A measly E-rank hunter, the world’s weakest, was bestowed with the ability to level up. Sung Jinwoo quickly attained the power of necromancy with the help of the system. Assuming the title of Shadow Monarch, Jinwoo had the ultimate power to reanimate dead beings as shadows. Starting with Igris, the red knight, to the ever-powerful Beru, Jinwoo built a formidable shadow army in Solo Leveling with his skills. If you’ve read the manhwa and want to know how Jinwoo’s shadows stack up, I have analyzed their powers and ranked them all here.
Spoilers Warning This article contains heavy spoilers about the shadows of Sung Jinwoo. Thus, we highly suggest you to read the manhwa completely beforehand in order to avoid ruining your intended experience.
13. Kaisel
- Rank: Knight Grade
During Jinwoo’s return to the Demon Castle, he clashed against Baron and his wyvern, Kaisellin. After successfully defeating them, Jinwoo extracted the shadow of Kaisellin and named him Kaisel. While Kaisel absolutely looked like an overpowered majestic dragon, there was no scope for Kaisel to shine in its entire screentime.
Thus, Kaisel was never called for a battle and was only used as a traveling medium by Jinwoo. I’d have wanted to see a lot more of Kaisel, and I was damn disappointed with its character utilization at the end. So, it is the least formidable shadow in Sung Jinwoo’s army.
13. Tank
- Rank: Knight Grade
During the unfortunate Red Gate Incident, Sung Jinwoo came up against the Ice Bears in the frozen area. They had an Alpha Ice Bear among them whom Sung Jinwoo defeated with ease and extracted its shadow. Although the normal ones look like polar bears, the alphas are distinctive with a gigantic physique equal to that of an army tank. Hence, Jinwoo befittingly named it Tank.
Tank started as an Elite Grade and eventually reached the Knight Grade. As a knight-level shadow, it had stronger defense and offensive features, thanks to its robust physique, razor-sharp claws, and fangs. Tank’s strength was equal to that of an A-Rank hunter, thus, is a good starter pawn in battles.
11. Jima
- Rank: Elite Knight Grade
When the Ahjin Guild collaborated with the Knights Guild to take on a high-end A-Rank Gate, our protagonist Jinwoo met Boss Naga (humanoid x snake). As expected, he extracted its shadow after eliminating it and named it Jima. Jima was as strong as it was before being extracted and granted the Elite Knight Grade.
Hence, Jima was as capable as that of a mid-range S-Rank hunter. The Nagas possessed incredibly hard skin; used to make shields and armor, so they had a natural line of defense. Additionally, they also had the special ability to grow in size and regenerate body parts along with formidable strength due to their enormous size.
10. Iron
- Rank: Elite Knight Grade
Iron is the shadow of Kim Chul, an A-Rank hunter who tried to kill Jinwoo during the Red Gate incident. After being extracted as a shadow, Jinwoo gave him the title Iron, and as the name, he remained a loyal shadow of Jinwoo.
However, he didn’t have a major part in the storyline although he gained an Elite Knight Grade status. He had a handful of abilities such as Shout of Provocation, Regeneration, Great Strength, and Defense as he was a Tanker in real life.
9. Shadow Giants
- Rank: Elite Knight Grade
After Jinwoo visited the Double Dungeon where it all started once again, an S-Rank gate spawned across Japan. This was a gateway for powerful and gigantic giants entering Japan and stomping their way through (similar to the Rumbling from AOT).
This is when Sung Jinwoo stepped up to obliterate up to 30 of these giants by himself. Each giant was said to possess powers that rival an S-Rank hunter easily.
so, in the end, Sung Jinwoo had a total of 28 giants at his disposal after extracting their shadows. These are the most powerful pawns in Sung Jinwoo’s army that serve in the frontline as they can easily handle S-Rank level hunters.
8. Min Byung-Gyu (Temporary)
- Rank: Unknown
Min Byung-Gyu was an S-Rank healer who participated in the Jeju Island Raid, which eventually led to his death at the hands of the Ant King. As an S-Rank healer, Min Byung-Gyu was exceptional with healing, buff, and stealth magic as well. He also mentioned that in terms of combat, he would be equal to that of an A-Rank hunter which is not very bad for a healer.
Right after he died, Jinwoo had to extract his shadow for a short time to heal his fellow hunter, Cha Hae-In who was on the verge of death. After bringing back her from potential death, Jinwoo decided to honor him by canceling the extraction to let his soul rest in peace as Byung-Gyu wanted.
Even though he was a shadow for a short time, a mentioned on our list of strongest shadows is well-deserved for this S-rank hunter.
7. Ant Queen (Temporary)
- Rank: General Grade
The Ant Queen was the final boss of the S-Rank Gate that spawned on Jeju Island. I mean, you must have already got an idea of how powerful she was as the boss of an S-Rank gate. However, Beru, the Ant King, remarked that more than her battle prowess, the Queens’ true power was in line with her reproduction abilities.
Ant Queen was able to reproduce a number of ants for over four years the main aspect being that the newer generations of ants are automatically more advanced than the older ones.
