The sword is an elegant, classic weapon, and multiple characters from across the DC universe seem to agree. In a world where everything from super-speed to heat-vision is used, swords are still effective. The question is: who in this vast multiverse wields them the most skillfully?
From warriors to assassins to even vigilantes, the sword has been wielded by many iconic heroes and villains alike. Some use them as their primary weapon, while others can back up their sword skills with other means of fighting, whether it's through martial arts or through superpowers. Regardless, a select few have proven their abilities with the blade.
Black Manta
David Hyde AKA Black Manta is a master of close combat, mixing his skills as a mercenary with his high-tech suit. He also is known for dual-wielding short swords that he uses when he battles Aquaman. He is just a man in a suit, but he always finds a way to make Aquaman bleed.
These same skills are what earned him a slot on the Suicide Squad. His swordsmanship would even carry on to his son Jackson, who would become Aqualad. Jackson is often seen forming swords out of the water using his hydrokinesis.
Batman
When Bruce Wayne trained to become the vigilante that he is now, he mastered any form of fighting he could come across. From ancient martial arts to training with Wildcat in order to perfect boxing, Batman conquered it all, and that includes sword-fighting. After all, one of his idols as a child was the masked hero Zorro.
He doesn't use it often, but when he does, Batman can use a sword with elegance and grace. This mastery of the sword is also what allows him to fend off other sword fighters without ever needing to pick up a blade. Batman knows all the moves himself, allowing him to predict their moves.
Azrael
The Order Of Purity, a splinter group of the Order Of St. Dumas, bestows their chosen warrior with the Sword Of Sin to carry out their twisted quest to take control of Gotham City. As a result, any Azrael becomes a master of wielding the Sword Of Sin as a means to even operate.
Azrael is someone who has actually beaten Batman in a fight. He operates in Gotham City and is even a member of Batman Incorporated, which showcases that if he impresses Batman, then he's worth mentioning.
Ra's Al Ghul
Thanks to the Lazarus Pit, Ra's Al Ghul is over six hundred years old, and in that time, he has become someone not that different from Batman. They are both masters of martial arts, but Ra's Al Ghul proudly embraced his swordsmanship, and that training would pass onto Damian Wayne, his grandson.
Ra's was the one who formed The League Of Assassins in the first place. The organization is formed of all his various apprentices, and since they all prove to be problems for the Bat-Family, that shows how effective Ra's is. He typically is a puppet master, but when he needs to, Ra's has proven to be a threat to most with his sword.
Cassandra Cain
From birth, Cassandra Cain was trained by her mother to be the perfect assassin. She inherited all of her mother's skills as well as some of her father's, as he too was an assassin. So as a result, she too had an affinity for swordsmanship, but she rarely uses a sword anymore.
Cassandra ended up betraying her mother and became one of the most skilled fighters of the Bat-Family. She embraced their non-lethal ways, for the most part, and avoids swords, but that doesn't mean she slacks. If a situation calls for a sword, the enemy is going to be in trouble.
Deathstroke
Very few villains can boast that they've beaten Batman in a fight multiple times. Deathstroke AKA Slade Wilson is the most famous mercenary in the DC universe and for good reason; he always gets his target. Slade has been shown to be deadly in all forms of fighting and with nearly any weapon.
His go-to weapon is his sword which he has used to fight, maim, and even kill multiple skilled and/or powerful beings. He's known to have been a consistent rival to the Teen Titans, fought Ra's Al Ghul, and even used his sword to defeat The Flash, and that is no small feat.
Katana
It makes sense that this hero is the best: it's in her codename. Tatsu Yamashiro is the wielder of the Soul Taker sword, a mystic katana that steals and holds the souls of its victims within. Tatsu Yamashiro AKA Katana is another hero who has faced off against some of the best sword fighters.
Multiple times, Katana has fought Lady Shiva, and sadly, that's a fight that she always loses. That doesn't take away from how skilled she is, able to deflect bullets with her sword. What helps is that Katana does not care about killing, almost in a similar mentality as the Punisher; she believes all criminals have earned death. The lack of hesitation allows her to conquer most threats.
Lady Shiva
Very few people in the DC universe are more skilled in fighting than Lady Shiva, and combined with how evil she can be, that makes for a dangerous character. She is another elite assassin and with her dual swords, so she often leaves piles of bodies for heroes to find.
Shiva has taken on Deathstroke, her own daughter Cassandra Cain, and multiple members of the Bat-Family. Even if she loses, her swordsmanship skills leave her enemies regretting that they fought her.
Damian Wayne
Each Bat-Family member has their preferred weapon, and Damian Wayne almost exclusively wields a sword. Though Damian does end up obeying his father's wishes of non-lethal methods, Damian Wayne was raised by Ra's Al Ghul and that training will never go away.
Fortunately, that training combined with more training by Talia Al Ghul and his father has made him the deadliest version of Robin to fight. His sword skills have allowed him to beat Deathstroke and Lady Shiva before he was even a teenager.
Wonder Woman
Originally, Wonder Woman wielded her bulletproof bracer and the Lasso Of Truth. However, in modern comics, Princess Diana has been reimagined to be more of the warrior that she's supposed to be. So now she sports a sword and shield along with her usual equipment.
Wonder Woman is actually one of the most skilled members of the Justice League. Since she has no qualms about killing her villains, her swordsmanship combined with her demigoddess status makes her a force to be reckoned with. Even Batman has called Wonder Woman the best melee fighter he's ever seen, and this is the man that fought Lady Shiva.