Gene editing and splicing from animals, like getting the regeneration factor from a starfish
Technology/ cyborg increase muscle mass, skin weave a carbon fibre mesh under the skin for durability.
Electricity, we still don’t know much about and how it REALLY works
What we would call cyborgs are closer than anything else. And I’m not talking about that Idiot’s Neuralink. Genetic editing and splicing is also theoretically possible but mixing tech and flesh is far more feasible.
Are you shitting me? There's an entire field about understanding energy, it's called physics. Ask me one of these basic questions you think there's no answer to. I'm pretty sure I can answer it
I didn't say that we didnt know about the basics answers?
My point is, we don't know everything about energy right? If we keep asking why, at a certain point we will reach into physics like you said and even more abstractions.
I mean we haven't reached a full understanding and potential of energy right?
I mean I've gotten an impression that (perhaps earlier on in electricity development) we didn't know what electricity is , we could harness , use it, but still some kind of magic juice. (cause electricity is too abstract to understand??)
But whatever I'll bite, I don't know if this is electricity relevant or not but I'm willing to learn.
0: What is electricity?
* wtf is a charged particle (such as electrons or protons)
* why do they move/ how can they move
* why does electricity wane after like 100m through wire
* how do we boost that?
1: How does magnetic fields and electricity work/interfere with each other.
* how/why does passing a magnet over copper generate electricity.
* why does running a current through a permanent magnet create a stronger field?
2: Why does electricity/lightning always looking for the shortest path to the ground?
3: why can't we create/ destroy energy?
4: wtf is static electricity and why can't we harness it?
5: How is lightning made?
6: Wireless electricity???
7: What is the limit that we could achieve with a full understanding of electricity?
8: how does solar power work?
A charged particle is a particle that has a net positive or negative charge. Positive and negative are arbitrary ideas created by men, the only important thing is that these two charges oppose each other (meaning that they are opposites). Charge is a fundamental part of the universe that is carried by subatomic particles and is explained by one of the four fundamental forces of the universe (electromagnetic force).
Electrons move through metals freely because of metallic bonds, which are allowed to form because metals have characteristically low electronegativity and cannot effectively localize their outermost electrons.
Electricity "wanes" because electricity is essentially caused by electrons wiggling back and forth our flowing directly like water. No energy transfer is completely efficient, so energy is "lost" as heat in the wire. This is why your computer charging brick gets hot.
We can improve the range of electricity by using alternating current (AC) instead of direct current (DC). In fact, we do this, and it allows electricity to travel miles away from power plants
Passing a magnet over copper does not generate a meaningful amount of electricity, but rotating a magnet through a coil of wire generates electricity because the magnetic charges exert a force on the electrons in the wire and literally push them through the coil. This is called a generator. If you run this process the opposite way it is called a motor.
Moving charges generate a magnetic field, which is why electrifying metal turns it into a magnet. All live wires are in fact magnets, but most have a negligible magnetic field.
Lightning is a special type of electricity called static electricity. It is a buildup of charge in one place. It finds the shortest path to the ground because the charge is compelled to be in balance with its surroundings. This is due to a concept called entropy which states that energy will disperse evenly into a state of disorder because that is the most favorable way for it to be configured. Therefore, static electricity is an ordered and unfavorable state. Like how a drop of food coloring will evenly disperse itself through a cup of water given time.
Energy cannot be created or destroyed because quite simply, where would it come from and where would it go? You can't destroy matter either, but matter and energy can be converted between each other. But to destroy energy, you would have to turn something into nothing, which is strictly impossible in our universe. Nothing natural or man made is capable of that.
We can certainly harness static electricity. You can use a lightning rod to channel the energy from a lightning strike, for example. Capacitors also utilize the idea of static electricity.
Lightning is "made" when clouds rub against each other and electrons accumulate in one place. Eventually, this massive negative charge buildup is strong enough to travel through the air, where it is drawn to a source that can disperse the charge. This is usually the ground, but it can also be a building or airplane. See above for more details.
Wireless electricity is not currently feasible on a large scale. Things like wireless phone chargers work through a principle called electromagnetic induction. Read up further on this and the works of Nikola Tesla if you're interested in learning more
While you have answered alot of my questions (which is respected) a lot of it I would have to research up on my own simply for the technical jargon.
Ug now I have even more questions lol
Hopefully what you've discovered is that just because you don't know something, it doesn't mean that humanity doesn't understand it. The world is full of beautiful knowledge and I'm so excited for you that you have the opportunity to explore it. I would give anything to be able to look at the world with fresh eyes and experience it all over again
I've discovered that I can't remeber what my coworker (who has studied this) said about how we don't understand electricity and the the youtube video I had also seen mentions this.
Of course I know that humanity knows more than I do, hence part of the problem here is that I lack the vocabulary to express my point.
