Fixing your least favorite/ favorite Character

[Thane]

Just now, Slumber said:

If I could possibly know of a way to fix my least favorite character, Gaius, I would have.

If that is your opinion, then why not write that as opposed to coming across as an edgy brat failing at comedy?

[Slumber]

Just now, Thane said:

If that is your opinion, then why not write that as opposed to coming across as an edgy brat failing at comedy?

Because "A noose" is 6 letters, and "I don't even know how" is 16.

[Thane]

Just now, Slumber said:

Because "A noose" is 6 letters, and "I don't even know how" is 16.

Another zinger. Truly, you're on fire tonight.

[Anacybele]

Well, why not just say to tone down the candy stuff? I honestly would say this too, and I actually like Gaius.

[ChibiToastExplosion]

11 minutes ago, Slumber said:

That's a thing worth expanding on for an Aqua Teen Hunger Force character.

I want candy
Bubble gum and taffy
Skip to the sweet shop with my sweetheart Sandy

... thanks, now I'm gonna have MC Pee Pants stuck in my head all night....

On topic, I agree with Roy promoting earlier only so everyone else bitches less. I don't think it ever bothered me quite as much as it seems everyone else. Roy is my favorite because he's NOT the combatant.

I'd fix Tharja, but honestly that red stain on the sands of Plegia is actually a bonus to my least favorite FE country, so there's a twofer for ya.

[Sasori]

14 minutes ago, Slumber said:

If I could possibly know of a way to fix my least favorite character, Gaius, I would have.

I could have said "Remove the candy puns", but that's really ALL he has to his character. There's no way to fix that without removing him as a character or just making up a new personality entirely to replace his. As a unit, he's fine. Like every other character in Awakening, there's really no way for him to have awful stats. But yeah, the only way to fix him would be to remove the candy puns, which would more or less be the same as removing him from the game entirely. So for a more extreme way of expressing that,

Gaius is unique among my "least favorites". Units like Tharja, Takumi and Xander at least have something worthwhile to discuss about their actions and personalities. Hell, even Vaike, I could say "Go more into why he's such an egotistical shithead", and with a competent writer, something decent could come out of it. But Gaius, expanding on his character would be "Explain why he likes candy", which is one of the dumbest things I've typed out in at least a week. That's not a thing worth expanding on for a serious character. That's a thing worth expanding on for an Aqua Teen Hunger Force character.

Gaius was one of my least favourite Awakening characters because of his candy obsession. Still I thought there was one moment where the character became a slightly interesting and they might have made him into a good character if they actually showed the thief side of his job for more then one or two conversation.

It was his conversation with Libra in one of the dlc episodes where he  says he does his job because he's good at it and because someone needs to do the dirty work even if it pays crappy and makes his allies suspicious of him. 

On an unrelated note that dlc did the same thing with Miriel where it briefly dropped the experiment of the week gimmick and instead focuses on her establishing a mutual friendship with Cherche and her talking about her problems with making friends.

So yeah focusing more on aspects like those would be my fix for some of the gimmicky awakening cast members.

 

[Thane]

6 minutes ago, Sasori said:

It was his conversation with Libra in one of the dlc episodes where he  says he does his job because he's good at it and because someone needs to do the dirty work even if it pays crappy and makes his allies suspicious of him. 

Don't you like his support with Maribelle? It's a fairly popular one, if memory serves, and I know I rather like it.

Also, can people just tone down the whole "kill my least favorite character" nonsense? It contributes nothing and risks just annoying people who like those characters. Try to expand upon your thoughts and opinions rather than writing something that adds nothing to the topic.

Edited July 18, 2017 by Thane

[Interdimensional Observer]

Here's a legion of rewrites I did when I was in my Fates fanfiction mood. A bunch are kinda radical and this stems from my own radical plot rewrite as you can tell (and they're from a person with very little knowledge of the actual characters), but here they are anyhow in case anyone is in the slightest interested:

Spoiler

Former children:

Spoiler

Kana- does not exist plain and simple.

Hisame is rumored to have originally been Hinata’s brother, hence why I started this little thought (with Hubert from ToG in mind). I’d say keep him as the little bro, not twin though, and say he is the responsible one in the family. While Hinata runs off and has fun with Takumi, Hisame spends his time learning to manage the affairs of their noble house, and engaging in intellectual pursuits.  He has a little practice in swordplay for self-defense, but does not feel the need to take it further. Hisame has some love for his brother, but is largely unconcerned with him on the surface, saying he wishes Hinata does not die of his recklessness to avoid bringing misery to mother and father. Hisame knows his criticisms won’t change his brother’s ways, so he does not try to reform Hinata or even stay in touch with him at times. Since Hinata is the retainer of a Hoshidan prince, a prestigious position, Hisame does credit his brother with providing a boost to their family’s fortunes and status through his duty to Takumi. Takumi himself has at times asked Hisame if he would join him as another retainer, as Hinata has requested it. Hisame courteously spurns it each time, though he is a tad critical of Takumi for his own behaviors, which occasionally serve to worsen those bad ones of Hinata. Yet Hisame remains polite in his criticisms of Takumi, he would not want to upset a member of Hoshidan royalty, particularly the insecure Takumi, and risk his family’s fortunes. Nonetheless, he does try to appease Takumi’s requests for him to become a retainer by doing various favors for him and Hinata- such as buying them new weapons, armor, favorite foods, or by helping cut down the military logistics load they handle. Hisame aims to convince his parents to divert from the default of having Hinata chosen as the heir to their noble house, because: Hinata is ill-suited for it, Hinata would be happier free from formal obligations, and because Hisame himself, despite his protestations, wants it.

Shiro: The son and heir to a prominent noble family in Hoshido, which over two decades ago received King Sumeragi’s sister (or they received a Hoshidan royal two generations ago). Thus, Shiro is Ryoma’s cousin, instead of son in this scenario. Shiro and Ryoma enjoy battle together, and have a friendly rivalry going between them. Yet off the battlefield, Ryoma and Shiro greatly differ. Shiro is wild, even wilder than Hinata. Shiro stays away from home most of the time, wandering the world and having a good time. Whenever Shiro stops by his family’s estate or Hoshido Castle, he just barges in, often filthy, and kicks back, asking for some strong drink. To Ryoma, Shiro is an embarrassment to his noble family and demands that he act the part. Shiro says that is not his way, and tells Ryoma he is honestly no different from him. Ryoma rejects this, yes, he may want to have fun like Shiro, but he is able to restrain himself, and as a prince, has to restrain himself. He does it not just as prince and future king, but also because if he fails to uphold his duties, they will fall on his beloved siblings. Ryoma then states this is why he enjoys the battlefield, it permits him to release himself of some of the pomp and circumstance his position forces onto him, and with that controlled release, he is able to earn greater prosperity for his kingdom and fulfill duties associated with a prince. Shiro is contemplative at times, and rather wise when he feels like it. Still has potent first blood in him. Kiragi is a friend of his, they first met in Shirasagi in the company of their pals Ryoma and Takumi, and later the randomly wandering Shiro happened to stumble by Kiragi’s village. The two go on occasional wild adventures together, with Shiro leading, and Kiragi commenting or providing ideas.

Kiragi: A Hoshidan commoner (not sure which region of Hoshido he should be from) with a youthful appearance from a rather poor family of farmers (possibly with an abusive/drunkard father and or abused/broken/sick/addicted/abusive mother). Kiragi’s optimism is boundless despite the terrible conditions of his upbringing. He grew up with a love for hunting (starting at ~age 3), which he did whenever he got the free chance to do so. One day, the young (~6) Takumi, eager not just to practice the katana, but also the yumi (kids want to do everything), was visiting the region where Kiragi lived on a hunting trip. Kiragi saw the great retinue that accompanied Takumi, and grabbed his yumi and snuck away to watch them. Seeing the fun of the hunt, and in particular how a boy with a bow slightly older than him was the center of attention, decided to join in. Hiding in the bushes, he waited for Takumi to take aim at a particular piece of game and ready his arrow, just as Takumi was about to fire, Kiragi shot the creature dead on. Immediately royal servants rushed over to find the shooter of that arrow and dragged out Kiragi, ready to take him away for punishment. Takumi saw the kid however and bid his servants stop, Kiragi acted rather casually with Takumi to the servants’ astonishment, but Takumi bid the servants to let Kiragi stay. The two spent the rest of the day in competition, and Takumi offered to let Kiragi come with him. Kiragi declined the request and returned home. Takumi would later make return visits to Kiragi and eventually succeeded in getting him to visit Castle Shirasagi, join him on hunting tours, and whatnot. Yet, Kiragi would always return home eventually, despite the poor conditions of it, and he never became Takumi’s retainer either, and Takumi always respected his friend’s refusal. Kiragi cares about Takumi, and visits frequently enough, he just doesn’t think life as a warrior-servant is his kind of thing, and he apologizes to Takumi for it. Takumi tells him he doesn’t have to. Unlike with others, Takumi was never really angry at losing to Kiragi, though he did keep up his competitiveness. Mikoto welcomed Kiragi as Takumi’s friend, and once watched the two practicing shooting at targets. Mikoto then showed them her own talent with the yumi, gained not by archery, but by a form of meditation (this is a real thing) she had picked up. In it, she focuses on herself and her control of the bow and the arrow through the entire, drawn out, slow process of loading and firing, never at all thinking about the target or hitting anything, only control over her own actions. Takumi and Kiragi didn’t get it, but the boys were wowed when she struck the distant target right dead in the center. On my various remade routes, Kiragi does not appear alongside Takumi, but rather shows up later, either as something of an Est or as a pre-promoted Sniper on Birthright. The reason behind this is that Takumi does not want his best friend to get caught up in the fighting, and hence forbade him from joining the Hoshidan Army. Takumi has enough of the people he cares about caught up in the war who he could possibly lose, he wants somebody to stay out of it for peace of mind.

