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{{trope}}
{{cleanup|The description needs a rewrite. Self-demonstrating articles are fun as subpages, but not as the main page.}}
[[File:ExorcistBeforeAndAfter 758.jpg|link=The Exorcist|frame|[[Army of Darkness|"Honey, you got ''real'' ugly."]]]]
{{quote|''As the humble spirit you now see before you, I am free to cross over and possess any human I wish, enabling me to undo the sacred spells that keep you here. If you so deem it.''|'''Shendu''', '''''[[
Why hello there! [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast|Kelvek the Seducer]] welcomes you to her den of decadence. What? Of course [[Third
[[I Have You Now, My Pretty|You see]], [[Terms of Endangerment|my pretty]], Kelvek the Seducer has taken Demonic Possession of [[Showing Off the New Body|this fragile and beautiful body]] from its [[Split Personality Takeover|rightful owner.]] How did she do this? Oh, there are so many [[Evil Tastes Good|delectable ways!]]
# First, by taking over an [[Empty Shell]] or once a mortal's [[Deal
# Secondly you can always forcibly take over anyone foolish enough not to realize [[Evil Is Not a Toy]]. The [[Religion of Evil]] and other [[Religious Horror|foul]] [[Cult
# The third way is popular among [[Mummy|mummies]] and [[Sealed Evil in
# A fourth way is to let the victim think he is possessing ''you!'' First, you let them think that by summoning and then "[[Bondage Is Bad|binding]]" you <small>*[[Noblewoman's Laugh|Ohohoho]]*</small> they will get [[Powers Via Possession]], but they never [[Read the Fine Print]] in this [[Deal
[[Puppeteer Parasite]] can do this with science, but it lacks a certain ''je ne sais quoi.'' [[The Virus]] on the other hand simply cores out the host's mind like an apple, effectively "[[Loss of Identity|killing]]" the original personality and soul of the host immediately. And the [[Living Doll Collector]] uses [[People Puppets]], how ingenious! What amazes Kelvek the Seducer is that you humans [[Grand Theft Me|do it]] to [[Astral Projection|each other]], not that it isn't [[Evil Is Sexy|deliciously kinky]]. Also, though it shames Kelvek the Seducer to admit it, this trope is not solely restricted to demons. Angelic Possession works in precisely the same way, except that those feathery hypocrites don't know how to have ''fun'' with it.
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Hmm, you aren't bad looking yourself. Would you mind terribly if I "[[Trouble Entendre|change clothes]]"...?
{{examples}}▼
▲{{examples}}
== Anime and Manga ==
* The preferred method of the demonic space entity known as the Obsidian Lord, the true [[Big Bad]] of ''[[
* This is what is implied to be the relationship between [[Creepy Child|Ai Enma]] and Yuzuki Mikage, a new character in ''[[Hell Girl
* This is how [[Devilman]] works. In the manga, it's very pronounced, since anyone can be possessed the instant they succumb to acting on instinct. Naturally, bars and nightclubs prove great places for demons to go to possess people since there are so few inhibitions in them.
* Any non-Gatekeeper human in ''[[Gate Keepers|Gatekeepers 21]]'' who succumbs to the dark emotions is susceptible to being possessed by [[Demonic Invaders|The Invaders.]] ''Any'' dark emotion. Even complaining about kids in your taxi.
** [[Fridge Logic|Think about it.]] Swearing to yourself because you stubbed your toe can result in your [[Our Souls Are Different|eternal soul]] being taken over. "[[Gosh Dang It to Heck]] that hurt! Stupid rock! I oughtta... BLARGH!"
* Dark Nova possessed Optimus Prime for a while in ''[[Transformers Return of Convoy]]'', but Sky Garry manages to save him.
* Shinou, the original king of the demons in ''[[Kyou Kara Maou]]'' has done this a couple of times to Wolfram (who, interstingly enough, is also a demon {{spoiler|and may or may not be Shinou's [[Identical Grandson]]}}). The first time this happened because {{spoiler|Shinou himself was posessed by some [[Sealed Evil in
* Happens to {{spoiler|Ling Yao}} in ''[[Fullmetal Alchemist]]''. He accepts Father's Philosopher's Stone and allows Greed to take possession of his body so he can finally find the secret to immortality. Subverted in that {{spoiler|after Greed regains his previous memories, he ends up as an enemy of the Homunculi and he starts [[Sharing a Body|working on equal terms]] with Ling so he can defeat them.}}
** Also, {{spoiler|Pride}} does something possession-like to {{spoiler|Al at one point, [[People Puppets|operating the armor with his shadows]] while Al is out of it.}}
* Played for laughs early in ''[[
** Curbstomp? Considering she needed to call on {{spoiler|Machina's alternate form}} to disturb Isumi's final spell and it looked like Isumi only retreated to call for reinforcements and to get the [[
** {{spoiler|When Athena first threw Hayate out of her castle, it seems to have been mostly her; the Spirit didn't take dominance till later.}}
*** {{spoiler|Alternately, we could have never seen Athena un-possessed, it's just only become visible during these times.}}
* In ''[[Yu Yu Hakusho]]'', when {{spoiler|Demon Yusuke}} is fighting Sensui{{spoiler|'s true personality, Shinobu}}, {{spoiler|when Yusuke starts to lose his upper hand, his demonic ancestor Raizen decides to take control of Yusuke unexpectedly, laying down onto Sensui one of the most vicious, brutal beatdowns in shonen manga/anime.}}
* Demonic possession is more or less what Take Over magic amounts to in [[Fairy Tail]]. However, the caster is in complete control... unless they ''aren't,'' in which case they are a rampaging monster. Just ask Elfman, Mirajane or {{spoiler|Lisanna}}.
