Rank 1: Maiar
- Known representatives: Sauron, Gandalf, Saruman
The Ainur were the first beings created by Eru, the god in The Lord of the Rings. They are angelic or ghostly beings. Among these Ainur are the Valar (“The Powerful”) and the weaker Maiar (“The Helpers”). The Maiar were servants of the Valar and were later sent to Middle-earth as messengers.
How many Maiar exactly came to Middle-earth is unknown. They have the ability to take on various forms. This includes animal forms, allowing them to roam through Middle-earth unnoticed.
The most famous Maiar is probably Sauron. To aid in the fight against the dark lord, five more Maiar were sent to Middle-earth in the Third Age, who are known as the Istari or wizards. This includes Gandalf, Saruman, and Radagast.
With their divine power, the Maiar are undoubtedly the most powerful beings in Middle-earth, placing them in first place in this ranking.
Even though Sauron may seem like the ultimate evil to many inhabitants of Middle-earth, there is a dark power that is even more powerful. Its origin has to do with the creation story, which unfortunately is not explained in the films of The Lord of the Rings. How all of this is connected, and how the world, including Middle-earth, was created, is explained by my colleague Christoph Waldboth here on MeinMMO: A god from The Lord of the Rings was so powerful that he created a cruel villain only through the power of his thoughts
