Slayer
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What a sorrowful man... Men do not know their place in the world. Because of that, they prosper, only to end up suffering in their prosperity. Perhaps it was necessary that we were cast out into the twilight. For when the sun sets, the moon rises... And some flowers shine their most beautiful under the moonlight. In other words, that is where true happiness lies. Don't you agree, Sharon?
― Slayer[src]
Slayer is a recurring character in the Guilty Gear series. A charming and refined vampiric gentleman, Slayer is an extremely powerful fighter who enjoys "meddling" in others' affairs, often offering advice to the other characters, much to their frustration and/or confusion.
Design
Slayer has the appearance of a middle-aged man, to whom class is quite important. Slayer's attire reflects his refined nature and is one of the many facets of Dandyism within his design: he wears a white undershirt beneath a rather professional-looking gray suit. The sleeves of his coat bear red-cross-shaped emblems. Slayer has brown hair, usually slicked to the side, complemented by a short well-kept beard and a thin mustache. He wears a monocle and is often found smoking a pipe. Over his shoulder is an almost magical red cape, which can shape-shift, and allow for teleportation. In combat, he uses no weapons, relying instead on his own physical strength and vampiric abilities.
In Guilty Gear -Strive-, Slayer now wears a pinstripe vest spouting several cross-shaped silver buttons with his suit, a golden watch, and a badge with chains. His red cape is replaced with a large black over-the-shoulders greatcoat featuring red lining. This greatcoat keeps the red crosses on the sleeves featured in his former design. Slayer's appearance in -Strive- can also be altered depending on the Overdrive that he performs; one tearing his clothes while the other making him revert to a more younger appearance. Whether the effects are temporary or permanent for the rest of the match is currently unclear at the moment.
Personality
Slayer is often portrayed as a character who understands a great deal more than other members of the cast. Having lived much longer, he possesses a strengthened sense of perspective, and as such, he generally remains calm and dignified regardless of the situation in which he finds himself. He also often openly shows his practice in Dandyism, a lifestyle within which self-fashioned elegance, counter-cultural image, and activities of leisure are paramount.[3] Several of his special moves are named after this practice.[4]
Despite this, he is not without passion. Slayer is a lover of refined things; poetry, romance, and often stops to admire the beauty he sees in the world of Guilty Gear, and in those younger than himself.[5] In combat, his blood boils, and although he is occasionally frustrated by the lack of challenge others are capable of presenting him with, he is ever graceful to those with whom he fights, offering them congratulations for a good performance.[6]
As a result of the sentiment he gained from being in the human realm for so long and his unlikely relationships with various characters, he usually assists them with a warning or a bit of advice, despite how he feels someone of his standing shouldn't be focused on such affairs.[7]
Story
Background
Slayer was born to a powerful noble vampire family.[8] Slayer founded the Assassin's Guild, but disappeared shortly thereafter. His original intentions for the Assassin's Guild were altruistic, intending to punish those who rose above the law.[9] Unfortunately, he finds, upon returning, that his syndicate is far from his original idealistic view of it, and decides to dismantle it.[10] He seems to be connected to Gabriel in some significant way, and seems to know quite a lot about various political affairs, most notably the Post-War Administration Bureau (P.W.A.B).[11] After soon taking notice of his old organization being cast into chaos, a result of Zato-1's absence, Slayer emerges from retirement to "tidy" things up.[12]
Slayer is dedicated to a loving marriage with his loyal wife, Sharon, who appears by his side in several of his poses as well as his round endings. She's seen delivering tea and letters to Slayer throughout the series, alongside appearing as an equal to Slayer when engaging in the finer things like writing and reading. This devotion to Slayer also extends to being a willing source of blood for her husband. Slayer is notably unable to disobey Sharon's orders.[13]
In “Night of Knives”, Slayer acts as a sort of meddler and watcher; his observations prompt much of the introspective beats within the story.
Slayer approaches Millia Rage, introducing himself by name, yet notes that he bears several aliases. The pair converse, to which Slayer later offers a toast to the moon and the stars above, commenting that he takes great pleasure in observing the wonders of humanity. Slayer waxes poetic about the nature of life being intertwined with death. With years of intuition supporting his claim, Slayer tells Millia that she will find her purpose. Before much elaboration can be done, Sharon beckons for Slayer, and he takes his leave.
