TEXT: Steven S. Long
  THE
  
  Author: Steven S. Long
  Editing & Development:  Steven S. Long
  Layout & Graphic Design:  Steven S. Long 
  (well, OK, using tools and templates devel-
  oped by Andy Mathews, and with some sug-
  gestions by Andy Mathews...)
  Illustrations:  Steven S. Long using Campaign 
  Cartographer 2 Pro from ProFantasy Soft ware 
  (try it! It’s great!)
  Everything Else:  Stev... you get the picture
  Hero SystemTM ® is DOJ, Inc.’s trademark for its roleplaying system.
  Hero System © 1984, 1989, 2002 by DOJ, Inc. d/b/a Hero Games. All rights 
  reserved.
  Champions © 1984, 1989, 2002 by DOJ, Inc. d/b/a Hero Games. All rights reserved.
  Fantasy Hero © 2003 by DOJ, Inc. d/b/a Hero Games. All rights reserved.
  Dark Champions © 2004 by DOJ, Inc. d/b/a Hero Games. All rights reserved.
  Pulp Hero and The Radio Marauders © 2005 by DOJ, Inc. d/b/a Hero Games. All 
  rights reserved.
  Star Hero, Justice Inc., Danger International, Danger International, Western 
  Hero © 2002 by DOJ, Inc. d/b/a Hero Games. All rights reserved.
  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, 
  electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or computerization, or 
  by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from 
  the Publisher:  DOJ, Inc., 1 Haight Street, Suite A, San Francisco, California 94102.
  Printed in the U.S.A. First printing September 2005
  Produced and distributed by DOJ, Inc. d/b/a Hero Games.
  Stock Number:  DOJHERO-HPA05
  http://www.herogames.com
  A Hero Plus Adventure for
  TABLE OF
  CONTENTS
  Adventure Summary 
  3
  Part One:  Investigating
       The Marauders  
  3
  Part Two:  Battle With The
      Marauders! 
   
  5
  Part Three:  The Veteran’s
       Square Bomb 
   
  7
  Part Four:  The Madman’s
       Laboratory 
   
  8
  Conclusion 
   
  8
  Radio Marauder 
   
  9
  10¢
  30 x
  THE
  
  YOUR SECRET LEAGUE OF HEROES
  ENCODED MESSAGE!
  Attention Secret League Of Heroes 
  members! Here’s your secret message for 
  this Hero Plus Adventure. Use your secret 
  decoder ring to read it!
  24-1-8-8-14-18-17-24-15-, 15-8-20-1-8-14 2-8-3-
  24-11-8-1! 3-15 3 13-8-17-8-12-18-14 7-12 2-8-3-
  24-11-8 9-8-9-13-8-1-15-5-18-16-, 25-7-11-’1-8 
  3-13-7-11-14 14-7 2-8-3-1-17 3 15-8-20-1-8-14 
  20-7-17-20-8-1-17-18-17-24 14-5-18-15 15-20-8-
  17-3-1-18-7.
  18-17 20-3-9-16-3-18-24-17-15 14-5-3-14 12-8-3-
  14-11-1-8 3 5-18-24-5-8-1 14-5-3-17 17-7-1-9-3-2 
  2-8-26-8-2 7-12 2-8-18-1-4 15-20-18-8-17-20-8-, 
  14-5-8 24-9 9-18-24-5-14 2-3-17-14 14-7 9-3-6-8 
  14-5-8 1-3-4-18-7 9-3-1-3-11-4-8-1-15 3 2-18-
  14-14-2-8-, 2-8-2-2-, 2-8-18-1-4-8-1. 7-17 14-5-8 
  15-20-3-2-8 7-12 2-8-18-1-4-17-8-15-15-, 15-16-
  8-20-18-3-2 1-3-4-18-7-15 9-18-24-5-14 17-7-14 
  18-9-16-1-8-15-15 14-5-8 16-2-3-25-8-1-15 9-11-
  20-5. 18-17 14-5-3-14 20-3-15-8-, 6-18-14 7-11-14 
  14-5-8 1-3-4-18-7 9-3-1-3-11-4-8-1-15 2-18-14-5 
  14-5-8-15-8 15-16-8-20-18-3-2 1-3-4-18-7 16-18-
  15-14-7-2-15-, 2-5-18-20-5 12-18-1-8 13-8-3-9-15 
  7-12 20-7-17-20-8-17-14-1-3-14-8-4 1-3-4-18-7 2-
  3-26-8-15 16-7-2-8-1-12-11-2 8-17-7-11-24-5 14-7 
  6-17-7-20-6 16-8-7-16-2-8 7-11-14!
  8-17-8-1-24-25 13-2-3-15-14 104-6 (U* 3-20-14-
  18-26-8 16-7-18-17-14-15); 7-3-12 (-E), 13-8-3-9 
  (-E/Q), 15-14-11-17 7-17-2-25 (-*), 12 20-5-3-1-24-
  8-15 (-E/Q). 14-7-14-3-2 20-7-15-14-:  P 6-7-18-17-
  14-15.
  
