Gandalf the White vs Darth Sidious (Emperor Palpatine)

Gandalf the White

“No blame to you and no harm done to me.  Indeed my friends, none of you have any weapon that could hurt me.”  -Gandalf the White (to Aragorn, Legolas & Gimli) in The Two Towers

“‘Dangerous!’ cried Gandalf.  ‘And so am I, very dangerous: more dangerous than anything you will ever meet, unless you are brought alive before the seat of the Dark Lord…”  -The Two Towers

Species: Maiar of Valinor in semi-mortal form

Affiliation: Istari

Height: “he seemed the least, less tall than the others” in reference to his stature compared with the other Istari (from Unfinished Tales)

Weapons

--- Magical staff: allows him to use his more powerful magical combat abilities

--- Glamdring: Elven-made sword that glows white near orcs, goblins and demons; inscribed with runes that protect the hands of the wielder if struck during battle

--- Narya: Elven-made Ring of Power, also known as the Ring of Fire; has the power to help resist temptation, tyranny, domination and despair

Abilities

--- Magical telekinesis 

--- Illumination/ Blinding Light – both from his staff and from his person

--- Lightning strike – able to cause a bolt of magical lightning to strike a foe

--- Fire/ heat – able to light objects on fire or make them heat up if not flammable

--- Destructive blast – slamming his staff on the ground and creating a powerful blast of magical energy and white fire (this power destroyed his staff when he battled the Balrog)

--- Magically imbued weapon strength (as demonstrated during his battle with the Balrog when he destroys its giant fire wreathed sword)

--- Magically enhanced persuasive speech

--- Surprising physical strength and speed for appearance

Gandalf's Background

One of the Maiar of Valinor, (Tolkein's version of the Greek Olympus or Norse Asgard,) he originally helped shape the world with the Valar after it was created by the Iluvitar.  Five Maia spirits were chosen to be sent to Middle Earth during the Third Age in the guise of old men, yet wielding powers no man possessed.  In this form they were considerably weakened from their former selves; needing to be sustained by food, shelter and warmth; though they did not age and possessed various degrees of magical powers.  They became the Order of the Istari and thus Olorin became Gandalf (or Mithrandir as the elves called him).  They were sent to aid men and elves in their fight against Sauron, one of the servants of Melkor (also called Morgoth,) but were forbidden to dominate the peoples of Middle Earth or to match Sauron's power with their own.  Gandalf was not as powerful as Saruman (previously Curumo) but when Saruman disobeyed the mandate given by the Valar he was cast out of the order of Istari and forever forbidden from returning to Valinor.  Gandalf sacrificed himself doing his duty to aid the free peoples of Middle Earth in the defeat of Sauron when he fought the Balrog.  When his spirit returned to Valinor after more than 2000 years in Middle Earth, he was warmly received by the Valar.  They chose to send him back with more power than before, and he replaced Saruman as the head of the Order of Istari, though at that point Gandalf was the only one that had stayed true to his mission.  

“‘Yes, I am white now,’ said Gandalf.  ‘Indeed I am Saruman, one might almost say, Saruman as he should have been.’”  -The Two Towers

Tolkien on Faerie and Magic
     Tolkien wrote an essay titled "On Fairy-Stories" basically attempting (though also recognizing it as impossible) to define what a fairy tale is and the necessary elements of the story to be qualified as one.  The realm of faerie is of great importance and within that realm is magic and the use of magic.  Tolkien states, "but it is magic of a peculiar mood and power, at the furthest pole from the vulgar devices of the laborious, scientific, magician. There is one proviso: if there is any satire present in the tale, one thing must not be made fun of, the magic itself. That must in the story be taken seriously, neither laughed at nor explained away."

     He explains that magic cannot be used too frequently because it diminishes the power, respect and allure of it.  Thus in his stories, he limits the use of magic.  He intentionally does not explain Gandalf's powers and does not define their limits.  Again, quoting his essay he says, "faerie cannot be caught in a net of words; for it is one of its qualities to be indescribable, though not imperceptible. It has many ingredients, but analysis will not necessarily discover the secret of the whole."  Understanding this, we realize that while we see Gandalf's powers in the book, we do not truly see his full arsenal of magical powers.

Darth Sidious (Emperor Palpatine)

“Flesh does not easily support this great power!”  -Darth Sidious (about himself)

"The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural." -Darth Sidious

Species: Human

Affiliation: Dark Lord of the Sith/ Galactic Emperor

Height: 5’ 8”

Weapons

--- Crimson bladed lightsaber

Abilities

--- Force Lightning (able to control the level of damage done from almost nothing to near-death)

--- Force Telekinesis

--- Force Storm creation: dark side power that creates hyperspace wormholes able to displace objects across vast distances and tear apart the surfaces of entire planets

--- Force Grip/ Choke

--- Master of all seven forms of lightsaber combat; considered one of the greatest Sith Swordmasters ever

--- Ambidextrous lightsaber fighter

--- Force speed: increased speed of the user enables him to see the world and the entities around him in slow motion, allowing him to dodge attacks easily and attack quicker with greater accuracy

--- Force Flight: power of telekinetic levitation taken to an extreme degree

--- Sith Alchemy: could be used to enhance the strength of objects, genetically engineer living beings to make them more dangerous and easy to control, able to alter image of user perceived by others

--- Transfer spirit/ essence from one body to another: allowed him to survive death on two separate occasions

--- Power to channel the collective life essences of billions to sustain himself

--- Force mind control: more powerful than normal mind tricks, it combined a hypnotic lull with his voice to make even the strong minded-bend to his will

--- Powerful Force seer in his ability to see the future

--- Force Stealth: able to mask alignment with the Force or even the user's Force aptitude from others (and possibly even their presence with enough skill)

On Darth Sidious' powers:

"Upon spending decades immersing himself in the many facets of the Force, it was believed that Palpatine had a mastery over all known powers, previously unknown powers, and could create new abilities on a whim."  -Dark Empire Sourcebook by Michael Horne

The novelization of Revenge of the Sith states that Darth Sidious was the most powerful Sith Lord in the history of the Order.

"Darth Sidious was incredibly skilled in lightsaber combat, one of the greatest duelists of all time."  -Wookieepedia

Darth Maul vs Drizzt Do'Urden - The Breakdown

           Another interesting match up of two similar, yet very different characters.  Both characters are incredibly skilled warriors with a blade and both choose to wield two blades simultaneously.  To better understand the characters and better understand the battle, let’s look at each a little more closely.

            Darth Maul, apprentice to one of the most powerful Sith Lords of all time, was crafted as a weapon with the purpose of bringing down the Jedi Order.  From the time he was a child he received cruel and painful training at the hands of his master and was taught only hatred.  Through his training and due to the natural characteristics of his species, Darth Maul was incredibly resistant to pain.  He was instructed in the ways of the Dark Side of the Force and schooled in many forms of combat.  Maul prided himself in his ability to vanquish his enemies using only his physical prowess in battle.  Though he was a Dark Lord of the Sith and was fully capable of dispatching his enemies with his ability to manipulate the Force, he preferred to use his lightsaber instead.  The skills he possessed made him arrogant, which is what eventually led to his demise at the hands of Obi-Wan Kenobi – not viewing his enemy as a threat once he believed Kenobi defeated.  His arrogance as well as his desire to dominate his enemy without using the Force is what lost him the fight against Drizzt Do’Urden.

