How do you get quirks in Boku no Hero Academia?

The world of My Hero Academia is full of amazing, useful, and silly quirks. But, when it comes to being a superhero, some quirks are better than others. For example, All Might would never have become the hero we all know him to be should the quirk handed down to him have been anything less powerful than One For All.

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From the ability to copy another person's quirk to the ability to outright steal it permanently—as well as just about everything in between—here are some of the most incredibly powerful My Hero Academia quirks.

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Update on January 22nd, 2022 by Tanner Fox: My Hero Academia continues to be one of the most popular shounen anime series, with the fifth season recently debuting in May of 2021. The students in UA's Class 1-A continue to hone their skills and encounter new challenges and rivals along their paths to becoming fully-fledged heroes.

A lot has changed for Izuku Midoriya, his close friends, and the world of professional heroics in My Hero Academia, and it's time to re-evaluate which characters possess the series' most powerful quirks.

IQ - Seiko Intelli

A Seiai Academy student, Seiko Intelli is a very minor character featured in the Provisional Hero License Exam arc. Though she's eventually outwitted by a group of students led by Momo Yaoyorozu, she proves to be an excellent leader with an indispensable ability.

Seiko's quirk, IQ, allows her to temporarily boost her intelligence when she drinks tea. Different types of tea impart differing effects on her mental faculties, and, in the anime, she is seen drinking English High Tea, which seems to grant her advanced premonitory abilities.

Copy - Neito Monoma

Neito Monoma has a unique quirk; he has the ability to copy other quirks. Thankfully, he can’t actually copy all quirks, as he's beset by restrictions and limitations. Still, it can be an incredibly useful quirk with a boundless amount of potential applications.

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However, even with limitations on what he can mimic, this ability is extremely useful. It allows Monoma to be fairly versatile in any given situation. He can even combat an enemy with their own quirk depending on what it is.

Confession - Shin Nemoto

A quirk wielded by Shie Hassaiki affiliate Shin Nemoto, Confession allows its user to draw out the truth from anyone after a question is asked. While it's not particularly useful in combat, it is of incredible importance to Overhaul during questionings and interrogations.

Shin Nemoto was held in high esteem by the notoriously-testy Overhaul, and he was a vital member of the villain's Eight Bullets inner circle. Regrettably, Shin Nemoto remained loyal to Overhaul to the last, an allegiance that landed him in prison following the eventful Shie Hassaiki arc.

Warp Gate - Kurogiri

Though he's not all that powerful on his own, Kurogiri acts as an invaluable asset for Tomura Shigaraki and the League of Villains. Instrumental in their infiltration of the USJ in the first season of the anime, Kurogiri's quirk, warp gate, allows him to envelop friends and foes in a dense fog which can teleport them from place to place.

Perfect as a means of transportation and as an easy way to escape from hazardous situations, Kurogiri has a major hand in allowing the League of Villains to remain so evasive. Though he's proven to be fallible during the USJ attack, he's an essential member of any villain crew.

Erasure - Shota Aizawa

U.A. professor Shota Aizawa may not be all that powerful in a conventional sense, but his quirk makes him incredibly valuable in combat. Wielding Erasure, Aizawa can temporarily deactivate a person's quirk, with the effect lasting for as long as he can keep his gaze fixed on them.

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Obviously, it comes with a few weaknesses; it doesn't last all that long, and it gives him dry eye. Still, we've seen him use it to save lives in the past, and, though he won't be demolishing city blocks or pulverizing opponents, he's still more than capable of saving the day.

Bloodcurdle - Hero Killer: Stain

Stain had what is quite possibly the most brutal combination of quirk and personality. His quirk, bloodcurdle, gives him the ability to freeze anybody whose blood he ingests. His quirk is only effective in violent altercations, of course, and he then takes advantage of the person being frozen to maim or slaughter them.

In the hands of a killer like Stain, this quirk is incredibly powerful—and incredibly dangerous; the famous fight which pitted him against three UA students was indication enough of that fact. Furthermore, we can only wonder how his quirk might have been utilized had he become a hero.

Hardening - Eijiro Kirishima

One of U.A.'s Class 1-A students, Eijiro Kirishima features prominently in the My Hero Academia anime. His quirk, Hardening, allows him to morph his body into a near-unbreakable material and to transform his arms into sharp weapons. It may not be one of the class' flashiest quirks, but it is proven to be devastating to enemies in battle.

During his training with Pro Hero Fat Gum and once again during the Shie Hassaikai attack, Kirishima demonstrated his prowess in combat, going toe-to-toe with some of the anime's fiercest villains.

Heal - Recovery Girl

Recovery Girl boasts the incredible ability to heal the wounds of those she kisses. She's a prominent part of U.A.'s faculty, and, without her, the school wouldn't be able to concurrently conduct dangerous exercises with students.

She's seen healing Izuku Midoriya on multiple occasions, but there are, unfortunately, limits to her abilities. Heal boosts the body's natural ability to recover, but its overuse could impart devastating effects. Still, her power is indispensable, and it's hard to know what U.A. plans to do once she can no longer perform her duties.

Half-Cold Half-Hot - Shoto Todoroki

Most of the elemental MHA quirks seen in the anime seem like they would be useful depending on the situation. However, many of them are limited by their environments, as evidenced in the series. That’s what makes Todoroki’s quirk stand out among the rest.

Shoto Todoroki can command both fire and ice, and it’s an extremely strong quirk. He was already a skilled fighter before entering U.A. as a result of his strict father. Todoroki is a versatile fighter thanks to his quirk, and he will become an even bigger threat as he gains more control over his quirk.

