Namor

This page is about the Phase 2 incarnation of the character. For other uses, see Namor (disambiguation).

PHASE 2

Namor
Portrayed by Lewis Tan
Codename:	Submariner
Affiliations:	eXcalibur
Birthdate:	July 12, 3300 BCE

Journal:	Imperious Rex
Player:	Walks

"If the chance to serve Atlantis comes first, I will put them before you and any sort of togetherness."

Betrayed on the eve of his coronation and placed into a restless sleep for centuries, the King of Atlantis awakens in the modern age and a world changed. He's not too happy about it, either.

Details

Character Journal: Imperious Rex

Real Name: Namor

Codename: Submariner

Aliases: SWORD Classification: McKenzie #90214, Your Highness, Namor I, , Namor McKenzie (used on fake identification)

First Appearance: May 4, 2015

Date of Birth: July 12, 3300 BCE (Bronze Age), Appears to physically be in his mid-twenties

Place of Birth: Bensaylum

Citizenship: Atlantean

Relatives: Atlantean Royal Family; Thakorr I (Grandfather), Fen (mother), Leonidas of Minoss (father)

Education: Education in sailing, arithmetics, magic theory, politics, swordplay, and trade by royal tutor

Relationship Status: Single

Occupation: Wayward King

Team Affiliation: eXcalibur

Biography

The Ancient Past

Destined for Greatness

Namor was born to rule a city that no longer exists.

Well, Namor was born to lots of things.

The first? Rumor. There was scandal as the then unwed Princess Fen was found with child at a time of political turmoil in the grand city of Bensaylum, the Capital of Atlantean Empire. Also known as the City at the Edge of the World or the City of Arches, Bensaylum was a thriving trade, entertainment, and intellectual hub; the envy of its Bronze Age neighbors in wealth, prestige, magical knowledge, and technology. The fact that Fen would choose an outsider as her consort was an uncomfortable fact of which detractors to Thakorr’s rule took full advantage.

Said consort, Leonidas, was a native of Minoss who primarily enjoyed quiet adoration of his family, sailing, and generally not getting in the way of other Atlantean egos or causing any trouble. His mother had abdicated her title long before in favor of the life of a scholar, so Namor was also born to directly inherit the crown from his grandfather.

The next? Destiny. While all Atlanteans were born with a measure of strength and speed above their land-dwelling cousins, Namor quickly showed signs that his own prowess outstripped that of even his grandfather’s father. The citizens of Bensaylum were a proud, elite people, but also superstitious: Namor’s own increased gifts hinted at a prophecy foretold by long before:

The heir to the throne of Neptune,
Heir to the all the ancestor’s boons and winged with glory, Will sit as king in the water that is under the water, He shall rule time beyond time, once and future, Or else all the arches of Bensaylum shall fall.
It shall come, and overflow, and pass through: The king of the sea shall be moved with bile, Sand on his face, under the water, on his face, And be called forth to fight after the flames. He shall set forth with nothing, lose everything,

but the multitude shall be given into his hand.

This would be cemented when Namor grew wings on his ankles at age fourteen.

Lastly? Turmoil. This would not become apparent until much later, but growing unrest in the city and its faith in the ruling class had been matched by the philosophers’ increasingly vocal opinion about the benefits of communal government and sharing of all goods.

All of these factors resulted in Namor’s young education being themed around the ideas of constant, unquestionable authority and perfection. This came naturally to the overly competitive young boy and then man, but did very little to win him friends. This did not bother him: he was to be a perfect example of everything that the Empire of Atlantis historically valued in a ruler; unquestionably regal, uncompromising, and ambitious for the Empire.

Pity this only fueled public discontent, and the eve of Namor’s coronation would be more remembered for the military coup that followed.

Betrayal and the Sinking of Atlantis

As tradition demanded, the new heir was required to spend a night communing with the ancestors in the Depths of Bensaylum; a Vault filled with only partially understood technology, pilfered artifacts, and magical contraptions deemed both essential to the empire’s might and too dangerous or misunderstood for public use.

