Professional Documents
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Marvel Comics
In story information
Type
Weapon
Iron Man's armor is the fictional powered exoskeleton worn by the fictional Tony Stark when he assumes his
superhero role of Iron Man. The first version of the armor was created by Stark with the help of Ho Yinsen.
The appearance of Stark's armor has radically changed over the years, either as a result of modifications made by
Stark or specialized armors created for specific situations.
Overview
Though Stark's wide array of armors have many different abilities, they are alike in that they are made of incredibly
strong fictional materials bolstered by a force field. Every suit has a self-contained environment, assorted onboard
weapons systems, enhanced strength, flight, and various communications arrays and sensors (such as radar and
radio). Furthermore, they typically have multiple power sources including a secondary solar energy collection
function in the event that conventional recharging methods are unavailable. Older versions of the armor could also
fold virtually flat, allowing Stark to store them in his bullet-proof briefcase.
The defining abilities of Stark's armor are the jets situated in the boots and the repulsors situated in the gloves. The
repulsors originated as a hand attachment, but have since become the armor's most important standard armament.
They have been referred to as being magnetic,[1] a blast of charged particles,[2] and as a force beam.[3] In the 2008
movie, the repulsors are a form of propulsion and (as hand units) steering jet, though they can be used offensively. A
later variation on this is the Pulse Bolts, bolts of concussive energy that actually gain energy the further they have to
travel, up to a limit of roughly three football fields (about 329 meters).
Another defining trait is the chest-mounted "uni-beam", also known as the variobeam, and tri-beam (in the 2008
film, Tony commands J.A.R.V.I.S. to divert power to his "chest RT," or chest repulsor transmitter). Originally a
spotlight and "proton beam," it has grown to accommodate a number of other weapons, primarily light and
force-based.
Construction
Contrary to its appearance, most of Stark's armors are not rigid metal suits, like a medieval knight's. His standard
armor suit consists of approximately two million grain-of-sand-sized discrete units, which are shaped to have as
large a surface as possible to optimize their effectiveness. The basis of the suit's structural integrity is the powerful
force field which permeates the armor's "cells," as well as the whole configuration when active. Each of the "cells" is
a tiny unit in its own right, contributing energy and computing power to the entire armor; this is also why the suit can
Space Armor MK I
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #142 (January 1981)
While based on the same design principles, this suit's matrix was formed non-collapsible to increase its protection
from the rigors of deep space; also, its specialized nature made collapsibility unnecessary. Power was provided by a
Mk IV micro-nuclear supply pack, supplemented by solar power converters. Systems were controlled via a
cybernetic interface, though it proved to be overly sensitive; when Stark first used the armor he had difficulty
triggering the appropriate command to activate the feature he wanted. The suit was designed for extended time
outside of the atmosphere, up to two days in orbit (food and catheterization capable). The life support, boot jets and
altitude maneuvering were powered by an on-board supply of liquid oxygen. Weaponry consisted of palm-mounted
third-generation Repulsors (electron beams which require laser ionized path of air to travel through the atmosphere;
the beam is moderated using a pulsing beam and early form of adaptive optics; objects are jolted away from the
beam path by the combination of ionized air and the accelerated neutron beam) and a chest-mounted Unibeam (a
variable intensity light source usable as a spotlight or a laser; the pentagon shape of the emitter allowed for more
accurate laser pulsing while in an atmosphere), and epaulet-mounted concussion-burst cannons. Sensors consisted of
radar, sonar, infrared scanners, and radio. Additional features included ECM against radar and sonar, and the fully
articulated hands could be fired out on retractable cables for use as long-range grapples. The most obvious feature on
this special armor was its ability to attain escape velocity without aid of an external thruster, unique to this Iron Man
version; however, the nuclear jets which allowed this made the suit bulky, heavy and awkward in Earth's gravity.
