Darkseid
The ruler of Apokalips, once known as Uxas, gained his throne following the
death of his mother Queen Heggra. Since his youth, he plotted to gain the throne
of Apokalips by any means necessary.
He and his brother Drax were in competition: while he created dissent, Drax
worked on peace between New Genesis and Apokalips. When Drax attempted to tap
into the Omega Force from Apokalips' Infinity Pit, Uxas killed him and took the
power for himself; thereby creating the image he has today, and taking on a new
name: Darkseid.
As he grew older, he fell in love with a scientist named Suli, with whom he
had a son Kalibak; she was subsequently poisoned on Heggra's behalf (she feared
Suli would corrupt his son due to her peaceful views of science). Darkseid was
forced to marry Tigra, against his will; when he murdered his mother, he had
both Tigra and their son Orion banished on Apokalips.
Years later, Darkseid witnessed the death of Avia, wife of New Genesis'
Highfather, Izaya. Darkseid pretended to kill Izaya, but rather kept him alive,
insuring that the two worlds would wage war against one another. The war that
broke out between Apokalips and New Genesis lasted for countless years.
| "Darkseid is a majestic figure. He's dangerous because whatever his
decisions are affect all of us. He loves that...he wants to make the
ultimate decision, and the ultimate decision is to run the cosmos..."-
"The King," 1984 |
Finally, the war was ended when both Darkseid and Izaya enchanged heirs:
Highfather's son, who was named Scott Free, for Darkseid's neglected son Orion.
The two worlds would be at peace as long as both heirs were kept intact in their
new environments. But over time, Scott Free was able to rebel against the system
he was growing up in and subsequently escaped Apokalips, much to the delight of
Darkseid, who again waged war against New Genesis.
The war was reignited with both the escape of Scott Free, who took on the
name Mister Miracle, and when Darkseid invaded Earth, the 'neutral zone', and
attempted to capture several Earthlings whom he believed possessed fragments of
the "Anti-Life Equation," which would allow its possessor to control the
cosmos.
Over the years, Darkseid has attempted to gain control of the anti-life
equation. When he and other Earth heroes tackled the Anti-Life Equation as a
whole, he realized that the only way to control the anti-life equation was to
control the Source. After his son Orion killed him within the Source, thereby
tainting it, he was able to return through his son's "dark side" and continue
his quest to control the Source. When Darkseid made a grand attempt and
destroyed the Source Wall in order to control the Source, he was ultimately
imprisoned on the Source Wall.
He escaped the Wall due to the help of Metron and Desaad. Upon his
return, he was able to get his son Kalibak to replace him on the Source Wall and
has destroyed one of his long-time agents, Virman Vundabar. It was recently
foreshadowed that Darkseid is preparing to fight his final battle with his son
Orion: a battle he has alluded to that he might not survive...
Finally abandoning his quest to conquer the Source, Darkseid finally achieved
his long-time goal of cracking the Anti-Life Equation; however his grand victory was violently
ripped away from him by his son Orion, who for some time had been given conflicting
reports by his mother Tigra that Darkseid may not be his son after all.
Soon after, following the death of his estranged wife Tigra, Darkseid did indeed
meet his son Orion, as the Source Wall prophisized years before, in the red lights
of the fire pits of Apokalips. After a vicious battle, Darkseid was finally defeated by
his son Orion (felled, in fact, by Orion's reversal of his own Omega Beams). Whether
the cosmos has truly seen the last of Darkseid has yet to be seen.
Weapon of choice: the "Omega Beams," which can either completely destroy a
living being, or "capsulize" the victim's life force for future resurrection.
