Sigma (Mega Man X)

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Sigma
Sigma in his original form as he appeared in Mega Man Maverick Hunter X
Game series	Mega Man X series
First game	Mega Man X
Creator(s)	Keiji Inafune
Voice actor(s) (English)	Unknown (1997-2002) Walter Roberts (2003) Dave Pettitt (2004-present)
Voice actor(s) (Japanese)	Unknown (1997-2002) Mugihito (2001-2003) Banjō Ginga (2004-present)
In-Universe Information
Classification	Reploid (Mega Man X) Sentient virus (all later games)
Loyalty	Mavericks

Sigma is a video game character and the main villain of the Mega Man X video game series and is the final boss in all games of the series except Mega Man X: Command Mission and Mega Man X8. A typical "power mad" antagonist, Sigma is a Reploid first seen in the original Mega Man X who rebels against humankind using a military force of robots called "Mavericks." The Maverick Hunters are devoted to crushing Sigma and his minions; X and Zero are among the organization's most prominent members. Sigma appears as a bulky, bald humanoid in most of his forms. He often produces a new body after defeat, most commonly in the form of a giant, disembodied head.

1 History
2 Abilities
3 Trivia
4 References

[edit] History

Before Mega Man X

Sigma is the arch-enemy of the Maverick Hunters, and instigated many of the destructive Maverick Wars. However, he was originally built to be the most advanced Maverick Hunter (of the time). Sigma possessed Dr. Cain's latest circuitry designs, which were theoretically supposed to prevent him from going Maverick. He was placed in charge of the 17th Unit of Maverick Hunters, and led his Hunters to victory multiple times.

One day, he received reports of an incredibly violent Maverick. He arrived at an abandoned laboratory to investigate reports of a "red Maverick" that destroyed an entire Hunter squadron (Gamma Unit). It was there that he confronted Zero, the last creation of Dr. Wily. Zero carried with him a malicious computer virus, one which powered up his abilities and turned him into a "bloodthirsty god of destruction." Sigma fought well, and after a long struggle, defeated Zero. He crushed the crystal in Zero's helmet, an action which transferred the virus directly from Zero into Sigma. Sigma limped away from the battle, and ordered his men to take the body of Zero back for study.

Mega Man X

Sigma's advanced circuitry did its job well, as Sigma remained stable for months before succumbing to the virus inside of him. He declared a mass revolt, and instigated total war on the humans. Many of the Maverick Hunters followed him out of loyalty, leaving Zero in charge of the organization. By this time, he had become a very powerful Maverick Hunter. X, the last creation of Dr. Light and the base model for every Reploid, decided to join Zero out of guilt. X and Zero battled through the Maverick regime, and it was X who finally destroyed Sigma. But though his physical body was destroyed, Sigma's soul—the virus—survived, and Sigma had no qualms about leaving a cryptic message for X that stated this very fact.

Mega Man X2 and Mega Man Xtreme

Over the years, Sigma returned time and time again—the first time he returned with the help of the X-Hunters, and masterminded the Unification plot. X thwarted this, and a reactivated Zero returned to the Hunters as the leader of Zero Unit. Later, Sigma hacked into the Maverick Hunters' Mother Computer and infected it with Maverick data.

Mega Man X3, Mega Man Xtreme 2 and Mega Man X4

Sigma then infected the Reploid scientist Doppler and used him to front the revolts in Doppler Town. Sigma was thought to be defeated after Zero used a true anti-virus made by Doppler. But still, he returned. This time, he used the two "Soul Erasers," Berkana and Gareth, in a plot to capture Reploid DNA to increase his strength, but was destroyed again. Sigma later masterminded the plot to pit the Reploid Army, "Repliforce", against the Maverick Hunters. Despite his defeat, he succeeded in part by destroying Repliforce.

Mega Man X5

It was some time before Sigma surfaced again. During his absence, Sigma learned of Zero's origins, and hatched a plot to unlock Zero's true power—the power that the original virus gave him. Sigma enlisted the help of a bounty hunter named Dynamo, and plotted to crash the orbiting space colony, Eurasia, into the Earth. The ultimate goal was to mix Sigma's own viral code, which he spread across the Earth, with a newer virus that would ultimately recreate the original Zero Virus, and therefore warp Zero back to evil. This plan failed, and though X and Zero defeated Sigma, Zero was critically wounded and left for dead. Sigma used his last energy to try and destroy both X and Zero, but Zero managed one last shot of his buster which decimated the flimsy shell Sigma had left. X, despite serious injury, was inexplicibly rebuilt and returned to the Hunters. Zero's body, however, could not be found, and he was thus declared "missing".