The dangers inherent in an atomic-energy based propulsion system of such immense power seem to have driven
Tony Stark to build the thruster unit which he has been using ever since.
invisible- a layer of low density plasma would be held in place by a focused magnetic field, and the tripole waveform
reflected radar, along with a wave modifier that bent the radar around it. To quash any detectable infrared signature,
the armor's boot-jet exhaust was "washed" by bursts of super-cooled air. The micro-turbines on his jet boots possess
assisted air liquification devices; rings of liquid nitrogen.
Silver Centurion
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #200 (November 1985)
Stark began creating the Silver Centurion armor as a method of
working out ideas and experimenting. The S-circuit, which uses its
energy more efficiently, is an example of the breakthrough
developed by Stark, using the armor as a model. With the
destruction of Circuits Maximus by Obadiah Stane, Stark donned
the newest set of armor to battle the foe that stripped him of his
business, his friends, and almost his life. The battle with Stane was
the first field test of this armor, and resulted in the defeat of Stane
and the destruction of Stane International.
The suit had a rigid interior and a 3-D knitted metallic exterior,
providing protection from physical attacks as well as acid, heat,
cold, most forms of energy, radiation, and electricity. A 3-D
knitting pattern on a submolecular construction level gave the
armor itself more strength, while allowing for the most
comfortable suit interior. By expanding the field that keeps the
armor rigid, the armor could encase itself in a protective force
field that was effective against most forms of attack; Stark could
also use this field to polarize the armor to either attract or repulse
other items via magnetic polarity.
Most of this armor used solar power to charge the batteries and run most of the integrated circuitry, though the pods
on the sides were batteries that could maintain the suit's functions for a short time. It was also able to recharge itself
from electrical sources, a thermocouple to siphon power from extreme heat or cold. Flight was accomplished via Mk
IV boot-jets (which incorporated high-speed duo-source turbines), supplemented by a booster pack that enabled the
armor to attain speeds up to 750mph (1210km/h) in the air and 180mph (290km/h) in the water.
Weaponry consisted of a chest-mounted Mk III Unibeam (search light, heat beams, tractor beam, laser beam, and
ultraviolet light beam), palm-mounted Mk III Repulsors (laser-guided particle beam emitters), pulse bolts
(slow-moving high energy plasma discharge "torpedoes" that build in intensity as they travel through the
atmosphere, picking up static and ambient energy and thus doing more damage the farther they travel), and a sonic
emitter (generating high-frequency sound waves).
Hydro Armor
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #218 (May 1987)
This unit was designed for salvage missions at the bottom of the deepest oceanswhile Stark's conventional suits
function underwater, they were noisy, inefficient, and they leaked. The exact composition is unknown; it is assumed
to be composed of the same layered "flex-metal" micro-scale suit tiles fabricated by genetically engineered
metal-affinity bacteria which assemble themselves in specific orderly arrays and then expire, leaving behind various
metallic deposits which form all the metal shapes and micro-electronic circuits. A new aligned-crystal production
process allowed the construction of a large, semi-spherical headpiece, as transparent as glass. This unit possessed
several ocean-specific weapons, such as the electric field of an electric eel, a camouflage 'ink cloud' and small 'manta
ray' torpedoes. It also comprised an inner "Escape Suit" that could be jettisoned from the main suit in case of
emergency (this inner suit possessed a Unibeam, 2 torpedoes, and the holding bay). Functions were controlled by
cybernetic interface.
Telepresence Armor
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #280
Critically wounded by a bullet near his spine, Tony Stark was paralyzed from the waist down. After some
soul-searching, he designed an armor which would enable him to walk. While his paralysis was ended by the
implantation of an organic microchip, this proved only the start of his problems, as the biochip was revealed to be a
parasitic life form, designed to consume his own nervous system and replace it with one that could be controlled
from the outside. He now needed the support armor even more to protect himself from the people who controlled his
body, since his armor cybernetically responded to his own brain. The cybernetic interface and battle computer were
integrated with the Telepresence Neural Net, a more subtle armor he used to simulate his degenerating nervous
system. While it was still worn as a suit of armor, the functions and muscle control were carried out by the suit, not
by the wearer.
