Skulduggery Pleasant

This article is about the character. For other uses see Skulduggery Pleasant (disambiguation).

"You are not to look the master in the eye."This article contains spoilers! Please, refrain yourself from reading its content if you haven't read Skulduggery Pleasant: Resurrection.

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"I seem to have lost track of this speech, I'm not sure where it is going, but I know where it started and that's what I want you to remember. Has anyone seen my hat?"

— Skulduggery giving a rousing speech to Valkyrie, Tanith and others, Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire

Skulduggery Pleasant
Character Information
Taken Name	Skulduggery Pleasant, Lord Vile, Detective Inspector Me
Species	Human (skeleton)
Gender	Male
Birth	31st December 1574 (as his age for 2007 is given as 433)
Age	433 (First book) 444 (currently)
Death	23rd October 1700 in The War (resurrected)
Magic	Elemental, Necromancy (as Lord Vile)
Faction	The Dead Men (formerly), The Irish Sanctuary (formerly), Arbiter Corp
Weapons	Revolver
Titles	Prime Detective Skeleton Detective Death Bringer (as Lord Vile) Lord (as Vile)
Location	Ireland
Relations	Unnamed wife (deceased) Unnamed child (deceased) Abyssinia (former partner as Lord Vile) Caisson (alleged son)

Skulduggery Pleasant is an Elemental and a "living" skeleton. He fought in the War against Mevolent as part of a group called the Dead Men. However, the death of his family at the hands of Nefarian Serpine caused him to go mad and in a fit of rage, he picked up a poisoned dagger which trapped him, and Serpine tortured and killed him. He was resurrected, but he soon was overcome by his fury and desire for destruction and became Lord Vile, the most powerful of the Three Generals. Five years later, he regained his senses and became Skulduggery Pleasant again.

From 2007 onward, he took on Valkyrie Cain as an apprentice Detective and together they have saved the world many times – most notably when two of the three generals returned, the Faceless Ones almost broke into our dimension (after which he was trapped in another universe), Croke Park Stadium was almost destroyed, a Remnant infestation of Ireland, the Death Bringer almost killing everyone, Argeddion almost destroying the world by giving Mortals magic, the War between Sanctuaries – in which almost every Sanctuary in the world declared war on Ireland – also almost killed everyone, Valkyrie succumbed to Darquesse, making him draw together a team of soldiers, monster hunters, killers, criminals and Valkyrie's reflection to defeat a god.

He did not, however, manage to stop his ex-girlfriend from being resurrected.

Biography

History

Skulduggery Pleasant grew up presumably somewhere in Ireland approximately 400 years ago. When he was a child he had a stutter that caused people to think that he was possessed by the devil. At some point, he met Ghastly Bespoke and Hopeless and they became good friends. When an evil sorcerer named Mevolent gathered an army and tried to conquer the world to summon the Faceless Ones back to their reality he was opposed by a resistance movement, in which Skulduggery helped. Skulduggery was one of the leaders of the resistance movement.

During the war, Skulduggery was part of a group, ironically named the Dead Men, as they would always come back from suicide missions alive. Ghastly Bespoke and Erskine Ravel were some of the members.

He fell victim to Mevolent's second-in-command, Nefarian Serpine, who killed Skulduggery's wife and child and then attacked Skulduggery himself with a dagger. Skulduggery then grabbed it and discovered that it was barbed with poison. Skulduggery was tortured for several days before being killed by Serpine on October 23rd, around 1700. Mevolent's minions then stuck Skulduggery's body on a pike and burnt it for all to see.

One by one the other leaders of the resistance fell but strangely, Skulduggery's spirit did not move on. His bones had been placed in a bag and thrown in a river, but Skulduggery was somehow able to go into the bag, reattach his bones and quite literally pull himself together (It was later revealed that this was Auron Tenebrae's meddling). However, the loss of his family drove him to create a new, violent personality: Lord Vile. he was gifted with armour by his new girlfriend Abyssinia who also made sure that he stayed on the 'right' track. Vile aligned himself with Mevolent and fought alongside him for five years. Abyssinia also fought with him, decimating entire villages with Vile.

Five years later, he was brought back to Skulduggery when Vile couldn't kill his own friend Ghastly Bespoke. With his help, the resistance was able to defeat Mevolent whose minions were either imprisoned or rehabilitated, Serpine included. Before this, however, Skulduggery and the Dead Men teamed up with the Diablerie to hunt down and kill Abyssinia. After Skulduggery himself cut out Abyssinia's heart, the groups parted ways and the war continued. Another of Mevolent's henchmen, Baron Vengeous, was personally tracked down by Skulduggery, who threw a stick of lit dynamite at him. A truce was signed between the Sanctuaries and the former followers of Mevolent and an uneasy peace began. After Mevolent's defeat, Skulduggery became a detective, but he never lost his hatred for and desire for revenge on Serpine.

Sometime during his career as a detective, a band of goblins would steal his skull and he would continue using one which he had won in a poker game until it was recovered by Valkyrie Cain in 2009.

The Truce is Broken

Skulduggery was present at Gordon's funeral. He met Stephanie in Gordon's office and told her that Gordon had died "doing what he loved." In Gordon's will, he was left a piece of advice. When Stephanie was alone at Gordon's house and attacked by Vindick Leather, who was hired by Nefarian Serpine to find the key to the caves, Skulduggery saved her. By this point his disguise had come off and Stephanie saw that he was a skeleton.

Skulduggery defending the Sydney Opera House at all costs to keep those Australian readers.

After a brief conversation, Stephanie fainted. When she came back to consciousness, Skulduggery brought her some tea and explained to her that about the secret world of magic and mages. He also told her that he was killed by a man called Nefarian Serpine but came back to life as a skeleton, and that Serpine made a truce, but broke it, not that the Sanctuaries are aware of this and he is now looking for the supposedly mythical Sceptre of the Ancients.

He took Stephanie to see China Sorrows that night, and as they were driving back to Gordon's, they were attacked by the same man who assaulted Stephanie earlier that morning, damaging Skulduggery's precious Bentley. His adept power made him impervious to fire and when Stephanie leads him into the river Liffey after after a long chase, the water counteracted the spell and tore him apart. The next day, Skulduggery comes by Stephanie's house and casts a spell on her mirror, allowing Stephanie's reflection to leave the mirror and fill Stephanie's place while she goes with Skulduggery to solve the case of Gordon's murder. They go to Skulduggery's friend Ghastly for some information on the Sceptre, but Stephanie gets into an argument with Ghastly, so they leave. He next takes Stephanie to the Irish Sanctuary to try and persuade the Elders that the Sceptre actually exists, but the Elders refuse to believe them.