            Much like Darth Maul, he was raised in a world of hatred and deceit.  The Drow are a cruel race and Drizzt was raised by his older sister, who beat him regularly for the smallest of infractions.  He was taught to fight by the most skilled weapons master in his home city and eventually surpassed his teacher in his skill with a blade.  When Drizzt was old enough, he attended Melee Magthere, the combat academy of the Drow city, where he was the top ranking student in his class and possibly the most skilled graduate of the school ever.  Despite his cruel upbringing, Drizzt retained a conscience, and eventually fled the harsh world in which he was raised.  After several years spent outside the city in the dangerous passageways of the Underdark, he traveled to the surface with his magical panther Guenhwyvar.  There he became a ranger in the service to the goddess of the woodlands, attempting to rid the world of evil creatures such as orcs, trolls and goblins.

            What makes these characters similar and different is the upbringing they received.  Both were born into and raised in a world of hatred, deceit and evil.  Darth Maul accepted this world as his own because it was virtually the only thing he knew.  Drizzt Do’Urden was shown compassion and even love from Zaknafein Do’Urden, his father and weapons instructor.  This little ray of light in his life saved Drizzt and gave him the strength to flee what he knew was a terrible world rather than to accept his fate and become a part of it.  Does this in any way translate into strength on the battlefield for either of them?  I don’t think it does, or at least isn’t contrastable.  Neither of them gains an advantage over the other from this, but it just makes them more interesting to pit against one another.

            When first looking at the two characters I was completely expecting that Darth Maul would walk away the victor, but after looking into their psyche’s a bit, I began to understand that the way Darth Maul actually died was because of his arrogance, not because Obi-Wan was more powerful.  Even in his battle against two powerful Jedi, Maul barely utilized his impressive arsenal of Force powers.  Despite that, I presume he would use his powers if faced with the need to (assuming he saw the need.)  Thus, having one warrior be able to hold the other in the air and choke him to death did not seem like it would make for a very good pairing.  That was the reason I decided to allow Guenhwyvar as part of Drizzt’s arsenal.  At first it seemed unfair to allow one warrior to essentially be able to add another into the arena on his side, but then I considered that against the advantage of Darth Maul’s Force abilities.  I thought the two powers were close to balancing each other out, though not directly comparable.  The difference was that Drizzt is not opposed to using Guenhwyvar to the cat’s full potential, whereas Maul heavily restricts his use of the Force in combat.  Speaking in terms of skill with a blade, Drizzt is possibly superior, but that would be difficult to say considering the skill Maul possessed with his double-bladed lightsaber, especially when coupled with his use of the Force.

            What puts Drizzt just past Darth Maul and allows him to claim the victory was the state into which he can sink when angered or frightened beyond control, becoming “the Hunter.”  At the absolute apex of his skill, Drizzt is unquestioningly superior in physical combat to Darth Maul and with Maul’s seeming need to finish a fight with only his skill, he underestimates his opponent and ensures his own defeat.

            It made sense to me that Darth Maul would die in this fight in much the same way he did in The Phantom Menace.  Just as Obi-Wan became angered by the death of Qui-Gon Jinn and skirted on the edges of the Dark Side for power against his Sith opponent, so did Drizzt when he believed Guenhwyvar dead.  The anger made them lose control to an extent, while Maul had learned to use his anger and focus it long before.  Thus, Maul gained the upper hand, but in his arrogance believed his enemy defeated and refused to finish them off quickly as he should have.  Had he not had the need to defeat his enemy in physical combat, he would have most certainly been the victor.

Darth Maul vs Drizzt Do'Urden - The Battle

            Drizzt Do’Urden sat at his campsite on the border of the forest overlooking a valley from the top of a cliff face.  He looked out as the sun began to set over the distant mountains and smelled the savory venison cut cooking over his campfire.  He reclined against his pack resting against the ground, but listened intently to all the sounds around him.  Some one – or some thing – had been following him the last several days as he made his way across the landscape.  Earlier he had gotten a glimpse of a robed and hooded figure in the distance before it disappeared into the bush, but he could not tell how large it was, or even what it was for that matter…

            Darth Maul pulled his macrobinoculars up to face and looked towards the edge of the forest.  From the hilltop where he laid on his stomach, he flipped a switch on his macrobinoculars and they switched to heat vision mode.  He saw a bright glow and noticed a somewhat lesser glow right next to it – his prey next to a fire.  He stood up and walked back to his speeder bike and hopped on…

            Drizzt heard a strange humming sound far off that seemed to grow louder rather quickly.  He wondered if it was the creature that was following him.  He stood up quickly, walked to the edge of the forest, crouched low and pulled the hood of his green cloak over his head.  He watched a trail of dust rising across the scrublands before him, getting closer, fast…

            Maul’s speeder crested the last hill and came to the edge of the forest just seconds later.  He jumped off, high into the air and twisted once before landing right in the middle of the sparse campsite.  He immediately scanned around him, not seeing anyone right away.  He closed his eyes and reached out with the Force…

            Drizzt watched in amazement as the hooded figure jumped high into the air off the loud and strange looking beast it rode and spun before landing on his feet.  The creature looked around but did not see Drizzt crouched in the bushes.  The creature pulled back his hood and Drizzt stared in astonishment at the creature.  He did not know what it was, but it certainly looked evil.  He did not want to judge the nature of the creature too quickly, for he too was feared merely when sighted by most others.  He couldn’t be too cautious either – the horns on his head and the red and black markings all over the creature’s face were very sinister looking.  He notched an arrow onto his bow, took aim and slowly stood up…

            Maul sensed the movement right ahead of him through the Force and opened his eyes.  He stood looking as the silhouette of a figure pointing a bow at him slowly rose from the bushes.  For a second he contemplated his prey and then raised his arm, pointing it at his target and fired the lanvarok on his forearm, the disc flying away…

            Drizzt saw the disc flying at him and tucked and rolled to the side as it flew at him.  He recovered to a standing position to see a second disc flying at him, but could tell it was off its mark and he did not need to move to avoid it and simultaneously raised his bow at his opponent.  The disc suddenly changed direction and he barely moved his head aside in time.  The flying disc scraped along his cheek and sliced his ear nearly in half.  He fired his bow; his arrow was true and went straight for his enemy’s heart…

            Maul sensed the arrow coming at him and clapped his hands together and caught it just before it would have slammed into his chest.  He let the arrow fall to the ground and threw off his cloak; it would only slow him down.  He pulled out his lightsaber and sprang at the elf, igniting his weapon in mid-air…

