Global Defense Force
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| Backstory | GDF: Phase 1 | GDF: Phase 2 | Allies & Enemies | The Beacon | The Hall of Heroes | Team Members |
*Formerly members.
Backstory
In late 2011, the untimely closure of the Palladium Sentry left a huge void in the superhero community. For so many years, the Sentry served as a cornerstone in not only the fight against crime, but also improving the lives of Paragon City's citizens. Fortunately, former Sentry member Starforge had an idea. Whereas the Palladium Sentry oftentimes fought crime at home in Paragon, Starforge believed a group that could more readily protect the entire planet was needed. Soon enough in early 2012, the Global Defense Force was born.
The mission of the Global Defense Force was simple; to be ready to deploy heroes around the planet at a moments notice anytime a threat arose. In order to do this, Starforge was able to obtain a derelict space station which was soon retrofitted to serve as the orbiting base of the Global Defense Force. Not long after completion of the station, Starforge had the station technicians install a central intelligence unit in the command center. An offshoot of the Palladium Sentry's own intelligence unit, NAIKA, AVI (Automated Virtual Interface) would help keep the station's defenses and databases up to date. Soon enough, the Lambent Dawn was officially operational.
The first members to join Starforge in the Global Defense Force were his longtime allies from his days in the Palladium Sentry. It didn't take long for word to spread and before he knew it, the group's membership soon included a wide variety of established heroes and even some at the start of their heroic careers. Unfortunately, this also drew the ire of many villains looking to make their name at the GDF's expense. The most notorious of these villains were known as the Doom Society. The leader of the Doom Society, Dominion, had his sights set on taking down Starforge and the GDF and at the end of 2012...he succeeded.
Staging a calculated attack on the Lambent Dawn, the Doom Society was able to not only destroy the base but take down a good number of heroes with it. The icing on the cake was their sabotage of the GDF's shuttle which forced a trapped Starforge to watch in horror as everything he had built was taken away. However, in their haste to destroy the base, the Doom Society missed the fact that the shuttle wasn't actually destroyed in the attack. Hurtled through space from the explosion, it took many years for Starforge to return home.
The world had seemingly changed a great deal when Starforge returned to Paragon City. The fallout of the Doom Society's attack had left the few surviving members of the GDF scattered or in hiding while the villains were relishing in their newfound fame. It would take a long time, but Starforge was determined to see the Global Defense Force return. His first stop was the find any trace of the Lambent Dawn. Luckily, he discovered debris on the lunar surface and after establishing a new partnership with the United Nations, the Global Defense Force was once again up and running. Temporarily based out of the Armstrong Moonbase, Starforge used this as a staging ground to recover more debris from the Lambent Dawn. As luck would have it, AVI was able to survive the attack which helped a great deal in getting the GDF up and running again.
In the ensuing months, Starforge worked with the United Nations while also having the Guardian Collective help move a decommissioned Guardian outpost into Earth's orbit to serve as a more permanent base of operations for the GDF. Many more villains were seeking to put an end to the Global Defense Force's resurgence but despite these threats the Global Defense Force's new base, the Beacon, was brought into Earth's orbit and will be the new staging ground for Starforge and his team to defend the Earth from any evil that seek to harm it.
GDF: Phase 1 - The Foundation
Released March 2020
The GDF was informed by the UN that an outbreak of Tellurian Plague had occurred in a Central African research facility. Once inside, the heroes discovered lab notes detailing experiments involving the introduction of Tellurian Plague to flora and fauna from Primal Earth. They also discovered the researchers had successfully combined the Plague with a rare lichen from Eden creating the 'Red Lichen'. Soon after, the GDF rescued the lead researcher of the Red Lichen, Arthur Stotch.
As Arthur led them further into the lab, the heroes learned the Red Lichen seemingly had a mind of its own; quickly enveloping any living creature it was introduced to. To their horror, it was revealed that Arthur had tested the lichen on himself, creating the monstrous entity known only as 'Massacre' The resulting battle between Massacre and the heroes raged throughout the facility as the heroes tried to keep the lab intact but also rescue the remaining trapped survivors. Ultimately, Massacre escaped and the GDF plotted their next moves.
