#fe3h meta

[slotumn]

3H intra-Fódlani relations if they were realistic.jpg

After reading this I grew even more convinced that Officer's Academy would just be a free for all PVP zone between different nationalities lmao

Like come on, you take a bunch of teenagers~young adults from three countries that share land borders, group them by nationality, then have a big important annual event that commemorates a historical battle between the nations. I know they're coming up with new insults every week like graduating depends on it.

#fe3h #fire emblem three houses #fe3h worldbuilding #fe3h meta #meta #slotalks

[reunionatdawn]

My Analysis of the Best Paired Endings in 3H (Part 19: AM Sylvain/Felix)

Sylvain: I hate Crests, you know. They mess everything up in life, the future, everything… Just because I have a Crest, I'm treated as the heir, and my older brother nearly killed me because of jealousy. Bitches... they swarm to me, no, to my blood, like ants... Mercedes: …I'm sorry. Did I remind you of something you didn't want to remember? Sylvain: …Sorry, I slipped. Ah, damn, I didn't mean to show such a pathetic side… Mercedes: …No, I'm glad. It feels like I saw your true face for the first time.

The localization watered down, omitted, or completely rewrote a lot of the more interesting gender-related dialogue. In his Japanese B-Support with Mercedes, the word Sylvain used for women was "女ども" (onnadomo). This term is derogatory. It is used to refer to females in a demeaning manner and carries a tone of contempt or disdain. It is considered offensive and is avoided in polite conversation. A comparable word in English might be "bitches" or "wenches."

Sylvain: …Oh, what's up, Professor? Haha, sorry, didn't notice you at all. We've been meeting quite often lately. Oh, could it be that you're interested in me? (Female Byleth): ...Just kidding, it's a joke. Please don't make such an obvious disgusted face. (Male Byleth): Sorry, my arms are reserved for girls only! I'd prefer not to lend them to bastards.

The localization also changed some lines in Sylvain's B-Support with Byleth pretty significantly. If you are playing as Male Byleth, he refers to males as "野郎" (yarou). It's an informal term that is somewhat similar to "guy" or "dude" in English, but it's more derogatory. It's a gendered insult and it suggests that the person being referred to is undesirable or contemptible in some way. It implies qualities like rudeness, roughness, or unpleasantness. It is also considered offensive and impolite, and it's generally not used in polite contexts.

Sylvain: My brother was always a truly irredeemable bastard. Selfish, conceited, and arrogant. I've always had to clean up after him…even after he died. But, thinking about it, if my brother, not me, had been born with the Crest… Would I have become like my brother, or would there have been a different fate for me…?

"Yarou" is often translated as "bastard". In Hopes, if you take Sylvain on an expedition and ask about his likes, he says it's talking to girls. If you ask what he dislikes, he says it's being surrounded by guys, and he uses the same term. And he often used it when referring to guys in general, such as during teatime. I think he was even more of a misandrist than a misogynist, and it's a shame that wasn't as apparent in English because it's pretty integral to his character.

Sylvain: If someone is in trouble, you help them. That's what a knight, no, what a human being does. Whether it's a cute girl or a rugged big guy, it's the same thing. Ashe: …！ Sylvain: Hey, don't give me that look. Are you falling for me? Unfortunately… Ashe: What are you talking about? …I'm just a little surprised.

Even though Sylvain disliked most women, he still vastly preferred their company over men. In their B-Support, he saved Ashe's life, and Ashe came to thank him (quite similar to Sylvain's A-Support with Felix, actually). And he basically told Ashe "no homo". In the localization of their C-Support, he asked Dimitri to come to town together with him to pick up girls. But in the Japanese, he simply encouraged him to invite girls out to dinner on his own.

Sylvain: Hey, Professor. If you're free, wanna go out to the town together? (Female Byleth): I found a place with delicious food. I thought I had no choice but to invite you, Professor! (Male Byleth): In search of unseen beauties… No. Just kidding. Please don't give me that look.

While there are plenty of hints that Sylvain is bisexual, I think it makes perfect sense that he can't end up with Male Byleth or any other male character except for one. He had a VERY specific type. I don't even think Female Byleth was truly his type. But ya know, self-insert.

Sylvain: Dorothea, Hilda, Mercedes… Lady Rhea is also quite the beauty. Ah, the Officer's Academy is great, Professor. Beauties everywhere you turn! Haha!

So, what was his type? Well, he tells you on the first day of school who he was interested in. Three girly girls and Lady Rhea, who represents the Mother Goddess archetype, the embodiment of the divine feminine principle.

Sylvain: Professor, have you seen Felix? He's always disappearing when you take your eyes off him. Byleth: I saw him at the training ground. Sylvain: Well, I thought it might be something like that. Sorry, Professor. Thanks for your help! Taking care of horses, you know, it's quite soothing. They repay trust with trust. Sigh… In that regard, dealing with girls is quite tricky.

Sylvain liked damsels in distress he could swoop in and help. He thought Hilda was cute until he learned that her "delicate flower" act was insincere. And he was attracted to Dorothea, whom he compared to a beautiful flower in bloom, until he suspected she had an ulterior motive. On the day he was looking for Felix, he said he liked looking after horses because, unlike girls, they can be trusted.

Yuri: Oh, is this what they call mutual affection? I'm up for a rendezvous anytime… But next time, could you use better lines than when we first met? That was terrible! "Hello, young lady, delicate as a little bird! Would you care to chat a bit over there…" Sylvain: Oh, come on, I already apologized plenty for mistaking you for a girl! How many times do I have to say it! Yuri: I didn't really need an apology, you know. Look at this face; there are plenty who make that mistake. In fact, I even think I should have conversed with you, even if I had to pretend to be a woman. There's nothing wrong with maintaining a relationship with the future Margrave, right? Sylvain: What an enthusiastic pick-up line… I can't help but feel strange myself.

What mattered to Sylvain was whether his brain registered someone as a girl. He tried to woo a crossdresser at a harvest festival. And the pick-up line he used on Yuri was changed in the localization. He called him "delicate as a little bird" in Japanese. And he was not turned off by the idea of Yuri pretending to be a woman with him.

Sylvain: ...Sorry. Well, I understand, but it seems my mind was refusing to comprehend... Certainly, you... I mean, you're a woman. Yes, a lovely young lady, indeed. Oh no, I've been rude. I'm terribly sorry, miss. Leonie: What's with that tone... Sylvain: I really am sorry. This is a first for me, too. Even if Leonie is ro… I mean, even if she's an active girl, something like this… Leonie: You were about to say "rough", right!?

He knew Leonie was a girl, but his mind just didn't see her as a one. He used the word"粗雑" (sozatsu). It means "rough" or "crude" in English. Later, he compared her to a sunflower, rather than a delicate flower. The word he used for "delicate" was "可憐な" (karenna). And that's the word he used when hitting on Yuri.

Sylvain: It might also be one of the knights… Oh, wait, me!? Ingrid: I'll hit you. Sylvain: W-wait, I was just kidding! I'm against violence! Being too rough ruins a beauty, you know! ………… Uh, well. I-I mean, when I say "beauty," I'm not talking about flirting or anything, yeah!

In his A+ Support with Ingrid, the Japanese word he used was "乱暴" (ranbou). It means "rough" or "violent" in English. It can refer to behavior that is aggressive, forceful, or lacking in restraint.

Sylvain: I'm weary from the nonstop battles. A gentle and beautiful young lady who can heal my troubled heart, I wonder if it's lying around out there somewhere… (Best Answer): It might appear someday.

Even his notes to the advice box suggested that his ideal partner was a "Yamato Nadeshiko". The term describes the "flower of Japanese womanhood" or "traditional daughter of Japan". It's a nostalgic term for the perfect woman under the ideology of Japanese patriarchal society. Sylvain adored traditional femininity and wanted a partner who was the epitome of feminine beauty.

Sylvain: To be honest, I left home without telling my father, even though the country was in a difficult situation. Haha, I can imagine my father's angry face. "That idiot son of mine…" Haha, scary, scary…

But it was not because he was interested in upholding patriarchy. In fact, it he hated patriarchy and did not have a good relationship with the men in his life. His father was known as the "Wall of Ice". Matthias only cared about whether he had a Crest and could wield the Lance of Ruin. He didn't have much regard for his son's life and wanted him to take out a group of bandits by himself to earn his inheritance.

Ingrid: As you know, Sylvain and I have known each other since we were children. In the past, he often had bruises and other injuries on his face and body. Every time I asked, he would say he got them during training, but still…

And growing up, Sylvain was regularly beaten by his older brother.

Dimitri: Who's naïve and serious…? Besides, compared to you, most men are probably the same. Sylvain: Oh, really? A man who gives a dagger as a gift to a girl he likes is quite… Dimitri: How many years ago was that story? …If I seriously slap your head, will you forget about it? Sylvain: If I were hit with that monstrous strength, I'd die… It doesn't sound like a joke.

His Japanese voice acting during his C-Support with Dimitri conveyed a lot more distress than the English version did. Because of how overly serious Dimitri was, and his history of being abused, he genuinely could not tell that he was just joking about hitting him.

Sylvain: Ah, damn it… Joining the Empire… I wonder what Father would say… And then there's His Highness… He's definitely furious, right? That guy, when he's angry, he's downright terrifying… I wonder how I'll be killed… Just imagining it makes my legs tremble. However… it's your decision. I'll follow you…until the end. Haha, I wonder what's gotten into me. I should be scared out of my mind… and yet…

If you recruit Sylvain into CF, you'll learn that he was terrified of Dimitri's anger. He was a childhood friend, but he was never as close to him as he was to Ingrid and Felix. Dimitri was, after all, the future patriarch of the Kingdom with superhuman strength. Which would be kind of intimidating to an abuse victim. In CF, he calls Dimitri a stubborn "yarou". While he is on good terms with him in AM after his boar phase, he doesn't even have an A-Support with him.

Sylvain: Thinking that he's in the next room makes me hesitate to invite a girl over at night. I'm already scared and scared of the scolding the next morning... (Best Answer): Maybe I should reconsider the room assignments…

Sylvain's note to the advice box was about how he was afraid to invite girls to his room because Dimitri was next door. He didn't take his scoldings from Ingrid or Felix very seriously. But Dimitri's seriousness seemed to remind him of his father. And Sylvain was deathly afraid of his father. I'm sure that's why he felt like he had no way out of his arranged marriage.

Sylvain: As someone with a Crest, I was raised with great care by my parents. But my older brother, who didn't have a Crest, was suddenly treated very coldly when I was born. …My older brother even pushed me into a well and abandoned me in the snowy mountains. I understood it even as a child. I had taken everything from him. How could I complain in front of someone who wanted a Crest but couldn't get one? So, the persistent stares of women, the appraising looks of noble daughters… I had to smile and accept them. …Because I had the Crest.

Sylvain bears the Crest of Gautier which is associated with the Death Arcana in Tarot. And the theme of "death" certainly played a large role in his character arc. Growing up, he was constantly told that he should go die and his brother tried to kill him. But Death doesn't mean literal death. It signifies a time of significant transformation, transition, and change. The old version of you needs to "die" to allow the new you to be created. 

Sylvain: Ever since King Lambert passed away, I hardly get to see my childhood friends anymore…

Death also represents a resistance to change. In Hopes, if you take Sylvain on an expedition and ask him about his memories of the past, he sadly recounts how he and his old friends stopped hanging out much after King Lambert died. Sylvain would have been fifteen at the time. The same age he was when he hit on Lord Gwendal's daughter, prompting Ingrid to finally leave her room out of concern for him.

Sylvain: Actually, I have a history with Lord Gwendal. Yes, that was a story from many years ago. I met a lovely young lady, fell in love, and was nearly killed by her father… And that father happened to be Lord Gwendal. Oh boy, I was truly prepared to die at that time!

In Japanese, Sylvain's Classic Mode death quote uses the word "覚悟" (kakugo). It means "prepared for" or "mental readiness." And in Japanese, he uses that exact same word when talking about the Lord Gwendal incident. Sylvain's childhood antics (such as hitting on Ingrid's grandmother) could be seen as a harmless ploy for attention to compensate for his terrible home life. However, his involvement with Gwendal's daughter appeared to be way more serious.

Sylvain: …Well, whatever you think, Professor, I don't intend to change my attitude. You see, I may be a good-for-nothing, but I'm still a noble with a Crest… I try not to get involved in serious relationships. They only bring trouble. Eventually, I'll be quietly married off to some suitable partner and settle down.

Sylvain was extremely disingenuous with girls. He would use them for sex, then dump them in public. He was dreading the fact that his life would change after he got married and he blamed them for it.

Ingrid: Just… childhood friends, right? Then why do I have to clean up after your messes? Sylvain: Haha, nobody asked you to do that! Well, just think of it as your role and accept it. For some reason, it's been like this since we were kids, and it'll probably continue. Ingrid: …Continue like this? So, you don't have any intention of changing your ways!?

The only way Sylvain knew how to cope with his fate was by pretending that he just couldn't resist falling in love with every cute girl that he laid eyes on. But the truth was that he disliked girls and was even afraid of them. He was being literal when he said he would stake his life on flirting.

Ingrid: You keep earning resentment from women, and eventually, you'll really get stabbed. Sylvain: Haha, well, if I get stabbed, I get stabbed. I suppose that's just how it goes. Ingrid: …Dying for such a silly reason is definitely not okay, are you stupid!? …Glenn was the type to make those kinds of jokes too. And he really never came back.

Ingrid's line in her B-Support with Sylvain was changed slightly. She specifically warned him that he would get stabbed if he didn't change his behavior. And he just laughed, as if he were prepared to die.

Sylvain: I just, uh… Well, you're going to think I'm being a jerk or hitting on you or whatever… When we're side by side like this, training, I feel— I don't know—oddly at ease. Ingrid: I know what you mean. It's probably because we've been friends for so long. Sylvain: That must be it. Let's never change. Friends forever?

All Sylvain wanted was for things to go back to how they were when he was a kid. In their Houses A-Support, he emphasized that he was not trying to hit on Ingrid. The idea that things wouldn't change between them just put him at ease.

Ingrid: What do you mean you feel relieved seeing me eat? Sylvain: Haha, sorry, sorry. I didn't mean anything by it. Just seeing you enjoying your meal like that makes me, you know, feel relaxed. [...] Nobody can stay the same as they were in the past. You said something like that recently too, didn't you? That's why having something that doesn't change is really comforting for us.

In their Hopes A-Support, he offered to treat Ingrid to dinner not as an attempt to woo her, but just so that he could watch her eat. It was a relief to him that some people never change.

Sylvain: Hey Felix, you free? You must be free, right? Let's go flirt with some girls together today. Felix: Tch… You're disturbing my training. Go by yourself. Sylvain: Don't say that. Come on, we've known each other for a long time, haven't we?

The one change that bothered Sylvain more than any other was the change in Felix's personality. While he didn't like girls becoming attached to him, he was sad that Felix seemed to have outgrown that tendency and no longer wanted to spend time with him.

Felix: We've certainly known each other for a while, but that's about it. Besides, it's not what I wanted. It was just our parents' wishes. Sylvain: So, you're saying it's a rotten relationship, huh?

The phrase "rotten relationship" is kinda hard to translate. It is "腐れ縁" (kusareen) in Japanese. It means "a relationship that cannot be severed even if one wants to." It's usually a relationship that has persisted for a long time, often against one's will or preference, because it is bound up in some work, social, or family obligation. It tends to have a negative connotation, implying that the relationship is undesirable or plagued by difficulties.

It was derived from "鎖縁" (kusari-en) or "chain relationship", a term that refers to a close and inseparable relationship between two people, often described as being bound together by chains. "Chain relationship" was a positive term referring to two people bound by fate, as if they were destined to be together. But over time, the "rotten" part was added, and it took on a negative connotation.

Felix: That boar prince, it's been a rotten relationship since birth… No, even before birth. That's why I'm warning you… He harbors a beast within. You can trust in his skill in combat and brute strength, but as a person, he's utterly untrustworthy. You better be careful not to be devoured yourself.

Felix used the exact same term when he warned Byleth about Dimitri in Chapter 2. And the way he described his relationship with Sylvain is actually a far more accurate description of his relationship with Dimitri. Felix did have fond memories of their childhood together, but Dimitri's sadistic smile while torturing the rebels was ingrained in his mind. After that, he no longer wanted to associate with him, but he couldn't break off their relationship due to his family.

Sylvain: So, you're saying it's a rotten relationship, huh? Come on now, Felix. You used to cling to me like glue back in the day. You couldn't beat your brother, got into fights with His Highness, and every time something happened, you came crying to me. Back then, you were so meek and innocent. I doted on you like a little brother… Felix: ...Enough.

Sylvain disagreed that his relationship with Felix was just a rotten relationship. The implication was that it was more of a chain relationship and Felix was trying to downplay how close they were because he was hurt by the way Sylvain was acting.

Felix: Listen. I've held back until now, but there are plenty of things I want to say to you. In your personal life and even on the battlefield, you're frivolous. Whenever something happens, it's always about women… Sylvain: Hmm, what's wrong with that? It's rude to ignore cute girls… Felix: There's a limit to that, you sex fiend. If your sword skills were solid, I could acknowledge that. But you slack off even in training… Do you not feel any guilt about hurting others' feelings and holding them back?

Sylvain's womanizing certainly hurt Felix's feelings, but he was even more hurt by his frivolousness in battle. The implication was that he had no choice but to double down on his training because he was always babysitting Sylvain on the battlefield.

Felix: Being in this military academy, one becomes speechless at the sheer number of fools who, indulged by the power of their Crests and the status of nobility, neglect their training. It's truly astounding. (Best response): It would be good to give them training.

Felix's note to the advice box was undoubtedly written with a particular person in mind.

Sylvain: You know, since way back, I've been doing stupid things, and you've always been there to yell at me… Felix: Both of us getting lectured by Ingrid because of you… Try to put yourself in my shoes, I got dragged into it every time. Sylvain: Yeah yeah, that's right. Our relationship hasn't changed no matter how many years have passed. But you've changed, Felix. You were so adorable when we were kids… Now, you've become completely warped. I wonder why you grew up like this… Felix: Tch… You, on the other hand, are still a good-for-nothing, just like in the past. Sylvain: Ahahaha, what's that? Is that something the person who has always been by my side would say? Even now, look, you came all the way to me with the intention to apologize for what happened the other day, right?

Sylvain wasn't intimidated by Felix. But being yelled at by him still hurt his feelings and he kept his distance afterwards. And Felix came crawling back to him to apologize. He couldn't sever their relationship even if he was so hurt that he may have wanted to. He was afraid of losing their friendship, so it proves he was lying when he called it a rotten relationship.

Felix: …The boar prince and I have been acquainted since before birth. Before I knew it, he was always by my side… You might even say that, at one time, we were best friends.

Dimitri and Felix were always together as little kids and Felix used to whine unless they could do everything together. I've seen some people say that they were best friends up until the incident suppressing the rebellion when they were 14 or 15. But that didn't appear to be the case. At the time the Tragedy of Duscur occurred, when he was 13, Dimitri considered Glenn his best friend.

Sylvain: However, both His Majesty and Felix have really grown up, haven't they? Ten years ago, they were the kind of guys who would squabble over breaking each other's swords and whatnot…

Felix always went crying to Sylvain whenever he and Dimitri fought. Dimitri broke Felix's sword when they were nine years old. So, even by that age, Felix was clingier with Sylvain than Dimitri.

Sylvain: A little laziness is just right. If you push yourself too hard, you'll just get tired. Oh yeah, I'll treat you to a meal, so let's go out to town together, Felix. Felix: No. Sylvain: Which is more important, going to town with me or training? Felix: Training. See ya.

Sylvain lamented how cute Felix used to be in Houses, Hopes, and even Heroes. He was the only male character that Sylvain was ever interested in spending time with one-on-one. He even invited him out to dinner like he did with girls. It is very likely that he was so sad about how much Felix changed because he used to be his ideal "girl".

Sylvain: More importantly, it's time for the ballroom dance now, isn't it? There's also the White Heron Cup competition, right? So, Professor, who are we sending from our class? (Byleth chooses Sylvain as the representative for the White Heron Cup) Sylvain: Huh, me? Well, um, that's fine I guess. It's a good opportunity to show the girls what I can do. (Byleth does NOT choose Sylvain as the representative for the White Heron Cup) (Japanese) Sylvain: If anything, I'd rather see a beauty dancing than watch a bastard dancing, you know. (English) Sylvain: I get it. No worries, really. I'd rather see a beautiful person dancing instead of some goof like me.

Sylvain lumped himself into the "yarou" category, too. He was eager to impress girls during the Battle of the Eagle and Lion. But he will sound a bit disappointed if you choose him as the White Heron Cup representative. He's happier if you choose a beauty. The term he used for a "beauty" was "美人" (bijin). It means "beautiful person," but it is primarily used to refer to beautiful women.

It can sometimes be used to describe an exceptionally attractive man, although less commonly. Generally, "bijin" is more commonly associated with feminine beauty in Japanese language and culture. While it can technically be used to describe individuals of any gender who are considered beautiful, the term often carries connotations of traditional or stereotypical feminine beauty standards.

And since "yarou" is gendered, you'd think that "beautiful woman" would be the obvious way to translate that line, right? But I have to give the localizers credit where credit is due. They used "beautiful person" rather than "beautiful woman". Because they knew Sylvain would not have minded one bit if Felix had been the White Heron Cup representative.

Felix: You seem like you have something to say. …You're not seriously considering choosing me as the representative for the White Heron Cup, are you? (Byleth does NOT choose Felix as the representative for the White Heron Cup) Felix: I see. That's fine then.

Felix is unsociable. He gets annoyed if Byleth stares at him too long during teatime and he struggles to maintain eye contact when talking to people. Yet he was not as opposed to participating in a dance contest as you'd expect. He even brought it up himself. If you don't pick him, he doesn't sound relieved like most of the others. In fact, in Japanese, I'd say he sounds a tiny bit disappointed. His objection seemed to be dancing with a girl, not dancing in general.

Felix: I'd much rather swing a sword at the training grounds than dance with a girl at the ball. Sylvain: Huh? Your Highness and Felix, are you joking…? You can dance with all the girls in the school. Do you mean to say that on such a wonderful day, you'll be practicing swordplay with each other…? That doesn't seem like a sane idea!

One the "Night of Promises", Dimitri was not looking forward to the ball because he was sad that he was never going to rekindle his spark with Edelgard. He still attends the ball, and the cutscene shows him dancing next to Edelgard, as if to imply that he wished he was dancing with her instead of the girl he was actually dancing with. Felix felt the same way as Dimitri. He said he was going to skip out and train instead, something that made Sylvain sad. He used the word "yarou" once again here, emphasizing the masculine nature of the activity he's criticizing.

Felix: But… to the casual observer, it might not look entirely unlike a tryst between a man and a woman. If you're truly dissatisfied, then that's your compromise. Byleth: Unfriendly. Felix: Call it whatever you want. I'm about to head back to the training grounds.

If Byleth meets Felix at the Goddess Tower, his dialogue indicated that he did indeed skip the ball to practice at the training grounds.