            Drizzt threw down his apparently useless bow and drew both of his scimitars as his opponent made an impossibly long jump towards him.  He dove out of the bushes and rolled into a crouched position.  His enemy landed just feet from him.  He quickly surveyed his opponent’s weapon.  It seemed like some kind of magical sword where the enchanted and glowing blades sprang out from both sides of the long hilt in the middle.  He had never seen anything like it and hoped his own weapons would be strong enough to defend against it…

            Maul spun his lightsaber in a whirring motion above his head as he stepped towards his enemy.  The energy beam smashed into the dark elf’s scimitar but did not slice it in half as he expected it would.  These were no ordinary weapons this warrior carried.  The other scimitar came at him blindingly fast and the other beam of his lightsaber barely moved fast enough to deflect it.  He stepped back to recover himself, understanding his enemy better and giving him the respect he should have from the beginning.  He lunged at his enemy again, this time ready for battle…

            Drizzt twirled his swords blindingly fast, weaving them together gracefully for perfect attacks that were blocked and countered every time.  The Gods would have stared in wonder at the speed at which the two opponents fought.  Both warriors were at the limit of their skills, every attack in their arsenals were used up.  Drizzt’s enemy jumped away and Drizzt was grateful for the respite.  He used the opportunity to cast both of his spells upon his enemy, simultaneously covering him in harmless purple flames and surrounding him in a sphere of complete darkness.  His enemy jumped back in fear, but quickly recovered himself.  Drizzt could only see the purple flames surrounding his enemy, not his enemy himself, but watched as his enemy raised an arm in his direction…

            Maul reached out with the Force, finding his target and then sent him flying backwards.  He slammed into a tree and slid down, dropping both scimitars.  Darth Maul charged toward him with only the Force to guide his movements.  He sensed the danger and dived sideways as the dagger spun through the air towards him.  He had not reacted fast enough and the blade sunk into his flesh just below his collarbone.  He tore it out and threw it back at his now standing opponent, who casually flicked his sword and knocked it from the air.  Maul growled in anger and raised his arm again, this time unleashing a barrage of Force lightning upon his enemy…

            Drizzt had never felt pain like it before.  It was as if every inch of his body was being stabbed over and over again.  He writhed on the ground in agony, not seeing anything but a blinding blue light.  It stopped almost as suddenly as it began and Drizzt opened his eyes to see the purple outline of his enemy flying through the air towards him, red-blades prepared to strike.  He felt one of his scimitars lying on the ground next to him and picked it up as he rolled out of the way of his enemy’s blade.  He swung his sword at the Sith’s legs, but he jumped over the blade.  From the ground Drizzt blocked several attacks and then landed a kick behind his enemy’s knee, knocking him off balance…

            He felt his knee give way under him and Maul took several steps forward to stop himself from falling over.  He turned around, still unable to see, but sensed the presence of his enemy and swung his lightsaber in time to catch the attack just before it would have struck his neck.  He countered and his blade cut into the elf’s leg just above his knee.  It was not a deep cut and would not bleed since it had been instantly cauterized, but it would still hurt.  The elf stumbled backwards slightly and Maul unleashed another barrage of Force lightning.  It hit his enemy square in the chest, sending him flying backwards onto the ground.  Maul let the electricity flow from his fingertips for a few more seconds and then stopped.  He did not want to kill his enemy this way; he wanted to defeat him in physical combat…

            The dark elf rolled over and groaned.  He felt drained of energy, but knew he was fighting for his life and quickly stood up, gripping his scimitars.  The small cut on his knee was in pain, but he ground his teeth and stood up.  To his amazement, his enemy was standing, with a twisted smile on his face, apparently waiting for Drizzt to rise.  He took up a fighting stance as his opponent dashed at him.  He swung his sword Twinkle in an arc and connected with the incoming blade, then swung Icingdeath towards the torso of the Sith Lord.  His blade was parried again and he spun away from his opponent, but quickly lunged back at him, both swords swinging at different parts of his enemy – one at his head, one at his chest.  Instead of being blocked by blades he felt himself fly backwards again as his enemy stretched out his hand…

            The spells Drizzt had cast wore off and Maul watched as his enemy flew backwards and slammed into the ground, sliding on his back for a few yards before coming to a halt in the dirt.  He could feel the anger rise in himself.  His opponent was the most skilled swordsman he had ever fought, besides his own Master.  He was not able to block the last move his enemy tried, so he sent him flying instead, but he did not like it.  He wanted to prove he was the better swordsman and resolved himself to limit his use of the Force in the fight only to when it was necessary.  His enemy pulled something from a pouch and whispered something to it.  A cloud of swirling black smoke suddenly appeared in front of him, and for a second Maul thought his enemy was using magic to escape.  Then from nowhere an enormous black panther appeared and looked sideways at Maul, taking him in.  It raised its hackles at him and let out a ferocious snarl, and lowered its body as if preparing for battle…

            Drizzt stood up behind Guenhwyvar, and gazed into the eyes of his opponent.  He hoped the appearance of the mighty panther might be enough to discourage his opponent from continuing the battle, but he did not really hold out much hope for this possibility.  His opponent raised his hand again and Drizzt was afraid he was about to receive another barrage of lightning or a push backwards.  He felt the air around him seem to move or sway in some way, but nothing happened.  His enemy gave a look of surprise that slowly twisted into a gruesome smile.  Then he lunged forward in a high arc and Guenhwyvar jumped to meet him…

            Maul flew through the air and watched as the powerful cat jumped at him, maw agape and claws extended.  He rotated in mid-air, just over the cat’s head as it tried to swipe at him.  His lightsaber blades made contact with the cat’s back as he came around, leaving deep gouges along his flank.  Once he landed, his lightsaber blades met the blindingly fast scimitars of Drizzt Do’Urden.  The blades twirled and slammed against one another and suddenly Maul felt a blade slice his arm and leave a gash beneath his bicep.  It was an odd sensation: the pain from the blade felt like a normal cut at first, but then suddenly felt as if there was ice against the wound.  It transformed from a feeling of coolness to one of somebody pressing a chunk of frozen snow very hard against his arm.  The great cat was bounding towards him, snarling as it came, and he reached out with the Force as it leaped into the air…

            Drizzt again felt the sensation of being flung as if by an invisible hand and then felt a huge mass slam into him.  He hit the ground and spots of blackness interrupted his vision and then the weight came down on top of him.  He felt the air being pressed from his lungs and felt the pain from the gashes that had been torn into his side. Guenhwyvar quickly rolled off of him and he gasped for air as his vision began to return.  The great cat hissed and snarled beside him.  He sensed his friend did not want to leave his side until he recovered and he appreciated that…

            Drizzt slowly stood up behind the massive black beast and Maul watched with pleasure as his enemy appeared to be struggling to stand.  He was glad he had not had that cat just take him down; it looked painful.  The dark elf patted the panther on the back and it sprang at Darth Maul again.  He waited until the cat was right in front of him and then sidestepped, swinging his lightsaber as he did so.  The blade sliced along the side of the cat’s face and neck.  The cat stopped just ahead of him and began to turn around.  Maul was much smaller and spun quicker, plunging his blade into Guenhwyvar’s stomach.  He pulled it out and plunged it in again right next to the first wound.  The cat let out a sound that was halfway between a growl and a whimper.  It reached out with its giant paw and swung it around, slicing open Maul’s back and sending him flying at the same time…

