Frank Castle

Frank Castle, alias Punisher, is a vigilante of some accomplishment and underworld infamy. Devoting himself to his crusade in the wake of his family's death in 2004, he has since carved his way through criminal enterprises around the world. At the time of Shades of Gunmetal, he is operating in Los Angeles.

Early Years and Military Career (1968-1993)
Born August 17, 1968, Frank David Castle grew up in New York City under the care of parents Frank Sr. and Louisa. Though his father was absent for the first four years of his life, owed to his service in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Vietnam Conflict, his legacy and indirect presence nonetheless instilled a strong sense of duty into his son. Despite a brief attempt at following his uncle into the Catholic priesthood- an endeavor that ended rather abruptly when Frank proved unable to forgive those who had committed sins against their fellow man- it would appear that Frank's true place lay in his father's footsteps in the Marines.

Frank's service in the U.S. military during the late 1980's earned him numerous citations for valorous service, including a number of Silver and Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts, as well as advancement through attrition to First Lieutenant by the end of his deployment in Panama. Shortly after his return in 1989, Frank met Maria; by 1991, the two were married. The Persian Gulf War briefly separated Frank from his newly-pregnant wife, but also served to earn Frank his Captain's bars and another Purple Heart. Upon his recovery, Frank was offered an early honorable completion of his second term of service, which he accepted; it was not until civilian aid efforts began directing their focus to the atrocities committed in Somalia that Frank rejoined the military, this time qualifying for training as Force Recon. He was deployed in command of the Seventh Marines, Bravo Company, under Lieutenant Colonel Richard M. Hoffman. By the time of his discharge in 1994, Frank had accrued a number of combat citations, including the Navy Cross and Medal of Honor. It was also during this time that he was approached by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for recruitment as an agent, owed to his successful working relationship with Agents Munroe and Strahm and Liason Weekes.

The Bureau (1994-2004)
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Revenge and Punishment (2004-2006)
The beginning of 2004 saw Frank positioned in Tampa, Florida, as part of an undercover operation into VIktor Astrov's gun-smuggling organization, alongside Tampa PD and his colleague from Somalia, Jimmy Weekes. The unforeseen involvement of Robert Saint, however, resulted in a bloody shootout with Astrov's men that caught Saint in the crossfire. The knowledge of his son's death set Howard Saint on a quest for retribution, eventually leading him to leverage Weekes into providing him with Frank's actual identity. Armed with this information, Saint- at behest of his wife, Livia- orchestrated a retaliatory strike intended to kill not only Castle, but his entire family while gathering in Puerto Rico. Saint's enforcers succeeded in their second goal, but timely intervention by a local medicine man kept Frank from bleeding out from his wounds. He spent five months in recovery, returning to Tampa in August of 2004 only to discover that the city's law enforcement had failed to pursue any criminal charges against Saint and his men. Disenfranchised and disgusted, Frank prepared to take matters into his own hands, setting up a safehouse in a largely-unoccupied tenement. HIs first operation- the acquisition of intelligence about Saint's movements- was to string up Micky Duka and intimidate him into providing information.

Armed with Duka's secrets, Frank set about disrupting Howard Saint's money-laundering operations by seizing or destroying shipments, picking off his soldiers, and even assaulting one of his banking centers. Amid the confusion, Frank also isolated Quentin Glass, Saint's second-in-command, from the rest of the organization by use of blackmail, and foiled several hits placed against him. The second attempted assassination- made by a man known only as The Russian- put the other residents of the tenement in harm's way, pushing Frank to settle his conflict with Saint with an all-in assault on his nightclub, then populated entirely by his surviving enforcers. Between strategic use of antipersonnel mines, stealth, and a shock-and-awe attack, Frank managed to eliminate over a dozen well-armed and well-disciplined criminals, including Howard Saint and his surviving son, John.

Frank spent a short time in Tampa after his business with Saint was concluded, hunting down straggling members of his organization and unveiling further ties to a Cuban cartel. Taking the opportunity to rid the city of its major source of heroin, Frank engaged in another guerilla war against the drug-runners, eventually drawing the attention of Microchip and encountering his former partner, Natasha Romanov, while on operation. Microchip presented him with intelligence files- and access to a substantial array of weapons- in exchange for personal revenge against Luis Armenteros, the leader of Dios de Los Muertes. During the conflict with the Death Gods, it became apparent to Frank that Micro's intel and weapon drops would be better handled by a courier; before leaving Tampa, he tracked down Mick once again and enlisted his help upon discovering that the young man had remained clean after being cut loose from the Saints.

