Today Ziggy wanted to talk about new head canons(or it was new when I stared picking away at this article now it's been a few months yolo). It's related to several "new" pieces of lore actually. Time to revist it and draw autistic amounts of detail to something you all probably noticed and glanced over as not a big deal!
Ziggy's not crazy, Ziggy swears!
...Wait only the voices in Ziggy's head read these.... right?
"....Sometimes."
orz
We're going to start off being autistic about power levels before we get into the other topics. If you don't want to read excessive autism about minutia.... Why did you even click on the link? But anyway, there are two (or maybe even three) topics today. The first is an indepth look at the Power Level: Gazef. The second does require we dwell on hyper specific details. Unfortunately. Then we'll get to the bonus section that is a more broad conclusion.
Autism-man away! /o/
====
Autism-man here.
Thesis: Kuervo's (or however you want to romanize his name Ziggy prefers Kulervo for such symbolism such wow) power level is around Adamantite and another that is less distinct but is typically the peak of humanity.
DECIDE THE DESTINY
For those who haven't read it, Maruyama stole one of Ziggy's totally original ideas only someone like me could have ever come up to address the unprecedented problem of having too many goddamn charactres. Ziggy's not salty.
NOT AT ALL!
Gefun Gefun.
Here's an excerpt of what is relevant for the discussion today.
“Too many of the Empire’s warriors end up going to the gladiatorial arenas and such. Speaking of strong folks… A while ago, I saw Palantynen in the Imperial Capital. It seems as though he had improved even more through some torturous training. It felt as though he was a monster that we could no longer win against no matter what we do.”
“Kullervo Palantynen huh? I haven’t seen him in the arena yet.” Nimble tilted his head, “he’s strong. From what I’ve heard. Is he as strong as our nation’s trump card?”
A shocked expression flashed across Baziwood’s face before he realized what Nimble meant by “trump card”, at which point he laughed.
“How would that fight go. With my expertise, it’s hard to tell exactly which one of them is stronger… Well, I guess you should be correct more or less.”
“That’s amazing!”
They had loaned a massive undead army from the terrifying nation that was the Sorcerous Kingdom of Ainz Ooal Gown. If this man could hold his own against even one member of that army, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he was at the peak of human strength.....
“Wait, if Palantynen is this strong, then how strong were his predecessors? The magic item hoarder aside, wasn’t that transvestite a noble? Is even the nobility not answering our calls?”
“By ‘transvestite’ you meant the third son of Viscount Zesch? I think he should still be within the Empire...”
They had no more information to work off of.
Not only was Nimble’s intelligence network within the nobility limited, but even the Empire’s espionage department could not get their hands on more information either.
The espionage department did not investigate in detail the whereabouts of the few powerful individuals within the Empire. This was because, in the past, the Empire did not have the capabilities to deal with him should they have offended him by doing such and suffered retaliation. His strength was nothing to scoff at, able to hold his ground even against the combined strength of the Four Imperial Knights. Ziggy TL:
「しかし、パランタイネンがあれだけ強いんだ。前の奴らはどれぐらい強くなっているんだ？ マジックアイテム狂は別としても、あのオカマは元々は貴族だろ？ 貴族つながりで話とか聞かないのか？」
「オカマというのはゼシュー子爵家の三男の彼のことですね？ 帝国内にはいると思うんですが……」
"However the fact is Parantein is that strong. How strong can those guys become? Other than Magic Item collectors, wasn't that Okama originally a noble? You haven't heard of any related talk from the nobles. "
====
So first. Ahoy hoy. One thing about this Prologue to miscellaneous people is how it answered a question Ziggy had a few years ago on a certain twitter post. And that is why there was a caveat on a certain statement that probably didn't even come to mind when reading this....: (unless you're as autisitc as me!)
===
Remedios: Buser: Kelart: Rotting Wolf Kurevo (in the past [in his youth?]): Vestia Gazef’s teacher: Tira [Tia and Tina’s sister? Or typo?]: Nigun: Ryaruasu Zero: Headhunting Rabbit: Luisenberg of Red Drop: Pesshiam of Six Arms: Edstrom of Six Arms: the average of the Imperial Four Knights:
Twitter
====
Did you notice? When it said "in the past" what that really meant was that it was Kulervo level probably while as the Martial Lord before Go Gin. At least it's suggested he's actually managed to level up. So what level is he really? . We know that Go Gin defeated Kulervo. What we know about Go Gin's power is that he was far stronger than Head hunting rabbit and the Four Knights. Likewise Baziwood claimed even all Four Knights could not defeat Go Gin. (we'll come to it later, but Gazef Stronoff is at a level that merits similar reaction).
If we look to Head Hunting Rabbit's predictions, relative to himself (someone described beyond Orichalcum and is on par with Zero and Tira, the possible third triplet of Tina and Tia who are Adamantite ranked adventurers) at least he felt the Four Knights would be tough opponents but the only opponent he ever saw besides Ainz he felt was unbeatable was Go Gin. No mention of Kulervo appears here, the previous martial lord.
What matters, if we decide not to scrutinize whether Head Hunting Rabbit even ever met Kulervo before, is that there is a distinct difference in the power of Go Gin and the Four Knights. Just as Gazef can likely defeat the Four Knights, Go Gin is similarly powerful enough to crush them all at once. Given Kulervo lost to Go Gin in the past but also that Baziwood claimed the Four Knights together could no longer best him, then he should now be at the very least Gazef's level, one foot into the Realm of Heroes. The main factor here is that it appears Kulervo(in the past) was a peer of the Four Knights but Kulervo(now) is a peer of Gazef or higher.
=========
“The Martial Lord, huh,” Jircniv muttered. Jircniv had once asked Baziwood about letting all the Four Knights battle the Martial Lord. He had laughed and said they had no chance of winning. Theanswer worried him, so he let Fluder gather some information about the Martial Lord. The results showed that the Martial Lord was a being that was so powerful that it was unfair
[V10]
“Tell me what you think of His Majesty, the Sorcerer King.” He had another ability, besides being a first-rate fighter-cum-assassin. That was the ability to analyze his opponents. Through long experience in the murderous profession of being a warrior and assassin, he had attained the ability to evaluate people ― to see if they were strong. “It’s extremely bad.” To date, there was only one other person about whom he had stated a similar opinion. That person was the Martial Lord himself. In other words, this was the second person he could not defeat. Incidentally, the rank below that was “It’s bad”, which he had said when he had seen the Empire’s Four Knights.
[V10]
Speaking of strong folks… A while ago, I saw Palantynen in the Imperial Capital. It
seems as though he had improved even more through some torturous training. It felt
as though he was a monster that we could no longer win against no matter what we do.”
[P]
=====
First, an upper bound. Kurevo is below or equal to Kelart in regards to his definitive level.
Kelart. She has to be in the Realm of Heroes.She's a 5th Tier caster after all.
====
Enri respectfully nodded. However, Nfirea did not think the magic caster called Ainz was limited to third tier spells. Given that he was a person whocould nonchalantly give away those magic items, he might be able to use fifth tier spells, which were the domain of heroes
[V2]
She was Remedios’s sister, younger than her by two years, Queralt Custodio. She was the high priestess of the temples, and leader of the priesthood. It was public knowledge that she could use divine magic of the fourth tier. However, that was but a deception; those close to her knew that she could cast fifth tier spell
[V12]
===
Therefore, we can say Kuervo in the past was AT BEST in the Realm of Heroes.
Second, lower bound: Zero is equal to or LOWER than Kuervo's level. What we know about Zero is:
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Clementine (while affiiliated with the Black Scripture) > Fully Equipped Gazef > Clementine (while affiliated with Zuranon) > Hamusuke > Gazef > Brain > Gagaran > Zero > Wall[kabe] > Zaryusu > Climb > a tiger > ordinary person
Strength Permutations: The [above] are the relative strength of warriors that have appeared so far.
Note: The [Wild Magic] Ring was not used.
Note: Fully equipped Gazef and Clementine are reinforced by various items, so there is a question if this ranking is correct. Note: Maruyama merely judged wining and losing at a basic level. (Because there are various things one cannot win against, such as Clementine vs the Skeletal Dragon)
Note: Zero is high in terms of level, but monks are weaker than warriors, thus the evaluation
==
“Oi oi, why the fierce face? Aren’t you one of the Six Arms who’re supposed
to be on par with adamantite-ranked adventurers? What’s wrong with a little
handicap?”
Zero’s eyebrows wrinkled, and he smiled. “Hmph! You mean that old man? Sorry, but I sent four of my people to welcome him. They’re not like Succulent over there. They might not be as good as me, but they’re not bad either. How could that old man make it?”
...
Could it be neither of them were fighting seriously? This is the true pinnacle of
mankind, a battle between people on par with adamantite-ranked adventurers!
[V6]
====
What we can deduce is Zero is most likely a higher level than all the others in Six Arms. None of the warriors despite being superior martial classes are stated to surpass him even though normally that is how it should pan out according to Maruyama Gagaran an Adamantite ranked warrior self described to be inferior to Gazef also ranks higher than Zero in combat potential.
Thus, Kuervo who is stated to be greater than or equal to Zero purely in terms of level comparisons should based on pure levels surpass the other members of Six Arms by transitivity, and showing Kulervo is stronger than people all normally said to be Adamantite ranked(even if the truth of that remains in doubt for every member).
If in terms of level Kuervo >= Zero
and
Zero >= Luisenberg from Red Drop (an Adamantite ranked warrior)
and
in terms of combat potential Gagaran >= Zero
It stands to reason Zero is an Adamantite ranked monk at the very least. Similarly by transitivity we can presume Kulervo(in the past) is at least Adamantite in terms of level.
With the caveat his level and combat capability do not differ substantially. People in the community love to throw around the idea of wasted levels but typically not many people have levels in vastly divergent classes due to their own affinity with other classes, how slow Ordinary classes seem to work, and them investing most of their time in a specific field.
To summarize:
Realm of Heroes > Kulervo(past) > Adamantite ranked Adventures
Now we have the deductive statement: Kuervo being on par with a certain undead (a Death Cavalier) suggests he is NOW at the peak of humanity. This would explain why Kuervo's level estimate in the twitter post says "in the past". Martial Lord Kuervo was somewhere between Adamantite and the Realm of Heroes.
As of Volume 14 Kuervo has now reached a point beyond his past rank(most likely Adamantite based on how past Kulervo compares to the Four Knight level warriors).
How do we know Kuervo isn't in the Realm of Heroes in the past?
That is perhaps easier to answer: Gazef was always considered the strongest warrior in the surrounding regions but he had not actually been in the Realm of Heroes. If Gazef was the strongest warrior, then Kuervo had to be inferior to him in some way. Seeing as no one not even Slaine mentioned Kuervo was Gazef's equal, but Clementine admitted the Theocracy claimed Gazef as well as Adamantite level warriors were strong enough to face her to an extent, Kuervo was most likely in a position similar to Luisenberg, Gagaran, Vestia, and so on.
Consider what the Realm of Heroes is typically defined as:
=====
“…That is to say, he could be an adamantite ranked adventurer… those people who are the highest ranked adventurers, living legends, in other words, the mightiest human beings?” “Indeed,” Peter replied as he nodded gently. Nfirea looked around at the other members of the Swords of Darkness, who were also nodding in approval. He was dumbfounded. Adamantite ranked adventurers possessed guild plates made of adamantite, a rare magical material which was the hardest metal known to man. If adventurers and their numbers formed a pyramid, then adamantite ranked adventurers would occupy the peak, and would be correspondingly scarce. Both the Kingdom and the Empire only boasted two teams of adamantite ranked adventurers each. Their abilities were at the zenith of human potential. One might even call them heroes
[V2]
“I don’t know what sort of ugly face is under that helmet of yours, but there’s no way that I, Clementine-sama — one who’s left humanity behind and stepped into the realm of heroes — could possibly lose!”
[V2]
Gazef Stronoff. He was the mightiest warrior of the Kingdom, superior even to adamantite ranked adventurers. A man that was arguably the Kingdom’s ace in the hole. However, Ainzach immediately shot that proposal down
[V3]
“…Hey don’t compare him to me. Gazef’s a man with a foot into the realm of heroes, y’know?” “Hmph. You’re a heroic woman too… although the woman part is in doubt.” As soon as Evileye’s voice trailed off, Gagaran laughed and answered: “Oi oi, Evileye. These heroes in question are monsters with unique abilities that have surpassed the realm of humanity, right?” “…I do not deny that.” “Then I’m still human. Just an ordinary person who can’t reach the realm of heroes.”
[V5]
Gazef: Known for being the greatest warrior not only in the kingdom but also in the surrounding region as well. He's a genius with a sword but has yet to earn a place in the realm of heroes.
[V5]
In the grip of her powerful emotions, Remedios slammed her fist down on the table. As someone who had entered the realm of heroes, that blow crushed the area of the table beneath it and gouged a chunk out, which fell to the ground.
[V13]
The Brain Unglaus who stood there had already surpassed Gazef Stronoff — he had entered the realm of heroes
[V14]
Shalltear will get to show the first peerless scene. You will realize the
power of Level 100s. Excluding heroes it will be humanity’s strongest
class swordsman(Brain) VS Shalltear. Please look forward to it in three chapters
[ARC]
Q: For people of the New World the standard of their power in terms of level is understandable.
Second Half of the Teens: Adventurers in the B-A rank, elite soldier class, ordinary person’s limit
First Half of the Twenties: Adventurers ranked A-A+, depends on country but the leading [or more powerful] people
Second Half of the Twenties: Adventurers ranked A+, the highest limit of humans with the exception of Heroes
Thirties: Famous people in history or Hero Class people
Forties: The cooperating Heroes that did battle with the Evil Gods, Landfall
Fifties: UNKNOWN or so is the feeling
A: …How did you peek at the secret text where roughly all the characters’ levels are written
[Arc]
===========
All that said, the most damning of all evidence though showing a split between the Gazef tier and Adamantite tiered people. :
==========
Q: [That Lightning-san. The Empire’s war potential isn’t surpassed? I wonder why the Kingdom hasn’t been absorbed yet. ]
A: Gazef to put it frankly is even stronger [than the Empire’s fighting force]. If he had the same equipment as the four knights and fought all four people simultaneously he would very likely win. If they are all [respectively] fully equipped Gazef would surely win. Rather than a serious battle Gazef has a high probability of winning against a Death Knight?
