The Great Leviathan

The Great Leviathan, (巨大竜リヴァイアサン) referred to as the Orichalcos God in the Japanese version and the Grand Dragon Leviathan in English promotional material, serves as the primary antagonist of the Waking the Dragons story arc. Although it does not manifest in its full physical form until the arc's climactic episodes, it is a central force throughout. Born from the Orichalcos and fueled by the rage of humanity, the Leviathan is believed to be the most powerful creature ever to exist.

Names	The Great Leviathan, (巨大竜リヴァイアサン) Orichalcos God
Gender	Genderless (Referred to as Male)
Race	Leviathan
Occupation	God of the Orichalcos
Origin	Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters Episode 147: "Legend of the Dragons", 名もなき竜 ティマイオス, Namonaki Ryū Timaiosu, lit: "Nameless Dragon, Timaeus" (March 4, 2003)
Alignment	Evil
Age	Unknown, at Least 10000 years (Older than Dartz)
Created By	Masahiro Hikokubo, Shin Yoshida

Appearance

The Great Leviathan’s size is inconsistent, depending on its state of power. During the Battle of Atlantis, it appeared smaller than its later revived form, which emerged 10,000 years afterward. In its fully revived state, the Leviathan's immense size allowed it to encircle the island of Atlantis twice, and it towered over even the Egyptian God Cards. Its head alone was comparable in size to an average God monster. This disparity in size may be attributed to the difference in the number of souls it absorbed for power; by the time of its revival, Dartz had harvested millions of souls, whereas during the Atlantean conflict, the available soul energy may have been significantly less. Additionally, its reduced size during the ancient battle could have resulted from the prolonged conflict, which may have drained its strength. It is implied that Critias and Hermos, absent from the Atlantean flashback, had been defeated and sealed before the Leviathan’s final confrontation.

The Leviathan is a massive purple serpent with a pink underbelly and teal fur-like ruffles along its body, including its forked tail and membranous structures. Its head is large and elongated, featuring long jaws with an underbite and simple teeth. Two small pink mandibles extend midway along its lower jaw. Its head and the underside of its jaw are protected by a grey carapace, and its crest includes six spikes—five angled backward and one forward. Its small yellow eyes are a defining feature, which Dartz also displayed when he merged with the Leviathan.

Personality

The Great Leviathan was a malevolent and destructive force, embodying pure evil and an insatiable hunger for annihilation. It thrived on the hatred, resentment, and despair of humanity, which fueled its power through the Orichalcos Stone. As a creature of darkness, it sought the total eradication of all life on Earth, driven by an unrelenting desire to dominate and consume.

Unlike more sentient antagonists, the Leviathan did not exhibit complex emotions or reasoning. Its actions were purely guided by its instinctive drive for destruction and its connection to the Orichalcos's corrupting influence. It responded fiercely to challenges, roaring its defiance and engaging in battle with unrelenting ferocity, as seen during its final confrontation with the Egyptian Gods.

Despite its overwhelming power and destructive nature, the Leviathan lacked the strategic cunning or emotional depth of other villains. It relied entirely on its sheer strength and the dark energy it absorbed, leaving it vulnerable when faced with the light and unity symbolized by Yami Yugi and the Egyptian Gods. This lack of emotional nuance underscored its role as a representation of pure evil and the consequences of unchecked rage and resentment.

Biography

Dartz, the king of Atlantis, was corrupted and manipulated by the Orichalcos Stone, which commanded him to resurrect their god, the Great Leviathan, using the souls of humans. The Leviathan was ultimately defeated by the three Legendary Dragons—Critias, Hermos, and Timaeus—but the battle resulted in the sinking of Atlantis. Like Zorc Necrophades, the Leviathan embodied pure evil, driven by a desire to exterminate all life on Earth. To achieve its resurrection, Dartz needed the souls of three specific Duelists who wielded the Legendary Dragon cards: Yami Yugi, Seto Kaiba, and Joey Wheeler.

As Dartz collected more souls, the Leviathan grew increasingly active. Its presence became especially evident when the souls of Joey and Kaiba were captured. Following Joey's capture, the Leviathan began to manifest in the skies, and by the time Kaiba's soul was taken, it had become conscious enough to roar from its astral prison.

When Dartz failed to capture Yami Yugi's soul and lost the souls of Kaiba and Joey, he sacrificed his own soul to revive the Leviathan. Declaring his soul to be of "equal" value, Dartz succeeded in resurrecting the Leviathan. The monster overwhelmed the Legendary Knights and an army of Duel Monster spirits, but Yami Yugi was able to channel the light of the souls the Leviathan had absorbed. Using this power, he summoned the three Egyptian Gods—Slifer the Sky Dragon, Obelisk the Tormentor, and The Winged Dragon of Ra.

