Editing Master Man (section)

== The Unstoppable Master Man ==

'''PL:'''11 (165 pp)

Alternate Identity: Ben Ojukwu; Identity: Public; Base of Operations: Lagos, Nigeria (later New York); First Appearance: Thrilling Comics, April 1962; Gender: Male; Age: 26; Height: 6' 2''; Weoght: Burly; Eyes: Brown; Hair: Black

'''Abilities'''

Strength 20/32* ( 5/ 11*, * with power); Dexterity 16 ( 3); Constitution: 20/28* ( 5/ 9*, * with power); Intelligence 13 ( 1); Wisdom 13 ( 1); Charisma 12 ( 1)

'''Saving Throws'''

Tougness  9/ 11* ( 5/ 9 Con,  2 Protection); Fortitude  5/ 9* (Con); Reflex  3 (Dex); Will  4 ( 1 Wis,  3 Base)

Defense: 21 (Base  11)

Base Attack:  11

Initiative:  3 (Dex)

'''Powers'''

Protection 2

Enhanced Strength 12 (Alternate Power: Leaping 12)

Immovable 8

Enhanced Constitution 8

Super Strength 9 (Feats: Groundstrike, Shockwave, Super-Breath, Thunderclap)

'''Feats'''

All-Out Attack; Endurance 4; Chokehold; Luck 1; Improved Grapple; Critical Strike; Improved Pin; Improved Throw

'''Skills'''

Survival  17 ( 1 Wis, 16 Ranks); Climb  21/28* ( 5/ 12 Str, 16 Ranks); Notice  17 ( 1 Wis, 16 Ranks); Intimidate  17 ( 1 Cha, 16 Ranks); Acrobatics  19 ( 3 Dex, 16 Ranks)

'''Complications'''

Must honor ancestral orisha; overconfident


'''Background'''

When the greedy Tusk Corporation bought up the Nigerian village of Alanu, planning to level it and build oil wells, the powerful ancestral spirits of the proud Ojukwu family called upon young Ben to defend the land they had protected for generations. They added their spirit to his strength to create Master Man, charged with bringing justice to the oppressed.

'''Personality'''

Ben Ojukwu is a passionate man, deeply serious about his work. Unfortunately, this devotion sometimes makes him stubborn, and he feels the need to be the leader of any team he's on. He views himself as the world's most powerful hero, and though he may not be wrong, this does mean he sometimes gets a swelled head. At these times, he risks losing the support of his ancestor spirits, and must commune with them to regain wisdom. 

'''Publishing History'''

Master Man was the invention of Calvin Winston, writer for the two [[Captain Invincible]] titles at the time. A supporter of the civil rights movement, Winston had suggested that the company create a black superhero as a way of providing a positive role model. Winston had an interest in West African folk lore, and got the inspiration for "Master Man" from a Nigerian folk tale. The social climate of America in 1962 wouldn't allow for a black hero as a lead character, so Winston introduced Master Man as a supporting figure in a [[Captain Invincible]] story, where the latter visited Nigeria and, after a series of misunderstandings, helped Ojukwu battle the Boar, an enforcer for the Tusk Corporation. Though the character's first appearance created some controversy among readers, it also led to [[Star Comics]] receiving praise from civil rights groups, and editor Joe Prelutsky allowed Winston to press on by including the character in JUSTICE INTERNATIONAL when it made its debut a year later.

By the end of the decade, Prelutsky felt the character's popularity was more than enough to warrant his own book, and that the tense climate in America regarding race relations would actually be a benefit for a book that tackled such issues. MASTER MAN #1 arrived on stands in January of 1970, and was an instant hit. Winston, again the writer, took Master Man to the streets of New York, battling the mysterious organization known as H.A.T.E., while African-American artist  Bill Lincoln contributed the book's moody and expressive visuals (as well as uncredited dialogue assists.) When Winston left Star Comics in 1973 after a conflict with the new Editor in Chief, Lincoln became artist and writer, continuing the title for six more years until leaving to work on his own projects. Without its original talent, the title fizzled out in 1981, and a year later Master Man was killed in the pages of JUSTICE INTERNATIONAL. However, when the Star Comics Universe was rebooted in 1983's THE END OF TIME, Master Man was declared alive again, and a second volume of his book began in 1989. 

[Master Man is a member of Justice International]