Shigure: A rather cosmopolitan Hoshidan whose father was a wealthy merchantman who married into a minor urban noble family in exchange for supporting them with his fortunes. The affluence of his upbringing led Shigure to travel through both Nohrian and Hoshidan cities quite frequently. A dandy and an artist of many forms, his personal style blends elements of Nohr and Hoshido together in a manner that is exuberant, but at times excessive and tacky. Shigure decided to join the Hoshidan military out of his love for the drama of war as shown on the opera stage and in other arts, and out of noblesse oblige, found very much also in those arts. Though his dramatic nature is problematic at times, he does show some competency on the battlefield, particularly when his artistic keenness and want of perfection is channeled just right. A retainer of Aqua in my reworking of Fates, he dyed his hair as close to as her majestic shade of blue as he could get, to honor her, and because he liked the color so much. (Heart class is now Apothecary- to reflect on his father’s merchant background).

Forrest: An illegitimate child of Garon bestowed on a fair maid servant in his frustrations after Arete died. Five years later, Leo spotted the maid slaving away with her little child, whose appearance he noted was familiar (because he looked like him and his siblings). Asking the maid of the child’s father, the maid quietly replied to the no-nonsense prince Leo that he was of Garon born. Leo believed the woman and spared her and her child from worry by sending them into Camilla’s care, given her generosity to children and single mothers. Four more years passed, and Forrest, now nine, returned to Leo, wanting to serve the one who rescued him and his mother. Leo was kind, and allowed him to join his retinue. While Forrest’s long locks of hair weren’t an issue, Leo found Forrest’s personalized attire, now of the high standard required by a notable royal servant, to be problematic, particularly the color. Leo tried to tell Forrest to change it scolding after scolding, but Forrest he found kept wearing it when not involved in public occasions. Leo grew utterly frustrated with his efforts, but ultimately yielded to Forrest by the end of a year of trying. Forrest was thankful to Leo, and asked why he relented. Leo told Forrest that he suspected with a high degree of certainty that he was his half-brother, an illegitimate child of King Garon. Forrest was shocked by the news. Leo then told Forrest never to speak of this, not even to his other half-siblings, as illegitimacy is an issue that could endanger his life and upset Nohrian court politics. Forrest, swore to obey his strict, but well-meaning half brother. Leo then responded that if there was anything Forrest wanted to talk about, anything, he would be there for him and willing to listen and help if need be, no matter how busy or sick he was. Forrest treasures this about his brother. His nontraditional appearance led him to getting picked on a lot, and Niles harasses him just as he does women, Leo tries to keep Niles away from him for this reason. Nonetheless, Leo allows Forrest to serve as both a servant in a variety of tasks. They include domestic work, he is a good at laundry, and caring for his often ill big brother and savior; though cleaning is not his thing. Also, paperwork, which is not so interesting, but he does it to help Leo. Leo gives Forrest some say in his wardrobe as well, but minds him to keep it from being too feminine. His mother now works at a charity Camilla patronizes, and it was there he learned his domestic abilities caring for others, including younger children. That said, his cross-dressing and feminine appearance and interests are his nature as well. He prefers conservative dress to the scandalous, but is willing to make skimpier clothing for Camilla to wear, who adores him (but does not know Leo directed him and his mom to her charity). After Leo revealed their relation, he taught Forrest horseback riding (he came to like horses and became an animal lover), and then aimed to teach him magic as a means of self defense. Yet, Forrest hates bloodshed, and hesitated to fight. So instead, Leo taught Forrest the healing arts instead so that he at the least would be able to keep somebody alive who could protect him. Forrest is still scared by the sight of blood a little, but he hates bloodshed more, and thus prefers to help others during war by healing and mending wounds, both with magic and nonmagical means. 

Asugi: A failed ninja-turned thief. Their refusal to abide by the ninja dietary code which (in reality) denied certain foods, including sweets, was the tip of an iceberg of disagreement with the strict ninja way of life. Going rogue and escaping their ninja home, they found it still difficult, possibly more at times, but it was still worth it he felt- he likes the freedom. Their skills as a ninja, though unrefined and incomplete, remained a serious matter for them, seeing how they could be a difference between a meal and not having it. Pretty serious and a bit cynical, a realist concerned with the here and now, his appearance suggests he is a little too laid-back. The sweet-tooth is his weakness.

Rhajat: Of mixed Flame and Wind Tribe ancestry, Rhajat is obsessed with geomancy and divination. Through mastery of the heavens and earth, Rhajat experiments with power, seeking immorality and destructive might alike. She lives alone, on an eccentric diet. To make a living, she does offer her notably good skills to anyone willing to pay the high price, and is willing to ignore any offense they should make upon her should they pay, in gold or in rare items necessary for her schemes. If they get too annoying however, she will find a magical way of getting at them.

Mitama: A priestess of a mystical inclination. She loves sleeping, for oftentimes she has visions or vivid dreams when she sleeps, sometimes with deities or real people involved. When she wakes, she writes down in poetic form the contents of her dreams, and she even speaks in poetics. Sometimes she even recites or writes down poetry in her sleep. She has developed a cult following of followers who regard her word as divine revelation, and others still admire her literary talents. She does attend to her ceremonial duties and runs poetry circles as well.

Caeldori: A promising young woman who serves in the Hoshidan air force. She used to serve under Reina, who was quite the mentor and senior commander. Later, Aqua took her as a retainer. A bit moody and glum compared to Shigure, the two contrast rather well. 

Selkie: A kitsune girl who enjoys play. Selkie is a master of shapeshifting and sometimes disguises herself as a fair human maiden or something to trick others. Kiragi’s home village is near the Kitsune Forests, so he has from time to time met Selkie and he respects the Kitsune.

Velouria: Now Keaton’s sister instead of daughter. Her collecting habit is tweaked to make it less gross, it now becomes a more refined collection of the eclectic and the rustic, blended with some scientific collecting (e.g. peculiar rocks, artifacts, rare insects) but her habit still exists. Her desire to be good for her father, is now a willingness to help her brother whenever he needs to be bailed out. Her apathy remains, but if need be she will in a most nonchalant manner help out. 

Nina: A girl raised among bandits and other outlaws. She herself grew into a fine outlaw, fast, quite cunning, a daring treasure-seeker, and charming enough to dupe men who underestimate her cunning. She can get overly obsessive with mocking and toying with the males she has outwitted, undermining her rational thinking processes (making herself vulnerable to being outwitted) and harming her reputation. Sometimes, she gathers her own bandits (often men she has tricked into following her) and leads them, others, she goes freelance as individual bandit or even mercenary.

Soleil: A freelance mercenary with a bright, outgoing, sociable personality. She enjoys girl talk on any topic and doing girl things. With men, she flirts a good bit with her usual robustness, but derives much more fun when she has a chance to indulge in matchmaking for her female friends, chat about their ongoing relationships, or go on group dates. As for mercenary work, she travels around, taking up whatever decent task there is for her to do with all of her energy. When Selena and Laslow first arrived in this world, they bumped into her and spent some time together when they began looking for work. She is a bit shy with men underneath, she just finds things more comfortable and relatable around other women, men are a separate world. Also a friend of Ophelia.

Sophie: A young knight errant, who travels with her horse Avel (an Abel reference possibly given the b/v English transliteration thing with Japanese). Sophie was enthralled with adventure tales of knights as a kid and took up service to Nohr in hopes of herself becoming some glorious knight of legend. Finishing basic training, she failed to complete the rest of it, partly out of her own breaking with military discipline. But she also left so she could set off on her own path as a wandering knight who would grow as they traveled Nohr and Hoshido alike helping those in need and dueling foes. Avel sometimes acts such as though they want to help, forcing Sophie to help out even when she does not want to, but at other times, he hinders Sophie’s helping instead. She plans to return to Nohr and finish becoming a knight once she feels she has accomplished enough.

Ophelia: A sweet bookish girl. Originally a good deal introspective, and still so to a degree, she broke out of her shell by adopting many exaggerated personas she can switch between, thus bypassing her socialization issues by always acting according to her currently-in-use persona’s defined traits. (Alternatively, Ophelia is not shy but introspective, and is possibly high functioning on the spectrum, the personas are kept though.) These personas originated in various characters in various literary works she has read. She is really smart, and a fast and voracious reader who collects books, keeps them in good condition, but also scribbles in them all her notes and thoughts. Her hunt for books takes her places. Either a friend of Elise, an orphan receiving a stipend from Camilla, or the daughter of a decent-to-do family (from either Nohr or the western Centralia).

Siegbert: The young head of a notable noble family of Nohr. When his father died a couple years ago, he became the new head of the noble house. His uncle helped manage things so his young nephew would not be overwhelmed by the task, but his uncle mismanaged the family’s finances and drove it heavily into debt. Siegbert blames himself for the problems his uncle caused, as he had a difficult time bringing himself to turn down his uncle’s new spending requests or to question his judgement or criticize him. Very likable, and handsome and young, he admittedly enjoys conversation with the ladies (and the ladies love the fact he has status and money- in theory at least). He desperately wants to cull his trusting, kind nature that has sunk his family into debt, but struggles to reign in his charitable side. As a military officer, Siegbert is knowledgable and disciplined, and it is partly that military ethos that makes him overly trusting. In the military, the ethos keeps everyone generally in line and working efficiently, and he only has to use heavy punishment rarely, with lesser punishments (which he doesn’t love doing, but does as it must be done to keep order and justice) getting his point across. Outside of the military, not recognizing the absence of that ethos is his error.

