List of Claymore characters
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This article lists the characters associated with the Japanese manga series Claymore.
Contents |
[edit] Non-Claymores
Raki
- First appearance - Volume #1
Raki is a young boy with a story very similar to Clare's. His mother and father were murdered by a Yoma, which left him with his older brother Zaki and his uncle. After his uncle was murdered, he discovered that the Yoma which had killed his parents had also kill his brother, Zaki and taken Zaki's form to hide among the villagers and eat them. The Yoma was slain by Clare, who left the village the next day. Raki was suspected of being a Yoma as well, and was exiled from the village. Clare offered to take him with her until they reached a village where he wanted to live.
Raki's life with Clare parallels Clare's life with Teresa in many ways. Both lost their families to Yoma that were killed by the Claymore who would eventually take them in as their mentor and companion. Both pairs saved each other on a regular basis, with the Claymore using her physical powers to save the human from those trying to kill them, and the human saving the Claymore from a life of loneliness and becoming a cold-blooded killer because of her pain.
Raki was separated from Clare during her fight with Ofelia. In Volume 10, it is revealed that Raki is now living under the care of Easley and Priscilla, although he is not aware of their true identities.
Rubel
- First appearance - Volume #1 ; Also known as "The man dressed in black"
Rubel (as Clare once called him) is a white, thin man dressed all in black. He is apparently immortal and does not seem to age. He also apparently has supernatural powers. He gives orders to the Claymores and collects the payment afterwards. He is not, however, the organization's leader.
[edit] Claymores
Clare
- First appearance - Volume #1
Clare is the series' protagonist. When she was a little girl, a Yoma captured her and made her its toy, often torturing her. She was saved by Teresa, whom she then followed and loved for the rest of Teresa's life.
After Priscilla murdered Teresa, Clare vowed to kill Priscilla and took Teresa's severed head with her. Clare subsequently found Rubel in a town and asked to become a Claymore, by fusing Teresa's flesh and blood with her own. She thus became the first hybrid with 1/3 Yoma blood, instead of the normal 1/2 and 1/2. Because of this lower demonic ratio, her Claymore rank is #47 — the lowest of all.
Clare is partially awakened, but was able to revert to her human state. In addition she is gifted in sensing Youma chi and using that to predict their actions in combat. She is therefore significantly stronger than her rank would suggest. Clare also has demonstrated mysterious abilities which puzzle even higher- ranked Claymores, such as being able to revert her awakened comrade Jean back to normal (Volume 9). Jean—the #9-ranked Claymore—pledged her loyalty and life to Clare in gratitude for saving her. This allied a top Claymore with Clare (the bottom-ranked warrior) and dismayed both Helen and Denev.
Clare lost her right arm during an incident involving Ofelia, but she later received a new one from Irene, along with the "Light Speed Sword" technique. Even though the new arm was part of her, it still seemed to have its own life; she thus projected two auras. She could only skillfully use the Light Speed Sword with her new right arm.
In the North campaign, Clare joined Flora's party.
Seven years after the last stand at the North Campaign while in seclusion with her 6 fellow Claymore survivors, she would perfect Flora's technique "Windcutter".
Currently her rank number is unknown.
Elena
- First appearance - Volume #1; Status - deceased
Elena became a Claymore at the same time as Clare and shortly thereafter befriended her. She started her missions later than Clare, however, she misused her Yoma's strength during her assignments, prompting to gradually lose control much faster than other Claymores. When she finally felt the Yoma taking over her, she resorted to The Black Card, a system in which a black card engraved with the Claymore's unique symbol is sent to the fellow partner they want to be killed by. She was subsequently slain by Clare.
Her rank number is unknown; it was never mentioned.
Teresa
- First appearance - Volume #3; Status - deceased
Teresa was the strongest Claymore of her time, and was famously known as Teresa of the Faint Smile for effortlessly slaying enemies with a faint smile on her face. When first introduced, she despised the organization for taking away her humanity and any chance at a happy life. According to her, the humans she trusted sold her to the organization, and she was given the choice to either become a beggar or become a Claymore. When she was human, Teresa loved her black eyes and thought her best feature to be her black hair, but after becoming a Claymore, she lost her black hair and black eyes along with much of her humanity. Feared and alienated from the human race due to her Claymore blood, Teresa resigned herself to a lonely and unsatisfying life. She became a cold-blooded killer who cared for no one, only helping villages because she was ordered to, and taking pleasure in scaring humans.