New York became Frank's next destination, where he found no shortage of organized crime syndicates to disrupt. Now better prepared in terms of strategy and armament, Frank quickly scythed through dozens of small-time gangs and dismantled several larger organizations, quickly earning a reputation throughout the city for his brutality against the corrupt. The media quickly inflated the "Punisher" to near-mythical status, even in the shadow of the ever-increasing body count he racked up, steadily swaying public opinion- and, more clandestinely, that of the NYPD- in his favor. Throughout 2005, his one-man war left New York's criminal underbelly decimated- and especially angry following a shootout dubbed "The New Year's Massacre" by the press in which Frank single-handedly cut down over a hundred members of the Franchetti crime family. The Franchettis, along with longtime rivals the Russoti family, waged a relentless campaign against Frank, destroying several of his safehouses and forcing the vigilante to relocate to Los Angeles.

Armory
In his war against the criminal underworld, Frank employs a vast array of conventional and unconventional weaponry, but favors several pieces from his armory.

M4 Carbine
Frank's preferred weapon for operations is his Colt M4A1 carbine, owed to its versatility and familiarity. Though its configuration frequently varies based on his given needs, Frank typically employs a custom-shortened AG36 grenade launcher and EOTech holographic sight, as depicted here. It is not uncommon for him to equip the rifle with an Advanced Armament Corp suppressor for covert work or EOTech dual-magnification sight for longer-ranged engagements.

SL8 Rifle
Though he initially qualified with the M21 for long-ranged marksmanship, Frank typically employs a Heckler & Koch SL8-4 special purpose rifle for wetwork at a distance, typically equipped with a Trijicon dual-band, variable-zoom scope.

1911 Colts
In close confines, Frank employs a pair of M1911 Colt pistols for offense and defense. Prior to his death, Castle Sr. heavily customized the sidearms to incorporate large-block compensators, extended magwells, and re-bored firing chambers. Circa War Zone, Frank passes one of the vintage Colts to Amanda Young and replaces it with an identical piece.

M60E3
For situations in which extended or suppressive fire is important, Frank prefers the U.S. Ordinance M60E3, circumventing its tendency to melt and deform by utilizing a custom-milled titanium alloy barrel. This weapon was later passed to Amanda Young for use in their vigilante crusade.

Knife
For hand-to-hand combat, Frank prefers the KA-BAR fighting knife with which he was trained as a Marine. He prefers a partially-serrated blade for its uses in both utility and intimidation.

Combat Gear
While operating alone, Frank employs guerrilla combat tactics to whittle down his opponents' numbers, and as such favors a lighter loadout that enables him to move quickly and unhindered. Most commonly, this includes a hardcase drop-leg holster and behind-the-back holster for his Colts, a lightweight plate carrier to provide small-arms protection, and a Kevlar-reinforced leather trenchcoat with elastic loops sewn into its lining to retain grenades and additional magazines for his weapons. Following her integration into Frank's mission, Amanda later customized a heavier ballistic vest for his use, which served to replace his lightweight loadout.

Project: BLACKGUARD
In preparation for the Battle of New York, Frank approached Tony Stark to requisition an Iron-class combat suit while aboard the Helicarrier. He was provided with a retrofitted War Machine-class suit, which he and Mike King adapted to meet their anticipated threats. Referred to as the BLACKGUARD armor, Castle's power armor incorporates a shoulder-mounted caseless 5.7mm variant of the XM214 Microgun, a 25mm shoulder-mounted autocannon employing airburst rounds, wrist-mounted Class 4 ultraviolet beam emitters, and a wrist-mounted, thermite-based incendiary weapon for offensive purposes and chaff launchers and a limited-use repulsor barrier for defense, as well as an onboard virtual intelligence system for suit management and targeting assistance for the suit's shoulder-mounted weaponry. BLACKGUARD was reclaimed by Stark Industries following its use in the liberation of New York City from Hoffman's hordes.