            Drizzt watched in horror as his friend was stabbed twice in the abdomen, swatted away the evil creature that did it and then collapsed onto its side.  He rushed forward and knelt beside his friend, stroking his hand along the spine of the great cat.  It whimpered and purred at the same time, resting its wounded head on the ground and taking rapid wheezy breaths.  Drizzt felt the anger rise up in him.  He stood and turned on the spot, drawing his dagger.  He sighted his enemy, rising and clutching his back.  He threw the dagger through the air and as he turned it sunk into the flesh of his enemy’s pelvis, just where it joins the leg.  His enemy grimaced and fell over.  Drizzt picked up his swords from where he had laid them on the ground and rushed towards his downed enemy…

            Maul pulled the dagger from his pelvis and looked up to see the dark figure of the elf barreling towards him.  He raised his arm and let out a barrage of Force lightning, knocking his opponent to the ground.  Maul began to rise and saw his opponent running at him again already.  He ignited his lightsaber blades, but knew with his new wounds, he could not likely compete with the elf in direct battle.  He reached out with the Force and grabbed the elf, swinging his arm over his head in an arc and watched as the elf followed through the air.  There was a dull thud when Drizzt slammed into the ground.  Maul picked him up again and gripped him in mid air, then focused on the dark elf’s neck, slowly constricting it.  He watched as Drizzt squirmed in the air, legs flailing as he clutched his neck, trying futilely to break free of the hold.  Maul watched with pleasure as his enemy writhed, gasping for air.  Maul wanted to make him struggle a bit, allowing him enough air to breath a little, but he could feel his victim slowly slipping towards unconsciousness.  Then he felt a presence behind him and looked back just in time to see the great panther leap at him.  He was forced to drop his hold on Drizzt to get out of the way of the incoming panther…

            Drizzt fell back to the ground clutching his throat.  He was gasping for air, but looked up to see his enemy recovering from his dodge out of the way of the path of Guenhwyvar.  The cat was very visibly struggling to stand, but managed another jump at the black and red tattooed creature.  Drizzt again watched in horror as his enemy sidestepped the cat’s attack and thrust his blade into the side of the immense panther. Guenhwyvar collapsed as he pulled his blade out of the cat’s chest and disappeared in a cloud of swirling smoke.  Anger welled up inside Drizzt Do’Urden past the point of control and he let in the Hunter…

            Unexpectedly, Darth Maul was struck by a presence of absolute hatred and anger, something he had only felt once before.  He could sense that his foe was suddenly more dangerous than before and knew he needed to end this fight quickly if he was to survive.  He raised his arm and released a barrage of Force lightning.  It hit Drizzt full on, but to Maul’s amazement the elf kept running at him.  When Drizzt reached him, their blades connected and sparks exploded where the blades connected.  The hum of the lightsaber and the whir of scimitars was music to the ears of any master swordsman, the two great warriors locked in mortal combat…

            Drizzt barely knew what he was doing; the anger in him was so powerful.  It was almost as if he were detached from what his body was doing.  Twinkle arced down and sliced through the hilt of his enemy’s weapon as his kick hit Maul in the chest.  His enemy fell backwards and Drizzt lunged, but was sent backwards in mid air by the invisible hand.  He went nearly straight up into the air and then fell back toward the ground.  The evil creature was already standing when Drizzt landed back on both feet.  Twinkle flew from his hand as the lightsaber struck it.  Drizzt swung Icingdeath at his opponent and it was deflected.  Both warriors moved with astounding speed and the series of thrusts, parries, slashes and dodges that followed were incredible to behold.  Drizzt swung his sword at Maul’s side and underneath the parry Maul used.  He doubled back and sliced the hilt of the sword where the blade met it and the glowing red blade disappeared…

            Darth Maul jumped backwards in surprise as his enemy completely disarmed him.  Maul did not fear his opponent.  A Sith does not have fear, he told himself.  Drizzt swung the sword and Maul moved with incredible speed as he jumped forward and grabbed his enemy’s sword arm.  He twisted, rotating behind Drizzt’s back, manipulating the joint until the elf dropped the sword.  Maul twisted again and broke the elbow at the same time he low kicked, taking Drizzt’s feet out from under him.  The Drow lay on the ground in front of him, his sword lying on the ground a few feet behind his head.  Maul extended his hand towards the sword, using the Force to call it to him…

            The reflexes of the Hunter caused Drizzt to reach into the air with his good arm as the sword flew over his head.  He caught it and sitting up as he did so, swung and sliced it through both shins of his enemy.  As his enemy was falling to the ground, the sword was already twirling around and came down with a thud just after the Sith Lord hit the ground.  The horned head rolled twice before resting in the dust…

            Drizzt limped back to his campfire, pulled out the figurine from his pouch and inspected it.  It did not appear to be damaged and he smiled.  He sat down and leaned against his pack.  He pulled the venison from the fire and sank his teeth into the juicy and delicious meat, as the sun disappeared beyond the horizon.

Darth Maul vs Drizzt Do'Urden

Darth Maul

Species: Zabrak

Home planet: Dathimor

Affiliation: Dark Lord of the Sith

Height: 5’9”

Weapons

--- Double-bladed crimson lightsaber

--- Sith Lanvarok

Abilities

--- Force telekenisis

--- Force lightning

--- Resistance to force lightning

--- Force choke/grip

--- Force assisted jump

--- Force mind control

--- Teras Kasi master - “Steel Hand” martial art

--- Master of Niman – Form VI lightsaber combat

--- Master of Jar’Kai lightsaber technique - dual wielding

--- Master of Juyo – Form VII lightsaber combat

--- Master of Sith lanvarok

--- Top physical condition

--- Incredible resistance to pain – both from training and naturally from species

           

           

Drizzt Do’Urden

Species: Drow Elf

Home city: Menzoberranzan (city in the Underdark of Faerun)

Affiliation: Drow warrior / Ranger in the service to Mielikki, the Goddess of Nature

Height: 5’4”

Weight: 130 lbs

Weapons

--- Icingdeath: scimitar with the power of ice and cold, enchanted to keep its diamond edge always sharp and to make it more likely to strike true

--- Twinkle: elf-made scimitar enchanted to make its edge reform after strikes, making it always sharp; enchantment also makes it more likely to strike its target and defend against opponents’ strikes more effectively

--- Three daggers – one in each boot, one horizontally on belt behind back

--- Longbow with quiver of arrows

Armor

--- Dwarven-crafted mithral chainmail armor – twice as strong as steel and half the weight

--- Bracers of the Blinding Strike – ankle bracelets that magically increase foot speed

Abilities

--- Globe of Darkness spell – able to place a sphere of complete darkness around any object or creature and follows the object or creature if it moves

--- Faerie’s Fire spell – a harmless glow of purple flames surrounds an object or creature, illuminating it in the darkness or if it becomes invisible

