Bethany Plays: RD Chapter 1-9: Fire Emblem Warriors Zero

For duty and honour!

There are some rumours that The Grapevine has Izuka covered for.

What kind of priestess?

A promise they have been without for years.

...Hopefully they didn't die.

Jarod decides to abandon the Daein Occupation and focus on surviving. What he plans to do while holding the capital, I have no idea, but he's got no other option than to submit to Sanaki's punishment.

Jarod does have a meaningful option in fighting back, though, he's not hopeless yet.

With that said, though, the rest of his soldiers? Less keen on the sacrificial play.

Micaiah chooses not to quit, is the idea behind this thought.

This name is one that has two vastly different connotations. I think it's supposed to be "a survivor after all".

闇よりの生還者

JP seems to back me up on this one.

Tormod has been waiting for the chance to say that.

Not news to us, but great news for the Liberation Army!

Not even "But wait, there's more!" Come on, man.

Ooh, a ceasefire!

I'm not sure what a first time player is thinking here. The fact this opened with "Part 1" tells them the game is nowhere near over, but do they know how the chapter structure is going to prove Sothe right? The nature of providing a contents page means most online playthroughs have to hint at how exactly Part 1 ends.

How are the Begnion Occupation Army going to get out of this one?

Sanaki means business.

Tormod sings his praises. That's some high praise.

Muarim:
ペルシス公は、若くして
元老院議長を務められ……
なおかつ、神使様を補佐する
宰相という地位の…有能なお方です。

Tormod:
すっげえ、いい人！
おれたちにも親切にしてくれるし、
あんななよっとした姿なのに
めちゃくちゃ切れ者ってとこも、
尊敬しちまうんだよな～。
前の戦いでもさ、元老院は
クリミアに兵を貸すのを渋ってたんだけど、
ペルシス公が戻ってきたら、
あっという間に派兵が決まって……と、 ……悪い。

Micaiah:
どうして謝るの？

Tormod:
や、だってさ…
クリミアが戦ったのはデインじゃん。ベグニオンの派兵がなかったら、
デインもこんな状態に
なってないかもしれないのに……
それを決定した奴を褒めるのは
無神経かなー…って。

Tormod cites the moment where Sephiran forced the Senate to deploy Begnion aid to help Crimea in the war against Daein... and then suddenly realises that this is an insensitive topic and apologises for praising a man for a decision which indirectly caused this mess to begin with.

Start spreading the news! The war's over today!

Tormod's happy to give Micaiah more glory.

Also he's not touching Izuka with a hundred foot pole unless there is Greek fire on the other end.

You can have fun too, you know! Izuka-free fun for all!

Jarod can't, though. He's been very mean.

"Just all bundle up so we can arrest you at once."

Jarod's pretty confident the game is up for him now.

This emissary politely informs Jarod as to Numida's plan for him: ie feed him to the wolves.

And... hints that Jarod might be able to save himself by manipulating Sanaki's goodwill? I'm not really sure what the plan for surviving would be.

Messenger:
ヌミダ公は、万事において
そなたたちが勝手にやったことだと
申し出ておるが……
神使様は、そなたたちの申し開きを聞き
その上で判断されると仰られておられる。
助かる道は、まだ残されているのだ。
思慮に欠ける行動をとり、
自分たちに不利になることがないよう…
くれぐれも注意なされよ。

Jarod:
……それはもう。
神使様のご配慮に対し、
心より御礼申し上げますよ。
全て使者殿の
仰られるとおりに致しますとも。

I put this in for completeness, but I don't really see anything that explains why the messenger chose his final words?

Hah! Poor Numida. Jarod really didn't like his boss, huh?

Alder suggests that, if they're going down, Numida goes down with them.

Alder:
全て終わり…ですか。
我々はヌミダ公の罪を被って処断される……
お情け深き神使様が、
こちらの言い分も聞いてくれるというのが…
せめてもの救いなんでしょうかね。
ヌミダ公を、なんとか
道連れにできるといいんですが。

Jarod:
それは…間違いなく無理だ。
なにしろ俺たちは、ヌミダ公……
引いては元老院の不正の証のようなもんだ。
神使に会わせるぐらいなら、
どんな手段を講じてでも始末にかかるだろうさ。
そしてそれを…神使では止められない。

I get the impression that Alder is thinking about blabbing about Numida to Sanaki when he says he wants to drag Numida down with him.

Jarod doesn't like this plan.

Honestly, I don't even think they'd wait for Jarod to make the first move. Jarod has no incentive other than loyalty to not rat out Lekain and Numida's asses right here, and if he does so, the Senate loses.

Jarod knows someone against whom revenge will be more satisfying.