  4  The Radio Marauders
  Hero System 5th Edition
  A 
  wave of science-crime strikes the city 
  as armed robbers hit banks and jewelry 
  stores, using special radio devices to 
  stay one step ahead of the police! It’s 
  up to the PCs to track these well-equipped thieves 
  down and put a stop to their robberies... but when 
  they ﬁ nd out that there’s more to this crime spree 
  than mere robbery, will they be able to stop the 
  scheme in time?
  Th e Radio Marauders is a Pulp Hero adventure 
  designed for characters built on a total of 150 Char-
  acter Points or less. Th e optimal number of PCs is 
  four to six, but you can scale it up or down based 
  on the number of opponents you pit against the 
  heroes in various encounters.
  ADVENTURE
  SUMMARY
  Th e heroes are called in to help with the 
  investigation when a series of bank robberies takes 
  place in the city. Th e robbers wear special devices 
  that not only allow them to talk with each other 
  via radio, they black out radio and telephone com-
  munications for roughly a mile around the scene of 
  the crime, making it impossible for police cars and 
  oﬃ  cers to maintain contact or for alarms to work. 
  As a result, no one’s even come close to catching 
  the men the newspapers have dubbed “the Radio 
  Marauders.”
  Aft er following some initial avenues of inves-
  tigation, the PCs come to grips with the Radio 
  Marauders at another bank robbery. Aft er defeating 
  them, the heroes have more clues to work with as 
  they try to determine who’s behind the crimewave 
  — including copies of the radio devices.
  Th e situation takes a turn for the worse when 
  the man behind the Radio Marauders lands a group 
  of “Bolshevik agitators” with a “bomb” in Veteran’s 
  Square, a crowded area. While the heroes and the 
  cops work to defuse the bomb and save thousands 
  of lives, the Radio Marauders hit two banks in 
  other parts of town.
  Th e latest robberies give the PCs the ﬁ nal 
  clues they need to track down the man behind this 
  scheme, mad scientist Jennings Petrie. Th e real goal 
  of the robberies was to obtain scientiﬁ c prototypes 
  and plans kept in a safe deposit box... and now that 
  he has those plans, Petrie’s going to build a weapon 
  with which to threaten the entire city! Th e heroes 
  have to ﬁ nd him and stop him before he unleashes 
  this terrifying new device.
  PART ONE:
  INVESTIGATING THE 
  MARAUDERS
  Th e adventure begins when the PCs are drawn 
  into an investigation of a strange series of robber-
  ies. Over the past several weeks, a group of gang-
  sters has robbed several banks, stealing not only all 
  the money they could get their hands on, but riﬂ ing 
  through safe deposit boxes. What sets them apart 
  from other gangs of bank robbers is that they’re 
  equipped with special radio devices. Th e device 
  consists of (a) a helmet with two “arms” that hold 
  a telephone-like speaker in front of the wearer’s 
  mouth (so he can talk without having to use his 
  hands to hold the speaker) and (a) a backpack-like 
  unit with two radio antennae (one on each shoul-
  der). Th e device not only lets the robbers com-
  municate with each other when they’re in diﬀ erent 
  rooms or buildings, it contains a radio jamming 
  device that makes all other radio and telephone 
  devices within about a mile stop working. Th is tips 
  people oﬀ  that a robbery’s in progress, prevents 
  the police from using their car and dispatch radios 
  when responding to the crime, and stops bank 
  alarms from functioning. In the resulting confu-
  sion, the highly-skilled and well-trained robbers 
  have little trouble getting away scot-free.
  Th e press calls the gang the Radio Maraud-
  ers. So far they’ve gotten away with over $300,000 
  in loot, leaving many people destitute and several 
  banks ruined. Th e police have no leads, though 
  they’re keeping a closer than normal eye on the 
  other banks in the city.
  GETTING THE HEROES INVOLVED
  How you get the heroes involved depends on 
  the types of PCs you have and the type of cam-
  paign you’re running. If at least one PC is a masked 
  crimeﬁ ghter, then the heroes have plenty of incen-
  tive to stop whoever’s behind the Radio Marauder 
  crimes. Th e same consideration generally applies 
  if you’ve got a PC who’s a cop, a detective, or a 
  reporter. For example, maybe a victim who had a 
  treasured keepsake stolen from his safe deposit box 
  hires a private eye to get it back, and a city editor 
  could easily assign a PC newshound to get the big 
  scoop about the Marauders.
  If none of those easy hooks are available, 
  you can fall back on the PCs’ circle of friends and 
  contacts. A group of adventurers usually builds 
  up a large group of acquaintances and allies, and 
  THE RADIO
  MARAUDERS
  HERO PLUS 
  ADVENTURES
  Th e Radio Marauders 
  is one of Hero Games’s 
  Hero Plus Adventures, a 
  series of short, no-frills, 
  inexpensive adventures 
  in PDF format. Hero 
  Plus Adventures are 
  designed to provide 
  roughly one game 
  session’s worth of enter-
  tainment, though they 
  include suggestions 
  on how to lengthen or 
  expand the scenario 
  if you want to. Th ey’re 
  written with simplicity 
  and ease of use in mind 
  so you can run them 
  with a minimum of 
  preparation.
  PRINTING
  Th e general statement 
  on the credits page not-
  withstanding, DOJ, Inc. 
  grants each purchaser 
  of Th e Radio Marauders 
  permission to make one 
  (1) printed copy of this 
  adventure.
  
