HAMMERHEAD

 

HAMMERHEAD

Real Name: Joseph

First Appearance: The Amazing Spider-Man (Vol. 1) #113, October 1972

Powers: A baseline human with no superhuman powers, portions of Hammerhead's skull and skeleton have been surgically replaced with a nearly unbreakable steel alloy, making him extremely resistant to physical injury; in particular, his head, flattened as a result of the procedure, is virtually impervious to physical damage. He is an exceptional athlete and hand-to-hand combatant, although his favorite battle tactic is to simply charge his opponents headfirst.

Although considered dim-witted by many, he possesses a keen criminal mind and is proficient in the use of firearms, especially machine guns. He customarily carries 1920s-style Thompson sub-machine guns and utilizes other accoutrements of that era. At times, he uses special guns which fire non-lethal stun pellets instead of bullets. On occasion, he wears an exoskeleton that magnifies his strength at least tenfold and provides supplemental protection from injury and heat. His underlings use various advanced weapons as needed.

H.E.R.B.I.E.

 

H.E.R.B.I.E.

Real Name: Inapplicable

First Appearance: Fantastic Four (Vol. 1) #209, August 1979

Powers: H.E.R.B.I.E. (Humanoid Experimental Robot B-Type Integrated Electronics) was built by Mr. Fantastic and Master Xar of the extraterrestrial Xandarians, using technology to create a robot that could seek and locate Galactus. Though the original model was destroyed, Mr. Fantastic built a number of other H.E.R.B.I.E. robots to aid him in his laboratory and provide other services at the Baxter Building.

The original H.E.R.B.I.E. models possessed flight capacity, computer interfacing abilities, infrared scanners, retractable arms and metal coils which can wrap around a target, and fire-extinguishing foam. They formerly possessed offensive capabilities, which Mr. Fantastic has since removed. The humanoid model can remain operational even when its head has been removed from its body, contains metallic tendrils and lasers, and can operate devices from Mr. Fantastic's laboratory.

MARIA HILL

 

MARIA HILL

Real Name: Maria Hill

First Appearance: New Avengers (Vol. 1) #4, March 2005

Powers: Maria Hill is a baseline human with no superhuman powers. She is, however, a trained S.H.I.E.L.D. operative proficient in interrogation, unarmed combat, marksmanship, and the handling and processing of massive amounts of information. She is skilled at directing several operations and operatives at once. She sometimes uses S.H.I.E.L.D. devices in combat.

As the former director and deputy director of S.H.I.E.L.D., she had contact with various government agencies and unlimited resources.

DEVIL-SLAYER

 

DEVIL-SLAYER

Real Name: Eric Simon Payne

First Appearance: Marvel Spotlight (Vol. 1) #33, April 1977

Powers: Originally a baseline human with no superhuman powers, Eric Simon Payne had his latent psychic potential unlocked by a cult of demon worshipers. As a result, he has various limited telepathic and telekinetic skills. He can cast illusions in order to render himself invisible or disguise his appearance and garb, and assimilate a language simply by being in the presence of someone who speaks it. With concentration, he can infiltrate the thoughts of others to retrieve information, and project his own thoughts into their heads. His telekinetic powers are limited to lifting and manipulating matter weighing less than what he can physically lift himself, roughly 300 lbs. Similarly, the amount of psychic force he can direct at an object is limited by the amount of physical force he can produce when throwing or striking an object. Thus he cannot lift a car with his mind nor project enough telekinetic force to knock over a tree. He mostly uses his telekinesis as a minor aid in combat, sending small objects hurtling about, tripping up his opponents, retrieving his weapons if they are dropped, and so on.

The Devil-Slayer wields a Shadow-Cloak, which opens up into an extra-dimensional crossroads, letting him use it for transportation and procurement. By wrapping the cloak around himself, Payne is able to teleport by entering that crossroads and then relocating to a new point before returning to our dimension. Like Nightcrawler, distance and time work differently in the Shadow-Cloak dimension, allowing Devil-Slayer to travel miles away in this world in a matter of moments by moving only a few feet in his crossroads in a matter of seconds. Unlike Nightcrawler, though, Devil-Slayer is fully aware of his time in the crossroads, and the teleportation "bounce" through his dimensional hub doesn't happen automatically. Still, this also works to his advantage since he can "spy" into our dimension before reopening his cloak to return to it, allowing him to teleport to places he has not physically seen before. He is able to accommodate up to around five people at once when teleporting, but presumably could transport hundreds if they traveled into his cape's dimension one at a time. The Shadow-Cloak also gives Devil-Slayer access to a near infinite supply of weapons. Its cross-dimensional nature allows Payne to reach into the folds of his cape and pull out any number of items from different countries, dimensions, and possibly time periods as well. He keeps a personal cache of weapons inside his cloak's dimension (including various swords, spears, staves, axes, guns, etc), but can also call up different or more exotic weapons as well. He has summoned everything from computer-guided wrist rocket launchers to mystical glaive staffs which render the wielder invincible.

A former United States Marine, he is a highly trained combatant, marksman, and assassin.

