Malefor

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This article is about the character from The Legend of Spyro reboot. For the Undead Dragon King, see Malefor (Skylanders). For his Skylanders Academy counterpart, see Malefor (Skylanders Academy).

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Malefor
Malefor as depicted in The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon
Full name:	Malefor The Dark Master
Species:	Purple Dragon
Gender:	Male
First appearance:	The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night (2007)
Latest appearance:	The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon (2008)
Portrayed by:	Kevin Michael Richardson (2007) Mark Hamill (2008)

“It seems we share other qualities besides that of our color.”

– Malefor, The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon

Malefor, also known as the Dark Master, is the overarching antagonist of The Legend of Spyro series. He was introduced as an unseen background character who was leading his armies in the war against the dragon race that raged on for many years. While commanding his followers, he was imprisoned in the realm of Convexity as a bodiless spirit., where he remained until the climax of The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning. It wasn't until the followup sequel where we learn about the Dark Master's true identity, as well his name.

After being released from his imprisonment by Cynder, and brought back to life through the Night of Eternal Darkness by Gaul, Malefor becomes the main antagonist of The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon and served as Spyro's final obstacle for the fate of the world.

Character Development

Creation

Malefor's backstory and history were left purposely vague so that Vivendi Games could use him in whatever capacity future games might need him. His core character was set as a malevolent force, using tools and characters at his disposal for his nefarious ends. Malefor's original character design was envisioned by Krome Studios' Jared Pullen via the Dragon Temple statue. He pitched the idea that the statue itself was actually a representation of the Dark Master before he abandoned the path of good. As a result, fans were given an early glimpse of Malefor in The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning.

Jared stated he never got the opportunity to get into the design particulars for Malefor, but rather had the opportunity to block him out as a whole. He liked the idea of Malefor having an impressive crownlike array of horns that radiated from the center-most point of his face, so as to make one mean and somewhat regal silhouette. When he spoke to the Sierra Entertainment producers for how the villain might later be portrayed, Jared was keen to see Malefor's wings act as an all encompassing mantle; much like a leathery cloak emitting tendrillous motes of seething darkness.

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  Malefor's Dragon Temple statue designed by Jared Pullen

Character

According to Jared Pullen, Spyro's parentage was originally going to be revealed in stages and throw up the notion that his father was possibly either Ignitus or Malefor. The concept was to re-occur across the trilogy like a strong theme, but it was never panned out. Malefor was intended to taunt Spyro and cloud his mind with the lie that he was his father. Originally, Malefor's corruption would have been caused by something much more powerful.

Physical Appearance

Original Design (2006-2007)

Malefor is a purple-scaled dragon with the horns on his head resembling a crown and his two main horns growing from behind them. In his original Krome Studios design depicted in Dragon Temple statues and story flashbacks, his eyes were constantly glowing, and his tail ended with a triangular spade. A single of ridge of horns ran down his back to the tip of his tail, similar to Spyro's.

Sometime after his exile, Malefor gained a scar on his right eye and his two main horns are marked with indents (presumably during his time fighting the war). More horns had grown along his back, his wings had protruded two spurs with the wing fingers becoming slightly more lengthy, and his once triangular tail spade had splitted into two ends. It is said that this change in appearance is Malefor's Dark form after embracing the dark nature of the Aether element. This form is notably featured on the Malefor statues found within the Well of Souls.

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  The statues of Malefor at the Dragon Temple (left) and the Well of Souls (right). Malefor's Well of Souls statue has a different appearance compared to his statue at the Dragon Temple before his fall to darkness.
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  Malefor as depicted in the storybook flashback

Dawn of the Dragon Design (2008)

In his redesign for Dawn of the Dragon by Étranges Libellules, Malefor resembles his previous character designs by Krome Studios, but gained a few changes. Unlike his Krome Studios character models, the center horn on Malefor's head was made longer and he now lacks the scar on his left eye. The crown-shaped horn formation on his head is replaced with horns growing on each of his cheeks with two pairs protruding around his center horn. Sickled spikes grow from around the top of his shoulders, one growing on the back of each of his legs. Two row of spikes even protrude from the back of his head to the center of his tail. Three spikes extends down from his chin resembling a goatee, and like his previous incarnation, his tail ends with a double-ended spade.

