God Slayers

The God Slayers (神スレイヤーズ, Kami sureiyāzu) are a group of characters and a term used in the story, "DxD: FINAL."

Profile
A God Slayer is typically an individual with the power to slay Gods, thus marked as those who partake in the act of deicide, or the genocide of omnipotent entities. Usually, God Slayers are regarded with hostility and fear, but are also used as tools in other conflicts, either being contracted by a pantheon to eliminate a rivaling religion, or being captured and used for personal gain. It is unknown how exactly these slayers of heavenly entities came to be, but their existence dates back to the days of the Great War. Originally great in number, the mythical deiciders have all but vanished from the pages of history.

It is possible for a God Slayer to be created through various means. Typically, a God themselves must choose an individual to carry out their will, bestowing upon them a fraction of their power, thereby stripping them of their "humanity," and granting them immense power. The intended individual can be chosen regardless of whether or not they are alive or dead, as if they are deceased, the deity will revive them. It is also possible for a God Slayer to be born when they have killed a God through other means, and rob that deity of their power.

A God Slayer does not necessarily have to be human, however. They can be supernatural beings as well, such as Devils or Angels. Some examples of supernatural beings becoming God Slayers are Asterich Eligor, a matriarch of the Pillar of Eligor that killed the Hindu God of Rage, Asura, and the Angel of Death, Azrael, who slew the Hindu Goddess of Love, Rati. Very rarely do Gods choose supernatural beings to become their representatives, however, as they often choose humans to become their weapon of mass deitic murder.

God Slayers are also divided into two categories: Deitic God Slayers, and Demonic God Slayers. Deitic God Slayers are those chosen by Gods from various pantheons, sans God himself. Demonic God Slayers are those chosen by Demonic Gods, such as Mahesvara, the demon counterpart to the Hindu God Shiva, and Dagda, a former member of the Irish Pantheon. Deitic God Slayers possess a wide variety of powers that stem from their host God, and while still capable of dying, they are considered to be powerful beings. In contrast, Demonic God Slayers, who exchanged much more of their "humanity" than the Deitic God Slayers, have a limited amount of power, but gradually obtain a great deal of power as time progresses. They are also capable of being resurrected countless times by the demonic god who reincarnated them as God Slayers, though they slowly lose their sanity and reasoning with each subsequent revival.

While God Slayers are typically known for their ability to kill Gods, they do not, in truth, kill them. In fact, all omnipotent entities are made reality through the thoughts and beliefs of those who create them as concepts and constructs, thus forming the religions that would eventually give rise to them. Thus, the only way to truly 'kill' them is to kill their believers, down to the last man. This had been strictly made forbidden, however, considered to be the ultimate taboo, and this fact has been kept heavily secret from other beings, with only a select few being aware of it. One God Slayer has attempted to perform a true act of deicide, having nearly succeeded in slaughtering almost every member of the Islamic Religion before they were executed by the God who reincarnated them. The name of this god has not been made public.

Known God Slayers

 * 1) Issei Hyoudou: God Slayer of the Demon God, Dagda
 * 2) Tokiomi Matsusaziki: Daughter and God Slayer of the Demon God, Mahesvara
 * 3) Yuno Gasai: God Slayer of the Demon God, Vishnu
 * 4) Dulio Gesualdo: God Slayer of the Deitic God, YHVH
 * 5) Azrael: Angel of Death, God Slayer of the Deitic God, Rati
 * 6) Asterich Eligor: Matriarch Devil, God Slayer of the Deitic God, Asura

Trivia

 * The means of becoming a God Slayer by slaying a Deitic or Demonic God through various means is in reference to the series, Campione! Characters from this series become a Campione, also known as a King of Kings, or Demon King, by slaying various celestial entities.
 * Issei Hyoudou makes a reference to the series directly in the second chapter of the story, expressing shock and refusal to become a deicider. He also shares some similarities to the series' protagonist, Kusanagi Godou, as both initially refuse this role, and begin to attract several girls to their side.