20 Strongest Versions of Black Panther (Ranked)

One of the most popular and iconic superheroes to ever emerge from the pages of Marvel Comics is none other than the Black Panther. Ever since his first appearance in 1966’s Fantastic Four #52, the King of the hidden kingdom of Wakanda has become a mainstay in the minds of most fans, and rightly so. Not only does the Black Panther boast superhuman abilities like enhanced strength, speed, stamina, and agility, but he’s also a skilled warrior to boot.

Over the years, numerous versions of Black Panther have arisen solidifying the character as an important part of the Marvel Universe’s continuity. Some of these Black Panther variants are stronger than others, and some even possess other-worldly abilities that make them unique versions.

This article will rank the various versions of Black Panther that have ever existed by how strong they are. With the recent release of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, I know you must be itching to meet these other versions of the character. So, let’s jump right into it.

20. Black Panther 2099 (K’Shamba)

We’ll kick off the list with Earth-2992’s Black Panther who goes by the name K’Shamba. He is the King of Wakanda in 2099 and differs from other versions of the character for the single reason that he didn’t consume the heart-shaped herb responsible for Black Panther’s superpowers.

As a result, he doesn’t have any of the Black Panther’s superhuman abilities. Still, K’Shamba isn’t to be trifled with as he still has peak human conditioning and is an accomplished martial artist. He’s also a weapons master, skilled in the use of a variety of weapons.

His skills as a fighter are evident as he was able to defeat a powerful version of Doctor Doom. Still, he has to rank as the least powerful version of the Black Panther on this list.

19. Kasper Cole

Kasper Cole is a Black Panther version who became so not out of design but purely by accident. While working as a New York City police officer, Kasper Cole finds the Black Panther suit in evidence lockup. He picks it up and decides to use it to fight crime in his city. I guess he doesn’t really count as a vigilante considering he’s already a cop!

Initially, Kasper Cole doesn’t have any special abilities, just using handguns to take down bad guys. Eventually, however, he encounters Erik Killmonger who offers him a synthetic version of the heart-shaped herb. Fortunately for him, it works and he acquires the powers of Black Panther.

Later on, Cole becomes the White Tiger and routinely teams up with other super heroes as the defender of Brooklyn.

18. Ultimate Black Panther

Next up is Black Panther from the Ultimate Universe who is supremely different from the main Universe T’Challa most fans are aware of. In the Ultimate Universe, T’Challa is mortally wounded during the Trial of the Panther. His father couldn’t let him perish so he makes a deal to save him.

T’challa gets healed but the Weapon X program seizes the opportunity and decides to utilize T’Challa’s abilities. Just like Wolverine, he is experimented on and implanted with retractable claws in his hands. These combined with his abilities and fighting skills make him a powerful version of the Black Panther.

He is rescued by S.H.I.E.L.D. who use him as an asset before Captain America helps him escape. The procedures he went through traumatized him and he can no longer talk. Still, he’s a powerful variant of Black Panther due to the experiments conducted on him. 

17. Azzuri

This version of Black Panther debuted in 2005’s Black Panther #1 and is none other than the grandfather of T’Challa. He was the King of Wakanda and the Black Panther while World War II was on course. Thanks to the heart-shaped herb, he possessed superhuman powers and abilities like enhanced strength, speed, reflexes, agility, and so on. He’s also a powerful necromancer and has an in-depth knowledge of the Black Panther lineage, making him privy to information others don’t have.

Apart from these regular Black Panther powers, he also has divine knowledge that grants him access to information and memories of all his predecessor Black Panthers going back centuries. What’s more, he’s also a necromancer, capable of controlling the dead.

All these abilities proved useful as he fought with Captain America and Nick Fury to help protect Wakanda from the Red Skull who wanted to raid the nation’s vibranium deposits to help the Nazis win the war.

16. Vibranium Man

Just like Iron Man, the next version of Black Panther dons a high-tech suit that is made from one of the most powerful materials in the universe, vibranium. This advanced suit affords him enhanced strength and increased durability that allows him to stand up against some powerful beings he wouldn’t stand a chance against. The suit can also fire strands of purple electrified webs. Without the suit, this version wouldn’t be nearly as powerful as he is.

Vibranium Man’s suit usually comes in handy as he battles agents of his arch-nemesis Killmonger, who is King in this universe. While he doesn’t have the powers of other Black Panthers on this list, he definitely ranks high thanks to the vibranium suit which makes him a formidable opponent.

