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Introduction
Heyo everybody, KingofWolves here to give another MHA CRT, a pretty long one too and for only a few characters. This is a pretty weird CRT in that it is discussing an entirely separate power system to the verse, a system that we acknowledge on the wiki but have yet to officially note or talk about at length. This CRT will be dedicated to finding and displaying all evidence of this secondary power system, in the hopes that we can further link characters to it. The power system I'm talking about, of course, is the strange scaling chain of Supernatural Willpower that seems to give a host of abilities depending on the who and why of its usage.Without further ado, lets start things off.
Hint of Something Beyond Quirks
Quirks are what drives MHA, as they are the power system of the verse. 80% of the population have Quirks, some more outstanding than others. The strongest of Quirk users tend to find themselves leaning either into the category of Hero or Villain. At the pinnacle of these two factions lie the God Tiers of the verse: All Might and All For One. These two and their Quirks, One For All and All For One respectively, have a long history nearly 200 years long. The long legacy of passing and stealing Quirks has woven the very fabric of the story, and even now, the ramifications of Quirks in the future are unknown. The Quirk Singularity theory, the belief that eventually Quirks will become too strong to handle and a downfall of society is inevitable, is a practical guarantee with Quirks such as Eri's Rewind and Tomura's Decay. One would not be remiss to believe that, when it comes to My Hero Academia, Quirks are the only thing that should matter in a fight and will be the only thing that matter in the end.But that is not true. There is a force beyond Quirks that seems to have just as much influence over the characters of the show as their Quirks do, if not even surpassing Quirks entirely in the right situations. This force, of course, is the willpower of the individual.
True Fear
Willpower in MHA isn't just a method to surpass your limits, but is a tangible, real force that can be actively controlled and exerted to cause phenomenon in other people. This willpower is something that is separate from the user's Quirk and personal power COMPLETELY. Willpower, the ability to affect others with your conviction alone, is something that many people on the wiki associate with one particular character: the Hero Killer, Stain.Stain uses his Willpower in a what appears to be the most basic method of application: instilling Fear to paralyze your foes.
Very clear and obvious usage of the ability no? Due to the strength, the sheer faith and conviction that Stain has in his ideals, he can exert his Willpower onto others, even a High Tier character such as Endeavor, and make them completely unable to move. This ability is recognized by the wiki, but there's quite an important question to ask...
Why Can Stain Do This?
Why is this a thing in the first place? Why is this Willpower power system even a factor in the story? Is it even relevant? Is it a wasted plot thread?The answer to all these questions is given by Gran Torino in chapter 57. A direct answer of what this power is, the feeling of it, how dangerous it can be and even it's name.
This "Willpower" is actually "Charisma"
The ability to force your ideals onto others, to embolden yourself with your beliefs, to push past your limits and lead others to do the same, is called Charisma, or at least that's how I will be referring to it from now on. Charisma is why Stain could stun nearly a dozen people with just his words and his conviction. Charisma is what villains feel when All Might appears and isn't smiling. Charisma is the driving force for where characters find their lot in life.
All Might's Charisma
All Might, as the Number One Hero, a born prodigy and unwavering pillar of hope, the Symbol of Peace, naturally has a LOT of Charisma. More than just his presence making others feel safer, his ability to instill fear in people is no less potent than Stain's. Izuku and Bakugo even remark on it when they come face to face with him in their fight.Izuku and Bakugo know how strong All Might is. They understand more than anyone exactly the level of opponent they're facing, as they got a front row seat to All Might brawling with the USJ Nomu. However, what they note initially when he makes his entrance to fight them is not his power. In fact, his power is never a factor in their fear of him in the first place.
What causes Izuku and Bakugo to falter (Less so Bakugo but we'll get to him) is All Might's presence, his Charisma. He is actively exerting his willpower on the two of them, taking the role of a "villain" in order to force them to cooperate. Izuku even likens All Might's Charisma to that of Stain's Charisma, and given All Might is holding back here, the ability to freeze people in their place is well within his grasp, if not even easier to do than Stain's version.
And to show that his power or status isn't the cause of this...
Toshinori Yagi, the man behind All Might, is a withered skeleton with no power to fight like he used to. Everyone knows this, the villains especially, and it was this fact that emboldened the antagonists of the series to strike out in the first place. These two young villains are resolved to put All Might down, his stance above them torn down. Yet, with just a few words, they're frightened so bad they can't take a single step towards him, and even fall down, trying to ESCAPE him. All Might's Charisma is overwhelming no matter the form he is in, and even if you acknowledge that he isn't as strong as he used to be, it is irrelevant if he wants you to stand aside. His Charisma is independent of his status.
Tomura Shigaraki's Charisma
Now we come to the second most known case of Charisma: Tomura Shigaraki. Tomura's brand of Charisma is the basis of this thread in fact, as he exhibits the most blatant form of this power via instilling fear in his enemies with just a glance. It is after awakening to his full power that he becomes "liberated" and can freely exert his Charisma on whoever he wishes.A lesser known fact about Shigaraki, though, is that his presence doesn't ONLY cause fear. In the case of Re-Destro, his presence actually causes him to become less stressed, a form of awe and reverence taking place of the fear he should be feeling. This part of the Charisma is something that All Might also employs; the ability to be a symbol to others for them to look up to. The ability to be a leader.
