Soul Edge is one of the most iconic swords in the world of gaming. It is probably even more renowned, if not equal in fame than its sister sword, Soul Calibur. If you’ve played or you’re at least familiar with the game, you’ll know both of them.
However, for those who haven’t played the game and have at least seen both swords, they might likely better remember Soul Edge for its nightmarish look. Indeed, Soul Edge came to being during what seemed like a nightmare for the people of ancient times.
During these forgotten years, all that was known were killings, war, and violence. Since all the lives were lost, violence and hatred caused an ordinary sword to come to life.
Soul Edge was so evil that anyone who touched the sword was corrupted. The wielder would become violent and would kill anyone just to feed Soul Edge the souls.
After so many years, Soul Edge, along with its corrupted wielder would terrorize the land. The sword would continue to feed on souls, becoming stronger and stronger. No one’s will was strong enough to fight against the influence of the sword.
As time went on, the sword became infamous across the land. This caused power-hungry individuals to seek out the sword in hopes of getting even more power.
Even though they knew what might become of them, all they cared about was gaining supreme power. After all, no one and no other weapon was as powerful as Soul Edge. There was nothing that could stop Soul Edge from claiming more and more souls.
Soul Edge was unmatched and for a very long time, it reigned supreme. This was until a time came that a hero king encountered the cursed sword. The hero king’s name was Algol and unlike all others who wielded Soul Edge before him, his name would be remembered.
What is Soul Edge?
As we’ve shared earlier, the cursed sword, Soul Edge, was once just an ordinary blade. But because it was used over and over again in many battlefields and because it had been used to spill a lot of blood, the sword became cursed.
You could say that the sword came alive on its own but with a lot of encouragement from evil. Unlike Soul Calibur, all the killings and bloodshed it witnessed for a long time was enough for it to have consciousness and become sentient.
It didn’t need any ritual or any special items for it to come to being. Over time, it gained enough power to corrupt anyone. As more and more powerful people wielded Soul Edge, the cursed sword gained new abilities all the souls it fed upon.
How Powerful Did Soul Edge Become?
The evil sword got so powerful that at some point, it was able to cause a cataclysmic event that affected the whole planet. The cursed sword is also able to open a rift to the Astral Chaos, another realm in the world of Soul Calibur.
During the entirety of the games, only two weapons were able to break it. None of the two were ordinary.
Another noticeable feature about Soul Edge is it’s appearance. While it does have its general iconic look, its design actually varied depending on its wielder. This is a characteristic of both Soul Edge and Soul Calibur.
It reads into its wielder and takes the form of whatever weapon may be ideal for its user. If the wielder’s fighting style made use of two weapons or a shield, Soul Edge changed itself into two as well.
For its survival, it served its host by becoming the ultimate weapon of their fighting style. The weapon is powerful, intimidating and unconquerable. To add to that, the weapon also boosts its wielder’s strength, speed and reflexes. It transforms its wielder into his or her evil version.
By now, you could almost ask, “how can anyone beat someone with that kind of weapon?” More importantly, can anyone wield the weapon without being under its control? After all, what’s the point of having the most powerful weapon if the sword is in charge?
What Does Soul Edge Look Like?
Soul Edge doesn’t have just one design. It changes its shape depending on its wielder. We begin with whom we know was the first wielder of Soul Edge, Algol.
When Algol wielded Soul Edge, about half or more than half of its blade was still uncovered by the organic parts of the sword. In the middle of this monstrous organic part was its eye. Three claws form the asymmetric guard and the grip had a design of a snake spiraling downward towards the pommel.
It had the same design when Arcturus, the son of Algol, wielded the sword. This was probably because the sword didn’t last too long with Arcturus for it to have enough time to morph.
After so many years, when Algol and Arcturus were considered ancient, a pirate named Cervantes gained possession of Soul Edge. Cervantes made use of dual-wielding swords.
Cervantes in Soul Calibur II
Cervantes in Soul Calibur III
With him, Soul Edge transformed and split into two swords. With each Soul Calibur game, Cervantes had a different design and so did his Dual Soul Edge. However, he only truly had Soul Edge until Soul Calibur III.
