- "The Man who does no perish at the blade of Ra's al Ghul, will become Ra's al Ghul"
- —Malcolm Merlyn
This article is about the title of Ra's al Ghul. For the current holder of the title, visit Malcolm Merlyn. Ra's al Ghul (Arabic: رأس الغول Raʾs al-Ġūl; Demon's Head) is a title held by those who are the leader of the League of Assassins. To date there have been at least four.
Overview
This title applies to all Ra's al Ghul successors, but Oliver was chosen to be the next Ra's al Ghul because he survived a battle against the current Ra's al Ghul. Whoever holds the title of Ra's al Ghul leads the League of Assassins and has access to supernatural waters which can heal wounds and grant the user the ability to live for much longer than the normal human life span. The water's effects, however, are not permanent and lose their effect on the user after an unknown solid period of time, requiring the current Ra's al Ghul to find a successor before his time runs out.
To ensure the person fully commits to the duties of Ra's al Ghul, the final requirement to becoming Ra's is for the person to destroy the place they originated from.
Known users
- Ra's al Ghul's predecessor (deceased)
- "Ra's al Ghul" (deceased)
- Oliver Queen (briefly; formerly)
- Malcolm Merlyn
Trivia
- Three men that held this title have at least one illegitimate child, Nyssa al Ghul, William, and Thea Queen.
- Possible candidates to succeed Ra's al Ghul are called horsemen.
Behind the scenes
- According to Andrew Kreisberg at WonderCon 2015, members of the league pronounce it as "Raish"; others pronounce it as "Ra's".[1]