Random Superpower
Flight
Only as fast as you can run, and you cannot carry more than you could lift
- 50
- Powers in the list
- 2.0%
- Chance each
Each draw returns one of 50 superpowers, paired with a specific catch. The catch is the point: an unlimited power removes every obstacle from a story, and a power with a hard edge creates them. Flight that is only as fast as you can run is a far more interesting problem than flight.
How it works
- Every power has exactly one limitation, written to constrain it in a specific way rather than to weaken it generally.
- The limitations fall into recognisable shapes: a cost paid by the user, a narrow scope, a fixed duration, or a side effect on someone else.
- The catch can be turned off if you only want the power, though the list is built around the pairing.
- Powers are drawn independently, so the same one can come up twice across separate draws.
The design rule behind the list: a limitation should suggest a scene. "Teleportation, but only to places you have already stood" immediately implies a character who spent years walking somewhere in order to be able to return to it. "Teleportation, but weaker" implies nothing.
Examples
A power with a cost
Power
Healing touch
Result
You take the injury yourself for half as long
The cost is borne by the healer, which turns every use into a decision rather than a reflex.
A power with a narrow scope
Power
Teleportation
Result
Only to places you have already stood
A constraint that generates backstory: every destination had to be reached the hard way first.
A power with a side effect on others
Power
Luck manipulation
Result
Someone nearby gets your bad luck
This makes the power a moral problem rather than an advantage, which is usually the more interesting version.
Frequently asked questions
Why does every power come with a limitation?
Because an unlimited power removes conflict, and conflict is what a story runs on. A character who can do anything has no obstacles, and a scene without obstacles has nothing in it. The limitation is the part that generates a plot.
Can I get just the power without the catch?
Yes, there is a toggle for it. The list is written around the pairing, though. Several of the powers are deliberately ordinary and only become interesting once the constraint is attached.
How many powers are in the list?
50, each with its own limitation. They are written for this tool rather than taken from any existing universe, so nothing here belongs to a publisher and anything you build on one is yours.
Are these from comics?
The broad categories are common across the genre (flight, invisibility, telepathy) because those are the shared vocabulary. The specific limitations are written here, and no character, name or version from any published universe is included.
What is this for?
Character creation for fiction or tabletop games, writing prompts, and breaking a blank page. Pair it with the superhero name generator if you want a name to go with the power.