Questions tagged [powers]
A broad term covering the abilities of superheroes (such as Superman or Spider-Man), mutants (X-Men or telepaths), and magical users (witches and wizards). Can be arrived at in a number of ways - natural talent or learning (magic), being an alien (Superman), radiation (Fantastic 4), or other.
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Why did the Jedi want to bring balance to the Force?
During the Prequel trilogy, the Jedi wanted to bring balance to the Force, in accordance with a prophecy. There seemed to be a general agreement that this was a 'good thing', but a disagreement with ...
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When Jedi lose parts of their body, does their midi-chlorian count and strength in the Force diminish?
From what I understand, midi-chlorian count is a strong indicator of ability in the Force (though there are other factors as well). So it seems like when Anakin loses his arm or Luke loses his hand, ...
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Invisibility should cause blindness: how does hard sf cope? [closed]
One problem I've always thought of with science fiction characters becoming invisible is that they should go blind, because their retina does not catch any light.
Obviously a lot of soft SF or ...
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How do the Incredible Hulk's pants stay on but not his shirt?
I guess I can live with the fact that the Incredible Hulk changes size drastically when he transforms, but why does his shirt rip off and not his pants?
I think that we need a little better answer ...
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How does Superman fly?
If I remember correctly, Superman's powers come from the fact that Earth's sun is yellow and Krypton's sun was red. So he is supercharged by our sun's solar energy or something like that.
While this ...
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What is the first instance of a person gaining powers from radiation?
What is the first person to gain their superpowers through exposure to radiation? I am thinking of comic book heroes and ionizing radiation (such as gamma rays) rather than, for example, folklore ...
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Is Zack Morris's 'time stop' ability in "Saved By the Bell" a supernatural ability?
I've always wondered if Zack Morris's ability to stop time in the show was to be taken literally as an ability, or if it was just a story device. The latter actually would make more sense... but for ...
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Why does Spider-Man shoot webs from his wrist in the movies?
From what I remember, in the original comics, Spider-Man shot webs from his wrist because Peter Parker used his science background to design mechanical web shooters.
In the Sam Raimi movies, however, ...
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A witch, a vampire and a pixie meet in a bar and talk about tomatoes eradicating humanity
I remember reading a series of books that took place in the Unites States in our time, but some 50 years ago or so there was a problem with genetically modified tomatoes eradicating most of humanity -...
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How strict is the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery?
In the first book Hermione mentions that she has tried a few spells, before ever arriving at Hogwarts, Sorcerer's Stone, Ch 6:
I've tried a few spells just for practice and it's all worked for me.
...
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Who was the first super hero with super-speed powers in comics?
Who was the first super hero with super-speed powers in comics?
Plus question: Any prior hero from Pulp magazines or books with super-speed?
Mythological species not included.
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Was E.T. a Jedi? [closed]
I came to this thought that E.T. was in fact a Jedi (or at least Force-sensitive) and the more I think about it, the more it seems possible. This would explain many things.
First, we already know ...
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Complicated story identification from book cover
I really want to find this book again. I had it back in the seventies, the story was complex, surreal, competing realities type.
The cover showed one figure (I think), anyway, their neck was a ...
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What's the difference between the Light side and the Dark side of the Force?
We know that Dark side is linked to emotion like fear and anger, but the interesting point here is the between line the two side of the force.
As an example, what make Mind tricks a "acceptable" ...
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Does The Hulk need oxygen to survive?
I'm not very familiar with the different versions of The Hulk. However, in general does he need to breathe oxygen in order to survive?
Would it be possible to kill him by propelling him into outer ...
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Can Magneto control Colossus?
I know Magneto can control magnetic fields, to an insane extent, even to the point of manipulating Adamantium. I know he never does it in the movies, but is it ever explored in the comics or cartoons ...
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Has Black Widow ever been imbued with Spider-Powers?
I'm aware that there are many Spider-People of various flavors (see Into the Spider-Verse) and all kinds of storylines where others have been temporily imbued with Spider-Powers.
Lo and behold, Black ...
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Where does Heimdall's sight come from?
A fairly straightforward question: where do Heimdall's abilities come from?
It seems most Asgardians have a standard set of superhuman capabilities (strength, toughness, longevity, etc), and those ...
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Short story: Man gains X-ray vision, cheats at cards, sees a clot in his blood
I remember reading it close to 10 years ago: a man acquired the ability to see through objects. He used it to cheat at cards, and later, saw through his own flesh and divined a blood clot approaching ...
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Can Superman see through his eyelids?
Given that his x-ray vision allows him to see though skin, can he use this ability with his eyes closed? Or do they prevent it somehow?
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What story has an alien symbiote bond with a human in a cave?
I'm looking for a story (novelette, short, etc) I've read in an anthology, about a human running from pursuit who lands in a planet and enters in a cave where something falls on his shoulders and he ...
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Looking for a short story from the '80s where inanimate objects talk because of a fluke
Looking for a short story a friend of a friend described. I Googled around but can't find it. Anyone know this one?
"This is reminding me of a funny short-short SF story that I can't find from a ...
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How does Ms. Marvel fly?
Using her original Kree-given powers, how did Ms. Marvel fly? Was this an ability that all Kree had, or was she manipulating gravity, or what? Or was it never explained past "she can fly"?
She still ...
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Does Rogue ever take advantage of the removable power suppression we see?
One of the main characteristics of Rogue is her lack of control over her mutant power — unless she wears a full-body suit and gloves, she can't touch anyone without hurting them. With even brief ...
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Does Wonder Woman ever get cold?