Nohr:

Spoiler

Xander: The Elder Crown Prince of Nohr. A wise, serious heir who loves his father and siblings. The people of Nohr love him, and Xander takes great pride in the Nohrian people and Nohrian culture. Like Leo, he has enjoyed a full education, and is equally as versed in scholarship and governance as he is in swordsmanship and equestrian. Xander has a less imposing aura than Leo, he maintains the regal Nohrian discipline, but weaves in hints of kindness and warmth. In tastes, Xander is bit simpler and more traditional than Leo, who is drawn to the finer details in aesthetics a bit too much perhaps. Though their artistic preferences don’t influence their statecraft or strategist abilities- they can be equally adept in examining the big picture and the minutiae. The two brothers are essentially equals and treat each other as such. In court politics, Xander finds himself a mediator between the Leonine and Iago factions. As the long designated heir, backed by a national history of royal primogeniture, Xander tries to be aloof from the fray and keep the position of heir unsullied. Xander’s sympathies go with his little brother, but he is more willing to work with Iago than Leo, though he does keep his brother’s claims of Iago’s ulterior ambitions in mind. It is not that Leo refuses to work with Iago, it is that Leo wants to be aggressive at curtailing Iago’s influence at court. Xander is willing to let his brother do this, but within limits. Leo knows just as Xander does that open war in the court is not going to go well for Nohr’s best interests and that Iago is strong, but the two differ on how much restrain to exercise in the shadow war of intrigue and bureaucratic control. Leo gets around to accepting Xander’s cautions most of the time, even when he feels that Xander is letting Iago’s faction gain ground for no good reason. Xander does not like Iago much, but realizes his Father finds him useful and that he has status that must be respected, so he treats him with diplomatic politeness. Xander works to build bonds with members of both the Leonine and Iago court factions and discover and catalog their interests and concerns. Via these bonds, Xander attempts to unite the two court factions with compromises that address the wants and needs of the faction members and stabilize Nohr’s polity.

Camilla: The first princess of Nohr. She was raised lovingly, and became a beautiful, kind princess. After the Ice Tribe rebelled and killed Arete and supposedly killed Azura, and after he returned with Corrin, Garon grew increasingly inconsolable. His queen consort tried to help ease his pain, as did all of his other mistresses and ladies in general serving the royal estates. However, they could not replace Arete, and he became annoyed with their efforts. Eventually, he beat his wife to death (no pregnancy that becomes a miscarriage though- don’t want to be that dark, even though reality could be). Camilla was there when the murder happened, she watched her outraged father and held her mother’s corpse as she spoke her last words after so much screaming and tears. Though spared a beating by Garon, when Camilla tried to speak with him, he was utterly cold and she saw no longer her old strict but loving father. Garon later had a breakdown, he had reached the depths of his despair, though Camilla did not see it. When Garon recovered, he was still the changed individual, but his rage had receded and some clarity had returned. Camilla was forever changed as well. Her mind was shattered. (Note- I had no idea of Peri’s full backstory when writing this, that said, I’ll change my Peri instead of my Camilla.) Looking for a way of escaping this trauma, Camilla saw that her siblings were now devoid of loving parents, particularly the infant Elise and toddler Corrin. Being the elder sister, Camilla threw herself into their care, becoming a big sister/mother figure. Though Garon continued to make sure his children were given prestigious educations, servants and caretakers, and luxury, he never gave them love, demanding instead strict obedience and hard work from them. Camilla came to hate her father, and gave herself entirely to taking care of not just her siblings, including Xander and Leo too, but also her friends, her servants (Garon continued to randomly attack his servants and officials from time to time), and the people of Nohr themselves. Camilla became a fighter to protect those close to her and to appease her father’s nagging demands for useful children. Camilla also developed her own sadistic streak, vengeful against anyone who would hurt those dear to her. She found wyverns to be adorable pets particularly the revenant variety, and the axe fun to swing around, thus explaining her choice of class. Magic is entertaining to her, and she had Leo teach her a bit. She doesn’t care about Nohr the country, nor serving King Garon, and she is not so informed of matters of politics or anything intellectual really- Leo and Xander handle that. She is partly why Corrin and Elise are so innocent, she wants to protect them from cruel realities as much as she can so she doesn’t see them hurt. With regards to Leo, Camilla is concerned that he overworks himself (he does), and, much to his dislike, particularly since he is now grown, she nurses him back to health when his fails a bit. Camilla also tries to help him overcome his shyness and his difficulty with emotions, but again, he does not like being treated that way and rejects it, politely if he can manage it. Camilla is loved by the Nohrian people, for she loves them and patronizes a number of charities in Krakenburg and a few others elsewhere in Nohr. Camilla helps both normal people, and the dark side of the Nohrian underclass. which she does by taking in young darkling children and reforming them into soldiers in her retinue. She channels their bloody skills into those used to combat banditry and thieves throughout Nohr. Garon approves of Camilla’s personal armed force due to their work’s maintenance of order in the land. (Note, having skipped every single Support and actual plot scene, I was not aware of her bastard status until after writing this. While I could amend things and make her as a bastard work, it would have a domino effect on my revised Azura and Forrest, whose specialness derives to some degree from their bastard nature. Hence, I’ll do without concubine wars and give Camilla and the three other Nohrian royal children the same mother- a fertile, legal wife of Garon of a mother, though unable to sate Garon’s sexual appetite.)

Leo: The second prince of Nohr. From early on, he was an intelligent, curious child who read every book in every subject he could. Sickly (I’d be willing to give him anemia as a medical condition), he took up magic instead of physical weapons for this reason. Still, to avoid being labeled as fragile, he trained with a blade and learned fencing too. Horseback riding was also taken up for this reason, and it lets him avoid too much fatigue while running all over Nohr doing all the duties he has taken on. He was raised on the stories of his great grandfather and grandfather, who helped unify Nohr through periods of great civil war and centralized power and authority in the Nohrian crown. He likewise heard praise of his father for following in his grandfather’s footsteps. Yet, Leo has witnessed his father gradually decline over the years, going from a pragmatic and reasonable absolutist to a stubborn and paranoid autocrat. Leo has tried to help his father recover, but has learned with time he is beyond a full recovery to the person he was when Leo was but a small child, when he was in his very promising early regnal years. Leo hopes in time his elder brother as a king will be able to correct the errors of their father’s ways. When Iago first rose to prominence about eight years prior to the start of the game (the New Nobility arose about five or four), Leo was wary of him and openly critical. Leo quickly learned that was a mistake, and Iago has despised Leo ever since. Surviving several attempted assassinations arranged by Iago- by poison and force alike, as well as several attempts by Iago to discredit him in the eyes of His Majesty, Leo grew colder and more distant than he originally was. Leo continues to oppose Iago, with caution to avoid being disowned (and possibly killed- Leo knows it has happened before in Nohrian history) by his father whom Iago can seize the favor of at times, as he hates him and what he is- a greedy bureaucrat usurping power from a capable (in theory, Garon has declined, but could decently improve without Iago around) monarch. He would rather die than kneel to Iago in total submission. Disillusionment with chivalrous and moral idealism led meritocracy and especially pragmatism to become his new ideals. Leo is knowledgable about virtually any intelligent topic: economy, politics, philosophy, math, science, magic, history, military strategy, the arts. Leo is dedicated to efficient centralized government, a model bureaucrat, a first servant of the state (not the people, not the nation) indeed. A bit elitist, not aristocratically snobby, he is just willing to call on most people on their averageness, “everyone is special” doesn’t go very far with him. Leo wants to keep mediocrity from duties beyond its capacity, he demands all the truly talented he can get to best the Iago faction and see to it Nohr is ruled as best as it can be. Leo’s interests are the state of Nohr, his royal family, and himself, though some question the exact order of these in Leo’s priorities. Leo loves his family, but finds it a bit difficult showing his affection. Leo is just as talented as Xander, and would make a great king, but he is obsessed with ensuring it is Xander who lives and becomes King. Elise is too young, innocent and untrained for duty of being a monarch. Camilla’s mind has been shattered and she herself admits she is ill-suited for the task. Xander was raised to be King, and is wise, moral, talented, of great physical vitality, and adored by the public, even if he has faults and is inferior to Leo in ways, he should be king. Leo does not want the crown for himself. Though raised as the spare, Leo is concerned his health, fair under the best of circumstances, would lead him to rule for only a brief few years. That said, Leo overworks himself a lot normally as a prince trying to keep Nohr on the right track, to the collapse of his health at times. When he does collapse, it generally takes someone else to stop him from trying to reschedule his busy life to compensate for the breakdown, ignoring the fact his obsessive rescheduling is only going to delay his return to good health. One of the other reasons, is that Leo is still quite shy, he relies on an imposing mask of coldness, intelligence, regality, and formality to conceal this. Leo would rather be working away in the shadows, unnoticed by everyone, happy simply seeing his labors bearing fruit in Nohr. Leo’s shyness and difficulty expressing his emotions means he has challenges with the ladies, he can utter sweet eloquent language to them, but being authentic is the issue. He has grown a significant retinue of servants, who assist him in the many duties he has taken up as a prince of Nohr. Most of the retinue is male, not so much because he is that bad talking to women, he has no issues with them outside of romantic concerns, but more because Niles, his dear retainer, cannot be reined in completely, despite his efforts to try. Hence, he tries to exclude women for their own sake, the few who are in are wholly aware of Niles’s offensiveness and steel themselves against it thanks to Leo. Assured of himself on the outside, Leo is constantly self-critical, but not overly insecure, just constantly reassessing things to see if he could have done better or how to improve on things. His childhood was cut short by Garon’s changed nature and later, the coming of Iago, he felt he had to mature and use his prodigal talents for serious hard work from a young age.

