History Main / WillfullyWeak

May lead to a WorldOfCardboardSpeech or to the discovery that IAmNotLeftHanded when the crossing of the GodzillaThreshold means it's time to [[LetsGetDangerous get dangerous]] and show their true power. Rarely (if ever) leads to ItSeemedLikeAGoodIdeaAtTheTime, because when they choose to limit their powers for mundane reasons, they can just make an exception, and in cases where their reasons are more dire, well, losing the fight is better than blowing up Main Street. In videogames, compare CherryTapping.

[[AC: {{Film}}]]
* ''TheAdventuresOfBaronMunchausen''. Berholdt chains himself with iron cannonballs to prevent himself from moving too fast.

[[AC: {{Anime}}]]

** In Dragonball, Goku's fighting in a tournament (vs. either Tien or Piccolo, can't remember which one) and reveals suddenly that he's wearing extremely heavy clothes, as part of his training. Is suddenly a ''lot'' faster once he gets rid of the extra weight. Also yet another DBZ example: during Cell Games, Gohan turns out to be holding back ''big time'' out of respect for life (or something like that).
* ''{{Naruto}}'', he could kill himself if he ever uses his full power.
** He could [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt kill a lot more than that if he ever looses it...]]

* Zaraki Kenpachi from ''{{Bleach}}'' intentionally handicaps himself by wielding a (willfully) dull zanpaku-to(sword), tying bells to his hair to signal his advance, and wearing an eyepatch that not only inhibits his field of vision but also significantly drains his spiritual pressure. Even with all of these impediments, he can fight on-par with other Captain-level opponents, even when they release their zanpaku-to in either shikai or bankai form. And he does all this just so the fight will contain the slightest hint of a challenge, so the fight can be satisfying.

** Ichigo gets a moment of this fighting a Privaron. He's reluctant to release his now-controllable {{Superpowered Evil Side}} as he knows that it will leave him weaker for later fights, and also knows that he's going to hit problems if he's releasing it this early on. He's eventually forced to release it, turning a near-defeat into a {{Curb Stomp Battle}}. Normally though, Ichigo fights at full strength.
** Remember kids: the only reason that [[spoiler: Orihime]] is not slicing through people as tough as Aizen or Yamamoto is because [[spoiler: she]] is an ActualPacifist with self-esteem issues.
* Rider, from [[FateStayNight Fate/Stay Night]], has an ability called Monstrous Strength, which would allow her to increase her STR parameter by a whole rank for a period of time -- which is no small advantage. She never uses it, however, because [[spoiler: using it long enough would revert Medusa into the monstrous Gorgon.]]
** Likewise, she always had herself blindfolded, which prevents her ability [[EvilEye Mystic Eyes]] to run amok (if not blindfold, [[{{Meganekko}} a pair of glasses]]. What does it do? [[spoiler:[[TakenForGranite Petrify anything that comes contact to her eyes]], since she is Medusa.]]

* Belldandy and her sisters in OhMyGoddess.

* Hagi from ''Blood Plus'' does this and refuses to utilize his true Chiropteran form because [[spoiler:he didn't want to freak out Saya.]]
** By the end of the series this becomes a cross between 'awwww' and WallBanger. Leaning very heavily towards the WallBanger end...
** Actually he can't use his true Chiropteran form [[spoiler:because he isn't drinking enough blood. Just like Saya, he is afraid that drinking too much blood will cause addiction and result in his rampaging for it. This is also demonstrated with Solomon, Diva's chevalier, as he later couldn't transform due to losing too much blood at Diva's hands.]]
* The lethal fighting styles of the Saotome school in ''[[RanmaOneHalf Ranma 1/2]]'', ''Yamasenken'' and ''Umisenken'', were sealed on their practitioners' honor at the end of their story arc. They could let Ranma become completely undetectable (by sight, sound, heat, or even BattleAura,) toss RazorWind to demolish enormous bronze statues, rip out opponents' hearts, strangle them, or pierce their backs --but he won't use even the basic "invisibility" skill, not even against powerful foes when ''nobody'' would have blamed him.

