Dragons & Jetpacks discussion
Challenges
>
2026 Hero Challenge: Suicide Squad vs Thunderbolts
date
newest »
newest »
Mod
Amanda Waller
1. Widow- read a book where a major character is a widow or widower, where someone loses a spouse during the story, or with a widow on the cover or “widow” in the title.
2. Master Manipulator- read a book where a major character is noted for being ruthless or manipulating others, where someone has a ruthless plan that involves deceiving or using others, or with someone who is highly skilled at making plans on the cover.
3. I’m From the Government- read a book where a major character works for a government, where someone has an important position with a lot of influence, or with an influential person on the cover.
Rick Flag
1. Special Forces- read a book where a major character is some kind of elite soldier, where Special Forces of some kind play a part in the story, or with any kind of elite soldier on the cover.
2. Family Legacy- read a book where a child follows the same career as a parent, where tradition is important, or with a parent and child on the cover.
3. Brainwashed- read a book where someone is brainwashed, where someone assumes a false identity, or with a brainwashed person, or someone being brainwashed on the cover, or “Brain” or “Washed” in the title.
Nightshade
1. Not From Around Here- read a book that features an alternate Earth, where at least one major scene is on a different version of Earth, or with more than one Earth on the cover.
2. Teleport- read a book where someone can teleport, where teleportation is important to the story in some way, or with some kind of teleport happening on the cover, or “Night” in the title.
3. Undercover- read a book where a major character goes undercover for a period of time, where someone has to do something they are opposed to in order to preserve a lie, or with some kind of spy on the cover.
Deadshot
1. I Don’t Miss- read a book where a major character is a fantastic marksman with any ranged weapon, where aim is important to the story in some way, or with a target of any kind on the cover.
2. Smoker- read a book where a major character smokes, where smoking is important to the story in some way, or with someone smoking on the cover or “smoke” in the title.
3. “It’s not a death wish!”- read a book where a major character doesn’t care if they live or die, where someone takes a really big risk, or with “wish” in the title or a psychiatrist on the cover.
Captain Boomerang
1. The Land Down Under- read a book where a major character is from Australia, where at least one important scene is set in Australia, or with something Australian on the cover.
2. The Rogues- read a book where someone is a member of a gang, where a gang is important to the story, or with a gang member on the cover or “gang” in the title.
3. Racist- read a book where a major character is racist, where racism is important to the story, or with a racist on the cover.
Bronze Tiger
1. Top Tier Fighter- read a book where a major character is a highly skilled fighter, where someone fights in some kind of tournament, or with a martial artist of some kind on the cover.
2. League of Assassins- read a book where a major character is an assassin, where an assassination or attempted assassination is important to the story, or with some kind of assassin or assassination on the cover.
3. Sensei- read a book where a major character is a teacher, where teaching or learning is important to the story, or with a teacher on the cover.
Atom
1. Clothes make the Man- read a book where a major character gets some kind of power from something he or she wears, where some kind of device is important to the story, or with someone in a suit on the cover.
2. Secret Weapon- read a book where someone has some kind of secret they hide from people that are close to them, where secrets are important to the story, or with someone whispering on the cover or “secret” in the title.
3. Revenge- read a book where a major character wants revenge, where revenge is important to the story, or with someone getting revenge on the cover or “revenge” or “vengeance” in the title.
Duchess
1. Amnesia- read a book where someone loses their memory, where memory is important to the story, or with someone with memory problems on the cover, or either “memory,” “amnesia,” or “forgot/forgotten” in the title.
2. Apokolips- read a book where someone spends a lot of time on a planet that isn’t their own, where someone travels from one planet to another, or with some kind of space travel on the cover.
3. Female Furies- read a book where a group or team has a definitive leader, where a leader leaves their team, or with only women (at least two) on the cover.
Enchantress
1. Artist- read a book where a major character is an artist, where art is important to the story, or with something artistic on the cover.
2. Split Personality- read a book where someone has at least two personalities, where someone is possessed, or with someone with more than one personality on the cover.
3. I Put a Spell On You- read a book where a major character can cast spells, where magic is important to the story, or someone with magical abilities on the cover.
Nemesis
1. Impostor!- read a book where someone pretends to be someone they aren’t, where an assumed identity is important to the plot, or with someone with a mask on the cover.
2. …have been greatly exaggerated- read a book where someone is believed to be dead but isn’t, where someone fakes their death/allows people to believe they are dead, or with an empty grave on the cover.
3. You Won’t Believe Who I’m Dating- read a book with an improbable couple as main characters, with an unlikely romance being important to the story, or with some kind of an “odd couple” on the cover.
