Genealogy of the Holy War: Most (and Least) Memorable 12 Crusaders

[BriForABri]

When I played through Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War and completed it for the first time, I knew then and there that it was my new favorite FE game. Many factors played a role in this such as the music, story, etc., but one (or twelve) parts that piqued my interest perhaps more than the rest were the Holy Crusaders of Jugdral. I know other Fire Emblem games replicated this idea such as Binding Blade, Sacred Stones, etc. but I think Genealogy of the Holy War did the best job at implementing the history and legacy of the 12 Crusaders into the gameplay and story. This can be found in instances such as Sigurd (Baldr) and Arvis (Fjalar) fighting and even courting the same woman, or the continued disputes and fighting between Manster and Thracia. Players hear tell of these legendary warriors at the start of the game, but then they get the chance to control descendants of the Crusaders as well as fight against different descendants across Jugdral. Not only that, but the player can pair up characters and play as the children of some of the descendants in the previous generation! I loved it! Combine this with the interesting story connections and you get an incredible game mechanic that other Fire Emblem games would try to replicate in the future.

My question for you all today is as follows: Which Crusader is your favorite and which do you think impacted the story of BOTH generations more than others? Likewise, we have to look at the ones that did little to affect the story. As for me, my favorite would have to be Ced, the wielder of the Wind Tome Forseti, the founder of Silesse, and the long past relative of Prince Lewyn. This may be partially due to the fact that I loved playing through Silesse in Chapter 4 of the game (I love snow/ice levels) as well as listening to its chapter theme, Dances in the Skies, but I also loved playing as his descendants, Lewyn and Ced in the first and second generations. Particularly in the second generation, however, I think their story relevance really shined. Lewyn served as the rescuer and guardian of Julia, while Ced played a major role in Manster as a rescuer of many children being hunted. What is really interesting to me however is how the spirit found within Lewyn's tome (Forseti) resurrects Lewyn and guides the Liberation Army safely through harm until the end of the Holy War. The kindness that the Wind God Forseti and Crusader Ced were known for was very interesting to witness and read about. Forseti, for example, believed that he himself was a wind meant to guide the light to the people of the world. As a result, Ced and his descendants also followed Forseti's beliefs and sought to follow in his footsteps. For these reasons, Forseti, Ced, and his descendants (Lewyn and his son, Ced in particular) are my favorites among all the rest. 

My least favorite was not difficult to pick. It is, without a doubt, Neir, the wielder of Helswath, the founder of Dozel, and the long past relative of Lex. My biggest reason for despising Neir lies solely in little story relevance he and his descendants have. I know one could argue this, but not only can the player NOT control any of his descendants (aside from Lex, who is only a Minor-blood), but his descendants also play a large role in the horrors and crimes that engulf Jugdral in the Second Generation. Similar to Thrud and Fjalar though he may be, at least those two have SO much more story relevance (such as the House Friege and Arvis). I found myself forgetting him and his descendants very quickly. I hated dealing with his stupid weapon, which is just a hand-axe with stupid buffs. However, I did find the whole family dispute that took place in Isaach in Chapter 6 to be mildly interesting. Being able to choose which member of Neir's family to fight against was an interesting concept! But in the end, I cannot find myself taking any interest in the founder of Dozel or his descendants.

Shout outs to Hezul for a close second. He is saved only by the House Nordion and its descendants. 

[Slumber]

Favorite: Od. The family dynamics of Isaach is... interesting, to say the least. Chulainn just went off and became a pit fighter, Shannan's cool, Galzus had his chunk of the family destroyed and he just wandered the earth as a mercenary, Mareeta's awesome, Ayra's pretty overrated, but she's the mother of the only two worthwhile infantry units in gen 2.

Baldr is obviously the most important/impactful. All of the main characters in Jugdral are his descendants.

Least favorite: Ulir. That dipshit decided to lock most of his crazy superhuman powers behind a bow. And as bad as Dozel's house and Neir's descendants are, Edean/Briggid's family is the worst. Andorey and Scopio are so fucking punchable it's ridiculous. Briggid/Eyvel's cool, but Edean's about as interesting as a pool noodle.

[Roxas]

speaking of the 12 i feel like even the least relevant crusader is still more relevant than any of the other heroes mentioned in any other game (i.e. the archanea/elibe bozos not named anri/roland/durbans/athos) 

[Etrurian emperor]

Compared to other founding fathers the 12 crusaders aren't really memorable as a whole. I guess having 12 of them wouldn't make it very practical to start characteristic them all but even Fala barely gets any detail despite her being the ancestor of Arvis and Julius. 

I guess Tordo or ''Trud'' (pffff) stands out to me the most. His house makes for the most recurring villains on Jugdral and Reinhard being adressed as his second coming might give us an idea what he was like. 

Edited January 1, 2019 by Etrurian emperor

[BriForABri]

10 hours ago, Etrurian emperor said:

I guess Tordo or ''Trud'' (pffff) stands out to me the most. His house makes for the most recurring villains on Jugdral and Reinhard being adressed as his second coming might give us an idea what he was like. 

Because of how much Tordo's descendants and house are mentioned within the lore and story in Thracia 776, such as fighting the Friegian Empire so much, witnessing the bonds between Olwen and Reinhardt, and getting a better idea of what Julius' and Ishtar's relationship was like, I find myself taking a bigger interest in Tordo. It is the connections to the plot that make me take an interest in Crusaders such as Ced, Tordo, etc. 

