Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Fall of the House of X #5! Throughout the Krakoan Era, the X-Men’s focus has been on one enemy above all others: Nimrod. Nimrod is the ultimate Sentinel who’s proven time and again that he’s Orchis’s deadliest weapon, as even Omega-Level mutants can’t touch him. Ironically, it’s only after Nimrod effectively takes over the entirety of the anti-mutant organization that he meets his end – a defeat that stands as the X-Men’s most impressive victory to date.

In Fall of the House of X #5 by Gerry Duggan, Lucas Werneck, and Stefano Caselli, the X-Men take Orchis down once and for all. Previously, Nimrod took over Orchis (which was originally operated by humans), running its systems through himself for the sake of complete control and ultimate security – or so he thought. Given Nimrod’s power-play, all the X-Men had to do is kill Nimrod, and all of Orchis will be destroyed forever as a result. While that’s easier said than done, the X-Men pull it off nonetheless.

Cyclops’ optic blast is the only force strong enough to pierce Nimrod’s armor, so he hammered Nimrod relentlessly, giving Storm an opening to shock Nimrod’s system with lightning. During this final battle, Nimrod was fighting multiple X-Men teams at once in different android bodies, though Storm’s lightning attacks reverberated through them all. Storm’s reach was assisted by Magneto and Polaris, who manipulated the magnetic field surging through Nimrod, ensuring all his forms were destroyed. The combined effort of the X-Men working together was enough to kill Nimrod/destroy Orchis, something not even the strongest among them could do alone.

X-Men’s Victory Over Nimrod Proves They’re Combined Might is Stronger than Legion

X-Men: Before the Fall – Sons of X #1 by Si Spurrier and Phil Noto

While the X-Men’s victory over Nimrod is impressive in its own right given how great a threat the Sentinel has been throughout the Krakoan Age, it’s made even more so when considering those who were unable to beat Nimrod alone, as that implies the combined effort of the X-Men is a power that surpasses even Omega-Level mutants like Legion. In X-Men: Before the Fall – Sons of X #1, Legion is running hyper-realistic scenarios where he’s fighting Nimrod. Legion hopes to be the key to mutantkind’s salvation against its greatest threat, though time and again, he falls short.

This issue reveals that even Legion’s seemingly unparalleled strength (indeed, he has countless personalities with just as many unique mutant powers at his disposal) isn’t enough to beat Nimrod. Every time, the Sentinel was able to predict and counter any attack Legion launched at it, resulting in Legion’s continuous defeat. When this issue was released, it seemed like the X-Men’s chances of defeating Nimrod were hopeless, especially when considering another seemingly all-powerful mutant couldn’t defeat Nimrod alone either: Apocalypse.

Even Apocalypse Can’t Withstand Nimrod Alone

Powers of X #3 by Jonathan Hickman and R.B. Silva

While not technically Omega-Level, Apocalypse’s mutation grants him immense power, which is only heightened by the Celestial technology integrated into his body (including and especially the Life Seed). Apocalypse has ruled over entire timelines, and has stood as perhaps the strongest X-Men villain throughout the team’s Marvel Comics history. However, when Apocalypse went toe-to-toe with multiple Nimrods at once (just as the X-Men did), even he didn’t stand a chance against Nimrod’s power. Neither Legion nor Apocalypse could beat Nimrod alone, making the fact that the X-Men did it together all the more impressive.

Not only is the X-Men’s victory over Nimrod a testament to how powerful the team truly is, but it’s also a shining beacon of hope going into the X-Men’s upcoming era, ‘From the Ashes’. The X-Men are about to embark on a journey that will see them rebuild their home following Orchis’ utter destruction of Krakoa, as well as repair relations with humanity while fighting for the freedom of mutants everywhere. That’s a decidedly grim scenario, but after seeing them defeat Nimrod where Omega-Level mutants could not, the X-Men are more than capable of overcoming that adversity.

Fall of the House of X #5 by Marvel Comics is available now.