MISTER JIP

 

MISTER JIP

Real Name: Unrevealed

First Appearance: Strange Tales (Vol. 2) #8, November 1987

Powers: Born in the 15th century, the man who would become Mister Jip was an amoral seeker of knowledge and the first student of the Ancient One in Kamar-Taj. Seeking immortality in order to continue his quest for knowledge sans interruptions, Jip developed a process through the black arts of absorbing the body of another person into his own, adding their remaining lifespan to his. The unequivocal evil behind the spell came with a number of restrictions and side effects. First, Mr. Jip could only possess the bodies of people who already contained a potent level of evil or darkness. Anyone of particularly high selfishness, sadistic, or malevolent intent would qualify, although "darkness" also seemed to qualify anyone in possession of the Darkforce, even an essentially noble soul like Cloak (Tyrone Johnson). Second, anyone aware of Jip's existence and intent would reject the possession process, instinctively creating psychic barriers to repel the festering malevolence of his soul before it could grab hold of theirs. As a result, Jip needed to catch his victims unawares in order to assimilate them as a host body.

Having survived over five hundred years through this process, Mr. Jip's body had suffered a toll. His hunchbacked, decaying true form reeks of evil, with the residual features of his past hosts rippling through his flesh as if still trying to escape. Jip can temporarily assume the appearance of any of his past hosts in order to appear in public. He can also manifest portions of their bodies in other ways. Mr. Jip has been seen with functional eyes and mouths on his back side and manifesting on other areas of his flesh as well. He can sprout hands from his hump to hold a book so that eyes on his back can read it. Jip has sprouted multiple arms or tentacles of living flesh to grip his opponents or snare objects in close quarters. He can also detach portions of his mass and retain a remote link to them. His familiar, YipYap, is a pair of eyes attached to long stalks that is capable of flight. YipYap's small size allows it to covertly observe events for Mr. Jip, transmitting its observations back to Jip through their shared link. YipYap can also separate into two individual eye-stalks to track separate events simultaneously. Mr. Jip also once removed one of his many eyes and installed it in Brigid O'Reilly's eye socket. This allowed him to remotely track her activities and influence her behavior.

Mr. Jip is a highly skilled master of the black arts, having demonstrated a number of spells and mystical abilities. He is capable of feats such as teleportation, body swapping other people, casting bolts of force, creating enchanted shackles, shaping remote viewing screens out of his flesh, and so on.

AQUEDUCT

 

AQUEDUCT

Real Name: Peter Van Zante

First Appearance: Ghost Rider (Vol. 2) #23, April 1977 (As Water Wizard); The New Warriors (Vol. 1) #7, January 1991 (As Aqueduct)

Powers: Peter Van Zante was a United States Army soldier who was injured in combat overseas and transported by ship back home while strapped into an experimental life support unit. Lightning stuck the ship and the energy was conducted through his body, somehow giving him the power to manipulate liquids. Turning to crime, he initially adopted the costumed identity of the Water Wizard and later Aqueduct after briefly working with environmental activists.

Aqueduct can psionically manipulate all liquids within 500 feet of him by stacking liquid molecules. Though he tends to manipulate water more than anything else, he has also affected oil and coolant fluids in the past. He is able to shape liquids into different forms (such as giant hands, waterfalls, solid restraints, and even geysers) and create enough surface tension in the liquid that it feels like a solid mass.

His control over his liquid creations is absolute until it has dissipated or he loses focus, interest, or consciousness. Aqueduct can cool and condense moisture from the atmosphere in order to form a fresh supply of water for him to manipulate virtually anywhere. He can pull water and other liquids from many sources, including sprinkler systems, underground rivers, and nearby bodies of water. He can affect water molecules within both the human body and technology (such as vehicles and armored suits), and he can dehydrate people and objects, extracting fluid from them and displacing it into the atmosphere.

He can make water flow and move about in mid-air, and direct it as highly-pressurized streams that carry a solid impact. Thus, he can create giant creatures made of water which are strong enough to shatter wood with their fists, or create a "jet ski" made of water and ride away sitting on top of it. He can propel himself forward on jets of liquid over vast distances at speeds up to 35 miles per hour, so long as water remains available for him to manipulate. After 30 minutes of steady water control, Van Zante experiences mental fatigue. Additionally, he cannot convert or control liquids once they've been transitioned to a solid or gaseous states, nor can he control the temperature of water (or combine hydrogen and oxygen to create water). His powers were briefly enhanced by the mystic Moondark, allowing him to make larger liquid constructs with hellfire immunity.

DEATHURGE

 

DEATHURGE

Real Name: Unknown

First Appearance: Marvel Two-In-One (Vol. 1) #71, June 1981

Powers: Deathurge is a wraith-like superhuman entity whose origin is unknown and who appears to be a messenger of death. Deathurge can fly at great speeds, become intangible at will, and draw forth from his non-reflective ebony body a variety of simple weaponry such as spears, axes, and bows and arrows. These weapons, also non-reflective black, appear to be made of the same unknown substance as Deathurge's body. When these weapons strike Deathurge's target, the target dies, a blackness spreading from the spot where the weapon bloodlessly struck and passed through the target's body. If the weapon happens to pass through someone other than Deathurge's target, that person will feel the sensation of numbing coldness but will not blacken or die. Deathurge's targets are apparently only those who have at least to some degree craved death and oblivion.

