In a Marvel world full of hammer-wielding gods and armor-waering billionaires, it’s easy to be overshadowed. This is especially true if there’s a crudely made television show demonstrating just how lame of a character you are. Throw in a few doomed comic series and you have the Inhumans. Originally introduced in 1965, the Inhumans are an ancient race that uses a special mist called Terrigen to gain superpowers. Inhumans expose their teenagers to the Terrigen Mist and when they emerge, they’re usually physically changed and have some sort of unique ability. For years, they lived on the moon in a city called Attilan, which was ruled by the Inhuman royal family. Modern comics moved the Inhumans to Earth where their numbers increased thanks to a large cloud of Terrigen that transformed humans who had trace amounts of Inhuman DNA.
Inhumans haven’t had the best exposure in recent times thanks to a poorly received television show and some seriously confusing comic series. While Inhumans have their quirks, Marvel fans shouldn't underestimate them. In their ranks are some of the most powerful Marvel characters ever created. But that isn't really what makes them so great. The Inhumans are an entire race -- not a single team. Some Inhumans are just average citizens and others have sonic-screams that can destroy planets. They are a diverse people, covering a wide range of power sets and superhuman abilities. To show you just how varied and unique Inhumans can be, we're counting down 20 Inhumans from weakest to most powerful.
20 SAN
If you read the 2003 series Inhumans, you're probably familiar with the character San. Born into Attilan society to a warrior father, San always had dreams of becoming a soldier post-Teregenesis. But, after undergoing Terrigenesis, San emerges clumsy and unathletic. His dreams of being a warrior are dashed when he discovers his true calling: art. However, over time, San learns to love his Inhuman calling and thrive as an artist.
San has the Inhuman ability to create clay sculptures. As a member of the Attilan artistic community, many Inhumans thought highly of his talent. But, on our list, San’s ability comes up short. He's physically slow, easily wounded, and doesn’t have any offensive weapons. While being artistic is cool, it doesn’t make for a powerful Inhuman.
19 ALARIS
Alaris, like San, was one of the Inhumans who starred in the 2003 series Inhumans. After Terrigenesis, Alaris found he had developed super strength and the physique of a warrior. Alaris has all of the normal Inhuman attributes, including superhuman speed, durability, and agility but his Terrigen-given gift is his strength. He is strong for an Inhuman but his strength isn’t comparable to other Marvel characters like the Hulk or Thor.
In some ways, Alaris represents a typical Inhuman soldier: powerful but not overly so. He isn't a memorable character and he isn’t incredibly smart. However, he is a more capable fighter than many other Inhumans, including San. Still, his average powers put him lower down on our list.
18 AURAN
Auran has large, fox-like ears and the Inhuman gift of parabolic hearing. This means when someone says a specific word on Earth, she will hear it and know its location. As an Attilan police detective, this regularly comes in handy. During the 2014 Inhuman series, Auran uses her gift to find Black Bolt after his brother Maximus kidnapped him. Unfortunately, once she finds both Maximus and Black Bolt, her power is useless and she's killed.
The reason she's so low on our list is because her powerful hearing isn't an offensive or defensive ability. It makes her good at investigating, but compared to other Inhumans, parabolic hearing lands her in the weaker category.
17 TRITON
Cousin to Black Bolt and brother to Karnak, Triton is one of the strongest, fastest, and most durable Inhumans in the world. But, only if he's in water. After undergoing Terrigenesis, he transformed into a scaly, lizard-looking creature who can only survive in water. Outside of water, his skin dries up and his gills cause him to suffocate within minutes.
While underwater, Triton is more impressive than the greatest human athletes and can hold his own against the most powerful ocean dweller, Namor. If he could breathe air and use some of those skills on land, he'd be higher on our list. But, without a water tank strapped to his back, Triton is completely powerless on land. Because of that, he doesn't rank any higher.
