History Main / HandicappedBadass

* Barbara Gordon -- the first ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} -- gets [[ComicBook/TheKillingJoke shot through the spine and paralyzed]]. Although she'd already retired as Batgirl she becomes an InformationBroker under the name Oracle, pictured above, and becomes the greatest source of info in Franchise/TheDCU, leader of the Comicbook/BirdsOfPrey, member of the JLA, the hero who can pick up hundreds of millions from a supervillain's secret account and employ them somewhere else, the one who can ''break the Internet should she so wish''. When a number of the Titans were once discussing who actually ran the JLA, and are suggesting a variety of names from Superman to Batman, Arsenal's four-year-old daughter immediately responded ''"Owacle."'' While she mostly does non-action work as befitting her position, she has proved to be a capable fighter even in a wheelchair. She also beat the shit out of Spy Smasher from her wheelchair when the latter threatens to take over her operation.

[[caption-width-right:297:[[ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} She]] doesn't need ''legs'' to kick your ass.]]

** Averted painfully with [[spoiler: Jaime Lannister]]: he loses his sword hand, which more or less [[BreakTheHaughty breaks him.]] He's suicidal for some time afterward, though he does pick up a bundle of GuileHero tendencies later on. He becomes obsessed with recovering his skill - apparently not realising that fighting left-handed is a ''new'' skill he needs to learn from scratch - and terrified of someone finding out that he can't fight anymore.
** Tyrion Lannister, who doesn't let being born a dwarf stop him from personally leading charges in ill-fitting armor and chopping down men twice his size. In one case he forces his reluctant men to attack because they would look like total wimps if they were outmanned by someone they usually mock.

* Franchise/{{Zatoichi}}, the blind swordsman, who [[WalkingTheEarth travels from town to town]] as a common masseur but [[SwordCane keeps a sword hidden in his cane]] just in case. He slashes through hundreds of victims (including the wings off of flies) in 26 films and a TV series.

* Multiple characters in ''TabletopGame/SentinelsOfTheMultiverse'': BlindWeaponmaster Mr Fixer and one-eyed markswoman Expatriette have vision limitations, while Chrono-Ranger and both versions of Luminary have had to get a prosthetic replacement for a missing arm.

* ''Series/BirdsOfPrey'': Barbara Gordon, formerly ComicBook/{{Batgirl}}, was shot by ComicBook/TheJoker prior to the start of the series, leaving her a paraplegic. Normally she stays at the hideout as Oracle, but she's still quite capable of defending herself with gadgetry and collapsible batons.

** Tiber Septim, the [[FounderOfTheKingdom founder]] of the Third Tamriellic Empire who [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascended after his death]] as [[DeityOfHumanOrigin Talos]], the Ninth Divine, could use the power of the [[MakeMeWannaShout Thu'um]] early in his campaigns. He used it to "shout down" the walls of Old Hroldan, which earned him much attention and acclaim. However, a failed assassination attempt left him with his throat slashed and unable to speak in more than a whisper. He still completed his conquest of Tamriel (with the help of the [[HumongousMecha Numidium]] at the end). He would, of course, also later ascend to Godhood.

** ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' has Lester Crest, who suffers from an unidentified wasting disease that makes it painful for him to walk, and he uses a cane (or when at home, a wheelchair) to get around. He's also a criminal mastermind whose bad side is a dangerous place to be, as [[spoiler: [=LifeInvader=] CEO Jay Norris found out when Lester [[YourHeadAsplode blew his head to bits on live TV]] via a rigged prototype smartphone]]. And during the "Obvious" version of the final heist, he even [[spoiler: leans out of a helicopter with a rocket launcher and blows up other attacking helis]].

** Revolver Ocelot lost his arm, but it doesn't stop him from [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder betraying whoever he worked for]], commanding two squads of [[AmazonBrigade Amazon Brigades]], having a one-on-one fist fight with Old Snake at the top of a summarine, and ultimately [[spoiler: [[GoodAllAlong freeing the world from the Patriots and war economy once and for all]]]]. Unlike Old Snake, Ocelot is legitimately in his 70s, and he's still as ripped as he was in his youth.

** In ''VideoGame/WolfensteinTheNewOrder, we have Caroline Becket, who is paralyzed from the waist down, but organizes a formidable resistance movement against the Nazi regime. [[spoiler:She later actively joins the fray when she downs a [[PowerArmor Da'at Yichud power suit]] which allows her to move as well as, if not better than, an an able-bodied soldier.]]
** In ''VideoGame/WolfensteinIITheNewColossus'', B.J. Blazkowicz starts off severely injured and wheelchair-bound, but is still perfectly capable of killing Nazis. He later dawns PowerArmor to help him continue fighting the Nazis. [[spoiler:It's the same power suit that Caroline wore before she was killed.]]

It is important that your character's conquest of their physical challenge make sense; not properly explaining their ability to continue to function, let alone on the badass level, will result in audience confusion, or worse, your character becoming a SympatheticSue.

