In the spring, Kimberly Magic Academy, a prestigious – and famously dangerous – magic school welcomed its incoming freshman. Among these new students is the mysterious Oliver Horn who hides his dark past and an even darker purpose for his enrollment.
When a troll runs wild at the opening ceremony, Oliver unites a group of new students, including a battle-hardened samurai and veteran of war named Nanao. After taking down the troll, Oliver quickly bonds with the six students and they are determined to hone their magic as well as survive the dangerous trials – and dangerous fellow mages – present in the school.
Perhaps the biggest flaw in this series is that it takes about six episodes to actually get into the meat of things, but so long as you can sit through the slow slog, it presents a refreshing take on stale magic school anime. If you are looking for more anime recommendations like Reign of the Seven Spellblades, head on down below.
Anime Like Reign of the Seven Spellblades
For Fans of Magic School
Mashle – Muscles and Magic
When a person is born, they bear a distinctive mark on their face that denotes that they have magical abilities. To maintain the magical integrity of the world, those without the mark are swiftly exterminated.
Mash Burnedead was born without a mark or magical ability, but he was taken in by one weak mage and raised away from society in the forest. While he lacks magical skills, Mash has honed his physical strength to superhuman levels by working out everyday.
When Mash was discovered in the forest and his peaceful life was upended, he decides to go to magic school to become a Divine Visionary, a person that the whole world recognizes for their supreme skills, in order to protect his family.
However, while being magic-less in a magic school seems like a pretty indomitable obstacle, Mash’s muscles are capable of feats that seem just like magic.
Both Reign of the Seven Spellblades and Mashle take place at European-style magic schools that would most easily be called “Harry Potter-like” schools of magic. The characters wear robes, ride brooms, and use wands. However, while they are set in two similar schools, the anime series provide two pretty different experiences.
Mashle is about a guy with no magic committing feats and solving problems with his immense physical strength in ways that seem like magic. While Mashle is often light-hearted and comedic, it does have moments of high action as well as moments where it treats itself seriously. However, rarely does it take itself as seriously as Reign of the Seven Spellblades and its vicious fights and revenge-fueled murder plots.
Little Witch Academia
Although Atsuko is an ordinary girl, she became enamored by witches and magic by a magic show she saw as a kid hosted by a witch named Shiny Chariot.
Now, she has aspires to be a witch, taking the first step by joining a renowned academy for witches called Luna Nova Academy.
Although she faces hardship as a first generation witch and fan of Shiny Chariot, whom many consider a fraud, she and her two friends do their best each new day.
Both Reign of the Seven Spellblades and Little Witch Academia feature more European-styled magic schools where the characters wear robes, use wands, and ride brooms. Therein, a new student builds a group of friends that help them on their journey.
However, Little Witch Academia is what can best be described as a very “high energy” anime. The characters are energetic in everything they do and it can move at a rapid pace. This is a much different experience to Reign of the Seven Spellblades’ slow and deliberate build up.
While Little Witch Academia often seems a little manic, it does have a grand plot that it is building up towards and an intrigue that is unfolding. It isn’t quite the same experience as the revenge-fueled murder in Reign of the Seven Spellblades, though. It is distinctly less menacing, but no less interesting.
Trinity Seven
After the red sun stops shining, Arata Kasuga’s hometown disappeared along with all the people. However, he manages to create an artificial world for himself by using a mysterious grimoire.
One day, his artificial world crumbles and a mysterious girl demands he hand over the grimoire. Instead, he ends up enrolling in a secret magic school with six others.
Together, they bolster each other’s magic as the Trinity Seven.
There are moments where Reign of the Seven Spellblades, outside of its revenge plot, seems like a standard magic school harem anime, but with some superfluous dudes in the group. This gets even more common once the gender-bending starts. So, why not just go right to a similar magic school harem anime without the superfluous dudes?
Although Reign of the Seven Spellblades does eventually start to focus more on its revenge plot and various battles, Trinity Seven keeps things a bit more predictable with a magic school setting and a fair bit of fan service. However, much like Reign of the Seven Spellblades and its diverse group of characters, Trinity Seven is also largely carried by its interesting character group in the school. However, while it is a harem anime first, it does feature a particularly intricate magic system.
The Irregular at Magic High School
After magic, once thought to be folklore, was turned into a technical skill, schools to teach it opened all over.
