Ororo Munroe
Storm (Ororo Iqadi T’Challa, née Munroe) is a fictional character that appears in a number of comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Giant-Size X-Men #1 (May 1975), and was created by writer Len Wein and artist Dave Cockrum. Best known as a longtime member and sometimes leader of the X-Men, Storm is the reigning queen consort of Wakanda, a title held by marriage to King T’Challa, better known as the Black Panther.
Storm is an extremely powerful mutant and has demonstrated a plethora of abilities, most of which are facets of her power to control the weather. Storm possesses the psionic ability to control all forms of weather over vast areas. She has been able to control both Earthly and extraterrestrial ecosystems on several occasions. She can control the temperature of the environment, control all forms of precipitation, humidity and moisture (at a molecular level), generate lightning and other electromagnetic atmospheric phenomena, and has demonstrated excellent control over atmospheric pressure. She can incite all forms of meteorological tempests, such as tornadoes, thunderstorms, blizzards, and hurricanes, as well as mist. She can dissipate such weather to form clear skies as well.
Her precise control over the atmosphere allows her to create special weather effects. She can create precipitation at higher or lower altitudes than normal, make whirlwinds travel pointing lengthwise in any direction, channel ambient electromagnetism through her body to generate electric blasts, flash freeze objects and people, coalesce atmospheric pollutants into acid rain or toxic fog, and, along with her natural ability of flight, summon wind currents strong enough to support her weight to elevate herself to fly at high altitudes and speeds. Her control is so great that she can even manipulate the air in a person’s lungs. She can also control the pressure inside the human inner ear, an ability she uses to cause intense pain. She can also bend light using moisture in the air and her manipulation of mist and fog to appear partially transparent, and in later comics, nearly invisible.
Storm has also demonstrated the ability to control natural forces that include cosmic storms, solar wind, ocean currents, and the electromagnetic field. She has demonstrated the ability to separate water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen via electrolysis, allowing her to breathe underwater. While in outer space, she is able to affect and manipulate the interstellar and intergalactic mediums. Storm can alter her visual perceptions so as to see the universe in terms of energy patterns, detecting the flow of kinetic, thermal and electromagnetic energy behind weather phenomena and can bend this energy to her will.
Storm has shown to be sensitive to the dynamics of the natural world, and her psionic powers over weather are affected by her emotions. One consequence of this connection to nature is that she often suppresses extreme feelings to prevent her emotional state from resulting in violent weather. She has sensed a diseased and dying tree on the X-Mansion grounds, detected objects within various atmospheric mediums—including water, and sensed the incorrect motion of a hurricane in the Northern Hemisphere and the gravitational stress on the tides by the Moon and Sun as well as the distortion of a planet’s magnetosphere. Storm can view the Earth as weather patterns, and is able to precisely recognize her geographic position through interpretations of these patterns. Storm’s mutant abilities are limited by her willpower and the strength of her body. Sentinels identify Storm as a possible Omega-level mutant.
Storm’s ancestry supports the use of magic and witchcraft. Many of her ancestors were sorceresses and priestesses. Storm’s matrilineal powers have even been linked to the real-world Rain Queens of Balobedu, the region from which her Sorceress Supreme ancestor, Ayesha, hails. The Mystic Arcana series deals with Storm’s ancestor Ashake, who worships the Egyptian goddess Ma’at, also known as Oshtur — the mother of Agamotto. Oshtur appears to have strong favor for the bloodline of Ororo. For some unknown reason, since the dawn of Atlantis, this line of African women has been given distinguishing features of white hair, blue eyes, and powerful magic potential. Although Storm has not developed her magical potential, it has been hinted at. The Mystic Arcana series lists the characters with magic potential according to the Marvel Tarot deck. The Tarot asserts Storm as being “High Priestess,” the First Tarot’s choice one-third of the time. The other draws were the Scarlet Witch and Agatha Harkness. These three characters split the High Priestess card equally. A timeline-divergent Storm became the sorceress who taught sorcery to Magik and some of Storm’s alternate universe selves possess considerable magical talent. On a separate note, it has been stated that Storm’s spirit is so strong that she was able to host the consciousness of an avatar (or “manifestation body”) of Eternity, a feat which very few Marvel characters can accomplish without dying.
Storm is an expert thief, and a skilled, cunning and gifted hand-to-hand fighter, trained by Achmed el-Gibar, Professor X, Wolverine and T’Challa, the Black Panther. By using superior strategy, Storm has overcome physically stronger foes like Callisto and the Crimson Commando in hand-to-hand combat. Storm is an excellent marksman with handguns, and is proficient in the use of knives. Storm is also fluent in Russian, Arabic and Swahili. As part of her paraphernalia, Storm carries a set of lock-picks (with which she has an extraordinary ability at picking locks, in an early appearance she was able to pick a lock with her teeth while physically and mentally reduced to the level of an infant) and her ancestral ruby, which allows inter-dimensional transportation with the help of her lightning.
- Physical abilities and traits :
Storm’s physiology grants her a total immunity to extreme weather conditions and temperatures of heat and cold. Her body compensates for rapid decreases or increases in atmospheric pressure. She can see in near-complete darkness and has superb dexterity. Storm has been described as having one of the strongest wills among the X-Men, making her highly resistant to psychic attacks especially in tandem with electrical fields she creates around herself. Telepaths have found it difficult to track her down and probe her thoughts. Several of these traits are independent of her mutant status and are a result of her ancestry. Also, when utilizing her powers, Storm’s eyes turn solid white.