----------------------------------------
Amazing Grace
Amazing Grace lives among the lowlies of Apokalips. An loyal agent of
Darkseid, she pretends to preach opposition ot Darkseid's word and encourages
them to revolt. When they do, they are easily defeated, thereby crushing their
revolt and their spirits. When Superman infilitrated Apokalips, trying to prove
he was behind G. Gordon Godfrey's reign of terror on Earth, Grace was "captured"
by Darkseid's troops and was to be thrown into the firepits; all to lure
Superman out. He saved her, but he himself fell into the firepits. He survived,
but with no memory or powers. Grace, on the behalf of Darkseid, seduced him, and
convinced the man of steel that he was Darkseid's son. Superman was given his
powers back when he allied with Darkseid, and he battled Orion, during which his
memory came back. Grace still serves Darkseid among the denizens of Apokalips
today.
Like her brother Glorious Godfrey, Grace is a master in mind manipulation,
who uses those powers to subtly influence others.
Deep Six (Gole, Pyron, Jaffar, Shaligo,
Slig and Trok)
Water-based agents of Darkseid. They have been killed and resurrected many
times throughout the years.
In a battle against Aquaman, it was revealed that the Deep Six have
resurrected because they spawn themselves. This battle saw what appears to be
the end of Shaligo, Jaffar, Trok and Pyron, while Slig and Gole escaped to
Apokalips. They have not been seen since.
Among their collective powers, Slig can disintergate an object by touching
it, Shaligo can fly, and Jaffar can mutate living beings with a simple
touch.
Desaad
Desaad has been in the company of Darkseid since his days as Prince Uxas.
They were, during this time, close allies and perhaps even could be considered
friends. But when Queen Heggra ordered Desaad to poison and kill Darkseid's wife
Suli, whatever friendship they had was destroyed with her death. Although Uxas
despised Desaad for what he did, he nonetheless considered Desaad an ally, and
used his alliance to have Desaad poison and kill Heggra, giving Darkseid the
throne of Apokalips.
He has, and still does, serve Darkseid as both his "right-hand man" and as
his chief torturer, a task Desaad takes great pleasure in. He is responsible in
Granny Goodness's training of Darkseid's new students by brainwashing them and
filling their minds with fear, dispair and total obedience to Darkseid.
Desaad, despite his servitude to Darkseid, has betrayed him many times, in
minor ways. But no matter hwo minor they were, Darkseid punished Desaad the same
way: a blast of Omega Beams. Yet Darkseid has continued to bring Desaad back for
all of his technological and tactical knowledge.
Desaad has also served Darkseid as acting as...Darkseid. In a few instances,
Desaad took on the image of Darkseid to tend to matters that the master of
Apokalips could not address at the time. For example, the formation of
Intergang, where Desaad, acting as Darkseid, helped establish the criminal
organization in Metropolis. Desaad has also impersonated Darkseid during times
when Darkseid was thought dead; he took on Darkseid's image to assuade the fears
and/or uprisings of the denizens of Apokalips, to remind themthat their master
is always watching. When Darkseid recently, and very publicly, returned from the
dead through his son Orion, the crowds of Apokalips saw this and the secret of
Darkseid's recent appearances was revealed. Desaad was spared from any
punishment by the people by Darkseid, and continued his duties under Darkseid's
watchful eye.
Desaad himself was killed while trying to kill Orion. The two entered the
Source together; some time later Orion was brought back by Highfather, but
Desaad has been, in essence, fused with Orion. Both Darkseid and Highfather
realized this and worked together to split the two and return them to their
former selves.
Recently Desaad recruited the aid of Metron to break Darkseid from the
Source Wall. At first, they accidentally caused Ares, also imprisoned on the
Wall, to escape. But they managed to succeed in breaking Darkseid free. Desaad
has thus returned to being Darkseid's boot-lick once again.
Devilance the Pursuer
Devilance was a tracker of Apokalips, who hunted, trapped and killed his
victims for his master Darkseid. His ultimate, and final, mission was against
the Forever People and, most importantly, the Infinity Man. The two did battle,
and in the end, they were both killed when they caused the island they were
battlling on to explode.
Weapon of choice: a lance, which serves many functions: transportation,
blasting weapon, tracking device. The weapon contains circuitry which obeys
Devilance's mental commands. He has superhuman strength and has a tolerance for
pain and injury.
