Magneto

Current Events

After the Schism, Magneto remained on Utopia alongside Cyclops. He became part of Cyclops' new "Extinction Team" to help prove that the X-Men are "Earth's Mightiest Heroes" while also defending mutant rights. Magneto is also faced with a ghost from his past in the form of his clone, Joseph. Disguised as Magneto, Joseph kills a group of anti-mutant protesters and Magneto must clear his name.

Origin

Magneto's childhood

The man that would become known as "Magneto" was born Max Eisenhardt in Germany during the 1920's to a middle class Jewish family. His father, Jakob Eisenhardt, was a World War I veteran and a proud German. The family struggled against discrimination and hardship during the Nazi's rise to power, the Nuremberg laws, and Kristallnacht. In the early 1930's, the family fled to Poland, where they were captured during the Nazi invasion and sent to the Warsaw Ghetto. They managed to escape the ghetto, but were captured again. Max's mother, father, and sister were executed, but Max survived (potentially thanks to an early manifestation of his powers) and was sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp. There, Max became a Sonderkommando, forced to dispose of gas chamber victims. While at the camp, Max was reunited with a girl he had fallen in love with during his school days named Magda. Max and and Magda escaped when Auschwitz was liberated and were soon married.

They moved to the Ukrainian city of Vinnytsia, where they started their new lives together. Max adopted the name "Magnus" and Magda gave birth to their daughter who they named Anya. Magnus worked as a carpenter to support the family and for a time they lived happily. One night Magnus was attacked and instinctively lashed out with his mutant powers of magnetism (which had never surfaced before due to a bout of scarlet fever as a child), killing the attackers. Later that evening, he returned home to find his house on fire, with Anya trapped inside. Magnus rushed inside to rescue her but he was too late.

Enraged at the death of his beloved daughter, he used his new powers to kill the surrounding mob that started the fire. Magda, terrified of her husband's strange abilities, fled to the forest and never saw her husband again. Magda made her way to Wundagore Mountain, where she gave birth to twins Pietro and Wanda (who would grew up to be Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, respectively). Magda later disappeared, presumed deceased. During the next few years Magnus had an identity forger named Greg Odekirk create him a new identity, reinventing himself as a gypsy named "Erik Magnus Lehnsherr".

It was while using this identity that he went to Israel to help at a psychiatric hospital. There, he met Professor Charles Xavier. The two became fast friends, playing chess and having intellectual debates about mutation and the future of mankind. When Baron Wolfgang Von Strucker attacked a young patient named Gabrielle Haller, Xavier and Magnus used their powers in order to save her. Following the battle, Charles and Magnus realized they had very differing ideologies. Magnus disappeared and the two friends would not meet again for many years. During the next few years, Magnus worked for the CIA hunting Nazis, but this association ended when they murdered a girl he was becoming close to. Magnus eventually resurfaced, now using the identity of the mutant supremacist "Magneto". He attacked Cape Citadel and was stopped by the original X-Men, a confrontation that would spark a decades long rivalry.

Creation

Magneto was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby in 1963. He made his first appearance in X-Men #1, becoming the very first foe of the iconic mutant team. Creator Stan Lee stated that he "did not think of Magneto as a bad guy. He was just trying to strike back at the people who were so bigoted and racist. He was trying to defend mutants, and because society was not treating them fairly, he decided to teach society a lesson. He was a danger of course, but I never thought of him as a villain." Lee also explained that he originally planned for Magneto to be Professor Xavier's brother rather than simply an old friend.

Character Evolution

The Master of Magnetism

In his initial appearances, Magneto was portrayed as a would-be tyrant who would often abuse his subjects (he physical abused his lackey Toad, while Scarlet Witch was psychologically tormented into obedience). Eventually, (as Marvel did with many of their long-lasting villains over the years) Magneto was given a more humanized portrayal as a Holocaust survivor who wanted to ensure that mutants would not suffer the same fate his family did for being born different.

Magneto has long been the face of mutant separatism, in opposition to Charles Xavier's ideal of coexistence with humanity. Believing that mutants are the next stage in human evolution, he sought to assert their dominance over the planet. This was Magneto's means of assuring the survival of his people in a world that hates and fears them for there very existence. Though not a hero, Magneto is charismatic, noble, and wise. His long and turbulent friendship with Charles Xavier has been a cornerstone for both men's lives, as a rivalry that has lasted decades.

