Surtur (Earth-616)

Origin[]

The Fire Giant Surtur was native to the extra-dimensional plane of Muspelheim and was the mortal enemy of the Asgardian ruler Odin and his son Thor. Surtur and the Ice Giant Ymir were older, and therefore more powerful immortals than Odin and Thor, who were always hard pressed to defeat them. Surtur was imprisoned for a long time within the depths of the Earth.^[11][12]

First Aesir/Vanir War[]

In ancient times, as Odin intended to unite Aesir and Vanir into a single tribe, no matter the cost, Surtur proposed Vanir leader Freyr help against the Aesir, resulting in a years-long war between the two Gods kinds.^[13]

Ragnarok[]

Surtur was destined to be involved in Ragnarök in which Asgard would be destroyed and reborn in an endless cycle. He would cross the Bifrost and destroy Asgard with the Twilight Sword.^[6]

He was once freed by Loki and set against the Earth when Odin visited it to break the romance between Thor and Jane Foster. Thor used Odin's magic sword to send Surtur to outer space, where he was bound against a magnetic asteroid.^[14]

Spell of Fire and Ice[]

He was next summoned to Earth together with Ymir when the Spell of Fire and Ice was cast by the Sons of Satannish.^[15] While Ymir attacked Wakanda, Surtur wreaked havoc in Antarctica. Doctor Strange transported Ymir to the South Pole right in front of Surtur just as both were about to strike, their blows canceled each other out, causing both monsters to vanish in a massive explosion.^[16]

Invasion of Asgard[]

Surtur freed himself again and arrived through the mystical flame in Asgard. The Fire Giant then decided that he would destroy Asgard first, then Earth-616 then the entire universe, marking his arrival by setting the very sky ablaze. Surtur announced his impending arrival and began to shower Asgard with flames. When Loki realized Surtur's power, he fled; leaving Thor, Sif, Balder, and the Warriors Three to band together. While Thor and the Warriors Three rallied troops to battle Surtur, the Thunder God sent Balder and Sif on a mission to wake Odin.^[17] He led his legions of Fire Demons to Earth, to draw Asgard's armies away from their capital city. Surtur then crossed Bifrost and attempted to destroy the city once and for all. However, Odin, Thor and Loki made a last stand and eventually defeated Surtur - at the cost of Odin, who fell with his foe into a dimensional rift.^[7]

Beta Ray Bill[]

When a portal to Muspelheim opened close to the planet of Korbin, hordes of Fire Demons attacked it, forcing its inhabitants to create a warrior to fight back: Beta Ray Bill. The demons were too much for the hero and the Korbinites had to flee in a fleet of ships led by Skuttlebutt.^[18] This led Bill to meet Thor and gain a mystical hammer, Stormbreaker, to fight the demons.^[19] The two warriors fought the invading demons together.^[20]

Invasion of Midgard[]

The Casket of Ancient Winters, an Asgardian power object, unleashed blizzards everywhere on Earth, a prelude to the attack of the Fire Giant Surtur and his hordes. The Avengers battled the demons across Manhattan.^[21] He reforged the Twilight Sword to begin his plans of conquest.^[22] Malekith the Accursed used the Casket of Ancient Winters to free Surtur.^[23] Winter spread across the planet.^[24] Surtur began his invasion of Asgard.^[25] Thor tried to battle Surtur but was no match for the Fire Giant.^[26] Surtur was in Asgard to reclaim the Eternal Flame that Odin and his brothers stole at the beginning of time. Surtur and Odin hurled themselves at each other, sending shockwaves throughout the Nine Worlds. Surtur was surprised by Odin's power and called upon all the winters in an effort to stop Odin. Surtur used the cold to completely imprison Odin, as Surtur goes to the Eternal Flame and lights the sword Twilight.^[27] But nothing happened.

Loki revealed that it was him that hid the real flame and replaced it with an illusion. Loki and Surtur battled, with Loki leading a merry chase until Surtur discovered the real flame. Thor had revived as well, and father and sons faced off against Surtur. Surtur and Odin grappled to the last, falling into the chasm of Muspelheim, which sealed up behind them.^[28] Odin returned but wore power dampeners, hiding his presence from Surtur. Odin imparted all his power to Thor to fight the fire demon when he arrived.^[29] Thor battled Surtur across time and space.^[30]

Surtur Vs. Ymir[]

