@martianmister  
The unicorn’s polar ray spell seems to work like a phaser in Star Trek. It deals nonlethal damage at a certain setting/strength, and lethal damage at higher settings/strengths. You are correct that their is no visual indication of which version the caster is using (although unicorns may be able to identify the difference).
 
The only clues that might lead one to conclude that Twilight was using the deadly version of the spell are that Glimmer was using lethal force in their previous duel (so replying in kind is warranted), and Twilight usually performs an exaggerated preparatory movement before using the lethal version of polar ray.

@Eeveeinheat  
How do you know it’s lethal?

Again with the kill-shots, Twilight?

I always find it funny that the lethal spells never make contact, but the non-lethal ones do. Why even use lethal spells if you don’t want to kill?

@Pinkbeardedpony  
Nah, your cool. Debates can get heated; whether one is right, wrong or we reach an impasse, as long as we hug it out, no hard feelings.
 
No, you did not say explicitly that she was not extremely powerful. The thing is you did call her “a nobody” which does have connotations no importance, influence or power. And the fact that, from what I understand,the crux of your argument is her power level against Twilight; every rebuttal attacks Starlight’s power. It led me to believe that you were grossly underestimating her. Not an unknown which is to say: “we didn’t know of her at all…” but a “nobody” which in used as a noun is derogatory saying: “What she got, is nothing compared to Twilight, she’ll curb stomp her.” Sure, compared to a Princess she is a nobody, but she was somebody in her space/community, however twisted it is. So yes, it was err on my part but noone calls someone a nobody purely in neutral
 
Jarring? Only an infinitesimally small amount because I tend to like these types of villains; the ones where if you pissed of the wrong person shit can hit the fan without you realizing it until it’s too late. This is also why SG leapfrogging over everyone doesn’t really bother me: She masked her power with the Staff of Sameness stating that it was one of Meadowlark’s (an eastern unicorn stated by Twi) magical artifacts, like amulets and talismans probably in the same vein as the Alicorn Amulet (which even in Twilight equalized state confirms Meadowlarks’s existence). There was no inclination during the premiere that equalized unicorns can’t do magic, Sugar Belle proved that. And with Twilight confirming that Starlight didn’t pull Meadowlark out of her flank cast further doubt to Starlight’s power. Then she outright confirmed it was ME, DIO! her in the end. She actively kept her power level hidden until she was forced to.
 
Sure it can be annoying for some people, but it makes me want to know more about them. I mean we did get SG’s backstory, but…:/ Time was not on our side.
 
 
I have long since changed my stance of “Starlight buffed out her power level in months” to “She had the power all along but is an overacheiver and not as powerful as Twilight but enough to get her sweating”.

@drumpowa  
I agree with most of what you said. However, read my invisible internet lips. I have not once claimed that Glimmer is not an extremely powerful unicorn. I have called her a nobody multiple times, but the reason for that is not to undermine her magical power.
 
I can’t say I much appreciate a completely unknown character crawl out from under a rock and then suddenly fight the most powerful mage in the world like it was nothing more than cooking dinner or watering some plants. At least with Sombra, Celestia knew who he was and was afraid of him. Likewise, Chrysalis would, by her very nature, do her best to remain unknown to maximize her potential for infiltration and taking full advantage of the element of surprise. The fact that Glimmer immediately jumps up the rankings and becomes the second most powerful unicorn in the world is a little jarring wouldn’t you agree.
 
Wait just a minute though, because we’re not done yet. Next the writers expect me to just roll with the fact that Glimmer, in the span of a year or less, managed to bridge the gap between herself and Twilight to the point that she can fight her in an honest fight. I don’t cotton to that narrative, no Sir. I don’t like the main 6 getting upstaged, especially at their own specializations.
 
If I am coming off as hostile, beg pardon. One should strive to treat others with the utmost respect, doubly so strangers.

@SuperDEF  
I take issue with your contention that Glimmer’s uncommon spells are automatically a sign of strength. We have not been given a time frame for her mastery of those spells. It could have taken her a whole year or a single day to incorporate the enchantments into her magical catalog, and which it was is unclear. She is clearly more powerful than an average unicorn, seeing as she can teleport and throw around strong polar rays.
 
Your other argument, that Glimmer’s statements about the difficulty in casting spells is solid evidence of her own magical strength is flimsy. My rebuttable presumption is that Glimmer is a nobody unicorn living in a Podunk town that most Equestrians wouldn’t even know exists. I am not inclined to believe she is an authority on magic, as I have seen no strong evidence of it. Her statement that casting a given spell is difficult is nothing more than an anecdote. Twilight neither confirmed or denied her claim, if I recall correctly.
 
Your last argument, that Twilight’s has no strength without the support of her friends is specious. Twilight has accomplished things in the art of magic that put Glimmer to shame. You really don’t need me to jog your memory about all of the incredible magical exploits Twilight has performed do you (the list is quite long, (ง ͠ ͠° ل͜ °)ง).

@drumpowa  
Also, Starlight had all the time in the world to figure out Twilight’s fighting style, since she (Twilight) had to fight off things like the bugbear. And her style is pretty clear: Incredibly powerful (but long on cast time) arcane blasts, shields for defense, teleportation, flight. And her copying skill, which Starlight walked right into on one occasion.
 
