the original Pit had two escape tunnels, one which led to the water tower outside, and a secondary tunnel that exited in an undisclosed location. However, as a more efficient back-up escape plan, in the event of a total collapse in the Pit (which ultimately happened), a boring device (with intensity 2 digging) is kept on the bottom level, just in case...

Briefing Rooms: on level two of the Pit, one can find three different meeting rooms, each with a different purpose. The first is the situation analysis room, where current hot spots are tracked by Joe intelligence ops, the second is a holographic imaging chamber, with which the Joes can truly plan for enemy fortifications and the like, and the last is a generic meeting room, used when the others aren't necessary.

Concealed: the Pit itself is underground, being essentially an inverted, five story building. On the surface, the Pit interfaces with Fort Wadsworth by posing as its motor pool, which consists of a garage and a fully functional repair / service bay; the ruse must be believable, after all, and besides, the Joes have to maintain their vehicles somewhere.

Communications: on the second level of the Pit, between the secondary staging area and the holographic imaging room, is the Joe team's primary communications facility. Usually staffed by Breaker while he's on duty (and not already on another mission), this room has equipment that allows the Joes to keep tabs on their operatives in the field, wherever in the world they happen to be.

Computer: all of the systems in the Pit are controlled by a central computer bank that is located on the fifth level, where it can safely weather almost any calamity save for a complete rout of the Joe team. This computer has links to the Pentagon's computer network (via a secure land line wired into the second level) as well as most other, secured law enforcement agency databases.

Escape Paths: in the event that Cobra, or some other nefarious organization should determine the true location of the Pit and assault it, or if some other calamity should strike the base, the Pit is fully equipped with several escape paths. Every level has access to a tunnel that leads to the water tower behind the motor pool, though there is also a secondary escape path that leads from level 5.

Garage: the first level of the Pit primarily consists of a large vehicle storage bay, one that can accommodate a large array of vehicles and towed implements of destruction. One could probably fit over a dozen M.O.B.A.T. tanks within this space, assuming the Joe team felt the need to have ten of them built at any one time. The garage also has two large hydraulic lifts for moving gear up to the surface and back.

Gym: half of the Pit's motor pool level is composed of a large training area meant to keep the Joes on their toes. It is fully equipped with sparring mats, target practice bays, combat dummies, and even a full-length pool, for swimming laps! Of course, when training Joes for special missions, the gym can be fitted with all kinds of unique training mechanisms with which to prepare them for field conditions.

Hangar: though the Joes house their more heavy duty aircraft (Skystrikers, X-30 Conquests, etc...) at McGuire A.F.B., they do keep a few Dragonfly helicopter gunships and other V.T.O.L. vehicles within the Pit for easy deployment. These are kept in an expanded portion of the vehicle bay on the Pit's first level, and have access to the surface thanks to their very own hydraulic lift and motor pool 'expansion' building.

ICBM Silo: in addition to all their other defenses and sneakiness, the Joes added a missile silo to their headquarters; the citizenry of New York City would probably have kittens if that ever got public. This silo can fire a missile with global range, one that can fly with intensity 13 speeds, and may be armed with anything from conventional explosives, to A.B.C. warheads if required to do so.

Infirmary: situated on the third level of the second Pit, the Joes have decided to add an infirmary within their headquarters, as the membership of their unit has grown considerably; the infirmary is usually staffed by Doc, and later Lifeline, while they're on duty - or whenever they're needed. This facility is fully equipped with operating bays, essential medical supplies, and everything needed to patch Joes up after a mission.

Kitchen: with the rampant growth of the G.I. Joe team, a growth that coincided with the explosion of Cobra activity throughout the eighties, it became necessary for the Joes to have their own source of food, instead of just sharing space with the chaplains above them. The team has months worth of canned goods, meat, and frozen foods available, the equipment to prepare such food and a mess hall to serve it in.

Lab: usually manned by Flash whenever he's de-engineering some Cobra device or testing out a new Joe one, this electronics laboratory is fully stocked with all kinds of electronic testing gear, reams of spare components, and a bevy of experimental, yet classified devices that you're not cleared to know about. Flash, along with other Joe techies, uses the lab to great effect.

Living Quarters: the Pit has a very large space for living quarters on level four, basically consisting of all of that floor which isn't already taken up by the armory. There are enough bunks to man about a hundred Joes on this level, though there are also eight special 'suites' for commanding officers, visiting dignitaries (assuming they have the proper security clearance), and the like.

Power Plant: this massive generator, built into the foundation of the Pit on level 5, is powered by standard fuels, and capable of running for six months in a pinch, should external power to the Pit be cut off. Should this occur, the generator will switch on immediately, causing a minimal loss of electricity and ensuring that the Joes don't find themselves caught without computer support in an emergency.

Radiation Shielding: built during the height of the Cold War, the Pit was designed with nuclear war in mind. The facility was constructed such that, should the surface of the Pit take a direct hit with a nuclear warhead, the bottom two levels could survive the hit - and even the resultant radiation! While the rest of the Pit would be vaporized, the rest could continue to function for months, thanks to this intensity 25 power.

Sealed: the Pit is equipped with completely internal utilities, such as power generators, atmospheric recycling apparatii, and food and water stores capable of keeping the Pit fully functional for six months, its bottom two levels doing so completely sealed off from the outside world. Furthermore, every level (and every room within) can be sealed off by the Pit's main computer, if necessary.

Staging Areas: the Pit has two large staging areas, spaces designed for Joes to muster their forces for a mission. The primary staging area of the Pit is on level three, adjacent to the gym, whereby Joes can move their gear straight from the training stage of a mission to the preparation stage. The secondary staging area is on level two, where further gear and heavy ordinance can be stored in a pinch.