STRONGHOLD

HISTORY

Stronghold is a maximum security metahuman penitentiary run by the Department of Extranormal Operations (DEO). The facility is buried in the side of a mountain in the Wallowa Range in northwestern Oregon, with a security perimeter extending out for five miles in all directions to keep anyone unauthorized from approaching the prison.

While a relatively new facility compared to Slabside, Belle Reve, Iron Heights, and other prisons used to house metahuman criminals, Stronghold has not had trouble filling its holding cells. The prison serves to hold prisoners from all across the Western United States, and its proximity to a locus of superhuman activity like Superior City means Stronghold is never lacking for new inmates.

The only major incident to have occurred at the prison was when the inmates were infected with a variant of Joker venom, which led to a major riot and mass breakout. DEO forces were able to get control with the help of the New Enforcers of Justice and the escapees were eventually all recaptured and incarcerated in Stronghold once more.

FACILITIES

The three levels of holding cells are designed especially for inmates with metahuman powers. Force fields, specially reinforced materials, and a variety of more exotic technologies are all put to use in containing the prisoners and preventing them from using their powers against prison staff or to escape. The prison also contains a mess hall, though again one designed with metahuman prisoners in mind, as well as medical and psychiatric facilities. Rehabilitation efforts are made, though there have been few successes and the prison remains focused more on containment than treatment. Perimeter defenses include a sophisticated array of sensors as well as non-lethal weaponry for deterring intruders and disabling potential escapees. Given the possibility of assault on the prison to liberate inmates who are connected to powerful criminal organizations, Stronghold is also equipped with military grade defensive weaponry.

POPULATION

The prison staff consists of about a dozen administrative staff, including the warden; two dozen scientific and engineering support and research specialists in metahuman abilities and containment; a medical team of about twenty; and a security force of twenty regular guards and ten Checkmate Knights.

Stronghold has the capability to hold approximately fifty inmates. At the time of the Joker incident the following metahuman criminals were incarcerated at Stronghold: