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claire-starsword · 3 months

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Shining Force II Encyclopedia - Character Profiles

(You can also read this one on Neocities to not have to scroll through 30 characters in one post. Then again maybe you like that, so do whatever you like)

The "Characters" section of the book has a short profile for each character, plus basic gameplay information such as starting class and items, spell list and stat growth. I have ignored the gameplay info as it is basic stuff already covered in guides and walkthrough elsewhere. The strategy part of the book however also has small info boxes for when a character joins the force or appears in the story. I have translated those in this section as well, to gather all character info in one place, and also because Kazin's destroyed me emotionally. I have noted which part of the story some info boxes are placed, when they depend of context.

So, let's start!

Besides the protagonist who you'll be leading the adventure as, there's a total of 29 characters who will become your allies. They'll be a helpful bunch to have around. They are of many different classes and species, but will support you in many ways through this long and harsh war. Among them, some will be hard to recruit. You should find out by yourself how to get them!

This thing opens by telling you all secrets so that's an hilarious line.

Bowie Human / Male The protagonist. A boy with golden hair and blue eyes. Humans are weaker than dwarves and centaurs in battle, and inferior to elves when it comes to intellect. But he has greater endurance and fighting spirit than most humans¹. Aiming to become a legendary hero, he became a swordsman and is training under Sir Astral. His father was in the Granseal army² and disappeared during a expedition to slay a dragon³, so he lives with only his mother now.

¹Humans suck. Luckily for you you are special boy

²His father is mentioned as captain of the army in the JP version.

³Curiously, Mars of Shining Wisdom has a dad with pretty much the same story, except he's brought up in game, although unrelated to the whole plot.

Sarah Elf / Female A girl training under Astral, alongside Bowie. Her long blue hair and big red eyes are quite distinctive. She has always been the kind that enjoys looking after others, and comes across as a big sister despite being the same age as Bowie. Because of that personality she oftens ends up doing the jobs no one likes to do, and is nice enough to pull them off without complaining. New Member blurb: A pupil of Sir Astral, the same age as Bowie. A kind girl good at taking care of others.

It fascinates me how every guide seems to ignore the troublemaking and feisty side of her we see in the actual game. Like, none of the above contradicts it, it's just very pointedly not talking about it.

Chester [Huey] Centaur / Male Bowie and Sarah's classmate. Training under Astral in order to become a knight. He doesn't speak as much as the others, because centaurs are a quite prideful race¹. But his good nature is written plainly on his face. New Member blurb: Being a centaur, his movement is superior. Another student of Sir Astral.

¹i cannot remember a single time this man sounded remotely snobbish. He's more of a pushover at the beginning of the game, and is the one to thank Slade for jailbreaking them at Galam before Sarah decides to grill the man instead. The closest thing I can think of is that he doesn't wanna talk while dismantling the ship. He's also pretty annoyed at Jaha but, it's Jaha. Most people are annoyed at Jaha.

Jaha [Jaja] Hobbit / Male Another classmate, training under Astral to become a warrior. He talks a lot more than the other three, and Chester tends to get annoyed at that. His attack and defense are high, so he'll be a good ally in battle. New Member blurb: The oversleeper joins the team. He's usually clumsy, but a great help in battle. Kazin [Kazun] Elf / Male A boy studying magic under the scholar Hawel, a researcher of the ancient ruins. Has above average talent for magic. He puts up a cool and collected front, but can be quite fiery at times. Key Character blurb: [when met at Yeel Village] Training at magic under Hawel. Has a better reputation at Yeel Village than his master. New Member blurb: [when joining the force after Hawel is killed] Loved Hawel like a real father. A reliable guy, specialist in fire spells.

:'(

Slade [Jippo] Scavenger¹ / Male The one who started the calamity, bringing turmoil to the once peaceful Granseal. He's a thief, and likes the adventure more than gold or fame. New Member blurb: [when met in jail] A scavenger known as the thief on the side of justice. There's still a little time until he fights alongside the force.

