Azazel

Real Name
Azazel

Occupation
Would-be-conqueror; former ruler

Citizenship
Inapplicable

Place of Birth
Isla des Demonas, Caribbean Sea

Known Relatives
Kurt Wagner (Nightcrawler, son), Nils Styger (Abyss, son), Kiwi Black (son), numerous other offspring (deceased)

Group Affiliation
Neyaphem (leader)

Education
Unrevealed

Height
6'

Weight
149 lbs.

Eyes
Red iris with black sclera

Hair
Gray (formerly black)

Powers
Azazel can teleport by opening a portal into another dimension, traveling through it, and returning via another portal back to his originating dimension. Unlike his son Nightcrawler, he does not suffer from the limits of needing to see or know where he is going. While in this other dimension, Azazel can manipulate its energies to open small viewing portals to Earth or generate bolts and streams of paralyzing energy, as well as destructive energy which causes a form of disintegration. In addition, Azazel can disguise himself by appearing human. (This is shown in the forth picture posted.) Azazel shares a mental bond with his offspring via which he can control their minds to a limited degree. Azazel also seems to be immortal as he has lived since biblical times. However, Azazel does have a weakness--the blood of "angels" is caustic to him and other Neyaphem.

Abilities

Azazel has a vast knowledge of dark magic, and his long lifespan has also allowed him to study swordsmanship to such a degree that he has become a near unparalleled master with bladed weapons. Also, unlike his son Nightcrawler, Azazel has five fingers and toes. However, they do both have a prehensile tail, pointed ears, fang-like canine teeth, and Azazel's body is coated with red-colored fur.

Other Info
A mutant from biblical times, Azazel is the ruler of the Neyaphem (a race of demonic looking mutants) and claims that the Earth and everything on it belongs to him. In his time, he enslaved and killed humans in order to impose his rule and dominion. However, another group of mutants, the Cheyarafim (or "angels"), saved humanity from persecution and death by Azazel, banishing him and the other Neyaphem to the Brimstone dimension. (To learn about the Neyaphem, click on their highlighted name above.)

Only able to leave this dimension for short amounts of time, Azazel ended up fathering dozens of children throughout the Earth in order to have an offspring with the power to free him permanently from his prison. Nightcrawler was one of his children as a result of his time spent with a young Mystique. While Mystique had actually fallen in love with Azazel, he seemed only to be interested in impregnating her; however, in truth, Azazel found himself actually loving Mystique, making her the only woman he ever truly loved. Shortly after his "mission" was complete Azazel left Mystique because the Cheyarafim had learned of his current location in Germany; thus, they would attempt to kill Azazel, Mystique, and their unborn child. Knowing that Mystique would be safe (having her resources and being the woman she was), Azazel left her to protect her and their child. Mystique, however, would never know of Azazel's true intentions and hated him for leaving her. (Click on the highlighted names above learn about Nightcrawler and his mother. Note: Beware of the revealing outfits worn by Mystique on her bio page.)

Later, after all of Azazel's children's powers were mature, he began using his mental link with them to bring them all to one place, the place of his banishment. (Some of the more notable children include Nightcrawler, Abyss, and Kiwi Black.) Once they all arrived, Azazel was able to get his children to begin a ritual to open a portal to the Brimstone dimension. However, before they could finish, the X-Men arrived and a fight ensued. Unfortunately, the fight ended with the X-Men being trapped in Azazel's dimension. Soon after though, a coordinated effort from Polaris on Earth and Abyss in the Brimstone dimension, everyone was able to escape the dimension except Azazel. (To learn about the X-Men and/or the highlighted characters above, just click on their names. Note: Beware of the form fitting outfit on Polaris' bio page.)

Currently, Azazel's status is unknown. In addition, it is unknown if the events of "M-Day" had any impact on him. (Click on the highlighted name above to learn about M-Day. Note: Beware of revealing and/or form-fitting outfits on M-Day's bio page.)

To learn a tiny bit more about Azazel, click on the following link, http://marvel.com/universe/Azazel_%28mutant%29.

