Sonic the Hedgehog is great and all. Sure, he can run faster than the speed of sound and beat just about anyone that comes his way, but does that mean that he is the greatest of the franchise? Not necessarily. As a matter of fact, many of Sonic's friends have impressive abilities that surpass his own. They may not be able to run at high speeds, but they are amazing at what they do. One of those characters is Knuckles the Echidna.

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Introduced in Sonic and Knuckles, this attitude-fueled powerhouse has a lot of abilities that allow him to go toe to toe with the blue blur and then some. As a matter of fact, there are many things that he excels at that Sonic can't even do himself. Everyone might talk about the blue hedgehog, but it's time for the red echidna to get some love too.

Updated April 4, 2022, by Gabrielle Huston: With the recent release of the second Sonic the Hedgehog movie - and Knuckles' starring role in it - we figured it was about time we returned to consider how Knuckles is able to one-up his blue frenemy.

15 Knuckles Has Super Strength

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles the Echidna with an umbrella

While this technically isn't "something Knuckles can do," it is an ability that he has. Since his creation, he's been known for being incredibly strong. As a matter of fact, he can carry objects and creatures that are several times his size and weight without breaking a sweat. We're not exaggerating, either. Knuckles has a lot of power.

There are several times when his strength is compared to Sonic's speed. As a matter of fact, the rate of Knuckles' strength is equal to the rate of how fast Sonic can run. Because Sonic can run between Mach 1 and Mach 5, that would mean that Knuckles can effectively lift between 100 and 500 metric tons. This easily makes him the strongest character in the entire franchise, let alone between him and Sonic.

14 Knuckles Can Create Fissures

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles the Echidna cracking the ground

What good is all of that strength if Knuckles can't get creative with it? Thankfully, his powerful punches have multiple uses that make him one of the most dangerous creatures in Sonic history.

Several times throughout the series, Knuckles has been shown punching the ground to create little shockwaves, but his strength goes much further than that. If Knuckles punches the ground hard enough, he can create entire fissures that will swallow anyone foolish enough to get in the way. As if that weren't impressive enough, his punches can also trigger volcanic eruptions that will easily burn right through any bad guy trying to threaten him. Just imagine throwing a punch at the ground and an earthquake explodes all around you. That's the kind of power Knuckles works with.

13 Knuckles Splits Air Molecules

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles surrounded by fire

Knuckles has a lot of power behind his punches, but his ability in combat goes beyond just having massive strength. He can also throw punches too fast for the eye to process, which leads to some devastating results. The first part of this is that Knuckles can actually ignite his own punches ablaze because they fire so quickly. This, in theory, creates friction that subsequently makes his punches much deadlier and hotter.

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The bigger use of his quick punches is the fact that Knuckles can split air molecules in the process. While this might be a little ridiculous to accept, splitting an air molecule results in a massive explosion. It's made more impressive by the fact that Knuckles has this power in his own two hands.

12 Knuckles Can Survive Any Impact

Knuckles clicking his fist together radiating with power

When you're the hero of an entire world, you're bound to take a couple hits during your career. Sonic himself has taken many of them, but there are some that left him quite winded. When you throw Knuckles into the mix, things play out a bit differently. On top of having super strength, Knuckles is also extremely durable and can survive just about any hit or impact that might come his way.

In the past, he has been shown to survive an entire bomb that exploded right in his face without so much as a scratch. Furthermore, he's even been sent outside of the atmosphere, fell back down, and still survived the impact. His durability has been said to be as impressive as his strength, meaning that he can take a hit just as powerful as his very own punches.

11 He Might Not Be Fast, But Knuckles Is Never Affected By Recoil

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles (1)

As Sonic never slows down or burns out despite how fast he can run, Knuckles also doesn't get affected by the effort or recoil of his punches. Sonic can't exactly keep throwing hits without getting tired at some point. Knuckles can just muscle on through without any sort of negative consequences to stop him in his tracks.

Furthermore, when Knuckles throws a massive punch at a big object, the force that rebounds to him doesn't slow him down at all. It barely even phases him. If Sonic were to run at top speeds and collide with an object or foe, he would definitely show signs of wear and tear. Knuckles can simply attack to his heart's content, go out for dinner later, and you'd never know the difference.

10 Knuckles Can Punch Through Anything

sonic-movie-2-knuckles

While Sonic had his time in Super Smash Bros. using his fists to get the job done, his punches don't hold a candle to the ones emitted by Knuckles. In tandem with his super strength, Knuckles can throw a punch that will break just about any surface that tries to block it.

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Throw a giant boulder? Not a problem for his punches. A steel beam? That doesn't even pose a challenge. Knuckles can easily shatter any object that comes his way, no matter what it's made out of. This means that when Eggman comes knocking, Knuckles could easily plow right through whatever giant robot he created for their encounter. That takes a lot of natural talent.

9 Knuckles Takes On Armies Without Breaking A Sweat

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles and Sonic

Knuckles' durability goes a step further by allowing him to keep fighting and not lose his energy. Knuckles is a stalwart through and through, which allows him to battle even the toughest of foes for extended periods of time.

During previous adventures, he's been shown to take on entire armies of foes. He throws punch after punch, jumping, dodging, and spinning to gain the edge on his opponents. The entire time he doesn't even get tired or break a sweat. Knuckles can easily push through any trial that he faces. His stamina capability matches that of his endurance and raw strength, which make him a powerful contender to anyone trying to steal the Chaos Emeralds or mess with Sonic.