At one such school are siblings Tatsuya and Miyuki Shiba. While Miyuki excels, her brother is placed in a lower class due to his seemingly magical ineptitude. However, he has rather unique abilities that make him quite irregular.
While both Reign of the Seven Spellblades and The Irregular at Magic High School focus on new students at magic high school, The Irregular at Magic High School isn’t as European-style in its magic school setting. It is more the standard anime magic school.
Regardless, both series appear to be aiming at a similar set up. Both follow a main character that is not only very strong, but a person that pretty much everyone likes. However, they also have a dark past that fuels their present action. While both series explore that main characters’ darker story, they also showcase issues within the friend group as well, though admittedly Reign of the Seven Spellblades has more of a focus on them.
For Fans of Dangerous School Life
The Ancient Magus’ Bride
After being abandoned by her family, Chise Hatori is a 16-year-old teenager without hope.
In order to not have to worry about herself, she sells herself to slavers, only to be purchased by Magus Elias Ainsworth.
There, she is told she will become his apprentice and, in the future, his bride. Together, they work to build a relationship and work to control her own magus powers that will eventually result in her early death.
The Ancient Magus’ Bride isn’t actually a magic school anime at first. It isn’t until the second season that it becomes one. However, even before magic school, The Ancient Magus’s Bride still has that same sort of European-style fantasy magic world like Reign of the Seven Spellblades. Mages wear cloaks, they brew potions, they deal with creatures, and do so all out of the public eye.
However, although it takes a minute to get to the magic school arc, the world of The Ancient Magus’ Bride, like the world of Reign of the Seven Spellblades, is never not dangerous. If you enjoy your main cast being frequently imperiled, both series feature that quite a bit.
The biggest difference between these two is that The Ancient Magus’ Bride is a shoujo anime, which means it focuses more on the blooming relationships – romantic and otherwise – that the female main character is forming with others.
The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule The World
Ray White is the first commoner to be admitted to the prestigious Arnold Academy of Sorcery. As such, he is also the immediate target of contempt by some of the nobles at the academy.
However, what they don’t know is that Ray’s real identity is the current Iceblade Sorcerer, one of only a few powerful magic wielders that once led their country to victory.
Despite being the current holder of such a legendary power, Ray just wants to live an ordinary school life that he hasn’t been able to experience until now.
Both Reign of the Seven Spellblades and The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule The World focus on similar magic schools where the main character is pretty overpowered, often to the point of you wondering why they even need to go to a school. You soon find out that they have other reasons for attending and aren’t necessarily there to gain academic knowledge.
Unlike Reign of the Seven Spellblades and its revenge plot, The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule The World is about intrigue that is blooming in the school itself. The main character and his gathered harem get pulled into this and address it.
Both series are pretty standard magic school harem anime with a lot of decent action. However, while The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule The World has some darker back stories, it never quite gets as dark as Reign of the Seven Spellblades. Ray isn’t there to commit murder in The Iceblade Sorcerer Shall Rule The World like Oliver in Reign of the Seven Spellblades. He’s there to attempt to have a happy school life.
The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World
In his life as the world’s strongest onmyouji, Haruyoshi only pursued power. However, even his immense power couldn’t stand up to the well-played cunning that saw him betrayed and slain.
Using a technique he formed, he is able to reincarnated himself into another world. In this world, he, unlike the other members of his prestigious mage family, has no affinity for magic.
Haruyoshi, now Seika, the son of his father’s mistress, is shunned for his origins and lack of affinity. However, while he lacks in traditional magic, he still excels in spiritual power, allowing him use of his onmyouji techniques.
While once he pursued power, he will now seek greatness by honing his cunning.
Although The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World is indeed an isekai anime, it still follows a pretty similar magic school anime plot.
Both series feature young men who attend a magic school, make a group of friends that look suspiciously like a harem, and then get into a lot of secret fights with mysterious forces at work around the school.
However, unlike Reign of the Seven Spellblades, The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World isn’t focusing on revenge so much as he is trying to use cunning in a new world to thrive and not get betrayed like he was in his previous life.
For Fans of Revenge Plots Where They Pick Off Targets One-by-One
Oshi no Ko
In the country hospital where he works, doctor and idol enjoyer Gorou Amemiya meets the famous and beloved idol Ai Hoshino. He is surprised to discover that this sixteen-year-old idol is pregnant, but promises the safe delivery of her twin babies.