  5 
  Hero Plus Adventure #5
  that might include the Police Commissioner, an 
  interested private citizen, the owner or director of 
  one of the victimized banks, a friend or inﬂ uential 
  citizen who had his safe deposit box rummaged 
  through, or the like. Th is person appeals to the PCs 
  to use their well-honed skills, instincts, and heroic 
  luck to succeed where the police have, so far, failed.
  AVENUES OF INVESTIGATION
  Once the heroes have taken an interest in the 
  case, it’s time for them to start investigating. It’s 
  impossible to predict every conceivable tactic they 
  might take, but here are some common avenues of 
  investigation and how they tend to play out:
  Talking To Th e Cops
  If the PCs are on good terms with the police, 
  or if they’re working at the behest of a high police 
  oﬃ  cial who can give them access, they can talk 
  to the cops who’ve investigated the robberies and 
  examine their ﬁ les.
  Each of the robberies tends to ﬁ t roughly the 
  same pattern. First, the Radio Marauders suddenly 
  show up in the bank. According to witnesses at some 
  of the robberies, they arrive in a big black limo or 
  a black panel truck. Th ere are usually at least half a 
  dozen of them; the smallest number ever seen was 
  ﬁ ve, the largest ten. While using their radio devices 
  to black out communications and keep in touch, 
  they hold everyone in the bank at gunpoint (typi-
  cally with Th ompson submachine guns and a variety 
  of pistols) and methodically ransack the place. Th ey 
  take everything they can out of the till and force the 
  bank manager to open the vault. If enough of them 
  are present (usually at least seven), they also rob safe 
  deposit boxes. Th ey don’t look through the boxes in 
  any order; they just crowbar them open at random to 
  see what they can ﬁ nd. Sometimes they get lucky and 
  make oﬀ  with someone’s best jewelry; sometimes all 
  they ﬁ nd are marriage licenses and birth certiﬁ cates.
  Th e police know a Radio Marauders robbery 
  is in progress when radios and telephones in the 
  vicinity stop working... but since they lose the abil-
  ity to communicate with each other and headquar-
  ters, they can’t respond eﬀ ectively. Th e best they can 
  do is go to the nearest bank and see if the Radio 
  Marauders are there. Only once did two cops ﬁ nd 
  the robbers... who promptly shot them and their 
  squad car full of holes.
  At this point, the cops have no real clues, just 
  eyewitness descriptions of the Radio Maraud-
  ers and their gear (though the helmets eﬀ ectively 
  hide most of the robbers’ faces). Even if the police 
  department oﬃ  cially doesn’t want the heroes 
  involved, many individual cops welcome their par-
  ticipation, because the investigation is stalled.
  Streetwise
  Some characters may want to use Streetwise to 
  try to track down the Radio Marauders. Unfortu-
  nately, this isn’t likely to work — under Dr. Petrie’s 
  clever (if maniacal) leadership, the robbers remain 
  a tight-knit bunch who’ve stopped mingling with 
