Critique Review: Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance · 9:37pm Feb 10th, 2016
Hello, everypony. I am the Critique.
And welcome to the second week in Fire Emblem month!
Last week, we looked at a fanfic that didn’t really capture the spirit of what a Fire Emblem game means to me. And many of you are probably wondering… What does Fire Emblem mean to me?
Well, to really answer that question (or at least in the hope it does) I am going to give my full thoughts on the story of Path of Radiance, the first game in the Fire Emblem series I ever played.
The Fire Emblem series had been out for years before I started to play it. Hell, Path of Radiance was the ninth game in the series. With a sequel to it schedule a year after I played it. Fortunately, most of the Fire Emblem games take place in completely different worlds and different timelines. Much like the Final Fantasy games. This allowed players to pick up any Fire Emblem game and play it without being loaded with tons of backstory and getting confused.
It’s probably why I could go into Fire Emblem 9 and come out of it fully satisfied. I didn’t leave confused or lost as you might think I would have. There is no backstory that you need to learn in order to enjoy this game. This is a separate universe from previous Fire Emblems, allowing a new story and new mythology to be told.
Sure, elements can be the same or reoccurring themes, but characters change, motives for characters change, even the rules of the world seem to change a bit, depending on where we are. Sometimes dragons can be used as mounts, other times they are people who use magic stones to transform into dragons.
Even the central item, the Fire Emblem, which appears in every game, is different from game to game. Sometimes it's a shield that can unlock doors, a stone that holds a demon lord, a medallion that burns a bright blue flame, whatever the story needs it to be. Which allows a ton of flexibility with the story telling. You never know when the Fire Emblem will show up.
And that’s why I’m excited to talk about one of my favorite games of all time. Let’s dig into Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance!
Our story begins with our main character, Ike. Yes, Ike. You know that guy from Smash Brothers who’s not very good, because of his slow and heavy build and his sword sounds like a cannon when it hits you?
Yeah, that Ike.
Ike is training in the woods with his father, Greil. And like in smash brothers, he’s getting his assed kicked and is easily knocked out.
When Ike recovers he finds himself being treated by his little sister, Mist. Mist scolds her father for being so rough with Ike, but Greil laughs and says
Greil: If this is too much for the boy, he'll never make it as a mercenary.
Turns out Greil is the commander of a group of mercenaries, who perform various jobs around local towns to make money. … So yeah...just like mercenaries.
However, much to the dismay of his sister, Ike thinks that he hasn’t received enough punishment and is ready for round two.
Greil: Alright then, I’ll go get my big stick.
Greil is hesitant to fight Ike so soon after recovering, when a fellow mercenary named Boyd arrives. Greil volunteers Boyd to fight Ike in a sparring match to see how he fares. And it’s at this point where the game officially begins.
You are guided by helpful tutorials to win your first fight. It teaches you essentials, like how to move. How to attack. How some weapons can be used directly, like swords and axes. And how some weapons, like bows and magic, can be used from a space away. However, bows cannot counterattack if attacked by a direct weapon and vise versa. How weapons degrade as you use them. When the weapon durability counter hits zero, the weapon breaks. Fortunately, you can carry multiple weapons on character. Meaning if one of them breaks, you won’t be defenseless, since Fire Emblem characters can’t fight without weapons.
But enough of the game elements, back to the story. Ike manages to defeat Boyd, much to Boyd’s dismay and Greil agrees to challenge him again. The fight begins for the two with Ike managing to defeat Greil.
Mist congratulates Ike, but it turns out that victory wasn’t what it seemed.
Mist: Ike! You were great!
Ike: Father, you were holding back, weren't you?
Mist: What? Is that true?
Greil: If you could tell the difference, that means you're improving.
So, yeah, Ike couldn’t actually beat his father. What a load. If this were a Mary-Sue, he’d had beaten his father, called him a faggot and flown off with wings bursting out of his back! Worst Fanfic Ever!
With this victory over his father and Boyd, Ike thinks himself ready for a real job and asks Greil give him a real mission. Griel is hesitant at first, but agrees to give Ike a chance, but telling him that he won’t be favored or baby because of who he is and that a lot will be expected of him. Ike agrees and promises to work hard for him.
I’ve got to say, I do like the interactions between Griel and Ike. Griel’s a tough but fair father who legitimately wants to give his son a chance. Ike is a respectful, but still young and wants to prove himself. There’s a very legitimate trust between the two, mostly because they are so much alike. Which we will get to.
Other stories would have had Griel be unfair and not even giving Ike the time of day, but I like that Griel gives Ike a chance to prove himself. That and it’d be an extremely short game if he didn’t.
So, let’s see how Ike does on his first day?
Titania: Good morning, Ike. Today's your first day as a professional soldier,
isn't it?
Ike: Yeah, and I'm ready to go.
Greil: What you are is late. The others were suited up and ready at the break
of dawn.
Well, your ass is fired!
Also, meet Titania. No, she is not the queen of the fairies. Awesome as that would be. No, she’s actually the second in command of the mercenary company called the ‘Greil Mercenaries’. Gee, arrogant much there, Griel? She’s also the… sort of love interest to Greil… I’ll come back to that later.
Titania and Griel discuss the jobs they have and divide them among the two of them, each of them taking members of their group for backup. Griel requests that Titania take Ike with her to show him the ropes and to evaluate him to see if he needs more training before putting him in real danger.
Titania agrees and Ike, Boyd and Oscar (Body’s younger brother) to head out and run a few bandits out of town. I won’t go into great detail with the other characters, because if I did, we would be here all day. But each character has a bit of a backstory and personality to them that you end up seeing later in Support Conversations.
Basically, in each battle a character performs with a certain character, they have a chance of having a conversation with that character to further develop their relationship. Sometimes backstory is revealed or they have a change in their character. It’s nice character interaction and development for characters who aren’t part of the main cast.
In combat, it also helps when the two characters are in close proximity to each other, as they gain increased stats like attack and defense. So outside of story, there is a gameplay reason to do this.
Back to the story, Ike and the others complete a few missions with Ike learning the ropes as he goes. His confidence growing with every battle.
After a while a character by the name of Soren arrives at their mercenary base. Soren, it turns out, is a part of the mercenary group and had been studying at a magic school. He explains that he returned to warn the group of an invasion of their home country, Crimea, by the neighboring country, Daein.
It turns out Daein had swiftly attacked the country without warning or without provocation. The attacked forced the king’s brother to gather as many troops as possible in order to meet the Daeins and send them back.
Griel believes that they need to discover what is happening to the king’s men and the battle of the capital city. He orders Ike to gather a squad and lead a reconnaissance mission to find out what the result of the battle was. Ike is pretty shocked by this since he’s still learning and that Titania is going with him as an advisor.
Regardless, he does as he is told and leads his team. When they arrive they find that the Daein army has in fact won the battle and conquered the capital. Well, mission over. Can we go home now?
Actually, before our group can head out to warn Griel what they saw, they are attacked by a small pocket of Daein’s forces. After the battle, Ike finds a woman unconscious just outside of the battlegrounds. Not sure of who she is, Ike suggests they take her back to their base to ask her some questions when she awakens.
You know, this being an anime, I would not have been surprised if Ike wanted to grope her first. … Disappointed, but not surprised.
Fortunately, Ike has a little more integrity than that and lets the boobies be.
It turns out that the lady Ike found is actually Princess Elincia, heir to the throne of Crimea and the sole survivor of the royal family. Ah, so the Mary-Sue of the story. I wouldn’t be surprised if she somehow lost her memory.
Thankfully, that doesn’t happen. She knows full aware of who she is and what happened, explaining that her uncle had sent his royal guard to escort her somewhere safe, but they were ambushed and she barely made it out alive. She comes to the conclusion that if Ike and his friends hadn’t arrived when they had, she probably would have been dead.
However, Griel is dubious about her identity since he had never heard of the king having a child. Elincia explains that her identity was kept a secret in order to avoid a blood feud with her uncle, since he was technically next in line for the throne.
I would have questioned this, but if Lion King taught me anything.
Siblings suck… Ike better watch his back for that sister of his.
Elincia tells Griel and Ike about how the royal knights were to escort her to Gallia to be placed under the protection of King Caineghis, a friend of her father's. And trust me, if there is any king you want to be protected by, it’s this one. (Hint, he’s the big red one.)
