History ComicBook / Apocalypse

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/0f3df968_ee0b_45fc_a272_b7d6b238b7e1.jpeg]]
[[caption-width-right:350: ''"Peace does nothing to test -- to INCREASE -- mutants' strength. To force them to evolve into the strong."'']]

->''"I am the rocks of the eternal shore. Crash against me and be broken!"''

Apocalypse is a Franchise/MarvelUniverse character created by writer Louise Simonson and artist Jackson Guice. He first appeared in ''ComicBook/XFactor'' vol. 1 #5 (May, 1986). He has since gone on to plague the Comicbook/XMen and other heroes. Born 5,000 years ago into a desert tribe in AncientEgypt who took one look at the blue skinned mutant and left the supposed abomination behind to die, the infant who would become Apocalypse was found by the leader of a band of desert raiders called Baal, who adopted the boy and named him "En Sabah Nur" -- "The First One", as he believed that the child was the first of a MasterRace of beings who would one day inherit the Earth[[note]]He was not actually the "first" mutant, as there were others who came before him -- Selene, notably, is over thrice as old as him at over 17,000 years old[[/note]]. Baal raised En Sabah Nur and indoctrinated him into the brutal philosophy of his raiding band -- [[TheSocialDarwinist Survival of the Fittest]], and the idea that life is and should be a never ending struggle of the strong against the weak and each other to earn the right to live and prosper.

Throughout the centuries, the immortal Apocalypse traveled to numerous civilizations and cultivated worship of himself, and manipulated them into conflict and civil war to separate the strong from the weak. He eventually gained more power after discovering and bonding with the technology of a crashed Celestial ship, granting him a wide range of abilities but making him so powerful that he had to begin to periodically enter lengthy periods of regenerative rest to prolong his lifespan, and seek out powerful mutants as host bodies. He awoke at various points to influence history and attempt to recruit useful people to his cause, activating the powers of the mutant [[Characters/XMenAcolytes Exodus]] in the 12th century and transforming Victorian MadScientist Nathaniel Essex into the immortal geneticist [[Characters/XMenMarauders Mister Sinister]].

The explosion in the mutant population in modern times awoke Apocalypse from his slumber and set him loose upon the world once again. He now actively seeks to provoke a war between humans and mutants so that mutants can inherit the Earth under his guidance, whilst trying to increase his power by finding powerful mutants to serve as his new host. His plans often bring him into conflict with the ComicBook/XMen, who he regards as {{Worthy Opponent}}s who have [[WeCanRuleTogether earned the right to live in his dystopic mutant empire]], when he isn't [[MindControl brainwashing them to serve as his minions]] or [[GrandTheftMe trying to steal their bodies]], or trying to destroy them as threats to his plans.

Apocalypse is one of the ComicBook/XMen's most powerful and dangerous recurring foes. There is more than one BadFuture and AlternateUniverse where he rules the world, and ''all'' of them are hellish {{Death World}}s built on billions of corpses where people have to fight and kill each other to earn the right to live. Unsurprisingly, even without all that, Apocalypse has earned the hatred of a number of prominent characters for his millenia of atrocities, genocide and evil schemes.

Apocalypse has featured in various adaptations of the ''Franchise/XMen'' as an ArcVillain, including the 1990s ''WesternAnimation/XMen'' and ''WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution'' cartoons. He is the BigBad of the 2016 movie ''Film/XMenApocalypse'', making his live-action debut, played by Creator/OscarIsaac.

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!! Apocalypse provides examples of the following Apocalyptic Tropes:

* AboveGoodAndEvil:
** He is even the BigBad of an epic 4-part StoryArc in the [[WesternAnimation/XMen 90's cartoon]] called "Beyond Good And Evil", which gave us this gem:
---> '''Cable''': The world won't stomach your evil forever.\\
'''Apocalypse''': Evil? I am not malevolent! I simply AM!
** He turned down membership in the ''Acts of Vengeance'' crossover conspiracy because he didn't see himself as evil.
** He is also written this way in ''ComicBook/Xmen92'', as revealed with the following exchange:
---> '''Joseph:''' You're not one of the good guys!\\
'''Apocalypse:''' Good. Bad. Meaningless words used to describe lesser beings. I am [[DarkMessiah he who was born to save the world]]. Will you join me?
* AchievementTestOfDestiny: In ''House of X'', he oversees a ceremony in which mutants depowered by the ComicBook/ScarletWitch are restored... if they can prove their worthiness to him by dying in a trial by combat to him.
* ActuallyADoombot: The [[BossBattle boss battles]] with him in ''VideoGame/SpiderManAndTheXMenInArcadesRevenge'' and ''VideoGame/XMen1993'' both count as this, being a Murderworld doppelganger and a Danger Room simulation of him respectively.
* AdaptationalBadass:
** The [[WesternAnimation/XMen 90s animated series]] version of him is way more of a LargeHam, and gets to be way more epic since he doesn't have to share space with the other worldbeater Marvel U BigBad types.
** His ''[[WesternAnimation/XMenEvolution Evolution]]'' counterpart may be the strongest version, and is slightly less evil.
** ''Film/XMenApocalypse'' establishes him as ''easily'' the most powerful mutant ever seen in the ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'', [[spoiler:except for ComicBook/JeanGrey in full out Phoenix mode]].
** ''ComicBook/Xmen92'' made him one of these too, given that he survived the "Westchester Wars" in the backstory (which was apparently a big enough conflict that all the X-Men believed he was dead in the present day), terrified the duo of [[spoiler:Cassandra Nova and Joseph]] into submission, and at one point was even shown [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu casually dragging the body of defeated archdemon N'astirh behind him]].
* AdaptationalWimp:
** His video game appearances, on the other hand, usually have him playing second fiddle to ComicBook/{{Magneto}}. He's a generic mid-game BossBattle in both of the Sega Genesis [[VideoGame/XMen1993 X-Men]] [[VideoGame/XMen2CloneWars games]] (justified in the first game, since it's just a Danger Room simulation of him and not the real deal) and a BaitAndSwitchBoss in ''VideoGame/XMenMutantApocalypse''.
** He also tends to get nerfed heavily in alternative universe tales, so much so that even in his own titular ''ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse'' he is [[spoiler:one-shotted and KilledOffForReal by Magneto in the story's climax]], albeit after a knock-down drag-out brawl with [[ComicBook/XMan Nate Grey]], who'd been specifically engineered to kill him and had raw power estimated to be on par with the Dark Phoenix, and who later comprehensively made mainstream Apocalypse his minion. ''ComicBook/HouseOfM'' and ''Mutant X'' are other prominent examples of this.
* AncientConspiracy: Five thousand years is a ''long'' time to manipulate things behind the scenes, and he's TheManBehindTheMan for the Externals, a lesser AncientConspiracy of other mutant immortals [[spoiler: Ironically, half of whom are actually much more older than him, as they are implied to actually originate from the ''Hyborian Age'']].
* AlternateCompanyEquivalent: He's more or less equivalent to ''ComicBook/{{Darkseid}}'', who looks similar and even rules a planet named "Apokolips".
* AlwaysABiggerFish: He gets a nasty surprise when he finally re-encounters [[ComicBook/XMan Nate Grey]] in ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018''. While Nate had previously all but killed his reality's Apocalypse, mainstream Apocalypse had faced Nate - then a kid with vast but malfunctioning powers and little experience in using them - and trounced him. Now, he's facing an older and far more experienced Nate, one at the height of his potential as a fully-fledged RealityWarper, and who keeps him imprisoned as a literal after-thought, ultimately making him a minion in ''ComicBook/AgeOfXMan''. When Apocalypse tries to resist, blustering, Nate gives him an ArmourPiercingResponse.
-->'''Nate Grey''': You forget. I was born to ''end'' the apocalypse.
* AmazonChaser: Genesis, his first wife and the love of his life, is actually stronger than he is. Fitting for a man who religiously believes in survival of the fittest.
* AntiVillain: In ''ComicBook/Xmen92'', where he gathered a notably less evil incarnation of his Four Horsemen and recruited a [[HeelFaceTurn Heel-Face Turned]] Joseph and Cassandra Nova to stand against the threat of [[spoiler:Xodus, the Forgotten Celestial]].