  the underworld and haven’t been spending their 
  loot around town. However, if a hero makes his 
  Streetwise roll by 6 or more, he hears about a gang-
  ster named “Sheets” Malone who told some of his 
  pals that he was “in big with the Radio Gang.”
  Th e heroes have to make another Streetwise 
  roll at -3 to ﬁ nd Sheets Malone; reduce this to 
  -2 if they have police cooperation. Malone has a 
  PER Roll 13- and Resistance (5 points), so taking 
  him unawares, following him back to the Radio 
  Marauders’ lair, or convincing him to talk isn’t 
  likely to work... but it may not hurt to try.
  If successfully followed, Malone eventually 
  leads the PCs to the Radio Marauders’ hideout in an 
  abandoned factory. Since this would bring the sce-
  nario to a (potentially) premature end, try not to let 
  it happen — give Malone plenty of PER Rolls to spot 
  a tail, have him lose the PCs whether he knows about 
  them or not, or arranging the timing of ﬁ nding him 
  so that he can’t derail the rest of the adventure.
  Tracking Th e Radio Devices
  If the PC team includes a gadgeteer or scien-
  tist, the heroes may try to ﬁ nd the Radio Maraud-
  ers by tracking their radio devices with the help of 
  Weird Science. Th is tactic, too, is highly unlikely 
  to work. As you can see below, the devices’ Radio 
  Perception/Transmission has Concealed (-6 to 
  PER Rolls for others to perceive or track). Even if 
  the PCs somehow succeed in locking onto a signal, 
  they may not be able to hold it long enough for it 
  to do them any good — aft er all, once they’re a safe 
  distance from the scene of a robbery, the Radio 
  Marauders turn their devices oﬀ .
  Staking Out Banks
  As dull as it may be, the best way to come to 
  grips with the Radio Marauders is to stake out a 
  likely bank or two. If the PCs have a gadgeteer or 
  scientist among their number (or as a Contact or 
  Follower), he could build radio devices that let 
  them communicate through the Marauders’ black-
  out so they can cover more banks (but let them 
  think to ask if they can do that, don’t suggest it to 
  them). Th is tactic leads nicely into Part Two.
  PART TWO:
  BATTLE WITH
  THE MARAUDERS!
  Unless something unusual happens during the 
  initial period of investigation, it’s unlikely the PCs 
  will get any solid leads on the Radio Marauders. 
  Th at means it’s time for you to inject a little action 
  into the adventure and set up a battle between 
  them!
  If the PCs have staked out banks, you can 
  move on to this part of the adventure whenever 
  you like just by having the Radio Marauders arrive 
  on the scene. Otherwise, you need to have a rob-
  bery take place when the PCs are nearby so they 
  can respond, or have someone somehow get word 
  to them that a robbery’s occurring. Th e easiest way 
  to do that is to have the phone go dead while a PC’s 
  in the middle of a conversation — if that doesn’t 
  make him rush to the nearest bank looking for the 
  robbers, he needs to turn in his hero badge!
  