Yes, he is so cool, he can turn into a giant, red, man-eating lion… And you thought that Lion King joke had no point in it.
Anyway, Elincia begs Griel and Ike to sell her services to help her arrive safely to Gallia in order to tell the king what has happened. However, Elincia carries very little valuables and can only promise to pay them when the deed is complete.
Before our heroes have much time to think about it however, they are approached by Daein soldiers, who demand that the mercenaries turn over Elincia. Griel, knowing full well it would condemn the girl to death to turn her over, refuses and tells his troops to prepare for battle.
The fortress gets surrounded by Daein soldiers, which in any other scenario would spell the end of them, but in Fire Emblem, you’re usually better off than they are. Even if they outnumber you. Griel tells his son to lead the attack on the front line, protecting the princess and his little sister at any cost, while he goes to the rear by himself and holds them off. And this is why Griel is a fucking badass.
After the battle, Griel orders his troops to gather any supplies they need and burn their old home to the ground. Ike is put in charge of Elincia, I know I wish I was, and Ike asks her to help with packing food and supplies. Elincia is taken aback by Ike asking a noble to help, something that Ike doesn’t seem to notice.
His little sister, Mist, however, is not quite as dumb.
Mist: Sorry, this is kind of awkward. Making a princess help with packing...
Elincia: Please don't worry, Mist. I just hope that I don't end up slowing you
down by getting in your way.
Mist: Don't be silly! You're so much better at this than I am. It's a big
help! Are all princesses as good at this sort of thing as you are?
Elincia: Ha ha! I wasn't raised at court, so my life was a bit different than
other princesses. I cooked, cleaned, sewed... Why, I did all manner
of things.
Mist: Really? That's surprising. I would never have guessed that by looking at
you.
Elincia: Let's see, I also rode horses, practiced swordfighting…
And yes, that horseriding and swordfighting does come into play later in the story. Oh, Chekhov's gun! How I love you?!
Elinica then notices a medallion hanging around Mist’s neck and Mist explains that it is all she has of her mother.
Elincia: Oh... It's a lovely... That's an incredible medallion, isn't it? I
wonder what that light is.
Mist: It used to belong to my mother. It's all I have to remember her by. Hmm
... I don't know where the light comes from. It didn't used to be like
that. A while back, it just started glowing.
Elincia: The world is full of mysteries, isn't it? One thing is clear, though
... It certainly is beautiful.
Mist: I wonder what that light means…
Oh, I wish I could tell you what that light means… But I can’t… Spoilers for the sequel and such.
And I figure this is a perfect time to explain a little bit about those animorph characters you saw a little while ago, since the story decides to. Those people are a race called the ‘Laguz’. A group of beings with the ability to change into certain types of animals. They don’t get to choose what animal they become. They become whatever they were born as.
There are three major types of Laguz (technically four, but spoilers). There are the beast Laguz, who are populated by giant bobcats, tigers and lions being the strongest of them. In human form, they usually have cat ears and whiskers on their faces and usually a cat-like tail.
There are the bird Laguz, consisting of hawks, ravens, and herons. Their human forms usually have wings growing out of their backs. I’ll explain more about them when we get there.
And the most powerful of the laguz race, the dragons.
Apparently, prejudice has been going around for years between the Laguz and the human race, also called ‘Beorcs’ in this world. Slavery, violence, you know, the normal stuff that comes from discrimination, second-class citizenship and racism.
The group manages to retreat into the sea of trees to Gallia, but is forced to split up when they meet a Daein barricade. Griel takes one path taking only a few men with him, a more severe path, leaving Ike, the princess and the others to deal with a small patrol route. After successfully infiltrating Gallia’s borders, Ike begins to worry about his father.
His worry begins to get the better of him, and feeling that Elincia is safe in Gallia’s borders asks her to carry on without him while he searches for his father. Elincia is grateful to be alive at this point and agrees to take Ike’s sister, Mist, with her while he goes back into enemy territory.
Ike and the others search for them, but there doesn’t seem to be any sign of them. However, Titania manages to see something in an old fort and the group goes to investigate. What they find, however, is an ambush. They begin to fight when Griel and his group finally arrive.
A general of the Daein army, Petrine, challenges Griel to a one on one, after seeing how arrogant and pompous he is. It’s during this scene that an important plot point is dropped. It turns out the King of Daein, Ashnard, puts men against each other in an arena. Those who win and survive are given titles, regardless of birth or gender. It’s eerily similar to how the Laguz royalty functions.
Laguz, unlike the Beorc, do not give titles by class or birth. Instead, a Laguz’s strength determines his or her place in society. The stronger the Laguz, the higher the rank. And the strongest is the one who rules the land.
Kind of a disadvantage when you were born a bobcat and the other guy is born a huge freaking lion!
However, there are some exceptions to the Laguz rules, which I don’t entirely understand, but whatever. I’ll get to that down the road. Griel agrees to the one on one, confident he can beat his opponent.
And it turns out, he was right. Griel manages to keep the woman on the ropes and causes her to contemplate retreating. However, enemy reinforcements arrive to turn the tide.
What a twist!
However, before our game is game over, our heroes are saved by a Gallian general named, Ranulf, who brings a group of Laguz soldiers to the battlefield.
What a twist!
But, a mysterious figure known as the Black Knight appears and saves General Petrine, by telling her to retreat for now.
What a twist!
And then a meteorite falls from the sky and kills everyone in a fiery death!
What a twist!
… Okay that last part didn’t happen…
Anyway, after the battle, Ranulf greets Ike and his companions with open arms. With Ike showing his stupidity.
Ranulf: The princess came and requested Gallian aid for your mercenary
company. That is what brings us here.
Ike: Are you one of Gallia's sub-humans?
Ranulf: Sub-human? Ha! What arrogance it takes to coin such a name! You think
yourselves the only ones worthy of the name "human", and so we laguz
must be beneath you? And thus you call us "sub-human". We are less
then human to you, is that it?
And then Ike was eaten by a lion!
Actually, Ike quickly learns that sub-human is a derogatory term and equally as fast apologizes. Ranulf, surprised by a beorc (just like sub-human is an insult to laguz, human is an insult to humans… It’s weird), is pretty forgiving of Ike.
It turns out that Elincia had ran into the Gallian troops on her way to the capital. Fearing the worst, Elincia begged them to help Ike and his companions. In return, Elincia would meet with their king. … Which is weird since she was going there anyway, but whatever.
Ranulf agrees to escort Elincia to his king personally, but asks that Ike and the others to wait until he has word he can send for them, since beorc aren’t much welcome in Gallia, with the exception of a few, as Ranulf demonstrates.
Ike agrees as it gives his troops a chance to rest from all the marching and fighting. However, Griel seems distracted.
Greil: Hm? What was that?
Ike: What's wrong? You're not paying attention. It's not like you.
Greil: I was thinking about something. So, what's been decided?
Ike: What were you thinking about father?
Greil: I was thinking about that life insurance policy. I really need to stop putting it off.
While Ranulf and Elincia are on their way, Ike can’t sleep with the entire battle playing through his mind. He sees his father wandering alone in the woods and decides to follow him. Griel quickly discovers Ike and tells him to return to the fort they are staying in. Ike refuses and wants to talk to him about why Griel put him in charge so soon after he had taking a job, claiming that he’s far from ready to be responsible for so many people.
Griel, however, disagrees and then changes the subject by talking about Ike’s mother and what he remembers of her. Ike states that he can only see her face, but nothing more and that he never talked about her.
Griel: Well, son, that’s what happens when she leaves you for a man with a longer sword.
Griel then tells Ike to go back to the base and not worry about it. And like any teenage boy, Ike does exactly what he’s told and.
Griel: Ike… I’m sorry… I didn’t get … life insurance…
Ignoring the atrocious voice acting for that scene, the Black Knight asks for Griel to surrender an item that only he seems to know about. And despite Griel being stabbed in the gut, he has a lot to say.
Black Knight: Now then, will you give me what I came for?
Greil: I...don't...have it...... ...I threw...it away...
Black Knight: Ha. You, who knows better than any what it truly is, threw it
away? Surely you can craft a more plausible lie. You're not even
trying anymore.
Greil: I'm done talking to you.
My god, you’ve just been stabbed, man! You should sound like ‘Gah gah gah gah!’
Ike tries to avenge his father and attacks the Black Knight, but as you would expect, the Black Knight backhands Ike, easily putting him down. However, before the Black Knight and finish off Ike, Caineghis appears and forces the Black Knight to flee.
