Black Axe (Earth-616)

Black Axe
Name	Unrevealed
Current Alias	Black Axe
Aliases	Robert Hyde
Affiliation and Relationships
Relatives	Emily Hall (adopted daughter)
Physical Characteristics
Gender	Male
Height	6′1″ (1.85 m)
Weight	190 lbs (86.18 kg)
Eyes	Irises: Brown
Hair	Brown
Origin and Living Status
Origin	Apparent immortal; Allegedly part of an elder race
Living Status	Alive
Reality	Earth-616
Personal Information
Identity	Secret
Citizenship	Scottish
Occupation	Assassin; former mercenary, thief, soldier, warlord
Education	Extensively self-taught
Base of Operations	Loch Lanark, Scotland
Creators and Appearances
Creators	Michael Bennent, Edmund Perryman
First	Black Axe #1 (February, 1993)
First	Black Axe #1 (February, 1993)

History

Origins

Black Axe is apparently an immortal, allegedly part of an elder race though he believed himself to be unique, born nearly 15,000 years ago, claiming the rise of the Moreau Atoll 15,000 years ago was only a little before his time.

Over the millennia, he has amassed great wealth and powerful technology. He regularly fakes his death and took on new identities. He participated in countless military campaigns in countless roles, for the pure challenge of it.

Ancient Egypt

Circa 1000 BC, he visited the Egyptian city of Saqqara, investigating rumors about Amentah, a recently-deceased yet long-lived pharaohs adviser. He found the sarcophagus empty, confirming his suspicion that Amentah could be immortal as well.

At some point, the Black Panther sold Black Axe Vibranium to be incorporated into his axe.

14th century

Black Axe battled the undead in Europe, then ravaged by the Black Death.

15th century

He then fought in Japan's Sengoku period wars, befriended the Tamayoshi smiths family (who helped him refine his axe) and began a blood feud with the Hand.

19th century

He later fought in the American Civil War.

20th century

In 1936, he was hired by Mys-Tech to steal the Ark of the Covenant.

During World War II, as Robert Hyde, he saved an orphan, Emily Hall, to whom he later left his castle after retiring and faking his Hyde's identity's death.

Modern days

With the help of Black Panther and Afrikaa, he exposed the efforts of Cardinal Technologies to escalate the civil war in Mohannda.

Attributes

Power Grid

Powers

Black Axe possesses various superhuman attributes, though the exact source of these powers aren't known.

Superhuman Strength: Black Axe's muscles, connective tissue and skeletal structure are much more efficient than those of a normal human being. As a result, he possesses some degree of superhuman strength. While the maximum amount of weight he can lift on his own isn't known, it is known that amount doesn't exceed 2 tons.

Superhuman Speed: Black Axe is capable of running and moving at speeds that are beyond the natural physical limits of the finest human athlete.

Superhuman Stamina: Black Axe's musculature is far more efficient than that of a normal human being. As a result, his muscles produce considerably less fatigue toxins during physical activity than that of a normal human. At his peak, he can exert himself for several days before the build up of fatigue toxins in his blood begins to impair him.

Superhuman Durability: Black Axe's body is tougher and is naturally more resistant to some types of physical injury than that of a normal human. For example, Black Axe's bodily tissues are able to withstand great impact and blunt trauma forces. He can withstand impacts, such as falling from several stories or being repeatedly struck with superhuman force, that would severely injure or kill a normal human with little to no injury to himself. However, he can still sustain injury from bullets or bladed weapons composed of conventional materials.

Superhuman Longevity: Black Axe is functionally immortal in the sense that he is immune to the effects of aging. While he is more than 10,000 years old, he has the appearance and vitality of a man in his physical prime. He is also immune to the effects of all known Earthly diseases and infections.

Superhuman Sense of Smell: Black Axe's sense of smell is heightened to levels well beyond the capability of any normal human. He can recognize, and possibly even track, individuals by their unique individual scent. He has been known to detect the scent of familiar opponents from a distance of one city block.

Abilities

Black Axe is a formidable combatant, experienced and skilled in all known forms of Earthly armed and unarmed combat. Black Axe has a genius level intellect, having acquired great knowledge in a variety of areas throughout the course of his life. He also has access to some of the most advanced technology seen on Earth, some of which may be of his own design including a suit of armor and an advanced medical center located in his castle in Scotland.

Weaknesses

Although Black Axe has referred to himself as immortal, this isn't strictly true. While he can't die as a result of old age or disease, it is possible for him to sustain sufficient physical injury to cause his death.

Paraphernalia

Equipment

Armor: Black Axe often uses a mysterious suit of armor, apparently of his own design. Much about the workings of the suit aren't known, such as its power source. The suit is constructed of a metal alloy that hasn't been identified, though it has been theorized to be composed of Wakandan Vibranium. What is known about the armor is that it increases Black Axe's strength to much higher levels, sufficient for him to lift at least 10 tons. The unknown alloy is also very durable and renders Black Axe highly resistant to most forms of conventional physical injury. The armor also renders him invisible to normal human sight and possesses various high tech sensors. These sensors are used to analyze opponents and to possibly determine any potential weak spots they might have, as well as developing possible countermeasures to an opponent's attack.

Weapons

Axe: Black Axe's primary weapon is a six-foot high-tech battle axe. The Axe is composed of an unknown material, but is extremely durable. It can fire powerful energy blasts, generate force fields sufficiently powerful to withstand energy blasts of Mephisto, and teleport him across great distances.

Transportation

Typically through teleportation as a result of some sort of device built into his axe.

Trivia

• The title-introducing text in Black Axe #1 states Black Axe has "50,000 years of practice", while the first page of the same comics states that he is a little under 15,000 years old. This error is corrected in Black Axe #2 as 10,000 years.

See Also

• 11 appearance(s) of Black Axe (Earth-616)
• 1 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Black Axe (Earth-616)
• 1 minor appearance(s) of Black Axe (Earth-616)
• 3 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Black Axe (Earth-616)
• 9 image(s) of Black Axe (Earth-616)
• 1 quotation(s) by or about Black Axe (Earth-616)

Links and References

• Black Axe at the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe