If a Great Ape has their tail cut off, they immediately revert back into their humanoid form. They do have one glaring weakness, their tail. To the average person, the Great Ape would appear nearly invulnerable, but a warrior who can match their incredible strength can do battle with them. An improved version, the Golden Great Ape, was revealed in Dragon Ball GT, but like much of that series, it’s unclear whether the Golden Great Ape will remain canon due to GT and Super directly conflicting with one another. This form also has severe side effects on the users mental state, as that person often becomes beast like in nature. While in this form, the users power skyrockets, as does their body size. It’s first witnessed in Dragon Ball, although seen far more often during the events of Dragon Ball Z, as both Gohan and Vegeta turn into a Great Ape. Great Ape The original Saiyan transformation, the Great Ape is limited to their race, like most entries on this list.
This high risk, high reward nature was enough to carry the Kaio-ken through much of Dragon Ball Z, but during Super it was also revealed that it can be layered on top of Super Saiyan, ensuring that even years after it’s debut, the Kaio-ken could continue to remain relevant. We’ve repeatedly seen examples of the tolls it takes, such as Goku collapsing in pain, or his Ki being thrown out of sync. From its first reveal to the most recent sighting of it in Dragon Ball Super, Goku has always had to be careful or else risk injuring or even killing himself. YES NOUnlike many forms in this list, which with training can be improved upon and the costs negated, the Kaio-ken has remained risky to use.