Note to Readers: Being fans of DEATH BATTLE, I am pretty sure it is easy for you all of you to understand that whenever one approaches the question of "Who would win in a fight?" That there are some factors that matter more than others. In other words, we simply cannot cover EVERYTHING. We do realize that the weapons, armor, and skills, listed in this blog do not encompass everything that Link and Cloud posess in their aresenal. With this however, we have only compiled information that WE have ultimately decided as important. We also realize that all of our judgement is indeed based on OPINION.  But, this opinion, however, is based on extensive research we have done ourselves and we hope you will learn that by reading this blog you will come to accept that we did not pull this out of our ass and or caved into fanboy biases. As always, be courteous, show respect, and don't be a dick. Thank you!:)  

Welcome Deathbatttle Fans, to our very first, official Deathbattle Prediction blog! Where we will dig deep into the each fighter’s history and make a bold prediction about who would win a DEATHBATTLE!!!

…It has finally come…One of the most heavily requested Death Battles ever, a fight between the protagonists of two of the most fervently loved video game franchises in history. Zelda’s Link VS. Final Fantasy’s Cloud Strife.

Unsurprisingly, A LOT of people are excited for this. We here at the DEATH BATTLE fan blog team might have some personal match-ups we want to see, but from a popularity standpoint it's hard to think of a more suitable fight to analyze for our first large scale collaboration blog. Sit back as we look at these two iconic heroes’ weapons, armor, and skills to give our own opinions on one of the biggest fan-boy debates in history. As always we can only speculate on what the official DEATH BATTLE team’s verdict will be, but we’ll do our damndest in our speculation. IT’S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLE!"

But before we begin, I would like to repost the official DEATH BATTLE Rules that have been featured in the credits of every episode so that we have better understanding of how things should play out.

Rules of DEATH BATTLE

So there’s the official rules. Now that we have that squared away, let’s get on with this!

 

 

Born in the mountain village of Nibelheim, Cloud is the arrogant and proud mercenary of Final Fantasy VII. At age 13 he joined the elite organization S.O.L.D.I.E.R, seeking to become a 1st class soldier, only to make it as an ordinary Infantryman. Eventually he was chosen as one of the test subjects for the Jenova Project. After a long series of events, Cloud’s psyche was eventually reformed to create many false memories, causing him to believe he was an ex-First Class Soldier turned mercenary for hire. Cloud has confronted many foes in his time, the most famous of them being his arch nemesis and war hero Sephiroth and is generally considered one of the most powerful protagonists to ever be in a Final Fantasy game.

The Hero of Time’s tale has been passed down throughout generations of Hyrule’s history with slight variations, but like any retold myth there are always recurring themes. Most incarnations of Link are usually depicted wearing a green tunic, a wind cap, and a trusty sword and shield. The main goal of these many incarnations, like any hero, is to protect their land from the dangers that threaten it. Throughout Zelda history Link has saved the land of Hyrule from the evil sorcerers Vaati, Agahnim, Veran and Onox, the demon lord Ghirahim, Demise, and of course Ganondorf Dragmire. He has mastered everything from swordplay, to archery, to magic, to sumo wrestling and is likely one of the deadliest characters to ever star in a Nintendo game.

 

 

Cloud has wielded several weapons throughout the games he has appeared in with his trademark weapon being the infamously massive Buster Sword. The most powerful of these swords is easily his Ultima weapon, a sword with an attack power dependent on Cloud’s vitality. Buster Swords measure as long as 6 feet, as wide as a foot and are capable of cleaving through solid steel, fending off large waves of enemies, and other amazing feats provided the right person is wielding it.

