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IKONN

Real Name: Ikonn

Identity/Class: Extradimensional being (Demon?/principality);
    active circa 1000 AD; modern era;
    magic-user / mystic principality

Occupation: Mystic Entity

Group Membership: Octessence

Affiliations: Bedlam (Olisa Kabaki), Doctor Strange (Stephen Strange), Ian Fate, Mister Rasputin, Monks of Ikonn, Mary Elizabeth;
    some association with Set; see also the Catalogue of Correspondences for Set from Ian McNee's reading of the First Tarot

Enemies: James Norcross;
    Octessence (Balthakk, Cyttorak, Farallah, Krakkan, Raggadorr, Valtorr, Watoomb) - adversaries

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: Lord of Illusions

Base of Operations: Extradimensional realm

First Appearance: (Named and partially seen) Strange Tales I#145 (May, 1966);
    (fully seen) Doctor Strange II#47 (June, 1981)

Powers/Abilities: Ikonn's primary power is to create and destroy illusions (see Images of Ikonn). Ikonn can control people by inserting a fragment of his own substance in them. He can fly or levitate with ease. The longer he maintains his presence on the Earthly plane, the greater his control above matter and reality, the nearer the disruption of the time-space continuum. He can create mystic force fields that prevent the access of astral forms.

head shotHistory: (Iron Man III#22 (fb)) - Approximately 1000 years ago, Ikonn and seven other mystic entities quarreled about who among them was the most powerful. They organized the Wager of the Octessence. Ikonn and each of the others created a totem in which a fraction of his power was contained. The first human being who had touched the Totem would have been transformed in a living incarnation of that power. The Totems were hidden in Temples in various parts of the World.

(Thor II#17 (fb) - BTS) - The Ivory Idol of Ikonn was buried in the Temple of Ikonn in the location corresponding to the present Kenya.

(Doctor Strange II#47 (fb)) - In the 19th century (see comments), a group of Tibetan Monks worshipped Ikonn in their Temple. They forged a Bell with which they evoked Ikonn.
    James Norcross stole the Bell of Ikonn, killing some adepts of the cult, Ikonn perceived the pain of his worshipper's death and sought vengeance against Norcross.

(Strange Tales I#145 - BTS) - Mister Rasputin gained a deep knowledge of the Illusions of Ikonn. Using the Forbidden Ritual of Ikonn created an illusion that mirrored Ikonn's form.

(Doctor Strange II#47) - Many years after Norcross' death, a student named Mary Elizabeth played the Bell of Ikonn, unwittingly granting the demon limited access to the Earth. Still not completely linked to the Earthly plane, Ikonn could introduce some particles of his own substance in the young people who attended the University of Norcross, starting his revenge against Norcross and his successors, and driving the University into chaos and rebellion. Doctor Strange and Clea stopped the students, after which Ikonn confronted the Mystic. The supernatural being easily broke the Chains of Krakkan and the probe of the Eye of Agamotto which Strange imprisoned him with. However, his link to the Earth-plane depended from the sound of the Bell. Strange neutralized the sound, and Ikonn had to go back to his dimension.

(Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme#48 - BTS) - As many other omnipotent beings, Ikonn was involved in the War of the Seven Spheres, a cyclic conflict between magic entities which would endure for 5000 years.

(Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme#49) - Ikonn was evocated by Dr. Strange and appeared as a multi-copied orange-skinned giant being. He wanted to enlist Strange as a weapon in the Pan-Cyclic conflict, appealing to the Protocols of Servitude. The interference of Cyttorak, Seraphim and other beings drove Strange to pronounce the Emancipation Incantation, refusing to serve Ikonn and any other being in their war.

(Over the Edge#2 (fb) - BTS / Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme#80 (fb) - BTS) - Doctor Strange fought in the 5,000 year war and regained the favors of Ikonn.

(Thor II#17 (fb) - BTS) - Olisa Kabaki touched the Ivory Idol of Ikonn in Kenia and became Bedlam, replying to the call of the Octessence.

Comments: Created by Stan Lee (writer);
    graphically created by Gene Colan (pencils) and Dan Green (inks).
Ikonn has an entry in the Appendix of the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #6.

Per David Sexton
Mystic beings (such as demons) can gain power in 3 ways...