Sylvain: When I heard you were heading to the Goddess Tower, I wondered who you were having a tryst with… I never expected you'd just be standing there alone, lost in thought. Byleth: Tryst...? Sylvain: Wait a minute. Seriously, what's going on? When someone goes to the Goddess Tower, isn't it to meet a lover? Here, vows exchanged are sure to be fulfilled… It's the lovers' sanctuary, you know. (Option 1) Byleth: Why did you come alone? Sylvain: Huh? Oh, well... Truth be told, I was curious about who you were waiting for. I hurried to catch up, only to find you alone in the end... Well, I must say, it put my mind at ease.

Sylvain goes to the Goddess Tower simply because he was curious about who Byleth was waiting for and was relieved to find out that she was alone. Then afterwards, he offers to make a vow with her.

(Option 2) Byleth: Don't you need to invite a female student? Sylvain: That's true. I could have invited someone, but my true love is right in front of me. Being alone at the Goddess Tower means I can try to woo you, right?

The phrase Sylvain used for "true love" was "本命の相手" (honmei no aite). "本命の" (honmei no) translates to "main," or "primary". "相手" (aite) translates to "partner" or "opponent," depending on the context. The phrase typically refers to the person that the individual truly loves or considers as their most significant romantic interest.

HOWEVER. It also translates as "favorite opponent" in specific contexts, particularly in sports or competitive activities where "aite" means "opponent" or "rival." In that context, it refers to the most formidable opponent in a competition or match, the one whom the athlete or team considers their top rival or challenger.

Byleth: …Me? Sylvain: Yes. Who else would I be talking about?

Who else would he be talking about? Well maybe someone who spends a lot of time with Byleth as a sparring partner? Someone who was absent from the ball? Perhaps someone he made a promise together with in the past?

Sylvain: Hey, Professor, I won't make you unhappy. So, how about getting married… Byleth: You're not trustworthy. Sylvain: Haha, well, that's true.

Sooo. Why did Sylvain go to the Goddess Tower? Was Byleth his true love? Or was she actually his primary rival for his true love? Well, I think we can rule out the "true love" option.

Felix: This is troublesome… The enemy is just a bunch of thieves. I doubt there are any skilled fighters among them. Sylvain: Don't be so cold. I'm looking forward to it. Come on, there might be a beautiful female thief among them.

Felix was always trying to prove his worth in battle. And Sylvain was always goofing off because he didn't value his own life. Before the group's first battle against bandits in Houses, he wasn't acting serious because there would most likely not be skilled fighters among them. He even made a joke about flirting with one of them.

Felix: If they're in a state of confusion right now, we can easily round them all up. I'm on my way. Sylvain: …No, no, no, hold on a second. Don't you think there's something strange about that fortress?

In Hopes, the bandits were a much greater threat than they anticipated, and Sylvain completely changed his tune. You gain Support points with Felix if you suggest charging the fort. But you gain points with Sylvain if you suggest a more cautious approach.

Sylvain: Ah, I thought since it's a festival day, there wouldn't be any lectures, and we could play all day… Hey, Professor. Even if you were planning an assassination, would you really choose the day of the Rite of Rebirth for it? I feel like there might be times when security is less tight. Or is there a reason it has to be this day?

Before the Rite of Rebirth, there was an assassination attempt on Lady Rhea. Sylvain didn't take it seriously because he knew the monastery's security would be tighter than ever on that day, and he was just goofing off and chatting up Hilda.

Sylvain: …But it's strangely quiet these days. Is it because the knights are out and about? Felix: I heard the knights are putting all their effort into tracking down the enemy. Sylvain: Putting all their effort… Isn't that a bit too much? Is it okay to neglect the monastery's defense? Felix: …How do you see this situation? Byleth: Maybe you're worrying too much. Sylvain: Is that so… Well, I hope the knights come back soon.

But after Jeralt was killed by intruders, he was standing with Felix, worrying about the thin security with all the knights out looking for the enemy. It's a very nice bit of subtle storytelling, showing that, even if he seemed like he was always goofing off, he was serious about Felix's safety and always kept an eye on him.

Sylvain: Come to think of it, you don't like sweets, huh? Well, thanks. I'll eat it later. …So, what do you want me to do? Ah, you want me to play matchmaker with a girl? Felix: Is your head filled with sugar or something? I'm just here to thank you for the battle the other day. If you hadn't noticed the ambush, I would probably be dead by now. Sylvain: Oh, right... But isn't that just how it goes? On the battlefield, it's all about mutual support. That's what comrades do, right? Felix: …You haven't changed a bit. Sylvain: Yeah, I'm still the same as ever. Felix: You always…

Felix is the only partner who will confess their feelings for Sylvain at the end of the Support chain. You could tell that he was mulling it over in the A-Support. He even brought a gift of sweets for Sylvain before he planned to tell him how he felt. But he chickened out. Still, he was going to say that he was grateful to Sylvain for always protecting him ever since they were kids.

Sylvain: His Majesty or Felix would probably make better hunting partners than me. I prefer to just sit back and watch.

While there are no specific childhood anecdotes related to this, a comment Sylvain made during his Hopes expedition did imply that he occasionally accompanied Dimitri and Felix on their hunting trips.

Felix: Boars are naturally wary animals, but this one seems injured… If it senses us, it'll charge. We can't afford to get injured by its massive rush. Raphael: Huh? Felix, you sound like you've fought something like this before? Felix: It's a story from many years ago, but I once let a similar quarry slip away. [...] House Blaiddyd and House Fraldarius used to go on hunting trips together. On one trip, a certain prince killed so many deer it proved impossible to fit them all on the sled. Meanwhile, I went off hunting on my own, encountered the boar, and barely escaped with my life.

Felix had a near-death encounter with a wild boar as a child. And I strongly suspect that Sylvain was the one who saved his life and got pretty hurt in the process.

Felix: You've always been like this since we were kids. Normally so unreliable, but you've always thrown yourself in harm's way and helped us when it really counted. …Every time you managed to put on that carefree smile for us, I cannot deny that I wanted to hug you a little. Sylvain: O-Oh… You're the one spouting those kinds of lines? Have you eaten something strange? Felix: Tch… I won't say it again, you fool! Now that I know you're safe, I'm going back to my room.

In the A+ Support, Felix will finally say what he was thinking back in the A-Support. He will mention how Sylvain would literally put his body on the line and then smile afterwards. And Sylvain told Marianne that a smile was the true measure of a person's worth. He always smiled because it made him feel strong.

Felix uses the word "抱いていた" (dakishiteita). It means "embrace" or "hold." It can mean to literally hold, hug, or embrace someone in a physical sense. Or it can be used metaphorically to express the idea of cherishing or harboring a feeling of admiration or longing. But the writers probably chose that word for its dual meaning.

Felix was certainly trying to communicate his admiration for Sylvain's ability to smile even when he's hurt and in a lot of pain. And in doing so, he made his intense longing for Sylvain clear. And I do not think the localizers were wrong to have Felix express his desire to hug Sylvain in a literal sense. It was all part of the same package.

Sylvain: Alright, alright. Then I'll wait while having a meal until you feel like it. Come on, Felix, let's grab a meal in town. I'll treat you. How about some meat? Felix: …Alright. I owe you one. Just for today, I'll go along. Sylvain: After we fill our stomachs, then we can go chat up some girls… Felix: ………. Sylvain: Just kidding, jeez, you're really short-tempered. Come on, let's go together, Felix!

Sylvain offered to treat Felix to dinner in their B-Support, and he got rejected. In the A-Support, he offered again, and Felix agreed because he owed him. Now, Sylvain offered to treat Byleth—even the male—to dinner in his Paralogue because he saved his life, and he owed him. So, that probably wasn't what he wanted to hear.

In Sylvain's mind, relationships were always transactional, and he was very suspicious over whether anyone really wanted to spend time with him. He even suspected that Felix came to give him the sweets just so he could set him up with a girl. So, he apparently tested Felix's intentions by suggesting they chat up girls afterward. Ya know, just to make sure they're on the same page and it's really a date. In light of what Felix intended to say, it's clear why he was upset.

Sylvain: ...Hey, uh, Ingrid. Training again today? Ingrid: No, today I'm going to the city to buy supplies. Training comes afterward. Is there something wrong? Sylvain: N-no, you're still as serious as ever, huh? Some things never change. Ingrid: …What are you talking about? I haven't changed at all. Sylvain: Y-yeah, you're right, haha. Ingrid: …Hey, what's up, Sylvain? Did you eat something strange? Sylvain: N-no, it's not that. Um… Have you found someone you like?

Sylvain was always smooth whenever he was flirting with girls. But in his A+ Support with Ingrid, he was incredibly flustered and stumbling over his words. He's a completely different person when he's really fallen for someone. Taken at face-value, the player would assume that he has fallen for Ingrid. And while that is certainly a valid interpretation, it actually isn't the only interpretation. He was particularly worried that she had been training a lot lately.

Sylvain: No, it's not like I'm flustered or anything. …I was just a little curious about the reason, that's all. Ingrid: …The reason for the makeup, huh. What do you think it is? Sylvain: Well… Is it because of a guy? If we're talking about someone you might like, going by your past tendencies… Felix…No, His Highness is also a possibility.

And the first person he asked about was Felix, due to Ingrid's history with Glenn and how Felix had changed to be more like him. But was it because he was afraid Felix would steal Ingrid from him? Or was he afraid Ingrid would steal Felix from him? While many people consider Ingrid the "canon" love interest for Sylvain, they deliberately left their A+ Support open to interpretation. I have no doubt that the writers preferred Felix as Sylvain's love interest, but they didn't want to make a gay pairing too obvious, so they left it open for Ingrid, too.

Sylvain: I've been given the opportunity for revenge. I won't waste it… even if it means stabbing each other to death…!

Regardless of which one you interpret as his love interest, Ingrid and Felix were the two most important people to Sylvain. If you do not recruit them in CF, they will die at Arianrhod, and Sylvain's dialogue changes in response during "Field of Revenge". The Japanese verb he uses "刺し違える" (sashichigaeru) literally refers to stabbing one another and killing each other.

Sylvain: Professor! Has it really been five years? We ought to raise a glass to the occasion. Celebrate your return. Nah, I'd rather commemorate it with your death.

Sylvain's CF arc is very interesting. He becomes like Miklan. The foreshadowing in his B-Support with Byleth was intended for this exact moment. He was so jealous of Byleth's ability to live freely that he wanted to kill them. And now he gets the chance. He doesn't care if he dies as long as he gets his revenge for his two friends. Sylvain felt like his parents only valued him for his Crest and his brother wanted him dead. But those two really loved him. He was so driven to kill Byleth in CF because s/he took everything from him.

Mercedes: You can't choose where you're born. It's like flowers not being able to choose where they bloom. Since we don't suffer from hunger or thirst, we can't complain even if the place is cramped. It's the same for both of us… We all have to bloom where we're planted. Sylvain: It's true that flowers can't choose where to bloom. They can't go where they want to go until they die, and if the environment is bad, they will just wither away.

Because of the arranged marriage looming over his head, Sylvain felt like a flower with his roots firmly planted. He didn't feel like he could go where he wanted to go until he died.

Sylvain: Finally… I can go to the place where they are… I'm sorry, Your Majesty… I… will go ahead and wait… Dimitri: Thank you, Sylvain. I will also… definitely go to where you all are.

And where did he want to go? To the place where Ingrid and Felix were. CF!Sylvain was relieved that he could finally join them upon his death, something that was sadly not included in the localized version. That line was especially relevant to his relationship with Felix because they promised to die together.

Sylvain: Me… disliking girls? Hahaha, no way, no way, not at all! I'm always serious when it comes to girls. I put my life on the line to woo them. Dorothea: You should focus on one person and then say that. You only have one life, and usually, there's only one person you can love enough to stake your whole life on.

Sylvain has the fewest number of paired endings out of any student. Understandably, very few women would consider marrying him. Mercedes would in order to escape her arranged marriage, but she'd have to give up her dream. And Ingrid would because she loved him and thought she needed to take care of him or else he'd end up like Glenn. But she'd also have to give up her dream.

In his S-Support proposal, Byleth was not quite sure if Sylvain was being sincere because he was still using shallow words. And Dorothea did not trust him, either, because he had to propose to her at least ten times. And of course, Dorothea will marry pretty much any nobleman in the game to secure her future. Felix had no one pressuring him and nothing to gain from being with Sylvain.

Sylvain: Do you remember? We made a promise when we were kids. That we'd die together. Felix: ...I remember. Sylvain: So, you see, there's no way I'd die before you and leave you behind.

In English, "dying together" could be taken as platonic. Just brothers-in-arms or best friends. However, there's a cultural nuance to it in Japanese because that phrase is often used in a romantic context. It implies that they will not just die but spend their whole lives together. It was, in essence, a marriage proposal.

Felix: …Well, I suppose that's true. But I'm fed up with getting terrified like this. You shouldn't just fool around all the time. Take your training seriously for once. …If you end up carelessly throwing your life away, I won't be able to die with you. Sylvain: Yeah, you're right. Once I'm healed, I'll try to be a bit more serious.

Felix uses the phrase "肝を冷やす" (kimo-o-hiyasu). It's an expression that literally translates to "cooling the liver" but figuratively means "to be frightened" or "to be scared stiff." It refers to the feeling of fear or nervousness that causes a person's body temperature to drop, often likened to a sensation of chilling one's liver.

Their entire Support chain was about how Felix never really changed. He always prioritized his training over hanging out because he was absolutely terrified that Sylvain would get himself killed and they wouldn't have a future together. After finally realizing this, Sylvain reaffirmed his childhood promise. He no longer wanted to die.

Sylvain: Anyway, I suppose you just said the things I usually say, right? Even if it's the same pick-up line, serious guys' words are taken seriously.

When Felix said Sylvain was frivolous in their C-Support, he used the word "不真面目" (fumajime). When Sylvain said he'd be more serious from now on, he used the word "真面目" (majime), which is the opposite. He also used this word in his Support with Dimitri. It means "serious" or "earnest" in English. It describes someone who is diligent, takes things seriously, and is sincere.

The "Sincerest of Knights" was not just saying that he would take his training seriously. He was also saying that he would take his personal life seriously. He wouldn't be frivolously going around picking up girls and telling them he loves them enough to stake his life on them anymore. Because he already found the one.

Sylvain: These five years, fighting and fighting… Finally, the tough times have come to an end. A new era is about to begin. …So, I thought it's about time I put an end to my own fate. Byleth: Put an end to? Sylvain: Yes. My fate is not determined by something like a Crest; it's determined by me… This is the first step towards that. Not someone trying to use my Crest, not someone decided by someone else, and not just a playmate…

Death is the arcana of transformation and typically refers to a need to start over by letting go of the past. It is about moving forward from outworn and outgrown ways of life. And that's what Sylvain's character arc was all about, regardless of whether he marries Byleth.

The term for "put an end to" is "けじめ" (kejime). It can be translated as "closure," "settling accounts," "bringing something to an end," or "establishing a clear boundary." It suggests that Sylvain is finally ready to confront his fear, establish firm boundaries with his father, and decide for himself who he forms intimate relationships with.

Sylvain: But our feet aren't roots. We can move ourselves and go where we want. If we navigate cleverly, we might not have to give up what we want to do. [...] I'm not trying to court you or anything like that. But if I, as the legitimate son of Gautier, were to propose to you… The other party would have no choice but to withdraw. It might sour our relations a bit, though. Afterward, you can do as you please. You can work at the church or become whatever you want. Mercedes: But if you did that, Sylvain, you wouldn't be able to marry the person you love, right? Sylvain: Hahaha, I'm not being serious about that.

Sylvain is a Gemini. Being the Twins, they'll flit from person to person to see what everyone has to offer, but once they commit, their lives are complete and whole. Because he and Felix made such a promise before the game even started, it suggests that they were both in love with each other, regardless of whether you go for their paired ending.

And if Sylvain already had someone that he wanted to spend his life with, but that he wasn't free to do so because they were the wrong gender to produce heirs, then it paints his behavior in a different light. His storyline was about forbidden love. He changes his behavior in Hopes because he realizes that he can go where he wants and doesn't have to give up on being with the person he loves.

Felix: I was raised to value strength above all else. Whereas you had a reason, an ambition, pushing you toward that hunger. So, tell me. What was the reason? Why were you driven to become so strong?

Not only is Sylvix the best relationship for Sylvain's growth, but it is also the best relationship for Felix's too. Felix was also a victim of Faerghus's patriarchal culture. He was taught to swing a sword before he could write and was raised with the motto: "Grow strong so you may live, and live to grow stronger".

Felix: It's like training with my brother. He always won—always—and died before I could win a single bout. From the first time I held a sword, all I wanted was to surpass him. And that's what drove me to become so strong.

Since Felix was a child, his main ambition in life was to surpass his brother, who he always lost to while sparring. And that sense of purpose continued to subconsciously drive him, even nine whole years after he died.

Rodrigue: …My eldest son was quite outstanding, you know. He was knighted at the age of fifteen.

Glenn possessed exceptional swordsmanship ability. Felix was probably so obsessed with surpassing his brother at swordplay because he was trying to earn the admiration of his father.

Felix: Sorry, but I'm not "Emile." And of course, I'm not your brother. Tch… It's so annoying being compared to someone else. Mercedes: I'm really sorry… I'll be on my way then. …Oh, the tea refill is here. Please help yourself if you'd like. …Well, see you. Felix: …I am me. Regardless of what anyone says, I'm not anyone else. …Isn't that right…Brother.

The English localization changed several lines in Felix's C-Support with Mercedes, giving it a slightly different meaning than the original Japanese version. The verb used by Felix is "重ねる" (kasaneru). It means "to pile up" or "to layer". Metaphorically, in this context, it conveys the concept of overlapping an image of one person with someone else, because they remind you of them. The Japanese version made it sound like "You're you, not anyone else" was something Glenn had to remind Felix often.

Shez: Is Dimitri really that much like his dad? Rodrigue: Oh, yes, absolutely. Well, the late King was a bit more hot-headed, it seems… Compared to me and my son, they are spitting images of each other. See, we don't resemble each other much. Shez: Yeah, you're really not very similar at all. Your looks aside, of course.

The concept of "kasaneru" played into Rodrigue's relationship with both of his sons. He had trouble viewing them as their own people, rather than just reflections of himself. He was very proud that Glenn took after him and disappointed that Felix did not. He also projected his own feelings onto Glenn. While it did seem like he chose to defend Dimitri to the death, he was not satisfied to die.

Felix: …Hmph. It's a waste to keep someone like you as a woman. Leonie: Oh, come on. That's what's wrong with you. Strength has nothing to do with gender. It's because you underestimate your opponent that you fall into traps. Felix: …Yeah, you're right.

I've seen some people accuse Felix of being a misogynist because of several comments he made to female characters. One comment was to Ingrid about finding a husband, which I'll get to later. Another was his comment to Leonie about being impressive "for a girl". His comment in Japanese is actually entirely different. He was saying that Leonie is so strong that it's a waste because strength isn't a trait that is appreciated or expected of females in Fódlan.

Felix was implying that her talents might be better suited for manhood. And she actually made him question that way of thinking. This Support showed how Felix was aware that some people don't naturally conform traditional gender roles and it would make their lives much easier if they were the opposite sex. Which is something he had undoubtedly thought about himself.

Felix: It's all well and good to remember the dead, but sentimentality will get you killed. All the tears in the world couldn't bring them back, after all. Ingrid: You have always viewed the world in such stark terms. It might even be one of your strengths. But one day, you will learn that emotions and sentimentality are also a strength, not a curse.

Felix is a Pisces, which is considered one of the most feminine signs of the zodiac due to its association with sensitivity, intuition, empathy, and creativity. Pisceans are often described as dreamy, compassionate, and deeply empathetic individuals who are attuned to the emotions and needs of others. As a child, Felix was meek, innocent, clingy, and would cry easily. These are stereotypically feminine traits which would certainly not be valued in a strength-obsessed culture like Faerghus. And especially not in a boy.

Felix: I am tired of it. For years, I've been forced to be a "replacement" for the dead. I had an excellent brother. He was a splendid knight worthy of admiration… He's dead now. After my brother's death, his presence haunted me like a shadow.

The Mother Goddess archetype is a powerful and ancient symbol found in various cultures and mythologies around the world. It represents the qualities of nurturing, fertility, protection, wisdom, and interconnectedness. Some examples are Isis from ancient Egyptian mythology and Mother Mary in Christianity. Sothis was the embodiment of the divine feminine principle.

The one who embodied the divine masculine principle was Nemesis. He represented the Warrior Hero archetype, which embodies qualities such as courage, strength, and valor. Figures like Achilles in Greek mythology, King Arthur in Arthurian legends, and Beowulf in Anglo-Saxon literature exemplify the ideals of the Warrior Hero.

Despite being the most religious country, the actual values of Faerghus were much more aligned with the Warrior Hero than the Mother Goddess. The Crest of Fraldarius is associated with the Emperor arcana. It represents the divine masculine principle. As the replacement heir, Felix's patriarchal duty was to serve as the king's sword and shield. But he hated the ideals of chivalry.

Dimitri: Heh. You know, Felix, you really are growing more and more like your brother. Always so sarcastic, and constantly looking for a fight. But deep inside, more than anyone, you—

The concept of "kasaneru" factored into Dimitri and Felix's relationship as well. Felix's gruff personality was not the natural effect of puberty. It was the result of being forced into a role he wasn't suited for. He hated bloodshed. His first battle left him horrified and he needed to desensitize himself to cope. After losing his brother and becoming a squire, his naturally sentimental and meek personality changed to become more like his brother, "sarcastic and constantly looking for a fight". Stereotypically masculine traits.

Bernadetta: Felix, did you just smile? And it was a really big smile, right? Hehehe, it's like cracking open a tough nut and finding a sweet smile inside… Felix: Tch… Don't get cocky, silly girl. Bernadetta: Oh no, the shell closed! Felix: …You've got guts to tease me like that. Seems like you really want to get in trouble.

The word Bernadetta used was "甘い" (amai). It is used for "sweet" and, just like in English, is often used to describe something that is sweet in taste or metaphorically sweet in demeanor or expression. In Japan, sweets are culturally coded as childish and feminine and liking meat is considered masculine. Did Felix truly not like sweets? Or did he just avoid them because of how they are perceived?

Bernadetta: Felix, please try this. This candy has a reputation for not being sweet. (Normal) Felix: I refuse. Whether it's sweet or not, I don't like candy. (Felix & Lysithea support level B reached) Felix: Candy, huh... If you say it's not sweet, should I take some?

It's worth noting that Felix will refuse to eat unsweet candy that Bernadetta offers him in their A+ Support. But he will actually give the candy a try if he has reached B-Support with Lysithea, after he tries her cake. And in their paired ending, he gives up the sword to spend to his life baking sweets with her. So, it suggests that he was just concerned with keeping up appearances.

Felix: If I were to die here, would you say something like you did when it was my brother? "That's the true end for a knight."

