★ Top Fifteen Tournament #11 - Darish Vol

lorenzo.r.2nd wrote:anybody know the vote percentages by any chance?

The current standings are:
Exar Kun - 8 (Counting Decaf, he affirmed a vote on Slorg)
Outlander - 7
Darish Vol: 6

Yea, im voting Kun over a scrub like Vol. Various reasons, I feel like they are obvious to anyone with half a brain. Outlander is more contentious, but Kun has it either way

Vol's a great pick, but my vote goes to the HERO OF TYTHON. I might make a post for him later in the run-offs.

The HoTLander would by all rights be swatted like a fly by Luke, especially considering the fact Onslaught Malgus appears to be an inferior-trained Sith compared to TPM Maul - per several accolades stating that Maul represents why the Sith are deadlier and better than ever, and other quotes stating the Banites had evolved beyond their predecessors - with at best similar TK potency, and yet, he is a pretty good fight for the HoTLander.

Any vote for the Outlander, let alone Kun, is completely undeserved and unjustified compared to Vol's well sourced and quantified standing compared to Luke and Abeloth.

Vol being below Yoda doesn't even really make sense in light of the gargantuan gap that DE through to FotJ creates between Luke and Yoda. Luke kicked DE Sidious' ass in a duel, and seeing as Yoda's two strongest shown powers - tutaminis and augmentation - are both strictly Control Force powers, that means DE Luke alone already kicked the shit out of someone whose Control abilities (Reborn DE Sidious at the height of his physical and Force power respectively) are a solid Gillardian, Kenobian growth tier above Yoda's.

How does Malgus appear to be an inferior-trained Sith?

Geistalt wrote:How does Malgus appear to be an inferior-trained Sith?

I can post them when I'm home unless someone else wants to do it, but Maul has quotes stating that:

He is evidence that the returned Sith are "deadlier than ever" and "more powerful" than ever, he is "the best trained Sith in history", and the RotS novel states that the Banite Sith have "evolved" and studied "all aspects" of the Force. They were the first to create an ironclad system for producing successively more powerful Sith with each generation, and successfully birthed the most powerful and successful Sith Lord in history (Sidious) who individually embodies the imbalance of the Force, who was strong enough to destroy the Jedi and rule the galaxy through sheer will, and who the Force birthed a celestial tier deity (Anakin) expressly to counterbalance.

The Banite Sith are, indisputably, greater masters of power than any Sith order prior, by leaps and bounds. And Maul is their most extensively trained in combat barring perhaps Sidious in 1,000 years.

Might address some of this stuff tomorrow.

Voting for Vol

ILS wrote:The HoTLander would by all rights be swatted like a fly by Luke, especially considering the fact Onslaught Malgus appears to be an inferior-trained Sith compared to TPM Maul - per several accolades stating that Maul represents why the Sith are deadlier and better than ever, and other quotes stating the Banites had evolved beyond their predecessors - with at best similar TK potency, and yet, he is a pretty good fight for the HoTLander.

Any vote for the Outlander, let alone Kun, is completely undeserved and unjustified compared to Vol's well sourced and quantified standing compared to Luke and Abeloth.

Vol being below Yoda doesn't even really make sense in light of the gargantuan gap that DE through to FotJ creates between Luke and Yoda. Luke kicked DE Sidious' ass in a duel, and seeing as Yoda's two strongest shown powers - tutaminis and augmentation - are both strictly Control Force powers, that means DE Luke alone already kicked the shit out of someone whose Control abilities (Reborn DE Sidious at the height of his physical and Force power respectively) are a solid Gillardian, Kenobian growth tier above Yoda's.

Exar Kun has a direct scaling chain that puts him well within Vol range as shown here:

LadyKulvax wrote:

ILS wrote:Even though the descriptor "much the power of Luke Skywalker" is fairly opaque on its own,

I can entirely sympathize with the position that you take here, but the factor is that even with such context in mind the opaque value doesn't vanish. I am not saying that 'much of the power' equates to nothing. Obviously the author wouldn't have bothered if it was meaningless. But the fact remains, how much of a gap in power exists between the two? I can't help but be reminded of one of the most infamous quotes in the history of the mythos. The '80 percent of the Emperor' quote Darth Vader has from Lucas himself.

