The Phantom Troupe is a gang of thieves known both for their ruthlessness and their intense loyalty to one another. Some admire them for their thieving prowess, while others despise them for taking lives without a second thought. Love them or hate them, they’re exceptionally strong – but who among them is the strongest?
With so many powerful members, it’s hard to say who the strongest Phantom Troupe member is. It could be the leader, Chrollo Lucilfer, who has the ability to steal other people’s abilities at will. It could also be Hisoka Morow, who temporarily joined for his own purposes and managed to totally bamboozle the rest of the troupe. Or maybe it’s Uvogin, whose raw physical strength is unparalleled.
Over 4,000 HxH fans voted on this list over on Ranker, so we’re going to display these Phantom Troupe members in reverse order with the #1 voted character last.
10. Shizuku Murasaki
Despite not being the strongest in physical combat, Shizuku Murasaki is one of the most valuable members of the Troupe. That’s because of her Nen ability, a conjuration technique called Blinky. Blinky is a vacuum that can suck up an infinite amount of any non-living substance.This is invaluable for the Troupe’s more grisly missions, since she can use Blinky to clean up after a massacre. Because she can’t suck up anything made from Nen, she can also use Blinky to detect Nen-based traps.
But the most dangerous use of Blinky is one you might not expect. While blood does consist of living cells, it’s not considered a living thing here, so Blinky can suck all the blood from someone’s body. She does this when battling the chimera ant Pike.
9. Shalnark
Shalnark is one of the most intelligent members of the Phantom Troupe. As a licensed hunter, he has access to information that other members don’t. What’s more, he knows what to do with that information. He’s often the person who comes up with the group’s more complicated plans.
In addition to his brains, he also has some pretty useful Nen-based abilities: Black Voice and Autopilot Mode. Black Voice involves sticking an antenna into a target’s body and controlling them remotely through a cell phone. He uses this repeatedly when dealing with members of the mafia. Autopilot Mode lets him do the same thing to himself – until he completes a difficult task he instructs himself to complete beforehand, he’ll have enhanced strength, but he won’t remember what happened afterwards, and he’ll experience severe muscle pain for several days.
8. Machi Komacine
Machi Komacine is the Phantom Troupe’s unofficial medic, in part because of one of her primary Nen abilities: Nen Stitches. This ability lets her sew wounds closed or even reattach severed limbs. The stitches also seem to have regenerative properties, because once closed, the wounds are nonexistent.
Machi can also use her Nen Threads offensively. Sometimes this means using them to control her opponents like puppets, sometimes it means cutting or strangling them – it all depends on what she needs in the moment.
7. Nobunaga Hazama
Unlike many of the other members, Nobunaga Hazama doesn’t display any special Nen-based powers. However, he’s a master swordsman who uses Iaidō, a type of swordplay that involves very quickly removing the blade from its scabbard, striking, cleaning the blade, and then replacing it in the blink of an eye. He uses this skill when keeping Gon and Killua hostage in the hopes that they’ll eventually be willing to join the Phantom Troupe.
6. Uvogin
Uvogin’s physical strength is unmatched. Without using Nen at all, he can easily beat the stuffing out of most opponents. When he does use Nen, he uses it to enhance his physical attacks. This is called Big Bang Impact, a technique where he enhances a right straight punch with aura, giving it about as much power as a missile. It’s simple, but extremely effective – he managed to destroy Kurapika’s arm with it even though the latter was using Emperor Time.
Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t enough to defeat Kurapika, who was able to defeat him using Chain Jail and Judgment Chain.
5. Phinks Magcub
Though he’s reckless and hard to get along with, Phinks is still a valuable member of the Phantom Troupe. His most prominent skill is an enhancement type Nen ability called Ripper Cyclotron, which he uses to destroy a chimera ant. Ripper Cyclotron allows him to increase the strength of his punches by rotating his fist in a circle and concentrating aura in it. The drawback is that he has trouble controlling said punches.
4. Feitan Portor
Feitan Portor is the troupe’s interrogator, a task he usually accomplishes through torture. After defeating the Chimera Ant Zazan, he becomes the interim leader until they find Chrollo.
In order to defeat Zazan, he uses a particularly terrifying combination of techniques: Pain Packer and Rising Sun. Pain Packer is activated only when he’s sufficiently angry. It allows him to conjure a suit of armor that will protect him from the next attack he unleashes. That attack is Rising Sun, which involves summoning a miniature sun and scorching his opponent with it. Its heat depends on how badly he’s been hurt up until that point.
Because of this technique, the rest of the Troupe knows to get the heck out of the way whenever Feitan appears to be enraged.
3. Illumi Zoldyck
The eldest of the Zoldyck siblings, Illumi is one of the most unsettling. He trained Killua and continued to try to control him from afar with mind-control needles. While he’s incredibly loyal to his family, he has concerns that the family might not approve of, such as his desire to control Alluka, and his strange contractual relationship with Hisoka. That last relationship is why he joins the Phantom Troupe – he wants to destroy Hisoka and thinks it’s the best way to do so.
What abilities does he bring to both his family and the Troupe? Illumi can use needles for a wide variety of purposes, largely focused on control. Using Needle People, he can force living people to do his bidding. Using Corpse Control, he can do the same thing with the bodies of those who have passed. He can also implant needles to create hypnotic suggestions, as he does with Killua. Finally, he can dramatically alter his appearance using Body Alteration, which is how he’s able to appear as Gittarackur at the start of the series.
2. Hisoka Morow
Hisoka only joined the Phantom Troupe so that he could fight Chrollo, and he bounced at the earliest opportunity. So, he’s not exactly a true member. That said, he’s one of the most frightening people in the world of Hunter x Hunter, both for his creepy interest in Gon and for his raw power.
Aside from being freakin’ jacked, Hisoka has a unique Nen ability called Bungee Gum. If you’ve seen the show, you heard Machi explain it four times in a row, but here we go again. He can turn his aura into a sticky, gumlike substance that can be used to bind opponents, defend him against projectiles, allow him to walk on walls, and even close up wounds.
His other ability, Texture Surprise, lets him change the texture and appearance of any flat surface to his liking. That’s how he managed to create a fake Phantom Troupe tattoo.
1. Chrollo Lucilfer
Ask anybody in the Phantom Troupe who they think is the strongest member and they’ll probably say their boss, Chrollo Lucilfer. While he might not be as physically powerful as say, Uvogin, his command over the group’s loyalty combined with his Nen techniques make him a formidable foe.
Chrollo’s primary ability is Skill Hunter. This allows him to take Nen techniques from other people and store them in a conjured book for his own use. To do this, he must see the technique in action, ask the person to explain their ability, and then have them touch the book’s front cover – all within an hour. It’s not easy to accomplish, but he’s managed it enough times to amass a panoply of techniques, including Indoor Fish, Teleportation, Lovely Ghostwriter, and more.