This article contains spoilers for the HxH manga and anime.
Summary
Chrollo Lucilfer is the leader of the Phantom Troupe and head of the Spider, where he represents the #0. Little is known about Chrollo’s background, but what is known is that he originated from Meteor Island and that he founded the Phantom Troupe alongside 6 other citizens of the city, where only outcasts live. He was first introduced during the York Shin Arc, during chapter 71 of the manga. Chrollo acts as the main villain in the York Shin Arc in Yoshihiro Togashi’sHunter X Hunter. He is mentioned prior to this, ashe is the reason for Kurapika’s misery.He and his Phantom Troupe murder the entirety of the Kurta Clan in cold blood for their scarlet eyes.
Chrollo is not only a good leader, but an extremely charming and charismatic figure. His intelligence is a huge asset when it comes to leading and ensuring success for the Troupe, especially in fights where his skills are at play. One interesting aspect of Chrollo’s character is his abilities and skills. He is part of the rarest category of Nen users, Specialists – meaning his Nen does not follow any specific rule and makes his second easiest Nen type to learn Manipulation and Conjugation. With this, he has gained one of the most terrifying abilities inHunter x Hunter, Skill Hunter.
What is ‘Skill Hunter’?
A Nen Ability That Can Steal Other Nen Abilities
Skill Hunter is Chrollo Lucilfer’s main ability. It is a Nen specialist skill that comes in the form of a book with a handprint on it. Its main purpose is to steal other Nen users' abilities. In theHxHuniverse, to make an ability more powerful, the user must set themselves rules to follow. The stricter the rules, the more powerful the ability. With it being so overpowered, it needs to follow a set of certain rules to work, notably:
- Witness the Nen user’s ability
Ask the Nen user about their ability and be answered
The palm of the Nen user must touch the palm print on Chrollo’s book
4. All this must be completed within one hour.
If all these rules are respected,then Chrollo can steal the Nen ability, which he will then store on one page of his book, which he’d have to keep open on that page to use later on. When Chrollo steals an ability, the Nen user finds themselves unable to use such ability, and one example is Neon Nostrand, the spoiled daughter in the mafia family that liked to collect organs and body parts. He stole her future prediction ability and the watcher witnessed the entire process.
I’m Only A Part of The Spider. What’s Important Is The Survival Of The Whole, Not The Invidual. - Chrollo
During his fight with Hisoka, it’s revealed he has developed a new ability that compliments Skill Hunter: Bookmark. This allows him to use not only one, but two abilities at the same time by placing a bookmark in his book.
How powerful is Chrollo Lucifer’s ‘Skill Hunter’?
One of the Best Abilities in Hunter x Hunter
Chrollo Lucilfer’s ‘Skill Hunter’ is undeniably one of the most overpowered abilities the show has ever seen so far. As mentioned before, it allows Chrollo to steal any ability if all his conditions have been accomplished. This does, however, require a level of secrecy, that is, this process and his identity, as most individuals would most likely refuse to talk or place their hand over his book if they knew who he was and what his purpose is.
When Chrollo steals another Nen user’s ability, it makes that individual powerless. This can be good or bad. It is bad if he borrows an ability from his Troupe members and leaves the person defenseless. It is unclear if ‘Skill Hunter’ strips the user of their Nen entirely or if it just steals the ability and those Nen users, and they can just develop new Nen skills. If it does strip it entirely, it would add a new layer to just how powerful of a skill this is. It is also unclear if Chrollo can return stolen Nen abilities or not, as he was never seen doing it. However, it is fair to assume that he can.
He has borrowed two abilities in the manga oftwo very important members of the Phantom Troupefor his fight with Hisoka, and it would not make sense if he was planning to keep them and leave his Phantom Troupe with no Nen. So, it’s fair to assume he can give abilities back, if so he wishes.
Another interesting aspect of this Nen power is if Chrollo steals the ability of someone who dies with strong emotions, it enhances the stolen ability just like it would if it wasn’t stolen. This was seen happening with the Elder of Meteor village, whom he stole an ability he went on to use in his fight against Hisoka, called Sun and Moon.
One final thing to keep in mind about Chrollo is that he is a Specialist, so stealing Nen abilities farther away from Specialization will not be easy for him to use, such as enhancement. The stolen abilities don’t depend on the original user’s aura, but Chrollo’s own, which is why he is better at using Specialist, Conjugation, and Manipulation Nen skills.
Fights That Have Seen ‘Skill Hunter’ Be Used In
Chrollo has Heavily Used this in his Fight Against Hisoka
When it comes to major fights so far where fans have gotten to see Chrollo’s abilities, two come to mind. The first ishis fight against two members of the Zoldyck family, Zeno Zoldyck and Silva Zoldyck, two extremely powerful individuals. This fight occurred during the events of the York New City arc. During this fight, Chrollo made use of a stolen Nen ability that he took earlier from a member of the Shadow Beasts. This ability was Fun Fun Cloth. However, this is the only stolen ability seen in this fight.
Even more interestingly, when Chrollo finally takes on Hisoka, a long-awaited fight for fans that definitely did not disappoint, fans get to see more of his stolen powers. Chrollo had been very well prepared for this fight, and used a multitude of abilities, notably, the Sun and Moon, Order Stamp, Convert Hands, Gallery Fake, as well as Black Voice. The last two abilities were borrowed by him from his Spider members, Kortopi and Shalnark. With that, the true extent of Chrollo’s power was seen.
Let’s take this to the death. - Chrollo
Fans could see how amazing his Skill Hunter ability is. Consequently, he managed to take down and kill Hisoka, a powerful foe, even though he went on to be revived andleft on a hunt for the Phantom Troupefor his defeat. Hisoka even resorted to killing Kurtopi and Shalnark almost immediately so they would not be able to lend their abilities to Chrollo anymore.
Hunter x Hunter is available to read via Viz Media. The series can be read by the fans officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and theManga Plusapp. The HxH manga is set to finally return on October 7th, 2024.