It's much too debatable. Exar Kun due to New Rebellion can boast being far more powerful than the Luke seen in that novel due to Kueller as shown in the first post. That'd put Kun well up to an early New Jedi Order Luke. Can we definitively say that 'much of' Luke's power at that point in FOTJ is more than the Luke in NJO? Less?

Perhaps a far more comparable measurement should be made the following way. Viun Gaalan "might have been a match" for Kyp Durron in combat, yet Gaalan was inferior to Ivaar Workan as Workan unlike Gaalan was among the seven High Lords, a position earned through raw power:

Ascension wrote:Although the attractive, graying human male had been a Lord for many years, he was new to his rank of High Lord. Taalon's untimely demise had paved the way for Workan's promotion. Vol had enjoyed watching Workan step into the role as if he had been born to it. While Sith truly trusted no one but themselves and the Force, Vol nonetheless regarded Workan among those who fell on the side of less likely to betray him.

Sashal, Ascension wrote:"While the humans of the Lost Tribe and the Keshiri are different races, no one has ever been excluded from achieving high rank if she can prove herself worthy. You yourself worked with Sarasu Taalon. It is merit, not genetics, that enables one to rise or fall in our culture."

Workan admits vast inferiority to Grand Lord Vol:

Ascension wrote:But if she knew the Sith were here on Coruscant-

No. If something happened and his Master found that Workan had not warned him, Workan would not live long enough to draw breath to apologize. It had to be now.

However Kyp Durron at that time, per his own admission, was post-prime:

Legacy of the Force: Exile wrote:When I was still a teenager, I was able to reach into the gravity well of a gas giant and pull a spacecraft out of it. That's something that not many Masters could accomplish. I could do it because I was strong in the Force ... and because I had absolute faith in my right, my need to use that craft for a specific purpose. But I doubt I could do it today. I'm no weaker in the Force, and I'm a lot more skilled... but today I'd know that my intended purpose was not a good one, and this knowledge would deny me the focus I needed then to perform that task. So was I a Master then, or am I a Master now?"

It's further confirmed that Exar Kun had augmented Kyp Durron's power to the point that Kyp could 'barely contain' his power and is stated to be at full power:

Jedi Academy Sourcebook wrote:Over a number of weeks, Kun slowly bends Kyp to his will, and begins to augment his power.

Dark Apprentice wrote:Kyp felt his skin tingling with barely contained power,

Dark Apprentice wrote:Against the full might of Kyp Durron

Exar Kun in numerous quotes, was more powerful than Kyp Durron:

Dark Apprentice wrote:His best students were going sour, getting impatient, trying to push the limits of their abilities. But he had sensed a greater, deeper menace that vibrated within the very stones of the Great Temple itself. . . evil, and well hidden.

I, Jedi wrote:"And who will stop me?" I hesitated because Kyp's words seemed to echo within themselves, we were not alone, which meant Kyp's mentor had come to aid his apprentice.

"I will, if you make it necessary." An ancient sneer of contempt twisted Kyp's features.

"Puny Jedi, you are of no concern to me." Even though I had braced myself for another attack, it did no good. Kyp's previous blows were like light breezes compared to this full-on gale. I slammed back into the wall with teeth rattling-impact.

Dark Apprentice wrote:He searched, sending his thoughts like a probe deep into the storm systems of the gas giant. Behind him, Kyp felt the black-ice power of Exar Kun arise, tapping into him and reinforcing his abilities. His own feeble exploratory touch suddenly plunged forward like a blaster bolt.

It is further confirmed that Kueller was more powerful than any student Luke had ever had, including Kyp Durron:

New Rebellion wrote:The presence had neared. It was strong in the dark side. He could feel the ripples, feel a power he hadn’t felt in a living being since he encountered the Emperor. Luke had never had a student that powerful, of that he was certain. Whoever it was became powerful after he had left the academy.

