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The Amulets of Power are power-granting artifacts used by avatars of the Tiger God.

History

Origin and the Sons of the Tiger[]

The three amulets originated in the hidden city of K'un-Lun as the head and front paws of an enchanted Jade Tiger statue,[4] created from the same magical elements as the Great Emerald Crystal that allows the city to periodically appear in other dimensions.[5] After their removal, the claws and head were replaced with copies.[6]

Eventually they came into the possession of Master Kee of the Tiger Dojo, who kept the amulets in a special wooden box. When he was raided by ninja assassins, he was forced to bequeath them to his best student, Lin Sun, with his dying breath. Lin took the jade tiger's head for himself and gave the tiger's claw amulets to fellow martial artists Bob Diamond and Abe Brown. Channeling the power of the amulets, the three became known as the Sons of the Tiger.[7]

Possession of Hector Ayala[]

After fighting together on several adventures, the Sons of the Tiger eventually disbanded. Lin Sun discarded the amulets, pitching them into an alleyway, where they were eventually discovered by Hector Ayala, who channeled the power of all three amulets to become the White Tiger.[8]

After Ayala's retirement,[9] he returned the Amulets to the original Sons of the Tiger, who were convinced of the talismans' true mystic properties when they were drawn into another dimension. Seeking that power for himself, Master Khan, the self-proclaimed God of K'un-Lun, had his Ninja henchman steal the Amulets for him. Combining the Amulets with the original Jade Tiger statue, they grew into the shape of a lifelike full-grown tiger and opened a portal to K'un-Lun, which Khan rode the Tiger through, with Power Man, Iron Fist, and the original Sons of the Tiger in close pursuit.[6]

Somehow, Hector Ayala reclaimed the original amulets and became the White Tiger again for one night. While interrupting a burglary, the thieves fled and a misunderstanding with the police led to Hector being arrested for the murder of the store owner. He was found guilty at trial and fled the courthouse before being shot to death on the front steps of the courthouse.[10]

Ayala family legacy[]

The Jade Tiger Amulets were eventually handed down to Ayala's niece, Angela Del Toro, who became the new White Tiger.[11] However, she was corrupted by the Hand and fell from grace in the hero community.[12] Hector's youngest sister, Ava Ayala, adopted the role of White Tiger after her.[13]

When Jeremy Briggs sought to depower the world with his Clean Slate nanotechnology, he disabled the students of Avengers Academy by stealing their magical artifacts, giving the Amulets of Power to Coat of Arms. However, thanks to her relationship with the Tiger God, Ayala was able to bring their power back to her.[14]

To test his plan to merge universes together, the Maker freed Del Toro from prison and supplied her with a new set of Amulets from another universe, which, though still made of green crystal, drew power from a red Tiger God and had glowing red eyes to match. When the Tiger Gods from Ayala and Del Toro's Amulets merged together into a new golden form, Ayala's Amulets became a dull, inert grey, and Del Toro's took on a yellow glow.[15] Ayala later broke Del Toro's Amulet in half, freeing both of them from the Tiger God's power.[16]

Properties

Divine Empowerment: Wearers of the amulet are imbued with the power of the ancient Tiger God, imbuing them with master-level knowledge and experience of the martial arts,[citation needed] among other powers. When worn separately, by joining hands and reciting the incantation, "When three are called and stand as one, as one they'll fight, their will be done... For each is born anew, The Tiger's Son", Abe Brown, Bob Diamond, and Lin Sun were able to mystically channel their martial arts prowess through one another, increasing each other's strength and prowess.[7] Hector Ayala and subsequent White Tigers used all three amulets in unison, greatly increasing the amount of power wielded by a single host.[8]

  • Enhanced Strength: Wearer's physical strength is enhanced beyond of human potential. Their physical strength is above a normal human being.
  • Enhanced Speed: Wearer is able to run and move at speeds superior to those of any Olympic athlete.
  • Enhanced Durability: Wearer's body is more resistant to physical injury, to variable degrees than that of an ordinary human. The Amulets can also sustained the wearer, so they don't need to sleep or eat as long as they wore them.[15]
  • Enhanced Agility: Wearer's agility, balance, and bodily coordination are enhanced to levels that are beyond the natural physical limits of even the finest human athlete.
  • Enhanced Stamina: Wearer's body eliminates the excessive build-up of fatigue-producing poisons in their muscles and their musculature generates considerably fewer fatigue toxins than the muscles of an ordinary human being, granting them superhuman levels of stamina in all physical activities.
  • Acceleration Recuperation: Especially effective by placing the amulets on the wounded area of their body. They are able to heal broken bones, torn muscles, several gunshot & knife wounds and other severe injuries within moments.
  • Heightened Animal-like Senses: They can see with greater clarity and greater distances than an ordinary human. Wearer's vision extends into the ultraviolet and infrared areas of the electromagnetic spectrum, allowing them to see in near-total darkness and retain the same level of clarity. Wearer's hearing is similarly enhanced, enabling them to detect sounds normal humans can't and sounds they ordinarily could but at much greater distances. They can track a target by scent and track them to the exact location.
  • Camouflage: Angela Del Toro discovered[citation needed] that the Amulets allow wearer to blend in with their surroundings while remaining perfectly still, though without becoming completely invisible.
  • Threat Detection: When the Tiger God feels threatened by nearby mystical energies, it can throb to alert the Amulets' wearer.[17]
  • Psychic Resistance: The Tiger God is able to protect the wearer of the Amulets from even a well-directed psi-probe.[18]

Divine Possession: During extraneous circumstances, the wearer of the Amulets can have their body taken over entirely by the Tiger God, increasing their ferocity in battle.[4]

Life Imitation: When combined with the body of the original enchanted statue, the Amulets can grow and change to become part of a lifelike copy of the Tiger God itself.[6]

  • Portal Creation: Being made from the same crystal that allows the residents of K'un-Lun to observe and traverse the dimensions, in its living form the Jade Tiger is able to open portals to K'un-Lun with a roar.
  • Teleportation: The living Jade Tiger can turn itself and its rider into a mist, disappearing from one area to appear in another.

Limitations[]

Anyone who uses the Amulets for an extended period of time can find themselves physically addicted to its power.[10]

See Also

Links and References

References

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