Max Eisenhardt first consciously used his mutant powers when his family was trapped in a burning house. Unable to rescue his daughter from the blaze due to his inexperience coupled with interference from a hostile mob, he angrily unleashed hs powers. Later calling himself Magento, Max banded together a group he dubbed the Brotherhood of Mutants and hs spent most of his time trying to defeat the X-Men and the entire homo-sapien race.