Army of the Waves

The Army of the Waves, or the organization behind the waves, is the main antagonist in The Rising of the Shield Hero.

Overview
The Army behind the waves is a mysterious organization which is responsible for creating the Waves of Calamity since ancient times. This force is responsible for many disasters in Raphtalia's World and Glass' World including the Waves of Calamity, destruction of the Hengen Muso and Freegem Styles, destruction of nearly all historical documents, and several attempts to "take over the world" from people like Kyo and Takt. Their full intention is unknown, however it seems to be related to both gaining the rewards from destroying worlds and entertaining their all-powerful leader.

Due to their destructive nature, this organization is opposed by Heroes with the Legendary and Vassal Weapons as well as the Guardian Beasts. However, the Spirit of the Shield warned Naofumi that the army is too powerful to fight head-on.

First and Second Army
The main force of the Army of the Waves has not yet been encountered by Naofumi and the other heroes. As of Naofumi's second return to Glass' World, they hold incredible power but are currently attempted to track down and win over a certain young girl. However, S'yne's Sister warns that since he had "killed" Malty, they will soon turn their focus on him.

Third Army
To the rest of the army, the Third Army are considered a group of grunts and military worker ants. Most soldiers are considered disposable and can be easily replaced. The main goal of the Third Army is essentially to test prototypes created by the technical department. They are also occasionally sent in as "Vanguards of the Waves" to disrupt the defences of certain worlds through destroying historical documents, certain styles, or even nations. These Vanguards of the Waves are reincarnated individuals hand-selected from other worlds so that they follow a "cookie-cutter" mindset which makes them easy to control. The Third Army consists of in-numerous Vanguards of the Waves with S'yne's Sister as a commander if required and has been the only part of the Army of the Waves which Naofumi and the other heroes have encountered directly.

Technical Department
The technical department is responsible for developing the magic and technology of the army behind the waves. They are responsible for upgrading technology such as the weapon control accessories and they use the Third Army to test out their prototypes.

Leadership
The leader of the Army of the Waves is an incredibly powerful person and is also known as the "World Eater" (Naofumi), "Self-proclaimed god" (Ancient text), or "the great one" (Ofuda Reincarnator). Not much is known about this leader except that they like to pursue women and are looking for entertainment. Some people within the army believe that pleasing the leader means providing a challenge. It also seems that this leader is the one with the power to reincarnate individuals and imbue them with special abilities.

Vanguards of the Waves

 * Kyo Ethnina: Kyo was the first reincarnated individual whom Naofumi had interacted with. It is unknown how much Kyo was aware of the Army of the Waves and his position however he was successful in weakening both Raphtalia's World and Glass' World's defences by corrupting the Spirit Tortoise and manipulating the Vassal Book countries to invading others. He is eventually stopped by Naofumi and the other heroes.
 * Takt Alsaholn Faubrey: Takt was the second main vanguard of the wave whom Naofumi had met and is likely one of the Third Army's first attempts to steal Vassal and Legendary Weapons. He nearly takes over Raphtalia's World and causes massive damage in the process, but is eventually stopped by Trash and the other heroes.
 * Hidemasa Miyaji: Miyaji is another vanguard of the wave who is partially responsible for killing the Legendary Ofuda, Legendary Jewel and Legendary Blunt Instrument wielders as well as kidnapping Kizuna, the final remaining Legendary Hero. The weapons of the killed heroes were then given to the technical department for experiments. He was given the Vassal Musical Instrument but was later stopped by the Heroes and killed by Mald.
 * Harpoon Reincarnator: This is another vanguard of the wave who is part of the Third Army. He is also partially responsible for killing three of the four Legendary Heroes with Miyaji. The weapons of the killed heroes were then given to the technical department for experiments. He was groomed by S'yne's Sister to be entertainment for the army's leader as he gathered a massive army to attack the heroes. He was eventually defeated.

