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* KarmaHoudini: For his involvement in helping [[spoiler:Ishmelga Rean acquire certain technology to further his goals and indirectly being one of the causes of the entire issue in "Reverie"]], he got off with only a warning (and not even a stern one at that) from Vita.
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[[WMG:[[center: [- ''VideoGame/TrailsSeries'' [[Characters/TrailsSeries Main Character Index]]\\
''Kingdom of Liberl:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEstelleParty Estelle's Party]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesLiberlRoyaltyAndMilitary Liberl Royalty and Military]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesLiberlCivilians Liberl Civilians]]\\
''Crossbell State:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellGovernmentAndInfluentialGroups Crossbell Government and Influential Groups]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellPoliceAndMilitary Crossbell Police and Military]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellSpecialSupportSection Special Support Section]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellCivilians Crossbell Civilians]]\\
''Erebonian Empire:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaNobility Erebonia Imperial Family and Four Great Houses]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaIronblood The Ironbloods]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaMilitary Erebonia Military]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsStaffAndInstructors Thors' Staff and Instructors]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVII Thors Class VII]] ([[Characters/TrailsSeriesReanSchwarzer Rean Schwarzer]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIIOriginal Original Class VII]] ([[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIIOriginalPartOne Part One]], [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIIOriginalPartTwo Part Two]]) | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIINew New Class VII]]) | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsMainCampusClasses Main Campus Classes]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsBranchCampus Branch Campus]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaOthers Erebonian Civilians and Major Groups]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesImperialLiberationFront Imperial Liberation Front]]\\
''Republic of Calvard:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCalvardMiscellaneous Calvard Miscellaneous]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCalvardArkrideSolutionsOffice Arkride Solutions Office]]\\
''Other Nations:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesRemiferiaMiscellaneous Remiferia Miscellaneous]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesElsaimMiscellaneous Elsaim Miscellaneous]]\\
''Notable Groups:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesTheBracerGuild The Bracer Guild]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesOuroboros Ouroboros]] ('''The Seven Anguis''' | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesOuroborosEnforcers Enforcers]]) | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesJaegerCorps Jaeger Corps]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesSeptianChurch Septian Church]]\\
''Others:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesAncientZemurianCivilization Ancient Zemurian Civilization]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesSeptTerrionsAndHolyBeasts The Sept-Terrions and the Holy Beasts]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesPosthumousCharacters Posthumous Characters]] -] ]]]]
Seven individuals who pledge their loyalty to the Grandmaster and execute her plans.
[[folder:The First Anguis]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/RyoheiArai (Japanese, ''Evolution'' games)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure Azure]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]''
Identity currently [[TheUnseen unknown]]. Has appeared during several scenes across the series at the Celestial Globe.
----
* TheDragon: He's shown to be the member of Ouroboros closest to the Grandmaster, other than [[MouthOfSauron Campanella]].
* TaughtByExperience: In the post-credits scene of ''Cold Steel IV'', he's the one who insists that the Anguis and Campanella not get involved in [[spoiler:Cedric's]] development after joining the Society, reminding the others how that ended for Weissman.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Second Anguis - Vita Clotilde, The Azure Abyss]]
!Vita Clotilde
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vita_clotilde_sen_iii.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Vita as of ''Cold Steel III'']]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Vita as she appeared in ''Cold Steel I'' and ''II'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vita_clotilde_sen_ii.png [[/labelnote]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Misty]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/misty_full_artwork_28sen_i29.png[[/labelnote]]]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grianos_initial_design___concept_art_28sen29.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Grianos]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Grianos-Aura]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grianos_aura.jpg[[/labelnote]]]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YukariTamura (Japanese), Ayaka Maeda (Japanese, ''The 3rd Evolution'' only), Creator/EricaLindbeck (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel I]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel II]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel III]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie Reverie]]''
A stunning woman who is the top star of the Heimdallr Opera House and known as the Azure Diva. She also has another job at Radio Trista where she goes by the alias "Misty" and serves as the hostess of show Abend Time. She is later revealed to be the Second Anguis of Ouroboros whose title is Azure Abyss.
----
* AffablyEvil: Played with. Perhaps the worst acts that she's done so far is kidnapping Alfin and Elise early on in ''Cold Steel II'', and her role in triggering the Erebonian Civil War, considering the other villains in the game have done even more terrible things that even she sometimes disapproves of. Her earlier BitchInSheepsClothing role as well as her tendency to taunt the protagonists early on in ''II'' make it ambiguous whether her politeness throughout the games is genuine or an act, but by the end she proves to be a GracefulLoser with some very clear scruples of her own, making her a genuine example.
* AmicableExes: [[spoiler:A conversation with Crow in ''Cold Steel IV'' implies that she had some sort of relationship with him that went beyond being simple partners, but by the time of the game, both have seemingly moved on from each other.]]
* AttackAnimal: One of her Crafts has her {{Familiar}} Grianos transform into its OneWingedAngel form to attack the enemy.
* BecomingTheMask: While she initially starts being Misty as a means to safely infiltrate Trista, it's pretty clear she gets a kick out of it.
* BigBad: She serves as the main antagonist of ''Cold Steel II'' overall.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Downplayed; she initially acts friendly towards Rean and the members of Class VII before her true allegiance is revealed. But even afterwards, it's clear that she's not that bad compared to other villains in ''Cold Steel II'', and by ''III'', she drops the "bitch" part.
* BlowYouAway: Her regular attacks from ''Cold Steel IV'' onwards have her send a small tornado at her opponents.
* BreathWeapon: During her boss fight and when playable, one of her Crafts has her summon [[{{Familiar}} Grianos]] in his OneWingedAngel form, who then breathes a gust of chilling air at the enemy.
* BrokenPedestal: Machias and Elliot were huge fans of hers, but finding out that she's part of Ouroboros put a damper on this. Likewise, Emma had a case of BigSisterWorship towards her, but Vita breaking an unknown taboo of their clan resulted in those feelings becoming very mixed.
* BuxomBeautyStandard: She is quite well-endowed, which her outfits highlight, and several characters have commented on her beauty.
* TheCastShowoff: In-universe, she shows off her singing voice by performing an impromptu rendition of [[CallBack Whereabouts of the Stars]] during a broadcast. Then she gets called out for it. In ''Cold Steel IV'', she casually teleports onto Arc en Ciel's stage during a performance to join the vocal section, and does it so seamlessly that everyone in the audience thinks it was a planned part of the show.
* CelebrityMasquerade: She is a HotWitch and Anguis who moonlights as Erebonia's top opera star and as a popular radio personality during the first two ''Cold Steel'' games.
* ClarkKenting: Her disguise as Misty consists of glasses, a hat, and simpler and more conservative casual clothing. No one could tell who she was, not even people who were fans of both her personas such as Machias and Elliot.
* ColorCodedCharacters: Known as the [[RedBaron Azure Abyss]] as an Anguis and the [[StageName Azure Diva]] as an opera star, and was the one who lead Crow to the Azure Knight Ordine. Fittingly enough, she wears primarily blue outside of her Misty disguise, her weapons were a blue MagicStaff and later a blue CombatHandFan, and has a blue bird as a {{Familiar}}.
* CombatHandFan: Uses one from ''Cold Steel III'' onward as she had returned the staff that she used to Roselia after the events of the Infernal Castle, as the staff originally belonged to the latter in the first place.
* ContraltoOfStrength: Creator/EricaLindbeck gives her a low and regal voice in the English dub, befitting her abilities as an Anguis, mysterious nature as a witch, and former occupation as an opera singer.
* CoolBigSis: Towards Emma when they were younger. Even now, though they're on opposing sides, it's clear that Vita still cares for the former in her own way and is willing to give her advice too. Emma, for her part, still calls Vita "[[UsefulNotes/JapaneseSiblingTerminology Nee-san]]" in the Japanese script.
