History GreaterScopeVillain / AnimeAndManga

** The series' final arc revealed that the greatest Greater Scope Villain of all is Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, the first Chakra user, the true identity of the Ten-Tailed Beast/Gedo Statue, and a PhysicalGoddess more powerful than any other enemy fought so far and Black Zetsu, who is revealed to have been responsible for setting the entire generational conflict that began with Hagoromo's sons, jumped to Madara and Hashirama, and then Naruto and Sasuke. Every conflict and casualty from the warring clans era to the modern village wars and Akatsuki can be traced back to his constant manipulation of the world.

* ''Franchise/PrettyCure'':

* Black Hole of ''Anime/PrettyCureAllStars DX 3'' was this for not only the separate villains, but for those who showed up in even the team up movies. It only applied for the All-Stars movie series.
* ''Anime/SuitePrettyCure'' has Noise as the Bigger Bad behind the Minor Land villains. He eventually becomes the Big Bad after his existence has been revealed.
* ''Anime/DokiDokiPrettyCure'': Proto-Jikochuu was unsealed by the King of the Trump Kingdom, who wanted to save the life of his daughter Marie-Ange with the Eternal Golden Crown, which kept Proto-Jikochuu sealed inside a crystal fountain. After Princess Marie-Ange was saved, Proto-Jikochuu corrupted the King and turned him into King Jikochuu while residing inside him. However, Proto-Jikochuu was never in control of King Jikochuu and only corrupted his heart. King Jikochuu always acted on his own accord and was motivated by his own selfishness. Once King Jikochuu was purified in the penultimative episode, Proto-Jikochuu is consumed by Bel, who in turn is consumed by Proto-Jikochuu instead. As a result, Proto-Jikochuu becomes the MonsterOfTheWeek in the final episode.

* Kars from [[Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency Part 2]] of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure''. He is the creator of the Stone Masks and the reason why Pillar Men are seen as evil (as his species is naturally a subterranean, nocturnal race and prefer to live away from humans). Because of his creation of the masks, Kars is indirectly responsible for the tragedies both the Joestars and Zeppelis face early on as well as serving in Dio's ascension and giving him his powers. This leads to the Joestars being intertwined in a fate in which each [[TheProtagonist Jojo]] must do battle with evil.

* ''Manga/SoulHunter'': Empress Dakki is the BigBad, but late in the story she’s revealed to be working for Jyoka, a extremely [[TimeAbyss ancient]] and powerful being who have been secretly manipulating the course of History for millennia, in the hope of turning earth into a replica of her destroyed home world. [[OutsideContextProblem Few people were even aware of her existence]], and Dakki was her [[TheDragon dragon]] ([[DragonWithAnAgenda with an agenda]], [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder of course]]).

** [[OverarchingVillain Zeref]], the Black Wizard. It's been 400 years since his presumed death, and people are still fighting against demons and other evil artifacts he made back then. Hades, the closest thing the series has to a BigBad at that point, is one of the few who realizes he's NotQuiteDead, and aims to [[SealedEvilInACan unleash his sealed power on the world]]. However, it turns out Zeref was doing nothing not because he was sealed, but because he simply didn't want anything to do with the world's destruction. In fact, it's that kind of presumptuous thinking that spurs Zeref into taking up the role as BigBad.

* Duke Dermail in ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing''. He's the string-puller behind OZ and connected to most of the large political shakeups in the series, though he mainly lurks in the background while [[OverarchingVillain Treize]] and other villains move things forward. In the end, [[spoiler:he's offed before the finale, leaving a BigBadEnsemble with plans all unrelated to what he was aiming for.]]

** In a rather unique example, the ultimate cause of all problems in the series is not a character, but ''forces of nature'' -- the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_law_of_thermodynamics second law of thermodynamics]], [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entropy entropy]], and the impending [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_death_of_the_universe heat death of the universe]] are what the OverarchingVillain Kyubey is trying to ''[[WellIntentionedExtremist fight against]]''.

** The original manga and anime have Zorc Necrophades, the demonic being originally defeated by the Pharaoh. He's both MadeOfEvil and TheCorruption, and was born of slaughter and genocide. [[BigBad Dark Bakura]] is trying to release him, and at the very end of the final arc, Zorc finally takes center stage as a BigBad in his own right. Dark Bakura is an OverarchingVillain in other stories, and since Zorc Necrophades becomes the background villain in those as well.

* In ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'', that would be The Idea Of Evil. Conjured into existence by humans' collective wish to explain their suffering, it keeps the world a miserable place, enabling characters like Griffith and the rest of the Godhand to run rampant over humanity. It has no actual, independent will though and that's where the Godhand comes to play. They can be and do as they wish, because every fiber of their being and actions represent and embody It.

* ''Fzranchise/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'':

*** Kaido becomes the Greater Scope villain of the Thriller Bark Arc on hindsight, once it's revealed that he's the one who killed Moria's former crew, traumatizing the Warlord into an obsessive scheme to amass a crew of undead soldiers exactly so he wouldn't have to worry about their lives ever again.

* The Zabi family and [[TheCaligula Gihren]] [[TheEvilPrince Zabi]] in particular become this in the various sidestories set during ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'''s One Year War. ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamThe08thMSTeam'', ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam0080WarInThePocket'' and ''[[Manga/MobileSuitGundamThePlotToAssassinateGihren The Plot to Assassinate Gihren]]'' are all examples of this.