While his colors (aside from being purple) were shrouded in mystery in the previous titles, Malefor is depicted in Dawn of the Dragon having dark violet scales with red-colored gradients on his snout, legs, and horns. A darker shade of purple scales runs from the back of his head to his tail tip and his scaley underbelly is light brown. A fleshy white line is prominent from the center of his red-tipped snout to the crest of his central horn. His wings are in a dark coloration of red with lighter color membranes, and the spurs on his wings are light yellow. Unlike the other dragons featured in the trilogy, in Dawn of the Dragon, Malefor is portrayed having yellow eyes with black reptilian pupils.

In the Nintendo DS version of Dawn of the Dragon, Malefor's design is heavily based on his console version's character artwork. Instead of being dark violet, in the Nintendo DS adaption, he is portrayed having light purple scales with gray-colored horns, wing spikes, claws and underbelly. His eyes are also completely yellow.

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  The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon console concept art

Personality

It was said he was the first purple dragon ever born. Malefor is, in many ways, the exact opposite of Spyro. As his name dictates and represents, he is completely malevolent; the unbalanced embodiment of evil after having gained full command over the dark side of Aether, a powerful element of the Purple Dragon that draws in the essence of the very universe itself. Despite being calm and courteous, Malefor is also cunning, highly intelligent and manipulative, being able to devise twisted plans. While Spyro does good and wishes to protect the world he lives in, Malefor seeks its destruction and will use all he can to finish what he started.

Even after his corruption, Malefor retains his arrogance that contributed to his fall to darkness, mocking others in their attempts to stop him. Scrapped voice dialogue during his final battle with Spyro and Cynder shows Malefor's bloodthirtsty nature as he threatens to give the two dragons quick deaths while mentioning their friends won't be given the luxury. Judging from his pure ruthless sadism, he is, no doubt, a murderer as he killed millions of creatures in his "quest to fulfill the destiny of the purple dragon." Malefor is willing to exploit anything for the sake of his goals and destroy everything that stands in his way. He is also a skilled orator, able to strike doubt in the resolute and courageous minds and use it to his advantage. With this skill, he is very experienced at using his enemy's faults against them; an example being his use of Cynder's past deeds make her doubt herself long enough for him to take control of her.

Malefor seems to personify Lust, one of the Seven Deadly Sins, as his intense desire for power is what lead him to his corruption. Because of his deeply tainted state, he possesses a fatalistic philosophy that it is his fate and destiny as a destroyer; a Purple Dragon fated to purify the world by destroying it so a new world would be created for him to rule. Therefore he most likely does not perceive himself as evil, more so as an anti-hero; using questionable and lethally draconic means to accomplish a "noble" goal. But like many villains, Malefor undervalues the power of friendship, and ultimately love, when he tries to use Cynder to kill Spyro for his nonacceptance of the alleged truth and nature of the purple dragon breed, only for her to break his bind over her when Spyro tells her that she has left him with nothing left to fight for, somewhat revealing a trace of his love for her.

Despite his current malevolent nature, it was implied that during his youth Malefor was somewhat like Spyro, caring and courageous. Chief Prowlus mentioned hearing about what people said about Malefor when he was young; as we learn later, he was viewed by the ancestors as the shining hope for Dragonkind, a benevolent and heroic figure beloved by all, 'the great protector' of an age that fell to tragedy. Based on the ruins below Warfang, the ancestors had built the whole area as a training ground for Malefor, as well as a golden stone statue of him that was placed at the Dragon Temple.

Abilities

Malefor is unfathomably powerful, possessing extreme physical strength and is able to take multiple punishments, including the full brunt of Spyro and Cynder's combined Aether attacks. He claims that he is eternal, thus he is undefeatable and immortal. Like all dragons, Malefor possesses the ability to fly.

