History: Bedridden by meningitis as a child, Basil Sandhurst's obsession with control became his downfall as a scientist when his refusal to obey ethical restraints had him barred from most research facilities. Disdainful of the supposedly "menial" work he was later assigned at Cordco, Sandhurst was subject to fits of rage, and in the course of calming him, his brother Vincent inadvertently triggered a laboratory explosion, scarring and crippling Basil. When the guilt-ridden Vincent outfitted him with an automated lab, Basil bonded a super-strong exoskeleton to his body, powered by cerebral energies from those around him. As the Controller, he planned to enslave New York, but Iron Man ended his scheme, leaving him comatose.

Institutionalized, the Controller recovered and seized control of hospital staff, only to fall before Iran Man again. Months later, he was released by the ruthless alien Thanos, who upgraded his technology. Promised rulership of Earth, the Controller enslaved dozens of operatives; but his egotistical displays endangered Thanos' security, and when the Controller failed to defeat Thanos' enemy Captain Marvel, the alien left him for dead. Reviving soon afterward, the Controller again fought Iron Man and was again defeated.

The Controller went underground for years, upgrading via stolen Stark technology from Justin Hammer, and eventually enslaving a "cult" of Californians. However, Iron Man vanquished him once more, burning out the exoskeleton's Stark components. Sentenced to the Vault, where he joined Crossfire's crew, the Controller soon escaped, only to be captured by the Red Skill, who controlled the Controller via the mesmerizing Voice. Defeated by Captain America, the Controller escaped and briefly helped from the Inner Circle for the New Enforcers, but his exoskeleton's systems broke down from Iron Man's earlier attack. Undaunted, the Controller lived multiple vicarious lives via both human pawns and mutated cyborgs, but he overreached himself by enslaving telepath Sarah Jessup, whose psionic power overloaded while he fought Iron Man, and he was left comatose once more.

Revived by the world-conquering Master, the Controller became the Master's pawn against the Avengers and Heroes for Hire. Abandoned after a later defeat, the Controller, in an ironic nod to his many hospitalizations, acquired his own clinic, where he influenced the wealthy to do his bidding. However, the Controller could not resist enslaving Tony Stark as well, leading to his latest defeat by Iron Man. Remanded to the Raft, the Controller escaped with dozens of others but was recaptured during a clash with the U-Foes and Avengers.

Height: 6' 2"
Eyes: White, formerly black
Weight: 565 lbs.
Hair: Black

Abilities: The Controller wears an exoskeleton that grants him mobility, as well as superhuman strength (lifting 1000 pounds) and endurance. He uses "slave discs" to control others, up to several dozen at a time, draining cerebral energy to magnify his exoskeleton's strength (to lift up to 50 tons and possibly more) and duplicated his victims' abilities. He can psionically control "weak-willed" subjects even without his discs. He flies via boot-jets and has employed image inducers, stun mists, and other technology as needed.

User notes: Iron Man: "A classic case of genius undermining itself, Sandhurst was a borderline sociopath before his accident. Now he sees others as no more than tools, batteries, badges of his supposed greatness. I'm genuinely amazed that he retains enough social skills to be a member of a team. But the Controller's greatest weakness is what controls him: ego. No matter how much power he has, it's never enough, he overreaches himself ever time. He can't just win, he has to win gloriously. And, so far, there's always been someone there to catch him at that moment of weakness between wanting and having. So far..."