Art by: Ruairí Coleman, Adriano Di Benedetto & Andrew Cramer

© 2025 MARVEL
 WE B E XCLUSIVE

AVENGERS ACADEMY
BY MARTY FORBECK

While the Avengers have occasionally allowed temporarily not the Green Goblin—used his knowledge of
heroes to join the team on a trial basis, they have rarely had anti-Skrull tactics to discredit the Avengers and claim their
any formal schooling or training programs. Other groups government-backed resources as his own, effectively putting
like the X-Men have had dozens of hero schools throughout him in charge of the entire Initiative program.
the years, all varied in nature, but the Avengers have only Osborn’s primary goal during his brief reign as Director of
ever had one school, and it’s a relatively recent addition to National Security and the S.H.I.E.L.D. replacement H.A.M.M.E.R.
their organization. was to wipe the Avengers out for good, and as part of his
Today, the Avengers Academy serves as both a home and scorched-earth strategy, he shuttered many of the programs
a place of learning for many of the most promising young that had been formed in the aermath of the superhuman
heroes on the planet, but that’s not how things started out. civil war, including the Initiative trainees program. However,
In fact, the school was never meant to exist in the first place. in secret, he began work on a trainee program of his own.
In hopes of fomenting the next generation of super
HISTORY villains, Osborn used data from the Avengers Initiative
As part of the Fiy-State Initiative, S.H.I.E.L.D. started a project to kidnap super-powered teenagers from around the
training program for young heroes at Camp Hammond in globe—mostly teens who the Avengers had not had a chance
Stamford, Connecticut, the site of the disaster that launched to contact or train—and bring them to a secret government
the superhuman civil war. compound. A few of the more promising candidates were
Registrants were brought there to take part in a brief allowed free rein within the facility as Osborn plied them
military-style boot camp, where they could learn how to with money and drugs, aiming to teach them the benefits
control their powers and prepare to take part in the larger of a lavish criminal lifestyle. The rest were subjected to
Initiative program. This was done under the guidance of excruciating experiments—torturous procedures designed
drill instructor Gauntlet (Joe Green) and program director to unlock their full potential and destroy their minds.
Hank Pym—who had been secretly replaced by the Skrull Aer the end of Osborn’s reign, the Avengers discovered
agent Criti Noll. and liberated his compound. That much was easy, but the
Though this program didn’t last long, it provided vital hard part was figuring out what to do with the captured
early training to a number of important up-and-coming kids. The team couldn’t simply send them home, as many
heroes, including Stature (Cassie Lang), Reptil (Humberto of them were already on the verge of mental and physical
Lopez) and Hardball (Roger Brokeridge). breakdowns, but the Avengers weren’t about to lock up a
Then came the global Skrull invasion, and several bunch of innocent teens either. The kids had to be brought
key Avengers, including Hank Pym, were suddenly outed somewhere safe, to a place where they would voluntarily
as Skrull spies. Norman Osborn—who was, at that point, stay but could also be monitored and treated.