* DeathGlare: Gives a FRIGHTENING one to Duke Cayenne after he [[SpeakIllOfTheDead insults the recently killed Crow]] while holding Prince Cedric at blade point, complete with glowing BattleAura and [[PowerEchoes booming voice]].
* TheDogWasTheMastermind: One of the biggest reveals in ''Cold Steel I'' was the fact that the friendly radio DJ that Rean would occasionally meet was also a villainous witch who was also a member of Ouroboros.
* DragonWithAnAgenda: Although she's ostensibly subservient to Duke Cayenne for a majority of ''Cold Steel II'', she's not particularly interested in his goals and is merely pursuing her own aims, irrespective of the Noble Alliance's well-being.
* EarlyBirdCameo: In an interview with Creator/{{Falcom}} president Kondo, she was the woman flirting with Kevin at the beginning of ''The 3rd.''
* EasyAmnesia: She has a form of memory-manipulating ability. If you speak to Trista Radio's manager before the final battle, he'll tell you that he honestly doesn't remember ever hiring 'Misty'. She also performs it on the jaegers who were hired by Duke Albarea in the prologue, making them forget about what they saw in addition to having them leave Ymir.
* EnemyMine:
** In ''Cold Steel II'', she and Crow team up with Class VII to defeat the out-of-control Vermillion Apocalypse.
** [[spoiler:And then in ''Cold Steel III'' she lends her assistance to the heroes when they go up against Osborne and the other members of Ouroboros. What prevents it from being a full [[HeelFaceTurn Heel-Face Turn]] is that she's still loyal to the society - she just disapproves of their current operation.]]
** [[spoiler:Carries on in ''Cold Steel IV'' and ''Reverie'' as well. She is even invited to the Imperial Wedding in the former.]]
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Genuinely cared for Crow and was genuinely upset at his death at the end of ''Cold Steel II'', becoming [[TranquilFury noticably enraged]] when [[SpeakIllOfTheDead Duke Cayenne insulted him]]. It's clear she also still cares for Emma deep down.
* EvenEvilHasStandards:
** When the Anguis discuss Weissman's death, she, Arianrhod, and the 1st Anguis consider him an AssholeVictim. And then there's Ymir where she thinks it was too much for Duke Albarea to raze Ymir just to grab Princess Alfin.
** She also displays a disdain for {{Sore Loser}}s in the climax of ''Cold Steel II'', where she's about to concede defeat to Class VII, only for Duke Cayenne to hold prince Cedric hostage and awaken the Vermillion Apocalypse. She's absolutely disgusted that he'd stoop this low, and after Crow sacrifices himself to defeat Vermillion and save Cedric's life, she angrily commands Cayenne to release Cedric, and would have followed through on her threats had Rufus not intervened.
** [[spoiler:Happens in ''Cold Steel III'' as well. The whole reason she teams up with the heroes in its climax is that she finds the Great Twilight plan to be way too dangerous to enact. As the ending shows, she was absolutely right.]]
* EvilKnockoff: [[spoiler:Played with in ''Reverie''; she has a Hollow copy that serves as a boss in the True Reverie Corridor, most notably when it fights [[DualBoss alongside]] Roselia's during Sara, Sharon, Aurelia, and Victor's Trial Door. That being said, Vita herself started out as a villain and remains an Ouroboros agent, even if she's been spending more of her time helping the heroes as of late.]]
* {{Familiar}}: Grianos, a blue-feathered bird capable of transforming into EldritchAbomination to attack enemies. It later died at Rufus' hand during the finale of ''Cold Steel II''.
* FanNickname: In-universe; her fans call her the Azure Diva.
* FireWaterJuxtaposition: She and her adoptive younger sister Emma are near opposites in terms of personality and roles, and fittingly enough, they also have opposite Orbal elements, with Emma having [[PlayingWithFire Fire]] as her secondary element while Vita has [[MakingASplash Water]] as her secondary element (which also happen to be the same secondary elements of the corresponding Awakeners they are [[ShipTease rather close to]]).
* GenkiGirl: Her Misty persona acts quite energetic when hosting Abend Time.
* GrandStaircaseEntrance: Her first appearance during Rean's field study in Heimdallr is this. There are only members of Class VII (and front desk) down there and clearly, two of them are awed by her appearance.
* GreaterScopeVillain: For the first part of the Erebonia arc, when she's pulling the strings behind the scenes to enact the Phantasmal Blaze Plan, but does not get directly involved until her proxy, Crow, is in danger. It's hinted she may also have been heading up operations in Crossbell around the same time, making her this to ''Zero'' and ''Azure'' as well.
* HasAType: If Crow and Loewe are any indication, Vita seems to have a thing for men with silver hair.
* HeadTurningBeauty: Several characters have commented on her beauty with her having a decent amount of fans in both of her personas as Misty and the Azure Diva.
* HighClassFan: Her hand fan from ''Cold Steel III'' onwards only adds to her former diva image.
* HighClassGloves: She wears some in her outfit from ''Cold Steel III'' onward, which is fitting considering her former occupation as a famous opera singer.
* HoldingYourShoulderMeansInjury: She holds her right shoulder throughout the finale of ''Cold Steel II'' due to Rufus slashing her in the back.
* HotWitch: Just like her sister Emma, she's a very beautiful member of a witch clan.
* HumansAreBastards: Her ''Aria of the Abyss'' S-Craft has her reciting a chant declaring this. It's left ambiguous on whether she actually believes so, or if it was done solely for dramatic effect.
-->'''Vita:''' Humankind are evildoers, shackled by emotion. Fury, misery, agony, envy. Behold the Abyss, for it longs to be forever at your side!
* AnIcePerson: One of her Crafts, Eternal Winter, surrounds her targets in ice.
* InstantFanclub: She's a famous opera singer in Erebonia, to the point of being considered the idol of the capital. She also got a second fanclub for her Misty persona.
* LadyOfBlackMagic: An elegant and beautiful woman, whose magical powers are considered second only to Crimson Roselia, the Elder of the Hexen Clan.
* LasciviousBeautyMark: She has a beauty mark below her left eye, and several characters have commented on her beauty and can be quite TheTease at times.
* {{Leitmotif}}: "The Witch of the Abyss" in ''Cold Steel II''.
* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft is Aria of the Abyss.
* MagicStaff: She fights with one in ''Cold Steel II'' though she no longer uses it after the events of the Infernal Castle as she had returned it to its rightful owner Roselia.
* MakingASplash: Her secondary element is Water, contrasting Emma's Fire.
* MasterOfNone: Not as extreme as Emma, Eliot and Alfin but she has rank for all attack type with relatively lower individual rank than most fighters. The difference is that unlike 3 other MagicStaff users, she manages to score B on "thrust" and "pierce" type.
* MsFanservice: She's got a large chest and long, shapely legs, and her default dress in the first two ''Cold Steel'' games is a [[SexyBacklessOutfit Sexy Backless Outfit]] that shows plenty of cleavage. Several characters (both male and female) are even shown commenting on her beauty.
* NotInThisForYourRevolution: Much like the other members of Ouroboros joined with the Noble Alliance, Vita has no interest in their goals and says as much towards Duke Cayenne during the finale of ''Cold Steel II''.
* NoodleIncident: She was apparently banished from the Hexen Clan after breaking an unknown taboo seven years ago. What the taboo was and her motives for doing so and her reasons for joining Ouroboros remain a mystery.
* OptionalPartyMember: You can make her playable in ''Cold Steel II'' using DLC item in Japan. For other territories, she can be unlocked by purchasing a Phantasmal Mirror for 200,000 mira.
* OutGambitted: By Osborne at the end of ''Cold Steel II''.
* PetTheDog: Seems to have genuinely cared for Crow and is clearly upset over his death. She even apologizes to Class VII and asks them to take care of him. Partnering them up at the Reverie Corridor and she refers to him as an ideal knight in their victory quote.
