Summary
Berserkhas a wide variety of interesting, disgusting, and frankly horrifying creatures for Guts and his party to go up against. However, the most notable of these is the Apostles. They were once human, but after sacrificing something important to them and using a Behelit, were granted supernatural powers by the God Hand. Apostles are everywhere, and serve as the main opposition to Guts on his quest.
There are a number of named Apostles that make their mark on the story, be it over the span of multiple story arcs, or only a few chapters.
This article will contain spoilers for the entire Berserk manga, so read ahead at your own risk.
10Snake Lord
The Snake Lord is the first monstrous figure we encounter in the story of Berserk, and even though we didn’t know what an Apostle was at the time, the Snake Lord was indeed one. Bearing the appearance of a man-snake hybrid, towering over other characters on the page and wielding a massive halberd. However, besides his imposing form and enhanced strength and durability, Snake Lord is nothing special.
Though the Snake Lord appears very intimidating, and he would be for the average person, for Guts at this point in his journey, the Snake Lord is a cakewalk. He is a great introduction to the more supernatural and fantasy elements of the series, but as a named Apostle, is definitely on the weaker side.
9The Count
The Count is the second named Apostle we see in the series, and he is a big step-up in power from the Snake Lord. His human form is nothing special, merely being a large, bald man, but his Apostle form is quite strong.
He turns into a giant slug monster, capable of great strength and devouring foes. While not sporting any special magical abilities, The Count is also able to create new apostle minions under his control and imbue his followers with his powers, allowing him to gain a large force of powered humans.
8Rakshas
Rakshas is the designated assassin of the reborn Band of the Hawk, and is an exile from the Kushan empire, specifically the Bakiraka clan. While Rakshas only joins Griffith and his band in order to kill him later, he works with the band as well as any other member. Often, Rakshas is leading away foes and distracting them from a greater threat, or eliminating them one by one.
Although a member of Griffith’s army, Rakshas is one of the weaker Apostles. As an assassin, he excels at striking from the shadows, and his Apostle abilities let him move as though his body was made of mist and shadow, as well as transforming to gain tentacles and flight. But in a one-on-one fight, Rakshas is quite weak, and the enhancements to his abilities like strength or stamina pale in comparison to his peers.
7Wyald
Wyald was the leader of the Devil Dogs, a group of prisoners that the King of Midland used as his secret attack force for dealing with threats off the record. Wyald appears a bit like an ape in his human form, and once transformed into his Apostle form, looks like a massive Gorilla or Orangutan, with many eyes around his body and the top half of his human body on the Apostle top.
Wyald boasts incredible strength, even in his human form, but he was bested by Guts after a long-fought battle. All Wyald really has is his strength, and uses that to overpower humans. But even then, he wasn’t finished off by Guts; he was torn apart by Zodd, another Apostle.
While Wyald is a very early Apostle in the timeline of the series, and was able to be defeated by a pre-eclipse Guts, it’s worth noting that he wasn’t actually killed by him, and whether he could have is up in the air.
6Rosine
Rosine is the antagonist of the Conviction Arc, and she showed us that Apostles can come in different forms with completely different, but just as superhuman and deadly, abilities.
Sporting the appearance of a moth-human hybrid, Rosine is able to produce poison dust from her wings, as well as travel at alarming speeds. In her fight with Guts, she reaches supersonic speed. While not possessing as much physical strength or regenerative capabilities as an Apostle like Grunbeld or Zodd, the capabilities of superspeed combined with poison and sharp, piercing wings should not be discounted.
5Irvine
Irvine is a member of Griffith’s reborn Band of the Hawk, and serves as the designated archer captain of the group. Unlike most other Apostles we see in the series, he excels at range rather than close combat. In his human form, Irvine makes use of a demonic greatbow capable of defeating human enemies in one shot.
Irvine’s Apostle form pretty much enhances his already masterful sharpshooting capabilities. He is able to create arrows with his fur that explode on impact, completely eviscerating foes, and he can even make a makeshift crossbow using his horns. While not being focused on strength, he is stronger than a similar Apostle like Rakshas, due to his range and high damage output.
4Locus
Locus, the “Moonlight Knight”, is another member of Griffith’s reborn Band of the Hawk. Although he is an Apostle, he comes across as very regal and knightly. In his human form, he is a typical knight, riding atop his horse and using a lance to fight.
As the case with almost every Apostle, when transformed into his apostle form is when his true strength comes out. As an Apostle, Locus merges with his horse and becomes a centaur-like figure, gaining increased speed and agility, along with enhanced strength and combat prowess. Locus is especially dangerous due to his cunning and seemingly sophisticated nature, along with his leadership qualities and Apostle powers.
3Grunbeld
Grunbeld is a giant, towering individual, and if Zodd were not a member of the reborn Band of the Hawk, Grunbeld would assuredly be the most intimidating presence second to Griffith himself. Even in his human form, Grunbeld is a force to be reckoned with, as besides his towering stature, he sports a full plate of dragon-scaled armor, a massive greathammer, and an explosive shield cannon.
Grunbeld is dubbed, “The Great Flame Dragon”, and this shows in his transformed state. As an Apostle, Grunbeld takes on the form of a mighty Dragon, capable of the feats expected of one; breathing fire, crushing under his claws, and boasting corundum scales that are nearly impentetrable by normal means. Guts is only able to push him back with the Berserker Armor, which is also the introduction of it.
2Zodd
Zodd is one of the most powerful characters in the Berserk series, second only to Ganishka, the Skull Knight, and the members of the Godhand. Zodd is a warrior through-and-through, with an insatiable thirst for battle. He is said to have slain thousands upon thousands of warriors on the battlefield throughout his life, and has been dubbed Zodd “The Immortal” due to being unkillable.
Zodd boasts incredible strength and regenerative ability, even in his human form. Once he transforms into his Apostle form, Zodd sports a minotaur-like appearance, becoming even larger and having massive hands and claws, horns on his head, and hooves at his feet. In this form, Zodd is nearly unstoppable, and can even sprout wings and take flight.
1Ganishka
Ganishka was the demon-emperor of the Kushan empire, and the strongest Apostle in the series so far. His abilities allowed him to turn into a giant cloud of mist representing his face, and was able to summon thunderstorms and other elementals to deal significant damage to anyone around him, including other Apostles, like Zodd.
There are arguments to be made over who is the stronger Apostle between Zodd and Ganishka. However, Ganishka tops this list due to story implications besides pure strength or brute force. Even though Zodd is incredibly powerful, he still respects and obeys the Godhand, and even bowed to Griffith immediately upon his rebirth, and joins his Band of the Hawk.
Granishka, in contrast, opposed both the Godhand and Griffith, something no other Apostles have done. He even ascends twice, becoming nigh unstoppable and towering over the entire continent. Even though Ganishka was defeated by Femto and Skull Knight, his immense power leaves him as the strongest Apostle thus far inthe series.