* The [[Soul Jar]] variant occurs in ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!]]'' as Ryou Bakura winds up possessed by the spirit of Zorc Necrophades by putting on the [[Clingy MacGuffin|Millenium Ring.]]
* [[Cool Big Sis|Urd]], [[Nice Guy|Keiichi]], Megumi, and even [[Magical Girlfriend|Belldandy]] have fallen victim to this in ''[[Ah! My Goddess
* One episode of [[Pokémon (
* A more benevolent version happens in ''[[After War Gundam X
** One ''[[Super Robot Wars]]'' manga takes this idea and runs with it by having Tifa get possessed by a metric ton of random characters, including [[Mazinger Z|Baron Ashura]] and [[Xabungle|Timp]], with the threat hanging over their heads that [[Cosmic Deadline|if they don't clear it up soon]], Tifa's original personality will be destroyed. Thankfully Lucille returns and plays [[Cool Big Sis]] before offering to take all the roaming spirits with her when she leaves. Of course, the comic ends with Tifa still getting possessed, but it's all about [[Rule of Funny]] anyhow.
* Gaara from [[Naruto]] and his malevolent [[Sealed Evil in
** {{spoiler|Sasuke becomes the vessel for Orochimaru, who himself is no longer human but a bizarre [[Eldritch Abomination|snake demon]]}}.
* The fate of the winner of [[Kakurenbo|Otokoyo]].
* This happens to Konekomaru in a filler episode of [[
** It happened to [[Posthumous Character]] Father Fujimoto as well. He got possessed by [[Satan|the big man (er, demon) himself]]. {{spoiler|And then his adoptive son Yukio got possessed by Satan as well. Must run in the family.}}
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* Eclipso, the former Spirit of Vengeance that [[The Spectre]] replaced, is another example from DC. Anyone who is unlucky enough to come into contact with Eclipso's black crystal prison will be possessed by it.
* [[Doctor Strange]] allowed a tiny fragment of the demonic entity Zom to possess him in ''[[World War Hulk]]''. He quickly discovered that [[Evil Is Not a Toy|this was probably not the wisest choice]].
* During a story arc of ''[[Sturmtruppen]]'', Private Fritz is possessed by the demon infesting the outpost 666 and starts behaving like the one from ''[[
* [[Sleepwalker]]'s demonic enemy Cobweb had his minions possess innocent humans at different points in the series to do his evil bidding. Sleepwalker was able to expel them from the humans' bodies by zapping them with his [[Eye Beams|warp vision]], which broke the demons' possession and sent them back to their home dimensions.
* [[Deadman (Comic Book)|Deadman]] is a heroic ghost that uses this as his main power. It was granted to him by the Hindu goddess Rama Kushna.
* Both [[Ghost Rider]] characters have this situation.
* In ''[[Nains (comics)|Nains]]'' Issue #8 (Sriza of the Temple) the protagonist is an exorcist, so possessions are featured a lot.
== Film ==
* Arguably, the entire point of the movie ''[[
* ''[[
* And ''[[Fallen]]'' (1998), with Denzel Washington.
* ''The Others'' had a very creepy scene where the little girl was possessed by the ghost of an old woman. Then we find out {{spoiler|the girl is the ghost, and ''she'' was possessing the old woman.}}
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* The alien threat in [[John Carpenter]]'s ''[[Ghosts of Mars]]'' operate in this method.
* The premise of the [[Evil Dead]] movies. The people possessed by the "spirits of the [[Tome of Eldritch Lore|book]]" can even appear to change back into their former selves, only to lure their former friends into reach.
* The Ghosts in ''[[
* Annabelle in ''St. Trinian's: The Legend Of Fritton's Gold'' gets possessed by her ancestor Captain Fritton. There is no real point to this scene, other then having the other girls scream, making the Emo do an exorcism, damaging Annabelle's self-esteem, and getting the second half of the clue.