* ArchEnemy: To Angel (because of the whole Archangel thing), Comicbook/{{Cable}} (because he's Apocalypse's prophesied enemy who's spent a lifetime trying to destroy him), and [[ComicBook/XMan Nate Grey]] (Cable's ''ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse'' counterpart, engineered as a weapon against Apocalypse, who actually succeeded in killing his version of Apocalypse - or at least, leaving him for [=AoA=]!Magneto to rip in half). Technically the latter's grudge is against his version of Apocalypse, but his hatred for Apocalypse transfers over just fine as it's more about what Apocalypse represents (quoth Nate: "I was born to ''end'' the Apocalypse.").
** Additionally, ComicBook/TheEternals regard him as an ancient foe. However, by this point he has managed to piss off half the cast at least, as well as many other heroes (e.g. the time he brainwashed the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk), to say nothing of the entire alternate and future Earths that have to endure his rule.
** Thor also carries a grudge against him, and has since the early 1000's.
* ArtisticLicenseLinguistics: He supposedly has an Arabic birth name, even though he was born in Egypt around 3,000 B.C.--several thousand years before the Arabic language existed, and ''long'' before it would have been spoken in Egypt. The name isn’t remotely correctly Arabic. It definitely doesn’t mean “the seven lights,” which would be (الانوار السبعة), roughly transliterated as “al-anwaar as-sab’a.” It could be a list of three words (عين صباح نور) which would mean “eye morning light” which sounds really silly. It could also be, most likely, a garbled form of (صباح النور), pronounced roughly, sabaah an-nuur, literally meaning “morning of light,” but in actual context, Apocalypse’s name would then mean “good morning.” Both Sabaah and Nuur by themselves ARE names, but...usually women’s names. It sounds even sillier in the film adaptation, where they have modern Egyptians speaking in correct colloquial Egyptian Arabic...reciting a name over and over which is obviously supposed to be Arabic...but makes no grammatical sense at all.
* AvengingTheVillain: During a period where he is believed to be dead, Cable's son Tyler Dayspring reinvents himself as Genesis and appoints himself Apocalypse's successor.
* AxCrazy: DependingOnTheWriter, Apocalypse has been written as completely insane and suffering from grandiose delusions which he expresses through genocide and killing those he perceives as weak.
* BadassArmFold: A signature pose he uses to assert his superiority.
* BadassBoast: (Most likely in 1990s X-Men cartoon)
--> "I am Apocalypse! Look upon the future and tremble!"
--> "''I am as far beyond mutants as they are beyond '''you!''' I am '''eternal!'''''"
--> "I am the rocks of the eternal shore. Crash against ''me'' and ''be broken''!"
--> "Beast, how many peoples have dreamed of my end? You are no closer than the Babylonians with their swords and fire sticks!"
--> "There exists no freedom from me; there is only freedom through me."
--> "You have travelled over 50 centuries of time to stop me. When will you learn it cannot be done?"
* BaldOfEvil: Although in his youth he sported a long mane, nowadays he prefers to go without.
* BarrierWarrior: His Celestial armour comes equipped with powerful forcefields which he can use in a variety of ways.
* BeenThereShapedHistory: Various flashbacks and exposition dumps over the years have shown his recurring effects on history over the centuries. There was the time he spooked UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat into fleeing Egypt, for example. He is also stated in-universe to be the reason why [[https://web.archive.org/web/20120203120826/http://www.kv64.info/2008/06/amenhotep-i-undiscovered-tomb.html Amenhotep I's tomb has never been found]], as he killed Amenhotep and dragged his body out into the desert to rot. In ComicBook/JonathanHickmansXMen he claims to have caused the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Late_Bronze_Age_collapse Bronze Age Collapse]].
* BenevolentBoss: Genocidal maniac though he may be, Apocalypse is surprisingly consistent in his treatment of those who serve him well. The best example of this is the mutant Caliban, originally put to work as his bloodhound before heavily physically empowering him at Caliban's own request (compare Caliban [[https://i.annihil.us/u/prod/marvel//universe3zx/images/b/bf/CalibanMorlock.jpg before]] and [[https://www.geekgirlauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/78424-54406-caliban_super.jpg after]]) as a reward for his faithful service. He took in and provided for Autumn Rolfson, the first Famine, even after she failed him as a Horseman (this became a plot point in ''Uncanny X-Force'' when TheBusCameBack for her) and fulfilled his pitch to the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk to the letter. Even with disobedient ex-minions he tends towards lenience, letting them act freely as long as they uphold his ideals (prime examples being Exodus and Mr. Sinister, though a good chunk of X-Men also fall into this category thanks to his curious habit of poaching their ranks for new Horsemen).
* BigBad: For the original X-Factor and Cable, and shares this spot with Magneto for the X-Men as a whole, since he is their most powerful recurring villain by far (not counting one-offs like Dark Phoenix or the Adversary).
* BigGood: In ''House of X'' he sits on the Autumn chapter of the Quiet Council of Krakoa, which represents mutantkind's most powerful and respected leaders (the other two chapter members are ComicBook/ProfessorX and ComicBook/{{Magneto}}).
** He also takes this role in [[spoiler:the second volume of ''X-Men '92'']].
* BloodKnight: Strip away the Celestial tech, the SuperpowerLottery and the TimeAbyss that make up Apocalypse's character and this is what you have at his core -- a ferocious warrior who glories in war and believes that civilization is uplifted only through the continuous propagation of it.
* BreakTheHaughty: ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018'' and ''ComicBook/AgeOfXMan'' comprehensively do this, with Nate Grey demonstrating just how he can now swat Apocalypse like a fly/run him like a puppet, shutting down Apocalypse's boasts in one flashback as he warps him into his 'Age of X-Man' form with a single line - "You forget. I was born to ''end'' the Apocalypse." It's notable that in Apocalypse's appearances afterwards, in ''ComicBook/JonathanHickmansXMen'', Apocalypse is a more humble and thoughtful figure.
* [[BroughtToYouByTheLetterS Brought To You By The Letter A]]: He wears an A-shaped device like a belt buckle. It's actually a Celestial transporter that grants him his {{teleportation}} abilities.
* CardCarryingVillain: His origins are somewhat ignominious, as he was introduced as the mastermind behind a throwaway generic evil organization called the Alliance of Evil. (Originally, ''[[SmugSnake the Owl]]'' was supposed to fill this role.)
* TheChessmaster: Frequently works behind the scenes, manipulating others to his will.
* ClothesMakeTheSuperman: Depends on the writer. Depends ''greatly'' on the writer. He ''is'' consistently shown to derive a fair bit of his power from the armor granted to him by the Celestials, but how much of it is natural, how much of it is specific to the armor, and how much of it is natural but augmented by the armor varies greatly, as does the extent to which it provides life support and how decrepit he is without it.
* ComboPlatterPowers:
** Apocalypse's natural mutations are physical prowess, intelligence, immortality, and his strange gray skin and blue lips (surprisingly enough), and his MasterOfYourDomain ability, as shown in the ''Rise of Apocalypse'' mini. The rest of his abilities such as the technopathy, psychic abilities (maybe; the comics are inconsistent on whether or not the psychic abilities are natural or augmented), his armor and other powers are either derived from technology on loan from the Celestials or by altering his genetic structure.
** In the 2016 film, the only power he has that we know for a fact is natural to him is the ability to exist as a [[GrandTheftMe body-jacking]] psionic entity. An undisclosed number of his other powers, which include technopathy, SuperStrength, and SuperEmpowering other mutants, are the result of his ability to "assimilate" powers from his hosts and retain them in all future host bodies.
* CompositeCharacter: In the movie, carrying on a "proud" X-Men movie tradition. Specifically, movie Apocalypse is an amalgamation of comics Apocalypse and the Shadow King.
* DarkActionGirl: His cultist follower [[CatGirl Anais]], who tried to resurrect him when he was reduced to a ghost and possessing ComicBook/{{Cyclops}}.
