Eliwood

The Knight of Lycia in Fire Emblem 7
Eliwood
Species	Human
Class	(FE7) Lord, (FE6) Paladin
Promotion	(FE7) Knight Lord
Affiliation	Lycian League
Hair color	Red
Eye color	Blue
Age	37 (as of FE6)
Weaponry	Durandal, Rapier
Base	Pherae
Relatives	Roland (ancestor) Elbert (father) Eleanora (mother) Roy (son) Lyn, Ninian or Fiora (possible wife)
Debut	Fire Emblem: Fuuin no Tsurugi

Eliwood is one of the three main characters of Fire Emblem and also appears in the game it acts as a prequel to, Fire Emblem: Fuuin no Tsurugi. He is well known as the father of Roy.

Background

Early Years

Eliwood was born into the royal family of Pherae, being the son of Pherae's marquess, Lord Elbert. His father taught Eliwood the basics of fighting with a sword, and afterwards he received further instruction from Marcus. Eliwood became close friends with Hector, of Ostia's royal family, when they both were about seven years old. During their first meeting, Eliwood and Hector made a special blood oath to protect each other from danger. They began sparring once every two months when they were twelve years old.

Fire Emblem

Eliwood first appeared in the game at the end of "Chapter 7: Siblings Abroad". He saved Ninian from members of the mysterious Black Fang organization near Khathelet (he was in the area to meet Hector for one of their sparring matches) and brought Ninian safely to Lyn and her group, who were protecting Ninian's brother Nils. Eliwood discovered that Lyn was the granddaughter of Caelin's marquess, but Marquess Caelin's evil brother Lundgren had taken control of Caelin to kill Lyn so he could become the heir to Caelin. Eliwood believed Lyn's story and offered his assistance, but Lyn was determined to deal with her problem herself. Eliwood did get a chance to help them later on. In "Chapter 9: A Grim Reunion", Lyn's group returned to Khathelet and met with Eliwood again to ask for his aid. Eliwood was able to convince the other countries in the Lycian League to remain neutral in Caelin's affairs, so that Lundgren could not sway them, although by doing so he also swore himself and Pherae to be neutral as well, preventing him from helping Lyn directly.

A year later, Eliwood embarked on his own journey to track down his father, whom had went missing a month previous. The journey began in "Taking Leave" (Eliwood Chapter 11), when Eliwood was 17 years old. At first he was only accompanied by Marcus and Lowen, but their ranks quickly swelled. Hector and his men joined up with them in "Chapter 12: Birds of a Feather". Then they were joined by Lyn and several of her soldiers in "Noble Lady of Caelin" (Eliwood Chapter 15, Hector Chapter 16). They wound up exploring a mysterious conspiracy of lords in the Lycian League planning a rebellion against, and they were being manipulated by Ephidel, a shadowy messenger from the Black Fang. Eliwood was also disturbed by claims that Elbert supported this plan. Eventually they journeyed to Dragon's Gate, the Black Fang stronghold on Valor, the Dread Isle. Along the way they discovered an amnesiac Ninian, but bringing her to Dragon's Gate turned out to be a trap as the Black Fang was able to recapture her. Nergal, the mastermind controlling the Black Fang, wanted to use Ninian to summon an army of dragons from the Dragon's Gate for his use in world domination.

Eliwood was reunited with his father at Dragon's Gate, but the reunion was short lived. Elbert's quintessence was drained by Nergal so that Ninian could open the Dragon's Gate, and he died shortly afterwards. But before he died, Elbert was able to damage Nergal to the point that he had to retreat and spend a while recovering. Nils was able to prevent Ninian from opening the Dragon's Gate, and together they all fled Valor. When they returned to Badon in "New Resolve" (Eliwood Chapter 20, Hector Chapter 21), Ninian tried to apologize, but Eliwood said he did not blame her for what had happened to his father. They then sought a way to defeat Nergal. After a meeting with Lord Uther, Eliwood's group was directed to the Nabata Desert to meet a living legend. They arrived there to find Athos, one of the eight legendary heroes whom had fought off the dragons almost one thousand years ago. Athos first sent them to find the Shrine of Seals in Bern, with the aid of Pent and Louise.

They soon arrived in Bern, but they were discovered by the Black Fang, who sent various agents to attack them. Eliwood did not like this, because he found that most of the Black Fang were just good people who were being manipulated by Nergal and Sonia. In order to find the way to the Shrine of Seals, they first needed to retrieve the Fire Emblem for Queen Hellene. The Fire Emblem had been taken by Sonia, so they broke into the Black Fang's fortress and successfully retrieved it. Then they defended Prince Zephiel from an assassination attempt in "Battle Before Dawn" (Eliwood Chapter 26, Hector Chapter 28). Afterwards, they received directions to the Shrine of Seals and arrived there in "Cog of Destiny" (Eliwood Chapter 27, Hector Chapter 29) after defeating the last of the Black Fang members, who were lead by either Linus or Lloyd.

