Luchino Nefaria is a wealthy Italian
aristocrat and traditionalist that also desires greater wealth and power, driving him to join the
Maggia criminal organization. The recently formed
Avengers superhero team, however, thwart many of his plans and force a direct conflict, so Nefaria lures the Avengers to his castle on the pretense of a charity event, and places the group in suspended animation, using images which threaten to take control of America. After he releases them, the Avengers become suspicious of him after hearing they are wanted and they cannot remember what happened at the castle. They go to the castle, however nearly all of them are paralyzed by Nefaria's gas. Meanwhile, the
Teen Brigade were captured by Nefaria, and when they tried to contact the Avengers were thrown in a dungeon which would place them into suspended animation if they touched the walls.
Captain America gets into the castle without touching the ground, other Avengers, or walls, and freed the Teen Brigade, who gave the antidote to the Avengers. Captain America was also paralyzed, and with his hands and feet attached to ropes he was suspended between floor and ceiling, where Nefaria mocked him, saying he would be a hero for capturing him. However, Iron Man then burst through the wall. Neferia was defeated and deported after an officer heard him confess to being in the Maggia. In retaliation, Nefaria then unsuccessfully attempts to destroy
Iron Man, and then suffers yet another defeat when stopped by the
mutant X-Men team. Nefaria reappears several years later and attempts to take control of the United States base
NORAD, but is stopped by the X-Men once again. Nefaria attempts to escape in a plane which is attacked by the X-Man
Thunderbird. The plane explodes, killing Thunderbird and injuring Nefaria. Now virtually destitute and discredited, Nefaria hires the supervillains
Living Laser,
Power Man and
Whirlwind to form the second
Lethal Legion. The group rob several banks, and unwittingly finance an experiment Nefaria has created in a bid to become superhuman. Employing the former scientific adviser to
Heinrich Zemo, Nefaria devises a means of temporarily amplifying the abilities of the Lethal Legion, and then sends them into combat against the Avengers. The effect, however, is temporary and once defeated their combined abilities are drained by Nefaria who possesses them magnified a hundredfold. After a long and protracted battle, Nefaria is finally defeated. Nefaria is kept in isolation and under observation by the Avengers, and it is discovered that the process to empower him makes Nefaria immortal but vulnerable as his body reconfigures itself. Whitney Frost, also known as
Madame Masque and the daughter of Nefaria, attempts to find a cure for what is believed to be his deteriorating condition. She hires the
Ani-Men to attack
Avengers Mansion and free her father. While battling Iron Man, Nefaria's life-support system is severed and his weakened form is crushed by a stored Jupiter Landing Vehicle. Nefaria briefly reappears some time later as a corpse reanimated by the
Grim Reaper. Grim Reaper directs Nefaria to attack the Avengers, but loses control soon afterwards and Nefaria dies once again. Nefaria eventually reappears, but in an
ionic humanoid form, and constantly requires ionic energy to sustain his existence. Nefaria plans to detonate an ionic bomb, which will transform millions of people into an ionic state which he can then control, perceiving it as the best way to guarantee that he receives the respect that he feels he deserves. Nefaria gains control of the ionic heroes
Wonder Man and
Atlas, who he intends to use to kill the Avengers. He is stopped by the Avengers, the
Thunderbolts, and Madame Masque, with Masque using a weapon she had developed to disrupt Nefaria's energy. Following the "
Siege" storyline, Madame Masque seeks out Nefaria to help the
Hood after
Loki takes back the
Norn Stones. The
New Avengers capture
John King and use him to track the Hood and Madame Masque. After a battle with Count Nefaria, they capture the villains and bring all four of them to
Maria Hill to place them under arrest. During the "
Gang War" storyline, Count Nefaria is attacked by Madame Masque, who takes control of the Maggia. Nefaria is placed under mind control and is among the villains who battle Spider-Man in Central Park. Shotgun shoots off the mind-control sigil on Count Nefaria, freeing him from its control. ==Powers and abilities==