Vampires, werewolves, witches, and hybrids all have different levels of strength in The Vampire Diaries. But power is useless without the skills to utilize it, and several of the characters run into this problem. Even a human can beat a vampire with the right expertise and training.
Almost everyone in the main cast has found themselves at a standoff with one another, and the outcome has proven to be surprising on more than one occasion. While the age and species of the characters play into their fighting abilities, there are plenty of other factors that cause them to come out on top.
Matt Donavan
Matt Donavan is the most useless out of the main characters. He had no storyline after the first few seasons, and he was always getting kidnapped and being used as a bartering chip. He went on to become a police officer to protect the people of Mystic Falls, but he wasn't very good at it.
Ever since wearing the Gilbert ring, Matt has died a countless number of times. Although he trains to fight vampires, his arrogance is his biggest downfall, as he will charge into battle with no chance against his enemies.
Elena Gilbert
Elena's always been a fighter, but she's no match for the vampires who seek her out every season. She was trained by Alaric and can think her way out of dangerous situations, but her abilities can't even begin to compare to the other characters.
After becoming a vampire, her supernatural strength allowed her to better defend herself. Elena has gotten the upper hand a few times, but there's nothing about her fighting abilities that make her stand out.
Alaric Saltzman
Alaric talks a big game, but he's not the most talented vampire slayer in the show. Damon and Stefan have both gotten the upper hand on him on more than one occasion, and while it's understandable given that he's human, a vampire hunter should be more prepared to face off against the supernatural.
Alaric has killed plenty of vampires throughout the series, but he also died so many times he developed an evil alter ego. If it weren't for his Gilbert ring, he would have been dead in the first season.
Tyler Lockwood
Tyler's bad temper makes him reckless and easy to rile up. While a large part of that was due to the werewolf gene, Tyler was a bully long before the curse was triggered. It doesn't take a full moon for him to get into a fight, and Tyler packs his punches with blind range rather than precision.
After becoming a hybrid, he began to hone in on his skills hoping to overpower Klaus. He traveled to New Orleans to enact his revenge by killing Klaus's unborn child, but Klaus overpowered him and compelled him to leave.
Stefan Salvatore
Stefan's fighting abilities depend on his diet. He'd be much stronger if he drank human blood, but Stefan tries to stick to animals to prevent himself from becoming the ripper. Without human blood, Stefan is weak, vulnerable, and can't hold his own in a fight.
However, the "Ripper of Monterrey" is a different story. When Stefan gives in to his urges, there's no limit to his madness. The Original hybrid even wanted Stefan as his sidekick due to how unhinged he becomes.
Damon Salvatore
Damon doesn't hesitate to go in for the kill. While the other characters' morals cause them to hold back, whenever Damon sees a threat, he immediately eliminates it.
His fighting abilities are pretty average, and he and Stefan are actually young compare to the other vampires who have come to Mystic Falls. Damon doesn't always think things through, but sometimes his impulsiveness works in his favor. It may not win him any brownie points with Stefan or Elena, but Damon won't go easy on his opponents.
Caroline Forbes
Caroline may be a young vampire, but she's a strong one. She doesn't give up, and because she fights with purpose, she has an advantage over her enemies. Damon was able to take advantage of Caroline when she was human, but as a vampire, the tables turned.
She's overpowered Damon despite his age, and was even able The Originals. In season 1, Caroline was once seen as the weakest of the main cast. After becoming a vampire, she proved everyone wrong and became a force to be reckoned with.
Jeremy Gilbert
Like Matt, Jeremy was weak and used as a bartering chip to get Elena and her friends to fall into line. The Gilbert ring saved his life countless times, and while he wanted to learn self-defense, it required years of training.
But once Jeremy became one of "The Five," he developed superhuman strength and heightened senses. His body was physically altered to kill vampires, and that, on top of being trained by vampires and vampire hunters alike, made him more powerful than several of the other characters.
Katherine Pierce
Even if she didn't have five hundred years' worth of strength, Katherine is the most intelligent character in the cast. She always stays one step ahead of her enemies, and her diabolical plans are impossible to figure out. Katherine is an incredible annoyance to the Salvatores as they consistently end up falling into one of her carefully laid traps.
She managed to outrun the oldest vampire in the history of time and knows how to keep herself alive, no matter what it costs her. Katherine is prepared for anything, and she even built up a tolerance to vervain by drinking it every day.
Klaus Mikaelson
Given that Klaus Mikaelson is the Original hybrid and over a thousand years old, he's the most powerful creature of the species. The stories about Klaus were so outlandish and chilling, that many people believed his very existence was a myth.
The Salvatores were so helpless to stop Elena's death by his hand, that they focused on finding a way to bring her back to life after he inevitably kills her. Mikael also taught the Mikaelson's how to fight, so Klaus had carefully honed skills along with his supernatural abilities.