Who Can Beat Darkseid?

Darkseid is one of the most feared supervillains in the DC Comics, and the New God is powerful enough to defeat many heroes and villains in DC and the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). But there are several Marvel and DC characters who could beat him.

None of the characters listed below would have an easy time taking on Darkseid, given his sheer power. Yet, thanks to their technologically advanced suits, weaponry, or magical prowess, the following characters at least have a chance if they face off one-on-one against Darkseid.

1 – The Hulk

Thanks to Hulk’s unlimited strength and endurance, it’s tough to truly beat him. Using the Hulkbuster, Tony Stark subdued the Hulk in Age of Ultron, and Thanos expelled him via Bifrost in Infinity War.

While Hulk is beatable, as Stark and Thanos showed, the latter physically dominated him without playing any mental games. If Darkseid took Thanos’ route, he could defeat Hulk just as easily.

But if Darkseid tried to wear down Hulk mentally, he would be in trouble. Playing mind games with Hulk will make the Green Goliath angrier.

And the angrier Hulk is, the stronger he gets. This would allow him to summon enough physical strength to defeat Darkseid.

2 – Doctor Strange

Thanks to his sorcery, Doctor Strange is one Avenger who could defeat nearly any hero or villain. Strange isn’t just skillful with his array of magical talent, he also possesses a genius IQ.

We can’t forget Stephen Strange’s experience fighting some of the craftiest villains, including elder gods.

So, how would he scope out Darkseid? Easy. Strange can astral project, as he’s done so many times to know where his would-be opponents are lurking.

This strategy would catch Darkseid off-guard and Strange would win the battle before the God of Evil even knew what hit him.

3- Thor

When you’re an Asgardian God who killed Thanos (even if it did little to advance the Avengers agenda), you have a chance to defeat Darkseid.

Thor also scored victories against opponents with more power than he has thanks to his wisdom and wit. One good example came when he defeated Hela, as Thor realized he needed to outsmart her.

While Darkseid may have Thor beaten in strength, he doesn’t have the God of Thunder beaten in wit. Thanks to Thor’s smarts, he will ultimately win this battle.

4 – Scarlet Witch

Some call Scarlet Witch the strongest Avenger, and her ability to manipulate reality is one major reason. Once she traps Darkseid in a reality that works against him, the New God will have a tough time competing with her.

But if Darkseid can circumvent this reality, Scarlet Witch has an array of hexes and curses in her arsenal.

Like Hulk, Scarlet Witch grows more dangerous the angrier she gets. If Darkseid were to provoke her mean streak, this wouldn’t even be a battle.

5 – Iron Man

Darkseid may see firsthand just how dangerous Tony Stark’s array of technology is. If Stark didn’t have a suit of armor capable of defeating Darkseid, he would just purposefully build one to crush the New God.

Given Darkseid’s strength, expect a technologically-advanced version of the Hulkbuster to do the job. And if the suit still isn’t strong enough, Stark has the brainpower to outsmart Darkseid.

Stark has an IQ of 270, and he used his supergenius intellect to defeat plenty of past opponents. Though it killed Stark in Avengers: Endgame, his ability to outsmart Thanos ended the Mad Titan’s quest to destroy the universe.

If Stark could end Thanos using his wit, he can definitely stop Darkseid.

6 – Black Panther

T’Challa may be the most resourceful Avenger, but his vibranium suit alone is one huge reason he can withstand a villain like Darkseid. And just like Thor and Stark, T’Challa also possesses a genius-level IQ, so he can outsmart any opponent, even if they are more powerful.

Also like Stark, T’Challa isn’t afraid to use the Infinity Gauntlet to win a fight. So, if all else fails, Black Panther could disintegrate Darkseid with a single snap.

If losing to Darkseid potentially meant the loss of human life, T’Challa wouldn’t hesitate to do what he needed in a fight against the New God.

7 – Ultron

You may have expected Thanos to be our first villain on this list, as one quick snap with the Infinity Gauntlet could end Darkseid. But many sources have stated the New God’s power is far better than the Mad Titan’s.

In a one-on-one battle against Thanos, we’ll give the victory to Darkseid. Ultron, however, would step in and easily defeat the New God.

In What If…?,  we met a scenario where Ultron defeated the Avengers, ripped the Mind Stone from Vision, and subsequently killed Thanos, ending the Mad Titan’s quest of completing the Infinity Gauntlet.

