Richard Rider

Robbie Rider (Brother)

Secret Avengers (Former Member)

Valkyrior (Ally)

New Warriors (Ally / Former Member)

## Background

### 1984 - 2002: Richard Rider

Richard Rider is the first son of high school principal, Charles Rider & 911 dispatch operator, Gloria Rider. A couple of years after Richard, his parents had a second son named Robert. Though Richard had always been insecure about Robbie being smarter than he was, Robbie always looked up to his big brother. Their dad was a good father but extremely strict. He never wanted Rich to grow up to be a delinquent & came down hard on him when he had fights with school bully Mike Burley.

Richard grew up to become your average teenager. He wasn't the class clown, neither the wallflower, nor the cool kid. He went to high school, had girl troubles & tried to help out his parents with his younger brother when he was at home. All seemed to go their normal way for the young Richard until he came into contact with the Nova Corps. The Nova Corps was a peace-keeping force that was based on the planet Xandar. When Rhomann Dey, the Nova Prime, was dying he fled through the universe & went to Earth. He chose Richard to receive his powers & gave him the Nova Force.

The sudden infusion of power overloaded Rider's body & he was hospitalized. While Rider was comatose, the moribund Rhomann Dey explained to him that he was to use his powers for the good of Earth & the universe. Just as sudden as he was incapacitated, Rider was miraculously recovered as the doctors said. Discharged, he tried to resume his normal routine.

The next day, Rider discovered that he now possessed super strength, near invulnerability, flight & a uniform with a sealed life-support system. Indeed, he barely had the opportunity to test out these powers before radio circuitry contained in his uniform's helmet alerted him to Nova's enemy Zorr, who was on a rampage in the heart of New York City. Rider was able to locate Zorr & engage him in combats, although he was unable to seriously wound him. Using a telepathic link, Dey was able to teleport Zorr aboard his Nova-Ship & disintegrate Zorr, but was also destroyed himself in the process.

### 2002 - 2004: Nova

Having taken on the mantle of Nova, Rider was enamored with his newfound abilities but has no idea as to how he was supposed to use them. Despite this, he took up the life of a superhero & fought costumed enemies in New York as he gradually learned how to use his new powers.

Eventually, his life of constant intergalactic war was beginning to become tiresome. Hoping to rejoin his friends, Richard Rider requested to return to his normal life. When he was told he had to relinquish his powers in order to do so, to which Rider agreed. He began working in a fast-food restaurant kitchen but was barely able to make any money. He spent his time trying to pick up the pieces of the life he had left behind, all the while wishing he could find a way to regain the powers he lost.

Depressed by the loss of his powers, he dropped out of college & began working odd jobs in order make ends meet. While returning home one day, he was kidnapped Night Thrasher, who promptly dropped him from the top of a building. As he plunged towards the ground, his powers were reactivated & he flew up. With his powers back, Rider attacked Night Thrasher but was quickly subdued. Night Thrasher explained that It after analyzing Rider & his abilities, he concluded that if he could induce a high adrenaline rush, he could reactivate his powers. After Rider calmed down from his initial rage, Night Thrasher explains he is building a superhero team & wanted him to join. Rider agreed, becoming a valuable asset for the New Warriors.

### 2004 - 2005: Nova Prime

Again dubbed Nova by the media after the Warriors' debut, Rider worked harder to regain the respect of the public after his absence. Nova divided his time with the New Warriors, working solo & occasionally being called into space by the Nova Corps. In an encounter with Supernova, Rider used the full power of the Nova Force to help restore Xandar & its population through the planetary cloning banks that the Worldmind controlled. Although his powers were increased, Rider was reduced to being one of many personnel of the Nova Corps. With Xandar now under the protection of the Shi'ar Empire, Nova had superiors to whom he had to answer as a Corpsman.

While working with the New Warriors, Rider also began a flirtatious relationship with his teammate Namorita but they did not move beyond friendly squabbling in the first few months. In time, Rider had achieved the respect he craved. The rapport between him & Namorita eventually bloomed into a romantic relationship, although a somewhat strained one at that. When Nita underwent a change, turning into the blue-skinned Kymaera, Rider was there for her, not caring about her change in appearance. Though they continued their relationship, it eventually fell apart. Nita, undergoing another change in appearance/powers, needed Rider's support but he turned away because of his own personal problems.

Nova began having difficulty in maintaining his duties to different teams & his recent break up didn't help so he decided to join the Corps full time. When most of the Nova Corps & Xandar had been destroyed by the Annihilation Wave, Rider gained the Worldmind & the full power of the Nova Force. However, he found himself reluctant to utilize it. After attempting a one man assault on the Wave, he became greatly injured & crash landed on an unknown planet where he met Drax. He helped Nova get to safety & offered to assist him in controlling his power.In an effort to buy more time for the planet's evacuation from the Wave, Nova, Drax & Quasar punched through the Wave to meet Annihilus on his own command ship. In the ensuing battle, Quasar was killed & Rider was forced to flee with Drax.

