MOON KNIGHT
“I dress up as an obscure moon-god and strike fear in the hearts of men. Did you really think I was normal? Do you really think that any of us... any of the costumes are normal? We're all crazy. But we're the exact kind of crazy the world needs. The exact kind.”
Marc Spector // Steven Grant // Jake Lockley
A G E
39
A L I G N M E N T
Walking the Line
A F F I L I A T I O N
United States Armed Forces
CIA
P R O F E S S I O N
Entrepreneur
Commando
Mercenary
Detective
Vigilante
Spy
O R I G I N
◉◉◉◉ EARLY LIFE & CAREER 1977-2001
Marc Spector was born in New York City in 1977 to a small relatively mundane Jewish family that had settled in the United States two generations prior when Marc’s grandfather escaped persecution in Germany during the onset of World War II. Marc grew up living in the cynical eighties raised in a single parent household following his mother’s death to cancer in 1984 when he was seven years old and his brother, Randall Spector was five years old. Marc refused to listen to his father and saw himself as an unruly youth— though in reality it was grief and angst that he couldn’t cope with. When he was a teenager Marc joined a underground fight ring where he became a prize fighter until one day his father interrupted a fight to which Marc and him came to blows. It would be there in that ring that Marc and his father, Elias, settled their differences in the only way the men knew how: fighting.
Marc joined the military right out of his senior year of High School in 1995— after several tours of duty he was approached by Amos Lardner, an agent of the CIA, with an offer to utilize Marc’s brilliance beyond simple firefights overseas that could be filled by someone with lesser aptitude scores and utility in the field. Over the next several years he found himself coming into his own as a CIA agent and realized just what Agent Lardner meant with applying his efforts with the organization as opposed to the armed forces. Marc was talented, perceptive, astute, and ingenious in his efforts of infiltrating and sabotaging the efforts of his enemies before vanishing like a spectre of the night. However, as things would come out Spector became distanced from the CIA after discovering that the operations were not as “saintly” as he was led to believe. Not willing to cause a stink about his issues, he received a proper dismissal using the proper channels before opting out to try out mercenary work instead.
However, Mercenary Work was evidently worse than Marc’s time in the CIA. As much was evident when the man who hired Marc, Raoul Bushman, was a French Algerian terrorist in all but name and the price for Marc’s employment became the price of Marc’s soul. Upon trying to justify his actions working with Bushman, Marc came upon his current assignment when Bushman ordered the pillaging of an unearthed ruin that was being excavated and explored by renowned archaeologist, Professor Peter Alraune. Bushman was met with resistance by Alurane and order his men to kill everyone and loot the remains. With his conscience catching up with him Marc rejected the order and tried to save the life of Professor Alraune. Although grateful, the professor had taken a few shots from assault rifle fire and realized he was on his last legs. He had Marc promise to protect his daughter from harm and gave him her location. However, while successful Marc had taken several bullets and if not for the intervention of the professor’s daughter (she was a academically-trained surgeon) Marc would’ve probably died in the sand-covered ruin. But he didn’t— waking up alongside the statue of Khonshu he found himself with a new purpose and after receiving a revelation from his near-death state he snagged a white cloak off the statue of Khonshu and began hunting down Bushman’s thugs one by one until Bushman was forced to retreat.
◉◉◉◉ THE CRESCENT CRUSADER 2002-2015
Following his revelations in Africa, Marc Spector had realized that he needed to return to New York City to pursue his quest for redemption and solace. The horrors he had done working for Raoul Bushman alongside many others had made him convinced that he had to repent for the sins he was responsible for. Professor Alraune’s daughter, Marlene, accompanied him back to the United States viewing her father’s death as the last straw in keeping her in Africa though she couldn’t help but admit she had begun to harbor strong feelings for the disjointed former mercenary. However, surviving the ordeal as well as reflecting on his life in the military left Marc disjointed and fractured— the death of his brother by his own hands, countless operations overseas that the government brainwashed him into seeing as rightful, his actions as a mercenary, and other such things had unhinged him from his state of mind. Believing to be the Avatar of Khonshu after convincing himself he was chosen by the god to do his work distanced Marc from many of his former comrades but unbeknownst to them not only was it helping him from falling to pieces it was also very much real.
Alongside Khonshu, at first the only allies Marc had at his disposal were his pilot (Jean-Paul “Frenchie” DuChamp) and Marlene Alraune. Utilizing his fortune gained as a mercenary as well as Marlene’s settlement from the death of her former husband, Eric Fontaine, to create the start of his crusade to purge darkness from his city of birth as well as redeem himself in what would be a long and tiring spiritual journey. Marlene’s utter support for Marc was surprising at first but he trusted her as she had been the one who had brought her to Khonshu instead of allowing him to die in the desert ruins. Believing that his former name was “sullied” by his misdeeds he created the new identity of Steven Grant using his connections in the CIA to authenticate it with some legitimacy. But it wouldn’t be until the development of his alias, Moon Knight, that things would truly begin to take shape.
