Malefor (The Legend of Spyro)

"This is the true nature of our kind. Your destiny is to destroy the world."

- Malefor (to Spyro)

Malefor, the Dark Master is the primary antagonist in the Legend of Spyro trilogy. He is an unfathomably powerful Purple Dragon who turned evil because of his lust for power. Malefor then tried to erase the world, but the Dragon Elders imprisoned him in his own realm. Malefor is set free at the end The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night and he attempts to destroy the world again, but he is defeated by Spyro and Cynder and sealed away once and for all into the world's core. Malefor is presented as an evil counterpart of some sort to Spyro, and he is without a doubt the most evil and the most dangerous villain in the entire Spyro universe. Malefor makes a cameo in the second reboot Skylanders:Spyro Adventure.

About Malefor
Malefor (the Spyro counterpart of Satan himself) was the first of the Purple Dragon kind (though he says that they have been many before him). Seeing his extraordinary potential, the Dragon Elders taught him how to master the elements, but his power was unlimited and he consumed everything. Fearing his malevolence and his ambition, the Dragon Elders banished Malefor, but it was too late, he was already corrupted. Malefor then recruited an army of Apes, with the intent of destroying the world. As he led his army, the evil dragon taught the Apes to harness the power of the Gems, which are the dragon's lifeforce, and used them against the dragons race.

Malefor waged war against the Dragon kind for many years, slaughtering countless people to fulfill his "quest". His evil power tore open his own base of operations, the Mountain of Malefor, turning it into the Well of Souls: a chasm to the Underworld where all the souls of the malevolent dead people were sent, submitted to his influence. Malefor was ultimately defeated by the Dragon Elders, who imprisoned his spirit in the Well of Souls and his essence in Convexity. However, his armies survived and went into hiding, waiting for an opportunity to set the Dark Master free again.

Malefor is now the very embodiment of Evil and Darkness of the Legend of Spyro universe, as every malevolent spirit in the Well of Souls is under his command. He has complete control over Evil, including the smallest bit within someone's soul. His ultimate goal is to destroy the world in a "great cleansing". It can be guessed that he wants to build a new one following his own ideals and rule with an iron fist.

Personality
Malefor is a villain of pure malevolence, without the slightest comedic element or redeeming quality; he is cruel, ruthless, scornful, sadistic, violent, manipulative and ambitious. Like all Dark Lords, he has a calm, courteous and cold demeanor, with an imposing and menacing presence. He is also very self-confident and self-righteous, dismissing other beliefs than his owns as irrelevant. Malefor is willing to use anything he can to fulfill his goal, and remorselessly destroys everything in his way or everyone useless to him, except if he can use them again later. He also enjoys killing other creatures for pleasure and revels in their torment.

Malefor is highly intelligent, cunning and manipulative. He is also a skilled orator, able to instill doubt in the most determined minds and to use it for his own gain, as evidenced with Spyro and Cynder before the final battle. In his dark and twisted point of view, he doesn't consider himself evil but as messiah of some sort, destined to purify the world. He statess that destroying the world is the duty of the every Purple Dragon and he attempts to convince Spyro of this, by telling him that every Purple Dragon before him pursued the same goal (although this might be a lie, as he was stated to be the first Purple Dragon).

Powers and Abilities
As expected of a Dark Lord of his level, Malefor is incredibly powerful. Being a Purple Dragon, he can control virtually any element through his breath. He is seen using Fire, Electricity, Ice, Earth, Wind and even the Convexity Element, (a sort of quintessence element, which manifests as a purple energy and can influence the dimensions to a certain point) including the elemental furies, which he all masters to the point of perfection; (his best elements being apparently Convexity, Fire and Ice). It is hinted that he can also control other elements, most likely Shadow, Fear and Poison, which are evil-based elements that Cynder learnt to master when she was under his control, and perhaps even Time itself. He is unsurprisingly able to fly and has extreme physical strength, being able to fight on air or on the ground, in melee or at any distance.

Malefor also wields extraordinary powers of dark magic, which enables him to create, transform and manipulate things as he pleases. This is demonstrated for example when he makes his fortress levitate, when he turns his Ape monsters into undeads ghouls, and when he creates magic collars that binds Spyro and Cynder together. He has compete control over everything evil, being able to control every malevolent being and to increase the smallest drop of malevolence in someone's soul, to the point of turning them into a dark version of their former self. Using his dark energy, he can corrupt and transform the Monsters under his command, such as Cynder, vastly increasing their power.

A New Beginning
Malefor never appears in person during the first game of the trilogy, being only mentioned several times under his title, the Dark Master. Gaul, Cynder and his other servants are following his orders and he most likely devised Cynder's plan of action himself.

Malefor's army of Apes attacked the Dragon Temple at the beginning of the game, likely following the Dark Master's instructions. They destroyed all the dragon eggs, in order to prevent the birth of the next Purple Dragon, (purple dragon are born only once every twelve years and have the power to defeat Malefor) save from the two who would be the key for his freedom, whom they would raise to be Malefor's servants. The Apes stole Cynder's egg, while Spyro's egg was saved by Ignitus and found by a family of Dragonflies. Gaul the Ape King hatched Cynder and used Malefor's evil energy to transform her into a demonic dragoness, much more powerful than usual, who grew into an adult at a very fast rate.