For the sake of story, a restrained dose of AppliedPhlebotinum is allowed to explain or aid the character's ability to overcome the handicap. This technological or otherwise nonstandard aid cannot completely cure or nullify the effects of the injury, though -- that would kill the point of the character triumphing over the handicap. Thus, ''Series/TheSixMillionDollarMan'' wouldn't count. On the other hand, if the helping device has drawbacks that constantly remind the character of their issue, that's cool. For example, in ''Franchise/StarWars'', DarthWiki/DarthVader's life support suit enables him to kick ass despite his extensive and debilitating injuries, but it's clunky and outdated by the standards of TheVerse. Vader can't survive without it, and he still has to endure the constant pain of his old injuries ([[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking along with]] the incessant VaderBreath from that noisy respirator).

* ''{{Manga/Berserk}}'': Guts cuts his own arm off, [[spoiler: in a desperate attempt to save Casca from being raped by Griffith]], but it is later replaced by a metal version (that has a built in cannon). Not long after losing the arm he loses his right eye. Also, besides the attached/built-in weapons and a magnet in the palm for holding his {{BFS}} the thing is just a regular prosthetic (fore)arm.

** A three-year old Ukitake was afflicted with a fatal lung disease. He struggles daily with the disease, often confined to his bed, requiring a lieutenant who can manage the division for him, and has been debilitated in battle by bloody coughing fits. He has still managed to become one of the longest-serving captains, and other captains have observed that, like Aizen, Ukitake's reiatsu is unusually powerful even by captain standards. However, it's permanently channelled into keeping him alive and functioning. [[spoiler:When he was three, his parents made a bargain with Mimihagi, the Right Hand of the Soul King. Mimhagi merged with Ukitake's lungs to keep him alive in return for Ukitake sacrificing his life for Soul Society on the day the Soul King is killed.]]

The idiot got asskicked

** Izumi Curtis. Missing her entire uterus and a portion of her intestine detracts in no way from the sheer aura of asskicking that woman emanates.

** Her introduction sums it up rather nicely: the protagonist is told that Ayase would be his combat trainer before he sees her, and is somewhat confused to see a girl in a wheelchair, being a bit lost as for how to act around her. When she drops something, he awkwardly offers to help the poor cripple pick it up, and she smiles shyly and agrees... then when he comes near her she flips around like a ragdoll using only her arms for what is a wheelchair bound judo throw. "Don't underestimate me", indeed.

* [[AloofBigBrother Sesshomaru]] from ''Manga/InuYasha'' is missing one arm for most of the story. This does not make him any less of a badass. In his case, he was just so powerful to begin with that having one arm less simply isn't enough to bring him down to the level of almost anyone else. He actually ends up admitting that losing his arm helped make him even stronger than before.

** Later on, Johnny, the [=JoJo=] of Part 7, has the same problem, even moreso given the time period it takes place in. This doesn't stop him from kicking ass, as well as ''participating in a country spanning horse race''.

** ''Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaVivid'' revealed that [[GodEmperor Sankt Kaiser Olivie Sägebrecht]], the [[WorldsStrongestMan queen deemed second to none in combat]] and likely the most powerful [[MagicKnight combat mage]] in the setting, managed to achieve this distinction despite losing ''both'' of her arms in her early childhood. The gauntlets she always wears are actually {{Medieval|EuropeanFantasy}} ArtificialLimbs she manipulates through constant self-targeted [[PeoplePuppets body control]]. In fact, even before she received her artificial arms, she was more than capable of foiling would be assassins and killing them with a well-aimed rock using her legs alone back when she was still a kid.

** Subverted with Kakashi, who wears his headband over his left eye, creating a blind spot. Unfortunately for anyone who ever thought it was a handicap, said headband was actually [[EyepatchOfPower hiding one of his strongest weapons]]. Twelve year-old him might count though, as his ruined left eye had yet to be replaced when he and Obito actually managed to temporarily incapacitate the Iwa Jounin who was attacking them.

*** According to [[Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} the Other Wiki]], left handed people can develop ambidexterity much more easily than right handed people. When you think about it, it isn't all that unbelievable.

** Togo had an accident before beginning middle school that left her paralyzed. When she and her friends are shown to become MagicalGirl's she considers herself TheLoad and angsts, thinking she can't help due to her disability. When her best friend is in lethal danger she transforms and is shown to be quite [[TheGunslinger good with guns]]. Her legs aren't "fixed" when she transforms, instead her costume has ribbon appendages she uses to get around.
** [[spoiler:All the girls get hit with this, except for Karin. Fu is the most traditional as she becomes partially blind while Yuna and Itsuki have "invisible disablities". By the middle of the anime not only is Togo paralyzed but she's deaf in one ear as well.]]

** In the ''Literature/VorkosiganSaga'', Miles Vorkosigan, whose brittle bones and stunted growth enhance his badassitude. His mother implies that if he had grown up normally and been treated like anyone else, he would have been an intelligent and valued military officer; due to his disabilities and his society's extreme phobia of mutations, he has to work harder to overcome their expectations and ends up overshooting them by miles. Like all Barrayaran military officers, Miles trained extensively in hand-to-hand. He notes once that three-quarters of the moves are barred to him in a real fight due to his brittle bones, but the one-quarter remaining are still more than sufficient for him to grab a large and healthy man by the throat and toss him around a bit during ''Literature/ACivilCampaign''.

