Post by Iron Man on Jun 13, 2008 15:13:29 GMT -5
The Character
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Cannon or your own: Cannon
Copyright (Marvel/DC/ect): Marvel
Characters civilian name: Anthony Edward Stark
Code names/Aliases: Iron Man, Tony, "Shellhead", The Golden Avenger, Tetsujin, Iron Knight, Hogan Potts, Spare Parts Man, Cobalt Man, Director Stark
Class [Superhero, Vigilante, Mercenary..ect]: Superhero
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Gender: Male
Age: 30's
Apparent Age: 30's
Hair: Black
Eyes: Blue
Height and weight: 6'1, 185lbs
Appearance: Tony is a handsome middle-aged man who exudes confidence and charm. As CEO of Stark enterprises, Tony is skilled in the art of dressing to impress, and typically, wears expensive tailored suits and pricey watches. Tony's piercing blue eyes and disarming smile make him an instant hit with the women. He has a neatly trimmed moustache, which makes him instantly recognizable. The Iron man suit is a red-and-yellow contraption that is constantly being improved both aesthetically and scientifically.
Picture [if available]:
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Super Powers: Direct Cybernetic Interface: Extremis has fused Stark's armor to his body, allowing him to store the inner layers of the Iron Man armor in the hollows of his bones as well as control it through direct brain impulses. He has direct control over the communication devices, scanning equipment, and recording devices located in his helmet.
Wireless Communication: He is also able to remotely connect to external communications systems such as satellites, cellular phones, and computers throughout the world.
Improved Response Time: Because the armor's operating system is now directly connected to Stark's nervous system, its response time has been significantly improved.
Superhuman Reflexes: The Extremis armor grants him superspeed reactions.
Regenerative Systems: He has ability to heal himself and repair the armor.
Crystallized Iron Armor: The armor has evolved from a bulky iron suit to a molecularly aligned matrix of crystallized iron enhanced by magnetic fields over layers of other metals like titanium, creating a shell that is pliable, yet capable of amazing resilience and protection.
Flight: The armor can reach speeds in excess of Mach 8. This occurred in the comic "Iron Man Program Execute".
Power Cells: The suit is powered by a combination of solar converters, electrical batteries and an on-board generator that uses beta particle absorption as a fuel source.
Energy Conversion Power Recharge: The suit is also able to convert nearby energy sources, such as heat or kinetic energy into electricity, or even drain electrical energy directly into the batteries for recharge.
Self-Contained Life-Support System & Environmental Protection: The suit can be completely sealed for operations in vacuum or underwater, providing its own life support, and is shielded against radiation.
The weapons systems of the suit have evolved over the years, but Iron Man's standard offensive weapon has always been:
Repulsors: Concussive force that are fired from the palms of his gauntlets.
Other weapons built into various incarnations of the armor include:
Unibeam: Emits various types of light energy.
Lasers
Magnetism
Pulse Bolts: Concussive force blasts that pick up kinetic energy along the way, so that they hit harder the farther they have to travel.
Energy Shield
Learned Abilities: Quite apart from the powers granted him by the suit, Stark is an inventive mechanical engineering prodigy, constantly creating new technology and looking for ways to improve it. Furthermore, this extends to his remarkable ingenuity dealing with difficult situations such as difficult foes and deathtraps where he is capable of using his available tools like his suit in unorthodox and effective ways. He is also extremely well-respected in the business world, able to command people's attentions when he speaks on economic matters by virtue of the fact that he is savvy enough to have, over the years, built up several multi-million dollar companies from virtually nothing. He is known for the loyalty he commands from and returns to those who work for him, as well as his impeccable business ethics. He also strives to be environmentally responsible in his businesses, and in one case, immediately fired an employee who made profitable (but illegal) sales to Doctor Doom.
When Stark was unable to use his armor for a period of time, he asked for some combat training from Captain America and has become quite physically formidable on his own when the situation demands it. As evidenced by his two serious bouts with alcoholism and subsequent recovery, Stark is possessed of tremendous strength of will, never giving up and often emerging from defeat even stronger. It is arguable that the true "iron man" is not the armor, but Stark himself.
