A scientist and amateur magician from a Balkan nation who was fueled by two desires: the achievement of power, and eternal life. During World War II, he allied himself with the Nazis, but when that did not pay off, he went deeper into the world of sorcery, creating creatures such as the Un-Men and the Patchwork Man (I) in the process. In recent times, Arcane's body had grown old and withered. Seeking out the Swamp Thing, Arcane offered him humanity in exchange of using his powerful plant body for himself. Swamp Thing agreed and was magically transformed into Alec Holland. However, when Holland realized that Arcane would use the monstrous body to make himself ruler of the world, he furiously reverted the process. Arcane fled, seemingly plummeting to his death.But this was just the beginning of a long hatred between the two. Arcane returned time and again, in the body of an Un-Man, as an insectoid creature, and finally in the body of his niece Abigail's husband, Matthew Cable. Swamp Thing, however, defeated Arcane every time. Arcane died in one of their last encounters and was damned to Hell after his death.After years of punishment, he was considered evil enough to become a minor demon in Beelzebub's ranks. Later, Arcane actually redeemed himself and is now a force for good.