Attuma

Origin

It was during a time of war and slavery where a prophecy would tell of a warrior rise and take the kingdom of Atlantis by force, something that steered a warrior known as Rorak into ensuring that the warrior would be him. It was devotion that guided Rorak and his army to destroy several unsuspecting tribes, such as the tribe Skarka where Attuma would see his own mother killed before him. With many killed, most women and children of Skarka were taken as slaves, as with Attuma being raised as one of the slaves who was forced working within the mines where countless others suffered greatly and eventually died off. But the mines didn’t weakened Attuma seeing how his rage and desire for revenge only made him stronger, eventually becoming strong enough to raise an army of slaves against Rorak and his army after Atlantis started to disregard the use of slavery. Even though Attuma never gained any revenge against Rorak, he found himself with a massive army after freeing and gathering other slaves with a desire to claim Roraks goal of being the one who will overtake Atlantis.

Creation

Attuma was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in 1964 and first appeared in Fantastic Four # 33.

Character Evolution

Attuma believes that he is destined to conquer Atlantis. Which he has done on twice. His constant quest for Attlantis has brought him both allies and enemies. He has been known to team-up with Tigershark, Llyra, and even Kang. Attuma has fought the Fantastic Four, Avengers, and Alpha Flight.

Major Story Arcs

Rebellion

It was during one of his campaigns where Attuma became a father to a firstborn, a daughter known as Andromeda. Because of how Andromeda wasn’t a male child, Attuma grew ashamed and disregarded to accept Andromeda as his child. Despite the fact that Andromeda grew up to be a skilled and a dangerous warrior, Attuma eventually detached himself with whereabouts of his daughter. By the time Attuma finally amassed a massive army, he and his army stormed the gates of Atlantis. Even though the ruler of Atlantis Namor and his army managed to defend Atlantis from Attuma’s attacks, Attuma managed to infiltrate Atlantis because of Lady Dorma, who did this out of jealousy when Namor denied her love. This led Namor’s army into submission against Attuma’s forces when supplies grew weak to where even his own army and the citizens of Atlantis accepted Attuma’s own supplies and loyalty. Finally accomplishing the prophecy of overtaking Atlantis by force, Attuma still found himself going against a struggling Namor. But it would be Dorma’s disregard for her actions where she sought help from the Fantastic Four to help Namor reclaim his title and have Atlantis be restored back to normal. With the Fantastic Four’s meddling, Attuma found himself going against Namor one on one where Namor by the aid of Invisible Woman defeated him. Beaten and having his army diminished, Namor punished Attuma and most of his army by exiling him from Atlantis.

Against the Avengers

Attuma faced even a greater defeat when facing his army who looked upon him with disregard, also the beliefs of Attuma being the one who would one day rule Atlantis being false were starting to rise, also causing his massive army to diminish. This led Attuma into leading a way to rule the surface as a way to regain his respect from his own army and later setting his sights on ruling Atlantis once more. But Attuma was facing a setback when lacking any knowledge of the surface world or any of the human population, which led Attuma into setting up a base near the surface with the goals of capturing a human so that he and his army would study and analyze the surface world and it’s inhabitants. However this attempt found itself backfiring when Attuma captured an airliner that held Janet Van Dyne, also known as the Wasp and partner of her lover Hank Pym. Selecting Janet to be the human for Attuma’s studies, Attuma and his small army found themselves facing an enraged Giant Man who managed to rescue Janet from Attuma’s clutches. With Attuma believing that all humans held the same growing abilities as with Pym and Janet, he successfully escaped both heroes to rethink his goals for ruling the surface world. Yet the fact humans are incapable of breathing water, Attuma and his small army managed to gather enough materials to design a machine that would alter the oxygen levels to where humans would be incapable of breathing and possibly giving Attuma a greater chance of ruling the surface. But an encounter with Iron Man who was currently testing a submarine found Attuma’s plans foiled when the armored avenger destroyed Attuma’s machine.

