Season 7: Knuckles (Sonic the Hedgehog) vs Lucario (Pokemon)

 

Greetings and Welcome to another Edition of my Who Would Win Series and it is the Runner Up Match up of my "Fan Poll" Voting that I did last year with selected fans. 


Knuckles the Echidna. The Funny yet Powerful friend of Sonic the Hedgehog

Lucario, the Martial Arts Prodigy of Pokemon.

Stats, Abilities, Skills, Forms, The Fight Segment. That's pretty much all there is to it.

Knuckles is actually gonna have one major factor going into this blog. He is only going to be given "Canon Material" meaning, no Archie Sonic Material. 

Lucario on the other hand will have the Canon Material to work with, plus stuff from both the Games and Pokemon anime and movies. 

So, without further ado, let's begin

Knuckles   

Knuckles the Echidna is one of the Supporting Characters in the Legendary Video Game (and Comic) series Sonic the Hedgehog.

Born and raised on Angel Island.... By himself (Talk about Lonlieness that gives Robinson Crusoe's life a run for his money), Knuckles is the last surviving member of the Knuckles Clan, who sworn an oath to protect the Master Emerald, which contains the power to Counter the Chaos Emeralds, which, well, if you had Seven of those, you literally become unstoppable..... For a couple of moments at least XD!! (Coming later)

During a Patrol around Angel Island, Knuckles encountered two visitors, a Hedgehog and a Fox, who were on pursuit of the Evil Schemer, Dr Eggman, who invaded Angel Island and attempted to take the Master Emerald for himself. 

Thankfully, The Hedgehog and the Fox, literally beat Eggman to a pulp, and, despite some brief tension, like knocking out the Super Form from the Hedgehog, Knuckles eventually became one of the Good Guys of the series.

And yep, the Hedgehog and Fox are...... George Hancock and Ibara all along.............

George Hancock: Ahhh, I am back :D

Ibara: Well my best Friend George, I am glad to join up :D!!!

Nahhh just kidding...... SONIC AND TAILS!!!

George Hancock: What???? I thought I was in the story?

Ibara: Yeah!!! What gives?

Sonic: Sorry fellas, you are just imposters to us

Tails: Yeah!!!!

Knuckles: I cannot recall two imposters on Angel Island. So Shoo!!!

(Knuckles threatens both George Hancock and Ibara with a glare, both run away)     

Anyway......

After the ordeal on Angel Island, Knuckles participated on many epic adventures across the Sonic Series. Ranging from fighting Eggman Robots, Eggman himself, Metal Sonic being a nuisance to Knuckles, fighting Shadow to no avail, Approving stuff with his stamps....

Knuckles became a staple of the Sonic Series. Going as far as to be one of the most likable, funniest and badass characters all round. 

That's is a very brief background for Knuckles (There is a treasure trove of story behind Knuckles that makes him even more likable). Let's look at the Echidna's Capabilities 

Physical Capabilities

It goes without saying, Knuckles is actually one of the strongest characters of the Sonic Franchise. Both Literally and figuratively. It also helps that because we see him match the Casual Speeds of Sonic and Tails, Knuckles is also very fast all round. 

Oh, and to top it all off, he is also quite a tank, with alot of feats that make him pretty much a powerhouse. Here is a list of Feats for Strength, Speed and Durability for Knuckles

Strength     

Knuckles creating an Eruption with his Punch

• Knocked out Sonic, who was in his Super Form at the time. Although, this is just a surprise attack. Still, quite impressive, since Super Forms literally grant invulnerability

• Destroyed Eggman's Turrets with a Punch each

• Before Chris Redfield achieved it, Knuckles did this.....

BOULDER PUNCH!!!!! Except there isn't Wesker this time XD!!!

• Punched a portion of a Station that moved the Moon. To be clear though, Knuckles did not actually move the Moon physically, he simply disrupted the stability controls to make the Moon move.

• Knuckles can punch with such force, he creates Volcanoes

• Helped Sonic, Tails and Amy Rose stop a Speeding Train.