* PimpedOutDress: When not disguising herself as Misty, her main outfit is a flowing blue dress befitting her status as an opera singer. She eventually trades it in for a somewhat more practical, yet still just as fancy outfit in ''Cold Steel III''.
* PreFinalBoss: In ''Cold Steel II'', she and Crow serve as the last bosses fought in the main story before the [[FinalBoss Vermillion Apocalypse]].
* PromotedToPlayable: While ''Cold Steel II'' allows players to use her via Phantasmal Mirrors, she isn't physically present herself. [[spoiler:''Cold Steel IV'' finally allows her to be playable once again alongside a lot of characters.]] She is the first Anguis to become playable.
* PurelyAestheticGlasses: Justified because it's part of her "Misty" identity. Only Rean sees through it because of his powers help him see through her illusion.
* PurpleIsPowerful: Her eyes are purple, denoting her status as a powerful witch.
* PurposelyOverpowered:
** [[spoiler:While she's decently strong on her own, her Brave Order in ''Cold Steel IV'', Secret Art - Azure Peacock, allows all characters a flat 100% increase in damage for eight turns, effectively doubling their attack power. She's only available for her dungeon's boss and the TrueFinalBoss fight. It's balanced by the fact that it costs 5 Brave Points to cast but at that point, players already have ways to regain BP pretty quickly.]]
** In ''Reverie'', [[spoiler:while the turn limit for her Brave Order lasts only for four turns, she's one of the two characters who has access to the Art Boost IV passive link ability where she can bestow whoever's linked with her double the damage when the one linked with her is casting arts. The only drawback is that she and the character linked with her have to be at link level 6.]]
* ReallyGetsAround: Downplayed since the full extent of her personal life is unknown; in ''The 3rd'' she learns of Kevin's ties to Carnelia and is quick to show interest in him. The Fourth Anguis berates her for this, noting that it hasn't even been that long since Leonhardt's passing, whom Vita herself was apparently heavily interested in, and she's already showing interest in another guy. It's also worth noting that around this time she's already well-acquainted with and close to Crow.
* RedBaron: Nicknamed as the "Azure Diva" among her fans. Her title as an Anguis, on the other hand, is the "Azure Abyss."
* SecretIdentity: In addition to being an opera singer she took on the Misty persona and a job at Radio Trista for fun. Rean is the first person to find out about it and she rewards him with a Misty sticker by dropping it off at his mailbox.
* SexyBacklessOutfit: Her default blue outfit from ''Cold Steel II'' leaves her back exposed.
* SexySlitDress: Both the dresses she wore have a decently high slits that expose much of her legs.
* ShipTease: With Crow. [[spoiler:Some of their dialogue makes them come across as exes who still occasionally flirt with each other.]]
* SiblingYinYang: She and her adoptive younger sister Emma are near opposites in terms of personality and roles. Emma is shown to be a reserved ReluctantFanserviceGirl, lacking confidence, and finds herself frequently LockedOutOfTheLoop. Vita, meanwhile, is a very confident Anguis who is comfortable with her looks (to the point of being TheTease at some points) and is very knowledgeable about what goes on behind the scenes in regards to the origins of the Hexen Clan and other parts of the supernatural. Fittingly, the two also have opposite Orbal elements, with Emma having [[PlayingWithFire Fire]] as her secondary element while Vita has [[MakingASplash Water]] as her secondary element, the same as the secondary elements of the corresponding Awakeners they're [[ShipTease rather close too]].
* SignatureScent: She smells of lavender, as noted by Rean and Emma. Emma catching the scent of lavendar on Rean after he ran into her by chance sets her off for a moment.
* SpontaneousWeaponCreation: Her Dancing Blades Craft has her summon numerous floating {{Flaming Sword}}s to slash the enemy apart.
* SuperEmpowering: Near the end of ''Cold Steel II'', she casts a spell to empower Crow's weapon enough that he could stagger the Vermillion Apocalypse with his [[SwordBeam Deadly Cross]], with the latter's comment indicating that she likely used it to help him clear the trials to become Ordine's Awakener. [[spoiler:She and Roselia also cast the same spell on Aurelia, Victor, Matteus, Vandyck, and Wallace so they could deflect the Retributive Tower's WaveMotionGun.]]
* TheTease: Flirted with Kevin briefly during the beginning of ''The 3rd'', was stated to have regularly done so with Loewe as well while he was alive, and also did so briefly with Rean when the latter figured out her identity while she was disguised as Misty.
* TokenGoodTeammate: [[spoiler:In ''Cold Steel III'', all the other Anguis were willing to side with the gnomes in order to reclaim the Phantasmal Blaze Plan. Vita disapproves and goes independent.]]
* TranquilFury: When Cayenne is holding Prince Cedric hostage and calling a dying Crow a worthless wretch from a destroyed country, Vita stands, closes her eyes, and calmly orders him to unhand the prince before she makes him do it by force which is punctuated by her opening her eyes in her extremely creepy, shrunken-iris spell-casting expression.
* TrueBlueFemininity: She is a graceful opera singer and LadyOfBlackMagic who is heavily associated with the color azure.
* VaporWear: Her dress from the first two ''Cold Steel'' games revealed enough of her [[SexyBacklessOutfit back]] and [[CleavageWindow cleavage]] exposed to make it clear that she isn't wearing a bra.
* VillainousFriendship: Despite Crow not being an Ouroboros member, her friendship with him is genuine, as shown by their Combat Link and when she mourns his death.
* TheUnfought: In ''Cold Steel I'', which makes sense, given how her identity is only revealed at the end. Also, in ''Cold Steel III'', [[spoiler:because she and Class VII technically aren't enemies at the moment.]]
* TheUnreveal: It's never revealed what exactly was the taboo she broke throughout the entire Erebonia arc or even in ''Reverie''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Third Anguis (former) - Georg Weissmann, the Faceless]]
!Georg Weissmann/Professor Alba
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/georg_weissmann_s_craft_sc_evo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The Faceless]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:As Professor Alba]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/professor_alba_28fc_evo29.png[[/labelnote]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:SPOILERS]]Angel-Weissman https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ed6_win2_2007_07_07_12_16_5_1.jpg[[/labelnote]]]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/HideyukiTanaka (Japanese), Creator/KeithSilverstein (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky FC]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky SC]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' (Replica)
An archaeologist whom Estelle and Joshua meet in the prologue of ''FC'' and appears several times since. He is researching relics of ancient Zemuria. At least, that's what he claims. He is in fact a high-ranking member of the secret society Ouroboros.
----
* AbsentMindedProfessor: He puts on an act as one as Professor Alba.
* AdaptedOut: Despite being briefly shown in the opening credits, he does not appear in the OVA proper.
* AdventurerArchaeologist: Double subverted. In ''FC'', he appears to be a weak archaeologist who explores the Tetracyclic towers regardless of the risks, only to be revealed as the BigBad. Then ''SC'' reveals that despite his false name and persona, he actually is a certified archaeologist.
* AndThereWasMuchRejoicing: [[spoiler:Most of his fellows Anguis are clearly amused by his demise, but it isn't hard to imagine why. Likewise, the Enforcers didn't care one bit for his death, and are more touched by Loewe's.]]
* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:As cruel as his method of execution was, it's hard to feel the slightest bit of pity for him.]]
* BarrierChangeBoss: The first half of fight with him[[spoiler: at his [[OneWingedAngel second transformed form]] after merging with Aureole]], thanks to the mooks around him. The vulnerability exist even after the mooks were defeated and he can summon those indefinitely.
* BigBad: He's the main villain of ''FC'' and ''SC''.
* CardCarryingVillain: [[spoiler:Zigzagged. He's a proud {{Sadist}}, yet he still views himself as the savior of humanity.]]
