Black Panther

"The Black Panther has been a protector of Wakanda for generations. And now, it is time to show the outside world who we are."

- Black Panther

T'Challa is a Wakandan politician, the current ruler of Wakanda, and the current holder of the Black Panther mantle. After his father was killed in a bombing attack orchestrated by Helmut Zemo, the new monarch set out to kill the Winter Soldier, whom was widely believed to be responsible for the attack. After being drawn into the Avengers Civil War and siding with Iron Man, T'Challa learned the truth about Zemo's deception and decided to help the Winter Soldier by granting him asylum in Wakanda.

Raised in Wakanda
"For a man who disapproves of diplomacy, you're getting quite good at it."

- T'Chaka

T'Challa was born in Wakanda, an isolationist country located in Africa, to the reigning monarch T'Chaka and his wife Ramonda. Trained for most of his life to take his father's place as the next Black Panther, T'Challa grew into a man with a highly active mind and, despite T'Chaka's best efforts, a great dislike for politics.

Becoming the Black Panther
In 2009, one week after becoming the protector of Wakanda, T'Challa, as the Black Panther, was sent with Okoye to save Wakandan hostages from Zanda and Douglas Scott.

Black Panther took on Zanda as Okoye retrieved the hostages, and was shot in the shoulder by her Vibranium bullets. Before she could kill him, however, Zanda moved to shoot the fleeing hostages, giving Black Panther the chance to overpower her, and ensure the hostages escaped. Once the police stormed the building, the mercenaries fled, with Black Panther deciding to pursue them in his aircraft.

Following them to a yacht, Black Panther and Okoye took out the mercenaries and then confronted Zanda and Scott, with Black Panther killing Zanda by igniting one of her grenades, and saving Okoye by dropping a metal bar on Scott's hands.

Assassination of T'Chaka
"In my culture, death is not the end. It's more of a stepping off point. You reach out with both hands and Bast and Sekhmet, they lead you into the green veld where... you can run forever." "That sounds very peaceful." "My father thought so. I am not my father."

- T'Challa and Natasha Romanoff

When the United Nations decided to approve the Sokovia Accords in order to control and monitor the actions of the Avengers in the wake of a devastating battle between the Avengers and the now deceased terrorist Crossbones, during which several Wakandan citizens were killed among other innocents, T'Challa and the Wakandan government chose to support the accords as they felt that the Avengers could become a true risk to the safety of Wakanda and the rest of the world considering their involvement in Ultron's creation. T'Challa and his father T'Chaka attended the conference in Vienna, meeting Natasha Romanoff there. T'Challa spent time speaking with Romanoff where they had discussed the accords and their shared discomfort of such political meetings. T'Challa commented on the fact that the last time Romanoff was in such company, she had just exposed S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets during the HYDRA Uprising, claiming her dislike for it made him happy to have seen her there. They were then interrupted by T'Chaka who had teased his son and greeted Romanoff, noting that Captain America had decided not to attend as he disagreed with the control the accords would put on his and the Avengers' actions. Once Romanoff had taken her own seat, T'Chaka then expressed his pride of seeing his son's skill at politics getting much better as they thanked each other for their continued support during this difficult time for Wakanda's future. During the conference, T'Challa's watched as his father then gave a speech about Wakanda's dark history and unfortunate involvement in the creation of deadly weapons made with Vibranium, using these as his reasons for signing the accords. Upon hearing the commotion outside, T'Challa realized danger was incoming but was too late to stop his father being killed in a terrorist attack that was orchestrated by Helmut Zemo under the disguise of the Winter Soldier. While the fire was being put out, T'Challa mournfully took his late father's ring and took over his rightful role as King of Wakanda. While considering his next actions, T'Challa was greeted by Romanoff who expressed her own grief at T'Chaka's sudden death and promised him the Joint Counter Terrorist Centre would arrest the Winter Soldier and bring him to justice. T'Challa however then informed Romanoff that he intended to find and kill the Winter Soldier himself.

Hunting the Winter Soldier
"T'Challa, Task Force will decide who brings in Barnes." "Don't bother Ms. Romanoff, I will kill him myself."