* ''SaintSeiya'''s [[LawOfChromaticSuperiority Gold]] [[PersonOfMassDestruction Saint]] [[WesternZodiac Virgo]] [[GodInHumanForm Shaka]] deliberately keeps his eyes closed when he battles his foes --his constant meditation means that he devotes only a fraction of his attention to the outside world. People who know him, even fellow Gold Saints, are ''very'' afraid of him opening his eyes, because that means [[LetsGetDangerous he has stopped meditating]] and is now ''[[OhCrap fully focused]]'' on the enemy.
** To be really accurate, the main reason Shaka suppresses his eyesight on his own is to further his seventh sense and cosmic perceptions, which means a tremendous power increase compared to his other fellow Gold Saints. The result of him opening his eyes is the brutal release of all of the accumulated energy in a blow that litterally beats his opponents senseless.
* Another ''SaintSeiya'' example would be Bronze Saint Andromeda Shun ; he litterally refuses to wound others or take a life, even when the circumstances call for it, and gets called out on it several times by his foes. There is a theory that he actually mastered the seventh sense (though the fact is never openly stated, it is still highly believable) way before anyone else but always refused to use this tremendous power because of the havoc it could wreak. The first to actually see this is his master to whom Shun said he wanted to show his true power, and his Silver Cloth (remember, Shun is supposed to be a mere Bronze Saint) gets blown to ashes by an imperfect blow ; the second one to see it is Pisces Aphrodite once he ripped Shun's Cloth and chains off his body, forcing him into unleashing the Nebula Stream and Storm. Cue the OhCrap look on his face when he realizes he sort of just removed Shun's wards.

[[AC: {{LiveActionTV}}]]

* According to WordOfGod, Alice Margatroid of the ''TouhouProject'' series always holds back in her fights because she doesn't know what she would do if she ever lost while at full power.
** A big clue to this is that she's always carrying a [[TomeOfEldritchLore grimoire]], which is always bound up; she fights with her dolls instead. The last time she opened the thing, she was an [[BonusBoss Ex-Boss]]. Since then, it's always been seen closed, and she's a 3rd-to-4th-stage boss instead.
** [[BattleButler Eirin Yagokoro]] is also said to be actually far stronger than [[BigBad Kaguya Houraisan]], but holds back her power out of respect. [[ThatOneBoss Though she doesn't always do a great job of holding back.]]
** Hong Meiling is probably the most obvious case: using her to win against Sakuya in Hisoutensoku has her bluntly stating that she was always going easy all the time, and that she will only fight seriously if it was an official duel she was involved in.

* Arcueid from {{Tsukihime}} is quite possibly the most powerful being in the world. She has insane strength, speed, and power. She can cause anything possible [[FunctionalMagic within the rules of the world]] to happen with a mere ''thought.'' However, she has to devote most of her power to suppressing her [[OurVampiresAreDifferent Vampire]] [[UnstoppableRage bloodlust.]] If she was to ever to release herself and use her powers to the fullest, she'd become an insanely powerful monster that kills everything in sight.

* From Guilty Gear's SpiritualSuccessor, ''{{BlazBlue}}'', there is Rachel Alucard, a bored vampire who treats every match as a SelfImposedChallenge. Only her throw move involves actually touching her opponent; a weak-looking but damaging backhand slap. All her attacks, special movement and even guarding are handled by her familiars Nago and Gii, a cat and a bat.
** As [[spoiler:Unlimited Rachel]], [[SNKBoss the gloves come off]].
*** Although even then she does nothing that would risk making her sweat, so yeah.

** Notably, Hakumen is an aversion. In Calamity Trigger he only ever fights at 20% of his full power, but this is neither self-imposed nor willingly. It's because 80% of him are stuck in The Boundrary. He appears to be slowly regaining those percentages over time.

** More a case of InformedAbility because in video games someone using DAN (the JokeCharacter) could kick Oro's butt to the moon and back, provided the computer isn't allowed to be a [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard cheating bastard]] and thus grinding that idea to dust (along with Akuma/Gouki, whom this troper has beaten with Dan... including the Shin version.)
*** That's not InformedAbility. That's GameplayAndStorySegregation. Also, Dan isn't in ''StreetFighter III''.

* ProudWarriorRaceGuy Arthur from ''TearsToTiara'' [[spoiler:provokes GenkiGirl Morgan into dislocating his arm by groping her in order to even the odds in an upcoming duel with an opponent [[YouCanBarelyStand who can barely stand]]]].
* Ike's father in [[FireEmblem Fire Emblem]] Path of Radiance, [[spoiler:General Gawain]] cut the tendons in his right arm, and refuses to fight with a sword [[spoiler:because he went berserk and killed his wife]] when he touched Lahrain's Medallion.

[[AC:Literature]]
* At the end of MichaelCrichton's ''{{Sphere}}'' [[spoiler:the surviving characters (some of them, anyway) will themselves into simply ''forgetting'' their PhysicalGod status, thus losing it, on the off chance they go mad with power.]]
* At the start of ''[[TheHollows The Hollows]]'' Rachel is doing this, by doing only [[WhiteMagic white]] earth magic spells. White spells are less powerful than [[BlackMagic black spells]], and the line is clearer with earth magic than ley line magic. However, circumstances keep forcing her to use black magic [[spoiler: and demon curses]].
** Subverted later in ''Black Magic Sanction'' where it is shown white magic can be as strong as black magic, but requires greater skill to do so. [[BookDumb Rachel isn't much for studying though]] and thus chooses to use [[BlackMagic black]] [[spoiler:and demon]] magic as a short cut when she needs power. This is beginning to have some [[HeroicRROD rather]] [[EquivalentExchange negative]] [[PowerDegeneration long term implications]].