16 LUNA
Luna Maximoff is the daughter of Crystal and Quicksilver. After Terrigenesis, Luna developed the ability to "see" emotions as colorful auras. As interesting as that sounds, Luna’s original Inhuman ability is not very powerful and it would’ve landed her higher on our list. The reason Luna is where she is on here is because her powers continued to develop after she became addicted to Terrigen. She continued to expose herself to the mist, which caused her to become a strong empath with the ability to control minds.
If she continues to expose herself to Terrigen, she could change even more. On the other hand, long-term exposure could be detrimental and kill her. The outcome of her addiction is too uncertain to say for sure.
15 KARNAK
As surprising as it may sound, Karnak is the only Inhuman on this list who doesn’t possess a unique Inhuman ability. Unlike with his brother Triton, Karnak’s parents never exposed Karnak to Terrigen. Instead, they trained him in stress-point detection and martial arts.
While there are Inhumans much more powerful than Karnak, he still possesses an array of impressive fighting skills. By detecting weak spots, Karnak can take down opponents twice his size. Karnak can also escape psychic prisons if telepaths don't build them immaculately. He does this in Inhumans Vs. X-Men #3 when he escapes from Jean Grey’s mental bonds. As skillful and experienced as Karnak is, he doesn't always have an edge over superpowered individuals.
14 INFERNO
Inferno got his powers after encountering a Terrigen Mist cloud in Inhuman #1. Soon after his transformation, Inferno burst into flames and his skin became molten rock. Inferno can generate flames all over his body, withstand intense heat, and regrow lost limbs via pyroplasmic regeneration, as seen in Inhuman Annual #1.
His Inhuman ability may remind you of Johnny Storm from the Fantastic Four but the two share some important differences. Unlike Johnny, Inferno can produce flames without the need for oxygen. Inferno can (sometimes) also produce small volcanic eruptions. Inferno could be extremely powerful but at the moment, his lack of control holds him back. Because he can’t always power up at the right time, he only takes the fourteenth spot on our list.
13 FLINT
Flint didn’t know he was an Inhuman until a cloud of Terrigen Mist blanketed his town. The mist killed his adopted parents but Flint survived in 2014’s Inhuman #3. His Inhuman abilities are linked to rock, hence his codename "Flint". Technically, he is a geokinetic, meaning he can manipulate the earth around him. Some of his most impressive capabilities include creating a "rock armor," using pieces of rock to "fly," and maneuvering planet-sized pieces of rock.
In the future, we think Flint could rank as an even more powerful Inhuman. But since he hasn't had a lot of time to show what he’s capable, he doesn't make it any higher in terms of his power levels.
12 MS. MARVEL
Inarguably one of the most popular Inhumans on the list, Ms. Marvel, aka Kamala Khan, is a fairly new addition to the world of Inhumans, with Marvel introducing her character via a solo series (Ms. Marvel) in 2014. Kamala is polymorphic Inhuman with the capability to stretch, expand, and distort her body. Because of her morphogenetic traits, Kamala has an accelerated healing factor. However, she cannot use it while morphing.
With her powers, Kamala can increase her strength, dexterity, and speed, making her a powerful foe in battle. Off the battlefield, Kamala can impersonate people and use her small size to infiltrate close quarters. However, she isn’t without weakness. Electromagnetic pulses interfere with her elasticity, inhibiting morphing.Â
11 READER
Originally, Reader was from the Lor tribe, which were a group of Attilans who settled on Earth. When Reader went through Terrigenesis, he developed the power to make anything he reads come true. Reader’s powerful gift terrified the Lor people and they gouged his eyes out. But, crafty as ever, Reader created a deck of Braille cards that he could “read”. These cards include words such as “freeze” and “death.” Reader has three “reads” per day and the last one is always weaker.
Reader can make almost anything come true, from rewriting reality to creating a person, as he does in Uncanny Inhumans #15. While his disability restricted him somewhat, it also made him clever.Â