During World War II, ultra-nationalists popularized Yamato Nadeshiko as the female manifestation of Yamato Damashii. It is the term for an idealized Japanese man and refers to the traditional virtues and characteristics associated with him. These include loyalty, courage, honor, selflessness, and a strong sense of duty. This concept is deeply rooted in Japanese culture and history, reflecting the values upheld by the samurai class and other historical figures.

Dimitri: My closest friend was a knight who served the royal family. He was near to my own age, and I admired him greatly. But one day, I watched him die. He stood his ground and fought bravely, but his life was snuffed out in the blink of an eye all the same. Ingrid: I always looked up to Glenn. He was the very picture of a perfect knight—noble and virtuous. In the end, he laid down his life—the ultimate sacrifice. I feel proud of him in ways that words can't quantify. Rodrigue: To this day, I'm proud of Glenn. He gave his life to protect Prince Dimitri. If he had abandoned His Highness and fled, I don't know that I could have forgiven him… I would have been deeply ashamed.

Glenn was less a character and more an archetype. He represented the ideal man of Faerghus that Felix was supposed to aspire to be. Since he was a child, his purpose in life was getting strong enough to beat Glenn at sparring. He felt like he would only be valued if he became more like his brother. And after the Tragedy of Duscur, he felt like his father would only value him if he died.

Sylvain: The old Felix was really adorable, but what happened to make him like that? (Best Answer): Say it's part of growing up.

Whenever Felix lost to Glenn at sparring, he would go crying to Sylvain. It is likely that Sylvain was the one person, other than Glenn, who made Felix feel appreciated for who he really was. Rodrigue, Dimitri, and Ingrid always talked about how admirable Glenn was. Sylvain always talked about how adorable Felix was and was sad about how he had changed. After losing his brother, Felix probably felt like his purpose in life was keeping his promise with Sylvain.

(If Byleth is male) Felix: Having heard of your skills, I'm eager to meet you in battle. Come to the training ground later. There, you will show me what you're capable of.

Regardless of gender, Felix viewed Byleth as his personal rival, just like he did with Glenn when he was a kid.

(If Byleth is female) Sylvain: Such benevolence is a sight to behold! I don't suppose you would care to join me for tea? We could discuss education…and marriage. Felix: Control yourself, Sylvain. I have more important matters to discuss with our new professor. Come to the training ground later. There, you will show me what you're capable of.

Although, interestingly, it was Sylvain's marriage proposal that prompted him to challenge Female Byleth to a sparring match when she first became Professor.

Felix: …What. I thought it might be someone else, but it's you. Byleth: Meeting someone? Felix: I didn't have such plans. …I just wanted to come to a quiet place.

Felix skipped the ball. But he was already at the Goddess Tower when Byleth arrived. He said he just needed some quiet, but wouldn't the training grounds already be quiet on the night of the ball? In Japanese, it's clearer that he was actually expecting someone else instead of her. There's only one person he could possibly have had in mind. The person he made a promise with long ago.

Felix: You know the legend of the Goddess Tower, don't you? The one where vows always come true. It's so absurd it makes me feel like vomiting…but trying to believe in it might be amusing. Let's make a vow to the Goddess of Fódlan. I will… I will, someday, surpass you. I'll surpass your sword, your skills, and as a warrior, I'll defeat you.

Most of the students used the word "約束" (yakusoku) when referring to the legend. It means "promise". There were only a few who used the word "誓い" (chikai). "Chikai" conveys a stronger sense of commitment and means "oath" or "vow". It often involves a pledge made with deep sincerity and seriousness.

"Chikai" tends to carry a more profound emotional and moral weight than "yakusoku". Byleth rejected Sylvain's request to exchange vows. And her vow with Felix was quite unromantic. Before swearing his vow, Felix closed his eyes, which he also does in his A+ Support when he remembers his promise with Sylvain.

Byleth: What kind of vow is that? Felix: What, unsatisfied? If you're looking for a romantic relationship, I'm sorry, but hit up some other man. Unfortunately, I've lived a life devoid of such things. Blades, blood, and battles. That's all I am.

Felix wasn't disinterested in love. He was disillusioned with love. After feeling unloved by his father and cheated on by Sylvain, he was trying to fill the void of love with strength. The only way he knew how to prove his worth to himself was on the battlefield. And that was the only sense of purpose he had left in life, anyway.

Felix: Once I decided to fight alongside you and the emperor, I was prepared. …Prepared to abandon my country, to strike down my father, and to kill a man I once called a friend. But… my sword feels a bit heavy.

I found Felix's character arc in CF very interesting due to the whole "rotten relationships" idea. Remember how it means "a bad relationship that cannot be cut even if you try"?

Dimitri: Felix… You killed Rodrigue… your own father. Felix: I decided to cut down anyone who stood in my way. Even if it's my own father… Even if it's a friend I spent my childhood with. Dimitri: I see. After this exchange… I have finally resolved to kill you.

When it came down to literally cutting Dimitri out of his life, CF!Felix was very hesitant. He had a sad expression during this dialogue. And it was the same when he fought Ingrid.

Sylvain: Hey, Felix… Remember back when we were kids? We promised we'd die together, didn't we? Felix: ...Yeah, I remember. Sylvain: So… Now, it's gonna be you and me, killing each other. Felix: …Sorry, Sylvain. I'm gonna have to let you die first.

However, he showed absolutely NO hesitation killing Sylvain. In fact, he was even colder to him than he was to Rodrigue. Sylvain was clearly the real target of Felix's revenge in this chapter, not the boar. When Ingrid warned Sylvain that he was going to get stabbed if he kept cheating, it was probably foreshadowing for this moment.

Sylvain did not take CF!Ingrid's disloyalty personally and was not angry at her. He was just happy that her stubbornness hadn't changed. But he was very angry at CF!Felix. It was the betrayal he wanted revenge for. He specifically brought up their promise before expressing his desire to fight to the death. He was fully prepared to be stabbed to death, but he wanted to take Felix with him.

Rodrigue: Hmm. The dreams I held dear as a child have either already come true…or never will.

The Hero's Relic of House Fraldarius is the Aegis Shield, a reference to Greek mythology. It's likely no coincidence that Rodrigue's middle name is "Achille". He was probably inspired by Achilles, the warrior hero from the Iliad. Achilles' strong reaction to his childhood companion Patroclus' death is often taken as a sign that their relationship was possibly deeper than friendship. He lamented, "My dear comrade Patroclus has fallen—he whom I valued more than all others, and loved as dearly as my own life? I have lost him."

Rodrigue: No matter how much we grieve, the dead won't return. There's no way for them to hear our words. That's why their presence binds those living in the present like a curse. The more we cherished them, the more we become entangled and suffer… I'm not strong enough to scold His Highness for his foolishness. Byleth: Even so… Rodrigue: Yes. It seems scolding and getting them back on their feet is our duty as adults, isn't it? …Despite speaking so arrogantly, in the end, I am unfit to be an adult, aren't I?

When I first played AM and got to the scene called "Entrusting the Future", I assumed Rodrigue was still talking about Glenn when he lamented how the dead can't return.

Rodrigue: We both have a disposition where we can't just live without purpose. Both Felix and me. I lived to serve him, the late King Lambert… to support him as his right hand. Having lost the king I should serve, having lost the purpose of my life… I thought about what I should live for… And in the end, I made fulfilling our promise my new purpose. Shez: A promise… What was the promise about? Rodrigue: He asked me to admonish and correct his child if he ever strayed from the right path.

But after playing AG, there was another scene called "Entrusting the Future". And I realized he was actually talking about Lambert all along, not Glenn. AM!Rodrigue understood why Felix hated him for his comment about Glenn's death and he didn't blame him.

Dimitri: Every time I see the expression of longing on your face when you remember my father, there's always a thought that crosses my mind. I wonder if you wished to live and die alongside him. Rodrigue: …Haha, you're overthinking it, Your Majesty. Despite appearances, I consider myself quite resilient. No, I didn't wish for my own death when Lambert passed. However… if it were to fulfill a promise with him, I believe I'd be satisfied to die.

The concept of "kasaneru" played a large role in Rodrigue's relationship with Dimitri. It was very telling that he decided that his new reason to live was not to help his surviving son get back on his feet, but instead keeping his promise to Lambert. Dimitri had strayed from the right path, but Rodrigue could not scold him. In VW, this enabling caused Dimitri to throw everyone's lives away at Gronder Field. In AM, when the consequences of Dimitri's actions came back to bite him, Rodrigue took the punishment on himself, stating how there are no sins or punishments on the battlefield.

Rodrigue: He left home on his own, and now… this foolish son of mine. Felix: I have no intention of returning to you. Nor do I have any intention of returning to that boar. Rodrigue: …When a child misbehaves, it's the parent's responsibility. Felix… right here and now, you'll die!

Yet Rodrigue said he would not have forgiven Glenn if he had run away at Duscur. He could not even forgive his own teenage son for an act of cowardice on the battlefield. And if Felix joins CF, he has absolutely NO problems punishing him with death. I could understand and empathize with Rodrigue more after playing AG. I don't think he was a bad person. But he was certainly a bad father. He valued Lambert's (and Dimitri's) life above all others, even his own. And even his own sons. And Felix could pick up on that.

Felix: So, the old man's dead… Dimitri: Yes. Felix: I'll cut you down. Prepare yourself, you damn boar! Dimitri: Very well. Come at me, Felix!

There is unused dialogue that was apparently meant to be an alternate scenario based on whether Felix was defeated in Part 1 and was unrecruited in Part 2. I suspect much of his vitriol towards Dimitri in AM stemmed from jealousy over his father's affection. And because of him, he lost the chance to ever make up with his father. Their AM battle dialogue is the opposite of CF. This Felix had no hesitation cutting Dimitri out of his life violently and was prepared to die with him.

Felix: Sylvain, stand aside. My blade thirsts for his blood, not yours. Sylvain: Then surrender already. I don't even want to fight you! Felix: …Sorry. That isn't up for discussion.

But he had no desire to fight Sylvain. Because they could not finish their Support chain, Felix could not reaffirm his promise and find a new reason to live. I'm sure Sylvain knew that he was throwing his life away by trying to kill Dimitri and he was desperate to stop him. It's hard to overstate just how much more emotional Sylvain sounded in the Japanese version. He really did NOT want to fight Felix.

Rodrigue: Remember when I told you about the time I acted foolishly and got myself into trouble? Lambert broke through enemy lines and told me, "Don't waste your life." Although he was covered in wounds, so it wasn't very persuasive, was it? Dimitri: Haha, indeed. You two were truly good friends. I'm so envious of my father. Rodrigue: Haha, saying that would only make my son jealous. He'd ask, "What am I to you?"

As a descendant of the hero Fraldarius, Felix was expected to have the same kind of bond with Dimitri that Kyphon had with Loog and Rodrigue had with Lambert. But I never got the impression that he did. In Hopes, he inherits his father's title and position as the king's right-hand, similar to his solo ending in Houses.

His duty was to act as the Shield of Faerghus, and that involved protecting Dimitri, primarily from his own suicidal recklessness. That was a role he played in Houses as well, but he was mainly protecting Sylvain from himself instead of Dimitri. That's not to say that Felix did not care for Dimitri's safety in Houses. He just delegated those duties to Byleth, like when he asked her to "cage the boar".

Sylvain: Be careful, will you? …Jeez, you've even got bruises on your neck. If something were to happen to you, we don't know what will become of Faerghus, do we? Felix: I won't say it'll go smoothly without me, but I always assume I might die on the battlefield. Sylvain: Seriously, Felix… if you were to disappear now, what would happen to Faerghus and His Majesty?

It did not seem like being the Shield of Faerghus gave Felix a true sense of purpose or a reason to live. Sylvain's appeals for him to survive because Faerghus and Dimitri needed him did not seem to be very effective. In Hopes, he was pretty nonchalant about dying on the battlefield, causing Sylvain to scold him for being reckless. It was the exact opposite of their Houses Supports.

Sylvain: You and me, we'll support His Majesty and Faerghus, by complementing each other's weaknesses. Felix: …Yeah. Um… in the future too, I'll count on you. I hate to admit it, but I probably need you. Maybe. Besides… without you, everyone else would be insufferably gloomy. Sylvain: I get it. You don't have to say it. I'll always be with you, no matter what.

In Hopes, Felix was there to help Dimitri get back on his feet, both literally and figuratively. But Sylvain was the only one he could ever lean on. Felix was raised to believe it was his duty to be a literal human shield. And that's why it meant so much to him that Sylvain would always protect him.

Shez: Well, you know, Sylvain, who always fights with you, ends up being swarmed by enemies... Felix: …That's because every time, he boasts about taking charge with nonsense like "Leave it to me." Well, I believe he'd manage to get through any predicament, no matter how dire.

There was a change in Felix's C-Support with Shez. The localization stated that Felix would always get surrounded by enemies when fighting with Sylvain. But in the Japanese, it was the opposite.

Matthias: Rodrigue, fall back with the duke. The escape route is secured… Leave it to me. Rodrigue: Matthias… What a fool. Make sure you come back alive. You must! Matthias: It's been a while since I've fought to protect a friend's back. My blood is boiling with youthful fervor! Claude: Risking your life to let allies escape, huh? That's the knightly spirit of Faerghus we admire.

When Matthias died in GW, he said he would be waiting for Rodrigue and Lambert on the other side. It's extremely similar to what Sylvain says when he dies in CF. And there were many parallels between Sylvain and his father in Hopes.

Felix: I can still stand… I can still wield my sword. I can still fight…! Tch… With injuries like these, I won't withdraw…! Sylvain: Felix! Stand down! Aww, look at you all beaten up… Leave this to us and fall back, okay? Felix: Ugh… You better come back. If you're planning to die, I won't forgive you, Sylvain!

When Dedue is low on health during the SB battle at Ailell, Dimitri begs him to fall back because he cannot afford to lose him. But when Felix is low on health and can no longer stand, Sylvain is the one who comes to his aid. Rodrigue made it clear that he expected his son to fight to the death. But because of Sylvain he retreats. His future with Sylvain was the reason he chose to keep on living.

Sylvain: Ah… Felix. I'm glad you're safe. Felix: You, always trying to protect me... Don't be reckless. Even though you're weak, you always, always...! Sylvain: It's fine as long as you're safe. As long as you're alive, I… Felix: You idiot! Don't joke like that. If you ever dare to die, I won't forgive you…!

It's more obvious in Japanese, but what Felix said to Sylvain at the Valley of Torment was almost the exact same as their A+ Support. Sylvain probably knew he was going to die, just like Matthias did in GW. He was fighting to the death as he avenged Ingrid. Even though he wanted to die together with him, if it came down to it, Sylvain was always content to sacrifice his life to let Felix live. He died as a true knight so that Felix wouldn't have to. Felix had the type of bond with Sylvain that he was supposed to have with Dimitri.

Felix: …Well, I was prepared for it to come to this. With Father… and also with that boar, we'll eventually have to part ways.

Felix did not want to become a knight for many reasons. In Japanese, he used the phrase "袂を分かつ" (tasuki wo wakatsu). It literally means "to separate the sleeves" and is often used metaphorically. The imagery evokes the idea of two individuals going their separate ways, often signifying a farewell or divergence of paths. That is his entire motivation if he joins CF.

Felix: For the past five years, I've been fighting under the emperor. …I've slain quite a number of enemies. Now, I must look just like that boar from back then. …It's the face of a cruel beast that revels in blood and violence.

But if he takes that path, he becomes the very boar he hated.

Felix: …He's dead. I heard he was beheaded… But… I didn't see his head. If, by some chance, he's leading that army… Byleth: Are you truly ready to fight? Felix: …Don't underestimate me. Even if it's him, I'm prepared to kill.

In VW, Felix suspected that Dimitri was still alive all along. But he still chose to stay with the Alliance.

Felix: …I never truly understood his hatred and anguish towards the Empire. If it were me…could I have saved him? Could I have… stopped him?

Afterwards, he wondered if he could have saved him from dying like a wild boar. Even if he had stayed with the Kingdom, it wouldn't have made a difference. Only Byleth would have been able to stop him. Felix would have just died pointlessly at Gronder like everyone else. But there was no way for him to know that. In both routes, he suffers from regret and wishes he'd died alongside Dimitri. He is a lost soul, who lives only for the sword and fights with a will to die.

Felix & Sylvain (Non-AM) After the war, minor skirmishes continued throughout various regions in Fódlan. Felix, upon learning that there were battles still to be fought, chose to forsake his noble status and make a living as a swordsman. Over a decade later, he took on the role of a mercenary, and his employer turned out to be Sylvain, who had inherited the title of Margrave Gautier. The two of them were overjoyed to reunite, but their diverging paths meant that their fates would never intertwine further. After finishing his work, Felix left Sylvain's territory, embarking on another journey as a wanderer. It was a few years later when Sylvain received a sword that was unmistakably Felix's.

While Felix can eventually give up the sword and find some peace if he has a female partner, his paired ending with Sylvain is the single most tragic ending in the game. Despite having a chance reunion, Sylvain is unable to save him. While the reason for this is never stated, the Japanese ending offers a clue.

The phrase used in the Japanese ending is "道を違えた" (michi o tagaeta). It translates to "took the wrong path" or "strayed from the path." It implies making a mistake or deviating from the correct course of action, moral path, or intended direction. It emphasizes the idea of going astray or making an error in judgment.

Sylvain's arc was about realizing that his Crest did not decide his fate, he did. After Felix left him, he probably settled down with a random noblewoman, had children, and it was simply too late for him to start a new life with Felix. Because Felix went astray and chose an immoral path, it caused Sylvain to make a big mistake. Felix follows in Glenn's footsteps and dies alone, full of pain and regret. And I can't imagine that Sylvain's fate was any better when Felix's sword arrived on his doorstep. They can only be together in AM and their non-AM ending strongly emphasizes how that was the intended path for them.

Felix: Why did they die while I lived? …Even now, there's not a day I don't question. But I'm not as soft as you. I'll take my regrets to the grave. There are more important things to me now.

The localization did a faithful job with the Dimitri/Felix A-Support. It's just that, in Japanese, there was a line about how Felix would take any regrets to his grave. It was very similar to his A-Support with Rodrigue in Hopes. In AM, Rodrigue dies, and Felix never got to apologize for punching him. He even left a note in the confession box about that. But in Hopes, he could get closure with his father.

Felix and Dimitri's relationship was FAR from healthy. It probably would be much better for both of them to sever their rotten relationship once and for all and walk separate paths in life. And their A-Support was written with the idea that, if this was the final time Felix spoke to Dimitri one-on-one, that would be okay. He said what he needed to say and wouldn't have any regrets. Dimitri could sense his underlying compassion and was content to leave it at that.

Flayn: But isn't there a future beyond that where Felix can avoid taking lives? Felix: …It's fine to dream of such a future, but I don't belong there. After all, I've been swinging a sword ever since I was born. ...Swordsmen are troublesome creatures. Fighting for peace, yet losing our purpose when peace finally arrives. Flayn: …Haha, if that's the case, you need not worry. […] If you felt like you lost your purpose in life, surely you would find a new purpose. It's not like you to fear loss. Felix: …...… You really are something, aren't you? Huh… I've never even thought about it. Maybe there is such a way of living after all. ...I'm starting to get interested. Perhaps swinging a sword for the future you dream of wouldn't be such a bad idea.

One way Felix resembled his father was that he couldn't live without a great purpose in life, and if he lost that purpose, he'd need something to fill the void. He needed a future to look forward to during peacetime. He was intrigued by the idea that one day he could chop wood, fruits, and vegetables instead of people.

Felix: A millennial festival? Talking about festivities at a time like this, you're as carefree as ever, huh… Sylvain: No, no. While it's a celebration, it's also a political gathering where rulers from various countries gather. It wouldn't hurt to think about the future, right? You can't stay uninvolved either. Felix: Well, that may be true. For now, focus on the battle at hand, Sylvain. If you die here, there won't be any millennial festival or anything. Sylvain: Oops, a valid point! Well then, for now, I'll quietly prepare for the deployment. Felix: Do that. Don't neglect your preparations and end up losing your life in some trivial place.

He wielded a sword because he was afraid of loss. Getting stronger would not fulfill him the same way a relationship could. His non-AM endings really emphasize the fact that the sword was just filling the void of a partner.

Felix: I find it easier to wield a sword than to hold a woman's hand.

But personally, I think he was the only gay character in 3H (well, other than perhaps his father). He got along well with women, but I was struck by how unromantic his paired endings with them were. He is the only man to propose to Byleth at the training grounds instead of the Goddess Tower. He spends a lot of time apart from her in their paired ending and is happiest exchanging swords instead of words when they actually do see each other. It felt more like he was replacing the loss of his brother through her than really being in love.

In his ending with Flayn, he continues to wield a sword as Dimitri's right-hand and only gives it up in favor of a quiet life on his estate when Dimitri dies. When he marries Mercedes, Bernadetta, or Dorothea, he becomes the king's right-hand and travels across Fódlan with Dimitri. He spends a lot of time away from Bernie. Dorothea has to accompany him on the battlefield to get quality time.

His ending with Leonie is not romantic and they just become drinking buddies. In his ending with Ingrid, he gives up the sword when he's injured and does not regret it. The only two female paired endings that don't mention warfare, swords, or knighthood are Annette and Lysithea. But it felt like he fell in love with singing, not Annette. And with Lysithea, she dies young and leaves behind her cake recipe.

Felix: You're not cut out to be a knight. How about you start seriously looking for a marriage partner? Ingrid: …What's that supposed to mean? Felix: Just as I said. Ingrid: I understand that you dislike things like chivalry and knightly pride. Just because of that, you keep running away from your duty as the heir of the house… You have no right to speak so high and mighty.

In Japanese Felix did tell Ingrid to go find a husband, but he used the word "結婚相手" (kekkon aite) instead of "夫" (otto) which means husband. "Kekkon aite" refers to someone whom you are seriously considering as a potential marriage partner but may not be formally engaged to or married yet. He wasn't telling her to go find the next man to offer a huge dowry and immediately get engaged.

He was saying that she would be better off dating, finding a serious partner that she loves, and eventually getting married. He did not say this in a disparaging way. He didn't want her to end up like Glenn nor did he want her to blindly follow the orders of a king who he considered bloodthirsty. He genuinely thought that being a wife would be a safer and more fulfilling lifestyle than being a knight.

Dimitri & Felix Dimitri formally succeeded to the throne of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus after his coronation, dedicating his lifetime to the governance and reform of Fódlan. Behind many of his achievements stood Felix, the Duke of Fraldarius, who sometimes acted as the king's right-hand man and at other times served as his advisor. Bound by a lifelong steadfast friendship, it is said that Felix mourned more intensely at Dimitri's passing than even the queen herself. The tale of their lives, akin to the legendary Lion King Loog and his sworn friend Kyphon, will be passed down through the ages as one of the stories that adorn the history of Fódlan.

In any case, Felix was projecting his own feelings onto Ingrid. If you pair her with Dimitri, it says she supported him as a wife and queen, but still insisted on fighting on the front lines in battle like a knight. If you pair Felix with Dimitri, it says he mourned the king's death more than the queen. Ya know, the wife. Chivalry promotes homoromantic social bonding among men.

