One doesn’t think about theology when it comes to comic books. Comic books are meant to be these fantastic stories of people with superpowers fighting villains and saving the world. Yet, in the complex stories told by companies like DC Comics and Marvel Comics, hundreds if not thousands of made up and established religions come into play. Some of our favorite heroes are religious, while other’s are considered “gods” themselves, while the rest of the characters have to come into conflict with powerful gods that threaten the lives of innocent people. These “gods” are everywhere in comic books, and some are definitely way more powerful than others.

When it comes to these deities, power is everything. Some benevolent gods care for the people they watch over and don’t ask for anything, while other’s demand worship and blind faith that allows them to gain power over their followers. Others don’t care for either, simply wanting to dominate the galaxy or fight amongst themselves. This is the nature of comic book gods, and that is where we come in. You see some of these entities are more powerful than others, and the sheer volume of “gods” in these comic books is so vast that it would take pages upon pages just to introduce them to you.

So today we are going to explore the fifteen weakest DC Comics gods and the fifteen most powerful Marvel Comics gods in the multiverse. From founding Avengers to ghost-like figures, this list will give you all the details on these larger than life entities.

30 Weak: A Questionable Diety

Almost all comic book fans and the world at large know the story of Superman. The last son of Krypton, a planet destroyed from a far away galaxy, landed on a small farm town in Kansas named Smallville, and was raised to become a beacon of hope for humanity by both his human parents and the technology left behind by his birth parents. Now, anyone who knows the comics well or who watch Supergirl on the CW may know this already, but the people of Krypton did worship an entity known as Rao.

Even after the planet’s destruction, the survivors who lived on the planet before still worship the deity.

Originally believed to be the god living in the red sun of the planet, Rao became his own entity and the only god worshipped on the planet. While mostly benevolent, the god was also portrayed in the New 52 as a charlatan who drained his followers of their energy and became immortal. His most popular time came when the House of El was formed by Erok-El, where children born with red hair like that of Rao were immediately accepted into the military of the planet and considered higher class than the rest of society.

29 Powerful: Keeper Of The Bridge

When entering a magical kingdom like Asgard, a powerful first impression is needed to show visitors and citizens alike that the power of the king is in full effect, and no one can get past his best warriors. King Odin of Asgard made sure he had just that, and put the one and only Heimdall in charge of the Bifrost Bridge. Heimdall is best known as the protector of the Bifrost Bridge in Asgard. He transports and lets in those worthy of being allowed into the home of the Norse gods, and is also one of Asgard’s greatest warriors. He has been present for many of Asgard’s key comic book and film moments, from the popular Siege storyline in the comics to the more recent Thor: Ragnarok film and even the much buzzed about film Avengers: Infinity War.

Played by Idris Elba, the character’s arc played out through the entire Thor franchise and even into the Avengers films of the MCU. He is a skilled combatant, with his sword able to transport people throughout the realms. Many a time, Thor has found himself surrounded by enemies, and only by the power of his good friend Heimdall was he able to transport out of there and find safety.

28 Weak: A Puppet Master

One of the few religions you wouldn’t expect to find a comic book not only depicting but bringing a god-like figure to life in is Hinduism. Yet, that is exactly what DC Comics did when they introduced Rama Kushna. Based upon the Hindu god Rama Krishna, the goddess Rama Kushna is the deity that watches over the land of Nanda Parbat. This land has been a huge influence on DC Comics and in the DC television universe. It’s a place where great warriors train, as well as scary life-takers. We’ve seen this place on shows like Arrow and in the Batman lore. While not a deity that interferes directly with others in the comics, she has been responsible for the creation of several other lesser characters, such as Dead Man, whom she uses to do her bidding and protect the land she watches over.

These characters become her champions or avatars in the rest of the world and go about protecting the land and seeking justice and balance amongst all living things in the world. This ends up taking a toll on characters like Dead Man, sadly. However, if she were to ever be cornered, she is not one to be messed with.

