The DC landscape is filled with characters that absolutely boggle the mind in terms of unfathomable power. Even heavy hitters like Superman, Green Lantern, and The Flash, "terrestrial" heroes, for lack of a better term, pale in comparison to some of the entities they face when saving the world.
From reality warping to time travel, these cosmic-level beings can and, in some instances, have remade reality at will. It begs the question of whether The Presence is obsolete in his position as DC's Supreme Being given some of the new god-like beings who have appeared.
Updated on July 10, 2022 by Scoot Allan: Fans are anxiously awaiting the release of Shazam: Fury of the Gods, the sequel to 2019's hit DCEU film. The follow-up will be introducing a few new gods to DC's pantheon that are sure to prove their strength against the live-action Shazam Family. There are already quite a few powerful gods and demigods who continue to either threaten or support the heroes and villains of the DC Universe.
20 The Batman Who Laughs Became The Darkest Knight
The Batman Who Laughs was already a formidable opponent when introduced in Dark Nights: Metal. He became nearly unstoppable in Death Metal as Perpetua's lieutenant. However, his rule of Prime Earth wasn't enough. He wanted to usurp the strength of his boss.
So, The Batman Who Laughs merged himself with the powers of Doctor Manhattan. In return, he became an omnipotent god-like being who wanted nothing more than to destroy everything in sight. Needless to say, it was a dark moment for Earth's heroes when The Batman Who Laughs targeted the multiverse as the Darkest Knight.
19 Batman Used Metron's Mobius Chair To Become The God Of Knowledge
When Darkseid and the Anti-Monitor battled each other during the Darkseid War, the New God known as Metron was forced to witness the downfall of the gods in the DC universe. This led to some members of the Justice League taking over as New Gods themselves. When Metron was separated from his Mobius chair, Batman was forced to replace him.
The Caped Crusader was overcome with cosmic power and became the God of Knowledge. He was nearly corrupted by the immense knowledge that allowed him to stop crimes in Gotham City before they happened. He was also able to finally answer questions that had plagued him for years, like the identity of the man who killed his parents and the truth about the three Jokers.
18 Shazam Is Powered By The Abilities Of Multiple Gods
Though fans know Billy Batson's origins, they tend to think of him as a standard superhero. This is far from the truth. Once he becomes Shazam, he's the convergence of six separate gods. Batson and the powerful members of the Shazam Family all share power from Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles and Mercury.
In reality, this makes him more powerful than even Superman. His magical-based abilities always give him an edge in any encounter with the Man of Steel due to Superman's weakness to mysticism. While Shazam is not omnipotent, he's definitely closer to a god than a mortal man.
17 Mamaragan The Wizard Is An Ancient God And The Guardian Of Magic
The heroic Shazam first gained his abilities after he encountered The Wizard at the Rock of Eternity. He was also known as Shazam when they first met, which is why young Billy Batson used that as his magical word to transform into his adult form.
However, The Wizard was actually an ancient god named Mamaragan, who gathered other deities together to empower a champion to protect the world from the Seven Deadly Sins and other magical threats. He was the God of Thunder of the DC universe before he became a protector of all magic as the defender of the Rock of Eternity.
16 Darkseid's Ego Gets In The Way Of His Godhood
The powerful New God known as Darkseid is one of the most powerful beings in the DC universe. Unfortunately, Darkseid has a problem: his ego is enormous. Most of the time it's what gets him in trouble and stops him from taking the next step into godhood.
Darkseid's role in the Deceased comic series is a great example of his Hubris. He was so sure he would obtain omnipotence by combining various items with the Anti-Life Equation. In the end, all he did was destroy himself and transform the media-happy residents of Earth into zombies. Despite his amazing powers, Darkseid can be as dense as his rocky skin.
15 Highfather Is A Powerful New God Who Rules Over New Genesis
Darkseid ruled over the hellish planet Apokolips and fought an almost never-ending war against the planet known as New Genesis. His opposite there was the New God known as Highfather, who ruled the planet of New Genesis peacefully.
Highfather, like the rest of DC's New Gods, has god-like abilities that are enhanced with advanced technology. Highfather has the power necessary to combat his ancient foe Darkseid, which makes him one of the most powerful beings in the DC universe as well.