• Because Knuckles fought Sonic and Shadow, he can reasonably scale to higher power, such as the time when both Sonic and Shadow had a clash that resulted in a shockwave that shook nearby Forests. That alone is Gigatons worth of Energy

Mind you, all these feats were achieved without Super Form. Which I will get into later    

Speed  

• Can keep up with both Sonic and Tails at their casual Speed, which is faster than a race car

• At full speed, Knuckles is around Super Sonic Speeds thanks to dodging many obstacles and attacks, like one time, he had to avoid homing missiles and laser fire sprayed at him all at once!!! 

• Gliding Speed is somewhat slower but still quick enough to evade missiles and gunfire. Bullet timing Knuckles hahah

• Digging Speed is quick enough to create a 10km tunnel in around 2 minutes

• Can keep up with Sonic and Shadow's Combat Speed. Scaling Wise, Light Speed :D!!!!

Durability   

• Took explosions to the face. Sometimes even from inside the building and only comes out more pissed off than ever before.... YES!!!! I love Knuckles!!!!!

• By virtue of physics, Knuckles can create Volcanoes with his punches. This also means, he can also endure the same level of power as well!!! So yes, Knuckles is Mountain Level...... Or is he?????

• Did get electrocuted by Dr Eggman. 

• Took Laser Fire. Super Heated Energy that can melt metal

As mentioned before, none of these feats involved Super Form.... Which now means....

Super Form   

What is a Sonic Character without a Super Form? 

After obtaining the Seven Chaos Emeralds, Knuckles can achieve the Super Form. 

This form grants Invulnerability, Speed Boost, Power Boost and a All Damaging Aura that literally destroys anything in a single touch. Though to be clear, durable opponents can take more beatings from Super Forms. But, that is a tall order, because Super Forms are literally a game changing form in ANY scenario.

That's right, Knuckles can use this Super Form anywhere, anytime at this point. He can carry all Seven Emeralds in a random encounter, and if the battle gets dire, he will go Super!!!!

So remember I said Knuckles would be Mountain Level? With his Super Form, he goes into Planet Level..... Yep..... What a jump in power that might as well be a Dragon Ball reference...... Oh wait a minute XD!!!!

Hyper Form   

You think Super Form is powerful? Say hello to Hyper Form. 

Has all the capabilities of Super Form but now, Knuckles reaches greater Power, to the point he can go to Star Level and possibly Multi Planet Level. Yep, No joke, Sonic the Hedgehog series is vastly underestimated in terms of Power. 

Hyper Form is essentially the Final Form for Knuckles. At this point, he is now a legit Monster of epic proportions. Good luck trying to face an Echidna who may seem silly, but when he gets serious......... Rest in Peace....... Haha!!

Skills   

Knuckles actually has quite a varied skillset, although not as smart as Tails or as skilled in combat as Sonic, Rogue, Blaze and Big the Cat, Knuckles is still quite efficient in his own way.

What sets Knuckles apart however, is the fact he is extremely good at Digging. Infact, Knuckles' digging skills helped his friends time and time again. So much so it is ideal for Covert Operations and Stealth tactics and escaping. Even Ambushes. 

Yep, this guy is a real surprise :D!!!

Knuckles is also a climber, using his Fist Spikes to climb onto almost any surface, Knuckles can literally do whatever it takes to reach his goals

Also, Knuckles is a great glider, even though he has no parachute or equipment helping him glide, he still manages to glide.... Oh, he can even stay in the air at will........ Yep, I love this guy!!!

Knuckles Gliding..... Super echidna anyone??

Of course, Knuckles can Spin Dash, just like Sonic and other characters. A Spin Dash is also used as an Offensive Technique, powerful enough to shatter foes. 

Spin Dash

Power Ups

For the sake of the blog, I will list a handful of Power Ups that are stand outs. 