One day during a mission, Teresa saved a young girl named Clare who had been kept as a prisoner and toy of a Yoma. After leaving the village, she discovered that Clare was following her, and made many futile attempts to make her leave. Clare nevertheless trekked the forests and mountains after Teresa for days without rest or sustenance. When she finally collapsed, Teresa decided to help her, and stated that she would let Clare travel with Teresa until they reached the next town. In spite of herself, Teresa became attached to Clare, and for the first time for years, she was happy. However, she believed that Clare would never be happy with Teresa, as she was a Claymore destined for a life of travel and fighting and an eventual awful fate.
One day, after saving Clare from a bandit, Clare cried out of grief for Teresa's sorrow, stating that she went after Teresa because she felt her pain and loneliness, and wanted to heal it. This act shocks Teresa, who then realized that just like her, Clare had lost everything thanks to the Yoma and was alienated from other humans. She was now desperately clinging to Teresa because she needed a companion who'd been through the same plight as she'd been, and that was what Teresa needed to. Hugging Clare, Teresa cried too, silently thanking Clare for her kindness and realizing that even Claymores could cry. This event caused her to realize that even a Claymore could have companions, that she hadn't entirely lost her humanity after all.
Soon after this, Teresa and Clare reached a village and Teresa leaves Clare there, believing that a normal life with humans would be better for her. However, the village is soon raided by bandits and Teresa rushes back to save her. By the time she arrived, the bandits had slaughtered the villagers and tortured Clare. Seeing Clare's bloody form, Teresa flew into a rage and kills all of the bandits, breaking the rule that a Claymore should never kill humans, no matter what the circumstances.
Because she had killed humans, the Claymore organization marked her for death. It dispatched a team of five Claymores of unknown rank, with an unidentified observer to execute her and hold back a sobbing Clare. Teresa asks the observer what would become of Clare if she died, and the observer stated that that was none of her concern. Teresa then cuts down but doesn't kill her executers and states that Clare had become her reason to live, and thus she would live for her.
The unidentified observer subsequently assembled Claymores #2 to #5—namely, Priscilla, Irene, Noel, and Sofia, to kill her. Teresa defeated all four of them, without using her demonic power. Although she considered killing Priscilla because of her potential to surpass Teresa's abilities in the near future, she changed her mind and left with young Clare. Priscilla caught up, but used too much power in an attempt to beat Teresa, becoming an Awoken and subsequently decapitated Teresa.
Irene
- First appearance - Volume #4; Status - believed deceased
Irene is well known for her great speed wielding a sword and is Claymore #3, ranked after Teresa and Priscilla. Though she was originally Claymore #2, she was demoted to #3 when Priscilla joined the organization.
During the mission to assassinate Teresa, the Awoken Priscilla attacked her and amputated her arm. Irene, who was wanted by the organization, went into seclusion after this incident. She later trained Clare in the "Light Speed Sword" technique. She also gave Clare a new right arm after it was amputated. Rafaela, who was sent to execute Irene, eventually found her. While the manga does not reveal her fate after being found by Rafaela, it is generally believed that that she is dead because she was armless and defenseless when Rafaela found her.[1]
Noel
- First appearance - Volume #4; Status - deceased
Noel is well-known for her agility and vied with Sofia for rank #3. Though Noel's and Sofia's abilities appeared equal, Irene pronounced that Noel was 3rd rank.
Noel was among the party of #2 - #5 Claymores sent to assassinate Teresa. The Awoken Priscilla killed Noel during a battle.
Sofia
- First appearance - Volume #4; Status - deceased
Sofia vied with Noel for rank #3. Though the two were almost identical in power, their fighting styles are significantly different. Sofia, with her brute strength, once sliced a Yoma and the pillar it was hiding behind in two.
Sofia was among the ranked Claymores ranked #2 - #5 sent to kill Teresa. The Awoken Priscilla killed Sofia after the battle with Teresa.
Helen
- First appearance - Volume #5
Helen is ranked #22. Her special power is to stretch her arms to extreme lengths and bind her opponents. Helen is partially Awoken, but has reverted to her human state. She is a companion of Denev.
Early in the story, Helen told Raki that Clare is "the weakest and worst out of all of us Claymores".[citation needed] But she later admired Clare's fighting performance and gained respect for her.
