Harry Potter: Every Death Eater Rated By How Powerful They Are

Hogwarts seems like a great place to learn at the start of the Harry Potter franchise. All the professors are passionate about their subjects, and there’s so much to do on campus, including watching and playing Quidditch. Three of the four Hogwarts Houses, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor, embrace their home away from home, working hard to win the House Cup and progress in their studies. The only outlier, of course, is Syltherin House, which is where the more unsavory characters end up. At first, it seems like Syltherin is just full of a bunch of jealous jerks, but a dark underbelly starts to reveal itself as the movies go by.

Slytherin has strong ties to the Dark Lord, Voldemort, who was responsible for the deaths of Harry’s parents and for so many other tragedies during the First Wizarding War. When he returns and kicks off another conflict, his followers, known as Death Eaters, come out of the woodwork and start causing trouble all over the Wizarding World. Here’s every Death Eater, rated by how powerful they are.

14) Stan Shunpike

Harry goes on a bumpy ride on the Knight Bus at the start of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and meets Stanley Shunpike, one of the employees working on the vehicle. While the movies don’t show it, Stan becomes a Death Eater during the Second Wizarding War after running his mouth and spending time in Azkaban. He doesn’t pull off any impressive feats, though, so he’s at the bottom of this list.

13) Crabbe

Voldemort has plenty of loyal followers during the First Wizarding War, but a lot of them run and hide after his defeat. Crabbe shows up at the graveyard in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire once the Dark Lord returns, and he doesn’t get a warm reception. The lack of respect that Voldemort shows Crabbe means that the Death Eater can’t be all that strong. Crabbe’s only real claim to fame is his son, Vincent, who’s not all that impressive either.

12) Goyle

Goyle is in the same boat as Crabbe, being one of the Death Eaters who fail to search for Voldemort after his visit to the Potter house. Another thing the two villains have in common is that they both send their sons down a dark path. Goyle’s son, Gregory, spends most of his time at Hogwarts doing Draco Malfoy’s bidding, even going after Harry and Co. before the Battle of Hogwarts.

11) Draco Malfoy

Draco rises to the top of the Slytherin because of his name, not his strength. Whenever he does find himself in a position to fight, he either loses or is too scared to pull the trigger. Voldemort catches onto this and tasks Draco with taking out Dumbledore. While the headmaster would’ve let him finish the job, Draco isn’t confident in himself, forcing another Death Eater to step in.

10) Lucius Malfoy

As soon as he gets to Hogwarts, Draco takes after his father, Lucius Malfoy, who uses his status and wealth to get whatever he wants. Lucius clearly lives in fear of the Dark Lord and would rather leave his post as a Death Eater than see his mission through. The truth of the matter is that the head of the Malfoy family just doesn’t have what it takes to stand alongside the stronger Death Eaters.

9) Wormtail

Even with Voldemort walking around, Wormtail might just be the most evil character in the entire Wizarding World. He betrays all of his friends from his Hogwarts days, leading to the deaths of Lily and James Potter. Spending years hiding as a rat doesn’t change Wormtail’s attitude, as he’s willing to kill anyone who gets in Voldemort’s way, including kids like Cedric Diggory.

8) Thorfinn Rowle

Once the Voldemort cat is out of the bag in the Harry Potter movies, Harry and his friends never get a chance to rest. While in a cafe in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, two Death Eaters attack them. After they’re both knocked out, Harry recognizes one of them as Thorfinn Rowle, one of the villains who was on the Astronomy Tower at the time of Dumbledore’s death. Voldemort didn’t just trust anyone with big jobs, so Rowle does more good than harm.

7) Barty Crouch Jr. 

The Death Eaters go to great lengths to get their master back, including infiltrating Hogwarts. Barty Crouch Jr. goes undercover in The Goblet of Fire by posing as the auror Mad-Eye Moody. However, no one suspects a thing because Crouch Jr. is a capable dark wizard who knows his way around the Unforgivable Curses. The only reason he goes down is that he has to put all his cards on the table in order to get Harry to the end of the Triwizard Tournament.

6) Corban Yaxley 

Despite pulling a Crabbe and Goyle and not searching for Voldemort, the Dark Lord forgives Corban Yaxley’s transgressions and even gets him a great post during the Second Wizarding War. Yaxley becomes the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, helping take over the Ministry of Magic using his abilities. While he makes a few mistakes after getting a promotion, he’s still an essential part of Voldemort’s plan heading into the Battle of Hogwarts.

5) Igor Karkaroff

Igor Karkaroff is unlike most of the Death Eaters in the Harry Potter series. After standing by the Dark Lord’s side during the First Wizarding War, he turns his life around by becoming the headmaster of the Durmstrang Institute. Not just any wizard can reach that level, meaning Karkaroff must be pretty formidable. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get to show off his skills because he takes off upon Voldemort’s return.

4) Travers

Not every Death Eater gets a character arc; some of them are just muscle. After escaping from Azkaban, Travers fights in nearly every major battle of the Second Wizarding War and makes an impact, holding Ginny Weasley hostage at one point. The movies don’t confirm his fate, but even if he died, he probably took a few people with him on his way out.

3) Antonin Dolohov 

The Death Eater that accompanies Rowle to the cafe is Antonin Dolohov, who gives the main trio a run for their money. One notable fight doesn’t secure a top-five spot on this list, though, so he must have more on his resume. Well, in the books, he’s the one who kills Remus Lupin, and since the movies don’t say otherwise, it’s fair to assume he pulls off the feat in live-action, too. Since Lupin is no joke, Dolohov must have some tricks up his sleeve.

2) Bellatrix Lestrange

There’s one Death Eater that all the members of the Order of the Phoenix have to watch out for: Bellatrix Lestrange. At times, it feels like she doesn’t care what Voldemort’s mission is, only wanting to be free to kill people. And kill people she does, taking out Sirius Black and numerous other good guys. Thankfully, Molly Weasley is around to stop her during the Battle of Hogwarts because if she had kept going, Voldemort might have won.

1) Severus Snape

The biggest thorn in Harry’s side while he’s at Hogwarts isn’t Draco; it’s Severus Snape. The professor has it out for him from the start, and Harry comes to learn it’s because he’s a Death Eater. Well, he’s more of a double agent who’s trying to throw Voldemort off the scent. However, while he’s a member of the Dark Lord’s ranks, he’s his best weapon, since Snape has as much potential as any wizard. He’s so good that he develops a bunch of dangerous spells that help the titular character out in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

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