User blog:Cfp3157/Heroics of the Modern Age: The Avengers vs. The Dead Men

Somes times humanity finds itself faced with a threat so great that nothing can seem to stand against it, where normal men and women cannot protect the world from apocolypse. This is when we need to call in the best of the best, the elites, those who make the enemy cower in fear at just the mere mention of their name. These two groups are the ones who step up to the plate, to face the oncoming darkness;

The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, formed to save the world from Loki and his Alien Invasion.

vs

The Dead Men: Meritorious' top soliders, sent on suicide missions but somehow returning alive again and again.

Who is Deadliest

The Avengers


The Avengers are a team of powerful superheroes assembled by Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. through the Avengers Initiative as a team that could fight the battles that they could never handle alone. After saving the world in the battle of New York, they gained world-wide recognition, being referred to as the Heroes of New York. Once S.H.I.E.L.D. was disbanded, the Avengers reunited to finish hunting down the last remnants of HYDRA.
 * -|Iron Man=

Tony Stark is the genius billionaire that doubles as the first modern superhero via his advanced suit, Iron Man. Fresh off from defeating enemies the world over, Stark reluctantly agreed to serve as a consultant to Nick Fury's peacekeeping intelligence agency S.H.I.E.L.D. Stark joined the Avengers and helped defeat the Chitauri during the Battle of New York. Due to the battle, he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, leading him to create the Iron Legion. After the Battle on the Norco, the final event of Aldrich Killian's War, he destroyed all of his armors with the Clean Slate Protocol.

Equipment: Abilities: Steve Rogers was a weak but passionate citizen during World War II, who enlisted into the "Super Soldier" program. There, he gained enhanced physical attributes and led a team of elite commandos against HYDRA. In his final battle with Red Skull, he was frozen after crash-landing a missile into Antartica. He was left in this state until he was melted by Nick Fury. Awakened in a new world and new time, he continues to try to do the right things as Captain America.
 * Mark VII Iron Man Armor: The latest suit designed by Tony, the Mark VII gives Tony superhuman strength, reflexes, and durability (he could withstand a collision with a full-speed jet), as well as flight. The suit utilizes a wide variety of weapons, from the iconic repulsors on Tony's hands to several miniature guided missiles stored on his shoulders, to the powerful Unibeam and Turn-and-Burn lasers that utilized energy directly from the Arc Reactor in his suit. Finally, the suit has a direct connection to J.A.R.V.I.S., an A.I. system that constantly updates him on the situation unfolding, as well as the conditions of the suit.
 * Skilled Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Despite having no formal training in martial arts or combat aside from basic boxing and hand-to-hand combat techniques, Iron Man is a skilled hand-to-hand combatant thanks to his experience and the benefits his suit gives him.
 * Skilled Tactician: Iron Man's need to innovate his armor has given him a keen ability to think outside the box when fighting. Since his opponents often have equal, or even superior, technology to his own, Iron man constantly has to adapt, and does so well.
 * Genius-level Intelligence: Iron Man is easily one of the smartest men in the world. His genius mind allows him to constantly create and invent new technology, as well as adapt to threats at hand.
 * -|Captain America=

Equipment: Abilities:
 * Vibranium Shield: Captain America's signature weapon, this shield has proven nigh-invulnerable to all kinds of damage. The shield has blocked conventional firearms and knives, and has blocked against explosions, blasts of enegery, and lightning. The shield also can absorb and rebound kinetic energy, shown that it was barely scratched when out against Winter Soldier's bionic arm or even Thor throwing his hammer full force at it; although Captain America was thrown back from both (as he was not anchored), the shield more than protected its' user.
 * Uniform: Captain America's second uniform with the Avengers received significant modifications from his original. While resistant to firearms and flame retardant, the uniform is resistant to energy attacks such as Iron Man's repulsor beams. The uniform is also equipped with magnetic plates that make retrieving his shield significantly easier mid-combat.
 * Enhanced Physical Condition: After undergoing the Super Soldier serum, Captain America's body has been enhanced to the absolute limit. His strength allows him to compete physically with superhuman beings like Chitauri aliens and Ultron, and his body is durable enough to take energy blasts and survive 30 feet drops without discomfort. His reflexes, agility, and reaction time are beyond the level of Olympic athletes, and his stamina allow him to perform rigorous tasks far longer than most.
 * Master combatant: Captain America is a master of several styles and variations of combat. He is a master martial artist, incorporating at least eight vastly different martial arts from Boxing to Muay Thai, and received even more extensive training after his time with SHIELD. He is a masterful shield fighter, easily defeating dozens of men armed with knives and guns. He is a skilled marksman, throwing his shield with enough strength and precision to richochet off of walls and people back into his hands. Finally, he's an expert military operator, skilled in escape arts, demolition, espionage, tactical rescue, and intelligence gathering.
 * Skilled Strategist: Due to his mind's perception and ability to gather information being heightened as well, Captain America can create strategies and alter them in a split second. A prime example is his deployment of first-responders and the Avengers in the Battle for New York, and his skill as commander of the Howling Commandos in World War II.
 * -|Hulk=

