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Originally Posted by DrunkenRyder

Please Don't Look if you haven't read the Manga

Spoiler for manga:

Can someone please fill me in on the Arrancar Levels (by levels I mean Espada, etc), and the difference of a Vizard and an Arrancar. They say arrancar's are hollows that have taken off thier mask's, but what about the hyouku thing? And are the Vizards bad guys? Help would be appreciated.

Spoiler for manga:

The Arrancar don't really have "levels" in a manner of speaking...it's more like a numbering or ranking system. The Arrancar that are numbered 11 and up are done so by their "birth"...basically, by order in which they were created. Apparently the top 10 numbers were reserved for those with the most destructive power and (for Grimmjow at least) are numbered personally by Aizen. So far the only Arrancar we know to be an Espada for sure is Grimmjow, and he's #6. The Espadas also give orders to the 11+ Arrancars.

A Vizard/Visored is basically a Shinigami who has gained Hollow powers. An Arrancar is a Hollow who has gained Shinigami powers. Visoreds also possess intact Hollow masks that they can seemingly hide, while Arrancars often have broken masks still covering parts of their faces. The Arrancars also have a unique way of releasing their Zanpakutou as well (we've yet to see how Visoreds release their Zanpakutous).

You don't simply became an Arrancar just by removing your mask (as demonstrated by Orohime's brother early on in the series), the Hollow itself actually has to obtain Shinigami powers somehow before it becomes a true Arrancar. As for the Hougyoku, it's a device created by Urahara that erases the line that separates Hollows and Shinigami: it can turn Hollows into Shinigamis and vice-versa.

As for the Visored, we've only been introduced to two of them so far: Hirako and Hiyori. As Arti mentioned the only action we've seen them take so far is attempting to recruit Ichigo to their side, but at this point it would seem like they would not be on the side of the Hollow/Arrancars, or on the side of the Shinigami. They're probably just looking out for their best interest. So...I guess it all depends on your definition of "bad guy". If the Shinigami representing Soul Society are the good guys...well, they may end up fighting the Visored at some point, so it that sense that can be labelled as bad guys. However, I'd just refer to them as a third faction...somewhat neutral. That's just my opinion though.