Rodrigue had a wife and kids, but he devoted his life to a married (presumably heterosexual) man. He used his position as "sworn friend" of the king to fill the void of an actual gay relationship. He lost his reason for living when Lambert died. In this ending, Felix ends up following in his father's footsteps. I don't think that's a satisfying ending for him.

Dimitri/Felix: "彼らは生涯固い友情で結ばれ" means "They were bound by a lifelong strong friendship." This phrase emphasizes the steadfast and enduring nature of their friendship. The word "固い" means "firm" or "strong," implying a friendship that is resilient and unwavering. Sylvain/Felix: "生涯無二の友であり続けた" means "They remained lifelong inseparable friends." This phrase emphasizes the unique and unparalleled nature of their friendship. The term "無二" means "unparalleled" or "incomparable," suggesting that their bond was extraordinary and unmatched.

I would also like to compare the descriptions of friendship in the Dimitri/Felix ending to the Sylvain/Felix ending. Both phrases convey a deep sense of friendship, but they emphasize slightly different aspects. Dimitri/Felix emphasizes the enduring strength and solidity of their bond. In terms of depth, Sylvain/Felix carries a stronger sense of exclusivity and uniqueness in their friendship.

The term "無二" was also used in Ingrid's AM paired endings with Ashe and Dedue. Her arc was about belonging to herself, not a man. She wanted to go down in history as a knight, not as a wife. For that reason, her paired endings with Ashe and Dedue in AM don't specify her marital status. But the writers still wanted to suggest that she and her male partner were possibly lovers. So "無二" was chosen to emphasize their inseparable bond.

Felix & Sylvain (AM) Felix, who succeeded his deceased father Rodrigue as Duke Fraldarius, and Sylvain, who inherited the title of Margrave Gautier after his father's passing, both devoted their efforts to the restoration and prosperity of the Kingdom. Even amidst their busy days, their friendship never wavered. Felix would occasionally show up at the Gautier family's residence and insult Sylvain, and Sylvain, in turn, would visit the Fraldarius house frequently, solely to tease Felix. Throughout their lives, they remained inseparable friends, and there is even an anecdote that they coincidentally passed away on the same day.

In this ending, both men inherit their fathers' titles, but neither of them is forced to fulfill their unwanted patriarchal duty. Their bond is characterized by mutual devotion, not chivalry or bloodline. Their relationship effectively goes back to how it was when they were kids. Sylvain is free to go where he wants and spends his life with someone he loves, not just someone he can have Crest babies with. While he becomes a famous cheater in his solo ending, and a renowned lord in his others, here historians remember him most for his closeness with Felix.

Like Rodrigue, Felix wished to live and die alongside another man. When paired with most of his wives, he becomes the king's right-hand, a role that would require him to wield a sword and travel. But not in this ending. He stays in Fraldarius territory so he can be available for frequent surprise visits. Sylvain was his true purpose in life, and neither can live without the other. And to me, that is the ideal ending to both of their character arcs. The Shield of Faerghus died like a true knight. "The Shield's Successor" died like a true wife.

#fire emblem #fire emblem three houses #fe3h #sylvain jose gautier #felix hugo fraldarius #sylvix #fe3h meta #this is my otp from 3h #this meta is a doozy and looong #sorry i just had a lot of thoughts about them #and i really wanted to delve into their psychology #because they are such fascinating characters

[tygertyger413]

Sorry but I can't get over this

I know plenty of people have joked about this already, but Sylvain just...looks almost nothing like his dad???

(Using Sylvain's Hopes portrait to account for any changes in artists/art style)

Like, just by comparing these two pictures I can list so many differences:

Sylvain has a slight widow's peak (more obvious with his Houses post-TS portraits) and Matthias doesn't

Sylvain has a more heart-shaped face & pointier chin compared to Matthias's square head & jaw

Matthias's nose is taller and rounder (with visible nostrils) compared to Sylvain's anime nose

Sylvain's hair is a more vibrant orange-red compared to Matthias's darker red

Matthias's tall cheekbones

Sylvain having slightly thinner eyebrows (unless he just thins them out with tweezers/scissors)

Matthias having a pronounced brow ridge and a worry line between his eyebrows deeper than the chasm Byleth falls into right before the Houses timeskip

Sylvain's ears are less...veiny (?) compared to his dad's? Unless that's just like, an art style thing.

Maybe some of it could be explained by Matthias being 20+ years older than Sylvain, but not all of it. Especially when you compare Matthias to his other son, Miklan:

Same head shape, same jawline, same brow ridge, near-identical ears... Probably similar noses too, though it's a bit hard to tell with the different angles (Miklan's face is turned slightly more to the side compared to his dad's frontal view). Like it's obvious that Miklan inherited more of Matthias's physical traits.

But you know what physical traits all three Gautiers share?

Hair curliness

All three of them share red hair that curls upwards at the ends, with a few notable cowlicks in the middle of their heads that stand almost perfectly straight up. They also have bangs on both sides of their faces that curl inward. (It's harder to see with Matthias since the hair on the side of his head is cut super short, but still visible on the top of his head where his hair is longer.

2. They have the same fucking eyes.

Like, look at this:

Not only do they have the same eye color (or nearly the same color, in Matthias's case), they also have the same droopy eye shape.

AKA Sylvain's infamous sad doe eyes? He inherited them from Matthias.

Like can you imagine Matthias (or Miklan, for that matter) giving you this look?

So now that I've cursed you all with that mental image, I just want to say one last thing:

Since Sylvain barely resembles his dad, logically we would assume that he inherited most of his facial features from his mom. Knowing this, we can use Sylvain's features to approximate his mother's: a heart-shaped face, widow's peak, small pointed nose, and probably light-haired (so the red color Sylvain inherited from his dad would more prominent than it would be in darker hair). Might be useful info for anyone who wants to create fan designs for Mama Gautier.

Also Sylvain's mom must be super hot in order to balance out his dad's ugliness, lol.

#fe3h #few3h #sylvain jose gautier #matthias raoul gautier #miklan anschutz gautier #fe3h analytical #fe3h meta #my post #long post #this would not leave my head until I made this post so now you all have to live with this knowledge too #Sylvain really lucked out in inheriting few of his dad's looks #but I am mad that Sylvain's eyes - one of his best traits imo - came from Matthias of all people

[untitledgoosegay]

re: dimidue, my writing, & fic

it's important to me that dedue also gets to be weird and traumatized and difficult; it's important to me that dedue gets to be supported by dimitri as much as dimitri gets support from dedue

dedue's PTSD manifests very differently from dimitri's, whose trauma and mental illness are very obvious and externalized, but while it may be less obtrusive, "subtler" internalized mental illness is no less difficult to navigate

dedue gets passive-aggressive; he isolates himself and snaps [in the most plausibly-neutral manner possible] at attempts to draw him out; he's prone to insecurity, reticence, and self-abnegation, and to sink into dissociative apathy; he overextends himself trying to care for others as a coping mechanism that gets worse the worse he's doing; he denies that he's anything but fine even as it's increasingly obvious that he absolutely isn't, & to some extent even believes himself

unlike dimitri, who for all his issues is very self-aware about what he's experiencing and why (at least to the extent that he understands it), dedue is more inclined to denial and avoidance; he's opaque even to himself (dimitri's emotional intelligence complements him, in this respect)

dedue is in some ways even more prone to black and white moral thinking than dimitri -- when he's not actively in the midst of an episode, dimitri is constantly conflicted over the morality of his actions. he knows how he gets when his PTSD triggers, and it terrifies him, and he hates himself for it. he tears himself to pieces over it to the point of self-destruction and immobility. meanwhile dedue isn't nearly so passive or unquestioning in his judgment as some people (felix) accuse him of; he wouldn't accept or enable the murder of civilians, but i do think there's an extent to which he sees dimitri going Ape Shitt on the battlefield and goes "yep :) there he is, the man i love :)" the berserker rage worries him to the extent that it affects dimitri, but it doesn't really concern him in its own right. which on the one hand is often something dimitri needs -- someone to affirm, hey, this part of you comes from a good place, it doesn't frighten me, be kind to it instead of beating it/yourself with a stick -- but on the other hand ... mmmmm it is probably not normal for a person to be so blasé about barehanded dismemberment

dedue is a strong stabilizing & affirming influence on dimitri, but by the same token dimitri is a strong activating & encouraging influence on dedue; they are good for each other

#bird original #dimidue #fe3h dedue #dedue molinaro #fe3h meta #please. please. please. this man is SO weird #he just hides it behind a flat affect and more importantly by standing next to dimitri who is much more visibly off his shits #fic likes to position dimitri as the one getting support and encouragement from dedue & that DOES happen #but their support chain is 80% dimitri BEGGING dedue to accept emotional support & open up to him (like he used to) #& [gestures] @ fandom focusing on an indigenous/Black-coded man caring for & supporting his white partner #rather than vice versa when said moc has his own truckload of shit to deal with #tonight is the night for fe3h meta monologuing i guess

[asha-mage]

🌶️ whats the Hot Take on fire emblem or ffxiv!!

Oh boy. I'll go with Fire Emblem since I've played it more recently. Let me just put on this metaphorical beekeepers suit before I take a swing at this particular hornet's nest.

*zips*

Azure Moon is, inherently, a tragedy, and of the various endings, the one that is the bleakest for the over all future of Fodlan. On a smaller scale level, all the characters that we personally care about are going to be fine by the end of Azure Moon (presuming you where playing on casual and/or didn't let your favs die in the war). On a macro scale, none of the cycles that lead things to fall apart in the first place are fundamentally changed in any way. The systems that lead to the misery/issues of most of the cast are still in place.

Byleth has replaced Rhea as Archbishop, and thus as the semi-divine shadow ruler of Fodlan, and Dimitri has become Wilhelm 2.0- the mortal companion and figure head of said semi-divine shadow ruler, who unites all of Fodlan beneath the control of the Kingdom and Church. The Agarthans meanwhile remain unexposed and plotting in secret. Their's no hint that the Church is going to reform and stop it's policy of censoring and altering history to suit it's political agenda, or meddling in the affairs of the governments of Fodlan at whim or need. And their is really no reason to believe that in another few hundred years the cycle wont repeat itself as the pressure from all the cracks and flaws in the system once again becomes unbearable.

It's telling to me that Edelgard in Verdant Wind more or less accepts her fate when Claude and Byleth have her cornered. She tells them outright that the only way forward is to unite all of Fodlan and sieze the future, and they can only do that if they kill her. But in Azure Moon she resists past the point of all reason, becoming the Hegemon in her efforts to defeat Byleth and Dimitri, and using her last breath to try and cut Dimitri down with her dagger. And that's because deep down, she knows that Dimitri lacks the will and the courage to break the cycle. Claude, is a reformer, a visionary who wants a better future and wont stop until he has the truth. Dimitri even after everything he's been through is still a servant of the past, and still bound by it. So she refuses to yield to the bitter end, to give up her dream of a better future no matter what.

#FE3h #FE3h Meta #edelgard von hresvelg #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd #claude von reigan #Byleth Eisner #Azure Moon #Note I am NOT being a hater I genuinely love Azure moon because of this reason #the shakespearen tragedy of it all is *chef kiss* #The Spicy Take Zone #warning to all those thinking of clowning on this post: I WILL be blocking anyone that decides to engage in fanwank

[burr-ell]

I've seen the claim that Claude is hostile towards religion and it's like. Where? Him not liking Rhea before the end of his route doesn't erase all of the times he straight up says religion is very important or how he never degrades religious people for their religion. Sometimes I wonder where this perception of Claude came from because he's honestly really chill with this stuff?

(I mean, he's like this outside of the shitshow that is Hopes anyway lmao)

claude references gods of fate and fortune! he outright says one of the reasons byleth can lead fodlan is that she's the successor rhea appointed! the only time i can think of claude being flippant about religion is when he needles ignatz about having a lowkey crush on the goddess but his tone wasn't actively malicious or anything, just being kind of a dick, probably without meaning to. any other time he talks to the believers in fodlan's goddess, he isn't disrespectful; just talking about his perspective.

(claude and leonie's support chain is super underrated imo)

anyway claude isn't some kind of edgy reddit atheist and i really wish that take would Just Not lol it's very tiresome

#byleth holding up her husband: this is my emotional support agnostic #rhea: ok i will make an exception because he looks very polite #fe3h meta #fe3h #claude von riegan #asks #claude is the 'doesn't hate the church but does mistrust rhea' character people keep claiming edelgard is and thats that on that #tbh in general whenever i hear people talk about what they love about edelgard it's like dude. you dont love edelgard you love claude lol

[featherquillpen]

All That is Beautiful: a FE3H meta

I have been watching Kita Nash's excellent stream of the Scarlet Blaze route in Three Hopes, and there was a support conversation that got me thinking about beauty, goodness, and body image in Fódlan.

The Ferdinand and Bernadetta support in Three Hopes is very funny and cute. Ferdie challenges Bernie to a plant collecting contest, and like the most precious little fool in the world, he collects "edible plants" based purely on whether they look pretty.

This is, of course, extremely silly. But if you think about it, Ferdinand's belief that any plant that is beautiful must also be good actually follows directly from what he would believe as a devout follower of the Church of Seiros. There is a line in the Book of Seiros that reads as follows in the English edition:

"The goddess cares for and protects all that is beautiful in this world."

The excellent Teaspoon Translations gives us this direct translation of the Japanese edition:

"The Lord considers all beautiful things to be good."

If Ferdinand truly believes in this teaching, then it would actually follow that because the plants are beautiful, they must be good. And then I thought, what are the other implications of this belief? How does this apply to people, rather than plants?

It is implied that both Edelgard and Hubert consider themselves to be ugly. They both keep themselves completely covered below the neck at all times. Even in her "Summer Edelgard" art, unlike all the other FE girls, she wears a one-piece bathing suit, not a bikini. In Fire Emblem Heroes, Edelgard refers to her power as "hideous strength." In his support chain with Bernadetta, Hubert says that he knows his appearance is frightening, and if you choose him as the competitor for the White Heron Cup, he describes the sight of himself dancing as "grotesque." As former devout believers in the Church who have now turned against it, they likely believe that because they have forsaken the Goddess's protection and care, they have forsaken their beauty, as well.

If the Goddess cares for and protects everything that is beautiful, then if you stop being beautiful, what happens to the Goddess's care and protection? Likely many Fódlaners raised in the Church of Seiros live with the fear that if they lose their beauty, they will lose the Goddess's favor. Manuela, a devout believer, is preoccupied with the supposed loss of her beauty. Ferdinand says at teatime that he grooms his eyebrows every day. Many of the supports among female characters (Hilda/Lysithea and Dorothea/Ingrid come to mind) are about makeup and the quest to look pretty. Of course, some of this has to do with the importance of marriage for the livelihood of women in Fódlan, but even characters like Lysithea and Annette who don't have marriage on their minds are pulled into the obsession with beauty.

In conclusion, I think body image issues and an unhealthy obsession with appearances are rampant in Fódlan because of this particular teaching from the Church, reflected in people like Edelgard and Hubert who think they must be ugly because they have turned away from the goddess, and in people who want to earn the goddess's favor by being as beautiful as they can.

(Naturally, all of the beautiful plants that Ferdie picked were poisonous.)

#fe3h #few3h #fe3h meta

[lilias42]

Chose promise, chose due : critique détaillée de la scène "Le Bandit" Three Nopes

Bon ! Comme je l'avais dis dans un précédent billet, j'ai passé en revue toute la scène "Le Bandit" (où on apprend que Dimitri a recruté Miklan dans l'armée du Royaume et la réaction de Félix surtout, Ingrid un peu, et Sylvain passe en coup de vent), pour critiquer tout ce qu'il ne va pas dedans, et en essayant de réfléchir un peu à ce que les auteurs ont tenté de faire quand ils l'ont écrit. A la réflexion - et même si ça n'engage que moi, je ne suis pas dans sa tête -, je ne pense pas qu'ils avaient de "mauvaises intentions" en écrivant cette route, ils n'ont pas voulu écrire quelque chose de mauvais pour juste massacrer tous les personnages présents dans la scène, ou alors, qu'il n'en avait juste rien à cirer d'écrire un mauvais scénario. L'auteur de cette route semblait le moins branquignole des trois vu qu'il s'intéressait vraiment à l'histoire d'après les interviews, et en grattant un peu, je pense qu'il y a une logique dans les différents choix scénaristiques. ça ne veut pas dire que c'est bien fait mais, j'ai l'impression que l'auteur a tenté quelque chose, qu'il s'est méchamment planté et que ce qu'il a écrit a des implications très douteuses car, il n'a soit pas assez réfléchit, soit a des biais qui transparaissent dans ses écrits, soit qu'il s'est planté dans ce script pour des raisons inconnues et que je ne peux pas connaitre.

C'est une conclusion que je tire en grattant la scène pour essayer de comprendre ce bazar alors, c'est un peu comme un prof devant la copie d'un élève qui a pondu énorme absurdité : on réfléchit à ce qu'il a pu tenté de faire ou ce qui lui est passé par la tête pour croire que c'était la bonne réponse. C'est un constat et une tentative d'explication de ce qui a bien pu se passer pour qu'une telle scène arrive et pourquoi on a eu une telle scène. Je ne prétend pas détenir la vérité absolue, je livre juste mon ressenti et ma manière de voir et d'interpréter les choses. Ce sera alors sans doute très subjectif, comme toutes les critiques du monde, même si je m'appuie le plus possible sur les lignes du jeu et que j'argumenterai mon point de vue.

Cette intro a également été rédigé à froid, après avoir fini d'écrire la critique qui sera surement plus sur le vif et sanguine, avec quelques passages où le ton est plus exagéré afin de tenter de la rendre plus dynamique / divertissante à lire, tout en retranscrivant mon état d'esprit quand j'ai lu les lignes de la scène.

On est bon ? Alors, la suite est sous la coupe. On va suivre le plus possible la scène dans l'ordre et aller ligne par ligne car oui, y a à redire sur chaque ligne, même si je peux partir plus en avant pour rendre la scène plus clair pour ceux qui lise la critique sans le contexte. Bonne lecture :

On commence déjà sur les chapeau de roues ! Dimitri décide donc d'engager un bandit de grand chemin car, il manque de généraux, et il justifie son choix de prendre Miklan en disant qu'il sait que Miklan est compétent car, Matthias lui a tout appris... ça commence déjà très mal (et j'ai sauté quelques lignes mais, on va y revenir plus tard). Dimitri, le prince qui veut donner plus de pouvoir au peuple et aux roturiers, vient de faire monter un noble déchu qu'il sait être dangereux (Ingrid confirme dans l'exploration de ce chapitre qu'ils voyaient souvent Sylvain blessé quand ils étaient enfants et qu'elle était consciente qu'il mentait pour ne pas dire que c’était Miklan qui le battait, que même petite, elle savait que ce n’était pas juste des accident donc, Dimitri doit le savoir aussi) par ce qu'il a reçu une éducation noble... d'accord, qui êtes-vous et qu'avez-vous fait du vrai Dimitri ? (attendez-vous à ce que je la dise souvent celle-là…) Le vrai n'aurait jamais laissé un type pareil, un fratricide potentiel, monter aussi haut et ne pas recevoir de sanction pour ses crimes. Il vient juste de passer l'éponge dessus car "il est noble donc compétent deuh !"

De plus, à quel point c'est la dèche dans le Royaume si des vétérans roturiers de l'armée ne peuvent pas juste monter en grade et devenir généraux ? Ils sont tous incompétents ? C'est comme dans l'armée impériale, faut cacher les légumes dans la nourriture pour qu'ils les mangent parce que SB est une énorme farce qui ne s'assume pas ? (j'ai dit qu'AG essayait de faire des efforts et se plantait, pas que le reste du jeu n'était pas complètement débiles) ça n'a aucun sens que dans la meilleure armée de Fodlan, il n'y ait pas des roturiers qui puissent monter ! Et si vous me dites que c'est parce que des postes sont réservés aux nobles, je répondrais que Dimitri peut casser ça vu qu'il est littéralement le roi et que dans une situation pareille, osef du protocole, on prend les gens les plus aptes à faire survivre tout le monde sans se faire envahir !

Surtout que Dimitri l'a déjà fait dans cette histoire : à son arrivée sur le trône, il a créé sa propre armée privée dirigé par Shez (un roturier donc, un roturier aux supers pouvoirs mais un roturier quand même) car, il pensait que les idées nauséabondes de Rufus avaient contaminé les chevaliers de l'armée régulière qui sont corrompus alors, il veut faire le ménage dans les rangs. Donc, en deux ans, je pense qu'il a eu le temps de dégager les éléments problématiques, ainsi que repérer les bons soldats de cette fameuse milice qui est surtout composée de roturiers alors, il pourrait les faire monter eux au lieu de chercher un type aussi pourri que les chevaliers de son oncle, surtout qu'il a déjà nommer un roturier général avec Shez, tout en précisant qu'il a choisi Shez car, il gagnera plus facilement la confiance de ses nouveaux soldats car, il est un roturier tout comme eux et connait leur difficulté contrairement à un noble déconnecté. Donc, pourquoi il ne recommence pas ? Surtout qu'il doit avoir plus d'aplomb et d'influence que juste après son coup d'Etat.

Avec ça, Miklan dit dès sa première ligne de texte qu'il fait tout ça "uniquement là pour l'argent" (citation du texte) alors, t'es sûr qu'il est de confiance Dimitri ? T'as pas peur que ton « super général trop bien formé par Matthias » ne vous tourne pas le dos pour rejoindre Sailor fuku Delagarde qui lui dit « emblème = caca et tu as eu trop raison de tenter de tuer ton frère, j'aurais fait pareil à ta place UwU » et Hubert derrière qui lui propose un plus gros chèque que Dimitri ? T'es sûr que c'est pas mieux qu'un soldat roturier de confiance ? (bon, vous me direz, il fait confiance à Shez dans cette histoire mais, au moins, Shez a fait des choses pour gagner sa confiance et c'est la seule route où il a une ou deux neurones actives et où il sort de son rôle de mercenaire)

Et attend… quoi ? ça fait deux ans que tu as décidé ça avec Matthias Dimitri ? Donc… pile après le coup d’Etat à Fhirdiad contre Rufus (tu le précises même), alors que le Royaume ressort de plus de quatre ans de tyrannie avec Rufus qui gère rien, il y a eu le massacre des duscuriens qui a dû couter cher, tout comme le voyage en lui-même, une instabilité constante qui n’aide pas à lever les impôts, et le Royaume est défini par le fait d’être pauvre au point qu’ils n’ont pas les moyens de laisser un seul port qui n’est pas gelé aux srengs et l’enjeu même de leur conflit est l’accès à des ressources rares dans les deux camps (ce qui est une bonne précision apporté par Nopes, faut l’avouer)… et vous me sortez qu’il y a eu assez de thune pour poursuivre un seul gars dans tout le nord pour le faire devenir général ? Et bé, j’espère que Gustave en a profité pour arrêter tous les brigands qu’il a croisé ou confondu avec la bande de Miklan, ça aura au moins servi à quelque chose de cramer autant d’argent pour ça… et s’ils l’ont attrapé rapidement (vu que le moment de sa capture n'est pas clair), il doit être ultra discret le Miklan pour que personne n’ait eu vent de sa présence, dont Félix qui doit être au courant de beaucoup de choses en tant que duc de Fraldarius.