* From Creator/JohnCWright's ''Literature/WarOfTheDreaming'' there is Peter "OneManArmy" Waylock, who is wheelchair bound.

* It seems that Captain/Admiral ''Literature/HonorHarrington'' only gets badder with every major injury and amputation she suffers.

** Beldin is a hunchback, and suffers from dwarfism of an unspecified type. Neither condition prevents him from kicking the asses of people three feet taller than him without breaking a sweat (he treated [[TheBlacksmith Durnik]] like a basketball on their first meeting) and that's before he brings his immense magical ability and prodigious intellect to bear.

* ''{{Toys/Bionicle}}'s'' Vezon, although never actually fighting, manages to remain a main character, not dead, unbelievably unscathed after being captured by the worst torture master in the MU (with the building collapsing), and unmutated by Pit Mutagen. So what makes him better than BadassNormal? He doesn't have powers, and considering how almost every breathing thing in the MU has some power or other, that's pretty crippling. He also doesn't have much of a mind, so the mental handicap comes into play. This powerless nature doesn't apply to him anymore, since ever since he got fused to the Mask of Dimensional Gates, he became a living portal into [[AlternateUniverse other worlds]], and was reduced to a mere, yet very powerful and handy plot device.
* Literature/SirAproposOfNothing has been lame of leg since he was born and requires a staff to hobble about. And this has not at all stopped him from kicking a great deal of ass. Especially impressive considering that he doesn't ''want'' to kick ass.

** Captain Sand dan Glokta was badass once. He was a handsome, dashing war hero, a decorated warrior who distinguished himself in battle...And was captured by the Gurkish, and [[ColdBloodedTorture spent the next two years somewhat less pleasantly than he was accustomed to]]. This left him crippled, disfigured, incontinent, and in constant pain. At this point, most people would have been happy to live out their days in comfort, resting and being brought meals in bed. Glokta decided to screw that, promptly became an [[TortureTechnician Inquisitor]], and spends the series making readers cheer as he unwinds conspiracies, conquers [[ArchEnemy stairs]], and reveals that [[spoiler:he hasn't entirely lost the ability to [[SwordCane fence]]]].

** Averted painfully with [[spoiler: Jaime Lannister]]: he loses his sword hand, which more or less [[BreakTheHaughty breaks him.]] He's suicidal for some time afterward, though he does pick up a bundle of GuileHero tendencies later on. He becomes obsessed with recovering his skill - apparently not realising that fighting left-handed is a ''new'' skill he needs to learn from scratch - and terrified of someone finding out that he can't fight any more.
** Tyrion Lannister, who doesn't let being born a dwarf stop him from personally leading charges in ill fitting armor and chopping down men twice his size. In one case he forces his reluctant men to attack because they would look like total wimps if they were out manned by someone they usually mock.

* Gateman from Creator/AndrewVachss's Burke books uses a wheelchair, but is enough of a crack shot that other cons respect him.

** Maestro Killian, an old blind spy and weapons-master, who uses wind magic to see around him, still trains new spies, is a powerful fighter, and stood second behind Captain Miles in that same assault.

* Cap'n Bill, best known from the [[Literature/LandOfOz Oz books]] is an old sailor who had to retire from the sea after he lost his leg. Neither his advanced age nor his wooden leg stops him from going along on all sorts of magical adventures -- even though the books, particularly the non-Oz book ''Sky Island'', do show that the wooden leg gives him trouble from time to time (he can't run very fast and is liable to lose his balance if he tries), they also show that he's still got it when it counts and is someone you're glad to have on your side in a crisis.

** Darling is deaf and mute, and for this reason nobody believes she could be TheChosenOne. They are hideously wrong, since she grows up to be a natural leader and military genius, even without her AntiMagic powers.

* Waxahachie Smith, hero of a series of novels from Creator/JTEdson, is a gunslinger who had his trigger fingers amputated by vengeful foes. He had to work out how to wield guns without being able to physically pull a trigger.

** Inspired by the real [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivar_the_Boneless Ivar the Boneless,]] though there is debate about what his nickname meant.

* ''Literature/TheSagaOfGrettirTheStrong'' has Grettir's great-grandfather Onund Treefoot, a Norwegian viking who lost one of his legs in a battle with King Harald Finehair. He replaced it with a peg leg and continued a successful career as a warrior and seafarer.
* ''Literature/TheHungerGames'' has [[spoiler:Peeta Mellark]] who spends two thirds of the trilogy with a prosthetic left leg. [[spoiler:He's notably less badass in the second book but still he manages to fight pretty well in the arena and kills Brutus in an OffScreenMomentOfAwesome. In the third book he's somewhere in-between his badass levels of the first and second book.]]

* ''Literature/FriedGreenTomatoesAtTheWhistleStopCafe'' has Buddy '[[InSeriesNickname Stump]]' Threadgoode Jr, who had his left arm cut off in a train accident at the age of six. After one event having him be annoyed about his handicap and Idgie showing him that a handicap does not mean someone is worthless, he grows up to be quite amazing. Among his achievements are being a great quarterback for his highschool football team, and even being a great shot, despite lacking an arm.

