#yakumo 'i fight for my friends' shinonome

[ichor-hunter]

Atlas

Atlas Blood Code Study- Yakumo Shinonome

"A blood code received from Yakumo. It holds his fervent willingness to risk his life fighting to protect those dear to him. This code allows for the use of heavy armor, making it excellent for enduring combat in close quarters. It also features Gifts useful for standing up against power threats."

Introduction to Blood Codes and Yakumo

Blood Codes are the abilities imbued within a Revenant's Blood. Each Blood Code is unique to each Revenant that resides within the Gaol of the Mist. Once a Revenant has awakened from their slumber after the BOR parasite has been placed in them, the blood takes on a Code which I believe derives from the characteristics of that Revenant.

Yakumo also awakened as a Third Generation Revenant. He cares about his teammates and still searches for his old comrades back from when he grew up at the orphanage.

Greek Mythology

Yakumo's Blood Code is based on the Greek God Atlas.

Atlas took part in the Great War that lasted for ten years. Titanomachy (Titan battle) was the name of that war. It was a feud between the Olympian Gods that were led by Zeus and the older generation of Greek Titans. Atlas was on the Titan’s side and was against Zeus. Eventually, Atlas became the leader of the rebelling side and commanded all of the Titans.

In the end, the Olympian side won the war, and Zeus imprisoned him and the other Titans. Zeus gave Atlas the cruelest punishment of holding up the sky for all eternity, keeping the Heavens and Earth apart.

Similarities between Yakumo and Atlas

Atlas fought in the war of Titanomachy and Yakumo fought in the battles against the Lost, even before he was turned into a Revenant. Both Yakumo and his Greek God counterpart were both fighting against new dangers. For Yakumo it was the Lost and for Atlas, it was the Olympians. We could also consider that the Lost is a subversion of Olympians or corrupted Olympians, but we can discuss about that in a future post when I have something more concrete to write about.

Louis’ blood code is Prometheus and Yakumo's is Atlas. Both Prometheus and Atlas are brothers in Greek Mythology. They both took different sides in the war of Titanomachy but in-game, they get along like bros.

"This code allows for the use of heavy armor, making it excellent for enduring combat in close quarters. It also features Gifts useful for standing up against power threats." If it takes a Titan all of his strength to hold the skies for eternity, then just imagine how strong he is when he isn't holding the skies. As a veteran from the Great War, Atlas had participated in countless battles against the Olympians. This also applies to Yakumo's fighting style and how he proceeds in killing the Lost. 

The part of the description that mentions: "It also features Gifts useful for standing up against power threats," links with the concept of the battles he faced during the war and the sky. The skies are powerful, therefore Yakumo would have an arsenal number of Gifts to support him holding up the skies if he were Atlas.

The skies could also be interpreted as the player character, since Yakumo is the main go-to support NPC for most of our battles because of his strong buffs of support. Either that or my current theory of how the MC is connected with Heracles. Heracles encountered Atlas in his eleventh labor. He was tasked to take Golden Apples from Zeus' garden. Prometheus, who was grateful to Heracles for killing the eagle, advised him to switch roles with his brother Atlas. Heracles would carry the skies for him while Atlas can retrieve the apples for Heracles.

When the MC arrived at Home Base for the first time and accepted Louis' offer to join the team, Yakumo tossed an apple towards the MC. It isn't golden and there was no grandiose task involving stealing apples (plus Yakumo doesn't trick MC in the end. Unlike his Greek God counterpart tricking Heracles to hold the sky after he retrieved the apples) but it's an interesting nod towards that part of Atlas's mythology.

Yakumo's life before joining Louis was just as punishing as Atlas’ eternal punishment. He grew up in the orphanage with his group of friends, only to be forced into war and then die. He reawakened as a Third Generation Revenant as we learn in Riki's memories, but was torn apart from his friends. In a similar fashion, Atlas is also separated from his comrades and family after taking on Zeus’ punishment.

Yakumo only has a photo as a reminder and an instrument to reconnect with his friends again. With both Yakumo and Atlas participating in the war, they were the leaders and inspiration to those who followed them. For Yakumo, he had Emily, Miguel, and Riki. Time and again, they never fail to mention how great importance Yakumo is to them. He is their strength, and he is also everyone else's strength back at Home Base.  

If we also consider the bad ending, we see he takes Emily's place in the Crypt thus becoming the new Successor and following the same cycle once more. Instead of the skies like Atlas, he's carrying the weight of the Relic. Knowing how dangerous they are as they can cause the Queen to revive, he has a part of the world on his shoulders.

Atlas’ Gifts

Resilient Focus- Increases the amount of focus gained by receiving damage.

Guard Drain Rating Up- Increases your drain rating when you guard an enemy's attack.

Dogged Fighter- Temporarily increases stagger resistance versus enemy attacks.

Guard Reversal- Temporarily enables you to deflect attacks and stagger opponents after guarding.

These gifts are a mixture of Atlas’ punishment and his exploits in the Great War. Atlas can endure so much pain by holding up the skies but he can also tolerate his battles wounds from the war and press forward since he is the leader. Resilient Focus is more of Atlas being used to pain since he has to carry a magnanimous burden on his shoulders and the rest is based on his experiences in battle.

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Tormenting Blast- Leap forward and strike twice.

Flashing Fang- Increases the power of the next attack.

Strength Vitality Up- Increases strength and vitality.

Impact Wave- Temporarily adds a shockwave effect to strike attacks that deals additional damage.

Two-Handed Sword Mastery- Increases attack power when equipped with a two-handed sword.

These gifts are related to Atlas’ battles in the Great War. Since Atlas was the Titan that led the battles, he would portray strength greater than the rest of the Titans that fought by his side. Great strength comes with great power, which relates with his Strength Vitality Up and Flashing Fang. Tormenting Blast, Impact Wave and Two-Handed Sword Mastery are all valuable gifts that are wielded in battle.

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Foulblood Barrier- Creates a single-use barrier around you and your partner that greatly reduces damage.

Firm Stand- Receiving fatal damage when your HP is over a certain amount will leave you with 1 HP.

These are Yakumo’s signature gifts. Both of these gifts display a heavy relation to the lore of Atlas. Foulblood Barrier reduces damage taken, and the shape of the gift is similar to the shape of the Earth, which is similar to Atlas holding up the heavens. In a sense, he’s protecting the Earth from the Heavens, making sure that the Heavens doesn’t fall. Firm Stand relates to the punishment Atlas received since no matter what happens, he must continue to hold up the heavens and skies for all eternity and he must take the weight of it all. Even now on Atlas’ breath, he can’t afford to let go or he’ll be crushed. I think this is a representation of his determination which is akin to Yakumo’s personality.

Concluding Thoughts

I'm actually really happy going through the lore of Atlas. As everyone knows, Yakumo is the best guy to bring with you into battle in the game. I think Atlas is a really excellent choice for Yakumo since he and Atlas relate so much to each other lore wise. Yakumo will always be there for MC and all of his friends. There's that essence of humanity and the significance of the onigiri that really makes you relate to him as a character. Going through the vestiges of Riki and Emily shows a lot on how dependable he is to everyone in the story. Yakumo has really grown on me now after doing his Blood Code analysis.