Enhanced by Khonshu, Marc would begin seeing his powers as Moon Knight fully develop— this included but was not limited to protection from evil, the gift of healing, the cloak of the moon, and on occasion prophetic visions that drove Marc continuously further into delusion-induced mania. He became obsessed with stopping the crimes and horrors he saw and knew it was Khonshu’s truest will that he would protect others in his name. His dialogue began to shift into cryptic quips and paladin-esque righteousness; a fact that the criminals of New York City soon found frightening as he began to descend upon them with the wrath of a god behind him. Moon Knight was brutal and ruthless; a reputation that would be cemented when his vigilantism led to Detective William Flint investigating his efforts. Marc could not imagine Detective Flint would become his first ally in New York City, but eventually it was realized to be true when Flint sought out Moon Knight asking for his help with a series of “freak homicides”. Marc agreed.
As Marc began his career investigating these homicides and stopping petty crime where he could, he realized that he needed to be more equipped to which that he was eventually pointed in the direction of a former Stark Industries weapons designer by the name of Buck Lime. After a series of cases crossing over and Lime seeing the good in Moon Knight’s actions he agreed to help design and develop equipment for him as long as their interests aligned. A friendship between the two would take many years to develop but in the beginning the foundation of obligations and threats were how their relationship began. It would be also with Lime’s help that Marc would more accessibly be able to use his natural deductive abilities and tactics he developed as a CIA agent for Khonshu’s benefit and by extension New York City’s as well. Thus it was here that Marc continued to explore the cases the NYPD needed his and Khonshu’s help in providing answers to. Everything from vampires to werewolves to cultists to peculiar serial killers fell in as Moon Knight’s very first foes and he eagerly contended with them with the zeal that was required of him. It was in these actions that investigative journalists began reporting on what they called “The Crescent Crusader”; a fine nickname to fit a servant of Khonshu.
However as the years got more challenging, so did his foes.
◉◉◉◉ SHADOWS OF THE MOON 2015-
In the years since Moon Knight has remained an elusive yet necessary piece of New York City. He’s dealt with supervillains, criminal syndicates, supernatural beasts, mystical foes, and corrupt businessmen. He has made many enemies, few allies, and continues to do what he does best in the shadows of the moon. His friendship with Marlene has blossomed into a romantic relationship despite his best efforts to distance her from his madness and zealous crusade; but alongside his small crew he has grown fond of the blonde-haired surgeon as much is clear as the two have produced a daughter named Jessica some years ago. Marc constantly fears for the well-being of his daughter and romantic partner, but Khonshu has not willed his quest to be over nor would Marc accept such a conclusion when the world is facing itself in its darkest hour.
As there is always darkness outside of the presence of moonlight, Marc prepares himself for what lies ahead.
T A L E N T S
Enhanced Physiology: Supposedly enchanted by Khonshu, Marc has an array of abilities that include— accelerated healing, supernatural effects of fear upon his enemies, dark vision, partial invisibility when concealed in darkness, and occasional prophetic visions.
Hand-to-Hand Combat: Marc Spector has been described as a master martial artist with a range of comprehension of forms such as boxing, judo, savate, krav maga, and jiujutsu. His knowledge is so expansive that his enemies have witnessed firsthand how brutal and precise he can be in combat— whilst Marc is not unrivaled in his mastery of martial arts and reactive combat he is certainly in one of the highest tiers present.
Investigation: As a former agent of the CIA, Marc has learned the tricks of the trade when it comes to information gathering and reacting swiftly with the analysis of that information. He’s an excellent investigator, detective, and reactive fighter due to such skills and considering he utilizes them every single day it is no surprise he is one of the premier investigative superheroes on the planet.
Marksman: Marc Spector is a former soldier, spy, and mercenary thus it is no surprise that he holds a particular set of skills that lends to mastery with firearms. It is not a far belief to say that he has mastered the usage of assault rifles, handguns, and submachine guns with competency in other forms of firearms. Although he does not rely on such things as Moon Knight on a regular basis he reminds people just because he doesn’t use something doesn’t mean he is unable to.
Peak Human Conditioning: Due to a selective diet, constant training, and rigorous crusades upon his enemies Marc’s body is in a state of peak fitness where he is stronger, faster, and quicker than the average human.
Stealth: The CIA didn’t only teach Marc to be skilled at information gathering but also infiltration and espionage. Even with Khonshu’s blessing there is little argument that Marc is as silent as it comes unless he wants to be heard. He has snuck up on many enemies and allies with little-to-no effort in several situations.
A R C S
A Crescent Moon — Lynn James, the leader behind the powerful criminal syndicate known as “The Committee” in New York City’s underworld comes into conflict with Moon Knight as he begins to unravel their operations thus forcing them to act proactively given the Lunar Legionares tendency to drive crime out of the city in the past. Using her money as an affluent socialite, Lynn James hires out a discreet contract to the criminals of the world. One Million Dollars if they can kill Moon Knight.
Knightmare in New York – Returning to one of his favorite pastimes, a supernatural epidemic fills the streets of New York as a lingering creature dwells in the sewers preying on civilians. Moon Knight grabs his silver cestus and prepares to get to work; but this supernatural effect might rely on a little more help than Moon Knight is used to having.
), I've always been a fan of Gentlemen Agreements. They allow us not to waste our precious time writing character sheets that we might not use. No one likes seeing people butt hurt about their application not being picked (especially the GM). ;)