© 2025 MARVEL
AVENGERS ACADEMY
The real Hank Pym took a page out of the book of his new friendships, while Striker learned to tamp down his
Skrull replacement and suggested that the team turn their bravado and become an effective member of the team.
old headquarters in the Infinite Avengers Mansion into a sort There were some hiccups along the way, such as when
of reformatory school with himself as the director. Osborn’s Striker, Hazmat and Veil tried to impress Tigra by beating
subjects were invited in as the “potential next generation of her old ally turned foe Shroud to within an inch of his life or
Avengers” and taught the basics of heroism, while Pym and when the team was nearly talked into leaving the academy
a few other teachers secretly worked to ensure that at least by another of Osborn’s old subjects: the subtly villainous
they’d never become the next generation of the Masters of Alchemist (Jeremy Briggs). But on the whole, things around
Evil. If all went well, Pym hoped to open the school to other the school were looking up.
young prospects. Then the Asgardian Serpent invaded Earth, using eight
enchanted hammers to let his servants possess some of the
The Pilot Program strongest people on the planet. Two of those possessed—
The rest of the Avengers gave the project the green light, so Titania and the Absorbing Man—invaded Avengers Academy
Pym began organizing the freshmen agenda. He selected six and attempted to destroy New York City by growing the
Avengers—most of them former super villains—as tutors Infinite Avengers Mansion to life-size.
for Osborn’s six most damaged subjects. Working together, the students and faculty succeeded in
evacuating and atomizing the facility before it could crush
New York. The day was saved, but the school was gone. Out
First Class
of fear for their own safety, Justice and Speedball retired
Teachers:
from teaching, while Veil abandoned the class to take a job
¥ Jocasta with Jeremy Briggs.
¥ Justice (Vance Astrovik) Despite these setbacks, Pym was determined to keep the
academy alive. He had seen the place work, and he knew
¥ Quicksilver (Pietro Maximoff)
that it could work again. All they needed was a fresh start.
¥ Speedball (Robert Baldwin)
¥ Tigra (Greer Nelson) Moving West
¥ Wasp (Hank Pym) Aer a brief break, Pym refashioned the old West Coast
Avengers headquarters into the academy’s new campus and
Students: reopened the school in Los Angeles, with enrollment now
¥ Finesse (Jeanne Foucault) open to any young heroes interested in becoming Avengers.
Dozens of new students flooded into the school, though only
¥ Hazmat (Jennifer Takeda)
a few became deeply involved in the Pilot Program’s ongoing
¥ Mettle (Ken Mack) adventures, while the rest were relegated to classes in other
¥ Reptil (Humberto Lopez) parts of the facility.
¥ Striker (Brandon Sharpe)
¥ Veil (Maddy Berry) Important Additions
Teacher:
The students almost immediately discovered the true ¥ Hawkeye (Clint Barton)
purpose behind the school, but out of a combination of respect
for and fear of their teachers, they continued their training. Students:
The first real test for the class came during a field trip to ¥ Juston Seyfert and his pet Sentinel
the Ra, the prison where Osborn was being kept. Though the
instructors did their best to keep the students contained to ¥ Lightspeed (Julie Power)
other parts of the facility, Mettle, Hazmat and Veil managed ¥ White Tiger (Ava Ayala)
to sneak off and infiltrate Osborn’s cell. They planned on ¥ X-23 (Laura Kinney)
killing him but got cold feet at the last moment, in part
because Osborn insinuated that he was the only one who Skeptical about the prospect of the academy’s resurgence,
could fix the damage he had done to them. Jocasta faked her own death and le the school to consult
Osborn was, of course, lying, but the team never had with Briggs. Shortly aer that, Reptil was replaced by an
another chance to confront him about it. Pym punished evil version of himself from an alternate timeline. Hoping
those involved in the break-in and appointed Reptil as the to preserve the sanctity of his own timeline, the evil Reptil
class leader, with the understanding that he would keep the worked with the shape-shiing, psychic alien-human Hybrid
team on a tight leash. to kill select students and push Earth-616 into alignment
Events around the school calmed down for a while aer with his own universe.
that. The class had their first few bouts with real villains in Just as the Pilot Program was beginning to root out
the field—not all successful, but good experience nonetheless. this nefarious plot, Jocasta returned, backed by Veil and
Members of the team began to form strong relationships Briggs. Hybrid’s presence was all the proof she needed to
with each other. Finesse began an on-and-off romance with conclude that Avengers Academy was unsafe. Aer helping
Reptil. Mettle, as the only person capable of safely touching the program annihilate Hybrid and bring the original Reptil
Hazmat, naturally fell into her arms. Veil forged valuable back home, Jocasta demanded that Pym shut down the school.

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AVENGERS ACADEMY
Aer a brief fight, Pym talked Jocasta into just removing The battle between the Avengers and the X-Men over the
her own systems from the facility. Still, the incident struck return of the Phoenix Force destabilized life around the globe,
a mortal blow to the entire academy, and a number of the and the academy was no exception. At the dawn of the conflict,
newer students abandoned the school for Briggs’ organization. Wolverine (Logan) dropped all his students from the Jean Grey
The Runaways paid a brief visit to the academy aer that, School for Higher Learning—as well as a seemingly amnesiac
and at first, the teachers considered shoring up their lost Sebastian Shaw—off at the academy in hopes that the Avengers
numbers by forcibly enrolling the endangered teens into the could keep his mentees out of the growing conflict.
school. However, aer learning more about the Runaways Shaw was less amnesiac than he seemed, and the villain
and their tragic past, the faculty settled for letting them almost immediately mounted an effort to free Wolverine’s
run away, while extending an open invitation for them to mutant students from the facility. Both the Pilot Program
return later. and the faculty tried to put a stop to this, but aer seeing how
Members of the Pilot Program and the Runaways would determined Wolverine’s students were to join the war, they
meet again, though in not nearly so peaceful a locale as the decided to let the kids go.
academy. In the meantime, the students had other challenges
to deal with.

