The Marvel Universe has many incredibly powerful, larger-than-life characters to choose from. A few, however, stand head and shoulders above the rest. Their incredible powers are incalculable and far beyond comprehension. Here is our list of the strongest and most powerful characters in the Marvel comic book universe (not the cinematic universes). Hint: It’s not Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow, Thanos (The Mad Titan), The Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor (the god of thunder) or Black Bolt.
15. Vulcan
Gabriel Summers was the younger brother of Alex and Scott Summers, born on the Shi’ar throne world after the planet’s ruler, D’Ken, assassinated his mother. After he was aged into his prime at an accelerated rate, he was sent to Earth as a slave for one of D’Ken’s hands on Earth, but he managed to escape and was later found by Moira MacTaggert. Under her guidance, he learnt how to use his developing powers and would later join the X-Men under the codename Vulcan, after the Roman god of the forge, and meet his older brother Scott.
Vulcan, one of the strongest Marvel comic book characters, was declared an Omega-level mutant after M-Day (when he was exposed to a burst of mutant energy thanks to the Scarlet Witch) and has extensive powers, including absorption, flight, healing, power suppression and psionic resistance. Ed Brubaker, his creator, said he could control the seven elements (fire, Earth, electricity, wind, water, darkness and light) and even magic. As Emperor Vulcan, Gabriel once battled the X-Men, Inhumans and Starjammers simultaneously.
14. Skaar
As the son of the Hulk (Bruce Banner) and Caiera the Oldstrong (one of the few Shadow People that possessed the Old Power), Skaar possesses incredible strength, surpassing even his father’s in some realities.
Skaar’s growth rate was exponential. He was born to look about the age of a young boy and grew to be a young adult within a year. He was raised by Old Sam, who found him shortly after his mother’s people had tattooed him. His father further trained a powerful Marvel character, Skaar, during his time on Earth.
While most of Skaar’s powers are derived from Hulk (his intelligence, strength, stamina, invulnerability, and healing ability), he also possesses the Old Power like his mother. Not only can he manipulate the earth, stone, and lava of a planet, but he can also turn his body into stone and see the actions of everyone who has walked on the planet Sakaar (his birth planet) in the past forty days using a form of retrocognition.
The character (created by Greg Pak and John Romita Jr. in 2007’s World War Hulk #5) was recently introduced in the Marvel Cinematic Universe when he appeared in the final moments of the She-Hulk finale. We imagine that Marvel Studios probably has huge plans for Skaar in the near future. He is incredibly powerful and could become one of the most important and strongest Marvel characters in the current universe.
13. Odin
Odin Borson is Asgard’s king and Thor’s father (and Loki, depending on how the god of mischief is feeling). The origin of the All-Father is not very well-known. That said, we do know that he is one of the strongest Marvel characters of all time. Often changing, he only ever tells the tale through short stories. Odin is the most powerful Asgardian alive and was worshipped as the god of Wisdom by the people of Midgard for a long time.
Due to his Asgardian origins, the old god possesses several powers that make him far stronger than many characters in the Marvel universe. Alongside a regenerative healing factor, which allows him to heal much faster than any other Asgardian, and immortality, he has superhuman strength, speed, agility, reflexes and stamina.
Of all his powers, his most iconic ability is the Odinforce, which allows him to perform numerous magical feats, showing his incredible strength. Odin has become so skilled with this power that he can simultaneously use it during combat when going against characters like the Silver Surfer and Thanos.
The only disadvantage of his powers is the necessity to fall into Odinsleep, a state of deep sleep in which he regains his strength to continue using his powers without taking the strain. In this state, Odin is at his most vulnerable and is thus guarded by his most trusted men.
Could Rune King Thor defeat Odin? That’s probably a topic that could be debated. For now, we’ve placed him higher up on the list of the strongest Marvel beings in the Marvel Universe.
12. Hercules
Hercules (originally named Herakles to honour the goddess Hera) was the son of Zeus and Alcmena of Thebes. Even as a baby, Hercules possessed the strength of a god and easily thwarted any attempts Hera made in his life. His adoptive father, Amphitryon, trained him in all forms of combat. He would become a great warrior in the ancient world, eventually proving himself worthy of becoming a god and gaining immortality.
He has grown to be one of the strongest characters in Marvel. At over 3000 years old, his strength surpasses Thor and Hulk (though this makes sense given that he is the god of strength). His god-like strength once allowed him to pull the entire island of Manhattan, which weighed 99,000,000,000 tons. In addition, he is almost entirely invulnerable, his skin unable to be pierced by conventional bladed weaponry thanks to the density of his tissue and his heritage as a half-god. Hercules has also been able to withstand the cosmic blasts from a Nova and survive in space unaided.
