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Revision as of 15:43, 25 March 2014
I do have a responsibility to keep my inventions from evil hands – but I have a greater responsibility to oppose that evil any way I can. So, Tony Stark may have done his bit out there, but only Iron Man can do what has to be done... So... I guess Iron Man will be around for a while. 
- —Tony Stark[src]
Quick Answers
What is the backstory of Tony Stark becoming Iron Man?
How did Tony Stark inherit his family's company?
What is the significance of the 'Earth-616' in Anthony Stark's name?
What kind of technology does Tony Stark use in his Iron Man suit?
Who are the main adversaries of Tony Stark in the Iron Man comics?
History
Adoption
Maria Stark had problems when gestating the child of Howard Stark. After being told their child's life expectancy would be extremely low, Howard searched around the world for a way to cure his unborn child. He found himself rescuing the Rigellian Recorder 451 from the alien race known as the Greys, who promised him he would help Stark and his wife to have a healthy child.[2]
451 came to Earth in order to stop the Greys from crushing humanity to a pulp as soon as the Earthlings were technologically developed enough. 451 revealed the Greys' intention to Howard, and told him he would need to insert someone in humanity to accelerate the human's technological growth for the moment they would need to face the Greys, and Stark's unborn child was the perfect candidate. 451 genetically engineered the baby with Kree technology to make him the one who would uplift humanity, modifying his thought process, making him to think differently and practically, in order to be an expert in advanced weaponry construction. Howard discovered 451 had added a "genetic clock" to the baby which would've killed him as soon as he matured, and developed a biococktail to interfere with it. 451 left Earth and the baby was born, but Howard's interference made him ill. He and Maria decided to keep the baby hidden in the Maria Stark Foundation Hospice and adopt a healthy son, as they couldn't conceive a new baby, to prevent 451 from discovering Howard's meddling. The adoptive son was Tony.[3]
Early Life
Tony Stark was enrolled in boarding school at six, where he would soon start experimenting with erector sets. He went on to be his high school valedictorian. He then joins an undergraduate program at MIT where he majored in physics and engineering.[4] Double majors in physics and engineering were easy for him.[5] He drifted into his 20's and became the idle rich. Shiftless and rootless and traipsed around the world turning into a jet set playboy adventurer. When he was 21, he inherited his father's business, Stark Industries, and within a few years turned it into a multi-billion dollar industry complex whose chief contracts were for advanced weaponry and munitions for the U.S. government. Also buying the company that built the car and redesigned the brakes and fixed any of its future flaws.[6]
Inventing the Iron Man Armor
Iron Man is born!
Stark went to Afghanistan[7] 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 revolutionary 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 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 with another captive, the renowned Asian 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 that 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.[8] 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 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 enemy 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 rocket base. Stealing an enemy helicopter, they destroyed the site 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 chest plate's size and weight so he could wear it under his normal clothing. Required to wear the armor's chest plate at all times to keep his heart alive and 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 chest plate, 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 to be then public.
Becoming Iron Man
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.[9] 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. Terrorists who threatened to kill everyone present with a bomb invaded the match. 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. One of these early confidantes was "Happy" Hogan, whom Tony hired as his chauffeur.[10] Hogan fell in love with Tony's secretary Pepper Potts, whom Tony was secretly in love with.[11] Even though Potts reciprocated Tony's feelings, she eventually began a whirlwind romance with Hogan, which ended with the two of them getting married.
At first, Stark used his Iron Man identity mostly to combat spies, like the Actor,[12] and criminals who threatened Stark Industries, like the Melter[13] or Mr. Doll.[14]
During this time, the original Crimson Dynamo attacked Stark Industries, but Tony Stark persuaded him to defect.[15] Also, Stark faced off for the first time against the Mandarin,[16] who would become one of his most recurring enemies.[17]
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 S.H.I.E.L.D.. As Iron Man, he became a founding member of Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the team of super-human champions known as the Avengers.[18] 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, although he sometimes had trouble reconciling his private affairs with his responsibilities in the Avengers.[19] With the other remaining founders after the Hulk left,[20] he was among those who discovered the frozen form of the heroic Captain America, still frozen since World War II.[21] 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.[22]
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.[23] Stark's extraordinary genius in theoretical mechanics has enabled him to 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 stop manufacturing armaments and devoted his company to other areas of technology.[24]
The Illuminati
Iron Man and the Illuminati.
In the wake of the Kree-Skrull War, 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").[25] 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 chose to conceal their real identities, made Stark's plan impractical. Despite this, the group agreed to share vital information.
Alcoholism and a New Iron Man
In recent years Tony Stark's greatest nemesis has been alcoholism.[26] 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.[27]
When Stark finally regained his sobriety, he joined with Rhodes and two of his friends, Morley Erwin (late of Stark International) and his sister Clytemnestra Erwin of Richmond Enterprises, to set up a new electronics firm in California named Circuits Maximus.[28] In its brief existence, Circuits Maximus became a prestigious and successful firm.
While the armor was in his custody, Jim 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 recalibrations 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.
Battling Iron Monger.
However, soon after its completion, Obadiah Stane became alarmed at Stark's steps toward recovery. Circuits Maximus was bombed, injuring Rhodes and killing Morley Erwin.[29] 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 joined the new West Coast branch of the Avengers.
Founding Stark Enterprises
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.
The Armor Wars
Stark learned that an industrialist calling himself Spymaster had stolen the plans for the many secret technological innovations found in the Iron Man armor.[30] 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 a battle suit 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 and The Armor Wars.
Iron Man accidentally killed the second Titanium Man (also known as the Gremlin) in the course of these "Armor Wars".[31]
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.
Stark Shot
Later, Kathy Dare, a former lover of his with an unstable mind, shot Stark.[32] 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 'bio-chip' 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 James Rhodes taking his place as CEO.[33] 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 his nerve damage condition. The two briefly clashed in battle, but have since resumed their friendship.
Traitor
Frameup
Later, while under the influence of Immortus, Stark committed a number of horrible acts and was temporarily replaced by a younger version of himself.[34] This was corrected when Franklin Richards brought him and the other heroes who sacrificed themselves against Onslaught back. When the replacement Tony Stark returned to the Marvel Universe, he was merged with the Earth-616 Tony Stark who was resurrected thanks to Franklin Richards. Shortly after returning he subjected himself to judgment by his fellow Avengers and was exonerated.
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.
The Sons of Yinsen, who became worshipers of his mentor and the Iron Man technology, contacted Tony.
Sentient Armor
During a battle with Whiplash during a storm, the armor became sentient.[35] 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 its 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.
Stark investigated an early military armor that had been distributed to rebel forces around the world.[36]
Temugin also made his presence felt, challenging Iron Man for the apparent death of his father, the Mandarin.