Dr. Bedlam
An agent of Darkseid, Dr. Bedlam is a being of psionic energy. He controls
animate androids which he uses to take on a physical form. When these bodies are
destroyed, he can easily escape them and transfer himself into another. These
androids can take on his physical appearance, no matter what he wishes it to be.
He is a master scientist who specializes in mind manipulation.
Esak
Esak was a brilliant young man who was Metron's protege. He was destined to
take Metron's place one day as cosmic explorer and master technologist when he
was injured in an accident, which damaged him both physically and mentally. His
soul and faith were embittered badly, and he soon turned against Metron and his
New Genesis allies by joining the ranks of Darkseid's elite. Orion finally
confronted Esak and killed him, but before he died, Orion, still respectful for
Esak's past self, prayed to the Source for Esak, and his face was healed before
he finally died.
Female Furies
--------------------
Artemis
A huntress, who commands a pack of augmented cyberhounds.
Weapon of choice: she fights through her cyberpak as well as with
crossbow-like weapons.
Bernadeth
The leader of the Furies, and Desaad's sister. She has a constant feud going
on with Lashina, who wants to be the Furies' leader. Bernadeth was even killed
by Lashina, but Darkseid brought her back and killed Lashina in return. Sicne
then Lashina's been brought back, and Bernadeth keeps her under her heel.
Weapon of choice: the Fahren-knife, which causes the victim to burn from the
inside out.
Lashina
The toughest of the Furies. She has had an ongoing feud with Bernadeth over
the true leadership of the Furies since Barda left. On one mission, to rescue
Glorious Godfrey on Earth, Lashina was ambushed by Bernadeth while escaping, and
was injured, contracting amnesia. She later joined the Suicide Squad as Duchess
(whether or not she knew she was Lashina at this point is uncertain), a
gun-toting powerhouse of a woman. Some time later she recruited several members
of the Squad, and captured others, and returned to Apokalips, to confront
Bernadeth adn the Furies. She managed to kill Bernadeth, giving her control of
the Furies at last. But Darkseid killed Lashina for bringing unnecessary
violence to Apokalips. She was later resurrected by Darkseid, and has since
served under Bernadeth's command, although the friction between the two still
remains.
Weapon of choice: Lashina is a master of steel "lashes," which has always
been her primary weapon.
Mad Harriet
A pyschopathic killer. Plain and simple.
Weapon of choice: her energy claws, which she uses to amuse herself in
slashing her helpless victims with.
Stompa
The powerhouse of the Furies.. She fights with full force, with no
mercy.
Weapon of choice: her bulk strength and her gunboots.
Glorious Godfrey
Glorious Godfrey is a master mind manipulator. He was sent to Earth by
Darkseid to prepare for his arrival. He acted as a preacher, proclaiming the
benefits of "anit-life," which would justify the actions of man, whatever they
may be. He assembled a strong group of followers, named "Justifiers," to spread
unrest and rioting all over America. It took the efforts of the Forever People
to defeat him.
Some time later, Godfrey was sent to Earth again in a campaign by Darkseid
to discredit the super-heroes of Earth. Acting as "G. Gordon Godfrey," he
presuaded the people of America to denounce the super-hero elite who "protected"
them. Many super-heroes assembled together to stop him, and they did so by
revealing his evil nature and winning back the support of the people. Godfrey
attempted to defeat everyone, and foolishly attempted to wear the helmet of Dr.
Fate to do so. But when he tried to use it, it backfired and sent Godfrey into a
catatonic state. Soon after, the Furies were sent to Earth and retrieved him
from Belle Reve Prison. He serves Darkseid today on Apokalips as a persuader and
teacher in Granny Goodness' orphanage.
Granny Goodness
Granny Goodness is the headmistress of Darkseid's orphanage, where she molds
the orphans of Armagetto into mindless soldiers of Apokalips' armies. She
considers the orphans her children, putting them through what she calls "tough
love," which is nothing more than physical and mental torture.
Among Granny's greatest successes are the Female Furies, who represent her
best students. Although they've failed Grannty in the past, she, as well as
Darkseid, considers them to be valuable tools due to their total obedience to
her.
