This is a list of characters from the visual novel, anime, and manga series Demonbane, which incorporates elements of mecha and the Cthulhu Mythos
Black Lodge
Master Therion
- Master Therion (マスターテリオン, Masutā Terion)
- Voiced by: Hikaru Midorikawa (anime), Hikaru (PC)
- Current head of the Black Lodge titled Grandmaster, this youth with a contemptuous, bored expression cares little about those who cannot match his vast, mystical power, thus allows Kurou to survive their many scuffles so as to provide him a challenge and amusement. Master Therion also controls the Deus Machina Liber Legis.
- "Therion" is the Greek word for "wild animal" or "beast", specifically the "Beast of the Apocalypse", while the name "Master Therion" is a pseudonym of British occultist Aleister Crowley.
Etheldreda
- Etheldreda (エセルドレーダ, Eserudorēda)
- Voiced by: Rie Kanda (anime)
- Better known as the Pnakotic Manuscripts (ナコト写本, Nakoto Shahon), Etheldreda is the human Avatar of Master Therion's grimoire. Unlike the outspoken Al Azif, she is calm, collected and quiet, completely obedient to her master. Etheldreda is named after Aleister Crowley's dog.
Anticross
The Anticross (逆十字, Anchikurosu) is a group of the seven powerful sorcerers and upper echelons within the Black Lodge, they answer directly to Master Therion, but are not above achieving their personal goals. Each of their names is taken from emperors of the Ancient Roman Empire.
- Augustus (アウグストゥス, Augusutusu)
- Voiced by: Norio Wakamoto (anime)
- Master Therion's right-hand man and the self-proclaimed "Emperor of the Earth" is the leader of the Anticross. He owns the grimoire The Golden Bough (金枝篇, Kinshihen) and controls the Deus Machina Legacy of Gold. In the game, his form is the one Nia takes in response to losing to Kurou and Al.
- Titus (ティトゥス, Titusu)
- Voiced by: Jōji Nakata (anime)
- A four-armed samurai, Titus carries the grimoire Cultes des Goules (屍食教典儀, Shishokukyō Tengi) and takes to the field of battle in the Deus Machina Ogre.
- Tiberius (ティベリウス, Tiberiusu)
- Voiced by: Kazuki Yao (anime)
- A shrouded figure clad in black and red-striped robes, Tiberius is nothing more than a meager corpse, with his skeletal face covered by a lizard-like mask reflecting his current mood: green for content, red for anger and blue for agony. Sadistic and greatly delights in others' pain, he is the owner of the grimoire De Vermis Mysteriis (妖蛆の秘密, Yōshu no Himitsu, lit. Secrets of the Worm) and the Deus Machina Belzebuth.
- Caligula (カリグラ, Carigura)
- Voiced by: Daisuke Gōri (anime), Kenta Miyake (Super Robot Wars UX)
- A tall, powerful individual who hides his human face behind a skull mask, he is often seen alongside fellow Anticross member Claudius. Caligula has the grimoire Cthäat Aquadingen (水神クタアト, Suijin Kutāto, lit. The Water God Cthäat) and controls the Deus Machina Kraken.
- Claudius (クラウディウス, Kuraudiusu)
- Voiced by: Tomoko Kawakami (anime), Yuka Imai (PS2 game and Super Robot Wars UX)
- Dressed in modern sports clothing, the mischievous, childish Claudius is agile, but rash in his decisions. He is the master of the grimoire Celaeno Fragments (セラエノ断章, Seraeno Danshō) and controls the Deus Machina Lord Byakhee
- Vespasianus (ウェスパシアヌス, Wesupashianusu)
- Voiced by: Masashi Hirose (anime)
- A red-haired man dressed in grey, Vespasianus has a tendency to repeat his words. He acquired the grimoire Book of Eibon (エイボンの書, Eibon no Sho) and is the pilot of the Deus Machina Cykranosh.
- Nero (ネロ)
- Voiced by: Mia Naruse (anime), Ari Hinohara (Super Robot Wars UX)
- With a child-like appearance and known as "the greatest and most wicked magician" in the world, Nero is the only female of the Anticross, with the grimoire Unaussprechlichen Kulten (無名祭祀書, Mumei Saishisho, lit. The Book of Nameless Rituals) and the Deus Machina Nameless One at her disposal. In order to deceive Kurou, Nero feigns amnesia and gains his trust by developing a second personality called Ennea (エンネア).