Namor, dressed for state in his past grandfather’s armor, went into the Vault only to never return.

The official story, for the short time Bensaylum and the Empire lasted after that, was that the ancestors had deemed Namor I unfit to rule and that it was time for a new, glorious direction for the shining city and the islands and protectorates it dominated.

What actually happened is that Namor’s own guard, led by the city’s Master of Military, attacked the meditating young heir and, through some struggle managed to overpower him. Krang, however, did not want to spill royal blood and tempt the prophecy, and used sheer numbers to back Namor in a coffin that promised “eternal, dreamless sleep.” Krang was disappointed to not be able to strip Namor of the Royal Trident and other accouterments, but getting past Namor’s increased strength was difficult even with numbers on their side. They were able to secure the crown.

Krang, the People’s King, ruled the Atlantean empire for appropriately a month before Bensaylum sunk into the ocean.

A Relic in the Modern Day

Old Relics Found

In 1939, Leonard McKenzie’s team, assisting Howard Stark, found an abandoned cryotube in their exploration of the arctic depths that was both self-powered and unable to be opened. After a series of scientific studies by SHIELD, the tube (and project) was moved into cold storage in Alaska with other similar finds.

The Nowhere King

Namor's cryotube draws the curiosity of Clinton Barton when it begins putting out strange pulses of energy. This only increase in output until the cyrotube opens for an unknown reason — natural timers, power failure, the stars aligning — to interrupt an argument between Clint and Susan Storm, who had been hired by her mother to steal the cyrotube on behalf of her mysterious employer from its Barrow, Alaska holding facility.

The three fight until Namor collapses due to the stress of inflicted injuries and cyrogenesis. Clint cashes in on a promise from Clarice Ferguson, and the two are teleported to the mansion where the unconscious Namor is put in custody of the school's medical staff.

Reawakening

Namor awoke two weeks after his arrival, and amazingly didn't immediately break the mansion. There were some communications errors before Emma Frost placed the English language into his head. And then there were more communications errors as Namor simply failed to connect with his fellow mansion dwellers, seeking to recover his weapons. A deal was struck: Namor would be given his trident and rendered aid in seeking Atlantis, as long as he shared whatever Atlantis held with the mansion.

He proved to be rather useful, however, when Clint recruited him to help investigate an Atlantean artifact, and Namor solved the puzzle with his own special brand of — he hit it and it activated, releasing trapped Lemurians into the lab.

A Longer Search Than Anticipated

Adjusting to the twenty-first century, of course, was its own adventure, and a couple of people were more than happy to help with, if only for the amusement value. Namor mostly kept to himself, though he did step up to help fight the Avengers when they attacked SHIELD. He takes great joy in being able to show his strength, and reveals that he had previously known Thor in the far past.

Namor specifically recruits Clint Barton and Kate Pryde as his assistants in cataloging and discovering leads on Atlantis’ location, and Marie Ange Colbert helps with drawing descriptions of the lost relics and items from the Royal Vault.

Casual life at the mansion puts Namor into several situations he does not volunteer for, Along Came A Spider. He’s found to be the only mutant immune to the toxic emerald in Green-Eyed Monster due to not being human. Namor assists in fighting the Sapien League and containing the emerald in California.

Finding Use for Idle Hands

Poor Unfortunate Souls

Namor reluctantly assists again when Cyclops asks for answering his father’s distress signal in the Bermuda Triangle. This turns out to be a trap specifically engineered to trap Namor and Jean by Attuma, a Lemurian Warlord who had vowed vengeance on all dryskins. Namor is, in particular, affected by the toxins of the squidlings Attuma is using to mind control those he can capture. He is used as a weapon against the magical calvary called in to rescue to rescue mission.

Set Fire to the Rain

When a sophisticated, pyrokinetic android escapes its makers, Namor is called upon to chase the flying machine over the skies of New York. Namor fights the machine to a standstill, herding him into SHIELD and Avenger’s captivity. This battle extinguishes the last power left in Namor’s trident, cutting off his ability to manipulate water.

