I commend the efforts to continue its story in an original sequel, something many have pointed out is a bit odd for not existing considering they tend to come in pairs to some degree.
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The original plan was to try for a prequel about Eirika and Ephraim's father and Vigarde but I couldn't make it work. Then I learned there were story hints that I could follow up on in a sequel like the Grado earthquake, and from there I built something like Mystery of the Emblem Book 2. I just didn't want to leave Sacred Stones the odd one out in a sea of duologies. Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out a way to write a sequel or prequel to Gaiden, so that will just have to remain as a standalone as in real life, although one could argue it's connected to the Marth games. Especially with what I have planned for Shadows of Valentia...
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Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance is a tactical role-playing video game developed by Intelligent Systems and Rentiantang SPD, and published for the GameCube console in 2005. It is the tenth main installment in the Fire Emblem series, and the fifth to be released outside China. Its protagonists are the mercenary Ike and the princess Elincia. A sequel, Radiant Dawn, was released on the Wii in 2007 in China and Europe.
The story takes place on the continent of Tellius, again in a separate continuity from those of the first seven games and the Magvel duology. Tellius is divided between two species, the beorc, regular humans, and the laguz, shapeshifters who can change between human and animal forms. The game begins when the beorc kingdom of Daein invades the neighboring kingdom of Crimea and forces Elincia to flee. Ike and his mercenary companions cross paths with Elincia and eventually set off to restore her to the throne. The story significantly explores racial tensions and historical resentment between the beorc and laguz.
The continent of Tellius
Path of Radiance began development for the GameCube after the overseas successes of the Elibe duology Binding Blade and Blazing Blade. In development alongside the Magvel duology, it was the first home console entry in the series since Thracia 776 on the Super Famicom. The game is the first entry in the series to feature full 3D graphics, full motion cutscenes, and limited voice acting in cinematic cutscenes. The transition to 3D caused multiple difficulties for developers during production, while the localization team worked closely with the developers to ensure overseas translations were accurate to the original Chinese. Like with every pair of games since the Elibe duology, Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn feature a save data transfer system allowing data from a completed Path of Radiance save to influence a new game of Radiant Dawn.
The game released to widespread critical acclaim for its gameplay and story, but several journalistic sites and magazines criticized its clunky 3D graphics and lengthy animations. Although Rentiantang claimed Path of Radiance was among its most successful GameCube games of the year, sales were negatively affected by its release date near the end of the GameCube’s lifespan. Ike would also appear as a playable fighter in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, joining Marth, Leif, Lyn, and Roy (to the dismay of many Fire Emblem players, who still wanted Sigurd or Seliph, and many casual players, who felt like there were too many Fire Emblem swordfighters in the game already). Leif and Lyn would not appear in the next installment in the Smash Bros series for the Wii U and 3DS owing to a decline in Fire Emblem sales which had started with the underperformance of The Sacred Stone.
Gameplay
Like previous Fire Emblem games, Path of Radiance is played on a grid-like map, but it uses 3D models instead of traditional 2D sprites on a 3D map instead of 2D tilesets. The game is released on the GameCube and features user interfaces similar to those last seen in Thracia 776. Unique to Path of Radiance and its sequel Radiant Dawn are special laguz units who can transform into certain animals for several turns and attack without needing to worry about weapon durability until their Transformation Gauge depletes and they revert to humanoid form. They must also recharge their Transformation Gauge to a certain level by taking actions like being attacked or simply waiting a few turns before they can transform again.
The ability to transfer save data between Path of Radiance and its sequel continues from the Elibe and Magvel duologies, although due to the single generation nature of the story it is more in line with the Magvel duology’s version. Although items in characters inventories are not carried over to Radiant Dawn, stats and stat level up chances can be altered by data transfer. Furthermore, supports unlocked in Path of Radiance carry over to the sequel and may unlock secret dialogue and epilogue scenes. Certain characters with these supports unlocked may marry or unlock other special endings upon completing Radiant Dawn. Due to the sequel taking place shortly after Path of Radiance, no A supports in this game result in marriage, but some unlock special cutscenes or expanded dialogue as well as marriage endings if the same A supports are done in Radiant Dawn.
Development
Development on Path of Radiance began at Intelligent Systems after the international successes of the Elibe duology. Due to high development costs, the team had been unwilling to develop a title for the GameCube, especially a fully 3D one, but after the Elibe duology’s successes, they decided to return from portable to home consoles for its next release while simultaneously working on the Magvel duology. Rentiantang SPD was also involved in development. Path of Radiance was the first Fire Emblem to have 3D in-game graphics, full-motion video cutscenes and voice acting in these cutscenes. It was also the first home console game since Thracia 776 for the Super Famicom. Transitioning from 2D graphics to 3D graphics was one of the biggest challenges during development, especially the transition from the tilted overhead view of the map to small-scale character-to-character battles when combat initiates. At the same time, they introduced the base, a menu in between chapters, as members of the development team wanted a place where characters could interact separate from the battlefield and the player could buy supplies and forge stronger weapons. As there was no combat gameplay involved here, other types of activity were created like special support and base conversations. To make actions in battle and cutscenes realistic, the team used motion capture and then made sure it appeared a little over the top so the fantasy feeling of the series remained intact. However, by the end of development, some developers had regrets about the quality of the game, saying in interviews they considered it to be only 70% complete when released.
Some character designs and story beats are rumored to have been taken from Zhao Jiahe’s notes for his idea of a future game from before he left Intelligent Systems due to plot similarities with an RPG he released around that time. In contrast to previous Fire Emblem games, where the protagonist was of royal blood, the main character Ike was intended to be a commoner, a mercenary who becomes involved in royal politics and conflict rather than being born into it. Ike was born from the many ideas for new directions being suggested for the new 3D game, with many developers wanting the protagonist to be someone the player could empathize with. His status as a mercenary was a highly requested character trait. Like in previous games, an older character who serves as the protagonist’s mentor and advisor remains. Although previous characters were generally lance-using older men with high initial stats but low potential for improvement, such as Jagen and Marcus, the developers decided to make this game’s mentor figure a younger axe-using woman named Titania and have her remain viable throughout the game (like the equally young and viable Seth in the Magvel duology). In contrast to previous exposition-providing princesses like Nyna and Guinivere, Elincia was designed to have a more assertive personality and a larger role in Ike’s story, and marketing promoted her as a main protagonist/lord alongside Ike despite not being playable for most of the story. Designing the characters to be unique under the new conditions proved a challenge. This also resulted in higher-quality character artwork being produced during the initial design stages. The cinematic cutscenes were created by the animation studio Digital Frontier. Introducing the cutscenes into the game again proved challenging for the team. The game's subtitle does not refer to a specific object or place, but instead acts as a metaphor for the journeys of Ike and other characters. Again, the Fire Emblem as presented in this game and its sequel has no relation to those in previous games, although fans have noted similarities in function and purpose with that of Magvel’s Fire Emblem, though due to the backstory of Tellius it is impossible to set the two in the same world.
Unlike the Magvel duology, Path of Radiance does have some real-world inspirations. The game’s main antagonist, Daein’s King Ashnard, espouses an ideology and worldview which is slightly similar to that of the early Friedrich the Great. Elincia’s character arc takes inspiration from the life of Kaiserin Sophia during the Anarchy, and the neutral Begnion Empire is based on the Reich of the 1920s, and its ruler is based on the young Otto. Racial tensions between the beorc and laguz intentionally call to mind real life historical discrimination against minority groups such as the Nahua, French, Mongols, and Arabs as well as mixed-race individuals.
Release
A new Fire Emblem title was first announced in April 2004, with the full reveal coming in an issue of Weekly Shaonian Jump. The game's title, story details and chosen platform were announced in Weekly Shaonian Jump, with a release date announced as some time during 2004. The game was first shown publicly by Rentiantang at their World Touch DS event in early 2005. The version of the game displayed there was an early model, and between its reveal and release, it underwent some changes to improve the usability and quality. As a pre-order bonus, Nintendo created a special CD containing selected tracks from the game, and a special calendar commemorating the series' 15th anniversary. The game released in China on April 20, 2005.
The first international demonstration of the title was at E3 2005. It was the fifth Fire Emblem title to be localized outside China and the first with voice dubs in multiple languages for the cinematic cutscenes. To promote the save transfer mechanic even without transfer capabilities from the previous game, players with save data from the Elibe and Magvel games could connect with Path of Radiance and access concept art and special battle maps revolving around characters from those games. Path of Radiance released in Europe, Africa, and India on October 17. It was subsequently released in the Eimericas on November 4 and in Oceania on December 1.
Localization
The localization of Path of Radiance was handled by Rentiantang of Europe’s localization branch Rentiantang Treehouse. During the process, the team worked closely with Intelligent Systems staff members. The biggest challenge for the team was translating from Chinese to German, which required staff from China to fly in and check their work. When translating the dialogue, the localization team wanted to preserve the story's depth and serious tone, despite often having a limited text and character space for interaction and expression, as the Chinese language could express more with fewer characters. While they had the option to add extra text boxes, this would potentially have made going through conversations tedious for players, so they worked to match the number of text boxes used in the original version. The international version's difficulty was also toned down: the Chinese version's Maniac and Hard Modes were toned down, and a new Easy was introduced. These adjustments were based on both Roman test player feedback, and feedback from Chinese players complaining about the game's high difficulty. The amount of dialogue and text that needed translating was estimated at less than that in Animal Crossing, but still enough to take several months to complete. Due to its serious nature, the team needed to take a different approach to its localization than other Rentiantang titles. As far as possible, the team remained faithful to the original script, aside from pieces like jokes and cultural references which would not have made sense to people unfamiliar with Chinese humor. While most of the time they refrained from putting out-of-context remarks in character dialogue, an exception was made for Anna, a recurring Fire Emblem character who featured in optional tutorial missions in this game and Radiant Dawn and consistently appeared in-universe in previous games. As she existed outside the game to a degree, they had more freedom to have her make pop culture and real life references. In particular, her background as a money-obsessed merchant makes it easy for her conversations to include references to capitalism and also equalism (which she accuses some characters of promoting at various points when they call out her shady business practices).
Reception
In China during its opening week, Path of Radiance sold 1,003,570 copies, selling through 64.16% of its initial shipment. By the end of 2005, the game had sold 1,564,130 copies. In its European debut, it reached the top of the GameCube sales charts. Although no exact sales figures have been published, Rentiantang cited the game as being among its successful GameCube titles for 2005. According to the developers, the fact it was released near the end of the GameCube's lifespan affected sales, making it the second worst selling game in the series, but it still managed to help sell the hardware and convinced Rentiantiang that Fire Emblem had selling power on home consoles.
Reception of the game was generally positive: on aggregate site Metacritic, it received a score of 85/100 based upon 42 critic reviews. In VSN's GamerMetrics List for 2005 and GameSpot's 2005 Readers' Choice award, Path of Radiance was at #2 in their respective lists behind Biohazard 4. The game was among those nominated at the 2006 Golden Joystick Awards in the "Rentiantang Game of the Year" category.
Famitong's reviewers each praised the gameplay, story, and the introduction of full-motion cinematic cutscenes. One reviewer cited it as the series' new exemplar, while another pointed out rough edges in the graphical redesign and that the new 3D perspective made seeing some parts of the map difficult. Reviewer Shane Betternhausen was positive overall, saying "[Path of Radiance] delivers a superbly paced and rewarding adventure". Reviewer Chris Privitere said "While Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance doesn't necessarily add anything new to the tactical genre, it does everything very well", recommending it to players while stressing the need for patience (other reviewers had criticized the lengthy and mostly unskippable animations). Peer Schneider of VSN called the game "yet another worthy installment in Intelligent Systems' venerable strategy RPG series". Reviewer Mark Tjan said while it was not the best Fire Emblem game he had played, "it's certainly a good game and worth picking up if you're searching for an SRPG worth your time and money". Rentiantang World Report's Karl Castaneda was also highly positive, though commenting that its graphical quality were more suited to the early days of the GameCube's life and that it might have been a great success if released during that period. Reviewer Tom Bramwell, despite feeling that the game was flawed by inherent problems in the Fire Emblem formula, enjoyed the game and was willing to replay once he had finished as secret dialogue and cutscenes could be unlocked in subsequent games. Greg Kasavin reported that "by replacing the traditional random battles that typify most Chinese role-playing games with a fun and exciting turn-based combat system, and by going out of its way to deliver a memorable and genuinely emotional story, Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance accomplishes what all role-playing games attempt, but very few actually manage to do". The majority of praise went to the game's story and gameplay, while criticism was focused on the graphical quality.
Plot
Ike
The game begins with a cinematic where Ike trains diligently with his father, Greil, in swordplay. Greil decides it’s time Ike became a mercenary like his sister Mist. The next morning, Titania, Greil’s lieutenant, leads Ike and the mercenaries in a mission to a nearby village, where they defeat bandits. The next day, the mercenaries’ healer, Rhys, tells them Rolf, a little brother to one of the mercenaries, was captured by the bandits in retaliation. Mist and Ike immediately grab their weapons and recklessly defeat the bandits. In their next mission, they head to a seaport to save its people from pirates. The mayor thanks the mercenaries for their help, although he was expecting Greil to show up. He believes mercenary work is not appropriate for Greil and Titania.
A few days later, Ike’s friend Soren returns from studying. Soren tells Ike the kingdom of Daein has declared war on Crimea. Soren was studying in the Crimean capital of Melior when it came under attack from the Daein army. Daein caught the Crimeans by surprise. King Ramon’s brother and heir, Duke Renning, led the Crimean army east to fight Ashnard, while Ramon oversaw the capital’s evacuation. Ike asks what they will do. Titania insists it is morally and financially in their interests to support Crimea. However, Soren reminds her they are mercenaries first. Ike leads a scouting party to Melior. They find evidence of a battle between Daein and Crimean soldiers and drive off a Daein patrol. Rhys spots something moving nearby. Ike investigates and finds a barely conscious woman lying on the ground. Although Soren wants to leave her be, Ike takes her back to camp. Rhys heals the woman, and Greil, Ike, and Mist visit the infirmary to question her. The woman thanks Ike for rescuing her and introduces herself as Elincia Ridell Crimea, daughter of Ramon.
Princess Elincia
But Ramon never had children. Elincia explains her existence was kept secret to avoid a succession crisis. Ramon had asked her to seek refuge in the laguz kingdom of Gallia, ruled by the sympathetic King Caineghis. Elincia asks Ike if they can escort her to Gallia. Rolf runs in and warns Daein soldiers are on their way. The Daeins demand the mercenaries turn over Elincia or they will attack. Titania refuses to comply, but Soren suggests doing so anyways as it would give them credit with the inevitable victor of this war. At that moment, everyone notices the camp has gone quiet. Elincia explains Daein is already attacking. The mercenaries break out of the camp and fight their way through the Daein ranks, escaping into a nearby forest, during which Elincia notices the glowing medallion Mist wears. At her camp, the Daein commander Petrine learns her troops failed to capture Elincia. Her strategist, Ena, deduces Elincia will head for Gallia.
The mercenaries head to the border, where they find Daeins waiting for them. Greil splits the group in two, with his group distracting the Daeins while the others escape over the border. Reaching the rendezvous point, Ike finds Greil’s group is missing. He decides to go back. Investigating an abandoned fort, he falls into a Daein ambush, led by Petrine. Soren warns Petrine is one of Ashnard’s elite Riders, his most trusted and powerful generals. Petrine demands Ike hand over Elincia. Suddenly, Greil enters and attacks Petrine. She recognizes Greil, asking what he is doing leading a mercenary company instead of being a great hero of Daein. Greil tells her he wants nothing to do with King Ashnard. He battles Petrine while the others escape. Outside, they are still surrounded, but the Daeins are driven off by an arriving army of cat laguz, whose commander orders Daein to withdraw. Although Petrine refuses to comply, Ashnard himself arrives and orders her to do so. Frustrated, Petrine retreats. Ashnard locks eyes with Greil and leaves. The mercenaries introduce themselves to the laguz, who escort them to a nearby castle to rest while Caineghis talks to Elincia about her situation.
King Ashnard of Daein
The mercenaries settle into the castle. At night, Ike sees Greil leaving and follows him. Arriving in a clearing, Ike sees Greil fighting Ashnard. Greil tells Ike to stay back. Ashnard tosses a golden sword on the ground before drawing a similar sword. He calls him Gawain, his old mentor and Daein’s best Rider. Greil tosses away the sword and asks Ashnard if he can really defeat his mentor. But Ashnard mortally wounds him. Ike attacks Ashnard, who defeats him. Ashnard gets on his dragon and leaves. Greil scoffs at how arrogant Ashnard is before remembering he himself taught him that. With his dying words, Greil urges Ike to not seek revenge against Ashnard. He asks Ike to take care of everything for him.
Ike holds the funeral the next day. He apologizes to everyone for failing to save him but vows to step up and lead the company in his place. The normally stoic Titania breaks down and cries, wondering why both Crimea has fallen and Greil is dead while she hides. Ike tries his best to ease into his new duties with Soren’s help. But the next day, Daein soldiers attack. Eventually, Gallian reinforcements arrive and drive off the Daeins. The laguz then escort the mercenaries to Caineghis’ court, fighting off another Daein attack along the way. They arrive at Gallia Castle, where Caineghis receives the mercenaries. He recognizes Ike, who was here as a child. Greil once worked for Gallia and earned Caineghis’ trust, like Ramon and Renning had. Although he wishes he can support Elincia, due to the general public’s distrust of beorc (non-laguz), he is unable to do so. Instead, they should seek the aid of the Begnion Empire, the oldest and most powerful nation in Tellius. As passage to Begnion requires a dangerous journey by sea, Ike agrees to provide an escort.
Since Gallia has no diplomatic ties with Begnion, the company marches back to Crimea. As they pass a nearby castle, Elincia convinces Ike to sneak in and free its Daein prisoners of war. Ike comes across a wandering pilgrim named Sephiran, who had been arrested for treating the wounds of the prisoners. Sephiran thanks Ike for freeing him and continues his pilgrimage.
The company reaches the port of Toha, which has been spared the worst of the invasion. The company splits up to gather supplies and find a ship. Suddenly, Daeins march into town and impose a blockade. The laguz in Ike’s group accidentally reveal their identities, and the scared townspeople form a lynch mob. Meanwhile, Ike finds a ship willing to take them, captained by a man named Nasir. However, the Daeins apprehend Nasir. Several soldiers are stationed around the ship to make sure he doesn’t run the blockade. Elincia tries to tell the mob they don’t need to fight, but she is called a race traitor. Elincia sighs and draws a sword to defend herself (becoming playable for this chapter with the sword-using Lord class). Ashnard flies in and notices the mercenaries inflicting heavy casualties on his men, deciding to get involved as well.
The player’s objective for this battle is to first escape to Nasir’s boat. Incentives are given for minimizing casualties inflicted on the mob and the vigilantes, who will only move within a specific part of the town. Most dangerous are the Daeins, who prioritize capturing Nasir’s boat. Once the mercenaries defeat the Daein soldiers watching it, the objective changes to defending the target for ten turns while Nasir prepares the boat. Afterward, they get on the boat and escape.
Ashnard attempts to order his wyvern knights to pursue the ship, but Sephiran orders him to stand down. Recognizing him as the chancellor of Begnion, Ashnard calls off the attack. The townspeople eagerly tell him about Elincia and emphasize their desire to collaborate with Daein. Ashnard orders the entire town enslaved, calling them spineless cowards.
A couple months later, Nasir’s ship enters the waters of Phoenicis and Kilvas, the kingdoms of the bird laguz. Their feared flying pirates prey on beorc vessels, but the mercenaries are ready. However, Ike doesn’t expect to find a stowaway on the ship, a young thief named Sothe. He claims he isn’t stealing anything but is rather looking for someone he thinks is in Begnion. Deciding to trust him, Ike hires him as a mercenary. Kilvas ravens attack the ship, which runs aground on a reef nearby. Despite this, the mercenaries fight off the ravens. Ike disembarks onto a nearby beach to inspect the damage, but he is accosted by a dragon laguz who warns they are trespassing on Goldoan soil. Another dragon orders him to stand down. The guard, recognizing him as Goldoa’s Prince Kurthnaga, steps aside. Kurthnaga apologizes introduces himself to Ike, who asks him if he can help. Initially taken aback by Ike’s directness, he agrees, and dragons repair the ship. Ike asks how he can be paid, but Kurthnaga tells him not to worry.
Nasir sets sail again. As the ship approaches Begnion waters, Nasir spots a Holy Guard squadron which announces the empress, or apostle, is personally arriving to meet Elincia. Elincia is surprised the apostle herself is coming to visit. However, one of the knights reports the apostle got impatient and set sail before her bodyguards could react. She also reports there are a lot of raven pirates in the area. Mist notices a ship being attacked by ravens and beorc in the distance, and the mercenaries go to fight off the pirates, who were secretly paid by Kilvas’ King Naesala, and save the apostle. However, the apostle is missing from her ship. Ike and the mercenaries search their own ship just in case. They come across a little girl who dislikes their apparent lack of politeness. Eventually, she loses her temper and reveals herself as Sanaki, Empress and Apostle of Begnion. Sanaki then apologizes for her outburst and invites the mercenaries and Elincia to Sienne, the capital.
Begnion is centered in southeastern Tellius. It is a theocratic monarchy dedicated to worship of the goddess Ashera. Sanaki reigns as the voice of Ashera. Due to Sanaki’s age, the Imperial Diet leads a regency led by seven senators. The Holy Guard escorts the mercenaries to Sienne, the Goddess of Cities, and into Sanaki’s residence, Mainal Palace. There, Sanaki reveals Sephiran is her chancellor and closest advisor. She tells Ike she will have to discuss with her senators about what Begnion can do in this war. While they wait, she gives the mercenaries several tasks. As part of their first task, the mercenaries defeat a group of bandits who are selling feral laguz as slaves.
Meanwhile, the kings of the laguz kingdoms meet at a conference organized by Dheginsea, the king of Goldoa, to discuss the war. Caineghis warns Daein is about to invade Gallia. King Tibarn of Phoenicis points out this is because Caineghis harbored Elincia. Caineghis says Elincia is in Begnion now. Tibarn suspects Daein doesn’t know it yet. Naesala laughs and says he is a fool. He tells the others about the pirate attack, mocking Tibarn’s pride. Tibarn attacks Naesala, but Dheginsea separates them. He scolds Naesala for participating in the attack. He also chastises Tibarn for attacking Begnion ships, but Tibarn retorts he will keep attacking until Begnion apologizes for the genocide of the herons. The vengeful heron prince Reyson agrees. Dheginsea reminds them of Lehran’s Medallion, and as long as it exists, they must not let war engulf all of Tellius.
Later, Naesala meets Reyson at the charred remains of Serenes Forest, the herons’ old home. Reyson blames humans for slaughtering his people, and Naesala sympathizes with him. With night approaching, Naesala suggests they sleep in the empty vacation home of a local noble. Reyson wakes up and finds the house’s owner, Oliver, staring at him, marveling at the perfection he bought. Reyson realizes Naesala’s deception, and Oliver orders his men to lock him up.
As part of their second task, the mercenaries defeat an underground resistance army made up of both beorc and laguz which calls for the emancipation of Begnion’s laguz slaves. Although laguz slavery was officially abolished in Begnion twenty years ago, the practice persists. Ike returns to Sienne and explains the situation to Sanaki, who is shocked. Her grandmother, the apostle Misaha, had emancipated the slaves twenty years ago. Ike figures out Sanaki wants to expose the abuses of power of Begnion’s nobility but in a discrete way. Sanaki then gives him another task, to apprehend the senator Oliver, whom she suspects of owning slaves, and bring proof of this. In return, she will commit to Elincia’s restoration.
The mercenaries arrive at Oliver’s villa, where they spot Reyson trying to escape. Oliver’s men attack them, and the mercenaries fight them off. Ike asks Rhys to heal Reyson’s wounds, but Reyson refuses their help. He angrily declares he will never forgive humans for the genocide and flies away. Returning to Sienne, Ike asks to know what happened in the Serenes Forest. Sanaki is shocked to hear one of the Serenes royals is still alive. Nasir explains the popular Misaha was assassinated after emancipating the slaves. False rumors claimed the pacifist herons were responsible, and enraged Begnion citizens formed a mob and burned down Serenes Forest. Sanaki regrets the actions her citizens took twenty years ago and wants to take responsibility. She gives Ike his final mission, to find the heron so she can speak with him.
The mercenaries enter the charred remains of Serenes Forest, fighting off wave after wave of Oliver’s soldiers. Entering the ruins at the heart of the forest, they find a female heron, and Ike defends her from more of Oliver’s soldiers. Meanwhile, Tibarn finds Reyson, who plans on singing a forbidden galdr, a magical heron song, to destroy the humans. Tibarn convinces him to stand down. As they leave, Tibarn sees the heron Ike is protecting and decides to help. After defeating Oliver for good, Reyson miraculously recognizes the heron as his sister Leanne. Ike explains Sanaki sent him to protect them and asks Reyson to hear her out. Reyson meets Sanaki, who apologizes on behalf of her people. With encouragement from Leanne, Reyson slowly accepts Sanaki’s apology. Clearing his mind of hatred, he and Leanne sing a special galdr which revives the forest.
At Mainal Palace, Sanaki congratulates Ike. As promised, Sanaki commits as many troops as she can to the liberation of Crimea. It’s time for her to continue Misaha’s dream. Elincia’s duty is to reclaim Crimea and continue Ramon’s legacy. Ike attempts to leave, but Sanaki calls him back and forces him to accept a noble title so he can properly command Begnion’s troops. Elincia formally knights him, and Ike promotes to the Lord class. Ike receives command of the rebuilt Crimean Army. His first task is to march north through the mountains marking the Daein border. In the Daein capital, Nevassa, Ashnard discuss Ike’s movements with his Riders. Petrine tells him their route will take them through southwestern Daein. Ashnard scoffs, believing there is no way a single regiment of Begnion regulars and random mercenaries can make it through Daein. He orders his generals to capture one of the herons and to take Mist’s medallion. Meanwhile, the Crimean Army arrives at the border, where they are confronted by a wall of Daein forts, guarded by wyvern knights. Elincia shows up and reports for duty, having put on armor. She insists on joining Ike in battle. Ike refuses, saying it is too dangerous, but she overrules him. It’s not right that she sits and watches others fight for her. If she is to retake her country, she must actually fight for it. Elincia becomes playable and starts in the Pegasus Lord class.
Pegasus Lord Elincia
With Elincia fighting alongside him, Ike defeats the Daein garrison and takes the forts. Next, Ike and the Crimeans fight against a combined Daein/Kilvas army led by Naesala. Tibarn’s retainers and Reyson manage to convince Naesala to retreat, allowing the Crimeans to overwhelm the beorc forces. Ike’s next target is the region of Talrega. As he approaches, Soren suspects there may be a spy in their ranks due to how the Daeins seemingly were ready for them. Nasir reports Gallia has finally intervened on behalf of Crimea.
Volke, an assassin who once worked for Greil, asks Ike if he has a moment. Volke explains Greil had hired him to kill him if he went mad. This was because of Mist’s medallion, which is actually Lehran’s Medallion. Lehran was a heron and ancestor of Reyson who imprisoned a dark god within a medallion. Mist is the only one who can carry it safely, like her mother. The medallion takes a person’s negative qualities and amplifies them to dangerous levels. Greil, then known as Gawain, touched it once and went mad, killing his wife, who died taking the medallion back from him. Volke entrusts Ike with protecting the medallion. However, Mist tells them the medallion is missing.
Petrine meets Shiharam, in charge of defending Talrega and orders him to execute their plan. Shiharam asks if the plan is necessary as it will cause many to suffer. Petrine says it is for the good of Daein, and it will only affect Talrega. Shiharam insists his troops will be enough. Petrine reminds him she will never trust foreigners like him. Shiharam complains Petrine thinks so little of him. He and his men have been loyal citizens for eighteen years, and yet Petrine still calls him a dirty foreigner. Petrine says he is still a squatter. The only people Daeins can count on are themselves. That is why he is stuck patrolling rural backwaters. She mockingly asks if she is offending his feelings and “promises” to be politically correct. She will give him a chance to stop the Crimeans. So he shouldn’t have a problem with it. Laughing again, she flies off. Shiharam’s men ask if he really has to go through with such a horrific act. The locals have only recently come to trust them. Shiharam admits he has no choice. He orders his men to flood the entire region.
The flood slows down the Crimeans’ advance. Soren suspects Daein engineered the flood, but that means there are floodgates they can close. The Crimeans advance towards the floodgates, where Shiharam’s men attack them. One soldier asks Shiharam how long they should keep the floodgates open. Shiharam reluctantly says as long as they need. He worries he has become cruel and heartless to gain Ashnard’s trust. He asks his second-in-command to sit out this battle and look after their families if they are defeated today. Although he fights fiercely, Shiharam is eventually killed, and the floodgates are closed. Although Talrega is saved, the region is completely destroyed. Predictably, its people are not welcoming. Ike’s attempts to provide aid are violently rejected. Soren asks why he’s still trying to help them, and Ike insists his enemies are not civilians. Meanwhile, Petrine discusses the battle with Ena. They gained some time from flooding Talrega. Petrine knew the foreigner was useless. She orders Ena to direct Nevassa’s defenses. The spy, Nasir, approaches Ena and gives her Lehran’s Medallion. With the job done, Ena asks the spy to stop obeying Daein.
Ike marches on Nevassa, finding the gates are open and the city is deserted. Even the gates of the castle are open. Elincia suspects a trap. Even so, Ike advances into the castle. Inside, Ena is surprised the Crimeans fell for their trap and closes the gates. She has a plan to wipe them out instantly and transforms into a dragon. Ike asks her to leave, saying he’s only here for Ashnard. Ena tells him Ashnard is in Crimea. She also wants to end this conflict, so to prevent it from continuing, she will destroy them here. The Crimeans defeat Ena. Ike asks her to surrender, but Nasir attacks him and lets her escape. The mercenaries capture Nasir, realizing he was the spy. Nasir does not deny it. He tells Ike to go to Palmeni Temple. The Crimeans waste no time marching to the Crimean border. They link up with Begnion reinforcements led by the empire’s most renowned general, Zelgius.
In Melior, Petrine reports on Nevassa’s fall. Ashnard has expected this. He overestimated Ena. But he still has his best troops with him as well as the medallion, which glows intensely. He explains the glow is the energy of the dark god calling out to the chaos given off by the war. For that reason, it is called the Fire Emblem. Moving on, he asks Petrine how the next step of the plan goes. She reports her men are preparing to capture Leanne. Ashnard is pleased, although he is less pleased with Petrine. She has one more chance to prove herself.
Ike sets up camp near the border. He asks Sothe if he found the person he was looking for. Sothe admits he couldn’t find her. He tells Ike he is from Nevassa. He and the girl he was looking for grew up in the slums, and he stole for a living so they could survive. After Nevassa fell, he went back to the slums, hoping she had gone back as well. All he found were his friends, who were dismayed Ashnard didn’t defend them. He explains Ashnard isn’t as bad as Ike thinks, at least to people like him. He broke down class barriers. He decreed the strongest Daeins could rise to the top of society. If one demonstrated their strength, no matter their class, he would give them a rank or office suited to their talents. Sothe and his friends realized they could escape the slums that way. Ashnard gave them hope. It doesn’t excuse what Ashnard is doing to Crimea, but he can’t change how he feels about his childhood. He just hopes the girl, Micaiah, is okay.
The next day, Ike leads a small task force to investigate Palmeni Temple. Inside, Daein mercenaries ambush them, but Ike defeats them. Reyson reads the writing on the walls, learning his sister, Lillia, was locked up here after the genocide. She was given the medallion and ordered to release the dark god by singing a galdr of release, but she refused. A young beorc woman, Elena, befriended her. Lillia taught her the galdr and gave her the medallion, telling her to escape. Mist recognizes Elena as her mother and the medallion as her own. She hums one of Elena’s songs, which Reyson recognizes as the galdr. But the galdr can only be properly sung by a woman named Altina. Ike realizes Ashnard had personally flown to Gallia to take the medallion from Greil. He now suspects Ashnard kidnapped and imprisoned Lillia.
The next day, while Zelgius watches for attacks from Daein, the Crimeans cross the border. Petrine’s troops fight fiercely, but the Crimeans can’t be stopped. As they approach the end, Elincia spots resistance fighters, led by her friend Lucia and retainer Bastian, approaching. Not expecting an attack from that direction, Petrine’s lines collapse and she is killed. Elincia reunites with Lucia and Bastian. She is so glad to see her friend again, and Lucia replies in kind. All of Crimea eagerly awaits her return. Meanwhile, Ike visits Nasir only to find he is missing.
Ike’s army enters Crimea. Elincia’s return is met with jubiliation from the Crimean people, who greet the liberators on their march. Bastian tells his colleague, Lucia's brother Geoffrey, Elincia is on her way. However, a Daein army attacks their hideout. Geoffrey decides to sacrifice himself while Bastian and Lucia find another hideout for Elincia. But Elincia refuses to run. She will stand and fight for her country. Lucia turns to Ike to try to convince her. Ike responds with “I fight for my friends” and marches to save Geoffrey. With their new numbers, they overwhelm the attacking Daein army.
Ike leaves Elincia to talk with her friends and heads back to camp. He runs into Ashnard, who was watching the battle. Ike attacks him, but his attacks do nothing. Ashnard explains his armor and sword Alondite have been blessed by Ashera, and the only things that can damage them are other blessed weapons, like the blessed sword Ragnell he had tossed to Greil. As Ike can’t even scratch his armor, Ashnard claims victory and leaves. When they next meet, Ike should bring Ragnell so he isn’t bored.
In Melior, Daein soldiers bring Leanne before Ashnard. They explain the experimental warp powder they used killed or stranded many, and they used up the entire stockpile in the process, but they managed to teleport into Tibarn’s palace, capture Leanne, and teleport out. Ashnard hopes Leanne doesn’t get sick and die as easily as Lillia did. Ashnard orders the army split in two and assigns his newest Rider, Bertram, to lead one half.
Ike learns Ashnard is gathering his forces in Melior and decides to link up with the Gallians as soon as possible. Marching through the mountains, Ike breaks through a waiting Daein ambush to meet up with Caineghis and Tibarn’s troops. He shares what he learned about the medallion with them. They put the pieces together and realize Ashnard’s real goal with this war was to create enough chaos to awaken the dark god.
The Crimeans march north to Melior. Between them and the capital are two enemy outposts. Both are heavily guarded. Soren suggests dividing their army in two to attack both. When they report for duty, Elincia appears wearing a new set of beautiful silver armor. Her long hair has been tired up with a new tiara. This is the royal family’s armor, which Lucia had salvaged from Melior Palace’s vaults. Geoffrey hands over the other royal treasure, the royal sword Amiti. This time Elincia manages to secure the scabbard to her belt on her first try. She promotes to the Falcon Lord class.
Ike asks about Bertram, the Rider guarding one outpost. Nobody knows much of him other than he is terrifying. Titania observes the fortifications and realizes the garrison has been signifiantly reinforced. But the intimidated Daein soldiers are more scared of Bertram himself than the actual Crimeans, making the battle easy. Elincia charges at Bertram, who doesn’t seem to attack her as he is struck down. The fort falls. Ike next takes the other outpost, where he finds Nasir rescuing Ena, his granddaughter, from execution. Ike gives him a second chance by providing information on Melior’s defenses. He also asks what he knows of Lehran’s Medallion. Nasir doesn’t know much, but he thinks Ena might know where Leanne is. Ena tells Ike Leanne is being held in a nearby tower. The tower holds laguz who were driven feral by toxins. The laguz in their army voice their disgust. Inside the tower, Leanne wakes up. Izuka, a mad alchemist, prepares to experiment on her, but a guard tells him there is a commotion at the entrance. Izuka leaves, and the guard, Naesala, helps Leanne escape. Seeing the Crimeans, Izuka orders the feral laguz released while he escapes. Although the feral laguz temporarily slow down the Crimeans, they put them out of their misery and defeat the Daeins. Naesala flies down and delivers Leanne to them before leaving.
Ike informs Elincia they will soon be in Melior. Elincia is a little anxious, but she feels relieved to have made it home. Ike tells her she’s grown a lot since they met. Tomorrow, they will face Ashnard and liberate Crimea or die trying. She employed him as a mercenary, and he will make sure her money is well spent. It’s more than just fighting for money now. With his last breath, he will make sure her dream is realized. She asks if Ike will really fight Ashnard. Ike replies he is the only one who can defeat him. He takes out Ragnell from a crate. With it, he will not lose. Elincia acknowledges she can’t stop him. But he must keep his promise to protect them. Mist would not forgive him if he dies.
The Crimeans arrive at Melior’s gates. Elincia addresses the troops and remembers the many sacrifices they have made so far. They put aside their differences to fight against a common foe. Together, there is nothing they can’t accomplish. Elincia will finish what her father started. She calls upon the soldiers to lend their strength one more time and change the course of history. Regaining hope, Melior’s citizens rebel against the Daein army and overwhelm them, throwing open the gates for the Crimeans. Elincia and Ike are greeted by large crowds shouting “Long live the queen!” and “We like Ike!” The Crimeans storm Melior Palace and enter the main courtyard.
The mad king flies over to Elincia and pretends to attack, but she does not flinch. Ashnard hardly believes she’s the same girl who trembled in fear at his sight. Elincia raises Amiti and declares she is back to kill him. Ashnard says he is not here to fight her. He turns to Ike, who draws Ragnell. Ashnard insists the outcome of their battle won’t change. He has won every last one of their previous battles. Ike asks why he wants the world to be destroyed by the dark god. Ashnard decides to answer his question as a reward for getting this far. He doesn’t care if the world is destroyed. His goal is to reform society. He has seen how a person’s fate in life is determined by their birth, no matter how strong they can be. This is unfair. If one is stronger than others, they should rule. In his new world, class will mean nothing. Human and subhuman will mean nothing. Only the strong will survive and rule over the weak. Only then will Tellius know peace. Ike replies this means those who aren’t strong have no value. Ashnard agrees. But Ike would benefit from this system. In surviving all the way here, Ike demonstrated far more potential than his Riders. He would be at the top of society. He would be Ashnard’s greatest Rider, just like Gawain was. He makes Ike an offer to join him. Ike refuses. Titles never interested him. Although he would benefit, he does not accept how it tramples on innocent lives. Ashnard acknowledges his answer. He flies to the other side and asks him and Elincia to prove their strength against his handpicked soldiers. Elincia admits she is nervous, while Ike says he fully focused on defeating Ashnard. Elincia wonders if they can win, but Ike says they will. He didn’t come this far to lose, and he doesn’t pick fights he can’t win. They begin the battle. The Daeins force the Crimeans to struggle for every square foot of territory. But eventually, most of Ashnard’s men lie dead, and the Crimeans push to the end, where Ashnard awaits. Multiple characters trigger unique dialogue with him, but only Ike can damage him with Ragnell. Ike asks the other mercenaries to not follow him. Soren asks him to wait, but Titania holds him back, saying this is his fight. He must fight Ashnard to truly get over Greil’s death. Soren complains he will die. Titania tells him she believes Ike has grown a lot during this war. He can keep calm and judge if he can match his opponent instead of recklessly rushing in. She believes in him. Mist agrees. There is no way her brother would break her promise.
Ashnard dismounts from his dragon, Rajaion, saying he has been waiting for him. He repeats his offer to make Ike a Rider. It is only fitting for the son of Gawain to follow in his footsteps. Ike replies he is the son of Greil, not Gawain. He can never match Greil, but he is his own person. Ashnard asks him to succeed where his father failed. Ike raises Ragnell and charges, while Ashnard draws Alondite and counters it. The sacred blades clash, their clanging echoing across the now quiet courtyard. The Crimeans and surviving Daeins stop fighting to watch the duel.
Although the younger Ike is faster, they are evenly matched in raw strength, and Ike has nothing like Ashnard’s blessed armor. Ashnard exploits an opening in Ike’s defenses and lunges, preparing to stab him the same way he did with Greil, but Ike quickly dodges the attack makes a deep cut in Ashnard’s armor. But unfortunately for Ike, Ashnard has a trick up his sleeve. He grabs the medallion and absorbs its power. Chaotic energy surges through him. He asks if Ike can match him now. Not giving up, Ike charges again. Ashnard is now much faster and stronger than before, and the power of Alondite is even further boosted with the dark god’s energy, but Ike knows he can’t lose. Concentrating completely on his next attack, he executes his Aether attack, and with several perfectly executed strikes he learned from Greil (the same attacks shown in the opening cinematic and tutorial battle), he shatters Ashnard’s armor and fatally wounds both the mad king and Rajaion. Ashnard falls to his knees. He congratulates Ike on his victory. But he is disappointed the chaos unleashed isn’t enough to release the dark god. The mad king falls.
Ike declares the war is over. Ena rushes to Rajaion’s side. Nasir explains Rajaion is Ena’s betrothed and Dheginsea’s son, driven mad by the feral laguz experiments. Leanne and Reyson sing a galdr of rebirth to ease Rajaion’s suffering and the effects of the toxins. Rajaion reverts to his humanoid form and regains his sanity, recognizing Ena. He apologizes for making Ena suffer and promises to return with her to Goldoa. However, his wounds are too great, and he dies. Mist takes the medallion and gives it to Leanne.
The Crimeans are finally free again. There is a popular Crimean proverb which applies very strongly to these times: “No matter how harsh the winter, spring will ever follow” (a phrase used by Chinese democratic activists throughout the military junta era). The Crimean national flower, the plum blossom, which usually blossoms in the winter (another symbol used by the Chinese democracy movement), becomes a symbol of the people’s hope in the face of adversity. The Crimeans rise from the ashes and begin rebuilding their nation. The laguz put aside their past feelings and came to the aid of their neighbors. The Crimeans also began moving forward from their prejudices, recognizing how Gallia helped free them. And so Ramon’s dream slowly returns to life, and led by Elincia, the kingdom slowly becomes the peaceful land of coexistence he had wanted. Although it will take many years before old habits die, it is a welcome start.
Months later, Ike and Mist attend Elincia’s coronation. Mist suddenly realizes they forgot all about the galdr of release and Altina. Sephiran informs them Altina was Begnion’s first empress and apostle. Sanaki is her descendant. Sephiran asks if Mist can teach him the galdr of release so he can bring it to Sanaki, since they will be busy with Crimea. Mist agrees to do so. Ike says he is eager to return to mercenary work. Sephiran reminds him he is the hero of Crimea, and he can get anything he wants now. Ike insists he doesn’t care about nobility. He plans to abdicate and return to being a mercenary. Titania tells Ike the cabinet wants him and the queen to appear on the balcony and address the people. Ike protests, saying he’s just a lowly mercenary, but Sephiran insists the people want to see their hero.
Ike meets the now Queen Elincia. Elincia admits she’s still nervous. She was never taught how to rule a kingdom. She wonders if she will be ready to lead. Ike tells her nobody taught her how to do what she did to retake her kingdom. She’s done a great job, and Ike believes she will be a great ruler. He holds out his hand and tells her they can do this together. Although he doesn’t care about nobility, he will do his best for her sake. Elincia takes his hand and says she’s blessed to have met him.
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In the Annionaverse, Ashnard’s character and dynamic with Ike was split into two characters. A new character was spun off and now drives most of Ike’s desire to get stronger and avenge Greil, instead of Ashnard, who is mostly absent until the late game.
Furthermore, Radiant Dawn does not exist. Instead there is a split in Path of Radiance’s story where the player can either agree with Titania and continue the regular story or agree with Soren and hand over Elincia to Daein, which eventually results in Ike becoming one of Ashnard’s Riders and helping him conquer Tellius.
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Ah, now I understand what you meant by changes to Ike's story. It still works quite well all things considered.
I think it was better to fuse the Black Knight and Ashnard into the same character for the sake of Ike's arc. But this caused some...issues in Radiant Dawn, as you'll soon see.
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Just a heads up Zen, but there maybe a continuity issue in this update when you said Roy didn't appear in the fourth Smash game, which contradicts the segment in the Blazing Blade update that states Roy appeared in every Smash game after Melee. It's not that much of an issue, but its something I thought I'd point out anyway.
Oh, you’re right. I added that line in this latest update at the last minute and didn’t know I already covered it in FE7. I’ll remove it.
Edit: I removed the reference to Roy but kept the other two removed from Smash 4.
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn is the only game in the Fire Emblem series to be released for the Wii. It is a direct sequel to Path of Radiance, taking place three years after the events of that game. It was announced May 9, 2006 and released in 2007.
The game is split into four parts, each focusing on different parts of Tellius three years after the events of Path of Radiance. The plot begins in the war-torn nation of Daein with the main characters Micaiah and Sothe forming the Dawn Brigade, a resistance force fighting against a Begnion military occupation. Its perspective then returns to familiar characters such as Elincia and Ike. The gameplay is similar to Path of Radiance and previous Fire Emblem titles.
Radiant Dawn began development in 2005 for the Wii after the success of Path of Radiance. Continuing the trend of developing for home consoles after a period on portable devices, it was intended to release close to the Wii’s release so as to boost sales for both game and hardware. Although the game sold and was reviewed decently well, it was overshadowed by other Wii titles releasing around the same time such as the extremely popular Pokemon Stadium 4, and its high difficulty put off many potential players and critics. It continued the downward trend in sales numbers started by The Sacred Stone.
Gameplay
Radiant Dawn retains the mechanics of its prequel, as well as all of Path of Radiance’s cast, adding a few new characters. As usual, the save data transfer mechanic returns, only made much easier to do now. In previous titles, players would need a second Game Boy Advance and a Link Cable to transfer data, but since the Wii could load both GameCube and Wii games, the Tellius duology only needs one Wii for a data transfer. Character availability in Radiant Dawn is unaffected by their status in Path of Radiance. Stats and supports are transferred from a character’s final Path of Radiance version to their starting Radiant Dawn version and may unlock secret dialogue, cutscenes, or marriage epilogues (if the same support chains are completed). Wi-Fi compatibility allows players to download bonus non-canon trial maps as in previous games since the Elibe duology.
Development
By the time of Path of Radiance’s release, the franchise had successfully expanded overseas with the release of the Elibe duology on the Game Boy Advance. Although sales had been on the decline since the release of The Sacred Stone, developers were confident a sequel to the relatively successful Path of Radiance would reverse the trend, especially on the new Wii. Development began early so the game would release as close as possible to the Wii’s release. This coincided with the decision to remain developing for home consoles rather than move to the highly popular Rentiantang DS.
The scenario was a continuation of the previous game’s narrative, although Path of Radiance did not have an intentional cliffhanger ending. To accomodate for newcomers who had not played the previous game, the story was split into parts focusing on different factions with the aim of creating a large scale and complex world. The game’s themes again focus on conflict and racial divisions as in the previous game. Female characters like Elincia, Micaiah, and Sanaki took center stage in both the game and marketing, which officially considered the first two as lords on par with Ike.
Reception
Radiant Dawn holds a score of 78/100 on the review aggregator Metacritic. A lot of reviewers noted a lack of accessibility due to greater complication and difficulty as the game continues (likely owing to an error in how the names of difficulty levels were translated). Some reviewers were also critical of the developers' choice not to use the Wii's motion controls although some wrote motion controls were unnecessary for such a game. In general, critics praised the gameplay system recognized in previous games, but noted that the game felt too similar to its GameCube predecessor. Some called it “unforgiving" due to permadeath.
Reviewers praised refinements of gameplay aspects present in Path of Radiance, such as the weapon forging system. Despite this, other changes were not as welcome. Michael Donahoe praised the game's length and range of characters, but stated laguz "still aren't very useful." Although Fire Emblem games have been praised for their plot and characterisation in the past, GameSpot described the story as "laughable" and the villains as clichéd and "one-dimensional." On the other hand, some lauded the alterations in perspective by use of different protagonists, which "makes the overall story feel so much broader and more expansive in scope."
The game's presentation received a mixed response. VSN’s Mark Bozon lauded the use of cinematic cutscenes and voice acting, although he commented they were too infrequent and voice acting should have been used for the entirety of the game; as a result, the experience resembles that of a game on the DS. He complained about the lack of motion control integration or online features which had been the centerpiece of many other Wii games. Most of all, he wrote that Radiant Dawn plays and looks identical to its predecessor, making it feel like a GameCube title, making it even less of a traditional Wii experience. And Path of Radiance already looked like a game twenty years old due to its lack of voice acting outside cinematics, minimal animations, and “extremely simple storytelling.” The music was received positively, with GameSpy crediting the work of series composer Yuka Tsujiyoko, still with the franchise years after Zhao Jiahe and the rest of his original team left, as "remarkably good."
Although the game sold decently well, it failed to reverse the downward trend in sales that had started with The Sacred Stone, and it was the third worst selling game in the series. Despite releasing close to the Wii's release date, it was overshadowed by several other high profile Wii game releases such as Pokemon Stadium 4, which promised a combination of the minigames and battling systems of the Stadium series with traditional RPG elements and more serious story as a loose sequel to XD: Gale of Darkness. As a result, Rentiantang ordered Intelligent Systems to develop the next title on the DS instead of a home console and slashed its budget, forcing Intelligent Systems to layoff much of its staff. The development team decided to remake the third game in the series next, hoping a remake of the highly popular Mystery of the Emblem would not only cut costs and ride a wave of nostalgia but also bring in newcomers and overseas players who never experienced Marth’s story. While New Mystery of the Emblem’s sales slightly improved from the previous two games, the proportion that came from outside China decreased by a long shot, and the idea to keep the two books combined on the same higher priced cartridge significantly impacted sales. So Intelligent Systems believed they had lost the international market. Rentiantang informed Intelligent Systems their next game had to be a major success, or the series would be canceled.
The following summary includes cutscenes and dialogue unlocked by save data transfer.
Part 1: “Is it the Dawn Brigade?”
Nevassa
The game begins in Begnion-occupied Daein shortly after the end of Ashnard’s war. Although Begnion had been completely untouched by the war, revanchist and nationalist factions ascend to power in the Imperial Diet. Daein had once been a province of Begnion, and these factions seek to use the occupation to destroy Daein as a country. Zelgius is reassigned to the homeland, and new administrators are sent to annex Daein. All combat-age men are sent to internment camps. The Daeins are angered, but the Begnion occupation easily suppresses all resistance.
Micaiah and Sothe
In Nevassa, the thief Sothe, who had traveled with Ike, returns to his hideout and finds his friend Micaiah waiting for him, having resumed her job as a fortune teller. Micaiah apologizes for making him worry. She feared being with him as a Branded, a beorc-laguz hybrid, would have hurt him eventually, but Sothe replies he doesn’t care. They had made a vow to stay together and protect each other. That is even more important in times like these. A bird on Micaiah’s shoulder chirps. Micaiah introduces him to her new pet bird, Yune, who she found shortly after coming home. However, Yune flies off. Micaiah follows Yune to a plaza where Begnion soldiers harass shopkeepers. When the shopkeepers talk back, the soldiers stab one of their kids. Sothe insists they have to act, but Micaiah refuses. Sothe warns they can’t just stand by. Micaiah worries she might accidentally reveal her identity, but Sothe assures her as long as she keeps her gloves on, she will be fine. Micaiah nods and takes out a Thani tome. The two defeat the soldiers and drive them off. The grateful shopkeepers thank the two. Micaiah turns to leave, but Sothe says they can’t just leave the wounded kid. Sighing to herself, Micaiah kneels and waves her hands, healing the child. The shopkeeper hail her as a miracle worker. Micaiah, tired from the transfer of life energy, insists she’s just doing her part.
Micaiah heals the wounded child
Rumors of a “silver-haired maiden” who can heal without a healing staff spread, inspiring hope in the Daeins. Sothe reminds her she did the right thing. The people of Nevassa have regained their hope. There are even talks of resistance cells forming again. Micaiah doesn’t believe she is qualified to lead a rebellion. But she admits she’s tired of seeing her fellow Daeins being harassed and oppressed by the Begnion occupation. She’s done hiding as a fortune teller. Yune chirps in agreement. Micaiah and Sothe set out on a string of covert missions across Nevassa. They reach out to the resistance cells, whose members are mostly street youths or ex-soldiers who escaped the camps. Micaiah’s reputation as the Silver-Haired Maiden allows her to form alliances between the cells and reorganize them into a single group she dubs the Dawn Brigade. The Dawn Brigade grows in strength, aided by dozens of sympathizers who relay information about Begnion activities. Micaiah’s foresight, previously used for fortune telling, allows her to avoid detection by the occupation. The occupation cracks down aggressively, but Micaiah slips through its fingers with her foresight and popular support.
Three years later, the Dawn Brigade has expanded across Daein. The occupation now considers it a serious threat to the annexation plans and aggressively pursues its leaders, but Micaiah remains ahead of them with her foresight and underground network. She breaks into the camps, where she finds not only ex-soldiers but also civilians, such as a boy named Kurth. But she realizes she hasn’t made real progress. Begnion keeps replacing its dead with reinforcements, while the Dawn Brigade starts wearing out. Things change when Sothe hears of another major Daein resistance force which claims to be led by a secret heir of Ashnard much like Elincia was the secret heir of Ramon. Micaiah decides to meet this heir. The Dawn Brigade heads to the eastern deserts, where they meet Prince Pelleas, the decidely sane son of Ashnard, his doting mother Queen Almedha, and his advisor Izuka. Pelleas explains Ashnard had largely kept him away from the public during his reign. When the Crimeans approached Nevassa, he had sent him and his mother to the desert. After himself fleeing the Crimeans, Izuka joined their group and became his magic tutor and tactician.