¹The term for Slade's species, スケイブン (sukeibun), seems to come from Warhammer’s skaven race, which is pronounced a bit different than the word scavenger (which would be something like スカベンジャー(sukabenjaa) in katakana instead). However, the term first showed up in this series for those rat enemies at the start of Gaiden 1, and SFCD translated it as Scavenger, so I’m going with that. Honestly, I’d rather just call him a ratguy.

Kiwi Green Turtle¹ / No gender² A mysterious creature. Their body and shape is much like a turtle, but no one knows for sure what they are. Given the shell on their back, their defense is absurdly high. Seems they'll grow into an amazing character. New Member blurb: A poor creature put up for sale. The truth about them is deeply shrouded in mystery.

¹Green Turtle is the name of Kiwi's class in-game as well, in the JP version. I usually stick to the official class translations but, TORT has always been a weird one.

²Kiwi has only one line where they use the first person pronoun "boku", which is usually associated with little boys. However, that line is right at the beginning when they are at the pet shop and barely knows how to talk, so it might be them just copying the first little boy they heard. Also, as far as I know, more gender neutral pronouns like "watashi" or "jibun" are not commonly used by little children. One gender neutral option for a little kid would be just using their own name, but Kiwi doesn't even have a name at that point. So the pronoun used makes sense, though it would have been better to just not use any pronouns for such a short line. Then again I'm not taking this turtle as a serious attempt at agender representation, I'm just finger-gunning that no gender label anyway.

I suspect the devs main reason for listing Kiwi as genderless is that Kiwi is named by the player in game, and they didn't want to limit the player's interpretation. Still peculiar that they say "no gender" as opposed to the "unknown" Zynk and Claude got.

For the record, the english localization does refer to Kiwi as a he. I have chosen to use they/them pronouns here to emphasize this piece of trivia and the whole gender discussion.

Peter Phoenix / Male A phoenix chick. The phoenix is a bird spoken of in legends throughout every country. Brimming with curiosity, he's the kind that faces things without much fear. While he's blunt and asks a lot of questions, there's also a certain charm to him. The god Volcanon is like a father to him, and has also influenced a lot of his personality. After promotion, he becomes a very helpful character to have around. New Member blurb: A phoenix that ended up traveling with Bowie and the others. May [Matilda] Centaur / Female A girl of a hunting tribe who loves nature. Despite being both centaur classes, knights and rangers are very different. Compared to the prideful knights, rangers are more cheerful and open. New Member blurb: The ranger May is a bow user. She seems to be bored, so call out to her.

The portrait used for her throughout the guide seems to be from earlier in development.

Gerhalt Beastman / Male Hates crooked things! He's like the personification of moral sense. He's less hairy than other beastmen, and has a complex about it. The kind that likes fighting, rare to find in a peaceful village like that. New Member blurb: A beastman warrior tired of being nice to the villagers who forgot how to fight. Fights with fists strong enough to break stone.

Luke [Ludo] Birdman / Male Prince of Bedoe, the country of birdmen, and a great friend of Peter's. Is both kind and brave. Trusted by god Volcanon, the people of Bedoe work day and night to protect the peace of South Parmecia. New Member blurb: The brave prince of Bedoe. Willing to lay down his life for his country. Rohde [Lloyd] Human / Male A middle aged scholar who studies the Ancients. His fervor for his research has made him respected by other people. However, because he gets too absorbed in it, he's also known as an oddball. New Member blurb: A scholar who lives in the south of Hassan. Obsessed with ancient ruins, he continues to research them on his own. Rick [Mick] Centaur / Male A boy scared of adventures and facing the unknown, who ended up being left behind all alone. After meeting Bowie and the team, he grows up a bit.¹ New Member blurb: A sensitive yet strong willed boy. Lives in the harbor town of Hassan².

¹The manual also describes him as timid, yet he's very enthusiastic when you meet him, taking the initiative to join the team as soon as the Caravan picks his interest. It is possible that this description is more of a past thing, or his personality was reworked late in development. Or even, he might be putting in some effort to hide whatever fears he has.

²While this backstory is in the manual and most official guides as well, it contradicts the in-game story, where Rick has just arrived in Hassan, and had no idea what the town was like.