A strange alien bio-plasm was investigated in Las Vegas.[37]
Stark infiltrated the Thunderbolts posing as the Cobalt Man.[38]
Tony's Extremis Armor
Extremis
The US military attempted to claim older model Iron Man armors.[39] 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' 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, 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 he was becoming more and more aggressive battling the Crimson Dynamo and assisting the Avengers against Graviton.[40] 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. An outside force was controlling him. 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. Operatives looking to steal the technology killed Yinsen’s wife. In revenge, his son activated the chip, using Iron Man to go after those he felt responsible. A S.H.I.E.L.D. sniper soon shot Yinsen's son, activating his fail-safe: the Argonauts.
The New Avengers
While flying around the city, Iron Man arrived at the Raft prison to aid Captain America, Luke Cage, Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, Matt Murdock, and the Sentry in keeping prisoners in after a prison break. Tony was initially reluctant to make a new team but eventually agreed. The New Avengers went to find Karl Lykos and found out that S.H.I.E.L.D. had been enslaving the Savage Land Mutates to dig in Vibranium mines. Next, The New Avengers found the Sentry and helped him restore his memory before going off to Japan to face HYDRA and the Hand. After they returned, the New Avengers revealed themselves to the world. After this, the House of M occurred, followed by a battle with the Collective. In between these missions, the Sentry was sent to battle Iron Man by the government, and Tony only defeated him by showing the Sentry several reports of disasters awaiting his actions, which caused the Sentry to collapse. Tony also tried to help Cap shut down the Young Avengers, only to help them fend off an invasion by both the Kree and the Skrulls over Hulkling. The New Avengers also attempted to apprehend the vigilante Cloak when he was framed for an attack on his partner Dagger, but were interrupted by the Runaways, who helped clear Cloak's name.
Leading the Superhuman Registration Act.
Superhuman Registration Act
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 sought to defeat the proposal, even going to such lengths as to hire the Titanium Man to attack the hearing on the act as he testified in order to manipulate opinion in his favor. However, at some point, Tony Stark's opinion of the Act changed, 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.[41] He attempted 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 rejected the idea of registration.
After the Stamford, Connecticut disaster turned public opinion against super humans and fast-tracked the Act into law, Stark came out publicly in support of the Act, but the new law split the hero community in two. All of Stark's planning and manipulation came to fruition as Stark then became 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 unmasked as Iron Man.
Prior to the events of Civil War, Stark assisted fellow Avenger Spider-Man and his family. Peter Parker came to regard Stark as a mentor, became his assistant, and accepted a new technologically enhanced costume from him.[42] Stark also convinced 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 grew until Stark revealed a prison for super humans he and Mister Fantastic had built in the Negative Zone. When Spider-Man attempted to escape from Stark Tower, along with his family, in order to join the Resistance, he attacked 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 managed to escape with his family and was now considered a traitor by Stark and the Pro-Registration side.
Becoming Head of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Iron Man: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Other incidents in which Stark was directly involved was the death of Goliath (Bill Foster) 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 was no longer under his control and was seeking his own agenda; however, Sally Floyd and Ben Urich allege that Stark himself who compromised the nanites in Osborn, an accusation that Stark did not deny[43]. Stark went to the moon where the Sentry was visiting the Inhumans.[44] He personally invited the Sentry to join his team, saying that he might not be around to see the end of the Civil War and he would need some stronger heroes to be there if this was to happen. The Sentry followed Iron Man back to Earth, where he supposedly joined his side. Director Maria Hill suggested that Tony might become the next acting head of S.H.I.E.L.D. She cited his higher qualification than her, and the fact that it would "piss the right people off." Tony became very active in shutting down unregistered factions, frequently trying to arrest the New Avengers and pouring S.H.I.E.L.D. agents into Los Angeles to capture the Runaways. Eventually, Captain America's group surrendered and was granted amnesty, with Cap agreeing to go on trial for his actions during the "Civil War". However, while in custody, Captain America was killed in an assassination orchestrated by the Red Skull. Stark was devastated by his friend's death, and left unsure on how to proceed. In a letter Steve had written before his death, he asked Tony to insure that the Captain America legacy lived on and to look out for Bucky Barnes. Tony was instrumental in getting Bucky to assume the mantle of Captain America.
Iron Man and the other Illuminati were responsible for exiling Hulk from Earth, and were the people Hulk sought revenge on when he returned. Luckily, Stark saw this possibility as an eventuality, and was prepared to engage the Hulk with a brand new Hulk-Buster armor.[45] The battle between them destroyed most of New York City, and blows were thrown so powerful that no other hero could get close enough to help or act. Stark Tower collapsed on top of the two during the battle, and ultimately, Hulk took Tony captive to the Stadium with the rest of his captured heroes. Once all of Stark's sources (and comrades) were exhausted, he rendered the Hulk (who had been weakened from his fight with the Sentry) unconscious with orbiting military satellite lasers he helped install in his appointing as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. He had to draw money from numerous sources (most notably S.H.I.E.L.D itself) to repair Avengers Tower and the several damaged buildings and structures of New York.
As Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Iron Man investigated the death of Nebraska Initiative member, Gadget and stumbled upon her investigation of hundreds of missing persons.[46] Realizing that Stark was a danger to his work with Prometheus Gentech, Inc. in creating a new super-soldier, Secretary of Defense Jack Kooning had him depowered from his Extremis Armor and placed on leave for mental strain.[47] Stark secretly returned to Nebraska and with the help of Leonard Samson and Captain Ultra discovered that Prometheus Gentech was using the missing persons as test subjects for the Extremis virus and that Maya Hansen was unwittingly working for a reborn Mandarin to create an aerosolized version of the virus which he intended on unleashing to create a race of super-humans.[48] Iron Man, forced to use outdated armor, confronted the Mandarin and a cadre of Extremis-enhanced combatants at the Prometheus laboratories. He ordered S.H.I.E.L.D. to take out the complex with a miniature warhead contained within the gravitational pull of a black hole, thus limiting the damage just to the laboratory, as he tried to escape the event perimeter.[49] Mandarin escaped to China with Maya Hansen and pretended to be Tony Stark and convinced her to give him the sequence for the aerosolized virus. Stark and S.H.I.E.L.D. were taken into custody by the Commission on Superhuman Activities for their release of the nuclear device in Nebraska. Stark's main witness, Jack Kooning escaped to Myanmar and enlisted the help of Xang "King" Kong in tracking down the Mandarin, but was killed by him before he could take him out with a sniper rifle. Stark is convicted, but Dugan orchestrated an attack on the United Nations over which S.H.I.E.L.D. has jurisdiction as a distraction for Stark to escape and to track the Mandarin to China. In defeating the Mandarin, Stark is forced to cut off part of his foot to remove the Extremis armor dampener but was able to redirect the virus-containing rockets by sending them to an extremely high altitude and killing the virus. Having saved the day, he was cleared of all charges and reinstated as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.[50]
When Thor returned he learned of the events of the superhero-registration "Civil War" and was angered that Iron Man had waged war on the heroes who had been their friends and that Stark and others used his DNA to create the Thor Clone without his knowledge or permission. Tony began to fight Thor but it became obvious he could not win. Seeking a compromise, Stark rationalized that Asgard could be considered a foreign embassy, with diplomatic immunity granted to its inhabitants. Thor deemed this acceptable and the fighting stopped.[51]
During the Skrull Invasion.
