Looking for opinions not necessarily advice in Sci-Fi/Fantasy...

[ShelbyDawn57]

I'm working on a story where the main character gets possessed by a Central American god. Obviously there will be some inheritance of the god's powers. My question is, how far would that go? I mean, Thor is bullet proof, but his human counterpart in the Comix is disabled, so...
There are considerations like longevity and self healing and such.

My question is how far is too far before the character becomes to OP be have any conflict in their story line?

Again, I'm just asking for opinions, so fire away...And thanks in advance.

 

[EmilyMiller]

My FMC in the Coleoidphilia Trilogy became effectively God-like. But I made sure that wasn’t until the very end of the epilogue of episode three.

Em

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Tough call. OP ruins a story. I'd look at it from the other direction. What do you want your MC to be able to accomplish as part of the story? Then what's the minimum amount of power they'd need to pull it off? Being overpowered is always in context of the story.

 

[Euphony]

My question is how far is too far before the character becomes to OP be have any conflict in their story line?

You control all of this.

Your hero protag's invincibility is defined by your villain or other antagonist counter.

If your hero can survive tactical nukes, you're gonna have to build a villain to match.

As far as keeping reader's interest, it's on the author to make both sides of a battle compelling. We'll read anything if story is behind it. Most of the Greek myths are bonkers supergods way above human pay grade but they are hella reads.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Depends entirely on the nature of the conflicts in your story.

Superman's bulletproof. "Being shot at" isn't an interesting story for him. "Being shot at with Kryptonite bullets" might be, once or twice, but after that it just feels gimmicky. But that doesn't stop people telling interesting stories about him, because there are problems that can't be solved just through super-strength and not dying. For instance:

https://www.reddit.com/r/superman/comments/121qd31

 

[TheRedChamber]

Powers work best, I find, when they are well-defined and understandable and the author treats the rules with respect, but also has rules that are flexible enough to do cool stuff with.
(See Sanderson's Rule of Magic for more discussion of this)

Superman becomes boring because, over the years, he's become able to do practically anything and has one specific and predictable weakness which is why every Superman film starts with the villain breaking into the Kypronite museum, yawn (and then kidnaps Louis Lane)

(Don't know anything about your story obviously, so all this is shooting in the dark)
For possession by a God? Ask basic questions like - how invested is this God in keeping this particular human body alive? Are there particular times or days (or locations) when the God power might be stronger/weak - artifacts through which the power flows, and which can be separated from the hero. Is there an amount of magic juice that can be run out of at a particularly critical moment? Do the god and the mortal want different things? Are there other gods in the pantheon and where does this god stand in the hierarchy of power and status? Does the God have a particular role in the pantheon (war, fertility, the sea) and how does that shape the powerset.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Follow up question, when you said the God is possessing the MC, do you mean like completely in control of the body? Like it's a manifestation of the God? Or something else?
David Weber has a series where the MC is the Champion of a God. The MC has abilities as a result of it, but the limitation is that any mortal being can only physically and mentally withstand channeling so much of the God's power.

 

[Stimtheone]

Well, one of the characters in my stories is effectively godlike, yet there is still a degree of tension, mostly due to his behavior:

1. He will, on principle, not fuck with free will. There are very, very few exceptions.
2. He has a philosophy of people needing challenges. Thus, he does not help people more than they NEED it.
3. When he was the main character, his issues were often more about others doing things that he wanted, not of being able to do something.

Now, on the story idea OP proposed, you can find plenty of "limiters" both for the powers that the MC could get, or the god himself. Perhaps due to them not actively believing in this god they cannot unlock their full potential. Yes, having them there is one thing, but seeing what they are about and being spiritually aligned is another. Perhaps because they are not as "well-known" and thus they don't have a lot of people backing that power, it can be a lower-power god, perhaps with their enemies being equal ones that are trying to increase that power with nefarious plots. Say what you will about the Marvel franchise, but it made Thor much more believed in than Huitzilopochtli. PErhaps go on that philosophy. You need a challenge worthy of the character. IF they were a full god, they might be more concerned with guiding entire continents rather than whatever is their main idea at first. But having a slow growth also makes them relatable.

 

[Djmac1031]

Interesting conundrum, one both @EmilyMiller and I have had to deal with in our shared Angels & Demons universe.

As others have mentioned, make a character TOO powerful and there's no conflict, no tension.

Make powers inconsistent and you open yourself to plot holes and contradictions.

As we plotted our stories and characters, we wound up creating a hierarchy of characters and power levels so we could better understand their strengths and weaknesses.

My suggestion is take your time with it, think it through. Do a rough outline of what you want to happen and what powers are involved, what the limits are etc.

More importantly; make your characters realistic and interesting and readers will be far more accepting of powers and abilities.

Iron Man breaks every law of physics, yet people love Tony Stark, so they don't care.