Elric [Polnaref] Elf / Male A resident of Fairy Woods. Friendly with the fairies and dwarves. Has a great sense of justice, and keeps himself well informed. He's not very strong physically, and can be easily caught by traps.

New Member... blurb? Yeah no, sorry, they forgor him.

For actual Elric trivia, see the post about his mom.

Eric [Elric] Centaur / Male While searching for a magic sword, he got caught in an unfortunate incident and became trapped in a certain place. Has an air of sadness, and is quiet and well mannered. It seems he was lord of a castle somewhere, a long time ago. New Member blurb: A knight who was shrunk down in middle of his travels, searching for a legendary sword. Karna [Twiggy] Human¹ / Female A beautiful woman with a roundish face, but old-fashioned looks. She's fit to work as a priest, having a kind heart. She worries about Bowie and the others getting caught up in an incident as if it was her own problem. New Member blurb: A priest girl. Can use healing magic, so you definitely want to bring her along.

¹You read that right, human. Both this manual and every guide book I know lists both her and Taya as humans despite the ears. I've heard that the official novel calls her a half-elf to go around this issue, but as I don't have the novel (yet) I can't confirm this.

Randolf [Dongo] Dwarf / Male A barbarian who likes to drink. He's happy as long as he has alcohol, and looks like a hooligan. He seems related to gully dwarves¹, as his roughness stands out. The original dwarf people are virtuous and well mannered. New Member blurb: A strong dwarf warrior. Shows incredible destructive power in battle.

¹The term for his subrace (ドブドワーフ) seems to come from Dragonlance, or at the very least that was the only result I got looking it up. I'm gonna take a moment to say I really dislike these fantasy race stereotypes, they usually don't get too much focus on Shining games but I feel this guide in particular is laying a bit thicker on them which is a bit annoying. I already pointed out how the prideful centaurs thing doesn't even match this game's characters.

Tyrin [Piper] Elf / Male A level-headed middle aged mage, who is polite, but a bit hard to talk to. Likely thanks to years of accumulated wisdom, he has good mastery of magic. He is also physically stronger than the younger elves¹. New Member blurb: An user of offensive magic. His mastery of magic will be very useful in battle.

¹Tyrin's physical strength comes up in the manual as well, and it's nothing but a few attack points above Kazin and Taya as far as I know. He still has less than Sarah and the archers, so the elf line is a bit silly. The manual correctly associates it with his class instead.

Janet Elf / Female A girl of the forest who came after her boyfriend, upon hearing that he was working alongside the Granseal army. Her skill with the bow is on par with Elric's. New Member blurb: An elf like Elric, with similar skill with the bow. It's reassuring to have her around. Higins Centaur / Male Captain of the army of Pacalon, the centaur kingdom in North Parmecia. As captain in a country of prideful centaurs, he has a stern personality. However, he has a bit of a scatterbrained side as well. New Member blurb: Captain of the army of the centaur country. With high attack and movement, he has the enemies at his mercy. Skreech [Fielder] Birdman / Male He looks no different from an adult birdman, but is actually still a young boy. Birdmen grow faster than other species. He has a sharp, clear gaze, and a strong body. New Member blurb: Talk to everyone underneath the town's grounds¹. New allies join the force, and someone headed the same way follows along.

¹This blurb pops up at the Moun battle guide, refering to Frayja, Skreech, and Zynk. It is therefore incorrect, since Skreech joins at Tristan. Other parts of the guide describe the correct way of getting him to join, so it's a curious error.

Taya [Linda] Human¹ / Female A shrine maiden serving Goddess Mitula. A very reserved and mysterious woman. She often has a downcast look. She's transformed somewhere, waiting for Bowie. New Member blurb: As talked about in Tristan, someone with the power to control nature awaits somewhere in the shrine.

¹Both this manual and every guide book I know lists both her and Karna as humans despite the ears.

Frayja [Sharol] Hobbit¹ / Male The priest of Moun, tormented by regret over something he did. He looks a bit fat, given his sagging cheeks and the short stature of hobbits. Also at the age where he's losing hair. New Member blurb: Talk to everyone underneath the town's grounds². New allies join the force, and someone headed the same way follows along.

