1. Low

    Low New Member

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    Lightning Manipulation

    Discussion in 'Research' started by Low, Oct 7, 2013.

    So, my character in this story I've written is able to manipulate lightning, absorbing or projecting infinite amounts of it. He has an affinity to air.
    My question is, can he generate lightning storms? Like, catagory five winds, rain and stuff? If its possible, could someone please tell me how it is. Thankyou!
     
  2. mammamaia

    mammamaia nit-picker-in-chief Contributor

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    anything is possible in a fantasy... you are the writer and can make anything happen in any way you want...
     
  3. Low

    Low New Member

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    The context of my question was not that. I know I could make up a jumble as Ive already done so far. My question lay in the possibility or the science behind the possibility, if at all. It would help me immensely if I actually knew what I was writing about.
     
  4. Pheonix

    Pheonix A Singer of Space Operas and The Fourth Mod of RP Contributor

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    I don't think that there is too much scientific plausibility to your character really being able to do any of that.

    Now that said, Like Maia pointed out, that shouldn't stop you. Its a BA idea, but you should probably be able to at least bull crap an explanation, even if you never write it down.

    Let me ask, do you understand the principles of how lightning works? Or how storms develop and why that generate lightning? If not, I would suggest researching, and in this case, Google is probably your best bet.

    I think what you'll find is that Lightning Storms make Lightning, not the other way around. The lightning is a by product of the conditions of the storm. If your character can manipulate airflow and moisture content in the air (like Storm from X-men) then you might be in business. But straight up lightning manipulation won't go a long way towards creating the conditions required to have a lightning storm.
     
  5. Low

    Low New Member

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    No, I dont know how storms form/develop, or how lightning is generated as a result. But, this character Im referring to has a certain amount of air related abilities, such as flight, and when he gets angry, he make the winds swell. That is what I meant, when I said he has an affinity to air. You are probably right, Im better of using google for this. Thankyou for the particulars you mentioned though!
     
  6. Jetik X

    Jetik X New Member

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    Sparks such as lightning are caused when things become highly charged. The way lightning normally occurs is water evaporates and then rises up high enough that it freezes. These little pieces of ice then bump into each other and create static electricity, like rubbing a balloon on your head. The positively charged stuff ends up higher than the negatively charged. Sometimes, the ground builds up a bit of a positive charge too. Anyway, when the two charges become great enough, boom lightning. Most lightning happens between the top and bottom of a cloud while just a bit happens between the bottom of a cloud and the ground and even less between the top of the cloud and the ground.

    Anyway, you could probably say that your character generates lightning by rubbing the air together telepathically. In this case, he could generate lightning without a storm. If you want him to be able to make a storm, maybe you could say he has the power to heat the water trapped in soil and such so that it instantly evaporates on a large scale, thus leading to a storm. Or, he could just generate a "storm" of lightning without the rain and clouds, using the method I previously described. You could still retain the strong winds as it would be directly connected to how he generates it.
     
    Last edited: Oct 7, 2013
  7. Cogito

    Cogito Former Mod, Retired Supporter Contributor

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    As soon as you talk about absorbing infinite electricity, you've thrown science out the window anyway.
     
  8. TechnoGoth

    TechnoGoth New Member

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    Well if he can absorb and generate lightning then maybe he has a kind of natural faraday cage around him that stops the lightning strikes. While generating lighting bolts could be done in the same way as a Tesla Coil.
     
  9. ManOrAstroMan

    ManOrAstroMan Magical Space Detective Contributor

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    Weather has three main components: Temperature, Moisture, and Air Pressure. It sounds like he'd be more able to create disturbances in the atmosphere such as windstorms, but without the ability to affect the moisture in the air, I don't think he'd be able to make it rain.
    There's tons of great resources you can find online or at your library, and you might want to start watching your local TV weather report more regularly. I can't speak for everywhere, but here in Missouri, our TV meteorologists do a pretty good job of injecting educational information into their forecasts.

    The thing that gets me is the "infinite amounts of electricity" bit. @Cogito was right when he said you were ignoring science with that part, but what's worse--to me anyway--is that you seem to be overpowering your character.
    It's easy enough to give flaws and weaknesses to normal human characters, but when you get into fantasy and sci-fi, where people are capable of doing amazing things like flying or reading minds or turning into animals, you have to work a little harder to balance out the superpowers with weaknesses. Story is made up of conflict, the protagonist's struggle to overcome obstacles and achieve his or her goal. If you make your character too powerful, then the obstacles he's overcoming have to be enormous enough to provide conflict. Otherwise, the conflict seems insubstantial and your story falls flat. Just think of how many people think Batman is cooler than Superman. Batman has to rely on his brains, his skills, his training, etc to fight crime and save the day. Superman...just shows up and its over. There's no drama, no suspense, no threat to the hero. (This is why they invented Kryptonite in the old comics, so there'd be SOMETHING to slow him down.)
    Maybe he can absorb a lot of electricity, but the more he takes in, the harder it is to control. It puts a physical strain on him, and if he takes too much in, he blows up. Same thing with output: Maybe the more lightning he throws at his enemies, the weaker he gets. If he uses up the voltage he's absorbed from outside sources, continued use of his powers drains his physical energy to the point where he passes out or even risks death.
    (Sorry to go off-topic there!)
     
  10. mrieder79

    mrieder79 Probably not a ground squirrel Contributor

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    Agree completely with ManOrAstroMan. My first thought was, if this guy can control lighting, what sort of challenges will he face? Perhaps inner turmoil, maybe a super-villain? I don't know. I think that is going to be a bigger problem than credibility. When I read fantasy, I don't usually question the "science" behind things. If I read Forgotten Realms fiction, I'm not looking at the scientific foundation for the magic or special powers the different denizens of the realms possess. I just accept it as part of the fantasy and go on.
     

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