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Raven

Rachel Roth

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Raven

Real Name

Personas

Rachel Roth is the daughter of the interdimensional demon Trigon, a malicious and powerful being that seeks to conquer and enslave the people of Earth—and whose dark powers and influence were passed down to his daughter. Raised in the alternate dimension of Azarath, the half-human, half-demon grew up having to learn how to control her emotions in order to suppress her demonic powers. But while Rachel must avoid experiencing any sort of extreme feeling, one of her demonic abilities allows her to feel and control the emotions of others—letting her experience their sorrow, happiness, joy, loss and more.

Now known as Raven, she is extremely powerful, gifted with magical, psychic and telekinetic powers as well as the ability to manipulate energy, emotion and shadows. However, despite her vast abilities, the one thing Rachel wants the most is the one thing she cannot have: to be normal. She is forever cursed to never truly be herself because of the constant threat of destruction that comes with it.

Despite her need to maintain emotional control, she has formed a tight bond with the Teen Titans, considering them her only real family. She is willing do anything to protect them, even if it means surrendering to her own darkness and sacrificing her life in the process. Reserved, distant and secretive, Raven’s never quite sure how close to let anyone get, or how much she can trust herself to maintain control. But those who do get close? They have a loyal and powerful friend in their corner for life...and sometimes beyond.

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Character History

As she grew up in Gotham City, Rachel's mother Angela (later Arella) Roth fell in with a group of occultists who convinced her to participate in a ritual that would summon the demon lord Trigon to Earth. When Trigon did manifest, however, he took the form of a human man—not the monstrous, red giant she would later come to know as his true form. Arella was seduced by Trigon, married him and became pregnant with his child before he revealed the truth to her.

Horrified, Arella used the arcane teachings she’d learned to flee to a dimension between all forms of existence called Azarath. It was here that Raven was born. On Azarath, Raven was taken under the wing of a mystic named Azar who taught her to control her emotions in order to curb the energy in her bloodline. Azar’s theory was that any strong emotion—positive or negative—could potentially weaken Raven’s defenses and make her susceptible to Trigon’s influence.

But Trigon wasn’t so easily deceived. His looming threat would eventually force Raven to leave Azarath in search of ways to stop him once and for all, a process that would inspire her to become a Super Hero.

CREATORS: Marv Wolfman and George Pérez

FIRST APPEARANCE: DC Comics Presents #26 (1980)