[ARC]
=========
Krelvo should not be in the Realm of Heroes in the past then by the statements we got. Baziwood implies as much given his statements about how the Krelvo of today was 'no longer' an opponent people as strong as the Four Knights could defeat. That is suspiciously similar to how Gazef was evaluated compared to the Four Knights as well. The Kuervo or Krelvo or whatever of today isn't described in the Realm of Heroes either.
So just as Brain advanced from Gazef's power level to the Realm of Heroes by the time of Volume 14, Kuervo seems to have advanced from Adamanite to the Gazef power level.
As one might infer, Krelvo may not have been in the rank Gazef was at in the past. At the very least as of Volume 14 or Volume 17 (if you believe that Maruyama made a typo for the timeline of that side prologue) however he appears to be at least as strong as Gazef Stronoff was, someone the Four Knights could not defeat alone let alone together More on this later.
If Kuervo wasn't as strong as Gazef in the past that would explain how Go Gin bested him, as Go Gin is at least as strong as Gazef but perhaps even more so in the Realm of Heroes (depending ).
We know Death Cavaliers, the undead mass imported to the Empire are "Death Knight Level undead"(presumably), but their exact level remains in question. It seems most of the Death class of monsters Ainz can create are in the 30s however given how the Four Knights reacted to the Death Cavaliers and the similar performance between Death Knights and Death Warriors in Volume 14. Given Ainz also mobilizies his Death-series undead in groups further supports that general power level. They are permamen undead (seemingly) so that does upper bound them to the 40s.
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If this man could hold his own against even one member of that army, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he was at the peak of human strength.[Prologue] =========
Not the subtlest, but thankfully the 'peak of human strength' is synonmous with the Gazef and Brain (early volumes) power level. Only Heroes are considered 'beyond humanity'. That's why Gazef was the 'strongest' but he wasn't in the realm of heroes. He surpassed everyone else (as far as the general populace was concerned) but still wans't quite there in terms of level.
=============
Occasionally they would bump into patrol teams consisting of Death Knights, Death Wizards, Death Warriors, Death Priests, and Death Assassins. Though they were walking on the streets too, they maintained a tight formation with the Death Assassins silently keeping a lookout on the front. This wasn’t due to any perceivable dangers, but rather the fact that they were just following their original orders to patrol in formation
[V14]
Consequently, the amount of undead around the level of a Death Knight they had exported was minimal. It would be a waste to not use up his daily limit of [Create Undead], so Ainz had been exhausting his daily-use abilities; as a result, the number of undead he had created had already become a nuisance to him. If I were to lower their rental costs and raise them in the future, no one would rent from us again. Plus I don’t want to cut prices directly… Should I create a rewards system? The Empire rented quite a lot of Death Cavaliers from us, so we should probably focus on marketing to nations directly… but…
[V14]
“Wha— Hol-hold up a second, alright? Let’s all be sensible. Please don’t abandon this city!” “If we really wanted to run away, now would be the best time! Take a look, there.” Skama pointed towards two undead that were at the helm of the zombie army. They were quite easy to spot given how they were about two head’s height higher than the zombies around them. In conjunction with the overwhelming, hair-raising pressure they gave off that accentuated their presence, their strength was made apparent. Those undead carried a flag at their sides.
[V14]
“No movement, hmmm? So — does anyone recognize those undead?” Two undead creatures stood where Skama was pointing to. One held a huge shield in one hand and a huge sword in another while the other one was dual-wielding swords.
[V14]
=========
Ziggy proposes Krelvo(Now) is Gazef's and Volume 3 Brain's equal, someone with "one foot into the Realm of Heroes" or in the "strongest rank besides Heroes" or the "peak of humanity excluding heroes" or whichever way Maruyama explained it that you prefer. Krelvo(Martial Lord) however was weaker by a noticeable degree but still Adamantite(in terms of overall levels by the twitter upper and lower bound argument). It's not concrete but the 'peak of humanity' line about Kuervo(now) does imply he's at Gazef and Brain(Volume 3)'s level. He was also never described as being beyond humanity at the very least and was never referred to in the past as Gazef's equal.
Does that make sense? That might seem confusing to most who just consider Gazef Adamantite and leave it as is. But the idea of there being something beyond Adamantite but below Hero has always existed. In the Web Novel this was the so called A++ adventures where A+ was Adamantite. Similarly Palpatra brought up the superior Adamantite idea, Greater Adamantite if you will.
A++ was only ever alluded to but if you examine the Web Novel rankings it does make sense, as every Tier magic tier was defined by a pair of Adventurer ranks.
And for those who have already organized this into it's own power level.... this'll be rather redundant.... but Ziggy gets tired of having to re explain this over and over and over and over and over and over. Suffer with me!
===
We basically do not have anything more than this but there are rumors of A++.”
[WN]
“This is the item that I have explained simply to Momon-san before. This is the number assigned to Momon-san, if this number is given, it is possible to search quickly.” “Hmph.” “The materials for a novice and F are brass, E is bronze, D is iron, C is silver, B is gold, and A is platinum. And the highest A+ is mithril. Well, the A++ Rank is honorary and is made of the rarest metal Adamantium.” “Hmph.” “Ah, thread this through the hole, and please hang it from your neck.
[WN]
=====
Copper Iron FIRST TIER
Silver Gold SECOND TIER
Platinum Mithril THIRD TIER
Orichalcum Adamantite FOURTH TIER
Hero FIFTH TIER
F,E FIRST TIER
D,C SECOND TIER
B,A THIRD TIER
A+, Fourth Tier
Theoretically a A++ rank should exist if the pattern holds but it's so rare it doesn't come up often. Especially in the WN where the overall power levels were a bit lower (just a bit). Early adaptations and so forth. Palpatra's statements allude to the fact Adamantites come in different grades. However, in the light novel we know that Orichalcum should fit into the Adamantite rank following the pattern instead.
There are competing ideas why, one being Maruyama made a rounding error(like he did in the past), or another being that this is something he cranked up the power of the New World with as he said he would going to the Light Novel. There is the precedence of him botching his tier magic Tiers calculation after all.... You have to figure he also had some different ideas how the system would work(see the lack of racial levels for demihumans).
As Ziggy has demonstrated with Kruelvo or however he feels like spelling his name does appear to occupy a niche beyond conventional Adamantites but below the Realm of Heroes. This Peak of Humanity rank correlates with the A++ rank not in terms of Level or metal but in concept, of being the upper rank or rank beyond A+ rank or Adamantite but below Hero. It's the rank Brain was always at before his Hero level up. Likewise, it explains Gazef's power relative to other Adamantites and why wiser members of the world understand there is variability in the Adamantites.
Copper
Iron
Silver
Gold - Peak of the Talentless
Platinum
Mithril
Orichalcum
Adamantite
Gazef/A++ - Peak of Humanity
Realm of Heroes
Now you could argue Kuervo is in the Relam of Heroes now. But the reaction of Nimble and Baziwood allude to the idea he hasn't leveled up that far. We can acknowledge that it might be possible however. You could always see the "peak of human strength" as also meaning that he's the strongest human warrior they have seen. If Death Cavaliers are as strong or stronger than Death Knightss that is not that far fetched. Kuervo has been gone for at least a few years(at least two years as of this Prologue as Volume 1 to Volume 14 is approximately two years and Go Gin seems to have been the martial lord at the very least since autumn of that year).
Circumstantially this explains the caution Slaine gave Gazef in their assassination attempt and why they didn't rely on the Empire's Knights to finish Gazef either. They must of recognized he was in this buffer rank between Heroes and Adamantites. Theoretically. That might better explain why they sent an entire Scripture of people after him. Nigun with a few other guys might not have been enough if the power disparity was larger than some others might give Gazef credit for
Recall the way Maruyama broke down magical tiers and adventurer ranks in the Web Novel:
========================
1st Rank of Magic (Adventurers of E, F Class): The basics of being a magic caster, the first steps. However there are many who stay at this rank for life. Popular ones include magic to improve the milk of livestock in villages, magic to make delicious stew, magic to make spices like salt.
2nd Rank of Magic (Adventurers of C, D Class): The realm where hard working magic casters reach. If a talentless person works hard, this is his limit.
3rd Rank of Magic (Adventurers of A, B Class) If one can reach here, he is celebrated as a great magic caster. This is the realm where those hardworking of average talent reach the end of their line.
4th Rank of Magic (Adventurers of A+): The realm where humans with talent work extremely hard can reach. Basically those who live side by side with danger, like adventurers. Top level in a country, five are sufficient.
5th Rank of Magic (Adventurers of Hero Class): This and further levels are Hero Class. It is the realm where even those with talent cannot reach. At a level of one in a country. It is not strange for bards to sing of them. Famous ones include [Bluesky Dragonlord], [Pontiff of the Slane Theocracy], and she may be dead but [Country Destroyer ]
===
“Well, if you counted all the adventurers who were stronger than orichalcum-rank as being adamantite-rank, I could believe such a mighty warrior existed. After all, adamantite rank can cover a very broad range.”
....
“…There’s many kind of adamantite-ranked adventurers. Eight Ripples from the Empire is, frankly speaking, not really adamantite-ranked. Momon-dono is a true adamantite-ranked adventurer. He ‘s on a level I can’t hope to reach.” “Gramps…” “Hyahyahya, don’t worry. When I was in my prime, I might have been jealous, but now I’m just a wrinkly old coot. It’s not like I’m shocked or anything. Besides, I’ve seen several true adamantite-ranked adventurers in my time, but Momon-dono is unique even among them. From his presence, he feels like an adamantite among adamantites.”
[V7]
===
Now most people just think Adamantite also includes Hero ranked people. That's fair. But Ziggy suspects that Maruyama purposefully made it less clear to illustrate it's rarity. Now hero ranked people are Adamantie ranked, but that's using the nominal rank vs the power scaling rank if that makes sense. As we see in the volume 14 Black Scripture meeting, people tend to notice when someone is in the realm of heroes. There's clearly a substantial power aura felt by others that's distinct from people not in the realm of heroes.
It's also alluded to:
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“Revered elder, I seek your opinion on a certain matter. Having heard the rumors of Darkness’ Momon, do you not feel they are far too exaggerated? They say the two of them slew a Gigant Basilisk, without the aid of a healer.” “Uwah, it ought to be just a rumor.” Such a mighty foe (a Gigant Basilisk) could not be felled by just two people, not even if they were adamantite-ranked
V7
====
For context we know how strong Gigant Basilisks are supposed to be. Factoring out it's various abilities, two people of the same rank ganging up on it shouldn't normally be seen as not possible. Even if it's a monster with intrinsic advantages.
========
“Probably about D Class. However if they are the knights of the Baharuth Empire, then they should have good weapons, so depending on the situation about C……About any further would be impossible.”
“Then what about the Warrior Captain?”
“……About A+?”
He was the warrior called the Kingdom’s Strongest. If he was not about A+ then it would be bad in various ways. However, why did he compare the Baharuth Empire knights to the Warrior Captain?
[WN]
======================
“Then— Appear! Gigant Basilisk!”
From behind Quaiesse, a large shadow loomed forth. And slowly, it took solid form, becoming corporeal.
Nigun’s subordinates began to murmur amongst themselves.
If one used the metric adventurers used, this monster would have about 83 points.
Some amongst the Sunlight Scripture could use the 4th Tier of Magic, but only Nigun would be able to give this creature a good fight. No, while Nigun could battle it, earning a victory was an entirely other matter.
[WN]
“A Gigant Basilisk…” Climb repeated in a breathless voice. It was a huge monster that was almost ten meters long, like a cross between a lizard and a serpent. It had a petrifying gaze attack, its bodily fluids were a poison that could cause instant death, and its hard, thick skin rivaled mythril in toughness. It was a terrifying being, so being able to defeat a monster like that — which could destroy a town — was a perfectly sensible reason for being promoted to adamantite rank. However, there was one problem with that — “That’s… amazing. Still, did they really do it with just the two of them? Surely just two people, being a warrior and an arcane magic caster, wouldn’t be able to deal with a Gigant Basilisk, right? Doesn’t seem possible to me.” —Indeed. It was almost impossible for just two people to do it, especially if they were a warrior and an arcane magic caster. ...
“Still, a Gigant Basilisk… Yeah, I’ve got nothing. Enemies like that are too
much for warriors… for any close range fighters, actually. I’ve got the power of
Gaze Bane on my side, but it’d be really risky without backup.”
“Heard that, Climb? In other words, Gagaran can’t do it by herself. In other
words, it’d all be up to that Nabe woman. Maybe you could do the same if you
were paired with her… could you?
[V5]
====
If you crunch the numbers, Gigant Basilisks are basically in the upper 20s in terms of Level, approximately factoring in margins of errors and racial differences affecting it's DR. That's closer to where Gazef and Lakyus are instead of where most other adventures and Adamantites are. We can derive that from how Seven Levels Per Tier Theory breaks down magical tiers as well as several other related power level theories and anecdotes. Like how Liches would be a problem for Platinum ranked adventures, how strong the Lizardmen were (and the correction they get to their rank evaluations) , how strong Mithril ranks were compared to Nazarick Old Guarders, and so forth.
The second-hand observations match this. Multiple members of the Four Knights could not best someone One Foot Into the Realm of Heroes (Gazef Tier). Or rather Peak Human Potential.