* TheChessmaster: Combined with ManipulativeBastard. [[spoiler:He was playing Cassius, Joshua, and the Bracer Guild since the opening cutscene of the first game by making Joshua a ManchurianAgent. Years later, he manipulates Richard into starting a coup that allows Ouroboros to further undo the seals on the Aureole.]]
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler:Very ''very'' cruel. He is shot with a Salt Bolt, a 'cursed' weapon that slowly transforms the victim into salt from the inside out. Weissmann is fully aware what is happening to him as his body succumbs to the effect, cursing his killer with his last breath. After his whole body was turned into salt, Campanella ''shattered'' his salt body to pieces.]]
* CutscenePowerToTheMax: His True Evil Eye outright traps the party in cutscenes. In battle, it simply deals AOE damage while inflicting confusion and AT Delay.
* DarkMessiah: This is essentially how he sees himself. [[spoiler:Not for nothing is the final battle BGM of ''SC'' called "The Merciless Savior." However, when it comes to his own standing in Ouroboros, he seems to be the only one who believes he's doing any "saving." The Enforcers working under him all have their own agendas and consider their teamwork with him to be a matter of convenience.]]
* DeaderThanDead: [[spoiler:As a consequence of being killed with a Salt Bolt]]
* DeathGlare: His Evil Eye craft is far stronger than Joshua's.
* DeceptivelyHumanRobots: ''SC'' shows that he made puppet copies of Joshua that initially seem convincing, but are quickly proven to be anything but.
* DidntThinkThisThrough: [[spoiler:For all his planning, he completely underestimates Loewe when he became Angel Weissmann, not taking Loewe's Divergent Weapon into the equation, despite this same weapon being necessary to his plan mere days before.[[note]]Later games establish that the only way to harm a Divine Beast is to use a Divergent Weapon, which is why you only see Loewe and Weissmann taking on Ragnard.[[/note]] ]]
* DyingDeclarationOfHate: His last words before dying are used to insult his killer.
* EternalRecurrence: His view of human nature is such that he is convinced that humanity can't be trusted to not make disastrous decisions over and over. The fact that about half of the known issues with the modern world are Weissmann's fault or are otherwise attributable to Ouroboros seems to have passed him by.
* EvilSoundsDeep: [[spoiler:In the ''Evolution'' remakes, when his voice sounds basically really deep, especially when he is gloating about his plans]].
* FaithHeelTurn: He used to be an academic priest after being taken in by the Septian Church, but his fascination with the Aureole and meeting with the Grandmaster led to him discarding the path of faith, in his own words.
* FalseFriend: [[spoiler:For most of ''FC'', he poses as Professor Alba, a friendly archaeologist who just happens to cross paths with Estelle and Joshua on multiple occasions, and even offers his assistance at a few points, such as helping them get past a security checkpoint when they get held up, or providing them a lead on a jaeger assault. He continues his chummy act right until the very moment of TheReveal when Joshua finally figures him out, and after [[BreakThemByTalking emotionally breaking the poor guy]], ''he continues the act when he encounters Estelle'', who doesn't discover his true colors until well into ''SC'''s storyline.]]
* FatalFlaw: [[{{Sadist}} Sadism]], as it contributed to his downfall when [[spoiler:[[MagnificentBastard Cassius]] and [[ManipulativeBastard Kevin]] [[FlawExploitation exploited it]] near the end of ''SC''. Even before that, though, his cruelty causes him to make enemies out of his fellow Ouroboros members and allies, who let him die.]]
* FauxAffablyEvil: [[spoiler:After his cover is revealed in ''FC'', he tries to come off as an affable ex-boss to Joshua, while still planning on making his life miserable and turning him into a puppet again. At the end of ''SC'', he even gives the party a historical lecture before trying to force Joshua to kill Estelle in order to break him.]]
* FinalBoss: [[spoiler:Of ''SC'', as "Angel Weissman."]]
* FlawExploitation: He pulls this on Estelle, knowing that if some of her comrades are put in danger she'll [[LeeroyJenkins charge in to rescue them]]. [[spoiler:[[MagnificentBastard Cassius]] and [[ManipulativeBastard Kevin]] pull this on ''him'' at the end of the game, knowing that he won't possibly be able to resist the temptation to be a completely sadistic asshole once he regains control over Joshua. [[BatmanGambit They're right.]]]]
* ForTheEvulz: Subverted for the most part. [[spoiler:While he's a card-carrying sadist, his acts of cruelty are usually related to advancing his agenda in some way, with everyone's suffering being treated as the cherry-on-top. Even the trauma he puts Joshua through is supposedly part of an experiment for brainwashing humanity.]] Not that it doesn't come back to bite him.
* ForScience: His stated motive for most of his actions, when he isn't claiming to be a savior who can deliver mankind from doom. Even his most cruel and sadistic actions are mere experiments in his eyes.
* FourEyesZeroSoul: He wears glasses before and after the reveal. He's also the most evil character in the trilogy.
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: No one in Ouroboros likes him, but they are forced to put up with him, as he is the only one who knows how to find the Aureole. His successor as Third Anguis, [[spoiler:Mariabell]], even remarks how much every other Enforcer and Anguis seemed to hate him.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: A series of coincidences turned an ordinary young man into one of the most dangerous people in Zemuria. [[spoiler:First, the [[CataclysmBackstory Salt Pillar Incident]] devastated his homeland and led to him being taken in by the Church. Then, his curiosity led to his desire to study [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow the Sept-Terion and the Stigma phenomenon, which is forbidden.]] His desire caught the attention of [[TheAce Rufina Argent]], who [[AllThereInTheManual informed higher authorities about it.]] Weissmann was eventually excommunicated, but not before making a great deal of progress studying Stigmas... and not before he was approached by [[AncientConspiracy Ouroboros]].]]
* GoodEyesEvilEyes: His eyes are [[EyesAlwaysShut mostly shut]] as Professor Alba. As Weissmann, however...
* GreaterScopeVillain: Probably more so than any other member of Ouroboros as a lot of tragic events can be traced back to him. [[spoiler:He was a key player in the Tragedy of Hamel, an event changed the lives of Joshua, Loewe, [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Rean, Osborne, Lechter and Ash]], which then spiraled with Osborne becoming the chancellor and conquering other countries, Joshua and Loewe becoming Enforcers, Rean having a SuperpoweredEvilSide because Osborne had to transplant his heart to Rean, Lechter joining the Ironbloods to atone for his father's sins, and Ash carrying Erebonia's curse with the activation that he has "shoot the ones responsible for the incident", culminating with Ash shooting the emperor (who was innocent but offered his life to cure Ash of the curse) with a gun from Calvard and allow Osborne to declare war on Calvard.]] In short, ''the entire series'' can be blamed on him for pulling the metaphorical trigger!
* HateSink: He has absolutely ''no'' redeeming qualities. Not even his fellow Ouroboros members seem to like him all that much: his treatment of Joshua earned scorn [[EvenEvilHasStandards even from the other Anguis]], such as [[spoiler:Vita]] and Arianrhod. To top it all off, [[spoiler:after Kevin shoots him with a salt arrow, Campanella makes sure he'll ''stay'' dead, by smashing him to pieces.]]
* HolierThanThou: Estelle calls him out for acting this, complete with outright telling the trope name. [[spoiler:Made [[{{Irony}} ironic]] and somehow an [[InvertedTrope inversion]] since he was excommunicated from Septian Church due to his heresy act.]]
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Anytime he seems to have a nobler side, he'll subvert it by having sinister motives behind his actions.
** He "cured" [[spoiler:Joshua]] of his catatonic state, but only because he wanted to use the boy as a brainwashed pawn. Not to mention he was behind the tragedy that caused the latter's trauma in the first place.
** He seems oddly concerned about ending humanity's cycle of apathy and violence and isn't entirely wrong about Liberl Ark's self-destructive culture, but this is undermined by his hypocrisy. [[spoiler:He started the Hamel massacre and the 100 Days War in order to destabilize Liberl, all to make it easier to claim the power of the Aureole, making him just as warlike and greedy as the people he looks down on. His plan to make everyone "perfect" via brainwashing is also presented as the "easy way out," which is exactly the mindset people had when abusing the Aureole's gifts.]]