Major Story Arcs

War on Humanity

After decades of lying low, Magneto burst into the public eye leading the team the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Demanding not merely equal rights, the Brotherhood sought supremacy for mutant-kind. Their vicious attacks against humans led them to attract the attention of Professor Xavier and his X-Men, who are often able to repel the group.

Reformation Period

Headmaster Magneto

During a particularly heated battle with the X-Men, Magneto wounds and nearly kills Kitty Pryde (then only fourteen). Stricken with the revelation that he’s become a horrific extremist, willing to murder even children to achieve his goals,Magneto renounces his terrorist ways. He seeks out his former wife Magda and learns the truth about Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver: that they are his children. While the pair accept that he’s their father, they reject Magneto's leadership for his abusive treatment of them over their years in the Brotherhood. Time would eventually heal their wounds, and they would come to a grudging acceptance of him. Magneto joins the X-Men after being persuaded to give human/mutant co-existence a chance by Professor Xavier. This comes at a time when Charles is badly injured in battle and Magneto takes over the reins of his school, teaching young mutants to control their powers and use them for the betterment of both humans and mutants.

Even Wolverine, previously extremely wary of the mutant leader, grew to accept him. Rogue began to feel romantically towards Magneto, despite their age difference. It appeared Magneto was truly a changed man. The Mutant Massacre spurred on by the Morlocks would reverse a great many of these feelings when one of Magneto's star pupils, Cypher, is killed by a human. Magneto goes so far as joining longtime longtime X-Men rivals the Hellfire Club and many of his human-hating ways resurface. Ultimately, Magneto would view this as a failure on his part and retire to Asteroid M to live in seclusion.

Mutant Separatism

While living in isolation, a group of mutants led by Fabian Cortez calling themselves the Acolytes approached Magneto asking for his leadership. Magneto decided that his best course of action would be to create a nation for mutants unto themselves and goes so far as declaring Asteroid M such a nation. The X-Men respond by assaulting the asteroid, with Cortez’ betrayal leading to Magneto’s ultimate defeat. Magneto retreats to his back-up space station Avalon. During the X-Men’s siege of Avalon, Magneto used his powers to rip the adamantium from Wolverine's skeleton. An angered Xavier lashed out, wiping Magneto's mind and leaving him in a catatonic state.

Xorn

Xorn

After believing Magneto gone for good, the newest teacher at the Xavier Institute, the enigmatic, masked Xorn, revealed himself as Magneto in disguise to Professor Xavier. "Magneto", along with several mutants he had been teaching, staged an attack on Manhattan. This included murdering five thousand humans in crematoriums, mirroring his Holocaust persecution.

The X-Men doubted his legitimacy as the real "Master of Magnetism", but his addiction to the power-enhacing drug “ Kick” allowed him to assault and kill Jean Grey by giving her a planetary-scale stroke. An enraged Wolverine decapitated the alleged Magneto, who was later revealed to be an imposter under the influence of Sublime.

House of M

House of Magnus

After Wanda devastatingly, but accidentally, disbanded the Avengers and was rendered unconscious, Magneto appeared and demanded to have his daughter remanded to his care. Magneto watched over his sleeping daughter, kept unconscious by Xavier. Pietro demands that Magneto save her. Magneto retorts that it’s out of his hands and there’s nothing he can do. On the one hand Wanda is indeed his flesh and blood, but on the other hand, she’s clearly had a mental breakdown. The combined forces of the X-Men and the New Avengers arrive on Magneto's doorstep. Before they can act, the world flashes white and when it returns it has been remade as a world where mutants are the dominant species and humanity is on the decline. Magneto is now ruler over the sovereign nation of Genosha, the dominant superpower in the world, and mutants hold almost all worldwide positions of power.

The world has been reversed: mutants now subjugate and legislate against humans, waiting for them to die out over the natural course of their existence. When Wolverine and a mysterious girl named Layla Miller begin restoring the memories of the heroes, they stage a daring coup against Magneto’s headquarters where Wanda is kept. The revelation comes out that it was actually Pietro, not Erik, who convinced Wanda to remake the world in this image. As the world crumbles around them, Wanda utters three simple words: No more mutants. When everything returns to normal, 99% of the world’s mutant population has been depowered.

Nation X

Magneto, like many other mutants, emigrated to Cyclops’ Utopia island. When he arrives, Xavier demands he leave, but Cyclops overrules him and allows Magneto to stay after the former tyrant praised Cyclops for finally uniting mutantkind. Xavier refuses to accept Magneto’s change of heart and telepathically attacks him, but Cyclops stops the attack and orders Xavier to leave. Magneto laments the future of their race, but Cyclops assures him that Hope Summers, the Mutant Messiah is alive and well. Magneto swears fealty to the X-Men and is made a senior member of Cyclops’ cabinet.