With his plans of attacking the surface world being foiled more than once, Attuma was beginning to lose the loyalty with what remained from his army. But managing to construct another machine that’s designed to create tidal waves that could attack and destroy the surface world above. It would be before using this machine where Attuma noticed a swimmer near his hidden base. Believing that the swimmer was a spy, his men quickly captured the swimmer who happened to be the Avenger known as the Wasp, who has managed to been a captive of Attuma a second time. As Attuma gloated over his goals of having the world being attacked by his tidal wave machine, he was unaware that Wasp was sending a message to the Avengers of her location and Attuma’s plans. Yet even a majority of the Avengers proved to be unsuccessful against Attuma and his forces because of how he used the underwater environment as an advantage. But even his men despised Attuma’s victory over the Avengers when he fought the whole team at an unfair advantage, resulting with Attuma releasing the Avengers with the members having their own respirators. Even though Attuma managed to handle his own against the Avengers and the sudden arrival of Hawkeye and Quicksilver, his plans were foiled when his tidal wave machine and a majority of his equipment was destroyed. Leaving Attuma and his men fleeing from the scene to rethink their goals.

Another War Against Atlantis

Even after his foiled attempts against the surface world and it’s heroes, Attuma was still determind to achieve his original goal of taking over Atlantis. Managing to rebuild an army, Attuma made his attack on Atlantis once again that led itself into another fight between Namor and Attuma himself. Even an ever dedicated Attuma still failed to overtake Atlantis nor defeat Namor, thus forcing Attuma and his defeated army being forced into retreating. But luck would strike Attuma when him and his men suddenly encountered an alien robot servant that laid dormant after accidentally being dropped from an alien spaceship. Even though Attuma at first attacked the motionless robot, he discovered that it was indestructible and that it could be functioned into following commands, something that Attuma managed to do when setting the robot onto Atlantis. Even though Attuma was successful on having the robot proving to be a threat that was too great for Namor to face, the robots rampage found itself halted when Namor located the alien owners to help him shut off the robot.

But this setback found itself changed when Attuma encountered Byrrah after the robotic threat, an Atlantean prince who strongly believed that he was destined to claim the Atlantean throne. Offering both Krang and Attuma their share of power within Atlantis, much like Krang, Attuma held his own secret agenda of destroying Atlantis if Byrrah should fail his promise. Yet Byrrah did manage to overtake Namor’s throne after defeating him in combat and secretly using a hypnotizing machine to have the people within Atlantis under his control. With Attuma and Krang at his side, Attuma’s brief share of power ended when Lady Dorma destroyed Byrrahs machine after discovering it. With the Atlanteans restored, Attuma set his goals on destroying Atlantis when Byrrah lost his power over the Atlanteans. But this only resulted another defeat in the hands Namor who managed to rightfully reclaim his throne.

Another failed attempt to claim Atlantis for himself because of Namor, Attuma being able fulfill his prophecy was finding itself being nothing more than a mere misguided fable. But even a desperate Attuma still held hope of gaining the chance to strike when having scouts observe Atlantis and their ruler Namor, a chance that would finally come when Namor found himself dethroned and exiled by the very kingdom he protected. Taking the opportunity to strike against Atlantis, Attuma’s leadership found itself being challenged by one of his own, Gorgul, whom Attuma quickly silenced with a single punch. After him and his army easily overtaken Atlantis, Attuma found himself facing a captured Namor. Furious because of how Namor wasn’t killed on site, Namor faked his weakness so that he would be able to challenge Attuma in a single fight, something that Attuma couldn’t deny in front of his own army. Yet even Namor found the fight favoring Attuma because of his unique power armor that shocked Namor after each strike against Attuma. But Attuma found himself facing another defeat in the hands of Namor after Gorgul and Dorma found and destroyed the source of Attuma’s power armor.

Death by Sentry

Attuma is beheaded by the Sentry after attacking New York with his warrior Hordes. He is later revived by Doctor Doom in a vow to kill Namor.

Fear Itself

Attuma has become one of the Worthy and is transformed into Nerkkod, Breaker of Oceans after he comes into possession of one of the mystic hammers. Nerkkod wreaks havoc all over the oceans and his next target is New Atlantis. Namor comes into conflict with Nerkkod but he is simply overwhelmed and forced to retreat as New Atlantis falls under the mighty blow of Nerkkod’s mystic hammer. Nerkkod has Tiger Shark, Tyrak and Aradnea as his generals and he has them watch the prisoners of New Atlantis and turns his attention into destroying Canada. Nerkkod would terrorize Vancouver off the Pacific Coast with his army and come into conflict with Alpha Flight. Nerkkod begins to gain the upper hand when he sweeps most members of Alpha Flight inside a powerful whirlpool. Shaman goes into his psychopomp form and discovers that Attuma’s enhanced powers and abilities were given to him by the Serpent. Guardian grabs Nerkkod from behind and takes him to Cape Race, Newfoundland off the Atlantic Coast. Guardian overexerts himself with a powerful blasts and draws blood on Nerkkod but the payload was too much on his battlesuit and he collapses. Nerkkod’s forces would retreat from Vancouver when they were without their leader.

