FFPlaza.com Database: Headquarters

Database: Headquarters

As with many super-powered groups, the Fantastic Four have had several headquarters over the years. The Fantastic Four's have always been not only a base of operations, but also provided their living quarters, recreational facilities, and research laboratories.

The Baxter Building

Their first headquarters was the Baxter Building. Located at 42nd Street and Madison Avenue in New York City, it had been built in 1949 by the Leland Baxter Paper Company. It's orginial plan was as a high-rise industrial site and all 35 floors had 24 foot ceilings accordingly. Most of the top floors, however, had to be rebuilt some time before the Fantastic Four gained their powers. An unidentified techno-virus "infected" several buildings in the area and caused a substaintial amount of damage before the First Line was able to remedy the situation.

Once the Fantastic Four moved from Central City, however, Reed found the top five floors of the building perfect for their needs shortly after gaining their powers. He originally bought these floors and only paid a monthly service fee. During a financial strain, he resold their section to Baxter, but remained on the premises on a rental basis. Mr. Collins, the building manager, quickly became another problem the FF had to deal with. Collins had quickly found, after Dr. Doom lifted the entire building into space, that having a super-powered group living in one's building can be dangerous. Other tenants also noticed this trend and refused to renew their leases. Even after the FF had vacated the building, during a period when the group had broken up, no one would rent fearing that a super-villain might attack not knowing that the FF had left.

Collins finally tried evicting the FF for good after Terrax destoryed everything above the 32nd floor. Reed then bought the entire building with money he had earned from several of his patents. The Richards continued as landlords until Kristoff Vernard, believing himself to be Dr. Doom, sent the building into space once again. This time, however, the entire building was obliterated.

In the lobby of the Baxter Building, Reed had installed an express elevator to the top five floors which could only be accessed by a solenoid activator that the FF carried in their belt buckles. This elevator was equipped with scanners used to identify the passengers as well as detect concealed weapons. The other elevators only went as high as the 30th floor, which the FF eventually used as their reception area. Here a visitor would be greeted by Roberta and scanned. Roberta was usually able to deal with most visitors (including hostile ones) without needing to alert the FF.

The 31st floor was the living quarters and laid out much like any large New York apartment. The 32nd floor had some more living quarters, Alicia Masters' studio, the library, the reference room, etc. Reed used the 33rd floor for his laboratories; the floorplan changed frequently with his experiments. The computer and monitor banks, communications center, briefing room were located on the 34th floor and was considered the FF's actual headquarters. The top floor was the FF's hangar bay and machine shop.

In the Franklinverse, the Fantastic Four once again took up residence in the Baxter Building. From what has been shown, that Baxter Building is nearly identical to their original one. The only notable differences would be generally more advanced computer equipment and that the building was owned by Saul Baxter, apparently a philanthropist that Reed had known for some time.

Four Freedoms Plaza

The following is a restored section that appeared in The Fantastic Four Compendium. At the time the book was written (1987) Marvel had yet to do a detailed exploration of the FFP. With my background on architecture, I decided to give it a try. After all, Mayfair Games had created the first real maps of Gotham City and Metropolis, maps that were not being used within actual DC comics.

I wasn't so lucky. When the manuscript was sent to Marvel Comics for approval, someone there deleted about half the FFP entry, probably braying that Marvel had the sole right to depict the FFP. As it turned out, no one ever did get around to it. When an entry of FFP finally appeared in a Handbook of the Marvel Universe, the text was lifted more or less directly from the obsolete "Baxter Building" entry. The result is surreal. The author gave the correct height for the new building but gave it the same number of floors! 1500' and only 55 floors? Those're 27' ceilings!

The following has grown a bit dated over the intervening years. The FF vanished and the interiors of floors 71-100 were moved into the Negative Zone. The FF returned and moved to the waterfront. Alicia turned out to be a Skrull. Crystal, Sharon, Jennifer, and Wyatt moved on. So have we all. But it's nice to visit old familiar places. Have fun.

David Edward Martin, author of The Fanastic Four Compendium

The Tower
The towering Four Freedoms Plaza is the new headquarters for the Fantastic Four. It is a gleaming concrete and glass skyscraper topped by four immense numeral 4s. It is located on the same site as the old Baxter Building but there is little the two buildings have in common.

When the Baxter Building was hauled into space and destroyed, Reed took the opportunity to increase the space available to the FF. His equipment had already filled every available space and he knew the problem was only getting worse. When the time came to design the FF's new headquarters, Reed decided to triple his building's size. The result is the 1500' tall, 100 story Four Freedoms Plaza.

