Potent Pheromones

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Potent Pheromones are a superpower that uses one's natural chemicals to induce an abnormal emotional or physical response in another person. The typical example would be pheromones causing an intense desire for a person, usually a woman, having an effect that would lead to something close to Mind Control. However, this power can go beyond merely brainwashing someone into becoming a lovestruck pawn happy to do their master's bidding: more creative uses of pheromones can include using them to mark a target to unleash hordes of bugs or other creatures on, poisoning people or otherwise making them violently ill, and even empowering them with a strength boost or in some cases, brand-new superpowers. As you can see, pheromones can be quite the flexible superpower.

People with the Super Sense of smell can be vulnerable to this power, and the same can apply to people who are the opposite gender of the person using their pheromone powers. And of course, animals often lack the willpower to resist them thanks to being more in touch with their wild side.

Expect there to be a lot of overlap with Charm Person, as with Hypno Fool.

Examples of Potent Pheromones include:

Anime and Manga

• SPH or Space Pheromones, from ēlDLIVE, are select chemicals released by aliens. These pheromones are unique to each species, thus giving different abilities to different organisms.
• Love, the warden of Honey Prison from Toriko, uses her pheromones to keep her prisoners and animals in check. Along with a tranquilizing effect, Love can also use them to mess with her victim's senses and make them feel a powerful sexual attraction towards her. They even mess with people's perception of her and cause them to see her as a tall, busty bombshell as opposed to the tubby little midget she actually is.
• Rikujou Kaori from Killing Bites, aka the Brute Civet, can unleash pheromones with her musk to act as an aphrodisiac for other Brutes, leaving them in a state of uncontrollable lust.

Comic Books

• Marvel Comics:
  • Zebediah Killgrave, a.k.a the Purple Man, is a supervillain with the power of releasing pheromones that sap people of their free will. And being the sadistic psychopath that he is, he often takes this power to horrific extremes and will force innocent people to kill, mutilate, or torture each other, as well as force unwilling women to have sex with him.
  • Beast of the X-Men is capable of secreting pheromones that can cause women to be infatuated with him, but he doesn't use them and the only indication that he has any is All There in the Manual.
  • Minor Marvel villain Mandrill can exude pheromones that attract and enslave women, though particularly strong-willed women can resist them such as Black Widow and Shanna the She Devil.
  • X-Men/New Warriors member Stacy X once had the power to emit pheromones that could affect bodily functions when she touched people, such as orgasms, vomiting, and rectal issues among others. She was among the many mutants depowered by M-Day, but is sometimes shown to have them back for no real reason.
  • Wallflower, aka Lauri Collins, can generate airborne pheromones that can affect people's moods. The chemicals change people's emotions to match her feelings, which is something she barely has any control over.
  • Wolverine's son Daken can control pheromones in a way that can manipulate people's emotions and sensory perceptions, causing them to feel horribly afraid, crushingly depressed, or uncharacteristically overconfident. He can also manipulate his own pheromones to the point that he can conceal his own scent, allowing him to ambush people with senses as keen as Wolverine's.
  • Omega Red can generate pheromones called Death Spores that can horribly poison people, causing them to become violently sick at best and outright die at worst. They're so dangerous that he can potentially destroy the world with them, and they're capable of wearing down his own body if he doesn't regularly expel them.
  • Longtime Spider-Man enemy The Lizard, aka Curt Connors can secrete pheromones that can cause people to fly into a rage. Apparently, this works by literally activating the "lizard" part of the human brain and reawakening long-dead primal instincts.
  • Sleeper can use his pheromones to connect his thoughts to others' minds and mask his presence.
  • Cubist can emit short-range pheromones that can alter people's perceptions into a state of confusion.
  • Itsy Bitsy can secrete pheromones that can drive people into a blind rage.
  • Amos, aka Andrew Graves, is a mutant who can release airborne pheromones that can drive people into an aggressive state.
  • Milo Smutt is a mutant with the superpower to control his pheromones to amplify the current emotion he is feeling to other people.
  • Ebenezer Laughton, aka Scarecrow, produces a pheromone that affects humans and higher animals' adrenal glands to experience fear. It can also augment his physical attributes to superhuman levels.
  • DC Comics' Poison Ivy can produce pheromones that allow her to seduce and control other people.
  • Encatadora, aka Lourdes Lucero, manipulates pheromones through her magical powers from the Mists of Ibella, making men fall under her control.
  • The third incarnation of Crimson Fox can project pheromones that can affect people's emotions, especially men.

Fan Works

• Alicia Tavares from the Boston-area storylines of The Teraverse is a former criminal, now member of the Massachusetts Metahuman Investigations Unit, with the ability to generate custom pheromones at will.

Live-Action TV

• Pheromone Generators from Alphas can make pheromones that affect people within close proximity.
• Zigevolks from Grimm are goat-like Wesen who have a gland that releases pheromones from their sweat. By eating live amphibians, they can stimulate more pheromones and make them airborne to enthrall people.

New Media

• Evelyn is able to influence creatures (most notably Mr. Mooshi, although he is not sapient) using pheromones in Conquering the Horizon.

Tabletop Games

• Among the bits of non-cybernetic "bioware" which can be purchased by a character in Shadowrun there is "tailored pheromones", which is this trope available as a medical procedure. In game terms, it enhances the Charisma of the character (how much so is determined by the level and grade of the enhancement purchased), and only affects humans and metahumans.

Video Games

• Garalon from World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria uses magic pheromones to mark a target and damage them. There is also another affliction on a person who can leave a trail of pheromones that can harm others.
• Monster Hunter:
  • The Seltas Queen from Monster Hunter 4 onwards can cast pheromones that attract a male Seltas to assist her in battle. These pheromones can also give a Hunter the Soiled ailment, which prevents them from eating food or healing items out of disgust.
  • The Insect Glaive weapon also introduced in 4 is essentially a spear that allows its wielder to control a special bug called a Kinsect. The Hunter can shoot out a pheromone bullet as a "lock-on" for it to attack a monster, and aiming it at specific monster body parts will enable the Kinsect to collect special essences that can boost Hunter's stats.
  • Xeno'jiiva from Monster Hunter World, is an alien Elder Dragon that is responsible for the Elder Crossing, and lures dying Elder Dragons towards the New World with special pheromones so it can absorb their life essence once they pass.
  • Stinkminks from Monster Hunter Rise are endemic life that can help you lure monsters to other parts of the map by spraying them with its pheromones. It's a good way to get an edge over your target, since luring a monster to fight another can heavily damage them through either Wyvern Riding or in some cases, a turf war.
• The upgraded CASIE enhancement from Deus Ex: Human Revolution gives Adam the ability to emit pheromones that make others more susceptible to his suggestions.
• The Elcor race from Mass Effect can use pheromones to communicate with each other, and even can sense other races' pheromones.
• As one would expect from a game about bugs, Bug Fables has Ms. Kali, who can control people with pheromones. When she puts them to use before her boss fight, we see that Vi has a bit of an allergic reaction to them while Kabbu becomes a lovestruck puppet that she sics on Vi and Leif against his will. And judging by the stat boost he gets as a boss, they seem to empower her thralls as well.

Visual Novels

• Hatoful Boyfriend has Anghel Higure, who has a condition where his body makes pheromones that can cause people and even himself to experience illusions.

Western Animation

• As seen in the video above, Scarlemagne from Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts can produce pheromones that grant him control over any primate's mind.
• Gutrot from Ben 10: Omniverse comes from a species that produces chemicals in their body and can even create pheromones.