- Natasha Romanoff and T'Challa

T'Challa put on the Panther Habit in order to avenge his own father's death. He then quickly managed to track the Winter Soldier down to where he had been hiding in Bucharest, where he fiercely attacked him. Despite being momentarily shocked by the arrival of such an unexpected enemy, the Winter Soldier quickly got to his feet and began fighting Black Panther, almost being killed several times by the Panther's attacks. Using the incredibly sharp claws on his suit, Black Panther slashed at his enemy and tried to kill him, eventually pinning him to the ground and attempting to stab his target through the throat. However, their battle finally stopped when Black Panther was shot at by a helicopter, with his own Vibranium suit saving him. The Winter Soldier then attempted to escape by running off the side of the building, only for Black Panther to follow, grinding down the building's side. While the Winter Soldier attempted to escape by running on foot, the Black Panther hunted and chased Barnes down through a long traffic tunnel, pursued himself by Captain America and Falcon who were attempting to aid the Winter Soldier's escape. When Rogers apprehended a Joint Counter Terrorist Centre car to try and catch up to Barnes, who was escaping on a motorbike, Black Panther jumped onto the back of the car to gain extra speed as well as jumping on the back of Falcon and flying through the tunnel, trying several times to knock Barnes off the motorcycle he was riding but finding that Barnes' Prosthetic Arm gave him an advantage as the Panther was grabbed by the throat, but T'Challa quickly recovered, vaulting over the bike, and was thrown to the ground. Eventually, Barnes reached the end of the tunnel and tried to use an explosive to block their way, only for Black Panther to leap through the blast and cut through Barnes' tires, causing his own bike to crash. Although Rogers stopped him from killing Barnes, they were all soon captured when War Machine and an entire police squad arrived and surrounded them, to which he unmasked and revealed himself as the new king of Wakanda to the surprise of everybody. The police apprehended Barnes, Rogers, and Wilson, who were now fugitives due to the Sokovia Accords. The group was then brought to Berlin in an armored car to await their own punishments for the chaos they caused. Along the way, T'Challa explained to Rogers and Wilson the history of the Black Panther and why he had targeted Barnes, as he desired to avenge T'Chaka and vowed that Rogers would not be able to keep Barnes safe. The group soon arrived at the Joint Counter Terrorist Centre Building where they were greeted by Sharon Carter and her boss Everett Ross while Barnes was locked up in a maximum security prison of the German anti-terror police force GSG9. T'Challa was also brought in and watched as Captain America's Shield and the EXO-7 Falcon were being taken away. When Rogers questioned what would be happening to Barnes, he was told he would be questioned by Ross' men before being taken away to begin his sentence, which T'Challa seemed to agree with. Ross then explained that T'Challa would be provided with an office rather than a cell while he was there.

Losing the Winter Soldier
"How long do your psychological evaluations usually take?" "Why? You bored?" "Not currently, but my prisoner and I have a plane to catch."

- T'Challa and Natasha Romanoff

While awaiting news on what would happen with the Winter Soldier at the Joint Counter Terrorist Centre Building, T'Challa was visited by Natasha Romanoff who expressed her surprise at his secret identity, citing that this now placed him under the Accords' jurisdiction. T'Challa noted he wanted to move on so he could take Barnes to Wakanda. As Romanoff claimed this would be unlikely, Everett Ross confirmed T'Challa had been granted Barnes' extradition. T'Challa sat in his office while the Winter Soldier was questioned by Helmut Zemo posing as the psychiatrist Theo Broussard. However while T'Challa, Ross and the Avengers were watching the questioning unfold, the power throughout the building was suddenly shut off, cutting all of the video and audio feeds in the interrogation room. Sensing that a more sinister plan was unfolding involving the Winter Soldier, who may be attempting to escape, T'Challa then went to investigate the incident himself even further. Heading downstairs as chaos was erupting throughout the building, T'Challa discovered the Winter Soldier had escaped and was fighting Romanoff, Tony Stark and Sharon Carter. T'Challa managed to save Romanoff from being strangled by the Winter Soldier and engaged in a one on one fight with his enemy, proving to be equally matched in skill although the Soldier was able to use his Prosthetic Arm to gain an advantage with strength, managing to knock T'Challa to the ground. T'Challa refused to allow his prey to escape and continued fighting, subduing and kicking him down the stairs, which only helped him get away. When T'Challa learned from his Attaché that the Winter Soldier had escaped from the building, seemingly with the help of Steve Rogers, he decided to use Wakanda's many resources to track him down. On his way out, he was stopped by Natasha Romanoff, who came close to fighting Ayo, his security chief. T'Challa spoke to Romanoff politely and explained his plan, however, Romanoff offered him an alternative, to join Stark's team of Avengers members in finding and capturing Rogers along with the Winter Soldier for Thaddeus Ross. Knowing that this would prove to be a much faster method of finding and killing his target, T'Challa agreed to join Stark's team.

