'X of Swords': Ten mutants we are absolutely dying to see pick up a legendary blade in Marvel event
Marvel's upcoming 'X of Swords' event has got everyone talking, especially with the release of Mark Brooks' explosive promotional image featuring multiple X-Men — and a certain x-traneous British superhero — all wielding unique swords. Some of these swords are deeply rooted in Marvel history, while others appear to have been created just for the promotion. According to what we know of the 15-part crossover event so far, ten X-Men will be wielding ten legendary swords from around the Marvel Universe, against an unknown threat.
While the promo seems to imply that EVERY X-Man will be getting their own, wholly unique blade, the event will probably center on ten main ones, and the mutants who wield them. We take a look at the mutants we most want to see bearing blades this July.
10. Wolverine
Wolverine may not be a part of the Quiet Council, but he's a vital part of the X-Men nonetheless. He's died for mutantkind more than once, and he will always be at the forefront of keeping the mutants of Krakoa safe. He's seen wielding the Muramasa blade, containing a piece of his soul. Though giving a man with indestructible claws a sword might seem redundant, the Muramasa blade has deep ties to his history, and there's no better blade for him to be wielding.
9. Gorgon
Gorgon is a no-brainer when it comes to this event. He's already borne two legendary blades — the Godkiller and the Grasscutter. While both have gone missing, he is still proficient with just about any blade he can find. A trained samurai, and the head of Krakoa's military, there's no one better suited to cut through the X-Men's mysterious threat.
8. Magneto
The reasoning on this is simple. Swords, generally speaking, are made of metal. Magneto controls metal. As one of the heads of the new mutant state, and an important member of the Quiet Council, Magneto should be at the front and center of this event. What's more, he could wield all ten swords himself — without literally lifting a finger to do it.
7. Psylocke
Another of Krakoa's most competent wielders of the sword, the promo sees her with not just one sword, but two. Kwannon is a trained assassin who has been searching for purpose ever since her body was returned to her, split from Betsy Braddock. She was most recently featured in 'Fallen Angels,' where she went up against an actual god. With an ordinary sword, she's one of the most dangerous people on the island. There's no telling what she can do with a more legendary one.
6. Captain Britain
Betsy Braddock has her body back, and with it, a significant step up in power and status. She's the new Captain Britain, and though her brother wields the legendary Sword of Might (and is the only non-mutant featured in the promotional art), her new status comes with some interesting problems. As a mutant, and as Britain's protector, she's very much caught between two nations. Her blade has so far just been the focused totality of her psychic powers, but it still packs quite a punch - and with the Otherworldly magic now infusing her, it might be able to do even more.
5. Forge
He's going to take a sword that is also a gun and will probably do a lot of other weird and amazing things. What more needs to be said?
4. Magik
When it comes to swords steeped in X-Men lore, you don't get more iconic than Ilyana Rasputin's Soulsword. A piece of her soul, representative of her slow descent into corruption, it has been the center of a great many classic X-Men stories — most notably, playing a significant role in 'Inferno.' Magik is in charge of security on Krakoa, and any threat that faces mutantkind is her job to fight back.
3. Cypher
As the Krakoan translator, and creator of the new mutant language, Douglas Ramsey's importance to the new mutant status quo cannot be understated. While his powers of translation have never made him much inclined towards action, the promotional art sees him with a blade made from the same techno-organic material that has made up his arm. The techno-organic material has been teased to have greater ramifications, and may even be the embodiment of Warlock himself.
2. Charles Xavier
Another mutant not known for his sword-fighting abilities, Charles Xavier still wields the most important sword Krakoa has — the Cerebro sword. It's made of the broken pieces of Cerebro that was smashed when Xavier was killed, and forged by Magneto into a sword that is meant to remind Xavier of the threat hanging over mutantkind's head. Inside the sword is the mental backup of every mutant in existence. Xavier sleeps with it over his bed, the point hanging over his head like the sword of Damocles. He does not sleep well.
1. Nightcrawler
If the 'X of Swords' event was created for anyone, it's Nightcrawler. The most swashbuckling hero of all the X-Men, he wields swords with grace, precision, and above all, style. That's not the only reason why he's going to be the one to watch out for in this event, however. 'X of Swords' is a tarot card, representing great disaster — or, if it's upside down, resurrection. Both are things that have been central to Krakoa, and which have inspired Nightcrawler to start his new religion. He's also got a connection to the Krakoan Tower, which on the Tarot cards featured in 'Powers of X' #1 also foretell of an impending doom. Whether it's faith, whether its swords, whether it's destiny, the future of mutantkind seems to lie in Kurt's three-fingered hands.
Honorable mention: Eye Boy
If the promotional art is to be believed, he wields a sword with giant eyeballs on it, and that's something we think everyone wants to see.
What mutant swordsmen do you want to see most? Let us know in the comments!