Skulduggery and Stephanie then go to a gallery to seek more information about the Sceptre. They manage to get into a vault, where they find an Echo Stone. A man called Oisin, who imprinted himself on the stone, gives them information about the Sceptre of the Ancients. The two try to get back out, but they are attacked by two vampires who are working as security for the gallery. The two just manage to escape, and head over to the caves, where Skulduggery is kidnapped by Serpine's men. He is then tortured by Serpine's red right hand.

Stephanie is under a controlling spell at this time because China used her Given Name against her. Stephanie finally creates a Taken Name, Valkyrie Cain. A plan is made by Valkyrie, who is joined by Tanith Low, who she met at China's library earlier that night, Ghastly and two Cleavers, to rescue him. Just before they do, Skulduggery realises the location of the key to the caves.

After they escape Serpine's castle, he tells Valkyrie that the advice helped him find the location of the key, which Beryl Edgley has. He makes Valkyrie get it, and they get into the caves below Gordon's house, where they see Serpine acquire the Sceptre. The two meet Mr. Bliss, who betrays them. Skulduggery is thrown over a cliff but doesn't seem to be hurt by the fall. After finding out that one of the Elders, Sagacious Tome, betrayed them and helped Serpine kill the other two Elders, he, along with Valkyrie and Tanith go to the Sanctuary to stop Serpine. He also discovers that Serpine is really after the Book of Names. Tanith tells the other two to carry on when the White Cleaver attacks them. Tanith duels the White Cleaver while Skulduggery and Valkyrie take on Serpine, and is nearly killed. Skulduggery and Valkyrie have a long fight with Serpine. During it, Skulduggery defends himself using the Book of Names as a shield when Serpine tries to kill him with the Sceptre, and the book is destroyed. After Serpine nearly kills Valkyrie, Skulduggery uses the Sceptre to kill Serpine. He also discovers that Valkyrie can use magic.

The Lost Art Of World Domination

A few months after Serpine was defeated, Skulduggery was captured by Scaramouch Van Dreg during his search for Rancid Fines and Christophe Nocturnal, who mistakenly believed Skulduggery was looking for him. After Scaramouch gloats for a while, he realises that Skulduggery is asleep. Scaramouch wakes him up and then reveals to Skulduggery that he has a plan for world domination. Skulduggery questions what Scaramouch would do after taking the world, pointing out all the problems that would come about, and then asks how Scaramouch is planning on doing this. Scaramouch reveals he has bought a box from someone which contains a bug which will sap away all the magic from every sorcerer and give them to him. Skulduggery then asks Scaramouch to release the bug to see if it's really in there. After Scaramouch does so, Skulduggery steps on the bug, killing it. Skulduggery then says that the world needs more villains who only want to take over the world rather than destroy it and arrests Scaramouch.

Rise of the Grotesquery

Skulduggery aids Valkyrie in defeating Vaurien Scapegrace, a criminal who is wanted for various murder attempts. The two arrest Scapegrace, and take him to the Irish Sanctuary, where Thurid Guild, the new Grand Mage, and Mr. Bliss inform them that Baron Vengeous, a general of Mevolent, has escaped. Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit China for information on Vengeous. She tells them that Vengeous is planning to revive the Grotesquery to bring back the Faceless Ones.

The next day, Skulduggery picks up Valkyrie and they head to the pier to see if they find Vengeous. Valkyrie stays behind to check on her reflection, and after Skulduggery goes the pier, saves Valkyrie from a vampire called Dusk and two Infected. Dusk drops a syringe, which Skulduggery takes. Skulduggery decides to go to the Hibernian Cinema, which is a lab that is owned by Kenspeckle Grouse, to examine the syringe. However, Valkyrie makes a mistake and are forced to leave. Skulduggery takes Valkyrie to China's Library to meet Tanith, and Skulduggery tells Valkyrie that he has something to do. He won't tell Valkyrie what it is but promises to tell her later. After Valkyrie and Tanith find information on where the Grotesquery is, Skulduggery picks them up. Valkyrie mentions the Torment, and Skulduggery tells the two he knows someone who knows him. The person is Scapegrace. After telling him that Tanith is a brain sucker, Scapegrace says that the Torment lives in Roarhaven.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie, along with Scapegrace, go to Roarhaven. They go to Scapegrace's old pub, where Skulduggery and Valkyrie get into a barfight with some citizens of Roarhaven. When Skulduggery and Valkyrie defeat them, Scapegrace is shackled to a pipe, and the two go in the cellar. They see the Torment, but they are forced to run when he gets hold of Skulduggery's gun. While escaping, a mass amount of spiders chase them. They escape the spiders and come face to face with the Torment.

When asked for the location of the Grotesquery, the Torment asks that in return, Valkyrie is to be killed as she is a descendent of the Ancients. Skulduggery refuses at first but then agrees. He asks for a minute alone, and the Torment agrees. While alone, Scapegrace escapes and stands next to the Torment. Skulduggery switches Valkyrie with her reflection. It manages to fool the Torment and Scapegrace, and Skulduggery shoots the reflection. Skulduggery forces Scapegrace to get back to the Bentley. Valkyrie reveals that she is still alive, and the two drop Scapegrace to a cell, and they go to Bancrook - the location of the Grotesquery.

While in Bancrook, Dusk, Vengeous and some Infected arrive as well. Skulduggery calls for back up, and while they arrive, he distracts them. Vengeous defeats Skulduggery, and Valkyrie reveals herself and stops Vengeous from killing Skulduggery. Skulduggery then saves Valkyrie from Dusk, but Sanguine takes Valkyrie. Sanguine takes Valkyrie to a church, where Valkyrie's blood is used to awaken the Grotesquery. Skulduggery arrives to rescue her and throws a bomb on the Grotesquery. He threatens to blow up the Grotesquery, and Vengeous allows Skulduggery to take Valkyrie back. He tells her that the bomb is just a bag with a collapsible jack inside and the remote opens his garage door. When they escape, Skulduggery tells Valkyrie to steal the van when the Grotesquery is loaded in it. Valkyrie steals the van but crashes it. Skulduggery and Tanith then take Valkyrie to the Hibernian, along with the Grotesquery.

At the Hibernian, the Grotesquery is awoken and kills Stentor and Civet, Kenspeckle's assistants. Tanith is poisoned, and the two take her and escape. They go to the Sanctuary, and Mr. Bliss heals Tanith. Skulduggery and Valkyrie go visit a man called Finbar Wrong, and pick up a case. Finbar points out that a vampire is following them, who is Dusk. Skulduggery tells Valkyrie that she has to go to the Edgley reunion, and Skulduggery and Tanith would protect her and her family.

