Ranking the Black Fang from Strongest to Weakest

[Icelerate]

I've been inspired by Etrurian Emperor's thread where he ranks three characters each day based on how powerful they are story/lore wise as opposed to game play. 

Here I'll be ranking the Black Fang from it's strongest members to weakest. The characters will be taken at their peak within the story but if they were enhanced by an external force, I won't count that because that's not their power. Also, while stats are a purely gameplay thing, generally speaking, the more powerful a boss' stats are, the more powerful they are in the story as a means of gameplay-story integration. 

1. Nergal

Nuff said. This guy was the final villain and has the highest stat total compared to all the other members of the black fang. He's been mastering the dark arts for hundreds of years and taking quintessence to further boost his power. He's so powerful that even the legendary Athos doesn't compare. 

2. Limstella

She's the final morph you beat and the strongest of the morphs. She's so powerful that Nergal was impressed by how strong she is. 

3. Denning

One of the final bosses you face with a max level. 

4. Lloyd/Linus

These guys were hyped to be stronger than Jaffar, by the man himself. Jaffar himself is very powerful. Also, they ought to be stronger than their father due to them being in their prime and their father past it. Also, fighting one of them is the test that Athos uses to judge the strength of Eliwood/Hector which goes to show these two ought to be more powerful than the previous bosses the group has faced. 

5. Sonia

She's lower than Denning because Nergal didn't want to restore her with quintessence once she was gravely weakened by Brendan Reid despite him using up quintessence to create Denning. But she's incredibly powerful due to her killing the leader as well as being admired by Ursula to be "perfect".

6. Brendan Reid

Brendan may have lost the battle against his wife, but at least he managed to do a number on her despite being ill prepared for the betrayal by his very own wife. 

7. Jaffar

The dude has the moniker of Angel of Death and was hyped to be incredibly strong by Albert himself. Even together, Lyn, Eliwood and Hector stood no chances at beating him early on in their journey. The three lords were strong fighters even at the beginning of FE7 so that just goes to show how powerful this guy is. Taking on an army of Black Fang by himself for a while before being rescued is no small feat especially since he's also fighting Ursula and has to worry about Nino. 

8. Ursula

She's one of the four fangs and while she hasn't shown much in display of her power, that's still better hype than anyone below her. 

9. Legault

He's given a pretty badass moniker and is hyped to be second only to the four fangs. 

10. Uhai

He was fast and strong enough to capture Lyn, who is quite strong and fast herself. 

11. Jerme/Kenneth

These two may seem pretty strong gameplay wise but they were boosted by Nergal's power hence why you have to defeat them to destroy Nergal's barrier. 

12. Nino

She is inexperienced and the youngest even though she does have great potential. 

There might be more that I haven't listed but they weren't that important so I chose not to include them. 

Edited December 10, 2018 by Icelerate

[eclipse]

1. The lack of Teodor saddens me.  He even has a cool nickname!  Two of them!
2. When did we ever fight Denning?

Edited December 9, 2018 by eclipse

[Icelerate]

3 minutes ago, eclipse said:

1. The lack of Teodor saddens me.  He even has a cool nickname!  Two of them!
2. When did we ever fight Denning?

I didn't know who that is until googling. I wouldn't know who he is because I've never played chapter 19xx. 

In chapter 29E or chapter 31H. When Ostia castle gets attacked by the Black Fang. 

[eclipse]

Right.  I got him mixed up with That Other Guy We Never Fight (though I wish we did).

[X-Naut]

Is Denning truly a Black Fang? He was a last-minute creation fought after the Fang had been exterminated at the Shrine of Seals.

[Etrurian emperor]

Its always nice to see I've got a positive influence on people. 

As for Denning I actually don't think he's supposed to be very strong. He can only say ''Master Nergal awaits you on the dread isle' so its safe to assume Nergal only send him to Ostia to hand out an invitation rather than have him actually suceed. I don't think he's very strong because he doesn't need to be in order to say ''Master Nergal awaits you on the dread isle'' 

The strongest is obviously Nergal since he's the strongest being on Elibe. 