Tony came to the remains of the X-Mansion to talk with Cyclops. He informed the former X-Men leader that the government was pushing to get the X-Men registered. Scott told him there were no more X-Men and that they were going to be registered for being born.[52]
During the Skrull Invasion Stark's armor was infected by an alien cyber virus which ultimately purged him of the Extremis virus. Stark discovered Spider-Woman herself was the Skrull Queen Veranke who nearly deceived him to join ranks with her. He was saved by Ms. Marvel who upon Tony's request left him with Black Widow who acted as his defense until he could fix his damaged armor to a point to where it was fully functional. Tony led the heroes of New York against the Skrull invaders. His armor however, began to fail in midst of the battle forcing him to return to Avengers Tower for another one. The President of the United States was less than reasonable regarding Stark's action and ultimately removed Stark as director of S.H.I.E.L.D, and disbanded the entire agency itself. Although the battle against the alien invasion had been won, Tony suffered a great loss. His technology was non-functional, his corporations were in dismay, he had many new enemies, and little to no allies willing to help him with any of his problems.
Dark Reign
After the invasion, the U.S. government also disbanded the Avengers, handing control of the Initiative over to Norman Osborn. Iron Man was later a member of Henry Pym's Mighty Avengers.[53] Before fighting the threat of Chthon, Iron Man helped to subdue the Hulk.[54] He left the team after realizing he was not yet ready to be a part of it.[55]
With his Extremis powers failing, Stark was able to upload a virus that destroyed all records of the Registration Act, thus preventing Osborn from learning the identities of his fellow heroes. The only copy of this database remained in Stark's head, while he was now on the run in one of his extra armors,[56] and his remaining armors in Stark Tower were now in Osborn's hands.[57] Iron Man managed to gain a new armor and fought Namor in the Stark Undersea Base.[58] Stark was able to outsmart the Atlantean and escape the collapsing base. Osborn then placed a bounty on Stark's head, offering mountains of gold to the Hood's gang. The members of the secret organization the Cabal gathered to discuss many issues, among which was the hunt for Stark. Stark was losing intelligence by the day which slowed his thinking time and caused him to not be able to pronounce difficult words correctly. He started gathering and assembling parts to make his Iron Man suit easier to navigate and control as it was becoming more and more difficult for him to do so. He later abandoned it for the Dynamo Armor, which he borrowed from Dimitri Bukharin.[59] Tony was later tracked down by Pepper but the two were captured by Madame Masque.[60]
He managed to escape with Pepper's help, but was forced to leave her behind so she could fend off Masque. He then made his way to Afghanistan, but before he could reach his destination, he was shot down by Afghani militants. With his armor destroyed, Tony was forced to abandon it and proceed on foot to his destination, the secret laboratory that Stark worked with Ho Yinsen as a captive in developing the first Iron Man armor, Mark 0. Dusting off the outdated computer systems, Stark was able to reactivate the old suit, which was now the only armor simple enough for his deteriorating mind to operate.[61]
When Osborn personally caught up to the debilitated Stark and beat him savagely, Pepper Potts broadcasted the beatings, costing Osborn credibility and giving Stark public sympathy. Stark went into a vegetative state, having previously granted Donald Blake (Thor's alter ego) power of attorney.[62]
Stark Disassembled
A holographic message stored in Pepper's armor revealed that Stark had developed a means of 'rebooting' his mind from his current state prior to his destruction of the database. Blake and Bucky resolved to use it to restore him to normal despite Stark's offer in the message to stay in his current state if it would make things easier and Pepper's own uncertainty about the fact that Tony could come back when so many others could not.[63]
Stark Disassembled.
The procedure on how to reboot Stark was very complicated. First, they had to place Pepper's electromagnet implant onto his chest, which would be fueling his entire biology. Then they jacked in the hard drive that Maria Hill recovered, which was a backup copy of his brain before he underwent the Extremis injection and then they activated the implant by channeling Thor's lightning through Captain America's shield connected to it.[64]
Meanwhile, in the last remaining vestiges of Stark's mind, he was in a barren wasteland, digging for the lost relics of his life, assisted by a couple named Howard and Maria. However, every time he found something, giant machines resembling his own Titanomechs would attack, causing the illusion to reset. He eventually found he was digging for an iron chest plate, resembling the 1960s version of his old armor. [65]
Back on Earth, Pepper, Rhodey, and Captain America sent in Doctor Strange to help Tony after the first attempt to revive him failed. The Ghost interrupted the doctor's ritual, but Tony Stark manually overcame his coma and used the Ghost's ghostphone to transport the assassin away. It was then everyone realized Tony's backup memory drive was not quite complete, as he was awed by the events he read about on his computer after the skirmish, which included the Civil War, Captain America's assassination, the Secret Invasion, and Dark Reign.
Siege
During most of the Siege of Asgard Tony Stark was out of commission, but suddenly returned wearing an older version of his armor, disabling Norman Osborn's stolen Iron Patriot armor and signaling the return of all three main Avengers; including Thor and Steve Rogers. He was instrumental in the defeat of the Void, by ramming a H.A.M.M.E.R. Helicarrier into the villain at full speed, weakening him, finally giving Thor the chance to kill him.
After the Siege, Tony built a new model of armor with the help of Mister Fantastic. He also apologized to Thor for everything he had done. Later, Tony announced that he would make a new company, Stark Resilient,[66] to rebuild his former wealth and to extend his repulsor technology as a civilian energy source.
Resilient
After his reboot Tony, now with no company, decides to start a new company named Stark Resilient. Thor offers to give him treasures to fund his new venture, however he rejects it hoping to start from scratch. After working with Reed Richards on his new upgraded suit he pulls Stark from making government weapons.
Pepper becomes his new CEO and informs business men that he wants to use his repulsor technology to change the world and remove the need for oil and other fossil fuels. However he tells them that if they don't get on board he will ruin them. Angered by this, Pepper has a helicopter leave Tony, forcing him to use his new armor.
Tony's Bleeding Edge Armor.