Clash of the Avengers
"I didn't kill your father." "Then why did you run?"

- Winter Soldier and Black Panther

Having joined Iron Man's side, Black Panther eventually found and ambushed Captain America at an airport in Flughafen Leipzig-Halle, greeting Rogers with respect while Stark continued to argue about the Sokovia Accords while Spider-Man arrived and took away his shield to ensure that he could not fight back, as Stark tried to convince him to surrender himself over to the Joint Counter Terrorist Centre for interrogation. However, Rogers remained confident and had Hawkeye free him from Spider-Man's webbing and Ant-Man gave him back his shield. As Iron Man scanned the area, he spotted the Winter Soldier, who Black Panther attempted to go after, only for Rogers to stand in his way. When Rogers ignored T'Challa's warning to get out of his way, they engaged in a fierce fight, where the claws on his own Panther Habit caused permanent scratch marks on Rogers' shield. T'Challa teamed up with War Machine during the fight but they both proved to be bested by Captain America, who fought them both off while disarming War Machine's weapons. The fight was stopped when Captain America and Ant-Man used a Pym Particle Disk to enlarge and throw a large fire truck towards T'Challa, War Machine and Black Widow, much to their annoyance as both T'Challa and Widow managed to dodge the explosion while Rhodes was hit with full on force, knocking him painfully backwards. As Rogers and the rest of his team attempted to make their way to the Avengers' Quinjet to make their escape from the airport, their path was soon stopped by the Vision, who used the Mind Stone to block their path. T'Challa joined the rest of Iron Man's team as the two opposing sides later gathered up to charge against their former allies, T'Challa first targeted the man he was desperate to get revenge on and who was seemingly responsible for the terrorist attacks. During the fight Winter Soldier tried to convince T'Challa that he wasn't the one who murdered T'Chaka, but T'Challa only questioned why he had run away if he was innocent. He almost succeeded to kill the wrong suspect as he pulled away his Prosthetic Arm and then attempted to cut his throat, but Scarlet Witch intervened and stopped his claws from reaching Barnes, and threw T'Challa through a distance with her powers, hitting a jet bridge.

Losing his Targets
"We haven't met yet. I'm Clint." "I don't care."

- Hawkeye and Black Panther

Later, T'Challa spotted both Captain America and the Winter Soldier attempting to escape with a Quinjet in the hangar, but Giant-Man held him and the rest of Iron Man's team back. When keeping Spider-Man, Iron Man and War Machine away from his team members Ant-Man kicks an airplane bus at T'Challa, only to be saved at the last second by Vision intervening and blocking the bus with his Vibranium body. With Vision's help, T'Challa was able to elude Ant-Man to reach the Quinjet Hangar. Before he can do so, Hawkeye tries keeping T'Challa at bay by firing many of his explosive arrows directly at him. T'Challa dodged many of the arrows and caught two before they exploded right in his face, angering him enough to fight Hawkeye by showing him his Vibranium claws unleashed from his own Panther Habit as the Black Panther prepared to fight his legendary attacker. Seeing that his current technique was not working and still attempting to ensure his ally's escape, Hawkeye turned his bow into a staff and introduced himself to T'Challa, since they had never been introduced before this point, with the latter replying that he did not care who he was fighting. The pair started fighting one another until T'Challa broke his staff and knocked Hawkeye out of the fight, continuing his pursuit to the Quinjet Hangar. Despite the best efforts of Vision to block them, Rogers and Barnes reached the hangar due to the Scarlet Witch's interference. Panther came close to them, only to be stunned multiple times by Black Widow's Widow Bite, allowing Rogers and Barnes to escape, despite T'Challa trying to get a hold of the Quinjet. Romanoff claimed she had only promised to help him find not kill them. T'Challa was furious with her and he later reported her betrayal to Everett Ross.

