Rama-Tut
Rama-Tut is a male comic supervillain who features in Marvel Comics.
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Biography
Rama-Tut was originally Nathaniel Richards, a 30th-century human from an alternate Earth known as Other-Earth (or Earth-6311).
In the year 3016, the then 16 year old Nathaniel had developed an early Growing Man stimuloid. He was attacked at his schoolyard by Morgan, a bully who had humiliated him for years. Morgan slit Nathaniel's throat with the point of his anti-gravity unit. Nathaniel nearly died, spending a year in the hospital and almost bankrupting his parents. (Young Avengers v1 #2)
Seeking adventure and excitement -- like he had observed in his tapes -- in an age of peace and contentment, Nathaniel delved into his geneological history, finding the relics of an ancestor which some claimed to be Dr. Doom of the heroic era of Earth-616, while others claimed them to be Richards the Benefactor himself. These relics included the fortress of the Warlord, an alias used by Richards' wife, Cassandra, and mistakenly believed by many at the time to have been Nathaniel himself. (Avengers Forever v1 #9)
At this point, in response to a threat of Richards' future incarnation Immortus, the Time Variance Authority sent the Fantastic Four of Earth-7712 to use the Saturnyne Symbiont--a chronosynclastic nucleus designed by the scientists of omniversal majestrix Saturnyne, whose function was to weaken an organism's natural resistance to time energy. Implanted within Richards, this would make it impossible for him to store the nexus power and thus prevent him from becoming a temporal quantum wave as Immortus had become. Uatu suggested sending the Reed Richards Rocket Group--Earth-8212 Fantastic Four counterparts who had never gained their powers--to facilitate Richards' exposure to the Symbiont. However, the deputy secretary instead decided to send the more powerful Fantastic Four of Earth-7712 namely Big Brain, Dragonfly, Mandroid, and Ultra-Woman. This group failed, as their imposing nature made Richards' distrust them, and Richards' used the re-programmed weaponry from the Fortress to slay them all. The TVA then agreed to Uatu's original proposal, and the Rocket Group succeeded, as they appeared to be less threatening. Reed Richards of Earth-8212 convinced Nathaniel of his honesty by allowing him to sample both of their DNA and confirming Reed to be Nathaniel to be related. Accepting the reality of Immortus' threat, Nathaniel Richards agreed to willingly take the Symbiont, erasing Immortus' accumulated temporal energy and resolving the threat. (What If? v2 #39)
Bored by the utopia that was his era, Richards delved into the records of his ancestors, and discovered the design for a time machine. Building it and disguising it within the Sphinx, he travelled back to ancient Egypt.
Nathaniel donned a decorative (and possibly armored) costume for his journey. (Rise of Apocalypse v1 #2)
Crashlanding and becoming blinded, he was found in the desert by a wanderer, Baal. After being cured of his blindness by a later-lost medicine, Richards took the name Rama-Tut, and used his advanced technology to become Pharaoh. His people adored him, and during his reign, Rama-Tut battled En Sabah Nur, the young mutant who would later become known as Apocalypse.
Eventually, however, the Fantastic Four arrived from the 20th century, in search of the blindness cure. Rama-Tut captured them, but thanks to the Egyptian god Khonshu and Doctor Strange, they were freed and overthrew the Pharaoh.
Rama-Tut was frustrated as the sorceress Samira refused to bow to him. Rama-Tut obtained a portion of the Chronifact when it was sent back in time. He studied it in secret to learn how to bend its powers to his will. Rama-Tut encountered Killpower, who had been sent into the past by the Time Guardian to locate a portion of the Chronifact and who had overpowered a group of Rama's guards and forced them to lead him back to their master. Intrigued by Killpower, Rama had a feast prepared for them, during which he had a servant hurl a number of asps at them, which he blamed on Samira. Rama then told Killpower that Samira had tried to destroy him because she feared that he would retrieve the Chronifact fragment, which she had stolen from Rama-Tut. Rama then slew the servant who had hurled the asps so that he could never reveal the truth. After Killpower departed, Rama returned to his efforts to master the Chronifact fragment. Samira, however, swiftly showed Killpower an image of Rama with the Chronifact, convinced Killpower that Rama had lied to him, and then sent Killpower back to confront him anew. When Rama threatened Killpower with his Ultra-Diode Ray, Killpower used an image projector to create multiple images of himself to confuse Rama. Just then, Genetix, sent back in time by Mys-Tech's Oonagh Mullarkey to retrieve Killpowerr. Never having met the Genetix before, Killpower assumed them to be more agents of Rama-Tut. (Killpower: The Early Years v1 #1) When Stinger redirected Rama's ultra-diode ray blast back at him, he rushed to his arsenal, then began firing at them with a weapon too powerful for Stinger to absorb. Killpower then found the Chronifact fragment, and as soon as he grabbed it, the Time Guardian pulled him forward in time again. Samira then contacted Genetix and made a portal to send them after Genetix, while Rama fled deeper into his palace. Following their departure, Rama used another device to absorb the residual chronal energy. (Killpower: The Early Years v1 #2)