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: [[spoiler:At the start of ''The 3rd'', most of the party thinks Weissmann escaped and became a KarmaHoudini for all his atrocities. They have no idea that Kevin delivered karma in the form of a Salt Bolt.]]
* KnightOfCerebus: His reveal as the BigBad establishes that the lighthearted mood of ''FC'' isn't going to last.
* KnightTemplar: A completely unsympathetic example. [[spoiler:He insists that humanity is hopelessly flawed and is doomed to either constant warfare or complacent hedonism, so he wants to use the Aureole to brainwash them via Stigmas like he did to Joshua. He also likes to conveniently ignore his own role in actively causing conflict between Liberl and Erebonia and insists that the fact that he easily manipulated these conflicts is proof that humans are sinful. He sees himself so far above humanity that he thinks his sadism is justified.]]
* {{Leitmotif}}: He has no less than ''3'' exclusive themes in ''SC'': [[spoiler:"A Gravestone Struck by Lightning" for his on-foot battle, "Outskirts of Evolution" for the first form of Angel Weissman, and "The Merciless Savior" for the final form of Angel Weissman.]]
* LightIsNotGood: His name certainly indicates this [[spoiler:and even his OneWingedAngel form actually looks angelic in a way.]]
* LimitBreak: His S-Craft is Another Dimension.
* MagicStaff: Uses one in combat, one given by the Grandmaster along with Loewe's Kernviter.
* MeaningfulName: His fake and real name mean "white" and "white man" respectively, which is the [[LightIsNotGood color he dresses in]] after TheReveal. His real name could also be considered a pun on "wise man", which fits as he is a scientist.
* NeverMyFault: [[spoiler:Even when Loewe gets him to admit to starting the 100 Days War, Weissmann has the audacity to claim that it was humanity's fault for being so easy to manipulate.]]
* NietzscheWannabe: [[spoiler:The ultimate explanation for his Gospel Plan and why his final battle BGM is called "The Merciless Savior": he believes humanity is doomed to continually repeat the mistakes of the past and that everything will be pointless unless he forces the species into a new direction. Other characters (namely Estelle) are only too happy to point out that part of the problems are ones ''he'' caused and get a few points for thinking more like Nietzsche when they tell him that ''they'' don't think humanity is hopeless and are working to overcome their flaws.]]
* NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist: [[spoiler:He claims to be fixing humanity's flaws by using the Stigma to make them perfect, thus preventing their ViciousCycle of complacency, regression, and violence. Given that he constantly instigates human conflict and enjoys the suffering caused by his schemes, it becomes obvious he's a misanthrope who cares more about [[ControlFreak controlling]] and toying with humanity than actually saving them. This is further shown in his interactions with Joshua and Kevin. He claims the Stigma can save them from their tragic pasts, but is angered when their friends help them overcome their issues with their own free will, since that robs him of the opportunity to experiment on them and mold them to his liking.]]
* ObfuscatingStupidity: Downplayed. He actually does own his archeology credentials, but he pretends to be ditzy in order to hide his role as the BigBad.
* OneWingedAngel: [[spoiler:Twice, and almost literally, as a result of his merging with the Aureole. His first transformation is into a gigantic white monster with what look like wings folded over the front of his body, no legs and [[EyesDoNotBelongThere too many eyes.]] When the Aureole forcibly transforms him further, the 'wings' unfold to reveal enormous arms, a serpent-like tail attaches to his lower body and actual glowing wings sprout from his back with a halo completing the angelic imagery. It's even called ''Angel'' Weissman.]]
* PeoplePuppets: [[spoiler:His specialty, and it's implied his plan for "evolving" humanity is going to involve brainwashing.]]
* PerpetualPoverty: Professor Alba's excuse for never hiring Bracers.
* PsychoticSmirk: [[spoiler: His default expression after TheReveal.]]
* RedBaron: "Weissmann the Faceless."
* RedEyesTakeWarning: [[spoiler:His eyes glow bright red when he finds opportunities to engage in sadism.]]
* {{Sadist}}: [[spoiler:Ragnard accuses him of being unable to feel joy unless he's making his fellow humans suffer, which Weissmann takes as a compliment.]]
* SequentialBoss: [[spoiler:The final battle of ''SC'' consists of 3 phases: one battle against him as a human, followed by battles against both forms of Angel Weissman.]]
* SinisterMinister: [[spoiler:SC reveals that Weissmann was once a member of the Septian Church who was excommunicated for unspecified reasons. He certainly dresses the part. Outside material explains in more detail that he wanted to conduct research the church considered to be [[BrideOfTheMonster tampering in the Goddess' domain]], particularly concerning the Sept-Terrion and the Stigma phenomenon.]]
* TheSociopath: He feels no guilt for the lives he ruined, acts charming to manipulate others, can only feel joy from tormenting others, and believes he's superior to the rest of humanity.
-->'''Loewe:''' Forget bad taste. The only word for you at this point is sick.
* SquishyWizard: His human form has less HP than all the Axis Pillar Enforcers while having the highest ATS, though he still has high DEF thanks to being about 5 levels higher than all of them except Loewe.
* TakenForGranite: [[spoiler:His death at the hands of Kevin is essentially this.]]
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: [[spoiler:Being shot by a Salt Bolt is definitely this. Though it also carry a fair bit of DeathByIrony because he was killed by the incident that essentially changed his life.]]
* {{Ubermensch}}: [[spoiler:He sees himself as this. The fact that his ideal is a new kind of human who will always make the 'right' decisions (as determined by Weissmann) should let you know how far off the mark he is.]]
* UnderestimatingBadassery: [[spoiler:Even after Kevin tells him he is the Fifth Dominion, he still smugly tells him he is no match. One bolt and an OhCrap moment later...]]
* VileVillainSaccharineShow: [[spoiler:Especially notable in ''FC'', which was a mostly lighthearted tale of adventure until he revealed his true colors and showed himself to be far more calculating and dangerous than anyone else in the storyline. Almost all of the CerebusSyndrome that ensues in ''SC'' [[KnightOfCerebus can be traced back to his actions.]]]]
* WeCanRuleTogether:
** [[spoiler:He tries to convince Estelle to join Ouroboros under the rationale that she can reunite with Joshua this way. Though this is a ruse because he only kidnapped her to lure Joshua out of hiding.]]
** [[spoiler:He tries this again shortly before the final battle after brainwashing Joshua again. Once Estelle shoots down his grandiose plan to "save" humanity, he tries to force Joshua to kill her, only to be OutGambitted as Joshua had anticipated this all along.]]
** [[spoiler:In Phantasma, a copy of him tries to convince Kevin to throw away his humanity to control the Stigma and be free from his grief. When Kevin refuses, the professor sics two devils, Rostrum and Astarte, on him to force him to change his mind.]]
* XanatosGambit: [[spoiler:During ''FC'', he manipulates Alan Richard into instigating a coup and directs Loewe to assist him, but otherwise stays out of the action and just observes how everything plays out under the guise of "Professor Alba." If Richard succeeds, Weissman gains a useful pawn and considerable political leverage over Liberl. If Richard fails (which he does), Weissman still unearths a path to the Aureole and can use the resources of Ouroboros to finish the job.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Third Anguis (current) - The Wellspring Alchemist ('''Spoilers for the Crossbell Duology''')]]
!Mariabell Crois
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/anguis_bell_9.jpg]]
Daughter of former Crossbell mayor Dieter Crois and an alchemist of the Crois clan, she accepted an invitation to join Ouroboros as Georg Weissmann's replacement following his demise. See [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellGovernmentAndInfluentialGroups International Bank of Crossbell]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Fourth Anguis - Ellroy Harwood, The Thousand Oathbreaker]]
!Ellroy Harwood
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ellroy_harwood_kuro.png]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/TakayaKuroda (Japanese), Keisuke Baba (Japanese, ''The 3rd Evolution'' only), Creator/KeytheFarley (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsThroughDaybreak Daybreak]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsThroughDaybreak Kuro II]]''
A former member of the Order of the Moonlight Horse who, alongside Sharon and Lucrezia, joined Ouroboros after it destroyed the Order. He is now the Society's Fourth Anguis, otherwise known as the "Thousand Oathbreaker."