Meanwhile the Hammer girls Sasha Hammer and Justine Hammer plan to fill in the gap in military technology left by Stark Industries with their own Detroit Steel, and not in a nice way. To make sure that Stark's new company doesn't get in their way, they hire Spymaster to kill Stark Resilient while it's still in its crib. They also buy and sell old Stark Tech and H.A.M.M.E.R. weaponry and use some of it to fake a terrorist attack in Tokyo so their Detroit Steel could "defeat" these terrorists and come out victorious. Meanwhile making Iron Man and War Machine, who flew over there to see what's going on, look ridiculous in front of the cameras. Though they do not come home empty-handed: Tony recognized the youngest Hammer girl, Sasha, as an accomplice to Ezekiel Stane who destroyed Stark Industries and nearly killed Tony.
Meanwhile at the home front Stark Resilient has gathered a few misplaced geniuses to build him an Electric race car working on repulsor technology from scratch in six weeks. And Pepper Pots wants her own repulsor disc back in her chest and an armor suit to become the heroine Rescue once again. Tony is initially against this, but it seems he promised her this before his mind-wipe, so he does what she asks and Pepper becomes Rescue once again. Tony hosts a gala in name of Stark Resilient and invites both Hammer girls. After an appearance together with Pepper, Tony takes off with Sasha Hammer.
The Heroic Age
Iron Man and his enemies into the Heroic Age.
In the aftermath of Siege, the super human registration act was repealed thanks to the efforts of Steve Rogers, who now took over the position of the overthrown Norman Osborn. Iron Man reunited with Thor and Steve Rogers and rekindled their relationship while setting their past differences aside. Iron Man and Thor were assigned to Avengers along with Bucky Barnes as Captain America while Steve Rogers headed the Secret Avengers. Iron Man was slightly troubled that he may not be able to take orders from Steve, but Steve told him that Maria Hill would oversee the Avengers.
The first human possessing and using the Infinity Gauntlet.
On the day Tony was to public display his car, he was attacked by Hammer's forces and Detroit Steel. He found out that the drones were controlled by a cell phone application and with the help of his team was able to shut them all down. Tony was then able to focus on battling Detroit Steel who was trying to make his own publicity stunt by defeating Iron Man which would prove that the U.S. Government would be getting a better deal with Hammer, than they ever did from Stark (as Stark had rejected to make anything for them). However, the battle proved fruitless for Detroit Steel and Iron Man was able to save the day. However, this was only a minor setback to Sasha and Justine Hammer who were able to form a partnership with both Ezekiel and the Mandarin for preparation towards their next confrontation.
Having saved the day for now and his new company starting to shape up, he went to a local Alcoholics Anonymous meeting at the behest of Pepper to inspire confidence to those suffering from the condition. Things seemed to be going well for Tony but Doctor Octopus challenged him telling him that he had a bomb that would detonate most of the city if he didn’t comply to his request.
Versus Detroit Steel
When Iron Man went to the location he met Doctor Octopus and recalled their early years as classmates. He challenged Iron Man to either remedy his current health condition or publicly admit defeat that he was unable to solve such a case. Tony stated that Octavius' past actions were catching up with him and that he needed to see a doctor which he wasn’t.
Meanwhile, Stark Resilient was also attacked by Electro and Sandman, who were sent by Doctor Octopus. However, Pepper proved to be quite a match for them and they ended up having to retreat. At the base, Doctor Octopus told Tony to beg him, which he humiliatingly complied with realizing that lives were at stake for the mere pleasure of the mad man. Doctor Octopus recorded the scene and let Tony go and stated that he had been outsmarted and that there really wasn’t a bomb to diffuse.
Tony flew back to his office to see if everyone was alright. Upon the positive turn of events, Tony and Pepper decided to enjoy themselves and were staring into the sunset when they witnessed something fast falling from the sky. Upon hearing that there were multiple such occurrences of such an event around the world, Tony went to Paris to investigate where one of the hammers had fallen and told Pepper to hire Bethany Cabe who dismissed the idea stating the Tony just wanted another redhead in his office. Tony told her that it was because she was resourceful and capable woman.
Fear Itself
Stark breaks his sobriety.
During the Serpent's bid to rule Earth, Tony fought Mokk in the streets of Paris, France, where all citizens had been turned into living statues.Finding himself unable to defeat Mokk with conventional methods, Tony entreated Odin to allow him to design magically powered weapons in the forges of Asgard.[67] Haunted by the casualties and his failure, Tony began drinking again. Then Odin appeared and after discussing with Tony, the All-Father proposed to Tony to create magical weapons at Svartalfheim. However, determined not to fail again, he restored his sobriety. With these weapons, the Avengers defeated the Serpent's Worthy and Skadi, while Thor defeated the Serpent himself but payed with his life. Days later, Tony destroyed the weapons at Svartalfheim and after discussing with Odin, the God brought back to life the "statues" of the Parisians who weren't broken. Also, Stark offered the dark elf Splitlip a place to work at Stark Resilient.[68]
Avengers vs. X-Men
Weeks later, Ezekiel Stane and the Mandarin started upgrading classic villains of the Golden Avenger and used them to make acts of wars over the World. Which caused Tony to be doubted if he can really pilot the Iron Man armor, being cited by the U.S. army, with help of War Machine but before this conflict could be solved, a new one raised.
The Avengers fought the X-Men for the custody of Hope Summers, believed to be Phoenix's next host.[69] While the rest of the Avengers where in different locations around the World, trying to find Hope, Tony stayed at the Avengers Tower creating a Phoenix-killing armor, which he later used during the battle against the X-Men in the Blue Area of the Moon to face the Phoenix. When he used a disruptor on it, the cosmic entity wasn't killed but divided into five parts which possessed each one of the X-Men present at the scene.[70]
The Phoenix-possessed X-Men started changing the world into a better place for living, but knowing that Phoenix's ultimately destructive nature would bring chaos, Captain America and the Avengers tried to get Hope from Utopia in order to use her knowledge about the Phoenix against it while Tony started modifying his Phoenix-Killer Armor to prevent other failure, after the Scarlet Witch helped them against the X-Men (previously having visions of the Phoenix destroying Earth), Cyclops decided to hunt down every Avenger. The Thunderer offered the Avengers to hide in K'un-Lun, as well as to train Hope to face the Phoenix, because of his past experience with the Phoenix Host and Iron Fist Fongji, and the prophecy of the Phoenix bringing chaos to Earth. After Tony, Wolverine, Hope and the Thunderer teleported to K'un-Lun, Namor attacked where they were hiding, Wakanda, along a full army of Atlanteans.[71] After defeating Namor with the price of the partial destruction of Wakanda, the rest of the Avengers teleported to K'un-Lun, in order to help Hope to train to face the Phoenix.
He spent weeks enclosed searching for the connection between the Phoenix Force and Iron Fist. When Cyclops located the Avengers in K'un-Lun, he faced him with everything he had in order to allow Hope get to the Thunderer, after Cyclops defeated Tony and other Avengers, Hope and the Thunderer appeared along Shou-Lao, she absorbed the dragon's powers and managed to teleport Cyclops away.
