6. Unus the Untouchable: protected attacker

6. Unus the Untouchable: protected attacker Unus gives Factor Three a fighter who can advance through attacks that would stop most people. His force field protects his body, making the usual question of how to land a hit much harder for the X-Men. That confidence has already been challenged before this alliance. In his first encounter with the team, Beast magnified the field until Unus could no longer control what it repelled. The same protection that made him formidable prevented him from eating. His testimony in X-Men #37 brings that humiliation into Factor Three’s case against the heroes. In #39, Unus works with Mastermind at the American missile base. Their abilities divide the problem neatly. Mastermind obstructs Iceman through illusion, while Unus attacks Cyclops behind a force field that turns away Scott’s blasts. Cyclops and Iceman respond by changing the conditions of the fight. They fill the area with an icy mist, obscuring visibility as the military closes in. Unus and Mastermind withdraw. His role in that sequence is useful to distinguish from Blob’s. Both are difficult to hurt, but Unus is actively pressing an attack behind his protection. His defense makes that pressure possible. The encounter also shows why a strong individual power does not guarantee control of a mission. Unus can resist a direct blast; he still has to contend with visibility, timing, his partner’s position and the arrival of other forces.