Fusion Sword (Compact)

Fusion Swords (Apart)

In Advent Children, Cloud replaced his standard Buster Sword with Fusion Swords, a set of six different swords that can combine into one or be used separately to suit the combat situation he is in. The Main Blade is used as the base that all other swords gather around and is Cloud’s primary sword. The Hollow Blade forms around the main blade, but can be used on its own in combat and is sturdy enough to deflect bullets and withstand Sephiroth’s Masamune. The Back Blades function together as straight edge, long swords. And lastly, the Side Blades are two short handed weapons, that can quickly be dispatched from the sword to give Cloud an off-hand sword and appear to add extra mass to his already massive sword.

Although Link is known for wielding a vast array of swords such as the Goddess Sword and the Magical Sword, none are more famous than his famed Master Sword. Also known as the Sword of Time and the Bane of Evil’s Blade, the Master Sword is an almighty blade, capable of destroying most magical barriers with a single swipe, and with the assistance of special medallions can summon pillars of fire, earthquakes, and freezing ice..

Throughout the incredibly long and convoluted lore of The Legend of Zelda, the Master Sword is almost always the final blade that Link receives and is said in legend to be the only blade capable of vanquishing the evil power of Ganondorf and his demonic alternate form of Ganon (Even though other swords can as well).

Biggoron's Sword

Another sword worth mentioning would be the Biggoron’s Sword. While it isn’t quite as massive a Cloud’s Buster Sword and isn’t Link’s prefered weapon, it has significantly greater reach than the Master Sword, deals twice the damage, but is lacking the Master Sword’s ability to vanquish evil, more sturdy shielded defense, and greater variety of techniques.

Four Sword

Link Duplicates

Not to mention that with the Four Sword (also known as the Picori Blade), his attack is increased by four because of the sword’s ability to create three identical duplicates (with duplicates of their weapons, as each Link still has a shield). Though they do tend to be in it for themselves at times, they do work together when needed.

Sacred Bow

Light Arrows

Silver Arrows

Crossbow

While Link’s sword serves as his primary melee weapon, Link’s bow serves as his main projectile weapon.The Sacred Bow is generally regarded as his most powerful and is the only one capable of firing charged arrows that drill into his opponents. Light and Silver Arrows prove to be the most effective projectile weapons in the series and are capable of destroying even the most powerful forms of magic such as The Six Evil Barriers. Light and Silver Arrows were also instrumental in the many defeats of Ganondorf with Light Arrows wielding the ability to stun powerful foes, and with Silver Arrows possessing the strength to seriously damage and even kill the strongest of enemies. Along with this he can also use arrows imbued with ice, fire, and special exploding bomb arrows. There is a Crossbow variant of Link’s bow that lacks magically imbued arrows, but can shoot bomb arrows and special rapid-fire arrows.

Bomb

Double Clawshot

Gale Boomerang

Megaton Hammer

His other weaponry consists of Bombs both standard and remote detonated, a Double Claw-Shot designed for increased mobility and grappling enemies, two Magic Rods, one of which can freeze enemies and the other being able to create a four directional fireball that deals twice as much damage as the Ultimate Sword which is the strongest sword in the game that this rod appears in, the Gale Boomerang capable of summoning up tornadoes, and a mighty Hammer (usually called the Megaton Hammer) capable of generating shock-waves throughout the earth and denting heavily plated armor.

The Giant's Mask

Fierce Deity Link

Then there are his masks. The Giant’s Mask increases his size drastically, giving him a form strong enough to fight equally large monsters, but arguably his deadliest weapon is the Fierce Deity’s Mask. When activated Link is given an almighty god-like form capable of annihilating a being like Majora with ease. This version of Link wields a Double Helix Sword that can fire off a sword beam that does as much damage as the Great Fairy Sword and when he hits up close, both the melee strike and the sword beam do their own damage (8 times the damage). This mask is a force to be reckoned with.