Battle Royal 11 Results

Talk about and interesting poll! More than half of the votes came in the last 24 hours, which switched up who our winner was in Battle Royal 11!

And the winner is (drum roll please)...CAPTAIN AMERICA!

Cap took home half the votes with 6 votes. Coming in second was Darwin with 4 votes. And Sif and Odin picked up a vote a piece!

It was kind of fun to check up on the polls here and there and see Captain slowing taking the lead (even though I didn't vote for him).

Thank you for all of your votes! :-)

Laufey

Real Name
Laufey

Occupation
King of the Frost Giants

Citizenship
Jotunheim

Place of Birth
Jotunheim

Known Relatives
Loki (son)

Group Affiliation
Frost Giants

Education
Unknown

Height
Unknown

Weight
Unknown

Eyes
Unknown

Hair
Black

Powers
Frost Giants possess superhuman strength and resistance to physical injury. (The flesh and bone of the Giants of Jotunheim are about three times denser than similar human tissue, contributing to their superhuman strength and weight.) Also most Frost Giants can freeze someone just by touching them but they can't freeze one of their own. However, like all Frost Giants, Laufey possesses a weakness to heat. Frost Giants are extremely long-lived, but their life spans are not as long as those of the Asgardian gods, who have been able to extend their lives through consumption of the enchanted apples of Idunn.

AbilitiesUnlike most Frost Giants, Laufey was a skilled fighter. Also, his sheer size and strength only made him a formidable opponents even for the Asgardian gods.

Other Info
Laufey's origin is surrounded in mystery. Being a Frost Giant he is a descanted of Ymir, the first Frost Giant. (To learn about the Frost Giants and/or Ymir, click on their highlighted names above.)

As King of the Frost Giants, Laufey was seen wielding many weapons, including a giant war club, a sword, and a large axe.

At one point Odin, King of Asgard, marched his forces into Jotunheim to battle Laufey and the Frost Giants. When Odin faced down Laufey, he destroyed the Frost Giant's war club. Laufey was able to brandish a sword, and he tried to use his knowledge of the land to stop Odin with a concealed fire pit; however, he was unsuccessful. Soon after, a sprawling battle between the Odin and Laufey ensued. The battle ended with Odin using Mjolnir to crush Laufey's skull. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the character, places, and/or weapon.)

After the battle, Odin discovered a small Asgardian god-sized baby amongst the wreckage. The baby was Laufey's son, Loki. (Laufey had actually kept the baby hidden, due to his shame over his son's diminutive size.) Odin remembered his father Bor’s dying words to adopt the son of a father killed by his hands; therefore, Odin adopted Loki into his own family. (To learn about Loki and/or Bor, click on the highlighted names above. Note: Beware of the revealing outfit worn by Loki in his "woman-form.")

However, Neither Laufey or Odin knew that the battle was actually part of a plan. After the fateful battle and Odin 's claiming of Loki as his son, Laufey was left wounded, but alive. By plan, a version of Loki from the future actually traveled back in time and killed his injured father as revenge for all the beatings Laufey had given him.

To learn a tiny bit more about Laufey, click on the following link, http://marvel.com/universe/Laufey.

Interesting Note: Jack Kirby's original design for Laufey shows him a large giant, bigger than Odin with Green and Brown body armor. (This is shown in the third picture posted above.) And Laufey remained that way for many years, until Olivier Coipel redesigned him to resemble a new design of Frost Giants, now with Blue Skin and wearing less armor.

Random Note: In Norse mythology, Laufey is actually the mother of Loki--not his father.

Battle Royal 11

Imagine if twelve Marvel characters were to be in a huge battle where there could only be ONE victor. Putting the good and evil notion to the side...it's EVERYONE vs. EVERYONE--No alliances! Only ONE can be left standing!

Please choose who you think would win among the twelve Marvel characters in the poll.

Also, if you have time, please leave the reason why you think the character you chose would win in the "comment" section below. This way, we can all see your reasoning in choosing your winner.

Who will be the victor? Only YOU can decide!