So we can establish someone of Nigun(WN)'s level would struggle against a Gigant Basilisk as would everyone else in his Scripture. This does correlate with his 4th Tier caster power level as well as relative power levels of Adamentites in the LN and the twitter level rankings to this prospective new rank: peak of humanity.
If you combine the Web novel way of adding 10 DR to each Adventurer Rank this may become a bit more obvious using Maruyama's logic.
1-10 Copper
11-20 Iron
21-30 Silver
31-40 Gold
41-50 Platinum
51-60 Mithril
61-70 Orichalcum
71-80 Adamantite
81-90 Peak Humanity; One Foot Into Realm of Heroes
91+ Realm of Heroes
Both statements from Lakyus about herself(a fifth tier caster) and Neia claiming 100 is beyond human ability suggest 90 as an upper limit of some sort, given how strong humans can become and how many ranks above yourself one can triumph over. The majority of fans already accept Level 30+ is the Realm of Heroes anyway.
Now, DR doesn't equate perfectly to Level (case in the point the Lizardmen will actually rank one rank higher than their levels would suggest alone according to Maruyama). Other cases include things like the Zoastia ranking vs level argument.
Therefore it seems like the 90s are where the Realm of Heroes begin. This retroactively explains why Gigant Basilisk's who are in the 80s are such a problem, they aren't 'Adamantite' but 'Peak Humanity' ranked enemies, using Maruyama's ranking comparisons.
=======
Everyone aside from Lakyus was speechless. That much was expected. Even the highest-ranking orichalcum adventurers would only rate around 80 on the difficulty rankings. Although one could still triumph over a foe ranked roughly 15 points over oneself, trying to do the same with an enemy ranked almost twice as high as oneself was nothing short of laughable. And then— “Wait a minute! Are you saying Momon-san is going to fight that difficulty 200 monster by himself?” “Exactly. That’s why I said we’d just be getting in the way.” “But that’s not the same… you said 200? Are you kidding me? Are all adamantite-ranked adventurers that strong?” “If only. Even we’re ranked around 90 at best.”
Lakyus had not lied, but neither had she told them the whole truth. Although
Lakyus herself was rated at 90, Evileye was over 150, which was how she had
come to the conclusion about the insect maid and Jaldabaoth. And that was
also why Evileye was not part of this defensive line
[V6]
If Neia recalled correctly, difficulty one hundred monsters were not something which humans could defeat.
[V12]
There were roughly five hundred paladins in the order. Most of them were comparable to difficulty twenty monsters, and among them were great warriors capable of slaying a difficulty sixty monster one on one. All in all, there were twenty five of these ultra-elite warriors, who formed the core of Remedios’s forces.
[V12]
Difficulty 21-30: The level where it is an extreme emergency if Adventurers prepared for this degree of difficulty or highly trained soldiers (strong veterans, a rarely found Level) are not present.
[Blog]
=====
Ziggy personally believes in retrospect there is a trap or misdirection in Lakyus's statements. That is Orichalcum ranks are normally not in the 80s at all but Lakyus was purposely fudging the numbers since she's clearly beyond proper Adamantites as a Fifth tier caster but gave her own rating as 90 (though Adamantite is a nominal rank as well as a power level).
For instance, if we assume the pattern holds as stated by Lakyus, that means between a difference of 10 DR we have Orichalcum and Tier 5 Adamantite. If we go ten down that means Mithril and Orichalcum are in the 70s. Likewise, ten more down and we have Platinum and Gold. Now if you bothered to keep track, if you convert the DR to Levels it just does not add up. So either all the other mentions of power levels, tiers, and difficulty rating are wrong or Lakyus' statement is wrong. Given the context it makes more sense for her to be embellishing so we even have an explanation for the mistake. Or so Ziggy claims. From both the DR number crunching aspect and the qualitative perspective, Lakyus' lines are more suspect.
Other evidence suggests that Orichalcum is not so high either. If Orichalcum was really in the 80s why would Adamantites (like Gagaran) struggle against a DR 80 monster that should be in the same DR range as Orichalcum ranked adventures? Those statements match up more with the notion regular Adamantites are in the same level range of Gigant Basilk's not Orichalcum ranked adventurers, even with it's nasty racial abilities.
For example a DR 80 Orichalcum adventurer could exist if they never promoted to Adamantite alone but instead stayed as a team. There are examples of people slightly stronger than their teams staying with the weaker people for various reasons. Ninya for instance was supposed to be one rank stronger than the other Swords of Darkness. Similarly the Iron rank team that faced Shalltear actually had a Tier 2 caster, which does not quite fit the rankings as Maruyama broke down tiers and ranks. Likewise, Evileye and Lakyus are both clearly beyond normal Adamantite rank adventures but stay together with regular Adamantites (though given the ranks stop there that could be seen as an exception). The converse exists as well, Azuth is one rank lower than the rest of his team but that doesn't mean he can't keep ups sans the Powered Suit.
In retrospect the orichalcum ranked adventurer Lakyus mentions could also mean Azuth. Nominally he's Adamantite but effectively he is Orichalcum rank. However that doesn't mean he didn't increase his DR higher. How?
Come walk with Ziggy for a bit lads (and ladettes?????????). Do you remember how Maruyama describes what matters for powering up in Overlord?
====
there is foundational physical strength [su no kinryoku] (which can be trained) + Level Up Physical Strength (evolution [shinka]) + and various corrections from classes
[V5+6AT]
=======
This 'Physique' factor does matter less than Levels but it's part of the reason why certain races are superiro to others. They can get far more JACKED than others. This is also explains partially why dragons tend to be stronger than their levels imply. If even Lizardmen basically are ranked higher than their levels suggest at their size and number of raical levels, imagine a dragon's DR Correction.
One other thing to consider is lower level people can actually inflate their DR even if they can't increase their level. You can always dump time into Physique, the often forgotten factor of power scaling. FUQING JUICY BRAH. Ah Nigel, never change.
Why does this Power of Swole matter? Well one theory is Athletic Master, Azuth's strange class, is a byproduct of someone training up their Physique or whatever you want to call this. IE it amplifies the bonuses or something. Hence why if Azuth is the 'Orichalcum' ranked person Lakyus brings up, why his DR is so damn high. Sans Powered Suit of course.
That's just a theory though trying to link together the evidence that is floating around and very loose readings of the source text.
As Maruyama explained however, and as we've seen, the Power of Swole isn't that great.
=======
Shalltear paid the female warrior behind her no heed, and looked at the shocked arcane magic caster. “Magic Arrow!” In desperation, the magic caster cast a spell, sending two arrows of light streaking at Shalltear. However, they were easily resisted.
...
“What rank were those adventurers?”
“They were iron plates.”
“…I’d like to ask, but why have you brought so many adventurers on board
for just one Vampire? Is there going to be a competition of some sort?”
[V3]
His(Azuth) personal combat abilities are probably the lowest of the Adamantite ranked adventurers and also the lowest in his team. he himself is still strong enough to be considered an Orichalcum ranked adventurer.
[V14]
Q: Momon will come to the tomb as an adventurer. There was only an exexplanation of individual ranks for adventurers but not for parties. How are party classes determined? What’s the adventurer ranks if you hire a certain party rank? A E rank request may not require E rank adventurers. A: Basically party rank is the average of the members. Once a party has been established, they have to proceed as they are so they are of a similar rank. A question arises from a recently destroyed party composition, so they consult with various people and everyone
[ARC]
==============
And since Ziggy feels like beating a dead horse: let's crackdown further on Lakyus's statements that damn chuuni.
Similarly, if you convert Orichalcum difficulty rating her statements just doesn't add up to how people are normally described.
Like the Paladin ratings seem to line up with the broad breakdown as stated in the Web Novel adapted to the light novel ranks. The best normal Paladins are around Mithril ranks which is just before or at the so called 'Level 20 Wall' depending on your preferred DR conversion (ignoring DR Corrections which don't normally apply to Humanoids to the same extent as Monsters and Demihumans or Heteromorphs). The weaker ones that are the majority are around silver, which is what we expect of professional humanoid soldiers given past comments by Maruyama about professional soldiers.
=====
“Warrior Captain, are you serious about that!? Indeed, you are strong, and you could easily defeat a hundred knights. However, the Empire has that old man. Even you would be in great danger against him. There’s also a chance that you might lose against the Empire’s renowned Four Knights, under-equipped as you are
[V1]
“Yup, it goes without saying. No warrior in this country can beat me~ no, wait, almost no warrior in this country can beat me~” “Is that so… well, that gave me an idea. I shall give you a handicap, and have my revenge on you at the same time.” Clementine’s eyes narrowed, and for the first time she had a look of annoyance on her face. “According to the info from those chaps in the Windflower, there’s only five people in this country who can give me a good fight. Gazef Stronoff. Gagaran of Blue Rose. Luisenburg Albelion of Red Drop. Brain Unglaus. Also, the retired Vestia Croft Di Lofan… though none of them could beat me even if they went all-out.
[V2]
As he was now, Brain — his body enhanced by various effects — was a swordsman who stood at the peak of humanity. He was absolutely confident in his fighting ability, and a savage grin bloomed on his fac
[V3]
Elder Liches were fairly powerful opponents. To adventurers, platinumrankers would not be able to defeat one easily, but mythril-ranked teams would be certain of doing so. I
[V7]
The first casualty was a human warrior, but the Nazarick Old Guarder holding an electrically charged hammer did not seem particularly excited about it, instead looking for another target. “Priest-san, if you don’t heal him, he’ll die ~su” “…No point. Died instantly, and battle line fell with him.” Yuri muttered worriedly to herself, while Shizu shook her head as an answer. The two Nazarick Old Guarders that the warrior had been holding off were now freed up, so one went to deal with their priest while another one planne
...
The Nazarick Old Guarders held the upper hand throughout the battle with
Parpatra’s team. At this point, this one-sided battle could be described as futile
resistance. Even Yuri and the others could not help but pity them
[V7]
“Ah, the “no breasts, just pecs” one, am I right? She’s very strong. Although, I heard that she lost a duel with the Warrior Captain.”
[V7]
There had been one occasion when a lack of conscripts had resulted in tremendous casualties for the Kingdom. Fortunately, the counterattack led by Gazef had succeeded, killing two of the original Four Knights and putting an end to the war
[V9]
Q: [That Lightning-san. The Empire’s war potential isn’t surpassed? I wonder why the Kingdom hasn’t been absorbed yet. ]
A: Gazef to put it frankly is even stronger [than the Empire’s fighting force/Baziwood]. If he had the same equipment as the four knights and fought all four people simultaneously he would very likely win. If they are all [respectively] fully equipped Gazef would surely win. Rather than a serious battle Gazef has a high probability of winning against a Death Knight?
=====
So we can say Adamantite even together can struggle against a high level 20s enemy basically. Meanwhile, Mithril ranks struggle against an enemy not even in the 20s. The connection between Gigant Basilisks and Nigun also helps us lower bound Kruelvo too, where Nigun wasn't so much stronger than the Gigant Basilik to claim he could defeat it. The circumstantial evidence of Nigun mobilizing with aid and the gem lends support to the idea he is probably at Adamantite and not Peak Human/Gazef ranked. That is, Nigun is one rank lower than Gazef is effectively.
====
Remedios: Buser: Kelart: Rotting Wolf Kurevo (in the
past [in his youth?]): Vestia Gazef’s teacher: Tira [Tia and Tina’s sister?
Or typo?]: Nigun: Ryaruasu Zero: Headhunting Rabbit: Luisenberg of
Red Drop: Pesshiam of Six Arms: Edstrom of Six Arms: the average of
the Imperial Four Knights:
====
The best approximate we can give is Kurevo seems to be mid to high 20s in the past, he is the equivalent of at least a 4th Tier caster but below a 5th Tier caster in the past, and now is on par with Death knight level undead.Put broadly that does suggest he's closer to Level 30 than 20 at the very least wouldn't you agree reader that doesn't exist?
"......................................."
....Ziggy thinks so at least.
Given the Six Arms are split between some ranked higher than the Four Knights average and some ranked lower, we can say since they are all considered Adamantite then on average the Four Knights are Adamantite ranked as well by whatever metric was used to estimate Six Arms. Peak of Humanity would be closer to Gazef's level, stronger than Adamantite by a reasonable degree but not quite in the Realm of Heroes. One Foot Into the Realm of Heroes basically.
Heroes
Peak of Humanity
Adamantite
Ignoring hard levels, this would then match the deduction that Krelvo is now too strong for Nimble and Baziwood to defeat together similar to how Gazef can typically best Adamantites like Gagaran in single combat and has previously killed other Four Knights members working together. Similarly, Such feats suggest a person is in a different Adventurer Rank from the others(has Ziggy made his point enough times yet?).
Just as the Imperial Legions were not intimidated by a difference in numbers against Re Estize a difference in quality requires a difference in quantity to respond to. And those were at best Silver or Gold rankers compared to Copper(average soldier) to Iron rankers(average Knight and typical professional soldier).
This idea of quality vs quantity is always worth considering in Overlord.
=====
As for the knights, being able to stand guard in the Imperial Palace meant that they were among the most elite warriors in the empire, but he could close an eye to their losses. If they were to be ranked like adventurers, one might classify them as silver-rank.
