STARHAMMER

Real Name: Vuk

Identity/Class: Extraterrestrial (D'Bari) technology user

Occupation: former vengeance seeker;
    former explorer

Group Membership: None

Affiliations: Hussar, Neutron, Warstar, Webwing, Xartan race;
    formerly Namor the Sub-Mariner

Enemies: Avengers (Captain America/Steve Rogers, Giant-Man/Hank Pym, Iron Man/Tony Stark, Thor/Odinson, Wasp/Janet Van Dyne), Jean Grey, Louise "Weezi" Mason, Taryn O'Connell, Phoenix (Phoenix Force), Razorback, Rocket Raccoon, She-Hulk (Jennifer Walters)

Known Relatives: Bzztl (offspring) see comments, unidentified wife & children

Aliases: "Medusa", Prime Matrix, the D'Bari

First Appearance: ("Medusa" D'Bari) Avengers I#4 (March, 1964); (Starhammer) Uncanny X-Men I#387 (December, 2000)

Base of Operations: Currently unknown;
    formerly Dandesh IV, in the outer regions of the Coal Sack nebula;
    formerly mobile in space aboard his starship;
    formerly a Greek isle;
    formerly the planet D'Bari IV, in another galaxy

Powers/Abilities: Vuk possesses the standard strength and abilities of a D'Bari including an extremely long lifespan (measuring it in centuries rather than years). He can reproduce sexually and asexually by budding, but the latter only every thousand years.

   Wearing the Starhammer magnified his strength, lifting at least 10 tons. The Starhammer armor had psionic shields and was immune to most physical attacks. It could presumably be used in outer space due to its sealed environment. Starhammer employed a variety of weapons, including an energy club and an incineration gun.

   His chief weapon was the Petrifactor, able to turn anything into stone for 100 hours. When set to overload, its power pack can affect everything within one hundred thousand miles. The energies of petrifaction and de-petrifaction are the same, and thus a second exposure will revert a previously petrified victim to normal.

Height: 5' 4"
Weight: 130 lbs.
Eyes: White (no visible iris)
Skin: Green

History:
(Avengers I#4 (fb)) - Centuries ago (@ 500 BC), the D'Bari Vuk's ship suffered engine failure and he crashed to Earth, embedding itself at the bottom of the Sea. Meaning no harm, he roamed Earth, hoping to find someone to help free his ship. However, he was mistaken as a monster by Roman? soldiers encountering him, and when they attacked, he was forced to use his Petrifactor on them. Due to his appearance and his weapon, he was believed to be the gorgon Medusa.

(Avengers I#4 (fb) - BTS/Saga of the Sub-Mariner#8) - In the modern era, Namor, fleeing after his battle with the Avengers (per Avengers I#3) stopped off at a looming island. Sighting some human figures, he went to investigate, and was shocked to discover that they were made of stone. The statues resembled human fishermen.
    Vuk caught Namor by surprise and blasted him, but the ray had an attenuated effect on Namor.  Namor made an alliance with Vuk against the Avengers, promising to free his ship if he would turn the Avengers into stone.

(Avengers I#4) - Disguised as a photographer, the D'Bari petrified the Avengers--Giant-Man (Pym), Iron Man (Stark), Thor, and the Wasp--as they returned to New York. The newly revived Captain America had lagged behind them and was thus spared. Joining forces with Rick Jones, Cap managed to identify the likely culprit by his weapon in an enlarged photograph, and they tracked down the D'Bari. Cap dodged his petrifaction blast and disarmed him, at which point the D'Bari surrendered and explained himself. Cap forced him to restore the Avengers to normal, after which they brought his ship to the surface of the Sea. As the D'Bari repaired his ship, Namor led an Atlantean attack on the Avengers. However, when the D'Bari took off, Namor and the Atlanteans mistook the lift off for a sea quake and fled.

(X-Men I#135 - BTS) - Vuk had not yet reached home when Phoenix, hungry for power, consumed the D'Bari sun, destroying D'Bari IV and all of its inhabitants including Vuk's family.

(Sensational She-Hulk I#46 (fb) - BTS) - Vuk happened upon a group of Xartans (the Carbon Copy Men), they all adopted the D'Bari form, pretending to be a D'Bari outpost (on Dandesh IV, in the outer regions of the Coal Sack nebula). They did this hoping to elude the wrath of the Skrulls, who sought vengeance on them for..."infringin' on their franchise."