* DarkMessiah:
** Occasionally written this way, such as in 2006's ''Blood of Apocalypse'' where he claims to have literally been awakened by the screams of millions of mutants (due to M-Day) and offers his titular Blood to all of mutantkind as an antidote to a plague (that he himself created to weed out humanity). Made very apparent since he's apparently a servant of the Celestials aka Space Gods. The movie version also has some elements of this, but his ''ComicBook/XMen92'' incarnation might be the most triumphant example yet.
** This contrasts him with both {{ComicBook/Cable}} and [[ComicBook/XMan Nate Grey]], his eternal enemies, who fit the role of the MessianicArchetype - sometimes, during their respective 'Saviour Cable' and 'Second Coming' phases, actively embracing the symbolism.
* DarkseidDuplicate: Apocalypse has a similar, hulking physique to ComicBook/{{Darkseid}}, [[TheDreaded is a figure of fear]] and one of the oldest and most powerful mutants. Though he has never really expanded himself into being a major player for the entire Marvel Universe, he nonetheless is the closest thing to a BigBad in the various X-titles under Marvel's banner.
* DealWithTheDevil:
** It's been revealed that the Celestials knew about Apocalypse using their technology, and allowed him to keep it in exchange for future services (although, technically, the Celestials are not evil, so in a sense ''Apocalypse'' was the Devil in this case, except he was on the poor end of the deal). While they have yet to collect on said services, the Celestials did at one point prevent Apocalypse from dying to ensure that he would be able to pay them back someday.
** Apocalypse himself does this quite a bit, empowering Bennet du Paris, Nathaniel Essex, and a slew of modern-day mutants (including a few of the X-Men) in exchange for service. Ironically, this has helped the X-Men more than once, since it restored Angel's wings and Franchise/{{Wolverine}}'s adamantium. He also created one of his own worst enemies by empowering and granting immortality to Sinister.
* DemonicPossession: After the FusionDance incident in ''The Twelve'' (keep reading for more on that) a later issue had Jean Grey state that Cyclops had been "possessed by an evil spirit called En Sabah Nur", leading to some misconception that the incident was a case of this trope, rather than the FusionDance it actually was. Whether this was a clumsy attempt at a RetCon or a genuine misunderstanding on the part of Creator/GrantMorrison remains unknown to this day.
* DependingOnTheWriter: Whether he is a cosmic-level entity that can pimp-smack the likes of the High Evolutionary and go toe-to-toe with Asgardians like ComicBook/{{Loki}} and even ComicBook/TheMightyThor, or is a has-been dependent upon regeneration chambers. Justified partially by Apocalypse's original body being killed in ''ComicBook/XFactor'' #68 by Comicbook/{{Cyclops}} channeling the full power of the Summers bloodline, aka DeusExMachina. His evil quotient is also writer-dependent, with Louise Simonson tending to write him as more of a NobleDemon and WellIntentionedExtremist while later writers tend to dial his evilness as far in the other direction as possible.
* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: In ''ComicBook/Xmen92'' he effortlessly defeats the Limbo arch-demon N'astirh.
* TheDreaded:
** ComicBook/{{Cable}}, and his alternate universe counterpart the Comicbook/XMan, are each two of the most powerful psychic mutants alive. And they were both created by Sinister for the express purpose of killing this bastard.
** Apocalypse is feared by even high-tier supernatural monsters like [[Comicbook/TheTombofDracula Dracula]] - though Apocalypse has a certain wariness of Dracula in turn, since Dracula very nearly succeeded in killing him in the 1890s. [[ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} Deadpool's]] wife Shiklah tried to attack Evan (En Sabah Nur's clone) when she thought she saw the real deal reborn.
** In ''ComicBook/Xmen92'' [[spoiler:Joseph and Cassandra Nova]], both of whom have absolutely dominated every other villain in the series up to that point, are positively ''petrified'' when he drops in on them.
* DystopiaJustifiesTheMeans: His ideal society in the ''ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse'' is a bombed-out radioactive wasteland littered with genocide camps and Nazi-style genetic experimentation labs. Think Benito Mussolini on crack. Various {{Bad Future}}s ruled by him tend to be little better, though he has managed to restrain himself (or [[DependingOnTheWriter been restrained]]) from doing this in the normal timeline.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: At the conclusion of the [[ComicBook/XOfSwords 2020]] [[BatFamilyCrossover X-Event]], he singlehandedly manages to literally save all of both Earth AND the exiled mutant nation of Arrako (which include his first wife, their 4 children, and all of their surviving family & friends) from the full might of the Amenthi demon horde and their evil god, [[EldritchAbomination The Golden Helm of Annihilation]] by [[spoiler: personally defeating his wife Genesis in hand-to-hand combat, thus becoming the next host of Annihilation, and then immediately surrendering to the Omniversal Majestrix of Otherworld, Opal Luna Saturnyne, thereby instantly neutralizing the corrupting influence of Annihilation, allowing Saturnyne to defeat Annihilation once and for all bu transforming it from a cursed mask which absolutely dominated its wearer, into a talking spear absolutely dominated by its wielder. This allows the sentient island/mutant nation of Arrako to finally reunite on Earth with its long-lost twin sentient island Krakoa, liberating the millions of Arrakoan Mutants from being enslaved by the Amenthi demon horde and integrating them into the mutant nation of Krakoa, and enabling Apocalypse to finally reconcile at last with his estranged first wife Genesis and their children]]
* EnemyMine:
** He teams up with the X-Men to fight Stryfe in the ''X-Cutioner's Song'' and even helpfully saves ComicBook/ProfessorX from the weaponized virus Stryfe infected him with.
** The threat of CrisisCrossover villain ComicBook/{{Onslaught}} is great enough to necessitate one of these between him and his ArchEnemy Cable.
** He teams up with none other than the famous vampire hunter [[PublicDomainCharacter Abraham Van Helsing]] to fight Dracula's legions in ''Apocalypse vs. Dracula''.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: As seen in the ''Rise of Apocalypse'' miniseries chronicling his backstory, despite all his faults and brutal teachings, Apocalypse loved and respected his adopted father Baal for being the first person to show him kindness and mercy by rescuing him from the desert and raising him as his son. He also loved Nephri for being the first woman to show him affection, until she became disgusted by him for his bizarre appearance. The combination of Baal's brutal survivalist upbringing and Nephri's rejection made Apocalypse believe love and humanity were useless and embraced the vicious ethos that would create his character.
** ** As finally revealed at last by his full backstory in the [[ComicBook/XOfSwords 2020]] [[BatFamilyCrossover X-Event]]: [[spoiler: he was actually happily married once upon a time to his very [[TheLostLenore first wife/soulmate]], fellow immortal mutant Genesis, a Marvel omega-level mutant version of DC's own Poison Ivy, who he freely acknowledged was the strongest mutant/woman/person he had personally met ''easily surpassing even himself'', and they had four equally-ageless (upon reaching adulthood) Omega-level mutant children, ''who were actually his First Horsemen'']].
* EvenEvilHasStandards:
** He's disgusted by Loki's banal motives for "annoying the heroes of Earth" and refuses to join the "lesser villains" in ''Acts of Vengeance''.
** Despite the fact that [[MurderIsTheBestSolution his solution to the problem]] was to [[WouldHurtAChild try to kill]] [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Franklin Richards]], even he was horrified by the actions of ComicBook/{{Onslaught}}.
** He holds no truck with vampires or other supernatural baddies, as ''Apocalypse vs. Dracula'' demonstrates.
* EvilIsBigger: He's 7-feet tall in his usual form, but he'll often invoke this by using his shapeshifting powers to increase his size and utterly dwarf his opponents. Played with in his film incarnation, where he only changes into a supersized form during a BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind.
* EvilIsHammy: Especially in the 90's cartoon, basically every line that came out of his mouth was a grandiose BadassBoast using archaic language exalting his might.
* EvilIsPetty: In the ''Rise of Apocalypse'' miniseries chronicling his backstory, he as a young man was rejected by the girl he loved due to being physically ugly. When it turned out his powers made him immortal, he went back to her as she was dying of old age and taunted her on her deathbed.