* In the early twentieth century Ernest Bramah wrote numerous short stories and one novel (''The Bravo of London'') featuring blind investigator Max Carrados.

* In ''Literature/ChildrenOfTheBlackSun'', Isidro only has one functioning arm, but is still more competent than a lot of other characters with two. In many respects, his disability has more of a psychological impact on him (coming from a culture where not being "useless" is very important) than a physical one.

** In some versions Heimdall is this as well. He made the same trade as Odin, except he gave up an ear. He's the sole watchman of Asgard, with sight second only to Odin, and unmatched hearing in his remaining ear. And at Ragnarok he fights Loki to the death.

* Hephaestus, god of the forge from Myth/ClassicalMythology, was crippled when Zeus or Hera (DependingOnTheWriter) hurled him off Olympus as a child (again, the reason for this varies depending the writer). He is also a mechanical genius, and he's created super-gadgets and HumongousMecha. He also built two [[ClockworkCreature clockwork maidens out of gold and silver]] to help him walk, due to his handicap.

* Wrestling/RomanReigns has been battling leukemia since he was twenty two years old.

* Parodied in ''Radio/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy''. Scientists have discovered cures for everything and doctors are out of a job - but everyone finds this universal perfect health rather boring. Then they realise that "nothing turned, say, a slightly talented composer into a towering genius faster than the problem of approaching [[Music/LudwigVanBeethoven deafness]]". So the medical profession is resurrected to provide artificial injuries, diseases and disabilities to boost people's performance - "you always overcompensate for your disabilities."

** Greybeard has a HookHand in place of his left hand, and became half-blind after his right eye was [[EyeScream horribly scarred]]. Taken a step further in the [[WhatIf alternate ending]] ''December 21, 2010'', in which he was also missing his right leg.

* Many games have a character creation system where taking one or more hindrances on a character gives the player more points to allocate into stats, abilities, or whatever. Naturally, the greater the hindrance, the more points given. The highest points are usually disabilities (blindness, deafness, lost limb(s), etc.).

** Malik from ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedI'' loses an arm early on and yet later leads only ''four'' fellow assassins against a small army. Successfully. With him ''fighting in the front.'' The small army was composed of ''fellow assassins'' who were BrainwashedAndCrazy at the time. So, Malik takes on a small army of men who have received the ''exact same training'' that he has, and he ''still'' kicks their asses. And considering that he preceded the asskicking of said army with a BigDamnHeroes moment by saving [[MemeticBadass Altaïr]].

** Pendles the [[SnakePeople Roa]] lost an eye and his right tentacle had to be replaced with a prosthetic arm when it naturally molted off however, Pendles' still just as deadly an assassin despite these handicaps.

** Ironically, Hawkeye Gough, another one of the Four Knights of Gwyn, is {{blind|Weaponmaster}}, and according to himself, {{retired|Badass}}. Neither of these facts stop him from shooting down a dragon because it won't stay in one place.
** The Twin Princes Lothric and Lorian in ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'' are both crippled (Lothric was cursed and has been incredibly frail his entire life, Lorian is mentally damaged to the point he can't speak or use his legs due to sharing his brother's curse). This does not stop them being a brutally effective SiblingTeam more than capable of wiping their boss chamber with you.

* The [[spoiler: Inquisitor]] from ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'' becomes this following the conclusion of the epilogue DLC ''Trespasser.'' [[spoiler:With the Anchor mark growing increasingly unstable, [[TricksterGod Solas/Fen'Harel]] is forced to cut their arm off to prevent the Anchor from overwhelming and killing them. Even then Solas implies that the Inquisitor is LivingOnBorrowedTime anyways due to the Anchor's damage to his/her body. Still, it doesn't seem to let the lack of half an arm phase them even a bit; the next scene is of the Inquisitor striding into the Exalted Council with one arm of their jacket neatly pinned up, where they deliver either an epic RousingSpeech or a scathing TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to the Council, and either pledge to serve as the Divine's personal honor guard to keep the peace, or disband completely. The scene ''after'' that involves them vowing to stop Solas' [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt plans]] at all costs. Even without their arm and regardless of the Inquisiton's fate, it's clear that the Inquisitor is far from being done. Certain ending sliders also show that they replace their arm with a [[ArmCannon crossbow mounted on the stump]].]]

** Tiber Septim, the [[FounderOfTheKingdom founder]] of the Third Tamriellic Empire who [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascended after his death]] as [[DeityOfHumanOrigin Talos]], the Ninth Divine, could use the power of the [[MakeMeWannaShout Thu'um]] early in his campaigns. He used it to "shout down" the walls of Old Hroldan, which earned him much attention and acclaim. However, a failed assassination attempt left him with his throat slashed and unable to speak in more than whisper. He still completed his conquest of Tamriel (with the help of the [[HumongousMecha Numidium]] at the end). He would, of course, also later ascend to Godhood.

