#teas of fodlan

[randomnameless]

It's better to laugh than to cry, right?

Rhea BaD bcs she banned the technology to create Relics!

Or at least, makes sure no one in Fodlan knows how to craft them anymore :(

The Church LiEd!!!!

Will we ever know why the Church of Seiros hides the truth?

the FEH writers did their work, they wrote Claude being wrong while sprouting "evidences"!

Agarthium =/= Umbral Steel, because Umbral Steel is actually... something that you can find when you... defeat specific units like :

(tfw Agarthans harvested Agarthium from giant worms)

Come on Claude, we know what Rhea told you, and that shit you just sprouted wasn't what she told you at all.

She told you what "Umbral Steel" really was, surely you will finally reveal this to Marianne so she will stop uwufying poor Momo and give more fucks about the Relics, considering what, no, rather who they are, right?

...

go ahead Marianne, tell her what this "weapon" you're using actually is!

:')

This is a joke, right?

"I'll keep this tool in my hand for as long as I live, just like my ancestor Momo!"

But do you remember that Momo was turned in a beast, even if he had the matching crest, because he used Blutgang too much? This weapon is dangerous to use, even if you have all the requirements, because it's not really a weapon!

Apparently, no one gives a fuck!

:')

"but random, why are you so pissed? Rhea most likely came to the same conclusion when plot-wise, she gave the relics to the northerners in the first place, like the Laetitia Gautier!"

Rhea knows what the "relics" are, and much like she says in Nopes when fighting alongside a descendant of the Elites, if they use their powers with/for "good", then it's not a sin.

We can surmise* that Rhea knew what Sharon the Nabatean, turned into the Lance of Ruin, would want, like "help those people" so if Sharon and her powers - even if they were desacrated in the worst way - are used to do/protect something Sharon would herself do/protect, then it's an "acceptable" use.

something like "not only the will of the wielder" is important, but "the will of the person who was turned in this weapon".

But here?

There's no revelation about Sharon the Nabatean, Blutgang is just a tool, a sword that was maybe made with evil intentions, but ultimately just a mere sword, like Mareeta's blade.

In a series where some characters are berserked/weaponised against their own will (witches, feral ones, berserk people, etc etc) FEH refusing (but it follows the source material here!) to point out the "origins" of the relics is completely bullcrap.

We're on "ah yes, Ashnard has a big wyvern, doesn't he?" levels, without anyone to tell us that, no, this is no wyvern, but someone turned in a weapon against his will who had a name, a family and, in general, a history.

Imagine the Tales Series, where Lloyd never muses about the "shiny rock" he has even after he learnt that this shiny rock is basically what remains of his mother, or Genis not having his "I don't want to use this" moment when he has to use the shiny rock that used to be Marble - or a Destiny port where Stahn and his pals would only see the Swordians as, swords, and not as people they want to help.

That's basically Fodlan - you're not supposed to give a fuck about Marble, Anna, Dymlos or even Rajaion, they're just neat accessories/power ups, and that's all.

*of course it's only a hypothesis, because the devs dgaf about this issue and will never write about it

[tinnictheguardian]

So 20th September was Byleth's default birthday. It just so happen to be the day after my birthday and on the day, I was pretty tired as I was returning from Sea World, with a quick stop in Paradise Country, and so didn't do any tea drinking.

It also didn't help that Byleth's tea, Leicester Cortania, is just Darjeeling the second flush. So it just tastes like Darjeeling, which is not exciting.

The tea's in-universe description reads: A specialty tea from the Alliance blended with variety of leaves from the east. This tea is of the utmost quality.

As always, the Fodlan Tea Collection teas comes from Lupicia and is just their Darjeeling the Second Flush. On their website it's described as: A blend of summer-picked (second flush) Darjeeling tea often referred to as the "Champagne of teas", and representative of this region's many blends. Savour its rich, mellow flavour.

It tastes like Darjeeling. I don't know what more I can say. If you like Darjeeling, you'll like this tea.

I think the most notable part of this tea is that Byleth, a commoner mercenary, was given a high quality tea. No commoner leaf soup for her!

So yeah, 7.5/10 but mostly because it's just Darjeeling.

[ladysolwind]

Oh my god. Look what came in the mail today.

It's been in shipping and customs for two months. I ordered it back in April.

The cup is beautiful. If it wasn't so obviously delicate I'd probably just be holding it and staring at it. It only just got here so I haven't tried any of the tea yet, but I plan to.

Oh my god Sothis I'm so happy.

[featherquillpen]

Ferdinand von Aegir and Masculinity

One of the ways we can interpret Ferdinand's arc in Crimson Flower is as a reparation of his relationship to masculinity.

There are multiple lines of evidence suggesting that Ferdinand holds patriarchal beliefs at the beginning of Three Houses.

Ferdinand's line at the very start of game about how he is "Ferdinand von Aegir, legitimate son of the Aegir family." The preoccupation with legitimacy, both in the fiction of Three Houses and the real world, comes from one of the central tenets of patriarchy: control over reproductive labor so that men can pass down power and property to sons they are sure are their own. It is impossible to be fixated on legitimate sons (the production of heirs who can inherit property within the confines of marriage) without being fixated on controlling women (forcing them one way or another to produce sons for the men who married them, and only the men who married them.)

Ferdinand's one-sided rivalry with Edelgard. Why does he need to prove himself to be better than her so badly? I figure there are multiple reasons, but very likely one of them is that she is a woman who stands to inherit a great deal of power, which is something that happens very rarely in Fodlan. All the noble houses we hear about in Three Houses are run by men (Duke Aegir, Duke Riegan, Margrave Gautier, etc.) The young noblewomen at the Academy are all under intense pressure to marry, and there is a lot of evidence to suggest that they and their houses would then be under the control of the men they marry (Ingrid's whole story especially suggests this.) All the histories from the library talk about Kings, Emperors, and Dukes running the three nations in the past. This situation with Edelgard becoming the female ruler of a nation is unprecedented, and it seems to make Ferdinand feel insecure, especially since she's supposed to be the figurehead and he's supposed to be the power behind the throne (as established by the Insurrection of the Seven, his advice box question about how he wants to be Emperor.)

To be clear, I'm not saying that Ferdinand holds these views consciously. It's just that he, along with every other character in the game, lives in a society and has unconsciously absorbed some of the beliefs common to noblemen in that society (he's far from the only one!)

(Incidentally, this is why I get really annoyed when people say that Dorothea hates Ferdinand early in their arc together because of a misunderstanding. That's not true! Dorothea hates Ferdinand because she perceives him as a sexist nobleman, and she's right. Give her some credit!)

Character Growth

What I really enjoy about Ferdinand is that he's stacked high with character flaws, but he gets to learn and grow so much as a person, and the arc of his relationship to masculinity is no exception.