There are many other weapons Link has used throughout the series. The guy is practically a walking armory, but those are likely to be his most useful combat items

 

 

After the Jenova project Cloud’s veins became surged with mako.The range superhuman powers this has given Cloud has varied in his games. On one hand there were points in Final Fantasy VII where he was hanging from a cliff and needed the assistance of others to pull himself up, on the other hand Advent Children buffed him to ridiculous levels of superhuman, the sort of stuff one would see in Dragon Ball Z. Advent Children typically showed him scaling large buildings while cleaving other ones apart.

He fights using the Buster Basher fighting style, a form of fencing that specializes in overpowering blows and high knockback. He isn’t the fastest character in the Final Fantasy/Dissidia cast, but he is one of the strongest and is still capable of pulling off numerous deadly combos.

Omnislash

And like most Final Fantasy heroes, Cloud has access to Limit Breaks, special techniques that can be performed once a special meter that builds from taking damage is filled. The bar fills up faster if Cloud is hit with a stronger attack rather than a weaker one. These attacks deal vary from a downward slash (Braver), the Blade Beam, summoning up 6 meteorites (Meteorain), creating a giant tornado (Finishing Touch), and the Omni-Slash, a technique consisting of 15 sword slashes all doing the equivalent damage of a critical hit. There are several variations of this technique, such as two with the Fusion Swords, one that performs 6 strikes with each blade and another that uses 13 strikes.

Limit Break

Limit breaks vary in Levels ranging from 1 (Braver) to 4 (Omni-Slash). Cloud can only have 1 Level of Limit Break equipped at a time and each level has only 2 attacks. The higher the Level the stronger the attack and the longer the bar takes to fill up, with Level 4 not completely filling up until damaged to the point of near death. However, if Cloud heals with a healing item the bar remains where it was prior to the healing.

Fira

He is one of the strongest Materia users among the Final Fantasy VII cast and has access to all types of strong magic, but seems to prefer fire and is capable of summoning up molten flame with the Fira spell and its two variants. This magic is however limited by the amount of MP he has, but given the number of MP recovery items he can hold, that won’t be a big deal provided he can access and use those items in time. Also, as Advant Children has shown, the Magic is straightforward so it can be detected. Another famous aspect of Final Fantasy is summons, but since summons are living separate beings, that assist in attacking opponents, they would be classified as outside help and as such aren’t available in DEATH BATTLE.

Although the canons and incarnations greatly vary, Link has been typically described as a young warrior in training. He often receives some training from a teacher, but it is usually very basic. Without his items, power-ups, and equipment, Link is not much stronger than your average adolescent male. Despite this however, even when not in possession of the Triforce of Courage he is strong enough to lift rocks as big as his own head and sumo wrestle his way to victory against much more heavyweight opponents. He even beat a Goron in Sumo Wrestling with the assistance of the Iron Boots. 

The training he does receive has given him access to a variety of techniques.His Sword Beam allows him to fire a beam of energy when he is at full health. In contrast, the Peril Beam allows him to fire these beams when at the brink of death.

Spin Attack

His famous Spin Attack allows him to spin his sword in a circle to deal twice as much damage as a regular blow and can be enhanced with Magic to increase its power and range at the cost of a little magic energy

When Link is focused on his target he can Parry an opponent’s attack by circling around them and striking from behind or by jumping up and striking their head.

When Link has an opponent knocked onto the ground he can perform the Ending Blow in which he jumps up and comes down onto the opponent with a stab to the heart.

His Shield Attack allows him to strike the opponent with his shield which can stun them and deflect ranged attacks. It also sets the opponent up to receive Links Helm Splitter which strikes the opponents head similar to one of his Parry Attacks.

The Back Slice is the same as his other Parry attack except that it can be executed right after a sideways dodge.

The Mortal Draw is a high risk high reward attack in which link must sheathe his sword and put away his shield and cannot focus on (Z-target) an enemy. If this criteria is met and an enemy draws near Link can spin around and unsheathe his sword to deliver a powerful strike that will kill almost all normal enemies in 1 hit. It can however be blocked and stronger enemies such as bosses will not be instantly killed by the Mortal Draw just heavily damaged.

