User blog comment:Lasifer/Welcome to Rapture: Booker DeWitt vs. Jack Ryan/@comment-4661256-20140129043930

 El Alamein's Edges:

 Melee: Sky Hook vs. Pipe Wrench:  I've seen arguments for both sides of the two weapons presented here, but I believe that the Sky Hook has the potential to be a superior melee weapon. Firstly, blunt trauma is painful, yes, but rarely instantly debilitating. The same can be said of slashing/piercing injuries, but they tend to be far more severe because of blood loss - even if a blow from the pipe wrench causes a bruise or minor internal bleeding, it won't be as instantly damaging as if a cut from the Sky Hook leaves blood pouring from the wound. On top of that, the pipe wrench is kind of a WYSIWYG weapon - what you see is what you get. Nothing special. The Sky Hook looks scary - the psychological impact of staring down a guy wielding that while all you've got is a piece of scrap metal probably isn't too great.

Edge: Booker DeWitt

 Handgun: Mauser C96 vs. Webley Revolver:  Another classic example of handgun vs. revolver. The Mauser's 9mm rounds may lack stopping power compared to the .38 S&W rounds, but that's where the advantages of the six-shooter come to a screeching halt. The Mauser has a faster rate of fire and it can afford to have one, with 3 times the amount of ammo per clip that the revolver has - in theory, therefore, Jack Ryan may have to reload twice before Booker DeWitt even expends one magazine. Now, of course with a semi-automatic handgun DeWitt will probably fire his rounds faster, but that's beside the point here. Finally (and I believe most importantly) the Mauser's box magazine makes for a simple eject-n-switch reload that the revolver doesn't have the luxury of possessing - a slow, painstaking round-by-round reload is what's in store for Jack Ryan once he shoots out his first cylinder. Ultimately, the Mauser's faster rate of fire, much larger magazine, and ease of reload get it the edge over the Webley.

Edge: Booker DeWitt

 Shotguns: "China Broom" vs. 1882 Spencer:  Both of these shotguns hold 4 round before reload and are firing 12-gauge shots, so the debate comes down to shell vs. slug. I believe that the shell, which spreads a lot of tiny pellets upon firing, makes for a superior close-ranged weapon. Now, yeah, sure, the slug is better for mid-ranged combat, but shotguns are not precision weapons. Jack Ryan's got a neat trick up his sleeve with the slug, but he's not using the shotgun for what a shotgun was designed for. Booker DeWitt's shells will scatter shot across the battlefield and can pepper Ryan full of lead before he has enough time to acquire DeWitt and land an accurate shot.

Edge: Booker DeWitt

 Submachine Guns: Lanchester vs. Tommy Gun:  Well this is an easy comparison to make. The Lanchester is certainly a respectable submachine gun and it does have an above-average magazine capacity with 35 rounds (traditionally an SMG will hold 30 per mag) but that doesn't matter when the Tommy Gun can boast an impressive 40 rounds per mag. On top of that, the Lanchester's 9mm can't even hope to compare with the .45 ACP bullets that the Tommy Gun is belching out. Jack Ryan can keep DeWitt suppressed with the damning .45s and might even be able to get him behind light cover. The 9mm rounds will have a much tougher time contending with a solid object blocking their paths to their target.

Edge: Jack Ryan

 Long Range: "Bird's Eye" Springfield vs. Crossbow:  I'm probably gonna sound a little redundant when it comes to my edge here, as everyone else below me has stated the superiority of the rifle over the crossbow, but here goes. The Springfield bolt-action rifle obviously has a much longer range, and therefore greater accuracy at a distance. Sure, it's nice that the crossbow holds one more round before reload than the Springfield, and incendiary bolts are a nice touch, but this reminds me again of my shotgun comparison: he's using the crossbow for purposes other than what it was designed to do. And even if DeWitt is hit with a crossbow bolt, he just might be able to pull it out and keep going. If Ryan is hit by a .30-06 round, he'll have to contend with a nickel-sized hole in his body squirting out blood for the rest of the battle.

Edge: Booker DeWitt

 Explosives: Barnstormer vs. Grenade Launcher:  Generally I find that the rocket launcher is a superior anti-vehicular weapon while the grenade launcher is a superior antipersonnel weapon, and here I find no exception to the rule. Although the rocket launcer can be more accurate than the grenade launcher as it can be fired from the shoulder, the grenade launcher holds 3 times the ammo of the rocket launcher, and its faster rate of fire means that it can lay down rounds to suppress DeWitt while Ryan consolidates his position. Finally, grenade launchers are (generally) lighter, and therefore more portable in a battle space, than a rocket launcher.

Edge: Jack Ryan

OVERALL WEAPONS EDGE: BOOKER DEWITT

When it comes to handheld firepower Booker DeWitt has a huge edge. The SMG and grenade launcher do bring much-needed versatility and firepower to Jack Ryan's game, but Booker's SMG doesn't suffer an enormous disadvantage against the Tommy Gun, and the rocket launcher will still be able to hold its own in a firefight. The incredible ranged superiority of the Springfield over the Crossbow, though, gives DeWitt the chance to

TBC