Stephanie Brown was born the daughter of the Cluemaster, one of Gotham City's third-rate villains. Stephanie's father spent most of her childhood in prison or away from the family, and though he claimed to be "rehabilitated upon his return to Gotham, Stephanie was furious to discover that he was actually returning to crime without his need to leave clues behind. She decided something needed to be done. Stephanie tailored a costume for herself, and called herself the Spoiler. She knew where her father was hiding out, found out his plans, and left clues so that the police and Batman could stop him. Robin (Tim Drake) tracked her down, and she joined in on the capturing of Cluemaster. She also became attracted to Robin, and it annoyed her that he knew her identity but she did not know his.

During the events of "Knightquest", Cluemaster broke out of prison, along with Czonk and the Electrocutioner. Stephanie learned of the breakout on the news. Her mother, suffering from depression, was struggling with an addiction to painkillers. Steph decided to don her Spoiler outfit and go after her dad. She ran into Robin, and he let her work with him, although they got separated. Spoiler helped Robin out and he gave her a kiss in thanks. Before she could find out if she would see him again, the police arrived and they had to part ways.

Stephanie was kidnapped shortly thereafter by the Gully Carson gang, working with Cluemaster, who was still behind bars. Cluemaster got the idea to use her as insurance, but when the Carson gang withheld his part of the cut, he contacted Batman and Robin and told them that he had been forced to orchestrate their schemes because they were holding his daughter. Batman located the Carson's lair and Robin freed Stephanie. She insisted on getting her costume and going with him to bring down the rest of the gang--against Batman's objection. They were successful, and Stephanie decided to pay her dad a little visit in prison. She also made her attraction to the Boy Wonder very clear.

Spoiler next bumped into Robin when he was teamed up with Green Arrow (Connor Hawke) to take down a street gang selling guns. She told him that she didn't think it was fair that he got to have all the fun, so she was going to become the Spoiler more often. She insisted on coming with the two of them as they took down the gang, flirting with Robin as usual. There was no time for that, however, when they went after the real leaders of the gang the following night, as Robin was enraged over the death of a fellow student, Karl Ranck. Steph went to the funeral, unaware that Robin was there (with his girlfriend) in his civilian identity.

That night, Spoiler met up with Robin, telling him that she was going to be Spoiler more often, and would help him go against the boy who shot Ranck. They were in over their heads however, but thankfully Batman turned up, saved their necks and ordered Stephanie to go home.

During a point in which Tim and his then-girlfriend Ariana were unable to see each other, he and Stephanie grew even closer. He soon came to realize that his feelings for Stephanie had grown into something more, and after breaking up with Ariana, began dating Stephanie. Unfortunately, because he needed to maintain the Batman Family secrecy, Robin was unable to reveal his true identity to Spoiler. At first, she seemed more than happy with this arrangement.

Unfortunately for Stephanie, she found out she was pregnant by an ex-boyfriend who had left Gotham City during the Cataclysm. Tim, in his cover identity Alvin Draper, took Stephanie to Lamaze classes, and the two became even closer. Unfortunately Robin was moved temporarily to Keystone City during the last few months of her pregnancy. He however returned to her when she was giving birth. With Tim's help, she was able to deal with giving her child up for adoption. Although a painful experience, she felt it best to give her daughter a chance at a better life.

Soon afterwards, Tim was sent away to boarding school by his father, and the two were forced into a long distance relationship, made even more complicated by the fact she still didn't know his real name. Spoiler and Robin During his time away, Robin became friends with a girl named Star. One night, after seeing her go into an alley with some suspicious-looking people, Robin decided to follow her in costume. He ran into Stephanie, also on patrol, and she followed him as he tracked down Star to a gang meeting that erupted in a violent shootout. He managed to save Star, but Stephanie became convinced that he was cheating on her, and refused to see him for a time.

Shortly after this, Robin disappeared from Gotham for several days (he was off in Tibet on a secret mission), and in his absence Spoiler realized that she still wanted to be with him. Batman approached Spoiler and offered to train her. He also told her Tim's real name, and this betrayal drove a wedge in between him and Robin for awhile, as well as causing trouble for Stephanie and Tim. Spoiler began to train with Batman, and also the Birds of Prey (although they were a bit more reluctant). Stephanie also began a friendship with Batgirl who helped train her in-exchange for reading lessons.

Stephanie and Tim, as she now knew him, reconciled. Even after Batman - having decided that she wasn't really hero material - told her to hang up her costume and the Birds stopped mentoring her, she still patrolled with Robin, as well as went on regular dates. When the US Government came to Stephanie and her mother, and told her that the Cluemaster had died in service of his country in the Suicide Squad, Stephanie was shocked. She cut off ties with Tim and went on a crimefighting rampage, hunting down the Riddler, her father's former associate, to try to get a better idea of who he had been in life. Eventually, she made peace with his memory, and she and Tim rekindled their relationship.

Stephanie has also revealed that when she was a child, her babysitter had attempted to rape her. This man died of an apparent drug overdose eight days after she told her father what had happened. Whether or not he had killed him was one of the questions she had to resign herself to never being able to answer.