The building is evenly divided between regular tenants and the FF's headquarters. To make up for the inconvenience the tenants suffered when the Baxter Building exploded, Reed offered them increased space in the new building but under the old terms, including the 99-year leases. The original Baxter Building occupants occupy floors 1-50 of the FFP.

Floors 51-70 are a buffer zone. Tenants on these floors do not have 99-year leases; they must renew on a yearly basis. This provides the FF with room for future expansion when they finally outgrow their present area.

Floors 71-100 serve as the FF's headquarters. The layout is familiar to the FF in that it matches the old Baxter Building layout. Floor 71 acts as a reception and conference area. The FF's robotic receptionist Roberta guards the entrance to the rest of the building as she sits merged with her desk.

Floor 72 acts as an inn; guest suites fill this usually unoccupied floor. Two water-filled suites are maintained for aquatic visitors such as Atlanteans. One is filled with fresh water, the other with salt water. These suites are actually entered from corresponding swimming pools on the 72nd floor. The pools can also double as aquatic conference rooms. A watertight elevator connects these suites with the river access tunnel on Sublevel 5.

The FF's living quarters occupy floors 73-75. There are suites for the Richards' family; Ben; Johnny and Alicia; Crystal, Luna, and Maya; Sharon Ventura (Ms. Marvel II); Wyatt Wingfoot; and Jennifer Walters (She-Hulk). Other facilities include the kitchen, pantry, spa, two gymnasia (one for normal strength levels, the other for super-strong users), a large library, and a computerized classroom.

Floors 76 and 77 function as the team's command center. Meeting rooms, communications stations, links to Starcore and other astronomical organizations, and a computerized medical station are here.

Floors 78-80 are storage for miscellaneous supplies. These floors serve as future expansion space and as a buffer in case of a disaster in Reed's laboratory. Alicia claimed a section of 78 as a studio for the times she stays in the building.

Floors 81-99 act as Reed's laboratory and storage for his equipment. These floors are possibly the most dangerous place in New York City. Access is strictly controlled by the founding members of the FF. Recently Ben locked these floors to prevent the newer members of the FF from accidentally activating the equipment there. There is an identical workstation on each floor, enabling Reed to work on any floor. The workstation consists of computer terminals, communications console, and mechanical fabricators. None of these workstations is located overhead any other workstation and no three of them are in a straight line. This minimizes the risk of several stations being destroyed in a battle. The workstations are linked to each other and to a similar console in the Richards' home.

Floors 90 and 1 contain the Negative Zone Portal. The Portal is in a heavily armored room with walls of Unearthly strength material. A small adjoining hangar houses the Exploratory Module. Floor 95 contains the Microverse access center. The Reducta-Craft and its support services are housed here along with a variety of exotic microscopes capable of perceiving individual atoms and Microversal worlds. In game terms, these viewers have Class 3000 Microscopic Vision.

Floors 98 and 99 serve as warehouse and machine shops. They support the hangar on 100 and act as a buffer to absorb damage from possible hangar disasters. Fuel tanks for the FF's vehicles are on 99.

Floor 100 is the FF's hangar. It fills the space under the four immense 4s that top the building. The hangar is now the exclusive domain of the various model Fantasticars and Skycycles, along with parking for visiting aircraft. Because the FAA and the NYC authorities have finally cracked down on the FF's air traffic, the rocket and Pogo-Plane are no longer housed here. However, facilities for their use were included in the FFP construction plans. If the situation demands, the Pogo-Plane's launch platform is usable immediately. The launch platform extends outward after one of the 4s retracts. The rocket silo can be operational in three days. It is disguised as the central column supporting the roof. Firepits below connect directly to a special Negative Zone portal; this transmits the exhaust directly to the Negative Zone.

Basement
The FFP's foundation reaches 150' into the Manhattan bedrock. There are ten floors here. Sublevels 1-2 are used by the building's maintenance staff. Sublevels 3-4 contain the freight docks and tenant warehouse facilities. A railroad spur enables large masses of freight to be moved in or out without the need to deal with the impenetrable Manhattan traffic.

Sublevels 5-15 are restricted to the FF. These floors contain special devices and support facilities for floors 71-100. These include a back-up computer system, generators, holding cells, and any large items the FF might not want on the upper floors. Sublevel 5 contains the waterfilled conduit that reaches the Hudson River; this permits aquatic visitors to directly reach the FFP without suffering the indignity of having to swim through the NYC sewer system.