Others

 * S'yne's Sister: S'yne's Sister seems to a higher-up within the Army of the Waves and has connections with the Third Army and Technical Department. She is often seen testing new technology through the Vanguards of the Waves. However, she may have some hidden motives since she occasionally indirectly protects them and even warns Naofumi of the Army's power.
 * Malty S Melromarc: After fleeing her world after manipulating Itsuki, Malty and her companions (such as Mald, Lesty and Rino) found themselves in Glass' World where Kizuna was the last remaining Legendary Hero and was about to be killed (which would immediately destroy the world). Malty and her group prevented Kizuna's death and ensured her capture into the Third Army's hands. This gave her favour with the army's leader which gave her certain liberties. When she was betrayed and "killed" by Rino, it seems that the organization is going to return for revenge.
 * Rino: Rino joined Malty's group before they moved to Glass' World as a spy for Queen Mirellia. She acted as Malty's cheerleader and was considered her favourite - especially after Lesty's death. However, when the opportunity presented itself, Rino betrayed Malty and the Third Army by stabbing Malty in the back.

Magic
One defining aspect of the Third Army is that their main force consists of reincarnated individuals with unique abilities.
 * Reincarnation: Allows the leader of the wave to find and reincarnate individuals which meet a certain criteria. These individuals maintain memories of their previous lives.
 * Special Abilities: Reincarnated individuals are given unique skills are abilities which help them with their task.
 * Barrier: Forms incredibly tough barriers which can be manipulated at will. They can be used offensively to crush beings inside.
 * Status Viewing: Allows the Reincarnator to see other's level and stats.
 * Inter-Dimensional Storage: Allows the Reincarnator to store items in a personal dimensional space.
 * Base Reinforcement: Places a multiplier stat on the use when they are within their own territory.
 * Fail-Safe: If a reincarnated individual starts revealing information about the army in any way, their soul is destroyed.

Technology
With their vast resources and access to various worlds, the technology used by the Army of the Waves is incredible advanced. They have deep understanding of how the Status Magic System (SMS) works, including the Legendary and Vassal Weapons, Dragon Hourglasses and Dragon Emperor.

Accessories

 * Weapon Control Accessory: This accessory developed by the Third Army allows unworthy wielders to steal and wield Legendary Weapons and Vassal Weapons despite not being worthy. The first generation of these accessories could be broken to allow the weapon to return to their rightful wielder, however later generations made the accessories much more durable.
 * Magic Unsuppression: This accessory allows the user to use magic and abilities from their world even if they had been suppressed by the Legendary Weapons of the world they are currently in.

Legendary Weapons

 * Otherworldly Suppression: By using the dragon hourglass and the authority given to the Legendary Weapons, the Army of the Waves can use these Legendary Weapons to suppress any form of Legendary Weapon, magic or skills from another world. This requires the Army of the Waves to have the majority of the Legendary Weapons.
 * Artificial Behemoth: This entity is an artificial creature which has been infused with a Legendary Weapon and its power-up methods. This artificial monster was so powerful that none of the Heroes could take it on, except for Kizuna who specializes in fighting monsters.
 * False Demon Dragon: An upgrade of the Artificial Behemoth. This monster is an artificial Dragon Emperor developed with the demon dragon's dragon fragments and a Legendary Weapon and its power-up methods. It has knowledge and magic exclusive to the Dragon Emperor. This was later destroyed by the Demon Dragon Emperor with the other heroes.
 * Weapon Corruption: The technical department is working on a method to corrupt Legendary Weapons so that they will not return to their rightful owner even without a control accessory. This was first attempted (but failed) with the Legendary Ofuda.

Background
Information to be added later on.

Volume 16
While Naofumi is communing with the Spirit of the Shield, he is warned of a 'World Eater' who is the original enemy of the Legendary Weapons. This entity is so powerful that the heroes have no chance of winning in a direct fight so they must prevent it from entering their world. Both Kyo and Takt are revealed to be advance troops for this entity, trying to weaken the world's heroes. The Shield's power-up method was kept hidden by this entity and the Seven Star Gauntlets had been interfered with in the past.

Reincarnator-Like People
There are non reincarnated individuals of the Hero Worlds that have suspiciously done much work which aligns with the goals of the Army of the Waves. So far the only two people that fit under this category are Malty and Makina.

Otherworld Invaders
The two self-resurrection assassins that tried to kill Naofumi and the Legendary heroes seem to have similar goals to the Reincarnators and the Vanguards of the Waves. They come from the self-proclaimed "strongest world" and try to destroy other worlds so that they gain the resultant loot. However, they apparently gave off a different vibe than other Reincarnators like Kyo and they do not have the ability to manipulate Vassal or Legendary Weapons.

Trivia
Information to be added later on.