Knowing how linked Massacre could be to the Devouring Earth, the heroes calculated that he would eventually try to make its way toward the Hamidon. The heroes placed scanners throughout Eden and the Hive to notify the GDF when Massacre was in the vicinity. In addition, the heroes also attempted to discover the origin of the lichen used in the experiments. Defeating the Crystal Titan, the GDF were able to recover enough lichen samples to bring back to the Beacon to try and learn how it could be turned into the Red Lichen.
As research on the lichen continued, the UN reported that survivors from the research lab revealed that Arthur Stotch previously worked with Arachnos as a researcher on the Devouring Earth. This pointed the GDF toward Vernon von Grun; Arachnos' chief researcher on the Devouring Earth. The GDF would eventually catch up to von Grun who revealed Arthur wasn't evil enough for Arachnos and was extremely pleased when someone affiliated with 'The Foundation' came looking for candidates for an African research lab.
After dealing with von Grun, the GDF were called back to Eden where the Woodsman had discovered a hidden cave system below where the heroes previously fought the Crystal Titan. Not only did a large source of the same lichen grow within, but also crystallized Will of the Earth. As their research had still come up empty, the GDF assumed the Will of the Earth was the key to creating the Red Lichen. With the sheer amount of Will of the Earth inside, the GDF theorized Massacre would attempt to come here upon his arrival to the area.
The heroes then created a trap for Massacre; installing power dampeners throughout the cave while fighting through the creatures that called the cave home. In addition to the trap, the heroes also obtained Crey's defoliating poison as a backup should the dampeners not be enough. Not long after the final preparations were made, A.V.I. alerted the heroes that Massacre had finally arrived in Eden.
The battle raged throughout Eden as the crazed symbiote monstrosity proved able to withstand immense damage and also siphon off parts of his form to create innumerable decoys. Using the defoliating serum along with any group attacks they could muster, the heroes were finally able to push Massacre into the power dampening trap inside the Will of the Earth cave. The trap ultimately worked as intended and the Red Lichen retreated; Arthur Stotch was once again in control of his actions and teleported to the Beacon's power dampening detainment cell.
After a round of questions regarding the origins of the African research lab and who the Foundation was, Arthur was eventually placed into United Nations custody. If the Foundation had the means to not only procure Tellurian Plague from Praetorian Earth but establish a facility in Africa, they may prove to be a big problem the GDF would have to deal with sooner rather than later.
Released August 2020
Sunstorm alerted the Global Defense Force to attacks that were occuring at numerous Council bases; specifically bases housing Nictus and Kheldian technology. During their investigation, the GDF was drawn into battle with both Arakhn and Requiem before the true culprits revealed themselves. A force of new Void Hunters outfitted with extremely powerful Quantum Array Rifles attacked the GDF although ultimately they were unsuccessful in their ambush. During the ensuing chaos, the GDF was able to obtain one of the rifles which they took back to the Beacon for analysis.
A.V.I. alerted the heroes sometime later and pointed them toward a village in Eastern Europe where the AI had found the manufacturing spot for the rifles. As they investigated the village, the GDF uncovered the mine where the Void Hunters were forcing the villagers to mine for the rifle materials. Upon saving the village, the GDF were pointed to a company known as 'N-Corp'. Investigating N-Corp's office led them to stop more Void Hunters from destroying it but also found themselves in a secret sub-level below the office. Upon investigating further, they were met with a taunting message from Victor Ivanoff, the head of N-Corp. Ivanoff then unleashed his latest creation, Darkforge, on the Global Defense Force.
The GDF did not have long to figure out what the Darkforge was as they were soon called to deal with a prison break at the hands of both the Council and 5th Column who were looking to free their respective leaders. As the attack on Zigursky continued, N-Corp made their move and were able to capture both Nictus. The GDF followed the Void Hunters to a Russian N-Corp facility where the Council had tracked Arakhn to be. Inside the facility, they fought their way through the Void Hunters and Darkforges and were able to free a retired Russian hero known as 'Guardian'. Taking the GDF back to his base, Guardian was able to give the heroes more information on Project: Darkforge, mainly the fact that they were all cloned from 'NE-M.King', which the heroes concluded that they were cloned from Starforge himself. Unfortunately, they were also left with a message that Arakhn and the Council also had this information.
