Cloth (Saint Seiya)

is a fictional type of body armor presented in the popular manga series Saint Seiya, written and illustrated by the renowned japanese mangaka Masami Kurumada. Cloths are an ever-present and recurring theme throughout the entirety of Saint Seiya, and also appear in the anime adaptation and in all related media of the franchise.

Whithin the universe of Kurumada's work, as well as in its storyline, Cloths are objects of substantial importance, as they appear throughout the series as motivation and helpers to the protagonist characters.

In Kurumada's mythos, the Cloths are armor of divine origins, whose ownership and wear is only granted to those who attain the status of Saints of Athena, an army of warriors capable of superhuman feats, guardians of the goddess. The Cloths' designs are inspired by the 88 constellations of astronomy, and when not worn, they are shaped as the constellation they represent.

Fictional description

Throughout Kurumada's work, the many traits of the Cloths are revealed constantly.

The Cloths date from the age of myths of Ancient Greece, and their purpose is to protect the bodies of Athena's Saints, who although they possess superhuman strength, their bodies remain as vulnerable as those of ordinary humans. The Cloths are forged and composed of three singular elements: the mythical metal Gammanium , which is contained in larger proportion in the alloy , Orichalcum also is part of their composition, and finally, Star Dust Sand.

There are as many Cloths as there are constellations. As the Saints face constant threat of death, a guardian constellation watches over their life, and the Cloths represent the destined constellation of the bearer.

They are also described as living beings, capable of healing themselves and regenerate damaged areas if left to rest inside their Pandora Box, an ornamented metallic container which serves as storage and resting place, for some time; although if damage is extreme, the Cloths die. In such case, the only way to bring them back to life is by means of bathing them in abundant human blood. The Cloths also protect the bearer from extreme temperatures, although if subjected to sub-zero temperatures, the Cloths can become dormant or shatter completely due to cryogenic cristalization.

The Cloths also emit a form of sonic reverberation. The Bronze Cloths did so when they were in the presence of the Sagittarius Gold Cloth in vol.1 of the manga, and also the Gold Cloths emit these vibrations when the 12 Cloths are gathered in the same place. The Gold Cloths also use it to call each other when needed in battle.

Three ranks of Cloths exist, which match the rank of the wearer in the ranks of Athena's Army. Although the rank names utilizes the name of common metals bronze, silver and gold, these don't form part of the composition of the Cloths. The ranks are described as follows:

• : The lowest rank. They are granted to Bronze Saints and have the lowest level of resiliency. They are less ornamented and cover less body area. Their freezing point is below -150º Celsius. According to Kurumada's canon, there are 47 Bronze Cloths.

• : The second rank. They are granted to Silver Saints, and possess a much higher level of resiliency. They cover more body area and are more beautiful and ornamented than Bronze Cloths. Their freezing point is below -200º Celsius. According to Kurumada's canon, there are 29 Bronze Cloths.

• : The highest rank. They represent the 12 constellations of the zodiac. They are golden-hued and are extremely durable. Very ornamented and beautiful. Their qualities surpass those of Bronze and Silver Cloths by far, and they cover most body areas. To become frozen the temperature must reach absolute zero. They are extremely durable, as they have never been destroyed or damaged seriously since the ages of myth, a feat only the god of death Thanatos was capable of accomplishing. They complete the 88 Cloths.

Additionaly, one more type of Cloth exist. They are known as , (known as Ankoku Cloth in the anime adaptation). They are dark imitations of each one of the 88 Cloths, worn by the renegade faction known as the Black Saints. They are less durable than true Cloths, but judging from their bearers' battle prowess, seem to possess traits similar to those described in true Cloths. The Black Cloths don't form part of Athena's army.

Also, appears in the final volumes of the manga. The enormous statue in the image of Athena found at Sanctuary, changes from stone to a beautiful suit of body armor, when bathed in the blood of the goddess, indispensable for her to overcome the threat of Hades.

In the videogame Saint Seiya: Ōgon Densetsu Hen for the Famicon, a type of Cloth known as the , was featured. It was described as a Cloth of unknown type, and it was a bonus created only for the videogame, and it is not part of the Saint Seiya canon.

In case of need of Cloth repairing, a specialist in such art is required. During the course of Kurumada's comic, the one responsible for this task is Gold Saint Aries Mu, master of the techniques required.

Abilities and use

As the Cloths are not simply suits of armor, but living beings, they possess many qualities and abilities. Mastery of Cosmo is indispensable to wear them, as muscle and Cosmo must cooperate to utilize the Cloths. If the wearer has no mastery over Cosmo, the Cloths will be to him/her nothing more than a very heavy shell.

Some of their qualities, are listed as follows:

• Sentience: They possess a form of consciousness and are capable of discerning if their bearer if worthy of such honor. They serve only to good and are extremely loyal to the goddess Athena and their bearer, if he or she is deemed worthy as a Saint. They will not allow servants of evil to wear them, as evident when the Cancer Gold Cloth abandoned its bearer Cancer Deathmask . They are also fierce and are always willing to go into battle to protect Earth's peace, no matter the risks.

• Movement: The Cloths are capable of independent movement by means of flying. They can leave their Pandora Boxes and take the form of a radiant shooting star, to transport themselves to where they can be needed. To date, Kurumada has showed this ability only on Gold Cloths. The Cloths can also leave their Boxes and disassemble, to envelop their bearer's body instantly.