4
Art by Timothy Green II, Jeffrey Huet & Chris Sotomayor
© 2025 MARVEL
AVENGERS ACADEMY
Soon aer, five key mutants gained the power of the mercenary Arcade decided he must do something to make
Phoenix Force. During this time, a Phoenix-empowered the world fear him again.
Emma Frost visited the academy to inspect it for weapons, So he kidnapped young heroes from around the world—
and though she le aer destroying Juston Seyfert’s pet replacing them with cleverly constructed decoys—and took
Sentinel—an act that was easily undone—the teachers them to an isolated island where he forced them to engage in
nonetheless decided that the academy was no longer safe a Battle Royale-style killing game, to be broadcast
and closed the school until the ongoing conflict ended. internationally aer the fact. Though
Briggs took advantage of this opportunity and invited the contestants in this twisted game
the unsupervised students to his corporation so he could were drawn from all over, the largest
pitch them on his organization one last time. Once they were proportion came from two schools:
on the premises, Briggs revealed his latest great invention: the Avengers Academy and the new
aerosolized nanobots capable of suppressing most super- Braddock Academy founded by
powers. When paired with additional treatments, these Captain Britain (Brian Braddock).
bots could fix all the damage
that Osborn had done to
the members of the Pilot
Program. They could give
Mettle back his skin, detoxify
Hazmat and keep Veil from
disintegrating. The team
could have everything
they ever wanted. All they
had to do was help him
depower the rest of the world.
Though a few of the more
desperate students initially
accepted Briggs’ offer, after
they witnessed the full extent of
his plans for world domination,
they all turned on him. Veil
and Jocasta reunited with their
old allies and worked to disable
the nanobots, while Finesse and X-23
confronted Briggs directly.
Briggs defeated X-23 and would have
defeated Finesse too had she not used the
unconscious X-23’s claws to deal him
a fatal stab wound. Finesse considered
saving Briggs’ life, but aer hearing him
brag about how he would come back to
do it all again, she quietly allowed him
to bleed out.
The reunited Pilot Program returned
home, and as a reward for the students’
heroism, the faculty unanimously decided
to graduate them and their allies to the
next class. Though Veil decided to stay
depowered and return to civilian life, the
rest of the team accepted the promotion
and went on winter break to prepare for
the next school year.
Although none of them knew it at the
time, there wouldn’t be a next school year.

Avengers Arena
Aer years of being mocked for his overly
elaborate trap-filled Murderworlds and his
inability to kill any of the super heroes he
was regularly hired to hunt, the villainous

