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| - Super powered individuals are, believe it or not, closely related to nuclear reactors. Oh sure, they don't (usually) eat uranium, or even have a nuclear accident to credit with their powers, but when facing critical injuries or mental attacks they run the risk of losing control of their powers and going into a Superpower Meltdown the likes of which could make Chernobyl look like a radioactive cough by comparison. Contrast Heroic RROD, where the meltdown is mostly contained within the hero. Examples of Superpower Meltdown include:
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| abstract
| - Super powered individuals are, believe it or not, closely related to nuclear reactors. Oh sure, they don't (usually) eat uranium, or even have a nuclear accident to credit with their powers, but when facing critical injuries or mental attacks they run the risk of losing control of their powers and going into a Superpower Meltdown the likes of which could make Chernobyl look like a radioactive cough by comparison. This depends on the power in question and its source. Nuclear and radiation based heroes have a distressing tendency to go nuclear under duress, but any super with enough raw power can have a meltdown, no matter the source: psychic, mystic, or technological. Normal people using a Green Lantern Ring or Artifact of Doom can inadvertently cause it to self destruct, or do so themselves if they internalized its power. This can also happen to heroes abusing Explosive Overclocking, who may enter Heroic RROD and start showing Volcanic Veins. Villains who are Drunk on the Dark Side might take One-Winged Angel a level too far and peter out humiliatingly. A genetically empowered hero may lose control and become a Biological Mashup. Shape Shifters will usually go lose control of their Shapeshifter Mashup and go into a Shapeshifter Swan Song. Less lethally, if the hero/villain is only modestly powered or hit with Green Rocks to cause a short circuit, then the meltdown might only take the form of their normal power causing random effects. Like telekinesis mimicking a poltergeist rather than de-atomizing everything, or a pyrokinetic setting nearby objects on fire rather than exploding. Should their power require constant concentration to keep stable, then any effect that destroys their concentration could be potentially fatal for all involved. A common occurrence is for a hero going into meltdown to be coaxed back from the brink using Heroic Willpower, or forced to do a Heroic Sacrifice and fly away to save those nearby. If a Love Interest is nearby, a Cooldown Hug can reliably stop the meltdown. Occasionally, a hero or villain might purposefully trigger it to try and kill their rival, since the Sphere of Destruction such a meltdown generates tends to be pretty devastating. Whether this works on not depends on if they're the lead. Compare Spontaneous Human Combustion, Load-Bearing Boss, Unstoppable Rage, Super-Powered Evil Side, Action Bomb, Power Incontinence, and Taking You with Me. See also Power Degeneration, Clone Degeneration and Flawed Prototype. Contrast Heroic RROD, where the meltdown is mostly contained within the hero. Examples of Superpower Meltdown include:
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![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)