Car oui, y a juste Matthias et Gustave qui sont au courant ! Bon bah déjà favoritisme power, Matthias a juste arrangé la place pour son fiston préféré et Gustave est juste un gentil toutou obéissant à la famille royale (y a qu’à l’entendre dire que Rufus ne devrait pas être condamné publiquement comme les autres pour ses crimes car, c’est la famille royale, ce type est fanatique de la famille royale à ce point !). Tu m'étonnes que Félix soit énervé, lui disent de ne pas rentrer dans les détails de son "recrutement" (surement pour ne pas vomir) pour expliquer son choix car bon, c'est ça le fond du problème en fait, et qu'il ne réponde rien quand Dimitri dit en substance "fort parce que fiston de Matthias UwU" tellement l’échange est lunaire ! C'est le seul avec des neurones ici ! (même si soyons réaliste, si Félix ne dit rien, c’est surement pour signifier qu’il n’a rien à répondre à Dimitri sur ce qu’il vient de dire : Miklan est le mieux qualifié pour diriger car son papa noble lui a appris à être un bon général [sous entendant au passage que ses propres hommes de confiance roturiers au sein de l’armée n’en sont pas capable... car ils n’ont pas les techniques du margrave Gautier… népotisme et favoritisme familial power…])

Ensuite, Dimitri sort tout un discours sur les "emblèmes = mal" alors que dans un chapitre avant ça, il dit que le pouvoir est un outil qui est bon ou mauvais selon ce qu'on en fait. Son discours s'applique aux emblèmes vu qu'il utilise et la force qu'il lui donne comme exemple. Le jeu n'est même pas cohérent avec lui-même... Et je sais, il parle du fait que les emblèmes ont trop d'importance, ce qui posera un problème pour protéger le Royaume car ils se raréfient et que cela laisserait le pays sans défense si tous leurs porteurs mourraient mais, un emblème ne fait pas d'une personne une armée à elle toute seule. C'est pour ça qu'ils ont une armée et que les soldats roturiers se sont encore une fois battus pour protéger le Royaume, il n'y a pas que des seigneurs à emblème dans l'armée (genre, Ashe et Dedue entre autres exemples évidents). Dimitri peut être dévastateur avec son emblème pendant ses 5 ans d’errance mais d’un, c’est le seul porteur d'emblème à avoir une super force de ce qu’on en sait, et de deux, quand il tente d’affronter l’armée impériale de front dans VW alors qu’il n’a pas les forces suffisantes (que ce soit sur le plan numéraire ou tactique), il se fait massacrer à coups de lances. Paye ton armée en un seul homme.

Le jeu est souvent coincé vu qu'il doit tout faire pour dire que les emblèmes (et souvent les nabatéens au passage car les victimes sont responsables du mal qu’on leur fait évidemment mais, on va y revenir) sont le mal et la source de tous les problèmes histoire de dorloter les pleurnicheries des personnages (et en particulier celles de Delagarde) mais, sans se rendre compte que les problèmes existeraient quand même sans les emblèmes mais là, ce discours sur les "emblème = mal" est aussi coincé par le gameplay du jeu : si les emblèmes étaient si puissantes que ça, les unités à emblème seraient complètement pétées et les joueurs n'utiliseraient qu'elles pour gagner facilement en laissant les autres de côté alors, en l'état, le gameplay dit que les emblèmes et les Reliques ne sont pas assez puissants / suffisant pour vaincre des armées à elle toutes seules car sinon, Dimitri aurait déjà régler ça en deux temps trois mouvements, surtout que les porteurs d'emblème ne peuvent pas être partout à la fois, ils ne sont clairement pas assez nombreux pour tenir chaque point stratégique de Fodlan.

Qu'on fasse une forme de magie surpuissante qui transforme vraiment une personne en armée à elle toute seule, pourquoi pas, cela peut être une super idée (je l’ai fait moi-même avec ma sorcellerie) mais, en tant qu'unité de jeu vidéo, ça colle mal avec le fait qu'il ne faut pas que le joueur roule sur le jeu avec un God Mod ou alors, c’est un élément qui correspond plus à un boss très dur à battre et où il faut trouver la faille ou la bonne stratégie... donc, ça sonne très creux et hypocrite comme justification, surtout dans la bouche de Dimitri qui ne nous a pas habitué à ce genre de discours.

De plus, on a le coup des emblèmes qui se raréfie et donc, on a besoin de personnes sans emblème compétentes... bon, déjà, pourquoi ils se raréfies ? ça fait plus de mille ans, doit plus rester grand-chose du sang de base depuis quelques générations maintenant et de mémoire, Ingrid dit à Shez à un moment que toutes les familles nobles ont un peu de sang à emblème à force de se marier les uns aux autres dans Nopes (c'est dans leur soutien, et Ingrid dit même que maintenant, on est plus trop regardant sur l'emblème qu'ont les gamins tellement c'est mélangé, sauf quand il y a une Relique dans la famille... mais c'est pas le sujet)… et son propre emblème avait disparu pendant quelques générations avant de réapparaitre dans son sang alors, qui nous dit que ce n’est pas une période avant que les emblèmes ne reviennent ? Un autre trou dans le scénario qui ressemble à un emmental on va dire mais, on a encore le trou dans le barrage de Granjean de "pourquoi pas donner des responsabilités aux roturiers ?!" ça règlerait tous les problèmes de ce passage et surtout, ça éviterait d’absoudre complètement un type comme Miklan alors que sa seule place, c’est en prison à purger sa peine ou au bout d’une corde ! Pas d’avoir une rédemption gratuite !

D’ailleurs, petite cerise sur le gâteau : Dimitri fait sa petite démonstration à Félix, soit un des deux personnages avec Catherine à avoir un emblème majeur naturellement, et également un des deux personnages avec elle qui ne se plaint jamais de son emblème, il dit toujours que la force vient en fait de l'entrainement, les deux travaillant durs pour devenir fort et ayant un rapport sain vis à vis de leur emblème respectif (et Catherine est même assez prudente avec sa Relique et ne l'utilise qu'en cas d'urgence, même si c'est celle de sa famille). Laissez-moi croire que ce coup-là est une fulgurance des créateurs qui savent que tout le discours sur les emblèmes de Delagarde et le faux-Claude de Nopes (et malheureusement Dimitri ici) est juste un cache-misère et un bouc émissaire pour oublier les vraies causes des problèmes.

De plus, c'est fameux d'entendre Dimitri dire à son ami d'enfance à emblème majeur, qu'il sait être un accro à l'entrainement pour devenir fort et protéger ses proches "oui mais, tu sais, si on était fort, c'est juste parce qu'on avait les emblèmes et les Reliques dans nos rangs quand le sang était encore assez concentré – tu sais, comme chez toi vu que tu as un emblème majeur –, pas parce qu'on a une bonne armée, une bonne cohésion de groupe et un entrainement solide, c'est juste grâce au pouvoir que les généraux (dont toi) ont dans le sang, c'est juste normal que tu sois fort avec un emblème, t'es juste cheaté grâce à ton sang". Oui Félix, tu as le droit de le défoncer et d'arracher son masque à cet agarthan, défoule-toi ! Surtout que le jeu t’oblige à dire « oui, c’est vrai » alors que Dimitri vient de dire n’importe quoi mais heureusement, tu as eu le droit de rappeler à Dimitri que ton problème n’est pas tant de faire monter des sans emblèmes (car Nopes arrive à se souvenir que toi, tu t’en fiches, ce qui compte, c’est les vraies compétences des gens qui se développent grâce à leur travail acharné) mais, de propulser un criminel aussi dangereux comme général !

Ensuite, Ingrid et Félix font remarquer que leurs soldats ne vont surement pas accepté d'obéir à un ancien brigand aussi dangereux (surtout qu’Ingrid dit que tout le monde est au courant de l’histoire de Miklan), et très bon point pour eux : si les hommes ne respectent pas leur général, il y a plus de chance qu'ils l'abandonnent face à l'ennemi ou s'en débarrassent eux-mêmes car juste, c'est connu que c'est un monstre et encore une fois, c'est des roturiers, c'était sur eux que les attaques de Miklan tombaient. Miklan a beau dire que ses hommes sont juste des hommes de mains de Dimitri qui surveillent le moindre de ses faits et gestes et obéissent plus au roi qu’à lui, les autres soldats, la masse qui compose la grande partie de l’armée qui n’a pas eu la chance de naitre fils ainé de margrave, apprennent que Miklan a eu une telle promotion grâce à son père et le roi malgré tous ses crimes, et que ce n'est pas l'un d'entre eux qui a eu le droit de monter en grade (et ça va se savoir vu qu'il combat avec eux, tout se sait dans un camp militaire), je vous parie une pièce que ça va finir en mutinerie pour le dégager, voir le tuer histoire de faire justice eux-mêmes, encore plus vu le caractère de chien de Miklan, il va juste se faire haïr en deux minutes (et tu vas dire bonjours aux mutineries aussi Dimitri car, personne ne croira jamais qu’il n’y a pas eu de favoritisme dans sa nomination vu que c’est le fils de Matthias Gautier, surtout si ce n’est pas à cause d’une menace de Matthias que son fils est là où il est, bon courage pour les calmer).

Merci Félix de demander à Sylvain ce qu'il en pense ! Car bon, y a Félix qui parle quand le jeu l’y autorise, y a Dimitri qui est complètement torché avec la vinasse de Delagarde, Ingrid qui cherche où elle a mis ses dents vu qu’elle a perdu tout son mordant, Miklan qui crache des horreurs mais Sylvain, il n’a encore rien dit (surtout qu’on dirait qu’il pourrait ne rien dire si un évènement a ou n’a pas lieu d’après le datamine). C'est quand même le principal concerné alors, ce serait bien d’avoir son avis et vu que même s’il le comprenait dans 3h (parce que traumatisme dû à des violences domestiques), il disait aussi que c’était le pire être humain qu’il connaissait depuis l'ellipse et directement le chapitre où on allait l'arrêter à la tour alors… et zut… le conditionnement de Sylvain à penser qu'il ne mérite rien parce qu'il a un emblème revient au galop... bon, déjà, si son père a participé aux négociations, il va pas lui dire non vu que comme je l'ai dit dans le précédent billet qui a mené à celui-là, il doit savoir que son père n'aime que Miklan et l'a eu par obligation, et même s'il a la meilleure relation du monde avec Dimitri qui respectera surement son refus, avec Matthias juste à côté (et peut-être Gustave), ça aide encore moins pour dire « euh… non, je veux pas que mon meurtrier qui m’a battu toute mon enfance soit absout comme ça de ses crimes ». J’aurais bien aimé voir cette discussion, genre en flashback ou autre pour qu’on voie pourquoi Sylvain a accepté au lieu de l’expédier en disant "Sylvain a déjà tout dit ce qu'il avait à dire à Dimitri... hors champ..." tient…

En plus, c'est Sylvain (la VICTIME DE MIKLAN) qui s'écrase et s'excuse pratiquement d'être face à son frère ! Je sais que c'est censé être une taquinerie ou une blague mais, je trouve ça de très mauvais gout quand c'est dit face à celui qui a tenté de le tuer deux fois. C'est Miklan qui devrait lui demander pardon pour tout ce qu'il a fait ! Pas s'en tirer avec juste un soupir agacé et un "tout le monde sait à quoi s'en tenir..." ! C'est juste trop rapide et on a besoin d'une explication !

Ensuite… pitié qu’on en finisse… merci Félix d’être la bouffée d’air frais dans ce tas d’immondice avec ta pique sur « tous les moyens nécessaires » histoire de bien rappeler à Dimitri (enfin, à l’agarthan qui l’a remplacé) que ce qu’il fait est horrible et qu’il est juste en train de réhabiliter un ancien criminel en lui donnant les moyens de continuer à exercer son sadisme et sa cruauté. Car, franchement, qui pense ici que Miklan va arrêter d’aimer le sang et faire souffrir les autres, surtout une fois dans une position de pouvoir où il pourra diriger des gens qui devront lui obéir car c’est leur général ? Pas moi. Le tout en disant qu’il est conscient que Miklan a commis des atrocités quand il était brigand (non Dimitri, pas que pendant sa période de banditisme, souviens toi de quand Sylvain revenait de chez lui blessé de partout et tombait dans les escaliers toutes les deux minutes, Miklan a toujours été un monstre) Surtout que Dimitri reconnait que son action est stupide et qu’il mérite d’être critiquer pour ça ! Alors pourquoi le jeu ne laisse pas les autres personnages (dont Félix, notre sauveur à tous) le critiquer avec de VRAIS arguments ! C’est pas comme s’il n’en avait pas ! C’est pas vrai ! Nopes, c’est pas une enfilade de petites et grandes actions qui mène à une conclusion logique et en accord avec les personnages ! C’est qu’ils ont la conclusion et mettent tous et n’importe quoi pour justifier pourquoi il arrive là-bas ! Peu importe si c’est incohérent ! (une des raisons pour lesquelles j'ai un peu envie de croire à un scénario raté par incompétence plutôt qu'une vraie envie de faire les choses mal, c'est une erreur de scénariste débutant ce genre d'erreur où tu vas directement à la conclusion plutôt que de décrire le chemin pour arriver à la conclusion de manière satisfaisante).

« Pourtant, je ne peux pas m'empêcher de me demander dans quelle mesure sa vie aurait été différente, moins tourmentée, s'il avait possédé un emblème. » Dimitri, pose le vin rouge de Delagarde, l’alcool, ça ne te réussit pas ! Miklan aurait eu un emblème, un de tes meilleurs amis d’enfance, un type qui t’a toujours soutenu, a toujours été là pour toi, une des seules personnes qui te croit quand tu disais que les duscuriens n’étaient pas coupables du massacre où tu as failli mourir, un type très fidèle à ta cause qui a toujours pris soin de toi, n'existerait tout simplement pas. Sylvain n’existe que parce que son père avait besoin d’un enfant à emblème et merci à la Déesse, il n’a fallu qu’une tentative aboutit pour qu’il ait le résultat qu’il voulait, j’ose à peine imaginer le sort de potentiels gamins sans emblème qui aurait pu avoir entre Miklan et Sylvain… Si Miklan avait eu un emblème, il aurait eu un autre frère ou sœur de sa mère si elle avait survécu (comme c'était en route pour le faire vu que ça rajoute du pathos au male pain de Matthias de tuer son grand amour enceinte de lui, soit au moment où elle est le plus vulnérable) ou alors, il serait resté fils unique à sa mort avec Matthias qui le pourrit gâte et lui passe tout.

Même en étant le favori de son père, il voulait encore plus, jusqu’au point de vouloir tuer son frère pour avoir le peu que Sylvain avait. Et ne me faites pas croire que ce type aurait pu être un bon margrave vu comment il se comporte et son attitude. Les habitants de Gautier ont dû remercier la Déesse le jour où ils ont su qu'ils n'allaient pas se coltiner Miklan à vie !

Emblème ou pas, on s’en tape, c’est pas important, on s’en cogne complètement. Ça n’aurait pas empêcher Miklan d'être un homme violent qui fait du mal aux autres pour avoir ce qu’il veut. Ça n’aurait pas changé qu’il est tellement envieux et jaloux que si quelqu’un a ce qu’il veut, il préfère le tabasser à mort pour récupérer ce qu’il veut, plutôt que de travailler pour obtenir ce qu’il convoite. Ça n’aurait pas empêcher qu’il n’arrive pas à se satisfaire de ce qu’il a déjà. C’est le fils ainé du margrave Gautier, une des plus grandes familles du Royaume et des plus puissantes, le tout en étant le chouchou de son père. Avec Sylvain dans l’équation, Miklan avait un ticket doré pour une vie tranquille, sans responsabilité en vivant de sa rente et aux crochets des citoyens de Gautier. Sans Sylvain dans l’équation, il l’avait toujours mais, il aurait dû bosser un peu de temps en temps et encore, il pourrait désigner des hommes de confiance pour gérer son domaine. Tout ce que ça change qu’il n’ait pas d’emblème quand Sylvain est là, c’est que s’il voulait des responsabilités et l’attention de tous, il aurait dû se bouger pour son fief et travailler pour mériter ce respect en devenant un grand guerrier, un bon administrateur, quelqu’un de bienveillant qui aide les pauvres, un érudit qui trouve des solutions aux problèmes de sa marche, un diplomate pour résoudre le conflit avec Sreng et éviter que quelqu’un d’autres ne perdent un proche comme lui à cause des raids… mais non, il a préféré juste tuer Sylvain car, c’était moins fatiguant que de bosser et parce qu’il voulait pas un peu de pouvoir, il voulait TOUT le pouvoir. L’emblème ne changera rien, il est juste bourré de défaut et n’a jamais travaillé dessus ! Avoir un emblème ou non n’y changera rien s’il ne fait pas l’effort de devenir meilleur !

Ensuite… qu’est-ce qu’il raconte le Dimitri bourré juste après cette tirade pareille piquée au scripte de Delagarde…

« Tout comme l'oncle que j'ai assassiné. »

…

… … …

Tout comme… l’oncle… qu’il a… assassiné…

…

MAIS BORDEL !!!

C’est quoi cette réplique ?! D’où Dimitri pardonne aussi facilement à son oncle, un des instigateurs de Duscur qui a massacré (ou au moins laissé massacrer vu qu'il était le régent) le peuple de Dedue qui est une des personnes qu’il aime le plus au monde et le commanditaire de l’assassinat de son père Lambert - et qui a tenté de tuer Dimitri aussi et le déshumanise également à cause de son emblème au passage -, en disant « s’il avait eu l’emblème, il aurait été moins méchant… :’( »

Car souvenez-vous les amis ! L’héritage par primogéniture, c’est bien mieux et bien moins injuste que l’emblème, on risque moins de tomber sur un c*nnard qui abusera de son pouvoir de son pouvoir comme ça ou un incompétent ! S’il est né en premier, il est forcément mieux que les autres ! Même quand on a vu dans Nopes et 3h que Rufus est juste un régent feignant et négligeant qui pense plus à s’enivrer avec toutes les filles de Fhirdiad qu’à bien régner ! (au point que même Félix veut que le « phacochère » prenne le trône au plus vite alors qu’il est encore un ado edgy en pleine crise et immature, pour dire le niveau de Rufus !) Delagarde ! On t’a reconnu ! Enlève ta perruque et dégage ! Rends-nous le vrai Dimitri !

Bon, dans les faits, je comprends pourquoi Miklan et nopes!Rufus sont comparés ici : ce sont deux fratricides qui ont tenté / réussi à tuer leur jeune frère pour le pouvoir, pouvoir qu’ils n’ont pas eu par droit d’ainesse car, leur cadet avait un emblème et pas eux.

Mais sur quelle planète, dans quel univers, DIMITRI excuse son oncle d’avoir assassiné son père ?! Je sais qu’il va mieux dans Nopes (sur le plan de sa santé psychatrique seulement) et que sa schizophrénie est moins forte que dans 3H mais, quand même, il a passé 4 ans de sa vie minimum avec et a surement encore des visions du fantôme de son père décapité lui hurlant d’aller le venger, et il a aussi développé un syndrome du survivant sévère à cause de la Tragédie provoquée par son oncle, ce qui lui faisait croire qu’il devait vivre pour les morts. Jamais du saint Jamais il devrait le pardonner comme ça ! Je sais que ça fait partie de son arc d’apprendre à laisser le passé derrière lui et à pardonner (ce qui a déjà des conséquences fâcheuses dans 3h, vu qu’il est prêt à pardonner Delagarde même après qu’elle se soit littéralement transformée en monstre pour défendre ses idéaux nauséabonds dans son dernier chapitre) mais là, c’est vraiment pardonner quelqu’un qui n’a rien fait pour mériter le pardon et qui a activement chercher à faire du mal autour de lui avec la victime qui s’en veut (et le visage triste de Sylvain juste après confirme que oui, on est censé faire le parallèle et penser que le pauvre Rufus le fratricide, régicide, potentiel infanticide, génocidaire des duscuriens, tyran, ivrogne fini, j’en passe des pires et des meilleures, ne méritait pas d’être puni pour ses crimes).

Mordant d’Ingrid, je retire tout ce que j’ai dit sur le côté madame je sais tout autoritaire et dirigiste que tu lui donnais à l’académie dans 3H… car ma chère Ingrid, ton mordant me manque quand tu te couches devant Dimitri sans protester plus que « je comprends où vous voulez en venir mais, il a fait du mal aux autres quand même :( » sans te mettre à lui refaire le portrait avec ton aplomb légendaire… elle peut être douce et compréhensive mais, ça manque que personne d’autre que Félix ne tente de mettre des claques à Dimitri pour le réveiller tellement tout ce qu'il dit est lunaire…

"S'il ne se montre pas disposé à expier ses fautes, il sera exécuté. Mais s'il se repent..."

Dimitri. Tu lui donnes un moyen légal de continuer à massacrer des gens (voir son petit frère s’il se débrouille bien car, comment ses nounous vont pouvoir le surveiller H24 sur le champ de bataille, j’en sais rien, le jeu n’en sait rien, personne ne veut savoir), à exprimer sa cruauté, le tout en étant lavé de ses crimes tout en continuant à les faire, le tout en étant logé, nourri blanchi au frais des faerghiens dont il n’a pas eu le temps de dérober les deniers avant le passage des impôts – qui ne vont surement pas apprécié que Miklan soit absout de tous ses crimes alors que rappelons-le encore, c’est un voleur, un meurtrier sadique et un vi*leur (car « enlever des femmes », dans un jeu PEGI 12, c’est pour dire qu’il les a surement v*oler).

Avec tout ça, évidemment qu’il va se repentir ! Tu lui demandes juste de continuer à tuer des gens mais cette fois, c’est pour toi dans un cadre légalisé ! Y a pas de « Ce qui est fait est fait. Ce qui a été dérobé peut être rendu, mais chaque vie volée est à jamais perdue. » ! Si tu reconnais que c’est un criminel, arrête tout de suite cette mascarade, envoie le devant un tribunal et laisse la justice décidée de son sort sans que Matthias ne tente d’interférer ! Réveille-toi, reviens sur ta décision stupide et fiche le en taule pour ses crimes !

Bon… avec cette phrase, « Et quel meilleur moyen de se repentir que de risquer sa vie pour autrui ? » et son visage froncé pour son sérieux, je crois comprendre ce que le jeu essaye de faire : Dimitri se considère comme quelqu’un ayant fait beaucoup de mal autour de lui (surtout dans 3h), se sent mal d’avoir tué son oncle et d’avoir laissé Faerghus sous son joug aussi longtemps, pense qu’il est coupable d’avoir survécu à Duscur, qu’il ne venge pas les morts assez vite… et sa manière de se faire pardonner est de risquer sa vie et de se tuer au travail pour Faerghus. Et donc, il fait un transfert sur Miklan en se disant que si même lui peut se faire pardonner des morts et des vivants pour ses « crimes », Miklan aussi (et il essaye de faire autre chose mais, j’y reviendrais plus tard).