Ant Queen was able to hold her ground against the strike team full of S-Rank hunters, thanks to her ultimate strength. Additionally, we only saw one of her abilities, which is the poison spewed by her.
Overall, being a General Grade, the Ant Queen is equal to a top-tier S-Rank hunter in Solo Leveling. She was utilized as a shadow for a temporary period, she is ranked lower on our list.
6. Greed
- Rank: General Grade
When Hwang Dongsuk was killed by Jinwoo, his younger brother Hwang Dongsoo set his eyes on finishing the protagonist as an act of revenge. However, everyone knows how that mission went as Dongsoo was crushed by both Jinwoo and his father.
Later, when Sung Jinwoo finished him off for tormenting Jinho, he extracted his shadow and made him bow in front of him. So, an S-Rank hunter was reborn as one of the strongest shadows of Sung Jinwoo, but we couldn’t see him in action for a long time like the other top shadows you will learn more below.
5. Tusk
- Rank: General Grade
Tusk was the shadow extracted from Kargalgan who was the boss of the Hunters Guild Gate in Solo Leveling. Kargalgan was a mighty high orc shaman whose expertise lay in the field of magic.
After being reborn as Tusk, he was also one of the most loyal shadows of Jinwoo. He graduated from Elite Knight Grade to General Grade, showing the volume of magical powers he gained and trained.
Tusk was a proper powerful shaman and mastered a multitude of magics which helped Sung Jinwoo greatly throughout his hair-raising adventures. So, Tusk was one of the most versatile and powerful shadows in the shadow army.
4. Kamish (Temporary)
- Rank: Unknown grade
Kamish the dragon was infamously known as humanity’s greatest calamity and was the first ever boss encountered in the first S-Rank gate. However, after mass-murdering a lot of hunters, it was finally slain by the last standing five S-Rank Hunters who went on to become National Hunters later on. Kamish’s corpse was preserved by the Federal Bureau of Hunters.
During the International Guild Conference Arc, Jinwoo was able to bring it back from the dead as a shadow. However, since it was dead for a long time and its mana levels vanquished, Kamish lasted as Jinwoo’s shadow for a short period. Sung Jinwoo never had any good luck with dragons, isn’t it? First, it was Kaisel and now Kamish, though, Kamish was an absolute monster in its prime.
3. Igris
- Rank: Marshal Grade
From now on, we have entered the top three spots. Starting with the fan-favorite swordsman Igris, I have to mention that he’s the top one for me. If you don’t remember, Igris was the very first shadow Sung Jinwoo extracted and it will always hold a special place in every fan’s heart. Igris was entrusted with examining the potential of the Shadow Monarch’s successor and that is when Sung Jinwoo met him as well.
From day one, Igris has been one of the most loyal and powerful shadow soldiers. He initially started as Knight grade and continued to upskill constantly to become the Marshal/ Commander grade.
Igris was an exceptional swordsman and had a plethora of abilities like telekinesis, and regeneration along with impeccable strength to overthrow anything.
2. Beru
- Rank: Marshal Grade
Up next, we have another fan-favorite king, Beru, who is the most loyal shadow of Sung Jinwoo. He is the extracted shadow of the fearsome Ant King who’d slain a handful of S-Rank hunters as if they were nothing. Luckily, he switched teams as Beru now remaining as fierce and powerful as ever he was in his prime.
Beru is an exemplary versatile shadow who excels in almost all of their abilities. He has incredible strength and resilience, he can fly and move at an unreal pace, and more importantly, he can also perform healing magic. Thus, you can understand how our best boy Beru is the real deal when it comes to a strong versatile shadow and is only beaten by Bellion.
1. Bellion
- Rank: Grand-Marshal Grade
Bellion arrived late during the end game and immediately stole the show to become the strongest shadow in the history of Sung Jinwoo’s army. Furthermore, technically, Bellion was the first shadow ever made possible by Ashborn’s power should be noted. So, the first ever shadow created was the last one to join Jinwoo’s army during the Final Battle Arc.
Before his arrival, Marshal used to be the highest grade a shadow could attain. But after Bellion’s arrival, he contested against Beru only to end up easily beating him and clinching the brand new title of Grand Marshal Grade shadow.
Bellion is the perfect shadow one could ask for, as he is outstanding in many aspects like strength, speed, expertise in weapons, leadership, etc.
Well, this marks the end of the strongest shadows list of Sung Jinwoo. Throughout the story, Jinwoo was able to get his hands on some of the most overpowered shadows in this realm. At the same time, he was unlucky enough to achieve some shadows only to have them for such a short time. Over time, he earned a ton of loyal soldiers who would go to any extremes for him. That said, if you think there is a need for change in the above ranking, feel free to let us know through the comments below.
Undoubtedly, Bellion is the most powerful shadow of Sung Jinwoo and the only shadow to have the Grand-Marshal grade. He is the first shadow to be ever created by Ashborn and joins Jinwoo during the final arc.
At the end of the series, Sung Jinwoo is said to have around ten million shadow soldiers in his army. We have ranked the top most shadow soldiers above.
This is one of the most heated debate topics among the Solo Leveling community. In our opinion, Beru gets the upper hand slightly as he is more versatile and the most loyal shadow of Jinwoo.
