User blog comment:Tesla Man/Rise of the TDBU: Qin Shihuangdi versus Attila the Hun/@comment-422690-20120305002703

So.. weapon edges:

Swords: Dao wins. Sure, you can kill with both edges of the Sword of Mars, but you can just as easily cut yourself. Plus, the single-edged nature of the Dao allowed one to grip anywhere on the blade with the off-hand, allowing for a more flexible use of leverage and adding extra power and control during a fight. Meteoric iron, also known as plessite, is not all it's made out to be; it's a combination of two alloys of iron and nickel, which is of a lesser quality than steel, but a slightly higher quality than standard iron. Edge: Qin Shihuangdi

Polearms: Draw. The Ji is good for dismounting, and by its design it seems to be good for horseback fighting. The Heavy Spear is designed to be good on horseback, and can be used to dismount by killing the horse.the added weight of it makes for an armor-crushing blow. Edge: Even.

Ranged: Composite Bow wins. The Crossbow was a replacement for a bow and arrow only in large army fights; in smaller numbers the large reload time of the crossbow renders it almost worthless. Add that to the fact that a trained cavalry archer - which Attila was - can strike with the bow from any direction, and you've got an easy pick. Edge: Attila the Hun.

Armor Edges:

Attila wins this, simply for the inclusion of a shield. While it might not do too much against a crossbow bolt (without more information on materials I can't exactly tell), but something that was considered to be effective against the Roman weapons would likely fare well against what Qin throws at him. Edge: Attila the Hun.

Tactics:

Qin Shihuandi wins. Since this is a single battle rather than a drawn-out war, the tactic of flanking serves Qin better than Attila's tactic of raiding, which serves better in an actual war.. This is a little bit of apples -> oranges, since one is a battlefield tactic and one a war tactic, but I digress. Edge: Qin.

Battle:

Unknown. I am unable to find a link to the battle listed for Attila, so... no edge as of yet.

Psychology:

Attila wins. He is somewhat more ruthless when it comes to battle, being known as a butcher and inspiring terror across Rome, while Qin, despite ordering enemy soldiers buried alive to stop rebellion, has shown less of this aspect than Attila has. Additionally, Qin has a massive ego - he thinks he's the best. An overinflated ego can lead to arrogance and mistakes, especially against someone like Attila.

Overall: I'm going with Attila on this one. He has a better selection of armor and weaponry, along with being more mentally sound, despite Qin's advantage of a flanking maneuver for tactics, that is one that a cavalry unit could easily avoid.