Ike tries to carry his father back to the castle to save him. Yeah, because I’m sure he’ll be fine from a stab wound to vital organs with a can do spirit. However, before Ike can get him back to the fort, he collapses and his father passes.
Well, he’s lucky he’s not my son, I would take away his allowance for this.
When he comes to, they bury Griel somewhere nearby. Ike promises Mist that he’ll look after her and Mist is confused and doesn’t know what to do. Something that’s pretty understandable considering Mist is like 10.
Ike inherited the mercenary group from his father as well as the mission to escort Princess Elincia to King Caineghis. Which if I remember right had already happened. So, kind of an odd thing for Ike to say… Unless… No, no. It couldn’t.
Ike: I'll lead the company... In Father's stead... And I'll protect you all.
You, the princess...everyone. I'll protect you. You'll see.
Anyway, before Ike can begin to mourn his father, a group of Daein troops attack and Ike and his crew, already exhausted by what they have been through, are forced to fight them off. However, it soon becomes clear that the group is fighting a losing battle, with more reinforcements simply coming before they have a chance to recover.
They only saved by a group of Laguz soldiers sent by Ranulf to serve as escorts. I’m skipping a lot of the story, because there is still a lot to cover and I don’t want this review to be too long. The escorts take Ike and his group to King Caineghis, who greets them openly, stating that he knew Ike’s father.
Ike is confused by this, but it turns out that Mist and he lived here when he was younger and his father was a close friend to the king. Caineghis reveals that Ike’s parents were carrying a secret that killed their mother and caused their father to flee to Crimea from people pursuing them. Caineghis tried to help him in the past, but like Ike, Greil is stubborn and refuses the help.
Caineghis, feeling bad that he was unable to save Greil, offers Ike and his group a chance to stay in Gallia and live in peace. Ike, however, refuses, stating that he needs to avenge his father’s death. Seeing this, Caineghis asks Ike and his crew to lend aid to Princess Elincia once more.
If you’re wondering why Caineghis won’t help her, here’s why. Caineghis is one of the few Laguz who trust beorcs. Mostly because of people like Griel, and Elincia’s father, who did many things in an attempt to increase understanding and promote equality between the two races.
Many of the Laguz in his country do not and would not support an alliance or aid to a beorc country. As such, there would be disputes between the citizenry and soldiers, which would end badly.
Ike is, naturally, pissed off at this, but keeps his anger to himself since it isn’t Caineghis’s fault. Caineghis expresses regret that he can’t help the girl who is like a surrogate daughter to her and asks Ike to aid her on his behalf. Though if he could, this would be a much shorter game, not to mention easier.
He hires them to escort Elincia to the beorc country of Begnion, easily the largest country in the land, to ask for aid in her war against Daein. Ike agrees, but not before Caineghis gives them supplies and finances for their journey as well as a couple of soldiers to add to their army.
So, can’t be helpful doesn’t include providing everything a basic army needs, such as food, and supplies? … Is the lion king just being a dick?
I mean, he could have sent his right hand (Paw) man, Giffca, who is basically like the king, just painted a different color. And has a pretty sweet mustache.
But I guess the game would have been over if he had the overpowered shadow to the lion king at the not even halfway point of the game.
Anyway, Ike and his companions, accompanied by Ranulf as an escort, make their way back to Crimea where they attack one of the enemy camps to free some prisoners of war to add to their limited ranks. During that time, they meet two characters of significant important. Sephriam, a monk on a pilgrimage who is kind of an enigma.
And Volke, who is equally as mysterious. Volke approaches Ike and explains that he has information he needs to pass on to Griel. Ike explains that Griel is dead, but Volke response that his son will be just as good. However, Volke will only sell the information for a large sum of money. Ike says he doesn’t have that much and at this point, the game lets you choose to keep him around as a member of your force or ditch him and call him again when you have the money. As far as the story is concern, there isn’t a reason to pick either or, since the story continues regardless. Gameplay, this is your first ‘thief’ character, who are useful for unlocking doors to pass through and treasure chests with some pretty neat stuff.
After that, they make their way to a Crimean port town where they need to get on a boat to sail to Begnion. Ranulf talks to some connections and manages to get a boat ready for the group, but not before his disguise fails him and he is exposed as a Laguz. The Crimean townsfolk erupt in disgust and start attacking Ranulf.
Ranulf, not wanting to cause a problem for either country, lets them beat him. Ike is furious by this and intervienes, naturally causing the Daein troops stationed nearby to investigate. Have you noticed that Ike isn’t one for planning ahead?
Anyway, Ike and his crew are forced to flee from Daein’s forces on the boat to Begnion. As the Black Knight appears to try and stop them, he is confronted by Ranulf, who attacks him. However, despite Ranulf being much stronger than a normal beorc, he has no chance against him and is only saved at the last second by Sephiran, the monk Ike rescued earlier. He tells Ranulf to flee, saying that he will deal with the knight.
Ah, an homage to Griel I see.
After failing to stop Elinica at the port town, the Black Knight returns to his king, Ashnard. Ashnard asks if their mole has worked his way into the group and the Black Knight ensures him that no one suspects their plan. Ashnard orders the Black Knight to lead the invasion of Gallia, hoping to drag them into the war as well.
Kind of puts King Caineghis not wanting to help into perspective, huh? Maybe he really was being a dick.
As they sail, Ike and Elincia being to wonder why the Crimeans acted the way they did towards Ranulf, when they are supposed to be the good guys. They talk to their captain, Nasir, and Nasir explains that not everything quiet as black and white as they seem. Despite the king of Crimea’s attempts to bridge the relationship between the two races, the citizenry still have a lot of prejudice in their hearts.
Nasir explains that he too has been scorned by beorc, but that laguz had also had beorc as slaves. Ike refuses to accept that the crimes of the laguz justify the crimes the beorc commit now.
Yes, it does! And I’m not saying that to be petty to those fucking unicorn master race bastards!
They continue on their path and I’m skipping quite a bit again. Basically, our heroes sails for a month to Begnion, running into a ship that housed the Empress of the land. Who it turns out is like 10.
They arrive at Begnion via escort from the Empress’s royal guard where we get one of the worst moments for this major character and a completely badass moment from Ike.
The Empress, named Sanaki, tells Elincia that she has heard of her and her blight, but wants evidence to back up her claim to who she is. Elincia says she has no proof and no heirlooms to carry. Ike, however, vouches for her, firmly believing she is who she says she is. And then the Empress is kind of a bitch here…
Sanaki: Oh, really? And tell me, what gives you this strength of conviction?
If we believe her story, this woman has not engaged with the outside
world since the day she was born. So how is it that you, a lowly
mercenary, dare to assert her authenticity?
Ike: The Daein army pursues her with bloody-minded determination. At every
turn, they demand that we turn Princess Elincia over to them. What
further proof do you need?
Sanaki: Hmm... If someone of...proper standing made that pronouncement, I
would accept it as irrefutable proof. But you... You're a commoner.
You have no surname, no documented linage... You have nothing. I know
commoners. They are poor. For a price, they will support any lie, no
matter how outlandish.
Ike: ...
Sanaki: Oh! Now, I suppose you will tell me you are the son of some noble
house? No, of course not. But wait, perhaps you're a royal knight of
Crimea?
Ike: I am neither a noble nor a knight. I have no connection with the palace
whatsoever. And no matter how much gold I stood to gain, I would not
betray my convictions. Elincia has paid us, yes, but nothing more than
the standard fee to purchase our services as her escort. Nothing more. We
have come this far only because we believe Elincia to be a woman of
integrity. We would not sell our swords to a liar. I don't care how high
and mighty you might be. I will not stand here and let you mock the bond
of trust that ties us to Elincia.
God, I just want to smack that little brat in the face!
But it turns out that Sanaki was just kidding. She knew of Elincia’s identity all along and was just messing with her.
Oh, of course. Ha, ha, ha! SHE WATCHED HER PARENTS DIE IN FRONT OF HER, YOU FUCKING LITTLE BRAT!
Thankfully, Ike’s stupidity matches my own at this point as he makes this badass speech to the little twit!
Ike: What is the meaning of this? You knew Elincia was Princess Crimea? And
you continued to humiliate her for your own entertainment? For some
stupid game of wits and words? This is no joke!
Sanaki: ...