Mega Man X6

Three weeks passed as the humans moved underground to survive the devastation left by Sigma's last attack, and Sigma was soon resurrected by the scientist Reploid, Gate. Gate was angry at the world for rejecting his advanced creations, and turned into a Maverick after he came into contact with a piece of rubble that contained signatures of Zero's virus-infected DNA. Gate also managed to find Sigma's remains in the process, and began to rebuild his program and body. Though Gate used all of his abilities to piece Sigma's program back together, he wasn't successful, and the half-conscious, barely alive program inhabited an equally half-built body. The damage inflicted upon Sigma during the Earth Crisis was more severe than even Gate's ability could repair, and Sigma fought the Maverick Hunters, remembering little more than revenge against those who had hurt him. Technically, this would be the first instance when Sigma was merely a pawn in someone else's scheme.

Mega Man X7

However, time off allowed Sigma to fully recover, and soon, Sigma reappeared and manipulated the hunting organization known as Red Alert. His plan was to use a mysterious young Reploid named Axl to copy DNA signatures of X and Zero, and then use it to create destructive war machines. The plan failed as Axl fled Red Alert and sought asylum with the Maverick Hunters, and Red Alert's organization was destroyed before Sigma was defeated. He swore to return, even though he was tricked by Axl (using a DNA Core captured from Red) and blasted out of a window.

Mega Man X8

Sigma's next plot was very complicated, and it wasn't even him behind the entire scheme. It turned out that Axl was a prototype for a new generation of Reploids. These new Reploids possessed advanced copy abilities, and Alia discovered that the copy chips bore copies of Sigma's program among other powerful reploids. Sigma instigated a new Maverick revolt with these new Reploids as the humans were evacuating Earth in hopes of finding a new home on the Moon. The revolt was stopped, Sigma was completely decimated, and the real mastermind; Lumine, who was the manager of the project, was revealed and beaten. Before his death, Lumine made a startling claim— according to Lumine, Sigma was dead and not coming back. It is believed that the reason Sigma would not regenerate within another body after his final defeat is that he was on the Moon, where the virus might not be effective like on Earth. Another reason is that there might be a lack of available bodies, and he was stretched too thin. It is unknown if Lumine's claims are true. However, the fact that he made no known appearances in Mega Man X: Command Mission, taking place years later sometime in 22XX, may be a strong indication from Capcom that he would not be returning. Until Capcom announces another X series game with him in it, fans should assume that this was his final appearance.

[edit] Abilities

As the former leader of the Maverick Hunters, Sigma is a brilliant military leader, often thinking strategically and calmly in the execution of his plans. Even as a Maverick, Sigma is a competent leader, able to command others effectively, even those who would normally not take orders well, including the rogue Maverick Hunter, Vile, and the mercenary, Dynamo. Sigma also enjoyed learning the weaknesses of others (such as Zero's mysterious history), often using those weaknesses to his advantage. A former soldier, Sigma often moved with disciplinary grace, and expected those under him to follow his commands to the letter, as though he were commanding an army.

In his many battles against humanity and the Maverick Hunters, Sigma's body was reconstructed numerous times, incorporating different weapons and abilities each time. Such weapons include energy projectile guns, a sword, a scythe and weapons that launch fire and ice. In battle, whenever Sigma is defeated the first time, he usually returns immediately, more powerful than before. Video game players have called this act "pulling a Sigma." Later, it was discovered that Sigma's program (soul) and the Maverick Virus have merged and thus became one being known as the Sigma Virus. This is the reason why Sigma keeps returning after being destroyed countless times, because it was merely his body which was being destroyed and not his soul. Since all "new-generation" Reploids currently include Sigma's DNA in their make-up, Sigma's virus may have nowhere to go. It is worth noting, however, that Sigma is supposed to be killed by X using the Mother Elf according to the Mega Man Zero story, although this may simply mean destroying the Sigma DNA in the new generation Reploids and/or any trace of the Sigma Virus left behind.

[edit] Trivia

The Maverick logo is actually the Greek letter Sigma, stylized.
Sigma's final form often involves his head in some way, by either being the boss itself, or by being his only vulnerable spot. X1 Sigma is a huge Velguarder body (modelled from his pet dog that players fight), where only the head can be hit; X2 Sigma is a giant wire-frame of his head; X3 Sigma was an enormous battle body shaped like a demon head, and only Sigma's main head can be hit; X4 Sigma is a series of heads; X5 Sigma is an enormous battle body that is so big only his head can be seen; X6 Sigma is Sigma's head on a half completed giant body, where the only vulnerable point is his head.
Though not officially starring, Sigma was referred to in an episode of the 1994 Mega Man cartoon by Ruby-Spears, where X, Vile and Spark Mandrill go back in time. His profile, shown by X, mistakenly spells his name as Cigma.