His Jump Attack delivers an aerial strike that will deal twice as much damage as a normal blow. The Jump Strike let’s Link charge up this attack to release a shockwave that increases the attacks radius.

The Great Spin is a more powerful spin attack that can only be executed at full health.
The Great Spin Attack is a move that must be charged and allows link to move around and strike the opponent with consecutive spin attacks.

Link can also strike the opponent while dashing with the Pegasus Boots and rolling towards the opponent. He is also capable of performing an Up Thrust and Down Thrust when in the air.

Link also has 8 magic spells from Zelda 2 that he can use. But 3 of them are useless. The other 5 however are quite useful however.The Shield Spell increases Link’s resistance to damage. The Jump Spell makes Link jump higher. The Life Spell restores his life energy. The Fire Spell allows him to shoot Fireballs from his sword in place of Sword Beams, however the fireballs do not require Link to be at full health. Finally the Thunder Spell damages all enemies on screen who are not resistant to Magic, even bosses. While these spells are powerful, they still require Magic Energy to perform.

 

 

By far Cloud’s most valuable armor is the Ziedrich Bracelet, which halves the damage he takes from all forms of attack and boosts both his strength and defense all while costing no Materia. Unfortunately, due to a bug in the game the defensive bracelets in the game do not actually effect magic defense, but we can assume the intent was for this bracelet to give Cloud magical defense as well. Unfortunately, Cloud is unable to switch which armor he is using in battle and because of this only has access to one defensive bracelet.

He can’t use any other armor in Final Fantasy VII, but the Dissidia games gave him access to new types of headwear and armor. Of these new pieces of armor, his most useful ones are generally considered to be the the Genji Helm and Lufenian Chestplate. These armor pieces drastically boost Cloud’s HP and Bravery, but give no apparent defense boosts.

Damn...That must hurt like a bitch...

His standard S.O.L.D.I.E.R uniform doesn’t offer much defense, but Cloud has proven he can take an assortment of abuse, like when he somehow survived being stabbed directly in the chest by Sephiroth. He also has a variety of healing items at his disposal with the most valuable ones being the Hi-Potion (fully restores HP), Turbo Ether (fully restores MP), Elixir (fully restores HP+MP), the barrier creating Lunar and Light Curtains, the Hero Drink that temporarily boosts his base stats by 30%, and a Mirror that reflects attacks back at enemies. All of these items disappear after 1 use, but Cloud can carry as many as 99 of them and is only limited to how many times he can use the Hero Drink.

While Link’s Standard armor consists of a measly Green Tunic he possesses MANY other forms of defense like the Magic Armor, capable of making him immune to damage for as long as he wears it and has Rupees in his wallet. This Magic Armor drains 2 of Link’s rupees per second and when he runs out not only can he take damage again but the Magic Armor also becomes as heavy as the iron boots. Still, with a wallet of 9900 rupees that means he has a total of 82.5 minutes of damage immunity with this armor alone.

Link also possesses several magic items capable of making him immune to damage. The Guardian Potion+ makes him immune to damage for 3 minutes after he drinks it and when combined with the Potion Medal this doubles to 6 minutes. There is also his Nayru’s Love Spell that makes him immune to damage for as long as he has Magic Energy. And when he drinks the Chateau Romani he gains unlimited magic energy for 3 days at the least! Wind Waker  gave him one of his most useful potions, the Elixir Soup. This potion not only restores all of his hearts, not only doubles his strength until he takes damage, not only completely restores his magic stamina, but features two helpings in one bottle.