Shigaraki's Charisma is one that is designed to be followed, a sign of liberation from the shackles that the Hero Society has placed on people. It can be one of fear to those he wishes to destroy, but to those that see and agree with his goal, it is a driving force, an inspiration.
The source of Shigaraki's Charisma is his hatred, his will to want to change things and his want to destroy.
Why Does This Matter?
So why am I bringing up this topic in the first place? The wiki acknowledges most of these examples, and while I did go the extra mile to full explain everything about this Charisma as I could, I haven't really proposed many changes. So what's the point? Because there are people that can resist the Charisma of others, and as such, should gain a resistance to the effects of their Charisma.Also everyone with Charisma should get Social Influencing alongside their Fear Manipulation.
Resistance to Fear Inducement and Social Influencing
The crux of this thread, beyond establishing the secondary power system, is to give people resistance to the effects of Charisma as has been shown.First up,
Katsuki Bakugo (Dynamight)
Surprising, I know, but strangely, he is someone that Charisma seems to simply NOT affect normally. Despite being in the presence of both All Might and Tomura Shigaraki, a common theme from Bakugo is that he does NOT run away. In fact, Bakugo actively attempts to FIGHT when he is exposed to overwhelming Charisma, and as such, should have a resistance to Fear and Social Influencing.This is shown both in his fight with All Might and when Tomura makes him see his own death. Bakugo's instinctive reaction to feeling Charisma is to fight back, rather than run or be paralyzed by the fear.
For those questioning the Tomura panel, despite Bakugo's expression and seeing his own death, his stance is one of fighting, trying to blast Tomura, rather than succumbing to the fear like Deku, Momo, Iida, Shoto and Kirishima did in AFO's presence. Deku even says that the presence from AFO was just a "taste" in comparison to what Tomura subjected them to, yet Bakugo seems to handle it far better than they did.
All For One
The wiki already acknowledges that All Might has a resistance to fear due to being able to withstand AFO's presence, but the same should be said for AFO. Our resident Demon Lord fought All Might at the pinnacle of his power, when his anger and drive were at their peak, so naturally, AFO's own resistance to Charisma would have to exist to not balk in the slightest to an All Might fully committed to killing him.
Tomura Shigaraki (With All For One)
Tomura battles AFO constantly in his mind, and as such, is exposed to AFO's Charisma basically 24/7. He resists this influence with his own Charisma, as well as his sheer mental strength to take control of his own destiny. As such, resistances should be his in this regard.
Izuku Midoriya (Deku)
Deku is the strangest addition to having a resistance to Charisma, as unlike the others on this list, he IS affected by it like anyone else would be. Against Stain, he freezes. Against All Might, he tries to run. Against AFO, the vision of his death stops him cold. So why is he on this list?
In the above panel with Bakugo, note Deku's reaction to seeing his death again. When face to face with Tomura, a being containing comparable if not greater Charisma than AFO, such that he calls his previous encounter with AFO a "taste," what does Deku do? He attempts to fight. Like Bakugo, Deku does not freeze in this situation, but tries to fight against it. His stance is a yell of hopeless determination, as if he's giving his all for an inevitable death. A far cry from his previous position of not even being able to move. This I feel is grounds for a resistance to the Charisma ability, however, more impressive than even this, is what happens when AFO tries to take OFA.
Inside OFA, where willpower is the only way to fight, Shigaraki attempts to break down the very laws of the world itself with his hatred, the source of his Charisma. As such, his attack against OFA is one of absolute willpower, ALL of his Charisma made manifest in an attempt to destroy and take OFA for himself.
This burst of rage, the power so great it causes you to see your own death, is EASILY defeated by Yoichi Shigaraki, who bats down Shigaraki's Charisma with his own, completely stopping his attack. All For One, however, attempts to add his own power to the struggle, taking command of Shigaraki's hatred-based Charisma and his own Charisma to defeat Yoichi and Nana.
This leads to a seeming stalemate as the two forces lock, a stalemate which is broken by Deku, who rises to the occasion and overpowers both Shigaraki and AFO's Charisma with his own, the first time he's ever used his willpower in a way beyond just moving past injury. This forces the connection to end, thus securing OFA as Deku's power alone once more.
Deku's action in that clash, where he overcame AFO and Shigaraki's Charisma, is absolutely an example of resistance to Fear and Social Influencing, but even if his action alone isn't enough, the vestiges are still around and more able to help than ever. Due to the clash where AFO attempted to take OFA, the vestiges became more able to communicate and help Deku. This should naturally include their prior abilities being amplified, such as Deku's resistance to Mind Control. Therefore, the resistance to Charisma that the vestiges have should naturally extend to Deku, even if he's not in the vestige world. It should be quite simple if Deku is face with the Charisma of an opponent for the wills of the other users of OFA to bolster his own Charisma, allowing him to push past any fear he might feel.
Conclusion
The Second Power System of MHA is called Charisma, and is the source of feats from Stain, All Might, Shigaraki and All For One. They should gain Social Influencing on top of the Fear Inducement that they already have.Bakugo, AFO, Tomura w/ AFO and Deku should have resistance to Fear Inducement and Social Influencing for resisting the effects of this Charisma in various ways.
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