Ymir once again was released from his eternal prison.^[31] Surtur disguised himself as Odin in a plan to destroy Asgard, he told Heimdall that Ragnarok was upon them and Ymir must be stopped.^[32] The warriors went to fight Ymir, while Odin revealed his true visage to the Vizier.^[33] Odin transformed into Surtur, and fought Ymir.^[34] Surtur and Ymir were locked in combat. To defeat them, Thor retrieved the Twilight Sword from the Sea of Eternal Night. During the battle, Thor became trapped, and Eric Masterson made a fateful sacrifice. He bridged Thor and Mjolnir, and was re-merged with Thor. Thor lit the Twilight Sword in the Eternal Flame, causing Odin's control over Surtur to vanish. Surtur and Ymir fought over the Twilight Sword, and while they were distracted, Thor transported them both into the Sea of Eternal Night, where they will be frozen for "all time".^[35] They remained their for many years.^[36]

Return of Surtur[]

In Norway, a man named Sven found a medallion with connections to Surtur. During a ritual he stepped into a bonfire and was transformed into a fire demon, and told the others that their master, Surtur, had arrived.^[37] He took control of his village and burned most of it to the ground. Surtur arrived on Midgard with plans to cleanse the world with fire.^[38] He battled Thor and his allies across Norway.^[39] He was defeated by Odin who also fell in battle.^[40]

The Final Ragnarok[]

Loki created his Mjolnir and found it in the possession of the Dwarves. He took to Surtur who created multiple hammers like Mjolnir and even though they were not as powerful, there were more of them.^[41] Thor went to Surtur, and in exchange for him reforging Mjolnir, he would blaze a trail for Surtur and his army to raze Asgard to the ground and give the Asgardians a final, glorious battle. To prevent the cycle from starting over again, Thor went to the Three Norns and destroyed the Loom of the Fates, thus cutting off Those Who Sit Above in Shadow, seemingly destroying them. This also destroyed Yggdrasill and ended all the lives of those who dwelled in Asgard and all the other Nine Worlds, except Midgard.^[42]

Surtur apparently died once and for all during the final Ragnarok when Thor managed to break the cycle. He was trapped in an afterlife dimension fighting a continuous battle with Odin, who prevented Surtur from escaping and returning to Earth by sacrificing himself over and over.^[43] Odin told Thor that he chose to be there – as long as he fights the demon, the people of Asgard will be safe.^[44]

After the final Ragnarok, Beta Ray Bill briefly visited the ruins of Asgard, and saw Surtur's massive form falling from the sky, still clutching Twilight, although the sword was broken during Bill's battle with the demon Asteroth.^[45]

Everything Burns[]

When the Serpent was released by Skadi, the reborn Loki tried to find a way to stop him from destroying everything. He went to Limbo and made a deal with Surtur, promising to release him in Asgard in exchange for a splinter of his Twilight Sword. Loki used the Shadow to rewrite the Serpent's history, giving him a weakness. He then released Surtur in the Serpent's Dark Asgard, tricking him. After destroying Dark Asgard, Surtur returned home to Muspelheim.^[46]

Surtur made a deal with the unwitting Manchester Gods of Otherworld, the Fire Giant provided them with power directly from the fires of Muspelheim in exchange for a portion of their resources. He then sent his herald, Leah, to the Vanir, convincing the Steward of Vanaheim, Freyja's sister Gullveig to lead an uprising against Asgardia.^[47] When Surtur joined forces with the enemies of Asgardia and assaulted it and the other Realms, he planned to use the different cities of the Manchester Gods to form a network across all of the Nine Realms, and reverse the process in which the Manchester Gods fed energy to Surtur's original city, releasing all stored energy back out, burning everything in the Nine Realms.^[48]

When Loki traveled to Muspelheim to investigate, he was confronted by Surtur's right hand, the vengeful Leah. Loki tricked her and convinced her that he was working against the Nine Realms. Together, they decided to work against Surtur. First, in order to gain the Fire Giant's trust, Loki betrayed Thor and let him plunge in the fires of Muspelheim.^[49] Loki then proceeded to steal the Twilight Sword's shadow^[2] and travel back in time to fix the events that caused Leah to feel vengeful towards him. Right after Surtur ordered Leah to divert the spell that would bring Loki back to the present and transport him to his feet, the effects of the time-travel made effect, and the now appeased Leah saved the young trickster from Surtur.^[50]

Thor soon brought the fight to Surtur, using legions of Hel. While this army fought Surtur, Loki traveled to Otherworld and convinced the leader of the Manchester Gods, Master Wilson, to destroy the cities of the Manchester Gods, thwarting Surtur's plan. Using the Twilight Sword's shadow taken by Loki and combining it with Mjolnir, Thor was able to destroy the Twilight Sword and slay Surtur. The residual energy from Surtur's body was redirected by Odin into the empty Asgardian space, preventing it from causing any important damage.^[48] Following his death, Surtur's place as ruler of Muspelheim was passed to his daughter, Sindr.^[4]

