Marvel: Crisis Protocol – The Many Facets of Kang The Conqueror
Kang The Conqueror is coming to the tabletop in Marvel: Crisis Protocol. And he’s got plenty of variants to join him.
When it comes to timey-whimey shenanigans The Doctor isn’t the only one who’s got a few tricks up his sleeves. I meant Doctor Strange…WHO were you thinking of? This is a Marvel: Crisis Protocol article, folks. Anyhow, we’ve already got an Explainer on Kang The Conqueror from the comics.
Today, I want to tackle some of his other “variants” that could easily make the jump to the tabletop as well (plus one that’s already on the way). To say Nathaniel Richards has a complex history is putting it lightly. But what would you expect from a character that can manipulate time? So let’s dive into a few alternate versions of Kang The Conqueror!
Iron Lad
via Marvel
This one may come as a shock to folks who don’t follow comics but Iron Lad is actually a “younger” version of Kang. This is one of those bootstrap or “predestination” paradoxes. I’ll try to keep this short but future Kang goes back to a point in his own history where he interacts with a 16 year old version of himself. He takes that version on a trip through time to try and show him how totally awesome he will be.
This back fires spectacularly. The young version (let’s call him Nate for now) is horrified to learn of the villain he will become. Instead he steals the time travel tech from Kang and Nate hopes to escape his evil destiny.
This leads to the Young Avengers and a whole bunch of other story arcs. But let’s just say Nate becomes Iron Lad for a time and move on or we’ll be here all day.
Rama-Tut
Rama-Tut is a technically an “early” version of Kang the Conqueror. At this point Nate Richard’s history, he’s built a time machine (thanks to a mysterious Benefactor (it’s Doctor Doom)) and crash-landed it in ancient Egypt. He eventually usurps the throne of Pharaoh Amenhotep and starts to run things his way. Anyhow, this leads to a rebellion and the rise of a certain En Sabah Nur (you might know his better as Apocalypse).
He’s eventually defeated by a bunch of time-hopping heroes including the Fantastic Four, Doctor Strange, and the Avengers. Rama-Tut bounces around the time stream having some “adventures” of his own. This eventually leads to yet another facet of Kang being “born” into existence…
Scarlet Centurion
Scarlet Centurion, Marvel, First Appearance Avengers Annual #2 (July, 1968)
After Rama-Tut has a run in with Doctor Doom (during his bouncing through the Time Stream) he gets inspired to don armor inspired by his ancestor. Oh, did I mention that Kang and Doom are related? “Because Comics!” Anyhow, this version attempts to take on the “modern” era and ends up messing with the Avengers. This causes some more alternate realities to form and an Earth-616 vs Earth-689 Avengers throw-down.
The Scarlet Centurion does eventually get defeated but this also causes some more alternate realities to form. One of those realities leads him to have a son named Marcus Kang who eventually becomes a new Scarlet Centurion, too. And if that’s not confusing enough, in of of those alternate realities he splits off in time to become yet another persona…
Immortus
via Marvel
Oh boy, Immortus is another weird variant for sure. At some point in a future timeline, Kang basically gets bored. He decides to stop his conquering ways and when he’s around 60 he goes back to the Rama-Tut era. He arrives 17 after his younger-self had “departed” and reassumes the mantle of Pharaoh Rama-Tut. This time around he actually rules with virtue and compassion. At some point during this period he even destroys his time machines.
This version eventually constructs a suspended animation pod shaped like a sarcophagus. He then lays sleeping for the next 5000 years. He’s awoken in the modern era and actually aides the Avengers against Kang, too — but without significantly altering his own past! Because he’s been so careful about not creating alternate realities or paradoxes before…
Anyhow, when he’s physically in his 70s he sends himself to “timeless Limbo” in hopes of studying time and stalling his own death. This eventually leads him to proclaiming himself lord of Limbo and Master of Time and taking the moniker of Immortus.
Kang Is His Own Worst Enemy
Look, Kang’s variants have a complicated history that I’ve tried to summarize. I totally glossed over a LOT of important facts and other characters like Ravonna Renslayer and how important she is to both the creation of Kang The Conqueror and to why he manipulates his timeline so much. Honestly, time-travel stories can be very messy and Kang’s history is confusing. But if you ever manage to sit down and read it all in the correct order it works.
Kang The Conqueror has a lot of really crazy variants to play around with. Heck, there’s a whole council of them! The point is that if Atomic Mass Games wants to get really crazy with Kang and his supporting cast they have plenty of material to work with for MCP!
Do you have a favorite Kang variant? Don’t say Kangeroo the Conqueror…
