Gordon Campbell (Earth-616)

Gordon Campbell was a mercenary who operated under the nickname Arsenal^[3][4] that had been previously used by Nimrod Strange.^[1]

Arsenal was hired by a drug cartel that monopolized illicit trade in Central Africa, and wanted to stop a new operation that Raul Bushman, dictator of Burunda, was trying to set up.^[1][3][4] The cartel funded a Burundan revolution led by General Jonathan B'kosa,^[1][3] and used Arsenal to provide them with support^[5] so that Bushman could be replaced by another president under the cartel's control.^[2] Arsenal recruited four infamous mercenaries, Akkad, Banning, LeGrange and Archie Simmons, gathering them in Marseilles, France, to be sent to Burunda and contribute to the rebellion.^[1]

Arsenal also decided to recruit former mercenary turned superhero Marc Spector, alias Moon Knight, because Spector was the living person who knew Bushman best. Arsenal discovered many of Spector's secrets,^[1] including even his problems with cash flow,^[1][6] and decided to put him to the test by ambushing him with a four-man team (Bivens, Coffey, McClain and Vitelli) in the NYPD auto impound yard, correctly assuming that Moon Knight would try to recover his impounded helicopter. Arsenal fought Moon Knight, eventually knocking him down in a fair fight,^[1] but was acceptably impressed by Moon Knight's prowess.^[5] Moon Knight's would-be sidekick Midnight was easily defeated by Arsenal's thugs,^[7][8] and Arsenal toyed with the idea of killing him^[7] but decided against it, to avoid any ally of Midnight (like Moon Knight) wanting revenge, and because there was no need to.^[1] This humiliation, combined with Moon Knight's reluctance to have a partner, convinced Wilde to forfeit this identity and career.^[8]

Arsenal took Spector on a flight to Marseille, where he explained the situation: Arsenal's bosses wanted to hire him on an operation against Bushman - which caught Moon Knight's attention. So as to convince holier-than-thou Moon Knight, Arsenal claimed to have been hired by the Drug Enforcement Agency, and even offered to use that leverage to affect Spector's tax problems. Arsenal took Spector, in his civilian identity, to the mercs' safe house in Marseilles, where they started working on a plan; Arsenal wanted Spector to lead the rebellion because Bushman had failed to kill Spector and was obsessed with him. Suspecting that Spector may not be committed, Arsenal ordered Simmons to keep an eye on Spector - but Spector overpowered Simmons, discovered that Arsenal had lied to him, and returned to batter the other mercenaries. He defeated most of them easily; Arsenal was more of a match for him, but eventually Arsenal's weapons caused an explosion that Moon Knight escaped from, but left Arsenal himself defenseless and almost naked. Arsenal and the other mercenaries were arrested by the French police,^[1] but in the police van, Arsenal released himself, defeated the policemen and escaped. Arsenal refused to release the other mercenaries because they have proven to be worthless.^[5]

Arsenal decided to go to Burunda and kill both Bushman and Moon Knight. Bushman had closed frontiers with neighbouring countries, but Arsenal bursted in^[5] from Angola^[3] wrecking the roadblocks.^[5] Arsenal may have intercepted Bushman's armed forces communications and know that Bushman had found the rebels' secret camp, killed B'kosa and was at that point chasing Moon Knight with most of his forces.^[2]

Arsenal found the rebel army one kilometer from the capital city Freedomtown, waiting for B'kosa's orders. He convinced them to follow him instead, claiming to be working for the people who had geared them, and that B'kosa had died, Moon Knight they could no longer count with - all of which was true. Without B'kosa, the rebels were hesitant because they had no alternative head of state to Bushman, but Arsenal told them that was just a detail^[2] as he intended to install a puppet government.^[4][2] Arsenal established a stategy to take the Presidential Palace, the airport and the public radio stations, with Arsenal himself leading on the attacks.^[2] As most of the soldiers were far from Freedomtown looking for Moon Knight,^[2][3] and Bushman refused to abandon the search even with his capital city in danger,^[2] the rebels succeeded in capturing Freedomtown. Arsenal, who had taken the Palace, sat on the Presidential Palace, but refused to be President himself - he neither wanted that position or was allowed to have it by his bosses. He instead gave the highest positions to the four Burundan rebels who had been with him at that point, then phoned his bosses at the drug cartel. The new government was internationally accepted, and Bushman was arrested.^[2]

Arsenal was an excellent fighter with several kinds of weapons that he carried with him, including a shotgun fastened to his arm, needle guns with curare, grenades,^[7] and a rocket launcher.^[2] He was also excellent in hand-to-hand combat without weapons,^[7] and could release himself from police capture.^[5] He was a resourceful man who could travel internationally through closed frontiers, even being a fugitive.^[5]

Arsenal did not speak French.^[1]

Body armor and different traditional weapons.^[7]

Arsenal has used both an airplane (which he did not pilot himself)^[1] and a motorbike.^[2]

Arsenal frequently wears sunglasses^[7] of different types,^[2] even when indoors.^[5] Sometimes, he wears non-shaded glasses.^[2]