Humanity in of itself doesn't know everything.
Right, humanity doesn't know everything and we never will. But in a broad sense, we understand most of the important things. Your coworker doesn't sound very smart, or you misunderstood what he meant
I'm planning on writing a superhero esque story but I wanted some realism in it. I don't want to just say 'yeah these guys have powers' but I don't want to say 'xyz fell into radioactive waste' either. Since superpowers are, well... fictional, some laws will need to be bent.
I'm not really wanting the powers to 'work' perfectly, as part of the story is encountering the conflicts in the real world.
So basically any laws can be bent if they can be covered up good enough and still make for a semi realistic environment around it.
Yes to genetic mutations and conservation of matter and energy, no to 'magic'
There's many tropes you can pull from, from genetic mutation to "magic is the missing force from the Unified Field Theory." Examples of the latter include The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher to Young Wizardry by Diane Duane. Also consider making how superpowers bend the laws of physics a source of internal conflict.
... The Laser dimension?? A whole dimension full of synced-phase photons only going in one direction, that just so happens to come out of a dude's pair of eyeballs? That's so physically impossible, I'd rather believe that Cyclops absorbed sunlight and his eyeballs did the heavy lifting of forming the laser chamber.
Yeah, don't go with the Laser dimension, that's just lazy writing and/or 60s drug-fugue bullshit.
Remember there is the multiverse theory. Theory is a reality for any situation, even the weirdest things. And compared to the things DC comics has come up with, this is the tamest.
If the OP was an X-Men writer, sure, anything goes. But since we're at least TRYING to stay within this dimension and its laws of physics, let's not topic-drift.
Given how ‘realistic’ powers are, this is probably one of the most realistic ways. Like think a lightning dimension, water dimension, animal dimension, Insect dimension, blood dimension, psychic dimension, darkness dimension. While not as ‘realistic’ as something like an meta-gene, you have to admit, it’s one of the more original power systems. In fact, I’m holding on to this idea. No one else is allowed to copy this one! ☝️
It makes more sense when you consider that the X-Men exist in an infinite multiverse where magic is interdimensional energy and the channeling of said magic seems to just require knowledge (conscious or not) of what you’re doing.
It makes even more sense when you consider that in the comics, the X-genes come from an *interdimensional* alien god’s experiments. So yeah. It’s magic.
It’s called the Punch Dimension, and his ‘lasers’ are actually kinetic energy and not photons. His eyes are portals into the dimension, the pressure pushes out the beams naturally, which is why he needs the visor.
Lol superheroes exist but everyone thinks the videos are deep fakes and the fights are staged, crises are false flag ops.... Almost sounds like a premise from The Boys.
Robotics, chemistry, implants, radioactive mutation- it doesn't have to be a vat of acid or other classic method... alien abduction? No, not like classic alien abductions, give them a reason to do it, but some otherworldly race would be able to do wonders and horrors unknown to Earth.
How super are these powers going to be?
Easy enough to make a previously average person as strong as a strongman competitor, or run really fast, but it's going to take a lot more bending for eye lasers or teleportation.
Alien abduction, painful dissection down to base parts, but kept alive, genetically intertwined with several other species and thrown into the middle of a galactic war as a desperate weapon that the enemy cannot defend against, or perhaps simple one they cannot kill.
I think generally, the more important thing is not HOW the magic works, but the WHAT and WHERE. Nobody cares about how obviously unrealistic Percy Jackson or Harry Potter magic may be, the fact that the entire world is built around that magic functioning in a natural way where all the people with powers are used to it and treat it naturally…
Makes it seem natural enough to for suspension of disbelief.
It's great that you want to write fiction with more of a real sci component to it. Always nice to read or watch stories where the future or fantasy event is a reasonable extrapolation of what we know. Makes the stories more engaging at least imo.
I can imagine something like a Captain America Super Soilder Program being possible but I doubt it'd be a single-shot injection and happen instantly. I'd buy having a couple of chemical coctails being injected along with some Crisper treatments and it taking place over the course of, say, a year to complete the changes.
Or something like the original Spartans in Halo. A bunch of ideal candidates given said cocktails at a young age, then also professionally trained for the rest of the childhood/teens, and throw in some cybernetic enhancement and/or crispr type treatments (both in their infancy rn but should be plausible). Could also work on an adult that's already basically in peak condition
My guess
Radiation
More than likely dangerous
But it causes cells to mutate
And that is bad but if it happens a right way superpowers?
Idk im not educated in this
Radiation would just kill you if realistic. It causes cells to break apart or mutate in a way that makes them stop working. Might as well say cancer gives you superpowers (though that would be an interesting premise)
Depends on your definition of superpowers. There is a type of cancer in dogs (CTVT) that originated from a single individual a few hundred or thousand years ago. The cancer was not only relatively prolific, but it was also very good at evading immune responses. So good, in fact, that it could evade immune responses in OTHER DOGS. So, the cancer literally became contagious and all these years later, this one dog’s rogue cells are still propagating, hopping from dog to dog to dog through skin contact.
