TheDestinyfranchise has had its fair share of problems, but those issues did not stop millions of players from falling in love with the series' gameplay, characters, and lore. Like other MMOs,Destinyand its sequeltake players to various locations, where they are forced to battle several enemy factions. Each of these factions is dangerous, butthe Hiveare on a completely different level.
The Hive are an ancient race of aliens who worship the Darkness. Every member of the species has a parasitic worm inside their body that grants them power and immortality, and they can only feed them by continuously killing. There are literally billions of Hive in the universe, but only a small handful possess the kind of power that can kill multiple Guardians at once. Some of these Hive are so strong that they are considered to be Gods.
Updated Aug 08, 2025 by George Voutiritsas:The Witch QueenisDestiny 2’s latest season, and its campaign focuses on Savathûn, the Hive God of cunning and deception.Her throne world is massive, and as players explore it, they learn that the Hive were lied to from the very beginning. The Darkness tricked Savathûn and her sisters into creating the Hive that players know today, and it became a race filled with terrifying and powerful beings. This list has already identified several of the Hive’s strongest members, many of whom are considered gods, but when a race has lived as long as the Hive has, there are plenty of other high-ranking individuals who deserve recognition.
Shadowkeepwas a surprisingly big expansion, and it focused on the Hidden Swarm Hive brood on the moon. Hashladûn was one of the brood’s champions, and was an Ascendant Hive Wizard that players defeated at the end of The Scarlet Keep Strike.
Hashladûn was the eldest daughter of Crota and Omnigul. She was an abnormally strong Thrall when she was younger, which is why Crota decided to have her ritually mutilated. He sent a hundred Thrall, ten Knights, and an Ogre after her, and she defeated them all. She survived the ritual and went to serve in Oryx’s court.
13Dûl Incaru Commands The Taken Forces In The Dreaming City
At some point, Bungie will be placing all ofForsaken’s content into the vault. Before that happens, players should attempt to complete the Shattered Throne dungeon to defeat Dûl Incaru before she disappears. Dûl Incaru is an Ascendant Hive Wizard and one of Savathûn’s daughters, and she took control of Queen Mara Sov’s throne world.
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Dûl Incaru is responsible for the Taken curse that is still plaguing the Dreaming City, and her goal is to find a key to a pocket universe that created the Awoken race. Time flows differently in said universe, and she and her mother wanted to use the time dilation to obtain a massive amount of tributes for their worms.
12Omnigul Was The Leader Of Crota’s Armies
Omnigul’s infamous screech punctured the eardrums of manyDestinyveterans when theDark BelowDLC launched in 2014.She was an Ascendant Hive Wizard and Crota’s mate. He held her in high regard, as she was the one who led his armies.
Omnigul was there when Eris Morn’s fireteam raided the moon’s Hellmouth, and she personally killed the Hunter, Sai Mota, at the World’s Grave. When Crota fell, she attempted to bring him back through a ritual, but she was stopped at the end of the Will of Crota Strike set in the Cosmodrome.
11Zulmak Was A Contender For Oryx’s Throne
Zulmak was the final boss ofShadowkeep’s Pit of Heresy Dungeon, and he was a powerful Hive Knight who was reanimated by Hashladûn and her sisters. He became a Nightmare hybrid, and wielded a massive sword. He could also generate andcontrol fire.
At the time of his first death, Zulmak had made a name for himself by fighting in gladiatorial combat in the Pit. He wished to Ascend to become a Hive Prince, and it got to the point that Crota considered him to be a possble contender to Oryx’s throne.
10Nokris Could Use Powerful Magic
Compared to other expansions,Warmindwasn’t that good, but it did introduce players to Nokris, the estranged son of Oryx. Nokris may have been a Hive God, but compared to his brother and father, he wasn’t physically strong, which is why he resorted to learning magic and hoarding knowledge.
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While trying to impress his father, Nokris met with the Worm God, Xol, who agreed to teach him necromancy. This gave Nokris a great deal of power, but his father considered him to be a heretic because his magic violated the Hive’s belief of survival of the fittest, so he disowned him and sent him into exile.
9The High Celebrant of Xivu Arath Could Withstand Osiris' Light
Xivu Arath wanted to consolidate her power in the solar system once Savathûn went into hiding, and she sent her Celebrant to create an army of corrupted Wrathborn. The Celebrant was an Ascendant Knight, and it was the main villain ofForsaken’s Season of the Hunt.
Osiris is considered to be one ofthe strongest Guardians in history, and when he stumbled across the Celebrant and a number of Hive nobility on the moon, he unleashed his Light and obliterated everyone. The Celebrant survived though, and it went on to cause Sagira’s death.
8Ir Halak & Ir Anûk Created & Mastered The Deathsong
Oryx’s sons have received a great deal of attention throughout the series, but what new players may not know is that the Taken King also had twin daughters. Ir Halak and Ir Anûk started out as a single larvae, but Oryx cut it in half to see if it would survive, and both halves ended up surviving.
Oryx praised his daughters for their cunning and intellect, and Ir Halak was especially favored. This is because she created the Deathsong, which Wizards use to corrupt, kill, and destroy those who hear it.
7Golgoroth Was Specifically Created To Kill Oryx
Forsakendid a lot of things right, including its raid, which pitted players against a massive Taken Ogre. Morgeth may have been strong, but even he wouldn’t be a match for the mighty Golgoroth, who became one of Oryx’s strongest champions.
Xol created Golgoroth for one reason: to devour Oryx and his family, but another Worm God intervened. Once Golgoroth was on Oryx’s side, the Taken King placed one of the Tablets of Ruin into the Ogre’s flesh to deter Crota from taking it.
6Malok Was A Prime Candidate To Take Orxy’s Vacant Throne
Oryx’s demise created a major power vacuum within the Hive, and one of the leading candidates to replace him was his nephew, Malok. This former Hive Prince was Savathûn’s son, and he selfishly took tribute that was meant for Oryx.
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As punishment, Malok was taken and forced to pledge loyalty to his uncle, but Oryx allowed him to maintain some of his free will. Unlike other Taken, Malok was able to control and empower Taken Blights, which was an ability that only Oryx had previously been capable of.
5Alak-Hul Was Powerful Enough To Become King Of The Hive
The Darkblades are extremely powerful Knights, and Alak-Hul was arguably the strongest of them all. He wielded a massive axe, which he used to kill the Titan Vell Tarlowe, who was part of the fireteam that tried to assassinate Crota in the Hellmouth. Alak-Hul was like a son to Oryx, but the Darkblade attempted to usurp him.
This rebellion failed, and Oryx had Alak-Hul imprisoned aboard the Dreadnaught, where he attempted to consolidate power after his captor’s death. Eris Morn was the one who ordered Alak-Hul’s execution because he had the ability to replace Oryx as the King of the Hive. It turns out that Alak-Hul was worthy enough to be resurrected by a Ghost, and with his new life,he became the very first Lightblade. He is once again the final boss of his own Strike, except this time, he does not die because his Ghost manages to escape.