Equipment: Iron Man wears a sophisticated suit of body armor containing various offensive weaponry. He has a number of suits aside from the current model. Some are mission-specific or prototypes for testing, others are older models kept for nostalgia or for research. As the multi-billionaire head of a global corporation, director of a global law enforcement/espionage agency, and a genius-level inventor, Stark can procure or develop additional technology as needed. Posesses the Reality Gem. Formerly, Avengers Identicard
Weaknesses (Must Have): Tony has a heavy reliance on technology. Also he has a sever heart problem and a recovered alcoholic.
Background: Howard Stark (or his father since a Howard Stark Sr. has been mentioned) worked on the Manhattan Project, encountered Uatu the Watcher with the V-Battalion, was kidnapped by the Red Skull, and worked on the Arsenal robot. Secretly, Hugh Jones caused the car accident that slew Howard and Maria Stark on the Ides of March. According to one account, the original Crimson Dynamo attacked Stark Industries, but a young Tony Stark persuaded him to defect.
Stark went to Vietnam to supervise a field test for one of his transistorized weapons. He ignored concerns that security was insufficient. Stark tripped on a booby trap and a piece of shrapnel was lodged in his chest. The gravely injured Stark was taken captive by the Communist leader Wong-Chu, and was informed that within a week the shrapnel would penetrate his heart and kill him. Wong-Chu offered Stark a deal: if he built the Communists a powerful weapon, Wong-Chu would allow Stark to undergo an operation to save his life. Knowing this was a lie, Stark agreed, hoping to gain time and access to tools.
Stark was given access to a small laboratory in communist territory with another captive, the renowned Oriental physicist and Nobel laureate Professor Ho Yinsen. With Yinsen acting as his assistant, Stark designed and built an electrically powered suit of armor equipped with heavy offensive weaponry. The armor also contained a pacemaker-like device which enabled Stark's heart to keep beating after the shrapnel entered it. Donning the suit, Stark connected it to its power source, an electrical generator. Lying on a table Stark was helpless until the suit was fully charged. His captor, Wong-Chu, sensed something was amiss and came to investigate with armed men. Realizing he was sacrificing his life, Professor Ho Yinsen went out to confront Wong-Chu, to give Stark the extra time he needed to charge the armored suit fully. As the Iron Man, Stark avenged Yinsen's death and scattered Wong-Chu's guerrilla troops. Then, still clad in his armor, which was necessary to keep his heart beating, Stark made his way to the jungle, trying to escape enemy territory.
James Rhodes, a pilot in the United States Marines who was stationed in Southeast Asia, had been shot down in the jungle by communist rockets while he was on a reconnaissance mission. Rhodes managed to land safely and was attempting to get his helicopter air-worthy when he encountered Iron Man. After Iron Man helped Rhodes fight off an attack by communist forces, Rhodes allowed him to drain the helicopter's batteries to recharge his armor. The two tracked through the jungle together, finally discovering a hidden communist rocket base. Stealing an enemy helicopter, they destroyed the base and flew to the nearest American base.
Back in the United States, Stark redesigned his chest plate, which contained a pacemaker-like device, reducing the chestplate's size and weight so he could wear it under his normal clothing. Required to wear the armor's chestplate at all times to keep his heart beating, Stark decided to put the rest of the armor to regular use as well. After redesigning the entire armored suit to match the lighter chestplate, Stark made the existence of the suit public. He concealed the suit's true origin, as well as the fact that he himself had to wear the chest plate to live. Stark made it known that he would soon manufacture the suit, which he called "the human machine," for sale for the public.
Soon afterward, Stark donned one of his battle suits in order to prevent thieves from stealing parts from the other copies of it. This experience made him realize that the suit was too dangerous to be made available to the public. The next day Stark revealed what had happened to him in Southeast Asia to Joanna Nivena, his then fiancé. Together they attended a tennis match in Forest Hills, N.Y. that afternoon. Stark brought along his armor, which he was taking to a nearby laboratory for tests. The match was invaded by terrorists who threatened to kill everyone present with a bomb. Joanna urged Stark to don the armor to stop the terrorists. Stark did so, captured the terrorists and saved the spectators by throwing himself atop the bomb. Iron Man thus publicly became a hero, and Stark had a new sense of purpose, having decided to combat evildoers as Iron Man.