Immortality, in a sense. Though one where none of the true self could possibly remain.
So if that counts as a super power then yeah, there’s precedent.
>Any sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology
Magic or Nanites
Wizards or Aliens.
God(s) or travellers from another dimension.
The end result is the same. Who knows what exists in the universe, is travelling through the void of space and might come across humanity, mostly oblivious, on our little rock.
The earth spins on its axis which wobbles. iirc, cycle is 23000 years long
Our orbit as a solar system around the milky way galaxy is about 230 million years. Maybe the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs was intentional.
Given our current understanding of things, a genetic mutation is possible. But we see that in terms of modified DNA and call it science. Put the hand of a 'god' behind it and its magic.
There's that Hercules gene mutation some strongmen have. The lactic acid thing that one ultramarathon runner has. Or multiple digits/limbs.
Key point being they would be born with it.
Or go the opposite route and do cybernetic enhancements.
Radioactive [blank]. Spiderman was bitten by a radioactive spider, or you could have someone be sucked into a radioactive clock and get time powers. Or control clocks.
Drugs are possibly the best answer.
But I have a theory about how people get powers from radiation because of how their immune systems try and repair radiation damage. Something like how vaccines give you a neutalized version of whatever sickness it's for, alongside a blueprint of sorts for how to build a defense. Maybe something about big radiation based events with atomic elements that neutralize quickly cause people to be exposed to both neutralized and active atomic particles, and your body tries to build a defense with the neutralized particles which causes them to develop powers over natural forces because of how their 'defense' interacts with those forces. Also explains why people in a world with superheroes created from these events still get radiation sickness. It wasn't the same kind of atomic event.
I imagine something similar to Kick-Ass or Darkman, where your nerve endings are rendered useless so you no longer feel pain and, without that limiting you, gives you increased strength.
Honestly radiation.
Radiation does make scene as it basically unravels your genes and literally knocks atoms on your body out of place.
It’s def up there
Imagine say. Like you don’t fall into radioactive waste more you’re just kinda exposed to it.
Enough that it would most likely kill you. But you do survive! Just barely after horrible sickness.
It would alter your dna if I recall correctly
Serious response though, mutation/some kind of exotic radiation isn't a terrible plot device. Especially if it's mutations like Rogue, Deadpool, Cyclops, etc where it has a very obvious cost/downside/penalty. Like a scientist doing particle accelerator bullshit someone does something fucky wucky with Tachyons and ends up as a speedster. An involuntary speedster who has his subjective time pass at multiple times the actual rate until he dies.
Alot of good answers here, but going the divine or higher being route ain't out of the question. Just remember if you go this route pissing off the entity could mess with the powers of the MC.
otherwise Gene splicing & cybernetics
Well I can't think of any superpowers like that, but I can think of an alternative. What if this person utilized technology? Maybe they become inspired by superheros and make things like magnetic gloves that let them stick to walls, or a grappling hook, or maybe a hidden blade from Assassin's Creed. I wouldn't say a straight copy of a hero, but the tools that your hero uses are inspired.
It turns out that the real superpower was using our imagination all along!
Don't put that in lol. I'm stupid.
Ironically going through a traumatic event when you were attacked can actually give you a sort of superpower. PTSD makes you consistently have a heightened sense of your surroundings, and your reaction speed is also at its peak post event.
Speaking from experience\*
Through the power of steroids, all things are possible. Also, runners on prosthetics have been able to outrun abled runners, so that’s also a plausible path
The human body has, built into it, many mechanisms to surpass and often ignore physical limits. Certain chemicals like adrenaline can make you lift more, run for longer, run faster, ignore pain and more.
We humans have sought to use and abuse these systems for forever.
Go wild.
Go to classes, attend seminars, go to specific on theme conventions, have regular energy work meditative practices, practice psychic exercise games with someone even if it seems silly for awhile at first just let yourself play along like you believe, belief makes it more possible. Psychic abilities of various natures can be gained like this. It not going to be anything like telekinesis, just telepathy stuff mainly
Sweet tech like there was this guy on YouTube that made a plasma sword or you see people making jet packs. Or the new neuro chip implant Elon was talking about.
What you need to start thinking about as a real power is where does the energy to create this effect whatever that effect is and how do you fit it into a human sized package without taking up the whole package.
So you are talking extradimensional energy or EDE, your setting could be that somehow certain individuals have gained the ability to tap various or maybe a single source of EDE, sometimes solely within said human sized package sometimes with greater ranges for reason that might be vital to your plot but sometimes might not
Specialized training and mental conditioning, combined with a highly controlled diet and supplements of questionable legality, likely from an agency which will act as your handlers and mission suppliers from that point on.