A gifted scientist that was corrupted by gamma radiation to turn into a powerful monster, Bruce Banner and his experiments made him both a target and enemy of the government. Now, fearful of the damage that Hulk could inflict, Banner chose to live a discreet life in remote parts of the world, working to cure the sick and help the poor while trying to elude those who would take advantage of his ability to change into the enormous, green menace. Unknown to Banner, Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D. watched over him and kept hostile forces off his back, as Fury saw Banner's transformation as being a valuable asset to the agency's Avengers Initiative. Despite his chagrin, Banner aided the Avengers greatly in the Chitauri Invasion, and as a result was able to explore the world a free man again.

Powers:


 * Transformation: As the Hulk, Banner gains immeasurable amounts of superhuman strength and durability. Easily shrugging off nuclear bombs, tank shells, alien weaponry, and small arms, Hulk is near-invulnerable. His strength is equally limitless- easily allowing him to rip through steel like paper, and dent even adamantium. His strength lets him go toe-to-toe with the god Thor, as well as a suit of armor by Tony specifically designed to stop him. The transformation also gives him a powerful healing factor, with none of his injuries being maintained when transforming into either form.
 * -|Black Widow=

Natasha Romanoff was taken by the Soviet Union as a young child, raised to be a skilled spy and soldier. She excelled in her training, and performed several assassinations and missions that put her on the radar of SHIELD. She was eventually recruited by her would-be assassin, agent Clint "Hawkeye" Barton. As an agent of SHIELD, Natasha would be employed as Tony Stark's assistant to try to convince him to become an Avengers. Later, she would serve as a powerful member of the team in her own right as Black Widow.

Equipment: Abilities:
 * Widow's Bite: A pair of bracelets that serve multiple functions. The primary purpose of these bracelets are to deliver an electrical shock to the victim in a close quarters fight. They can also extend into a pair of batons, shoot taser disks, has a grappling hook built into it, and launch an electrical blast.
 * Various bombs and gadgets: In addition to the gadgets in her Widow's Bite, Black Widow utilizes several minor gadgets in her arsenal. Examples include flash bombs, smoke grenades, a glider harness, and a garrote.
 * Uniform: The fourth Black Widow uniform came with padding on her shoulders, knees, and elbows to protect her during her acrobatics. It has a thigh-holster on the left leg.
 * Expert Martial Artist: Black Widow is a skilled martial artist, taking out several armed pirates, soldiers, Chitauri aliens, and STRIKE agents with ease in hand-to-hand. She was able to hold her own against the Winter Soldier, who is both a skilled martial artist and superhuman, and dozens of Ultron sentinels.
 * Expert Marksman: When utilizing firearms, Black Widow is an excellent marksman. She can easily shoot opponents while falling or dodging projectiles.
 * Master Spy: Black Widow is a masterful spy, well-versed in the arts of espionage, disguise, stealth, infiltration, and demolition. She is a skilled interrogator, manipulating and tricking her victims into giving her information. She is one of the most feared and respected assassins in the world, killing dozens of targets in her time with the KGB and SHIELD. Her intelligence is incredibly acute, capable of gathering information and responding appropriately, as well as being multilingual and a skilled hacker.
 * Skilled Acrobat: Black Widow's fighting style relies heavily on her skill as an acrobat. She is incredibly nimble and light on her feet, capable of stealing a Chitauri chariot by throwing him out of it while commandeering it.
 * -|Hawkeye=

A master marksman and specialist in archery,Clint Barton has been assigned on various different missions and faced numerous dangers in his career; it was one of these missions that brought his comrade, Natasha Romanoff, into S.H.I.E.L.D. Before the Chitauri Invasion, Hawkeye was assigned by Nick Fury to keep watch over Erik Selvig while the doctor was studying the Tesseract; Hawkeye was subsequently brainwashed by Loki during the destruction of Project P.E.G.A.S.U.S. and unwillingly aided him in setting up his invasion of New York. However, after the attack on the Helicarrier, he was freed from Loki's mental control and joined the Avengers to fight against Loki's alien army. After that, he continued to work for S.H.I.E.L.D. until its collapse, after which he then returned to the Avengers as Hawkeye.