Wishing to retain some degree of anonymity, Stark established the fiction that Iron Man was his paid bodyguard wearing a suit of armor that he had invented. Only his most trusted aides learned Stark and Iron Man were one and the same.
At first Stark used his Iron Man identity only to combat spies and criminals who threatened Stark Industries. Later, he expanded the scope of his alter-ego's activities to battle any force or person who threatened the security of America or the world. Stark was instrumental in the organization and armament of the original global intelligence and law-enforcement agency known as SHIELD. As Iron Man, he became a founding member of Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the team of super-human champions known as The Avengers. Stark donated his Manhattan mansion to the Avengers for their exclusive use.
As an Avenger, Stark would go on to participate in many missions over the years. With the other remaining founders after the Hulk left, he was among those who discovered the frozen form of the heroic Captain America, still frozen since World War II. He was also the Avenger who sponsored the membership of Hawkeye, a man whom he had skirmished with, after realizing his good intentions. Hawkeye was one of the new Avengers who joined when Stark and the other founders decided to take leaves of absence.
Over the years Stark constantly refined and modified the design of his armor. From a bulky, transistorized iron suit, he eventually built a relatively lightweight, integrated-circuit, magnetically-polarized suit with more human-looking articulated musculature. Stark's extraordinary genius in theoretical mechanics has enabled him keep his suit of armor state-of-the-art. Stark eventually underwent heart transplant surgery so that he was no longer obligated to wear his metallic chest plate. For moral reasons, Stark eventually decided to no longer manufacture armaments and devoted his company to other areas of technology.
n recent years Tony Stark's greatest nemesis has been alcoholism. As a wealthy socialite, alcohol had been a constant part of his life. When his company, which had changed its name from Stark Industries to Stark International, was threatened with the takeover at the same time he was experiencing oppressive personal problems, Stark began to abuse alcohol. Although he managed to recover quickly from his first serious bout, the compulsion to drink remained a constant temptation. The second time he succumbed to alcoholism, due to even more devastating personal problems than the first time, Tony Stark went on a several month binge during which he was cheated out of Stark International, had all Iron Man suits destroyed (except one), lost the leases on his various apartments, and had his personal assets frozen so that he could not touch his fortune. All of this was the result of the machinations of the mysterious European entrepreneur Obadiah Stane, who took over Stark's company, renaming it Stane International.
During this time, Stark's friend James Rhodes, who had gone to work for Stark after leaving the military, assumed custody of the Iron Man armor and operated as Iron Man in his stead [citation needed] .
When Stark finally regained his sobriety, he joined with Rhodes and two of his friends, Morley Irwin (late of Stark international) and his sister Clytemnestra Irwin of Richmond Enterprises, to set up a new electronics firm in California named Circuits Maximus. In its brief existence, Circuits Maximus became a prestigious and successful firm.
While the armor was in his custody, James Rhodes became increasingly enamored with being Iron Man and, upon Stark's return to sobriety, feared that Stark would ask for it back. The cybernetic helmet had never been properly calibrated to Rhodes' brain patterns; he began to have severe headaches and his thinking was clouded. As a result Rhodes began to manifest hostility toward Stark. As part of his therapy, Stark constructed a simple suit of armor based on his original design with no intention of donning it until he felt in control of his alcoholism. When Rhodes began acting irrationally, however, Stark felt obligated to put on this crude suit of armor to prevent Rhodes from doing harm. Stark managed to subdue Rhodes and made necessary recalibration on the cybernetics. For a brief time Stark and Rhodes used their respective suits of armor as Iron Men, although Stark did so reluctantly. At the suggestion of the West Coast Avengers chairman, Hawkeye, Stark designed and built his most sophisticated armor to date, presumably so that the Avengers could find someone to wear the suit and bolster the team's strength.
