Lee Falk's The Phantom

"I swear to devote my life to the destruction of piracy, greed, cruelty, and injustice, in all their forms! My sons and their sons shall follow me."

I know there have been a number of Phantom write-ups, which inspired me to go back to doing a few King Features characters and especially Lee Falk's immortal Phantom. In many ways, the Phantom is like Batman: A lone figure with various contacts relying on skill, abilities, determination, and superstition to fight all forms of injustice. Like Batman, the Phantom has been interpreted many ways, from serial to television to movie to various animated incarnations (including predating the 'Batman Beyond' with 'The Phantom:2040'). Unlike Batman, the Phantom isn't born out of reaction to crime, but out of a legacy to thwart crime (specifically piracy), stretching back to the 1500s.

Why the Phantom?
First, the Phantom is a very iconic character, both in look and in origins. The Phantom to me was always one of the more imposing characters that were ever born of the comic strips and pulp era: Realistically, the Phantom's costume shouldn't be terrifying, but it is. This was a lesson that the Sci-Fi channel should have realized when it tried to 'update' the Phantom recently, and why, despite the campy 1996 movie, it was more true to the character.

I think the Phantom always strikes me as Iconic, and a character that could seriously give most modern villains a run for their money. Not the 'Defenders of the Earth' Phantom, but the true Kit Walker Phantom that served as the 'main' version of the Phantom for generations.

So...the Ghost Who Walks.....

The Phantom

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kit Walker, the 21st Phantom, the Ghost who Walks, the Man that Cannot Die

F: Rm (30)
A: Rm (30)
S: Ex (20)
E: Rm (30)
R: Gd (10)
I: Rm (30)
P: Rm (30)

Health: 110
Karma: 60
Popularity: 50 (in Bangella), 20 (World-Wide, though believed to be a myth).
Resources: Am (50)

Talents:
Lee Falk openly said that Kit Walker was a master of many, many talents, and had no problems learning new ones. As such, the 21st Phantom has the following skills:
Martial Arts A, B, E
Wrestling
Guns
Marksman*
Dual Weapons
Detective/Espionage
Escape Artist
Sharp Weapons
Blunt Weapons
Thrown Weapons
Horsemanship
Animal Handling*
Multi-Lingual
Resist: Domination
Pilot
Combat Driving
Chemistry
Knowledge: Phantom Lore
Knowledge: Bengalla
Knowledge: Jungle Patrol Protocols and History
Knowledge: Africa
Knowledge: Sing Brotherhood History
Business/Finance
Acting
Medicine*

Powers:
The Ghost Who Walks:
The Phantom possesses no real powers, but has something working for him that must be considered: Reputation. While the current Phantom is the 21st Phantom to wear the mask, all but a few individuals are aware of this. The Phantom therefore has a powerful reputation as being undying, or worse yet, a ghost. The reputation of the Phantom is a closely guarded secret, and even to the reader of the comic strip, the Phantom's face when not wearing the mask is always partially obscured. While the reader is aware Kit Walker is just the latest in a line of Phantoms, the general population is not. As such, when first encountering the Phantom, villains must make a Psyche FEAT to avoid a fear-like effect at Gd (10) intensity.

- Network: For generations, the Phantom has maintained connections throughout the world, and as such, has a good reputation and contacts accordingly. The Phantom can draw on contacts no matter where he is (on Earth obviously) simply by making a Green Intuition FEAT.

- 'Incarnation' Awareness: The Phantom maintains a vast library of journals and information of all of his predecessors, and as such, can easily access previous information and files as necessary. As such, the Phantom can 'call' up information from his previous incarnations as the previous Phantoms left meticulous journals.

- The Good Mark Ring: Granted by the Phantom to those who are closest friends, the mark is close to the heart and is used to identify those who are under the Phantom's protection. Should someone with the Good Mark be in danger and word reaches the Phantom, the Phantom will stop at nothing to help them. The shape of the mark is like two crossed swords.

- The Bad Mark or 'Skull' Ring:Made from one of the nails from the Crucifixion, the Skull Ring leaves a skull-shaped mark on the enemies of the Phantom, which is used to identify those individuals who have fought the Phantom and proven themselves evil. As the quasi-mystical aspects of the ring have shown to work on all individuals, it is considered to be a mystical artifact which does Fe (2) damage and forces a Psyche FEAT (No Karma). The ring's mark is about the size of an American quarter, and is well-known to the allies of the Phantom.

- The Skull Cave: A veritable fortress in Bengalla, which each Phantom since the beginning has used as their headquarters/sanctum/home. The Fortress is well protected from assault, being deeply hidden within the jungle and considered to be supernatural in origin (It's not). The Phantom maintains his headquarters and immense treasury there.

-Devil: The Phantom has a wolf adopted early on, which serves faithfully. Devil is smarter than the average wolf (Although average for a wolf in most other ways) and is considered to have the following stats:
F: Ex (20) A: Gd (10) S: Gd (10) E: Gd (10) R: Pr (4) I: Rm (30) P: Typ (6)
Health: 50 Karma: 40
- Ex (20) Tracking ability
- Ex (20) Bite

- Hero: The Phantom uses a white horse named Hero for main transportation, and is considered smarter than the average horse. Hero's stats are as follows:
Horses
F: Typ (6) A: Gd (10) S: Rm (30) E: Rm (30) R: Pr (4) I: Gd (10) P: Gd (10)
Health: 76 Karma: 24
- Can move 4 areas a round.
- Responds to the Phantom's verbal commands without question.

Contacts:
The Phantom has a multitude of contacts throughout the world, but some of them include:
Diana Palmer (wife)
Jungle Patrol (Where he holds the rank of commander)
various other law-enforcement agencies

Limitations:
Secret ID: The Phantom's identity is not known to the general public (in fact, only known to a handful of people). In addition, the Phantom maintains the illusion that he is the original Phantom as well.

Code vs. Killing: The Phantom never goes out to kill, seeking to disable enemies. While the Phantom carries two .45 pistols, he always shoots to disarm and never to kill.

Sworn to serve law and order: The Phantom is a staunch ally of justice, and always believes in handing his enemies over to the authorities. The Phantom believes in the justice system.

Sworn Enemies: The Singh Brotherhood Since the beginning, the Phantom is the sworn enemy of the Singh Brotherhood.


Note: The Phantom's wealth is immeasurable, and I placed it at Am (50) mainly for the convenience. In addition, I modeled this Phantom more on the Lee Falk era of the comic strip rather than the later versions or even the more recent takes on the character. To me, it is the 'classic' Phantom.