During the reunion, Skulduggery and Tanith are attacked by the Torment. They defeat him and force him to help them defeat the Grotesquery. The two pick up Valkyrie, and they go to Clearwater Hospital, where the Grotesquery is. Along with Mr. Bliss, and Cleavers, they attempt to defeat the Grotesquery. They find out that Sanguine is just pretending to work for Vengeous, and is actually working for someone else. During the fight, Vengeous arrives but is killed by the Grotesquery when his plan fails. During the fight, everyone is knocked out, leaving Valkyrie by herself to defeat the Grotesquery. She manages to defeat it, and Sanguine tells her and Skulduggery that the fight has just begun.

Skulduggery later visits Valkyrie at the pier, who is there in case the Infected she led to the river become vampires. One vampire appears, and Skulduggery and Valkyrie begin to fight it.

Gold, Babies And The Brothers Muldoon

A few months later, Skulduggery and Valkyrie investigate reports of babies going missing. It turns out that a group of Goblins are holding them to ransom. Valkyrie meets with a zombie, who complains that she is late. The zombie explains that the Muldoons, a goblin trio of brothers, had kidnapped three babies and demanded gold in exchange for their lives. He claims that the Muldoons were descended from powerful sorcerers, even The Ancients, although Valkyrie proves him wrong. They were normal human children, who later became sorcerers. After their father died and their mother went insane, they believed themselves superior to mortals. They attacked a group of mortals, and the Council of Elders ordered them to be ambushed. They escaped, but all three were transformed into goblins, with gold as their only source of returning to human form, making them resort to stealing and exchanging babies. They reach a ruined church, and the zombie leaves for the exchange to take place.

The first of the brothers, Liam, demands Valkyrie's money, but she persuades him to give her the babies first. He calls his brothers Colm and Fintan, who come with the babies. After she gives them the gold, they reveal that it is a double-cross. Skulduggery was the person responsible for turning them into goblins, and they say that they will send Skulduggery his head in order to make him come at them. Once he is in their grasp, they intend to kill him too.

The session is interrupted when Skulduggery bursts through the ceiling and crashes onto the floor painfully. The goblins reveal that Skulduggery was attacked by their sister, Peg. She crashes through the ceiling too, covered in wedding dresses and shouting out that she loves Skulduggery. It appears that Skulduggery and Peg have met before, with Skulduggery throwing an entire mountain on her to try and kill her.

Skulduggery and Peg engage in combat, while the Muldoons attack Valkyrie. She burns Fintan and he smacks into a wall. Colm tries to kill her, but she sets him on fire and elbows him in the jaw. Liam and Peg eventually get the better of the two and overpower them. Liam throttles Valkyrie, but she throws him across the church. Skulduggery summons up a piece of rubble to smash into Peg's face, but soon after, Liam rushes for the babies. Valkyrie quickly elbows him and knocks him unconscious.

Peg has an emotional breakdown after Skulduggery explains to her that they don't actually love each other. Peg leaves, saddened, and Skulduggery is left to be teased by Valkyrie.

Return of the Diablerie

Skulduggery and Valkyrie investigate the death of the Teleporter, Cameron Light. While investigating, Mr. Bliss tells them that the new Prime Detective, Remus Crux, would arrive soon and that Guild has agreed to meet Skulduggery and Valkyrie. As they leave, Crux arrives and reminds Skulduggery that he no longer works for the Sanctuary. Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit the Sanctuary to see Guild. He has an argument with them, and they leave. Outside, another Teleporter, Emmett Peregrine appears and asks Skulduggery for help. He offers protection to Peregrine, and he eventually agrees. The next day, Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit a lake that houses the Sea Hag, and the crime scene of a death of another Teleporter, Trope Kessel. The Sea Hag has claimed Kessel's corpse and lets Skulduggery and Valkyrie question the corpse. Skulduggery promises to bury the corpse if Kessel gives them information on how he was murdered. Skulduggery defeats the Sea Hag and they bury the corpse.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit China's library. While there, they learn the location of one of the last Teleporters, Fletcher Renn, who lives in the Grandeur Hotel. They also learn of the Diablerie, who are trying to bring back the Faceless Ones through a portal using a Teleporter and a Isthmus Anchor. At the hotel, they meet Sanguine, who is also trying to get Fletcher. The two defeat Sanguine, and after Fletcher fails to teleport away, they meet in a diner, where Fletcher reluctantly agrees to be protected. Skulduggery and Valkyrie take Fletcher to the Hibernian Cinema. Grouse gets into an argument with Skulduggery about the fact that he is constantly dragging Valkyrie into fights.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit Finbar Wrong so they can find the location of the portal. Finbar, using his Sensitive powers, finds out that the portal is at Aranmore Farm. When they leave, a Necromancer called Solomon Wreath, calls Skulduggery so they can meet. Wreath offers help, and Skulduggery agrees. After briefly going to Skulduggery's home, they start their way to Aranmore Farm. They meet the owner, called Patrick Hanratty. After failing to get him to leave, Skulduggery figures out that the Isthmus Anchor is the Grotesquery, which Guild has. They go to the Sanctuary and attempt to take the Grotesquery. Two members of the Diablerie, Sanguine and Gruesome Krav also arrive to try and steal it. Valkyrie's tooth is knocked out before they steal the Grotesquery, and Skulduggery and Valkyrie are framed for the theft. The two escape using a secret exit.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie go to the Hibernian again, and another argument arises between Grouse and Skulduggery. While Valkyrie is getting her tooth replaced, Ghastly returns to normal and they have a reunion. Along with Tanith and Fletcher, they go back to Aranmore Farm. Fletcher finds the location of the portal, and Patrick learns about the world of magic. Skulduggery tells Valkyrie that they can fix the Sceptre. Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit Gordon's home so they can find information on the crystal. Valkyrie talks to Echo Stone Gordon, and she finds out that the crystals are in the caves. The two go there, and they see the ghost of Anathem Mire, the old owner of Gordon's home. After getting a crystal, Mire traps Valkyrie, but she manages to escape.The two go to China's library, where they fix the Sceptre. After, China tells them that something has happened at the Hibernian. Guild has been kidnapped, and the Diablerie want Fletcher for Guild. Mr. Bliss tells them to double cross the Diablerie.

The next day, Valkyrie is arrested by Crux. She misses the trade, where Guild is rescued, but Fletcher is lost thanks to the Sea Hag. Valkyrie escapes her cell, and Skulduggery picks her up and they go to Aranmore Farm. The portal opens and three Faceless Ones come through. Valkyrie uses the Sceptre to defeat two of them, but the crystal breaks. The gang is forced to force the last Faceless One through the portal. They manage to get it through the portal, but the Faceless One grabs Skulduggery and he goes through the portal as well. Wreath suggests using Skulduggery's skull as an Isthmus Anchor to get Skulduggery back.

