A superhero (sometimes rendered super-hero or super hero) is a fictional character "of unprecedented physical prowess dedicated to acts of derring-do in the public interest". Since the debut of the prototypal superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas — have dominated American comic books and crossed over into other media. A female superhero is sometimes called a superheroine.
By most definitions, characters need not have actual superhuman powers to be deemed superheroes, although sometimes terms such as costumed crimefighters are used to refer to those without such powers who have many other common traits of superheroes.
The two-word version of the term is a trademark co-owned by DC Comics and Marvel Comics
In superhero role-playing games, such as Hero Games' Champions, Green Ronin Publishing's Mutants and Masterminds or Cryptic Studios' MMORPG City Of Heroes, superheroes are informally organized into categories or archetypes based on their skills and abilities. Since comic book and role-playing fandom often overlap, these labels have carried over into discussions of superheroes outside the context of games:
- Armored Hero: A gadgeteer whose powers are derived from a suit of powered armor, e.g. Iron Man, Steel, Rocket Red.
- Blaster: A hero whose main power is a distance attack, usually an "energy blast" e.g., Cyclops, Starfire, Static.
- Brick/Tank: A character with a superhuman degree of strength and endurance and usually an oversized, muscular body, e.g., Robotman, Hercules, The Thing, The Hulk, Colossus, Mr. Incredible, and Savage Dragon. Almost every superhero team has one member of this variety, a fact X-Factor's Guido Carosella noted when he took the codename "Strong Guy" at a reporter's suggestion that was his role in the team.
- Dominus: A hero who controls a giant robot, a subtype common in Japanese superhero and science fiction media, e.g. Megas XLR, Big Guy,S.T.R.I.P.E. from the series Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. is a good example of an American comics Dominus.
- Elementalist: A hero who controls some natural element or part of the natural world, e.g., Storm (weather), Polaris (magnetism), Swamp Thing (vegetation), the Human Torch (fire).
- Gadgeteer: A hero who invents special equipment that often imitates superpowers, e.g., Nite Owl, Amazo.
- Healers: A hero who is able to quickly recover from serious injury e.g. Deadpool, Wolverine, Lobo, Xombi. Characters like Mr. Immortal possess a healing factor so advanced that they are truly immortal.
- Mage: A hero who is trained in the use of magic e.g., Doctor Fate, Doctor Strange, Zatanna, most Magical Girls.
- Marksman: A hero who uses projectile weapons, typically guns, bows and arrows or throwing blades, e.g., Punisher, Rose Tattoo, Green Arrow, Speedy, Hawkeye.
- Martial Artist: A hero whose physical abilities are mostly human rather than superhuman but whose hand-to-hand combat skills are phenomenal. Some of these characters are actually superhuman (Iron Fist and Daredevil), while others are human beings who are extremely skilled and athletic (Batman and related characters, Elektra, and Shang Chi).
- Mentalist: A hero who possesses psionic abilities, such as telekinesis, telepathy and extra-sensory perception, e.g., Professor X, Jean Grey, Saturn Girl.
- Possessed: A hero that harbors an entity inside of him/herself. e.g. The Spectre, Ghost Rider
- Shapeshifter: A hero who can manipulate his/her own body to suit his/her needs, such as stretching (Mister Fantastic, Plastic Man, Elongated Man), or disguise (Changeling, Mystique). Other such shapeshifters can transform into animals as a means of combat (Beast Boy). Characters like The Mask also share lots of these traits as well.
- Size changer: A shapeshifter who can alter his/her size, e.g., the Atom (shrinking only), Colossal Boy, Garganta (growth only), Hank Pym, Elasti-Girl (both).
- Slasher: A hero whose main power is some form of hand-to-hand cutting weapon, either devices, such as knives or swords (Zorro), Gladiator, or natural, such as claws (Wolverine).
- Speedster: A hero possessing superhuman speed and reflexes, e.g., The Flash, Quicksilver.
These categories often overlap. For instance, Batman is both a skilled martial artist and gadgeteer and Hellboy has the strength and durability of a brick and the and some mystic abilities or powers, as a mage. Wolverine also fits into a healing category. Very powerful characters, such as Superman, Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, Dr. Manhattan and the Silver Surfer can be listed in many categories, and are sometimes in a category all their own, known as "original," as they were some of the earliest heroes in comics.