Argent Star[]

After his defeat at the hands of the Asgardians, Surtur resurrected in the deepest level of Muspelheim^[51] alongside a repaired Twilight Sword.^[1] Being unable to escape that part of the realm, Surtur was deemed unworthy of wield Twilight and left waiting for a warrior to prove his worthiness to the sword.^[51] He showed himself to Beta Ray Bill and Skuttlebutt's humanoid form when they tried to steal the Twilight Sword, preventing them from doing it.^[52] After fighting hand to hand with Bill, mortally wounding Pip the Troll, Surtur decided to end the fight. However, he was shot by Skurge with the help of Skuttlebutt, allowing Bill to reclaim the Twilight Sword and behead Surtur with it.^[51]

• Fire Giant Physiology: Surtur was depicted as an immense and malevolent being whose possesses the power of a thousand blazing suns.^[14] Surtur is an enormous Fire Giant, standing over 1,000 ft. in height. He is more of a force of nature than a physical foe.^[40] He is possibly a being composed of "living" flame so strong that he can affect the Earth's temperature from Asgard^[7] and can manipulate cosmic energy for various effects. Surtur's powers are usually shown to equal those of Odin.^{[7][6][53][54][55]} The Eternal Flame has an unknown connection to the Fire Giant Surtur. When in its vicinity, Surtur claimed it increased his powers. It is unknown to what extent this power increase leads to.
  • Superhuman Strength: Surtur possesses incalculable strength, being able to lift in excess of 100 tons.^[53][54][55]
  • Superhuman Stamina: Surtur possesses immesurable levels of stamina.^[54]
  • Invulnerability: Surtur possesses virtual invulnerability to all forms of damage.^[54]
  • Superhuman Speed: Surtur can move at great speeds.^[54]
  • Superhuman Reflexes: Surtur possesses incredibly quick reflexes.^[54]
  • Superhuman Agility: Surtur possesses great cordination and agility.^[54]
  • Living Flame: Surtur is composed of living flame that is so strong that he can affect the Earth's temperature.^[53]
  • Cosmic Energy Manipulation: Surtur can manipulate fiery energy for various effects.^[54][55]
    • Intangibility: Surtur can make himself non-solid at will.^[53]
    • Shapeshifting: Surtur can alter his appearance^[55] and shape of his body at will.^[53]
    • Size Alteration: Surtur can alter his size at will.^[55]
    • Pyrokinesis: Surtur can create and manipulate intense heat and flames.^[53][54][55]
    • Energy Projection: Surtur can project blasts of concussive force.^[54][55]
    • Flight: Surtur can levitate and move through the air at vast speeds.^[54]
    • Interdimensional Teleportation: Surtur can open interdimensional portals within the Nine Worlds.^[54][55]
    • Immortality: Surtur is considered to be a long-living entity, bordering on immortality.^[53][54][55]
    • Self Sustenance: Surtur can survive without air and sustenance.^[53]
    • Summoning: Surtur can summon his fiery sword at will.

• Mysticism: He possesses vast knowledge of ancient and arcane wisdom.^[54]
• Master Swordsman: Surtur is a master warrior and swordsman.^[54][55]
• Craftmanship: Surtur is experienced in the forging of Uru weapons.^[55]

• Vulnerability to Cold: Surtur is vulnerable to intense coldness.^[53][54][55]
• Vulnerability to Magic: He is also vulnerable to magical attacks and binding spells by beings wieldin cosmic power on a level similar to his.^[54]

• Twilight Sword: Surtur possesses the giant sword Twilight, also known as the Sword of Doom, composed of an unknown metal.
  • Reality Alteration: The sword is magic, capable of manipulating vast amounts of mystical energy and destroying and manipulating reality^[55], shattering dimensional barriers and inhibiting Odin's powers. Loki has temporarily tapped into the power of the sword to change Thor into a frog (Thor is normally resistant to this type of magical transformation) and making the Asgardian populace sick (Asgardians are normally immune to disease). Morgan Le Fay tapped into the power of the sword to reshape the entire planet Earth from modern day into a medieval world after using the chaos magic of the Scarlet Witch to "bridge the gap" between her personal faerie powers and the Asgardian magics bound to the blade. When the sword is bonded with the Eternal Flame, its powers are further increased to an unknown level.^[56]

• He took part in the battle between the Marvel and DC Universe.^[57]