Helen is short tempered. She once provoked Jean's anger by swinging her sword at Clare. Denev quickly resolved the situation, although Helen commented that she is "always the troublemaker".
Deneve/Deneb
- First appearance - Volume #5
Deneve is ranked #15 among the Claymores. She is another partially Awoken who has reverted to her human state. She was the first Claymore to demonstrate regenerative powers: her arm grew back after it was amputated by a male Awoken.
She currently carries the fallen Undines sword in memory of her fallen captain
Miria
- First appearance - Volume #5
Miria is Claymore #6. She can greatly, but only briefly, increase her speed, hence her nickname: "Mirage Miria" or "Phantom Miria". Miria is another partially awoken Claymore.
Miria was the head of the squad—formed by Clare, Helen, and Denev—that was assigned to eliminate a voracious eater Yoma. It was during this incident that it was revealed (to the reader) that voracious eaters are former Claymores. This particular awakened one was male and therefore from the first generation of Claymores.
She had already been suspicious of her superiors and, after she realized they had almost no chance of surviving the fight, believed that her squad had been betrayed by the organization and sent on a suicidal mission. She believed that her squad, composed of incompletely-Awoken Claymores, were considered troublemakers by the organization because of their problematic status as partially awakened Claymores. Determined to have revenge, she resolved to investigate the mysteries of the Claymore organization.
Miria was also the chief Claymore in the Northern campaign. She is an excellent strategist which was shown by the way she organized the North campaign claymores into small teams that would allow them to develop their experience in fighting with Awoken ones with minimal loss of life. In the first fight in the North campaign against three male awakens, Her strategic capabilities were also recognized by the one of the male claymores. The only seriously injured claymore in that fight was Yuma who lost an arm but who subsequently managed to regenerate it.
She still seems to be recognized as Rank 6 by the organization despite the fact she and the other 6 survivors remained in seclusion in the North after the battle for seven years. Miria directly leads the following Claymores: Queenie(#20), Tabitha(#31) and Yuma(#40).
Galatea
- First appearance - Volume #6
Galatea is Claymore #3. Little is known about her. She appears to be a master at sensing chi, being able to sense other Claymores from a long distance, read their emotions, and see their actions as if she were close by.
She fought alongside Clare and Jean, and helps Clare control her Yoma power.
Ofelia/Ophelia
- First appearance - Volume #6; Status - deceased
Ofelia is Claymore #4. She is an extremely powerful, cold-blooded murderer who particularly enjoyed hunting awakened ones. She is an indiscriminate killer, who will kill humans - but is not hunted by the organization because she kills any witnesses.
Her special fighting technique involves shaking her sword very quickly, which gives the blade a snake-like appearance. It is difficult to read and counter her sword when it is used in an attack.
Ofelia was supposed to fight with Clare against an Awoken Claymore, but she tried to kill Clare and Raki instead.
After she was severely wounded by Irene, Ofelia was pushed to her limits and Awoken without realizing it. Ofelia only recognized the change when she saw her reflection in a lake .
Before she became a Claymore, Ofelia's brother sacrificed himself whilst trying to save Ofelia from a Yoma. (Volume 7). She was later told that this Yoma was Priscilla, the same awakened one who had killed Teresa.
Rafaela
- First appearance - Volume #7
Rafaela is Claymore #5. Her job is to execute Claymores who disobey the organization. Her power is considered equal to that of her elder sister, Lucera, the previous Claymore #1.
Rafaela suffered an eye impairment when an experiment conducted by the organization caused her elder sister—Lucera to become an Awakened one. She became an inactive Claymore after that incident, and had a brief encounter with Teresa, who was a Claymore trainee at that time.
Rafaela first appeared as Irene's executioner. After the organization lost Teresa and four other highly-ranked Claymores, it reactivated Rafaela into the combat unit again by offering information on her elder sister in exchange for her enlistment.
Jean
- First appearance - Volume #8; Status - deceased
Jean is Claymore #9. Her specialty is offensive skill; her attack is said to be the most destructive among her peers. She became Awoken after prolonged torture by Daf and Riful. She was able to revert back to human shape by virtue of her extraordinary willpower and Clare's help. She then decided to become Clare's follower.
In the North campaign, Miria promoted her to the role of division captain. Jean leads the following Claymores: Eliza (#17), Emelia (#27), Natalie (#37), and Diana (#43).