Modular Armor
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #300 (January 1994)
This unit is a drastic departure from all of the previous armors. Instead of a single cohesive unit, each piece of the
armor is a stand alone subsystem that can be interchanged at will. As such, while the overall unit is still referred to as
the Mark 11, the actual configuration at any given time will vary. The shell was composed of layered "flex-metal"
which could condense itself like a 3-dimensional accordion pleat. Micro-scale suit tiles were fabricated by
genetically engineered metal-affinity bacteria, which assembled themselves in specific orderly arrays and then
expired, leaving behind various metallic deposits which form all the metal shapes and micro-electronic circuits.
The Modular Armor is rather well-known outside of comics due to it being the main armor in the Iron Man animated
TV series and Capcom's Marvel vs. Capcom video game series.
Arctic Armor
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #318 (July 1995)
The Arctic Armor was designed to be able to withstand temperatures as low as -340 degrees, it was one of Tony's
favorite armors and one of the worst. Very little is known about this armor; Stark used it to travel to an Arctic
bunker. It is hypothesized that the armor may have special thermal units for added wearer insulation. It also looked
very striking, being blue and silver in color, and possessing a unique hexagonal chest beam.
Crossing Armor
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #319 (August 1995)
This armor may reflect the mindset that resulted from Tony Stark being controlled more and more by Immortus. He
did away with the still perfectly serviceable (and because of its very nature still state-of-the-art) Modular Armor and
constructed a much more specialized armor; this one, in hindsight, was definitely designed for combat. In fact, it is
possible it was designed to take on the Avengers.
Its appearance was simpler, sporting rivets as its only decoration. Bulky gauntlets housed more powerful repulsors
on top of the wrist instead of in the palm of the hand. As Tony was dragged deeper and deeper into Immortus plan,
it seemed his armor reflected this, going from blood-red and gold to darker burgundy-and-bronze.
Retro Armor
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #325 (February 1996)
This armor's design history is unknown; it stands out because it, out of all the other armors in the armory, was picked
by "Teen Tony," a Tony Stark who had been plucked out of an alternate time stream many years in the past to help
fight his present-day self .
S.K.I.N. Armor
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 3) #42 (July 2001)(prototype); Iron Man (vol. 3) #44 (September)(finished
design)
This armor's main difference from its predecessors is its sheer size; the torso and shoulders in particular are massive.
Its development, starting from scratch, resulted mainly from Tony's fear that an innate factor had resulted in his
previous armor developing sentience. Its appearance also differed markedly from the Sentient Armor, perhaps to
make it seem as different as possible: it possessed a circular chest beam, a greatly altered overall configuration
(including many "industrial-style" details such as external tubing, earning this suit the ignoble nickname "udder
armor") and a restyled helmet.
The armor is powered by a Beta Particle Generator and solar power converters and controlled by a Cybernetic
Interface and Battle Computer to enhance reactions when in combat. It can absorb directed energy attacks as well as
massive non-directional energy discharges (like explosions). It also possesses a new force field.
The golden sections of Iron Man consisted of S.K.I.N (Synth-Kinetic Interface Nano-fluid), a liquid alloy that can be
manipulated to conform to any desired shape. It is lightweight but has immense structural integrity, being harder than
titanium and approaching low-grade adamantium. S.K.I.N. can be contracted to fit into a small container or
stretched/shaped into another form. The alloy's wondrous properties were developed by Askew Technologies, and
the exact elements incorporated into the S.K.I.N. remain unknown. Tony had set up the S.K.I.N. of his armor to be
stored in a small container. On his command, the S.K.I.N. spilled out and assumed its default armor configuration.
The larger size of the armor accommodated storage of several new systems, including an improved sonic array,
upgraded chameleon field, energy blade, missiles and even a number of grapefruit-sized, spherical drone units which
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Thorbuster
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 3) #64 (March 2003)
The Thor-Buster armor was designed by Tony Stark as a precaution against Thor, in case his good deeds went bad.