* EvilOverlord: Particularly in the ''ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse'', where he rules North America [[TheEmpire with an iron fist]].
* EvilVersusEvil: The six-issue ''[[FightDracula Apocalypse vs. Dracula]]'' miniseries, which is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. [[spoiler:Apocalypse ultimately wins, though not without some help from Abraham Van Helsing.]]
* EvilerThanThou:
** To Exodus, Mister Sinister, ComicBook/{{Bishop}}, Stryfe, ComicBook/{{Sabretooth}}, ''{{Dracula}}'' and even ''ComicBook/{{Loki}}'' at one point. He frequently pulls this, but puny lesser villains keep thinking they can take him and have to find out the hard way how wrong they are.
** He gets a WellIntentionedExtremist version of this pulled on ''him'' by [[ComicBook/XMan Nate Grey]] in ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018'' and ''ComicBook/AgeOfXMan'', explicitly keeping Apocalypse around solely as a motivational tool and occasional ideas wall, then later as a puppet HarmlessVillain to keep people content in his [[CrapsaccharineWorld flawed utopia]] by giving them something to fight.
* EvilutionaryBiologist: Of the "fight to the death and prove your worth" variety.
* FourIsDeath: The ''Four'' Horsemen, anyone?
* FreudianExcuse: Abandoned at birth due to his obvious mutations, adopted by a tribe of violent raiders who imparted their [[TheSocialDarwinist "only the strong are worthy"]] ethos that later became a defining element of his character, saw his entire tribe killed and also saw his adoptive father die in front of him not long after as a result of Kang the Conqueror's attempts to find him, was enslaved, had a particularly bad encounter with Kang himself, was rejected by the girl he had fallen in love with and risked his life to save... his formative years definitely weren't pleasant. He's still an absolutely vile being, but it's not hard to see how he became as awful as he is.
* FusionDance: The ''Twelve'' storyline ended with Cyclops performing a HeroicSacrifice to keep Apocalypse from achieving godhood. The results were... [[http://i.imgur.com/BNxb531.jpg not pretty]].
* GeniusBruiser: Not a natural genius like ComicBook/MisterFantastic or ComicBook/DoctorDoom, but he's had five thousand years to build upon the basic education he received as a nomadic Egyptian raider. He's also had the benefit of Celestial technology to tutor himself with.
* AGodAmI: He may or may not believe he is an actual god, but he is certainly happy to be worshipped as such if it furthers his interests, and he definitely has a monstrous God complex [[note]]A God complex is when you think you should be treated as or act ''like'' you are a god; actually believing yourself to be a god is a god delusion, not a god complex[[/note]]. There was also the Twelve storyline, where Big Blue literally attempted to become a god by absorbing the power of the titular Twelve[[note]]Technically thirteen, as Nate Grey was intended to be his new host body[[/note]]. At times he's indicated he considers himself ''better'' than being a "mere" god.
* GodGuise: He is worshiped as a god in his own right by some, but in ancient times he was sometimes mistaken for local deities. He played along as this served his ends well enough anyway.
* GoodIsBadAndBadIsGood: According to his doctrine, war, conflict, inequality, struggle, destruction and death are good and natural, because they make people stronger. Consequently, peace, kindness, equality and the rest are bad, or irrelevant at least, because they make people weak.
* GracefulLoser: In ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018'', he grudgingly concedes his position and scolds Kitty Pryde for doubting [[ComicBook/XMan Nate's]] sheer power - after all, he has Magneto "on a leash", he's got Kitty's powers neutralised with a thought, and he has Apocalypse himself in chains, while most of his attention is directed elsewhere. He also offers Nate advice on how to be "a ruler worthy of the counsel of Apocalypse." In the follow-up, ''ComicBook/AgeOfXMan'', he postures a little as Nate warps him to fit the world, but once he realises not only how he's been comprehensively been brainwashed, but how Nate casually slipped a bit of the real world (a Menorah) in just in the right place for Kitty to deliver a near-lethal injury via phasing it into his chest, he ruefully admits that it is brilliant.
* GrandTheftMe:
** Tries to pull this on ComicBook/XMan in ''The Twelve'' (along with stealing the powers of several powerful mutants, the titular number), and in a BadFuture on his (willing) adopted son Stryfe. He failed both times, though in the former case he managed to pull a forced FusionDance on Cyclops. Toyed with pulling it on ComicBook/{{Hope|Summers}} and has attempted it on others. He is always on the look out for powerful mutants to serve as his host body.
** In the [[WesternAnimation/XMen '90s animated series]] he pulled this on [[spoiler:Fabian Cortez]] in his final appearance.
** In ''Film/XMenApocalypse'' this is perhaps his only original mutant power, and his whole modus operandi basically amounts to seeking the most powerful mutants to body-jack because he steals the powers of his hosts and retains them for himself.
* HeWhoFightsMonsters: When he's being written by his co-creator Louise Simonson, usually (with the monsters in question being either malevolent gods like Loki or the Celestials). This interpretation seems to have returned a little in ''ComicBook/XOfSwords'', with all of his actions being a desperate attempt to [[spoiler: protect the Earth from Amenth and save his family]].
* HeelFaceTurn: Astonishingly pulls one off in ''ComicBook/JonathanHickmansXMen'', in which he willingly submits to Charles Xavier after Krakoa becomes a safe haven for all Mutants.
* HeroKiller: He is capable of taking on whole teams of heroes by himself, and has directly or indirectly killed numerous characters. One episode of the 90's animated series ends with him effortlessly killing the ''entire'' team of X-Men sent to stop him (time-travel saved them) and the ''ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse'' storyline kicks off with him committing nuclear genocide all over the planet.
* HiddenAgendaVillain: Occasionally stories have portrayed him as this, using the very logical rationale that if the [[ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse Benito Mussolini on crack]] [[DystopiaJustifiesTheMeans dystopia]] was ''really'' what he wanted that he's had more than enough time in his five thousand years of life to make it happen. Before the Celestials were brought in to be TheManBehindTheMan, this was the prevailing explanation for his [[OrcusOnHisThrone strangely-lax approach]] to [[TakeOverTheWorld taking over the world]].
** As finally revealed at last by his full backstory in the [[ComicBook/XOfSwords 2020]] [[BatFamilyCrossover X-Event]], his whole credo of "Survival of the Fittest" for thousands of years, was actually all along due to a [[TheLostLenore dead dame]]: [[spoiler: Apocalypse was desperately trying to fulfil the last express request of his beloved wife/soulmate, fellow immortal mutant Genesis, ''TO JUDGE THE WHOLE WORLD'', in order to ensure that the rest of the Earth would be strong enough to resist the re-invasion of the demon armies from the extra-dimensional hell-planet of Amenth, against whom she and their children and all of their extended family and friends (the entire mutant nation of Okkara, which is ''including even Arrako, the twin of the sentient island of Krakoa''), selflessly sacrificed their lives pushing back into their home dimension, and blocking up from crossing over into Marvel Earth.]]
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: That bit below about [[TheSocialDarwinist culling the weak]]? He taught that to his followers, so after he got badly beaten by Stryfe they judged him to be weak, and changed sides.
** In fact, he always beaten badly enough that he has become notoriously derided among fans as arguably the very worst ''jobber'' among the Megalomaniacal Evil Overlord class of Marvel's Super-Villains, at least in the Marvel Earth-Prime/Earth-616.
* HorsemenOfTheApocalypse: Used as the name and titles of his four top lieutenants. Because most Horsemen tend to either die or turn on him, he's constantly on the lookout for new mutants to serve as his bringers of Pestilence, War, Famine and Death. A number of X-Men have served in these roles over the years: Archangel, Wolverine and Gambit have all been Death for a time, Sunfire was Famine and Polaris was Pestilence. As of ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015'' and ''ComicBook/XMen92'', his last known Horsemen were [[RoboticPsychopath Bastion]], [[KnightTemplar Exodus]], ComicBook/{{Mystique}} and [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers Senator Kelly]].