(Sensational She-Hulk I#46 (fb) - BTS) - Rocket Raccon landed on the outpost, and after he saw one of the "D'Bari" relax his form for a second, the D'Bari and the Xartans knew they had to stop him.

(Sensational She-Hulk I#43 (fb) - BTS/ 45(fb)) - Razorback and Taryn "Down the Highway" O'Connell followed a distress signal to the planet of the "D'Bari," arriving just in time to see Rocket Raccoon get petrified. Razorback and Taryn tried to rescue Rocket Raccoon, but they were captured.

(Sensational She-Hulk I#44 - BTS) - She-Hulk allowed herself to be captured by the "D'Bari," and she was brought to the same cell as Razorback and Taryn, as intended.

(Sensational She-Hulk I#45) - As She-Hulk and Razorback compared notes, Razorback prepared to state that the "D'Bari" were imposters, but the real D'Bari turned him to stone before he could get the words out. Vuk intended to intimidate the She-Hulk and Taryn into explaining why they were there, but the She-Hulk tried to use an Ovoid mind-transfer technique to contact her ally Weezi Mason aboard an orbiting Skrull ship. This backfired, swapping instead the build and powers of the two women.

(Sensational She-Hulk I#46) - Weezi and the Skrulls--who recognized the Xartans' ruse--beamed down to Dandesh IV, where Weezi freed the She-Hulk and her allies. Unwilling to see "his people" (the Xartans, his replacement family) destroyed again, the D'Bari set the power pack on his Petrifactor to overload. She-Hulk and her allies successfully escaped the petrifaction effect, returning after it had subsided to recover Razorback and Rocket Raccoon. The Skrulls, the Xartans, and Vuk were all petrified.

(Wolverine II#136/OHotMU 2006#3 (fb) - BTS) - Vuk came to the Collector's "Prisonworld". He sought companionshp and budded off a son named Bzztl.

(Wolverine II#136) - Vuk and Bzztl were being held on Prisonworld when Wolverine arrived. Vuk recognized Wolverine as being one of the X-Men, and in his rage over Phoenix destroying their planet, attacked him. Wolverine easily threw him to the side. Wolverine then explained that he was there to help them break out, and Vuk accepted an invitation to join him.

(Wolverine II#137) - The cell Vuk and Bzztl were residing in was inspected by some of the Collector's agents while searching for Wolverine.

(Wolverine II#138 - BTS) - Vuk went missing during Galactus's consumption of Prisonworld and was not among the escapees.

(Uncanny X-Men I#387) - During the events of Maximum Security, the D'Bari, now wearing powerful armor and calling himself Starhammer, joined a few expatriate Imperial Guardsmen (and Borderers) in ambushing the X-Men. Starhammer confronted Phoenix (Jean Grey), recognizing her as being different than the Phoenix Force which had destroyed his planet, but blaming her nonetheless as she had summoned the Phoenix Force and her personality had shaped its form as Phoenix. Resisting her power, Starhammer tossed Jean to the ground and prepared to kill her. However, in desperation, she managed to pierce his shields, reach his mind, and deceive him into thinking he had succeeded in killing her. His vengeance seemingly achieved, he dropped to the ground, overwhelmed by the shock.
    The X-Men planned to remove and destroy the Starhammer armor.

(Maximum Security#3 - BTS?) - The D'Bari may have been one of the many aliens on Earth released when the heroes of Earth defeated Ronan and the Ru'ul.

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

Who is Starhammer?