The power source for the armor was a mystical Asgardian crystal, originally part of a new type of power generator
that Thor left Tony Stark to possibly use as a new energy source for mankind. Outwardly, it resembled the Asgardian
Destroyer. It was destroyed by Thor, its power source undone.
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Ablative Armor
First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 3) #71 (October 2003)
This prototype armor possessed armor made up out of three-inch (76mm) , honeycomb-shaped tiles, piled several
layers thick. Each tile was made of high-impact polymer. When one of the tiles was damaged, it popped off and the
next one below it snapped into place. Furthermore, the suit used repulsor-tech force fields to position new tiles,
produced in a "polymer kiln" on its back. It could also create a "storm cloud" of thousands of orbiting tiles around
itself to act as "chaff". This armor was originally designed to be used in space, where micrometeoroids provided an
impact-rich environment, but was ultimately used to defend against a parasitical alien life form which infected
organisms and altered them to suit its needs. For optimal efficacy, the tiles were "loaded" with specialized nanobots
which would turn the alien's biology against itself.
Anti-Radiation Armor
First Appearance: Incredible Hulk (vol. 2) #72 (July 2004)
The armor is designed to attract radiation into the armor where it is converted into usable power. This greatly
enhances its strength. Through absorbing ambient radiation the armor is able to decontaminate irradiated areas. It
also possesses repulsors and a unibeam.
Banner's addition was "RG-27," a special compound that neutralizes gamma radiation. Since it is most effective in
liquid or gas form, a series of tubes were built into the armor for irrigation. This enables the armor not only to
withstand radiation, but also allows it to decontaminate areas. To expose a government conspiracy, the two faked a
quarrel over some of their designs. Stark unveiled a finished version of the suit to battle the Hulk. However, Stark
seemed to be acting strangely while wearing the suit. A problem with the irrigation system was discovered. The Hulk
was able to help Stark shut it down before gamma poisoning set in.
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He is also able to remotely connect to external communications systems such as satellites, cellular phones, and
computers through the PAN interconnect (that is now thought-controlled). Because the armor's operating system is
now directly connected to Stark's nervous system, its response time has been significantly improved.
Another major departure from the previous armors is expansion of repulsor technology. The "repulsor flight system"
provides lift (something like anti-gravity) and positive flight control (pitch, roll and yaw), while the usual rocket
boots provide the armor with thrust. The same repulsor technology allows the individual pieces of the armor to
levitate and assemble themselves, by modulating what Stark referred to as "vectored Repulsor fields".
Furthermore, the Extremis process has endowed Stark with a 'healing factor' and possibly even enhanced physical
abilities, as he was confident enough to challenge Logan/Wolverine to a fight (and even challenging to see who's
capable of recovering faster from the other's attack). It was later stated that the Extremis enhancement speeds up a
person's repair process and hence the body's cells died and regenerated at a faster rate. This effectively made Tony
Stark immune to cancer and gave him his 'healing factor'.
In the Iron Man: The Inevitable storyline, it was shown that it's not only Tony Stark's body and the interfacing
undersheath that has self-healing properties. Even the Iron Man armor has the ability to self-heal and self-repair,
presumably through the use of nanotechnology. The armor is also able to store power throughout its structure,
indicating that instead of having main batteries mounted around the waist as in the older Iron Man armors, the
Extremis armor incorporates distributed and decentralized energy storage.
Note: Although Extremis for reasons of simplicity is referred to as "a virus", it is not. The Extremis process involved
injecting several billion microscopic nanotubes, which act as information carriers, into the brain. The brain is then
partly reprogrammed; the so-called "repair center," that part of the brain which maintains an "integrity map" of the
Argonauts
Sometime after the Extremis transformation, during an attack by the new Super-Adaptoid, Tony Stark realized he
could command several armors at once. Building on this, and realizing the world was becoming an increasingly
dangerous place, he decided to construct a "team" of Iron Menhyper-advanced drones that would be under his
direct mental command, just as his own armored body. Unfortunately, the "Argonauts" were abused and destroyed
before they ever could serve for good. They included:
"Space Ghost": space-flight capable, could reach low Earth orbit under its own power; nearly impossible to
detect espionage model; possibly intended as a satellite-killer.