With Nightmare, Soul Edge came in the form of a gigantic sword with most of its blade covered up in flesh-like parts. This was also the same design used when Inferno himself used Soul Edge as well.
Inferno is another name you have to remember as it is the entity within Soul Edge. It has the eye near the base of its blade and while the weapon seemed like a double-handed sword, Nightmare, because of his strength, could wield it.
With Pyrrha, Soul Edge changed its form into a straight, double-edged blade. The eye at the center of the guard with much of the sword’s steel revealed, the general design still leaned heavily on Soul Edge’s evil appearance.
Can the Sword Edge be Wielded Without Consequence?
With the question, we mean can the sword be wielded without its user being corrupted? The answer is ,“almost a no but not really a yes”. Remember Algol? Earlier, we mentioned that his name would be immortalized in history.
This was because Algol was something else. In fact, Algol is arguably the most powerful character of the game franchise. He was also the only one who was capable of wielding Soul Edge without losing his sanity.
Upon acquiring Soul Edge, Algol used the cursed weapon for peace and prosperity. He was loved by everyone, especially his people. But, how was he immune to the effects of Soul Edge?
Algol was insanely strong and powerful. Others have even described him as godlike. His will was simply too strong for Soul Edge to break.
While there were others like Pyrrha who eventually broke out of Soul Edge’s control and was still able to wield it, they don’t count as having immunity because they were still corrupted initially.
The Force Behind Soul Edge?
While Soul Edge gained consciousness due to the myriad of horrendous events that occurred during hundreds of years, this consciousness behind Soul Edge is Inferno. Inferno is the living and evil force that resides within the cursed blade.
He is responsible for Nightmare and is the main antagonist in Soul Calibur Series.
What Can Destroy Soul Edge?
In retrospect, only two weapons have ever been able to destroy Soul Edge. Note that this doesn’t ultimately mean that Soul Edge was vulnerable as both weapons were far from ordinary.
These were the weapons that were able to destroy Soul Edge:
Sophitia’s Ω Sword
What makes Sophitia’s Ω Sword special is that it was given to her by Hephaestus, the greek god of forge himself. Sophitia, with her Ω Sword, encountered Cervantes wielding Soul Edge in 1583 AD.
At this time, Soul Edge came in the form of two swords, with one smaller than the other. While Sophitia wasn’t able to destroy both swords, she was able to destroy the smaller one. However, upon doing so, shards of the cursed sword pierced into her chest.
Soul Calibur
Soul Calibur was meant to be the complete opposite of Soul Edge. While it may have some impurities, it came close enough to being classified as a holy weapon. Soul Calibur was able to break Soul Edge multiple times.
However, with each success, Soul Edge always found a way for it to return. In dealing with a weapon as powerful as Soul Edge, the only hope of ever winning is by having Soul Calibur. The very purpose of Soul Calibur’s creation was to stop Soul Edge from doing more damage.
Bonus: Raphael’s Rapier
While there’s nothing too special about Raphael’s rapier, it was, in fact, able to at least damage Soul Edge in Soul Calibur II during Raphael’s fight with Siegfried as Nightmare. Somehow, his rapier was able to pierce the eye of Soul Edge freeing Siegfried from its control.
So far, this is the only instance wherein Soul Edge was damaged by an ordinary weapon. This, however, doesn’t mean that Raphael’s rapier could totally destroy Soul Edge. But to damage Soul Edge was a feat in itself.
How Did Soul Edge Cause the Birth of Soul Calibur?
The birth of Soul Calibur, the sister sword of Soul Edge, the cursed sword’s opposite, the spirit sword, began with Algol. If you fail to remember, Algol was the powerful hero-king from ancient times, who wielded Soul Edge.
While he was loved by all, his son, Arcturus, began to feel jealous of his power, strength, and achievements. It also did not help that Algol was the only being able to wield Soul Edge without turning into its puppet.
Soul Edge sensed Arcturus’ vulnerability and was able to get him to wield the cursed blade. Unlike his father, Arcturus fell victim to Soul Edge’s corruption and began to attack his father. Not having much choice, Algol ended up killing his own son.