Deathurge's origins are not known. He may or may not be a supernatural being such as a demon or ghost. He may or may not be an abstract entity like Master Order or the In-Betweener. He may or may not be a physical being granted new life in a quasiphysical form such as the Eternal Chronos or Drax the Destroyer. It is not known what connection, if any, Deathurge has to the personification of Death.

Deathurge was first observed in the employ of the superhuman offspring of an Inhuman and a Deviant named Maelstrom. Although Maelstrom sometimes treated Deathurge as if he were a personal messenger or minion, Deathurge clearly served Maelstrom for reasons of his own. Deathurge was dispatched to slay the clonal bodies of Maelstrom's three prime minions and twice was commanded to slay clonal bodies of Maelstrom himself. A third clonal body of Maelstrom dismissed Deathurge when he realized they were at cross purposes. He later appeared on the planet Uranus in an attempt to convince the costumed super-hero Quasar to commit suicide.

ELEKTRA

 

ELEKTRA

Real Name: Elektra Natchios

First Appearance: Daredevil (Vol. 1) #168, January 1981

Powers: Typically, Elektra Natchios is a baseline human with no superhuman abilities. She has occasionally demonstrated low-level telekinesis, though it's possible that this may be just an illusion which victims of her mesmerism are led to see. She can communicate telepathically with individuals possessing similar levels of mental discipline, such as the Chaste.

She possesses numerous abilities that border on superhuman. She can control her own autonomic nervous system to a degree, controlling bleeding, fighting infection, etc. She is able to keep to the shadows and move with such speed that she can remain unseen even in broad daylight. She also has demonstrated on occasion the ability to mesmerize others and make them see illusions and other phenomena.

Elektra is a consummate practitioner of the martial arts. She is a mistress of the skills of the ancient ninja of Japan, and an Olympic-level athlete and gymnast. She possesses peak human levels of strength, speed, agility, reflexes, stamina, etc. She is an expert in Ninjtsu and various other martial arts, as well as gymnastics. Elektra wields a pair of three-pronged daggers called sais, though she also is proficient with, and makes use of, a multitude of martial-arts weaponry such as long swords, shruikens (thowing stars), and she is also experienced in the usage of firearms, explosives, and even anti-tank or aircraft artillery.

DEVIANTS

 

DEVIANTS

First Appearance: Eternals (Vol. 1) #1, July 1976

History: The Deviants are an evolutionary offshoot of humanity that was brought into being approximately one million years ago through genetic experimentation by the extraterrestrial Celestials. The Celestials altered the structure of the DNA complexes of the proto-humans whom they genetically transformed into the first Deviants so that physical characteristics, beyond bilateral symmetry, radically changed with each generation. Thus a Deviant child will greatly differ in appearance from either of his or her parents. Experiments conducted by the Celestials at the same time resulted in the creation of the Eternals and humanity having the potential for benevolent mutations.

Unlike the Eternals, the Deviants are not virtually immortal or indestructible. The sole known exception is the Warlord Kro, who, despite being vulnerable to injury, has lived for untold centuries, although he has concealed this fact from his fellow Deviants. Many Deviants possess superhuman abilities. The most common superhuman power among the Deviants is superhuman strength.

The genetic instability of the Deviants is the most important factor underlying the structure of their society. Although the Deviants are ruled by a hereditary monarchy and governed by a class of nobility, a great deal of power in Deviant society is held by the priesthood. The priests attempt to weed out those Deviants who are born with the most extreme and grotesque genetic differences from the others by consigning these Deviants to death in the flame pits at "Purity Time." Through such measure, the priests hope to keep variation with the Deviant race's genetic makeup within certain limits.

Because there is no standard physical appearance for Deviants, and because their race produces such grotesqueries, Deviant culture lacks the concept of physical beauty. However, perhaps due to envy, almost all Deviants regard humans and Eternals as physically repellent. Since Deviant children do not resemble their parents, and indeed may look physically repellent even to them, Deviant parents take no joy in childbearing. Indeed, Deviants look upon sexual activity merely as a necessary means of propagating the race, and take no pleasure in it. The sexes are segregated from each other in most public places in Deviant cities.

The Deviants were the first natives of Earth to develop technology, and even thousands of years ago had already become highly advanced in the study of genetics. It was the Deviants who created the Subterreneans as their slaves, and it has been speculated that it was the Deviants who genetically transformed ordinary humans into the water-breathing Atlantean race.

Originally the Deviants built their cities on the Earth's surface. They used their advanced technology to conquer the nations of humans, and eventually conquered the entire known world except for the empire of Atlantis. The center of the Deviants' empire was the island continent of Lemuria in what is now the Pacific Ocean. The Deviants treated the humans they conquered as slaves, and forced many of them to serve in armies that the Deviants sent to conquer other human nations. Finally, the Deviants sent a human army from the Lemurian Isles to attack Atlantis itself. To rout the invaders, Atlantis's King Kamuu opened the magma pits which were the capital city's means of heating. The Lemurian invaders were destroyed by the molten lava, but Its release triggered seismological upheavals.

Meanwhile, the Celestials' second expedition to Earth was sighted over Lemuria itself. The Deviants launched an attack on the Celestials, who retaliated by using an immensely powerful nuclear weapon on Lemuria. The weapon's shock waves combined with the disturbances beneath Atlantis to trigger the Great Cataclysm that devastated much of the planet. Lemuria and Atlantis both sank, and most of the Deviant population was destroyed.