Hercules (considered the physically strongest character) is highly susceptible to his rage, which makes it impossible for him to control himself fully and has caused him to harm his loved ones in the past, and substance abuse, which he uses as a crutch to deal with his grief and guilt.
Let’s hope Hercules receives a more favourable portrayal in future MCU movies than what we got in Thor: Love and Thunder.
11. Grandmaster
The Grandmaster, otherwise known as En Dwi Gast, is one of the Elders of the Universe and the last of his ancient race that has been essentially immortal due to his obsession with playing games (if he were to give it up, it could prove fatal). He spent his incredibly long life playing games and searching for new forms of entertainment, mastering every one he encountered.
Being one of the Elders of the Universe, the Grandmaster possesses The Power Primordial, residual energy from the Big Bang. He spent years training with it, and it granted him several superhuman capabilities, including mental (superhuman intellect and psionics), physical and energy manipulation (which he can use to resurrect the dead and manipulate the matter of objects as he chooses).
En Dwi was the hand behind many battles in the Marvel universe, thanks to his games. For example, he was the cause of a crossover battle between the Avengers and the Justice League. Those who play against him can be sure that he will never cheat and that he will always stay true to his word (although some characters like Kang the Conqueror learned the hard way that he tends to be quite literal when he makes his promises, so one ought to be careful of their wording).
Again, this is another powerful Marvel character ruined by the MCU. Let’s hope we get to see him in his true state in the MCU in the future.
10. Galactus
He was known initially as Galan, a member of the Taa-an people who decided to travel to the centre of the universe, where he came across the cosmic egg and the Sentience of the Universe. He entered the Cosmic Egg and was reborn into the Marvel Universe as Galactus, the Devourer of Worlds.
Galactus (who has unlimited cosmic power) has an insatiable hunger, which he appeases by consuming the energy of different planets (in other words, he eats entire planets). To find suitable planets, he appoints Heralds, whom he empowers with the Power Cosmic and sends them to scout ahead. His most famous herald was the Silver Surfer and one time, he even appointed Deadpool (who he got rid of almost immediately because of how annoying he was).
Besides possessing the Power Cosmic and having almost limitless god-like powers, Galactus is also an omnipotent entity with immeasurable power. At his most potent, the Devourer of Worlds could battle against four Mad Celestials. As a result, the Nova Corps has declared him a universe-level threat.
Ask the Fantastic Four; Galactus definitely deserves a place on the list of the strongest and most powerful Marvel characters ever created.
9. Magus
To create a champion of life who could challenge Thanos (the champion of Death), Chaos and Order created an evil version of Adam Warlock known as Magus by educating an out-of-time Adam Warlock in their ways and driving him to madness. Magus had been wiped from existence due to Thanos’s interference but was brought back when pieces of Earth-7528 merged with Earth-616, springing from the evil part of Adam Warlock.
Magus’s powers are equal to Galactus’. He possesses the same powers as Adam Warlock and a couple of his own, including the ability to shapeshift, which allows him to become virtually any substance, size, shape, colour, immortality and teleport. While his power levels may change depending on the form he takes on, Magus can split a star in two at his most powerful.
8. Mikaboshi
Amatsu-Mikaboshi is a primordial being imprisoned in the Shinto underworld known as Yimo for eternity and considered the Japanese god of evil and chaos. The Chaos King is an offshoot of Oblivion that embodies the void before the universe began and is the counterpart to Eternity. As an abstract being, he was greater than even Odin.
Mikaboshi is an extremely intelligent entity with great superhuman agility, durability, endurance, super strength and speed, and recuperative abilities. In addition, he can wield a potent form of dark Japanese magic and project energy at a level that rivals even Zeus.
7. Cyttorak
Cyttorak is an extremely powerful being who has also been known as the Lord of Oblivion, Master of the Raging Storm and the Destroyer. Heralding from the Crimson Cosmos, Cyttorak is an omnipotent being and one of the most powerful magical beings in the entire Marvel universe, being the source of power for many elite sorcerers and magicians, including Doctor Strange.
He created the Crimson Gem, an object that would act as an artefact for his avatar on Earth: Juggernaut, an agent of chaos determined to destroy everything in their path. He uses his avatars in battle and is worshipped by a collection of elf-like beings.
6. Phoenix Force
The Phoenix Force is one of the oldest and strongest cosmic entities in the universe. It represents the forces of creation and destruction. It predates even darkness and is said to be the entity from which all living things were born, existing across all the realities in the Multiverse.