* Dan Aykroyd LOVES this trope. ''[[Ghostbusters]]'' I and II feature possession, with Dana and Louis getting it in GBI; and Oscar (sort of), Janohz and Ray in GB II by the ''same'' entity. It also forms a prevalent part of the game. {{spoiler|1=There are even specific mooks who quite happily invade the bodies of NPCs, including the Busters. The most obvious example of this is, of course, Ray, who gets possessed after playing the hero -- "they'll have to go through me first!" Nice going, Doc. The Xbox version of the game has him get possessed again later on his way to the security office at the museum, with him babbling incoherently over the walkie-talkies. Then, of course, there's Illysa and Peck, both of whom get possessed at the museum. And the Mayor, who gets possessed by Ivo Shandor.}} So yes, this Troper thinks it's fairly safe to say that Mr. Aykroyd appears to be fond of this trope.
* ''[[Spider-Man (
* ''[[Happy Hell Night]]'': A mock satanic ritual turns out to be real when a body of a priest is possessed by a demon and starts killing people.
* "The Shrine"takes place in a small Polish village that is cursed with a demonic statue standing in constant fog. Those who approach the statue in the fog, eventually become possessed by the demon.
* Arguably the effect of the demonic mask in [[
== Literature ==
* Subverted in [[Forgotten Realms]] backstory as a very unfortunate incident. Dornal Silverhand noticed that his wife slowly
** {{spoiler|It's questionable just how good that turn out is, too. Despite everything Qilue does, she also ultimately ends up getting her goddess killed and leaving Lloth the sole deity of the Drow.}}
* In [[Robert Bloch]]'s [[Cthulhu Mythos]] story "The Shadow From the Steeple", one of Nyarlathotep's many forms can apparently possess people. The possessed individuals look mostly the same other than their skin turning darker. Oh, and they also glow in dark.
* Greg Bear's ''[[The Way Series|Eon]]'' has something somewhere between Demonic Possession and [[Puppeteer Parasite]]. The Jarts are a species (really a conglomeration of assimilated species and whatever you'd call "original" Jarts) that exist primarily as virtual personality fragments as a sort of hive mind, where bits can be combined, split off and downloaded into an artificial body to perform any given task. The book's protagonist, Olmy, discovers an "individual" Jart who had been captured by humanity centuries earlier and downloads it into his mental implants to study. The Jart, because of the "species'" inherent flexibility to modify itself to fit into any environment capable of holding a conscious entity is easily able to reverse engineer the implants interface and downloads itself directly into Olmy's mind, reversing their roles. (He gets better.)
* In Jim Butcher's ''[[The Dresden Files]]'', the whole Order of the Blackened Denarius are examples of this; the denarii are the thirty pieces of silver paid to Judas for betraying Christ. Each silver coin is an [[Artifact of Doom]] that acts as a [[Soul Jar]] for a [[Fallen Angel]]. ''White Night'' in particular examines the
** There seem to be three kinds of relationship between a full Denarian and his/her Fallen. The first kind is demonstrated by particularly brutish Fallen such as Ursiel or Magog, who simply [[Mind Rape]] their host into submission at first opportunity and outright take over. The second shows up with more cunning Fallen, who let the hosts stay in the driver's seat but use cunning and manipulation to make them do what they want (this is what Lasciel was trying to do to Harry, and allows more options, since with the mortal still technically in control, the Denarian isn't subject to as many restrictions as a Fallen by itself would be). Finally, the Fallen and Denarian can work as equal partners- the only known case of this is the relationship between [[Complete Monster|Nicodemus]] [[The Chessmaster|Archleone]] and his Fallen [[Demon Lords and Archdevils|Anduriel]].
* In ''The [[Book of Amber]]'', ty'igas are bodiless demons who can possess people. Which is harmless in itself, but causes memory loss. Of course, generally the demon doesn't have reasons to care much about effect of its actions on the host's well-being, since it can depart at any time, and even upon death simply gets expelled. Also, some (presumably easier to control) spirits can be used to make zombies (magically bound to service and forced to possess corpses).
* In Gav Thorpe's [[Warhammer 40000]] novel ''Annihilation Squad'', this overtakes {{spoiler|Kage. Fortunately, a blank can free him when in distance, and in the end, he is free enough to make a [[Heroic Sacrifice]]}}.▼
* Tak in [[Stephen King]]'s ''[[
* From the [[Chronicles of Thomas Covenant]], the Ravers are a trio of powerful demons who collectively act as [[The Dragon]] to [[Big Bad]] [[God of Evil|Lord Foul]]. They don't have true bodies of their own, but possess a variety of mortals across the series (they can possess humans without help, but require a power boost before they can possess [[Proud Warrior Race Guy|Haruchai]] or [[Our Giants Are Taller|Giants]]). Some main characters get possessed at different points and are able to describe the experience.