Traditionally, you can only get these power ups from a special box or crate, but for the sake of lore and gameplay, I will list some power ups just for fun

• Invulnerability (Not the Super and Hyper Form)
• Super Speed
• Invisibility
• Underwater Breathing
• Elemental Resistances (Fire, Electricity, Cold)

Feats for Knuckles   

Being a major character in Sonic the Hedgehog, Knuckles has achieved quite a list of amazing feats. Here is a list for the Echidna that reminds me of........ my friend who loves rabbits....... Oh I am serious hahahahaha.

• Has officially, and cleanly, beat Metal Sonic, who is designed to match Sonic....... Even though it has rarely, if ever beat Sonic but whatever hahah.

• Helped Sonic and friends defeat Dr Eggman time and time again

• Defeated Chaos

• Has, I kid you not, defeated Mecha Knuckles. Yep. You are getting Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla vibes XD!!!!

• Approved Leone from Akame Ga Kill as a Great Waifu........ :)

• Ate alot of Food......... Might as well have him in a Food Eating Contest.... Oh, right, Knuckles was in my own Food Contest XD!!!

• Out of all the Sonic Characters, Knuckles may well have the coolest Design, if only rivaled by Shadow and, my personal favorite, Sonic himself :D!!!

• Has been voiced by Idris Elba in the recent Sonic 2 Film and in his own Series.......

• Is also voiced by multiple Voice Actors. Japanese and English as well :D

• Sonic the Hedgehog is an incredibly fun series :D!!!!

Weaknesses   

Despite Knuckles being an absolute beast, he does have many weaknesses.

The biggest trademark for Knuckles is that he is one of, if not, the weakest character in the Sonic series in terms of Mental Control. Infact, he also goes to the borderline world of silliness, to the point that Knuckles is very gullible. 

This makes Knuckles very easy to take advantage of in many situations. Then again, later games and recent Sonic Material did make Knuckles overcome this weakness overtime.

Another weakness for Knuckles that is worth noting is that his fighting style is not quite as flashy as a well trained fighter. He also lacks equipment in a random encounter because most of them, such as his own Racing Vehicle, require specific circumstances to use. He also lacks ranged attacks that would have helped him get more versatile.

Finally, powerful foes can overpower Knuckles, even Super and Hyper Forms can still get overpowered or outlasted since they run on a Time limit. So really, Knuckles can still lose a battle against someone who has the exact same Stats or even greater than what he is capable of.

Still, it goes without saying that Knuckles the Echidna is badass, funny and super likable.

I had alot of fun researching this Echidna.... Oh no...... I ran out of thoughts XD!!!

Lucario  

Lucario is a Generation 4 Fighting/Steel Type Pokemon from.... well, Pokemon.

That's pretty much it for Lucario's Basic Background, why? Because there really isn't just one Lucario, there are other Lucario's out there!!!

However, it is worth noting that Lucario is the evolution of Riolu. And after attaining high friendship with a Pokemon Trainer, evolves into Lucario.

Riolu

Of course there is a movie dedicated to Lucario, even though it is already established there are other Lucario's Out there, and the Anime of Pokemon features even more Lucario. 

So.... That's pretty much it. Lucario is a cool Pokemon with amazing potential. Let's look at the Jackal's Capabilities

Physical Stats

Lucario by all intents and purposes, is quite efficient. Though never as strong as high tier Pokemon, Lucario does have moments to shine. Here is a list of Feats for Strength, Speed and Durability

Strength

• Evenly matched with Blaziken, who is Strong and Powerful enough to smash walls of buildings

• Could scale to Hitmolee's Kicks, which are powerful enough to create mini tornadoes. Then again, we never see these Tornadoes destroy a building, so those kicks are maybe wall level or even just Peak human level.......

• In Mystery of Mew, Lucario broke Registeel's Grasp, who at one point, threw an Humvee

Speed      

• Can match and exceed Ash's Pikachu, who is Lightning Speed

• Using his pre cognition, can evade any attack thrown at him, assuming he has the reflexes to do so.

• Fought Pokemon with Faster than Eye can track Speeds. Because many Lucario's can fight the likes of other Fighting Type Pokemon, that essentially settles to one of them fighting a Hitmontop, who spins at such speeds, they can go to Faster than Light Speeds thanks to the Speed of their Spin.