He’s still not fully accepted, however, as Cyclops reprimands him for taking what he believed to be too much initiative by constructing a giant support column to not only support Utopia, but house the Atlantean refugees, calling the structure New Atlantis. To finally atone for his past sins, he journeys to the top of a mountain to reflect and finally realizes what he can do: bring Kitty Pryde back to Earth. He saw the massive bullet she was trapped in when he was in the High Evolutionary’s space station and uses his abilities to bring her back, but he lapses into a coma.

Second Coming

Magneto comes out of his coma right after Hope was teleported into Utopia by a dying Nightcrawler. With the Nimrod Sentinels laying siege to Utopia, Magneto stopped Hank McCoy from leaving his patients as he stated that he had made certain promises to himself, which precluded him from laying in bed while his people were in danger of genocide. Magneto prepares for battle and manage to hold off a squad of Nimrods by attacking them with electrical blasts before finally dismembering the robots by pulling shards of iron from the core of Utopia through them. The wounded but victorious Magneto then gave a speech to the awed young mutants that surrounded him that it was their destiny to inherit the world.

Uncanny X-Force

Magneto receives a lead from Dr. Nemesis on one of his old Nazi tormentors. Erik reveals to Wolverine's X-Force that he is aware of their existence, and trades his silence for the murder of the Nazi officer. Wolverine takes the task on alone and completes it.

Schism

Facing the Hellfire Club

Magneto appears alongside Emma Frost, Colossus, Namor, and Iceman at the unveiling of a mutant museum in San Francisco under orders from Cyclops. The highly publicized event is attacked by the new Hellfire Club. Each of the X-Men present are taken down one by one through technology specifically designed to defeat each of them. Magneto is shot with a miniaturized neutron star. The Hellfire Club then attaches brain slugs to the X-Men to keep them unconscious. Idie, the only mutant left in the museum unscathed, kills the remaining Hellfire members to save everyone.

The Hellfire Club unleashes a giant Sentinel, charged with destroying Utopia. Cyclops and some of the younger mutants prepare to stand their ground, while Wolverine demands that the children run and save themselves. The Sentinel winds up being defeated. However, the X-Men are split between Cyclops and Wolverine. Magneto remains loyal to Cyclops and stays on Utopia.

Regenesis

Magneto is later assigned to Cyclops' new "Extinction Team", which also consists of Namor, Danger, Magik, Colossus, Storm, Hope, and Emma Frost. In a training exercise between the Extinction Team and Hope's Lights, Magneto is attacked by Zero and reacts by brutally by ripping him in half with his magnetic powers. Zero is able to pull himself back together (which Magneto knew he was capable of doing), but Magneto is harshly reprimanded by Hope and Cyclops for attacking so harshly during a training exercise.

Disappointments

For further information: Avengers Academy #22

After the apparent death of Jocasta, Hank Pym calls for Cyclops, Emma Frost and Magneto to aid him in his investigation. Upon their arrival to the West Coast Academy, Magneto agrees to assist so long as Quicksilver refrains from involving himself in any mutant affairs. He claims that Pietro coerced his sister into the events that led to her breakdown and cites his misuse of the Terrigen Mists and the war that was caused due to it. Magneto also says he sees through Pietro's excuse of a Skrull impersonator. Finesse attacks Magneto in Quicksilver's defense to which he restrains her. Quicksilver attacks his father to defend his protege and a small battle ignites between the Avengers Academy and the X-Men. Emma freezes everyone in place as they resolve their differences. Quicksilver agrees to consult with a mutual member of the X-Men on any mutant affairs, just not Magneto as Erik scans Jocasta's body. He discovers a significant amount of tachyons and antiparticles suggesting some sort of portal was used to attack her.

Not a Hero

Magneto and Joseph

An anti-mutant rally is torn apart and its members killed, apparently by Magneto. Iron Man and Captain America investigate the incident and call Cyclops and Magneto to answer some questions. Magneto claims innocence, though his DNA was located at the scene.

Iron Man begins to harshly accuse him as Magneto displays his powers and their inability to stop him. He leaves, assuring them he will find out who was responsible. Magneto asks Emma Frost to help tap into the magnetosphere to find who was capable of this sort of attack. Magneto discovers it was his clone: Joseph.