Art by Mike Perkins & Andy Troy

© 2025 MARVEL
AVENGERS ACADEMY
The Contestants of will Minoru came back and defeated Katy, inadvertently
Avengers Academy: pounding both her and Death Locket through the surface of
the island into Arcade’s secret underground base.
¥ Hazmat (Jennifer Takeda) The rest of the contestants tried to investigate, but before
¥ Juston Seyfert and his Sentinel they could, one of Arcade’s traps sprayed X-23 with an old
¥ Mettle (Ken Mack) trigger scent, turning her into a mindless killing machine.
To stop her, Bloodstone transformed into a mindless monster,
¥ Reptil (Humberto Lopez)
and Nara, in turn, died stopping him.
¥ X-23 (Laura Kinney) Further infighting followed. In the meantime, Apex and
Braddock Academy: Death Locket infiltrated Arcade’s inner fortress and discovered
Darkhawk alive and well in a stasis pod. Together, the three
¥ Anachronism (Aiden Gillespie) of them got the drop on Arcade and took control of the facility.
¥ Apex (Katy/Tim Bashir) At Arcade’s prompting, Apex turned on her fellow
¥ Bloodstone (Cullen Bloodstone) contestants and attempted to conceal her own crimes by
destroying the island and everyone on it. Faced with the
¥ Kid Briton (Brian Braddock (Earth-13022)) prospect of becoming a mass murderer, Tim pushed himself
¥ Nara to the surface of the shared body just long enough to allow
Death Locket to kill Apex.
Runaways:
With Arcade gone and Apex dead, the game ended. Hazmat,
¥ Chase Stein Minoru and several of the other survivors later tracked down
¥ Nico Minoru Arcade and brought him to justice, but their revenge didn’t
matter much. With Mettle and Seyfert seemingly dead and
Others: Reptil heavily injured, the instructors at Avengers Academy
¥ Cammi (Camille Benally) decided that it was too dangerous to keep the school running.
The academy permanently closed its doors, and everyone
¥ Darkhawk (Chris Powell) involved in the project returned to their regular lives.
¥ Death Locket (Rebecca Ryker)
¥ Red Raven (Dania) The New Avengers Academy
In spite of the original Avengers Academy’s messy ending,
All of these young heroes immediately attempted to attack the idea of such a school stuck around in the minds of those
Arcade and end the game, but he was too well equipped for who had seen it, and several years later, Captain Marvel (Carol
them to handle. As punishment for their insubordination, Danvers) took it upon herself to restart the school in a mobile,
Arcade threatened to annihilate Hazmat, but at the last extradimensional location with better safety protocols.
second, Mettle took her place and seemingly became the The new school’s first class was filled with promising
game’s first casualty. young heroes handpicked by the Avengers. In addition
Mettle didn’t actually die—Arcade teleported him into to their regular hero training, the students had to attend
confinement to later be sold as food to the psychic vampire standard academic classes and receive legitimate high-school
Emplate—but the rest of the contestants didn’t know that, diplomas. Classes were taught by a rotating cast of guest
so the killing began. lecturers and personal mentors selected in collaboration
Red Raven lost her life to the island’s defense systems while with the students themselves.
attempting to escape. The others formed into cliques and began
lying low, exploring the island while looking for a way out. The New Class
Of all the young heroes, only one—Apex—began actively Teacher:
trying to kill her competitors. She used her technopathic
powers to force Death Locket to stealthily attack several ¥ Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers)
other contestants, injuring Nara and seemingly killing Students:
Darkhawk. Nara later returned for revenge, and to keep
Apex’s boyfriend, Kid Briton, from killing Nara, Anachronism ¥ Bloodline (Brielle Brooks)
chopped his head off. ¥ Captain America of the Railways (Aaron Fischer)
Injured, Apex and Death Locket fled from the conflict into
¥ Escapade (Shela Sexton)
the custody of a group of Avengers students and Runaways,
where the exhausted Apex reverted to the form of her more ¥ Kid Juggernaut (Justin Jin)
heroic brother, Tim Bashir. Tim revealed that he and his ¥ Moon Girl (Lunella Lafayette) and Devil Dinosaur
sister shared a body, but as the stronger of the two, Katy ¥ Red Goblin (Normie Osborn and Rascal symbiote)
kept control of it most of the time.
Tim begged Death Locket to kill him, but out of love for To Captain Marvel’s delight, this new academy immediately
his gentle spirit, she hesitated. That was all the chance Katy proved to be a brighter and more hopeful place than its
needed to reassert control over Apex’s body and escape. On predecessor. Swarm (Fritz Von Meyer) managed to infiltrate
the way out, she killed Juston Seyfert and took control of his the institution on the first day, but the students immediately
Sentinel. With the Sentinel in hand, she razed half the island formed into a cohesive fighting unit and defeated him
and nearly killed Nico Minoru, though through sheer force without so much as a single casualty.