Her two greatest failures come in the form of Scott Free/Mr. Miracle, one of
her prize pupils-to-be, and Big Barda, the ex-leader of the Furies. Scott
rebelled against her and the system until he managed to escape Apokalips, while
Barda, who fell in love with Scott, left her service to Granny and went with
him. Granny has considered these two to be personal problems, and has tried to
punish them for years, but has never been able to get it done.
She was once, *once* corrupted by Scott Free, who almost made Granny see the
error in her ways. But Darkseid intervened to stop this. Since then, Granny has
been kept very busy with her orphanage, under Darkseid's very careful watch, in
the extreme case that Scott Free's plan may have worked. Over time, she has
continued to ber her normal old self.
Weapon of choice: Granny often uses a Mega-rod to keep her unruly children
under control.
Heggra
Heggra was Uxas/Darkseid's mother and the former ruler of Apokalips. She was
a demanding queen, who drove her son Uxas to the point where he rebelled against
her secretly to overthrow her. When he fell in love with Suli, a woman Heggra
did not want as mother to her grandson(s), she had her killed, and had her son
marry Tigra, a woman he cared nothing for, but a woman Heggra admired for her
hot-tempered nature. This further drove her son to remove her from power, which
he did. During a meal, Darkseid had Desaad poison Heggra; the plan worked and
Heggra died.
'Junior' Female Furies
--------------------
Bloody
Mary
A vampiric woman who can manipulate people with eyebeams.
Chessure
A dark grinning beast, under the control of lil' Malice Vundabar.
Gilotina
A brutal young girl, Gilotina served Granny Goodness closely. But when she
met the Newsboy Legion, her feelings about Granny changed. With their help, she
broke free of her control and now lives on Earth. Some time later, however, she
left her position at the Cadmus Project and, as Genesis showed, has managed to
realign herself with her Fury allies again.
Malice Vundabar
A young girl who controls Chessure.
Speed Queen
A fighter who uses "zip-gloves" and rollerblades to move her at superhuman
speeds.
Kalibak
Kalibak is the son of Darkseid by his first wife Suli, he longs for his
father's love and approval. He has had a long-standing rivalry with his
half-brother Orion, in the hopes that by killin Orion, he would ultimately gain
his position as Darkseid's sole heir. But often this was not the case, as
Darkseid, who often fit Orion into one of his grand schemes, would punish
Kalibak for battling and trying to kill his half-brother.
He has often stood beside his father in defending Apokalips from threats
outside and within, hoping to gain dad's respect. But recently, his attitude
changed suddenly. With the imprisonment of Darkseid on the Source Wall, Kalibak
was convinced he was the new lord and master of Apokalips, ready to destroy
anyone who stood in his way (like Darkseid did many years before, but without
the scheming and back-stabbing, just with brute force). He travelled to the
Source Wall to drain the powers of the Infinity Pit from his father, then free
Darkseid and kill him in combat. But he underestimated his father, and when he
apparently drained his powers, he freed his father...who still had all his
powers intact. Darkseid punished his son with a blast of Omega Beams and
transported him to an eternity on the Source Wall, where he remains to this
day.
Weapon of choice: his Beta-Club, which contains the ability of fire force
blasts and a "nerve beam," which can make its target feel agonizing pain. He
also has enormous strength and brute force.
Kanto
Kanto is Darkseid's master and personal assassin. A student of Granny's
named Iluthin, he was accused of stealing weaponry from Darkseid's then-master
assassin Kanto-13. Against the request of Kanto 13, young Iluthin was
exiled from Apokalips to Earth, Renaissance time. There he trained under Italian
teachers, and fell in love with a woman named Claudia. But Kanto 13 tracked him
to Earth, and at the wedding altar, Kanto 13 attacked them, and killed his bride
Claudia. Iluthin and Kanto 13 battled, and in the end Darkseid's assassin was
defeated. Darkseid himself came to Earth and destroyed Kanto 13 for failure, and
Iluthin returned to Apokalips as Darkseid's new assassin.
