This article discusses a kind of character in the Resident Evil series. For other uses, see Tyrant (disambiguation).

A Tyrant is a recurring breed of fictional creatures in the Resident Evil series. It is the Umbrella Corporation's ultimate bio-organic weapon, designed to be the perfect soldier in any battle situation. Created through surgical alterations and direct administration of the T-Virus to a living host, the Tyrant possesses superior strength and some have superhuman speed. The 'T' in T-Virus, in fact, stands for "Tyrant" because the ultimate creation of the virus is the Tyrant. This is why Tyrants have figured largely as final or near-final bosses in most Resident Evil titles.

Specifications

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Most humans, when exposed to the T-Virus, become zombies. About one in 10 million humans, however, can assimilate the virus and become Tyrants. This process is facilitated within the bodies of youths due to the presence of Beta Hetero Nonserotonin, a hormone secreted by a child's brain when under stress.

The only detrimental side effect in the host when creating a Tyrant is that the increase of adrenaline in its body causes the heart to enlarge; thus, a thoracic hernia forms and the muscle protrudes through the chest creating a visible weak spot on the otherwise unstoppable creature.

The research into Tyrants is thought to be descended from experiments done to Lisa Trevor, the daughter of the architect of the Spencer Mansion, who was imprisoned with her family after completing the mansion so she would not reveal the Mansion's elaborate secrets and traps. Lisa was a teenager when she was imprisoned and did not zombify, as is typical of those exposed to the T-Virus, but instead was imbued with superior strength. Albert Wesker and William Birkin were interested by this and continued experiments on her. She eventually began to tear the faces off of the female employees when she realized they were not her mother. She wore them on her body to give them to her mother if she found her. The project was shut down, and Trevor was incorrectly believed to have been killed in the Arklay Mountains. Her survival and mutations led Birkin to create the G-Virus later on.

A Note on Numbering

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Many fans are at a loss to explain the numbering scheme of the different Tyrants, as more advanced and powerful Tyrants have sometimes had lower numbering as its designation. One theory is that the last two numbers are its serial number, while the first (hundreds) number indicates its production series. While the Proto-Tyrant doesn't have a number designation mentioned in the games, it is probable that given that it's the direct precursor for the T-002 Tyrant, its designation is T-001. Some fans note at this that this indicates an alarmingly high number of Tyrants, but it must be noted that many Tyrants are experimental beings and many are destroyed as failures.

The production number one is thought to indicate that the unit is being mass-produced. Tyrant T-103 (also known as Mr. X), for example, is one of Umbrella's mass-production Tyrants. As such, this series is considered by Umbrella to be the most balanced between control, effectiveness and cost of production and, as such, receives a hundreds number designation.

Nemesis, being an experimental T-Virus/NE Parasite hybrid, is not included in the numbering scheme. It can truly be considered a completely different creature from regular Tyrants, but at the same time not because its in fact just a tyrant with a parasite.

There are counter-examples to the numbering system, however. These include the Outbreak games, in which there is a T-0400TP Tyrant- though this is an experimental variation on the T-103 Model with enhanced armor and a remote-detonator based control system.

Main Types of Tyrants

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Proto-Tyrant

The Proto-Tyrant was the predecessor to the T-002 Tyrant. Standing over 250cm tall, the Proto-Tyrant could deliver enormously powerful attacks with its huge body and claw-like digits, easily rendering instant death to anything it targeted.

Although it resembled the finished Tyrant model greatly, it was mentally unstable and lacked higher reasoning. Moreover, the Proto-Tyrant's body decayed significantly, due to an overabundance of the T-Virus. As a result, the Proto-Tyrant could not be used effectively as a B.O.W. and was scheduled to be destroyed.

However, the Proto-Tyrant was released from its containment within Umbrella's Underground Lab in Raccoon City when S.T.A.R.S. operative Rebecca Chambers was in the area (in Resident Evil 0) in order for Albert Wesker and William Birkin to gather combat data. The Tyrant's fatal flaw was the fact that its mutations had exposed its spinal column, providing a vulnerable target for Rebecca; the creature may not have been susceptible to conventional weaponry otherwise. Although Rebecca thwarted the Proto-Tyrant temporarily, it soon managed to recover and followed Rebecca into the underground Treatment Plant after reconvening with Billy Coen. With their combined firepower, Rebecca and Billy put a permanent end to the Proto-Tyrant.

