Cross-Country

Strength
7d

Agility
6c

Intellect
4x

Willpower
7d

Hand Size:
Edge:

4 (25)
2

Origin:

While it can be argued that Cross-Country has the genetic imperative to operate heavy machinery, the truth is that the man is but a normal human, generally speaking. He entirely lacks super-normal abilities, but the man is a demon behind the wheel of any heavy vehicle.

Powers:

(none)

Hindrances / Augmentations:

(none)

Equipment:

the HAVOC (i): this heavy duty, tracked vehicle is Cross-Country's baby. The Heavy Articulated Vehicle Ordnance Carrier is loaded to the gills with missiles and guns, and even has a secondary vehicle secreted inside. The HAVOC is described in its own vehicular entry.

Knife (s): since you never know when you're going to need to cut something (or someone), Cross-Country always has a knife on his person. Made from m.s. 12 materials, this blade can cut through items of like m.s., or be used to inflict his Strength +2 damage in melee.

Sidearm (a): sure he prefers to shoot people, places and things with his HAVOC, but Cross-Country usually has a spare 'piece' on him, just in case. He can fire this gun to inflict his Agility +4 damage in a single shot, raised to +5 in a semi-auto burst.

Skills:

Boxing (s): as does every other Army recruit, Cross-Country was trained in the fine art of self-defense. Should he find himself unarmed, Cross-Country may divide his pre-card play action score between two such attacks, the last of which occurs as a contingent action.

Guns (a): a precursor to his heavy weapons training, this skill showcases Cross-Country's ability to use most firearms with ease. Whether wielding a standard, semi-automatic, or fully automatic rifle or pistol, Cross-Country may do so at a reduced difficulty.

Marksman (a): to properly handle heavy weaponry, Cross-Country has been trained in the use of this skill. As such, whenever Cross-Country is operating line-of-sight weaponry (from rocket launchers to mortars to tank cannons), he does so at a reduced difficulty.

Military / United States (w): it goes without saying but Cross-Country has been trained in the fine arts of the martial lifestyle by the United States military. As such, he knows the SOP like the back of his hand, and can easily contribute to most military efforts.

Calling:

Thrill-Seeker, with a secondary calling of Soldier: Cross-Country loves to wreck stuff, usually when behind the wheel of something with a weight rated in 'tons'. His time in the military has only augmented this tendency, but has laced it with a sense of duty!

Costume:

Cross-Country's first GI Joe uniform consists of gray and red trousers, a white T-shirt beneath a green vest, white, brown and red leather boots, brown leather gloves, gray wrist bands, a brown leather belt with a 'stars and bars' belt buckle, and a gray cap with black goggles.

Personality:

Cross-Country is the kind of Joe that the team loves to have around. Sure he has a tendency to blare his country music way too loud, but the man is practically fearless under fire and a demon at the wheel of just about anything still partially functional. He's fun at parties, too!

Real Name: Robert M. Blais, Grade E-5
Occupation: armor, heavy equipment operator
Legal Status: citizen of the United States with no known criminal record
Marital Status: single
Alias(es), if any: none
Group Affiliation: GI Joe

Height: 5' 10"
Hair: red
Eyes: blue
Weight: 185 lbs
Other Distinguishing Characteristics: none

Story:

Cross-Country grew up the child of construction workers; his father operated a bulldozer and his mother a grader. Spending so much of his early youth around extremely heavy machinery, it's easy to see how the man could grow fond of the things, both for fun and for work.

After years spent recklessly driving all manner of huge vehicles on terrain that others wouldn't dare, it was only natural that Cross-Country get a job where he could do that with disregard to the local property values: the Army. Sure enough, he enlisted to be an Armor expert.

His experience and keen eye for the surrounding terrain, coupled with an uncanny knack for the best handling of almost any heavy vehicle, got Cross-Country noticed by the powers that be. Before too long, they had recommended him for membership on the GI Joe team.

Since that group is always working out the kinks on experimental hardware with which to fight Cobra, it was only natural that they put him in charge of the team's latest contraption: the HAVOC - a Heavy Articulated Vehicle Ordnance Carrier. And he took to it like crazy.

On his very first day with GI Joe, Cross-Country was drafted by Sgt. Slaughter to help him pursue a gaggle of Dreadnoks that had extricated Zartan from the Pit. Ecstatic that he had the opportunity to put his new toy through its paces, Cross-Country happily went along with this.

In a subsequent running firefight from Staten Island to the New Jersey swamps, Cross-Country engaged in a battle of wits against the Dreadnok known as Thrasher, pitting his skills against the man and his HAVOC against Thrasher's cobbled together monstrosity, the Thunder Machine.

In the end, Thrasher escaped thanks to Zartan's holographic technology and a clever dodge by Zandar. However, Cross-Country went on to participate in several real, sanctioned missions alongside his new GI Joe teammates, where he managed to distinguish himself with ease.

(Historical Divergence)

This ended when the Joe team was disbanded for a time in the mid-1990s, after which Cross-Country returned to conventional military service. When Cobra activity worldwide caused the eventual reactivation of GI Joe, Cross-Country wasn't one of the first Joes to return.

He eventually did do so, assisting the team on some of its most ambitious actions against Cobra and its many surrogate groups. With Cobra defeated - apparently - in the wake of World War III, Cross-Country is presumably with the group to this day, since he's needed.

It'll take every Joe on the roster to round up all the Cobras that escaped in the wake of the global disaster they caused, after all!

1993 Variations

Equipment:

Machine Guns (a): Cross-Country now carries several of these weapons in the field. They can discharge a single round to inflict his Agility +4 in damage, three rounds to inflict his Agility +5 in damage, or continuous fire to inflict his Agility +6 in damage.

Missile Launcher (i): when guns just aren't enough, this light anti-tank missile launcher is an implement Robert can use to disable most enemy armor - or people, depending. It inflicts intensity 10 damage upon everyone within near missile range of where it hits.

Costume:

Robert's second GI Joe uniform includes includes a gray cap with black goggles, gray denim jacket with the 'stars and bars' printed on the back, worn over an orange T-shirt, acid-washed blue jeans, gray leather boots, and orange belts and holsters for his gear.

2014 Variations

Equipment:

The HAVOC, Mark 2 (i): this heavy duty, half-track vehicle is Cross-Country's new baby. Though basically a refurbished Snow Cat, the Mark 2 Heavy Articulated Vehicle Ordnance Carrier is loaded to the gills with missiles, and is described in its own vehicular entry.

Revolver (a): for stylistic purposes, Cross-Country traded his standard-issue sidearm out for a revolver. He can fire this old-fashioned weapon to inflict his Agility +5 in damage per deadly blast, though he can only effectively discharge one round per exchange.

Costume:

Cross-Country's third GI Joe uniform is comprised of gray and red trousers, a white T-shirt beneath a green vest, white, brown and red leather boots, brown leather gloves, gray wrist bands, a brown leather belt with a 'stars and bars' belt buckle, and a gray cap with black goggles.

Extra Goodies:

Cross-Country Saga System 13 Text File Download

GI Joe directories featuring a version of Cross-Country:

1986

1993

2014

Interested in using Technoholic content in your own project? Please read this beforehand!