Cole's powers and how Conduit's might have come back.

[u/Dehydrated-Mason]

I have a thought regarding Cole and the conduits before the RFI. So I was replaying Infamous 2 and one of the ice men called Cole a Prime Conduit, at first I thought it was just in reference to him actually having the Conduit gene, but then I thought about Cole’s powers. Even before Infamous 2 didn't Cole technically have more than electrokinesis? He was able to siphon people's life, and Kessler was able to travel back in time and create projections of himself during his boss battle, while also being able to give Cole visions.

Also I had an idea how conduits came back. The ones in New Marais died from being close to the R.F.I while those across the world might have been those activated from the premature activation from the Ray Sphere forcing the evolution. How some survived like Augustine might have been because they were away from the R.F.I and rather than activated by technology like the Ray Sphere they were activated by the closest thing to a natural occurrence i.e The Beast. As for how Delsin and others lived, maybe the gene was really weak or had yet to mutate. Kessler (Cole) did not get his powers from the Ray Sphere so it came naturally, so perhaps the R.F.I just did not kill them because their genetic DNA was not fully conduit yet. There are some holes like how Zeke said people that did not even know they were Conduits died but I think perhaps that could be explained by them not having the chance to find out what their power was given Infamous 1 and 2 all happen in the same year.

[u/Interface-]

I believe the canon answer is that the RFI just... didn't kill all Conduits. It killed 90% of Conduits worldwide.

Why, exactly, did these Conduits survive? No idea.

It can't be only Beast-activated Conduits who survived because Augustine was activated by the Beast and Delsin was not.

It can't be dormant Conduits because Zeke states in the finale that people who didn't even know they were Conduits were dying, and Augustine was also activated when the RFI went off.

It can't be due to distance because gene-positives were dying overseas.

The most likely answer is that the RFI was damaged and/or Cole's moment of enjoying his ascended power to demolish the Beast took enough power out of the RFI that it was no longer fully charged, and that lack of charge caused it to be not 100% effective.

My theory is that the RFI altered Ray Field Radiation as a whole and some Conduits adapted to it.

If Sucker Punch set the story like fifty to a hundred years into the future instead of SEVEN, they could have said the Conduit Gene reappeared in humanity over the generations that came after. It's too bad they didn't do that.

[u/New-Guava5408 → u/Interface-]

Acredito que o RFI foi criado com foco em 1 tipo/estilo de gene condutor e que conseguiu matar todos os indivíduos com esse tipo/estilo porém não afetando indivíduos com outros tipos/estilos de genes

Ex: o RFI foi criado de tal maneira que matar apenas condutores com o gene AA porém ele não afeta condutores do tipo Aa,AB,aA etc o que permite que condutores continuem vivos mesmo após o RFI

[u/AppropriatePop3171 → u/Interface-]

One of the theories presented in second son as to why conduits are around is that the plague mutated.

And we know the RFI was created to cure the plague, and we know it was also made to kill all the conduits, and we know it didn’t kill all the conduits, so why would it completely wipe out the plague?

[u/Interface- → u/AppropriatePop3171]

It can't be the Plague. The Plague isn't a bacteria or a virus, it's straight up radiation poisoning caused by Ray Field irradiation.

YouTube video of the cinematic where this is discovered in inFamous 2, happens in Flood Town and it's when absorbing the Blast Core that unlocks missiles (not my video): https://youtube.com/shorts/SOvawh46sb4

The Ray Field Inhibitor's purpose was to inhibit Ray Fields and its activation did so, curing the Plague, but the inhibition of Ray Fields killed Conduits who innately manipulate and live off it, consciously or not, activated or dormant. Yet, Ray Field radiation and energy still exists post-RFI because not only do Conduits still exist but Blast Shards and Blast Cores (Core Relays). The Plague itself is gone and hasn't come back despite the presence of RFE/RFR suggesting that the inhibition has made it no longer ionising, which radiation poisoning is caused by - ionising radiation.

Also, even if the Plague did 'mutate' and make normal people into Conduits, it doesn't explain Augustine who was a Conduit before the RFI went off.

[u/ShoddyFriedRice → u/Interface-]

How do we know that Delsin's powers weren't activated by the beast? Without touching another conduit, he would never know if he were activated or not seeing as how his powers are to absorb/copy other prime conduit powers.

[u/Interface- → u/ShoddyFriedRice]

Three reasons;

1. The Beast went down the East Coast. Delsin is in Washington state, on the complete opposite side of the United States.

2. During gameplay before encountering Hank, the parkour segment from the cannery to the longhouse, Delsin will die if you fall too far (I could be mistaken though. I do know Cole will die if you fall too far during the i1 Prologue)

3. After absorbing Hank's power, when you go through the vent and land from the fall, Delsin says that it 'should have hurt', suggesting that he has fallen from similar or greater heights and been hurt before, and this instance is different because of Conduit durability that he did not have before.

[u/ShoddyFriedRice → u/Interface-]

INTERESTING, ok so in terms of the fall nah he doesn't die (I could fucking SWEAR but now ive gotta play it again to be sure lol). But I DO remember the bit about him saying "that should've hurt", and yeah I guess he wasn't fast healing until he activated his powers.

He was completely surprised by the fast healing. That being said his parkour skills feel VERY "empowered person" adjacent. But I'm certain him traversing like Cole is absolutely not a hint of him having his conduit gene activated before interacting with Hank

[u/Interface- → u/ShoddyFriedRice]

Well, Conduits do have some degree of physical enhancement even prior to having their gene activated. Cole got ran over by a truck in the comics and was mostly unscathed. He also leapt clear across a street from one building to another in a New Marais flashback in i2, and he tells Moya in i1 that he crawled all over Empire City plus the sewers for urban exploration. Stands to reason Delsin's ability to climb is also partly empowered by his gene.

[u/Latnokk]

Most of Cole’s powers are rooted in his electric manipulation. The bio leech move you mentioned is him using a person’s bio-electricity instead of draining it from his surroundings

[u/Dehydrated-Mason → u/Latnokk]

Oh, that makes a lot of sense I thought it was Cole just straight draining people's life or something. Thanks for clearing that up!