Red Ring

Mirror Shield

Link has also occasionally received a gift from the great fairy that halves the damage he takes from attacks and is equipped with a Red Ring that cuts the amount of damage he takes by ¼. As if his defense couldn’t get any greater, his Mirror Shield is capable of deflecting nearly all magical and physical attacks from opponents. There are also magical fairies he will keep in a bottle who revive him, but since these fairies are separate beings, we can assume it counts as outside help and therefore can’t be allowed to be used in DEATH BATTLE. Instead, Link has the Magic Potion, a potion that is pre-emptively rubbed over Link and fully restores his HP when he has lost all hearts and the Purple Potion, which has the same basic revival properties a fairy in a bottle would have, but without the outside help. Since the Magic Potion is pre-emptively rubbed across Link it doesn’t take up any inventory space, technically giving him a 5th potion.

Pegasus Boots

Magic Cape

These many defenses Link has at his disposal are made all the more impressive with the Power Bracelets. The name of this item varies from game to game, but the power is the same basic thing, this wrist-wear gives Link a constant strength boost enough strength to match the toughest Goron. With this he can move giant pillars and lift boulders many times his size. This power is backed by his Pegasus Boots, which also allows him to dash at speeds fast enough to crash through solid rock at the cost of a lack of control over the direction he’s moving. And to top this all off, he has access to both the Magic Cape that makes him completely invisible to the human eye provided he has magic available and Roc’s Cape that allows him to jump and soar great heights.

 

 

Cloud’s Motorcycle, Fenrir, is a four-wheeled motorized vehicle with extraordinary maneuvering capabilities and with a combination of polished black metal over brushed gold mechanics. On either side of the front tires is an expandable compartment that fits all pieces of the Fusion Swords, or the sword's fully completed form. It can reach 250 MPH, reverse easily, and can keep itself upright and driving even without a driver. But like a motorcycle, it does have a limited fuel supply (how much is unknown) and can not come to Cloud's aid when called.

Epona

Epona is Link’s trusted steed. She was a wild and untamed horse that only Malon can get close to. But thanks to Malon, Link eventually makes a connection with the horse. If Link plays Epona's Song on his ocarina, Epona will come to Link. But it can only be used in places Epona can reach. Also, since she is a horse, she has the strength and weaknesses of a horse. So while not as fast as Fenrir, she can come to Link’s aid when needed and has an easier time to recharge. Also note that Epona does not attack. So she is considered a vehicle, not outside help.

Crimson Loftwing

It's also well known that Link posesses a Crimson Loftwing in Lengend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, but since the rare bird is capable of attacks, he is not applicable in the fight.

Advantages

• At base, Cloud has superior speed and strength.
• Cloud is very durable.
• Fenrir is faster and able to last longer than Epona in movement.
• More mobile than Link.

Disadvantages

• Magic is very straightforward.
• Mainly uses his sword(s) and magics, so no variations beyond that.
• Defense isn’t a fraction as good as Link’s even with his super-human abilities.
• Fenrir is a motorcycle, thus unable to act on its own.
• Phoenix Downs are worthless in a one on one fight.
• No access to summons.
• Deadly Limit Breaks can only be used when damage to the point of near death is received

Advantages

• Has more ways of attacking outside the sword and magic and a wider variety of ways to get in on the opponent overall.
• Vastly superior defenses.
• Fierce Deity puts him in a god-like state.
• Four Sword gives him three clones to fight alongside him.
• Epona could act on her own.
• 2 means of revival, even after demise.

Disadvantages

• Link’s dependence on the Items. Without them, Link is just an average person with a sword and shield.
• Generally has less speed and strength than Cloud even with the Power Bracelets and Pegasus Boots.
• Four Sword duplicates sometimes get in the way.
• Epona is a horse, thus can only last so long.

 

 

Since we are nearing the end of this blog, it now time for you to hear our overall opinions about how the fight will play out. Do you agree? Let's find out.

AkumaTh

"Link has a huge arsenal of weapons and armor on his side. When put together, he is literally a monster on the battlefield. Cloud may have a speed advantage, but nothing in Cloud’s arsenal can get passed Link’s defenses. With wider ranged magical attacks as well as numerous options to attack, Link has this match in the bag."

