X-Laws

The X-Laws are the primary group of antiheroes in the anime and manga series Shaman King. Like Yoh and the other protagonists of the story, they oppose Hao Asakura. However, their methods are far more ruthless and harsh. With the exception of the members of X-I, all current X-Laws are ex-military. Most members use firearms as mediums for their spirits.

The X-Laws zealously believe Iron Maiden Jeanne and her ideals; as a result, they are completely faithful to her and will stop at nothing to ensure her mission will be completed. Like Jeanne, they are convinced they are saving the world from the corruption and evil of Hao. They will eliminate anyone who stands in their way as they believe only those who join them are good.

Because Jeanne is constantly inside her iron maiden, her defacto leader is Marco, a man completely faithful to Jeanne. The X-Laws obey him without question and his authority to act is overruled only by Jeanne herself.

Each member of the X-Law has an Archangel (Arch-Spirit in the English dub) as a guardian spirit. These powerful entities is presented to them by Jeanne once she deems them worthy and truly believing in their cause. The spirits are kept inside the ammunition of a gun, and are actually the tsukumogami of cars. In the anime, all the archangels were absorbed by Morphine/Chloe when the X-Laws all fell to Hao. The result was her "upgrade" to Angel Advent.

Members

The division of the X-Laws into teams exists only in the manga. In the anime, the X-Laws work as a collective group rather than splitting up into distinct teams of three.

Team X-I

Iron Maiden Jeanne

• Spirit: Shamash
• Furyoku: 500,000
• Origin: Mont Saint-Michel, France
• Seiyu: Yui Horie

The leader of the X-laws

Marco Lasso - 2nd in command of the X-laws

• Spirit: Michael (Ferrari Testarossa)
• Furyoku: 12,000
• Origin: Sicily, Italy
• Birthdate: November 17, 1973
• Seiyu: Akimitsu Takase

The defacto leader of the group, whose authority is overruled only by Jeanne herself. He helped found the X-Laws with the shaman Luchist Lasso, who would later fall under the influence of Hao Asakura.

Marco Lasso is extremely loyal to Jeanne, and will stop at nothing to achieve what he believes will bring about Jeanne's ideals of a world free of corruption and evil. Like Jeanne, he tends to see issues in black and white; either something is good or evil. Those who join the X-Laws are considered good and those who do not are automatically evil and with Hao Asakura.

Because of his utter and complete devotion to Jeanne, he is the most devastated when Jeanne's attempt to destroy Hao by opening the Gate of Babylon fails. However, while the other X-Laws go to challenge Hao and avenge Jeanne's defeat, dying in the process, Marco becomes the only survivor (not counting Lyserg Diethel, who leaves the group to help Yoh Asakura).

As Yoh Asakura prepares to defeat Hao, Marco chooses to follow Jeanne's lead and places his faith in Yoh in hopes that Yoh will achieve what the X-Laws failed to do.

The manga reveals details from his past left unsaid in the anime. Marco was originally an entrepreneur who worked with cars and a close friend of Luchist, the leader of the X-Laws at the time. Marco's company was on the verge of creating a new sports car, but gave up when Hao apparently destroyed his house and killed his entire family. Marco was driven to attempt suicide, but eventually chose the path of revenge.

In chapter 266 of the reprint edition, it was shown that Marco Lasso had shot Luchist Lasso alongside with himself. He entrusted Yoh and the others to 'give Hao some love', as Marco had declared love as the real justice. His glasses was passed down to Lyserg as Marco remarks that he would look great with them on.

Marco contains Michael in a fully automatic Beretta pistol. Marco was named for the manga and anime Chibi Maruko-chan, and for the cigarette brand Marlboro.

Lyserg Diethel

• Spirit: Morphine, Zeruel (Lotus Elise)
• Furyoku: 3,500
• Origin: London, England
• Seiyu: Yoko Soumi

The newest member of the group. In the manga, Zeruel did not replace his first spirit (Morphine in the Japanese versions, Morphea in the English-language manga, Chloe in the English-language anime); however, in the anime, Lyserg abandoned his original spirit in favor of the more powerful Archangel. Notably, Zeruel is the only archangel not named after a real archangel.

Team X-II

A trio composed of John Denbat, Porf Griffith, and Lucky Dirac. They are killed in the anime with most of the other X-Laws during their final assault on Hao. In the manga, they die after the loss of Team X-III. After losing faith in Marco, they decide to kill Hao by attacking his headquarters. Their spirits are burned by Hao, which forbids them from ever entering Heaven or Hell.

John Denbat

• Spirit: Raphael (Aston Martin DB4)
• Origin: England

A former member of the SAS. In the manga, Denbat, as Team X-II's attempt to kill Hao fails, curses Hao for killing his comrades when he realizes that Porf and Lucky are dead. Hao questions why Denbat chooses to stand against him instead of stopping if Denbat was aware that Porf and Lucky would likely die in the process. Denbat, aware of the possible consequences, had prepared a test satellite in space wired to his Archangel with a laser known as XDI. Denbat fires the laser from Orbit at Hao; the blast is deflected around them and Denbat meets his unfortunate end at Hao's hand.

