The final chapter of "Fairy Tail" will air in the fall of 2018, and the appeal of this series lies above all in its captivating characters. Therefore, I have chosen a top 10 ranking of Fairy Tail's characters based on their strength. Please note that this ranking is purely based on my own bias and subjective opinion.
10th Place: Silver Fullbuster
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
One of the "Kukimon" members, an executive of the "Gate of the Underworld." He is a handsome middle-aged man with a scar on his left forehead. Nicknamed "Absolute Zero," he wears armor with the words "ABSOLUTE ZERO" engraved on it, and wears a cross piercing in his ear. As his nickname suggests, he is an ice demon-slayer and a Taoist priest. He belongs to the Nine Demon Gates, a group believed to be made up entirely of demons, and can use magic to destroy demons.
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
At first glance, he appears carefree. He sincerely apologizes to Natsu, who cleans up after accidentally freezing the Sun Village, and throws a bath towel at Lisanna, who is imprisoned naked. However, when it comes to battle, he becomes as ferocious as a berserker, cornering his enemies with icy coldness. As his last name suggests, he is the father of Gray Fullbuster, who died 17 years ago. Natsu also says that they "smell alike," and when Natsu points this out, he suddenly turns on him and attacks him.
9th Place: Bloodman
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
One of the Spriggan 12. A large man clad in black robes and armor. His true identity is a demon from the Book of Zeref. His body is made of magic-impairing particles, so he is called the "Grim Reaper." He can cause magicians to suffer from a lack of magical power or die instantly. He can also turn his body into mist, nullifying opponents' attacks, and extend his arms to attack.
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
According to Gajeel, "his magical powers aren't that great," but that's because he uses incantations rather than magic. He can use all the incantations used by the "Nine Demon Gates." There are also levels of ability called "seals," and according to Bradman, "the first seal steals magical power with magical barrier particles, the second seal opens the door to the underworld in the field of corpses, and the third seal is the Grim Reaper's judgment of life." By unlocking the third seal, he transforms into a being with magical barrier particles spewing from his entire body, and is able to control the large number of skulls he has summoned.
8th Place: Brandish U
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
One of the "Spriggan 12," also known as "Brandish the Nation Destroyer." Eight years ago, she was the same age as Lucy and had the nation's crest on her right thigh. A woman with two cross-like decorations on her head and a collar and bikini underneath her coat. She has a laid-back personality and dislikes trouble, and is known for her careless behavior, such as abandoning assigned missions, but she follows Zeref's orders regardless of her mood. She is generally expressionless, but her emotions are quite fluctuating, such as when she cried when she could no longer eat star mango gelato.
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
He possesses such powerful magical power that Gray calls it "more powerful than Makarov's," and it's said that his power could destroy an entire country. She uses high-level magic to alter the mass of objects, enlarging or shrinking entire islands, and even shrinking tumors so small they disappear if their exact location is known.
7th Place: Dimaria Yesta
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
When she becomes one with the God of Time, Chronos, her hair stands on end, her body is dark, and yellow patterns appear. She possesses unimaginable magical powers, capable of causing gigantic explosions and firing lasers from her fingertips. She also has the ability to use magic to seal time, allowing only Dimaria to move within that frozen state. He himself describes it as "the strongest magic that can never be defeated," and what had previously appeared to be lightning-fast sword techniques were actually events that occurred during the time when he was sealed by this magic.
6th Place: God Serena
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
One of the "Spriggan 12," and one of the Ten Wizard Saints and the Four Heavenly Kings of Ishgar (ranked #1). A hero with a straight scar on the bridge of his nose and bud-like hair on top of his head, he is a striking figure. He wears a halo-like ornament on his back. He is said to be the strongest mage on the continent of Ishgar, but he often strikes an exaggerated pose only to be ignored, and he has a unique greeting of "God bye-bye," so Makarov calls him "a disappointing guy."
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
A second-generation dragon slayer with eight dragon slayer magic crystals embedded within his body. He wields powerful dragon slayer magic of earth, fire, water, and wind as far as can be seen, and his eye colors reverse during battle. His abilities have even been described by August as "hybrid theory" and "the man beloved by the Dragon God." In order to defeat Acnologia with his own hands, he abandoned the continent of Ishgar and traveled west to Arakitasia, defecting to the Alvarez Empire. During the invasion of Ishgar, he subjugated Bosco alongside August and Jacob, and single-handedly overpowered the Ten Great Magic Saints, including Warrod, who were waiting east of Fiore.
5th Place: Larcade Dragneel
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
One of the Spriggan 12. He has the nation's crest on his left shoulder. A blonde young man with a similar appearance to Zeref, he is always seen with his hands clasped together and a smile on his face. He has a white cross pattern on his forehead, carries something resembling a giant cross on his back, and has a rosary attached to his bare left arm. Because he never responds to calls from the Spriggan 12, August treats him coldly.
