Iron Man's armor

Iron Man debuts his new golden armor as he battles the caveman-like villain Gargantus. From Tales of Suspense #40 (1963). Cover art by Jack Kirby

First Appearance: Tales of Suspense #40 (April 1963)

In order to make this armor less frightening to the general public, Stark created a gold-colored version with a wide array of improvements over the original.[5]

The MK III armor. Art by Steve Ditko.

This was the first armor to use the now standard red-and-gold color scheme. The 2007 retcon miniseries Iron Man: Hypervelocity hinted that Stark based the new cosmetic improvement on a childhood fantasy, as the red and gold color scheme came from his elementary school's colors, and the whole "Iron Man" motif from the eponymous song by Black Sabbath.[6]

Silver Centurion armor

Though this armor debuted before the return to the title of creative team of David Michelinie and Bob Layton, the latter revealed in 1996 that he designed the Silver Centurion.[7] He wrote that "Mark Gruenwald and associates came to me and asked me to come up with a 'Samurai-type armor' for the series. Gruenie was a big believer in overhauling the Armored Avenger on a regular basis." Layton also revealed the original color scheme for the armor was red and black. He does not know who changed the original black color to silver.

First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 1) #300 (January 1994)

The Modular Armor is the main armor in the Iron Man animated TV series and Capcom's Marvel vs. Capcom video game series.

First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 2) #1 (November 1996)

The paradigm of this armor was quite different from the one Iron Man had worn for years in the baseline universe, but the arrangement of weapons as well as the color scheme remained similar. Writer Scott Lobdell confirmed in an online discussion that the secret of the Prometheum Armor was nanotechnology.[8]

First Appearance: Iron Man (vol. 3) #1 (February 1998)

This armor possessed a "horned" faceplate reminiscent of the first red-and-gold armor, as writer Kurt Busiek said that he liked Iron Man's helmet from early Avengers issues,[9] and a pentagonal chest beam.

First Appearance: Avengers/Thunderbolts #1 (May 2004)

This armor was used to impersonate the Cobalt Man.

The Extremis Armor from Iron Man (volume 5) #1 (July 2008). Art by Salvador Larocca.

First Appearance: The Invincible Iron Man #10 (April 2009)

A version of the Rescue armor is adapted into the 2019 feature film Avengers: Endgame, in which Potts, who is married to Stark, wears the armor when joining the battle in the film's climax, and fights side by side with Stark against Thanos' forces.[10]

First Appearance: Invincible Iron Man' #25 (June 2010)

In Invincible Iron Man #25 (2010), Stark creates a new armor in the aftermath of the "Stark: Disassembled" storyline.[11] Created by writer Matt Fraction and artist Ryan Meinerding, this new armor is sleeker in appearance, and is featured in the 2010 crossover storyline, the "Heroic Age".[12]

Iron Man in his Bleeding Edge armor. Cover art to Invincible Iron Man vol. 5, #25 (August 2010) by Salvador Larroca.

First appearance: Iron Man (vol. 5) #1 (January 2013)

This gun-metal grey[lower-alpha 1] armor debuted in the first part of the 2012 "Believe" storyline, which launched the fifth volume of the Iron Man series as part of the Marvel NOW! initiative. This version of the armor is a testbed for new suits, and is composed by "smart-metals [that] align to a subdermal ghost of a skeleton".

First appearance: Iron Man (vol. 5) #4 (February 2013)

Described as starting "Where War Machine leaves off",[13] the Heavy Duty armor is a large, bulky suit that focuses on firepower. In addition to standard repulsor weaponry, the armor possesses a large rotary cannon that is built into the left arm, and a gun turret positioned over the right shoulder.

First appearance: Superior Iron Man #1 (November 2014)

Stark begins using the Endo-Sym armor,[14] which features a chrome finish, in the beginning of the 2014 "Avengers & X-Men: AXIS" storyline. When writer Tom Taylor and artist Yildiray Cinar created the armor, they designed it to glow red/orange when Tony was angry.[14]

First appearance: Invincible Iron Man (vol. 2) #1 (October 2015)

Beginning with the 2015 All-New, All-Different Marvel branding, Tony Stark designs a more streamlined and less complex suit of armor, once again with the traditional red and gold colors. This armor's primary feature is that it can change shape depending on the wearer's needs.

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Tony Stark, portrayed by Robert Downey Jr., has worn and created multiple armors. He also designed suits for James Rhodes / War Machine, Peter Parker / Spider-Man, and Pepper Potts. Obadiah Stane has developed a suit of his own, "Iron Monger".

In an alternate timeline in What If...?, Stark's father Howard develops a "Hydra Stomper" suit for the non-superpowered Steve Rogers.

In the 2007 direct-to-DVD film The Invincible Iron Man, Stark with James Rhodes' help creates a grey and bulky suit of armor (similar to the original Iron Man armor that Stark and Yinsen created in the comics) in order to escape from caves.