After Millia succeeds in assassinating the General, Slayer appears once more. She attempts to fight against him, but Slayer easily renders her unable to fight, deflecting her attacks without moving an inch.Slayer unveils that he is here to evaluate the work of his subordinates, something which Millia is shocked by – Slayer, however, confesses that he had retired a long time ago. Slayer asks her for her justification on why she carried through the murder, going on to outline the Guild’s former purpose: To maintain order by taking care of corrupt leaders in the interest of preserving a good social order. Millia dismisses it, saying that the purpose of the order now is profit and survival. Slayer declares that such an organization which kills only for money and causes pain and sorrow to its members does not have the right to exist, to which he then poses a final question to Millia: “Does murder bring you happiness?”
Slayer appears before Zato at the Assassin's Guild headquarters, where he notes that the Guild has changed under Zato’s influence. This angers Zato, but to Slayer, Zato's influence has been detrimental, and the Assassin's Guild should no longer exist. He claims an organization that perpetuates misery among its peers has no right to remain in his eyes. However, Slayer asks Zato to share his perspective which he refuses, He instead attacks Slayer.[14]
Slayer then appears and speaks to Millia in her cell, proclaiming that he has come for her future. He takes out a dagger powerful enough to cut even her hair and offers to free Millia from the chains binding her hair. Both talk about the way this dagger also has the power to kill her. Millia thinks about the consequences of freedom compared to death, and this time she chooses life, declaring that her fight is not over. Slayer warns her of the dangers of continuing to use a forbidden power to fight, and of being thrust back into the world which was cruel to her. Millia replies that this time it will be different, the way she lives will be her decision, a critical point in her journey towards freedom from her life as an assassin, and her feelings towards Zato. Slayer cuts the hair binding her to her chains, praises her, and encourages her to stand alone, defiant against any difficulties she might face. As she departs, she addresses Slayer as “Fuuga ri na Dandy”/“Elegant Dandy”, a sign of respect for the help he has given her.[15]
Guilty Gear XX
Slayer's Story Mode begins with a visit to Ky Kiske, claiming that it is "customary for the king of the night to ask for permission from the protector of the day before venturing into the sunlight".[16] He has the apparent motive of either observing the cast, or warning them of being targeted by the P.W.A.B. He has three endings: in one, he defeats Eddie, who wanted to possess Sharon. In the second, he faces Venom, and explains that his victory was because of hesitation in Venom's heart.[17] In the third, he defeats I-No, and has a brief conversation with That Man about current events as Slayer laments that he himself isn't set in stone due to also aging quite a lot.[18]
Guilty Gear Dust Strikers
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Guilty Gear Judgment
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Guilty Gear XX Λ Core Plus
Slayer decides to return to retirement, stating he has spent enough time in this world, and would like to leave it to the younger people. He acknowledged that he is becoming sentimental, as he finds it somewhat difficult to leave the world behind, even though he believes he no longer has a place within it. This all initially was first admitted to Millia initially believing he's hitting on her, but rebukes with a self-admittance of being far too old right now and with his said sentimentality (as he merely wanted to remember her specifically before her hair's curse fully consumes her). He talks to various members of the playable cast expressing his farewells to them and requesting fights from each of them to remember them by, and once again expresses his concerns for the current state of the Assassin's Guild; unlike his prior encounter with Eddie, Slayer emphasizes with him and plants a thought within him on his current answer to his life that the beast should search for. He also offers advice to Venom to not be as obsessed with Millia and to hopefully find his own answer in life without Zato around.
However, if he uses his Instant Kill against Sol after he pesters him with a fight request, he will be rather unsure of leaving the future to people such as him, especially with the P.W.A.B. around. As a result, Slayer decides to take matters into his own hands, stealing documents about a nearby branch from Ky's hands and encountering both Crow and his Justice clone before ridding of it (despite being restricted by a field that prevents him from jumping). He then uses his raw power to destroy the branch building to prevent Crow from feeling satisfaction from triggering the self-destruct sequence. Though Faust arrives just afterward with the same intention to destroy the said branch, Slayer offers a fight to him as a way to make up for "stealing his prey", and the doctor accepts. Slayer then also hunts down I-No to deal with her to save That Man the trouble of not standing for her antics.
