Anthony Edward "Tony" Stark[9] was a billionaire industrialist, a founding member of the Avengers, and the former CEO of Stark Industries. A brash but brilliant inventor, Stark was self-described as a genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist. With his great wealth and exceptional technical knowledge, Stark was one of the world's most powerful men following the deaths of his parents and enjoyed the playboy lifestyle for many years until he was kidnapped by the Ten Rings in Afghanistan, while demonstrating a fleet of Jericho missiles. With his life on the line, Stark created an armored suit which he used to escape his captors. Upon returning home, he utilized several more armors to use against terrorists, as well as Obadiah Stane who turned against Stark. Following his fight against Stane, Stark publicly revealed himself as Iron Man.

Fresh off from defeating enemies all over the world, Stark found himself dying due to his own Arc Reactor poisoning his body, all while he was challenged by Ivan Vanko who attempted to destroy his legacy. After the Stark Expo incident, Stark reluctantly agreed to serve as a consultant for S.H.I.E.L.D. where he used his position to upgrade their technology while he began a relationship with Pepper Potts. With the world yet again being threatened, Stark joined the Avengers and helped defeat the Chitauri and Loki. Due to the battle, he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, leading him to create the Iron Legion to safeguard the world and help him retire.

The 2013 "Mandarin" terrorist attacks forced Stark to come out of retirement to protect his country, inadvertently putting his loved ones at risk and leaving him defenseless when his home was destroyed. Stark continued his mission, finding Aldrich Killian as the mastermind of the attacks. Eventually, Stark defeated Killian, and was prompted to destroy all of his armors with the Clean Slate Protocol after almost losing Potts. However, when the Avengers were officially demobilized due to the War on HYDRA, Stark built more armors and resumed his role as Iron Man, aiding them in the capture of Baron Strucker and acquiring Loki's Scepter.