Mais les deux personnages sont dans des situations complètement différentes : Dimitri n'a jamais décidé de se retrouver à Duscur, n’est pas coupable des crimes qu’il pense avoir commis (surtout qu’il n’y a pas l’épisode où il est un vagabond pendant 5 ans où il tue les impériaux qu’il croise dans cette chronologie), s’en veut profondément pour tout ça et surtout, il choisit activement de tout faire pour se racheter. Il fait tous les efforts du monde pour mériter sa rédemption.

Miklan, lui, a choisi de mal agir, a choisi de blesser les autres, et s’il est ici, c’est que le chef de la garde royale l’a capturé, ramener à Fhirdiad et qu’on lui a dit « ton papa t’a arrangé une place haut gradé de général dans l’armée car t’est son fiston, et le roi pense que ça te permettra de te racheter, intéressé ? » (et c’était surement ça soit la prison ou la corde), le tout en continuant à tuer et à propager de la violence. Il ne fait rien pour avoir sa rédemption, elle lui tombe juste toute cuite dans le bec et ce n’est pas tant une rédemption qu’une légalisation de ses crimes vu que là, il tuera dans l’armée, et ça ne va pas donner de supers résultats si on le laisse trop en roue libre, je plains sincèrement les civils qui vont tomber sur lui…

Donc, idée intéressante sur le papier mais, très mal exécuté.

« S'il en est parmi vous qui ne lui pardonnent pas ses méfaits, allez-y. Vengez-vous. » [entre dans le jeu pour cramer Miklan par le feu].

Blague à part, dans une situation pareille, évidemment que personne ne va faire quoi que ce soit.

Le roi en personne donne sa bénédiction à Miklan pour continuer à tuer des gens et l’absout au passage de ses crimes (temporairement mais, même Miklan est capable de comprendre que ce n’est pas dans son intérêt de sortir des clous pour montrer qu’il se repentit bien et éviter de finir suspendu à la lanterne), Sylvain es toujours coincé par ses traumatismes et que vu ce qu’il a vécu, ça ne m’étonnerait pas qu’il ait encore peur de Miklan, Ingrid a perdu ses dents, tous les autres lions sont moins hauts placés que les faerghus four et dépendent de Dimitri donc, ils ne vont pas aller contre lui (ils ne sont même pas présent), Rodrigue est heureusement hors de la scène pour que le jeu ne tabasse pas encore plus son personnage pour le forcer à se coucher face à Dimitri, et même si j’adorerais voir Félix agir en attrapant Miklan pour le trainer jusqu’au tribunal le plus proche, ça créerait des tensions avec Matthias qui pourrait faire pression pour libérer son fiston en menaçant de ne plus soutenir l’effort de guerre.

De plus le jeu fait tout pour montrer que Félix est en tort dans cette scène, c’est lui qui est censé être le méchant flic qui ne pardonne pas au pauvre Miklan d’avoir été un potentiel fratricide de Sylvain et un dangereux bandit qui a fait du mal à beaucoup de gens (dont sur ces propres terres dans 3h vu que la tour Conrad est à Fraldarius).

Ses deux dernières répliquent le prouve pour moi : il se couche en disant qu’il comprend Dimitri mais, que Dimitri devrait leur parler de ses raisonnements avant, alors que je suis désolé, même avec tout le développement de son personnage dans Nopes et même s’il est plus calme et mature que dans 3h, le vrai Félix n’aurait pas laissé passer ça, encore plus maintenant qu’il est duc. Il ne laisserait pas un criminel pareil se tirer et Dimitri s’en tirer aussi avec « déso Félix », surtout pas après tout ce qu’il a raconté avant (et que Miklan a également piller les terres de Fraldarius dans 3h donc, il y a des chances qu'il ait dû réparer les dégâts qu'il a fait à son propre territoire).

De plus, je pense qu’ici (et même s'il y a surement de la surinterprétation), on essaye d’opposer deux choses : la voie de la justice et de la rédemption défendu par Dimitri, et la voie de la vengeance et de la punition trop sévère à cause des émotions, idée que Félix semble défendre dans cette scène.

Évidemment, je n’étais pas dans la salle de réunion quand les auteurs ont écrit cette scène (sinon, j’aurais pété un câble) mais, je pense qu’ils ont essayé de montrer que si Félix agi de manière impulsive en étant guidé par son ressentiment envers Miklan, que ce soit pour son passé de criminel ou ce qu’il a fait à Sylvain, et est donc dans un optique de vengeance, là où Dimitri arrive à passer outre son ressentiment et ses propres envies vengeresses et donne à Miklan une chance de se racheter, montrant son évolution d’arme vengeresse des morts à roi bienveillant sachant accordé son pardon (même s’il finit par se venger de Thalès à la fin, n’épargne Delagarde que parce qu’elle a de nouveau 12 ans d’âge mentale à cause d’un lavage de cerveau qui ne sert qu’à la blanchir à la chaux, et que la guerre continue même si les deux têtes de l’Empire sont tombés mais, c’est pas le sujet. Une scène foireuse à la fois). Et sur le papier, pourquoi pas, ça aurait pu être une très bonne confrontation avec un thème qui collerait à Dimitri.

Cependant, cette fois, ce qui pêche, c’est la situation, le contexte et les personnages impliqués, surtout que cette discussion n’est pas tant autour de « justice Vs vengeance » mais plutôt « ne pas pardonner quelqu’un qui ne cherche pas à s’améliorer Vs donner un passe-droit à quelqu’un qui a fait des chose de mal et qui ne fait rien pour le mériter » si on extrapole un peu. De plus, même le jeu sait que son débat ne va nulle part car, il ne laisse pas Félix opposer de bons arguments à Dimitri, alors qu’ils sont évidents.

Dans le texte, Félix ne demande pas à venger qui que ce soit mais, pourquoi Dimitri a décidé de nommer général un criminel aussi dangereux que Miklan en pleine guerre.

Toute l’incartade sur les emblèmes ? Complètement inutile, ça ne justifie pas pourquoi prendre Miklan et pas un bon soldat roturier, je crois que je l’ai assez expliqué ici. Mais Félix n’a pas le droit de répondre à ça, il doit juste rappeler à Dimitri que ce n’était pas ça sa question puis, Dimitri répond en faisant un parallèle foireux en pardonnant un tyran qui a tué des centaines de personnes et a provoqué les deux Tragédies de Duscur.

Le coup de « s’il avait un emblème, il aurait été différent » ? La belle affaire, avec des « si », on mettrait Fhridiad dans une bouteille, Paris avec et elle flotterait. Là, de ce qu’on en sait dans le présent et pas dans une réalité parallèle, Miklan est un homme violent et dangereux qui prend du plaisir à faire souffrir les autres, et préférera utiliser la violence pour obtenir ce qu’il veut plutôt que de travailler dur, le tout en étant surement haï de tous pour ses crimes.

De plus, ce n’est pas Miklan qui a voulu se repentir dans cette histoire. Rappelez-vous, c’est Dimitri qui a envoyé Gustave lui courir après Miklan dans tout le nord, et ce n’est que quand on lui donne directement l’occasion en or de se « repentir » tout en continuant à tuer qu’il rejoint Dimitri et si on l’a cherché, c’est parce que c’est le fils du margrave Gautier, le tout en disant ouvertement devant Dimitri qu’il n’est pas là pour la rédemption mais, pour l’argent.

Ce n’est pas Miklan qui s’est soudainement trouvé une conscience et a décidé de rejoindre l’armée royale anonymement comme soldat de base afin de défendre son pays car, il est doué pour se battre, puis se met à travailler d’arrache-pied pour se racheter, tout en n’acceptant aucune aide extérieur le jour où sa vraie identité est révélée. Là, ça aurait déjà plus de sens pour une rédemption, même si ce serait surement Out of Character pour Miklan.

Là, on lui donne sa rédemption uniquement parce qu’il est le fils de Matthias. Il aurait été un bandit random, il serait déjà en train de se balancer au bout d’une corde comme tous les autres. Dans cette situation, je ne le voie pas comme quelqu’un qui veut réellement se repentir de manière sincère mais, seulement un opportuniste à qui on offre le pardon sur un plateau d’argent tout en lui permettant de continuer ses crimes mais, dans un cadre légal. On légalise ses crimes, on ne les punit pas.

Vous me direz, le fait de se battre dans l’armée contre son gré peut être sa peine après un jugement mais, comme c’est présenté dans cette scène, cela donne plus l’impression qu’un grand noble s’est arrangé avec le roi pour faire libérer un proche. C’est pas quelque chose que monsieur et madame Tout-le-Monde peuvent se permettre car, ils ne sont pas dans les petits papiers du roi, ils ne se connaissent pas, et un margrave en personne ne leur a pas appris la stratégie. Car dans le fond, c’est quoi la justice ? Un système décidé et exercé COLLECTIVEMENT afin de réglementer les conséquences des actes répréhensibles afin d’éviter qu’ils n’aient lieu, recommencent et pour punir les coupable, le tout en étant toujours en groupe afin d'être le plus neutre possible, de ne pas risquer qu’il y ait de la corruption, des biais car un juge connait le condamné… tout en étant accepté par le plus grand nombre car, c’est un système juste qui fonctionne et cela évite de tomber dans des cycles de vengeances sans fin qui ne font que provoquer que plus de mort. L’État sert d’arbitre dans les conflits entre individus ou entités qu’il a en charge, et ça part mal si on commence à faire des exceptions car le chef de l’Etat décide d’épargner un type car il le connait personnellement. C’est pour ça que normalement, la justice est le pouvoir qui doit rester le plus indépendant des trois et ne pas subir la moindre influence du monde législatif ou exécutif (je sais, je m’éparpille mais promis, ça va quelque part).

Dans toute la scène, Félix parle de Miklan comme d’un « bandit », il ne l’appelle pas par son nom ou par le sujet « il » une seule fois, pendant que Dimitri l’appelle « Miklan » ou alors « il » qui est quand même très neutre. Dimitri définit Miklan par ce qu’il est personnellement (Miklan fils des Gautier) ou le désigne de manière neutre, là où Félix le définit par ces actions de brigand. Ce que dit Félix pourrait s’appliquer à n’importe quelle situation où un criminel devient d’un coup général, il est assez général dans ses propos et demande pourquoi on offre à un criminel à peine sortit de sa vie de crime une place aussi importante, ce qui sont des arguments qui s’entendent.

De son côté, Dimitri se considère sur Miklan de manière plus personnelle. Ses arguments sont taillés pour correspondre à Miklan et à sa situation très particulière, vu que son histoire de ne pas avoir pu hériter à cause de son petit frère qui a un emblème et pas lui ne peut concerner qu’une toute petite fraction de la noblesse, qui représente aussi une petite part de la population, et Dimitri est allé le chercher lui en particulier car, il a reçu une très bonne éducation grâce à son statut de fils ainé de margrave (et donc sa noblesse). Remplacer Miklan par un brigand au hasard, Boris le Fracasseur de crâne, fils de Jean et Jeanne Dupain, boulanger à Fhirdiad, qui s’est tourné vers le crime pour x raison, une grande partie de son argumentaire s’effondre, d’où le fait que cela ressemble plus à un acte de favoritisme qu’un vrai acte de rédemption.

Alors, le « débat » entre Félix et Dimitri tombent complètement à plat car, il ne colle pas à ce que le joueur sait de Miklan, ni ce qu’on voie dans la scène même, et avec le scénariste qui est obligé de mettre des bâtons dans les roues de Félix en lui faisant ignorer des réponses évidentes, le tout avec cette conclusion et le « vengez-vous » qui sort de nulle part car, ce n’était pas la question de base. La question de base est que si oui ou non on peut donner une place pareille à Miklan sans qu’il n’ait rien fait pour le mériter et malgré toutes les exactions qu'il a commises.

Ce n’est pas impossible à faire pourtant, le personnage de Miklan est assez proche de celui de Shokan / Shogen dans le manga "Elusive Samurai". Ce sont deux brigands très violents et sadiques car, qui n’ont pas eu ce qu’ils voulaient, pensaient que cela leur prenait tout leur avenir et se sont tournés vers le banditisme pour obtenir ce qu’ils voulaient.

Sauf que pour Shokan, on l’a vu se faire rétamer par le héros qui est à deux doigts de le tuer (ce qui est d’autant plus ironique vu que le héros est un enfant, alors que Shokan est un chasseur d’esclaves enfants qui a l’habitude de tuer les deux parents pour les faire sombrer dans le désespoir comme lui), ce qui commence à le faire réfléchir sur ses actes, puis il se fait engueulé par son patron (un méchant) pour avoir massacré les paysans (car un paysan mort ne paye pas d’impôts mais, on prend quand même), et quand on le revoie, il a évolué pour devenir un bon intendant des terres que lui a donné son maitre, puis il est redevenu un vrai samurai se battant avec honneur pour son maitre dans son dernier combat, voyant le héros comme son égal et il pense à demander à son maitre qu’on traite bien ses hommes après sa mort (on est toujours du côté des méchant).

Et surtout, Shokan / Shogen est un méchant. Un méchant qui devient honorable avec une rédemption assez claire certes mais, un méchant quand même dans le camp du méchant gouverneur opprimant le peuple de Shinano, ce qui passe mieux que si c’était le héros qui acceptait de lui pardonner tous ces crimes alors qu'il a massacré ses fidèles, là où Miklan fini dans le camp des héros, c’est le chef des héros qui lui fait tomber sa rédemption dans la bouche, et il meurt même en martyr pour défendre le Royaume, alors qu’on ne l’a pas vu devenir meilleur.

Je ne suis pas contre les rédemptions de personnages, ça peut être de très bonnes histoires (que ce soit celle de Shokan ou de Zuko dans "Avatar le Dernier Maitre de l'Air" pour citer un exemple plus connu) mais, c’est comme tout, il faut que les bonnes conditions soient réunis pour qu’elles soient crédibles et tiennent la route… et surtout, il faut que ce soit bien écrit et cohérent avec le reste, ce qui n'est clairement pas le cas ici.

Bon ! Je crois que c’est clair mais, c’est catastrophique à tous les niveaux et surtout, c’est un concentré de tout ce que Nopes fait mal. La situation n’existe que parce que le scénario la force à arriver, au lieu de construire une jolie petite route pour atteindre cette situation, et tous les personnages présents ressortent amoindris par cet échange :

Dimitri ? Pardonne à un meurtrier ; lui donne l’occasion de continuer à perpétuer des horreurs ; a bu la bibine de Delagarde et se met à dire que les emblèmes sont la source des problèmes ; oublie son objectif de donner plus de pouvoir aux roturiers en faisant monter un ancien noble devenu brigand, plutôt qu’un roturier méritant ; se blâme pour la mort de son oncle

Ingrid ? A perdu ses dents, son caractère et son attachement à ses amis et se couche trop facilement face à Dimitri vu qu’elle proteste à peine

Sylvain ? On le force à devoir travailler avec son ancien tortionnaire et c’est lui qui doit s’excuser, le tout en parlant à peine et avec la discussion entre lui et Dimitri qui a lieu hors champ (car il ne faut pas comprendre pourquoi la victime agit comme ça et se concentrer sur son agresseur, c’est important)

Miklan ? Est fidèle à lui-même – ce qui est un problème en soi – et a juste eu sa rédemption offerte sur un plateau d’argent, avec la hache à planter dans le dos de Sylvain emballée avec…

Félix ? Le seul qui s’en tire la tête haute vu qu’il proteste et appelle Dimitri sur ses décisions mais, il doit toujours se coucher à la fin et dire amen à Dimitri à la fin

En plus, de ce que j’ai vu de ce feu de poubelle ambulant, cette scène est le concentré parfait de comment Nopes traitent les victimes et leur agresseur :

Miklan tente de tuer Sylvain ? C’est Miklan qui a le droit à la rédemption sans faire aucun effort pour la mériter, et c’est Sylvain qui doit s’excuser

Matthias maltraite aussi Sylvain ? C’est Matthias qui a le droit à des violons pour qu’on le plaigne et c’est Sylvain qui doit le pardonner et bien se comporter avec son père, alors qu'il est parfaitement au courant que son père l'a eu par obligation et préfère Miklan alors que c'est un monstre

Rufus tue Lambert et a tenté de tuer Dimitri en provoquant le chaos dans le Royaume au passage ? Les violons tristes sont pour Rufus avec Dimitri qui regrette d’avoir tué le tyran après coup

Delagarde provoque une guerre continentale qui tue des centaines d’innocent car elle veut refaire tout son empire ? La pauvre chérie est dorlotée par la narration qui trouve toujours un moyen de la dédouaner de ses actes, que ce soit en ne la faisant pas tuer Thalès dans SB, en se faisant trahir par Claude (on jure, c’est pas raciste de donner le rôle du sale traitre sans honneur à l’homme métis à la peau bronzé, surtout quand ça sert à dédouaner est une frêle femme tellement blanche qu’on l’a perdu dans la neige faerghienne), ou en sortant le lavage de cerveau par Thalès du chapeau qui l’a fait régresser à un âge mental d’une gosse, et Faerghus est blâmé de ne pas vouloir être envahi

Claude jette un baril d’essence à briquet sur les relations entre Sreng et Faerghus en provoquant une nouvelle guerre entre eux ? Bon, là, ok, on le tient un peu responsable pour ce qu’il fait (et toujours, ne voyez aucun racisme dans le fait que le seul qui doit subir les conséquences de ses actions est l’homme à la peau brune d’origine moyen-orientale, dont on a complètement saboté le caractère et le développement de personnage en le faisant provoquer une guerre entre deux pays alors qu’il veut la paix entre tous les peuples pour qu’il n’y ait plus de racisme, le tout en lui refilant les défauts de la jeune fille blanche car, si une blanche ne peut pas être bourré de défauts, être une sale menteuse hypocrite et belliciste doublé d’une impérialiste brutale et cruelle, un homme de couleur peut totalement l’être tout en même temps, qu’importe ses aspirations de base. Comme toujours, zéro racisme dedans [et pour ceux qui se pose la question, oui, c'est du sarcasme, évidemment que c'est un traitement extrêmement raciste !]), mais on a quand même des pleurnicheries à base « bouhou ! Le Royaume nous a envahi au lieu de nous laisser indépendant quand on s’est tiré d’Adrestia y a 400 ans, c’est trop des monstres cruels ! Vengeons nous sur leurs descendants et en collaborant avec l'Empire dont on s'est tiré à la base, même si tous les responsables sont redevenus de la poussière depuis le temps ! >:( »

TOUT LE CAST ou presque tape sur les emblèmes et veulent qu’ils ne soient jamais arrivés dans le sang de l’humanité, alors que c’est les humains qui ont massacré les nabatéens pour les avoir ? On expulse les nabatéens de l’intrigue, Rhéa est décrite comme trop méchante car elle a aidé les autres et ne s’est PAS vengé sur les enfants des gens qui ont massacré son peuple (tout en étant la seule vraie héroïne de SB, je dis ça, je dis rien, surtout que ce n'est pas la chute + l'attaque de Thalès qui va la tuer, elle a survécu à des explosions de simili armes nucléaires et Byleth s'est pris une dérouillée similaire mais, a survécu quand même), on leur reproche d’exister, et on donne tous les bons points ou presque à ceux qui les ont assassinés et transformé en arme, que ce soit les agarthans avec le paralogue du créateur d’Arval, ou le fait qu’aucun personnage n’est vraiment remis en question quand il chouine sur les emblèmes. En particulier Delagarde qui est soigné par le scénario comme la petite chouchoute des développeurs qu’elle est.

Tout dans ce jeu fait tout ce qu’il peut pour pardonner aux agresseurs tout en blâmant les victimes d’être ainsi, comme si c’était leur faute si elle subissait de la violence, alors que non. Ce ne sera jamais de leur faute, c’est toujours la faute de ceux qui ont choisi de les agresser, n’échange pas les rôles Nopes. Ton discours sur « l’impérialisme, c’est bien » est déjà extrêmement dangereux mais, tu ne fais qu’aggraver ton cas en ajoutant que c’est la faute des victimes si elles sont blessées, tu ne fais que légitimer les envahisseurs violents ! Et si je veux bien croire que pour le recrutement de Miklan de cette manière, on a plus à faire avec de l'incompétence qu'à de la malveillance, c'est tellement constant et régulier dans ce jeu de blâmer les victimes et de pardonner les agresseurs que selon moi, ça révèle que les auteurs y croient plus ou moins, même inconsciemment sinon, on ne le retrouverait pas de manière si régulière partout, sauf s'ils l'ont incorporés au reste de manière accidentelle mais, faut pas exagérer non plus !

En plus, est-ce que ce serait possible de juste garder cette scène sans détruire tous les personnages ? Ou au moins une rédemption pour Miklan ? Dans l'état, si on garde la scène et l'agencement tel quel, je ne pense pas que ce soit possible.

Comme je l'ai dit plus haut - et même si je pense que Miklan est allé bien trop loin pour avoir une rédemption -, il faudrait que Miklan soit bien plus actif, cherche la rédemption par lui-même et travaille énormément sur lui-même sans accepter aucune aide extérieur, tout en acceptant que les personnes autour de lui ne le pardonneront jamais. Scénaristes. Laissez Sylvain être en colère contre son frère, laissez le montrer son traumatisme, montrez le sur ses gardes quand Miklan approche, avoir des réflexes d'autodéfense quand Miklan ou Matthias ou quelqu'un d'autre fait des gestes trop brusque... laissez Ingrid et Félix traité Miklan de tous les noms quand ils le voient ou ne rien cacher de leur mépris. Laissez les lions faire barrage pour protéger Sylvain. Laissez Dimitri le condamner fermement. Cela ne nuira pas à votre scénario de montrer les personnages ne pas s'entendre à 100%, d'avoir des émotions négatives, une répulsion pareille pour d'autres persos... ce sont des aspects des émotions humaines qui font partie intégrante de la vie, c'est normal de les montrer dans vos histoires sans pour autant condamné à 100% les personnages ou les montrer être dans le tort. Cela rendra vos histoires plus crédibles et vivante.

Et sinon, si on reste sur l'idée que Dimitri a recruté Miklan lui-même, je pense qu'il faudrait le montrer comme dans tombant dans l'excès de pardon après avoir été dans l'excès de vengeance, puis montrer que cela ne lui réussit pas. Félix, Ingrid et Sylvain pourraient se disputer avec lui et décider de ne plus vraiment lui obéir, devenant des unités vertes sur le terrain pendant une ou deux batailles, Rodrigue de même en plus discret tout en donnant les bons conseils à Dimitri, même si ce dernier s'entête. Les autres lions ne diraient rien de peur de la réaction du roi et du margrave car ils sont moins bien placés que lui, et les quelques personnes qui encouragent Dimitri dans cette voie du pardon extrême le font soit parce que ce sont des carpettes (Gustave), soit par opportunisme et intérêt (Matthias) soit parce qu'ils n'arrivent pas à voir les implications d'une telle décision, tout en étant inquiet en voyant tous les amis de longue date de Dimitri être farouchement contre sa décision de nommer Miklan général (Shez pour qu'iel serve à quelque chose).

