Iron Maniac is an evil alternate universe version of Iron Man from Earth-5012. He first appeared in Marvel Team-Up (vol. 3) #2, wearing armor that bears heavy resemblance to that of Doctor Doom (and is, because of that, mistaken for that villain).
He comes from an alternate reality where most of the Avengers were killed when they encountered the vicious alien Titannus in space. While the team is rescued by the reserve Avengers five years later, it takes another five years to fight back the Trellions - the alien race that has brainwashed Titannus - and, during that time, an apparently power-hungry Reed Richards turns his back on the surviving heroes (the exact circumstances behind this are unknown). Scarred for life due to an attack from the Human Torch shortly before the aforementioned hero is killed, Iron Man sets his own operation base in Latveria for the express purpose of "take over the world to save it from Richards," until Richards somehow manages to banish him into Earth-616 (For some reason, emphasis is placed by the alternate Iron Man on the fact that Richards got rid of him without killing him, although why this would be necessary is unknown). Other differences between his world and the one we know include that there is no Spider-Man - or, at least, he and Iron Man have never met - and that Hank Pym is another version of the Hulk.
After being transported to Earth 616, the alternate Iron Man fights the Fantastic Four and Doctor Strange, all of whom initially assumed him to be their Doctor Doom having escaped from Hell. However, after he unmasks himself, they learn his true identity, shortly before he manages to temporarily negate the FF's powers and escape, concluding that he has no reason to trust that they will not turn on him like the FF of his world did. Capturing a recently-discovered mutant, the alternate Iron Man attempts to return to his home dimension by using the mutant as a power source, but is attacked by Spider-Man and X-23 as they investigate the situation. After the appearance of Captain America and Black Widow, he realizes that he is in an alternate world, but continues to fight the heroes, calling them all 'Richards' lackeys'. He is defeated thanks to Spider-Man and X-23's use of their own version of the fastball special to destroy his equipment, shortly after 'warning' the other heroes of the Titannus War (by saying that he wouldn't kill them now because it would be a kindness).
While the alternate Tony Stark is kept locked up and drugged in the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, he is briefly visited by his counterpart in this universe, although he is unaware of the visit. Shortly after the alternate Stark is transferred to a conventional cell, Titannus soon arrives and fights the heroes, this time confronting a new group of Defenders assembled by Doctor Strange. When Titannus' comatose lover is revived, she tells him that she never loved him and that he was insane, causing Titannus to kill himself. The alternate Iron Man later discovers from Spider-Man and Wolverine that the Avengers were never massacred in space in this reality because the group had been disassembled, thus never encountering Titannus and averting the so-called 'Titannus War'.
He subsequently broke free from captivity, having immunized himself to the gas that was used to keep him sedated on board the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. In the process, he gained the unwilling alliance of the LMD Diamondback. Having convinced her that he is the "real" Tony, the AU Tony Stark erased her memories, reshaping the former LMD into an advanced suit of armor. This armor, even more advanced than the pre-Extremis suit Iron Man wore at that time, was able to replicate any weapon from the wearer's memory. He subsequently battled Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain America and Luke Cage, but was only defeated after the sacrifice of rookie hero Freedom Ring, who kept Iron Maniac occupied long enough for Captain America to knock him out with a shield thrown at the back of his neck.
The name Iron Maniac is what he decided to call himself, due to being the "sole survivor of a sane world living in a backwards, insane world".
Iron Maniac is known to be at least partially cyberized, with armor plating implanted in his chest (revealed during his escape from the Helicarrier, when he is shot). It is unknown whether the rest of his body is similarly armored or if he possesses other cybernetic enhancements.
He has been briefly mentioned as being held in a S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier recently in The Irredeemable Ant-Man.
Read more about this topic: Alternative Versions Of Iron Man
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—Walter De La Mare (1873–1956)
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