The War Machine Armor: Mark II, also known as the Iron Patriot Armor, is the second armor given to James Rhodes. Following the Chitauri Invasion, the armor was repainted and modified by A.I.M. to rebrand Rhodes as Iron Patriot. Following Aldrich Killian's False Flag Attacks, the armor was reverted back to its original War Machine name and design, and was used by Rhodes for Air Force missions and during the Battle of Sokovia.
However, Stark did decide to make Rhodes his own armor, as a way to keep the U.S. government from his doorstep. He discovered that the original War Machine had served as a buffer that calmed the government that would exploit his technology. Stark made a newer suit which he later gave to him. Since Stark was busy with the construction of Stark Tower and as a consultant to S.H.I.E.L.D., he had no time to fight against the terrorists as Iron Man. But knowing that the world expects Iron Man to always be available, he gave the armor to Rhodes to fight in his place.[1]
For some time, Rhodes used the new armor to destroy various cells of the terrorist group Ten Rings around the world as War Machine. When he fought in Hong Kong, Rhodes was called by Stark to assist him in fighting against the Chitauri during the Battle of New York. Since Rhodes was on the other side of the world, he could not help the Avengers in their battle in time. Although when he was able to get to New York, he found the Chitauri defeated and the Avengers all gathered inside Shawarma Palace, where Stark invited him to join them.[1]
Tony Stark had tried to make Rhodes another armor and then decided to keep it for himself.[2]
Iron Patriot[]
"Now once again America seems to have created a terrorist monster and once again, it came back and bit us in the ass. And how is President Ellis responding? By taking the guy they call 'War Machine' and giving him a paint job. Because if there's one thing that scares violent, international terrorists, it's a rebrand. Just in case we didn't get the point they changed his name to 'Iron Patriot.'"
In 2013, James Rhodes was still using the suit to serve the government. However, after several supposed Mandarin attacks on America, the Mark II was repainted in the motif of the American flag in a design similar to Captain America's Uniform. Instead of acting under the violent guise of War Machine, Rhodes was given the name "Iron Patriot" to boost morale with the American people.[2]
When the Mandarin supposedly killed Thomas Richards on live television, President Matthew Ellis sent Rhodes to find and capture him; however, he was led into a trap with his suit being immobilized by an Extremissoldier. Locking himself into the suit, Rhodes was taken to a secret A.I.M.base where they tried to remove him to no avail, forcing their leader Aldrich Killian to use his Extremis powers to burn it open. Once removed, an Extremis soldier Eric Savin, took control of the suit and flew it to Air Force One where he pretended to be Rhodes and accompanied Ellis on board.[2]
When the time came, Savin used the Patriot Armor to kill all bodyguards and place Ellis inside the suit. Killian then used a remote control to pilot it back to him, with Ellis captive inside. Once arriving back to Killian, he locked Ellis inside the suit, strung it up from a crane and intended to burn him alive on live television. Rhodes and Stark, however, infiltrated the base with Rhodes rescuing Ellis, taking control of his armor and flying him to safety.[2]
Back to Basics[]
Sometime afterwards, the name was reverted back to War Machine and the American-inspired motif was removed, returning to a darker suit.
James Rhodes later used the gauntlet of the armor in a failed attempt to lift MjĂžlnir alongside Tony Stark, and to defend himself from Ultron's first attack. He donned the entire armor during the final battle against Ultron in Sokovia, fighting the Ultron Sentries and giving air support to the Helicarrier. After the battle, he used it for superhero activities after becoming part of the official roster for the Avengers.[3] Ultimately, however, the armor would be replaced by a Mark III, which was in use by Rhodes until 2016.[4]
Capabilities[]
The War Machine Mark II armor vastly improves on the flaws of the Mark I. As it was originally Tony Stark's Mark II armor, the original kept the icing flaw and the poor power distribution, despite its formidable arsenal, and was not originally designed for James Rhodes or properly calibrated to his physiology, making it potentially unsafe for him to use. The new model is noticeably more streamlined, and was built from the start as a military tool and weapon, rather than an unarmed prototype, and was specifically designed for Rhodes to use. It has weapon-grade repulsors, enhanced thrusters and the standard function of augmenting the strength and durability of its user.
However, the suit had the opposite weakness of the Mark I: extreme heat. This was shown when an Extremis soldier applied heat to its chest, causing it to shut down. Later, as soldiers in the Mandarin's compound attempted to no avail to open it, Aldrich Killian applied heat to its chest. The heat intensity was so great that the suit ejected Rhodes from itself for his safety, when it determined it could no longer protect him from it.
Self-Contained Life-Support System and Environmental Protection: To be added
Collapsible Plating: Just like the Iron Man armors following the Mark V and the Mark VI, the Iron Patriot (and by extension, War Machine) armor was designed to be able to open and close up from head to toe and allow the user to seamlessly step in and out of the suit at will.
Repulsors: Like most or all of Iron Man's armors, the Iron Patriot armor has standard repulsors capable to flight stabilization and firing concussive energy blasts in the form of segmented bolts.
Minigun: Like most Iron Man armors, most of the suit's weapon systems were concealed beneath its exoskeleton. It demonstrated having miniguns concealed in its arms while in the Middle East.
The War Machine Mark II's most intimidating weapon is a long, thin, twin barreled, rifled gun mounted on an articulated arm which slides in a V-shaped track on the suit's back. The track allows the gun to slide up over either shoulder and the arm allows the gun to elevate and traverse for the field of fire with few if any, blind spots.
Missiles: The armor has formidable miniature missiles.
Miniature Stark Sonic Cannon: The Stark Sonic Cannon can make frequencies that could make someone's ears bleed. James Rhodes only uses it as a last resort in combat.
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