Psiot Activation

[bribri]

I'm pretty sure this has been discussed in previous threads, but I seek a better understanding.

Based on the early issues of Harbinger, there are only three known born-activated psiots in the world:

• Peter
  Darpan
  Harada

Peter and Darpan have been shown using their powers as infants, but I seem to recall that Harada was called into question because of the events of Harbinger 0. Some speculated that the atomic blast activated his power, but I've glanced through the issue and it doesn't seem to specifically state that the traumatic experience activated him. He could have had the power before, although it is never shown to be the case.

What is the general consensus? Was Harada born activated?

Regardless, is it possible to achieve activation through other means? I suppose the Bleeding Monk achieved his powers through years of deep meditation. Yes? Can others achieve it the same way or through a traumatic experience? Have we seen other examples (besides the Bleeding Monk) who have been activated through means beyond Peter's power (Renegades), Harada's procedure (Eggbreakers), and Rising Spirit's procedure (Generation Zero)?

Trying to get this straight in my head without reading 30 back issues!!! Thanks in advance!

[BugsySig]

I believe Harada admits to Peter in issue 3 or 4 that he lies about being born activated.

And as you said, other than the three methods only the Monk is known to have achieved his powers through meditation, but he says he was able to teach this to others and does so at his monastery.

[blujay]

I'm gonna say it was the A bomb that activated Harada. Harbinger #0 was essentially him abusing his powers (in a way that he doesn't anymore) because he was young and had just gotten them (like how Pete initially used his).

I don't really remember Bleeding Monk #0 very well (and I didn't understand it all that well when I read it initially) so I don't remember how he got his powers, but I'm going to say "maybe" to "can powers be activated through trauma/meditation" despite that we haven't seen any other evidence to the contrary.
Edit: We have seen evidence, I just didn't remember it.

So to be activated, you need to be born activated (which is extremely rare), activated directly by a powerful psiot (like Pete/Harada/Darpan) or through the Eggbreaker procedure.

I have a question though: Was Archer born activated? Archer #0 is a little fuzzy atm

[hunter_peterson]

I'm gonna say it was the A bomb that activated Harada. Harbinger #0 was essentially him abusing his powers (in a way that he doesn't anymore) because he was young and had just gotten them (like how Pete initially used his).

I don't really remember Bleeding Monk #0 very well (and I didn't understand it all that well when I read it initially) so I don't remember how he got his powers, but I'm going to say "maybe" to "can powers be activated through trauma/meditation" despite that we haven't seen any other evidence to the contrary.

So to be activated, you need to be born activated (which is extremely rare), activated directly by a powerful psiot (like Pete/Harada/Darpan) or through the Eggbreaker procedure.

I have a question though: Was Archer born activated? Archer #0 is a little fuzzy atm

PRS activated Archer after they abducted him and erased his memories. It was the torture activation method.

The Bleeding Monk did indeed activate his powers through meditation, which might be why they're so powerful. He's immortal, can see the future and enter minds from great distances. Probably he can do more... it'll be great when he returns!

Harada admitted to lying about being born activated and has referenced being activated by the A-bomb since then, so catastrophic trauma appears to work also. This opens the doors to Psiots being created by violence... maybe Ultimo is one?

There was also the Chinese activation tests resulting in Gang, which seemed to be the same as PRS ones, but mass produced.

So far the only Psiot who can activate other Psiots is Peter. That might have something to do with him being born activated- he likely somehow activated himself in the womb. Harada can't do it, but he can locate them using his resources and activate them using his technology. Darpan's never shown any power but showing you your worst fears.

That's about as much as we know about activation, I think.

[jeremycoe]

I think that woman in Mexico (or her unborn child) was activated by the Armor Hunters attack.

[jmatt]

.. it'll be great when he returns!

I would love to see him show up in Divinity.

[bribri]

I'm gonna say it was the A bomb that activated Harada. Harbinger #0 was essentially him abusing his powers (in a way that he doesn't anymore) because he was young and had just gotten them (like how Pete initially used his).