He is a master swordsman and fighter, and considers his work his art. He
models himself after the people of the Italian Renaissance whom he lived among
during exile. During Darkseid's attack on the Source, Kanto encountered Artemis,
the one-time Wonder Woman, and defeated her in battle; during this fight it was
inferred that Kanto was not only her former teacher but her former lover. He
remains in the service of the recently revived Darkseid, awaiting his next
command.
Special thanks to Walt Simonson for pointing out a previous error about Kanto's origin!
Lump
Entry written by
Azmodi
The Lump is a being who was long ago decieved by Darkseid into channeling
his mental energies inward. This caused him to become master of the Id.
Countless realms he is ruler of, but all exist only in his mind. Due to this
status, his body has become totally non-functional, and he must be kept alive by
life-support machines. This creature is hidden away in Section Zero, Darkseid's
top secret area.
Mantis
Mantis is an agent of Darkseid and apparently related to the bugs of New
Genesis. He preceded Darkseid in travelling to Eearthm, in the hopes of wreaking
a little havoc for his master's imminent arrival. But the Forever People,
summoning the Infinity Man, defeated him.
Later he assembled many of New Genesis' bugs to form an army and invade
Earth, but the combined efforts of Orion, Forager and Lightray sent them
retreating away from Earth. Some years later, Mantis, on behalf of Darkseid, and
perhaps with a little self-motivation, destroyed the bug colony in a giant
blast: Orion responded by virtually slaughtering him. But Mantis has recently
returned to action, proving Darkseid's great powers.
Mantis has a deadly touch; he can either burn or freeze something with it.
He also has the ability, perhaps a power given to him by Darkseid, to create
anti-matter within an object; when matter and anti-matter make contact, it makes
for an extraordinary explosion.
Mokkari and Simyan
Two Apokalips scientists, loyal to Darkseid and stationed on Earth, who
specialize in cloning and creating various genetic monsters in their Evil
Factory to terrorize Earth.
The real Mokkari and Simyan were killed years ago in combat with Superman, Jimmy
Olsen and the Newsboy Legion. Since then, the psychotic geneticist Dabney Donovan
managed to create clones of this dastardly duo. They continued their monster-making
ways, until, in an attempt to take over Project Cadmus, were destroyed by Donovan and
a clone-formula of his design.
S'ivaa
Entry written by
Azmodi
S' Ivaa is the shadow element, a being of pure rage. Borne in the fire death
of the Old Gods, he knew nothing of the peace of New Genesis or the corruption
of Apokolips.
S' Ivaa rested for generations in the seas of New Genesis, unaware of the
world around him. But, Darkseid's poisoning of the Source caused the behemoth to
awaken, and cause havoc. Highfather and Darkseid had no choice but to merge
their abilities and work together to stop the monster, lest both New Genesis and
Apokolips be destroyed by his rage. With the aid of Superman, Orion was able to
push S' Ivaa through a dimensional rift, and he was imprisoned upon the Wall of
the Source, his great threat was neutralized.
Steppenwolf
Steppenwolf is Darkseid's uncle and Heggra's brother. During Heggra's reign,
he commanded the armies of Apokalips. He was responsible for killing Avia,
Highfather's wife, causing wat between their two worlds. Highfather did extract
some revenge for his wife's murder by killing Steppenwolf. Little did both know
that Darkseid had manipulated Steppenwolf into going on this raid so that he
could remove his uncle, the only thing blocking him from taking the throne of
Apokalips after Heggra's forthcoming death. Years later, Darkseid broght
Steppenwolf back from the dead, and Steppenwolf now serves his nephew as a
military leader.
Weapon of choice: Being a master swordsman, Steppenwolf takes great pleasure
in using a electro-ax in battle. He also utilizes a cable-snare to lure victims
into his grasp.
