The problem with this is that denying their scaling to one another is
not exclusively based upon the cutscenes. Every single depiction within the Odyssey-
the story of the verse- also depicts the various deities as being one another's general equals, as already demonstrated ad nauseam. So, if the cutscenes, trailers, gameplay,
and actual story all: over, and over, and over, and over again: depict them in the same light, the only thing that leaves that would differentiate them from one another is their Lore (or, backstory.)
There are two problems, then, with using exclusively the Lore in favor of
everything else to grant these characters their tiers, aside from that it flatly ignores and is inconsistent with everything else the verse depicts-
1) Said Lore is, often explicitly, tied to the ongoing story as described above. It is a very frequent occurrence that a God's Lore directly alludes to their attitudes towards the ongoing canon conflict, and thus remains subordinate to/an aspect of the larger canon.
"For some were Gods that could not suffer Achilles to survive. Straight and true the arrow flew and harpooned Achilles' heel, where his mother held him when submerged. The wound was deep, his weakness found, Achilles met his end... A decade hence, from Hades' depths, Achilles has been drawn. Armored now, upon the heel, revenge his only aim. For envious Gods stole from him his glory and his life. Now they tremble at the wrath of the man that cannot be harmed." -Achilles' Lore
"Now, as the greatest war between the heavens clashes on earth, what will remain when the dust has settled? Who will be the victor that writes history? If Ah Muzen Cab was, indeed, one of the original four Bacab, he survived the end of the world once and became a God. What power will he seize this time when the new world is made?" -Ah Muzen Cab's Lore
"Now, a new war brews, but this one between Gods, not men. While the battlefield is no place for the fairest of all, Aphrodite recalls the destruction between the Greeks and Trojans. Perhaps, this time, her beauty can be used to stop a war instead of start one. Perhaps, this time, she will discover the beauty within." -Aphrodite's Lore
"And now there is war. None could know peace without war, victory without defeat, glory without failure. Artio must join those that fight if only to enforce the cycle of things. Nothing and no one defies the laws of nature like a God." - Artio's Lore
"Patient to a fault, Chronos knows no urgency. He does not fear pain, or war, or death, for he is time itself and will outlast all. For this reason, his presence on the field of battle is alarming. This war between Gods must portend a conclusion so dire as to threaten the very existence of time. Perhaps, all the Gods should begin counting the seconds of the eternal clock. There may be few of them remaining." - Chronos' Lore
It goes on, and on, and on- these are a few of just the ones at the top of the list alphabetically. The same war the Comics depict, the Odyssey explores the story and aftermath of,
is a part of these Gods' Lore. Separating them from the story itself is impossible.
2) The lore, divorced of the actual story of the setting, isn't even evaluating Smite at that point, but simple adaptations of mythology to a video game. Mythology is messy enough as is, just look at the ceaseless troubles the wiki's had evaluating mythological profiles: do you expect to be able to create complete profiles for these characters based on brief snippets of backstory on a God that, by the verse, is simply considered to be the actual God as they are in our real world? Over the every-showing-they-actually-have? Much less for them to be accurate.
Regarding false equivalencies...
Replication of the feats as they are is
not a prerequisite for being equal in power to those characters. Attack Potency is simply that- potency- not range or scope. No, no one but Chronos is time itself. However, the following remains:
Premise
(P) 1)
Olorun is a being that possesses three aspects, one of which created the universe, in addition to possessing a fundamental command over all cosmic forces.
P2) If Olorun is a being that possesses three aspects, one of which created the universe, in addition to possessing a fundamental command over all cosmic forces, then Olorun is Universe level+.
Conclusion
(C)) Olorun is Universe level+.
P3) Aside from this, there is
Chronos, who is Time itself. Aside from even that,
Jormungandr's battle with Thor during Ragnarok is fated to shake the entirety of creation, and to herald its eventual collapse, and
Vamana who spanned the entire of Earth, the Underworld, and the Heavens (Note that, in Hindu Cosmology, this simply refers to the entire current universe, not other parallel realities.)
P4) If Olorun is Universe level+, and Chronos, Vamana, and Jormungandr, to name a few examples, all demonstrate powers on a cosmic scale on a similar scale, then this scale of power is not inconsistent within the verse.
C2) Therefore, this scale of power is not inconsistent within the verse.
P5) We are given no reason to assume that Olorun's Durability: or the durability of any God, for that matter: is dramatically beneath the potency of their powers.
C3) Therefore, Olorun's Durability should scale to his Attack Potency, which itself is consistent enough within the verse to not dismiss as a one-off occurrence.
P6) Cerberus not only harms Olorun, just as Gods have harmed Gods countless times in the story-line preceding this instance, but his doing so
is vital to the story, as Cerberus being able to harm him explains why Yemoja was called upon to begin with. If Olorun was infinitely stronger than every other God, then he would not have been considered with the ambush, and instead have evaporated Persephone's minions with a blink.
P7) Whenever a character A has a showing that makes them comparable to another character B, with any given feat C established in the story, Character A can reasonably be said to be on even-enough footing to scale, regarding Attack Potency and Durability with Character B (barring extenuating circumstances, which- if we're no make no Lore/Current Self distinction- there are none of.)
P8) If Olorun's Durability is Universe level+, Cerberus harms Olorun (and his doing so is vital to the story), and a character A (Cerberus) harming a character B (Olorun) puts him on even footing with Olorun regarding Attack Potency and Durability.
C4) Cerberus is, still, Universe level+ in Attack Potency and Durability.
P9) We have no reason to hold Cerberus on a pedestal over every other God in the story. He is not a major player at all, and
every depiction we receive of the Gods shows that they can harm one another freely.
P10) If Cerberus is Universe level+, and we have no reason to hold Cerberus as being above every other God, then we can safely state that other Gods are comparable.
C5) Other Gods are comparable to Olorun, and to similar Gods with feats that are cosmic in scale.
So, only Chronos being Time itself is irrelevant.
There really isn't any way to overstate just how consistent Gods harming each other is within the story-
it is, in fact, THE definitive central premise of the entire setting and story.
If you reject that premise on appeal to Authorial Intent
("...just because Cabrakan = Chronos and Chronos = Low 2-C therefore Cabrakan = Low 2-C, this is not true, as in reality, Cabrakan himself has only shown 7-A feats, and we logically know such a character is clearly not treated as a Low 2-C by anyone working on the game.")- the entire verse ceases to be, and at that point you cease to debate Smite at all.