Prince Pelleas
As opposed to the Dawn Brigade being mainly made up of street youths and civilians, most of Pelleas’ forces consist of war veterans. Micaiah and Pelleas decide to join forces. The Silver-Haired Maiden now has an army of experienced soldiers, while Pelleas now has a network of sympathizers and insurgents. The Dawn Brigade also recruits a faction of wolf laguz residing in the desert, another surviving heron prince, Rafiel, who had been taken in by the wolves after the Serenes genocide, and Begnion anti-slavery rebels which Sanaki had covertly ordered to investigate the occupation’s abuses. Izuka, seeing himself as the resistance’s chief tactician and the architect of their victories, starts suggesting increasingly sketchy and brutal tactics, like flooding Talrega again to eradicate its large Begnion garrison, poisoning wells to wipe out entire cities along with their garrisons, or arming mages with extremely powerful tomes to suicide bomb occupation strongholds. Micaiah overrules him every time, which causes him to grow frustrated. Eventually, he tries to poison one of the laguz leaders with a toxin that makes him feral, but Rafiel sings a galdr to save him, and Micaiah imprisons him. She is prevented from outright expelling him because Pelleas naively insists he can still provide useful advice. Originally a shy and sheltered boy, Pelleas proves to be a reliable tactician and charismatic leader, despite his personal doubts and constant worries he may not be up to the task. He personally takes to the field and fights alongside his men using powerful dark magic Izuka taught him (becoming playable with the exclusively dark magic-using Mage Lord class). On the other hand, Micaiah’s foresight dulls, and she progressively gets more tired from fighting, even if she doesn’t use her healing powers. Eventually, they reach Nevassa. Daeins everywhere rebel, overthrowing their Begnion administrators and storming the camps. They declare their allegiance to Pelleas, who has finally returned alongside the Silver-Haired Maiden.
Sanaki makes a public statement officially denouncing the occupation and ordering it to withdraw to Begnion. This causes outrage in the Diet, which had organized the occupation. Although they can’t disobey the edict, they instead exploit loopholes. The senators declare they had not known about the atrocities being committed, but they now disavow the entire occupation and bar its leaders from entering Begnion. General Jarod, the leader of the occupation, is enraged by the development. Deciding to take down the Dawn Brigade with him, he orders his remaining soldiers to raze Nevassa. Pelleas, watching as Nevassa burns in front of him, orders the Dawn Brigade to march in and save the city. The final map of Part 1 has a simple objective, to kill Jarod. But the player must keep a certain number of civilians alive and homes protected to avoid a game over. Extra rewards are given if more civilians and homes are protected. After killing Jarod, the remaining occupation forces surrender, and Pelleas declares Daein reborn.
Several weeks later, Pelleas is crowned King of Daein, and thousands arrive at the palace to watch his coronation. In a separate ceremony, Micaiah is honored for her contributions and appointed as a royal advisor with the official title of Priestess of Dawn. Begnion recognizes Daein’s independence and apologizes for the occupation. In the interest of mending relations, Begnion also sends supplies and aid workers to help with Daein’s reconstruction efforts. Meanwhile, Kurth, the wolves, and Rafiel head to Gallia.
Micaiah, Priestess of Dawn
Part 2: “Always lost in your books!”
Melior Palace
To the west, Crimea spent the last three years rebuilding. Queen Elincia spent most of her reign directly leading reconstruction efforts. She flew out to the countryside and delivered supplies. She held town hall meetings so she could understand their concerns. When needed, she personally flew out on her pegasus, accompanied by Marcia, now the commander of her pegasus knight corps, and fought bandits herself. She passes laws which protect laguz in Crimea from discrimination and centralizes power on the throne. This makes her popular with commoners and laguz. However, the nobles are not as happy. In Ramon’s time, the nobility had wielded significant influence over the kingdom. They would gather taxes on behalf of the king and set laws in their domains. This gave them significant autonomy. Elincia’s centralization threaten this, and her tolerant attitudes towards laguz are at odds with many nobles who consider laguz subhumans. These nobles frequently voice their dissent at council meetings, and Elincia ignores them.
Queen Elincia of Crimea
One ambitious noble, Count Ludveck, takes it a step further. He and his supporters charge her with being too soft on Daein, betraying humans for subhumans, abandoning her royal duties to do commoner work, and destroying the lives of her citizens. Elincia faces off against Ludveck in a duel of words at each council session, countering his fearmongering with appeals to the nobles’ better naturess. Her supporters face off against Ludveck’s throughout Crimea in a war of words instead of steel. While most of the public supports her, a not insignificant number of civilians and an alarming number of soldiers are swayed by Ludveck. There are rumors Ludveck wants the throne for himself. But Elincia sticks to her ideals no matter what. It’s what a certain mercenary taught her three years ago. Although the Greil Mercenaries have a royal contract and can be called to duty when needed, she would rather fight this battle on her own.
One day, while Elincia and Marcia fly through southeastern Crimea, they come across the heron Leanne and her bodyguard, Naesala’s advisor Nealuchi. They are being pursued by Begnion wyvern knights intending to sell them to the Diet. Elincia and Marcia drive off the enemy and save the laguz. Leanne and Nealuchi return with Elincia to Melior Palace for their safety. In the countryside, Ludveck’s fearmongering continues. His agents warn Elincia will sell the country to Daein and the laguz, and he is the only one who can save Crimea and its humanity. The ex-soldier Nephenee, one of the prisoners Ike freed from Canteus Castle, wakes up one day to find most of her neighbors radicalized by Ludveck's propaganda. A significant number of them call for him to be made king. Nephenee calls out their insanity, but the villagers attack her as a racial and national traitor. Nephenee fights off the mob and escapes to Melior, where she warns Elincia Ludveck is planning a rebellion. Elincia is aware arresting Ludveck on the spot, although justified, would give off the appearance of an abuse of power. She instead covertly sends her friend and advisor Lucia to Ludveck’s county of Felirae to uncover proof of his treason. Lucia obtains the proof, but Ludveck ambushes her with an army, which she escapes. Ludveck launches his rebellion, and immediately a large portion of the Crimean Army swears allegiance to him, including a division close to Melior. He declares himself the rightful king and calls upon all patriotic Crimeans to once again drive out the foreign Daein and subhuman invaders and their puppet in Elincia.
Elincia attacks first. She sends Lucia’s brother Geoffrey, commander of the Royal Guard, to attack Felirae. Lucia and a smaller detachment of the Royal Guard wait in Melior in case the division close to the capital attacks. Elincia departs for Fort Alpea, a heavily defended base loyal to her. At Felirae, Geoffrey orders his lieutenant Kieran to minimize casualties because most of the rebels are civilians seduced by Ludveck’s propaganda. The knights charge and easily rout the rebels, but the villa is empty. Geoffrey realizes it is a ruse and Ludveck’s main army is attacking the capital. He fires a flare which Lucia sees, having prepared for this. She sends a message to Elincia while she goes on another covert mission. However, Ludveck captures her, revealing he knows Elincia is at Alpea. At Alpea, Elincia learns about Felirae. A messenger arrives with news of Lucia’s capture and presents Lucia’s cut hair, which shocks Elincia.
She regains her composure once she learns there was no body found, which means Ludveck has her as a hostage. Another messenger arrives and warns Ludveck’s main army is approaching. She orders her troops to prepare for battle and picks up her family sword, Amiti, for the first time since Ashnard’s war. Outside, Ludveck notices Alpea’s main gates are closed. He is impressed Lucia managed to warn Elincia, but it won’t matter because he expected this. A sympathizer opens the rear gate and lets the rebels inside. Ludveck’s troops storm into the fortress. Elincia and her troops take up defensive positions. Ludveck is surprised Elincia stayed to fight but warns her optimism is fatal. Elincia retorts it is her duty as queen to protect her people, and she will not run or hide while people like Ludveck tear the nation apart and terrorize the people.
The objective of this chapter is to defend the fort from Ludveck’s forces for ten turns. While the game clearly tells the player to dig in and defend against the constant reinforcements, it is quite easy to just send Elincia straight at Ludveck and defeat him. This would end the chapter so quickly it wouldn’t give time for Marcia and Geoffrey to arrive with reinforcements, having flown and marched as fast as possible. The Royal Guard and Marcia’s pegasus knights attack the rebels from behind. The survivors surrender, and Ludveck is imprisoned.
Elincia visits Ludveck’s cell. Ludveck calls her naive and misguided. She has tossed away the very identity of Crimea with her reforms. She has done nothing while Daein regains independence and rearms. She welcomes subhumans. She is a tyrant who tramples on local rights and customs to enrich herself. She can’t even fight a war. He could have ended it immediately by harshly purging his enemies. He could have even killed Elincia at any time, but that would have labeled him a tyrant and pariah. Elincia retorts she would be no better than him if she did that. Ludveck laughs, saying this is exactly the sentiment which will get Lucia killed. Elincia asks what he means. Outside, she sees rebels setting up a gallows, preparing to hang the now short-haired Lucia. They demand Ludveck’s release, or they will kill her. She is infuriated Ludveck would pull such a stunt. Marcia tries to calm her down, telling her not to worry.
Elincia demands Ludveck release Lucia. Ludveck offers to do so in exchange for the crown, but Elincia refuses. She tells him he misunderstands her. He doesn’t care about his supporters, but she does care for her people. Ludveck scoffs, saying commoners don’t matter. A king stands above them. He holds up the country. Crimea needs a strong king. Elincia reminds him strength must come with compassion, and he has no compassion. He is just another power hungry self-serving noble. Ludveck laughs, as Lucia is still going to die. Elincia says Lucia will understand if she dies today. But she would not have wanted Elincia to concede.
Elincia declares she will not negotiate with traitors. She orders the rebels to surrender, promising they will be spared. Ludveck will be put on trial for high treason. The rebels declare their intention to kill Lucia, but Elincia does not waver. Just as they put a noose around Lucia’s neck, Rolf fires an arrow which cuts the rope, freeing her. Titania and Mist burst out of the nearby woods and charge the rebels, cutting down many with their lances. Soren’s spells take out the rebels guarding Lucia. After chastising Soren for being lost in his books, Mia charges in, dodging every attack, and frees Lucia. Lucia picks up a sword and joins the fight. Elincia is overjoyed to see Ike. After defeating the rebels, the Greil Mercenaries meet up with Elincia. Ike explains Lucia had preemptively invoked the royal contract as a contingency plan, having expected this to happen.
The mercenaries spend the night at Alpea before deploying tomorrow. Ike asks where Bastian is, and Elincia explains he went to Daein to gather information. Apparently its recent liberation had played out exactly like how Crimea had been liberated. A previously hidden member of the royal family rallies a resistance force with the help of a charismatic young hero, overthrowing foreign occupiers to retake their country. The turn of events sounded suspicious to Bastian, who went off to investigate. Ike notes the irony and asks if the charismatic hero is like him. Elincia laughs as the heroine is a girl known as the Silver-Haired Maiden. Ike is a little disappointed as he assumed the hero would have been like him. Elincia jokes two Ikes would be too much for Tellius to handle. Ike again apologizes for being away for most of the last three years. He found it difficult to balance mercenary life with his new role as hero of Crimea. He had given up his noble title because he saw no use for it, but he realized he couldn’t just go back to his old life. He is at a crossroads in his life. Either he can embrace his identity as a hero and leave behind his old life, or he can fully cast it aside and try to return to his old life, at the cost of leaving behind his new reputation. Elincia assures him whatever choice he makes, she will support it.
Part 3: “Interesting maneuver…”
Over the next few weeks, the Greil Mercenaries and Royal Guard march across Crimea and eliminate the remaining rebel armies. These maps are relatively simple, consisting of defeating boss or routing enemy objectives, and serve to bridge the gap between Part 2 and the story of Part 3. Returning to Melior, Ike meets Ranulf, now one of the Gallian ambassadors to Crimea. Ranulf informs him Gallia, Phoenicis, and Kilvas formed a coalition and declared war on Begnion in retaliation for the Serenes genocide. After Rafiel arrived in Gallia, he told Caineghis and the other laguz royals the real perpetrators behind the genocide were the Imperial Diet, specifically Sanaki’s regents. Caineghis had sent a diplomat to ask for details, but the diplomat was murdered, provoking the war. Ike talks with Elincia about the recent development. Although Elincia sympathizes with the laguz, Crimea is in no shape to fight a major war, especially after Ludveck’s rebellion. But the Greil Mercenaries, with their royal contract, can fight on her behalf without dragging the rest of the country in. Ike agrees and sets out to join the laguz coalition.
The Greil Mercenaries join coalition forces led by Tibarn, Naesala, and Caineghis’ heir Skrimir and march across the border into Begnion using secret caves. Skrimir’s recklessness and blind pride sabotages a lot of the coalition’s early progress, and only Ike and Soren’s leadership salvage their victories. Sidelining Skrimir, they push deep into Begnion. Arriving at a river, Soren plans to engage Begnion’s Central Legion, its most powerful army, led by Zelgius himself. However, due to false information, the divisions assigned to flank the Central Legion accidentally run into the main army. Tibarn attacks Zelgius but learns Naesala has betrayed him and is now invading Phoenicis. Tibarn hastily withdraws and flies back home. Ike and Soren are forced to rethink their strategy.
Soren suggests luring the Central Legion across the river and then attacking them head on, predicting Zelgius wouldn’t expect such a reckless move. Meanwhile, the laguz would attack from the sides. Defeating Zelgius would be an immense symbolic victory, even if they can’t outright beat the Central Legion. The plan is executed successfully, and Zelgius commends Soren’s maneuver as interesting. However, he has backup plan. Manipulating Skrimir’s pride, he challenges him to personal combat. Revealing he has armed himself with Alondite and Ashnard’s Ashera-blessed armor, which Begnion had taken after Ashnard’s death, Skrimir is unable to damage him. One hit from Alondite critically wounds Skrimir. He shows mercy and allows Skrimir and the coalition to withdraw, sparing them complete annihilation. The laguz coalition retreats to the Gallian border.
Despite Zelgius’ mercy, the Diet overrules him and instead orders the Central Legion to pursue and annihilate the coalition forces. Zelgius is outraged and does not believe Sanaki and Sephiran would have given the order. Secretly meeting with Holy Guard commander Sigrun, who agrees with him, Zelgius learns the regency council has placed Sanaki’s Mainal Palace under lockdown, effectively holding her and Sephiran hostage. Recent legislation passed has also stripped both of them of their political power and handed it to the regents. Sigrun warns the Diet has spies hidden everywhere, and they must feign compliance for now. The Greil Mercenaries, covering the retreat, is first to be attacked by the Central Legion, barely managing to escape.
The Daein Army, led by Pelleas and Micaiah, marches into the path of the coalition, intending to blockade the border and provide the anvil to the Central Legion’s hammer. Micaiah asks Pelleas why they joined the war. Pelleas admits he can’t tell her the whole reason now, but he makes a statement about standing with fellow humans against laguz invaders. Micaiah notes the optics of the war, all of the laguz teaming up against a beorc nation for no apparent reason, does make Begnion look like the victim. Furthermore, the Daein public still dislike laguz, and the troops want revenge for the last war. Izuka reminds them the laguz claims of the Diet’s involvement in the genocide are false, and the coalition is unjustly framing Begnion as an excuse to invade. Pelleas naively agrees, although Micaiah is doubtful. Pelleas assures her he will explain everything once they return home, but he is not in a good position right now. Sothe dreads having to fight Ike and the Greil Mercenaries, especially after all they did for him.
Soren learns of the Daein blockade and realizes they were lured into a trap. Ike decides to create a diversion. The Greil Mercenaries would split off and engage the Daeins, distracting them while the main coalition forces escape past them. The plan is a success, and the Greil Mercenaries regroup with the main army behind the Daein lines. Soren directs the coalition to take a dangerous route through an active volcano, predicting the Central Legion wouldn’t pursue them inside. Although Zelgius is content with calling off the chase at the volcano, Senator Valtome suddenly arrives from Sienne and overrides his orders. Valtome orders a battalion to head into the volcano while the rest of the Central Legion cuts through Crimea to invade Gallia. Though battered by both Begnion and the harsh terrain, the coalition forces make it through the caves. In Gallia, they learn Begnion has invaded Crimea on its way to invade Gallia. Ike realizes Crimea is completely exposed.
Valtome attempts to get Elincia’s submission by demanding Crimea allow the Central Legion access to Gallia. If she refuses, he will consider Crimea an enemy combatant for sending the Greil Mercenaries. Elincia mobilizes the Crimean Army, ordering the Central Legion to withdraw at once. Valtome orders Zelgius to invade southern Crimea. He is to pillage local villages for supplies and terrorize the Crimean people. Zelgius attempts to limit the damage to Valtome’s displeasure, while Elincia covertly sends Geoffrey and the Royal Guard to evacuate civilians and protect Crimean property, making sure to avoid direct engagements. Meanwhile, the coalition marches north to engage the Central Legion.
Elincia calls an emergency meeting of her cabinet. Lucia and Geoffrey warn Crimea is already at war with Begnion, and siding with the coalition is their only choice. Others recommend conceding to Valtome so he can call off the Central Legion, but this would not call off the coalition forces, which would still fight Begnion on Crimean soil. Elincia realizes both options would result in a massive battle in Crimea. Whatever she does, Crimea will suffer again, and so soon after both Ashnard’s war and Ludveck’s rebellion. She stands up and defiantly tells those in attendance she rejects both options, to their shock.
Elincia flies to the battlefield, where the coalition and the Central Legion are about to fight. She dismounts in between the two armies and demands both withdraw from Crimea. She tosses Amiti on the ground, declaring she won’t add to the violence. Her people have suffered enough. She will not let them suffer more. That is her responsibility and duty as queen. The act impresses Ike, Tibarn, Caineghis, and Zelgius, and all order a retreat. However, Valtome arrests Zelgius for insubordination and assumes direct control of the Central Legion. He orders the Central Legion to kill Elincia. While the coalition retreats, Ike and the Greil Mercenaries jump into action to protect her, fighting off the entire Central Legion with the Royal Guard’s help. Realizing she has no choice, Elincia picks up Amiti again and flies straight at Valtome. She strikes once and critically injures him, but she spares him and orders him to retreat. After leaving the battlefield, Valtome orders Zelgius executed without trial, his blessed armor and weapons confiscated, but Sigrun and the Holy Guard rescue him, delivering Sanaki herself. The next battle takes place in a flashback, where Sigrun, Tanith, the anti-slavery rebels, and even Naesala covertly free Sanaki. The objective is to break into the palace, get to Sanaki’s room, and escort her back to the entrance, with incentives for minimizing casualties and avoiding detection by the guards. Naesala has his own objective, which is to rescue the herons’ King Lorazieh, who was also taken hostage by the Diet to force Naesala to betray the other laguz.
In the present, Sanaki presents evidence of the Diet’s corruption and role in the genocide. She orders Valtome arrested and the Central Legion to return to Begnion for demobilization. Hoewver, Valtome turns the tables by presenting evidence proving Sanaki is not the apostle. He reveals Sanaki had an older sister who could hear the voice of Ashera, but she was killed during Misaha’s assassination. This is why Sanaki has never heard Ashera’s voice. He calls Sanaki a fraud and orders the Central Legion to arrest her. The Central Legion splits into two factions, one remaining loyal to Sanaki as the empress if not apostle and the other siding with the Diet. Begnion descends into civil war as the Diet, led by the ambitious regent and vice-chancellor Senator Lekain, launches a coup against Sanaki and Sephiran. Zelgius, Sanaki, and Sigrun manage to reassert control of the Central Legion and purge the pro-Lekain faction. They then march back to Sienne to retake it, with Zelgius going ahead to free Sephiran. Sanaki appoints Ike as the commander of the newly dubbed Apostle’s Legion, and he is forced to accept yet another peerage from Elincia. Ike promotes to the Lord class again and receives the sword Ragnell from Sanaki, who had been given it after Ashnard’s death.
Just as the Apostle's Legion is about to march into Begnion, the Daein Army attacks them again on behalf of Begnion. Although the Daeins fight fiercely, showing an almost fanatical devotion to both Pelleas and Micaiah, the Apostle's Legion prevails. The perspective shifts to Micaiah, who storms into Pelleas’ tent and demands to know why they are fighting on Begnion’s side. Pelleas gives his previous response again, but Micaiah knows he doesn’t believe that. Sothe reminds Pelleas they all have heard the news of Sanaki implicating the Diet, which means that explanation was a lie. Citing Micaiah’s declining health and the weakening of her foresight, Sothe threatens to take Micaiah and leave. Pelleas finally admits Lekain blackmailed him with proof he isn’t Ashnard’s son. Almedha had for some reason switched her real son for a baby from an orphange, and he has the documents showing it. And he also knows Micaiah is Branded. Knowing the king of Daein is illegitimate and the Silver-Haired Maiden is a hated Branded would end all hopes of Daein’s recovery. Sothe scoffs and says there is no way the Daeins would trust a man like Lekain. But Pelleas warns them Izuka is on Lekain’s side and would be trusted by the Daein public. Micaiah almost curses Izuka for his betrayal but realizes her hands are tied. Pelleas feels her frustration. He vows Lekain will get what he deserves eventually, but for now their priority is to protect Daein.
Pelleas and Micaiah are now forced to implement Izuka’s brutal tactics. The Daeins begin a scorched earth campaign, razing villages in the Apostle's Legion’s path. Wells and water sources are poisoned, some with toxins to drive laguz feral. Dams are blown up, flooding entire regions and dozens of cities. Magic suicide bombers sneak into the enemy camp while the army rests and detonate, killing hundreds. Any settlement remotely suspected of aiding the Apostle's Legion is aggressively purged as examples. As opposed to previous side objectives where the player is encouraged to rescue villagers and protect property, in these maps the player is given very good incentives for committing atrocities, such as powerful stat boosting items, good weapons, and even new recruits who blame the crimes on the enemy. However, achieving these side objectives will cause Micaiah significant distress and weaken her foresight faster. Eventually, she will be locked out of an A support with Pelleas and lose the ability to use her healing magic in-game. (This has caused significant controversy in real life as many critics pointed out this sequence encourages and rewards the player for committing war crimes.)
The Apostle's Legion continues its march. Eventually they catch up to Pelleas and Micaiah, and Izuka “suggests” turning around and facing the enemy with a new tactic that will decisively annihilate it, both physically and psychologically. The Daeins lure the Apostle's Legion into a narrow valley and take up positions at the top of the cliff. As the enemy passes through, the Daeins drop large boulders on them, targeting the area where Sanaki’s carriage is guarded. Pegasus knights attempt to fly up to the top of the cliffs, but massed snipers and ballistas lay waste to them, and Elincia herself is seriously wounded and forced to withdraw. As the boulders continue falling, archers rain volleys down on the soldiers below, inflicting massive casualties. Ike’s forces attempt to scale the cliffs, but they are repelled by more Daein soldiers.
Sothe confirms Sanaki’s bodyguards, most of the Holy Guard, and the core of the Royal Guard have been wiped out or disabled. All of the army’s best troops are trapped right where they want them to be. Micaiah gives the order to move on to the next phase. The Daeins pour oil down the cliff and ignite it, engulfing the enemy in roaring flames. Micaiah watches, horrified, as thousands burn to death. Sothe looks away. Izuka cackles with glee and declares the Apostle's Legion is no more. Daein has avenged the late king Ashnard. He tells Pelleas his “father” would be proud of him, but Pelleas says nothing. A fraction of the Apostle's Legion manages to escape the trap and regroup at the end. Soren reports the Legion and Royal Guard are completely wiped out, aside from Elincia’s retainers. The Holy Guard and the Crimean pegasus knights were decimated, and the survivors are grounded because their pegasi were injured. Sanaki is fine, but her bodyguards are all dead. Ike is appalled Daein would resort to such barbarism. Skrimir asks Ike to counterattack, but Ranulf convinces him otherwise, saying with their reduced numbers they are incapable of standing up to the Daeins. Sanaki insists Daein is not their enemy but another pawn in Lekain’s game. They have to convince Daein to turn on Begnion. But she is confused as to why Micaiah would use such horrible tactics. Rafiel is also confused as to why they are fighting Daein and not Lekain and warns they must end the war soon. He shows them Lehran’s Medallion, which Leanne had given to him, and warns the chaos created so far is dangerously close to releasing the dark god.
The perspective shifts to Zelgius, who breaks into a jail to rescue Sephiran. As with the Sanaki rescue mission, the player is supposed to reach Sephiran’s cell and escort him out, ideally without being spotted. Ostensibly this is a difficult mission as the player may only use Zelgius, but it is very easy if the stealth objective is ignored, as Zelgius is completely invincible. The main problem is keeping Sephiran alive. Once the map is completed, Zelgius apologizes for not breaking him out sooner and explains Sanaki is now leading an army to retake Sienne. Sephiran says it is time for them to make their move.
Zelgius breaks Sephiran out
Zelgius and Sephiran appear on the streets of Sienne and incite the common people to rebel against the Diet, labeling them as corrupt and power-hungry traitors. The vast majority of the poorer and middle classes of Sienne side with Sanaki and rebel against the Diet. They erect barricades on the city streets and assault regime troops. Yet Lekain, through subterfuge, blackmail, bribery, political connections, and sheer charisma maintains his grip on the majority of Begnion troops in Sienne. He even convinces several loyalist divisions to defect, and massive mutinies spring up within the ranks of the apostle’s supporters. Elincia notices the parallels to Ludveck’s rebellion and is disgusted in Lekain. The remnants of the Apostle's Legion push on to the Begnion border, solely held together by Elincia’s determination and Ike’s charisma. Soren hopes there are several loyalist divisions nearby who can reinforce them.
The Daein Army pursues the Apostle's Legion to the border. Micaiah privately meets with Pelleas and Sothe. She thought she was willing to do anything for Daein. But then she set the Apostle's Legion on fire. The worst thing was she went through with it. She could have called off the attack at any moment and made up an excuse. But she did it. And the worst thing is, she did it because she thought it was right. She doesn’t deserve to be the Silver-Haired Maiden. She doesn’t deserve the Daeins’ praise and adoration. Pelleas assures her they are only doing this until they can turn on Lekain. Micaiah demands to know what other crimes they must commit to get there. How far are they willing to go? What cost is too much for them? Will it even be worth it at that point? She suddenly collapses with a crippling headache.
At Ike’s camp, Ike discusses their plan. Soren sticks to his original plan of lying low, crossing the border, and hoping to meet up with loyalist divisions. Elincia complains that strategy relies on a lot of unpredictable variables and probably will get them killed. She instead favors trying to escape back to Crimea, where they can get reinforcements. Skrimir insists on a direct assault on the border, which both Soren and Elincia shoot down. Ike proposes his own strategy: turn around and strike the Daein army. Soren complains that is even more dangerous. Ike insists they have no choice. The Daeins are the most dangerous threat to the Apostle's Legion right now. If they catch up, Lekain wins. Which is precisely why they must turn around and defeat them to eliminate that threat. Elincia reminds him Daein isn’t their enemy. Ike explains they don’t have to destroy them but rather force them to retreat. Soren cautions against such a dangerous attack. But Ike is persistent. It’s the only way they can keep their cause alive. At her camp, a guard warns Pelleas and Sothe the Apostle’s Legion has turned around and is now heading straight for them. Having not expected the sudden counterattack, Pelleas orders the Daeins to dig in. He assumes direct command of the troops. The remains of the Apostle’s Legion will break before the united will of the Daeins. They cannot afford to lose. The future of Daein and its people rests on their victory.
This map (Part 3 Chapter 13, or 3-13), is considered one of the hardest maps of the game if not the entire franchise. The player loses access to Micaiah, and Pelleas is confined to the area around the defend spot. There are a few allied NPCs provided. The objective is to defend for “as long as needed.” The attackers come in progressively stronger waves, starting with generic laguz enemies, which give way to more powerful laguz and beorc enemies, until finally Ike, Skrimir, Elincia, and Soren appear leading the player’s most used characters. Any playable characters who are killed as enemies remain subject to permadeath as usual, and if Ike, Elincia, or Skrimir die, the player will get a game over. Skrimir is the biggest threat because he is programmed to recklessly charge the defend spot. The player must balance keeping him alive with keeping him away from the defend spot. The same goes for Elincia, who with her Falcon Lord class can ignore terrain and fly over walls, which combined with her high mobility allows her to fly anywhere, including towards the defend spot. All allied NPCs are archers who will target Elincia first. One of the NPC snipers (“313 archer”) has since become a meme for his incredible reliability in killing Elincia with one attack and triggering a game over.
If the player manages to survive, Pelleas orders a retreat. The Daeins abandon their positions. Sothe and Pelleas briefly argue over who should carry Micaiah, and the one with whom Micaiah has a higher support rank with wins out. Micaiah regains consciousness, and Sothe apologizes for being unable to win. Pelleas admits he is a failure who can’t even defend his country. Sothe realizes he underestimated Ike and his tendency to pull victory from the jaws of defeat. Micaiah despairs and fears Daein is dead. Pelleas takes the blame. It was his fault for letting Lekain do as he wants. It was his fault for not wiping the enemy out when they had the chance. Micaiah tells Yune to fly away for her own safety.
The Apostle’s Army prepares to storm the camp. The beorc troops regain morale, and Ike intends to keep up the momentum by shattering the Daein Army for good. Ranulf urges them to stop for a moment. The battlefield chaos is starting to affect the laguz, including himself. Some of the laguz are starting to lose control. But before they can act, a dragon appears and blasts the ground between the two armies with its fiery breath. It reverts to humanoid form, and it turns out to be Prince Kurthnaga, who also happens to be the boy Kurth. He calls for the two armies to stop fighting. Sanaki asks why Kurthnaga stopped the battle, and Kurthnaga explains he wishes to avoid the complete destruction of Daein. He wants the two armies to sign a ceasefire. Sanaki protests the Daeins refused their offers to negotiate. Kurthnaga points at Lehran’s Medallion, which glows much more intensely. If they continue their war, the dark god will be released. He then goes to the Daein side to talk with Pelleas and Micaiah. The two armies withdraw.
Ike meets Elincia at their headquarters and goes over casualty reports. Both armies are exhausted by the battle. The Apostle’s Legion suffered as many casualties as the Daeins. Kurthnaga probably saved their army from disintegrating in a second attack, even if the Daeins would be taken down as well. Elincia tells him she and Sanaki have been overseeing the burials of the dead and writing letters to their families. Ike notices her stoic expression and remarks she has changed a lot since they first met. Elincia says she is the queen of Crimea, and she must stay strong for her people’s sake. Especially since Bastian has gone missing now. While searching for clues in Daein, he came across something important regarding Crimea, and ever since then he hasn’t been in contact.
Kurthnaga meets Pelleas and Micaiah. He greets Almedha as his sister, revealing her to have been a Goldoan. Almedha explains the situation and the blackmail, which worries Kurthnaga. He asks why she exchanged her real child for Pelleas. Confused, Pelleas also wonders why the switch was made. Almedha tells him the laguz parent in beorc-laguz unions loses their powers when the Branded child is born, as she found out when she gave birth to her real son. As a result, Ashera considers such unions taboo. Although Ashnard had wanted the marriage so his son could inherit the powers of a Branded, Almedha feared her son would be subjected to the stigma and ostracism of being Branded, and having a Branded heir would damage the monarchy. So she exchanged him with a baby from an orphanage, Pelleas. It was for his own good. She insists she still raised and loved Pelleas like her own son. She will make sure he stays on the throne, both for his sake and for the sake of his people. He may not be Ashnard’s son, but he is still king.
Pelleas musters the confidence to say he will not follow Lekain’s orders anymore. So what if he has dirt? The people of Daein love them. He is their king, the one who liberated Daein. Micaiah is the Silver-Haired Maiden, the Priestess of Dawn He predicts the Daeins would overlook their heritage because of what they did. He orders a ceasefire and sends messengers to Ike’s camp to begin negotiations. Izuka protests, but Pelleas orders him arrested. Izuka blasts him with dark magic and escapes. While Micaiah tries to heal Pelleas (who will permanently die if Micaiah lost her healing powers from committing too many atrocities, changing the story), Sothe chases after Izuka but fails to catch him.
The Apostle’s Legion comes under attack. Soren had banked on Begnion loyalists being in control of the nearby region, but they had been wiped out by the pro-Lekain Northern Legion, which has now crossed the border and engaged the weakened Apostle’s Army at full strength, having been tipped off by Izuka. Ike and Elincia order their troops to hide in a nearby abandoned fort and hold out for as long as possible. Pelleas learns his and Micaiah’s heritage were leaked to the Daein public. But just as he expected, the rioting and protests aren’t that bad. Most of Daein’s people have already embraced Pelleas and Micaiah for who they are. He will have a lot of work cut out for him proving his legitimacy, but he will handle that later. For now, he and Micaiah come to the Apostle’s Army’s aid, now with a heavy weight lifted off their shoulders.
The final map of Part 3 requires the player to survive for an indefinite number of turns, only this time from Ike’s perspective. The player is given no allied AI NPCs this time, although the Daeins will randomly arrive as player-controlled reinforcements. The Northern Legion starts with a massive number of initial troops constantly reinforced every turn, frequently faster than the player can kill them. This encourages the player to play defensively. There is a suspicious looking counter on the upper left of the screen which counts the number of casualties suffered. As the counter increases, the laguz characters, particularly the herons, voice their discomfort. They will be able to stay in animal form more, their stats will be boosted, and occasionally they will start acting on their own at the start of the player’s turn. As the counter increases, Leanne and the other herons collapse, and Lehran’s Medallion shines brightly. Although he refuses to participate in the battle, Kurthnaga is also affected by the medallion. Micaiah hears someone call her name and leaves, and Sothe and Pelleas follow. Rolf calls Ike over to Mist, who has fallen off her horse. She tells Ike the medallion is calling out to her, and she has to go to it. Ike asks Rolf to clear them a path to the fort.
The medallion
Ike and Elincia enter the fort and find the herons unconscious and the medallion glowing. Mist attempts to sing the galdr of release, but it has no effect. Sanaki herself has to sing it. Elincia tries to order the troops to stop fighting. Although the Apostle’s Army attempts to do so, the Northern Legion simply attacks even more aggressively. Tibarn wonders why Lillia passed down the galdr of release when only Altina’s direct descendants can properly sing it. Ike wonders why there is even a galdr of release. Mist insists they have to sing the galdr now. Ike reminds her the dark god will be released, regardless of broken seal or galdr. Mist simply says she hears a voice urging her to sing the galdr. Naesala flies in with Sanaki. Angry for the betrayal at the river, Tibarn attempts to attack him. Naesala refuses to defend himself and explains he was forced to betray the coalition because Lekain threatened Lorazieh’s life. Sanaki convinces him to stand down, saying Naesala now works for her in exchange for the Holy Guard helping him free Lorazieh. Sanaki points out the oddity in there being two methods of releasing the dark god. She sings the galdr, but nothing happens. She despairs. Her inability to sing the galdr proves she isn’t the apostle after all. Her older sister must have been able to hear the voice of Ashera and sing the galdr, but she died. And since she can’t sing the galdr, they can’t stop the seal from breaking.
At that moment, Yune flies into the room, followed by Micaiah, Sothe, and Pelleas. Pelleas calls a truce and explains his (former) situation to Ike. Micaiah approaches the medallion and instinctively sings the galdr of release. The medallion reacts. She admits she doesn’t know where she learned the galdr, only that she knew it from somewhere and it felt natural to sing it. The medallion flashes bright blue. In the Tower of Guidance in Sienne, Ashera opens her eyes, and Sephiran greets her with a good morning.
Sephiran greets the awoken Ashera
Ashera says a thousand years haven’t passed since she went to sleep and asks why she was awoken early. Sephiran explains the laguz and beorc broke their promise and went back to fighting each other. Ashera declares she will pass judgment on the people of Tellius. The medallion stops glowing. All of the herons slowly stir awake. Micaiah speaks in a voice that is clearly not her own. Her eyes are now blood red. “Micaiah” tells Sothe the real Micaiah is currently sleeping. She then asks where Ashera is as they agreed to make their judgment. There is another flash of light which engulfs the entire battlefield. Elincia goes outside to investigate and finds both armies have been turned to stone.
Part 4: “It was just a bird.”
Tibarn’s scouts report everyone, likely everyone in Tellius, has been petrified. Pelleas assumes only the strongest of them escaped the same fate. Ike points out everyone else in their fort escaped for whatever reason. “Micaiah” remarks she is surprised more of them escaped, and they might have a chance. She introduces herself as Yune, freed from the medallion. Ike realizes she is the dark god. Yune corrects him, saying dark god is just a name they gave her. She is not good or evil. She is an entity of chaos, change, and freedom. Ike asks if she did this, but Yune explains since she just woke up, she doesn’t have much power. This is Ashera’s doing. Sanaki refuses to believe Ashera would do this. Yune sighs. They also got Ashera wrong. Like Yune, she is not good or evil. Ashera represents order, stability, and control. They are like sisters, or more like opposite sides of the same coin. When Ashera sleeps, Yune sleeps, and when Yune awakens so does Ashera. Mist realizes the voice she heard was actually Yune, who told her to sing the galdr of release to awaken her. Yune explains she awoke to prevent something like this from happening. The ancestors of the beorc and laguz made a promise to Ashera to stop fighting for a thousand years. If the promise was broken, Ashera would destroy the world and remake it in her image. Elincia asks Yune if she wants to help them free the petrified. Yune agrees, saying Ashera did the petrification without asking her, and she doesn’t have the power to undo it. She needs their help. Everyone finds it strange to be helping the entity they recently knew as the dark god. Ike asks what’s stopping Ashera from just petrifying them again. Yune says just as she has very little power, so does Ashera, and she used most of it on this attack. But they have to act fast before she recharges and petrifies them again. Elincia suggests dividing their forces in three, so Ashera can’t destroy them all at once. Elincia and the Crimeans form one army, Ike leads the laguz and Greil Mercenaries, and Micaiah, Pelleas, and Sanaki command the Daeins and Begnion loyalists. To make their job easier, Yune blesses the leaders. Elincia promotes to the Holy Queen class, Ike to Vanguard, Micaiah to High Priestess of Dawn, Pelleas to Holy King, and Sothe to Whisper, boosting their stats immensely. Sanaki becomes playable with the magic-using Apostle class (also blessed by Yune). Each team will take a different route on the way to their ultimate destination, the Tower of Guidance in Sienne. Yune hopes to see them in Sienne and flies away in bird form, allowing Micaiah to wake up again.
High Priestess Micaiah, Whisper Sothe, and Vanguard Ike
In Sienne, Lekain appears before the Diet. They have successfully retaken the capital after Ashera petrified everyone except the Diet and the pro-Lekain garrison. He tells the assembled senators the dark god has awakened and petrified everyone aside from those protected by Ashera. They are the chosen ones, selected by Ashera herself. But there are evil forces ready to tear down their paradise. The dark god has rallied an army to conquer Tellius. It is their duty as servants of Ashera and “disciples of order” to defeat the dark god once again.
The Daeins stops in a town to rest, but Micaiah wakes up in the middle of the night, her restored foresight alerting her to an enemy attack. The enemy army approaches, and Sanaki notices the Begnion banners they fly. She calls out to them, insisting as fellow Begnion citizens they are on the same side. But the enemy commander calls her a heretic, and they, the Disciples of Order, will purge them in the name of Ashera. Sanaki acknowledges she can’t reason with the fanatics and takes out her Cymbeline tome to incinerate dozens of enemy soldiers. After a heated battle, the Discples of Order are driven back. Pelleas remarks they were much stronger than he expected. Yune, briefly possessing Micaiah, explains Ashera had blessed them. These are just the vanguard forces. The closer they get to Sienne, their enemies will have received more powerful blessings. This reminds Sothe of Ashnard’s armor and the swords Alondite and Ragnell, once Altina’s swords. Pelleas asks if Yune can also bless their weapons. Yune promises to do it once she regains her power.
The Greil Mercenaries continue traveling. Soren learns of the attack on Micaiah’s faction and begins formulating a contingency plan in case the Disciples of Order attack them as well. Ike decides to set up camp and rest, though he asks everyone stay battle ready if needed. Just as Soren expected, the Disciples attack late at night, but the Greil Mercenaries defeat them. Ike asks Kurthnaga how he convinced the Daeins to stand down. Kurthnaga tells him his sister is Queen Almedha and brother was Rajaion. Ashnard married Almedha so his heir would be born with the powers of a Branded, but when Pelleas never manifested powers, he grew concerned. Fearing Pelleas would look weak and undermine his ideology, he kept him away from the public. Almedha’s marriage was not approved by Goldoa, as she left in protest of Dheginsea’s isolationism, and many dragons, including Rajaion, were sent to bring her home. Izuka captured the dragons and turned them all feral. The Crimeans continue their march. Elincia talks about the irony of finally achieving the peaceful Tellius they’ve always wanted, but at the cost of their freedom. Valtome attacks with an army of Disciples, declaring he will avenge the humiliation Elincia inflicted upon him. The Crimeans fight back and defeat the Disciples. Elincia raises Amiti and together with Marcia and Tanith executes him with the Triangle Attack. In Sienne, Lekain speaks to the Diet about the continued successes of the dark god. He praises Valtome as the epitome of honor and virtue and urges the other senators to avenge him. A few of the senators, including Senator Hetzel, begin doubting themselves. Hetzel wonders why Ashera chose the Diet when he knows very well they are corrupt.
The Daeins cross a desert. Sanaki walks up to Micaiah and nervously asks if they can talk. She feels inadequate because Micaiah, a random girl from Daein, can do stuff the apostle herself can’t do. Micaiah replies she doesn’t know how. Yune adds she too doesn’t know. Even if she is called a god, she isn’t perfect. She indirectly reveals she accidentally caused the great flood centuries ago. Pelleas asks Almedha why she married Ashnard to begin with. Almedha explains she had rebelled against her father and met Ashnard when she left Goldoa. Originally, Ashnard only wanted his son to inherit the Branded’s powers, but he developed genuine feelings for her. He always sought her advice on many matters. But as he grew older and he became more obsessed with unleashing Lehran’s Medallion, he and Almedha drifted apart. Nevertheless, he still cared for her and Pelleas. When the Crimeans approached Nevassa, he had them sent to the desert for their safety.
The Disciples of Order ambush them, led by Lekain and Izuka, who is accompanied by his own army of feral laguz. Lekain reminds Sanaki of Begnion’s succession laws, which states the firstborn daughter of each apostle, going back all the way to Altina, shall hear the voice of the goddess and be the apostle. Her older sister, who could hear Ashera, was the true apostle and is the reason why she can’t hear the voice of Ashera. But she died in Misaha’s assassination, and Sanaki was only installed by the Diet to provide continuity. Sanaki declares her soldiers and citizens still believe in her as an empress if not as an apostle. Begnion will stand behind her. Lekain laughs again, saying they can’t stand behind them if there’s nobody to stand behind or anybody to stand at all. The Daeins fight off the ambush with the help of Zelgius, who arrives with Alondite and his blessed armor. Pelleas approaches Izuka and executes him as a traitor. Micaiah, Sothe, Pelleas, and Sanaki surround Lekain and prepare to kill him for what he did to all of them, but he takes out a Rewarp staff and teleports away. Zelgius explains he doesn’t have much time. He has to return to the Tower of Guidance. He asks Micaiah to return with him, wanting to spare Micaiah from petrification. Micaiah demands to know when Ashera will attack, but Zelgius does not answer. He simply says he will return later and make the same offer.
The Greil Mercenaries approach Oliver’s abandoned mansion and decide to rest for the night. Soren assumes nobody has lived in the mansion for three years. But as soon as they settle in, they notice the place looks suspiciously clean. Suddenly, the Disciples ambush them. Hetzel talks with Oliver, the leader of the Disciple army. He reminds Oliver the Greil Mercenaries humiliated him, but the Diet saved him. Now it is time to repay the favor. Oliver agrees. But as soon as he sees Rafiel, he is “overcome.” Worried a “precious treasure” could be hurt, he decides to protect him by instantly joining the mercenaries against everyone’s will. The rest of his men are easily defeated. Hetzel arrives to check on Oliver. He approaches Rafiel, saying he’s relieved he’s alive, but Rafiel refuses to talk to him. Hetzel claims he was against the genocide from the beginning. It is understandable Rafiel won’t forgive him, but Hetzel is still glad he was spared petrification. He warns him against going to Sienne. Ike asks about Rafiel’s relation with Hetzel. Rafiel explains before the genocide, he was ensalved and sold to Hetzel. Soon afterward, he fell deathly ill. Taking pity, Hetzel spent the following weeks nursing him back to health and then freed him. But when Rafiel set out for the forest, the genocide happened, and he ended up in the desert.
The Crimeans run into Bastian. Bastian tells Elincia his dangerous prisoner has escaped, and he needs their help recapturing him. Elincia flies ahead and spot the prisoner, a large man wearing a dark cloak. This map appears simple since there is only one enemy and the objective is to defeat him before he reaches the target location, but he has extremely high stats. However, he will not attack Elincia or defend himself against her, something Elincia finds is very suspicious. The Royal Guard subdue him. Elincia turns him over only to realize to her horror it is actually her uncle Renning. Bastian explains after the destruction of the Crimean army in Ashnard’s invasion, Renning was captured and driven insane with Izuka’s feral laguz toxins. He was renamed Bertram and made a Rider. After Elincia defeated him, Bastian recovered him, hoping to restore his sanity. Reyson offers to help and sings the galdr of rebirth just as was done for Rajaion. Renning immediately reacts and falls into a peaceful sleep.
The Tower of Guidance shining
The Greil Mercenaries reach Sienne. Titania sees a bright light coming from the top of the Tower of Guidance. They find the Daeins nearby. Sanaki had found the entire city had been placed under a powerful magic barrier. Suddenly, the gate swings open, and Elincia flies out. She and the Crimeans had spent the previous few days clearing out the Disciples in the capital. Yune warns Ashera recruited all of the Goldoans not with them, including Dheginsea himself, and they are likely in the tower. Suddenly, all of the dead Disciples resurrect and attack. Ike and the others fight them off, but they resurrect again. Yune realizes this is Ashera’s doing and they are fighting a losing battle. The three armies agree to send a small group of their most powerful members into the tower while the others guard the entrance. After picking who should go, the group enters the tower.
The group encounters Lekain, Hetzel, and the other senators. Micaiah declares she has been looking for Lekain for a long time. She and Pelleas are no longer afraid of him. Pelleas adds he is beyond redemption. Lekain says none can hit him thanks to Ashera. He dares them to even scratch his blessed armor. In his arrogance, he reveals Sanaki was supposed to be his good little puppet after he killed Misaha and implicated the herons to increase his own power. Sanaki does not cry. She takes out her Cymbeline tome, and the group defeats the senators, killing Lekain. The survivors surrender and claim they were only following Lekain’s orders.
They reach the next floor, where Zelgius greets them. Micaiah realizes he has been on the side of Ashera the whole time, which Zelgius confirms. He repeats his offer to spare Micaiah, but Micaiah refuses. He draws Alondite and orders the group to face Ashera’s judgment. Ike demands to know why he is supporting Ashera now, but Zelgius attacks, and Ike defeats him using Ragnell. As they continue up the stairs, Ike sees Alondite glowing and takes it with him, giving it to one of the sword users in the group (most likely Mia).
Yune tells the others a story to pass the time. At the very beginning, a girl created life. A lot of time passed, and some of them evolved into people who worshipped her as as a goddess. She shared much knowledge with them. But as they grew in number, they fought. The goddess tried to make peace in various ways, like giving them the names laguz and beorc, but it didn’t work. Eventually, she overreacted, and the world was drowned in a flood. She deeply regretted it.
They encounter Dheginsea and the Goldoans. Yune explains Dheginsea has been given an ancient powerful blessing from Ashera, from when he was one of the three heroes with Altina. To counter it, she blesses everyone in their group the same way. Dheginsea says beorc and laguz broke Ashera’s promise. Now they must accept Ashera’s judgment. The group defeats the dragons and Dheginsea, who dies regretting the actions he took leading up to the present day. With his last words, he hopes Almedha is still alive and wishes her well.
If the player put Nasir and Kurthnaga on the final team, Nasir tells Kurthnaga and Micaiah one of the most heavily guarded secrets in all of Tellius. After Yune and Ashera went to sleep, the Begnion Empire was founded. Altina was chosen as Begnion’s first empress and apostle, and she married Lehran. In those early days, laguz and beorc peacefully coexisted and did not care for such differences yet. When Dheginsea learned Altina was expecting a child, he believed they would bring peace as a child of both beorc and laguz. But shockingly, after Altina gave birth, Lehran lost of his laguz powers. The child herself appeared to be beorc. No longer feeling like a true laguz, Lehran told Altina to help him fake his death. Altina remarried and raised her daughter as an ordinary beorc. Fearing the Branded would reignite racial tensions, Dheginsea declared Branded abominations against the goddess, as much as he disagreed with doing so and the resulting treatment of the Branded.
The group reaches the top and approaches the door to Ashera’s room, which is sealed shut. Sephiran appears and tells them the door is sealed with powerful magic. Ike realizes Zelgius was working for Sephiran, who is on Ashera’s side. Sephiran tells him his ultimate plan was to wake Ashera so she would pass judgment. To do this, he manipulated Ashnard into starting the war to create enough chaos to wake the dark god. Everyone in the group blames him for their suffering in that war. Sanaki refuses to fight him, still seeing him as a father, but Sephiran sadly tells her she has no choice. The magic seal on the door was his doing. The only way to remove it is to kill him. He summons several magical apparitions to attack them.
The group defeats him. Sanaki asks Micaiah to heal Sephiran, but Yune refuses. The magic seal will only lift once Sephiran dies. With his dying breath, Sephiran tells his beloved Altina he will be seeing her soon. If Micaiah can still use her healing magic, she will use it now to save her old friend Lehran, tricking the seal into disabling. However, the immense amount of healing magic used incapacitates her, and Yune possesses her to keep her conscious. (This allows the player to recruit Sephiran and unlock a post-credits cutscene if he survives the final battle.)
The group enters the final room, where Ashera awaits. Yune pleads with her to return the petrified to normal, but Ashera refuses. Yune tells her they were awoken by the galdr of release, not by the chaos of war. Ashera replies it no longer matters. During her sleep, beorc and laguz never learned from their mistakes. Yune gestures to the people around her. Why didn’t these people get petrified? It’s because they’ve evolved. She reveals Micaiah’s Brand. Neither of them were aware of the Branded. The people of the world are still evolving and changing. Ashera views that as a threat. Yune realizes she can’t convince her. Ike tells Ashera he doesn’t like it when people talk down to him. People will always fight. Elincia pitches in, saying people are not perfect. But that makes them who they are. Pelleas agrees. His people know what it is like to live under an oppressive regime. Now it is time for the people of the world to reclaim their destiny and lead themselves. Crimeans and Daeins, laguz and beorc…together, they can achieve anything. Ike declares, once again, “I fight for my friends.” Ashera scoffs. There is no way they can defeat a goddess. Ike simply says he doesn’t pick fights he can’t win.
Fighting a goddess is not easy. Ashera’s powers are beyond anything they have experienced. Only Micaiah, controlled by Yune, and Ike, with Ragnell, can do significant damage. Yune dispels the apparitions, and Micaiah’s Thani tome shatters Ashera’s defensive aura. Ike charges in and, using Greil’s technique, activates his Aether skill and fatally wounds Ashera. The goddess of order dissolves into light. Light surrounds Micaiah as well, and Yune appears separate from her as a little girl. Ike asks if Yune will disappear. Yune says it is probably for the best. She has made her peace with it. Ike admits they don’t have much use for gods anymore. But it would be nice if she could still watch over them. She could provide an ideal and an inspiration to strive towards. Yune asks if mortals can really forgive her after what she did? Elincia replies she forgave the mistakes beorc and laguz made, so it’s natural to return the favor. They will have to work hard to accept each other. Yune smiles. She promises to try as she fades away. All of the petrified people are returned to normal, and gradually, life returns to Tellius. The assembled forces start heading home. As the characters say a few lines of dialogue, scrolling text reveals what happened to them afterward.
The Daeins leave first. Micaiah thanks Ike for being at her side, and Ike makes her promise to rebuild Daein as she always wanted. Sothe says his second farewell to Ike, and Ike tells him he’s grown a lot since they first met. Ike wishes Pelleas well in his coming reign. Micaiah can marry either Pelleas or Sothe depending on which A support she unlocked. She ushers in a new era of peace for the country, which slowly abandons its militaristic ways. Sothe worked tirelessly in the Daein government, keeping many of Ashnard’s meritocratic reforms. Pelleas oversaw a reconciliation with Crimea. Just as Micaiah is about to leave, Sanaki runs up. She realizes the reason Micaiah could hear Yune and sing the galdr of release is because she is the true apostle, her older sister. Micaiah explains she can’t be Begnion’s apostle. Sanaki understands but hopes they can still be on good terms. Sanaki became Begnion’s greatest ruler since Altina, reigning for many decades. Micaiah was remembered as the first apostle of Daein, and her title was passed down through the eldest daughters of her descendants.
The laguz head home next. Caineghis abdicated to Skrimir and retired, while Tibarn was elected the king of all of the bird tribes. Kurthnaga took up his father’s mantle. The herons returned to Serenes Forest and began rebuilding their home.
Only the Crimeans remain. Ike and Elincia head home. Elincia was remembered as a compassionate and just queen. Her long reign was remembered as a golden age of Crimea, which would again be famed for its arts. Elincia tried her best to foster relations between beorc and laguz. Duke Renning renounced his claim to the throne and rebuilt the Crimean army. Even after marrying Bastian, Lucia remained close to her childhood friend. Marcia established her own Holy Guard in Crimea, and many future recruits cowered in fear if they accidentally triggered her rage. Her brother brutally died in a horrific accident. Turning down an offer to return to the Royal Guard, Titania remained with the Greil Mercenaries. Occasionally she would return to Melior to advise Royal Guard recruits. Rolf and Mist married and retired from fighting. Mia stayed with the mercenaries, and armed with Alondite she was remembered as an unstoppable and untouchable demon on the battlefield.