Isle of Glass

Namor works with the close team formed by Clint Barton over their last misadventures to intercept a pair of artifact smugglers. This leads to the opening of the portal to Avalon, a magical warehouse dimension. Namor, Clint, Matt, and Topaz explore the pocket dimension, only to accidentally release another time-trapped relic from the past — the magician Mordred. He escapes.

Breaker of Oceans

The emergence of the Society of Thule leads to Namor battling Nerkkod in Tokyo as the rest of his team searches for a way to shut the hammer-wielder down. This is Namor’s first interaction with Alani Ryan, a friendship that will continue to develop.

A Pause in Regular Scheduling…

The next couple of years are a restful period Namor uses to further research the progress of human civilization. He retreats a little into himself, appearing occasionally for shirtless cata sessions by the lake or as arm candy at the Hellfire Gala.

Potomac Calls to Chesapeake

Namor is asked by Topaz and Amanda to parlay with the Spirit of the Chesapeake during her invasion and attack against the city of Baltimore, along with Meggan Szardos and Alani Ryran. Namor proves unhelpful, at first, siding with the spirit and their shared disgust with humanity — his suggestion is for the spirit to either find the power to wipe all men from the land or to seek a peace she can accept. An appeasement is met. This, and a lot of flirting.

All Hallow’s Complications

On Halloween in 2021, Namor is swept up in the spell cast by Satanna as she attempts to take Avalon for herself. Namor is cast into the role of Dracula, alongside Emma as his bride, as reality twists toward Victorian Gothic Vampire Horror.

Avalon’s stability is greatly compromised as a result, and Namor volunteers to help empty the collapsing dimension’s shelves. Namor and Matt fight minions summoned by the dimension’s defenses together. The hordes of minions overwhelm the small team and Topaz is seemingly lost to the void.

Upon her return, Namor is extremely curious what knowledge the “Void Walker” might have learned of his lost city in the space between multiverses.

Joining eXcalibur

Clan Akkaba and a New Team

Continuing his new proactive take on mansion events, Namor invites himself to join the newly formed eXcalibur team in returning Genesis to his own reality. He felt a connection to the young prince — also pulled from his throne by those he should have trusted — and acts as the boy’s bodyguard as they retake Evan’s castle.

eXcalibur reluctantly vote to allow Namor to join their team.

Namor connects with several new people during this period — Terry on how to improve his public image to gain support for Atlantis, Quentin for how to generate a separate revenue flow by using his assets. He cultivates his relationship with Alani Ryan when she expresses interest in knowing more about the people of Atlantis.

He also makes an effort to bond with his new team, getting everyone hand-selected gifts for the new year. This leads to being trapped in a time loop with them as the wormhole interacts with a newly acquired vending machine.

Namor reaches out to Emma Frost to ask to join her at the Hellfire Gala.

Namor is present on the field team for the events of Reality_03:_Chimera_Contagion. They find themselves in a technologically advanced reality where the wealthy can purchase and amass multiple superpowers, and Namor is tasked with gathering intelligence with the group besieging the city. A raid on the primary corporation threatening an incursion leads to Meggan being infected, and Namor assists in rapidly transporting her to urgent medical treatment.

This action inadvertently mutates the chimera virus used to transfer powers, causing Namor to swap powers with Illyana Rasputin. He is not pleased, sulking on the loss of his wings is a loss of identity. Relief arrives with the hyper-lucky Alani, who has gained psychometry. Namor allows her to read the Trident of Neptune.

Laved by the the Gulf and Ocean Grand

Namor’s continued liaisons with the Spirit of the Chesapeake suddenly provide more than a pleasing distraction when she informs him that some new ruins of an Atlantean outpost have been unearthed in the keys of Florida.

He is accompanied by eXcalibur to investigate, and the first sight of the ruins of his people cause Namor to erupt in fury. First annoyed by the Nymph’s playful jabs at the Chesapeake, Namor lets his temper get the best of him and uses the remaining magical power in the ruins to banish the spirit and ensure that the ruins are destroyed. It turns out that this was his intention — to bury his people’s memory, rather than recover it.

