Top 20 Super Villains with Unmatched Fighting Skills

This cosmic Marvel foe has vanquished many opponents in his heyday. As a character who’s job revolves around enforcing Kree laws he’s bound to get into more than a fair share of scuffles. Fortunately for Ronan though he’s more than prepared. He doesn’t just have superhuman strength, durability, and an impressive intellect. He also has incredibly tough combat armor and a cosmi-rod which can be used to create force fields, shoot energy, and even fly. If that wasn’t all, he’s even recently developed the ability to create pocket realities that he can trap opponents in. These skills and resourceful gadgets quite literally make for a world of a difference when on the battlefield!

Reverse Flash might not be a martial artist, but you hardly need to rely on skills like those when you have super speed. He can win pretty much any fight in an instant. That means he can take you down before you even blink an eye. Heck, he could take you down before you even realize you’re in a fight! Even when he goes up against other speedsters like the Flash, he always finds a chance to slip away. When you’re fighting the Reverse Flash the goal isn’t to beat him, it’s to hope that he doesn’t erase you from the timeline completely!

Being cold and calculating is kind of Sinestro’s entire thing, and those traits lend themselves very well to a fight. As leader of the Sinestro Corps, Sinestro can use his lantern ring to summon light constructs to attack his enemies. Considering that he taps into fear in order to make everything work, it means that he’s not really someone you should take lightly. You never know what kind of mind games he can be up to. Even without the ring he’s a highly skilled hand-to-hand combatant. He also has years of experience both from leading the Sinestro Corp and formerly serving under the Green Lantern Corp. It shouldn’t sound too surprising when we say that you should fear this guy!

There are many villains that are impressive in their ability to stand toe-to-toe against heroes like Batman or Superman. But what about someone who can face off against the entire Justice League? With a special helmet that allows him to learn and replicate any fighting style, Prometheus is an unstoppable enemy. Not unlike Batman, Prometheus has plans on top of plans for how to deal with any threat. And with a suit of incredibly durable body armor, he can withstand a lot of damage. While he’s certainly reliant on his helmet, even without it he possesses mastery over multiple martial arts. To say he’s a dangerous fighter doesn’t do this character justice!

One of Wonder Woman’s fiercest rivals, Cheetah is a villain with the abilities and appearance of a cheetah. With her devastatingly sharp claws, strength, and agility she can cut pretty much anyone down to size. While her claws are arguably her most powerful weapon, her speed shouldn’t go unnoticed either. DC once put out an official ranking of their ten fastest characters and Cheetah happened to be in the mix! She might not be on the level of Barry Allen or Wally West but her speed when matched with claws and an animalistic rage can do serious damage. Better hope you don’t cross paths with her anytime soon!

Originally a caveman, Vandal Savage became exposed to radiation from a meteorite that crashed to Earth. The radiation advanced his intelligence and gifted him with immortality. When you’re as old as this guy you’re bound to know your way around a battle. Vandal is an expert in combat and has an extensive knowledge of military tactics and weaponry. He also has access to cutting-edge technology. On occasion he utilizes energy-based weapons and has even used a gadget the size of a pen to take down speedsters. The thing with Vandal is that even if you somehow manage to overpower him, your victory is meaningless considering he’s immortal. His abilities, intelligence and stubborn refusal to die make him someone you don’t bet against.

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#14: Juggernaut

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Supervillain Origins: Juggernaut (Redux)

Few characters in the Marvel universe are as much of an unstoppable force as the Juggernaut. With a bulky frame hidden underneath an impenetrable body armor, Cain Marko is practically invulnerable, which is great for him, but not so great for his enemies. This isn’t really a character who strategizes in battle, but when you can barrel through walls that’s not an issue. Considering he can withstand the force of a building collapsing on him, his strength goes a long way. And with the help of the Gem of Cyttorak, he even has a healing factor to help him with injuries. It’s probably for the best if you get out of the Juggernaut’s way!

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#13: Black Manta

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Top 10 Black Superheroes

Many threats lay underneath the sea, but one of the most dangerous forces that Aquaman has ever faced has to be Black Manta. At a first glance it might seem like Black Manta is just a guy who wears a tacky suit, but don’t be fooled. Since he was trained to fight by his dad as a child, he has an advanced knowledge of combat. He’s also great with weapons, so much so that he even once took control of Aquaman’s trident! He’s a villain with endless gadgets and an ambition that simply makes him refuse to quit. He might just be a human, but Black Manta has managed to bring the king of Atlantis to his knees on many occasions!

Fueled by anger and bloodlust, Victor Creed proves to be one of Marvel’s most ruthless mutants. His mutant claws allow him the ability to cut through essentially any material. And while that’s kind of what he's known for, he’s also got a lot more that makes him a dangerous brawler. His healing factor allows him to recover from many severe injuries. Which is always great considering how many fights he gets into! What also aids him in fights is the knowledge he has. Sabretooth has been trained by multiple organizations such as Hydra, Weapon X, and the CIA. He might act like a wild animal, but that savagery is what helps him hold his own!

While Wilson Fisk tends to prefer fighting opponents through mental mind games and political maneuvers, this has never stopped him from getting his hands dirty when he has to. Sure Kingpin might not have any powers but that doesn’t stop him from being a dominant fighter. He’s extremely well-trained in martial arts. In fact, he once beat 8 men from the toughest martial arts institutes in less than 20 seconds! And don’t let that fluffy exterior trick you either, nearly Kingpin’s entire body is composed of muscle, meaning he’s freakishly strong. It’s no wonder he’s been such a problem for superheroes like Spider-Man and Daredevil!