Erik sits in a bar in the Appalachian mountains and overhears a television news report from Christopher Bach, a politician in Chicago calling for Magneto to be brought to trial. He leaves and heads toward an abandoned steel mill nearby but is captured and brought inside before Joseph. Astra reveals she has revived him as Joseph questions Erik's current standing with the X-Men. Erik reminds Joseph that he is only a clone which sets him off. Joseph unleashes his cloned and deformed Brotherhood on Erik who manages to defeat them and impale Astra. He forces Astra to teleport them both to Utopia. Magneto heals his wounds and attempts to interrogate Astra. When he is unsuccessful he asks that the Cuckoos read her mind.

As Joseph tears apart Chicago it is revealed that Astra made a deal with Christopher Bach to clone Magneto and have him stage attacks to swing his political favor. Joseph tells Bach this was Astra's arrangement and he want's no part of it. Joseph proceeds to destroy Millenium Park as Magneto arrives and takes on Joseph. The two exchange devastating blows with full subway trains before Erik is left defeating Joseph with his bare fists. Magneto turns Joseph in to Cyclops as Christopher Bach is shown crushed by debris.

Avengers vs. X-Men

For More information: Avengers vs. X-Men

When Captain America arrives on Utopia to discuss Hope and the returning Phoenix Force, Magneto stands in the background along with the Extinction Team. Once Cyclops blasts Captain America, Magneto lifts Colossus into a magnetic fastball special and launches him into the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. Magneto then saves Emma Frost from Iron Man but Quicksilver jumps in to stop him. Magneto takes on Iron Man who is wearing a carbon nano fiber suit. Unable to control his suit, Magneto drops a tower of Utopia on Iron Man, crushing him. Tony comes through the rubble and fires 2 million neodymium high grade magnets to counter Erik's powers. Magneto blasts through them but Tony activates satellites around Jupiter and siphons the planets magnetic field unleashing it in a uni-beam and firing back at Erik. Erik destroys the satellites and creates his own suit of armor and begins to punch it out with Iron Man. During the fight he begins to realize that the Phoenix is most likely going to destroy them and winds up getting distracted and punched out by Iron Man. Magneto is left floating in space.

Personal Information

Physical Attributes

• Height: 6'2"
• Weight: 190 lbs.
• Eyes: Bluish-gray
• Hair: Silver (formerly black)
• Distinguishing Features: Magneto was devolved into an infant by Alpha the Ultimate Mutant, and regrown into a younger adult by Eric the Red; so, despite his much greater chronological age, he appears to be a man in his physical prime.

Status

• Identity: Publicly known
• Occupation: Adventurer, mutant rights activist; former would-be conqueror, sovereign ruler of Genosha, teacher of the New Mutants, headmaster of the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters, terrorist, secret agent, Nazi hunter, volunteer hospital orderly, carpenter
• Citizenship: German
• Place of Birth: Germany
• Education: Some public schooling, unspecified advanced training in genetic engineering and robotics
• Marital Status: Widower
• Known Relatives: Jakob and Edie Eisenhardt (parents, deceased), Erich Eisenhardt (uncle, deceased), Ruth Eisenhardt (sister, deceased), Magda Eisenhardt (wife, deceased), Anya Eisenhardt (daughter, deceased), Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch, daughter), Pietro Maximoff (Quicksilver, son), Zala Dane (Zaladane, alleged daughter, presumed deceased), Lorna Dane (Polaris, daughter), Vision (former son-in-law), Crystalia Amaquelin (Crystal, former daughter-in-law), Luna Maximoff (granddaughter), Thomas Shepard (Speed, grandson), William Kaplan (Wiccan, grandson), Joseph (clone)

Powers and Abilities

Powers

Magnetic Field Manipulation

Master of Magnetism

Magneto's mutant power gives him mastery over all forms of magnetism. He can perceive the magnetic forces of the Earth as well as the bio-electrical patterns of all living beings. He can draw on and use the magnetosphere of the planet, which extends far into space. Magneto can use his vast power to reshape even the most indestructible metals, including the adamantium in Wolverine's skeleton. He been shown controlling the most insignificant magnetic particles in the both atmosphere and in living beings, reversing their blood flow or ripping out any ferrous elements through their tissues. Magneto can also create fields of magnetism strong enough to manipulate non-ferrous items, though he may be using anti-gravity fields to do this. He has demonstrated the ability to lift thousands of tons with his magnetic powers, although the greater he exerts himself the greater the physical and mental stress. Magneto also has the ability to increase his physical attributes by directing his magnetic powers inward. He has been seeing increasing his physical strength, durability as well as speed and reaction time.