[V9]
In addition, Marquis Boullope also commanded elite troops. He had been inspired by Gazef’s warrior band, and had thus created a unit of professional warriors. They were very good fighters. Although they were still inferior to the warrior band under Gazef, they were still a match for the Empire’s knights ― perhaps more than a match. Of particular note were their numbers, which were numbered around 5,000. If they clashed with Gazef’s warrior band, Boullope’s more numerous elites would triumph by a great margin
[V9]
“You guys, who are you? Not ordinary farmers, I’ll bet.” Jugem was level 12. With that in mind, his current opponent was roughly level 10, or maybe 11. The other three might be level 9. An ordinary villager was level 1. Maybe some of the trained members of Carne Village were level 2. The troops accompanying the tax collectors from ERantel felt like they were below level 3. This meant the soldiers he was fighting now were very strong
[V9]
“My prince. I trust you understand that aside from the copper ranks, every adventurer is stronger than the average soldier?” “Umu. Of course. That’s why they’ll produce excellent results once they’re drafted. They’ll be able to defeat the Imperial knights with ease!” “I do not dispute that point. However, if we did that, then our enemies ― the Empire, for instance ― would also conscript adventurers. The result of that would not be a battle between adventurers, but a systematic slaughter of the rank and file by adventurers. The losses would be far greater, and many of the weak would die. This is why both sides don’t use adventurers, to avoid such an arms race. In addition, the rules of the Adventurer’s Guild would never allow it.”
[V9]
Unlike the band of warriors led by Gazef Stronoff, most of these knights were merely a smidge stronger than the average soldier. If they were to fight the monsters of the Sorcerous Kingdom, they would probably be destroyed as easily as it would be for someone to break the branches of a dead tre
[V14]
However, goblins were one of the weakest species. If their numbers passed a certain point, well managed countries, like the Empire, could easily fix the problem. The Knights could easily defeat simple goblins.
But, if there were no problems, the man, and his subordinates, would not have needed to come to this place.
So yes, there was a problem.
There was a clear problem, one that could severely impact a strong country like the Empire.
The problem was that the goblins had started to learn skills.
Goblins would sometimes leave their nests, a behaviour some monkeys also displayed. The young males would leave their tribe and visit several others, doing their best and risking their lives, and learning skills in the process. Such goblins would be vastly more dangerous than regular ones.
Especially those that learnt magic or martial skills. If such goblins appeared, their mere numbers would turn into a large danger.
If a knight fought a goblin, the knight would probably win. However, if a knight fought ten armed goblins, the balance of power would change. Even if they won, what if they faced a hundred, or a thousand—
This was the violence of numbers.
[WN]
=====
If we turn to circumstantial evidence, the Theocracy lower ranks (non Cardinal and Black Scripture members) were actually wary of Gazef Stronoff for being powerful, even Nigun who is by all rights quite strong leading a force of people to gank him AFTER orchestrating events so Gazef would be underequipped.
That idea makes a lot more sense if we factor in Gazef is in a rank below Hero but above Adamantite (Adamantite Plus, Adamantite of Adamantite, One Step Into the Realm of Heroes).
====
Nigun said that, but he was very clear that another mission of this nature would be very unlikely. The orders he had been given were to “assassinate the greatest warrior of the Kingdom, the man famed in the surrounding countries for his matchless might, Gazef Stronoff.”
[V1]
“…Can we kill him?” Nigun did not mock his subordinate’s unease. Their prey was the Kingdom’s Warrior-Captain — the strongest man in the region — Gazef Stronoff. Eliminating him would be more difficult than attacking and exterminating the inhabitants of a huge goblin village. In order to dispel his underlings’ fears, Nigun calmly replied: “It will be fine. Right now, he does not possess any of the Kingdom’s treasures, the ones which he is permitted to bear. Without them, killing him will be a piece of cake… no, it would be better to say that without them, this is our only chance to kill him.” The Kingdom’s Warrior-Captain, Gazef Stronoff, was famed as the strongest fighter in the land. But there was a reason for that reputation beyond his extraordinary swordsmanship.That reason was the five heirlooms of the Kingdom. Although only four of them were known, he was permitted to bear all of them
[V1]
Just as I thought! This person [Gazef] is famous across the lands; the man who was once the greatest threat to the Theocracy!
[Obama]
======
Krelvo in the past and the Krelvo now. The reason he is not described as in the Realm of Heroes because he is now at the level Gazef was stuck at. Or so Ziggy believes based on the above and the limited description we got about him. Furthermore that is what Ziggy is trying to convince you to believe as well.
-----
This was only the fourth time he had heard those words of thanks. The previous three times had been when he was given his weapon, his armor, and then when he had fought his best opponent, the previous Martial Lord “Rot Wolf”, Krelvo Palantynen.
[V10]
------
Him being able to squeeze in a bit more power also makes more sense as will be discussed later.
Lemma: The Kuervo of the past is probably Adamantite ranked, and the Kuervo of today is probably Gazef/V3 Brain/Apex of Humanity ranked.
And now the real reason Ziggy wrote this article:
"NANI the Fuq!?"
Thesis: Ziggy believes the Okama mentioned by Baziwood and Nimble is Gagaran.
What a plot twist. Or not?
Why so much noise about Gagaran now? Why ramble so long just for a lemma? Well, you'll see.... reader that doesn't exist!
There's a enough evidence now to prove an old theory along with a new one. That's all.
To begin with, just because Gagaran lives in the Kingdom doesn't mean she was born there. Afterall Tia and Tina went there from abroad as well. Similarly Silver Canary left the Empire and went to the City State Alliance and already had members from elsewhere.
=====
“I see… I understand the idea, even if I don’t accept it. Then what if a city they stayed in was attacked? If they still didn’t lend their strength then, wouldn’t that be unforgivable as citizens of the Empire?” “I understand the point you’re trying to make. However, they feel that they have discretion over whether or not they count as citizens of the Kingdom. In addition, they might also be traveling abroad at the time
[V9]
===
If we look to Gagaran's classes:
===
Knight
Air Rider
Mercenary
etc
A woman who is so large and muscular a question mark often gets added to "woman" when describing her. A warrior who saved Lakyus after she ran away to become a nadventurer and an early member of Blue Rose (there is one other early member). There are many mysteries about her. She goes by an assumed name and her past is completely unknown, she hasn't even talked about it to her friends. ...she is the most trusted person on her team and not fo rher strenght but for the broad mindedness she radiates. She's like a reliable big brother.
V6CS
“Ah, the “no breasts, just pecs” one, am I right? She’s very strong. Although, I heard that she lost a duel with the Warrior Captain.” “…I heard an adventurer addressed her with that made-up nickname and got beaten half to death. Hahaha, what a frightening young lady.”
If the first person was a midget, then this one would be a giant. Seeing this person brought the word “boulder” to mind. Indeed, that person had a stout and massive body, but that girth was not born of obesity.
That person’s arms reminded observers of logs, while the neck which held the head up seemed as wide around as a pair of a woman’s thighs. The head which sat upon that neck was squarish in shape. The heavyset chin — currently clenched closed — and the way that person’s eyes surveyed its surroundings reminded one of a carnivorous beast. The blonde hair upon that head was trimmed short for the sake of practicality.
That person’s chest bulged mightily under their clothes, as though on proud display. Said chest resembled nothing so much as thoroughly-honed pectoral muscles. Put more clearly, this was no longer a tender feminine bosom.
[WN]
====
Recall the 'class order acquisition theory'. From what we've seen classes as listed on character sheets (barring ones that seem to change into others) indicate the order they are first acquired.
What we see first is Knight. So far as Knights are concerned, they should be the spare sons of a noble household who were no longer needed to inherit the family. In isolation, it is a bit strange for their to be a female Knight we've never heard rumors about. However, we do know in the Empire some noble women take up the sword or spear or whatever pointy stick of hard dirt you want to poke peope with. So that argument is not exactly air tight Although nowadays the Imperial Legions train Imperial Knights, not too long ago in the past nobles still did have their own retinue's of Knights.
======
“….No, there are no problems. There are
few things that can make me happier than you becoming part of the
Empire, my friend. Then for your position, how about becoming a
Margrave?”
Blood related relatives of the
Emperor would be Dukes, and below them were Marquesses, Earls, Viscounts
and Barons. A Margrave was equivalent to a Marquis in the Empire. It
was the highest rank that a non-blood related noble could reach,
excluding marriage.
Such a noble had a large private
army, a wide and vast territory and could make their own laws to a
limited extent. Considering that, it was a suitable position for Ainz.
“….How many Margrave are there in the Empire?”
“Currently two.”
During the reign of the Blood
Emperor, Margraves were the nobles that were removed due to their level
of authority. When Jircniv just became Emperor, there were five. Despite
the fact that they were meant to protect the borders of the Empire.
[WN]
=====
Because the Kingdom and Empire have similar origins, and the fact that modern Imperial Knights actually have their own designated class (Imperial Knight) and Kingdom Knights have their own class (Knight allegedly) what distinguishes them comes down to nuance. Believe it or not, Obama (Overlord Mass for the Dead) provides some further distinction but the canonocity of that remains in question.
For Imperial Knights pedigree is a non-issue as any can be palace guards, likewise they are expected to actually fill the role of town guards in addition to monster extermination three roles distinct in Re-Estize. Four if you want to count Legionaires as soldiers but we know some guards may be soldiers and vice versa.
Imperial Knight = Adventurer, Guard, and Knight
The actual Knights of the Kingdom would be equivalent ot the Royal Earth Guard actually, pedigree aside. Imperial Knights are closer to Gazef's Warrior Band but it's not concretely the best parallel. Still it's the military force closest to being under the King's control that does not languish in the palace.
=====
“How I envy the Empire.” Gazef could not find anything to say which could comfort the King and answer his mumblings. The Empire had itself been a feudal kingdom three generations ago. However, the power of the nobles had been steadily eroded, and the current crop was now absolutely loyal to the reigning Emperor.
[V3]
While its name was written on the signboard, the Kingdom’s script was different from that of the Holy Kingdom, so they could only make a rough guess at what it said. The Kingdom and the Empire had once been the same country, so there were many similarities between them, but the Holy Kingdom had never been tied to either of those countries, so they differed greatly
[V12]
===============
Thus, Ziggy hopes the reader will excuse inferences drawn from one culture relating to the other. Please? No....? U-Umu...... orz
Well anyway, extra sons for the nobility of the Empire and Kingdom were typically seen as disposable to an extent. In the Light Novel we see how Phillip was treated in detail meanwhile we also have various Knights commonly being called scions of nobility. We even seen how some people who were strong and are confirmed or implied to come from noble family's (based on their number of names) also bore the honorary Knight title(namely Vestia and Azuth).
For those who are unaware it goes:
Commoners: PERSONAL-NAME FAMILY-NAME
Nobles: PERSONAL-NAME NOBLE-NAME FAMILY-NAME
Titled: PERSONAL-NAME NOBLE-NAME TITLE FAMILY-NAME
The Honorary Knight title is "Di", with Dale being another common title. Di was something actually Hitori forgot to include in her translation but it comes up in the Black Scripture and Azuth meeting but only as Ruby Text. All you need to know was it's something to easily skim over.
Azuth's formal name would thus be:
Azuth NOBLE-NAME Di Aindra
Tangent over. I have another article focusing on this more. So Ziggy isn't going to drag this naming scheme out too long.
=====
In the Kingdom ― and in the Empire ― commoners had two names, nobles had three names, and titled people had four names. For the royal family, they had four names ― plus their titles for a total of five names. This was why Jircniv Rune Farlord El-Nix and his four names were mocked for not being an actual member of royalty.
[V10]
Philip was born the third son of a noble family. Similar to commoners, third sons were not individuals who were particularly welcome in noble families. No matter how rich a family was, splitting its assets multiple ways would ultimately weaken it. Therefore, it was all inherited by the eldest son. In this respect, the nobles followed the same basic principle as the commoners. Perhaps a wealthier family might have been able to give a third son some financial support. Perhaps they could count on connections to other noble families and foster him out. However, this was not the case for Philip’s family. Once the eldest son came of age ― in other words, when the chances of him dying of disease were greatly decreased ― the third son Philip was no longer necessary to his family. Would he be given a bit of money and then chased out of the family home? Or perhaps he would be sent to live with a poor family and work like a peasant. He could only see tragedy waiting in both options.
[V10]
Along the clean and spacious hallways were the elite soldiers assigned to guard duty in the palace. They stood resplendent in their full plate armor — they were knights. The Knights of the Empire were commoners recruited and trained into professional soldiers. In contrast, the Kingdom’s knights were usually third sons of landed nobles or others who could not otherwise inherit the family estate. However, the Crown paid them very highly, and so only first-rate swordsmen were accepted for membership. Not even nobles could sneak in through backdoor connections
“Now then, do forgive me for my frankness — let us get down to business, Azuth Aindra-sama and the members of Blue Rose present,” Lakyus squinted her eyes. Her uncle had abandoned his title as a noble, but because he still retained the title of honorary knight, proper etiquette dictated that he must be referred to by his full name. However, Azuth was the type to dislike being called by his full name.
[V14]
It was for this reason that Brain sought to become stronger, going as far as to request assistance from that person — Gazef Stronoff’s teacher and former Adamantite-ranked adventurer, Vesture Croff di Laufen
[V14]
======
Given the implication how we have two different Kingdom residents of noble lineage who are strong but not working in the palace who bear honorary knight titles, we know one of them didn't retroactively get a Knight class at least. And Azuth being from nobility and training to be an adventurer didn't just give him Noble Fighter or Knight either. Instead he actually possesses Fighter and so forth. It could always be one of his unlisted classes however.
That suggests that Knights are closer to an occupation style Classes: similar to Mercenary. You actually need to be working as a Knight to get the Knight class. Theoretically. Lots of other martial focused characters dont' have any semblance of Knight on their sheets. Even Baziwood who has been ennobled didn't acquire Knight instead he still has Imperial Knight and Guardian. And unlike many others, we know hat Baziwood doesn' have any hidden character classes. What a twist!
Imperial Knights in contrast didn't need to be nobility and likewise they were not hired just for guard duty as alluded to in the LN and WN. Namely, they were expected to not only police but combat monsters and so forth.
==========================
It was a place where the Empire and the Kingdom clashed in fierce battles. It was also a place famous for the proliferation of its undead. Adventurers hired by the Kingdom and Imperial knights would often go there to hunt down the undead. This task was important enough that the Empire and Kingdom’s support corps had built small towns nearby to support their personnel.
