@Background Pony #923C
You’re right. But the reason I have a problem with that in the cartoon is that Celestia should at least be on Twilight’s level (using her for an example, could any of the others). The only reason that happened was to take the characters out of the story because the writers didn’t know how to handle/didn’t care about them and they had to be removed from the movie.

The Worf Effect is a bad writing vice. Especially when it’s overused.

@ChildOfTheNight
What about Twilight? Is she the most powerful ruler too? Equestria is ruled by four most powerful rulers. Remember?

I think it was the sphere because I think Cadance’s force field didn’t hold up more power than the sphere (similar to how in an offscreen event in “The Transformers: The Movie” Trailbreaker’s force field didn’t just hold up much longer than the Decepticons’ fatal blasts in a bonus scene that was cut from the finished film and seen in storyboards). Desptie Cadance holding it in a total of four seconds before becoming the second Crystal Princess to turn into a statue and overthrown by an evil king. Yes, Cadance Turing into a statue is just like one thousand years ago during the fall of Crystal Empire but with a different Crystal Princess and a different evil king. And even if Cadance is petrified by Tempest and overthrown by the Storm King, I believe that without the rightful ruler of the Crystal Empire, the Crystal Empire would have make another fall just like what King Sombra did one thousand years ago.

@Chopsticks  
The Worf Effect. Named after the character in the Star Trek: The Next Generation character that was the resident badass and would get his ass whooped whenever some big threat needed to be introduced as a problem.
 
The difference is that Lt. Worf actually was a wonderfully developed character that was also actually badass.

What about Twilight, Shining Armor, and Flurry Heart? Are they most powerful rulers too?

There’s actually a trope for this, The Warf Effect, I think. Basically, you get some tough character or other entity who’s job is to get their butt kicked by Monster of the Week.
 
And there’s an image I can’t find of him pointing at a whiteboard to the Princesses with, “How to Get Your Butt Kicked”.

Most Powerful? YES!
 
but they not main character so ye, they must lose and main character(book horse) save the day :)

@JBAR  
Yeah I’ve seen this a while back, too.  
Edit: I think this is a repost.

I’ve seen this like a year ago not sure were tho

“most powerful” but most incompetent

@Background Pony #E85F  
“I’m a powerful alicorn, capable of moving the sun and the moon!”  
A pony: “ACHOOO!”  
“OH GOD MARE DOWN MARE DOWN QUICK TWILIGHT TAG IN!”

Writing the princesses to have actual reputable magical power was probably one of the bigger mistakes they ever did, considering how they have to be checked/worfed whenever they want a story to happen.

@Background Pony #A93A  
Perhaps they mean politically.

How can they be the most powerful being in the world if they get KO’d if literally anything so much as sneezes in their direction?

@Background Pony #4574  
i don’t hate the show, and i’m not sure you know what a shitpost is

@Sparksian  
Why are you even here if you hate the show to the point of syayposting?

spherical boi, obviously
 
ah, yes, but someone will tell me how Celestia just wanted Twilight to learn to be a good ruler
 
no, it’s bad writing. it’s the same worf effect they use every season opener and finale

Yeah… Celestia… Powerful… Amazing and fun character, but powerful is a strong word.

Looks like the Loc-Nar.

“3 of the most powerful rulers of equestria”
 
Implying that there’s other more powerful rulers of Equestria? Lrn2engls.