Invulnerability · Game Mechanic Compendium

Definition

Invulnerability is a timed state in which the protected figure takes no damage, or none of most kinds, however large the hit. A barrier has a capacity or blocks one class of attack, so spell immunity such as Black King Bar is a barrier’s selective ward, and shield buttons stay with barrier. A reflect returns the attack, where invulnerability only voids it, and stasis cast on an enemy is a stun, while stasis on oneself or an ally belongs here. Invincibility frames inside a dodge or dash belong to the parry and dodge mechanic, and the mercy flicker after a hit to hit points.

Behaviour

Most forms are self-cast and last seconds; some, such as Intervention, are cast on an ally at range. The state is binary, so counterplay works on time: opponents disengage, wait out the timer, or switch targets. Many forms price the immunity by inaction, as Divine Aura, Ice Block, and Zhonya’s Hourglass do. Others let the user act, or kill on contact as Starman Mario does. Exceptions keep it “nearly all” damage: the Wonder Super Star does not stop a fatal fall.

Variations

Immobile stasis (World of Warcraft, League of Legends): total immunity at the price of all action, the self-cast mirror of a stun’s stasis.
Acting invulnerability (World of Warcraft, Super Mario Bros.): the user keeps acting, at half attack speed for Divine Shield, or kills on contact.
Ally-cast immunity (League of Legends, World of Warcraft): cast on another figure; Divine Intervention sacrifices the paladin to shield a party member who cannot act.
Single-turn guard (Pokémon Gold and Silver): Protect wards off attacks for one turn, with a falling success rate on repeats.
Cheat death (Pokémon Gold and Silver, Dota 2): damage lands, but Endure leaves one hit point and Shallow Grave prevents death; these border heal and resurrection.
Physical-only immunity (Dota 2): Guardian Angel, edging towards a barrier’s selective ward.

Gating

Power-up forms are consumables placed in the level, so the designer rations access, from the 1985 Starman to the 2023 Super Star. Massively multiplayer forms pair mana with long cooldowns, 15 minutes for Divine Aura. World of Warcraft adds Forbearance, documented by 2006, a one-minute lockout on the target against a second paladin immunity spell, and reaches Ice Block only through a talent investment. Multiplayer online battle arenas add an item form, Zhonya’s Hourglass, open to any champion. Pokémon rations Protect by PP and by its falling success rate, a rule against back-to-back use comparable to Forbearance.

History and provenance

The name is older than the behaviour in tabletop play: the 1974 potion of invulnerability is a +2 defence bonus, and the 1978 Globes of Invulnerability keep out spells. Phoenix (1980) has a Force Field button that protects the ship for a few seconds and then locks out for about five, an antecedent on the barrier border. The earliest documented use of the definition is the Starman of Super Mario Bros. (1985), whose booklet names the result “Invincible Mario”; earlier arcade power-ups remain unsurveyed. EverQuest’s Divine Aura carries the spell form in a 2001 guide; its presence at the 1999 launch is unconfirmed. Blizzard’s 2006 class page presents Divine Shield as replacing Divine Protection because it allows attacking.

Notable examples

Notable examples, in chronological order. Notes describe how the ability behaves in each game; gating is what limits its use there; the latest reference is a widely played game from 2020 or later.
Game	Year	Medium	Gating	How the ability behaves
Super Mario Bros. Nintendo (Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka)	1985	Video	Consumable	Touching a Starman placed in the level turns Mario into "Invincible Mario" for a short time, and enemies he touches are defeated. The booklet gives no duration. The flicker after Mario shrinks, during which "he can not be killed by bad guys", is a separate system rule.
EverQuest Verant Interactive	1999	Video	Mana, Cooldown	Divine Aura, a cleric spell at level 1 (paladin 55) cast on the caster only, costs 10 mana and a 1-second cast and gives 18 seconds of invulnerability on a 15-minute recast; the cleric "cannot cast or attack" meanwhile. Values are from a 2001 guide.
Pokémon Gold and Silver Game Freak (Nintendo)	c. 1999	Video	Per rest	Protect, 10 PP, wards off the opponent's attack for one turn, and its success rate falls if it is used on consecutive turns; Detect does the same at 5 PP. Endure instead leaves the user with one hit point however hard it is hit. Wording from the 2000 Nintendo Power guide.
World of Warcraft Blizzard Entertainment	2004	Video	Mana, Cooldown	The paladin's Divine Shield voids "all damage and spells" for 10 seconds (12 at rank 2) at the cost of half attack speed; Divine Protection lasts 6 to 8 seconds, forbids attacking, and has a 5-minute cooldown. The mage's Ice Block, a 20-point Frost talent, protects from spells and melee for 10 seconds during which the mage cannot move, attack, or cast.
League of Legends Riot Games	2009	Video	Mana, Cooldown	Kayle's ultimate, Intervention, is cast on herself or an ally at 1,300 range and gives immunity to all damage for 3, 4, or 5 seconds for 100 to 50 mana on a 90 to 60 second cooldown (2010 values). Zhonya's Hourglass, a bought item, gives 2.5 seconds as Invulnerable and Untargetable with no other actions, on a 120-second cooldown in current data.
Dota 2 Valve	2013	Video	Mana, Cooldown	Omniknight's Guardian Angel makes nearby allies immune to physical damage for 4 to 5.5 seconds in a 700 radius, for 125 to 225 mana on a 100 to 80 second cooldown. Dazzle's Shallow Grave lets damage land but keeps an ally from dying for its duration. Values are current, not those of 2013.
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Square Enix	2013	Video	Cooldown	Hallowed Ground, a paladin job action learned at level 50, is used instantly and renders the user impervious to most attacks for 10 seconds on a 420-second recast; the paladin job is open only to a character of the gladiator class. Values are current.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder Latest Nintendo EPD	2023	Video	Consumable	Picking up a Super Star makes the player invulnerable for a short time, able to run through enemies and slightly faster. It does not prevent death from a fall into a gap, so the immunity covers nearly all damage rather than all of it.

