The Witches of the Marvel Universe

From Thor's enchanted hammer to the halls of Doctor Strange's Strange Academy, magic courses through the veins of the Marvel Universe. While dozens of heroes and villains call upon the mystic arts in some way, every magic user has a different path to wielding power. Some call upon almighty cosmic beings, others wield weapons of ancient power, and many walk down the Witches' Road. 

Now, let's take a closer look at Agatha Harkness, the Scarlet Witch, and the other witches of the Marvel Universe. Whether they practice witchcraft, describe themselves as witches, or draw upon different sources of dark magical power, these women help make the Marvel Universe an enchanted place.

AGATHA HARKNESS

Although Agatha Harkness is an ancient being who survived the Salem Witch Trials, she debuted as the magical guardian of Franklin Richards in FANTASTIC FOUR (1961) #94 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Agatha eventually mentored Wanda Maximoff and taught her about her magical abilities. 

When Mephisto absorbed the spirits of Wanda's sons, Agatha erased the Scarlet Witch's memories to stabilize her, but Wanda later killed her in retaliation. Nevertheless, her ghost continued to advise Wanda. Eventually, the spirit of Wanda's late mother Natalya Maximoff revived Agatha on the Witches' Road. 

During her tenure at the Strange Academy, Agatha was physically de-aged. She also created a new version of the Darkhold, a powerful spellbook, in the form of a child during this time.

SCARLET WITCH

Before Wanda Maximoff became an Avenger who reshaped reality, she debuted as the Scarlet Witch with Magneto's Brotherhood of Evil Mutants in UNCANNY X-MEN (1963) #1 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Unaware that her biological mother was also a sorceress called the Scarlet Witch, Wanda joined the Avengers with her brother, Quicksilver. 

As she honed her natural chaos magic abilities, Wanda married the Vision and had two sons, who were erased from existence when they were revealed to be aspects of Mephisto. That ordeal sent Wanda into a downward spiral that resulted in the disassembly of the Avengers and the depowering of most mutants. Eventually, Wanda recovered, found balance, made peace with the mutants, and rejoined the Avengers.

JENNIFER KALE

Carrying on her family's history with the Cult of Zhered-Na, Jennifer Kale debuted in ADVENTURE INTO FEAR (1970) #11 by Steve Gerber and Rich Buckler. Based out of the Florida Everglades, Jennifer is a close ally of Man-Thing and has used her Atlantean magic to help the creature guard reality numerous times. 

In addition to helping heroes like Ghost Rider (Danny Ketch), Jennifer frequently works alongside supernatural heroes in groups like the Legion of Night and Doctor Strange's Witches. Jennifer also played a crucial role in saving the Marvel Universe from a Marvel Zombies invasion, starting in MARVEL ZOMBIES 3 (2008) #1 by Fred Van Lente and Kev Walker. 

LILIA CALDERU

Although Doctor Strange may be the Sorcerer Supreme, Lilia Calderu was powerful enough to put him under her spell in MARVEL PREMIERE (1972) #12 by Steve Englehart, Mike Friedrich, and Frank Brunner. After wielding mystical objects like the Book of Cagliostro, the Witch-Queen had a brief affair with Baron Mordo, and Strange's mystical nemesis stole the book from her. Calderu took control of Strange and had him retrieve the book for her. Despite her impressive feats, Calderu was mortally wounded by a beast called the Living Gargoyle, which Strange killed.

ALICE GULLIVER (THE WU)

Before she became the sorceress known as the Wu, Alice Gulliver was the daughter of a police detective and August Wu of the Coral Shore, the mystical protector of Hong Kong. After a demon killed her mother, Alice inherited her mother's mystical powers and duties. 

Alice mixed magic with her police work when she debuted in a DOCTOR STRANGE: LAST DAYS OF MAGIC (2016) #1 story by James Robinson and Mike Perkins. With the Scarlet Witch, she faced Dark Tongji and shot the criminal magician dead.

MORGAN LE FAY

Originally hailing from the legends of King Arthur, the powerful ancient sorceress Morgan Le Fay stepped into the Marvel Universe in BLACK KNIGHT (1955) #1 by Stan Lee and Joe Maneely. Having studied under Merlin, Morgan has experience across several mystical disciplines, including faerie and Celtic magic. 

After romancing Doctor Doom, Morgan battled heroes like Spider-Woman and the Avengers. She also tried to raise Atlantis to the surface of the ocean in the modern day. Since betraying Doom and escaping his wrath, she has focused her efforts on Captain Britain and the mutant heroes of Excalibur.

MAGIK

Although Illyana Rasputin is one of Marvel's most fearsome mystics today, she was merely Colossus' little sister when she debuted in GIANT-SIZE X-MEN (1975) #1 by Len Wein and Dave Cockrum. After the demon Belasco trapped her in the hellish Limbo dimension, Ilyana learned white magic from an alternate reality Storm and taught herself black magic from Belasco's library. 

With her Soulsword, Magik escaped, joined the New Mutants, and eventually took over Limbo. Although she has since relinquished that title to Madelyne Pryor, Magik is a central member of the X-Men and one of the world's most skilled mystics. 