Yet Exar Kun's spirit was more powerful than Kueller:

New Rebellion wrote:This Kueller had more Force capability than anyone she had encountered in years. Except Exar Kun, and he had been a spirit. Kueller was alive. He was using these deaths to replenish his own well of hatred. The dark side ate people from within, but while it did so, it gave them much too much power. He appeared to have more power than she had. More power than Luke.

New Rebellion wrote:"I've fought better than you, Kueller," Luke said. The lightsaber felt odd in his hand. "And won."

"Years ago, Skywalker. You've become complacent." Kueller slashed at Luke.

The spirit of Exar Kun is however, far less powerful than his living prime as his power was annihilated by a Jedi Wall of Light:



This results in him requiring to draw on the temple focal points to prevent himself from being pulled into the void in such a weak state:

Dark Side Sourcebook wrote:Exar Kun-who didn't technically die so much as merge with the dark side and retain his identity-resisted the dissolution of his spirit by drawing on the remarkable focusing energies of the Massassi temples on Yavin 4.

And he's further stated to be nigh insane by Jedi Academy:

The New Essential Guide to Characters wrote:For four thousand years he remained there, driven half mad by the unbearable isolation.

We further have confirmation that Exar Kun required restoring his lost power to resurrect, and that this entailed draining the power of the entire Jedi Academy:

Jedi Academy Sourcebook wrote:Eagerly but cautiously, Kun observes each arrival, probing for weaknesses and the power he needs to restore his lost reserves of energy. For a time, he is able to subside by feeding on their residual energy, but soon he will need worshippers if he is to grow more active. With a nucleus of followers to provide him energy-providing anger and fear, Kun will have enough power to escape his exile and take on human form.

Jedi vs. Sith: Essential Guide to the Force wrote:Exar Kun corrupted Luke’s most powerful student, Kyp Durron, and attempted to resurrect himself by draining power from Luke and the other trainees.

In other words, spirit Kun at his peak only had fed upon the power of Kyp Durron, Streen and Gantoris which is less than half of what he needed per the aforementioned sources. Simply put Exar Kun in life is far, far more powerful than as a spirit who already is much more powerful than DS Kyp Durron a stronger incarnation than the one compared to Viun Gaalan who is < Ivaar Workan << Darish Vol.

The idea Kun's votes are 'undeserved and unjustified' is baseless.

Here is why I am voting for the HERO OF TYTHON:

(1) Scourge states the Hero of Tython has the potential to be the most powerful Force user in history, more so than Revan or Vitiate.

(2) A weakened Hero defeats a more powerful Vitiate than the one Revan Reborn lost to, scaling him far above Malak, Kun, Nadd, and Tenebrous.

(3) Still in his early twenties, the Hero experiences vast combative growth--facing Malgus, Soa, the Dread Masters, Revan, etc.--and spiritual purification. 

(4) Nevertheless, the Hero is dominated by Arcann and sent into comatose for days after channeling spirit Valkorion's Force lightning storm.

(5) The Hero experiences spiritual enlightenment to move "beyond light or dark" and permanent raw power increases by Valkorion to then defeat Arcann.

(6) Nevertheless, the Hero is dominated by chained Vaylin, who then further explodes in power after becoming unchained Vaylin.

(7) The Hero benefits from further vast permanent raw power increases by Valkorion to then all-but-defeat defeat unchained Vaylin in one-on-one combat.

(8) The Hero is now a "vessel of supreme power worthy of preserving Valkorion's spirit," in contrast to being made comatose channeling some of his power.

(9) The Hero experiences further combative growth facing the Six Gods, Zildrog-empowered Vinn Atrius, and forces of the restored Sith Empire. 