After Clare killed #Ligardes/Rigardo and was pleading for death since she had gone passed her limit, Jean took a chance to help her revert back. She succeeded at the cost of her life, but she was able to fulfill her pledge and return the favor to Clare.
Eva
- First appearance - Volume #9; Status - deceased
Eva was Claymore #7 and was assigned to the northern part of the continent. She and her team members were killed when they encountered 27 Awoken Claymores.
Flora
- First appearance - Volume #9; Status - deceased
Flora was Claymore #8. Her nickname is "Flora Windcutter", after her lightning-fast sword extraction technique. Her blade cannot be seen with the naked eye. Miria made her a division captain during the North campaign. Flora lead the following Claymores: Lily (#18), Wendy (#30), Karla (#39), and Clare (#47).
She was killed by Rigardo.
Ondine/Undine
- First appearance - Volume #9; Status - deceased
Ondine was Claymore #11. She carried two swords, unlike the other Claymores who use just one. Ondine had large muscles and incredible physical strength, which was maintained by her constant use of Yoma power.
Ondine was one of the division captains in the North campaign and lead Denev (#15), Zelda (#24), Claudia (#36), and Juliana (#43). Denev discovered her in her true form as she was hiding in a supply room and recuperating from her first battle in the North campaign.
In the Chinese and Italian versions [2], it was strongly implied that Ondine used to be a weak fighter who survived only because she was protected by a fellow Claymore. When that comrade died, Ondine was ashamed of her weakness and inability to prevent her death. She resented her weakness and this eventually led to the muscles and attitude she has now. One of the swords she carries belonged to the Claymore who died protecting her, whose name has not been revealed.
She was killed by Rigardo during the second battle.
Veronica
- First appearance - Volume #9; Status - deceased
Veronica was Claymore #13. She was a defensive fighter. She was one of the division captains in the North campaign and lead Cynthia (#14), Helen (#22), Pamela (#35), and Matilda (#41). Veronica was the first warrior killed in the northern campaign.
Cynthia
- First appearance - Volume #9
Cynthia was Claymore #14 and another defensive fighter. In the Northern campaign, she was part of Veronica's team.
Queenie Queenie is Claymore #20. She is on Miria's team and she is partners with Yuma and Tabitha.
Elda
Elda was Claymore #6, but was #5 before Priscilla joined the organization. Elda was mentioned by Sophia when Noel wanted to know who was the last to join the group after Irene pronounced that they had to kill Teresa. It is unknown if she is actually still alive or Awoken.
[edit] New Arc
Claris She is the new rank 47 (Clare's old rank), and a non complete hybrid (as shown by her normal eye and hair color). Unlike most Claymores, she has no tolerance for extreme weather conditions. Seven years after the North Campaign, she's sent to the north to join a group hunting awakened ones.
Her group is caught in an ambush by a number of awakened ones. Her teammates are severely wounded and she is knocked out. Upon awakening, she finds her comrades recovering and all the awakened ones gone, leaving only huge bloodstains. She later finds the swords of 17 Claymores in what appears to be a makeshift memorial, dating from the Northern campaign 7 years ago. Unknown to her it was the 7 survivors from 7 years ago Clare, Milia, Helen, Deneve/Deneb, Cynthia, Tabatha, and Yuma who saved her. Her fellow Claymores think that she was saved by the vengeful spirits of the fallen Claymores.
She later reports her findings to the organization and would soon be assigned to assist Rank 4 Miata. She discovers that Miata, despite being Rank 4, is nothing more than a child, and an unstable one at that. This leads her to question just what the Claymores are.
Nina She is Claymore #9. She is the captain of the team assigned to kill an awakened one. However, they are ambushed and overpowered by three awakened ones. They were rescued by the surviving Claymores from seven years ago.
Nina calls her attack "Shadow Chaser", as it tracks opponents' yoma aura.
Rene She is the new "Eye" of the organization.
Audrey She is Claymore #3. She is a proud but well mannered warrior. She uses her sword to deflect her opponent's attack. Riful calls this technique as "soft sword".
Rachel She is Claymore #5. Her attitude is the opposite of Audrey. She is hot tempered and confrontational. She can split objects by swinging her sword. Riful calls this technique as "steel sword". Miata She is Claymore #4. She is an unstable warrior and she was going to lead Claris. Her powers are mostly her strength.
