Duel Masters

Main characters

• Shobu Kirifuda (切札 勝舞)
• He aspires to become a great duelist like his father, Shori Kirifuda. Shobu keeps a positive attitude throughout the series, insisting on dueling for fun as opposed to simply winning. In the first season, Shobu takes on the challenge of defeating the temple champion, Hakuoh, who he feels has become corrupt with power. Throughout this portion of the series, Shobu must defeat Hakuoh's underlings while he struggles to understand the true spirit of dueling. All in all Shobu is brave, strong, and has the guts never to give up, just like his favorite creatures.
• He uses a Fire Civilization deck which later becomes a Dragon Deck and even later evolves into a Dragon/Angel Command deck. After being defeated in a later season he loses most of his deck but is guided to his father's deck by the spirits of Bolmeteus Samurai Dragon and Bolbalzak "Sword Flash" Dragon. Soon after he combined elements from the 2 decks and created a Samurai Dragon/Angel Command deck (Fire, Light & Nature civilizations).
• As of Duel Masters Cross his main cards are: Bolmeteus "Kensei" Dragon, Bolshack Yamato Dragon, Bolbalzak "Sword Flash" Dragon and Saint Bolshack, Spiritual Dragon. After losing Saint Bolshack, Valkiryas Musashi, Ultimate Battle Dragon and Sword Flash Galaxy, Super Champ became his trump cards as well. Later, his trump card becomes Bolshack NEX. He defeated Zakira with Bolpheaus Heaven in the manga.
• Shobu also appeared in the anime movie "Rockman.EXE: Program Between Light and Darkness." In the Versus anime season, he appears as an adult.
• Hakuoh (白凰)
• (Japanese); Joe Ochman[20] (English)
• Hakuoh is the archrival of Shobu Kirifuda. Hakuoh came from a prominent dueling family, and specialized in Light civilization from a young age. At that time, he was a reflection of Shobu, a young kid who loved the game above all else. This changed, however, when a mysterious duelist appeared and challenged Hakuoh to his first Kaijudo duel. Unaware of the dangers involved in a Kaijudo duel, Hakuoh became overconfident and was nearly killed as a result. Instead of being crushed by his opponent's attack, however, Hakuoh was pushed out of the way by his mother, who was fatally wounded. Since then, Hakuoh has become a cold-hearted villain and Shobu's main rival. Hakuoh no longer sees any fun in dueling and decides that one's value as a human being is determined by their ability to win and will rest at nothing to "be the best". As a result, Hakuoh becomes a dueling champion and the leader of the White Soldiers. Later in the series, he is challenged by Shobu Kirifuda (who Hakuoh recognizes as a reflection of his former self). As he is consumed with power, Hakuoh not only desires to defeat Shobu, but to crush him entirely and destroy his dreams of dueling. Hakuoh is finally defeated by Shobu and later he befriends him for showing him the true nature of dueling.
• In Duel Masters Charge, Hakuoh is brainwashed into becoming Zakira's pawn, "White". In Duel Masters Zero, he becomes similar to his old self and appears to be working with Professor March (a mad scientist who lures duelists to a deserted island). In Duel Masters Cross, he tries to stop Zakira by challenging him to a duel, but was defeated. Afterwards, his "White" personality overtook him once again. However, after beating Mimi in a duel, he was able to return to his old self after seeing the damage he had caused.
• Hakuoh uses a Light Civilization deck. In Season one, it is a mono-civilization deck focusing on a combination of Urth, Purifying Elemental, Szubs Kin Twighlight Guardian, and Dia Nork, Moonlight Guardian, with his intent on evolving Urth into Alcadeias, Lord of Spirits. This first deck relies heavily on blockers, which leaves him vulnerable to Shobu's "Scralet Skyterror." Later, in Duel Masters Cross, he is given a Light/Darkness Knight deck by Zakira. His main cards are Urth Purifying Elemental, Hanusa Radiance Elemental, Alcadies Lord of Spirits, Alphadios Lord of Spirits, King Alcadeias, Holy Gaia; Perfect Galaxy, Spirit of Immortality; and Nero Gryphis, Mystic Light Emperor.
• Kyoshiro Kokujo (黒城 凶死郎)
• A self-proclaimed "evil genius" and another of Shobu's main rivals throughout the series. He uses a Darkness Civilization Deck, but later on in the subsequent series, it becomes a Darkness/Water deck. He has earned the nickname "Black Death", because of his relentless tactics and masterful use of Darkness civilization.
• In later episodes, he helps Shobu to defeat P.L.O.O.P. (once again using a mono-Darkness deck). In Charge, he defeated Mimi in the Battle Arena tournament but lost to Yuu. He works on his own to defeat the Fua Duelists, who are responsible for destroying his former home. His ultimate cards are Dorballom, Lord of Demons, Ballom, Master of Death, Ballom Emperor, Lord of Demons, Ballom Monarch, the Dark Reaper King, XENOM, the Reaper King, Dark Strike, Reaper Beast, Bell Hell De Gaul, Footprint of the Reaper and most recently added, Black Ganveet, Legion of Darkness.