---

I think a lot of the cases for Darish Vol are wanting your cake and eating it too. You cannot both have Luke be an untouchable entity that no one else's feats--regardless if they consume planets, ragdoll mega strike teams, or freeze fleets--can compare with, while also having a bunch of "the other high tiers of the era" right near Luke because ... of some strange open-ended comparisons. Denning's commentary, if taken at face value, reveals Caedus, Krayt, and Luke are interchangeable fighters with unique strengths and weaknesses: "That's kind of like asking whether Bruce Lee or Royce Gracie could take Von Damme." Under how we generally take quotes, this is clearly inconsistent with Luke's repeatedly affirmed vast superiority to Caedus. Denning may be discussing a more "neutral" Luke than the glowing, Abeloth-destroying version we see him achieve, or approaching this from more of a Drew Karphysyn mindset that "almost anyone can defeat anyone if the circumstances are right," or both, but I see no reason to put Caedus, Krayt, or Vol with Luke because of such. Not to mention nowhere in Denning's commentary does he mention nor insinuate Vol is with Luke, anyway. 

I think there's a tendency that, when we see a range a Force user can be at, we embrace the highest possible point. Vol certainly could be near the Abeloth-destroying Luke, but he doesn't have to be. There's a very ride range Vol could place at. Frankly, a Force user just capable of holding their own against Yoda could also have "much the power" of Luke. It really does come down to the intent and the semantics, and I'll need more proof to back the point of view that holds someone who explicitly doesn't do the Abeloth-destroying-awesomeness is near the Son of God who actually did the Abeloth-destroying-awesomeness. That's not to say the Hero doesn't also have a wide range--with probably a lower high and higher low than Vol--but I think it is best to go with someone repeatedly affirmed and shown to easily be at least level X than someone who possibly could be at level X. The Hero is set up to be the most potentially powerful Force user of the Old Republic era, then is sent through eight OOU years of DBZ-style growth to repeatedly far away surpass his previous self with new power or knowledge, all the while gathering vast scaling above actually tangible and insanely powerful Force users. And he probably has the most combat experience of any Force user ever bar Luke with everyone he's fought along the way. That's not to say my vote for the Hero is also free of subjectivity or is necessarily more objective than the other takes, but that's my personal justification behind my vote.

Oh, and I also don't think there's any good evidence that the Hero struggled against Malgus.

DarthAnt66 wrote:(4) Nevertheless, the Hero is dominated by Arcann and sent into comatose for days after channeling spirit Valkorion's Force lightning storm.

Not what happened. He lost and got stabbed in the stomach via Force ragdoll.

@Geistalt: Depends on the version. My mention of the comatose is to stress the extent he's below Arcann and his growth to later be able to harness Valkorion's spirit.

Good to see the comparison points laid out for Vol, namely Luke's comparison to Abeloth herself, were ignored. Little wonder why. 

Vol's standing to a full-power Luke has been ratified and left unaddressed in my original post, as have pretty much every important point. Trying to bog down the thread with Outlander wank to sway the votes is sad but not unexpected.

@ILS: They weren't ignored... you are actually ignoring @LadyKulvax's rebuttals rn.

Ascension is written by Golden, not Denning. I don't care to ascribe Denning's prowse and wordage to another author that seems to underemphasize power gaps.

EmperorCaedus wrote:@ILS: They weren't ignored... you are actually ignoring @LadyKulvax's rebuttals rn.

Not that I would dignify it with a response, but all it did was quote half of the first sentence of my post, feign "sympathy" for my argument with a crocodile-esque smile, and then proceed to ignore every point I made, claim what I said was vague when in fact it was perfectly straight forward, and then use the opportunity to once again post a plethora of misused quotes.

Lets reiterate: "much the power" on its own is vague, but when put in context, is quantifiable. Abeloth was described as having a dozen times the Force strength of Luke, and yet he has contended with her several times.


It's not rocket science, which is why there is such effort being made to obfuscate the point. If, for the sake of spelling it out, "much" meant anything from 50-80% of Luke, and yet, Abeloth is 1200% of Luke, and Luke can still contend with her, that suggests that in comparison Vol would be damn near equal to Luke.


The numbers and percentages are irrelevant and figurative. The important point is that Vol is much closer to Luke than either are to Abeloth, and yet the margin between Luke and Abeloth is already so small he can contend with her and hold her off physically.


