Calculating Strength

[CaptainBoyHole]

So i'm planning on making a story where the fighters of this planet can be ranked from F rank all the way to SSS rank. What i want to know is there an easy way of figuring out how strong each rank should be?
Like how strong is an F rank? What can they do? What makes them different from normal humans and F-rank? Why aren't world-class weight lifters F-rank when they are stronger than the F-rank? Is there something special about them that makes them F-rank? And if there is what is that special thing that makes them F-rank and not D-rank or C-rank, also how do we compare between a F-rank and D-rank if its not just based on strength?

I know i'm asking a lot of questions but honestly i just threw this question out there to get like any semblance of an idea to try and work with. If this fails, i'll probably just go the old boring and basic route of gradually increasing the amount of destruction they can do each rank. Like F-ranks can break through stone and lift cars while D-ranks can do more than that and C-ranks can do even more than a D-rank can!

 

[gaylolis]

no matter what rank it is, we can agree that MC will always be the shit.

i think an easy description of each power was how well they fare against ones in the same rank, and those lower than them--in general. no need to make it too complicated. like in the usual cultivation story, the higher you go, the harder it is to break through, and the bigger the gap between each realm. that's about it.

about the lifting strength and such, let's just say there are various specializations as each person trained differently.

if you want to measure the general strength, you can use some numerical amount like life force, ki strength, or so. if someone broke through a certain amount, it meant they're now on that level.

i don't understand what you meant by not just based on strength, isn't power levels made to show how strong you are in general compared to the others?

let's just say, if you want to add in your wit and combat experience? there are many different factors that might determine victory and defeat. if you went to Vs Battles wiki, their discussion could go on forever.

 

[Yiphen]

Well, you could define what a "SSS" and "F" rank would be in terms of strength, and then fill in the middle.

 

[ShyMaskedMan]

So i'm planning on making a story where the fighters of this planet can be ranked from F rank all the way to SSS rank. What i want to know is there an easy way of figuring out how strong each rank should be?
Like how strong is an F rank? What can they do? What makes them different from normal humans and F-rank? Why aren't world-class weight lifters F-rank when they are stronger than the F-rank? Is there something special about them that makes them F-rank? And if there is what is that special thing that makes them F-rank and not D-rank or C-rank, also how do we compare between a F-rank and D-rank if its not just based on strength?

I know i'm asking a lot of questions but honestly i just threw this question out there to get like any semblance of an idea to try and work with. If this fails, i'll probably just go the old boring and basic route of gradually increasing the amount of destruction they can do each rank. Like F-ranks can break through stone and lift cars while D-ranks can do more than that and C-ranks can do even more than a D-rank can!

well, it depends on what your story's world.

I am also a newbie so you can disregard what I am saying next.

If on Earth, fighters can be measured by a lot of things like "power", "technique", "speed", "instinct/intuition", "reaction", 'body stature", "mental", "pain tolerance", "durability", "stamina", and etc

It would be best if you can choose what you want the fighters be measured into the rank, you can choose all but give major priority to a few as base line like "power", "speed", "stamina" and "technique" or other combination. You can also choose only a few as your measuring factors.

F - an average person with average athletic abilities given a little training with little to no experience in fighting would be a good base comparison.

 

[Elohimiel]

F - Average
E - Trained
D - Human Limit
C - Superhuman
B - Elite
A - Supernatural
S - Outliers
SS - Anomalies
SSS - Monsters/Out of this world/Strongest/Unimaginable

 

[Jemini]

As several people have said already, it's a question of what the power scaling in your world is actually like. None of us can give you real input on how the rankings should break down if we don't even know what criteria they are being judged on, or how the power scaling in your world looks.

That said, I can give a few general examples applied to certain situations. I don't know if it will help you, but it might help some others.

First and foremost, the rankings ought to always correspond to accomplishments and not actual combat ability and CERTAINLY not raw stats in the case of a liteRPG or cultivation world. These rankings should measure how capable of a fighter they are, not how 1-dimensionally powerful they are. They might have some talent or ability that is not measurable by raw stats or a straightforward test, so the results they get are the fairest way to measure things. All that said, we CAN still make generalizations based on what the average would be rather than the exceptions.

If you are using a liteRPG system in which characters have game-like stats, it would likely be most effective to have the general power of someone ranked on a logrithmic scale. So, for instance, if you total all their stat points, an F-rank would have 10 total points, an E-rank 100 total points, a D-rank 1000 total points, excetera. This creates a correspondingly greater and greater gap between each rank, especially if you happen to have a world in which S ranks have god-like abilities.

On the flip-side, if you are dealing in a world that has very real-world like ways in which things work, then you would do almost the same thing based on the amount of time someone has trained. Or, if there is an equivalent to stats, then a reverse log-base. This reflects the fact that, in the real world, it takes more and more time to make very small improvements, but those very small improvements of the absolute numbers can actually make a HUGE difference when it comes to application and results. So, even though IRL does not have stats, we will use the stats again to represent what I'm talking about for a reverse-log. So, an F-rank has never trained a single day, and runs from 50 total stat points to 100 total stat points (less than 50 can't even get you ranked to begin with.) An E-rank has trained for a month, and ranges from 100 total points to 110 total points. A D-rank has trained for a year, and has 110 total points to 111 total points. A C-rank has trained for 5 years and has 111 total points to 111.1 total points.

Again, in the 2nd example, the stat points are a metaphore since there actually are no stats in such a world. The important part is the amount of time they train, and adding more time makes smaller and smaller actual differences in their body but those small differences get tremendous results.

