Summary
He is an anthropomorphic echidna and the current guardian of the Master Emerald, a powerful ancient relic which is his solemn duty to protect from anyone who wants to abuse it. He is also the sole remaining descendant of the Knuckles Clan and last of the echidnas on earth.
A loner by nature, Knuckles is independent, headstrong and serious, yet gullible and short-tempered to a fault. He is fully devoted to his duty, spending most of his time on Angel Island protecting the Master Emerald, and rarely cares about anything that is not important. When his friends and others are in need of his help, however, Knuckles can always be relied on being willing to leave his post and prove himself a true and good-hearted hero. He is also one of Sonic's oldest friends and rivals.
Powers and Stats
Tier: High 6-A | 8-A | 4-A | 2-C, likely 2-B | At least 4-B, possibly 4-A | High 2-A | At least High 2-A
Name: Knuckles the Echidna
Origin: Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Gender: Male
Age: 17
Classification: Anthropomorphic Echidna, Guardian of the Master Emerald
Powers and Abilities: Superhuman Physical Characteristics, Combat skills/Martial Arts, Ability to sense emerald power, Can use the Master Emerald and control its powers, Can glide through the air and dig through the ground, Can punch the ground hard enough to create a shock wave that trips opponents or cause a small volcanic eruption, Limited Electrokinesis (Can summon lightning bolts), Limited Geokinesis, Fire Manipulation | All of his previous abilities on a dramatically enhanced scale, True flight, Chaos Energy Manipulation | All of his abilities increased to an even greater scale than his Super form, Can breathe underwater, Can create a shock wave strong enough to destroy any normal enemies around him by gliding into walls (Nicknamed "Gliding Shock Wave Attack" by fans), Afterimage Creation.
Attack Potency: Multi-Continent level (A consistent rival of Sonic, and has proven himself able to match Adventure Sonic in combat) | Multi-City Block level (Fought Classic Sonic, Tails and Mecha Sonic) | Multi-Solar System level (Should be comparable to Classic and Adventure Super Sonic) | Multi-Universe level, likely Multiverse level (Uses the same power source as Hyper Sonic) | At least Solar System level, possibly Multi-Solar System level (Roughly equal to Sonic who he has clashed with several times) | High Multiverse level+ (Stalemated Super Sonic, should be comparable to him fighting against Enerjak (Knuckles) who was weakened prior to the fight) | At least High Multiverse level+ (Eventually became one with the Chaos Force, a realm transcending th space-time of of infinite universes)
Speed: FTL (Can keep up with Sonic's casual run, he should be comparable to Tails speed movement speed wise. Can react to and keep up with even Sonic's attacks, though he lacks the quickness Sonic has. Sonic has said in Sonic Battle that Knuckles is "easily read") | Relativistic+ (Somewhat comparable to Classic Sonic) | Massively FTL+ (Should be comparable to Classic and Adventure Super Sonic) | Massively FTL+, likely Inaccessible to Immeasurable (Should be comparable to Hyper Sonic) | Massively FTL+ reactions and combat speed (Can fight toe-to-toe with Sonic) | Immeasurable (Nearly as swift as Super Sonic) | Immeasurable
Lifting Strength: Class 10+ or higher (Physically stronger than Shadow, who can overturn buses with one hand) | Higher | Higher than in Super form | At least Class G (Lifted an entire power plant while under water) | Unknown | Unknown, possibly Immeasurable
Striking Strength: Multi-Continent Class | Multi-City Block Class | Multi-Solar System Class | Multi-Universal, likely Multiversal | At least Solar System level, possibly Multi-Solar System level | High Multiversal+ | At least High Multiversal+
Durability: Multi-Continent level | Multi-City Block Class (Took a massive beating from both Sonic and Tails in Sonic 3 and he was just dazed) | Multi-Solar System level | Multi-Universe level, likely Multiverse level | At least Solar System level, possibly Multi-Solar System level (More durable than Sonic) | High Multiverse level+ | At least High Multiverse level+
Stamina: Very high, among the highest on Sonic's team | Limitless | Limitless | Extremely high (Can fight with Sonic and other characters without getting fatigued) | Likely Limitless | Godlike, but can become tired if he uses his powers too much.
Range: Several kilometers | Universal+ | Multi-Universal | Extended melee range normally, much higher with Chaos Energy blasts | Unknown | High Multiversal+
Standard Equipment: None | Chaos Emeralds | Super Emeralds | None notable
Intelligence: Book smart in the games (seems to have extensive knowledge of ancient civilizations, as he was able to translate an ancient language in the Gigan Rocks), skilled combatant, though a little naive (trusts individuals like Eggman despite him tricking him many times). Extremely high in the comics due to genetic enhancement (at only three years old, he was doing math at a high school-college level, also quickly picked on other vital subjects he would need in order to be a guardian such as history, geography, and science).
Weaknesses: His attacks are readable | The Super form has a time limit based on how many rings he has | Same as Super form | Has trouble accessing the full extent of the powers available to him | None notable | His powers are unstable, and he has difficulty controlling them, to the point that he has hurt himself using his powers before
Notable Attacks/Techniques:
- Punch Attack: Knuckles' triple punch combo.
- Drill Claw: A downward flaming attack at the foes.
- Deep Impact: Knuckles performs a punch which is so powerful that it causes friction with the air, creating a small explosion.
- Maximum Heat Knuckles Attack: Knuckles strikes his enemies with a high-speed homing attack after charging his power.
- Gliding Shock Wave Attack: Hyper Knuckles hits a surface while gliding, causing an earthquake that destroys everything within range.
Key: Base (Modern, Games) | Base (Classic, Games) | Super (Games) | Hyper (Games) | Base (Archie Pre-Genesis) | Hyper (Archie Pre-Genesis) | Chaos (Archie Pre-Genesis)
NOTE: Contrary to popular belief, the "dimensional matrix" in the Sonicverse DOES NOT make them Tier 1, nor connected to M-Theory. The term "dimensional matrix" on its own doesn't mean anything without context. It could mean a lot of things, but nothing important without actual clarification. One thing Schlemmer didn't do was clarify what he meant. Archie Sonic has never gone out of its way to make the term "dimension" relate to mathematical ones, which only worsens the situation. To add fuel to the fire, the term "dimensional matrix" has a use in mathematics, columns, and Superstring Theory. Without any proper evidence, it is wrong to assume they mean String Theory when mathematical dimensions have never even been embraced before in this verse. And if it were to be a column of dimensions, that could mean universes. A column of mathematical dimensions would only peak at nine anyway, thus, these characters are not Tier 1.