Alder:
もう、何もかも捨てて逃亡し……
夜盗団にでもなりますか？

Jarod:
いや…そこまでして
生き延びたいとは思わない。
俺たちは腐っても帝国軍人だ。
強盗になって生き延びるよりは
戦って死ぬ道を選ぶ。そうじゃないのか？

Alder:
……将軍なら、
そう言うだろうと思ってましたよ。

Alder suggests they become bandits, but Jarod has too much pride to go out without his Begnion pride.

The Silver-Haired Maiden.

Alder likes this plan too.

What's Sanaki going to do? Execute him?

"I want to listen to my voice for a few hours!"

Or, well, Pelleas's, same thing.

Where did we get this delicious food, then? Maybe Sanaki gave it to them.

PARTY!

Party means inventory management, apparently.

Two conversations today.

Sothe is sans Micaiah.

Pelleas would like a turn with her.

There is a long waiting list for that.

Pelleas is going through the pain of "the girl I like is super popular."

Sothe suggests he just make time.

Yeah, this man is pathetic.

I wasn't thinking that.

If I were you, I'd be a lot more than envious.

We are the last person to give war funds to.

Pelleas apparently overspent.

...I do not trust you with money.

Well, that's true, but...

We don't pay the troops with the war chest.

10000G for the player, though, that's nice.

So what does Jill have to say?

Micaiah is in the process of wandering off.

Micaiah would like some actual peace and quiet to herself.

Jill notices she could use the break.

And Micaiah knows Sothe too well.

Sothe lives and breathes worrying about Micaiah. Imagine if he had reason.

Jill is actually worried about it.

Micaiah assures Jill all is fine.

Jill will get her set up for a rest all the same, though.

Micaiah thinks a good bit of rest in nature will do the trick.

And reminds Jill she had her own reasons for wandering around too.

Jill's just sending mail.

I don't think this was an on-screen conversation, but yeah, Jill's day job is running wyvern courier with Haar.

Jill is surprised that Micaiah spotted her intentions.

That's the plan, at least.

As opposed to getting in trouble in Begnion. Jill has complete faith in him.

Either his disinterest in war, or he just fell asleep. For longer than Sleeping Beauty.

The priorities on this man.

"...One step ahead of you."

Funny this question comes right afterwards.

"...I'll just be over there... stretching my wyvern's wings..."

And the item Jill has?

"Might."

Pass allows units to cross enemy-occupied tiles. In Heroes, this had a HP requirement- this is not the case in Radiant Dawn. Not that it increases the skill's utility.

...Not that I was expecting a new rank for Micaiah/Fiona I didn't already have access to, but this screen seems kinda... empty?

Where is everybody? At least this makes the inventory management easier.

Today's Bargains. Shine is the A Rank Light spell, and I buy it in preparation for this mission. The Master Seal is completely useless to me, and quite honestly, I have no idea what kind of run might want to buy it.

The shop is now selling Iron Heavy weapons (Iron Blade, Iron Poleaxe, Iron Greatlance). I don't take advantage, but something to keep in mind.

I do get a spare Ellight for Micaiah. I think I'm going to at least need something.

Nailah had enough fodder on the west wing to outdo literally everyone else. I can see it, but I wish I could see the kill breakdown like in SoV.

Micaiah is taking a nap on a map with Healhedges. Prepare for the ambush, everyone.

I think people would've questioned a bird partaking in the feast even if they recognised it as yours, Micaiah.

Bird tribes can't fly around at night, but I'm not sure if normal birds have the same issue. Yune is a mysterious bird, though.

I wonder if this has to do with the sickening of Order in times of war. Mist seemed more or less OK, though- then again, so did Reyson and Leanne.

Micaiah's ready to save her country.

...Ambush! Get it, because of all the bushes?

(Also, it's not a ball. ...Possibly for lack of trying.)

...I don't think this army has a Miracle scroll yet.

Micaiah is sick of talking to people right now, come back later-

Oh, right, an ambush. Very well, then, Jarod, I summon my secret weapon, Allies From Nowhere!

...Guys? Meg? Laura? Jill? Fiona? Little help here?

Well, we can take a look at Jarod right now. He doesn't double Micaiah, but mine is as slow as she can possibly be while still having enough Speed to avoid that double. Hm...

Jarod also has three Authority Stars. He must be an inspiring figure, to survive the PR loss from multiple stabbings of his own soldiers.

This is what the map looks like. I like our odds.

So now, why is this a thing?

Jarod:
もっと早く……
あの森でおまえを捕らえたときに
殺しておくべきだったな。

Jarod opens this part of the conversation with "I should've killed you in the forest [back in Chapter 1-2]".

Jarod is suiciding himself on Micaiah in the desperate hope his death has more meaning than "disposed of when no longer politically convenient for Numida".

