When Doctor Strange recited the Emancipation Incantation, he gave up the majority of his magical powers in order to avoid being a pawn to the higher beings his magic came from. As a result, he could no longer fulfill all the tasks necessary for defending the realm of Earth alone. He began assembling teams of Secret Defenders to act with him or on his behalf against mystical threats that required more muscle than he could provide alone.
After he was trapped in his pocket dimensional Sanctum Sanctorum after the Siege of Darkness, Strange forcibly passed on the burden of assembling the Secret Defenders to Doctor Druid. Druid was compeled to assemble Defender teams in Strange's absence until he managed to remove the binding force upon him.
Other members include Silver Surfer, Ghost Rider III, Nomad, Namorita, Punisher, Sleepwalker, Sepulcre, Cadaver, Drax, and Deathlok.
