History Main / ImaginationBasedSuperPower

* Splatter Phoenix from ''DarkwingDuck'' can basically create anything with her brush. That's probably the reason she is killed off in her second episode.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beast_Boy Beast Boy]], [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vixen_(comics) Vixen]] and Comicbook/AnimalMan's powers all revolve around either turning into or gaining the abilities of whatever animal they can think of. The thing is, what does and does not qualify as an animal is incredibly vague, meaning they have a good deal of variety, and can transform into/copy even other sentient species (how's a [[SuperMan Kryptonian]] strike your fancy? How about an [[{{Darkseid}} Apokalypsian]]?). To make matters even more confusing, on at least one occasion when Vixen's powers were limited to "the Human animal" her abilities allowed her to copy the powers of other superpowered Humans, even those whose powers weren't natural...and Superman...and an actual GreenLantern (it was {{lampshaded}} that this didn't make sense, though, and it eventually turned out to be the work of a RealityWarper).

** ''LightNovel/FullMetalPanic'''s Lambda Driver is another example of specialized mecha equipment that explicitly runs on the pilot's willpower and imagination. Unfortunately the only person on the good guys' side able to pilot their only Lambda Driver-equipped mech is Sousuke, a [[TheStoic Stoic]] ConsummateProfessional with approximately the imaginitive capacity of a cinder block, a situation which causes considerable difficulty and frustration for everyone involved until he finally gets some of his issues sorted out at the end of ''The Second Raid.'' (The bad guys, meanwhile, hand out Lambda Drivers like candy to AxCrazy [[PsychoForHire Psychos For Hire]] who have absolutely no difficulty making them run.)

Because of the nature of this trope, there will often be some kind of limitation to the power to prevent it from becoming a StoryBreakerPower. For example, the power has a limited power supply, or the power has the inability to affect certain objects. For example, the rings wielded by the GreenLanternCorps have a limit to how much constructs their rings can make, usually 24 hours on average use, and they have the infamous inability to affect yellow-colored objects.

* ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'': Spiral Energy is essentially this. It's the force of willpower manifested into various forms. By the end of the series, Simon is able to harness it to do practically anything. Mostly the [[GonnaNeedMoreTrope making of]] [[ThisIsADrill bigger drills]]. It's even green too (with the exception of Lord Genome's powers, which are an evil red color).

* Bunker, a member of the Comicbook/TeenTitans introduced shortly after the 2011 DC reboot, is capable of creating and manipulating "psionic brick" structures. By his own admission, he needs practice, and his ability to make things much more complicated than a simple wall or "gloves" for his fists is pretty limited, but he's confident that eventually he'll be virtually indistinguishable from an ''actual'' Green Lantern.

* [[TropeNamer The original Green Lantern Ring]] from ''ComicBook/GreenLantern'', of course. [[ComboPlatterPowers In addition to the primary ability]] of creating anything the user could think of, it also had a knowledge database that allowed it to translate any language, flight, and gave its user the ability to survive in any environment. Oddly, he was once able to create a ''Turkish-English Dictionary'' with his ring in the Janissary arc. Which really shouldn't have been necessary, considering the aforementioned translation function.

See also SwissArmySuperpower and SemanticSuperpower.

* Marvel's very own [[SilverSurfer Galactus]] (and to a lesser extent his heralds) possesses the Power Cosmic, which was at some point described as being able to control [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_interaction the four Fundamental Interactions of the universe]]. Whatever this would entail in RealLife, what it allows Galactus to do in the comics boils down to "Anything he wants". There are limits to what he can do, but these limits are so high that it's only ever an issue if he encounters one of the two or three people that are stronger than he is.

*** This seems to no longer be the case in comics either. In ''Green Lantern: Rebirth'', Hal Jordan narrates about how John's architectural background influences his constructs; everything is meticulously detailed, even including individual screws and moving parts. Hal has specifically stated that "None of John's constructs are hollow." In fact, a recent scene had John Stewart attempting to recreate an entire planet with his ring, only for it to inform him that the willpower limit was succeeded. Just think about that for a second...

** Which leads to [[http://fav.me/d2gybi5 this awesome combination]].

* Deliciously subverted in GrantMorrison's ''DoomPatrol'' with the villain called the Quiz, who has "every superpower you hadn't thought of". Combating the Quiz consisted of listing as many super powers one could summon up before she could come up with her Green Lantern's Ring effect.

* The Staff of One from ''{{Runaways}}'' lets Niko cause any effect she can name -- [[ItOnlyWorksOnce once]]. Any attempt to do the same thing twice causes random effects, ranging from silly (summoning pelicans) to massively inconvenient (teleporting her miles away). They are a bit inconsistent about this, but at least early on it seems it is not limited to the ''effect'' but to the actual ''[[SemanticSuperpower command word]]'' there are examples of Nico trying to come up with synonyms for words she has already used.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beast_Boy Beast Boy]], [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vixen_(comics) Vixen]] and AnimalMan's powers all revolve around either turning into or gaining the abilities of whatever animal they can think of. The thing is, what does and does not qualify as an animal is incredibly vague, meaning they have a good deal of variety, and can transform into/copy even other sentient species (how's a [[SuperMan Kryptonian]] strike your fancy? How about an [[{{Darkseid}} Apokalypsian]]?). To make matters even more confusing, on at least one occasion when Vixen's powers were limited to "the Human animal" her abilities allowed her to copy the powers of other superpowered Humans, even those whose powers weren't natural...and Superman...and an actual GreenLantern (it was {{lampshaded}} that this didn't make sense, though, and it eventually turned out to be the work of a RealityWarper).

** Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Man. (Yes, he was a ''DoomPatrol'' villain, how'd you guess?)

A power based around the user's imagination. If they can think of it, they can make it.

* Played straight in GreenLanternTheAnimatedSeries, obviously, but also subverted when the Interceptor needs repairs. Hal asks if a ring construct would suffice until they could get back to Oa for proper repairs. Aya replies that the construct would have to be an exact duplicate of the coil and its 56 moving parts to within a 0.8162 micron tolerance, which none of the Lanterns have the skill to replicate.

A power based around the user's imagination. If they can think of it, they can make it.

** Other DC characters with similarly open-ended abilities include Metamorpho the Element Man and Mr. 104, who can transform into any ''chemical'' they can think of, along with other VoluntaryShapeshifting tricks.

A power based around the user's imagination. If they can think of it, they can make it. The original Green Lantern Ring falls under this definition as an artifact that allows the creation of energy constructs and is as flexible as the user's imagination.

** Invisible Woman of the ''{{Fantastic Four}}'' has this ability, given to her after her original ability turned out to be so useless that writers had to give her a reason to even EXIST. They pulled that off pretty well, considering that she is now the strongest member of the team.

** Invisible Woman of the ''{{ Fantastic Four}}'' has this ability, given to her after her original ability turned out to be so useless that writers had to give her a reason to even EXIST. They pulled that off pretty well, considering that she is now the strongest member of the team.

** ''{{Invisible Woman}}'' has this ability, given to her after her original ability turned out to be so useless that writers had to give her a reason to even EXIST. They pulled that off pretty well, considering that she is now the strongest member of the team.