There are multiple support chains where he learns to accept women's boundaries and give them more autonomy. There's the support chain with Dorothea, of course. But there's also the support chain with Bernie, where she lays down a boundary with him and he learns to accept it. There's the support chain with Mercedes, which starts with Ferdinand lecturing her about exactly how she ought to be religious, and ends with him stealing her adoption paperwork to empower her to free herself. There's the support chain with Marianne, which starts with him lecturing her on how to be a proper noble and ends with him telling her that only she can define her own purpose in life.

There's also the obvious marker of Ferdinand's changing relationship with masculinity, which is his long hair post-timeskip. If we look at the character designs for other men in FE3H, we can see that he has the longest hair of any man in the game, by a long shot. The man with the second-longest hair is Linhardt, and he has a tea party line about girls getting jealous of his appearance. Generally, it seems like hair shoulder length or shorter is normatively masculine, while hair longer than shoulder-length like Linhardt's and Ferdinand's is not. So Ferdinand now feels secure enough in his relationship to masculinity that he can break the mold that way.

Crimson Flower

One more important point is that Ferdinand is able to go farther in repairing his relationship to masculinity in Crimson Flower than in other routes. There are multiple points of evidence for this.

First, there's Ferdinand's support chain with Edelgard, exclusive to CF, which is paired with some changes to his support chain with Byleth. In CF, Ferdinand is able to accept that Edelgard is better suited to lead than he is, and accept that he might be able to thrive in a support role instead, a more healthy take on masculinity than his earlier drive to prove that he must be more worthy to lead. Of course, this growth does not happen in the other routes. He continues to set himself against Edelgard, and with her out of the picture, he goes on to become the most powerful person in Adrestia, just like he wanted from the start.

Another interesting difference we can find in his paired endings. Returning to the concept of patriarchal lines of succession I discussed above, most of Ferdinand's paired endings feature him becoming Duke Aegir, marrying, and producing heirs, thus perpetuating the patriarchal line of succession. Ferdinand has only three paired endings in which he either does not become Duke Aegir, or makes sure that he is the last Duke Aegir, and all three of these are exclusive to Crimson Flower. In his endings with Edelgard and Hubert, he doesn't become Duke Aegir at all, but devotes himself to serving Edelgard as an advisor. In his CF ending with Constance, they become "one-generation nobles" who "pioneer the reformed class system." This shows that Ferdinand has broken free of the idea that he needs to pass down noble power through a patriarchal line of succession.

[emblemxeno]

Tbh I always found it weird how many people like to go "edelgard did nothing wrong!!" when I always percieved it as "her heart's in the right place, but her difficulty with moral nuance, refusal to Just Talk To People and alarming tendency to just stand by and look disgruntled while her "allies"/subordinates do terrible things because she thinks it's necessary to ally with the people she wants to stop in order to take them down makes her look way more like a tyrant than she probably intended"

Yknow, classic well-intentioned extremist stuff that people in-universe still have every right to be mad at because well-intentioned or not she still deliberately hurt them

Oh to continue on about my last thing (the "extremist edelgard" ask) I feel like a lot of the reason people excuse edelgard is because crimson flower kinda removes or downplays a lot of the sketchier parts of her character to go for a more unproblematic "look at this victim of oppression overthrow the system that hurt her!" story while ignoring that we barely even know what edelgard plans to do to replace the old system beyond "meritocracy" and all the stuffy old corrupt nobles that are still alive aren't magically going to give up their old ways just because the emperor's teacher/love interest/ideas guy (which definitely would've had some uncomfortable grooming implications were this set in any other time period) looked at them with their big wet doe eyes and made them tea

What I'm remorseful over is that this was legitimately my perspective and thoughts on her... 6 months after the game first came out and I had played all the routes. And you describe it so perfectly! Because that's what the game has presented, both with its strengths and flaws.

I hoped that others would be at least open to accept that opinion just existing, yet even that is too much for some. Somehow, some way, a maelstrom of factors have led people to deny her of any wrongdoing. And sometimes it gets to just really ugly places.

Like, when the election was over, someone made a "meme" where they (and Edelgard fan) did a political election map of Fodlan, and they made it so Rhea was representing the Republican votes and Edelgard the Democrat votes, trying to do some dark humor comparison calling Rhea a fascist and I just 🙃🙃🙃

Not only are many of these people seemingly incapable of having a good faith discussion, they're self-poisoned by their own parasocial relationship to this game and character that they can't even entertain the notion of not shoving it into what's a really fucked up real life scenario.

[butwhatifidothis]

Regarding the isolationism post‚ I looked at the hopes datamine to double check‚ and 2 out of 3 countries trade outside Fodlan. Aegir to the east (e.g. Morfis)‚ and Dominic with Albinea. Leicester is a bit iffy since Edmund has islands and is a hub for merchants (but I'll give the benefit of the doubt and say that it's trade with the other countries). Unless this is a different type of isolationism that I'm not familiar with.

Even without that, Almyra, the place that keeps trying to fuck over Fodlan for literal shits and giggles, has some form of trade be done with it because Fodlan manages to get shit from eastern Almyra (Almyran Tea Blend). And that's without mentioning all of the other foods and teas and shit they get from foreign countries! Plus the entire existence of a set of traveler's journals that detail someone's personal experiences with foreign countries that is readily available in the biggest religious center of Fodlan also swerves Fodlan away from being this isolationist nightmare some folks claim it to be.

Like I'm not going to sugarcoat it Claude was wrong. Incorrect. Not right. He himself directly alludes to his own incorrectness in 3H. It's not about lying it's not about being sneaky it's not about trickery and obfuscation and schemes the guy was wrong. Like oh my god can we please just let characters be wrong sometimes none of us are five we should be able to handle a character being wrong sometimes

[randomnameless]

IDK if you've played FE5, and maybe that's what Raquie was refering to when he vague posted about systemic issues bringing bandits...

But in FE5, you basically have a character who used to be bandit, then was beaten by Best Mom Eyvel and started to try to turn over a new leaf and a new life : Dagda.

Through the course of the game, Leif is caught by the Empire, and Dagda wants to "round up his boys" (aka the former bandits who started a new life like him) to free Leif, but one his "boys", Gomez, refuses and basically keeps Dagda and his daughter Tanya hostage in their home, planning to kill them later.

(and he kills them if you don't unlock the gaiden chapter, I think it's the 8x).

During those chapters, we have a small discussion between Leif and August, Leif's "savvy" advisor, where Leif wonders why people in Thracia are bandits and if they can't have a better job/occupation instead, and August telling him that, basically, Thracia is a shit land not fit at all for farming, its people are very poor and starve, and sometimes, being a bandit is the only solution to survive/have something to eat.

And yet, while it makes us sort of sympathise with Gomez (who tried to do "honest" work and farm, but it doesn't work and he feels like his efforts are pointless), Gomez still wants to kill Dagda and Tanya, and depending on your runs, you cannot "capture" him (a mechanic introduced in FE5 where you basically beat an enemy and then release him instead of killing him), Gomez still dies.