27 Powerful: A Cosmic Entity

An influential character such as this next powerful Marvel god is rare to come across. Not only does he have great power himself, but his influence on the Marvel universe is felt in several of the comic book company’s storylines. These stories include Infinity Wars and more. One of the original immortal characters known as the Eternals, Kronos has the distinct honor in the comics of being the grandfather of the mad titan Thanos and the creator of the Guardian of the Galaxy known as Drax the Destroyer, whom he made specifically to end the life of his grandson, Thanos.

Kronos lost his body in an accident years ago and became a spirit, traveling the cosmos and becoming more powerful to become one of the universes most powerful gods. However, he does exist on the astral plane and appears humanoid to those he interacts with only to identify with them as he is a non-corporeal entity. This shows how amazingly powerful the god truly is, as his power reaches beyond the physical realm and into the astral world unseen by most of the heroes. However, he has proven to be easily tricked and messed with in the comics.

26 Weak: All Bark And No Bite

This next DC Comics god is one that audiences were recently introduced to in the DC Comics film, Justice League. He is a herald for the powerful and mighty Darkseid and is the commander for a massive army. He is Steppenwolf. One of the oldest of the New Gods in the DC Universe, Steppenwolf is the uncle of the maniacal ruler of Apocalypse, Darkseid. He is a ruthless general responsible for several villainous crimes, including the destruction of Earth-2 and it’s heroes, including Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. He also took the life of the leader of the New Gods wife, Avia. Wife of the Highfather, Steppenwolf ended her life in a cruelest fashion.

You’d think with a resume like this that he’d be one of the DC Comics universes most powerful gods, and yet he is definitely flawed. His crimes and his reputation have yet to be enough to take down the original Justice League, and despite his monstrous appearance, his cinematic debut was definitely lacking any sort of connection with the audience. However, his portrayal in the recent Justice League film hasn’t been a memorable one, and he is often defeated quite easily by the Justice League of Earth 1.

25 Powerful: The Thunder Rolls

This next Marvel god has made a name for himself in recent years. Not only has he been a founding member of the Avengers, but his exploits in the galaxy have stopped several powerful threats to his homeward of Asgard, his adoptive home of Earth, and the galaxy as a whole. His name is legendary in Norse mythology as well, and his power has been so great that he has nearly gone toe to toe with villains normally saved for team adventures. One of the most powerful Norse gods in the Marvel universe, Thor is the hero who has lit up the comic book world.

Between his own power and the power channeled through his weapons Mjolnir and more recently Stormbreaker, he is a force to be reckoned with. He has helped lead the Avengers into battle against the most powerful enemies in the universe and is nearly immortal. He’d be ranked higher on this list, but he often faces trouble overcoming threats like his brother Loki, Dark Elves, Frost Giants, or even cosmic threats like Thanos. However, despite setbacks in the comics like losing his mantle to the human Jane Foster, he has proven to be a formidable warrior without his title or power.

24 Weak: Overly Emotional

When looking at the various gods of a comic book franchise, it’s important to ask oneself what kind of an impact these gods had on the overall story. Some gods like Darkseid and Odin have had major impacts on their respective comic book companies, influencing major company storylines and bringing about some of the comic book worlds most shocking moments.

However, there are other gods who are mentioned in passing or who are alluded to for brief periods of time but don’t really impact the overall story being told. This next DC Comics god is one such example. Originally a powerful alien, X’hal was transformed into a goddess on the planet Okarra. This was the home planet of Teen Titan Starfire, and this goddess gained her power after being transformed by the entities known as Psions. Although merciful and kind, her past makes her unstable at times, losing control of enough power to destroy entire worlds. She was attacked often in her past before gaining godhood, and although powerful she is unable to control her moods or powers at times. This inability to control her own abilities makes this “god” less powerful than the rest of her peers.

23 Powerful: A Real Go-Getter

One of the more recognizable and powerful gods in recent years in the Marvel Universe has to be Hela. While introduced as the secret daughter of Odin, who imprisoned her for her power-hungry conquest of the galaxy, fans may not know that her origins were changed for her MCU debut greatly. Recently introduced in Thor: Ragnarok, Hela in the comics is the daughter of Loki and the goddess of demise. While not the physical embodiment of it, Hela embraces demise and rules over Hel. With her power nearly rivaling Odin, the goddess is a force to be reckoned with. She can command a great army of the deceased, using those who were not worthy of Valhalla or finding soldiers from other realms who have passed on, she has faced down the Avengers, Asgard, and even her father Loki on several occasions.