Denbat's spirit, Raphael, is held within the ammunition of a grenade launcher. His name is based on John Denver and Golden Bat cigarettes.

Pofe Griffith

• Spirit: Sariel (Porsche 911)
• Origin: United States

A former Delta Force member and a sniper. In the manga, he is killed by Hao after being distracted by Hao's crying.

Sariel is housed in a Remington 700. Pofe is named for Hope cigarettes and the TVR Griffith.

Lucky Dirac (Larch)

• Spirit: Uriel (Ford GT40)
• Origin: United States

A former Delta Force member. In the manga, he hears through a radio transmission of Pofe being killed by Hao. He attempts to run, but is killed by Hao.

Uriel is kept in a bazooka. Lucky is named for Lark cigarettes and Cadillac cars.

Team X-III

A trio containing Benstar (Bunstar), Cebin (Kevin), and Miine (Meene). In the anime, they are killed during the X-Laws' final assault on Hao. In the manga, Team X-III is killed early on by Hao in the Shaman Fight, when he challenges the entire group to attack him. Their souls and their spirits are consumed by the Spirit of Fire in chapter 140.

However, with their deaths, Hao goes on to reveals his medium, the air itself, to the X-Laws, who had intended to go so far as to sacrifice their own lives as to discover the secret because they knew that regardless of what they did, their fight with Hao would kill them.

Chris Benstar (Bunstar, Venstar in the English anime)

• Spirit: Metatron (Hummer H1)
• Furyoku: 10,500
• Origin: United States
• Birthdate: May 6, 1961
• Seiyu: Seiji Sasaki

A soldier who served in the Gulf War. In the manga, he is impaled by the Spirit of Fire after Kevin and Mina are killed. After the Shaman Fight announcer tells Benstar that the shield being used in the tournament is the strongest in the world, Benstar reveals his weapon, Grenade X, and detonates it in an attempt to destroy Hao by sacrificing his own life in the process and assured that Jeanne would not be injured in the process. Grenade X consumes all the oxygen in the ring at once, but does not destroy Hao or the Spirit of Fire because Hao was able to use his powers as an onmyoji to change the Spirit of Fire into water.

Metatron is held in a rocket artillery launcher. Benstar is named for the Seven Stars cigarette brand.

Cebin Mendel (Kevin)

• Spirit: Remiel (300SL Coupe)
• Furyoku: 9,700
• Birthdate: September 18, 1971
• Origin: Austria

A former member of the Cobra Unit who seeks revenge on Hao. He wears a mask to cover his disfigured face, caused by Hao burning him with the Spirit of Fire ten years prior to the Shaman Fight. In the manga, he is killed shortly after Mina.

Cebin houses Remiel in specially built guns which resemble human forearms. He is named for Cabin cigarettes and Gregor Mendel. His hobby is singing in a chorus, his favorite food is Sachertorte.

Miine Montgomery (Sometimes written: Meene) (Minnie in the English manga, Mina in the English anime)

• Spirit: Gabriel (Giulietta SZ)
• Furyoku: 8,300
• Origin: Canada
• Birthdate: January 26, 1981
• Seiyu: Tomoko Kawakami

A former member of the Canadian Special Forces and the only female member of the group, other than Iron Maiden Jeanne. In the anime, she is shown to be more sensitive that she appears and returns Morphine to a disillusioned Lyserg in hopes that he will leave that group and not be destroyed as the rest of the surviving X-Laws attempt to defeat Hao. In the manga, however, she is the first member of Team X-III to be killed by Hao.

Miine keeps Gabriel in a Luger P08 pistol. She is named for "Mine" (峰) cigarettes and Lucy Maud Montgomery.

Others

Luchist lasso

• Founder of X-Laws and ex-member
• Spirit: Lucifer (Lamborghini Countach LP400)

The founder of the X-Laws, Luchist was the one who found the orphaned Jeanne and was likely the one who granted her shamanic powers. He uses SWORD-000, which signifies that Lucifer is created before the other angels and is the most powerful.

Luchist acts as the main rival to Marco. After Marco lost his family as a child, he came to know Luchist, who became Marco's mentor. The two shared a good relationship as close friends and worked as car dealers. Luchist's decision to defect from the X-Laws and join Hao Asakura is a devastating blow to Marco, who vowed to exact justice on his former master.

Lucifer is kept in a Comp Hunter revolver. Luchist is named for Lucky Strikes.

Hans Reiheit (first appearance in Volume 30)

• Exiled member of the X-Laws
• Spirit: Azazel (Tank)
• Origin: Austria

The most dangerous member of the group because of his spirit, the angel Azazel. Azazel has a reiyoku level of 470,000, which is higher than the Spirit of Fire's reiyoku level of 300,000. The reason he is not able to defeat Hao is because, although his angel is more powerful than the Spirit of Fire, Reiheit only had enough furyoku to Oversoul him for three seconds. Hao Asakura, by contrast, has enough furyoku to form the Spirit of Fire for four times.

Azazel is kept in a Steyr AUG. Reiheit is named after Hi-Lite cigarettes.