** As finally revealed at last by his full backstory in the [[ComicBook/XOfSwords 2020]] [[BatFamilyCrossover X-Event]], [[spoiler: the First Horsemen were actually his own biological children, 2 sons and 2 daughters, who he sired and raised with his very first wife/soulmate, fellow immortal mutant Genesis. Like their parents, they were equally ageless upon reaching adulthood, and like their mother, are also Omega-level mutants. Not only that, they surpass him. ''Easily''. The first Death and the first Famine were their sons, the first War and the first Pestilence were their daughters.]]
* HumansAreSurvivors: Expresses these sentiments to Loki during their fight in the ''Acts of Vengeance'' CrisisCrossover:
--> '''Apocalypse:''' Humans are not the weaklings you take them for. Each, be he hero or villain, is dying from the day he is born. Each breath... each ''effort''... is an act of courage against inevitable doom... such courage we immortals can only dream of.
** Indeed in the now-classic [[AgeOfApocalypse 1995]] [[BatFamilyCrossover X-Event]] which was the original version of the Age of Apocalypse, even after he had already conquered the entire continent of North America, he still allowed humans to live, albeit as the periodically-culled oppressed slave masses to the mutant ruling classes, instead of exterminating them outright wholesale, and he even let "superior" flatscans (i.e. those non-mutant humans who managed to actually thrive in his totalitarian dictatorship) to actually join what passed for the "Elite" in his imperial capital of what used to be New York City.
* {{Hypocrite}}:
** Apocalypse's [[TheSocialDarwinist creed]] is rather undercut by the fact that, in the comics, he became as powerful as he did through ''sheer dumb luck''. Most of his power actually stems from the Celestial[[note]]alien super-gods who're basically the ultimate engineers of the universe[[/note]] technology he discovered and managed to master.
** Meanwhile, in the 2016 film, his entire modus operandi is hinted through his interactions with Charles Xavier to really be seeking out or engineering powerful mutants so he can take their bodies, and thusly their powers, as his own. Meaning he's not refining his own strength, he's ''stealing'' the strength of others, which is arguably worse than his comic version.
** Subverted and explained by his full backstory in the [[ComicBook/XOfSwords 2020]] [[BatFamilyCrossover X-Event]], [[spoiler: the simple reason why thousands of years ago, Apocalypse was the sole survivor of the ancient mutant nation of Okkara who remained behind on Earth, even while everyone else who was still alive (by his own admission, scores of 'godlike' i.e. Omega-level mutants, including his own wife, their children, and all of their extended family and friends) selflessly sacrificed themselves to stop the further Amenthi invasion of Earth by counter-invading the extra-dimensional hell-planet of Amenth, where they would be stranded forever, trapped in perpetual on-and-off warfare against a planet full of demon hordes? Simply because the self-proclaimed First Mutant ''was just not strong enough to join the rest of them''. The worst part? He ''admits'' that they ALL knew it, especially his own spouse who made him stay behind --- against his own wishes to join the rest of his kin and kith -- to instead try and hold the fort by fortifying the rest of the Earth against Amenthi re-invasion in the future.]]
* InadequateInheritor: He very decisively rejects Stryfe in 2009's ''Messiah War'' storyline after discovering that Stryfe is his chosen heir from the future, pronouncing Stryfe to be a weakling unworthy of the honor.
* {{Irony}}: During the ''Evolutionary War'' CrisisCrossover Apocalypse (then still a relatively new character and still under the creative direction of his original creators) fought the [[EvilutionaryBiologist High Evolutionary]]. During the fight he chastised the Evolutionary for his impatience and referred to his invasive methods as "unnatural selection", advocating for more patient methods in keeping with his status as an immortal (see [[http://panels-of-interest.tumblr.com/post/34774646670/apocalypse-vs-high-evolutionary-from-x-factor here]]). Later, when creative control of him passed to other writers, Apocalypse would himself adopt methods very similar to those he advocated against.
** This is partially justified by the fact that after ''X-Factor'' #68, he was in inadequate and decaying host bodies for a very long time, which when combined with TheReveal of his motives in ''ComicBook/XOfSwords'', may explain why he became more desperate.
* ItAmusedMe:
** In the ''Blood of Apocalypse'' storyline he flat-out admits this is his motive for transforming the timid mutant Gazer into his Horseman of War.
** This was also his motive for rescuing Fabian Cortez in the 90s series after his failed attempt to usurp Magneto. Recruiting an ''open'' sufferer of ChronicBackstabbingDisorder to his cause doesn't sound like the best of ideas, but [[spoiler:ultimately the real danger to Apocalypse's plans was Cortez's incompetence]].
* TheJuggernaut: Not as extreme as the {{Trope Namer|s}}, but Apocalypse is still a force of nature.
* KilledOffForReal: In ''ComicBook/UltimateMarvel'' and the ''Film/XMenFilmSeries'', he was killed by Phoenix.
* LargeAndInCharge: In the animated series at least, he is shown to be perfectly capable of altering his size to be as large as he wants; however, every version has his default size as somewhere around the 15 foot range, and even before he got Celestial tech he was still taller than any normal human.
* LargeHam: One of the absolute Kings of this trope, ''especially'' in the 90's animated series.
--> '''Jean Grey''': Sinister, why have you kidnapped me?
--> '''Apocalypse''' (coming out of the shadows): BECAUSE I TOLD HIM TO!!! [[EvilLaugh AHAHAHAHAHAHA!]]!!
* LegacyCharacter: In ''Uncanny X-Force'' it's revealed that Apocalypse is part of a long line of beings who made sure evolution headed in the direction the Celestials desired.
* LetsYouAndHimFight: When he awakens crusader Bennet du Paris's latent mutant abilities and rechristens him as his herald Exodus, the first thing Apocalypse does is pit him against his best friend, fellow crusader Eobar Garrington. Predictably, this leads to an IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight that ends with Exodus snapping out of it and turning on Apocalypse.
* LightIsNotGood: His name "En Sabah Nur" means "Birth of Light', "Awakened Light" and "Dawn" but is also a villain of divine motif with his cults.
* LoveMakesYouEvil: He was pretty well on his way to villainy already when Nephri rejected him, but said rejection was probably what pushed him over the edge. During the time he convinced Hulk to be one of his Horsemen it greatly hinted that while he sees emotions and love as a weakness, he himself still has not gotten over the rejection of his first love.
* MagicKnight: For most of his history he has defied this, being a mutant powered by technology and having little to do with Marvel's magical community. This changes in ''House of X'', where he reveals that he has a formidable knowledge and command of sorcery, and puts it to work in his position as adviser for the island's incarnation of Excalibur.
* TheManBehindTheCurtain: On rare occasions in more modern day and future storylines, Apocalypse's fearsome exterior visage of an ancient and incredibly powerful mutant is torn away to reveal... an ancient and incredibly old man with a physique roughly akin to that of [[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Mr. Burns]], whose current power is largely due to being encased in what is basically glorified (albeit very, very advanced) PoweredArmor, while his own power ate away at his body. However, every appearance after ''ComicBook/XFactor'' #68 is a host body not capable of handling his full power. He can subvert this trope via GrandTheftMe, and finding a suitably powerful host to contain his awesome energies (or better yet, elevate himself to cosmic-level evil using one or a number of even stronger hosts) is one of his more common plots.
* TheManBehindTheMan:
** Not only did he [[DieOrFly awaken the powers of Exodus]] and [[SuperEmpowering grant Mr. Sinister his powers outright]], Apocalypse is also the original source of much of the latter villain's resources. He also has at least one mutant cult and a number of minions, and was once even worshipped by a group of Skrulls. He was introduced as the leader of a throwaway generic evil organization, the [[ObviouslyEvil Alliance of Evil]] and an alternate version of him was the master of Dark Beast and other evil survivors of that timeline.
** He also ends up being TheManBehindTheMan for the Externals, a secret society of mutant immortals introduced in the pages of ''ComicBook/XForce''. This is highlighted pretty effectively in the ''ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse'', where all the surviving Externals are shown to be working for him.
** Though Apocalypse hates to admit it, the Celestials are ''his'' Man Behind The Man.
* ManipulativeBastard: As Warren Worthington, Wolverine, Cyclops and many, many other people can attest. He has no qualms about manipulating the fates of entire cultures and nations either.