She cares nothing for the goals or aspirations of the living, instead focused only on the task of death and all it represents.

Her goal was much loftier in the MCU, as she sought to rule over Asgard and take over the universe with her army of the deceased, and was only able to be stopped by triggering Ragnarok itself.

22 Weak: War Never Changes

The son of Zeus and Hera, the Old God Ares is the god of war, and one of the most ruthless adversaries Wonder Woman faces in her comics. So much so that he becomes her nemesis. Having a contentious relationship with his father, he has been portrayed as both Wonder Woman’s adversary and in some versions of her origins as her half-brother. He thrives on humanity and it’s darkest aspects and views them as lesser beings undeserving of his father’s watchful eye. He is constantly trying to start wars on Earth that will result in the complete annihilation of the human race, hoping to pit humanity against itself and only being stopped by the might of Wonder Woman herself.

His name is legendary in Greek mythology as well, and his need for conquest and war make him a truly worthy adversary to one of the most popular heroes in the DC Universe. He thrives on chaos and war and was most recently seen in the first Wonder Woman film. However, his power weakens when Wonder Woman is able to convince others to give up their war or fight around him, as he feeds on chaos and war energy.

21 Powerful: The Original Norse Powerhouse

Everyone knows the story of Thor and his father Odin, the king of Asgard. Yet some of you may not know that Odin is not the oldest of the Asgardian gods. He didn’t create the gods or Asgard himself, but rather inherited it from his father, Bor. Bor is the father of Odin and the grandfather of Thor. One of the gods who witnessed the birth of the universe, Bor has been notable for being one of the first gods to fight to bring peace to the realms. He was one of the oldest of the gods, but he was not the most powerful as he passed on in the battle with the frost giants, manipulated into the fight by a modern-day Loki, who tricked him in order to secure his future birth and place in Asgard. Bor became the sacrifice Loki needed in order to cement his claim to the Asgardian throne, and led to Odin waging war with the Frost Giants in the first place. Despite his fall, Bor remains one of the most powerful Asgardian gods in the Marvel Universe, helping build the legend of Odin and securing Asgard’s place in the universe.

20 Weak: Brains Over Brawn

The New Gods of the DC Universe are legendary. The successors to the Old Gods such as Zeus and Ares, the New Gods are a galactic powerhouse that has struggled with a sort of civil war between the Highfather and Darkseid, two brothers who represent very different goals in the universe. Yet, how often do we sit there and ask ourselves how the New Gods came to be, and who if anyone made them as powerful as they are? Well this next god may not be the most powerful, but he is one of the smartest and most knowledgeable beings in the universe, holding the secrets that very few others know or are capable of understanding.

He is Metron, a being who has traveled to the source of the universe and survived. An immortal god who created the New Gods in DC Comics, Metron gains power not through strength or speed, but through intelligence. Immortal and able to travel through time, Metron has studied all of history and learned the secrets of the universe, putting this knowledge into one of his greatest inventions, the Mobius chair. The chair gives anyone who sits in it the knowledge Metron gained, but few can handle that much information other than him.

19 Powerful: Chaos Rules

In DC and Marvel comics, (and really in most works in the world), Greek and Norse mythology are the two most popular mythologies in the world and used the most often, with only Egyptian mythology coming in a close second. Most people know the stories of Greek legends like Zeus and Ares or the Norse gods like Odin and Thor, and yet there are several other cultures that have equally rich mythologies and characters that deserve to be told. This next Marvel god may be evil, but his legendary status is worthy of being one of the most powerful in the universe.