Magneto can create powerful magnetic force fields for personal protection, project blasts of electricity or magnetic energy, and generate powerful electromagnetic pulses. He can also assemble complicated machines within seconds through the use of his powers. Although Magneto's primary power is the control over magnetism, he can also manipulate any form of energy from the electromagnetic spectrum. This includes visible light, radio waves, ultraviolet light, gamma rays, and x-rays. It is more difficult for Magneto to manipulate other forms of energy, so he predominately only uses magnetism.

Abilities

Genius-level Intellect

Magneto is a genius with competence in various fields of advanced science, especially genetic mutation, particle physics, engineering, and robotics. His intellect has allowed him to create many advanced and complex machines, most of which are well beyond the scope contemporary science. He has engineered advanced robots, space stations, devices capable of nullifying mutant powers except for his own, devices that generate volcanoes and earthquakes, and devices that block telepathy. He can create artificial living beings (such as Alpha the Ultimate Mutant) and fully-grown adult clones, as well as mutate humans in order to give them superhuman powers.

Military Training

Magneto has some military training in hand-to-combat, and is capable of holding his own in a fight, but prefers the use of his powers in most combat situations. He is an able athlete, despite his advanced age, and possesses exceptional stamina.

Master Tactician and Strategist

Magneto is an excellent strategist, both in actual battles and games of chess, and has extensive combat experience. He has successfully held his own against entire groups of superhuman adversaries, such as the X-Men and the Avengers.

Multilingual

Magneto is a polyglot, fluent in English, German, Polish, Yiddish, French, Russian, Ukrainian, Hebrew, and Arabic. He has even managed to decipher the ancient language of a lost civilization.

Paraphernalia

Magneto's Armor

Magneto's Helmet

Magneto's helmet is designed to prevent telepathic intrusion or psionic attacks. This is accomplished via technology of Magneto's own design wired into the helmet itself. The helmet has become something of a symbol, an integral part of Magneto's persona. When Magneto was thought dead after the sentinel attack on Genosha, t-shirts adorned with the image of him wearing his helmet and featuring the slogan "Magneto Was Right" started being worn by disenfranchised mutant youth as a symbol of rebellion.

The costume that Magneto wears is actually a type of armor that he has created through the use of his magnetic powers. The costume is an amalgam of various lightweight, but highly durable, metallic alloys that further protects him from many forms of physical injury.

Alternate Realities

Age of Apocalypse (Earth-295)

Age of Apocalypse Magneto

In a world where Charles Xavier died before ever forming the X-Men, it was up to Magneto to create and led the team against the ruler of this desolate future, Apocalypse and his Horsemen. In the Age of Apocalypse Magneto found this world's X-Men after the death of his friend Charles Xavier, at the hands of Xavier's own son David who traveled back in time to kill Magneto hoping to fulfill his "father's greatest wish". In honor to his friend´s memory, Erik decided to fight Apocalypse and his twisted plans. Magneto and the X-Men fought against the forces of Apocalypse who, without the interference of Xavier was able to take over North America. In the first mission as X-Men in Cape Citadel, Magneto´s daughter Wanda was killed provoking his misery and anger. For years the X-Men opposed Apocalypse´s forces.

Holocaust, Mr. Sinister, Mikhail Rasputin and Abyss are the final Apocalypse's horsemen, and while Magneto's team was composed not only of X-Men but also of standard "evil" mutants from traditional time-lines, including mutants such as Sabretooth, other individuals who were "heroes" in Earth 616 serve Apocalypse in this timeline. In this time-line, Magneto was married to his former protege Rogue, and being able to touch due to his magnetic mastery over his own bio-aura, were able to have a son together who they named Charles, in honor of Xavier.

Magneto and Charles are later personally captured by Apocalypse himself, though they are rescued by Rogue and the other X-Men, including X-Man, who raid Apocalypse's citadel in a desperate final attempt to save all of reality from M'Kraan crystallization. In this final confrontation, Magneto uses his maximum magnetic power to destroy Apocalypse once and for all. When the world is about to end a shinny power stopped the nuclear bombs and saved all humanity. All people assumed that Magneto stopped the bombs and made him a global hero, nevertheless Magneto knows that he didn't stop the bombs.