Equipment: Abilities:
 * Hoyt Buffalo Bow: A heavily customized compound bow, equipped with a laser sight and a special set of buttons that allow Hawkeye to select an arrow in his mechanical quiver. This mechanical quiver control allows him to equip his traditional arrows with a variety of trick arrowheads.
 * Trick Arrows: Hawkeye utilizes a wide variety of trick arrows, ranging from traditional arrows, explosives and tasers, grappling hook arrows, one equipped with a hacking chip, and arrows that explode into multiple, smaller ones.
 * Master Archer: Hawkeye is an outstanding marksman, capable of performing shots that could be considered superhuman. He was capable of shooting the previously mentioned hacking arrow directly into a computer's mainframe, and hit Chitauri aliens speeding past him on their chariots (one without even looking). He was able to provide sniper support for the Avengers from atop a skyscraper, and can fire arrows at the same rate as automatic rifles.
 * Expert Assassin: Hawkeye is a highly trained assassin, easily sneaking past several S.H.I.E.L.D. agents while under Loki's control. He is also a very skilled martial artist, fighting fellow assassin Black Widow to a standstill, and even utilizing his bow as an effective makeshift weapon.
 * -|Thor=

Thor is the heir of Odin, the king of Asgard. When Thor's headstrong ways nearly plunged his realm into war, Odin banished Thor to Earth as punishment, where his otherworldly antics drew the attention of S.H.I.E.L.D. While in exile on Earth, Thor learned humility and helped to save his new friends from a destructive threat sent by his jealous adoptive brother Loki. In the process, Thor redeemed himself in the eyes of his father, and attempted to confront Loki over his actions; the ensuing confrontation resulted in Loki's own exile. After being welcomed back to Asgard as a hero, Thor must now return to Earth once again to prevent a cosmic-level catastrophe. With Mjølnir, a legendary hammer with immense power, in his hand, the mighty warrior soon finds himself drawn into an unlikely alliance with Nick Fury's secret initiative, the Avengers, lending his power to their cause against Loki and his army.

Equipment: Abilities:
 * Mjølnir: A small but powerful war hammer used by Thor, that is near indestructible and can smash near everything. It also gives Thor the ability to manipulate the weather, such as lighting and wind. When Thor throws the hammer, it always returns to him, as well as limited flight by using the momentum of swinging Mjolnir to launch himself.
 * Asgardian Physiology: Thor is one of the strongest Asgardians in the realm, which grants him superhuman strength, reflexes, an extended lifetime, and superhuman durability. Thor's capable of going toe-to-toe with the Hulk with nothing else but his hands, and was strong enough to withstand superhuman blows such as Quicksilver's supersonic punches, Iron Man's 400% charged repulsor blasts, and the Destroyer's disintegrating beam.
 * Master Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Thor is one of the greatest hand-to-hand combatants, mastering several forms of Asgardian and human fighting styles. While it seems to be little more than grappling and hand-to-hand combatant, Thor's style highlights his use of his superhuman speed and strength combined with his skill to make him a lethal opponent in a hand-to-hand fight. He was able to defeat several highly-trained SHIELD operatives even without his powers, and fight a much older and skilled Malekith.
 * Master Hammer Fighter: Thor is a master of fighting with his battle hammer Mjølnir, due to centuries of practice wielding it, and he is also extremely proficient in hammer throwing. He even had been able to use Mjølnir as a defense tool, blocking energy shots from the Destroyer, Loki's Scepter and Chitauri weaponry.

The Dead Men


The Dead Men were an elite group on the side of Sanctuary during the war. They were named The Dead Men as they were renowned for going on Suicide Missions but always managing to come back alive. The Group has gone had several members over the years but the number of Dead Men has always remained at 7 with new members replacing those who had been injured or ironically enough killed.

"I want you all to know, that we are the first line of defence. In fact, we’re practically the only line of defence. If we fail, there won’t be a whole lot else anyone else will be able to do. What I’m trying to say is that failure at the point isn't really the smart move to make. We are not to fail, do I make myself absolutely clear? Failure is bad, it won’t help us the short term and certainly won’t do us any favours in the long run, and I think I’ve lost track of this speech, and I’m not too sure where it’s headed. But I know where it started and that’s what you've got to keep in mind. Has anyone seen my hat?"
 * -|Skulduggery Pleasant=

- Skulduggery Pleasant's Inspiring Speech

Skulduggery Pleasant is an Elemental and a living skeleton. Originally a normal human sorcerer, Skulduggery was originally killed at the hands of Neferain Serpine who lured him into a trap by murdering his wife and children. However Skulduggery was later revived through unknown means but with his skin and flesh gone leaving behind only a skeleton. After the war he became a detective for the Irish Sanctuary and which would lead to him meeting his future partner Valkyrie Cain.

Equipment:


 * Handgun: Skulduggery carries two Smith & Wesson revolvers with a six round magazine.


 * Sword: All of the dead men carry a sword with them into combat. While the exact specifications are not known for the sake of comparison it is assumed that it is roughly 2 feet long. The blade is incredibly sharp, able to lop off limbs and heads with ease.


 * Gauntlet: Originally mages went into battle with a sword and shield but this was impractical as it left them with no free hand to use their magic and thus they created an arm length gauntlet, reaching from the shoulder all the way down to the wrist. This Gauntlet is able to block Cleaver Blades, which are made from an incredibly sharp material able to slice through skin and bone.

