17 Most Powerful Avengers Created by Stan Lee – Ranked by Power Level

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The iconic Stan Lee co-created a host of Marvel’s most iconic characters, from Spider-Man to Iron Man to the imposing Doctor Doom, with many of his greatest superheroes going on to become Avengers. But who are the most powerful Stan Lee characters ever to be recruited as one of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes? Some of the answers are obvious, while others are likely to blow your mind, especially because we’re counting every Stan Lee creation who ever joined the team, whether he ever intended them to be members or not.

We’re ranking the 17 most powerful Avengers hero created by Stan Lee according to the power levels of their superpowers, counting only those who joined the Avengers in Marvel’s mainstream reality – no matter when they joined.

17

Beast, aka Hank McCoy

First Appeared in X-Men #1 by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

Created as one of the five founding members of the X-Men, Beast joined the Avengers in 1975’s Avengers #137, from Steve Englehart and George Tuska. This was after Hank had tampered with his own genetic structure, resulting in him growing blue fur and mutating into a more animalistic form. Beast’s powers give him superhuman agility, strength and an impressive healing factor (though not on the same level as Wolverine), as well as sharp claws and teeth. Recent developments in X-Men comics have suggested his powers also enhance his predatory instincts, making him a more vicious fighter.

16

Sandman, aka Flint Marko, aka William Baker

First Appeared in Amazing Spider-Man #4 by Stan Lee & Steve Ditko

Sandman was created as a villain for Spider-Man, but many fans forget that he joined the Avengers during a bid for redemption, in Avengers #329 by Larry Hama and Paul Ryan. While he’s since gone back to villainy, Sandman has helped out Earth’s Mightiest Heroes in emergency situations – for example in the epic JLA/Avengers crossover.

Sandman’s consciousness is contained within a single grain of sand that gathers and controls others around it. This allows Sandman to turn into a near-liquid form and to harden his skin to rock-like levels, while also shapeshifting into different forms depending on the amount of sand he has to work with, frequently utilizing a giant humanoid form.

15

Giant-Man, aka Ant-Man, aka Hank Pym

First Appeared in Tales to Astonish #27 by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber & Jack Kirby

A founding Avenger, Hank Pym was at one time considered the strongest of the group (yes, more than Thor or Iron Man), but his powers haven’t kept pace with his fellow heroes’ various evolutions over the years. Hank can shrink down to minuscule size and grow into a giant, while his technological inventions allow him to control insect life and create interdimensional doors. Pym can also use the size-changing ‘Pym Particles’ he discovered to grow and shrink inanimate objects, though he uses this power far more rarely.

14

Quicksilver, aka Pietro Maximoff

First Appeared in X-Men #4 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

Originally introduced as an enemy of the X-Men – one of Magneto’s original Brotherhood of Evil Mutants – Quicksilver and his sister Scarlet Witch joined the second generation of the Avengers, working with Steve Rogers and Hawkeye as ‘Cap’s Kooky Quartet.’ Quicksilver is one of the fastest superhumans in existence, with enhanced reflexes and a unique physiology that’s immune to the physical punishment of superfast movement.

13

Spider-Man, aka Peter Parker

First Appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15 by Stan Lee & Steve Ditko

One of Stan Lee’s most iconic creations, Spider-Man long flirted with Avengers membership, but managed to fall out with the team every time he seemed ready to join. Peter Parker has enhanced agility, strength and durability, as well as a supernatural sense for incoming danger and the ability to adhere to sheer surfaces like walls. The science genius created unique web-shooters which allow him to fire near-unbreakable ‘webbing,’ which he uses both to restrain his enemies and to swing between New York’s skyscrapers.

12

Iron Man, aka Tony Stark

First Appeared in Tales of Suspense #39 by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber & Don Heck, co-designed by Jack Kibry

Another one of Stan Lee’s most famous creations, Tony Stark is a genius inventor who uses his sophisticated armor to keep up with Marvel’s superhumans. A founding Avenger, Tony is constantly updating his armor, giving him strength and invulnerability to match some of Marvel’s heaviest hitters. His suits tend to use lasers, missiles and EMP blasts, but Tony is also famous for his ‘Buster’ suits, which are custom-made to take down specific targets like the Hulk, Thor and the alien villain Fin Fang Foom.