FE5 has a lot of "pointless" deaths, but imo, the game also makes clear Gomez, despite his plight, was not "right" to capture/take his former boss hostage and ultimately kill him.

And through the course of the game, while we have Gomez, we also have Lifis, a bandit (pirate!) who seems to do pirate things for shit'n'giggles, the bandit in the Ralph'n'Amalda chapter who wants to capture villagers and sold them as slaves because it's a good source of income, meanwhile, we have the Dandelion Thieves, another group of, uh, bandits, but they don't do bandit things, they rescue people (well...) and are basically seen as honorable.

Tl;dr : even in FE5, the "I was sad once" or the "society made me like this" isn't a valable justification used to excuse bandits doing bandit things, especially when said bandit things are to kill, enslave or seduce randoms.

It also ignores the fact that well..the bandits are burning down villages and killing people. Like the plight of one's suffering is not an excuse for the crimes that they commit and while it's never too late to do the right thing and atone, it's not a pass to commit crimes. And like you mentioned, there's no evidence suggesting that the bandits in Firene or in any of the continents in Engage for that matter are doing the things they're doing because they're poor and starving; Engage doesn't want to well..engage with that cause that's not the focus (and it doesn't need to be).

Ugh, this feels like a continuation of that stupid "woobifying the villain" trend where their argument is "the villains suffered, so therefore their actions are justified and how dare the heroes try to stop them and uphold the status quo."

You are perfectly right anon. Céline could have still tried to arrest them, but let's not act as if her decision didn't had some justifications. She isn't doing it out of pure pleasure either, she simply want to protect her people.

Also that's going to be a little long but

When it comes to explaining why a crime is born you need to fufill a lot of conditions : when do people enter this crime ? at childhood or adulthood ? Is it linked to economic problem ? if so which one ? and why ?

I already talked about it but even if you, a player used to FE never diving onto why there is banditry in some part of the world, I simply don't think the idea that it is a result of economic hardship or a flawed system makes sense with what is presented of Firene

It's is canonically introduced as a pacifist country, the wealthiest of the 4 kingdom and holding philantrophic value as well as having a pastoral style of life. The Kingdom if Abundance is it called.

I received quite ago an anon ask that made the clever remark that if all the character originating from Firene had name derivated from fashion brands, was to show the wealth of Firene and when you look at the design for the Firenese they are all wearing outfits that look incredibly lavish and very designed, even in contrast of the other Royals. What's more in the jpn version, all of the member of the Firenese cast safe Alfred, Jean and sort of Boucheron speaks a very polite and fancy japanese, Etie even sounds a bit snobbish. And all of them are rich : Alfred and Céline, obviously as Royals, Etie being the daughter of a marquis, same for Chloé, Boucheron is the son of a count and while Louis holds from more common origins and that his father had to work harder to provide for the family, his polite speech and is outfit for Somniel and his personality in general seems to infer he was still from quite a wealthy family and it adds up with how he hails from a town that is famous for the grapes it produces. Mauvier too hails from a wealthy family and Jean, a commoner, is the son of a doctor and wants to be one. And he can freaking read and afford fridging glasses ! While it's likely thanks to his dad, his dad HAD to go through studies to be a doctor and even in medieval setting those were very pricey. So that's telling a lot of how the common people of Firene beneficiate from quite the wealthy style of life and if you compare the commoner outfit to the noble one avalaible in the Somniel, they aren't that different and those commoner outfits stands out a lot compared to the Brodian and Solmic one. From that we can deduce that the peasants in Firene are quite wealthy.

And it makes sense since Firene is mainly operating in interior from an economic point of view. It relies a lot on agriculture and since Firene is a land of abundance and fertility, they have a lot of land to cultivate. With most of the trade between farmer and merchants being operated in the inside, it creates more wealth for them since the concurance is so little and mainly between Firenese rather then with an exterior country for a less pricey product. This explain why there is so many farmer, peasants and merchants in Firene and you can expect the people to be quite wealthy, even among commoners.

This description doesn't fit one of a country who suffers from banditry because of poverty. Because poverty can be one of the main reason for the practice of banditry, but usually those are country that rely on agriculture and have a crisis in such domain like China or Russia at some points. Firene is described as an ever propesperous land, where even in autumn they can benefit from the recolts. The only season where it could be harder would be winter but seeing how the climate in Firene operates since they can cultivate oranges and grapes, fruits mainly developped into Mediteran region irl, and how Alfred and Céline describes it, I doubt they ever had to face a disastrous winter.

If you wanted to make that arguments for Brodia or Elusia, I could believe it since it has been established that those two had financial problem because of the war. Saphir is 35 and saw her villager ravaged as a child and all the character who had suffered from poverty are younger then her : Yunaka, a Brodia, was abandonned by her parents (in the manga, she was literaly sold), Griss (and in XenElyos Gregory) was sold to Sombron's cult when Marni was abandonned by her mother there too and they are both from Elusia. And the reason was because for the three of them, their parents were too poor to deal with them, having several other children to take care off in Marni's mother case, but in Yunaka and Griss, they were only children. From Alcryst's introduction in chapter 7, we also learn that there is thief there too.

For Firene it is much harder due to how the land is described in canon. It simply doesn't add up.

As for the bandits, seeing how the mainly operates around the Firene and Brodian border, it is likely because it is the less defended part of all Firene since there is no one to guard the border. But they clearly don't originate from there. Teronda is said to have taken over the village since he killed all the villagers and Mitan invaded the ruins because there was nobody there to make it her lair. However, it's no indicator they come from Firene. Their name don't evocate any fashion brand I know off, when even Jean's parent are named after it (Sean/Sean John and Anje from Maison Anje). Their name seems to be after a hotel brand and a confection brand ? But they don't have name that have any French signification, and their palette doesn't look very Firene either, with Mitan being closer but having colors much less bright. As for the highwaymen, in the JPN version their nationality isn't mentioned, it is likely that the localization added that were from Firene because they are said to attack shipment comming from Jean's village.

But again, even if they were from Firene, that begs the question of where exactly ? Because for them to move out this far, this clearly mean they had the means since someone really poor can't afford to leave their place. Or in that case they hail from a region where agriculture is less present and performant, so near the Firene border since there is more mountains and therefore is an environement less welcoming for agriculture, but it is invalidated by the presence of a village that they robbed off. The villager had some valuables, meaning they were still wealthy, and in the ruins that the bandits invaded there is a territory where agriculture can be grown there so... yeah, I don't buy it any seconds.

And the fact that they were able to set out a squad to kill an entire village.. people that are really poor don't have the means. They are also too numerous to fit that profile seeing how again, actual bandits operating because of their stomach being empty have less means, targets smaller targets and operates in a much less number.