•     When I originally wrote this profile, I had forgotten about the Wolverine and Nova issues. It seemed quite clear that as there was only one surviving D'Bari, and that as both Starhammer and the "Medusa" D'Bari were referred to as the last D'Bari that they were one and the same. In addition, both referenced losing their wife and children to Phoenix. After posting the profile there was an uproar (well, two of the Masters of the Obscure questioned it anyway). The profile was supplemented with info from Wolverine and it progressed towards chaotic from. In an effort to be complete and unbiased, I reformatted this to be a group entry, and to cover all of their appearance.
• The D'Bari in the She-Hulk issues was definitely the same one who encountered the Avengers, unless he was just lying pass himself off as that being, but he did recall the events with the Avengers. Similarly, it could have been a Xartan posing as the "Medusa" D'Bari, and he might have given them his petrifactor (or had it stolen or reproduced).
• The "Medusa" D'Bari did not necessarily die at the end of Sensational She-Hulk I#46. As the D'Bari had previously stated that the petrifaction effect only lasted 100 Earth hours, one might guess that the same was true of the effect caused by its overload. So, while the Xartans and the "Medusa" D'Bari may well have been returned to normal, the Skrulls's star-ships had shattered doing to their stone forms being unable to handle their acceleration as they attempted to flee. They might have returned to normal, too, but would have soon died in the vacuum of space.
• My guess would be that Tas'wzta, the D'Bari seen as part of the Nova Corps, was not the "Medusa" D'Bari. However, if it was, then he most likely would have died in that issue...unless he's got some weirdo healing ability, or the D'Bari can bud off parts of themselves to reform, etc. All speculative.
• Similarly, my guess would be that the D'Bari in the Wolverine issues was not the same, mostly due to the existence of his son. However, Madison Carter speculated that due to the D'Bari's plant-like appearance, they may not necessarily require the same things needed to produce an offspring as mammals do. Meaning he could have reproduced asexually after his planet's destruction (and even after the She-Hulk issues).
• Starhammer could be a new D'Bari altogether.
• He could be the "Medusa" D'Bari (my opinion).
• He could be the father or the son from the Wolverine issues.
• He's probably not Tas'wzta.
• Based on the above, there were as few as one (more likely two), and as many as five KNOWN to survive the destruction of D'Bari IV.
• Anyone want to contact Chris Claremont and see what his intent was? I'll alter the profile accordingly based on his response.

In OHotMU 2006#3 it was revealed that Starhammer was indeed the same character as the "Medusa" D'Bari and the D'Bari father seen in Wolverine II#136-138. He also got a name: Vuk. His son from the Wolverine issues was given the name Bzztl. Further information was added to the profile from the OHotMU entry like the D'Bari's reproduction process and the inclusion of the Classic X-Men story.

As originally written, Avengers I#4 made it appear that there never was a Medusa of Greek myth, but rather the D'Bari inspired the legend.

It's pretty hard to tell which appearances in the Sensational She-Hulk contain the actual "Medusa" D'Bari, so I'm listing him as BTS unless it's clearly him, either by speech or by carrying the Petrifactor.

    Pretty much all of the aliens active on Earth during Maximum Security were inmates from interstellar prisons banished there by the Intergalactic Council. The specifics of how Vuk ended up in prison and how he got the armor are both unknown. It is also possible that he came to Earth during that time coincidentally.

    Some other guy made his first modern appearance in Avengers I#4...can't seem to remember who that was...

Thanks to Madison Carter for reminding me about the Wolverine appearances.

Starhammer received his own profile in X-Men: Phoenix Force Handbook (September, 2010). The main image by Gus Vasquez was mostly based on Uncanny X-Men I#387, p17, pan1 (see to the right).

This profile was split from the D'Bari profile again and a bit updated by Markus Raymond.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:

The "Medusa" D'Bari was mistaken for:

• Medusa - gorgon, slain by old one of the Argonauts. turn others to stone with looks, serpents for hair.
      --Tales to Astonish I#32, Marvel Preview#10/2
  
  but was otherwise unconnected to:
   
• MEDUSA (Medusalith Amaquelin Boltagon) - Inhuman Royal Family--Fantastic Four I#36
• Medusa - Menagerie of Myth--Marvel Team-Up II#2
• MEDUSA MOONRIDER of Earth-Amalgam - Medusa + Mark Moonrider, Un-People --Challengers of the Fantastic#1
• Medusae (Lhasa) - friendly alien race, aided Seeker 3000 against the Hkkkt--Seeker 3000#2
• GORGONS - other aliens who were mistaken for the Medusa of myth--Journey Into Mystery I#96
• MEDUSA WEB of Earth-NU (Babel, Backfire, Electrique, Gatto di Sangue, Imprint, Potiphar, Relampago, Skybreaker, Thunderhead, Toocheetsca, Troublemaker)
      - international mercenary organization
      --Psi-Force(nu)#17,18

Bzztl

(Wolverine II#136/OHotMU 2006#3 - BTS) - Vuk budded off Bzztl on the Collector's "Prisonworld".

(Wolverine II#136) - Bzztl and his father Vuk were being held on Prisonworld when Wolverine arrived.

(Wolverine II#137) - Bzztl and Vuk's cell was inspected by some of the Collector's agents while searching for Wolverine.

(Wolverine II#138) - Bzttl, Wolverine, and many others managed to escape.