"Submariner": streamlined for great speed underwater; capable of using the ocean itself as a weapon, it
apparently unleashed several tsunamis, and was able to overpower Namor, the Submariner, under water - an
incredible feat.
"Adamantium Man": equipped with practically indestructible "Stark-Chobham" armor, an experimental
composite of carbon nanotube-reinforced ceramics, laced with adamantium.
"Digger": enormous drone, possibly over a hundred tons; equipped with (shielded) Antarctic Vibranium (which
dissolves any metal) helmet dome and a specialized repulsor/unibeam system which allowed it to tunnel at
incredible speed.
"Hulkbuster II": also a massive drone, ostensibly designed mainly for raw power and toughness, to take on the
Hulk. It proved entirely capable of taking on the Avengers. Like its predecessor, Hulkbuster II bore a distinct
resemblance to Juggernaut.
While extremely powerful, the drones were useless once Tony Stark rendered himself clinically dead.
Hypervelocity
First Appearance: Iron Man: Hypervelocity (January 2007)
This new iteration of the armor possesses enhanced repulsors, housed not in gloves but in high-strength manipulator
waldoes (giving the armor somewhat longer arms than usual); multiple-mode bootjets that can operate both with and
without oxygen intake; improved structural integrity for the armor; an improved "chameleon mode" and a
"supercavitation spike", projecting upward from the back, which apparently creates a sort of "bubble" so that the
armor can travel underwater at near-supersonic speeds. A massive amount of electrical energy is stored in a spinning,
superconductive capacitor ring on the back.
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The most radical feature of this armor must be that its vastly increased computing power allows it to make a
"back-up" of Tony's own mind, so that in the event of critical injury of the wearer, the armor can act as him, with all
his knowledge, insight and experience. The effect is so complete that the armor, thus activated, referred to itself as
"Tony 2.0."
After several hours of existence, the armor managed to develop a program that enabled it to function at
"hypervelocity" - effectively thinking and moving at a much, much faster timeframe than everyone else.
Note that this story is set before "Extremis", though it was published afterwards.
Hulkbuster Armor MK II
In the World War Hulk event, Stark designed a new Hulkbuster armor, in order to battle the Hulk upon his return
from space. He does so in World War Hulk #1, and initially was able to hold his own against his foe. The new armor
was built as a large exoskeletal shell which fits around his normal armor and is equipped with rocket-boosted
gauntlets, capable of punching the Hulk back several miles. It is also equipped with adamantium-tipped injector
needles, which Stark used in an attempt to suppress the Hulk's power with S.P.I.N. Tech nanites, but the nanites
failed due to sabotage (see Avengers: The Initiative #4). With the damage done by the Hulk and the entire Stark
Tower collapsing on the already damaged armor, it was unable to continue functioning. It briefly re-emerged as a
host body for the demon Zom, who attempted to use it to access S.H.I.E.L.D. technology and destroy New York City
by shifting it into the Negative Zone; Zom was defeated by the efforts of the self-styled "Renegades" (Amadeus Cho,
Hercules, Angel, and Namora), and the armor was used by Amadeus Cho as a temporary support to shore up
structural damage caused in the battle.
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Superhuman Registration Act. To provide the inspiration which Tony had given in life, Steve briefly wore an Iron
Man armor with a red, white and blue color scheme.
In the Marvel limited series Bullet Points, an alternate reality where Dr. Abraham Erskine is killed (along with a
young MP Benjamin Parker) one day before injecting Steve Rogers with the Super Soldier formula, thus
terminating the Project: Rebirth, and initiating Project: Iron Man, in which Rogers takes place instead, making
him Iron Man until he is killed in a fight with this reality's Hulk, Peter Parker. Years later, when Galactus attacks,
Tony Stark finally armors up with the suit.
