MOGUL of the MYSTIC MOUNTAIN

Real Name: Mogul

Identity/Class: Extradimensional (Asgard) warrior/magic-user

Occupation: Tyrant

Group Membership: Ruler of Zanadu

Affiliations: Abu Dakir, Demon-Riders, Jinni Devil, Mutaurus, Ogur the One-Eyed, Sulibeg;
    also commanded an elite guard of warriors

Enemies: Alibar, Fandral, Hermod, Hogun, Saguta, Sif, Thor Odinson, Volstagg

Known Relatives: Shezada (sister)

Aliases: Mystic Mogul, Warlock Supreme, Prince of Darkness

Base of Operations: Zanadu (the Mystic Mountain), within the Forbidden Land, the border of the lands of Gunderheim, Hindi, and Skornheim, on the periphery of the landmass of Asgard

First Appearance: Thor I#137/2 (February, 1967)

Powers/Abilities: Mogul had a variety of magical powers, including teleportation, matter rearrangement, and illusion casting. He apparently created the Demon-Riders.

He wielded an enchanted sword, and used a mystic sky-craft for transportation. He could view distant events with enchanted crystals. He attempted to use a potion containing the deadly Spotted Plague.

Within his arsenal, he had the Enchanted Rod of Wondrous Wizard Power, along with other unidentified magical items.

Mogul controlled a number of powerful agents, including Demon-Riders, Jinni Devil, Mutaurus, and later Ogur the One-Eyed. His elite guard of warriors wielded conventional swords.

Height: 6' 9"
Weight: 660 lbs.
Eyes: Hazel
Hair: Black

History:
(Thor I#137/2 (fb) - BTS) - The past of Mogul is largely unrevealed, but he became the ruler of Zanadu, a city within the hidden Mystic Mountain (actually a giant crystal stalactite hanging from a massive cavern beneath the barren Forbidden Land), near the kingdom of Asgard. With his exotic enchantments, technologies, and servants, he attacked and enslaved neighboring kingdoms.

   Long ago, Mogul conquered the homeland of Hogun the Grim. Thousands perished rather than surrender, and many more died under his tyranny, as Mogul slayed Hogun's kinsmen, laid waste to his land, and captured his people's battle standard. Mogul cowed the survivors, and kept them oppressed by occasionally mystically transferring Zanadu from its actual location in Mystic Mountain to the interior of a mountain looming over Hogun's homeland. Although Hogun himself escaped, alongside his father and brothers, he and his relatives dedicated their lives seeking to locate Mogul's home, the Mystic Mountain, and recover the battle standard of their people, but to no avail, for Hogun's father and all of his brothers perished seeking the Mountain.

(Thor I#137/2 (fb) - BTS) - Saguta fled the tyranny of Mogul, but was discovered, tortured, and left for dead, as a warning to others, that none could defy Mogul.

(Thor I#143/2 (fb) - BTS) - Mogul used the power of his sorcery to create the forty Demon-Riders.

(Thor I#137/2) - When Hogun--alongside Thor, Fandral, and Volstagg--encountered Saguta and learned that Mogul was responsible for his condition, he challenged Mogul to show himself. Mogul indeed appeared, taunting the others with his powers. When they rushed him, Mogul had his giant Jinni pick him up and carry him off, returning him to the Mystic Mountain.

(Thor I#138/2 - BTS) - Searching for Mogul, Thor and the Warriors Three encountered and defeated Ogur, proving their worth to his master, Wazir, who granted them the knowledge of the location of Zanadu.

(Thor I#139/2) - Mogul sent away his dancers and other entertainers, having grown weary of their revelry.  His adviser, Abu Dakir, informed him of the approach of Thor and the Warriors Three, so Mogul used his Enchanted Crystal to visualize the quartet of invaders; he then sent his Jinni Devil to destroy them.

(Thor I#140/2) - From Zanadu, Mogul watched the struggle, in which the Jinni fell before Thor and the Warriors Three.

(Thor I#141/2) - As the quartet stormed Zanadu, Mogul unleashed his elite squad of guardsmen against them. From within his castle, Mogul armored the captured thief Alibar to lead his Demon-Riders against the invaders; however, he knew that Alibar could never control the Demon-Riders, but rather just ride before them.