Amy Beddoes
1. Red Hair- read a book where a major character has red hair, where hair color is important to the story in some way, or with a redhead on the cover or a mostly red cover.
2. In the Chair- read a book where a major character has some kind of physical disability, where someone loses the use of a limb in the story, or with a wheelchair on the cover.
3. Hacker Extraordinaire- read a book where a major character is highly skilled with computers, where computers or hacking are important to the story, or with a computer on the cover.
Ravan
1. Killer- read a book where a major character kills someone during the story or has killed people in the past, where killing someone is important to the story, or someone being killed on the cover.
2. Cult- read a book where someone belongs to a cult, where cults are important to the story, or a religious leader on the cover.
3. Terrorist- read a book where a terrorist is a major character, where terrorism is important to the story, or with a terrorist or terrorist act on the cover.
Mod
Citizen V
1. Swordsman- read a book where a major character is good with a sword, where swordsmanship is important, or with a sword on the cover.
2. Genius- read a book where a major character is highly intelligent, where intelligence (intellect, not spycraft) is important to the story, or with a smart person on the cover.
3. Leader- read a book where a group has a particular leader, where leadership is important to the story, or with a leader on the cover.
Hawkeye
1. Archer- read a book where a major character is a skilled archer, where archery is important to the story, or with a bow and/or arrow on the cover.
2. Carnie- read a book where an entertainer is a major character, where a performance is important to the story, or with a circus on the cover or “Circus” in the title.
3. Ex-Wife- read a book where a major character is divorced or getting divorced, where a character’s ex is important to the story, or with “ex” in the title or with someone’s ex on the cover.
Luke Cage
1. Framed- read a book where someone is set up for a crime they didn’t commit, where someone is wrongfully accused, or with “frame” in the title, or some kind of frame on the cover.
2. Danielle- read a book where a major character has a daughter, where someone is named in honor of someone else, or with a young girl on the cover.
3. Mr. Mayor- read a book where a major character is an elected official, where politics is important to the story, or with a politician on the cover.
Songbird
1. Runaway- read a book where a major character runs away from home, where running away from something is important to the story, or with some kind of runaway anything (kid, train, whatever) on the cover.
2. Former Criminal- read a book where a major character was a criminal and reformed, where someone has served prison time, or with a criminal or a jail cell on the cover.
3. Sonics- read a book where someone has sound related powers, where sound, sounds, or music is important to the story, or with something very loud on the cover.
Meteorite
1. Psychiatrist- read a book where a major character is a psychiatrist, where therapy is important to the story, or with a psychiatrist, patient, or asylum on the cover.
2. Stolen Power- read a book where something important is stolen, where someone loses a special power they once had, or with something glowing on the cover.
3. Matricide- read a book where a character kills their mother, where a mother is killed during the story, or with a dead mother or grave on the cover.
Atlas
1. Alias- read a book where someone takes someone else’s name, where someone impersonates another character, or with some kind of name tag or identification card on the cover.
2. Giant-size- read a book where something is absolutely huge, where something being big is important to the story, or with something very large on the cover.
3. Marine- read a book where a major character is in the armed forces, where someone abandons something they are supposed to be doing, or with someone in the armed forces on the cover.
Techno
1. Brilliant Inventor- read a book where a major character is an inventor, where inventions are important to the story, or with some kind of lab on the cover.
2. Man or Machine?- read a book where a major character has metallic body parts/cyborg implants, where cyborgs are important to the story in some way, or with someone who has any kind of artificial body part on the cover.
3. I Think I’m A Clone Now- read a book where there is at least one clone in the story, where cloning is important to the story, or with a clone on the cover or “Clone” in the title.
Mach-1
where armor is important to the story, or with someone in armor on the cover.
2. Master Mechanic- read a book where someone is a highly talented mechanic, where designing or repairing something is important to the story, or with a wrench or blueprints on the cover.
3. Head of Security- read a book where a character works in security, where security is important to the story, or with some kind of security personnel on the cover.
Jolt
1. Teenager- read a book where a teen is a major character, where teens are important to the story in some way, or with a teenager on the cover.
2. Orphaned- read a book where someone’s parents are killed in an accident or attack of some kind, where the loss of family is important, or with an orphan on the cover.
3. And… she’s Back!- read a book where someone comes back from the dead, where some kind of resurrection is important to the story, or with “resurrection” or “dead” in the title.
Skein
1. Clothes make the Woman- read a book where someone’s clothes are important to the story, where clothing in general is important, or with some kind of fashion model on the cover.
2. Mind over Matter, sorta- read a book where someone has telekinesis, where someone has a very small or limited power, or with an immigrant on the cover.
