The group consists of four individuals (usually
mutants) that have been genetically altered and mentally conditioned to serve the ancient mutant,
Apocalypse, either willingly or forcibly. They are enhanced or endowed with new abilities, and are always given the same titles based upon the biblical
Four Horsemen Death,
Famine,
Pestilence (replacing the biblical
Conquest), and
War. While Apocalypse has empowered other individuals to do his bidding, the Four Horsemen remain his elite minions, always playing a key role in his plans.
The First Horsemen Thousands of years ago, Apocalypse and his wife,
Genesis, ruled the sentient island
Okkara, home to a thriving mutant civilization. They had four children, each named after tribulations absent in their mutant paradise:
War,
Famine,
Pestilence, and
Death. They were raised to be warriors, often beaten by their mother for showing weakness. When they came of age, they formed the first Horsemen of Apocalypse and fought against the
Brood in
Ancient Egypt. When the forces of
Annihilation from the dimension of Amenth invaded Earth and split Okkara into
Krakoa and
Arakko, the Horsemen, along with Genesis, the rest of the Okkaran mutants, and the newly created island of Arakko, were voluntarily sealed away in Amenth to stop the invasion while Apocalypse remained on Earth to build a mutant society strong enough to repel the Amenthi Daemons when they returned.
11th century incarnation Apocalypse assembled a new incarnation of the Horsemen during the 11th century and sent them to kill a pagan named Folkbern Logan in medieval London. To fill the role of Pestilence, Apocalypse recruited Phantom Bats, a mutant with wings in place of arms and the ability to emit red bats that immolate anything they touch. For the role of Famine, Apocalypse chose an unnamed
Native American who rides an undead flying bear. For the role of War, Apocalypse recruits an unnamed mutant who resembles a
mummy and rides a horse who has bat-like wings. For the role of Death, Apocalypse recruits a mutant who possesses a gaseous body and wears a full-body cloak.
Thor comes to Logan's aid and kills the Horsemen of Apocalypse single-handedly.
15th century incarnation In
X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula #1, Apocalypse began assembling a new cadre of Horsemen as he had chosen a new Horseman to fill the position of War. This Horseman led the
Riders of the Dark, an army of Apocalypse's followers who became legendary for their power. Possessing a horse clad in armor that he rode into battle and a pair of battle axes which he could link at the butt and throw, turning them into a sort of bladed boomerang that seemed to return to him, War single-handedly defeated
Dracula and his army.
First modern incarnation Fall of Mutants . In the 20th century, Apocalypse recruits
Plague, a member of the Morlocks, to fill the role of Pestilence. He approaches ex-soldier
Abraham Kieros and grants him the position of War. An anorexic girl named Autumn Rolfson is Apocalypse's third choice and becomes Famine. Apocalypse recruits
Angel after saving him from a plane crash, making him the Horseman of Death. Angel becomes Archangel and is given metallic wings to replace his original wings, which had been amputated. The Four Horsemen are forced to battle one another for leadership and Death emerges victorious. In their first battle against
X-Factor, the Horsemen were nearly defeated until Death appeared, shocking his former comrades. While X-Factor is strapped down, the Four Horsemen are sent out by Apocalypse to destroy
New York City. Meanwhile,
Caliban confronts Apocalypse and asks for power to avenge his fellow
Morlocks. X-Factor frees themselves and take on the Four Horsemen; Pestilence is accidentally killed by
Power Pack in the battle and Archangel comes back to his senses after assuming he killed his former comrade
Iceman. Apocalypse retreats with his remaining Horsemen and Caliban.
''X-Cutioner's Song'' While Apocalypse heals from his recent defeat on the moon,
Mister Sinister disguises himself as Apocalypse and orders the Horsemen War, Famine, and Caliban, who was transformed by Apocalypse and replaced Angel as Death, to capture
Jean Grey and
Cyclops. The
X-Men later defeat the Horsemen when they discover their hideout.
Hulk After a battle with the X-Men in their mansion,
Hulk is taken by Apocalypse and becomes the new incarnation of War, being supplied with weaponry and a helmet that shields Hulk from his father's abusive and severely distracting spirit. Apocalypse sets Hulk against the
Juggernaut to test the latter's strength. Hulk overcomes the Juggernaut after being empowered by energy from
Franklin Richards' "
Heroes Reborn" pocket universe. He likewise overloads
Absorbing Man, but comes to his senses after injuring
Rick Jones.
Second incarnation The Twelve . During "
The Twelve" saga, Apocalypse selects a new group of Horsemen to collect the chosen mutants written in
Destiny's diary. This group consists of
Ahab as Famine,
Deathbird as War, Caliban as Pestilence, and Wolverine as Death. As Death, Wolverine is sent to destroy the Mannites, a group of artificially-created children, since Apocalypse believed them to be a threat. He partially destroys a captured Bastion and then attempts to kill the children, but one of the Mannites, Nina, calls the X-Men for help. When Death captures
Mikhail Rasputin and fails to teleport out with him, he is chased into the Morlock tunnels by the X-Men. He battles them and regaisd his memory thanks to the efforts of
Jubilee,
Shadowcat, Archangel, and
Psylocke. The rest of the Horsemen are teleported to another dimension by Rasputin.