A year later had passsed of Apocalypse´s defeat and Magneto had created the Bureau of Mutant Affairs in order to capture all former allies of Apocalypse, focusing on Sinister´s trace. It was revealed that Magneto knew that Jean Grey was the mutant who stopped the bombs but he keept the secret so he could create a new world based on confidence on mutants and humans alike. But later Sinister appeared with Jean Grey and a group mutants brainwashed named as Sinister Six, who revealed the truth about Magneto. In the confrontation many mutants died of both sides, incluiding Magneto´s son Pietro, but Magneto managed to free Jean from Sinister´s influence and finally killed the villain. Due to his false heroic acts Magneto get imprisoned. Some years later he is killed by Weapon X who was became the new Apocalypse.

For more information see: Age of Apocalypse

Magnus Reality (Earth-27)

Like is mainstream counterpart, Magneto was fighting against humanity. However, he eventually found peace when he married Rogue and had a son named Magnus. Magnus inherited his father's powers and was well on his way of becoming even more powerful that Magneto, until one day he disappeared. In truth, he was taken away from this reality by the Timebreakers and was placed in the new Exiles team. Magneto was sure that his son had just left home to start his own life until his burned corpse was sent back. Magneto was left with only a small note explaining what happened to his son.

Big Town (Earth-110)

Magneto lead the Brotherhood of Mutants who included Storm, Havok, The Scarlet Witch, Quicksliver and Wolverine. He worked along side many villains which included Doctor Doom, Ultron, Namor and the Hulk to attempt to kill Reed Richards but were thwarted by the combined powers of the Avengers, Fantastic Four and the X-Men. Magneto was ultimately killed by Mockingbird who was enraged by the death of Hawkeye.

Brother Mutant's Reality (Earth-127)

Magneto was a female in this reality and lead the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Along with her Brotherhood, she attempted to take over the world by making herself more powerful. In a attempt to fuse together each other's powers, Magneto was fused together with the Brotherhood members and they became the new entity known as Brother Mutant, who possessed their combined powers.

1602 (Earth-311)

Grand Inquisitor Enrique

Magneto was Enrique, Grand Inquisitor of the Catholic Church. He is charged with hunting down “Witchbreeds”, what the church termed mutants in this universe. What the church did not know was the Enrique, assisted by his children Petros and Wanda (though they were not aware he was their father), was smuggling mutants who could pass for human out of Europe while burning only those that could not, such as Angel, at the stake. When his secret activities were discovered by the church, he, along with Wanda and Petros, were forced to flee to the New World to the colony of mutants he had secreted out of Europe. After he assisted in helping return Steve Rogers to the proper time stream, he left Wanda and Petros in Carlos Javier's care with the instruction that Carlos was not to tell them he was their father. He then left, sailing north for the colony of his “Brotherhood”.

For more information see: 1602

Days of Future Past (Earth-811)

Magneto is confined in a wheelchair and is being held in one of the concentration camps by the Sentinels. When Franklin Richards was able to set free all mutants in the camp, Magneto stayed behind to stall the Sentinels long enough to escape. He was subsequently killed.

For more information see: Days of Future Past

Mutant X (Earth-1298)

Magneto is the leader of the X-Men which consists of himself, Polaris, Quicksilver, Nightcrawler, Rogue, and Mystique.

Ultimate (Earth-1610)

Character Evolution:

Earth-1610 Magneto

Ultimate Magneto's background differs greatly from his mainstream (616) counterpart. Here he was born Erik Lensherr. Erik killed his mother (his father's fate is unknown) when he found out that his mother was a project manager of the Weapon X program and had kept and tortured Wolverine, Erik freed Logan and then fought his way out. Magneto's mother had wanted to "cure" mutants, and her son. However, it has also been alluded to that he is from a very wealthy and well-connected family that he has parted ways with. His wife's name was Isabelle, and he is aware from the beginning of his familial relationship with Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. It is also noted that he verbally mistreats them, hinting that he regards them as a living reminder of having an inter-species relationship. This version of Magneto is significantly darker and more cynical than the mainstream version, regarding all humans with utter and unwavering disdain and likening them to "insects".

An arrogant fantasist who gradually sank deeper and deeper into his self-proclaimed role as Mutant Messiah, Eric Lensherr eventually reinvented himself as Magneto, the leader of the Brotherhood Of Mutants and a ruthless terrorist who is willing to kill hundreds in the name of mutant supremacy. On several occasions Magneto has attempted to implement unflinchingly genocidal plans on humanity. He commands a noticeably larger Brotherhood than his mainstream counterpart and has displayed enough power to defeat the Ultimates.

Additionally, he was the one to cripple Professor X. Before the end of their association, Xavier and Magneto shared a very intense intellectual friendship. Using his knowledge of technology and genetics, Magneto helped Xavier to create the Savage Land as a mutant utopia. He also created an artificial language called Epsilon-Omega, based on Esperanto and featuring its own script, for mutants to use in the Savage Land, as a rejection of human languages. They even have plays, poetry, and songs in this language.