The Avengers then teamed up with several X-Men who had realized that Cyclops and Emma had completely lost control. Together they attacked Cyclops and Emma and gained the upper hand until Cyclops was forced to take the final piece of the Phoenix from Emma, making him the sole host. The complete Phoenix proved too much and finally turned him into Dark Phoenix.[72]
The Avengers fought Summers around the world with the help of the X-Men and Nova, while trying to contain the chaos the gigantic force produced around Earth. Scarlet Witch and Hope eventually managed to defeat him, causing the Phoenix to leave Scott and possess Hope, but she managed to control it, repairing all the damage Scott caused on the planet, and finally, using the powers of the Scarlet Witch to manipulate reality, she destroyed the Phoenix Force with a final blast of energy which caused millions of people around Earth to manifest mutant powers. Cyclops was finally incarcerated, and Steve accepted the Avengers should've done more to help mutants, and allowed the world to hate them. As a result, he started planning a new team of Avengers in hopes of unify mutant and humankind.[73]
Mandarin's last stand
After the conflict with the X-Men, General Bruce Babbage forced Tony to use a special attachment to his armor, which could turn it off whenever he wanted. After faking Rhodey's death and having Pepper in a crisis, Tony let Mandarin and Hammer win this battle, only to start playing with his own rules.[74]
In a plan apparently made with Captain America, Tony quit being Iron Man, giving General Babbage what he wanted. He had to take his armor out of his system, although he gave Rhodey a new armor to take his place, after he helped Rhodey fake his death. After Spymaster infiltrated Stark Resilient and attacked many of its members, Stark decided to no longer be part of that company to keep his friends safe from the Mandarin, who remotely managed to control Stark, make him his prisoner and force him to build Titanomech alongside Ezekiel Stane.[75] After Mandarin used 3 of his rings to power the first Titanomech, Tony started a plan with Ezekiel, convinced super villains Whirlwind, Blizzard and Living Laser to join him in a rebellion with the final purpose of defeating the Mandarin, and managed to use the technology in his body to help Resilient find him, using microbots known as the Swarm, which tracked the repulsor technology of Tony's body. Resilient asked Triumph Division and the Dynasty to help Tony defeat the Mandarin and his Titanomech. After Tim Cababa managed to reactivate the Extremis virus inside Stark's body, Tony created a link with the Swarm and used them as bombs to destroy Mandarin's weapons, who in the end was killed by Stane.[76]
Stark returned to Seattle, and after isolating himself in order to create new technologies and think about his life, he decided to take some time and clear his mind in the process by going to space.[77]
Along the Guardians of the Galaxy
The Secret Origin of Tony Stark
When he returned to Earth, Tony created a new armor to test new technologies. After many aspects of his life were questioned upon defeating numerous people who got their hands on the Extremis virus, Tony decided to accept an offer Star Lord made to him[78] and joined the Guardians of the Galaxy to explore the universe.[79][80]
During his voyage in space, Tony Stark was faced by a rouge Rigellian Recorder called 451, who claimed he had met Tony's father, and was the one responsible decades ago for allowing to Tony be born. The Recorder revealed he had supposedly genetically engineered Tony in-womb, providing him with his intelligence and wits, and also that he modified Tony to let him be the only future pilot of a giant armor called Godkiller which would be the nuclear deterrent of Earth.[81] Tony was forced into piloting the Godkiller, but somehow couldn't.[82] 451 discovered his long-time plan had no profit, and decided to destroy his consciousness along with the Godkiller.[83] Tony managed to escape from the Godkiller with the brain-dead body of 451.[84]
Upon returning Earth, Tony investigated why he couldn't pilot the Godkiller, and discovered the hidden secret that he wasn't the baby 451 modified, but an adoptive son used as a decoy to prevent 451 from finding the actual boy. Tony finally located his long-time secret foster brother, Arno Stark, who was no longer in danger as 451 was now dead. Reunited with his genius brother, Tony decided he could use the millenial information stored in 451's database and the intellect of Arno to help build a better world.[3]
Personality
Tony Stark is, for the lack of a better word, complicated. During his early days of success, Stark was a man who only cared about fame and wealth. He had no sense of responsibility or humility, always rubbing his success on the face of everyone he met. This all changed when he was captured by terrorists. After building the first Iron Man armor and escaping captivity, Stark had realized the kind of person he really was and engaged in a life of heroism to atone for his past mistakes.
Plagued by many vices, Stark is prone to womanizing, pride and most surprisingly, alcoholism. This lifetime of troubles has caused him to develop a cynical view of the world. Despite this, Stark is devoted to truly make the world a better place.
Iron Man is a hero that relies on his intellect and technological resources to defeat foes and achieve victory. Stark invariably prides himself on being one of the most intelligent people of the Marvel Universe.
Alcoholism
As an upperclassman, Stark suffered from alcoholism. He drank almost on a regular basis, and subsequently got replaced by Rhodey as Iron Man and got kicked off the Avengers (though he eventually regained his position). By the time of the Heroic Age, he managed to stay sober till his meeting with Odin. Despite this, he still managed to stay sober and control his drinking.Attributes
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Powers
Thanks to the Repulsor Tech node implanted in his chest, which is linked to his brain, Tony is able to interact with different types of energies and forces a normal human cannot. The R.T. node acts like a new sense for its user.[85] The reactor's excessive generation of energy provides Stark with an increased amount of intelligence and gave him superhuman-level multitasking and learning capabilities.
Stark using the R.T. node to project energy at will
Energy Emanation: The R.T. node not only provides repulsor energy to run devices such as the Iron Man Armor, its user can produce beams of energy at will, possibly weaker and less directed than the Uni-Beam.[86]
Magnetic Force-Field: The R.T. node creates a force-field which can be modified at will by its user by incrementing the power of the Reactor. It can be so powerful to destroy bullets or repel people. It can be so powerful to surpass an electromagnetic field generated by Electro.[87]
- Electrical Fields Detection: As the R.T. node is connected to Tony, he can feel different electrical fields that the Reactor is picking up. This includes all kinds of invisible frequencies.[88]
- Levitation: The magnetic force-field generated by the Reactor can interfere the ones created by the planet and levitate. It's unknown if this interaction can be used to fly.[89]
Enhanced Senses: The reactor also increases the senses of its user, allowing Tony to "hear better" for example.[90]
Enhanced Strength: The R.T. node allows who possesses it to have a greater strength.[91]
Enhanced Healing and Durability: It has been shown that an user of an R.T. node not only recovers incredibly fast from different types of injuries[92] but also to resist more physical damage than an average human.
Psi-Shields: Due to S.H.I.E.L.D treatments, Stark's mind is shielded from even the strongest telepaths alive.