Building Features
The basic structure of the FFP consists of various combinations of reinforced concrete, steel, and other durable materials. Floors 1-50 are fairly normal construction (Remarkable Material strength). Floors 51-80 are somewhat sturdier (Incredible Material strength). Reed's laboratory floors 81-97 have the highest strength (Amazing). Some internal walls are further reinforced to Unearthly strength; these surround the Negative Zone Portal and Microverse access areas.

Floors 50, 70, and 98 contain the mechanical facilities for the building's ventilation and plumbing systems. The ventilation system contains an auxiliary oxygen supply and air recycling system that can maintain a breathable atmosphere within the building for days.

The FFP is permeated with small tubes 1" in diameter. These run the length of the building. Their purpose is to allow Mister Fantastic to quickly reach any part of the building. The tubes extend into the rented sections of the building where they are discreetly concealed as part of the ventilator system. They are seldom used without warning the tenant beforehand.

An empty elevator shaft runs the height of the building. It is for the use of other members of the FF who need to quickly get to any other floor. It is only for use by those with the means to travel through the air or along walls. Safeguards in the shaft can detect and catch anyone falling down the shaft; sensors are able to differentiate between a freefall and controlled downward flight. In the event of a freefall, nets spring out from the sides.

Trash receptacles are linked to the building's recycling systems. The system has the power of Disruption (Amazing rank) and Matter Animation (Typical rank). Anything dumped into a trash receptacle is broken down into its component compounds or atoms and sorted in the bins on Sublevel 4. Safeguards automatically shut the system down if a living being is placed in it (Life Detection, Incredible rank).

The FFP has a series of breakaway points. These unoccupied floors have special destruct devices that will separate sections of the building. The idea is that if the FF's headquarters were drawn into space like its predecessor, these devices would detach the lower civilian floors, which would hopefully remain attached to the ground. The breakaway points are located on floors 54 and 70.

Antarctic Laboratory

Some years ago, Reed set up a research laboratory in Antarctica. It was designed expressly for some of his more dangerous experiments. (In case something went terribly wrong, fewer people would be affected.) Shortly after their return from the Franlinverse, the Fantastic Four lived at this base until their Pier 4 warehouse facilities (see below) were set up with living quarters.

The five domed building was designed specifically as a lab. Although there are luxurious accomodations for five, the facilities are relatively cramped for an efficient use of space. The floorplans and room layouts were well engineered, and obviously at least one prominent architect (I would guess Buckminster Fuller) was brought in for the design work.

Known facilties within the building include a well-stocked kitchen, a small dining area, living quarters (four double-occupancy rooms?), a hangar bay with maintenance equipment, and storage space.

Pier 4

Since the Thunderbolts had taken up residence in Four Freedoms Plaza, Reed took it upon himself to set up their old warehouse on New York's docks as their new headquarters. While originally a warehouse like any other (outwardly it still looks like a warehouse), Reed has upgraded the building's structure and security to his exceptionally high standards.

Living quarters were quickly established on the top floor. While they were riddled with Reed's technological enhancements (like the ability to fire the Fantasti-flare from any room and room-specific force fields), they have been customized by its occupant to suit his/her tastes. Franklin's room, for example, was littered with model spaceships, video games, and toys. Reed had also attached a tesseract to the living quarters and laboratories, so that they could add as much space as they need without disturbing the building's facade. While the original structure only had accomodations for four bedrooms, another was added when Valeria Von Doom showed up.

Facing the docks were three large garage doors. Office space could be accessed on the south side of the edifice. The interior warehouse space was roughly four stories high with an additional (substantially smaller) floor above that. This lent itself to both storage of a vast amount of equipment as well as Reed's larger experiments and potentially a training center. The building's computer could be accessed by vocal commands, however only by members of the Fantastic Four. (Although some less critical functions may be activated by anyone.) All of the exterior windows depict a holographic image of an empty interior so that the Fantastic Four always maintain a high degree of privacy inside and Reed rebuilt Roberta to handle incoming calls.

In a battle between the Fantastic Four and Diablo and his elementals, Pier 4 was completely destroyed. It had been only a short time that the FF had been living there and any other features that may have been installed in the dwelling were not depicted.

Baxter Building II

Shortly after the destruction of Pier 4, an old teacher of Reed's by the name of Noah Baxter returned to his friend's life and helped finalize construction of a new Baxter Building. The building was actually built in space at Noah's Alexandria space station and teleported down to the location of the original building once the Fantastic Four turned it on using their DNA.

The building appears to have the same exterior physical characteristics, but the interior seems to have been designed differently. Little has been shown at this point, but there is clearly a larger Negative Zone access room than its predecessor and individual living facilities have been included. The building has also been designed to be a sort of living computer to better respond to the commands of the FF. Hologromatic displays and VR simulators appear to be the norm.