• Cosmo augmenting: As stated in vol.1 of Kurumada's Saint Seiya manga, the Cloths possess a Cosmo of their own, and are capable of magnifying their bearer's Cosmo by many times. The more the bearer flares his Cosmo, the more power the Cloths endow him with.

• Self-healing: As stated before, the Cloths are capable of restoring themselves, provided damage is not critical, and they're allowed to rest for some time. The legendary Phoenix Cloth, worn by Phoenix Ikki, is the only Cloth that is effectively impossible to destroy, as it can resurrect from its ashes, without the need of reparation or human blood.

• Energy radiation: As the Gold Cloths represent the 12 constellations in the sun's ecliptic, they have spent millennia absorbing and storing solar radiation. Only the Gold Cloths are endowed with this ability, and they are capable of releasing the stored energy in the form of an extremely powerful burst of light, that pierces and destroys anything in its path. Such ability was displayed in the Underworld, and the Gold Cloths were able to pierce the otherwise indestructible Wailing Wall.

Also, some Cloths include pieces that can be used as weapons, such as the Cerberus Cloth's flails, the Auriga Cloth's discus, the Sagittarius Gold Cloth's bow and arrow, among others. The Libra Gold Cloth is a similar case, as it breaks down in 6 pairs of real weapons.

Certain Cloths also are endowed with unique traits, such as the Cygnus Cloth, which feels as if frozen when touched, the Dragon Cloth, which is endowed with the greatest resiliency among Bronze and Silver Cloths, the Hydra Cloth, that can regenerate its "fangs" without limit, the Perseus Cloth, which includes the fearsome Medusa Shield, capable of petrifying living beings, among others.

Evolution

Throughout the series, the Cloths undergo several reparations, through which their appearance changes and their power and endurance increases. To date, Kurumada has showed these evolutions only on Bronze Cloths.

The first evolution occurs when the Pegasus and Dragon Cloths are repaired by Aries Mu, first being revived with Dragon Shiryū's blood. Kurumada redesigned these Cloths in this occasion, more notably the Pegasus Cloth. In the animation, the events occurred in the same manner as the source material, but the Cloths' designs remained the same. The endurance of the Cloths was also greatly increased.

The second evolution occurs before the battle of the Twelve Temples, when the four Bronze Cloths of the protagonists were once again repaired by Aries Mu. Their design changed little in this occasion, but their endurance was also increased again.

A third evolution takes place after the battle of the Twelve Temples, shortly before the 'Poseidon' arc. The Bronze Cloths were completely shattered at the end of the conflict of the Twelve Temples, so they had to be revived with human blood, which was granted by the Gold Saints. The Bronze Cloths were revived, with a new appearance, and their endurance and power was much increased, coming close to that of Gold Cloths. By effect of the Gold Saints' blood, the Bronze Cloths color changed to a golden hue, when their bearer flared their Cosmo to the maximum.

The fourth evolution takes place during the 'Hades' arc. Before going into the Underworld, Aries Shion bathes the Bronze Cloths, which were extremely damaged at the time, with the blood of the goddess Athena. By receiving the blood of the goddess, the Cloths reach a way of perfection impossible to achieve with human blood, and regenerate instantly, becoming even more powerful and durable, with a renewed appearance.

The final and most powerful stage of evolution is reached at the end of the 'Hades' arc, during the invasion of the Bronze Saints of the Elysion fields. Having been bathed in divine blood, the Bronze Cloths were capable of resurrecting the legendary God Cloth state, after their wearers flared their Cosmo past the limits of the 7th sense and reached the 8th sense. The God Cloths' power and endurance is very close to the ', the armors worn only by the gods, and their appearance is dramatically changed, becoming armors of impressive beauty. As revealed by Kurumada in Saint Seiya Next Dimension, the continuation of his original manga, the God Cloth state is an illusory one, as the Bronze Cloths revert back to their normal form once the threat of evil has been vanquished.

Known Cloths

As the number of existing Cloths is relatively high, Masami Kurumada has yet to display most of them. The number of Cloths he has revealed to date is 43.

In the canon, the known Cloths are:

In the Bronze category: Pegasus, Cygnus, Dragon, Andromeda, Phoenix, Bear, Lionet, Unicorn, Wolf, Hydra and Chamaeleon, eleven in total.

In the Silver category: Lizard, Eagle, Ophiuchus, Centaurus, Whale, Hound, Crow, Perseus, Cerberus, Auriga, Musca, Heracles, Canis Major, Sagitta, Cepheus, Lyra and Crateris. The Cloths worn by Eris' Ghost Saints, that appear in the first Saint Seiya theatrical release, were created and designed by Masami Kurumada, thus they are considered part of the canon; these are Southern Cross, Orion and Scutum, the Sagitta and Lyra Cloths also appeared both in the original manga and in the first movie, albeit the Lyra Cloth has a different color in the movie from the one appearing in the anime adaptation. 20 in total.

In the Gold category: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. 12 in total.

A few more Cloths representing other constellations appear in the spin-off works Saint Seiya Episode G and Saint Seiya Lost Canvas, although they aren't part of the Saint Seiya canon.

Other types of armor

Besides the Saints' Cloths, other types of body armor appear throught Saint Seiya. They are worn by the equivalents of the Saints in the armies of Poseidon and Hades, and possess traits and abilities similar to those of the Cloths.

They are listed as follows:

• : Worn by the seven commanders of Poseidon's army, the Mariner Generals.

• : Worn by the 108 soldiers of the army of Hades, the Specters.