▲* Tak in [[Stephen King]]'s ''[[The Regulators (Literature)|The Regulators]]'' and ''[[Desperation (Literature)|Desperation]]'' (not the same character, the novels are a short of [[Alternate Continuity]] versions of each other).
▲* In Gav Thorpe's [[Warhammer
▲* From the [[Chronicles of Thomas Covenant]], the Ravers are a trio of powerful demons who collectively act as [[The Dragon]] to [[Big Bad]] [[God of Evil|Lord Foul]]. They don't have true bodies of their own, but possess a variety of mortals across the series (they can possess humans without help, but require a power boost before they can possess [[Proud Warrior Race Guy|Haruchai]] or [[Our Giants Are Taller|Giants]]). Some main characters get possessed at different points and are able to describe the experience.
** The ''[[Warhammer
* Played with in ''[[
** Serial, actually; he jumps around the world, including into an on-air televangelist, before settling on a crazy medium.
* This is the ultimate goal of the Storm King in ''[[Memory, Sorrow,
* In the ''Mage Winds'' trilogy of the ''[[Heralds of Valdemar]]'' series, [[Big Bad]] Ma'ar is discovered to have been possessing the bodies of his descendants to prolong his own existence. This starts more like a case of serial [[Grand Theft Me]], but as he suffers story-driven [[Villain Decay]] over the centuries, he eventually forgets to "finish off" the spirit of the final body he inhabits, bringing about his ultimate downfall.
* Spirits sometimes do this in the ''[[Inheritance Cycle]]'', if they can [[Turned Against Their Masters|dupe a spellcaster who summons them]].
* ''[[Parrish Plessis]]'' has the Eskaalim, information entities which act as [[The Corruption]] for their victims before taking complete control.
* In [[Robert E. Howard]]'s [[Conan the Barbarian]] story "A Witch Shall Be Born" this is one explanation offered from why Taramis (actually her [[Evil Twin]] Salome) is suddenly [[The Caligula]].
* ''[[Harry Potter]]'' has {{spoiler|Ginny Weasley, who became possessed through Voldemort's [[Soul Jar|boyhood diary]]}}.
** {{spoiler|Professor Quirrel}} might also count by the end of the first book, though it's an interesting case; the original owner of the body is in fact allowed to remain in control, likely mostly due to the possessor's weakened state, and in the climax is ''told'' to give control over to the possessor to give control over (and talks back). It is also apparently consensual, though possibly for definitions of the word which include death threats.
* In ''[[The Drowning City]]'' by [[Amanda Downum]], there's an interesting twist: a demon (jinn, to be precise) is bound inside a human shell by trickery and restrained and controlled by powerful magical bindings.
* The [[Big Bad]] of ''[[Rivers of London]]'' is the Spirit of Riot and Rebellion {{spoiler|[[Punch and Judy|Mister Punch]]}} who is possessing innocent souls forcing them to commit random acts of murder and violence. At one point manages to possess and entire theatre crowd all at once.
* This is what happens in [[The
* In the last book of ''[[The Bartimaeus Trilogy]]'' {{spoiler|an ill-advised magical experiment leads to a number of powerful demons inhabiting most of the higher members of the government. The demons have no ability to possess people, but the magicians summoned them into their own bodies, believing they could control them. Instead they obliterated their minds and set up shop.}}
* '''Things''' in ''[[
* ''[[A Certain Magical Index]]'' has the demon Coronzon, who possesses {{spoiler|Lola Stuart}} since before the beginning of the series. Coronzon is apparently capable of taking multiple bodies at once, doing so to {{spoiler|Aleister Crowley}} while staying in its current body.
== Live-Action TV ==
* A old show called ''Everyman'' about real exorcisms on demons.[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jh9EAPqM1OA "Everyman-Exorcism"]
* ''[[
** [[Inverted Trope|Inverted]] when the gang goes to try and exorcise a demon possessed boy...only for it to turn out the boy is soulless, and has ''trapped'' the now terrified demon inside his body.
** The last season saw {{spoiler|Winifred Burkle's soul destroyed by a magical ritual and her body taken over by an ancient demonic being called Illyria.}}
** Vampires in the Buffyverse as a whole are an example of this-they're dead bodies possessed by demons.
* ''[[Double the Fist]]'': Mephisto gets possessed by a Demi God Fear Factory, causing him to shoot lasers, murder people at random (well, more than before) and steal Steve's car. He shows up again two episodes later leading an army of lumberjack pandas.
* This happens a lot on ''[[Supernatural (TV series)|Supernatural]]''. It's actually the only way demons operate in the world, their default form being thick, black smoke. It's even been [[Lampshaded]] in "Jus in Bello".
{{quote|
'''Sam''': "Not long enough." }}
** There's the young girl whom Lilith possesses and proceeds to terrorize, and kill half of, her family; Meg Masters, who has to spend over a year watching a demon use her body to kill people; the season 2 episode where a demon possesses Sam and proceeds to shoot and torture Dean...