[Rapaille]

If we just look at the crusader himself then my favourite would be Bragi. I find it quite interesting that he was a Loptyrian priest prior to becoming a crusader and how he wanted the people to forgive the Lopto church (he built Bragi tower at the place of the conclave where he was raised and wrote a message that he wished that the Lopto sect wouldn't be persecuted). Makes it more tragic when you consider what the Lopto would have to go through for the following years.

If we also look at descendants then it's Njörun. Her story is also pretty tragic and her descendants are some my favourite characters in the Judgral games.

Least favourite is Ulir. We know almost nothing about him, his weapon is lame and while Briggid is cool I'm not all that fond of Adean (I like the 2nd gen characters though).  

[BriForABri]

10 hours ago, LJwalhout said:

If we just look at the crusader himself then my favourite would be Bragi. I find it quite interesting that he was a Loptyrian priest prior to becoming a crusader and how he wanted the people to forgive the Lopto church (he built Bragi tower at the place of the conclave where he was raised and wrote a message that he wished that the Lopto sect wouldn't be persecuted). Makes it more tragic when you consider what the Lopto would have to go through for the following years.

Considering that I have been interested in learning Bragi and his descendants, your description is very interesting to read about. For example, I have always wondered what exactly the purpose of the Tower of Bragi is and why it was built. Not only that, why was it built so far away on the borders of Agustria/Orgahill? It is details like these that make me interested in Bragi as a Crusader and his impact on Jugdral. 

[Eltosian Kadath]

Favorite: I think I will go with Fjalar, not only is his family crest the Fire Emblem of Jugdral, but his decedents have had a massive impact on the continent.  From the hypocritical drunken philanderer Victor, to his son Emperor Arvis who strove to end discrimination with an iron fist, with his daughter Julia being the easy way out of the game, his son Julius being the heir to Loptyr and even his bastard with general Aida being the 10 star general himself Bishop Saias. Almost forgot about Queen Hilda there, another of his descendants who led house Friege as the dowager queen by the end, plus the Azel and his descendants. Plus I love how it is implied that Bantu is the fire dragon that blessed their bloodline.

Special mention has to go to Njörun and Dain for the way those sibling's succession crisis split the whole Thracian peninsula so thoroughly that they needed an entire extra game to deal with it.

Least Favorite: I don't know, if I look just at the descendants probably Bragi, but as an individual there is enough supplemental material that I get a good enough sense of him not to place him this low. Maybe Neir, I guess, although I do like how in both generations it is those of Neir descent who most consistently clash kin vs kin.

2 hours ago, FE_McFly said:

I have been interested in learning Bragi and his descendants, your description is very interesting to read about.

You might want to check out some of the translations of treasure articles found here:

 

[BriForABri]

2 hours ago, Eltosian Kadath said:

Favorite: I think I will go with Fjalar, not only is his family crest the Fire Emblem of Jugdral, but his decedents have had a massive impact on the continent.  From the hypocritical drunken philanderer Victor, to his son Emperor Arvis who strove to end discrimination with an iron fist, with his daughter Julia being the easy way out of the game, his son Julius being the heir to Loptyr and even his bastard with general Aida being the 10 star general himself Bishop Saias. Almost forgot about Queen Hilda there, another of his descendants who led house Friege as the dowager queen by the end, plus the Azel and his descendants. Plus I love how it is implied that Bantu is the fire dragon that blessed their bloodline.

Similar to Ced with the impact he and his descendants have on the story, I also believe that Fjalar and her descendants are very interesting. As you said, the fact that the "Fire Emblem" in this particular FE saga is the family crest of Fjalar stands out a lot. I loved learning about her family tree and how her descendants impact the game, but I loved the connection between the Fire Emblem and Arvis' (for example) eventual rule over Jugdral. While Ced may be my favorite, it can't be denied that Fjalar is one of more impactful Crusaders.

P.S. Thank you very much for the link to the Treasure articles! I appreciate the help!

[Dandy Druid]

This is a hard one, but because I find their descendants interesting: Bragi. I like Bragi, and I like the idea behind their signature stave: The Valkyrie Staff. It makes me wonder when and how many times they used it in the fight against the Loptyr Empire. He was also pretty compassionate towards the Lopt Sect and didn't wish for their persecution. I'm also a fan of how his descendants (like Claud) are able to see into the future, and it makes me wonder what other supernatural elements that House Braggi is associated with. The house is also influential within Grandbell for being a center of religion IIRC. Plus, House Edda was probably the most "neutral" during the political split between Sigurd and Arvis in Gen 1. I'm also a fan of Lene and Claud, who are interesting characters in their own right. I like the contrast between these two in particular, a house that is known for its priesthood, but the descendant of Bragi himself grows up poor, having to fend for herself, and work in a rather sinful line of work.

Runner Ups: Thrud, Njorun

Least Favorite: Neir. Probably because they're the house with the least information on them? IDK, the game and extra material hardly talks about him. The only other house that doesn't get that much coverage is Ulir, but I like Edain, Brigid, and the showdown with their brother so I'll take deeply sowed family drama.