Both the Persona series, and the Shin Megami Tensei franchise that it branched out from, use real-world mythology in the game’s complex lore inspired by real myths and legends from cultures all across the globe. Abrahamic mythology, comprising of mostly religious tales from Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and a few other faiths, is used quite a lot as inspiration for personas in these series. In the holy texts of these religions, there is mention of the Four Horsemen of the apocalypse: War, Famine, Pestilence, and Death. These riders appear as fiends astride mighty mustangs and destriers in their Persona 5 Royal incarnations.
Black Rider, from the Tower Arcana, represents Famine and is one of the stronger mid to late-game personas with a wealth of tremendous skills. They can heavily damage all foes with Physical, Curse, or even Almighty-type skills, though their strongest ability is being able to instantly kill all adversaries afflicted by the fear status with a Ghastly Wail. Being so powerful, there is understandably quite a cost to fusing this persona, however, there are plenty of relatively accessible fusions available for Joker to take advantage of.
10 Yurlungur & Hariti – $107,875
The fusions in Persona 5 don’t always necessarily follow a mythological pattern. They mostly try to consider statistical relations, though there are plenty of fusions with some thematic consistency. One that doesn’t do so very clearly is the fusion between the rainbow serpent Yurlungur and the ogress turned goddess Hariti.
Yurlunger hails from Australian mythology and is a mighty being capable of reincarnation. They were said to live in a lake of rainbow-colored water. They specialize in zapping enemies with a plethora of great Electric skills, though can also deliver some moderate Almighty damage to all foes for reliable hits that aren’t affected by type resistances. Hariti is a deity from Buddhist mythology that once ate children before Buddha convinced her to eat pomegranates instead. She then became a goddess and patron of parents in Buddhism, which is reflected in her mostly support and healing skills.
9 Ose & Hecatoncheires – $110,134
Here there is a somewhat more lore-appropriate fusion between a demon and a giant. Ose is a being from the underworld written of in many demonology texts and is a master of shape-shifting magic. Not only can he change forms between a leopard and a man, but he can also turn a human into whatever he desires. His P5R form specializes in dealing heavy Physical damage to all foes.
The huge other half of this fusion is a giant from Greek mythology who once helped Zeus fight the titans in an epic war for Olympus. They are said to have 100 hands in which they can strike foes with devastating succession. They can do so in-game via a few multi-hit Physical attacks that can combo very nicely with the passive critical-boosting skills this massive being possesses.
8 Ananta & Kushinada – $115,030
Despite different origins, this fusion makes more sense than at first glance. Ananta, the many-headed primordial serpent from Hindu mythology that existed in the void before creation is prophecized to one day destroy the universe, not unlike how Black Rider and the other Four Horsemen herald the end times. Accordingly, Ananta can unleash heavy Nuclear-type damage to all adversaries that can wipe out the opposition thanks to the Nuke-boost they get from this destruction deity’s passive skills and trait.
Very familiar with many-headed serpents of destruction is the goddess Kushinada from Japanese mythology. She was about to be sacrificed to the monstrous hydra-like monster known as Yamata no Orochi when she was saved by the storm god Susano-o who transformed her into a comb and hid her in his hair. Her Persona form is all about healing and buffing the party against damage.
7 Narcissus & Unicorn – $118,531
Here is a combination of figures from folklore that have only a slight superficial relation to the Horseman they create. Narcissus is a beautiful man from Greek mythology who was cursed by the gods to fall in love with this own reflection. He became so obsessed with his image on the surface of a nearby pond that he drowned in an attempt to embrace it. Where he died flowers grew and they were named after him. Narcissus in Persona 5 attempts to afflict enemies with the dizzy status, which lowers their accuracy greatly until they are attacked.
Unicorn is a bit more lore-friendly for a Black Rider fusion since it is very much equestrian. They are from many different mythologies around the world, appearing in European, Middle-eastern, and Asian folklore and proliferate the fantasy genre in various mediums. These kind and gentle creatures focus on Bless-type skills and healing Joker’s party.