In his first ending after fighting against Potemkin to give Gabriel his best regards as a fellow elder, he is shown talking with his wife Sharon after returning to his own world, having trouble coming up with a haiku compared to before. Even then, he seems to enjoy the peace and regardless, he claims to be able to have any of his brethren as opponents to fight whenever he is bored.
Another ending, however, has him convinced by Anji's words from their encounter (which can also be reached if Slayer finishes off Venom with either an Overdrive or Instant Kill). Anji questions if retirement is what Slayer truly should seek if his blood still boils for battle. He eventually runs into Baiken and, reinvigorated by the current generation of fighters, starts a new organization solely of fighters alongside the aforementioned Baiken as they spring an attack on the P.W.A.B., claiming that their own drive is stronger than theirs.
Guilty Gear Xrd
Slayer enjoys his retirement until a being from the Backyard showed up and declared war. With this, he feels uneasy. While on the mission, he's one of the three Assassin's Guild members (save for Zato-1) who was ambushed by Bedman. Although he managed to survive with an injury he had from Bedman and warns Chipp, the Jellyfish Pirates and Faust how dangerous Bedman is like he did to Venom and Millia, as Faust got knocked out by Bedman with a single attack. Chipp buys the others some time by holding off Bedman, while Johnny and the other Jellyfish Pirates take the unconscious Faust, Venom and Millia away from Bedman before he reaches the May Ship.
Reconvening at Slayer's destroyed mansion, the Assassins decide that they will avenge their loss and take measures to defeat Bedman. Slayer personally denies Zato-1's information behind the "trick" of Bedman's abilities as his pride won't allow him to take advantage of it, as he feels ashamed for being taken off-guard by Bedman's power.
Guilty Gear -Strive-
Slayer and Sharon are seen having a romantic moment in the epilogue.
Abilities
Slayer is heavily hinted to be one of the most powerful characters in the world of Guilty Gear, though he is never seen using his full power, as hinted by his story mode interactions with other characters. Slayer, being a vampire, is immortal, and has lived hundreds upon thousands of years. As a vampire, he is also able to suck the blood out of others to heal his injuries, though he finds it rather distasteful. He can even draw out their blood or life force by mere touch, as his EX form reveals. He can regenerate instantly from impalement and regrow a severed limb in seconds. He also possesses telekinetic abilities as seen when he mentally controlled his severed arm to attack Bedman. He is also extremely physically capable, as some of his most powerful in-game moves are simple punches and kicks. Slayer also utilizes a sort of animate, red, cape-style garment that he is usually seen wearing on his shoulder in battle. It is very versatile, as Slayer can voluntarily change its size, and uses it for many different things such as guarding himself (as seen in his aerial block), or for sitting on (as seen in his crouch animation). He is also able to use it as a pair of "wings", or to teleport, though he does not necessarily need the cape for the latter.
In the past, he was able to destroy Zato-1's Dark Space, which is a pocket dimension that allows Zato to create and manipulate shadows, by merely exerting his own aura (which took the form of a demonic crimson shadow) and it is demonstrated that his own ability to control Darkness exceeded that of Zato-1's. He can also project his aura to 'punch' his opponents at long distance as he did when he fought Zato in Night of Knives and Bedman in their rematch in Revelator. Slayer is also, apparently, very, hard to actually defeat, as he is always conscious when "losing" a battle in both Story Mode and actual gameplay, where his knockdown sprite is him lounging on the ground, rather than actually knocked out (albeit rather displeased with himself). Also, when Slayer is almost hit with Dizzy's Instant Kill he makes a "whatever" gesture at the mushroom cloud, clearly unimpressed.
Most of Slayer's animations involve agile kicks and powerful yet flashy punches, along with some hints of martial arts via a shoulder-leaning attack, and quick movements. Slayer can also make use of his claws for a variety of attacks as well, and a few energy-based attacks. In gameplay, Slayer mainly is focused on dancing around his foes to react to their various attacks with his own, baiting them into a bad move to back-swing-blow them with full force to fish for nasty counter hits. It is almost as though he is playing around with them to a degree without extra gimmicks on his part, as he prods them with lunging and poking attacks of all sorts that can lead into a fully-committal blow should a chance present itself, but at the cost of low mobility (as he lacks a running dash) and requirement to both read and space himself from his foe correctly to not misjudge an option himself.