Ike: Elincia's homeland is lost to her! Her family has been hunted down and
killed by the monsters of Daein! And with nowhere else to turn, she
endures mortal danger and terrible heartbreak to reach your door. And
then you...you laugh at her?! Where is the humor in that? Where is your
decency? You're horrible! You are all horrid people! You disgust me
beyond words! And you owe Elincia a proper apology.
The only moment where Ike’s stupidity is something I am 100% behind.
I mean, Jesus fuck, girl! This is just disgusting! I know she’s supposed to be a little kid and stuff, and I know she does try to redeem herself later in the game, but it has been 8 years since this scene and I still find this scene appalling! I still find this unacceptable and I have still not forgive this little twat for this scene!
And just when the little brat couldn’t get any worse, she tells Ike that if he doesn’t bend over and pull his pants down, then Elincia can kiss any chance of saving her country goodbye. Ike is, of course, pissed about it, but holds his tongue.
After a brief meeting, Ike vents how much he is angry at the Empress to Titania and Elincia. Titania explains that him insulting the Empress would have surely resulted in his death, but the Empress kept him alive despite that. Yes, that’s all well and good, but that still doesn’t excuse that scene.
Ike apologizes to Elinica for acting like an idiot, but Elinica found it rather noble to see him so angry on her behalf.
And here’s where I want to talk about the two here. Ike and Elincia have this kind of chemistry scattered throughout the story, with Elincia taking a huge interest in Ike. Always being around him, wanting to be with him, talking to him a large amount of the game. And they are always written so well together.
This… was not in the original Japanese script. According to my sources, the original Japanese script was far different, especially referring to Ike and Elincia. They were friends, but hardly the deep relationship they seemed to be having in the English version. I’m not sure why this is, but I can’t help but feel that the Americanized version wanted the two of them together as much as we did.
Way to get my hopes up, Obama! I’m going to write fanfiction about Ike becoming evil and it all being Elincia’s fault!
Anyway, a few days pass and Elincia is invited to a meeting with the Empress to discuss what would need to happen in order of the alliance between them to be forge. A soldier from Begnion asks Ike to perform some deeds as ordered by the Empress. At first, Ike is hesitant, rightfully so, but realizes that aiding the Empress could in turn make the Empress consider Elincia’s plight and thus he agrees to it.
They stop a group of peddlers from transferring some goods and deliver them back to Begnion. Ike is curious about what the crates contain and why they are so heavy, but the soldiers of Begnion are keeping their mouths shut.
Meanwhile, in Goldoa, land of the dragon laguz, King Caineghis gathers the other laguz lords of the land to discuss the invasion of his land and what it could mean for the future of the continent. He’s joined by the dragon king, Deghinsea, the Hawk King, Tibarn, the Raven King, Naesala, and the last heron prince, Reyson.
They discuss Elincia's travel to Begnion, which Naesala points out is because the lion king threw them out, and that Elincia arrived safely in Begnion. However, Naesala also reveals that Daein knows of Princess Elincia’s arrival in Begnion and they have dispatched a team of assassins to deal with her.
When asked how he knows this, he simply says he found it on luck. The others don’t believe him and claim that he is working with beorc in the Daein army, which we know to be true from a previous scene that I intentionally skipped. Sorry, but we got to get through this.
Deghinsea warns them about trying to start a war with Daein or Begnion, depending on the side the others choice. Tibarn dismisses it, stating that the heron race is nearly extinct because of them, and that they need to pay.
Reyson is of the same mind and wants the beorc to pay for the death of his kind.
Something I want to mention about the herons is that they are kind of wusses. They are easily the weakest of the laguz and even the weakest beorc is more than a match for them. However, they do posses magic that can wipe out armies if they choose to unleash it. Deghinsea fears this because of Reyson’s motive for wanting to kill beorcs.
Deghinsea urges Tibarn, Naesala and Reyson not to pick a side in the war, even if Caineghis is attacked. He mentions a medallion called Lehran's Medallion, warning them if the entire continent is swept up in a war, something bad will happen.
After the meeting, Naesala tricks Reyson into being abducted by a Begnion senator as a trophy for his collection.
Gee, who would have thought that evil bird would have turned out to be evil?
Meanwhile, Ike agrees to do another task for the Empress while they continue to wait. A group of fighters in the desert is causing some problems for the nearby village and Ike is being sent to investigate and capture their leader.
To Ike’s surprise, the members of the thieves are Laguz. Regardless, Ike battles them and captures their leader, who turns out to be a 10 year old boy. Yeah, children being some kind of high authority is kind of common in Fire Emblem, oddly enough.
The leader, named Tormod, explains that he is helping Laguz slaves find a place to live away from their abusive masters. Thus why the Laguz agreed to help the little beorc boy. Ike tells Tormod that the Empress wanted to meet with him and discuss with him his motives.
Meanwhile, Reyson is trying to escape his captivity, but the senator is not as friendly as one would think. And I know I used this image last week, but I need it again.
Ike delivers Tormod to the Empress and Tormod makes the accusation that there are still Laguz slaves. The Empress doesn’t believe him since her grandmother outlawed it years ago. Tormod starts to lose it when Ike figures out the Empress’s plan.
He figures out that the Empress knew of the slaves in Begnion, but has been working to find out who is still employing them. She hired Ike and his gang to investigate because she wasn't sure who was under whose payroll.
The Empress tells Ike that a member of her senate is up to something suspicious and that Ike is to investigate the matter. Ike arrives at the senator’s manor and begins his investigation. At first, there doesn’t seem to be anything. However, he discovers that a laguz is trapped here and attempts to rescue them. Reyson escapes, but so does the senator.
Ike returns to the palace after a brief conversation with Reyson, who says that ‘the beorc will pay for what they did twenty years ago.’ Ike demands an explanation from the Empress, but she remains silent due to shame. Nasir appears and tells Ike what happens.
It turns out that the former empress was assassinated. A beloved empress was killed and the people needed a scapegoat. Naturally, they turned to the laguz. More specifically the herons. The people marched to the heron’s home, Serenes Forest and burned it to the ground, the herons killed in the fire.
However, it turns out that the Heron’s were not involved in the empress’s death and it was, in fact, someone in the court. The empress is ashamed of what happened that night and vows to make it up to the last surviving heron. However, long it takes.
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Tibran approaches one of the servants to King Naesala and discovers where Reyson is located. After interrogating him, he also discovers that is was Naesala, himself, who sold Reyson to a senator of Begnion. Tibran flies off to find Reyson, fearing for his safety.
Ike continues his search for Reyson, battling Oliver’s men as he searches. During one of the battles, Ike find a heron, but not the one he is looking for. It turns out this heron is a girl. Ike is confused since he thought all the herons perished in the fire 20 years ago and follows her to investigate. The heron sees Ike and, thinking that she is in danger, faints.
Ah, a good defense tactic, girl. Make it easier for them to murder you! Don’t fucking run away! No fight, no fun after all.
Oliver catches up with them and spots the heron, ordering his men to capture her. Ike and his group form up around the heron and defend her while she takes her power nap. Selfish bitch.
Meanwhile, Reyson threatens to use forbidden magic to wipe out every human in the forest when Tibarn catches up with him. Tibarn is hesitant to agree with Reyson’s plan since herons cannot use chaos magic safely, but if it is what Reyson wants, he’ll work with him to achieve it.
As Tibarn and Reyson prepare to leave, they spot Ike and his crew, and Reyson recognizes the heron on Ike’s back. Tibarn, against his nature, flies over to Ike and offer his assistance in protecting the heron girl. They manage to find Oliver and kill him before he has a chance to flee again.
After the battle, the heron girl, named Leanne, starts to regain consciousness. Sure, wait til after the battles are done. Because that was so helpful trying to protect your… sweet… sweet ass…
Anyway, Reyson is shocked that Leanne somehow survived the massacre and Leanne explains that the forest protected her. Look, it never explains how or why, but it’s there and you’re apparently not supposed to question it. But what kind of critic would I be if I didn’t? How did the forest protect her when it was on fire?! Did it wrap her up in leaves and twigs?! Was the forest planning on eating her when she was well done?!
Tibarn asks what motive Ike has for protecting Leanne and he explains that the Empress ordered the heron under her protection and Ike find Reyson and escort him to the Empress to speak with them.