And even if they had began a carrier because they were poor, by the time we fight them, it's obvious they amassed quite enough of the money to try to live another life rather then keeping this buissness they are involved in. But they didn't. They clearly can't have been kids that had been poor if they are from Firene and if they started out recently, their description invalidates this seeing how they have been operating for a while and are described as "willing to do any evil deed for the sake of treasure" or as "systematically stealing people". And seeing how Mitan steals mainly valuable, she isn't poor or starving, her target are too precise for that. (note it's their JPN descr, and in the case of Mitan, it implies she isn't targeting only merchants)

And again, seeing how the Royals are willing to spend any money possible to help their people since they hold philanthropic values, I don't see why they wouldn't try to help out their less favored citizens. After all, Alfred is willing to dig well himself for them. Céline to protect them had the gouvernement heighens the funds for the merchants and peasants trading the tea leaves that they spend time growing and even state in the jpn version she doubled the number of escorts. They did everything to rebuilt Florra port and to help the survivors heal and rebuilt the home that were ravaged by the Elusian army. They even went personally to help a little commoner, to collect the good that were stolen from their people and blames themselves for not having being arrived sooner to save that village of chapter 6. They would absolutely provide for their people if they were in need.

Another evidence of this is the plague and how they helped their citizens in thos time and speaking of which, I think the Plague is literaly the only ground someone could have to argue that Firene had economic hardship as a side effect of the plague, but you can't blame the Royals for it when even the King of Firene was struck by it and that at that time, they though Alfred caught it too. And seeing how Louis's father had to double up the work after losing his wife, it might be an indicator of it.

But again, as you pointed out too, the game never tried to infer that Firene had economic hardship, it does the exact opposite. But since the army is less present and that the country is so wealthy, it would obviously end up having some people choosing to be bandits to exploit others but with such an economic system, it's banditry that is hurting the economy ! It's perturbating trade, raving village and thus agricultural field and cultures, etc. They aren't poor or anything, they ARE what is causing economic hardship to Firene if any there is !!!

But as your rightfully point out, whatever is the reason that motivated them, it doesn't change the fact they choose to prioritize their own needs at the cost of the suffering of other and turned it into a literal buissness and commiting crime against humanity by sacking village, robbing of innocent people of their rightful belonging and commiting massing killing is not jusitifyable and makes me really doubt the claim they are simply trying to put the two together. Whether Céline was being harsh or not, they deemed others, villagers maybe even poorer and working hard to gain their life, to be lesser then then them and went on to rob them and kill them. And reminder that this is a SOFTCORE version of what actual bandits might commit as a crime, look for Berserk to get an idea closer to reality. But again, Céline herself still admitted to not completely liked that idea, but I really don't see how she is in the wrong here for punishing people who terrorized her citizens, killed them and steals them.

It got a bit long here, sorry I just brainstormed a lot and realized how it simply doesn't add up.

"Ugh, this feels like a continuation of that stupid "woobifying the villain" trend where their argument is "the villains suffered, so therefore their actions are justified and how dare the heroes try to stop them and uphold the status quo.""

Yes, I think that trend is VERY much a problem. Do you imagine if I tried to justify idk Rafal by saying "yes he destroyed an entire world and commiting 1 000 of attrocities but he was sud uwu" ? ugh, make me sick and it would go against his character since the whole point of his character is that he did it, acknowledges it and refuse to have someone take the blame for it, and goes into a whole redemption arc. Remove his crime and you lost 99% of what makes his character so savory !

But frankly, I think it's because of this trend that people can look at Zephia or Sombron and think the game is trying to redeem them or make them human or sympathetic for literaly giving an explanation as to what the heck they motivation are.

Besides that's like saying that it's fine to do evil when you are oppressed when as someone who holds that as a dear principle, you are responsible for your actions not matter what and can't blame any one but yourself for the choice you did. Which is also one of Engage's message : that no matter how you are born, you can still be a good person and that you should held responsability for your action and be ready to change to obtain forgivness. So, the whole defending the minro boss bandits in Engage thing is literaly going against the message of the game.

[alienducky]

Questions for people with FE3H oc's, in no particular order:

1) What's their fave tea, and do they have a fave snack to go with it?

2) Do their table manners live up to Lorenz's standards?

3) Who would they have a sleepover with, and what would they do during it?

4) Who would they most like and most hate to study with and why?

5) What's their fave and least fave chore?

6) Would they get along with Byleth or Shez better?

7) Did they grow up in the CoS faith, and do they follow it now?

8) If at the monastery at the time, would they take part in the fishing tournament, and how well would they do?

9) Do they have any sentimental keepsakes they carry with them?

10) As a child what did they want to be when they grew up, if different to the path they ended up on?

11) What combat class do they secretly wish they could be?

12) What animal would they keep as a pet? (Ignoring allergies, I'm asking what they'd like not what they could have) - mounts don't really count for this

13) If they're a mounted unit what would they name their mount?

14) Do they prefer form or function?

15) If they could visit a country outside of Fodlan, where would they go?

16) Who could they win an arm wrestle against? A game of darts? A game of chess?

17) What sort of things do they find funny?

18) Are they an early bird or night owl?

19) Sweet or savoury?

20) What are they afraid of? Including phobias

21) Are they more likely to get laugh or frown lines?

22) How did they decide on their personal/post skip outfit, and was the price or the aesthetic a bigger factor in their decision?

23) What skill or ability are they proud of that they don't get to show off often?

24) What is their fondest most treasured memory?

25) In a modern FE3H au, what would they be instead?

(there's another 10 questions here if you want)

[randomnameless]

The quintessential problem with Claude and the deer is that they should not have been involved in the war at all, or at least not Claude. What does he have to gain participating on it? Nothing, and he makes it even more explicit in azure moon when he dissolves the alliance. He could've pretty easely given the power to Lorenz or Hilda and nope out of there (what he does in silver snow), as it is clear througouht white clouds that he doesn't have as much of an attachtment to Fodlan as he does Almyra. And it isn't like the devs couldn't take the deer studients out during post-TS, when Marianne unless recruited is pressumed dead, and Lorenz unless recruited joins the imperial forces and dies helping the empire.

Outside of the problems with racism and the bigoted tropes related to "savage cultures" the Fodlan games perpetuate, the devs did not know how to use one of their house leaders for the main plot of "church vs empire", and idk if that's because they bit more than they could chew, or if it was intentional taking into account who gets the short end of the stick in both games happens to be mixed and from one of those "savage cultures".

TBH...

It's on the devs for having wanted to add a third lord to their game, but failing to, well, link him to any of those plots.

Supreme Leader's war of unification?

Well, Nopes gave him a part this plot - and yet there's no third choice in this plot : you bend the knee or you die. Nopes' wise, Clout decided (in his route) to bend the knee with his "alliance" that is totally supposed to make Supreme Leader reconsider her desire to roll over Leicester and make it part of Adrestia again!

(Granted, Nopes don't tell us how his plea to stop the war after killing the evil lizard lady will play out and leaves an open ending...)

In Houses, well, he doesn't want Leicester to be flattened, and goes on the offensive (counter offensive?) when Billy pops up with basically what is the plot events of Silver Snow (down to using the same strategy with disguises) with the Gronder Map.