The Faceless Ones' universe

For one year, Skulduggery was trapped in this Universe, tortured every day by the Faceless Ones for fun by being retracted in and out by their telekinesis and pulling apart limbs. Again Valkyrie managed to reach him, he had gone mad, believing that she was a hallucination. This trauma later led to the resurfacing of Lord Vile.

The Revengers' Club

After Valkyrie learns that Skulduggery's skull could be used as an Isthmus Anchor, she manages to open the portal and get Skulduggery back. She has also been learning Necromancy. While Skulduggery was in the Faceless Ones' universe, he was tortured by the Faceless Ones through the body of Batu, but he had learned new powers, such as flying. Skulduggery attaches his own skull back at his house, and Skulduggery realises they are being followed by Staven Weeper, a Sanctuary agent. Skulduggery tells him to tell Guild that he has returned. Skulduggery then takes Valkyrie to the Temple, where he forces Wreath to tell Valkyrie about the Death Bringer, a Necromancer prophecy. Skulduggery figures out that the Soul Catcher was stolen by Billy-Ray Sanguine, who is part of the Revengers' Club, who's members want to get revenge on the Sanctuary.

Weeper had told Skulduggery about a vision that Sensitives had been seeing, so he and Valkyrie visit Finbar about the visions. He tells that the visions are about Darquesse, the person who destroys the world. He takes them to another Sensitive,Cassandra Pharos, who shows them a vision of Darquesse. In the vision, Darquesse kills Valkyrie's parents. The next day, Valkyrie tells Skulduggery that her mother is pregnant, and he suggests the name Skulduggery. They then visit the Sanctuary, where they realise that it had been raided by vampires. They free Tanith and Ghastly, who were arrested while trying to get Skulduggery's skull and find Guild, who has his fingers bitten off. Guild has his fingers re-attached, and they find out that the Desolation Engine was stolen.

Valkyrie visits China, where she learns that Sanguine's father is Dreylan Scarab, a man who assassinated Esryn Vangaurd during the war. Scarab is free and wants revenge on the Irish Sanctuary. At Ghastly's shop, Skulduggery tells everyone that Scarab was innocent, and it was one of Guild's men who actually assassinated Vanguard.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie go to see Caelan, a vampire who also helped in getting Skulduggery's skull back, to see if he knows where Dusk - a member of the Revengers' Club - is. Caelan says he doesn't know, but another Vampire called Moloch does. Valkyrie manages to get some information but is kidnapped by Dusk. Skulduggery rescues her, and they go to the Hibernian. Grouse is kidnapped by the Revengers' Club. The gang fail to get him back, and Tanith is also kidnapped.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit the Midnight Hotel, which is owned by Anton Shudder. Skulduggery believes that the Revengers' Club will use the Soul Catcher to steal a Remnant, spirits that can possess people. Sanguine appears as a guest, and he later reveals that he wants to steal a Remnant. A zombie horde, led by Scapegrace, attack the hotel, but since they had eaten a human, the horde is crazy and out of control. Skulduggery, Shudder, Valkyrie and Sanguine defeat the horde, but Sanguine manages to steal a Remnant. With the Remnant, Kenspeckle is forced to fix the Desolation Engine.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit Myron Stray, who tells them that Serpine's old castle is still being used. They go there, and rescue Grouse, Tanith and they take back the Desolation Engine. With the help of China, they force the Remnant back into the Soul Catcher, and Tanith is taken to the Hibernian. Wreath takes back the Soul Catcher with the Remnant inside it.

Skulduggery, Valkyrie, Ghastly, Guild and Shudder all figure out that the Revengers' Club have made another bomb, and that they plan to blow up Croke Park Stadium. They all go there to stop them. Scarab has held Guild's family hostage and forces Guild to blow up the stadium. Skulduggery and Valkyrie try to stop him but they fail. Fletcher appears and teleports Guild away. They teleport back, and Guild decides it is time to face up to his crimes. At the Sanctuary, Davina Marr (the new Prime Detective), uses Myron Stray's True Name to blow up the Sanctuary with the Desolation Engine. Skulduggery flies away with Valkyrie and Guild as the Sanctuary blows up.

Myosotis Terra

Skulduggery and Valkyrie were in a cave looking for the missing German Sanctuary Agent Myosotis Terra. During their mission, cave people attacked and captured them, with the means of eating them. In the end, they escaped with Myosotis.

The Remnant Outbreak

Skulduggery and Valkyrie are hunting Davina down after she blew up the Sanctuary. Their search leads them to a house in Dublin Street, where they ask a man called Ranajay for someone called Ephraim Tungsten, who has been helping Marr escape the country. Ranajay tells them that a man called Tesseract is also looking for Marr, and agrees to tell them where Marr is hiding. Skulduggery now has a façade, just like Ghastly. Skulduggery and Valkyrie find Marr is hiding, and manage to save her before she is killed by Tesseract. They take Marr to the Hibernian, and Kenspeckle Grouse agrees to look after her before they interrogate her.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie, along with many others attend the meeting at the Great Chamber to elect a new Council of Elders. Corrival Deuce reluctantly accepts to be the Grand Mage, and he nominated Erskine Ravel, an old friend of Skulduggery, and Skulduggery as Elders. Skulduggery doesn't want to be an Elder. Skulduggery and Valkyrie visit China because Skulduggery's façade has been giving him problems. There, they discuss Tesseract and his possible hirers. Later Skulduggery and Valkyrie go to Ghastly's shops, where Ravel and Tanith agree to help interrogate Marr. Valkyrie says that she has to go, and Skulduggery wonders where she is. Valkyrie visits a Banshee so she can seal her True Name, Darquesse.

Vaurien Scapegrace accidentally finds out where Skulduggery lives, and after an auction to sell the information goes wrong, he is forced to give the information to Tesseract. Skulduggery, Valkyrie, Ravel and Tanith take Marr back to Skulduggery's house to interrogate her. Skulduggery figures out that Marr's hirers have clouded her memory. She agrees to be helped remember, but Tesseract shows up and defeats everyone and kills Marr. Fletcher appears with Ghastly and they escape. At the Hibernian, they are all healed. After they are healed, Skulduggery drops Valkyrie home. On the way, Valkyrie tells Skulduggery that she is off work for Christmas.

Two days later, Skulduggery meets up with Valkyrie. She gives him a Christmas gift, a hairbrush. Skulduggery doesn't give Valkyrie her gift because Christmas was one day ago. Skulduggery then questions where she been going alone the past days. Valkyrie confesses that she is Darquesse, but she has sealed her True Name. Skulduggery accepts this and tells her that she should have told him sooner. He also tells her off for seeing Doctor Nye. The two then track down Scapegrace and Thrasher. They want to be returned to human form, so Skulduggery takes them to the Hibernian, and Kenspeckle agrees to try to make them human again.