Powers and Abilities
 * Armoured Clothes: Crafted by Ghastly Bespoke, the Dead Men all wear full body armour. Made out of strong leather like material, it helps cushion the damage from punches and kicks and can stop strikes from sword, scythes and even protect against bullets. The armour covers all over the wearers body, with steel toed boots and a hood and is light enough not to restrict the users movement.
 * Skilled Elemental Magic User:  Skulduggery is an elemental, meaning his magic focuses on control of the elements (Big shock I know). The elements and some of their uses are listed below;


 * Fire: The flashiest and most used of the four elements. Elemental sorcerers create fire by generating friction, usually the snapping of fingers, and use it for various purposes. These include from creating fireballs, creating barriers of fire, expelling fire in a flamethrower type stream and fireballs can be focused into more concentrated flames which can be used to cut and carve.


 * Air: Air magic is the most versatile and, at times, the most powerful of the four elements. Air magic is the easiest to learn with most sorcerers learning this first. Uses of Air magic includes pushing and pulling towards or away from the sorcerer, squeezing and crushing objects, holding a person in place, creating a powerful wall of air to block an attacker, flight, creation of whirlwinds, reading disturbances in the air, depriving people of air, containing an explosion within a sphere of air and can be used to buff up a users punching power by encasing their fists with a layer of air.


 * Earth: Earth magic was at first, and for a very long time, thought to be last resort defensive magic. However it has since been shown to have some offensive prowess as well. The main use of earth magic is to turn the user into an unbreakable stone statue but the length of this transformation is unpredictable and could last any length of time, from a couple of years to several centuries. Other uses include collapsing the ground underneath and opponents feet and can be used as a means of travelling through walls.


 * Water: Water is the most rarely used out of the four elements . When the user is submerged in water, water manipulation can be used in a similar way to air manipulation. Uses of Water magic includes walking on water, enhancing swimming ability, firing a stream of water as a projectile, creating a wall of water, manipulating water vapour in the air to create small rainstorms and the manipulation of ice or snow.


 * Skilled Hand to Hand Combatant:  Skulduggery is an extremely skilled unarmed fighter and regularly bests some of the toughest mages in hand to hand combat and can fight multiple skilled opponents at once and has shown himself able to beat other members of the Dead Men without much trouble.


 * Skilled Marksman:  Skulduggery is a master marksman and is able to consistently get lethal shots and head shots when in combat even when under fire and can even wield both at once without a decrease in accuracy once managing to head shot someone despite having being literally pulled apart.


 * Superhuman Durability and Endurance:  Skulduggery's skeleton has is held together by magic and this means that having limbs ripped off during combat can be easily reattached and even with all his bones forcibly separated from each other he is still able to survive and rebuild himself (hell he's has spent the last 20 or so years with someone else's skull on his head). Due to his lack of muscles he also has unlimited stamina which allows him to outlast virtually any human in any feat of endurance allowing him to fight without ever tiring.


 * Skilled Detective: After the War, Skulduggery went into detective work for the sanctuary and has honed his skills to become their top and most effective enforcer. Skulduggery can scan rooms almost instantly when walking into them and can digest and recall complex schematics and maps with only a glance. Skulduggery is also skilled at reading faces and is so effective at such that it almost seems like he is reading a person's mind.


 * Lord Vile: When Skulduggery was resurrected he found himself consumed with rage at the death of his family and he eventually gave into this rage and became the powerful necromancy Lord Vile, donning a black armour which disguised his appearance and allowed him to fulfil his murderous anger. A list of Lord Vile's powers and abilities are as follows;


 * Necromancy Powers: Lord Vile's chosen magical discipline is Necromancy, which is the power to harness the energy of the dead. Lord Vile is one of the most powerful users of this particular discipline and can use it in a variety of ways. He can make shadows into solid projectiles which can be used as blades, can be fired as jagged shards from a distance and can be used as tendrils to grab onto an opponent. Vile can also shadow-walk which is form of teleportation where the user uses the shadows to travel through the ground. Shadows can also be used to fly, supporting the mage as the move through the air. He can also create a bubble of death, in which all life force within the aptly named death bubble are sucked towards the user as it contracts, making them stronger. Necromancy also becomes more powerful when death is nearby as it allows the user to absorb the energy and buff up their magical attacks.


 * Lord Vile's Armour: Lord Vile stores his necromancy power in his armour which is described as full set of medieval armour. Unlike most Necromancy objects it is made purely of shadow as opposed to being an object and has no solid form, allowing it to shape to fit the user and gives Vile great flexibility. If removed then Vile would be unable to call upon his Necromancy powers but this is nearly impossible to do and requires a great deal of physical strength. It also functions as a normal suit of armour, albeit more powerful, and can protect Lord Vile from a variety of physical and magical attacks.