Athos met with them there and said that he had not teleported them to the shrine because he thought that the journey would help Eliwood and his group to prove their strength to themselves so they would be capable of wielding the Divine Weapons that had been used to fight off the dragons years ago and which Athos thought would be effective against Nergal. Athos brought them to Bramimond's lair in the basement of the Shrine of Seals, and they were able to convince Bramimond to lift the seals over the Eight Divine Weapons. After they returned to the surface, Nergal returned and kidnapped Ninian. Eliwood and Nils were then nearly caught in an explosion left by Nergal as he left, but luckily they were protected by a barrier erected by Athos.

After taking Hector to one of the Western Isles for the thunder axe Armads, Athos brought Eliwood's group to a cave in Ostia which held Roland's weapon, Durandal, in "Valorous Roland" (Eliwood Chapter 28). Eliwood could only bring four of his allies in with him. He was successful in fighting through the cave's protectors and received Durandal. But soon afterwards, an ice dragon approached Eliwood's group, and Eliwood instinctively used the Durandal to kill the dragon. He then found out too late that the dragon was actually Ninian's true form, and that both Nils and Ninian were really dragons that had been summoned by Nergal.

Eliwood, awash with guilt and grief, had Athos hold Durandal and said he was not ready for it yet. And Nils became distant from him. Nevertheless, Eliwood decided to endeavor in finding a way to kill Nergal and stop his schemes from unfolding. They returned to Valor Isle in "Victory or Death" (Eliwood Chapter 30, Hector Chapter 32) and made their way to the Dragon's Gate. Nils also decided to resume helping Eliwood because it was Ninian's wish. Athos returned to them at Dragon's Gate with several more powerful weapons that would be needed to battle Nergal and any dragons he summoned in "Final Chapter: Light". Eliwood finally decided he was ready to hold Durandal again.

Nergal was killed in the following battle, but in his dying breaths he summoned three fire dragons from Dragon's Gate. Luckily at that point Bramimond was able to return and used power from the Eight Divine Weapons to restore Ninian to life with her soul intact. Eliwood and Ninian had no time for a reunion yet, as Ninian passed out after using her powers to destroy two of the fire dragons. Eliwood's group was left to deal with the last one. The dragon was destroyed, but Athos passed away afterwards, predicting a future disaster in Elibe.

With the last dragon destroyed and peace restored to Elibe, Ninian and Nils decided to return to their realm through the Dragon's Gate and then seal it shut. Eliwood was disappointed because he would never see them again, but in one ending Ninian ultimately decided to stay in Elibe with Eliwood. One year later, Eliwood underwent his coronation ceremony and became the new marquess of Elibe.

After Uther's funeral, Eliwood and Hector did not see each other for fifteen years, likely being too busy with their new responsibilities as marquesses. Depending on whom he had A Rank Support with, Eliwood was married to either Lyn, Ninian or Fiora. Together they had a son named Roy. Eliwood and Hector met again and introduced their children. Eliwood met Hector's daughter Lilina. They also talked together about the mysterious death of King Desmond of Bern, thinking that Zephiel's rise to power reminded them of Athos's prediction that a dark star would rise in Bern and cause the great catastrophe. However, Eliwood also reminded Hector of Athos's last prophecy, that hope would again come from Lycia.

Fuuin no Tsurugi

Eliwood as Marquess in Fuuin no Tsurugi

Eliwood fell ill by the beginning of Fire Emblem: Fuuin no Tsurugi. Lilina visited to pay her respects, and Eliwood also called Roy back home. In "Chapter 1: Dawn of Destiny", several bandits tried to attack Castle Pharae to take advantage of Eliwood's sickness, but Roy was able to arrive in time to defeat them. Since Eliwood was sick, he appointed Roy the leader of Pherae's army to represent them in the Lycian League's army, which was being led by Hector in battle with Bern. Eliwood enlisted a band of mercenaries led by Dieck to help Roy. He also sent Lilina back to Ostia so that she could maintain order there in her father's absence.

Eliwood did not physically appear again, but he was mentioned in the prologue to the ninth chapter. With Hector having passed on, Eliwood was the only lasting power left in Lycia. He called together the other heads of the Lycian League to form the new Lycian League Army, and Roy was appointed its leader. It was also decided that Lycia would take a defensive stance to protect Lycia rather than go directly on the offense against Bern. Near the end of the game, Roy also briefly mentions being concerned about his father's illness. It is unknown whether Eliwood survived his sickness, and how much longer he lived.

Support Conversation Summaries

Eliwood is capable of having Support conversations with seven other characters in Fire Emblem.