  THE ROBBERY
  For the bank, use the map on page 24 of Vil-
  lainy Amok (with appropriate changes, such as 
  removing the ATMs) or quickly sketch out one of 
  your own.
  For the Radio Marauders, use the character 
  sheet at the end of this adventure. Th ere should be 
  at least one of them per PC, if not more. Th ey arrive 
  in whatever vehicle seems most appropriate to you, 
  and one to two of them stay in the car as getaway 
  driver(s).
  Th e Radio Marauders’ goal for this robbery is 
  (a) grab as much money as possible, and (b) check 
  the bank records and safe deposit boxes to see if 
  they can ﬁ nd what they’re really looking for (see 
  page 7 for the secret behind the crime spree). It’s 
  not at this bank, but they’ll still try to rob a few safe 
  deposit boxes to cover their trail.
  You want to give the heroes a real challenge 
  here. Th e Radio Marauders aren’t petty crooks or 
  cheap thugs, they’re well-trained, well-equipped 
  criminals more than capable of holding their own 
  in a ﬁ ght. Unless the heroes ﬁ ght really well or get 
  really lucky, at least some of the Marauders should 
  escape somehow. If necessary, give each of the 
  Radio Marauders 1-2d6 of Heroic Action Points to 
  emphasize how tough they are.
  During the battle, if possible and appropriate 
  give at least one PC the chance to make a PER Roll 
  to see the Radio Marauders looking through the 
  bank records. If you can’t do that, have the Radio 
  Marauders leave the records tossed around the 
  bank manager’s oﬃ  ce in such a way that it’s obvious 
  they were looking at them.
  AFTERMATH:  WHAT THE HEROES
  CAN LEARN
  If the Radio Marauders defeat the heroes, 
  they’ll leave them behind and make their escape; 
  they have no interest in taking prisoners, admin-
  istering coups de grace to unconscious heroes, or 
  anything like that.
  If the heroes defeat the Radio Marauders, and 
  in some cases even if they don’t, they have more 
  clues and information to work with:
  Captives
  Hopefully at least some of the Radio Maraud-
  ers got away, but there’s a good chance the heroes 
  will have survivors to interrogate (or perhaps 
  bodies to autopsy). Th anks to treatments admin-
  istered by Dr. Petrie, every Radio Marauder has 
  Resistance (5 points), so getting anything out of 
  them via Interrogation is likely to prove tough. And 
  if they take the captives to the police station, they’ll 
  ﬁ nd the Marauders’ lawyer already waiting for them 
  there; he’ll ensure that all questioning ceases (the 
  Miranda rule may not be the law of the land in the 
  Th irties, but the cops [and characters who work for 
  or with them] can’t just ignore an attorney who’s 
  present).
  If the heroes succeed with Interrogation 
  despite the diﬃ  culties, you should tailor the infor-
  mation they receive to keep the scenario moving 
  along, but not derail it. Th e captives will not tell the 
  heroes the location of the gang’s hideout, but they 
  might reveal the following facts:
  —they work for an older guy they call “Doc”; they 
  don’t know his real name. He’s some sort of scien-
  tist. He pays real good, in cash! Th ey can describe 
  him if asked to (characters who’ve encountered Dr. 
  Jennings Petrie before will recognize him from the 
  description if they succeed with an INT Roll).
  —they’re looking for something in the banks other 
  than just money. None of the captives know just 
  what (unless the heroes captured all of them at the 
  scene), but they know the money’s not the real goal.
  —the Doc is “workin’ on a real big plan,” but they 
  don’t know what it’s all about. Th ey think (hope) it’s 
  some sort of scheme to rob all the banks in the city 
  simultaneously, netting the gang millions of dollars.
  Radio Devices
  If the heroes have captives, they’ve also got 
  their radio devices to examine. Th e devices are 
  Personal Foci, so the heroes can’t use them... but 
  they can study them. With a sample in hand, a gad-
  geteer or scientist character might be able to ﬁ nd a 
  way to trace the broadcasts or “jam” the radio and 
  telephone blackout eﬀ ect. To keep this from ending 
  the adventure in a swift  and anticlimactic fashion, 
  you should arrange the timing so the characters 
  have to spend many long hours on this project, only 
  succeeding when you’re ready for them to track 
  the Radio Marauders back to their lair. (In fact, 
  it would make a great ending for Part Two if the 
  characters ﬁ nally have a tracking device ready to go 
  right aft er the scene at Veteran’s Square.)
  Bank Records
  Whether they see the Radio Marauders exam-
  ining bank records, or discover aft erward that they 
  were doing so, the PCs should learn that the rob-
  bers were doing something other than taking cash 
  and valuables from the bank. Th e obvious (and 
  correct) conclusion is that they want to steal some-
  thing from a speciﬁ c depositor. Th ey’re hitting one 
  bank aft er another until they ﬁ nd the one that’s got 
  what they’re looking for. Whatever it is, they must 
  be closing in on it, since there are only so many 
  banks in town....
  If the PCs are particularly clever, they may 
  decide Petrie’s looking for something scientiﬁ c, 
  prompting them to start talking to famous scien-
  tists around town to see if any of them are hiding 
  something of particular value in a safe deposit box. 
  If you want to reward them for their cleverness, 
  this can lead them to an encounter with the Radio 
  Marauders robbing banks in Part Th ree. If not, 
  this is a dead end; those scientist whom they know 
  about and who will talk to them either won’t say 
  anything, or reveal no information of any use.
  6   The Radio Marauders
  Hero System 5th Edition
  
