NOTE: This article is about the mainstream version of Arclight. The incarnation from the X-Men Cinematic film series can be found here: Arclight (X-Men: The Last Stand).
Arclight is a recurring antagonist of the X-Men comic series. She is a member of the Marauders where she used her shock wave powers to lead them and went against the X-Men.
Powers and Abilities
Arclight's mutant ability enables her to create shock waves through physical contact, usually combined with her super strength in form of punches. The light that is produced when she claps her hand is a side-affect of her powers.
She can direct a wave of seismic energy by striking a victim with her hands or feet. This typically creates a massive shock wave damaging or disorientating all within line-of-fire and shatter objects. Arclight has a sense of superhuman strength allowing her to lift approximately a limit of 50 tons. She was trained in the covert Ops granting her the knowledge and the experience in hand to hand combat and various weapons.
Comic Book History
Origins
Before joining the Marauders, Philippa Sontag once served in the military's special forces during the war in Vietnam. The traumatic experiences there led to her powers awakening enabling her to create shock waves through physical contact and she became a body builder. She used her deadly skills in combat and joined the Marauders in what would be a deadly attack on the under-dwelling Morlocks' community. She became second in command of the team behind Scalphunter during their first attack where she killed dozens of Morlocks. She later joined Superia's Femizons female based team.
Though the details of her recruitment by Mister Sinister to the Marauders remain unrevealed, she has participated in all of the Marauders' major operations. Due to Mr. Sinister cloning its unclear if she is the original or a clone.
M-Day
After the events of M-Day, Arclight became a resident at the X-Mansion and was one of the few mutants that still retained their powers. She eventually left the Mansion and became a member of the New Marauders alongside her fellow partner Scalphunter and newcomers Lady Mastermind and Sunfire. She later appeared as a seemingly mindless slave that attacked the X-Men. During this, Arclight was seemingly killed.
Movie History
Arclight appeared as a supporting antagonist in the 2006 film X-Men: The Last Stand, where she is portrayed as a member of the Omega Gang. Upon hearing the news of a mutant cure being developed, Arclight and the other Omegas allied with the Brotherhood of Mutants (led by Magneto) to track down and kill the mutant boy Leech (whose powers act as the source of the cure). Following the battle between the X-Men and the Brotherhood, Arclight was killed along with Quill and Psylocke on Alcatraz Island by Dark Phoenix's disintegration wave.