However, soon after its completion, Obadiah Stane became alarmed at Stark's steps toward recovery. Circuits Maximus was bombed, injuring Rhodes and killing Morley Irwin. Desiring vengeance, Stark donned the untested new armor and sought out Stane. Stane himself put on a suit his engineers had built using Stark's plans, and met Iron Man in battle as the Iron Monger. Losing the battle against Stark, Stane committed suicide.
Stark decided that although one is never truly cured of alcoholism, he could also not deny the responsibility of being Iron Man. He resumed his career as Iron Man, and helped Hawkeye in forming the new West Coast branch of the Avengers.
Stark also managed to reclaim control of his fortune, although he decided not to claim ownership of the company formerly known as Stark International. Rather, he founded a new technological design and manufacturing company, Stark Enterprises, based in Silicon Valley in Southern California. Stark Enterprises quickly became a highly successful and innovative company.
Stark learned that an industrialist calling himself Spymaster had stolen the plans for the many secret technological innovations found in the Iron Man armor. Spymaster had then turned these plans over to Stark's most powerful and antagonistic business rival, Justin Hammer, who in turn had made them available to criminals. These criminals had then incorporated the stolen technological innovations into their own armored battle suits. Outraged that his inventions were being used for criminal activity, and even for killing, Stark determined to deprive these criminals of his secrets. He planted a computer virus in Hammer's computer system that would wipe out all traces of the plans for Stark's Iron Man technology. As Iron Man, Stark sought out and caught many criminals and others (such as the United States government's Guardsmen) who wore battle suits utilizing his technology. He implanted devices called 'negator packs' on their armor to fuse the circuits, rendering the suit useless. With the computer records of the plans for his technology gone, presumably it could not be used in reconstructing the suits.
Iron Man accidentally killed the second Titanium Man (also known as the Gremlin) in the course of these "Armor Wars."
The United States government branded Iron Man an outlaw as a result of these and other vigilante actions, and his longtime Avengers comrade Captain America was among those opposing him. Stark publicly claimed that he had fired Iron Man in displeasure over his illegal activity. Shortly afterward, Iron Man was apparently destroyed in combat with government forces.
In fact, however, Stark had survived. He created an even more sophisticated armored battle suit to wear as Iron Man using technology far more advanced than that which Spymaster had stolen from him. Stark continued to go into action as Iron Man, but publicly claimed that the previous Iron Man was dead and that another employee of his whose identity was being kept secret was now wearing the armored suit.
Later, Stark was shot by Kathleen Dare, a former lover of his with an unstable mind. The gunfire severely injured Stark's spine and it appeared he could be crippled for the rest of his life, unable to walk. However he could still function normally within his Iron Man armor. A microchip device was later implanted in Stark's spine that enabled him to walk and move normally once again. This 'biochip' proved problematic and degenerative nerve damage occurred. This was aggravated by the attack of Kearson DeWitt, a madman who claimed Stark had stolen his father's designs. DeWitt had Stark's nervous system attacked with a techno-organic virus, but Stark was able to survive. He temporarily had to be placed in cryo-stasis, with Jim Rhodes taking his place as CEO. Soon after recovering, Stark was injured from feedback from a 'telepresence' system to remotely control his Iron Man armor and battle Ultimo. Stark eventually recovered after extensive rehabilitation.
Stark was forced to restructure Stark Enterprises when several of Stane's business decisions were leaked to the press. This also caused a number of other heroes to confront Iron Man, such as the Hulk regarding gamma bomb production plants.
Stark also quarreled with Rhodes over several good-intentioned but wrong decisions Jim made as CEO (such as selling off nuclear assets to a dummy company secretly operated by AIM), as well as his actions in Imaya. Rhodes was still angry Stark had lied to him about the nerve damage. The two briefly clashed, but have since become friends again.