Skulduggery, Ravel and Ghastly all gather at Ghastly's shop. They do not know that the Remnants have all been released, so they are attacked by Solomon Wreath, Anton Shudder and Corrival Deuce. Ravel is also possessed, and Ghastly and Skulduggery are forced to escape. Skulduggery calls Valkyrie, who was with Fletcher, so they could meet up at the Hibernian. China is also forced to leave her library, so she, along with Tanith meet up at the Hibernian as well. A man called Geoffrey Scrutinous is saved by Skulduggery. They meet up with a woman called Philomena Random, and they go to the Great Chamber. Scrutinous and Random are possessed, and Skulduggery escapes and goes to the Hibernian.

Skulduggery makes up a plan to teleport all the Remnants to MacGillycuddy's Reeks, which contains the Receptacle. However, Fletcher is not powerful enough, so everyone, including Kenspeckle and Clarabelle, his assistant, go to Gordon's house. Valkyrie persuades Echo-Gordon to reveal himself, and he says he can teach Fletcher to teleport a large group of people. Skulduggery and China go to Burgundy Dalrymple who has half of the key to unlock the Receptacle. The two defeat him and take the key. They then go to Drogheda and meet with Tanith and Valkyrie, who have the other half of the key. They go back to the Hibernian to gather all the Remnants together. However, Fletcher is possessed by a Remnant, so they are forced to drive to Kerry, where the Receptacle is. But Valkyrie is taken by Fletcher. She is saved by Sanguine, who has been paid to stop the Remnants. He joins the others on the drive to Kerry. Valkyrie finds out that Kenspeckle has been killed by a possessed Clarabelle and tells everyone. On the way to Kerry, Ghastly and China are possessed and steal Valkyrie. A Remnant possesses her and brings out Darquesse.

Skulduggery, Tanith and Sanguine find the entrance to the Receptacle, and Skulduggery opens it. All the Remnants, including Valkyrie (or who she believes to be Darquesse are at the Receptacle. Skulduggery and Tanith persuade Darquesse to let the Remnant out of her, which brings Valkyrie back. Skulduggery and Tanith threaten to kill Valkyrie if the Remnants do not vacate the bodies they are possessing. All the Remnants, except for one leave their bodies. The one who stays possesses Tanith, and who runs away.

At the second meeting at the Great Chamber, it was revealed that Corrival Deuce had died. Ravel is nominated as Grand Mage, with Madame Mist, a Child of the Spider, as the first Elder. Skulduggery nominates Ghastly as the second Elder, who only accepts so he can get Tanith back. Skulduggery and Valkyrie then visit the Temple, and Skulduggery threatens Auron Tenebrae, the High Priest, to admit it was his fault that the Remnants were released, but he wouldn't.

Skulduggery is then seen following Tesseract. After Tesseract kills the Torment, Skulduggery tries to arrest him. During their fight, a man claiming to be Lord Vile appears and fatally injures Tesseract. Before Tesseract dies, he asks if Skulduggery was revived by Lord Vile, but Skulduggery doesn't answer.

The Wonderful Adventures of Geoffrey Scrutinous

Geoffrey Scrutinous is talking to a cop, telling him that he will handle everything that has happened. The cop agrees and walks away, leaving Geoffrey at the murder scene. Skulduggery and Valkyrie inspect the scene. Skulduggery admits that he has no idea what happened. Geoffrey says that neighbours heard an old fashioned train at the time the person dies. He comes to the conclusion that the person was hit by a train. But Skulduggery says there are no train tracks or anything of the sort. Geoffrey searches around the room and picks up an old pen, he looks down on the piece of paper which reads "I'm going to be hit by a train." Geoffrey informs Skulduggery of the piece of paper. They are sure it is the person's handwriting. They come to the conclusion the person didn't know he was writing. Skulduggery looks at Geoffrey and asks why he is writing. Geoffrey is confused and looks down at his hand and find he is writing. He drops the pen and Skulduggery reads out loud "I'm going to be eaten by a shark." Geoffrey becomes worried, Valkyrie says the pen is cursed. Skulduggery says Geoffrey has twelve hours before a shark does eat him.

The trio sit in a diner, discussing where the murdered person worked. Skulduggery makes some calls and finds four people were killed in the last two weeks. He comes to the conclusion that the pen was handed down from person to person and each of them were killed in turn. The curse started with a sorcerer named Elwood Satchel. The three got into the Bentley, drove to a person who knew Satchel well. He wasn't home so they waited in the car.

He returns the next morning and tells them how Satchel died. He said Satchel was electrocuted while running. A few days later they found a note, left by Satchel. Skulduggery asked if Satchel had any enemies. The man mentions another sorcerer named Davit Maybury, who Satchel had stolen his girlfriend from.

The trio go to Maybury's house, but no-one answered the door. When Geoffrey has only 15 minutes until he is going to be eaten, Skulduggery finds a door in Maybury's bedroom. Geoffrey notices the carpet is wet and soggy. Skulduggery calls out to Maybury through the door, but nothing happens. Geoffrey asks where the water is coming from, but Valkyrie says there is no water. Geoffrey sees a fish but he is the only one to experience it. Skulduggery looks for a way to open the door, without noticing it, he does. The go down a room with a dead Maybury sitting in the armchair. Geoffrey panics, but Skulduggery tries to calm him by telling a useless story.

Skulduggery looks at the cursed pen and cracks the outer shell. He sees four symbols engraved on the inside. Skulduggery notices one symbol is incorrect, which made the curse pass from person to person instead of one person. Geoffrey's teeth start chattering. Skulduggery rings China Sorrows to see if he can correct the symbol. Geoffrey notices the shark's dorsal fin poking out of the water. Valkyrie jumps in front of him but knows that won't do anything. Skulduggery starts talking to China about the symbol. Geoffrey starts shouting, saying that the shark is coming. Skulduggery tells Geoffrey to stop shouting. Valkyrie tells him to scare it away by splashing, but China says not to splash about. Skulduggery continues talking and takes up a scalpel and tries to correct the mistake.

The Shark comes for Geoffrey, Valkyrie grabs his arm and pulls him away at the last second. But she drops him again, under water. He looks for the shark and sees it coming for him. But at that time, the water disappears and so does the shark. Geoffrey thanks Valkyrie for saving him. Skulduggery wonders why he doesn't get a thank you too and Geoffrey merely said, Skulduggery told him to shut up and walked away.