A recording device is found in what remains and taken back to the mansion for study. It holds a map containing a recording of the fall of Atlantis and a message left by those who fled the city: their time-displaced king would find them.

Physical Characteristics

Tall, sharp, imposing. Namor is an athletic man with above average good looks who wears his causal presumption of authority and inherent privilege like a second skin. He has a strong face with a square chin and chiseled, perpetually serious features normally set into a scowl. His broad shoulders and strong chest boast of a swimmer’s build and lots of muscle. His ethnicity is decidedly unclear: brown skin with almost Asian features, but with a mix of something much, much older and far more regal.

Height: 6’2"

General Build: Muscled, jacked and allergic to shirts.

Eyes: Grey-blue

Hair: Black

Distinguishing Features: Four small, palm-sized wings of white/gray feathers on his ankles (two on each leg), Pointed Ears

Powers

Flight, Aquatic Prowess/Adaptation, increased physical agility, increased speed, and limited invulnerability coming in two flavors.

"Homo mermanus": A subspecies of humanity genetically tweaked for increased speed (60mph), strength (up to 2 tons out of water), and an amphibious physiognomy suited for high pressure aquatic environments. Underwater this translates into high speed swimming almost triple human Olympic athletes, the ability to breath underwater through oxygen diffusing membranes in his lungs, the ability to perceive and see through the murky depths, and physical imperviousness to extreme temperatures. He also has the physical durability needed to survive depths greater than 5,000 feet (his body does not experience oxygen toxicity or nitrogen narcosis), which in turn results in limited invulnerability (can withstand low caliber bullets, glancing knife wounds) on dry land.

His strength, agility, speed, and even healing are greatly enhanced by contact with water. The first three factors are almost doubled, and his own regeneration is increased at least two fold (giving him a very specific “healing factor” that still takes some time).

Namor does not experience any discomfort without physical contact with water beyond standard human hydration needs.

"The First Mutant": At puberty Namor gained the ability to fly not as an expression of genetic engineering, but through the X-Gene. This was accompanied by the physical manifestation of two small wings on each ankle. These wings do not really make any sense re: flight when science is applied, but covering or injuring the wings inhibits his control. Physics-wise, Namor produces a psionic field of force to propel himself against gravity and is able to reach speeds of ~50 mph comfortably. His flight ceiling seems to be capped out ~700ft before he experiences discomfort and loss of control. Any ice accumulation on his wings will greatly limit his speed and control in flight, so weather can certainly inhibit any soaring.

"Genetic Tinkering": Namor is a descendant of Ancient Atlantis. This gives him the ability to harness and utilize the city's unexplained advanced technology, augmented by human magic, that was one of the staples of ancient Atlantis’s majesty.

The exact nature of Atlantean magic, however, makes any use by terrestrial mages often chaotic. Namor’s aura appears “off” to anyone who can sense these things, but this does not grant him any sort of magical resistance.

Equipment

"The Trident of Neptune": Eight feet from prong to tip, the Trident is an artifact that symbolizes the power of the Atlantean Kingship passed down from the ancestors. It was foretold to bend the ocean to it's master's will. In reality, the trident is a marvel of Atlantean technology and boosted by the presence of several inscribed gemstones that act as an internal battery when the trident cannot draw on Atlantis's own power. Once it had considerable hydro-kinetic power -- say enough to float an island -- but time and the loss of Atlantis has reduced it's power to one percent of it's original holding.

With it, Namor can manipulate water, but only to a certain degree. He is able to draw water to him, but only has the capacity to control about a small hotel swimming pool's worth of water. Once he adapts to it's limitation, Namor might be capable of moving and manipulating water with a certain skill, but will not attain the Trident's ancient power with the loss of the city's boosting spires. However, this assumes Namor will actually figure out his limitations. The battery life of the trident is not something that Namor knows about, and will fail him when most dramatically appropriate.

Trivia

Namor was banned from Florida following Laved by the Gulf and Ocean Grand.

External Links

xp_communication posts

xp_journal posts

xp_logs posts

Plots