Seeking power by joining Rama-Tut's family, the ambitious general Ozymandias pledged his sister Nephri to become Rama's bride. When his grand vizier Logos came to report information, Rama overruled his general Ozymandias' refusal to let Logos speak. Logos brought word of En Sabah Nur, a young outlander of bizarre appearance and great strength within the Sandstormers under Baal of the Crimson Sands. Having known of the existence of Apocalypse, Rama intended to find the young Nur and guide his maturation, rather than allowing Baal, who intended for Nur to overthrow Rama-Tut, to do so. Rama ordered Ozymandias to find and bring the young Nur to him. While Baal showed Nur a subterranean chamber fragmented from Rama's original ship containing the Eye of Ages, Ozymandias led his armies to slaughter the Sandstormers. The Sandstormers, however, sensed their approach and ambushed them, though the ground collapsed above Rama's former vessel, swallowing up soldiers and Sandstormers alike, and injuring Baal and Nur. (Rise of Apocalypse v1 #1) Ozymandias was sole survivor of the collapse above. Nur healed from his wounds and became more powerful, while Baal perished soon after. Ozymandias told Rama that Nur had perished. Doubtful, Rama-Tut criticized Ozymandias for his failure to recover En Sabah Nur for him and ignored Logos' warnings that marrying Nephri would allow Ozymandias to manipulate him through her. After Nur escaped the collapsed chamber, he was found by Logos, sent their by Rama-Tut, who apparently had knowledge of the site of his emergence. Logos, intending for Nur to save Egypt from the horror of a royal consolidation of Rama-Tut and the house of Ozymandias, had Nur hide out within the pyramid project. (Rise of Apocalypse v1 #2)
Stuck in the past with time machine that traveled only backwards, a West Coast branch of Avengers consisting of Hawkeye, Iron Man, Tigra, and Wonder Man arrived in 2940 BC to try to convince the younger Rama to aid them, knowing he was more malicious at this age. No sooner had they arrived, however, when Rama blasted all four of them into paralysis with his Ultra-Diode Ray. (West Coast Avengers v2 #20)
Rama-Tut fled to the future, but after hitting a temporal disturbance, he discovered an adrift Doctor Doom in the timestream. Rescuing him, Rama-Tut allowed Doom to somehow get the idea that Tut was a future version of the Latverian ruler. After dropping Doom off in the 20th Century, and tussling with Cable's mentor Blaquesmith, Rama-Tut (inspired by Doom) took on a new identity- that of the Scarlet Centurion. The Centurion, in turn, eventually became Kang the Conqueror.
Kang, in his later years, wearied of his expansive chronal empire. Seeking a simpler time, he left his love Ravonna in charge and travelled back to ancient Egypt, resuming his role as Rama-Tut. He also destroyed his chronosphere so that he would not be tempted to turn back. Tut ruled for a decade, basking in his people's adoration and being a very wise and benevolent leader. Eventually, however, he became rankled by his fate- becoming Immortus- and resolved to shatter the cycle that led to it. Entombing himself in suspended animation, Tut awoke in the 20th century and united with the Avengers, battling a version of his past self- Kang- during the Celestial Madonna crisis. He found he could change nothing, and, after being sent home by Immortus, sunk into despair. Resigned to his fate, Rama-Tut entered Limbo and became Immortus.
He later travelled the Ark of History during a meeting of Kang and his variants. They were called by Immortus to acquire the warlord's prize that was the last legacy of Nathaniel Richards. To that end, Rama-Tut along with Scarlet Centurion, Kang and a seeming new variant named Scion all looked to acquire the hidden item that was present in the Baxter Building at various points in the timeline. (Fantastic Four v6 #35)
Overview
Personality and attributes
This incarnation came to father a child named Ramades though he came to abandon this son in Ancient Egypt. Ramades by the time he reached 20 years of age discovered his father's time travel equipment and intended to be greater than Kang himself. (4 v1 #16)
Powers and abilities
He could create a rip in time beneath the sands of Ancient Egypt and unleashing an endless sea of sands onto an enemy to bury them. (Fantastic Four v6 #35)
Among his army were the sarcophobots that were robots dressed as Egyptian mummies. (Fantastic Four v6 #35)
He was said to had been responsible for building a headquarters called the Ark of History that was located in Neverspace which was a place where broken timelines died. It was built as a monument to his divinity with safeguards created to ensure only his bloodline could pass through its walls. This meant though that variants of him were able to access this structure. (Fantastic Four v6 #35)
Notes
- Rama-Tut was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby where he made his first appearance in Fantastic Four v1 #19 (October, 1963).
Alternate Versions
- In a divergent timeline, Rama-Tut became incensed when he realized Immortus was but a servant of the Time Keepers. He defied his destiny, and became Kang once more.
In other media
Television
- In Fantastic Four, Rama-Tut appeared in the setting of the 1967 animated television series in the episode "Rama-Tut" where he was voiced by actor Mike Road.
- In X-Men: Evolution, Rama-Tut made a non-speaking cameo appearance in the setting of the animated television series.
Video games
- In X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse, Rama-Tut was mentioned in the setting of the video game.
Appearances
- Fantastic Four v1: (1963)
- Avengers v1:
- Rise of Apocalypse v1:
- All-New, All-Different Avengers v1:
- Kang the Conqueror v1: (2021)
- Fantastic Four v6: (2021)
External Links
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