Ensuite, Miklan serait une unité jouable (de préférence très mauvaise ou médiocre pour enfoncer le clou sur le fait que même s'il est l'élève de Matthias, c'est un très mauvais combattant et une mauvaise idée de le faire devenir général) mais, en plus des protestations générales dans l'armée avant et après les batailles, ainsi que pendant l'exploration, dans la bataille suivante ou encore celle d'après, il trahirait Dimitri car, les idéaux de Delagarde l'arrange et qu'on lui propose plus d'argent, devenant une unité rouge qui attaque Dimitri sans pitié avec un dialogue dans le combat montrant à quel point Miklan est une ordure, avant que Félix, Sylvain, Ingrid et Rodrigue débarquent d'un coup sur le champ de bataille pour aider Dimitri et le protéger de Miklan, qui est vaincu dans cette bataille. On finirait alors avec Dimitri qui comprend qu'il faut un juste milieu entre la vengeance aveugle et le pardon aveugle, tout en promettant de faire de son mieux pour trouver un juste équilibre entre les deux, le tout en s'excusant envers ses amis (et en particulier Sylvain qui, comme le grand frère qu'il est, dirait que ça a été un coup dur de le voir recruté Miklan mais, qu'ils restent amis quand même et qu'il pensait éviter tomber dans son ancien travers vengeur, même s'il espère que Dimitri ne lui refera jamais un coup pareil).

Sinon, je ne voie vraiment pas comment intégrer Miklan... c'est comme pour Jéritza, sa simple présence aux côtés des gentils nuit à tous le cast et les font paraitre bien pire qu'ils ne le sont...

Je ne sais même pas comment conclure ce billet bien trop long… peut-être juste avec ces quelques mots : Three Hopes est un beau gâchis. FE3H, malgré tout l’amour que j’ai pour ce jeu, a beaucoup de trous dans son scénario et de zone d’ombre. Cela aurait pu être une bonne réécriture pour les combler, être une nouvelle voie d’or en plus d’AM, ou alors le jeu aurait pu explorer la guerre des héros ou la guerre du Lion et de l’Aigle. J’aurais aimé retrouvé des personnages que j’aime ou leurs ancêtres. Malgré le fait que je trouvais le redesign des trois seigneurs ratés, j’étais ouverte à ce qu’on me raconte une nouvelle histoire à Fodlan, j’aurais aimé y retourner pour une nouvelle aventure, surtout qu’on voyait Claude et Dimitri combattre ensemble dos à dos et que j’aurais adoré jouer une route où les deux classes fusionnent pour combattre Delagarde de manière scriptée, ce qui aurait permis pleins de nouvelles interactions entre les personnages.

Mais entre ses problèmes d’écriture, son ton, les fausses bonnes idées avec Shez qui n’est là que pour calmer les gens qui n’aiment pas les avatars silencieux et dont le concept boiteux ne tient pas la comparaison avec Byleth, les retcons dans tous les sens… déjà, ce jeu partait avec des sacs de sables accrochés au pied… mais ce qui le plombe le plus à mon avis, c’est que Delagarde DOIT être une waifu qui fait vendre. Et comme les gens n’aiment pas dire qu’ils aiment un méchant (alors que ça ne gêne pas pour Thanos, Dark Vador, le Joker les autres empereurs rouges de FE…), il faut tout faire pour la blanchir la plus possible, surtout qu’une femme ne peut pas être mauvaise à cause du sexisme des auteurs. Alors, on refile ses défauts à Claude, tant pis si ça en fait un énorme stéréotype raciste au final tout en massacrant son personnage. Tout le monde pleure sur les emblèmes et à quel point elles sont mauvaises, et pour être sur que personne ne conteste, on jette les nabatéens hors du scénario. L’impérialisme devient quelque chose de bien et de cool, c’est cool de conquérir d’autres nations, c’est qu’une partie de capture du drapeau grandeur nature et tant pis si on pave la route de vrais cadavres de vrais gens, avec les agresseurs comme elles ont toujours de bonnes raisons d’être violents et leurs victimes ont toujours bien cherché leur sort, tout en ayant tort de se défendre. Ces derniers points ont des implications très graves IRL, ça ne devrait jamais être le discours portés dans l’espace publique et en conséquences dans le jeu, on se retrouve avec des agresseurs systématiquement pardonnés et des victimes qui doivent se coucher, avec ceux qui les défendent montrer comme n’ayant pas d’argument, comme c’est le cas avec Miklan (et je crois que Dimitri est aussi montré comme étant en tord d’accueillir Rhéa et la protéger mais bon, je viens déjà de me taper l’analyse détaillée de toute une scène de ce brûlot, je vais pas aller chercher d’autres horreurs). Le tout en caressant dans le sens du poil la partie la plus toxique du fandom qui est connu pour harceler les personnes qui leur déplaisent, puis s’en vanter en volant leur nom d’utilisateur comme si c’était un trophée de chasse.

On se retrouve donc avec un jeu extrêmement mal écrit et pire que tout, avec des messages nauséabonds, extrêmement toxiques et qui sont d’autant plus malsains qu’ils viennent du Japon, un ancien pays impérialiste qui a beaucoup de problème pour reconnaitre ses crimes de guerres et tout ce qu’il a fait subir à ses voisons, que ce soit en Chine ou en Corée entre autres, et dont la recherche historique en interne est très limité avec très peu de sciences sociales, ce qui enferme encore plus l’Histoire dans le carcan du roman national.

Bref, malgré ses quelques rares bon point, Nopes est un gâchis complet sur tous les plans qu’il vaut mieux séparer de l’expérience de 3H pour éviter d’accentuer ses défauts. Je ferais le travail moi-même pour étendre l’univers de Fodlan avec mes propres idées. Au moins, je suis sûre de ne pas être déçu…

#une curieuse qui s'énerve un peu et dit des trucs qui lui passe par la tête #fe3nopes #fe3h meta #peut-être ? A vous de voir... #désolé si c'est aussi long mais fallait que j'explique bien mon point de vue vu que je tire quand même à boulet rouge sur 3Nopes #en tout cas ça fait du bien de vider son sac en réglant ses comptes avec cette scène que je déteste tout particulièrement #je ne vais pas m'étendre je pense que c'est clair pourquoi #merci beaucoup d'avoir tout lu !

[themoomoorn]

HEY LOOK IT'S DIMITRI'S EYEBALL ON A CAKE LET'S EAT IT

...and now that I have your attention, help me settle this once and for all!

What do you, viewers at home, believe lies underneath Dimitri's eyepatch during Part II of Three Houses?

#fire emblem three houses #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd #fe3h #fe3h meta #If you've read the 2020 NinDo interview you will recall that the eyepatch is little more than an aesthetic choice #Plus the artbook's comments also prove it #“IT SHOWS HIS SUFFERING” ok how did he injure it then “UHHHH” #So in this case #speculation doesn't interfere with canon #something fun for a change

[kiveriah]

Azure Gleam - Dimitri

We get to see how a Dimitri with a present support network can be a good king since early on, and he could have reached a similar path in 3H if he had the same opportunities, I stand by that.

Pre-timeskip Dimitri is the same, the only thing that changes is that he was crowned sooner and those who were keeping their distance (Rodrigue and Matthias, Lambert’s best friends) are suddenly by his side, supporting him with more than thoughts. 

Plus all of the Blue lions leave the academy and follow him, expanding his support network even further. Unlike 3 houses in which everyone kept him at bay, they were closer than any other house, yes, but only Mercedes called him by his name, the others either was love or respect always refer to him by his title (or worse). 

Felix and Rufus are the worst offenders. Rufus was one of the people responsible for the Tragedy of Duscur and manages to kill his brother but to his regret Dimitri survives. And then he claims he is ‘scared’ of him since he was a child. He continues to taunt him until his death.

All of his family is either dead (Lambert, his mother) or has betrayed him (Rufus, Patricia/Anselma and Edelgard*). Rodrigue, Felix, Matthias, Sylvain, and Ingrid kept their distance.

But when they need to defeat Rufus all come to aid him and STAY with him as their king. The two most important changes are:

Rodrigue drops his title but helps him with Duscur (second father figure)

Felix becomes the duke and tries to advice him (rekindle their friendship but he stills calls him out, thing the others still have a little trouble doing)

We get to see Dimitri become more open, sharing the burden and trusting the Blue lions. Even if he is still plagued by his ghosts he now holding tight to the living. We reach a similar Dimitri than the one we get to see at the end of Azure Moon which makes me wonder, had he had a support network (he knew he could go back to) in 3 Houses how he did here, would his fate had been any different?

Bonus:

We already had hints in 3Houses about how the lost his eye and why he is so ruthless with Randolph but it is nice(? to get a confirmation in 3Hopes also.

See how Dimitri acts in 3 Houses after getting captured, tortured and threatened (with Dedue / possibly Rodrigue), he tried to follow the same modus operandi as his trauma VS in 3 Hopes he willingly gave himself as a hostage and what Cordelia is threatening him with.

We know Dimitri parrots what other think of him. When his uncle or Felix call him beast/boar he does not deny it, he never pushes back. He accepts all criticism at face value. This is the way he reacts with words and I think this is the way he reacts with actions, he is just parroting or recreating what he went through. It show how when the others took the first step to help him he open up/trust did too.

#3 hopes #azure gleam #fe3h meta #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd #fire emblem #fe3h #three hopes spoilers #fire emblem three hopes spoiler #more like random rambles barely stitched together #but #im sure someone with more braincells than i will do a write up lie this soon

[randomkposts]

I'm aware Fareghus is a far from perfect nation. It is a nation born from the descendants of Andrestia, who rebelled to form a kingdom of their own. Its people still have colonialism and imperial culture at their roots. It has a lot of issues to work out. 

And I believe that the next generation, the ones who are coming into the lead of their people, are going to be the ones to break the cycle. Not all of it, not right away, but they are going to be future leaders, and are aware of aspects of their system that are hurting their citizens, and want to change things. I don't think you can like the characters of Faerghus sincerely without recognizing the problems of Fearghus as a nation.  Dimitri wants to end the racism against the Duscur, Felix loathes the culture that promotes venuration of death, and a bunch of them definitely have problems with how views about crests have impacted their lives. 

And they don't want to burn down the whole system. They want to change it from within, from what they can do as lords of their people. And defecting breaks the trust of the people in them, hurting the causes they desire to change within their home. 

Edelgard wants to change the system too. She wants to burn away the old, and set up a new one. And while I agree that fire needs to be set for the sake of progress, that destruction is a bringer of change, it should not be what you bet it all on. Everything set on fire, offers no means of escape, and you need people to keep things running. I know she needs to move fast, because she has a time limit, but all that fast moving does not ensure a stable structure being set for the future she is trying to build, she doesn't have a system set in place to keep the future she is building up to, to continue to get there after her death. The cost is already a lot of lives lost to the war. The commoners who lost resources and people to it , the soldiers who fought in it, the leaders who died defending what they felt was theirs, the land that is scarred by it. Who is going to be there to keep the people from reverting to how things used to be after her death? 

She has no heir/sucessor, adopted or otherwise. 

She is descended from an Empire of conquests, and it is still active as seen with Brigid, and Dagda. And she solved the problems that came the same way? Is she going to have the diplomacy to ensure lasting peace for future problems? Particularly as she was kept isolated by the tunnel snakes who have racist (speciest?) Views, and only in a route where Byleth helps her, can she break away from them. And that help comes at the cost of Byleth alienating their own support base, the church.

But back to Diplomacy, after conquering the continent, and Killing the tunnel snakes, she probably has to deal with Almyra, particularly if she killed Claude. Regardless of how much the people of Almyra like or dislike Claude, she still (unknowingly, as he has trust issues for good reason), killed a royal of another country. And Almyra does not have a good relationship with the Leicester already, the now Empresses of the continent killing a royal of your country seems a good reason to invade. Especially since the continent is still pretty rocky after all of the invasions she did, hey allies, let's go hit them while they are down. 

The earlier invasions from Almyra in imp year 961 was barely defeated after all, and threat of further invasions was what prompted co-operation. But I don't expect fantastic cooperation from a nation that has recently been conquered. Tropes, resource management, and morale are not going to be at their best or most cohesive under the circumstances. 

So she could potentially be fighting a two pronged war, if they decide not to wait for her to finish dealing with the snakes. 

And even if Claude lives, he's not exactly in a good position to prevent a war, should they decide to go for it. And going to war in a recently conquered, unstable continent, are pretty good odds to expand Almyra, at the least, if not necessarily total victory over Fodlan.

I don't think Edelgard, as Empress can have lasting peace under the circumstances. Change certainly, but not peace in her lifetime or the aftermath. And I do think, that if her chapters had been given the full length and attention the others had, it could have been a fascinating avenue to explore this kind of conflict. 

*Hopes Edelgard may be different, but I can not accurately say until I experience it, either through luck of finding it used at good price (increase in digital gaming makes that a taller order then it used to be), or watch a playthrough. Currently watching Majin Tensei 2 movie, and thinking I might want to watch a lets play of SMT 4 instead of game movie, so might be a bit. 

#fire emblem three houses #fe3h meta #fe3h thoughts #a conversation with my friend #random k #lets play this safe and tag critical #edelgard critical #discussion of colonialism #imperial critical #holy kingdom of faerghus #adrastian empire #faerghus critical #i suppose #edelgard von hresvelg #those who slither in the dark #diplomacy #almyra #war #conflict #consequences #mentions of- #byleth eisner #felix hugo fraldarius #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd #claude von riegan #tell me if I missed any tags please

[slotumn]

Apparently I'm having a lot of 3H worldbuilding thoughts this weekend. This post is on: on what Adrestia (+Agartha) was after, exactly, by invading Faerghus first in most routes

So the ideological/political explanation is that Faerghus is close to the Church and will defend them so you automatically have to go after them if you go after Church etc etc very cool, but what do they get, materially, by going into the frozen north first thing? That they don't have as much of in Adrestia (or Leicester)?

Metal and mines, apparently:

On top of this, regions adjacent to Faerghus— Duscur and Sreng— are also known for metalwork and weaponry.

Of course you can say it's because the Slithers have deeper infiltration up north (with their involvement with Duscur and Western Church plus Cornelia) so that obviously makes it easier, but I think it's the other way around. Meaning, I think the Slithers put more effort into infiltrating Faerghus because of the metal resources.

Following from that, I think the decision to invade Faerghus first in non-CF routes was a compromise between Edelgard/Adrestians and the Slithers, where Edelgard gets the ideological/political points but Slithers get the material benefits. Ideological stuff listed above aside, if you want to do wide social/civil reforms and make Fódlan less myopic, wouldn't it be more practical to take over the country with fertile farmlands and ports and industry and finance and trade first?

Well, that's what the Empire does in CF, where the Adrestian side presumably has more leverage on operations thanks to having Byleth and the Creator Sword on their side. Situation's a bit different in Hopes but I think it's interesting that in SB, the official invasion as led by Adrestia (instead of Lonato jumping the gun) does end up waiting until after securing the pact with Leicester.

Back to Houses though, it's not hard to see why Slithers want metal and mines. They want to make weapons, and not just regular weapons, they're out here making big fucking mechs. Probably fantasy computers (which also require metals, including precious metals) to operate them, too.

And on the one hand, seeing the Agarthans drag all the actual spoils off to their underground lair so they can make whatever fucked up weapon that they'll use for their own goals probably pissed the Adrestians off. But on the other hand, what can they do when the Agarthans are also providing the military technology (ex: Aymr) that the Adrestians use for their own goals?

Given all this, I think in non-CF routes, by the time Byleth wakes up again, the Empire is actually in a far worse state than we think. The Adrestian troops who are actually doing the fighting are stuck up north where they haven't made much progress in years, and any material gains they have there just go straight into Slither pockets. Back in Enbarr, the Adrestians and Agarthans hate each other even more than they already did at the beginning of the war and are probably doing everything they can to sabotage and spy on one another, while fighting a war on the same side.

At that point, the greatest common motivation the Adrestians and Agarthans would have in finishing up conquering the continent is probably the prospect of finally getting to go at it with one another.

And the letter Hubert leaves in SS/VW telling Byleth about the Slithers: the suddenness of that plot point aside, let's just appreciate how petty (complimentary) that is, politically. "I know you killed us and all, but we really hate the guys we were doing this group project (war) with. Can you kill them too. Thanks."

Tl;dr the Adrestian-Agarthan war councils in non-CF routes probably gave multiple people high blood pressure

#fe3h #fire emblem three houses #adrestia #faerghus #agarthans #those who slither in the dark #twsitd #meta #slotalks #fe3h meta

[reunionatdawn]

My Analysis of the Best Paired Endings in 3H (Part 6: Ferdinand/Dorothea)

(Normal): Thanks but no thanks, Mr. Noble. I already have my heart set on someone else. (Ferdinand & Dorothea support level B reached): I suppose I can settle for you just this once, Ferdie.

The writers obviously put a lot of love into this ship, as it's one of the rare times that the main story dialogue changes depending on Support level between two characters. Plus, since he asks her out on a date outside of their Support chain, it shows that Ferdinand is canonically interested in Dorothea. And this is true in Hopes as well. He fears his mind will "wander to other things" while training with her.

Dorothea: Song and dance live on in our memories, but there's no real record of them. Even memories fade over time. Will anyone remember me when I'm gone?

Dorothea is a Libra, an air sign. Air signs are masculine, but not as much as the fire signs. Libras are extroverted, cozy, and friendly people. Libras, like the Scales that symbolize the sign, are often concerned with attaining balance, harmony, peace, and justice in the world. Dorothea had the motivation to join Edelgard's cause to dismantle the corrupt nobility. But she was also compassionate and hated the idea of fighting people she knew.

Ferdinand: I will do what I'm called to do, even if no mark of me remains in the history books.

Ferdinand bears the Crest of Cichol, which is associated with the Justice Arcana. Justice is a signifier of legal matters being resolved in a fair and balanced manner. It represents the power to distinguish between what is fair and what is unfair, in an impartial way. Ferdinand's dream was to lead the Empire to an age of enlightenment and hold his father accountable for his crimes. The downside to his ambitions was that his life revolved around being recognized for his achievements.

Ferdinand: That is true nobility! Acting in accordance with the people's needs and wishes. As war drags on, those living near the front lines inevitably get the worst of it. Still…Edelgard will not give in. She will push to complete her mission, no matter how many people die. Not everyone with noble blood has noble ideals.

His character arc was about exemplifying true nobility, defined as, "having or showing fine personal qualities or high moral principles and ideals." Not just being noble, defined as, "belonging to a hereditary class with high social or political status." And I would argue that opposing Edelgard was vital to his character arc.

Dorothea: Oh, Ferdie. You opposed Edie for so long… I had real hopes for you, you know? Now you're following her. Is that your duty as a noble? Follow your master when they say to heel? Ferdinand: I will not try to explain my duty or hers. You would not understand. I wish you could.

Dorothea is one of the few non-lord characters that will actually react to another non-lord character's death. If you don't recruit Ferdinand, he will die at the Great Bridge of Myrddin so that his name goes down in history as "the legendary Ferdinand of Adrestia".

If Ferdinand does not complete his arc, Dorothea will be the one who is most disappointed. She will say she had high hopes for him, a reference to their B-Support where he made her treats, and she reconsidered him as husband material. His memory will not live on in the history books, but it does live on in her heart. It was hard not to think of this pairing as "canon" after I saw this dialogue.

Dorothea: Though we only knew each other briefly back at the academy, you were still my friend—but now our paths have diverged forever.

There's even a Hopes version of this dialogue available in Record Keeper. Similar to Edelgard and Byleth in Silver Snow, if Ferdinand and Dorothea's paths diverge, it is treated as a great tragedy of fate. It shows how much the writers favored this particular ship.

(Normal): Yes… I have met someone quite charming recently. I'm hoping we can spend more time together soon. (Dorothea has reached Support Rank A with a male): I am. There is someone whose company I have come to enjoy.

While Dorothea is bisexual, she did seem to have a preference for men. The dialogue in her B-Support with Edelgard only changes if Dorothea has attained A-Support with a male character.

Linhardt: You've probably overcome a lot of tough times, haven't you? I think that's incredible, really, but why not just let go of the suffering and run away from the memories that cause you pain? I suspect you'll find it a better way of living. I know I do. Dorothea: That's not living, Lin. It's running away. If I leave my hardships behind, then all of that means nothing.

She only got into the academy by buttering up some noble, which suggests that she may have had to perform sexual favors. She had a poor self-image, despite her physical beauty. And that is why I think she pursued men so adamantly, even when she was not truly attracted to them. She was running away from her past.

Dorothea: What's important isn't how someone looks, it's their true nature. I don't pretend to know your true nature. I don't even have a very good understanding of my own. But I suppose you see mine just fine, don't you? Just a silly girl with no thoughts in her head except for marrying a noble, yes? Good-bye, Felix.

Dorothea had to hone her masculine energy while living on the streets and performing in the opera. She despised the goddess (although she has a hidden talent for faith). Her paralogue with Ingrid showed how the two had contrasting views on marriage. Dorothea wanted to play the traditionally feminine role of housewife, with a noble husband fulfilling the traditional masculine role of provider and protector.

Dorothea: But if you and I were devoted to one another… maybe we could strive for the future you believe in. Maybe I'd finally understand your path and be able to think about more than just myself. Hubert: Seems it's my turn to not understand. Did you just propose marriage as a way to get to know me?

She was always looking for a wealthy husband to take care of her into her old age, and often came across as nothing but a shallow gold-digger. Because she was afraid of living in poverty, she would settle for a nobleman regardless of whether or not she knew him very well or was actually in love with him.

Sylvain: You know, even when I was a kid, I never had trouble with girls. …But thinking about it now, I wonder what they liked about me back then. They didn't know everything about me… It's just confusing. Dorothea: Oh, where did that come from? No one can know everything about you.

She was at first dismissive of the idea that people need to know each other fully to get married. But she did commiserate with Sylvain about how people wanted to marry her without even knowing anything about her. However, she flirtatiously makes plans to grow old with him immediately afterwards. Even though they still barely knew each other.

Dorothea: I never had much to begin with in life, and I worry that one day, I'll be that way again… That's why I keep searching for someone who will love me. Someone unaware of the songstress, who can love a girl that used to be scared and alone on the streets of the capital… I wonder if such a strange person can even exist.

But what she really wanted was to spend her life with someone who did know her true self. Several of her endings depict her giving up on her goal of finding a rich husband. She is able to find love with Petra and Manuela and those are happy endings for her. But I still think the happiest ending for her is to find her dream man. A rich provider and protector who would know and love her as the scared orphan girl.

Dorothea: Oh, really? You're something different? That's not how I remember things… It was the very day that I was discovered…

I think Ferdinand offered the best closure to her character arc. There was a palpable sexual tension between them in both games, with Dorothea pushing him away yet secretly desiring to be closer. I'd argue she has more far chemistry with him than any of her other potential partners. At the academy, Dorothea did not flirt or make advances on Ferdie, despite him being the exact type of wealthy noble she was after. But in the end, she was more open, honest, and emotionally vulnerable with him than she was with anyone else.