T-002 Tyrant

The T-002 Tyrant was the first truly completed Tyrant model (appearing in the original Resident Evil). Developed within Umbrella's secret Arklay Laboratory under the Spencer Mansion, improvements over the Proto-Tyrant include virtual invulnerability to small arms and better reasoning abilities, along with longer talons. Although the T-002 model appeared wild, in reality, it could obey orders quite well.

During the Mansion Incident, Wesker released the Tyrant from its containment and ordered it to attack Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, only to be impaled upon its talons; Wesker, however, had figured this into his plot to betray Umbrella and once he would be resurrected by his mysterious virus, he would then take the Tyrant and jump ship to a rival company. The S.T.A.R.S. members, however, subdued the beast, but when they attempted to make their escape from the mansion, the Tyrant returned, rejuvenated and now fully prepared for battle after undergoing its limit release phase, which was made evident by the reddish hue its integument took on. The beast was now superhumanly agile, but it was eventually destroyed by a rocket launcher dropped by Brad Vickers.

It also appears in Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Jill Valentine could "summon" zombies as some of her moves, (but in reality, she looks to the side in shock and ducks out of the way while various RE enemies attacked her opponents) and can "summon" him as a hyper combo, which works as follows: Jill kneels and looks shocked as a hole blasts from the ground. If the opponent is in the middle and not blocking, the Tyrant comes up and dashes/attacks to each side, dealing damage. It then stops, howls and jumps out of the way.

T-103 Tyrant

Colloquially known as Mr. X, the Mass-Produced T-103 Tyrant first appeared in Resident Evil 2 and has also made appearances in Survivor, File No.2 and even a brief cameo near the ending of Nemesis. It is the only Tyrant model ever to be mass-produced by Umbrella. These Tyrants were produced on Sheena Island by infusing hosts with Beta Hetero Nonserotonin extracted from children; without this treatment, only one in ten million normal humans would accept the T-Virus and become a Tyrant. The T-103 has a far more human-like appearance than the other Tyrant models, although it still stands out, due to its inability to speak and its great height. The T-103 can recover from injuries faster than the T-002, due to high metabolism and extremely efficient cellular self-repairs. Furthermore, the T-103 is equipped with a "limiter" inside its defense coat, which is used to force it to follow orders.

Umbrella deployed one of their T-103 units via helicopter into the RPD Precinct in order to retrieve the G-Virus from the Birkins. The Tyrant also had several encounters with Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield, as well as Umbrella agent HUNK, before falling into molten metal. After removing its Limiter, this Tyrant transformed into a Super Tyrant, with an appearance closer to that of previous models, including talon-like digits upon both of its hands, as well as great speed and agility. Either Leon or Claire eventually managed to defeat it with the rocket launcher dropped by Ada Wong.

The rest of the T-103 units that were transported via helicopter were dropped into the Waste Factory located behind Raccoon Park to eliminate the U.S. Army unit that was sent by the Government to retrieve William Birkin and the G-Virus. The soldiers were acting based on falsified intelligence given to them by an Umbrella spy and led to a trap. The Tyrants were destroyed, but not before taking the entire Army squad as casualties with them. Jill finds the remains of the soldiers and one of the Tyrants near the Paracelsus' Sword rail cannon while exploring the Waste Factory. An experimental T-103 variant, designation T-0400TP, was located within the Raccoon City Umbrella laboratory. This experimental model is faster and stronger than the original T-103 units and also lacks the exposed heart once its limiter is removed. Once the outbreak began, and with the large number of Hunters roaming about, Umbrella scientists Linda and Carter felt it best to unleash the Tyrant to even the odds. Programming the creature with an MO Disk to eliminate all Hunters on the premises whilst not attacking any humans, the Tyrant seemed to follow orders well until it suddenly went berserk, killing Carter and knocking Linda unconscious. The creature would then go on to stalk the survivors of the Raccoon City outbreak located within the labs until it was defeated, prior to their escape from the subterranean laboratories. Making its way onto the streets of Raccoon City and removing its limiter, however, the Tyrant then transformed into the Tyrant-R, or a Super Tyrant. The creature again had to be defeated on the streets of the destroyed city before the survivors could attempt to make an escape; shortly after its defeat, however, the accidentally unleashed Nyx (a Bio-Organic Weapon) captured and absorbed it. The result was a hideous mass of merged bodies of Nyx itself, an entire squad of U.B.C.S. who tried unsuccessfully to halt the monstrous creature, and the experimental Tyrant itself.