After escorting the two herons to her, the Empress falls to her knees and weeps, begging forgiveness for what her people had done. Reyson refuses to accept. However, Leanne instantly forgives the Empress and begs Reyson to as well. Reyson feels that Leanne doesn't know the truth about what happened that night and that’s why she’s so quick to forgive. Turns out that Leanne does know everything and is forgiving regardless, sensing the sincerity in the Empress’s plea.
Reyson eventually sees his sister’s side and is able to rid himself of the hate in his heart. And I don’t really know how to make that funny so here’s a fart noise! PFFFFT!
And then in complete bullshit moves that would make Ferngully say ‘Fucking bastards.’ Here’s this.
What the fucking hell?! ‘Oh, kids, don’t worry about burning down the rain forest! Just get a couple of bird people to sing the forest back to life! Hey, let’s see if that works for you goldfish! Or your grandparent! Or writer’s brain!’ Seriously, what the hell?!
Doesn’t that kind of undermine the idea that the forest is fragile and we need to be careful because once it’s gone, it’s gone forever? Did any writer look at this and not see this as a potential problem?
Ugh… Whatever. They arrive back at the castle where the Empress agrees to lend her support to Elincia’s quest. Oh, yeah, we are still on that, aren’t we?
However, the Empress only agrees if Ike is made commander of the army. Ike agrees, but Begnion soldiers won’t think much of him unless he has a title. Ike is reluctant since he doesn’t see a title as anything but a name. However, Elincia manages to convince him and she knights him.
Meanwhile, Ashnard hears of the invasion of Daein by Crimea and seems almost pleased about it. Ashnard orders the Black Knight to kidnap one of the heron siblings and to find the medallion as well.
Back over to Ike, because I guess that scene was incredibly necessary, Reyson arrives to offer his aid as payment for saving his sister with Tibarn saying that he and his people will aid Ike if the need arises.
After a few battles, Nasir appears again to explain some rumors he heard about while off doing his own thing. He hears that Gallia is making moves to attack Crimea in an attempt to route the Daein forces stationed there. If Ike can keep pushing Daein’s forces, news of his victory will spread across the land and enforce Gallia’s offense.
Later, however, Soren accuses Nasir of selling secrets to Daein. However, Nasir denies them and says that he fully supports Elincia and her quest. He admits while he does have his own motives, they are hardly to hinder her. Soren doesn’t buy it, but when Nasir threatens to expose Soren’s secret to Ike, he keeps quiet.
Ike continues to march towards the Daein capital when he encounters Naesala working with Daein troops. When Naesala discovers that Reyson is one of Ike’s traveling companions, he approaches Reyson to speak to him. Reyson is, unsurprisingly, pissed off at Naesala did, but does reveal that Leanne is alive.
Naesala is shocked by this news and begs Reyson’s forgiveness. Because Leanne is pretty hot. … I’m not kidding that’s the motive. … Can’t argue with it?
Reyson doesn’t forgive him and Naesala orders his troops back and to abandon the Daein army as a sign of good faith.
After the battle, Ike finds a trove of treasure that the Daein’s were most likely going to be used to buy the raven’s loyalty. Ike takes his 30,000 gold and sends word for Volke. You know, that thief with the important message for Griel? Yeah, I didn’t say Chekov’s gun wouldn’t get rusty.
He gives Volke the money and Volke explains what he has to say. He says that he was hired by Griel to shadow him in case something bad happened. He was to kill Griel if he ever went rogue. And if he was killed, tell his son the story of Griel’s secret. Ike is curious why is his father would hire a man to kill him, and Volke explains the secret of Lehran’s Medallion, or at least, what he knows.
Lehran was one of the first herons to ever exist and that the medallion was originally his. The medallion housed an evil god with a vast amount of chaos magic that could easily overwhelm a violent person. Griel once touched the medallion for a second and was sent into a blind rage that took many people he called friends and the life of his wife.
Ike is pretty dubious about all of it, since if the medallion was as dangerous as he claimed, why was Mist allowed to carry it? Volke explains that Mist has a balance of order magic in her (I don’t know what that means, just roll with it) and that the medallion doesn’t affect her like it does others. Ike recalls a moment where he tried to touch the medallion and his father scorned him harshly, telling him that it was only for Mist.
After murdering his wife, Griel set out to find Volke and hired him to kill him if he ever lost it again. He moved his children to Gallia and then to Crimea in order to hide from people searching for the medallion.
It turns out that Griel and his family lived in Daein for a time and Griel’s original name was Gawain, a famed general of the Daein army. Volke, after hearing who Griel was, refused, knowing that even someone trained in the art of assassination would stand no chance against him. With this knowledge, Griel cut the tendons in his arm, crippling himself.
Ike is confused and horrified by all this and worries how he is going to tell his sister what he’s just discovered. Just as he is about to tell her, Mist approaches them screaming that her medallion is missing. Ike is petrified with fear as he helps Mist search for it. He holds off telling Mist the truth, because I don’t see how saying ‘By the way, little sis, that medallion holds an evil god and anyone who touches it will become a heartless murder. Great job losing it!’
Ike realizes he can’t spend too much of his time looking for it, as he needs to focus on the war at hand and save Crimea. As if the kid didn’t have enough problems.
Meanwhile, the Black Knight appears before the Daein general, Petrine and her advisor, Ena. It turns out that the worm in Ike’s group stole the medallion and handed it over to the Daein army. However, he would only deliver it to Ena. He orders Petrine to give the medallion to King Ashnard, but to handle it with care.
Ena takes the medallion and says that she is not leaving Daein’s side. The worm begs her to leave Daein, now that her job is done. But Ena refuses saying that the man she loves is in Daein’s grasp and she needs to be with him. The worm tries to convince her that the man is dead in soul and that his body doesn’t recognize her, but Ena doesn’t listen. And it turns out that the mysterious worm was… Princess Elincia!
I’m just kidding, it’s Nasir.
Ike and his group arrive at the Daein capital where they feel their final battle is about to take place. However, when they arrive, they are met by Ena and her army, who states that Ashnard is stationed at Crimea castle. And Ena challenges our group revealing herself to be a dragon laguz.
Ike and his group battle Ena’s forces and eventually defeat Ena herself. Ike is curious why a laguz is such a high ranking officer, if Daein has hatred of them. However, before he can get answers, Nasir allows Ena to escape by attacking Ike. Ike manages to fight him off, but not before Ena can get away. Ike is pretty pissed off knowing that a man he trusted is a traitor, but Nasir allows himself to be taken prison, telling Ike to go to hell, I mean, go to a nearby temple.
Back at Crimea Castle, Ashnard explains his joy of how strong the Crimean army is becoming. He gets a hold of the Fire Emblem, Lerhan’s Medallion, but is careful not to actually touch it. He marvels at it’s beauty for a bit before Petrine continues her report. She explains that the Black Knight has chosen to capture Leanne rather than Reyson, since her magic is most likely to be stronger than his.
Ike arrives at the temple Nasir told him to when he discovers that there are some writings on a wall in a secret room. Reyson begins to read it and tells Ike and the others what he’s discovered. It turns out Reyson’s older sister was locked in this room for some time and wrote on the wall to memoire whoever found her. It turns out King Ashnard had kidnapped her to use her magic to release the dark god, 20 years ago. However, she refused because she could not release it.
See, Herons have the power to unleash the dark god with a song if need be. Herons have this ability since Lehran was a heron himself. She began to get sick due to her mistreatment, however, a young beorc woman took pity on her and began to care for her. As a result, the heron and this woman would build a friendship. That woman was Princess Elincia!
Okay, I’m done with that gag. It was actually Ike’s mother. It turns out that the heron gave Ike’s mother the medallion and taught her the song to release the dark god for safe keeping. Ike starts to put the pieces together and how it all connects to the work of Ashnard. Everything he had been doing in this war, was to release a dark god for a yet unknown purpose. And that everyone there, Elincia, Reyson, and himself were somehow connected to this mission.
Ike gathers his troops and begins his march to Crimea Castle. On the way, he meets up with his old buddy, Ranulf, who explains that Gallia is ready to support Elincia’s fight against Ashnard. But not before telling them how cute Elincia and Ike look together.
Elincia: My lord Ike, may I have a moment?
Ike: Of course. What is it?
Elincia: The soldiers say that tomorrow we'll be able to see the great bridge.
Once we cross it, we'll be in Crimea.
Ike: That's what I've been told.