Second place goes to Limstella. She's Nergal's strongest creation and is said to be significantly more powerful than Sonia who is already quite strong. 

After these two freaks its likely that the Reed brothers are the strongest in all of Nergal's forces. They have the prestige of their dad but unlike their dad they are young men in their golden years, yet also more older and thus more experienced than the main lords. Them being stronger that Sonia also has a certain tragedy to it. They might have stopped her in a straight fight but they were powerless when it came to daddy's bedchamber. 

Killing their leader already makes Sonia stronger than most black fang members and she's a morph to boot.

Jaffar is hyped a lot and he doesn't disappoint. The three lords alone couldn't beat him according to Elbert and he handled himself nicely against a black fang army.

Brendan Reed might have been the strongest fighter at one point but he's an old man. Old age and Sonia's mind games probably kept him down to some degree. Still he gave Sonia a very nasty wound.

Ursula seems very much intended to come off as the junior member of the four fangs. She's more of a promoted servant than a powerhouse in her own right. 

Uhai: Likely one of the stronger members. I suspect his morals and disgruntlement with Sonia were the reasons he was kept below the four fangs and that him being so jaded made him easier to beat than he would otherwise has been. 

Legault is pretty strong for a thief but still just a thief. He's very skilled but not made for combat. 

Nino would rank quite a long way behind most generic black fang bosses or even mooks. She's just a young girl who's never been trained properly. In time that would change pretty significantly. 

[Acacia Sgt]

Hm, not incluiding Pascal here? I know he's technically no longer a member when you fight him, but I'd still count him, at least I'd do. In that case, I'd rank him high-ish, considering he used to be one of the Four Fangs.

Same for Jerme. I don't think he'd be on the lower end of the list. He was the Fang's top assassin until Jaffar replaced him. Considering Jaffar is one of the Four Fangs, Jerme probably also was one then. Even if he's being empowered by Nergal when fought, that wouldn't change the fact that before Nergal's meddling in the Black Fang, Jerme was still their top assassin and likely a Four Fang. I doubt his ability faltered just for being demoted.

Edited December 10, 2018 by Acacia Sgt

[Fire Emblem Fan]

1. Nergal. I don't think this needs explaining.

2. Limstella. The most powerful of the morphs, and for good reason. Even the strongest Black Fang members would have the hardest of hard times actually beating Limstella.

3. Lloyd. Both Lloyd and Linus are incredibly powerful, and they're both shown to be forces to reckon with. I think Lloyd's cooler head puts him a slight step above Linus, however.

4. Linus. Strong, as stated, but not quite as even-tempered or strategic as Lloyd.

5. Jaffar. I think Jaffar would beat almost anyone else in the Black Fang in a fight. He's so strong that even the three main protagonists of the game would likely be unable to beat him without their combined strength. He shows his fighting prowess when he fends off Ursula and the entire Black Fang while protecting Nino, and when you go to face Sonia it's a very safe assumption to think he's an immense help there.

6. Sonia. She's powerful, but she's a bit high-and-mighty on herself, and it's shown that maybe she's a slight step below some of the others. Arrogance is really her downfall.

7. Brendan Reid. He's the leader of the Black Fang and therefore pretty powerful, and if he was younger he'd probably be ranked higher. But as it stands, he's a bit old, and apparently bewitched by pretty ladies fairly easily.

8. Ursula. She's shown to be pretty powerful, but of the Four Fangs, she's also easily the weakest. She's also shown to have what could be assumed is fear of the likes of Sonia and Limstella.

9. Legault. He's said to be second to only the Four Fangs, and I'd say that's true. Aside from those four, only Reid, the morphs, and Nergal would be more powerful.

10. Denning. He's apparently powerful, but you don't really ever see him do much of anything. So he's just kinda...there.

11. Uhai. Quiet, accurate, strong. That's it.

12./13. Jerme/Kenneth. Yeah these dudes are pushovers.