Provenance

Earliest documented use: Super Mario Bros. (1985), video. Confidence: medium. The instruction booklet pairs the Starman with "Invincible Mario", a timed immunity to enemies that is picked up and spent. Confidence is medium because earlier arcade power-ups remain unsurveyed. Phoenix (1980) has a Force Field button, also called a barrier button, that protects the ship for a few seconds and then cannot be used for about five; it is an antecedent on the barrier border, beside the shield buttons filed as held barriers. The name is older than the behaviour: the potion of invulnerability in Monsters & Treasure (1974) adds +2 to defence and saving throws, and the Globes of Invulnerability of the 1978 Players Handbook keep out spells, a selective ward. The same book's Sanctuary is an attack ward broken by a saving throw that bars the cleric from attacking. Pac-Man's power pellet, which reportedly turns the ghosts edible rather than making the player immune, is a role reversal outside the definition. EverQuest's Divine Aura, the spell form, is cited from a 2001 guide; its presence at the 1999 launch is unconfirmed.

Sources

Nintendo. (1985). Super Mario Bros. instruction booklet. Rulebook Mario, Super Mario, Invincible Mario, etc.. Accessed 2026-10-24. The Starman as the item that makes Invincible Mario, and the separate post-hit flicker during which Mario cannot be killed.
Juanita Jones, Russell Phoenix, Jimmy Monkerface, and Damien Waples (Prima Games). (2001). EverQuest Players Guide. Book Cleric chapter, level 1 spells; spell reference, Divine Aura. Accessed 2026-10-24. Divine Aura's mana, cast time, 18-second duration, 15-minute recast, and the cleric's inability to cast or attack while it lasts.
Michael Lummis and others (BradyGames). (2004). World of Warcraft Official Strategy Guide. Book Mage chapter, Frost talents (Ice Block); Paladin chapter, spell tables (Divine Protection, Divine Shield). Accessed 2026-10-24. Durations, the attack-speed price of Divine Shield, and Ice Block's wording that the mage cannot move, attack, or cast.
Blizzard Entertainment. (2006). World of Warcraft: Paladin spells. Website Divine Shield; Divine Intervention; Other Information (Forbearance). Accessed 2026-10-24. Forbearance's one-minute lockout, Divine Shield as the replacement for Divine Protection that allows attacking, and Divine Intervention.
Riot Games. (2010). Kayle, the Judicator. Website Abilities, Intervention. Accessed 2026-10-24. Intervention's 3, 4, and 5 seconds of immunity to all damage, its mana cost, cooldown, and range (Wayback Machine capture of June 2010).
Riot Games. (2026). Data Dragon 16.21.1, item data. Website Zhonya's Hourglass (items 3157, 223157, 773157). Accessed 2026-10-24. The Stasis active, 2.5 seconds Invulnerable and Untargetable with no other actions, on a 120-second cooldown.
Valve. Dota 2 hero data, Omniknight. Website Guardian Angel. Accessed 2026-10-24. Physical damage immunity for allies in a radius, with duration, mana, and cooldown in current-patch values.
Valve. Dota 2 hero data, Dazzle. Website Shallow Grave. Accessed 2026-10-24. An ally kept from dying for the duration.
Square Enix. Final Fantasy XIV Job Guide: Paladin. Website Job Actions, Hallowed Ground. Accessed 2026-10-27. Hallowed Ground learned at level 50, instant, a 420-second recast and 10 seconds impervious to most attacks, and gladiator as the paladin's prerequisite class; current values.
Nintendo Power. (2000). Pokémon Gold & Silver Player's Guide. Nintendo of America. Book Move list: Protect, Detect, Endure. Accessed 2026-10-24. The wording and PP of Protect, Detect, and Endure.
Centuri, Inc. Phoenix Service Manual. Centuri, Inc.. Rulebook Game Summary, pp. 3-4; Game Instructions. Accessed 2026-10-24. The Force Field button, its few seconds of protection, the lock-out of about five seconds, and birds destroyed on contact; the manual is undated.
Gary Gygax (TSR). (1978). Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, Players Handbook. Rulebook Cleric Spells (1st Level), Sanctuary (c. pp. 43-44); Magic-User Spells, Minor Globe of Invulnerability (c. p. 77), Globe of Invulnerability (c. p. 84). Accessed 2026-10-24. The antecedent attack ward and the spell-immunity globes that carry the name; page numbers follow the scan's page markers.
Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. (1974). Dungeons & Dragons, Volume 2, Monsters & Treasure. Tactical Studies Rules. Rulebook Potions, Invulnerability, p. 32. Accessed 2026-10-24. The potion of invulnerability as a +2 bonus to defence and saving throws.
Jacob Woodward. (2023). All Power-Ups in Super Mario Bros Wonder. Retro Dodo. Article Accessed 2026-10-24. The Super Star's short invulnerability, its slight speed boost, and its failure to prevent death in a fall.

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West, James, Jr. (2026). "Invulnerability." Game Mechanic Compendium, updated 2026-10-27. http://localhost:4321/abilities/invulnerability

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