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* Played with in ''[[Deep Space Nine]]'', when Miles O'Brien's wife is possessed by an alien energy being who [[I Have Your Wife|orders O'Brien around in exchange for not killing her]]. ''She'' can blend in perfectly, but O'Brien's odd behavior makes people suspect ''he's'' some kind of doppelganger. (Something similar also happened to him on another occasion...)
** In another episode, one of the Prophets of Bajor and a Pah-wraith take possession of the bodies of Kira and Jake Sisko respectively in order to duke it out on the station.
* The ''[[
** In the two-parter "The Impossible Planet"/"The Satan Pit", what may or may not be the Devil himself possesses the archaeologist Toby Zed.
** The Fendahl Skull did this to turn Thea Ransome, a scientist, into a golden [[Grim Reaper]].
* In an episode of ''[[The Suite Life of Zack and Cody|The Suite Life On Deck]]'', Bailey finds herself possessed by the spirit of the ancient South American royal Princess Zaria when Zack finds her [[Artifact of Doom|crown]], thereby releasing her spirit from her [[Soul Jar|bust]].
* ''[[Honey I Shrunk the Kids (TV series)|Honey I Shrunk the Kids]]''. Diane gets possessed by the ghost of a Celtic princess when translating a spell tablet in "Honey, You'll Always Be A Princess To Me", and Amy gets possessed by the ghost of a 19th century comedian in "Honey, I'm Spooked" when the Szalinski family gets a [[Soul Jar|trunk containing the comedian's spirit]] (who got released when they opened it).
* ''[[
* Seen in [[One
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* The Kyuss Song 'Demon cleaner' is about a man with multiple personalities who believes that all his friends, coworkers and family are all against him; he comes to the conclusion that his other personalities are demons and decides to exorcise them with a vacuum cleaner. Yeah, really.
* The Spike Jones song "Don't Give the Chair to Buster" has Buster's attorney claiming that this has happened to his client ("the devil was in him that day"), slightly subverted when the attorney admits that certain non-lethal but still dangerous assaults were in fact Buster's own idea.
* The Project Hate MCMXCIX's song "Descend Into the Eternal Pits of Possession," sounds like it is [[Exactly What It Says
== Multiple Media ==
* The Makuta in ''[[Bionicle]]'' are [[Energy Beings]] who can possess living bodies or robots. The only catch is that the body must be empty of a soul (but still alive, unless it's a robot, of course) before they can enter it.
** However the spirits of unborn Makuta (basically liquid Antidermis<ref>
== Religion ==
* [[Truth in Television]] according to the Catholic Church and most other Christian denominations.
* Frequently occurs in [[
* This trope is sometimes played straight and inverted in East Asian religion, where humans can be possessed by benevolent or evil spirits. Usually, shamans and the like are called in to exorcise the person under possession.
== Tabletop Games ==
* In the ''[[
* Daemons in ''[[Warhammer
** Don't forget the starships possessed by daemons.
* In ''[[
** There's actually a Song (which are the spells of the game) that allows any Celestial to possess any living thing.
* ''[[Dungeons
** ''[[
** Ghosts in some editions could do this, and it's the signature trick of the odem, a type of disembodied evil spirit from the [[Ravenloft]] setting.
** The ''magic jar'' spell, which has been part of the game since the first edition and allows even humans to play the part of demonic-possessor-from-the-soul-jar.
* The yikaria (or yak-folk) from the [[Forgotten Realms|Kara-Tir]] setting can do this via a magical ability called "skin crawling"; this is unusual, seeing as yikaria are living, mortal, corporeal beings. Still, given the other atrocities they're known to commit, [[Bad Powers, Bad People| it seems fitting.]]
* ''[[
* ''[[
** Nomads as well: Astral beings that possess their hosts and make them murder other people.
== Video Games ==
* The various ''[[Doom]]'' games have "former humans", soldiers who were possessed by the Demonic Invasion.
* In ''[[
* ''[[Soul Nomad and The World Eaters]]''
** Subverted: the main character's mentor purposefully exposes the main character to possession by Gig, an evil force inhabiting an [[Artifact of Doom]], because she's aware that the main character is strong-souled enough not to be booted out and you need the power from the possession to save the world. Gig is ''not'' pleased when he discovers that he's forced to play second-fiddle and [[Fusion Dance|power battery]] to some bright-eyed [[Heroic Mime]] he has no real control
** The [[New Game
** {{spoiler|[[Complete Monster|Raksha]] bought two slave children then [[Break the Cutie|broke them]] so he could inhabit their soulless bodies...and then he starts to really be a jerk.}}
* ''[[Disgaea]] 2'': In the worst ending, {{spoiler|the real Overlord Zenon possesses Adell after he is forced to kill Rozalin.}}
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* ''[[Ghost Trick]]'''s Sissel can possess dead bodies, but only so he can contact their souls. {{spoiler|Yomiel, on the other hand, can manipulate both the living and the dead.}}
* The Watchers in ''[[Drakengard]]'' have possessed the [[Big Bad]]. This becomes evident when she starts talking in two different voices, or shades between: her normal, [[Creepy Child|little girl]] voice, and a foreboding, evil man voice.