Peri: From a Nohrian noble family, she is on the childish side of things, though a little more mature in my revision of her- a bit more a bossy high school clique leader, than a psychotic little girl (though some of that remains, her appearance would otherwise have to be tweaked). She was born privileged, and abused that sense of privilege, getting her way a bit too much (her parents deserve some blame). No more killing servants for her, but antagonizing them to the point they either submit out of fear, run away crying, or she demands they be fired for the slightest infraction, yes. She was not chosen by Xander as a retainer, but rather assigned by King Garon. Peri’s father did Garon some good work, he got rewarded with among other things, the right to have his daughter assigned to Xander’s retinue, as she naggingly sought. Xander, loyal to his father, obeyed. Peri is a bit much for Xander though, he tries to rein in her excesses and keeps a close eye on her, but he can only do so much. Peri is a good fighter, strong and unrelenting, if egotistical and ignorant of strategy. Still, Xander keeps trying to reform her, she has potential as a fine person and warrior, as frustrated as she makes him.

Niles: Born in the dregs of society, Niles worked his way out through cunning and whatever he could do. He is a realist, narcissistic, hedonistic, uncouth towards women, and free in terms of sexuality. Morality, he hardly has a care for it. Unsympathetic to the dredges he came from, not accepted by the upper class, and happy to verbally shred it too, though he relishes its luxuries, Niles fits in with no group. Niles was looking to see if he could find easy living serving a royal. Rejected by Xander due to unscrupulousness, and then Camilla due to his sexism, he ultimately landed his gig with Leo. Niles expected easy money from his servitude, plus plenty extra from swiping and pawning some fancy objects from royal estates. But, serving Leo, the overworked prince, was anything but easy, neither giving easy pay nor an easy chance to steal. On one occasion, he tried a major heist that would end his service under Leo before he returned to the slums swimming in wealth. Leo was astute however, and caught Niles and his cronies in the act. His image shattered, Niles was nonetheless impressed by Leo, and Leo by him. Niles then drove a tough bargain by offering him his full talents to Leo, in exchange for which Niles would be spared from punishment and given a good salary. Niles now had greater duties and responsibilities, but he didn’t mind them once he saw Leo was locked in perpetual battle with Iago. Seeing in Iago a soul as bad and nonexistent as his own, Niles wanted to tear the guy apart, there is room for only one of them. Niles proved to be a very talented servant of Leo after seeing Iago, and is not above using this and the prince’s occasional poor health as leverage to assert his interests. Were Leo to drop him from his retinue, he would lose a great asset. Leo conceded to Niles this point. It turns out Leo and Niles shared in coldness and pragmatism, though Leo is a good bit more idealistic, moral and selfless than Niles. Niles also has developed a fascination with Leo, charmed by him, cold, yet so sweet beneath it all. He sees Leo somewhat as his exclusive plaything, albeit one he has to please very often, even when it means doing things that don’t please Niles himself. Leo sees Niles as dangerous to others, but also helpful and insightful to him, so, Leo tries to keep Niles in check. A compromise between keeping the useful Niles out of necessity in war and the non-war struggle against Iago and other corruptors of Nohrian court and politics, and the moral ideal of getting rid of this debauched servant. This is why Leo embraces pragmatism more than meritocracy- Niles has plenty of merit, but it is hard to accept it due to his immorality. Keeping Niles around is a move of necessity. The two check each other by looking for cracks in each other’s aura of perfection, and exploiting them to their fullest, or at least as far as their hearts will allow them to. Entertained by Odin just like Leo, albeit without the deep meaning behind it, nor any contempt. Niles deprives some further delight bothering Forrest, whose feminine appearance makes him a target for harassment. Leo always comes to Forrest’s defense and consoles him when he finds out, and tries to keep him and Niles far apart geographically to prevent such things in the first place. Niles has spread rumors of Leo and Forrest as lovers in response, and Leo shrugs them off- he’d rather not reveal the truth of Forrest to Niles.

Odin: When Owain and Severa and Inigo arrived in this world (1-3 years ago), they ended up near the Dragon’s Gate, on the border of Nohr and Valla. Hence, they found work in Nohr. Owain was impressed by Prince Leo’s visage of striking coldness and talent wowed him over. Going directly before Leo with his usual enthusiasm, Owain, taking the name Odin for a change of identity in this new world, made his case for why Leo should add him to his servants. To see someone this happy and excited willing to serve him, a prince whose work is rather toilsome and depressing, was utter buffoonery to Leo. He could not help but laugh, and added Odin to his retinue as a entertaining idiot, he could use the entertainment. Odin then went about going from swordplay to magic, wowed by Leo’s Brynhildr and overall magical power. Odin also told Leo all about the world he was actually from, with some exaggerations, as would be expected from Owain. Leo continued thinking Odin was a mad fool, and listened to his absurd tales for a laugh, discounting the veracity of them entirely. Eventually, Odin realized Leo was laughing at him and thought him crazy, and felt really hurt by it. Odin stayed on, but became despondent. Leo largely ignored this. However, illness and or fatigue eventually caught up to the overworked Leo as it had before. Leo languished for a while as he recovered, and Odin came to check on him out of his sense of duty. Leo, in a more emotionally vulnerable state while disabled, realized his mocking of Odin had gone too far and apologized, telling Odin he could freely resign from being his retainer. He further explained to see such a cheery fellow, who is so very beheld to optimism and fantasy and completely detached from reality’s cruelties, was something he dejected as impossible and stupid, but at the same time envied it. Odin then in full seriousness and sobriety, and later tears, told Leo that was not the case at all, the world he had come from initially was doomed to destruction- his mother and father, the people of his kingdom, the entire world, was all destroyed before him, and all he could do was flee with a few friends and hope he could change things somehow in another world just like his. To survive, and to help others survive, he suppressed this terror and shock he experienced and became the incredible person you see, but underneath it, he struggled, the memories still tormenting him from time to time, much like his liege. Leo, taking Odin’s unbelievable story as truth this time, was moved by it and thanked Odin for his sympathy. Thus, Odin and Leo reconciled, each all the more willing to don their usual personas for the sake of making the other feel better.

Gunter: A Nohrian general of sixty years. Gunter served the king prior to Garon as a young soldier in the internal wars thirty years ago. Several years later, Gunter served again in the war with Hoshido that then suddenly and unexpectedly turned into a war with Hoshido against Valla. Gunter continued to serve Garon loyally, and received prominent positions of military administration and governance. In the brief conflict between Nohr and Hoshido fifteen years ago, Gunter was at first sent to the front to fight Hoshido, but when the Ice Tribe soon revolted, he was tasked instead with the situation there. When the Ice Tribe killed Arete, Gunter subjugated the Ice Tribe, breaking its resistance to the core and moving beyond the mountains to a brief campaign in the tundras which ended on a positive note for Nohr. Gunter afterwards became military governor of the Ice Tribe Mountains, installing Kilma as the Ice Tribe’s nominal head chieftain. Kilma had lost his son (and possibly wife) in Nohr’s suppression of the Ice Tribe, and was willing to tolerate being Nohr’s puppet, hoping that somehow, he would be able to help his people through this terrible period they would be going through for who knows how long. To keep Kilma obedient, his daughters Flora and Felicia were taken hostage, placed in the care of Gunter. Gunter himself had had a wife and daughter, yet both had perished (to what?- I can’t decide between Ice Tribe, or not Ice Tribe). This loss resigned Gunter to giving the rest of his life to selfless devotion to Nohr and King Garon. Besides governing the Ice Tribe and launching the occasional attack against the tundra, Gunter has temporarily departed from the role at times to help subdue desert nomad attacks, and peasant uprisings across Nohr. King Garon also seeks his counsel on military affairs frequently, as Garon respects Gunter as one of Nohr’s greatest and most loyal generals, despite Iago’s disaffection for the old stalwart (and by “disaffection”, I mean failed attempts to implicate him in anti-Garon plots). When Nohr and Hoshido begin warring again, Gunter is relieved of his duties in the Ice Tribe, and instead becomes the commanding general of Nohr’s conventional non-New Nobility forces. Though he rarely fights himself, he still can fight well for his age, his duties are issuing commands, managing logistics and developing strategy, which he is excellent at. From a minor noble family, Gunter rarely visited the old family estate after the loss of his wife and daughter stripped him of joy, and sold it and the title to Nohr’s treasury, choosing instead to live year-round in the governor’s mansion in the Ice Tribe Mountains. However, King Garon wanted Gunter for all his service to have some place of retreat from the bitter cold of the mountains, and when Gunter refused to accept one, forced him to accept the duty of mentoring the young Corrin in the martial arts, whose estate of confinement was on the northeast side of the Great Lake. The location was close to Krakenburg so they could be monitored, but not too much so that Hoshido would find out about Corrin, it was also deep within Nohr and safe from attack by anyone. The location also allowed Gunter to temporarily leave his duty while still managing it from a distance, to his liking, and featured a lovely view of the water, and plenty of sun and warmth. Gunter has come and gone from Corrin’s estate, which he goes to now for a month every so often getting the message Garon was sending him, though he still focuses on his duties to Nohr. Corrin has some potential Gunter thinks, but also sees that their isolated upbringing and lack of a full education impairs their talents.