Brainwashing - Hitoshi Shinso

Shinso has a criminally undervalued quirk, but, based on the way they test for new students, it’s no surprise that Shinso failed. Yet, that shouldn't be an indication of the strength of his quirk; the ability to control minds is not one that should be underestimated, especially when he can mimic others’ voices and gain a higher chance of getting a response from his targets.

Shinso played a minor role in the second season of the anime, but he's been a much larger part of the fifth season. His altercations with Deku have been some of the season's most interesting moments, and there's no denying that he wields an incredible power.

Black Hole - Thirteen

Thirteen is sort of an overlooked hero due to her focus on rescue instead of combat, but that doesn't mean she should be underestimated. The ability to create black holes is an incredible feat, and it makes Thirteen extremely dangerous in a fight.

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One can understand why Thirteen has dedicated the use of their quirk to rescue instead of harm. Her quirk can prove to be extremely dangerous, and there's a significant chance that she could kill her opponents, something heroes often try to avoid.

Decay - Tomura Shigaraki

Tomura Shigaraki has one of the more disturbing My Hero Academia quirks out there. Not only is it dangerous, but it’s painful, and, quite frankly, it just looks alarming. Shigaraki has the quirk of disintegration. We saw it get used against Aizawa in the first season.

Shigaraki doesn’t seem terribly interested in using his quirk in excess. It may be that it's physically painful or draining, but it's more likely there are other reasons he doesn’t want to rely on the quirk.

Foldabody - Edgeshot

The current Number Four Pro Hero and highest-rated member of the group of heroes known as The Lurkers, Pro Hero Edgeshot boasts a strange quirk of which he makes incredible use. Known as Foldabody, he's able to transform his body into a razor-sharp and incredibly thin strand which he uses to slice through enemies and squeeze into tight spaces.

While a deadly offensive tool, Foldabody is versatile and makes Edgeshot a valuable asset in all sorts of situations. He played a major role in the attack in Kamino Ward during the anime's third season.

Explosion - Katsuki Bakugo

Katsuki Bakugo, the longtime rival of series protagonist Izuku Midoriya, wields an incredibly devastating quirk known simply as Explosion. Able to ignite the nitroglycerin which he excretes from his hands, Bakguo can torch his enemies with ease, further developing his quirk to allow him to fly via controlled blasts.

Unfortunately, his immense power is counterbalanced by his equally hot temper. A hothead through-and-through, Bakugo isn't easy to get along with, and this hinders his ability to work as part of a team—some fans even suggest that Bakugo fits into the Tsundere character archetype. Nevertheless, he's an incredible fighter, and he possesses one of Class 1-A's most impactful quirks. Also, Izuku Midoriya's One For All was briefly transferred to Bakugo during the events of the Heros Rising film.

Manifest - Tamaki Amajiki

It may not seem all that useful on paper, but Tamaki Amajiki's Manifest quirk can be incredibly powerful. Manifest allows Amajiki to change his appendages into those of animals he's eaten recently. With this, he's able to create tentacles and a massive shell to ensnare and attack his enemies. He can also sprout wings, giving him even more of an edge.

Though he goes by the intimidating name of Suneater, he's brought down by his extreme lack of self-confidence. Still, he's been able to shake off multiple powerful attackers at once, and he's doubtlessly one of the anime's most powerful characters.

Overhaul - Kai Chisaki

Overhaul, A.K.A. Kai Chisaki, has one of the most terrifying MHA quirks. His villain name is based on the quirk itself; he can deconstruct and reconstruct matter—including organic matter—on a whim. He can also alter any item or person during this process, healing or damaging as he sees fit.

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That makes him an extremely dangerous person to try and fight against, as our heroes learned. The end of season four showed just how lethal he can be–taking on a group of protagonists without a moment’s hesitation and nearly winning.

Rewind - Eri

Perhaps the most pivotal character to be introduced in the series' fourth season, Eri has the unique ability to rewind time, granting her the ability to either heal damage or revert others into a state of nonexistence.

She has no control over her quirk and has spent years under the thumb of Overhaul, who planned to use her quirk to mass-produce bullets that could rob heroes of their quirks. In the end, she was saved by Deku and brought to live at U.A., but her story remains one of the most tragic seen in the series so far.

Hellflame - Endeavor

The current number-one pro hero in Japan following the retirement of All Might in the third season of My Hero Academia, Enji Todoroki, better known as Endeavor, commands an intimidating, firey quirk known as Hellflame. Much like Katsuki Bakugo or his son Shoto Todoroki, Endeavor can summon powerful bursts of flame from his hands, and he's able to use it in all kinds of situations.

Though his quirk may be similar to those of powerful U.A. students, Endeavors years as a professional hero have given him even more of an edge. Most villains would be hard-pressed to take him on, with All For One himself perhaps being the only villain Endeavor couldn't beat.

One For All - All Might

Naturally, we had to include One For All on this list. This quirk is technically a few quirks merged together, but, since they’ll never be separated, we’re counting them as one. One For All combines immense strength and power with the ability to hand the quirk to somebody else. Thus, it creates a lineage of heroes, handing the quirk down through the ages. It has some unusual side effects, as readers of the manga are well aware of.

One For All is an exceptionally powerful quirk; All Might and Midorya can both prove that fact for us. Both heroes have been capable of amazing feats, with All Might being the number one hero for years.

All For One - All For One

All For One is the quirk that allows our main villain to take any quirk he wishes. It’s basically the polar opposite of All Might's One For All, and it allows All For One to get more and more powerful with time, picking and choosing the quirks he desires.

To make matters worse—or better, depending on how fans want to look at it—this quirk also enables the user to transfer quirks between users, allowing All For One to take quirks and give them to his followers. It’s a smart way to ensure loyalty, at the very least.

How did people get quirks in My Hero Academia?

How are quirks determined?

What are the 8 quirks of Deku?

Who was the first quirk user?