* ''[[
* The Phoenix arc of ''Ace Attorney'' features spirit channeling, in which a spirit medium allows herself to be possessed by a dead spirit. It's not hazardous in itself, but possession by a vengeful spirit can force the medium to do violent acts. {{spoiler|And Dahlia Hawthorne's as vengeful as they get.}}
* Happens in [[Quest for Glory]] 3: Wages of War, where Demons possess humans and humanoids, and can either chose to remain hidden inside a fleshy suit, or completely morph the host into their original Demon (And Bulky) form.
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** ''[[Fanfic|Kingdom Hearts: End of Days]]'': Riku is able to somewhat reverse this by taking all of Ansem's powers to augment his own. Kinda Ironic because in Chain of Memories Ansem was obsessed with repossessing Riku.
** In ''[[Birth By Sleep]]'' it's revealed that {{spoiler|that Xehanort, the [[Big Bad]] from the previous games, is actually a Keyblade master named Terra, who, like Riku, gave into the darkness in his desire for revenge, thus allowing the original Xehanort, an old Keyblade master, to possess his body, and become the Xehanort that we all [[Perverse Sexual Lust|know and love]].}}
* Nicholai Conrad in ''[[Shadow Hearts]] Covenant'' gets a nice power boost by making a certain [[Deal
* Two characters are possessed by a demon in ''Phantasmagoria''. The original host, magician Zoltan Carnovash, murders his wives under its influence, and is finally killed by the final victim's lover during a rigged stage performance. The forcibly exorcised demon returns to the spellbook from where it was summoned, which another character places inside the small chapel and weighted under a large Bible. Much later, protagonist Adrienne Delaney stumbles upon the chapel and curiously looks inside the spellbook, unknowingly releasing the demon which proceeds to possess her husband Donald Gordon, who starts exhibiting increasingly violent tendencies until the final chapter has him trying very hard to kill Adrienne.
* In ''[[Paper Mario:
** {{spoiler|Just in time to be forced to beat up his [[Implied Love Interest]], that's it}}.
** This happens a lot in the Mario RPGs. {{spoiler|Bowser gets possessed by Cackletta in ''[[
* ''[[World of Warcraft]]'':
** There is a Boss in the Serpentshrine Cavern instance. His name is Leotheras the Blind, and while he's an incredible danger all on his own, There exists an unnamed demon within him that occasionally transforms his body into a Chernabog-like creature and throws spells that can decimate any party member not specifically geared to survive his attacks. When Leo is nearly defeated, the Demon leaves the host, and the raid group has to fight them both simultaneously.
** Also in the background, the fallen Titan Sargeras, lord of [[Legions of Hell|the Burning Legion]] possessed Medivh, the next Guardian of Tirisfal and an immensely powerful mage, [[Tyke Bomb|before he was born]]. Medivh then opened the Dark Portal, through which the orcs came to the world. However, he was killed before Sargeras could fulfill his plans, causing him to be sent back to the nether without his body, effectively [[Put
** Grand Crusader Dathrohan/Balnazzar of the [[Knight Templar|Scarlet Crusade]]. Dathrohan was killed first, but it's explicitly called possession. Wearing a paladin's body has given him ''lots'' of [[Treacherous Advisor|opportunity]] to cause [[Self
** Kalecgos, the blue dragonflight youth, is possessed Sathrovarr when you fight him in the Sunwell Plateau instance.
* While the Ing from ''[[Metroid|Metroid Prime 2]]'' aren't really demons (although being extradimensional creatures of darkness, they're probably close enough), they fit this trope as they must possess the bodies of other creatures to survive in our dimension. They open a dimensional portal and come through in a gaseous form, entering the body of a nearby creature and possessing it. The possessed creature will gain a darker colour and become more powerful.
* In ''[[The Legend of Zelda:
** Wait, no mention of {{spoiler|''[[The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
** Or {{spoiler|[[The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
*** {{spoiler|The reverse happens, too. Link is about to get his block hacked off by a Phantom, when it suddenly stops dead in its tracks. Considering that the [[Evil Chancellor]] has her empty body, that leaves her soul free to take other measures in aiding Link. Put two and two together, kids.}}
*** {{spoiler|It also happens in the final battle. After Zelda gains her body back, Malladus simply possesses Chancellor Cole. He can't apparently maintain control of his form for long, but then wants to destroy the world in short time that's left.}}
** This is [[The Legend of Zelda: Oracle
*** And Impa, briefly before possessing Nayru.
* In ''[[Roguelike|TOME]]'', Spirits can possess any body on the ground; effectively raising them [[Back
* This is one of the more frustrating strange moods in ''[[Dwarf Fortress]]''. Not because the dwarf does something unpleasant (that's fell moods), but because ''they don't get experience for whatever it is they make''.