Rise of the Death Bringer

Skulduggery is questioning Kenny with Valkyrie about Paul Lynch's death. He uses the name, "Detective Inspector Me", while his façade is on. They leave along with Fletcher Renn when they finished and Skulduggery drops Valkyrie off at Alice's christening.

Fletcher later picks Valkyrie off and takes her to Skulduggery, who is waiting at Bernadette Maguire's cottage. When they are later attacked by the Jitter Girls and they managed to wake up Darquesse, Skulduggery is able to turn her back into Valkyrie.

They go to the Necromancer Temple and Bison Dragonclaw, a Necromancer, sets a Warlock on them and runs away.

They later were captured in the temple. Auron Tenebrae revealed Skulduggery's dark past to Valkyrie, Disturbingly, this was similar to her own Darquesse. They later escaped and the Sanctuary stormed the Temple.

After a failed attempt (though they thought otherwise) to capture or kill the Death Bringer Melancholia St Clair at the Battle at Willow Hill, they become slightly more at ease.

At the Requiem Ball, Skulduggery introduced Valkyrie to dignitaries such as Dexter Vex and Quintin Strom. However, Melancholia St Clair was revealed to be alive and the battled in the tunnels under the mansion. Skulduggery reforms into Lord Vile and battles Melancholia. Defeated, she and Valkyrie attempted to flee. Even the White Cleaver was ripped apart by Vile's magic.

Finally, Vile and Darquesse battled in O'Connell's Street, Dublin; Eason's Book Shop and Forbidden Planet, a comic book shop. They manage to return to their normal selves in Forbidden Planet.

Not long after, Eliza Scorn revealed that China Sorrows was actually the one who captured Skulduggery's wife. Scorn then destroyed China's Library. Skulduggery and Valkyrie abandoned the badly-injured Sorrows in the dirt and left in disgust.

The End Of The World

A few months after China's Library was destroyed, a boy named Ryan was looking around a library. Near him he sees a group of four suspicious strangers, shortly before noticing a tiny silver circle on a shelf. After Ryan picks it up, it burns him, leaving a mark, and the group of four come up to him. Their names are Samuel, Obloquy, Mercy Charient and Foe. They threaten him to go with them, but then Valkyrie shows up to save him. They run through the library throwing fireballs, before getting outside to the Bentley. Skulduggery then gets in and drives them away. During the drive Valkyrie explains some things about magic and it's people to Ryan before coming to an apartment building. She also explains that Foe and his friends need the imprint on Ryan's hand to activate a Doomsday Machine, a bomb that was initially meant to destroy the Faceless Ones. Deacon Maybury was a sorcerer who used to belong to Foe's gang, but he betrayed them and stole the key, planning to sell it on.

They searched Deacon Maybury's trashed apartment looking for clues about his murder. While searching a woman came to the apartment, Francine, looking for Deacon. They explained to her that Deacon had been killed and asked if she knew anything about it. She said she was very close to Deacon and loved him deeply. Ryan returns with her to her apartment. When he tells her it was no trouble at all, Francine tells him there will be trouble. Suddenly, Foe appears and kidnaps him. It is revealed that Francine is just an illusion, and she is really Mercy in disguise. Fortunately, Valkyrie and Skulduggery save him, and they escape by jumping out the window.

Skulduggery explains that the only person able to create an illusion is Robert Crasis. They drive to Crasis' house, and he explains that Foe threatened his family so he was forced to disguise Mercy as Francine. Skulduggery asks for a map, and he finds the location of the Doomsday Machine.

They drive to a shopping mall and enter a room, where they plan to stay until all of the shoppers have left. Skulduggery asks Ryan why he doesn't miss his home, and Ryan explains that he was initially planning to run away from home. But Skulduggery tells him that he doesn't have a home. Crasis created Ryan. Ryan is an illusion. And beneath the illusion lies Deacon Maybury. Ryan tells him that he is crazy, but Skulduggery insists that he is telling the truth. Deacon disguised himself so he could hide from Foe's gang, as an average teenage boy. Ryan eventually gives in, and he sits away from the others and weeps. Valkyrie comforts him and tells him that by dismantling the Doomsday Machine he would make Deacon mad.

They find the activation panel, but Foe's gang arrive. They fight, with Skulduggery defeating Mercy and Samuel and Valkyrie defeating Obloquy. Foe flees the scene when Samuel unleashes his vampire form. Ryan dismantles the machine, and Valkyrie comforts and kisses him. But then the illusion fades, and Deacon is revealed. Skulduggery tells him that he may escape, but only because Ryan was their friend.

The Summer of Light

Valkyrie and Skulduggery fight to stop the outbreak of magic in mortals. They discover that this is caused by Argeddion's Summer of Light, deliberately placed on his desired wife, Greta Dapple. After Skulduggery discovers this, they go to find Tyren Lament and his group of sorcerers. Doing so, they discover that Argeddion is waking from his coma, and giving magic to mortals through their dreams. Four mortals in particular, Kitana Kellaway, Sean Mackin, Doran Purcell and Elsie O'Brien, stand out by using their newly discovered powers to murder enemies and wreak chaos and havoc across their neighbourhood. Apart from Elsie, who leaves them as she is not evil, they resist arrest attempts by Skulduggery and Valkyrie, and when Kitana plunges her hand into Valkyrie and squeezes her heart, Darquesse is unleashed. After Darquesse kills Kitana, Sean and Doran, Skulduggery promptly puts on his Necromancer armour and turns into Lord Vile. Darquesse and Lord Vile fight, and when they are thrown into the Sanctuary, Skulduggery taps a special pattern on his skull which he had embedded into his subconscious. The lights made by the symbols around the room cause both of them to have seizures, making them their usual self.

Get Thee Behind Me, Bubba Moon

Skulduggery travelled to America with Valkyrie to deal with Bubba Moon.

Theatre of Shadows

Valkyrie and Skulduggery during Theatre of Shadows.

Eight weeks after the Summer of Light, Grand Mage Erskine Ravel issued a proclamation that Detectives Pleasant and Cain had disappeared and that Silas Nadir had escaped custody during the confusion Argeddion had caused.

The Button

Skulduggery and Valkyrie tracked down Conor Delaney, the cause of the world's destruction and did their very best to avert it.

