So, 19 hours ago, my fellow admin Warlock did an in-depth look into the origin of Black Adam, prior to the New 52 (henceforth to be referred to as pre-52). Right now, I will be talking about the powers, abilities and feats of Teth-Adam (pre-52). Black Adam is gifted with a wide range of powers that appear to correspond to and match, if not exceed, those of Captain Marvel. Essentially, he is gifted with 6 attributes of particular gods who are exemplars of them. He is as strong, fast, durable, powerful, knowing, and as possessed of inner strength as 6 gods who are pinnacles of those qualities. These powers are both magical and divine in nature. They are magical insofar as it was the wizard Shazam who originally provided the link to the gods who empower Black Adam, but the powers themselves come directly from the 6 gods who lend their puissance to him. This is a significant distinction insofar as the gods seem to have shown reluctance to abandon their avatar, even when his magical patron would clearly rather have removed his gift. While the wizard was able to initially displace the powers into an amulet, this was clearly not sufficient to keep Adam from eventually reclaiming them. Nor was Shazam apparently able to repeat the feat in the modern age. Captain Marvel, having apparently inherited the wizard Shazam’s power after the Spectre slew him, was roughly rebuked when he sought the gods’ intercession with Black Adam during the events of 52. It took an impressive coalition of magic-users acting in concert with Marvel, and the simultaneous distraction of fighting a large contingent of the world’s heroes, to change the Word and temporarily de-power the violent powerhouse. The chief distinction between the power of Captain Marvel and that of Black Adam is that Adam’s powers are provided by the Egyptian, rather than the Greek, pantheon. Presumably, the two are nearly equal in power, though it is conceivable that one god might be more potent than another (an interesting note is that Solomon, Achilles, and Hercules - three of Marvel’s patrons, were originally at least half mortal). Aside from the short-lived Black Marvel family, Black Adam does not share his power the way Billy does with Freddy, rendering him much more powerful in most situations. Therefore, any feat demonstrated by Captain Marvel should be at the very least duplicable by Adam. Teth even in mortal form shows remarkable ability in inspiring his followers, even to their deaths, and was an able warrior before being given his abilities. Moreover, Adam has had centuries more experience with his powers than most super-beings, and is an accomplished and iron-willed combatant even without his powers. Much like Captain Marvel (pre-52), the beings that Black Adam draws his power from can have their names abbreviated into Shazam, which also happens to be the word he says to turn into a superhuman being. The powers he receives from the different gods are as follows: He received the stamina of Shu, rendering him nigh-invulnerable. He doesnt need to eat, sleep, or breathe (he can survive unaided in space). Black Adam is extremely resistant to magical attack and effectively tireless. Even when a specially prepared bullet made from the Rock of Eternity could puncture him, Adam dug it out with his fingers and healed almost instanly. The coolest thing is that Black Adam has survived the equivalent of a major astronomical event being teleported inside his skull. The speed of Heru, allowing him to fly, move and fight at at least Mach 500 in an atmosphere, well over the speed of sound. In one account, Adam traveled from the farthest reaches of the cosmos to earth in 5000 years, travelling a total distance of 156 billion light years. Even though 5000 years is a long time, we have to take into account that the distance was a few billion light years. The strength of Amon, granting him strength on par with Superman and Captain Marvel. He was able to toss an aircraft carrier weighing hundreds of thousands of tons with one hand for possibly hundreds of miles. In fact, he was able to hold his own against the Justice League, the Justice Society and the Teen Titans, something Superman and Captain Marvel have never done. The wisdom of Zehuti, granting him access to a godly level of knowledge both magical and mundane. Black Adam an simply ‘know’ appropriate knowledge for a situation and be counseled as to the best course of action. Adam has voiced distrust for the voices of the gods to Captain Marvel. Adam’s gods have also expressed approval for his more brutal actions in “52”, which appears to be very different than the stance of Captain Marvel’s patrons. Black Adam’s senses are phenomenally sharp as well, though nowhere near the level of Superman’s. The power of Aton, which provides Black Adam with the magic lightning to transform and Adam can use the lightning bolt as a weapon by dodging it & allowing it to strike an opponent. The power of Aton enables Adam’s flight, enhances his physical abilities & invulnerability and gives him godly resistance against magical attacks. This power also allows him the power of interdimensional travel. It is feasible that the power of Aton and the wisdom of Zehuti could be used more extensively, if required, but that Adam’s general invincibility makes him favor the direct approach. Finally, he was granted the courage of Mehen, which provides Black Adam with a godly degree of inner strength, including superhuman resistance to psychic manipulation or any form of mind control. It is worth noting that even in mortal form Teth-Adam demonstrates phenomenal determination, mental toughness and nerves of steel. For now, that is all the powers I can dig up about Black Adam (pre-52). Thanks for reading the long-winded pieces Warlock and I have written about Black Adam and Ill see you again tomorrow with more battles to come. -CBF
Posted on: Wed, 10 Dec 2014 11:59:10 +0000
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