GAMBIT
Real Name: Remy LeBeau
Height: 6'2
Weight: 180 lbs.
Eyes: Red
Reddish-Brown
Group Affiliation: X-Men
Powers: Kinetic Energy, Agility
First Appearance: X-Men #266, August 1990

Gambit grew up in the streets of New Orleans, and is assumed to be an orphan. Like many others forced to grow up on their own, on the streets, Gambit learned the fine art of thieving at an early age, a talent that was only bolstered by his mutant ability which manifested later. With the ability to convert any object's stored potential energy into kinetic energy, Gambit made a deadly thief indeed. He became part of a thieves guild at some point in his youth, and it was during this time that he met his future, though ill-fated, wife-to-be, Belladonna. They were to be married, he a thief, she an assassin in order to unite the two factions and bring peace. It was also here that he discovered the secret of immortality. The thieves guild had struck a deal many years ago with an immortal called the Benefactoress, who provided them with a serum which would prolong their lives. In return for a terrible price, of course.

Not wishing to see Belladonna and Gambit married, Belle's brother, Julien, challenged Gambit to a duel. Julien lost, and the price was his life. Wishing to maintain peace, Gambit was cast out by the thieves guild, though he continued to live by his thieving skill. Gambit's life of crime was cut short when he met up with Storm. Though she was technically the leader of the X-Men, she had been regressed in age to the point just before puberty, and thus had only weak mutant powers available to her when she ventured to Cairo, Illinois. The Shadow King found her there, and might have succeeded in killing her if not for Gambit's timely intervention. He helped her get away from the villain, and they spent a time thieving in the streets of New Orleans, kindred spirits of a sort. When Storm decided to return to the X-Men, Gambit went with her and joined the team as well. When Storm was returned to adulthood during The X-Tinction Agenda, it was apparent that he had become rather attached to her when he became a bit jealous over she and Forge's kiss. Still, it wasn't long before he had found another woman who intrigued him. When he met up with Rogue, it was attraction at first sight. He began to persue her relentlessly, and eventually won her over with his cajun charms. Though they could not touch because of Rogue's mutant power, the emotion between them was not lessened, perhaps even increased. But what little happiness they had found was bound not to last for long.

Belladonna showed up on the X-Men's doorstep, creating all sorts of chaos, especially between Gambit and Rogue. The X-Men soon found themselves traveling back to New Orleans to unravel the mystery there which Belladonna had told them about, encountering their old foes, the alien Brood when they arrived. The threat of the Brood ended, the X-Men returned home, Gambit leaving behind Belladonna once again, thinking her dead from the battle. It wasn't long before he returned to New Orleans again, though, this time to confront the Benefactoress and end the immortal's rule over the guild.

Rogue and Gambit's relationship continued to progress, and bits and pieces of his past were revealed, most of it checkered. Once the lover of the External Candra, and the ally of Sabretooth, Gambit's past was questionable...but the X-Men rarely thought twice about it, for he had proven himself time and time again. It wasn't until the crystal wave came, bringing the end of the X-Men's world and beginning of the Age of Apocolypse that things began to unravel. In one last moment of desperation, believing their world was about to end forever, Rogue kissed Gambit, the first time they had ever truly touched. When the world was returned to normal, and the Age of Apocolypse ended, it took Gambit months to recover from the coma she left him in. Meanwhile, Rogue, who had absorbed some of the memories, and even powers, of Gambit, was slowly going mad. Unable to piece together the memories she had inadvertantly stolen, she nonetheless felt the darkness behind them. She left the X-Men for a time to sort things out, hitting the road with Iceman and heading West, toward Seattle. Something in Gambit's memories was drawing her there, something not altogether pleasant. When Gambit finally awoke from his coma, he left to track her down. He knew where she was going, he knew which memories would be strongest within her, as they were in him. They met in a theatre, a landmark which stood out vividly in Gambit's memories, and she demanded to know what had happened here. When Gambit finally relented and offered his hand, to let her touch him and know all of his memories, she refused, turning away from him and flying off.

She did eventually return, though, and their relationship had barely even begun to heal when she left again, this time to visit her childhood friend Cody. Gambit went after her, only to find that Belladonna had taken the boy before Rogue arrived. Between the two of them, they managed to defeat both Belladonna and Candra. But it did nothing to heal the rift between them. It took a long time, a fight between Joseph and Gambit, and her near death before Rogue would even admit her love for him. Things were just beginning to come together again for them when the final straw came. Giving himself up to two of his former friends, now bounty hunters hot on his trail for reasons unknown to the X-Men, Rogue and several X-Men tried to rescue him from their questionable destination in Antarctica. They themselves were caught instead, all of them, by Nanny. Their powers negated and placed in chains, Gambit and Rogue finally had one chance, one night to touch each other and express their love. It was to be their final moment. The next day, a mysterious man appearing as Eric The Red forced Gambit to stand trial for his crimes. He also forced Rogue to kiss Gambit and take his memories to reveal to the "court" his crime. It was heinous indeed.

Many years before, before he had turned toward the light and noble path, he had worked for the X-men's foe, Sinister. Reluctantly it seemed, Gambit gathered together the deadly mutants who would become Sinister's Marauders, and then led them to the Morlock tunnels. Ultimately, Gambit was responsible for the most devestating event in the history of the X-Men, the Mutant Massacre. And though he tried to stop the Marauder's when he saw their true intent and nearly died for it, and even though he managed to resuce the little girl Sarah who would grow up to become the X-Man Marrow, the X-Men found him guilty, and could not forgive him. Rogue left him in Antarctica, renouncing her love, his home with the X-Men, and leaving him to live or die on his own.

Recently reunited with the team, the circumstances which brought Gambit back from a certain death in Antarctica remain unclear. He and Rogue have renewed their romance, to a degree, and once again he fights alongside the X-Men.


Strength: Gambit is a mutant who possesses the normal human strength of a man of his age, height, and build who engages in intensive regular exercise.

Fighting skills: Excellent hand-to-hand combatant, utilizing streetfighting techniques and acrobatics Special skills and abilities: Bilingual in English and French, ability to throw small objects, including knives, throwing spikes, and playing cards, with extraordinary accuracy.

Known superhuman powers: Gambit has the mutant ability to tap into the potential energy contained within an object and transform it into kinetic energy. When Gambit thus charges an object with kinetic energy and throws it at a target, the object releases this energy explosively on impact.

Personal weaponry: Throwing spikes and playing cards


Updated October 18, 1998

Gambit has had guests since March 19, 1998





This history was written by Onyx, please do not use without permission. Stats copied from Marvel Comics.