HUNTSMAN

Real Name: Cephalus

Identity/Class: Uncertain. Magical warrior

Occupation: Hunter/tracker of Olympians for Zeus

Group Membership: Olympians

Affiliations: Arachne, Argus, Avengers (Ares, Captain Marvel (Noh-Varr), Hawkeye (Bullseye), Iron Patriot (Norman Osborn), Ms. Marvel (Karla Sofen), Sentry, Spider-Man (Mac Gargan), Wolverine (Daken) ), Eos, Eris, Delphyne Gorgon, Hera, Lamia, Mutates of Earth-6943, Pluto, Shadow-Hound, Typhon, utilized variety of mythological agents, including the Menoetius, Polyphemus, Scylla and Charibdis, and the Sirens;
former agent of Zeus;
former indirect pawn of Ares and Hippolyta

Enemies: Aegis (Trey Rollins), Athena, Avengers (Black Panther, Goliath (Clint Barton), Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Spider-Man (Parker), Spider-Woman (Drew), USAgent, Vision, Wasp (Pym), Wolverine (Logan/Howlett) ), Champions of Los Angeles (Angel, Black Widow, Ghost Rider/John Blaze, Iceman), Amadeus Cho, Hercules, Namor, Venus (Aphrodite)

Known Relatives: Procris (wife), Deioneus (father), Diomede (mother), Actor, Aenetus, Phylacus (brothers), Asterodia (sister), Aeolus (paternal grandfather), Enarete (paternal grandmother), Sisyphus (paternal uncle), Xuthus (maternal grandfather), Creusa (maternal grandmother)

Aliases: Huntsman of Zeus

Base of Operations: Mount Olympus

First Appearance: Ka-Zar Quarterly#1/2 (August, 1970)

Powers/Abilities: The Huntsman generates terror in the Olympians Gods, making them particularly vulnerable to him. All of his powers stem from his Power-Staff, which is directly powered by Zeus, himself. His abilities, and those of the staff, were initially completely dependent on the Huntsman maintaining contact with it. If it was knocked from his hands, he became completely powerless, and the staff had no more power than an ordinary wooden stick. In addition, the Huntsman’s powers are dependent on Zeus. If Zeus ceases to desire the Huntsman to accomplish his mission, his powers drop off sharply. If either of these situations occurs, anything summoned or created by the staff will return back to where it originated.

The Huntsman’s staff can project powerful bursts of energy, travel between dimensions (at least Earth and Olympus), generate convincing illusions, and summon (or create) creatures from Olympian mythology, or artificial duplicates of these creatures (see below). The Huntsman must speak some form of rhyme to summon these creatures.

The Staff drains the power of an Olympian on contact. In addition, the staff grants him superhuman strength and durability, presumably even to the Class 100 level if need be.

The Huntsman could also generate a flaming staff which allowed him to travel through the air on a trail of mystic flame. When thrown, it could temporarily disperse and paralyze all caught in its energy release. Again, Olympians were even more susceptible to this power than others.

Height: 6'1"
Weight: 285 lbs.
Eyes: Black
Hair: Brown

History: (Incredible Hercules#139 (fb) ) - In ancient Phocis the people knew Cephalus as the greatest hunter in the world. One morning the goddess of dawn Eos hit on him, but Cephalus stayed faithful to his wife Procris and rejected her advances. Eos nonetheless gave him a javelin made of light as a gift. When Procris heard Cephalus talking about a dawn in his sleep she was fearful that he had taken a lover and followed him during the hunt. When Cephalus heard rustling in the bushes he tossed his javelin and like always hit his target perfectly. When he saw that he had killed his wife Cephalus threw himself into the sea.

(Incredible Hercules#139 (fb) - BTS) - For his suicide Cephalus' face was twisted in Tartarus. Eventually Zeus took pity on him and raised Cephalus from Tartarus to turn him into his personal Huntsman.

(Ka-Zar Quarterly#1/2(fb) - BTS) - Huntsman hasn't been used in a long time by Zeus.

(Ka-Zar Quarterly#1/2(fb)) - Shortly after returning to Olympus following his first exile alongside the Avengers, Hercules again incurred the wrath of Zeus, and headed back to Earth. Enraged (and goaded by Ares), Zeus summonned the Huntsman to drag Hercules back to Earth

(Ka-Zar Quarterly#1/2) - Hercules, terrified by the Huntsman, encountered Goliath II and headed to Avengers Mansion to gain assistance. The Huntsman sent his Shadow-Hound to attack Hercules at the mansion, but Hercules managed to subdue it. The Huntsman then arrived and blasted the rest of the Avengers unconscious. Hercules flled from the Hutnsman, complaining that he was forced to flee against his will.