** Team Rocket (the organization) in ''Anime/PokemonTheFirstMovie'' as they were the ones that commissioned the creation of Mewtwo.

* The BigBad of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' is the powerful witch Walpurgisnacht ([[TheManBehindTheMan actually]], it’s [[TreacherousAdvisor Kyubey]]), but an even more powerful threat exists in Madoka's Witch form, the omnipotent Kriemhild Gretchen, who only appears in several onscreen timelines in Episode 10 and being the TrueFinalBoss defeated in Episode 12. Homura's main goal is to prevent Madoka from becoming a MagicalGirl in the first place, specifically because of this fate that she seals by making a contract with Kyubey. Originally, she only wanted to protect Madoka [[BecauseYouWereNiceToMe in return for the kindness only she had shown her]].
** The villains in the original story, Walpurgisnacht and the aforementioned Kyubey, take a backseat in most spinoff manga, where the main characters deal mainly with other characters with which they have little or no on-page involvement. [[SubvertedTrope Though Kyubey often]] [[HijackedByGanon turns out to be behind the plot]].
** ''Manga/PuellaMagiTartMagica'', being set during the Hundred Years' War, also has King Edward III of England, who started the war back in 1337, along with each descendant of his who kept it going, down to Henry VI in its present day. The BigBad [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen Queen Isabeau]] is cooperating with them in exchange for power.
** In a rather unique example, the ultimate cause of all problems in the series is not a character, but ''forces of nature'' -- the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_law_of_thermodynamics second law of thermodynamics]], [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entropy entropy]], and the impending [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_death_of_the_universe heat death of the universe]] are what [[OverarchingVillain series]] BigBad Kyubey is trying to ''[[WellIntentionedExtremist fight against]]''.

** Zeref, the Black Wizard. It's been 400 years since his presumed death, and people are still fighting against demons and other evil artifacts he made back then. Hades, the closest thing the series has to a BigBad at that point, is one of the few who realizes he's NotQuiteDead, and aims to [[SealedEvilInACan unleash his sealed power on the world]]. However, it turns out Zeref was doing nothing not because he was sealed, but because he simply didn't want anything to do with the world's destruction. In fact, it's that kind of presumptuous thinking that spurs Zeref into taking up the role as BigBad.
** Acnologia, the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse, is one of the most terrifying forces of destruction known to man, and the only being Zeref himself fears. It turns out getting rid of Acnologia is on Zeref's agenda (though at the expense of the rest of mankind), and once Zeref is defeated, he ends up being the sole remaining enemy Fairy Tail needs to defeat.

** The greatest scope villain so far is [[TechnologicallyAdvancedFoe The Kingdom of Marley]], since they are behind every major event that started the plot: They are the ones who stole seven of the Nine Titan Powers from Eldians a century ago, and the true reason the Eldian people fled to the Island of Paradis to seclude themselves behind the three Walls, they are the ones who keep sending the mindless man-eating Titans, and they are the force behind the Beast Titan and the other Titan Shifters who breached Wall Maria at the beginning of the story. All because they want to seize the rich fossil fuel deposits of the islan].

* The BigBad of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' is the powerful witch Walpurgisnacht ([[TheManBehindTheMan actually]], it’s [[TreacherousAdvisor Kyubey]]), but an even more powerful threat exists in Madoka's Witch form, the omnipotent Kriemhild Gretchen, who only appears in several onscreen timelines in episode 10 and being the TrueFinalBoss defeated in episode 12. Homura's main goal is to prevent Madoka from becoming a MagicalGirl in the first place, specifically because of this fate that she seals by making a contract with Kyubey. Originally, she only wanted to protect Madoka [[BecauseYouWereNiceToMe in return for the kindness only she had shown her]].

** In a rather unique example, the ultimate cause of all problems in the series is not a character, but ''forces of nature''- the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_law_of_thermodynamics second law of thermodynamics]], [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entropy entropy]], and the impending [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_death_of_the_universe heat death of the universe]] are what [[OverarchingVillain series]] BigBad Kyubey is trying to ''[[WellIntentionedExtremist fight against]]''.

* ''Manga/{{Toriko}}'' several times reveals that the BigBad is just a pawn or a servant to a much bigger bad. However, both the villainous NEO organization and the Blue Nitro's goals revolve around Acacia's Gourmet Demon - which makes him the main reason of everything that happened.

* The [[GodEmperor Sacred]] [[MadScientist Ancestor]] in ''LightNovel/VampireHunterD'' is the vampire progenitor, the most powerful and ancient of the Nobility and responsible for the current state of the world - [[AfterTheEnd a post-apocalyptic hellhole]] where vampires used to be the dominant species and humans were their playthings (though, things are slowly changing). He is heavily implied to be {{Dracula}} himself and as well as the titular protagonist's father, who has made his life goal to find and destroy him. However, the Ancestor is never seen in the story (except for the first OVA where we see his portrait where he resembles D very closely, while in the manga and illustrations, he is always covered in darkness) and D takes on individual villains on separate installments.

** The Ten-Tailed Beast, the original tailed beast, of whom the other nine are pieces of its chakra divided. BigBad Tobi wants to reform the Ten-Tails and become its Jinchuriki, so he can enslave everyone with his Mangyeko Sharingan.