* In one of the endings of ''[[Ogre Battle]]'', {{spoiler|the demon Galf possesses your victorious character, ruling the now united continent in your name.}}
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* A core player ability in the [[Dungeon Keeper]] series, in which you can do this to any creature under your control. Mainly useful for combat, fast scouting, digging and claiming of territory, and in the unofficial expansion, ''Ancient Keeper'' to suppress normal emotional responses at key times.
* Early on in ''Muramasa: The Demon Blade'', Momohime gets possessed by a demon named Jinkuro, forcing her original soul out of her body. An evil monk then steals the soul to give to a giant demon, and Momohime-Jinkuro has to rush to get it back, because if the original soul is destroyed, then Momohime's body will wither and die, leaving him once again without a vessel.
* [[Tear Jerker|Tragically done]] AND [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|gloriously inverted]] in ''[[
* ''[[Mass Effect]]'' and its sequel have [[Eldritch Abomination|Reapers]] do this once they decide their [[You Have Failed Me...|mooks have failed]], or the fight is important enough to require personal intervention.
** The final fight of the first game has {{spoiler|[[Big Bad|Sovereign]] ''melt'' the flesh off [[The Dragon|Saren's]] corpse to fight Commander Shepard with Saren's cybernetic implants}}.
** '''''"[[Boss in Mooks Clothing|ASSUMING DIRECT CONTROL!!!]]"''''' [[Memetic Mutation|Sound familiar?]] [[
* In ''[[Fire Emblem]]: The Sacred Stones'', {{spoiler|Lyon}} has either type two or type four depending on which sibling's path you choose.
** In ''[[Fire Emblem]]: Seisen No Keifu (Genealogy of the Holy War)''... upon reading the [[Tome of Eldritch Lore]], Prince Yurius ends up as an avatar of a Dark God. Irredeemably so, at that through a combination of Type 2 and 3-- and this was all set up by the [[Complete Monster]] of a head of the game's [[Religion of Evil]] as to unseal the [[Sealed Evil in
* Most of the inhuman enemies in ''[[Dragon Age]]'' ''Origins'' who aren't Darkspawn are the results of Demonic Possession, which is a risk anyone with magic talent faces. Corpses and trees can also be possessed.
** {{spoiler|Anders}} in [[Dragon Age 2]] suffers from a case of this, though it's not as clear cut as most cases. {{spoiler|He voluntarily allowed, his friend the spirit of Justice, to come into his body. Anders' own hatred of his magically inclined brethern's oppression perverted Justice into Vengeance, who's a tad more angry.}}
* In ''[[
** Aradia did it first in ''[[Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne]]''. Only, she's... uh... a goddess. A fake goddess. [[Fantasy Kitchen Sink|It's kinda complicated]].
** And Nemissa did it before either in ''[[Soul Hackers]]''. Kinda subverted in that she leaves when she realizes it's necessary. And the possessee still has pretty much control over herself, limiting how much damage Nemissa can do. Later, {{spoiler|Spooky}} is taken over by Satanael, who later decides to take on the party... by ''blowing his way out of the victim's body''. '''''And he doesn't make it all the way out.'''''
** Before [[
* Early in ''[[Wild
* [[Sonic Unleashed]]: you can converse with the townsfolk in the hub worlds, and some of them at night become possessed by Dark Gaia monsters, who make them either depressed, apathetic, or weirdly for some normally serious characters, laid-back and happy. As side missions, you can perform 'exorcisms' on them by flashing them with a camera and then defeating their "demons."
* ''[[Guilty Gear]]'' has a [[Shout
* In ''[[Super Robot Wars NEO]]'', Amane Inaba gets possessed by {{spoiler|Larva}}
* ''[[Shadow of the Colossus]]'' has {{spoiler|Wander}} gradually possessed by Dormin.
* ''[[Legacy of Kain]]''. While it's not done by the actual [[Our Demons Are Different|demons]], the ones who mainly do this are related. It's done to either corpses or unwilling living people. The host is gradually worn out, and can be immediately used up if the possessor decides to transform it.
* Wonderfully [[Inverted Trope|inverted]] in ''[[Summon Night]] Sword Craft Story 2'' where a ''demon'' girl is possessed by an ''angel'' girl. The later only comes out when the former goes too far on the [[Tsundere|tsun side]] however.
* Several characters from ''[[
* ''[[Something|Something Else]]''
** The Miko leader gets possessed by a Big Boo and turns into the boss of World 3. Luigi frees the Miko, and Luigi receives a "reward" for rescuing her.