Elemental Abilities

Being a rare purple dragon like Spyro, Malefor can control many abilities others cannot, such as the elements of Fire, Ice, Wind, Electricity (shown in story flashback), Aether, and perhaps even Time itself. It is hinted and displayed that he can also control dark elements, as he was shown using the Fear element during the final stage of his battle with Spyro and Cynder. Since he is over a thousand years old, Malefor's elemental abilities are far more developed than Spyro's, as displayed by his use of Fire and Ice abilities, his Aether abilities in place of Spyro's fire attacks, and on a much larger and more powerful scale that Spyro has displayed thus far. He has also demonstrated the ability to project forcefields made of Dark Aether that protects him from all attacks except the Aether Breath.

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  Malefor harnessing the elements of Fire, Ice, and Electricity

Immense Malice

Malefor's evil was so great that it split the foundation of his mountain fortress and created a pit that reaches down into the boundaries of the underworld, where the lost souls and phantoms who turned to darkness could reside. The lingering remains of Malefor's evil still fills the Well of Souls.

Powerful Dark Magic

Living up to his title as the "Dark Master," Malefor has full command over the darkness that corrupted him. Embracing the sinister influence of Dark Aether, he possessed enough willpower to not let the aethereal darkness consume his mind. With Dark Aether at his disposal, Malefor wields powerful dark magic that enables him to corrupt anything or anyone to his will, demonstrated when he transformed Cynder into a monstrous version of herself, giving her increased strength and abilities and compels her complete servitude to Malefor. Aside from wielding Dark Aether, his powers let him create armies of Grublin minions, craft the magical chains his minions used to shackle Spyro and Cynder, turned the Apes into undead ghouls, summon great monsters like the Golem or the Destroyer, use dark crystals to power said monsters and communicate with others from afar, and uproot and suspend a portion of Warfang above the land. His notable power is absolute mastery over malevolence, reawakening any bit of his darkness left in those he previously corrupted and putting them back under his control. An example of this is when he corrupted Cynder again during his final confrontation with her and Spyro.

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  Malefor using his dark magic to reawaken Cynder's darkness

Story

Early Life

The Elders teaching Malefor how to master the elements.

Born in ancient times, Malefor was the first purple dragon, and a talented one at that. He first mastered the element of Fire, despite not being born a fire dragon. He then harnessed the elements of Ice, Wind, as well as other abilities that none thought existed. Thus, Malefor was the first dragon to be able to use more than one element, which other Dragons were restricted to only one. Believing Malefor to be the shining hope of Dragonkind and the one to usher them into a new age, the Dragon race, the Moles and Cheetahs, worshipped Malefor as a beloved hero; a golden statue was erected at the Dragon Temple in his honor and a stone mural was constructed on the walls of the area where Malefor trained. He was encouraged by the Dragon Elders, who willingly passed down their secrets of elemental mastery to Malefor. However, his power was limitless, holding no boundary. This allowed Malefor to gain a lust for power and he consumed everything. Fearing his lack of restraint, Malefor was banished from dragon society when he wouldn't stop.

Filled with hatred for his own kind, Malefor abandoned his true calling and embraced the darkness of the Aether element, the signature raw ability of the Purple Dragon. The dark power corrupted his physical appearance and altered his voice, but Malefor was able to gain full command over Dark Aether and avoid losing himself to its influence. As a result, Malefor would take on the title as "The Dark Master" for his full mastery over the dark power he possessed. He built himself a great fortress within a mountain and afterwards recruited an army of Apes, teaching them how to artificially harness the power of the gems, which are the Dragons' lifeforce. It wasn't long before he sought more and greater power, waging a war against the Dragon race. His actions sent the world spiraling into chaos, ruining the peaceful reputation of the Dragons in the process. With his army established and growing by the day, Malefor lived in dark seclusion, staring out upon the lands. His sheer malice was so great, that it split the earth surrounding his mountain fortress and created a pit of despair called the Mountain of Malefor, also known as the Well of Souls by the evil-hearted. Eventually, Malefor was defeated, and his spirit was imprisoned within a portal in a realm between worlds called Convexity. Despite this setback, he was still able to command his army from the depths of his prison, extending the war. His existence as a purple dragon became lost in time as the years went by; descendants would only come know about Malefor through his alias, the Dark Master.