----
* AscendedExtra: After being excluded from gameplay during the first ''Daybreak'' game, the sequel has him participate in battle.
* BadassFingersnap: During ''Daybreak'', he snaps his fingers to [[spoiler:summon pools of poison beneath his enemies.]]
* CigarFuseLighting: His Hazard Cigar Craft sees him toss his cigar at some purple smoke he blew towards his opponents, triggering an explosion.
* CombatPragmatist: During ''Daybreak'' Chapter 5, [[spoiler:he intends to use chemical weapons to kill all of the other teams in one fell swoop during Almata's BattleRoyale.]]
* DevilInPlainSight: All of the Anguis usually disguise themselves or don't appear in public when they are carrying their plans. He don't either [[spoiler:as a result of the pact between Gramheart and the Grandmaster]] or simply to live up to his name.
* EarlyBirdCameo: He doesn't physically appear, or even get his name revealed, until the first ''Daybreak'' game, but he does technically makes a brief cameo, via his shadow, in a [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sharon_kreuger___visual_28sen_iii29.jpg flashback sequence]] during Chapter 2 of ''Cold Steel III''.
* GratuitousEnglish: When using his S-Craft, he'll announce that "It's Showtime!"
* GreaterScopeVillain: As he admits during his and Lucrezia's formal introduction, he's the one behind the creation of Garden, combining the remnants of the Order of the Moonlight Horse with those of the [[spoiler:"D∴G Cult".]] Every negative action committed by said organization only happened because he couldn't be bothered to keep an eye on them.
* GuestStarPartyMember: [[spoiler:He serves as a non-playable ally during the "Cross-Renne," Walter, and Lucrezia fight in ''Kuro II'''s Intermission.]]
* HeroKiller: Shows off what he can really do in the Intermission chapter of ''Kuro II'' when he [[spoiler:kills off ''the entire cast'' which includes Kasim, Shizuna, Walter, and Lucrezia ''without lifting his finger'' via his nerve toxins. They only get saved due to the Genesis' power to perform Time Leaps, a power he was apparently ''counting on them using''.]]
* InsultBackfire: People often call him "the worst," a label he considers to be the highest of complements.
* ItAmusedMe: Van questions his reason for hiring the Solution's Office during Chapter 5 of ''Daybreak''. His response?
-->'''Ellroy:''' Because it'd be more fun that way.
* ItsWhatIDo: He has a name to live up to after all, so count on him to break rules whethever they are minor (like smoking in an office) or major ([[spoiler:using internationally prohibited chemical weapons]]).
* LimitBreak: ''Kuro II'' gives him Umbra Nordens as his S-Craft.
* MeaningfulName: Being called the Thousand Oathbreaker is pretty fitting for a man who take delight in breaking any rules he can.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Somebody with a nickname like Thousand Oathbreaker sounds like the least trust-worthy person you can meet, [[spoiler:though it didn't stop him from being a reliable ally during the battle against Almata.]]
* PersonOfMassDestruction: By virtue of [[spoiler:using WeaponOfMassDestruction.]]
* PhlebotinumPills: His DROP-00 Z Craft has him bite into a spherical pill, restoring some of his HP and boosting all of his stats.
* PoisonousPerson: ''Kuro II'' shows that his main method of fighting is using poison, summoning pools of it beneath the target in his regular attacks, and flinging some from his hands in his "Void Snape" Craft.
* PreFinalBoss: [[spoiler:In ''Kuro II'', he, alongside Ixs and Jolda, serve as the last bosses fought in the main story before [[FinalBoss Grendel-Zolga]].]]
* RedBaron: Aside from his "Thousand Oathbreaker" title, Renne notes that he is also in the criminal underworld as the "Maven Lawbreaker," due to the fact that any organization that he's dealt with ends up self-destructing.
* ShapingYourAttacks: His "Void Snape" Craft has him fling poison in the form of snakes.
* SmokingIsCool: Usually smokes a cigar anytime he appears.
* SuperSerum: His Demon Brute Craft has him drink a red liquid from a vile, giving him the "[[NoSell Reflect]]" buff.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: During ''Kuro II'',[[spoiler:more precisely, during his Intermission Bad End, he is confronted by what can reasonably be called a small army composed of two A-Rank Bracers, two Dominions, the number two of Iscariot, multiple jaegers including two of the strongest alive, two Enforcers, Heiyue, and Arkride Solutions Office. What is his response? [[DeadlyGas Release a chemical gas on the island.]] What is their response? Dropping dead. Despite RuleOfCool being fairly prominent in Zemuria and as mundane and anticlimactic as it may be, this IS the usual outcome to a weapon of mass destruction.]]
* TheUnfought: [[spoiler:Surprisingly enough, he doesn't fight the heroes in ''Daybreak'', going as far as to surrender his team's card after Walter and Lucrezia lose.]]
* UnseenNoMore: He was briefly mentioned during Chapter 3 of ''Azure'', where Arianrhod says that she'll "leave the rest to Oathbreaker" while she heads to Crossbell. He's also alluded to in ''Cold Steel III,'' having gone to Alteria alongside [[spoiler:Mariabell.]] ''Daybreak'' is when he officially makes his in-person appearance.
* WildCard: As the "Oathbreaker," he generally can't be trusted to follow rules or keep promises, yet he'll sometimes do those very things just to shatter the expectations associated with his title, making him extremely unpredictable. This is later PlayedForLaughs in the first ''Daybreak'' game; when Van mentions that the Solutions Office is a no-smoking zone, Ellroy retorts that he's simply living up to his name by breaking the oath of smoking in a non-smoking area.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Fifth Anguis]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/HiroshiOkamoto (''The 3rd Evolution'')
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]''
Currently [[TheUnseen unrevealed]]. The most mysterious of the Anguis at this point - he has not appeared or has had any information about him confirmed since his first and only appearance during Star Door 14, in contrast to the First Anguis, who has made multiple appearances since then.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Sixth Anguis - Dr. F. Novartis]]
!Professor F. Novartis
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_legend_of_heroes_hajimari_no_kiseki_2020_04_23_20_019.jpg]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MitsuakiMadono (Japanese), Creator/DaveBMitchell (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' (Voice only) | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure Azure]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie Reverie]]''
->''"But now that we have all of our subjects--ah, my manners have escaped me yet again--all of our ''participants'' assembled, let us begin."''
Sixth Anguis of Ouroboros and leader of the Thirteen Factories, appearing in ''Azure''. Not especially popular with Enforcers due to his ForScience tendencies, but still less hated than the Faceless.
----
* BigWhat: [[spoiler:After Roy proposes to the Grandmaster that he and Ouroboros would not interfere with each other for at least two and a half years, this is his reaction.]]
* EarlyBirdCameo: Namedropped as early as ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky Second Chapter]]'', and had spoken lines in ''The 3rd'''s Star Door 14.
* EvilHasABadSenseOfHumor: [[spoiler:In ''Reverie'', his idea of a joke is to threaten Renne's parents.]]
* ForScience: His motivation for doing just about anything is to satisfy his scientific curiosity.
* {{Gonk}}: A creepy-looking man with ScaryShinyGlasses, a bowl-cut and a hunched back. His hair colour and wrinkly face make his age quite cryptic.
* GracefulLoser: [[spoiler:Accepts that he cannot reproduce Simulacrum as well as the Elysium System.]]