• Fiora- Eliwood asks Fiora if she has gotten used to their ranks and tells her that there is no need for formalities around him, even though Fiora insists on keeping their conversation formal. Eliwood says that he likes thinking of all his soldiers as friends, and Fiora says she likes that way of thinking but does not believe it to be possible. In the second Support conversation, they discuss Florina and Ilia, and Eliwood realizes that Fiora has much responsibility and warns her not to be too hard on herself, because if she overworked and fell she would be left with nothing. In the final Support conversation, Eliwood urges Fiora to rest more often and reminds her that she still has a right to happiness. He says that someone like Fiora not finding happiness would be the greatest tragedy of them all. He then asks to fight at her side, so that he may protect her.
• Harken- In the first conversation, Harken asks Eliwood to remain during the rear during battle and leaving the fighting to the others, saying that Eliwood's skill has improved but Harken does not want to take unnecessary risks. In the second conversation, Harken asks the same thing of Eliwood, but Eliwood is bound on fighting the enemy directly for his own reasons. He asks Harken to take care of his mother if he dies in battle, but Harken says that he would kill himself soon afterwards. Harken tells Eliwood that he does not want to lose Eliwood like he did Elbert and says that all of the troops hold Eliwood's life over their own respective lives. In the final conversation, Eliwood re-affirms himself in not retreating to the rear, and he assures Harken that both of them will survive the upcoming battles in order to please Eleanora and Elbert.
• Hector- In the first Support conversation, Hector meets up with Eliwood just to check up on his wellbeing. They talk about their sparring matches and each recall different records for their battles, although Eliwood reminds Hector that he had slept through numbers class so Eliwood's record was more likely to be accurate. In the second conversation, Hector tells Eliwood about some troubling dreams he had, and they felt like long-past memories. He says that in the dreams a bearded man was looking after her daughter, and Eliwood has him recall the hair color of the man and woman, and Eliwood concludes that the dream is actually foretelling Hector's future. Hector then recalls his daughter being taken away in the dream by a Pherean boy with red hair, so he gets angry at Eliwood and walks out on him. In the third conversation, Eliwood reminds Hector of their first meeting and the blood oath they made to protect each other. They decide not to break their oaths, not even in old age. Eliwood tells Hector to stay alive, and Hector warns Eliwood not to die before him.
• Lowen- In the first Support conversation, Lowen discovers that Eliwood has not eaten breakfast and so he panics, blaming himself for oversleeping while Eliwood tries to calm him down. In the second conversation, Lowen wakes up after fainting from not eating breakfast. Lowen realizes that Eliwood has skipped breakfast again and rushes off to get him some food. Eliwood decides to warn Marcus. In the third Support conversation, Lowen finds that Eliwood has finally eaten breakfast and enjoyed it. Lowen is overjoyed, and it is at this point that Eliwood finds out that Lowen has been preparing all of his meals. Lowen tells Eliwood about his family's background in cooking and how he has been cooking for Eliwood the entire journey. Eliwood then shows Lowen great gratitude for his work and promises to make time for all of his meals.
• Lyn- Eliwood and Lyn spar together. Afterwards, Lyn asks Eliwood to help her by teaching her how to behave like a noblewoman, as she had to attend many banquets in the place of the ill Hausen. But Eliwood tells her that there is no need for her to change herself, and Lyn thanks Eliwood for believing in her.
• Marcus- In the first conversation, Marcus checks up on Eliwood and suggests that Eliwood stay out of battle. But Eliwood refused, saying that the journey was his responsibility. Marcus is impressed by how much Eliwood has grown. Marcus sees much of Elbert in Eliwood and reminds Eliwood of the promise he made to Elbert to protect Eliwood. Eliwood thanks Marcus and says the Pherae owes its existence to Marcus. In the final Support conversation, Marcus tells Eliwood to take care of his heart so he could use it to rule over Pherae one day. He also swore to not only protect Eliwood, but to one day protect his son as well. Eliwood thanks Marcus from both himself and his future son for Marcus's devoted service. Marcus then remembers that Elbert was around Eliwood's age when he met his wife, so he decides to find Eliwood a wife as well.
• Ninian- In the first conversation, Ninian approaches Eliwood and thanks him for saving her life, having heard from Lyn that Eliwood was the one who saved her from the Black Fang back in Chapter 7. She wants to repay Eliwood, so he asks her to show him a special dance during her free time. In the second conversation, Eliwood talks about an annual harvest festival and Pherae and suggests Ninian come there to dance. He unintentionally brings up the subject of his father and assures her that Elbert's death was not her fault. But Ninian contests this and admits she has been deceiving Eliwood then begins crying. In the third conversation, Eliwood finds that Ninian is unwilling to reveal her secret, and Eliwood says he is unwilling to force her to, but she was always welcome to confide in him. Eliwood tells Ninian that he loves her regardless of whatever secrets she has and is willing to sweep away anything that troubles her in order to make her smile again. Ninian is left at a loss for words.

Other Appearances

Video Games

• In the Super Smash Bros. series, Eliwood has been represented as a sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and as an Ace-rank Primary Spirit in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. His Spirit came with a boost to the power of fire attacks. When fought in a Spirit battle, Eliwood's Spirit would possess Roy in a battle where the entire field is covered in lava and explosive attacks were strengthened. All fighters in the battle would also periodically become easy to launch.

Trivia

• In Fuuin no Tsurugi, Eliwood is playable in the game's Trial Map mode. He is unlocked by beating the game five times.