Capturing Helmut Zemo
"Vengeance has consumed you. It is consuming them, and I am done letting it consume me. Justice will come soon enough." "Tell that to the dead." "The living are not done with you yet."

- Black Panther and Helmut Zemo

Having had a meeting with Thaddeus Ross onboard the Raft prison where he had a top-secret meeting with Falcon, Tony Stark discovered the location of the now fugitives Captain America and the Winter Soldier. Once Stark had put on his Iron Man suit and went to find them, T'Challa secretly followed Stark while onboard his jet to Siberia, where the Winter Soldier laboratory was located. T'Challa infiltrated the building with the plan to kill Winter Soldier; following close behind as Iron Man made peace with Rogers. However, he overheard the conversation between Rogers and the terrorist Helmut Zemo, in which he confessed to killing all the other Winter Soldiers and admitted to framing Barnes for killing King T'Chaka. Having learned this truth that he had been deceived, Black Panther focused his efforts on Zemo, with the intention of killing him. While Zemo rested on top of a hill outside the missile bunker, certain that he had succeeded to pit Iron Man and Captain America against each other, T'Challa quietly confronted him, now aware of the truth. However, rather than going face-to-face with T'Challa, Zemo instead explained to T'Challa that his family died in the Battle of Sokovia and that he wanted to tear apart the Avengers to find justice for his own family's tragic demise. Zemo also admitted that T'Chaka's death was not intended and apologized for it, saying that T'Chaka was a good man who he respected and had a dutiful son in T'Challa. Realizing how horribly revenge could consume a man and that his father would never have wanted a Black Panther to commit murder, T'Challa decided to spare Zemo and even stopped him from committing suicide, using his Vibranium-protected hand to block the gunshot. While he struggled to get out of the headlock, T'Challa stated to Zemo that the living are not done with him yet.

Binding his prisoner, T'Challa was approached by Rogers and Barnes as they retreated from the facility. Updating them on what he had heard, T'Challa, wanting to make amends with Barnes, told him that he had sources in Wakanda that could help him in removing his Winter Soldier programming, and then left to take Zemo to the authorities. T'Challa handed Zemo over to Everett Ross for his punishment.

Saving the Winter Soldier
"Your friend and my father, they were both victims. If I can help one of them find peace..." "You know if they find out he's here, they'll come for him." "Let them try."

- T'Challa and Steve Rogers

Some weeks later, T'Challa informed Rogers and Barnes that the best chance of having the Winter Soldier programming removed was for Barnes to return to cryo-sleep statis, which Barnes agreed to do. After Shuri explained how she intended to remove the HYDRA programming, Barnes willingly let himself freeze in a cryo-chamber until the Wakandan scientists can find a way to cure him of HYDRA's brainwashing. Rogers warned T'Challa that forces of opposition would come and declare war on Wakanda for allowing the Winter Soldier to take refuge within the kingdom, to which T'Challa replied that they could try as the two overlooked the landscape of the kingdom's mountains.

Months later, T'Challa was told by Shuri that, since Barnes programming were mostly connected to trigger words, she would use an algorithm that would 'reset' Barnes so HYDRA's programming could be destroyed without removing his memories. Shuri then revealed that her algorithm could be used to improve the Wakandan's technology though artificial intelligence in a more effective way than Ultron.

Coronation
To be added

Personality
"You are a good man. And it's hard for a good man to be a king."

- T'Chaka to T'Challa

T'Challa is showed to have high respect towards other people, especially towards his father, T'Chaka. He honors the tradition and principles of Wakanda and is willing to take action whenever it is necessary. When his father died, he was willing and ready to take on his rightful place as king of Wakanda. While he does not seem to favor a fight, he was very quick to try and avenge his father's death. An honorable fighter, T'Challa respects his opponents and is willing to spare his enemies' lives.

