Superhero

''Not to be confused with the super genre from which superheroes originate. Also not to be confused for the Superhero role.''

A kind of hero who owns superhuman abilities called superpowers. The most typical superheroes are duty-bound to protect the people of an "-opolis"-suffixed city from any threats that may arise. These threats generally come in the form of supervillains who sets their sights on the Main Place to enact their evil. A superhero may operate alone, with a Sidekick, or on a team of other superheroes. It's common for a superhero to have more than one alias — one as a crime fighter and the other as an everyday civilian — which is called the secret identity. Others outside of their allies can't know who the superhero is as a civilian. If this Nuclear Secret gets out, it's bad news. Their enemies can track down where they live, civilians can ruin their privacy for personal favors or autographs, and they would never be able to lead their civilian life and tend to what they must.

The backstory of a superhero can vary case by case. One of the most used backgrounds for a superhero is that they gained their powers in a Freak Accident, such as contact with radioactive materials. They could have also been bestowed the powers by somebody who made it their mission to be the defender of the people and fighter of evil. It's also possible that they could have always had their powers and came from a planet far away. Generic superheroes often live in their headquarters a la Superman or Batman's dwellings. When trouble strikes the central city, a distress signal sounds to alert them of an evildoer's latest moves. Superheroes battle both Supervillains and lesser Criminals. These Criminals love robbing the local bank and stuffing sacks full of money. Mature franchises may depict a Criminal wielding a gun as they stick the good people of the bank up.