Do I need to reiterate the feats which Luke and Abeloth have, which are in vast excess of anything Valkorion has ever done? I suppose I have to since some are content to ignore and hamster wheel around reality:

-More powerful than Galen per the greatest adversary/greatest Jedi quotes from DE (pre prime). Galen having TK in the million ton range.
-Completely mitigating Unuthul's TK, which is strengthened by the Force strength of trillions of killiks and can bend turbolasers
-Manipulating and moving a dovin basal, which depending on the size puts Luke's TK anywhere in the range of effortlessly swallowing turbolaser fire to pulling fleets through hyperspace to moving moons
-Contending with Abeloth several times, an entity that can melt cities with her sheer anger, without the need for any rituals, prep or even a power more advanced or specialized than TK to produce the effect

Lets reiterate: "much the power" on its own is vague, but when put in context, is quantifiable. Abeloth was described as having a dozen times the Force strength of Luke, and yet he has contended with her several times.

To clarify my last post, I would actually agree with this point if both were written by Denning. The "dozen times" is from Denning, the "much" is from Golden. 

Different authors, so I don't see any basis to "quantify" the intent/semantics of one with another that has potentially wildly different intent/semantics.

DarthAnt66 wrote:

Ascension is written by Golden, not Denning. I don't care to ascribe Denning's prowse and wordage to another author that seems to underemphasize power gaps.

You're perfectly entitled to ignore the prose; that does not change the fact that it exists. We cannot pick and choose which cross-book, cross-medium and cross-era comparisons we like one day and want to ignore the next. The EU claims to be a coherent universe with a coherent continuity and timeline.

It's revealing how history repeats itself: whenever the TOR camp encounter an argument they cannot counter, the toys fly out of the pram and the methodology is changed. Superior feats aren't enough, now I need to factually tie Vol directly to the Outlander to prove the basic point that he is superior. Simple prose comparisons are not enough: now instead of taking the simple point that Abeloth is much more powerful than Luke but Vol is comparatively close to him, then analysing the shown gap between Luke and Abeloth to deduce the much smaller one between Luke and Vol, you want to handwave the prose because it was written by different authors... even though they are both collaborating on the same line edited series and claiming to present us with a coherent, cohesive narrative.

Feel free to throw out methodology altogether as you have so many times in the past, but it does nothing to further your own arguments... 

DarthAnt66 wrote:

Lets reiterate: "much the power" on its own is vague, but when put in context, is quantifiable. Abeloth was described as having a dozen times the Force strength of Luke, and yet he has contended with her several times.

To clarify my last post, I would actually agree with this point if both were written by Denning. The "dozen times" is from Denning, the "much" is from Golden. 

Different authors, so I don't see any basis to "quantify" the intent/semantics of one with another that has potentially wildly different intent/semantics.

I'm glad you agree. Sadly, since we are dealing with canonical prose written within the same series by a team who are collaborating to give us one shared narrative, this is not an appeal to authorial intent. If it was author tweets, you may have a point, but you're simply ignoring evidence at this point. Feel free to explain why you think the lines being written by different authors is relevant though, you know, rather than just saying it as if it's a given. 

It's not a "simple prose comparison." It's using the prose of an author to analyze the prose (i.e. what the author really means) of a different author. Are you reading the lines of Stover's Revenge of the Sith the same way as Dark Rendezvous or The Tenebrous Way? No. The fact they're apart of a coherent, cohesive narrative doesn't mean all the prose is to be interpreted the same way. I've never heard that before--not to mention it's inconsistent with comments you've probably said just weeks ago.

Do not mistake this point-of-view for a change or even appeal to methodology. I would not have supported this argument five years ago, two years ago, or yesterday. It's just a bad argument. Sorry. I have no clue why--neither on a literary or Star Wars continuity basis--we would interpret prose in the way you're suggesting.

DarthAnt66 wrote:
(2) A weakened Hero defeats a more powerful Vitiate than the one Revan Reborn lost to, scaling him far above Malak, Kun, Nadd, and Tenebrous.

[1].The quote you're using here is only applicable by depending on your sole interpretation. The Star Forge providing Malak with far greater powers and Malak himself having them are not one in the same. To 'provide' is to offer a supply or quantity of something to something else. It is not the same as literally having it. The Star Forge itself is far more powerful than anyone above. It can TP mindrape and destroy civilisations and no one is above it. Malak's amplification is simply not equating to this power.