* MasterOfYourDomain: This is his baseline mutant ability, and the in-universe explanation for his NewPowersAsThePlotDemands, as he has complete control of his own body down to the molecular level. Mutant powers being genetic, this basically allows him to effect PowersAsPrograms however he sees fit.
* MeaningfulName:
** His ''given'' name is translated as "The First One" - he and Selene both have very good claims as being the first mutants alive [[spoiler: It's revealed in [[ComicBook/XOfSwords 2020's]] [[BatFamilyCrossover Event]] that Selene was likely the First of the First Generation of Earth mutants (i.e. "Killcrops", whose powers are present from birth), being born around 15000 BC in what eventually became Central Europe, during the ''Hyborian Age''. Apocalypse, meanwhile, is confirmed to be the First, but of the Second Generation of Earth mutants (whose powers activate at puberty), being born just around 3000 BC in what is certainly Ancient Egypt, though Apocalypse has BOTH mutations from birth and activated at puberty]]. [[note]] "En Sabah Nur" actually translates into roughly "The Seven Lights." While not as meaningful, it does have a poetry to it. [[/note]].
** Fanon holds that the hidden meaning - En Sabah Nur has been claimed (somewhat dubiously) to translate to "The Seven Lights" - refers to Apocalypse being the 7th External [[spoiler: Selene, Krule, Nicodemus, Saul are heavily hinted as originating from the Hyborian Age thousands of years before Apocalypse was born; White Sword may be at the very least slightly older than Apocalypse; and mutant-turned-demon helllord Azazel, also known as Nightcrawler's biological father, may also secretly be another External as well, considering his physical immortality.]]
** The ancient definition of the word 'Apocalypse' was actually something closer to "divine revelation" than "the end of the world", and Apocalypse has indeed spent centuries seeking out individuals he judges as potentially worthy to impart "revelations" to, with the caveat that they [[TrainingFromHell prove themselves worthy of them first]].
* MindControl:
** Pulled this on several mutants, including Angel and Wolverine. On one occasion, he even pulled it on the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk - and, even more impressively, he is one of the few to pull it on the Hulk ''successfully''.
** Gets this pulled on him by [[ComicBook/XMan Nate Grey]] - who, it should be noted, was at the peak of his strength and is arguably Marvel's most consistently powerful psychic.
* MoreThanMindControl: Directly related to the above, as he actually talked Hulk in that instance into ''willingly'' becoming his horseman by promising to silence the voices in his head (Bruce Banner's schizophrenia was at an all-time high point and he was constantly hallucinating visions of his dead father Brian Banner) in exchange for his service. The helmet Apocalypse equipped him with was built for this very purpose, and as long as it was working Hulk was more than happy to do Apocalypse's bidding. It was only after the helmet broke and his father ''immediately'' reappeared taunting him that Hulk rejected the role, tearing off the rest of his armor and leaping away.
* {{Mutant|s}}: One of the first mutants born, though definitely not the first as he often claims [[spoiler: his fellow Externals Selene, Krule, Nicodemus, Saul, White Sword --- as well as their fellow mutant Azazel (''Nightcrawler's biological father'', who while so far not yet confirmed to also be an External, is still physically immortal like them, such that he even managed to ascend to becoming an actual hell-lord through millennia of human fear from him pretending to be the Devil) --- are confirmed to indeed be much older, originating from the Hyborian Age, c. 15,000 BC or so. Apocalypse was born about 12,000 years later in Ancient Egypt]]. The combination of both his Celestial-gifted PoweredArmor and his Celestial techno-organic-viral augmentation makes it difficult to gauge which of his abilities derive from his own natural genetic mutation and which are artificial enhancements/additions.
** As finally revealed at last by his full backstory in the [[ComicBook/XOfSwords 2020]] [[BatFamilyCrossover X-Event]], [[spoiler: Apocalypse is actually the "Great Re-Seeder", indeed the first... but only of the ''second'' generation of Mutantkind on Earth, i.e. those whose powers activate at puberty rather than already be present at birth (i.e. "KillCrops"). Fittingly, Apocalypse is a textbook example of a Transitional Species[=/=]Missing Link individual: He has mutations both 1) present from birth (gray skin, blue facial markings), and 2) activated at puberty (cellular control, bio-blasts)]]
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Played with, as seen in the MeaningfulName entry above. While his name is ''very much'' this to a modern-day perspective, the original meaning of the word was a bit more benign. Counts as an unintentional GeniusBonus.
* NewAgeRetroHippie: Forcibly invoked in his ''ComicBook/AgeOfXMan'' incarnation by [[ComicBook/XMan Nate Grey]], who realised that even a utopia (well, an attempted one, which resulted in a disturbing CrapsaccharineWorld) needs something to fight against. And in his view, Apocalypse will always be his enemy. So, hilariously, he repurposes Apocalypse as [[spoiler: a ''sex guru'' --- complete with a cult of groupies --- who is subversively trying to bring both romantic love AND erotic lust back to the Gattaca/Equilibrium-style [[CrapsaccharineWorld dystopia]] where they are absolutely and permanently thoroughly banned by a totalitarian regime that considers psychological/emotional attachment/intimacy to be the real root reasons that prevented humanity from successfully reaching utopia throughout its whole history]]. Adding a bit of pathos is the reveal that at least part of Apocalypse actually ''preferred'' it that way.
* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands:
** No one's ever been able to manage to give a precise listing on what exactly his powers actually ''are'' (and, for that matter, how many of them are actually his and aren't from his armor), and the writers of his comics have admitted they just give him whatever abilities are needed to make him effectively menace the heroes.
--->'''Frank Tieri:''' So what... this guy's kind of like Mr. Fantastic on steroids? Yeah, his powers have always been sort of nebulous, but as long as he's cutting through X-Men teams like Kirstie Alley through Sizzler, I don't think the fans care.
** [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] by a few [[AllThereInTheManual supplementary sources]] back in the 90s; they listed his mutant power as the ability to alter his own biology on a subatomic level. Since this would include being able to alter his own DNA at will and [[AllYourPowersCombined mutant powers are genetic]], [[SuperpowerLottery well]]...
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: Whether by [[EpilepticTrees accident or design]], a lot of his attempts to recruit new horsemen end with him helping the heroes in the end, such as him rebonding Wolverine's adamantium skeleton, regenerating Sunfire's legs and restoring ComicBook/{{Polaris|MarvelComics}}'s sanity. Sometimes he at least has the sense to add in a touch of BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor, as was the case with the 'improved' wings he granted to Angel when remaking him as Archangel.
* NobleDemon: This was apparently the original plan for him, as revealed in Louise Simonson's ''X-Factor Forever''. [[spoiler:Turns out all of Nur's villainy in the modern day is to keep Earth safe from the Celestials, and when Arishem the Judge shows up he even pulls a HeroicSacrifice to save Scott and Jean's baby.]] Even leaving that aside, Apocalypse ''does'' have standards of behavior he holds himself to, such as keeping his word and respecting worthy opponents.
* OneManArmy: Case in point- in ancient times, even in his youth, he would sometimes take part in a battle and fight ''both'' sides, [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder even the side he was supposed to be on]], and he would ''win'', or at least he'd come out alive despite everyone trying to kill him. Keep in mind that this was ''before'' his Celestial-upgrade, so while he was still superpowered, he was not the invincible demigod he would later become. It goes without saying that ''since'' said upgrade, he more than qualifies for this trope.
* OneWingedAngel: During the final issues of ''X-Factor Forever'' he sprouts a pair of metallic wings ''very'' similar to those of Archangel, his most well-known Horseman. The times he's grown to a colossal size and become an AttackOfThe50FootWhatever may also count.
* OrcusOnHisThrone: Frequently accused of this, as with his power and age there really aren't very many good explanations as to why he's not already ruling the world ''ComicBook/AgeOfApocalypse''-style if that is truly his aim. The most common explanations are either that he has [[HiddenAgendaVillain another, deeper goal]] or that his hand is being stayed by some higher power (usually the Celestials).