Tigra
Tigra was Darkseid's second wife, after Suli was murdered by Heggra and
Desaad. There union was a loveless one, established so Heggra could have a true
grand-son. After Darkseid had Heggra killed, he had Tigra and their son Orion
exiled. After he dealt Orion to New Genesis, he had Tigra imprisoned in a
cryogenic state. Tigra has since been freed, and has recently attempted to
convince Orion that he is not Darkseid's true son. With that plan having failed,
she waits in the shadows for the next opportunity to strike back at her husband
Darkseid.
Virman Vundabar
Virman Vundabar was one of Darkseid's agents and military leaders. He grew
up in Granny's orphanage, and modelled himself after the Earth-based Prussian
name that Granny gave him. He was a brilliant strategist and ingenious scientist
who had a love for military precision and effeciency. Like Darkseid's other
agents, he has schemed to take Darkseid's place by either force or succession
or...accident.
Recently, after Darkseid's return from the Source Wall, Virman tried to take
advantage of Darkseid, who was still a bit dizzied since his break from the
Source. However, Darkseid knew he was coming to assassinate him, and destroyed
him with his Omega Beams, with the mindset that Virman Vundabar was to be no
more.
Yuga Khan
Entry written by
Azmodi
Yuga Khan was once the ruler of Apokolips, and he sired two sons with his
wife, Queen Heggra. One was Drax, who was basically peace-loving, and the other
was Uxas, also a gentle soul. But Khan knew that Uxas, when he finally claimed
the Omega Force, would be a powerful force. Still, he didn't think his son would
try to kill him and take the throne. Yuga Khan was obsessed with becoming the
most powerful being in the universe, and through this rule the universe as well.
But he desired far more than physical conquest, he also wished to learn
everything that could be discovered about the universe as well. So naturally, he
also became obsessed with solving the mystery of the Source. He wished to know
why he and the other New Gods existed. Izaya of New Genesis (who would later
become Highfather) tried in vain to dissuade him from his quest. Yuga Khan
eventually tried to force his way into the Source, and like all others before
him, failed. He was imprisoned on the Promethian Wall and Queen Heggra assumed
control of Apokolips. From his vantage point, Yuga Khan watched as Desaad killed
Suli (as per Heggra's orders), and as Uxas became Darkseid. Then he saw Darkseid
force Desaad into assassinating Heggra in retaliation for his wife's death. And
then he looked on as Darkseid ascended to his throne to become the supreme ruler
of Apokolips.
Eventually, through an exertion that could shake planets, he tore himself
off the Wall. To replenish his depleted powers, he drained the life energies of
all the living beings on the nearby planet Velos, before destroying the world
itself. He then made his way to Apokolips, wreaking havoc on many worlds,
draining the life-energies of millions of beings and adding them to his own. By
the time he reached Apokolips, he was nearly invincible. He effortless
imprisoned Darkseid and destroyed Desaad for the death of his wife. He then
proclaimed himself ruler once again and made the Hunger Dogs work even harder at
building weapons of war.
The armies of New Genesis, under the leadership of the Commander, attempted
to stop him. Yuga Khan slew the Commander and then proceeded to overpower all
the armies of New Genesis single-handedly. He also used his powers to block off
Highfather's communication with the Source. But Yuga Khan was still obsessed
with understanding the universe, even if this understanding brought about the
destruction of the universe as well. He bonded himself with the wall with
Highfather had used to communicate with the Source. But he had overreached
himself once again. He was imprisoned as a Celestial Giant on the Source Wall
for the second time. Helplessly, he watched as Darkseid took control of
Apokolips once again.
Yuga Khan is one of the most powerful beings in the universe, him being
invulnerable as well as immensely strong. He is also able to project powerful
force blasts that are capable of destroying entire planets. Plus, he is able to
travel in both normal space and Hyperspace at tremendous speeds with no
protection. He gains these powers from the life energies of others, which he is
able to drain on a planetary scale.
Information collected from the New Gods Secret Files and Origins and
Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe (the comic and the
deluxe edition series)
The quotes are collected from "The Gods Themselves" by
Peter W. Dodds, which appeared in Amazing Heroes #47, May 15, 1984.