--- Infravision/ Darkvision – power to see in complete non-magical induced darkness

--- Master in the art of dual wielding

--- Master of thrown weapons

--- Well-trained archer

--- Top physical condition

--- Incredibly fast reflexes and nimbleness of Elven species

--- “the Hunter” – an almost bestial state in which anger and instinct take over and Drizzt barely has control of his actions.  When he does this, he is at the apex of his potential, but he does not like to fall into this state for fear of what he will become

Guenhwyvar

--- Giant black panther (600 lbs) called from another plane of existence by speaking its name aloud to the small figurine Drizzt carries in a pouch

--- Invulnerable to magical attacks

--- Can only spend six hours every two days on our plane of existence

--- Can heal from practically any injury when returned to its own plane of existence for long enough

Batman vs Boba Fett - The Breakdown

    I chose this as the first fight for two reasons.  The first is a great appreciation for both characters in their respective series and the second is the uniqueness of the match up itself.  The two characters are extremely similar in many ways but there are a few fundamental differences that separate them, making Boba Fett and Batman possibly the best match up I could dream up.
    Let’s look at Batman first.  Batman is the secret identity of the man Bruce Wayne, who uses his alter ego to fight crime in his home city of Gotham (and sometimes beyond.)  Bruce Wayne came from a wealthy background, but was struck by tragedy early in life when a thief gunned down his parents right before his eyes.  As he grew older he was trained as a ninja and became a highly skilled detective.  With his vast fortune he was able to acquire all the necessary equipment, armor and weapons he needed to become the worst nightmare of all the criminals poisoning the city he called home.
    Despite his zealous quest to fight crime in the city and his often brutal nature, he never stooped to the level of killing criminals if he could help it.  He believed in justice as the law dictated it, wanting to be more than just a hyped-up vigilante.  He never let his horrific introduction with crime destroy him, though it certainly must have darkened his heart a bit and formed him into the man he became.
    One trait that also sets Bruce Wayne (Batman) apart from others is his intelligence.  Batman is perhaps the most skilled detective ever seen in fiction.  He uses logical reasoning and deduction to help him solve crimes.  His understanding of how people behave and think allows him to gain insight into the minds of his opponents and often allows him to stay several steps ahead of his enemy.  Coupled with his physical prowess and extensive monetary assets, his intellect makes him what Superman dubs, “The most dangerous man on Earth.”
    Batman is often lumped into the category of superheroes, though he technically has no super powers and is thus not a superhero.  He would more appropriately be called a masked- or costumed-crime fighter.  While he is indeed very smart, very rich, and one of the most skilled hand-to-hand combat fighters ever to walk this planet, he is still an ordinary human being.  I would argue this makes him far more interesting.  He is a more entertaining character to follow because he has human weaknesses and could theoretically be killed by anyone.  Not only this, but this mortal man often goes toe-to-toe with characters that do possess super powers and is victorious more often than not.  He once very nearly beat the Man of Steel (Superman) in single combat – now that’s saying something.
    Boba Fett on the other hand is a cold-hearted killer.  An unaltered clone of the notorious bounty hunter Jango Fett, he was trained by his father during the first ten years of his life on the necessary skills of a Mandalorian warrior.  The Mandalorians were considered to be one of the most, if not the most, elite warrior societies known in the Star Wars Universe.  His training was quite literally cut short by the lightsaber of Mace Windu as it lopped off his father’s head in a pitched battle on Geonosis.  Just like Bruce Wayne, Fett watched the death of his only parent as a child; though unlike Wayne, he had nobody to turn to and was forced into a cruel world alone at a very young age.  He did the only thing he knew and became a bounty hunter.
    His hatred for the Jedi after his father’s death flowed through his veins.  As a teenager he learned from experience what combat was like and due to his youth was unable to physically compete with many opponents, thus he discovered that it was often easier to outsmart your enemies than to attempt to engage them in combat.  Just like Bruce Wayne, his intelligence became perhaps his most powerful weapon.  As he grew older though, he did become an incredibly skilled and dangerous warrior, firmly upholding the title of the Mandalorians.
    As an intelligent and deadly warrior, Fett began to hunt down and kill beings with powers equitable to superheroes – the Jedi.  He collected several lightsaber trophies from Jedi he dispatched and even went as far as to practice enough with them to develop some skills, despite his lack of any Force abilities.  At one point in his career Fett entered into single combat with none other than Darth Vader.  Considering the number of enemies that have fallen victim to Vader, one would expect a mere bounty hunter would stand no chance.  Fett very nearly defeated Vader, and in fact could have, but chose not to fire his weapon at the last second because of the aggravation he thought it would cause him when the Empire discovered who Vader’s killer was.  Fett then kicked the cask they had been fighting over into a river of lava, depriving Vader of his goal.  Darth Vader never forgot that fight and granted Fett a respect he reserved for very few others in the galaxy.
    During his career, Fett went on to hunt down and either kill or capture more beings than probably anyone else before or after him.  One of his favorite methods of disposal was the use of a Disruptor, which breaks down objects to a molecular level – in essence, disintegrating them.  Fett was a brutal and effective killer in every way.  The only mark ever able to escape him several times was Han Solo, though he was able to detain and deliver him to Jabba the Hutt the very first time he was sent to capture him.  At one point, Fett broke into an Imperial bunker and single handedly wiped out an entire battalion of stormtroopers.  Through his work as a highly paid bounty hunter, he amassed a fortune greater than that of some small planets and was able to put this to use on many of his jobs in the form of equipment, weapons and armor (just as Batman did.)

    After looking at the two characters more closely, it is easy to see that in many ways they are almost the same character.  One of the big differences is their level of brutality.  Batman refused to kill his enemies, believing that detaining them and sending them through a fair justice system was preferable and more honorable.  Boba Fett on the other hand was more than willing to kill his victims (and to do it solely for profit.)
    In many ways, that fact alone is why Fett won the battle; he came into the match prepared to kill.  His weapons and equipment were designed with the purpose of killing in mind and he is armed to the teeth in almost every way one could think of.  There is also the fact that the weapons he brought to the fight were vastly superior from a technological standpoint.  Batman’s weapons were instead designed to harm an opponent, and could possibly kill if used correctly.  I say 'could kill' because his weapons have the potential to kill but are virtually useless against an adversary as heavily armored as Fett was – it’s like shooting a slingshot at a knight in full plate armor.  Fett’s choice of armaments had no problem blasting through Batman’s armor, but Batman’s deadliest weapons were barely capable of putting a scratch in his enemy’s.
    To make the fight a bit more entertaining (and a little closer to fair), I left out the use of Fett’s Disruptor rifle.  I figured having Batman get vaporized at the outbreak of the battle would not be as interesting and would inherently prohibit the showcasing of the rest of their arsenals and how they would match up against each other.  I also gave Batman every single weapon or gadget he has used, despite that he could not realistically carry all of the equipment I gave him.  (But who cares since it’s all made up anyways, right?)
    Obviously there are people out there who will whole-heartedly disagree with my conclusion – especially big Batman fans.  I feel I should remind readers that I hold both of these characters in very high regard.  Batman is unquestionably the most interesting ‘superhero’ in my mind and Boba Fett the coolest character in Star Wars.  I did my best not to favor one character over the other and attempted to look at the facts and the history of both characters as objectively as possible before determining whom the winner of the fight would be.