The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning

Many years later, Malefor was able to catch wind of the promised prophecies connected to the birth of the next Purple Dragon. This caused him to feel threatened of another dragon with powers equal to his own that was capable of stopping him. During the Year of the Dragon, he sent the Dark Armies to the Dragon Temple under the command of his servant, Gaul the Ape King, to destroy all of the dragon eggs to prevent the next Purple Dragon from being born.

Gaul finishes corrupting Cynder using Malefor's poisonous powers so she can serve the Dark Master.

Under another order however, Gaul captured a dragon egg, as Malefor needed a dragon born on the Year of the Dragon to open the portal in Convexity that served as his prison. Gaul stole Cynder's egg so she would serve Malefor and bring him back, while the Apes smashed all the other dragon eggs, unaware that the Fire Guardian Ignitus had already rescued the purple dragon's egg. Gaul used Malefor's dark powers to corrupt and influence Cynder, transforming her into a large, evil dragon with greater strength and agility at an unnaturally fast rate. Cynder and Gaul then set out to bring Malefor back. Cynder embarked on a mission to open the Convexity portal which imprisoned her master's spirit, while her Ape army scattered and left the land in ruins. Her ultimate plan was to capture each of the four Dragon Guardians and drain their energies into crystals which she would use to release Malefor from his prison.

Spyro, the newly born Purple Dragon, and his adoptive brother, Sparx the Dragonfly, traveled across the land and rescued each of the four remaining Dragon Guardians after Cynder drained their energies into crystals. She then journeyed to Convexity and placed the last one into the portal containing her master, providing Malefor with a means of escape. After engaging in a final battle, Spyro used his full power and defeated Cynder, freeing her from Malefor's thrall and returning her to her true form; a dragon the same age and size as Spyro. Suddenly, Convexity begins to implode, drawing everything into the portal. Spyro saved Cynder, and he and Sparx escaped the collapsing Convexity dimension as the spirit of Malefor emerged.

After they safely returned to the Dragon Temple, Spyro and Cynder both gazed up at the sky, having sensed that the fight with the Dark Master wasn't over. While resting off the weakness from the battle, Spyro dreamed of the battle between him and Cynder and how he saved her, hearing Malefor's voice in his head, calling his name.

The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night

Freed from Convexity, Malefor's spirit made his way to the Mountain of Malefor; an omnious pillar of light appeared at the peak of the mountain, a symbol of his presence. As the Night of Eternal Darkness drew close, Gaul and his Ape army traveled to the Well of Souls after being called to it. They established their base at the mountain fortress, awaiting the return of the Dark Master, who Gaul planned on resurrecting and releasing from the Well of Souls to satisfy the Apes' lust for power and exact their revenge on the Dragon race. To lure Spyro into his unaware stage, Gaul captured Cynder, who left the Dragon Temple when she still blamed herself for what happened when she was under Malefor's control.

As Gaul held Cynder captive, he informed her that Malefor would either take her back for her "loyalty" as his servant or kill her. Though, she refused any notion of becoming the Dark Master's slave again and remained imprisoned by Gaul in the Mountain. Spyro, who grew to care for Cynder, and Sparx set out to rescue her and eventually made it to the Well of Souls, where Spyro confronted and fought against Gaul. During the Celestial Moons' eclipse, Spyro fell into the Well of Soul's beam of energy; its dark power allowed the influence of Dark Aether to take control of Spyro's mind. Having lost control over this sinister power, Spyro killed Gaul in his fury and was about to turn on Sparx and Cynder. Fortunately, Cynder saved Spyro by knocking him out of the beam generated by the Lunar Alignment, freeing him from the effects of Dark Aether.