On Sheena Island, Vincent Goldman, the city's commander and the man behind the outbreak itself, dispatched no less than 17 T-103 units to eliminate Ark Thompson, a spy who tried to gather evidence as to Goldman's various atrocities, such as the massacre of a large group of detained teenagers during a prison break, before they were extracted of the prized Beta Hetero Nonserotonin; this was facilitated by the fact that there was a factory on the island that mass-produced the T-103s; each unit that Ark encountered, however, was killed with a barrage of gunfire. The multiple T-103 units, along with the production factory, were destroyed during the self-destruction of Sheena Island.

T-0400tp

A variant from the T-103, This is supposed to be an armour encased version of the 103s. After mutating, it is capable of taking immense damage, more so than the typical Tyrant. This is the only Tyrant capable of being programmed specifically to defend humans, rather than attack them, but its biological and mental instabilities lead it to betray its charges. It was eventually subdued with a rocket launcher, but awoke and tried to kill its foe once more. However, it was absorbed by the Nyx Biological Weapon after a Stinger missile from a FIM-92 failed to hit the chopper from which the container holding Nyx hung, hitting the cargo instead, liberating Nyx in the process, which proceeded to annihilate an entire platoon of U.B.C.S. and the T-0400TP. In the body of the Nyx, fused with the countless victims of the rampaging biological weapon, it can only be affected when the Nyx's nucleus is harmed.

Nemesis T-Type

The Nemesis model is a T-103 type that has been implanted with a new breed of parasitic organism known as NE-a. Despite this, it has enough differences between the standard T-103 model to be considered a different creature from the regular T-103 (and other Tyrants, for that matter). It was ordered to kill all the remaining S.T.A.R.S members.

For complete information on the Nemesis, refer to its article: Nemesis (Resident Evil)

T-078 Tyrant

The Tyrant model deployed in Umbrella's Military Training Facility located on Rockfort Island for special forces training. It has no official model number, but it's often known as the T-078 (based on the label that appears over its capsule).

This model is actually a variation of the T-103 model, having its limiter removed and its claw-studded hands changed into club-like fists, but otherwise, it is similar to a standard T-103 and has roughly the same attack power. Unlike many other Tyrants, this model did not possess a weak spot of any kind (for example, an exposed heart)- proof that by this point, Umbrella had developed their Tyrants significantly since the Arklay Mountains incident.

During the viral outbreak on Rockfort Island (the events of Veronica), Alfred Ashford released this Tyrant from its capsule when Claire Redfield and Steve Burnside attempted to escape the island prison. During the initial confrontation, Claire encountered the Tyrant at the passageway to the Ashford's Palace and easily subdued it. However, the Tyrant recovered and stalked her into the cargo plane they were using to escape. In this second encounter, the Tyrant was stronger and more agile. Claire eventually managed to defeat the beast by weakening it and ejecting a cargo box filled with high-powered explosives out of the plane, pushing the Tyrant out as well.

Other Types of Tyrants

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Thanatos Tyrant

The second of the three Tyrants was Thanatos, who was released by Greg Muller, a renegade employee of Umbrella who was against mass-production of the Tyrants and considered, as many Umbrella scientists, his creation to be an artistic masterpiece. The events in Resident Evil Outbreak showed just how powerful and agile the monster was; in fact, it successfully destroyed an entire U.B.C.S. unit effortlessly. Thanatos would then go on to attack the remaining survivors of the city-wide outbreak, who came to the University to unearth answers, but the creature was temporarily rendered unconscious by a blast of electricity, enabling the survivors to accomplish what the UBCS squadron could not; during the prior attack upon Thanatos, the U.B.C.S. was instructed to obtain Thanatos' blood for use in the production of the Daylight antivirus, but needless to say, they failed. An amazing show of Thanatos' endurance and survival instinct came when Nicholai Ginovaef set demolition charges in Raccoon University, which exploded while Thanatos was still inside. It survived the blast, unprecedented by its predecessors, with the resulting damage costing it one arm, so to compensate, the remaining left limb of the Tyrant, now known as Thanatos-R to signify its "rebirth", elongated to enormous proportions. Also, Thanatos-R now had the ability of jumping hundreds of feet into the air prior to crashing down upon its intended target, which made it a formidable boss, but the creature was felled by the blast of a rocket launcher. Demonstrating its superiority over previous models, however, Thanatos-R returned for a third battle before ultimately being subdued by an ampoule filled with a sample of the Daylight, a cure to the T-Virus which acted by arresting all proliferation of the pathogen within cells, thus, making it lethal to any and all T-Virus-infected Bio-Organic Weapons. While the Thanatos lacked the capability of mass-production, most of the data collected on it helped create other B.O.W.s, such as the Bandersnatch in Veronica. The Thanatos-R is one of the most resilient and powerful Tyrants in the entire Resident Evil series, shown in an ending movie for Kevin and Jim. The Tyrant, even after being knocked out with the rocket launcher AND a dose of Daylight, still emerges seemingly unharmed from the ruined debris of Raccoon University and runs toward Kevin and Jim, still ready for a fight.