Tabitha Tabitha is Claymore #31. She is on Miria's team and is one of the survivors of seven years ago with Clare, Miria, Helen, Deneve, Cynthia and Yuma. Yuma
Yuma is Claymore #40. She is a defensive fighter and is on Miria's team. She lost an arm in a fight, but was able to regenerate it. She is a survivor of the last stand seven years.
[edit] Awakened Ones
Priscilla
- First appearance- Volume #4; Status - Awoken
Priscilla was promoted to Claymore #2 shortly after she joined the organization, which bumped Irene to Claymore #3. She possesses the ability to conceal her presence from Yoma and fellow Claymores, allowing her to slaughter entire packs of Yoma without nearby Claymores noticing. She became a Claymore after a Yoma possessed her father and slaughtered her entire family. She crept behind the Yoma while it was eating her sisters guts and sliced off its head. After that incident, she swore to eliminate all the world's evil.
Though powerful, Priscilla was still a child at the time she joined the organization and thus had the mentality of one. She had full and blind faith in the righteousness of the organization, and believed that as someone carrying out the organization's orders, she was righteous too. She was the only Claymore sent to execute Teresa who actually believed Teresa deserved to be executed, rather than just committing the task because she was ordered to. She also appeared to be highly apologetic, frantically begging forgiveness over mistakes and faults. She was also polite and fair in combat, choosing not to land a blow on Teresa while she was distracted, apologizing when she said she was going to kill her, and telling the other Claymores to back down while she was battling Teresa because she believed a 3-to-1-battle would have been unfair.
Priscilla's blind faith would ultimately cause her to lose all her humanity and altruism when Teresa defeated her and the other top Claymores. Confused and frightened as to why a righteous person like her could not defeat a murderer of humans, she attacked Teresa in anger. In a fit of blind rage and righteousness, she released too much of her Yoma power and became an Awoken. She then decapitated Teresa, amputated Irene's arm, and killed Noel and Sofia in front of a horrified Clare before flying off. These acts would prompt Clare to become a Claymore in order to avenge Teresa.
Riful revealed to Clare that Priscilla is the lover of Easley, who is one of the Three Persons of the Abyss who rules the North.
Daf
- First appearance - Volume #8
Daf was Claymore #3. He is Riful's lover and helps her torture captured Claymores. Daf has a strong attack and can throw beam-shaped darts at his enemies, but he lacks strategic knowledge and intuition. Riful saved his life when she interfered in a fight against the Claymores.
Ligardes/Rigardo Status - deceased
Ligardes was a Claymore whose rank was supposedly #2. He worked for Easley during the North campaign, but does not get along with Easley or Daf. His nickname is "Silver-Eyed Lion King", which he's not fond of because of something in the past. During the North Campaign he proceeds to eliminate the top 5 strongest Claymores he deems a threat which are the 5 team captains Milia, Flora, Jean, Veronica, and Undine.
He purposely ignores the weaker members which leads to his downfall by one berserk Claire upon witnessing Floras murder.
[edit] Three Persons of the Abyss
The Three Persons of the Abyss are former #1-ranked Claymores who have Awoken. They are considered the most powerful and dangerous of the Awoken.
Riful
- First appearance - Volume #8
Riful was the Claymore #1 of the first generation of female Claymores. She was the youngest Claymore to be Awoken. She lives in the Western territory and wants to create powerful Awoken Claymores by means of torture to join her struggle against Easley, the ruler of the Northern territory.
Jean, Clare, and Galatea got Riful's attention as possible "recruits", but she decided to wait for them to become stronger before making them Awoken. She also warned them that Easley will not be as gentle as she was when she defeated them (Volume 9). Riful has said that the only way to beat Easley is to join her as an Awoken. Her lover is Daf.
Easley
Easley is a male former Claymore with long, silver hair, hence his nickname "White Silver King". His lover is Priscilla and he dwells in the North.
Easley's character forms the story arc of the North campaign. More than half of the Claymore team was sent to deal with him and his Yoma followers.
Lucera
- Status - deceased
Lucera was Rafaela's older sister and the Southern region was her territory. After a fight with Easley she retreated wounded and was later found by Rafaela. Wanting to finish off Easley she pleaded with her sister to awaken while embracing her. But Rafaela proceeded to break her weakened sisters back.