TOPAZ

Although the sorceress Topaz is a powerful magician, she spent her early years with Jack Russell. She helped the Werewolf by Night calm the beast within starting in WEREWOLF BY NIGHT (1972) #13 by Marv Wolfman and Mike Ploog. 

Between her innate magical abilities, telepathic powers, and the instruction of her teacher Taboo, Topaz was strong enough to face powerhouses like Dracula and Mephisto. After studying under Doctor Strange, she joined his coven, the Witches, and began fighting supernatural threats in WITCHES (2004) #1 by Brian Patrick Walsh and Mike Deodato Jr.

SATANA HELLSTROM

As the sister of Daimon Hellstorm, Satana has used her hellish mystical powers to help and hunt Marvel's heroes since she debuted in a VAMPIRE TALES (1973) #2 story by Roy Thomas and John Romita. After saving Doctor Strange, she completed his Witches team and helped the coven take on her demonic father. 

In addition to serving as a Hell Lord, this succubus has joined the Thunderbolts, briefly married Deadpool, and teamed up with heroes like Blade and Ghost Rider (Johnny Blaze). Satana currently operates the 2nd Circle, a nightclub that welcomes both humans and supernatural entities.

SATURNYNE

Opal Luna Saturnyne is the commander of the Captain Britain Corps and one of the Multiverse's key leaders. Since debuting in a UK-exclusive story by Dave Thorpe and Alan Davis, the "White Witch" has frequently encountered former Captain Britain Brian Braddock, current Captain Britain Betsy Braddock, and the heroes of Excalibur. 

With reality-warping magic and access to infinite technology, Saturnyne keeps order across the Multiverse as the Omniversal Majestrix. To save the mystical realm of Otherworld from all-out war, Saturnyne organized the X OF SWORDS tournament between the X-Men and battle-hungry lost mutants of Arakko.

NICO MINORU

After learning their parents were secretly part of a villainous conspiracy, Nico Minoru and her friends ran away from home in RUNAWAYS (2003) #1 by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona. Like her parents, Nico can use blood magic to summon the Staff of One, which can cast any magical spell once. 

After taking the name Sister Grimm, Nico studied magic under her great-grandmother, the Witchbreaker. She continued her studies under Hellstorm. Nico was one of several young heroes Arcade kidnapped and forced to fight in his lethal tournament, and she now mentors the next generation of mystics at Strange Academy.  

MARGALI SZARDOS

After Mystique and Destiny lost their infant son Nightcrawler, the sorceress Margali Szardos adopted the young mutant in X-MEN ANNUAL (1970) #4 by Chris Claremont and John Romita Jr. As a practitioner of the Winding Way, Margali's magic ebbs and flows between extremes, which has occasionally set her against Nightcrawler. 

To increase her powers, Margali recently cast a spell that transformed Nightcrawler into a mindless beast and turned his hope into a physical weapon: the Hopesword. However, Margali and her power were then absorbed by Mother Righteous, another mystic she owed.

AMANDA SEFTON

The daughter of Margali Szardos, Amanda Sefton debuted in UNCANNY X-MEN (1963) #98 by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum as another follower of the Winding Way. Originally named Jimaine Sdzardos, Amanda grew up with Nightcrawler, and the pair rekindled their long-simmering romance as adults. 

As Daytripper and later Magik, Amanda helped Nightcrawler on a few missions with the X-Men and joined him in Excalibur. After briefly ruling over the Limbo dimension, Amanda seemingly sacrificed her life to save Nightcrawler and close a portal between Earth and the afterlife.

CYNTHIA VON DOOM

Before Victor Von Doom became Doctor Doom, he was the son of Cynthia Von Doom, a skilled witch who debuted in ASTONISHING TALES (1970) #8 by Gerry Conway and Gene Colan. To punish the Latverian Baron who persecuted her and her people, Cynthia made a deal with Mephisto to empower herself. 

After seeing her newfound power kill children, Cynthia renounced it, and Mephisto took her soul upon her death. Doctor Doom made several unsuccessful attempts to outfox Mephisto, then used his mystic knowledge to save his mother's soul and send it to a better afterlife with help from Doctor Strange. When Doom briefly operated as a heroic Iron Man, Mephisto created a mystical copy of Cynthia to torment Doom.

LORE

Hailing from an alternate universe shaped by necromancy and death magic, Lore is a Wanda Maximoff variant who stands as a dark warning of what the Scarlet Witch could become. As she crossed dimensions to kill nexus beings and absorb their mystical power, she faced Wanda in SCARLET WITCH (1994) #1 by Andy Lanning, Dan Abnett, and John Higgins. When Lore tried to call on the spirits of her victims, Wanda freed them and defeated her dark counterpart. 

While trapped in the afterlife, Wanda faced Lore again in SCARLET WITCH (2024) #3 by Steve Orlando and Jacopo Camagni. Now ruling the Witches' Underworld, the necromancer gleefully uses her power to block the path back to the land of the living.

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