** Several famous heroes have been missing an eye. St. Jiub is one famous example, as well as Hakon One Eye and Olaf One Eye from [[HornyVikings Nordic]] history. A massive scar over one eye is often a frequent option for {{Player Character}}s during creation, and it doesn't hinder them a bit.
* Kala Kapur in ''Videogame/{{Evolve}}''. She's blind in her left eye and has to wear an exoskeletal life support system to prevent her immune system from failing completely. It still doesn't stop her from fighting giant flesh eating monsters.

* ''VideoGame/GodOfWarAscension'': Pollux is a severely atrophied man due to being a co-jointed twin to his brother Castor, having only one arm, a head and a torso. With that said, Pollux is the demigod half of the Gemini Twins and has psychokinesis as his main power. When Kratos knocks Castor out cold during the boss fight, Pollux keeps [[PowersDoTheFighting fighting using his powers]] by lifting their body with his mind and throwing everything out at the Ghost of Sparta.

** Ragna the Bloodedge, from it's spiritual successor ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'' is a handicapped badass whose arm is [[spoiler:an ''EldritchAbomination'']] because he lost his real one when Terumi, while possessing his brother Jin, cut it off. In ''Continuum Shift'' [[spoiler:he loses his other arm while freeing Noel from mind control and gets it replaced with an arm made of Lambda-11's components]]. During a good portion of Chronophantasma Ragna is unable to use his Azure powers, and by extension his right arm and eye, because of [[spoiler:Celica's ability to suppress seithr]].
* Zaird from ''{{VideoGame/Gungnir}}'' is paraplegic. He is also the final boss, and deserves the status.
* Kat in ''VideoGame/HaloReach'' has lost her right arm, but her robotic replacement arm works so well that she's still in active service in an elite unit and the team's expert on fixing broken electronic equipment, even though she's right handed. It does look pretty ghastly though, but nobody ever comments on it. Maybe they are [[DarkActionGirl too scared to risk it]].

* Harman Smith of ''{{VideoGame/Killer 7}}''. A wheelchair bound old man who will destroy nearly anyone with the anti-materiel rifle he possesses on the back of his wheelchair. Con Smith as well, he's a skilled gunfighter despite being completely blind.

** [[ColonelBadass Heidern]]. His right eye was torn out by Rugal, and has since obtained an EyepatchOfPower, but it didn't stop him from kicking massive amounts of badass.

** Lee Sin burned himself in an act of protest against occupation of his homeland, Ionia. Afterwards, he was left blind. So, he re-trained himself as a martial artist. He aims his jumping kicks by the reverberations of the ''sonic booms he produces when he punches.''
* Louis in The Passing for ''VideoGame/Left4Dead2''. His legs are injured, so he can't run and gun to give cover like Zoey and Francis can. So what does he do? He mans the [[{{BFG}} Heavy Machine Gun]].
* ''VideoGame/{{LISA}} The Painful RPG'': Depending on the player's responses to Buzzo's sadistic choices, protagonist Brad can lose one or both of his arms as the game goes on. He's still a toughed, determined, fire ball-throwing martial artist who can take out gangs, kill powerful bloated mutants, and climb ropes with his mouth. [[SlidingScaleOfGameplayAndStoryIntegration It is, however, made more difficult to do so with less arms.]]

** Big Boss lost an eye, but never lost a trace of his badassness. He becomes even cooler as an old man. Hell, the eye alone doesn't do him justice: during the ill-fated Virtuous Mission he suffers a broken arm, multiple lacerations and a broken rib from getting his ass kicked by The Boss and thrown off a bridge into a river. The medical officer overseeing him fully admits he should be back in intensive care rather than going on Operation Snake Eater a week later, where (not even counting injuries he can get in gameplay) he ends up getting shot in the leg with a crossbow, poisoned by spider venom, electrocuted with 10 million volts, beaten to within an inch of his life by a guy strong enough to punch massive holes in concrete, and ''then'' loses his eye. He ''still'' succeeds the mission.
** Old Snake. The power suit doesn't really make him super human, so much as gives him just enough of a muscle assist to stay in the game. Physically Snake's in his 70s despite being 42, and after the first act he starts having seizures due to his older generation nano machines. And in the third act, [[spoiler: half his face is burnt off]]. And he still keeps fighting, no matter how many obstacles he must face, or how many friends try to talk him out of it.

** In ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4GunsOfThePatriots'' Raiden is more artificial than organic, to the point that he runs completely on synthetic [[AlienBlood white android blood]]. This does [[CursedWithAwesome not slow him down at all]], but his real Handicapped Badass moment comes, when he has to come to Snake's rescue after ''having lost both of his arms''. Again, with hand-like cyborg feet, this [[Awesome/MetalGear doesn't slow him down at all]].

* [[MeaningfulName Kiling]] Meehilbis "[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast of the Ghosts]]" in ''VideoGame/MitsumeteKnight'' is not only an Handicapped Badass due to his blindness, he's also a cool OldSoldier; yet he's the NumberTwo of the enemy mercenary brigade Valpha-Valaharian, a master [[TheStrategist strategist]], and a powerful foe in battle using a SinisterScythe. Badass indeed!