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AVENGERS ACADEMY
To say that the members of the new class became fast LOCATIONS
friends would be understating it. Romantic overtures The Avengers Academy has only ever been situated in one
flourished between Bloodline and Escapade. Moon Girl and of three locations.
Red Goblin, though far too young for romance, found kindred
spirits in each other. Fischer and Jin developed crushes on one
another, though ultimately both ended up partnering with
The In nite Avengers Mansion
Initially created as a submicroscopic base for a team of
other people—with Jin dating Daily Bugle reporter Marcus
Avengers led by Hank Pym, the Infinite Avengers Mansion
Wetherell and Fischer seeing the independent vigilante
is not actually infinite, but from the perspective of a person
Mysteriant (Qaari Beck).
in Underspace, it is so unfathomably vast as to dwarf any
Soon enough, the team faced its first real challenge. Backed
real-life building. Pym and Jocasta built the whole place
by a new incarnation of the Sinister Six, Moon Girl’s self-
themselves, so when they came up with the idea for Avengers
declared rival Squid Kid beat up Red Goblin and kidnapped
Academy, it was already at the top of their minds.
his younger brother, Stanley, hoping to use the young Osborn
Though the central areas of the building were constructed
as leverage against their grandfather, Norman Osborn, and his
to resemble the original Avengers Mansion, the side wings
company, Oscorp. Red Goblin and his allies also hated Oscorp,
contained countless all-purpose spaces, bedchambers,
but they couldn’t condone harming an innocent child—and
laboratories and training rooms, making it an ideal spot to
despite being a member of the Six, neither could Mysteriant.
host a super-hero school.
He led the class to Squid Kid’s secret compound, where they
rescued Stanley and broke up the Sinister team.
The West Coast Avengers Academy
The West Coast Avengers headquarters was never meant to
Later Additions house an academy, but aer the destruction of the Infinite
¥ Blackheart Avengers Mansion, it was the only building the Avengers
had with enough space to host all the students. The faculty
¥ Hazmat (Jennifer Takeda)
retrofitted some bedrooms to better serve as student
¥ Mettle (Ken Mack) dormitories but made few other changes to the facility as
¥ Teen Immortus (Nathaniel Richards) a whole. In place of a dedicated training room, students
participated in physical drills outside, sparring with their
This victory further bolstered Captain Marvel’s faith in teachers on the grass.
the new academy, so she began looking into expanding the For more on the original West Coast Avengers headquarters,
institution. She invited Hazmat to return to the school as a see page see Avengers Expansion, page 45.
resident advisor, and despite her traumatic past with the
previous incarnation of the academy, Hazmat agreed. The New Avengers Academy
Shortly aer that, Emplate kidnapped Escapade, hoping to As opposed to the first two campuses, the home of the
use her switching powers to free himself from his vampiric new Avengers Academy was built from the ground up to
nature. To rescue her, Bloodline and Hazmat tracked Emplate function as a boarding school. Its central building resembles
back to his extradimensional lair, where they discovered the Avengers Mansion but with the addition of separate
Mettle alive in the psychic vampire’s custody. Together, the dormitory wings for boys and girls. Other connecting wings
three of them freed Escapade from Emplate’s control and serve as classrooms, labs and training grounds.
escaped back to the academy, where Captain Marvel offered Though the academy’s exact location is a secret, the
Mettle the position of resident advisor for the boys’ wing of facility’s M’kraan Crystal shard—known as the Parallax
the school, putting him right back alongside Hazmat, his Stone—allows it to effectively exist in several locations
long-lost love. at once and instantly travel to any place at any time. If
Mere days later, time-displaced pre-reincarnation versions the teachers want to take students on a field trip to the
of Billy Maximoff (Wiccan) and Tommy Maximoff (Speed) Savage Land, they can be there in a moment, and many of
appeared in the academy’s mysterious Midnight Chapel, the locations that the academy frequents have stationary
seeking refuge from Mephisto, who sought to claim their structures—gymnasiums and the like—that supplement
souls. Mephisto sent his son Blackheart to retrieve the pair, the school’s regular facilities.
but the students successfully fought him off and returned Behind the main school (in its true location) sits the
the two boys to their rightful place in the timestream. As Midnight Chapel, and beyond that stands a lighthouse
punishment, Mephisto robbed his son of his demonic essence, floating in the void. No one knows where either building came
turning him into a human. from, but strange things seem to emanate from their halls.
With nowhere else to go, Blackheart turned to the students Upon the grounds, the walls between the realms are
of Avengers Academy, who reluctantly took him in. At around particularly thin. Glimpses of other times, places and
the same time, the shard of the M’kraan Crystal that powered dimensions flit in and out of the buildings’ shadows, and
the school’s dimensional drive pulled Iron Lad out of his sometimes, when the stars are right, things can cross over.
own lost place in the timestream and deposited him in the Many of the deadliest attacks on the Academy have begun
Midnight Chapel, where he rebranded himself Teen Immortus in the Midnight Chapel. The faculty keep a close eye on the
and became the school’s chaplain. place, and students visit at their own risk.
Much of the story of this new Avengers Academy has yet
to be written, but if the first few weeks are any indication,
the future of the Avengers looks bright indeed.

