In his original stories, Ragman is a Vietnam War veteran and the sole survivor of an attack on his father and friends, inexplicably gaining their collective skills and strengths.

Starting in 1991, Rory Regan's origin and nature were revised, making him a Vietnam veteran of Jewish heritage who inherits the mystical Suit of Souls after his father was killed by criminals.

[2] Worn by many champions over the centuries, each patch of the costume possesses the soul of a corrupt person who offers their skills, knowledge, protection, and strength to Ragman to earn redemption and release.

[5] The title character Rory Regan was presented as a vigilante who focused on standard urban crime threats such as gangsters, drug dealers, and thieves.

After his mini-series, this incarnation of Ragman did not appear regularly in the DC Comics universe beyond a minor cameo during the company-wide crossover Crisis on Infinite Earths.

The mini-series was plotted by Keith Giffen, scripted by Robert Loren Fleming, illustrated by Pat Broderick, and colored by Anthony Tollin.

Rory Regan is still a veteran of the Vietnam War, with the story establishing him now as a divorced man who is "pushing middle age" when he first dons the costume.

The mini-series reveals that Rory's father was a Jewish man born with the name Reganiewicz, which he changed and shortened after immigrating to the United States.

The mini-series establishes there have been several to carry the mantle of Ragman before Rory, including his own father Gerry, who attempted to protect Jews from Nazis during World War II.

Now inheriting the costume and role, Rory Regan is depicted as a hero who struggles to control the Suit of Souls and not give into his emotions when facing criminals.

The story depicts Rory returning to Gotham City from New Orleans, only to then lose control of his Suit of Souls as it hunts down evil men to kill and absorb.

[8] In the 2005-2006 mini-series Day of Vengeance, a tie-in to the company-wide crossover Infinite Crisis, Ragman joins Shadowpact, a group of magic-users who oppose the Spectre.

The series was published from 2006 to 2008, ending after 25 issues, and revised parts of Ragman's history, saying the costume had originally come into being in 1812 BCE and could take on different forms (such as a knife or spear) without altering its powers.

In 2010, a one-shot comic entitled Ragman: Suit of Souls was produced by writer Christos N. Gage, artist Steven Segovia, colorist David Curiel, and letterer Rob Leigh.

The mini-series was written by Ray Fawkes, illustrated by Inaki Miranda, and colored by Eva de la Cruz, with covers by Guillem March.

A Vietnam veteran, Rory Regan had grown up helping his father, a junk man who owned a pawn shop named Rags 'n' Tatters.

While drinking with his friends one night, his father discovered two million United States dollars stuffed inside an old mattress that had been pawned just recently.

This was retconned in a 1991-92 eight-issue limited series[citation needed], and currently each of the patches in the suit is made from the soul of an evildoer that Ragman had punished and absorbed.

[citation needed] During the series Day Of Vengeance, Ragman is one of the few volunteers willing to take on the rampaging Spectre, who has decided that all magic is evil.

[citation needed] In the Shadowpact series, Ragman, along with his teammates, was trapped inside a shield of solid blood that grew over the town of Riverrock, Wyoming.

Ragman and the rest of the team spend a very short period of time inside the shield, but due to magical after-effects, a full year passes outside.

[15] Ragman briefly appears in The Network one-shot for the "Battle for the Cowl" storyline, assisting Cassandra Cain and the Huntress in tracking down a group of hostages around Gotham.

After removing the duct tape from the mouth of a gagged woman, Ragman proceeds to counsel her for her apparent drug addiction, telling her that she will never truly be free until she takes hold of her life.

During the 2009-2010 "Blackest Night" storyline, Nekron completely shut down Ragman's suit by using the Black Lantern rings to reanimate all the souls attached to his body.

When Etrigan, desperate to destroy the witch, broke a gas main in the old house the ritual took place in and breathed his fire on it, Ragman, Batwoman, and the now-amnesiac Clayface had barely any time to get out of range of the resultant explosion, but managed it.

This collection of souls lend their power to Ragman, giving him superhuman strength, speed, and stamina, as well as mystical abilities such as gliding on air currents, mentally manipulating his cloak and rags to attack or ensnare others, and being able to sense magical and demonic forces.

In the 2006 series Shadowpact, it is said the suit can take on other forms and has done so repeatedly over the years, appearing as a cloak in ancient Egypt, a spear during the Roman Empire, and a dagger in Victorian England.

[20] This version is the sole survivor of the city of Havenrock, which Damien Darhk destroyed with AmerTek's nuclear missiles, and wears ancient rags from the Devarim era.

[citation needed] He travels to Star City to seek vengeance for Havenrock by attacking AmerTek executives until Green Arrow convinces him to abandon his quest and become a hero.

In the series finale "Fadeout", Ragman returns to Star City to help find the Green Arrow's son, William Clayton.