• Can avoid Flying Based attacks, one of them can reach speeds of around Super Sonic. Fly itself allows the Pokemon to carry their Trainers and other Pokemon across large distances in a short time span. 

Durability   

• Endured attacks that are super effective against Steel and Fighting Types. This is important because Super Effective is literally critical hits.

• Can endure a Charizard's Flamethrower, which can melt a Boulder

• Can survive a Seismic Toss from other Fighting Type Pokemon.

• Rock Tomb....... Just..... Rock..... Tomb....... XD!!!

• Took a full on rush by a Tauros, which is powerful enough to shatter metal and steel.

Mega Evolution   

With the use of a Key and a Mega Stone, Lucario attains Mega Evolution. Though this is a power up, the fact that it requires a Trainer to trigger it sets gives it less reliability in terms of a random encounter.

However, I will give Lucario his Mega Evolution for this match up solely based on Maximum Potential Rules.

The Mega Evolution is an incremental Power Boost. Even though not a substantial jump, it still can be helpful, especially with regards to the fact that increased health and power is a thing.

That said, it runs on a limit and Mega Evolution is temporary. But still, very much a badass way to go :D

Notable Abilities

Because the Pokemon Series is loaded with thousands of abilities, it is impossible for me to list Lucario's Full List of Abilities that, again, were used by different Lucario with different skills to begin with.

That said, there are notable Abilities that Lucario use that are pretty standard for its arsenal. Let's take a look.

• Quick Attack
• Aura Sphere (Powerful enough to destroy a Bridge and Overpower a Hyper Beam, which is powerful enough to blast Pokemon backwards at around 30-80ft)
• Rock Smash
• Copycat (Mimics a move before it is triggered)
• Sword Dance
• Meteor Mash (Yep, A Meteor Mash :D!!!!)
• Screech (Reduces Target Defense)
• Metal Claw 
• Rock Tomb.......... This.... Rock Tomb... (This move really gave me nightmares back in the day hahahaha)    
• Counter (Retaliation attack)
• Low Sweep
• Final Gambit
• Bone Rush
• Heal Pulse (Very handy, its a regeneration)   
• Dragon Pulse (Super Badass)

Skills  

Lucario is by all intents and purposes, a Martial Artist. Highly skilled and very powerful, Lucario has the skills that can make Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris Smile.

Aside from all this, Lucario is also quite a cool head. Having Natural Precognition, he can predict movements of his foes and act on instinct.

Lucario is also highly intelligent, infact, Lucario is one of the smartest Pokemon in existence. So much so they have a history of helping fellow trainers with problem solving skills.

Feats for Lucario  

Lucario is very much the first character of my series that has a loose list of Feats. Again, there is many Lucario out there so pinpointing specific feats means we have to composite them together. Here is a handful of feats for Lucario.

• Helped Ash and friends in the movie Lucario and the Mystery of Mew. 

• Broke out of Riley's Pokeball while in the inside!!!!! 

• Destroyed Metal Balls with Bone Rush

• Defeated Blaziken, who had the Type Advantage over Lucario and yet lost.

• Is part of the Super Smash Bros Series

• Is a Super cool Pokemon with Super Cool Abilities :D

• Is so Intelligent, Lucario can speak!!!! Though Lucario uses telepathy, still, super cool

Weaknesses 

It goes without saying but Lucario is a mere Glass Cannon. Especially with regards to having almost no substantial Defensive Capabilities that help him negate damage outright.

In terms of Stats, Lucario is wildly inconsistent since stat boosting abilities make it hard to pinpoint its true potential. Even if you give him that benefit, Lucario is not even close to being one of the strongest Pokemon in existence. Lucario is powerful, but never in the same league as Mewtwo, Rayquaza, Kyogre, Latios and Latias. And do not even start with Arceus hahahaha.... Lucario is barely in the same league as these Pokemon.