And that addition radically changes... well, everything regarding Claude's relevance : he cannot form an alliance with the Blue Lord or the Kingdom to get rid of the Empire because "plot convenient myopia" and apparently Dimitri BaD enough that he attacks Alliance troops for no reason.

Forget SS, GW (and AM, in a way) is just using plot contrived excuse to... not have an united from to face the Empire. Why? IDK. Each Lord must be the hero of his story, or the unification boner means only one of them can "win" an unified Fodlan i'd guess.

Nabateans and the plot ?

No one gives a fig about that "plot", so it's basically pursuing a side-quest for no payoff.

Now, as @fantasyinvader wrote, Claude's story and journey as one who is ignorant and gets to learn and clear his misconceptions + the background of the land we're living in could have been interesting, doubly so given how Billy is voiceless and cannot play the "protag discovers the world at the same time as the player does" role.

But it has... no payoff.

Much like Rhea's infodump about the World, Relics and Nabateans... Claude reacts to the mention that Billy has a rock for heart, and not about his crest, his shiny bow or the fact that Rhea also had a vested interest in, uh, getting rid of prejudice against people who are perceived as "different" because her family was genocided for that.

Hell, the entire "prejudice" angle from Supreme Leader's war is swept under the rug, so we can have the Deers say nonsense like wanting to rekt Thales for Supreme Leader's sake, while only Flayn and Seteth can hear her "nabateans shouldn't have power over the people"...

There's no parallel drawn in the game about Claude and Rhea's situation - since she's at the center of this subplot - about being perceived as "outsiders" and not being able to do various things from existing to "rule over the people" because of what they are, or even faking their identities and building metaphorical walls between them and the people they're living with because they are afraid of rejection.

Nah, we can't have that, Rhea must be irrelevant to the possible, while also being the biggest scapegoat/dragon of this saga at the same time as a nebulous red herring to sell pots of tea.

Ihthe "fight against prejudice and make people accept each other" angle was that relevant to his route, Claude would have most likely talked or interacted with Dimitri and learnt of his plan to cleanse Duscur's name in his Father's assassination, raised a brow at Petra being a hostage and done something else than give a surprised pikachu face at Rhea's infodumps.

He could have reacted at her reveal that if you might want to live in peace with some people, if those people don't want that and label you as nothing more than fodder or things to be looted, it's not going to work.

And of course, gave a reaction at your second in command (unofficially?)'s reveal that, uh, her house keeps identured Almyran children as war prisoners?

Some people already made some AUs or "what ifs" routes for a proper Claude route and not the nonsense that we got in FE16 where it's basically "I react to the same plot events that happen in the other routes but top it all with a zombie".

The Deers could have been "better introduced" in a plot about getting rid of prejudice, or learning the causes of this prejudice : Marianne was/is hunted because of her blood ties to Maurice - not because what she did, but because what Momo did back then! - Lysithea was treated as a guinea pig and her house rolled over by Adrestia who has a less than rosy views about the "offshoots" that are called Leicester and Faerghus, Lorenz could explain that prejudice, just like piety, are tools used by people whenever they're relevant, like, some people being pissed at foreigners and some who aren't because they make money through international trading like Margrave Edmund does, Hilda justifying her House's animosity towards Almyrans because they lost many people in those pointless skirmishes (maybe a closed ones? Her mom or Uncle or whatever?) which would make Claude realise that "ending prejudice" is a much more difficult quest than, idk, just killing one or two randoms.

The commoner trio might share Claude's views about prejudice and welcoming foreigners, but have more "mundane" worries like being able to have a roof and food to eat, which might be the case of some people in Leicester, or tell us more about Leicester and how it works (give us more insight about the different countries if Fodlan ffs).

Maybe we could have add a Claude who learns and discovers Fodlan, and along the way, starts to love the land as much, if not more, than Almyra and really wanting to protect this land from whatever Supreme Leader's cooking, or becoming an Almyra v.2.

I don't think making Claude the third wheel of the plot was maliciously intentional because of the, uh, implications with RL cultures and Almyra, but more like they didn't know where to put him.

I noticed you wrote the conflict as one that is "the church vs the empire", but I do not really agree - if that was the case, the war would have stopped in VW/AM/SS the second Rhea was caught.

The main conflict is Supreme Leader's war of conquest - with the twist that the devs were really banking on their brilliant idea of making the red emperor the titular waifu of the game that each person/lord/whatever Rhea is must find a way to excuse and/or justify her actions.

With this in mind, AM is basically Dimitri's fall (and rise!) because of his ties to Supreme Leader.

In VW? The game cannot explore too much outside of the Supreme Leader scope so we're left with.. well, what VW was.

Claude cannot go on a journey to discover Fodlan and get rid of his misconceptions... because part of those same misconceptions are used by Supreme Leader to start her war, or the sheer concept of a conquest, aka a nation being rolled over by another is anathema to his, supposed, ideal of wanting people to accept each other despite their differences.

I ranted about it since day 5, but the Nabatean subplot (and Fodlan in general) is accessory to Supreme Leader war, there is no point aka no payoff for learning all of that, because you cannot challenge the one who wants to unify the continent.

As such, Claude cannot deviate too far from this plot - while receiving infodumps about "the lore" - and we end up with third wheel of a bike and characters who, at first and second glance, appear to be irrelevant.

Fodlan ends up unified despite starting as three separate countries, we feel bad for Supreme Leader and mourn her unknown ideals, Rhea is gone and the Agarthans aren't a problem anymore.

the second the devs said leicester was a republic, claude was doomed. Merchant republics are always irrelevent or straight up useless in the FE series!

[tinnictheguardian]

Okay, so I am back dating this post on 18th of December because I realised that I missed Hapi's birthday!

So while this should have chronologically been the first time I tried the Dagda Fruit Blend, I actually drank it first in May for Hubert's birthday. Because both Hapi and Huberts are coffee drinkers, not tea drinkers.

So their "tea" is this faux coffee-tasting tea. I don't care for it.

[randomnameless]

elincia is a highborn person she couldn't know how the people feel or want

uwu

this one's for you @randomnameless

[isephierreo]

3H's UI Design

The title screen shows Sothis throne, in the game, Byleth sees Sothis throne between their dream of the War of the Heroes and their awakening by Jeralt. Which may symbolize that the scene of a throne is the first thing you will see before and after entering the game. The throne is also the place where the most important things happen, such as meeting Sothis, merging with her, and the events of Chapter 11.

After beating the game, Sothis is shown sleeping on a throne, this is similar to Final Fantasy XV, so spoilers for FFXV.

In FFXV, after beating the game, Noctis is shown sleeping with Luna/Oracle in a logo, mirroring the end of the game. It was the end of the game where Noctis sacrifices himself to save his world, and then sleeps in peace on his throne in the afterlife. This is similar to how we know in end of the game about Sothis sacrifices herself to save Fodlan and then went to rest on her throne in the holy tomb.

