[PC] Pacific Championship Wrestling [Faux-80s OC Promotion]

(various wrestlers use NJPW Collab DLC Elements)

Founded in the early 1960s, Pacific Championship Wrestling spent its first two decades as a relatively mundane promotion and member of “the territories”. However the early 80s have seen the territory system beginning to collapse with several territories falling into bankrupcy due to the financial crisis of the turn of the decade and the rise of the independent Spike Wrestling Association, which has stolen leading talent from many promotions and pushed its product nationwide with a new style of wrestling focused heavily on TV.

Hoping to survive, PCW has been forced to reinvent itself to compete against the SWA by upping their own production values, hiring new talent, and expanding its presence outside its original territory with more frequent shows in a wider area, as well as securing a number of TV deals on the west coast. All of this has come at a substantial capital investment cost and the promotion now finds itself in “Do or Die” conditions, only a few poor months away from ruin.



Victor Adonis
Nickname: The Bronze Adonis
Finisher: The Jackhammer
Notable Signature: The Bronze Biceps



Current holder of the PCW Heavyweight Championship belt. Known as the Bronze Adonis for his deep tan, toned muscles, and chiseled good looks, Vic Adonis is the biggest star on the promotion’s roster and a veteran of the company. Vic has defended his title for nearly a full year now, delighting fans with his confident (some say arrogant) performances, crushing opponents with repeated “Bronze Bicep” lariat attacks. 


Ken Tarrow
Nickname: GOLDEN
Finisher: The GOLDEN Gate Bridge



A rich kid from San Francisco, two years ago Ken Tarrow plundered his trust fund to buy the best physical trainers and wrestling lessons money can buy. Arriving in late ‘83 just in time to be part of PCW’s big push, Ken has shot to the top of the card thanks to a mixture of good performances, attitude, and, if rumors are true, bribery. Craving the approval of the masses, this golden boy finds himself frustrated by the fact the common fan has no interest in some rich brat after the economic hardships of only a few years ago. Hoping to change that, Ken has now set his eyes on the ultimate GOLDEN prize, the PCW Championship belt!

(Ken’s name and parts of his theme are based on the Japanese folklore Goldenboy “Kintaro”, also known as Sasaki Kintoki)


SKYHAWK
Finisher: Hawksault (Moonsault Neckbreaker Drop)
Notable Signature: One Legged Missile Kick



A masked wrestler from Japan, in late ‘82 Skyhawk exploded onto the PCW scene out of nowhere when he took apart infamous hoss monster Hugo Bollinger in less than ten minutes. Instantly popular afterwards, Skyhawk has been a staple of the upper half of the card since, with many fan attempts ascertain or guess his identity, as no one has seen him without his signature mask. Despite being classed as a Junior Heavyweight, the taciturn masked wrestler held the PCW Heavyweight Championship Belt for three months before losing a title match against Vic Adonis.

(Skyhawk has his origin in a character I played in a short lived World Wide Wrestling RPG tabletop game, where he was a young wrestler struggling to escape a series of gimmick masked jobber roles, with Skyhawk being just the latest in a series of repackages across a few different promotions)


Sergeant Steele
Nickname: One Man Battalion
Finisher: Jumping Piledriver
Notable Signature: Cobra Clutch Backbreaker



Before going on to SWA stardom in the 90s, Steele Johnson first made a name for himself in the territories, spending several years with PCW in the mid 80s after being honorably discharged from the army. Six months ago Steele capitalized on his background, trading his black singlet for a more military look and taking on the moniker of “Sergeant”. In addition, a few recent tag matches with Howitzer Reynolds have fans clamoring for an official team up for a shot at the PCW Tag Belt.

(This is basically my take on a younger Steel Johnson from the default SWA roster, unfortunately I misremembered his birth year as 1959, its actually 1969, meaning he’d only be 16 in 1985, whoops!)


Skullcrusher Jack
Nickname: Cranium Destroyer
Finisher: The Skullcrusher DDT (Dangerous DDT)
Notable Signature: Skullcrush Rush (Mount Headbutt)



A PCW standby since the mid 70s, Jack Barton’s gimmick is classic heel behavior enhanced by a aggressive emphasis on repeated blows to his opponent’s head, often using his own head as a weapon. Often seen as the gatekeeper to the top for an aspiring midcard heel. Jack has come under fire from fans and officials alike after his signature Skullcrusher DDT left fan favorite Matt “Matte Black” Emerid seriously injured late last year and unable to compete for some time, with some calling for the move to be banned.


