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Ty |
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Intuition: |
Ty |
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32 |
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32 |
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Popularity: |
-20 |
Real Name: Bruno Horgan
Occupation: Industrialist, professional criminal
Legal Status: United States citizen (deceased)
Identity: Public
Place of Birth: Queens, NYC
Marital Status: Divorced
Known Relatives: None
Base of Operations: NYC area
Past Group Affiliations: Masters of Evil (I and II), Death Squad
Known Powers:
Melting Ray, Mk I: This weapon makes use of Excellent Intensity energies which break down the structure of iron and steel. It has Excellent range, but, because it is mounted in a chest harness, it can only be used against targets in front of or in contact with the Melter.
Melting Ray, Mk II: This improved version of the ray employs a variable frequency microwave generator which has Remarkable Intensity and range. Changing the frequency setting takes one turn. The device’s operational modes are as follows:
- One (Metal): Monstrous attack on targets of up to Monstrous Material Strength.
- Two (Stone): Unearthly attack against non-mystical rock and stone, including stonelike beings.
- Three (Wood/Cellulose): Does Amazing damage to plants, wood, paper, rayon, and similar materials.
- Four (Flesh): Causes Amazing intensity burns to living beings.
thereafter fall unconscious from the shock of their wounds.
Melting Ray, Mk lll: This device functions just like the Mark II, but is mounted on a belt harness, restricting its field of fire to the areas in front of the Melter.
Melting Ray, Mk IV: This version functions just as the Mk II listed above does except that it has a Monstrous Intensity and range.
Talents:
Melter has Remarkable Reason in Engineering, Repair/Tinkering, and Business/Finance.
Contacts:
Former ally of both Blacklash and Blizzard; ex-employee of Justin Hammer.
Role-Playing Notes:
The Melter was a firm believer in the power of technology to overcome any obstacle or foe. He began his criminal career with the simple goal of avenging himself against Tony Stark. Over the years, his fixation increased to include Iron Man and any of his allies. This drive remained with him to the end, although he later began to devote more of his time to acquire wealth through criminal means.
History:
Bruno Horgan was an industrialist who specialized in the development, design, and manufacture of weaponry and munitions for the United States government. Horgan was driven into bankruptcy when a government safety inspection team proved that he was using inferior materials. His defense contracts were later awarded to his foremost competitor, industrialist and inventor Anthony Stark, who was secretly the armored crimefighter Iron Man.
As one of Horgan’s factories was being dismantled, the bankrupt industrialist noticed a strange phenomenon. One of his poorly constructed, experimental radar devices had begun to malfunction. Casting a brilliant beam of light, it caused any iron components upon which it shone to begin instantly to appear to melt. Horgan analyzed the device and redesigned it so that it could be strapped to his chest. Equipped with this weapon, Horgan began his career as the Melter by striking at the factories owned by Anthony Stark. However, the Melter was defeated by Stark in his identity of Iron Man, became the Melter’s main nemesis.
As a member of Baron Heinrich Zemo’s Masters of Evil, the Melter twice battled the Avengers, the team of champions to which Iron Man belonged. The Melter was also among the costumed criminals who were assembled by Doctor Doom to attack the Fantastic Four on the day of the wedding of Reed Richards and Susan Storm.
Later, finding his chest device unwieldy, the Melter redesigned it into a hand-held gun. Still not satisfied, he later kidnapped Anthony Stark and forced him to design a new “melting gun:’ which was far more powerful and was capable of dissolving all metals, as well as affecting human flesh, wood, and stone. Defeated once again by Iron Man, the Melter was returned to prison.
The Melter next fought the Avengers as a member of the new Masters of Evil organized by the robot Ultron. Afterwards, the Melter teamed up with Whiplash (who is now known as Blacklash) and the Man-Bull as members of the criminal Death Squad. The Death Squad fought Iron Man at a large comics convention but were defeated.
The Melter again redesigned his melting weapon to wear on his belt. Having again proved to be unsuccessful on his own, the Melter teamed up with his former partner Whiplash and another of Iron Man’s longtime adversaries, the original Blizzard. The three criminals were financed in reconstructing their weaponry by billionaire Justin Hammer in return for a percentage of the proceeds from their robberies. The Melter, Whiplash, and the Blizzard had the misfortune of staging their robbery of a casino hotel when Anthony Stark happened to be there with his friend, Bethany Cabe. Iron Man and Cabe succeeded in over coming all three criminals, who were sent to the prison on Ryker’s Island. Shortly thereafter, operatives of Hammer freed them and took them to Hammer’s enormous “house boat” base. When Iron Man appeared at the base, Hammer sent the Melter and numerous other costumed criminals to attack him. How ever, Iron Man quickly returned them to prison.
While in jail, the Melter met a nuclear physicist who had been convicted for tax evasion. Together they developed a method of adjusting the Melter’s melting beam to affect Iron Man’s new armor. After leaving prison, the Melter confidently attacked Iron Man yet again. Unexpectedly, though, Iron Man happened to be wearing an old suit of armor that the Melter’s beam, adjusted for Iron Man’s new armor, did not melt, and the Melter failed again.
Somehow, though, the Melter was soon back at large. His reputation tarnished by so many humiliating defeats by Iron Man and his Avenger teammates, the Melter decided to win himself notoriety by killing the Thing, who was then hospitalized, recovering from injuries. A large number of other costumed criminals also tried to kill or capture the hospitalized Thing, but all of them, including the Melter, were thwarted by various costumed champions who acted to protect him.
Despite his long history of repeat ed failures, the Melter obsessively persisted in seeking vengeance on his enemies. He was planning to attack Iron Man and the Avengers yet again when he was fatally shot with an explosive bullet by the enigmatic assassin Scourge, who was posing as the Melter’s assistant. After murdering the Melter, Scourge contemptuously crushed the Melter’s latest melting beam weapon beneath his foot.