However the battle caused the Mountain to collapse all around them, trapping the three. To save them, Spyro used his Dragon Time ability to encase him, Sparx and Cynder in crystal, frozen in time.

Between The Eternal Night and Dawn of the Dragon

After the eclipse, Malefor was resurrected and escaped from the Well of Souls. He then proceeded to wreck havoc on the world, with the only other purple dragon trapped in suspended animation. Filled with evil and hatred, he attacked the Dragon City of Warfang and reclaimed its temple throne, suspending the temple itself and parts of the city above the land as a symbol of his power. It was also said that Malefor cursed the Apes sometime during his return, turning them into shadows. Since the Apes only served the Dark Master to seek his power for their own power-hungry goals, they have ceased to be useful to Malefor and paid the price for their disloyalty. Presumably afterwards, Malefor created a new army consisting of artificial, earthy creatures called Grublins as replacements for the Apes, and summoned an earth golem from the deep to lay waste to the world.

The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon

A glimpse of Malefor speaking to the residents of Warfang through a crystal.

Three years after The Eternal Night, Malefor ordered a troop of Grublins to release Spyro and Cynder from their three-year slumber inside the time crystal and chain them together with a pair of green snake chains he created for them to be sacrificed to the Golem. They managed to escape however, and reached Warfang when it was under siege by Malefor's army. During the struggle, Spyro and Cynder defeated the Golem, earning the city inhabitants a victory. However later that night, Malefor made an ominous announcement to the Warfang citizens that since they survived the siege, they would be the first to witness the resurrection of the Destroyer, a mountain-sized golem said to destroy the world to usher in a new one.

Spyro and Cynder attempted to stop the Destroyer, but when they destroyed its crystal core to defeat it, Malefor restored the Destroyer through his dark powers, continuing its mission. Realizing that the only way to stop the Destroyer was to defeat Malefor, Spyro and Cynder set off to confront the Dark Master. After going on a long journey, Spyro and Cynder both made it to Malefor's Lair where they confronted the villainous dragon and found him waiting for them. He taunted Spyro by saying that they have more in common than just their color. Spyro denied this, saying that he is nothing like Malefor, who then proceeded to free the young dragons of the snake chains that chained them together as his way of "thanking" Cynder for her services and make them feel more comfortable.

Malefor then claimed that his influence over Cynder had not been completely diminished and that she had led Spyro to the Well of Souls to trick him into freeing the evil dragon. Cynder both denied Malefor's words, but grew unsure and said that she doesn't know anymore, to which Malefor replied by taking control over her again and renewing her dark side. While Malefor attacked Spyro through Cynder repeatedly, he assured Spyro that there have been many Purple Dragons before him and that the true nature of their kind has been to resurrect the Destroyer and the Golems of the Deep during that age in order to bring about the "Great Cleansing", destroying the world. Despite having been stopped from completing his goal back in his time, Malefor revealed that Spyro had nonetheless fulfilled his 'destiny', and that the world would be destroyed along with Spyro.

Malefor personally speaking to Spyro and Cynder

Spyro denied Malefor's statements and continued to be struck by Cynder as Malefor laughed maniacally. Cynder angrily asked why Spyro wouldn't fight back, and Spyro sadly responded that it was because she had left him nothing to fight for. This realization broke Malefor's hold on Cynder, and she lovingly told Spyro that there was always something. Enraged by this turn of events, Malefor chained Cynder back to Spyro with the same snake chains, binding them together in order to kill them both before engaging the two dragons in battle. During their fight, Spyro and Cynder followed after Malefor in the skies above the temple. However, the Destroyer managed to enter the maw of the earth, initiating the world's destruction as it began to break apart. Spyro and Cynder continued their battle against Malefor as they were descending into the core of the world.