** Duster of ''VideoGame/MOTHER3'' had a leg injury that gives him a serious limp, but not only can he keep up with the others, he's actually ''the fastest character in the game who can counter enemy ambushes and attacks by kicking''.

* [[CoolOldLady Ana Amari]] from ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' is one of the best snipers in the world. When she was working for Overwatch, she had a cybernetic eye that enhanced her vision to the point where she technically didn't even need a scope anymore. However, being on the receiving end of a ScopeSnipe, courtesy of Talon operative Widowmaker, has left her with only her organic left eye to aim with. [[NeverMessWithGranny Not that that stops her from kicking ass well into her 60s.]]

** Gen once fought ''Shin Akuma'' to a standstill despite suffering from leukemia.[[note]]In fairness, Akuma stopped fighting when he realized Gen was ill. It still didn't stop Gen from surviving a Shun Goku Satsu ([[DubNameChange Raging Demon]]).[[/note]] Hell, the fact that Gen had lived at terminal level for 10-15 years (or however much time passed between ''Alpha 3'' and ''IV'') by sheer determination to die in battle rather than succumb to his illness has to count.
* MOBA game ''VideoGame/{{Strife}}'' features Claudessa, a warrior who lost her arm slaying a dragon, Silvertongue. She took the dragon's claw as a weapon, and uses a shield in place of her missing arm. Fittingly enough for this trope, she is arguably [[CharacterTiers the most powerful hero available to play.]]
* ''VideoGame/SuperFighter'': The ninja Onimaru, despite having lost a leg (and having it replaced with a peg leg), needing a staff as a makeshift cane, and having taken serious injuries to his head (needing cybernetics to replace his left eye and metal plating around the parts of his face surround his lost eye), he can still hold his own against all the other fighters of the cast.
* Calvina Coulange from ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsJudgment'' suffered severe nerve damage to her arms when the AbusivePrecursors known as the Furies attacked the Moon base she was stationed at, but she's just as capable a pilot as she ever was once she gets her hands on an alien mech with a brainwave interface.

** Regal Bryant of ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', formerly a martial artist of tremendous strength and skill, [[spoiler:was forced to kill his girlfriend and]] swore he would never take another life with his own hands. Later, someone else convinced him to treat the oath more literally and fight with his feet instead. Naturally, he's still one of the most powerful combatants in the game, and on top of that he happens to be [[spoiler:a culinary genius, a philanthropist, and the President of one of the most powerful corporations in the world]].

** The Demoman comes from a BadassFamily of mercenary explosives experts. All of his ancestors with his job, according to his mother, have been ''entirely blind'' by age 30. His missing eye is FridgeBrilliance as well, since one of the Demoman's assets is his ability to attack outside his field of vision.

** One of the replacements for his grenade launcher, the bootlegger, literally [[SeadogPegLeg chops his leg off and places a wooden peg on the stump]]. What does it do? It makes him run faster, and gives him better turn control while charging.
** Ever since the Meet the Pyro video has come out, we finally know the Pyro's mental handicap. [[SugarBowl His mind is filled with laughter, candies and rainbows.]] Even though he thinks he's spreading joy to the world, he is actually mercilessly slaughtering his enemies.

** The blind shaman Drek'thar commands Frostwolf forces against the Stormpike dwarves in Alterac Valley, and is a pretty tough boss. He's a major Horde figure both in lore and in game, and he only becomes more awesome in ''Warlords of Draenor'', where he buries a whole contingent of Iron Horde soldiers in a landslide.

** Lor'themar Theron lost one of his eyes in battle against the Scourge during the Third War. Kilrogg Deadeye, meanwhile, followed the traditions of his clan and put out one of his eyes to be granted a vision of his own death.
* Dunban in ''VideoGame/{{Xenoblade}} Chronicles'' injured his right arm in a battle that took place a year before the game's story began. Regardless, he springs right back into action for the purpose of protecting his hometown and friends when the need arises, and does a really good job at it. He manages to completely cripple that arm in doing so, but he just comes right back using his left arm for sword-work. He also doesn't have any issues climbing up cliffs with only his left arm.

** One case has Phoenix serve as defense attorney on a trial while ''suffering from amnesia from a blow to the head'' and having no idea what's even going on.

* Victor Vasko in ''{{Webcomic/Lackadaisy}}'' lost an eye in a labor dispute and was kneecapped by his ex-partner, leaving him with one knee that bends a little bit. Victor is still about 250 pounds of Slavic badass, and took out a squad of well-armed gunmen before taking a load of Double-Ought buckshot in the side. He survived.

* As in the original mythology, mentioned above, the ''Webcomic/ArthurKingOfTimeAndSpace'' incarnation(s) of Sir Bedevere lost a hand during the Roman War. In the Space Arc his prosthetic enables him to jack directly into the ''Excalibur'' communications console. Largely for the sake of a pun about hand signals.

** Sollux gets blinded partway into the story. He doesn't mind so much though, since that injury also left him unable to hear the voices of the soon-to-be-dead, which he finds to be a huge relief. Besides which, he knows Terezi gets by just fine with her blindness, and hopes to learn from her how to sense the world the way she does.