[2].Regardless of whether you agree with it or not, the quote is not by itself absolute. It needs to be demonstratably proven by holding up to scrutiny against other sources. Malak's quote does not.

[3].KotOR's internal scaling places Ragnos and Nadd above Darth Nihilus in power who is a magnitude above Kreia and all of her peers due to Kreia's own admission which is supported by the script stating Nihilus was even further above them than that. All of which we know through canonically accurate estimations from Kreia through the Telos IV holocrons and the authorial support of Chris Avellone, as well as statements in KOTOR 2's strategy guide in further support.

Furthermore, later quotes make it clear that the quote is straight up conflicted by other quotes:

Mandalorian Scout & Kreia, Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords wrote:"Freedon Nadd was a dark Jedi, he conquered Onderon long ago and became their king. The royal line is directly descended from him. The stories say that he was far worse than Revan and Malak ever were. This place is tainted and the Sith presence here makes the danger great."

"The soldier is correct. The dark side is strong here... and it will grant its strength to the Sith."

In the above quote, the Mandalorian is explaining who the tomb is for and why its taint is dangerous to them. Kreia agrees with this clearly, feels his 'legacy lives on in the very stones of his resting place' so is even more aware of his power. And rather infamously, whenever someone says something she disagrees with, be it the player or an NPC, she goes out of the way to say they're wrong.

I also can't see how this could be claiming Nadd is a worse ruler or tyrant. Nadd was a dick to the people of Onderon. Malak bombarded Taris and Telos IV into slag and bombed Dantooine to boot. Along with other planets I may be unaware of. I'd wager that's being worse than Nadd in terms of cruelty and slaughter.

Then there's the following quote:

Dantooine, Worlds, Knights of the Old Republic, Games, LucasArts website wrote:The most notable feature of Dantooine is the Jedi academy, originally founded by Jedi Master Vodo-Siosk Baas. For generations now it has served to train promising Jedi Padawans, with several dozen students in attendance at any given time. The most infamous graduate, however, is that of Exar Kun, trained by Vodo-Siosk Baas himself. Exar Kun was a Jedi Apprentice that turned away from the light side to embrace the seductive power of ancient Sith magic. Forty years ago he began a war upon the Republic that had grave consequences, but through great effort and sacrifice on the part of the Jedi he was defeated. The legacy of his taint is slowly passing away in the wake of the Mandalorian Wars and the coming of a new Sith threat.

Exar Kun is the most infamous graduate of the Dantooine academy due to the powers he gained through Sith magic and the war he started after it.

We can battle over this quote until COVID-19 godstomps us all, but if you can provide actual feats for Darth Malak being > Exar Kun or even just Freedon Nadd, really, I'd be willing to change my mind.

Of course it's an appeal to methodology, Ant. 

You're suggesting that if one book states that Abeloth is a dozen times as strong as Luke, and another that Vol has "much" the power of Luke, that you are perfectly entitled to ignore the implications of this simply because the lines were written by different authors. That's purely a methodological concern; how we interpret and use evidence.

Worse yet, you haven't even explained why. I am not using the hyperbolic figure "dozens" itself but rather putting the description in proportion to another description (rendering your Stover namedrop meaningless). 

Proportionately, Abeloth has, at least, many times the power of Luke, whereas Luke is not even twice as powerful as Vol. To put it even more simply, Abeloth is head and shoulders more powerful than Luke, whereas Luke is proportionately much closer to Vol. Therefore, all we need to do is look at how Luke compares to Abeloth, and then deduce that proportionately, the gap between Luke and Vol is much smaller. You already agree to this, so again, short of uprooting the methodology itself, you have no case here.

Since you've already as good as conceded the point, feel free to have the last word. This level of hamster wheeling shouldn't be dignified with a response. I'm all for engaging with the evidence, but if we're going back to the classic TOR tactic of uprooting the nature of evidence itself, you've lost my attention. And since the feats listed twice now have also been ignored, I'm pretty happy in stating that a guy who hangs around with Abeloth and Luke Skywalker is better than a guy who hangs around with Malgus, someone whose demonstrated TK power is literally hundreds of thousands-millions of times weaker than Luke and Abeloth's. 