To oppose the Annihilation Wave, Rider & the infamous outlaw Star-Lord formed an army called the United Front. His land-based army included Drax, his new lover Gamora, Mantis, Rocket Raccoon, Groot & Adam Warlock, while the outer-space forces consisted primarily of Phyla-Vell, Red Shift & Stardust. The United Front fought valiantly, holding off the wave as best they could & gaining small victories.

After months of fighting, Nova finally confronted Annihilus with Star-Lord & Phyla-Vel. Using the quantum bands, Annihilus proved to be too much for them until the the bands joined with Phyla-Vell. Annihilus fought on but Nova forced his hand down Annihilus' throat & tore out his entrails. With the war over, Annihilus' forces were destroyed & treaties were signed. Rider & the Worldmind went to maintain the duties of the Nova Corps by himself but he found himself overwhelmed by his sense of duty. Trying something new, he helped Star-Lord to start the Guardians of the Galaxy.

## Romantic Relationships

* Namorita: Girlfriend (2004)
* Gamora: On & Off (2005 - 2009)

## Powers & Abilities

* **Nova Force:** Richard Rider is the host of the Nova Force, a vast energy source that he can access to grant himself a number of superhuman attributes.
	+ ***Superhuman Strength*:** Rider is able to channel the Nova Force for the purpose of increasing his physical strength to vast levels. He has stated that his best shot can destroy everything within 3 miles. He was even capable of going blow for blow with the likes of Annihilus himself in combat & was even able to literally tear Annihilus inside out.
	+ ***Superhuman Speed*:** He can grant himself the ability to move at speeds that are beyond the physical limits of the finest human athlete. While the upper limit of his running speed is not known, he can at least run several hundred miles an hour.
	+ ***Superhuman Stamina*:** His muscles produce considerably less fatigue toxins during physical activity than the musculature of a normal human. He is able to exert himself physically for at least 24 hours before fatigue toxins impair him.
	+ ***Superhuman Accuracy*:** Nova can shoot beams of energy with an accuracy of millimeters.
	+ ***Superhuman Durability*:** Rider's body is highly resistant to all forms of conventional physical injury. He can withstand high caliber bullets, falls from tremendous heights, exposure to extremes in both temperature & pressure, powerful energy blasts, acidic corrosives & tremendous impact forces without sustaining injury. While employing the Nova Force, Rider can easily withstand the rigors of deep space indefinitely.
	+ ***Superhuman Agility*:** His agility, balance & bodily coordination are enhanced to levels that are far beyond the physical limits of the finest human athlete.
	+ ***Superhuman Reflexes*:** His reflexes are far superior to those of the finest human athlete.
	+ ***Regenerative Healing*:** In spite of his great physical resilience, it is possible for him to sustain injury. When injured, he can purposely channel the Nova Force to rapidly heal damaged bodily tissues. However, the Nova Force cannot regenerate lost limbs.
	+ ***Flight*:** Rider can propel himself through the air at tremendous speeds. Nova is fully capable of achieving faster than light velocities & can enter & traverse hyperspace, which he often does while traveling through space. However, moving as such speeds would cause mass devastation so he travels much slower while within a planetary atmosphere.
	+ ***Energy Generation*:** Nova can expel the energy in the form of extremely powerful concussive blasts that he often uses in combat situations.
* **Hand to Hand Combat:** Rider is a formidable combatant, though he is naturally more comfortable at using the Nova Force's energy generating capabilities during combat.
* **Nova Corps Uniform:** The material of the uniform helps to contain & regulate some of Rider's powers by siphoning some of the energies of the Nova Force. The uniform also contains inhibitors that can manipulate various hormones in Rider's brain for the purpose of moderating his moods as needed. The uniform also has self-repairing capabilities, allowing it to seal rips & tears on its own. Rider can also alter the appearance & nature of his uniform to suit his needs.
* **Nova Corps Helmet:** The helmet contains radio circuitry enabling Nova to pick up radio transmissions, monitor transmissions, telescopic sights, night vision sensors, heat imaging sensors & overlay a visual heads-up display for tracking energy signatures. It also contains a synaptic scrambler to use on opponents in close quarters. The helmet has a rigid construction & shape when worn, but becomes as malleable as cloth when it is not.

### Ratings

* **Acumen:** 4 - Trained / Learned (7 - Master / Elite as Worldmind)
* **Might:** 7 - Master / Elite
* **Quickness:** 7 - Master / Elite
* **Mysticism:** 1 - Nonexistent
* **Gadgets:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Projection:** 6 - Expert / Advanced
* **Tactics:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Battle:** 6 - Expert / Advanced

## Trivia

* He is good friends with the superhero Darkhawk. Together, they're called "The Bucketheads."
* Magik has a power ranking of 190, classifying her as Power Level 4 / Moderate Threat. When using Worldmind, his ranking increases to 220 (Power Level 5 / Elevated Threat)

## Notes

* The original character of Nova belongs to the Marvel Universe.