  1. Entities can steal energy from an unwilling source by consuming the source entirely or by draining a portion of energy from the source. This exchange is one-way. The entity takes energy.
  2. Entities can be given spiritual energy unconditionally in the form of worship. Statements of worship come in the, "I believe..." format. Worshippers may also petition for favors, etc., but this form of prayer is an affirmation of their belief and of the entities existence. The worshippers expect nothing in return. This exchange is also one way. The entity is given energy.
  3. An entity may grant energy to a petitioner in answer to an invocation or prayer. The mere act of being asked gives the entity power and so to encourage this action, some spiritual beings will grant power to an individual who invokes their name in the proper way. The entity may chose to ignore the request. I would theorize that the spiritual energy or "mystic potential" present in the petitioner plays a part in how often requests are granted. The invocation or prayers of an individual who has large amounts of spiritual energy would provide the entity with a more enticing exchange and they would be more inclined to answer them.


    Thanks to Catherine Yronwode and her THE LESSER BOOK OF THE VISHANTI web-site, I was able to easily find many occasions in which Ikonn's name was used by Dr. Strange for his spells.
Invoking powerful Entities' names to bolster and strengthen defenses, attacks, purposes and so on is quite logical. It could happen not only when a long verbal formula is spelled, but also with simple exclamations like "By the Fangs of Faralloh!" or "...by the fetters of red Cytorakk...".
    An incomplete list of Ikonn's invocation is reported below. The invocations of the Images of Ikonn, the Illusions of Ikonn and Ikonn's Shifting Sands are reported in the relative spell profiles.

It's rather strange that Ikonn let Strange's invocations work after he was defeated by the Mystic.

    Ikonn specifically references Norcross' adventure as taking place "in the previous century as your race perceives time." Due to the sliding timescale, it IS theoretically possible that Ikonn was referring to the 20th century, rather than the 19th, but it seems much less likely.
--Thanks to John McDonagh for looking up this missing information.

Profile by Spidermay.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Ikonn has no known connections to

Dr. James Norcross

    James Norcross was a normal human. He was a University teacher and researcher.

    During one of his voyages in the 19th century, Norcross found the Tibetan temple where the Monks worshipped Ikonn.
He decided that it was a pagan cult unworthy to exist, so he stole the Bell of Ikonn, but in doing so he shot at the Monks, killing some of them.

    Norcross went back in the USA and founded the University of Norcross. He hid the Bell in a casket which remained closed until it was found many years after his death.

--Doctor Strange II#47 (47 (fb)

 

Mary Elizabeth

    Mary Elizabeth was a normal human. She lived in Norcross and was a student at Norcross University.

    Mary Elizabeth and one of her colleagues, Donald, were called by Mrs. Wellesley to witness the opening of James Norcross' casket. They found the Bell of Ikonn and, unfortunately, Mary Elizabeth played the Bell, triggering the spell for calling Ikonn on the Earth.
    The enchantment of the Bell put Mary Elizabeth in trance and obliged her to keep playing the Bell over and over.
    The Doctor Strange used a time-dilatation spell to slow Mary's playing and break Ikonn's grab on the Earth plane. When she stopped playing she fainted and Ikonn disappeared. 

--Doctor Strange II#47

 

Images: 
Doctor Strange II#47, p19, pan3 (Ikonn, demon form)
Doctor Strange II#47, p16, pan5 (Ikonn, head shot)
Doctor Strange II#47, p17, pan4 (Temple)
Doctor Strange III#49, p14, pan1 (Ikonn, human form)
Doctor Strange II#47, p18, pan1 (Dr. Norcross)
Doctor Strange II#47, p10, pan5 (Mary Elizabeth, the Bell of Ikonn, Donald and Mrs. Wllesley)

Appearances: 
Strange Tales I#145 (June, 1966) - Denny O'Neil (writer), Steve Ditko (artist), Stan Lee (editor)
Doctor Strange II#47 (June, 1981) - Roger Stern (writer), Gene Colan (pencils), Dan Green (inks), Jo Duffy (editor)
Doctor Strange Sorcerer Supreme#49 (December, 1992 - January, 1993) - Len Kaminski (write), Geof Isherwood (pencils), Bob Petrecca, Barnett (#48) & Don Hudson (inks), Mike Rockwitz (editor)
Iron Man III#22 (November, 1999) - Kurt Busiek & Roger Stern (writers), Sean Chen (pencils), Rob Hunter, Rags Morales, Nelson & Eric Cannon (inks), Bobbie Chase (editor)

First posted: 02/17/2007
Updated: 12/31/2009
Updated: 12/28/2018
Last updated: 05/04/2021

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
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Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com

Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!

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