Duessel

Obsidian General
Duessel
Species	Human
Class	Great Knight
Affiliation	Grado
Hair color	Purple
Eye color	Purple
Base	Grado
Debut	Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones

Duessel is a recruitable unit from Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones and originally was one of Grado's Imperial Three.

Background

Duessel spent most of long life living at and fighting for Grado. He became of Grado's top soldiers, to the point where he was appointed part of the Imperial Three, the land's top three generals, and he earned the nickname of "Obsidian". The other two were Glen and Selena. Duessel was particularly skilled with a lance and seemed to usually carry several on his person. He collected weapons, particularly the work of the craftsman Gavaleus. Due to family tradition, he also carried a cursed lance on him at all times which could cause madness to those who wielded it in combat. Duessel avoided using it at all times, but there was one incident in which Valter swiped it from him in battle after breaking his own lance, and it shattered Valter's sanity. Duessel still did much good and also tutored Prince Ephrami of Renais in fighting with a lance during his years studying at Grado. Although Ephraim's skills were initially poor, Duessel noticed his strong will, which allowed Ephraim to eventually become a prize pupil. He also often came to Renais as an emissary of Grado and strengthened his friendship with Ephraim.

He admired Emperor Vigarde for his comitment to peace, and this reinforced Duessel's strong sense of duty to his country. But he noticed that the emperor starting acting differently after Lyon began experimenting with the Dark Stone. Vigarde eventually launched the War of the Stones, and Duessel began to doubt that Vigarde was still the same great emperor that he remembered. The Imperial Three were first seen at the end of "Chapter 3: The Bandits of Borgo", when they were summoned to an audience with the emperor. Prior to the meeting's beginning, Duessel mostly watched while Selena and Glen debated the rationality of the emperor's actions in his sudden invasion of Renais. Vigarde announced the addition of Valter, Caellach and Riev as Grado's generals, and he assigned Duessel and Riev with protection of Grado and promised to give them specific details later.

At the end of both paths' Chapter 9, Duessel was ordered to go to Frelia to take on the Frelian army and Ephraim. He attempted to question his orders as well as Grado's treatment of Renais, but Vigarde quickly silenced him. In "Chapter 10: Turning Traitor" of Ephraim's path, Selena arrived to help him fight off the approaching Frelian army. Duessel ordered his unitls to hold, as he wanted to try to negotiate with Ephraim first. Selena took this as a sign that Duessel was a traitor, so she called for his arrest under Vigarde's orders, as the emperor had apparently foreseen his treachery. Duessel and his men pulled back and tried to fight off the rest of the Grado's forces while Ephraim's army arrived. Duessel began to feel there was nothing left for him to live for, but if Ephraim talked to him, he would pull Duessel out of it and convince him to fighti alongside him. Duessel could also recruit the conflicted Cormag. Following the battle, Duessel told Ephraim what he knew about Vigarde's behavior and the Dark Stone, which influenced Ephraim's decision to head for Grado's capital. Duessel then volunteered to join Ephraim's army. Even though he would be fighting his own country, it was for the sake of saving the emperor he used to admire. If his soldiers survived, they would stay behind to join with the Frelian army.

In Eirika's path, a similar version of events seemed to ensue, as Duessel and Knoll were shown as the only people Ephraim recruited during his journeys and merged with Eirika's group when the two met up again in "Chapter 15: Scorched Sand". Duessel fought loyally for Ephraim and Eirika for the remainder of the war. Once it ended, he and Cormag discussed the burdens they had to bare in restoring Grado to its former glory.

Possible Fates

Duessel has two different endings depending on whether or not he reaches an A Rank Support with Amelia. However, the two endings do not contradict each other and could both conceivably take place canonically.

• '"Default Ending - Duessel returned to Grado following the war and played a vital role in its rebuilding. He spent his remaining years watching over Grado and sharing his wisdom with other nations as an expert combat instructor.
• Duessel and Amelia's Ending - When they returned to Grado, Duessel was able to reunite Amelia with her mother. The two wept with joy and thanked Duessel. Amelia became Duessel's most trusted companion.

