Lord Tirek

Lord Tirek is a male centaur, the older brother of Scorpan, and the main antagonist of the season four finale. He is a villain who escapes from Tartarus, steals magic, and seeks to rule over Equestria. He is defeated and banished back to Tartarus by the Mane Six through Rainbow Power magic acquired from the Chest of Harmony.

Development and design
Tirek shares his name and certain aspects of his design with a Generation 1 villain from the animated television special Rescue at Midnight Castle. He is a centaur with red skin, white hair, dark fur, cloven hooves, and is somewhat bovine in appearance.

Over the course of Tirek's appearances in the finale, his appearance gradually changes as he absorbs more magic. He intially appears very frail, with muted colors and a hunched posture that leaves him roughly at the height of a normal pony. After absorbing the magic of many unicorns, he gains a more muscular physique, brighter colors, and a pair of curved horns. His later transformations exaggerate his form even further, becoming larger, brawnier, and with increasingly long and elaborate horns.

During her May 2014 takeover of the Hub Network's Twitter feed, Meghan McCarthy identified Tirek as her "new favorite character," and described Tirek as having "some serious issues and some serious magic." On May 10, 2014, Jayson Thiessen tweeted "hehe" in reply to a fan's tweet "Was just rewatching episodes with a friend. Was that Tirek at the end of Castle Mane-ia? My mind may have just blown." In a series of tweets during January 2015, Stephen Jackson replied to Jim Miller "Was that Tirek's shadow at the end of Castle Mane-ia?" "I don't really think it is, but I'd like to hear from someone on the team." "Or, I think it's up to me to decide huh? :)," Miller replied "You got it!" Jackson further replied "I got what?" "I got what exactly?" "Here's a compaison [sic] of The Pony of Shadows and Tirek pic.twitter.com/UxTgEUfnkg," and Miller further replied "you got that it's up to you to decide." On March 15, 2015, Miller was asked, "I would like your thoughts on this: are Sombra and Tirek the redeemable types? This is not about Season 5 at all[,]" and replied, "I don't want to speculate in case we ever decide to use them again."

Depiction in the series
Lord Tirek appears in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 1 in a frail and weakened state, indicated by pale colors and a raspy voice. In a Canterlot alleyway,  he approaches the unsuspecting unicorn Rare Find and drains his magic, growing larger and more powerful. This attack is sensed by Princess Celestia in a vision in her dream, causing Princess Luna to see it and become aware as well.

Celestia and Luna explain to Twilight Sparkle that Tirek and his brother Scorpan came to Equestria from "a distant land" to steal Equestrian magic. However, Scorpan grew to appreciate the ways of Equestria and even befriended a young unicorn wizard. Scorpan pleaded with his brother to abandon their plans, but Tirek refused to relent. To save Equestria, Scorpan informed the princesses of Tirek's intentions. Scorpan returned to his homeland while Tirek was imprisoned in Tartarus for his crimes.

Celestia states that Tirek likely escaped during the events of It's About Time, when Cerberus left his post at Tartarus' gates, and has only recently regained enough strength to use his dark powers after languishing in Tartarus for centuries.

While continuing to devour unicorn magic, Tirek is captured by Discord, who is there on behalf of his friendship to the ponies. Likening Discord's actions to those of his "weak-minded brother," Tirek appeals to Discord's former nature as a master of chaos, convincing him that friendship is "a new form of imprisonment" and that betraying the ponies will grant him freedom to do as he pleases. With Discord's aid, Tirek is able to continue absorbing unicorn magic, gaining a stronger form and increasing in power. He soon becomes strong enough to begin absorbing magic from Pegasi and Earth ponies as well.

In Twilight's Kingdom - Part 2, Tirek continues to grow in strength and size. He becomes powerful enough to steal Alicorn magic and makes his way to Canterlot Castle. Anticipating his arrival, Celestia, Luna, and Cadance transfer all of their magic into Twilight and send her into hiding, believing Tirek is unaware of her royal status. When Tirek arrives and finds the princesses devoid of their magic, he banishes them to Tartarus as revenge for his own imprisonment.

When Discord has doubts about their alliance, Tirek gives him the medallion around his neck as a token of his gratitude and loyalty, claiming that it originally belonged to "someone very close" to him. He soon discovers Twilight via her depiction in a stained glass window and questions the existence of a fourth princess; Discord confirms this and directs Tirek to Twilight's home in Ponyville.

When the two arrive, they capture Twilight's friends and Tirek absorbs their magic, growing even more powerful. Discord is thrilled by the prospect of ruling Equestria alongside Tirek, but Tirek suddenly turns on him and says he is no longer of any use, proceeding to absorb his magic as well. When Discord reminds Tirek of the medallion, Tirek reveals it was given to him by his treacherous brother Scorpan and considers it "as worthless as he is."