** The Akatsuki were the Greater Scope Villains for Part I. We're told that they're out there, and that Sasuke's [[CainAndAbel brother]], Itachi Uchiha, is a member, and that current BigBad, Orochimaru, is motivated in part by fear of them. Two of their agents (Kisame Hoshigaki and the aforementioned Itachi) put in a brief importance and inflict horrible damage on the town, but then they pass right back out of the story, and Orochimaru becomes the focus again. In Part 2, the Akatsuki take center stage, and their leader becomes the series' new BigBad.

** ''Anime/DigimonDataSquad'': Kurata is responsible for Merukimon's hatred of humans by invading the digital world and murdering several innocent Digimon permanently, and, even after his death, he ultimately caused the conflicts of the final arc: His actions lead King Drasil to try to destroy the human world, and his final act, though not his intention, was to set both worlds to collide, which would have destroyed them if it wasn't stopped in the final episode.]] Although, one could say [=SaberLeomon=]'s unprovoked attack set Kurata on his genocidal plans, but by the present day, Kurata is a megalomaniac who intends to take over ''both'' worlds and only destroy the digital world when he gets bored of it.

* ''Anime/KirbyRightBackAtYa'': The {{evil|Overlord}} Lord [[CardCarryingVillain Nightmare]]. Him being the creator of the Demon Beasts which he used to terrorize the universe, prompting the foundation of the Star Warriors, which Meta-Knight and Kirby are part of (among some other characters, original or not, related or by proxy) and that were nearly wiped out, which set as a fate that a young Star Warrior (Kirby) would defeat them. King Dedede purchasing those monsters (and getting huge debts out of them) to try to defeat Kirby is one of the driving forces of the plot. Corrupting some denizens of Dream Land into Demon Beasts is also his doing.

** Madara Uchiha began the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan along with manipulating and twisting [[BigBad Tobi]] into his successor. Madara is indirectly responsible for almost every bad deed to happen within the context of the Akatsuki's actions and also being responsible for the Uchiha Clan having a tarnished reputation, indirectly fueling his descendant's future.
** The series' final arc revealed that the greatest Greater Scope Villain of all is Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, the first Chakra user, the true identity of the Ten-Tailed Beast/Gedo Statue, and a PhysicalGoddess more powerful than any other enemy fought so far and Black Zetsu, who is revealed to have been responsible for setting the entire generational conflict that began with Hagoromo's sons, jumped to Madara and Hashirama, then Naruto and Sasuke. Every conflict and casualty from the warring clans era to the modern village wars and Akatsuki can be traced back to his constant manipulation of the world.

** Currently Sakazuki/Akainu, Teach/Blackbeard and Kaido are prime candidates for the position of BigBad. However, the Five Elder Stars, a cabal of five leaders who thus far seem to be the highest rank in the world government, are ultimately the ones who pull the reins of most of the organizations which cause most of the events in the story: they control the Marines (which Akainu is now in command as the Fleet Admiral) and while executing Gold Roger and trying to defeat Whitebeard indirectly gave them the means to ignite two Pirate Eras, which in turn caused the pirate boom in all the seas; employ the Seven Warlords of the Sea (which Blackbeard wanted to be part of as a means of recruiting several Impel Down prisoners and ultimately sparking the War of the Best to kill Whitebeard) and mostly pay no attention to them (which allowed Crocodile and Doflamingo to act with impunity for long, as seen in their respective arcs); try to cover-up the void century even if it means to put several innocents on trial and execute them (how the Cipher Pol 9 tried to do so to Nico Robin), and completely ignore the crimes the Celestial Dragons do (such as slavery, which caused the incidents in Sabaody).
** The character named Imu. They are the one the Five Elder Stars (the above mentioned Greater Scope Villains) ''bow down to'', and '''the true ruler of the world of One Piece'''. Their existence is mostly a secret from even other top officials, like Sakazuki and Kong, partly for obvious reasons and mostly because their very place is a complete betrayal of the World Government's deepest principle, instated by its founders: That there will not be a single king everyone shall bow to.
** The Emperors Kaido and Big Mom for the Punk Hazard, Dressrosa and Zou arcs. Kaido is the one buying the artificial Devil Fruits that Donquixote and Caesar Clown are making, and Big Mom is the one behind Caesar's gigantification experiments. They later lose this status as they take center stage as main villains.
*** Kaido becomes the greater villain of the Thriller Bark Arc on hindsight, once it's revealed that he's the one who killed Moria's former crew, traumatizing the Warlord into an obsessive scheme to amass a crew of undead soldiers exactly so he wouldn't have to worry about their lives ever again.

* In ''Anime/YokaiWatchShadowside'', initially, Shutendoji's goal was to gather the Youseiken so "The Princess" would awaken and take the human and Yo-kai Worlds...until it's ultimately revealed all of Shutendoji's efforts were to use the Youseiken to awaken Soranaki. As a far greater destructive force, Soranaki almost drove the Yo-kai race into extinction, and was one of the BigBadEnsemble of ''Anime/YokaiWatchForeverFriends'', which was fought by Enma and three Yo-kai Gods, corrupted Shien, and 90 years later, did the same with Fukurou, Douketsu and several other Yokai in the present.]

