Invictus Maneo/Vic Rattlehead

**“**I'm putting a price on peace!**”**
— Invictus Maneo selection quip
**Vic Rattlehead** is the illustrated mascot of the classic thrash metal band Megadeth, a victim of a torture cult who burnt him free of his flesh and stripped him of all his freedoms for being impure. They drilled a visor into his skull so he couldn't see any evil, drilled muffs over his ears so he couldn't hear any evil, and hooked his jaws shut so he couldn't speak any evil. He eventually escaped, becoming a rebel against censorship that likes to cause chaos and torment around the world, almost becoming the very thing that made him who he is today.

Vic Rattlehead originates from the 1985 Megadeth album Killing is My Business... and Business is Good!, and his home stage is Dystopia.

## Fighter Info

### Basics

Vic Rattlehead is a heavyweight fighter who focuses on applying pressure upon his foes, exploiting their weaknesses so he can punish them with his great combos and absurdly effective kill confirms, with his combo game being among the best in the game. He is further supported by his stellar mobility, which makes him noticeably hard to counter.

Vic Rattlehead makes use of bones in his basic moves, which have disjointed range and work as swords, with Vic swinging twice so he can disrupt any attack and immediately follow up with a guaranteed hit. In his heavy tilt attacks, Vic Rattlehead will shred on an electric guitar, which produces soundwaves that hit enemies multiple times before launching them away, which makes them perfect for edge-guarding. Vic's down air has him come crashing down with his sign from the *Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?* cover, knocking foes down if it connects, while his up air has him throw an explosive weapon above him which will eventually crash down and make an explosion on landing. For his grab, Vic stretches his hand out and traps his foe in a jar, whereas he tortures them through either electrocuting them, poisoning them, freezing them, or weakening them.

Though Vic is very effective at applying pressure, his high gravity and heavy weight make him very easy to combo and destroy once approached. All of his Specials are basically useless against anyone who can counter them or make them backfire, and his recovery jumps don't reset if he's hit mid-use.

### Specials

* **Special A: The Conjuring**
Vic will emit a muffled cackle and hold a black book, emitting a black charge from it. At minimum, Vic summons a little demon that travels a short distance and claw at the enemy, with Vic summoning progressively bigger demons that travel further away. Vic can store his charge. At max charge, he summons Satan for devastating impact.
* **Special B: Mechanix**
Vic summons a classic-looking motorcycle, driving straight ahead in it. Vic can shoot bullets from his gun mid-ride to force enemies away or use the bike for horizontal recovery. Vic better jump out of his vehicle eventually, as turning gets harder and it'll explode if it takes enough damage, hurting and launching him.
* **Special C: United Abomination**
Vic summons a pair of grotesque-looking angelic wings, able to use up to five new jumps before the wings disintegrate and force Vic to free-fall. While the jumps individually do not give Vic much height, they can help him make sick combos in the air and can be just as good as a standard recovery if he takes no hits.
* **Special D: Set the World Afire**
Vic growls through his hooked jaws, summoning a bazooka. Vic can move left and right at halved speed, being able to jump around too, before he fires the bazooka or decided to cancel it. While the bazooka has a lot of start-up, the ensuing clip launches and KOs almost everyone fairly early, but it can be reflected and thus backfire.
* **Showstopper: Rust in Peace... Polaris**
Vic summons a strange lime gem, creating a light ahead of him. If he catches anyone, he'll bring them before all the leaders of the world, smashing a button that will summon a nuclear missile to crash down where the captured target(s) stand(s). He will dive into a bunker while the missile lands, causing severe damage to his opposition.