Player menus is a notebook Byleth carries with charms on it. Pages feature the country logo of chosen house, with the Church of Seiros logo on a page before choosing a house.

Besides a feather pen as a cursor, many ui are in the form of a set of papers; A plain papers, a papers with a Church of Seiros pattern and Sothis tiara, and a papers with a heart pattern in a corners cover.

The design of the options box is similar to a bookmark cards and the ribbon at the top left as a bookmark ribbon that is placed between pages.

With many ui somewhat similar to the sticky notes.

Roster's design is like a campus card, where characters stand on the ground outside a classroom when see roster.

Although the background varies depending on the floor it is on.

The cards and MVP also feature a unique frame for each house or story chapter you are in.

The lower and upper design of a banner that appears upon raising a professor level or passing a certification exam may look similar to a mosaic above a door, which may symbolize the opening of a door to new knowledge and experience gained.

The same theme is present in the banner when begin exploring or lesson plan, symbolizing the beginning of your journey of exploration and teaching others. However, there is no single for Battle, and this may symbolize that there is no benefit to be gained from battles and conflict, and this fits with the FE franchise's message that war is bad. Besides, each one has a color that distinguishes it.

The design of the Crest of Seiros and its various styles is present in most of the UI with the same, if not more, than the Crest of Flames, which is a constant reminder that Officers Academy is the same as the Church of Seiros.

There are many plant patterns that decorate the UI, which is a reference to the passing of the seasons, the meaning of the game's Japanese title. And you can see a branch of leaves on the right of the notebook, which indicates that the notebook has become more like your diary of your life in a monastery.

During a tea party, a screen is decorated with plant patterns with blue roses, giving the ambiance of a garden in which you are sitting. Along with a dialog box in the color of natural hot tea.

The date circle at the top left features four shapes for each season, rose for spring, morning glory for summer, grape vines for fall, and poinsettia for winter. However, during a period of war, the circles loses its colors and becomes grey.

In the background of the chapter title of within White Clouds, the same plants are present, with the background design as a white paper with the Church of Seiros logo. However, like the date circle, during a period of war the background becomes dark with sparks of war flames, plants change to holly and thistle, the Church of Seiros logo to the country logo of the chosen house.

The CF's background differs from the SS's in a red double-headed eagle with two additional black stripes.

And this brings me to the background title before the start of each battle. Unlike the background title in each new chapter, which looks like a new page being turned to record daily events, the background title of a battle is literally the cover of notebook, and this may symbolize something similar to the Battle theme above. Like the chapter title background, it features the Church of Seiros logo during White Clouds and changes to the country logo for the chosen house, with SS and CF sharing the same background.

Speaking of battle, before any start, Fodlan map will appear on a plank of wood. This is similar to what Claude did in cutscene The Academy, where he placed a map on a table and started discussing it.

Battle Prep looks like a clock + glass mosaic, and if you notice, it is surrounded by a magic circle that appears between roles of units. It looks somewhat similar to Mila's Turnwheel, and I know Divine Pulse sounds like shattering glass, but it can be interpreted as follows; A clock is set before the start of a battle, and the magic circle is used to set units' movement points, and when the time comes to use Divine Pulse, the clock glass is shattered, which appears as a portal to an almost parallel world to return to a specific point. Furthermore, the design where the Crest of Flames is located in the middle and surrounded by the rest of the crests is very similar to the Goddess mural. There is also a crescent inside which looks like a star chart, and this corresponds to the cutscene At Death's Door, where the use of Divine Pulse shows what looks like space.

Because we don't use a battle notebook, we use a key ring memo pad instead.

Despite all the praise I gave for the game's UI design, there were some things that disappointed me. Most notable is the Adrestian empire logo for Silver Snow.

I know that the developers called Silver Snow the empire route, but they had to design the UI to fit the Crest of Flames flag, which represents the route as a whole. They don't even reuse the MVP frame from prologue, even though it's very convenient for the route. Why do they design loungewear in line with the Crest of Flames flag but not with the UI?

again they using the Adrestian empire logo for the unique classes poster. Why didn't they design a unique poster for each route? Or make it neutral?

I wish they would change the plant patterns during the tea party in Byleth's room to match the ambiance like a garden.

After all, 3H's UI design is not as perfect or innovative and iconic as Persona 5. However, in this post I wanted to share what I found fun about designing it, and you can summarize it as follows: 3H's UI design represents Sothis, the goddess of the Fodlan world, and the core foundation of the Church of Seiros, which in turn built the Officers Academy where you begin your new life as a instructor to your students through the passing seasons of the year.

Of course, I did not include all the UI designs, perhaps because I forgot them or failed to know its meaning, such as magic circle when raising the level. So, feel free to add to this post if you have any ideas.

[toa-secretsanta]

Cafe Chat

It had been a tough couple of months, you thought as you finished wiping down the counter top. The cafe was empty, which was to be sort of expected at this time of night, but keeping the lights on and the place clean to give it a welcoming atmosphere. Anywhere else, having a night coffee shop would be a recipe for business failure, but in the small town which had arisen to serve the community of Garreg Mach Monastery, it was actually profitable. Mercenaries returning from harrowing missions, visitors to the church wanting a late night drink or even students looking for a place to cram in some last minute ‘studying’. 

  Whatever the reason, it worked out well for you. Arriving in this place, looking for work which would suit your unique circumstances. It should have been impossible like in every other town passed though on the way but you had held hope in your heart that if there was anywhere in all of Fodlan accepting then it would be here. Taking a break from reminiscing, your attention is drawn as the small bell over the door tingles, signalling the entrance of the first customer of the night.

  “Welcome” You say, offering a small smile over your shoulder, while waiting for them to take a seat at the counter.There’s no rush, in fact the Boss had been very clear during your training that rushing the customer was a big No-no. Once they’re settled, you turn around asking “Can I get you a drink?” 

  The customer in question smiled back charmingly. He had a roguish look about him, with his walnut skin, curled lock and handsome looks. However, you could see that the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. There was a hardened steeliness lurking there, as though he already knew your weaknesses and how to exploit them. But you take his friendliness at face value, no need to upset the first customer of the night. 

  “Sure, what do you recommend?” He replies smoothly “Ah well it depends on what flavours you like” You say. From his looks, you suspect he’s from somewhere outside of Fodlan or at least was raised there, perhaps one of their more exotic blends would be suitable. “I like tea, and spices. Something flavourful but light” You’re told, confirming your intuition. “I know just the thing. Coming right up”

  As you listen to his idle conversation in the background, you start preparing the tea leaves and spices to make the blend. The light leaves of the oolong, with the warming scents of ginger and ginseng with a touch of fennel to finish it off. “And can you believe it, she didn’t even bat an eyelid or say sorry as she copied my work. Just because she hadn’t finished hers in time.” The young man had just finished telling you all about some antic his classmate had got up to earlier. “Here you go” Placing the cup in front of him, he blows on it gently before taking a sip. 