Batman vs Boba Fett - The Battle

    Batman crouches inside the twenty-second level of a building under construction in the city of Gotham.  There is a loud roar and a rumble as the building shakes and dust falls from the ceiling.  Batman switches on his infrared vision and is able to tell there is a large source of heat now resting atop the building.  He sits silently; waiting in the darkness for whatever or whomever just sent all the dust into the air…
    Boba Fett lands Slave I atop a building in the city of Gotham and descends the ramp onto the rooftop.  He looks around, his scanners whirring with information about this new environment.  He picks up a life reading only five floors below, believing he has found his assassination target: the Batman…
    Batman knows that the city’s mob bosses hired a particularly deadly mercenary to hunt him down and kill him.  He knows little about his new opponent, though he heard his adversary’s technology might be even more advanced than his own.  Batman is not worried though; he does not fear this new enemy, knowing he has defeated many worthy opponents in the past.  Suddenly his infrared vision picks up a new signal descending through the building and he hears a roar of thrusters.  When it ceases, on the floor above him he can see the outline of a human figure, the heat of a jetpack still glowing on its back…
    Fett walks over to the staircase-to-be and looks down the twenty seven-story long hole.  He thinks about what the crime lords of the city told him about his prey.  He knows his target is unparalleled in hand-to-hand combat ability and heard stories of his lightning speed and brute strength.  His strategy is to not let the masked warrior get within physical striking range and to take him out from a distance.  He does not fear his opponent, but still fully respects the abilities he is rumored to possess.  He jumps down the hole, igniting his jetpack to slow him down and lands on the floor above his target.  The bounty hunter targets the vigilante in his helmet and raises his arm, taking aim at the floor directly above his target.  The missile fires and launches from his wrist, speeding towards the ground and exploding against the concrete just above Batman’s head…
    The streak of light seen through the infrared goggles alerts the Caped Crusader of what is about to happen.  The explosion shakes the building as Batman rolls and dives across the floor, away from the flying concrete that lands where he had only just been crouching.  He spins around onto his back just in time to see his adversary drop through the hole in the ceiling.  A barrage of fire issues from his gun and Batman rolls out of the way just in time.  He throws a Batarang that hits his opponent squarely in the face.  The clang of the thrown weapon on his enemy’s helmet echoes throughout the building.  Batman pulls out his grappling gun as he jumps back onto his feet and takes aim through the darkness…
    Fett recoils slightly from the clash of metal against his helmet.  He aims his blaster rifle once again and fires.  Just as he does so, he feels the pull of a rope around his feet as Batman dives out of the way of his shot again.  His world twirls as he falls to the ground and onto his back.  By the time he looks up, his adversary is already racing towards him.  He attempts to fire another shot as he rolls, but it soars just over his attacker’s head.  Batman flies through the air and his knees and arm slam against the ground where Fett had just been lying, cracking the concrete.  Sensing the next oncoming attack, Fett raises his arm to block Batman’s swing, but his blaster rifle takes the hit instead.  It is flung out of his grasp and across the floor, far beyond his reach.  Batman’s next punch hits him directly on the side of his helmet and the computer displays in his helmet flicker from the impact…
    Having delivered a powerful blow to Fett’s head, Batman raises his other arm to strike his opponent’s chest with the hope of cracking a few ribs underneath his body armor.  As his arm begins to come down, he feels a sharp pain on his side as he is knocked over.  As Fett’s knee had collided with his lower back, he simultaneously launched an explosive dart from his kneepad only inches from Batman’s armor.  As Batman takes the blow and rolls to a standing position he feels the burns now on his back singe with pain.  He grits his teeth, crouches down and reaches for his utility belt…
    Fett knows he has injured his opponent, but also knows it is not enough to give him any real advantage in the fight.  He springs to his feet and draws his blaster pistol with one swift motion.  He aims down the site and fires, again only just missing the other combatant.  Another shuriken comes flying through the air and this time manages to hit Fett in an area where his armor is not as thick.  It slices open the back of his gloved hand before hitting his wrist guard and bouncing off, sliding along the floor.  He drops his pistol as the blade slices his tendon, causing his finger to jerk.  Suddenly, a blast of light and loud bang go off directly in front of him.  His helmet is unable to compensate for the abrupt change of light quickly enough and his worldview becomes drastically brighter…
    The flash-bang grenade goes off exactly as Batman hopes and with his eyes covered, the grenade has no effect on him.  He raises his head to see his opponent look around, apparently dazed.  He does not know if his enemy’s helmet saved his vision from the blast, but he sees a momentary hesitation and rushes to take advantage of it.  Within a second he is leaping towards his opponent and delivers a flying kick into his chest.  Fett is hurled by the impact and slams against the ground, sent skidding across the cement floor.  Batman leaps forward again, hoping to strike his enemy with a more powerful blow in a less protected area.  Midway there, the man sprawled on the ground swings his arm up and sprays out a cone of fire.  Batman spins around, using his cape to protect himself from the flames.  The heat against his back is intense as the flames lick around him.  He tucks and rolls away to regain a better tactical position…
    The fire emitting from his wrist only just saved him and Fett realizes this fight needs to end quickly if he hopes to escape without any further injuries.  As his opponent retreats to outside the range of his flamethrower, he douses the erupting flames.  The bounty hunter returns to a standing position and for a moment the two combatants lock into one another’s gazes, as Fett’s vision returns to normal.  Each is completely still, waiting to see what the other will do.  Again, Fett raises his arm and fires a shot from the blaster mounted on his wrist gauntlet.  The first one blows a hole in Batman’s cape, but misses as he dives to the side. Fett’s next shot finally makes contact with his opponent.  The blast hits Batman in the shoulder and he stumbles backward slightly…
    The pain is intense as the shot connects with his shoulder.  His armor dampened the blast, but Batman understands his opponent’s technology is superior to his own.  These are no ordinary firearms he is fighting with.  Batman also knows that this is no ordinary assassin, but one much more skilled in the art of combat than is traditionally sent his way.  He grabs a smoke grenade from his belt and pulls the pin, dropping it at his feet as he spins around.  He sprints for the edge of the building at top speed and leaps off the edge into the night…
    The smoke grenade Batman laid at his feet does nothing to Fett’s view of him.  His helmet tracks him as he spins and begins running for the edge of the building.  Fett reacts with superb reflexes and begins sprinting after his opponent.  He watches as Batman hurdles off the edge of the building and begins to drop towards the ground.  Before Fett even reaches the edge, he sees Batman gliding away, his cape extended out like a hang glider.  As Fett reaches the edge and jumps outwards, he ignites his jetpack and instantly begins gaining distance on his opponent gliding away towards a lower rooftop…
    Batman is gliding silently through the darkness when he hears the roar of the jetpack again.  He judges the growing volume and turns sharply at exactly the right moment and watches his opponent zoom narrowly past him.  He looks sideways as Fett banks and turns towards him.  The bounty hunter raises his arm up again and fires several shots at Batman, who instantly folds in his wings, tucking into a dive for a few meters to avoid the shots.  Once again spreading his wings to continue to glide, Batman quickly looks around, attempting to relocate Fett.  The roar is suddenly in his ears as he feels the mass of a fast moving object strike him.  Fett has grabbed onto him and the combined weight causes the wings of his cape to fly upward like an umbrella in an intense gale…
