Bleach: How Powerful Is Lanza del Relámpago? Calculating Ulquiorra’s Strongest Attack

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Lanza del Relámpago appears to be Ulquiorra’s most powerful technique, and possibly the strongest attack in terms of raw power among the Espada.

To estimate the yield of this attack, I will use a range-based approach that allows us to determine the potential destructive scale of Lanza del Relámpago.

Area-Based Destruction

The explosion produced by this attack was large enough to rival the size of Las Noches, despite being thrown toward the horizon. Based on Ulquiorra’s own statement about possessing the power to destroy Las Noches, this suggests that the explosion’s affected area is comparable in scale.

Using our previous estimate, Las Noches has an area of 14,400 km². Given its cubic shape, each side measures 120 km. If we model the explosion as circular, this corresponds to a blast radius of approximately 67 km.

To estimate the yield, we apply the Glasstone & Dolan / Kingery–Bulmash airblast model, using the following relation:

$Y = \left(\frac{x}{0.28}\right)^3$

Where:

Y = explosive yield in kilotons of TNT

x = blast radius in kilometers

0.28 = empirical constant corresponding to 20 psi overpressure

Substituting our values:

$(67 / 0.28)^3 = 13,700,938 \text{ kilotons of TNT}$

This equals 13,700 megatons of TNT, remaining within the previously estimated range.

It is important to note that this calculation only accounts for the region directly affected by the explosion itself, without considering the pressure wave, which would propagate much farther and devastate massive structures beyond the initial blast zone.

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Using a scale comparison, we obtain the following measurements:

Explosion diameter: 241 px = 134 km

Shockwave diameter: 352 px = 188 km (radius of 94 km)

Explosion height: 865 px = 480 km

Applying this updated radius to the same formula:

$(94 / 0.28)^3 = 37,836,370 \text{ kilotons of TNT}$

This corresponds to 37,838 megatons of TNT, nearly tripling the previous result, yet still remaining within the broader range obtained in the Dark Cero analysis. It should be emphasized that these extreme values are primarily driven by the estimated size of Las Noches.

Based on area scaling and shockwave analysis, Lanza del Relámpago reaches yields in the tens of thousands of megatons. This places Ulquiorra’s strongest attack firmly within the range of large-scale natural disasters, rivaling supervolcanic events and massive seismic phenomena.

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