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
According to Zeref, Larcade is a "secret weapon" that even has the potential to defeat Acnologia. Mavis describes him as "different," and he, along with August and Irene, calls himself special among the "Spriggan 12." He uses magic that instills three human desires: sex, food, and sleep. He calls himself "Zeref's son," but his true identity is Etherious, one of the test subjects used to create Natsu.
4th Place: Irene Belserion
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
Known as "Scarlet Despair" (or simply "Despair"), she is the strongest female mage of the Spriggan 12, rivaling August in strength. However, she herself complains that this nickname is "not cute." As Neinhart recalls, she looks similar to Erza, with long scarlet hair that she wears in four braids. She knows Erza and seems to have some kind of relationship with her. She also seems to have a fair amount of acquaintance with Neinhart, who calls her "sama" and shows him respect.
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
As a High Enchanter, she can enchant and transform anything (so much so that Zeref calls her a genius at enchanting and removing magic). This allows her to transform the snowy, sacred Mount Zonia into a flower field. It sounds sweet when written down, but he can freely change the surrounding environment and climate. It can also be used for attack, and by adding it to the atmosphere, he can create gusts of wind that can even gouge the ground, so much so that even Acnologia praised him for it. He can also change the appearance of his opponents, project a giant eye into the sky to investigate his surroundings, add magical effects to allied soldiers, separate the opponent's additional magic, and even give his sword a personality and personify it. He also invented Dragon Slayer magic, a magic that grants humans the same power as dragons by infusing their power with it.
3rd Place: August
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
One of the Spriggan 12, he is known as the "strongest of the Spriggan 12." An old man with white hair and a beard, he carries a staff and wears a cloak over his robes, giving him the appearance of a sage or god. He is generally gentle and caring towards his friends. It is revealed that he is actually the child of Zeref and Mavis. Nicknamed the "Sorcerer King," he is said to have mastered all kinds of magic, from all over the world and throughout history. In Alvarez, he is also known as "Calamity." According to Makarov, he possesses great magical powers that are in a league of their own compared to the other Spriggan 12, and is said to surpass Zeref in terms of the number of spells he can use.
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
August's magic is so illicit that he can instantly copy the opponent's magic upon seeing it, while simultaneously nullifying the opponent's own magic. It's this magical power that allows him to remain unscathed no matter how powerful the spells he receives. In fact, Brandish calls him one of the strongest members of the Spriggan 12. In addition to his overwhelming abilities, he is also the smartest of the Spriggan 12, and as such, he serves as their leader.
2nd Place: Zeref Dragneel
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
He is said to be the most vicious wizard in the history of the magical world. Known as the Black Mage Zeref, he was once worshipped as a god by a cult that believed in black magic, and they attempted to revive him through the R System. The incantation "Lullaby" is a form of black magic created by Zeref, and it has given rise to many powerful demons known as "Etherious," such as Deliora and Kukimon. Even now, 400 years later, his name continues to inspire reverence among dark mages whose hearts are tainted by evil.
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
Being under the ancient "Curse of Contradiction" known as the "Black Magic of Ankhseram," he has survived for 400 years with an immortal body. Thanks to the Curse of Contradiction, he also has the power to drain the life out of those around him, and just the fact that he is immortal and possesses the magic to drain life makes him arguably the strongest wizard. He is also actually Natsu's older brother.
1st Place: Acnologia
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
A jet-black dragon known as the "Wings of Darkness," this dragon is the world's most powerful, even terrifying the most ferocious wizard, Zeref. Its body is covered in eerie purple patterns. According to Zeref, it is "the black dragon that heralds the end of an era." Like other dragons, it possesses high intelligence, but it views humans as nothing more than insects and does not speak. It uses "I" as its first-person pronoun.
Source: Fairy Tail © Hiro Mashima, Kodansha / Fairy Tail Production Committee, TV Tokyo
His true identity is that of a human dragon slayer who was given dragon slayer magic by a dragon supporting coexistence during the Dragon King Festival, a war between dragons over coexistence with humans that occurred 400 years ago. His power grew so great that he even killed a dragon supporting coexistence, and as a result of constantly being covered in the dragons' blood, his body was transformed into that of a dragon. Meanwhile, Aruka Dios speculates that "Acnologia is closer to Etherious, and Zeref turned the Dragon Slayer into Acnologia." He can also revert to human form, and in his human form, he appears as a dark-skinned man with long hair and patterns all over his body, wearing a black cloak.
Summary
Fairy Tail characters are each unique, and while some are incredibly strong in certain situations, others are generally mediocre. It's difficult to make a general comparison of their strengths. However, I believe the top four characters are generally similar and don't change much. Be sure to pay close attention to the enemy characters in the original manga and anime.