Tirek soon finds Twilight and pursues her relentlessly, destroying the Golden Oak Library in the process. Enraged, Twilight fights Tirek in an intense battle of magic. Tirek fights back, but their evenly matched might leads them to a stalemate. Thus Tirek offers Twilight a trade: the release of her friends in exchange for the Alicorn magic. Despite her friends' protests, Twilight agrees to trade the magic for her friends, including Discord despite his betrayal. Upon releasing them, Tirek promptly absorbs all of Twilight's magic, making him all-powerful.

However, when Discord bestows Scorpan's medallion upon Twilight as a sign of true friendship and gratitude, it proves to be the final key needed to open the Tree of Harmony chest. As Tirek rampages through the Everfree Forest, the Mane Six open the chest, gaining a new, powerful magic that Tirek is unable to overpower. With this magic, the ponies strip Tirek of all his stolen magic and reduce him to his weakened state again. He is last seen locked in a cage within Tartarus, guarded by Cerberus.

Lord Tirek is briefly mentioned by Rainbow Dash at the beginning of The Cutie Map - Part 1.

Personality
Tirek is evil, sadistic, narcissistic, and driven by an obsessive desire for power. He has a violent temper and fierce nature, as seen during his battle with Twilight Sparkle. He is also very manipulative and highly persuasive when striking a deal. However, while Tirek may hold up his end of a bargain in some cases, he is dishonest and traitorous, not hesitating to turn on and dispose of anyone whose usefulness has expired, like Discord.

He has a deep resentment toward his brother Scorpan after his betrayal, describing him as "weak-minded" and "worthless."

Magic
Tirek is potentially one of the most powerful magic users in the show. However, his magic is severely diminished due to his imprisonment in Tartarus. He frequently shoots beams from an orange orb floating between his horns, and he absorbs magic from others.

Upon escaping from Tartarus, he steals unicorns' magic to restore his strength, later stealing it from Pegasi, Earth ponies, and even Discord himself. Tirek is changed both physically and magically, gaining brighter colors, a more muscular physique, longer horns, and a deeper voice. As he progresses, he drains magic from dozens of ponies at once.

After absorbing the magic of Twilight's friends and Discord, Tirek's size increases to the point at which he towers over most buildings in Ponyville. His growing musculature shatters the bracers on his arms, and he grows a mass of white hair on his head to match his beard and tail. He is able to match Twilight Sparkle in a magic battle. When negotiating with Twilight, he snaps his fingers and summons Twilight's drained friends in levitating bubbles.

After absorbing Twilight's Alicorn magic, Tirek grows even larger. He is finally overpowered by the Mane Six when they gain the power of the Tree of Harmony, and he loses all of the magic he'd drained from his victims.

IDW comics
Tirek appears on 's Fan Expo retailer exclusive cover RE.

explores Tirek's "secret origins": at a young age, Tirek, a prince of his homeland, was instructed in the ways of magic by a centaur hermit named Sendak the Elder and became interested in pony magic through him. Tirek's ambitions greatly concerned his parents King Vorak and Queen Haydon.

When Tirek attempts to absorb the magic of a unicorn that Sendak captured, it backfires, resulting in an explosion that catches the whole kingdom's attention. King Vorak sends Sendak to the mines for his crimes, punishes Tirek, and returns the unicorn to Equestria. While confined to his castle quarters, Tirek plots to overthrow his father and rule over Equestria.

Tirek appears on 's Hot Topic cover.

Chapter books
Tirek is mentioned several times in Discord and the Ponyville Players Dramarama, since everypony is uneasy about Discord being in a show since the last time he did it, he worked for Tirek.

Merchandise
Lord Tirek is featured on the fan-designed WeLoveFine T-shirts "Tirek's Lousy Tee" and "My Kingdom for a Sandwich," both of which are by the same artist.

Quotes
"'Is he friend, or is he foe?' the pony wonders. I can assure you... I am no friend. I am Lord Tirek, and I will take what should have been mine long ago."

- To Rare Find in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 1

"Oh, please, I've seen this before. But he was always weak minded. You are Discord, you are legend, you cannot fall into the same trap that claimed my brother! Help me to grow strong, and be rewarded with something far greater than "friendship": freedom."

- To Discord in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 1

"How does it feel, knowing that soon every Pegasus, unicorn, and Earth pony will bow to my will, and that there is nothing you can do to stop it?!"

- To Princess Celestia, Luna, and Cadance in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 2

"Give my regards to Cerberus."

- Twilight's Kingdom - Part 2

"Here, I want you to have something. This was given to me by someone very close to me. I give it to you as a sign of my gratitude and loyalty."

- To Discord in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 2

"You've helped me grow strong, you've provided the means by which I can obtain Princess Twilight's magic, and now you are no longer of any use to me."

- To Discord in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 2

"My brother who betrayed me. It is as worthless as he is."

- Referring to Scorpan in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 2

"How is this possible? You have no magic!"

- To the Mane Six in Twilight's Kingdom - Part 2