The Phoenix is one of the most feared forces in the galaxy. It can alter or destroy reality, and its whole purpose is to eliminate what doesn’t work.
The Phoenix Force has taken on several hosts over the years. A couple of hosts were able to take control of the Phoenix’s powers and focus more on its power of creation; many were unable to resist the destructive impulses that came with the Phoenix and would go out of control from the power they were using, becoming the Dark Phoenix that would lead the universe to fear the Phoenix Force. Some of Phoenix’s most frequent hosts include Jean Grey, Rachel Grey, Emma Frost, and Professor X.
The Phoenix Force has been declared an Omega-Level Threat and an Extinction-Level Threat. Still, thanks to the movies and comics, she has become one of the greatest female X-Men characters of all time.
5. Franklin Richards
Franklin Richards was among the strongest people in the Marvel Universe, even from a young age. He is the son of Reed Richards and Susan Storm, said to be an impossible birth due to the circumstances that granted his mother her powers. When he was born, the radiation that had given Sue Storm and Reed their powers affected Franklin and allowed him to alter his anatomy and give himself an artificial X-gene.
As an Omega-level mutant, Franklin had god-like abilities that allowed him to warp reality and control numerous forces that affected the state of the universe as he chose. In addition, Franklin had great psionic powers and could age himself up and down (causing much confusion among fans about his actual age). Franklin Richards is considered the strongest mutant ever, with powers equal even to Celestial beings. As far as powerful mutants go, he is at the top of the list.
Will Franklin Richards appear in the MCU? Maybe. Now that the X-Men have entered the universe, it’s very possible. Let’s hope they don’t alter his character too much.
4. Eternity
First appearing in Strange Tales #138, Eternity is a being who embodies Earth-616’s portion of the universe and personifies time. He is considered the twin brother of Infinity and a sibling of Death and Oblivion.
He is an extremely intelligent being who can manipulate several forces in the universe, including energy, matter, reality, space, time, and magic. He is omnipresent and has been ranked above several powerful abstract entities, including Lord Chaos, Sire Hate, Mistress Love, and Master Order.
3. Living Tribunal
There is only one version of the Living Tribunal in the Marvel Multiverse because he embodies it. He manifests as a being with three faces, each representing Necessity, Equity and Just Revenge, who has to agree with himself before intervening in anything.
The Living Tribunal is an omnipotent being created by One Above all to maintain the structure and balance of the Multiverse and enforce its judgement when it begins to tip out of order. If it restores balance, it can obliterate an entire inhabited planet.
He is incredibly intelligent, significantly more potent than both Eternity and Infinity. With absolutely limitless powers, he can erase entire realities and nullify even the powers of the Infinity Gems simultaneously, meaning Thanos is unwilling to engage in combat with him. The only being that has managed to defeat him is Beyonder.
2. Beyonder
Beyonder is one of the strongest and most powerful of all the Marvel abstracts. Characters like the Celestials, the Supreme Cosmic Beings and the Living Tribunal are at his mercy. As a child, he had a universe explicitly created for him and, for a long time, believed that his universe was everything that existed.
When a hole was poked in his universe, he saw Earth. After observing it for a while, he took over the planet with a mere thought, started the Secret Wars and created Battleworld, where many heroes and villains were forced to battle one another.
Beyonder has several powers, including psionic abilities that allow him to scan the minds of an entire world, erase people’s memories and neutralise the psychic probes from even the most powerful telepaths.
His ability to warp reality is so powerful that he can will any harm that is done to him to be repaired. He can also teleport, fly, and quickly learn about the entire Multiverse.
So… who is the strongest and most powerful Marvel Character?
1. One Above All
Essentially, the god of Marvel, the One-Above-All, is the supreme leader of the Multiverse and the ultimate source of love and good, which is why the Multiverse exists in the first place. He rarely intervenes with any multiversal matter, choosing to remain hidden and instead leaving any problems that arise for his servants like the Living Tribunal. He didn’t even do anything when the Prime Universe was destroyed.
If he chooses to destroy what he has created, he will manifest into his other half, the One Below All, essentially the devil of Marvel.
The One-Above-All (who has unlimited power) is an omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient being represented as all-powerful and occasionally portrayed as Jack Kirby. His only weaknesses are Multiversal Imbalance (which he cannot fix) and Duality. He is the strongest and most powerful Marvel character (and one of the most powerful fictional characters) of all time.
Tell us, who do you think are the strongest and most powerful Marvel characters and beings in the Marvel Universe?