11

The Thing, aka Ben Grimm

First Appeared in Fantastic Four #1 by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

Being invited to join the Avengers is an honor, and one that’s been extended to most members of the Fantastic Four at one time or another (the Thing is one of the rare heroes to serve on the FF, Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy.) After being mutated by cosmic rays, Ben Grimm’s body transformed, now covered in highly durable rocky plates. He also possesses immense strength only slightly less than the Hulk himself. He was a key member of the New Avengers starting in 2010.

10

Invisible Woman, aka Sue Storm

First Appeared in Fantastic Four #1 by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

Sue Storm may not have the reputation she deserves, but she’s one of the most powerful superhumans in Marvel lore, proving her status by injuring a Celestial with her forcefields. Sue’s forcefields are immensely strong and shockingly complex – she was even able to create a fully functioning jet in One World Under Doom #1. She can also turn herself and others invisible, with a staggering amount of control over her powers – her control over the visible spectrum is so fine, she can alter the color of her hair just by controlling how it reflects light.

9

Captain Marvel, aka Mar-Vell

First Appeared in Marvel Super-Heroes #12 by Stan Lee & Gene Colan

Declared an honorary Avenger following his iconic death in 1982’s Death of Captain Marvel, from Jim Starlin, the original Captain Marvel was a close friend of Carol Danvers, who later took his codename to honor his heroic legacy. Mar-Vell is a Kree alien, with increased strength and durability compared to humans. Thanks to various upgrades to his body by cosmic patrons and the powerful Nega-Bands, he gained a variety of powers including flight, invulnerability, telekinesis and Cosmic Awareness, which allowed him to know where he could most benefit the universe at any given moment. Mar-Vell was a major foe of Thanos, who admitted to respecting the hero on his deathbed.

8

Hercules Panhellenios

First Appeared in Journey Into Mystery Annual #1 by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

A demi-god from Greek Mythology, Hercules isn’t as respected by his fellow heroes as he might like, thanks to his lack of care in using his unbelievable strength to save innocents and combat evil gods including Hera and Hades. Hercules has served on the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy, and is a founding member of the Champions. He is an immortal being with thousands of years of tactical and combat experience, specializing in grappling – a type of combat in which he humbled even Thor. Hercules is known as the ‘God of Heroes’ in Marvel lore.

7

Doctor Voodoo, aka Jericho Drumm

First Appeared in Strange Tales #169 by Len Wein and Gene Colan, Concept and Design Contributions by Stan Lee and John Romita Sr.

Lee played a small role in developing Doctor Voodoo, proposing that Marvel introduce a hero who used voodoo magic and suggesting his original codename, ‘Brother Voodoo,’ with other creators actually designing and debuting Jericho Drumm. One of Marvel’s most gifted sorcerers, Doctor Voodoo is considered Marvel’s world expert on dark magic, and even replaced Doctor Strange in 2009 when he lost the title of Sorcerer Supreme. Drumm can alter the fabric of reality, allowing him to teleport, summon gods to work his will and manipulate time and physical matter.

6

Scarlet Witch, aka Wanda Maximoff

First Appeared in X-Men #4 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

Scarlet Witch is one of the most powerful and dangerous heroes in Marvel lore – especially since she consumed and bonded with the Darkhold (and the Elder God Chthon) in 2022’s Darkhold Omega #1 from Steve Orlando and Cian Tormey. She is the world’s greatest practitioner of Chaos Magic – the oldest form of magic in Marvel lore, which directly alters reality on the most fundamental level. Wanda can raise the dead, alter probability and foresee future events. She is also the Nexus Being of Marvel’s main reality – connected to the fundamental life force of creation and able to draw on its power.