 * Superhuman Durability: Owing to his Armour, Lord Vile is incredibly durable and has survived many injuries that would have killed other people. This includes being thrown into walls, blasted with magic from multiple different mages and even being slammed into the ground from a great height and managing to come away mostly unscathed.


 * Skilled Combatant: Lord Vile is a very powerful mage and he has been known to take on entire battlefields of soldiers and come out on top. He is by far the most powerful of Mevolent's Three Generals and has been able to defeat opponents who have been able to beat Serpine and Vengeous with relative ease as well as take on multiple powerful mages at once and hold his own against a self healing, demi-god.

After years spent as Lord Vile, Skulduggery managed to come to senses, removing the armour with his necromancy powers and casting it deep into the earth. Skulduggery only brings out Lord Vile as a last resort, when an opponent is too powerful to be defeated by normal means. "Fashion. It's life or death."
 * -|Ghastly Bespoke=

- Ghastly on his line of work.

Ghastly Bespoke is a tailor by trade and a close friend of Skulduggery. When his mother was pregnant with him she was jinxed and as a result he was born with scars that covered his entire head, making integration into normal society almost impossible. As a child, Ghastly told his friends that his mother was a tailor and his father was the boxer - but it was the other way round, with his mother being a famous boxer with a 23 consecutive win streak while his father enjoyed sowing making adjustments to hemlines and all that.

Equipment:


 * Sword: All of the dead men carry a sword with them into combat. While the exact specifications are not known for the sake of comparison it is assumed that it is roughly 2 feet long. The blade is incredibly sharp, able to lop off limbs and heads with ease.


 * Gauntlet: Originally mages went into battle with a sword and shield but this was impractical as it left them with no free hand to use their magic and thus they created an arm length gauntlet, reaching from the shoulder all the way down to the wrist. This Gauntlet is able to block Cleaver Blades, which are made from an incredibly sharp material able to slice through skin and bone.


 * Armoured Clothes: Crafted by Ghastly Bespoke, the Dead Men all wear full body armour. Made out of strong leather like material, it helps cushion the damage from punches and kicks and can stop strikes from sword, scythes and even protect against bullets. The armour covers all over the wearers body, with steel toed boots and a hood and is light enough not to restrict the users movement.

Powers and Abilities
 * Skilled Elemental Magic User:  Ghastly is an elemental, meaning his magic focuses on control of the elements . The elements and some of their uses are listed below;
 * Fire: The flashiest and most used of the four elements. Elemental sorcerers create fire by generating friction, usually the snapping of fingers, and use it for various purposes. These include creating fireballs, creating barriers of fire, expelling fire in a flamethrower type stream and fireballs can be focused into more concentrated flames which can be used to cut and carve.


 * Air: Air magic is the most versatile and, at times, the most powerful of the four elements. Air magic is the easiest to learn with most sorcerers learning this first. Uses of Air magic includes pushing and pulling towards or away from the sorcerer, squeezing and crushing objects, holding a person in place, creating a powerful wall of air to block an attacker, flight, creation of whirlwinds, reading disturbances in the air, depriving people of air, containing an explosion within a sphere of air and can be used to buff up a users punching power by encasing their fists with a layer of air.


 * Earth: Earth magic was at first, and for a very long time, thought to be last resort defensive magic. However it has since been shown to have some offensive prowess as well. The main use of earth magic is to turn the user into an unbreakable stone statue but the length of this transformation is unpredictable and could last any length of time, from a couple of years to several centuries. Other uses include collapsing the ground underneath and opponents feet and can be used as a means of travelling through walls.

* ''Note: I have crossed out the abilities which Ghastly himself is not powerful enough to use. I was going to just remove them but this way it makes it easier to tell the difference without having to painstakingly remember all of the powers.''
 * Water: Water is the most rarely used out of the four elements . When the user is submerged in water, water manipulation can be used in a similar way to air manipulation. Uses of Water magic includes walking on water, enhancing swimming ability, firing a stream of water as a projectile, creating a wall of water, manipulating water vapour in the air to create small rainstorms and the manipulation of ice or snow.


 * Skilled Hand to Hand Combatant: Trained from an early age by his boxer mother, Ghastly is one of the most powerful hand to hand fighters in the skulduggery pleasant universe. He can fight multiple skilled mages at once, once being able to take down six sorcerers single-handedly. He was also the only member of the main cast able to fight on par with the assassin Tesseract, a mage who defeated four exceptionally skilled mages (which included Skulduggery, Valkyrie and Ravel) single-handedly.