The twelve characters that are involved in the Battle Royal 11 are the last twelve characters that have been highlighted on the Marvel Madness blog:

Darwin, Red Skull, Captain America, Volstagg, Hogun, Fandral, Angel Salvadore, Sif, Havok, Sebastian Shaw, Heimdall, and Odin. (If you have forgotten some of these characters' powers/abilities, go ahead and check out their bios right here on the Marvel Madness blog by clicking on the highlighted names above.)

Darwin

Real Name
Armando Muñoz

Occupation
Adventurer; former student

Citizenship
U.S.A.

Place of Birth
New York City, New York

Known Relatives
Mrs. Munoz (mother), Hector Munoz (father)

Group Affiliation
X-Factor Investigations; formerly X-Men

Education
Muir-MacTaggert Research & Development Institute, New York; Biltmore Academy for Advanced Education, New York; unidentified middle school

Height
6'4"

Weight
150 lbs.

Eyes
(originally) Brown; (currently) White (no visible iris)

Hair
None

Powers
Darwin's mutation is in a state of continual reaction, adapting to whatever his current situation demands. For example, if placed in total darkness his eyes automatically adapt to allow him to see; if underwater he grows functioning gills; if exposed to fire his body becomes fireproof; if falling, his bones soften & his body elasticizes to cushion his landing; or if exposed to the void of space, he stops requiring oxygen & the density of his skin & internal structure increase. His mutation's adaptivity seems limitless; however, he lacks conscious control, & his adaptations are purely instinctive. Thus far, Darwin's mutation has not displayed any capacity for generating energy beyond converting his physical form into same. It has also afforded him a genius-level intellect, & he has shown the capacity to learn new skills & languages with only limited exposure.

Abilities
None

Other Info
Armando Munoz was born different from other children. By age four, he was bald, his arms were longer than normal, and his eyes seemed to change. His father rejected Armando and abandoned him and his mother around this time. Unfortunately, Armando's mother blamed him for his mutation. Despite this, Armando resolved to make his mother happy and love him again. A day came when he was asked to take an IQ test. Unknown to anyone at the time, Armando's desire to impress his mother subconsciously activated his mutant power and allowed him to test off the charts; therefore, he was quickly enrolled in a renowned boarding school, the Biltmore Academy. His mother gladly enrolled him in the Biltmore Academy boarding school, where Armando was bullied relentlessly for years due to his appearance.

Later, at age 15, during another attack by the school bullies, Armando's mutant ability manifested itself and he fought back, subconsciously hardening his hands and beating the bullies unconscious.

Sometime later, during a visit home, Armando saved his mother's life after her smoking caused a fire in the house; Armando carried his mother out of the house, unaffected by the flames to the astonishment of firefighters and paramedics. Afterward, tests were done at the hospital, and scientists were brought in to examine Armando. The senior scientist who tested Armando, published a paper about Armando's ability which "outed" him as a mutant and dubbed Armando, "Darwin, the Evolving Boy" (after Charles Darwin) because he seemed to adapt to every condition the scientists could think of.

Unfortunately, his mother continued to reject Armando, denying that she could ever give birth to such a thing. Still rejected by his mother, Darwin attempted suicide; however, his mutation saved him. The resident psychiatrist recommended Armando to a renowned geneticist known as Moira MacTaggert. MacTaggert took Darwin in and began training him in the use of his powers. (To learn about Moira MacTaggert, click on the highlighted name above.)

Later, Darwin and three of MacTaggert's other young students (Vulcan, Petra, and Sway) were recruited by Moira's colleague Professor Charles Xavier to join his X-Men and rescue the team's original members from the living island Krakoa. During the assault, Petra and Sway were killed by Krako; however, before they died, Darwin and Vulcan were swallowed in the earth by a combination of Sway and Petra's dying powers. After the X-Men hurled Krakoa into space (unaware of the Darwin and Vulcan's survival), Darwin instinctively converted himself into pure energy and bonded with Kid Vulcan, trying to keep them both alive. (To learn about the characters and/or team above, just click on their highlighted name. Note: Beware of the revealing outfit on Sway's bio page.)