I don't really remember Bleeding Monk #0 very well (and I didn't understand it all that well when I read it initially) so I don't remember how he got his powers, but I'm going to say "maybe" to "can powers be activated through trauma/meditation" despite that we haven't seen any other evidence to the contrary.

So to be activated, you need to be born activated (which is extremely rare), activated directly by a powerful psiot (like Pete/Harada/Darpan) or through the Eggbreaker procedure.

I have a question though: Was Archer born activated? Archer #0 is a little fuzzy atm

PRS activated Archer after they abducted him and erased his memories. It was the torture activation method.

The Bleeding Monk did indeed activate his powers through meditation, which might be why they're so powerful. He's immortal, can see the future and enter minds from great distances. Probably he can do more... it'll be great when he returns!

Harada admitted to lying about being born activated and has referenced being activated by the A-bomb since then, so catastrophic trauma appears to work also. This opens the doors to Psiots being created by violence... maybe Ultimo is one?

There was also the Chinese activation tests resulting in Gang, which seemed to be the same as PRS ones, but mass produced.

So far the only Psiot who can activate other Psiots is Peter. That might have something to do with him being born activated- he likely somehow activated himself in the womb. Harada can't do it, but he can locate them using his resources and activate them using his technology. Darpan's never shown any power but showing you your worst fears.

That's about as much as we know about activation, I think.

Excellent breakdown.

Thank you, all!

[Ramses818]

I'm gonna say it was the A bomb that activated Harada. Harbinger #0 was essentially him abusing his powers (in a way that he doesn't anymore) because he was young and had just gotten them (like how Pete initially used his).

I don't really remember Bleeding Monk #0 very well (and I didn't understand it all that well when I read it initially) so I don't remember how he got his powers, but I'm going to say "maybe" to "can powers be activated through trauma/meditation" despite that we haven't seen any other evidence to the contrary.

So to be activated, you need to be born activated (which is extremely rare), activated directly by a powerful psiot (like Pete/Harada/Darpan) or through the Eggbreaker procedure.

I have a question though: Was Archer born activated? Archer #0 is a little fuzzy atm

PRS activated Archer after they abducted him and erased his memories. It was the torture activation method.

The Bleeding Monk did indeed activate his powers through meditation, which might be why they're so powerful. He's immortal, can see the future and enter minds from great distances. Probably he can do more... it'll be great when he returns!

Harada admitted to lying about being born activated and has referenced being activated by the A-bomb since then, so catastrophic trauma appears to work also. This opens the doors to Psiots being created by violence... maybe Ultimo is one?

There was also the Chinese activation tests resulting in Gang, which seemed to be the same as PRS ones, but mass produced.

So far the only Psiot who can activate other Psiots is Peter. That might have something to do with him being born activated- he likely somehow activated himself in the womb. Harada can't do it, but he can locate them using his resources and activate them using his technology. Darpan's never shown any power but showing you your worst fears.

That's about as much as we know about activation, I think.

I think you are wrong about the Bleeding Monk. Reread 0 and tell me if you don't change your mind.

[Mandrakk]

I think you are wrong about the Bleeding Monk. Reread 0 and tell me if you don't change your mind.

Uh the monk DID activate through meditation when he was with the lover of wisdom, and meditation was also the way the Monk used to activate his students(a pity that he taught them non violence too he might as well have killed them himself).

PRS activated Archer after they abducted him and erased his memories. It was the torture activation method.

Well technically Archer was activated twice as he was mindwiped before being handed over to the Dominion who treated him like dirt to have him activate again...Thinking about that, if a Psiot can be unactivated could Peter potentially work out how to do it ?

The Bleeding Monk did indeed activate his powers through meditation, which might be why they're so powerful. He's immortal, can see the future and enter minds from great distances. Probably he can do more... it'll be great when he returns!

Totally, I like the guy and would love to see what he has been up to since Harada went all Imperium...Also if Meditation is such a good way of activation makes one wonder how good The Monk's students were given they were all activated that way(again a shame he poluted them with that non violence crap), oh and while I am at it, am I the only one who got a sort of Psi Lord vibe when the Monk told Pete and Harada the future he saw during their fight ? The Psi Lords being the decendants of Psiots instead of Hard Corps this time around would be a nice little twist.

maybe Ultimo is one?