¹Some guide books call him human instead. His proportions are very different from the other hobbits/dwarves in the series so I’m willing to believe that more.

²This blurb pops up at the Moun battle guide, refering to Frayja, Skreech, and Zynk. It's a bit odd, since Frayja joins before the battle, not after freeing the town. It is also just wrong when it comes to Skreech.

Jaro [Falcon] Pegasus / Male Used to be a Galam soldier. Disliked having to fight alongside unknown monsters. The pegasus are a special race, centaurs who have sprouted wings. New Member blurb: Satisfied with how the battle ended, he joins the force as a helpful ally of great mobility. Gyan Hobbit¹ / Male A very hotblooded man. The kind that cannot stand still seeing others in trouble. He's a kindhearted person who loves children, and is always worrying about his family. New Member blurb: Warrior of superb power and stamina. A reassuring ally to have at the very front.

¹He calls himself a dwarf in game. Some other guide books call him a dwarf as well.

Sheela Human / Female An old pupil of Astral. She became a priest after her training, but for some reason has abandoned that profession, and became a disciple in the ascetic monks cabin. She's frank and sociable. New Member blurb: Someone who once trained under Astral. Has great attack and can uses several kinds of magic.

Zynk [Backus] Robot / Unknown¹ Was once just junk lying around in the ancient pathway. After a lot of tinkering from the one who picked them up, they began to move. Joins Bowie after a certain event. New Member blurb 1: [when met on Moun] Talk to everyone underneath the town's grounds. New allies join the force, and someone headed the same way follows along. New Member blurb 2: [when joining after Petro's death] After meeting Petro, he joins the force after following around since Moun.

¹Zynk speaks in a rough manner when first met under the rock of Moun, including using the casual and rough pronoun "ore", which is usually masculine. After that, they switch to polite and gender neutral language.

I suppose that the unknown label here is more due to the fact of robots likely not having a biological sex.

The english localization refers to Zynk as a he. I have chosen to use they/them pronouns here to emphasize this piece of trivia and the whole gender discussion.

Chaz [Oneia] Human / Male Hawel's son. Travelling through many countries as he polishes his magical abilities. Later on, he inherits Hawel's research. A rare kind of mage, curious and enthusiastic. New Member blurb: Here comes a special ally capable of understanding any incident in the world!! A passionate and active mage!! Lemon Human / Male As his appearance shows he is clearly a soldier, the highest commander of the Galam army, in fact. A person who hates crooked behavior and wrongdoings, but for some reason, his personality has completely changed. Key Character blurb: [when coming after the force near Hawel's house] Highest commander of the Galam army. He hates wrongdoings, so why is he acting like this? New Member blurb: [after defeated in the Red Baron fight]: An honest man who shows respect even for his enemies. Would be reassuring if he became an ally. Claude [Mud] Golem / Unknown¹ A stone giant. Supports the group from behind the scenes without drawing much attention, but can unleash powerful attacks with their huge body. Their weak point is their low movement, but since they can take many hits, they can work well as a shield.

¹Claude speaks casually and uses the rough and masculine pronoun "ore" when first met. In HQ, they are slightly more polite and use the polite and gender neutral "watashi" instead. Because there's not dialogue about them, I don't recall the english version using any pronouns for them as well.

I suppose that the unknown label here is more due to the fact of golems likely not having a biological sex.

Claude does not get a new member blurb, because the guide does not cover the Ancient Pathway as part of the walkthrough.

#shining series #shining force 2 #shining force 2 encyclopedia #long post #giant ass post in fact! has taken a good chunk of my life these past weeks!#never expected to talk so much about the gender of a turtle but that's where we are #pretty sad that this genderlessness here feels just like male-lite but alas lol what did you expect #i'm running with it anyway #also it should be obvious that i just copypasted the stuff from neocities so there's some redundant information from other posts #it's gonna become the norm here a bit. doesn't hurt anyone #same for the links to the website because things are better organized and revised there #oh no i just realized i need to update zynk's tag because i changed the romanization #i want to make a page about character names at some point #unfortunately my phone ate a draft i had

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