How do you control an overpowered character so they don't break the story?

[MFontana]

It's simple.
Change the challenges they face into something their OP abilities can't necessarily solve.
Alternatively, put them up against their foil. An antagonist who's abilities are the protagonist's inverse, or one who has counters to what the protagonist can do (if you're looking for more of a battle-scenario).

 

[C.Details]

If the character is new to being overpowered then you can do things like having opponents be better fighters then this character. Can't hit if they dodge, out maneuver and redirect their op attacks.

You could have a growing phase too, their attack is too much they even blow themselves away. Could hurt themselves/others or turn a city into a valley.

Could have the bad guys function under the op character's nose. So other more aware characters get a chance to deal with the big bads.

Could have an equally powerful big bad like Him from power Puff girls.

Or set them into situations that forces them to limit themselves like a sporting event, personal challenge, politics, personal trauma or their power only works under certain restrictions like Excalibur from soul eater or some pokemon abilities.

 

[DireBadger]

Make them a dumbass.

Seriously, people can't think of EVERYTHING. My character is a bit OP, but sometimes he just doesn't think of stuff. Humanity is terribly complex.

 

[Author_Riceball]

For a main character or protagonist who is too capable, too difficult to defeat, practically impossible to beat, too overpowered, or too intelligent—how do people usually control these characters so that their power scale doesn't ruin the story?
(Excluding having them meet a stronger character.)View attachment 42873

Just have them be uninterested in the plot and only exist to monologue and have them give some advice and aura farm.

 

[hell_yeahMylike]

Just have them be uninterested in the plot and only exist to monologue and have them give some advice and aura farm.

Oh, I'm reading this right now, but I'm only up to chapter 2.

 

[unlaumy]

Make them a side character that only appears once in a while as a plot device

 

[CharlesEBrown]

Could model it after the movie Fallen...

Spoiler

the over powered creature is the one narrating the story, not the detective hunting it

 

[CheertheSecond]

Nothing is more overpowering than friendship.

You can't friendship through poverty in a money world

 

[DireBadger]

You can also always kill them to prove that the threat is serious. That's a classic hook, because after you kill the OP character, the protagonist no longer feels OP.

 

[Anonjohn20]

For a main character or protagonist who is too capable, too difficult to defeat, practically impossible to beat, too overpowered, or too intelligent—how do people usually control these characters so that their power scale doesn't ruin the story?
(Excluding having them meet a stronger character.)View attachment 42873

Every strength needs a weakness to balance it.

 

[ConansWitchBaby]

Make them allergic to cringe. So they have to hyper focus on making sure they don't come off as a dumbass.

 

[DireBadger]

Every strength needs a weakness to balance it.

I like psychological weaknesses :)

Delilah didn't defeat Sampson by kicking his butt and arm wrestling him into submission.

 

[FRWriter]

I personally hate OP characters. It's the laziest form of writing. It's 100% my personal bias, though.

It's already been proven that they can work if progression and more serious topics are not what you are aiming for.

Just look at One Punch Man.

If your story is about comedy, OP characters are not really a problem and more like a means to an end. Usually, though, stories like that get pretty boring after a while. With OP characters, there is no real risk, and most readers get bored quickly.

I've seen countless stories where authors get greedy and give their MC a gazillion special abilities/skills/bloodlines/divine items and many other things, and I usually immediately stop reading. It's incredibly dumb in my opinion, especially if the follow-up is that the MC hides all these abilities. It's just infuriating to read a story like that.

There seems to be a large audience for it—however, just look at the countless Japanese/Chinese stories with OP protagonists. Usually, that's where all the "face slapping" moments come. They hide, take all that abuse, get humiliated, only for them to reveal a fraction of their real abilities and turn it around.

In my opinion, these worthless time-wasting storylines are the absolute worst.

I've gone off topic... not revealing their strength, or making combat not a core topic, are the most used techniques to control an overpowered character.

 

[Eldoria]

Tricks to making OP characters not ruin the story: By adding character development, ideological conflict, providing ethical boundaries for the use of power, and presenting an equal antagonist.

 

[Sekstifire]

Makes so the story is not about power at all.

Or at least not about power at all from the OP protagonists POV.

You gotta either go cartoon or be sincere about it though. Not that thing a lot of wish fulfilment stories do where the OP protagonist has a superficial goal like having a "slow life" or something.

Also play with the fact that people won't be able to tell how strong the protagonist's opponents are. For example, put an extremely strong opponent where a weak opponent the protagonist beats early on would normally go and don't reveal the discrepancy until way later.

 

[Wenlock]

Maybe they want to live a quaint life so they hide their powers (a common motive) OR They are a plain sadistic personality who is yearning for excellent entertainment. So then it's like I can end this anytime I want but I don't want to just yet.

Or at least not about power at all from the OP protagonists POV.

You gotta either go cartoon or be sincere about it though. Not that thing a lot of wish fulfilment stories do where the OP protagonist has a superficial goal like having a "slow life" or something.

Also play with the fact that people won't be able to tell how strong the protagonist's opponents are. For example, put an extremely strong opponent where a weak opponent the protagonist beats early on would normally go and don't reveal the discrepancy until way later.

That slow life one is MILKED

 

[MFontana]

Tricks to making OP characters not ruin the story: By adding character development, ideological conflict, providing ethical boundaries for the use of power, and presenting an equal antagonist.

That sums things up pretty well, Eldoria.
It also gives a perfect reason to drop one of my favorite Doctor quotes from Doctor Who.
"Good men don't need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many."

My approach though, tends to focus inward for conflict, or by attaching consequences to any action or inaction the OP protagonist takes, and forcing him to live with said consequences. (Moral and Ethical dilemmas are a useful tool, because they can't be solved simply by being 'overpowered').

 

[Envylope]

I solved it by making a dumb MC and focused on the comedy elements of the story. The story was not about the fights really. The reader knew the MC would not lose, so for the fights, I focused on the cool factor and spectacle.

 

[ConansWitchBaby]

Some type of inaction. Got an in-progress idea story that I'm tryig to flesh out. Guy comes back from being isekai'd and lived his life for 15 years without problems. Then the other world makes contact with Earth for help instead of just kidnapping a bunch of teens. Cue the "how about no" from the MC. "Just turn your own children into child soldiers and leave us alone." "Sure, I turned your goddess into a battery and made the fabric of reality my bitch to return but, that doesn't mean that I'll use my power for you guys."

 

[Bartun]

In my case, my MC is weak, so she has to rely on other people. One of her closest allies is a 'dragon' that is inhumanly strong and fast, but he's also naive and inexperienced. In contrast, the main antagonist is a 'mage' who is incredibly cunning and skilled.