Bayonetta isn't just an action-adventure title combined with hack 'n' slash mechanics but also a title that introduces the player to a variety of powerful characters. While many of the bosses faced by the player are angels, players should also focus on the clan that the main character herself, Bayonetta, is from—the Umbra Witches.
Umbra Witches are a clan of European witches that were known for practicing the dark arts as well as being one of the two clans that were seen as the Overseers of History. This has led them to have many powerful leaders as well as other powerful members. These are the strongest witches mentioned or seen in Bayonetta.
7 Viola
Although only a witch-in-training, Viola is an Umbra Witch from a different reality that comes to warn Bayonetta of danger in Bayonetta 3. Although not much is known about her yet, she has already been shown to be quite powerful as well as resourceful. She uses a katana which she must block with in order to activate her Witch Time.
This sword will become very useful to the player as many of her attacks are based around it. Charging up her attacks will allow her to hit more than one enemy with her sword while she can also attack from a distance using darts, allowing for a fresher playstyle than those that have only experienced Bayonetta herself.
6 Eva
Named Eva as a nod back to Dante's mother in Devil May Cry, in Bayonetta Eva isn't seen in the game but mentioned in the description of the Bracelet of Time accessory. This item's description states that Eva is a 'truly extraordinary witch' who made a contract with a dark knight, so she could take on the mass army of the Inferno.
She was highly renowned for this feat as well as for creating the bracelets which Bayonetta can equip to allow her to master the Witch Time mechanic that Eva was known to also have mastered. As she had also crafted these bracelets herself it shows that she wasn't only skilled in combat but also outside of it, being able to create items that better improve her own abilities.
5 Cleopatra
Another character that isn't directly seen in any of the Bayonetta games, Cleopatra, is mentioned in the description of the Selene's Light accessory. Bayonetta reveals that the queen of Egypt was also the leader of the Umbra Witches during that period of time.
As a historical figure, she was already incredibly strong. However, the game adds to this by revealing her to be this powerful dark witch. Furthermore, she is shown to be quite thoughtful as the item known as Selene's Light was not made for her own use, but rather something she crafted to help other witches that were struggling to master their skills.
4 Umbran Elder
The Umbran Elder may not have as much information on her compared to other Umbra Witches in Bayonetta. However, as the leader of the clan, it can be assumed that she possesses a large amount of power when compared to the other members.
Her power also gives her authority over what happens in the clan as she is known by the players to be the one to have decided the punishment of Bayonetta's mother as well as causing herself to be isolated. Her power seemingly wasn't enough though, as during the Witch Hunts that occurred she was one of many to be killed on the streets of Vigrid by the Lumen Sages.
3 Jeanne
Acting as both Bayonetta's rival and best friend throughout the series, Jeanne has always had the attention of the Umbra Witches due to her skills that would one day see her become the heiress of the Umbra Witches.
However, after the witch trials, this didn't come to pass, and she instead found herself under the mind control of Balder. Throughout the first game, she is seen crossing paths with Bayonetta as they attempt to fight one another, showing their skills to be on par though Bayonetta always wins in the end. Eventually, she is freed of this control, and she begins to help Bayonetta when their power is combined.
2 Bayonetta
Naturally, the main protagonist of the game and the woman that is commonly described as having the blackest of hearts would find herself ranking highly among the powerful Umbra Witches. Although the Umbran Elder demanded Bayonetta would not learn the dark arts as a punishment, she is still highly skilled with them, all thanks to the sheer power of her mother, Rosa.
Throughout the franchise, players have seen all that Bayonetta has been able to do, from summoning the largest of demons through contracts to defeating the bosses of the game. She's also incredibly skilled in combat without the help of her Umbra Witch powers.
1 Rosa
Bayonetta's mother Rosa was known to be an incredibly skilled as well as powerful witch. Most of her daughter's skills appear to have been inherited from Rosa as players are able to play as this effective Umbra Witch in Bayonetta 2.
Rosa can be seen as being the most powerful Umbra Witch due to her gameplay in the second title of the franchise as compared to Bayonetta, all of Rosa's attacks do triple the damage. This power also made her quite influential until she was eventually hated and imprisoned by her own clan through falling in love with a Lumen Sage, this inadvertently started the fourth clan war between the two sides.