Apostle

For spawn created by apostles, see Pseudo-Apostle.

Apostles in their base forms.

These are those refashioned by causality and extraordinary obsession. These are apostles. [...] Beasts to be simply shunned, feared, and detested.
– Locus on apostlehood

Apostles (使徒) are inhumans who, typically having acquired and activated a beherit in a moment of anguish, summoned the God Hand and joined the ranks of demonkind in exchange for a precious sacrifice. The sacrifice required is always something that defines their humanity — relinquishing it is akin to abandoning a part of one's soul. Apostles have only one absolute law decreed by the God Hand: "Do as thou wilt," allowing them to act with free will in how they use their ascended status. However, this law does not protect them from one another, allowing apostles loyal to the God Hand to eliminate those who interfere with their designs. While apostles are free to do as they please, most heed the call of the God Hand when needed and possess a "maddening" instinct which compels them in the presence of a God Hand member.

Physiology

The released forms of several Band of the Falcon apostles.

Each apostle is unique in their released form — a spiritual reflection of themselves made flesh. Their appearance varies greatly, from warped versions of animals to demonic and hellish monstrosities, many of which bear remnants of their human features. Conversely, the features of an apostle's released form are often reflected in their normal form, ranging from the obvious, like Wyald's ape-like face, to the more human features of Locus, Grunbeld, and Irvine.

When an apostle is killed, their spirit is dragged into the Abyss, and their physical body reverts back to its original normal form with all injuries remaining on their bodies analogous to the injured parts of their previous apostle form.

Personality

Apostles are ravenous by nature and yearn for bloodshed.

Most apostles are defined by their lack of empathy and insatiable desire for bloodshed, though there are exceptionally disciplined apostles such as Locus, Grunbeld, and Irvine, who can suppress their ravenous tendencies. Following the Incarnation Ceremony, numerous apostles flock to Griffith and pledge their allegiance to him. In doing so, they are finally granted a place in the world of man, fighting alongside humanity as the White Falcon's metaphorical beaks and talons.

Despite their transformation into demonic beings, several apostles retain at least one shred of their former humanity. An example is the Count, who, after being mortally wounded, was unable to sacrifice his daughter in exchange for new life.

Abilities

All apostles — except the Egg of the Perfect World — bear an initial humanoid form but can assume their released forms at any time. Even in normal form, they possess strength and reflexes far beyond those of typical humans. Wyald, completely untrained in combat, easily mutilates challengers like Barbo and keeps up with a trained swordsman like Guts due to his monstrous strength. In their released forms, most apostles are extremely powerful, boasting abilities and strength greatly exceeding that of most humans.

Size is no guarantee of power, and while many apostles are terrifying for their monstrous appearances, those utilizing abilities not immediately evident are particularly lethal. Examples include Rosine, who can fly at speeds high enough to break the sound barrier and create sonic booms, and Irvine, whose refined use of self-fashioned arrows makes him nearly untouchable. The Count's body, already very slippery and malleable, sustains numerous injuries from Guts and still functions properly until he is decapitated. Rakshas boasts a similar power, having an amorphous body and only being deterred by the destruction of his mask.

Some apostles can create spawn called pseudo-apostles, usually by transforming humans, though the method and effects vary. The Count creates a spawn from Zondark by forcing him to ingest a parasitic slug, allowing the Count to speak and monitor through him and granting Zondark his regenerative abilities. Rosine's elves are spawn created from hundreds of kidnapped children, while adults are turned into monstrous insectoid guardians that can shift between human and insect forms at will. The Egg of the Perfect World uses its tendrils to "sting" and infect humans, granting them forms reflecting their beliefs: the Great Goat is transformed into a goat-headed stereotype of a demon, while Mozgus and his disciples are transformed into stereotypically angelic beings bearing wings.

Apostles have evil power flowing through their bodies, which can have various effects on contacted subjects. Ganishka's man-made beherit is a vat filled with amniotic fluid and made from stitched-together apostles. Since their interiors are linked to the beyond, they are used to turn embryos of pregnant women into rapidly-developing daka as they're infused with evil power, and by the emperor himself to initiate a second, artificial reincarnation. By raping Casca, Femto tainted her two-week-old embryo into a mutated fetus that was born in under a month. Guts has been using the Dragon Slayer to kill apostles for such an extended time that their blood and malice have tempered the sword, imbuing it with astral properties suitable for inflicting damage on astral beings.

Known apostles

(† indicates the apostle has died)

• Borkoff
• Egg of the Perfect World†
• Ganishka†
• Grunbeld
• Irvine
• Locus
• Rakshas
• Rosine†
• Slug Count†
• Snake Lord†
• Unidentified female apostle†
• Unidentified roaming apostle†
• Wyald†
• Zodd

Notes

• Vlad Tepes, Charles, Baron Balzac, and Niko appear outside of the manga proper. Vlad Tepes appears in Berserk: The Prototype, Charles appears in Berserk: Millennium Falcon Hen Seima Senki no Shō, and Balzac and Niko appear in Sword of the Berserk: Guts' Rage.