William Stryker

[Source]

"*I am set upon a righteous course, Anne. Nothing, and no one will deter me from it!*"
―William Stryker[src]
**William Stryker** was an anti-mutant religious extremist and a former U.S. soldier connected to Weapon X.

After learning his child was a mutant he murdered his family and became a religious zealot and founder of the Purifiers, whose sole mission is to exterminate all mutants.

## Biography

### Early life

William Stryker was born on May 14, 1948 in Des Moines, Iowa, though his family later relocated and was brought up in Westchester County, New York. He was raised Episcopalian. In his younger days, Stryker joined and left many rock and roll bands as a guitar player.

After graduating from Amhearst College, Stryker enlisted in the U.S. military where he became a Sergeant. It was hinted that he may have been involved in the Weapon X program at one point. After his tour, Stryker and his wife decided to visit her parents, in Phoenix, Arizona, but a car crash left them in the Nevada Desert.

Marcy went into labor and Stryker was forced to deliver the baby himself. At birth, the child was physically mutated and Stryker, believing it was a monster, stabbed the newborn. When his wife woke from unconsciousness and asked if the baby was okay, Stryker simply hugged her and then snapped her neck. Horrified at his actions, Stryker noticed that the car was leaking gasoline and placed his family back in the car, sat in the driver's seat, and lit a match. The car exploded, but he was thrown from the car and spared from death. After the funeral, Stryker turned to the bottle and was ultimately honorably discharged, after his drinking caused him to lash out at his trainees.

### Founding the Church of Humanity and the Purifiers

"*The evil... the sin... was Marcy's not mine. She was the vessel used by God to reveal unto me Satan's most insidious plot against humanity... to corrupt us through our children while they were still in the womb. The Lord created man and woman in his image, blessed with his grace. Mutants broke that sacred mold. They were creations, not of God, but of the devil. And I had been chosen to lead the fight against them.*"
―William Stryker[src]
After hitting rock bottom, years after the accident, Stryker was reading a news article, written by Professor Charles Xavier and realized that his child was a mutant. Styker became convinced that Satan had a plot to corrupt humankind, by taking over their souls while still in the womb, resulting in their mutations. Stryker further concluded that the only reason God would have allowed his son to be a mutant was to direct him to his true calling: ridding the world of mutants. That day, Stryker came to the realization that he was saved from the explosion to do God’s work, in destroying all the monsters that Satan created: the mutants.

His suicide attempt failed and he concluded that God must have prevented him from taking his own life so that he could serve God on Earth. Stryker then had what some may call an epiphany regarding his role and purpose in the world. Stryker's believed that God wanted him to lead the war against all mutants.

Over the next few years, William Stryker became a Christian and the controversial preacher and founder of The Church Of Humanity in order to spread his hatred of mutants. He also founded a secret paramilitary group called the Purifiers which carried out violent acts against the mutant population.

## Personality and traits

"*My name is William Stryker, and I am not a monster. I am simply a loyal servant of God.*"
―William Stryker[src]½

## Appearances

Template:Imagecat (Purifiers)
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