The Equestria Girls as Superheroes · 4:53am Sep 12th, 2018
So, obviously they're still at the Meddling Kids stage of their career. And that's fine, it's alot of fun. But at some point they're going to get serious about this right? Someone needs to make Sunset's comics a reality!
*ahem*
Anyway, just some thoughts on using them as a super team.
So first and most obvious, they've got three big things going for them powers wise. They've got their music-powered combined harmony beam, which I'm going to call Rainbow Chorus because if we can't call attacks what's the point right? Very powerful, but it's slow and it takes all of them PLUS a good heartsong. They also have an individual power, which is tied to how their talent (for want of a human term) expresses itself in this world. So the speed, telekinesis, mind reading, and so on. Finally they have a powered up form that comes either through music or through expressing their primary Harmonic Virtue. The main effect of this is that they get a big boost to their other powers, plus becoming a source of magic that can be used for other things. Now the details of why it works like that don't matter for this, lets see how this works in practice.
Rarity: Force Fields, Generosity. Rarity's powers are straight up built for heroic last stands and hold the line actions, a protective power that is boosted when sacrificing or risking herself for others. It is also excellent for battlefield control. However the force panes she creates don't move with her, and strain on a shield causes feedback, especially if they are shattered. In a normal fight she quickly conjures and dismisses individual shields to minimize strain, while warding their flanks. Outside of combat, she has very good social skills and a number of high society contacts. She is also their PR professional: designing costumes, planning events, and doing all the other thousand things a public Super Team needs to stay viewed in a good light.
Twilight: Telekinesis, Magic. The name of her Virtue is misleading, but it carried over from Equestrian scholarship. Twilight is empowered by Synthesis, bringing people and things together to create wholes greater than the sum of their parts. This is most commonly seen through science, but can also be expressed through coordination and leadership. Her power is a mix of Battlefield Control, Utility, and Offensive offering great versatility in a fight. Twilight is also able to create both robots and magical technology ('devises') and is an unparalleled researcher and theoretician. She is also in charge of planning, and assists Pinkie with logistics.
Rainbow: Speed, Loyalty. Just as Rarity's powers are built for last stands, so Rainbow's powers are built for daring rescues. Practice has given her much more familiarity with power and how to use it effectively. She effectively combines it with both parcoer and tools such as bicyles or rollerblades for supreme mobility. Takes the role of a light front line fighter and scout, as well as being their go-to stealth expert and sabateur. Foiling the doomsday machine is just another prank after all.
Fluttershy: Animals, Kindness. Fluttershy is not a combatant at all if she can help it, though she can show surprising fierceness if the need arises. She also doesn't ask animals to fight for her, since she doesn't want to put them in danger. However, this doesn't mean that her powers do not contribute. And seeing animals as friends rather than tools or weapons often provides incidental benefits. Whether finding information, calming summoned monsters, or simply alerting them to natural hazards, Fluttershy's communication powers have repeatedly proven invaluable. And, of course, her calming and understanding presence is exactly what the team needs in times of stress.
Pinkie Pie: Explosions, Laughter. Pinkie is the team's demolitions expert, and by far the most directly destructive. Her power can turn turn anything flammable into an explosive, especially sugar, and especially if caffeine is involved. Destructively themed names are another known amplifier. Actual explosives, in her hands, become astoundingly powerful. For this reason, it is fortunate that her Virtue is Laughter. The interactions makes her blasts, for want of a better word, cartoony rather than deadly. Someone can be knocked back, covered in soot, and stunned, but otherwise be unharmed. Structural damage is avoided unless desired, circumstances will conspire to allow people to escape, and so forth. In addition, of course, her general Pinkieness and quixotic nature is a great boon to team morale. However, this only applies in a situation she is able to make light of. The more serious the situation, the more likely her 'stun setting' will be disabled.
Applejack: Strength, Honesty. Applejack's powers are good for big entrances. She is literally empowered by boldly entering, proclaiming their intent, and fighting fair despite the temptation otherwise. For this reason Applejack is the group's paladin in combat: heavily armored as only her immense strength can bear, bursting down doors, and so forth. However, her powers are actually almost more useful off the field than on. In disaster relief and rescue work, for example, her strength is an incredible boon. The most common expression of Honesty in such circumstances is through helping everyone, regardless of circumstances, even if they may technically be enemies: this Virtue also extends to honorable conduct. Outside of her powers, Applejack has strong wilderness survival skills that complement Fluttershy's abilities exceptionally well.
Sunset Shimmer: Telepathy, Empathy. Ironically, one of the most hot blooded team members has a power that is almost broken...in non-combat support. Through understanding, communication, and sharing perspective, not to mention her telepathy, Sunset is incredible at gathering information and a solid understanding of the situation and motivations involved. This is especially relevant, of course, when healing people transformed by Discordant magic. Her charisma and leadership skills are also exceptional, and she frequently assists both Twilight in her research and Rarity with her art. She even has a number of skills from her shady past, such as hotwiring cars, that she has kept in practice with. One thing she is not, however, is a front line fighter, and it galls her to no end.
This all sounds pretty cool. Got any superhero names?
Oh, and can't forget Spike as the bumbling sidekick/comic relief/mascot.
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You're right, I forgot Spike. He's actually gotten rescue training to help with disaster relief and similar, and has a vest with a whole suite of sensors that Twilight designed for him. Twilight still blames Rainbow that convincing him that being a cyber-dog would be awesome, and keeps refusing to design the upgrades. She did compromise, though, with a magic capacitor that he can switch on to give him a 'Super-Mode'.
No superhero name ideas yet, but give it time.
Other tech they've developed for various missions:
Telepathic Comms based on Sunset's magic, carefully tuned to the group's harmonic bond so it is untraceable even with magic.
Force Field Tent based on Rarity's powers. Actually amazingly useful for saving space, time, and weight when on missions.
Hyper-Cycles Actually those super-bikes that can get up to 60mph for a short burst, but reconfigured to interact with Dash or Applejack's powers. Obviously the two of them need very different gearing systems. Twilight is working on a human powered plane variant. Dash's cycle has broken land speed records (and the speed of sound) when channeling Loyalty.
Magic Trap, an improved version of Twilight's original synthetic Element of Magic, Useful in emergencies to depower magical threats, but definitely not a first resort. The contained magical energy invariably has unpredictable and dangerous effects when released, and a Discordant power source can actually destroy or possess the device. While it can get magic out of malicious hands for a moment, new and exciting follow on problems are basically inevitable.
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The Magic Trap sounds inefficient. How do they strip a bad guy of their powers, then?
Also, is Discord responsible for this? You keep saying 'Discordant' magic.
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I mean Discordant magic as in in the opposite of the Harmony magic they’re using. Stuff based on negative emotions and conflict. The nomenclature confusion Discord’s name causes is entirely on purpose in his part :p
And yeah, the magic trap is inefficient. Mostly because I need a reason Twilight can’t just go Tirek on any magical threat that crossed then. But also remember how that thing acted up in Friendship Games, and she hasn’t perfected it.
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All right