It is also worth noting that Mega Evolution does require a Trainer to trigger. So giving Lucario the Mega Evolution would mean it needs both the Key Stone and Mega Stone to trigger it. Which, well, it is entirely reasonable to give both to Lucario in a random encounter by means of Maximum Potential. 

But even still, Mega Evolution is not a big gap in power, all it really does is incremental boost of power that is like 20-30% Power increase. Good, but nothing spectacular

Finally, Lucario can only use 4 Abilities at once. He can learn more abilities but he has to replace one out of 4 in order to learn it, forgetting the previous ability, which is quite a risky end on Pokemon's Part...... Yep, what a weird system hahahah

Still, it goes without saying that Lucario is cool and a badass Pokemon :D!!!

The Fight!!!!!    

(Lucario is sitting ontop of a rock, eating Berries)   

Lucario: I believe my time for Calm Thinking is extended. Hopefully I get a good rest after my battle against a Machamp.....

(From a distance)   

(Knuckles is gliding across a nearby factory and is escaping security)  

Knuckles: Seriously? These guys are upset I just entered the building with no harm intended? 

Security: Alert!!! Alert!!! Intruder Alert!!!!!

The Boss: Get that Pokemon!!!! It ate my Chocolate!!!!

Knuckles: A what?

(In a flashback, Knuckles ate a chocolate bar that the Boss owned, infuriating him in the first place)  

Knuckles: Well, your too slow!!!!

(Knuckles eventually escapes the Factory and glides a good distance away. Out of Sight and out of trouble.... until.....)

Lucario: I sense Someone Coming.....

Lucario: Looks like Trouble, I better check it out.

(Lucario runs toward the commotion, turns out, Knuckles had an unhappy landing because he was then attacked by nearby Pigeots)  

Knuckles: Ugh, those Birds are scary!!!!!!

Lucario: You there!!!! What are you doing?

(Knuckles looks towards Lucario)

Knuckles: Oh hello!!! I am just trying to find my way back to my friends. Do you know where the nearby transport station is?

Lucario: I do not know what your talking about, but since you invaded my home, your gonna be taught a lesson.......

Knuckles: Well, if that's what you want, come and get me first!!!

FIGHT!!!!!!!!!!  

(Lucario first strikes with a Quick Attack, however Knuckles is barely phased)  

Knuckles: Oh no.......

(Lucario then attacks Knuckles with a flurry of Kicks and Punches. One of the kicks trips Knuckles.... Low Sweep)

Knuckles: Oh no........

(Lucario then proceeds to go into a pose)  

Lucario: I shall finish you...... Weakling

Knuckles: Oh No......... 

(Lucario then does a Sword Dance and gains an Attack Boost) 

Knuckles: Wow!!! So Cool!!!! 

(Lucario then attempts another strike.....) 

Knuckles: Nope, not again!!!

(Knuckles suddenly stands up quickly and grabs Lucario's Fist)

Knuckles: Time to play it hard now......

(Knuckles then pulls Lucario's Left arm and then hits him with his own right arm, which then blasts Lucario over 100ft across the forest)

Lucario: What?????

(Knuckles then spin dashes towards Lucario, hitting Lucario 4 times before Lucario is then on the ground) 

Knuckles: You see pal, You shouldn't try and attack someone who asked for directions.

Lucario: You..... will not beat me!!!!

(Lucario then unleashes his Mega Evolution after holding out both the Mega and Key Stones at hand) 

MEGA EVOLUTION!!!!

Lucario: Behold......

Knuckles: Wow............. what a Rip Off  

(Lucario, now boosted, uses Aura Sphere and this time, blasts Knuckles back at 50 ft)

Knuckles: Woah!!!!!! That is something!!!

Lucario: Your no match for me.

Knuckles: Oh yeah? Well how about this-

(Before Knuckles could finish)

Knuckles: Ouch!!

(Lucario's Metal Claw hits Knuckles and causes minor gashes across his body)

Knuckles: Who are you?