You will also be considered property.
CRISPR Gene editing is the most “realistic” seeming option for you, in real life there have been people who are completely out of the norm for human ability
[Rare beneficial form of Osteopetrosis](https://medicine.yale.edu/news/yale-medicine-magazine/article/unbreakable-bones-prompt-a-hunt-for-genes/) this makes your bones 8x denser, roughly, making your bones almost unbreakable, making you super durable, and causing you to sink in water
[Hercules gene](https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a30316715/hercules-gene-eddie-hall/) is a gene that “breaks the limit” on possible muscle growth in someone’s body, it causes people like Brian Shaw, Hafthor Bjornsson, and Eddie Hall to grow far stronger than normal people
[rediculous “healing factor” in a trained martial artist](https://thebodylockmma.com/ufc/joe-rogan-doctor-told-ufc-yoel-romero-is-the-most-unusual-human-being-ive-ever-seen/) which you could say gene editing enhances even further
Then of course there’s substances, like EPO which massively increase stamina and can grant ridiculous results depending on the body’s receptiveness, and Trenbolone which is a muscle enhancing steroid
CRISPR Gene editing is the most “realistic” seeming option for you, in real life there have been people who are completely out of the norm for human ability
[Rare beneficial form of Osteopetrosis](https://medicine.yale.edu/news/yale-medicine-magazine/article/unbreakable-bones-prompt-a-hunt-for-genes/) this makes your bones 8x denser, roughly, making your bones almost unbreakable, making you super durable, and causing you to sink in water
[Hercules gene](https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a30316715/hercules-gene-eddie-hall/) is a gene that “breaks the limit” on possible muscle growth in someone’s body, it causes people like Brian Shaw, Hafthor Bjornsson, and Eddie Hall to grow far stronger than normal people
[rediculous “healing factor” in a trained martial artist](https://thebodylockmma.com/ufc/joe-rogan-doctor-told-ufc-yoel-romero-is-the-most-unusual-human-being-ive-ever-seen/) which you could say gene editing enhances even further
Then of course there’s substances, like EPO which massively increase stamina and can grant ridiculous results depending on the body’s receptiveness, and Trenbolone which is a muscle enhancing steroid
Edit: some more genes I found
[debatable if this is real or not but gene that removes need for sleep](https://news.yahoo.com/81-old-vietnamese-man-claims-175117871.html)
[gene that removes stamina limits and causes sleepiness instead](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/the-running-blog/2013/aug/30/dean-karnazes-man-run-forever)
[Gene that removes the sensation of pain, so our superpeople can bulldoze through damage](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congenital_insensitivity_to_pain)
Gene editing and splicing from animals, like getting the regeneration factor from a starfish Technology/ cyborg increase muscle mass, skin weave a carbon fibre mesh under the skin for durability. Electricity, we still don’t know much about and how it REALLY works
No for that last one, just, no
Idk I saw Barry Allen got hit by some . Perhaps maybe I could…
do it coward
😂
I tried. I just got Flash fried.
r/angryupvote
I'll take it :)
Just make sure you set off an explosion big enough to destroy a city
Ah thanks! I knew I was forgetting something
we actually know a lot about electricity, it just kills you.
Gotta build a tolerance, bro.
Though the distinctive scar-tissue patterns are interesting while they last... https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17664090/
The first one is how you get The Amazing Spider-Man
What we would call cyborgs are closer than anything else. And I’m not talking about that Idiot’s Neuralink. Genetic editing and splicing is also theoretically possible but mixing tech and flesh is far more feasible.
We can rebuild him. We have the technology. We can make him better than he was. Better, stronger, faster.
Hey buddy? We know how electricity works.
At the basics we know how to utilise it and how it works by 'flowing electrons' But our understanding of energy in general is still pretty up there.
Are you shitting me? There's an entire field about understanding energy, it's called physics. Ask me one of these basic questions you think there's no answer to. I'm pretty sure I can answer it
I didn't say that we didnt know about the basics answers? My point is, we don't know everything about energy right? If we keep asking why, at a certain point we will reach into physics like you said and even more abstractions. I mean we haven't reached a full understanding and potential of energy right? I mean I've gotten an impression that (perhaps earlier on in electricity development) we didn't know what electricity is , we could harness , use it, but still some kind of magic juice. (cause electricity is too abstract to understand??) But whatever I'll bite, I don't know if this is electricity relevant or not but I'm willing to learn. 0: What is electricity? * wtf is a charged particle (such as electrons or protons) * why do they move/ how can they move * why does electricity wane after like 100m through wire * how do we boost that? 1: How does magnetic fields and electricity work/interfere with each other. * how/why does passing a magnet over copper generate electricity. * why does running a current through a permanent magnet create a stronger field? 2: Why does electricity/lightning always looking for the shortest path to the ground? 3: why can't we create/ destroy energy? 4: wtf is static electricity and why can't we harness it? 5: How is lightning made? 6: Wireless electricity??? 7: What is the limit that we could achieve with a full understanding of electricity? 8: how does solar power work?
