“ | Lapu-Lapu also stood up to a heavily armored Spanish army, led by their Portuguese captain, Ferdinand Magellan, on the morning of April 27, 1521.
— Vincent Pauletti
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He is best known for the Battle of Mactan, which happened at dawn on April 27, 1521. The battle halted the Magellan expedition and delayed the Spanish occupation of the islands by over forty years until the expedition of Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in 1564.
Besides being a rival of Rajah Humabon of Cebu, little is known about the life of Lapu Lapu and the only existing documents about his life are those written by Antonio Pigafetta.
Battle vs. Hatuey (by Killermoves)[]
From the Journal of Captain Lemuel Santiago, Spanish Navy:
I’d never been one to have a liking to violence, like my other colleagues and seamen. Yet violence seemed to chase me, like an ex-wife asking for alimony. God I wish my life would change; something different than this. I’m nothing more than a hired killer now, against Christians and savages.
One of the most peculiar of my battles happened somewhere in an island in the Pacific. A little insignificant floating rock consisting of one small village surrounded by jungles.
The island was not part of our beloved empire, but it served as a port for food and water. The island did have a few inhabitants under the rule of Chief Lapulapu. Ever since Mactan, we had made a deal with the heathen leader for cooperation in exchange for their independence. We took the oppurtunity, knowing he too would capitulate like the rest of them.
Unfortunately for these heathens, one of our boats who docked contained the Taino chief Hatuey, together with 4 of his most trusted warriors. Instead of being burned at the stake like what was originally planned, the conquistadores decided to take him back to Spain in order to be paraded in a triumphus. While the boat docked on the island, the Taino escaped, killing a few of our men. They then ran to the jungles on the hill.
I arrived with my men to capture Hatuey. But Lapulapu, who also sailed to the island, warned us to stay back. It was his island and Hatuey was his trespasser. They told me they would settle this dilemma under their own terms.
We agreed, and decided to watch the whole thing unfold. We wondered who between the Oriental and the Indian would win together with some rum.
What happened soon came from the records given to me by the survivors.
Lapulapu had 4 men to guard the small village. They put a few posts and some traps for defenses. As expected, they failed to stop Hatuey. The Taino attacked, raiding and burning houses. One of Lapulapu’s men was ganged upon, shot by arrows and spears. He stood no chance.
The Visayans did manage to retaliate with a barrage of arrow fire. But none of their inferior arrows scored a hit, and Hatuey and the Taino got away unscathed, retreating towards the deep jungle.
Again, we asked Lapulapu if he needed help, but the Visayan disagreed and told us to stay put. Now that one of his own was dead, this battle became more personal. It was his honor that was at stake. The Visayans were not known much to be passive, and were warriors through and through. So Lapulapu decided to go chase Hatuey’s group and hunt them down.
Into the jungle, Lapulapu and his men went. Sure enough, their arrival was met with hostility. While hidden in the foliage, Hatuey and the Taino attempted to ambush the Visayans. One lucky Taino did score a kill from an unsuspecting Visayan who got his head bashed with the former’s wooden sword.
This time, however, the Visayans finally got a glimpse of their enemies. They quickly huddled together behind their shields, nullifying the Taino’s weapons. None of the latter’s swords, spears, and bows could penetrate against them. Soon enough, the Visayans avenged their fallen brethren. With shields in front, they charged at the Hatuey and his Taino. With their steel swords, the Taino got their faces cut, limbs chopped off, and necks spurting blood. Lapulapu and his men easily took three kills.
Hatuey again signalled his remaining man to retreat, but not before driving his spear through the chest of a rushing overzealous Visayan.
Unfortunately for the the Taino, the Visayans proved too unrelentless. Hatuey’s remaining man got his back slashed deeply by the sword of a pursuing Visayan. The Poor Indian’s spine was lacerated cleanly. Hatuey managed to avenge his death by drawing and quick-firing his bow, which went through the bastard’s throat.
It was too late for Hatuey, however, to aim his bow at Lapulapu, who greeted him with a shield bash. The Taino chief crashed to the ground, and narrowly dodged a downward sword strike to the face. Hatuey got up and drew his wooden sword, managing at least to hit Lapulapu’s rib. But with adrenaline rushing, Lapulapu felt nothing but rage. With a yell, he made a wide powerful swing with his sword. Hatuey tried to block it but it was useless. The horizontal swing chopped Hatuey’s wooden sword and slashed his neck.
As his opponent laid down bleeding and dying, Lapulapu raised his sword and yelled in victory. Another day in the land of the savages. May civilization finally reach them.
Expert's Opinion[]
The voters believe that Lapulapu won this battle due to his weapons being made up of superior materials. He also has the advantage of shields, something that the Taino severely lacks. Also, while both can do guerrilla warfare, Lapulapu's tactics have more in store compared to Hatuey.
To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.Battles here were deemed to be unfair or otherwise not in accordance with wiki standards, and have been removed from the statuses of the warriors and displayed below.
Battle vs. Shaka Zulu (by Impaler5150)[]
Lapu Lapu scours his land on the Pacific coast. While looking out, Shaka attempts to kill him by surprise by throwing his iwisa, in which Lapu-Lapu blocked. Lapu -Lapu fired his pana sling dart, which also got counted by Shaka's wicker shield. After a brief staredown, Shaka and Lapu-Lapu run at each other full-force, meeting up on the beach. Shaka Zulu axe, but is parried by Lapu-Lapu's sibat spear. Lapu-Lapu stabs Shaka in his shoulder but Shaka swung the Zulu axe, slicing Lapu-Lapu's leg. Lapu-Lapu staggers off into the forest, with Shaka running right behind him. Shaka stabs at LAPU-Lapu with his iklwa spear, but misses. Lapu-Lapu counters with a slash to Shaka's leg with his kampilan sword. Shaka disarms Lapu-Lapu of the swprd and slings it into the ground. Shaka runs to get his spit of poison and chews some up and holds it in his mouth. Lapu-Lapu slashes Shaka from behind, but gets blinded by the spit of poison. Lapu-Lapu, blinded, is then impaled with the iklwa spear by Shaka. Shaka, victorious, staggers back to his Zulus to lay claim to what was Lapu-Lapu's territory.
Expert's Opinion[]
While Lapu-Lapu was slightly bigger and stronger, Shaka was just too much of a warrior for him.
To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.