The Leviathan, now fully revived, roared its challenge and soared into the skies, pursued by the Egyptian Gods. A climactic battle unfolded over the ocean. While the Leviathan initially seemed evenly matched with the Egyptian Gods due to its immense power drawn from millions of captured souls, Yami Yugi tapped into the light within those same souls to empower the Gods. With their newfound strength, the Egyptian Gods overcame the Leviathan, neutralizing its dark power and vanquishing it.

In the aftermath, Yami Yugi freed Dartz from the Leviathan's corrupting influence by using his own light, symbolized by a memory vessel, to eradicate the hatred and resentment that had fueled the Leviathan. This act extinguished the curse of the Orichalcos and permanently destroyed the Leviathan. In the Japanese version, Dark Magician Girl mentioned that the Leviathan was sent to live peacefully in the Duel Monsters Spirit World after its curse was lifted. Atlantis, meanwhile, sank back to the ocean floor, restoring balance to the world.

Powers and Statistics

Tier: 2-C

Powers and Abilities: Superhuman Physical Characteristics, Immortality (Type 1, 3 and 8, can continue to exist through the Darkness in human souls even after being physically destroyed), Regeneration (Low-Godly over time, can reconstruct its body if it absorbs enough souls), Creation (Created the Orichalcos Stones), Absorption (Can absorb magical energy and souls to fuel itself. Absorbed the power of the Egyptian Gods cards to regain its strength), Energy Manipulation and Projection, Telepathy (Can telepathically communicate with other beings and regulary communicates with Dartz), Mind Manipulation, Empathic Manipulation (The Orichalcos Stones grant their wielders extreme greed and increase their rage), Corruption (Type 2, can corrupt the mind, the body and the spirit of other beings), Madness Manipulation (Can drive other beings to madness), Transformation (Can turn humans into monsters), Soul Manipulation (Can remove souls from both humans and Duel Spirits on a global scale), Reality Warping, Darkness Manipulation, Weather Manipulation (Its mere presence is capable of creating a storm of global proportions), Portal Creation (Opened a portal leading to Atlantis), Body Control & Additional Limbs (Can create tentacles from its body to grab and restrain targets), Astral Projection (Can partially manifest itself outside its astral prison even when still sealed), Power Bestowal (Can grant supernatural powers and knowledge), Self-Sustenance (Type 1, 2 and 3), Large Size (Type 3, is far bigger than all the Egyptian Gods), Flight, Dimensional Travel

Attack Potency: Low Multiverse level (Singlehandedly defeated up to twelve powerful Duel Monsters who fought together, including Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon and all three Legendary Knights, with ease and was powerful enough to fight the three Egyptian Gods at the same time. Dartz never saw Zorc Necrophades as a threat to the Great Leviathan, stating the powers of the Leviathan were greater than those of Zorc, and only waited to capture the Pharaoh's soul because he wanted him to destroy Zorc to have free reign)

Speed: Massively Hypersonic+ (Can easily keep up with the three Egyptian Gods at the same time with ease. Formed a giant storm that was spinning at this speed)

Lifting Strength: Unknown

Striking Strength: Low Multiverse level (Can easily destroy extremely powerful monsters like the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon with ease and can fight and harm the Egyptian Gods)

Durability: Low Multiverse level (Easily endured attacks from extremely powerful Duel Monsters Like the Egyptian gods without difficulties.) Immortality and Regeneration make it hard to harm and kill

Stamina: Infinite

Range: Multiple Kilometers via Energy Projection, Planetary in general

Standard Equipment: Orichalcos Stones

Intelligence: Unknown (It has enough sentience to create the Orichlacos stones, which seem to act as a conduit for its will, and can communicate with Dartz while its physical form is still incomplete)

Weaknesses: Is vulnerable to the power of the light of the souls, which can be used to destroy its physical form or even annihilate it, though it requires immense power to make it happen.

Trivia

• The Leviathan is featured in the Old Testament of the Bible as the primordial creature of the sea.
• On the Yugioh.com site, the monster's artwork displayed for that monster was erroneously that of "Cave Dragon".
• However, according to the English dub, the Leviathan was unrelated to Duel Monsters.
• Leviathan's initial appearance as a gigantic eye could be inspired by the Eye of Sauron from Lord of the Rings.