Despite their efforts, Malefor proclaimed that he was eternal, unable to be destroyed. After a final Aether blast against Spyro and Cynder, Malefor was knocked to the Earth's crystal core, but recovered from the blow unscathed, ready to attack again. Suddenly, several dragon spirits emerged from the crystal core, surrounding the evil dragon. As the egregious Malefor looked upon the spirits in shock and fear, he was dragged down and sealed away forever into the crystal core by the spirits. Upon his defeat, the snake chains that shackled Spyro and Cynder together disappeared along with the Dark Master's magic, freeing them at last. Spyro then used his powers over Aether to reconstruct the world, slowly putting it back together and ending Malefor's malice for good.

The Legend of Spyro 3D

According to the plot of the cancelled Spyro Movie, the Dark Master sent his forces to hunt down Spyro's egg. He had also enslaved Cynder by using a red crystal that was around her neck, turning her into a powerful black dragon.

Relationships

Spyro

While Spyro saw Malefor as an enemy who must be stopped, Malefor instead saw Spyro as a useful tool to achieve his goals rather than an enemy. As they were both purple dragons, he initially saw Spyro as a threat and sought to prevent the young dragon from being born. When that plan failed, Malefor used Spyro to free him from the Well of Souls and showed no intentions to try and kill Spyro until realizing that he wouldn't join his cause. When the two met face-to-face for the first time, Malefor easily exploited Spyro's fear of becoming a second Malefor by stating that Spyro had followed the Purple Dragon's alleged destiny of destroying the world by releasing Malefor from the Well of Souls, even if unknowingly. Throughout Dawn of the Dragon, few characters stated that Malefor and Spyro are very similar besides just their color, something that Malefor himself agreed to.

The main difference between the two Purple Dragons was that Malefor was consumed by greed when realizing that his power was unlimited, leading him to become evil and fought only to fulfill his predetermined "destiny". Spyro, on the other hand, doesn't seek to rule over anything and fights for friendship and love while wanting to create his own path instead of letting others decide it for him. Unlike Malefor, Spyro was raised away from the shower of praise that the Elder Dragons had lavished upon Malefor, which had fed his ego and sense of self-importance, allowing Spyro to grow up humble and kind. Spyro's different upbringing, far from the constant praises of the dragons, allowed him to connect with others, not isolated and consumed by promises of destiny. Spyro's love for his teachers, friends, and especially for Cynder is what kept him from going over the edge. Malefor had no such relationships to ground him, thus ensuring his downward spiral.

Cynder

Malefor's powers corrupted a young dragon named Cynder to be his devoted servant, weapon against Dragonkind, and the key to releasing him from his otherworldly prison. Even after Cynder was released from his control, Malefor continued to use her to fuel his goals without her realizing it. Through his minions, he used her as bait to bring Spyro to the Well of Souls so that Spyro could free him, and before their final battle, he corrupted Cynder again to break Spyro's will to fight. According to Gaul before the Night of Eternal Darkness, Malefor would possibly welcome Cynder back for being "a faithful servant", or destroy her if he chooses.

When Spyro and Cynder faced Malefor for the first time, he removed the snake chains off them as a "thanks" for how much Cynder had helped his cause. The dark dragon was then quick to bring Cynder back under his control by sowing the seeds of doubt within her; he claimed that, along with freeing him from Convexity, Cynder used Spyro by luring him to the Well of Souls and tricking him into freeing Malefor. This caused Cynder to become uncertain of her own actions, allowing Malefor to use her vulnerability to easily put her back under his thrall. He then used Cynder's corrupted form to attack Spyro. Upon realizing that Cynder's feelings for Spyro are stronger than his own dark magic, Malefor saw that Cynder made her choice to ultimately defy him and angrily chained her back to Spyro with the snake chains with the intention of killing her along with Spyro. In the end, Malefor only saw Cynder as a weapon he would use against those who oppose him, ignoring any trauma he forced her through, and will deem her as just another enemy to his goal if she resisted his dark temptations.