The War of the Sanctuaries

During the the most recent war, Skulduggery was forced to go up against friends and ally with enemies, all the while trying to figure out who was behind all the suspicious orchestrations. He suspects that the Warlocks were being set up to attack the mortals, though he can't figure out why. He and Valkyrie try in vain to find the mysterious Man with the Golden Eyes, who they believe to be behind the destruction of the Dublin Sanctuary and several Warlock killings. It isn't until Ghastly Bespoke and Anton Shudder are killed by Erskine Ravel that they make the connection. Angered at the betrayal and the loss of his friends, Skulduggery vows to kill Ravel. However, when the Warlocks attack Roarhaven instead of Dublin, as Ravel had planned, Skulduggery agrees to take over command of Roarhaven's soldiers and lead the fight alongside Ravel. Ravel is caught by Darquesse who punishes him by setting him in unimaginable agony for twenty-three hours a day. Skulduggery is content with this and does not attempt to lift Darquesse's curse in any way.

Although Valkyrie had now been Darquesse for longer than ever, Skulduggery believes that she can still be saved. He goes to Valkyrie's reflection Stephanie for help, since she is in possession of The Sceptre of the Ancients. She accepts, on the terms that they are to kill Darquesse if they get the chance. After a hesitation, Skulduggery agrees.

The Dying of the Light

Skulduggery is first seen with his gun pressed to the head of Rhadaman who was trying to kill Stephanie, Valkyrie Cain's reflection. Skulduggery fought with him and interrupted Stephanie when she was making a speech by knocking him unconscious. They shared playful banter until Skulduggery stopped suddenly and walked away, remembering she wasn't Valkyrie.

Fletcher and Wreath accompany Skulduggery until they reach Necropolis, where Wreath explains that only the dead can enter. Wreath and Fletcher went up a hidden staircase that led to a long room with an open balcony which allowed them to view the city. Skulduggery continued forward alone and was confronted by a Scottish man who was called 'The Inquisitor'. He explained to Pleasant that he was there to do a test of purity. He told Skulduggery that the deceased were whispering in his ear, that they knew of his wife and child who were murdered. He tells Skulduggery that his wife and child are waiting for him in the city, to which Pleasant replied that they were dead and that no part of them was there. Another man appeared before Pleasant, this one French, who called himself 'the Validator'. He told him that the test was about Skulduggery and that only he could take it, and only he could pass or fail. The ghost of Skulduggery's wife appeared and spoke, but Skulduggery refused to believe that it was her. As they spoke, a small ghost child ran in and out of doorways like it was playing. Skulduggery stepped back suddenly like he's been hit and his shoulders sagged.

When his wife continued to talk of watching Skulduggery die, the child ran over. Skulduggery spoke to his wife but was looking down directly at his child.

He took one step forward and went to reach down to the child, but stopped himself and stepped back again. Skulduggery then stood there, trembling, overwrought with emotion. Ghastly and the other ghosts of Skulduggery's past appeared. A hole in the ground opened and his wife grabbed his arm, and the other ghosts dragged him into the hole. Skulduggery reemerged and pushed the Validator in, letting the ghosts take him instead.

Skulduggery was finally met by a Necromancer called 'the Guardian' who tries to get an insight of his soul, to which Pleasant replies '...You want to shock me into admitting some dark secret that I've been hiding away for all these years? I've just been spoken to by beings claiming to be the ghosts of my friends, the ghost of my wife...I saw my child. After all these years, I saw the face of my child again. I'm all shocked-out for today ...' The Guardian then explains that if Skulduggery wins the fight against him he may activate the Meryyn Sigil and the one who wears the Sigil will be invincible until all the sand falls in the hourglass.

Devastation Day

Skulduggery instead is convinced to join the fight against Darquesse, Scapegrace and Trasher taking his place. Skulduggery becomes Lord Vile and with Melancholia, almost take down Darquesse. Later, Darquesse ended up destroying the world, Skulduggery in it, but it was just an illusion.

After, Skulduggery pretends to sacrifice himself to the Accelerator but actually throws Ravel in instead, making use of a loophole in the Engineer's instructions. He teases Valkyrie about her tearful goodbye later.

Resurrection

Five years after Devastation Day, Skulduggery attempts to convince Valkyrie to join him again for a mission. Skulduggery now works for the Arbiter Corps, an international Marshal Service-like organisation, after quitting as City Guard Commander of Roarhaven, due to a disagreement with Supreme Mage China Sorrows. During the investigation, Skulduggery is 'corrupted' by Azzedine Smoke, which makes him want to kill Valkyrie and join the anti-Sanctuary to resurrect Abyssinia. Skulduggery is able to overcome Smoke's influence after some time, showing the incomparable bond he shares with Valkyrie.

Trivia

• Derek Landy revealed in an interview that he never cared or even thought about what Skulduggery looked like when he was alive. This is for the same reason he will never tell his readers if Skulduggery's child was a girl or boy. He said that Skulduggery is who he is and when people read about his past he wants them to only remember that 'his wife and child were murdered', 'his wife and child were murdered'. He said Skulduggery is whole and he wants his readers to only have certain, important details of Skulduggery's past; The rest is irrelevant.

Powers and abilities

Skulduggery Pleasant is an extremely powerful sorcerer: despite being an Elemental, he is shown to be able to adapt to other magical disciplines as well and has advanced Elemental magic to an extent that is only exceeded by Mevolent. He is also an excellent detective and possesses a variety of other skills:

Elemental

Skulduggery excels at Elemental magic. Air to be his most powerful element. He possessed the standard powers of an Elemental sorcerer, however during his imprisonment in the Faceless Ones' dimension, Skulduggery had ample time to enhance his existing powers and become a stronger adversary. He can now also create streams of fire, fly, create solid walls of air and manipulate earth more than just as a defensive element.

Necromancy

When Skulduggery's family was killed, he became possessed by anger and grief and later, around 1850, became the character known as Lord Vile, who then began his training at the Necromancer Temple. As Lord Vile, Skulduggery is a master of Necromancy and can bend shadows to his will. He was strong enough to hold his own against Darquesse and even could've killed her if she hadn't healed herself in their showdown. He can summon spears of darkness, absorb death to make his armour stronger, create ropes of shadows, and use them to rip any people who try to pull off his armour. Lord Vile was even able to hold out against Kitana Kellaway and her friends who's powers were close to those of Argeddion himself.

Aura

Valkyrie Cain is able to see that Skulduggery has a very unique crimson red aura. This apparently is what allows him to recover from Smoke's corruption quicker than other characters.

Other skills

Skulduggery is shown to be an expert detective. He commonly picks out key details and comes up with plans. He has a well-known reputation for his skills and is considered cunning and unpredictable. Skulduggery has also displayed his skills in hand-to-hand combat on multiple occasions, being taught how to box by his friend Ghastly Bespoke. He has held his own and defeated opponents on several occasions with his bare hands such as the White Cleaver, Vindick Leather, Vaurien Scapegrace and several Hollow Men. Skulduggery's style of combat has been noted to be brutally efficient, disregarding finesse for effectiveness. Skulduggery is proficient in punches, kicks, jabs, blocks, throws, counterattacks, choke holds, body locks, counter locks, etc. He is a stationary opponent in physical combat, disregarding athletic and extravagant manoeuvres in a fight and preferring to remain on the ground and in full control of his attacks. Skulduggery is also a skilled swordsman able to compete with Burgundy Dalyrymple in swordsmanship. Aside from these skills, Skulduggery is proficient with firearms, using his gun instead of magic, stating he likes to use modern technology. Skulduggery has also been shown to be mildly proficient at both playing the guitar and singing.

