What Core Superpower Should You Have?

By: Zoe Samuel
Estimated Completion Time
7 min
What Core Superpower Should You Have?
Image: Witthaya Prasongsin / Moment / Getty Images

About This Quiz

Superheroes have themes. Very few of them have random assortments of powers, Superman being a rare example of this. For the most part, this is because every superhero, or supervillain as the case may be, has a theme, an idea, a unifying thesis. Spider-Man is a very clearly defined superhero in part because all of his powers center around his identity as the part man, part spider. 

A theme is an implicit boundary. It's a style, and all style is about saying what one isn't just as much as what one is. Spider-Man's powers are thus all about the abilities of a spider. Other superheroes are similar. Storm, of the X-Men, has the ability to control the weather, which is really a collection of powers in her case. Wolverine's powers are all reflective of a wild animal: claws, healing factor, etc. Even Batman, who has no "powers" per se, themes all his gear on the image of the bat.

Even superheroes who aren't on a theme usually have a single defining power. Superman's is flight. Sure, he's bulletproof and super strong, but flight is the thing everyone thinks of first. Supervillains also have defining powers, even if they have a theme that less clearly links them to those powers. Thanos, whose name comes from the Greek "Thanatos," meaning death, has death as his main "power," but that power comes from the Infinity Gauntlet, which gives him the power to do anything he likes. You may not be a demigod, a hero or a villain, but if you take this quiz, we'll tell you what your core superpower should be!

If you had superpowers for one day, what would you do with them?
I'd fly to the top of Mount Everest.
I'd go to an MMA competition and win.
I'd solve an existential threat to all humankind, like climate change.
I'd rob Fort Knox, obviously.

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What is the best "business model" for superheroism?
Nonprofits, like the X-Man
NGOs, like The Avengers
One-man-bands, like Batman
Small teams that still work if broken up, like with The Punisher and Microchip

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How would you describe your relationship to governments, if you had superpowers?
I'd want to be friendly and open to them, to avoid conflict.
I'd stay off the grid.
None, I would be clever about it and keep my powers a secret.
Like Magneto's; they are the enemy!

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If you had superpowers, would you want to join up with a team?
Probably not
It seems likely I would.
Yes, almost certainly
Definitely not

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How would you take on an enemy who could turn any object into a weapon?
I'd create some sort of barrier around them so they couldn't reach anyone with their weapons.
I'd just take all the punishment they can dish out, until close enough to strike.
I'd appeal to them with words to get voluntary compliance.
Drop a building on them. Ha! Use that, jerk!

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What sort of safe house or hideout would you have?
A very modern building with grounds
A mobile home
An old building, probably part of a university
A NORAD–like facility in a mountain or, better yet, a volcano

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Who would you want as a sidekick?
Jubilee. I always liked her attitude.
Robin. We'll just have to make him more like "Nightwing."
No one, really
Emma Frost. She seems like she's got some good decision making instincts.

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Who would you want to show off in front of with your superpowers?
My old high school classmates
Tough people from whom I'd want respect
No one!
The whole world

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If you had superstrength, what would you do with that power?
I'd try to make myself useful in situations when having someone strong would be handy.
I'd find some manual labor job that I could do really well and make the salary of 10 men.
I'd try to use it for some kind of precision task that could only be done with bare hands, but needed huge amounts of force.
I'd break into a bank vault, obviously.

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How would you defeat an enemy who could read minds?
I'd come up with a plan where knowledge of it doesn't matter.
Attack without a plan!
I'd meditate so that I could blank out my mind, so I could act on a plan without thinking about it.
Throw them into outer space, obviously!

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What special gear would you carry around, to use with your powers?
Rope
A club
A Swiss Army Knife
A suit of armor

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Should a superhero's superpowers have lethal capacities?
Only as a side effect, I think.
Not directly, or not at all.
All tools can be made into weapons. It's up to the user.
Of course! Like laser vision, etc.