Micaiah is not the sole hope of Daein. Killing her will not destroy it so long as Pelleas can rally the people in her stead!

...Yeah. Yeah. We're not counting on Pelleas.

Micaiah's been doing all the work, swimming in all the glory.

And this is going to hurt.

Micaiah:
いいえ、希望は消えないわ。
あなたたちがどれほど押さえつけようと
みんなの心の中には希望が残っていた。
デインを…自分たちの国を
取り戻したいという想いが残っていた。
たとえわたしが死んだって、
その気持ちは消えたりしない！

Jarod:
……じゃあ、試してみよう。
俺とおまえ、どっちが正しいのか……
死の先に世界があるなら、
そこから確かめてみることだ！！

Micaiah gives a speech about how hope never dies, and Jarod basically tells her "Let's test that theory. If there's an afterlife, you'll be able to watch for yourself!"

Micaiah seizes up, and...

Wait, what's that glyph?

Well... things have just gotten much more interesting.

Blue HP? Shoves Jarod back? Worked for Daein in the last game? The Black Knight is on our side now?

Micaiah is understandably confused. And still hasn't recovered from the shock of almost being stabbed by Jarod.

Not technically an answer.

Well, at least he is coming back to that thought. Funny to hear Ashnard's Daein called "old Daein", rather than the set that served Ashnard's dad. Though that does make me wonder who the Riders of Daein will be once Pelleas has restored the country. My guess is Micaiah, Jill, Tauroneo and Fiona.

The Black Knight could walk into a room full of laguz and emerge the sole survivor. What chance does a level 4 Halberdier have?

...Oh yeah. I forgot that detail in the excitement.

Jarod's happy to see if this random guy really is the unstoppable wrecking ball of mass destruction.

The Black Knight declares "Bring it."

Jarod demands that the Black Knight fight his minions for amusement. This is the perfect opportunity to escape.

Especially when you put the mission in Fog of War!

Well, Micaiah has faith in the mysterious stranger who categorically never reveals his identity.

Now that is a stat screen. That's +10 HP, +8 Str, +10 Skill, +3 Spd, +9 Luck, +5 Def, and he's also found a use for those Mag/Res stats that have gotten buffs. Alondite no longer blocks criticial hits as a rule, but it is otherwise identical to its PoR stats.

The Black Knight could always wield Lances, but huh, he can get to SS Lance. That's mainly a unique class thing, Meg will not be able to reach SS Rank Lance.

And he has exchanged Renewal and Luna for Eclipse, Imbue and Nihil. Eclipse is a buffed up version of Luna that not only negates Defence entirely, but deals a whopping five times damage. There is nothing in the game that needs that much killing- even the final boss doesn't break 280 HP. Imbue heals the Black Knight for 18 HP a turn, assuming anything in the Imperial Occupation Army could deal 1 HP of damage. And Nihil negates the zero skills we will be encountering.

The Black Knight does not have Authority Stars, for some reason. He's Independent, though, and not a Liberator.

This is correctly reflected in the map screen. If the Black Knight possessed Authority Stars, he would get to use them to counter Jarod's. I also find it interesting that his death is a failure condition.

Good question.

That will not be answered yet. I... don't think this ever gets answered. Once you know more about how the Black Knight works, you can sort of... guess at the answer, but even knowing the moving parts that would help, it's not clear how they fit together.

Let's just take solace in that he's here and he's not killing us.

Micaiah has faith in the Black Knight. She proceeds to turn around and kill that Fighter standing behind her.

The Black Knight moves past her, drops Alondite in the dirt, and lets Micaiah do all the heavy lifting. Just because this map is blatantly an excuse to have the Black Knight turn the Imperial Occupation Army into a mountain of corpses that would make Gritnea look civilised does not mean the All Girls condition is on pause. It is possible for Micaiah to kick this map's ass herself.

The Black Knight can wander over here and find this Olivi Grass, though. There are also two Coins on the borders of the map, but I don't know where they are and the map on Serenes doesn't highlight where the trees are to use as references.

Micaiah guards a chokepoint for the Black Knight

She doesn't struggle to do it. This guy couldn't hit the broad side of the Black Knight.

I'll be taking this.

Some of the soldiers are a little more of a worry, though, since Micaiah can't double them with her Speed where it is.

I have Micaiah stand next to him, not in a thicket, and have the Black Knight follow her to safety.

I won't count the Black Knight getting swung at against him, I don't really have a choice here.

Now why would I go and do a thing like leave Micaiah vulnerable?

Oh yeah.

This is why I put Resolve on Micaiah. If you give it to anyone else for 1-8, you can't move it back to her for this mission. Resolve will increase her Speed by 1.5x, so...