Personality

Skulduggery, despite his bizarre appearance which he hides while in public with a disguise, is something of a dapper gentleman. He has a polite, old-fashioned way of speech and a velvety-smooth voice which enraptures Valkyrie when they first meet. As well as a powerful sorcerer, more specifically an Elemental, he is particularly enthusiastic about detecting, always searching for clues, much to Valkyrie's and Tanith's chagrin. He is also a flamboyant egotist, vocally exalting his own plans, complimenting himself, and showing off his magical abilities to Valkyrie, at one point walking on the ocean's surface after falling from a cliff.

Skulduggery is a clever strategist, usually forming the plan the team uses, when they actually have a plan, and sharpening his wit on Valkyrie's, taking pleasure in his own wisecracks. The two partners develop a relationship throughout the books. He also reveals that he used to be great at motivational speeches, although he has obviously lost this talent, as his attempt to psyche up the party before they confront the Grotesquery with:

"I want you all to know that we are the first line of defence. In fact, we practically the only line of defence. If we fail, there won't be a whole lot anyone else will be able to do. What I'm trying to say is that failure at this point isn't really the smart move to make. We are not to fail, do I make myself absolutely clear? Failure is bad, it won't help us in the short term and certainly won't do us any favours in the long run, and I think I've lost track of this speech, and I'm not too sure where it's headed. But I know where it started and that's what you've got to keep in mind. Has anyone seen my hat?".

Skulduggery's suave demeanour hides a desire for revenge. Because he died hating Serpine and his hatred brought him back, it forms part of his existence. At Valkyrie's questioning, he describes his true nature as a "dark, twisted thing." Several characters throughout the series have commented about his legendary rage, which manifests itself in the form of Lord Vile, who is Skulduggery's evil side and shows how deadly the skeleton detective can really be since Lord Vile was arguably the most powerful necromancer who had ever lived. When Skulduggery transforms into Vile, he is capable of appalling acts including slaughtering hundreds of people, one of the most notable being the mother of one of his closest friends Ghastly Bespoke. However, Skulduggery has also shown a very strong will and has managed to fight off his darker urges and managed to help Valkyrie do the same when she transformed into Darquesse. He is also deeply remorseful for the terrible acts he committed as Lord Vile and has spent his entire life, or more accurately his afterlife due to the fact that he was dead, trying to redeem himself. Despite the darker side of his nature, witnessing the murder of his family makes him sensitive to the loss of others. Although he accepts sacrifices from individuals as part of war, he is highly reluctant to allow this to happen. He protects Valkyrie diligently throughout the novels; originally only about to arrest Serpine, he is forced to kill him when he attempts to kill Valkyrie.

When the Faceless Ones returned to Earth, Skulduggery is sucked into the vortex along with them and trapped with them in a different universe. This ordeal seems to have had a lasting effect on his sanity, testament to this being when Valkyrie came to rescue Skulduggery he thought she was a hallucination and he mentioned he had been hallucinating a lot.

On an interesting note, the head he was wearing was not his own; he won it in a poker game. His real head was stolen from him by goblins while he was asleep. When Skulduggery came back to Earth, a lot of characters believed him to be unhinged, but he said he was faking this side of his personality. Skulduggery particularly hates being shot at, as he finds it very rude.

Description

While his former appearance remains unknown, although he claims to not have been bad to look at, Skulduggery currently resides in the form of a skeleton. He can commonly be seen wearing suits made by his friend Ghastly, Skulduggery wears a hat, scarf, wig and glasses to cover up his face when in public, the wig being described as having fuzzy hair. Before the series, he got his skull stolen by some Goblins, while he was meditating. Since he has been using one he won in a poker game, however, he is reunited with it in Dark Days. It is noted that his old skull has higher cheekbones.

Equipment

Skulduggery drives a 1954 Bentley R-Type Continental, although he has other cars stashed around Ireland, typically brightly coloured Ford Fiestas. In combat he uses his Magic and a .38 Smith and Wesson revolver. Skulduggery also has a case which contains another gun, some bullets and a bomb spike. During the War Skulduggery wore black leather, a metal gauntlet that travelled from wrist to shoulder and his gun holstered at his side. He wore this outfit again during The War between Sanctuaries.

Trivia

• Skulduggery's given name and the sex of his child will never be revealed.
• What made Skulduggery quit his job as the city guard commander will be properly discussed.
• Valkyrie has never dressed Skulduggery up for Halloween. Until now, at least.
• Nefarian Serpine once used Skulduggery's ribcage as a xylophone.
• There is evidence that Skulduggery speaks the Irish Gaelic language (commonly known as Gaelige or Celtic Gaelic). In Mortal Coil he mentions the word creim, which is Irish for erode.

Quotes

"Doors are for people with no imagination."

— Skulduggery to Valkyrie about entering from the window, Skulduggery Pleasant

"Absolutely. I would have never tripped. I'm far too graceful."

— Skulduggery to Valkyrie, Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire

"You're still upset about that time I made you explode, aren't you? I can tell."

— Skulduggery meeting Baron Vengeous, Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire

"Only a moron would bring a sword to a gunfight."

— Skulduggery in response to Baron Vengeous calling him a heathen, Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire

"If I knew a little more about how I ended up living as a skeleton with an impeccable dress sense, I could give it a try."

— Skulduggery telling Valkyrie that he doesn't know if he is immortal, Skulduggery Pleasant: The Faceless Ones

"Open. Oscail. Oscailte amach. Enter. Mellon. Open Sesame. Remnant. Soul Catcher. Receptacle. Danger."

— Skulduggery trying to open the door to the Receptacle, Skulduggery Pleasant: Mortal Coil

"The sparrow flies south for winter."

— Skulduggery to Oblivious, before knocking him unconscious, Skulduggery Pleasant: Death Bringer

"That's right. Until the end."

— Skulduggery to Darquesse, before attempting to kill her in Cassandra's vision, Skulduggery Pleasant: Last Stand of Dead Men

"If you can't believe in yourself, then believe in me. Because I believe in you."

— Skulduggery to Omen Darkly about his destiny, Skulduggery Pleasant: Resurrection

Appearances

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See also

• Gallery
• Skulduggery's official profile

References