Real Name: Gwendolyn "Gwen" Maxine Stacy
Known Relatives: George Stacy (father), Helen Charmichael-Stacy (mother, deceased), Arthur Stacy (uncle), Nancy Stacy (aunt), Paul Stacy (cousin), Jill Stacy (cousin).
Affiliation: Nidhogg, formerly the Superhuman Affairs and Laws Taskforce (SALT), New York Police Department Crime Scene Unit, Tigra la Muerteface.
Biography: Only child of NYPD police captain George Stacy, Gwen was raised by her father after her mother died when Gwen was young. Smart, confident and ambitious, she was the official queen of her high school, being a popular straight-A student that was also the captain of the cheerleading team and president of the student council. While some accused her of being egotistical, Gwen knew that she was destined towards great things. Having been fascinated by both superhumans and her father's police work, Gwen was determined on using her genius to revolutionized law enforcement in its entirety. After graduating from high school, she enrolled at the prestigious Empire State University, majoring in biochemistry. At first, her time at ESU was gearing up to be the same success story as before, but that is until she met her first real hindrance towards her future goals in the form of her fellow ESU student Peter Parker. Though both of them were gifted young people and top student in their course, their clashing personalities made them unable stand each other, with Gwen being put off by Peter's aloofness and broody character, while Peter disliked her air of superiority and arrogance. Their mutual dislike of each other only grew over time, as they were forced to share a lab together. The animosity between Gwen and Peter reached its boiling point one late autumn night, when alone in the lab and having gotten in yet another argument with Peter, exhausted and frustrated Gwen failed to notice that her experiment suddenly went critical until it was too late, setting the lab on fire. After the accident, an investigation by the university found that Gwen was to be held responsible for the fire, and she was expelled from ESU. As she was leaving her dorm room, Parker tried to support her and apologize for his behavior, but their past resentment caused them to start arguing again, make them part on a bad note. Though Gwen recovered quickly and would go on to graduated with honors from Columbia University, the humiliation caused by the expulsion, formed a deep-seated hatred inside Gwen towards Peter Parker that she would carry for years to come.
After earning degrees in both superhuman biology and forensic sciences, Gwen joined NYPD as crime scene investigator. Instantly gaining recognition amongst her peers for her skills and ingenuity, which resulted in her being promoted to the Superhuman Affairs and Laws Taskforce (SALT), a specialized unit within the NYPD that handled superhuman crime. As a forensic scientist for SALT, Gwen invented and revamped many of the investigating methodologies used to examine superpowered incidents and crimes, which played a big part in the convictions of a number of high profile supervillains. For example, by comparing hundreds of samples, she was able to prove that burns on famous anti-mutant TV anchor Benedict Ryan could have only be done by mutant extremist and Acolyte of Magnus member Jubilation "Flare" Lee and her power of lumikinetic explosive light blasts. Other high profile case was trial of the government official Henry Peter Gyrich, which Gwen proved to have mentally controlled and blackmailed hundreds of people as the villain Puppet Master. These accomplishments made her rising star within the NYPD, and there were rumors that CSA (Commission on Superhuman Activities) was looking to offer her prominent position in their science division. With her future looking ever so bright, it may call it ironic that it was Gwen refusal of letting go of the past that lead her at a dark path. During a joint operation between SALT, the FBI and various superheroes to take down the Big Man, New Yorks most influential crimelord, she met her old college lab partner Peter Parker, now a member of the world-famous superhero team the Avengers as the size-changing hero Giant-Man. Talking together, they both congratulated each other for their success in their respective fields. Peter also apologized to Gwen for his past behavior, explaining that he was dealing with a lot of anger issues related to his uncle's death. Gwen pretended to have long forgotten their old rivalry, when in fact she still blamed Peter for the expulsion from ESU. Infuriated not only by that her despised rival was considered hero by the rest the world but also that she was now forced to share credit with him on the biggest case in Gwen career so far. Wating to prove her superior to Peter, Gwen made a fateful mistake. Falsifying key evidence that linked one of Big Mans lieutenants to a cold case, given the good guys an opening to take down parts of Big Man network. Gwen ruse was however soon discovered after Peter reexamined the evidence. With the entire operation now in danger, Gwen was called in for questioning, but before she could give her statement, she was kidnaped by Eliane "Scorpia" Coll, an agent of the Big Man.