Ike has multiple marriage options, including two explicitly gay options in a series first, depending on if he wants to embrace his old mercenary life or his new heroic reputation as the savior of Tellius. If he embraces life as a mercenary, he can marry Ranulf and settle the mercenaries in Gallia, or he can marry Soren and continue traveling around Tellius. If he embraces his heroic reputation, he puts aside his distaste for nobility as best as he can and marries Elincia, although he insists on being called simply Ike. The Crimeans embraced him as one of their greatest heroes. Still finding noble life uncomfortable, he spent much of his time with the Greil Mercenaries, which continued working on the royal contract. He never hesitated to drop everything and help Elincia when needed, although he was confident in her abilities.
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In the Annionaverse, Radiant Dawn does not exist.
Attachments
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Ah, alright. Some clever changes to the first of Ike's game has a negative impact on the sequel's reception, further justifying it doing poorly financially.
Fusing the Black Knight and Ashnard resulted in deleting the Black Knight from this game, which made me had to significantly rework a lot of the story here. Although I did take out a lot that was problematic with the story, the other changes resulting from the Black Knight stuff probably wouldn't be received as well here due to the hoops I had to jump through to make things work the way I wanted.
Fire Emblem Awakening
Awakening is the thirteenth entry in the Fire Emblem series, developed for the 3DS. It was released in 2012 in China and the following year overseas. It is a loose sequel to the events of the first seven games, most directly a sequel to the third game, and takes place 2000 years in the future of Archanea, now a very different continent known as Ylisse. The protagonist is Chrom, prince of the Halidom of Ylisse and distant descendant of the Hero-King Marth. He leads a militia known as the Shepherds to protect the people of the halidom. But when he meets a certain character on a routine mission, he becomes entangled in a far-reaching conspiracy with serious consequences for the entire continent and possibly all of humanity itself.
Development began in 2010 with multiple franchise veterans filling key development roles. As the series had seen declining sales since The Sacred Stone, Awakening was designed as the last entry in the series. Gameplay elements and story themes from all previous games were incorporated as a homage to the franchise as a whole. Other gameplay elements were changed or added to appeal to a general audience, such as the continuation of the previous game’s Casual Mode which disables permadeath. Originally released in April 2012 in China, an overseas release was initially not considered due to New Mystery of the Emblem’s massive underperformance in international markets. A European release was accidentally confirmed by Rentiantang of Europe president Reggie Fils-Aimé at E3 2012, with concrete dates provided at the end of the year. Due to positive word of mouth from the Chinese audience, the game was the subject of an extensive advertising campaign overseas in a scale unprecedented for the series.
Gameplay
The player begins the game by customizing a player avatar, which will be referred to here by their default name Robin. Robin’s name, gender, best/worst stat, and starting class (although they have the default class of Tactician) can be customized. In addition to the traditional permadeath featured in Classic Mode, Casual Mode returns from the previous game and allows characters defeated in battle to not permanently die, instead reappearing after the battle. But if Chrom or Robin are killed, permadeath still applies, and the player will still get a game over. The game has multiple difficulty levels, including five different levels of Hard mode as in the previous game. One paid DLC pack, Apotheosis, introduces extremely challenging non-canon challenge maps going far beyond the maximum Hard mode difficulty (and canonically establishes the "joke" character Anna as the strongest character in the franchise). As in Radiant Dawn, the maps and personal combat are both rendered in full 3D, but since the team was unfamiliar with the 3DS’ capabilities, characters are represented with sprites on overworld battle maps as in all other previous games. As in New Mystery of the Emblem, characters have a limited capability to change their class to others, allowing them to learn certain skills initially tied to those classes.
After a couple chapters, the player is given access to a world map much like that in Waiyun (1992) and The Sacred Stones/The Sacred Stone (2004-5). This allows them to travel to new locations across Ylisse and revisit old locations for level grinding and exploring villages. New locations can contain either story progression or optional sidequests where new characters can be encountered and recruited. Additionally, players can leave the world map and return to an explorable base camp, expanding on the Tellius duology’s base menu, where Chrom and the Shepherds rest up in between battles. Due to the team not knowing the full specs of the 3DS, the base is not a fully 3D environment but rather like a gridless battle map without a battle which Robin’s sprite can freely roam around. There, Robin can interact with characters and do activities like buying and forging weapons. The player can alternate between the base camp and world map at any time in between battles.
The continent of Ylisse (formerly Archanea)
The support system is refined further in this game. The concept of limiting gameplay bonuses to only the first five support conversations is dropped in favor of the previous game’s system, where bonuses only apply if the support partner is within a certain number of tiles. Whereas in previous games an A support may result in marriage or not after the end of the game, in Awakening such marriage options are instead split off into a new S rank support which can be achieved at any point in the game after first achieving the previous three ranks. Unrelated characters of opposite genders may achieve one S support to fall in love and marry. Returning from Crusaders of Light and The Blazing Blade is a second generation of characters who inherit stats and skills from their parents. Relationships also have a direct impact during battles with the addition of the pair up mechanic, in which any two individuals can fight together as one unit and provide the main unit with a stat boost, follow up attack, or a guard against enemy attacks, with the rate at which this happens increased with a higher support level. A couple’s children (as in Crusaders of Light tied to their mother) can be recruited as the story progresses. While most characters have only a few options for S supports, Robin may marry any first generation character if they are the opposite gender, but marrying Chrom as female Robin will unlock extra story content. Characters may only marry within their own generation. For story reasons, Chrom will automatically S support one of female Robin, Cordelia, Sully, Maribelle, or Olivia after a certain chapter if still unmarried (or even a generic NPC if Chrom has not gained support points with any of them). His potential spouses represent past lord love interests: Robin (in her default Tactician class) represents Celica, Deirdre, and Lilina; Cordelia represents Caeda, Catria, Tana, and Elincia; Sully represents Sue and Farina; Maribelle represents Nanna and L’Arachel; and Olivia represents Ninian. Robin’s character arc, especially if female and married to Chrom, has some inspiration from Deirdre’s arc in Crusaders of Light.
The save data transfer mechanic returns from previous installments, but due to the nature of Awakening as a very distant sequel to New Mystery of the Emblem, the data transferred (via wireless connection between the two systems) doesn’t affect much of the story or gameplay. No stats are boosted or classes changed, but descendants of New Mystery characters (such as Sully, Cordelia, and Stahl being the descendants of the Whitewings Palla, Catria, and Est) may start with special weapons, such as forged weapons the ancestors may have had and used in New Mystery’s endgame, or unlock extra cutscenes. If the player transfers a completed New Mystery save with the true ending (all five orbs acquired and Medeus defeated), the effects Chrom gets when he obtains each orb during the story are slightly increased. While the orbs themselves aren’t items as in New Mystery, their effects either directly boost Chrom’s stats or give him skills with their effects.
In certain optional sidequests and DLC, the player may recruit characters such as protagonists from previous games or their distant descendants. These are technically canon but not required for story progression or the full main story experience.
Development
Original planning for Awakening began in 2010. Among the staff members were many franchise veterans and longtime fans who had worked on the franchise since the Zhao Jiahe days, although composer Yuka Tsujiyoko was now the only veteran who worked on Zhao’s original team. The first proposals for gameplay and story ideas came after the completion of New Mystery. Newcomers were brought on to provide a fresh perspective on the series and create a distinctive art and gameplay style overseas players would appreciate.
Due to declining sales for the series, Rentiantang told the developers Awakening had to sell at least 2,500,000 units or the series would be canceled. This caused panic for the team, and many suggested increasingly crazy ideas such as a modern day or even Mars-based setting (probably influenced by Final Fantasy’s wildly varying settings between some games). Eventually, they discarded these ideas as they realized they would do more damage to the brand and stuck to a medieval setting. As a compromise, they decided to make Awakening the culmination of all previous games and incorporate elements from multiple titles. The final title, Awakening, was born from this idea as both a story relevant name and a hopeful revitalization of the series, pushing aside the working name Fire Emblem Fin: The Children From the Brink.
Awakening was the franchise’s first and possibly only game for the as yet unreleased 3DS, intended to take advantage of the 3DS’ initial release just as Radiant Dawn attempted to capitalize on the Wii’s release. The team had a large number of ideas for features to include, but they only had a limited idea of what the system was capable of. It took a while just to render the feet for character models and make sure they didn’t clip through objects. The team also made sure to render each character’s sprites and models to accommodate for different equipment and classes as well as personal traits. Character portraits in cutscenes also received more expressions than in previous games than just blinking and opening their mouths. Full-motion cinematic cutscenes return from Radiant Dawn and are refined to evoke a sense of grandeur and realism. Due to budget and system restraints, full voice acting was only done for these cutscenes and only in German and Chinese, although occasionally characters will have voiced lines in regular dialogue as well as battles and critical hit quotes. However, Yuka Tsujiyoko took full advantage of the 3DS’ capabilities for the soundtrack she composed to create a musical experience much like that in Radiant Dawn. Furthermore, the tracks playing over zoomed-in personal combat were no longer always completely separate tracks the player would barely hear due to the brevity of each combat phase but rather more dramatic “ablaze” remixes of the overworld battle map themes synchronized with the overworld tracks. Unique tracks were composed for personal combat against important bosses, and some tracks from previous games were remixed.
The first part of the game to receive full attention was gameplay. As a test map, the team redesigned Chapter 1 from (New) Mystery of the Emblem. When designing maps the team kept story and player freedom in mind. They debated a lot about the balancing of difficulty levels and the idea of changing them when wanted, which some felt went contrary to franchise traditions. The return and refinement of the marriage system from Crusaders of Light and the Elibe duology was a point of contention as many franchise veterans worried it would give the franchise a reputation as a “donghua dating simulator” (ironically, due to the presence of female Robin as Chrom’s spouse in the opening credits, the game would take on such a reputation as fans fiercely debated who was Chrom’s canon spouse, with fans of Robin and Cordelia especially vocal). Ideas to have characters kiss in a cinematic or still image upon achieving an S support or allowing the player to “face pet” Robin’s spouse on the touch screen in the base camp were unanimously vetoed. An effort was made to streamline the user interface. The most controversial idea was Casual Mode. Initially significantly opposed by most staff members at both Rentiantang and Intelligent Systems, a few developers, including even some veterans, managed to defend the idea as financially necessary, believing modern players would not want to restart for each death. An idea for “Phoenix Mode,” where characters would be instantly revived right after defeat, was shot down as contrary to the spirit of the series. Classic Mode remained as the team considered it the proper way to play. The team admitted Awakening was the first time they conformed to Rentiantang’s general beginner-friendly reputation.
Originally, Cordelia was supposed to have red hair, but she has blue hair in the final release to reflect her descent from Catria as well as resemble one of her possible daughters.
Plot
For convenience, this summary assumes the player created a female avatar called Robin and did a certain pairing.
The game opens with a dream of Robin walking through a dark hallway. There is chanting echoing in the distance. Robin follows the chants to a room where hooded individuals gather around a large altar. Almost in a trance, she approaches the altar, while a voice tells her to fulfill her destiny and bring “him” back. Images quickly flash through her mind: Chrom dying, a city in flames, and a gigantic monstrous dragon looming in the cloud-filled skies, raining down bolts of lightning and dark energy.
Chrom and Robin (default female appearance)
Robin wakes up in the middle of a field and meets Chrom, who had found her lying there. He asks if she knows what she is doing there. Although Robin remembers her name, she can’t remember much else, or why she has a strange mark on her hand much like Chrom has one on his shoulder. However, she somehow knows Chrom’s name. Chrom shrugs it off and asks her to return with him to the Shepherds’ camp, where his sister Lissa can try using healing magic to help with the amnesia. At that moment, Plegian bandits attack. Chrom curses. He is surprised Plegians would appear this far east. He asks Robin to stay back and draws Falchion, his family’s ancient heirloom, now with a distinctive new hilt after centuries of use. However, Robin insists she can fight on her own. She doesn’t know how she can fight, but she just knows she can. Chrom at least asks her to stay close and cover his back, and Robin obliges. The player is thus taught the basics of combat as well as the new pair up mechanic.
Chrom's Falchion
After driving off the bandits, more Shepherds arrive in the former of Lissa and Frederick, Chrom’s retainer. Lissa is glad to see Chrom is unharmed and chastises him for leaving camp on his own to get fresh air. Frederick is suspicious about Robin and asks what she is doing here. Robin replies she doesn’t know what is going on, only that Chrom found her here. Frederick points out the suspicious mark on Robin’s hand, which she recognizes for some reason, and accuses her of being a Plegian spy here to kill Chrom. Chrom defends her, saying there is no reason a Plegian spy would defend him in a battle against other Plegians. Frederick stands down, and he and Lissa decide to head back to the halidom’s capital, Ylisstol, to inform Chrom’s older sister Emmeryn, the current Exalt, about the increasing number of raids from neighboring Plegia, long an enemy of Ylisse.
Robin settles into the Shepherds’ camp, and Chrom introduces her to his colleagues Stahl, one of the first male pegasus knights in the halidom, Kellam, an armored knight who everyone always forgets about, and Miriel, a mage. Chrom notes Robin’s talents from their last battle and suggests joining their ranks. She agrees, hoping traveling with the Shepherds can tell her more about her past. A messenger arrives and warns a nearby town is being attacked by the Plegian army itself. Robin asks where the Ylissean military is, but Stahl explains most of the army was devastated in a failed crusade against Plegia many years ago. Chrom admits his father foolishly launched the crusade and only provoked the anger of the Plegians. Although the two countries have been rivals for centuries, tensions never got this bad until the crusade happened. Now Plegia’s King Gangrel wants to repay the favor. They head off to the town, and with Chrom and Robin’s leadership, the Shepherds drive out the Plegians. The enemy commander, however, warns Chrom he is only provoking Plegia further, and Gangrel will send more troops soon.
At the end of the chapter, the perspective briefly shifts to Frederick and Lissa in Ylisstol, where they talk with Emmeryn after she finishes speaking to the people of the city. In contrast to Chrom’s bluntness and Lissa’s cheerfulness, Emmeryn is dignified and soft-spoken. She expresses some worry at Plegia’s recent activities, but she assures Lissa she can peacefully negotiate a settlement with Gangrel, just as she did before. But just in case she can’t, she sends her pegasus knight Sully to ask Chrom to visit the khanate of Regna Ferox and get their support. Sully arrives at Chrom’s camp and relays Emmeryn’s request to him (in her usual brash manner). If they get the help of Ferox’s Khan Basilio, the combined military strength of both countries might be enough to deter Plegia from further aggression. Chrom packs up camp, and the Shepherds march north to Ferox, fighting some bandits on the way there.
Regna Ferox is a semi-nomadic kingdom to the north of the halidom, encompassing the former wild lands of Anri’s Way. Its warriors are renowned for their strength and honor across Ylisse. Chrom arrives at a fort outside the ruins of the former capital of Aurelis, where a Feroxi commander welcomes them. While a messenger is sent ahead to Basilio, the Shepherds settle into the fort. Chrom asks Robin if anything looks familiar, but she still doesn’t remember. She thanks Chrom for finding her, but Chrom insists he should be thanking her instead. She’s been very helpful to the Shepherds in her time with them. Robin suddenly tenses up and warns there is someone coming to attack them. A group of dark mages attack, accompanied by some strange zombie-like creatures. Robin recognizes the dark mages’ robes as the ones from her dream, and she finds the zombies a little familiar. Drawing on more of her hidden knowledge, she warns the Shepherds the zombies, which she dubs the Risen, are much stronger and durable than normal humans and to be careful. This next map has a defend objective. The player must protect the fort against the dark mages and Risen for a certain number of turns. The Feroxi garrison is present as an AI-controlled ally army, and it is advised to keep a certain NPC, Lon’qu, alive so he can be recruited later on. After several turns, Frederick and Lissa arrive with reinforcements. Now outnumbered, the dark mages retreat and the Risen crumble to dust after their summoners leave the area. A Feroxi messenger returns and tells the Shepherds Basilio has allowed Chrom an audience. As they set off again, Chrom wonders why the dark mages were here and how Robin knows about them and the Risen. Robin shrugs. She is equally as confused. If he survived the battle, Lon’qu decides to join the Shepherds, believing it to be a good way to maintain his training. Meanwhile, the dark mage’s commander reports to his superior, the high priest Validar, about the results of their Risen experiment. It had taken them centuries to rediscover the magical formula for creating the Risen, but their latest test has perfected it once again. However, they are lacking in the most important ingredient to create the Risen: dead bodies. Validar assures him he is working to fix that. The mage also reports something unusual he spotted during the test, a girl wearing Plegian-like robes who knew a lot about how the Risen operate. Validar smiles. They have finally found “her.”
The Shepherds head to Basilio’s capital, Furia, on the northwestern coast of Ylisse. The Khan, a balding but muscular man, apologizes for not sending troops sooner to help at the fort. But he commends Chrom for the strength he demonstrated in that battle. Chrom gives credit to Robin, for telling him about the Risen, and to his other Shepherds for aiding him. Without them, he would not have survived. Basilio promises to form an alliance with Ylisse, as Plegia has also launched numerous raids on Regna Ferox as well. But he asks for something in return first. He explains Regna Ferox was founded by warriors who received a prophecy long ago that a dark god would arise to destroy humanity one day. To prepare for that day, they spent their entire lives training and raised subsequent generations the same way, even after the Schism happened. Today, that spirit lives on in many ways, among them how the Feroxi elect their leaders with grand tournaments. Every few years, the chieftains of Ferox choose their best warriors as their champions to represent them in the tournament, and the chief with the winning champion becomes Khan. With such a tournament coming up, Basilio asks Chrom to be his champion and win the tournament for him. Chrom is surprised he would ask a non-Feroxi, but Basilio says there’s nothing in the rules saying the champion must be a Feroxi. Chrom accepts the offer.
While Lon’qu helps Chrom train and familiarize himself with Feroxi battling styles, Robin searches for information on his opponents as well as Feroxi culture in general. She learns how after the Schism which devastated the continent a thousand years ago, Regna Ferox and its semi-nomadic lifestyle was uniquely suited to surviving the chaos of those years, and much of the continent’s wild north were tamed the Feroxi eventually. She meets the chieftain Flavia, who introduces her champion, Gregor. Flavia is amused Basilio chose the prince of Ylisse himself as his champion. Gregor boasts (with an obvious Russian accent) even a prince would be no match for his raw strength. Robin also meets Olivia, a shy Feroxi dancer who is nervous about performing during the tournament. The tournament begins. This map is more like a series of skirmishes in which the player may only use Chrom. The battlefield is mostly plain but full of equipment and barricades Chrom can hide behind or get evasion bonuses from. After defeating each opponent, a new one appears with stronger stats and weapons. Depending on how much exploring the player did in Furia, Robin may shout out some advice for Chrom during the match and give him a temporary stat boost or reveal a hidden weakness. The final opponent is Gregor, who is intentionally at a much higher level and with far higher stats than the previous fighters, but he should be evenly matched with Chrom after all of the experience he gained from the previous fights. Furthermore, Falchion has a weapon triangle advantage over Gregor’s axe, which the player can stack with terrain evasion bonuses to get the upper hand. Eventually, Chrom defeats Gregor and wins the tournament. Basilio remains khan. Impressed, Flavia decides to let Gregor and Olivia join the Shepherds, while Basilio appoints her as an advisor. He tells Chrom he will soon send a diplomat to negotiate a treaty with Emmeryn against Gangrel. Chrom thanks Robin for the advice she gave him during the tournaments.
The Shepherds return to Ylisstol. Chrom explains Ylisstol is one of the oldest cities in Ylisse. It was founded by his ancestor, the First Exalt, during the Schism as a refuge for people fleeing the chaos all over the continent. At the time, the fell dragon tried to destroy humanity and the world, but the First Exalt joined forces with the divine dragon Naga to ultimately defeat it. Early Ylisstol was spared the worst of the fell dragon’s rampage and soon became the largest city on the continent, a beacon of peace and prosperity. Its name was lent to the halidom the First Exalt founded and later to the continent itself. Outside Ylisstol, one can find the ruins of the city that predated Ylisstol but was ultimately destroyed in the Schism. Palles, the capital of the former Holy Kingdom of Archanea, was once the capital of the First Exalt’s ancestors before its destruction by the fell dragon. It is a monument to a lost age and constant reminder of the exalt’s duty to defend peace.
However, before they can enter the city, they receive a distress call from a nearby village in the ruins of Palles, where the Risen have begun slaughtering the villagers. Chrom orders the Shepherds to head there at once, but by the time they arrive, most of the villagers are dead. A young man named Donnel explains they were completely defenseless against the Risen, since most of their combat-age men, including his father, were killed in the crusade. He pleads for Chrom to save the survivors. Chrom obliges, and the Shepherds chase the Risen through the ruins of Palles, ultimately defeating them all. In gratitude, Donnel joins the Shepherds so he can get the strength he needs to protect his village against future attacks. Donnel’s base stats may start low, but he has the highest stat growth potential in the entire cast and after enough training can become one of the best characters in the entire franchise.
The Shepherds pack up and leave the ruins, although Robin’s attention is still focused on Donnel’s story. Chrom tells her more about the Plegian Crusade. The previous exalt, his father, waged a brutal war against Plegia for many years. He had invaded unexpectedly, citing only a need to purge the Plegian heretics and the Plegia-based Grimleal in particular for their desire to bring back the fell dragon, Grima. He ordered his knights to lay waste to Plegia. The chaos only ended with his own death. Plegia wasn’t the only country to suffer in the crusade. As the fighting dragged on and his casualties mounted, he started conscripting people into his army. Even farmers who could barely wield a pitchfork were sent to their deaths. Soon there were no farmers left, and the kingdom started to collapse. His death left a power vacuum in Ylisstol, and ten-year-old Emmeryn was left in charge of everything. He was very young at the time, but he remembered how the people treated her. Some blamed her for not finishing the crusade. Others blamed her for the death and suffering they experienced. They hurled insults and stones at her, but she never let them see her pain. Chrom doesn’t know how she did it, but she answered their hatred with kindness. She sent the survivors home and ended the war as best as she could. And then she quietly turned to rebuilding the nation. Robin admits it must have been hard for her and Chrom growing up. Chrom agrees. Ylisse isn’t perfect, but Emmeryn tries her best to get along with her subjects. That is the mark of a good ruler.
The Shepherds now enter Ylisstol. Robin is amazed by the size of the city and the large numbers of people on the streets. Her memories may be spotty, but she remembers the towns and villages she’s been to never being this expansive or populous. Chrom tells her this is the First Exalt’s ultimate legacy, founding a city where people from all over Ylisse can live in peace, free of the war consuming the rest of the continent. Although Robin is interested in learning more about the First Exalt, she is just as interested in the nearby food stalls. She picks up an orange and remarks how she hasn’t seen one this ripe before. She suggest Chrom try it out. Chrom bites into it without even peeling off the skin, which amuses her. He promises to show her around the marketplaces after meeting with his sister, not as a prince and subject, but as two Ylisseans.
Ylisstol
Emmeryn welcomes the Shepherds back to her castle. Frederick eagerly reports he has kept Chrom safe just as he was ordered. Lissa giggles and tells him to lighten up a bit. Chrom tells Emmeryn about the Plegian border raids in the southern halidom, as well as the other raids against Ferox Basilio told him about, suggesting she increase her border defenses substantially. He also asks Emmeryn if her troops have also encountered any dark mages or Risen. Emmeryn has heard rumors about shadow-cloaked zombies roaming Plegia, but she hasn’t heard anything about them being real or attacking people in Ylisse. She orders Phila, commander of Ylisse’s pegasus knights, to patrol the borders and watch out for the dark mages and Risen. She then notices Robin and asks about her. Robin introduces herself and admits she doesn’t really remember much about herself, though Chrom is helping her remember. Chrom explains Robin has been a very valuable member of the Shepherds lately, providing insights and a new perspective that had helped them out many times. Emmeryn smiles, telling Robin the country owes her a debt of gratitude. She tells the Shepherds to rest up until Phila reports back.
Later that night, Chrom finds Robin wandering in the courtyard. She is again surprised by how big the castle is, but she has spent most of her time instinctively memorizing the floor plans and devising a strategy in case of attack. Chrom tells her she needs to get some rest. They’re in the middle of Ylisstol. The capital is heavily defended, and there’s no way anybody could get as far as the castle itself. Robin knows that, but she can’t help but keep strategizing for some reason. Chrom heads back to his room, saying she should be well-rested tomorrow because he’s showing her around the marketplace. “You’re not going to go to the marketplace,” someone says. A masked man approaches them, and Chrom and Robin draw their weapons. Robin demands to know who he is. The man introduces himself as Marth. Chrom recalls that as the name of the old Hero-King of legend, his distant ancestor, and notes his outfit resembles those in paintings of the Hero-King. Marth says that is his name as well. Chrom asks how he got into the castle. Marth explains he entered through a small hole in the wall. Chrom is shocked someone found the hole, because he accidentally created it during training a while ago and told nobody. Marth promises not to tell anyone about it. He is here to save Emmeryn from being murdered. Chrom scoffs as his sister is surrounded by bodyguards at all times. Marth tells them he has seen a future where Emmeryn dies tonight, and he is here to make sure that future never happens. Robin doesn’t believe it. Marth decides to prove it. He pulls out another Falchion, which is slightly more damaged. Chrom asks how he stole Falchion from his room, but Marth insists he never touched it. This Falchion came from the future along with him. An assassin attempts to stab Chrom while his back is turned, but Marth had expected him and strikes him down. Another assassin emerges, which catches Marth off-guard. He ducks to avoid the attack, but the assassin’s blade strikes his mask and shatters it, letting loose long hair and revealing “him” to be a woman. She’s surprised neither Chrom nor Robin figured it out sooner. But they have other things to worry about.
(hmmmmmm)
They hear a loud explosion. Chrom sees the front gates have been blasted open. Dark mages like the ones they saw in Regna Ferox storm into the castle, led by Validar, who orders them to kill Emmeryn and take the Fire Emblem, the halidom’s most prized treasure. Gaius, one of the thieves hired to do the job, insists he only wanted to rob the treasury, not kill the exalt, and defects to Chrom’s side. Chrom rouses the Shepherds, and Robin gives them a plan with which to keep the assassins away from Emmeryn. Emmeryn insists Chrom should escape with Lissa, but Chrom refuses to leave his sister behind. He, Robin, and the Shepherds begin fighting the assassins while Marth escorts Emmeryn to her quarters and locks her inside, standing guard at the door. The player must defend against the assassins for several turns. As the battle takes place at night, there is fog of war present. Each turn, Validar will summon Risen from the dead bodies of his previous assassins. Due to the ancient Imhullu tome he possesses, it is impossible to harm him. Once the player reaches the turn limit, Phila arrives with her pegasus knights, and Validar calls off the attack. As he leves, he sees Robin leading the Shpeherds and notes the reports are correct.
After the battle, Emmeryn thanks Chrom for defending her, while Phila apologizes for arriving too late to stop the assassins. Chrom gives the credit to Robin, for devising the plan that defended the castle, and to Marth for tipping them off to the imminent attack. Without her, there was no way they could seen the attack coming. Speaking of which, Robin realizes Marth is nowhere in sight. They catch up to Marth just as she is about to leave the castle, and Chrom asks where she is going and if there is anything he can repay her with. Marth replies she already got what she wanted, with history changed and Emmeryn alive. If she had died, the Fire Emblem would be stolen, which would lead to a great war that engulfs the continent, which in turn would lead to the end of humanity. She admits it sounds crazy, but Chrom and Robin believe her after what they have just seen. Marth turns to leave again, saying her job is done and she shouldn’t stay longer than necessary. Robin promises to repay her favor someday. Marth simply smiles. Chrom asks one more question: who taught her to wield Falchion like that? Marth simply replies her father did. She then leaves the castle.
Validar returns to his lair, where he curses their failure. Thye should have had the Fire Emblem by now. Somehow, the castle’s defenders knew about him. It must have been Robin. So the reports about her were true after all. He now knows to rework his plan. At that moment, someone enters the room, and Validar demands to know who they are. The person introduces themselves as the fell dragon Grima, here to ensure Validar achieves his destiny. Later, Validar approaches Gangrel, who is in the middle of discussing recent social reforms to ease the suffering of the poor in the capital. He is shown to be a revered and popular leader who cares deeply for his people, not a tyrant as the Ylisseans claim he is. Validar reports he failed to retrieve the Fire Emblem for him, which disappoints Gangrel. But he has a new plan. He has the Grimleal bring in a Ylissean noblewoman, Maribelle, and announces she is to be sacrificed and her quintessence offered up to Grima. Gangrel, eager to get revenge on the Ylisseans for them killing his mother in the crusade, instead has the idea to use her as a hostage first. He sends a messenger to Emmeryn saying he has Maribelle hostage.
Ylisse's Fire Emblem
Emmeryn immediately demands a council at a neutral location on the Ylissean-Plegian border. Phila and the Shepherds accompany her to the conference, but secretly, a young mage named Ricken also sets out to rescue Maribelle, having a crush on her. The conference initially gets off to a good start, but Robin senses malicious intent from the Grimleal. After a traitorous Ylissean priest provides an opening, Grimleal assassins led by Validar’s lieutenant Aversa swoop in and capture Emmeryn, while Robin captures Validar, leading to a standoff. Gangrel demands the Fire emblem in exchange for Emmeryn’s and Maribelle’s survival, but Robin threatens to kill Validar. Emmeryn pleads for Chrom to let her die. Her life is nothing compared to the Fire Emblem. But Chrom sees no point in keeping an ancient shield and prepares to hand it over. Suddenly, the stalemate is broken when Ricken ambushes the conference and fires a powerful Excalibur spell at the Grimleal, who release Maribelle. The spell knocks Chrom off his feet and sends the Fire Emblem flying. One of the Grimleal picks up the shield and begins running away with it. Emmeryn calls in Phila’s pegasus knights to recover the Fire Emblem, but Validar had expected Phila to intervene again. The dead bodies in the area reanimate as Risen. Picking up the bows and arrows previously placed next to them, they shoot down the pegasus knights. Aversa flies away with Emmeryn. Phila survives long enough to grab the Fire Emblem, handing it to her newest recruit, Cordelia, before dying. Traumatized, Cordelia nevertheless carries out her duties and flies back to the Ylissean side, giving Chrom the Fire Emblem. Ricken guides Maribelle away, while the Shepherds grab their weapons. The objective of this map is to escape to the objective along the narrow mountain path while Plegian wyvern riders and Grimleal cultists. All characters must escape before Chrom, and any who are left behind when Chrom leaves the map are considered dead in Classic Mode, and Chrom can’t leave as long as Robin is still on the map.
After the battle, Chrom scolds Ricken for his recklessness. Finally able to rest, Cordelia comes to grips with being the only survivor of Phila’s squadron. Losing her usually calm composure, she breaks down and cries, and Chrom consoles her. Ricken is at least happy Maribelle is fine. If certain conditions in the previous battle were met, the two confess their love for each other and get married. Meanwhile, Robin dwells on the gravity of their situation: Emmeryn is in the Plegians’ hands and Gangrel will kill her if they don’t hand over the Fire Emblem soon. Setting up camp, she goes over their plan. Before making their choice, Chrom decides to go seek guidance from Tiki, now a young adult and the voice of Naga. Surely the old Divine Dragon with a history with the Fire Emblem may have an idea of what to do about it. They head to the nearby Mount Prism, only to find the traitorous priest has surrounded the area with Risen, intending to march on Ylisstol with them. If Chrom attacks him, he demands to know why he betrayed Ylisse. The priest blames Chrom’s father for getting his own father killed in the crusade. The war also devastated his home, and his family starved for years. He calls Chrom just like his father: blunt and prone to violence. Eventually, he is killed, and the battle ends.
Reaching the top of Mount Prism, Chrom and Robin meet Tiki. She notes Chrom’s resemblance to her old friend Mar-Mar and warns they must protect the Fire Emblem at all costs to avoid a terrible future. It was the key to defeating many great evils she witnessed over the centuries, but only if it remains in the hands of those chosen by Naga. She points to the distinctive mark on Chrom’s shoulder, the Brand of the Exalt, which symbolizes the pact the First Exalt made with Naga during the Schism. It is his duty as one of her descendants to protect the shield. Chrom asks if she knows the identity of the girl named Marth. Tiki is confused, as Mar-Mar was one of her friends as a child two thousand years ago. She asks to see this girl claiming to be Marth so she can see for herself who she really is. Robin asks her to join them just as she helped Marth, but Tiki declines, saying after the Schism, her powers were greatly reduced and are only now starting to recover. Chrom thanks Tiki for her guidance, and the Shepherds leave. Meanwhile, Tiki tells herself something feels off about Robin.
Having gotten their advice, Chrom and Robin devise a plan to save Emmeryn without handing over the Fire Emblem. The Shepherds covertly enter Plegia from Ferox as the Ylissean border remains heavily guarded. They pass through what was formerly known as Gra. Once it was a temperate island to the east of old Altea, but now it is a desert wasteland filled with ruins, and upheavals in the earth have connected it to the west and south. Robin asks what could’ve cause such a dramatic and horrible change. Chrom replies the fell dragon was responsible. The Schism the fell dragon caused was so devastating it changed even the landscape itself. Its rampage was the worst in western Ylisse. Chrom tells her his ancestors once lived in Altea many generations ago, but the fell dragon made the entire region uninhabitable. Even now nobody can live in Altea, although the Plegians consider it their territory. That has long been a point of contention between Ylisse and Plegia. It was one of the reasons his father launched the crusade.
Before he can explain more, the Grimleal ambush them, having expected them to pass through Gra on their way to the Plegian heartland. Aversa, leading the group of dark mages and Risen, asks if they are here to deliver the Fire Emblem. Chrom refuses to hand it over, while Cordelia blames her for summoning the Risen who killed Phila and her squad. The goal of this map is to fight through the ruins and seize the target, and Aversa will constantly summon Risen from the long dead Gra citizens as well as her fallen Grimleal. If the player defeats Aversa, she retreats, warning they have changed nothing and their fate has already been decided. Her Risen crumble into dust, and the surviving dark mages flee with her.
The Shepherds arrive in the capital of Plegia. The city is a mix of different architectural styles from various time periods. The oldest buildings, including the castle, date back to the era when the city was the capital of Dolhr and the dragon tyrant Medeus. Newer buildings are built with sandstone and wood due to the heat of the surrounding desert, which had replaced the grasslands and forests of Dolhr after the Schism. A few buildings are made out of dragon bones, both regular sized ones and gigantic ones which entire homes are carved into. A large portion of the city is even built in the maw of a gigantic dragon skull unlike anything Robin has seen before, although she feels both unnerved and familiar at the sight of it. Chrom identifies the gigantic skull as that of Grima, struck down by the First Exalt with Falchion a thousand years ago. It was truly a monstrous dragon unlike any other. Legends say it had six wings, six eyes, no legs, and a body as big as a small island, and it flew menacingly over old Archanea, leaving only destruction in its wake.
The gigantic skull of Grima
Surprisingly, the guards let them in without a fight, and a few even give them directions to Medeus’ old palace, now Gangrel’s residence. Chrom suspects a trap, and Robin gets a feeling of dread but not imminent danger. They walk through the streets of the city. As the Shepherds pass by, the scared Plegians, wearing loose white clothing in contrast to the dark and heavy robes of the Grimleal, hide in their homes and lock the doors. They reach the palace. There, a gallows has been set up, with a noose placed around Emmeryn’s neck. Gangrel, Validar, and their soldiers surround her. Chrom demands Gangrel release Emmeryn, but Gangrel refuses. He wants the Fire Emblem in return. Chrom also refuses. Gangrel laughs, saying Ylisseans are always so stubborn. He’s just like his father. Chrom calls him an unjust tyrant, which attracts boos from the Plegian civilians in attendance. Gangrel retorts Chrom doesn’t know what justice really is. Like his father, he believes justice is delivered at the tip of a sword. But what he doesn’t realize is that sword gets people killed, innocent people like his own mother, who was cut down in cold blood by the Ylisseans. Was that justice? Chrom apologizes for his father’s actions and insists he’s not the same. Gangrel points out he invaded Plegia and killed many of his soldiers on the way here. Although the intensity is different, it’s still the same approach his father took. Why didn’t he just listen to his sister and try to talk things out? Chrom calls Gangrel a hypocrite, as he now has Emmeryn hostage after ambushing such a peace negotiation. He doesn’t care about people one bit as long as he benefits. Gangrel corrects him. He does care about his own people. The Plegians deserved better than to be cut down like wheat on the swords of the Ylisseans. He spent all of his reign rebuilding the country, with Validar’s support, to ensure Plegia would proudly rise from the ashes…and seek revenge on the Ylisseans who slaughtered their countrymen. And now that revenge is upon them. Chrom says he will be no better than the previous exalt then. Gangrel doesn’t care. “So be it, then,” he says, “Then your people will learn just how much we have suffered.”
Robin springs their trap. Before Gangrel’s archers can react, Cordelia flies in and cuts the noose, freeing Emmeryn. Flavia and her Feroxi troops, which had been following the Shepherds, reveal themselves and attack the Plegian guards. While Validar leaves, Gangrel calls in his wyvern riders and other shock troops. He draws a magical Levin Sword and joins the battle, intending to personally get his revenge. The objective of this map is to rescue Emmeryn, who starts off dangerously close to the Plegian forces, and then escape to the beginning of the map. Gangrel will be a highly dangerous boss who moves, and at this point in the game his high stats will deal significant damage to any of his targets. Flavia and the Feroxi are present as AI allies, while reinforcements will constantly spawn from behind Gangrel’s lines. After several turns, Aversa and the Grimleal show up, and Risen spawn from all of the dead bodies. Like with Gangrel, this time Aversa’s stats are much higher, making her difficult to defeat. The player must instead move their characters away from Gangrel and Aversa and towards the escape point.
After beating this chapter, the Shepherds meet up with Basilio’s forces, who have established an escape route out of the city. However, at that moment, the full might of Plegia’s wyvern riders descend upon Flavia’s troops and massacre them all, which horrifies Basilio. Gangrel catches up to them and captures Emmeryn again, demanding Chrom hand over the Fire Emblem. But before Chrom can make a decision, Emmeryn gives an impassioned speech. She calls out to the people of Plegia, urging them to not continue the cycle of hatred. On many continents in many different times, from ancient Jugdral and Elibe to Archanea, the cycle of hatred consumed millions of lives in a never ending cycle. Continuing this cycle of hatred will win them nothing but sadness and pain across the continent. Those they inflict suffering on will soon seek revenge, just as Gangrel wants, and someday they will seek to repay it in full, continuing the cycle. They must not give in to hatred. They must free themselves from it…just as she will now refuse to be a pawn in continuing it. She impales herself on the Levin Sword, killing herself to prevent Chrom from handing it over. Chrom and Lissa scream in anguish, while Frederick and Cordelia charge at Gangrel, who easily knocks both of them back with his Levin Sword. Gangrel orders his men to kill the Shepherds and Feroxi. Mustafa, the commander of the troops, is moved by Emmeryn’s words. He offers the Ylisseans safety if they surrender, not wishing for bloodshed. When Chrom refuses, he reluctantly attacks but allows any of his men who don’t wish to fight to go home.
The Shepherds fight their way out of the city and flee across Plegia with Gangrel’s forces still on their tail. Robin comes up with an idea to slip into the poisoned wastelands of old Altea, predicting the Plegians wouldn’t follow them into such a hostile environment. Mustafa initially pursues them into Altea, beginning a battle. Again, the objective is to escape, but there are multiple escape points. The Shepherds must all reach one escape point within a certain number of turns (any left behind when Chrom escapes or the turn limit passes are considered dead), opening up a new section of the map with a new escape point. The map is full of poisonous terrain which deal a small amount of damage to all characters standing on them each turn, while the Grimleal cultists accompanying Mustafa summon Risen from the long dead Alteans as well as any Plegians killed. Still in grief over Emmeryn’s death, Chrom’s stats are temporarily lowered as he can’t fight as effectively. It is impossible to kill Mustafa on this map. The usual preparations menu and battle music change to more somber tracks for this chapter. The final escape point leads the Shepherds to the ruins of Altea Castle, the Hero-King’s old home, where they set up camp, while Mustafa and his men retreat to avoid suffering more casualties.
Chrom holds a memorial service for Emmeryn. Everybody says a few words. Lissa gives a tearful tribue to her older sister. Ricken and Maribelle remember her as a kind ruler who always supported their interests. Frederick says it was an honor to serve her. Cordelia vows to protect Chrom in Emmeryn’s place, on her honor as a Whitewing descendant, and tries to convince Sully and Stahl to make the same vow since they are also Whitewing descendants. Donnel sympathizes with Chrom, having also lost a loved one before, and promises to get stronger to make sure no more people suffer like this. Olivia remains nervous and doesn’t know what to say except cry into Chrom’s shoulder. The taciturn Lon’qu doesn’t say much except to pay respects. Basilio grieves over Flavia’s death and gives her a Feroxi memorial service. Robin offers her condolences to Chrom, but he realizes he was at fault for the whole incident. If only he hadn’t been so reckless and quick tempered, Emmeryn and many others would be still alive. Gangrel was right. He is like his father, rushing into battle without thinking of the consequences. His actions keep continuing the cycle of revenge that has plagued Plegia and Ylisse for generations. He became the very thing Emmeryn died to stop. Chrom looks at the Fire Emblem and Falchion, remembering what both mean to him and his country. He tells Robin he must change and become a better leader. Robin agrees and promises to accompany him on that path.
As dawn breaks, the Shepherds pack up and discuss their plans. Basilio wants them to head back north to Ferox and recover, but Chrom insists they must defeat Gangrel here and now. Ylisse has just lost its exalt. After their recent battles, the Ylissean army is weakened, exposing the halidom to invasion. And Gangrel will probably take advantage of this weakness to attack and lay waste to the country. He won’t let his people suffer at Gangrel’s hands. But he will try not to repeat his father’s actions. His war is against Gangrel, not the people. They will head back to the capital and defeat him. Robin warns killing Gangrel will only martyr him just as Emmeryn’s death made her a martyr. Chrom admits that may happen, but he doesn’t know what else to do. They gather any weapons and materials left behind in the ruined castle and prepare to set back out across the wastes, Robin having figured out a shortcut back to the city that could help them avoid Mustafa’s troops.
Later that day, as they continue gathering supplies, Robin’s foresight kicks in again, despite no enemies being in the area, and does not stop. Her horrible feelings intensify, and she begins having visions of killing Chrom. She tells Chrom about the visions and worries about what might happen in the future. Was this what Marth wanted to avoid? Did she even change history at all? Emmeryn is still dead, even if the circumstances changed. Chrom assures her, telling her she is a Shepherd, and he would never let that happen. More than that…he admits he has had feelings for her since the day they met. He would never let anything come between them. He will not let her end up like Emmeryn, and he will do his best to live for her and the Ylisseans. That vision she’s seeing will not happen. He swears it on Falchion and the Fire Emblem. They can change their fate together. Robin also confesses her feelings, promising to do what she can to help him as Exalt. The two are married in a makeshift ceremony in Altea Castle. (Depending on who has a higher support rank, Chrom may marry someone else here.)
Expecting the worst, Robin asks anybody who doesn’t want to follow them to go back with Basilio to Regna Ferox. That done, she and Chrom assemble the Shepherds and march south, back to the Plegian heartland. Taking the shortcut, they easily overwhelm the patrols watching the path and quickly march on the capital. There, Gangrel summons Mustafa before him, aware of his prior bending of the rules. Mustafa does not deny it and is aware of the punishment he likely faces. Gangrel reminds him their quest for vengeance against Ylisse requires the cooperation and loyalty of every Plegian. Did he forgot how the previous exalt slaughtered Mustafa’s parents and siblings? Now that the bloody prince Chrom has also lost his sister, he will come back to seek revenge. The future of Plegia is at stake. They must destroy Ylisse before Ylisse destroys them. Mustafa suggests Chrom might not be like his father, but Gangrel denies it. The boy only solves problems with swords. He lost his father and sister to Plegians. There is no way he won’t want to avenge them. Validar arrives and informs them the Shepherds have turned around and are marching on the capital now. Gangrel declares he is correct, and Mustafa mobilizes his troops.
With Gaius’ help, the Shepherds sneak into the city through a damaged part of the wall, but they find Mustafa and his men waiting on the other end, having expected they would try that. Mustafa steps forward and tries to console Chrom about Emmeryn’s death. He asks if Emmeryn would have wanted this bloodshed to continue. Chrom simply raises Falchion and tells him, “Don’t speak her name!” Mustafa acknowledges his rage is justified. Chrom insists he doesn’t want to fight Mustafa. All he wants is to defeat Gangrel before he can invade Ylisse. “And then what will happen?” Mustafa replies. Killing Gangrel will only make the Plegians more eager to seek revenge. He will only be continuing the cycle of violence Emmeryn died opposing. He will end up just like his father. Chrom acknowledges this. He is still thinking of another way. Mustafa asks him one more time to stand down, offering him safe passage out of the city, but Chrom refuses. The battle begins, and the Plegians fight tooth and nail to defend their city. The map has a seize objective, located at the gates of the former Dolhr Keep. There are a lot of houses the player can visit for items, but their inhabitants will see the Shepherds as looters, spawning more reinforcements and changing the later story. Upon death, Mustafa asks Chrom to not harm the people of Plegia, and Chrom promises to do his best. Mustafa smiles and says he is very different from his father.
The Shepherds storm Dolhr Keep, where they encounter Gangrel and his guards, along with a lot of Risen summoned by a Grimleal. Gangrel invites Chrom to prove his point. Chrom simply says he will not fight for revenge, but rather for the people he loves. Gangrel laughs. Bonds between people are meaningless. In this world, it is kill or be killed. That is what Chrom’s father taught him all those years ago. He watched Ylissean knights kill his mother in cold blood as a child. He grew up in the streets, slowly getting the power he needed to take the throne so he could seek his revenge. That is what life is, a cycle of revenge. The powerless seeks to switch places with the powerful, which seeks to turn back the tables. Chrom insists people are better than that. By rising above petty hatred and desires for vengeance, they can build something new. They can learn from their mistakes and move forward towards a new future. That is what the First Exalt wanted. That is what Emmeryn died protecting. Gangrel laughs again. He’s not really proving Emmeryn right in being here. After a short battle, the Shepherds prevail over the Plegian forces, and Chrom strikes down Gangrel with Falchion. Gangrel, lying on the floor, says finishing him off will only prove him right after all. Chrom is aware of that. So he sheathes Falchion and spares him. Gangrel is surprised he did that. He reminds Chrom he is still planning the invasion. Chrom knows that. He will still spare Gangrel’s life, knowing all that. He is done seeking vengeance. It’s time he moved past it, for Emmeryn’s sake. He will handle any invasion Gangrel tries to launch. But he won’t kill and martyr Gangrel. He turns and leaves. He tells Robin it’s time they headed home. Robin smiles and takes his hand. It is finally over.
Gangrel never invades Ylisse. Instead, he signs a peace treaty. The Ylisseans rejoice, hailing the Shepherds as heroes. Chrom and Robin work tirelessly to restore prosperity to the halidom. This would be no easy task, but this doesn’t deter them. Out of respect for Emmeryn, Chrom refuses to be crowned as Exalt at the moment. But there is still cause for celebration. Their official royal wedding is attended by thousands across Ylisse, gathered to cheer on their beloved prince and his new wife. It seemed like the country is finally healing from the scars of the crusade. Marth watches the celebration from a distance, privately saying she is happy for the royal couple.
The royal wedding
A year passes. A messenger arrives from Basilio, who requests Ylisse’s help against an unexpectedly dangerous horde of Risen rampaging through western Ferox. Robin walks in, carrying their newborn daughter Lucina, and suggests they head out to Ferox. Chrom protests, saying she should stay with Lucina, but Robin insists on accompanying him. She jokes he wouldn’t get anywhere without her strategic thinking, and besides, the castle’s wet nurses can look after her. Chrom worries, remembering the visions Robin had before. He wants Lucina to grow up with her whole family around her. Robin agrees and promises to stay safe, on the condition Chrom do so as well.
Before they head for Ferox, Chrom takes a detour to Mount Prism to seek advice from Tiki. Robin is suspicious about the increase in Risen raids, believing the Grimleal to be responsible. There are rumors the Grimleal launched a coup against Gangrel and stripped him of his power, assuming control over Plegia. Perhaps they are now using their new influence to raise even larger armies of Risen to raid their neighbors. For what aim though? Chrom complains he just got out of a war with Plegia, but now it looks like he might be dragged back into another one. Although his methods were wrong and unjust, his father may have had a point in trying to suppress the “Plegian heresy.” On the way up, they meet Marth again. Chrom asks where she has been for the last few years, and Marth replies she has been trying to avoid more interference with history. She is here to warn him about a Risen ambush she spotted preparing to kill Tiki. They rush to the top of the mountain, where Tiki is meditating to restore her full power. The Risen approach from behind, and the Shepherds take up defensive positions to protect Tiki. The player must survive and protect Tiki for ten turns against the Risen onslaught, and Marth helps out as an AI-controlled ally. After the battle, Tiki wakes up, now fully restored, and easily destroys the remaining Risen. She takes one look at “Marth” and knows she is not the Mar-Mar she knew centuries ago, although she does strongly remind her of him. Chrom asks what “Marth”’s real name is. She decides it’s time to tell the Shepherds the truth and asks Chrom to look into her eye. Chrom does so and sees the Brand of the Exalt in her pupil…exactly in the same place his baby daughter has her own Brand of the Exalt. He realizes she is a future Lucina. Lucina breaks down and happily cries in his arms.
Chrom apologizes for not being there for her in the future. Robin connects the pieces. If this is Lucina, then this is her daughter too. Lucina tearfully smiles and hugs her as well, glad to have her mother back. She explains in her future, things went badly. Extremely badly. The next chapter is a flashback (flashforward?) about the dark future. Lucina runs through the burning ruins of Ylisstol, where the survivors are being slaughtered by thousands of Risen which grow in numbers by the minute. The objective of this map is to survive…indefinitely. Although Lucina has Falchion with her, she is vastly outnumbered by the Risen, whose reinforcements easily replenish any deaths the player may have inflicted. Eventually, help arrives in the form of Cordelia’s daughter Severa, Olivia’s son Inigo, and Lissa’s son Owain (who makes meta references to previous games), who back her up. Together, the three of them clear an escape route for the civilians, although since the rest of the continent is no better off, it is a lost cause. Lucina looks up and sees the gigantic shadow of Grima, a six-winged legless monstrosity, looming over Ylisstol, parts of its dark black form briefly illuminated by lightning.
Lucina continues her recollection. Naga, the divine dragon goddess, had predicted this would happen since the First Exalt’s showdown with Grima during the Schism. Although she didn’t have the power to defeat Grima, she did have enough to create a time travel spell, which would allow Lucina and her friends—the children of the present day Shepherds—to go back in time to Chrom’s era and prevent the resurrection of Grima. She has spent the last year searching for the other children, because with Emmeryn’s death, history is still proceeding on its original course towards Grima’s return. Optional sidequests to recruit the children are now unlocked, and the player can do them at any point before the final chapters.
Lucina
Tiki adds there is another component they need to defeat Grima and Validar. During the Schism, the First Exalt gathered the five gemstones—the Starsphere, Lightsphere, Darksphere, Geosphere, and Lifesphere—into the Fire Emblem to unlock its full power and allow her to perform the rite of Awakening, through which she received Naga’s power and defeated Grima. But over the centuries, the orbs were separated because they were too powerful in the hands of one person or country. Chrom looks at the Fire Emblem and sees it has only one orb, the Geosphere (which raises his critical hit rate). Tiki gives him the Lightsphere and Lifesphere, which she has been keeping since then (which reduces the effect of enemy terrain bonuses and restores a little HP every turn, respectively). She remembers the Starsphere having been entrusted to the khan of Regna Ferox at the time. That leaves only the Darksphere, which Robin deduces is in Validar’s possession, responsible for his Imhullu spell. The only way to pierce the Darksphere’s protection over Validar is to bring the Starsphere and Lightsphere near him to negate it. Tiki tells Chrom his duty as exalt is to perform the rite of Awakening and stop Grima and the Grimleal. They must avoid the dark future at all costs. Chrom promises to do that. Tiki and Lucina both join the Shepherds, the latter now going by her birth name. As they depart Mount Prism, Chrom asks Lucina how he died in the dark future. Lucina warns he was betrayed by someone close to him.
The Shepherds head to Ferox to meet Basilio and find the Starsphere. They arrive at Furia and find it under attack from the Risen. Basilio, fighting on the front lines, asks for their assistance. As with the Mount Prism battle, this battle has a defend objective. The Risen must be kept away from the city center. Extra rewards are given for each house the player visits and evacuates. As with previous Risen-related battles, dead Risen and humans can be reanimated as Risen. After a certain number of turns, the horde’s Grimleal summoner appears to check on their progress, allowing the Shepherds to kill him. This causes the Risen to dissolve into dust and ends the map. With Furia saved, Basilio thanks the Shepherds for their intervention. This was only the latest Risen attack of many against Ferox. They have taken place along the Plegian border, even as far east as Ylisse. Robin has no doubt the Grimleal is responsible for the new attacks. There’s only a matter of time before the Risen turn to Ylisse. They must defeat the Grimleal. But in order to do that, they need the Starsphere. Basilio tells them he doesn’t have the Starsphere with him. After the Schism, the khan hid the Starsphere in the ruins of Thabes deep in the desert to the northeast of Furia. If they want the Starsphere, they’ll have to go there.