The Japanese god of evil and a formidable chaos king, Amatsu-Mikaboshi is the enemy of heroes like Thor and Hercules. He was around when the Earth was nothing but a void and watched as the Amatsu-Kami were created by the elder gods of Earth. He hates the Kami and uses an army of the deceased to find the Grasscutter sword, a powerful weapon in Japanese lore that equals that of Mjolnir. He was presumed to be taken out during the Secret Invasion storyline after joining Hercules God Squad, but returned more powerful and seeking to turn the planet back into a primordial void during the Chaos War.

18 Weak: Hero To Zero

The legend of Hercules is one of the world’s most popular myths and legends to ever be explored. Countless films, books, shows, and even video games, have seen the popular character rise to fame and glory. Often portrayed as a hero, very few see the character become somewhat of a villain or get beaten. In fact, until more recently, this masculine character would never have been shown to be beaten by a woman, and yet, his turn in the DC Universe shows that he is not as powerful as some legends make him out to be. There are women both godlike and human who have beaten the brash and arrogant demigod and have decimated the toxic masculinity his character sometimes shows in popular culture.

Known in both Greek and DC Comics lore, the story of Hercules in DC sees the powerful demigod and son of Zeus become increasingly violent, to the point where he once imprisoned the Amazonian Queen. However, he was given a redemption arc and became somewhat of a hero. Yet, he is often defeated quite easily and doesn’t boast the strength of heroes like Superman or Wonder Woman. His ego and brazen attitude are often his undoing.

17 Powerful: A Planet Comes Alive

This next Marvel god is known as one of the original Celestials, powerful beings who have lived nearly as long as the entire universe. Whether you buy into his MCU backstory or his original comic book origins, the power of Ego is undeniable as he has been a major force to be reckoned with for years. Ego, the living planet, was most recently made famous by Kurt Russel in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 in the MCU. In the comics, his origins vary, from coming to consciousness as a formless entity and building a planet around himself, (similar to the movie), to being a scientist who merged with a planet.

Either way, he is a very powerful god-like being who gained enough strength and power to try to take over the galaxy. I mean, you’d have to be in order to build a planet around yourself and control it as if it were a limb attached to your body. Sheer size alone gains him a god-like status. However, he was defeated by Thor in the comics and ended up giving up his conquest goals. However, sometimes other characters drive him mad and make him a force to be reckoned with.

16 Weak: Untapped Potential

The legend of Darkseid is vast, and one of the comic book world’s most entertaining villain backstories. The brother to the Highfather and a New God, his nightmare world of Apocalypse has been war-torn and serves him in his conquest for the anti-life equation. While comic book fans have seen Darkseid’s children in the past, only recently have fans been introduced to the daughter no one knew he had, and her origins make her a powerful god-like figure in her own right. Grail is the daughter of Darkseid and an Amazon warrior. She is a powerful entity, who in the recent comics has even taken the life of Hercules. She harbors some of her father’s nightmarish abilities and was trained to be an Amazonian warrior like Wonder Woman. She even managed to take on most of the Justice League and nearly won.

However, her greatest strength comes from striking from the shadows. An even match often results in her utter defeat. You’d think someone trained in the ways of the Amazons and bearing Darkseid’s raw power would lead her to being a formidable opponent, but if she has to strike from the shadows to gain the upper hand, then her power must be greatly reduced.

15 Powerful: The Planet-Eater

While his on-screen presence has yet to be felt in the MCU due to his status as a property of FOX (until the Disney/Fox merger goes through), and his only on-screen appearance in the second Fantastic Four movie being underwhelming, the history and power of the comic book Galactus is one of Marvel Comics most popular and well-known stories. One of the first major celestial threats the heroes of Marvel Comics ever united for, Galactus came to power well before Thanos and his Infinity War or the Kree-Skrull war. He is known as the devourer of worlds, as he consumes entire planets and civilizations.

He devours entire civilizations, using great machines to turn a planet’s natural resources into fuel to feed his never-ending hunger, and destroying lives in the process. His hunger has even led to the destruction of the Skrull homeworld, sparking a villainous plot for the Skrulls and Earth. He has the power to make powerful heralds like the Silver Surfer to go to planets and prepare them for his consumption. His only drawback is that he isn’t doing this for villainy, but rather to survive as planets are his only energy source.