(Thor I#142/2) - Mogul unleashed firebolts against the remaining enslaved kinsmen of Hogun as they cheered the approach of their liberators. Still unsatisfied with their reaction, Mogul forced his servant Sulibeg to give him his potion, which contained the Spotted Plague. Mogul then took to his sky-craft and prepared to unleash the Plague on all those who defied him.

(Thor I#143/2) - Volstagg forced Mogul's sister, Shezada, to give him the Enchanted Rod of Wondrous Wizard Power.

(Thor I#144/2) - As Fandral, Hogun, Thor, Volstagg, and Alibar routed the Demon-Riders, Mogul plotted his supreme feat of total villainy and vengeance, intending to slay all who lived with the Spotted Plague.

(Thor I#145/2) - As Mogul prepared to unleash the Plague over Hogun's homeland, the heroes made their way to his throne room. Alibar conjured Mogul's image in the tyrant's Enchanted Crystal, and he then followed Hogun's directions, precisely mouthing a spell that unleashed a bolt of temporal force, seemingly defeating Mogul.

(Thor I#474 (fb) - BTS) - Although apparently destroyed by that bolt, Mogul was instead trapped within the Enchanted Rod, which was kept under guard by the new ruler of Zanadu, Alibar.

(Thor I#474 (fb)) - Shezada seduced Alibar, tricked him into sending away his guards, and then she freed Mogul from the Enchanted Rod. Mogul summoned his servants, retook control of Zanadu, and threw Alibar into the dungeon.

(Thor I#474 (fb)) - Hermod and Hogun arrived to try to rescue Alibar, but they were defeated and imprisoned as well. Hermod eventually escaped and headed back to Asgard by himself.

(Thor I#474 (fb)) - Mogul transported the Mystic Mountain to just outside the city of Asgard, and led his servants to attack; Hermod had returned just seconds before, giving scant warning to his allies. The gods of Asgard defeated Mogul's minions, and Thor confronted Mogul himself. Mogul nearly overpowered Thor, but the god of thunder rallied and managed to hold his own against Mogul's magic blade long enough for Sif, Alibar, and Hogun to force their way into Mogul's throne room. Alibar recited a spell that unleashed the power of the purloined Lamp of Alaeddin, which shrunk Mogul and Thor down and sent them into its interior. Thor--who was totally alien to the magic of the Lamp--was expelled from it, but Mogul was trapped within. Thor combined the power of his hammer with the spell of Alibar, such that the Lamp would be sealed forever--certainly no mere rubbing with cloth would ever break its seal.
    Within his prison, Mogul's rantings of revenge went unheard by his enemies.

(Nextwave: Agents of H.A.T.E.#11 - BTS) - The Beyond Corporation somehow created duplicates of Mogul and unleashed them on Nextwave when they invaded their State 51 base, but Nextwave made short work of them.

Comments: Created by Stan "The Man" Lee, Jack "King" Kirby and Vince Colletta.

    Thor I#474 describes Mogul's magic as coming from ancient Baghdad.

    I don't know how long ago the original encounter with Mogul was. It was one of the "Tales of Asgard" stories, and could well have been centuries before the modern era. The Marvel Chronology Project puts is before Thor's 19th Century adventures anyway. Mogul claimed that his flying craft gave rise to legends of the Flying Carpet, but obviously flying carpets do exist in the Marvel Universe (e.g. Arabian Knight). However, perhaps his "Flying Carpet" existed before any others, giving an indication of how old the story might be...not that I know when that was, though!

    The characters from the Mogul storyline were patterned to some degree after the folk tales of One Thousand and One Arabian Nights.

    The Mystic Mountain is named Zanadu, Zandu, and Xandu -- further information and clarifications available in that profile.

Mogul supposedly died during the Ragnarok in Thor II#85.

Mogul has an entry in Marvel Legacy: The 1960s Handbook.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Mogul has no known connections to:

Mogul's sword

An enchanted weapon with a wavy blade (somewhat resembling a kris) used by Mogul, on one occasion, he transformed it into a snake.

It proved sufficient to allow him to match the power of Thor's hammer Mjolnir blow-for-blow, and even come out on top.

