User blog comment:WanderingSkull/The Road Less Traveled: Adrian Carton de Wiart vs. Hiroo Onoda/@comment-4661256-20141113002255

El Alamein's Edges:

 Melee: FS Knife vs. Shin Gunto:  Normally, a hugely oversized blade like the Shin Gunto would get a cursory glance and a dismissive wave before I would say "Too big, edge: other weapon." However, while the FS is certainly the more maneuverable knife in a close-quarters fight, you have to look at the warriors wielding the weapons. Hiroo Onoda is fanatically insane - driven by uber-patriotism. Give that guy a sword and tell him it's for the honor of Japan, and that crappy cheap Shin Gunto might as well be a flat-out katana, because Onoda will carve you to pieces with it. De Wiart might not be a slouch with a knife, but Onoda is downright insane with a sword.

Edge: Hiroo Onoda

 Pistols: Webley vs. Type 26:  As WetWaffle and Elgb have stated below, World War II-era Japan was not famous for its high-quality handguns - quite the opposite. Whereas the Webley is a rugged and reliable weapon, the Type 26 is an inaccurate, unreliable, downright shoddy piece of work. Plus (for what it's worth) the Webley has a 6m range advantage over its Japanese counterpart.

Edge: Adrian Carton de Wiart

 Submachine Guns: Sten vs. Type 100:  Honestly, this is a really close comparison. The Sten's 32 rounds do beat out the Type 100's 30 rounds per mag, but 2 bullets won't make much of a difference with an automatic weapon. The Sten's 500 rds/min are also not much higher than the Type 100's respectable 450 rds/min. But the Sten's higher muzzle velocity and better-quality round (the 9mm is superior to any bullet with the word "Nambu" in it, especially a dinky 8mm) translate to better stopping power, which makes all the difference in an automatic firefight where a grazing wound could mean a debilitating hit.

Edge: Adrian Carton de Wiart

 Rifle: Lee-Enfield vs. Arisaka:  The Lee-Enfield is the superior weapon. It has a larger internal magazine (10 rounds vs. 5 - double the capacity of the Arisaka) and is probably better manufactured, given World War II-era Japan's penchant for producing crappy weaponry. That being said, Onoda took exceptional care of his rifle (it still being serviceable when he surrendered in the 1970's - 29 whole freaking years after the war was over) and it was probably the weapon he used the most extensively during those 29 years. And though he has less rounds to waste, that makes him more cautious a shot. I think de Wiart's superior rifle balances out with Onoda's superior experience with the weapon in question.

 Edge: Even

 Explosives: Mills Bomb vs. Type 99 Grenade:  The Mills Bomb is easier to use. With a simpler pin mechanism, it won't be as complicated to use or take as long a time to deploy as the Type 99 Grenade, which, as Elgb mentioned below, requires the user to strike the head of the fuse after pulling the pin to activate.

Edge: Adrian Carton de Wiart

WINNER: ADRIAN CARTON DE WIART

I wanted Hiroo Onoda to win - really, I did. But the fact is he's outmatched by a warrior with more fighting experience. Although Onoda is a tough survivalist and deserves recognition for his 29 years in the Philippine jungle, the vast majority of it was not spent fighting (and even when he did fight, it was against civilians and police forces, not other soldiers). De Wiart's weapons are more reliable - a huge factor when talking about weapons of this era - and he has the true combat experience necessary to back those skills up. Those two factors, coupled with his marginally better training and logistics, are enough to win him this fight.