** The greatest scope villain so far is [[spoiler: [[TechnologicallyAdvancedFoe The Kingdom of Marley]], since they are behind every major event that started the plot: They are the ones who stole seven of the Nine Titan Powers from Eldians a century ago, and the true reason the Eldian people fled to the Island of Paradis to seclude themselves behind the three Walls, they are the ones who keep sending the mindless man-eating Titans, and they are the force behind the Beast Titan and the other Titan Shifters who breached Wall Maria at the beginning of the story. All because they want to seize the rich fossil fuel deposits of the island]].
** [[spoiler:Karl Fritz, the 145th King and a bearer of the Founding Titan. He was wracked with guilt from the war crimes committed by his ancestors, so he decided to punish his own subjects to atone for those sins, wishing for the extinction of the Subjects of Ymir. So, during the great Titan War, Fritz abandoned the majority of his people on the mainland, to suffer a cruel fate from other ethnicities. Then he took those who followed him to the island of Paradis where he sealed them within three Walls, isolating them from the world and erasing their memories. Not only that, he ensured that his successors would uphold his will by means of Vow of Renunciation. That means that his successors will never be able to use the Founding Titan to its true potential and would never kill the Mindless Titans marauding across the island. Fritz's plan would have succeeded, but he underestimated the Attack Titan which disrupted his designs and conquered the Founding Titan.]]
** An even greater scope villain is the [[spoiler:ancient Eldian King Fritz. He gleefully exploited Ymir's powers to conquer Marley and had his daughters devour her corpse to inherit her Titan powers. His vision was for Eldia to enslave the entire world using the power of the Titans.]]
** There's also a hidden GreaterScopeVillain influencing the entire plot, not revealed till Chapter 121: [[spoiler: '''''Eren Yeager'''''. He used the past and future sighting ability to peer into the history of the Attack Titans to manipulate them into reaching their current state. He was the one who influenced Kruger to give Grisha the Titan, hinted to him about Mikasa and Armin. He compelled Grisha to butcher the Reiss family to prevent the Will of the First King interfering with his plans for salvation, then commanded Grisha to feed himself to his younger self. It is revealed he was pulling the strings all along since the moment he kissed Historia's hand (which showed Eren what he needed to do), and then he steps up to be the BigBad once he lets Ymir unleash the Wall Titans and orders them to raze the nations outside Paradis.]]

* In ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'', that would be [[spoiler:The Idea Of Evil]]. Conjured into existence by humans' collective wish to explain their suffering, it keeps the world a miserable place, enabling characters like Griffith and the rest of the Godhand to run rampant over humanity. It has no actual, independent will though and that's where the Godhand comes to play. They can be and do as they wish, because every fiber of their being and actions represent and embody It.

** Zagred, the Word Devil, is this in the first saga. He’s the one who [[spoiler:deceived the humans into committing genocide against the elves and cast the forbidden Reincarnation Magic, leading Patry to become the main villain of the story. Patry, unaware of Zagred's role, follows his plan of reincarnating the elves, gathering the magic stones, and summoning the Shadow Palace.]] This leads to Zagred gaining body in the living world, his goal all this time, so he can spread chaos and destruction to fulfill his sadistic desires.

*** Megicula is another one in the second saga. It is responsible for placing the curses on the House Silva and the princess of the Heart Kingdom. [[spoiler:Now it's no coincidence that Vanica, who is its host, is invading the Heart Kingdom, where Noelle is with the princess.]]

* [[BigBad Skull]] and [[TheDragon Van Vogt]] from ''Manga/Cyborg009'' serve this role in ''Anime/Cyborg009VsDevilman'', as they're the ones who authorized and backed up [[MadScientist Dr. Adams Teufel]]'s High-Teen Number Cyborgs and "Cyborg Demon" research. The ending of the OVA also features a {{Cameo}} from [[spoiler:the Demon Statue, the GreaterScopeVillain of the entire ''Manga/Cyborg009'' manga.]]

** Ryuk is the Greater Scope Villain to Light, since he's responsible for all of the events while Light simply uses the [[ArtifactOfDoom weapon]] Ryuk gave him, and eventually [[spoiler:kills Light]].

** ''Anime/DigimonDataSquad'': Kurata is responsible for Merukimon's hatred of humans [[spoiler:by invading the digital world and murdering several innocent Digimon permanently]], and, [[spoiler:even after his death]], he ultimately caused the conflicts of the final arc: His actions lead King Drasil to try to destroy the human world, and [[spoiler:his final act, though not his intention, was to set both worlds to collide, which would have destroyed them if it wasn't stopped in the final episode.]] Although, one could say [=SaberLeomon=]'s unprovoked attack set Kurata on his genocidal plans, but by the present day, Kurata is a megalomaniac who intends to take over ''both'' worlds and only destroy the digital world when he gets bored of it.

** Dr. Gero is the GreaterScopeVillain of the Android Saga. When he appears properly, he's a BigBadWannabe who the Z-fighters ''think'' is one of the androids Future Trunks warned them about (apparently the ButterflyOfDoom meant that he decided to turn himself into an android instead of releasing the two much stronger androids who were responsible for the BadFuture), but he's the one who created Androids 17 and 18 (by kidnapping two runaway teens and turning them into cyborgs against their will), Cell, Super 17 (in ''GT''), Androids 13, 14, and 15 (in the movies), and Android 21 in ''VideoGame/DragonBallFighterZ'' [[spoiler:By androidizing ''his own freaking wife'' into a monster with HorrorHunger who causes the plot of the game.]]

