Howard Stark, an entrepreneur and maker of armaments, and his wife Maria have a wealthy son named Tony Stark. When his parents unexpectedly passed away, Tony, who had grown up to be a genius with a remarkable mind for technology and innovations, naturally followed in his father's footsteps and inherited Stark Industries. Tony led a life of a bon vivant while designing numerous weapons of war for Stark Industries, in excess of what any other business was producing.

Once Tony Stark made the decision to consult on a weapons deal outside in hostile territory, fate would take a nasty turn for him. Under Tony's transport, an improvised explosive device detonated, putting him in danger of dying.

When Tony awoke as a warlord Wong-Chu prisoner, he made the horrifying discovery that a piece of shrapnel had been thrown millimetres from his heart by the explosion. Only the quick action of fellow prisoner and engineer Yinsen managed to stop the shrapnel.Tony used his experience of being close to death as inspiration while being held captive and made to work on weapons. What if he was able to power an iron suit that would aid Tony in escaping while simultaneously preventing the shrapnel from killing him?

With their combined ingenuity, Tony and Yinsen created the powerful iron armour known as Iron Man. Although there was much need for improvement, the initial outfit succeeded in doing what Tony couldn't achieve on his own. In order to complete the necessary preparations, Yinsen gave his life. Tony then managed to escape while donning the Iron Man costume for the first time, returning to the United States a different person.With complete access to his tools, Tony created the first of many upgraded versions of his suit of armour and committed his life to battling threats to the globe.

IRON MAN:

Over the years, Tony has developed hundreds of additional suits and enhancements since that initial suit he fashioned in a cave. However, there are common offensive and defensive qualities present in the majority of the more than 50 Iron Man versions.

The repulsor rays, which are every suit's main weapon and are produced by the gauntlets, use energy pulses to deter and disrupt foes. Stark can fly faster than any fighter plane and manoeuvre more rapidly thanks to the booster jets in his suit.

Tony has access to 360-degree vision, information about his surroundings and adversaries, and the ability to transmit and stop signals along any frequency thanks to the heads-up display in Iron Man's helmet. Additionally, Tony's resistance against EMP and psychic-based attacks is increased by the helmet. (To be continued)