Taking a small detour on their investigation to stop Arakhn, the GDF enlisted the help of the Freedom Phalanx to help save Paragon City. As Arakhn was defeated, the GDF uncover the flash drive they deduced housed the information she downloaded from Guardian's base, however it turned out to be a message from the mysterious 'S'. 'S' pointed them to an alternate dimension where they found Victor Ivanoff had just left but were able to triangulate his position and teleport to the main N-Corp facility.
Doing battle with Ivanoff, the GDF manage to finally defeat him but not before coming face to face with the source of N-Corp's Nictus and the true source of the Darkforges, Starscourge. Starscourge was revealed to be Starforge's doppelganger from Nictus Earth and the genetic template the Foundation had given N-Corp to use. The GDF ultimately defeated the Nictus and drove him back to his home dimension. Not only did the Foundation appear to have the capability to conduct genetics testing and now cloning but this event also confirmed they had the power to reach various alternate dimensions.
Released February 2021
The GDF are called to help bring an end to the conflict between General Tanambe and Queen Dahlia of Natumbe. Tanambe has somehow obtained an army of War Walkers which he's using to take control of the region. Eventually defeating Tanambe and his army, the heroes attempt to somehow uncover the origins of the War Walker army. After ruling out the Council or Arachnos as sources of the War Walkers, the GDF turn to Alec Parson and the New Praetorians for help getting to Praetorian Earth.
Marauder leads the GDF through Devouring Earth-infested ruins before finding their way to the War Walker factory. Inside, the heroes find hints that the Foundation previously visited this factory during the collection of Tellurian Plague samples. After defeating the factory's Forgemaster, the GDF are suddenly shunted back to Primal Earth. The heroes are shocked to find it appears an attack took place in their absence. Rushing to find Alec, they find him badly beaten with a flash drive containing a message...from the Doom Society.
With the Doom Society back in operation, the GDF attempt to locate old allies that previously dealt with the Doom Society. One was James Grayson, otherwise known as Shadowbat. Learning that James was last seen in China, the GDF hurry to find him. Passing through a remote village, the GDF find references to the word 'Kirau' before they are pointed further into the forest. Encountering a group of warriors in the forest, A.V.I. is able to deduce that they belong to the Kirau Clan, old enemies of Starforge who were enlisted into the service of Victor Van Braun.
Exiting the forest, the GDF discover a mansion they find belongs to Van Braun, as various journals littered the area detailing his battles with the Palladium Sentry. Below the mansion, the GDF soon came face to face with Van Braun's chief lieutenant, the cyborg Turbushido. After a quick battle, the cyborg escaped GDF in pursuit. Inside, the heroes learn that Van Braun was invited to join a mysterious organization they theorize could be the Foundation. Ultimately, the GDF was successful in rescuing James from the the Kirau Clan and returned to the Beacon to inform him of the Doom Society's return.
The GDF are soon informed that Marauder has gone after the Doom Society alone. The GDF follow his path and do battle with the Torrent and Arsonist in Boomtown before the pair escape into the sewers. Inside the sewers, they find many strange, open canisters lining the halls. Eventually, the GDF are able to recover Marauder and after a quick skirmish with another Doom Society member, Ghoul, learn that they all fell victim temporarily to his toxins. Back topside, the heroes were quickly surrounded by a strange mechanical army. It was here that the Doom Society revealed took over the Praetorian factory to create their new Doombot army.
Despite the threat of the Doombots, A.V.I. is able to determine the source of the canisters used to house Ghoul's toxin. Traveling to a Sicilian warehouse said to be controlled by the Marella Crime Family, the heroes soon find themselves on a Marella cargo ship heading back to Paragon City. While on the ship, the heroes discover a rogue metahuman known as Instinct who reveals the Marellas traffic metahumans; his son being one of them. Prior to their arrival in Siren's Call, Instinct notes his son could temporarily negate the metagene.