3. Well that’s distracting- read a book where someone wears revealing clothes, where a character is noted for their looks, or with someone in a very revealing outfit on the cover.
Speed Demon
1. Chemist- read a book where a major character is a chemist, where chemistry is important to the story, or with chemicals, a beaker, or a test tube on the cover.
2. Repeat Offender- read a book where someone gets a chance after committing a crime and then returns to a life of crime, where someone betrays their team, or with a criminal on the cover.
3. Super-Speed- read a book where a character moves very fast, where speed is important to the story, or with something fast on the cover.
Amazon
1. Olympian- read a book where a champion professional athlete is part of the story, where a major character is or was a professional athlete, or with some kind of sports event on the cover.
2. Debilitating Accident- read a book where someone survives a bad accident, where an accident is important to the story, or with some kind of accident on the cover or “accident” in the title.
3. Bartender- read a book where a major character is a
bartender, where an important scene takes place in a bar, or with a bar/saloon/tavern on the cover.
Mod
Darkseid Jan 1-Jan 31
1. Alien- read a book where a character goes to a planet that isn’t their native one, where something being alien is important to the story, or with any kind of alien on the cover.
2. Immortal- read a book where a character is immortal, or essentially so, where immortality is important to the story, or with someone very, very old on the cover.
3. Despot- read a book where a despot is in charge of a country or a planet, where someone rebels against an absolute ruler, or with any kind of tyrant on the cover.
Born Uxas of Apokoklips, he killed his own brother to get the throne, seized control of an ancient power called the Omega Force, and eventually became ruler of the planet. He has two sons, the monstrous Kalibak and the mighty Orion, who would later side with the forces of New Genesis against his monstrous father. He also arranged for the death of his mother, payback for her having his first love killed. Not content with his god-like power and rule of his native world, Darkseid constantly seeks more power and strives to become the supreme being in the universe. He has clashed with most of Earth’s major heroes, and lived long enough to threaten the Legion of Super Heroes in the 30th Century. His might is unquestioned, and his intellect is dangerously keen. He also rules an entire planet, including may vastly powerful henchmen and underlings. One could argue, taking all that into account, that Darkseid is one of, if not the, most powerful being in the DC Universe. It also been hinted that he is so singular that throughout the multiverse, there is only one Darkseid. His powers include immortality and vastly superior strength, stamina, speed, durability, and invulnerability; he has fought Superman in single combat and beaten him. The Omega beams he fires from his eyes can utterly obliterate what they strike, or resurrect beings killed by that power. He can teleport through time and space, grow to immense size, and possesses both telepathy and telekinesis. Darkseid is a fully trained warrior, versed in armed and unarmed combat, and has access to his world’s advanced technology. He rules over many powerful beings, and has an army of parademons at his beck and call. Darkseid has appeared in many cartoons, video games, and various live action shows and movies.
Mod
Suicide Squad
Christina
Fannie
Shawnie
Melaine
Thunderbolts
Milou
Audrey
Vinca
Haley
Mod
Signing Bonus to Christina for being the first to sign up
I am in! Suicide Squad please!
Mod
Mod
Your secret identity is Melaine.
Mod
Ends: 12/31/2026
Continuing the tradition started by Mpauli, I present the DC; Suicide Squad vs. Marvel: Thunderbolts superhero reading challenge.
Players are welcome to join in whenever they want during the year, as long as the event is running.
Note: I am, first and foremost, a comic book fan. If there’s a difference between the comic book version of a character and the cartoon/tv/movie version, I’ll pretty much always use the original, comic book one (there are very few exceptions to characters being in the comics first. Oddly, most of them are female).
Rules:
-Each player decides, if he or she wants to compete for the DC or Marvel team.
- DC players are trying to complete the DC roster challenge, Marvel players trying to complete the Marvel roster challenge.
-There are going to be 12 characters on each roster, each represented by 3 challenges based on that character’s traits and powers. A bio for each character will be posted the first time that character is completed.
-For each trait challenge you're able to complete, your team is awarded 1 point.
-If you manage to complete all three trait challenges you "recruit" that character completely, which is awarded with 3 additional points.
-With 12 characters and 3 trait challenges per character, you need to read 36 books for the maximum of 72 points from the recruitment part of the challenge.
-The books for the recruitment challenge can be read at any point during 2026.
-Each book can only count toward one trait challenge, so you can't complete multiple challenges by just reading one book, even if the book would technically qualify for more than one challenge.
-For a book to count, it should have at least 100 pages. Graphic Novels do not count for the challenge.
-In addition to the main recruitment part, each month a supervillain will be revealed. Like the heroes, each villain will have 3 trait challenges. For each completed challenge you're rewarded with 1 point, if you manage to "beat" the villain by completing all 3 related challenges, you're awarded with an additional 3 points.
