Brainiac vs Iron Man

[Vakanai]

Iron Man has two days prep. No ring outs. Otherwise this is a standard Khazan match. If there's a chance of speed blitz then speed will be equalized.

[big_adventure]

With two days of prep, Tony should be able to take over Brainiac at the bell. Hacking computer systems is one of his main things - he's hacked and re-written his body's own OS at LEAST 3 different times now. He hacked Doom and shut down all of Dooms (and Latveria's) systems during a video chat with unspecific but extremely short prep. And obviously, the AIs he has working for him are pretty much the very best non-self-evolving-and-want-to-kill-their-own-masters editions in Marvel. They are hyper smart, hyper fast and often rather sarcastic. Programming free-form sarcasm = total badassery.

What is Brainy's default speed in comics? I haven't read anything with him in it in years...

[Shellhead]

With two days of prep, Tony should be able to take over Brainiac at the bell. Hacking computer systems is one of his main things - he's hacked and re-written his body's own OS at LEAST 3 different times now. He hacked Doom and shut down all of Dooms (and Latveria's) systems during a video chat with unspecific but extremely short prep. And obviously, the AIs he has working for him are pretty much the very best non-self-evolving-and-want-to-kill-their-own-masters editions in Marvel. They are hyper smart, hyper fast and often rather sarcastic. Programming free-form sarcasm = total badassery.

What is Brainy's default speed in comics? I haven't read anything with him in it in years...

Brainiac is an alien, and Stark isn't that great at dealing with advanced alien technology. He ended up surrendering to the Kree during the Kree-Shi'ar War because his armor was outclassed so badly by Kree technology. And he hasn't even had good showings against Kang the Conqueror, who is just an extremely aggressive warlord from the future and not even an inventor like Stark. I could see Stark hacking Doom's system. They've clashed repeatedly, so Tony would have eventually prepped against him. Probably even set his viruses to translate Latverian if needed. (Isn't it strange how everybody in Latveria speaks English?) But Stark is starting with just two days prep, so he isn't going to try to pick up an alien operating system language on the fly, he's going to go for EMP. And since Brainiac has such advanced technology, he is probably well-shielded from EMP. Stark can try brute force, but he isn't going to have anything resembling the speed or power of Superman to wield against Brainiac.

Speaking of Superman, Brainiac is able to mimic his powers. So if there is going to be a speedblitz, Iron Man is going to be on the receiving end. Brainiac can shrink him down, then crush him like a bug.

[big_adventure]

Brainiac is an alien, and Stark isn't that great at dealing with advanced alien technology. He ended up surrendering to the Kree during the Kree-Shi'ar War because his armor was outclassed so badly by Kree technology. And he hasn't even had good showings against Kang the Conqueror, who is just an extremely aggressive warlord from the future and not even an inventor like Stark. I could see Stark hacking Doom's system. They've clashed repeatedly, so Tony would have eventually prepped against him. Probably even set his viruses to translate Latverian if needed. (Isn't it strange how everybody in Latveria speaks English?) But Stark is starting with just two days prep, so he isn't going to try to pick up an alien operating system language on the fly, he's going to go for EMP. And since Brainiac has such advanced technology, he is probably well-shielded from EMP. Stark can try brute force, but he isn't going to have anything resembling the speed or power of Superman to wield against Brainiac.

Speaking of Superman, Brainiac is able to mimic his powers. So if there is going to be a speedblitz, Iron Man is going to be on the receiving end. Brainiac can shrink him down, then crush him like a bug.

Well, the OP did say that if the speed made it a blitz, speed would be equalized.

[Shellhead]

What is Brainy's default speed in comics? I haven't read anything with him in it in years...

Did you bring up speed to see if we would be using equalized speed per the OP?

There is a major difference in intelligence between these two characters. Brainiac has a 12th level intellect. By comparison, the entire population of 20th Century Earth is considered to be the equivalent of a 6th level intellect. Stark isn't going to close that gap within 48 hours, if ever. Anything that he brings to this fight is probably easily countered by stuff that Brainiac is just carrying in his pockets. Think about the difference between your basic iPhone capabilities and the collective knowledge of ancient Greece, and you will begin to appreciate Stark's problem.

[big_adventure]

Did you bring up speed to see if we would be using equalized speed per the OP?

There is a major difference in intelligence between these two characters. Brainiac has a 12th level intellect. By comparison, the entire population of 20th Century Earth is considered to be the equivalent of a 6th level intellect. Stark isn't going to close that gap within 48 hours, if ever. Anything that he brings to this fight is probably easily countered by stuff that Brainiac is just carrying in his pockets. Think about the difference between your basic iPhone capabilities and the collective knowledge of ancient Greece, and you will begin to appreciate Stark's problem.

Except - that's not what happens in comics.

[Slade]

Except - that's not what happens in comics.

I'm not sure I follow. What's not what happens in comics?

[Shellhead]

Except - that's not what happens in comics.

Here's what happens in comics: Iron Man beats his opponents with his superior technology. He doesn't have super-powers, so it has to be the technology. That won't work against Brainiac, because Brainiac is so much smarter than Stark, and his technology is so much more advanced.