Flora and Felicia: The daughters of the Ice Tribe Head Chieftain Kilma. They were taken hostage by Gunter with Garon’s approval at a young age to keep Kilma loyal to Nohr. Raised as Nohrians, with as much of their Ice Tribalism eradicated as Gunter possibly could, they have been taught to be lady servants. The two were traumatized when they became hostages and have since lived their lives with eyes monitoring them and with fear in their hearts. Still, the two have coped with their circumstances the best they can. Felicia, the one who was more traumatized initially, displays greater signs of coping, she is warmer, thinking things aren’t as bad as they seem to be, and is more naive. Gunter to them became a father figure, he was strict with them and forced them to abandon their Ice Tribe origins, but he displayed some element of love and care in his heart, enough to rush to cling to it and they appreciate him somewhat. As a precaution against the death of Kilma leading to possibly anarchy and violence in the Ice Tribe, Gunter, again with Garon’s approval, proposed training one of Kilma’s daughters to be the heir to the Ice Tribe should he die. Given the rigid cage they were in, it would be highly unlikely they would be killed, and betrayal would be impossible. Flora was chosen as the daughter heir, though initially Felicia was chosen and Flora, knowing Felicia was weaker, coaxed her into yielding it to her. Flora has thus met with her father on several occasions more than Felicia, and became versed from him in utmost secrecy about the Ice Tribe’s real condition and was filled with pride for her Tribe and its ways. Flora has in this became aware of exactly the situation her Tribe is in and has lost her naïveté. She displays innocence on the outside, and on the inside, has a desire to overthrow Nohr’s rule, if presented with the opportunity. What moderates the appearance and the desire is the recognition of the Ice Tribe’s precarious situation, like her father, she does not want to see the Ice Tribes further destroyed and does not want to see another failed revolt, but she so badly wants one at the same time. Gunter brought the sisters to Corrin’s estate, where the two served Corrin. Corrin was naive like Felicia, and the two got along well. Flora liked Corrin, but once she began being raised as the heir to the Tribe, she saw Corrin in a new light, another painfully innocent individual, who she could tell, though she knew not why, was also being held captive. Flora envies her sister and Corrin for being so innocent and free of worry, but they are also stupid pawns of Nohr to her, and she cannot go back to what they are, she knows too much.

Jakob: Age 22. Born into poverty in Nohr. He was abandoned by his parents as an infant and raised in an orphanage before being impressed into the services of a local noble around the age of three or four. Said noble was hopelessly corrupt, and frequently had the young Jakob serve him in his bedchambers. When not being molested, Jakob was forced to perform hard servile labor, with abusive punishment for the slightest failure of etiquette or output. Eventually, the noble’s hedonism was deemed excessive even by the standards of the wealthy and powerful, and when he refused to tone down his ways, Garon sent in Gunter to confiscate the man’s estate. The noble was taken away, stripped of his title and imprisoned, where he later committed suicide Jakob learned. Something had to be done with the noble’s estate after he was disposed of. While the manor passed into the hands of another, the servants were permitted to stay or leave and find new masters. Jakob wanted nothing to do with this place, and when he saw Gunter, the man responsible for removing his hated master, he was drawn towards him. Jakob, of only ten years at the time, with cold determination asked Gunter if he would accept his services. Gunter was impressed by the sight of this lone child coming before him, and thought not personally in need of such a servant, decided to take Jakob and brought him to Corrin’s estate, which was fairly undermanned. Jakob had no personal care for Corrin, but Gunter told him to serve Corrin as though he were serving him. Jakob out of love for his liberator thus threw himself in serving the young Corrin. Jakob did not have a happy early life, and he is generally very serious. His old master forced severity on him, and Gunter is the epitome of military discipline. Caring for the innocent Corrin however has forced him to develop a gentler and more relaxed side, so as to not scare/intimidate them. He has learned the healing arts and skills with a dagger to better care for and protect Corrin. His cooking is top notch, and his talents at all other household chores are laudable as well.

Iago: Nohr’s enemy within. Either of low nobility or no noble status, perhaps he is even a lowborn commoner. Iago seeks power, and has carefully and cunningly navigated Nohrian politics to wedge himself at the top. Aims to make Garon his alone and rule Nohr through him. Hans and Zola are his henchmen, non-nobles who for their war and political abilities respectively and their personal loyalty to Iago have risen via the New Nobility.

Hoshido:

Spoiler

Ryoma: The first prince of Hoshido. Raised as the heir, he remembers his father very well, and works to make himself into a worthy heir to his short rule. He is highly disciplined, with the warrior’s code of Bushido drilled into him, but is not without his more relaxed side, he simply cannot let it interfere with his princely duties. Of about 25 years; in anime/manga/Japanese video games, 22-29 can be considered “adult but not old”, appropriate for Ryoma. He has very clear memories of Ikona, seeing how he was of about 6 years when Mikoto came to be the Lady-in-Waiting of Ikona. He was about 10 when Sumeragi died, meaning a 6 year minority would have occurred had Mikoto not taken the throne herself- enough time for nasty nobles to screw things up. Ryoma’s relationship with Mikoto is a healthy stepson-stepmother one. However, on top of the step relationship, Ryoma has with Mikoto a complicated, but healthy too, relationship of rule. Ryoma approved of Mikoto’s ascendancy to the throne and appreciates the time it has granted him to mature into a good potential king. Ryoma has no qualms with Mikoto, who is as competent and talented as any very good monarch who ascended normally, ruling until her death or problems induced by end of life circumstances require it. Nonetheless, Ryoma when he reached 18, two years later than he suggested originally to Mikoto, but which she refused due to wanting Ryoma to take the extra time to develop and grow, Ryoma became of age and started to involve himself seriously (he practiced in his earlier years in minor roles supervised by Mikoto and those she approved of) in politics and governance and all the other affairs of a ruler. For the past seven years or so, First Prince of Hoshido Ryoma has increasingly become co-ruler with Queen Mikoto. One cannot call Ryoma “King Ryoma” as the grand ceremonial and political trappings of real monarchal status are not adorned on him, only Queen Mikoto, but he is in many ways all but a king. Ryoma has served as not just a big brother but also a father figure to Takumi and Sakura, since Sakura has no memories of Sumeragi, and Takumi nearly none. The Rajinto was bestowed on him by Mikoto between the ages of 18 and 21, for she saw that he had become a glorious prince, who when she died, would be an worthy ruler. Initially, the bond between Mikoto and Ryoma was weak, and though the relationship improved over time, the death of Sumeragi strained it. Ryoma expressed skepticism towards Mikoto’s selflessness (he thought she might be power-hungry) until a few years into her personal rule. Only with consideration of the possibility of the alternative (noble/daimyo control) as being worse, and the belief that his wise and noble father would not have chosen a scheming seductress as his second wife, did he originally consent to Mikoto’s regency and later her personal rule. 

Hinoka: The first princess of Hoshido. Roughly 22 years old. Her mother Ikona chose to raise her as a maiden, the traditional path for a Hoshidan princess or noblewoman. Mikoto when she became Hinoka’s stepmother, continued rearing Hinoka according to Ikona’s wishes. However, when Kamui was taken hostage by Nohr, Hinoka suddenly rejected her life as a maiden. Hinoka felt that she could not be passive with her sibling kidnapped, she wanted to help bring her sibling back and disliked a more traditional Hoshidan female upbringing. Thus, Hinoka’s true nature, brash and impatient, came to the surface and she revolted. Hinoka got out of hand with her servants trying to raise her as a maiden, but Mikoto defused the situation and allowed Hinoka to train as a warrior. Far happier this way (Mikoto and Hinoka finally started to grow closer), Hinoka took her training very seriously and dedicated herself to rescuing her kidnapped sibling, as well as fighting for Hoshido, its people, and the rest of her family. Like Ryoma, Takumi, and Aqua, she was raised with an understanding of how to govern, not that she would ever need it. She dedicated herself to the naginata after practicing a little with other weapons. Yet feeling it wasn’t enough, Hinoka took up tenma riding, and she found it both a rigorous challenge and liberating too. An animal lover as a result. While she did receive training at the Hoshido’s great naginata school for royals, nobles, and the wealthy, the need to restrain her temper and led Mikoto to bring her to Hoshidan temples. There, Hinoka received instruction from monks and nuns and became highly disciplined, particularly since the discipline gained at the temples led her to take in military discipline better. The amazement at the single-minded concentration of monastics also led her to narrow her focus on one weapon, the naginata. It was in these circumstances that Hinoka met Azama.

Takumi: The second prince of Hoshido. Insecure, but at the same time overconfident. Competitive with almost everyone. He is a mamma’s boy, and generally takes Mikoto’s side or submits to it. Mikoto has spoiled him, but he does know the difference between right and wrong and hasn’t gotten everything he’s wanted. Really wants to rescue their long lost sibling, and hates Nohr and Garon. He occasionally oversleeps or wakes up really tired (if it was a bad dream, a bogeyman Garon is often in it- Mikoto distillation of hatred of Garon into her kids apparently went too far in this case). His education was excellent, designed to make him a worthy spare just in case. He is not one for studying, but when he applies himself, he does well. He was shy during his earliest years, partly the result of a royal child’s early upbringing being quite a sheltered life. When Hinata was chosen for one of Takumi’s first playmates, the two bonded closely, and Hinata helped Takumi came out of his shell (and shoved him out of his shell from time to time too- the push him into a koi pond kind, but Hinata always apologized if he realized he had gone too far). Takumi became martially enthusiastic and took up every weapon he could, just like how a modern kid takes up a slew of sports. Takumi ultimately abandoned the katana and naginata, his elder brother and sister each being better than him with those weapons. Magic was a no, he wasn’t for healing, and clubs and shuriken were too large and heavy and too small and light respectively. Thus, he settled on the yumi, a decision also made by the fact that he liked archery and really enjoyed hunting with Kiragi. The Hoshidan national treasure the Fujin Yumi was bestowed on him as a gift from Ryoma and Mikoto when he became 16. Takumi takes good care of the weapon, and generally doesn’t let others touch it. Takumi still trains with other weapons too though. Likes looking nice, which partly explains why Oboro is his servant. Has been afflicted for years with seizures that generally occur in the night as he is asleep or near it, including one prolonged instance that nearly cost him his life. Has resulted in rumors that he is cursed, but the seizures generally don't affect his day to day life. Nonetheless, the rumors and increased dependency on others, including the need for someone to be present as he sleeps (often Hinata) in case of an episode, has added to his insecurity.

Sakura: The second princess of Hoshido. Coddled as the youngest of the Hoshidan siblings. She was raised in the shrine teachings and became a shrine maiden. Timid and passive, she nonetheless can show her strength when she feels she must. Mikoto is reminded of herself when she was young in Sakura, and to be fair, Mikoto actively sought to cultivate Sakura as a priestess if she did not mind it, she sought to give Sakura the life she herself was denied by fate. 