14. Nino. She's like, what? Thirteen years old? Obviously she's not very skilled yet.

Edited December 10, 2018 by Fire Emblem Fan

[Shakespeare1142]

16 hours ago, Icelerate said:

 

1. Nergal

Nuff said. This guy was the final villain and has the highest stat total compared to all the other members of the black fang. He's been mastering the dark arts for hundreds of years and taking quintessence to further boost his power. He's so powerful that even the legendary Athos doesn't compare. 

 

 

Both stats wise as well as economically, Nergal is on par with some of the most powerful figures in the game,  he can pose a threat to a fully trained team of units on his own for fucks sake

[Dismissed]

16 hours ago, eclipse said:

Right.  I got him mixed up with That Other Guy We Never Fight (though I wish we did).

Ephidel, yeah. He got barbecued like Sigurd, Flora, and Rinea. But this time, it was through the power of dragons.

Good thing Elibian Nights is a thing.

[Shoblongoo]

...pretty sure Sonia is supposed to be canonically stronger than any of the Four Fangs.

Ursula idolized power and "perfection."

She considered Lloyd, Linus, and Jaffar her peers.

She considered Sonia the paragon of what she aspired to become. 

[Etrurian emperor]

8 minutes ago, Shoblongoo said:

...pretty sure Sonia is supposed to be canonically stronger than any of the Four Fangs.

Ursula idolized power and "perfection."

She considered Lloyd, Linus, and Jaffar her peers.

She considered Sonia the paragon of what she aspired to become. 

But we could also consider that Ursula admires Sonia so much that she's not an entirely good judge of character. Isn't it a common theory that Ursula is thinking with her pants when it comes to Sonia?

[Shoblongoo]

1 minute ago, Etrurian emperor said:

But we could also consider that Ursula admires Sonia so much that she's not an entirely good judge of character. Isn't it a common theory that Ursula is thinking with her pants when it comes to Sonia?

Possibly. 

I always read into Linus and Lloyd's reluctance to confront her over bewitching their father a tacit admission on their part that they believed she could flat-out murder them, if it came to blows.  

[Paper Jam]

12./13. Jerme/Kenneth. Yeah these dudes are pushovers.

I don't think the guy who was "top dog until that cretin Jaffar showed up" would be a pushover.

[Fire Emblem Fan]

9 hours ago, Paper Jam said:

 

I don't think the guy who was "top dog until that cretin Jaffar showed up" would be a pushover.

Compared to everyone on the list sans Nino, they are.

[Acacia Sgt]

2 hours ago, Fire Emblem Fan said:

Compared to everyone on the list sans Nino, they are.

In story or gameplay? Because for Jerme in the former he'd have to be stronger than at least Uhai and Legault.

With Kenneth it's talk about right.

[Fire Emblem Fan]

10 hours ago, Acacia Sgt said:

In story or gameplay? Because for Jerme in the former he'd have to be stronger than at least Uhai and Legault.

With Kenneth it's talk about right.

Story. I disagree, Legault is specifically stated to be second to ONLY the Four Fangs; the obvious exceptions being Brendan Reed himself and the two main morphs. As for Uhai, we see him accomplish more in the story than either Jerme or Kenneth; we don't see those two really do anything but whine.

[Acacia Sgt]

1 minute ago, Fire Emblem Fan said:

Story. I disagree, Legault is specifically stated to be second to ONLY the Four Fangs; the obvious exceptions being Brendan Reed himself and the two main morphs. As for Uhai, we see him accomplish more in the story than either Jerme or Kenneth; we don't see those two really do anything but whine.

Exactly. If Jaffar replaced Jerme as their top assassin, and Jaffar was made a Four Fang, then wouldn't that mean Jerme was a Four Fang himself? I doubt that he was their top assassin but not a Four Fang himself. So that means he'd be above Legault, and certainly above Uhai by extension.

What we see is not always what it is. We also never see Pascal do much, but it's outright stated to us he was a former Four Fang.

