Military strength of Numenor

[Bom Tombadillo]

Originally Posted by Morthoron

And really, the Edain that fought against Morgoth were if anything just as powerful a force as the Numenoreans. They were their ancestors, after all.

This seems like the key here. There's an almost universal theme in the Silmarillion, it seems to me, of "fading:" all good things must come to an end, and everybody falls eventually, so it's doubtful the Numenoreans could have done anything the Edain didn't.

That said, there is a little leeway, since there's a fair bit of emphasis in the Akallabeth, it seems to me, on how great and glorious Numenor was before its decline, but it's still doubtful that they could've done anything especially huge. Legate and Galadriel55 have already made the same points on the topic I would - any battle against what I would term a "high" creature, such as an Ainu, must ultimately come down to spiritual power, not physical, whether that be the purity to avoid corruption or merely the mental strength to face such a one down.

[Belegorn]

I think the fading usually is with the Elves whereas the age of Men is waxing. I believe the Numenorians were greater than their Edain ancestors. They are said to be closer to the Eldar than to men; "in all things more like to the First-born than any other of the kindreds of Men;" [Sil; 321]. Now their power did wane due to their rebellion and desertion of Eldar-like lifestyle. That's why the Kings in Numenor were only living like 250 years whereas the Faithful still had greater lifespans. Elendil was over 300 when he fought Sauron. Ar-Pharazon felt his end coming when he was about the same age of Aragorn when he died.