# What would be the best chemical elements for a shapeshifter to turn into? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** comic-books-manga\ **Created:** [February 22, 2022, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920 "2022-02-22T06:08:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cmyers1980](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyers1980/32/11814_2.png) [@Cmyers1980](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cmyers1980)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2022, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/1 "2022-02-22T06:08:43Z")
If someone had the ability to shapeshift into any chemical element, compound, form or material while still maintaining normal human speed and movement like [Metamorpho](https://www.reddit.com/r/respectthreads/comments/fosjjf/respect_metamorpho_dc_post_crisis/) and [Absorbing Man](https://comicvine.gamespot.com/forums/gen-discussion-1/respect-the-absorbing-man-2058675/) what would be the best and most versatile elements to turn into for combat, surveillance, evasion etc? ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2022, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/2 "2022-02-22T13:28:14Z")
What about water? Water is extremely powerful, and it can assume any shape to conform to its environment. Heck, you could escape by flowing down a drain and out into the drainage system. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2022, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/3 "2022-02-22T14:41:09Z")
Marvel Comic’s Sandman does pretty good being able to turn into sand. He can compress himself to be as hard and durable as concrete or loosen himself to float in the wind as a sandstorm ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2022, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/4 "2022-02-22T15:28:03Z")
> [@Cmyers1980](#): > > what would be the best and most versatile elements to turn into for combat, surveillance, evasion etc? It doesn’t matter. All fictional form changers behave in ways that tge substance doesn’t perform. Emma Frost’s diamond doesn’t act like diamond. Cyclops’s steel doesn’t act like steel. Rockslide’s rocks don’t act like rocks. So make anything that you want do anything that you want. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2022, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/5 "2022-02-22T22:46:46Z")
Vibranium, obviously. Or maybe adamantium, or impervium, or obdurium, or whatever, depending on your setting. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2022, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/6 "2022-02-23T01:03:15Z")
With that type of control, can you re-constitute from the atoms up? Because you could turn part of yourself into a critical mass of plutonium and take down a planet. Or more mundanely convert half your atoms to Sodium and half your atoms into water, adjusted to the size of the room you wanted blown apart. For Secret Squirrel sort of stuff, turn yourself into Nitrogen. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2022, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/7 "2022-02-23T01:04:51Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Cyclops’s steel doesn’t act like steel. I’m going to guess you meant Colossus. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2022, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/8 "2022-02-23T01:06:25Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I’m going to guess you meant Colossus. Well, if you get Jean drunk enough she will tell you stories… ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2022, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-be-the-best-chemical-elements-for-a-shapeshifter-to-turn-into/959920/9 "2022-02-23T01:14:29Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Well, if you get Jean drunk enough she will tell you stories “His superhero name really isn’t about that visor he wears, you know.” 😃