* MadScientist: Novartis is both clever and evil.
* NotMeThisTime: [[spoiler:He's accused by both Vita and Renne to be behind the events in ''Reverie''. He admits that he's only helping out the Elysium system but flat out tells them he's only there as an observer though Vita quips that he's involved himself a little too much.]]
* OhCrap: [[spoiler:Seeing [=McBurn=] at the Celestial Globe since the latter's fake self warned him not to tell his real self that he made a clone of him. He also expresses surprise at the new president of Calvard, Roy Gramhardt's appearance considering it's supposed to be a secret meeting place.]]
* OutOfFocus: Despite appearing in a few games, Novartis is mainly interested in his pursuit of science and even as he partakes in most of Ouroboros' plots, is more than happy to remain on the background and work on his own devices, leaving most of his character and personal history unknown.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Seventh Anguis - Arianrhod, The Steel Maiden]]
!Arianrhod/[[spoiler:Lianne Sandlot]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/arianrhod_cs3_portrait.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Arianrhod unmasked, as depicted in the ''Cold Steel'' series]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Arianrhod masked, as depicted in ''Azure'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/arianrhod___bust_helmet_28ao29.png[[/labelnote]]]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AyaHisakawa (Japanese), Creator/CheramiLeigh (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' (Voice only) | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure Azure]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel I]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel III]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie Reverie]]'' (Replica)
Seventh Anguis of Ouroboros known as the "Steel Maiden". First appearing in ''Azure'', she makes a cameo appearance in ''Cold Steel I'' and later makes a full return as an antagonist in ''Cold Steel III'' and ''IV''. Due to the sheer number similarities between her and the legendary "Lance Maiden" of Erebonian history, many assume her true identity to be Lianne Sandlot herself. It's later confirmed in ''Cold Steel III'' that she [[spoiler:truly is Lianne Sandlot, having survived her historical death through mysterious means.]]
Arianrhod is the leader of the Stahlritter, a unit of loyal female knights who are not Enforcers, but rival them in power.
----
* TwentyFourHourArmor: She's never seen without her incredibly bulky armor on, except for certain flashbacks.
* TheAce: Easily one of the strongest fighters on Zemuria.
* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Averted with Dreichels himself, as her feelings were reciprocated, but circumstances prevented them from getting together. [[spoiler:Once Dreichels had reincarnated as Osborne, a part of her had hoped that this time she would have been able to get together with him. Unfortunately for her, by the time that she found him, Osborne had already fallen in love with Kasia and started a family with her that resulted in Rean. Lianne, for her part, muses that, so long as he was happy, then it was alright.]]
* AlwaysAccurateAttack: In ''Cold Steel III'', all of her regular crafts are undodgeable, which can be a rude awakening to those relying on evade tank builds.
* AntiVillain: Easily one of the least villainous members of Ouroboros.
* AmazonBrigade: The Stahlritter are Arianrhod's bodyguards ([[BodyguardingABadass not like she needs them]]) and they are exclusively female.
* {{Archenemy}}: [[spoiler: Ever since she learned about Ishmelga from Dreichels, she has made her number 1 goal to destroy him.]]
* ArmoredVillainsUnarmoredHeroes: Guess which side of the spectrum she's on.
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler:''Cold Steel III'' reveals that she did die as Lianne Sandlot, but she mysteriously came back to life. It's because as an Awakener, her life is tethered to her Divine Knight.]]
* BadassBoast: In ''Cold Steel III'' she delivers one towards [=McBurn=] when he asks for a fight.
--> "I, too, shall enjoy the night breeze if you break my helm."
** She delivers another one while performing her [[LimitBreak S-Craft]].
---> "I am Steel, she who cuts through all!"
* BigDamnHeroes: In ''Cold Steel I'' she appears in time to rescue Rean's field study group in Lohengrin Castle. It's revealed retroactively in ''Cold Steel IV'' that the reason she rescued him and his group is because [[spoiler:he's the son of the reincarnation of the man who she once loved.]]
* BlueBlood: As Lianne Sandlot, she was a Countess who ruled Lohengrin Castle and Legram, which were then taken over by her retainers of the Arseid Family.
* BootstrappedLeitmotif: "Unfathomed Force," a late-game boss theme for ''Azure'', is heavily associated with her, to the point of it being reused wholesale for her boss battle in Chapter 3 of ''Cold Steel III''.
* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: She is able to crush a truck engine simply by throwing her spear from faraway.
* ContraltoOfStrength: In the English dub, Creator/CheramiLeigh gives her with a low voice befitting her as one of the most powerful women in all of Zemuria
* DualBoss: [[spoiler:In the final chapter of ''Cold Steel III'', you have to fight against her and '''Demon [=McBurn=]'''. Then in ''Cold Steel IV'', she ends up fighting alongside Osborne and this time, [[{{Foreshadowing}} they're ARCUS linked.]]]]
* EarlyBirdCameo: Along with the other Anguis, she made a voiced appearance in ''The 3rd''.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: She steps in to prevent a swindler from fleeing to Calvard with stolen medicals goods following Crossbell's raid by the Red Constellation because she won't stand such a distasteful behavior towards civilians. Duvalie also mentions that she would have been just as outraged as the Crimson Wings and herself had she been around to witness Duke Albarea's attack on Celdic.
* EvilKnockoff: [[spoiler:In ''Reverie'', she has a Hollow copy that serves as a boss in the True Reverie Corridor, most notably during Laura, Agate, and Roselia's Trial Door. Granted, Arianrhod spent all of her screentime on the villain's side, but she herself was never very evil.]]
* FallenHero: Once she was Lianne Sandlot, a heroic legend of Erebonian history who joined forces with Dreichels the Lionheart to put an end to the War of the Lions. Over 250 years later however, she joined Ouroboros (a terrorist organization) and becomes one of the highest ranking members of the Society in addition to being one of its two strongest fighters. [[spoiler:Subverted, however, as she joined for the sake of destroying the curse of Erebonia.]]
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Unlike her DualBoss fight with [[spoiler:[=McBurn=] in ''Cold Steel III'', she's ARCUS linked with Osborne in ''Cold Steel IV'' despite having no known relationship with him at the time. [[spoiler:It's a sign that she trusts and loves Dreichels and his reincarnation.]]
* FreudianExcuse: [[spoiler:The reason for her being an antagonist throughout the series? All done out of loyalty towards Dreichels, who in current times has now been reincarnated as Giliath Osborne. She feels responsible for not being there to aid him when he needed it most, aka the death of his wife and near death of Rean, which resulted in Osborne making a literal DealWithTheDevil. She decided to join Ouroboros as a means to an end, and later sides with Osborne himself directly, in order to help put a stop to the curse of Erebonia once and for all.]]
* GrowOldWithMe: [[spoiler:She made such a promise with Dreichels 250 years ago. However, reviving as an [[TheAgeless Immortal]] and losing the ability to bear children led her to break her promise.]]
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: One of the nicest member of Ouroboros, and has blonde hair.
* HeelFaceDoorSlam: [[spoiler:After her defeat, it seems like she's going to accept Rean's offer to save her life and join the heroes' side. Then Rufus shows up...]]
* HistoryRepeats: [[spoiler:Her final fate directly parallels that of her student, Loewe.]]
* HonorBeforeReason: [[spoiler:She tells Roselia the reason why Dreichels never told Rose about the curse is because it would have been a terrible and feeble life for someone who is nearly at the end of his life and the problems of man still linger on.]]
* HumongousMecha: In ''Cold Steel III'', she appears alongside the Aion Type Alpha II. [[spoiler:Said game also reveals that she's been the Awakener of Argreion the Silver Knight since before the War of the Lions.]]
* IAmNotLeftHanded: She is so strong that she was holding back '''every time''' we see her fighting. [[spoiler:Not even Aurelia, the strongest woman in Erebonia was enough to make her fight at full power.]]