Elincia: It feels like I've been away for many years. Crimea is the land where
I was born and raised. To feel so removed from it... I feel now, at
this late juncture, that I know almost nothing of my own country. It
is an unreal experience.
Ike: I know what you mean. I don't have the sense that we're on the brink of
being back in Crimea, either. I don't even remember this area at all.
Maybe it's because I was born in Gallia and raised in the countryside.
But countries are joined together like this all over the continent. I'm
really in awe of it all.
Elincia: So am I! For one who knew nothing of life outside the royal villa...
Everything...is... So very big.
Ike: Big? Hmm... Yeah, I guess you're right. When we left Crimea, it was
spring... The snows were melting, the days were getting longer, and the
weather was mild.
Elincia: It's been almost a year since we departed. Only a year, but the
distance we've traveled to get here has been long and hard... It
feels like many years have passed us by. Yet this is the land where I
was born and raised... Ah, my dear, sweet Crimea... How is it that
you feel so far away?
Ike: For me, too, Crimea is my homeland. We're almost there... Let's go home.
Elincia: It is as you say, my lord Ike. ...Let's go home.
Unknown: Oooh, what a romantic setting. Makes it hard to make an appearance! I
guess I could just leave you two…
God… I hate and love this couple…
During the journey, they run into Crimean rebels who have heard of Elincia’s fight against Ashnard and arrive to support her. Turns out most of them are people that Elincia knew from birth and had become close friends with.
Meanwhile, Ike and Ranulf decide to talk to Nasir to try to get some answers, but they find out that he has escaped.
They approach one of Crimea’s forts where Elincia's knights are stationed when it becomes attacked by Daein forces. Ike manages to fight them off and in the distance sees the Black Knight waiting for him. After the battle is settled and the princess is safe, Ike rushed out to the Black Knight to challenge him.
The Black Knight accepts, allowing Ike to show how strong he’s become. Ike slashes at the Black Knight with all his might, but is unable to damage his armor. The Black Knight explains that his armor is impervious to all but weapons of the goddess. One of which was the sword that the Black Knight offered his father. Ike kept it as a memoir of his father’s killer. A powerful sword that hits like a tank and shoots energy beams out of it and Ike keeps it as a fucking trophy! What the fuck?!
Do you know how much easier this game would have been if he could have used that from the start?!
Despite the fact that the Black Knight could kill him, he lets Ike go and says that he’d best use the weapon, Ragnell, when they meet next. Oh, that fancy armor is indestructible. I smell coward!
After that, the Black Knight infiltrates Tibarn’s palace and manages to kidnap Leanne. God, that girl is always put into distress. Get some bodyguards, girl!
Tibarn discovers that Leanne has been kidnaped and swears to tear out every Daein neck to save her. A threat that would scare the piss out of me if I was a Daein soldier. Gameplay and strength wise, Tibarn doesn't fuck around.
Let me put it this way, if Caineghis is Celestia, than Tibarn is Luna. A really pissed off Luna.
After traversing a dangerous mountain path, Ike meets up with Tibarn and King Caineghis to discuss their strategy in battling Daein as well as the dangers Lehran’s Medallion invites.
Ike reveals everything he learned about his father and how everything is connected to King Ashnard. They discover that from shared information that the Medallion will unleash the dark god if the entire continent erupts in the flames of war. Ashnard started the war with Crimea, taking them out quickly, since it was known for its peaceful interactions with Laguz. He had hoped to drag the Laguz into the war with the Heron massacre and the attack on Crimea, and thus Begnion, in an effort to save their beorc brothers, would side with Daein.
They believe that the only way to stop the dark god’s release is to stop fighting. But Ike says that even if the dark god is released, they’ll deal with it. You know, like most anime characters that kill god.
Tibarn reveals that Leanne has been kidnapped and that she needs to be rescued immediately. However, no one knows where she was taken, so they are still looking for answers. They fear for her safety since the last time Ashnard had a heron, she wasn’t exactly living in a five star hotel.
Leanne: Those buildings block my view of the city!
Ashnard: Oh, just shut up and eat your broccoli!
Ashnard orders to bulk of his army divided among two forts. Ike and the gang realize that if they are going to take both forts, they’ll have to have a two pronged attack, hoping that they don’t suspect them to try and take both forts at once. Their plan is to use a larger force to attack the first fort, but that force is merely a ploy to get the other fort to draw troops towards them. Meanwhile, Ike would take a smaller force to take the weakened fortress.
Ike begins his preparations for battle when Elincia walks up to him, dressed in a suit of armor and carrying around a sword and a pegasus.
We finally fired Chekov's gun… About 20 chapters later… But a shot is a shot…
Elincia says that she is tired of sitting on the sidelines while others are hurt in her name. Ike is hesitant, saying that her retainers probably disagreed with her on this. Turns out they did, but Elincia’s mind refused to change. She admits she’s not very strong, but she does have healing magic that can keep others alive. Ike agrees, but says not to take any risks.
Ike and Elincia’s group manage to take the fort, but it turns out that Tibarn’s group was heavily hit by Daein forces with the appearance of the Black Knight.
Meanwhile, one of the advisors of Daein’s troops asks Ashnard if he is deliberately trying to sabotage his own war. Ashnard assures him that is not the case, but the knight is unconvinced. Ashnard says that he hopes that Crimea will win the next few battles, but he realizes that they cannot defeat him, so it would be for nothing.
Ike realizes his next battle will be against his father’s killer and prepares the holy blade, Ragnell, to face him. God, took you long enough, asshole!
Mist finally approaches Ike to try and figure out everything that she had learned about her parents. Ike is able to comfort her, but Mist is afraid that he’s going to fight the Black Knight and that he’ll be killed like her father was. Ike manages to convince her otherwise, stating that he’s never going to leave her.
They attack the other fort with all their might and manage to break through it’s defenses. Ike arrives at the throne room of the castle and challenges the Black Knight to a one on one. Like a real man.
The Black Knight agrees, stating that if he wins, he can have the unconscious Ena, who he was asked to kill by King Ashnard.
And I know, you’ve all waited this long so… Here’s the fight…
If you’re wondering about the change in HP on the Black Knight, he has an ingame ability that causes him to regenerate. And Ike can use Items to heal himself.
So, yes, Ike manages to defeat the Black Knight and avenge his father. After the battle, a soldier activates a trap to bring down the entire castle. Fortunately, Ike, Ena and Mist are saved by Nasir who helps them escape.
Ike confronts Nasir about his betrayal and Nasir says he was working to save his granddaughter, Ena. Meaning that Nasir, is also a dragon. Nasir convinces Ike that he is not his enemy and hopes to stop Ashnard’s madness. Ike forgives him and when Ena wakes up, she reveals a place where they might keep Leanne.
Turns out that Leanne is held in a tower, how cute, controlled by a madman named Izuka. Izuka is known for dealing in strange experiments and that laguz are often test subject. He plans on making Leanne his next test subject, when Ike and his gang attacks. Izuka employs his the laguz he experimented on to attack them. Ike tries to convince them to abandon their slaver, but he quickly discovers that they’ve been turned into soulless animals.
Meanwhile, Leanne is snuck out of the tower by a Daein soldier, who is actually Naesala in disguise. While he is a greedy prick, he confesses that he could never allow Leanne to be put in danger and thus, helps her away from the battle.
After the battle, Naesala appears before the group and returns Leanne to her brother. They also learn that Izuka has been experimenting on laguz, turning them into mindless servants. Warping their minds beyond recognition and turning them into monsters. However, Daein uses them as more powerful versions of their sane counterparts.
And thus… the final chapter… The final battle against Ashnard. The battle we have waited for since the beginning. Let’s do this…
Ike and his crew march onto Crimea castle, with every ally the have gathered from the beginning. Elincia and Ike make a speech about how far they’ve come in their long journey together and give the soldiers a rousing speech to give them strength in their final battle.
Meanwhile, the advisor from before asks Ashnard to flee and save himself, but Ashnard laughs, saying that everything is going precisely as he wants it. Ashnard says that he will either win the battle and claim his glory, or he will die and his country will burn for all he cares. He reveals that he was made king by murdering every line of succession and potential threat he had, meaning that he was the last king of Daein.
The advisor states that despite his king’s evil, he is still loyal to the guy. To which Ashnard, unsurprising, is a dick.
Ashnard: Are you still determined to protect me? Knowing this truth?
Bryce: ...I am... Even knowing now as I do...you are still your father's son.
The blood of Daein's kings flows in you. You are all that remains.
