Talk:Empathy

Ability Naming Conventions
The following sources are used for determining evolved human ability names, in order:
1. Canon Sources	Episodes
2. Near-canon Sources	Webisodes, Graphic Novels, iStories, Heroes Evolutions
3. Secondary Sources	Episode commentary, Interviews, Heroes: Survival
4. Common names for abilities	Names from other works
5. Descriptions of abilities	Descriptions
6. Possessor's name	If no non-speculative description is possible
Note: The highlighted row represents the level of the source used to determine empathy's name.
Source/Explanation
The name "empathy" comes from a writer. See here for further information.

Name

I received an email from a writer, but I can't say who the writer was. Sorry. But in the email, the writer said, "Lydia is an empath. She feels the emotions, thoughts, hopes, desires, and dream of others. Lydia expresses this in the tattoos she possesses." That's about the best I can say right now. Sorry, I suppose this one will require a bit of trust on the part of the community. :) -- RyanGibsonStewart (talk) 15:22, 23 September 2009 (EDT)

• Where was her ability described as "empathy"? I can't remember the source... I mean it could be something like "tattoo empathy". Lol. AltesUTC CH
  • She was described as an "empath" to me in an email. -- RyanGibsonStewart (talk) 18:03, 25 September 2009 (EDT)
    • They shouldve named it clairvoyance, thats what it sounds like to me. daevon 14:18, 26 September 2009 (EDT)
      • Clairvoyance is the ability to find someone where-ever they are. Empathy means she feels the emotions, thoughts, hopes, desires, and dream of others. That makes it very different from Clairvoyance --Leckie -- Talk 12:12, 27 September 2009 (EDT)
        • Empathy doesn't explain how she knew people's names, and their location in time and space. Also, we more-or-less have two powers with the same name now. I think I'd prefer "Lydia's ability". - Hive 16:05, 27 September 2009 (EDT)
          • If they feel thoughts, she could get that info. And she didn't know Hiro went back, she just said that Hiro had been to the Carnival before, and "felt" when. She didn't go "His name is Hiro Nakamura and he's in the Carnival fourteen years ago". Intuitive Empath - Talk - Contributions 18:18, 27 September 2009 (EDT)
            • It could be an advanced form of clairvoyance, we all know how powers evolve in heroes. daevon 20:12, 27 September 2009 (EDT)
              • I'm just going off the email I got from one of the writers. -- RyanGibsonStewart (talk) 21:18, 27 September 2009 (EDT)
                • Dawn Olivieri also calls herself "an empath" here. -- RyanGibsonStewart (talk) 11:20, 17 October 2009 (EDT)

like a crossover

this ability is rather like clairvoyance and clairesentience combined, isn't it. What we now need to understand is whether the ink in neccesary or if that's just for samuel's benefit of being able to see the person. --mc_hammark 18:31, 1 October 2009 (EDT)

• • I totally 100% agree with you, and i think her body's like the crystal ball (In the gn) and she sees the images like she does in the ball, but instead on her body. get it? daevon 20:20, 1 October 2009 (EDT)

As seen in Acceptance...

Lydia can control ink and form tattoos without Samuel. AltesUTC CH

• Not really, in the webisode, she tells Edgar that her tattoos don't move on her own, but the one of her daugther did. By saying "I show you what you need to see", I think that's she's referring to what her ability does, which is expressed through the tattoos. She has no control over what it shows, she can simply turn it on and off. That's how it happens as far as I was able to understand. Intuitive Empath - Talk - Contributions 18:55, 7 October

2009 (EDT)

The Painted Lady

In the Graphic Novel:The Painted Lady lydia describes her ability as being able to see others' wants and desires, maybe thats how she sees the tattoos on her body, because samuel wants to know who these people are that he keeps learning about. daevon 07:19, 10 November 2009 (EST)

the ink

If lydia needs a physical link to a person, maybe the ink (which has minerals from the ground in it) works because everyone has touched the ground? --mc_hammark 12:57, 24 November 2009 (EST)

Empathic mimicry

It seems to me that this ability could be a weak form of empathic mimicry. She apparently uses Samuel's power to display ink images, and Hiro's power to teleport to the past. - Hive 23:56, 24 November 2009 (EST)