@drumpowa  
Well, now I know what I’ll be dreaming about for a week. Can’t yet tell if that’s going to be a good thing.

@Starswirl  
Twilight didn’t instantly replicate the shield spell, she recognized it beacuse she already knew it, as she just claimed to Starlight she also had been studying magic.

@Starswirl  
Don’t sleep on my 8 legs, honey.
 

@drumpowa  
Ninja’d by a caffeinated spider. Heh.

@Pinkbeardedpony  
He definitely suffers from worfing. Which is a shame. Spells he’s shown, let’s see… the shield spell, of course, and arcane blast. Not a great arsenal, that’s for sure.
 
@SuperDEF  

 
Actually, that showed us Twilight can instantly learn a spell Starlight studied for years. Can you really blame folks for not being satisfied with the situation suddenly going in the opposite direction?

@Pinkbeardedpony  
Then what do make of her ability to rip off and replace cutie mark magic? Initially it was thought to have been powered by an artifact but it was in fact her own power. So this nobody went from nobody to nightmare in terms of power level. To Mr Starswirl’s point about her being baffled, she was baffled because she worked hard for years for the spell she did when it took Twi minutes. And if she studied years on one spell, who is the say that she didn’t study others. Not to mention she had enough power to take down a stone bridge while running. I’m still baffled as to how you still don’t see she at the very least A tier while Twilight is S-tier the nth degree.
 
I had been contemplating this while away (fixing my car) that she may not have “hit the gym” as you so put it (though it did make me chuckle) during the season but she gained her power between her backstory and the premier.
 
And Trixie? Pfft. She was classified as a showmare where her magic is highly skilled but weak in terms of overall power B-teir at best. Most unicorns will be C-D teir, More magically incline ones (Trixie) will be B-tier and some select few though natural talent(Shining Armor) or hard working overachievers (Starlight) will reach A-tier. Only those whom have a sole talent in magic are the 99th percentile of the unicorn world S-teir (Twilight).
 
Which is another thing, Twilight may be capable of replicating any power but even she can’t do it to it’s fullest potential (e.g. Twilight acknowledging SA prowess in force fields in S2 finale)
 
So in terms of takeout orders, I’ll take H.)Starlight didn’t power boost, she already had higher power and is an overacheiver.

@Starswirl  
Maybe if we weren’t getting “Worfed” every ten minutes I would remember that he existed. ¯*༼ᴼل͜ᴼ༽*/¯
 
Shining definitely boasts tremendous magical reserves, but his list of spells known is very small. Have we even seen him cast polar ray or teleport before? I am interested to know what Twilight’s parents are capable of in terms of magical expertise. In any case, sorry for not mentioning Shining Armor.

@Starswirl  
That still doesn’t mean Starlight being this strong is a eyebrow raising concept. Starlight didn’t get a full dementration of her magical strength and abilities beacuse it wasn’t necessary for the plot. The very fact that she has the ability to remove cutie marks and perform this special shield spell is a good indication of her feats.
 
As I said previously, Starlight and Twilight pretty much acknowledged that they both had studied and performed many spells, the reason why Twilight did the same special shield spell just like Starlight, and by Starlight’s reaction it wasn’t the type of spell you can perform easily. This shows us that Starlight is either on par with Twilight on magic usage or if not greater until more information and development about her gets more revealed, which it did as shown in the finale.
 
I still don’t see it as farfetched as many others making it out to be. Twilight’s real strength comes from the support of her friends or working together with her friends. Starlight, on the other hand, strenghten herself up due to her beliefs and determination.
 
I say the real differences of power between the two is their characteristics and traits.

@Pinkbeardedpony  
Shining Armor would like to habe a word with your about who the most powerful living unicorn was.

@Background Pony #3921  
Admitting that you didn’t read all of the posts in the discussion before joining in doesn’t do you any favors, pal.
 
To your first point, why would Glimmer withdraw if she thought she could take Twilight. Need I remind you that the first 2 episodes of the season take place in Glimmer’s home. One does not cut and run from one’s own home unless the situation is truly hopeless. Glimmer withdrew from the town, then tried one last Scorpio killing attack before escaping into the cave system at the edge of town.
 
Moving on to your second point, bringing up Starswirl and Starlight Glimmer in the same breath was a bad hill to fight on. Starwirl has been consistently talked up as one of the greatest magicians that ever lived. Indeed, it was his extensive and frightening study of time-based magic that made Glimmer’s diabolical plan possible in the first place. Starlight Glimmer is an unimportant nobody that was introduced this season. Up until she appeared, the strongest unicorn currently living was Trixie Lulamoon. Remember that Sunset Shimmer is not canon, so having a unicorn that is significantly more powerful than Trixie is a huge deal. The average unicorn is pretty pathetic in terms of what magic they can cast. Most of them cannot even cast the polar ray spell, and they cannot levitate much weight either. I do not find your casual dismissal of Twilight’s destiny as a pony whose special talent consists of mastery of magic convincing. I do not know what Glimmer’s cutie mark signifies, but it is not likely to be just “magic” in a general sense.
 