However, when he finally had the chance to avenge his father, he ultimately chose not to, knowing that doing so would make him fall as low as Zemo, and would go against what the Black Panther stands for. As he stood by Zemo, the latter explained to him about how he had also lost his loved ones too, and that he and T'Challa were not different, as they both are in pursuit of revenge. It was at this moment that T'Challa realized that revenge has completely consumed Zemo, and he realized that this is not what his father would have wanted for him. In the end, he was willing to help Captain America and Winter Soldier, by granting them asylum in Wakanda since they were international criminals now. He also displays a strong resolve, as when Captain America warned him the world might declare war on his country for housing Winter Soldier, he confidently stated to let them come.

According to his father, T'Challa tends to disapprove of diplomacy but was nevertheless supportive of the Sokovia Accords.

Powers

 * Enhanced Strength: After having consumed the Heart-Shaped Herb, T'Challa's strength is tremendously enhanced beyond the peak of human potential, moving into the early levels of superhuman condition even when not wearing the Panther Habit. He could fight Winter Soldier on equal grounds, despite the latter's own strength and fighting ability. With the Panther Habit, he was strong enough to overpower the Winter Soldier, sending him flying through the air with his attacks and even dueled Captain America on equal grounds.
 * Enhanced Speed: T'Challa can run and move at speeds beyond the peak of human potential, moving into the early levels of superhuman condition. He was able to reach the second floor of the Joint Counter Terrorist Centre Building using his acrobatics before Bucky could walk up a set of stairs. With the Panther Habit, he is fast enough to easily outrun moving vehicles matching the pace of Captain America and Winter Soldier respectively, eventually overtaking the Winter Soldier's motorcycle by using the vehicle Captain America hijacked as a springboard.
 * Enhanced Stamina: T'Challa's musculature produces fewer fatigue toxins during physical activity than the musculature of an ordinary human. T'Challa's body eliminates the excessive build-up of fatigue-producing chemicals in his muscles, granting him exceptional endurance and lung capacity, greater than of normal humans. He was able to intensely pursue the Winter Soldier on foot without any signs of fatigue.
 * Enhanced Durability: T'Challa is much more durable than a normal human being. Even when not wearing his Panther Habit, he can survive blunt force trauma such as being hit with the Winter Soldier's bionic arm and surviving the explosion at the Vienna International Centre with minor injury, despite being right next to the blast's epicenter. While wearing the Panther Habit, T'Challa's durability is increased further thanks to the Vibranium, which allowed him to withstand bullets and explosions completely unfazed.
 * Enhanced Agility: T'Challa's agility is outstanding, far greater than Olympic athletes. He can coordinate his body with perfect balance, equilibrium, flexibility, and dexterity. His movements are akin to an actual panther, being capable of crawl and climb through walls and leap great distances with accuracy. Even without the Panther Habit, he was able to lunge several feet when attempting to shield his father from the explosion in at the Vienna International Centre and used parkour to reach the second floor of the Joint Counter Terrorist Centre Building faster than Bucky could walk up a set of stairs. After being propelled into the air by a kinetic pulse, T'Challa was able to contort his body mid-air and land on the roof of a vehicle while it was traveling at high speeds.
 * Enhanced Reflexes: T'Challa's reflexes are superior to those of the finest athlete. They are beyond human potential, which allowed him to catch Hawkeye's arrows with ease.

