Tomax
| Strength 6x |
Agility 6b |
Intellect 6d |
Willpower 6c |
| Hand Size: Edge: |
4 (25) 2 |
Origin:
Tomax is, like his twin brother, possessed of minor psychic abilities. The minds of the two are inextricably linked, almost but not quite to the point that they act as one, though whether this is due to genetic mutation, natural psionics, or some other agency is unknown.
Powers:
Natural Psionics (Psipathic Powers):
Mind Link (w) (a): in addition to vicariously experiencing everything his twin does, Tomax is also privy to the thoughts of Xamot. The two possess a mind link that functions at intensity 15, allowing them to plot and scheme together regardless of the distance between them.
Sensory Link (w) (t): his nervous system inextricably linked to Xamot's, Tomax experiences every physical sensation of his twin thanks to this inherent, intensity 15 sensory link. When Xamot suffers physical damage, Tomax will experience a like amount of karmic damage.
Hindrances / Augmentations:
(none)
Equipment:
Knife (s): Tomax carries a small blade, for when he has to get up close and personal with a foe. This knife, made from m.s. 12 metals, can be used to either slice through items of up to a like m.s., given enough time, or to inflict his Strength +2 in slashing damage in melee.
Laser Pistol (a): his principal weapon, Tomax wields an advanced battlefield device designed by Cobra. Carrying six shots per charge, this direct energy device can emit a laser beam capable of inflicting his Agility +5 in Armor Piercing energy damage with each deadly assault.
Pauldron (s): though mostly worn for ornamental purposes, Tomax nonetheless benefits from the protection this item provides. Worn on his right shoulder, this object provides him intensity 8 (or +2) defense against physical attacks striking that portion of his body.
Sidearms (a): Tomax is rarely, if ever, found without a firearm. He typically has at least two on his person, each of which he may use to inflict his Agility +4 in damage when discharging a single round, or his Agility +5 in damage when attempting semi-auto fire.
Sky-hook (a): helping to facilitate rapid entry to and exit from a facility, Tomax usually brings a sky-hook and a lengthy line with which to utilize it. This item can be used to quickly descend from one location to another, assuming the line holds (and he isn't knocked loose).
Skills:
Acrobatics (a): Tomax is quite the acrobat, and is incredibly hard to connect with when not taken by surprise. Easily able to avoid being struck by others, he benefits from a lowering of the difficulty to dodge attacks or to reduce falling damage.
Business / Finance (w): primed after fighting for the Legion and for himself, Tomax has found the world of international finance a battlefield more to his liking. He should receive a reduction in the difficulty of actions related to financial matters, particularly corporate law.
Guns (a): well-trained by the Foreign Legion Paras, Tomax can easily wield most modern firearms. Whether holding a standard, semi-automatic, or fully automatic rifle or pistol, Tomax may discharge such weapons at one difficulty level lower than is normally necessary.
Languages / English and French (i): though his origins aren't certain, intelligence circles assume Tomax originally hails from Corsica. As a result, he is assumed to be fluent in both of these languages, being able to read, write, and speak using them with ease.
Martial Arts (a): Tomax is never shy about engaging in fisticuffs, as he had plenty of experience in such even before he signed up with the Legion. He may dodge attacks, catch thrown weapons, or even strike in unarmed melee at a reduced difficulty.
Military / France (w): cutting his teeth in the French Foreign Legion, Tomax was shaped into a lean, mean fighting machine! He is well-versed in martial tactics, and can readily lead a body of fighting men and women into battle should he be required to.
Contacts:
As a high ranking member of Cobra, Tomax naturally can draw upon the resources of that organization, its Crimson Guard in particular. That force of fanatically motivated infiltrators and saboteurs have only profited under his and Xamot's leadership, after all!
Of course, Tomax achieved this position as a result of his success, both as a cutthroat mercenary and as a relentless financier. This hard work has enabled both him and his twin to forge Cobra's most notorious and enduring legal cover: Extensive Enterprises!
Calling:
Greed: perhaps because of his destitute upbringing, or maybe because he has learned to enjoy living in the lap of luxury, Tomax strives to own and/or make use of the most expensive and exclusive goods and services. After all, he's worked hard for his money, so why not?