Third incarnation Blood of Apocalypse Following the
House of M and
M-Day, Apocalypse resurrected, assembling a new cadre of Horsemen with the purpose of wiping out 90% of the baseline human population. Apocalypse's new Horsemen were
Gazer as War,
Sunfire as Famine,
Polaris as Pestilence, and
Gambit as Death. Gambit willingly became Death, as he had come to believe Apocalypse could be helpful to the mutant cause, though he would need to be watched. Sunfire breaks free of Apocalypse's control with the help of
Emma Frost, although he was weakened by the experience, and Gambit retained a large portion of his original personality. Polaris is knocked out by Iceman in the final battle, rescued by
Havok, and freed from her brainwashing by the X-Men. Gazer is killed by
Ozymandias while defending Apocalypse Ozymandias.
The Final Horsemen Centuries prior, Apocalypse had created what he referred to as his "Final Horsemen". This cadre of Horsemen had been assembled one by one through time by Apocalypse and Ozymandias and would only be awoken when all other approaches had failed. They comprise the following members: •
Decimus Furius (War) - Furius is a mutant who originates from ancient Rome and possesses a
Minotaur-like appearance. He was found by Apocalypse and Ozymandias and appointed as War. Along with immense strength and durability, War's axe psionically infects all it touches with a berserker rage and a cold thirst for destruction. •
Sanjar Javeed (Death) - Javeed is the bastard son and servant of
Shapur II, king of the
Sasanian Empire. When Shapur refused to reveal his existence, Javeed turned to thievery to get the attention of his father. Using his mutant ability to channel disease, Javeed poisoned the entire kingdom by spreading disease through stolen treasures. •
Jeb Lee (Famine) - Lee is a
Confederate spy who fought during the
American Civil War. He marched behind enemy lines disguised as a
Union drummer, gathering information. After the war, he returned home while mistakenly wearing his Union uniform. The Confederates believed him to be a traitor and burned his family alive in front of him. This stimulated his latent mutant powers, the ability to use percussive sound to create a bioauditory cancer, a "living sound" that feeds on the flesh of those who hear it. He was approached by Apocalypse and Ozymandias and appointed as Famine. •
Ichisumi (Pestilence) - Ichisumi is a
geisha who comes from 19th-century
Kumamoto, Japan. Ichisumi was jealous of all the more beautiful and intelligent women around her; as she suffered from a severe inferiority complex. Stemming from her repressed rage and the disapproval of her father, Ichisumi attacked the other geishas with a swarm of beetles generated through her mutant abilities, who have the ability to absorb thoughts and memories. Pestilence enters a relationship with Archangel and is later revealed to be pregnant with his child, who will be the new Apocalypse. She has since given birth to twins, Eimin and Uriel, known as the
Apocalypse Twins. •
Psylocke - Archangel briefly chooses Psylocke to replace Sanjar Javeed as Death.
Fifth incarnation The Four Horsemen of Death Banshee,
Daken, Grim Reaper, and Sentry are resurrected by the Apocalypse Twins and are each sent after a key member of the
Avengers Unity Squad that they have some personal ties to. The Avengers Unity Squad are overpowered by the Horsemen, but undo their victory by transferring their minds into the body of their past selves after the Horsemen's victory, providing
Rogue with sufficient power to force the
Celestial Executioner away while her teammates confront Daken, Grim Reaper, and Banshee. Affter Sentry is freed from his Horseman programming, he takes the Celestial Executioner into deep space. Daken and Grim Reaper escape, while Banshee ends up in the X-Men's custody.
Sixth incarnation Apocalypse Wars When
Cerebra detects six hundred new mutant signatures in Tokyo,
Storm sends
Colossus and his team to investigate, only to learn that the signatures was the work of
Sugar Man. Sugar Man had genetically engineered six hundred mutant embryos in total isolation from the
Terrigen Mists, intending to have them serve him. The X-Men's interference results in Sugar Man being separated from his ark, which is transported one thousand years into the future along with the X-Men. Colossus is separated from the X-Men and recruited into the Horsemen of Apocalypse as War, alongside
Deadpool,
Venom, and a female version of
Moon Knight. While the X-Men battle Colossus, Deadpool, and Venom,
Nightcrawler takes Storm to the interior of Apocalypse's pyramid. They are ambushed by Moon Knight, who Nightcrawler throws into a pit of spikes. At the top of the pyramid, Storm and Nightcrawler encounter Apocalypse, who reveals that the planet they are on, dubbed Omega World, is an extension of his body. Nightcrawler stabs Apocalypse in the back, causing Omega World to collapse.
Return of the First Horsemen After Genesis becomes Annihilation's new host, Arakko is subjugated and united with the forces of Amenth. The Horsemen are sent to
Otherworld to destroy the province of Dryador and lay siege to the Starlight Citadel. When
Summoner successfully lures Apocalypse to Otherworld, the Horsemen attack and wound Apocalypse.
Saturnyne intervenes and arranges the
X of Swords tournament, in which War and Death participated, with Death being captured and enslaved by the rulers of Sevalith during the contest. All of the Horsemen (save Death) take part in the battle between Amenth and Krakoa at the end of the tournament and return to Amenth at its conclusion. Genesis later frees Death, with the Horsemen siding with their mother in the civil war on Arakko. At the war's conclusion, Death remains on Arakko while War and Famine join Genesis in exile on
Phobos. ==Other versions==