The Deviants who survived did so by escaping to the small number of underground cities they had previously established. They built more subterranean cities, but eventually abandoned most of them for their new subterranean capital city on the sunken Lemurian continent, the so-called "City of Toads."

Since the sinking of Lemuria, Earth's Deviant population has been greatly reduced from what it was. Because of the Deviants' distaste for childbearing, they have felt no need to increase their numbers by a considerable degree, and today there are only about two thousand Deviants in the world, most of whom are sequestered underground. The Deviants have had various contacts with humane over the centuries, and their grotesque appearances may hive inspired many tales of devils, demons, and monsters. Some of the monsters of legend may actually be mutates bred by the Deviants. Even today some Deviants have infiltrated human society; a number have even become professional wrestlers.

In recant years, under the leadership of the Deviant monarch Tode, the Deviants attacked New York City, but were repulsed by Eternals. Hoping to learn the secret of the Eternals' immortality, Tode led most of the Deviant ruling class and a good number of their warriors in an attack on the Eternals' principal city, Olympia. Tode and his forces captured all the Eternals who were present, who, however, broke free as a result of the intervention of the second Iron Man. The Eternals captured the invading Deviants, whose atoms the Eternals melded into a giant stone-like block and cast into space.

With Tode and most of the ruling class thus eliminated, Warlord Kro and Tode's son Ranar both attempted to claim the throne. However, it was the priest-lord Ghaur who instead became the true ruler of the Deviants, and he remained so since.

JUMBO CARNATION

 

JUMBO CARNATION

Real Name: Unrevealed

First Appearance: New X-Men #134, January 2003

 

Powers: Jumbo Carnation is a mutant with several outward signs of his physical mutation. He possesses great physical size and mass, giving him superhuman endurance and strength, the latter is greatly enhanced due to his set of two additional fully-functional upper appendages and related enhanced musculature. Presumably, he can lift several tons of weight under his own power.

 

He also possesses the ability to convert the flesh of his entire body into a bio-polytetrafluoroethylene substance (or teflon). In such a state, his body has a very high melting point, he is impervious to corrosion, and has very low friction, all of which serves to enhance his external durability.

Jumbo Carnation is a socialite and fashion designer with several contacts in the fashion industry. Known for his flamboyance and catering to the mutant community, he is an expert in the production of clothing, shoes and accessories, identifying trends, and selecting styles, fabrics, colors, prints and trims for a collection.

CONSTRICTOR

 

CONSTRICTOR

Real Name: Frank Payne

First Appearance: The Incredible Hulk (Vol. 1) #212, June 1977

Powers: A baseline human with no superhuman powers, Frank Payne was an undercover agent for S.H.I.E.L.D. when he defected to the subversive criminal outfit known as the Corporation and assumed the costumed criminal identity of the Constrictor.

As the Constrictor, the Corporation provided Frank with a costume with partial bullet-proofing around the chest and head areas, and lined with electrically-insulated fabric. He originally possessed two cybernetically-controlled, electrically-powered Adamantium-alloy cables which eject and retract from special appliances running from shoulder to wrist. These cables can extend to a maximum of 30 feet and cab be used as whips capable of rending steel or lesser metals; or as bonds capable of enticing an object or human being and constricting with a maximum force of 115 pounds per square inch.

After a battle with rogue clone KIA in which both of his arms were sliced off, the Initiative's medical team provided the Constrictor with a set of cybernetic arms which can be reshaped into his Adamantium coils and function just the same. The Constrictor is an excellent hand-to-hand combatant well-versed in street fighting techniques.

WRECKING CREW

 

WRECKING CREW

Roster: (l to r): Wrecker (Dirk Garthwaite), Piledriver (Brian Philip Calusky), Bulldozer (Henry Camp), and Thunderball (Eliot Franklin)

First Appearance: The Mighty Thor (Vol. 1) #148, January 1968 (Wrecker); Defenders (Vol. 1) #17, January 1974 (remaining members and team debut)

History/Powers: Years ago, Dirk Garthwaite, a small-time burglar wielding a crowbar, broke into a hotel room and overpowered its occupant, the Asgardian trickster god Loki, who had just requested mystical enhancements from Karnilla the Norn Queen. Accidentally receiving these enhancements, Dirk became the costumed Wrecker. After a battle with Thor caused his mystic power to be transferred into his trademark crowbar, Garthwaite was sent to Ryker's Island prison where he befriended fellow inmates Henry Camp, Brian Calusky, and physicist Dr. Eliot Franklin. Escaping from prison during an electrical storm, the foursome ventured to find Garthwaite's crowbar. Upon finding it, he had his three partners hold onto the crowbar with him during the lightning storm, and the resultant bolt of lightning split the Wrecker's superhuman strength between the four of them, creating Bulldozer, Piledriver, and Thunderball. Together, they formed the super-villain team known as the Wrecking Crew.

-The Wrecker possesses superhuman strength and a high degree of imperviousness to harm as a result of the magical power bestowed upon him by Karnilla the Norn Queen. The enchantment augmented his entire body, strengthening his bone, muscle, and flesh. The Wrecker possesses superhuman strength that enables him to lift (press) about 50 tons. Previously, when sharing his superhuman power with the other three members of the Wrecking Crew, the Wrecker could lift (press) about 10 tons. The Wrecker is capable of withstanding the impact of a .45 caliber bullet without it penetrating his skin.