6 Mishaguji & Neko Shogan – $111,934
Here there is a combination of two ancient gods from eastern religions to form the fierce Black Rider. Mishaguji is a deity who sometimes takes the form of a bizarre, pale worm. They were worshiped by people of ancient Japan as a fertility god. They have a mix of skills making them a generalist persona for Psychic and Physical damage along with some status ailment inducing ones.
Neko Shogun is a general in the form of a cat from Chinese mythology. They are a deity of war and have temples all over China. They concentrate on buffing and healing the party.
5 Dakini & Thunderbird – $113,590
This is a combination of two potentially destructive forces that forge a Horseman. Dakini, noted in Buddhist, Hindu, and Tibetan mythology, is a female being with vastly varying lore. In some tales, she is a paragon of feminine virtues and strength, while in others she is a destructive servant of the goddess Kali. She specializes in Physically damaging skills that hit enemies multiple times and can stack for huge damage with her Charge skill, which multiplies the damage by the following Physical attack by 2.5.
As one of the few beings from Native American mythology, Thunderbird stands out for both its dynamically cool design and powerful combat potential. As expected, they are spectacular at unleashing devastating Electric attacks and have passive skills and a trait that further increases their potency.
4 Barong & Zouchouten – $113,707
Two mighty deities from eastern mythologies fuse here to make one of the Four Horsemen. Barong is a god who protects mankind and embodies the forces of good in Balinese mythology. His eternal enemy is the evil witch Rangda, who also appears in Persona 5 Royal. Strangely, Barong has no Bless or Almighty skills, contrary to his trait that reduces the cost of all Bless skills. Instead, he has some heavily damaging Electric attacks.
The deific other half of this combination, Zouchouten, is one of Buddhism’s Four Heavenly Kings and guards Buddha’s realms in the south. He primarily buffs the party while also decreasing negative effects inflicted by foes or altogether avoiding them.
3 Parvati & Tam Lin – $119,107
With this match, a goddess and a knight merge to give rise to Black Rider. Parvati, the wife of the god Shiva, is the goddess of love and beauty in Hindu mythology. She is capable of powerful transformations, like turning into the mighty Durga, a more warrior-like version of herself, and even being able to merge with Shiva to form the dual-gender god Ardha. Parvati features mostly healing and support skills in addition to some decent Psychic attacks.
Merging with Parvati is the knight from a fairy court, Tam Lin. He is a figure known in English mythology to be a wild and wily warrior who serves the legendary Seelie Court and the fairy royalty who reside there. Appropriately for a knight, he prioritizes Physical skills and can manipulate the chances of critical hits occurring.
2 Garuda & Daisoujou – $132,094
Two representations of death fuse to make the Black Rider, though they each herald demise differently. Garuda is a lesser deity from Hindu mythology that was colossal enough to block out the sun with its wingspan. They once battled the gods, but eventually succumbed to them and became the god Vishnu’s mount. With their massive wings, they are said to be able to cause hurricanes by beating them. This is shown in P5R with their skills that pertain to unleashing ferocious Wind attacks.
The undead monk Daisoujou was a man so devout that he died while fasting. However, his faith allowed him to persist after death, becoming an icon in Buddhism for the kind of blessing true faith can bring in the form of immortality. With such mastery over death, it is understandable that Daisoujou has the most powerful instant death skill in the game. This monk in yellow possesses the coveted Samsara, which is a Bless-type skill with a high chance of simultaneously kill all foes.
1 Norn & Anubis – $119,350
With these two, Persona 5 Royal reveals the best lore and stat fusion for Black Rider of the Four Horseman. Norn are the Norse goddesses who together rule over fate, deciding who lives and dies, as well as how. Suitably, they can dictate the flow of battle much like they can time and destiny. They have many excellent support and healing skills that can completely change the outcome of a battle, such as Samarecarm, which can revive a single ally with full health.
Anubis is the Egyptian god of mummification who, like Black Rider, carries a scale, though for very different reasons. The Horseman, a thinly veiled allegory for Famine, shows their scale as empty in order to represent the empty stomachs and markets that lead to starvation. Anubis holds his scale to weigh the hearts of the dead and judge them for their deeds in life. The jackal-headed deity appropriately has powerful Bless and Curse-type skills as well as a few instant death ones.
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