In the famous anime Bleach, there exist several factions of highly skilled warriors who take on the Shinigami. By far, the most fascinating group is the Quincy, and the Sternritter is a group of the most powerful Quincy of the Wandereich.
Charged with purging the Shinigami, they are given their powers by the almighty Yhwach and prove to be the most formidable foes for protagonist Ichigo Kurosaki to battle.
Yes, they’re incredibly strong, but who ranks above all the rest as the strongest? Here’s a ranking of the 10 most powerful Sternritter in Bleach.
12. Sternritter F: Äs Nödt
A strong Sternritter who possesses an ability that can put anyone at a disadvantage, Äs Nödt has F- The Fear, which makes anyone vulnerable to him. In addition, he was capable of stealing Byakuya Kuchiki’s Bankai and proved to be a tremendous threat to the Gotei 13.
He believes that everyone experiences fear, and The Fear proves it. More than causing wounds, he creates fear in the hearts of those he shoots with thorns. The effect of this is to make his targets lose all rational thought and thought processes, causing them to become flooded with doubts, which can instantly kill the weak-minded.
Also, he can use Vollstandig, which enhances his already powerful abilities by directly affecting the optic nerve through vision. Only someone with extreme willpower or who has died can counter this incredible ability. Moreover, none of the characters in the list above portray such stoicism because they are all motivated by emotion. Therefore, Äs Nödt is one of the strongest Sternritters.
11. Sternritter Z: Giselle Gewelle
The eccentric and playful Giselle Gewelle is referred to as Z – The Zombie. Giselle is a biological male, despite her appearance and behavior. Her morality is nonexistent, and she is willing to use even her allies to gain an advantage.
Her ability, The Zombie, turns people into mindless zombies when they are splattered with her blood. She used this to fight back against the Soul Society by turning an entire battalion of Shinigami into her puppets. With her power, she can heal herself and others, but the effectiveness of her zombie transformation depends on the enemy. A stronger enemy requires more blood to be splattered on them.
10. Sternritter V: Gremmy Thoumeaux
The Visionary Gremmy Thoumeaux has a very childlike appearance. The body we’re first shown is nothing but a manifestation of his imaginative ability because his real body is just a dismembered brain. He takes pride in his abilities, and anything he imagines comes into existence.
Not only that, but he was able to create Guenael Lee, a complete person, and had a decent fight during his battle with Kenpachi Zaraki. Gremmy believes in his power, and with good reason, but he is also extremely arrogant, not only declaring himself the strongest Sternritter but also claiming he will defeat Kenpachi without raising a finger.
9. Sternritter H: Bazzard Black
Bazzard Black, aka Bazz-B, is a Sternritter with the ability to manipulate fire. He battled Toshirou Hitsugaya and took away his ice bankai, even though he has the ultimate counter for ice, which is fire, as his primary ability. He keeps his red Mohawk with two metal nuts in his upper left ear and a bolt through his lower right ear.
While very harsh and hard-headed, Bazz-B is extremely loyal to Ywatch and holds fellow Sternritter Jugem Haschwalth in high regard. He is also very pompous, claiming he will be able to defeat Hitsugaya with only a finger, even if he has his bankai. This Sternritter is merciless but has shown compassion for his comrades on occasion.
8. Sternritter J: Quilge Opie
The Jail Quilge Opie is the hunting captain of the Jagdarme of the Wandenreich. He was sent to Hueco Mundo during the second invasion of the Soul Society by the Quincy. He is a strong authoritarian figure, and he has very little regard for anyone other than the Quincy.
He is heavily critical of his subordinates and acts in a barbaric manner, but he is also very calculating and decisive and shows no mercy to others, as seen by his actions against Aizen’s Espada. His ability allows him to create a Reishi sword and a Reishi jail, both of which are said to be unbreakable, along with the absorption of all surrounding Reishi. This same prison was able to hold Ichigo as the Soul Society, and the captains were decimated.