+8 Speed. I now double anything that doesn't double me. And I also get +16 Avoid, too. And any accuracy worries I might theoretically have shouldn't be an issue.

You'll have to mentally add the x2 and the -16 Hit to these numbers, though.

I think the Black Knight can't enter the south thicket. Healhedges must just cost less to armours.

Picture this, as often as possible.

Now, I had a run that went much less well (no Resolve immediately, couldn't get the Black Knight out of trouble), and this guy, since he carries a Vulnerary, became an issue.

Consider us even.

The Black Knight scouts ahead.

I'll be finishing you off, thank you.

And this archer behind us is the last fodder unit. He actually found us earlier in the failed run, but I went so fast I nearly left him behind. Unfortunately, this means it's much harder to get to where Jarod spawns- the opposite corner. Ironically, I think this map would've gone better if I didn't send the Black Knight north to hunt for Coins.

While I'm shimmying my way over to Jarod, here's one screenshot I took during the failed run that is still relevant: if you attempt to have the Black Knight Rescue Micaiah to make this map unloseable, Micaiah asserts her independence. The Black Knight with Rescue penalties can't double enemies and I think he actually doesn't oneshot everything (maybe that's just Jarod he's short on), so that might make things a tad more of a slog if he could.

Anyway, we're here.

Atoning implies you're letting him live. He can repent from the grave.

Honestly, trampling worms is disgusting. The way they can duplicate in the act...

Let's Shine a little light on the extent of his crimes.

And not get hit back.

One more thing Resolve can do for us is help land crits.

I hope you enjoyed the way you died, Jarod.

Micaiah has finished with you.

Of course, the Black Knight is supposed to be the one to beat Jarod here.

Jarod: I see you’re pretty impressed with yourself!
Black Knight: Did you think the likes of you could be a worthy opponent for me? Know your place.

This seems to be the origin of the Black Knight's iconic crit quote from Heroes: "Know your place!"

...That is quite the gash across his chest he's picked up. Also his left shoulderguard could use a bit of buffing out. Design-wise, that's nice and generally consistent between games, but he seems to have changed his red cape for a black one at some point.

Jarod accepts his death.

Farewell.

...Alder? Weren't you on distracting duty?

...You did make a distraction, though, right?

...Himself, I imagine.

...This is not a good thing to say in the same sentence.

Alder:
ジェルド将軍…　…あなたは……
めちゃくちゃな上司でしたが……
そ…れでも………
……私も…部下たちも
みんな……あなたを慕って……
………………

..."Longing for you"? Is that what we're going with here?

"Quick, you can't say hell, say something adjacent!"

I'll take your word for it. ~~I have an armour knight in my army, I can't talk.~~

...Black Knight, you can just swing again.

So yeah, remember how the Black Knight didn't kill Ena in PoR? Maybe Alondite just can't kill someone who has surrendered. Considering I think that's a war crime, that's a nice setting more swords should come with.

It's a very weird setting and Jarod doesn't appreciate being let off on a technicality when he really wants to die.

Micaiah points out that Alder's sacrifice means nothing if Jarod doesn't leave this conversation alive.

And so Micaiah has spared Jarod's life.

To the Black Knight's complete and utter confusion.

Micaiah thinks it's best if Sanaki gets his hands on him, and thinks Jarod's going to spend the time until Sephiran gets here burying Alder and giving him a proper funeral. From an external perspective, I actually like this decision. But this is still a very strange choice from the perspective of the Micaiah, General of the Daein Army.

……時間をあげたいんです。
失った仲間を埋葬し
祈るための時間を………

Is... is "he's not ours to judge" a localisation invention?

"...Not that you did much other than pick some grass off the ground."

OK, that's great. ...Also, wait, is the Black Knight's dented armour mirrored too?

Sothe notices Micaiah is in danger now that the danger has passed. That's some sixth sense.

Sothe goes into Mad King's War mode and recognises the Black Knight as not just "a bad guy", but a "GET THE HELL AWAY!"

Micaiah's OK with him, though. He seems helpful.

It's not that Micaiah doesn't know who the Black Knight is.

So how did the Black Knight survive?

The Black Knight's survival is explained satisfyingly later, I promise. It's a fascinating story, too. But this is the most hilarious question dodge I have ever seen.

So why is the Black Knight here?

...Because he wants Daein back. You know, that seems like a reasonable thing to want for a former General of Daein. We're on the same side now.

Black Knight:
デイン王国の復興……
そのために来たのだ。
Sothe:
……それが真実だとしても…
もうその必要はない。
戦いの決着は既についた後だからな。
Black Knight:
…果たしてそうだろうか？

Sothe points out that, with Sephiran on the way to disarm the Occupation Army, there is no need for the Black Knight here. The Black Knight gives a response along the lines of "Is that so?"