Kirifuda family

• Shori Kirifuda (切札 勝利)
• Shobu's father and a world famous duelist. Shori left home to continue his training, but he continued to miss his family every day. He reappeared in later episodes but disappeared again after the defeat of P.L.O.O.P. He makes an appearance in Duel Masters: Curse of the Death Phoenix to assist Shobu, only to disappear at its end. In Duel Masters Charge he was believed to have been killed in a duel against Zakira.
• Shori is primarily seen in flashbacks, and whether he is believed to be alive or dead varies from season to season. However, he is seen to be alive at the end of the SX manga and all media following it. He plays with a deck similar to, but more advanced than Shobu's, with Bolberg Cross Dragon acting his trump card.
• Mai Kirifuda (切札 舞)
• Shobu's mother and Shori's wife. To help Shobu on different occasions, she has occasionally taken on the persona of a second "Dragon Mask" (the persona being first used by Knight) and challenged him.
• Katta Kirifuda (切札 勝太)
• Shobu's younger brother and the protagonist of the Versus/Victory seasons. He was in a coma as a young child during the events of Shobu's story. He initially has an aversion to Duel Masters but quickly learns to enjoy dueling against people. He has a strong obsession with curry bread.
• Joe Kirifuda (切札 ジョー)
• Katta's son and the protagonist of the King seasons. He lives with his mother Lulu. Joe has the power to bring his creature drawings to life with the help of his friend, the talking deck case Deckie. His favorite food is ramen.

Shobu's friends

• Rekuta Kadoko (角古れく太)
• Shobu's best friend and loyal sidekick. Even though he is an expert at the rules Rekuta is a terrible duelist, often going without a single win during a tournament. He's often seen with his portable laptop to keep track of important duels. As a running joke, he is often accidentally sent flying into the air.
• He has almost every card ever released (since his father Maruo (丸雄) owns a card shop) but cannot correctly use the cards. His card knowledge often helps Shobu during duels.
• Mimi Tasogare (黄昏ミミ)
• Another of Shobu's friends. Mimi first appeared to be both ditzy, but was later revealed to be the second of the Four Temple Guardians at the Junior Duelist Center and an expert player. Mimi also has super-strength and excellent martial arts abilities which enable her to bring down any walls and other obstacles. Her personality sometimes switches to a "serious mode" while dueling. Near the end of the first season, Mimi reveals that Hakuoh was not always a heartless duelist and her personal connection to Hakuoh has developed into a slight crush throughout the series. She mostly uses Nature Civilization cards, but tends to use Shield Triggers from all 5 civilizations.
• George Kamamoto (ジョージ釜本) / Boy George
• A baby in a pink bear suit who is always seen sucking a pacifier. He rides around in a motor baby carriage and uses a Water Civilization deck, he is a skillful duelist and has even defeated Mimi (a powerful duelist in her own right) fairly easily. In Charge, he uses a Darkness/Water deck and withdraws from the tournament after losing to Yuu.
• Dr. Root (Ｄｒ．ルート)

Temple Guardians

The Four Temple Guardians (四天衆) are the elite members of the White Soldiers that work under Hakuoh.

• Mikuni (三国) / Johnny Coolburns
• The first of the Temple Guardians. He uses a Fire deck, and during his duel with Shobu he purposely mimicked everything he did in order to throw him off. Mikuni managed to defeat Shobu, but Mimi managed to convince the Master to invite Shobu to try again in a duel against Mikuni. He is defeated by Shobu the second time around and thus he quickly befriends him. Due to his defeat at the hands of Shobu, Hakuoh ends up discharging Mikuni. He returns in Charge, having regained Hakouh's friendship.
• Temple Guardian 2
• See Mimi Tasogare
• Gyuujirou Japan (邪藩 牛次郎) / Benny Haha
• The third of the Four Temple Guardians. In the English dub, he is Mimi's "twin brother" where he had different plastic surgeries to look older where he claims that he is one minute older than Mimi. In the original version, he has no familial ties to other characters. Gyuujirou is often seen piloting a robot suit and first appears where he destroys Mimi's access card upon her defeat and wrecks her deck. He often cheats and relies on deceit in his duels. His constant defeat at the hands of the series' heroes has led him to hate both Shobu and Hakuoh.
• Gyuujirou returns in Charge claiming to have turned over a new leaf, but this is quickly revealed to be an act. He forces Hakuoh into dueling before their match in a self-made Duel Masters Battle Arena by taking Aizen and Mikuni as hostage. Hakuoh manages to complete the "perfect duel" and defeat Gyuujirou despite his many attempts to cheat. Afterward, Gyuujirou detonates a bomb beneath the stadium and seriously injures Hakuoh so that he is unable to duel him the next morning. With Hakuoh eliminated, he ends up dueling Shobu again and loses. It is revealed that he is also working with Yuu. After he lost to Shobu, Gyuujirou was banished by Yuu and trapped in a room with George which they both escaped in the same episode. He uses a Water Civilization Deck and later a Wave Striker Deck during his tournament match with Shobu.

P.L.O.O.P.

Short for Powerful Loyal Order of Princes, P.L.O.O.P. is an evil organization that plot to use monsters from the Civilizations of the Creature World to take over Earth. This organization appears only in the 26 episodes which were never broadcast in Japan. Their original names are unknown.