A few years later, the reality-altering "M-Day" event revived Kid Vulcan and Darwin's consciousness was also reawakened inside Vulcan; however, Darwin was helpless to prevent Vulcan's vengeful attacks on the X-Men. During Vulcan's battle with the X-Men, Marvel Girl (Rachel Summers) sensed that Darwin still resided within Gabriel, so she used her telepathic powers to draw him out, which injured Vulcan. The X-Men sew this as their chance to finally defeat Vulcan; however, he was still stronger than they thought and he managed to escape. However, now with Vulcan gone, Beast noticed that Darwin’s remains were not only alive, but were beginning to restore his body. (Click on the highlighted event and/or character,above to learn more about them. Note: Beware of the revealing and/or form-fitting outfits worn by some on the M-Day bio page.)

After recuperating at the Xavier's Institute, Darwin agreed to lead a team to stop Vulcan, who had left Earth bound to destroy the interstellar Shi'ar Empire of his birth. Rejoining the X-Men, Darwin helped commandeer a Shi'ar ship and they set off in pursuit of Vulcan; however, they were ambushed by Warskrulls. However, when Darwin witnessed Xavier's kidnapping, he secretly hitched a ride on the kidnapper's shuttle, which arrived at the Shi'ar High Council's Starways. In his attempt to rescue Professor X, Darwin was captured and imprisoned after seeing former Shi'ar Majestor D'Ken reclaim the throne. Confronted by Vulcan, Darwin learned of his plans to marry D'ken's sister Deathbird and to execute Xavier on their wedding day. In addition, Darwin reluctantly accepts Vulcan's offer to be his Best Man at the wedding; however, Darwin would attend the wedding in shackles. At the ceremony, at the site of the M'kraan Crystal dimensional nexus, Darwin witnessed an assault on the ceremony by the X-Men and their allies (deposed Shi'ar Majestrix Lilandra and the interstellar pirates, known as the Starjammers). While under this attack, Vulcan threw Xavier into the Crystal, but Darwin dove in after him (protected from the Crystal's mind-shattering effects by his mutation). Eventually, Darwin was able to rescue Xavier and retreat with him to the X-Men's ship, unaware that Lilandra had pre-programmed it to return them to Earth to ensure Xavier's safety. (To learn more about the highlighted place, race, characters, object, and/or team above, just click on their names. Note: Beware of a couple very revealing outfit on Deathbird's bio page. Also, beware of the form-fitting outfit on Lilandra's bio page.)

Later, Darwin was one of the X-Men who heeded the call for help when Hulk came to the Xavier Institute. Darwin opposed him alongside the X-Men, the New X-Men, and the X-Factor Investigations. While battling the Hulk, Darwin's power reacted by absorbing the gamma energy from the Hulk; however, Darwin found that the Hulk had more energy then he could siphon off. With this, his body involuntarily decided that the best way to defeat the Hulk was to stay away from him; therefore, he teleported himself out of the Hulk's path of destruction. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn more about the character and/or teams.)

At one point, Darwin's father hires X-Factor to help him find Darwin, supposedly because he feels bad for walking out on him and his mother when he was younger. After the investigation succeeds and Darwin is reunited with his father, he is betrayed and is sold out to by operatives of an organization known as the Karma Project, who are experimenting on living human beings. Fortunately, he is eventually saved by X-Factor, and agrees to join the team. (The fourth picture posted is of Darwin in X-Factor.)

After joining X-Factor, Darwin helped in many different missions, including helping to rescue the Invisible Woman from Doctor Doom, and battling Bolivar Trask and his MRD (Mutant Response Division). One time, when the X-Factor was in Vegas on a rescue mission, the team encountered Hela's Undead Niffleheim Warriors. With help from Thor, the team held their own, but the key to winning to battle was Darwin gaining Hela's powers and using them against her. Unfortunately, taking on Hela's death powers seemed to have had negative effects on Darwin, who chose to leave the team for sabbatical. (To learn about the different characters above, just click on their highlighted names. Note: Beware of the very revealing outfit on Hela's bio page. Also, Darwin after he absorbed Hela's power is shown in the fifth picture posted above.)