Taken to an abandoned church, Coll tortured Gwen for information about the task force and the evidence they had against the Big Man. Suffering for hours and still refusing to talk, Coll concluded that Gwen would not break within a reasonable time and left tied up Gwen for a moment for to call her boss about her next move. Injured, scared and not wanting to die, Gwen blamed herself for doing something as stupid as falsifying evidence, but mostly she blamed Peter Parker for driving her to do it. Believing that this was the end, Gwen was saved by the church's secret occupant: an alien symbiote. The symbiote had previously bonded with superheroine Spider-Woman during an adventure of her in space. While bonded with Spider-Woman, the symbiote made her more powerful than before by augmenting her strength, speed, and reflexes. These gifts however came with a coast, as the symbiote also bonded mentally to Spider-Woman over time, amplifying her emotions. Spider-Woman noticed that the symbiote was making her more aggressive. Already concerned about the effects the symbiote was having on her, the breaking point came when it almost made her kill her brother Albert when he was brainwashed to become supervillain Goblin Knight. Knowing that symbiote had a weakness against sonic waves after an earlier encounter with villainess Echo, Spider-Woman used the bell at the abandoned church to separate herself from the symbiote, despite it resitting and finally begging her not to leave it. Barely surviving the separation, the symbiote was left weak and undisturbed at the church for months until Gwen arrival. Sensing the same rage as it felt, it bonded with Gwen, healing her injuries while also giving her powers similar to Spider-Woman. Savagely attacking Coll when she came back to finish the job, Gwen left her bloodied and beaten as she escaped into the night. Full of rage and nowhere else to go, Gwen and the symbiote mutual hatred towards Giant-Man and Spider-Woman respectively slowly corrupted their minds, filling it with ideas of revenge. Given in to their need for vengeance, Gwen and the symbiote merged with each other, becoming Venom.
As Venom, Gwen spent months stalking Spider-Woman in her civilian identity of Cindy Moon, taunting her by performing minor assaults towards her while she was either in her civilian or costume identity. As the symbiote had learned to cancel out Spider-Woman spider sense, Gwen was able to strike without warning and then disappear. In one of those attacks, Gwen pushed unsuspecting Cindy in front of an oncoming truck. Another one had her distract Spider-Woman momentarily during a battle with Electro by pelting her with bricks. As the web themed hero became ever more frightful of her mystery assailant, Gwen planted evidence that pointed towards Giant-Man as the culprit behind the attacks. When Gwen was sure that Cindy suspected Peter, she confronted Peters aging aunt May, terrifying into a catatonic state while also leaving clues that Spider-Woman was the assailant. With both heroes now assuming each of malicious intent, they had a brief struggle when they faced each other until they calmed down and tried to resolve the matter peacefully. Seizing the opportunity, Venom attacked the tired heroes. With Venom dominating the fight thanks to the symbiote enhanced speed and strength, the heroes were only able to win by using a powerful sonic cannon to render both the symbiote and Gwen unconscious. Unable to sperate Gwen from the symbiote without lasting damages, both of them were imprisoned in sonic commitment cell provided by the Future Foundation. There they remind until they managed to escape during an attack on the Baxter Building by the Annihilation Horde.