  PART THREE:
  THE VETERAN’S
  SQUARE BOMB
  With the information gleaned from the earlier 
  robberies and other sources, Dr. Petrie is pretty cer-
  tain he knows where his objective — plans and pro-
  totype parts for a deadly “sound weapon” developed 
  by an eccentric researcher named Moultrie Dobbs 
  — is hidden. It’s at one of two banks. But since the 
  heroes have involved themselves in his aﬀ airs, he’s 
  got to ﬁ nd a way to distract them so neither they 
  nor the cops can interfere with either of these cru-
  cial robberies.
  One distraction, coming up....
  ALL HAIL THE GLORIOUS PEOPLE’S
  REVOLUTION!
  In the middle of their investigations, the PCs 
  receive a frantic call for help from the police (or 
  their contacts, or they hear about this on the radio 
  — it doesn’t matter, as long as they get there in time 
  for a big action scene). A Communist revolution is 
  breaking out down at Veteran’s Square!
  Veteran’s Square is basically just the intersec-
  tion of two streets downtown. Th e city widened it 
  slightly and erected a statue in the center to honor 
  veterans of the Great War, then renamed the site 
  “Veteran’s Square.” Doctor Petrie has chosen this as 
  the site of his distraction.
  Th e PCs arrive at the Square to discover a 
  strange site. An object roughly the size and shape 
  of a Jenny airplane has crashed in the middle of 
  the Square, right next to the statue. Unlike a Jenny, 
  the “plane” mainly seems to be made of metal; its 
  nose is buried in the ground, leaving the rest of 
  the thing sticking up at an angle. Nearby, using the 
  plane and statue as “cover,” are three (or more, if 
  you prefer) men. Th ey’re wearing uniforms vaguely 
  reminiscent of those of the Red Army of the Soviet 
  Union, carrying Th ompson submachine guns, and 
  shouting Bolshevik slogans. A curious crowd has 
  gathered, though the police are keeping them back 
  as best they can.
  According to witnesses, a few minutes ago the 
  daytime crowd at the Square heard a strange sort 
  of “buzzing” noise coming from the air... followed 
  by silence. Th en the strange “plane” crashed, right 
  here! Th en the men with guns got out of it (appar-
  ently none the worse for wear despite the impact). 
  Th ey declared themselves the “vanguard” of the 
  American Bolshevik Army, a group “destined to 
  bring the great Workers’ Revolution to the shores 
  of America!”. Even worse, they said that the “plane” 
  was actually a sort of bomb! If anyone gets too 
  close, or the police try to stop them, they’ll trigger 
  the bomb, turning the Square and much of the sur-
  rounding blocks to rubble. “Such will be the fate of 
  all capitalist oppressors of the people!”
  As the heroes hopefully realize sooner or later, 
  this is all a big lie. Th e “Bolsheviks” are members of 
  the Radio Marauders whom Dr. Petrie has brain-
  washed into thinking of themselves as Communist 
  revolutionaries. (Instead of getting their Resistance 
  treatment one day, they got their minds scrambled.) 
  Th ere’s a “bomb” in the aircraft , but it doesn’t con-
  tain any explosives. A hero who spends 1 Turn 
  examining it close up and succeeds with a Demoli-
  tions roll at -1 realizes it’s no threat at all.
  Th e PCs have to ﬁ nd a way to defuse this situ-
  ation (ha, ha) and prevent the “Bolsheviks” from 
  hurting anyone. Th ey can’t just kill them, lest they 
  detonate the “bomb”; they have to be more clever 
  than that. In the end the Bolsheviks will prob-
  ably be killed (aft er all, they might open up on the 
  crowd with their machine guns), but shooting them 
  right oﬀ  the bat isn’t the way to go. Play the situa-
  tion for tension, excitement, and thrills.
  For Veteran’s Square, use the “Rosie’s Bar” 
  street map from Th e HERO System Resource Kit 
  and draw in the statue and plane/bomb, or simply 
  sketch out a city street intersection on your own.
  If Knocked Out, the “Bolsheviks” come to not 
  remembering the brainwashing or knowing where 
  they are or what they’ve done. Th e same thing hap-
  pens aft er they next go to sleep. But as long as they 
  remain conscious, the brainwashing holds.
  If the heroes think fast and realize it’s all a 
  distraction, you have two options. First, you can 
  have the “Bolsheviks” starting ﬁ ring into the crowd 
  to keep the PCs focused on the action at Veteran’s 
  Square. Second, they can just make it to one of the 
  banks being robbed in time to try to stop the ﬂ ee-
  ing Radio Marauders in an exciting car chase... if 
  they roll a 6 on 1d6 (or if any of them succeeds 
  with a Luck roll) to pick the right bank by sheer 
  heroic fortune. (Any of them may spend Heroic 
  Action Points, at 1 per +1 on the roll, to ensure suc-
  cess.)
  MEANWHILE, ON THE OTHER SIDE
  OF TOWN...
  ...the Radio Marauders are robbing two banks 
  and ﬁ nding the Moultrie Dodds plans and parts 
  in one of them. Heroes at Veteran’s Square won’t 
  have time to reach them (even if they ﬁ nd out the 
  robberies are taking place), but if the heroes have 
  deduced what’s going on and not taken the Bol-
  shevik bait, they might have a chance to ﬁ ght the 
  Radio Marauders now. If so, let them win the ﬁ ght... 
  but the parts and plans were at the other bank, so 
  the Radio Marauders have them! If necessary, have 
  witnesses at one of the banks describe how the 
  Radio Marauders were excited about ﬁ nding the 
  plans and parts, or took special care in handling 
  them, to emphasize what happened.
  7 
  Hero Plus Adventure #5
  
