🧙Gandalf vs. Witch-King

[Aldarion]

I believe that Tolkien specifically states that the Istari, Gandalf included, were close to or even equal in power to Sauron himself, but were forbidden from utilizing their full power for accomplishing their mission. (Unfinished Tales, I think, but I am not certain). If my memory is not playing stuff on me, then this means that Gandalf is definitely superior in power to the Witch King. Question is, would he be allowed to utilize that power, even in self-defence? Seeing how he killed a Balrog, I do not see why not; but the Witch King may have counted on that in their confrontation at the gate-house. And later Gandalf states that he "may have prevented" a lot of ill had he not been called away by Denethor's madness; this suggests that he, at least, was fully confident in his ability to defeat Witch King. And there is also the fact that, as Alcuin stated, Gandalf fended off the Nine at Weathertop.

 

[Miguel]

Gandalf is more powerful than the Witch-King.

 

[Olorgando]

Yep, that Gandalf-vs- Witch-king scene was one of those (depiction of Faramir, Frodo telling Sam to “go home” due to a cheap Gollum trick, the Ents being others) where I turned into a cross of X-Men’s Wolverine and a Tasmanian Devil against PJ. The utter, lowest, most pathetic trash that PJ concocted. As has been mentioned above, Gandalf the Grey held off all nine Nazgûl on Weathertop, and also took out the Balrog (a far more powerful being than the Witch-king). After returning as Gandalf the White, he almost casually strips Saruman of his power. Had he been allowed to (and even as the White, he probably still had some restraints on him) he probably would have shot down the flying Nazgûl before Minas Tirith in flames. But if push came to shove, he would have slam-dunked the W-k and his cronies, and broken the backboard in the process (however one imagines this to be done in a world long before the invention of basketball). And even in a one-on-one confrontation with Sauron, stripped of the One Ring, while Gandalf the White was in possession of the Ring of Fire – Sauron has a very bad record at these things – I would not necessarily bet on a Sauron victory (Gandalf the White with the One Ring would have made hamburger patties out of Sauron – unless his transformation to the White absolutely precluded his us of the One Ring. But as Gandalf himself knew, this would not have made things any better - just another Dark Lord).