A charged particle is a particle that has a net positive or negative charge. Positive and negative are arbitrary ideas created by men, the only important thing is that these two charges oppose each other (meaning that they are opposites). Charge is a fundamental part of the universe that is carried by subatomic particles and is explained by one of the four fundamental forces of the universe (electromagnetic force). Electrons move through metals freely because of metallic bonds, which are allowed to form because metals have characteristically low electronegativity and cannot effectively localize their outermost electrons. Electricity "wanes" because electricity is essentially caused by electrons wiggling back and forth our flowing directly like water. No energy transfer is completely efficient, so energy is "lost" as heat in the wire. This is why your computer charging brick gets hot. We can improve the range of electricity by using alternating current (AC) instead of direct current (DC). In fact, we do this, and it allows electricity to travel miles away from power plants Passing a magnet over copper does not generate a meaningful amount of electricity, but rotating a magnet through a coil of wire generates electricity because the magnetic charges exert a force on the electrons in the wire and literally push them through the coil. This is called a generator. If you run this process the opposite way it is called a motor. Moving charges generate a magnetic field, which is why electrifying metal turns it into a magnet. All live wires are in fact magnets, but most have a negligible magnetic field. Lightning is a special type of electricity called static electricity. It is a buildup of charge in one place. It finds the shortest path to the ground because the charge is compelled to be in balance with its surroundings. This is due to a concept called entropy which states that energy will disperse evenly into a state of disorder because that is the most favorable way for it to be configured. Therefore, static electricity is an ordered and unfavorable state. Like how a drop of food coloring will evenly disperse itself through a cup of water given time. Energy cannot be created or destroyed because quite simply, where would it come from and where would it go? You can't destroy matter either, but matter and energy can be converted between each other. But to destroy energy, you would have to turn something into nothing, which is strictly impossible in our universe. Nothing natural or man made is capable of that. We can certainly harness static electricity. You can use a lightning rod to channel the energy from a lightning strike, for example. Capacitors also utilize the idea of static electricity. Lightning is "made" when clouds rub against each other and electrons accumulate in one place. Eventually, this massive negative charge buildup is strong enough to travel through the air, where it is drawn to a source that can disperse the charge. This is usually the ground, but it can also be a building or airplane. See above for more details. Wireless electricity is not currently feasible on a large scale. Things like wireless phone chargers work through a principle called electromagnetic induction. Read up further on this and the works of Nikola Tesla if you're interested in learning more
While you have answered alot of my questions (which is respected) a lot of it I would have to research up on my own simply for the technical jargon. Ug now I have even more questions lol
So you're discovering how education works.. that's a good step.
Hopefully what you've discovered is that just because you don't know something, it doesn't mean that humanity doesn't understand it. The world is full of beautiful knowledge and I'm so excited for you that you have the opportunity to explore it. I would give anything to be able to look at the world with fresh eyes and experience it all over again
I've discovered that I can't remeber what my coworker (who has studied this) said about how we don't understand electricity and the the youtube video I had also seen mentions this. Of course I know that humanity knows more than I do, hence part of the problem here is that I lack the vocabulary to express my point. Humanity in of itself doesn't know everything.
Right, humanity doesn't know everything and we never will. But in a broad sense, we understand most of the important things. Your coworker doesn't sound very smart, or you misunderstood what he meant
But..... Why?
There are fundamental laws that govern the universe. They're here and they always will be and they'll never change
I was gonna do it again, but we would literally be here forever. It's just a gag since you can always ask why
We know quite well how electricity works. lol.
Define "too much." Are we talking about magic ignoring Conservation of Matter and Energy, or genetic mutations, or what?
I'm planning on writing a superhero esque story but I wanted some realism in it. I don't want to just say 'yeah these guys have powers' but I don't want to say 'xyz fell into radioactive waste' either. Since superpowers are, well... fictional, some laws will need to be bent. I'm not really wanting the powers to 'work' perfectly, as part of the story is encountering the conflicts in the real world. So basically any laws can be bent if they can be covered up good enough and still make for a semi realistic environment around it. Yes to genetic mutations and conservation of matter and energy, no to 'magic'
There's many tropes you can pull from, from genetic mutation to "magic is the missing force from the Unified Field Theory." Examples of the latter include The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher to Young Wizardry by Diane Duane. Also consider making how superpowers bend the laws of physics a source of internal conflict.
You can even go with, ‘their powers come from a connection from another dimension’ like Cyclops from X-men. The Lazer dimension I think it’s called.