8 Knuckles Can Do What Sonic Famously Can't: He Can Swim

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles swimming

It's a common theme among the Sonic franchise that the famous blue hedgehog cannot swim. Why this is the case, we'll never know. However, unlike his friend, Knuckles can actually go in the water and swim as much as he likes.

It is important to note that Knuckles doesn't just swim normally; he's excellent at it. He dives to low corners and rises faster than anyone else. While he can't breathe underwater without a special device, Knuckles' swimming skills are the most impressive out of anyone else on the Sonic team. Being a renowned treasure hunter, he actively tried to better his swimming abilities so that he can dive deeper, swim farther, and hunt longer.

7 Knuckles Digs

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles digging

The quintessential skill of any treasure hunter is the ability to dig. Once you get to the "X" that marks the spot, you just pull out your shovel and burrow away. However, Knuckles needs no shovel to get the job done. The drills on his hands are more than powerful enough to break through any material, and they make for more than just a good tool in combat.

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Knuckles will often resort to digging when looking for treasure, and he does it very quickly. He can break through just about any material in the process, so he's bound to find whatever treasure he's looking for. It ended up being one of his trademark abilities in Sonic Adventure 2, where all he did was hunt for more treasure (as well as helping to save the world from Eggman).

6 Knuckles Glides

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles the Echidna gliding

As if the great abilities of Knuckles the Echidna never end, another one of his trademark tricks is his gliding ability. Because he has those long dreadlocks, he can spread them out while he's in the air and they'll allow him to glide far distances. Wow, that sounds way more ridiculous when you say it out loud. Nonetheless, it's an extremely useful ability in the games.

If you played any of the 2D Sonic games as Knuckles, we're sure you can attest to how it almost felt cheap that Knuckles could glide and avoid almost every hazard on the stage, similar to how Kirby functions in his games. The glide ability would later serve Knuckles well as he hunted for the Chaos Emeralds and had to traverse expansive environments.

5 Knuckles Can Climb Up Walls

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles the Echidna climbing

Because of the sheer power involved in Knuckles' hands, he actually learned to tone down his strength and be focused on utility. He did this by barely plunging his drills into the sides of landscapes. This allows him to stick to walls and ceilings with ease. This was an ability he's had since his creation, and was fully functional in games like Sonic 2 and Sonic and Knuckles.

Knuckles uses this ability to get around much easier, as he can't gain any further height after jumping. Gliding doesn't get him any higher either. As you can imagine, his climbing ability also helps him while he hunts for treasure, as there are no mountains high enough to stop him from searching for the next big score.

4 Knuckles Senses The Chaos Emeralds

Sonic the Hedgehog - Chaos Emerald

When Knuckles was first introduced into the Sonic universe, he was a guardian of the Master Emerald. As such, he had many abilities in place to help defend the Emerald as well as find it if it were ever lost or stolen. One of his most useful abilities in this regard comes in the form of sensing the energy of the Master Emerald and Chaos Emeralds respectively.

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Because he can sense their energy, he can follow a trail all the way to the source, meaning that anyone that's trying to steal these powerful jewels is going to have a hot-headed echidna on their tail at all times. This ability makes him one of the few remaining Emerald Detectors. No doubt Sonic and his friends are glad that they have such a unique friend on their side.

3 Knuckles Can Translate Ancient Text

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles talking about the Gigan Rocks

As the Sonic series has progressed, SEGA has introduced some complicated lore on top of the convoluted stories already present. There are now ties to ancient times and various secrets hidden within the various zones. As you might expect, this leads to a lot of old places that are difficult to traverse because nobody can translate these ancient writings; nobody except Knuckles, that is.

While he might be lacking in the intelligence department at times, Knuckles is an excellent historian; he understnads of all kinds of ancient texts and cultures. When coming across the Gigan Rocks, he was able to read what they said with little to no effort at all. Being a master treasure hunter isn't an easy task, but Knuckles is equipped with all the information he needs to excel at it.

2 Knuckles Summons Lightning Bolts

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles the Echidna summoning lightning

Knuckles has always had access to some supernatural abilities, and many speculate this is due to his connection with the Master Emerald. Whether this is the case or not, these special powers make him a force to be reckoned with for more reasons than one. Sure, Sonic has his speed and all, but Knuckles has the ability to summon lightning bolts at will.

With a wave of his hand, he can call down a bolt from the heavens to strike whichever target he chooses. This ability was on full display in Sonic Adventure 2, where it was actually a mechanic in the Battle Multiplayer where two people would try to find the most treasure. This is just one example of the many powers that come from being so closely attached to the Master Emerald.

1 Knuckles Can Even Control The Earth Itself

Sonic the Hedgehog - Knuckles

Understand that when we say "control the Earth," we don't mean that Knuckles is some kind of Earthbender. Instead, we're referring to the ways in which he can command the Earth and the forces surrounding it. Again, this is likely due to his connection to the Master Emerald.

It results in him being able to use the Earth on multiple occasions. If ever he is damaged, he can tap into the Earth to heal him on the spot. Furthermore, he can call down a storm of meteors in a sticky situation. Coupling this with the fact that Knuckles is one of the few people who knows how to use the Master Emerald, this control of the Earth can get even more impressive as he exercises his various skills. He may not be Sonic, but that doesn't mean than Knuckles the Echidna is a pushover.

NEXT: The Best Bosses In Sonic Unleashed, Ranked