In the game, Cynder leads the Ape Army in a war against the Dragon Guardians, sending her minions to distract the Guardians, while she captures them and absorbs their power into magic crystals. After completing her goal, she goes to the Convexity Dimension and uses the Guardians' powers to open the Portal that served as the prison to Malefor. Spyro manages to defeat Cynder and to revert her back to normal, but Malefor's spirit is set free.

The Eternal Night
Once again, Malefor never appears in person, being only seen during flashbacks. However, he devised the plan enacted by Gaul the Ape King during the course of the game.

Gaul and Malefor are waiting for the Night of Eternal Darkness: a lunar eclipse which plunges the entire world in darkness, during which all the malevolent souls imprisoned in the Well of Souls are free to roam the world. Gaul lures Spyro to the Mountain of Malefor by holding Cynder hostage, planning to fight him to the death during the eclipse.

During the battle against Gaul, Spyro is trapped in the beam of demonic energy caused by the eclipse, which corrupts him and turns him into a powerful dark dragon called Dark Spyro. Spyro then kills Gaul with his dark powers and returns into the beam of demonic energy that served as the key to opening the Well of Souls and to set Malefor free from his prison. It is now revealed why Malefor wanted Spyro to be at the Well of Souls during the Night of Eternal Darkness; because a Purple Dragon was needed to free the Dark Master, and because the eclipse would corrupt him. By having Spyro and Cynder by his side, Malefor would remove them as a threat and would gain two powerful servants.

Fortunately, Cynder has resisted Malefor's corruption all throughout the game. She manages to turn Spyro back to normal, and Spyro uses his power over Time to encase himself, Cynder and Sparx in a magic crystal, protecting them all from the mountain's destruction as a result of the esclipse. Unfortunately, Malefor was resurrected and began plaguing the world in darkness.

Dawn of the Dragon
Malefor did not lose time after being freed. He turned all his Ape servants (who were too greedy and weren't loyal to Malefor) into living-deads and created another army of monsters, known as the Grublins. He then attacked the Dragon Temple, which he turned into a flying fortress where he based himself, forcing the Dragon Guardians to flee to the Dragon City of Warfang. Malefor then covered the entire world in darkness, spreading plague and misery everywhere, and causing the world's denizens to fear the dragon kind.

Three years had passed since the end of the previous game. Spyro, Cynder and Sparx awaken from their slumber in the crystal by a horde of Grublins, who place magical, snake-shaped collars on Spyro and Cynder to bind them together; before taking them away to sacrifice them to a huge and powerful Golem of the Deep by Malefor's orders. They are unable to defeat the ancient creature but they are rescued by Sparx and the Hunter of Avalar. They later go to Warfang, which was under attack by Malefor's armies and manage to defend the city, as well as destroy the Golem (who tracked them down) for good.

Malefor later released the legendary monster known as the Destroyer, who began to travel around the world, leaving behind a fiery trail called the Belt of Fire, or the Ring of Anihilation. Once the creature completes its circle, the apocalypse will begin and a new world will raise from the ashes of the old one. After that, they attempt to slow down the Destroyer by causing a flood, then stop it by destroying its heart, but not to avail as Malefor reactivates it. Spyro and Cynder had no other choice but to go to Malefor's Lair and confront the demonic dragon himself. There, the Dark Master manages to break their confidence in a few sentences, using Cynder's doubts to turn her evil again and make her attack Spyro. However, by refusing to fight back, Spyro manages to turn Cynder back to normal. The two engage in a tremendous battle against Malefor, but they are too late as the Destroyer has just completed his journey and the world began to break apart. Nevertheless, they continued to fight with Malefor, which leads them to the center of the world. There, the evil dragon engages in a duel of Convexity Breath against both Spyro and Cynder, but they managed to knock him down.

As Malefor is eternal and couldn't be destroyed, the Spirits of the Dragon Elders sealed him away into the core of the world. Spyro then used his power to stop the destruction of the world and reconstructed it, ending the Dark Master's malice once and for all.

Boss Battle against Malefor
"Graah! So be it. You have made your choice, so you shall suffer the same fate. PREPARE TO DIE!"

- Malefor (to Cynder and Spyro)

First Stage
The first part of the battle takes place in a dark sky filled with stormy red clouds. Malefor is a formidable enemy, who uses highly powerful attacks, but he is slow and you must take advantage of it. Try to stay behind him, watch his movements and keep attacking him at close range, mostly with magic-infused Melee attacks, which deals heavy damage and creates gems that replenish your magic and life-points. Malefor attacks by firing one or many Fire Bombs, (huge fireballs) by firing many Convexity Bombs, (huge balls of purple fire, which tracks you down and that you must dodge several times) by breathing a continuous stream of purple Convexity Fire, by perfoming a Convexity Comet Dash (he surrounds himself with purple electricity and charges at high speed) and by delivering vicious claw swipes and bites, which he can infuse with magic. Dodge as much as you can and use Spyro's power of Earth as a protection. You can switch characters whenever your life runs low.

