Ran'ji > WoD + Oracle of Light + Scorn!?

[Nalien]

But story sense doesn't do the justice, because what did he do to achieve such strength in the first place?

Besides leading Eulmores army against Sin Eaters for decades? Besides training multiple generations of Minfilias against the Sin Eaters?

He has just as much combat experience as someone like Raubahn, if not far more given the nature of the threat Eulmore faced prior to Vauthry taking the throne. Even with an arm missing, Raubahn gives us a fairly good fight during the Grand Melee (and he completely stops us in our tracks at the start of Stormblood). So really, Ran'jits strength never really seemed questionable to me. Had Eulmore not given up, it seemed to me like he'd actually have been lauded as the Firsts last great hero...

My only complaint with Ran'jit was how his little Dragon familiar/fusion was not remotely touched upon... Dragons shouldn't even be on the First, so that's a big question looming over him already, but perhaps it isn't an actual Dragon, in which case OK... What is it then? Why can he fuse with it? It was perhaps the biggest thing that made him interesting, and I don't recall it ever being explained... I hope we perhaps get more regarding him in 5.x on the Eulmore side of the story, but it feels like it's a bit too late...

[Daralii]

Besides leading Eulmores army against Sin Eaters for decades? Besides training multiple generations of Minfilias against the Sin Eaters?

He has just as much combat experience as someone like Raubahn, if not far more given the nature of the threat Eulmore faced prior to Vauthry taking the throne. Even with an arm missing, Raubahn gives us a fairly good fight during the Grand Melee (and he completely stops us in our tracks at the start of Stormblood). So really, Ran'jits strength never really seemed questionable to me. Had Eulmore not given up, it seemed to me like he'd actually have been lauded as the Firsts last great hero...

My only complaint with Ran'jit was how his little Dragon familiar/fusion was not remotely touched upon... Dragons shouldn't even be on the First, so that's a big question looming over him already, but perhaps it isn't an actual Dragon, in which case OK... What is it then? Why can he fuse with it? It was perhaps the biggest thing that made him interesting, and I don't recall it ever being explained... I hope we perhaps get more regarding him in 5.x on the Eulmore side of the story, but it feels like it's a bit too late...

He refers to it as "Beast borne of mine own blood," which suggests it's some kind of hemomancy or something. I don't know if his black sclera and white irises are a side effect of however he got that power, or if he's been partially infused with Light or something.

[FrejyaAthenes]

I just find it funny that the only expansion to not do this is Heavensward, the one where we're supposed to be depowered and vulnerable.

[Edax]

Besides leading Eulmores army against Sin Eaters for decades? Besides training multiple generations of Minfilias against the Sin Eaters?

The problem with this line of logic is that the Eulmorean Army that has been fighting Sin Eaters for decades and thus should be stronger than Ran'ji. Instead none of the Eulmorean Army come close to Ran'ji, along with any in the Crystalium Army (also been fighting Sin Eaters for decades).

[Nalien]

The problem with this line of logic is that the Eulmorean Army that has been fighting Sin Eaters for decades and thus should be stronger than Ran'ji. Instead none of the Eulmorean Army come close to Ran'ji, along with any in the Crystalium Army (also been fighting Sin Eaters for decades).

I think there is a pretty huge difference between leading an army, and being a (frankly) entirely disposable foot soldier... Most who fight Sin Eaters die, we saw that plenty throughout the story. Those that continue to survive do so because they're stronger, and Ran'jit was pretty much at the peak of that little notion. Just because they've been fighting Sin Eaters for decades doesn't mean everyone in their army has been, the vast majority die and are replaced, grim as that might be. As far as I'm aware Ran'jit was the only character noted for serving as long as he had in all of Norvrandt... Seems he also had an oddly long lifetime as well, from what I can gather (since he trained plenty of Minfilias, although I guess they might have a high turn over rate), which only adds to his power level in a fantasy setting...

[Edax]

I think there is a pretty huge difference between leading an army, and being a (frankly) entirely disposable foot soldier... Most who fight Sin Eaters die, we saw that plenty throughout the story. Those that continue to survive do so because they're stronger, and Ran'jit was pretty much at the peak of that little notion. Just because they've been fighting Sin Eaters for decades doesn't mean everyone in their army has been, the vast majority die and are replaced, grim as that might be. As far as I'm aware Ran'jit was the only character noted for serving as long as he had in all of Norvrandt... Seems he also had an oddly long lifetime as well, from what I can gather (since he trained plenty of Minfilias, although I guess they might have a high turn over rate), which only adds to his power level in a fantasy setting...

I see no indications that the Eulmorean and Crystalium Armies have suffered 99.99% casualties over the years.

[Nalien]

I see no indications that the Eulmorean and Crystalium Armies have suffered 99.99% casualties over the years.

I suggest you go talk to Moren and have him retell you the story of the Oracles of Light, then. 99.99% is obvious hyperbole, but the story went to great lengths to highlight the constant loss of life and dire circumstances involved in fighting the Sin Eaters... That's partly why Eulmore became the place it was, people were sick of fighting a losing battle... Heck, if people aren't out right dying to Sin Eaters (and in a battle where your trump-card Oracle of Light fell, one can imagine many regular soldiers fell as well...), they're slowly being turned into Sin Eaters themselves... The Exarch even mentions that it came at great cost to their forces to even learn about the Lightwardens... At every stop possible, they tried to highlight how dire the situation was, then Ran'jit steps in as Eulmores General, old and obviously battleworn, not to mention he mentored numerous Minfilias, who all fell in battles he presumably took part in, prior to Eulmore ducking out of the conflict... That alone labels him as perhaps Norvrandts single most powerful mortal, I really don't get how people can think he wasn't hyped up...

[Iscah]

The problem with this line of logic is that the Eulmorean Army that has been fighting Sin Eaters for decades and thus should be stronger than Ran'ji. Instead none of the Eulmorean Army come close to Ran'ji, along with any in the Crystalium Army (also been fighting Sin Eaters for decades).

The "Eulmoran army that has been fighting sin eaters for decades" is not a single person who has been training for that long. There is no guarantee that any one person who has been in the army over that time is stronger than Ran'jit is.

I'm not sure how you can even go about comparing them.

[Edax]

The "Eulmoran army that has been fighting sin eaters for decades" is not a single person who has been training for that long. There is no guarantee that any one person who has been in the army over that time is stronger than Ran'jit is.

I'm not sure how you can even go about comparing them.

That also brings up a point, the Eulmoran army has been allied with the Sin Eaters for an entire generation, which means Ran'jit would have his combat experience eroded away for decades by peacetime.

[Nalien]

That also brings up a point, the Eulmoran army has been allied with the Sin Eaters for an entire generation, which means Ran'jit would have his combat experience eroded away for decades by peacetime.

He really didn't strike me as the kind of person to let his talents erode, personally...

Not to mention, there wasn't really a "peacetime". Between Eulmore and Sin Eaters, sure. All the other monsters in the world though? They kept a standing army despite having control over both Sin Eaters and their entire population, probably a reason for that and probably plenty of work to be done because of that.