Once Ultron took the Infinity Stones, he killed nearly every living thing in the universe before discovering the multiverse existed.

Ultron wouldn’t need to destroy the universe to defeat Darkseid. No matter what the New God would throw at Ultron, the latter could just disintegrate Darkseid’s attacks with the Gauntlet.

Ultimately, Ultron would go on the offensive and use the Gauntlet’s power to destroy Darkseid.

8 – Captain Marvel

This one would be a toss-up, but Captain Marvel has grown into her powers so much that there is a chance she could give anyone, hero or villain, trouble in a fight.

Anything Darkseid throws at her, Carol Danvers can reflect and even absorb. Once she rechannels that energy, it could be all over for Darkseid.

However, you can also argue that Darkseid’s powers are superior to Danvers’, even if she were to absorb, rechannel, or reflect them. If that were the case, then Danvers would, like many others on this list, turn to wit to upend the God of Evil.

We have seen Danvers use her wit to overcome opponents with theoretically more power than she has. Knowing this, Darkseid may be just another villain that can’t handle Danvers’ smarts.

9 – Wonder Woman

While Wonder Woman can’t match Darkseid in power, she can defeat him by summoning others like family and the Old Gods. She also has quite a history facing Darkseid, and in most cases, he hasn’t defeated her.

Once, Darkseid invaded the island of Themyscira, intending to kill off the population. Wonder Woman survived. And while she was forced to become Darkseid’s enforcer, Dr. Frankenstein freed her and she managed to pin him with her Lasso of Truth maneuver.

10 – Batman

When Batman realized Darkseid was weak to Radion, he didn’t hesitate to hit him with a Radion blast. However, Darkseid countered with an Omega Beam, sending the Caped Crusader through multiple points in time.

Darkseid intended for Batman to implode once the latter had enough omega energy. But Batman, along with the Justice League, had the foresight to counter and defeat Darkseid.

While it may be true that Batman can’t match Darkseid physically in a one-on-one fight, his wit would be enough to defeat the God of Evil. If the Caped Crusader had time to prepare for a standoff with Darkseid, he would enjoy an even greater advantage.

11 – Superman

Like many DC characters on this list, Superman often fights Darkseid alongside the Justice League. This is something we’ve seen in comics like New 52 and Final Crisis.

Also like most of the DC heroes on this list, Superman would defeat Darkseid with interference, prep time, or by outsmarting him. Superman is the one outlier, and the New God knows it.

While Darkseid may possess more power than Superman, the Kryptonian once defeated the God of Evil one-on-one when he was on a mission to rescue John Henry Irons.

One reason Superman fares so well with Darkseid, even in a one-on-one battle, stems from his remarkable endurance.

Most of the Marvel and DC superheroes on this list possess superhuman endurance. But Superman’s endurance is so great that he is nearly indestructible. Combine Superman’s durability with his genius IQ, and it’s easy to see why he fares well against Darkseid.

12 – Aquaman

Aquaman’s trident would be his lifeline in facing Darkseid. While the New God has the Aquatic God beaten strength-wise, if Aquaman went for and gouged Darkseid’s eyes with his trident, he would tip the scales to his favor.

The Omega Beam may be Darkseid’s most prominent power, but if the trident damaged Darkseid’s eyes, there would be no way he could use the attack.

We saw Aquaman do this in New 52. He had the Justice League behind him, but even if he faced Darkseid one-on-one, Aquaman could still give himself an advantage by targeting the New God’s eyes.

13 – Silver Surfer

As one of Marvel’s most powerful entities thanks to his expertise in the Power Cosmics, Silver Surfer can defeat just about any hero or villain. And while he’s never faced Darkseid, Silver Surfer has overwhelmed villains who match the New God’s strength.

Defensively, Silver Surfer is one of very few characters who could withstand an Omega Beam. But even if he doesn’t believe he has enough strength to endure the beams, he’s still fast enough to outrun them.

14 – Highfather

Highfather may be Darkseid’s biggest adversary, as the two share an intense rivalry in the DC Comics. While many of their fights ended without a victor, Highfather once bested Darkseid when he swayed Orion, Darkseid’s son, to embrace good rather than evil.

He also has a better Source connection than Darkseid and with that connection, he can counter Darkseid in any way imaginable. Highfather can alter reality, or he can enhance his strength or even cosmic abilities to outlast Darkseid’s.