** Zeref, the Black Wizard. It's been 400 years since his presumed death, and people are still fighting against demons and other evil artifacts he made back then. Hades, the closest thing the series has to a BigBad at that point, is one of the few who realizes he's NotQuiteDead, and aims to [[SealedEvilInACan unleash his sealed power on the world]]. [[spoiler:However, it turns out Zeref was doing nothing not because he was sealed, but because he simply didn't want anything to do with the world's destruction. In fact, it's that kind of presumptuous thinking that spurs Zeref into taking up the role as BigBad.]]
** Acnologia, the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse, is one of the most terrifying forces of destruction known to man, and the only being Zeref himself fears. [[spoiler:It turns out getting rid of Acnologia is on Zeref's agenda (though at the expense of the rest of mankind), and once Zeref is defeated, he ends up being the sole remaining enemy Fairy Tail needs to defeat.]]
** For the Tataros arc, we have an unusual zig-zagged exemple. Mard Geer serves as the ArcVillain[=/=]DragonInChief to [[TheDreaded E.N.D.]], the master of Tartaros, who is sealed away in his book while the former intends to free him. [[spoiler:While it's eventually revealed that E.N.D. was merely a DecoyLeader for Mard Geer to rally the rest of Tartaros around, what he doesn't realize is that E.N.D. is actually Natsu, the main character. It's not just him, either; the entire Tartaros guild does what they do in the name of Zeref and E.N.D, and eventually wiped out in large part thanks to Natsu, all without knowing that their "master" and their biggest enemy are one and the same.]]

* In ''Anime/GuiltyCrown'', GHQ is secretly being assisted by [[spoiler:Da'ath, an ancient organization existing since human evolution and which is responsible for the Apocalypse Virus' creation for their AdamAndEvePlot.]]
* [[spoiler: Mamo]] at the end of the ''Anime/GravestoneOfDaisukeJigen'' is implied to have been watching over (and possibly controlling) the events of the film. This may just be a ShoutOut, but the sequel ''Anime/GoemonIshikawasSprayOfBlood'' suggests there ''is'' a hidden figure who wants the main characters dead. This could be [[spoiler: Mamo]] or someone completely different.

* In ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry'', [[spoiler:Nomura and her employers at [[GovernmentConspiracy Tokyo]]]] just used the BigBad and their goals to further their own plans.
* [[spoiler:Jesei]] is spoken of in the third to last episode of ''LightNovel/{{Inukami}}'', and only after that does he affect the plot directly. The rest of the time, he was just an observer and instigator of an unknown part of another character's backstory.

* In ''Anime/KillLaKill'', Ragyo Kiryuin is [[EvilOverlord ruler of the world]], and [[BigBad Satsuki]]’s boss, but is mainly a background threat [[spoiler:[[SubvertedTrope until later]]. The ''real'' example is the Original Life Fiber, the source of all life fibers, who manipulated the evolution of mankind since its arrival on Earth and eventually seeks to assimilate all humans and consume and destroy the planet to launch its spawn into space to reproduce [[VideoGame/ChronoTrigger Lavos-style]]. Ragyo is merely a servant to the Original Life Fiber]].

* The Emperor of Darkness from ''Anime/MazingerZ'' and ''Anime/GreatMazinger'' fits the bill. The HumongousMecha previous BigBad Dr. Hell found were ancient -- and severely outdated -- weapons of his army. During the first series, he did not directly interfere with the plot, and he remained in his underground empire, watching the war between Kouji Kabuto and Dr. Hell as one of his underlings schemed to bring both of them down. After [[spoiler:causing the end of Dr. Hell's army and Mazinger-Z]], he became BigBad of the next series. [[spoiler:And again, together with the rest of the Mycean Empire]] in ''Anime/ShinMazinger''.

** [[BigBad Jamitov Hymen]] and [[TheDragon Bask Om]] from ''Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam'' serve as this for ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam0083StardustMemory''. Much of what happens in the OVA, including Operation Stardust's success itself could traced in one way or another to them, ultimately leading to the Titans taking power. All the while [[spoiler:Haman Khan]] lurks in the background.

* ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'' has [[PowerParasite All For One]], [[TheParagon All]] [[DentedIron Might]]'s EvilCounterpart and ArchNemesis, and the man who crippled him [[spoiler:and killed his predecessor]] several years prior to the story's start. He's the one who nurtured the main BigBad Tomura Shigaraki into a villain in the first place, and spends the first two seasons supporting him from the shadows before finally revealing himself during Season 3 after Tomura is boxed into a corner. Tomura becomes the BigBad after All For One's defeat and imprisonment by All Might... [[spoiler:that is until he has All For One's original Quirk implanted in him. All For One returns to become the BigBad when he uses his original Quirk to hijack Tomura's body and use him as a puppet to steal One For All.]]

