
“ | I feared you had gone forever, Batman. And that would have meant I'd never feel your spine crumble in my hands. | „ |
~ Bane |
Summary[]
An anonymous inmate of Pena Duro, a notorious Cuban prison, was chosen as a test subject for an experiment known as "Project Gilgamesh," which aimed to create super-soldiers by endowing normal men with titanic strength via the use of Venom, a newly developed steroid. After gaining increased strength, the prisoner stole the notes for manufacturing Venom and broke out (and I do mean broke out) of Pena Duro, becoming a freelance assassin with a reputation for getting results. Gotham Crime boss Rupert Thorne would later hire Bane to kill Batman - and after Batman brought him down, Bane became obsessed with crushing the Dark Knight (the only man he saw as a worthy opponent) and clashed with him many times over the years.
Powers and Stats[]
Tier: 9-A+ | 8-C
Key: Batman: The Animated Series | The New Batman Adventures - Mystery of the Batwoman
Name: Only known as Bane - no source provides him with a real name
Origin: The DC Animated Universe
Gender: Male
Age: Unknown, but judging by his physique he should be at least in his mid-twenties during BTAS and at least early thirties in Mystery of the Batwoman
Classification: Human
Powers and Abilities:
- Superhuman Physical Characteristics (See Attack Potency, Speed, Lifting Strength, and Durability)
- Hand-to-Hand Combat Mastery (Is a trained killer, and frequently competes with Batman in combat)
- Empowerment (Venom enhances Bane's strength and durability)
- Size Manipulation (Using Venom increases his size)
- Stealth Mastery (Got the drop on Dick Grayson, who is trained in detection)
- Preparation (Exhaustively studied Batman and his fighting style to formulate a surefire method of defeating him)
His second key provides him with no additional abilities, only greater strength.
Attack Potency: Small Building Level+ (Bashed apart several large stone walls, which was calculated here. Warped the Batmobile's armored exterior with his bare hands. Is the most powerful adversary that B:TAS Batman had ever fought, which includes the likes of Clayface. Fought Killer Croc, one-sidedly beating him down and hospitalizing him. Overtly stronger than Batman, knocking him around during their battle. Knocked out Dick Grayson with a hold. As a Peak Human enhanced by Venom, he should be at least comparable to the (relatively) normal people who amped themselves with Venom patches in Batman Beyond - said people, when amped by the patches, were strong enough to harm Batman II, as shown in these three examples. As someone with superior strength to Batman, should be stronger than The Penguin's henchwomen, who could kick Batwoman through a stone wall, making a large crater) | Building Level (Is twice as strong due to refining his Venom formula, taking him from 0.21 tons of TNT to 0.42 tons of TNT. Smashed through a wall)
Speed: Hypersonic, possibly Relativistic or higher reactions and combat speed (Has tagged both Batman and Killer Croc. Reacted to and caught a punch from Dick Grayson. Caught Batman's thrown Batarang out of the air) - he should be just as fast in his second key, as the only difference is greater strength.
Lifting Strength: Class 10 to Class 25 (Half as strong as his TNBA key. Crushed a Batarang in his hand with ease. Is overtly stronger than Batman, who can pull massive blocks of limestone backward, tear a door off its hinges, et cetera. Due to scaling above Batman, should be stronger than Nightwing, who could struggle with a furious polar bear), possibly higher (Physically stronger than Killer Croc. As a peak-physique human amped by tremendous amounts of venom, he should be stronger than Jackson Chappell, a normal man amped by a few small venom patches - in a contest of strength, Chappell could easily overpower Batman II, who has done this - however, Batman II's strength isn't consistent) | Class 25 (Rather easily lifted a Moai, which weigh an average of 20 tons) possibly higher (As listed above)
Striking Strength: Small Building Class+ | Building Class
Durability: Small Building Level+ (Should be capable of withstanding the force of his own blows. Can tank a kick from Batman. Should be just as, if not more durable than a Venom-patch-enhanced Jackson Chappell, who could take hits from Batman II with little trouble. As a Peak Human with enhanced durability, should be more durable than Amanda Waller (who was unhurt by this explosion) and 13-year-old Tim Drake, who shook off a hit from incomplete Clayface, whose kicks could shatter a stone bench) | Building Level (Since Venom enhances durability along with strength, it stands to reason his refined venom doubled his durability as well)
Stamina: At least Athletic in both keys (Didn't seem at all fatigued after his two fistfights with Batman)
Range: Standard Melee Range
Standard Equipment:
- Venom Apparatus: A device connected to Bane's body that puts venom into his system upon the push of a button. Ripping the tubes out of his neck can render it useless.
Standard Tactics: Generally opts to learn all he can about his opponent through observation, and then strike accordingly. However, if ambushed (such as Superman and Robin confronting him during Knight Time), he will simply activate his Venom and strike first.
Intelligence: At least Gifted, likely Genius, with notable combat prowess (Has intelligence that matches his strength. Is a brilliant military strategist and trained killer. Refined his own venom formula to increase his strength)
Weaknesses: Removing his "Venom tubes" will lessen his strength - that, and it is possible to trigger an overdose on his Venom, which could kill him. Otherwise, normal human weaknesses.
Note: Bruce Timm has stated that the original DCAU tie-in comics are not canon, with the only tie in comics that have statements to the contrary (other than Batman: The Adventures Continue, which has so many continuity issues that it's essentially impossible to argue it's canon) being Justice League Infinity, the Batman and Harley Quinn tie in comics, and specifically the first annual of Batman Adventures. Ergo, I only consider those three comics canon.