The defeat to Tempesta was for plot, we never saw Freed use Dark Ecriture at all during that fight, he just stood there and took it and that's because Mashima didn't want him to downplay the 9 demon gates (Tempesta was the first opponent fairy tail faced).
I'm curious to know why you consider Freed's attack equal to Erza's and why you placed Mirajane ahead of Mystogan and Erza?
I agree that Freed is one step ahead of the rest here, but why Erza above Mystogan, when his Three Layered Magic Circle: Mirror Water seems to be stronger than Erza's defense? Also, why Mirajane = Laxus in terms of defense?
I disagree with this one. Erza is at least equal to Laxus in terms of stamina, if not higher. We have seem more Erza fights to support this than we have feats from Laxus, although I do not necessarily disagree that he is a stamina monster as well. Not sure about Freed being equal to Mystogan, though.
I'd say Mystogan and Erza are close in intelligence; Erza was able to counter Midnight's magic, when Jellal could not. They are at least equal, honestly. Why is Laxus again inferior to Mirajane in terms of intelligence?
I disagree with this. Mystogan is above Freed and Mirajane in speed, and possibly even Erza.
What do you mean by spell diversity? The number of spells they have mastered? If so, Erza and Laxus are again above Mirajane. If you consider all Mirajane's blasts, they all derive from her Satan Soul power. If we go by these standards, Erza has far more armors that grant her more versatility.
Mystogan should be second and Erza third. I agree with the rest.
Thanks to Dark Écriture: Pain and Absolute Shadow.
Yeah you could be right that Mystogan's defense > Erza's defense. But it doesn't really matter, it was more to proof that Freed's defense is above all of them.
Erza has PoF. I was excluding PoF in this.
Jellal did counter Midnight's illusion.
Why?
All the spells Mira used in Satan Soul are different.
Which spell from Erza is high in AoE?
That doesn't make him equal to Erza in terms of attack.
Fair enough.
What does that have to do with anything? It still is a feat, whether it is labeled as PoF or not. You are being biased, if you choose to exclude feats from a character. Erza >= to Laxus' stamina.
Did he?
He was able to match Laxus and Jura, so that alone puts him above Freed and Mirajane.
They all derive from her Satan Soul. I don't see how that's different from Laxus' lightning variation spells or Erza's armors.
Blumenblatt, Photon Slicer and Fairy Burst, for example.
I agree Natsu has his own problems but if we're talking about power, there is just no way that Natsu would lose here. I mean if anyone were to become S-Class right now, he would be a very good candidate.
I disagree. Like I mentioned before, the term "hax" magic I think is used a little loosely. I mean, seriously, if getting hit at point blank is hax magic, than 90% of all magic are hax.
Not even... Freed is no where near Mirajane's Level. In base form maybe, but the moment Mirajane used her Takeover Form that was supposedly forbidden by Makarov due to its uncontrollable strength, she easily overpowered him. Even Freed was surprised and knew he lost. He kept on fighting only because of his will and promise to Laxus.
Sure, a spell that takes a lot of time and preparation. Something that you don't have in battle. If we were to let any wizard charge up their power, the attack would obviously be stronger and more deadly. Let's face it. Freed isn't winning against anyone that is high tier.
No. If we were to compare Freed with any S-Class Mage I would put him a tier below all of them. Erza/Mystogan/Mirajane are easily close to Laxus' power or higher. They were the only ones who even stood a chance to face Laxus in the Battle of Fairy Tail Arc, someone who Freed cannot beat. If I were to rank them, Freed wouldn't even be considered to be on the list. I'd rather use Natsu and Gray.
Okay, that's fine. If you truly believe so, then that is your belief. But the reason why I got "wound up" on the idea of Kagura vs. Freed is because fans are in denial and purposely skewing the truth.
The fact that the manga has not portrayed that means it is inconclusive. But because there is no indication of Freed being S-Class, it isn't far-fetched to say that he is not S-Class Level. You can call my comments "desperate excuses" but I am not biased nor do I overhype a character, let alone my favorite character. Torturing doesn't mean anything unless you tell me Kyōka is stronger than Mard Geer in sheer power. No.