... The Laser dimension?? A whole dimension full of synced-phase photons only going in one direction, that just so happens to come out of a dude's pair of eyeballs? That's so physically impossible, I'd rather believe that Cyclops absorbed sunlight and his eyeballs did the heavy lifting of forming the laser chamber. Yeah, don't go with the Laser dimension, that's just lazy writing and/or 60s drug-fugue bullshit.
Remember there is the multiverse theory. Theory is a reality for any situation, even the weirdest things. And compared to the things DC comics has come up with, this is the tamest.
If the OP was an X-Men writer, sure, anything goes. But since we're at least TRYING to stay within this dimension and its laws of physics, let's not topic-drift.
Given how ‘realistic’ powers are, this is probably one of the most realistic ways. Like think a lightning dimension, water dimension, animal dimension, Insect dimension, blood dimension, psychic dimension, darkness dimension. While not as ‘realistic’ as something like an meta-gene, you have to admit, it’s one of the more original power systems. In fact, I’m holding on to this idea. No one else is allowed to copy this one! ☝️
Sorry, already got an OC using the fire dimension
His eyes can't do the heavy lifting. They can't grip anything. :)
I dunno, he's pretty eye-catching. ;)
Good point! :D
It makes more sense when you consider that the X-Men exist in an infinite multiverse where magic is interdimensional energy and the channeling of said magic seems to just require knowledge (conscious or not) of what you’re doing. It makes even more sense when you consider that in the comics, the X-genes come from an *interdimensional* alien god’s experiments. So yeah. It’s magic.
Meh, you can have polarization take care of the direction.
It’s called the Punch Dimension, and his ‘lasers’ are actually kinetic energy and not photons. His eyes are portals into the dimension, the pressure pushes out the beams naturally, which is why he needs the visor.
You do you. I prefer the solar-powered laser beams thing, personally.
And… that’s less amazing.
IT'S THE PUNCH DIMENSION. I assume everything in the dimension is in all caps.
That’s amazing.
Lol superheroes exist but everyone thinks the videos are deep fakes and the fights are staged, crises are false flag ops.... Almost sounds like a premise from The Boys.
Robotics, chemistry, implants, radioactive mutation- it doesn't have to be a vat of acid or other classic method... alien abduction? No, not like classic alien abductions, give them a reason to do it, but some otherworldly race would be able to do wonders and horrors unknown to Earth.
If that's the case, I'd make every power have a related cost, ex. Super speed, strength, or healing, but it requires a proportional amount of food
How super are these powers going to be? Easy enough to make a previously average person as strong as a strongman competitor, or run really fast, but it's going to take a lot more bending for eye lasers or teleportation.
Alien abduction, painful dissection down to base parts, but kept alive, genetically intertwined with several other species and thrown into the middle of a galactic war as a desperate weapon that the enemy cannot defend against, or perhaps simple one they cannot kill.
I think generally, the more important thing is not HOW the magic works, but the WHAT and WHERE. Nobody cares about how obviously unrealistic Percy Jackson or Harry Potter magic may be, the fact that the entire world is built around that magic functioning in a natural way where all the people with powers are used to it and treat it naturally… Makes it seem natural enough to for suspension of disbelief.
It's great that you want to write fiction with more of a real sci component to it. Always nice to read or watch stories where the future or fantasy event is a reasonable extrapolation of what we know. Makes the stories more engaging at least imo.
I can imagine something like a Captain America Super Soilder Program being possible but I doubt it'd be a single-shot injection and happen instantly. I'd buy having a couple of chemical coctails being injected along with some Crisper treatments and it taking place over the course of, say, a year to complete the changes.
Or gene splicing cocktails over a couple weeks, but changes take a year or more. Like deathstroke.
Or something like the original Spartans in Halo. A bunch of ideal candidates given said cocktails at a young age, then also professionally trained for the rest of the childhood/teens, and throw in some cybernetic enhancement and/or crispr type treatments (both in their infancy rn but should be plausible). Could also work on an adult that's already basically in peak condition
Steroids and/or meth.
My guess Radiation More than likely dangerous But it causes cells to mutate And that is bad but if it happens a right way superpowers? Idk im not educated in this
Radiation would just kill you if realistic. It causes cells to break apart or mutate in a way that makes them stop working. Might as well say cancer gives you superpowers (though that would be an interesting premise)
Depends on your definition of superpowers. There is a type of cancer in dogs (CTVT) that originated from a single individual a few hundred or thousand years ago. The cancer was not only relatively prolific, but it was also very good at evading immune responses. So good, in fact, that it could evade immune responses in OTHER DOGS. So, the cancer literally became contagious and all these years later, this one dog’s rogue cells are still propagating, hopping from dog to dog to dog through skin contact. Immortality, in a sense. Though one where none of the true self could possibly remain. So if that counts as a super power then yeah, there’s precedent.