When Malefor's life is depleted he plunges into a cloud and reappears to deliver a tremendous bite attack. Quickly press the button that appears on screen to finish him off. If you fail, his attack will harm you a lot and you will have to wait until his next bite attack.

Second Stage
At this point of the battle, the Destroyer will reach its destination and the apocalypse will begin. The battle will continue in the ruins of the temple, which is a much shorter arena where flying is way harder. This can be a severe hindrance, as you need to fly continuously.

The battle is very similar to the first stage, but Malefor now regularly moves from one place to another. The Dark Master uses the same attacks, but in a different way: he now breathes short streams of Convexity fire, his Convexity Bombs are harder to dodge, and he strikes with a double claw swipe that stomps the ground. He also uses the dangerous Ice Shard Bomb: He breathes a huge stream of Ice, which divides itself into a flurry of homing ice balls. If you are hit by the stream of Ice, it is an instant Game Over and the ice balls are hard to dodge. Near the end of the fight, Malefor will surround himself with a spherical Convexity Shield which deals huge damage, so stay away from him and wait for the Shield to vanish before attacking him again. Don't hesitate to unleash your Fury attacks whenever you can.

Once again, when Malefor's life is depleted you'll have to finish him off when he charges at you and strikes you with his claws, by pressing the button that appears on screen. This time, you must do it twice.

Third Stage
A meteor falls into the volcano and the world starts breaking apart, separating the arena into many platforms.

Malefor surrounds himself with a huge spherical Convexity Shield, which protects him from your attacks. Only your Fury Attacks can harm him, so unleash it and keep attacking Malefor's shield to replenish your fury bar, while dodging his attacks. (He use the same attacks as in the previous stage) This time striking Malefor does'nt release gems to recover life and magic, so be very careful. Striking him with a Fury Attack will raise your life points.

When Malefor's life is depleted, he will breath a huge, continuous stream of Convexity Fire on Cynder. Push quickly and repeatedly the button that appears on screen, until the control switches to Spyro. Then, pushes the button that appears to strike Malefor. You will then dive into the center of the planet and Malefor will crush both dragons against the cliffwall. Once again, push repeatedly on the button that appears and land the coup de grace.

thumb|450px|left|boss battle against Malefor

First Stage
The first stage is a 2D fight which takes place on a bridge. Malefor mostly uses melee attacks with his fangs, his claws and his tail. Avoid it by jumping and use your own your own Melee attacks and your elemental breaths until he starts using his wing as a shield. Wait a little while until he starts attacking again. After some time, Malefor will start flying behind a huge purple crystal that you must attack as much as you can, while dodging the streams of Fire or Ice that Malefor breathes at you from above. When a part of the crystal breaks, run back to avoid Malefor when he lands and repeats the operation until the crystal is broken.

Second Stage
The second stage is an aerial 3D battle. The world is breaking apart and Malefor has become a bigger and darker version of his normal self, with red eyes and a blackish body colour. Malefor is surrounded with purple, floating Convexity Shards which he hurls at you and which you must destroy before striking his weak point, the big purple gem on his chest. Cynder is the best character choice here, as she can take down more shards with her Wind breath.

The elemental breaths are the best weapon in this stage of the fight. As the battle progresses, Malefor will starts breathing a huge fireball that you must dodge, then huge fireballs and iceballs in rapid succession.

thumb|350px|left|Battle against Malefor and ending

Also, when all the Convexity Shards start flying towards you, you must destroy those right before you and rush into the gap created. Continue to destroy the shards and to attack Malefor's gem until you defeat him.

Trivia

 * Malefor may be a variation of the name "Valefar", a Christian demon and Duke of Hell.
 * His name might be composed from the Latin noun malum (-i,neutrum) - evil; and Greek foreo - i carry; meaning ˝The carrier of evil˝, or maybe ˝The source of evil˝.
 * It is worth noting to note that Spyro and Cynder did not actually defeat Malefor themselves, since he recovered from their combined Convexity attack unscathed. It was only the intervention of the ancestors that allowed Malefor to be beaten.
 * Malefor's plan might be more complicated than it appears, as most of it turned out to be a ruse to trick Spyro in releasing him. Since the young purple dragon would be the key to free him, sending the Apes to destroy the dragon eggs was probably a ruse to scare his enemies. He might have wanted to steal Spyro's egg so he could be corrupted like Cynder and used to free Malefor after Cynder completed her stage. Despite Ignitus saving Spyro, the young dragon was lured to the Mountain of Malefor, and unwittingly got corrupted and freed the Dark Master in The Eternal Night. Judging from Gaul's reaction, it can be guessed that a corrupted Spyro was meant to replace him as Malefor's right-hand.
 * Malefor appears as an unseen villain in the second reboot series Skylanders: Spyro Adventure, in which he is portrayed as the Undead Dragon King, ruler of the Underworld. He was defeated long ago by the female Dark Elf Necromancer Hex, and corrupted Cynder's counterpart.