I know this has probably already been argued, but in Honest Hearts, Joshua mentions that he expected a different courier (Ulysses) to come after him, and from what we gain from the in-game lore, both are fairly strong leaders and can seemingly survive experiences that would likely kill any other normal person (much like the courier surviving a bullet to the brain), so to this I ask:
1)Firstly, which character spoke more to you and how do you think their philosophies and morals/actions stood out to you.
2)Secondly, who would win in a 1v1 between them if their paths ever did cross, and do you think the outcome would be different depending on the form of combat they engaged in (melee, guns, etc.)?

Personally, I think Joshua Grahams character development over the DLC (depending widely on the choices you made) had the most impact on me, I personally chose to fight with Joshua but taught him to show mercy in the final moments of the DLC which is said in the closing cinematic that learning mercy allowed Joshua to give not only others mercy, but give himself mercy for the things he has done.
Secondly, Given that Ulysses was a frumentari and was most likely better trained with melee weapons and also that Joshua Graham was a New Canaanite and was trained with the ins and outs of firearms, I believe that Ulysses would win in Melee and Joshua would win with firearms.

I look forward to seeing everyone else's thoughts on this!

1. Joshua was certainly more impactful on me.

His rise as a legate, fall and subsequent redemption were truly a great character arch worthy of the Badlands Legate.

2. No idea. Personally, I think it would go to Ulysses. He's a trained Frumentarii while Joshua is a 50sh year old burn victim. Not saying Joshua couldn't win but he's not really the great warrior he's touted to be. Yes, he's a badass mofo who's survived death many times but ultimately he's a skilled tactician and war chief. Ulysses is a warrior.

The question is... after the battle would Joshua truly be dead?

@Tribal Raven wrote:

1. Joshua was certainly more impactful on me.

His rise as a legate, fall and subsequent redemption were truly a great character arch worthy of the Badlands Legate.

2. No idea. Personally, I think it would go to Ulysses. He's a trained Frumentarii while Joshua is a 50sh year old burn victim. Not saying Joshua couldn't win but he's not really the great warrior he's touted to be. Yes, he's a badass mofo who's survived death many times but ultimately he's a skilled tactician and war chief. Ulysses is a warrior.

The question is... after the battle would Joshua truly be dead?

You make some very good points worth considering, thank you!
Also i'm pretty sure if Ulysses is able to defeat Graham, he wouldn't make the mistake of everyone else who has tried to off The Burned Man before him haha

I like to think Joshua because I love his story, but it would probably be Ulysses.

In game terms, it would definitely be Ulysses because his stats are crazy high compared to Joshua. In canon terms it depends. I wouldn't discount Graham because the man is one of the toughest people in the Fallout universe. Hell, before surviving being burned alive and thrown into the grand canyon, Hanlon says dozens of NCR rangers and snipers had tried to take Graham out, but he always came back. For a long time he was the back bone of Caesar's army, and an influential figure in his conquest of Arizona. That was all in his prime though, which is long past, whereas Ulysses appears to be slap bang in the middle of his.

Hard to say. Probably Ulysses in a straight up fight, but like I said, Graham isn't an easy guy to kill.

@IRORIEH wrote:

I like to think Joshua because I love his story, but it would probably be Ulysses.

In game terms, it would definitely be Ulysses because his stats are crazy high compared to Joshua. In canon terms it depends. I wouldn't discount Graham because the man is one of the toughest people in the Fallout universe. Hell, before surviving being burned alive and thrown into the grand canyon, Hanlon says dozens of NCR rangers and snipers had tried to take Graham out, but he always came back. For a long time he was the back bone of Caesar's army, and an influential figure in his conquest of Arizona. That was all in his prime though, which is long past, whereas Ulysses appears to be slap bang in the middle of his.

Hard to say. Probably Ulysses in a straight up fight, but like I said, Graham isn't an easy guy to kill.

Very good points about their ages and in-game stats! I never considered their ages, but now that I think about it, it would probably give Ulysses the upper-hand. And now that I think back about how hard that final fight with Ulysses was, Theres no doubt that Ulysses would win in-game haha. Thanks!