Unfortunately, Gorou is mysteriously murdered and when he opens his eyes again, he is in the body of Aquamarine Hoshino, Ai’s newborn son. With his new twin sister Ruby, the pair happily cheer Ai on until tragedy strikes yet again and the pair become embroiled in the dark side of show business.
It seems particularly strange to compare an anime about murdering mages at a magic school to a series about a idols, but in truth they have a similar plot.
Both series are about young men who enter either a school or an industry with the sole goal of finding and killing the person or people responsible for the death of their mother. Along the way, they make a series of good-hearted – and largely female – friends that don’t knowingly assist them or know their goal, but admire the main character.
The big difference is setting and amount of actual violence. Oshi no Ko, outside of its bloody first episode, is not focused on fighting people. It is instead focused on lies, deception, and manipulation.
Gungrave
Brandon Heat and Harry MacDowel grew up on the streets together and both turned to crime in order to get by. However, when their activities are noticed by the eyes of the expansive Millennion mafia syndicate, the pair find themselves brought under their wings and rising through the ranks.
Things go well until one fateful day that changes it all.
Years later, Brandon Heat is brought back from the dead to fight Millennion and its new leader, Harry MacDowel.
While Reign of the Seven Spellblades takes a minute to show the real reason Oliver is going to that school and even longer to explain why, Gungrave tells a more focused story about revenge.
While Gungrave is innately different as a sci-fi Mafia story about a reanimated hitman killing all his previous associates, Brandon Heat is essentially doing the same thing Oliver Horn is.
Both series focus on a main character picking off targets responsible for a betrayal and death one-by-one. However, Gungrave is split between the bloody revenge and telling the why he is doing it in a flashback. Alternatively, Reign of the Seven Spellblades hides the revenge plot among magic school life activities.
Kill la Kill
Ryuuko Matoi is on the hunt for her father’s killer, and her only lead is the missing half of his invention, the Scissor Blade.
On her quest, she arrives at the prestigious Honnouji Academy, a school that is ruled over by the super powerful Satsuki Kiryuuin and her Elite Four. Believing Satsuki knows who killed her father, Ryuuko challenges one of the elite, but gets beaten due to their special uniforms.
After receiving a special uniform of her own, Ryuuko sets plans into motion to dominate the school and find out what happened to her father.
Both Reign of the Seven Spellblades and Kill la Kill feature main characters going to a prestigious and somewhat dangerous elite school with the sole focus of finding the person or people responsible for the death of their parent.
While Reign of the Seven Spellblades focuses on him murdering his way down a list, Kill la Kill is slightly more innocent with the main character just fighting her way to the top in order to get to the woman she thinks is responsible.
While both series enjoy their action, Kill la Kill goes quite a bit bigger with the action and features a frenetic amount of energy in, not just the fights, but every aspect of the story.
Of course, the biggest difference is the setting. Reign of the Seven Spellblades takes place at a European-style magic school while Kill la Kill features a school in a world where special clothes can grant magnificent power.
For Fans of Weapons Augmented With Magic
Alderamin on the Sky
The world is currently embroiled by war between the Katjvarna Empire and the Kiorka Republic.
Within a corner of the empire, a young man prepares to take his High Grade Military Officer Exam. He is lazy and lecherous, but no one would expect his name would go down in history as a legendary military general.
This is his story.
While it doesn’t quite fit in any of the other categories, I wanted to include Alderamin on the Sky because it and Reign of the Seven Spellblades are by the same author.
While one is about a main character’s revenge plot at a dangerous magic school and the other is a fantasy-laced World War I-inspired war story, they maintain similar detailed and dark storytelling while also putting an above-average amount of effort into making each member of the friend group feel like a main character in their own right by actually developing them. Those characters are also clandestinely brought together in a similar way to “the troll event” in Reign of the Seven Spellbaldes that immediately binds them as friends.
The biggest similarity between them is the magic system in both worlds. Reign of the Seven Spellblades uses swords as magic wands while Alderamin on the Sky uses magical spirits to power artillery and World War I era rifles. Since those rifles are a slower firing weaponry, swords also still have a place in Alderamin on the Sky.
Do you have more anime recommendations like Reign of the Seven Spellblades? Let fans know in the comments section below.
