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The Black Dog Knights are a band of criminals and rapists enlisted five years prior to Griffith's rescue mission by the King of Midland to fight in the Hundred-Year War. Led by Wyald, their ruthless behavior against civilians resulted in them being banished to a remote region of Midland.[1] Their motto is "Enjoyment and Excitement".[2]

Appearance[]

Most of the members are ugly and fierce looking thugs. They dress in armor much like Wyald's, with fur and skins interspersed with metal plates. None are very notable except Wyald himself.[3]

Abilities[]

Despite being considered on equal footing compared to the Band of the Falcon in terms of valor[1] and nigh-equal in their wartime accomplishments,[4] the Black Dog Knights lack military competence or strategy, having only their sheer strength, cruelty, barbarism, and fear of Wyald to push them in battle. They are easily destroyed by the Band of the Falcon with what little they have, but not before burning and pillaging a cottage, raping its women and staking the inhabitants.[3]

Story[]

During Midland's Hundred-Year War with Tudor, the King enlisted able-bodied prisoners to be drafted so as to compensate for the shortage of soldiers. A monstrous man named Wyald, later revealed to be an apostle, volunteered for service and won the right to lead the army of criminals after killing his only competition, Barbo. The newly formed Black Dog Knights soon gained an infamous reputation for being the most cruel and barbarous army in all of Midland, committing numerous atrocities under Wyald's command before the King sent them to remote battlefields.[1]

Golden Age Arc[]

When the Band of the Falcon rescue Griffith and defeat the Bakiraka, the King sends a messenger to the Black Dog Knights to pursue and kill the Band.[4] In pursuit of the Band of the Falcon, they come across a farm just outside Wyndham that housed people who aided them. Wyald asks if they have seen a group with a wounded man. To amuse themselves before beginning to hunt after the Band of the Falcon, the Black Dog Knights destroy the farm, having all the residents slaughtered and the women raped.[1]

Manga E62 Black Dog Vs

The Knights face the Band of the Falcon.

As the Band of the Falcon comes to the top of a hill, Casca notices that they are being pursued by the Knights, who have impaled the farmers' maimed bodies with their weapons. In order to buy the band time to escape, Pippin and Guts kill many Black Dogs, but no matter how many are cut down, they still charge full force. Guts realizes that the Black Dog Knights are driven by fear of Wyald, who steps in and faces the duo. When they retreat, the Black Dogs follow, knowing full well a trap has been set; and after the Band of the Falcon members have crossed, the bridge explodes while the Black Dog Knights are in the middle of it.[3] Wyald and several other Knights safely made it across the bridge before the explosion, but the loss of a considerable amount of men forces them to stop, to Wyald's disappointment. When a soldier points out that the bridge likely is not the only trap the Band of the Falcon has set, Wyald crushes his bead. Indeed, as the Knights resume the chase into the woods, giant boulders are pushed onto them from the cliffs above, they run into an explosion and are pelted by a hail of arrows.

Despite many of its members being killed by these traps set by the Band of the Falcon, they continue to pursue the rescue team until another Band of the Falcon unit rejoins and combats the pursuers. Then, Guts clashes with the Black Dogs' leader.[2] Guts' sword and Wyald's club clash as the Band of the Falcon and the Black Dog Knights collide.[5] Eventually, the Band of the Falcon gains the advantage over the Black Dog Knights. One of the latter calls out to Wyald, informing him that the Knights intend to retreat. In response, Wyald damages a tree's trunk, which collapses on the retreating Black Dog Knights. Afterwards, he casts his club away into the face of a stuttering Knight and begins transforming into an apostle.[6] Wyald is later mortally wounded by Guts[7] and then finally killed by Zodd.[8]

Members[]

  • Wyald (leader)[1]
  • Ex-condemned criminals from Midland[1]

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Berserk :: Volume 11, "Demon Dog (1)"
  2. ^ a b Berserk :: Volume 11, "Demon Dog (3)"
  3. ^ a b c Berserk :: Volume 11, "Demon Dog (2)"
  4. ^ a b Berserk :: Volume 10, "Flower of the Royal Palace of Stone"
  5. ^ Berserk :: Volume 11, "Demon Dog (4)"
  6. ^ Berserk :: Volume 11, "Roar of the Mad Beast"
  7. ^ Berserk :: Volume 11, "Mortal Combat (2)"
  8. ^ Berserk :: Volume 11, "The Immortal, Again"
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