Taking a break from Fire Emblem Fates today! Instead, the Making of Fire Emblem: 25 Years of Development Secrets book features original profiles of characters from Path of Radiance. There are a lot of interesting things to look at for fans of the Tellius saga, familiar names but very different story.
You can find much more from this book on the compilation post here.
As you can imagine, the process of doing all this (scanning, editing, translating in some cases, etc) took a lot of time, and I am unemployed… so if you like what I did, then…
Please donate! It helps fund future projects!
Enjoy!
This translation comes from a document on page 335 of the book. It required a magnifying glass to read, but was readable! I provide the original Japanese transcript below my analysis at the end of the post.
Ike
Gender: Male
Origin: Empire of Babylonia, Principality of Persis
Position: Plays a pivotal role in the formation of a group of vassals left behind by his father, eventually becoming the captain of the group (the male protagonist)
Class: Lord
Specialty: Swords
Personal History:
- 0 Years: Born to a knight family that serves Duke Persis, who is part of the Babylonia Empire
- 2 Years: Younger sister Mist is born. Afterward, the two had an ideal upbringing filled with love from all around them.
- 12 Years: Suddenly, his father is charged with treason, and their castle was invaded. His father is killed in action, and his mother is unaccounted for. His father’s subordinates, Tiamat and the others, escape the castle.
- 14 Years: Tiamat and the other survivors form a mercenary group. She and the others teach Ike the basics in warfare in order to polish his skills.
- 17 Years: Engages in his first battle.
Family Structure:
- Father (not yet named): A Knight who serves Duke Persis in the Empire of Babylonia. 5 years ago, he was charged with treason and executed by Duke Persis.
- Mother (not yet named): An adopted daughter of Duke Persis who married Ike’s father. She has been missing since the incident 5 years ago.
- Mist (Younger Sister) [Tentative]: Just a year younger than Ike, and is part of the mercenary group with him. The female protagonist. Appears in events alongside the protagonist Ike.
Personality: Enjoys solitude. Quiet. Is hot-blooded at his core. Reckless.
Hobbies: Enjoys viewing scenery from high places while alone. Trains in swordplay.
Motivation/Goal: Searches for the truth behind his father’s execution and destruction of his family. Works tirelessly in order to restore his family’s honor. He and his sister work together to improve their mercenary group’s reputation.
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- So there are some very fun things in here! Let’s take a look:
- Empire of Babylonia seems to be what eventually becomes Begnion, as evident by the Principality of Persis. Begnion was made up of several of these principalities that had dukes in each.
- Ike is stated to be a Lord, but he was eventually made a “Ranger” and then “Hero” upon upgrading.
- His personal history is rather different. A knight family that serves Duke Persis, and his father killed for treason and mother gone missing. This is very different from how his mother died at a young age and father when he had already come of age. Tiamat (Titania’s Japanese name, which remained the same) had a rather larger role too, teaching Ike rather than his father.
- Greil did not have a name, but seemed to have a similar role as a knight of some form of nobility. But the rest seems to be different, such as the circumstances of his death. The mercenary fort does get invaded in a similar fashion, but he does not die there.
- Elena did not have a name either, and may still be alive in this version of the game, rather than dying when the two were young. More importantly, she was the adopted daughter of Duke Persis here, which is a significant difference.
- Mist kept her development name it seems. A note on “just a year younger,” 0 years old is not considered being 1 year old, so being born 2 years later makes for a one year difference on these profiles (in Japanese ones).
- His personality is a little different. He does have the hot-headed and reckless nature, but the quiet and loner tendencies seem to have changed. Perhaps given to Soren? UPDATE: I saw Reddit user clicky_pen’s thoughts on the loner tendencies, and admit it has been a little while since I played the game (and so, unfortunately have the Smash Bros and Fates version in my head. xD) and agree, that when I think more about Path of Radiance especially, those tendencies do stick out. Perhaps loner has more negative connotations, as the word can also be translated as “solitude” (so, one who seeks solitude, which has an implication of being content with it, rather than shunned and forced into it). I fixed it up for you. : ) Thanks for the (indirect) feedback!
- The hobbies are very interesting. Specifying viewing things from high places while alone says a lot about his personality. I wonder if Mist and Ike standing at their father’s grave overlooking the woods in the final game was inspired by this?
- The motivations here are somewhat similar, though rather than finding the truth, he seeks to find his father’s murderer. In the original, it seems he is more concerned about family honor and the reasoning behind the execution. Improving the group’s reputation may imply they were ridiculed in some fashion, or generally have a bad reputation, perhaps due to having a “traitor” as a father.
These are just a few observations based on the above. I would love to hear what other Tellius fans can make of the above! Please feel free to sound off in the comments below.
There are other profiles that I hope to look into slowly, but surely. Please spread the word to anybody who maybe interested.
Lastly, for reference, below is the original Japanese transcript:
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アイク
性別：男
出身：バビロニア帝国ペルシス公国テーベ
身分、役職：父の元家臣を中心として結成されているよう兵団の長（男主人公時）
兵種：ロード
特物：剣
略歴：
０歳、ペルシス公付のバビロニア帝国騎士の家に産まれる。
２歳、妹ミスト誕生。
以後、妹と共に周囲の愛に育まれ順調に育つ。
１２歳、突然、父が謀反の罪を問われ、居城が攻撃される。
父は戦死、母行方不明となる。
父の部下ティアマトたちに城を脱出する。
１４歳、ティアマトたちが、傭兵団を旗揚げする。
アイクは、彼女達の元で武術の腕を磨く。
１７歳、初陣を迎える。
家族構成：父○○○ ペルシス公付のバビロニア帝国騎士。
５年前、謀反の罪でペルシス公に誅殺
母××× ペルシス公の養女として父に嫁ぐ。
５年前の事件以来行方不明
妹ミスト（仮）１つ年下。アイクと共に傭兵団にいる。
女主人公。アイクが主人公の時はイベントで登場。
性格 ：孤独癖あり。無口。基本的に熱血。無鉄砲。
特技、趣味：高所から一人で景色を眺める。
剣術修行。
行動、目的：父が誅殺され、一族が減ぼされた理由を探り
いつの日か、一族の名誉を回復すること。
彼と彼の妹と行動を共にしてくれた傭兵団の名を高めること。