Major Story Arc:

Ultimate Magneto originally recruits Wolverine to infiltrate the X-Men and kill Professor X. While with the X-Men, Wolverine joins them for an attack on the Brotherhood. Magneto appeals to them with his own ideals of mutant superiority. He dismisses the X-Men however Cyclops returns later after a fight with Professor X. Magneto asks Cyclops to address him as father when in front of Quicksilver. When the Sentinels attack all mutants in major cities, Magneto takes control of them and rewires them to hunt humans. Cyclops reveals to have been spying on the Brotherhood and calls the X-Men for help. Magneto is about to crush the President between two cars but is stopped in time by Professor X. Wolverine stabs him in the chest from behind and Quicksilver takes off his helmet. Professor X is able to take control of Erik's mind and turns him into a super magnet, crushing him in front of everyone.

Marvel Zombieverse (Earth-2149)

Zombieverse Magneto

When turning an asteroid away from the Earth, the Sentry had come in contact with a disease that turned normal people into flesh craving zombies. The majority of Earth's superheroes had become infected, and in turn ate virtually all of the human population. Magneto alone remained, and sought to protect the few remaining humans that also survived. When Mr. Fantastic from the Ultimate Universe came to the Zombie Universe Magneto takes him in, and then offers to stay behind when Reed left in order to destroy the device that linked the two worlds.

For more information see: Marvel Zombies

Earth X (Earth-9997)

Magneto is the ruler of Sentinel City, a city made out of mutant-hunting robot Sentinel in the Savage Land.

For more information see: Earth X

House of M (Earth-58163)

When the Scarlet Witch reforms reality she creates the House of M, a world where mutants rule under Magneto and humans are the oppressed minority.

For more information see: House of M

Other Media

Animation

Pryde of the X-Men

Magneto is the leader of the Brotherhood of Mutant Terrorists. He plans on stealing a power circuit from the X-Men and attempt to wipe out humanity. The cartoon opens with him already apprehended by the military, but Emma Frost breaks him out to resume the attack. Meanwhile, Kitty Pryde, a young teenager, is arriving at the Xavier Institute to learn about the strange powers plaguing her.

X-Men: Animated Series

Animated Magneto

Magneto is one of the primary antagonists through most of the series’ run. Though he is mostly villainous, he retains much of his tragic back-story and maintains his turbulent friendship with Charles Xavier.

X-Men Evolution

X-Men Evolution Magneto

Magneto again returns as the primary antagonist of the series, though he’s cast in a much more mysterious role for the first portion of the series.

Wolverine and the X-Men

Magneto controls the island nation of Genosha in this series, using it as a haven for any mutant who desires sanctuary from the persecution of humanity while plotting against the X-Men.

Iron Man: Armored Adventures

Iron Man: Armored Adventures Magneto

Magneto is seen targeting a mutant girl, Annie Claremont, in hopes of recruiting her to help him to wage war against the humans, he eventually crosses paths with Iron Man and War Machine.

Film

X-Men (2000)

Ian McKellen as Magneto

Magneto’s desire for mutant supremacy stems primarily from his time in a concentration camp in World War II. He brings together the Brotherhood of Mutants consisting of Mystique, Sabretooth, and Toad and plans to use a machine that turns people into mutants against a UN summit so that the world leaders will have to acknowledge the persecution that mutants endure.

X2: X-Men United (2003)

Magneto is left to rot in a plastic prison in which not one scrap of metal is permitted. He is periodically visited by an anti-mutant military extremist named William Stryker who uses a strange chemical to force Magneto to tell him about Xavier’s institute. Magneto is eventually able to free himself when Mystique concocts a plan to smuggle metal inside the bloodstreams of one of the security guards. On the loose, Magneto launches a counter-attack against Stryker using his insulated helmet to block out Stryker’s manipulation of Xavier’s mental powers.

X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

Magneto and Xavier are shown visiting Jean Grey when she’s very young, wanting to help her harness her powers before they become too volatile. Fast-forward to the present where Magneto is once again plotting against the X-Men and humanity at large for introducing a mutant “cure” into the world.

X-Men: First Class (2011)

Michael Fassbender as Magneto

In the prequel/reboot to the X-Men film trilogy, the origins of how Erik Lehnsherr becomes Magneto are explained. Erik meets a young mutant, Charles Xavier, and together they form the X-Men.