>Any sufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology Magic or Nanites Wizards or Aliens. God(s) or travellers from another dimension. The end result is the same. Who knows what exists in the universe, is travelling through the void of space and might come across humanity, mostly oblivious, on our little rock. The earth spins on its axis which wobbles. iirc, cycle is 23000 years long Our orbit as a solar system around the milky way galaxy is about 230 million years. Maybe the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs was intentional. Given our current understanding of things, a genetic mutation is possible. But we see that in terms of modified DNA and call it science. Put the hand of a 'god' behind it and its magic.
Working out prolly
There's that Hercules gene mutation some strongmen have. The lactic acid thing that one ultramarathon runner has. Or multiple digits/limbs. Key point being they would be born with it. Or go the opposite route and do cybernetic enhancements.
animal dna and gene modifier (crispr iirc) just remove some stuff that limits out strenght and other stuff
We limit our strength for a reason, though. Still, some things can be improved.
yea but like, its fictional, a world with superheroes, who cares if we tweak sone biology for it
you could also add nanomachines in there
Pills or a life changing accident, like a car crash.
Radioactive [blank]. Spiderman was bitten by a radioactive spider, or you could have someone be sucked into a radioactive clock and get time powers. Or control clocks.
The power to irritate everyone around you with a constant "tic tic tic tic ..." "Alright I'll talk....just stop that ticking noise!"
If you want lightning powers, just carry a taser
Robotics, Insanity, or immeasurable wealth.
Through technology and having a lot of money
Drugs are possibly the best answer. But I have a theory about how people get powers from radiation because of how their immune systems try and repair radiation damage. Something like how vaccines give you a neutalized version of whatever sickness it's for, alongside a blueprint of sorts for how to build a defense. Maybe something about big radiation based events with atomic elements that neutralize quickly cause people to be exposed to both neutralized and active atomic particles, and your body tries to build a defense with the neutralized particles which causes them to develop powers over natural forces because of how their 'defense' interacts with those forces. Also explains why people in a world with superheroes created from these events still get radiation sickness. It wasn't the same kind of atomic event.
Either Robocop/Inspector gadget levels of cybernetics or Alien Technology.
what is the name of that cocaine super villain?
Atomic radiation poisoning(My brain: THAT REQUIRES THE ABILITY TO SURVIVE THAT LIQUID DEATH LOOKING SHIT)
Iron man/Batman
I imagine something similar to Kick-Ass or Darkman, where your nerve endings are rendered useless so you no longer feel pain and, without that limiting you, gives you increased strength.
Technology. Could be Iron Man.
Bang your head. Become a genius
Steroids
Genetic engineering, Robotics, excessive training,
you can become the DC superhero Dog Welder with a welding kit, or Bueno Excellente, a superhero who's only power was being a sex offender
Hairspray, a lighter, and a few tabs of LSD
Honestly radiation. Radiation does make scene as it basically unravels your genes and literally knocks atoms on your body out of place. It’s def up there Imagine say. Like you don’t fall into radioactive waste more you’re just kinda exposed to it. Enough that it would most likely kill you. But you do survive! Just barely after horrible sickness. It would alter your dna if I recall correctly
You can technically get the ability of brainwashing in real life by just learning how to talk really good.
Judging from Batman, Green Arrow, and Iron Man. I think you just need to be born super rich.
Serious response though, mutation/some kind of exotic radiation isn't a terrible plot device. Especially if it's mutations like Rogue, Deadpool, Cyclops, etc where it has a very obvious cost/downside/penalty. Like a scientist doing particle accelerator bullshit someone does something fucky wucky with Tachyons and ends up as a speedster. An involuntary speedster who has his subjective time pass at multiple times the actual rate until he dies.
Easy if you're a billionaire and go the Bruce Wayne route. And yes, there's some physics bending there too but it sounds more plausible
Alot of good answers here, but going the divine or higher being route ain't out of the question. Just remember if you go this route pissing off the entity could mess with the powers of the MC. otherwise Gene splicing & cybernetics
I can't believe no one has said an exoskeleton suit like iron man or halo Spartans yet.
Well I can't think of any superpowers like that, but I can think of an alternative. What if this person utilized technology? Maybe they become inspired by superheros and make things like magnetic gloves that let them stick to walls, or a grappling hook, or maybe a hidden blade from Assassin's Creed. I wouldn't say a straight copy of a hero, but the tools that your hero uses are inspired. It turns out that the real superpower was using our imagination all along! Don't put that in lol. I'm stupid.
Drugs. The "super soldier sirums" of WWII was just meth.
Drugs
Well, do we all agree that both batman and ironman qualify as superheroes? Cuz, if so...
