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History

Amka Aliyak was an Inuk teenager living in Pangnirtung, a village on Baffin Island in Nunavut, Canada.[3] After the Master of the World established a facility in that territory with the objective to repair the damage caused to the glaciers by global warming,[4] Amka broke into the base to investigate its origins.[3] Once she infiltrated the facility, Amka encountered the Inua spirit, Sila, in containment.[3] When she tried to free Sila, Amka was attacked by the base's defense drones. She managed to shove the drones into the containment field surrounding Sila, which caused an explosion. While Amka was fatally injured, the explosion freed Sila, and the spirit healed her injuries in a flash of light.[4] Having been imparted with Sila's energy, Amka was trapped inside the factory until her rescue by Spider-Man during the Alpha Flight's fight with the Champions. The battle was interrupted when Spider-Man brought to them the newfound information that the Master was using Amka as a battery, leeching off the supposedly limitless energy of the Soul of the North. The collected forces of the Champions and Alpha Fight took down the Master of the World, then later Amka chose to become a superhero, and train with the Champions.[5]

After the government passed "Kamala's Law" which outlawed individuals under the age of 21 from being a superhero, Snowguard was one of the individuals who were apprehended by C.R.A.D.L.E..[6]

Attributes

Powers

Divine Empowerment: After saving Sila, Amka's act of bravery earned her the Soul of the North's blessing as Sila's essence became one with her. As a result, Amka can harness the spiritual energies of the "Aurora Borealis" and Arctic.[5]

  • Shapeshifting: Amka can transform fully or parts of herself into wildlife;[5] or combining different animals at once. However, emotional turmoil or an overdose of magical energy can cause Amka to lose herself in the transformation.[5]
    • Flight: By generating feathery wings from her back, Amka can fly.[5]
  • Superhuman Strength: Even in her human form, Amka is stronger than a normal human.[7] Certain transformations can further increase her strength, potentially dramatically so.[5]
  • Aurora Manipulation: Amka can generate and control auroras, as shown when she summoned an aurora and formed it into animal-shaped imagery.[5]
  • Magic

Abilities

Bilingual: Amka speaks both Inuktitut and English.[3]

Trivia

  • Following Amka's first appearance in Champions (Vol. 2) #19 was released on April 11th, 2018, it was revealed in an exclusive announcement by CBC Books on April 25th that she was going to become the Champions' newest member, Snowguard.[8]
  • In order to develop Snowguard, Jim Zub sought out the advice of Nyla Innuksuk, founder of the Toronto-based virtual reality production company Mixtape VR, who is Inuit and grew up in Igloolik and Iqaluit. Innuksuk offered guidance on various aspects of Inuit life in northern Canada. It was also Innuksuk's idea to set Amka's story in Pangnirtung.[8]
  • After deciding to create a new character for Champions, Zub chose to make the powers of the new teammate magic-based, because there was no character in the line-up like that. Since there were heroes based in many different mythologies, he turned to Inuit myths as a base to build from.[9]
  • For their October/November 2018 issue, the Northern Canadian publication Uphere Magazine featured an in-character interview with Snowguard.[10]
  • Amka's favorite superhero is Guardian. She has a poster of him hung in her room.[2]
  • Snowguard's alias was an amalgamation of Guardian and Snowbird.[2]

See Also

Links and References

References

  1. Champions (Vol. 2) #25
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Champions Annual #1
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Champions (Vol. 2) #19
  4. 4.0 4.1 Champions (Vol. 2) #20
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Champions (Vol. 2) #21
  6. Champions (Vol. 4) #1
  7. Champions (Vol. 2) #24
  8. 8.0 8.1 van Koeverden, Jane (25 April 2018) Meet Snowguard: Marvel Comics' new Inuk teen superhero CBC Books. Retrieved on 1 June 2018.
  9. Zub, Jim (3 May 2018) I really love Snowguard's design and wanted to ask... Tumblr. Retrieved on 1 June 2018.
  10. Davey-Quantick, Jessica (November 2, 2018) A Champion Of The North Uphere Magazine. Retrieved on November 9, 2018.
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