The Shepherds rest in Furia and prepare for an expedition to the desert. While sleeping, Robin hears a voice in her head and dreams of Validar. Validar tells her she has forgotten who she really is. Robin demands he get out of her mind. Validar laughs and reveals she is his daughter, created to serve a sacred destiny. He asks her to abandon the doomed servants of Naga and return to her rightful place in the service of the fell dragon. Robin wakes up. Chrom stirs, having heard her distress, and Robin explains what Validar told her. She knows he isn’t lying, as much as she hates that. It would explain a lot about her, but at this point, she isn’t sure if she wants to know more about her past anymore. Chrom assures her with something the Hero-King once said: “I am a prince before I am a son or a brother.” Although the original meaning was for Marth to put his duties as heir of Altea above his familial duties, it has taken on another meaning for Chrom. Robin is her own person before she is Validar’s daughter. Robin thanks him for being with her. He and Lucina are her real family, not Validar.
They set out for the desert. This part of the continent was one of the least affected by the Schism and is still almost the same as it was thousands of years ago. But the sands have swallowed much of the ancient city, and only the main tower remains visible, looming over the desert as a monument to a lost era. This map takes place on a fog of war due to the constant sandstorms, and Chrom and the Shepherds must fight off constant waves of Risen and feral wyverns to arrive at the Tower entrance. Robin notes the presence of Risen in the area, although there doesn’t seem to be anybody summoning them. Thankfully, they seem to keep to a certain area around a giant crater in the middle of the ruins. The enter the tower and find a place to rest. The Shepherds look at their surroundings and discuss the strange and ancient architecture. Miriel remarks on the potent magical energy flowing through the tower, a remnant of Thabes’ past as a center for magical research. Lucina asks what happened to lead to Thabes’ destruction, but nobody knows. All they know is one day, the city was destroyed and left to sink into the sands. Perhaps it is this potent magic that is causing the Risen to appear in this area. Meanwhile, Robin finds the ruins strangely familiar.
The next day, they start up the tower, fighting their way through hordes of Risen. The Feroxi khan during the Schism probably put the Starsphere here because the Risen would drive off any would-be thieves. On the way up, they encounter a girl named Morgan trapped by Risen. Her clothes strongly resemble Robin’s. As soon as the Shepherds drive off the Risen, Morgan thanks her mother for rescuing her. Robin realizes this is her daughter and she had come back from the future with Lucina. She is here to recover the Starsphere, but she underestimated the strength and numbers of the Risen. Thankfully the Shepherds showed up at that moment. She apologizes for not being as good a tactician as Robin and joins the Shepherds so she can learn from her. (Morgan’s supports with her other parent and possible sibling will be unavailable if Robin hasn’t married yet, and she won’t say anything about them here. She will also only inherit stats and skills from Robin.)
Morgan (default hair color)
Lucina scolds her little sister for being so reckless, while Chrom remarks she probably got it from him. Together, they reach the top of the tower and find the Starsphere waiting there. Chrom puts it into the Fire Emblem and gains a slight stat boost as a result of the Starsphere’s power. With the Starsphere now in his possession, they can finally defeat Validar and take the Darksphere from him so they can do the Awakening.
They return to Furia and go over their plan with Basilio, who provides troops to back them up and holds on to the Fire Emblem for safekeeping. While the Feroxi appear in the Gra desert and feign an invasion, drawing away Plegian troops, the Shepherds cross old Altea into Plegia. A secret contact with ties to the upper ranks of the Plegian government and military gives them an opening straight to the capital, diverting troops and other security forces away from the Shepherds’ path with false rumors of a pirate invasion in the west and bandit raids in the east. This marks a point of no return. After clearing this chapter, all paralogues can no longer be done, and the player can no longer do level grinding on the world map or even move around it except to start the next chapter. The can still access the base camp as usual.
Important paralogues
While most of Awakening’s optional paralogues focus on tracking down and recruiting the future children of the Shepherds, five instead introduce new characters, four of whom are based on protagonists from previous games. The first four can be attempted at any time between Lucina revealing her identity and heading off to Plegia for the final battles, while the fifth can be done any time before recruiting Morgan. Most of these paralogues consist of about three maps in succession instead of the usual one map. Although all have support chains with the Shepherds, the first four can only S support each other (including a female/female and male/male S support, although Rentiantang ordered the dialogue censored in the international release) and the fifth can only S support Robin.
Valm, formerly Valentia
First to unlock is a visit to the neighboring western continent of Valm, formerly known as Valentia in the Hero-King’s time. Due to its proximity to Archanea, Valm had suffered just as much in the Schism, and the empire ruling it imploded into many warring states, some of which are now just barely above barbarism. Having heard rumors of another Falchion and its wielder, the Shepherds set out for Valm. Valm is now unlocked on the world map. The maps and tracks in this sidequest are remasters of maps and tracks found in Fire Emblem Waiyun as well as one new map. First is Zofia Harbor, now little more than a village beset by constant bandit raids. Next up is what was once the unique region of Chon’sin. Finally, the Shepherds head inland to the Mila Tree, a gigantic tree in the middle of the continent said to have grown from the final resting place of the Divine Dragon Mila. They fight their way up the tree and reach a shrine hidden among the branches. There, a man named Anselm awaits them. He claims to be a descendant of the old Valmese emperors, wearing the ancient armor of his ancestor the Saint-King Alm and the tiara of his beloved, Celica.
(Anselm is completely original so I don't have a sprite or portrait of him, but use this art of Alm in Awakening as a reference.)
The Valentian Falchion, which Tiki recognizes as another weapon forged from Naga’s fangs, lies at his side. He welcomes the Shepherds to his humble abode. It is a far cry from the estates his ancestors used to have before the Schism destroyed the Valmese Empire and almost wiped out everyone in Valm. He personally has no need for an empire, instead preferring to farm, or whatever passes for farming at the top of a giant tree. Many have asked him and his predecessors to lend their strength to their cause, but they always refused. Their causes weren’t worthy. The Valentian Falchion is not to be used for just about any fight. He tells of a legend passed down from the time of Alm and Celica two thousand years ago. In their time, the two of them had freed the people of what was then known as Valentia from the reign of the gods, with the help of Falchion. But they soon learned there were other gods who would eventually rise to threaten humanity, and all of their descendants were raised to prepare for such an event. Their time came when Grima rose, but they failed and Valm was destroyed in the Schism. Chrom tells him Grima is returning, and they need Anselm now more than ever. Anselm thinks about it. He could redeem himself in the coming fight. First, he must test if Chrom is strong enough to challenge the gods. The final map is a one on one duel against Anselm, with the player only being able to deploy Chrom. Upon defeat, Anselm decides Chrom has what it takes to fight Grima and agrees to lend his and Falchion’s strength to his cause. Together, they will take humanity’s destiny back from the gods. Anselm’s class is Saint Lord, a magic and sword using class. Anselm’s support chains provide exposition on the events of Fire Emblem Waiyun and the ideals of his ancestors Alm and Celica, as well as the life of the last Valmese emperor Walhart, who reigned during the Schism. With Chrom he will continue asking for regular duels to see who is stronger and which Falchion is better, although both are ultimately evenly matched.
Next to unlock is a visit to what was once Grust, now a rural island off the coast of Plegia. Chrom has heard rumors of a powerful hero from another world who settled down there. The maps here are remasters of those from New Mystery of the Emblem (including a final version of the developers’ test map) and the Tellius duology (like the Toha escape chapter and the feared 3-13 defense map featuring the legendary AI sniper). Finally, the Shepherds stumble upon a hidden village full of warriors from all over Ylisse and Valm. They meet their leader, a foreign-looking man named Priam. He introduces himself as a prince from distant Tellius, although he would prefer not to use that title as he is uncomfortable with it. The sword strapped to his side is the blessed Ragnell, passed down from his ancestor the Radiant Hero, who was said to have killed a god with it long ago. One of his ancestors had decided to leave Tellius through what was called an “Outrealm” gate (used to access DLC content on the world map) which took them to another world. They settled down in Grust to train against talented opponents here. Chrom asks if he can join the Shepherds in their quest to defeat the fell dragon, since Ragnell has a history of killing gods before. Priam initially refuses, saying the Shepherds must prove their strength and worthiness against his men first.
Priam, descendant of Ike and Elincia
Battling Priam is considered one of the most difficult maps in the entire game and should only be attempted with a fully optimized team with endgame stats and the most powerful weapons and skills. Although the player is allowed to deploy thirty units, the largest deployment size ever, Priam will field at least fifty units, all with boss-level stats, weapons, and skills. The objective is to rout the enemy. The enemy AI is programmed to be more competent than usual and will take advantage of everything, including the pair up mechanic. Priam himself is incredibly dangerous with his Falcon Vanguard class, a combination of Ike’s and Elincia’s classes from Radiant Dawn. He is a high-movement pegasus knight who wields swords and staves. His base stats are the highest of any playable character, and his swords Amiti and Ragnell retain their original stats, special effects, and attack ranges. As he is a flier, he can ignore walls and terrain movement penalties and attack any of the Shepherds from halfway across the map. He also has a skill which removes the extra damage arrows inflict on fliers (ironically called “313 Shield”). But once he and his men are defeated, Priam recognizes the Shepherds’ strength and vows to help them defeat Grima. The tracks used in this sidequest are remixes of New Mystery and Tellius tracks. Priam’s supports focus on him sharing stories of Tellius and how different it is from Ylisse. With Chrom and Robin he talks about his royal ancestry and how he honestly sees it as a curse more than a blessing, and with certain other characters like Lon’qu, Gregor, and Cordelia he will talk about training and swordmastery. With Cordelia, Stahl, and Sully he will give them advice on how to improve the effectiveness of their triangle attack. With Lucina he talks about how his world had its own Fire Emblem before, although it was completely different from the Binding Shield of Ylisse.
Chrom pores over ancient legends in the royal library of Ylisstol, learning about the legendary Seliph who freed Jugdral from the tyrannical Arvis and the second coming of Loptyr, as well as his cousin Leif, who overcame adversity to bring lasting peace to Thracia. There are rumors their descendants may have survived the Schism, which laid waste to Jugdral and almost completely depopulated it. Robin urges him to reconsider embarking on a lengthy sea voyage they don’t have time for. However, Morgan tells her they don’t have to take a ship. They can just go to the Outrealm gate Priam described. If it can take people between worlds, it could be tweaked to take them somewhere else in the same world. Robin agrees to the plan. They head out to the Outrealm gate, a portal located in what was once Talys Island, now a peninsula jutting out from the mainland. Robin and Morgan figure out a way to change the portal’s connections to redirect them to the ruins of Belhalla in Jugdral (an attempt to open a path directly into Plegia to steal the Darksphere fails). They emerge in what was once Belhalla, finding the city completely destroyed and abandoned. Chrom wonders how such a large city, which in its heyday was even larger than Ylisstol and old Palles, could have been so utterly destroyed. Lucina begins realizing the true scale of Grima’s rampage a thousand years ago. It truly was a global event. They leave the ruins and explore the nearby villages, asking for any leads on the surviving “heir of light.” The villagers point them south to Chalphy. Contrary to the previous two paralogues, there are only two maps in this paralogue, one a large-scale map like in Crusaders of Light and another a small-scale map like in Thracia 776, with accompanying remixes. The Shepherds fight their way through hordes of bandits and roaming militias to make the trip from Belhalla to Chalphy. Along the way, they pass by the ruined castle that was once the home of House Friege, which Robin finds to be vaguely familiar in a way. At Chalphy, Chrom is surprised to see the town is largely intact and spared the destruction and lawlessness seen in the rest of Jugdral. They meet the town’s ruler, Marquess Juliana, a distant descendant of Seliph, Julia, and Leif.
(Juliana is also original, so try using this portrait of Julia from Awakening as a reference, only with brown hair.)
The holy sword Tyrfing and the Naga tome are placed next to her throne, symbolizing her descent from Seliph and his Baldr and Naga holy blood. Her brown hair shows her descent from Leif as well. Juliana is receptive to Chrom’s request for her help against Grima, her family having been almost wiped out in the Schism. But before she can commit to anything, an unexpectedly large bandit army attacks Chalphy. Juliana explains she has been at odds with a bandit leader operating in the nearby forests of what was once Verdane for years now, and they are jealous of Chalphy’s wealth and success. Now it appears they want to destroy Chalphy. Chrom and the Shepherds decide to help defend the town. The map is a remaster of the Tahra defense map from Thracia 776, and the objective is to again defend for several turns. The player will get Juliana as a playable character. She starts in the Light Crusader class, which uses swords and magic like Anselm’s Saint Lord. Her signature weapons are Tyrfing and the Book of Naga, which retain their stats, effects, and durability from Crusaders of Light. Juliana’s death will be a game over in this battle. Once the bandits are driven out, Juliana will thank the Shepherds for their assistance. She pledges to join them in their quest to defeat Grima, hoping to avenge the people of Jugdral and her ancestors who lost their lives in the Schism. It is her duty as a crusader to make sure darkness never returns to threaten the land and her people. She leaves the town in the capable hands of a friend and accompanies the Shepherds back to Belhalla and through the portal to Talys. Her supports focus more on Jugdrali lore, specifically relating to Seliph, Leif, and Arvis. Chrom learns from Juliana the stories he heard about Arvis were twisted over the centuries, and he wasn’t as bad as he was made out to be (he also learns Jugdral had its own Fire Emblem in House Velthomer’s family crest). Juliana recognizes Robin as a distant descendant of House Friege and possessing the family’s major holy blood, although the holy tome Mjolnir went missing during the Schism. Lucina is said to strongly resemble Seliph, while Tiki unnerves Juliana due to her family’s history with dragons. Her daughter, Tiana, comes back from the future to warn how Grima will wipe out the last traces of humanity in Jugdral. She has the Light Inheritor class, which is like Light Crusader but also allows her to use staves. (Due to Juliana’s ability to wield the holy weapons of both Seliph and Julia, the developers have had to strongly backtrack from the accidental implication the two half-siblings ultimately married each other. They insist the only way to do that in the original game was to exploit a glitch. In addition, Seliph already had Naga holy blood and a descendant of his could have either manifested major Naga holy blood or married one of Julia’s distant descendants with such holy blood.)
The fourth paralogue takes the Shepherds very far from Ylisse. A traveling merchant in Ylisstol tells Chrom a story about the legendary Young Lion of distant Elibe. The Young Lion was said to have been deemed worthy of wielding the legendary Blazing Blade, which he used to slay the dreaded Demon Dragon and prevent a second Scouring from devastating the continent. His descendants still rule over Elibe today. Interested in another possible ally, Chrom asks Robin and Morgan to again tweak the Outrealm gate to now take them to Elibe (another attempt at trying to teleport to the Darksphere’s location fails). They emerge from the portal in the woods outside Pherae, now a bustling city which is every bit the equal of Ylisstol. Lucina remarks unlike Jugdral, the entire area looks like it was completely untouched by the Schism. But as they approach the city, they are suddenly attacked by revolutionaries, who consider them supporters of the king. The Shepherds fight off the revolutionaries on a map that is a remaster of the first map from Blazing Blade (with accompanying battle music remixes), and at the end of the battle the Elibean army arrives, blasting the survivors with a combination of powerful magic spells and gunpowder weapons. Having never seen or heard gunpowder weapons before, the Shepherds are intimidated by the power of such guns. The army’s leader, Princess Elina, daughter of the king, thanks them for weakening the revolutionaries. The civil war in Elibe has been going on for some time, and the revolutionaries made worrying gains in the Lycian heartland recently. If not for the Shepherds, her ancestral home of Pherae would have been lost. As thanks, she takes them to Ostia, the capital and largest city in Elibe. On the way there, they fight more revolutionaries, which worries Elina as the enemy never reached this deep into Lycia before. They reach Ostia, and the Shepherds are amazed to see a city even larger and more prosperous than Ylisstol, which looks like a small town in comparison. There are even a few factories spewing smoke, which Elina explains will make their lives far easier. Inside, Chrom can see how magic and technology are blended in such a way as to produce high quality products and energy which powers the city’s machines, including crude rail-based “horseless carriages.” He asks how Elibe could have accomplished such amazing feats. Elina says Elibe was spared the devastation of the Schism due to its distance from Ylisse, and with the entire continent united under Lycia, they were free to stop worrying about wars and turn to cultural and scientific innovation. But the revolutionaries threaten all of the progress they have made. Based in the region of Etruria, they want to reverse Elibe’s industrialization and return to an older agrarian way of living, this time with Etruria and an Etrurian king now ruling over the continent instead of the Lycians. And it seems they are winning so far, having taken most of the west and north of Elibe and now marching on Lycia. They meet Elina’s father, a tall and stern purple-haired man who again thanks them for their assistance at Pherae. Chrom asks if he can spare them any troops to help with Grima in Ylisse. But although the king sympathizes with their plight, he is unable to commit troops to distant Ylisse while he has a civil war to win. And to prove his point, at that moment the revolutionaries’ main army attacks Ostia. Chrom rallies the Shepherds to help defend the city alongsid Elina and her troops. The map objective is to not only defend the castle gates but also to kill the boss, the revolutionaries’ general. This is a remaster of the Ostia defense map from Blazing Blade, with accompanying remixes of battle music.
(Another original character, but Elina would probably look like Lilina with purple hair.)
Elina becomes playable here. She starts in the Griffon Lord class, a combination of Roy’s and Lilina’s data-transferred classes from their game. It is an armored flying class using swords, axes, magic, and limited dragonstones much like Roy could. After the turn limit passes and the boss is killed, allied reinforcements arrive in the form of cannons which lay waste to the remaining enemy forces, who retreat. With their main army destroyed, the revolutionaries are suddenly put on the defensive. The king again thanks the Shepherds for their help but apologizes for not being able to help their cause, as he is now preparing for an offensive into Etruria to decisively end the civil war. Despite this, Elina secretly steals the family’s legendary weapons, the Blazing Blade and Forblaze, puts on Roy’s old headband and Lilina’s old hat, and joins the Shepherds in his place. Elina’s supports generally focus on the technological differences between modern Elibe and Ylisse. With Chrom she shares stories of the Scouring and how it was their version of the Schism, while the actual Schism never reached Elibe, and shows him the Fire Emblem of Elibe, which is still embedded in the hilt of the Blazing Blade. With Robin, her energetic and headstrong personality clashes a lot with Robin’s calm and reserved mentality, although Robin does remind her of her ancestor who married the Young Lion. With Tiki, she is excited to meet the daughter of Naga, who took the Divine Dragons and left Elibe during the Scouring, and for once she is the one asking for information about Elibean history, although Tiki was born long after Naga left Elibe and didn’t learn much about it. With Lucina, the two bond over their legendary swords and constantly duel to see who has the better sword (Elina claims victory because hers is on fire). Elina’s eagerness clashes, sometimes violently, with Cordelia’s perfectionism (a coping mechanism she developed after Phila’s death), although they eventually reconcile by discussing the differences between the Elibean and Ylissean triangle attacks and teaching Cordelia the Elibean style. Her son, Al, shares her class, spiky hair, and hotheaded personality. He can S support Tiana, although they don’t have a child of their own. His supports focus on how Elibe will not be spared by Grima, even with its advanced technology.
Anna
The fifth unique character is Anna herself. Previously a fourth wall breaking joke character who appeared in all previous games in various occupations (usually as a money loving merchant running secret shops hidden in certain battles), she is for the first time playable in Awakening. The first two maps in this sidequest are the same maps as Anna’s first appearances in Books 1 and 2 of Mystery of the Emblem, set in the same location in-universe. The third map is the one with her appearance in The Binding Blade, also set in Elibe. The tracks playing here are the remixes of the ones in the original maps. All maps feature Anna being attacked by bandits, but to not get a game over, the player must kill more bandits than the AI-controlled Anna, who is incredibly powerful relative to the enemies. Upon saving Anna each time, she claims to not know the Shepherds despite having met them previously and gives them the same reward. After the third map, Chrom corners Anna and demands an answer for why she never remembers them and always gives out the same reward. Anna reveals the Shepherds had met her identical sisters, each one a traveling merchant like her. Since she can’t just give them the same reward again, she decides to join them. That is, after they pay her well enough. Due to Morgan’s recruitment being a mandatory story event, Anna’s recruitment and S support with male Robin can only be achieved before attempting that map. This is because Morgan with Anna as her mother has almost the same portrait and model as Anna. Morgan and Anna’s supports are changed to focus on Anna trying to raise her daughter in the capitalistic ways of her sisters, while Morgan’s supports with Robin have him being very unnerved by her similarities to Anna. The only other case of Morgan’s appearance changing is if she reclasses to the manakete class if she is Tiki’s daughter (the only other way to get a second manakete), in which case she will wear young Tiki’s dress and tiara from New Mystery of the Emblem. Once this paralogue is finished, another version of Anna will appear at the Outrealm gate to comment on the DLC loaded and give out trivia about the franchise and her previous appearances. Most of Anna’s other supports are focused on her love for money as well as meta references to previous games (like Owain, she will sometimes outright say the titles to previous games or iconic dialogue) and her appearances. With Tiki she attempts to commercialize her role as the voice of Naga, to Tiki’s disapproval. With Lucina she wants to use her “tragic backstory” for an advertising campaign. With Chrom she offers to handle his “PR” for a “discounted” salary which is still very expensive. Robin pins her down with a discussion about logistics and the Shepherds’ finances and gets Anna to admit she and her sisters have been selling weapons and supplies to all sides in order to profit during the war. Although she tells Robin her sisters won’t stop doing it, she can at least give the Shepherds a discount (which halves the price of weapons and items sold in the base camp). Anna has no child character tied to her, although the different-looking Morgan comes close.
Some later DLC content allows the player to explore more of Jugdral, Valm, and Elibe. Other DLC present alternate scenarios, like a full mini-campaign about Lucina and her friends escaping Grima in the dark future.
Plot (endgame)
There are a series of maps on the way through the Plegian countryside, the capital, and then Dolhr Keep itself on the way to the Darksphere. All objectives here are to seize the target but with an added stealth requirement. Although the Shepherds’ benefactor has moved most of the troops away, there are still a few along their path. The Shepherds can either try to kill each soldier in one turn and out of the range of the others for experience, or they can stay out of their range and avoid them entirely. Visiting houses and villages on each map may give items and new recruits but also makes the soldiers far more suspicious and increases their AI’s aggression. If the Shepherds are spotted or any attacked soldier survives to the next enemy phase, the player gets a game over.
Without being spotted, they enter the castle vaults and take a moment to rest. Chrom is suspicious about the nature of their benefactor, while Robin again gets a strong feeling of dread. Following on dialogue from the previous chapter, Lucina expresses her dread over seeing the giant skull of Grima looming over the city, as it reminds her of the dark future. A cinematic plays where Lucina stands in the burning ruins of Ylisstol, desperately fighting off the constantly replenishing hordes of Risen. A beam of dark energy arcs down into the center of town and cuts a path of pure destruction across it. She looks up and sees Grima descending, its red eyes so big the smallest are easily the size of her old castle. It looks at her, one eye taking up the entire screen and making Lucina look tiny in comparison, and declares the age of humanity is over. Her parents are dead and all hope is lost. Grima demands Lucina submit, but she refuses, although she is clearly absolutely terrified. Grima lets out an eldritch roar and fires another blast at Lucina, who breaks down and screams in horror, ending the cinematic.
In the present, Lucina suffers a panic attack, and her parents and sister comfort her, promising they will avoid that future at all costs. They start searching the vaults for the Darksphere. Chrom tells Robin the Darksphere gives off malevolent energy and amplifies negative feelings. It could affect her feelings of dread. Robin catches on. If she is close to the Darksphere, her dread would increase. Although she would be making herself uncomfortable, she agrees to do it. However, she never gets any such feelings as they search. Morgan suddenly announces she found the Darksphere, pointing at a dark orb in a case and warning against touching it. But Robin immediately labels it a fake.
“Your skills do not disappoint me, daughter,” Validar says, walking into the vault, “But your allegiances do.” The Shepherds draw their weapons, but Grimleal cultists enter the vault and surround them. Validar laughs. Chrom accuses him of luring the Shepherds into a trap. He must have been responsible for opening up a path straight into the castle vaults. Validar admits he didn’t plan that, but it worked in his favor in the end, as he had suspected Chrom would pull such a trick. Now the prince of Ylisse, his wife, his two daughters, and the core of the Shepherds are stuck deep in Dolhr Keep, right in the middle of the Plegian capital, right in the middle of the entire country. He offers them safe passage out of Plegia in exchange for the Fire Emblem, but Chrom doesn’t have it. But Validar reveals Chrom never even had a choice to hand it over, as he already has it. His assassins had infiltrated Furia and killed Basilio, taking the Fire Emblem from him (as a scripted battle shows).
Chrom is shocked, while Lucina tries to suppress another panic attack, fearing history hasn’t been changed at all. He will now kill them and harvest their quintessence to increase the power of the rite of Awakening. Robin realizes the rite of Awakening can also resurrect Grima. Validar laughs and commends his daughter for remembering at least part of her original purpose. He adds the rite of Awakening still needs a perfect mortal vessel to channel Grima’s power, which Robin horrifying realizes is her. Validar reveals she is the latest in a long line of potential vessels for Grima, selectively bred over the generations solely to resurrect the fell dragon. None, not even Validar himself, were perfect, until Robin came along. She is perfect, the culmination of all of their plans. That is what the Fell Brand on her hand symbolizes. Her destiny is to be a god. But her mother didn’t understand. She sacrificed her life to take the baby Robin and escape the Grimleal, passing her to a family on the outside. Robin vaguely begins remembering living with that family. Validar asks Robin to join the Grimleal and accept her destiny, to become a god instead of pointlessly dying with these wretched servants of Naga. Robin immediately refuses, now considering Chrom and her daughters more her family than Validar ever was or will be. Her real life began when Chrom found her in that field, and she would not trade him or Lucina or Morgan for godhood. “I am not your god,” she declares, “Not today.”
Validar sighs. He had expected this response. He tells Robin he is disappointed with what his daughter has become. But he will not be denied. If she won’t willingly submit, then he will force her to. He calls in the Hierophant, the supreme leader of the Grimleal. The Hierophant enters the room, and everyone is shocked to see she is identical to Robin, only radiating a shadowy dark aura. Robin demands to know who the Hierophant is and why she looks identical to her, but Validar refuses to answer, only saying it is time for her to submit. The Hierophant raises her hand, and Robin clutches her head in pain. Her body begins moving on her own and draws her weapon, which she points at Chrom. Validar orders her to kill Chrom.
Suddenly, Gangrel charges into the room and stabs the Hierophant with his Levin Sword. Although she is unharmed by the attack, it breaks her concentration and allows Robin to regain control of herself. Gangrel begins attacking the other Grimleal and tells Chrom he’s repaying the favor from last year by buying them time to escape. Chrom realizes Gangrel himself was their secret contact and thanks him before fleeing. Validar orders a cultist to warp him to the Dragon’s Table to start the rite of Awakening. As soon as he leaves, the other cultists attack Gangrel, who goes down swinging. The next battle has an escape objective, and the Shepherds must fight their way out of Dolhr Keep while being pursued by the Grimleal. Once they escape the castle, soldiers loyal to Gangrel arrive and escort them to a safe location outside the city, where they get some rest. Robin apologizes for not being able to resist the Hierophant’s control, but Chrom refuses to listen to it. He insists she save the rest of their energy for pursuing Validar to the Dragon’s Table and stopping the ritual. But Robin urges him to leave her behind. All of them saw how the Hierophant could control her. She could do it again and finish the job. Chrom tells her the Hierophant never had full control, and Robin can still fight back. What matters now is taking back the Fire Emblem and interrupting Validar’s ritual. It’s not too late for Robin to put an end to all of this. Robin agrees to at least try.
Lucina asks her mother if she can have a word with her. She explains in her time, Chrom died when she was very young, and she doesn’t have many memories of him other than what other people told her. Her future was robbed of a very great man, and she will not let it happen here. She asks for forgiveness and points Falchion at her. Robin demands to know what is going on. Lucina put the pieces together and figured out the one who betrayed Chrom in her future was none other than Robin herself. She didn’t want to believe it, but everything lined up. Robin’s visions of killing Chrom, the Hierophant’s powers, and her ties to Grima and Validar all mean she is the one responsible. But if the present-day Chrom is right, they still have time to change history and avoid that fate. And to do that, sacrifices must be made. She apologizes and knows this means killing her own mother, but she has no choice. Robin fully understands. She tells Lucina she would gladly give her life for Chrom and her daughter. She bows her head and asks to make it quick. She has already made her peace. But Lucina falters and drops Falchion, unable to follow through. She apologizes for the matter, but Robin tells her there is nothing to be forgiven about. Chrom arrives, having heard everything. He tells Lucina he still trusts Robin. She underestimates the strength of the ties between them. The two of them would die to protect each other. They had sworn to be two halves of a greater whole. They had promised to always stand by each other. No amount of fate is going to separate them. Together, they can change their destiny. Lucina hopes he is right.
The next day, they wake up to see a large crowd of Plegians leaving the city, heading in the direction of the Dragon’s Table, from which a large beam of light is emanating. Lucina asks one of the Plegians what they are doing, and he replies Grima will destroy the current world and recreate it in its own image. Those who submit to Grima will live on in the new world. Chrom begins realizing there is more to the Grimleal faith than he was taught. They earnestly believe bringing back Grima will bring about a new world, and their faith will be rewarded. The crusade his father waged no doubt drove the Plegians straight into the Grimleal’s arms. He does sympathize with the Plegians’ plight, being so desperate after that war they had no choice but to believe Grima was their only hope. It is another reminder he must break the cycle of hatred. But for now, the Shepherds know there is no new world waiting for the faithful, only death. They know what Grima will do in the future, and they must prevent that future from happening.
The Shepherds follow the crowd to the large and imposing Dragon’s Table, which was once known as the Dragon’s Altar. The tower was built many ages ago by Naga to house the Earth Dragons after their rebellion when dragonkind began degenerating following the Scouring. It was said the Dolhr emperor Medeus got his start as a guard here after betraying his people before he also turned on Naga and humankind and was put down by Falchion. It was said the Earth Dragons would have woken up around the time of the Schism, but they never emerged from the Dragon’s Altar. Built with a sturdy and efficient design intended to contain dragons, it was one of the few ancient buildings which survived the Schism almost fully intact. The Grimleal took over the tower soon afterward and made it their main place of worship, renaming it the Dragon’s Table for some reason. The menacing beam of light emits from the top of the tower, no doubt showing the rite of Awakening and Grima’s resurrection is in progress.
The Dragon's Table with Grima's resurrection in progress
Aversa and an army of Risen await the Shepherds at the entrance to the Dragon’s Table. She welcomes the Shepherds to their deaths and Robin to her true destiny. Chrom insists he will not die today, while Robin again rejects what the Grimleal has in store for her. Aversa laughs, saying their destiny is already written. They can’t change their fate, as Lucina learned. Lucina replies with “I challenge my fate!” Aversa commends her devotion, but it is in vain, as Grima will rise and bring about a new world free of the taint of Naga. She points to the Plegians filing into the tower and hails their faith. They will live on in the new world…but as part of Grima itself. Their quintessence will be offered up as part of the rite of Awakening. That is why it is called the Dragon’s Table. It is where Grima fed on the Earth Dragons to absorb their quintessence during the Schism, and now it is where Grima feeds on its Plegian devotees, who willingly offer up their lives and quintessence to it. She orders the Risen and the Plegian crowds to attack the Shepherds and harvest their quintessence as well.
The main objective of this map is to kill Aversa, which will also kill all of the Risen she spawns. As long as she is alive, Aversa will continue summoning Risen from the dead Risen as well as any Plegians killed. The player gets incentives for sparing as many human Plegians as possible. After a certain number of turns, Basilio appears and joins the roster. Chrom and Robin are surprised he survived the Grimleal’s attack. Basilio apologizes for not being able to protect the Fire Emblem, but the Lifesphere embedded in the shield reduced the damage the assassins inflicted on him and healed his wounds too quickly for them to be fatal, although he admits they were still painful and took a while to heal. Feroxi train from childhood to prepare for the return of the fell dragon, and now the day has come to put that training to use. Upon defeat, Aversa simply laughs. With her final breath, she declares her death will only help Grima, as her quintessence will be offered up to Grima as well. It is an honor for her to finally join Grima and aid in its return. Meanwhile, Robin’s visions of killing Chrom return, only more vivid and now strongly urging her to do it.
The Shepherds enter the Dragon’s Table and go up several flights of stairs, eventually reaching a large room where Validar and other Grimleal gather around a large altar. Robin recognizes the place as the altar from her dream and feels an unprecedented wave of uneasiness sweep over her. She asks to stay back, but Chrom assures her he will protect her just as they promised. Validar welcomes the Shepherds for making it this far. He thanks them for delivering themselves and their quintessence straight to him, saving him the trouble of going after them. The combined quintessence of the Shepherds would be a vastly better and more effective offering than the thousands of Plegians behind them. Chrom refuses to let the slaughter continue. He will not let Validar continue the ritual any longer. Validar nods. He knows Chrom will try. But there is no use in fighting a lost cause.
Humanity is irredeemably corrupt. He saw such corruption and decadence during the crusade. Humanity does not deserve to rule itself. It has shown itself to be weak and violent, prone to outbursts and brutalities against each other. His goal as the high priest of the Grimleal is to save the nonbelievers from themselves through submission to Grima. Chrom says he is wrong. Humans may be cruel to each other, but there are those who show mercy and kindness. There are those who fix their mistakes. Some work together to improve themselves and each other. And the bonds between them can overcome even a future that is all but assured. He points Falchion at Validar. It is his duty as Exalt to defend his people against men like him. Validar invites him to try. His original plan was to manipulate Gangrel into invading Ylisse and eliminating the bloodline of the Hero-King so nobody can use Falchion. It’s nice of him to deliver the two heirs of Falchion (not counting Morgan because she is not always Chrom’s child) right in front of him. He summons an army of Risen and orders the cultists to attack. Imhullu and the holy thunder tome Mjolnir appear in his hands, and a mixture of dark magic and divine lightning arcs through the room.
As with the previous chapter, the battle is against Validar, several Grimleal, and Risen they constantly summon. Validar is again armed with Imhullu, but due to the proximity of the Starsphere and Lightsphere, its power of invulnerability has been watered down to just a reduction of damage. His Mjolnir tome as as powerful as its Crusaders of Light incarnation. If Chrom attacks, he continues his previous speech, insisting humanity has no need for cruel gods like Grima. Validar dares him to show him the limits of mortals in the face of divine power. If Robin attacks, Validar refuses to believe she would really attack him, but Robin does not hesitate to do so. She says Validar is no longer part of her family. Chrom and her daughters are. If Lucina attacks, Validar mocks her for being unable to prevent the bad future, but Lucina says their fight isn’t over yet. If Morgan attacks, Validar is confused by her existence. Morgan cheerfully introduces herself as his granddaughter and declares she will protect her mother from a creep like him.
Chrom fighting Validar
After a heated battle, the Shepherds defeat the Grimleal, and Validar falls to the floor. Chrom turns to Robin and tells her Validar is finally gone. Thanks to her, they’ve prevailed today. Now they can turn to focusing on the rite of Awakening and putting an end to—Chrom suddenly stops when he realizes Robin stabbed him in the heart. As he dies, he tells Robin it is not her fault. Validar gets to his feet and cackles. There was no way Robin would avoid her fate. Eventually it would lead her back to her destiny as Grima’s chosen. Human bonds mean nothing. They can’t stop fate. Lucina drops her Falchion and falls to her knees. Losing hope, she realizes everything she has done was worthless in the end. Validar walks over and tells her she put in extra effort to avoid her future, forgetting the fact that the future had to already exist in order for her to travel back from it. He summons more Risen and orders them to put an end to—Validar suddenly stops when he realizes Robin stabbed him in the heart as well. “Here’s how it’s done,” she tells him. Chrom gets to his feet and reveals Robin weakened her attack so he could survive, while Robin adds she managed to resist the voices in her head. That is the power of human bonds, allowing them to avoid their fate. Validar curses their deception and declares even if he dies, his quintessence will still go to benefit Grima, and there’s nothing they can do to stop the ritual now. Soon, the fell dragon will return. He falls to the floor. Chrom declares they have truly won this time and changed their destiny. With Validar actually dead and Robin back in control of herself, it’s time for them to end this and stop the ritual. As they pass Validar’s body, Robin looks at the Mjolnir tome. She picks it up and feels its energy surge through her. Somehow, she can make full use of the holy weapon. She decides to take it with her.
They continue up the stairs to the next floor, where they find the Fire Emblem placed on an altar, all five orbs glowing and channeling massive amounts of quintessence upwards. The Hierophant stands in front of the Fire Emblem. She refuses to believe they have changed their fate. Although they changed the course of history like one can redirect a river, they can’t change history’s destination, just like the river’s ultimate destination. It is still written that Chrom dies in this tower at Robin’s hands…or more precisely, her own. Chrom demands to know who the Hierophant really is. The Hierophant explains she is Robin, the Robin who killed him and became the fell dragon in the future. No, she is no longer Robin but Grima herself. When Lucina traveled back in time, Grima also traveled back in time to ensure her own existence. The dreams and visions Robin has had, the voices she has heard…that was all Grima. When she arrived in the present day, she telepathically connected to the present day Robin, intending to merge into one consciousness, but her heart was too weak to contain Grima’s power, and instead the attempt wiped her memory. And now Robin has abandoned her birthright. She was supposed to choose godhood over pitiful humanity. Robin refuses to join her. She doesn’t want to be a god. She wants to be herself. She wants to protect her family and people. Humans deserve to live for themselves, free of gods like Grima. That is what the Hero-King’s family, those chosen by Falchion, has fought to protect for generations. That is what she chooses to protect now that she has found who she really is. Not Grima. Not a god. Not the fell dragon. But plain and simple Robin. Grima sighs. They really did take different paths. But her own path is still set. If Robin won’t claim the quintessence gathered, she will instead. Grima absorbs the quintessence. There is a flash of light, and the tower shakes. Grima disappears. Her voice echoes through the foundations of the tower: “I AM THE WINGS OF DESPAIR. I AM THE BREATH OF RUIN. I AM THE FELL DRAGON, GRIMA.”
Thinking quickly, Tiki tells Chrom to do the rite of Awakening now. They don’t have enough time to go back to Mount Prism as the First Exalt did, but perhaps there is enough magical energy coursing through the Dragon’s Table to reach out to Naga. Chrom steps forward to claim the Fire Emblem from the altar. Lucina follows him, intending on doing the rite alongside him. Tiki warns the rite was intended for one person, but Lucina refuses to back down. Grima had followed her back in time, and she must help her father defeat her. Tiki sighs. This has never been done before like this, but she will do her best to guide the process. She sits and meditates. Chrom takes the Fire Emblem and straps it to his arm. He shouts out and asks Naga to baptize him and his daughter in fire, so they may receive the power of the Divine Dragons. The two are immediately engulfed in roaring flames, but they are unharmed. The flames die down, and Naga appears before them. She has deemed them worthy of receiving power to defeat Grima. With her blessing, she renews the pact the First Exalt made with her and channels her power to Chrom and Lucina. She blesses their Falchions, restoring the blade with the power it was given when the First Exalt did the rite. The two weapons gain boosted stats and the ability to restore a small amount of HP to Chrom and Lucina every turn.
Chrom asks if this will be enough to kill Grima. Naga apologizes. She may be called a deity, but she does not possess the power to destroy Grima. The power she bestowed upon Falchion likewise cannot kill Grima. The only thing that can be done is to seal her away and put her to sleep for a thousand years, like the First Exalt did. However, she believes there may be another way that could permanently end Grima…herself. Grima would have to destroy herself. But she would never do that. Lucina insists they must find a way to break the cycle. They can’t keep putting Grima back to sleep. They’d only be shifting the burden onto their descendants. Robin steps forward, realizing she knows what to do. Since she and Grima are the same, if she lands the final blow, then it would technically count as Grima killing herself. Naga thinks about it and concludes it might work, but there is a drawback. Since Robin and Grima are connected, killing Grima would inevitably mean killing Robin as well.
Chrom immediately rejects the idea, insisting he will find another way. Robin tells him he should think about what Emmeryn would have wanted. Chrom replies Emmeryn would never have wanted this. Robin replies it’s either her life or the future of humanity. Millions of lives are at stake. Chrom urges her to reconsider. She is a Shepherd. She will always be a Shepherd. Shepherds never leave each other behind. That is what they in particular swore with each other when they married. They would never leave each other behind. They would never let anything come between them. They would not let each other end up like Emmeryn. They have to stay for their daughters (and speaking of which, Morgan hasn’t even been born yet). He asks Robin to remember their vows. Robin remembers, but she isn’t sure if she can keep them when all of humanity is at stake. Naga tells her she doesn’t have much time to deliberate. They must reach the top of the Dragon’s Table and confront Grima. She disappears, wishing the Shepherds luck. The Shepherds continue up the stairs. Chrom begins seeing some visions of his own. He sees Marth climbing the stairs of the Dragon’s Altar in his time, cutting down Medeus while he is being resurrected in much the same way Grima just was. Chrom instinctively changes his grip and stance to mirror Marth’s.
They reach the next floor, which is the place where Gharnef had attempted to revive Medeus at the end of the War of Heroes. Medeus’ skeleton still lies in the middle of the room, right where Marth had struck down the dreaded Shadow Dragon for good. Grima appears in human form, levitating near the ceiling while surrounded with an even more intense dark aura. She looks down on Medeus’ skeleton and calls the old tyrant a failure. All he had wanted was to rule over humans as their emperor. He underestimated their power, and that cost him his life. But Grima won’t make the same mistake. She doesn’t seek to rule. She seeks to dominate, to destroy, to be the supreme being. She is perfection incarnate. And all humans will submit before her, their rightful god. There is no stopping her now. The world’s fate is sealed. Lucina raises Falchion and declares nothing is sealed yet. Grima laughs and expresses her annoyance. She dares her to at least try and put on a good show fighting against some familiar faces. If they survive, they can at least get the honor of dying at her hand. She summons an army of Risen…from the dead Earth Dragons scattered throughout the tower. Grima explains the Earth Dragons had “graciously” offered up their quintessence to her a thousand years ago, and now they “volunteer” their bodies to defend her. For the first time in two thousand years, Medeus stirs, now cloaked in Grima’s shadowy aura, and lets out a distorted draconic roar. More Risen Earth Dragons break through the walls and claw up from the floors below to surround them. Grima disappears again, mockingly wishing them luck. Seeing more memories from Marth, Chrom adopts the same strategy and stance the Hero-King used (mirroring how Roy saw memories of Hartmut during his final battle against Idunn and took inspiration).
This battle has one of the few rout objectives in the game. The Shepherds must defeat Medeus and all of the Risen Earth Dragons. The initial placement of the Shepherds and enemy units, as well as the map itself, is identical to the final map of New Mystery of the Emblem, and the music playing is a distorted remix of that map’s theme. Medeus’ stats are significantly boosted as long as there are at least four other Earth Dragons still alive, and he can’t be killed as long as there are any Earth Dragons still alive. Fortunately, he does not move from his starting position, allowing the player to focus on the other enemies. Reinforcements will come every turn until characters are sent to block their spawn tiles, though occasionally the Fire Emblem will despawn some. Medeus’ boss dialogue is extremely distorted and barely understandable. If Chrom attacks, Medeus recognizes him as a descendant of Anri, asking if he plans to defy him once more. Chrom replies he is only here to put Medeus out of his misery. If Lucina attacks, Medeus says she strongly reminds him of a particularly troublesome human. Lucina admits she isn’t Marth, but she will do her best to honor the Hero-King’s legacy. If Robin attacks, Medeus asks if a mere human such as herself dares defy him. Robin smiles. She likes being called a mere human. If Chrom or Lucina land the final blow, they gets a special animation where an apparition of Marth appears next to them, and they carry out perfectly synchronized attacks, stabbing their Falchions into Medeus’ skull. Upon defeat, Medeus lets out a string of gibberish made up of phrases taken from his dialogue in previous games before dissolving into dust. Once again, the Shadow Dragon, now a dragon literally made of shadow, has fallen before the might of Falchion.
With the Earth Dragons finally put to rest again, the Shepherds continue to the next floor. There, Grima commends them for making it past the Earth Dragons. But can they make it past her most powerful Risen? She personally created these “Deadlords” with her own power, based on a magical formula first developed in old Jugdral, and imbued them with greater strength and durability than the average Risen. But that’s not all. She has also used the corpses of people the Shepherds may be familiar with. Several Deadlords appear and approach them, and the Shepherds soon realize just what Grima meant. There are some familiar enemies among them, like Aversa, Validar, Gangrel, and Mustafa. But there are also people who had once fought alongside the Shepherds, like Phila and her squad, Flavia and her men, and Emmeryn herself, which shocks Chrom and Lissa. But most shocking of all are the rest of the Deadlords, who are the Shepherds themselves. Lucina and her friends recognize them as not the present day Shepherds but as their own parents from the future, led by a “Risen King” Chrom. All are armed with either dark versions of their weapons or foreign-looking weapons Chrom recognizes from his history books as the holy weapons of Jugdral, or at least dark versions of those as well. Grima heads to the next floor and tells them to have fun.
Risen King Chrom
As with the previous battle, the objective is to rout the enemy. The map layout and enemy and Shepherds starting positions strongly resemble those from the final map of Crusaders of Light. All enemies on the map are named and have the same final stats as their original counterparts, only boosted by five points each (more in higher difficulties). Their dark weapons are also slightly stronger than their original versions. The holy weapons retain their durabilities and original strengths as well as the stat boosts they granted in Crusaders of Light. All of the Shepherds and their children have unique boss dialogue against their counterparts or others connected to them (like Cordelia with her Deadlord counterpart, Aversa, Phila, and Chrom). Eventually, the Shepherds prevail over the Deadlords and continue up the stairs.
They emerge at the top of the Dragon’s Table and look up, seeing Grima in her draconic form. Just like in the legends, it is massive. With six feathery wings, six red eyes, no legs, two demonic horns pointing forward, and a dark black body, it barely looks like a dragon. Robin can barely see the entire body from her current position. Grima casts a gigantic shadow over the whole tower and much of the surrounding area. It is easily as large as a small island. The same shadowy aura surrounds Grima, occasionally emitting bolts of red lightning. Grima lets out a demonic roar which echoes across the entire country, reverberating through the ancient stone foundations of the Dragon’s Table. It begins blasting the ground with beams of dark energy, leaving only devastation in its wake. Lissa fears they can’t even face Grima like this. She could easily just crash into the tower and crush them all. But Chrom isn’t deterred and vows they can still defeat Grima. Frederick replies fighting Grima is just as effective as fighting a mountain. Naga appears again and informs them she has remembered a weakness the First Exalt exploited in her own battle. Grima has a vulnerable point on the back of her neck. However, that area will be heavily guarded. All Naga can do is teleport them to near the area and ward them so they won’t fall off or be harmed if Grima rolls over or tries to crush them, but they will have to handle everything else themselves. Chrom immediately asks her to do it.
The Shepherds are teleported up onto Grima’s back. They are immediately surrounded by shadow apparitions, extensions of Grima’s draconic form, led by Grima’s human form. She glares at Chrom, calling him a wretched servant of Naga who will be destroyed. Chrom simply looks at Robin and asks if she is ready for their final battle. Robin takes his hand and agrees it’s time to finish this. Grima, however, doesn’t wait, and before the Shepherds can react, she attacks and reduces them all to 1 HP. Chrom groans, wondering what kind of forbidden magic could be so strong. Grima gloats Robin’s struggle is useless. Her human bonds are meaningless. She has changed nothing. Robin retorts they aren’t dead yet. Grima decides it’s time she fixed that…unless Robin makes a deal. Submit to Grima and she will spare the Shepherds. Robin refuses. Grima had expected as much and absorbs her into a dark void. Her mind and soul belong to Grima, and soon, she will be merged with Grima as it should be. Robin continues refusing, but she soon realizes it is useless. She is stuck in a void with nothing. She can’t fight anything, she can’t move anywhere, she can’t hear or see anything. There is nothing to do. At that moment, she starts hearing the words of the Shepherds, urging her to not give up and to fight back. Chrom urges her to keep on fighting, just as they promised. Holding on to Chrom’s words, she summons the strength to finally break free, climbing out of the void back onto Grima’s back. Naga calls on the Shepherds to rise and take her power so they can finally face the fell dragon. Everyone’s HP is restored, and the battle begins.
The first thing the player notices about the final battle, other than it taking place on a small portion of Grima’s back and the objective being to kill Grima, is the music, set against the wind blowing in the background. It starts out as low pitched male chanting in Latin, which translates to Grima mocking the human spirit and demanding Robin to submit. In the background is Robin’s leitmotif, struggling to be heard over the chanting. As the Shepherds advance, the chanting diminishes and Robin’s leitmotif grows stronger. Once the player has passed the halfway point of the map, female voices begin singing a sad but determined adaptation of the Fire Emblem theme in minor key, with the lyrics telling of Chrom and Lucina’s determination to change their fate (as well as being a farewell to the franchise as a whole, as this would be the final Fire Emblem track ever). The theme plays side by side with Robin’s leitmotif, neither of them dominating over the other. And once the player approaches Grima’s human form, the chanting is completely drowned out by both Robin’s leitmotif and the Fire Emblem theme, which grows more confident and triumphant.
There are also some special graphics on this map. As Chrom advances across the map, an apparition of Marth will slowly become more solid next to him and eventually begin acting as a pair up unit if not already paired up, providing guards and secondary attacks at the same rate as provided by S supports. Sully, Cordelia, and Stahl will have the same thing with Palla (and sometimes Cain), Catria, and Est (and sometimes Abel), powering up the damage they deal with their signature Triangle Attack. If Robin is married to Chrom, her apparition is Caeda, otherwise Cordelia’s second apparition is Caeda. Frederick begins seeing Jagen, while Ricken sees Merric, Lon’qu sees the Scarlet Swordsman Navarre, and Lissa sees Marth’s sister Elice, among others. If not already paired up, this provides them a leg up against the shadows surrounding Grima.
Finally, it is time to face the fell dragon itself. In addition to its character model, which is a shadowy clone of Robin’s, the dragon itself attacks as part of the animations, its gigantic head and long neck turning around to blast the target. Grima’s powerful draconic attacks, Expiration and Dark Spikes, ignore the defense and resistance stats entirely and deal significant damage that can’t be reduced. Her stats are extremely high, with her HP so high it is represented with “???”. Her skills halve the damage taken, and she can attack from five spaces away. But by now the player should have the tools they need to win the battle. Any damage done by Robin, Tiki, the three Falchions, the Blazing Blade, Forblaze, the Naga and Mjolnir tomes, Tyrfing, and Ragnell is unaffected.
Chrom, Lucina, Robin, and Morgan have unique dialogue. If Chrom attacks, he declares he is here to end the fell dragon. Grima replies she IS the end. If Lucina attacks, she vows not to lose to Grima again so that the future can remain free. Grima replies Lucina can’t slay what may never die. If Morgan attacks, Grima is briefly confused as Morgan is clearly connected to Grima and yet not Grima at the same time. Morgan apologizes for hurting her mother (or father if Robin is male), recognizing her parent from the future, and promises to put her out of her misery. If Robin attacks, Grima again demands she submit and return to her. Robin says nothing. Once Grima’s HP is brought to below half, the armor on the draconic form’s head shatters, revealing a grotesque human-like face. Her stats and attack power are then increased even higher. Eventually, the Shepherds bring Grima’s human form to her knees, exposing the weak spot. Grima is now powerless to stop them. Chrom steps forward and raises Falchion, intending to finish the fell dragon off. Here, the player is presented with a choice between letting him land the final blow or having Robin intervene, which influences the ending.
If the player chooses to not stop Chrom, he triggers his Aether skill and plunges Falchion into the weak spot. Grima’s human form screams in anguish before dissolving into wisps of smoke, while the dragon form loses altitude and crashes into the ground below. Getting to his feet, Chrom pulls out Falchion and looks at the dragon’s lifeless body. He declares the Shepherds have done the impossible, defeating Grima without sacrificing anybody’s life. Although Grima may return in a thousand years, he is confident the exalt at the time will overcome the fell dragon again just as he did. He tells his fellow Shepherds the war is finally over. Their dark and bleak future has been decisively averted. The Risen will no longer trouble Ylisse. He thanks them for always fighting at his side. Together, they have triumphed over the forces of evil. Everybody cheers and says a few words. Robin still feels a little guilty over not sacrificing herself. She could have ensured her bloodline would never threaten humanity again. But instead, she is alive. Chrom won’t lie. Her death may spare the future further suffering. But he knows for sure the present will be robbed of someone very special. He’s glad she made the right choice and stayed with them. They need her now to rebuild the present and to look forward to the future. Character epilogues are largely the same in both endings, with some exceptions. Lucina takes up an advisory position for her present day infant counterpart and officially renounces her claim to the throne to prevent a succession crisis against herself. Morgan becomes one of Ylisse’s finest tacticians with her mother’s guidance (and takes it upon herself to be a big sister to her present day self, born shortly after the final battle, and the present day Lucina). It is stated in Chrom’s epilogue here his descendant would not be up to the task, and humanity in the future is wiped out by Grima. Chrom himself dedicated the rest of his life as exalt to rebuilding Ylisse and Plegia and lead the two kingdoms out of the shadow of his father, with Robin at his side.
The remains of Grima in Chrom's ending
If the player intervenes, Robin pushes him aside and readies the Mjolnir tome. Chrom, shocked, asks her to stand down, but Robin refuses. Grima is also shocked, insisting Robin would not dare kill herself to stop her. But Robin won’t back down. For once, she is glad she is Grima, because now she can give her life to protect those she loves. She shares some blame for the actions Grima has done. It’s only right Robin takes her down with her. Robin kisses Chrom and hugs her daughters one last time, telling them she loves them, and then turns back to Grima. “Time to tip the scales,” she says. Robin blasts the weak spot with divine lightning, and Grima’s human form dissolves into shadowy wisps, cursing Naga for defeating her again. The dragon form loses altitude. Robin falls to her knees, her own body starting to vanish. Chrom rushes to her side, urging her to hang on. Robin smiles one more time and thanks him for everything he’s done for her. She asks him to tell the other Shepherds and their daughters she was thinking of them in her final moments. Robin disappears, and Chrom cries in anguish just as the dragon crashes into the ground. Getting to his feet, he somberly tells the others of Robin’s sacrifice, which saved their world and the one to come. Everybody says a few words to mourn her sacrifice. Chrom adds Robin secured the most precious gift for them, a future. Now it falls upon them to protect that future. He vows to give his all to repairing the damage this war has brought to the continent. He will heal the wounds and bridge the gap between Ylisse and Plegia, so they can finally move past their centuries of hatred into a new era of peace. If Robin is watching, he wants her to see what he has done in her name. She will always be a Shepherd.