--Wolverine II#136 (Wolverine II#136-138

The Petrifactor was able to turn anything into stone for 100 hours. The energies of petrifaction and de-petrification are the same, and thus A second exposure to the ray will revert a previously petrified victim to normal. Detonating the Petrifactor by overloading its power pack can affect everything within one hundred thousand miles. (Avengers I#4 (fb) ) - Around 500 BC Vuk was forced to use the Petrifactor against attacking soldiers. Due to his appearance and his weapon, he was believed to be the gorgon Medusa. (Avengers I#4 (fb) - BTS) - In the modern era Vuk caught Namor by surprise and blasted him, but the ray had an attenuated effect on Namor. Namor made an alliance with Vuk against the Avengers, promising to free his ship if he would turn the Avengers into stone. (Avengers I#4) - Disguised as a photographer, Vuk used the Petrifactor to petrify the Avengers--Giant-Man (Pym), Iron Man (Stark), Thor, and the Wasp--as they returned to New York. The newly revived Captain America had lagged behind them and was thus spared. Joining forces with Rick Jones, Cap managed to identify the likely culprit by his weapon in an enlarged photograph, and they tracked down the D'Bari. Cap dodged his petrifaction blast and disarmed him, at which point the D'Bari surrendered and explained himself. Cap forced him to restore the Avengers to normal by using the Petrifactor a second time on them. (Sensational She-Hulk I#43 (fb) - BTS/45 (fb) ) - Razorback and Taryn "Down the Highway" O'Connell followed a distress signal to the planet of the "D'Bari," arriving just in time to see Rocket Raccoon get petrified. (Sensational She-Hulk I#45) - As She-Hulk and Razorback compared notes, Razorback prepared to state that the "D'Bari" were imposters, but the real D'Bari turned him to stone before he could get the words out. (Sensational She-Hulk I#46) - Unwilling to see "his people" (the Xartans, his replacement family) destroyed again, the D'Bari set the power pack on his Petrifactor to overload. She-Hulk and her allies successfully escaped the petrification effect, returning after it had subsided to recover Razorback and Rocket Raccoon. The Skrulls, the Xartans, and Vuk were all petrified. --Avengers I#4 (Avengers I#4 (fb), Avengers I#4, [Sensational She-Hulk I#43 (fb)], 45 (fb), 45-46

Vuk's starship (Avengers I#4 (fb)) - Centuries ago (@ 500 BC), the D'Bari' Vuk's ship suffered engine failure and crashed to Earth, embedding itself at the bottom of the Sea. (Avengers I#4) - In the modern era the Avengers helped bring Vuk's ship back to the surface of the Sea. As the D'Bari repaired his ship, Namor led an Atlantean attack on the Avengers. However, when the D'Bari took off, Namor and the Atlanteans mistook the lift off for a sea quake and fled. --Avengers I#4 (Avengers I#4 (fb), Avengers I#4

images: (without ads)
X-Men: Phoenix Force Handbook, Starhammer profile (main)
Avengers I#4, p14, pan5 ("Medusa")
Avengers I#4, p14, pan1 (Vuk)
Wolverine II#136, p20, pan5 (father)
Uncanny X-Men I#387, p21, panel 2 (Starhammer unmasked)
Sensational She-Hulk I#45, p12, pan4 (Petrifactor)
Avengers I#4, p23, pan1 (Vuk's starship)
Wolverine II#136, p12, pan4 (Bzztl)

Appearances:
Avengers I#4 (March, 1964) - Stan Lee (writer/editor), Jack Kirby (pencils), George Roussos (inks)
Sensational She-Hulk I#43-46 (September-December, 1992) - John Byrne (writer/artist), Renee Witterstaetter (editor)
Wolverine II#136 (March, 1999) - Erik Larsen & Eric Stephenson (writer), Jeff Matsuda (pencils), Jonathan Sibal (inks), Mark Powers (editor)
Wolverine II#137 (April, 1999) - Erik Larsen (writer), Jeff Matsuda (pencils), Jonathan Sibal (inks), Mark Powers (editor)
Wolverine II#138 (May, 1999) - Erik Larsen (writer), Jeff Matsuda, Steve Scott & Yancey Labat (pencils), Jonathan Sibal, Scott Elmer & Scott Koblish (inks), Mark Powers (editor)
Uncanny X-Men I#387 (December, 2000) - Chris Claremont (writer), Salvador Larroca (pencils), Tim Townsend (inks), Mark Powers (editor)

First Posted: 05/04/2004
Last updated: 01/09/2019

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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