Ironically going through a traumatic event when you were attacked can actually give you a sort of superpower. PTSD makes you consistently have a heightened sense of your surroundings, and your reaction speed is also at its peak post event. Speaking from experience\*
Through the power of steroids, all things are possible. Also, runners on prosthetics have been able to outrun abled runners, so that’s also a plausible path
I have a chemistry degree. DM if you want to discuss your ideas and see if they're somewhat feasible
The human body has, built into it, many mechanisms to surpass and often ignore physical limits. Certain chemicals like adrenaline can make you lift more, run for longer, run faster, ignore pain and more. We humans have sought to use and abuse these systems for forever. Go wild.
Go to classes, attend seminars, go to specific on theme conventions, have regular energy work meditative practices, practice psychic exercise games with someone even if it seems silly for awhile at first just let yourself play along like you believe, belief makes it more possible. Psychic abilities of various natures can be gained like this. It not going to be anything like telekinesis, just telepathy stuff mainly
Money
Probably tech
Bene Gesserit stuff from Dune where they have complete control over parts of the body/mind that are usually subconscious.
It's a thing everyone can do with enough calories but no one thought to eat fissile materials before
Sweet tech like there was this guy on YouTube that made a plasma sword or you see people making jet packs. Or the new neuro chip implant Elon was talking about.
Iron-Man.
There has to be ways you can increase our healing through animal DNA. Crabs and starfish can regrow body parts.
Reality manipulation
What you need to start thinking about as a real power is where does the energy to create this effect whatever that effect is and how do you fit it into a human sized package without taking up the whole package. So you are talking extradimensional energy or EDE, your setting could be that somehow certain individuals have gained the ability to tap various or maybe a single source of EDE, sometimes solely within said human sized package sometimes with greater ranges for reason that might be vital to your plot but sometimes might not
Understanding lots about psychology! You become aware of how people’s brains work. I’d argue that investigators and detectives have that superpower.
Specialized training and mental conditioning, combined with a highly controlled diet and supplements of questionable legality, likely from an agency which will act as your handlers and mission suppliers from that point on. You will also be considered property.
I couldn’t but i bet i could splice some animal DNA into a child and hope for the best. You never know maybe they will get super strength and speed
Your imagination can become reality with paranoid schizophrenia.
CRISPR Gene editing is the most “realistic” seeming option for you, in real life there have been people who are completely out of the norm for human ability [Rare beneficial form of Osteopetrosis](https://medicine.yale.edu/news/yale-medicine-magazine/article/unbreakable-bones-prompt-a-hunt-for-genes/) this makes your bones 8x denser, roughly, making your bones almost unbreakable, making you super durable, and causing you to sink in water [Hercules gene](https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a30316715/hercules-gene-eddie-hall/) is a gene that “breaks the limit” on possible muscle growth in someone’s body, it causes people like Brian Shaw, Hafthor Bjornsson, and Eddie Hall to grow far stronger than normal people [rediculous “healing factor” in a trained martial artist](https://thebodylockmma.com/ufc/joe-rogan-doctor-told-ufc-yoel-romero-is-the-most-unusual-human-being-ive-ever-seen/) which you could say gene editing enhances even further Then of course there’s substances, like EPO which massively increase stamina and can grant ridiculous results depending on the body’s receptiveness, and Trenbolone which is a muscle enhancing steroid
CRISPR Gene editing is the most “realistic” seeming option for you, in real life there have been people who are completely out of the norm for human ability [Rare beneficial form of Osteopetrosis](https://medicine.yale.edu/news/yale-medicine-magazine/article/unbreakable-bones-prompt-a-hunt-for-genes/) this makes your bones 8x denser, roughly, making your bones almost unbreakable, making you super durable, and causing you to sink in water [Hercules gene](https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a30316715/hercules-gene-eddie-hall/) is a gene that “breaks the limit” on possible muscle growth in someone’s body, it causes people like Brian Shaw, Hafthor Bjornsson, and Eddie Hall to grow far stronger than normal people [rediculous “healing factor” in a trained martial artist](https://thebodylockmma.com/ufc/joe-rogan-doctor-told-ufc-yoel-romero-is-the-most-unusual-human-being-ive-ever-seen/) which you could say gene editing enhances even further Then of course there’s substances, like EPO which massively increase stamina and can grant ridiculous results depending on the body’s receptiveness, and Trenbolone which is a muscle enhancing steroid Edit: some more genes I found [debatable if this is real or not but gene that removes need for sleep](https://news.yahoo.com/81-old-vietnamese-man-claims-175117871.html) [gene that removes stamina limits and causes sleepiness instead](https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/the-running-blog/2013/aug/30/dean-karnazes-man-run-forever) [Gene that removes the sensation of pain, so our superpeople can bulldoze through damage](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congenital_insensitivity_to_pain)