Crule (Earth-616)

Crule
Name	Unrevealed
Current Alias	Crule
Aliases	Krule
Affiliation and Relationships
Affiliation	Externals, formerly Nazis
Marital Status	Single
Physical Characteristics
Gender	Male
Height	6′8″ (2.03 m)
Weight	329 lbs (149.23 kg)
Eyes	Irises: White
Hair	Orange
Unusual Features	Claws, fangs
Origin and Living Status
Origin	Mutant External
Living Status	Deceased
Reality	Earth-616
Place of Birth	Possibly northern Africa
Personal Information
Identity	Secret
Occupation	Former Nazi agent
Creators and Appearances
Creators	Fabian Nicieza, Rob Liefeld, Mark Pacella
First	X-Force #12 (May, 1992)
First	X-Force #12 (May, 1992)
Death	X-Force #54 (March, 1996)
Death	X-Force #54 (March, 1996)

 Having been informed of your awakening by Gideon, I decided we would be best served by severing your five branches right now... Before you become a threat to us all! 

—Crule

History

Origin

Crule is an ancient berserker and a member of a rare subspecies of mutant immortals called Externals, to which among them he represents Ferocity. To this Crule is considered the meanest and maddest of them all. Though believed to originate from northern Africa as well as being centuries old, Crule has been said to not only be old enough to remember Ishtar and Mitra but often has invoked the deities. This could make the savage immortal several thousand years old.

High Lords

It is unknown when exactly he joined his fellow Externals, namely Garbha-Hsien and Nicodemus in forming the self-fashioned “High Lords”. But preferring to give into his ferocious nature, Crule does not partake nor care for the schemes of the others to control the destiny of the Earth. Due to Crule's ways the others cautiously use his services to be their enforcer and assassin.

Crule may have been with them when they tried to recruit another External named Candra in the early to mid 11th century.

World War II

During World War II, he worked in a concentration camp, happily operating a gas chamber.

When Externals Clash

When the rest of the High Lords began looking for the next External and sensed it in the recently risen from the dead Cannonball, they gathered to discuss this new revelation to which Crule didn’t attend. Gideon came up with a plan to lure Cannonball by killing his mentor and threat to their secrecy Cable. Though the others were shocked with Gideon’s plan to use Crule as the one to see it done and despite Absalom’s concerns, Saul and Nicodemus allowed it.

While in the Lowtown Madripoor, an Asian city-island not far off the coast of China, Crule was in a bar playing poker and til he caught the dealer cheating. Crule not one to deny his inherent tendency’s and love for violence, proceeded to destroy the bar and the people in it. After while enjoying a drink to his work Gideon showed, and to Crule’s joy to catch up on a half century of hatred attacked Gideon. At first Crule proved the better of the two, that is until using his ability to masterly duplicate the abilities and powers of others Gideon soundly beat Crule.

Gideon filled Crule in on his plan to rid them of Cable, the newest ascended Cannonball and things which pertain to the ascension of the Externals. Together they went to Gideon’s penthouse apartment above the main administrative offices of Ophrah Industries in Denver. Crule though wanting to tar Roberto da Costa apart upon meeting but Gideon, still affected by his coping of Crule, savagely beat Roberto to unconsciousness instead.

To the Pain

In upstate New York Adirondack Mountains three miles from a now destroyed X-Force’s underground base, Crule found them and what was left of Weapon P.R.I.M.E. trying to arrest them. But when S.H.I.E.L.D. showed up and X-Force fought back Crule heard over the radio of a S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicopter flying by that Cable was either dead or long gone, he decided that Cannonball would better serve them dead.

Crule ignoring Gideon's plan and not caring for his fellow Externals needs, decided the High Lords would be best served by severing Guthrie’s five branches right now before he'd become a threat to them all.

As X-Force took off in a hijacked S.H.I.E.L.D. interdiction personal assault carrier Crule jumped aboard and once they were over the coast of Newfoundland, which they had started to head for Arizona he smashed his way through a damaged part of the vehicle. Crule made quick work of Warpath and though sustaining injuries from Shatterstar and Feral, he easily throw them aside but before going through Rictor he had words with Cannonball. Once Crule revealed that Gideon had Sunspot and that he my have already killed him, Rictor blasted him through the side of the S.H.I.E.L.D. carrier which he fell a few thousand feet.

Prisoners of Fate

Crule ended up in a body cast for his troubles and was placed at St. Anthony's Hospital in Portland Maine to recover. While there the Legacy Virus would by unleashed on mutantkind and not given the immortal Externals would be safe. When the virus to the first among them in Nicodemus, Gideon and Saul would attempted to get Cannonball to break their deal to leave each other alone by kidnapping Warpath, Boom-Boom and Siryn.

But Cannonball not falling for it sent his X-Force to rescue their friends, the team located Crule and took him from the hospital. Once on board the IPAC they made a deal with Crule that if he tells them what they need on the Externals they’ll do what he can't and take them down player by player. Crule wanting to humble his fellow High Lords was more then happy to give them up, so happy that he wouldn’t stop talking. Once X-Force saved their friends they crossed the Pacific Ocean and out of fear that if they kept Crule around he would recover enough to leash out at them, so they dumped him overboard and left him there.

Even an X-Ternal Can Die!

With the lost of Nicodemus and Burke, Crule though unafraid found himself as with the remaining High Lords vulnerable for the first time in centuries. Though not from others but from one of their fellow Externals, namely Selene. Selene who had been waiting for this moment for centuries and with the coming terror that is Onslaught, not to mention the return of Apocalypse that would come with it she made her move.

Aware they were being hunted Crule gathered Absalom, who at first did not believe him until they made it to Manhattan and found a dead Gideon in the streets of the Rockefeller Center. With X-Force's Sunspot and Caliban having found Gideon due to him calling them for help, Crule and Absalom unaware of this nor Saul’s fate attacked them believing they were the cause. Crule and Absalom proved to much for the two X-Force men until the rest of their team in Shatterstar, Siryn, Meltdown, Domino and Warpath who would not join the fight arrived to help. During the battle Crule having been caught of guard was defeated by Shatterstar and as he wanting to test Crule's immortality went to cut his head off, Domino stepped in and stopped Shatterstar.

With X-Force having won Selene who had been watching and knocked out Warpath after he found a dead Saul discovered her, made her move and drained a defeated unaware Absalom of his life-force. Though shocked X-Force tried to save him as Crule saw what Selene had done freaked and dove in after him. But with Absalom dead Crule brutally attacked her, and despite being injured Selene managed capture him. Selene quickly drained the life-force from Crule as X-Force, unable to save him watch on in horror.

Attributes

Power Grid

Powers

Crule had superhuman strength (lifting 13 tons), durability, lifespan, speed, agility, reflexes, coordination, fangs and claws.

Abilities

He had centuries of experience in many forms of armed and unarmed combat.

Paraphernalia

Weapons

• Gauntlet-covered claws
• Hair Whip with Spiked Mace

See Also

• 18 appearance(s) of Crule (Earth-616)
• 1 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Crule (Earth-616)
• 6 mention(s) of Crule (Earth-616)
• 1 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Crule (Earth-616)
• 15 image(s) of Crule (Earth-616)
• 3 quotation(s) by or about Crule (Earth-616)