Pre-Crisis Lex Luthor vs 616 Marvel Earth

[Shai-Hulud]

Pre-Crisis Lex Luthor arrives on Marvel Earth with only the clothes on his back and $1 million dollars cash. His goal is to take over the world. How does he do?

Special conditions: Lex can't use magic nor can any spell-using characters be part of the scenario.

[Pendaran]

Special conditions: Lex can't use magic nor can any spell-using characters be part of the scenario.

Qualifiers like these as far as eliminating thereby a whole bunch of obstacles for the guy tend to answer your own question of if he could otherwise.

[Shai-Hulud]

Qualifiers like these as far as eliminating thereby a whole bunch of obstacles for the guy tend to answer your own question of if he could otherwise.

Do you think Lex has a kind of slam-dunk without the spell-casters?

My thought was that against the likes of Doctor Strange he had no chance, therefore uninteresting.

But opposing Reed, Tony, Mandarin, Xavier, Magneto and the like might make for an interesting contest, especially if Lex is unknown until he moves.

[Powerboy]

Pre-Crisis Lex Luthor arrives on Marvel Earth with only the clothes on his back and $1 million dollars cash. His goal is to take over the world. How does he do?

Special conditions: Lex can't use magic nor can any spell-using characters be part of the scenario.

The problem right there is that his main adversary in the "Taking over the world" competition is disqualified. I refer to Dr. Doom, of course.

I suspect that, even without magic, Doom is very serious competition. Did Pre-Crisis Luthor invent the armor he used or was it given to him?

At any rate, I don't think Luthor ever succeeds in taking over the world. If he does, it doesn't last long. But he certainly becomes a major player.

[MichaelC]

Do you think Lex has a kind of slam-dunk without the spell-casters?

My thought was that against the likes of Doctor Strange he had no chance, therefore uninteresting.

But opposing Reed, Tony, Mandarin, Xavier, Magneto and the like might make for an interesting contest, especially if Lex is unknown until he moves.

Mandarin does have some ritual magic, plus chi-mysticism, so I'm not sure if he would be allowed.

[Shai-Hulud]

Mandarin does have some ritual magic, plus chi-mysticism, so I'm not sure if he would be allowed.

Mandarin is a sorcerer now? I didn't know.

Martial arts and chi stuff is all good. Just no spell-casting.

Consider the OP to refer to the "regular" or "major" spell-casters like Strange, Doom, Magick, Mordo and Agatha Harkness.

If a character has some minor incidents of dabbling, they can be in, just no spells. I know Reed did some dabbling (his magic words were "I'm an idiot" or something similar if I recall correctly), but Reed's in despite that.

I should've had two scenarios, one where anything goes, and one where magic is simply turned off. Whatevs....

[MichaelC]

Not a true sorcerer, just some ritual stuff to enhance his tech that gets mentioned once in a blue moon.

[Shai-Hulud]

Not a true sorcerer, just some ritual stuff to enhance his tech that gets mentioned once in a blue moon.

Yeah, Mandy is in.

It's not necessary to do too much hair-splitting. The point was to give Lex a fighting chance in a world where souls can be ripped and Shuma-Gorath can be summoned to munch on people, and so far as I know, the guy's got nothing going against that stuff.

I'm not looking to bust a nut over the magic thing. Talk about whatever is most interesting in the situation.

[rhyvurg]

I was about to say Lex could "take over" politically and not have to worry about the vast majority of characters that might otherwise stop him, but that wasn't generally PC Lex's shtick. It's odd to say, but I feel like Lex is actually at somewhat of a disadvantage due to his experience with superhumans. He's simply not used to dealing with Superman level beings who have no exploitable weaknesses. He might find a way to drain Hulk's gamma (though that's a 12-hour solution at most now) or figure out how to get some argonite for Hyperion, but characters like Thor & Blue Marvel have no weakness tricks to exploit

[theoneandonly]

thor did have his sixty seconds limit for a weakness though it depends on lex gaining knowledge about it somehow and being able to separate him from it for the said time limit. brashear could be brought down if luthor is successful in draining his energies like brashear was able to do with anti man.

[The Watcher]

Will he be pleased that an entire race of cosmic beings share his look?

[Powerboy]

Will he be pleased that an entire race of cosmic beings share his look?

He will immediately decide it's because they worship him.

[Shai-Hulud]

Will he be pleased that an entire race of cosmic beings share his look?

No, he will conclude the Watchers cosmically made themselves bald in order to mock him. In fact, Lex might forget all about ruling earth and obsess with destroying them. Best stay invisible.

[rhyvurg]

thor did have his sixty seconds limit for a weakness though it depends on lex gaining knowledge about it somehow and being able to separate him from it for the said time limit. brashear could be brought down if luthor is successful in draining his energies like brashear was able to do with anti man.

He used to, but this is modern Thor, not Silver Age. I'll give you the other one though, Lex might figure that one out.

[theoneandonly]

He used to, but this is modern Thor, not Silver Age. I'll give you the other one though, Lex might figure that one out.

if it's the modern thor then he is a goner as the current version is the unworthy odinson.