I'm sure it's common knowledge that Wonder Woman customarily wears a costume with bare arms/legs/shoulders. Since her backstory usually has her growing up on some sort of tropical island, it makes ...
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What power(s) did Hiro's father have?
I've been re-watching season one of Heroes. It seems like almost everyone initially introduced is the offspring of two people with powers. Hiro's mom was a healer, what powers did his dad have?
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Can Superman focus his heat vision to a microscopic level?
If Superman can turn off Manchester Black's powers, can he focus his heat vision to a microscopic level?
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What does a high Midi-chlorian count actually mean?
This question is related to a few others here like Who is the most powerful user of the Force? and When Jedi lose parts of their body, does their midi-chlorian count and strength in the Force diminish?...
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How did the Kents raise a super-baby?
I have seem plenty of questions and posts about how could Superman (with all his powers) deal with XYZ, more or less having his Superpowers in the way of everyday routine for a normal human.
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Why did Saruman lose his power after he was banished from Orthanc?
Saruman was strong enough to defeat Gandalf the Grey, but upon banishment from Orthanc and his taking over of the Shire he seemed like nothing more than a normal old man. He apparently retained his ...
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Does Colossus have powers beyond his body becoming metal?
We all know he is stronger and more durable when in his organic metal form. My question is does he have additional powers? Specifically energy based ones. I only ask this because the Marvel Wiki gives ...
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What characters on Heroes have the ability to manipulate space and time?
In the show Heroes, there are a bunch of people who can do crazy things to space and time, including stopping it.
With the large cast, it's hard to keep track of who can do what, but who has the ...
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Are Time Lords psychic?
The Doctor is famous for his use of psychic paper:
However, at times, the Doctor seemingly demonstrated innate psychic powers. At the end of series 4, for example, he used them to
Besides this and ...
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Bitten by a vampire, werewolf, and zombie... what happens to him? [closed]
I'm toying with the idea of having a character bitten by more than one bite-infecting monster and wondered about just what would happen.
What are the generally-accepted time windows from bite to ...
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1990s(?) story. Someone is killing people who have special abilities (super powers)
I am trying to ID a story (or comic book series) from the 1990s I believe. It would have been in English.
Someone is killing people who have special abilities. (Sort of like Skyler was doing in Heroes ...
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How does ascension work in the Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erickson?
In the Malazan Book of the Fallen series, it is implied people 'ascend' to become gods (or god-like)? What decides who ascends and how does it work?
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Are Storm's mutant powers plausible?
Most level 4+ mutants in the X-Men universe have powers that have at least partially scientific (or at worst, pseudo-scientific) explanations:
Professor X - Brain cells can interact with a 'psionic ...
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Are Warehouse 13 characters Pete Lattimer and Steve Jinks Alphas?
In the SyFy TV show Warehouse 13 characters Pete Lattimer and Steve Jinks both have supernatural-abilities that can't be explained by science, nor by the use of any artifact (the show's premise).
...
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Novel about children who develop mental powers at puberty. Read in the 70's or 80's
There's a novel that I read years ago for which I can no longer remember the author or the title.
The only things I can remember are...
It was about mental powers, telepathy, etc
Children developed ...
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What exactly are Jessica Jones' powers?
As far as I can recall, on the Netflix Jessica Jones TV series, she had only exhibited super strength and super toughness. Does she have any other powers?
What exactly are Jessica Jones' powers in ...
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When did Harry's Power Levels begin being acknowledged?
I've just re-read Summer Knight, and in it, there's a lot of mentions of how outmatched Harry always is. Now I'm listening to Dead Beat, which is the seventh book in the series, and it's talking about ...
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How many types of webbing does Spider-Man have?
I know this may not be an easy question to answer, but it occured to me... Over the years, Peter Parker has made a number of different types of webbing. Considering that the webbing is, more or less, ...
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Story ID - In a World Where Artifacts Grant Superpowers, a Poor Boy Finds a Unique Artifact
I am trying to identify a short story that I likely read in Asimov's Science Fiction or one of Dozois's Year's Best SF&F anthologies in the 1990's or early 2000's. I looked through a great many ...
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Identify a book series, where order fights against chaos and they travel back in time
I'm trying to remember a book series I read in the mid-2000s. I've tried to remember as much as possible, some of the details might be incorrect. The book series is for young adults/teens and I think ...
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Young adult book about 5 girls with superpowers
I'm looking for a book for young adults (read it about 6 to 8 years ago, so around the 2008-2010 time frame) about 5 (or 4) girls, brought together because they have superpowers and can save the world....
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What is Nightcrawler's Limitation?
This has more regard to Nightcrawler's teleportation ability. Every instance I've seen him teleport it has been with a room or given space. In the old Sega Genisis games (not sure how closely they ...
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Is there an objective answer to who "the strongest Avenger" is?
In Thor: Ragnarok we have a scene in which Thor is trying to access a computer in a Quinjet by saying his name in different ways. One of the ways is by calling himself "the strongest Avenger", which ...
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Space Opera Novel Series ID - Probably Read in 2003-2010
I'm looking for the name of a series of space opera novels I read some time ago, probably between 2003 and 2010.
It may have been published quite a few years before I read it, I don't think it was ...
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Short story about a boy who brings a roach back to life
I'm trying to find information about a short story which involved a little boy who brings a dead cockroach back to life at the end of the story. I recall that he is repeatedly told to stop playing ...
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If Superman is injured, how completely and quickly does he heal?
We know that Superman can bleed, be bruised, and, more generally, sustain injuries under some conditions.
Assuming these injuries are not fatal, how completely does Superman heal?
Is healing almost ...
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