Exiting to the surface, the GDF and Instinct were thrust into battle with Atom Bomb and Razorjaw. After the battle, a large explosion occurred nearby which blanketed the area in a thick fog. The GDF then found themselves in another nightmare scenario with a hoard of Ghouls approaching. Fighting their way through, the final Ghoul hinted at the Doom Society's real plan involving a mysterious 'Cure' but the heroes found themselves back in Siren's Call before they could learn more. During the battle, it also appeared the villains were able to capture Instinct.
Released April 2021
While the GDF focused on a countermeasure for Ghoul's toxins, they also learned from Fracture that the metahuman trafficking ring was controlled by a Marella lieutenant named Gravemind. The GDF are able to ultimately defeat Gravemind and uncover the location where the captured metahumans are being held. Fighting through the holding facility, the GDF are able to rescue the metahumans however they learn Instinct's son had been handed over to the Foundation while another four elemental-powered metahumans were sent to an undisclosed location.
The GDF return to try and figure out what the Doom Society's 'cure' is and how it relates to the Foundation. Unfortunately, they are quickly called back to Natumbe the GDF learn someone is disturbing the graves of the fallen Natumbe citizens from their recent conflict. After investigating a nearby tomb the heroes are attacked by the mercenary Killzone before a wave of reanimated Natumbe citizens approach. The GDF pursue Killzone into another crypt where upon defeat he tells them that the one behind the reanimation is named 'Sculptor'. Before he can divulge any further information, Dark Carver arrives to extricate the soldier. Eventually, the GDF finally face off with Sculptor although thanks to Dark Carver and Lasernaut, the Doom Society are able to escape with him intact. On top of that, a message from the Doom Society hints that the 'cure' they seek will be 'Doomsday' for the GDF.
The GDF are then called to London to attempt to rescue a former Crey geneticist named Richard Black. Black had received a 'Foundation Grant' to leave Crey and conduct his research into the metagene at a state of the art facility in London. After fighting through hoards of Doombots, the GDF eventually arrive at the research lab in search of Dr. Black. Inside, they find multiple notes that reveal Black was researching both negating the metagene and causing it to evolve further. They also indicated Black was completely unaware of the Foundation's true nature as they supplied him with constant test subjects. The GDF discovered the existence of 'Blanks'; the result of trying to negate the metagene which seemingly wiped out everything of what the subject once was. They also learned the Foundation had sent four elemental metahumans to Black to help evolve their metagene; likely the same ones mentioned in the holding facility. Unfortunately, the GDF are too late to rescue Dr. Black as Lasernaut once again appears to capture him.
Despite the failure to capture Sculptor and rescue Black, the GDF are quickly called by Scirocco to deal with rising Doombot activity in Cap Au Diable. While there, they uncover an unrelated plot by Dark Carver to take control of the Power Transfer System. During ensuing battles with Dark Carver, her identity is revealed to be James Grayson's sister; long thought to have died in the Doom Society's attack on the first GDF base in 2012. Shadowbat quickly comes up with a plan to subdue Carver where they learn that she has been an unwilling victim to Ghoul's toxins all these years.
The race to find a cure for the toxin comes to a head as Shadowbat comes up with a plan to capture any Doom Society member they can for the location of their base and Ghoul himself. The GDF are successful in defeating half of the Doom Society before uncovering the location of their holding facility thanks to Shadewarp, who reveals he was the one that assisted them with N-Corp. Inside, they are able to push back Ghoul with a temporary countermeasure before locating Instinct and Dr. Black. Before they can escape, the GDF come face to face with what appears to be the Doom Society's 'cure', Doomsday. The monstrous Blank, a result of the marriage between Sculptor's twisted body modifications and Dr. Black's research seeks to destroy the heroes but fortunately they are able to escape with the captives before the lab is brought down on the Doom Society's new monster.
Released July 2021
Despite the sudden appearance of Doomsday, the immediate threat the GDF must deal with is Ghoul's toxin. With half of the Doom Society in PPD custody, the GDF go to a local precinct to question Arsonist about the location of Ghoul's lab. Unfortunately, the precinct is attacked by Ghoul who infects the officers with toxin causing the heroes to fight to escape. To make matters worse, Ghoul has placed a multitude of toxin bombs throughout the area forcing the GDF to disarm them all before the citizens all become infected.