In What If?: Age of Apocalypse, Captain Britain wears an early model of the Iron Man armor, custom painted as
his uniform, as part of the Defenders.
In Marvel Zombies, Forge is shown using an enhanced version of the original armor against the zombies.
In the 2008 Black Panther annual story "Black to the Future" (a What If?-type story set in 2057) the USA
challenges the nation of Wakanda's global dominance with an army of Iron Men. This force is led by an Iron Man
giant robot piloted by Tony Stark himself. This huge machine (easily as big as the New Avengers/Transformers
giant suit) could only be controlled by direct neural interface, so Tony Stark was physiologically injured when the
suit was damaged by Wakanda's panther-shaped giant robot. Tony's death ended the war and inspired a
Wakandan-led global peace.
In House of M, Tony Stark is still the head of Stark Industries but also the star of the hit TV show: 'Sapien Death
Match' along with his father, and Johnny Storm. His battle armor for the show is similar to his original gold
armor, however, it is then revealed that he was working on a much more advanced armor, more advanced than his
current armor in the normal reality. This armor was chunkier, had large wing-like jets coming from the back and a
cannon on its right hand. It also has counter magnets built in, to prevent Magneto from controlling it.[9]
In the New Avengers/Transformers miniseries, Stark used a giant armor, the size of a Transformer; it allowed
Iron Man to go head-to-head with the invading Decepticons. Due to the massive energy requirements, this armor
would quickly run out of power, until recharged by Optimus Prime, Jazz and Bumblebee.
In Incredible Hercules #125, the evil Amazon Artume had used a mystical object to change the world into her
vision of it. In this world, men were an oppressed and debased part of society, and a male resistance movement
existed. Practically the last member of it was Hercules, who wore cybernetic armor made for him by Tony Stark,
who had long since been executed.
Galactus Buster armor, so far known only to be featured in his ending scenario for the video game Marvel vs.
Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds.
Other media
1994 animated series
As noted above, Iron Man's modular armor was his standard suit
for his appearance in the 1990s Iron Man animated series, but with
a slightly modified face plate to give it the traditional mouth-slit.
The suit was redesigned in the second season of the show, most
significantly by restoring the "mouthless" appearance of the armor.
(The season 1 armor appeared in a flashback early on)
The trademark of a changing armor remained a constant in the
animated series, with the first season featuring the hydro-armor
and deep space armor, straight from the comics. The second
season, however, was when the variant armors became a focal
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Live-action films
Several types of Iron Man armor appear in the 2008 film Iron Man
and the 2010 sequel Iron Man 2:
Mark I: As in the comics, the first armor which Stark builds with
Yinsen's help while in captivity during the first film is crude and
bulky. It had the ability to amplify Stark's strength tremendously
and protected him from small arms fire. The suit was armed with
flamethrowers and a missile launcher, as well as a limited rocket
jump capacity to allow Stark to exit the immediate hostile area and
escape after he sustained damage to the suit's knee joints while
attempting to escape. The rockets failed shortly after the start,
however, resulting in the suit shattering upon landing and forcing
Stark to abandon it to attempt to reach friendly territory. Later,
Stark's enemies found the abandoned armor, using it as the base
design for Obadiah Stane's Iron Monger suit (although Stane still
needed to steal the power supply from Stark). The second film
shows that Stark displays the Mark I within his workshop with it
holographically labelled "Reconstruction" and has it apparently
retrofitted with an independent arc power source, allowing it to be
operated by other users that have access to Stark's lab. The first
prototype was based on the original gray suit from Iron Man's first
appearance.
Mark II: Upon returning home during the first film, Stark developed a sleeker, polished stainless steel Mark II
prototype version with improved flight capability, but it was prone to icing when attempting to test high altitudes,
and the weight was a destructive problem if Tony would have to land from any height. The second film shows that
Stark displays the Mark II prototype within his workshop with it holographically labelled "Prototype" and has it
retrofitted with an independent arc power source, which shown when it was operated by James Rhodes in
hand-to-hand combat against Stark in the Mark IV armor.