[V2]
The Knights of the Empire were commoners recruited and trained into professional soldiers.
[V5]
. Speaking of which, many knights were on patrol, mindful of the safety of their surroundings.
[V7]
As he looked forward to his shopping, his eyes met those of the knights standing by the roadside for an instant, and his easygoing expression immediately tightened up. A tag team of a heavily armored knight and a lightly armored knight stood at the street corner, surveying the surrounding conditions. Everyone knew that the temples to the Four Gods were in the vicinity, and so security was especially strict here. While he doubted that they would arrest people off the streets, Hekkeran could sense their gazes resting on the weapons at his waist. It would be one thing if he was an adventurer, but as a Worker without any form of backing, he did not wish to go up against the knights who enforced the Empire’s safety.
The gods seemed to have smiled on him, because the knights compared his
face to a wanted list, but did not stop him. Thus, he passed through the densely
packed temple distric
[V7]
Anyone with the slightest bit of academic knowledge would immediately recognize the emblem of three crossed staves on the side of the carriage, and from there they would know who it belonged to and who rode within it. That was why the knights on guard duty by the roadside did not stop the carriage and its passengers for questioning
[V7]
Just as Kabein said, the deaths of the knights which policed the Empire would be a huge loss
...
After all,
the Empire’s knights were not just a military force, but a police force as well.They were the people who protected the safety of the Empire. Needless losses
to them would threaten the Empire’s stability
[V9]
. In the adventuring profession, far more people die than manage to make a name for themselves. However, with someone that powerful supporting them… well, at least that’s what those people with no confidence in themselves will think. Also, since we have knights, there aren’t many jobs for low-ranked adventurers in the first place.”
[V10]
Three Hippogriffs flew in the skies above that massive castrum. They began with a wide aerial orbit, followed by a slow descent. Any knight would know that this was the ceremonial descent of the Royal Air Guard, troops under the Emperor’s direct command.
[WN]
The troops were a strange sight.
Probably due to the contrast between black and white.
The white was a three metre long collection of human bones. Countless bones were interconnected to form the shape of a quadruped with a long neck, a dragon. And it slowly moved forward.
The black was a two metre tall knight riding on top. Their left hands held a giant tower shield that hid three quarters of their body, and their right hands held a flamberge. The black armour that covered their giant bodies were engraved in crimson patterns that resembled blood vessels.
They moved in unison without reigns, as if the knight and the dragon beneath were of one mind.
The knights knew the name of the undead that was shaped like a dragon.
This was as the knights were tasked with monster extermination within their borders.
It was important to tell the difference between an enemy that could be defeated and one that could not be, and thus knowledge of monsters was highly prized. The knights had attended lectures. Amongst the knowledge that was hammered into them, one of them was the name of this undead.
[WN]
“The rest of them will surely be safe. They will be accompanied by Imperial Knights after all. Also, I heard there will be healers travelling together too. Don’t worry, we will happily reunite again in a few days.”
Travelling with the Imperial Knights indeed lowered the risk significantly. Moreover, people with rogue and priest skills were present as well. It was as if whole adventuring parties would be following them. Their safety was secured.
[WN]
They headed towards a covered carriage, and surrounding it were the figures of 14 knights.
As they stood there in a perfectly straight line, helmet in their arms, Rangoburt fully believed that they were the personification of the Empire’s military might.
[WN]
From the looks of their armour and the emblem engraved on their chest, he was able to determine their origins and ranks.
They were from the Third Division of the First Army, seven were normal knights, one was a knighted magic caster, another was a knighted priest, two were knighted rogues, two were heavy-armour knights, and finally, their commanding officer.
Basically, they were a group of knights that one could see regularly patrol the Imperial Territories.
[WN]
—The knights shouted, and in unison, stepped back to take distance. In a panic, some of them got tangled with their compatriots and the sound of metal clanging against each other could be heard.
It was quite the unsightly display.
The specialised warriors of the Empire. One of the pillars of the country, perhaps the most important one, the knights were panicking.
[WN]
Firstly, one needed to identify those who
could work well in a group. For even if one became a knight, if one
only worked by oneself, their utility would be minimal.
[WN]
==========================
So what are Gagaran's origins supposed to be? Even if she's a Knight we cannot prove she came from one or the other nation.
First, based on external features, we can approximate the ethnic group Gagaran descends from as probably hailing from the Empire or Kingdom(shocker I know):
===
If the first person was a midget, then this one would be a giant. Seeing this person brought the word “boulder” to mind. Indeed, that person had a stout and massive body, but that girth was not born of obesity. That person’s arms reminded observers of logs, while the neck which held the head up seemed as wide around as a pair of a woman’s thighs. The head which sat upon that neck was squarish in shape. The heavyset chin — currently clenched closed — and the way that person’s eyes surveyed its surroundings reminded one of a carnivorous beast. The blonde hair upon that head was trimmed short for the sake of practicality.
[V5]
He had the typical blond hair and blue eyes of the Kingdom, and while there were no other distinguishing features on him, he looked quite handsome.
[V2]
That person’s chest bulged mightily under their clothes, as though on proud display. Said chest resembled nothing so much as thoroughly honed pectoral muscles. Put more clearly, this was no longer a tender feminine bosom. This was the adamantite-ranked adventurer team composed solely of females — Blue Rose. The two of them were members of Blue Rose. One was the arcane magic caster Evileye, while the other was warrior Gagaran
[V5]
A smiling man strolled casually along this road, the safest in the Empire, humming as he went. The man was roughly 175cm tall, and he looked to be around the age of 20. His hair was blond and his eyes were blue, while his skin had a healthy tan. His looks were hardly uncommon in the Empire
[V7]
======
At least Gagaran appears to have the same features common to these two nations with the same origin. Doesn't hurt to be thorough, so what we know is she was a Knight and came most likely from one of these two nations.
Gagaran's birthday also being Lower Earth Month does suggest she hails from a nation of at least the Four Elemental Gods. We can't say she's not from the Theocracy as the majority of human birthdays we know of come from the Kingdom and people like Erya who don't fit in do leave sometimes, Empire, and Holy Kingdom. It could be a similar or different calendar. The birthdate does lend evidence she comes from this region instead of from other places not covered in the story.
But let's consider her next class: Air Rider.
Based on the name, it implies someone who specialized in using Flying Mounts. Some people however attribute this class to a being a specialized user of her magic boots. We already know people can make builds around magic items in certain cases, like Azuth did (supposedly).
============
he long, massive spiked war pick at her waist was called Full Iron. The luxurious crimson cape she wore, — reminiscent of royal garb — was called the Crimson Guardian. Below her armor was a Vest of Resistance, a Dragontooth Amulet and a Belt of Greater Power. In addition, she wore Winged Boots and a Twister Circlet, while the rings she wore also possessed powerful magic. This was the full battle attire of Gagaran, one of the Kingdom’s topmost warriors
....
Perhaps she sensed that following up on the attack would be dangerous, but
Gagaran skated away — her legs remained still, but the distance between them
opened up. The fact that she was moving so nimbly despite her massive frame
proved that her wounds were completely healed. She took her place beside Tia
[V6]
because his(Azuth) class levels had been built around operating the Powered Suit, he would be an insignifican tfigure were he to be without the suit. Although he relies heavily on the Powered Suit's capabilities he himself is sitll strong enough to be considered an Orichalcum ranked adventurer.
[V14]
==============
There are multiple ways to speculate on what Air Rider is or does. Another example is in the past some readers believed it was proof Gagaran was once part of the Imperial Air Guard, that is a Hippogriff rider. others think Gagaran came from perhaps the Wyvern riding tribes.
We know little about the Wyvern tribes, other than they exist, but given the Knight class, the Imperial origin sounds more plausible, even if it's not Imperial Knight. It's dangerous to assume that Air Rider has to be a mount related class however because Imperial Knight proves that one can be something similar to another class in name but not require the same nuane, in this case nobility for knighhood.
On that topic, given the lack of reference to Gagaran's origin in the Kingdom, that is no rumors of powerful people resembling her in the Kingdom's history seem to exist, does still support the idea that she hails from the Empire, Air Rider class aside. Because different interpretations exist for Air Rider, let us avoid using that as the lynchpin or proof of her origin for now. It can be a supporting point but because it is not definitive it probably is not convincing to rely on it.
On to the next class: Mercenary!
This one doesn't get described much but it has some indicative features. Gazef, one of the most famous warriors in the region actually was a Mercenary in fact.
==============================
“—If you want to ask why I’m so strong, I can’t rightfully give you an answer. Basically, I was talented. Incidentally, I learned how to fight as a mercenary. The nobles call my habit of kicking people crude, but I learned it during that time too. There was no secret to becoming strong,” Gazef concluded
...
Gazef Stronoff
Fighter
Mercenary
Champion
[V5]
Although this band of horsemen were the very picture of mercenary warriors, their disciplined movements and their clipped, precise words were nothing like that of a common sellsword. Their eyes were keen, and they maintained a high level of alertness. Some might have taken their wariness on wide-open plains to be a form of paranoia or cowardice, but in a world where magic was real and monsters roamed everywhere, even being on guard against everything they could see was not enough to guarantee their safety. There were giant spiders which could survive for months without eating or drinking while lying in wait for their prey, unclean monsters which resembled banks of fogs that slid through the air, venomous lizards with petrifying gazes that one had to flee at all costs if they were encountered on open ground… They were all on edge because they were wary of monsters with such deadly powers. However, normal mercenaries did not go to such lengths for alertness.
[V9]
“You seem relaxed. You don’t think anyone’s going to attack?” “Hm? Oh, I haven’t gotten that stinging feeling, so no prob— Oh, you probably wanted to say that feelings can’t be trusted, eh? Well, I understand where you’re coming from, but you surely have also had moments when you thought ‘this will work out fine’, right? There are also times where you have had a bad feeling about something, so you try to plan for it, and it ended up being true, or something.” “…Yeah, I’ve had those experiences.” “See? Our past experiences can function as our intuition.” The mercenary leader spoke in a tone that didn’t seem to match his appearances at all.
...
“Are you worrying about down and out mercenaries? Would they not be able
to recognize the flag of the Sorcerous Kingdom, the hottest of all topics?” he
shrugged, “experienced mercenaries are surprisingly well-informed. Those who
don’t even know of the flags of the countries around don’t scare me at all.
…Looks like you’re not buying it. Think about it, wouldn’t it be worrying to not
know which noble you’re picking a fight with? You wouldn’t want to get into
trouble that way, would you?
[V14]
=============
From what we can see, Gagaran started out as a Knight, became an Air Rider then a Mercenary. Or at least that would be what the Level Order Acquisition (LOA) Theory suggests. Now caution is required if a certain class possibly changed into another. Zanac's Prince becoming King suggests this at least, as does Neia's Squire and Archer levels changing. What happens in those cases is generally the class stays in it's relative slot to reflect the foundational class before the change but turns into the superior class.
LOA is a Theory with lots of supporting evidence however (like Keno, Zaryusu, Gondo, Olasird'arc,Neia fanatic, and Momonga) who we have general ideas how they progressed in classes and levels.
Let us assume for a moment LOA is true. What if anything can we deduce from Gagaran's order of class levels?
====
Knight
Air Rider
Mercenary
etc
====
Looking at it, Air Rider strangely comes BEFORE Mercenary. That is a bit suspect actually. Why? Consider all the other soldiers we have character sheets for:(with Level order arranged Left to Right)
====
Gazef: Fighter, Mercenary, Champion
Baziwood: Fighter, Imperial Knight, Guardian
Remedios: Paladin(Genius), Holy Knight, Evil Slayer
Gustav: Paladin, Holy Knight, Charisma(Normal)
=====
Typically the second job class of Humanoid melee combatants who serve a nation is the primary vocation they employed their martial prowess in. Why? Dunno. But typically people don't have these classes as their first class. Gazef has his Mercenary experienced denoted, Baziwood has his military experience, and both the Paladins have their roles as Knights of the Holy Kingdom listed (assuming it's not just the prestige Paladin class but fits the more general pattern of soldier occupation ie Knight of the Holy Kingdom, Knight of the Empire).
If we look at this pattern, then we see something strange with Gagaran.
Assuming Air Rider was just due to Gagaran getting and relying heavily on her Winged Boots presents an interesting observation:
Gagaran got a hold of a magic item she still uses today fairly early in her leveling up phase. And even if that isn't what Air Rider implies, Gagaran has Knight as her first listed class, not Fighter.
Was it a family heirloom of a noble family she hailed from? A gift from her lord? Assuming Air Rider = Winged Boot user, then that might actually be plausible and support the noble family connection. From what we see of Imperial Knights and Knights in Re Estize, normally they do not possess magic items or notable magic items. At least these Knights do not possesss magic items that distinct as Winged Boots.
Likewise, assuming Air Rider meant Gagaran was a mounted warrior of a flying beast suggests Gagaran was in a position to use a flying mount before she ever joined a Mercenary band. That would typically imply she was part of the Royal Air Guard however. Which doens't match the class name of Knight.
This presents some data to bias the projected homeland she came from:
Flying mounts are never said to have been used in the Kingdom nor are they ever depicted. Meanwhile, because magic casters have poor reputations in the Kingdom, few nobles rely on them for enchanting items meant for combat, barring heirlooms.
Now, the Wyvern Rider society could have Knights for all we know. However, based on what we know, the Empire has more prominent magic caster culture, magic items, nobles, and ethnicities that match Gagarin's possible background than a what-if blank spot in Overlord.
===
This level of knowledge in magic was not part of conventional education, so it wasn’t taught even in noble families. This fact applied to the royalty as well. The only reason Prince Zanac knew what he knew about druids was because he had actively sought out that information. The fact that magic casters didn’t hold any status in the Kingdom was probably to blame. If it was like the Empire where someone as great as the TriArts Magic Caster exists, it might have been a completely different story. However, the Kingdom’s ignorance of magic and desire for brave, strong cavalrymen had already become deeply rooted in their culture. A magic caster capable of changing the status quo never appeared.