 

The Wrecker has established a mental link with his enchanted crowbar. In the past when the Wrecker has lost his superhuman powers, the power has transferred itself into the crowbar. By making physical contact with the crowbar, the Wrecker can transfer the power back into himself. Also, by touching the crowbar, the Wrecker can magically transform whatever he is wearing into his costume. By concentrating on the crowbar, the Wrecker can use it to take mental possession of whoever touches it and cause an enchanted aura that can repel bullets to surround that person.

After first gaining his superhuman powers, the Wrecker was able to teleport individuals to Asgard from Earth and to create waves of force about him that could deflect bullets. It is not known whether the Wrecker is still capable of these feats.

The Wrecker wields a four-foot long cast iron crowbar which has become virtually indestructible through extensive contact with the Wrecker's enchanted skin. Wielded by the superhumanly strong Wrecker, the crowbar becomes a weapon of vast destructive potential. The Wrecker has used the crowbar to demolish entire buildings in minutes and to hold off the thunder god Thor in battle. The Wrecker has used the crowbar offensively as both a throwing weapon and a bat.

-Brian Philip Calusky was raised as a farmhand, but eventually turned to a life of crime. The Wrecker’s enchantment augmented his entire body, strengthening his bone, muscle, and flesh. Piledriver possesses superhuman strength that enables him to lift (press) about 10 tons. Piledriver has superhuman durability and is capable of withstanding the impact of a .45 caliber bullet without it penetrating his skin. He often uses large hands and feet as pistons, battering opponents or sending shockwaves through the ground.

 

-Henry Camp was a master sergeant in the United States Army who turned to a life of crime after a dishonorable discharge. The Wrecker’s enchantment augmented his entire body, strengthening his bone, muscle, and flesh. Bulldozer possesses superhuman strength that enables him to lift (press) about 50 tons. Bulldozer has superhuman durability and is capable of withstanding the impact of a .45 caliber bullet without it penetrating his skin. For his costume, Bulldozer has a specially-made armored helmet, neck and shoulder apparatus that gives him added protection and invulnerability when ramming an opponent. The helmet partially affects his peripheral field-of-vision.

-Dr. Eliot Franklin was a physicist who was nicknamed "the Black Bruce Banner" for his expertise in the gamma radiation research pioneered by Dr. Banner. Inventing a baseball-sized compact gamma bomb 10 times as powerful as Banner's original device, he was sent to prison after attempting to steal back his invention from an unscrupulous businessman who patented the device in his own name. The Wrecker’s enchantment augmented his entire body, strengthening his bone, muscle, and flesh. Thunderball possesses superhuman strength that enables him to lift (press) about 10 tons, though she has been temporarily boosted to Class 40. Thunderball has superhuman durability and is capable of withstanding the impact of a .45 caliber bullet without it penetrating his skin. Though originally empowered by Asgardian mystical energy imparted to him by the Wrecker's crowbar, Franklin's been frequently stripped of that energy, regaining his powers by absorbing either the same energy or replacing it with other forms of absorbed energy.

Thunderball was wearing the a chain-gang ball & chain when he was granted his powers, and the wrecking ball thus became his enchanted talisman much like the crowbar. The ball was virtually indestructible and could be hurled at a target, then return to his grasp much like Thor's hammer. Like the crowbar, it also served as a focus for the magic -- if his power began to weaken for some reason, Thunderball could revitalize his strength by coming into proximity with the ball or bar again. Dr. Eliot Franklin holds a Ph.D. in physics. He is a gifted physicist, as well as an expert tactician and planner.

-The Crew lost their power on many occasions, often with either Thor or Loki stealing their power away from them, or gathering it back into the Wrecker alone. On one extended period of powerlessness, Thunderball was recruited by the Secret Empire and designed his own powered-exoskeleton to fight in. It mechanical gave him at least Class 10 strength and protected him from physical injury. It could also produce high-voltage electricity, either on contact or channeled through the wire-guided wrecking ball which extended out from his right gauntlet to great lengths.

In recent years, the Wrecking Crew have been modified slightly so that they must draw upon outside sources of power in order to maintain their abilities -- thus, their strength and durability levels vary depending on how charged they are. They have proven capable of absorbing various forms of electromagnetic energy (both as ambient releases or from power blasts) and Asgardian magic to metabolize for their strength. Once they even managed to drain the mystically-enriched life essence of Hogun the Grim to power themselves.

DEATH

 

DEATH

Real Name: Death

First Appearance: Captain Marvel (Vol. 1) #27, June 1973

Powers: The personification of Death can manifest itself on the physical plane at certain times to certain individuals as a sentient, quasi-tangible humanoid entity of either gender. Like Eternity, Lord Chaos, and Master Order, Death is an abstract being embodying a concept, whose true nature and origin is unknown. Death and the being called Eternity are said to comprise the mystical essence of the universe: Eternity embodies the principle of life, and Death embodies the principle of mortality.

