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Old 03-21-2011, 06:35 PM   #5
Formendacil
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I think the whole question has a bit too much of a superhero/comic book presumption to it... Speaking of "powers" in the plural sense, and then the list of "Powers i.e: Healing, Lightning summon, enhanced physical strength and speed, earth shattering, telekinesis, flight, continental shifting, cursing, necromancy etc.," while probably not intended to put me in such a mindset has me picturing Oromë as SuperElf, and Valinor as Gothamirë City, Home of the Doom of the Valar's Justice League...

It's a bit of a nitpicky point, but I think it's a pivotal little point: the Ainur (Valar and Maiar) are not super-powered aliens from planet Arda, but they are gods. Even with the Ainulindalë ever present to remind us of the monotheism behind the Valar, the fact is that the Valar are patterned on the pantheons of pagan gods. In this light, I think that a comparison to the power of the Greek or Norse gods is applicable--"power", I would say, not "powers."

After all, it's not that Gandalf has high scores in fireball casting, medium scores in understanding animal languages and telepathy, and poor-to-no levels of healer magic. On the contrary, Gandalf is, simply, powerful, with an affinity for things involving fire. The reason, I think why it is so hard to get a fix on exactly what he can do as a wizard is because his magic isn't supposed to be a set of specific powers, but because he is ultimately a semi-divine being.

Of course, the Istari are a special case, and as Maiar incarnated in human bodies, they come a lot closer to "super-powered humans" than the Valar do.
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