Natsu's power level is indeed S-Class level. But the problem is, he has zero intelligence. And that's exactly why he shouldn't become a S-Class mage. I'd say the next S-Class should be Gray or Freed.
I can agree with you at some point. Someone as Erza (PoF) and Laxus (high stamina) could probably take Dark Écriture: Pain. But Freed's magic is hax thanks to Dark Écriture: Death. I don't think someone who is stronger than Elfman could take that lol.I disagree. Like I mentioned before, the term "hax" magic I think is used a little loosely. I mean, seriously, if getting hit at point blank is hax magic, than 90% of all magic are hax.
If we're going by Elman who is arguably slow and weak, then yes, that magic is strong. But I can almost guarantee you that it wouldn't work against an S-Class Mage which I think Kagura would deserve the title more than Freed?
Kyôka is stronger than Freed, that's a fact. I said that they both used torture magic but that Freed has more spells. Freed didn't had the chance to do something against Tempesta. If he would've gone all out like his fight against Mira or Rustyrose it would be different.
I know Mirajane is above Freed, but even though their fight was small they fought on par for a while. All by all, Satan Soul still surpasses Absolute Shadow, but Freed has more spells.
I forgot about Ultear lol. Yeah she is above Rustyrose and Azuma. But Zancrow isn't stronger than Rustyrose. Rustyrose's magic is capable of a lot and his Tower of Dingir surpasses any spell from Zancrow. If I'd rank the Seven Kin I'd say:
True.
Only based on the fact he can't use Jutsu Shiki in a fight? He still has Dark Écriture.
I won't rank Erza a lot above Freed. Freed surpasses her in defense, intelligence, spell diversity and AoE.
His attack his high thanks to Absolute Shadow and Dark Écriture: Pain.
Thank you sir.
I can somewhat agree here. I will definitely say that you are right when you say Natsu has high attack power and low intelligence. To me, an S-Class wizard needs both but if one doesn't meet the strength requirement first, then I don't think they are S-Class level regardless of their intelligence. I mean by that logic, Levy should already be one. But the reason why I think Natsu can be S-Class is because even though he does have low intelligence, we know that Laxus is similar in a way. His raw power just compensates for his lack in thinking straight.
Okay. I respect your opinion but in my eyes, anyone who is a high tier mage would be able to tank the spell. Assuming they have low durability though, I still think a decent wizard should be able to dodge it. I can see Freed being somewhat strong for a mid tier mage but anyone high tier like Kagura should destroy him.
Fair enough. I acknowledge that Freed did have to protect Yajima in that battle but Bickslow and Evergreen could have done that since it wasn't just him alone. To a certain extent, losing a 3 on 1 battle means you aren't quite at the level of your opponent despite having to protect someone. If it were a case like Simon protecting Erza against Jellal in the Tower of Heaven Arc, I would understand that because he was the only one there who could save Erza right then and there. But in this case, we have 3 decent wizards protecting only one person and I still believe that if Freed were truly that strong he would either be able to block Tempesta's attacks or tank it.
Okay, I give that to you.
Hmm... I happen to think a little differently. I never was a fan of Azuma especially with the plot of the Tenrou Tree being uprooted as it powered FT because by that logic, Acnologia can just destroy it, causing FT to be doomed. But for the sake of discussion, my list would be as follows:
Even without Jutsu Shiki and just Dark Ècriture, I find it hard to believe that he can beat a high tier wizard. Mid tier? Sure. But not high tier. This could be because I tend to be strict and refuse to put many characters as high tier unless they have shown to be at that level or deserved it. But to quickly explain my ranking, I would place Freed around Orga's or Rufus' level. Just a little below Sting and Rogue, individually.
I honestly can't agree. I mean, again, you have your opinion and I have mine but I would place Freed above Erza in intelligence by just a little bit and versatility by a decent amount.