As for your last point, I find it improbable that winged flight and levitating one’s body through the air require equal amounts of concentration and generate equal amounts of fatigue. Pegasuses can hover without any noticeable difficulty at all, and they can fly from a very early age. I contend that the frequent use of a levitation spell requires much more concentration and causes fatigue to build up at a much higher rate. This is especially true when there are a great number of small objects to lift or the object has a tremendous mass. Glimmer lifting her own mass with such impressive mobility, for such long segments of time, and with such ease is a feat that has never been seen before in the series. This display is, indeed, one of the strongest pieces of evidence I have as to why Glimmer’s power boost is ridiculous.

@SuperDEF  
Because little during her first appearance hinted at this. She was obviously skilled, but Twilight quickly showed her up once she had a handle on Starlight’s abilities. She copied Starlight’s own shield spell after seeing it once; even Starlight was baffled.
 
And now, she seems to be Twilight’s superior in magic. I don’t mind having powerful unicorns capable of going toe-to-toe with an alicorn, but this was not a graceful way to introduce it.

I don’t get why many people are questioning why Starlight Glimmer is greater than Twilight Sparkle in terms of a magic duel.
 
If anything, Starlight seems to always be this capable of power, but she wasn’t able to fully demonstrate this during her debate. The very fact that both Twilight and Starlight made a statement they had studied and learned many magic spells during their time shouldn’t be that hard to understand why Starlight is so strong.
 
In a 1v1 fight, Starlight can handle Twilight fairly. However, if Twilight had any of her friends with her I doubt she’ll last long (as evidence when Starlight was outnumbered and escaped into the cave).

I’m surprised there is a “Like a boss” variant of this clip.

From a meta-standpoint, it would’ve been much better for Twilight to overpower Starlight in every sense. As in, magic duels, laser beam fights, even have Starlight unable to outsmart Twilight.
 
Yet… Starlight still succeeds in her goal of preventing the Rainboom. It forces Twilight to think outside her box and know that she can’t solve the problem with brute force. Sure, she defeats Starlight easily with it… but she can’t make the Rainboom happen.
 
I could write an essay on this…

@Pinkbeardedpony  
Not bothering to read the rest of the responses to such an easy question - Twilight did not have her number in their second confrontation in the Cutie Map, she blocked one spell. Also, Sunset was known to be a power unicorn. Third, Starswirl the Bearded was a unicorn. There are powerful unicorns without being the Element of Magic.
 
Also, Twilight attacked and move around more while Starlight side stepped and didn’t move around nearly as much thus conserving strength. Her biggest spell she did while standing on a cloud and not levitating herself, Twilight did a lot of flying maneuvers as well as used a shield more often, and after one really big beam she just did the attack beam.

@drumpowa  
Let us go over what has been mentioned thus far. Glimmer is a match for Twilight because:
 
A.) She was hitting the gym like an Olympic athlete for a few months.  
B.) She was plundering Equestria for spellbooks, scrolls, artifacts, etc.  
C.) She was making like Batman / Dr. Doom and made intricate plans and contingencies  
D.) Twilight was a big, fat, lazy slob and was out of form due to resting on her laurels  
E.) She cut a deal with Discord and sold her soul to get all the magical potency she needed  
F.) She discovered the secret of Dark Magic, which helps her more than vanilla magic  
G.) She was tapping into the latent magicks of either the time spell, the magic map, or both
 
Which item(s) you order for takeout is up to you. I think it is self-evident that quite a few of the options are hard to believe, especially when all but C and perhaps G have any hard evidence in the program. You object to option F, while I object to options A,C, and D.
 
As for the plausibility of Dark Magic, I will admit that I don’t recall much of what was said about it. It seems logical to me that Glimmer would have difficulty in using vanilla magic for the purpose of slaking her thirst for vengeance. On the other hand, if there are dark counterparts to the elements of harmony, then Glimmer would get a huge boost in magic reserves and potency when using Dark Magic in pursuit of her iniquitous machinations.
 
As for how she learned about Dark Magic, how about stumbling across Sombra’s rhino horn? Perhaps she was lying about the Staff of Sameness and it is actually an Element of Dissonance.
 
What I meant in my previous post is that most fans of the show would recognize what a Dark Magic magic aura is based on visual presentation alone, and putting the dots together that this forbidden art is the reason that a mere unicorn is “hanging with” an alicorn is no more absurd than expecting me to believe that Glimmer was able to do what Trixie needed a magical artifact to do with natural talent and hard work. Villains getting over on heroes without cheating or taking a shortcut to do so is just strange.

@Pinkbeardedpony  
All are valid except for
 
@Pinkbeardedpony  

 
SCREECH
 
Okay, the whole discussion came about when you needed explanation for Starlight’s upgrade but then you come back with Dark Magic which is fine but with no explanation to how, you’ll give that a pass? I was with up to that point.
 
To reach an equilibrium between us, I think Twilight should have maybe used such Dark magic at least in conjunction with Starlight being in attendence. That way Starlight knows about the power, does her research and then goes hog wild.