7. Sternritter Y: Royd Lloyd and Loyd Lloyd
Royd and Loyd are twins with the ability of pure mimicry. Royd was able to copy Ywatch and hold off Genryuusai Yamamoto himself, knowing the grave risk that came with doing so. He is extremely loyal to his majesty, Ywatch. Loyd is tall and is the elder of the twins.
He is a stoic individual and does not get involved in conversations with the enemy. Like his brother, Royd is able to replicate, but only uses his abilities to the limits of his spirit energy. Still, like all Quincy, he can absorb energy from the surrounding area.
6. Sternritter C: Pernida Parnkgjas
The Compulsory Pernida is the left hand of the Soul King and a member of the Schutzstaffel. The hand is incredibly tall and towered over both Yumichika and Ikkaku during their confrontation. Mainly silent, Pernida doesn’t show any personality, but other Schutzstaffel can understand it.
Later on, it evolved and began using full speech. Pernida has the ability of Evolution Governance, using it as organic absorption, adaptive replication, anatomy manipulation, self-replication, and regeneration.
5. Sternritter D: Askin Nakk Le Vaar
The Deathdealing Askin is a Quincy that was also at Hueco Mundo during the invasion of the Quincy at Hueco Mundo. Also, a member of the Schutzstaffel, he is very unpredictable and is extremely sarcastic, eccentric, and pompous.
He has respect for Kisuke Urahara and his intellect but usually only has respect for women with nice bodies. Yuck.
4. Sternritter A: Uryuu Ishida
Uryuu Ishida is already a well-known character in the series as he is the Crown Prince of the Wandenreich. He is normally quiet and solitary and is very calm and intellectual. Like most Quincy, he has mastery of the bow and absorption of the atmosphere.
He eventually gets blessed with the ability of Antithesis (the power to swap events that have occurred between two targets). Uryuu also obtains the ability of Auswählen (absorption of energy from Quincy, who are deemed needless, and transferring said energy to Quincy who needs it), making him one of very few Quincy who have the ability.
3. Sternritter B: Jugram Haschwalth
The Balance Jugram Haschwalth is a Quincy with the highest rank so far. He is the Sternritter Grandmaster, acting as Ywatch’s advisor and acting Emperor when Ywatch is asleep. He is extremely devoted to Ywatch and is extremely powerful and confident in his power, with him declaring war on Captain-Commander Shunsui Kyoraku.
He uses a range of weapons, including a broadsword and the conversional Quincy Bow and Arrow, along with the ability to absorb powers from other Quincy, an ability only Ywatch has.
2. Sternritter X: Lille Barro
The X-Axis Lille Barro is the leader of the Schutzstaffel of the Wandenreich. He is dark-skinned and believes those who lose don’t act fast enough. He has great belief in his and Ywatch’s ability, but he easily gets unnerved by things he doesn’t understand. He is the first Quincy Ywatch granted a Schrift, and in turn, he sees himself as Ywatch’s masterpiece, the meeting closest to God.
Lille has the regular Quincy techniques as well as being an expert marksman but also has the power of The X-Axis, which allows him to use his rifle and pierce any object in his sight. The X-Axis also allows any and all enemy attacks to phase through his body, resulting in his body emerging unscathed whenever he is attacked. He keeps his left eye closed, for he believes it is unfair to his opponents, but if opened three times in the fight, he is permitted to keep it open throughout.
1. Sternritter M: Gerard Valkyrie
The Miracle Gerard Valkyrie is the heart of the Soul King and one of Ywatch’s Schutzstaffel. No fight with him is a fair fight, for he is gifted the most overpowering ability in the series. Gerard is tall and muscular in size and is very aggressive in his fighting. He is convinced no one has a chance against him, including Senjumaru Shutara of The Zero Division.
When confronted by several lieutenants and captains, he demanded they all come at him at once because it would not be fair one-on-one. Gerard has the regular Quincy techniques, although his weapon of choice is a shield. He has always had the ability of The Miracle and was not granted it by Ywatch. It is described by Gerard as the power to manifest “miracles” by giving form to thoughts, feelings, and desires of his.