What's your ideal FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE?

[Superlad93]

Just as the title says. It can be one that we've already seen in the comics, TV, or movie. Or it can be one that you've come up with and wish they'd do. Or a mix of the two options. Feel free to make the post as detailed or short as you like. If you're going for detail, then what's the architecture like? Where's it located? How does Superman get in? What's inside? Zoo or no? Robots? So yeah, guys, have some fun with it lol

[Superlad93]

Location: North Pole.

Outside architecture: a small mound of snow and ice over top a small set of stairs leading to a door with the S on it. It looks like a stormcellar or the outside entrance to a basement http://www.foundationbuildersllc.com...tonemapped.jpg (complete with guard railing and little brown welcome mat at the end of the stairs). Just super unassuming. Maybe have a little itty bitty Superman flag poking out from the top of the small mound of snow over head. This is the age old Superman idea of "there's more to this than meets the eye." This is the thinking behind the idea of Clark Kent, so I think he'd likely reflect that in a place that's created for his solitude. Also the totally mundane nature of Superman walking down the steps to what looks like a basement is a really charming visual, to me.

How do you get in: The key under the mat.

Design layout: the actual layout of the fortress is modeled after a brain--Clark's brain to be specific. When Clark lets you into the fortress, he's letting you into his mind--his thoughts. You permeate the smiling invulnerable exterior, and you see the lost little alien, the boy from Kansas, the husband, and father. Being allowed into the fortress is once again an honor of the highest, and breaking in now becomes a violation on a higher magnitude than ever before. Clark going to the fortress is almost like him stepping into his own thought balloon.

Inside architecture: It's grand--simply grand! A mix of All Star's more "ergonomic" and minimalist look, and iconic crystal structures peppered throughout. All the furniture (unless it's in one of his mock recreation rooms) floats. After Clark saved the life of a feng shui expert (from a band of hipster culture-cannibals) they kept in touch, and Clark invites her over to help introduce feng shui to the fortress. The Fortress is now designed to promote calmness, productivity, and increased resolve.

Warning: I am NOT a neurologist, I just like this idea lol

Limbic system: Clark has a dizzying amount of trophies in his hall of trophies. All from past adventures and feats of strength. Rooms dedicated to his family and friends. Kandor. Hall of weapons

Cerebral cortex: Workshop: it's like your dad's shed, but there's super science equipment. Monitor room: the Post-Crisis one that has a room full of news from all over the world and beyond. Superman robot assembly area.

Brainstem: All of the automated upkeep for the fortress.

Robots: Yes. When Jon was born Clark decided to re imagine the Superman robots as these tinker toy robots. They vaguely resemble action figures now.

Zoo: He has temporary pens for creatures he's just rescued. It becomes more of an animal shelter rather than a "zoo." He keeps them in relatively small pens while he works on finding them a home. If he can't find them a suitable home, he goes down to the subbasement and he gets to work on a tesseract approximation of their home environments. They're floating orbs about the size of a truck, and they hold environments about the size of a park. Clark goes back to his farming roots, rolls up his sleeves, and hand lays all of the grass, water, food, and such for the environments. It's reminiscent of Fantastic Beast And Where To Find Them. Jon loves going from environment to environment to tend to all of the animals.

[GreatKungLao]

My ideal Fortress of Solitude is a movable one. Combine space ship with crystal tech. Space ship Fortress of Solitude could help Superman accomplish lots of things when it comes to helping other worlds. He can transport multiple amounts of people or creatures in danger, he can do hyper space jumps, he can share technologies or use those on board for some necesarry stuff, etc.

[RedWhiteAndBlueSupes]

Silver Age/ Donner fortress

Hon. mention to the South American one from "Sacrifice" era.

Nice details there Superlad93

[Superlad93]

My ideal Fortress of Solitude is a movable one. Combine space ship with crystal tech. Space ship Fortress of Solitude could help Superman accomplish lots of things when it comes to helping other worlds. He can transport multiple amounts of people or creatures in danger, he can do hyper space jumps, he can share technologies or use those on board for some necesarry stuff, etc.

There's something really cool about a mobile fortress, and I don't think it's something we've seen before when it comes to Superman (maybe the Collector ship, but it wasn't really used)

Silver Age/ Donner fortress

Hon. mention to the South American one from "Sacrifice" era.

Nice details there Superlad93

The Aztec fortress was a really fascinating idea. They could've done something like make it so Superman was haunted by Aztec ghost in an issue. Like he comes home and he keeps noticing stuff missing or being moved. Turns out Aztec ghost are feuding with the phantom zone criminals, and Superman's sanity is caught in the middle lol

And thanks, man!