[Fire Emblem Fan]

2 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Exactly. If Jaffar replaced Jerme as their top assassin, and Jaffar was made a Four Fang, then wouldn't that mean Jerme was a Four Fang himself? I doubt that he was their top assassin but not a Four Fang himself. So that means he'd be above Legault, and certainly above Uhai by extension.

What we see is not always what it is. We also never see Pascal do much, but it's outright stated to us he was a former Four Fang.

You're not getting it. Legault is said to be second to the CURRENT Four Fangs: Lloyd, Linus, Ursula, Jaffar.

[Acacia Sgt]

1 minute ago, Fire Emblem Fan said:

You're not getting it. Legault is said to be second to the CURRENT Four Fangs: Lloyd, Linus, Ursula, Jaffar.

Do they specifically say "Current"? I checked the script and couldn't find it. Also, consider this, if it was only to the current fangs, it doesn't change the fact Jerme would still be better than him as the Fang's former Top Assassin. Also, Legault would've had to be a Four Fang himself then, but it's never stated he used to be one. So that means people like Jerme and PAscal were still above him.

[Fire Emblem Fan]

It's obviously current because every conversation about the Four Fangs is specifically about the current ones, unless it's Jerme or Kenneth whining about it. To say "well it doesn't specifically saaaaaay current" even though it obviously is would be like saying "well no one ever specifically said Lyn's hair is green so it isn't!"

And no, not necessarily; one doesn't HAVE to be a Four Fang. It's not a requirement.

Legault > Jerme

[Acacia Sgt]

16 minutes ago, Fire Emblem Fan said:

It's obviously current because every conversation about the Four Fangs is specifically about the current ones, unless it's Jerme or Kenneth whining about it. To say "well it doesn't specifically saaaaaay current" even though it obviously is would be like saying "well no one ever specifically said Lyn's hair is green so it isn't!"

And no, not necessarily; one doesn't HAVE to be a Four Fang. It's not a requirement.

Legault > Jerme

Not quite. Lyn's hair has visual cues of it's color. Unless it's like Micaiah's silver hair, if there was something to say about her hair, it would've been done, but the color is never in dout since it's seen.

For a guild of assassins, how could being the top assassin not earn you a spot in the Four Fangs? Even if not, the position itself shouldn't be understimated. If Legault was really better than Jerme, then why is there no indication of that? He should've been the Top Assassin before Jaffar's arrival, not Jerme. He should've been a former Four Fang. Legault being second best to the current four fangs means that he should've been better than at least one former Four Fang, as Jaffar wouldn't have been in the picture yet, meaning he would've had to held a spot there before Nergal's arrival. Yet Legault was never demoted of anything. He never speaks of not accepting the position, or being overlooked.

Edited December 13, 2018 by Acacia Sgt

[Interdimensional Observer]

Looks to me like Uhai is ranked a little too lowly, he should be at least above Legault. Legault is cunning, but he admits all he ever was was a cleaner- killing off traitors. Uhai it seems to me, according to his class, was in terms of raw power much stronger. Otherwise I agree with everything else.

I get the impression without direct evidence that Ursula was a Sonia appointee, owing to her great loyalty to her. Since Jaffar is also a clear Nergal addition to the Four Fangs, Ursula could be. This doesn't mean much when it comes to power though.

[Eltosian Kadath]

What about Ephidel? that guy is Nergal's right hand man, is seen acting as a representative of the Black Fang when interacting with Lord Helman of Santaruz, and Darin of Laus, and had to be taken out by a fire dragon. He at least deserves an entry...

[Paper Jam]

We never see Ephidel do any actual fighting, so we don't know how strong he actually was. Not strong enough to survive against a dragon, of course, but there are plenty of people who aren't.

We also never see Ephidel together with any of the other Black Fang except Jaffar, although their interactions seem to be pretty telling: Ephidel tended to give orders to Jaffar, suggesting that he might have outranked Jaffar.

Much like Sonia did, come to think of it. I'd guess that Ephidel was probably about equal in power to Sonia. (Or maybe a bit less, since going strictly by the stats, Sonia would have survived an attack by the Dragon.)

Edited December 23, 2018 by Paper Jam