5

Doctor Strange, aka Stephen Strange

First Appeared in Strange Tales #110 by Stan Lee & Steve Ditko

Former surgeon Stephen Strange is the Sorcerer Supreme – a gifted practitioner of the mystic arts whose abilities are elevated to godhood by the godlike Vishanti and a host of mystical artifacts. Unknown to most Marvel heroes, Doctor Strange is thousands of years old, having lived through various divergent timelines and alternate dimensions. Strange is capable of destroying entire worlds with a single spell and came close to beating the Hulk to death thanks to his ability to invoke the power of otherworldly patrons like Zom and Watoomb (as seen in World War Hulk.) He even has a spell prepped to kill DC’s Superman if he needs to.

4

Ares

First Appeared in Thor #129 by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

The Greek God of War, Ares has been a villain for almost his entire life in Marvel Comics, often battling his half-brother Hercules. However, when Iron Man formed his own Avengers roster following Civil War, he recruited Ares as a combined replacement for Wolverine and Thor (in 2007’s Mighty Avengers #1 from Brian Michael Bendis and Frank Cho.) Ares has little time for human morality, working with both Tony Stark’s heroic Avengers and Norman Osborn’s villainous Dark Avengers.

Ares has the immense strength and durability of a literal god, and is an expert user of every weapon ever created. Ares is also able to influence all forms of conflict, exerting psychic influence over practitioners of violence. He has shown immunity to various mortal powers, able to physically break magic spells and step outside time when superhumans try to restrain him – this is due to his nature as a god rather than any specific superpower.

3

Thor, aka Jane Foster

First Appeared in Journey Into Mystery #84 by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

Stan Lee created Jane Foster as the love interest of Thor, but she later gained superpowers by taking up Mjolnir, as seen in 2014’s Thor #1 from Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman. As an Asgardian God, Jane gained immense power and durability, as well as the ability to commune with otherworldly lightning and wield it against her enemies. She had a unique control over the mystic hammer Mjolnir, able to control it with even more finesse than the original Thor. Since giving up Mjolnir, Jane has become the new Valkyrie, wielding a shapeshifting weapon that can take any form she needs.

2

Thor Odinson

First Appeared in Journey Into Mystery #83 by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby

Marvel’s Asgardian God of Thunder, Thor has godly strength and invulnerability. He is also able to commune with otherwordly lighting, summoning world-breaking storms at will. He is a partly mystical being linked to the Earth goddess Gaea and the otherworldly Phoenix Force, and has a variety of powers which he keeps in reserve, such as the ability to summon fire and control the earth itself.

Following the death of Odin, Thor gained the Allpower, allowing him to alter reality in feasibly any way. However, Thor’s power is tied to his wisdom, and he must use his abilities in conjunction with natural and narrative law or risk damaging the fundamental forces of reality, creating contextual limits to this new ability.

First Appeared in Incredible Hulk #1 by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby

The Strongest One There Is, Bruce Banner’s Hulk is a creature of limitless physical strength, with Thor recognizing him as perhaps the first manmade god – “Midgard’s God of Wrath.” While Hulk often limits his strength in order to avoid unleashing planetary destruction, various stories – including Al Ewing and Joe Bennett’s acclaimed Immortal Hulk series – have shown that Hulk’s powers have no ceiling, and he is even capable of ending the cycle of multiversal creation by destroying everything in existence, partly due to his ties to Marvel’s ultimate force of evil, known as the One-Below-All.

Fans have arguably only seen Hulk’s full power once – in 2011’s Incredible Hulks #634, by Greg Pak and Paul Pelletier. In that comic, Hulk finds himself in the Dark Dimension – a reality of monsters with no innocents to protect. There, Hulk was able to cut loose, becoming a gigantic, gamma-powered titan and obliterating an entire planet in a single blow.

The angrier Hulk gets, the stronger he gets, with no upper ceiling, allowing the Green Goliath to face off with the gods themselves – a worthy status for a founding member of the Avengers who has always been defined by his incredible strength.

Those are the 17 most powerful characters co-created by Stan Lee who went on to become Avengers – whether that’s the fate Lee had planned for them or not. Let us know in the comments below which Avengers you think should appear on this list, as well as who you think should appear lower or higher in the rankings.

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