[RedWhiteAndBlueSupes]

Yeah I like the Aztec Fortress it didn't get enough play and it actually made sense why he moved it there, rather than shoehorning it Etc.

As for a mobile Fortress? And it's been awhile since I've read this era but, after the original post-crisis Fortress was destroyed Steel built a new one located in extra dimensional space, I forget how it was accessed but that was technically a "mobile" Fortress

[Sacred Knight]

Crystal exterior. The big key to get in. A mix of crystal tech and post-Crisis Kryptonian tech. The universal Zoo is a must. Phantom Zone projector also housed. Utilize the tesseract idea of the early 2000's as a means to move the fortress if necessary. To stave off attack or something like that.

[Superlad93]

As for a mobile Fortress? And it's been awhile since I've read this era but, after the original post-crisis Fortress was destroyed Steel built a new one located in extra dimensional space, I forget how it was accessed but that was technically a "mobile" Fortress

Ah right, the tesseract fortress--or was that the Eradicator fortress? Still making my way through that era. From what I hear, it was a pretty cool idea for a fortress.

[Sacred Knight]

Steel helped Superman with that Fortress. I think they utilized B13 tech to build it or something. It was presented as kinda a gift from Steel to Supes.

[Superlad93]

That's pretty awesome. Like Hephaestus gifting Zeus lightning bolts.

Steel would totally have a hall for him to create in my fortress. Such an underutilized character.

[Kuwagaton]

There really aren't many ideas I don't like. Locating in the arctic is cool because it's tough to find for humans (unless it's a big honking stack of crystals) , but south America is cool because that's just fitting for an alien temple.

I like the tesseract fortress because it's ultra sci fi and more practical. Losing the classic hallmarks isn't needed, but I don't find them a big loss.



But I like the 1989 interior. The cold, spacious crystal and ice interior doesn't feel to me like a place someone would actually enjoy. That seat is a must.

[Superlad93]

The cold, spacious crystal and ice interior doesn't feel to me like a place someone would actually enjoy. That seat is a must.

Agreed on both counts. I can never get down withe cold angular crystal stuff because it just looks so uninviting, and not like somewhere Clark would go to chill.

The seat needs to come back! I had it in mind when I was writing my stuff up. I'd make it Clark's special chair, and everyone who comes by knows not to sit in it lol

[RedWhiteAndBlueSupes]

I like the big airplane marker key as well for the fortress.

Ya it would be the tessaract fortress, I'm weak on that particular era, I don't think it lasted very long.

[Ascended]

I like the giant ice crystal Fortress, its probably my favorite hold-over from the Donner films. But I never liked the idea of that giant structure just laying out in the open where any passing explorer could stumble upon it. Sure, the Fortress isn't exactly easy to reach but you've always got those guys who decide to trek across the most extreme territories or climb the highest mountain just for kicks.

So in my mind, somewhere in the arctic there's a giant crack in the ice that seems like it goes down forever. But if you could fly, or you knew where the hidden stairs were (disguised with a simple optical illusion so there's no technology to track on any level), you'd find that crack opens up into a massive cavern a couple miles in radius and even further down into the earth. And in the center of that cavern is the ice crystal Fortress.

There'd be other ways to reach it; hidden paths through underground lakes and mazes under the ground with entrances even harder to find, but floating down through that giant crack is the easiest and most direct route. It also gives us the super-awesome visual of Clark floating down with a shaft of light shining from above.

Inside the Fortress, robots maintain all the various systems, the zoo full of endangered alien species, the garage where Clark tinkers with time spheres and 1923 T-bucket Fords, a huge hall full of trophies and weapons too dangerous to be held anywhere....basically just your standard Fortress type stuff.

But I like the idea that Clark has other hideouts scattered around the solar system. Maybe he's got the Collector of Worlds' ship on the moon Titan, a smaller Fortress on every continent, outposts among Saturn's rings and one on Pluto, and I like to believe that he's got a room of his own on Oa, Rann, and a few other worlds he's helped out over the years, all easily accessible thanks to a Zeta network housed in the main Fortress.

Maybe Maxima keeps a room for him on Almerac as well, just in case Kal comes to his senses and forgets about that terran hussy.

[Sacred Knight]

That's pretty awesome. Like Hephaestus gifting Zeus lightning bolts.

Steel would totally have a hall for him to create in my fortress. Such an underutilized character.

Yep, he's awesome. In fact, at the end of that issue, Superman in turn gifts John with one of his capes with the S on the back, symbolism that he was family. Previously he'd just been wearing a plain red cape.