Hoffnung

Taking its name from the German word for hope, Hoffnung is a black, double-edged blade mounted on a black hilt, its crossguard formed as a V with a single star at the middle. When it is idle, Gerard tucks it away inside the buckler strapped to his left arm and draws it only to fight. Its cutting power is formidable: the Cage of Life conjured by Kirio Hikifune buckles under it, the needle Senjumaru Shutara raises to block it simply breaks, and even a full exchange against Kenpachi Zaraki's Nozarashi leaves nothing worse than a slight nick along the edge.

The blade's real threat comes from Gerard's Schrift, The Miracle, which he says gathers the collected hopes of the masses and binds them into the weapon. Since wounding hope gives rise to despair, any harm inflicted on Hoffnung recoils onto whoever caused it, so that even a slight chip in the edge tears open a far greater wound in the attacker's body. The power is not unbreakable, though: Tōshirō Hitsugaya shuts it down by freezing the sword through and through, stopping its function cold.

No one but Gerard ever carries Hoffnung, which he swings throughout his drawn-out battle against the Gotei 13 and the Visored in Wahrwelt. Once he enters his Quincy: Vollständig, Aschtonig, the sword's tip unleashes energy blasts fierce enough to flatten whole city blocks.