The most iconic hero in the MCU has to be Iron Man. Kicking off the franchise back in 2008, fans have had the privilege to watch the growth and evolution of the character in the past 11 years of Marvel movies. Tony Stark himself has come a long way from the narcissistic billionaire he once was, eventually sacrificing his life to save the universe. But it's not just his personality that has changed so much over the years.
As the character has developed so too has his armour and weaponry. No longer limited to the technology available to him in a cave, Tony Stark has continued to tinker with his tech, until it's at the very best it can be. He's utilised many gadgets and weaponry over the years to help give him an advantage in a fight. He's clearly more favourable of some other others though and we're taking a look at the 10 most dangerous Iron Man weapons in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
10 FLAME THROWER
First we'll go back to the days of living in a cave and looking for ways to survive. In the original Iron Man Tony Stark did whatever he could to escape the grasps of the 10 Rings terrorist group. The solution he came up with was a suit of armour which was powerful enough to withstand the onslaught of bullets being fired at him. The suit needed some weapons though and the limited tools available to him allowed him to create some flame throwers.
The flame thrower is a weapon that hasn't really re-appeared since but could be extremely useful in many situations. Create one hot enough and it could have melted some Ultron robots. Or perhaps unleashing it during the battle for Earth might have kept some of the Outriders at bay. It's a shame we didn't see some upgrades to this weapon but back when he really needed it, the flame thrower was a very dangerous piece of tech at his disposal.
9 REPULSORS
The classic Iron Man weapon is obviously the repulsors. They are the bread and butter of the superhero game for Tony Stark and useful in countless situations. They have been a major part of nearly every armour he has created and they've never failed as an offensive weapon. They rely on the power of the arc reactor and of course can therefore run low on energy but they are incredibly useful in battle.
Originally designed to help balance the suit when flying, they can also be used to blast people and even burn through things. They project a bolt of light and energy which can throw enemies backwards severely damaging them. They can also be modified based on what is required of them. For instance, they can fire off short quick bursts or much longer ones, weakening a more powerful enemy. Plus the tech has been transferred and modified, such as to detachable turrets that fire alongside the hero.
8 UNIBEAM
There's something even more powerful than the repulsors that uses the same energy. The miniaturised arc reactor that keeps the shrapnel from Tony Stark's heart and powers the suit, has enough energy to also create a unibeam. The unibeam is a single blast of energy that is stronger that the repulsors put together. It's incredibly draining on the suit and we've even seen a giant version of it when the arc reactor exploded.
It's been used on many powerful enemies including Ultron and even Thor when the two fought each other. It's incredibly dangerous due to the sheer force of it, although it's easier to dodge due to it being difficult to wield. When paired with the repulsors at the same time, it can become even more dangerous and has been used time and time again to mark the final blow on a foe. Much like the repulsors it can be ricocheted off of objects like Cap's shield to help with more team based offensive manoeuvres.
7 LASER
There's a surprisingly useful tool in the Iron Man arsenal that is rarely used. When it is utilised however it can cause some serious damage, although it can also be used for repairs. The laser first surfaced in Iron Man 2 and was used to cut down a lot of Hammer tech robots that were aiding Whiplash. At the time Rhodey mused that he should have used it sooner since it was so effective!
Since then the laser has surfaced a number of times in dire situations. It was used to repair part of the Helicarrier when it was attacked by Loki. It was also used to defeat a Leviathan during the Battle of New York, with the laser cutting into the underbelly of the impressive beast, killing it. There's been very few instances where the lasers have not been effective but unfortunately, they are in some instances a limited use weapon.
6 MISSILES
Tony Stark used to sell military weaponry and was a specialist in missiles, launching the Jericho, a powerful piece of hardware. Although Stark has turned his back on these days that doesn't mean he hasn't continued to use his speciality in missile technology to kit out his suits with enough firepower to take down a tank or even a bunker! And in fact, that's exactly what he did with his first official suit.
