Yhwach is already mounting his next attack in the Thousand Year Blood War, with more casualties sure to come. The Sternritter previously showed up to briefly cause chaos and steal Bankai, but they intend this to be the final battle. Now, with the Soul Reapers not prepared and still missing powers, what kind of danger are they in? Is there any way they can combat the Sternritter without falling victim to their deadly Schrifts?
Schrifts are the powers given to Sternritter upon swearing allegiance to Yhwach. The Quincy King, using his own power of the Almighty, splits his soul among them. Depending on who the Quincy is or their ability, he carves a letter on the Soul Fragment given, granting more power. Now, with Sternritter for every letter from A to Z, the Soul Society is in for a long, bloody battle.
10. As Nodt
- Schrift: F- The Fear
- What it does: Strikes deathly fear into enemies
- Stolen Bankai? Yes, stole Byakuya Kuchiki’s Bankai
As Nodt is one terrifying dude with the Schrift to match. One of the first introduced Schrifts, The Fear was enough to shake Byakuya, no easy feat. While it’s mainly used to immediately scare opponents into death, Byakuya was able to resist a vast amount of that energy. As Nodt didn’t give up though, goading him into using Bankai before stealing it.
Now, As Nodt can strike fear like never before thanks to the even more powerful Bankai he wields. The second invasion of the Soul Society that begins in season two will see him combining the two, terrifying enemies with the Bankai of their own captain Fortunately, Byakuya’s sister isn’t scared of facing him and is on a mission to win back Senbon Zakura for him.
9. Driscoll Berchi
- Schrift: O- The Overkill
- What it does: Strengthens him with every kill.
- Stolen Bankai? Yes, from Vice Captain Chojiro Sasakibe
Driscoll takes the Overkill part of his Schrift seriously, powering up every time he slaughters someone. There’s no exact measure, but with each kill he racks up, his strength and spirit energy increases. This extends to his Quincy abilities, shown when he fired a massive arrow of Reishi through Chojiro. To add insult to injury, he stole Chojiro’s Bankai first, using it against his former Captain later.
8. Mask de Masculine
- Schrift: S- The Superstar
- What it does: Cheering for him makes him stronger.
- Stolen Bankai? No.
Mask de Masculine is a luchador Quincy with some real star power. Literally, he shoots star beams that pierce straight through an opponent like a hole punch. That’s only his base power too, with the Quincy being one of Yhwach’s top fighters thanks to his massive strength and even more impressive Schrift.
Mask’s Schrift, The Superstar, powers him up any time his sidekick James or others cheer him on. Since the cheers power him up, it seems like an easy solution to just kill James, right? Wrong! James is essentially invincible, reviving any time he’s killed as long as Mask is still going. This combo is the most dangerous thing about Mask, allowing him almost unlimited power.
7. Gremmy Thoumeaux
- Schrift: V- The Visionary
- What it does: Manifests his imagination
- Stolen Bankai? No.
Gremmy likes to pull off a bait and switch with enemies using his powers, which manifest his imagination. While it seems straightforward at first, the limits are nearly boundless and allow him to create almost anything, at one point even summoning a meteor. While he’s powerful and has the vivid imagination to make his Schrift powerful, Gremmy isn’t without his fallbacks.
Namely, carelessness. Gremmy doesn’t care who he hurts, friend or foe, and will destroy everything to win a fight. While Gremmy’s imagination can usually get him through most fights, that imagination can backfire on him if he’s in danger, as he imagines himself dying during a fight and almost does. Will he be able to imagine something that can defeat a monster like Kenpachi when they clash?
6. Lille Barro
- Schrift: X- The X-Axis
- What it does: Allows him to pierce anything along a straight line.
- Stolen Bankai? No.
Lille was the first Sternritter, as well as one of Yhwach’s elite guards. While he’s got some odd convictions, believing any who think they’re winning a battle are damned to fail, but he backs it up with some major firepower. Seriously, this guy has a sniper rifle that can pierce anything with no ammo, only firing spirit energy bullets in a straight line. His maximum distance? As far as his eyes can see.
Lille is devastating in just his base form too, being one of the few Sternritter to show their Volstagg form. His transformation makes him even more deadly, allowing him to fly and even phase through enemies and their attacks. When both his eyes are open, most enemies have no chance, so the Soul Reapers have a lot of work ahead of them.
5. Giselle Gewelle
- Schrift: Z- The Zombie
- What it does: Zombifies and controls enemies.
- Stolen Bankai? No.