Death and Eternity can both manifest themselves as sentient beings, and have spoken of themselves as siblings. They have appeared in humanoid form, although presumably they could appear in any guise they chose. Eternity generally appears in the form of a male, while Death usually manifests itself in female form. This may simply be the form Death chooses to seduce males into doing its will. When Death presented itself once to the vampire lord Dracula as a rival rather than as a seducer, it took male form. While Death can take the guise of a living human, it more often appears to living beings as a hooded, robed skeleton.

The personification of Death sometimes seems to possess fathomable motives. Death seems to seek new conquests, and manipulates mortals with or without their knowledge in order to gain them. Death once attempted to destroy Dracula through human pawns because Dracula was depriving it of conquests by creating vampires who were neither truly alive nor truly dead Death failed on that occasion, but Dracula eventually fell victim to permanent destruction. Although Death ordinarily seems content to maintain a balance in the universe between its power and Eternity's, Death will seize opportunities that arise to achieve dominance over Eternity. Death once appeared to the mad Titan Thanos in the form of a woman with whom he fell so much in love that he was willing to destroy the universe in order to please her. Death also apparently works in partnership with Galactus, the destroyer of worlds. Death has on occasion taken the role of gamesman, having once played a tournament of champions with the Elder called the Grandmaster.

Death's ultimate goals are unknown. There may be a master plan guiding its movements or nothing more than random chance. Virtually all living creatures in the known universe must eventually surrender themselves to Death. Even the Eternals and Asgardians age, although they do so very slowly, and will someday die. The Olympian gods do not age, but can be killed by a sufficiently powerful force. The Elders of the Universe, reputed to be the oldest living beings in the universe, can also be killed by a sufficiently powerful force. Galactus, the only known entity said to predate the Big Bang itself, believes his death inevitable.

The relationship between Death and the so-called gods of the dead of the various pantheons is also very hazy. Death gods like Hela and demons like Mephisto seem to receive certain undefined powers from Death and even rule over extradimensional realms seemingly inhabited by the souls of deceased mortals. But whether they are Death's pawns or allies cannot be determined.

Death remains one of the greatest mysteries of the universe. At one point, Death was "killed" by the extradimensional being known as the Beyonder, who later "recreated" it. The implications of this on Death's nature are still a mystery. Later, Death appeared to the Phoenix Force, claiming it to be the product of power of all life yet unborn, and thus somewhat an agent of Death and abstract entity the likes of Eternity and Death. Death helped to convince the Force to leave its then-current avatar, Rachel Summers.

ATOM SMASHER

 

ATOM SMASHER

Real Name: Ronald and Michael English

First Appearance: Black Goliath (Vol. 1) #1, February 1976 (Ronald); Marvel Two-In-One (Vol. 1) #85, March 1982 (Michael)

Powers: Orignally baseline humans with no superhuman powers, Cross Technology Enterprises (CTE) employee and his brother Michael developed nucleonic radiators which those used to mutate themselves, taking on the criminal identity of the Atom Smasher.

The English brothers could generate atomic radiation which they could project as heat, concussive force, or hard radiation. Their energies enhanced their durability, and they could also transform into pure energy, though even this form could be contained with lead, graphite, or other radiation dampeners. Each brother also employed multiple similarly costumed agents, trained in combat and operating his equipment.

Michael used a gyrojet to transport stolen materials and employed three Robotrons, 20-foot tall robots each operated by an agent in its head; extremely strong and durable, these robots fired concussive blasts from their heads and lasers from their wrists.

AWESOME ANDROID

 

AWESOME ANDROID

Real Name: Awesome Android

First Appearance: Fantastic Four (Vol. 1) #15, June 1963

Powers: The Awesome Android was the criminal genius Mad Thinker's earliest attempt to create a pseudo-living superhuman servant. The Thinker stole Mr. Fantastic's patented DNA research and
modified it, with a mixture of both synthetic-organic and mechanical components resulting in a pseudo-organic body which was a cross between a robot and a true android. This was made possible, in part, by splicing unstable molecules into the DNA patterns of an ape.

The Awesome Android's unstable molecular tissue and skin can mimic those it makes physical or sensory contact with; originally, it could only copy one ability at a time for about an hour. It could lift around 25 tons without mimicking, was unaffected by gases, could expel hurricane winds from its "mouth" at 180 miles per hour, shape its fists into weapons such as blades or granite blocks, and expand its overall size and mass by 10%. It could duplicate the Thing's rocky skin, Iceman's ice-armor, Stingray's amphibious wing-flaps, etc.

After an upgrade, it could split into at least 6 multiple forms, each one adapting to fight different opponents, growing vastly in size to match a giant opponent, sprouting wings to battle flying ones, and developing diamond-skin to counter super-strength; however, at this juncture, destroying the Thinker robot controlling it caused feedback, which disabled the Android.

The latest upgrade enabled the Android to mimic any living creature's powers and skills, and to retain multiple abilities for months, perhaps permanently. Powered by atomic energy, the Android can be knocked out by striking a vulnerable motor nerve terminal under the right armpit. The Awesome Android is typically mute, but while working for the law offices of Goodman, Lieber, Kurtzberg, & Holliway, it communicated through a chest-top display with a Wi-Fi link to his CPU, allowing to display his thoughts as words.