When his father discovered his secret identity, Tim was told to hang up his cape, and he did. He was forced to live a normal life for a time. During one day after school, Stephanie attempted to surprise Tim with a visit. Unfortunately as she arrived, she caught a female classmate of Tim's attempting to put the moves on him. Assuming yet again that Tim was being unfaithful, Steph broke off ties with Tim and angrily decided to put her attention elsewhere.

Creating a homemade Robin costume, Stephanie snuck into the Batcave and demanded that Batman train her as the new Robin. Despite his past belief that Stephanie was an inept crime fighter, Batman accepted her, put her through several months of intensive training and made her a costume with the same modifications as Tim's. As Robin she patrolled with Batman, and for a time seemed like a capable replacement for Tim. Unfortunately, for disobeying his orders on two missions, Batman later stripped her of the costume and told her that she was done being a hero because he couldn't trust her in the field

In an effort to prove her worth to Batman, Stephanie stole one of his long-range plans for dealing with the entirety of Gotham's criminal underworld. Since this plan was predicated on the involvement of "Matches Malone" (who she did not know was actually one of Batman's alter egos), it quickly spun out of control. The result was a citywide gang war, in which Stephanie was captured by the Black Mask, who tortured her to get information about Batman.

Although she escaped and made her way to Leslie Thompkins' clinic, she had been severely injured by the villain, and died in a hospital bed as Batman sat beside her

Batman later found evidence that vital medical treatment that could have saved Spoiler's life had been denied by his longtime trusted ally, Leslie Thompkins, who had fled to Africa in shame. When confronted by Batman, Thompkins, in tears, claimed that she willfully withheld treatment to Spoiler in the hopes that Batman would see the violence he caused and give up his mantle. Batman has personally exiled Leslie from the United States, informing her that if she ever returns he will make sure she is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

In the events following the resurrection of Ra's al Ghul, Robin follows the trail of a female thief called Violet. This leads him to reunite with his friend Ives in a pregnancy social service class. This added to random encounters with a blonde student in high school trigger his memories of Stephanie Brown. During his quest to find Violet, he is followed by a character dressed up as Spoiler. Later, this character takes off the mask revealing a blonde girl that knows Robin's secret identity. Accordingly, Robin is led to believe that Stephanie Brown is alive and back as a Gotham vigilante, although she is yet to be positively identified. Spoiler reveals herself to Robin trying to warn him that Violet led him to an ambush. Robin reacts violently and confused trying to unmask Spoiler and finally falling in the trap she was trying to warn him from. Before the trap is sprung however, Spoiler addresses Robin with his true name.

Spoiler is revealed to be the thought dead Stephanie Brown. Leslie Thompkins faked the death of Brown, switching the body with a woman who overdosed. Batman reveals he had his own doubts about it, placing a reason behind the lack of memorial. The reason behind the ruse was because the doctor was trying to protect her: if Batman's enemies knew that she was alive, they would continuously use her against him as Black Mask did as her identity has been compromised. Stephanie followed Leslie to Africa after she was well enough to travel under an alias and has been doing volunteer works all this time until she decided to return to Gotham. Spoiler once again rejoins the Bat-Family, and tells her mother of her return.

Spoiler has had a prominent though unexpected role as both ally and betrayer to Robin. Following Batman's recent disappearance and descent into madness, Robin is attempting to locate his mentor, while at the same time trying to maintain control over Gotham's criminals.

Tim asks that Stephanie aid him in their search for Batman, who Tim believes has gone insane due to an incident from years ago. Unknown to Tim however, Stephanie, under the orders of Batman himself, has been doing all she can to hinder the investigation. Batman it appears had anticipated his own downfall, and feels that it is best that Tim learns how to handle things on his own. Upon discovering this, Tim has pulled away from his friendship with Stephanie until he can sort out his feelings. But, Stephanie has also been ordered by Batman to make Robin better by challenging him. So Steph hired the Scarab, an assassin she had encountered in her time as Robin, to cause trouble, though she insisted the Scarab only use non lethal rounds. She started working with Tim's old pre-teen foe the General. This ended badly when he attempted to kill her, and it was only thanks to her martial arts prowess she avoided getting shot in the head. She did get shot in the shoulder, but managed to escape the General and later she saved Tim's life from a rogue Scarab, now working for the General. She has still not told Tim the truth about her plans, though she regrets her actions.

When the General, now wearing the identity of Anarky attempts to create complete violence by provoking a Gotham Gang War, Spoiler arrives to aid Robin in keeping order and defeating the General. Afterwards, Robin confronts Spoiler, stating that he is aware that Batman ordered her to 'help him become a better Robin'. And although her actions proved successful, the methods she used were questionable. And so Robin, although still in love with Stephanie, orders her never to wear the Spoiler costume again, due to the fact he cannot continue to deal with her messing up.

Prior to this however, Batgirl recruits Spoiler and Vigilante to a new network of heroes that will replace Batman, who at the time was missing in action. Unfortunately, it is later that Batman was killed during the events of the Final Crisis, during a battle with Darksied.