Lucario: Don't you have a Pokedex? I am Lucario

Knuckles: Lucario? What a cool name for such a Jerk

(Lucario then does 5 more Metal Claws, Knuckles is now bleeding hard)

Knuckles: Now this is getting "cough" serious

Lucario: Giving up yet?

Knuckles: Never.....

(Knuckles then attempts a Spin Dash, but Lucario avoids it thanks to Precog)

Lucario: Fool.......

(Knuckles then hits a cliffside that was right behind Lucario, creating a 20ft wide hole)

Knuckles: Oh no.......

Lucario: Well.... Not as Strong as you thou-

(Suddenly)

HYPE!!!!!!!

Knuckles: You were saying?

(Knuckles, after triggering the power of the Seven Chaos Emeralds, finally attains Hyper Form)

Lucario: This got interesting. 

Knuckles: Interesting? Now you pissed me off. Prepare to lose!!!

(Knuckles then runs towards Lucario. Lucario then triggers Bone Rush)

(Eventually, both Mega Lucario and Hyper Knuckles clash, but this time, Hyper Knuckles finally overpowers Lucario)

Lucario: Such Power!!!!!!! 

Knuckles: Shut up!!!

(Knuckles then punches Lucario so hard, he flies towards a nearby mountain and crashes)

Knuckles: That is for fighting me......

(Knuckles follows the trail that leads to the Mountain, Lucario, inside a large cave created by the impact, is still alive, but badly bruised)

Lucario: Your a strong foe............. But I can still beat you

Knuckles: Seriously? I gave you a wallop and you still didn't give up?

Lucario: I cannot let you go any further "Coughs" I must defend my home from invaders

Knuckles: Feelings mutual Pal................ But....

(Knuckles then simply punches the ceiling of the cave and causes a Volcano within the Mountain, Lucario is buried underneath)

Knuckles: I am sorry, but it had to be done.....

K.O!!!!!!!!

Lucario may have been a Skilled Pokemon, but Knuckles was simply too much to handle.

Lucario may be more versatile but that was literally it. Knuckles had all other categories in spades. We are talking about an echidna who literally matched Sonic's Speed at around Lightning Level and that was not even considering Super and Hyper Forms, which put Knuckles at Faster than Light Speeds. Lucario cannot achieve the same Speed Feats of Knuckles both Figuratively and Literally.

It also doesn't help that Lucario is a wet noodle compared to Knuckles in terms of Power. 

Wall level vs Mountain Level? I think that alone speaks volumes as to how much of a stomp this match up was from the get go. 

While Precog is a thing for Lucario, he had to first act on instinct and surpass the Speed of Knuckles in order for it to be effective, and while in some situations this helped, Knuckles is already much faster to the point it is not a reliable way to cement a victory.

Lucario may have healing options but none of that would matter against the Super and Hyper Forms of Knuckles, which not only boost stats but also Increase Speed and Invulnerability. Yeah, Mega Evolution is nothing compared to Invulnerability. It is a Health increase yes but Durability vs Invincibility? No contest.

Knuckles   

+ Superior Stats

+ Both Super and Hyper Forms Ended the Fight instantly

+More Maneuverable in the Air thanks to Gliding

- Less Versatile

- Not as Smart

Lucario

+ Versatile

+ Smarter

- Much Weaker in Stats

- Mega Evolution cannot compete with Super and Hyper Knuckles

-Less mobile in the Air

Thanks to his Stats, Super and Hyper Forms, plus Tricky Abilities like Gliding and Digging, Knuckles the Echidna has what it takes to simply "Knock out" Lucario.

Guess Knuckles just Lucariowned this match up............ haha!!!!

The Winner is Knuckles the Echidna

A Special Thanks to my Great friend Alex Chen, Thank you for helping me research Knuckles and Lucario. Your help has been invaluable and I hope to collaborate with you again in the future.

Oh, and thank you for driving me to play more Sonic Games, it has been a great time :D

Next time on Who Would Win........

Vs.......

Max Rockatansky (Mad Max) vs Aatami Korpi (Sisu)