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© 2025 MARVEL
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 AVENGERS ACADEMY
OPPONENTS This message contains some truth, and it appeals directly to
Though the students of Avengers Academy have fought with the young, disenfranchised heroes that Briggs most likes to
dozens of super villains, three have had far more impact on recruit. However, his solution to this generational problem—
the institution than any others. the part that he doesn’t mention until he has recruits fully
on his side—is not to empower young heroes, but to seize all
the power in the world for himself and distribute it piecemeal
Norman Osborn to a select group of his own handpicked teenage cronies.
The students of Avengers Academy have never directly
Briggs is currently believed to be deceased, though with
fought Norman Osborn, but his villainous activities cast a
his molecular manipulation powers, it wouldn’t have been
long shadow over the whole organization. He is the reason
hard for him to fake his demise. There’s always the possibility
that the original academy exists in the first place. He also
that he’s still out there somewhere, lying low while he plots
created the Alchemist, the school’s first major villain. On top
his next nefarious scheme.
of that, his corporation also served as the impetus for the
creation of their latest great opponent, the Sinister Six—and
he is Red Goblin’s grandfather. Arcade
Though the students of the current academy aren’t trying Osborn may have started the original Avengers Academy,
to harm Osborn or dismantle Oscorp, they despise both and but Arcade got it shut down. He is the only villain who has
wouldn’t hesitate to take a shot at either, should the chance ever come close to killing a member of the school, and his
arise. Ironically, Osborn’s nature has taken a turn for the island Murderworld dealt lasting harm to everyone involved.
better in recent months. Arcade has yet to show his face at the new Avengers
Academy. However, the Avengers Arena was arguably the
greatest success of his mercenary career, and if he can
The Alchemist find a way to re-create that achievement, there’s no doubt
Jeremy Briggs took to Norman Osborn’s tutelage like a sponge
that he’ll try.
takes to water. In fact, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that the
Alchemist based his entire life around Osborn’s example. Like
Osborn, he used his powers to make himself into a ruthless PLAYING AT SCHOOL
and destructive business magnate. Furthermore, he was an Though schools have always played a large part in the lives
intelligent planner and a persuasive pragmatist, capable of of teams like the X-Men, they are a relatively new addition
sounding reasonable even while explaining his plans for to the wider world of the Avengers. Nonetheless, many of the
complete global domination. same principles apply. Avengers Academy is where students
Briggs tries to get other young heroes on his side by learn not only to control their powers and defend themselves,
pointing out that a world full of super-powered adults has but also to work together as a team so they can do the most
created endless chaos and that the current generation has, in good. It is a place where young heroes can mature and learn
many ways, failed to provide a better world for the next one. to become their best selves.