The only problem I have with this is that those attacks or spells listed were all quite underwhelming in feats with the exception of Jutsu Shiki which I would rate as a strong spell. The only downside is that it's casting time and preparation is a little long. Don't get me wrong, Freed has the hype as seen in the Battle of Fairy Tail Arc, but he just doesn't have the feats to back it up.
No, you're not fanboying, but I'm a fan too though. I agree with what you said.
So it is okay to say that Natsu has low intelligence in general but one cannot say Laxus is the same as well? What has Laxus done to prove that he is smarter than Natsu, who you claim to have low intelligence? Everyone has a downside in their abilities. It is not an insult to say someone doesn't meet the average level for attack, defense, speed, intelligence, versatility, etc. Especially when it is the truth. Besides, not a single character is perfect. Even Acnologia has some flaws as he will eventually be defeated.
I disagree. If attaining S-Class position is so easy, there should be many of them by now. We know that in order to be S-Class, it is expected that you would have power comparable to that of a current or former S-Class as seen by the S-Class Promotion Trial in X784. With this in mind, I can see someone like Gray, Natsu, and Kagura being S-Class level because they could potentially defeat someone like Erza, Mirajane, or Laxus. Freed, on the other hand, is no match for any of them. Assuming that he doesn't battle any of the S-Class wizards, he would still have to somehow prove his strength.
You don't necessarily have to beat an S-Class mage though. Natsu was passed because Gildarts thought he was passable. Levy lucked out by not having to fight anyone. Cana and Freed fought each other as opposed to any S-Class Mage. Same with Gray. I just don't think S-Class is that big of a deal if characters are already fighting at the Wizard Saint level.So it is okay to say that Natsu has low intelligence in general but one cannot say Laxus is the same as well? What has Laxus done to prove that he is smarter than Natsu, who you claim to have low intelligence? Everyone has a downside in their abilities. It is not an insult to say someone doesn't meet the average level for attack, defense, speed, intelligence, versatility, etc. Especially when it is the truth. Besides, not a single character is perfect. Even Acnologia has some flaws as he will eventually be defeated.
For your information, I have enough evidence to say Laxus wasn't very bright in the first place. I'm pretty sure others will have more reasons as I can't remember all of them from the top of my head, but here are a few. His solution to making Fairy Tail stronger by going to war with each other was not smart whatsoever. He even ended up admitting his mistakes which led to him being banned from the guild. Also, he attempted to use Fairy Law without even understanding why it didn't work in the first place. Hiro Mashima has already portrayed Laxus as an arrogant and stubborn character who knows no limits since he is always in denial even when he clearly cannot win in certain situations. For instance, Laxus always jumps to extreme measures without taking into account the after effects and consequences.
Even Makarov acknowledges this. So here is my point: What is wrong about saying that a character is not thinking straight? I never said he was mentally unstable or something...
I disagree. If attaining S-Class position is so easy, there should be many of them by now. We know that in order to be S-Class, it is expected that you would have power comparable to that of a current or former S-Class as seen by the S-Class Promotion Trial in X784. With this in mind, I can see someone like Gray, Natsu, and Kagura being S-Class level because they could potentially defeat someone like Erza, Mirajane, or Laxus. Freed, on the other hand, is no match for any of them. Assuming that he doesn't battle any of the S-Class wizards, he would still have to somehow prove his strength.
Some may argue that you don't have to necessarily fight S-Class mages every year as the trials change, but know that the difficulty is the same. Not only does Gildarts mention it but so does other guild members who have witnessed it.
So like I said, the chance of Freed passing something like this especially with other strong competitors is very low despite the differences in trials every year.
S-Class Promotion Trials: http://fairytail.wikia.com/wiki/S-Class_Mage_Promotion_Trial
Judging from the past trials, we can tell that it is not that easy. As far as we know, there were no winners in the years X779 or X783. To put into perspective, Makarov became Guild Master in X736. The first time that we knew of someone who was labeled as S-Class was Laxus in X778. That is a period of 42 years in which we haven't seen any new S-Class members besides Gildarts. It just goes to show how hard it is and the chances that there were no successful candidates. I have a feeling we're taking the S-Class level too lightly but in the end, you guys have your opinions.