Video Games

• Magneto is the final boss of the NES game Marvel's X-Men. However, players could only access his level via a special code input at the level selection screen.

• Magneto was one of the main villains in X-Men: Madness in Murderworld .

• Magneto is the final boss of the X-Men arcade game. He kidnaps Professor X and Kitty Pryde during the first two stages, prompting the heroes to go on a rescue mission as well as welcoming them to die.

• Magneto is the final boss of the Sega Genesis game, X-Men . However, after defeating Mojo, players must softly press the reset button on the console to delete a computer virus emitted on Mojo's level before time runs out, in order to face him.

• Magneto appears in X-Men: Children of the Atom. He was the non-playable boss of the game whom the players must defeat at his space station Avalon.

• In X-Men 2: Clone Wars , Magneto served both as a boss and, for the first time in X-Men video game history, as a playable character. Upon defeating him in the third level aboard Asteroid M, Magneto joins the X-Men when he discovers that his entire crew had been assimilated by the alien Phalanx invasion.

• In Marvel Super Heroes and X-Men vs. Street Fighter he returns as a playable character, toned down from his appearance in Children of the Atom .

• In the Quake conversion X-Men: The Ravages of Apocalypse , the player played a cyborg created by and working for Magneto.

• In Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes, Magneto was a partner assist.

• Magneto is a character in Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes .

• Magneto appears as a boss in X2: Wolverine's Revenge voiced by Fred Tatasciore. He is shown as a prisoner of The Void (a mutant prison) until he is released by Sabretooth.

• Magneto is the main antagonist in X-Men Legends voiced by Tony Jay. Like the other characters in the game, he appears in his Ultimate costume, though his personality and his relationship with Xavier is more similar to his 616 incarnation.

• A cape-less and non-helmeted version of Magneto was a playable character in the game Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects

• In X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse , Magneto (voiced by Richard Green) was made the main playable character as part of the game's Brotherhood. He and his Brotherhood of Mutants sided with the X-Men when Apocalypse kidnapped Quicksilver when rescuing Professor X and fighting the forces of Apocalypse. He has special dialogue with Zealot.

• Magneto also appeared in X-Men: The Official Game voiced by Dwight Schultz. Magneto is only playable in the DS version of the game. In this game (which is set between the X2 and X-Men: The Last Stand films), Magneto teams up with the X-Men to battle the Sentinels, and also sends Sabretooth in the Master Mold to retrieve Jason Stryker to make him a member of his Brotherhood. His plan was foiled by Wolverine.

• Originally, Magneto made a brief appearance in a cut-scene in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance lying on the floor next to Professor X, both having been defeated by Doctor Doom. However, the new Xbox 360 downloadable content features him (with his classic costume, 80's costume, Ultimate costume, and Xorn as alternate costumes) as a playable character with Richard Green reprising his role. Magneto has special dialogue with Professor X and Fin Fang Foom.

• Magneto appears in the Wii, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation Portable versions of Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 . He and Quicksilver have become victims of The Fold and will fight the heroes within a Repeater Tower in Reykjavík, Iceland. After he and Quicksilver are defeated and cured, Magneto uses his magnetism to help the heroes get to the top of the Repeater Tower. He appears as downloadable content for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions. The DLC also includes an extra mission where the player fights Magneto.

• Magneto appears in the Marvel Super Hero Squad video game voiced by Tom Kane. The players fight him on Asteroid M.

• Magneto appears in the Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet video game voiced by Maurice LaMarche. Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver appear on Asteroid M in order to confront Magneto who mentions that the message they received is for them to contain the Space Infinity Stone which had been shattered following an attack by Doombots. When Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver reassemble it, Doctor Doom arrives and reveals that his attack on Magneto was just a ploy so that he could get the Space Infinity Gem. When Doctor Doom ends up defeated, he tricks Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch into swiping the Space Infinity Gem. Doctor Doom's attacks on Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch cause Magneto to use his magnetic abilities on Doctor Doom who reveals that he had placed Asteroid M on self-destruct. Magneto sends Doctor Doom flying where the Space Infinity Gem transports Doctor Doom to a cage. Magneto then gives his children the Space Infinity Stone. After Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver leave, Magneto claps off the self-destruct sequence.

• Magneto once again appears as a playable character in Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds voiced by Tom Kane. Alternate colors include Ultimate Magneto and Mutant X Magneto.

• Magneto has been confirmed to be in the game X-Men Destiny which allows players to take control of one of three character's fate. The game is set for release in fall of 2011.