Unless you want to argue that the Outlander has millions of times the telekinetic potency of Malgus and want to deal with the implications of that. Up to you.

Just another thought while we are here: given the disparity in feats between Luke or Abeloth and, say, Valkorion, Vaylin, Malgus or the Outlander himself, how far do you think you can stretch "much the power of" while fitting those characters in the gap between Vol and Luke/Abeloth?

As an example: TOR crew claims that Arcann Force pushing and outskilling the Outlander means he's far stronger than him, but the Outlander later dodging his Force pushes makes him a near equal. Then, later, the Outlander resisting Vaylin's omnidirectional power waves which knocked down others suggests a clear and sizeable gap between the Outlander and Arcann etc, and also, that the Outlander is close to Vaylin by virtue of resisting her. Cool, let's go with that.

Luke has not only resisted Abeloth, but has Force pulled her. As has Vol himself. Per TOR standards, that makes Luke and Vol "close" to Abeloth, at least, the gap isn't radically different between say, Arcann and Outlander at the start of KOTFE.

Regardless of the exact margins, the point is, Vol is even closer to Luke than either are to Abeloth, who cannot outright dominate them but has to weaken them first.

So, even being generous and using the "low end"  parity for Vol to Luke Ant suggested (whatever that means), considering the feats for Luke and Abeloth are in the range of millions of tons of telekinetic strength, do you really think that the Outlander with his comparatively meagre feats will conveniently fit above Vol but below Luke? If so, by virtue of what feat?

It simply does not add up under scrutiny.

Luke is, in actuality, not "a dozen times" weaker than Abeloth. That same Luke all-but-defeats Abeloth in CQC and temporarily matches her telekinesis. The quote is hyperbole expressed through Luke's point-of-view. Though, you already recognize that. In fact, you're openly arguing that this Luke is kind of close to this Abeloth. So, to restate yourself, you're arguing Luke is simultaneously a "dozen times" weaker than Abeloth but also close to Abeloth, and that since the description of "much" is way closer than "dozen times," that must mean Vol is super-close to Abeloth! Yeah, that's a joke argument, sorry. Let's just name all the reasons why.

(1) You're using "dozen times more powerful" to stand-in for "close but not really close," then saying this should be applied generally because there's a cohesive Star Wars continuity. That means all quotes with descriptors of "ten times stronger," "two times stronger," "far more powerful," "distinctively more powerful," etc. would be referring to characters rather close in power, arguably with an unremarkable difference. You would need a quote like "a hundred times more powerful," "infinitely more powerful," etc. for any quote to convey a vast power difference per your outlook. This would dramatically change how we interpret every quote.

(2) You're taking Luke's analysis at face-value when it shouldn't be, for reasons I outlined and for reasons you acknowledged to exist. 

(3) You're taking Luke's conveying of power comparisons--the fact it's hyperbolic notwithstanding--as reflective of Abeloth's conveying of comparisons. 

(4) You're ultimately taking Denning's prose and conveying of power comparisons as reflective of Golden's prose and conveying of power comparisons, for reasons you're apparently now denying (not sure?) and have yet to justify. If you want to do this, note Lucas holds Vader is 80% of Palpatine yet thinks Palpatine can one-shot him. If there's any authoritative prose to use for power-comparisons--which is a new and crazy notion--it would be Lucas'. Indeed, Chee and co. have repeatedly stated the Star Wars continuity is trying to play a "catch up game" with Lucas' mind. So, given there is a cohesive continuity and this cohesive continuity is perfectly reflected in Lucas, and assuming this means prose must also be consistent like you say, then Vol being "much the power" of Luke doesn't preclude a one-shot gap. Again, I think it's unfair to use prose from other authors as a stand-in, so I won't be arguing this, but you are, so I'm not really following how you would disagree with me here. 

You'll find a way, I'm sure. And blame the TORians along the way.