Hypnos T-Type

The Hypnos Tyrant was seen on Sheena Island (in Survivor), an experimental prototype that was created by implanting the Hypnos gene into a standard Tyrant model. The Hypnos gene was created by Dr. Klein (Lott and Lily's father) by implanting several cells into one organism and then, eliminating the weaker cells through natural selection.

In its initial phase, when protagonist Survivor first encountered the Tyrant, it appeared as a genderless, hairless youth posessing claws for digits in its preservation tank. Once it awakened, the Hypnos Tyrant proceeded to kill either the Umbrella commander of Sheena Island, Vincent Goldman; the sewer janitor, Andy Holland; or the UT Commander, depending upon the scenario path selected. The creature, however, sustained sufficient damage from its battle in the hallway with Ark, thus, transforming into its more aggressive second form, which included massive talons upon its left hand and an enlarged mandible. After further damage, the Hypnos Tyrant then transformed into its final form, which seemed to be more of a regression than an evolution; in essence, it became a hunched, primate-like being with an elongated tongue and razor-sharp talons, losing much of its former intelligence during the mutation. Also, the beast suffered from hypertonia, thus, its muscles were excessively large, rendering it vulnerable to gunfire. The Hypnos Tyrant was eventually destroyed when it leapt upon Ark's escape helicopter just after the island exploded, at which point a missile was propelled into its abdomen, pushing it into the distance and a second was launched to blow the Hypnos Tyrant away with the power of both detonated missiles.

T-091 Tyrant

Possessing tentacle-like digits on its hands, this Tyrant was fought by Bruce McGivern of Dead Aim on the Spencer Rain just moments before its sinking. Thanks to its tentacle-like fingers, as mentioned earlier, it has the ability of striking from quite a distance away, but what it lacks is speed. Furthermore, the creature possesses an exposed tumor upon the posterior of its cervical region, which proves detrimental to it in battle. Utilizing this weakness, Bruce blasted the tumor until the creature was no more.

T-092 Tyrant

Also known as the Reagent 092, the T-092 is effectively what Morpheus D. Duvall becomes once he injects himself with the TG-Virus. In effect, the T- and G-Viruses have been amalgamated on a molecular level, thus, this new virus allows its host to utilize electromagnetism in a variety of ways, including the generation of bolts of electricity and, most importantly, the ability to create an electromagnetic force field. Thanks to said barrier, conventional weapons and attacks are rendered useless against the T-092, hence the creation of the Charged Particle Rifle, which is a rifle that fires an immense amount of supercharged energy, similar to the powerful hydrogen plasma cannon known as the Linear Launcher used to kill Alexia Ashford in Veronica. Apparently, the subject undergoes a sex change, as noted with Morpheus D. Duvall and has awesome agility and power, but the T-092 can be defeated with the sheer power of the Charged Particle Rifle as it can tear through the creature's electromagnetic barrier. After sustaining enough damage, however, the uncontrollable transformation properties of the G-Virus take effect, transforming the T-092 into a blob-like being with a head capable of moving all about the large mass provided that it is its only weak point. Bruce, however, manages to blast the head of the beast enough times to destroy it. The fact that it requires more than one blast from the Charged Particle Rifle just to make the T-092 vulnerable in one place to conventional gunfire makes it the single most powerful bioweapon created by Umbrella.

Pluto

One of many failed experiments sent to the Umbrella waste disposal facility in the Atlantic for destruction, the monster known as Pluto was unleashed when Morpheus D. Duvall released the T-Virus into the facility. Originally, Pluto was an unnamed convict acquired by Umbrella's researchers who was intended to be their next Tyrant-class killing machine. His eyes were removed, thus, forcing his sense of hearing to evolve following genetic manipulation via the T-Virus, but the experiment went wrong, due to the convict's anatomy reacting negatively to the virus; as a result, the subject developed copious amounts of adipose tissue, as opposed to muscles. Thus, Pluto was sent to Morpheus' island for destruction, but it received a stay of execution, thanks to the machinations of Morpheus, until it confronted Bruce McGivern. The gigantic beast's weakness was the fact that its brain was not covered by the meninges or its cranium, leaving Bruce with an obvious target to attack until the creature was toppled.

Resident Evil creatures | Computer and video game villains | Fictional supersoldiers