Baphomet (Son of Satan foe)

BAPHOMET

Real Name: Baphomet

Identity/Class: Demon

Occupation: Agent of Satan (see below)

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Satan/Marduk Kurios and his legions

Enemies: Possessor (Raphael Zoran), Son of Satan (Daimon Hellstrom/Hellstorm), Salomé (maybe)

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Goat-Boy (ok, not really)

Base of Operations: Hell, Satan's realm

First Appearance: Marvel Spotlight I#15 (May, 1974)

Powers: Superhuman strength and durability (greater in Hell, weaker on Earth, possibly Class 10). He is able to project fireballs (real or hellfire?). He, himself, is immune to hellfire. He also possesses some skill with a longsword.

History: Baphomet is a demon of some history, although he certainly is much younger than the group known as the Elder Gods. He is worshipped by some as an aspect of Satan, and has served under Satan. He is symbolized by the inverted star in the demonic/satanic pentagram. He has commented on past conflicts with Daimon Hellstrom/Hellstorm, but no further information is known about those.

(Marvel Spotlight I#15) - On Daimon Hellstrom's birthday, February 2, Candlemas in the Satanic Calender, Hellstrom went to investiage a satanic cult, which turned out to be a trap designed by Hellstrom's father, Satan. One of the cultists she his cloak to reveal himself as Baphomet, and the others transformed into a horde of demons. Hellstrom fled the trap and led Baphomet to the top of the St. Louis Arch. After a brief struggle, Hellstrom incinerated a few of the demons, which surprised Baphomet, who thought them immune to Hellstrom's power, as well. This caused Baphomet a moment of uncertainty, which allowed Hellstrom to get the drop on him, and blow out the arch beneath his feet. Baphomet fell to his death, or that of his physical form, which caused his spirit to be cast back to Hell.

(Son of Satan#2-3) - The Possessor, an enemy of the Son of Satan, attempted to gain access to Hell via the portal under Fire Lake. The Son of Satan followed his trail and ran into Baphomet and his legions who were guarding the portal. After an inital conflict, the two joined forces against the Possessor, although they were unable to stop him from accessing the portal.

(Dr. Strange III#73-74) - When the demon-sorceress Salomé searched the pocket realm of the Forge Canal for the hiding Dr. Strange. She encountered an object known as the Enigma Box, which she probed to determine its worth. From the box came forth a giant stone form of Baphomet, which questioned Salomé and delayed her quest. When her patience reached its end, she blew the stone form to pieces and went about her way. The pieces grabbed her and attempted to stop her, but she unleashed her powerful magic and vaporized them.

(Doc Samson II#2 - BTS) - Baphomet was invoked for power by Jack Holyoak.

Comments: Created by Steve Gerber and Jim Mooney.

There was some hoo-hah back in the Marvel Spotlight about Witch's pentagrams and Satan's pentagrams, which are inverted versions of each other. Hellstrom's was initially pictured "wrong" (Witch's instead of Satanic), but it changed on his birthday before his meeting with Baphomet, and it symbolized the merging of his human side and his darksoul. There's an image in one of the letter pages showing which is which, but I don't care enough to go look for it. Maybe later.

Supplementary info courtesy of Omar Karindu: Baphomet's stone form refers to the historical source of his name - supposedly, the Knights Templars worshipped a stone idol called Baphomet, and called on it for power, wisdom, and wealth. Such "devil-worship"was the excuse used by Pope Clement V and King Phillip IV of France to disband the order, which had grown wealthy and politically powerful enough to be either attractive or threatening to Phillip. Most historians agree that the charge was trumped-up, but flimsy conspiracy theories abound surrounding how powerful and extensive the Templars had grown. No boxes or anything, but it seems similar enough to be the source of that Forge Canal weirdness

Clarifications: Satan

Appearances:
Marvel Spotlight I#15 (May, 1974) - Steve Gerber (writer), Jim Mooney (artist), Roy Thomas (editor)
Son of Satan#2-3 (February-April, 1976) - John Warner (writer), Sonny Trinidad (artist), Marv Wolfman (editor)
Dr. Strange III#73 (January, 1995) - David Quinn (writer), Peter Gross (artist), Lee Sullivan (inks), Evan Skolnick (editor)
Dr. Strange III#74 (February, 1995) - David Quinn (writer), Steve Yeowell (artist), Evan Skolnick (editor)
Doc Samson II#2 (April, 2006) - Paul Di Filipo (writer), Fabrizio Fiorentino (artist), Mark Paniccia (editor)

Last updated: 08/16/12

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