The Fairy Tail franchise is home to a lot of intriguing characters who possess unique qualities that set them apart from each other. One of these qualities is intelligence. In many cases, intelligence has proven to be more handy than brute force in achieving certain objectives, and it is even more useful when used in conjunction with strength.

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That said, these characters are rather gifted in the area of brain power. While some of them may not be the brightest socially, their battle sense is something to behold. These characters have been seen on occasion to work their way around problems using their superior thinking ability.

10 Natsu May Be Dumb In The Common Sense, But He Makes Up For It With His Battle Sense

Fairy Tail_ Natsu Dragneel

In many cases, Natsu has displayed incomparable dumbness that leaves his guild mates dumbfounded. He is single-minded and rarely ever thinks of the big picture. But aside from his bad social skills, he is an excellent fighter, and not just because of his raw power.

Natsu has defeated opponents who were way more powerful than himself by thinking at light speed during a fight. He's quick to know what works in a fight and take advantage of it. His battle with Zancro proved this when Natsu emptied himself of his magic power and used his body as a vessel to contain Zancro's magic.

9 Happy Is Smart Enough To Call Out Other People's Mistakes

Fairy Tail_Happy

Happy is Natsu's best friend, and he always gives Natsu ideas on how to handle situations. Whenever Natsu displays his signature dumbness, Happy calls him out in the most hilarious manner. He does this with other people, too, like Gray and even Lucy. During the Neo Oracion Seis arc when everyone was at a loss as to how they were supposed to defeat the enemy, it was Happy who came up with the plan that won the battle and saved the world.

8 Laxus Dreyar Is More Of A Brute, But His Brain Is As Quick As Lightning

Fairy Tail Laxus Dreyar

Laxus was introduced as a very powerful and arrogant lightning wizard who seemed to care only about himself, but he proved to be a smart man on many occasions. When he attempted to take over the Fairy Tail Guild, he devised an ingenious plan that put the guild members in difficult situations.

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Laxus was also smart enough to use Freed's enchantment to make his enemy save his life mid-battle. Seeing as he was poisoned with bane particles and unable to fight efficiently, he drew an enchantment which the enemy cancelled with a bane particle canceler, thereby healing Laxus in the process.

7 Erza Uses Multiple Armors In Battle By Deciding Which One Will Work Best

Fairy Tail Erza Scarlet in one of her armors

Erza Scarlet "requips" into various armors mid-battle by quickly assessing her enemies and deciding which armor will work best in any given situation. This is only possible thanks to the speed with which her mind works. She's also a good problem solver who is always ready to provide a working solution during missions with her team. Erza quickly realized how to break a supposed curse on Galuna Island after hearing about the way the curse worked. Everyone was left astounded at the speed with which she figured it out.

6 Gray Fullbuster Uses His Intelligence In Conjunction With His Magic Power

Gray Fullbuster

Gray always scolds Natsu for being so dumb and gets into fights with him over the slightest things, even when they are on a team assignment. One thing's for certain though - Gray didn't allow Natsu's dumbness to rub off on him. Gray fights with his magic as well as his brain.

Whenever Gray meets a troublesome opponent, he always somehow figures out their weakness and exploits it in the most impressive manner. He has overcome several opponents by simply outsmarting them. Rufus, for example, is a very smart bookworm who creates spells based on his memory of them, yet he was somehow outsmarted by Gray.

5 Gildarts May Not Act Smart All The Time, But He Might Just Be The Smartest Fighter There Is

Fairy Tail Gildarts Clive

Gildarts coexisted perfectly with Natsu both as a father figure and a friend because they both possessed similar traits. Gildarts is clumsy and rarely serious, but is also incredibly intelligent in battle. He was mostly shown to overwhelm his foes with brute force, but his fight with August proved that he may well be the smartest fighter in the franchise.

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No one seemed to know how August's power worked, but after seeing it in action, Gildarts quickly deduced its principles, much to August's shock. Gildarts' many years of battle experience make him able to quickly judge situations and overcome his enemies.

4 Makarov Is The Guild Master Not Just Because Of His Power

Makarov Casting Fairy Law

As Guild Master, Makarov is both wise and powerful. He has brilliantly carried the burden of the troublesome guild on his shoulders for years. He's also smart enough to carry out covert operations, like the time he had Gajeel spy on his son's guild, and when he made Mest a spy in the Magic Council. He also displayed his brilliance when he came up with a two-pronged strategy to win the Grand Magic Games and save his guild members at the same time.

3 Lucy Heartfilia May Not Be So Powerful, But She's Used To Outsmarting Her Foes

Fairy Tail Lucy Heartfilia

Lucy is a strong celestial wizard, but she's far from being one of the most powerful characters in the series. Still, she's overcome many difficult situations by thinking on her feet. She loves solving difficult riddles and taking on tasking challenges. During her jobs with her team, she provides aid not just by fighting, but by coming up with strategies to win. Given her various exploits, she may very well be one of the smartest people in the entire series.

2 Levy McGarden Is A Bookworm With A Great Analytical Mind

Fairy Tail_Levy Mcgarden

Levy is definitely not the most powerful character in Fairy Tail, but her mental prowess is almost unrivaled. She's the one the entire guild turns to for figuring out the most complex problems, and she always delivers right on time. Her brilliance and magic power make her very reliable and efficient. Even Lucy turns to Levy for assistance with the most difficult problems, and so long as Levy is on the case, everyone can rest assured that she'll come through.

1 Mavis Vermillion Is As Smart As A Supercomputer

Fairy Tail_Mavis Vermilion

Mavis was the first Guild Master of the Fairy Tail Guild, and she was known as the Fairy Tactician. She even led the kingdom's troops to victory in several battles. Her tactical mind is second to none in the entire series, and her brilliance when coming up with battle strategies makes it seem like she's seeing into the future.

Mavis can quickly assess anyone's character and know in what manner a person would behave under certain conditions. Using this ability, she came up with a plan that won the Fairy Tail Guild the Grand Magic Games by placing her guild members with opponents they had an advantage against. Her brilliance is intimidating even for the toughest of foes.

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