Support Conversation Summaries

Duessel is capable of having support conversations with four other characters:

• Amelia - Amelia comes to Duessel to praise his skill and ask him to help her in battle. Duessel seems to recognize her face but cannot remember where from, blaming his age although Amelia boosts his ego by telling him he looks quite young. Duessel agrees to protect her in battle but still wonders where he knows her from. In the next conversation, Duessel tutors Amelia on fighting with spears and the weapons triangle, and suggests that she become multi-proficient by learning to fight with multiple weapons. She then goes off to use practice her skills, explaining that it is to battle one of the Knights of Renais (likely Franz) as it is a way that they keep track of each other's progress. Duessel then remembers who she is, but is too late to tell her as she had already left. In the final conversation, Duessel catches up with Amelia and asks her about her mother, finding out that she is the daughter of Melina. Duessel tells her the story of how she rescued Melina and that she is still living in another village. He had seen Melina's face reflected in Amelia's, and Amelia begins to cry, and even Duessel, claiming that age must have loosened his tear ducts, begins to sniff as well.
• Cormag - The first conversation begins when Duessel approaches Cormag and asks him if he is well, being concerned for his heart rather than his flesh. Duessel points out that he made the decision to leave Grado and even though his own heart is not at ease, he has found something to believe in and fight for, but he is concerned that Cormag has not found the same. Cormag assures Duessel that he also made a choice to be here and believes in himself, and that his brother would understand. He also todl Duessel that since he was also in the army, there was no shame to be fighting alongside him. In the next conversation, Duessel is impressed by Cormag's skills, and Cormag asks to see his treasured lance. He recognizes it as the work of Galaveus, and Duessel is pleased to see he knows of him. He has a collection of Gavaleus's finest works, but this lance is his most beautiful, so he never dulls it with dirt or battle and is actually saving it to only use during his finest hour. Cormag is sure that he will never be Duessel's equal, and Duessel then tells Cormag that Glen had also asked to see the lance and made similar comments. Duessel assures Cormag that he will be his brother's equal. In the final conversation, Duessel shows him the cursed lance that has been in his family for generations, which he was supposed to carry without wielding. Duessel tells Cormag about the time that Valter grabbed used the lance, which drove him mad. Cormag then asks for the lance, as he feels that the lance only needs someone to master it. He assures Duessel that he has not been seduced by the weapon but instead could use it for the purpose for which it was forged. Duessel tells Cormag that he has no son to pass on this legacy to, and so he decides to entrust the lance to him in hopes that he could truly use it righteously someday. Cormag acknowledges the possibility that he could become another Valter, but Duessel has faith in him, and Cormag asks him not to get himself killed before that time comes.
• Ephraim -In the first conversation, Ephraim apologizes to Duessel for making him side against Grado in the war, but Duessel dismisses this as nonsense and asks Ephraim to use him however he pleases in the war. Duessel than notes how advanced Ephraim's skills have become and reminisces about their first training sessions, and they agree to duel again after the battle to see how Ephraim had advanced in his training since then. In the next conversation Ephraim comes to talk to Duessel when he looks distracted, and Ephraim asks if he was thinking about Grado, wondering if he had made the wrong decision in asking Duessel to fight Grado in the war. Duessel tells him not to worry because his reasons are his own and he will fight the same regardless of the enemy. Ephraim than challenges Duessel to a rematch, having lost the first match. Ephraim presumably wins this one as the final conversation begins with Duessel commending Ephraim and saying he has nothing left to teach him, but Ephraim claims he still has much to learn from him. Ephraim then talks about his aspirations to become the greatest spearsman in Magvel due to his belief that the spear was the most superior of all weapons. He thanks the skills Duessel taught him for his still being alive and was glad that though their countries were friends, Duessel trained him like family. Duessel says that it is the nature of war that the young will surpass the old and as a warrior all he could do is improve his skills and pass them on to a student. He then says that his only regret in being branded a traitor is that he betrayed the emperor, but Ephraim retorts that Grado had betrayed its former ideals and Duessel had remained loyal to his original oaths, going on to say that Duessel was the last true man of Grado if anything. Duessel then gives further words of inspiration to Ephraim and tells him to be a good king. Ephraim assures him that that has been his intention since he first held his spear, and he vows to never change but to let his faith and beliefs drive his every action as king.
• Knoll - Duessel approaches Knoll, wanting to know about the fates of Lyon and Vigarde. Knoll makes a quick attempt to dissuade him but then begins to tell Duessel after he affirms himself. Knoll goes through the story of the time shear in the next conversation, and Duessel does not believe the claims of seeing the future. He then asks if this is what caused Lyon to start the war, but Knoll does not know. He says that only one person knows the truth behind that and that he only tells the truths that he knows for himself. In the final conversation, Duessel finds Knoll and notices how worn down he looks, warning him that looking like that on the battlefield could invite death. Knoll does not seem to mind the possibility, as he says that he has lost his way and probably should have been executed in the capital, no longer knowing his way through life. Knoll recalls how optimistic Lyon had been in the past and compares the loss of Lyon's old self to his losing everything. Duessel tells Knoll that he has also lost everything and that they are both dead men staying away from their grave, but he also tries to assure Knoll that they can start a new after looking back on the past what gave their lives meaning. Knoll tells Duessel that he is not as strong as the general, but he agrees to search for a new path that will guide him to realizing the dreams that Lyon once held so dearly.