 

[lanceGibs]

Follow up question, when you said the God is possessing the MC, do you mean like completely in control of the body? Like it's a manifestation of the God? Or something else?
David Weber has a series where the MC is the Champion of a God. The MC has abilities as a result of it, but the limitation is that any mortal being can only physically and mentally withstand channeling so much of the God's power.

Having seen the mechanisations of some such godmen at closer quaters it would be interesting to read more about them before you put pen to paper.

 

[SimonDoom]

My question is how far is too far before the character becomes to OP be have any conflict in their story line?

I don't understand what this sentence is asking. What is "OP"?

 

[TheRedChamber]

I don't understand what this sentence is asking. What is "OP"?

Overpowered.

(Commonly used abbreviation in video games and probably comic book circles, but not here...)

 

[mpeters]

Well, as someone who's done their fair share of superhero writing and creation (I'm working on a novel now), as been noted before, it's all up to you.

Firstly a correction: Thor is not bulletproof, which is why he's been shown swinging Mjolnir around in a circle in front of him as a shield.

Anyway... I have a character in my book that gets his powers from an Aztec god of fire, but his power is limited to only being able to control existing fire, so he has to carry a flame gun with him, so that he can shoot out a burst of flame and then use his magical ability to make that flame obey his will (and even keep burning without a source of fuel). It gives him limitations that would otherwise make him too powerful.

So keep a balance in mind. Maybe his powerset is much more limited unless he allows himself to be possessed by the god, but that god himself has limitations.

 

[mirafrida]

I guess the simple answer is that, paradigmatically, the most interesting conflicts in superhero stories are supposed to come from within - from the inner turmoil of the hero, the baggage of their past experiences and mistakes, their relationships with the people they care about, disagreements within the super-team, etc. Normally those inner struggles are then externalized in ways that prevent them from utilizing their unstoppable power to defeat the bad guy. Only when they've resolved the inner conflict, are they able to muster the power that was always within them, and finally save the world.

 

[EmilyMiller]

Overpowered.

(Commonly used abbreviation in video games and probably comic book circles, but not here...)

See, I understood that. I’m so much hipper than @SimonDoom

Em

 

[SimonDoom]

See, I understood that. I’m so much hipper than @SimonDoom

Em

That is such a low bar to jump over. I once told my sons I was "plugged in" and they burst out laughing in my face.

 

[EmilyMiller]

That is such a low bar to jump over. I once told my sons I was "plugged in" and they burst out laughing in my face.

That’s kinda funny

Em

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Wow, thanks for all the responses. I was intentionally being obtuse but think a little more definition is in order based on your responses. Our protagonist is ritually possessed by the cat god; "I have no name. I am older than the sky and have been called many things by many people; Bast, Bes, Tezcatlipoca, the protector, the transformer, you may call me what you will..."
Think Sabretooth from X-Men, but in a nineteen-year-old girl. Our nemesis is a drug cartel that shot her and murdered her mother, so GOD like powers would be overkill. Agility, strength, razor sharp talons are all given. Main question I'm debating is invulnerability/regeneration, especially when combined with martial arts training. That and too many tropes...

Should also note, when the god manifests, she get the ferocity that goes with it, so, again, OP...

 

[TheRedChamber]

Think Sabretooth from X-Men, but in a nineteen-year-old girl. Our nemesis is a drug cartel that shot her and murdered her mother, so GOD like powers would be overkill. Agility, strength, razor sharp talons are all given. Main question I'm debating is invulnerability/regeneration, especially when combined with martial arts training. That and too many tropes...

Should also note, when the god manifests, she get the ferocity that goes with it, so, again, OP...

I'd assume that Spider-man level damage tanking would be appropriate - she's going to be fast enough to avoid taking damage in most situations, so 'better than a human' but not complete invulnerability and 'recovery takes hours/days for what might take a human weeks/months'

 

[yibala]

Wow, thanks for all the responses. I was intentionally being obtuse but think a little more definition is in order based on your responses. Our protagonist is ritually possessed by the cat god; "I have no name. I am older than the sky and have been called many things by many people; Bast, Bes, Tezcatlipoca, the protector, the transformer, you may call me what you will..."
Think Sabretooth from X-Men, but in a nineteen-year-old girl. Our nemesis is a drug cartel that shot her and murdered her mother, so GOD like powers would be overkill. Agility, strength, razor sharp talons are all given. Main question I'm debating is invulnerability/regeneration, especially when combined with martial arts training. That and too many tropes...

Should also note, when the god manifests, she get the ferocity that goes with it, so, again, OP...

Sounds like Laura Kinney/X-23 in both abilities and temperament. Consider some of her stories, or Wolverine's. They have regeneration, which isn't the same as invulnerability. It can make them close to immortal, but that depends on how fast they regenerate. As others have said, characters like that can have compelling stories as long as you give them worthy obstacles to face. Those obstacles don't have to be adversaries in the drug carte. Her conflict could be more internal, like coping with how revenge and possession by a god affects the person she wants to be, or the people she loves. But if you're looking for external conflict, why not have the cartel also have a god-possessed champion to be her nemesis?