Setsuna: A girl from high Hoshidan nobility. A bit quiet, fluid in her movements, yet clumsy, and overall of average ability. Originally raised to be a maiden and a fine wife, she was of a rather fragile beauty, as she continues to be. Despite her high background, she proved to be only average, the critical would say mediocre. A disappointment to her family, they changed her role from a potential noble wife to a lady servant of royalty (a proper high noble can’t serve anyone below them). Yet, after a particularly nasty trip during her training, her skills here too were determined sorely lacking. Thus, the only path left for Setsuna before consigning her to a nunnery was the Hoshidan military. Here, Setsuna displayed what seemed to be greater promise than elsewhere, her skills with a bow seemed solid. Of course, Setsuna flopped again on a major occasion, and it seemed like her future laid in a nunnery. However, Hinoka was present during Setsuna’s big mistake this time. Hinoka remembered having had Setsuna by her side when she too was originally destined for maidenhood and wifehood. Seeing how saddened she was that she had screwed up again, and told by Setsuna of her story of constant failure despite her hard efforts, Hinoka intervened and spared Setsuna from the fate her family had decided on. Delighted to have their daughter chosen by a royal princess as her servant, Setsuna’s family approved and she became Hinoka’s retainer. Thanks to her threefold training, Setsuna, though truly great at nothing, is equally at home when attending formal ceremonies and gatherings with Hinoka, doing domestic service for her, or taking her bow and helping Hinoka in battle. Setsuna does have some fine skills in particular aspects of domestic work, fighting, and ceremony, despite the overall averageness and tendency to err. Setsuna is not overly concerned with her failures, except when they involve major moments, she accepts her middling nature and is happy enough with her life.

Azama: Raised in a monastery from a young age, Azama was an orphan offered by a poor woman who could not care for him. Or, the younger son of a noble family whose vows of celibacy would keep the not that large inheritance from having to be split between him and his elder brother. Or, he was offered as a desire of his noble family to patronize their faith. Regardless, Azama learned the sacred writings and became a studious, clever, monk with a promising future. Yet, Azama is also acerbic, taunting, and inconsistent, qualities that make him hard to love. Azama, though able to recite entire chapters of scripture from memory, seems very superficial and aloof, he does not seem to take the teachings to heart. In a sense, his fluctuating regard and disregard for things of this world is in line with the teachings, but at the same time aren’t. He doesn’t mind pointing out the contradictions in his scriptures, and kind of use them to justify his ways. He confuses everyone because he is hard to pin down. He and Hinoka met when during one of her training sessions at a temple. He displayed his usual qualities, and he annoyed Hinoka, whose temper and demand for direct answers (though she isn’t so black-and-white like Takumi, she can digest complex answers easier than him) made her an easy target. Revisiting Azama’s temple over time, Azama continued to pester Hinoka whenever she came, but she grew more resilient to it with each visit. She too learned the temple writings as part of her training and discipline exercises, and could respond to Azama’s citations. Azama was saddened (so he said) that Hinoka was overcoming his jests and happily impressed by her learning. Azama then said he had done as he had as a way of testing Hinoka and helping set her mind on the right path, one backed by the teachings. Hinoka believed Azama (whether he was telling the truth or not is uncertain) and asked if he would be willing to become her personal spiritual aide. Azama agreed to the task, but as soon as he accepted it, Hinoka could tell from his response he might have been lying. Regardless, despite the fact he continues to annoy her and doesn’t always do as asked, and he continues to remain elusive as to his intentions, Hinoka trusts and relies on Azama, he is smart, and he hasn’t ever abandoned her since he became her retainer, which she takes as enough to prove his ultimate goodness. Azama does indeed provide Hinoka from time to time with serious and confidential spiritual guidance when she seeks it, and can attend to somber duties, but the jesting aloofness is never far away and easy to prod out.

Hinata- Started as a playmate of Takumi and met him around the age of five or six, the two are about the same age. From a mid-level noble family. Hinata helped turned the little prince, rather shy in his early years, into a outgoing active kid. Hinata is rough, wild, and doesn’t mind getting treated the same way, which the insecure and privileged prince can be to him. Takumi’s other best friend, Kiragi, who Takumi also met around the same time, is a good friend of Hinata too. His decision to become a retainer of Takumi originates in his desire to be with his best bud, and help and protect him. As wild and irresponsible as he can be, he in the end always tries to be mature and responsible regarding the health, safety, and emotions, of his little bro Hisame and Takumi too. He loves his little brother Hisame, and is concerned he takes life too seriously and is growing old before his time. Gets along with Oboro, but she is a little harsh on him and he doesn’t like it. Nonetheless, he does as she demands and helps with her shopping for Takumi or her tailoring of his stuff, albeit grudgingly. Takumi appreciates his helping of Oboro though, and likes it when he steps in when she toys with him a little, though chance has it he he sides with her at times. Hinata is rewarded by Oboro with the occasional nice outfit from her for his helping of Takumi and not ticking her off too much. (I’d very possibly turn Hinata into an Oni Savage to give us a second with Hisame no longer a kid.) Also, is a hobbyist woodcrafter and or metallurgist.

Oboro- Her grandfather was a fine artisan of textiles, who under the long reign of the pre-Sumeragi king, was able to establish themselves as a purveyor of clothing to the royal family of Hoshido. Her father took over the family business, and helped expand the business beyond Hoshido, catering to Nohr as well. Unfortunately, he was in the borderlands 15 years ago, and, though not himself an oligarch of the borderlands, had joined them in protesting Nohr’s new restrictions on trade. He (and possibly his wife) was killed by Nohr during the conflict as he tried to escape with the family’s assets in the borderlands (his wife would then have died of heartbreak if she wasn’t with him). (I don’t know if I want her (still wealthy and prestigious) family to be of Centralia origin, only to relocate after the Nohr takeover to Hoshido, where their rise to near-nobility is specifically due to Mikoto’s patronage, or not.) Oboro was taken in by one of her several uncles who continued running the family business in Hoshido. Oboro was raised on hatred towards Nohr stemming from her parents’ death. Oboro loves fashion and has been raised in the family business (like her cousins), but she also has strongly sought vengeance as well. While lacking noble background, her family had the wealth to enroll her in naginata school to sate her desire, and soon became a top notch junior warrior. Training with Princess Hinoka on occasion, during one duel, Prince Takumi showed up. Takumi wanted to duel his sister, but she was tired at the moment. Takumi was eager to duel though, and decided if his sister wouldn’t duel him, he would duel her opponent. Oboro was willing to duel Takumi, and the two did. Oboro won, but was impressed by the prince, telling him she wouldn’t mind dueling him again. Impressed by his appearance, Takumi takes care to look cool, Hinoka is rather utilitarian, Oboro commented on Takumi’s appearance. Takumi responded she looked nice too. Oboro then thanked Takumi and he left. Oboro later brought Takumi on his birthday an outfit she had personally picked out for him. When Takumi later slipped it on, he stated there were a few things he didn’t like about the design, and that it was a bit too loose. Oboro then insisted on tailoring it to Takumi’s specifications. Soon after this event, the two starting chatting with each other, and shared their desires to get back at Nohr, the murderer of Oboro’s parents, and the kidnapper of Takumi’s sibling. United by a black-and-white worldview, Oboro and Takumi began to train together frequently, and soon she became his retainer. Oboro is infatuated with Takumi, his insecurity and stupidity is cute, his competitiveness fun. He is always uncomfortable around her when he is getting measured for clothing when it involves being in various states of undress, and always tries to have pants and an undershirt on. Oboro likes getting a peek at his skin though, and toys with him a little. Takumi does like showing off any musculature he has developed though. Hinata, being Takumi’s other retainer, gets along with Oboro. Hinata is less fashionable and less concerned with it, but generally finds most things Takumi finds cool cool as well. Oboro tries to enlist Hinata in helping her with Takumi’s attire, which he does okay in for an unskilled lackey (he is only so willing to help against his will). Oboro does hate it though when Hinata wears Takumi’s clothes, even when Takumi gave Hinata permission, she made/bought/customized them for Takumi and Takumi alone, Hinata will ruin them! She also hates it when he does things with Takumi that will lead to Takumi ruining his good clothes too, but she is very rarely angry at Takumi, only Hinata.

Hana was born into high nobility. Her father either founded or inherited a great sword school in Hoshido (borrow one of the historical schools- Musashi’s or Yagyu’s or anyone else’s- and make it the basis). Hana herself is one student of said school, and works vigorously to prove herself in it. She also has a knowledge of the other sword schools, and while preferring her father’s and boasting about it, tries to learn the rest as a challenge to them and herself. This interest in schools of the sword makes Hana also receptive to trying out other weapons or non-weapons and learning about their schools and personal styles as well. Hana, whose name means flower, has a bursting love for life and is high energy. She serves Sakura as her friend and retainer, using her as the focus point for her mediation when training (when it isn’t the sword(s) or Hoshido she is using as the locus). Occasionally, she tries to get Sakura to practice with her, to various results. More often, Sakura patches up Hana when she inflicts accidental injury on herself in her training.

