Basic Trope: A super-powered character using a gun.
- Straight: Bob has powers but runs around with a gun anyway.
- Exaggerated: Bob is a Flying Brick who is not only Nigh-Invulnerable but also has Super-Speed, meaning few people can hit him and those who can, cannot hurt him. He still carries several guns (including at least a ridiculously big one) with him into battle.
- Downplayed:
- Bob is The Archmage who has a gun that he uses as a Finishing Move.
- Bob is a Badass Normal superhero in the vein of Batman, who uses a sidearm as backup.
- Bob has Super-Strength, so his gun of choice is something that's supposed to be vehicle mounted.
- Justified:
- Bob's power set isn't useful for combat, or doesn't provide anything but a general all-around improvement, so he Fights Like a Normal. And normals in his world use guns.
- The gun is the source of Bob's powers.
- Bob has Super-Strength and similar powers but otherwise has no way to attack enemies at a distance.
- Bob has powers but not at the level where a gun wouldn't be useless.
- Bob's powers have certain limits, requiring other weapons.
- Bob's power is somehow enhanced by guns (i.e. he has super aiming skills or has the ability to increase kinetic energy, resulting in explosive ammo).
- Bob wants to challenge himself by using guns instead of his powers.
- To Bob, guns are simply more fun to use than his powers. May go hand-in-hand with the above example.
- Bob is a Super Cop and the gun is his service weapon.
- In the story, superheroes use both superpowers and weapons. Bob’s weapon is a gun.
- Inverted:
- Heroes Unlimited employs a cannon that shoots out superheroes.
- Alice thinks Heroes Fight Barehanded and Doesn't Like Guns.
- Subverted: Bob has guns available to him but passes them up to fight the Big Bad, using only his powers.
- Double Subverted: During the heat of battle, Bob grabs a gun out of desperation and uses it to kill the Big Bad.
- Parodied:
- Bob has the power to shoot bullets out of his hands but uses a gun for no reason whatsoever.
- Bob insists that merely having a gun and knowing how to fire it is a superpower. Anyone who disagrees with him finds themselves happily agreeing when they're shown the business end.
- Bob tries to use guns as a solution for everything even when utterly inappropriate including trying to get a cat down from a tree by shooting the branches and trying to treat a wound by firing into the ground enough that it can be used to cauterize the wound.
- Zig Zagged:
- Bob's powers come and go and during the times when his powers are gone, he has a gun ready.
- Bob's superpower IS the ability to summon guns.
- Averted: Bob doesn't need guns and doesn't use them.
- Enforced: The writers think guns make Bob look more cool.
- Lampshaded: "Okay, you have powers... What the Hell do you need a gun for?"
- Invoked: Bob brings a gun along for added power.
- Exploited: Bob has a gun in order to make his enemies believe he is powerless.
- Defied: Bob has a chance to use guns but refuses because he Doesn't Like Guns.
- Discussed: Bob's teammates argue with him about the uselessness of his guns.
- Conversed: "Did you see this character? He has all kinds of powers but I guess the artist thought he would look badass with a huge cannon on his shoulder."
- Implied: Bob might be carrying a small sidearm in his utility belt but never has to use it so we don't outright see it.
- Deconstructed:
- Bob brings a gun into battle and his teammates continually question his actions in doing so, especially when he hardly even uses it and obviously has no need of it.
- Bob is restricted by his obsession with redundant armaments, and is often locked out of the plot due to mundane issues like aircraft security or violating gun-licence laws. Naturally, his unarmed counterparts waltz through to save the day, to his eternal frustration.
- Reconstructed:
- As it turns out, the gun belonged to Bob's soldier father who used it in war and died while holding it. He's doing this in honor of his memory.
- Bob keeps pulling non-lethal trick shots like Blasting It Out of Their Hands or Shoot the Bullet thanks to his Super-Reflexes, as well as Attack Its Weak Point on every kind of machinery..
- The next villain has a Power Nullifier that renders the rest of the team useless, only to surrender after a *Click* Hello and a smirking Bob arrives.
- Played For Laughs: Bob shoots a room full of bad guys, only for Alice to remind him, "You know you have powers, right?".
- Played For Drama: Bob is terrified of using his near godlike powers so he opts for using a gun instead.
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