Sorry I misread I thought you were saying Amaterasu were too weak to do anything. I know we're going to disagree on the concept of the 8 year difference though so if I will mention which arcs I am talking about.
Lol. Yeah, we'll leave this one to rest because I am the only fanatic who seems to focus on that aspect a lot.
Yes this where Ajeel/Hades would differ. I can't see Hades being able to put current team Natsu on the run. This to me is the main difference between a Spriggan and someone like Mard/Hades - the abilities are on another level. (Team Natsu obviously would have beaten Ajeel, they were actually held back by plot tbh).
This however does not discount Hades as someone who just gets steam rolled. On Tenrou against team Natsu he was playing around and still wiped the floor with them. Laxus did better but he conceded after a short bout. Hades completely outclassed Makarov.
I agree, that together, Team Natsu would be able to beat Ajeel, but then every member has increased in power by quite a margin so I would take that into consideration as well. As for Hades, he probably won't be defeated easily with his heart but without it, I can see a Easy-Medium Difficulty fight.
I think it's fair to put Hades at Heavenly Kings level. A step down from Spriggan and a step up from Makarov. Gildarts could definitely fight against Hades and maybe even dominate for a time, but Hades would likely win.
Yeah, I would definitely put Hades up there out of the 4 Heavenly Kings. The minimum he could be placed would be close to Warrod. The maximum is kind of difficult but I would put him near Wolfheim or a little below Hyberion. I can see Gildarts defeating Hades but that is just me. Most people would be like you and argue that Hades would win.
Well I don't yet put Erza above or equal to Hades personally. I don't know if you had a typo with the underlined section but Tenrou LFD would trounce Tenrou Erza, and even beat current Erza.
I actually think Tenrou Erza was not too far from Tenrou LFD Natsu. Then in Tartaros, Erza was able to pull ahead of Natsu by just a little bit. Now in the current arc, Natsu has surpassed Erza.
In my opinion though... Current Erza > Tenrou LFD Natsu [Easy-Medium Difficulty]
I agree and disagree about the Heart. I agree because it certainly amplifies Hades power. But in the context of magic the Heart is an invention of Hades own knowledge. People learn and invent spells, Hades did this and it allowed him reach a level that was likely beyond his capabilities without it. It is basically a piece of equipment to him like Erza's armours and weapons.
We'll likely never know how he made his Heart, it's likely he had to sequester some of himself or his power into it (FH has a sarcophagus so I expect DH to have some of Hades in it). The Heart is actually still relevant though given Precht's involvement with Fairy Heart. And Acno just needed a roar, no axe lol.
Okay, I can see your point about him putting his MP into the heart which makes it part of his own creation; however, as we can see, it can be destroyed quite easily. Not to mention, the time it takes to construct it would be very long. So if Ajeel were to face Hades and destroyed the heart almost immediately after the fight starts, I can see Hades losing the edge significantly from that point on. Basically, it wouldn't make that much of a difference in my opinion except that he can delay the fight a little longer.
I still think it was OP though... Which could be why we haven't seen something similar to it in that regard. It is kind of like how the Tenrou Tree is no longer referenced nor mentioned. This is kind of a stretch but I personally believe Tenrou Arc was quite skewed because it seemed like Hiro Mashima was planning to end Fairy Tail right there but then changed his mind and continued it.
I don't think anyone is saying the Spriggan are a joke, it's widely acknowledged by most on here they would defeat anyone not a dragon pre-skip.
They might be underrated by some, overrated by others. It really depends what plot you're talking about. Personally what I believe is happening is the hype is becoming more refined with feats. When Brandish shrunk that island and scared Natsu/Gray with her MP the featless hype was huge. Then Ajeel came along to confirm the Spriggan were more powerful than Makarov but we seen team Natsu be able to stop his attacks when allowed to, and also that Laxus might be their level. In Ajeel's second fight the sense of their invincibility against someone of Erza's level was erased, and she just won with help. So in this sense all that is happening is the actual level of the Spriggans is being gauged, compared to the initial hype which was higher.
Imo Spriggan's get underrated when people say Kagura could defeat one herself, or Cobra+Midnight can take one. If it were that easy this arc would be a joke.
Fair enough. I think Brandish has severely been downgraded in portrayal though. As for Ajeel, I would call his fight with Erza a stalemate. He obviously didn't win but I don't think Erza could have defeated him in that fight either. The other Spriggans are hyped to be strong but we've yet to see feats from them. Many say that Ajeel is the weakest Spriggan but I beg to differ. I can see him being a major threat if he were to go all out and not fool around like he did in his fight with Erza.
In my eyes, there may only be one Spriggan that is a fodder and can get one-shotted pretty easily. Of course it is pure speculation but I see Jacob Lessio as All or Nothing. I don't know why but ever since he made an appearance, I doubted his capabilities. His title of being an assassin depicts him as being extremely strong in offense but very weak in durability; hence, my prediction.