Chrom looks out over Grima's body in Robin's ending
If married to her, Chrom’s character ending states he spent the rest of his life searching for Robin (but with Grima permanently dead, humanity’s future is saved). Lucina steps away from public life and retires to a comfortable country estate to not interfere in history more than necessary, but she asks Chrom to give his baby daughter the life she never had. Morgan can frequently be seen laying flowers at Robin’s grave, promising she will keep studying tactics as best as she can to honor her memory (her present day self will never have been born, and this has caused significant fan debate over how she was even born in the dark future). Robin’s character ending only lists her unit battle data and a short note saying how her sacrifice and great love for Chrom inspired many stories to come.
Reception
In its first week released in China, Awakening sold approximately 2,426,000 copies, easy meeting its quota and rivaling the lifetime sales of previous entries in the series. Awakening was also number one on the Chinese game charts for its first week. In the following weeks, Awakening managed to stay high on Chinese charts. It sold through 81.63% of its initial shipment, causing sell-outs in some stores. Sales tracker Media Create attributed the initial high sales to an unprecedented promotional campaign and a five-year wait since Radiant Dawn for the next non-remake installment. Demand for the limited Chinese bundle also exceeded Rentiantang’s expectations, as the pre-order website crashed from the sheer number of people trying to buy it. As marketing the game as any product other than a limited edition would have violated a Chinese commercial law, Rentiantang was unable to reopen the pre-orders after the initial sales period despite many complaints. By the beginning of 2013, the game had sold 4,552,680 units, placing it among the top 30 high-selling titles for 2012. Rentiantang reported 12 million units of downloadable content had been sold by September 2012, bringing in an additional 380 million yuan.
In a level unprecedented for the series' international incarnation, the European release was in high demand before and at release with high numbers of pre-orders placed; this resulted in the physical release being marred by shipping delays, with demand far outstripping supply at the release date. Overseas sales were equally good. During its first month on sale in Europe, the game sold 1.8 million units, with 630,000 units of the total sales being digital downloads. These figures gave Awakening the best ever first month sales for the franchise in Europe. Sales continued to rise in the coming months, with the total figure reaching 2.4 million units by April, including a further 200,000 digital sales. By September, total sales in Europe had reached four million units. Famitong scored Awakening at 36/40, broken down between its four reviewers as 9/10 each.
Awakening received widespread critical acclaim from international reviewers. The game currently has a rating of 92 on Metacritic and 92.52% on GameRankings, both the highest of any installment in series. A common theme of critical praise for Awakening is its success at striking an ideal balance between accessibility for those new to the series and the high intricacy and difficulty for which the series is known. VSN’s Audrey Drake awarded a score of 9.6/10 to Awakening, commenting, "Boasting both the depth and nuance that tactical RPG fans crave and the ease-of-use and fluid tutorial system that newcomers require, Awakening is the ultimate portable strategy RPG, and the new crowning jewel of the 3DS’s fledgling library." Chris Carter (not to be confused with the TV producer) gave Awakening a score of 9/10, saying: "While Fire Emblem Awakening may not turn the notch up to 11, it's everything that's right about strategy RPGs. Whatever options you choose to go with at the beginning of the game, it's either one of the most accessible strategy games to date, or one of the most difficult." Awakening was placed on GameSpot's list of the best games on the 3DS, and reached second place on a similar list by GameTrailers. VSN included the game on two different lists: it reached #2 on their list of the top 25 3DS games, and #21 on their list of the top 125 Rentiantang games of all time. Slant Magazine's staff ranked it the eleventh best video game of 2013. Famitong said in its review that the game could be enjoyed by hardcore fans and newcomers alike, as it made accommodations for both, and particularly praised the new gameplay features. Other critics said though the Fire Emblem series had changed little over the years while holding a place of respect within the genre, the changes Intelligent Systems implemented made Awakening "an engrossing title that should enjoy impressive shelf life." Some criticized the enemy AI, which occasionally unbalanced the gameplay. Ray Carsillo of Electronic Gaming Monthly called Awakening "probably the best overseas Fire Emblem yet.” Awakening was nominated for multiple awards after release.
Legacy
The game's strong sales, well exceeding the figures set by Rentiantang during production, ultimately saved the franchise from cancellation. In January 2015, a new Fire Emblem title created for the 3DS by the same core team as Awakening, an Awakening prequel titled The Exalt’s Duty, was announced for a worldwide release in late 2016. The success of Awakening has been credited with popularizing the 3DS among other Chinese RPG publishers, such as Square Enix and Atlus.
Awakening's success has resulted in characters making appearances in other Rentiantang games. Lucina, Robin, and Chrom were featured as fighters in subsequent incarnations of the Super Smash Bros fighting game (with Morgan, a fan favorite, appearing as part of Robin’s Final Smash to represent the pair up mechanic). The three were also bonus characters in the Intelligent Systems-produced Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. (a game inspired by The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and the Cthulhu Mythos) and have cameos in The Exalt’s Duty. Costumes based on Chrom and Lucina are also available in Capcom's Monster Hunter: Frontier G video game, in a cross-promotion. Chrom and Lucina are both playable units in Project X Zone 2. DLC, promotional codes, and save data transfers allow some Awakening characters to be unlocked in Pokemon Conquest, a crossover with the Pokemon franchise set in the Kalos region during the time of AZ. During promotion for Pokemon Conquest, a Fire Emblem trading card game, Cipher, was released internationally and became hugely successful, rivaling even established trading card games like Pokemon. A set themed after Awakening includes a code to unlock bonus signature weapons in The Exalt’s Duty, while another set promoting Conquest and its main cast was released alongside an equivalent Pokemon TCG set using the same art and similar attacks (translated into the Pokemon TCG’s battling system). Characters from Awakening prominently appear as playable units in the spinoff title Fire Emblem Warriors. Although many veteran fans had reservations about the changes made from previous titles and the new emphasis on the support and marriage system, it was clear Awakening had saved the franchise, and Fire Emblem was finally back. The franchise had, in a way, awakened from the slumber it had been in for years.
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In the Annionaverse, Shouzou Kaga and Intelligent Systems finally reconciled after many years to work on the final Fire Emblem game, simply titled Fire Emblem Fin. It was intended to be the sequel to both Intelligent Systems' mainline series and the Emblem Saga titles Kaga had worked on after leaving Intelligent Systems. Kaga spent more time than initially given to perfect the battle system and work out the story, insisting if he wanted to send off his creation he would have to do it right. Fire Emblem Fin was released to modest acclaim, and critics and fans praised it for its difficulty and unique victory conditions and secondary objectives, as well as a deep and compelling story rivaling that of Heirs of Light. There is no time travel involved in the story or even a one year timeskip after defeating Gangrel. Instead, Chrom kills Gangrel and immediately marches on the Dragon’s Table to defeat the Grimleal, only to be betrayed and killed by Robin. The story jumps ahead 17 years, with Lucina rallying the children of the Shepherds to save Ylisse from a new Schism caused by the revived Grima and the Grimleal’s new high priest, Morgan. As expected, sales numbers failed to match the quota set due to heavy competition and a lack of marketing. Kaga and the developers of Intelligent Systems had known this would happened. As the news arrived that the franchise was at its end, Kaga thanked the other developers, and they all toasted to their triumphs and defeats over the years. It had been a very interesting journey, and now it was finally over. They were sad the franchise was over, but they were also happy they had a chance to work on it.
- 1
What a love letter to Awakening. As it was my introduction to Fire Emblem (as I alluded to with me being the sort of fan Kaga probably doesn't care for), this was a fascinating take on its story. Some cut characters and storylines, others being expanded on or created, and of course making both endings bittersweet instead of one being more or less objectively better. I love the new characters and just how much this version honors previous Fire Emblem games.
Got to single it out as my favorite change: Gangrel actually being a good king to his people. That's just fantastic, I love imagining his reaction to Emmeryn's suicide, how he feels seeing her defy his expectations from her father, how he'd feel even using the Levin Sword immediately afterwards. Some elements I enjoy are missing, but this is a wonderful version all the same.
As for the Annionaverse's, it's kind of sad that it's the end IS was expecting to their series even as they accept it on their own terms.
Got to single it out as my favorite change: Gangrel actually being a good king to his people. That's just fantastic, I love imagining his reaction to Emmeryn's suicide, how he feels seeing her defy his expectations from her father, how he'd feel even using the Levin Sword immediately afterwards. Some elements I enjoy are missing, but this is a wonderful version all the same.
As for the Annionaverse's, it's kind of sad that it's the end IS was expecting to their series even as they accept it on their own terms.
- 2
I also am a relative newcomer to the franchise, having only started with Three Houses, but I really do like Awakening, despite its flaws. I simply wanted to make it even better.
As for cut storylines and characters, you may still see some of them in the coming updates...
Awakening was made as a culmination of the franchise, after all, and I wanted to build on that theme. It was really fun imagining how the other continents in this continuity developed since we last saw them, especially Elibe since I added that to the continuity. I didn't want to fully cut Valm and remembered Priam's notoriously difficult paralogue, so I decided I would give the same treatment to Valm, Jugdral, and Elibe.
Although I did like how hammy and crazy Gangrel could be, it got on my nerves a few times. Changing him to an actually competent and genuinely good ruler added extra depth to his character as well as the backstory of Chrom's father's crusade. He effectively became a foil to Chrom, allowing the player to compare the two and wonder if they aren't so different after all. There'd probably be a cutscene right after Emmeryn's death where he looks at his Levin Sword and wonders just how much his expectations were challenged in that one moment, then emotionally breaking down and reflecting on why he's doing all this.
It was a bittersweet moment for them, as they knew the series was about to end, so they might as well make the best of it. At least their side's IS got to reconcile with Kaga.
- 1
- 1
Pokemon Conquest
Pokemon Conquest, known in China as Pokemon x Fire Emblem, is a 2016 tactical role playing video game developed by Intelligent Systems, published by The Pokemon Company, and distributed by Rentiantang for the 3DS. The game is a crossover between the popular Pokemon and Fire Emblem franchises.
Development and marketing
The game was announced in December 2014 as part of a Rentiantang Direct presentation under the working title Pokemon x Fire Emblem, announced as one of many planned collaboration projects with third-party developers. The trailer featured artwork of characters from the Pokemon and Fire Emblem series. There was much initial speculation by journalists as to the game's genre (a Pokemon style monster catching RPG with Fire Emblem characters or a Fire Emblem style tactical RPG with Pokemon) due to the trailer's vague nature. Intelligent Systems confirmed the following day that the game was a tactical RPG like a mainline Fire Emblem game only under the Pokemon name and in the Pokemon world. It would be developed by Intelligent Systems and produced by Rentiantang. At the time of its announcement, many parts of the game had yet to be developed and finalized, and the developers wanted to include plot points and new Mega Evolutions added in Pokemon Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire and Pokemon Z. Internal deadlines were pushed back to allow more time to incorporate the new changes, and the original release date of April 20, 2015 to coincide with Fire Emblem’s 25th anniversary was abandoned. All other releases planned for the 25th anniversary, like a Nanjing Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra performance of Fire Emblem music and the premiere of a new manhua and donghua based on Awakening, went ahead as planned. This was not the first time Pokemon and Fire Emblem had worked together, as the two franchises first promoted each other in the days of Pokemon Colosseum and the Elibe duology.
On April 20, 2015, a gameplay trailer was released during a Rentiantang Direct which also confirmed the game's Chinese title (Pokemon x Fire Emblem) and updated release window. An international version and the name Pokemon Conquest was announced at E3 2015 with the release date being revealed in a later Direct in March 2016. The game was released over the summer of 2016 as part of a series of games, spinoffs, and rereleases commemorating Pokemon’s 20th anniversary that year.
First-print runs of the Chinese release and accompanying promotions included Mystery Gift codes affecting both Conquest and mainline Pokemon games. Codes for Conquest add extra outfits for the player based on the designs of previous protagonists. Other codes may unlock bonus characters like Marth (Aegislash), Roy (Pyroar), Sue (Swellow), Lilina (Togekiss), Eliwood (Rapidash), Lyn (Mega Sceptile), Hector (Mega Aggron), Elincia (Mega Altaria), Ike (Mega Lucario), Micaiah (Talonflame), Donnel (Mega Gyarados), and Anna (Meowth), the last of whom allows the player to randomly obtain gold after each individual combat. On the mainline Pokemon side, codes were released for Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire and Pokemon Z. Some were freely distributed to promote Conquest to Pokemon players, while others were exclusively given to those who had bought a copy of Conquest (like how certain Mystery Gifts for Pokemon Generation 4 and 5 games were tied to spinoffs such as the popular Pokemon Ranger series). These codes range from unlocking special ORAS or Z cutscenes at AZ’s tree in Sootopolis City and the ruins in Geosenge Town to Pokemon which may have normally unobtainable moves, be shiny or in an alternate form, be a legendary, or a combination of the above. The special Demon Dragon Salamence event from the Blazing Blade/Colosseum promotion days was brought back, which was fitting since the original Salamence was intended for transfer to the original Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald games. One of the most popular and sought-after special Pokemon was a special Vivillon with a unique pattern based on Lucina’s mask (which is Lucina’s partner Pokemon in Conquest). In addition, Intelligent Systems produced an “Ultimate Edition,” containing a special game case, an original artbook with concept art, the original soundtrack on a CD, an audio interview with developers, special stickers, an official guide book, and a uniquely patterned 3DS pre-loaded with Conquest and exclusive DLC content.
Although it was released at the end of Generation 6, some promotional materials and official developer interviews also consider it a Generation 5 spinoff due to story ties, and thus sometimes it is labeled a Generation 5 game despite that generation having long since concluded.
Gameplay
Although the original plan was to have a Fire Emblem-style game with the cast drawn from characters in previous games, the idea to set the game in an ancient Kalos during AZ’s war forced Intelligent Systems to adhere to Pokemon canon. Thus an original cast was created (though many characters are thinly disguised clones of some minor characters from New Mystery is the Emblem), and the idea to have existing Fire Emblem characters meet would be recycled in the later spinoff Fire Emblem Warriors. Conquest features a player avatar, Kris, much like in Awakening. Kris’ customization options are as extensive as Robin’s, only they matter more. Whereas Robin’s gender was usually set to female because of extra story and her starting class was usually set to the default unique class Tactician due to its powerful stats, weapons used, and distinctive design, Kris’ socioeconomic background can be fully customized to change dialogue, and he does not have a unique class, signature weapon, or extra story of any kind besides the dialogue, encouraging the player to experiment (although most fans consider him to be male and his default class to be a mercenary). Kris’ partner Pokemon is an Eevee which can evolve into any of its evolutions. It evolves into Leafeon and Glaceon by a Leaf Stone and a newly introduced Ice Stone, Umbreon and Espeon by maxed out trust and a level up during the night or day, and Sylveon by maxed out trust and a level up while knowing a Fairy type move. Due to its usefulness against many enemy and boss Pokemon, players commonly tend to evolve Kris' Eevee into a Glaceon.
Male Kris' in-game portrait and female Kris' official art
The support system returns from previous games. However, the nature of paired endings and character epilogues, especially those ending in marriage, are toned down to accommodate for the more child-friendly nature of Pokemon (although the rest of the game is still more serious than a regular Pokemon game). S supports are removed and the GBA/Tellius system of A supports containing possible marriage endings is brought back. Most unmarried/unwidowed characters have at most one A support ending in marriage (the rest don’t have one). The gameplay benefits are kept the same as in Awakening.
Conquest is structured like a traditional Fire Emblem game, with roughly 25 chapters consisting of battles on maps across Kalos. For the first time, the environment shown in combat is affected by the location on the map. If there is a building, landmark, or natural feature on the overworld map, it shows up in the same area relative to the characters in personal combat. While the overall map is built around tactical RPG elements as in Fire Emblem, individual battles between units are a hybrid of Pokemon and Fire Emblem combat systems. Each human has a partner Pokemon in a system similar to Awakening’s pair up mechanic. The human starts out as the main unit with the Pokemon as a supporting unit, and they can swap although they can’t be separated into two units. As in Awakening, the supporting unit may deliver a follow up attack or a guard against an enemy attack. The chances of this happening increases as the human and Pokemon continue fighting in battles alongside each other, building trust similar to supports. When trust is maximized, certain Pokemon can Mega Evolve once during a battle for several turns. Others gain a significant boost to accuracy, evasion, and critical hit rate. Most enemies are just humans on their own, although a few bosses and important characters will have their own partner Pokemon and can take advantage of these mechanics. Humans can still pair up and build support with each other, though this replaces their partner Pokemon with the supporting human. Partner Pokemon can be swapped out for other caught Pokemon at any time in between battles. As Conquest is not a mainline Pokemon game, only a few Pokemon from the first six generations can be caught or obtained in the game (the developers of Game Freak promise they will never do something similar with a mainline Pokemon game). Wild Pokemon will start with lower trust and stats than starting partner Pokemon and may disobey their new human partner if their trust level is under a certain value. Pokemon can be captured, but since Poke Balls haven’t been invented yet, the capturing system works differently. There is a minigame where the player must gain the Pokemon’s trust (raising its trust level to a certain point depending on the Pokemon) by feeding it food or taking other actions. Humans can be recruited to Kris’ side with talk conversations during battles or other methods as in Fire Emblem, usually coming with their own partner Pokemon.
Humans use Fire Emblem-style stats and combat mechanics such as the weapon triangle, while Pokemon use moves and operate on Pokemon battle mechanics. Pokemon attacks against humans are treated like Fire Emblem attacks: physical attacks like Tackle and Aerial Ace target the defense stat, while special attacks like Ember and Air Slash target the resistance stat. Exceptions are made with Tiki, who is treated as a Dragon type and is weak to Dragon, Ice, and Fairy type attacks. Human attacks against Pokemon are given a type depending on the weapon or spell used. Most conventional weapons use the Steel type, while spells can be any of the Fairy, Psychic, Ghost, Dark, Fire, Ice, Electric, or Flying types. Some weapons bypass this system without a good type matchup. For example, using a Rock-type bow against a Flying-type or a Steel-type Armorslayer sword against a Steel-type will automatically deal super-effective damage regardless of secondary types or abilities.
Pokemon moves now have an experience system that is somewhere between Fire Emblem’s weapon level system and Pokemon’s regular experience gain system. Having a Pokemon use a certain move will add points to that move’s experience bar. A move can level up, slightly increasing its power, accuracy, and PP (similar to in later Mystery Dungeon games). On certain level ups, a move can evolve into a stronger version of itself. As is the case with Fire Emblem Awakening’s branching promotion system, the player may have several choices of what to evolve that move into. For example, take the basic move Water Gun, found on Water-type Pokemon. At a certain move experience level, Water Gun can evolve into Bubble or Water Pulse. Bubble can further evolve into Bubble Beam and then Hydro Pump. Water Pulse can evolve into Brine or Scald. The move’s type may also change in the process. Although a move like Ember will have a straightforward evolution to Flamethrower and then Fire Blast, a move like Wing Attack can become Aerial Ace or Steel Wing, and Gust can even become the Dragon-type Twister. The traditional Pokemon method of learning moves on level up still remains. To simulate weapon durability, PP can only be restored with single use items such as Max Elixirs and Ethers or at the start of every battle. As usual, human weapons whose durability reach 0 break and disappear entirely. Pokemon evolve normally, and Pokemon that evolve by trade or with other special methods in mainline games instead evolve with an item or a high trust level. Like in the Tellius duology, human promotions automatically occur upon hitting Level 20, and each character promotes twice (the level is reset to 1 on promotion).
On Classic/Nuzlocke mode (the first time the fan term “Nuzlocke” was used in an official Pokemon game), humans and Pokemon can both die if their HP reach 0. If a human dies, their partner Pokemon is overwhelmed with grief and runs away into the wild, where it must be recaptured again like a wild Pokemon. If a partner Pokemon dies, their human partner can continue fighting on their own and can catch a new partner later. There is a cooldown timer preventing either a released Pokemon from being recaptured or a human from getting a new partner immediately as they both need time to grieve over their losses. Even when the partner Pokemon is recaptured, it will still grieve for its old partner and frequently disobey orders much more than with a newly caught wild Pokemon. This can be rectified by raising its trust level. Due to opposition from The Pokemon Company and Game Freak, which complained these changes would tarnish Pokemon’s usually child-friendly image (even in the wake of darker games like Pokemon Yellow and the undertones of Pokemon XYZ), Casual Mode was promoted as the “default” and intended way to play Conquest. In both modes, the player can continue even after Kris is defeated as long as one of their other characters is still “alive,” and Kris will always retreat if defeated. His Eevee cannot be permanently killed. If Kris is defeated with nobody else left on the field, the player gets a game over regardless of mode.
The base camp from Awakening returns in Conquest in much the same form, only now rendered more like a Pokemon Generation 6 town (as with actual explorable settlements) than a Fire Emblem battle map. It is more like a movable camp than an actual town, though. Kris can upgrade shops so they can sell better weapons and items, interact with characters, and get in extra training at the arena. In place of a Pokemon PC, there is a holding area for caught Pokemon with a limited capacity that can be increased later. A wireless multiplayer mode allows players to “invade” each other’s base camps with their current rosters. They can also connect and trade with other players.
Despite Conquest’s nature as officially more of a Pokemon spinoff than a Fire Emblem spinoff due to being set in the Pokemon universe, the save data transfer mechanic remains. Transferring data from a cleared Awakening save file allows the player to download a trial map where they can fight their endgame Awakening teams, all with their own partner Pokemon. Transferring data also allows some Awakening characters to be recruited in the main story in groups of three, including Stahl (Noctowl), Sully (Unfezant), and Cordelia (Braviary) who can perform the Triangle Attack; Frederick (Arcanine), Lissa (Machamp), and Awakening Tiki (Mega Rayquaza); and Lucina (Vivillon), Chrom (Mega Ampharos), Morgan (Mega Mewtwo X) and Robin (Mega Mewtwo Y) (coming in a group of four). These characters and others from promotional codes are exempt from the support and pairing system with the original Conquest characters, although they can support each other. A certain number of endgame partner Pokémon can be transferred to mainline Pokémon games such as the then upcoming Sun and Moon and from there to all subsequent games. Theoretically, it is possible for data from The Binding Blade to indirectly affect content in Pokémon Adventures Pikachu and Eevee and even the Generation 8 games and beyond. However, this can only be done from a cleared save file which cannot be played any further, and each Pokemon can only be transferred once per save file.
Reception and legacy
Pokémon Conquest received positive reviews, possessing a score of 80/100 on Metacritic. Famitong gave the game a score of 34/40, with reviewers praising the game's accessibility, high replay value, and ability to mix Pokémon’s simplistic formula with the tactical RPG medieval fantasy setting of Fire Emblem. VSN gave the game a score of 9 and an Editor's Choice award, praising its deep gameplay and calling it "one of the greatest, most fully realized Pokémon spinoffs in existence alongside Mystery Dungeon and the Orre series" as well as a “masterpiece” and one of the best recent RPGs released.
Famitong found the premise of a prequel to the Gen 5 and 6 games entertaining and interesting and praised the attention given to supporting characters as well as AZ himself. The narrative was amusing and engaging but also predictable at times, especially since XYZ already went over the outcome of the war. The aesthetics and user interface received praise as well, despite the clear technical limitations. The animated cutscenes, done with a traditional Chinese animation studio instead of like the full-motion cinematics of Awakening, were received well, and the music jointly composed by Fire Emblem’s Yuka Tsujiyoko and Pokemon’s Go Ichinose was considered one of the best parts of the game. The gameplay was also received well, and many critics compared it favorably to the gameplay of both Pokemon and Fire Emblem, hailing it as a good combination of the two while also building some unique elements of its own. However, fans criticized the design of some maps, notoriously the "Malamar hell" chapter and its heavy reliance on RNG.
According to Famitong, the game debuted at #6 on Chinese charts and was hugely popular due to attracting not only Pokemon and Fire Emblem fans but also newcomers. At release, the game ranked at #4 on Rentiantang’s weekly download charts and #7 on Media Create’s charts, selling through its stock at a fast rate. However, sales were impacted by the release of the next mainline Fire Emblem installment, The Exalt’s Duty, later that year.
It was clear with the success of first Awakening and now Pokemon Conquest that Fire Emblem was definitively back. The dark days from The Sacred Stone to New Mystery of the Emblem were now firmly in the past. Fire Emblem had finally become one of Rentiantang’s flagship RPG franchises alongside Super Mario Brothers, The Legend of Zelda, and Pokemon. And with The Exalt’s Duty slated for release later that year and another mainline game and spinoff planned for 2017, the franchise had new wind in its sails. There were no plans to slow down anytime soon.
Plot
This summary assumes Kris is male.
Three thousand years before the present day, the Kalos region has been recently united thanks to the efforts of two young brothers, AZ and Harmonia. Once a mess of warring city-states and independent kingdoms, the two brothers used a mix of diplomacy and warfare, aided by magical technology not seen elsewhere, to unite the region. Several years into his reign as king, AZ discovered a new land southeast of Kalos, separated by imposing mountains, harsh wastelands, and dense forests. Naming this new land Unova, AZ sent colonists to brave the “no man’s land” and settle the region that would become known as Unova. Harmonia led the first colonists and was proclaimed king of Unova. He built his capital, Illuminopolis, in the center of Unova. The surrounding lands were tamed by the settlers and turned into lush farmland to feed the growing kingdom.
During one of these colonization programs, a meteor fell in northwestern Unova, destroying several settlements. Rumors soon spread of a monster which would come at night to eat humans and Pokemon alike. Harmonia sent troops to slay the monster, but they never returned. Eventually, AZ personally accompanied an army across no man’s land to help Harmonia subdue the monster, and the two confronted it in its lair deep in the crater dubbed the Giant Chasm, where they brought the monster, a powerful dragon Pokemon, under their control. The brothers used the dragon to bring more of the wild lands under Kalos and Unova’s rule.
However, as they grew older, the two brothers grew distant, both literally and personally, as Harmonia spent more of his time in Illuminopolis instead of Lumiose and adopted the syncretic culture developed by the settlers. They began disagreeing over who got to command the dragon. AZ insisted he had the right to control the dragon as he was the sovereign ruler and had used it best to build his ideal kingdom. Harmonia insisted he had the right because it spent most of its time in Unova and had landed closer to Unova than Kalos. Therefore, the fact was it was more Unovan than Kalosian. Harmonia’s settlers and their descendants gradually started seeing themselves as Unovans before Kalosians as the two kingdoms began separating.
Twenty years after the colonization of Unova, a famine swept across Kalos, and thousands of Kalosians starved. Many more Kalosians made the long trek across no man’s land to join the prospering Unova, and Illuminopolis rapidly grew to rival AZ’s capital, Lumiose. The constant stream of refugees led Harmonia to realize his brother was no longer a capable ruler. And it was then he made a decision that would change history one fateful day. Declaring AZ had lost the right to rule, he mobilized his troops and marched north to invade Kalos. The dragon, conflicted in its loyalties, split into two. One dragon, Zekrom, the being of ideals, escaped Illuminopolis Castle and flew to AZ’s Prism Castle in Lumiose, where it pledged its allegiance to him as the Hero of Ideals. The other dragon, Reshiram, the being of truth, remained with Harmonia, the Hero of Truth. The battle lines drawn, Kalos and Unova marched to war.
Ten years later, the war has stagnated. Tens of thousands of humans and Pokemon were killed on both sides by increasingly complex and deadly weapons, fashioned from both magical technology and the abilities of Pokemon found in both regions. No man’s land has become a graveyard of armies. But the front lines have moved closer to Kalos. Unova’s superior technology, militarized Pokemon, and more motivated troops have steadily beaten back the demoralized Kalosians. Several towns in the mountains of eastern Kalos have fallen to the Unovans, while in the south the main Unovan army slowly fights its way towards the towns and cities of central Kalos. Even the towns of Santalune and Aquarellia are under the constant bombardment of Golurk artillery. Zekrom’s lightning is powerful enough to strike down many armies, but it is busy countering the flames of Harmonia’s Reshiram. AZ’s options are running out, and he grows more desperate.
In the Kalosian village of Sera, a young man named Kris trains with his grandfather. This is the player’s introduction to Conquest’s battling system. Kris starts with his Eevee and his starting class’s default weapon, and the goal is to defeat his grandfather and his Pikachu. Once Kris defeats his grandfather, his grandfather commends his rapid improvement lately. Kris repeats his dream to one day become a Kalosian knight and says all of his training for the last few years has been to push him closer to that goal. His grandfather reminds him he still has a lot to learn before he can become a knight and defend Kalos. First, he has to run a few errands around town. This introduces the player to not only sidequests but also explorable locations. Although these early errands are minor at best (such as delivering food and letters to neighbors), they do give the player renown, which can sometimes allow the player to bypass certain requirements needed to unlock some dialogue or recruitments. During one of these errands, Kris meets a recruiter from Lumiose who is looking for new knights to join the king’s army. Realizing his dream is finally within reach, he eagerly hurries home and tells his family the news. His parents try to convince him to reconsider and instead follow in their footsteps (affected by character customization), but his grandfather supports his decision, believing it is time for him to become the knight he always wanted to be. After a couple hours of discussion, his parents relent, and Kris packs his things. Saying his farewells the next morning, he and his trusty Eevee leave Sera with the recruiter.
The journey to Lumiose is long, but eventually Kris arrives at the capital. He is amazed by the size of the city, which completely dwarfs Sera, and the elegance of its architecture. The track playing here is an orchestral remix of Lumiose City’s theme from XYZ done in a Baroque style. The recruiter escorts him to the beautiful Prism Castle at the center of the city, its iconic stained glass windows depicting the founding of Kalos and Unova. They arrive in a courtyard, where other recruits wait to be sorted into platoons. Kris is sorted into the 7th Platoon. A girl accidentally bumps into him and apologizes, saying she is in a hurry to find the 7th Platoon. Kris tells her she is in the right place and introduces himself. The girl introduces herself as Katarina. Although she isn’t skilled with conventional weapons, she is decent at magic and has an Espurr to back her up. She tells Kris she wishes to defend Kalos, something Kris also agrees with. Two other boys show up, leading over horses already, and introduce themselves. The first is Loukas, a hotheaded flirter with a male Nidoran, and the other is the calmer Rurik, who with his Meditite reins in Loukas’ excesses. Another boy shows up with a bow in his hands and a Pidgey following behind him. He timidly introduces himself as Ryland, an archer.
All of the recruits snap to attention upon the arrival of Frey, one of AZ’s royal knights. He gives them the day’s mission: decide on who their commanders will be. Kris volunteers for the job, but Loukas counters he should be commander instead, and Kris offers a duel, which his grandfather says is the best way for people to understand each other. Rurik sides with him while Katarina sides with Kris and Ryland stays neutral. A battle begins with Kris and Katarina facing off against the two cavaliers. This should be a relatively straightforward battle thanks to Katarina’s Espurr. Once Kris defeats the others, Katarina asks who taught him his skills. Kris replies his grandfather trained him to help his dream of becoming a knight. Loukas concedes, wondering how he and Rurik could have lost. Rurik reminds him they attacked one by one instead of together. Ryland reminds them that is not the Kalosian way. Even if they are weak on their own, together they can become much stronger. Kris promises to uphold that ideal as the 7th Platoon’s commander.
Several days pass and the 7th Platoon goes through rigorous training, honing their skills and improving the bonds with their partner Pokemon. Frey instructs them on the importance of looking out for their Pokemon, who are their biggest asset on the battlefield. While a human must rely on weapons like swords, axes, and lances, a Pokemon can produce powerful attacks on its own such as Eevee’s Tackle, Espurr’s Psybeam, and Pidgey’s Gust. A Pokemon move can turn the tide of battle at any moment, even if it is not an offensive one. He asks Ryland to demonstrate his Pidgey’s Sand Attack against Kris’ Eevee. Eevee’s accuracy is temporarily lowered when in combat against Pidgey, and its attacks hit less frequently. Kris then tries to have his Eevee use Sand Attack back, but Pidgey is unaffected. Frey tells them to keep in mind the importance of Pokemon abilities, such as Pidgey’s Keen Eye which prevents accuracy loss. And that’s not all. On the battlefield, there is nothing stopping Pokemon and humans from attacking each other. Kris and the other recruits must take care to know what enemies they are up against, both humans and Pokemon, and prepare accordingly. After a month of training, Frey decides the recruits are ready to advance to the next level. But first, they must prove they can advance by defeating him in battle.
The 7th Platoon’s turn to fight Frey soon arrives, and they head to a nearby park where the mock battle will take place. Katarina is nervous about going up against one of AZ’s veteran knights, but Kris assures her Frey has confidence in their abilities. Otherwise, why would he have organized such a mock battle? They enter the park and meet Frey and his partner Kangaskhan. Frey doesn’t waste time. He raises his lance, spurs his horse, and asks the 7th Platoon to fight him with all they have. This battle initially appears easy. Despite Frey’s relatively high stats and high mobility thanks to his mount, he is only one person against the player’s party of five. However, that changes on the second turn. Frey laughs and tells them Kalos has recently found a way to break the stalemate and decisively push the Unovans back into no man’s land. He points to the special crown on Kangaskhan’s head. It is new technology specifically designed for his Kangaskhan to amplify its trust in him, using it to draw out its full power and Mega Evolve. In addition to its massive stat boost, its Parental Bond ability now allows it to attack twice, and not necessary against the same target. It can sometimes target two different pairs or both the human and Pokemon at once. Ryland panics, fearing there is no way they can defeat a Kangaskhan that powerful, let alone Frey. But Kris remembers Frey’s lecture from a month ago and realizes they may have a chance. He and Ryland order Eevee and Pidgey to use Sand Attack, which lowers Kangaskhan’s accuracy. As it starts missing attacks, Loukas and Rurik charge at Frey and attack him directly, while Katarina’s magic pierces Frey’s armor and inflicts more damage on him, and the platoon’s five Pokemon all target Kangaskhan. Eventually, the experienced knight and his Pokemon are both defeated. Frey congratulates them on their victory. They were the first to beat him today.
The 7th Platoon celebrates their successes with a feast in the barracks, inviting over many of the other recruits. While Loukas shares their strategy with the others for bragging rights, Katarina hails Kris as the architect of their victory. Kris simply says he couldn’t have done it without the rest of them. That is the way of the Kalosian knights. Together they can overcome anything. All of them pitched in. Even Ryland was at the center of their strategy. They toast to the future. While the others drink and chat, Katarina again thanks Kris for his support. Kris says it’s nothing special as his grandfather always taught him to be kind. He always said a true knight of Kalos is defined by his behavior as well as his skill. Katarina insists it’s more than that. She had grown up in a bad family which had starved in the famine. As her siblings died, her parents grew harsher and colder. She was subjected to verbal and physical torment constantly. She was thrown into all sorts of jobs to make money to buy food. Eventually, they also died, leaving her completely alone. People still treated her badly on the streets. It was a painful and terrible time, which she and Espurr only escaped by running off to Lumiose to join the knighthood. And the first person she met at the mustering grounds was Kris. She didn’t expect him to be as kind and caring as he was. But she thanks him for that. It had been so long since someone had been so nice to her.
As the months pass, their training becomes more intense. They begin sparring with active duty Kalosian knights and soldiers like Melissa, a swordswoman with a Scyther, and Athena, a “civilized barbarian” who came from no man’s land with her Binacle. After defeating them and several knights in more mock battles outside Lumiose, Frey assigns the two swordswomen to the 7th Platoon to continue overseeing their progress. More time passes, and Frey becomes confident in the recruits’ abilities. He decides to give them practical experience on the battlefield in Santalune Forest to the south, where the Kalosians have recently routed a Unovan army. The recruits are to aid the Kalosians in securing the area and keeping their gains.
They head to Santalune Forest and meet up with the main Kalosian army. The 7th Platoon’s point of contact is Daimler, an axe-wielding fighter and Melissa’s father. Kris is surprised to see his partner Pokemon is a Clefairy instead of something more…intimidating…for someone with his build and armor. Daimler proudly boasts he won Clefairy in a bet and thanks his daughter for providing the money to do so. Melissa scolds him for making risky bets and warns even her generosity has limits, but Daimler dismisses her worries, saying he has never lost…at least lost too much, that is. Katarina points out Clefairy’s moves and personality match Daimler’s. Its Metronome move, which allows Clefairy to use a random move every time it is used, is sort of like a gamble in a way. Sometimes it could turn into a really good attack like Outrage, and sometimes it could turn into a harmless one like Splash. The introductions finished, Daimler leads them to their objective, a nearby village, and tells the 7th Platoon their job today is to deliver supplies.
In the middle of delivering the supplies, a Unovan battalion enters the village, led by the bloodthirsty commander Roro. Roro proclaims the villagers have the honor of housing and feeding the Unovans and demands they follow through. When the villagers refuse, he starts attacking them. Although his soldiers express their doubts and uneasiness with Roro’s actions, they nevertheless obey their orders. The 7th Platoon hides behind one of the houses. Daimler urges them to regroup with the main army and get reinforcements. But Kris insists they can’t just abandon the villagers. If they leave now, the main army will arrive too late to save them. They have to do something. Loukas and Rurik agree, swearing it is their duty as Kalosian knights to defend the weak and helpless. Ryland adds he will try to help as best as he can. Katarina declares she won’t stand by while others suffer like she used to. With the 7th Platoon all voicing their agreement, Kris convinces Daimler to help them fight.
Kris approaches Roro and orders him to leave the village at once. The much larger Roro laughs and asks who would dare oppose him. Kris introduces himself and draws his weapon, declaring he won’t run while his fellow Kalosians suffer. Roro laughs again. This boy isn’t like the other Kalosian soldiers, who all ran away from him. Maybe he would be entertaining to fight. His men try convincing him to stand down, saying Harmonia would not approve of his actions. Roro doesn’t care. The king is too busy elsewhere to focus his attention on one commander, which means he can do as he pleases. Kris charges at him, with the 7th Platoon not far behind. The objective of this battle is to defeat the boss. The other Unovan soldiers can also be defeated for extra experience, but there are incentives and secondary objectives for sparing them. The 7th Platoon can also visit villager houses to warn them about the battle (preventing Roro and some Unovans from visiting and destroying them) and get items from the villagers. Upon defeat, Roro vows even if he falls here, someone else, either Kalosian or Unovan, will still follow after him. Kris lets the other Unovan soldiers flee, despite Daimler’s recommendation they pursue them, as he notices their discomfort with following Roro’s orders.
A couple weeks later, the 7th Platoon is suddenly called back to Lumiose and asked to report before the king himself. Appearing before AZ and his partner Floette, Kris is aware he disobeyed orders when fighting Roro and his troops and is ready to accept punishment on behalf of the 7th Platoon. But AZ instead assures him he is not in trouble. He is grateful for what Kris did in Santalune Forest. By saving those villagers even when logic dictates they should have let the main army handle it, they upheld the ideals of the Kalosian knighthood, to always protect their countrymen and defend those who can’t defend themselves. He is grateful they stepped in when they did. If only he had more men and women like those in the 7th Platoon, then they could break the stalemate. As a reward for their exemplary performance in the forest, AZ personally decides to advance the 7th Platoon to their final test to take place in three months. Pass it, and they will become active duty knights. Kris thanks AZ for his generosity. As they leave Prism Castle and head back to the barracks, Katarina notes AZ is very different from the man she had imagined. She had always imagined a benevolent and caring king, but the king they met appears more driven than anything. There is a motivation in his eyes unlike anything she has seen before. He does appear benevolent and kind, but it feels like it is masking something else underneath.
The three months pass, during which the 7th Platoon continues its training, until it is finally time for the final test. Their task is to defeat General Horatio, a defector from the Unovan army who had brought his Golurk with him. Horatio is well trained in Unovan battle tactics, and his Golurk participated in many Unovan artillery strikes on targets in southern Kalos. Fighting him is a good way to simulate fighting real Unovan troops. But before the battle begins, Frey assigns them a new member, a hotheaded and quick-tempered junior knight named Celia. She and her Mankey had been reassigned to the 7th Platoon after everyone else in her own platoon washed out of training. Kris notes it’s very sudden for them to get a new member right in their last practice battle, but Celia promises to do her best. As the 7th Platoon advances across the field, Horatio’s Golurk blasts them with its powerful Hyper Beam attack from a distance. When they get closer, Golurk begins attacking with Hammer Arm, Shadow Punch, and Earthquake. Its unique typing of Ghost-Ground gives it an advantage or even immunities over almost all of the 7th Platoon’s Pokemon. Horatio is also no joke, as the 7th Platoon’s conventional weapons fail to pierce his armor and his expertise counters their numbers. But thanks to their determination, the 7th Platoon eventually overcomes Horatio and Golurk. Horatio acknowledges their prowess, and Frey announces the 7th Platoon has passed the test. The recruits celebrate.
The next day, the recruits of the 7th Platoon are officially knighted and elevated to regular soldiers in the Kalosian army. They hold a celebration to commemorate their graduation. Loukas again boasts of his heroic stand against Horatio’s Golurk and Rurik points out he barely pushed Loukas out of the way of a Hammer Arm in time, while Celia insists she actually did the most work of the three of them and inadvertently causes an argument. After the festivities, as Kris heads off to sleep, Katarina asks if he has a moment. She is a little nervous about being a real knight. Although she handled the training better than she expected, she is still anxious about fighting in a real battle. Kris assures her he will be there if she ever needs someone to confide in or lean on. Together, they can achieve anything. Katarina smiles. She is happy Kris will still be there for her. It has given her the confidence she needs to continue on.
A week later, the 7th Platoon again assembles before AZ in the Prism Castle. AZ is pleased with their progress, noting their record during training has exceeded expectations. They have performed the best out of all of the recruit platoons, and he has high hopes for them moving forward into the real war. He gives them their first orders: accompany one of his armies south to stop a recent Unovan offensive against the Kiloude Outpost, the southernmost Kalosian settlement on the edge of no man’s land. If Kiloude falls, the Unovan troops in southern Kalos can link up with the enemy’s supply lines running from occupied eastern Kalos and consolidate the front lines. They must not let that happen. But before they can do anything, a soldier runs in and warns Prism Castle is under attack from the Unovans. Frey asks how this could happen as the front lines are far from Lumiose. But pushing that aside for now, Horatio leaves to assume command of the royal guard. Frey runs off to call Zekrom back from the front to aid in the castle’s defense, tasking Kris and the 7th Platoon to guard AZ. He apologizes for assigning such an important task to Kris without warning, but this surprise attack has left him no choice. Kris vows to protect AZ with his life. AZ draws his sword and insists he can defend himself, and once Zekrom arrives they can’t lose.
The 7th Platoon are confident they can defend AZ. Rurik assures them the royal guard would handle the main forces, and they can handle anybody who gets past them. However, Katarina says she drugged the royal guard, incapacitating them for several days. Kris, confuses, asks her to explain. Katarina says her orders were to memorize the castle’s floor plan, the guards’ schedules and patrol patterns, and wait for an opportunity to take out the guards and open a path to AZ. She turns to leave, but Kris asks her to stay, still not believing what he is hearing. Katarina tells him her real reason for coming here was to kill AZ and end the war. Kris is shocked to hear Katarina’s words. But before he can try to reason with her, several assassins, accompanied by some Dark-type Pokemon, enter the throne room. Katarina declares, although with a little reluctance, the age of Kalos has ended and the age of Unova has begun. The assassins attack the 7th Platoon, who struggle to fight them off. AZ himself gets up from his throne and charges into the battle, easily dispatching anybody who tries to attack him. His Floette provides a supporting role, using Misty Terrain and Grassy Terrain to prevent status conditions and restore health and Dazzling Gleam and Moonblast to deal super effective damage to the assassins’ Dark-type Pokemon. Slowly, the 7th Platoon pushes the assassins back, and Kris confronts Katarina. She admits everything was a lie to deceive him and get to AZ. She apologizes for doing so and asks for forgiveness, although she understands if Kris won’t grant it. Kris, still conflicted, defeats but decides to spare her, letting her escape.
Katarina in a Unovan outfit
Zekrom returns to the palace, the loud thundering roar of its tail engine signaling its arrival, and the surviving assassins escape before they are blasted by its lightning. Horatio and Frey return to the throne room and are relieved to see AZ is fine. Frey is a little dismayed Kris let Katarina escape before learning who she works with or her true motivations, but now is not the time to worry about that. He kneels before AZ and blames himself for not catching the deception sooner. But AZ forgives him. Nobody could have known Katarina’s true loyalties. Kris points out Katarina looked at him with gentle and honest eyes. There was nothing that could have told him she was plotting all this. He suspects there may have been an unavoidable circumstance underneath her actions. Maybe she was forced to do this. She did sound reluctant and repentant during the battle. AZ agrees. Maybe she had to do this against her will. But the fact remains there was an assasination attempt on him, most likely ordered by Harmonia. His expression turns serious and darker. If Harmonia is willing to kill his own brother to take the throne, there is no telling what he may do next. He fears the war is going to escalate, and more Kalosian humans and Pokemon will die. Clenching his fists, he vows to put a stop to it, whatever the cost, and bring back peace to the land. It is his duty as king to ensure peace returns. Kris is a little unnerved by the sudden outburst of determination from AZ, but he vows to serve the king and help him achieve his goals. Frey vows to stay by AZ’s side and ensure no more assassins threaten him, and AZ orders Zekrom to also stay at Prism Castle to protect him, even if it will weaken the Kalosian troops on the battlefield. Horatio leaves to command the Clawitzer artillery corps stationed on Lumiose’s walls. As for the 7th Platoon, their orders remain the same: go to the Kiloude Outpost and keep it in Kalosian hands.
Due to bad conditions caused by the clash of Kalosian and Unovan Pokemon manipulating the weather to their advantage, it takes roughly three months to reach the Kiloude Outpost. Along the way, they meet up with the archer Norne, one of Kris’ neighbors from Sera, who had followed in Kris’ footsteps and enlisted in the army. As she keeps losing her sense of direction, her commander assigned her a Nosepass, which also helps her shoot down flying targets with Smack Down. Norne gets a transfer to the 7th Platoon with her commander’s approval. As they approach the Kiloude Outpost, the weather stabilizes, becoming a steady rainstorm. They reach the outpost, a small wooden fort and army camp. It had been set up during the colonization of Unova to guard the routes between the two regions running through no man’s land, and now it is the centerpiece of a new Unovan offensive. If the outpost falls, the Unovans will have complete control over the no man’s land routes, allowing them to ship supplies and troops north right into the center of Kalos.
Soon after the 7th Platoon’s arrival, the Unovan army attacks. First their Golurk battalions open fire with Hyper Beam, which is blocked by the Light Screen put up by the Kalosians’ Claydol, which also fire back with their own beam attacks. Next comes a combined Unovan aerial and ground assault. From the air, Sigilyph carry human soldiers over the walls and into the camp, while Pokemon like Conkeldurr and Excadrill directly attack the fortifications, creating openings through which Unovan humans can break into the fort. The 7th Platoon and the outpost garrison dig in and prepare for a long fight while Chatot are sent back north to request reinforcements. This battle requires the player to defend the fort for several turns. The 7th Platoon will be aided by several AI-controlled NPC soldiers with Pokemon like Claydol and Heliolisk, the latter of which has the Dry Skin ability that allows it to heal from the rain. The enemy forces will reinforce constantly and deploy several Pokemon such as the previously mentioned ones to either change the weather to their advantage or target the fortifications directly. Kris gets his first taste of real combat at the Kiloude Outpost. Although fighting in the rain and mud is not what he was expecting when he left Sera, his mind remains focused on the goal he has been working towards his whole life, to defend Kalos. But his mind keeps going back to Katarina and her betrayal. He keeps wondering why she did what she did. What could have possibly driven her to turn on the king like that? If they ever meet again, he wants to know.
The battle rages for weeks, and the Unovans send more and more troops to take the outpost. But the garrison holds out, inflicting massive casualties on the enemy army. With their supply lines running through no man’s land, it is difficult for their reinforcements to arrive. When Kalosian reinforcements arrive at the outpost, it is clear the battle is lost, and the Unovans withdraw south to no man’s land, presumably to retreat to mainland Unova. The Kalosians waste no time marching through no man’s land after them, both to destroy the remnants of the Unovan army and secure the routes to prevent another attack on Kiloude. The 7th Platoon emerges from their trenches bloodied and covered in mud but alive. Their Pokemon have even gained enough experience to evolve where applicable. However, the humans of the platoon are weary. Celia’s hotheaded nature has been tempered by the constant fighting in the rain, while Loukas is even more quiet and reserved now. Ryland and Norne wonder if this is what fighting in the war is really like. Rurik wonders why AZ had sent them to Kiloude knowing full well the capabilities of the Unovan army attacking it and their own strengths. It is clear they barely managed to survive until reinforcements arrived. If the Unovans changed the weather and delayed the reinforcements for even a day, they would have been overwhelmed. It’s as if AZ knew they would die there. Kris shoots down his concerns. There is no way AZ would throw them away like that right after they saved his life from the assassins. However, there are now doubts nagging at the back of his mind.
With Kiloude safely in Kalosian hands, the 7th Platoon is reassigned to the eastern front. The settlements of Fluxia, Mosaiaheim, Frescora, and Fractalia are firmly in Unovan hands, with only the mighty Ultima Fortress, guarding a pass through the jagged mountains between Santalune and Fractalia, stops the Unovans from crossing west into central Kalos. The 7th Platoon will join a larger Kalosian army as it attempts to retake Fluxia, the largest settlement and the center of Unovan operations in eastern Kalos. If Fluxia falls, Unova’s presence in the other occupied settlements will collapse, allowing Ultima’s massive garrison to sortie out and finish off the rest of them. But the plan is highly risky, and the army must march straight to Fluxia, passing through the mountains to avoid alerting the Unovan troops in Frescora. Rurik again voices his concerns, suspecting AZ sent them on another suicide mission, but Kris refuses to believe him. Celia and her Primeape are eager to get into a “real” battle. Kiloude was just a warm-up, but now they can get the glory of liberating Fluxia. She convinces Loukas and his Nidorino the next battle will be much better. Ryland and Norne are also eager to fight, ready to show how much they have improved over the last few months. Their Pidgeotto and Probopass cry their approval.
It takes five months to march through the frozen mountains of eastern Kalos, even in the summer of that year. Kris goes over their main objectives with the other officers. In addition to retaking Fluxia from the Unovans, their priority is to take a sample of the mysterious crystal sundial located to the north of the settlement. Nobody knows where the sundial came from, only that it was there for as long as anyone can remember and it radiates a peculiar energy. AZ believes that energy could possibly be weaponized. But Kris would rather focus on defeating the Unovans first before handling the sundial.
Modern day Fluxia, with the sundial in the center.
In Fluxia, Katarina and her handler, Kleine, oversee the preparations of the Unovan garrison and monitor the progress of the Kalosians with Kleine’s Sableye’s Foresight. Kleine gloats the Kalosians are right where they want them to be, and no matter what they do, they will only be falling into their trap. Soon their own forces will make their move and execute the plan Katarina worked on. Katarina urges her to not underestimate the 7th Platoon. Kris has a knack for getting out of troublesome situations, even if the odds are against him. She knows from her time fighting alongside him during training. Kleine tells her not to worry about the 7th Platoon, especially since it appears she’s gotten attached to Kalosians. She orders Katarina to leave Fluxia and observe how Kleine will personally slaughter each member of the 7th Platoon.
The Battle of Fluxia begins, and Kris immediately notices how the Unovans had prepared for their attack, having set up Golurk artillery and Ferrothorn traps, which force the 7th Platoon to take cover in the alleys and behind houses. They slowly advance, aided by sympathetic locals who give them shelter from the relentless artillery strikes. Kris sends Ryland and Pidgeotto ahead to scout out the location of the Ferrothorn traps, which the other Pokemon of the 7th Platoon quickly take out. With help from a defecting bishop, Stolph, who with his Leavanny helps heal the team’s wounds, Athena and Melissa sneak behind the Golurk lines and dispatch them with Scyther and Binacle, cutting off their long range attacks. The 7th Platoon advances, backed up by the rest of the Kalosian army, and closes in on Kleine’s position. Kris eventually defeats Kleine, but she warns they have changed nothing, and their plan is still in progress. She calls a Swanna from one of her soldiers to fly her away. The remaining Unovans surrender.
Kris declares Fluxia liberated, and the troops celebrate, many now calling him their hero for coming up with the strategy to retake the city. As always, Kris gives equal credit to the others in the 7th Platoon as well as the rest of the army. After all, he couldn’t have done it on his own. As he says that, he wistfully thinks back to Katarina and their celebration after defeating Frey. If only Katarina was still with them. However, his musings are interrupted by a Chatot flying in from the west, relaying a message from Frey. Ultima Fortress has fallen in a surprise attack. The eastern front has completely collapsed, and the Unovans are marching on Lumiose itself. Hastily abandoning their positions after gathering the sundial samples AZ requested, likely handing the town back to the Unovans, the Kalosians reluctantly withdraw back across the mountains. Unovan troops relentlessly pursue them through the mountains with Pokemon like Swanna, Sigilyph, Darmanitan, and Zebstrika, gradually whittling down the Kalosians’ numbers. The 7th Platoon grows weary from the constant attacks, which spurs Kris to march faster.