EDIT: Also, there is a very interesting concept I saw on some stupid anime from the mid 2000s. It was lame, but the concept was pretty good. They were ranked from F to SSS like you have here, but there was also 1 rank higher than SSS. They called it "G-type" (swapping out the word "rank" for "type.") The G, in this case, stood for "God." It was a special rank for those who held so much power that they could be considered god-tier. I just make this suggestion because you don't have a G-rank in your ranking system. However, I would only recommend this application if you are implementing a power system that actually has the potential to go that high. Also, the "G-type" rank would be one that's never actually spoken about by anyone and is only first mentioned when the unthinkable individual that does, indeed, defy even the power of a SSS appears and starts up-ending common sense itself on everyone.

 

[AliceShiki]

My only suggestion would be to be careful with the numbers... Like...

Any power scaling works if you wish, but try keeping the amount of people in each rank proportionate to how hard it is to get there...

Like... Don't go making armies with million of S-rank characters or something, it really kills the suspension of disbelief.

 

[BenJepheneT]

would this help?

 

[ThrillingHuman]

So i'm planning on making a story where the fighters of this planet can be ranked from F rank all the way to SSS rank. What i want to know is there an easy way of figuring out how strong each rank should be?
Like how strong is an F rank? What can they do? What makes them different from normal humans and F-rank? Why aren't world-class weight lifters F-rank when they are stronger than the F-rank? Is there something special about them that makes them F-rank? And if there is what is that special thing that makes them F-rank and not D-rank or C-rank, also how do we compare between a F-rank and D-rank if its not just based on strength?

I know i'm asking a lot of questions but honestly i just threw this question out there to get like any semblance of an idea to try and work with. If this fails, i'll probably just go the old boring and basic route of gradually increasing the amount of destruction they can do each rank. Like F-ranks can break through stone and lift cars while D-ranks can do more than that and C-ranks can do even more than a D-rank can!

Well, say that f ranks are like humans, e ranks are sturdier, can't be knifed easily and can, like, drink acid like water or smth, D-ranks won't care if you shoot at them with small caliber guns up close in the eyes, c ranks are local overlords that don't care about most weapons in general except for high caliber, b ranks are very strong nation-wise and have some kinda trait that makes them be better than those below in quality, like they have angel wings or shit, a-ranks are like the top people who can destroy a city on their own, tank a ballistic rocket naked and shit, s ranks are like super freaks, possibly blessed by gods or similar entities, have innate advantages other don't have that break the power balance or have their ways of breaking through the limits of their original potential. As for AA AAA SS SSS etc, it's a way of grading within one rank, like F<FF<FFF<=D and similar things. Power-wise, say that one realm is topped by another and can kill those below like ants. I dunno

 

[Yorda]

Well, you could define what a "SSS" and "F" rank would be in terms of strength, and then fill in the middle.

Yeah. That sounds nice. You would get some excellent consistency that way! What bothers me with novels that have stats in them is that authors are math pantsers. They just throw out math and numbers as they go nonsensically.

To fill in the middle I would use excel and mathematics to make a smooth stat progression for levels and ranks. Then I would be able to sort of plan out a rational stat progression for my character and give solid numbers that make sense. While doing the calculations I would think about what the stats actually mean. Like 10 strength vs 100 strength directly correlate to somebody who can lift 10 kg with one arm or 100 kg with one arm. 10 agility vs 100 agility might mean the faster person can run 10 times faster than the slow person.

I would also consider that higher stats also enable someone to use new techniques and skills, for example, somebody with high leg strength might be able to jump high into the air to perform an aerial attack, while a weakling would be stuck on the ground. Skills and techniques would also really make a difference for how you might classify someone as SSS or A or D etc.

 

[CaptainBoyHole]

Yeah. That sounds nice. You would get some excellent consistency that way! What bothers me with novels that have stats in them is that authors are math pantsers. They just throw out math and numbers as they go nonsensically.

To fill in the middle I would use excel and mathematics to make a smooth stat progression for levels and ranks. Then I would be able to sort of plan out a rational stat progression for my character and give solid numbers that make sense. While doing the calculations I would think about what the stats actually mean. Like 10 strength vs 100 strength directly correlate to somebody who can lift 10 kg with one arm or 100 kg with one arm. 10 agility vs 100 agility might mean the faster person can run 10 times faster than the slow person.

I would also consider that higher stats also enable someone to use new techniques and skills, for example, somebody with high leg strength might be able to jump high into the air to perform an aerial attack, while a weakling would be stuck on the ground. Skills and techniques would also really make a difference for how you might classify someone as SSS or A or D etc.

While this idea sounds nice and all a normal author definitely doesn't know how to use excel and mathematics to make something as complicated as that.

 

[XianPiete]

I have seen a few stories where the author uses animals to gage strength for example;

Tier 1 strength is 1 bull.
Tier 2 strength is 2 bulls.
Tier 3 strength is 5 bulls.
Tier 4 Strength is 10 bulls.

I have also seen stories where they use weight to gage strength for example;

Tier 1 strength is 200lbs.
Tier 2 Strength is 400lbs.
Tier 3 strength is 1 ton.
Tier 4 strength is 2 tons.

As an author, it is up to you how you describe the differences in strength between characters. All that really matters is that you give a general idea of how powerful they are. When you read these stories, once the main character gets above the early limits of strength you only really judge their strength based on how they deal with the next chapter's "powerhouse".

 

[GDLiZy]

Don't be stupid and used the "wow that man punch 200N of force!" system. I can assure you that most would not know what 200N of force could do.

You should use the result as a measuring system, and make it vague so that you won't accidentally break your own rules.