With Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood for the number one spot on MyAnimeList's top anime rankings.
Yet regardless of whether Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is sured or not as the top anime, its story, messages, and characters will always remain one of the most well-known and beloved series to have ever been created. But that said, which of Hiromu Arakawa's characters are quantifiably the strongest? The answer lies in the characters' skills, ability, and battle intelligence.
Major Alex Louis Armstrong
Known as the "Strong-Arm Alchemist," Major Armstrong is a constant comedic presence fueled by his well-meaning persona, but often misguided aggrandizement of his impressive physique. He also serves as Edward Elric's bodyguard after Edward's automail arm was destroyed and he needed to travel to his hometown Resembool to have it fixed.
Armstrong is an extremely tall and muscular fighter who, despite his size, is extremely nimble and an excellent boxer. He pairs his boxing skills with his earth-based Alchemy skills to fight in both close quarters, as well as hurl pointed stones at mid-range. He is shown to be strong enough to fully stop the homunculus Sloth at full speed with pure brute force.
"Old Man" Fu
The Grandfather of Lan Fan and one of two guards tasked with protecting Ling Yao, Fu was introduced when the Elric Brothers and Winry travel to Rush Valley at Winry's request. He is an extremely loyal guard and grandfatherly figure towards Ling Yao.
Fu is an exceptional hand-to-hand fighter able to fight on equal with King Bradley for a short time. As a ninja, he has exceptional speed, is highly intelligent, and has mastery over short-swords, knives, and an assortment of throwing weapons. As a Xingese martial artist, he is also trained to locate and battle enemies by sensing their Chi's.
Major General Olivier Mira Armstrong
Known as "The Northern Wall of Briggs," Major General Armstrong has been tasked with protecting her country Amestris from the antagonistic country Drachma. She rules Briggs with an iron fist and inspires unshakable loyalty in her subordinates and fear in anyone who dares oppose her whether friend or foe.
Though not an Alchemist, Olivier has brute strength that far outclasses her younger brother, Alex, which is seen when she destroys their family home by throwing him through it. She is a master tactician and excellent swordsman, which she shows in her tag-team suppression of the Homunculus Sloth, as well as by defeating numerous Immortal Dolls.
Greed/ Ling Yao "Greeling"
Ling Yao searches for the Philosopher's Stone in order to find the secret of immortality and claim the royal title of Emperor of Xing. Ling Yao willingly takes in a Philosopher's Stone, which is the core of the Homunculus Greed, this allows Greed control of Ling's body in exchange for his cooperation and strength.
Ling Yao is a master swordsman and is highly trained in Xingese martial arts, allowing him to sense Chi and by extension sense the locations of enemies Homunculi. While they can not use each other's skills simultaneously, with Greed now an extension of Ling, it gives him the power of The Ultimate Shield which allows Greed's body to harden to the strength of Diamond. The ability to alternate powers serves Greeling in multiple fights against enemy homunculus.
Alphonse Elric
Alphonse Elric is the younger brother of Edward Elric and an extremely knowledgeable alchemist and fighter. He and his brother Ed spend a large majority of their time researching and tracking down potential Philosopher's Stones to restore his and his brother's bodies.
Alphonse is an exceptionally knowledgeable Alchemist for his age and is only rivaled by his older brother, Ed. His with "Truth" gave him an even greater knowledge of Alchemy, which he gained in exchange for his entire body. Aside from his Alchemy skills, Alphonse is an exceptionally gifted hand-to-hand fighter, with Ed even itting that Alphonse is the better fighter.
Scar
A former Ishvalan Monk whose actual name has never been revealed, Scar was given his nickname for the distinguishable X-shaped scar he has on his face. He became an infamous criminal when he went around major cities in Amestris to hunt down and kill State Alchemists as a form of revenge for what State Alchemists did to his people the Ishvalans.
As a former Ishvalan Monk, Scar has exceptional almost super-human strength which, when paired with his ability to destroy objects on an alchemical level granted by his right arm, makes him an exceptionally skilled and deadly hand-to-hand combatant. He was able to at one point fight off both Ed and Alphonse singlehandedly and only retreated after taking multiple gunshot wounds and being surrounded by dozens of alchemists and soldiers.
Colonel Roy Mustang
With a lazy demeanor and womanizing attitude, Mustang is introduced as an unreliable yet surprisingly talented Alchemist and government official. Mustang is also the reason why Ed decided to attempt to become certified as a State Alchemist by promising him the ability and funds to seek out the Philosopher's Stone, which would only be possible through the military's resources.
Mustang is the strongest Fire Alchemist seen in the series. He was taught by Berthold Hawkeye, who perfected fire alchemy before his ing and ed his knowledge onto Mustang. By utilizing special gloves to aid his transmutation, he has exceptional command of his flames, with his right hand focusing on large-scale explosions and his left hand focusing on pinpoint firepower. One of his most notable achievements was the complete destruction of a homunculus single-handedly.
Wrath/ Fuhrer King Bradley
The Fuhrer of Amestris and leader of the entire Amestrian military, King Bradley is the most influential and important person in all of Amestris. He is later revealed to be a homunculus who hides his defining Ouroboros tattoo behind his eyepatch. While often appearing carefree, he is always on guard and ever vigilant.
As a homunculus, Bradley possesses extreme healing abilities that let him recover from fatal wounds instantly as well as an "all-seeing eye" that he can use to see through any material allowing him to fight in total darkness and low visibility. In addition, Bradley was trained from a young age in tactics, history, hand-to-hand combat, and swordsmanship, making him one of the most singularly dangerous characters in the series.
Father
Father is the result of the first homunculus known as "The Dwarf in the Flask" using the souls of the entire Kingdom of Xerces to grant him and his benefactor Van Hoenheim immortality. However, his lust for power led him to plan to use the much larger country of Amestris in a similar way to essentially become a god.
With the power and energy he obtained from absorbing hundreds of thousands of human souls, besides possessing immortality, he regenerates from normally fatal injuries rapidly, as well as is able to break all traditional rules of alchemy. He is also the creator of the homunculus which are offshoots of himself and only hold a fraction of the total power he wields.
Edward Elric
Edward Elric is the main character of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and works as a State Alchemist for the Amestrian military to research the Philosopher's Stone in his attempt to restore his and his brother's bodies.
On top of his own dedicated studying he did alongside his brother, Ed studied under the "house-wife" Izumi Curtis, who completed his Alchemic training as well as taught him his exceptional hand-to-hand combat skills. These skills, along with his highly imaginative mind and the ability to use alchemy without making a transmutation circle, allow him to quickly attack and dodge other opponents' attacks. While Ed has had many losses against these opponents, he's had just as many wins against unbelievably strong foes who could not normally be beaten. He is undoubtedly a difficult match for any enemy.