* ''WebComic/MuhPhoenix'': Subverted with Daredevil. During most fights he just hits thin air.

* Peter from ''Webcomic/BadMoonRising'' is first seen hanging from a sewer pipe lobbing a Molotov cocktail at some waterlogged vampires. Peter was born without legs, and forgoes use of his wheelchair when not doing activities that require it, like playing Murderball

* Cortez from ''Machinima/TheLeetWorld'' is the best shooter in the house, despite being near-blind. Instead, he uses his acute hearing to track targets, and was the only housemate able to land a hit when a [=HAXed=]-up Ahmad went into FlashStep mode.

* In ''Literature/DeadWest'', the Porcelain Doctor has a very bad limp, and when he overexerts himself, he needs not only his cane, but Gervas' help to move around. This doesn't stop him from turning every skirmish into a CurbStompBattle, if he decides to LetsGetDangerous. He can even do it [[spoiler: without his PsychicPowers!]] Mind you, he was an accomplished fighter before his injury, and his brother doesn't exactly believe DisabledMeansHelpless, so this should be the expected outcome. Most of the people he meets make the mistake of underestimating him, simply because of the cane.

** Antoinette is able to [[http://akaichounokoe.deviantart.com/gallery/?q=Neighborhood+war#/d4qmgw6 pilot a biplane and shoot up the roof of someone's house with near deadly accuracy]] and the thing is with that is that she has legally blind and has awful vision.
* Subverted with the Invalid Commandos in ''WebVideo/BallGrillPolice''. Like TheCavalry, they arrive from the woods to aid the policemen against Uncle Sam, but are unable to do anything, as they are, well, invalids.
* ''Literature/FearLoathingAndGumboOnTheCampaignTrailSeventyTwo'': [[spoiler: George Wallace, of all people. He turns his own paralysis into a sign that he understands the troubles of the common man, and shakes off his segregationist past. He is even able to goad Spiro Agnew into insulting his paralysis to make an impassioned plea. All of which help him become president in 1976. Unfortunately, the stress of the presidency [[{{Deconstruction}} takes a huge toll on his already fragile health]], and his decides not to seek re-election. However, in the sequel he eventually recovers his health, becomes a powerful opponent of the tyranny of Donald Rumsfeld and returns to the governorship of Alabama]].

--> "Gotta love modern weapons tech. Easier for a one-armed man to fire a missile launcher than pull on his pants."

* John Gotti was deaf in one ear (which played a role in his downfall as when meeting with his underlings they would play the radio and Gotti would demand they turn it down, making it easier for bugs to pic up conversation). He also walked with a limp after his foot was crushed by a cement truck.

** The Red Son winds up losing his left arm and eye fighting Magneto. He gets cybernetic techno-organic replacements that, if anything, only make him even more dangerous.
** Charles Xavier is confined to a wheelchair. He's also the most powerful psychic in the world bar just a few, and far more skilled than any of them.

[[caption-width-right:397:[[ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} She]] doesn't need ''legs'' to kick your ass.]]

[[caption-width-right:300: [[Comicbook/{{Batgirl}} She]] doesn't need ''legs'' to kick your ass.]]

Often introduced for PositiveDiscrimination, especially when the character is either blind or in a wheelchair.

* Barbara Gordon -- the first ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} -- gets [[Comicbook/TheKillingJoke shot through the spine and paralyzed]]. Although she'd already retired as Batgirl she becomes an InformationBroker under the name Oracle, pictured above, and becomes the greatest source of info in Franchise/TheDCU, leader of the Comicbook/BirdsOfPrey, member of the JLA, the hero who can pick up hundreds of millions from a supervillain's secret account and employ them somewhere else, the one who can ''break the Internet should she so wish''. When a number of the Titans were once discussing who actually ran the JLA, and are suggesting a variety of names from Superman to Batman, Arsenal's four-year-old daughter immediately responded ''"Owacle."'' While she mostly does non-action work as befitting her position, she has proved to be a capable fighter even in a wheelchair. She also beat the shit out of Spy Smasher from her wheelchair when the latter threatens to take over her operation.

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* Bentley in the ''Franchise/SlyCooper'' series mixes this with GeniusCripple, becoming a better fighter than before after he became wheelchair-bound by building a bunch of stuff onto his wheelchair.

* Gohē Takeda from ''Manga/{{Ginga Nagareboshi Gin}}'' after he [[spoiler:loses his leg]]. Made even more badass by the fact that he [[spoiler: cut it off himself!]]
* In the sequel, ''Manga/{{Ginga Densetsu Weed}}'', [[spoiler:Smith]] becomes this after [[spoiler:losing his leg to a car while saving GB.]]

** Sonoko is supposedly one of these but her fight is never seen. She's bedbound and covered in bandages but is the most powerful Hero [[spoiler:due to having over twenty [[FairyCompanion faeries]].]]

