WORLDENGINE
Classification: World-altering quasi-mystical device
Users/Possessors: Price, Seth
First Appearance: Thor I#491 (October, 1995)
Powers/Abilities/Functions: The Worldengine was intertwined with the World-Ash tree Yggrdasil, and spun a wheel which affected Yggdrasil's own clock, making it believe that Ragnarok had occurred.
History: (Thor I#494 - BTS) - After learning that when Ragnarok occurred, a new race of humans would be born from
Yggdrasil, nurtured by the morning dew, the physicist Price, assisted by Seth, constructed the Worldengine on the site of a former internment camp for German superhumans from the 1940's. The Worldengine's purpose was to trick
Yggdrasil into beliving that Ragnarok had already occurred. To operate the machine, Price created clones from DNA he had obtained of Thor and the Enchantress'.
(Thor I#491) - The effects of the Worldengine upon Yggdrasil caused Thor to weaken, and slowly die, because he could not be alive by the end of Ragnarok. Because Thor was taking too long to die, Price sent warriors to kill him, but Thor defeated them, and followed one back to the Worldengine. Before he could react, the warrior clubbed Thor over the head.
(Thor I#492 - BTS) - The effects of the Worldengine also caused Beta Ray Bill to weaken, and start to die. Thor was protected from death by the magic of the Enchantress, which required him to remain near to her to remain alive.
(Cosmic Powers Unlimited#5 (fb) - BTS) - To save Beta Ray Bill's life, the Silver Surfer combined his power with Odin to remove the enchantments which bonded him to Thor, so that
Yggdrasil would no longer recognize him as an analogue to Thor.
(Thor I#494)- Thor and the Enchantress located the Worldengine again and confronted Price, who happily related the entire story of how he had built the Worldengine. Noting that there was nothing either Asgardian could do to stop the Worldengine, Price had them watch as the new race of humanity was born. However, because Ragnarok had not actually occurred, the Earth's atmosphere lacked the ashes of humanity which the new creatures required to live on, and they died almost immediately. The Worldengine then realized its mistake and began to force a true Ragnarok upon the Earth. Thor was able to halt the Worldengine's wheel, and struggling against it, forced the Worldengine to halt, stripping himself of his own godly heritage in the process.
(Journey Into Mystery I#511 (fb)) - Odin decided to take advantage of the Worldengine to forego the effects of Ragnarok, causing
Yggdrasil to transform all Asgardians into humans, with no memory of their having been gods. Odin had intended for Thor to reawaken their true identities, but had not forseen Thor's disappearance while battling Onslaught.
(Journey Into Mystery I#505)- The Wrecker sensed the magic of Yggdrasil from his crowbar, and came upon the Worldengine beneath New York. Seth then attacked him, and beat him unconscious to protect the Worldengine's secrets.
(Journey Into Mystery I#506-507) - The "Lost Gods", former Asgardians, were led to the Worldengine by the Enchantress, and found that Seth had sent his agents the Men in Black to dismantle the Worldengine so that the spells cast by Odin could not be undone.
Comments: Created by Warren Ellis and Mike Deodata Jr.
The Enchantress very seldom participated in public appearances as a villain, so Price would have had few opportunities to obtain her DNA. Possibly he obtained it behind-the-scenes of Avengers I#16?
The Worldengine has an entry in Marvel Legacy: The 1990s Handbook.
by
CLARIFICATIONS: Requiring powerful servants to operate the Worldengine, Price created clones from the DNA of Thor and the Enchantress. These clones appeared to be almost mindless, and single-minded in their care for the Worldengine. When the new race of humanity perished, and the Worldengine realized Ragnarok had not occurred, the clones turned on Price and murdered him. They were presumably slain by the Worldengine.
--Thor I#491, 494 The new race of humans which were to exist following Ragnarok came from embryo sacs that hung from the branches of
Yggdrasil, and were nourished by the morning dew. After Yggdrasil believed Thor to be dead, the sacs opened, and the new lifeforms emerged. However, they died almost immediately because had Ragnarok truly occurred, the Earth's atmosphere would contain the ashes of the old race of humanity. Without these ashes, the new humans had no food and perished.
--Thor I#494 Images taken from: Appearances:
First Posted: 04/04/2004 Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
The Worldengine should not be confused with:
Thor I#491, page 21, panel 4
Thor I#494, page 12, panel 2
Thor I#494, page 15, panel 1
Thor I#491 (October, 1995) - Warren Ellis (writer), Mike Deodato Jr. (artist), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Thor I#494 (January, 1996) - Warren Ellis (writer), Mike Deodato Jr. (artist), Ralph Macchio (editor)
Journey into Mystery I#505-506 (January-February, 1997) - Tom DeFalco (writer), Deodato Studios (artists), Mark Gruenwald (#505) & Terry Kavanagh (editors)
Journey into Mystery I#507 (March, 1997) - Tom DeFalco (writer), Mark Campos (pencils), Bobbie Chase (editor)
Last updated: 07/15/2004
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