Subaki: From a noble family in Hoshido with an excellent record of talent and service, Subaki carries his family’s pride as its heir. He is great at many things, and is so with a fraction of the effort others need much of the time. His excellence in Hoshido’s military academy meant he could have become one of Hoshido’s greatest generals, but instead, he chose to serve the young Princess Sakura. He met her on several formal occasions, he was saw her grace and serenity, and she saw that he was indeed a knightly young man. Rumors having spread of the two being perfect for each other, the dashing noble son of prominence, and a pure and innocent Hoshidan princess. Subaki, liking the princess, chose to fulfill this fantasy, and Sakura agreed to it. Obsessed with perfection, Subaki wishes to attain it, and works hard to move every inch he can closer to it, but knows he can never attain it, it always recedes into the distance, which leads him to be rather depressed on the inside. Likewise, his relationship with Sakura is not as it seems (kind of Hardin-Nyna). Subaki swore loyalty to Sakura because he thought it would please her and she, passive and timid, gave in to the public pressure. Subaki certainly likes Sakura, but when he chose to serve her, it was as much for the public image of it. He thought it the best option for exciting the public which adores him, and he particularly liked this option when factoring in what he thought Sakura wanted. In truth, Subaki became concerned that Sakura does not actually care for him after all. If so, he was burdening her with his forced presence and the attention he brought, and could not go back on this choice without ruining his image. Sakura was told to like Subaki by the public, and she did like him enough, but did she sincerely choose Subaki as a retainer? On second thought, when discovering Subaki’s fears, she realized she did not choose Subaki, nor does she sincerely love him romantically, not yet at least. Telling him this, Subaki was saddened. Sakura told Subaki that nonetheless, she appreciated him deeply since having become her retainer. Subaki, after the immediate sense of failure and wrongdoing, thanked Sakura and rededicated himself to her to compensate for his error. He would no longer be so overly concerned with being her knight, though he would not discard his public image, but would instead work to his utmost to serve his most kind princess Sakura, who has unfairly had to put up with him and his obsession with conforming to public expectations. (If this was converted a support chain, which I could see, the A ends with Subaki swearing to serve Sakura until the war ends and peace returns, yet it leaves open what he will do afterwards- allowing him to S someone else.) He enjoys life, and is inclined to indulge if the option is dangled before him.

Yukimura- Of about 40-50 years of age (a couple more than Mikoto, I think 45 sounds good; Sumeragi, during the war against Valla, would have been 29-ish), Yukimura is an accomplished nobleman of Hoshido. During the war 20 years prior, he as a young officer served with distinction. Likewise, during the brief conflict that occurred 15 years ago, Yukimura proved himself worthy of the promotions he had received after the first war. When the daimyo attempted to overthrow Mikoto at the very start of her independent reign afterwards, Yukimura served among the forces loyal to Her Majesty, and went to work quelling the opposition. When the opposition was quelled, Mikoto knew Yukimura had served her very effectively, and brought him into her officialdom, the pool of members of which was constrained by the strong daimyo opposition to her. Yukimura then proved himself to be equally amazing as a bureaucrat/politician, and became Mikoto’s single greatest minister/advisor, one of the greatest statesmen Hoshido ever had. Yet, sexism and disgust by the daimyos towards Mikoto led them to spread stories that Yukimura, whom she depended on since the beginning of her controversial rule, was more than just a servant. Yukimura, it was rumored, was in fact the brains behind the throne, using Mikoto as a puppet for his own rule. Other, related tales spoke of Yukimura, a man who was rather handsome, witty, intelligent, charming, and very well off, but who never married, as the secret lover of Mikoto. The details of these lover accusations could get out of hand and become rather crude. For the sake of not adding fuel to these fictions, Mikoto delayed her elevation of Yukimura to retainer status until later in her life. There is a kernel of truth to the rumors of romance though. Yukimura never married initially due to his busy military career, but when he became an official of Queen Mikoto, his heart fell in love with her. Yet, he knows she and he cannot be together for reasons of politics and proper royal-servant relations, and she knows it as well. Mikoto thanks Yukimura for his service dearly and superficially responds to his adorations, but lacks the real romantic attachment to him, another impediment to his love for her. Yukimura cares not about his noble line or estate, serving Hoshido and Queen Mikoto and her children is enough. Mild in temperament, a little eccentric, he is good at drawing insights about other people or from things, he is also interested in physics and the mechanics of things.

Orochi is of a family with a long history of being royal diviners. Orochi is roughly of Mikoto’s age, meaning the mid-late forties. Orochi first encountered Mikoto when she became a lady-in-waiting of Ikona. Once Queen, Orochi went from the rare acquaintance of Mikoto to her servant. The two quickly developed a good relationship, aided by Mikoto’s deep understanding of ritual due to her original life plans of being a leading member of the Vallite clergy. Orochi is something of a socialite, and she is versed in Hoshidan court politics and gossip. Her providing of such information to Mikoto assisted her in the early transition to being queen. Mikoto has used Orochi as a supervisor of her children at times, more so Takumi and Sakura. Orochi and Yukimura get along well, as the essential vassals of Mikoto. The two have considered marriage, which would allow each to continue their lineages, but, after years of considering it, they have chosen not to. Yukimura has given his heart to Mikoto, and Orochi chooses not to weigh herself down with a husband.

Reina- She first fought during the conflict 20 years ago as a fledgling Sky Knight (16-18 years old). Five years later, she fought once again, and by this time had developed her skills as a warrior. Silencing daimyo opposition to Mikoto, Reina emerged as a noted Kinshi Knight. Reina is of a lower background, her family worked breeding tenma and kinshi (somebody has to raise the mounts- surprised we haven’t had a cav who started as a stablehand yet). Managing animals means Reina has seen a good bit of life and death, and this, while not desensitizing herself to it, means she does not flinch at it as others do at the idea of killing. Knowing life is finite and precarious, Reina aims to make the most of it and boldly goes into battle. Massacring enemy combatants please her, and she chases after her foes. If they are so scared they surrender and never come back, good, she’ll be merciful. If they continue opposing her, another gut to open, yay! Reina stayed in the military when peace returned, becoming the commander of a whole division of Hoshido’s air force. She enjoys hunting bandits down; hunting animals doesn’t please her as much, they don’t deserve to perish so much. Though a bit excessive, Mikoto found Reina energetic and a loyal servant, and thus bestowed her with high honors.

I'll leave out Mikoto, Kotaro, Shura, Garon, and Azura.

Not going to name favorites and least favorites, but here are a bunch of on the spot things:

Make it so Celica can pass through the center of the desert with a super challenging battle (giant sandworm Terror?) for Deen and Sonya recruitment. More supports overall for SoV would be appreciated- IS went from one extreme to another in quantity.

Tone down Heather's rampant anti-male attitude and her lusting for women, I don't mind her as a lesbian, just make her a bit more polite and add another trait. Devdan/Danved needs an overhaul though. Either make him into a non-campy gay (a better version of his Japanese incarnation), or rework his NA take to be more effectively "Gumpy". Tone down Ilyana's hunger and frailty by a few magnitudes, add some more personality traits, and tie her into the Convoy Group more. Mia needs to be less monotype as well. Aran and Laura need something, anything more to the both of them; and Ed, Leo, and Nol need what they have already shown more. More Sigrun too.

Make Harken less of a shell of a former person, show us what he was like before the tragedy of the Knights of Pherae. A hobby or two would help. Make Rath less stoic too.

Nix the Blood Pact- Ashy and Naesala were retroactively hurt by it. Find another way to show Pelleas's incompetence.

 

1 hour ago, Hylian Air Force said:

Makalov- Marcia should be able to defeat him like Ike does Shinon, and he should join on Turn 1 of Chapter 17 as a prepromoted unit with swords and lances, much better bases than he does in Chapter 14, and actual remorse. The fact that he doesn't learn in Radiant Dawn turns me off of him even more. He acts like Griff from Red vs. Blue, and is even orange like he is, and probably is as skilled. Such a person in real life is not only insufferable, but would also be considered contemptible. I hate him out of everyone else in Tellius that isn't a Senator, and even then, Oliver is at least willing to move heaven and earth for the Herons (if even for his own strange and petty reasons). Grow a backbone and stop spending your sister's money, we have too many people like that in real life.

He's pretty irredeemable and unlikable, but I think that's a nice change of pace for a playable FE character- one who is never redeemed and doesn't truly have a heart of gold. Nor a Travant or PoR Naesala type where they are irredeemable in some regards, but have nuance to compensate. He is simply unlikable, and that is likable.

[Hero_Lucina]

5 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Make it so Celica can pass through the center of the desert with a super challenging battle (giant sandworm Terror?) for Deen and Sonya recruitment. More supports overall for SoV would be appreciated- IS went from one extreme to another in quantity.

I'd play that. 

[Moblin Major General]

3 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

He's pretty irredeemable and unlikable, but I think that's a nice change of pace for a playable FE character- one who is never redeemed and doesn't truly have a heart of gold. Nor a Travant or PoR Naesala type where they are irredeemable in some regards, but have nuance to compensate. He is simply unlikable, and that is likable.

I might be able to tolerate him if he didn't have such a punchable face. I guess that's the point, you make people who are assholes look like assholes so punching them doesn't seem so wrong.

[Sasori]

4 minutes ago, Thane said:

Don't you like his support with Maribelle? It's a fairly popular one, if memory serves, and I know I rather like it.

Also, can people just tone down the whole "kill my least favorite character" nonsense? It contributes nothing and risks just annoying people who like those characters. Try to expand upon your thoughts and opinions rather than writing something that adds nothing to the topic.

I do remember there being a good Maribelle support, but if I recall correctly there was a conversation between Gaius and Libra too in the harvest dlc.

[Thane]

Just now, Sasori said:

I do remember there being a good Maribelle support, but if I recall correctly there was a conversation between Gaius and Libra too in the harvest dlc.

Yeah there is. I just don't get the Gaius hate. Sure, I also dislike how often he brings up sweets, but to say it's the only thing to his character is a blatant lie or willful ignorance, as he's got many conversations where he doesn't mention that at all. He's got a past and shows different sides of himself and his strengths and flaws. If you want to hate on bland Awakening characters, I'd personally go with Kjelle, but to each their own.

[Interdimensional Observer]

2 minutes ago, Sasori said:

I do remember there being a good Maribelle support, but if I recall correctly there was a conversation between Gaius and Libra too in the harvest dlc.

