In the 2003 storyline "Standoff", Iron Man and Thor come into conflict over Thor's aggression toward the military dictatorship in the nation of Slokovia, whose leader, General Stoykovicz, has slaughtered its citizens for worshipping Thor as part of his ban on pagan worship. When Stark decides to confront Thor, he wears the Thorbuster armor, which he designed some time prior to the story as a contingency plan in the event of such a confrontation. Outwardly the armor exhibits elements of Asgardian technology, resembling a hybrid of an Iron Man armor and the Asgardian weapon known as the Destroyer. The power source for the armor is an enchanted Asgardian jewel fragment originally given to Stark by Thor as a gift, in the hopes of one day being utilized as a new energy source for mankind. Because the jewel possesses the same type of enchantment that gives Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, its power, it allows the armor to absorb and re-channel the energy directed at the armor by Mjolnir. During their battle, Thor neutralizes the armor by ripping off its right arm and removing the jewel fragment.