* PathOfInspiration: He has claimed to have been worshiped by numerous civilizations over mankind's history, usually under a GodGuise. In the modern day he definitely has scattered cults of worshipers, among them, the survivors of the Skrull Empire after it was it was decimated by Galactus, and in the 90s animated series he had a Mayan cult that was led by Fabian Cortez.
* PetTheDog: He allows ComicBook/GenerationX member Chamber to leave his temple without a fight, and promises the boy that "Apocalypse protects his own" (Chamber is one of Apocalypse's many descendants, though he didn't know it at the time).
* PhysicalGod: Not that he gets to show it off often, but he is powerful enough to qualify, plus he is actually worshiped as a deity. He possesses virtually every physical superpower in some form, as well as a range of others, and is immortal and an absolute beast to kill.
* PoweredArmor: Ridiculously advanced armor no less, on a multi-millennia loan from some of the most powerful aliens in the universe.
* PoweredByAForsakenChild: When severely weakened he can drain the life force of others, and he also has power siphoning machines that allow for a more complete transfer.
* PsychicPowers: It's unclear if Nur has any actual psychic powers of his own (he's used [[MindOverMatter telekinesis]], though that could just be a function of his PoweredArmor) but at the very least his psychic defenses are formidable enough to make even the likes of Professor X think twice about trying to read his mind.
* PutOnABus:
** After the Celestials abducted him for reasons unknown. [[StatusQuoIsGod He returned sooner or later, of course]].
** And again after [[ComicBook/XOfSwords X of Swords]], where he's reunited with his wife daughter and decides to stay behind in Otherworld with them.
* QuirkyMinibossSquad: His Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, who are usually BrainwashedAndCrazy mutants (or superhumans, at least) under his control, and more than once brainwashed superheroes - making them even quirkier is the fact they're ReplacementGoldfish for [[spoiler: his children, the original Horsemen]]. Also, the Dark Riders and the Alliance of Evil, though the latter group was [[LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain buried like so much cat litter]] for being a little too ObviouslyEvil even by comic-book standards.
* [[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld Really 5000 Years Old]]: Born in the days of Ancient Egypt, Apocalypse is one of the oldest living non-supernatural beings on Earth.
* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Gives an epic one to ''ComicBook/{{Loki}}'' of all people, in what is definitely a crowning moment of awesome for the character:
--> '''Apocalypse:''' Your so-called [[CrisisCrossover Acts of Vengeance]] is already a failure. Remember, Loki, that Apocalypse is not one of your petty villains.
* SadistTeacher: This is more or less what he has remade himself into in the modern day - a crazy and ruthless "teacher" whose students are entire cultures and species. The biggest problem, of course, is that what he teaches is [[InsaneTrollLogic absolutely bonkers]] and tends to result in his "students" destroying each other, which he seems to find acceptable as long as they got "stronger" (ie. become merciless {{Blood Knight}}s) while doing it. One could get the feeling that he does everything he does because war and conflict and struggle [[EvilCannotComprehendGood are the only things that he is capable of understanding]]; thus, if people are not fighting and killing and dying all the time and everywhere, [[TautologicalTemplar obviously the world is wrong and he has to fix it.]]
** ''ComicBook/XOfSwords'' explains both this and his HeelFaceTurn (of sorts) in ''ComicBook/JonathanHickmansXMen'' - everything he's ever done is actually to prepare Earth for [[spoiler: the invasion of Amenthi demons, as per his first wife's last wish]].
* ScienceWizard: Apocalypse has been shown to be adept in various scientific fields such as engineering, biology and physics. He has also recently shown working knowledge of sorcery as adviser to a new incarnation of Excalibur.
* ShapeshifterBaggage: Can take any form regardless of size or shape. He almost never reduces himself to petty espionage, however, though he has occasionally taken human forms to better manipulate others or move about freely in society.
* ShapeshifterWeapon: Apocalypse can make anything from battering rams and saw blades to Energy Weapons from his arms.
* SizeShifter: This is a noticeable part of his shapeshifting powers, especially in the animated series. Usually he'll just settle for towering over his opponents, but on occasion he increases his size to such a degree that it becomes AttackOfThe50FootWhatever.
* TheSocialDarwinist: His whole schtick is culling the weak so that the strong survive. This extends to himself, as well; he has been entirely willing to die whenever he's been defeated due to his belief that his own failure makes him unworthy of life.
** Especially to his own descendants , who he made a point to never indulge or coddle: he made them fight to the death once they came of age in order to determine their individual rankings in the heirarchy of Clan Akkaba and he even punished them by culling one of their number (ironically usually those who physically resembled him the most) whenever they were forced to directly summon him for help in dealing with their problems , as he preferred that his own descendants be able to deal with their own problems without resorting to running to him for help.
*** This comes back to bite him in the ass big-time when [[spoiler:his own direct descendants (who by the late 19th Century have dwindled to just a dozen or so survivors in Victorian-era London after being massacred by THE Count Dracula himself) have finally gotten so sick and too tired and of his callous apathy to their plight, as well as the millenia of lifelong abuse from his own personal version of “Tiger Parenting” that they willingly defect to the other side by accepting Dracula’s offer for them to become vampires , and they then turn on their own actual ancestor, very nearly defeating him once and for all]]
* SomethingCompletelyDifferent: In ComicBook/DawnOfX, Apocalypse does an apparent HeelFaceTurn, joining the newer incarnation of Excalibur and on official occasions, ''[[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking wears a business suit]]''.
* StartOfDarkness: The ''Rise of Apocalypse'' mini, which reveals how he was abandoned at birth due to his obvious mutation, adopted by Baal, the chieftain of bloodthirsty nomadic raiders, was hunted by Rama-Tut/Kang the Conqueror who caused the death of his adoptive father, was enslaved by Rama Tut’s warlord Prince Ozymandias, rescued but was rejected by Princess Nephri, his younger sister and the girl he'd fallen in love with, was eventually executed by her older brother, literally rose from the dead to defeat his enemies, and eventually rose to power as an immortal conqueror himself.
* SuperEmpowering: In addition to Mr. Sinister, Apocalypse has also empowered most of his Horsemen, either giving them brand new powers or upgrading what was already there. This has even helped the X-Men on occasion (despite the brief episode of brainwashing), as he has restored Angel's wings, Wolverine's adamantium skeleton, and Sunfire's legs. Though it later turned out that Angel had a HealingFactor and his wings would have regrown naturally anyway, so it's for a given value of "help".
* SuperPrototype: Exodus was apparently his first attempt at empowering a herald, and by far his most powerful. Though Nur was able to contain his rebellion easily enough, it says something that none of his later minions, from Mr. Sinister to the Dark Riders, came anywhere close to Bennet Du Paris's level of sheer raw power.
* SuperpowerfulGenetics: The Clan Akkaba, entirely composed of his genetic descendants, often have powers. Presumably, following their cult to his beliefs, they subjugate (if not cull outright) any muggles. Most of them inherit his VoluntaryShapeshifting ability, especially his descendant Hamilton Slade, whose younger brother Frederick Slade meanwhile had natural pink hair coloration and teleportation ability (with the same sound effect even) of his distant great-something grand-daughter, Blink. Three known direct descendants have PlayingWithFire powers; Chamber/Jonathan Starsmore is a paychic semi-{{Energy Being|s}} half-contained in a physical human shell, his own distant great-something grandfather Jack Starsmore (a first cousin of the Slade brothers) can breath fire, and Apocalypse himself has a bastard son with his teenage horseman Autumn Rolfson, his most decent offspring and youngest child , William Rolfson , whose bionuclear microwave powers turned him into effectively a flaming skeleton (requiring a lifesupport suit of armor) upon hitting puberty.
* SuperStrength: He is easily Class 100, though he rarely demonstrates the full extent of his strength.
* SuperSupremacist: Kind of. He definitely considers mutants to be the MasterRace compared to humanity, whom he usually wants to totally eradicate. However, some mutants are more equal than others in his philosophy, since he only cares about [[TheSocialDarwinist literal survival of the fittest]]. Therefore, by his own logic the weaker mutants are to be destroyed by the more powerful mutants as well. And of course he considers himself to be [[UltimateLifeform the apex of evolution]].