Iron Man Armor
Iron Man's primary powers mostly come from his armored suit.
Suiting up the Iron Armor: The armor used to require several machines to put on the suit, in a lengthy process. Later, this was changed to having it in a suitcase, which shortened the suiting up time, but was not very effective on the battlefield. The deposition of the armors changed over time, being able to hold the armor within himself, and use it when needed, and spring into action in mere seconds. A new model of armor uses intelligent liquid metal to generate itself around Stark. Recently, Stark returned to having several machines to suit him up, although the process was now made fast.
Support Powers
- Superhuman Strength: He is capable of lifting up to 100 tons when wearing his armor and can achieve higher levels of strength when powered by a sufficiently more powerful source.
- Superhuman Speed: Even when not traveling for extended distances, the armor enables the wearer to move and react at very high speeds.
- Flight: The armor can typically reach speeds in excess of Mach 10, however Iron Man has been recently depicted as able to reach orbital escape velocities (5 miles per second) and up to speeds that can outrun black holes. Use of the jet boots provide enough power to lift a load of about 500 tons.
- Power Cells: Most of his armors are powered by a combination of solar converters, electrical batteries and an on-board generator that uses beta particle absorption as a fuel source. Current models after Iron Man Armor Model 38 use a Repulsor Tech generator located in Stark's chest to be powered.
- Energy Conversion Power Recharge: The armor is also able to absorb and convert nearby or far away energy sources, such as heat, solar, electrical, magnetic, geo-thermal or kinetic energy or energy from the planet itself into electricity, or even drain energy directly into the batteries for recharge.
- Self-Contained Life-Support System & Environmental Protection: The armor can be completely sealed for operations in vacuum or underwater, providing its own life support, and is shielded against radiation, biological, chemical, corrosive, kinetic, and electrical attacks as well.
- Magnetism: The armor can generate magnetic fields to pull or push metal objects at will.
- Anti-Magnetism: The armor Tony has to negate the effects of magnetism on it. Tony skill is used often to be immune to the powers of Magneto. This skill can be triggered when the armor picks next wave magnetism.
- Onboard Computer: The armor has an internal onboard computer operating system that aids Stark in providing strategies, background information on opponents, surroundings, the status of the suit, and prevents a lock on from targeting systems.
- Sensor Array: Known sensors include radar/lidar, night vision, and physiological/medical scanners that allow Stark to take and monitor the vitals of other people, including heart and brain scans. These scans also provide Stark with real-time personal physiological data. They are also capable of an all-environmental scan for atmospheric content or life forms--including astral energy projections.
Iron Man lifting a 16,000 Ton Nuclear Reactor
- Override: When required, armor systems including strength amplification, durability amplification, and repulsor intensity can be greatly increased, by bypassing safety circuits and limiters. However, there is a chance that this can result in a complete system failure of the armor. An example of this mode is when Iron Man easily lifted a 16,000 ton Nuclear Reactor, and flew into the sky and threw it into the sea. It seems that he utilized this resource on the Hulk once, as the armor ends up completely inert.[96] The range of the Override can be controlled as only reaching his very limit and staying at it for a long time will cause a system failure. This range goes from a safe 800% to 3200%, up to a very dangerous 5000%.
Defensive Powers
Crystallized Iron Armor: The armor has evolved from a bulky iron suit to a highly complex matrix of molecularly-aligned fully crystallized ultra high carbon iron/steel hybrid alloy enhanced by magnetic fields over layers of other ultra hyper alloys like titanium alloy and or tungsten/vanadium alloys reinforced with carbon nanotubes creating a shell that is pliable, yet capable of amazingly high resilience and protection.
Iron Man's shield withstanding explosions
- Enhanced Durability: His armor is very durable, capable of withstanding tremendous amounts of punishment. It can withstand high caliber bullets with ease. He can also withstand rockets, missiles, torpedoes, high powered lasers, and such, taking little to no damage. Future armors were fully resistant against electricity, fire, heavy impacts, energy blasts, take zero Kelvin and up to the Suns temperatures, even some of Thor's attacks (see Thorbuster). The suit can withstand almost unlimited kinetic and thermal impact, as well as most forms of radiation thanks to its refractory coating. The armor can survive anything short of a nuclear explosion at ground zero. The suit automatically protects its wearer when he enters an intrinsically hostile environment, such as outer space or deep sea. The armor even has specialized circuitry that guards against telepathic attacks. Tony is very confident in his suit's defensive abilities, when he was caught in a nuclear explosion, he was only thinking about women and completely forgot about what was happening around him.
- Energy Shield: Energy shielding that can protect the user from harm. It is also capable of reflecting attacks and staying mobile. At 2% power, the shield is strong enough to withstand a nuclear explosion.
Offensive Powers
Iron Man employs his repulsors.
- Repulsor Rays: The armor's primary energy weapon. A particle beam weapon, standard equipment in the palm gauntlets; can repel physical and energy-based attacks, traveling as a single stream or as a wide-field dispersal. It's damage potential is extremely lethal, from being able to go through 2 inches of steel like paper to blasting a hole through a mountain. They can be powered up to make a larger beam or a Full Form repulsor Ray, which does 360 degrees of attacks. The power of the repulsor Beams can range from the basic ones such as the one from the Mark 3, which fires 2 gigawatt beams, to the beams on a much further model of the suit such as the Model 27 which fires beams in the high petawatt region, but those require a little assistance from outside. The latest model of repulsor technology is that of Mark IVa, used for the first time in the Iron Man Armor Model 42, featuring a red color.
- Unibeam: A powerful searchlight, capable of projecting beams in virtually every light spectrum. Also used as a powerful weapon that can destroy anything in its path. It fires a boosted form of the Monobeam with some energy backing it up.
Unibeam
- Tri-beam: This unique version of the Unibeam runs on direct power from the chestplate, draining it's energy rapidly if not fully charged. It has considerable knockback.
- Multi-beam: As the name implies, the Multi-beam can fire multiple energies at the same time. Generally used with the energy that Tony Stark has absorbed.
- Pentabeam: The Pentabeam has microwave lensing projector that allows for directed beams of ultra-high multi mega-joule electrons, protons, acoustic energy, and neutrons.
- Omnibeam: Rather than only firing beam type attacks, the Omnibeam can generate heats at 25232 degrees Fahrenheit, extremely powerful lights causing irreversible blindness in the enemy, and emit ultrasonic attacks capable of stunning even superhumanly durable foes and even causing disintegration. The other way the Omnibeam is fired is by absorbing or draining any energy in Iron Man's vicinity, drawing it into his chest reactor and converting it into billions of petawatts and firing it.
- Lasers: Standard lasers that can be used as weapons or for welding, including UV laser to penetrate light-permeable shiels.