** The [[spoiler:Ten-Tailed Beast, the original tailed beast, of whom the other nine are pieces of its chakra divided.]] BigBad Tobi wants to reform [[spoiler:the Ten-Tails]] and become its Jinchuriki, so he can enslave everyone with his Mangyeko Sharingan.
** [[spoiler:Madara Uchiha began the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan along with manipulating and twisting [[BigBad Tobi]] into his successor. Madara is indirectly responsible for almost every bad deed to happen within the context of the Akatsuki's actions and also being responsible for the Uchiha Clan having a tarnished reputation, indirectly fueling his descendant's future.]]
** The series' final arc revealed that the greatest Greater Scope Villain of all is [[spoiler:Kaguya Ōtsutsuki, the first Chakra user, the true identity of the Ten-Tailed Beast/Gedo Statue, and a PhysicalGoddess more powerful than any other enemy fought so far and Black Zetsu, who is revealed to have been responsible for setting the entire generational conflict that began with Hagoromo's sons, jumped to Madara and Hashirama, then Naruto and Sasuke. Every conflict and casualty from the warring clans era to the modern village wars and Akatsuki can be traced back to his constant manipulation of the world.]]
** Momoshiki and Kinshiki Ōtsutsuki from ''Anime/BorutoNarutoTheMovie''. It turns out they were a threat to even [[spoiler:Kaguya]], as they were the reason why [[spoiler:Kaguya used Infinite Tsukuyomi to make a Zetsu army in the first place]].

* In ''Manga/OnePiece'' currently Sakazuki/Akainu, Teach/Blackbeard and Kaido are prime candidates for the position of BigBad. However, the Five Elder Stars, a cabal of five leaders who thus far seem to be the highest rank in the world government, are ultimately the ones who pull the reins of most of the organizations which cause most of the events in the story: they control the Marines (which [[spoiler:Akainu is now in command as the Fleet Admiral]]) and while executing Gold Roger and [[spoiler:trying to defeat Whitebeard]] indirectly gave them the means to ignite two Pirate Eras, which in turn caused the pirate boom in all the seas; employ the Seven Warlords of the Sea (which Blackbeard wanted to be part of as a means of recruiting several Impel Down prisoners and ultimately sparking the War of the Best to [[spoiler:kill Whitebeard]]) and mostly pay no attention to them (which allowed Crocodile and Doflamingo to act with impunity for long, as seen in their respective arcs); try to cover-up the void century even if it means to put several innocents on trial and execute them (how the Cipher Pol 9 tried to do so to Nico Robin), and completely ignore the crimes the Celestial Dragons do (such as slavery, which caused the incidents in Sabaody).
** The character named [[spoiler:Imu]]. Why are they on the list? [[spoiler:Because they are the one the Five Elder Stars (the above mentioned Greater Scope Villains) ''bow down to'', and '''the true ruler of the world of One Piece'''. Their existence is mostly a secret from even other top officials, like Sakazuki and Kong, partly for obvious reasons and mostly because their very place is a complete betrayal of the World Government's deepest principle, instated by its founders: That there will not be a single king everyone shall bow to.]]
** The Emperors Kaido and Big Mom serve as this for the Punk Hazard, Dressrosa and Zou arcs. Kaido is the one buying the artificial Devil Fruits that Donquixote and Caesar Clown are making, and Big Mom is the one behind Caesar's gigantification experiments. They later lose this status as they take center stage as main villains.

* ''Anime/{{Pokemon}}'':
** Team Rocket (the organization) was this in ''Anime/PokemonTheFirstMovie'' as they were the ones that commissioned the creation of Mewtwo.
** Madame Boss is this to Giovanni, as she was his mother and the head of Team Rocket before him. Giovanni himself is this in the anime, since getting on his good side is the main reason the Team Rocket trio constantly try capturing Pokemon, namely Pikachu. In fact, he barely pays any attention to them and is only involved during major situations. In fact, at the time of this writing, he's only battled against Ash once and won.
** Team Magma was this to Butler in ''Anime/PokemonJirachiWishmaker'', as he [[spoiler: used to work for them and tried to create a Groudon for Team Magma using a machine utilizing a piece from the Pokémon, but failed and was admonished for it, making him want to seek out Jirachi and use its power to bring forth Groudon that way.]]
** Team Plasma is this in ''Anime/PokemonGenesectAndTheLegendAwakened'', as they were the ones responsible for the creation of the [[WeaponizedAnimal Genesect Army]].
** [[spoiler:[[DiscOneFinalBoss Primal Dialga]]]] was portrayed as one in the anime adaptation of ''[[VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeon Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time-Darkness-Sky]]''. Granted, as [[spoiler:he wasn't even the villain of the game]].
* In ''Manga/PokemonAdventures'', Team Rocket is this for the events of the ''Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum'' chapters, as [[spoiler: the Rocket Generals managed to capture [[{{God}} Arceus]] during the ''[=HeartGold=] and [=SoulSilver=]'' chapter and use its power to create [[PhysicalGod Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina]], which after the events of the chapter were sought out by Team Galactic for their own goals]].