LousyTactician

"I understand that on the surface Cloud’s over-the-top DBZ powers from Advent Children seems to make him the clear cut winner, but the biggest challenge I see him facing is the simple fact that this Link he is fighting is a composite version of the strongest attributes of every Link throughout Zelda history. Along with his standard equipment/defenses that reduce all damage he takes by 75%, Link has at least 3 item combinations that can make him temporarily indestructible, with the most useful one by far being Nayru’s Love combined with the Chateau Romani.

I predict Cloud’s superior strength and speed will make the fight start in his favor, but when Link begins activating his more long lasting power ups and mixing him up with his staggering variety of weapons Cloud will eventually be overwhelmed. If Link’s standard Master Sword doesn’t work, he’ll bring out his more effective Biggoron’s Sword, Golden Sword, and Four Sword. If those don’t work he’ll try magic spells and his other standard weaponry like bombs and arrows. If those don’t work he’ll have the Giant’s mask available, to over-power even Cloud’s super-human strength, and if that doesn’t work he’ll have the god-like power of the Fierce Deity at his disposal. All of this is backed by the ridiculous amount of defensive and recovery items he holds. Cloud can hold a large number of recovery items too, but the key difference is Link will only need to take the Chateau Romani and activate Nayru’s Love in order to not worry about damage for a LONG time. If Cloud wants to keep up with Link’s defensive endurance he’ll have to constantly be using his recovery items to stay in the game. And whenever his health drops too low so will the attack power of his Ultima Weapon.

There is no way this fight will end without there being at least one pissed off fan, but that’s how DeathBattle roles sometimes and if you want my verdict, the fact that this is a composite Link gives him the edge. Any lone incarnation of Link I don’t think would stand a chance against Cloud, but when combined into a composite form Link is a completely defensive and versatile powerhouse."

Samurai Spartan 7000

"When predicting  the outcome of things like this, there seems to be a hell of a lot of assumptions. For example. #1 We are assuming that the Link in question is a "composite" of sorts that represents the traits possesed by all Links in all canons. #2 We are also assuming there is no standing distinction between "Link" and "Toon Link" in this particular fight. #3 We are assuming Ben or Chad won't bring the laws of physics into the equation when considering how many items each fighter can have.#4 And the most dangerous assumption we have made here, is idea that we have truly covered ALL of their most powerful traits and or items. I mean, damn, there's just so much to look through with these two characters!

Looking past the assumptions however, I predict that the way the consumable items will be handled will make the biggest difference in the fight. Both possess items that would make it seem like they could achieve perpetual invincibility given that they could consume or equip their items with unchallenged ease. But they will be in the middle of a fight, and whether or not they will be able to use their itmes so easily during combat is a very hazy subject. You also gotta realize that the notion of such things cannot be based on whether or not a player can pause their game and change Cloud or Link's statuses while time is stopped.

I would imagine that during the fight, both of them would start to catch on to the fact they can stop their opponent from healing themselves. But I digress. I cannot really say for sure, but with the facts presented and the way we have presented them, I am going to have to look upon Link in favor of winning.  

There are just aren't many characters out there that can maintain the power of invincibility for the amount of time Link can and there are even fewer characters that can trump that power. 

I have to admit I had different opinions coming into this, but now I can safely say there is good reason people should be putting their money on Link."

Psb123

"With a vast amount of defenses that give him either superhuman durability or complete invincibility for long periods of time, the ability to gain unlimited magic, and a wide array of deadly weapons, my money is on Link."

So there is our prediction for who we think will win the upcoming DEATH BATTLE! But if you thought the predictions end here think again. Psb123 asked people to predict what music we’d be hearing in the upcoming DEATH BATTLE! Thank you to everyone who gave predictions. He will post another article very soon about the results. So look out!

Thanks to all the fans who are keeping up with us and we hope this is just the beginning of many great thins to come! Thanks again and stay screwy!