GEOMETER

 

GEOMETER

Real Name: Unrevealed

First Appearance: Quasar (Vol. 1) #51, October 1993

Powers: A member of an extinct alien race of scientists, the Geometer was the first to create a mathematical equation which described the workings of the universe. Obsessed with mathematical perfection, he began searching for a universe that would fit his ideal.

The Geometer is an angular crystalline being who utilizes the Lathe of Perfection, a device which conducts a form of metamorphic force that manipulates matter and energy for him. The effects it made on matter and energy typically changed them into symmetrical constructions and geometric shapes.

He is virtually immortal, can form gravimetric shields, and even travel across time and dimensions.

EBON SEEKER

 

EBON SEEKER

Real Name: Xanth

First Appearance: Fantastic Four (Vol. 1) #229, April 1981

Powers: The being who later became known as the Ebon Seeker was originally named "Xanth" and a member of the Moensien race from billions of years in the future of Reality-81049. The Moensians reached an evolutionary, cultural, scientific, and philosophical dead-end. Xanth and his lover Shareen were chosen to explore space for other lifeforms with which to interact with and enrich their stagnant race. After "40 solar years" of searching, they happened upon a derelict ship floating toward a black hole. Despearate to learn of the ship's origins, Xanth pursued, and his and Shareen's craft were pulled into the black hole.

Their ship and bodies were instantly disintegrated, but their minds lived on as they were pulled into the black hole. Inside the hole, their vaporized life-energies were met by swirling energy-beings of black light, who sought to commune with them. Shareen's life force listened to their voices, and she was reborn as a creature of living light and true peace. The life force that had been Xanth could not listen or comprehend, and was driven mad. He assumed only the darker aspects of the black hole, which consumed him body, mind, and soul. Xanth fled the dark light, and escaped out of the "opposite end" of the black hole, forsaking his Shareen.

Xanth emerged into the physical universe in Reality-616, distant spatially and far earlier temporally from his entry into the black hole. Consumed with completing his mission, Xanth sought life, but his new form was like unto a black hole and, upon contacting a planet, his energy/matter was drained outward, devastating the planet and weakening himself. Upon his death, he destroyed that world and then was reborn in the resultant energies to continue seeking new life, repeating the tragic process allegedly a million times. In addition, the black hole that recreated him began expanding, attempting to reclaim its escaped matter and threatening to prematurely end the universe. Shareen, now known as Firefrost, endlessly pursued Xanth, now known as the Ebon Seeker, to restore his sanity and end the destruction.

Immensely massive, the Ebon Seeker's presence disrupted time and space around him, temporarily causing "reverse video" effects and making it difficult to breathe. He absorbed all force, impact, and matter he contacted. At the same time, he progressively shrunk as he bled off his own energy/matter as tendrils, which ensnared and siphoned power from beings and objects. When his power was depleted, he destroyed the planet around him, regaining his full power in the process. Unaging (and unaffected by fatigue, disease, etc.), he traveled through space's vacuum unaided and communicated telepathically.In reconnecting with Shareen, he may have transformed into a living light being similar to Firefrost.

RESURRECTION FIVE

 

 

RESURRECTION FIVE

Members: (l to r): Tempus (Eva Bell), Proteus (Kevin MacTaggert), Hope (Hope Summers), Elixir (Joshua Foley), and Goldballs (Fabio Medina)

First Appearance: House of X (Vol. 1) #5, September 2019

Function: In creating the mutant nation-state of Krakoa, five mutants were studied and it was discovered how they could combine their powers in order to facilitate the resurrection of any dead mutant.

To begin, Goldballs creates inert spheres of non-viable biological matter; Proteus alters reality to make those spheres into viable "eggs"; an injection of the deceased mutant's preserved DNA is manipulated to bond with the egg by Elixir; Tempus then ages the biological growth rapidly through time manipulation; all held together in perfect synergy by Hope Summers and her interactive mutation.

Initially, their capabilities topped out at 1,000 mutant resurrections a week, or 200 per day. Furthermore, extensive testing has shown that the Five do not operate under duress, fatigue, or even massive exertion. The more mutants they resurrect, the stronger they become and the easier the process becomes. The experience has been described by the Five as incredibly blissful (but not in a narcotized manner). Originally, the mutant resurrection process took around 48 hours, but the process is shorter.

Additionally, these five mutants appear to have become an inseparable family unit and are almost never apart from one another, their symbiotic process appears to have extended beyond the union of their powers and to the mutants themselves. Some of this could be psychological, as on Krakoa, they are universally revered as cultural paragons.

TIME BUBBLE

 

 

First Appearance: The Mighty Thor (Vol. 1) #372, October 1986 (first mentioned); Avengers (Vol. 1) #296, October 1988 (first seen)

History and Functions: In an alternate future timeline, the world devourer Galactus nearly died on Earth-8810, and Tiamut the Black Celestial (aka the Dreaming Celestial, who had long ago been expelled for the cosmic Celestials' ranks for unspecified crimes) restored him, but altered his makeup, such that his hunger had become ravenous and his appetite increased geometrically. The Black Celestial's intent was that Galactus would eventually consume the entire universe, including the other Celestials. Meanwhile, Tiamut summoned an army of Deviants to construct probability machinery that would ensure that they would still exist when all else had become void; Tiamut would then become the nucleus and founder of a new reality. As Galactus grew in size, he eventually utilized a machine which generated a black hole, drawing more and more mass into itself, which in turn caused both it and him to grow in size, and his hunger increased as well. Eventually, around 20 years after the modern era, the force generated by this massive black hole began to warp time around it.