Art by Mike McKone & Jeromy Cox

10

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AVENGERS ACADEMY
Theme Purpose
Founding a school is an inherently optimistic act. To do so, one On a student team, the characters have clear goals:
has to believe that they can help bring about a future worth
fighting for and that the students can find a place in that world. ▶ Learn how to control their powers.
A school-based team should focus on that, whether the ▶ Learn how to work with others.
heroes are faculty, students or some combination of the two. ▶ Come back intact and alive.
While the students can certainly have adventures outside
the school, there can be plenty of intrigue on campus as well. That last part is vital. If a student gets hurt, they can be
That can come from rivalries between students, troubled confined to the school for their own safety. In severe cases, they
students who struggle to fit in and even assaults from outside can be sent home or pulled out by their parents or guardians.
the school’s grounds.
Beyond that, most of the students at any such academy Headquarters
hope to be called up to the big leagues someday. If they There are two ways that schools can serve as headquarters.
master their powers and prove they can be an invaluable Every Avengers Academy thus far has been a private
asset, they can find themselves a member of one of the most boarding school in which the students both study and live.
powerful and influential super-hero teams on the planet. This keeps things simple, as the students don’t have to worry
Some students might only want to get through school, find about keeping their escapades secret from those around
a way to integrate into society and have a regular life, but them. They can focus entirely on their training—at least
others are shooting for the fame and influence that comes until danger comes knocking.
with being part of a marquee operation. In this case, the headquarters should be a school building
or campus. This is oen kept isolated from its surroundings,
Style both for the privacy of the students and the safety of anyone
A school-based game usually focuses on the experience of who might live near them. It’s not unheard of for training
the students, and it oen starts with the day that they first exercises to spill outside the school, and it almost seems
arrive. With many schools, this can be at the time of its inevitable that the place could someday be attacked.
founding or when it reopens aer having been destroyed. In the second option, the students attend a regular school—
These moments offer fresh starts for students, much like perhaps not even the same school as their teammates—and
showing up for the first day at any new high school or college. meet up with each other outside school hours for training
Each student oen has a secret that they would prefer the in their powers and teamwork. In this way, they’re more
other students didn’t discover—at least not until they know like a sports club.
each other better. This might have to do with their powers For schools like this, the headquarters is usually a single
or the way that people treated them back home. Maybe their building or space, like a dojo. The students might live there
parents are gone or dead, or maybe they’re simply no longer when not in school—in which case they need a dormitory
welcome at home. Perhaps they’re a clone of someone else. and dining facility, at least—but they also could live at their
Or it could be they hurt someone with their powers and are respective homes instead.
in the school as a means of avoiding prison.
In many schools—especially larger ones—factions or Transportation
cliques form among the students. Friendships and enmities Student teams don’t always have the same kind of
can develop fast, and students who stick to themselves can transportation demands as an adult team. Oen, the
be shut out from alliances or lobbied hard to join. adventures come to them rather than the other way around.
In smaller schools, the students all have to work together, When the students do need to travel long distances, it helps
and they don’t always get along. When you have to spend if they have access to a jet or someone with teleportation
every waking moment with the same group of people, even powers, but such problems are usually for the faculty to solve.
small differences can grow. If the students are competing for In some cases, such as with the newest Avengers Academy,
grades, romance or other kinds of attention, these rivalries the school itself may serve as transportation.
can spill over into the rest of their lives. For shorter distances, it’s not uncommon for the students
Still, most student teams can find ways to stick together to use a van or even a bus—as long as they have someone
when it counts most. It’s one thing to be someone’s rival at with them who knows how to drive.
the school and another thing entirely to put them in danger
in the field. REGISTRATION
If the school doesn’t offer enough direct adventure by With a regular team, the characters have to join, but with a
sending the students on missions, the kids oen take that student team, they usually have to be admitted. For the sake
issue into their own hands. They might sneak out to find of the game, the Narrator should work with each player to
some fun, or they might discover that someone they’ve been make sure that their character has a good reason for being
hiding from has finally found them. part of the school.
Alternatively, the characters can be members of the
faculty. Then they have to deal with the students and all Requirements
the trouble they can be in, attract or cause. Many heroes are All a student needs to qualify for Avengers Academy is powers.
incredibly competent when pointed at something and told to They don’t have to have interesting powers or even know
break it, but shaping minds and helping build young lives how to handle them yet. This is an ideal place for a Rank 1
is a whole different kind of challenge. character to start.

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 Art by Carola Borelli & Carlos Lopez
AVENGERS ACADEMY
If the character is part of such schools don’t consider
the faculty, the requirements it a vocation as much as a
can be a bit looser. Regular duty they handle among
folks without any powers at their other obligations, so
all can be excellent teachers, they might have a different
though if they’re going to be occupation instead.
teaching young heroes, they If the school’s nature
probably should have some is secret, those involved
experience in dealing with may want to take the Secret
super-powered people. Identity tag. If its mission
is common knowledge, they
Getting In might want to take the Public
For a brief time while the Identity tag instead.
school was on the West
Coast, anyone could apply to Powers and Roles
Avengers Academy, and as Schools are a great place for
long as they had powers, they characters with unusual pow-
were likely to get in. However, ers. They can learn how to use
throughout most of its history, them creatively and well in
the students of the academy such a setting, and they oen
have been handpicked by the don’t have to worry much about
Avengers themselves. performing in combat.
Despite that, getting If the characters are all
admitted shouldn’t be that students, that keeps the game
hard. Schools want to have simple. The Narrator plays the
students, and the faculty members of the faculty and staff
does what it can to make sure and can keep the characters
things like tuition aren’t a on their toes directly. If the
barrier to entry. characters are part of the faculty
All the characters have to and staff, they have far more
do is be part of an incident autonomy, and the Narrator
that the Avengers might should keep this in mind
have heard of. They could be when concocting adventures
independent heroes who have for the game.
already made a bit of a name If there’s a mix of students
for themselves, like most of and faculty on the team, make
the newest class. Or they sure the players understand how
could be newly empowered to deal with this imbalance in
heroes in need of extra help, authority. While students don’t
like the original class. always listen to their teachers,
Once a character has they can be punished if they
joined the school, staying fail to do so. Faculty characters
in is another question. If should be careful not to abuse
they prove to be a danger such authority, or they can
to other students, the faculty quickly have a revolt on their
might be forced to expel hands—or perhaps even be fired.
them. This is usually done
as a last resort, as shoving a Graduating
dangerous student back out Student characters can rank up
into society rarely makes while studying at the school. In
anyone safer. fact, they can work their way
up in a more granular way, as
Character described in Chapter 9: New Rules.
Alterations The moment they hit their rank
A student at the school cap is an excellent time for them
should take Student as to graduate. The school has taught
their occupation. A teacher them everything it can, and now
should take the Educator it’s time for such students to head
occupation—at least if out on their own.
they’re committed to the The Narrator should keep this
school. Some teachers at in mind when running an ongoing