  PART FOUR:
  THE MADMAN’S
  LABORATORY
  From this point, the adventure rapidly moves 
  to its conclusion. Th e heroes have to track Dr. 
  Petrie and his Radio Marauders to their hideout 
  and defeat them once and for all... or else the city 
  will pay the price!
  FINDING THE HIDEOUT
  Th e PCs might ﬁ nd the Radio Marauders’ 
  hideout in any of several ways, such as:
  —a gadgeteer or scientist PC (or NPC, if necessary) 
  might ﬁ nally have ﬁ nished building a device that 
  can follow their radio transmissions
  —they might get to the last two robberies just soon 
  enough to use Shadowing to follow the Marauders 
  back to the factory
  —a tip obtained from Streetwise might lead them 
  there
  —they might ﬁ nd muddy bootprints or the like at 
  the last robbery scene; the mud is only found in the 
  part of town where the factory’s located
  —psychic powers might give a PC (or friendly 
  NPC) a vision of where to ﬁ nd the robbers
  —a captive Radio Marauder might ﬁ nally crack 
  under interrogation and tell what he knows
  —something found in the “Bolshevik bomb” air-
  plane, or on the faux Bolsheviks, might tip the PCs 
  oﬀ  to the factory’s location.
  THE HIDEOUT
  Th e hideout is an abandoned factory on the 
  edge of town (if appropriate, make it an old radio 
  factory that went out of business due to the Depres-
  sion). Use the map on page 69 of Villainy Amok (if 
  you have that book) or one of the warehouse maps 
  from Th e HERO System Resource Kit for the factory.
  Th e interior of the factory is mostly intact, but 
  has been partly gutted to make way for Dr. Petrie’s 
  scientiﬁ c equipment and experiments. Th at section 
  of the building is full of mad scientist gadgetry and 
  consoles, including a large, sparking Jacob’s ladder. 
  In the center of Dr. Petrie’s lab area is a monolith-
  like object that looks something like a Gernsback-
  ian radio antenna (i.e., it has ﬁ ns and circular vanes 
  on it, that sort of thing). Draw all these objects in 
  on the map, or represent them with spare dice and 
  the like.
  Th e monolith-antenna is a project Dr. Petrie’s 
  been working on for some months, based in part 
  on the (stolen) work of Moultrie Dodds. Th e parts 
  and plans stolen from Dodds’s safe deposit box are 
  what he needs to complete the job. When ﬁ nished, 
  the monolith-antenna will let Petrie broadcast a 
  radio signal that will put everyone in the city but 
  him and his men to sleep... leaving the city defense-
  less against their looting and pillaging! Mwah hah 
  hah hah hah!!!!
  THE OPPOSITION
  In the factory are Dr. Petrie himself (Pulp 
  Hero, pages 401-02) and as many Radio Maraud-
  ers as you need to give the PCs a good ﬁ ght. Kit 
  Dr. Petrie’s Gadget Pool out as appropriate, using 
  devices from Pulp Hero or others of your own 
  choosing. At the very least he should probably have 
  an Electric Pistol and a Rocketpack, but make the 
  choice based on your PC group... and don’t forget 
  that if they beat him, they’re likely to get their 
  hands on his toys.
  Once the PCs discover the villains’ lair, it’s up 
  to them to decide how to proceed, but whether they 
  sneak in or crash through the front door with guns 
  blazing, sooner or later there’s going to be a ﬁ ght. 
  Make sure it’s a challenge for the PCs, but one they 
  can probably win in the end. Th is is the big climax, 
  so it’s appropriate that the PCs should triumph!
  CONCLUSION
  Assuming the ﬁ ght goes the PCs’ way, they can 
  defeat Dr. Petrie (who hopefully has a chance to 
  escape, in best master villain tradition), capture all 
  the remaining Radio Marauders,  and destroy the 
  monolith-antenna. If they conducted themselves 
  well and didn’t make any major blunders, 2 Experi-
  ence Points is probably an appropriate reward for 
  their heroic eﬀ orts.
  8    The Radio Marauders
  Hero System 5th Edition
  