Quick Hank
Nickname: Irish Lightning
Finisher: Backflip DDT (Destino)



Hank Brogan first made a name for himself alongside his older brother, Sean Brogan on the British wrestling scene. However the brotherly tag-team came to an end in March, 1982 when Sean Brogan was killed in a drunk driving incident. Swearing sobriety, Hank left the UK behind and joined PCW in late ‘82, where his charm and fast-paced aggression has earned the Junior Heavyweight a good number of fans. Despite his frequently heelish fighting style and past clashes with Skyhawk, Hank has recently been seen more as a face due to his ongoing feud with fellow Junior Travis Dawson. A feud which started when Hank flew into a rage during a joint promo where Travis made a number of whiskey related jokes about his late brother.


Howard Reynolds
Nickname: Howitzer
Finisher: Three Rounds Rapid (Triple German Suplexes)
Notable Signatures: Lots of Elbows



A native of Rock Island, Illinois. Howitzer Reynolds earned his nickname due both thanks to his powerful elbow drops and his hometown’s fame for producing military armaments. A mainstay of the upper half of the card, Reynolds held the PCW Title belt for a couple brief months in ‘84 before losing it to Skyhawk. Since then he has slumped a bit, but a couple recent teamups with Sergeant Steele Johnson thanks to his vague military theme connections has fans hoping to see “The Gunners” become an official team up.

(In the WWWRPG game I played, everyone was asked to think up a wrestler to help fill the NPC roster, Howitzer Reynolds is the one I made, so I brought him over to FPWW alongside Skyhawk)


Paul Hisuna
Nickname: The Veteran
Finisher: Death Valley Bomb



A Japanese-American native to California, Paul Hisuna has been with PCW for over a decade, with the exception of a brief and unsuccessful promotional stint in Japan in 1980. A two-time holder of the PCW Championship belt, Hisuna remained a crowd favorite for years thanks to his consistent performance. However his habit of avoiding the dramatics and focusing on the actual art of wrestling has recently caused him to lose some ground in popularity as PCW makes a push towards bigger audiences and a wider reach.


Johnny Sheers
Nickname: Blaster
Finisher: The Final Bomb (Vertical Fire Powerbomb)



Johnny’s the match you watch if you wanna watch bodies hit the mat. With an arsenal of moves focused on demolishing his opponent’s back with repeated slams, announcers have occasionally joked he must be the world’s worst chiropractor. Aside from his fighting style, Sheers is otherwise unremarkable and somewhat lacking charisma. He has been sitting solidly in the midcard since early ‘84 when he lost a title shot against Vic Adonis. Many think the Blaster is in danger of getting lost in the shuffle as PCW brings on newer, flashier talent.


Satoshi Yasuda
Nickname: The Blue Maximum
Finisher: Blue Buster (Modified Side Buster)



One of several new talents brought on last year, Satoshi is a young rookie trained by one of Japan’s leading promotions. Having come to America to hone his talents, the young heavyweight has evolved rapidly in the last year, both in technique and in his appearance (as well as English skills). Having rapidly climbed to the upper half of the card, many fans feel it is only a matter of time before he’s given a shot at the title belt.

(Yasuda is basically my character from the NJPW Fighting Road DLC, albeit with some modifications and significant toning down)



Travis Dawson
Nickname: Neon Punk
Finisher: Wheeee! (Jawbreaker to Flying Rollup Pin)



This young Junior spent his first year with the company languishing at the bottom of the card. Then in early ‘83 he cut his hair and traded his simple trunks in for a mohawk and a variety of patterned tights, both colored in eye searing neon colors. His recent mockery of Quick Hank earned the young heel not only a broken nose and a few weeks out on injury, but his first taste at the center stage, and now he’s looking not only for revenge, but a permanent place in the spotlight.


Mathis Archambault
Nickname: French Fighter
Finisher: Time Bomb



Despite the name, PCW hasn’t hesitated to pick up talent originating from well beyond their namesake ocean. This midcard regular spent several years on the English and European wrestling scene before coming over to the states. With a wrestling style that mixes in savate kicks, Mathis has put on some impressive performances, but has yet to find much popularity with the PCW fanbase.


The Lowcard Group:
Troy Burnett, Marcus Stillman, Roy Wilson, Leon Young



These four young wrestlers represent some of the latest rookie talent PCW has brought on board in the last year, both for the purposes of filling out the lowcard and hopefully discovering a diamond in the rough. Troy and Marcus have managed to generate some buzz in recent appearances, but all four will have to work hard if they hope to impress and work their way up the card.