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Would you try to make money with your powers? If so, why?
Maybe I'd make some public appearances, but for charity.
Yeah, because I'd be working for it. Should really good athletes not get paid what they're worth?
Not overtly, because I'd want to avoid too much attention.
Yeah! My kingdom of evil isn't going to rule itself!

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How likely would you be to use your powers for helping people you didn't know, even if it wasn't a dangerous or emergency situation?
Very likely
Not too likely
What kind of question is that? Of course I'd help.
I would not ... unless I was being paid!

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If you had a costume, how would it look?
Spandex! Old school!
Lots of leather and denim
Like normal clothes? I think I'd just want to wear clothing I could move in.
It'd be very tactical, but also like medieval armor.

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How would you deal with the arrival of a hostile alien spacecraft, if you had superpowers?
Cause it to crash into something hard and sharp, like a mountain, and then throw it into a body of water.
Climb aboard and take them on one by one!
Figure out their reason for invading, and come up with a better reason for them to leave.
Nuke 'em!

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In real life without superpowers, how would you deal with being mugged at knife point?
I'd just hand them all my money.
I'd grab the knife by the blade and take it from them to show how badass I am.
I'd determine why they want my money, and try to help them with the real problem.
I'd beg for my life, and tell them to rob my friends, who have more money than me!

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If you could walk through any wall, what would you want to do with that power?
I'd see what's inside that chamber under the Sphinx!
I'd find out what's inside the suspected First Emperor of China's tomb, which they can't open yet.
I'd go into the buried train station in Brooklyn allegedly containing the missing pages of the Booth diary!
I'd go into the White House and steal a bunch of secrets!

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Which of these selfless acts is the closest to something you've done?
Pushed someone out of the way of a bus
Gave my jacket to someone else so they wouldn't get sick from the sub-zero temperatures
Helped someone learn to read
Let someone have my seat on public transport

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How clearly can you think when your heart is racing?
I think fairly clearly.
Not too clear, if I'm honest.
It's physiologically impossible to think well enough even to read when your heart rate is at 155 bpm or higher.
Oh, I'm crystal clear!

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With which of the following characters do you most closely identify?
Captain America
The Hulk
Iron Man
Doctor Doom

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How do you deal with the sight of your own blood?
I don't freak out too much.
I'm fine with it.
I have a natural reaction, but it's just my body responding, not my mind.
I get really sick.

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Which do you think is cooler, superpowers or super gadgets?
Gadgets, probably
Superpowers, definitely
I think gadgets are better because the fact that you got them says something about your other abilities.
Call me greedy ... Why not both?

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If you could fly, what would you want to do with that power?
Take photos of my town from up high
See the peaks of the Rockies up close
See ice crystals form in clouds
Steal from a major art museum!

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At what age do you think you'd be able to handle having superpowers?
My late 20s
My teen years
My 40s
My 30s

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How physically tough are you?
I'm not very tough.
I'm rough and ready!
I'm familiar enough with pain that I don't have too much trouble with it.
I'm not tough at all.

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If you had the option to have superpowers, do you think you would really want them?
Yes, if learning to use it was an interesting, long process.
Maybe, if it were just a simple power.
Probably not. I'd be worried about winding up in a lab, or worse.
Of course! I want all the powers!

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Where would you center your base of operations, in the event you had superpowers?
The countryside, within striking distance of some major American cities
I'd keep it mobile.
At a center of learning, like Boston, Oxford, or Berkeley
Someplace remote, like the Alps

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If you had superpowers, what would you use as a secret identity?
Reporter
I wouldn't have one.
College professor
Scientist

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If confronted by an enemy who threatened that if you didn't obey, they would hurt those you love, how would you respond?
Try to determine how they could follow through, and see if there was a way to intercept that plan.
Tell them that's impossible because I love no one.
Find a way to convince them of the error of their ways.
Attack! Overkill is always better than underkill!

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You Got: