Russian mad scientist, both in the sense of freak innovation and a permanently angry temperament. Dr. Ivan is one of my oldest characters, dating all the way back to early school and possibly even before it. He is the creator of "Formula X-16", a "miracle" chemical that served as a keystone plot device coveted by various villainous factions in the universe that informed the pre-DYOS project, in a narrative loop that sees him inventing countermanding gadgetry against whatever conquer-the-world purpose the thieves have concocted. Running an independent lab supported by a dedicated military garrison, his attitude toward his "minders" is antipathetic at best, as they end up destroying his compound to contain the latest out-of-control accident as often as save him from outside forces.

Dr. Ivan is one of several cameo characters from my early works appearing in the Hack of Ages montage. He has not been identified within DYOS, although I have longstanding plans to feature him in DYOS X.ii. He is name-dropped in the IOT game Mobius: Total Chaos, having created technology used by the Bundesleet to contain Black chaos energy—Rick O'Leigh, the Grand Alliance, and the Psi Wars are direct elements of his original setting.

• Dr. Ivan's surname has not officially been settled, going through several versions as my understanding of Russian has improved. The most recent given is "Uvojev", which is plausible via Serbo-Croatian uvojak, meaning a lock of hair.
• The original comics featured a running gag in which an evil laugh would break down into coughing.