More recently, Darwin has begun a trek back to New York to warn his friends after he had a dream or vision that showed that his friends were in danger.

To learn a little more about Darwin, click on the following link, http://marvel.com/universe/Darwin.

Red Skull

Real Name
Johann Shmidt

Occupation
Former beggar, thief, menial laborer, bellboy, terrorist leader for the Third Reich, would-be world conqueror

Citizenship
Citizen of Germany sought by authorities throughout the world for war crimes and major offenses

Place of Birth
An unidentified village in Germany

Known Relatives Hermann Shmidt (father, deceased), Martha Shmidt (mother, deceased), Sinthea Shmidt (Mother Superior/Sin, daughter)

Group Affiliation
Special operative in the government of Germany's Third Reich, former leader of most currently active Nazi subversives throughout the world, former ally of THEM and A.I.M., former leader of the Nevada-based fragment of HYDRA, leader of the People's Militia, former partner of Hate-Monger, creator of Scourge of the Underworld

Education
Unknown

Height
6'1"

Weight
195 lbs

Eyes
Blue

Hair
Reddish blond, later none

Powers
None

Abilities
The Red Skull is a fine unarmed combatant, marksman and master of disguise. He possesses a keen mind at military, political, corporate and subversive strategies.

Other Info
Johann Shmidt was born the son of an abusive, drunken German villager named Hermann Shmidt and his saintly, long suffering wife Martha, who for years endured abuse and beatings from her husband. Martha died giving birth to Johann, their only child. Driven to madness by the death of his wife, Hermann Shmidt tried to drown the newborn infant, accusing him of murdering Martha. However, the doctor who had just delivered the baby saved Johann from his father, and the next morning Hermann Shmidt committed suicide. The doctor ended up taking Johann to an orphanage, where the child led a lonely existence. Eventually, Johann ran away from the orphanage when he was seven years old and lived in the streets as a beggar and a thief. As Johann grew older he worked at various menial jobs, but spent most of his time in prison for crimes ranging from vagrancy to theft.

By his late teens, during the rise of the Third Reich, Johann Shmidt got his most prosperous job, a bellhop in a major hotel. There he served the room of Adolf Hitler himself. One day, by chance, Johann was present when Hitler was furiously berating an officer and swore he could train Johann himself, a simple bellhop, to be a better National Socialist. Looking closely at him and sensing his dark inner nature, Hitler decided to take up the challenge and recruited Johann. (To learn about the Third Reich and/or Hitler, click on their highlighted names above.)

Dissatisfied with the standard drill instruction his subordinates used to train Shmidt, Hitler took over personally. Upon completion, Hitler gave Shmidt a unique uniform with a grotesque red skull mask, and gave him the name, "Red Skull." Shmidt's role was the embodiment of Nazi intimidation, while Hitler could remain the popular leader of Germany. The Red Skull was appointed head of Nazi terrorist activities with an additional large role in external espionage and sabotage. The Skull was spectacularly successful, wreaking havoc throughout Europe in the early stages of World War II. The propaganda effect was so great that the United States government decided to counter it by creating their own equivalent using the recipient of the lost Operation: Rebirth, Steve Rogers, to become "Captain America." Thus, beginning a long-lasting feud between the two. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the operation and/or Captain America.)

Hitler took great pride in his protégé's successes and let the Skull have anything he wanted. Therefore, Hitler financed the construction of secret bases for the Red Skull in various locations throughout the world, many of which were equipped with highly advanced experimental weapons and devices developed by Nazi scientists. The Red Skull was particularly interested in procuring technological weapons that could be used for the purposes of subversion and warfare. During World War II, the Red Skull and Captain America clashed many times. But, during their final battle towards the end of WWII, the Skull had been supposedly killed when he was buried under the rubble of a bombed building. However, due to experimental gas that was released during the cave-in, the Red Skull remained in suspended animation for decades.