Now fugitive from the law, Gwen and the symbiote maintained a low profile for while as they traveled crossed America. Though determined to continue their vendetta against hated enemies, Gwen still had some twisted sense of morality left which prohibited her from harming innocents that were not Cindy or Peter. In fact, as she traveled from city to city, she would often take upon herself to investigate local crime and then hunt down the culprits and punish them, often harshly. Justifying her action to herself by claiming that she was putting an end to violent criminals that the police or superheroes were either too stupid or too preoccupied to catch, Gwen began to see her herself as a "Lethal Protector," someone who would truly rid society of crime and corruption. Since becoming Venom, Gwen has returned to menace both Spider-Woman and Giant-Man countless times. She has also come in conflict with other heroes like Ghost-Rider, Wasp, Daredevil and the Defenders. But she has also found herself begrudgingly working with her hated adversary to stop greater threats, especially the Venom symbiote psychopathic spawn that merged with the Hydra leader Synthea Schmit, becoming the unbalance serial killer Carnage. Recently Venom has found herself working for the mysterious terrorist origination Nidhogg, but whether it was by choice or not remains uncertain.
Basic Characteristics
Gender: Female.
Height: 5'7 (variable as Venom).
Weight: 130 Lbs (variable as Venom).
Eyes: Blue.
Hair: Blond.
Powers: While boned with the Venom symbiote all of Gwen Stacy physical attributes are augmented to a superhuman level. Having absorbed the DNA of superheroine Spider-Woman while being boned with her, Venom bestows Gwen with powers and abilities similar, and in some case even stronger, of Spider-Woman's. Most apparent is that Venom is way stronger than Spider-Woman, whose super-strength is limited to about 10 tons while Venom can lift over six times that amount. Venom also possesses extrasensory warning systems similar to Spider-Woman spider-sense. Though not as powerful as Spider-Woman, this warning system allows Gwen to detect danger from any direction and then kickstart her reflexes to avoid it. Because Spider-Woman was the previous host to the symbiote, it has learned to bypass her spider-sense, tricking it to not registering it as a threat. Other similarities to Spider-Woman powers are Venom abilities to cling to any surface and create web-like substance to trap opponents. The webbing also provides Venom to travel around quickly by attaching them to high points and then swing from strand to strand. The symbiote is highly resistant to physical injuries, able to withstand attacks from a superpowered adversary and most conventional weapons. If however, Gwen is ever injured the symbiote can heal those quickly thanks to a regenerative healing factor. This healing factor has allowed Gwen survive injuries that would have otherwise been fatal, like being impaled through the chest by the Scorpions stinger tail, struck by lighting attacks of Thor and being crushed by maximum sized Giant-Man. The symbiote can camouflage itself by shapeshifting to mimic any type of clothing whatsoever. Furthermore, it can blend in its surrounding, rendering it invisible to the human eye. Though having no formal training, Gwen is a formidable hand-to-hand combatant while wearing the symbiote.
Gwen is a genius intellect and formerly respected expert in superhuman biology and biochemistry. She has a vast knowledge of how various superpowers affect the human body and can use that against her enemies in a fight. As a former forensic scientist for the NYPD, Gwen is familiar with protocols and methods used by the police and crime scene investigators, making her skilled in detective thinking. She also uses this knowledge to wipe away evidence of her presence, making her very hard to track. Former drummer, having played in a band, Tigra la Muerteface, in high school.
Despite her great powers, Venom has some weaknesses. The Symbiote is highly susceptible to thermal and sonic attacks. The symbiote is also influenced by powerful emotion. As the symbiote species, the Klyntar, are not naturally evil, wanting nothing more to aid their host in beneficial harmony. As they adapt to become more thoroughly ingrained to their host, a common side effect of this progress is it amplifying the host often subconscious emotion. During its period boned with Spider-Woman, the Venom symbiote increased her aggression. When Spider-Woman violently separated herself from the symbiote despite the fact that it was begging not to, it deeply scared its psychology. Trauma brought by the rejection plus Gwen underlying rage issue has made Venom symbiote addictive to rage and other negative emotion, affecting its host psychology to feel those emotions constantly.