I believe Ultimorte was refered as being special before the attack on Mexico and was in the process to be shipped to the US for analysis because of it, which might suggest he is something else, or it could have been PRS shenagians to obtain a new Psiot but I am leaning towards the first option.

There was also the Chinese activation tests resulting in Gang, which seemed to be the same as PRS ones, but mass produced.

Well we know from Harbinger wars that PRS had dealings with the Chinese so it's not so surprising there methodology was the same.

[lorddunlow]

I'm gonna say it was the A bomb that activated Harada. Harbinger #0 was essentially him abusing his powers (in a way that he doesn't anymore) because he was young and had just gotten them (like how Pete initially used his).

I don't really remember Bleeding Monk #0 very well (and I didn't understand it all that well when I read it initially) so I don't remember how he got his powers, but I'm going to say "maybe" to "can powers be activated through trauma/meditation" despite that we haven't seen any other evidence to the contrary.

So to be activated, you need to be born activated (which is extremely rare), activated directly by a powerful psiot (like Pete/Harada/Darpan) or through the Eggbreaker procedure.

I have a question though: Was Archer born activated? Archer #0 is a little fuzzy atm

PRS activated Archer after they abducted him and erased his memories. It was the torture activation method.

The Bleeding Monk did indeed activate his powers through meditation, which might be why they're so powerful. He's immortal, can see the future and enter minds from great distances. Probably he can do more... it'll be great when he returns!

Harada admitted to lying about being born activated and has referenced being activated by the A-bomb since then, so catastrophic trauma appears to work also. This opens the doors to Psiots being created by violence... maybe Ultimo is one?

There was also the Chinese activation tests resulting in Gang, which seemed to be the same as PRS ones, but mass produced.

So far the only Psiot who can activate other Psiots is Peter. That might have something to do with him being born activated- he likely somehow activated himself in the womb. Harada can't do it, but he can locate them using his resources and activate them using his technology. Darpan's never shown any power but showing you your worst fears.

That's about as much as we know about activation, I think.

I think you are wrong about the Bleeding Monk. Reread 0 and tell me if you don't change your mind.

What do you mean? The Bleeding Monk definitely activated most of his powers through meditation. I will agree that his time-related powers (he can see all times at once - not just the future) seem to have manifested only after the trauma of being impaled with a spear, but everything else he had before.

[Ramses818]

I'm gonna say it was the A bomb that activated Harada. Harbinger #0 was essentially him abusing his powers (in a way that he doesn't anymore) because he was young and had just gotten them (like how Pete initially used his).

I don't really remember Bleeding Monk #0 very well (and I didn't understand it all that well when I read it initially) so I don't remember how he got his powers, but I'm going to say "maybe" to "can powers be activated through trauma/meditation" despite that we haven't seen any other evidence to the contrary.

So to be activated, you need to be born activated (which is extremely rare), activated directly by a powerful psiot (like Pete/Harada/Darpan) or through the Eggbreaker procedure.

I have a question though: Was Archer born activated? Archer #0 is a little fuzzy atm

PRS activated Archer after they abducted him and erased his memories. It was the torture activation method.

The Bleeding Monk did indeed activate his powers through meditation, which might be why they're so powerful. He's immortal, can see the future and enter minds from great distances. Probably he can do more... it'll be great when he returns!

Harada admitted to lying about being born activated and has referenced being activated by the A-bomb since then, so catastrophic trauma appears to work also. This opens the doors to Psiots being created by violence... maybe Ultimo is one?

There was also the Chinese activation tests resulting in Gang, which seemed to be the same as PRS ones, but mass produced.

So far the only Psiot who can activate other Psiots is Peter. That might have something to do with him being born activated- he likely somehow activated himself in the womb. Harada can't do it, but he can locate them using his resources and activate them using his technology. Darpan's never shown any power but showing you your worst fears.

That's about as much as we know about activation, I think.

I think you are wrong about the Bleeding Monk. Reread 0 and tell me if you don't change your mind.

