Remarkably talented in many fields, alex excels in such eclectic practices as portraiture, tracking, cross-country running and wood-chopping, taking the time after each of these extraordinary feats to remark that his skills have been "Passed down the armstrong line for generations." armstrong is also a highly formidable hand-to-hand combatant, able to fight on equal grounds with such highly skilled and dangerous fighters as the scarred man and the chimera roa. Befitting his large and well-defined physique, armstrong possesses tremendous strength and endurance bordering on superhuman, able to endure with only minor damage blunt force trauma that would render most people unconscious or crippled. His punches are able to easily plow through solid surfaces and his strength is able to nonchalantly move large and heavy objects out of the way. Despite his size, he has been noted to be deceptively fast and agile, able to dodge and maneuver against close-range attacks with surprising balance and efficiency. Armstrong's combat style resembles boxing using strong and swift punches to overwhelm an opponent and agile dodges and swift footwork to evade attacks.
Major alex armstrong utilizes a style of combat alchemy that has apparently been passed down the armstrong line for generations and mixes alchemical skill with physical prowess. With the aid of two metal gauntlets strapped to his fists (both marked with transmutation circles), armstrong transmutes objects mainly by punching them. It is possible that this method transfers the kinetic energy of his blows into the alchemical energy, enhancing the speed and force of his transmutations, since he mainly uses alchemy to rapidly produce large stone spikes, walls or other objects from the earth at a rate among the fastest in the series. Additionally, the armstrong style allows alex to double as a source of heavy artillery, transforming raw stone or brickwork into projectiles which are then launched with the force of his punch. With his alchemy being combined with hand to hand combat, it is notable that alex is the first of the few state alchemists to survive a direct fight with scar. Armstrong's gauntlets both are inscribed with encircled triangles and a trio of runes. Inside the triangle appears to be the hebrew word often associated with "God" (as described by edward elric in chapter 53). Additionally, there is a ring of inscribed text around the outermost circle on each gauntlet. While difficult to make out, the text on the right gauntlet (as shown in chapter 7) reads "Laufet, brüder, eure bahn, freudig, wie ein held zum siegen" while the left gauntlet (whose text is made legible at the end of chapter 58) reads "Froh, wie seine sonnen fliegen durch des himmels prächt’gen plan, laufet, brüder, eure bahn, freudig, wie ein held". In chapter 59, the text on the right gauntlet is shown to be identical to that of the left. It is unclear whether this is a continuity alteration or whether armstrong had the text altered in the years since the ishval civil war (since chapters 58-9 take place during the flashback of volume 15), however the latter seems likely, as in chapter 95 - when the gauntlets are once again shown clearly - depicts them with the shortened text.
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