...By your leave.
(Exit Bryce)
Ashnard: Such loyalty to a corpse... In truth, there is nothing in this world
more humorous than a knight.
Ike and his group attack the capital of Crimea and confront Ashnard and a legion of his best knights. As Ike and Ashnard stare each other down, Ashnard reveals that his goal is that if Ike has the strength to kill than to do so. Ashnard believes that blood is weak and that only the strongest is fit to rule, thus is what he wants to base his world on.
I find this funny, because this is the guy who hates Laguz, and yet takes their philosophy of the strong rule and the weak drool.
Ashnard is by far the strongest opponent in the game, and only Ike can hurt him with his sword. Everyone else just has to hold off the army of idiots and hope that Ashnard doesn’t pay attention to them. Just look at this scene with Ike and Ashnard taking turns to bat each other with sticks.
Yeah, if you aren’t careful when Ashnard touches the medallion and turns into a behemoth, he will easily kill anyone, but Ike and whatever of the three commanders you picked.
And if Caineghis is Celestia and Tibarn is Luna, then Ashnard is Discord with a big ass sword.
And after all that… it’s finally over… The game is complete…
After the death of Ashnard, his dragon mount begins to go wild. Ena approaches it even though Ike advises her not to and is able to calm him down. Ena reveals that the beast is actually a dragon of Goldoa. And Ena’s husband.
*Sniff* I… just got something in my eye…
It turns out that Ena joined with Daein to try and save her husband from the experiments that Izuka put him through. But when she finally found him, it was too late. His mind had already been warped and he didn’t recognize her. Despite that, Ena stayed with Daein just to stay close to him, hoping to one day free him from Ashnard’s control.
However, the battle had become too strenuous and the experiments had messed up his body too badly. He was going to die.
Leanne and Reyson manage to sing a song that is able to transform the dragon, named Rajaion, back into his human form. Just long enough to confess his love to Ena.
They find the medallion and return to Reyson and Leanne for safe keeping. Feeling that the pure magic of the herons could keep the dark god in check. And thus, Elincia is crowned queen of her country, the laguz and beorc are starting to get along and everything is going swimmingly.
Sephiran makes an appearance and discusses with Ike about everything that has happened, stating that his Cinderella story will awaken mad ambition in others and that Ashnard’s plan to awaken the dark god has not been completely foiled.
However, that is a story for another time… Enjoy this scene while I get the judgment written.
So… what do I think?
I fucking love this game!
Yes, it has its stupid moments, some moments I question, and some moments that make me go ‘what the hell?’. I’m not a fan of the perma-death that punishes you for making one wrong move and losing the unit forever or restarting the chapter. And my controllers certainly don’t like it either as they fly across the room with me storming off in disgust for having to play through the goddamn mother fucking chapter for the 6th time that day!
Some of the plot points are confusing. And I feel that the laguz units make the game too easy if you level them up.
And while I have my complaints about the gameplay, nothing changes the fact that I played through the game like 20 times and am currently planning my 21st runthrough.
I enjoyed it's difficult to master, but easy to pick up strategy based gameplay. I love the rock-paper-scissors method to combat that is a good starting point for battle, but ultimately comes down to how much investment you’ve given to your characters.
I love the majority of the characters, each dripping with lore, backstory and personality. I love the dynamic of the story. Here’s a simple mission, get it done. Kill Ashnard. And then while you’re at it, let’s pile on some stuff that all comes back to him. Making the villain always pivotal to the plot instead of being replaced halfway by someone we don’t know.
There’s a lot for me to enjoy in this game about swords, sorcery and strategy and I hope this explains why I enjoy the game so much. It’s because it’s well written and well thought out. I enjoy it because of the satisfaction I get from completing a difficult map. It’s like jerking off, except people die.
If this sounds like something you’d enjoy, give it a go. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to play some more Fire Emblem… No, I don’t have a problem!
Hey! I like Ike.
Nice Review Critic. I got into the series when Fire Emblem 7 on the GBA (which is simply known as Fire Emblem in the west since it was the first game with an international release) and I've loved it ever since.
Path of Radiance is one of the better games in the series to. At least marginally better than Radiant Dawn that came after. That game was not very good. I take it You'll be looking forward to Fates when it comes out here?
Out of curiosity who where your favorite characters in this game?
It's refreshing to see something that is actually good. It's by no means perfect, but then there are few works out there that are.
I also liked how they expand the universe, keeping a few elements while telling new stories in different lands and eras. Most universes see direct continuation (Avatar) or are just so massive that you can tell whatever story you want without having to step on too many toes (Warhammer 40K); this seems like a nice medium.
3746625 Same here! He's my main!
3747340 I am looking forward to Fates. I'm interested to see where it goes from Awakening.
From POR, my favorite character is Ike, but I think outside that, I would definitely say Jill. I think she has the most complex story for a minor character I've seen in a Fire Emblem game. Especially this one. She's interesting, her supports with Mist are cute, and she's actually not a bad unit. Sure, she is rather low when you get her, but she builds up into a pretty strong unit.
3747775 Yeah, I enjoy the series. It's great because very few games connect to each other in terms of worlds and mythologies, so you can pretty much start wherever.
Hmmm,this looks like a different review than what I am used to, and more like a lets play. Oh well, I am into new things and let's plays are how I really got into my favorite Sega CD gme and second favorite Hideo game "Snatcher". So, lets do this!
Everytime i see a tutorial and I hear the characters say something about the controller in game (With the exception of MGS, there, I am surprised that Snake doesn't have a select button on his wrist on his suit.) all I can think of is Mario "You may not know what it is, but the great player in the sky will know."
I also like how it gives us a chance to see where Ike comes from, and how he acts. It allows us to get further into his character. Kind of like how Jonathan Joestar's character is established by saving Erina not out of a desire for her, but because he believes in being a noble hero.
So, its kind of like having a background character talk to your hero or meeting a background character in a magna that has his own history.
Trixie: or a two-episode character
Yeah, like that. The question is, though, does it make it confusing to have so many characters to keep track of for their history and actions.
Ah, so Ike is the Jonathan Joestar of the group.
This is what I love about Pony...it was the youngest sister who was evil and not the Older.
Don't worry princess, there are other ways to pay...
Yes Pinkie, she will bake a cake for the whole army.
So, you are less Disney princess and closer to Celestia, Twilight, Naga, and put in favorite senshi here.
OH this? It's my Behlit, speaking of wich, do you know when the next eclipse is?
Buck, every fantasy world I go to. Every single time!!!!
That i s why we have speed and heart!!! Rhos won't mean much to a lion paw, but we will give it our all.
Wow, you could not be more obivious that someone is going to die than saying "You don't need me anymore."
You fool! Don't you know, never attack the guy who jus killed your loved one in the first round, you get beatened!
I'm a little conlficted here, to be honest. On theone hand, I am all for keeping true to the source material. I prefer to be true to the artist's vision and believe that a dubber should dub and not adapt. However, seeing a relationship like this grow is actually something that could happen and makes for an interesting ynmaic. It allows us to see what the battlefield can do to a couple of friens and whre their relationship can grow On the otherhand, I prefer it when a story dons't try and put in a new elationship that wasn't there in th frst place. I think this might be one of those cases where dealing with the real thing is better to understand the scenario.
So, glass cannons then. Right, so we have our nukes.
I am going to forgive this one since we are in a world with bird people and a whole bunch of magic spells (But no ressurection spells, what the hell clerics? Are you sleeping on the job?) Its kind of like trying to talk about forest fires in Naruto, one of the Hokage's jutisus allowed him to instantly create an old pine forest right then and there. OR talking about the use of guns in Dragonball, not really neede.
Then again, I live by the thought of "Terminators lose their scariness if you say that Superman exists!" Also, I think that kids would see that hey don't have maigc and wouldn' t be able to do this.
You are not seeing this, but my writer's senses are going into overdrive.
Black knight, invincable, I smell Monty Python gag
Ike, do not fail me. It's the night before the big battle, the woman is walking up to you. IT's time to take her into your bed and ride her like a stallion baby!!! Everybody knows that girl's hormones are more activfe the night before a final battle, and they will always want to get- (BANG!) Brains!!!
Trixie: And you try that again Trixie will hurt you.
The battle is over, cue the yub nub and the force ghosts!!!!
Soounds like my love for LEgend of LEgia.