15. T’Chaka

King T’Chaka is one of the more popular names on this list. He’s the father of T’Challa and was Black Panther before him. He’s also the son of Azzuri and inherited both titles from him. As the leader of Wakanda post World War II, T’Chaka realizes that the technological advancement that his nation enjoys can be both a blessing and a curse.

His father stopped Red Skull from using vibranium to further the Nazi agenda and so T’Chaka realizes that in the wrong hands, this technology could wreak unimaginable havoc. So he decides to hide Wakanda’s resources from the rest of the world, instead masquerading as the head of a third-world undeveloped country.

Apart from having the powers of the Black Panther bestowed upon him by the herb, he is also a skilled warrior and a majestic leader of his people.

14. Killmonger

Another version of the Black Panther is Eric Killmonger, a regular arch-nemesis of King T’Challa and also his cousin. In the comics, the story of Killmonger is quite different from Michael B. Jordan’s portrayal of the character in the MCU.

Killmonger isn’t from the royal lineage but became ruler of Wakanda for a time. Despite being a ruthless leader with radical views, his subjects still considered him a revolutionary leader. He does get the powers of Black Panther thanks to the heart-shaped herb although he falls into a coma after taking it.

What makes him even stronger is the fact that he’s been resurrected severally which strengthens him over time. What’s more, he’s fused with a symbiote several times which gives him powers like shape-shifting, energy-draining, and regeneration. Add the fact that he is incredibly cunning to all this and you have one very capable Black Panther.

13. T’Challa

Over the years, we’ve had the luck to see T’Challa in Marvel Comics and the MCU as well. While MCU T’Challa played by the late Chadwick Boseman was powerful and quite memorable, T’Challa in the comics is stronger.

T’Challa takes up the role of King of Wakanda and Black Panther after the death of his father T’Chaka. The heart-shaped herb grants him unique supernatural abilities like increased strength, speed, reflexes, and agility.

In addition to this, T’Challa also possesses divine knowledge which allows him to access the knowledge, strength, and experience of every Black Panther before him.  He’s also a skilled necromancer which is why he’s called King of the Dead. This allows him to interact with the spiritual realm and also fashion weapons from spiritual energy.

T’Challa also shares a mental connection with the Panther Goddess Bast which grants him additional abilities such as teleportation. Also, after being exposed to Galactus’ mind he gained the ability of hyper-cosmic awareness allowing him to peer into the future and have visions of the multiverse.

What makes him even more skillful is the genius intellect that allowed him to create a new discipline of science called Shadow Physics. This allows him to understand vibranium at a quantum level and fashion weapons from it. Also, don’t forget the fact that he’s a highly trained warrior.

12. Bronze Tiger (B’Nchalla)

This version of Black Panther is the product of Amalgam Comics, a crossover between Marvel and DC Universes that saw the combination of Marvel and DC characters. In this version, the Bronze Tiger from DC Comics known for his strength and ferocity is merged with T’Challa who also boasts superhuman abilities to form B’Nchalla the King of Wakanda.

As a hybrid of the two characters, this version of the Black Panther was quite a formidable force and combined the best of both worlds to give us one epic powerful character. So, it only makes sense he’s this high on the list.

11. The Panther

Another version of the Black Panther is T’Chaka from Earth-1119 who is the son of T’Challa and Storm. He was attacked by Klaw during an expedition and gets recruited by a group of superheroes known as the Exiles and adopts the moniker The Panther. While still young, he does possess the powers that other Black Panthers on this list do thanks to the heart-shaped herb.

These include enhanced senses, superhuman strength, speed, agility, and reflexes. Additionally, he has a connection to the spiritual dimension and shares some of his mother Storm’s abilities. He’s also a skilled warrior and fighter to boot which comes highly in handy during his expeditions with the inter-dimensional team the Exiles.

10. Shuri

If you admire MCU Shuri, then you’ll definitely adore Shuri from the comics. In the comics, not only is Shuri a genius inventor, but she’s also a skilled warrior. Shuri has no choice but to become the new Black Panther after her brother T’Challa falls into a deep coma.

She takes the heart-shaped herb and acquires the traditional powers of the Black Panther including superhuman strength, speed, agility, reflexes, stamina, and senses. What makes her even more powerful than previous incarnations of the Black Panther is that she enters the spiritual plane, Djalia, where she gains additional powers. These include the ability to turn her body into stone and transform herself into a bird or a flock of birds.

She showed just how powerful she was in War with Atlantis when she defeats the incredibly strong Namor and his Atlantean army.