* Gobber from ''WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon'' only has one leg and one arm. As a Viking, he is very badass. Toothless only has half a tail but is still badass and at the end, [[spoiler:Hiccup becomes one when his lower left leg is destroyed during the final battle]].
** [[BigBad Drago Bludvist]] from the sequel counts too, having lost an arm after being attacked by a dragon. Although he's badass in a [[TheDreaded very]] [[AxCrazy different]] [[KnightOfCerebus way]] to the characters above.

* The grandfather in the ''Film/SpyKids'' trilogy. He was played by Ricardo Montalbán, who really was a wheelchair user in his latter years.

* ''Code of the Dragon'': Badass fighting '''cripple'''. He doesn't even need the wheelchair. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccF50ssJKVA Why talk about it when you can witness it?]]
** It's better than that. The fighting Black cripple is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF57HT0Ynho&feature=related Henry Smalls]]. He isn't crippled, '''he has NO legs'''. He is a kendo master, fourth-degree black belt, and a skilled practitioner of over 20 martial arts. I'd love to see somebody try to rob him in real life, the ass-kicking would be EPIC.
* PlayedWith in the case of Jake Sully in ''Film/{{Avatar}}'', who still manages to be his own subtle kind of badass even though he is paraplegic and thus needs a wheelchair. However, most of his truly badass moments occur in his fully mobile Na'vi body [[spoiler:and he changes to this body permanently at the end of the film, killing his old one]].

* 2013 horror ''Film/TheHumanRace'' featured a one-legged protagonist who couldn't walk without crutches. [[spoiler:He's quite the fighter, uses his crutches to exploit a loophole in the 'no walking on the grass' rule and ultimately wins]].

* In Sarah Monette's ''Literature/DoctrineOfLabyrinths'' series, Mildmay the Fox has near crippling self-esteem issues and one of his legs is crippled at the end of the first book, leaving him in near constant pain when he walks and unable to get around without a cane. He still manages to be the biggest badass in the book and accomplishes a few feats that most able-bodied people would probably have died attempting.

* Creator/{{PBS}}'s forensic history series ''Series/SecretsOfTheDead'' did an [[http://www.pbs.org/wnet/secrets/resurrecting-richard-iii-full-episode/1934/ episode]] on [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfPlantagenet King Richard III Plantagenet]]'s remains, even training a Renaissance reenactor with the same type of severe scoliosis as Richard in medieval fighting arts and getting him a custom-made suit of plate armor. Turns out that it would only have been a mild impediment on foot (mainly due to diminished lung capacity from the malformed ribcage) and no impediment at all on horseback (which neatly explains the "my kingdom for a horse" line in [[Theatre/RichardIII the play]]).

* The Second Edition of BlueRose introduces a new order of heroes to the Kingdom of Aldis: The Quiet Knights. When you keep losing adventurers to the seductive song of a siren, who better to send against it than a deaf warrior? Gorgons keep petrifying your soldiers? Send blind Knights to fight them.

* In ''VideoGame/DwarfFortress'', thanks to [[SubsystemDamage the combat system]], anyone can become this including yourself in Adventure Mode and your dwarves in Fortress Mode. All you need is a crutch ([[ImprobableWeaponUser preferably a heavy, metallic one]]) and enough time to grind crutch walking and you are back up fighting against the best of them, or you can just crawl around and slay [[AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever megabeasts]], although it will be difficult because of your reduced speed.

* Tachibana Ukyou in ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'' is suffering from tuberculosis, including having an IncurableCoughOfDeath. Doesn't stop him from stylishly kicking ass whenever a fight breaks out.
* Not-Robot Bunny from ''VideoGame/UltimateChickenHorse'' is in a wheelchair (due to being a reskin of the default Bunny, who is a robot with wheels). This doesn't affect its ability to navigate deadly obstacle courses, and it plays just like the other able-bodied animals.

* John Gotti was deaf in one ear(which played a role in his downfall as when meeting with his underlings they would play the radio and Gotti would demand they turn it down, making it easier for bugs to pic up conversation). He also walked with a limp after his foot was crushed by a cement truck.

** ''Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaVivid'' revealed that [[GodEmperor Sankt Kaiser Olivie Sägebrecht]], the [[WorldsStrongestMan queen deemed second to none in combat]] and likely the most powerful [[MagicKnight combat mage]] in the setting, managed to achieve this distinction despite losing ''both'' of her arms in her early childhood. The gauntlets she always wears are actually [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy medieval]] {{Artificial Limb}}s she manipulates through constant self-targeted [[PeoplePuppets body control]]. In fact, even before she received her artificial arms, she was more than capable of foiling would be assassins and killing them with a well-aimed rock using her legs alone back when she was still a kid.

[[caption-width-right:300:Even without working legs, [[Comicbook/{{Batgirl}} she]] can ''still'' kick your ass.]]

[[caption-width-right:300:Even though her legs don't work, [[Comicbook/{{Batgirl}} she]] can ''still'' kick your ass.]]

[[quoteright:297:[[ComicBook/BirdsOfPrey https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/oracle_1_5085.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:[[Comicbook/{{Batgirl}} She]] doesn't ''legs'' to kick your ass.]]

[[caption-width-right:300:Even though her legs don't work, [[Comicbook/{{Batgirl}} she]] can ''still'' kick your ass.]]