14 Weak: The Scourge Of The Universe

The mythology of H.P. Lovecraft and his tales are some of the worlds most creative mythologies. The entities of this mythology are powerful creatures who have the power to change or destroy not only worlds but reality itself. One of the oldest of the gods, the creature M’Nagalah, comes originally from a Lovecraft tale but was adopted into the DC lore. The creature is more of a disease, known as the God of Cancer, which spreads like the disease to consume entire planets and civilizations and corrupt them to its will. It acts almost like a demonic plague or a cult, warping the mind of those it corrupts and destroying anyone or anything who doesn’t conform to its will.

However, it’s not strong enough to resist those who can resist it’s corrupting influence. I mean think about it. This is a powerful god-like entity who consumes everything in its path. This is a power similar to Marvel Comic’s Galactus, but unlike that god, M’Nagalah is able to corrupt entire groups of people to its will, similar but not quite like the Heralds of Galactus. Yet, it’s power isn’t strong enough to overcome strong-willed people? Doesn’t sound too godlike to me.

13 Powerful: Looks Can Be Deceiving

This next god-like being is quite monstrous in appearance, but in reality, his actions have stopped a much darker threat from emerging to claim the Earth as its own and uses its monstrous appearance to combat truly evil threats. Known as both the Demogorge and the God-Eater, Atum was a powerful Egyptian entity who was cursed with a demonic form after slaying all of the demons of Egypt and banishing them from Earth. That is not the kind of reward one would think of getting after fighting off an entire demon invasion, but that’s the life of a god I guess. He is not evil but looks it. He returned to fight a war with the Egyptian chaos and evil god Set that lasted a million years before banishing the evil god back to his own dimension. He has a lot of the power of other Marvel gods but is able to wield them with more skill than the rest. Now, that is key in determining his true power in the Marvel Universe. So many “gods” have great powers but are unable to channel them or have a true understanding of how they work. We saw this briefly in Thor: Ragnarok when Thor learned where his power truly originated from. Yet, Atum is able to control his powers at will.

12 Weak: Lacking Tactics

This next god from the DC universe is a powerhouse warrior who found herself turning her back on one of the most powerful gods in the DC multiverse and instead fighting for justice and love. I’m of course talking about Big Barda, a highly skilled warrior and one of the leaders of Darkseid’s elite armies. A powerful New God, Big Barda in DC Comics spent years leading the Female Furies, an elite group that served Darkseid. She was a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, boasting enhanced strength and expert combat skills.

However, she fell in love with Scot Free, known in the comics as Mister Miracle.

He was a master escape artists that could escape from any prison. She fell in love with this hero and turned into a warrior that protected the innocent and fought Darkseid’s forces. That’s a major breakthrough to one of Darkseid’s top warriors, and turning her back on the mad tyrant showed a lot of courage and skill on her part. Although a skilled warrior, unfortunately, she is not the best tactician, often taken down by more skilled planner and generals. She tends to go in fighting first without looking at what works best in a given situation.

11 Powerful: The Might Of Olympus

Zeus is the king of the Greek gods in both Greek and Marvel mythology. Ruler of the Greek gods on Mount Olympus, Zeus was also one of the members of the Council of Godheads, a gathering of god-like beings who worked together to stop threats too big for any one god to handle. He was one of the founding members, along with Odin and Vishnu. He held great power over Olympus and the Greek gods, harnessing the power of thunder to unleash great bolts of lightning during battle. Zeus was the secret sixth child of Cronus and Rhea the Titans. Cronus had Zeus’s siblings imprisoned in Tartarus for fear of being overthrown, so Zeus took revenge and waged a ten-year war with his father until he ultimately won, securing the male Titans in Tartarus and establishing himself as the supreme ruler of the Olympian gods.

The father of several demigods, Zeus is the original god of thunder, and although good and powerful, he often displays his power in immature ways that are unnecessary for a king of his status to use. You’d think after a ten-year war he’d learn how to rule wisely. His sons include Hercules and Perseus and more.