Just feel like throwing this out there- the normal Gaius-Libra support may have been inspired by the Colm-Moulder one in SS. Consider looking it over.

[SpearOfLies]

20 minutes ago, Thane said:

Yeah there is. I just don't get the Gaius hate. Sure, I also dislike how often he brings up sweets, but to say it's the only thing to his character is a blatant lie or willful ignorance, as he's got many conversations where he doesn't mention that at all. He's got a past and shows different sides of himself and his strengths and flaws. If you want to hate on bland Awakening characters, I'd personally go with Kjelle, but to each their own.

I agree about Kjelle. Let's add Stahl too. He annoying me so much his " average is awesome" archetype much more than "I'm not perfect even I am" cordelia archetype. I don't know really a way to fix them.

[Hero_Lucina]

4 minutes ago, SpearOfLies said:

I agree about Kjelle. Let's add Stahl too. He annoying me so much his " average is awesome" archetype much more than "I'm not perfect even I am" cordelia archetype. I don't know really a way to fix them.

Can I lump Tharja and Gangrel in there too? I can't find ways to fix them like I could Anthony

[Thane]

So has this thread merely devolved into complaining about your least favorite characters, or should we stick to the interesting topic of actually trying to improve something?

[Anacybele]

I don't understand why people think the blood pact ruined Naesala. I think it improved him. I didn't like him much in PoR because he seemed like he was being a dick for nothing. There were no clear motives or reasons behind his actions which looked selfish and greedy. Then RD came and made me really like him by actually explaining why he was doing it. He wound up inheriting a country that was under the control of the blood pact which forced him to act the way he did so he could protect his people. It showed that he's not a bad guy just for the sake of it, he had to do the wrong thing in order to do the right thing.

I would've just put a little more depth to the blood pact itself and explain a little more about how it works and who originally invented them.

Edited July 18, 2017 by Anacybele

[Armagon]

I few more favorites of mine to fix/improve

Nowi: Back when i first got Awakening, Nowi was one of my favorite characters, and she still kinda is. However, because of S-Supports, i would make it so that Nowi is older. She's 1000, yes, but she looks like a child. Her physical age should at least be around the same age as everyone else, so that it's not weird. Look at Sophia. She is also a Manakete, but she's 100 years old and looks to be about Roy's age (yes, i know Sophia is only half-Manakete). On that same page, make Nah physically older, because again, S-Supports.

Walhart: One of my favorite villains in the series. Walhart's fix is really simple actually: make him more relevant. The thing with Walhart and the whole Valm arc is that they came out of nowhere, and was mostly filler. Have Walhart someone we know of from the start. Not directly, but like, someone you would hear about in political talks. In addition, remove Excellus. Excellus is what really brings down Walhart's character. Walhart's goal was supposed to be to unite the world to defeat Grima, but Excellus pulled him away from that. Also, make it so that it's explained why Walhart knows about Grima.

Priam: Make him relevant to the plot.

Nergal: Have him actually be the final boss and not some generic Fire Dragon

Zephiel: Remove his "humanity must die" mentality. It's kinda contradictory how he says humanity can't be trusted, yet he trusts Murdock. And now that his "humanity must die" mentality is gone, let's have his conquest of Elibe be influenced by Jahn instead.  Let's have Jahn convince Zephiel that Bern deserves to dominate, and to accomplish it, the power of Dragons must be used, which leads Zephiel to unseal Idoun.

 

I don't have any least favorites to fix because there are only four characters in the entire series that i don't like, and i've already talked about them on the first page of this thread.

 

Edited July 18, 2017 by Armagon

[SpearOfLies]

7 minutes ago, Hero_Lucina said:

Can I lump Tharja and Gangrel in there too? I can't find ways to fix them like I could Anthony

Tharja is one my fav so not like is good idea ask me. I can only advice you change love to obsession and try read her outside of Robin and Noire. A creepy girl that love cursing.

4 minutes ago, Thane said:

So has this thread merely devolved into complaining about your least favorite characters, or should we stick to the interesting topic of actually trying to improve something?

Most of time was killing the character...

Let's try a random character than the least fav. I think this may work better.

Nah - She was supposed to be actual young manakete with a adult-like/serious personality opposite to her mother Nowi. It quite bother me that the support show just her lack of experiences and naivety. There is also the random yandere with inigo...

I think adding more about her adult-like behavior to her support and let her tell more about the doomed future would improve the view of her character instead of comical manakete weed eater...

[Hero_Lucina]

Just now, SpearOfLies said:

Tharja is one my fav so not like is good idea ask me. I can only advice you change love to obsession and try read her outside of Robin and Noire. A creepy girl that love cursing.

I'll try

[SpearOfLies]

1 minute ago, Hero_Lucina said:

I'll try

Please make sure to change love to obsession. It quite different idolize someone as the chosen one and believe someone is her fateful lover. Robin's background(amnesiac talent tactician) help a bit.

[Azz]

11 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

I don't understand why people think the blood pact ruined Naesala. I think it improved him. I didn't like him much in PoR because he seemed like he was being a dick for nothing. There were no clear motives or reasons behind his actions which looked selfish and greedy. Then RD came and made me really like him by actually explaining why he was doing it. He wound up inheriting a country that was under the control of the blood pact which forced him to act the way he did so he could protect his people. It showed that he's not a bad guy just for the sake of it, he had to do the wrong thing in order to do the right thing.

I would've just put a little more depth to the blood pact itself and explain a little more about how it works and who originally invented them.

The reason why I think the Blood Pact ruins Naesala is because it completely oversimplifies his actions in PoR as 'The Blood Pact made me do it.' They could have easily gave Naesala's actions have more meaning to them. Like, after the the previous Raven King's rule, Naesala was left with a rundown country full of starving people. So Begnion were like 'You scratch our backs, we scratch yours.' Of coarse Naesala having the best intentions for his people in mind is like sure and he does what he does in RD, distracts the LA and unintentionally leads to the massacre of the Hawk People. Of coarse this wasn't what Naesala agreed to and thus he decides to go against Begnion and side with the LA in oder to atone for his sins.

This is just one thing that could have been done. And TBH, I could write an essay on what else could have been done instead of the Blood Pact, however this is not the topic for such a thing.

[Anacybele]

1 minute ago, Azz said:

The reason why I think the Blood Pact ruins Naesala is because it completely oversimplifies his actions in PoR as 'The Blood Pact made me do it.' They could have easily gave Naesala's actions have more meaning to them. Like, after the the previous Raven King's rule, Naesala was left with a rundown country full of starving people. So Begnion were like 'You scratch our backs, we scratch yours.' Of coarse Naesala having the best intentions for his people in mind is like sure and he does what he does in RD, distracts the LA and unintentionally leads to the massacre of the Hawk People. Of coarse this wasn't what Naesala agreed to and thus he decides to go against Begnion and side with the LA in oder to atone for his sins.

This is just one thing that could have been done. And TBH, I could write an essay on what else could have been done instead of the Blood Pact, however this is not the topic for such a thing.

But Naesala had something even worse than that. Because of the blood pact, his people were literally in danger of dying out, not just lacking food. And I feel like Begnion was just that as you said, "you scratch our backs, we scratch yours."

[Rapier]

4 hours ago, Reimu Hakurei said:

Give her smaller breasts and therefore a better personality. She's just creepy and ugly to me.

Something seems funny here.

ahem

Ephraim - I don't really like him, and it is because the game treats him like the second coming of whatever genius strategist in History I could use as an analogy and the plot seems to favor him even though his actions seem stupid in practice. Raiding a castle with few soldiers, being ambushed by Valter, then lolplotarmoring your way out of danger through a handwaved blackscreen was so bullshit that I don't buy the narrative's description of him at all, since his actions directly contradict it. Were he without plot armor, he'd have been screwed like Theon Greyjoy from GoT/ASOIAF in that scene. He is also absolutely perfect, and I don't remember an instance where his plans go awry and he is punished for it (the above case may sound like a contradiction to what I'm saying, but it actually isn't since he escapes harmlessly anyway).

Mia - She is adorable, but her personality is limited to being a generic shounen heroine bumping other people's heads as she looks for her white clad rival. A bit of character building could do her good. Why is she so obsessed with being stronger? Was she bullied as a kid, or lived close to the Daein-Crimean border and saw her village suffer constant attacks, or did any event of that sort that understandably led her to hold tight to this goal ever happen? The narrative never shows us that. Alternatively, her "white clad rival" could also be fleshed out. Maybe she saw a white clad knight save her, or her village, or do something that she was amazed with, or even trained her, and she considers her "rival" someone to look up to and surpass (not like the Black Knight, who wishes to kill their rival and mentor, but because she wishes to become as good as they were in her memory).

Myrh - She is also adorable and her "acts mature, but isn't quite" way reminds me of Sanaki, which is cute, but what is the point of her character anyway? She fits in the manakete archetype and iirc they are regarded as divinity or sacred people in SS, but I don't remember her being something important to the story, nor doing anything important. If she does something relevant during the endgame, ok, I'm wrong, but I've never seen anything until that point, which makes her seem like a token character whose reason to exist is to fit the archetype than anything else.

The Black Knight - His rivalry with Greil could've been much deeper than "you were once my mentor, and I want to surpass you (by killing you)", like a clash of ideals or principles. His almost absolute submission to his master as his reason for existing is also very questionable.

[Azz]

6 minutes ago, Anacybele said:

But Naesala had something even worse than that. Because of the blood pact, his people were literally in danger of dying out, not just lacking food. And I feel like Begnion was just that as you said, "you scratch our backs, we scratch yours."

The thing with blood pact is, Naesala did not sign the pact, he predecessor did. This is why I think what I suggested is an overall better reason for Naesala's actions, as there are much more personal to him and it would be his mistake for siding with Begnion rather than a mistake he inherited, thus making his redemption much more satisfactory.