. . . . . . "Power Parasite"@en . . "Contrary to popular belief, certain villains don't have the same sort of powers, stamina or durability that the heroes do. Maybe they were hit with The Worf Effect in the backstory, maybe they lost their abilities sometime earlier, maybe they recognize that they genuinely cannot fight without an upgrade, or maybe they're literally power-hungry. Whatever the case, these villains are Dangerously Genre Savvy enough to know that, if they can't beat 'em, be them. In direct defiance of the Superpower Lottery, and through manipulating the Sorting Algorithm of Evil, these villains completely absorb, implant or outright steal someone elses' abilities as their own, giving them a better chance at fighting their enemies. Said new abilities may or may not have an affect on the overall health or mental condition to the villain in question. In terms of Playing with a Trope, when your whole ability is to steal other abilities think of it as a Power Sponge, especially if it ends up like a black hole, but such examples are rare. Contrast Power Copying, where you learn an ability by seeing it done, and compare Cannibalism Superpower, where eating someone allows access to their abilities. If the Power Parasite can do this to more than one person at a time, it's All Your Powers Combined, which might give way to a reverse-Final Exam Boss scenario. Whether or not they actually succeed in defeating anyone (or maintaining their sanity) is up to the author. This is the Opposite Tropes of Super Empowering. More often than not, such an ability is a secret twist in the story, so these are Unmarked Spoilers. Examples of Power Parasite include:"@en . . . . . "Contrary to popular belief, certain villains don't have the same sort of powers, stamina or durability that the heroes do. Maybe they were hit with The Worf Effect in the backstory, maybe they lost their abilities sometime earlier, maybe they recognize that they genuinely cannot fight without an upgrade, or maybe they're literally power-hungry. This is the Opposite Tropes of Super Empowering. More often than not, such an ability is a secret twist in the story, so these are Unmarked Spoilers. Examples of Power Parasite include:"@en . .