What do you mean? The Bleeding Monk definitely activated most of his powers through meditation. I will agree that his time-related powers (he can see all times at once - not just the future) seem to have manifested only after the trauma of being impaled with a spear, but everything else he had before.

Sorry I should have been more clear. I wasn't referring to how he was activated or how he activated his students. Sorry to confuse you guys. I simply meant that I don't believe he is alive. Also I believe he was activated before he met the naked man on the mountain just he didn't understand what he was doing, partly because he just couldn't except it.

[lorddunlow]

I'm gonna say it was the A bomb that activated Harada. Harbinger #0 was essentially him abusing his powers (in a way that he doesn't anymore) because he was young and had just gotten them (like how Pete initially used his).

I don't really remember Bleeding Monk #0 very well (and I didn't understand it all that well when I read it initially) so I don't remember how he got his powers, but I'm going to say "maybe" to "can powers be activated through trauma/meditation" despite that we haven't seen any other evidence to the contrary.

So to be activated, you need to be born activated (which is extremely rare), activated directly by a powerful psiot (like Pete/Harada/Darpan) or through the Eggbreaker procedure.

I have a question though: Was Archer born activated? Archer #0 is a little fuzzy atm

PRS activated Archer after they abducted him and erased his memories. It was the torture activation method.

The Bleeding Monk did indeed activate his powers through meditation, which might be why they're so powerful. He's immortal, can see the future and enter minds from great distances. Probably he can do more... it'll be great when he returns!

Harada admitted to lying about being born activated and has referenced being activated by the A-bomb since then, so catastrophic trauma appears to work also. This opens the doors to Psiots being created by violence... maybe Ultimo is one?

There was also the Chinese activation tests resulting in Gang, which seemed to be the same as PRS ones, but mass produced.

So far the only Psiot who can activate other Psiots is Peter. That might have something to do with him being born activated- he likely somehow activated himself in the womb. Harada can't do it, but he can locate them using his resources and activate them using his technology. Darpan's never shown any power but showing you your worst fears.

That's about as much as we know about activation, I think.

I think you are wrong about the Bleeding Monk. Reread 0 and tell me if you don't change your mind.

What do you mean? The Bleeding Monk definitely activated most of his powers through meditation. I will agree that his time-related powers (he can see all times at once - not just the future) seem to have manifested only after the trauma of being impaled with a spear, but everything else he had before.

Sorry I should have been more clear. I wasn't referring to how he was activated or how he activated his students. Sorry to confuse you guys. I simply meant that I don't believe he is alive. Also I believe he was activated before he met the naked man on the mountain just he didn't understand what he was doing, partly because he just couldn't except it.

You think he's still stuck on the spear and just projects himself?

I've toyed with that theory, but I'm not sure if that's how it works. I think his unchanging reference point for viewing the events of the universe (past and future) is that moment, but he is very much alive in my opinion. I think it is hard for us to understand it because it's akin to trying to explain to a two dimensional creature that there is depth in addition to length and width. Our brains just fail to parse the idea correctly. The Bleeding Monk lives and perceives in four dimensions. He is not fooled by the illusion of the progression of time. Everything at all times just is. He can perceive everything at all times.

[greg]

You think he's still stuck on the spear and just projects himself?

I've toyed with that theory, but I'm not sure if that's how it works. I think his unchanging reference point for viewing the events of the universe (past and future) is that moment, but he is very much alive in my opinion. I think it is hard for us to understand it because it's akin to trying to explain to a two dimensional creature that there is depth in addition to length and width. Our brains just fail to parse the idea correctly. The Bleeding Monk lives and perceives in four dimensions. He is not fooled by the illusion of the progression of time. Everything at all times just is. He can perceive everything at all times.

The Bleeding Monk was introduced in Harbinger #1, so we can assume his character is very important to the Valiant universe.
Since he is also a new character we might assume that he replaces something in the older Valiant universe.

I'm now thinking that the Bleeding Monk is an Erica Pierce replacement, and Thought-No-Thought is the replacement for the "Behind Reality Quantum Space" that Solar shows Erica Piece during Alpha & Omega (and later shows Fred Bender).