    Fett clings to Batman from behind as the two freefall towards the ground.  Batman’s elbow slams into his side and the two begin to spin as they plummet towards the ground.  Fett slams his helmet against the back of Batman’s head and feels the vibration from the reinforced neck brace in the Batsuit.  He feels himself flung from Batman’s back as the fist flies next to Batman’s head and over his shoulder to collide with his own helmet.  Batman’s cape again goes rigid and fills with air, but the speed of the fall is too great for him to sufficiently slow down enough before smashing into the ground.  Boba reignites his jetpack and the intense power is enough to allow him to land squarely upright on the ground…
    Batman collides with the ground but has his fall broken by a parked car.  The roof slams inward and the windows shatter, sending shards of glass in all directions.  He groans in pain and can taste blood in his mouth.  He rolls over and sees Fett land gracefully across the street.  He quickly hops off the car and onto the pavement, feeling a throbbing pain as he does so in his ribs, at least one of which is probably broken.  His leg is also in pain, but he limps only slightly as he spreads his legs for balance.  He cracks his neck and moves into a fighting stance, waiting to see what his opponent will do next…
    Fett looks at Batman, knowing he must be in great physical pain and is impressed by his enemy’s resolve.  He stares for a moment to see if he can detect a weakness, but his opponent shows no signs of pain.  Fett locks onto the smashed car sitting behind Batman with his rangefinder and fires his homing missile mounted on his jetpack.  Batman looks up as it flies away from Fett’s back and spins down toward him.  He dives away from the car, but the size of the explosion flings him forward, slamming him onto his back and across the wet pavement…
    Fett takes a step toward his motionless opponent lying on the ground.  Suddenly, Batman rolls over and throws a line around Fett’s feet and pulls.  Batman sees his adversary’s feet fly into the air and watches as he slams onto the ground.  He then sends an electric current through the cord and Fett shakes violently from the shock and then goes limp.  Batman stands, wary in case his foe is playing a trick.  He stays crouched until enough time passes that he believes his opponent to be unconscious.  He pulls the handcuffs from his utility belt and steps toward the comatose figure.  As looks carefully once more to be sure this is no ploy, and begins bending over the body.  He clasps one wrist into the handcuffs and grabs the other…
    Fett lies silently motionless, pretending to be out cold as Batman locks the first cuff around his wrist.  Sensing his moment of opportunity as Batman reaches for the other, he swings his arm forward, grabbing Batman’s wrist instead.  He pulls the surprised vigilante towards him as he lifts his legs, still bound together, and drives a powerful kick into Batman’s abdomen.  He then swings his legs and hits Batman at the knees, knocking him to the ground.  Fett rolls the other direction as Batman stumbles and falls to the pavement.  Fett reaches down and pulls off the cord wrapped around his ankles as Batman recovers from the hit and is again on his feet…
    Batman reaches down and pulls from his belt an oddly shaped metal box.  He hastily unfolds it with expert hands into a gun shaped object.  He raised it at Fett, but holds his fire.  He squints at his enemy and speaks.
    “Leave now and no more harm will come to you; but stay and you will force me to break my only rule,” he says in a gravely voice.
    “You will die tonight.  You can be sure of that,” Fett replies.
    “There is no need for this fight.  I have no quarrel with you.  Why don’t we both just walk away?” Batman asks.
    “You cannot be serious?  You are nearly defeated.  I will have your head before the night is over,” Fett proclaims.
    “Fine!” yells Batman as he fires his weapon.
    Fett dives sideways as a blast of foam shoots past him.  He rolls into a crouching position and raises his arm to spray his flamethrower, but a blast of foam hits him directly in the chest, knocking him backwards with enough force to land him on his back once again.  Though Batman is slowed by his multiple injuries, Fett sees him quickly soaring through the air.  Fett extends the vibroblades from his wrist gauntlets and only narrowly blocks Batman’s spiked forearm from colliding with his face.  Their forearms locked together, Fett punches Batman in the gut and has the gesture immediately returned.  Fett rolls over, putting Batman on the bottom of the scuffle and slams his helmet into Batman’s face…
    The blow to his face jars the caped warrior and he feels his nose begin to bleed.  As Fett takes another jab at his torso, Batman reaches up and grabs his arm right on the bicep, stopping the blow from landing.  He then squeezes tightly and flings the mercenary off of him and against the parked car, causing the alarm to begin blaring.  He rises to his feet again just ahead of his opponent and delivers a powerful punch to the helmet of Boba Fett.  The blow actually lifts Fett off his feet and sends him crashing into the parked car again, his jetpack smashing the driver’s window…
    Reeling from the mighty blow delivered to his face, Fett looks up in time to see Batman’s leg coming in for a kick.  He catches the leg enough to slow the blow, but not to stop it and he slams into the car again.  He feels Batman grab his arm and swing him around.  The kick delivered to his back and the simultaneous pull on his arm force his shoulder to dislocate as he flies through the air and lands face first on the pavement.  The pain is incredible as the energy of hitting the ground shoves his joint back into place…
    Batman swoops down and grabs his opponent’s helmet and smashes the face into the ground repeatedly.  He hears the faceplate crack and then punches the back of his opponent’s head for good measure.  Suddenly, his opponent’s uninjured hand is reaching back and grasps his neck.  With surprising strength his foe pulls him forward, over his own head, landing Batman on his back.  He rolls over and still in the process of standing up, slams his body into Fett’s, sending them both hurtling to the ground…
    Slamming into the ground, Fett aims a punch at his face, but Batman’s agility allows him to counter the blow, grabbing Fett around the wrist.  Batman slams his arm down and Fett lets out a yell of pain as his adversary further strains his injured arm.  He sees Batman pull something from his utility belt and catches a glint in the moonlight as he raises it above him.  Fett reacts quickly enough and swats the tranquilizer dart from Batman’s grip.  He looks at the Batman through his cracked faceplate and swings his good arm up at Batman’s face.  As expected, his opponent catches his arm, but this time, Fett’s arm is strong enough to hold back Batman.  He struggles for a few seconds until his arm is perfectly aligned and then with a smile under his cracked visor, he unleashes a blast from his wrist-mounted flamethrower right into Batman’s face…
    For a second, he doesn’t know what is happening, and then he feels the intense heat and unbearable pain as the flames cover the unprotected part of his face.  He falls backwards onto the ground, clutching his charred flesh in anguish.  The fire must have damaged the lenses on his cowl too because his vision is completely warped.  He breathes and feels a sharp pain in his lungs and coughs.  He can taste blood and feels it wet his lips when he coughs.  He feels a spiked boot slam into his back where the explosive dart burned him previously and he recoils in pain.  He hears a cold voice speak to him and knows his enemy is standing next to him…
    “As I told you Batman, I would have your head before the night is over.  You were a worthy opponent, unmatched in physical combat, but alas, I am the better.”
    Fett stared down at his opponent, moaning in pain.  He held nothing against the man; in fact he admired him greatly.  He was a man with a strong sense of justice and an unshakable moral code.  Fett saw much of himself in the masked vigilante, though he did not understand his unwillingness to kill.  That is one difference that set them apart Fett thought, as he raised his weak arm, supported by the other, and pointed it at Batman’s head…
    Fett stands silently over the corpse of Batman, a smoking hole where only a second before his face had been.  Fett looks down at the corpse for a moment, his foot resting on his dead enemy’s chest.  He turns his head skyward as Slave I descends towards the street.  With a whoosh, the ship comes to rest on the asphalt street.  Fett grabs the body by the foot and begins dragging it towards the cargo hold doors as the ramp lowers with a hiss from the hydraulics.  Sirens are growing louder as the police draw nearer, but they are of no concern.  Fett knows he will be long gone when they arrive, on his way to claim the bounty for killing the Batman…