[V14]
====
In contrast we know the Empire has Flying Mounts, and we know nobility not only have family members who attend the Mage Academy but also even have some magic items. Nobility seems a more likely source because given Gagaran has the class listed after Knight but before Mercenary she could have only been so strong before either acquiring the mount or getting the magic item in either case (barring the caveat of unlisted classes going between or before Knight of course). We are assuming however one of her unlisted classes does not go between Knight and Air Rider though. Olasird'arc proves that unlisted classes can go between any of the listed ones.
Imperial Knights seem less likely to have been the origin because we already know that the typical Imperial Knight doesn't get magic items that early. Hippogrif Riders may be more likely assuming no other classes come between Knight and Air Rider. It's not hard to become an elite in the Empire by capping out just in Fighter levels for example. Elites are only considered Silver or Gold. Climb himself was considered about Gold ranked, yet only has two classes, Fighter and Guardian for example.
===
\[V7]
===
If we sum up the factors:
1.) Human Region Birthdate
2.) Features typical of humans in this region
3.) The lack of mentions or rumors about her origins in the Kingdom despite being ADamantite there
4.) The LOA theory of Knight coming before Air Rider then Mercenary
5.) The possible Winged Boots heirloom
More than likely Gagaran for some reason abandoned her position as a Knight. Her occupation after that was a Mercenary, ignoring the possible different implications for Air Rider at the moment.
Given the steep competition in the Empire for mercenary work as Workers, Adventurers and Imperial Knights already are competing in the nation for monster extermination(and Hekkeran didn't have Mercenary as a class suggesting Workers don't usually get it), and the fact Gagaran was in the Kingdom eventually, it is not farfetched to suggest her Mercenary class was acquired while working in the Kingdom as a Mercenary, especially as given the precedence, we already know Gazef worked as a Mercenary in the Kingdom and got the same class. That's the nation we know that uses them most prominently due to the lacking infrastructure there in terms of mliitarization.
====
“Is that so? I personally feel it would be better to be escorted by competent bodyguards. The way to the Royal Capital is long, and unlike the Empire, the roads of the Kingdom are not very safe. I could recommend some reliable mercenaries.” The security of the roads in the Kingdom fell to the nobles who owned the land through which those roads passed. In turn, they would collect a toll from travelers. This was the privilege of the nobles, but in truth, it was little more than a means of collecting a road tax, and the security of the roads was riddled through with holes in many places. It was quite common for travelers to meet brigands or sellswords who had turned to banditry while on the road
V3
Therefore, traveling merchants typically hired adventurers or a band of trusted mercenaries to defend themselves. A powerful and prestigious person like Bardo would surely know of well-trained and reliable mercenaries
[V3]
Soldiers in the Royal Army included conscripts armed and outfitted by the lords of various domains, mercenaries hired by the cities, guards tasked with patrolling the cities, and so on. However, the one thing they had in common was that they were all of low birth.
[V5]
Climb walked along the main street of the Royal Capital. Climb blended perfectly into the mass of humanity, given that he had few distinguishing features about him. He did not wear his distinctive suit of white armor. While he could use certain alchemical items to change its color, he was not that attached to it. Besides, there was no need to go around in full plate armor while walking on the streets. As a result, he dressed lightly, wearing a chain shirt under his clothes. Only the longsword at his waist marked him as visibly different from the average citizen. He looked like a patrolling soldier — a city guardsman — or a mercenary when outfitted in that way. Some people would avoid him, but they would not clear out of his path in the way they would for someone in heavy armor. Anyone in such a panoply ought to be an adventurer. It was not so much that they needed the protection as the publicity
[V5]
=====
Why Gagaran and Gazef didn't immediately turn to adventurering instead of mercenary work might seem strange given the pay outs. However there was a demand and adventuring is not exactly the easiest profession to get into given how little guidance is given to newbies, the well known high fatality rate, and the dangers of relying on request boards instead of contracted work. Also you don't need to fight monsters as often and adventurers don't have as high a reputation as it seems ( or so we are told).
The exact reasons probably will not be dwelt on.
Irregardless of that all, a Knight becoming a Mercenary and then an Adamantite ranked adventurer at some point probably would of been known to Lakyus, a noble scion of the Kingdom with connections to the royal family if Gagaran hailed from the Kingdom. To take the devil's advocate for a moment, Gagaran coming from the Kingdom might explain why she avoided going with Lakyus to the Royal Palace or how spaced out she was. Being fair however, Gagaran could of been spaced out because of the role she would need to play in getting Lakyus to leave the capitol (sucker punchign Lakyus).
=====
“Tia’s not here. Gagaran and Evileye both dislike stuffy occasions… but it’s
not that stuffy, is it? I’m wearing a proper dress just in case, but I didn’t insist
on them doing the same.”
[V5]
Evileye sighed heavily on purpose. “The Princess has been so gracious to welcome guests who had barged in without warning with tea, would our leader be so cruel as to refuse her offer? What an indifferent fellow. Oy, musclehead.” She received no response from Gagaran. Although the gazes of everybody in the room were affixed on Gagaran, she pretended that she had heard and seen nothing at all. “Oy, you there with the coy expression, woman who’d sink straight to the bottom if she fell into the sea.” She was indeed being completely ignored. Evileye sighed loudly in response to her behavior. “Oy, Gagaran.” “Oy? Oh? What? What do you need me for? What’s going on, Evileye?”
[V14]
====
Between the two most likely origins, Gagaran hailing from the Empire seems more plausible than the Kingdom in Ziggy's opinion. Perhaps you may agree reader?
Since Ziggy is pushing this agenda so hard, is there any evidence to support this deduction?
Ziggy believes there is. For that though, Ziggy wants to talk about a somewhat taboo topic: gender identity. Is Gagaran really a woman? At first people used to argue that Gagaran was just what Warrior women looked like. But after Remedios and Leinas appeared, is tht really true? Something in the mobile game, ObaMa, Overlord Mass for the Dead made Ziggy really sus.
=======
""It's what's inside your heart that makes you a sweet young lady or not!""
Obama Gagaran
=======
That's a bit.... strange of a thing to bring up. It makes sense in terms of gender identity as we (people of the modern era) understand it though. Then Ziggy remembered an odd thing from both the mobile game and the latest volume:
=====
“Oy, you there with the coy expression, woman who’d sink straight to the bottom if she fell into the sea.” She was indeed being completely ignored. Evileye sighed loudly in response to her behavior. “Oy, Gagaran.”
[V14]
ちなみに脂肪が少ない彼女は水に浮かびにくく、 海に入れば一直線で沈んでしまう。 ただ、そういった不利を覆すほどの筋力もあるため、 泳ぎ自体は達者である。
By the way, she has little fat so it is difficult for her to float,
Swimsuit Gagaran Obama
======
If you do not know, human women tend to have a higher fat percentage than human men. Likewise body fat percentage affects how easily you float in water. So people who are very fit and muscular actually struggle to float.
Entoma's own statements support the idea Maruyama is aware of this biological notion in addition to this semi canonically plausible idea and Evileye's implication.
===
She playfully knuckled her own head, and then brought the severed man’s arm under her jaw. There was a shakashaka noise as the flesh of the man’s arm was torn away. Entoma’s throat moved in time with the sound. Then, with a cute urp, the stench of blood spread through the air. “While the fat of women’s meat makes it tender and children’s meat tastes good despite having less fat, eating the meat of a muscular man is best when trying to lose weight.”
[V6]
====
=====
Given how the character sheet questions her gender, Gagaran's own statements about gender(canon status up in the air), and how even her body fat comes into question, there seems to be more evidence to suggest she's actually male rather than female based on her physical composition and beliefs. (her Obama swimsuit art is still mad sus though brah).
If Gagaran has the heart of a woman then it makes sense why people would think of her as a women. And guess what is one way they call a man who believes or acts like a woman?
Okama. And where has an Okama been mentioned before in Overlord?
And now we finally have a candidate for her original identity: the Okama of the Empire or the 3rd son of the Viscount Zesch.
Dun dun duuuuuun.
Hitori's muh waifu just like the next manlet but unfortunately Ziggy doesn't like translating Okama as 'transvestite'. Transvestite basically means just cross dresser. it has other nuances but words like Butch or Dyke seem more accurate in comparison. That's becasue Okama basically means "a man who acts womanly" in some cases.
Gagaran = Third Son of a Imperial Noble family
The biological features match, the chiseled jaw line, and even Gagaran's origin seemed to be from the Empire as well even before factoring in her gender. There is nothing wrong with a woman being overly muscular or having a broad chin. Just those are features typically found in the opposite sex of humans. If we pair that with her body fat composition and how not ony her character shet but even Entoma questioned her gender,
Is it possible Gagaran just inherited the physiology of an ancestor like Neia inherited her father's scary eyes? Possibly. Though if women could take after male ancestors just as much as female ancestors, why are so few women described like Gagaran? Even the muscular women still have overall unquestioned sex despite coming form the same species.
It just seems more likely that all the suggestions point to Gagaran being an Okama instead of a bona fide female.
And finally for the first part, our lemma:
Given Kruelvo had gotten stronger but in the past was a possible new recruit to the Four Knights, the Okama being on par with the Four Knights (Adamantite) actually circumstantially strengthens the case Gagaran is the Okama if we add it to the gender questionability, her origin as a Knight, the mystery of her identity in the Kingdom, and her features and date of birth suggesting she came from this area.
Physiologically speaking, Entoma assessed Gagarn's body to be male, the lack of fat content was not only implied by Evileye but confirmed in Obama as well, and even her character sheet alludes to her gender being questionable.
Would all of these details prove it definitively? No. Not really, however Gagaran's classes, physiology, own beliefs, and the details of her origin do suggest this is more likely than alternative theories like Gagaran comes from the Wyvern riding tribes or Gagaran comes from the Kingdom.
=====
TLDR
Gagaran's original identity seems to be somewhat likely to have been the Third Son of Viscount Zesshu.
======
For some circumstantial and less concrete information, that may or may support the original sex, is the pattern of male connections to Gagaran and sexual relations.
We see for example, Gagaran come onto Brain, a man who may or may not be homosexual and at one point was. In the novels, he admits to not really understanding women as well and didn't have any comfort women in his time with the Death Spreading Brigade. Yet he flirted somewhat back with Gagaran.
Then we have Osk. When Osk pondered those he was attracted to, he brings up Head Hunting Rabbit and Go Gin, two powerful males, one of which cross dresses. But specifies Gagaran as his ideal.
Also Gagaran's swimsuit art in Obama. That thigh covering up her pelvis is mad sus yo. Super sus.
------
“Oh, it’s been a while. What, come to sleep with me, have you?” Gagaran jerked her chin, indicating that he should take a seat. There was an evil, savage grin upon that square face of hers. Climb simply shook his head blankly. Gagaran said the same thing every time, to the point where it had become something like a form of greeting. However, she was not joking in the slightest. If Climb answered “yes”, even in jest, she would immediately drag him into a singles’ room on the second floor. Climb would be helpless before her irresistible arm-strength. Gagaran, who prided herself as a “cherry picker”, was such a person.
[V5]
“As if… What happens to you doesn’t really matter to me. I just felt that it would be a shame for you to die a virgin, so I thought that if we had the time, maybe I could break you in. Still, now that I know that you didn’t beat ‘Illusion Devil’ by chance. You really are an incredible warrior. Even without crossing blades, I can tell that it’ll be easy with you around.” “Thank you very much. On my part, I now know the rumors were true as well. Still, it’s best not to get careless. There’s a lot of monsters out there who can kill us in moments.” “Oh, aren’t we careful. I don’t mind men like that. While you’re not a cherry, how about a quick tumble?” “I’ll pass. It’ll probably get squashed.” Climb did not ask which part of him would get squashed. “Really? What a shame. Be careful, Climb.” Gagaran waved farewell and then strode off. As Brain watched her leave, he quietly said, “I didn’t expect her to be so nice, given the way she looks.”
[V6]
After he said that, he extended his arms. Osk’s eyes were entranced by his fists. They were round fists. His fists had been reshaped by punching hard objects tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of times, until they were now in a round, ball-like shape. These hands were made for battle. A chill ran through Osk, followed by an uncontrollable excitement. “―Where are you looking, you pervert.” “I was just thinking that those were good hands.” It was true he liked those hands very much, but sadly, Headhunting Rabbit did not interest him
Gender was not a big matter for him. However, Osk’s ideal partner was the
warrior from the Kingdom’s Blue Rose (Gagaran). Granted, Headhunting
Rabbit would make a good partner as well, but he felt too skinny, compared to
her. In contrast, the Martial Lord was a little too thick
[V10]
“—Climb, Brain-san has already made his decision.” “As expected of Princess -san, you’re a good woman. That said, I don’t really understand women anyway. Mmmm, how do I put this.” Brain stood upright.
[V14]
By the way, I scrapped it, but Brain in the published books was homosexual. In fact there was a setting where he was in love with Gazef, so that’s why he had no women in the bandit cave [for himself]
[TWTR]
-------
Is it the most supportive evidence? No. But on top of everything else, it does make you :thinking: emoji. Or is that just Ziggy's shizautism? Autischizophrenia?
=====
=====
Bonus:
Topping Off Level Cap
Something overlooked a lot is people often assume level progression is uniform. Now EXP amounts might increase and some classes might be harder to get but in theory there should not be an issue going from one level to the next. But didn't Kuervo's weird disappearance for years not make you question things? Between the Kuervo of the past and the Kuervo of now in particular?
