Advance Guard

Advance Guard were a hero team active after Gold Morning.

Methods and Goals

Advance Guard were known as an "icon" group, meaning that they were one of the hero teams that also pushed an agenda in the civilian sphere.<ref name="II1.8e1"> Some capes were taking on roles as icons and iconoclasts for the various movements in the civilian sectors. Four hero teams led the ‘icon’ groups. Advance Guard, Foresight, the Shepherds and the Attendant.

The first two were aimed at pushing forward. New approaches, doing things right this time. The opinions on what that way forward looked like it differed, feeding into the division between the two groups. - excerpt from Daybreak 1.8</ref>

Specifically, Advance Guard's ideology focused on moving forward and new approaches, leaving behind the mistakes of the old world.<ref name="II1.8e1"/><ref name="II1.1e1"/> Their views on what this new world should look like differed from the other notable "progressive" icon team, Foresight.<ref name="II1.8e1"/>

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Illustration by MugaSofer based on one by Wildbow.<ref name="WoG1"/>

Advance Guard cooperated with police, sometimes using mover powers to increase their response times.<ref>I watched him glance over the small crowd, looking for the person who had spoken. He kept looking out for the speaker as he told us, “There’s some police on their way. With all the reconstruction and the lower priority, they’re trying to get through the traffic right now.” - excerpt from Daybreak 1.1</ref> This tied into their larger strategy of fast strikes against an enemy to overwhelm them.<ref name="5.2 e3">“They’re money hungry, with fancy costumes and nice facilities. I’ve had pretty mixed reactions dealing with them, too.”

Tristan frowned. “Okay. I’m bothered they’re just marching in here. Assuming it’s not a trap, what’s even their plan?
[...]
They’re good,” Tristan said. “And there’s a lot of them.”

“But they’re aggressive. Their usual M.O. is to blitz a target,” I pointed out.

“Not out of the question here,” Tristan said. - Excerpt from Shadow 5.2</ref>

Symbol

Advance Guard members generally wore the team's symbol worked into the sleeve or breast of their costumes; a stylized person wielding a shield shaped like a ">" symbol.<ref name="II1.1e1">I caught a glimpse of the emblem on his sleeve. A badge, not a personal symbol or icon, but part of the team he belonged to. Advance Guard. They were a team with an agenda to push. The world had ended, and they were pushing hard for a better and different tomorrow.

I could respect that.

I could also cringe inwardly at the fact that our superhero here was implicitly sporting a ‘move forward’ ideology when that was the last thing this old man probably wanted to hear with a freshly reopened emotional wound. Time and place. Unfortunately, because of the team emblem the cape had on his breast- a stylized figure holding a shield shaped like a greater-than symbol, the guy represented that ideology every time, in every place. - excerpt from Daybreak 1.1</ref><ref name="WoG1">Therealtahu: Advance Guard emblem. I'm having a hard time imagining the "shield" thing.
Wildbow: I could draw it
[...]
Wildbow: [Image deleted at WB's request.]
[...]
Wildbow: Picture the chevron/greater than symbol being worked into the border of the sleeve/breast/whatever - Discord conversation with Wildbow, Archived on Spacebattles</ref>

Structure

Basic Hero team like the old protectorate model of multiple members under sub leaders.(conjecture)

They have a overarching design astheitic.<ref>The costumes were distinct enough for me to recognize them before any icon came into view. Bold contrasts of light and dark, angles, armor panels, and bright colors. Masks tended to be full-face. All of it looked like they had one very tired designer working on their costumes. Cohesion to the max.

The camera caught the icon, and it popped up in a window, blur-corrected. A figure running to the side, drawn out as a collection of triangles and irregular shapes. Their arm was out and holding an arrow-shaped shield. Others had slight variants on the same icon, to play into costume textures and other minor details. - Shadow 5.2</ref>

Warden Response

They are an affiliated team with Warden support, and are presumably working with the larger hero organization to deal with a long term problem.

History

Background

Circumstances of the teams formation is unknown.

Early Ward

Victoria Dallon encountered Shortcut when he was responding to a car crash that had damaged a memorial. The crowd were hostile toward him, Victoria tried to ease the situation and complimented him on his response time.<ref name="II1.1">Daybreak 1.1</ref> Shortcut took that interaction the wrong way.

Victoria later applied to join the team, but was rejected without a reason being given. She speculated it was because she had a two year "gap" in her records.<ref>There weren’t any openings. I was pretty sure Advance Guard had turned me down because of my background, the two year gap prior to Gold Morning. Others had their reasons for rejecting me. As it was, the field was fairly cluttered. - Excerpt from Flare 2.2</ref> According to Shortcut however it happened because he personally nixed her joining.<ref name="II2.3">“Reaching out and talking,” he said. “I just wanted to make sure there’s no hard feelings.”

“About you not getting into Advance Guard.”

I’d emailed, they’d sent a reply a couple of hours later saying no.

“I didn’t devote a lot of thought to it,” I said. “Sucks, but you guys have to do what you have to do. And so does everyone else, apparently. I’ll figure something out.”

“They didn’t tell you it was me?”

“No,” I said. I frowned.

“I told them to tell you no and to tell you it was me, and why.”

“Alright,” I said. “They just told me no.”

“Well fuck that. I thought you needed to know, what you did back there, it was shitty.”

“Beg pardon?”

“I realized after your face came up on some of the events about the Norfair community center incident. You went up against Lord of Loss?”

“I don’t see what the issue is,” I said.

“You happen to beat me to the scene, and then you use your secret identity, condescension and anti-parahuman shit to take me down a notch? And then you want a place on Advance Guard?”

“I happened to be there. I’m sorry, it was not my intention to come across that way.” I tried to help you out some. - Excerpt from Flare 2.3</ref>

Members

Name	Description
ReSound	Sonic manipulating Blaster.<ref>“Avant!” ReSound called out, and the sound was magnified, loud, echoing far faster than a normal echo could or should. The camera’s sound died, dissolving into crackles. Several of the Hollow Point villains covered their ears. - Shadow 5.2</ref> Possible group leader or sub-group leader.
Shortcut	A mover who uses a polearm to draw circles around himself and teleport. Curmudgeonly and assumes the worst in people, generally combative.
Spright	Took an uncommon shine to victoria. Power-copying trump.
Mayday	Leader. Former Protectorate stationed in Baltimore.<ref> Mayday, Siren, ReSound, Gong… “Mayday,” Kenzie said. “He was Baltimore.” - Shadow 5.2</ref>
Siren
Gong
Signal Fire	Former Protectorate trained in San Diego with Optics.<ref> Signal Fire, Flapper, Prong… “I trained under Signal in San Diego, too,” Kenzie said, adding, “I’d really like to use that training someday soon.” - Shadow 5.2</ref>
Flapper
Prong
Tandem	apparent Case 70
Mapwright	Thinker.

Fanart Gallery

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  Alternate Advance Guard logo by lonsheep on Discord
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  Alternate Advance Guard logo by Mugasofer on DeviantArt

References

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