Powers & Abilities

Attuma possess the physical benefits of his Atlantean nature. However, many of Attuma’s natural physical Atlantean attributes are considerably much more developed than those possessed by the vast majority of his species due to Attuma being a mutant as well.

Attuma is capable of breathing and surviving both on land and underwater indefinitely, where as most Atlanteans are only able to survive out of the water for about 10 minutes without artificial aid, certain chemicals, or mechanical devices. However Attuma, like Namor will still need occasional physical contact with water in order to survive on land and can lift about 60 tons as long as he’s under water or at least slightly wet on land and his stamina is enough to stay at peak capacity for about 24 hours on end before the build up of fatigue toxins in his bloodstream begins to impair him and affect his overall capabilities. Attuma also posses superhuman speed, reflexes, and agility and can swim at a speed much faster than normal Atlanteans that rivals Namor’s at hundreds of miles per hour. Attuma’s body is much more resistant to all forms of physical injury than that of the bodily tissues of a normal human being or even normal Atlanteans and is tough enough to withstand high caliber bullets, falls from a great height of over several stories, and powerful energy attacks while sustaining little to no pain or physical injury as well as also withstanding powerful impact forces and blunt force trauma from direct physical blows from superhumans as well as from extreme pressures and extreme temperatures such as the extreme cold and pressure of being deep underwater to where normal humans or even normal Atlanteans would not be capable of survival from being submerged that deep underwater and although it’s Attuma’s weakness, he can also withstand extreme heat better than normal humans.

Attuma also has superhumanly acute senses where his sense of sight, hearing, and smell like all Atlanteans are at a level that are greater than that of what normal humans are capable as Attuma’s senses like all Atlanteans are specifically adapted to living in the ocean. Attuma’s eye are capable of seeing objects with much better clarity at much greater distances than that of what normal humans are capable and are specially developed to be more sensitive to the green portion of the spectrum enabling him to see in the murky depths of areas of near total darkness such as being at the bottom of the ocean floor allowing Attuma to see clearly in the murky depths of the ocean giving him night vision.

Attuma like all Atlanteans has a longer lifespan where the average Atlantean lifespan being about 150 years of age.

Attuma is a skilled and experienced Atlantean warrior, who was trained extensively in the use of many different forms of combat and weapon use including swordsmanship. Attuma is also an expert hand-to-hand combatant, especially while fighting underwater, and having been fully trained, has also achieved mastery in the use of most form of the Atlantean based weapons.

Attuma is also a skilled military tactician in oceanic warfare who wears metal body armor and a helmet and uses a unique three-pronged, trident-shaped, iron sword that weighs about 50 pounds as his main weapon.

In Other Media

Television

• Attuma appears in The Marvel Super Heroes.
• Attuma appears in the 1967 Fantastic Four episode “Danger in the Depths,” voiced by Henry Corden.
• Attuma appears in the Avengers: United They Stand episode “To Rule Atlantis,” voiced by Philip Atkin.
• Attuma appears in the Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes episode “Atlantis Attacks,” voiced by Mark Acheson.
• Attuma appears as a recurring villain in Avengers Assemble, voiced by Dwight Schultz in the first four seasons, and by Dan Donohue in Avengers: Black Panther Quest. In the series, he is the ruler of Atlantis and a member of the Red Skull‘s Cabal. Schultz would also reprise his role in two episodes of Ultimate Spider-Man.

Film

• Attuma appears in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, portrayed by Alex Livinalli.

Video Games

• Attuma appears as a boss character in the 1997 Fantastic Four video game.
• Attuma appears as a boss character in Marvel Ultimate Alliance, voiced by Gregg Berger.
• Attuma appears in Marvel Avengers Academy.
• Attuma appears as an enemy in Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2.

Merchandise

• Attuma appeared in ToyBiz’s action figure line for Fantastic Four: The Animated Series.
• Bowen Designs created a bust of Attuma.
• Attuma appeared in the HeroClix figure game.
• Attuma appears in Funko’s Pop! line of bobbleheads.
• Attuma was featured in Hasbro’s Marvel Legends line as a Build-a-Figure release.