ZERO – Strongest Sin Archbishops, Ranked

The captivating world of “Re: ZERO – Starting Life in Another World“ seems ever-expanding, as antagonizing forces within the series keep spawning seemingly out of nowhere. The Sin Archbishops of the Witch Cult have emerged as some of the more newly formidable adversaries faced by Subaru Natsuki.

The leaders of the Witch Cult, each Sin Archbishop embodies one of the seven deadly sins, wielding unique powers that challenge Subaru’s resolve and impact the story in more ways than one. While the anime has only introduced a few archbishops, this piece seeks to compare these figures based on their level of strength. By implication, this will carry some spoilers directly from the light novel series. Therefore, regarding the most formidable archbishops, here is a list of the strongest archbishops according to their strength.

7 Rui Arneb

Sin Archbishop of Gluttony’s Satiation

• Authority: Authority of Gluttony
• Light Novel Debut: Volume 20
• Affiliation: The Witch Cult

One of the three representations of Gluttony, Rui Arneb, is the Sin Archbishop, who represents the Satiation aspect of Gluttony. A major villain of Arc 6 in the light novel series, Rui Arneb is quite the fearsome opponent, even when she looks no more than a child. Although Rui may not seem as powerful compared to the other Sin Archbishops, the difference between all representatives varies regardless of authority. As a representative of Gluttony, Rui possesses the skill of Gluttony that allows her to eat the name and memories of an opponent, essentially consuming their existence.

However, beyond the Gluttony skill, Rui still hides a trump card, the Eclipse skill. The skill is divided into the Solar and Lunar Eclipse, which, as expected, serve different purposes. The Lunar Eclipse allows Rui to use her victims’ memories and harvest their skills and knowledge, while the Solar Eclipse allows her to harvest her victim’s names and use their appearance. Importantly, despite the power of her authority, Rui is not the most physically formidable archbishop, as Subaru managed to defeat her, leaving her mind broken and earning her placement at the bottom of the pile.

6 Roy Alphard

Sin Archbishop of Gluttony’s Bizarre Eating

• Authority: Authority of Gluttony
• Light Novel Debut: Volume 17
• Affiliation: The Witch Cult

Gluttony’s representative for the aspect of Bizarre Eating, Roy Alphard, is another Sin Archbishop of the Witch Cult and yet another powerful entity by human standards. A major villain of Arc 6 of the light novel, alongside his siblings, Lye and Rui, Roy Alphard cares very little about what he eats, which is understandable given the aspect of Gluttony he represents.

However, Roy’s preference for quantity over quality directly impacts the level of his powers and abilities. Sharing the same skills of Gluttony and Eclipse with his other siblings, it is unsurprising that Roy is also near the bottom of the power order between the Sin Archbishops. In addition, Roy becomes significantly weaker after trying to devour Reid Astrea, who turns out to be more powerful than the archbishop, leaving Roy unconscious and ultimately sealed away.

5 Lye Batenkaitos

Sin Archbishop of Gluttony’s Gourmet

• Authority: Authority of Gluttony
• Light Novel Debut: Volume 9
• Affiliation: The Witch Cult

The oldest of the three siblings representing the sin of Gluttony, Lye Batenkaitos, was the Sin Archbishop of Gluttony, representing the Gourmet aspect. One of the more mysterious archbishops, Lye was devious in a way that allowed him to deflect attention from himself, secretly building his strength by devouring countless people.

However, for all his insatiable hunger for the names and powers of others, Lye and his siblings are considerably outclassed by other archbishops like Regulus, regardless of how strong Lye could get. While Lye is comparably much stronger than humans, it makes a good case for his low placement on this list after getting decapitated by Ram at the end of Arc 6 in the light novel series.

4 Petelgeuse Romanee-Conti

Sin Archbishop of Sloth

• Authority: Authority of Sloth
• Light Novel Debut: Volume 5
• Affiliation: The Witch Cult

The representative of Sloth, Petelgeuse was a Sin Archbishop of the Witch Cult and its co-founder, having lived as a spirit connected to the Sage for four hundred years. One of the few archbishops already introduced in the anime, Petelgeuse, was the depiction of insanity within the Witch Cult.

While not physically imposing or possessing any raw physical power, Petelgeuse was one of the stronger archbishops due to his large amounts of magical energy. Preferring not to use magic in combat, Petelgeuse relies on the Unseen Hand skill of the authority of Sloth, giving him a perfect balance of offense and defense whenever he faces an enemy. However, he cannot rank higher on this piece because he is more or less a spirit without a permanent body.

3 Capella Emerada Lugunica

Sin Archbishop of Lust

• Authority: Authority of Lust
• Light Novel Debut: Volume 17
• Affiliation: The Witch Cult

The Sin Archbishop of Lust of the Witch Cult, Capella Lugunica, spearheads the antagonism from the Witch Cult within the series, as she is one of the two archbishops to have been introduced in the anime series. Considered to have the worst personality of all the archbishops, it is only right that Capella’s strength matches her cruelty.

As the possessor of the Witch factor of Lust, She can use the Authority of Lust while also being able to transform herself or others into other beings. However, she is most lethal when using her Black Flames, powerful black flames that burn everything in their sight and can not be put out. Capella has the highest raw attack power among archbishops with her flames.

2 Sirius Romanee-Conti

Sin Archbishop of Wrath

• Authority: Authority of Wrath
• Light Novel Debut: Volume 16
• Affiliation: The Witch Cult

Petelgeuse’s self-acclaimed wife, Sirius Romanee-Conti, is the Sin Archbishop of Wrath of the Witch Cult. Rather wrathful in her demeanor, Sirius is on a level of strength and power only bested by Regulus Corneas.

Possessing an abnormally long lifespan, Sirius has the highest amount of physical strength among the archbishops. In addition, Sirius can also use the Soul Washing skill, which allows her to share or transmit her emotions to others in a specific space. With a combination of all of her skills and abilities, Sirius is arguably the most fearsome of the archbishops but just falls short of the top placement.

1 Regulus Corneas

Sin Archbishop of Greed

• Authority: Authority of Greed
• Light Novel Debut: Volume 8
• Affiliation: The Witch Cult

The Sin Archbishop of Greed, Regulus Corneas, was quite the villain until his death. By default, Regulus was the most powerful of the archbishops. He held the witch factor of Greed, which made him near-invisible until Subaru figured out his Authority. While not physically imposing like the other archbishops, Regulus, using the Authority of Greed, operated more or less like a distortion in time and space.

Through the effective combination of the two skills that make up his authority, Lion’s Heart and Little King, Regulus was an impossible opponent to deal with. With the ability to stop the time of his own body and organs, and even that of others, He could prevent himself from being affected by any physical phenomena and interact with any he chose to, making it a perfect balance of offense and defense. Even without deep combat knowledge, Regulus was simply too powerful for most of his opponents.