(Sub-Mariner I#29) - The Huntsman said that he had filled Hercules with too much fear, such that he could now sense his approach and escaped him. He summoned the Sirens to bring Namor under his control, whom he then sendt to overtake and occupy Hercules until he could smite him. This was effective, and after catching up with the two, the Huntsman summoned Polyphemus, Scylla, and Charybdis to subdue them (Namor had recovered his own will in struggle against Hercules). As Hercules and Namor began to overpower the three creatures, the Huntsman struck down Hercules from behind. Namor then knocked the staff from the Huntsman’s hands, causing the creatures and the Hutnsman’s powers to vanish. Zeus, however, intervened and summoned the Huntsman back to Olympus. Hercules and Zeus made their peace, and all was right again. Namor, his memory of the events erased by Zeus, snapped the now powerless staff of the Huntsman in half.

(Champions#2) - Ares, Hippolyta, and Pluto duped Zeus into agreeing to the marriages of Hercules to Hippolyta, and of Venus to Ares, in order to prevent an attack by a union of the lords of the death dimensions. When Hercules and Venus refused, Pluto coerced Zeus into summoning the Huntsman and sending him after them. Hercules had recently joined with a group of other heroes to form the Champions. They succeeded in initially fighting off the Huntsman (along with the Titan, Menoetius, whom he had summoned). However, the Huntsman then cast an illusion that made the Ghost Rider see the other Champions as Pluto and his allies, and he attacked and incapacitated them. When he saw what he had done, he was shocked and was easy prey for a blow from behind by the Huntsman. The Huntsman then took Hercules and Venus back to Mount Olympus.

(Champions3) - The Champions arrived in Olympus to stop the weddings. The Huntsman summoned an army of Pluto’s Mutates to battle them and warned Pluto of their arrival. Zeus heard this and questioned Pluto’s true motives. The Huntsman prepared to summon forth more allies, but got his head smacked against a stone wall by the Angel.

(Incredible Hercules#127) - Hera sent Huntsman after Athena's agent Aegis. Trying to escape Aegis jumped out a window and died when his breastplate's forcefield failed to protect him.

(Incredible Hercules#127 - BTS) - Huntsman took Aegis' corpse to the Excello Soap Company, a subsidiary of the Olympus Group.

(Incredible Hercules#127) - Aegis' brestplate led Athena, Hercules and Amadeus Cho to the Excello Soap Company where Hera was already waiting for them with Huntsman, Pluto, Typhon and Delphyne Gorgon. The fight between both factions was interrupted by the arrival of Iron Patriot (Norman Osborn) and his Avengers.

(Incredible Hercules#128) - Huntsman fought alongside Hera, Typhon, Delphyne and Pluto against Osborn's Avengers getting into a personal fight with Noh-Varr.

(Incredible Hercules#129) - Huntsman watched Hera tossed Hebe, Hercules' ex-wife, out a window. He was then ordered by Hera to stash away the Aegis breastplate.

(Incredible Hercules#138) - Huntsman was among Hera's legions that fought the Avengers at Olympus Group Tower.

(Incredible Hercules#139) - Huntsman concentrated on Wolverine, who tried to lure him into a trap. Though Cephalus missed Wolverine with his light javelin at first, the javelin returned to impale Wolverine.

(Incredible Hercules#141) - Huntsman next targeted Quicksilver, who ran away from Huntsman's javelin. Quicksilver ran past Huntsman and the javelin impaled Huntsman himself.

Comments: Created by Allyn Brodsky and Frank Springer.

The Huntsman seemed to show some direct allegiance to Pluto, but this was not elaborated upon.

There is no evidence one way or the other to determine whether the creatures summoned by the staff of the Huntsman are the genuine article or not. Some of these commented on the fact that they had been summoned (rather than created(?)). They may differ significantly from the stories of myth, but that’s artistic license for you.

Thanks to our resident Master of Mythology, William Uchtman, for clarifying/detailing the origins of mythological characters for me.
In addition, he comments (regarding the Huntsman): "something about him reminds me of Keres, an ancient god who predated the Titans. He sadisticly terrorized the spirits of the dead until ripped apart by Cerberus. I'm not saying this is who the Huntsman is supposed to be, but if I drew a depiction of him, it'd resemble the Huntsman."

Smite. What a great word.

In the All-New OHotMU Update#3 Huntsman received his own entry. In this entry it was suspected that he was the reincarnation of the famous Greek hunter Cephalus. It was finally revealed that he was Cephalus in Thor & Hercules: Encyclopaedia Mythologica. Laelaps' name was revealed in this entry as well.
--Markus Raymond

Clarifications: Huntsman should not be confused with:

• Huntsman, name for Weapon XII @ New X-Men I#129
• Huntsman, Kraven of Eurth @ Avataars: Covenant of the Shield#2
• any other hunter