Laser
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- Pulse Bolts: Extremely powerful plasma discharges that propagate in strength over distance, but implode if they get overloaded.
- Energy Blade: Based on the same design Tony Stark used to build Captain America's energy shield, this laser sword, emitted from his right arm, could also be flattened into a shield on his hands, or spread over the entire armor to encase the armor in a protective covering.
- Pulse Barrage: Pulse Barrage is one of Iron Man's standard long range attack. Because of its extremely low energy consumption, Pulse Barrage can be a very effective attack. an upgraded Red Pulse Barrage has the ability to penetrate through foes hitting others behind them, and the ability to ricochet off walls hitting more targets.
- Smart Missiles: The Smart Missile is one that can target the weak points of a structure, object, or foe to inflict maximum damage with a minimal payload.
- Hyper-velocity Impact: The program Hyper-velocity allows Tony to think and move at a much faster time frame than everyone else, allowing for quicker attacks. Also, it could create an electrical bubble if Tony is going fast enough.
- Plasma Discharge: A plasma discharge is given off when the suit comes into contact with Vibranium.
- Telepathic Microscopic Tasers: Tony created this device to prevent telepathic beings use its powers. They are stored in the armor's electric jet. One inhaled by a telepath, the more he/she tries to sue his/her psychic powers, the higher is the voltage of an electric current released in his/her body. It can be lethal if the telepath doesn't stop trying to use his/her powers.[97]
Abilities
Super-Genius class Intelligence: Quite apart from the powers granted him by the suit, Tony Stark is far more than a mechanical engineering prodigy who graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with honors at the age of 17[98].
With an intelligence classed as super-genius,[99] he easily is one of the smartest people on Earth. 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, as an example: when he built the first Iron Man Armor in captivity.[100] He has also been able to hack even technology from the aliens Kree, a race centuries more advanced than humans.[101]
Tony is known as a "futurist". He has stated that the way his mind works he can intuit the future, even being able to foreshadow that a situation similar to the superhuman Civil War was going to happen, years before it did.[102]
More recently, Stark's intelligence grew to super-human levels with more energy being emanated to his brain thanks to the R.T. node in his chest, levels which even left Mr. Fantastic amazed.[103]
Stark can use his superior intellect to the levels of dividing his consciousness with the help of equipments and perfectly operate three portions of his consciousness at the same time, being able to move, fight, talk and process information in three different bodies at the same time.[104]
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Stark using his vast intellect to create multiple Iron Man Armors at the same time.
Expert Engineer: He is an excellent engineer and mechanic capable of fixing almost, if not all, any machinery.
Expert Businessman: Stark is 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 multimillion 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. He states that if he wanted to, he could give away his entire fortune and build it up again within a week.
Expert Tactician: He is a brilliant tactician capable of quickly formulating battle strategies and new plans if the situation changes, like being able to elaborate different complex plans in order to defeat different enemies in difficult situations,[105][106] and be victorious. Even going as far as to simultaneously put Reed Richards in check on five different boards playing chess, a game he didn't learn until later in his life, leaving Richards totally astonished.[105]
Skilled Combatant: Stark was trained in unarmed combat by Captain America, Black Widow, Black Panther and Shang-Chi[107] and has become quite physically formidable on his own when the situation demands it. He has managed to fight trained Hammer Industries guards,[108] defeat five trained Skrull soldiers in single-handed combat[109] and numerous Voldi gladiators.[110]
Trained Marksman: Tony knows how to handle firearms, mainly the ones he has produced.[111]
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Slightly-Trained Acrobat: Through his training, Stark has learned to increase his agility and perform acrobatics, which even though don't reach levels of people like Captain America, are superior to the average human.[112]
Indomitable Will: 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.Weaknesses
R.T. node Dependence: The Repulsor Tech node implanted in Stark's chest has the basic machine codes to keep Stark's Extremis-modified body working. So it needs to be in constant connection with him.
Alcoholism: Tony has been battling against his alcoholism due to the high pressures of running his industrial company, maintaining his social profile, and being Iron Man. More recently, he started to drinking again when, because of the Serpent arrival on earth, he believed it was the apocalypse.
Paraphernalia
Equipment
- Armors: 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. He has developed a special briefcase to carry his armor in. A few models are too big for the case and require a separate module. 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 as possible.
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R.T. node inmplanted in Stark's chest
- Repulsor Tech node: The Repulsor Tech node is a type of fusion power which derivated from the Repulsor Technology of the Iron Man suit created by Tony. It can be used as a source for clean energy as well as a powerful bomb, further modifications made along Rand Industries discarding the second possible application. After being left in a coma in a battle against Norman Osborn, an arc reactor was used to run Stark's body once more by using it to run the basic machine codes to keep Stark's Extremis-modified body working, also providing Stark with an increased intelligence, multitasking abilities and additional powers.
- Skrull Anklet: Which allowed him to shut down any psychic abilities.
The Reality Gem
- Space Gem: As a member of the Illuminati, Iron Man possesses one of the Infinity Gems (previously having the Reality Gem)
- Avengers Identicard.
Weapons
Various repulsor weapon systems by Iron Man armor
Girlfriends
Babs
Babs
Babs was one of the many dates Stark had to forget Pepper Potts; she went with Tony to take a look at the completed reconstruction of his factory.[113]
Cynthia
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Cynthia
Cynthia was one of the many dates Stark had to forget Pepper Potts, even though he mistook her for Sandra.[113]
When Tony Stark was captured by the Melter, she and several other of Stark's dates rushed to the Stark Enterprises Main Plant to check if Tony was still alive.[114]
Nan
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Nan
Transportation
Notes
- The identity of Iron Man was publicly revealed when Tony donned half the suit to save a dog from being run over. This was then later covered up by Stark claiming to have given up the suit with someone else now inside.
- The teenage Tony Stark was incorporated into the real Stark.
Trivia
- Stark means "strong" in several languages, including German, Swedish and others.
- Lee based Stark's personality on Howard Hughes, explaining, "Howard Hughes was one of the most colorful men of our time. He was an inventor, an adventurer, a multi-millionaire, a ladies man and finally a nutcase".[115]
- As revealed in Iron Man #243, Tony Stark's blood type is A+ (A Positive).
- Tony Stark made a brief behind-the-scenes cameo appearance in Super Friends #5 by DC Comics. He telephoned a Super Friends telethon and spoke with Batman, wherein he pledged $75,000 to the Heart Fund.
- Tony's favorite sport is soccer.
- Forbes.com has listed Tony Stark as #4 on its list of fifteen wealthiest fictional characters, with a net worth of US $12.4 billion.[116]
- BusinessWeek has ranked Iron Man as one of the top ten most intelligent fictional characters in American comics.[117]
- Tony claims to have beaten Reed Richards in chess twice.[118]
- There have been at least 40 different armors built by Tony Stark since the first Iron Man Armor, though not all of them are Iron Man Suits.