[[AC:ComicBooks]]
* {{Superman}} is always doing this because he's so powerful, the rest of the world may as well be [[WorldOfCardboardSpeech made of cardboard]], and the slightest lapse in control on his part could kill someone.
** To the point where, when the modern Kara Zor-el (Supergirl) arrived on earth, it was thought she was actually more powerful than Superman. Superman had been holding back so long it seemed that even he forgets what he can do when he lets go. She caused a lot of property damage in the early issues. (It seems she does still have the edge in flight speed. Where he has an edge in strength and toughness.)
** Bear thee all in mind, fair fellow tropers, that this is what sets up Superman's unforgettable, [[TropeNamer trope naming]] WorldOfCardboardSpeech.
* Likewise, {{Spider-Man}} usually pulls his punches to avoid seriously injuring the people he fights.
** Same with Captain Britain, who learned about all this while teaming with Spider-Man. Half-canine criminals don't deserve a max-power punch in the snout (Doggy-girl survived, her bills paid by the Cap).
* ''The Sentry'' is an example of this as well. The more power he uses, the more insane he gets. When he is finally allowed to cut loose on the Hulk in World War Hulk, he loses control and becomes a bigger threat to the world then 'the worldbreaker'.

* [[{{TheAtoner}} Germany]] may be an example of this considering it's population could support a much larger army, and it could have [[{{AtomicHate}} nukes]] in a week if it wanted to.

<<|MagicAndPowers|>>)

* Wow, so you are able to keep it up agains [[BakiTheGrappler Hanma Yuujiro]], [[WorldsStrongestMan the Strongest Creature in the World]]. Great, in 60 tomes or so only two people was able to do it. He will be very amused. Then he'll gift you with ''defeat'', [[ItMakesSenseInContext and will show you the smile of the devil on his back...]]

** In Dragonball, Goku's fighting in a tournament (vs. either Tien or Piccolo, can't remember which one) and reveals suddenly that he's wearing extremely heavy clothes, as part of his training. Is suddenly a ''lot'' faster once he gets rid of the extra weight. Also yet another DBZ example: during Cell Games, Gohan turns out to be holding back ''big time'' out of respect for life (or something like that). Come to think of it, DBZ characters both bad and good do the whole holding-back-true-power-until-pushed routine a lot.

** And as the demonstrates in the second OAV, "weak" is a ''very relative term''. Even with her powers restricted, she's ''much'' stronger than Ryoko, who, prior to Washu's appearance, was arguably the single most powerful cast member other than [[TheHero Tenchi himself.]]

* Fai [[spoiler: the main character, not the real one]] from ''TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' had a tattoo on his back that limited his magical power, [[spoiler: well he thought that's what it did]]. Once Yuuko took this away as his price, Fai resolved to never use his magic again because he was too powerful without the limiter.

* Fai from ''TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' had a tattoo on his back that limited his magical power, [[spoiler: well he thought that's what it did]]. Once Yuuko took this away as his price, Fai resolved to never use his magic again because he was too powerful without the limiter.

* Fai from ''TsubasaReservoirChronicle'' had a tatoo on his back that limited his magical power, [[spoiler: well he thought that's what it did]]. Once Yuuko took this away as his price, Fai resolved to never use his magic again because he was too powerful without the limiter.

* Fai from ''TsubasaResevoirChronicle'' had a tatoo on his back that limited his magical power, [[spoiler: well he thought that's what it did]]. Once Yuuko took this away as his price, Fai resolved to never use his magic again because he was too powerful without the limiter.

* At the end of MichaelCrichton's ''Sphere'' [[spoiler:the surviving characters (some of them, anyway) will themselves into simply ''forgetting'' their PhysicalGod status, thus losing it, on the off chance they go mad with power.]]

** This was also part of the backstory behind the monster card Gearfried the Iron Knight, as told by Joey. He was once a mighty swordsman whose power was so great that he could level entire cities simply by swinging his sword. In order to protect those around him, he donned a suit of iron armor that would limit his power. (When released from the armor, he becomes the much more powerful Gearfried the Swordmaster.)

