Agents of DIO

"There are those rare men who have not a strap of good in them... the evil elite! Like me... and like you... So how about it? Will you become my servant?"

- Dio Brando,

The Agents of DIO (の手下) are the primary antagonistic force in the original universe of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, with its members appearing in Phantom Blood, Battle Tendency, Stardust Crusaders, Diamond is Unbreakable and Stone Ocean.

The group is composed of the many people Dio Brando has gathered around him through sheer charisma and/or due to his various desires of dominating the world, finding "Heaven", and destroying the Joestar Group. Even after DIO's death, the remnants of his group appear in later parts. In Stone Ocean, DIO's followers serve as major antagonists continuing his legacy.

Phantom Blood
Dio meets Wang Chan, who becomes his first loyal subordinate after providing Dio with poison to slowly kill his father and George Joestar I. Later, Dio steals the Stone Mask from the Joestar Mansion and uses it to become a Vampire with George's blood. He then creates an army of Zombies under his control, including Jack the Ripper, Bruford, Tarkus, Doobie, Adams, Page, Jones, Plant, and Bornnam.

Dio's group was nearly exterminated by the Joestar Group at Windknight's Lot during the night of December 2, 1888. His last known servant, Wang Chan, dies during the sinking of a ship headed towards America, leaving Dio trapped inside his coffin with Jonathan's body.

Battle Tendency
Although Dio supposedly died after the events of Phantom Blood and his followers were thought to be killed by Jonathan Joestar and his allies, there were some minions that survived, including a bloodsucking zombie, which disguises itself as a major squad leader in the. He is later killed by Lisa Lisa as revenge for George Joestar II's murder.

After witnessing Dio's dominant power fifty years ago, Straizo is unintentionally convinced by Dio to betray the Joestar Group and becomes a vampire in order to gain eternal youth. Additionally, Kars is revealed as being the man responsible for creating the stone masks which caused Dio's rise to power.

Stardust Crusaders
Nearly a hundred years later in 1983, DIO resurfaces when his coffin is pulled out of the ocean's depths by a group of treasure hunters. He obtains a Stand from Enya the Hag when Diavolo sells his five Arrows to her. With Enya as his adviser, DIO forms a new group, mainly consisting of human Stand users and only a few Vampires. In secret, he befriends a priest named Enrico Pucci and unknowingly impregnates four women with his children. He recruits members from all around the world, who are primarily mercenaries like Hol Horse, and manipulates many of them with large sums of money, but he also has a number of devoted followers, like N'Doul, Enya the Hag or Vanilla Ice. For more hesitant or untrustworthy followers, such as Noriaki Kakyoin and Jean Pierre Polnareff, DIO uses flesh buds to enthrall them. However, even Enya had a spore secretly implanted in her brain.

During the fifty days it takes for the third Joestar Group to travel to Egypt, DIO's minions are defeated one at a time as they attempt to assassinate the Joestars. Although DIO fails to achieve his goal and the majority of his group is defeated once again, he and Vanilla Ice succeed in killing half of the Joestar Group before their deaths. After Jotaro and Joseph leave DIO's body out in the desert to evaporate with the rising sun, Jotaro finds DIO's Diary and learns of what DIO had planned. Considering the journal dangerous, Jotaro burns it so that no one else could ever read it.

While some members of DIO's group are confirmed to be deceased, the fates of the other agents are unknown after their defeats.

Diamond is Unbreakable
Yoshihiro Kira and Mr. Nijimura both retrieved a Bow and Arrow from Enya in the past. As a result, many citizens of Morioh gained Stands, including the sons of the aforementioned. While Yoshihiro was only ever involved with Enya, Mr. Nijimura was recruited by DIO himself, as the vampire travelled the world in search of suitable Stand Users.

Due to DIO's death, the flesh bud inside Nijimura bursts and he suffers from a horrific transformation leaving him unable to die. His sons Keicho and Okuyasu then spend years using the Bow and Arrow in hopes of finding a Stand that can put their father out of his misery, creating most of the town's Stand Users. Keicho later dies at the hands of one of them.

Whereas Mr. Nijimura and Okuyasu befriend Morioh's Joestar group, Yoshihiro and his son are killed during the battle with Josuke Higashikata and his allies.

Stone Ocean
The final remaining servants of DIO's group are Enrico Pucci and Johngalli A. The two enact a plan to steal Jotaro Kujo's Stand and memories by framing his daughter, Jolyne Cujoh, to lure Jotaro into their base of operation, Green Dolphin Street Prison. While Johngalli A. acts entirely out of revenge, Pucci also needs Jotaro's memories to fullfill DIO's dream of finding Heaven. To aid him in that goal, and to defeat Jolyne and her allies, Pucci uses the inmates and prison staff of Green Dolphin Street, and after leaving the prison even recruits DIO's sons (except Giorno). Pucci prefers to hide his identity as the prison chaplain - he mostly communicates with his agents through Whitesnake, promising them power and concessions from prison authorities or simply mind-controlling them. He often erases the memories of his agents' encounters with him, ensuring that he can't be tracked down. He does, however, directly interact with DIO's sons, serving as somewhat of a mentor figure to them.

Pucci does succeed in killing the Joestars and their allies, and almost manages to create a world where everyone will see their Fate just as DIO wanted. However, Emporio kills him before he is able to do so, making the world free of Pucci's influence. In the alternate universe, the deceased Joestars and their friends are reborn as alternative counterparts, with different lives and memories.

Like the previous incarnation of the group, while some of its members are confirmed deceased, the fates of other members are left ambiguous, including the fate of DIO's sons, Ungalo and Rikiel.

Heaven Ascension DIO's Agents
In Eyes of Heaven, Heaven Ascension DIO manages to possess various allies throughout the 8 parts of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure to try and attack the Joestar Group. While Diego Brando and Dio Brando were originally in alliance with Heaven Ascension DIO, Diego said to Jotaro Kujo that their alliance is only temporary and they'll eventually finish him off once and for all.

Below are a list of all of the characters who were possessed by Heaven Ascension DIO, or were in alliance with him without being possessed.

Enemies

 * See Joestar Group