Because of this, he decided to find a way to deal with Soul Edge. He purified some of its shards and enlisted the greatest sage to help him create the spirit sword, Soul Calibur. However, all their attempts failed until Algol sacrificed himself for the ritual to become successful.
Thus, Soul Calibur was born. But because it also had some of Algol’s essence, it wasn’t pure because of the hero king’s hunger for power. This was solved with the help of a tribe tasked to safeguard Soul Calibur. In time, they were able to purify the sword until it could be recognized as a holy weapon.
Who Was Able to Wield Soul Edge?
Algol (the Hero King)
By now, you should already know the tale of Algol. He was a hero king, the only wielder immune to the influence of Soul Edge and is also the man responsible for the creation of Soul Calibur.
Cervantes de Leon
Before Cervantes became a pirate, he wasn’t actually an evil man. It was betrayal that made him decide to change his ways. As a pirate, he stole from other ships and took whatever unruly jobs he wanted.
At one point, he was tasked to steal a weapon. Unbeknownst to Cervantes, it was Soul Edge. Soul Edge turned him into a mad man. He not only killed everyone that guarded Soul Edge but he also murdered everyone in his crew. During his time wielding Soul Edge, he killed countless people just to feed the blade souls.
He would kill anyone and everyone, especially those that wanted Soul Edge for themselves. In 1583 AD, he encountered Sophitia and met his first defeat. With the help of some shards of Soul Edge, he was revived some time later.
While he may have been able to make a duplicate of Soul Edge with some shards, he never again gained the possession of the true Soul Edge.
Siegfried
One of the few people that were able to wield both Soul Edge and Soul Calibur was Siegfried. While he may have appeared as a hero during the later parts of the game, the cause for him wielding Soul Edge was actually hunger for power.
Right when Cervantes laid dead after his fight with Sophitia, Siegfried took his chance and clutched Soul Edge’s grip in his hands. Because of this, he got corrupted by the cursed sword and later became Nightmare.
Nightmare
A couple of individuals were at some point the Nightmare. Those that became Nightmare were Siegfried, Inferno himself and Graf Dumas who some presumed to be Raphael.
Pyrrha
Pyrrha is the daughter of Sophitia. Sophitia is the female warrior that was able to destroy one of Cervantes’ Soul Edge swords. During her childhood, she was kidnapped by Tira and was manipulated by her to do wrong.
In the end, this led her to become the wielder of Soul Edge. Eventually, she fought her brother, Patroklos, the wielder of Soul Calibur. Fortunately, with her will and the help of her brother, she was able to set herself free from the influence of Soul Edge.
Interestingly, right after her defeat from her battle with Patroklos, she was able to wield Soul Edge immune to its effect. She used Soul Edge to free her brother from the ice that encased him.
Afterwards, they destroyed both Soul Edge and Soul Calibur together.
Where is Soul Edge Now?
Together with Soul Calibur, the two powerful swords were last seen destroyed by Petroklos and Pyrrha. We can only guess if that is the finality of the two swords until a new installment of the game is released.
Both swords have always been able to come back from the grave but it seemed the way the siblings destroyed them was their end. However, there could be some explanations as to how both swords might actually still come back.
The Fusion of Soul Edge and Soul Calibur
At one point in the game, Siegfried was able to pierce Soul Edge in its eye using Soul Calibur. This resulted into what was called Soul Embrace. Soul Embrace is the fusion of both Soul Edge and Soul Calibur.
After the embrace, both swords combine and become a new and even more powerful weapon. The combined sword then had the name, Broken Destiny. Soul Embrace was broken when Siegfried encountered Nightmare in the Lost Cathedral.
Soul Edge or Soul Calibur?
More than providing you with an in-depth article about Soul Edge, we were also able to write an article about Soul Calibur. Feel free to read our article about the spirit sword.
With this article, we hope you learned a lot about the infamous cursed sword from the world of Soul Calibur. Let us know what you think about Soul Edge and don’t forget to share this article with your friends so they can also learn a lot of new information about the evil ancient weapon, Soul Edge.