Dragonkind

Though only displayed through flashbacks and hints over the series, it is said that during his youth, Malefor was revered by the Dragons, who saw him as a symbol of hope for their race. He in turn was encouraged to be trained by the elders, who passed down to him their elemental masteries. Over time, as Malefor became stronger than what anyone imagined, he was consumed by his lust for power and showed no restraint. The Dragons began to fear Malefor and exiled him from the realms. Ever since, Malefor waged a war against his own kind for decades after siding with the Apes. He was even willing to kill an entire generation by destroying all the eggs in the Dragon Temple to prevent Spyro's birth despite only having to smash one specific egg (ironically, it was one of the two eggs that weren't smashed or stolen).

Shortly after his resurrection and release from the Well of Souls, Malefor wasted no time in attacking the Dragon City of Warfang in a display of his hatred and malice, laying waste to a large portion of the settlement. He suspended the city temple above the land as a symbol of his dominance, while leaving Warfang's denizens to recover from his assault and face the war he would spearhead once again.

Apes

When Malefor was exiled from dragon society, he recruited an army of Apes and taught them how to harness the Spirit Gems, gaining their favor with promises of power and revenge. However, the Apes only served him out of their own greed and thirst for power. When Malefor returned after the Night of Eternal Darkness, the evil dragon punished the Apes for their disloyalty by turning them into skeletal ghouls, after which, he had his own Grublin army replace them as his minions.

Profiles

“Dragon prophecies speak of the rare purple dragon with a mix of reverance and fear. As the first purple dragon ever born, Malefor proved a quick study in the dragon arts, mastering all the elemental breath attacks. As his power and knowledge grew, Malefor became corrupt, turning to evil in his quest for more and greater power. Fearing the prophecies' promise of the birth of a second purple dragon, Malefor led a raid against the Dragon Temple, seeking to capture the egg. Ignitus had hidden Spyro's egg, but Malefor did not leave empty-handed, having stolen Cynder's egg. Raising the young black dragon and penetrating her mind, Malefor used the young Cynder in another grab at power, only to be banished at Spyro's hands. Released years later by Gaul the Ape King, Malefor continues his mad quest and will stop at nothing to bring about the end of the world.”

– The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon Prima Official Game Guide, page 28

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning
Finnish	ؤrhنmن	N/A
Russian	جàëüôîً	N/A

Voice portrayals

Voice Actor	Appearance
Kevin Michael Richardson	The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night
Mark Hamill	The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon

Voice Portrayals in other languages

Voice actors
Language	Name
Danish	Dick Kaysّ
Dutch	Fred Meijer
Finnish	Rauno Ahonen
French	Martial Le Minoux
German	Bodo Wolf
Italian	Vittorio Bestoso
Norwegian	Per Frisch
Spanish (Lat Am)	Tomلs Rubio
Swedish	Johan Hedenberg

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Malefor/Gallery.

See also

Skylanders franchise

Main article: Malefor (Skylanders)

Malefor is the Undead Dragon King in the Skylanders franchise. He was originally a background character responsibly for Cynder and Hex's dark pasts that lead them to become Skylanders. He made his full debut in the IDW comic story arc, Skylanders: Return of the Dragon King, where he orchestrated a plan to get revenge on not only Cynder and Hex, but Spyro as well.

Skylanders Academy TV series

Main article: Malefor (Skylanders Academy)

In the Skylanders Academy TV continuity, Malefor is the evil Dragon King of the Cadaverous Crypts and a master of the dark arts. He hails from a family of villainous dragon overlords, with his daughter Cynder being heir to the throne.

