Y’know, I stopped playing the Champions RPG for a reason. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to think about this superhero stuff again after my comic-book company folded. Bastards.
An important power you’ve left off is Teleportation – a favorite of mine, though my legs would probably atrophy from never having to walk again – my hero-name would almost certainly be La-Z-Boy.
Ignoring the omni-powers (though they’d be awfully nice), I can think of a lot of nasty things to do to villains (or heroes) with the combination of Teleportation and Super-Strength. “Surprise!” WHAMMO! You could call me Back Door Man.
Of course, I could also be Back Door Man with a combination of invisibility and stretching (malleability), and just concentrate on female villains. “Surprise!” WHAMMO!
Invulnerability and Super-Speed – reminds me of a character I had once, named Ramjet. He didn’t exactly run though – he had a jetpack and roller skates. These two powers, invulnerability and superspeed (or flight), mean never having to say you’re sorry. Keep moving, and you just crash through villainous traps.
For those who are interested, there’s an incredibly funny book out there called “How to Be a Superhero.” I’ll look up the publishing info when I get home. I still laugh out loud when I read it.
–Da Cap’n
“Playin’ solitaire 'til dawn
With a deck of fifty-one.”
Apathy and complacency. If ya got those, nuthin else matters.
“There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences.”
~P.J. O’Rourke~
I didn’t much care about your post, UncaBeer, butI’m ok with it.
I did too, Poly. I’m a big fan of Niven. Then there’s also a song by Tom Smith called “The Superman Sex Life Boogie.”
What? Oh, the OP.
Super speed with super intelligence on the side for me, thanks.
Ya gotta be careful in picking superpowers. There’s a character in the Legion of Super Heroes called Ultra Boy. He had all of Superboy’s powers but with one restriction: He could only use one at a time. If he used Super-Strength, he could break his hand punching through steel. If he used Invulnerability, he could only lift a couple hundred pounds or so. He could fly on his own, but his standard-issue Legion Flight Ring took care of that and allowed him to be invulnerable or something. He was actually a good character because he showed the importance of problem-solving.
So if I had to pick two from the list, I’d pick Invulnerability and Super-Strength. Those would get you out of just about any jam.
If you’re Omnipotent, you can give yourself all the powers you want…
Save The Endangered Jackalope! Send Cash Now! If You Do This, I Will Use The Cash To Save Any Jackalope That I Happen To Find! Send Cash Now! Before It’s Too Late! My Bills, I Mean The Jackalope’s Bills Are Due The 15th Of The Month! This has been a message from the Illuminated Committee To Save The Jackalope. Fnord.
Well, leaving off the omni-'s I think I’d go for Invisibility and Telekinetic. As someone else pointed out, I can use Telekinesis to make myself fly (maybe slowly) but in any event I would be the best cat-burgler in the world. Doors would just open themselves for me, and I could float through buildings soundlessly and of course invisibly. I could rob a museum while it was open! AHAHAAHA you are powerless to defeat me!!!
I think I’d go with flight and super-mallebility. I’d take super-intelligence if it was an option, instead of the super-mallebility. Telepathy would be cool, but it is impolite to read other people’s minds, at the very least. “Healing touch” would be great, but I would feel obligated to live my life in hospitals. I can be selfish in my choice of super-powers, right?
I sure could use strength and flight, however there has to be a certain degree of invulnerability with super-strength, it wouldn’t make much sense to catch a 30 ton boulder only to be knocked out in a regular bar fight… I would say at least bulletproof. Same goes for flight, there has to be some degree of speed, other superheroes might frown on the fact that you have to “drift” to the troubled areas of town.
Although I would have to say the healing power combined with omnipotence would grant me about 2 billion followers if I claim I am the next messiah… “please give generously my loyal subjects” (heh)
Or perhaps a luxury life of crime with the powers of invisibility and strength…
final thought: become the most amazing porn star with the powers of growth and super speed! (couldn’t resist)
The omnis are no fun. I’d have to exercise the option of forgoing the list and choosing my favorite classic power of all time: to be Master of Magnetism! The applications are endless, since apparently said power is not limited to screwing up compasses and tossing around ferrous metal, but bleeds into other areas of the electromagnetic spectrum, as well. Unlike Magneto, though, I’d fully be a superhero, since that’s the way my momma raised me. Imagine an average day at work: you coast into the tense hostage situation, riding the Earth’s magnetic field, and crush the evil terrorists’ guns with a wave of your hand, grab the iron in their bloodstream and lift them into the air, throw ‘em into the paddy-wagon (or whatever the feds use nowadays), cuffing them along the way, and then cross your arms across your expansive chest and stare off into the distance in three-quarters profile while the cute and appreciative former hostages swoon around you. Beats the hell out of temping, is all I’m sayin’.
Instead of “choose one of: flight, super strength, omnipotence”, how about a cost-based system, like in the super-hero role playing game Champions?
You know. You get 100 “Points” to spend. Flight costs 1 Point per 1 meter/second of flying speed, minimum cost 10 Points. Having twice normal strength (measured by how many pounds you can bench-press) costs 5 Points, and every subsequent doubling of your strength costs an additional 5 Points. True invulnerability doesn’t exist, but you can buy yourself an armored hide as tough as a bulletproof vest for 18 Points, or as tough as the forward armor of an M-1 Abrams tank for 57 Points. X-Ray Vision costs 20 Points. Invisibility costs 20 Points but requires physical exertion to sustain and has a “fringe” effect like the aliens in Predator; you can get rid of the fringe effect for +10 Points, and eliminate the physical exertion requirement by paying 1.5 times the normal cost. Reed-Richards-like malleability costs 5 Points for every 2 meters you can stretch your body.