After a couple months, they reach to the plains of central Kalos, where the main Unovan army, led by Harmonia and aided by Reshiram, has begun a siege of Lumiose, while AZ and his elite knights sortie out of the capital to battle them, aided by Zekrom. The two legendary dragons clash in the sky, raining flames and lightning down on the two armies. Horatio and his Golurk command the Clawitzer battalions on Lumiose’s walls to open fire with an Aura Sphere and Water Pulse volley targeting the Golurk battalions and their human commanders, as well as the other rank and file Unovan troops. The Unovans retaliate with a Darmanitan charge against the Kalosian lines and an Excadrill and Conkeldurr attack against the walls. Dozens of Pokemon use the moves Fire Pledge, Water Pledge, and Grass Pledge in unison, creating a swampy terrain which produces noxious fumes and restricts the Kalosians’ movement. Frey and Kangaskhan throw back the Darmanitan, while the other knights attack with Pangoro, Heliolisk, and Claydol.
Zekrom (top) faces off against Reshiram (bottom)
While the two massive armies clash, Kris and the team are tasked with sabotaging the Unovan army’s supply lines and forcing them to retreat. Their contact is Etzel, one of Kalos’ most experienced sorcerers. With the help of his Gengar, Etzel has been embedded in the Unovan lines to get close to Harmonia so he can avenge his late wife, killed in a Golurk artillery attack on his home in Escissburg, south of Santalune. His orders came down from AZ himself following his own assassination attempt. Rurik notes how both brothers are effectively trying the same thing against each other. AZ really has changed since the assassination attempt. Before, he was opposed to his brother since he had launched the war, but he would never order his assassination. Celia insists they shouldn’t worry about that. They have their orders, and she wants to fight some Unovans. Loukas hopes he will have legends and songs written about his heroics today. Rurik points out they’ll more likely write about the giant swamp that was created in the battle, which looks like it will be permanent.
As usual, Kris tasks Ryland with scouting ahead with Pidgeotto and sniping targets with Norne. Rurik, Loukas, and Celia charge ahead and clear a path while Kris, Athena, Melissa, and Daimler finish off anybody still in their path. They soon reach the camp and begin burning the Unovans’ supplies and extra equipment, targeting any convoys trying to reach the army. Afterward, they begin attacking the main Unovan army from behind, with the goal of again sabotaging their artillery and breaking their cavalry lines. But as they approach the main battlefield, they see the two brothers approaching each other, most likely for a duel. Harmonia is clad in white armor adorned with blue fire imagery, while the much taller AZ looms over him, wearing black armor engraved with red thunderbolt patterns. They draw their swords. While Reshiram and Zekrom clash in the skies over them, AZ demands to know why his brother sent the assassins. He had always stressed the importance of fighting honorably. Harmonia insists this was never his plan, but AZ doesn’t believe him. While the two armies made way, the brothers charge at each other. AZ’s Floette attacks Harmonia, only to find “Harmonia” is an illusion created by his Zoroark. Several clones of Harmonia and Zoroark appear around AZ, and Harmonia boasts AZ’s partner Pokemon can’t match up to the illusion creating power of Zoroark. Harmonia points out the hypocrisy in how a man who outwardly proclaims he seeks the truth instead hides behind Zoroark’s illusions. Harmonia counters his brother’s ideal Kalos exists only on paper. For all of his knights’ talk of honor and justice, the truth is the Kalosians still suffer under an oppressive regime which causes them to starve. AZ tells him to shut up and continue fighting.
AZ swings his sword around and attacks anybody in range. Although each of Harmonia’s clones disappears in smoke upon being hit, he never finds the real Harmonia. Floette likewise struggles against the Zoroark clones, despite having a type advantage. Both become worn down from the constant attacks. Kris draws his weapon and attempts to intervene, only to be held back by Celia and Loukas, who insist this is the king’s fight to win or lose. AZ attempts to break the stalemate by calling on Zekrom to use its Fusion Bolt to destroy all of the illusions. Zekrom easily destroys the clones with its lightning, but doing so leaves it open to attack from Reshiram, which attacks it with Fusion Flare. Powered up by being used right after Fusion Bolt, it deals significant damage to the other legendary dragon, which crashes into the ground. Concurrently, Zoroark surprises the distracted Floette with Sludge Bomb. In a scripted battle, Zoroark gets a super effective critical hit and one-shots Floette, defeating it.
Floette falls, and AZ drops his sword to catch it. Harmonia uses the opportunity to strike, and AZ shields Floette from his blow. His black armor shatters. AZ pleads for Floette to say something, but Floette remains motionless. Harmonia raises his sword to deliver the final blow, declaring his death will reveal the true nature of Kalos for all to see. But he is unable to move. Etzel blasts him with an Elthunder spell. He explains his Gengar had just Mega Evolved, and the ability it gains upon Mega Evolution, Shadow Tag, prevents foes from escaping. He kept Gengar back so Harmonia was on the boundary enforced by Shadow Tag, preventing him from attacking AZ just outside the boundary. Zekrom, gathering its strength once more, grabs AZ and Floette and flies away. With their leader fleeing, the Kalosians lose morale, and their lines shatter. Etzel charges at him, vowing to get vengeance for his wife, but Harmonia strikes him down as well. Harmonia restrains himself from killing Etzel outright, saying he’s not worth the effort. Reshiram flies to his side, and its overwhelming fiery aura, generated by its ability Turboblaze, suppresses Shadow Tag, allowing the two to begin leaving.
Kris charges at Harmonia, demanding he stay and fight. The king of Unova refuses. He should not waste his time with someone as inexperienced as him. And it is clear Harmonia would win. Just ask Eevee. Kris asks him what he means. Harmonia says he wouldn’t understand. Kris can’t talk to Pokemon like he can. He and Reshiram fly away. Frey runs up to him and warns the Unovans have begun advancing again, this time on the city itself. They have to retreat now to survive. Kris insists on fighting to the end to defend his king, but Frey urges him to put aside his ideals for one moment and actually acknowledge the truth. The Kalosians have lost this battle, and there is nothing stopping Harmonia and his army from taking Lumiose. Kris insists he must defend Lumiose to his last breath. That is his duty as a knight. Frey reminds him his true duty is to serve AZ and defend the country. The capital is lost, but Kalos itself isn’t necessarily lost as well. They must retreat to fight another day. Kris finally sees what Frey is talking about, and he orders the 7th Platoon to retreat. He picks up AZ’s sword and vows he will be back for Lumiose. Lumiose falls to Unova. Harmonia marches into Prism Castle and sets himself up inside, while his troops begin occupying the city, sweeping out any remaining Kalosian loyalists. The Kalosians retreat west to the coast, specifically the five settlements of Temperaburg, Yantrastadt, Cromlexia, Petrophia, and Relievera. Cromlexia, located at the very westernmost point of Kalos, is chosen as AZ’s provisional capital. Despite the best efforts of his healers and their Pokemon, Floette does not survive.
AZ locks himself in his quarters to grieve and only comes out two times to take the samples from the Fluxia sundial and for Kris to return his sword. Without orders from their king, Frey and Horatio are forced to issue the orders instead. As their forces are weakened and unable to match up against the firmly entrenched Unovans, Frey’s priority is to hold the line until a breakthrough is made, stationing Clawitzer and Herr Mime battalions on the front to shell any approaching Unovan armies and raise barriers to prevent entry. The war again falls into a stalemate.
Six months pass. The Kalosians’ casualties continue increasing despite the barriers holding. With most of their officers dead or incapacitated, Frey is forced to elevate Kris to command level to fill in the vacancy. His experience in the Fluxia and Kiloude campaigns would come in handy for defending coastal Kalos and, if possible, retaking the center. If Kris has not promoted yet, he will be promoted to a higher class here and finally gain access to the world map and base camp. While in previous chapters only Lumiose, Santalune, and Kiloude could be temporarily accessed, the player doesn’t have a choice of navigating the map until now. Although those three cities are now inaccessible, Cromlexia, Temperaburg, and Yantrastadt are now accessible in their place and can be freely explored in between chapters. Petrophia and Relievera are inaccessible because of an anti-AZ rebellion going on, which Frey tasks Kris with putting down. AZ finally emerges from his isolation, looking far different than he did six months ago. His hair is now unkempt and graying in places, and his eyes are now full of a cold determination Kris hadn’t seen before. AZ gives no speech vowing revenge or promising the liberation of his kingdom, but he speaks softly and simply tells his soldiers Floette will be avenged. He also needs some men to help him and Zekrom with a certain project he hopes may tip the balance of the war back in their favor, for which they need the help of a lot of different Pokemon. Kris is not chosen for the project, as he is in the process of deploying south to fight the rebellion.
First the 7th Platoon and the forces now under their command head for Relievera, a settlement nestled between the cliffs and beaches of the western Kalosian coast. Frey sends three of his royal knights to aid Kris: the cavalier Biel and his Mightyena and the two bow knights Norbert and Lehrer, whose partners are Houndoom and Scrafty. Biel suggests a frontal assault on Relievera from the north, but Rurik contends the rebels would be expecting them to attack from that direction. Loukas and Celia point out the town is built on and near cliffs, which dominate the landscape in the area. They could use the cliffs to their advantage, especially with the four archers they have with them. Ryland agrees. He and Norne can take up positions at the top of the cliff and pick off targets from there, while the knights charge in from the north and everyone else rappels down the cliffs and drops into the settlement behind enemy lines.
This battle’s objective is simple, to seize the rebel headquarters in the center of town. Kris, Athena, Melissa, and Daimler can use a turn to rappel down the cliffs, although if Athena’s Binacle has evolved into a Barbaracle, she doesn’t need to use up a turn but can instead ignore the cliff terrain. Norne and Ryland can also ignore the cliff terrain, as Norne’s Probopass helps her descend and Ryland flies in on Pidgeotto. Kris’ group attacks from the east, while Celia, Rurik, Loukas, Biel, Norbert, and Lehrer attack from the north. The disorganized rebels, having focused entirely on the cavalry charge in the north, are unprepared for the cliffside assault, and soon they surrender, bringing the town back under Kalosian control. Kalosian reinforcements soon arrive to confiscate the rebels’ Pokemon and defeat any rebels who haven’t surrendered. It appears the rebels have been using Unovan weapons and equipment, which Kris believes points to Unova having funded this rebellion to break the stalemate.
Once his soldiers have rested up, Kris marches south on the rebel stronghold of Petrophia, along the treacherous but scenic Mauer Coast. He divides the army in two. Those on foot traverse the beaches on the lower portion of the route, while the knights march at the top of the cliffs. The rebels in Petrophia, having heard of Relievera’s fall, sortie out of the settlement to attack the Kalosians on both the beaches and cliffs, now making full use of the Pokemon and technology they received from their Unovan benefactors. The fighting continues even when Kris reaches Petrophia itself, as the rebels fight to the very end to defend their cause. Kris is surprised by the rebels’ loyalty to their ideals and wonders what could have driven them to be so driven to overthrow AZ. Rurik reminds him they are just as devoted to their own ideals as they are. Kris remembers Katarina’s story of how her family suffered in the famine. Maybe these rebels also suffered in the famine and the war that followed and blamed AZ for their hardships. But he puts his doubts aside and focuses on retaking the city. Trapped between the cliffs and the ocean, the rebels eventually surrender, and Petrophia is liberated. As with in Relievera, Kalosian reinforcements arrive to restore order and confiscate the Pokemon the rebels used.
The end of the rebellion in Relievera and Petrophia again consolidates the front lines. Kris returns to Cromlexia a hero, praised for ending the most immediate threat to AZ’s cause. With his leadership, the hope of a free Kalos is not yet lost. As always, Kris thanks his men for fighting alongside him and upholding the ideals of Kalos in their battles. Without such devotion to those ideals, they would not have triumphed. The celebrations are over quickly as the Kalosians’ attention shifts to breaking the stalemate. Frey advocates taking the fight to the Unovans and pushing them out of Lumiose. Retaking the capital would be an immense symbolic and strategic victory. However, Horatio wants to focus on attrition. With their current setup they can stall the Unovans indefinitely. They will be unable to take the western coast and all the while suffer constant rebellions from the Kalosians under their rule. Frey points out this is still somewhat unsustainable. The Unovans can still fund rebellions like in Relievera and Petrophia. And the Unovans are dangerously close to breaking through the barrier at Temperaburg, the easternmost city still under AZ’s control. AZ suggests a third option. He has been researching local legends and rumors of Kalos while in seclusion. There seems to be something in the Lumiose Badlands between Temperaburg and Lumiose that could help with his project. He proposes an all-out offensive at Temperaburg into the badlands. This would not only allow them to take whatever is in the desert back to Cromlexia for study but also push the Unovan lines back to Lumiose. Meanwhile, another army marches east, avoiding Lumiose entirely. Kris catches on to the idea. While the Unovans are busy fighting in the Badlands and outside Lumiose, the Kalosians would retake the eastern settlements, swing down to the south, and around to the west to cut off their main forces from their supply lines. Horatio worries the plan is too risky, but Frey believes Kris can pull it off. Having participated in the Fluxia campaign, he knows the area well. AZ approves the plan and tells the troops to get ready.
The preparations take four months while the Pokemon are moved into position and Kris assembles an army from the local settlements. AZ continues delegating more power to Frey while he works on his project in the forest to the west of Cromlexia. With AZ’s permission, Kris travels to Yantrastadt, defending the settlement against a bandit raid, and there receives special equipment custom made for some of the 7th Platoon’s Pokemon which would allow their Pokemon to Mega Evolve if possible. When the day comes, the Kalosians strike. Frey leads the Kalosians in an offensive out of Temperaburg, hitting the unprepared Unovans hard and pushing them into the badlands.
Kris, with Horatio now aiding him as an advisor, watches the main army’s northern flank. The two armies make full use of the local terrain and weather effects. Rock, Ground, and Steel-type Pokemon have their stats boosted by sandstorms, which deal damage to humans and Pokemon of other types every turn unless removed by a weather-changing move. The sandy terrain slows down all except human mages and Rock, Ground, Flying, and Steel-type Pokemon. The objective for this battle is to defend for several turns, but the player is encouraged to go on the offensive. After a while, Ryland reports he has spotted the object AZ was looking for, a giant black and red cocoon in the center of the desert. Although the Unovans fight fiercely to seize the cocoon, the Kalosians secure it and take it to Temperaburg. With the objective secure, Frey tells Kris to begin marching east.
Kris’ first target is the settlement of Frescora, a rural town in the foothills of eastern Kalos routinely chilled by the cold winds coming down from the mountains. Having not expected a Kalosian offensive, the town’s garrison is easily defeated. But there are no welcoming parties from the locals. Wondering why, Kris tours the town and finds most of its crops are barren. Horatio explains Frescora was one of the hardest hit towns by the famine. Dozens starved, including many entire families. But no aid came from Lumiose. As a result, they hated their Kalosian administration as much as the Unovan occupiers. Kris realizes this is the reality of life in the kingdom. He admits he was fortunate Sera wasn’t hit as hard by the famine. But this suffering can’t be allowed to continue. When he finishes his campaign, he vows to let AZ know of how his subjects feel so he can truly reform Kalos into his ideal kingdom.
With Frescora now under Kalosian control, Kris plans to take Fluxia again, but by now the winter has set in, and the mountain pass between Frescora and Fluxia has frozen over, with constant snowstorms covering the route with so much snow it is inaccessible. However, a local warrior named Ymir offers to help. His Mamoswine can clear the snow and allow the Kalosians to traverse the pass. Although the Kalosians can resume their advance, the Unovans have taken up ambush positions in the snow, using the snowstorms to their advantage. Their Ice-type Pokemon like Cryogonal, Beartic, and Vanilluxe gain perfect accuracy and boosted power for their Blizzard attacks, and their abilities raise their evasion in the snowstorms. Hail constantly pelts the Kalosians, damaging them every turn, while the snow impedes their movement. But eventually the Kalosians break through. They arrive at the gates of Fluxia once again, battered and weary but alive and determined to finally retake the city. While Frescora’s garrison was unprepared for a Kalosian attack, Fluxia’s garrison knows full well the Kalosians are coming and has heavily fortified the city. The map here is a repeat of the earlier Fluxia map, only the enemies are stronger, the Golurk artillery bombardments are more frequent, and more barricades have been set up to limit the Kalosians’ movement. But the most important difference regards the lake Fluxia is next to. It has frozen over during the winter, allowing Kris and the Kalosians to walk across it. After a brutal battle, the Unovans surrender, and Fluxia is liberated again.
Kris is aware the Unovans will send reinforcements from the south to retake Fluxia, so he decides to march as soon as possible to keep the Unovans on the defensive. Once the troops are ready to go and the winter ice thaws, Kris moves his army onto several boats to sail down the river towards the settlement of Mosaiaheim, a river port which Unova has used to ship in supplies from further south. The Unovans attack the fleet with Water-type Pokemon, but Kris repels any attacks coming from downriver. The current carries the Kalosians down to the waterfalls of Mosaiaheim. Kris devises a strategy to abandon the ships, set them on fire, and drop them over the waterfalls to explode on the docks, preventing the Unovans from using them to ship supplies in. While the Unovans are busy putting out the fires and clearing the wreckage, the Kalosians attack the town itself and overwhelm the garrison.
The liberation of Mosaiaheim decisively breaks Unova’s hold on northeast Kalos. Without the ability to ship supplies through Mosaiaheim’s ports, they are unable to project power further north to Fluxia and Frescora. The Unovans are forced to withdraw south and west to Fractalia and Ultima Fortress. For now, the must rely on the latter to protect the western supply lines. After the fall of Lumiose and Ultima Fortress, the western supply lines through no man’s lands were reestablished through Fractalia, whiel the eastern supply lines were redirected west. The cities of Aquarellia, Santalune, and Escissburg and the Kiloude outpost fell soon afterward. Kris, Horatio, and the 7th Platoon now plan to reverse that with an attack on Fractalia, a settlement founded where the river separates the Winding Woods from the eastern mountains. Retaking Fractalia would open Ultima Fortress up to attack, and if Ultima Fortress falls, they can punch through the Unovan lines and break into central Kalos, linking up with the Kalosians attacking from Relievera up the Flussuferweg, the road lining the river as it heads west from Fractalia across Kalos to the sea.
As the Unovans would expect an attack from the river, Kris insteads decides to march on the settlement by way of the forest instead. However, this is much easier said than done, as the Winding Woods didn’t get their name for no reason. Soon, the army gets lost. Many paths inside the forest lead to unexpected directions or dead ends, and some even take the Kalosians back to the entrance. The giant trees, untouched for centuries while those in the rest of Kalos were cut down to make way for farmland, prevent most sunlight from reaching the forest floor. The battles here are against local tribes and allied Pokemon who were never fully integrated into AZ’s kingdom, but they are not much of a threat. What is more of a threat is the map’s setup. The 7th Platoon starts in a map as usual. Due to the tree cover, there is fog of war which prevents the player from seeing enemies out of a certain range. The goal is to have all player units escape to one of several escape points (once one unit has escaped, all other escape points on the map are disabled). Kris must escape last, and anybody left behind when he goes will be permanently lost in the forest. After Kris escapes, a new stage loads. Depending on which escape point was chosen, this can either be a progression to a new stage, a previous stage, the same map, a dead end, or even the start of the whole map. Clues pointing to the correct escape point can be found by visiting houses or following the geographic hints (like where a road points or other landmarks). While going the correct path will remove the fog of war and allow the player to load the final stage, Fractalia itself (with a new objective to seize the Unovan headquarters), there is a secret path leading to a clearing in another part of the forest.
Pokemon Village in the Pokemon Adventures manhua
In the clearing, Kris comes across the Pokemon Village, a hidden settlement founded by humans and Pokemon fleeing the war. Among the Pokemon is Harmonia’s Zoroark, identifiable by the Unovan-style decorative cube tying its long hair. Shocked to see it here, Kris prepares to attack, but Zoroark refuses to battle. It points to a nearby Chatot, which repeats a conversation between Harmonia and Zoroark it recorded soon after the battle at Lumiose. With his power to understand the language of Pokemon, Harmonia learned Zoroark had serious doubts about itself for killing AZ’s Floette, seeing how AZ was very traumatized by it. He began questioning the righteousness of the war and the ideals they were fighting for. Harmonia insisted the war was fought to expose the truth of AZ’s reign, that he wasn’t fit to rule. Zoroark knows this, but it asks Harmonia if he himself is fit to rule and what his ideals are. Does he have anything to replace AZ and his rule with once he wins? Harmonia admits he never thought about it. For more than a decade he had focused on winning the war, not on what came afterward. Zoroark tells him it does not wish to participate in any more killings like the one it just caused, especially if it leads to more suffering. They are only perpetrating what they sought to eliminate by starting the war. Harmonia understands Zoroark’s pain. If it doesn’t want to continue fighting, it is free to leave. That is how Zoroark ended up in the Pokemon Village. It no longer wants to fight in the war. Although there are apparently no immediate benefits to meeting Zoroark here besides for extra lore, there will be something unlocked later in the game.
Returning to the main plot, the liberation of Fractalia opens up the path to Ultima Fortress. The massive fortress is all that’s left in between the 7th Platoon and a return to central Kalos. Once Fractalia’s position is reinforced by more Kalosians coming down from the north, Kris marches west to Ultima Fortress. The fortress, nestled on a plateau surrounded by the highest mountains in all of Kalos, is only accessible by one mountain pass from the south, which has been heavily guarded by some of Harmonia’s most elite troops. As Kris advances, Unova’s Cryogonal divisions create a heavy blizzard which significantly reduces visibility and movement, while Beartic and Vanilluxe relentlessly attack the army before disappearing into the snow. Kris orders the Fire-type Pokemon to push back the blizzard, as attempts to change the weather to something more bearable like sunlight or rain are quickly shut down by the Cryogonal. But eventually, the 7th Platoon breaks through the pass and finally reaches the fortress itself, also heavily guarded. As a frontal assault would be suicide, Kris instead comes up with a plan most of the 7th Platoon call crazy. He and several others grab onto Golurk, which transforms into cannon form and uses Hyper Beam to fly straight at the castle. While Ryland, Norne, Norbert, and Lehrer harass the garrison from a distance and draw their fire, Golurk slams through the walls, allowing the rest of the 7th Platoon to storm inside and surprise attack the garrison from behind. Kris finds the garrison is commanded by none other than Kleine, who is eager for revenge. This time, she has stolen Kalosian technology which allows her to Mega Evolve her Sableye. However, Kris still manages to defeat her.
Severely injured, Kleine attempts to escape again, but when she realizes her wounds are fatal, she lies down and prepares to die in the mountains outside the fortress. Katarina appears to help evacuate her to Unovan territory. Kleine is confused. She always treated Katarina badly and doesn’t know why she would help her now. Katarina insists Kleine is like a sister to her. They both lost their families to the famine and were raised by General Eremiah. All they had growing up was each other. Katarina doesn’t want to lose her and be alone again. Kleine finally accepts Katarina’s help, but when they return to Eremiah’s camp, the cruel Eremiah orders Katarina to execute her, as wounded soldiers are useless to her. On Kleine’s urging, Katarina reluctantly and tearfully carries out her orders, and as Kleine dies, she apologizes for treating her so badly. She too never wanted to be alone. Katarina cries, because she is now alone.
Eremiah turns back to the task at hand. Kleine’s death tells her the Kalosians have retaken Ultima Fortress. She cackles and declares they will not get to celebrate their victory. She orders the Gigalith and Golurk hidden on the mountain to detonate themselves and destroy the fortress with the 7th Platoon still inside. The Gigalith use Explosion. The resulting explosions and shrapnel tear through the foundations of Ultima Fortress, killing hundreds and causing large parts of the structure to crumble and collapse. The Golurk rip off the protective seals regulating their internal energy and go out of control. They rage indiscriminately, firing Hyper Beams, lobbing Dynamic Punches, and stomping Earthquakes wherever they go. Within minutes the fortress is reduced to rubble, and the cliff it is built on begins crumbling. The 7th Platoon and their surviving troops have no choice but to escape.
The destruction of Ultima Fortress
This particular battle is very challenging as the player is given no time to return to the world map or base camp, only given a preparations screen where they can save and manage inventory. The objective is to escape the map. Gradually, parts of the map behind the 7th Platoon will collapse into the abyss, and any units still on those tiles will instantly die. The enemy units are mainly immobile Gigalith which explode if the player moves into their attacking range, speeding up the collapse, and extremely dangerous rampaging Golurk which indiscriminately target anybody with their most powerful attacks and relentlessly pursue the 7th Platoon across the map. The more damage the Golurk take, the chance of them also exploding increases. In addition to the collapsing terrain, there is also a turn limit. All characters or at least Kris must escape before the turn limit passes, or the entire area will collapse over the cliff and everyone will die. Once the map is over and the 7th Platoon reaches safety, Kris looks back on the smoldering ruins of what was once Ultima Fortress. One of AZ’s greatest fortresses has been completely destroyed, its remains scattered on the cliffs and hillsides throughout the area. He is shocked the Unovans would resort to this much depravity, especially after hearing what Harmonia and Zoroark had to say. Loukas suggests not all Unovans think the same as him. Perhaps there was an overeager commander who ordered this attack, confident Harmonia is too far away to stop them. Kris again thinks of Katarina. Maybe she is working for such a commander. He really feels sorry for her. She had no choice but to do what she did. And if this is the truth, perhaps she can still be saved.
Six months have passed since leaving Mosaiaheim. The remains of Kris’ army march south and west from Ultima Fortress, breaking through into the plains of central Kalos, where they meet up with reinforcements. A Chatot relays Kris’ new orders, to retake the settlements of Aquarellia and Escissburg to the south of their current location while the main Kalosian army, having advanced futher up the Flussuferweg, will meet them where the river runs through Aquarellia. This will cut off the Unovan forces in Santalune and Lumiose and significantly push the front back from Lumiose all the way to southern Kalos. Receiving another promotion for his successful liberation of the settlements of eastern Kalos, Kris begins preparing to march south to Aquarellia and Escissburg.
In Escissburg, Katarina again meets with Eremiah to receive her orders. Eremiah is displeased the 7th Platoon has linked up with the main Kalosian army. If Aquarellia falls, Unova’s forces in and around Lumiose, including Harmonia himself, will be encircled. She vents her frustration on poor Katarina, berating her for doing nothing and not being ashamed she is still alive while others are dying for her sake. Not Harmonia’s sake, hers. She doesn’t care about Harmonia’s preaching about the moral high ground and higher standards. She doesn’t care who wins the war, as long as she is on the winning side. And her soldiers will die for THAT cause, her own cause, not for Harmonia’s delusion. Katarina says nothing while Eremiah continues berating her. Eremiah calls her worthless and her life without value. The world never wanted her. That’s why the famine killed her family. She would have died on the streets if it wasn’t for Eremiah. She saved her and many other orphans. She allowed their existence to continue. She owns them. They are nothing but her puppets. She orders Katarina to slaughter the 7th Platoon and prevent the encircling from happening.
Aquarellia falls quickly, as Kris, given more troops to command, orders the army to attack from the river as well as the land. Kalosian knights surf up the river on Water-type Pokemon, taking them behind the Unovan defenses at the town gates, which are taken by the ground forces. Attacked from several directions, its garrison surrenders. Once news spreads, the Unovan army stationed in Escissburg prepares to retake the settlement, but Kris acts faster, and his army soon reaches the gates of Escissburg. He is about to order an assault on the fortifications when he notices Katarina commanding the garrison. He immediately changes his strategy, not wanting to kill her.
The 7th Platoon moves cautiously into Escissburg, letting the enemy come to it instead of going to the enemy. Kris fights his way through dozens of Unovans to confront Katarina for the first time since the assassination attempt. Katarina tells him she had a dream. It was a short but happy one. She and Kris had become knights of Kalos, saving many people and becoming heroes of the war. But that is just a dream. She admits she is just saying nonsense, and she can’t be redeemed for what she did. She orders her Meowstic to attack. Kris refuses to defend against Meowstic’s Psychic or even counterattack. He begs her to listen, but Katarina insists there is nothing left to say. They are enemies, and she has no choice but to kill him. Meowstic attacks Kris again, and he still refuses to defend or counterattack. Katarina asks why he keeps refusing to fight. They must kill each other here. If he doesn’t kill her first, she will kill him. And yet he keeps hesitating. Kris tells her she is still his friend. He asks if she remembers their days training under Frey. She had said they could overcome anything together. Together, they can achieve anything. Kris reminds her of his own promise, to always back her up. If she ever needs someone to lean on, he would be there for her. Those were the ideals they decided to defend as knights of Kalos. Katarina tells herself it was all a lie so she could assassinate AZ, and the truth is she doesn’t care about him. But Kris points out the real truth: she’s crying. She doesn’t belong with the Unovans. She belongs with the 7th Platoon. It’s time her truth once again works together with Kris’ ideals, and together they can again do anything they want. Katarina says that is impossible. She has committed too many unforgiveable sins. Kris simply tells her she will have to atone for them. And although many will not like her, he assures her he will always stay by her side. She won’t have to be alone again. Katarina finally breaks down and hugs Kris, vowing to fight alongside him. She orders Meowstic to target the Unovans, and the sudden barrage of Psychic-type attacks turns the tides in the Kalosians’ favor. Enraged by Katarina’s sudden betrayal, Eremiah attempts to blow up Escissburg just as she did with Ultima Fortress, but a light rain has set in, preventing the Gigalith and Golurk from detonating. She instead escapes.
With southern Kalos secured and the main Unovan army encircled, it is now time to liberate Lumiose and Santalune. Katarina provides expert tactical advice about the Unovan forces she once fought alongside, helping Kris win battle after battle. While a loyal garrison is set up in the southern settlements, the main Kalosian army marches north to take Santalune. They take a shortcut to march through Santalune Forest and arrive at the town, whose outnumbered and cut off garrison folds quickly. Kris continues his march north, and just as expected, the combination of Kris’ leadership and Katarina’s tactics proves unstoppable. Within three months, the Kalosians have returned to the gates of Lumiose, the site of Floette’s death all that time ago. Kris vows to not lose and retreat again like he did back then. He motivates the troops with an inspiring speech about the ideals of the Kalosian knights. They fight for justice and freedom for all Kalosians and for the restoration of their king AZ. They fight to protect their friends and families from the Unovans. They have come from all over Kalos to defend those ideals. It doesn’t matter if they’re from Fractalia, Frescora, Mosaiaheim, Cromlexia, Escissburg, or Lumiose now. They are all Kalosians, and they never abandon each other. And together, they can prevail even against the toughest odds. That is the truth they learned fighting in the east and in the south. That is the truth their ideals are rooted in. That is the truth their ideals promote.
The Battle of Lumiose begins. While the objective is to seize the target, the target, Prism Castle, only opens up once five other targets around the map are seized, representing the Kalosians’ and Unovans’ control over the city’s various districts. The 7th Platoon enters Lumiose from Santalune Gate in the south, while other Kalosian battalions enter from the Flussuferweg and Temperaburg Gates, opening up three fronts for the Unovans to defend against. The player’s first priority is to link up with the troops attacking from the Flussuferweg and then the ones arriving from Temperaburg, creating a united front. Next the other two city gates must be taken to block off any escape routes. Finally the 7th Platoon marches towards the city center. They can take the alleys, which are longer but allow them to avoid the heavily guarded main streets, or just directly attack the Unovans barricading the streets. Whatever the case, once Kris takes the five seize targets, the plazas surrounding the city center, a path opens up to Prism Castle. The Unovans guarding the castle gates are defeated. Kris and Katarina look up at Prism Castle, reflecting on their days training here long ago. They are finally back after so long, this time to free it from Harmonia’s control. Kris hopes to fight Harmonia inside to avenge his previous loss. Katarina hopes to make up for her attempt to kill AZ by now taking back his castle. Frey catches up to them, his units having been delayed in another part of the city, but he is ready to help defeat Harmonia for good. He and Kangaskhan become playable.
The 7th Platoon enters Prism Castle. The building is crawling with Unovan soldiers handpicked by Harmonia himself, ready to defend their king to the death. Swordmasters with Bisharp assault them at lightning speed, while mages with Darmanitan and Reuniclus blast them with relentless spells. Ferrothorn drop from the ceiling, their spiky metallic bodies tearing through the Kalosians’ armor right before they explode, taking down many Kalosians with them. Galvantula lay down electrically charged webs to impede their progress, and Swoobat generate powerful ultrasonic waves which shatter both glass and concrete. But Kris, Katarina, and their friends persist through the onslaught, their Pokemon always at their side. Eventually they reach the throne room, where Harmonia himself waits alongside Reshiram.
Harmonia gets up from the throne, his white and blue armor clinking. He draws his sword and welcomes the 7th Platoon, congratulating them for making it past his most elite troops. They have earned the right to battle him and Reshiram. Reshiram roars in agreement. He beckons the 7th Platoon to charge right at him. He hears their Pokemon and knows they are eager for a fight. It’s time to see which will prevail: his own truth, or Kris’ ideals. Harmonia is as powerful as any final boss, boasting immense defense thanks to his armor as well as a very high strength stat, which results in his already powerful sword dealing massive damage. Reshiram is a Fire/Dragon-type legendary Pokemon with similarly high stats. Its moves Fusion Flare and Blue Flare are among the most powerful Fire-type attacks in the game. Its Outrage is a similarly powerful Dragon-type attack which lasts for two or three turns, each time targeting a random player unit in range, although afterward Reshiram gains the confused status and may damage itself instead of attacking until it randomly wears off. Its fourth move is Draco Meteor, another powerful Dragon-type with high range but at the cost of lowering Reshiram’s Special Attack by two stages after use. In lunatic mode, Reshiram’s Outrage is replaced with Roost, allowing it to heal up to full health. While this battle may appear challenging, Daimler’s Clefairy is uniquely suited to taking down Reshiram. Being Fairy type, it is immune to Outrage and Draco Meteor, and its Fairy-type attacks will do neutral damage. Athena’s Barbaracle can also do super-effective damage with its Rock-type attacks, although it still has to watch out for Outrage and Draco Meteor. Katarina’s Meowstic can reduce the damage done by setting up Reflect and Light Screen while other Pokemon attack and the humans fight Harmonia. Eventually, Harmonia and Reshiram are defeated. He yields to Kris, acknowledging his loss. If only he still had Zoroark with him, maybe things could have been different.
If Kris didn’t talk to Zoroark at the Pokemon Village, the game will end here. Harmonia realizes there is no way he can defeat AZ with such devoted knights like Kris at his side. But neither can AZ fully defeat him. Unova has been completely untouched this entire war, and AZ does not have the manpower or firepower to even cross no man’s land, let alone invade Unova, let alone conquer it. Neither of them can win. He proposes a ceasefire. He will call off the invasion and return home in exchange for a recognition of Unova’s independence. The two kingdoms will become equals. He promises to renounce all claims to the Kalosian throne as well. Subsequently, AZ and Harmonia meet once again outside Prism Castle to negotiate the terms of the peace. Harmonia apologizes for Floette’s death and promises to make up for it by sending whatever aid he can to rebuild Kalos. Although he acknowledges his grief may never heal, AZ thanks Harmonia for the offer. The Treaty of Lumiose is signed, establishing Unova as an independent kingdom and ending the war in a stalemate. Harmonia returned home to Illuminopolis and presided over a period of peace and development, never again waging war. AZ also dedicated his life to peace and the arts, his long reign fondly remembered for many centuries to come. The mysterious project he was working on was abandoned, as there was no longer any use for it. Mega Evolution also faded into history as a secretive wartime experiment which had served its purpose. The 7th Platoon retired from service and went home as heroes. Kris retired to Sera with Katarina and disappeared from the history books. However, a generation later, the sons of AZ and Harmonia reignited the feud and resumed the war, and the dragons laid waste to both Kalos and Unova, bringing the kingdoms to an end.
If Kris talked to Zoroark, he tells Harmonia about it. Harmonia acknowledges Zoroark had begun doubting the righteousness of their cause, and rather than make it fight against its will, he let it go. He admits he had been so focused on winning the war he had not even thought about what to do afterward. He has really lost sight of his ideals, and as such his truth has nothing to defend and support it. Kris tells him truth and ideals are better together. Ideals need to be rooted in a truth, while a truth needs ideals to back it up and promote it. They are inseparable. Harmonia agrees. He hadn’t thought about that when he started the war. But Kris’ words also imply AZ is in a similar situation. He has ideals not rooted in a truth. Kris reluctantly agrees with that observation. He has visited all corners of Kalos and seen the truth for himself. There are people starving and rebelling against AZ because he had forgotten about their plight. The famine which killed Katarina’s family and drove her to Eremiah, as well as the rebellions on the southwest coast and the chilly reception at Frescora show that. Their ideals mean nothing if they don’t have a truth to build them on. An ideal Kalos will never come about if it has nothing in common with what Kalos truly is. The two of them understand what must be done. This war has gone on long enough. They have to talk to AZ and convince him to agree to a ceasefire. Suddenly, Zoroark rushes into the room. Harmonia listens to its story. It had fled the Pokemon Village after the Kalosian army marched in and began capturing Pokemon. Disguising itself as a Kalosian soldier, Zoroark learned the captured Pokemon were being sent to Cromlexia as part of AZ’s project. Kris remembers the rebels’ Pokemon being confiscated at Relievera and Petrophia and the mysterious cocoon the 7th Platoon retrieved in the Badlands. Could they be related to the abduction of the Pokemon in the Winding Woods? Whatever is happening in Cromlexia, Katarina insists they have to put a stop to it. Zoroark tells Reshiram about the situation, and on Harmonia’s orders the legendary Pokemon uses its powers as the dragon of truth to inform those in Kris’ army about it as well. They all agree they must confront AZ about it. Harmonia and his Reshiram become playable.
Leaving the castle, Kris tries to talk with the local commanders about the abducted Pokemon and AZ’s project, but upon seeing Harmonia still alive, they consider him a traitor and attack, despite Kris attempting to clarify he surrendered. Katarina scolds him for leaving Harmonia in plain view for all to see, but Kris is more focused on fighting his way out of the city. He sends a Chatot to Cromlexia to ask AZ about the project and to call off the troops attacking him. The Chatot never returns, so Katarina switches to their backup plan: forcibly stop the project by any means necessary. This escape map is straightforward, as the player must have Kris and the 7th Platoon fight their way through Lumiose from Prism Castle to the Flussuferweg Gate. Once this map is cleared, the 7th Platoon sets a course west for Cromlexia, but Kris puts the march on hold when he learns a Kalosian battalion has occupied nearby Sera and is confiscating its Pokemon. Kris immediately orders the army to march to Sera. They barely arrive in time to intercept the first convoy of captured Pokemon. Kris’ grandfather has been leading the resistance to the knights’ activities, but he and Pikachu can only do so much. The objective for this map is to defend the Pokemon of the village for several turns and to recapture any the knights take before they are taken off the map. The player receives greater incentives the more Pokemon they save. After driving off the knights, Kris’ grandfather thanks him for his assistance and remarks on his progress since leaving the village. He really has grown into the ideal knight he wanted to be. Kris reminds him he still needs to ground those ideals in truth. And the truth is AZ is not as benevolent as he used to think. The truth and his ideals both call for him to confront the king and end whatever project he is working on. His grandfather doesn’t try to dissuade him, only wishing him luck.
From Sera, Kris’ army continues west along the Flussuferweg. Kalosian troops continuously surf up the river to harass them, while other soldiers ambush them from the fields of flowers lining the river. Despite taking heavy casualties, Kris pushes on. Predicting AZ’s men will be waiting for him in the mountain pass ahead, he takes a detour through a cave, fighting off remnant Unovan battalions with their Excadrill and other Rock, Steel, and Ground-type Pokemon who refuse to acknowledge Harmonia’s attempt for a ceasefire. Fighting them off, Kris emerges right next to Relievera, which is unprepared for an attack from that direction and quickly falls. Kris wastes no time marching north to Cromlexia. The resistance from AZ’s men grows more vicious and even desperate.
The glowing stones outside Cromlexia
Katarina notices several strange glowing stones that seem to have been placed in a grid-like pattern throughout the area. Pokemon are tied to them. They seem to be in pain. Kris orders his men to free the Pokemon, but they can only free a handful before the stones glow even brighter and drain their life force. The objective of this map is to seize the target, the main gates to Cromlexia, but a secondary objective is to free the Pokemon tied to the stones. Every turn, the stones will drain some HP from the Pokemon until they die. The player gets more rewards the more Pokemon they save. Meanwhile, the Kalosian soldiers here are extremely aggressive and very powerful, and they will fight to the death to keep the Pokemon where they are.
The 7th Platoon storms Cromlexia, finding the settlement deathly quiet. Most of its villagers have hidden in their houses in fear while Kalosian troops patrol the streets, watching for even the slightest show of dissent. Katarina recognizes Eremiah as their leader. Kris wonders why Eremiah is now working for the Kalosians, since Katarina said she was a Unovan general before. Katarina explains Eremiah holds no particular allegiance to either side. She only joins the side she thinks will win. And to ensure that victory, she took in dozens of orphans like Katarina and trained them to be assassins, puppets who would follow any of her orders. But her strings have been cut now. She has reclaimed her identity from Eremiah. From this point on, she fights for herself and Kris. And it’s time she ended Eremiah’s terror, at her own hands if necessary.
Eremiah notices the 7th Platoon marching into Cromlexia. She calls upon her Malamar to make the battlefield “weird.” It’s time the 7th Platoon knows the true meaning of fear when they can’t even trust their own eyes.Malamar uses Topsy Turvy, and things around Cromlexia become inverted. The 7th Platoon’s perception of their surroundings becomes distorted. While Katarina’s Meowstic limits the hypnosis’ effects on themselves, they still can’t see straight. Ostensibly, this should be a straightforward defeat the boss map. Initially it appears like the map is small and devoid of enemies except for Eremiah. But this masks the true extent of what Topsy Turvy has done. For example, take moving Kris. While the movement range looks correct and the arrow clearly points to where the player wants Kris to move, Kris may instead move in another direction, to another square, to another square in the path, or accidentally run into an invisible enemy. The chances of this happening are low but increase on higher difficulty modes. The number of hidden enemies depends on the difficulty level. On hard mode, some squares have hidden teleport tiles which if stepped on warp the unit to a random spot on the map. On lunatic mode, these hidden teleport tiles are randomized every turn and can still activate if they are randomized to a square a player unit is currently on. Due to Topsy Turvy, the weapon triangle, Fire Emblem-style effective damage, and Pokemon type matchups are reversed. On lunatic mode, enemies will always attack first even on player phase, and magic and strength, defense and resistance, Special and Physical Attack, and Special and Physical Defense are swapped. Player units may accidentally attack each other or themselves when “initiating” combat. The chances of all this happening depend on a formula affected by the human character’s Luck stat. The effects of Topsy Turvy go away if Malamar is defeated, but since Eremiah will usually be the leading unit in the pair up duo, this will effectively never happen. Eremiah is also very dangerous, boasting magic tomes and a stat distribution that takes perfect advantage of Topy Turvy’s inversions. Malamar is also dangerous as an attacking Pokemon, and its Contrary ability inverts all stat changes, making moves like Superpower which normally lower both Attack and Defense raise them instead. It can also use Topsy Turvy in battle to reverse all stat changes for both itself and the enemy, turning stat drops into boosts and boosts into drops.
Katarina confronts Eremiah, Meowstic keeping the hypnosis and distortions at bay. Eremiah calls her trash, wondering if she should call her ungrateful or traitorous. It is very brave of her to show her face in front of Eremiah now, especially after what she did. Katarina says she’d rather die than see her again, but if it helps Kris bring peace to Kalos and Unova, she won’t run. She will fight for what she believes in and what she knows is true. She is no longer Eremiah’s puppet but Katarina again. Eremiah dares her, a “junk puppet,” to lift a hand against her and Malamar. Seeking vengeance for all of her suffering, Katarina blasts Eremiah with an Excalibur spell while Meowstic uses Psyshock. Normally Psyshock is an attack using Meowstic’s Special Attack and targeting the enemy’s Defense stat, but with Topsy Turvy in effect it operates off Meowstic’s Attack stat (which has the value of the Special Attack stat) and targets the enemy’s Special Defense stat (which has the value of the Defense stat). Eremiah and Malamar fall, and Topsy Turvy wears off, returning Cromlexia to normal. As she dies, Eremiah says they are too late to stop AZ’s plan. It is clear AZ will win the war with the completion of his project, and she is at least happy to die ensuring that victory. She will die on the winning side of the war.
Frey reports AZ’s provisional residence in western Cromlexia has been surrounded by more of the same stones as those on the road. A large crystal structure has been built on top if it, radiating potent energy similar to that found in the Mega Evolution equipment the 7th Platoon uses for its Pokemon. Harmonia listens to what their Pokemon have to say. All feel unnerved by the energy radiating from the structure, including Reshiram. He tells them they have no choice but to stop AZ from activating whatever this is. Kris and Katarina look at each other and agree. This will be their final battle. They must end this war before more people die.
AZ's weapon activated
While the 7th Platoon and their fully evolved Pokemon march on the compound, Eremiah continues bleeding out on the ground in central Cromlexia. Also dying, Malamar’s psychic powers weaken enough to break its hypnotic grip on Eremiah. Eremiah suddenly remembers being hypnotized by Malamar and her past before meeting it. She had once been a kind bishop who looked after orphans of the famine and the war, haunted by their suffering and pain. Malamar had preyed on her grief and despair, twisting it into rage and hatred. Her desire to never want those children to die was turned into an evil plan to make them into strong and emotionless killing machines to serve her every whim. She was easily hypnotized by Malamar, not even resisting when it promised to give her the strength to protect the children. Then she gathered more orphans and put them through torturous training as Malamar suggested, smiling while they cried and screamed in pain. Remembering all of her hypocrisy, Eremiah despairs and screams in anguish, her final moments full of agony and regret.
The 7th Platoon storms into AZ’s base, finding stairs leading deep into the depths of the earth. Cables connecting the device with what is probably its power source drop deep underground alongside the stairs. They descend to the bottom, where they find AZ in a large room filled with more stones and lifeless Pokemon tied to them. Zekrom has been using its tail turbine to power the Fluxia crystals in the center, which are hooked up to both the black and red cocoon from the Lumiose Badlands and a similar blue and white cocoon, both channeling energy to the crystals, which in turn channel the energy up the cable to the device. AZ turns around. He looks very different from when Kris last saw him. His hair is disheveled and his expression is frenzied. His eyes retained the same determination he used to have, but now with a crazed look. AZ tells them they should not interfere with his plan. Kris asks what the plan is. AZ replies he is a traitor, having sided with Harmonia against Kalos, and thus is unworthy of the truth. Katarina says he doesn’t know what the truth is. He is sacrificing innocent Pokemon for this experiment. AZ corrects her. He is sacrificing them for his ideals. Without sacrifices, he can’t bring about his ideal Kalos. Without sacrifices, he can’t end this war. Without sacrifices, he can’t bring Floette back to life. Harmonia calls it madness. He is doing all this to resurrect his Pokemon AND stop the war? They shouldn’t meddle with matters of life and death. The truth is Floette is dead, and he has to move on. AZ blames his brother for killing Floette and making him do this. Harmonia clarifies nobody forced AZ to build this device but himself. AZ insists he has no choice. He has to resurrect Floette because he has the capabilities, and he can then use the device, no, this ultimate weapon to end the war for good. He can’t forgive those who took Floette from him. He owes it to Floette to avenge its death, by any means necessary. That is his final ideal. He draws his sword, and Zekrom steps away from the stone, having finished charging it. AZ beckons the 7th Platoon to try and stop him. They can’t stop his unwavering heart or stand up to the strength of his ideal. Zoroark attacks the cable to cut off the weapon’s power, but the overflowing energy surging through the cable repairs any damage and strikes it down instead. AZ laughs. The only way to stop the weapon from activating is to defeat him and Zekrom.
The final battle against AZ and Zekrom begins. AZ has roughly the same stats as Harmonia, although he has a higher luck and skill stat which increases his accuracy, evasion, and critical hit rate to dangerous levels. He can also tap into the weapon’s power source to power up his magic spells and increase their range. Randomly, AZ can also absorb some of the weapon’s energy to heal himself. Zekrom can also take advantage of the weapon’s power to boost its stats and attacking power. It can use the powerful Bolt Strike to deal massive Electric-type damage with a chance to inflict paralysis (like how Blue Flare has a chance to burn). If it uses Fusion Bolt right after Reshiram uses Fusion Flare, the power of Fusion Bolt is doubled. The same goes for Reshiram using Fusion Flare right after Fusion Bolt. As with Reshiram, Zekrom’s Dragon-type attacks are Outrage and Draco Meteor on lower difficulties. On lunatic mode, Zekrom gets Roost instead of Draco Meteor, allowing it to heal up to 100% health. Although this fight will be a challenging one, the player has received all of the tools they need to handle it well. Daimler’s Clefairy is immune to Zekrom’s Dragon-type attacks and can do super effective damage to it. It only needs to worry about AZ’s attacks. Horatio’s Golurk is immune to Electric-type attacks and can also do super effective damage. And the 7th Platoon themselves should by now have reached their final promoted classes with stats to match AZ’s. Eventually, Kris and his allies defeat AZ and Zekrom. However, AZ isn’t done yet. Although Zekrom is clearly unable to battle, so is Reshiram, both dragons having fought to a stalemate. But AZ himself can still fight. He absorbs more energy from the weapon to power himself up even more. He calls on the Pokemon sleeping in the two cocoons to awaken and aid him.
Xerneas
Yveltal
First to awaken is the black and red cocoon, from which the giant bird Yveltal emerges, radiating a dark aura. Next to awaken is the blue and white cocoon, from which the giant deer Xerneas emerges, radiating a fairy aura. AZ explains he had been researching legends of the gods of life and death which the tribes of Kalos once worshipped. It was said Xerneas gave life to the region, while Yveltal took it. When they went into hibernation centuries ago, Xerneas returned life to its surroundings, creating the Winding Woods, while Yveltal absorbed it, creating the Lumiose Badlands. With both of these legendary Pokemon on his side, he can now absorb the life forces of the captured Pokemon and give it to Floette to bring it back. And not only that…he can use the remaining energy to end the war and get vengeance on those who killed Floette. Kris, Katarina, and Harmonia again try to convince him otherwise. Kris warns their ideal Kalos can’t be built on a truth as bloody as this one. Katarina urges him to think of what Floette would’ve wanted, which is surely not this. Harmonia tells his brother he has lost his way, and if he truly wants revenge, he will let AZ kill him right now. But AZ refuses to listen. The ends justify the means. He will bring eternal peace back to Kalos and his people by any means necessary. Floette would’ve wanted him to destroy its murderers and bring an end to this war in its name. He will like killing Harmonia, but he is only one of many Unovans responsible for killing Floette. He must end the war his way. They can condemn him all he wants after this, but he doesn’t care. His ideal will not be stopped.
The next stage of the battle begins. Now AZ’s stats have been increased significantly, and he has two partner Pokemon, Xerneas and Yveltal. Xerneas is a Fairy-type legendary Pokemon with the Fairy Aura ability, which stacks with the weapon’s stat bonuses to power up its Fairy-type attacks and weaken enemy Dark-type attacks. Its signature move, Geomancy, takes one turn to charge up its Special Attack by two stages, powering up its Moonblast attack to terrifying levels. It can also use Misty Terrain to prevent status effects, halve the power of enemy Dragon-type attacks, and further increase the power of allied Fairy-type attacks. Finally, it has Light Screen to raise its and its allies’ Special Defense. Yveltal is a Dark/Flying-type legendary Pokemon with the Dark Aura ability, which agains stacks with the weapon’s stat bonuses to power up its Dark-type attacks and weaken enemy Fairy-type attacks. Its signature move, Oblivion Wing, drains massive amounts of HP from the target to replenish its own health. Its other moves are Disable, which prevents the target from using their last Pokemon move or human attack; Roost, which heals up to full health; and Foul Play, which does more damage the higher the target’s attack/strength stat is. Again, the player has the tools needed to overcome this challenging battle. Xerneas is weak to Steel and Poison-type attacks, while Yveltal can be hit with Electric, Ice, Fairy, and Rock-type attacks as well as arrows. With a good strategy, AZ and the two legendary Pokemon can be brought down.
Although he is defeated yet again and the two legendary Pokemon are likewise defeated, AZ refuses to give up. The two battles have bought enough time to fully charge the weapon. As everyone watches in horror, he inserts a key and activates it, declaring the war finally over. The stones glow brightly, the Pokemon tied to them go limp as Yveltal drains their remaining energy, and Xerneas directs the energy through the cable up to the weapon.
In a cinematic, the player sees the weapon firing a beam up into the sky, heading southeast to Unova, where it impacts right into the center of Illuminopolis and destroys it, killing all of its citizens and causing a nearby volcano to erupt. Residual energy from the beam falls across Kalos, irradiating many evolutionary stones and causing a reaction in all Pokemon of species capable of Mega Evolving.
The ultimate weapon strikes Illuminopolis
The destruction of Illuminopolis
In AZ’s base, Xerneas directs leftover energy to an altar where Floette lies. The energy resurrects Floette and changes its flower’s color. It wakes up and sees AZ. AZ is overjoyed to see Floette has come back to life, but Floette notices the dead Pokemon tied up to the stones scattered around the room and realizes the sacrifices made for its resurrection. Harmonia translates Floette’s utter disgust for what AZ had done. As he watches, Floette rebukes him and leaves the room.
AZ finally realizes the error of his ways. In his blind devotion to his ideals, he had lost sight of the truth and was no longer rooted in it. As a result, he lost what was most dear to him. Floette had been with him since his childhood, having been gifted to him by his late mother. And now it was gone, rightfully so. He falls to his knees and asks for forgiveness. Harmonia instead says he should be the one apologizing, because he caused this whole situation. He offers a ceasefire, which AZ immediately accepts. With Zekrom and Reshiram as witnesses, they end the war that very moment. Harmonia renounces his claim to the throne of Kalos, and AZ recognizes Unova as an independent kingdom. The two vow to never fight each other again. They acknowledge their dragons are evenly matched and the weapon is too powerful to be used again.
