Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-6810329-20160911021344/@comment-25926288-20160914194123

Wicked Wizard of the West wrote: Wait, why is Dark Swan higher than the other Dark Ones? She was called the most powerful Dark One, claimed herself more powerful than Rumple, and math says Emma's magic + Dark One's magic is greater than Dark One's magic alone.

Merlin tends to be higher than the Dark Ones simply because of knowledge, even though they are supposedly equally matched. (Feats-wise, the Dark Ones look worse than Regina because they never get time to shine magically, which is hilarious). Rumple was the longest living DO that we know of, so he'd likely be higher up on the Dark One list over say Gorgon or Hook.