- In The Invincible Iron Man #500 it's revealed that Tony is 35 years old.
- Tony Stark has three doctorates.[119]
- Iron Man was ranked 12th on IGN's Top 100 Comic Book Heroes in 2011.
- The character of Nathan Stark on the television show Eureka is inspired by Tony Stark.
- Tony Stark is the first human to possess and use the powerful Infinity Gauntlet, Mr. Fantastic wore first, but didn't use it.
See Also
- 3527 appearance(s) of Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
- 43 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
- 618 minor appearance(s) of Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
- 999 mention(s) of Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
- 31 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
- 5989 image(s) of Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
- 477 quotation(s) by or about Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
- 36 victim(s) killed by Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
- 126 item(s) used/owned by Anthony Stark (Earth-616)
Links and References
- InvincibleIronMan.com & Message Boards (sister site to Advanced Iron)
- Advanced Iron - THE Iron Man Site to visit
- DRG4's Iron Man the Animated Series Page
- Iron Man Figure Archive @ toymania.com
- Iron Man: The Animated Series (1994-5) @ Marvel Animation Age
- Iron Man Message Board
- Iron Man at the Internet Movie Database
- Iron Man 12
- The Iron Man Armory
- John Jackson Miller's Iron Man production notes and trivia
- Under the Armor - An Iron Man Fanlisting
- Iron Man Comics - Marvel
- Man Marvel's Iron Man Page
- Iron Man Movie Group link
- Stark's Site
- Marvel Directory
- cx mh 06fict15 iron.html Forbes
References
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z Vol 1 5
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 5) #10
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Iron Man (Vol. 5) #17
- ↑ dp pt# Avengers: The Ultimate Guide
- ↑ http://www.ironmanarmory.com/earlyyears.html
- ↑ dp pt# Avengers: The Ultimate Guide
- ↑ The place and moment when Tony Stark became Iron Man has changed over the years, it was originally during the Vietnam War in Vietnam, it was later changed to the Persian Gulf, and more recently to an unnamed conflict in Afghanistan
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #39
- ↑ Nivena on ironmanarmory.com
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #45
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #57
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #42
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #47
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #48
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #46
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #50
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #54
- ↑ Avengers #1
- ↑ Avengers #7
- ↑ Avengers #2
- ↑ Avengers #4
- ↑ Avengers #16
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #48
- ↑ Iron Man on marveldirectory.com
- ↑ New Avengers Illuminati #1 (May 2006)
- ↑ Early Years on ironmanarmory.com
- ↑ Iron Man #170
- ↑ Iron Man #187-188
- ↑ Iron Man #199-200
- ↑ Iron Man #225
- ↑ Iron Man #229
- ↑ Iron Man #242
- ↑ Iron Man #284
- ↑ Avengers Forever (softcover, Avengers Legends: Volume 1, 264 pages, January 2001, ISBN 0-7851-0756-8, hardcover, 296 pages, September 2009, ISBN 0-7851-3796-3)
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 3) #15 (April 1999)
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 3) #50
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 3) #72
- ↑ Avengers/Thunderbolts mini
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 3) #55 (July 2002)
- ↑ Iron Man (Collections) Vol 4 #2
- ↑ New Avengers Illuminati #1 (May, 2006)
- ↑ Amazing Spider-Man #529
- ↑ Civil War: Front Line #11
- ↑ New Avengers #24
- ↑ World War Hulk #1
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 4) #22
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 4) #23
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 4) #25
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 4) #26
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 4) #27 #28
- ↑ Thor (Vol. 3) #3
- ↑ aftermath of Messiah Complex
- ↑ Mighty Avengers #21
- ↑ Mighty Avengers #22
- ↑ Mighty Avengers #23
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #10
- ↑ Dark Avengers #1
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #11
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #14
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #15
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #17
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #19
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #20
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #21
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #20
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #25
- ↑ Fear Itself #5
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #510
- ↑ Avengers vs. X-Men #1
- ↑ Avengers vs. X-Men #5
- ↑ Avengers vs. X-Men #7
- ↑ Avengers vs. X-Men #11
- ↑ Avengers vs. X-Men #12
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #515
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #520
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #526
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #527
- ↑ Avengers Assemble (Vol. 2) #8
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 5) #1–5
- ↑ Guardians of the Galaxy (Vol. 3) #1
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 5) #9–12
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 5) #14
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 5) #15
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 5) #16
- ↑ Based on Pepper Potts' experience with a similar R.T. node to Stark's in Invincible Iron Man #4
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #521
- ↑ Based on Pepper Potts' experience with a similar R.T. node to Stark's in Invincible Iron Man #502
- ↑ Based on Pepper Potts' experience with the same R.T. node to Stark's in Invincible Iron Man #4
- ↑ Based on Pepper Potts' experience with the same R.T. node to Stark's in Invincible Iron Man #4
- ↑ Based on Pepper Potts' experience with the same R.T. node to Stark's in Invincible Iron Man #4
- ↑ Based on Pepper Potts' experience with the same R.T. node to Stark's in Invincible Iron Man #4
- ↑ Based on Pepper Potts' experience with the same R.T. node to Stark's in Invincible Iron Man #4
- ↑ Secret Invasion #1
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 4) #5
- ↑ 95.0 95.1 95.2 Iron Man (Vol. 4) #6
- ↑ Iron Man #132
- ↑ Avengers vs. X-Men #2
- ↑ Iron Man: The Legend (1996)
- ↑ Avengers: Roll Call #1
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #39
- ↑ Operation: Galactic Storm
- ↑ New Avengers: Illuminati #1
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #25
- ↑ Iron Man: Fatal Frontier Infinite Comic #7
- ↑ 105.0 105.1 Invincible Iron Man #4
- ↑ Invincible Iron Man #516
- ↑ Iron Man: Fatal Frontier Infinite Comic #12
- ↑ Iron Man #125
- ↑ New Avengers Illuminati (Vol. 2) #1
- ↑ Iron Man (Vol. 5) #7
- ↑ Iron Man #116
- ↑ Iron Man: Fatal Frontier Infinite Comic #5
- ↑ 113.0 113.1 113.2 Tales of Suspense #89
- ↑ Tales of Suspense #90
- ↑ "Bullpen Bulletins" (Dec. 1997 Marvel comics): "Stan's Soapbox" (column), by Stan Lee
- ↑ The Forbes Fictional 15 (2013-07-31)
- ↑ heroes/index 01.htm The Smartest Superheroes (2006-06-01)
- ↑ Iron Man: Legacy #7
- ↑ New Avengers (Vol. 2) #29
- ↑ Avengers (Vol. 4) #10
- ↑ Avengers: Roll Call #1
- ↑ All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe Vol 1 1
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