9. Coal Tiger

Not many people know that originally, Black Panther was known as Coal Tiger before the producers of the comic books decided the name wasn’t quite as ideal. So they decided to stick with the name Black Panther. This version of Black Panther named Coal Tiger first appeared in 1988’s A-Next #4. He is none other than T’Chaka II, the son of T’Challa who was named after his grandfather.

He appears in the Marvel Comics 2 alternate Universe and is a member of that reality’s Avengers called A-Next. What makes Coal Tiger so powerful is his ability to transform into a human-panther hybrid. This transformation serves to increase his strength enormously, and not only that, his stamina and speed are enhanced as well.

8. Spider-T’Challa

Another powerful version is Spider-T’Challa from the Earth-19919 reality. He possesses the powers of the Black Panther as well as the powers of Spider-Man which makes an incredibly lethal combination. Not only does he have twice as much superhuman strength, agility, and speed, but he also has six arms. This particular mutation proves to be quite useful as he can still sling webs and swing while fighting opponents.

7. Chieftain Justice

Chieftain Justice is another version of the Black Panther in another universe. While he only appears briefly in the comics, he is a member of the Captain Britain Corps. Members of this force share the power of Captain Britain and as such, Chieftain Justice has additional powers apart from his own as the Black Panther.

Apart from the usual Black Panther powers granted by the heart-shaped herbs, he can also store inter-dimensional energy that allows him to fly and release powerful energy blasts. This makes him one of the more powerful Black Panthers out there.

6. Mangaverse Black Panther

Next up is Earth-2301’s version of Black Panther from Marvel Mangaverse. T’Challa from this reality got the powers of the Egyptian god Horus in addition to his own as the Black Panther. Horus is one of the most powerful gods of Egypt. So, when his powers are combined with those of Horus, his power level is elevated to unimaginable heights. He could transform into a Panther or Falcon at will. He could also summon spirits to channel their knowledge and power. A Black Panther version that has the additional powers of Horus surely has to rank as one of the strongest.

5. Ngozi

Ngozi is the resident Black Panther of Earth-17995. She was crippled and was forced to use a wheelchair her entire life. She witnessed the fight between Black Panther and Rhino and asks Venom to help her take down Rhino. Later on, she’s recruited by the Dora Milaje and is named the successor of T’Challa in Wakanda.

Not only does she have the powers of Black Panther, but the Venom symbiote is also attached to her granting her its alien powers too.  By combining the powers of Black Panther and Venom, she becomes an incredibly powerful being with a variety of powers and abilities. As a Black Panther-Venom hybrid, she definitely ranks high on this list.

4. Ghost Panther

2018’s Infinity Warps saw the creation of a new universe where several superheroes were fused to create new hybrid heroes possessing a variety of powers and abilities. This version of the Black Panther is a fusion of Ghost Rider and T’Challa’s Black Panther to form Ghost Panther.

This means that apart from Black Panther’s superhuman powers, Ghost Panther also has the powers of the Spirit of Vengeance instantly making him one of the strongest versions yet. Driven by the innate desire to destroy evil and all its harbingers, this is one of the most dangerous Black Panthers to ever exist.

3. Black Panther 1,000,000 BC

This Black Panther variant appeared in 2017’s Marvel Legacy #31 and was arguably the first Black Panther. As a Black Panther from the pre-historic era of Earth 616, he was a member of a group of heroes in the Stone Age Avengers. In addition to his descendants’ Black Panther Powers, he also had Asgardian abilities since he was worthy of Mjolnir.

Combine the Asgardian powers of superhuman strength, speed, durability, senses, reflexes and his original Black Panther abilities and you have one noteworthy character. Thanks to this, he’s certainly a contender for one of the most powerful Black Panther versions to ever exist.

2. Ghost Hammer

In Secret Warps: Iron Hammer #1, another variant of Black Panther was created that combined the powers of Ghost Panther (Ghost Rider and Black Panther) and Iron Hammer (Iron Man and Thor Odinson). This formed Ghost Hammer who had the powers of Ghost Rider, Black Panther, Iron Man, and Thor Odinson. Need I say more? This is definitely one of the most powerful Black Panther versions to ever exist, hands down!

1. Star Panther

This version of Black Panther is the aforementioned Vibranium Man after King Killmonger tosses him into the sun. Instead of being burned instantly, the Ghost Rider rescues him and a new Black Panther variant emerges from the flames, boasting tremendous cosmic powers. This version would be Star Panther and he has the power of the stars coursing in him. This suggests his power level is insane and by far the greatest we’ve seen on this list. Think of him as a Cosmic Black Panther and it undoubtedly qualifies him as the strongest Black Panther version. 

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