[Kage Kisaragi]

I imagine it goes something like this.

Iron Man: Don't think I wont stop you.
Brainiac: You have the attention of those infinitely your greater.
IM: O_o? You may have taken down the other Avengers but...
Brainiac: And now you stand alone Stark.
IM: Wait how did you know my name? Wait who are you?
Brainiac: We are Brainiac! We are Superior!
IM: What makes you think you're my superior?
Brainiac: We are the harbinger of your ascendance. We are the harbinger of your destiny.
IM: Ohhh kay. My Destiny?
Brainiac: You can't escape your destiny Stark.
IM: Listen bucket-head, you don't impress me, and what's this about my destiny?
Brainiac: You are arrogant Stark. We are the harbinger of your perfection.
IM: ...my what?
Brainiac: Stark submit now.
IM: Never!
Brainiac: We are assuming control!
IM: How did you? When did you? No Stop it!
Brainiac: Embrace perfection! Bend to me!
IM: Wait.. NOOO!
Brainiac: Assuming Direct Control!
IM: AAAHHH!!!! MAMA!!!!
Brainiac: I know you feel this. Impressive technical potential, you well know pain Stark.
IM: I think I already do. Ahhhh!
Brainiac: This hurts you?
IM: ;_; yes!
Brainiac: Your form is fragile.
*after it's all over*...
IM: ....
Brainiac: Releasing control of this form. I will find you again.
IM: No matter how much I shower the shame wont wash away. ;_;

[The Drunkard Kid]

And obviously, the AIs he has working for him are pretty much the very best non-self-evolving-and-want-to-kill-their-own-masters editions in Marvel. They are hyper smart, hyper fast and often rather sarcastic. Programming free-form sarcasm = total badassery.

Hank Pym scoffs at your namby pamby inbuilt safeties. If God meant for humanity to survive Hank's labwork, He'd have given them adamantium skin that makes anything electronic within a hundred yards into a slave.

Oooh, says Hank Pym, he just had a great idea. He'd better write it down.

[big_adventure]

I'm not sure I follow. What's not what happens in comics?

Here's what happens in comics: Iron Man beats his opponents with his superior technology. He doesn't have super-powers, so it has to be the technology. That won't work against Brainiac, because Brainiac is so much smarter than Stark, and his technology is so much more advanced.

What I mean is that Stark's tech has proven (mostly) superior over time to all kinds of advanced aliens, super-intelligent humans and other baddies. There are exceptions (such as the one mentioned above), but in general, IM runs roughshod over teched-up hyper-advanced aliens of every variety. Without prep, he winds up taking over alien tech quickly. When WW Hulk made him and Richards fight, and armorless, enslaved Stark had nearly cracked the slave disc through purely mental techno-manipulation. He didn't finish, since the writer wanted to make the Hulk the moral good guy when the Sentry charged in so he has Hulk make Reed not kill Tony, but this was a system that the Silver Surfer couldn't override.

No, that's not a guarantee that he wins, but with prep (which here indicates knowledge of what he's facing), he's got the time and the resources to make something nasty. Especially since one of his schticks is hacking and Brainiac is a computer. If you give Brainiac prep, I'm sure he can protect himself against Stark, but without prep? Stark pops in with weapons that can hurt Brainiac (he has made weapons to hurt Hulk, Thor and tons of other tough guys with less than 2 days of prep), while also initiating some kind of virus dump to Brainiac's systems.

One-sided prep is kind of unfair if the prepped side has vast skills. Even if the other side has BETTER skills, the other side doesn't know the fight is coming. Think about how often prepped enemies have beaten down Reed's default defenses, or Tony's or whomever's. They are almost always (always in the case of Richards) inferior mentally, but prep gives them the edge, at least for long enough to get a 10 count. Those guys then get back in the lab for a few hours and take control. Hell, they do it often when they don't have a lab to go to.

Someone other than me suggested that Stark would use an EMP. How tough of an EMP has Brainiac resisted without prep? Something tougher than what Stark can do with 2 days of prep and access to all of his toys? That's just one example. Stark could also come in with a powerful nuke (or something worse) and a nuke-proof forcefield. He's got feats for the latter (his armor doesn't have that much power internally, but...prep means bringing bigger toys...), and it would be foolish to argue that he can't do the former (nukes are relatively child's play - Stark's dealt with antimatter, collapsing dimensional barriers, etc.).

All I'm really saying is that "12th level intelligence" versus "6th level intelligence" isn't a feat. It's narrative, and it means nothing, especially where Comic (specifically Marvel) tech-gods are concerned. Remember, the first thing that the hyper-advanced galaxy-conquering Skrulls did on Earth when they switched from "secret" to "invasion" was to disable (with massive prep) Stark's worldwide net, and they did this to remove what they saw as the second greatest threat to their open invasion before it really started - Stark and his tech base. The biggest threat that they saw was Reed Richards, whom they took care of by kidnapping well beforehand. They also pulled a kidnap-swap with Pym. They did this because they knew that those guys (especially Reed and Tony - this was explicitly stated by the Skrulls in the arc) were massive threats to them, all by themselves, thanks to their lowly 6th level intellects.