- The term "ennea" may refer to the "Enneagram of Personality", a system describing nine distinct personality types and their interrelationships.
Doctor West
- Doctor West (ドクター・ウェスト, Dokutā Wesuto)
- Voiced by: Takumi Yamazaki (anime), Prof. Shiryū (PC)
- A flamboyant, eccentric mad scientist of the Black Lodge, he works for the organization to advance his research in mechanics and weaponry. Occasionally seen with an electric guitar, he serves as a source of comic relief for the series, due to his propensity for getting into various accidents and defeats at the hands of the Hadou Financial Group. Unlike other members of the Black Lodge, Doctor West does not possess any magical abilities, thus resorts to a simple assortment of machine guns and rocket launchers. However, he does construct a few Destroyer Robots to combat the Demonbane, in their initial engagements.
- His name is perhaps derived from Herbert West, a character in the short story Herbert West–Reanimator by H.P. Lovecraft.
Elsa
- Elsa (エルザ, Eruza)
- Voiced by: Mikako Satō (anime), Hina Kamimura (PC)
- One of Doctor West's creations, Elsa is a gynoid, built to be stronger and faster than an ordinary human, equipped with a pair of tonfas. Although she recognizes Kurou as her enemy, following an encounter where he saves her, Elsa admits her love to Kurou, much to his confusion. She ends most of her sentences with the suffix "robo".
- Elsa's name is probably derived from Elsa Sullivan Lanchester, the star of the movie Bride of Frankenstein.
Sandalphon
- Sandalphon (サンダルフォン, Sandarufon)
- Voiced by: Nobuyuki Hiyama
- A black angel who possesses equipment similar to that of Metatron and invariably appears to confront the white angel. He is a member of the Black Lodge's inner circle but stands apart from all of them and shows little interest in fighting weaklings. Sandalphon typically plays a minor role in the story but becomes the primary antagonist in Leica's route.
- It is revealed that his real name is Ryuuga Crusade (リューガ・クルセイド, Ryūga Kuruseido), Leica's brother and another test subject in the Moonchild Project. Although he was male and therefore did not have a real prospect of becoming the C Priestess, he was still experimented upon and had a magical dynamo implanted into his body, giving him superhuman combat ability. Although he did not know what the ultimate fate of the test subjects would be, Ryuuga still distrusted the scientists and planned to take Leica and escape. He loved the sky and his dream was to fly with the birds. Ryuuga's first escape attempt was successful but he was overpowered by Vespasianus, while his second attempt was cut short when Leica was manipulated into attacking him. He sustained severe injuries and was placed into a coma. Ryuuga's memory of the incident was distorted and he believes Leica killed him, causing the birth of a hatred that would eventually turn into an all-consuming obsession with killing Metatron. Vespasianus provided him with his equipment and gave him the name Sandalphon, making him an agent of the Black Lodge.
- Sandalphon clashes with Metatron repeatedly over the course of the story and in Leica's route, he is drawn into the scene of the final battle along with Demonbane and Liber Legis. Without Master Therion, Etheldreda is incapable of fighting Demonbane on even terms and attempts to take control of Sandalphon to use as a pilot but he turns on her, consuming her and gaining the full knowledge of the Pnakotic Manuscripts. With it he takes control of Liber Legis and battles Demonbane. He is defeated but continues to battle Metatron on foot. Leica deals him a fatal blow and he dies in her arms, in a state of peace, if not sanity. In all other routes he is killed by Metatron in a duel near the end of the story.
- Sandalphon is a master martial artist and the magical dynamo implanted into his body gives him superhuman strength. In addition his armour provides him with enhanced durability, flight, and a voice scrambler that hides his identity. His pathological hatred of Metatron grants him a measure of resistance to pain and allows him to endure otherwise crippling blows. When he consumes Etheldreda, Sandalphon becomes capable of piloting Liber Legis and using all of its arsenal.
- The name "Sandalphon" comes from the name of an archangel who is noted by some texts during the Midrashic period as the twin brother of Metatron.
Nya
- Nya (ナイア, Naia)
- Voiced by: Ai Orikasa (anime)
- A mysterious bespectacled woman in black (Nya) or a black man in a suit with odd earrings (Naia), Nya/Naia first appears as the owner of an old book shop when Kurou is hired by the Hadou Financial Group to search for a grimoire. In reality, Nya/Naia is Nyarlathotep, one of the cosmic Outer Gods who orchestrates most of the events triggered in Zanma Taisei Demonbane.