There are a lot of tough Batman adjacent heroes and villains, but two of the toughest are Red Hood and Deathstroke. Red Hood has been through a lot. Jason Todd began his career as Robin, was killed by the Joker, and returned as a villain before rejoining the Bat-Family.
Deathstroke is one of comics' greatest mercenaries, having battled some of the greatest heroes ever, with a decent amount of them related to Batman or being Batman himself. Red Hood and Deathstroke are two of the strongest characters to regularly cross paths with Batman, but only one can stand supreme.
10 Red Hood Was Trained By Batman And The League Of Assassins
Red Hood started life as angry street urchin who got taken in by Batman after trying to steal the Batmobile's wheels. While he was harder to deal with than Dick Grayson, he still learned a lot from Batman, becoming a great fighter. Although it wouldn't help him against the Joker, Jason would get much better after he came back.
Jason was trained by Talia al Ghul and the League of Assassins after returning to life and was able to hold his own against Batman on more than one occasion. Red Hood is one of the best fighters in the Bat-Family, which is saying something.
9 Deathstroke Is A Combat Hardened Veteran
Deathstroke was already an amazing combatant before he became a super soldier. A highly trained and decorated Army Ranger, Slade Wilson was the cream of the crop in the US military, earning his way into the super soldier program. He had made a name for himself on the battlefield at that point.
Deathstroke is among the most balanced villains in the DC Universe, skill-wise. His training as a Ranger made sure he was good at everything and that extended to his years as a mercenary post-super soldier program. Deathstroke is used to people trying to kill him for years and no one has ever succeeded.
8 Red Hood's Done Better Against Batman Than Deathstroke
Batman is the ultimate litmus test for just how formidable someone is in the DC Universe. Both Deathstroke and Red Hood have fought Batman, but one of them has had way more success. That's the Red Hood, as his time a a villain was probably one of his most successful eras. Todd was able to defeat and take over just about every gang and their leaders in Gotham, then went on and schooled Batman.
Deathstroke, on the other hand, hasn't had nearly as much success against Batman, even with his his vaunted super brain and physical enhancements. Red Hood outsmarted and out fought Batman; Deathstroke has never done nearly as well.
7 Deathstroke Made The Justice League Look Like Chumps
Deathstroke may not have the Batman success that Red Hood has, but he does have Todd beat elsewhere. Hired by Dr. Light to protect him from the Justice League, Deathstroke was able to take down Wally West, Kyle Rayner, Zatanna, the Atom, Elongated Man, Hawkman, Green Arrow, and Black Canary in seconds. The Justice League has been beaten before, but Deathstroke made them look like fools, proving that he's one of the best hand to hand fighters in the DC Universe.
6 Red Hood Is Always Ready For A Gunfight
Deathstroke and Red Hood are masters of multiple weapons and both men are known for using firearms. Fitting his military background, Deathstroke is more into rifles, but prefers using his other weapons. Red Hood, on the other hand, is known for his twin pistols and is one of the best gunslingers around.
Red Hood has made his pistols a part of his repertoire, using them for long range and close-up fighting. While he can use many kinds of weapons, his pistols are the one thing everyone associates with him. Deathstroke's rifles are great, but pistols are much better for the type of fights Red Hood is involved with.
5 Deathstroke Has The Ikon Suit
Deathstroke isn't a fool; he knows that he's going to come up against some of the most powerful heroes ever. It's one thing to be ready for them with an amazing plan, but it's another to have to deal with someone like Superman, who has a tendency to overcome all of the clever plans people make against him. That's where the Ikon suit comes in.
Deathstroke's Ikon suit allows him to survive an attack from even the strongest foe, with its gravity sheath protecting him from attacks. With the Ikon Suit, Deathstroke has defeated powerful enemies or at least did better against them than he should have.
4 Red Hood's Rage Grants Him Strength
One of Jason Todd's defining characteristics has always been his anger. It's what made it so hard for Batman to deal with him as Robin and spurred him to villainy when he returned to life. Red Hood's anger may be a liability sometimes, but it's also helped in his greatest battles, giving him strength when he otherwise would have had none.
Red Hood can be a loose cannon, but he's learned how to use it wisely over the years. He's not going to rush in like an rage sick idiot in nearly every non-Joker related case, instead harnessing it to make himself a more dangerous fighter, one who is tough and unpredictable.
3 Deathstroke Has Superhuman Strength And Speed
Deathstroke is literally stronger than Red Hood. He was chosen to be the guinea pig for a super soldier serum, one which gave him superhuman strength and agility. This strength has allowed him to go toe to toe with super strong heroes like Donna Troy, Starfire, and Cyborg, making his skilled attacks even more devastating.
Deathstroke is also extremely fast. While he isn't Flash level, Deathstroke is agile enough to be a threat to even those with the Speed Force. Deathstroke's superhuman physicality has made him into one of the most dangerous people on Earth.
2 Red Hood Has No Fear
Jason Todd has died. Death is usually the scariest thing a human can face but he's been able to overcome it, returning to life. At this point, there's nothing that the Red Hood fears. He's confronted the worst things and gotten past them. While he was obsessed with revenge when he first came back, he was able to overcome that to do the right thing.
Red Hood has confronted the most terrible things and came back from them. His fearlessness makes him much stronger than he'd be otherwise. Red Hood may not have super strength, but he reserves of strength that are unfathomable.
1 Deathstroke Is A Master Strategist
Deathstroke's enhanced brainpower means he can analyze a situation and make a strategy to deal with it almost instantaneously. This ability has allowed Deathstroke to become one of the greatest superhuman combatants on the planet.