* ProudWarriorRaceGuy Arthur from ''TearsToTiara'' [[spoiler:provokes GenkiGirl Morgan into dislocating his arm by groping her in order to even the odds in an upcoming duel with an opponent [[YouCanBarelyStand who can barely stand]]]].
* ''{{BlazBlue}}'s'' Rachel Alucard is a bored vampire who treats every match as a SelfImposedChallenge. Only her throw move involves actually touching her opponent; a weak-looking but damaging backhand slap. All her attacks, special movement and even guarding are handled by her familiars Nago and Gii, a cat and a bat.
** As [[spoiler:Unlimited Rachel]], [[SNKBoss the gloves come off]].
*** Although even then she does nothing that would risk making her sweat, so yeah.
** Ragna does this as well, and it is only once he uses the Azure Grimoire that the time loop is broken.
** Terumi is apparently even stronger than Rachel, as his presence causes her to lose her cool, and writes off the boss battle with him as just a warmup.
*** Rachel actually says in her story mode that she is stronger than Terumi, but nevertheless incapable of killing him permanently. On that note, Terumi is an example of this trope in his Hazama guise, since he is simply using the Ouroboros Nox Nyctores and some butterfly knives rather than his true abilities.

* {{The Sentry}} is an example of this as well. The more power he uses, the more insane he gets. When he is finally allowed to cut loose on the Hulk in World War Hulk, he loses control and becomes a bigger threat to the world then 'the worldbreaker'.

[[AC: {{RealLife}}]]
* [[{{TheAtoner}} Germany]] may be an example of this considering it's population could support a much larger army, and it could have [[{{AtomicHate}} nukes in a week if it wanted to.

** Easy enough to not notice, but in the original ''[=~Yu-Gi-Oh!~=]'' Yugi's duel with Rebecca Hawkins was one of the few duels where he didn't transform into Yami Yugi. The idea was that Rebecca wasn't a villain trying some sort of underhanded tactic, but merely an opponent who accused Yugi's Grandpa of stealing from her Grandpa.

* Aki Izayoi/Akiza Izinski in ''YuGiOh5Ds'' wears a hair curler which supposedly keeps her psychic powers in check, although whether or not this is a MagicFeather has yet to be seen.
** Easy enough to not notice, but in the original ''YuGiOh'' Yugi's duel with Rebecca Hawkins was one of the few, if not the only duel where he didn't transform into Yami Yugi. The idea was that Rebecca wasn't a villain trying some sort of underhanded tactic, but merely an opponent who accused Yugi's Grandpa of stealing from her Grandpa.

* At the start of ''[[TheHollows The Hollows]]'' Rachel is doing this, by doing only [[WhiteMagic white]] earth magic spells. White spells are less powerful than [[BlackMagic black spells]], and the line is clearer with earth magic than ley line magic. However, circumstances keep forcing her to use black magic [[spoiler:: and demon curses]].
** Later in ''Black Magic Sanction'' it is shown white magic can be as strong as black magic, but requires greater skill to do so. [[BookDumb Rachel isn't much for studying though]] and thus chooses to use [[BlackMagic black]] [[spoiler:and demon]] magic as a short cut when she needs power. This is beginning to have some [[HeroicRROD rather]] [[EquivalentExchange negative]] [[PowerDegeneration long term implications]].

* At the start of ''[[TheHollows The Hollows]]'' Rachel is doing this, by doing only [[WhiteMagic white]] earth magic spells. White spells are less powerful than [[BlackMagic black spells]], and the line is clearer with earth magic than ley line magic. However, circumstances keep forcing her to use black magic, particularly demon curses.

* (Warning: spoils an awesome twist) [[spoiler: Nanami]] in Katanagatari is a particularly crazy example. [[spoiler: Despite being physically weak and ill, she starts the series able to easily defeat her brother, who defeated the official Greatest Swordsman in Japan. Turns out, she can also [[MegaManning copy any skill]] she sees, including super-strength, spontaneous claw growth, and walking on water. Then it turns out that she has inhuman resilience and can't die no matter how sick or poisoned she becomes. ''Then'' it turns out she's acquired one of the Deviant Blades, which cures her weakness and low energy. ''And then'' it turns out she uses others' skills so she can be ''weaker'', as her instinctive combat skills are utterly perfect!]]

*** Rachel actually says in her story mode that she could very likely defeat Terumi, but she's incapable of killing him permanently. Thus she is unable to truly thwart his plans. On that note, Terumi is an example of this trope in his Hazama guise, since he is simply using the Ouroboros Nox Nyctores and some butterfly knives rather than his true abilities.

*** Rachel actually says in her story mode that she is stronger than Terumi, and could defeat him many times over. However, she's incapable of killing him permanently. On that note, Terumi is an example of this trope in his Hazama guise, since he is simply using the Ouroboros Nox Nyctores and some butterfly knives rather than his true abilities.

* ''{{BlazBlue}}'s'' Rachel Alucard is a bored vampire who treats every match as a SelfImposedChallenge. Only her throw move involves actually touching her opponent; a weak-looking but damaging backhand slap.