• Prince Irving the Terrible
• Shobu encountered him in the Light Civilization.
• Prince Melvin the Conqueror
• Shobu encountered him in the Water Civilization.
• Princess Pollyana of Green Gables
• She is a minor P.L.O.O.P. member who Shobu encountered in the Nature Civilization and works with Prince Wilbur the Great. She first appeared in Logville Village where she dueled against Shobu and lost. Princess Pollyana helped Prince Wilbur to capture Master Pangaea. She dueled against Flora (whose father was captured by Pollyana and Wilbur) and lost to her.
• Prince Wilburg the Great
• Shobu encountered him in the Nature Civilization.
• Prince Maurice the Merciless
• Shobu encountered him in the Darkness Civilization.
• Prince Herbert the Ruthless

Black Soldiers

The Black Soldiers are a group of duelists that are the opposite form of Hakuoh's White Soldiers. Most of the Black Soldiers consists of duelists that were unable to defeat Hakuoh when wanting to become a member of the White Soldiers. They entered the Battle Arena Tournament to beat all of its players. After the defeat of most of the Black Soldier, most of the unnamed members left the group.

• Kuroyanagi (黒柳) / Robby Rotten
• Leader of the Black Soldiers. He wanted to be a member of Hakouh's White Soldiers, but was denied membership even when he had defeated Mikuni. He formed the Black Soldiers so that he can duel Hakuoh. Unfortunately for him, he was defeated by Shobu and was last seen being interrogated by Yuu about Shobu.
• Akayanagi (赤柳) / Akakan
• Member of the Black Soldiers and Robby Rotten's right-hand man. He is the strongest of the Black Soldiers. He was defeated by George.
• Aoyanagi (青柳) / Multi-Card Monty
• Member of the Black Soldiers. He likes to tell long stories and confuse his opponent before the duel while shuffling his deck. He was defeated by Mimi.
• Ishiguro (石黒)
• Member of the Black Soldiers. Ishiguro had previously wanted to meet Hakuoh when he was a student of the Temple. He defeated most of the Temple's students in a duel, but lost to Mikuni. He joined up with the Black Soldiers in order to duel Hakuoh and took part in the Battle Arena Tournament. Ishiguro was defeated in a duel by Hakuoh who acknowledges Ishiguro as a strong duelist.

Other antagonists

• Yuu Fua (不亞 幽) / Yumama
• A mysterious girl often seen with her nose in a book or standing on the ceiling. She defeated George, Yuki and Kokujo right before they were supposed to duel, making her win by default. She was a childhood friend of Great Bucketsman. While she appears to be the cause of all the disruption in the tournament, she is really a pawn of her malicious older brother, Zakira. After she is released, she becomes an ally of Shobu, along with Bucketman. While brainwashed, her trump cards are Cruel Naga, Avatar of Fate and Super Necrodragon Abzo Dolba. In Duel Masters Cross her deck contains all 5 civilizations and is focused on creatures who have the following effect: "If this card is discarded during your opponent's turn, you may put this card into the Battle Zone instead of the Graveyard". Afterwards, she changes her deck into a Light, Water and Darkness civilization deck based on the Knight race using Brunhilde, Ghost Knight and Nero Gryphis, Mystic Light Emperor as her trump cards.

• Zakira Fua (不亞 ザキラ)
• The main antagonist of the Duel Masters Charge and the Duel Master Cross series. An evil duelist, the nemesis of Shobu's father, and the one controlling Yuu, who is his younger sister, from the start. His goal is to obtain the "Duel Master's Proof" and use it for his evil means. He has multiple agents working under him, and operates from a large castle. His agents are ranked in terms of increasing power from A-Z (Z being himself). He uses a combination of Water, Darkness and Fire cards (most of his creatures are Zombie Dragons) with his deck being focused on sending cards to the graveyard (his and his opponent's), sometimes outright destroying them, and benefiting from it. Later in the series he changes his deck to a Light and Darkness Knight deck, his main trump cards being Romanov the 1st, Lord of the Demonic Eye, Death Romanov the 5th, General of the Demonic Eye, King Balcry, Demonic Eye Lord and Supernova Death Dragerion.

Trading card game

The card game first originated in Japan in May 2002 and was marketed by Takara (later Takara Tomy following the merger). It was produced in English by Wizards of the Coast, who purchased the rights to the name Duel Masters from Reality Simulations, Inc., which ran a play-by-mail gladiator game called Duelmasters, now known as Duel2. The English-language printing of the TCG ran from DM-01 Base Set (May 5, 2004) until DM-12 Thrash of the Hybrid Megacreatures (November 2006). It was the twelfth and final expansion released by Wizards of the Coast for the English-language game before it was discontinued in 2006.

The spin-off product, Kaijudo, was announced by Wizards of the Coast in February 2012.[22] A relaunch of the TCG product line with Wizards of the Coast working along with its parent company Hasbro. It was released on June 26, 2012, and was incompatible with previous Duel Masters cards. Wizards of the Coast discontinued Kaijudo in 2014.[23]