However, it actually seems like Overlord has Torticelli Flow. Who is Torticelli? Well that doesn't matter as much, but the idea is that the flow of anything will slow down as more of it is expelled or rather if there is only a little bit left, then things start trickling out slower than when there was a lot more to empty out. The idea is that because most liquid tanks rely on gravity to direct liquid out a spigot instea dof applying some force to it, because more of it is gone the force directing it will weaken. Put in a way humans can understand, things flow easily when there is lots in the tank but it becomes unbearably slow to get the last few bits out.
So where does this apply to Levels?
Well you're in luck reader who doesn't exist! Autism-man is here to confuse you!
Anyway, at it's core it seems like Maruyama intended for this rule to apply to YGGDRASIL, that is it was quite easy to level up, for the most part, but it became really hard to MAX level. In a sense it's like Torticelli's law but in reverse: as you add more it becomes harder to build up more. Think of it like stacking more and more things higher up, it takes more effort to just place something there because of that cuck gravity wearing you down.
======
Generally, if a mistake was made in making a character, dying and using the level drain was [way to respec]. Like an ordinary MMO earning 0.1 % of EXP takes 1 hour. It was really calm to reach Lv. 95, as it rises unexpectedly quickly. It is hard without comrades.
95レベルまでは超余裕で成長させることが出来るが、それ以降は以外に早いけど仲間がいないときつい
Able to grow as far as Level 95by being extremely complacent, however increasing beyond that required on to be determined/strong minded with the exception it was easy for those with comrades
[Arc]
=======
After this Prologue however, people have started to debate whether this rule actually applies to everyone reaching their capacity. This topping off phenomenon appears to be exemplified by a few New Worlders. Instead of the 'last five levels requiring dedication' however, people think it's generalzied to the last 1/20th(5 percent) of someone's level cap is the hardest to reach.
====
Arche:
People who knew thought she had brilliant aptitude but actually she was just an early bloomer and had already nearly reached the limits of her potential.
[V7]
Though the winner was covered in glory, Brain — the loser — felt as though all his efforts up to that point had gone up in smoke. However, Brain had also learned that the dream of becoming the strongest in the world was not one that only he possessed. It would seem his perspective had been too limited. After retreating into himself for over a month, Brain broke through the despair that would drive anyone to drink, and pulled himself together. He refused employment offers from several nobles, having decided for the first time in his life to strengthen himself. He trained ceaselessly, honing both his skills and his body. He learned about magic and furthered his knowledge. The genius now applied himself like a scholar. Defeat had only made Brain stronger.
...
Rather than learn a broad range of techniques, he had focused on one single
goal. His goal was to strike faster than his opponent, to accurately deliver a
single, fatal blow, and in the course of his studies he had innovated a second
unique martial art — Instant Flash.
That high-speed strike was swift enough to be undodgeable, but he had not
stopped there.
His training after that was extraordinary, in pursuit of the peak of
excellence. He must have practiced it hundreds of thousands, no, millions of
times. His ceaseless use of the Instant Flash had caused calluses to grow on his
palms, specializing them in performing the technique, and parts of his sword’s
hilt had been worn into the shape of his grips.
[V3]
The Brain Unglaus who stood there had already surpassed Gazef Stronoff — he had entered the realm of heroes.
[V14]
“Martial Lord… Go Gin.” He had met the Martial Lord about ten years ago.
...
This was only the fourth time he had heard those words of thanks. The previous three times had been when he was given his weapon, his armor, and then when he had fought his best opponent, the previous Martial Lord “Rot Wolf”, Krelvo Palantyne
[V10]
“Too many of the Empire’s warriors end up going to the gladiatorial arenas and such. Speaking of strong folks… A while ago, I saw Palantynen in the Imperial Capital. It seems as though he had improved even more through some torturous training. It felt as though he was a monster that we could no longer win against no matter what we do.”[Prologue] “…Black eyes and hair like Nabe-san, so he shouldn’t have been born in this area. I’ve heard that in the south, people like Momon-san are commonplace… did you come from that region?” “Yes. We have come here from a faraway land.” He’s older than I thought, he’s already an uncle. Hey, that’s rude. A warrior on par with a magic caster of the third tier should be around that age. Miss Nabe’s pretty amazing too. Ainz’s keen ears picked up their whispered words, with the exception of Peter’s. Being called an uncle made Ainz feel uncomfortable, but it probably couldn’t be helped that he was an uncle in the eyes of these youngsters. If one was an adult by the age of sixteen, then Ainz was definitely an uncle to them
[V2]
====
It may not seem strange at first. But remember that Arche, Brain, and presumably Krelvo were all people who have their livlihoods filled with using their skills constantly. Krelvo and Brain in particular dumped far more time into training than perhaps even Arche. Yet Brain did not reach the Realm of Heroes until after Gazef's death and Krelvo didn't reach Gazef's level (theoretically) until after his tenure as Martial Lord. We don't know the exact time differential however Go Gin was already the martial lord by the time Ainz came to this world, meanwhile it's been two years since and Kruelvo only now has been seen as surpassing his old self or at least it was the first time it was noted.
Likewise, Lakyus for example is described as someone with more room to grow, despite being in the Realm of Heroes already and engaged in lots of adventuring work. At least in Volume 6.
Similarly for Arche, she had not only spent time in the Academy but also several years as a worker but still hadn't capped out her level, but was quite close.
All of these people were notable for being regarded as excellent in their crafts. What we see is they stabilzied around a certain power level for a great deal of time (despite being fairly active in their chosen fields). Brain focused heavily on training, Arche was a fairly active Worker, and Kuervo was off in the mountains or whatever training for god knows how long AFTER being the Martial Lord.
=====
Now it's hard to say exactly how fast each of these people progressed. We know too little about what factors affect leveling up in any great detail. Like did Brain need Vestia's guidance to break into the Realm of Heroes after he spent so long training? But we know Arche, Brain, and Kuervo were all not at their peak but close to it ( or at least the next stage of their development).
The Brain who never really tried several years ago was inferior to Eryua (Mithril to Orichalcum ranked warrior). Only after trying did he reach around the peak of humanity.
----
Indeterminate
Given the way Gringam was gushing with praise for him, and the fact that he could fight evenly with Gazef Stronoff, the mightiest warrior of the surrounding nations, it was clear that his strength must have been top-rate. So it was just that he did not know that the world contained such skilled exponents. Hekkeran was filled with awe. “Mhm… then, who do you think is stronger, between that Unglaus chap and Uzruth.” “Uzruth,” Gringam answered without any delay. “If he had to battle Unglaus from the grand martial tournament, it would definitely be him. I witnessed a fight of his in the arena recently, and I am certain of it,” “So that means he can stand on par with the Warrior-Captain from several years ago? Is he really that strong? Oh my.”
[V7]“Fun. Warrior Captain-dono. Is your arm getting rusty?”
“Maa, it has been four years since the end of the tournament.”
Gazef clenched his fist to suppress himself. The opponents are the nobles, who wanted to infuriate him.
[WN]
Approximately 2 years after being Adamantite ranked (Volume 3)
The Brain Unglaus who stood there had already surpassed Gazef Stronoff — he had entered the realm of heroes.
[V14]
------
So Brain was:
Four years before Ainz: inferior to Erya (he never tried hard however)
Year of Ainz's arrival: on par with Gazef
Two Years after Ainz's arrival: in the Realm of Heroes
Brain's a Genius however and so he may not be the best point of comparison(if being a Genius makes it easier to level up compared to just being talented or having Aptitude). It seems like that would be the case but it might just be a false assumption too. Doesn't helpt these two terms get conflated.
For the typical 'peak potential' normal person we have:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
He’s older than I thought, he’s already an uncle. Hey, that’s rude. A warrior on par with a magic caster of the third tier should be around that age. Miss Nabe’s pretty amazing too. Ainz’s keen ears picked up their whispered words, with the exception of Peter’s. Being called an uncle made Ainz feel uncomfortable, but it probably couldn’t be helped that he was an uncle in the eyes of these youngsters. If one was an adult by the age of sixteen, then Ainz was definitely an uncle to them
[V2]
His facial features were rough, and his hair was parted. His tiny mustache was neatly trimmed and he gave others the impression of being relaxed. He looked to be around 30 years old.
[V7]
“Still, I can’t believe the Magic Academy would actually let go of such a talented girl.” “Indeed, she’s capable of using magic of my tier at this age. For all we know, she might end up being able to attain the sixth tier.”
[V7]
“This Hamsuke shall become stronger for the sake of Milord, so Milord will look upon me with different eyes! But how much longer must this one practice before this one can count as a full-fledged warrior? Hamsuke shall be a warrior!” “Well… I’d say you could be a warrior in one, maybe two more months, Hamsuke-san.” “…That’s so far off!” “I feel it’s already been going very fast, Hamsuke. Normal people take a year before learning martial arts. From that point of view, you’ve grown fast enough,” added Zenberu, the Lizardman standing beside Zaryusu. “Is that so?” “Indeed. You’ve fought live battles and been healed for your wounds, then enhanced with support magic and made to fight enemies stronger than yourself in death battles. After that hellish regime, you’ve made quite a lot of progress.”
[V7]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As it's portrayed, 'normal' people tend to reach the 'normal' peak of third tier in magic or warrior classes in their 30s. hat's not to say people like Calca or Lakyus can't exist, but it seems for people active in combat they reach their limit afer a decade or two of effort.
People like Climb however who are only teenagers still can reach their limit faster than adults by training substantially harder than others to reach the same region of power. That' s strange isn't it?
----------
He tightly gripped his sword, which was larger than a greatsword, and adopted a high stance. Then Climb began to swing down, expelling his breath as he did. In the moment before the practice weapon struck the ground, he held it still, keeping it from actually striking the ground, and then brought it back up again as he inhaled. He slowly increased the speed of his swings, his eyes fixed on the air in front of him, his mind focused on his practice. He repeated these movements around 300 times. Climb’s face looked as though it could not possibly get any redder, and droplets of sweat flowed down his cheeks. His exhaled breath was hot, as though to vent the accumulated heat inside him. Climb had been through harsh training as a soldier, but the weight of a greatsword was still quite heavy to him. Controlling the sword’s speed to keep it from striking the ground after swinging it down required considerable arm strength. After the 500th repetition, Climb’s arms began to cramp up and they felt like they were crying out in pain. The sweat flooded down his face in a deluge. Climb realized that he was at his limit. Even so, he did not intend to stop here
...
It was not that Climb was very strong, but that the standards by which he
was judged were too low. The average Royal Army soldier was little better than
the average man, and far weaker than the Imperial Army’s professional
Knights. Virtually none of them were famed for their martial skill throughout
the surrounding nations like Gazef was. While Gazef’s direct subordinates
were excellent soldiers, they were still a notch beneath Climb.
Among the adventurers’ rankings of copper, iron, silver, gold, platinum,
mythril, orichalcum and adamantite, Climb himself would be gold-ranked at
best. He was not weak, but there were many others who were stronger than
himself.
[V5]
Climb was nearing his limit. Though he woke early to practice every day, his rate of growth was slower than an old cow ambling down the road. He had made far too little progress ever since he had started learning the sword. While he might be able to improve his speed and strength by training his body, he might not be able to master special abilities like martial arts and the like. It would be terribly rude for someone like Climb to grumble about not being able to force a gifted individual to use his true abilities. Rather, he should blame his own lack of talent for not being able to make his opponent go all-out. In all likelihood, when Gazef told him to treat this as a real battle instead of simple training, he was telling Climb to “fight like you want to take my life, otherwise you are not worthy to be my opponent.” Climb gnashed his teeth quietly. He despised his weakness. If only he were stronger, he could be more useful. He could become the Princess’ sword and directly confront the villains plaguing the Kingdom’s people.
[V5]
Frankly speaking, Climb had no talent. However hard he worked, however hard he trained his body, he would never be able to reach the zenith of swordsmanship without talent. He was as dust compared to people like Gazef or Brain Unglaus
The answer was simple enough; Gazef could not overlook Climb’s
unwavering diligence, however useless it was. If every man had their own
personal limits, then one could say that Gazef pitied the fact that Climb hurled
himself bodily against the wall of his own limits.
Therefore, he wanted to teach Climb something else.
He felt that there was a limit to one’s abilities, but not limit to one’s
experience.
[V5]
It sounded purely disadvantageous, but it had a benefit in that the soldiers constantly honed their skills lest they be drawn into a factional conflict. While they were still nowhere near the level of the Imperial Knights, the Keep’s guards had some measure of skill.Of course, Climb was much more skilled than them, but the nobles had managed to find fault even with that. After all, he was stronger than the troops which the nobles themselves had put forward
[V5]
There were very few warriors in this city who were stronger than Climb. Even among the men of Gazef’s hand-picked warrior band, one could count the number of people who were stronger than Climb on one hand.
[V10]
-----------
Basically one can accelerate the speed of leveling up by putting in far more effort. You'll still level up if you go through the motions of life however. Just it won't measure up to reaching those who do try substantially harder. Gazef's men clearly train a lot more than the others but Climb still surpasses most of them in terms of power and maybe even effort.
Perhaps that substantiates the final 1/20th of level cap argument?
Consider how Maruyama phrases 'working hard'.
------------------
Ranks of Magic:
1st Rank of Magic (Adventurers of E, F Class): The basics of being a magic caster, the first steps. However there are many who stay at this rank for life. Popular ones include magic to improve the milk of livestock in villages, magic to make delicious stew, magic to make spices like salt.
2nd Rank of Magic (Adventurers of C, D Class): The realm where hard working magic casters reach. If a talentless person works hard, this is his limit.
3rd Rank of Magic (Adventurers of A, B Class) If one can reach here, he is celebrated as a great magic caster. This is the realm where those hardworking of average talent reach the end of their line.
4th Rank of Magic (Adventurers of A+): The realm where humans with talent work extremely hard can reach. Basically those who live side by side with danger, like adventurers. Top level in a country, five are sufficient.
5th Rank of Magic (Adventurers of Hero Class): This and further levels are Hero Class. It is the realm where even those with talent cannot reach. At a level of one in a country. It is not strange for bards to sing of them. Famous ones include [Bluesky Dragonlord], [Pontiff of the Slane Theocracy], and she may be dead but [Country Destroyer ].