* {{Technopath}}y: His PoweredArmor lets him interact with and take control of virtually any computer system that he wishes to.
* {{Teleportation}}: One of the abilities he has that's confirmed to be technological rather than biological in nature. He takes it to TeleportSpam levels when you fight him in ''VideoGame/XMenMutantApocalypse''.
* TinTyrant: He's ruled over people over the course of his long life and wears PoweredArmor.
* TouchedByVorlons: Apocalypse was granted much of his power by Celestial technology.
* TrainingFromHell: His entire childhood was basically this at the hands of his adoptive father Baal. He later subjects 12th century crusader Bennet du Paris to this as well, in order to awaken the crusader's latent mutant powers as Exodus.
* {{Troll}}: His appearance in the video game ''VideoGame/XMen2CloneWars'' consists of his intentionally deactivating his fortress's defenses and allowing the Phalanx to assimilate it, seemingly [[ForTheEvulz for no other reason than to annoy the X-Men]]. He also trolls them ''and'' the player in the boss fight against him, foregoing his usual BloodKnight attitude in favor of hovering out of reach for 75% of the fight and chucking mines down at them as they try to disable his disco computer. It really has to be [[http://www.vgmaps.com/Atlas/Genesis/X-Men2-CloneWars-Level5-Apocalypse.png seen to be believed]].
* TheUnfettered: During the Onslaught Saga he was the only one willing to go into WouldHurtAChild territory, reasoning that killing Franklin Richards was better than letting [[TheAssimilator Onslaught]] retain Franklin's RealityWarper powers.
* UsedToBeASweetKid: A young Genesis was sent back in time and actually befriended Apocalypse when he was a child. Genesis described him as being "kind, thoughtful and generous to a fault", a far cry from the megalomaniac that he became.
* UrbanLegends: Comic book urban legend has it that Apocalypse's dismissive attitude towards Loki during the ''Acts of Vengeance'' CrisisCrossover stemmed from writer Louise Simonson’s resentment at having to derail her book's plots for obligatory participation in the latest "next big event", leading to Apocalypse effectively giving Loki a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech and booting him out of the ''ComicBook/XFactor'' title altogether. Read more about it [[https://them0vieblog.com/2012/05/05/acts-of-vengeance-x-factor-apocalypse-vs-loki-reviewretrospective/ here]].
* TheVietnamVet: Abraham Kieros, one of his first modern Horsemen of War, was a quadripelegic Vietnam Veteran.
* VillainousLegacy: Being as old as he is, he has literally thousands of descendants around the world. He's also had at least one son in the present era modern day , William Rolfson (better known as Nemesis/Holocaust) and Cable's son Tyler also attached himself to his legacy when he became Genesis. He is also this for Kang the Conqueror; while Kang wasn't the only thing that made him go off the deep end, he was definitely the primary factor, and it is safe to say that without Kang's machinations, he likely would have never developed the ruthlessness that would mushroom into his trademark brutal megalomania.
* VillainousValour: Generally keeps his word and holds himself to his own beliefs, and treats his opponents with great respect. Given the sheer amount of hell he often puts them through, this tends to make them hate him even more.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: An incredibly powerful version of this trope, and one he effects through his MasterOfYourDomain ability. Celestial tech has amped it, but even before he acquired their technology he had the ability to duplicate physical superpowers through molecular manipulation. He's since used it to [[ShapeshifterWeapon morph his limbs into space-age weaponry]] and act as a highly-efficient HealingFactor that makes Wolverine's look tame, as well as [[SizeShifter alter his size]] (most prominent in the 90's cartoon) and occasionally just plain old impersonating people.
* WarIsGlorious: Firmly believes that conflict and struggle are what life is all about. He has started wars that have ended with the destruction of entire civilizations because he truly believes that peace is stagnation and leads only to weakness.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: En Sabah Nur's plans are horrific in scope and devastation, yet, DependingOnTheWriter he's not in it for the power. He genuinely buys his own sell about making the world a better place through ruthless Darwinism.
* TheWorfEffect:
** Subjected to this by Stryfe in the 90s ''X-Cutioner's Song'' story, but it was yet another case of WorfHadTheFlu.
** Despite being at the height of his powers, he was ''brutally'' put in his place by [[ComicBook/XMan Nate Grey]] in ''ComicBook/UncannyXMen2018'' and ''ComicBook/AgeOfXMan''. In the former case, he was used as a wall-decoration and occasional adviser whenever Nate thought he might have a decent idea. In the latter, he was nothing more than a brainwashed puppet, fulfilling the role of IneffectualSympatheticVillain in Nate's damaged utopia. When he postured during the conversion process, Nate cut him down to size with a single line. Since Nate is surpassed only by Franklin Richards and possibly Jim Jaspers at the very height of his power (and even then, it's questionable), there's AlwaysABiggerFish.
--->'''Nate Grey''': You forget. I was born to ''end'' the apocalypse.
* WorfHadTheFlu: Falls into this ''way'' too often. He is rarely depicted to be as powerful as he used to be and logically should be, and the most common justification for this is that his host body is weak and he is dependent on his regeneration chambers to survive (see TheManBehindTheCurtain).
* WorthyOpponent: The only reason he allows the X-Men to live is because he considers them among the strong.
* WouldHurtAChild: His solution to end the ComicBook/{{Onslaught}} crisis (and rid himself of a potential rival) was to kill Franklin Richards. Needless to say both Apocalypse's archenemy Cable and Franklin's mother [[MamaBear the]] ComicBook/InvisibleWoman put a stop to that.
* YouWillBeSpared: After THE Abraham Van Helsing himself personally saves him from being defeated through hypnosis by Count Dracula, Apocalypse foregoes his usual policy regarding humans and lets the man live.
----

!! Apocalyptic Tropes

* PutOnABus: After the Celestials abducted him for reasons unknown. [[StatusQuoIsGod He returned sooner or later, of course]].

Apocalypse is a Franchise/MarvelUniverse character created by writer Louise Simonson and artist Jackson Guice. He first appeared in ''ComicBook/XFactor'' vol. 1 #5 (May, 1986). He has since gone on to plague the Comicbook/XMen and other heroes. Born 5,000 years ago into a desert tribe in AncientEgypt who took one look at the blue skinned mutant and left the supposed abomination behind to die, the infant who would become Apocalypse was found by the leader of a band of desert raiders called Baal, who adopted the boy and named him "En Sabah Nur" -- "The First One", as he believed that the child was the first of a MasterRace of beings who would one day inherit the Earth[[note]]He was not actually the "first" mutant, as there were others who came before him -- Selene, notably, is over thrice as old at 17,000 years old[[/note]]. Baal raised En Sabah Nur and indoctrinated him into the brutal philosophy of his raiding band -- [[TheSocialDarwinist Survival of the Fittest]], and the idea that life is and should be a never ending struggle of the strong against the weak and each other to earn the right to live and prosper.

** His ''given'' name is translated as "The First One" - he and Selene both have very good claims as being the first mutants alive [[spoiler: It's revealed in [[ComicBook/XOfSwords 2020's]] [[BatFamilyCrossover Event]] that Selene was likely the First of the First Generation of Earth mutants (i.e. "Killcrops", whose powers are present from birth), being born around 17000 BC in what eventually became Central Europe, during the ''Hyborian Age''. Apocalypse, meanwhile, is confirmed to be the First, but of the Second Generation of Earth mutants (whose powers activate at puberty), being born just around 3000 BC in what is certainly Ancient Egypt, though Apocalypse has BOTH mutations from birth and activated at puberty]]. [[note]] "En Sabah Nur" actually translates into roughly "The Seven Lights." While not as meaningful, it does have a poetry to it. [[/note]].

** ''ComicBook/XOfSwords'' explains both this and his HeelFaceTurn (of sorts) in ''ComicBook/JonathanHickmansXMen'' - everything he's done is to prepare Earth for [[spoiler: the invasion of Amenthi demons, as per his wife's last wish]].