Abilities

 * Master Martial Artist: T'Challa is an extremely skilled martial artist, having been trained vigorously to become a warrior and protector of Wakanda, the Black Panther. His unique Wakandan fighting style is very acrobatic and heavily attack-oriented, primarily utilizing powerful sweeping kicks, aerial takedowns, and slashing attacks with hooked and clawed fists, reminiscent of the manner in which a panther strikes. His attacks are fluid and swift, allowing him to transition from attack to defense rapidly. Black Panther's techniques combine African martial arts such as Engolo, Moraingy, Musangwe, and Dambe. T'Challa skills have allowed him to compete with the Winter Soldier even without his suit. While wearing his suit, T'Challa is skilled enough to defeat the Winter Soldier, fairly quickly overpower and knock out Hawkeye using his staff unarmed, and even fight on par with Captain America himself.
 * Master Acrobat: Being immensely agile, T'Challa is an extraordinary master gymnast and acrobat, which allowed him to quickly catch up to Winter Soldier mere seconds after being and the latter having gone up several flights of stairs. The Panther Habit enhances his agility further to allow him to effortlessly outrun and vault over moving vehicles, land on his feet unfazed from several stories, perform aerial wheel kicks while fighting Captain America, to send Winter Soldier flying through the air, and lunge forward several feet to knock Winter Soldier off his motorcycle.
 * Master Tactician: T'Challa is a master in strategy and tactics. Due to his revenge for the Winter Soldier, T'Challa has shown to plan his attack while Barnes was on the run.
 * Multilingual: T'Challa speaks his native, as well as fluent English (albeit with a thick Wakandan accent).
 * Pilot: T'Challa has shown to be a skilled and elusive pilot, managing to tail Iron Man all the way to Siberia without the latter knowing.

Equipment
"I got a look at your suit. Vibranium weave. I'm very impressed."

- Natasha Romanoff


 * Panther Habit: In his Black Panther persona, T'Challa wears a black and silver-lined combat suit that is composed of a specially-designed Wakandan Vibranium-mesh weave akin to chain mail that is, like Captain America's Shield, lightweight, vibration-absorbent, nigh-indestructible and renders him immune to most physical damages especially from collisions and conventional weapons such as firearms, though he was notably vulnerable to the electrical charges of Black Widow's Bite and to Vibranium bullets.
 * Jet: T'Challa has a technologically advanced jet, similar to the Avengers' Quinjet, that he uses when he needs to travel the world quickly. When Black Widow stopped him from capturing Bucky, he used the jet to follow Iron Man to Siberia because he knew that Stark was going after Bucky too, arriving just a few moments later.
 * Wakandan Royal Ring: A ring that is worn by the King of Wakanda, passed down for generations after the death of his predecessor.
 * Kimoyo Beads: To be added.

Family

 * Wakandan Royal Family
 * T'Chaka † - Father
 * Ramonda - Mother
 * Shuri - Sister

Allies

 * Attaché
 * Avengers
 * Tony Stark/Iron Man - Former Ally
 * Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow - Recruiter and Temporary Enemy
 * James Rhodes/War Machine
 * Vision
 * Steve Rogers/Captain America - Enemy turned Ally
 * Sam Wilson/Falcon - Enemy turned Ally
 * Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch - Enemy turned Ally
 * Clint Barton/Hawkeye - Enemy turned Ally
 * Bruce Banner/Hulk
 * Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier - Mortal Enemy and Target turned Ally
 * Scott Lang/Ant-Man - Enemy turned Ally
 * Peter Parker/Spider-Man - Former Teammate
 * Joint Counter Terrorist Centre
 * Everett Ross
 * Sharon Carter
 * Zuri - Adviser
 * W'Kabi
 * Dora Milaje
 * Okoye
 * Nakia - Love Interest
 * Ayo
 * Xoliswa

Enemies

 * Helmut Zemo - Detainee
 * Ulysses Klaue
 * Erik Killmonger
 * M'Baku
 * Thanos
 * Loki

Trivia

 * In the comics, Black Panther was a member of the Avengers and member of the Illuminati, a group made of the smartest and most powerful characters in the Marvel Universe, including Blackagar Boltagon, Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Medusa, Hank Pym and Stephen Strange.
 * Unlike the comics, the mantle of the Black Panther is prescribed to the nation's greatest warrior instead of the King.

Behind the Scenes

 * Michael Kenneth Williams expressed interest in portraying Black Panther before Chadwick Boseman was cast.
 * According to Kevin Feige, the Black Panther was included in Captain America: Civil War as a third party, someone with a different point of view from both Captain America and Iron Man.
 * Jason Chu, Gui DaSilva-Greene, Aaron Toney, Daniel Graham, Nico Woulard and Kofi Yiadom were stunt doubles for Chadwick Boseman in the role of Black Panther.