One of Marvel Comics‘ most recognizable heroes, Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, uses his technological brilliance and powerful suits of armor to defend the world from all manner of threats. Despite lacking any superpowers, Tony’s suits have allowed him to become one of the strongest members of the Avengers. Yet, Tony is far from the only person in Marvel to wear armor into battle. Some of these heroes wear suits that Tony designed and gave to them. In contrast, other heroes developed their own armors with unique abilities. These suits offer a wide range of powers from super strength to energy projection. However, no matter their abilities or origins, these heroes use them to help people and fight evildoers.
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These are the most memorable and heroic characters who rely on advanced suits of armor to become superheroes and defend the innocent.
7) Stingray
While other armored heroes fly high in the sky, Walter Newell, aka Stingray, uses his suit to swim in the depths of the ocean. An oceanographer who made his suit to study the sea, Stingray has accidentally traded blows with Namor and Iron Man because of various misunderstandings. Even so, Walter has been a loyal member of the Avengers, Defenders, and the Initiative. His suit allows him to withstand the crushing depths of the deep ocean, breathe underwater, swim at high speeds, glide, and fire electric bolts. A unique hero among Marvel’s many armored superheroes, Stingray protects the seven seas from the forces of evil.
6) Mach-X
Before becoming a hero, Abner Jenkins was a notorious armored criminal called the Beetle. When Baron Zemo had his Masters of Evil go undercover as a new team of heroes called the Thunderbolts, Abner became the hero Mach-1. However, Baron Zemo’s plan backfired when Abner and the rest of the Thunderbolts decided that they preferred heroics over villainy and turned against their leader. Now a fully-fledged superhero, Abner has had numerous evolving Mach suits, with each being more advanced than the last. The Mach suits offer super strength, flight, invisibility, machine guns, gas grenades, and more. Having turned over a new leaf, Abner now uses his engineering skills for the good of humanity and is one of the most frequent reoccurring members of the Thunderbolts.
5) Guardian
James Hudson, aka Guardian, is the leader and founder of the Canadian superhero team Alpha Flight and is one of their strongest members. While working at a Petrochemical company, James developed an armored suit for geological exploration. Unfortunately, James discovered that his employers wanted to weaponize the suit, so he stole it. With the armor, James was enlisted to become a superhero operating under the aegis of the Canadian government. James’ armor grants him superpowers like super strength, flight, force fields, and technopathy. Eventually, aliens caused Guardian’s suit to fuse with his body, turning him into a cyborg. Still, Guardian’s armor is one of the strongest suits among Marvel’s superheroes.
4) Ironheart
Riri Williams is a child prodigy who enrolled at M.I.T. when she was just a teenager. Obsessed with Tony Stark, Riri reverse-engineered his technology and made her own suit of armor. Like Tony, Riri is constantly reworking and upgrading her armor so that she can be a more capable hero. Her Ironheart suit offers super strength, durability, flight, repulsor beams, missiles, and ultrasonic weaponry. When Tony fell into a coma, Riri donned her Ironheart suit to honor his legacy and protect people in his absence. She also became a valued member of the young rebellious superhero team the Champions. Although Riri is fairly new to the superhero game, she has already proven herself to be a courageous and selfless hero.
3) Rescue
Tony’s long-time love interest and assistant, Pepper Potts, was content for many years to help the hero fight crime from the sidelines. However, that all changed when Tony was on the run from the Superhuman Defense Initiative. During this time, Pepper discovered a suit of armor that Tony made for her. Taking on the name Rescue, Pepper used the armor to save people while Tony was in hiding. Although the Rescue armor doesn’t have as many offensive features as Iron Man’s armor, it’s still equipped with powerful force field generators. Despite preferring civilian life, Pepper dons the Rescue armor whenever people are in danger.
2) War Machine
Tony’s best friend and personal pilot, James “Rhodey” Rhodes, took on the War Machine armor when the Armored Avenger faked his death. After returning, Tony and Rhodey became a dynamic pair of heroes. Rhodey’s armor is like the standard Iron Man suit but armed to the teeth. The armor is equipped with a Gatling gun, a rocket launcher, machine guns, flamethrowers, and plenty of other devastating weapons, making him a walking armory. A brave and noble hero, Rhodey has been a long-time member of both the Avengers and their West Coast division. While Iron Man built the suit, Rhodey has proven himself more than worthy to wear it into battle.
1) Black Panther
If Iron Man is the most famous armored hero in Marvel, then T’Challa, aka Black Panther, is undoubtedly in second place. The king of the technologically advanced African nation of Wakanda, T’Challa, wears the ceremonial Panther Habit. This slender suit is made of vibranium, one of the strongest and most versatile metals on Earth. The vibranium in T’Challa’s suit allows him to absorb kinetic energy and redirect it as powerful shockwaves. T’Challa’s claws are made of anti-metal, which can cut through any metal, including adamantium. The suit also offers cloaking, light shields, wall-crawling, energy daggers, teleportation, and more. While he may not have the lasers and rockets that other armored heroes have, T’Challa’s Panther Habit is one of the most iconic and advanced pieces of technology in Marvel Comics.
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