The original Iron Man saw the missiles in action as they took out a tank, as Stark battle a group of terrorists. Since then they've been used in most of the major outings of the superhero, often becoming handy when facing insurmountable odds. There's a number of variations on the technology and some of these can even be fired from the Iron Man boots! They have a number of ranges and levels of explosives and many iterations in terms of fire power and aiming capabilities.
5 GAUNTLET
Avengers: Endgame was the end of an era and therefore it was appropriate that Stark had one more trick up his sleeve. He created the most dangerous weapon that any Iron Man suit has ever had, although it's also the most lethal to it's user. Utilising the energy of the Infinity Stones, the Iron Man armour was morphed into a wearable gauntlet twice. First Hulk used it, before the honour was bestowed onto Stark.
Stark used the gauntlet, clicking his fingers and ridding the universe of Thanos and his allies. The power of the weapon killed him though, putting an end to the legend of the playboy philanthropist. It's a powerful piece of technology, as it's difficult to even find objects capable of housing the stones. The last gauntlet created with this intention was formed by the dwarf Eitri, showcasing just how skillfull it was to create one out of the armour itself.
4 IRON LEGION
What's a more powerful weapon than a whole armour at your disposal? After Stark's unplanned trip to space, he became paranoid and suffered from PTSD. To try to tackle this trauma head on, he felt like he needed to create the Iron Legion in order to protect everything he cares about. Of course, Iron Man 3 showcased this army in it's full glory, although it was a rather short lived team of remarkable armours.
Amongst these fantastically designed armours was Igor, an early Hulkbuster proto type, as well as the stealth and space suit! Throughout the final sequence of the film Stark jumped from armour to armour, remotely controlling those that we not occupied. They succesfully fought off the Extremis army and had a spiritual successor throughout Age of Ultron. They were dangerous enough however to essentially create the next major villain of the MCU, Ultron.
3 HULKBUSTER
Speaking of a legion of powerful armours, they aren't required when the Hulkbuster suit is around. Nicknamed Veronica, this is a powerful piece of weaponry specifically designed to enhance the original Iron Man armour. It has a very niche target in mind and that is of course the jade giant himself. The Hulkbuster deserves a spot as a weapon in it's own right as it's two appearances have showcased how dangerous it can be.
The first time the Hulkbuster armour was in use it showcased it's potential against the Hulk itself. The quickfire fists of fury managed to actually knock down the Hulk, defeating him in impressive fashion. Bruce Banner later wore the armour and seemed to use it effectively during the battle of Wakanda. It's got a lot of useful tools at the users disposal but the additional strength is very useful when fighting weighty bruisers.
2 ARMOUR
It's difficult to not talk about the original suit of armour itself when we're talking about weapons. It has a lot of gadgets and gizmos attached to it, but a flying suit of metal armour that is enhanced in strength and agile in a fight, is absolutely a weapon. The armour has gone through many variations, each one unique and more advanced than the last. The upgrades only continue to make it much more lethal.
The suitcase armour for instance is perfectly designed to be put on in a dire situation. The addition of technology that allowed the armour to fly to Tony was in it's early stages when we saw it and although it was flawed it had some merits. The fact that Tony has now built in a system where he doesn't even have to be in his suit of armour has also cut down on the risk of causalities, perhaps at the cost of some skill however. Iron Man armour is perhaps one of the deadliest weapons in all of the MCU.
1 NANOTECH
The final technological upgrade made to all of the weapons systems made during the final part of the Infinity Saga, was the addition of nanotechnology. Tony had clearly been working on this concept for a few years and the addition of it into all of his armours meant that there was so much more potential in each suit. They could now morph and change and appear at the drop of a dime when they are most needed.
The technology meant he could now shift the nanotech into other weapons, such as a sword or a dagger. It was protective, able to create shields that were nearly indestructible. And the suits were linked up to a satellite which could send down additional technology available for use, which would sync up with the nanotech already at play. It was a genius idea, although proved to be almost fatal for Tony when he was stabbed on Titan after losing part of his suit. Despite this the nanotechnology itself is perhaps the most dangerous weapon at Stark's constant disposal in the MCU.