A recurring nemesis of Captain America, Brock Rumlow has gone toe to toe with Cap on several occasions, with mixed results. As a teenager, Rumlow ran away from home to train under Taskmaster, and his expert knowledge of weaponry and hand-to-hand combat quickly caught the attention of HYDRA. Given the codename Crossbones, Rumlow’s abilities improved, and he actually defeated the super soldiered Bucky Barnes in one particularly bloody affair. Crossbones excels in marksmanship and strategy as well as martial arts, and he literally laughs in the face of torture. Where all else fails, he has even learned brainwashing, so he has the edge even when he faces a stronger opponent.

As the name suggests, Kraven the Hunter considers himself the world’s greatest big game hunters, but rather than trap or shoot his prey, he prefers to kill dangerously large animals with nothing but his hands. Kraven sees Spider-Man as his greatest challenge yet, and although he usually loses out due to Spidey’s resourcefulness, he is more than a match for the web slinger, Spidey sense and all. Besides being a hunter, Kraven is also a trained mercenary and athlete, and when he took up the Spider-Man mantle to prove himself as superior, he even defeated Vermin, a foe Spider-Man was unable to take down.

There have been many versions of the Shredder over the years, but anyone who can take on four mutant amphibians is generally a pretty skilled fighter. By far the biggest enemy of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the Shredder rose through the ranks of the Foot Clan at a young age, eventually leading the organization into terrorism and assassination. Feared among his peers even before you take into account his spiked helmet and protruding armor, the Shredder has repeatedly overpowered Splinter and the turtles both mentally and physically, with his genius-level manipulation and complete mastery of the martial arts.

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#7: Bullseye

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Supervillain Origins: Bullseye

When it comes to martial arts, Bullseye just comes up short against his arch rival Daredevil, but where he has the edge over the Man Without Fear is in his pinpoint accuracy. From the age of 10, Bullseye was a perfect shot with a rifle, and as an adult, Bullseye has learned to use just about anything as a weapon. A playing card, toothpick and his own tooth are considered deadly weapons to the psychopathic assassin, but he rarely resorts to such measures. Bullseye’s obsessive research of his opponents and part-Adamantium bones are usually enough to defeat anyone who stands in his way.

Though his allegiance has wavered over time, GI Joe ninja Storm Shadow is most commonly known as the bodyguard for terrorist organisation Cobra. Storm Shadow has developed skills beyond those of your average ninja. Sure, being allusive is one thing, but Storm Shadow can climb vertical walls with his bare hands and move at lightning speeds. Where did you think the name came from? He is also a black belt in just about every form of martial arts, while he became virtually intolerant to pain while training under his uncle, and between them they form one of 30 family generations who were trained assassins. Talk about meant to be.

Bane is known for his muscly exterior, and for being the only one of the Dark Knight’s villains to have broken the Bat, but he is a lot more than just raw power. Bane spent time behind bars for crimes his father committed, where he learned to fully understand scientific principles and languages, working out for himself Batman’s secret identity. For a man who outweighs and outthinks the Dark Knight, he is also surprisingly nimble, after being experimented on while he was in prison. Exposed to a mystery drug called Venom, Bane developed enhanced strength, speed and stamina, which make it tricky for Batman to even land a single blow.

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#4: Ra's al Ghul

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The Origins of the Super Skrull

Ra’s al Ghul’s exact age differs with each comic book reboot, but one thing is for sure; he has been training in martial arts, swordsmanship and the mystic arts for centuries. The Demon’s Head of the League of Assassins, Ra’s has a pretty effective anti-aging method in the form of the Lazarus P`it, whose rejuvenating qualities have granted Ra’s near immortality. Primarily a Batman villain, Ra’s once defeated the entire Justice League using Batman’s own techniques, and the so called World’s Greatest Detective learns to respect and even envy Ra’s intelligence and strategy. If not for his dangerous methods, Batman might have stayed well away from this particular enemy.

She is often portrayed as an anti-hero on the silver screen, but comic book Mystique does not have quite so many redeeming factors. One of Magneto’s most trusted sidekicks, Mystique can shapeshift her way to just about anything, and the cells that allow her to transform are multifunctional. She can compress her body to as thin as a piece of paper, making her virtually impossible to hit, and if you do manage to land a blow, she manipulates her organs to ensure it won’t be fatal. Her tissues regenerate so often that she is able to maintain her youth despite being over a hundred years old, and that’s a whole lot of ass-kicking experience.

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#2: Deathstroke

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Deadpool VS Deathstroke

Slade Wilson was a gifted tactician and military leader even before a US army super soldier experiment which left him with heightened strength, speed, healing and endurance. As Deathstroke, he has taken on and beaten Batman, the Green Arrow and the Teen Titans with just one eye, after his wife found out what he had become and shot him. The experiment also granted him the ability to use 90% of his brain power, where a typical human is capable of using just 20, turning his tactical knowhow into tactical genius and turning his opponent’s own moves against them. And just in case you were wondering, he has also mastered just about every martial arts form.

After injecting himself with a modified steroid, Taskmaster unlocked the memory potential in his brain, leaving him able to replicate literally anything he sees. He has used the ability to mimic the athleticism of Black Panther, the martial artistry of Iron Fist, the swordsmanship of Silver Samurai, the archery skills of Hawkeye and even the precise aim of Bullseye. It’s lucky for Marvel’s Greatest Heroes that he is rarely pitted against them, preferring to train criminals for various organizations, as he has never lost a one-on-one fight. Only one character in Marvel is manic enough that Taskmaster can’t predict his next move; and you guessed it: Deadpool.