Investigating the time warp, the infinitely bureaucratic cross-dimensional temporal regulatory agency known as the Time Variance Authority (TVA) unwittingly exacerbated it, creating a 15-year bubble of time around it. This bubble eventually extended across all timelines, limiting time travel in either direction past that point. Within the Time Bubble, the black hole's massive gravitation virtually halted time, such that only beings of massive power or possessing time-manipulation abilities could function. The Council of Cross-Time Kangs (an organization of beings who had usurped the identity of various incarnations of Kang the Conqueror throughout the multiverse) learned of the existence of the Time Bubble, and recognized it as containing a weapon of some sort. Infiltrating the Council, Kang-Nebula (Ravonna, the future Terminatrix) learned of the Bubble. Along with Kang-Nebula, a trio of Kangs (including a divergent counterpart of the prime Kang) attempted to use the Avengers to penetrate the Time Bubble, and they were lost forever while the Avengers escaped.

The Fantastic Four's Reed Richards later discovered the Time Bubble and, using his Radical Dodecahedron, Reed powered their timesled Rosebud II, with which the FF (assisted by Iron Man/Tony Stark and Thor) entered the zone around the Bubble, generating hundreds of divergences in the process (or perhaps just showing hundreds of divergent timelines converging on a single point).
The aforementioned Kang trio latched onto Rosebud and were drawn into the Bubble. They were destroyed with the aid of the TVA-sent freelance peacekeeping agent Death's Head, who vanished from the Time Bubble when a blast from one of the Kangs damaged his craft's probability generator. As they headed for the nexus of the Bubble, they observed the mammoth form of Galactus and recognized his involvement.

The Fantastic Four tried to destroy the device generating the black hole via the weapons cache of the entire Shi'ar empire, aided by Gladiator (Kallark), but Tiamut revived and teleported the weapons directly into the black hole, destroying it in one fell swoop. Journeying to the Earth of that reality, Reed duped the computer of the Black Celestial into revealing his origins. Gladiator then crashed the remaining floating weapons depot into the Black Celestials' base, destroying it and apparently himself. However, the Invisible Woman (Sue Storm Richards) and the Human Torch (Johnny Storm), assaulted by Kang-Nebula, were trapped there and seemingly destroyed in the explosion, but Kang-Nebula had activated Sue's force field to save them all.

Meanwhile, thinking that Sue and Johnny had perished in the explosion, Reed vengefully taunted the Black Celestial with his plans to travel back in time and inform his brethren in the Celestials of his plans, so that they might stop him before he ever brought them to fruition. Teleporting back and forth with the space of that universe and within the time period of the bubble, Reed allowed the Tiamut to grow ever closer to them, until they led it to the point of no return from Galactus' event horizon/black hole. At the last second, Reed signaled Thor to form a magical warp to teleport them a safe distance away, while the Black Celestial was pulled into and destroyed by the black hole. For a brief instant, Galactus' raging appetite (and thus his sanity) were appeased, but this soon passed, and the consumption occurred at an even more accelerated rate from the vast influx of mass and power of the Celestial.

Learning of Sue and Johnny's survival, Reed led the group to Taa II, Galactus' worldship, where he located the Ultimate Nullifier. Kang-Nebula had been possessing Sue, and she attempted to usurp the Nullifier, but she fell for a trap set by Iron Man under Reed's direction, as Reed had suspected her involvement. Stunned by the electrical shock, Kang-Nebula was forced out of Sue and lost into the atmosphere of the Bubble. Returning to Galactus, the combined full energies of Thor, Iron Man, and the Torch's nova flame briefly restored Galactus' sanity, and he recognized the Nullifier as Reed gave it to him. Wishing to end his torment, Galactus activated the Nullifier, and a sphere of nothing consumed him and then the entire universe, effectively destroying the Time Bubble.

The Fantastic Four and their allies narrowly escaped the destruction; Thor and Iron Man fell off the timesled and back to Earth-616), while the Fantastic Four instead arrived in the divergent reality of Earth-9061, in which the Earth is ruled by a robotic Josef Stalin. All individuals who were seemingly destroyed by the Bubble eventually returned to existence.

PEACEMONGER

PEACEMONGER

Real Name: Talmadge Cobbleskill

First Appearance: Marvel Comics Presents (Vol. 1) #27, September 1989

Powers: The Peacemonger possesses the mutant ability to detect the negative empathic energy inherent in the hate of others around him. He can detect that emotional energy mentally, and apparently physically and then pinpoints its location and the amount. He can then absorb that energy into his body, directing it into his muscles, causing them to swell and increase his strength, endurance, and durability to superhuman levels. The Peacemonger has been shown to also increase in size, stature and mental instability when empowered. There is no established limit for his strength, though he has been shown to be strong enough to penetrate steel walls, bend metals, and easily rend human bone. However, without any hatred to siphon, the Peacemonger possesses only the size and strength of a regular person his age and build.

Absorbing negative psychic energy may also have had a rejuvenation effect. In his second recorded appearance, he had the appearance and vitality of a much younger man.