Costume:
Tomax's costume is primarily a sleeveless Cobra blue stretch fabric body suit, accessorized with a crimson and silver holster, codpiece, and belt, crimson and silver Cobra-themed knee pads and boots, black leather gloves, a crimson sash, and a steel pauldron on his right shoulder.
Personality:
Tomax always wants more. An ardent perfectionist, he constantly trains his mind and body to continually improve both - not to mention his bottom line. Greedy, ambitious, and ruthless, he almost epitomizes the Cobra philosophy, which is why he helps lead its Crimson Guard.
Real Name: unrevealed
Occupation: financier, mercenary, terrorist
Legal Status: presumably a citizen of France with a probable criminal record
Marital Status: single
Alias(es), if any: none
Group Affiliation: Cobra
Height: 6'
Hair: brown
Eyes: brown
Weight: 170 lbs
Other Distinguishing Characteristics: Tomax looks completely normal in and of himself, but stands out next to his brother, Xamot. This is because his clothes and his hair are the mirror opposites worn by his twin, even if the two are genetically identical.
Story:
The youth who became Tomax grew up destitute on a large French-held island in the Mediterranean, and learned to fight for every scrap of food as a child. Though his childhood was difficult, Tomax at least had the benefit of spending it alongside his twin brother, Xamot.
Tomax and Xamot weren't ordinary twins by any means. Sure, there are numerous reports of twins having a special bond with each other, some fanciful and some based in reality, but these two were truly special. They were each privy to the thoughts and feelings of the other.
Thanks to this highly unusual psionic ability, Tomax was able to pool his mental resources with his sibling, and the two managed to excel above and beyond the competition for meager resources. By the time they were adults, the duo had reversed their family's fortunes.
Instead of lingering at home, however, Tomax and his brother enlisted in the French Foreign Legion. While the two learned how to brawl during their upbringing, the Legion taught them how to properly engage in battle, a skill that would take them far in life.
Of course, Tomax ultimately didn't like the idea of being under the direction of others, and wished to fight for his own reasons. Thus, he left the Legion to become a mercenary, and fought alongside Xamot in numerous hotspots throughout Europe and Africa.
Eventually growing tired of waging war, the twins opted to parlay their mercenary profits into even more money in the realm of international finance. While their ruthless nature greatly assisted them in their endeavors, they found their new trade too fickle for their liking.
While Tomax and Xamot pondered their next move, they were approached by a criminal mastermind they'd only heard vague whispers of: the Cobra Commander. A shrewd judge of character, he knew that he wanted the twins working for him, and that he had exactly what they needed.
Offering them the power to pursue their fortunes, limited only by the cut of the profits he wanted for his own organization, Cobra Commander offered them a supremely motivated, insanely fanatic force of saboteurs and infiltrators to help them skirt corporate law: the Crimson Guard!
Liking the idea of pursuing truly cutthroat finance, Tomax and his brother readily agreed, but had to first prove themselves worthy of the position the Commander had for them. Doing so in a ceremony similar to that of their new subordinates, the two proceeded to get to work.
In addition to managing Cobra's extant front organizations, all seemingly named using anagrams of Cobra, Tomax and Xamot founded Extensive Enterprises. They operate this corporation as a legal front for Cobra's various activities, and never violate the law.
But then, that's what the Crimson Guard is for. These brutal and merciless Cobras ensure that Extensive Enterprises' competitors pay the price for getting in the way of profits, whether coercing them into capitulating to EE or simply rubbing them out altogether.
All members of the Crimson Guard profit greatly from Tomax and Xamot's leadership, making them even more loyal to Cobra than they were before - which is saying something. The twins don't merely direct the Guard from afar, however, for they occasionally find themselves in the field.
Tomax and his brother have led or participated in numerous operations at the behest of Cobra's leader, whether this was the original Commander, the imperial Serpentor, or even the second, impostor Commander - who was actually one of their own Crimson Guard, Fred 7!