(Comment: The listed appearances below reflect only when the sword was actually seen and/or used -- presumably, Mogol always carried it upon his person. Since it was able to withstand the force of Thor's hammer, perhaps Mogul's sword was also made of uru metal.)

--Thor I#137/2 (139/2, 140/2, 474

Mogul's enchanted crystals

Mogul possessed two of these crystals--a larger one, and a smaller--which allowed him to view distant events.

Mogul used the larger crystal to display the approach of Thor and the Warriors Three when they came riding to his domain, so he unleashed the Jinni Devil upon them; shortly afterward, he watched as the quartet defeated his giant minion.

When Mogul flew off to threaten Hogun's homeland, Alibar watched him with the smaller crystal and cast a spell of temporal force, which seemingly destroyed Mogul.

But some time later, Mogul returned, and he used the smaller crystal to observe the warriors of Asgard riding to oppose him. 

--Thor I#139/2 (140/2, 145/2, 474

Mogul's sky-craft

Resembling a mythical flying carpet, Mogul used it to transport him to Hogun's homeland, so that he could unleash the Spotted Plague upon Hogun's countrymen; but before he could do so, Alibar cast a spell of temporal force, which seemingly destroyed Mogul.

But some time later, Mogul returned, and he used his sky-craft to lead his forces against the warriors of Asgard. He and Thor had a final battle upon the sky-craft, until Mogul was trapped inside the Lamp of Alaeddin.

--Thor I#142/2 (144/2, 145/2, 474

Spotted Plague

A biological weapon that could infect a small nation with lethal disease, the Spotted Plague was mixed within an enchanted potion by Sulibeg; it was contained within a hand-held vial. 

Mogul flew upon his sky-craft to the homeland of Hogun, where he planned to unleash the deadly Plague upon the surviving inhabitants who defied him; but before he could open the bottle, Alibar cast a spell of temporal force that seemingly destroyed the tyrant.

The eventual fate of the Spotted Plague vial remains unrevealed.

--Thor I#142/2 (144/2, 145/2

Enchanted Rod of Wondrous Wizard Power

One of Mogul's items of mystic paraphernalia, it fired bolts of "wizard-force". It was stored in the Chamber of Doom beneath Mogul's throne room, where it was held in the hand of an idol; the chamber was guarded by Mutaurus.

When Shezada and Volstagg fell into the chamber, they were attacked by Mutaurus, so Shezada led Volstagg to the idol and gave him the Rod to use as defense -- Volstagg fired it at Mutaurus, and caused the minotaur-like creature to vanish. Volstagg later used the Rod to defeat the Demon-Riders, causing them to disappear as well. Then Alibar seemingly defeated Mogul with a spell of temporal force -- but Mogul had actually been trapped within the Rod, a situation he found most unseemly crowded, for his very atoms co-mingled with those of monsters and Demon-Riders.

Sometime afterward, Shezada murmured a spell which freed Mogul from the Rod; later still, as Balder and Sif stormed Mogul's throne room, Shezada fired an energy bolt from her hand that apparently destroyed the Enchanted Rod, so that it could never again be used to imprison Mogul.

--Thor I#143/2 (144/2, 145/2, 474 (fb), 474

Abu Dakir

Adviser to Mogul, he notified his master of the approach of Thor and the Warriors Three to the Mystic Mountain. He accompanied Mogul as he examined his Enchanted Crystal and summoned the Jinni Devil.

In the second battle against the Asgardians, he notified Mogul as the warriors of Asgard approached, predicting that the gods rode to their doom.

--Thor I#139/2 (474(fb)

Saguta

A former countryman of Hogun's, he escaped from Mogul's tyranny, but was captured, tortured, and left for dead by Mogul. He lived long enough to be found by Hogun and his allies, and to tell them who had killed him, sending them on a mission of vengeance.

--Thor I#137/2

Shezada

The sister of Mogul, she encountered Volstagg after he came to Zanadu. She used her feminine wiles to keep Volstagg off-guard as she sprung a trap door, sending him hurtling into the Chamber of Doom so that he would be slain by Mutaurus; however, Volstagg managed to grab Shezada and pull her down with him. Not wanting to be slain, Shezada directed Volstagg to the room where he would find the Enchanted Rod of Wondrous Wizard Power, with which he defeated Mutaurus.

