Aliases : David Reid, Retro
Base of Operations : Mobile
Tag : magog
Important Plots : Ragnarök
Journal(s) : newtomorrowman
Status : Played

Powers and Abilities : Once a normal human being, Magog is now a metahuman comparable to Superman in power and endurance. He is capable of lifting hundreds of thousands of tons and his punches have enough force to bring down buildings. He is also endowed with superhuman durability; enough to withstand being at the center of an atomic blast and still survive. Magog’s stamina is far beyond that of a normal human being’s as well, though it is not quite Kryptonian in longevity. For all intents and purposes, it might as well be – Magog has run for entire days at a time without stopping or even feeling significant fatigue.

Magog is also capable of generating and projecting plasma energy. Though he can project this energy without aids, he prefers to channel it through his lance. The limits of Magog’s energy projection are unknown – at present he has demonstrated the ability to project concentrated offensive bursts from either of his hands, as well as more focused beams or blasts of energy emitted from his lance. Magog can control the strength of these blasts – he has demonstrated a range of power from simple dizzying bursts to blasts strong enough to obliterate flesh from bone. Magog's energy blasts are powerful enough to match Alan Scott's green flame and can pierce through even superhuman defenses, such as Green Lantern constructs.

Weaknesses : Like most that rely on weapons, Magog’s most glaring weakness is also his greatest strength – in his case, the lance weapon he uses to project his plasma blasts. Disarmed of it, his blasts become significantly less focused and dangerous – while still potentially lethal to individuals of normal human durability, they become much less hazardous to heroes already endowed with some measure of defense. Magog also suffers from a distinct lack of mobility - unlike supers such as Flash and Superman himself, Reid has no super speed, nor any type of flight. He is not capable of leaping to cross great distances, nor does he use teleportation - in other words, he is definitely limited in maneuverability, and faster foes could certainly take advantage of this.

Magog also has psychological vulnerabilities. Having spent the past eight years in a twisted world where Superman and the son of Lex Luthor rule the world with an iron fist, he is very suspicious of Superman, and by extension those allied with him. His past experiences with villains have given him a very black-and-white view of morality, and he is not likely to forgive or work with fence-riding evildoers, such as Riddler or Mirror Master. He has a ‘shoot first and ask questions later’ mentality that can be much more hindrance than boon.

History : Great-grandson of famous president Franklin D. Roosevelt, David Reid has a proud lineage of U.S. military service. As a boy, he dreamed of becoming a hero, and as a teenager he got his chance when the JLA held a 'Join the JLA For A Day' contest. Using the alias Retro, Reid entered the contest and won, but was shortly after abducted by the villain Prometheus, who intended to take his place and infiltrate the Watchtower. Using the Cosmic Key, Prometheus transported Reid to an alternate-universe Earth, fifty years into the future of the current Earth.

In this alternate Earth, the forces of justice had been destroyed, and the world answered to the sons of Superman and Lex Luthor. Joining a group of rebels led by Black Adam, Reid became a capable soldier. Reid manifested latent metahuman abilities after being stabbed with a mystical weapon by that world's Hawkman, gaining the ability to generate plasma energy. Ted Kord built a device that allowed him to channel and focus that energy into powerful blasts. This was not enough to save him after an encounter with Superman's heir left him almost dead, beaten savagely and barely clinging to life.

Shortly after this encounter, that world's Black Adam was killed in battle with the heirs of Superman and Luthor, and as Black Adam died, Reid was reborn, infused with energy by an unseen power christening him 'Magog' and replacing his ruined limbs with replacements of gleaming gold. His power was increased as well, allowing Reid to fight the son of Superman to a standstill.

Despite this power boost Magog was unable to kill Superman, and grew embittered by multiple inconclusive battles. Approached by a mysterious figure who offered to return him to his original world and thus prevent this future from happening, Magog accepted the offer and returned to his own time. He has resolved to kill Superman in order to stop the dark future he experienced from coming to pass.

Other Sources :

• Retro at the DC Database Project
• Magog at the DC Database Project
• Magog at Wikipedia
  

Divergences : Mixes and matches the various incarnations of Magog and throws in a bit of my take for good measure. This Magog has the same childhood of the current David Reid version, but divergences from canon as a teenager. Merges the character of David Reid with the Retro character from New Year's Evil - Prometheus #1.

Disclaimer - unless otherwise noted, all characters are property of DC Comics, used here only for roleplaying purposes.