 

[FeralSmile]

Wow, thanks for all the responses. I was intentionally being obtuse but think a little more definition is in order based on your responses. Our protagonist is ritually possessed by the cat god; "I have no name. I am older than the sky and have been called many things by many people; Bast, Bes, Tezcatlipoca, the protector, the transformer, you may call me what you will..."
Think Sabretooth from X-Men, but in a nineteen-year-old girl. Our nemesis is a drug cartel that shot her and murdered her mother, so GOD like powers would be overkill. Agility, strength, razor sharp talons are all given. Main question I'm debating is invulnerability/regeneration, especially when combined with martial arts training. That and too many tropes...

Should also note, when the god manifests, she get the ferocity that goes with it, so, again, OP...

Apologies for being so detail-oriented, but Bes isn't a cat god, and Sekhmet and Bast and Tezcatlipoca have very different qualities and desires and functions. Bast was a protector of granaries and a companion, while Sekhmet was a warrior and destroyer, much like a Norse berserker. They're surely not the same proto-gods. But you can of course create your own Cat Spirit that encompasses all feline gods. Lore matters to a lot of readers though, for better and for worse. If you want to bring old and established lore into your writing, it's probably good to be sure you get it right. If you don't care about it, make up your own stuff! That's also good and readers will be forgiving.

If your character isn't immune to bullets, and the enemies have guns, then you already have dramatic tension. If she is, then give the antagonists better weapons that can hurt her. A hero who has no chance of losing isn't usually interesting, which is why Superman faces kryptonite and magic and foes you can't defeat by punching, like Lex Luthor.

 

[AwkwardlySet]

Design the powers of your MC according to the nature and level of threat he is facing. You can make him a significant force, but he should still be weaker than the main bad guy. Also, you should make him unable to accomplish much on his own.
A good idea in my opinion would be to make him start with small powers only, but so that his powers grow over time. Build his character and wits by making smaller obstacles challenging for him, but then grow the level of threat over time, along with MC's powers. That way he won't be a Mary Sue and just get great powers from the start and readers will enjoy feeling his powers grow. It is like playing an RPG and leveling up your hero and getting better gear through progression.

 

[nice90sguy]

This reminds me of:

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Wow, thanks for all the responses. I was intentionally being obtuse but think a little more definition is in order based on your responses. Our protagonist is ritually possessed by the cat god; "I have no name. I am older than the sky and have been called many things by many people; Bast, Bes, Tezcatlipoca, the protector, the transformer, you may call me what you will..."
Think Sabretooth from X-Men, but in a nineteen-year-old girl. Our nemesis is a drug cartel that shot her and murdered her mother, so GOD like powers would be overkill. Agility, strength, razor sharp talons are all given. Main question I'm debating is invulnerability/regeneration, especially when combined with martial arts training. That and too many tropes...

Should also note, when the god manifests, she get the ferocity that goes with it, so, again, OP...

If she is possessed by a cat God (and I'll let others get into those specifics) it might make more sense to let make her skills and powers more stealth oriented.
She has amazing night vision, can move silently, etc..
She isn't going to get revenge by going berserker, but through more subtle methods.
She figures out where they are storing loads of cash, infiltrates it and sets a bomb to burn it all up.
If you've seen the Punisher movie with Thomas Jane, his revenge starts by manipulating members of the cartel he's fighting to turn against each other.
Let the FMC use stealth and cunning to fragment the cartel and get them killing each other, then she can mop up the remains.

I'd also agree with others, some sort of healing factor, but if she takes headshot, it's over. Heals quickly enough that she can take a hit, but if the bad guys unload on her...
Hence the need for stealth.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Apologies for being so detail-oriented, but Bes isn't a cat god, and Sekhmet and Bast and Tezcatlipoca have very different qualities and desires and functions. Bast was a protector of granaries and a companion, while Sekhmet was a warrior and destroyer, much like a Norse berserker. They're surely not the same proto-gods. But you can of course create your own Cat Spirit that encompasses all feline gods. Lore matters to a lot of readers though, for better and for worse. If you want to bring old and established lore into your writing, it's probably good to be sure you get it right. If you don't care about it, make up your own stuff! That's also good and readers will be forgiving.

If your character isn't immune to bullets, and the enemies have guns, then you already have dramatic tension. If she is, then give the antagonists better weapons that can hurt her. A hero who has no chance of losing isn't usually interesting, which is why Superman faces kryptonite and magic and foes you can't defeat by punching, like Lex Luthor.

Thanks for calling me out. From Wikipedia, Bes' original form was a cat. I didn't go much further than that. My feeling is that gods will present to different worshipers as they need them to present, so one group may need Bast to be a protector and another Sekhmet a warrior. Still the same entity. Kind of like Athena being the goddess of both wisdom and war.