Giselle is… terrifying. Sadistic, disrespectful, and willing to even kill her allies if it helps her get the job done. She won’t hesitate to use her Schrift, The Zombie, to turn allies and enemies alike into exactly that- zombies that obey her every command. Giselle isn’t just sadistic though, she’s downright murderous and will let enemies get in close to find out.
This Sternritter can’t activate her Schrift without bleeding, which takes some Soul Reapers by surprise when they land a clean cut. Unfortunately, if Giselle’s blood lands on a Soul Reaper, they’re immediately her toy. She even mentions she can do the same thing to Quincies, but they have to be dead first. This leads to some more questionable tactics as she isn’t shy about her tactics or lack of care for her friends.
4. Royd Lloyd/Loyd Lloyd
- Schrift: S- The Self
- What it does: Shapeshifting
- Stolen Bankai? Attempted to steal General Yamamoto’s.
Royd and his brother Loyd are special when it comes to Quincies, sharing one Schrift between them. They can both copy appearances, but Royd can copy exact personality while Loyd copies abilities. Royd unfortunately met his end in the first part of Bleach’s Thousand Year Blood War, a faithful Sternritter to the very end. While he was inevitably beaten by General Yamamoto, he kept with his mission and imitated Yhwach until the end. Yhwach repaid this by killing Royd himself, offering quick death and mercy.
Loyd will be a different story, with not much of a score to settle and no personal vendetta. Loyd is still just as loyal to Yhwach as his brother, with the added benefit of copying his enemy’s fighting style and abilities. Which works great, until he copies the strongest and most destructive captain in the Soul Society, Kenpachi Zaraki. Chaos ensues as Kenpachi vs. Kenpachi happens for the second time in Thousand Year Blood War.
3. Askin Nakk Le Vaar
- Schrift: D- The Deathdealing
- What it does: Sets a fatal dose of his choosing
- Stolen Bankai? No.
Askin isn’t just one of Bleach’s strongest Sternritter, he’s also one of the most likable. His Schrift, The Deathdealing, allows Askin to set a lethal dose of anything in his opponent’s body. To paint a picture of just how easily he can dispatch enemies, he changes Royal Guard Nimaiya’s blood to toxic, which begins to kill the Soul Reaper as poison fills his veins.
Askin’s downfall will be his laziness. He doesn’t like to fight, instead choosing to use lethal dose and his Spirit Energy-filled ‘Gift Balls’ to take out his enemies. Taking down a Royal Guard establishes his power, and shows that it won’t be easy for just a Soul Reaper to take him down. Thankfully the Soul Reapers have some help from their old friends in Hueco Mundo, and a fan-favorite Arrancar comes to lend a hand.
2. Jugram Haschwalth
- Schrift: B- The Balance
- What it does: Redirects misfortune from Haschwalth to enemies.
- Stolen Bankai? No.
Haschwalth was Yhwach’s right-hand man until Uryu came along. While he puts on a show that Yhwach knows what’s best, he resents Uryu for being named successor after just joining the Sternritter. While he doesn’t act on his animosity toward the new Quincy right away, it’s blatantly obvious that there’s hostility between them.
Jugram holds some of the greatest Spirit Energy in Bleach, second only to Yhwach himself among the Sternritter. His Schrift, The Balance, allows him to essentially tip the scales of battle. This directs misfortune on the battlefield back on his opponent, exemplified when he cruelly kills a Sternritter to damage his enemy. He was also strong enough to break Ichigo’s Tensa Zangetsu with only one swing of his sword.
1. Uryu Ishida
- Schrift: A- The Antithesis
- What it does: IRL Uno Reverse card.
- Stolen Bankai? No
Uryu’s betrayal was more than an arrow in the back when the Quincy once thought to be the last of his race was recruited by Yhwach. While he was given a Schrift and accepted into the Sternritter as Yhwach’s successor, he wasn’t endeared to the rest of the group immediately. Jugram even tries to kill him in the end, and the two have an all-out battle to determine Uryu’s devotion.
The battle reveals Uryu’s massively overpowered Schrift ability, The Antithesis. While he fights as normal, with his faithful Quincy bow and arrow, Uryu is at any time able to pull a reverse card on his opponent. This can go for everything from damage sustained bouncing back at the enemy to even healing Uryu, allowing him to avoid fatal blows even seconds after they happen.
Bleach is set to return near the end of July, with the Sternritter hitting the Soul Society even harder a second time. Although they haven’t had much time to recover or prepare, the Soul Reapers won’t go down without a fight. Even if they do go down, they’ll be sure to drag plenty of Sternritter down to hell with them during the fight.