While he is not known for using weapons, Slayer owns a particular dagger, which was used to cut Millia Rage's hair.
Music
- Haven't You Got Eyes in Your Head? - Guilty Gear XX
- The Vampire Saga - Guilty Gear XX ♯Reload Korean OST
- Riches In Me - Guilty Gear Isuka
- Jack-a-Dandy - Guilty Gear Xrd
- Ups and Downs - Guilty Gear -Strive-
- Rivalry themes
- Existence (vs. Millia, Eddie & Venom) - Guilty Gear XX
- When Life Comes (vs. Millia, Zato & Venom) - Guilty Gear Xrd
Quotes
Main article: /Quotes
Allusions
- Slayer is likely named after the thrash metal band of the same name.
- Many of Slayer's attacks are named after Queen songs:
- Two of his Dandy Step followups are called "Under Pressure" and "It's Late".
- Two of his Overdrives are named "Dead on Time", while the latter named Eien no Tsubasa (Wings of Eternity) is most likely named after "Spread Your Wings".
- His Instant Kill is named All Dead, named after the song "All Dead, All Dead".
- One of Slayer's other special moves, "Undertow" is a reference to the eponymous album by progressive metal band Tool.
- During one of the paths in Baiken's story mode of XX Accent Core Plus, he says the line "You may be right, I may be crazy", which may be a reference to Billy Joel's song "You May Be Right", though this is only in the localized script as the Japanese dialogue hints to no such thing.
- His Force Break, Big Bang Upper, could be named after either the British band Big Bang, or the Norwegian rock band Bigbang.
- In Xrd, Slayer's new Dandy Step followup, Helter Skelter, likely references the Beatles song of the same name, which has been covered by numerous artists.
- His initial followup from his Dandy Step known as Pile Bunker, is most likely named after the military weapon of the same name.
- In Xrd His 3d Model features the text "Happiness is not a goal" on his tie a reference to "Happiness is not a goal...it's a by-product of a life well lived" a quote by Eleanor Roosevelt.
Trivia
- Unlike other characters in-game, Slayer is not knocked out if he loses. Instead, he simply lays down, looking annoyed. Other characters from many of the Arc's fighting games follow this trend. Such as Rachel Alucard (another vampire, though she does not directly get hit by attacks as one of her familiars suffers damage in her place instead) and Nine the Phantom from the BlazBlue series, and later on Elizabeth and Margaret from the Persona series via Persona 4 Arena and its sequel Persona 4 Arena Ultimax.
- Additionally, during Dizzy's Instant Kill in Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator-, Slayer seems to brush off Dizzy's astronomically destructive power. He responds by shrugging, while every other character reacts with terror or shocked awe.
- According to the Guilty Gear Codex, Slayer was considered the last of his race on Earth since vampires began to die off shortly before he founded the Guild.[19] This is no longer the case as Nagoriyuki is also a vampire.
- Slayer has made a guest appearance in the game Code Shifter.
Gallery
Main article: /Gallery
External links
- GGXRD-R2/Slayer at Dustloop Wiki
- ↑ SLAYER | CHARACTER | Guilty Gear -Strive- | ARC SYSTEM WORKS
- ↑ https://www.guiltygear.com/ggst/kr/character/sly
- ↑ Dandy on Wikipedia
- ↑ Slayer/Commands
- ↑ GG World/Slayer
- ↑ Slayer/Quotes
- ↑ Slayer Path 2, Vs. Venom, Ending
- ↑ Arc System Works 25th Anniversary Character Collection, Page 64
- ↑ Guilty Gear XX script#Chipp Path 2
- ↑ Guilty Gear XX script#Venom
- ↑ Guilty Gear XX script#Potemkin
- ↑ GG World/Slayer
- ↑ Sharon's GGWorld Entry
- ↑ Guilty Gear XX Drama CD Night of Knives Vol.1
- ↑ Guilty Gear XX Drama CD Night of Knives Vol.2
- ↑ https://guiltygear.wiki.gg/wiki/Guilty_Gear_XX_script#Slayer
- ↑ https://guiltygear.wiki.gg/wiki/Guilty_Gear_XX_script#Slayer_Path_2
- ↑ https://guiltygear.wiki.gg/wiki/Guilty_Gear_XX_script#Slayer_Path_3
- ↑ Guilty Gear Codex, Page 23