"And when I let it out there are times when I just can't control it. And it's a sight to behold. Terrifying. Ferocious. Merciless. Tell us what we need to know or I shall release it, and believe you me it your will garner its full attention."
 * Superhuman Strength and Durability: Ghastly is a stocky man and as such as displayed feats that a are above the standard capabilities of a normal person. He can knock a person out with a single punch, choke hold someone into unconsciousness in a matter of seconds,carry a full grown person without struggle. Ghastly is also incredibly resilient, able to survive a bomb blast at close range and punch a steel mask without injury.
 * -|Anton Shudder=

- Anton Shudder

Anton Shudder is the owner and proprietor of the Midnight Hotel, named as a such because it changes destination every 12 hours. Dissatisfied with the various sanctuaries around the world and how powerful and bureaucratic they had become the Midnight Hotel was set up as a place for where people could stay as a form of sanctuary. There is only one rule, that no violence must be used against a guest with Anton fighting on behalf of the attacked person if the rule is broken.

Equipment:


 * Daisy: Anton Shudder carries a Winchester Model 1897 shotgun with a 5 round magazine which he affectionately calls 'Daisy'.


 * Sword: All of the dead men carry a sword with them into combat. While the exact specifications are not known for the sake of comparison it is assumed that it is roughly 2 feet long. The blade is incredibly sharp, able to lop off limbs and heads with ease.


 * Gauntlet: Originally mages went into battle with a sword and shield but this was impractical as it left them with no free hand to use their magic and thus they created an arm length gauntlet, reaching from the shoulder all the way down to the wrist. This Gauntlet is able to block Cleaver Blades, which are made from an incredibly sharp material able to slice through skin and bone.


 * Armoured Clothes: Crafted by Ghastly Bespoke, the Dead Men all wear full body armour. Made out of strong leather like material, it helps cushion the damage from punches and kicks and can stop strikes from sword, scythes and even protect against bullets. The armour covers all over the wearers body, with steel toed boots and a hood and is light enough not to restrict the users movement.

Powers and Abilities
 * Gist: A gist is a manifestation of a user's hate, anger and determination which effectively powers up and corrupts their soul. When used the Gist takes on the form of the user but with a much more animalistic appearance, with claws hands, sharp teeth and longer hair. A gist is easily powerful enough to rip through and kill dozens of opponents at a time but can only be unleashed for a minute at the longest otherwise the user would be reduced to a being trapped within the Gist as opposed to the other way around. As it is basically a ghost the Gist itself cannot be harmed only distracted and the only way to stop it is to attack the user themselves. Using a Gist also leaves the user extremely fatigued afterwards and unable to defend themselves until the regain their composure so is often used as a last resort or to take care of many enemies in a short period of time.


 * Skilled Hand to Hand Combatant and Swordsman: As his Gist can only be used sparingly Anton has to rely heavily on his hand to hand skills to finish off an opponent and as such is a exceptionally skilled unarmed combatant. Anton has can fight on par with some of the best fighters in the skulduggery pleasant universe and was easily able to outmanoeuvre and kill Baron Vengeous, another powerful mage. He can also take on multiple opponent on at once as showcased where he fought against 23 mages single-handedly and was coming out on top until cornered. Anton is also a skilled swordsman and is able to fight against and beat multiple opponents at once.

"So this, what's happening and what's going to happen, this isn't your fault. You can't control everything and not everything is your responsibility. At Croke Park you said something about how you don't want to drag me around after you so I can die beside you. I wanted to tell you then, but I didn't have the words and I didn't have the time. I'm here because I choose to be. You save my life. I save yours. That's how we work."
 * Superhuman Strength and Durability: As the biggest and most heavily built of the Dead Men, Anton can perform superhuman feats of strength such as carrying a full grown man with ease and killing someone with a single punch to the throat. He is also incredibly durable and was able to fight through being stabbed wounds, severely burned and being hit with an energy blast.
 * -|Valkyrie Cain=

- Valkyrie to Skulduggery

Valkyrie (or Stephanie as she was originally known) was just a normal girl until her uncle died suddenly and she found herself thrown into a world she never knew about. Taken under the wing of the Skeleton Detective, she later discovered that she was descended from the Ancients, the first ever magical beings and has gone on to save the world on numerous occasions from stopping crazy cultists, to vampires and even literal gods.

Equipment


 * Shock Stick: While the other members of the Dead Men carry swords, Valkyrie carries a staff roughly 2 feet long with a sigil carved onto the handle. When the sigil is pressed it turns the staff into an electrical stun staff, powerful enough to incapacitate a normal person and can even effect armoured warriors, although the effect is lessened. Alternatively the stick can be used as a blunt weapon.


 * Gauntlet: Originally mages went into battle with a sword and shield but this was impractical as it left them with no free hand to use their magic and thus they created an arm length gauntlet, reaching from the shoulder all the way down to the wrist. This Gauntlet is able to block Cleaver Blades, which are made from an incredibly sharp material able to slice through skin and bone.