  “Why, that’s fantastic!” He exclaims “I should come here more often, the names Claude by the way, Of the Leicester Alliance and head of the Golden Deer House” You smile politely but don’t offer your name in return. “Pleasure. I had a feeling you were a student at the school, but I didn’t realise you held such a position of responsibility” As those words hang in the air a wearisome look comes to the previously vibrant eyes. Like one who is trying to hold 1000 plans together where one wrong placement would bring everything down like a house of cards. “Ah…oh”

  Before you can say anything further, the bell goes again as two more customers enter. “Thought we’d find you here” The blond haired one says as they make their way over. Claude looks round and you can see the carefree smile slip back onto his face, the walls coming up. “Edelgard, Dimitri. You didn’t have to come out here looking for me” 

  “I said you’d be in some establishment drinking, though I will admit not one as tame as a cafe” The Lady, who must be Edelgard, said “But Dimitri here insisted. Wanted to talk to you about the upcoming mock battle. So of course I had to come to prevent you two plotting to join forces against me, it is the only way you have a hope of defeating the Black Eagles of course” Claude scoffs at this. “Try the other one Princess, I don’t need help to bring you down” It looks like an argument will break out soon if you don’t do something…

  “Can I get you two a drink?” You butt into the conversation. “We have a fine selection teas and coffees from across the continent of Foldlan and beyond” 

  “I’ll take a coffee” Says Dimitri “Something strong” You nod, noticing the shadows beneath his eyes indicating disturbed nights. “I’ve got a potent blend from Ylisse which I know a certain librarian favours.” You respond, alighting the burner below one of the coffee syphons. “And for you madam” You ask Edelgard who thinks for a moment before responding. “I’ll take a tea please, something traditional” Noting her request and noble bearing, you open the jar of earl grey tea leaves, adding a touch of vanilla. “Just a moment” 

  Once served, the three house leaders take their drinks over to one of the booths at the side of the bar. Conversation starts flowing between them as they appreciate their beverages. The talk must have returned to battle tactics as at one point you notice them pushing pouches of sugar around the table surface in formation. You’re happy to leave them be, in fact it’s a welcome change to the previous quiet from the start of your shift. 

  Customers have a way of attracting more customers so it comes as little surprise when the shop bell rings again and a young lady bounces in. “Oh good, you’re open” they exclaim, a smile gracing their features. “I thought that everywhere would be shut when I arrived as I was delayed on the road”

  “We stay open all night. No-one should be without a place for a rest and hot drink at any time of day.” You tell her, spouting the company line. “Plus, I find people out this late are usually in need of a place to hole up” The number of wandering strays, troubled academics and insomniacs you’ve met in the past few months are a testament to this. 

  “Lucky me then. I’ve come to visit someone at the Officer’s Academy. I do hope he hasn’t been too worried.” She says, a troubled look appearing “He can be a little … how to put it … overprotective of me at times.” 

  “Well if he’s at the Academy, then he should be aware of this cafe. Maybe he will find you here. Would you like a drink before heading to the Monastery?”

  “Yes please. That would be delightful. It’s been a tiring journey. Do you have something fruity? I think it’s a little late for caffeine”

  “Coming right up” You reach up to the top shelf where the ingredients for the herbal blends are kept. Rooibos tea is your go to, and this blend is a calming mix of citrus and flowers. Mixing citrus peel, lavender and rosehip into the rooibos leaves, you steep the tea in hot water before setting a mug in front of the red-haired lady. “Here you are, it’s called Moondrop Dreams”

  “What a pretty name” She says “Perfect for late nights. I’m Priscilla” She takes a mouthful and a serene look of calm passes across her demeanor.  “Just what I need after such a harrowing journey” 

  “Have you come far?” You ask curiously. “There’s so many lands outside of Fodlan” 

  “I come from Etruria in Lycia. That’s where my father rules… well my adoptive father. But I’ve always believed him to be my father. I only found out recently that it was not so. I left to search for my brother and hear about the home I lost so long ago I barely remember it” Priscilla pauses to take another sip. You wait patiently, not wanting to rush her with her tale. “I found him, fought alongside him, but we were soon separated again as he told me he had to leave to study more to become a knight worthy of his heritage and protecting me.” She lets out a sigh, a forlorn look in her eyes. “I wish he would realise that I don’t need him to get stronger, I just want him to be home. We can rebuild Ostia together, learning what we need as we go.” 

  There’s a deep longing in her tone, mixed with melancholy. You recognise it as akin to your own longing for home. Though you’re grateful for this job and place you’ve found, there’s elements of your homeland you miss. “It must be hard, but I’m sure he’s doing what he believes is best. For you and your home. Have you told him how you feel?”

  “No, I don’t want to upset him. Besides, in a way he is right about needing to learn more. I too, should study more to become someone who can be of assistance to his cause.” 

  “Have you considered coming to the Monastery? Then you could learn and be by your brother’s side” A thoughtful expression appears on Priscilla’s face and you notice a new spark in her eye. 

  “That’s an excellent idea. This trip could be a chance to check the place out, see what courses are offered. I’d love to see…”

  Unfortunately you don’t get to hear what she’d love to see as the door opens with a loud bang and a young man bursts in. The commotion causes the trio to look up from their model battlefield. “Priscilla!” He half-shouts rushing over to the lady you’d been chatting with. “I’ve been looking all over town for you. I heard about bandits on the road and thought —”

  Priscilla shushes him with a hand over his mouth. “I’m fine Raven, I just wanted a small break before coming to the Monastery. The roads were problematic but we took care of it and I patched up my companions afterwards.” The man identified to be Raven visibly deflated, the fight leaving his pose and the tension melted away. 

  “I just… I wanted to know you were safe. I’ve been waiting for your arrival” 

  “Well now you’ve found me, I’ve arrived. I just need to finish my drink and pay then we can go” 

“I’ll pay” Raven says immediately, pulling out his coin purse. “You don’t need to do that” Priscilla protests. “I’ve plenty of coin and besides I’m the one who’s drinking this tea” 

  “Is that so” Raven says, a mischievous smile coming to his lips. Quickly, he grabs her mug from the countertop and downs the last of the liquid. “There! Now I’ve drunk this too, so its my drink as well which I can pay for” He slides coins across the table looking triumphant.

  “You’re incorrigible” Priscilla says with a dramatic sigh. “Come on then, accompany me to my dwellings then. Isn’t that custom when a man’s bought a lady a drink” There’s a mocking tone to her voice but you can tell she’s just teasing Raven as siblings who love each other deeply would. You sense these two have a deep bond. 

  “I wish you both a pleasant evening and please do come again” You say retrieving the empty mug. 

  “I’m sure we will. Thank you for listening and I’ll give your advice some serious consideration” Priscilla says, Raven giving you a curious look at her words before holding the door open for her as they both leave.