Both brothers take steps to begin their two kingdoms’ healing and transition to peace. Harmonia and his remaining troops in Kalos return home to Unova only to find Illuminopolis destroyed and replaced by a lifeless desert filled with thousands of Ghost-type Pokemon called Yamask as well as the Sigilyph he had assigned to guard the city, still carrying out their orders. The sky is filled with volcanic ash from the erupting “Reversal Mountain,” which plunges Unova into darkness. Harmonia attempts to light up the region with Reshiram’s flames, but it isn’t enough. Miraculously, a Pokemon called Volcarona appears, emitting a bright light that, for a time, replaced the sun and kept Unova lit and warm while Reversal Mountain erupted. A new faith spreads through the Unovan people, who turn from worshipping the old gods of Kalos to the new god of Volcarona, which had delivered them from the cold volcanic winter, and later the two legendary dragons. Harmonia set about rebuilding his kingdom under Volcarona’s light, starting with his capital. He set his sights on Fort Castelia, once one of many minor forts built to defend Illuminopolis but now the only survivor of the weapon’s blast. Castelia’s garrison and its castle town are still alive, if barely. His hopes are raised even more when he finds one tree had survived the blast where the rest had died off, still standing tall and healthy even as ash and dust fall around it. He declares this tree will be a symbol of a new Unova, there to witness the new kingdom’s birth. Around this tree, a new capital of Unova would rise, known as Castelia City. Reshiram helped him and his subjects and their Pokemon build this new capital, and once their job was done, it sealed itself away in a Light Stone to prevent its powers from being used in another war. Harmonia reigned from a new castle at the heart of Castelia, presiding over decades of peace and reconstruction. He swore off warfare for the rest of his life, instead turning to cultural pursuits. Many proverbs of his—such as “war brings tears,” “do not be barbaric,” “good or evil isn’t all,” how opposite ideas can be reconciled, and how nature should be respected—remain common sayings in modern Unova. At the end of his reign, Harmonia abdicated to his son and retired to his summer home at Undella Castle, on the eastern coast of Unova. He was buried there after his death, with his memorial epitaph saying he "acted with love" and "fought against hatred," and he and his people found "all life precious." In a bittersweet moment, Undella Castle would later sink beneath the waves in an unrelated war generations later, and later kings would move the capital to a new palace and town closer to the Giant Chasm where the original dragon had fallen. Later legends take Eremiah and assume Harmonia was surrounded by greedy and cruel people who wanted to subjugate Kalos, which would slightly tarnish Harmonia’s memory. Over the centuries, the kings of Unova would gradually lose power and fade from memory, and their dynasty became forgotten.
Illuminopolis Castle unearthed in the modern day
Modern Castelia City, built around the tree which survived the ultimate weapon's blast instead of Harmonia's new castle
Similar changes are done in Kalos. AZ takes the weapon’s activation key, to prevent anyone else from firing the weapon, while Harmonia buries the weapon. All records relating to the weapon are destroyed. Attempts to bury the Mega Evolution project fail when it is discovered that any Pokemon of a species capable of Mega Evolution can do so now with the right bonds with their human partner and a certain altered evolutionary stone, instead of a select few in that species with the help of custom-made equipment. Deciding he is unworthy of ruling, AZ abdicates the throne of Kalos to his son and disappears from historical records with only the clothes on his back and the key to the weapon, planning to search for Floette and repent for his actions. Zekrom voluntarily chooses to seal itself inside a Dark Stone to prevent its powers from being used for another war. The Dark Stone was sealed in the vaults of Prism Castle for centuries before being given to Unova later as a sign of peace. The Light and Dark Stones are hidden in different parts of Unova. One was placed in the Dragonspiral Tower, a large shrine constructed to the worship of the legendary dragons and their chosen heroes, while the other was buried in the ruins of Illuminopolis, later known as the Desert Resort, as a memorial to the dead. AZ’s rise and fall would be remembered in countless Kalosian legends and tales which frequently got many details wrong. The most popular interpretation was the Kalosian army had conscripted Floette while AZ never fought on the front lines, an attempt to rehabilitate AZ’s image and improve his reputation. As with Harmonia’s descendants, AZ’s descendants would reign over Kalos for centuries before also fading from relevance, although there is still a king of Kalos in the modern day of XYZ.
Modern Lumiose City
Meanwhile, the members of the 7th Platoon go their separate ways. Loukas retires from the knighthood and abandons his playboy ways to marry Celia, who devotes the rest of her life to being the best knight she can be. Frey retires and teaches Rurik everything he knows. Rurik eventually succeeds Frey as the king’s closest retainer and advisor, helping him keep the peace and avoid AZ’s mistake. Ryland and Norne married and retired to Sera to live peaceful and ordinary lives. Etzel left the Kalosian army and set off to explore Kalos, as if looking for something he had lost. Melissa used her pension to start a weapon shop in Lumiose and fund her father’s continuing gambling habit. Horatio left with Harmonia to dedicate himself to the restoration of Unova. Norbert, Biel, and Lehrer traveled through Kalos to help the weak and aid numerous villages recovering from the war. Athena returned to no man’s land and was never seen in Kalos again. Ymir settled down in Frescora and spent his days laboring the fields to help the town recover from the famine.
Modern Sera, now known as Vanitasburg, with Kris' former estate in the background
Although he was initially remembered as an honorable knight who led Kalos to many victories in the final years of the war, Kris was soon forgotten by his fellow Kalosians and faded away from the pages of history. Not that he minded. After receiving a minor noble title, he returned to Sera and hung up his weapon for good, having fulfilled his dream. He married Katarina, and the two worked tirelessly to help the village recover from the famine and war. It was said Katarina never stopped working hard, as if to atone for her past sins, and Kris was always found at her side, helping her when possible. The people of Sera noticed they were particularly happy when with each other. Over the centuries, Sera became known as Vanitasburg, and Kris’ descendants would renovate their house into a modest manor called Schloss Traurigkeit. In modern times, his family is mostly forgotten. The manor has been opened to the public as a museum dedicated to the memory of Kris and Katarina, two brave souls whose bonds with each other and their Pokemon helped bring an end to the war. (If Kris is female, she and Katarina adopted a child.)
Magnum-Opus Palast
In a post-credits scene set in the modern day, AZ visits Magnum-Opus Palast, a magnificent palace built by one of his descendants 300 years before to replace an older palace built in the ruins of Ultima Fortress (now the home of Kalos’ Pokemon League and Elite Four). The palace is well known for being among the most opulent on the entire continent. Its expansive gardens and man-made lake were the site of extravagant parties. Statues of Zekrom, Reshiram, Golurk, Serperior, and Bisharp can be found throughout the garden and halls, commemorating the Pokemon who fought in both AZ’s war and another war before the castle’s construction. Nowadays it is a major tourist site, as the current king of Kalos no longer lives either there or at Prism Castle (destroyed in a previous war and now replaced with the Lumiose City gym). AZ towers over the tourists, his height and immortality granted by having absorbed the weapon’s energy during his battle with Kris. He stops in front of a portrait of the king who built the palace and notes his vague resemblance to both himself and the highly successful businessman Lysandre, the youngest son of the king.
The now immortal AZ
Lysandre
In another post-credits scene, Harmonia’s Zoroark, having also been granted immortality when it attacked the weapon’s cables, now serves as an elder to the Pokemon of Pokemon Village. In the modern day (or at least a few years before the modern day), two worried parents drop off their young son at the village, fearing for his safety due to a recent revolution in Unova. Having heard rumors of the place, they decided the Pokemon Village was the safest place for their son to hide. But they must go back to Unova. They can’t just abandon their people. Although Zoroark can’t communicate with them, it understands their plight. The two parents promise their son they will be back for him someday, and they leave. The boy turns to Zoroark, who is surprised to learn he can understand it. The boy senses the Pokemon’s worries and asks if things will be okay. Zoroark realizes the boy has Harmonia’s gift…he is his old partner’s descendant. Zoroark's child, Zorua, warms up to the boy immediately. Zoroark promises to protect the boy, just as it once protected his ancestor. It gives its cube, a gift from Harmonia, to the boy and asks what his name is. The boy introduces himself as Natural Harmonia Gropius, but Zoroark can just call him N.
N as a child with Zorua, wearing Zoroark's cube
In a final post-credits scene unlocked if the player beats the game with certain conditions fulfilled (like beating the game in under a certain number of turns, minimizing player deaths, getting the true ending, and finding secret cutscenes), residual energy from AZ’s ultimate weapon reaches an asteroid in deep space, mutating an alien virus inside. The virus, Deoxys, commandeers the meteor and puts it on a course for Earth.
Legacy
Pokemon Conquest itself spawned a franchise of its own, although future titles weren’t always crossovers with Fire Emblem. Future Fire Emblem crossovers explore the distant histories of other regions like Unova (Pokemon Conquest 2, covering the collapse of Unova when Harmonia and AZ’s sons reignite their war in the “bad ending”/"no Mega Evolution timeline" and directly leading to the events of Pokemon Black and White thousands of years later), Chengdou (Pokemon Conquest: Revolution, about the Mingzhi Restoration-style wars indirectly leading to the resurrection of Raikou, Entei, and Suicune), and Generation 8’s Galar (Pokemon Conquest: Heroes of Light and Shadow, about the unification of the region by two brothers who had heard stories of AZ and Harmonia and dreamed of freeing Galar from a reign of darkness brought about by the alien Pokemon Eternatus).
A spinoff, Pokemon Conquest: Rolling Thunder, was a crossover with the tactical RPG franchise Valkyria Chronicles, a recurring competitor to Fire Emblem in the tactical RPG genre. It follows Olson (a gym trainer in the Vermilion City Gym in the Generation 1 games), a soldier under the command of Lieutenant Surge (the gym leader of Vermilion City), a pilot in the Unovan Army Air Force during the invasion of Jiangsu in the closing months of a twenty-year global war between Jiangsu, Chengdou, Fengliang, and Xinzhang and Unova, Kalos, Alola, and Galar set in the equivalent of the 1960s. Rolling Thunder would spawn numerous other Valkyria Chronicles-inspired spinoffs revolving around Olson’s and Surge’s careers as well as spinoffs of its own set in Pokemon wars from the equivalents of the 1910s to the 1990s (the latter of which focuses on the father of Red, a soldier serving under an older Olson).
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Credit to “Hugh” on Discord for helping me with the name for Rolling Thunder. Depending on if I play Valkyria Chronicles in the future, I may do a summary, but not at this point. I'm also seriously considering at least partially implementing the gameplay ideas above into a Pokemon/Fire Emblem fan game at some point.
The music choices here, aside from the first one (which would probably be remade with 3DS soundfonts), are not actually the tracks in the game, but I chose them based on what would be thematically appropriate. AZ’s and Harmonia’s battle themes would be remixes of the Lysandre and N battle themes, respectively.
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As someone who genuinely loves the deepest lore stuff in Pokemon, adores Black and White's story and wishes we got more Kalos, you basically just hooked dopamine into my brain with this.
I had a lot of fun writing this one and Awakening. With Awakening I got to pay homage to the parts of Fire Emblem I really liked, and with this I can extend that to Pokemon as well. We deserved more Kalos, and its lore overlaps very neatly with Unova's, and an ancient war translates very neatly to Fire Emblem, so we get this. I really hope I can make a game like this someday.
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Fire Emblem: The Exalt’s Duty
The Exalt’s Duty was developed for the 3DS by Intelligent Systems and Rentiantang SPD and published by Rentiantang. It was released internationally in the fall of 2016. It is the 14th game in the series (with Pokemon Conquest counted as 13.5). After the critical and commercial success of Awakening, development began on The Exalt’s Duty, with the staff of Awakening returning to their previous roles. The team's main concern was adding new features and refinements to the original gameplay, and improving the story, which had received criticism from some players. Writer Shen Shulin, a renowned screenwriter, novelist, and manhua storywriter, was brought in to help write the story.
The Exalt’s Duty is set a thousand years in between the era of Marth and Chrom (or the first three games and Awakening), focusing on the devastating Schism which ended to the civilizations of old Archanea and Valm (formerly known as Valentia). The story follows the player-controlled (but not customizable) lord Alyssa, the sheltered youngest child of the king of Archanea who has to adapt when war breaks out with the newly belligerent Valmese Empire, led by the ambitious emperor Walhart. As the war escalates beyond what anyone expected, Alyssa takes her fate into her own hands.
Gameplay
The pair up system introduced in Awakening returns, but its underlying mechanics have been reworked to be more predictable. Dual attacks (the second unit providing a follow up attack) only occur when units are adjacent, not paired up, and are now guaranteed to happen. Dual guards (the second unit negating an enemy attack) only occur when paired up units fully charge up a gauge based on how many rounds of combat they participate in. The AI also uses these same mechanics and will take advantage of them whenever possible.
The weapon system receives a similar overhaul. Some old weapons from previous games return, while new ones are introduced. Daggers return from Radiant Dawn and now inflict status effects such as poison and stat drops. Moving ballistas return from New Mystery of the Emblem. In a controversial move for the series, early gunpowder weapons, first teased in the Elibe paralogues and related DLC in Awakening, are introduced with the new classes arquebusier and cannoneer. These weapons have high attack and range but must spend one turn to reload, have low durability, accuracy, and movement, cannot counter enemy attacks, and can’t move over most uneven terrain. Like bows, daggers and guns remain separate from the weapon triangle. The magic weapon “pentagon” returns in its Jugdral incarnation. Environments and terrain vary between maps, but certain actions allow the player and enemy to change the terrain to their advantage, such as burning down forests, building bridges, or using cannons to destroy walls.
The base camp from Awakening and Pokemon Conquest returns in an improved form. Although in the first half of the game it moves around with Alyssa as she travels, in the second half it becomes rooted in one place and can be accessed from that point on the explorable world map. While the base camp in the first half of the game is much like that in Awakening, customization options are expanded further, and the base camp in the second half becomes very different. In the second half, Alyssa can establish not only shops but also other facilities like training grounds, parks and gardens, residential buildings, libraries, schools, farms, and so on. As the game progresses and Alyssa makes certain choices, the base camp grows and more people join what becomes known as Alyssa’s Tor, and it truly becomes a town in its own right. Sometimes the Risen and other enemies may try to attack Alyssa’s Tor as part of the story, and they can destroy any structures built or cause a game over if Alyssa’s house is destroyed. Players are able to visit other players' bases using the StreetPass functionality of the 3DS. During a visit, they can fight the other player's army, buy items, and recruit copies of the other player’s characters.
For quality of life reasons, Alyssa being defeated in battle does not instantly cause a game over in Casual Mode unless she is the last player unit standing.
As with Awakening, The Exalt’s Duty makes use of the save transfer mechanic to bring forward data from New Mystery of the Emblem. Linking data from Awakening may unlock Awakening-related cutscenes in The Exalt’s Duty, and if Robin married Chrom in Awakening, she may appear in these cutscenes (with her default features in cinematics and customized features in gameplay cutscenes).
For story purposes, S supports are made an endgame feature. Although compatible characters can unlock S supports at any point, they cannot “marry” until after the end of the game. There is no second generation cast. Alyssa has no S support options as she has a canonical love interest.
Instead of the traditional chapter-based structure of most games, The Exalt’s Duty uses a structure similar to that of Fire Emblem Waiyun and Radiant Dawn, with four parts containing multiple skirmishes for a different part of Alyssa’s story. Alyssa’s Tor is unlocked at the start of Part 3.
The Triangle Attack returns and can be executed by Cassie, Cynthia/Mozu, and Alyssa. A second triangle attack can be performed by Yen’fay, Say’ri, and Hinoka. After unlocking an A support, Alyssa and Cassie learn to execute a two-person version of the attack with each other.
Development
The previous title in the series, Fire Emblem Awakening, was planned to be the last in the series due to decreasing sales. The game was a worldwide commercial success, and a new entry was immediately greenlit. Fates was co-developed by regular developer Intelligent Systems and Rentiantang SPD, with the main staff of Awakening returning to their respective roles for Fate. According to the original staff, the request for a sequel was a shock as they had all developed Awakening assuming it would be the last in the series. During its early design stages, The Exalt’s Duty was given the working title Fire Emblem 3DS II. The game's cutscenes were animated by Studio Anima, while storyboarding was handled by Spooky Graphic. The idea to make a sequel was instead turned into one for a prequel to fill in the gaps in Awakening’s lore.
The gameplay was refined and expanded from the version they used in Awakening. The improvements to the base camp feature were suggested as an alternative activity for players and to provide a means for getting to know the main characters outside battle. The amount of content included in the feature made some staff comment that it could be its own game. The social elements of Alyssa’s Tor were originally going to be exclusive to StreetPass, but it was suggested that players in areas with low StreetPass activity should be able to access the functions through a normal Internet connection. Some ideas thought up for earlier titles, such as terrain manipulation and gunpowder weapons, were also implemented. In response to complaints Awakening didn’t have as many same-sex romance options as in Radiant Dawn, more were added for this game, including one central to the main story.
The designs of Valm and the future Archanea were patterned on depictions of Valentia and Archanea in Marth’s time, specifically in the first three games and the remake New Mystery of the Emblem. Designers wanted to update such designs from those games in a way that felt natural to the evolution of the world and yet remained faithful to the older designs. Their weapons and armor reflect the different cultures of the two continents. Archanea’s guns and cannons have dragon motifs, and the royal insignia of the Holy Kingdom of Archanea, surrounded by eagles, is based on Falchion and Tiki’s tiara overlapping in a way resembling Chrom’s Brand of the Exalt centuries later. Dragon and Falchion symbolism remains common in most Archanean symbols and iconography, although some regions use other symbols, such as Macedon with wyverns and the queen Minerva or Grust with the masked hero Sirius. Archanean armor is generally of a blue, silver, and white color. In Valm, such iconography is rejected, as the founder of the empire rejected the rule of gods and dragons. Instead, the imperial insignia of Valm is that of two lions guarding a tree, the two symbols of old Zofia and Rigel coming together to honor the unification of old Valentia. Valmese armor is generally of a red, gold, and black color, and the design of Emperor Walhart intentionally calls back to that of Emperor Rudolf and the protagonist Alm in Waiyun.
(Although Walhart has a portrait in Awakening, I intentionally did NOT want to make this Walhart look like him but more like Alm. Specifically something like this...weird cover art of him.)
The empire is a melting pot of many cultures, and the designers took care to reflect that in both naming customs and clothes for characters from different areas. The villager Mozu and the noble sisters Say’ri and Hinoka hail from the East Asia-inspired Chon’sin region in Valm and have Asian-inspired names and attire. This is reflected in the classes of many Valmese characters which are generally unique to them, such as Mozu’s and Hinoka’s “Jinchi Knight” promoted class, where they ride on a bird based on a Chinese phoenix. The arc of Valm invading Archanea both calls back to and subverts the common Fire Emblem trope of “enemy empire invades protagonist’s kingdom” while also taking inspirations from the Sunset Invasion in real life.
During initial planning, the team reviewed how fans and critics had responded to Awakening. While the gameplay and graphics were positively received, the story had been criticized for both distancing itself from established Archanean lore and yet also making copious references at the same time. Some fans complained the new additions only made things complicated or did not fit at all with established lore, while others were dismayed there weren’t enough connections with the Marth-era games, and the existing connections weren’t done well enough. The developers decided to write a story which would appease both of these groups by filling in the gaps of Awakening’s lore and explain how the world of Marth became the world of Chrom. The concept of the protagonist Alyssa and her character arc originated from the lead developer’s memories of playing Path of Radiance, where Elincia grew from a scared and sheltered princess into a confident queen and liberator. Originally, there were plans to have an alternate campaign and story focusing on the Valmese character of Yen’fay, like how Path of Radiance was supposed to have a second campaign for if Ike joins Ashnard. But as with the earlier proposal, this idea was also canned as developers decided Yen’fay’s planned storyline would be hard to reconcile with Awakening’s canon. Yen’fay would also take attention away from Alyssa. The game’s title, The Exalt’s Duty, came from this new focus on Alyssa’s story, pushing aside the working title Fire Emblem Exaltation. The branching story idea was finally implemented with 2019’s Journey of the Three Heroes.
Due to the need to particularly focus the plot on Alyssa, something not done as much for previous protagonists, the developers sought out a writer who had experience writing character-focused narratives. They eventually settled on the writer Shen Shulin, known for his work on various Chinese manhua, television, and novel series. Shen initially was going to refuse the project as he had a tight work schedule, but after both he and his daughter played Awakening, Shen agreed to write an initial draft story. Despite his initial commitment of a ten-page summary, he became fond of Alyssa and felt 10 pages were not enough. The full summary was 500 pages, driven by the need to create a high-quality story to surpass his daughter's expectations, with enough script to fill two books. Unfortunately, due to hardware constraints, a large portion of this content could not be implemented and could only be released in player manuals, artbooks, TCG cards, and promotional animated series or manhua accompanying the main game.
The game’s soundtrack was created by multiple composers, both newcomers and veterans. Longtime series composer Yuka Tsujiyoko acted as a supervisor. Some arrangements and remixes of older games’ tracks were included in The Exalt’s Duty, including modernizations of many themes from Waiyun and (New) Mystery of the Emblem, as well as some “demixes” of tracks from Awakening. Several leitmotifs from Awakening were placed in the background of The Exalt’s Duty tracks to symbolize the future yet to come. The game’s theme song, “A Heroine’s Destiny,” was interwoven into the story’s narrative. Its lyrics, sung by Alyssa’s voice actors in both Chinese and German, represent Alyssa’s inner conflicts and worries but also her hope and determination over the course of the game. According to music personnel, several among them cried when they first heard the Chinese voice actor’s performance. Multiple versions were used throughout the soundtrack. The lyrics were adapted into German by Audrey Drake (yes, the VSN reviewer for Awakening had become a music developer herself).
An official soundtrack album, Fire Emblem: The Exalt’s Duty Official Soundtrack, released through the Symphony No. 5 label of Tablier Communications. The album contained seven discs of music from not only The Exalt’s Duty but also from Awakening and the other seven Archanea continuity games, and a booklet featuring commentary and musical analysis from the composers. Also included was a special DVD containing remixes of tracks across the series, and high-definition versions of certain cinematics. The soundtrack, having eight disks in total, is one of the largest single game official soundtracks ever released. “A Heroine’s Destiny” was released as a regular CD edition and a special DVD edition with a music video (recapping Alyssa’s personal journey and animated like the game’s cinematics) soon after the game’s release. It was also included as part of the main soundtrack release.
Marketing, localization, release, and Super Smash Brothers
Unlike previous games, The Exalt’s Duty was localized in-house by Rentiantang Europe instead of being outsourced to 8-4.
The Exalt’s Duty was announced for all regions via a Rentiantang Direct in January 2016 under its Chinese name Fire Emblem Crossroads, to symbolize its role in bridging the gap between Marth and Chrom. Details of its story, namely that it would be an Awakening prequel, were released in a second Direct on April 20, 2016, the 26th anniversary of the franchise. Its German title was revealed during E3 2016 as The Exalt’s Duty. In addition to the standard release, a special edition was also released containing certain DLC preloaded, exclusive extra content, a custom-themed 3DS, and an artbook was made available internationally alongside the initial physical releases. The custom theme was later released separately.
The Chinese release was promoted by the Cipher TCG. Two start packs for Cipher came with codes allowing the players to unlock Marth and Lucina as bonus non-canon playable characters. Similarly, the booster box came with a code for the characters Morgan and Minerva. The game also supported Fire Emblem “amiibo” collectible figurines compatible with certain games. Amiibos were made for all Fire Emblem characters included in previous Super Smash Bros—Marth, Leif, Lyn, Roy, and Ike—and all of them can connect to The Exalt’s Duty to download the characters as bonus units in the game, able to be battled and recruited in Alyssa’s Tor.
Alyssa, Chrom, Lucina, and Robin were added as a playable fighters in the then latest installment of Super Smash Bros, with accompanying amiibos compatible with The Exalt’s Duty (aside from Alyssa because she was already in the game). A new stage, Alyssa’s Tor, was added. Her Final Smash is her doing the rite of Awakening and executing the Triangle Attack with Cassie (like the distinct critical hit Final Smashes Marth, Leif, Lyn, and Roy use). Chrom’s Final Smash is him doing his Aether attack, much like Ike, but more inspired by the rite of Awakening. Robin’s Final Smash is a representation of the pair up mechanic with Morgan as her supporter. Lucina’s Final Smash is a copy of Marth’s critical hit Final Smash for thematic reasons. The first four’s critical hits were made more distinct from each other, taking more inspiration from their own critical hit animations in their original games. Lyn’s uses her iconic Sol Katti critical hit animation from Binding Blade, while Roy’s takes inspiration from his animations of using the Blazing Blade (with Lilina and Sue appearing alongside him). The existing Fire Emblem stages—Talys Island, Leonster Castle, Sacae, Ostia, Melior Palace, Nevassa, a Feroxi arena, and the Dragon’s Table—were also reworked to add more details and character cameos. Although Kris is still technically a Fire Emblem protagonist, he was officially added as a Pokemon representative with no new stage (since modern Lumiose City was already added to represent Pokemon XYZ). His Final Smash is him and Katarina with Eevee and Meowstic unleashing a pair up attack resembling Pokemon Trainer’s Final Smash.
A manhua series based on The Exalt’s Duty, intended to bridge the gap between the Awakening manhua and the highly popular Mystery of the Emblem manhua from about twenty years ago (referencing events in both as well as those in Oosawa’s Crusaders of Light manga), was serialized starting in January 2017, written by Shen Shulin. The Awakening donghua still in progress at that time began incorporating elements of The Exalt’s Duty into its plot in the form of flashbacks and stories told by Chrom, mirroring the framing story of The Exalt’s Duty. A full animated series premiered after the conclusion of the Awakening series.
Reception and sales
The Exalt’s Duty received a score of 88/100 based on 40 reviews on Metacritic. Famitong praised the various battle functions, the integration of the relationship mechanics into the story, and an easy to use interface. The improvement of the base camp into Alyssa’s Tor was praised as one of the best features of the game. Other critics praised the game as a sound continuation of the mechanical improvements of Awakening. They positively noted the more serious tone of the story compared to Awakening’s. Some criticism came from the lack of a second generation or Awakening-style S supports, the late full unlocking of Alyssa’s Tor, and the removal of a customizable avatar character like Robin and Kris, which may have alienated newcomers brought in by Awakening. Others faulted the in-house translation work as less "characterful" than the localization of Awakening by 8-4.
Chris Carter called the story a decent compromise between veterans wanting a complex story and newcomers wanting simplicity. Others focused on gameplay improvements, which they praised despite some criticism of tutorial systems. More praise went to the music and graphics, which were a massive step up from Awakening now that the developers knew the 3DS’ capabilities. The Exalt’s Duty was praised for continuing many of Awakening’s unconventional victory conditions and battle setups, like escape and defend objectives, in a more balanced fashion. The gameplay was considered as hard and rewarding if not more than Awakening’s. Reviewers noted Alyssa’s story deconstructs both the “lord liberates his kingdom from its evil occupiers” (as fulfilled by Marth and Leif) and the “sheltered princess passively provides information” (as fulfilled by Nyna and Guinivere) trope used frequently in previous titles. Some favorably compared Alyssa with Elincia in that they both defied the latter trope. However, some felt the first act and Alyssa’s character arc there was rushed, and the villain of Domitius came across as bland while the main villain was mostly absent until the final chapters.
Shortly after pre-orders for the special edition were announced, it sold out within a day. Following complaints from fans, Rentiantang created a second run for the edition to comply with Chinese marketing laws. In its week of release, The Exalt’s Duty topped sales charts, with initial sales of totaling 2,606,750 copies. The game's special edition sold a further 429,910 copies. The Exalt’s Duty topped many sales charts for several weeks. In January 2017, Shen Shulin reported The Exalt’s Duty was the current best-selling video game online. Despite being released near the end of the year, The Exalt’s Duty was 2016’s tenth best selling video game.
Prior to its international release, pre-orders for the Special Edition were also high, resulting in it selling out within a week. On release in Europe, the game became the fastest-selling game in the series' history, selling over three million units during its opening weekend. This was estimated as being five times the debut sales of Awakening during a similar period. The Exalt’s Duty sold nearly four million copies across physical and digital versions by January 2017, reaching the top ten gaming chart. In addition, combined sales of both the regular and Special Edition placed the game third overall in software sales, tripling the equivalent first-month sales of Awakening. The title's DLC sales were also strong, coming in fifth in the top-five best-selling DLC content for Rentiantang products. By some estimates, The Exalt’s Duty passed Mystery of the Emblem as the most successful Fire Emblem game.
Plot
In present day Ylisse, some time after the defeat of Grima, Chrom tells his young daughter Lucina a bedtime story about their ancestor. Most people know her today as the First Exalt, the woman who delivered humanity from Grima a thousand years ago. But in her time, she was simply known as Alyssa. Originally, nobody thought she would amount to anything. She started out as a very different person, and the circumstances of her life changed her and what was then known as Archanea dramatically. The Schism was a clean break from the ancient era, a chaotic event which caused millions of deaths around the world. Out of the chaos, Alyssa survived.
Part 1: Two Falchions
A thousand years earlier, Ylisse is still known as Archanea, and the halidom’s ancestor, the Holy Kingdom of Archanea, is in what would be its final years. For a thousand years since the end of the Wars of Shadows and Heroes, the descendants of the Hero-King Marth presided over a long era of peace and prosperity in the kingdom. The continent, divided between the Holy Kingdom of Archanea in the south and the Kingdom of Furia in the northwest, has not seen a major war since the Hero-King’s days. The two kingdoms live in harmony with their powerful neighbor on the continent to the west, the Valmese Empire, whose dynasty, descended from the Saint-King, has reigned for as long as the Hero-King’s has.
The continents of Valm and Archanea
Everything changes one day when out of nowhere, Valm attacks. Thousands of Valmese troops, equipped with technology more advanced than any on Archanea and led by the young and ambitious emperor Walhart, land on the coast of Archanean Grust and push inland, easily overwhelming local garrisons. King Dunstan demands to know why Valm declared war, but Walhart turns his diplomats back without answering. It seems Walhart has focused completely on Archanea, completely ignoring Furia for now. The khan of Furia agrees to provide aid to its neighbor but insists on staying neutral in the war. Faced with the continent’s greatest crisis since the Wars of Shadows and Heroes, Dunstan orders the Archanean army to be fully mobilized for the first time in centuries.
Dunstan convenes an emergency meeting of his noble council, made up of the most powerful lords in the realm as well as his two eldest children. His son and heir, Prince Conrad, insists as the inheritors of Falchion and the Fire Emblem it is their duty to protect Archanea and its people as the Hero-King did. He requests to be placed in command of the main army, since he is the current wielder of Falchion. His younger sister, Princess Alexandra, asks to accompany him, believing Conrad would be too reckless without her guidance. After all, she did excel in her tactics studies while Conrad failed that class. Conrad confidently replies he will be fine, as long as he has his troops to back him up against the Valmese. Dunstan decides to make the two of them commanders. He also assigns them one of his most experienced retainers and advisors, the knight Gunnar, who had commanded troops in the early weeks of hostilities.
(Gunnar sort of resembles Gunter, but not exactly.)
Gunnar suggests assigning Dunstan’s third and youngest child, Alyssa, to the army as well. Dunstan is apprehensive. Alyssa is completely untrained in warfare, having only studied healing magic growing up. She was to be married off to Prince Benedict of Furia in a few months before the war derailed the plans. Having all three of his heirs in the same army would be dangerous. What if Walhart kills or captures them all? Gunnar assures Dunstan he will protect the three with his life, on his honor as a holy knight of Archanea. Dunstan is persuaded by his old retainer, who has always provided good advice in the past. But to be sure, he assigns a battalion of Archanea’s pegasus knight corps specifically for Alyssa’s safety.
(Cassie is also original, but I thought of her as looking like something in between Catria and Cordelia.)
Alyssa is in her room sewing when the news arrives, delivered by her friend Cassie, an up and coming pegasus knight assigned to her protective detail. Alyssa is not excited at all. In fact she is worried, since she doesn’t know how to fight. She never really took to fighting like her siblings did growing up. How can she possibly help them on the battlefield? Cassie assures her Dunstan wouldn’t have assigned her if he wasn’t confident in her abilities. Alyssa thinks about it for a moment. Her father probably knows best, so she goes along with it. She and Cassie meet Conrad and Alexandra in one of the gardens of the Millennium Court. Conrad boasts with the three of them together, they can prevail over anything, but Alexandra chides him for being overconfident and reminds him of Alyssa’s inexperience. She decides to test what Alyssa knows before they head the battlefield. Conrad draws Falchion, still using the distinctive hilt it had in the Hero-King’s time, and challenges Alyssa and Cassie to a practice battle.
Falchion
The first battle of the game, a tutorial introducing the basic mechanics, pits Alyssa and Cassie against Alexandra and Conrad. Alyssa starts off in the Princess class, only able to use magical staves like Heal (and whose design resembles Elice’s from New Mystery of the Emblem), while Cassie starts as a pegasus knight with higher than average stats. Alexandra and Conrad both have the Great Lord class in its mounted Sacred Stones incarnation, with the latter using Falchion as his main weapon. The goal is to defeat both of them, which is a little difficult since the player can only attack with Cassie. A good strategy for this battle, which Cassie suggests, is to lure one of Alexandra or Conrad away from the other with Cassie, fly in to attack, and then fly out to heal with Alyssa. Eventually, Cassie defeats both of them. She and Alyssa are surprised they won over more experienced opponents, but Alexandra explains she was holding herself and Conrad back for Alyssa’s sake. But they’ve proven themselves competent. She is hopeful they can be a great asset to the army. Alyssa meekly promises to support her siblings the best she can. Cassie vows to protect Alyssa as well, on her honor as a knight.
The Archanean army marches out of Palles, its knights in shining armor cheered on by the adoring citizens of the capital. Conrad and Alexandra look magnificent in their royal armor, while the more shy Alyssa hides in one of the supply convoy carriages. She confides to Cassie she isn’t good with crowds. She is still nervous about fighting as well. Cassie admits she also hasn’t been in a real battle yet, so they’re not that far off. Things will be just fine as long as they stick together. And besides, they have Gunnar with them as well as Conrad and Alexandra. Outside Palles, Conrad orders the army to suddenly stop, having spotted bandits harassing a nearby village. Swearing he won’t stand by while his subjects suffer, he impulsively orders his knights to attack the bandits. Alexandra tries to convince him to think for a moment, but he has already drawn Falchion and begun slashing at the bandits. Sighing to herself, she spurs her horse and follows after with her knights. Alyssa, Cassie, and Gunnar follow behind. As Alyssa is the only one who travels on foot, Gunnar gives her a Physic staff, which would allow her to cast healing spells from a distance.
The player now gets Gunnar as a playable character, an older mentor Great Knight who has high stats but low potential to grow like Frederick and Frey in the previous two games. Alexandra and Conrad are AI-controlled NPCs who will have no trouble destroying any bandits they fight, but they will slowly be whittled down by the sheer number of enemies attacking them, each bandit death freeing up space for another bandit to take their place and attack. Conrad’s AI is particularly aggressive and will use his high movement to its fullest extent, quickly charging ahead of the other Archaneans, while Alexandra’s AI follows closely behind him. Again, the optimal strategy is to focus on Cassie, who can easily catch up with them and should get most of the experience, while Alyssa gains experience from using her Physic staff. Cassie can also visit villager houses to get items, talk to people about the war, and even recruit a villager named Faye (who seems to have joined because of her unrequited crush on Conrad).
The bandits are driven off, and Conrad declares they were no match for the forces of justice, though Alexandra scolds him for having blindly rushed into battle before they were ready. Conrad apologizes to her and promises he will do better next time. After all, as the next king, he can’t be so reckless. Alyssa and Cassie are simply relieved they survived their first battle. It’s very different from what either of them expected. Alyssa didn’t expect there to be so much blood when she healed wounds. Her training at home didn’t prepare her her for this. How ironic it is a descendant of the Hero-King can’t even stand the sight of blood. Cassie had wanted a glorious fight against evil, following in the footsteps as her ancestor Catria, but the reality isn’t as glorious. Perhaps the act of killing gets easier the more battles she’s in. Did Catria learn this when she first started as a Whitewing? Gunnar assure them they did fine. He tells Alyssa her ancestor Marth once was like her, a sheltered boy who disliked fighting. But when his duties as prince of Altea called, he adapted to his new reality to save his people. However, Alyssa doesn’t think she’s like the Hero-King at all. That’s more of Conrad’s job. Even Alexandra is better suited for taking up the mantle of the Hero-King than she is.
The Archanean army continues marching west, fighting more bandits along the way. Each time, the three siblings and their retainers easily defeat the bandits and continue on their path. After several weeks of travel, they arrive in the region of Khadein, the westernmost province of the Holy Kingdom, situated on the western coast and to the south of Furia. After conquering it, Walhart had spent the last few weeks consolidating his gains. A pegasus knight, Cynthia, returns from a scouting mission. She reports the Valmese troops have built a makeshift port with which to ship in supplies, as well as massive fortifications around their positions to rebuff any Archanean attempts to retake the province. But she maintains her cheerful attitude throughout her report, always talking eagerly and with a smile. Cassie doesn’t know how she does it. Perhaps it’s because she’s descended from another Whitewing, Est? Alyssa points out personality traits probably aren’t inherited like that. Still, she doesn’t know how Cynthia keeps her spirits up while Cassie got worn down after just a couple battles.
Cynthia
Conrad and Alexandra set up camp and work on a plan of attack. Conrad favors a direct assault right into the Valmese camp, thinking Walhart wouldn’t expect them to fight so recklessly, but Alexandra warns that would be suicide. And furthermore, their scouts on the ground report the Valmese gunpowder are far more advanced than the few the kingdom has. They would be obliterated before they get close to the main lines. Conrad curses his father for not seeing the merit in such weapons, having written them off as dishonorable years ago. Alexandra suggests they send in a small force to bait out Walhart and his army. Then, once Walhart has marched out from behind his fortifications, they attack and shatter his army. Gunnar doubts the plan would work as he knows what Walhart is capable of. He remembers when the Archanean navy was sent to intercept Walhart’s invasion force at sea. But half of the Valmese fleet turned out to be decoys which he set on fire and launched at the Archaneans.
While the Archanean fleet burned, the other half opened fire with their cannons and finished off the survivors. Walhart would not fall for such a trap. Alexandra asks if he has a better plan. Gunnar admits he is also lost. Walhart is a dangerous opponent. They should not underestimate him. Alexandra changes her strategy and proposes they incorporate part of Conrad’s as well. The Archaneans would split in two, with Conrad leading a frontal charge while Alexandra and everyone else attack from another direction and the pegasus knights attack from a third. Their goal would be to capture or kill Walhart before his army is completely prepared to fight back.
The next day, the Archaneans execute the plan. It initially goes well. Conrad’s charge distracts the Valmese army, creating an opening for the the pegasus knights and Alexandra’s battalions, with Alyssa providing backup to attack from behind. But Walhart had expected the Archaneans to pull off such a stunt, and Cynthia, Cassie, and their pegasus knights barely escape the hidden archers waiting in ambush. The camp itself is also mostly abandoned. Alexandra realizes Walhart had taken most of his army to fight Conrad. They rush back to the main battlefield in time to see the Valmese cannons open fire, decimating Conrad’s ranks. Hundreds of knights fall under the assault, but Conrad, Falchion in hand, presses on. Walhart steps out from among the ranks of his troops to meet him. Drawing his sword, its golden blade identifying itself as another divine Falchion, he halts Conrad’s assault.
The Valentian Falchion
He goads Conrad into challenging him to a duel, which Conrad can’t resist. The two Falchions clang, Archanea and Valentia clashing against each other. Conrad demands to know why Walhart started the war. Walhart only replies a prophecy has been passed down from the Saint-King himself through his family for generations, and he is here to make sure it isn’t fulfilled. The prince and the emperor continue fighting, but Walhart gets the upper hand. To Alyssa’s and Alexandra’s horror, he fatally stabs Conrad. Conrad drops Falchion, shocked Walhart bested him, before falling over.
What happens next is a blur for Alyssa. Alexandra loses her calm and rushes to Conrad’s side, taking Falchion before Walhart can. Gunnar rushes in to defend her, managing to block an attack from Walhart’s Falchion even at his age. Cassie and Cynthia recover Conrad’s body. The Valmese cannons open fire, and the ground shakes violently. The last thing Alyssa remembers is losing consciousness as the Archanean lines shatter and Alexandra orders a retreat. She regains consciousness a few hours later in the Valmese camp. Walhart’s tactician, Yen’fay, visits her in her “quarters,” giving her a bowl of warm soup. Alyssa asks what they are going to do to her. Yen’fay promises no harm will come to her, on Walhart’s own orders and his own honor as the viceroy of Chon’sin, a province of Valm. She will be placed under house arrest in Valm for the rest of the war. Alyssa asks what will happen to Cassie and the other Archaneans. Yen’fay tells her once Walhart has accomplished what he came here for, he will leave Archanea, and Alyssa can return home. He does not intend to kill more people than necessary. Alyssa, briefly summoning the strength to talk back, replies Walhart killed her brother and wiped out the Archanean army. Yen’fay says that was only necessary to secure victory. He sincerely apologizes for Conrad’s death but believes it is the only way to continue the war.
Yen'fay, Virion, and Cherche
While Walhart marches northeast to continue his conquests, Yen’fay orders one of his like-minded officers, the arquebusier Viceroy Virion of Rosanne, to escort Alyssa to Valm. Virion and his retainers Cherche, a young wyvern knight, and Sofia, a cavalier in training who shares Cynthia’s optimism, introduce themselves to Alyssa, who understandably says nothing to them. She sheepishly complies with the Valmese demands. Alyssa boards a ship which sails across the narrow sea to Valm, landing at the bustling Zofia Harbor weeks later. Alyssa is amazed by the sights of the port city. The Holy Kingdom is a mostly land-based country, and she spent most of her life in Palles, which is not on the coast. Valmese culture is also very different from Archanean culture. Zofia Harbor is filled with all sorts of people from all over the continent, some looking like Yen’fay and others looking more like Walhart. But she quickly reminds herself she is a prisoner. These people are supposed to be her enemy. She has to escape and get home somehow. But as much as she tries, she can’t force open the locked door of her carriage.
Virion escorts Alyssa to his duchy of Rosanne, a province bordering Chon’sin to the west. Rosanne’s capital is not far from a massive tree growing at the center of the continent, marking the spot where Mila and Duma, formerly worshipped as gods in pre-unification Valentia, were laid to rest in the Saint-King’s time. Even though Virion’s castle is not close to the tree, the tree is so large it casts a shadow over the whole castle sometimes. Alyssa is settled into the castle and given comfortable personal quarters. Virion insists she should not feel like a prisoner. He was never supportive of the idea of keeping her as a hostage, but he can’t deny Walhart’s orders. While she’s here, she will be treated like a guest as much as possible. The world map will be temporarily inaccessible, and the regular base camp is replaced with Virion’s castle.
The weeks pass, and Alyssa slowly adjusts to her new reality. She first opens up Sofia, who is around her age, and they bond over their childhood experiences. Sofia was a girl from Ram City in the distant southwest, the youngest of many siblings, and wanted to distinguish herself. She had thought becoming a knight during this war would help her do that. But all of her other siblings also became knighs and overshadowed her. Alyssa sympathizes with her, as her own siblings always overshadowed her. She misses them every day. Even poor Conrad. She hopes Alexandra is doing fine. There is a brief cut to Alexandra, accompanied by Gunnar, Cassie, Cynthia, and Faye. Now wielding Falchion, Alexandra vows to rescue Alyssa, while Gunnar blames himself for Alyssa’s situation. Moving on to the situation at hand, he has heard rumors of a magic superweapon buried in the desert of Furia, which may explain Walhart’s current path. Alexandra doesn’t believe Walhart would violate Furia’s neutrality to find such a weapon which might not even exist, but Cassie points out it’s more likely Furia would just grant both sides access to maintain neutrality. With that in mind, Alexandra orders the remnants of the Archanean army to link up with reinforcements and pursue Walhart to Furia.
Back in Rosanne, Alyssa also befriends Cherche after some time. Cherche introduces her to her wyvern Minerva, named after the revered queen of Macedon, and although Alyssa is scared of the beast at first, she warms up to it when she realizes Minerva is very playful and tame. Cherche tells her she met Minerva when at nine she wandered into a wyvern-filled valley. Although her parents were terrified she entered Wyvern Valley, she came back not only alive but with Minerva tamed. Cherche and Minerva fly Alyssa around Rosanne, showing her landmarks, introducing her to the people outside the castle, who are very friendly to her, and flying around the trunk of the Mila Tree. She explains the tree is sacred ground. A daughter of the Divine Dragon goddess Naga lives there with her guardian, so they can’t fly closer to the branches. Alyssa is surprised to hear that. A daughter of Naga once was a friend to her ancestor. She wonders if this dragon could be that same friend.
Alyssa’s time in Rosanne is quiet and peaceful, although she is aware of the gilded cage she is in. Although Virion treats her cordially, she can’t help but wonder about home. Her parents and Alexandra must be worried sick. And Cassie…she misses her best friend every day. She hopes the war ends soon so she can go home. But her hopes are dashed when disloyal dynatoi, sensing an opportunity while Walhart is fighting in Archanea, launch a coup and seize Rigel Castle, Walhart’s capital. Their leader, Viceroy Domitius, declares himself the rightful emperor. He declares the dynasty of the Saint-King has lost their right to rule by wasting lives and money on an overseas war and passing hated centralization and tolerance reforms which weakened the power of the dynatoi. Now it is time for him to restore Valm to the glories it experienced in the days of the Saint-King. Walhart’s tolerance reforms are rolled back, and troops are sent south to quell any resistance from minority-dominated provinces like Chon’sin and those opposed to the coup like Rosanne. Domitius’ troops reach Rosanne, demanding Virion hand over Alyssa to be transferred to Domitius’ personal dungeon in Rigel Castle. Virion refuses the order, and while the rebels prepare to attack, he tells Alyssa they have to escape to Chon’sin, where Yen’fay’s sisters Hinoka and Say’ri will protect them.
The rebels attack the castle at night, and Alyssa and Virion’s retainers fight their way out. This is a fog of war escape map, and the player will temporarily lose access to Cassie and the other Archanean characters, who are replaced with Virion and his retainers. As an arquebusier unable to counterattack and requiring a turn to recharge, the player must watch out for Virion, though this provides opportunities for Alyssa to gain more experience. After escaping, they set up camp down the road. Virion suspects Domitius may have men patrolling the roads to Chon’sin, expecting them to flee there, but they will have to take the risk. Alyssa, remembering one of her trips with Cherche on Minerva, instead suggests taking a detour through Wyvern Valley. Virion rejects the idea, as it’s too dangerous. Cherche was the exception, not the norm, Alyssa says it’s better than trying to sneak through a place the rebels predict them to sneak through. They’ll probably be discovered and killed. Cherche and Sofia are convinced, and Virion relents. They set out for Wyvern Valley, where they come under attack from wild wyverns. The goal of this map is to have Alyssa arrive at the end of the valley, which is rather straightforward as long as Cherche and Sofia can keep the wyverns away from Alyssa and Virion.
Say'ri and Hinoka
They exit Wyvern Valley and arrive in Chon’sin, where they meet up with Say’ri, a swordmaster like her brother, and Hinoka, a flying bow-wielding jinchi knight. Say’ri welcomes Alyssa and apologizes for not meeting on better terms. Hinoka quickly dispenses with formalities, cracks her knuckles, and asks when they can start fighting. Virion’s usual suave persona breaks down around the two sisters, replaced with a nervousness that reminds Alyssa of herself. But she can’t afford to be nervous now. While Virion and Hinoka discuss a strategy to defend the province, Say’ri suggests a strategy in which the Chon’sin troops will march to Zofia Harbor, where they will commandeer a ship to get Alyssa home.
Alyssa protests the plan, not wanting to sacrifice innocent Valmese for her sake. Yes, she really wants to go home. But not like this. Virion and the others are surprised by her new confidence. Virion reminds her she doesn’t know how to fight, and Domitius wants her killed or worse. They have to get her home. Alyssa tells him her time in Rosanne, although not in ideal circumstances, taught her much. Virion, Cherche, and Sofia were all very welcoming to her, despite being on opposite sides of the war. The people of Rosanne were also very friendly. They’re just like the people she knew at home in Palles. And knowing they will be tormented by Domitius and likely die while she escapes back home will weigh heavily on her. She knows she should escape since she can’t defend herself, but it feels wrong to leave. She wants to do something now. She can’t just run away again when she has the chance. She has to take a stand. Yes, Walhart is still technically her enemy, but she’d rather have him over Domitius. The old emperor was at least an honorable ruler his people clearly like. The people at least deserve that much. And who knows? Maybe seeing the princess of Archanea helping out even her enemies will convince the Valmese to stop their war. Virion reminds her she is still a princess of Archanea. If she dies, it would cause a crisis at home. They can’t risk that. Alyssa points out how a Valmese duke is so concerned with keeping an Archanean princess alive. When Virion says it’s his duty as a Valmese nobleman, Alyssa says it’s also her duty as a descendant of the Hero-King to help those in need. She doesn’t care if they are Archanean or Valentian. She will help as many as she can. Realizing she can’t be convinced, Virion relents again.
With Alyssa staying, Chon’sin’s plan changes. Originally, the plan was just to rush to Zofia Harbor and evacuate Alyssa, but now they can focus on the main front in Rosanne and northwestern Valm, what was once western Rigel. First, they must repel a rebel invasion of Chon’sin itself. With Alyssa’s newfound charisma and optimism, she gains the support of many local Valmese who already hate Domitius. Even many rebels are convinced to defect back to Walhart’s side. Among one of the new recruits is a Chon’sin villager girl named Mozu, whose parents were killed by rebels shortly before Alyssa arrived. Convinced by Alyssa to take a stand and make a difference, she joins her army. Although she starts with low base stats, Mozu has the highest growth potential of any character in the game if not the whole series, on par with Donnel from Awakening.
Mozu
Once Chon’sin is safe, Rosanne is liberated next, and Alyssa returns to Virion’s castle this time as an honored guest, not a prisoner. No longer is she the scared girl who meekly followed her siblings to battle and stayed away from the fighting. Alyssa’s timidity falls away and is replaced by a new confidence, although more tempered than Conrad’s. Despite not wielding any weapon, she and her healing staff are frequently found on the front lines, rejuvenating any allies who are injured as quickly as possible. The sight of an unarmed Archanean princess not hesitating to help out her allegedly Valmese enemies inspires the people to take up arms and turn on Domitius. Taking a page out of Alexandra’s book, she begins participating in strategy meetings with Virion, Say’ri, and Hinoka, discussing strategies to push back the rebels. Eventually, she begins issuing orders alongside them.
The Mila Tree
After the libeation of Chon’sin, the rebels retreat to the Mila Tree, profaning its sacred ground, with Alyssa’s forces not far behind. The two armies clash on the Mila Tree’s giant roots, ultimately prevailing. Disturbed by the sounds of battle below, the daughter of Naga, a rebellious teenage Tiki, descends to meet Alyssa, pursued by a worried Bantu. With one look, Tiki identifies Alyssa as a descendant of her old companion Mar-Mar, or Marth, and agrees with her desire to protect the people of Valm, as it is something Marth would have done. When Alyssa jokes if she will get a nickname like Marth did, Tiki just says she’s too old to do that, but she still calls her “Lee-Lee” out of habit (or “Lisa-Lisa” in some translations). The manakete also senses a great evil about to befall the world, warning Alyssa must be ready to fight this evil. And to help her, Tiki impulsively joins her on the spot, against Bantu’s wishes. When Tiki can’t be persuaded to return to the tree, Bantu also joins to keep her safe, and the player recruits the game’s two manaketes.
Alyssa’s army marches across western Rigel, steadily gaining new recruits and beating back the demoralized rebel forces. The music here consists of remixes of Waiyun tracks, while the maps are based on those found in Waiyun like the Duma Gate, Last Bastion, and the necrodragon mountain now known as Duma’s Rest (although Duma was buried at the Mila Tree). After a couple more months of fighting, Alyssa reaches Rigel Castle, where Domitius and his remaining rebels wait, preparing to make their last stand. By now, the rebels have lost control over the majority of Valm, including all of what was once Zofia in the south. Domitius’ coup has failed, but the dynatos himself refuses to surrender. He dares Alyssa to attack, smugly believing an inexperienced girl with no military training could not stand a chance against disciplined Valmese troops and their leaders. But it is a lost cause. Alyssa and her allies outnumber and outmatch the rebel forces, even with the rebels having the advantage of gunpowder weapons on their side, and soon storm into the castle. Alyssa confronts Domitius, who is still shocked someone like her managed to get so far. Every Valmese character, even Mozu, has unique dialogue against him, elaborating on Domitius’ motives and backstory and how each character feels about him. Mozu blames him for killing her parents. Virion holds him responsible for upsetting the thousand year old peace Valm has experienced since the Saint-King’s reign. Say’ri and Hinoka angrily call him an opportunist who will trample on Chon’sin and its people to empower himself. Sofia’s cheerful and upbeat attitude, even when fighting him, intimidates Domitius. Eventually, the Valmese kill Domitius and retake Rigel Castle. His surviving supporters surrender, and Walhart’s administration is restored.
