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Genius billionaire inventor, industrialist and CEO of Stark Industries Tony Stark was fatally wounded in a war zone in Sin-Cong shortly before being kidnapped by terrorists. Stark built an armored suit to escape captivity, which doubled as a device to keep his heart beating keeping him alive. Once he returned to the United States, Stark reinvented himself as the armor-clad superhero Iron Man.
COOL EXEC, HEART OF STEEL
Tony Stark is the wealthy son of industrialist and weapons manufacturer Howard Stark and his wife, Maria. Tony grew up a genius with a brilliant mind for technology and inventions and, naturally, followed in his father’s footsteps, inheriting Stark Industries upon his parents’ untimely death. Tony designed many weapons of war for Stark Industries, far beyond what any other company was creating, while living the lifestyle of a bon vivant.
Fate would take a dark turn for Tony Stark once he decided to consult on a weapons contract overseas in enemy terrain. An improvised explosive device exploded underneath Tony’s transport, and he was brought to the brink of death.
Awakening as a prisoner of the warlord Wong-Chu, Tony made a gruesome discovery: the explosion had sent a piece of shrapnel mere inches from his heart. It was only the timely intervention of fellow captive and engineer Yinsen that kept the shrapnel at bay.While held captive, and forced to work on weapons, Tony turned his near-death experience into inspiration. What if he could power an iron suit that would not only keep the shrapnel from killing Tony, but also help him to escape?
Combining their genius, Tony and Yinsen built a mighty suit of iron armor that would be dubbed Iron Man. This first suit left a lot of room for improvement, but it still did what Tony couldn’t do alone. Yinsen sacrificed his life so the final preparations could be made, and Tony, wearing the Iron Man suit for the first time, escaped and returned to the United States a changed man.With full access to his equipment, Tony built a new, more streamlined suit of armor—the first of many updated versions he would create—and dedicated his life to fighting threats to the world.
Since that first suit built in a cave, Tony has created dozens of new suits and upgrades over the years. However, throughout the 50-plus Iron Man models, there are common offensive and defense capabilities found in most iterations.
The primary weapon contained within every suit, the repulsor rays use energy pulses to repel and disrupt enemies and are generated through the suit’s gauntlets. The suit’s booster jets enable Stark to fly fast enough to break the sound barrier, and maneuver more quickly than any fighter jet.
Iron Man’s helmet provides Tony with a heads-up display that gives him 360-degree vision, access to information about his surroundings and enemies, and the ability to transmit and block transmissions along any frequency. The helmet also gives Tony a degree of resistance to EMP and psychic-based attacks.
A weapon centered in Iron Man’s chest, the unibeam is capable of projecting dazzling light, and can also be used as a powerful force beam that is even more powerful than the repulsor ray.
Each of Tony’s suits provides a full range of telecommunications, including the ability to jam and transmit on any frequency, and sophisticated artificial intelligence capable of piloting Tony to safety should he be rendered unconscious.
Beyond his all-purpose suits, Tony has created specialized armor for specific scenarios.