Starbolt was created by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum in 1977 and first appeared in The (Uncanny) X-Men Vol.1 issue 107 (1977). Much like many of his Imperial Guard peers, Starbolt is loosely based on the DC Comics Legion character Sun Boy. Part of the division of the Imperial Guard known as the Superguardians, Starbolt was among the first of the Imperial Guard encountered by the team of superhuman mutants known as the X-Men who sought to rescue the Princess-Majestrix Lilandra from her insane brother, then- Majestor D'ken.