  “We better be heading off too” You hear Dimitri say “I think we’ve talked enough strategy for now” 

  “You mean you just lost” Edelgard chips in causing Dimitri to huff in annoyance while Claude lounges with a playful smile on his face. A world of difference from the look you got a glimpse off earlier. “But his highness has a point, no good if we sleep through class tomorrow. Imagine what Teach would say” He adds, getting to his feet. The three of them head to the door. 

  “Do come again” You say locking eyes with Claude, an unspoken message passing between the two of you. “I will” He acknowledges before leaving with his friends. With everyone gone, the cafe falls into silence but not an uncomfortable one. You sense there won’t be any further visitors tonight so after cleaning up you retrieve your book from below the counter and await the oncoming dawn.

  [Fin]

[da-millerrrrr]

Hey boy I mean Sam

As harsh as it sounded, Byleth had given up on saving her father. She tried twenty seven times to save him, never succeeding. Those Agarthans seemed to be the only people to match her power.

In the end, she concluded she simply wasn't meant to be happy. It did not hurt that bad anymore, not after seeing her father die fourty eight times. He was just another casualty. Maybe a necessary death for peace and order in Fodlan.

Still, she always thought of her dad in battle, how he instructed her. That is why she thought of him now, as she dueled with a blood covered Dimitri on the field of the eagle and lion. He still would not listen to reason and Byleth sighed, stopping time again.

The mad king was frozen in place, with his lance raised above his head and a look of rage on his face. A moment later and Byleth would have been out of chances.

"He's a tough one, isn't he?" Sothis asked.

She was still around, since Byleth had found a way to avoid fusing with her thirty seven loops ago.

"He is," Byleth began rewinding time, "But he's worth saving."

Her and Sothis watched as the moments slipped by like water in a stream, all the sleepless nights planning attacks with Claude and Edelgard and the day even further back when Byleth had convinced them to form an alliance.

Considering it now, it seemed stupid. Dimitri was the one who needed help the most. Perhaps she would pick the blue lions next time and try to forge stronger connections between the houses. An early friendship with Claude might help him...

She smiled softly as they returned to the academy days. How happy all her beloved students were...

After so many loops, she knew each and everyone of them as well as she knew herself. She wanted only the best for them, for them all to survive. Even the academy staff were dear to her, no matter how annoying they were at the beginning of loops.

But in the messy stream of moments that made up the last five years, one moment caught her attention. A boring afternoon, spent drinking tea and silently reading with her father. Curious, she returned to it.

"Here? What use will you find reliving this moment?" Sothis wondered aloud.

But Byleth did not answer, restarting time on that afternoon.

Rain pattered on the window while footsteps could be heard just outside Jeralt's office. The bad weather did not stop life at the monastery, merely moving it indoors. Byleth looked down at the book she held.

A complete history of the Church of Seiros it said on the cover.

"You're just reading? Why did this stick out to you?" Sothis asked.

Byleth silently shrugged. She began reading despite knowing everything the book had to offer, hoping that something would happen.

Her father flipped a page in his book, his serious face never changing. The rain still poured, people still talked in the hallway and Byleth was still confused.

But she waited.

Her patience was rewarded when Jeralt put his book down.

"This is boring, let's go hunting."

"But it's raining," Byleth remarked, despite having fought loved ones, ancient evils and demigods in worse weather.

"This stuffy academy job as turned you soft, you used to drag a deer twice your size back to camp in a blizzard!" he complained.

Byleth smiled softly and Jeralt did the same, "Well, you at least seem happier now."

---

It was when Byleth was caked in mud, carrying a dozen rabbits and laughing so hard her sides hurt that Sothis cleared her throat. The poor professor was torn from that lovely afternoon with her father when Sothis stopped time.

"You'll only miss him more next time he dies," Sothis frowned.

"I'll save him," Byleth said, "I'll find a way."

"You can't."

She looked at her father, frozen in time as he carried the spoils of hunting with a great smile on his face. He was her only family. She could not bear to watch him die. Not again.

ohhhh my god. oh my GOD. I AM SHAKING YOU. OH MY GOD!!!!!!

byleth's determination. the fact that she figured out how to keep sothis around. the little moments with claude and edelgard and jeralt. oaaaaaaaaaaaa i am wailing and rolling around on the floor i love this

[randomnameless]

Tl;Dr : She BaD because she exists.

3H really went out of the way to display how Seteth and Flayn are just. People. And there’s still discourse over whether the Nabateans are horrible evil monsters that want to control humanity. Like huh? This goofy dad and his fish loving daughter? Be so for real

FR

"The Nabateans cannot rule over humanity."

"..Bro, Flayn just wants to eat fish and make friends."

[dragoncat91]

Power of Three: Fodlan, in a time of new tech advancement

Power of Three is my Fodlan sequel idea, following the children of the previous three lords, in a golden route where they all lived. If you are anti golden route please keep it to yourself on this post.

Rhea has stepped down as archbishop and fled the continent, leaving Byleth in her place. With her gone, so is her rule against advancements in tech and medicine. This is what this post will cover.

Technology

The Officer's Academy has typewriters now. Students use them for their assignments.

A telegraph system is established. Spearheaded by Archduke Claude Ramiel Riegan and Margrave Sylvain Jose Gautier, these two men are the reason the telegraph connects to Almyra and Sreng. Inclement weather sometimes takes the system down for periods of time, but history is made when news of "Thunder King" Boran Kralsah's death reaches his son at the Riegan estate via a telegraph from Uzair Kralsah, the new king.

A vinyl disc music player and recorder is invented. Discs are made and sold of Mittlefrank Opera Company performances, and recordings of Brigidese rain dances and Dagdan salsa music are made and distributed.

Due to trade with Morfis spearheaded by the Almyrans, and the Almyran locust plague and famine known to them as Turu's Tears (because Turu the harvest god is surely weeping), new agricultural tech is developed. Hydroponic gardening begins and crops that were normally imported, such as the tomato, can be grown in Fodlan and the surrounding area.

Weapons such as crossbows and flamethrowers are invented, and weapons that can go toe to toe with crest attuned relics but can be used by anyone.

Medicine

Crest genetics are fully understood now. It is now known that a person can be a "crested", have the crest manifest in their blood, or a "carrier", have the crest gene but it did not manifest, or an "uncrested" with no crest genes at all. A person can carry one crest and have a different one. Two manifested crests still don't happen naturally.

Incubators for eggs are invented. Normally they are used by chicken farmers in Faerghus to hatch the eggs during the cold winters. But a lucky discovery is made in Fraldarius territory when Duke Felix Hugo Fraldarius' son is born tiny, early, and weak and his uncrested mother barely survived. The baby was not growing fast enough and was in grave danger...in a desperate attempt, the duke allowed his wife's chicken farmer friend to place his son in one of the egg incubators just to see if that helped. Karel Ruben Fraldarius survived and grew into a fine heir.

Birth control already existed in the form of silphium herbal tea and sheep intestine condoms. But with medical advancements and new understanding of the bodily systems, vasectomies are discovered.