14 Zeus Is The God Of Olympus And Father Of Superheroes
Mount Olympus is the home of the Greek Gods who are ruled by the incredibly powerful Zeus. Much like the mythical God of legend, Zeus wields powerful bolts of lightning and has incredible strength and magical abilities that make him a powerful cosmic being.
Zeus has also passed on his power to other heroes over the years, not to mention the rest of the Greek pantheon of gods in the DC universe. Zeus was revealed to be the father of Wonder Woman, her brother Jason, and DC's version of Hercules. He's also the grandfather of Cassie Sandsmark/Wonder Girl.
13 Wonder Woman Is Power And Dedication
Like Shazam, Wonder Woman isn't a regular superhero. She's the daughter of the Olympian God Zeus and Amazonian queen Hippolyta. This made her an incredibly powerful demigod, though Wonder Woman was the God of War for a time as well.
Wonder Woman has more than raw power that makes her strong. She's a mixture of lover and warrior, and that makes her a potent character. For instance, in Death Metal she decided to sacrifice herself as a fighter to save the Multiverse and those that were precious to her.
12 The Time Trapper Is A God Of Manipulation
Introduced in 1964, the Time Trapper has been a thorn in the side of the original Legion of Super-Heroes. He has constantly fought against them to manipulate time for his own needs. His actions have resulted in the injury and death of several Legionnaires as well as his numerous defeats.
The difference between this god-like being and some others is the Time Trapper isn't always the same person. He has been a Controller that shifted elements to make the Legion a military group. During Zero Hour he took on the persona of Rokk Krinn, the Legionnaire known as Cosmic Boy. In Final Crisis, the Time Trapper was revealed to be Superboy-Prime.
11 Superboy-Prime's God-Like Power Is Based On Anger
Superboy-Prime is an unfathomable force to be reckoned with that has thrashed both DC heroes and villains alike. Following the obliteration of his home universe in Crisis on Infinite Earths, he returned with a twisted scope of what he saw as a failing superhero landscape and swore to change them at any cost.
Superboy-Prime is probably the most powerful incarnation of Superman due to his invulnerability to green kryptonite. Superboy-Prime has shattered dimensional barriers with sheer strength, subdued the JSA, Teen Titans, and Doom Patrol all at the same time, escaped the Speed Force, and nearly dispatched almost the entirety of the Green Lantern Corps.
10 Volthoom Is The Basis Of The Emotional Spectrum
Known as the First Lantern, Volthoom is the original being to harness the power of the Emotional Spectrum. In turn, this makes him the most powerful ring bearer amongst all other Lanterns. Searching for a remedy to his now-dead homeworld, Volthoom used a device capable of multiversal space/time travel called the Travel Lantern to venture into the multiverse.
Coming across the Maltusians in the main DC universe, Volthoom aided the ancient aliens in bearing their experimental power battery in exchange for being able to take it back to his universe. However, upon being exposed to the infinite power the spectrum wields, Volthoom's psyche was shattered. He can warp reality and is nigh-immortal.
9 Trigon Is The Embodiment Of True Evil
Father to the Teen Titans' Raven, Trigon is the quasi-manifestation of evil and hatred in the DC universe whose existence stretches back before the Big Bang. While his "demonic" appearance gives the idea of him being some variety of a Hell Lord, he is, in fact, a decedent of an ancient celestial alien race called The Divine.
This race summoned the evils of a hundred galaxies called the Heart of Darkness to cleanse Trigons' corrupted soul. However, he absorbed the energy to elevate his cosmic power and slew The Divine. Trigon has a myriad of abilities ranging from molecular reconstruction, immortality, and metamorphosis. Trigon spreads his evil across countless universes by tricking women into mating.
8 Mr. Mxyzptlk Is A Powerful Imp From The Fifth Dimension
Hailing from the 5th Dimension where the laws of physics are non-existent, Mr. Mxyzptlk is an imp who has pranked the Man of Steel for nearly a century. Originally a jester in his own dimension, Mxy uses his reality-warping abilities to jovial lengths to annoy Superman until he is undoubtedly sent back to his dimension once Superman gets him to say his name backward.
Despite this nuanced caveat, Mr. Mxyzptlk can travel through space/time and dimensional barriers, break the fourth wall, is immortal, and theoretically can do anything his imagination wills. This includes increasing his size and even defeating the Spectre by cracking the earth over his head.