** King Dedede gets possessed by Dark Matter in the boss fight for DDDark Castle. He even coughs up tiny Dark Matters for the second phase of the fight.
* In ''[[Pokémon Red and Blue]]'' (and adaptations, like ''[[Pokémon Let's Go]]'', many of the trainers you meet in Lavender Town's Pokémon Tower (one of the creepiest locations in the franchise, bar none) are possessed, possibly by their own Pokémon, requiring you to exorcise them by defeating them in battle. This is oddly the only time in the game franchise where this phenominon occurs; Ghost Pokémon do not do this in any other game.
** Of course, it happens [[Pokémon (anime)|in the anime]] all the time.
== Webcomics ==
* [[
** [http://mag-isa.thecomicseries.com/comics/pl/119127 American soldier] in prologue gets possessed.
** [http://mag-isa.thecomicseries.com/comics/pl/119534 Priest exorcises a demon who attacks him].
** [http://mag-isa.thecomicseries.com/comics/pl/119601 Angel battles demon-possessed kid].
* This is lampooned by ''[[All Over the House]]'' in [http://www.alloverthehouse.net/?p=43 this strip].
* Reynardine from ''[[
** There's also the Glass-Eyed Men, who at one point possess a robot.
* There are a few of these floating around the ''[[Sluggy Freelance]]'' universe, most notably K'Z'K the Vowelless.
* This is the major plot point in [[Garanos]].
* This occurs several times throughout ''[[
* [[The Dragon Doctors]]: While initially believed to be an alien, {{spoiler|the Crax}} is later revealed to be {{spoiler|the manifestation of a [[Complete Monster|sociopathic]] man who learned how to become [[Immortality Immorality|immortal]] by taking over other people's bodies. Did we mention he's become what is basically [[Body Horror|sapient cancer]]?}}
* [[
== Web Original ==
* It shows up a couple of times in [[Sevenshot Kid]].{{context}}▼
▲* It shows up a couple of times in [[Sevenshot Kid]].
* In the ''[[League of Intergalactic Cosmic Champions]]'', Mr. Obvious had been possessed by Asmodeus Beelzebub.
* ''[[Tech Infantry]]'' has the Caal, a long-extinct alien race whose souls somehow stuck around, and tend to possess other life forms. Humans possessed by the Caal are granted supernatural strength and other powers, to the extent that they are described as being able to ''walk through tanks'', but are of course also completely mind-controlled by the Caal.
* [[The Reveal]] in ''[[The Princess 99]]'' shows that the assassin, {{spoiler|Axel}}, had been possessed by a demon {{spoiler|she gets better via forcibly removal of said demon}}.
* [[Shiny Objects Videos]]: A toaster gets possessed in the aptly-titled "Possessed Toaster".
* Bad [[Slash Fic]] demons and [[Mary Sue
* ''[[Tasakeru]]'': {{spoiler|[[Innocent Flower Girl|Hanami]] is possessed by the spirit of the [[Big Bad]] in Book IV. Said [[Big Bad]] possesses [[Church Militant|the head of the]] [[The Order|Silver Order]] two books later.}}
* [[
* In [[The League of STEAM]]'s webisode, "Dinner With The Devil", {{spoiler|Sir Conrad}} gets possessed.
== Western Animation ==
* Season two of [[
* In the ''[[Johnny Bravo]]'' episode "Johnny's Inferno", Johnny ends up possessed by a demon who then tries to force Johnny into a rampage of evil. Of course, [[The Ditz|Johnny being Johnny]], and the demon's idea of evil being [[Poke the Poodle|quite underwhelming]], [[Hilarity Ensues|Hilarity Ensued]].
* While he was semi-permanently dead, Kenny had channeled himself through Cartman in ''[[South Park]]''. This is an interesting inversion since Kenny is much nicer to Stan and Kyle than Cartman.
** Micheal Jackson had also channeled himself through Ike in an episode. He was just happy being a kid and had to {{spoiler|win a little girl beauty pageant}} in order to leave.
* The original ''[[Transformers]]'' series has Starscream become a ghost after he dies, and over the span of two series possesses other transformers (Cyclonis, Scourge in G1 and Waspinator in ''[[
** Poked fun at wonderfully [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKCREMr7WV0 here].
* in ''[[
* A heroic example is Raven from ''[[Teen Titans (
** Considering she has a [[Super-Powered Evil Side]] as one lovely feature of her dual nature, one could argue that on the occasions where it takes control, she's possessed by her ''own'' inner demon.
* In ''[[
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{{reflist}}
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[[Category:Infernal Tropes]]
[[Category:Paranormal Tropes]]
[[Category:Mind Manipulation]]▼
[[Category:Face Monster Turn]]
[[Category:Split Personality Tropes]]
[[Category:Demonic Possession]]
[[Category:
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