 * Armoured Clothes: Crafted by Ghastly Bespoke, Valkyrie Cain clothes are made out of strong leather like material which helps cushion the damage from punches and kicks and can stop strikes from sword, scythes and even protect against bullets. Valkyrie's clothes consists of a standard (but still armoured) pair of trousers and a tee-shirt with the coup de grâce being a leather jacket which covers most of her torso and arms. Valkyrie also wears a pair of steel toed boots, armoured gloves and has a face mask which covers all of her face expect for her eyes and mouth, and can protect against blows to the head, although the impact from a bullet or sword blow could still be enough to do fatal damage.

Powers and Abilities

*Note: Valkyrie will not be able to transform into Darquesse for this battle as it is assumed that the mind block put in place by Argeddion in Kingdom of the Wicked is still in effect.


 * Skilled Elemental Magic User: Just like her mentor, Valkyrie's chosen discipline is Elemental Magic which is the manipulation of the elements. However unlike Skulduggery and other elementals Valkyrie only has a very basic grasp of this type of magic due to her young age and her general impatience means she does not have the time nor inclination to learn either Earth nor Water magic and so her abilities are limited to the following; Creating Fireballs, creating sparks of fire, pushing and pulling objects or people towards or away from herself and holding a person in place.


 * Skilled Necromancy User: As Valkyrie has not gone through the Surge (a reportedly painful magical transformation wherein the users magic is locked to a specific discipline) she also dabbles in Necromancy, the power to harness the energy of the dead. Valkyrie stores her power in a ring which she wears on her right hand. She can harness this energy for many purposes including; making shadows into solid projectiles which can be used as blades, can be fired as jagged shards from a distance and can be used as tendrils to grab onto an opponent. Valkyrie is a much more skilled Necromancer than she is Elemental but on the downside all her power in contained within her ring and if this was to be removed she would be unable to call upon her Necromancy powers.


 * Skilled Hand to Hand Combatant: Valkyrie has been trained by some of the most gifted unarmed combatants in the skulduggery pleasant universe and is trained in Kenpo Karate, Muay Thai, Krav Maga and Capoeria. Valkyrie has shown herself more than capable of holding her own against and even beating sorcerers decades and even centuries older than her with notable feats including defeating a vampire in its night form, beating Tanith Low and fighting multiple skilled mage simultaneously.

"I know things."
 * Skilled Acrobat: Valkyrie has shown herself to be superhumanly agile and frequently incorporates throws and flying kicks into her combat style. She is also a skilled free runner, able to outmanoeuvre unnaturally graceful vampires and other sorcerers across difficult terrain.
 * -|Saracen Rue=

- Saracen Rue on his mysterious power.

Another former Dead Man, Saracen is a notorious womaniser and ladies man, even being able to seduce enemy combatants. The only people who know what his actual magical power is are himself and Ravel and he takes great pleasure in the annoyance his vagueness causes over his friends. After the war Saracen was the only Dead Man to officially retire and as such became slightly overweight and "soft".

Equipment:


 * Sword: All of the dead men carry a sword with them into combat. While the exact specifications are not known for the sake of comparison it is assumed that it is roughly 2 feet long. The blade is incredibly sharp, able to lop off limbs and heads with ease.


 * Gauntlet: Originally mages went into battle with a sword and shield but this was impractical as it left them with no free hand to use their magic and thus they created an arm length gauntlet, reaching from the shoulder all the way down to the wrist. This Gauntlet is able to block Cleaver Blades, which are made from an incredibly sharp material able to slice through skin and bone.


 * Armoured Clothes: Crafted by Ghastly Bespoke, the Dead Men all wear full body armour. Made out of strong leather like material, it helps cushion the damage from punches and kicks and can stop strikes from sword, scythes and even protect against bullets. The armour covers all over the wearers body, with steel toed boots and a hood and is light enough not to restrict the users movement.

Powers and Abilities "Yay, we're walking into another ambush. I love it when we do things like that."
 * Mysterious Sixth Sense: While his power has never been officially revealed, Saracen has himself stated that he "knows things". While this vagueness makes it impossible to say what magical discipline he follows the abilities he has shown makes it obvious that he has some sort of sixth sense. This manifests itself in several forms including detecting the position of guards (including where they were and how well armed they are), know when he was being spied on, detect the presence of assassins and other sorcerers and even know about events that haven’t happened yet (although this may have been a joke). He has also shown a proficiency in symbol magic, specifically how to create and disable protective barriers although this may just be due to his sixth sense.
 * Skilled Hand to Hand Combatant and Swordsman:Just like his teammates Saracen is a skilled hand to hand combatant and can take on and defeat skilled sorcerers and multiple opponents once, his claim to fame being that he once took on a battalion of Mevolent’s troops alongside Anton Shudder. He is also a skilled swordsman and was able to fight against and disable a wraith (which he would have killed had it actually been killable).
 * -|Dexter Vex=

- Dexter Vex.

