Mythology, Religion & Legend — Power Ranking TOP 100
I wrote a book ranking the most powerful gods, monsters, and heroes from world mythology, religion, and legend! The ranking is heavily influenced by my own perspective, but every placement is grounded in the actual lore and episodes from each mythology, so I think it makes for a satisfying read.
In this post, I’d like to introduce some of the characters featured in the ranking. There are many more beyond the ones mentioned here, so if you’re interested in mythology, religion, or legend, I think you’ll enjoy it!
Rank 87: Beowulf (Norse / Germanic Legend)
Overview
Beowulf is the protagonist of one of the oldest epic poems in English literature, the Beowulf, and is a hero who slew various monsters including the giant Grendel, his mother, and a mighty dragon.
The giant Grendel, immune to bladed weapons and possessed of tremendous power, had been attacking the kingdom of Heorot for twelve years, killing and eating its people.
When Beowulf heard of this and joined the guard of the royal hall, Grendel launched a sudden night attack — leading to a bare-handed brawl. Even unarmed, Beowulf completely overpowered Grendel and tore off his arm, driving him away.
He then fought Grendel’s mother, a witch, but was dragged underwater into a desperate situation.
He attempted to fight with the famous sword “Hrunting,” but it proved completely useless against the witch. He then discovered a giant’s sword at the bottom of the water and used it to slay her.
In his old age, Beowulf also fought a mighty dragon that was ravaging his kingdom, and ultimately died in a mutual kill with the dragon.
This dragon breathed fire so powerful it could melt iron shields, and had scales so hard that swords could barely scratch them — clearly a formidable creature that ordinary humans would have no hope against.
His sword “Hrunting” is praised with the noble words “one who bears it with courage shall never lose in battle” — yet in the actual fight against the witch it was completely useless, and Beowulf discarded it immediately, suggesting it was probably only marginally better than an ordinary sword.
The fact that a nameless giant’s sword could kill the witch suggests Hrunting’s performance was ordinary at best.
Why This Ranking
Beowulf’s physical abilities are exceptionally high. The fact that he tore off Grendel’s arm bare-handed, that he killed Grendel’s mother — said to be far more powerful than Grendel himself — with a giant’s sword, and that even in old age he could fight a massive fire-breathing dragon to a mutual kill makes it clear that he possessed power head and shoulders above other heroes.
With slightly better equipment, his specs suggest he could put up a good fight even against war-god-class opponents — but based on the combat depictions in the story, I judged this position in the ranking to be appropriate.
Incidentally, the Grendel that Beowulf slew is also called “Orcneas (descendant of Cain)” in the epic, and from this, Tolkien is said to have derived the concept of “Orcs” in the Lord of the Rings. Furthermore, since Tolkien himself studied this epic poem, it is regarded as a mythology (or legend) that can be called the root of modern fantasy.