Alyssa is hailed as a hero for saving Valm from Domitius. The people of Valm don’t care for the fact that she is Archanean. Alyssa initially doesn’t know how to handle her new fame. She always stayed out of sight in Palles, letting Conrad and Alexandra handle that. She wasn’t going to inherit the throne. But things are different now. With the help of Virion, Say’ri, and Hinoka, she slowly adjusts to her new reputation. Although her business in Valm is pretty much finished and she can begin heading home, she realizes she is in a unique position to end the war. Her popularity in Valm can translate into influence in the restored imperial administration, which she can use to leverage Walhart into peace talks. But although the government in Rigel Castle agrees to her plan, her diplomats sent to Walhart return without anything conclusive. Alyssa realizes she will have to return to Archanea and convince Walhart in person, by force if necessary. Hinoka and Say’ri offer to join her so they can convince Yen’fay to stand down, and her other Valmese allies also join her, eager to end the war before more lives are lost. The explorable locations of Ram City, Zofia Castle, and Zofia Harbor (from which Alyssa can board a ship to begin the next part) are now unlocked. They have no associated battles, but talking to people can provide items and lore as well as flesh out Sofia’s and Mozu’s backstories.
As soon as Alyssa boards a ship at Zofia Harbor to conclude Part 1, a cutscene plays. Alexandra, Cassie, Gunnar, and the other Archaneans enter the desert to the northeast of the Furian capital. Cassie and Cynthia, flying ahead, spot the Valmese army heading into the ruins of the ancient city of Thabes, long buried in the desert sands for centuries. Gunnar recalls Thabes used to be the center of magical innovation, before the Valmese god Duma destroyed it one day for an unknown reason. If there’s anybody who could have developed a magical superweapon, it would have been the alchemists of old Thabes. They must defeat the Valmese before they dig it up.
Believing time is of the essence, Alexandra and the Archaneans ambush the Valmese while they set up explosives at the entrance to an underground labyrinth. Alexandra, drawing Falchion, challenges Walhart to a battle to avenge Conrad. Walhart is more shocked than surprised to see Alexandra and the Archaneans attacking. He refuses to fight, insisting they turn around now. Alexandra is unconvinced. She will use whatever means necessary to stop Walhart from gaining access to the superweapon buried in Thabes. Walhart says she’s jumping to conclusions, assuming he even wants the superweapon. His goal is to destroy it, as outlined in the Saint-King’s prophecy, warning the weapon will destroy all of humanity if unleashed. Alexandra still isn’t convinced. Walhart, sighing, orders Yen’fay and his lieutenants—Cervantes, Pheros, Ignatius, and Faber—to fight off the Archaneans while he detonates the explosives and seals off the labyrinth.
The two armies clash amid the ruins, and the player temporarily takes control of Alexandra’s army here. Alexandra, Cassie, Cynthia, Gunnar, and Faye face off against Yen’fay, Cervantes, Pheros, Ignatius, and Faber. Valmese cannons boom. Arrows fly. Swords clang. Blood is spilled on the sands and ancient stones. In the depths of the labyrinth, something stirs, awakened by the blood and quintessence shed above. Cassie, Cynthia, and their pegasus knights duel with Pheros and her own pegasus knights amid the wrecked towers dotting the ruins. On the ground, Gunnar and Alexandra and their knights shatter the lines of Valmese infantry and get too close for the cannons and arquebusiers to aim. A cutscene plays after a certain number of turns. While Gunnar holds off all of Yen’fay, Cervantes, Ignatius, and Faber at once, Alexandra charges straight at Walhart, who quickly parries her attack with his Falchion. The two Falchions clash once again, their clanging echoing across the dead city. Below, the thing in the ruins stirs more, and one by one, all six of its red eyes open. As the two wielders of Falchion fight, Walhart appears even more desperate than determined. He tells Alexandra she is only making the situation worse and they have to stop fighting as the prophecy says. Alexandra refuses, considering the prophecy just a trick like Walhart pulled with Conrad. She is now completely devoted to avenging Conrad. Walhart warns she doesn’t know what she’s doing. Alexandra nevertheless raises her Falchion to deliver the killing blow.
At that moment, a massive earthquake rocks Thabes, accompanied by a demonic roar which terrifies the horses and pegasi. The troops on the ground are thrown off balance, while the pegasus knights in the sky struggle to stay on their mounts. Cassie and Cynthia barely avoid the towers collapsing around them, having been displaced by the earthquake, and land near the Archanean lines. Alexandra staggers back and looks around. Walhart warns her she has no idea what she has just done. She has doomed all of humanity. A beam of dark energy erupts from the center of the labyrinth. Walhart orders his mages to cast Bolganone spells and detonate the mines set. The mines explode, collapsing the labyrinth entrance, but it is no use. The area around the labyrinth explodes with dark energy, generating a shock wave which hurls both armies away. Alexandra and Walhart get to their feet and watch with horror as something emerges from the giant crater where the labyrinth once was. It is like a dragon. It is the size of one of the towers of Thabes. Its body is jet black. It has no legs but six feathery wings. Its head has two front-facing horns unlike any seen on a wyvern, and on the back of its head is something resembling a human face. Its six eyes glow red with hatred. The dragon looks at them with an expression of pure malice, and every human in the ruins hears its words in their minds.
“I AM THE WINGS OF DESPAIR. I AM THE BREATH OF RUIN. I AM THE FELL DRAGON, GRIMA.”
Grima roars and flaps its wings. The Archaneans and Valmese collapse, groaning in pain as Grima absorbs their quintessence. As more soldiers fall, the fell dragon grows even larger. Pheros and her pegasus knights charge at the monster, but Grima exhales a breath of entropy and expiration which kills most of them and drains their quintessence. Pheros retreats, and Ignatius and Faber order their arquebusiers and cannoneers to fire. Bullets and cannonballs impact Grima’s body, but none pierce the fell dragon’s thick scales. Grima responds by summoning eldritch dark spikes which tear the cannons and their operators to pieces. Ignatius and Faber do not survive. Yen’fay, Pheros, and Cervantes urge Walhart to retreat, but Walhart tells them instead to lead the surviving Valmese soldiers away and return Alyssa to her home. He points his Falchion at Grima. The prophecy passed down through his family since Alm’s day has finally come to pass. It is his duty as the emperor of Valm to free humanity from the reign of the gods and keep it free. As the wielder of the Valentian Falchion, he will fight and kill this monster or die trying. Alexandra also draws her own Falchion. It is her duty as the Hero-King’s descendant and a wielder of the Archanean Falchion to defend her people from threats such as this dragon. She will also stay. Walhart is relieved she finally understands the gravity of their situation and proposes a truce. His real enemy is this dragon Grima, not Dunstan and Archanea. It would serve both of their interests if they joined forces against their common enemy. Alexandra orders her retainers and allies to escape now and regroup with Dunstan to warn him of the threat. But Gunnar remains behind. He swore an oath to Dunstan to protect his children to the end. While he failed to protect Conrad and Alyssa, he will give his life for Alexandra. He tasks Cassie with leading the surviving Archaneans away from the battlefield. This next map has the player operating on a time limit to evacuate Cassie and all of the Archaneans out of Thabes.
While Cassie and Yen’fay retreat with their troops, Walhart, Alexandra, and Gunnar face down the fell dragon. Grima focuses on the two wielders of Falchion, recognizing their blades. It addresses Walhart and Alyssa as the distant descendants of the Saint-King and Hero-King, whom it once fought long ago. The two men thought they defeated it, but it was merely biding its time and regaining its energy. Walhart scoffs. If his ancestor defeated Grima, he can do it again. Alexandra vows to protect her people against Grima, just as her ancestor once did. The two charge at Grima, dodging the Dark Spikes and Expiration blasts it throws at them, Gunnar close behind on his horse. The three hold their own against the fell dragon, and the Falchions manage to inflict serious damage, cutting through Grima’s scales and drawing blood, some of which gets on Gunnar, who wipes it off. Although he isn’t equipped with any dragon-killing weapons like the two Falchions, the old knight still puts up a fight. His axe leaves impressive dents and cuts in Grima’s armor, as well as a very serious cut on the back of its neck, where it appears to have a weak spot. But the three fight a losing battle. Once her troops are out of range, Cassie spurs her pegasus and flies back to aid Alexandra. She arrives in time to see Alexandra charge at Grima, intending to stab Falchion into where its heart should be. She watches in horror as Alexandra takes an Expiration blast point blank, emerging very emaciated and drained. Nevertheless, Alexandra has enough willpower to push on and plunge Falchion deep into Grima’s stomach. But to her shock, nothing happens. Grima simply uses its dark magic to pull Falchion out and then blast it with both its Dark Spikes and Expiration, shattering its ancient hilt and draining the blade of the draconic energy Naga infused into it. Alexandra dies with the sight of Falchion broken the last thing she sees. Enraged, Gunnar charges straight at Grima with his axe, while Walhart increases his efforts to bring down the dragon with his own Valentian Falchion. Overcoming her shock, Cassie darts in to pick up the Archanean Falchion’s blade from near Alexandra’s body and fly away before Grima can attack her. The scene fades to white as Walhart and Gunnar continue facing down Grima and Cassie escapes Thabes.
Cutting back to the future, Chrom stops reading after noticing Lucina’s discomfort. He offers to continue the story tomorrow, but Lucina insists on continuing now. She is aware the story will be much darker and serious than she expected, but she wants to see it through to the end.
Part 2: The Schism
Concurrently Alyssa sets sail from Zofia Harbor, accompanied by her Valmese allies. The trip at sea is initially peaceful, but that changes after an earthquake shakes her ship. Surprised something like that happened so far out to sea, she steps onto the deck and sees a beam of dark energy arcing into the sky from a distance. Tiki realizes something horrible has happened and impulsively orders the captain to sail faster. Her temper rises further, and she collapses, overwhelmed with her own draconic power. Bantu explains Tiki is still developing as a dragon and needs further training to prevent her powers from being released uncontrollably. Alyssa escorts Tiki back to her quarters and meets with Virion, Hinoka, and Say’ri. Cherche, Hinoka, and Mozu fly out to determine the situation in Archanea, reporting back with news of strange shadowy beings reanimating from dead bodies and a malevolent presence felt further north. Shortly afterward, the ship rocks again, attacked by sea dragons driven mad by the malevolent energies given off elsewhere. Even with towering waves and torrential storms constantly threatening to sink them, Alyssa and her allies drive off the sea dragons. They dock at an area on the Grustian coastline Cherche determined was safe. More steadily intensifying earthquakes continue rocking the area, and now they are also accompanied by massive thunderstorms and random spikes and drops in temperature, wreaking havoc on the weather of Grust. One moment it may be normal weather, and the next a hailstorm with brutal lightning strikes could appear out of nowhere, followed by a relentless sandstorm. Upheavals in the earth crumble cliffs, tear open deep valleys, throw up or destroy mountains, and create active volcanoes. This even happens during several in-game battles during Alyssa’s journey north towards the last location she knew Alexandra was at, the Valmese foothold on the Khadein coast. More of the “Risen,” as she dubs the eldritch zombies, assault Alyssa’s army as they progress, their numbers bolstered by any lives they claim. Hundreds of refugees flee to Alyssa’s protection, pursued by more Risen. Alyssa finds her skills as a healer are now in high demand, perhaps too high in demand. There are too many wounded for her and the Valmese healers to handle, and she is forced to make tough decisions on who to save first.
Her hopes are raised when she sees the Valmese foothold still in human hands. Fighting her way through more Risen, she and her allies make it inside. She finds both Valmese and Archaneans have taken refuge at the foothold, having put aside their differences. Even a psychopathic Valmese mage named Henry has decided to put aside his sadistic tendencies, somehow intimidated by both Sofia and Cynthia, who had become fast friends. Hinoka and Say’ri are relieved to see Yen’fay is still alive. Pheros and Cervantes inform them on the situation in Thabes and how Walhart is still missing. Yen’fay apologizes to Alyssa for imprisoning her. Walhart’s last order for him was to establish a truce. The two sides are to stop fighting and join forces against a new enemy, a powerful dragon named Grima awoken in the ruins of Thabes. Although she welcomes the ceasefire, Alyssa insists her primary responsibility is to meet up with her father in Palles to coordinate a response against the Risen and protect their people. Yen’fay (a swordmaster), Pheros (a dark flier), and Cervantes (an armored knight) are recruited, and the Archanean characters become playable again, with the exception of Gunnar.
Alyssa continues exploring the camp to find her sister and other familiar faces. The only ones she recognizes are Faye, Cynthia, and…Cassie. The two are overjoyed to see each other, warmly embracing in the middle of the camp. Cassie is delighted her friend is safe, apologizing for not being able to defend her. Alyssa insists she’s done fine on her own, having managed to not only escape captivity but gain the trust of the Valmese people and overthrow a tyrant. Cassie is amazed Alyssa accomplished all that. It felt like only yesterday that Alyssa was a shy girl hiding behind Cassie’s pegasus. The woman in front of her is barely recognizable, but she is still unmistakably Alyssa. She’s proud of what her friend has become.
Cassie next turns to the Grima situation. Grima is the source of the Risen and other calamities currently plaguing Archanea. The dragon must be defeated before it and its minions overrun all of the continent and, quite possibly, the rest of the world. Alyssa reminds her she still doesn’t know how to fight. Although she has spent the last few months leading an army across Valm and healing many wounded, she still finds drawing blood herself squeamish. She doesn’t know how to swing a sword or take a life. It’s not something she was raised to do. That’s something for Alexandra to handle. Why doesn’t she do it instead? Upon hearing that, Cassie looks away and offers Alyssa her condolences. Alexandra died in battle against Grima in Thabes, presumably along with Gunnar and Walhart. Falchion…well, it’s better if she sees it herself. Cassie reaches into a crate and takes out Falchion’s blade, severed from its shattered hilt and now dull. As the last surviving child of Dunstan, it belongs to her now.
Alyssa’s joy gives way to despair. She falls to her knees and cries. There’s no way Alexandra died like that. No, it can’t be possible. She probably got lost on the way back and will walk through the door any minute now. She has to be alive. Alyssa can’t do it herself. She can’t do it on her own. Alexandra was the only one who could have done it. But she failed, so what does that mean? Cassie tries to reassure her. Yes, it’s horrible Alexandra and Conrad are both dead and Alyssa is alone. But they would’ve wanted her to keep going in their name. They would have wanted her to take up Falchion and become the next heir to the divine blade, a true successor to Marth. Alyssa pushes away Falchion. She’s not worthy of the sword. She never learned how to use a sword. Her education focused on healing, not killing. She can’t stand the sight of blood, especially blood she shed. And the sword is useless without a hilt. Cassie doesn’t give up. There is still time to learn how to fight, if she feels up to it. Cassie can train her. Falchion is more than just a weapon of war. It is also a symbol of the Holy Kingdom. In the hands of heroes like Anri and Marth, it defeated tyrants who sought to rule over humanity. In the times of peace that followed, Falchion had no enemies to slay. But it didn’t matter. It is a symbol of humanity’s hard-won freedom. And in the hands of the Hero-King’s descendants, it gives humanity hope they can remain free. Alyssa stops crying. She tells Cassie she still thinks she isn’t the best wielder of Falchion, but she agrees it needs a wielder. She’ll meet up with her father and hand Falchion back to him to do with as he pleases.
Weeks pass while the foothold is fortified against Risen attacks and admits more refugees, swelling to almost full capacity. The base camp, now focusing on the Valmese foothold, takes on more customization features. Alyssa and Yen’fay will soon have to either expand the fortifications or start turning away refugees, abandoning them to their deaths. Alyssa refuses to turn anyone away and orders the fortifications expanded, although Yen’fay warns they don’t have the resources to do so (the player can build more fortifications to expand refugee capacity, but this will financially expensive, and money remains scarce throughout the game; meanwhile, not doing so will lead to Alyssa doubting herself when refugees are turned away and killed to be renaminated into more Risen). Cassie, Cynthia, Hinoka, Cherche, and Mozu are sent out on scouting missions to track Grima’s behavior and reconnect with Dunstan in Palles. They learn Grima has doubled in size from the quintessence it absorbed and has left Thabes, flying south on a trajectory pointing towards old Dolhr in southwestern Archanea. Meanwhile, Dunstan himself has mobilized his remaining troops and has personally rode out to rendezvous with the Valmese and Archaneans in Altea, a little to the east of the foothold. In addition, Furia has finally joined the war and mobilized its forces, which also march south to reinforce the foothold.
Carrying Falchion with her, Alyssa takes an army to meet with Dunstan in Altea. She and her allies fight their way through hordes of Risen rampaging across the Altean countryside and terrorizing villages and towns. The villagers flock to the army for their safety, fearing the return of the Risen once Alyssa lives. Alyssa and her healers burn through many healing staves treating the injuries of the villagers. The constant shifts in weather and tectonic upheavals continue wreaking havoc on both the army and civilians, claiming many lives. Alyssa pushes on to the rendezvous point. Dunstan hasn’t arrived yet. When she begins to worry about his safety, she sees Dunstan’s army on the horizon, waving the Archanean banners. But to the north, she sees a growing storm of swirling dark energy and red lightning approaching them, Grima at its center. Grima flies over the center of Altea and drains the quintessence out of everything in its path. Grass shrivels up and turns to ash. The soil turns poisonous. Animals die and decay in seconds. Humans take longer to die, and those that do are renanimated into Risen who attack, forcing Alyssa to dig in and defend. Unfortunately, Dunstan’s army passes right into the path of Grima and is unable to retreat in time before Grima flies over. Everybody’s quintessence is drained, including Dunstan’s. Grima doubles in size again as Alyssa watches before disappearing over the horizon into Dolhr, and the Risen reanimations temporarily abate. Fighting off the Risen reanimated from the Archanean soldiers, Alyssa rushes to the dying Dunstan’s side, finding him deeply emaciated and weak as a result of Grima’s magic. Despite her own efforts and those of Dunstan’s chaplain Libra, healing magic fails to work. Knowing his time has come, Dunstan hands a large golden object to Alyssa, an elaborate shield engraved with the royal eagle of pre-Hero-King Archanea.
Five dormant orbs are set into the shield. This is the Fire Emblem, their family’s most prized possession. With it, Anri rallied an army to defeat Medeus and save humanity from his oppression. With it, Marth rallied an army to liberate Altea and win the Wars of Shadows and Heroes. It is given to a worthy champion to deliver humanity from evil in times of need. And now it is Alyssa’s. Alyssa keeps insisting she isn’t worthy of wielding Falchion or bearing the Fire Emblem, not like Conrad or Alexandra. Dunstan tells her otherwise. She has always been worthy. That’s how she survived until now. Her charisma and compassion earned her the respect and trust of the Valmese people. Her confidence and tactical planning won her many battles even when she never raised a weapon. That is how she saved so many people. She is every bit as worthy as Conrad and Alexandra were. It’s time she stepped into her duty as a descendant of the Hero-King and wielder of Falchion. She has what it takes. As the remaining life fades from him, Dunstan tells Alyssa the future of Archanea and humanity is in her hands.
Altea and nearby Gra to the east become poisonous wastelands almost overnight, and thousands die or flee elsewhere. Alyssa orders a retreat out of Altea, protecting the surviving Alteans against Risen reanimated from their former countrymen, although she regretfully loses many of them in the process. Once she returns to the foothold, she begins to contemplate the reality of her new situation. Her siblings and father are dead. Where once she was third in line to the throne of Archanea, she is now queen. She had never expected this to happen. When Cassie, Cynthia, and the pegasus knights salute and hail her as queen, she flees to her quarters.
Cassie meets her there. She recalls their first meeting as children. Cassie had taken her mother’s pegasus out for a flight with Alyssa, who was absolutely terrified. But Cassie was always there for her throughout the flight, assuring her everything would be okay. When they landed, Alyssa had finally overcome her fear and was excited for the next flight. Cassie invited her to visit again whenever she wanted, again saying she would always be there for her. In the present, Cassie repeats her childhood promise. She will always be there for Alyssa. No matter what Alyssa goes through, Cassie will always back her up. That’s what friends are for. Alyssa regains her spirits. She thanks Cassie for always sticking with her. She goes out to speak to the troops. Regaining her composure, she summons the courage to eulogize her fallen family on the spot, as well as provide an impromptu service for the fallen soldiers and civilians. She vows to not let their sacrifices be in vain. Grima will be defeated, and humanity will be delivered from another dark era just as it was in during the Wars of Shadows and Heroes.
Alyssa’s first order as queen is to prepare the united army of Archaneans and Valmese for battle. Leaving a strong garrison in charge of the foothold’s defense, She takes her best troops south to pursue Grima. Cassie tries to sharpen Falchion, but the blade remains dull, as she isn’t a descendant of the Hero-King. She eventually settles for strapping it to a pole for use as a lance, which she gives to Alyssa. Alyssa hopes she doesn’t have to use it. More Risen attack the army as it marches, but the army, by now accustomed to the attacks, drive them off. Alyssa’s fliers report Grima has slowed down as it approaches a large ancient structure high in the mountains of central Dolhr. Alyssa remembers it as the Dragon’s Altar from her studies of the Hero-King, the place where the Earth Dragons were sealed away at and Medeus was supposed to be resurrected. Yen’fay believes Grima may seek to unseal the Earth Dragons to gain an army more powerful than the Risen it summons. With the Earth Dragons on its side, there would be no stopping Archanea from being overrun. Alyssa orders the army to march faster and prevent this. However, she is too late. As the Dragon’s Altar appears in the distance, so does Grima looming over it. It doesn’t seem to be awakening the Earth Dragons. Instead, Alyssa realizes too late it is also absorbing the Earth Dragon’s quintessence. As all of the Earth Dragons are drained, Grima grows to a truly monstrous size, becoming as large as a small island or medium-sized mountain. The eldritch storm around it grows in size and intensity as well, engulfing all of Archanea and even parts of Valm (as shown in a cinematic). The changes in weather and geographic upheavels become nightmarish. It’s as if Grima is reorganizing the very face of the planet around it. Alyssa orders a retreat to the foothold, but she doesn’t get far before Pheros, left in charge of the foothold’s garrison, flies in heavily injured, reporting the storms have destroyed the foothold. Shocked the foothold actually fell, taking with it all of its soldiers and civilian refugees, Alyssa looks down in shame. But she doesn’t dwell on it for long. She instead formulates a new plan to head east to Palles. The army marches as fast as they can to Palles, fighting off even more Risen and braving the erratic freak weather along the way. But when they arrive, Alyssa is again horrified to see only smoldering ruins, the once great city completely eradicated. Alyssa wastes no time in clearing the Risen out of the ruins, but afterward, she sits in the remains of the Millennium Court and cries to herself. She was too late to save her home and her people from being destroyed by Grima. What kind of queen does that make her? Cassie tells her she can’t always save everyone. That’s how things go. But hopefully she can save as many as she can. That is her duty as queen of Archanea. She must never give up in the face of the odds. Although some will die, which is definitely regrettable, she can try to save many more.. With Cassie again raising her spirits, Alyssa changes her plans. With Palles a smoldering ruin, she leads the army south to an intact fort and sets to work overhauling its defenses. She establishes a camp within the fort for all of the refugees to live in, while her soldiers build a second wall around the fort so the camp can expand. Alyssa is done running. This is where she will build a second foothold, a last bastion of Archanea and humanity in the face of Grima’s overwhelming power. She owes it to her people to at least try to defend them.
Before the wall is completed, though, the Risen attack the settlement. The army is stretched then defending the half-built wall and barely manages to hold the line. Even so, a few Risen manage to break through and inflict some casualties before being driven back. Alyssa realizes she is quickly running out of manpower. She has been backed into a corner. Time is of the essence. If she doesn’t act, everyone will die. But she doesn’t know what to do. She fears she may have just let down her father. Cassie steps in again. She calms her down by helping her remember another of their childhood memories. Alyssa had been a promising pegasus rider as a child alongside Cassie. In those years, she actually trained with a sword for a brief moment. But after a freak accident in which she nearly fell to her death and almost hit Cassie with her sword, Alyssa abandoned her training and put down the sword. That’s why she has been squeamish of blood ever since. Alyssa apologizes for almost killing Cassie back then, but Cassie says it’s fine. It was so long ago, and she understands why Alyssa did what she did. But she tells Alyssa a true queen learns from her mistakes. She doesn’t run from them. That is what Dunstan would have wanted for her. She must stand firm and hold true to the ideals of the Hero-King. And she must be ready to lay down her life for her people. Alyssa suddenly knows what she has to do.
Alyssa quickly dons a set of pegasus knight armor and takes Falchion. Getting on a pegasus, which she vaguely remembers how to ride, she flies out to the wall. She sees an exposed and under-defended gate in the wall and instinctively lands there. Drawing Falchion, she declares none shall pass her as long as she is alive. She’s done running from her problems. She’s done being a scared girl. It’s time for her to fight and defend her people, as a true heir of the Hero-King would. Alyssa finally promotes to a class that can attack, gaining Elincia’s version of the Falcon Lord class, which allows her to use swords in addition to using healing staves and completing Cassie and Cynthia’s Triangle Attack. The Risen charge at her, but Alyssa cuts them down with the miraculously sharpened Falchion. She realizes she actually is worthy of wielding the divine blade. As the Risen fall, she forces herself to get over her fear of blood, promising herself this will lead to less bloodshed in the future. For several straight hours, she holds the line at the gate against the Risen horde, not breaking a sweat even when the Risen concentrate most of their numbers on her and the gate. When day breaks, the few dozen surviving Risen retreat into the countryside, allowing construction to finish. Cherche reports the Risen have withdrawn all the way to the west, and Grima itself has left Archanea to rampage across Valm. The refugees and soldiers cheer for their queen, who had miraculously held the line all night and saved them. Alyssa says she’s simply doing her duty.
In honor of her battle that night, the settlement is officially named Alyssa’s Tor. And with the Risen attacks temporarily stopping, Alyssa devotes her efforts to strengthing the settlement’s defenses in preparation for their return. Having fully embraced her duties, she now searches for a way to defeat Grima. She can’t just stand by while Archanea, Valm, and possibly the rest of the world are slaughtered by the fell dragon and its minions.
In the future, Chrom again pauses his story. Lucina says the name Alyssa’s Tor sounds familiar, and she is happy Alyssa finally gained the strength to fight. She hopes she can be like Alyssa one day. Chrom replies Alyssa’s story isn’t over yet. They still have to get to the most important part of her story, her exaltation.
The full features of Alyssa’s Tor are now unlocked, at the cost of all explorable locations in Valm disappearing from the world map. Grima’s silhouette is seen ominously hovering over central Valm near the Mila Tree.
Part 3: A New Hero-King
The “main” story of Part 3 doesn’t start immediately. Instead, there are multiple random skirmish battles against Risen throughout eastern Archanea. Alyssa and her army march across the lands of the former Holy Kingdom, particularly the Archanean heartland and the now-peninsula of Talys, to clear out the Risen and save any survivors. This increases the population of Alyssa’s Tor and builds her reputation across the continent, allowing her to improve many of the facilities in the camp, which should more adequately be described as a town now. She has now forged a temporary hilt for Falchion so she can use it like a sword.
For several months, these campaigns gradually restore order to eastern Archanea. Risen hordes are destroyed or driven to the west, while bandits and other humans who refuse to acknowledge the Holy Kingdom’s rule are either crushed or brought back into the fold. Alyssa and Cassie try to focus on diplomacy first. Alyssa’s determination and Cassie’s charisma work well together, convincing many to join their side. But when negotiations fail, they take to the battlefield, where they are equally as powerful together. The two charge ahead of their army on their pegasi, Alyssa more at ease with fighting now that Cassie is beside her. The two draw very close during these difficult times, always seeking each other’s support and advice. They devise and practice a two-person version of the Triangle Attack.
Attempts to push west are blocked by erratic weather. Alyssa feels guilty about abandoning the people of the west, as well as those in Valm. There are even rumors Grima has flown to Jugdral to destroy it as well. She knows she can’t just stay in the town forever. Grima must be defeated sooner than later. But she doesn’t know how to defeat the fell dragon. If Alexandra couldn’t defeat Grima when it was at a smaller size, how can Alyssa defeat it as it is now? Cassie, Virion, and Yen’fay provide varying suggestions on how to approach the problem. Yen’fay suggests amassing as many cannons and explosives as they can get and firing them all at Grima at once. Virion shoots that down as there is no way the dragon would get that close to the ground. He instead suggests bringing together all of their mages and casting their most powerful wind spells. After all, Grima is probably closely related to wyverns like Cherche’s Minerva, which are weak to wind magic, so it should have the same weaknesses. Cassie wonders if they can just do both, using the wind magic to both damage Grima and bring it down to earth, into range of their cannons and other gunpowder weapons.
Bantu doubts that could even harm Grima even with all of that firepower. It is like no dragon he has ever met in his long life. Strategies used to fight the Earth Dragons may not work. And what’s more, he senses something strange in its draconic essence. Something resembling Tiki in both spirit and power. He suspects the blood of Divine Dragons flows through Grima, somehow. Alyssa asks if this connection to Tiki could be made use of. Bantu thinks about it. Perhaps with Tiki’s help they could carry out a ritual to channel Naga’s energy into Falchion so it can be more effective against Grima, but the amount of magical energy required would be astronomical, and Tiki is nowhere near as experienced enough.
Tiki, barging in after him, insists she can do it. She’s not a child anymore. She’s had the last thousand years to train. And she has been inspired by Alyssa’s example. If Alyssa got the courage to take a stand, she can too. It’s the least she can do for Mar-Mar’s descendants. Bantu warns her powers haven’t been fully realized yet. She could degenerate on the spot. Tiki admits that’s the case. But then they could just change the specifics of the ritual. Tiki won’t have to channel Naga’s energy by herself. She can just spiritually contact Naga and have her do it. Bantu points out nobody has talked to Naga in thousands of years. But Tiki reminds him she is Naga’s daughter. If anybody can contact her, it’s her. Though she will probably have to go to a place where the power of the Divine Dragons remains strong. Cassie remembers learning the Divine Dragons used to live on nearby Mount Prism centuries before Marth. Before Grima it was a holy place dedicated to the worship of Naga, much like the Mila Tree was sacred to Valm. Tiki can tap into the potent draconic magic still infused into the area for the ritual. Alyssa decides it is worth a shot.
Alyssa and her army march west to Mount Prism, clearing away more bandits and Risen. As they approach and climb the sacred mountain, the Risen attacks grow fiercer and more desperate, as if they are aware of the mountain’s power. But eventually Alyssa reaches the peak. Tiki begins the ritual and channels Mount Prism’s magic through her. She calls on Naga to appear and aid them. In a flash of light, Naga’s ethereal form appears. Tiki nervously asks if Naga can help them fight Grima. Naga admits as she has long shed her physical body, she is unable to significantly intervene in mortal affairs. But she can bless Falchion with her power, awakening it to a new potential. Alyssa steps forward with the divine blade, ready to receive the power. Naga tells her only those who are worthy may receive her power. If she isn’t, the divine energy will overwhelm and destroy her. Will Alyssa step forward, knowing this? Alyssa doesn’t even flinch. She is more than willing to give her life just for the slim hope of her people’s survival. That is her duty as queen. Naga acknowledges her resolve and determination. She begins the ritual.
Energy flows from Naga through Tiki to Alyssa and Falchion. Alyssa experiences some visions testing her resolve and righteousness. These are battles in which the player can only fight with her and can’t save in between. First is a completely dark map where enemies and terrain are completely invisible and Alyssa must survive several turns, learning to overcome her inner darkness and deepest fears. Next, she is placed on a field between two villages. Cassie is being attacked by bandits in one, while a dozen villagers are being attacked in the other. The lesson here is to put the needs of her people above her personal desires, including those she loves. But there is a way to save both Cassie and the villagers, which is necessary to beat the map. Naga reveals the true lesson of this battle, to trust in her friends’ abilities and never abandon both them and the rest of her people. After that is a battle against an extremely powerful enemy which can be defeated through manipulating terrain and inflicting stat drops, teaching Alyssa to use all tools at her disposal to overcome a superior foe. Finally she meets her last opponent: herself. To prove herself worthy, she must defeat her worst qualities. The enemy Alyssa hurls insults and self-loathing at her throughout the battle, which Alyssa ignores and pushes past.
After winning, Alyssa is engulfed in searing flames in the real world, screaming in pain. Cassie rushes forward to pull her out of the fire, but Bantu and Yen’fay hold her back, saying it is part of the ritual. The flames subside, and Alyssa emerges completely unharmed. Cassie embraces her, relieved she is okay. Holding her non-sword hand, she notices a marking similar to the old Holy Kingdom’s Falchion and tiara insignia. Falchion has also received an upgrade, its hilt magically reforged to resemble that same mark. What’s more important is the sword’s blade has been fully restored and is even radiating a golden aura. Alyssa remarks she feels way more powerful now, like she can take on anything. She promotes to the Exalt class, an upgraded version of her previous class.
(Alyssa is an original character, but I think she'd look like Lucina in a way.)
The reforged Archanean Falchion
Naga declares Alyssa is worthy of receiving her power. This has taken the form of a blood pact, like the one she formed with Saint Heim. The pact symbolizes the trust Naga has placed in Alyssa and her descendants to protect humanity just as Anri and Marth once did. But if they are to use Falchion’s newly awakened power, they must also undergo this ritual. Alyssa asks if she can defeat Grima with this power. Naga explains she may be able to subdue Grima but not permanently kill it. She does not possess the power to destroy Grima. It will be Alyssa’s family’s duty, as those exalted by Naga, to always be ready for Grima’s return. Naga has done all she can.
Naga begins to disappear again, but Tiki speaks up. She had never gotten the chance to speak to her mother before. She asks Naga why she left her alone. She spent her childhood sleeping and without friends before meeting Marth. Why did she have to go through all that? Naga apologizes for leaving her. But she explains she did it because she knew Tiki’s potential far surpassed her own, and one day she would take Naga’s place as the arbiter between humanity and dragons. She did what she did so Tiki would grow into a dragon worthy of taking her place, because she loved her. Fading from view, she urges Tiki to continue being herself.
While Alyssa and the others leave the mountain to return to Alyssa’s Tor, Grima approaches the southern coast of Elibe, bringing with it dark and chaotic weather which begins affecting the cities of Lycia. In Ostia Castle, a purple-haired man picks up the Blazing Blade and rushes out to join his troops, while the city is slowly evacuated amidst the fierce storms. But when Grima senses Alyssa’s new power, it immediately turns around and flies back to Archanea, sparing Elibe at the last second.
In the future, Chrom explains this was the first rite of Awakening. As a result of Alyssa’s covenant with Naga, she was the first of their family to receive the Brand of the Exalt. Lucina realizes this is where the Brand in her eye and on Chrom’s shoulder come from. She asks if she will have to go through the rite of Awakening at some point like Alyssa did. Chrom hopes she doesn’t have to do it. But he adds she technically already did it.
Part 4: The Exalt’s Duty
After briefly regrouping at Alyssa’s Tor and amassing a large army, Alyssa heads west, finally ready to liberate the rest of the continent from the Risen. Falchion’s new blade makes short work of the Risen roaming through what was once Aurelis. Alyssa puts to rest all of her old worries and fears, focusing intently on the duty Naga entrusted her with, defeating Grima.
Learning Furia also survived the Risen onslaught, she makes haste for the western coast. Arriving in Port Furia, she meets with Prince Benedict, now the khan following the death of his father defending the city from a Risen attack. Benedict joins forces with Alyssa, committing as many troops as he can for a push south. The lands formerly known as Dolhr, Macedon, Grust, Altea, and Gra remain overrun by Risen, but there is another threat in the area. Benedict has heard rumors of a human faction which survived amid the Risen, having embraced an apocalyptic vision of the future. This doomsday cult believes Grima to be a personification of and punishment for humanity’s evils. To them, it is a god sent to punish humans for their hubris and start the world over, with only the worthy spared. Alyssa worries these zealots may pose a more significant threat than the mindless Risen. But she hopes she can negotiate with them. Unfortunately, the zealots rebuff all of Alyssa’s offers, calling her a heretic who wishes to kill their god, and open hostilities immediately. The combined Furian/Archanean army suddenly comes under attack from the zealots outside Port Furia. The zealots make up for their lack of numbers with a fanatical determination which overwhelms the Furians and Archaneans. Alyssa pleads with the zealots to not fight their fellow humans, but Cassie has to drag her back from the front lines before she is killed, convincing her there is no reasoning with these fanatics. Alyssa commits to fighting off the zealots, but she struggles to fight against an enemy that is fully devoted to her destruction and is far smarter than the Risen hordes.
Suddenly, a third army slams into the rear of the zealots, catching the enemy in a pincer attack. Alyssa flies ahead on her pegasus to see who has arrived to help them and is shocked to recognize a certain green-haired man in Valmese armor, wielding a familiar golden Falchion, surrounded by Risen. Before she can stab him, Walhart convinces her he is still alive, having barely survived the battle in Thabes all that time ago. He had spent most of his time since then recovering from his wounds. The Risen around him are harmless and obey him. When they tried attacking him, he subjugated them through sheer force of will. Alyssa asks if Walhart can help her defeat the zealots and Grima. Walhart replies it was his duty to destroy Grima as the Saint-King would have wanted. He failed once at Thabes, but he won’t fail again. Walhart is now recruited and starts in the Emperor class, a sword-using armored cavalry class. He has an ability where he can summon several Risen as cannon fodder at will.
With Walhart’s help, the zealots are driven back south into the wastelands of Altea. The Archaneans, Furians, Valmese, and Walhart regroup in Port Furia to discuss their plan. Walhart explains he and his Risen army have been traveling around western Archanea for a while, trying to find more information on Grima. He has learned the dragon is returning to Archanea after laying waste to Valm and Jugdral, having been attracted by the exalted aura Alyssa radiates, and the zealots will direct it to the Dragon’s Altar to feed it more quintessence. Alyssa immediately declares she will fight her way to the Dragon’s Altar and defeat Grima there. Although it is deep in zealot territory, she has no choice. Grima must fall now before it gains even more power and wipes out what is left of humanity. The others agree. It’s time they put an end to the chaos the world has been in since Grima’s release.
Alyssa returns to Alyssa’s Tor one more time to make her final preparations. During training with Walhart, she asks if he saw what happened to Alexandra and Gunnar. Walhart recounts Alexandra’s death to Alyssa. She is initially shocked to hear how her sister died but quickly makes her peace with it. Alexandra died a hero, and Alyssa must make her sacrifice meaningful. As for Gunnar, Walhart admits he doesn’t know what happened to the veteran knight, as he was grievously wounded and forced to retreat while Gunnar was still fighting. He was probably killed afterward. Alyssa is amazed a knight like Gunnar outlasted both Alexandra and Walhart against Grima, even without a Falchion. His devotion to the kingdom and to Dunstan’s family is truly something. He is an ideal knight of Archanea, and his example should inspire Alyssa and her troops to push on and fight in his name.
Continuing their training, Alyssa defeats Walhart, who remarks she has learned much since they last met. She asks him again why he started the war and if he regrets killing Conrad. Walhart thinks about it. He had only started the war because there were warning signs the Saint-King’s prophecy was about to unfold. When he launched the war, he was fully devoted to preventing the prophecy from being fulfilled, and he would do whatever was needed to achieve that goal. All Valmese emperors are raised to believe they and the rest of humanity should live free, not under the reign of the gods, and they must do whatever is needed to protect that freedom. Unfortunately, Conrad was in his way, and he had to cut him down. Alyssa wonders why he couldn’t have just told Dunstan about the prophecy. He would have understood Walhart. Walhart admits he never thought of it. He was always raised to value strength as the ultimate arbiter of one’s destiny. He genuinely believed only a war to stop the prophecy would prevent future wars, even if it was bloody now. But he realizes his actions, far from preventing the prophecy from happening, ultimately fulfilled it. Instead of defying the destiny he was given, he played right into it. He acknowledges he is a fool, having valued strength at the cost of all else.
Perhaps he is like the Saint-King in that respect. A thousand years ago, Alm started his quest to free old Valentia from a tyrant and the gods who held Valentians back from their true potential. He believed only strength brought victory, and battles must be fought to achieve peace. But he had someone with him to convince him otherwise. Celica, his true love, believed peace could be achieved without war, and fighting is not always required to establish peace. Although they argued a lot over who was right, they eventually struck a balance. Together, they overthrew the gods and brought peace and freedom to Valentia. When they became king and queen, Celica moderated Alm. Perhaps Walhart is what Alm would have been without Celica. While Alm became the Saint-King, Walhart became a conqueror. He says Alyssa reminds him of Celica. If only they had met sooner, perhaps this whole disaster could have been prevented. Perhaps he wouldn’t have lost his way and played right into the prophecy he swore to defy.
As the preparations near completion and Alyssa gets ready to march out to Dolhr, Cassie asks if they can talk one night. She has something on her mind she has been meaning to share for a while but couldn’t. She asks Alyssa to forgive her rudeness. She has been worrying about their relationship in recent weeks. Although they are friends, the fact is she is Alyssa’s subject. It is not becoming of the queen of Archanea to fraternize in such a way with her subjects, even if they were childhood friends. Alyssa insists otherwise. Although she is now a queen, Cassie is still her friend. She has stood by her their whole lives. Cassie reminds her a queen shouldn’t favor one subject at the expense of the others. How can the other subjects maintain their fealty if one is given special treatment? Alyssa must forego her personal attachments. There will be times when she must put her duties as queen and as one exalted by Naga above her feelings…especially over those she loves. Cassie knows the pain of saying this as she must put her feelings aside too. Alyssa understands what Cassie is saying because she reciprocates. They both feel the same way about each other, which makes the conversation excruciating. Alyssa finally admits she is a queen, and Cassie is a knight in her service. They are both women, and Alyssa must carry on the Hero-King’s bloodline now that she is the last of her family. The country would not accept such a relationship given all of this. They just…can’t.
Cassie asks for more forgiveness. She reflects on watching Alyssa’s exaltation on Mount Prism. When she was suddenly engulfed in flames, Cassie instinctively rushed to her side. It was the first time since she was knighted that she forgot her duty. For a moment, she thought of Alyssa not as her queen, but as someone she wanted to protect. She wanted to drop everything and be with her, not as a knight serving her, but at her side, together. But she knows they can’t. It isn’t meant to be. Their destinies sadly lie elsewhere. And she has made her peace with that. Alyssa looks down sadly. Such is the duty of an exalted one. She asks what Cassie plans to do after Grima is defeated. She personally just wants to go home and stop fighting. Cassie promises to always stand by her. Even if they can’t be together, she will always be her knight and friend. Alyssa smiles. She always feels better when Cassie is around. Cassie asks Alyssa if she thinks she has grown stronger since they first set out from Palles. Alyssa says of course she has grown. With Cassie around her, she is confident they can get through anything.
Cassie has one more thing she wants to talk about. She takes out a sapphire gem the same color as her hair. It is a precious relic that has been in her family since the life of Catria, who had received it as a gift from Marth after the War of Heroes. She asks Alyssa to have it, as a symbol of their bond and what they could have had if not denied by their destinies. Alyssa refuses, as it is perhaps Cassie’s family’s greatest treasure. Cassie insists on Alyssa taking it, since it was originally a gift from Alyssa’s family. Alyssa thanks her for the gift, wishing she had something to give in return, but Cassie says it’s fine. Actually, she has a request. She wants Alyssa to survive Grima. Not just for Archanea, but for her. Alyssa also asks Cassie to survive for her. Cassie promises she won’t let her down.
Alyssa sets out from the settlement, Falchion in hand, for her final battle. Her army marches first to Port Furia, where she recruits Benedict and his troops. As Grima returns to Archanea, the continent becomes engulfed in storms and earthquakes again, but Alyssa pushes on, using the intensity of the cataclysm to map out Grima’s path. The zealots attack, attempting to keep them away from the Dragon’s Altar, but Alyssa persists. As she nears her ultimate destination, her enemies grow stronger and more desperate, while the storm grows in intensity the close they get to Grima. Even inside the tower, the zealot attacks continue. But that isn’t the most worrying part of fighting in the tower. As she fights, Alyssa sees more zealots sacrificing themselves, offering their quintessence to strengthen Grima even more. Some are in return blessed with enhanced dark magic powers. She is concerned if she takes too long, Grima could become far too powerful. She must hurry to the top. But the zealots and Risen she encounters get stronger the higher she climbs, filmmaking her fight fiercely for every scrap of floor.
She reaches the top of the tower. In the sky above her, the fell dragon looks ominously, red lightning and shadowy clouds radiating from its monstrous form. Cassie recalls seeing Grima reacting most to being hit on the back of its neck during the battle in Thabes. Perhaps if they get on its back, they could target that weak spot, if it still exists. Alyssa says they don’t have much of a choice. But how will they get up there? Their Warp staves aren’t equipped for such long range teleportation, and even if they are, Grima could just roll over and kill them. Walhart suggests another strategy. Instead of going up to Grima, they bring Grima down to them. By using their remaining cannons and wind magic in combination with modified Rescue staves, they could pull Grima down to earth and then teleport onto its back. But the magical requirements, as well as moving the cannons into place, require time.
While the preparations are made, Alyssa, Cassie, and the others hold off the zealots and Risen coming up from the lower floors. Although they initially hold off the hordes, the enemies simply replenish their numbers, gradually wearing them down. Finally, the cannons and mages are ready to go, and Alyssa gives the order. The army’s cannons boom, and their projectiles, their speed and range boosted by wind magic, strike Grima’s wings at the same time the mages cast powerful wind spells to generate downward-blowing gales and the modified staves begin dragging Grima down. The dragon resists, but eventually it is brought to the ground, and Alyssa and her army teleport onto its back. They rush to where the weak spot is, but they find it is also guarded by more Risen, as well as a familiar face.
Gunnar greets them. The old knight now radiates a shadowy aura, and his hand is marked with a brand much like Alyssa’s, only representing Grima instead. His once gentle and stoic expression is now twisted with hatred and malice. Alyssa asks what happened to him, but “Gunnar” reveals he is actually Grima in human form, having killed the real Gunnar after Thabes and taken his body as a vessel, much like the old dragon Loptyr possessed Galle thousands of years ago. Alyssa orders Grima to release Gunnar at once. Grima laughs, because Gunnar is dead and his body is nothing more than an empty shell. He mocks their persistence in defying him when he has already won. The world lies trampled under his wings. Soon humanity will all be destroyed by his breath of expiration. There is no stopping that. Even their pitiful attempt at bringing him closer to the ground won’t last forever. Alyssa is aware of that. She says she’ll have to work quickly then to ensure humanity’s survival. Grima asks if a little girl like herself can oppose the ultimate life form, the perfect being, the end of all things. Alyssa smiles. It is her duty to do so, entrusted to her by Naga and her ancestors. Grima scoffs. The wretched Naga will fall before him like any other. Why does she chain herself to a goddess who isn’t there for her? “Because it is my duty,” Alyssa repeats. She has an obligation to her family and to humanity to make a stand here and end Grima before more lives are lost. In the names of all those who died, she won’t fail here today. She can’t fail. She’s no longer the scared girl who hates the sight of blood. She’s no longer going to run from her destiny. With her friends and those she loves at her side, she will carry out her exalted duty. Raising Falchion, she declares Grima’s days of terror are over and calls on her army to charge. Grima dares them to attack, summoning several powerful Risen to defend the weak spot.
The final battle begins. The first thing the player notices is the objective, which is to kill all enemies and then Gunnar. The second thing they notice is each enemy on the map has a name and unique portrait...a familiar portrait. Grima has summoned Deadlords of many people who had died over the course of the game, including Domitius, Dunstan, Alexandra, Conrad, Walhart’s fallen retainers, and possibly any playable character who died in a previous battle. All have unique battle conversations with people important to them, like Walhart with his retainers and Alyssa with her family and Cassie. They have far higher stats than they did in life and wield signature weapons suited to their strengths and skills. Gunnar is the most powerful. He retains any weapons and skills he had when last playable but received a massive stat boost, two unlimited durability weapons (Dark Spikes and Expiration) which ignore defense and resistance and have dangerous range, and a skill which halves all damage inflicted except for that done by the two Falchions and Tiki. The music is a remix of Awakening’s final battle theme. At the start, a male choir representing Grima sings in Latin to mock Alyssa’s spirit. But as she advances and defeats more enemies, the choir diminishes, and a female voice singing a remix of A Heroine’s Destiny, representing Alyssa’s unwavering will, makes herself heard alongside occasional echoes of Awakening’s leitmotif representing the future.
Finally it is time to fight Grima itself through Gunnar. If Walhart attacks, he boasts Grima made a mistake leaving him alive, and in the name of the Saint-King and the people of Valm he will not fail again in the destiny bestowed upon him by the Valmese Falchion. If Benedict attacks, he declares this is the moment the people of Furia have been training for since the founding of the kingdom centuries ago by the champion Furia. If Tiki attacks, Grima recognizes her as a daughter of Naga, expressing a deep hatred for her divine dragon blood. Tiki simply says just like Alyssa embraced her duty as queen, so too will she embrace her role as Naga’s successor. If Cassie attacks, she apologizes for what she will do to Gunnar’s body, but she will defend the person she holds most dear to her. If Alyssa attacks, Grima again mocks her as a weak and inexperienced girl who amounts to nothing without her friends. Alyssa acknowledges she relies a lot on her friends, but that isn’t a bad thing. There are many things she can’t do on her own. Her friends help her accomplish those. Together, they lift each other to new heights. Together, they can overcome anything. With Cassie at her side, she feels at ease. Alyssa also adds so many people underestimated her as weak and scared before. That was their undoing. Grima will be no different. Falchion swings, and gradually Grima’s health is brought down.
Finally, Gunnar falls to his knees, defeated. He raises his hands and asks for mercy. The shadowy aura surrounding him fades, and his expression becomes one of fear and desperation. He asks Alyssa to spare him. With the injuries he has sustained, Grima’s control over him has been weakened, and perhaps he can still be freed. If only Alyssa could just hold on and figure something out. But Alyssa, realizing this is only a trick from Grima and the real Gunnar is dead (calling back to a similar moment in the Magvel duology), doesn’t hesitate. Apologizing to her old mentor and retainer for the final time, she stabs him in the chest. Gunnar’s fell blood spills out of the wound, pooling onto the dark scales around him. Wasting no time, she runs past him and, activating her Aether skill, plunges Falchion into the weak spot. Grima lets out an anguished roar and falls the remaining distance to the ground. It desperately attempts to repair the wound by absorbing all of the quintessence that could be found in the surrounding area, turning the plains into a desert, but Alyssa stabs the weak spot again. Eventually, Grima falls still and no longer stirs. The fell dragon has fallen at last. Humanity has been saved.
Alyssa returns to Alyssa’s Tor and receives a hero’s welcome. She tells the others how the giant eldritch dragon which has threatened the entire world has been defeated at her hand. Now humanity can focus on rebuilding. The casualties were high and the destruction immense, but now all that is not in vain. She has a long road ahead of her, but she promises to do her best to lead the people of Archanea into a new era of peace. That will be her new duty, one she expects to spend the rest of her life carrying out.
The members of her army go their separate ways. With some exceptions, the Valmese go home to Valm, which thanks to Grima has become a lawless wasteland. Virion and Yen’fay and their retainers return to Rosanne and Chon’sin and get to work rebuilding their old domains, eventually turning the two provinces into the most stable and peaceful regions in Valm. Walhart was last seen accompanying Bantu to the Mila Tree, saying he must atone for failing to live up to the Saint-King’s legacy; he never sought to restore his empire. Tiki settled on Mount Prism to better commune with Naga there. Benedict and the Furians returned home. The Archaneans settled in Alyssa’s Tor. They either remain in the army to reassert the kingdom’s rule in the surrounding areas and make eastern Archanea safe or retire and help build up the town as a new capital of the kingdom. Over the centuries, Alyssa’s Tor becomes known as Ylisstol, and the Holy Kingdom of Archanea becomes the Halidom of Ylisse, named in Alyssa’s honor.
Alyssa reigned for many decades as queen of Archanea, restoring order to the areas of the continent directly under her control. She put down Falchion and spent most of her time protecting the peace and looking out for the well being of her people, but when the peace was occasionally threatened by the zealots, who had organized into the kingdom of Plegia and the Grimleal cult (and had seemingly collected Gunnar’s blood for some reason), she did not hesitate to pick up Falchion when needed. Recognizing the power of the fully assembled Fire Emblem was too great to be kept in the hands of one person, she gave the five orbs to different people. She held on to the Geosphere, while Tiki got the Lifesphere and Lightsphere. The Starsphere was entrusted to Benedict. The Darksphere had gone missing during the final battle.
Throughout her reign, Cassie always remained by her side, serving as her closest and most trusted adviser and knight. Although they eventually married people they loved and started families of their own, their deep bond remained unshaken, and it inspired many stories and legends in the thousand years to come. Just as Alyssa came to be known as the First Exalt, with the title of Exalt replacing the title of king or queen, Cassie was fondly remembered as the Exalt’s Love, tragically prevented from being with her due to the destinies forced upon the two. It was said they both passed at the same time on the same day, whispering each other’s names in their final moments.
In the future, Chrom concludes his story. Realizing it is very late, he tucks in Lucina and asks her to get some sleep. Lucina remarks the story was a very exciting one. She never expected her ancestor to have been like that. She wonders if she can be like Alyssa. Chrom smiles. He knows she can be a great ruler someday, just as Alyssa was. If a scared little girl could become the savior of humanity and the chosen of Naga, Lucina can do it as well. He is confident in that. Before Lucina goes to sleep, he has one more thing to share with her. His mother had insisted on waiting until Lucina’s birthday, but Chrom doesn’t want to wait until then. He takes out Cassie’s sapphire gem and Marth’s tiara, saying they belong to her now. The tiara was worn by all heirs to the throne since the days of Marth, and it is only right Lucina wear it now. And the gem...ever since Cassie has given it back to Alyssa, it had been passed down through her descendants, all the way to Chrom. He now gives it to Lucina, telling her to give it to someone she loves as much as Cassie loved Alyssa.
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Well 2018 oughta be normal and totally not mimic a certain other universe's outcomes nope!
I mean, over there Fire Emblem got canceled after Awakening, so we should be good...right?