Midnight Squad

Overview

A team of mystics, magicians, and scholars, the Midnight Squad originally banded together in 1933 to defend Paragon City from evil occultists like the Circle of Thorns. Unlike other hero organizations, the Midnight Squad typically operates in secrecy and shadow.

History

Unlike many of the other hero organizations that have blossomed and then faded in Paragon City's past, the Midnight Squad has endured in one form or another since the 1920's. This amazing record of success stems entirely from the fact that the Squad has never been a formal team of heroes like the Freedom Phalanx or Dawn Patrol. Instead it is more like a very exclusive private club, the only requirement for which is that you know a great deal about magic and the occult. Members come and go, but the club remains.

The group originally started as a sort of reading and study group for paranormal investigators in the 1920's. Many of the original members had respectable jobs as professors, historians, museum curators, and scientists. They could not be seen publicly meeting and discussing controversial subjects like demons, magic, ghosts, and spirit worlds. So they met in secret, often late at night in the home of one of their many wealthy patrons and members. Their goal was to gather and digest as much information as they could about the occult, cutting through all of the superstition and lies to reveal the inner truths of the magical world (if indeed there were any).

The group was catapulted into the ranks of hero organizations in 1933 when a mysterious sorcerer who called himself the Dream Doctor approached them. The good doctor was well aware of the secret meetings, although the group's members were not aware of him. A powerful magician in his own right, the Dream Doctor's magical powers came naturally to him. He was not well versed in the history and traditions of the occult. He had come into conflict with a group of evil sorcerers called the Circle of Thorns and he needed help. He paid a visit to one of the private club's midnight meetings and asked for their assistance.

The academics in the group had never thought of themselves as heroes, but they were shocked and horrified at the Dream Doctor's descriptions of the foul Circle of Thorns. The group agreed to help, and many of them were actually quite excited at the prospect. One of the members came up with the name Midnight Squad, inspired by their late night meetings. A few of the members even went so far as to make costumes and wear masks. The group joined the Dream Doctor and helped defeat the Circle of Thorns, at least in part. Thus an ongoing war between the Midnight Squad and the Circle of Thorns began, and continued to be waged for decades to come.

Over the years the Midnight Squad has gone through hundreds of members and many incarnations. For a time in the sixties and seventies its members wore tights and masks and fought like traditional super powered heroes, using magic instead of mutations. But ever since the 1980's the group has become less and less public. In the world of magic it is a very risky thing to let your enemies know too many details about you. Far better to operate in the shadows and keep your presence hidden from prying eyes. By the early nineties the group had largely faded from public life, although it still remained quite active in the war on evil.

During the Rikti War, the Midnight Squad played a tremendously important role, but they also paid an awful price. The Rikti advanced technology was quite vulnerable to mystic assault, and the alien invaders soon realized this weakness. As they fought both the Circle of Thorns and the Midnight Squad they became determined to both learn more about magic and also neutralize its threat. The Midnight Squad became a prime target for Rikti assassins, and the group's main headquarters was destroyed in a fusion bomb blast. Many of its more heroic sorcerers were captured in battle and are still missing to this day, presumed dead.

Today the Midnight Squad is but a shadow of its former self. There are few true heroes left in the organization. All that survives is the knowledge base the group has acquired over the decades. It's much more a research resource than an organization fit to fight. The few remaining members guard their collections of tomes and relics feverishly, fearful of letting their last bit of power slip through their fingers. They're more than willing to help other heroes take up the burden of direct conflict with evil powers, but they have no courage for battle themselves. A few of the members have taken to actually mentoring young heroes interested in using magic to fight evil, but even they do so with care, making sure they don't expose themselves to any of the many dangers they see lurking around every corner. In a way the group has come full circle, reverting back to its origins as a group for academics and occultists who pursue and process knowledge and then give it to others to do good with.

Roster

• Ashley McKnight
• Tammy Arcanus, aka Numina
• Tommy Arcanus
• Montague Castanella
• Percy Winkley
• Ross Coldwell, aka Darkvine (deceased)
• John Knox, aka Crimson Fist

Researchers

The following people have done research for the Midnight Squad.

• Buck Salinger
  • Status: Contact in Croatoa
• Edgar Torvald
  • Status: Murdered by the Circle of Thorns
• Hinckley Rasmussen
  • Status: Contact in Talos Island
• Nathan Crane
  • Status: Murdered by the Carnival of Shadows