While competent in the field, and as successful as any other members of the Cobra Command, Tomax and Xamot were sidelined after a mission in Trucial Abysmia, wherein they killed several Joe prisoners they'd captured in the midst of their Terror Drome operation in that desert nation.
After this incident, Tomax and Xamot saw less and less time in the field. This left them to further develop the Crimson Guard in numerous fashions, expand the holds of Extensive Enterprises and Cobra's other fronts, and to occasionally provide the Commander protection.
When Cobra folded late in 1994, the so-called crimson twins were left to their own devices. Most of the Crimson Guard settled into even deeper cover, laying low until the organization that birthed them could somehow return to life, and made plenty of money as they did so.
(Historical Divergence)
Tomax and Xamot initially avoided joining up with Cobra once more when the Commander began to reassemble his forces, but were forced into doing so by Destro's son. That villain had infected the two with his so-called nano-mites, with which he could kill them at the slightest whim.
Forced into an invasion of Washington DC, the twins, along with a massive contingent of Cobra forces, almost toppled the American government. This was prevented when the Commander surreptitiously helped GI Joe negate Destro's son's nano-mites, immediately turning the tide of battle.
The duo continued their normal Cobra activities after that, upon the Commander's resumption of that organization's control. They persisted in this until Xamot was seriously wounded during an assault on the group by the Red Shadows, another terrorist outfit determined to rule the world.
Tomax carried on their work while Xamot languished in a Cobra hospital, though the comatose twin was taken into custody by GI Joe when they eventually located that facility. It wasn't until Cobra Commander instigated World War 3 that Tomax recovered his lost sibling.
The two were reunited, after a fashion, just in time for Cobra's supposed last stand, during which the group was dispersed for a third, and seemingly final time. In the aftermath of this battle, Tomax and his brother were taken into custody by GI Joe, and deposited in the Coffin.
Tomax is presumably a resident of that remote prison to this very day.
2002 Variations
Equipment:
Uzi 9mm (a): Tomax adopted this weapon for a short time in 2002, which can be discharged to inflict his Agility +4 damage in a single shot, his Agility +5 damage in a semi-automatic burst, or his Agility +6 damage when firing continuously.
Costume:
Tomax's second costume is primarily a sleeveless crimson stretch fabric body suit, accessorized with a black holster, crimson codpiece, silver belt, black and silver Cobra-themed knee pads and boots, black leather gloves, a Cobra blue sash, and a bronze pauldron on his right shoulder.
2003 Variations
Equipment:
Crimson Command Helicopter (i): built using plans stolen from GI Joe, the Crimson Command Helicopter is a villainous counterpart to the Joes' Night Attack Chopper. It is almost identical to the original, save for its color scheme, and is described in its own vehicle entry.
Helmet (s): though he usually don't bother with much combat gear, Tomax nonetheless wears a helmet when riding in the Crimson Attack Helicopter. This protective device provides Tomax intensity 8 (or +2) protection against any physical assault striking him in the cranium.
Costume:
Tomax's third costume is more like a uniform, including a crimson jacket with a black collar over a gray T-shirt, crimson trousers, black leather boots and gloves, a black leather belt, black leather belt holsters and other pouches, gray arm bands, and a black helmet when flying.
2005 Variations
Equipment:
Rocket Pistol (i): for a time, Tomax made use of Major Bludd's trademark weapon, a rocket-firing pistol. This projectile inflicts intensity 10 fragmentary damage, but requires a full exchange to reload after being fired at whoever has irked Tomax's ire.
Uzi 9mm (a): Tomax again adopted this weapon for use in 2005, which can be discharged to inflict his Agility +4 damage in a single shot, his Agility +5 damage in a semi-automatic burst, or his Agility +6 damage when firing continuously.
Costume:
Tomax's fourth costume is more like executive wear than a costume or uniform, and is comprised of a Cobra blue jacket over a white T-shirt, Cobra blue trousers, gray leather boots, and a gray leather belt. Generally, this is what Tomax wears when helping to run Extensive Enterprises.
Extra Goodies:
Cobra directories featuring a version of Tomax:
| 1985 | 2002 | 2003 | 2005 |
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