You probably remember that first moment. The steam. That massive, skinless hand gripping the top of Wall Maria. It changed everything. Suddenly, the "titans" weren't just mindless giants eating people; they were something deeper, weirder, and way more political. If you’ve finished Hajime Isayama’s masterpiece, you know that all the titans in Attack on Titan aren't just monsters. They're a legacy. A curse. A weapon system that lasted two thousand years.
Honestly, it’s easy to get lost in the lore. You've got the Founding Titan, the Attack Titan, and a bunch of others that seem to switch sides every five minutes. It’s a lot. But when you strip away the layers of Marleyan propaganda and Eldian mythology, you’re left with nine specific powers. These are the Shifters.
The Founding Titan: The God of the Walls
This is the big one. The Coordinate. Without the Founding Titan, the whole story basically doesn't happen. It’s the "alpha" that can control every other Titan and even alter the memories of the Subjects of Ymir.
Think about King Fritz. He used this power to build the walls and then literally gaslit an entire civilization into forgetting the outside world existed. That’s terrifying. The Founder isn't just about physical strength; it’s about total psychological and biological control. However, there’s a catch—the Vow Renouncing War. Because of Karl Fritz’s ideology, any royal who inherited the Founder became a pacifist puppet. It took someone like Eren Yeager, who wasn't of royal blood, to actually "unlock" the true, horrific potential of the Founder through a loophole involving Zeke.
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The Founder connects all Eldians through "Paths." It's like a cosmic, invisible nervous system. When Eren finally screams and the walls crumble, that’s the Founder at work. It's the ultimate power, but it’s also a cage for anyone who holds it.
The Attack Titan: Why Eren Never Stopped
The Attack Titan is unique. It’s the only one that doesn't seem to care about the "Will of the King." It has fought for freedom across every generation. But here’s what most people miss: its special ability isn't just "being strong" or "being angry."
It can see the future. Sorta.
To be specific, an Attack Titan successor can see the memories of future inheritors. This creates a bootstrap paradox that makes your head hurt. Eren didn't just follow a path; he basically paved it for himself from the future. When Eren Kruger told Grisha to save "Mikasa and Armin" before those kids were even born, that was the Attack Titan’s power leaking through time. It is the personification of momentum. It’s the titan that cannot be stopped because it has already seen its own victory.
The Colossal and the Armored: The Shield and the Hammer
We have to talk about Bertholdt and Reiner. They were the "villains" who started it all, but they were really just kids with too much power.
The Colossal Titan is a walking tactical nuke. It’s sixty meters of pure heat. Its main move isn't even punching; it’s just existing. The transformation itself creates a massive explosion that can level a city. But it’s slow. Extremely slow. If you don't finish the fight in the first five minutes, you’re basically a giant, steaming target.
Then you have the Armored Titan. Reiner’s signature. On paper, it’s invincible. Hardened plates cover its entire body. In reality? The Armored Titan loses almost every fight it’s in. Why? Because as the technology in the Attack on Titan world advanced, armor became less of an advantage and more of a weight. Anti-titan artillery and the Scouts' Thunder Spears turned the Armored Titan from a juggernaut into a glass cannon. It’s a great metaphor for Reiner’s own mental state—tough on the outside, completely crumbling on the inside.
The Female Titan’s Versatility
Annie Leonhart’s Female Titan is arguably the most versatile of all the titans in Attack on Titan. It doesn't have one "gimmick" like the Colossal's size. Instead, it’s an all-rounder.
- High Stamina: She can run for a long time.
- Hardening: Selective hardening makes her kicks lethal.
- Titan Attraction: She can scream and draw mindless titans to her location.
Marley used Annie for "sampling." Basically, the Female Titan could manifest abilities from other titans by consuming parts of them. That's why she can harden like the Armored or call titans like the Founder (on a smaller scale). She’s a jack-of-all-trades, and in the hands of a martial arts expert like Annie, she was the deadliest opponent the Scouts ever faced in the early days.
The Beast, the Jaw, and the Cart: The Specialists
These three are where the designs get really weird.
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The Beast Titan usually just looks like a big ape, but it changes depending on the shifter. Since Zeke Yeager loved baseball, he turned the Beast into a long-range artillery unit. He threw rocks so hard they functioned like shotgun blasts. Because Zeke had royal blood, his Beast Titan could also turn people into titans using his spinal fluid and command them with a scream. Without Zeke, the Beast is just a hairy giant. With him, it's a commander.
The Jaw Titan is all about speed. It’s small. It’s fierce. It has hardened teeth and claws that can even crush the crystal cocoons made by the Warhammer. We saw multiple versions of this—Ymir’s version looked like a goblin, while Falco’s version eventually grew wings. Yeah, a flying titan. That was a game-changer in the final battle.
The Cart Titan is the unsung hero of the Marleyan military. Pieck Finger stayed in titan form for months at a time. It’s a quadrupedal tank. Marley literally strapped machine-gun turrets to her back. It’s not "cool" in a traditional sense, but its endurance is unmatched. Pieck can transform hundreds of times in a row while other shifters burn out after one or two.
The War Hammer Titan: The Forgotten Power
We didn't see the War Hammer Titan until late in the series, but it was a terrifying reveal. Held by the Tybur family, it stays hidden. Unlike the other eight, the shifter doesn't sit in the neck. They hide in a crystal underground, connected by a long "umbilical cord" of flesh.
It can create anything out of hardened titan flesh. Spikes, swords, crossbows, a literal giant hammer. It’s basically a 3D printer for weapons. Eren only beat it because he realized the "cord" was its weakness and used the Jaw Titan's mouth as a nutcracker. It was a brutal, short-lived display of peak titan evolution.
Why the Titan Numbers Matter
You might wonder why there are specifically nine. In the lore, after Ymir Fritz died, her soul was split into nine pieces. This created the Great Titan War, where Eldian noble families spent centuries backstabbing each other for control of these powers.
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It’s a cycle of trauma. To inherit one of all the titans in Attack on Titan, you have to eat the previous person. You inherit their memories. You inherit their sins. And because of the "Curse of Ymir," you only get 13 years to live once you take the power. It’s not a gift; it’s a death sentence that comes with a cool transformation.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Theorists
If you're trying to keep the lore straight or writing your own analysis, keep these nuances in mind:
- Memory Leakage: Shifters aren't just themselves; they are influenced by the past. Armin’s feelings for Annie were arguably influenced by Bertholdt’s memories. When analyzing a character's motive, check who they ate.
- The Spine Connection: The "source of all living matter" (that glowing centipede thing) is the biological root. Titans aren't magic; they are a prehistoric biological anomaly.
- Technological Obsolescence: One of the biggest themes in the later seasons is that titans are becoming obsolete. Man-made cannons can now kill them. This is why Marley was so desperate to get the Founding Titan—they knew their "Titan advantage" was expiring.
To truly understand the ending of the series, you have to look at these nine powers as a single entity that wanted to be free. Eren’s final choice wasn't just about destroying his enemies; it was about ending the biological nightmare that started with a girl falling into a tree 2,000 years ago.
Next Steps for Deep Lore Enthusiasts:
Go back and re-watch Season 1, specifically the scenes where Eren first transforms. Notice how the lightning (the transformation spark) comes from the sky. It’s a direct link to the Paths. Also, pay close attention to the "titans in the walls" during the end credits of Season 2—the clues for the Rumbling were there almost a decade before the finale aired. Check out the "Attack on Titan Character Encyclopedia" for specific height and weight stats that Isayama confirmed for each of the nine forms.