Lich

The Lich is a Pureblood Heartless that appears in Kingdom Hearts III. Unlike other Heartless, it does not consume hearts to create more Heartless. Rather, it captures hearts and ferries them to the abyss of darkness. Also, if caught in time, it can be forced to relinquish the hearts it has captured, allowing them to return to their bodies.

Kingdom Hearts III
The Lich first appears at the in Olympus to collect Riku's heart after the Guardians of Light have been consumed by a Demon Tide and scattered across the worlds. After Sora chases the Lich down and frees Riku's heart, the Lich flees into a portal leading to other worlds to claim the hearts of the other fallen warriors—Aqua at the Northern Waters in The Caribbean, Goofy at the Middle Tier in Arendelle, Donald Duck at the Lobby & Offices in Monstropolis, Ventus at Main Floor: 1F in Toy Box, Mickey Mouse at the Marsh in Kingdom of Corona, and Lea at the Central District in San Fransokyo—forcing Sora to use the power of waking to give pursuit. Upon finally vanquishing the Lich, Sora is told by Young Xehanort that he has misused the power of waking too many times, and is condemned to meet the same fate as those whose hearts are taken by the Lich.

Design
The Lich is a large black Heartless with the shape of a roughly humanoid torso. It wears a black robe which fades into white tendrils at its base, and has draping sleeves that end in pink points. Its tall, pointed headdress covers its head and long neck with a criss-crossing design ending in a flair at the shoulders that resembles white hair or feathers. Its glowing yellow eyes peer through a skull-shaped mask. A heart-shaped hole cuts through its chest, in which is stores the chained hearts it captures, bordered by a bright pink design on its robe. Three chains dangle from under its robe, ending in pink spikes that hang at alternate heights.

It bears a grey staff with a black headpiece, which also features a heart-shaped hole through it.

Its name is derived from the from the Final Fantasy series.

Kingdom Hearts III
The Lich has a broad arsenal of magic, which grows stronger with every fight, and it must be defeated seven times before the battle is truly over. Each fight will take place in a different world.

The first fight will take place in Olympus. Sora must chase it through the corridors, which are filled with Shadows and Neoshadows. Despite Jiminy Cricket's many warnings, you can kill them to gain extra experience. Just be sure that you don't lose sight of the boss. After cornering it at the apex, the real fight will begin. The Lich has three attacks, Afterimage Slide, 6-fold Fire, and Aerora. The fire and aero attacks can be blocked. However, avoiding the afterimages can be tricky because, if you are locked on to it when it slides, you will remain locked on to the afterimage. Air Slide is good for avoiding the explosion. Due to only having three health bars, the fight will end quickly. Don't celebrate yet, because there are still 6 fights to go.

The second fight will take place on a large ship in The Caribbean. While its attack patterns are the same, there are two main differences: it is now assisted by Vaporflys upon its HP being reduced to 80%, and it now has a new attack called Afterimage Water. Simply dodge the water, block all its attacks, and mash it with combos until it dies.

The third fight will take place in the Labyrinth of Ice, located in Arendelle. It is now flanked by Winterhorns upon its HP being reduced to 50%, and has a new Blizzard counterattack which will freeze Sora unless he has Freeze Protection equipped. Dodge away when you see the Lich's eyes glow blue. Its Afterimage Water attack will not be used from here on.

The fourth fight will take place in Monstropolis. He loses its freeze counter, but now can do Fire Turn of which he summons 6 fireballs which move in different directions before charging at Sora. The charge can be cancelled by attacking it as he summons the fireballs. After having its HP reduced to 50%, it will disappear from the screen and summon Large Bodys to attack Sora. After they are all defeated, the Lich will reappear. This can avoided by killing it quickly, before he summons the enemies.

The fifth fight will take place in Toy Box. He loses its Fire Turn but gains a new Thunder disc attack, of which he summons electrical discs which charge at Sora and will electrify him. They can be blocked. He is assisted at the start of the battle by Marionettes, which can possess any toy they get close to. Kill them if necessary, but focus on the boss.

The sixth fight will take place in Kingdom of Corona. The thunder discs are removed, but he can summon clouds which inflict the cloud status, and thus must be dodged. He is flanked by several Flutterings that spawn at the beginning of the fight.

The seventh and final fight will take place in San Fransokyo. He uses all of its attacks from the previous fights, and the Neoshadows return to assist the Lich when its HP is reduced to 90% and 70% HP.

Upon its final defeat, Sora will gain a max MP increase, and learn Aeroga.