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AVENGERS ACADEMY
series. If the players would like to keep the game going in ▶ An anonymous villain kidnaps the students and drops
the school, the Narrator can establish a temporary rank cap them into a scenario eerily similar to the Avengers
for the characters while they’re in school. They can then set Arena incident but with strange differences. Traps
a higher one aer the characters graduate. constantly malfunction, and features of the island
Of course, the students aren’t always forced to leave once seem to disappear and reappear at random. Is this
they graduate. If they don’t have other plans, they could Arcade trying to re-create the successes of his past? Or
become part of the faculty instead. has someone else taken advantage of the mercenary’s
reputation to stage a twisted kind of test? Is the
Duties island even real?
Student characters are expected to attend school—or at least ▶ Kang and Ultron merge to form a creature called
training sessions—and to listen to the orders the faculty Ultrang-5 that lays waste to the Avengers. Can the
gives them. If they cannot abide by this, they might make students come together and succeed where their
a poor fit at the school. teachers have failed? What reluctant allies might they
Teacher characters are expected to train the students call on to face a threat of this magnitude?
and lead them on missions. If they are too busy saving the
world in other ways, perhaps they should stick to being a
▶ The Red Skull’s daughter Sin (Sinthea Shmidt)—once
again posing as the trad-wife influencer Cherry
guest lecturer or coach instead. Crane—organizes a bigoted attack against a mutant
school. Due to an ongoing conflict with the X-Men, the
Public Perception faculty at Avengers Academy forbid their students
If the school’s nature is a secret, the public likely thinks the from interfering. Can the students find a way to help
students are just regular kids, albeit at an isolated, private their mutant friends without their teachers finding
school. Most people probably regard the kids as snooty prep out? Or will the kids have to sneak or fight their way
students rather than super heroes. past their tutors?
If the school is open about its students and objectives, the
students may be subject to public scrutiny, but the Avengers
are a widely known and respected organization, so the kids
are unlikely to encounter the kind of public protests that so
oen plague mutant schools. In fact, most people would give
Avengers Academy a wide berth for fear of being caught up in
some sort of super-powered attack or even a training exercise.
Villains, however, might see the school as a potential target.

ADVENTURE HOOKS
Even the best students can sometimes use prompts to help
them get started, including when it comes to adventure.
Here are a number of adventure hooks the Narrator can
use for inspiration.
Players might want to skip this section, but peeking isn’t
really cheating. Aer all, these hooks are only prompts. The
adventures can go anywhere from here.

School Adventure Hooks

Here are five adventure hooks for students at
Avengers Academy:
▶ The students discover a new room in the school, a
small office with a desk and chair and a sign on the
door marked “J-3.” Nobody knows how the room got
there, and the teachers and staff don’t seem capable of
even perceiving it. The space seems innocuous enough,
but it must have a greater purpose. Has someone
breached the school’s defenses? If so, why haven’t they
revealed themselves? Are they looking to join the
academy or destroy it?
▶ Aer a dangerous mission, a student’s parents
appear on campus, demanding to take their child
home. The student doesn’t want to leave, but the
faculty are obligated to work with the parents. Can
the other students convince the parents to change
their minds? Or can they find some other way to
circumvent the issue?

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