Dexter Vex is likely the youngest of the Dead Men and is just as well known for his chiselled abs and dashing good looks as he is for his combat ability. While most of his comrades settled down after the war he continues to live the life of an adventurer, fighting evil wherever he can find it.

Equipment:


 * Sword: All of the dead men carry a sword with them into combat. While the exact specifications are not known for the sake of comparison it is assumed that it is roughly 2 feet long. The blade is incredibly sharp, able to lop off limbs and heads with ease.


 * Gauntlet: Originally mages went into battle with a sword and shield but this was impractical as it left them with no free hand to use their magic and thus they created an arm length gauntlet, reaching from the shoulder all the way down to the wrist. This Gauntlet is able to block Cleaver Blades, which are made from an incredibly sharp material able to slice through skin and bone.


 * Armoured Clothes: Crafted by Ghastly Bespoke, the Dead Men all wear full body armour. Made out of strong leather like material, it helps cushion the damage from punches and kicks and can stop strikes from sword, scythes and even protect against bullets. The armour covers all over the wearers body, with steel toed boots and a hood and is light enough not to restrict the users movement.

Powers and Abilities
 * Energy-Throwing: Dexter's chosen magical discipline is Energy Throwing which as the name suggests involves firing a powerful blast of energy from the users hands. The power of these can vary from causing a nasty burn to being able to cut through even the toughest of materials and can even be used to slice through and kill Wraiths, beings who are tough enough to shrug off sword blows and bullets with ease.


 * Skilled Hand to Hand Combatant and Swordsman: Dexter is an exceptionally skilled hand to hand combatant and has shown himself capable of holding his own against other powerful mages and taking on multiple opponents single-handedly, including a Dusk, a centuries old vampire, without the use of magic even after being shot in the leg. Dexter is also a skilled swordsman able to fight and defeat other trained swordsman even when outnumbered.

X-Factors
Training

The Avengers consist of some of the most qualified warriors in the modern world. Captain America and Thor have mastered several kinds of hand-to-hand combat styles, from traditional boxing to advanced martial arts to, in the latter's case, arts not even known to mankind. Black Widow and Hawkeye are accomplished fighters as well, with the only greenhorns being Iron Man and the Hulk- but both have enough sheer power to overcome that. While Dead Men are all skilled magic users and hand to hand combatants it is never really explained if any of this is due to any official training or if their skills are self taught or honed through combat. However by looking a the only member of the Dead Men with any specified training, Valkyrie, it is safe to assume they were at least taught the basics and expanded from there. Valkyrie herself has been trained not only in magic use but also in four different types of martial arts.

Experience

All of the Avengers are well-experienced in combat, with Iron Man being the first superhero of the modern world, and Thor constantly aiding in the defense of Asgard. The rest of the Avengers are experienced in more clandestine or military affairs, with the exception of the Hulk, who's lack of experience is matched only by his mighty strength. Five of the Dead Men are over 400 years old and spent most of that time fighting in the War and in that time have faced a variety of sorcerers, vampire and other weird and wonderful creatures. Skulduggery & Dexter continued on in semi combat roles even to this day and while Valkyrie has nowhere near the time span of experience has faced off against powerful sorcerers many times her own age as well as literal gods which makes up for her vastly shorter combat period.

Teamwork

Despite working well enough together to fight a common threat like Ultron or the Chitauri invasion, the Avengers consistently butt heads over mindset differences. In fact, Loki even used the team's inability to truly work as a cohesive unit outside of combat to aid in his escape. While the Avengers are certain to help each other during combat, and deeply care for each other, their constant bickering and tendency to fight as individuals rather than a unit hurts them.The Dead Men have been working together for roughly 200 or so years during the war and induvidual members have joined forces since then and over that time have forged an unwavering loyalty and willingness to die for their companions. They were famed for going on Suicide Missions and coming back alive and they work almost as one, with full confidence the person they are fighting besides will get the job done. While Valkyrie hasn't been fighting alongside the other members for as long she still can work alongside them well and her unshakeable bond with Skulduggery is greater than even the other Dead Men have with each other.

Brutality

None of these warriors is willing to kill as a first resort- with the exception of Hawkeye and Black Widow, two very deadly assassins, and the Hulk, who lacks little control at this point. While Thor is willing to kill for the greater good, he won't be malicious and will prefer to put an enemy down then outright kill. Captain America and Iron Man take that a step further- both of their fighting styles are designed to put foes down as quickly but as nonlethaly as possible. As a unit in the war the Dead Men would regularly fight and kill their opponents in battle but despite this most of them aren't really that brutal and will happily leave their opponent unconscious as long as they are out of the fight. The two notable exceptions are Skulduggery (who can let his anger get the better of him when pushed as well as having the chaotic evil Lord Vile just a sanity slipage away) and Anton (whose Gist is remorseless to any enemy, although he himself is likely the least violent of the group).