- "It's just the first pass. Give me some feedback, anything you think of. Shock absorption, lateral movement. Cup holder?"
"You may wanna think about some A.C." - ―Tony Stark and James Rhodes[src]
James Rhodes' Leg Braces were created by Tony Stark in order to restore James Rhodes' ability to walk, after Rhodes' spine was shattered during the Clash of the Avengers.
History
War Machine's Recovery
During the Clash of the Avengers, Vision accidentally shot an energy beam at James Rhodes' suit while aiming to temporarily impair Falcon. Vision's attack hit Rhodes, damaging and disabling his suit's Arc Reactor. Unable to react to the damage, Rhodes enters a free fall from high altitude. Despite Falcon and Iron Man's best efforts, they were unable to catch him before he hit the ground. Even though the suit's protection saved him from death, he suffered from a spine injury that paralyzed his legs.
Stark later created a pair of leg braces that allowed Rhodes to walk and engage in other activities fluently, and also integrated a similar functionality into all of his friend's suit designs.[1]