The Faraway is a replacement for the Lost Land, but we don't currently have a replacement for the "Backstage of Reality" (all prism-colored floating space) of Alpha & Omega.
We also don't have a clear replacement for Erica Pierce --- the one who wanted to correct the errors that Solar caused in the universe.
She knew the future, and wanted to stop it... also stopping the past and everything in between.

Sounds like what the Bleeding Monk sees, and he has already "interfered".

How could Kyros (the Bleeding Monk's old name) survive in one spot for months at a time?
He wasn't completely in our reality... he was and he wasn't... he was accessing Thought-No-Thought.

He has a body that he can't take with him into Thought-No-Thought, but that body doesn't die because his mind isn't disconnected...
He's alive outside of time and tethered to a bleeding body since 1755. He was tethered to a "living body" (that wasn't bleeding) before that.

The question would be whether he can see ANY time that does not connect to his physical body. He hasn't seen anything before his own birth.
If Harada (or Pete) decides to destroy the Bleeding Monk's body... then that may be why the Bleeding Monk is only concerned with Harada and Pete... the last world-changers before his actual "death".

[lorddunlow]

You think he's still stuck on the spear and just projects himself?

I've toyed with that theory, but I'm not sure if that's how it works. I think his unchanging reference point for viewing the events of the universe (past and future) is that moment, but he is very much alive in my opinion. I think it is hard for us to understand it because it's akin to trying to explain to a two dimensional creature that there is depth in addition to length and width. Our brains just fail to parse the idea correctly. The Bleeding Monk lives and perceives in four dimensions. He is not fooled by the illusion of the progression of time. Everything at all times just is. He can perceive everything at all times.

The Bleeding Monk was introduced in Harbinger #1, so we can assume his character is very important to the Valiant universe.
Since he is also a new character we might assume that he replaces something in the older Valiant universe.

I'm now thinking that the Bleeding Monk is an Erica Pierce replacement, and Thought-No-Thought is the replacement for the "Behind Reality Quantum Space" that Solar shows Erica Piece during Alpha & Omega (and later shows Fred Bender).

The Faraway is a replacement for the Lost Land, but we don't currently have a replacement for the "Backstage of Reality" (all prism-colored floating space) of Alpha & Omega.
We also don't have a clear replacement for Erica Pierce --- the one who wanted to correct the errors that Solar caused in the universe.
She knew the future, and wanted to stop it... also stopping the past and everything in between.

Sounds like what the Bleeding Monk sees, and he has already "interfered".

How could Kyros (the Bleeding Monk's old name) survive in one spot for months at a time?
He wasn't completely in our reality... he was and he wasn't... he was accessing Thought-No-Thought.

He has a body that he can't take with him into Thought-No-Thought, but that body doesn't die because his mind isn't disconnected...
He's alive outside of time and tethered to a bleeding body since 1755. He was tethered to a "living body" (that wasn't bleeding) before that.

The question would be whether he can see ANY time that does not connect to his physical body. He hasn't seen anything before his own birth.
If Harada (or Pete) decides to destroy the Bleeding Monk's body... then that may be why the Bleeding Monk is only concerned with Harada and Pete... the last world-changers before his actual "death".

Does it state somewhere he cannot see before his own birth? I thought I remembered Bleeding Monk #0 specifically stating he could experience time in the past and future.

[lorddunlow]

I just skimmed through issue again, and it seems I misunderstood. It is a little unclear, but it looks like Greg is right in that the Bleeding Monk only sees events in his lifetime (presumably, what he directly experiences - which would be a lot since he can telepathically communicate and sense people all over the world.)

[Ramses818]

Just got back to this thread and obviously Greg said it waaaay better than I could. I am Sooo enthralled with this character. Harbinger: Bleeding Monk 0 is my favorite issue of Valiant.

[jmatt]

I am Sooo enthralled with this character. Harbinger: Bleeding Monk 0 is my favorite issue of Valiant.

He's a great character and that's a great issue, no doubt about it.

[DIrishB]

I got mine for $14.95... came with a T-shirt that says: "I can read your mind and then punch through it. Now, bow." It has a mustard stain on the front.