From what I do know about the Zelda games, much is the same with them. Not so much different worlds, but different timelines.
The first game was actually set in the future. If I am correct in that.
Well, that is sad. In the first RPG I played my second time through, I did it with no weapons. Interesting thing about that is, if you go through with no weapons, as you level up, your attack goes up much faster, and you hit harder near the end. I beat the boss with bearfists.
Then I reloaded it, and picked up the final weapon and attacked him again. It was a quick easy win. I also think you max out at level 37.
I also remember you saying that you get to keep a large inventory in this game. Again, if I remember correctly.
In the game Quest 64, one has an unending inventory. I collected all items I could get and used next to none of them, until I got to the boss at the end. That was a lot! of items.
And a good, or interesting story can degrade that easy. The moral I take it is, don't write about a cheesy Mary-Sue.
There are a lot of them out there. I think at least one of mine fits that category, if not more.
Unlike the father in Tekken Heihachi Mishima, who did horable things to his son Jin. Just to make sure he turned out strong, or dead, if at all weak.
Now I am getting that song in my head from that cartoon Mulan, To Be a Man.
Kind of like Casca in the The Band of Hawks, from the show Berserk.
Would Guts fit the description of a Mary-Sue? You know, do to all his wins in the show. If so, he is one kick ass Mary-Sue.
Likely not though. As victorious as he was, most of the time, he did struggle for some of his wins, and to get to be who he is, it was not just handed to him, like a destined to win person or something like that. And he did not win all the time.
A Mary-Sue would just win, like Superman, and not always have a good enough explanation for it.
Then again, how does one explain how the hell he beat about 100 men in the woods alone, also while being used as a pin cushion for groups of archers? The guy should have died from all the arrows sticking out of him alone, never mind the countless gashes from swords.
Again, sort of like Casca and Griffith.
Though Casca ends up with Guts at some point in the story.
Guts gets the girl, just like a Mary-Sue. OK, not quite like one. He did save her life and such... Long story.
Who's body?
And I know, you find that very important in a story. Much of the time, anyways.
Not all guys in them are like that, I have seen enough of them to know, even the adult anime.
But if it was one like Master Roshi, then hell yes!
After all, a web search of him alone turns up: master roshi perv
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It does not help when some encourage the old coot.
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Now that is some encouragement right there!
There was bound to be at least one of them I guess.
This would usually be true in D&D as well. One usually does not play as a par, or sub-par commoner.
Though some role playing wit is needed in some situations just the same. That is, as slow as mine is most of the time.
Like one time I did think well enough, my group was surprised by some drow (dark elves).
My guy, one named Geed (as I said, I am not good with names.), was up in a tree with one drow in front of him. Geed hit him with a high level lightning bolt that cooked the guy, and the drow fell. At the time he had only one lightning bolt, and not much else. But he addressed the rest of the drow in the camp as he looked down on them form the tree, and said, "Leave while you can, or you end up like your crispy friend down there!"
The drow left and the rest of my group had cheered Geed on for this. Geed then told them, "Pack up camp quick, because I can't do that again, and I don't want to be here if they come back with reinforcements. And I am sure they will."
I am suddenly reminded of the red and gold medallion in the cartoon The Secret Of NIMH.
It sleeps, but glows with blinding radiance. The stone has a power when it's there.
I love that cartoon.
Much more than that. There is much prejudice towards what one can turn into in such stories.
Very few have a person turn into something less cool than a wolf or wild cat. Few ever turn into a bushbaby, or hamster.
Though rabbits are sometimes found in such stories. Oh' those wild bunnies!
Those that are weak may feel this to be unfair, but who wishes to listen to them anyway.
Didn't think so. But something like that does happen in a Zelda game, if you fail. I will give you the moon! baby.
Now, that would be a cool end!
Just like in Star Trek, Captain Picard was a prisoner, the one who had him kept calling him "Human", to be insulting. Picard was told, he did not deserve a name, and was to be nothing but "Human" from now on.
With their life style, no shit that would be important!
Would be interesting to know what he was thinking.
Speaking of knowing what one is thinking in a story, I have been doing a big no-no in my latest story, according to some.
It is said you are only to be giving the thoughts of only the main person, and none other, or it is too confusing, so I am told.
Yet I have been giving most everyone's thoughts in it. I found this bit of info about story writing only after I have already written the story, and I am not changing it, just to suit those that think it improper.
I remember something like this happening to a young colt in one of my stories. Not his best day.
In a way, it kind of was. Greil did forget to set up his life insurance. The last bit of allowance Ike would ever get from him.
I knew this was important.
Many got longer than Dragon Worrier on story.
The fully story of Dragon Worrier: The destined one rescues the princes. She asks, "do you love me?" You say, "no." She says, "but thou must! So do you love me?" You say, "yes," and she is happy. You go off and kill all the other bad guys, and save the kingdom. The end.
Wow! that is a short story. RPGs got much better after that.
Well, what a nice guy, I like him already.
Got to give you a game to play some how. Not everyone likes to see the game play itself, like some games make you do.
So, is good to keep Volke than, I take it.
Kind of like Naruto, or Gokou. I mean, how many times both have been called an idiot, or worse by even their own? But both seem to do well, just the same.
I have a very funny feeling that the mole is none other than Sephiran the monk. Just a guess.
"I will fend off the Black Knight for all of you!" And he wins. How convenient. But convenient for who?
Yes! Ike was just awesome right there. What a verbal bitch slap he gave.
I do like some of the Americanized version of some stories better then the original. But some changes relay sucked by comparison in others.
Voltron, with the lions is one. The original, Beast King Golion, is so much better than the Voltron that was put out in the US.
Oh, another that happens to have good luck. I have been writing about such a person. It can be debated if his current situation is luck (as in good luck) at all, or a whole heap of trouble for him.
OK, so much for the luck theory he tried to give.
What? Like the the entire continent swept up in a war is not bad enough?
I would like to give you the Moon! Oh, yes, I already used that one.
And some countries today IRL. North Korea is doing so well with theirs.
I do feel sorry for the people living there though. It is very sad.
How old is this girl, and why are you looking at her like that? You mad dog!
Computer, I humbly request you give him a good zap. >.<
Oh' I forgot this part:
So she is like a little older than 20. OK, Never-mind Computer. Though don't let that fact stop you, if you still do feel inclined to humor my past request just the same, for your own reasons.
Well, there blows an ill wind. Not so silent, but far less deadly then the real thing at least.
OK, so it was not Sephiran like I first thought.
But, Elincia! As you have said before, What a twist!
What! I so much want to give you a nuggy right now.
You know, that was one thing that bothered me about the short video 'Fall of the Crystal Empire'
Celestia kept calling King Sombra a coward in it. This was after he faced and defeated their armies, and was now facing two alicons in single combat. He was attacking them directly, and not exactly running from them. Hardly the actions of a coward.
Here we have the Back Night who wishes to face Ike wile Ike has a weapon that might be able to kill him, and lets Ike live till then. Also hardly the actions of a coward. But that is my take on it.
Oh' fuck, That would be scary. And in the Fall of the Crystal Empire King Sombra got to see what she can be like. But I think she can get much worse than that. She can likely use a powerful sleep spell on a person, then fuck with their mind in the dream world. And if that is anything like in Nightmare I Elm Street, One can die in their sleep.
Now that would be a match up I would like to see. Though seeing how much trouble Tantabus was for Luna, I would think Freddy could be about as much of a problem for her. Not so sure Luna wold be ready for a night out with Freddy.
Now I see why things would be bad if a war was started, aside from the war itself.
Holy shit! Raise your ritual celebrations of peace. This is almost like the ponies reason to have their Hearth's Warming Eve!
Make peace or die! Be it by great powers of cold in MLP, or fire in Fire Emblem. Funny that.
Broccoli again? How horrible to treat children this way.
Rainbow Dash likes them though. And so do I. Always have. Be it raw, boiled, steamed, fried, how ever. It is also good dipped in whipped Peanut Butter.
That would be so cool if it was Ranbow Dash, or just damn funny if it was Derpy.
"Look at my pony. My pony's amazing."
You know, in a way, I actually agree with the guy.
Yes, it is a sweet moment.
Well, just damn! That is sad.
That is about how many times I played through the first Zelda game. I may have a problem.
Unless one is like the Overfiend. When he jerks off people do die.
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Look what else I found, is nothing sacred?
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I think we both have a problem.
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And then it starts...