* ''Anime/SuitePrettyCure'' has [[spoiler:Noise as the Bigger Bad behind the Minor Land villains. He eventually becomes the Big Bad after his existence has been revealed]].
* ''Anime/DokiDokiPrettyCure'': [[spoiler:Proto-Jikochuu was unsealed by the King of the Trump Kingdom, who wanted to save the life of his daughter Marie-Ange with the Eternal Golden Crown, which kept Proto-Jikochuu sealed inside a crystal fountain. After Princess Marie-Ange was saved, Proto-Jikochuu corrupted the King and turned him into King Jikochuu while residing inside him. However, Proto-Jikochuu was never in control of King Jikochuu and only corrupted his heart. King Jikochuu always acted on his own accord and was motivated by his own selfishness. Once King Jikochuu was purified in the penultimative episode, Proto-Jikochuu is consumed by Bel, who in turn is consumed by Proto-Jikochuu instead. As a result, Proto-Jikochuu becomes the MonsterOfTheWeek in the final episode.]]
* The BigBad of ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' is the powerful witch Walpurgisnacht [[spoiler:([[ManBehindTheMan actually]], it’s [[TreacherousAdvisor Kyubey]])]], but an even more powerful threat exists in [[spoiler:Madoka's Witch form, the omnipotent Kriemhild Gretchen]], who only appears in [[spoiler:several onscreen timelines in episode 10 and being the TrueFinalBoss defeated in episode 12]]. Homura's main goal is to prevent Madoka from becoming a MagicalGirl in the first place, specifically because of [[spoiler:this fate that she seals by making a contract with Kyubey]]. Originally, [[spoiler:she only wanted to protect Madoka [[BecauseYouWereNiceToMe in return for the kindness only she had shown her]]]].
** The villains in the original story, Walpurgisnacht and the aeformentioned [[spoiler:Kyubey]], take a backseat in most spinoff manga, where the main characters deal mainly with other characters with which they have little or no on-page involvement. [[spoiler:[[SubvertedTrope Though Kyubey often]] [[HijackedByGanon turns out to be behind the plot]]]].
*** ''Manga/PuellaMagiTartMagica'', being set during the Hundred Years' War, also has King Edward III of England, who started the war back in 1337, along with each descendant of his who kept it going, down to Henry VI in its present day. The BigBad [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen Queen Isabeau]] is cooperating with them in exchange for power.
** In a rather unique example, the ultimate cause of all problems in the series is [[spoiler:not a character, but ''forces of nature''- the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_law_of_thermodynamics second law of thermodynamics]], [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entropy entropy]], and the impending [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_death_of_the_universe heat death of the universe]] are what [[OverarchingVillain series]] BigBad Kyubey is trying to ''[[WellIntentionedExtremist fight against]]'']].

* ''Manga/SoulHunter'': Empress Dakki is the BigBad, but late in the story [[spoiler:she’s revealed to be working for Jyoka, a extremely [[TimeAbyss ancient]] and powerful being who have been secretly manipulating the course of History for millennia, in the hope of turning earth into a replica of her destroyed home world. [[OutsideContextProblem Few people were even aware of her existence]], and Dakki was her [[TheDragon dragon]] ([[DragonWithAnAgenda with an agenda]], [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder of course]]).]]
* ''Anime/SwordArtOnline'''s first BigBad, Kayaba Akihiko, is the source for three {{Big Bad}}s, as his game helped influence them in some way. [[spoiler:One of them is his rival who used his game as a template for his own, the other was a survivor of Akihiko's game who wasn't quite done with his [[{{Griefer}} fun]], and a third is a MadScientist who attempts to use his augmented reality technology to try and revive his daughter who died in SAO.]] He also invented a lot of technology associated with virtual reality, or at least had a hand in them, and made the first VRMMORPG, so almost everything the later arcs make plot points out of, from World Seeds to Medicuboids, can be tied back to him.
** A smaller, though more [[FromNobodyToNightmare serious]] example would be Laughing Coffin, an infamous player-killing guild. They started off as a secondary group of antagonists, only being featured in a few episodes of the original arc. [[spoiler:Then the game ends and the remnants of the guild end up securing a poisonous chemical which they use to cause the events of two separate arcs: Phantom Bullet (where the poison is used to make an UrbanLegend about a deadly gun) and Alicization (where said poison puts Kirito into the arc's situation in the first place)]]. And because they were made this way because of Sword Art Online's permadeath system, they too are tied back to Kayaba.
* [[spoiler:The Anti-Spiral]] in ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann''. Its existence wasn't brought up until [[BigBad LordGenome the Spiral King]] gave a vague warning of its coming. [[spoiler:Its war on all Spiral lifeforms]] led to humans being forced into the underground. [[spoiler:Assuming it has any sentience and not just an event, the Spiral Nemesis is the bigger threat, as its capability to destroy the universe is why the Anti-Spiral turned against all life in the first place.]]
* ''Manga/{{Toriko}}'' several times reveals that the BigBad is just a pawn or a servant to a much bigger bad. However, both [[spoiler: the villainous NEO organization]] and [[spoiler: the Blue Nitro's]] goals revolve around [[spoiler:Acacia's Gourmet Demon]] - which makes him the main reason of everything that happened.
* Knives in the anime adaptation of ''Manga/{{Trigun}}''. Unlike in the manga, he remains crippled from [[spoiler:Vash's attack at July]] until the very end of the series, forcing him to work indirectly through [[TheDragon Legato]] and the Gung-ho Guns.

* In ''Anime/YokaiWatchShadowside'', initially, Shutendoji's goal was to gather the Youseiken so "The Princess" would awaken and take the human and Yo-kai Worlds... until it's ultimately revealed [[spoiler:all of Shutendoji's efforts were indirectly to help Soranaki to fully awaken, as the Youseiken are actually a mean to do so. As a far greater destructive force, Soranaki almost drove the Yo-kai race into extintion]], and was [[spoiler: one of the BigBadEnsemble of ''Anime/YokaiWatchForeverFriends'', which was fought by Enma and three Yo-kai Gods, corrupted Shien, and 90 years later, did the same with Fukurou, Douketsu and several other Yokai in the present.]]