Later, while under the influence of Immortus, Stark committed a number of horrible acts and was temporarily replaced by a younger version of himself. This was corrected when he and the other heroes who sacrificed themselves against Onslaught were brought back by Franklin Richards. Shortly after returning he subjected himself to judgment by his fellow Avengers and was exonerated.
Shortly after his return, Stark declined to challenge the Fujikawa acquisition and formed a new company, Stark Solutions. Injuries from battling the Mandarin and other foes revealed a danger of long term armor exposure. The armor's power systems and insulation were significantly redesigned to compensate. Jocasta's AI was recovered from Sunset Bain. Tony was contacted by the Sons of Yinsen, who became worshipers of his mentor and the Iron Man technology.
During a battle with Blacklash during a storm, the armor became sentient. This would be later revealed due to the Ultron Imperative. Iron Man (Sentient Armor) decided it would replace Stark, but ultimately sacrificed itself to repair damage to it's creator's heart. Stark posed as simple worker 'Hogan Potts' at Askew Electronics, incorporating a new alloy called SKIN into his armor designs. After tests against the Shocker, he went into battle against AIM, the Ghost, and finally Ultron after the villain revealed his manipulation of the Sons of Yinsen, his role in the sentient armor, and corrupting the SKIN technology.Later, Stark investigated a discontinued armor design used by rebels, the emergence of Temugin, and a strange alien bioplasm. Stark also infiltrated the Thunderbolts posing as the Cobalt Man.
The US military attempted to claim older model Iron Man armors [citation needed] . Their pretense was that Stark had not patented the technology and that he violated agreements made after the Armor Wars by continuing to adventure as Iron Man.
At the same time, a new Secretary of Defense was needed. Stark vied for the position and halted a disaster involving the technology as Iron Man.
Stark (later revealed to be manipulated by the Scarlet Witch) suddenly threatened a Latverian ambassador at a UN meeting. Clarence Ward used a stolen armor to kill nearly all of Stark Industries's board and Rumiko Fujikawa. In light of the incidents, Stark resigned as secretary.
Stark returned to work at a hectic pace, often sleeping in his lab. A former classmate asked for help--a super soldier project named Extremis had been given to a small terrorist group. Iron Man battled the augmented terrorist Mallen, but suffered massive injuries. Taking Extremis himself, Iron Man healed and found himself able to directly interface with technology, especially the armor. Going after Mallen again, Stark was forced to kill him.
Stark found himself becoming more and more aggressive battling the Crimson Dynamo and assisting the Avengers against Graviton [citation needed] . He also began building a group of drones nicknamed the Argonauts. 'Iron Man' was spotted attacking several officials, including those involved in his and Ho Yinsen's imprisonment. Stark agreed to go under watch, but armored up and escaped. He confronted Extremis' creator, only to learn the enhancement was not part of it. He was being controlled by an outside force. The Sentry was sent to apprehend Iron Man, only to find a remote unit and stopped via Tony's manipulation of CLOC.
Stark tracked down the sender at a press conference, finding Ho Yinsen's son. He learned Yinsen had been forced to secretly implant a control chip in Stark during their imprisonment years ago. This chip operated on Yinsen's breakthrough in using electromagnetic signals to control the body. Yinsen's wife was killed by operatives looking to steal the technology. In revenge, his son activated the chip, using Iron Man to go after those he felt responsible. A SHIELD sniper soon shot Yinsen's son, activating his fail-safe: the Argonauts...
Recently, it was revealed years before, in the wake of the Kree-Skrull War, that Stark initiated a meeting in Wakanda with Professor X, Mister Fantastic, Black Bolt, Doctor Strange, and Namor to form a clandestine, unnamed group to devise strategy and policy regarding overarching menaces (the "Illuminati"). Stark's original goal was to create a governing body for all superheroes in the world to answer to (with him most likely being the head of that group by his mannerism during the meeting). However, the different beliefs and philosophies, besides the fact that many heroes choose to conceal their real identities, made Stark's plan impractical. Despite this, the group agreed to share vital information.