Trivia

• In his redesign for Dawn of the Dragon, he is given three long, curved horns which gives him a strong resemblance to the Sorcerer's dragon form from Spyro: Shadow Legacy.
• As shown in the Exclusive talent trailer, Mark Hamill's voiceover for Malefor was originally much more clearer than the heavily filtered version of his voice in the final version of Dawn of the Dragon.
• Malefor claims that Spyro was the one who freed him at the Well of Souls. It is unknown how exactly Spyro unintentionally freed Malefor.
• In the Gameboy Advance version of The Eternal Night, the Chronicler stated that Malefor was lured by the evil pouring through the Well of Souls, causing him to turn his back on the purple dragon legacy and have his powers now feed only his own power and ego. In this version, the Well of Souls existed before Malefor and was not created by his evil.
• It is strongly implied that Malefor's existence as a purple dragon was lost in time that he became a rumor and legend, presumably after his fall from grace. However, the records in the halls of the Chronicler have documented Malefor's story.
• Malefor's Eternal Night character design bore a scar on his right eye as evident in his flashback image and the statue of himself in a shrine within the Well of Souls. The scar is absent in his redesign for Dawn of the Dragon.
• Malefor's appearance in the games is actually his "Dark" form, which resulted from him embracing his Dark Aether. Unlike Dark Spyro, Malefor remains conscious and is in full control of his actions. His Dark form is also what alters his voice.
  • In addition, Jared Pullen stated that it is possible for Malefor to be "stripped" of his dark form and be returned to normal.
  • In Dawn of the Dragon, Malefor's voice was so altered that it was hard for some fans to understand what he said in the game, and instead they had to rely on the game's optional subtitles.
• In the credits for the Nintendo DS version of The Eternal Night, Malefor's disembodied voice in the introduction scene (which shares the same audio dialogue as the console versions) was done by Kevin Michael Richardson, who was left uncredited in the credits' console ports.
• An extended, scrapped portion of Malefor's dialogue found in the game files of Dawn of the Dragon would've had Malefor plan to have a corrupted Cynder as his new queen over the world he will rule over.
• Malefor may be a variation of the name "Valefar", a Christian demon and Duke of Hell.
• Through unknown means, Malefor was aware of the moment Spyro and Cynder lost Ignitus to the Belt of Fire, pointing out that Ignitus should've warned Spyro of Cynder returning to Malefor's side and mocking the young dragon that [he] has "always been alone."
• While Malefor is taking heavy damage during his boss battle in Dawn of the Dragon, his body releases spirit gems, which are the lifeforce of Dragons, that restores Spyro and Cynder's health and mana energy.
• 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˝.
• The Dark Master (or DM) is usually a name given to the main villain in an RPG.
• In the movie Dragons: Destiny of Fire, there is a dragon called Vildrok that is very similar to Malefor: both want to destroy the world, both are evil dragons and the main antagonists. However, Malefor is despised and far more evil, bloodthirsty, malevolent, cruel and ruthless than Vildrok.
• The massive statue in the Dragon Temple training room and the dragon statues within the Well of Souls are both of Malefor. Two more massive statues of Malefor also appear outside the temple of each of the elemental dreamscapes Spyro was taken to regain his elemental breaths in The Eternal Night.
• Malefor is the only dragon in The Legend of Spyro series who has reptilian pupils. His eyes are also yellow unlike all other known dragons, who have white eyes. This is the result of his corruption under Dark Aether, but he retained full control over his actions and didn't let the dark power consume him.
• Worth noting is that Spyro and Cynder didn't actually defeat Malefor themselves since he recovered from their combined Aether attack unscathed. It was only the intervention of the dragon spirits that allowed Malefor to be beaten in time to save the world.
• In most concept art and artwork of Malefor across the trilogy, his eyes are depicted as completely yellow with no pupils, which show off his full corruption under Dark Aether. However, when you face him in the game, he has snakelike pupils, making his face seem more gentle and sinister, revealing that he has not let the Dark Aether element fully control him yet.
• Malefor is presumably the most evil and darkest villain in the Spyro franchise.
• Like the other concept art of the dragon characters made for Dawn of the Dragon, Malefor's right wing is missing.
• Malefor was considered for Crash Bandicoot: On the Run's Battle of the Dragons event as a season boss, but Dark Spyro was chosen instead.