#RF Etherberd

[runefactorynonsense]

Every so often I'm reminded of how Etherberd in RF4 is said to have gone on a decades long genocide of Earthmates, and it has me thinking-

What are the odds that this means he killed Raguna?

[runefactorynonsense]

Margot’s Rune Factory Headcanons #2;

I stumbled across this personal headcanon in notes I’d taken from my last playthrough (on top of all the babble I did about the library's books last week);

#2 - “Grimoire” is a word for the Earthmates who are connected to a Dragon [in this case, Terrable], and thus are able to wield their power.

Tl;dr - Raguna could be a Grimoire, and Ethelberd tried to become a Grimoire.

I’ve messed with this thought for several days, so hopefully this makes sense.

Headcanon that the word “Grimoire” has lost a great deal of meaning as time has gone on. Terrable has been sleeping, resting for so very long- in my headcanon, he’s been resting since the day Fiersome was sealed away. Terrable, for the longest time, had the best chance to share his power with Earthmates. Meanwhile, Aquaticus preferred to guide Earthmates instead of lending them power, and Ventuswill has given so much of her own energy to the land that there’s not any power she can spare. Truthfully, however, there hasn’t been anyone to truly wield Terrable’s true power, or any Native Dragon’s power, in generations.

There are some modern day Earthmates who are strong enough to feel Terrable’s presence within the earth. (Headcanon: Doctor Edward is one, as is Ivan, as is Raguna.) Some of those Earthmates have even had strange dreams of communication with Terrable - reminiscent of the dreams in RF:Frontier - but that’s it. (Ivan is one of those few- and the most trusted to the King, mayhaps.)

Nowadays, “Grimoire”’s correct meaning is mainly only used correctly in Norad’s Capitol and Sylphia, among royal researchers, mages, and knights. Even then, the term is used incredibly loosely, and quietly. (Ventuswill isn’t exactly about to spill secrets when she is weak, and the ‘right person’ isn’t around.) Among the rest of the country, the ‘Grimoire is a dragon’ or ‘Grimoire is a mage’ legends have become increasingly popular, ideas that stemmed from two halves of the truth. (The tale has become one of Kardia’s tourism drives; visitors enjoy the small town’s festivals and a chance to get a ye olde photograph at the base of the mountain.)

Meanwhile, the Sechs were on the right track, in having the idea that using an Earthmate would be a good way to get to Terrable… That an Earthmate and the idea of Grimoire were connected…

No one is sure of a Grimoire’s true form because no one is quite sure who a Grimoire will be, not anymore. It’s not often there’s an Earthmate strong enough, a situation dire enough, or an Earthmate with the correct will and drive to handle that power. Those who fit that criteria become the dragon’s messenger, just like those Earthmates of old who worked alongside Terrable to seal away Fiersome, or those who Ventuswill befriended long ago. (And it’s probably a good thing Fiersome doesn’t seem to be able to lend anyone power.) A true Grimoire would be granted powerful magic and stamina, a gift fromthe Dragon themselves, some of their essence in their veins- a force beyond any monster or mage in the mortal plane.

And that’s why Etherlberd was so desperate to get his spell right- first, against Terrable, second, against Ventuswill. He needed to figure out how to wield that power, to become a Grimoire, or something close to it, before someone wielded it against him.

So, to repeat, tl;dr - Raguna essentially = Grimoire, and Ethelberd tried to force himself to become a Grimoire.

And, personally, I’d like to see something where a RF hero actually gets to use that power, instead of the Dragon showing off all on his own. Not that Terrable driving off the Sechs Army wasn’t satisfying, but like. Let the Earthmates have their Thor: Ragnarok moment!

Please note; I haven’t beaten Tides of Destiny yet, so if that happened, I wouldn’t know. Also no spoilers pls I’ve avoided them thus far and would like to continue <3

And again, these are all personal headcanons made for fun, not meant to be hard facts or game lore <3