John is one of the more laid-back, easy-going personalities on the Atlantis Expedition. He is capable under pressure, an excellent marksman, and outstanding pilot. He is very instinctual and frequently is able to come up with ingenious solutions to complicated problems. Some put this ability down to his being a closet mathematical genius, despite little scientific training. He also has displayed the ability to keep up with much of Rodney McKay's complicated plans. But despite this, he tends to be relatively humble—being able to accept that sometimes there isn't anything he can do to help to resolve the current problem, and leaving it up to more capable minds. He has also occasionally shown a darker side; he did not hesitate to take action that killed over 50 Genii soldiers when Kolya was trying to take over the city in "The Storm". He also supported using torture on a former Atlantis colleague to gain information in "Critical Mass" Also in the episode, Millers Crossing, he talked Henry Wallace, the owner of Devlin Medical Technologies, into sacrificing himself to a Wraith. When McKay voiced his discomfort over this, he replied that he merely presented a situation. He told McKay that the report would only say that the wraith got the upper hand. Sheppard tends to be very honest at times: when he makes a deal, he keeps it, something which is acknowledged by the trust the Wraith, Todd, puts in him when they make deals together. Sheppard demonstrates this when he agrees to spare Todd in order to escape; then, despite having Todd at his mercy, with Todd never actually expecting Sheppard to honor their deal, Sheppard does and releases Todd. When Sheppard later offers Todd a deal in exchange for saving their lives, Todd is dubious until Sheppard gives to Todd his word, at which time Todd stops questioning Sheppard's honesty. Sheppard does keep the deal, convincing a reluctant Richard Woolsey to go along with it.