With the bombs dealt with Ghoul reveals his final gambit; infected members of the Freedom Phalanx sent to destroy the GDF. Thanks to some quick work by the heroes, the Phalanx are able to eventually come to their senses and Penelope Yin is able to look into their minds to find that Ghoul took them to his base to infect them. With the location finally in hand, the GDF infiltrate Ghoul's lab where not only are they able to create a full vaccine to his toxin, but the madman is finally stopped for good as well.
Before the GDF could celebrate their recent victory, they are alerted to an attack on the UN building in New York City. They find the place in chaos with civilians trying to escape the Doombot attack. As they try to clear the area, the GDF are ambushed by not only the returning Doomsday, but the sinister Sidesplitter as well. It quickly appeared Dominion had loaned out Doomsday for the clown's plot to defeat the GDF. After rescuing Jack Barrett from Sidesplitter, the GDF are forced into another confrontation with Doomsday. After appearing to defeat Doomsday and ensuring Jack Barrett was safe, the GDF refocused on finding Sidesplitter and stopping him. Dealing with Sidesplitter's personal army of Doombots, the heroes believe they have saved the city before a sudden shockwave rips through a multitude of nearby buildings: Doomsday had not only survived but evolved into a stronger form. Within the ruins of New York City, the GDF rushed to rescue trapped civilians while holding back Sidesplitter and Doomsday. Ultimately, they are able to stand their ground long enough for Lasernaut to arrive and extricate Sidesplitter and Doomsday.
After New York, similar attacks occured across the world with Doomsday carving a path of destruction that ends as quickly as they began. After investigating the recent attack sites, A.V.I. determines that all of these areas housed specific technology that could be used for portal technology. Following a trace of Nictus energy at the site of the most recent attack, the GDF are able to finally catch up to Shadewarp who escapes with the final portal component. The GDF eventually learn from the Rikti that Shadewarp was attempting to create the portal in the Rikti's own portal chamber. Inside, the GDF are finally able to stop Shadewarp and shut down the portal but not before the cyborg showed them what lurks on the other side: a giant alien being with a large army at his back. It appeared this was what the Foundation's true goal. Despite the timely arrival of Lasernaut to escape with Doomsday following another attack, the GDF are able to detain Shadewarp.
With Shadewarp defeated, the GDF focus on stopping Lasernaut. Recovering his tech from the Warzone, A.V.I. pinpoints his location where the GDF quickly defeat him. The heroes are also able to learn Sidesplitter's location from the fallen villain. Sidesplitter puts up a larger fight, even using his own specialized serum to transform into a monstrous form but the GDF are still able to stop him. With only Dominion and Doomsday remaining, the heroes are invited to a final battle in the Abyss. Surrounded by Devouring Earth, the GDF enter the final battle with the Doom Society and are not only able to soundly defeat Doomsday but also Dominion. The fallen leader leaves the GDF with one final hint to the whereabouts of the Foundation: the first member is back at the Praetorian factory.
Released October 2021
Arriving at the Praetorian factory, the GDF find research that shows the Foundation doctors, who were revealed to be Doctor Robotis and Quinton Deimos, experimented on Victor Ivanoff. Utilizing their lichen research with the Blanks, the off-shoot White Lichen was created. With Ivanoff as the host, the resulting symbiote was named 'Devastate'. Here the GDF also confirmed the name of the the alien seen in the portal: Conqueror. The GDF were ultimately able to stop both Devastate and Robotis with the former staying behind to ensure the self-destruction of the factory along with Robotis.
Returning home, the GDF were once again alerted by Scirocco that something was amiss. Victor Van Braun was set to meet with Lord Recluse about a potential partnership. During the ensuing battle with Lord Recluse prior to their meeting with Van Braun, the Foundation member revealed his true colors and ambushed both Arachnos and the GDF to defeat them in one fell swoop. It appeared while the Foundation would have allowed Recluse to maintain control of the Isles following Conqueror's arrival, that option was over now that the GDF had involved themselves. Van Braun was ultimately able to escape justice thanks to a last minute rescue from Deimos.