After Mogul had been defeated and replaced by Alibar, Shezada seduced Alibar and released her imprisoned brother. She stood beside Mogul as he prepared to engage the Asgardians in battle, and then joined with Abu Dakir in taunting the imprisoned Hogun and Alibar. When Balder and Sif stormed the throne room, Shezada destroyed the Enchanted Rod, so that it could not be used to imprison Mogul again.

She was also referred to as Sherzada.

She could fire destructive energy blasts from her hand.

--(face veiled, not identified) Thor I#141/2, (face revealed, not identified) Thor I#143/2, (named), Thor I#474 (141/2, 143/2, 474(fb), 474(fb)

    Hey...if she can fire energy blasts powerful enough to destroy the Enchanted Rod, why didn't she just take out Volstagg that way? Maybe her power has a mass or volume limit? Or maybe she didn't have her powers in that first encounter, and Mogul granted them to her so that she might better be able to defend his fortress in his absence?

Sulibeg

A servant of Mogul, Sulibeg mixed the Spotted Plague potion for him. Less than appreciative, Mogul considered testing the potion on him, but instead just kicked Sulibeg aside when he pleaded for mercy.

--Thor I#142/2

images: (without ads)
Thor I#474, p8, pan4 (Main Image - Mogul, freed from Enchanted Rod)
Thor I#140/2, p4, pan4 (Headshot - Mogul, holding battle standard of Hogun's people)
Thor I#141/2, p5, pan2 (Headshot - Mogul, unmasked)
Nextwave: Agents of H.A.T.E.#11, p20, pan1 (defeated Mogul duplicate; Hidden Man duplicate (background))
Thor I#137/2, p3, pan2 (Mogul's sword)
Thor I#137/2, p4, pan1 (Mogul transforms his sword into a serpent)
Thor I#474, p21, pan3 (Mogul (left) matches his sword against Thor's hammer)
Thor I#139/2, p2, pan3 (larger enchanted crystal displays approaching Thor and Warriors Three; Abu Dakir, Mogul (foreground))
Thor I#145/2, p3, pan4 (smaller enchanted crystal; Hogun, Alibar, Fandral, Thor (background))
Thor I#142/2, p4, pan3 (Mogul on his sky-craft)
Thor I#145/2, p3, pan2 (Mogul on his sky-craft)
Thor I#142/2, p3, pan3 (Sulibeg's hand holding bottle containing Spotted Plague; Mogul (background))
Thor I#145/2, p3, pan3 (Mogul prepares to unleash Spotted Plague on Hogun's homeland)
Thor I#143/2, p3, pan4 (Shezada finds Rod in idol's hand; Mutaurus, Volstagg (background))
Thor I#143/2, p4, pan2 (Volstagg fires Rod at Mutaurus)
Thor I#144/2, p5, pan4 (Volstagg holding Rod)
Thor I#139/2, p2, pan1 (Abu Dakir warns Mogul about approach of Thor and Warriors Three)
Thor I#474, p7, pan1 (Abu Dakir)
Thor I#137/2, p1, pan1 (Saguta)
Thor I#137/2, p2, pan1 (Saguta; Hogun, Thor (background))
Thor I#143/2, p1, pan1 (Shezada; Volstagg (left))
Thor I#143/2, p2, pan1 (Shezada)
Thor I#142/2, p3, pan2 (Sulibeg)
Thor I#142/2, p4, pan1 (Sulibeg fleeing, as Mogul kicks at him)

Appearances:
Thor I#138-142 (March-July, 1967) - Stan Lee (writer/editor), Jack Kirby (pencils), Vince Colletta (inks)
Thor I#143 (August, 1967) - Stan Lee (writer/editor), Jack Kirby (pencils), Bill Everett (inks)
Thor I#144-145 (September-October, 1967) - Stan Lee (writer/editor), Jack Kirby (pencils), Vince Colletta (inks)
Thor I#474 (May, 1994) - Roy Thomas (writer), Sandu Florea (pencils), Bob Petrecca (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Nextwave: Agents of H.A.T.E.#11 (February, 2007) - Warren Ellis (writer), Stuart Immonen (penciler), Wade von Grawbadger (inker), Nick Lowe (editor) [Mogul duplicate]

First Posted: 02/16/2004
Last updated: 06/01/2022

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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