Who the Clix? Klaw

Who the Clix? is a series of articles featuring information on comic book characters that have been made into figures for the popular tabletop game Heroclix. These articles are meant to help Heroclix players learn more about the characters behind their favorite pieces.

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Appearances in Heroclix: Fantastic Four, Wizkids Marvel, Avengers/Defenders War, Captain America, Infinity Challenge
First Appearance: The Fantastic Four #53
Team Affiliantions: Frightful Four, Masters of Evil, A.I.M., Lethal Legion
Created by: Jack Kirby and Stan Lee

Colonel Fritz Kalue is personally sent to Wakanda by Adolf Hitler to learn the nation's secrets. After World War II he returns to his native Belgium and changes his surname to Klaw. He raises his son Ulysses Klaw with tales of the wonderous Wakanda.

Ulysses grows up to become a pysicist and works in the field of applied sonics. Feeling he is on the verge of a breakthrough of a sound transducer, he steals vibranium to power the device. While stealing the rare ore from Wakanda, King T'Chaka attacks Ulysses to try and save his nation's natural resource. Klaw murders T'Chaka in front of his young son T'Challa. T'Challa tries to avenge his father but is only able to take Klaw's right hand.

Years later, Klaw has succeeded in his design and wears the transducer on his right wrist. This device allows him to transform sound waves into mass and he is able to eventually transform himself into a being of pure sound mass, thus becoming immortal. With these devices, he becomes a professional criminal and battles the Black Panther, T'Challa, as well as the Fantastic Four.

Klaw joins the second Masters of Evil and helps them battle the Avengers, only to be defeated by Black Panther again. He tries to reform the team only to be defeated by the Lady Liberators. Klaw later journeys back to Wakanda to steal a device that can destroy vibranium only to be stopped by the Thing, Human Torch and Black Panther. After this Klaw, alongside Solarr, traps the Avengers with Klaw demanding the throne of Wakanda in exchange for their freedom. Black Panther is ultimately able to out smart and defeat the villain again.

Klaw goes on to ally himself with a race of aliens in an attempted alien invasion. The invasion is foiled by Ka-Zar and Klaw is unable to even pilfer any of the alien tech. Klaw goes on to help the Molecule Man be born again only for the pair to be defeated by the Impossible Man. Soon after this, Klaw's power begins to wane and after a series of unsuccessful schemes, his physical body is destroy and his sound form is blasted into space.

During the Beyonder's Secret Wars, Doom is able to collect Klaw's sound form and resurrect him. Unfortunately, all of this has driven Klaw quite insane. While Klaw is able to help Doom temporarily become a god, the Beyonder is able to use the villain to trick Doom into giving up these new powers before the pair are teleported back to Earth. Klaw slowly regains his mental faculties while on Earth and joins a new incarnation of the Frightful Four, kidnapped and pressed into service by A.I.M., and recruited by the Pacific Overlords. In the latter event, Klaw actually turns against the villains and aids the West Coast Avengers.

During a breakout of a “vibranium cancer,” Klaw travels to Wakanda in an attempt to become much stronger. However, his ensuing battle with Captain America actually ends up destroying the cancer and leaving Klaw the same as before. Klaw returns to the Frightful Four several times after this, including uploading his consciousness to the internet only to be downloaded by the Wizard.

Klaw aids the Wizard in attempting to capture and control the Carnage symbiote, which at the time is using Cletus Kasady's lobotomized body like a puppet. With Klaw's help, Wizard is able to separate the symbiote by Cletus' body and bond it to Karl Malus before taking control of the new “Superior” Carnage's mind. The Frightful Foundation attacks New York City Hall and battles Superior Spider-Man wherein Wizard loses control of Carnage. The Superior Carnage then stabs Klaw with a vibranium spear which detonates the villain. The sonic blast separates the symbiote from Malus and it then latches onto Wizard. It quickly abandons Wizard when it sees Kasady, whom Superior Spider-Man had brought to the battle. Carnage is about to kill Wizard when a bolt of lightning strikes him and incapacitates both the symbiote and Kasady even as it separates them. Klaw, who had reached the “sound wall” of the universe due to his detonation was able to save his old ally by creating that bolt. Even as he feels himself being absorbed by the wall, he realizes that act of kindness may be his last.