  RADIO MARAUDER
  Val Char 
  Cost Roll 
  Notes
  15 
  STR 
  5 
  12- 
  Lift  200 kg; 3d6 [3]
  15 
  DEX 
  15 
  12- 
  OCV:  5/DCV:  5
  15 
  CON 
  10 
  12-
  12 
  BODY 4 
  11-
  13 
  INT 
  3 
  12- 
  PER Roll 12-
  10 
  EGO 
  0 
  11- 
  ECV:  3
  15 
  PRE 
  5 
  12- 
  PRE Attack:  3d6
  8  
  COM 
  -1 
  11-
  5  
  PD 
  2 
   
  Total:  5 PD (0 rPD)
  5  
  ED 
  2 
   
  Total:  5 ED (0 rED)
  3  
  SPD 
  5 
   
  Phases:  4, 8, 12
  6  
  REC 
  0
  30 
  END 
  0
  30 
  STUN 
  2 
  Total Characteristics Cost:  52
  Movement: 
  Running: 
  6”/12”
  Cost Powers 
  END
  11 
  Radio Marauder Radio Transmitter: 
   
  Radio Transmission/Reception (Radio 
  Group), Concealed (-6 to PER Rolls for 
  others to perceive or track); OIF (-½) 
  0
  4 
  Radio Marauder Radio Jammer:  Dark-
   
  ness to Radio Group 1” radius, Mega-
   
  Area (1” is 1 mile wide, deep, and broad;
   
  +½), Personal Immunity (+¼); OIF (-½),
   
  No Range (-½), 1 Continuing Fuel
   
  Charge (1 Hour, easily recharged; -0) [1cc]
   
  Perks
  1 
  Fringe Beneﬁ t:  Criminal Rank (mem-
   
  ber in Radio Marauders)
   
  Talents
  5 
  Dr. Petrie’s Mental Treatments:  Resistance (5 
  points)
   
  Skills
  3 
  +1 with Firearms
  3 
  Combat Driving 12-
  2 
  Gambling (Card Games) 11-
  2 
  CK: city where he lives
  1 
  KS: Local Underworld 8-
  3 
  Stealth 12-
  3 
  Streetwise 12-
  3 
  Systems Operation 12-
  2 
  WF: Small Arms
  Total Powers & Skills Cost:  43
  Total Cost:  95
  50+ Disadvantages
  20 
  Hunted:  the cops 8- (Mo Pow, NCI, Capture)
  15 
  Psychological Limitation:  Greedy (Common, 
  Strong)
  10 
  Experience Points
  Total Disadvantage Points:  95
  9 
  Hero Plus Adventure #5
  SUGGESTED EQUIPMENT
  Weapon 
  OCV 
  RMod 
  Dam 
  STUN 
  Shots 
  STR Min 
  Notes
  Th ompson SMG 
  +0 
  +0 
  2d6-1 
  1d6 
  30 
  14 
  AF5
  Pistol 
  +0 
  +0 
  1d6+1 1d6-1 
  7 
  8
  Armor
  None
  Gear:  Bank robbing tools, other gear as noted for speciﬁ c scenes during the 
  adventure
  Clothing:  Radio Marauder Radio Device (see above); street clothes
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Hero Games/5th Edition/Pulp Hero - The Radio Marauders.pdf