War Machine: After Rhodes confiscates the Mark II armor on behalf of the United States government, it is heavily
weaponized by the United States Air Force for their "War Machine" project. The Mark II's ballistic weaponry
upgrades were provided by defense contractor Justin Hammer. Weapon pods each containing a 9mm submachine
gun and a 5.56mm assault rifle are mounted on both forearms. An external 7.62mm minigun is attached via a
gyro-stabilized arm mounted behind the right shoulder. Enclosed inside of the left shoulder is a 40mm grenade
launcher capable of firing heavy munitions, including a bunker-buster warhead (which Hammer personally
nicknamed the "Ex-Wife") which performed well below expectations when it was used against Vanko's suit,
completely failing to explode. The energy repulsors from the original design are still located in the palms and chest.
Though Rhodes is the War Machine suit's primary pilot, its internal computer systems were linked to the Hammer
Industries mainframe, allowing it to be operated by remote.
Mark III: The armed red/gold Mark III prototype armor was the last armor built in the first film and was built with a
gold-titanium alloy (a fictional composite used in the Seraphim series of Stark Industries' satellites) to resolve the
freezing problem. It appears that this material not only prevents the armor's systems from freezing at high altitudes,
but is also extremely durable while maintaining the weight ratio of the Mark II. It was able to withstand small arms
fire, an explosion from a tank shell (the shell exploded in close proximity to Stark, resulting in a fall from several
thousand feet up), followed by hits by 20mm Vulcan shells and a high speed collision with an F-22 Raptor with only
minimal cosmetic damage. When Stark reverted to the original reactor after the second reactor was stolen by Stane to
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for fifty lifetimes on its own, but after returning home Stark developed a more efficient reactor that he used to power
the Mark II and Mark III suits as well. Although Stark reverted to the original reactor after the new model was stolen
by Obadiah Stane to power his Iron Monger suit, the reactor had great difficulty providing enough power to the
Mark III suit, being depleted to around a fifth of its power supply simply by flying Stark from his home to Stark
Industries, with the last 20% being exhausted during his fight with Stane in the Iron Monger armor.
The second movie reveals that the original arc reactor was first developed some years earlier in a joint effort between
Howard Stark (Stark's father) and Russian physicist Anton Vanko (the father of Ivan Vanko). Also, the miniaturized
arc reactor that Stark has been using for a power source in the previous version was slowly poisoning him with
palladium. When Stark successfully develops a new element for a power source of his personal arc reactor, he must
develop a new suit (Mark VI) capable of channeling the power of the small, but extremely powerful new reactor.
Hulkbuster armor (an exterior unit over his standard suit) (first seen in "Everything is Wonderful")
Space armor (first seen in "The Kang Dynasty")
Arctic armor (first seen in "Casket of Ancient Winters")
The original grey armor (also based on the movie version, but with full flight capability, repulsors, and unibeam)
(first seen in "Ultron-5")
Mark II armor (first seen in "The Ultron Imperative")
Stealth armor (first seen in "The Ultron Imperative")
Original Red & Gold armor (first seen in "The Ultron Imperative")
Silver Centurion armor (first seen in "The Ultron Imperative")
Thorbuster armor (an Asgardian Iron Man suit that was built in Asgard by Tony Stark and Eitri the Dwarf using
uru metal, making its repulsor blasts similar to Mjolnir's lightning) (first seen in "A Day Unlike Any Other")
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Notes
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
External links
Image gallery of the numerous armors of the invincible Iron Man (http://www.republiquelibre.org/cousture/
bd/IRNMN4C.HTM)
Detailed descriptions of the numerous armors of the invincible Iron Man (http://www.ironmanarmory.com/
Armors.html)
Emory University physics professor on the reality of the Iron Man suit and power source (http://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=h_i5pmyVxb8)
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License
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
http:/ / creativecommons. org/ licenses/ by-sa/ 3. 0/
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