7 The Anti-Monitor Is A Cosmic Menace
The Anti-Monitor is the original cosmic menace and the main antagonist in Crisis on Infinite Earths. It has been revealed that he's the offspring of an ultra-cosmic being called Perpetua. The Anti-Monitor and his brothers, the Monitor and the Forger of Worlds, were in charge of creating, examining, and destroying multiverses.
Hell-bent on erasing all things in existence, the Anti-Monitor's vast reality-warping capabilities have caused large contingents of DC superheroes to face off against him and fail. The Anti-Monitor can wipe out entire universes, distribute portions of his Anti-Matter power to other beings, and even wield the Anti-Life Equation to dominate the wills of those he chooses.
6 The Spectre Is The Divine Spirit Of Vengeance
The Spectre is the physical embodiment of divine vengeance in the DC universe. Having multiple hosts over the character's tenure, the Spectre rejected the notion of mercy. As a result, he was made to bond himself to a human soul in hopes that it would mitigate the wrath of God.
Having faced off with immensely powerful characters including the Anti-Monitor and Parallax, the Spectre derives his power from The Presence, the end-all-be-all creator in DC Comics. This makes him nigh-omniscient and nigh-omnipotent. Even when "killed" he can reconstitute himself, effectively making him immortal.
5 Doctor Manhattan's Godhood Is Based At The Atomic Level
Originally from the Watchmen series by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Doctor Manhattan is former nuclear physicist Jon Osterman. Ensnared in an intrinsic field subtractor, a machine that utilizes radiation to remove "intrinsic" fields from solid objects, he reconstituted himself as a godly being who simultaneously perceived all space/time relative to his personal life.
Now a quantum being with unlimited power, Dr. Manhattan can telekinetically control subatomic matter, making his capabilities unfathomably grand in scope. Limited time travel, size-alteration, immortality, and the creation of life and alternate universes are the traits that make Doctor Manhattan a truly cosmic being in his own category.
4 Lucifer Morningstar Is The Son Of The Presence
Lucifer was originally an archangel named Samael whose existence extended back well before the creation of the DC universe. Rebelling against his father at the dawn of time on top of the man's war against Heaven resulted in him being cast into a void dubbed The Chaoplasm. This space would become a desolate and barren region known as Hell.
Awaiting the day to be freed, Lucifer's frustration of a deceitful pre-destination being intrinsically tied to him gave him the power to release the souls of Hell and retire to Earth. As a result, Dream of The Endless had to watch over the bleak dimension. With the abilities of nigh-omniscience, chronokinesis, and reality alteration, Lucifer can manipulate any external force to the extent he desires.
3 Morpheus Is A Member Of The Endless Who Is Also The God of Dreams
The Endless are a family of incredibly powerful cosmic beings who each rule over a realm that represented different aspects of life. Neil Gaiman's celebrated Sandman series was the first to introduce the Endless as it followed Morpheus, the titular Sandman also known as Dream. He was the God of Dreams who ruled over his realm which was known as the Dreaming.
Morpheus is the lord of not only dreams but also all stories, and he has reality-altering abilities that place him on a level well above most superheroes and even other deities in the DC universe. His siblings in The Endless like Death, Destiny, Despair, Desire, Delirium and Destruction are all equally powerful gods who could challenge nearly any being in the DCU.
2 Perpetua Is A Mother Of Many God-Like Beings
Every Crisis event in DC's recent history served as either a character rework or a line-wide, hard reboot. Additionally, each moment had an antagonist that gave both heroes and villains a rude awakening. Eventually, they learned a cosmic menace named Perpetua was actually the puppetmaster who used these Crisis events to obtain control of the Multiverse.
Hailing from the 6th Dimension, Perpetua is a Super Celestial tasked by the Judges of the Source to create new life within the Omniverse. However, she decided to eliminate the Judges instead. Free of her captivity after being imprisoned, Perpetua went on a quest to destroy and recreate the Multiverse.
1 The Presence Is the Source Of Power From The Start Of Time
Where Marvel has The One Above All and Image Comics has Mother, DC's omnipotent creator of all things is known as The Presence. Only making a handful of nuanced appearances, The Presence is the Source of Creation, birthing the vast cosmic energies that inhabit the multiverse.
His power, like his counterparts, extends into the Omniverse. An incorporeal entity whose power is the source of every other power or energy, The Presence is one of a kind among DC characters and stands opposed to the Great Darkness that continually threatens the multiverse.