Gerald Shilling

**Gerald Shilling** is a fictional character and villain in comic books published by the American company DC Comics. He first appeared in *Tomahawk* #28 (November 1954), but his first appearance in *Swamp Thing* comics was in *Swamp Thing* Vol. 2, #86 (May 1989). He was created by Fred Ray.

## History

Gerald Shilling was a British noble in service to the crown during the American Revolutionary War.

A master of disguise, Shilling was continually able to gather top-secret information for the British by spying on American leaders. Upon completing a mission, he would mockingly leave behind his trademark: a shilling with a hole through its center. Lord Shilling often found himself at odds with the heroic frontier fighter Tomahawk.

In 1770, Lord Shilling aligned himself with Vandal Savage and the Illuminati. He played a pivotal role in a failed conspiracy aimed at assassinating American general George Washington. Shilling's nemesis Tomahawk, as well as his close ally Dan Hunter rescued General Washington from the Illuminati.

In December of 1799, Lord Shilling met an occultist named Jason Blood who told him about a mystical piece of amber containing the spirit of an Earth elemental. Shilling agreed to procure this item for Blood, but also used this as an opportunity to get revenge on his old foe Tomahawk.

Disguising himself as Tomahawk, Shilling made an appearance at a town hall in Gotham Town to ring in the New Year. He hired several actors to play the parts of Dan Hunter and Miss Liberty at a New Year's exposition. Present in the audience was the real Tomahawk, who had fallen upon hard times and was now a drunkard. Tomahawk accused the players of perpetuating a fraud and rushed the stage. During the scuffle, Lord Shilling exited the building and ran out into the street. Knowing that Tomahawk would pursue him, he quickly disguised himself as one of Tomahawk's close allies, Stovepipe.

At this point in time, Tomahawk and the real Stovepipe were tax collectors for Gotham Town. Shilling found the inebriated Tomahawk that they needed to collect taxes from the *Transvaal Trader* before it left port. The *Transvaal Trader* was also the ship carrying Shilling's employer, Jason Blood.

Through the evening, Tomahawk acquired the coveted amber crystal from an Apache woman named Moon Fawn. After conducting business with Blood, Shilling returned to Tomahawk's boat, but by this point, Tomahawk had sobered up enough that he could see through Shilling's disguise. The two fought one another, and during the fight, the essence of the Earth elemental trapped in the amber used its powers to dash their boat along the embankment. Shilling and Tomahawk continued to fight one another on dry land, and they fell through a chasm into an immense bat-filled batcave. During the struggle, Tomahawk lost the amber fragment and it fell into a pool of molten liquid. Shilling reached his hand into the liquid to retrieve it, but upon doing so, the amber was fused to his hand, mummifying the entirety of his arm. Tomahawk tore the desiccated limb free from its socket and left Lord Shilling for dead. Shilling survived the debacle, but his severed arm and its amber accoutrement became a mystical artifact called the Claw of Aelkhünd.

Little is known of Lord Shilling following this event, but it is known that he lived at least long enough to write his memoirs recounting his battles with Tomahawk.

## Powers and Abilities

### Abilities

* **Charisma**
* **Diplomacy**
* **Disguise**
* **Espionage**
* **Military Protocol**
* **Swordsmanship**

## Paraphernalia

### Equipment

* **Claw of Aelkhünd**: Also known as the Claw of Elk Hound, this was a piece of amber housing the spirit of the Earth elemental, Alec Holland. The fragment was fused to Shilling's hand, causing the rest of his arm to dry out and rot away. The amber, in addition to the desiccated arm, became known throughout the mystical community as the Claw of Aelkhünd.

## Notes

* The Hood was revealed to be Lady Shilling in "Vengeance of the Devil-Dogs".