LOCATION: 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. Originally designed as a high-rise industrial site to accommodate pulp recycling machinery to serve the mid-Manhattan area, each floor height is 24 feet.
The building's
steel frame construction utilized the first application of "K bracing" in the world and is one of the strongest structures of its kind. The Baxter Building is located a few city blocks from the
United Nations Building.
Reed Richards has applied for many land-use zone variations to allow massive reconstruction of the top five floors for the installation of a heavily-silenced silo, with a muffled
rocket.
The design of the headquarters of the Fantastic Four is along strictly utilitarian lines, except for apartments and public areas. All aspects of the design are constantly being improved, including security. For example, windows are 2 ft thick composites of various glasses and plastics which are mirrored on the outside. Solid, armored, exterior walls are also mirror-clad and are indistinguishable from transparent sections.
The top five sections of the Baxter Building are completely airtight; all doors are airlocks. Complete environmental support (including atmosphere) is provided by the area between elevators 2, 3, and 4 on all floors. The building's steel-alloy framework is rigid enough to be stood on one corner and not collapse (It was suggested that the Baxter Building did not collapse under its' own weight due to the use of tactile telekinesis by
Gladiator of the
Sh'iar Imperial Guard. Reed himself stated that even with the reinforced structure, it should not be possible otherwise).
The buffer-zone is the interface between the top five floors and the lower levels. It provides a rapid-disconnect between upper and lower segments of building. It contains an array of large oil-rams to dampen any oscillations between the five upper levels and the base of the building. The buffer-zone contains some support equipment for the upper levels, but mostly it is the "mechanical floor," which provides heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and elevator support equipment for the lower 30 stories.
(The matches will take place in the Baxter Building. But, if your characters are hindered by the location due to size or anything, I will allow the battle to be around or on top of the Baxter Building. Just let JH or me know if you think the location doesn't suit your character, and JH or I will determine if you can take the battle outside. Also, some characters might be prone to destroying the building; so, this match may have to resume outside if the building is destroyed...and, the participant(s) aren't killed in the process.)