** The original manga and anime have [[spoiler:Zorc Necrophades, the demonic being originally defeated by the Pharaoh. He's both MadeOfEvil and TheCorruption, and was born of slaughter and genocide. [[BigBad Dark Bakura]] is trying to release him, and at the very end of the final arc, Zorc finally takes center stage as a BigBad in his own right.]] Dark Bakura himself qualifies as a GreaterScopeVillain in other stories, and since [[spoiler:Zorc Necrophades]] is the GreaterScopeVillain behind him, he technically counts as the GreaterScopeVillain to those stories by extension.
** Much of the conflict during the ''Battle City'' arc can be traced back to Marik Ishtar's [[AbusiveParents abusive father]], an extremist who only saw his son as an extension of the Ishtar family's role as Tomb Guardians and never loved him as a person. The intense pain Marik was forced to endure during the Tombkeeper's Initiation at the hands of his own father [[spoiler:is what gave birth to his SuperPoweredEvilSide]].
** The manga only spin-off ''Manga/YuGiOhR'' has two. Though he never appears, Dark Bakura is technically this due to [[spoiler:killing Pegasus in the Duelist Kingdom arc]], which fuels the motivation of the BigBad of the spin-off, Yako Tenma, to [[spoiler:resurrect Pegasus, since Yako was his adopted son]]. At the same time, however, [[spoiler:Yako was corrupted by the Wicked Avatar, a card that was meant as an EvilCounterpart to all three Egyptian God Cards, but Pegasus never published the Wicked Avatar. Yako published it after Pegasus' death and it corrupted him, and the corruption drives Yako to resurrect Pegasus and get revenge for his death.]]

** Dark Bakura also has a significant role in the backstory of Aigami, who is the BigBad of ''Anime/YuGiOhTheDarkSideOfDimensions'', [[spoiler:and the evil essence of the Millennium Ring corrupts Aigami]], making Dark Bakura the GreaterScopeVillain for that movie as well.
* The Light of Ruin in ''Anime/YuGiOhGX''. Season 2's BigBad was serving it, [[spoiler:and the third season's BigBad turned to evil because of it]].
* The King of the Underworld in the Dark Signers arc of ''Anime/YuGiOh5Ds'', being the force behind the Earthbound Gods and the reason that the Dark Signers can make a DealWithTheDevil and return BackFromTheDead. This one may not qualify, though, as there's no indication it's even sentient and [[spoiler:it, along with its GoodCounterpart the Crimson Dragon, is being played like a violin by the straight BigBad, Rex Goodwin]].
* ''Anime/YuGiOhZexal'' has [[spoiler:an evil deity called Don Thousand, the true ruler of the Barian World.]]

** First, there's [[spoiler: Zarc, a power-hungry duelist from the utopian Original Dimension, as it is now called. Corrupted by the four Dragons now used by the {{Chosen One}}s, he became cruel, destructive and insane, and might have caused TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt had his former friend Ray not tried to stop him. To say the least, she failed, despite defeating him. The dimension was split into four separate ones (Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, and Standard). Zarc's body was destroyed and his soul itself was sundered, a part of it now within Yuya, Yuri, Yuto, and Yugo. Zarc's malignant personality still lives inside all four, and through the Dragons, constantly tries to consume them for the sake of his revival. Ray still lives and still opposes him, her own soul having fragmented and now residing within Lulu, Zuzu, Celina and Rin.]]
** Of course, that also means [[spoiler:the Dragons themselves could qualify for the Trope, especially since Zarc seemed able to hear the voices of Duel Spirits.]]

** Blackbeard is an example of this through the Drum Island Arc, since his pillaging of the country is what causes ArcVillain King Wapol to leave the country and stumble into the Straw Hats. Blackbeard himself is not present in said arc at all, except for a brief mention early on, and in fact only gets introduced nearly a 100 chapters later in the Jaya Arc.
** Doflamingo is the greater villain of the Jaya (as the boss of ArcVillain Bellamy) and Sabaody Archipelago Arcs (being the owner of the slave auction house that the Straw Hats trash, leading to the World Nobles calling in an Admiral attack on the island). His presence in both arcs is minimal, having little to no stakes in their ongoings, but his influence can be felt. He only becomes a proper ArcVillain when the Punk Hazard and Dressrosa Arcs come by.

** Blackbeard is an example of this through the Drum Island Arc, since his pillaging of the country is what causes ArcVillain King Wapol to leave the country and stumble into the Straw Hats. Blackbeard himself is not present in said arc at all, except for a brief mention early on.
** Doflamingo is the greater villain of the Jaya (as the boss of ArcVillain Bellamy) and Sabaody Archipelago Arcs (being the owner of the slave auction house that the Straw Hats trash, leading to the World Nobles calling in an Admiral attack on the island). His presence in both arcs is minimal, having little to no stakes in their ongoings, but his influence can be felt.

** Danzo Shimura is another one of these for Part 1. Every non-Uchiha BigBad is connected to him, including Orochimaru. If it includes the Uchiha, he’s responsible, indirectly or otherwise, for the StartOfDarkness or action of no less than four villains (Pain, Itachi, Sasuke and Kabuto).

** [[spoiler:Madara Uchiha began the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan along with manipulating and twisting [[BigBad Tobi]] into his successor. Madara is indirectly responsible for almost every bad deed to happen within the context of Akatsuki's actions and also being responsible for the Uchiha Clan having a tarnished reputation, indirectly fueling his descendant's future.]]