[WN]
Zaryusu is a hero of the lizardmen. He has the potential to become splendidly strong if he trains. Compared to the currently turned Vampire Brain...there is potentially a small distance [between their strength].
[ARC]
------------------
Notice how 'most people stay at the first tier' or the various 'working hard' exercpts? This could be interpreted as applying the 'slowed level up near level cap' idea. If Climb truly had no talent, why would he rank higher than nearly most of Gazef's warrior band? Besides the idea he might have a slightly higher level cap, it could be the vast majority of people never push themselves hard enough to get that final 5 percent of power or to get non-Normal job classes.
Unlike most people however, we actually know Climb wasn't just near his limit, he actually reached his level cap as alluded to his frustrations at no longer progressing further and Gazef's respect for his tenacity and Maruyama's confirmation.
========
Q: [I thought Gazef was weak, not beating Ainz’s wall monster despite being called strong by so many people. ]
A: Climb compared to a general soldier is strong enough they can’t be compared. It’s complicated but compared to Gazef’s soldiers he is strong. Considering soldiers in the Kingdom it is easier to count from the strongest. Maa, he has reached his growth limit [seichou genkai].
[ARC]
========
However, let's approach this in the opposite way: the Torticelli principle might explain this very minor situation but then why are most villagers rated so lowly but professional soldiers tend to be closer to their cap?
Obviously the danger element probably plays a role, just as the Elven King alludes to. But we do have some evidence of the inverse of trying hard is needed to level up. That inverse is exemplified by Tuare or Tsuare or however you want to spell her name.
----
Maid(Ordinary) Level 1
Slave(Ordinary) Level 2
----
Compare the years Tuare spent suffering due to human trafficing. Now compare that to Enri who in just a few short months gained far more levels far faster.
---
Farmer Lv.1
Sergeant Lv.1
Commander Lv. 2
General Lv. 2
-----
In particular we know from the start of Volume 8 to the end she gained a total of four levels too. Thus until she was exposed far more to conflict more often, Enri was about on par with Tuare and most other villagers being in the ball park of the first handfull of levels. So let's analyze this in stages.
Stage 1:
Pre Conflict
So Enri is Level 2 after the full extent of her life while Tuare up until the time she joined NAzarick is only Level 3. What we know is for the most part neither dealt with violence on a regular bias beyond living in the standard village of the Kingdom.
However, Tuare then goes through the hells of human trafficking, and lots of physical abuse against her will. Yet despite this turmoil on a far more regular basis than Enri's own troubles in just one life or death struggle at Carne, after years Tuare still was only Level 3.
Strange, don't you think?
Post Conflict
After Enri goes through the conflicts of Volume 8, we she suddenly earns more levels in this short span of time than Tuare did in the totality of her life.
Now we have some tools to address this: Enri probably has some talent or aptitude for being a leader. Didn't Calca and Lakyus gain massive amounts of levels in a short time?
However, if we ponder how regular and stressful all the pain Tuare went through, shouldn't evne someone like her progress like Climb did eventually, even with no talent in anything?
Thus, we hit upon a new source of mystery: why is Tuare's leveling up so slow then?
The first possibility is that this is how long it takes to acquire Ordinary or Civilian job classes.
The second possibility is that Tuare wasn't actively working toward the job class (ie not working hard) so it follows the slower villager progression time
The third possibility is that Tuare was resisting the situation and therefore used the inverse version of 'working hard' and slowed her own progress unintentionally to a crawl.
If your dedication or effort toward a craft leads to you progressing farther and faster on it, couldn't the lack thereof or rejection of a path have some influene? Neia is a good example of this, where she worked toward a goal but she clearly had more talent in a particular class. Yet then she kept dedicating effort in new paths from her starting one , despite all the conflicts she was in and training she did.
Why did Evangelist and Founder eat up so many levels if she trains so much and doens't actively use thsoe two (to our knowledge) in combat?
If we presume conflict and conflict alone influences the acquistion of job classes, that doesn't explain this clear contradiction. Doubly so if we remember Climb gained nearly all of his levels from training alone and copying others. Neia's early life aside, post Volume 12 we already know she's embraced being an Archer of a sort but then why do these non-Archer levels increase over her own Archer class?
----------
A shocked Evileye said. Lakyus was equally surprised. They had fought against a unit that was burning down demi-human villages in the past and they were strong. Especially the captain of that unit, who was stronger than Lakyus was at that time. Yet, no one from that unit was as strong as the people in front of them.
[V14]
Her name was Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra. It was hard to tell given the sheer pink dress she wore, but this woman was the leader of one of the two adamantite-ranked adventurer teams in the Kingdom, and Lakyus’ closest friend. She had racked up a considerable tally of accomplishments at the tender age of 19, and the fact that she had attained the coveted rank of adamantite must be due to her astounding talent. Climb felt the stirring of jealousy in the depths of his soul
[V5]
The speaker was the Holy Queen, Calca Bessarez. Due to her low place in the order of succession — only males had inherited the Holy Kingdom until now — she should never have taken the position of Holy Queen. However, due to two qualities she had, the crown had eventually been placed upon her brow. The first was her beautiful looks. Her face was as beautiful as a freshly bloomed flower, filled with cuteness and dignity, and it was praised as “the treasure of Roble,” while her radiant, vibrant long hair was like threads of spun gold. Since it resembled an angel’s halo, many who saw her gentle smile went on to describe her as a saint. The other quality was her excellence as a divine magic caster. She was a genius who could use fourth tier spells at the tender age of fifteen, and she had ascended to the throne with the firm backing of the previous Holy King and the temples. Almost ten years had passed since then, while certain voices disapproved of her excessive kindness, she had not made any mistakes which could be considered critical and thus she had ruled the Holy Kingdom to this day. However, this rule was not solid, and embers smoldered out of sight.
[V12]
------
There's a pattern here, as Climb, Calca, and Lakyus all reached the upper limtis of their power in their teenage years. Lakyus notably wasn't Nigun's equal in her earlier years but still had about Adamantite strength back then. Whenver this actually happened. Lakyus has abnormally high potential (ie level cap) so it makes sense to a degree. Calca and Climb however have different potentials. Calca probably didn't try as hard as Climb did(but maybe all her make up magic added up). But we already know people like Brain and Eruya can progress quite far by just going about their lives if they are talented enough.
Ultra Instinct Git Gud = Bonus Modifier
Going With the Flow = Normal growth?
Experiencing life and death isn't the only factor. Clearly Climb wasn't almost dying every time he trained but he reached his limit relatively safely. The conclusion we can draw is near-death experiences seem to trigger people to enter 'Ultra Instinct Git Gud'. Seems to make sense - you're forced to 'try hard' because you're going to die if you don't.
HOWEVER
You could also just try hard without the death looming over you. Seemed to work for Climb at least.
------------------------------------------------
Some powerful adventurers could take on an entire army by themselves. There were many theories as to why there were so many superhuman individuals among the ranks of adventurers. The most reliable explanation was that under extreme circumstances, the body — some might say the brain — would become abnormally active and trigger a super-recovery phenomenon, causing one’s physical parameters to increase non-stop. Other explanations included some form of blessing, evolution through the absorption of mana, and so on. However, what they all had in common was that the physical, mental and magical attributes of the body would increase rapidly. There were higher chances of this improvement phenomenon happening when facing powerful opposition. Given the fact that adventurers often faced powerful monsters with varied abilities, it was very easy for them to trigger such phenomen
[V6]
“The practice of divine magic is closely linked to everyone’s health, so I think it would be a good idea if we could have more divine magic casters be knights, or at least, teach knights how to use divine magic. Hacking and slashing at monsters with swords alone only produces casualties.” Baziwood was a man who had had to hunt down monsters in the past, and he had spent his fair share of time on the edge of death. He nodded, and continued in a low tone.
[V9]
Even though Brain was a warrior who trod the edge of life and death on a regular basis, the image of that hellscape ―created by a single magic caster― remained seared into his eyes
[V9]
“…How surprising. Are you at your wits’ end because you are all weaklings? This is truly a country of idiots. All the children that I sired turned out to be nothing but useless.” People born in wartime were stronger than those born in peace. That being the case, warfare was an opportunity to awaken the power latent in all living things. However, he had not heard about anyone whose power had awakened so far
[V11]
------------------------------------------------
On the topic of 'looming death' leading to power-ups basically, we do actually have a few examples of this.
====
Londes:
Four men had lost their lives in the blink of an eye. Though Londes was still gripped with fear, he readied his sword against the coming of the jet-black storm, like a martyr preparing to give his life for his faith. “Ohhhh!” It might have been a meaningless gesture, but Londes did not intend to wait for death. Giving voice to a battle cry, he swung his sword with all his strength at the oncoming Death Knight. Perhaps it was because of his circumstances, but Londes’s muscles broke their limit and surprised him. It might have been the best blow Londes had ever struck in his life.
[V1]
[V11
]====
So as callous as the Elven King is, there is precedence for some of his ideas.
-------------------
Arche in her school years was a second-tier caster going on a third-tier but she ended up at the third-tier near her peak. It took about two years for her to reach her peak further on in more active and dangerous settings with her life in danger.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“—Arche Eeb Ryle Furt.” She was an excellent girl. She had mastered the second tier of magic at a young age, and even begun her first steps upon the third.
[V7]
“She became an adventurer right? The smartest genius this academy has ever seen. The one who everyone believed was on the verge of the 3rd tier before she left?”
“….Yeah.”
Even now, her name still echoed through the halls of the academy. The current Top Three in the school had no choice but to admit that they were yet to reach her level.
[WN]
“—I’m confident in my magical abilities, please let me join.” That was what the tiny, skinny girl — who clutched a staff that was taller than she was — had said to them. Hekkeran was not the only one who recalled the dumbfounded way in which they had stared at her when she said that, as well as the look of shock on their faces when they had seen the true power of Arche’s magic. All these memories returned to their minds. Over two years had passed since that day, and they had gone through many adventures together. Yet, even after making a tidy sum of money from adventures fraught with the risk of death, Arche’s equipment had not changed much.
[V7]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And Kuervo had god knows how long to reach Martial Lord before disappearing to go train. I'm afraid it's been..... two years.
Dun dun duuuuuuuuuun.
Wait do any of you even remember that? It wasn't that long ago but it's burned into my Ziggity Zag Zigg peanut of a brain. Thanks Kojumbo!
But yeah using the Totally Perfect and Not Flawed At All Overlord Fan Timeline, Kuervo was no longer Martial Lord as of 0 CE Spring and by Volume 14 which was near 2 CE Kuervo was finally seen as surpassing the Four Knights.
----------------
So how do we visualize the 95% struggle in terms of level?
Well it might actually be beneficial to think of 95 percent not as 95 out of 100 but 19 out of 20. Or rather the conjugate - New Worlders and Players seem to struggle in getting the last 1 out of 20 levels for their level cap. So for the typical New Worlder they take a long time to gain their last level, meanwhile after Mithril it starts getting harder to get your last two or three levels.
It's never a massive amount of power missing, but leaves things open for more power ups.
====
Wooof. That took a while.====
Of course, they were charging vastly different prices for weaker undead compared to the stronger ones, so the most popular product was still those designed for cheap menial labor. Consequently, the amount of undead around the level of a Death Knight they had exported was minimal. It would be a waste to not use up his daily limit of [Create Undead], so Ainz had been exhausting his daily-use abilities; as a result, the number of undead he had created had already become a nuisance to him. If I were to lower their rental costs and raise them in the future, no one would rent from us again. Plus I don’t want to cut prices directly… Should I create a rewards system? The Empire rented quite a lot of Death Cavaliers from us, so we should probably focus on marketing to nations directly… but…
V14
“Kullervo Palantynen huh? I haven’t seen him in the arena yet.” Nimble tilted his head, “he’s strong. From what I’ve heard. Is he as strong as our nation’s trump card?”
A shocked expression flashed across Baziwood’s face before he realized what Nimble meant by “trump card”, at which point he laughed.
“How would that fight go. With my expertise, it’s hard to tell exactly which one of them is stronger… Well, I guess you should be correct more or less.”
“That’s amazing!”
They had loaned a massive undead army from the terrifying nation that was the Sorcerous Kingdom of Ainz Ooal Gown. If this man could hold his own against even one member of that army, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he was at the peak of human strength.[Prologue] ======
It still remains to be seen if 'trying hard' amounts to much for those without talent in non-combat classes. IE the General, Ordinary, Normal, Civilian classes. Whatever you want to call them. Given Tuare got Maid by practicing a lot suggests it's probably possible. But there's too many variables to consider.
Ziggy thinks it's interesting though how that broad idea from YGGDRASIL applies to New Worlders too potentailly. It does help explain things in Overlord a bit and isn't completely unfounded. Ziggy likes those kinds of theories. But how about you all?
"You know no one reads these right?"
orz
Hello darkness, my old friend.
"Here's Darkness!"
God damnit invisible chat, I don't want the Momon action figure! I already have five.....
orz
======
To conclude, Ziggy was pretty happy with the 'Prologue' given what we learned from it or could infer.
Anciliary Addendum:
He was not at all worried that the envoys would be attacked by an angry mob.
Those Death Cavaliers ― indeed, everyone present was probably very strong,
even within the Sorcerer Kingdom. He could easily believe that each of them was
a match for that Gazef Stronoff.
[V10]
This doesn't count for much, but you could say Zanac's instincts were correct and support the same conclusion Kurevo was evaluated at. Nimble and Baziwood as warriors closer in strength to Gazef and Kurevo and Death Cavaliers have a stronger argument due to relative power sensing but Zanac was around Gazef and other soldiers to at least be able to gauge talent to an extent - for example like how he mused about hiring retired adventures of at least a certain rank.
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