-Villains will only be active for one month each and you can't score from their challenges afterwards. But of course you can complete them for fun.
-Villains should be revealed at least 2-3 days before the end of the month (I try to aim for 5), so you get a little bit of time ahead to think about potential books to beat them.
-IMPORTANT: The books required for the villain challenges have to be read completely within the timeframe the villain is active. A book started 2 days prior the villain goes active can't be counted for the challenge.
-Beating each villain within the given amount of time would result in an additional maximum of 72 points you're able to earn for your team.
-IMPORTANT: To be able to keep up the score, it would great, if you could use a new post for each new book read, maybe like this: book link/character name/challenge name/number of challenges completed for that character:
Example: Dune/Captain America/Shield Toss/2 of 3
Of course you can additionally use a huge post, where you can schedule your books for all the challenges.
And it would be extremely helpful, if you would write "x recruited" within the post you completed the final trait challenge for a hero, or "x defeated" respectively for beating a villain.
- Portal Heroes:
Both teams are trying to recruit help for their teams and are trying to open portals to other comic universes to recruit heroes from there.
That means that we will have 6 additional heroes this year. But to be able to score from them, they need to be brought through the portal by the teams.
How does that work? Every time a player reads one of the Dragons & Jetpacks Books of the Month, this book counts towards an "Energy Cell" counter for his team. After the counter (30 for the first portal) is filled the team can unlock 1 of the 6 outer-dimensional heroes. After the decision is made, the hero belongs either to the DC or Marvel team and can't be unlocked by the other side. When the second team opens a portal, they choose from the remaining 5 heroes.
-For the portal heroes, only books count that are read after the time the hero was unlocked, so if a hero is unlocked in April, you can't use books read prior to that date.
By popular demand, in addition to Books of the Month, Mod Specials can also count towards Portal Heroes.
-After we see how fast the teams manage to open the first portal, the amount of Energy Cells needed to open the second portal might be adjusted to a lower or higher number.
-It is up to the players to decide when they read a BOTM, if they want to have it count towards a normal challenge or as an energy cell. Please include that information in your posts
By popular demand, a mystery Portal Hero will be revealed to the first team to hit 100 Energy Cells.
Various Bonus Heroes will be revealed throughout the year, with assorted special timeframes. They usually center around holidays or seasons.
-So, that's how you can play. I hope you're going to enjoy this challenge. :)
A reminder, it’s always helpful if you specify a character is defeated when you get there, which team you’re on, and, if it’s a BOTM, whether you’re using it for an Energy Cell or a slot in the challenge.
That said, have fun. Go forth and read.
For those unfamiliar with the teams in question:
The Suicide Squad, from DC Comics, had had several different incarnations. The original first appeared in 1959, during the largely hero-less era of comics, and was a sort of Mission Impossible style group of various military and civilian personnel trying to accomplish very difficult missions. The more modern, better known version debuted in the Legends miniseries in 1987, on the heels of the multiverse-shaking Crisis on Infinite Earths. The new version, which went through a lot of behind the scenes changes, was part of the secret government agency Task Force X, and was run by Amanda Waller. With a few designated heroes or good guys supervising, the Squad consisted of various supervillains who had been captured. They were offered a chance for reduced sentences in exchange for performing secret missions for the government. If they survived, and many didn’t, they got time off and/or other privileges. Initially written by John Ostrander, the book excelled at surprising twists and character development. The team got popular enough to make many appearances outside their own title, and at times, even in tv shows, movies, cartoons, and video games. They membership has undergone many changes over the years, but the central concept hasn’t really changed since the 80’s.
The Thunderbolts were a brilliant idea that probably couldn’t be done in today’s world. In the time before social media, it was a lot easier to keep secrets. During the “Heroes Reborn” storyline, when many of Marvel’s major heroes were missing and believed dead, a new group showed up to start picking up the slack. This group, the Thunderbolts, were led by the mysterious Citizen V, a name going back decades in different incarnations. What was eventually revealed, in a shocking moment that took almost all fans by surprise, was that these new heroes were, in fact, a new version of the Masters of Evil with new costumes and codenames, who were striving for access to the files and equipment left behind by the disappearance of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four, among others. Later, some of the team rebelled against their leader, the disguised Baron Zemo II, and actually made an effort to reform. The Thunderbolts have had many different versions over the years, from outsiders trying to better themselves to convicts taking on missions for the government (gee, that sounds familiar). Members and even leaders have come and gone, but they are often a fairly unpredictable wild card in the wider Marvel Universe. The movie released in early 2025 had virtually nothing to do with the comics version, in either mission or membership.