Batman vs Boba Fett

Boba Fett

"I've killed virtually everything that moves, at one time or another, a hundred different species, sentient and dumb; if it breathes I've probably killed it or something like it.  But I've killed clean. I've killed without stretching it out.”  –Boba Fett

Long Range Weapons
    EE-3 Carbine Blaster Rifle with added scope and stock (75m)
    Westar-34 Dallorian Blaster Pistol (50m)
    Left wrist-mounted rocket launcher with Type 12A anti-personal rockets
    Left wrist-mounted Blastech Dur-24 laser (50m)
    Jetpack-mounted homing missile
   
Mid Range Weapons
    Right wrist-mounted fibercord whip (20m)
    Right wrist-mounted ZX miniature flamethrower (5m)
    Kneepad dart launchers with FEX-M3 exploding tipped darts

Close combat Weapons
    Wrist-mounted retractable vibroblades
    Boots with spring loaded retractable spikes

Armor
    Mandalorian armor constructed from Mandalorian iron
    Reinforced armor mesh battle/space suit – blocks all unfiltered air, corrosive resistant
    Power armor liner shirt with micro energy field projector and 2 thin ceramic plating layers – reduces blast impacts, resistance to intense heat/cold
    Mandalorian helmet

Helmet Functions
    Compensates automatically for low or high light conditions
    Infrared vision setting
    Seals to prevent pressure changes and holds 5 to 10 minutes of air and filters poison and contaminants for up to two hours
    Dispenses water
    Voice activated commands for weapons, jetpack and sensors
    HUD - featured information on the surrounding environment and a 360-degree field of vision
    Macro binocular view plate – 50X digital zoom
    Rangefinder – lock on to and track targets in 360-vision up to 100 meters away


Jetpack
    Mitrinomon Z-6 Jetpack – fuel for three 20-second blasts, 20 three-second blasts or one minute of continuous operation. Each 3 second blast launches Fett 100 meters horizontally or 7 meters vertically
    Top speed of 145 kph
    Max range of 2 kilometers
    Gyro stabilization during flight
    Anti-vehicle homing missile

On Fett’s hand-to-hand combat abilities
    “Boba Fett was usually operating at amazingly strong human fitness. He had enough strength to hold Bossk, an infamous Trandoshan bounty hunter (whose species was known for its brute physical power) at bay. Very few in the Galaxy were as skilled in physical combat as he was.”  -Wookieepedia.com


Batman

“Batman is the most dangerous man on Earth.”  –Superman

Batsuit
    Constructed from Kevlar thread and carbon nanotube fibers – resistant to tearing
    Reinforced with material to dampen shocks and impact
    Spinal brace
    Full body electric shock delivery system
    Insulated against electricity and mildly fire-resistant
    Bulletproof – can stop 12-gauge shotgun from point blank
    Gloves and wrist guards with attached triangular fins for disarming of bladed weapons; can be shot as shurikens.
    Joint armor-reinforcement in the glove from the wrists and knuckles to the fingers
    Electrical shockers in the fingertips of gloves - used to control the cape structure
    Cowl contains shifting lenses that display opponents’ identification and medical information
    Various vision modes – night vision, infrared vision, and ultraviolet vision
    Lightweight steel-toed combat boots allow for full range of motion while kicking
    Radio disruptor in earpiece can jam signals
       
Cape
    Made of Nomex fire resistant material
    Kevlar fiber-weave to slow bullet impacts
    Applied electric current to shape-memory fibers creates semi-rigid form for gliding and slowing falls
   
Utility Belt
    Contains batarangs for throwing as skurikens
    Bat-lasso: composite-nylon cord used to throw around opponent’s and can deliver an electric shock
    Handcuffs
    Bat line – shoots out steel line in both directions to create a zip line
    Bat-Darts – tranquilizer darts
    First aid kit
    Bat Goo gun – used to hit opponents with sticky adhesive
    Grapple gun with high-tensile wire
    Miniature flamethrower
    Acetylene torch used to melt through metal
    Smoke grenades
    Flash-bang grenades
    Thermate incendiary grenades
    Rebreather – allows Batman to breathe underwater or in a vacuum

On Batman’s fighting skills
    Master of all known forms of martial arts
    Gone through pain management training
    In peak physical condition
    Throwing weapons master
    Advanced battle tactics knowledge
    Sky diving and rappel training

Possible Showdowns

Here are some ideas I had for different battles:

Boba Fett vs Batman
Zorro vs D'Artagnan
Gandalf the White vs Darth Sidious
Drizzt Do’Urden vs Darth Maul
Wolverine vs Predator
Son Goku vs Green Lantern (Hal Jordan)

If you have any other ideas for good pairings, please feel free to shout them out.

Fantasy Showdowns

    After having these kinds of discussions with friends for years, I finally decided to put some of them into story form.  As I am sure many nerds across time have done, my goal is to envision battles to the death between different fictional warriors and see who would come out victorious.
    Obviously there is no real way to compare two characters that do not truly exist, but it is still fun to try.  I do my best to ensure that I look at them as objectively as possible.  Though as most nerds do, I am sure I will have biases towards particular characters, but I will try my hardest to keep these out of the arena.  I try to look into the background, personality, combat training, weapons, armor and natural attributes.  Using these various points I attempt to compare two warriors that likely come from different places, times and perhaps even realities.
   Every battle scenario will include the necessary information about both characters to understand them before the match up.  This will be followed by a description of the battle itself.  Following these will be my explanation of the battle and the outcome.  It will give my reasoning for why one warrior triumphed over another as far as I understand them.  I obviously welcome feedback, because what is the point of this if not to elicit some kind of discussion amongst those of us nerdy enough to think about such things.
   Enjoy!