Doctor Strange is the Sorceror Supreme, which makes him one of the most powerful and skilled magic-users in the Marvel Universe. However, that doesn't necessarily make him the most powerful magical comic character out there.
There are a number of characters from the DC Universe who would put up a magical battle to test the Sorceror Supreme's abilities, as well as a few other characters who would make for an interesting battle with the magical surgeon. So today we are going to take a look at a few characters from DC Comics that Doctor Strange could defeat, and a few who would put up a challenge.
10 COULD DEFEAT: JOHN CONSTANTINE
While he's not considered one of the more powerful magic users in the DC Universe, John Constantine should not be underestimated. DC's supernatural con man has the knowledge and the tools to keep himself on the forefront of DC's mystical battles, or sneaking out the back way so he can fight another day.
Doctor Strange and John Constantine are both scholars in their field who have collected incredibly powerful weapons and talismans of magic that they both utilize, but Strange's mastery of the mystical arts, his connection to the magical forces of the universe and his own powerful energies eke out the win, though Constantine's loss would likely still somehow benefit him.
9 BEAT HIM: BLACK ALICE
Lori Zechlin/Black Alice isn't a very well-known character in the DC universe, but she has the potential to be one of the most powerful magic-users due to her power to steal the magical abilities of others to use for herself, which would leave Doctor Strange nearly defenseless in battle.
And even if Black Alice's stolen magical abilities weren't enough to take down a powerless Doctor Strange, she can steal more than one ability at a time, meaning she could take on Doctor Strange with his own magic, the Iron Fist, and some of Scarlet Witch's reality-altering hex abilities to seal the deal.
8 COULD DEFEAT: ZATANNA
One of DC's most prominent magic users and frequent member of the Justice League and it's supernatural offshoot Justice League Dark, Zatanna uses a powerful form of backward magic that she learned from her father Zatara. Her actual capabilities with this magic are almost limitless, however, she does have to be able to speak or write out the spells.
While this battle seems like it would be decided over who could say their spell the fastest, Doctor Strange has repeatedly proven to be able to mentally break magical holds or spells that have kept him contained or immobile, whereas if Zatanna's unable to speak her powerful magic isn't able to help her out much, giving Strange the edge.
7 BEAT HIM: WONDER WOMAN
The current leader of the Justice League Dark and one of the most powerful superheroes in the DC Universe is Wonder Woman, who not only has amazing strength, speed, and durability, but she is also well versed in magic and wields various weapons formed by the Gods.
This is a battle that has a lot of variables, as Doctor Strange's magical abilities usually allow him the option of quick Battlefield Removals (teleporting WW to another dimension), but Diana's own magical background and connections to the Gods of Olympus might give her just enough edge that her other incredible abilities and magical weapons give her the win over Doctor Strange.
6 COULD DEFEAT: SUPERMAN
Unlike Wonder Woman, who shares similar strength and speed power levels as DC's hardest hitter, Superman has proven repeatedly that magic is one of his weaknesses, alongside Kryptonite. While it isn't as toxic or fatal to the Kryptonian, magic has been shown to weaken Superman in a similar way, and magic weapons have also cut the indestructible hero.
Not only does Strange have the magical knowledge to effectively deal with a powerhouse like Superman, but he also has an entire arsenal of magical weaponry that range from mystical artifacts to enchanted axes, all of which would do heavy damage to the magically-weakened Kal-El.
5 BEAT HIM: SHAZAM
Shazam has a similar power-set to Superman with a very crucial difference, in that he is a small boy empowered by a magic word that transforms him into one of DC's most powerful characters. And while Shazam doesn't use magic per se, his abilities offer him a level of protection and wisdom that would give Doctor Strange a challenge.
What really defeats Doctor Strange in this battle is his heart, and a trick Shazam has used many times over quite successfully. Strange might be able to get the upper hand on the World's Mightiest Mortal, but should Billy revert to his youthful self and throw off Doctor Strange, he could end the battle with a "Shazam!" and a magical lightning bolt to the unsuspecting Sorceror Supreme.
4 COULD DEFEAT: THE FLASH
One of the more difficult characters from the DC universe for any character to face off against is the Flash, as his incredibly super speed and connection to the Speed Force usually give him an unfair advantage over almost any challenger.
Doctor Strange has dealt with speedsters before and has many magical abilities and incantations active at any given time to prevent damage from unknown or super fast enemies, including mystical shields that are able to react faster than Strange himself, as well as the ability to freeze time, all of which would give him the edge he needed to take out Barry or Wally.
3 BEAT HIM: THE SPECTRE
One thing that is interesting when looking at the history of Doctor Strange is that while he is able to take on huge multiversal threats like Shuma-Gorath, he doesn't have that many overpowered mystical feats to help determine these kinds of battles.
So when facing off against a character like The Spectre, who is one of the DC universe's most powerful magical beings, The Spectre has a few more impressive magical moments on record. And while Strange serves his universe as the Sorcerer Supreme, The Spectre serves all of creation as The Presence's divine vengeance and has very few limitations or weaknesses.
2 COULD DEFEAT: DOCTOR FATE
Doctor Strange's closest counterpart in the DC universe is the character known as Doctor Fate, who is the human host of the magical being known as Nabu. There have been quite a few faces under the magical helmet of Fate over the years, and all have gained his magical abilities and knowledge that are derived from the Lords of Order and Chaos in the DC universe.
Unfortunately, almost all of Nabu's human hosts have suffered terribly from his possession, with most of the newer hosts driven insane by the Helmet of Fate. Even if Doctor Strange and Doctor Fate's magical abilities were on an even level (which they aren't), Strange would be able to take advantage of the disconnect between Nabu and his human hosts.
1 BEAT HIM: DOCTOR MANHATTAN
Doctor Manhattan was first introduced in Vertigo's Watchmen graphic novel as the only powered hero in his world, and powered is a bit of an understatement. The accident that turned Jon Osterman into Doctor Manhattan gave him the powers of a god, and he is able to manipulate energy, matter, reality, time, and is effectively immortal, as he is capable of reconstituting his body.
Doctor Strange has dealt with some very powerful mystical threats over the years that have multi-dimensional abilities, but Doctor Manhattan has proven to multiple universes that he can do whatever he wants. And as we've seen recently in Doomsday Watch, he can be dealt with by Superman-level speeches, but that has never been Doctor Strange's greatest strength.