Johann Shmidt was eventually rescued in modern times by THEM (the ruling council of HYDRA headed by Baron Strucker). The Red Skull agreed to cooperate with THEM and did so just long enough to steal the Cosmic Cube from A.I.M. (which was then one of THEM's subsidiary organizations). This theft led to the Red Skull's first post-WWII clash with Captain America, which led to another Red Skull defeat. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the different teams and/or object.)

Seeking an heir, the Red Skull fathered a daughter by a washerwoman; however, this woman died in childbirth. The Red Skull had the mansion called "Skull House" built and raised his daughter there. Through advanced biological means, the Skull caused his daughter to reach adulthood within an unnaturally short period of time and endowed her with superhuman powers--he named her "Mother Superior." (To learn about the Red Skull's daughter, click on her highlighted name above.)

Later, the Red Skull learned that the effects of the experimental gas that had kept him from aging while he was in suspended animation were wearing off. As a result, the Skull aged at an unnatural rate until he became an elder man that would soon die of old age. Therefore, the Red Skull had Nazi scientist Arnim Zola transfer the Skull's mind into a clone of Steve Rogers. Alive again, the Red Skull became determined to destroy America from within, using its own capitalism. Remaining behind the scenes as the Red Skull, he created and/or funded the creation of several different subversive groups, including ULTIMATUM, the Watchdogs, Scourge of the Underworld, and others. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the character and/or teams.)

Through his agent on the Senate-sanctioned Commission on Superhuman Activities (CSA), the Red Skull manipulated the CSA's into eventually replacing Steve Rogers as Captain America with the violent and mentally unstable John Walker. As the new Captain America, Walker was manipulated by the Red Skull to act in a manner which publicly disgraced the image of the hero. In addition, the Skull tried to use Walker to kill Rogers (now known as "the Captain"). But, the Skull's attempt was unsuccessful when Rogers defeated Walker. As a final blow, the Red Skull tried to blow the Dust of Death on Rogers; however, Walker hit the Skull from behind with his shield, exposing Shmidt to the dust instead. The Skull suffered the signature facial disfigurement attributed to the Dust of Death (which gave him a permanent "red skull" appearance). But, Shmidt did not die due to years of exposure to low doses of the dust. (To learn about the group, character, and/or object above, just click on their highlighted names.)

Later, the Red Skull was attacked by Magneto. Being a Jewish Holocaust survivor, Magneto wanted to punish the Skull for his involvement in Hitler's regime. Eventually, Magneto was able to bury the Skull alive with only enough water to last for a few months. However, the Skull was eventually rescued by his henchman Crossbones. (To learn about the characters above, just click on their highlighted names.)

After some time, the Red Skull proposed an alliance with the Kingpin (Wilson Fisk) to bring a new designer drug to New York; however, the Kingpin refused to form an alliance with a Nazi. Fisk then defeated the Skull in hand-to-hand combat, sparing his life on the condition that he never come near the Kingpin's territory again. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the characters.)

Desiring the Red Skull's Cosmic Cube for himself, former Soviet general Aleksander Lukin hired Steve Rogers' former WWII sidekick, Bucky (now known as the Winter Soldier) to assassinate the Red Skull. When the Red Skull was shot, Shimdt attempted to use the Cube to switch bodies with Lukin to survive, but the Cube was weak. Therefore, the transfer was only partially successful as the Skull only managed to transfer his mind into Lukin's body. Now, the minds of the two enemies were trapped together in the same body. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the characters.)

After this, during the superhero Civil War, the Skull/Lukin used hypnotist Doctor Faustus to help arrange Captain America's assassination. Under Faustus' influence, former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent (and Cap's occasional girlfriend) Sharon Carter was brainwashed into killing Captain America herself. (Click on the highlighted names above to learn about the different characters, teams, and event above.)

More recently, Arnim Zola transferred the Red Skull's mind out of Lukin's body and into one of his own spare android forms as a temporary measure. Shortly afterward though, Lukin was killed by Sharon Carter and Zola was seemingly destroyed. Therefore, the Red Skull remained trapped in Zola's spare robotic body.

To learn more about Red Skull, click on the following link, http://marvel.com/universe/Red_Skull_%28Johann_Shmidt%29.