Learning of the government's plans to instigate a Superhuman Registration Act that would force costumed, super-powered individuals to reveal their identities to the government and sign on as licensed agents, Iron Man at first seeks to defeat the proposal, even going to such lengths as to hire the Titanium Man to attack the hearing on the act as he testifies in order to manipulate opinion in his favor. However, at some point, Tony Stark's opinion of the Act changes, seeing it as a new means to achieve the goal that he had sought in forming the "Illuminati", and to tie the knots of friendship between humans and superheroes. He attempts to convince the other members of the clandestine group to support the new Act, stating that their input could prevent the Act from becoming too restrictive of superhuman activities, but all except Mister Fantastic reject the idea of registration.
After the Stamford, Connecticut disaster turns public opinion against superhumans and fast-tracks the Act into law, Stark comes out publicly in support of the Act, but the new law splits the hero community in two. All of Stark's planning and manipulation comes to fruition as Stark then becomes the representative and leader of the pro-registration side, placed in opposition to the anti-registration advocates. In his first major public action as a supporter of registration, Stark again unmasks as Iron Man.
Prior to the events of Civil War, Stark assists fellow Avenger Spider-Man and his family. Peter Parker comes to regard Stark as a mentor, becomes his assistant, and accepts a new technologically-enhanced costume from him [citation needed]. Stark also convinces Spider-Man to unmask and go public with his identity as well. However, Peter's feelings of being manipulated and unease about the rightness of Stark's cause grow until Stark reveals a prison for superhumans he and Mister Fantastic have built in the Negative Zone. When Spider-Man attempts to escape from Stark Tower, along with his family, in order to join the Resistance, he attacks Stark, who had confronted him. However, due to Spider-Man's override of the suit given to him by Stark and some unexpected intervention by the Punisher, the web-slinger manages to escape with his family and is now considered a traitor by Stark and the Pro-Registration side.
Other incidents in which Stark is directly involved is the death of Goliath after being struck down by a clone of Thor, utilizing the Thunderbolts and other super-villains as a task force to hunt down unregistered heroes and even using the Green Goblin as a weapon against them. Unknown to Stark, the Goblin is no longer under his control and is seeking his own agenda. Stark then goes to the moon where the Sentry is visiting the Inhumans. He personally invites the Sentry to join his team, saying that he may not be around to see the end of the Civil War and he will need some stronger heroes to be there if this is to happen. The Sentry follows Iron Man back to Earth, where he supposedly joins his side. Director Maria Hill suggests that Tony might become the next acting head of S.H.I.E.L.D. She cites his higher qualification than her, and the fact that it would "piss the right people off."
Iron Man and the other Illuminati were responsible for exiling Hulk from Earth, and are the people Hulk seeks revenge on when he returns. Luckily, Stark saw this eventuality as a possibility, and was prepared to engage the Hulk with brand new Hulk-Buster armor. The battle between them destroys most of New York City, and blows are thrown so powerful that no other hero can get close enough to help or act. Stark Tower is collapsed on top of the two during the battle, and ultimately, Hulk takes Tony captive to the Stadium with the rest of his captured heroes.
Return of Thor
When Thor returns he learns of the events of the superhero-registration "Civil War" and is angered that Tony Stark (Iron Man) waged war on the heroes who had been their friends, and is also angered that Stark and others used his DNA to create the Thor Clone without his knowledge or permission. Strak tells Thor he can't just rebuild Asgard in the middle of America, eventully Tony begins to fight Thor but it becomes apparent he can not win. Seeking a compromise, Stark rationalizes that Asgard may be considered a foreign embassy, with diplomatic immunity granted to its inhabitants. Thor deems this acceptable and the fighting stops.
Personality : Tony is a man of contradictions. On one hand, he is a genius, a brilliant man who could make America the dominant military force if he would only let them in on his Irontech technology. On the other hand, he is an alcoholic playboy who has made sleeping with the worlds most beautiful women a point of honor. In Tonys defense, he has a serious heart condition that means that living for the moment is a necessity. Faced with the death sentence it is not surprising he turns to the bottle. Tony is a man who really wants to make the world a better place. He has funded the Avengers and has never knowingly made a dollar from an immoral source.