With Deimos utilizing a Nictus-like teleport for Van Braun's escape, the GDF had Farside quickly try and focus on the energy signature left at the battle site to see if they could locate a match. With luck, they found an abandoned lab in Russia. that appeared to have been used long before N-Corp or the Foundation. The GDF also discovered the existence of a Siberian lab that housed all of the remaining tech that was collected following the defeat of N-Corp. Inside the Siberian lab, the GDF quickly encountered Deimos' twisted amalgamation of N-Corp's Void Hunters outfitted with Doombot tech before finally reaching the man himself. As he ultimately revealed, Deimos had embedded fragments from Nictus Earth in a last ditch effort to stop the heroes but they were finally able to stop the madman. During his defeat, Deimos revealed that Van Braun would finish the Foundation's preparations for Conqueror's arrival...at Grayson Technologies.
Inside, the GDF were able to rescue James Grayson's business partner, Damian Royal, who claimed Van Braun was heading toward the testing level. Inside, the heroes were able to catch up to Van Braun however the villain escaped into a hidden sublevel; one even unknown to James Grayson. It appeared this sublevel was constructed in the period that Grayson was a captive of the Kirau Clan; with data entries from the Foundation referencing their mysterious leader and benefactor, 'Sovereign'. This sublevel also was found to house the culmination of all Foundation experiments, Project: Mutagen. Racing to stop Van Braun from releasing Mutagen, the heroes first located a terminal tracking an asteroid that had just entered the solar system before finding themselves in a vast cloning chamber.
Van Braun soon revealed Mutagen had already been released and sent to the Foundation's leader. Following a quick battle with Van Braun and one of the Mutagen monsters, the true leader of the Foundation revealed himself: Damian Royal. Royal proclaimed he not only had possession of Instinct's son, the genetic template for the Mutagen monsters; each with the power to negate the metagene of any metahuman they encountered. He also said Conqueror was nearing his arrival, wondering if the GDF would decide to stop the Mutagen army or stop the asteroid before it reached Earth.
With a choice needing to be made soon, the heroes had one final trip to make. Dominion had requested their presence with a plan to stop Conqueror. He revealed the creation of Doomsday was to defeat Conqueror should he actually arrive on Earth. He left the GDF with the option to release himself from Vanguard custody in order to use Doomsday to stop Conqueror.
GDF: Phase 2 - Age of Overseer
Coming soon Late 2023
Allies & Enemies
Allies
Enemies
The Beacon
The Beacon is the name of the orbiting base of the Global Defense Force. A large number of technicians are employed to manage the regular maintenance necessary to keep the Beacon functional. Due to destruction of the original base by the Doom Society in 2012, security has been heightened greatly on the Beacon; members of the Global Defense Force are given communicators that allow them to access the teleportation network set up by AVI to allow them access to the base from any location. Those allied with the Global Defense Force are also granted clearance to access the base.
Base Layout
Room Descriptions
The Hall of Heroes
The Hall of Heroes was constructed on the site where the Global Defense Force and their allies had their final, climactic battle, with the alien warlord Conqueror. Initially built to serve as a memorial honoring all the heroes lost in not only that battle itself but also the various Foundation-aligned plots directly preceding, the GDF also utilize the Hall as their secondary base of operations on Earth.
Base Layout
Room Descriptions
Team Members
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|---|---|---|
| Founder Starforge | ||
| Team Leaders Arsenal • Farside | ||
| Global Defenders Antivenom • Fort • Homefront • Shadeknight • Shadowbat • Silver Twilight | ||
| Defenders Afterglow • Arvo • Ash Maiden • Botanica • Cloudkeeper • Cymone • Dragonstrike • Ever Star • Farwalker • Jaeger Mistmourne • Moonbeam • Nightborn • Psychic Fox • The Silversaint • Spinosaurus Wrecks • Steel Shield • Wind-Rider | ||
| Members All Muscle • Aria Sound • Expert • Gloombug • Godspark • Gridiron Goliath • Mass Impact • Moonlight Medallion Mr. Blank • Nova Starstorm • Pulson • Radiotracer • Sir Winter • Universal Knight • Will o' the Wisps | ||
| Reserve Members Blue Icon • Bolty • Chimera Girl • Lumix • Nebuleia • Ultrastar | ||