Dorothea: Maybe I can believe you. I've wanted to ever since the day you made me those treats… I thought then that maybe you weren't like the others, but… There's a lot I have to let go of, Ferdie.

The tagline for the game was, "Sweet memories twisted by time's cruel hand". By getting closure with Ferdinand, Dorothea could reclaim a sweet memory and let go of some pain from her past. Ferdie considered Edelgard his rival and prided himself on being better than her. But with Dorothea, he said he wouldn't mind a life of being a simple drone, circling a queen. So, they both find a new way to live with each other. This pairing is a more wholesome alternative for Ferdie than Ferdibert. But Ferdie still is kind of a sub.

Ferdinand & Dorothea Ferdinand reclaimed the position of Duke Aegir and initiated reforms within his domain. Through his political methods, which closely aligned with the needs of the common people, the Aegir Duchy swiftly underwent reconstruction. Behind this success story was the significant contribution of Dorothea, the former songstress who became the Duchess, who dedicated herself to serving the commoners. Ferdinand, recognized for his achievements, was entrusted with governance across all of Fódlan. Despite being busy with his duties, he prioritized spending time with his family. He and Dorothea raised their children together, and their home was always filled with the sound of cheerful singing.

This feels like the picture-perfect ending for both of them. Dorothea achieves her life plan of marrying a rich provider and protector, overcoming her prejudice towards nobles. Her children carry on her legacy, and her memory will live on in their hearts.

And thanks to her experiences as an orphan, Ferdinand's policies benefit the commonfolk. He actually renounced his nobility and lived as a wanderer for five years because he did not believe in Edelgard's ideals, and he wanted to make up for his father's wrongdoings in his own way. He was prepared to leave no mark on history, but he is recognized for his achievements in the end.

#fe3h #fe3h meta #ferdithea #ferdinand von aegir #dorothea arnault

[tygertyger413]

The Parallels Between Holst Goneril and Miklan Gautier

Holst and Miklan have a surprising amount of things in common: they're both from noble families that have traditionally protected Fodlan's borders from foreign invaders (House Goneril with Almyra and House Gautier with Sreng), they're both crestless (meaning they are unable to use their families' relics in defense of said borders), they both prove to be capable fighters and leaders despite lacking a Crest (Holst at Fodlan's Throat, Miklan with his bandit group in Houses/being given a generalship in Hopes), and they both have younger siblings who do have Crests (Hilda and Sylvain).

And yet their paths in life and attitudes towards their siblings couldn't be more different. Holst is the Hero of Leicester, the greatest general the Alliance has ever had, a man respected and beloved by just about everyone, and later becomes Duke Goneril after inheriting the title from his father. He also is a doting big brother to Hilda who adores her and is overprotective of her to an almost unsettling degree. Meanwhile Miklan canonically abused and tried to kill Sylvain multiple times before being disowned, and went on to become a leader of a group of bandits that terrorized Gautier, with his final fate either being transformed into a Demonic Beast after using the Lance of Ruin in Conand Tower and killed (Houses) or being conscripted into the Kingdom army and dying in defense of Arianrhod (Hopes).

Why?

If their beginning circumstances were so similar, then why did Holst's and Miklan's lives turn out so differently? Is the difference something inherent to their characters? Or is it something else?

Could the difference be in their family situations? We know from Hilda's supports with Byleth in Houses that their parents placed a lot of pressure on Holst to meet their high expectations, that it was stressful for him to live up to those expectations even though he could most of the time, and that on the rare instances he failed, he was devastated by people's disappointment. As for Miklan, we know that his birth mom died in a Sreng attack when he was young and his father became distant and emotionally closed-off following her death. Margrave Gautier later remarried (most likely out of the pressure/desire to have a Crested heir who could wield the Lance of Ruin), but Matthias's second wife did care about Miklan despite him not being her biological son, to the point of being hit hard by his death in Azure Gleam. It's never mentioned how Miklan felt towards his stepmother, though. Still, between the Gonerils' pressure and Matthias's "Wall of Ice" personality, it doesn't seem like either Holst or Miklan would be inclined to see their parents as a source of support.

Could the difference be in their societies? Compared to Fargheus, which puts more emphasis on martial prowess and duty (and thus values Heroes' Relics and consequently Crests for the ability to more effectively fight and defend one's people), Leicester is known for its merchants and its Roundtable politics, so Holst would've been able to leverage his family's money and connections (as well as his own charming personality) to convince people to give him a chance despite his lack of a Crest more effectively than Miklan could've in Fargheus. Additionally, Crests are not only valued for granting the ability to use a Hero's Relic, they are also seen as blessings from the Goddess, so the Holy Kingdom of Fargheus would see Crests as even more special for that reason, while the less devout Alliance wouldn't care as much about the religious significance of Crests.

Could the difference be in their education? We know Holst canonically attended the Officer's Academy, but we don't know if Miklan ever did; nothing says he didn't but Rodrigue probably would've at least mentioned it offhand if he did, given how much Rodrigue loves to bring up his old school days with Lambert. Of course, even if Miklan didn't attend Garreg Mach, it's not clear if it was due to a lack of interest on his part or his parents deciding it wasn't worth it for him. We do know that he still received an excellent education from his dad despite lacking a Crest, and he taught him everything he knows. Still, Holst attending the Officer's Academy while Miklan was homeschooled could've affected them in other ways, as Holst would have had the opportunity to form positive relationships with more people and expand his worldview, including the idea that Crests (or his lack thereof) didn't have to define him nor his ability to be successful.

Which leads into my next question: could the difference be Holst's friendship with Balthus? Seeing how much grief his best friend suffered from his stepmother due to having a rare Crest while her son didn't might've convinced Holst that having a Crest didn't make someone inherently better or luckier. Also, having someone who valued Holst as a person instead of for his Crest/crestless nature from a young age (Holst and Balthus have been friends since they were teens, if not earlier) would've helped Holst's self-worth. Meanwhile it's unclear if Miklan ever had any friends: Sylvain's friends all hate Miklan for obvious reasons, and Glenn (the only other person we know of who would've been close enough in age and location to possibly be friends with him) is just a huge unknown in general - though if Glenn was half the honorable knight he is described as by others, he would've hated Miklan too if he knew about Miklan's abuse of Sylvain. The closest thing Miklan would've had to friends at the time of Houses/Hopes is the group of bandits that he led, and even that was more likely a leader/subordinate relationship rather than true friendship.

Another thing to note: Holst's and Miklan's attitude towards Crests. Miklan hates the Crest system because it was the reason Sylvain was chosen as heir to House Gautier over him, and hates and abuses Sylvain for "taking what should've been his", telling Sylvain he "should've paid for that Crest," and ultimately stealing the Lance of Ruin in Houses (which could be interpreted as Miklan taking what he considers to be "his" inheritance, given that the name of the chapter where you fight him is called "The Gautier Inheritance"). Notably Miklan seems more mellow in Azure Gleam, where he's able to earn respect as a general despite his status as a disowned crestless noble and former criminal - which strongly suggests that most of his anger/hatred comes from envy for the power and prestige associated with having a Crest. Holst's feelings regarding the Crest system are never explicitly stated, but it is telling that the Book of Crestology is one of Holst's disliked gifts in Hopes. In Golden Wildfire, while Holst doesn't oppose the Church of Seiros as a whole, he also says "to accept the teachings of Seiros unquestioningly is to abandon reason itself", suggesting that Holst disagrees with the Church on at least some issues - as such, say, the importance of Crests. Yet unlike Miklan, Holst holds no resentment towards Hilda for being born with a Crest when he wasn't - if he does, he hides it very, very well. Which poses an interesting possibility: could Holst's protectiveness and excessive declarations of affection towards Hilda be compensation for any ill will he may have felt towards her in the past, even if he never acted on it? Or a reactionary psychological response to whenever he does feel resentful towards her? (I.E. countering any impulse to hate/hurt Hilda with the reminder that he DOES love his sister and wants to keep her safe.) Another possibility is that seeing Balthus getting along well with his crestless half-brother is what convinced Holst that Crests don't have to get in the way of him having a good relationship with Hilda.

I've written a lot on this topic already, but I just want to share some final thoughts: Azure Gleam shows that Miklan could have easily become a renowned general like Holst if given the investment and opportunity, especially the Reunion at the Fortress City chapter (where Gwendal calls him "Sir Miklan" after Miklan dies out of respect for Miklan's skilled defense of Arianrhod while it was under siege by the Empire). And if Miklan could've turned out like Holst, then Holst could've turned out like Miklan. And yet Holst was able to rise above his family's and society's expectations to become a great general, while Miklan was unable to move past his resentment and blamed others for circumstances of birth beyond anyone's control. What made the difference? We may never know for sure. Perhaps it was something inherent to who they are as people; perhaps it was one of the reasons listed above; perhaps it was multiple reasons or something else entirely. Comparing what little we know about these two still provides us with a fascinating character study, and I wish we knew more about them, their families, and their early years so that we could dive even deeper.

#fe3h #few3h #fe3h analytical #fe3h meta #holst sigiswald goneril #miklan anschutz gautier #hilda valentine goneril #sylvain jose gautier #character study #my post #long post #child abuse mention #I've had this rotating in my head ever since learning that Holst was crestless from Hopes so that's why this is so long #I may follow this up with a post examining the parallels between Sylvain's and Hilda's characters sometime in the future #I really wish Sylvain and Holst had supports together #Just so they could talk about stuff like this

[dragonsarecats]

I definitely agree that the sway of Byleth as a lot of weight for SS! But I don't think it's the only important factor? Because to me if it was the case, Claude and Dimitri would have their own SS: the fact that it's specific to Edelgard do seems means something about the Eagles loyalty toward her.

Edelgard don't feel betrayed in Silver Snow nor did she trusted the other Eagles? Can you give specific dialog? To me Silver Snow, at least regarding Byleth and other student is kinda just what she expected to happen?

I do think the Hubert point has to be nuanced: Hubert is only one person in Edelgard huge lack of positive relationship, and more widely Edelgard truly awful situation. Edelgard is constantly watched by her abuser, she has to constantly worry that people she met could very much be TWSITD agent, ... Yes, she has someone to rely on but comparatively she has countless ennemies on her track ( unlike Claude who has mostly potential enemy, or indirect ennemies that have in no way the same weight as TWSITD or Aegir for example ). So yeah, while Claude and Edelgard trust issue are different in certain ways, I don't think Claude trust issue can be a point as to why found family is a fundamental trope of VW and not of CF?

For the inherent respect as a leader I'm sorry to have missed what you meant! But while you're right that Claude as the thoughest situation, the other lord don't take the respect as granted? The role of Emperor is now a puppet leader and the Prime Minister is supposed to hold the true power, Edelgard certainly does have to work for the respect and the amount of power she has in CF: she has to rely on TWSITD and make alliance with Caspar and Linhardt father for example. Even Dimitri who clearly has the best position of the three when it comes to natural respect has the whole Rufus affair!

For Ferdinand a the reason behind him being rival who don't litteraly seek to take her power, it's because he already has power over her so I don't think it's necessarily a strong point? Because of the insurrection, she's the puppet leader, he's the one with the actual power. And Edelgard noble connection are small and actually very unimpactful. Especially compared to Dimitri who has his actual group of childhood friend and adoptive fathers

How is Edelgard not inherently untrusting compared to Claude and Hubert? I mean, they made a choice to give one lord the line about being so untrusful they can't even trust themselves, they made SB about the hardship of trusting unlike GW where Claude surprisingly trust Shez to some extent quickly? I genuinely don't see how she has less trust issue, or at least less deep, and to me it kinda wouldn't make sense with her backstory ( especially on the Hubert comparison )?

I'm sorry for all the misunderstanding too, I hope I'm not too rude- And really if my ask bother you or take too much time to respond I really won't mind if you don't respond ^^" Thanks you for taking your time in any case

First of all anon, let's clear something up! I ADORE your asks! You're not rude at all, I really, genuinely enjoy disagreeing with you, if that makes sense? You're clearly super passionate about Three Houses and talking about this game with someone who is super passionate is really fun for me! And don't worry about how long it takes me to respond to you lol--which is very ironic considering this response took nearly twenty days when I normally reply within eight hours (finals hit hard D:) --because I love doing it! You're genuinely a bright spot in my day!

Now, to the rest of your ask!

So for me, the reason why Claude and Dimitri don't have a "Silver Snow", as you put it, is because thematically they don't really "need" one. The type of conflict dealt with by Claude and Dimitri both personally and politically doesn't require an additional route to explore, and also, Silver Snow is much more the Church route then it is the oppositional-Edelgard route. I think Silver Snow branches from Edelgard's route because that's the most interesting place to put it. As personally as Dimitri's route gets with Edelgard, he isn't her true opposition; Rhea is.

And thus for me, the Silver Snow route says much more about Rhea, Edelgard, Seteth, and Byleth, then it does the Eagles. I definitely think it says something about the Eagles-- that they don't appreciate Edelgard's methodology and could be convinced to opposed her (and have mixed feelings about them) puts them in a very similar boat to Claude, who is most frequently compared with Edelgard. However, when removed from the context of SS/CF (and thus, recruitment ignored, away from Byleth's influence), all of them do show up at Edelgard's side, and are willing to die for her. I think, similarly to the other routes, their relationships are different and more strained, but ultimately without the influence of Byleth they are loyal to Edelgard (and the Empire) in a way that can't be ignored.

"Edelgard don't feel betrayed in Silver Snow nor did she trusted the other Eagles? Can you give specific dialog? To me Silver Snow, at least regarding Byleth and other student is kinda just what she expected to happen?"

No, you're absolutely correct here, I definitely misspoke. If I were to try and correct what I said...I don't think Edelgard felt betrayed by the other Eagles, but perhaps, disappointed? It's a conclusion I come to from seeing her in CF more than anything else, frankly, because (and I'll elaborate on this a few paragraphs down), I see Edelgard as a very desperate person. She is desperate to trust even as she views everyone with suspicion, two traits that seem more diametrically opposed then they really are.

Go back into trust issues (and the leadership points), I think there is no "better" or "worse" when comparing Edelgard and Claude's trust issues, just "different." Edelgard's trust issues cause her to put on a front of suspicion, but it's not a strong one. This is the result of two things: her trauma, and Hubert. Edelgard has a peer she can trust anything and everything with (and this is a good thing for her), and that includes vetting people. Even with the Professor, Edelgard grows fond of her quickly, and begins to trust her (implied by game mechanics to really, really start at C+ but also scene in other routes the fondness really does carry), but Hubert holds off on Byleth until she makes that critical choice to go against the church. This to me symbolizes a sort of "safety" net that Edelgard has with Hubert? Further on her relationship with Byleth, Edelgard's trauma does result in her putting on a front of suspicion (which makes it no less apart of her, but rather something she deliberately does to protect herself), but I think Edelgard is just desperate for someone to reach out to her.

I haven't talked about this before, but I think one of the things that highlights the differences between Edelgard and Claude and also their trust level, is the concept of "adults." This affects Dimitri as well, but as a "rule" in three houses if something majorly affects two house leaders it affects the third in less dramatic/major ways. That is to say, that while Edelgard has never had an adult/authority figure she could rely on, Claude has. And while Claude has never had the ability to rely on a peer, she has. Edelgard removes the old guard almost completely when she rises to power, only compromising, as you said, with Lindhardt and Caspar's parents. She replaces everyone she can't rely one with people she can rely on, because she's learned the hard way through what happened to her and her family. Claude, on the other hand, had his parents. They raised him to be self sufficient and to survive in a world that hated him. Later, Claude had his grandfather, and now has Judith and Nader (who trained him in childhood). He had no peers and no friends until he arrives at the Academy. As a result, Claude simply...lives with the discomfort. He deals with the reverse of what Edelgard went through; instead of living with people who have harmed you, he experienced harm from other people and now is forced to be around people who think the same way and thus could harm him in the future. Whereas Edelgard clears out the rot and only compromises where she has to, Claude is a being of compromise. It's not just that he distrusts others, it's that others fundamentally distrust him.

Edelgard's place as the next Emperor is never in doubt. It just isn't. What really shows this off to me, is the silver snow cutscene in which the flame emperor is blatantly backtalking to the Agarthans! Talking about how she doesn't approve of what they've doing and how they're going to pay--to me it was really effective at showing off how well they were at manipulating her because there is a reason Edelgard goes after the Church first and not the people responsible for her own personal tragedy. It's never in doubt in the Crimson Flower route that Edelgard will be Emperor. She never doubts it. To better compare her and Dimitri to Claude--he's basically a bastard to the Alliance. Sure, Edelgard is at risk of being undermined and turned into a puppet leader, but the fact that she will be that leader is objectively not up for debate. Edelgard is not afraid of the people in the Empire (non-Agarthan) who caused the coup, and she's relatively easily able to steamroll over them. Edelgard has stability in her place in the world--her place has been custom made, after all, as the only survivor of her siblings. In a way, it's also what makes her such a tragic figure--she has a lot less agency in her route then it feels because she's trying to make the best out of a bad situation.

Claude, on the other hand, is implied to be in a very precarious position. He can't pull off the stuff Edelgard does because Edelgard is an absolute monarch in a similar way to Dimitri. She is the Emperor and Dimitri is the King. Claude is the head of the von Reigan house, but the constant pressure and presence of Lorenz combined with Holtz's looming (if pleasant) figure in the background shows to the player that Claude is objectively replaceable. It's why his ultimate strategy during the time skip is to stall, to take advantage of the lack of unification in the Alliance (the lack of unification under him), in order to keep the Empire's eyes off of his people for the longest period possible.

So I think their trust issues are fundamentally different despite how similar Claude and Edelgard are!

Before I go to that, though, I'd like to address Ferdinand. That man has absolutely no power over Edelgard lol. Their support chain honestly makes me feel a little bad for him? The other two rivals--Lorenz and Felix--get deeper, more meaningful resolutions with their Lords but to me, personally, it feels like Ferdinand just accepts that Edelgard is better than him and becomes humble in a way that feels almost self-depreciating (esp. in their line progression if you have them pull weeds together the whole run, like me and my friend lol). Ferdinand has no idea about the coup, and he's a rather oblivious character--he believes it's his job to keep Edelgard in check, and he is only allowed to be Prime Minister because when she ousted his father, she chose to keep him there. Edelgard has so much power over Ferdinand it's crazy--both personal and political--and I don't necessarily think they have a "bad" relationship or anything I just think that Ferdinand has self esteem issues, lol, and weighs his own worth against hers which she isn't responsible for. I think you're underestimating Edelgard here--while Dimitri does have a lot of personal and political connections, so does she! There's a reason she's able to almost instantly obliterate the old guard, and that's because she has replacements like Ladislava and Randolph waiting in the wings. She's also able to keep on nobles like Lindhardt and Caspar's father's. Edelgard is a very powerful character, I think it just feels otherwise sometimes because she's so deeply affected by what happened to her as a child (as she should be) and unlike Dimitri it doesn't make her large and imposing if that makes sense.

Edelgard is jaded in a way Claude is not. I did not mean to make it seem like she was trusting because she absolutely tries not to be. Her trust issues are bone deep, and comparing her and Claude as "more" or "less" was not something I intended to do, it's just that they manifest differently. What they each want from people they could potentially trust is different: Edelgard is desperate to have someone reach out their hand to her, and Claude is desperate for someone not to slap his away when he does. Edelgard is drowning in the same way Dimitri is, emotionally. The Hubert thing was less of a comparison and more of an example of why Edelgard wants to trust someone so bad and appears to "slip" more than Claude does with her mask even though hers is a lot more obvious partially because she has Hubert. She does not have to do all her vetting herself, and I think that's very good for her.

I think the reason for me, why found family seems to be a much bigger theme in Verdant Wind then Crimson Flower, is again, partially because of the power structure less inherent in the Golden Deer house. Lorenz is visibly worn down over time through conversation with Leonie (our queen!) about commoners, and despite everything about Claude being inherently political, the Golden Deer manage to be peers in a way no one else is, because let's be real, Claude is an equal to the other nobles the way Edelgard and Dimitri can't be. It doesn't make him closer to the others--Hubert calls Edelgard only ever by respectful titles and I think if they were any closer they'd merge into a single soul lmao--but it puts him on a more level playing field. Mr. Leader Man is treated with a lot more humor than grandiosity, and characters like Leonie and Raphael really do result in the Golden Deer all feeling like they're equals even if you're conscious that they aren't. This, for me, makes it feel a lot more explicit when you get your found family forming, because in a big big way, it's forming completely from scratch. There's almost no real positive relationship between any of the Deer when the game starts! And I'm including Raph and Ignatz in it because of Ignatz's massive guilt! It makes that development very tangible, because it almost doesn't feel like a natural progression. For me, the theme is so prominent because it's about the formation of found family, although I think you could definitely argue that other routes have other aspects of found family more prominent.

I'm so sorry this took me so long anon!! Know I've been slowly working on this and thinking of you, lol!

#twila talks #twila answers #fire emblem three houses #fe3h #claude von riegan #edelgard von hresvelg #fe3h meta #never fear anon i adore you and your asks!!!

[solmarillion]

Finwë Emblem: Three Houses

Realization: The three branches of the House of Finwë are characterized the same as the three houses in Fire Emblem.

House of Fëanor and Adrestia: A curse lies upon them. For the Fëanorians, it is their Oath, for the Adrestian Empire, it is the experiments done by Those Who Slither in the Dark. Violence is needed to force change. The ends sometimes justify the means. They are abhorred because they are the instigators- though if they don’t stand against the enemy, who will? Fëanor’s words compelled the Noldor to pursue Morgoth; Crimson Flower is the only ending in Three Houses that fundamentally changes the system. They are both associated with the color red, and the element of fire- Fëanor, spirit of fire; Edelgard von Hresvelg, the Flame Emperor.

House of Fingolfin and Faerghus: They value chivalry and bravery in battle even if it means sacrificing yourself. While they agree with the sentiment of the instigators, they do not agree with their methods- though they end up more alike than they realize. Those in power usually make decisions for everyone's protection and benefit, and they are respected because of legendary figures in their history. They are both associated with the color blue, and the element of ice- Fingolfin, who led his people across the grinding ice of the Helcaraxë; Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, a king ruling a land far to the north, amidst the cold and snow.

House of Finarfin and Leicester: They value alliances above all, even when those among you disagree with your methods or who you ally with. Only reveal the truths that are necessary to achieve desired goals. They aim to build bridges between nations and kindreds. Among them are controversial figures that may seem to have a clean image on the surface, but generate mixed opinions due to certain tactical and political decisions. They are both associated with gold- Finarfin, of the Golden House, known for their golden hair; Khalid von Riegan of the Golden Deer.

What I’m saying, is that Silmarillion fans should play Fire Emblem, and Fire Emblem fans need to read the Silmarillion.

#house of finwe #silmarillion meta #fire emblem three houses #fe3h #silmarillion #fe3h meta #tolkien #soleil's metas #i get this will only appeal to a small group of people #but i'm posting it anyway because i can't get this out of my head