History
Origin[]
Born circa 1900, Topher was infected with vampirism at the age of sixteen and following the Great Depression, he was able to earn a fortune by playing the stock market. Furthermore during the 1940s, Topher transformed at least one person into a vampire. Little else is known of Topher's activities following this, except that he at least drank the blood of one Mutant in 1979 and spent the next several decades as an indolent affluent.[1]
Runaways[]
In circa 2001, Topher lost his fortune following the dot.com bubble economic crisis. Thus he turned to crime, whilst accompanied by two minions; one male and the other female (it is known that one the minions was one of his 1940s transformations).[1]
In was during recent years that Topher's fate took a twist. While robbing a convenience store in Los Feliz, California, Topher and his two minions encountered the Runaways. Topher's two minions fled and Topher pretended they were his parents who had forced him into criminal activity.[2]
However Runaway team-leader Alex Wilder saw through Topher's deception, but kept up the facade that he believed Topher, assuming that Topher would betray them and that Topher's betrayal could be used to provide combat experience for the other Runaways.
Whilst a provisional member of the Runaways, Topher began to forge strife within the team by romantically pursuing two teammates, Nico Minoru and Karolina Dean, then as expected by Wilder, Topher attempted to feed upon the Runaways.[3]
However this attempt lead to his downfall, as he began to feed on Karolina Dean, whose solar-charged blood proved fatal to him. Topher's two surviving minions were later killed via sunlight by the parents of the Runaways, The Pride.[1]Attributes
Powers
Vampirism: Topher, like all other vampires, was capable of transforming an individual into a vampire by biting them. A special enzyme found only within vampire saliva is responsible for this transformation. After draining all of the blood from a victim, the victim enters a death-like state and returns to life three days later.
Topher possesses typical vampiric traits, such as;
- Superhuman Strength: Like all vampires, Topher possessed superhuman strength, within the 800 lbs-25 ton range.
- Superhuman Speed: Topher was capable of running and moving at speeds greater than even the finest human athlete.
- Superhuman Stamina: Topher's body was more resistant to the fatigue toxins generated by his muscles during physical activity.
- Superhuman Agility: Topher's ability, balance, and body coordination were enhanced to levels that were beyond the natural limits of the human body.
- Superhuman Reflexes: Topher's natural reaction time was enhanced to levels that were beyond the natural limits of the human body.
- Regeneration: Topher was capable of regenerating damaged or destroyed tissue to an extent much greater than an ordinary human.
- Immortality: Topher, like all vampires, was functionally immortal in the sense that he was immune to the effects of aging and was immune to all known Earthly diseases as long as he ingested fresh blood on a regular basis to maintain his vitality.
- Fangs: Like all vampires, Topher had fangs and claws. He could quickly drain a victim of blood.
Interestingly, in addition to typical vampiric traits, Topher possessed;
- Resistance to Vampiric Limitations: Topher was resistant to attacks that customarily kill vampires, including fire and penetration of the heart by wood. While such attacks could injure him, Topher would heal in a matter of seconds.
- Vampiric Detection: Topher could sense the condition of vampires he had created over the distances of at least several miles.
Weaknesses
Vampiric Limitations:
- Sunlight: Due to his vampiric metabolism, Topher was unable to withstand direct sunlight. Sunlight, somehow, caused the ichor within his veins to congeal and his skin to rapidly decay. Thus direct exposure to sunlight wold cause him to dehydrate completely and turn to powder.
- Solar-Blood: Topher was unable to ingest the blood from solar-powered beings, as it is fatal to him[1].
- Garlic: Topher, somewhat like most vampires, cannot handle the effects of garlic.
See Also
- 4 appearance(s) of Topher (Earth-616)
- 2 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Topher (Earth-616)
- 2 minor appearance(s) of Topher (Earth-616)
- 1 mention(s) of Topher (Earth-616)
- 2 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Topher (Earth-616)
- 3 image(s) of Topher (Earth-616)
- 1 quotation(s) by or about Topher (Earth-616)