* ILetYouWin: [[spoiler:It's revealed after the fight that despite her kneeling against Rean and Crow, they both note that she threw the fight in order for Rean to absorb Argreion's essence. Subverted in that she claims to have used her full power, though [[XanatosGambit she's fine with them winning as long as they can beat Ishmelga]]. [[DidntSeeThatComing Unfortunately, she didn't expect Rufus to back stab her at her weakest moment.]]]]
* {{Immortality}} : [[spoiler:A trait common to all Awakeners as they cannot die so long as their Divine Knights remain. This is how she was able to survive her historic death.]]
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: [[spoiler:Rufus fatally wounds her by running her through with the Gold Knight's sword.]]
* IronicName: The Arianrhod of Celtic mythology was a goddess of fertility. [[spoiler:This Arianrhod is implied to have become infertile after her resurrection.]]
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: [[spoiler:After finding Osborne and discovering him married with a child, she finds herself content enough that he is living an happy life.]]
* JeanneDArchetype: As Lianne Sandlot, she was an inspirational warrior and general who lead the Eisenritter to help Dreichels put an end to the War of the Lions and was canonized as a Saint after her purported death.
* JoustingLance: Her weapon of choice. [[spoiler:Even her Divine Knight has one.]]
* LadyOfWar: One of the most beautiful, graceful, and powerful women in the entire series.
* LawOfInverseFertility: [[spoiler:As it turns out, this is the reason why she left Dreichels as she was left unable to bear any children after coming back to life.]]
* {{Leitmotif}}: Unfathomable Force and Aria of the Saint.
* LightningBruiser: She's more heavily armored than the Stahlritter and wields a large lance, but she's still [[FasterThanTheyLook one of the fastest characters]], in both her boss fights and cutscenes. When she makes her first appearance in ''Azure'', she defeats the party with a flurry of lance strikes that are too strong and fast for them to defend against, and this is just her ''normal attack'' animation.
* LikeASonToMe: [[spoiler:How she views Rean after spending years looking out for him from afar, imagining him to be the son that she could have had with Dreichels. She also refers to the Stahlritter as her daughters shortly before her death.]]
* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft in both ''Azure'' and the later ''Cold Steel'' games is Grand Cross. [[spoiler:Also her finishing move when piloting Argreion.]]
* LivingLegend: As Lianne Sandlot, the Lance Maiden.
* MeaningfulName:
** Arianrhod was a goddess of Celtic/Welsh Mythology with dominion over time, fate, fertility and rebirth. All three of which symbolize reveals of her origins and true motivation. Both also were rulers of a castle of great renown and significance (Caer Arianrhod and Lohengrin Castle.) The name itself means 'Silver Wheel' in Welsh. [[spoiler:She's the Awakener of the Silver Knight, and is motivated by breaking the cycle of misfortune caused by the Curse of Erebonia.]]
** Her original name, Lianne Sandlot, is also basically a reference to [[Myth/ArthurianLegend Lancelot, one of the Knights of the Round Table and considered King Arthur's greatest knight]]. Fittingly enough, Lianne is also considered one of the Erebonian Empire's greatest warriors who also served its greatest emperor, Dreichels the Lionheart, who himself is basically a King Arthur analogue within the series. Her hometown, Legram, is also situated at a lake which coicincides with Lancelot's epithet "du Lac" which means "of the lake".
* MetallicMotifs: Lead a group of knights as Lianne and Arianrhod respectively named the Eisenritter (Iron Knights) and Stahlritter (Steel Knights), is known as The 'Steel' Maiden, [[spoiler:and pilots the Argent (Silver) Knight.]]
* MultiMeleeMaster: Implied; while she's only ever shown wielding her trademark [[JoustingLance lance]], Duvalie and Loewe owe their MasterSwordsman credentials to her tutelage, indicating she's well-versed in swordsmanship as well, possibly as a result of her long life. In Loewe's manga, Arianrhod easily defeats him with a sword and states that the next time they duel, she'll use her lance.
* MysteriousProtector: Briefly plays this role in ''Cold Steel I'' during Class VII's field study in Legram for reasons unknown. [[spoiler:''Cold Steel IV'' reveals that this was because ''Rean'' was there. It's also revealed that she had been secretly watching over him as he grew up, to the point that Osborne actually refers to her as one of Rean's mothers alongside Kasia and Lucia.]]
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler:By not telling Rose all about the curse that's stalking Dreichels, Osborne ends up making a deal with Ishmelga that nearly starts a global conflict all over the world.]]
* OldFriend: To Roselia. [[spoiler:She's the one who guided her to Argreion, her Divine Knight, a few years before the War of the Lions happened.]]
* OnlyTheWorthyMayPass: She serves as this in ''Azure'' where she tests the SSS's conviction and strength under [=KeA=]'s demands. This is under the logic that if they couldn't last long enough against her, there is no way they can take on Sigmund and [[spoiler:Arios.]]
* PaperThinDisguise: It's quite obvious she didn't even bother to try and disguise her identity as Lianne Sandlot. Everyone who's ever heard about Arianrhod are quick to assume that she has something to do with her past self.
* ParentalSubstitute: She is one for the youngest members of the society and the Stahlritter. She explicitly calls Duvalie her child in ''Cold Steel IV''.
* PoorCommunicationKills: [[spoiler:Because she never told Roselia about the curse and Ishmelga stalking Dreichels for 250 years, the issues with Erebonia continued on.]]
* RedBaron: "The Steel Maiden." And formerly, "The Lance Maiden" when she was still Lianne Sandlot.
* ReligiousBruiser: Technically, since she was canonized as a Saint for her role in the War of the Lions.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: From a chronological standpoint, she's well over 250 years old despite looking like a young woman in her early twenties.
* TheReveal: ''Cold Steel IV'' reveals the reason why she joined with Ouroboros without saying anything to Roselia for twenty years: [[spoiler:she's been looking out for Osborne ever since she found Dreichels' reincarnation. Then tragedy struck towards Osborne's life which she then takes it upon herself to help out Osborne get rid of the curse for good. Roselia did not take it well when she finds out about it.]]
* ShouldersOfDoom: She wears an armor with large and spiky pauldrons.
* SingleTargetSexuality: In all of her centuries-long life, she never loved anyone but Dreichels. [[spoiler:To the point that her feelings even extend to his reincarnation in Osborne.]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: [[spoiler:The only female Awakener of the seven Awakeners. She's also the oldest of them all.]]
* StarCrossedLovers: With Dreichels. Both fell in love and had sworn to live with each other after the "War of the Lions" ended, but circumstances such as her "death" prevented that from ever happening. [[spoiler:It turns out that she left him due to her inability to have children after coming back to life. She clearly regrets this however as by the time Dreichels reincarnates as Osborne she once again has a desire to be with him. Unfortunately for her she missed her chance since Osborne had already married Kasia and had a son with her (Rean) by the time Lianne finds him.]]
* StrongAndSkilled: She's one of the most physically powerful combatants and has unparalleled skill in wielding a lance. This is reflected in gameplay in ''Cold Steel III'', where her normal crafts are always accurate even against characters with high evasion.
* TakeUpMySword: [[spoiler:Or rather her name, as Lianne asks Laura to continue the tradition of having the initial letter "S." in the Arseid line as one of her last wishes before she dies.]]
* ThatManIsDead: When Laura calls her Lianne Sandlot, she describes that name as an "illusion of the past".
* TheStoic: She is a little bit short on the emotions scale.
* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler:With Dreichels[=/=]Osborne and Rutger at the end of ''Cold Steel IV''.]]
* TooPowerfulToLive: [[spoiler: She's one of the strongest characters in the series and a legendary nigh-immortal warrior who has lived for over 250 years, and every time she is fought she will either [[CurbStompBattle utterly curb-stomp]] the party, turn out to be [[IAmNotLeftHanded holding back]], or even both. And then, after her final defeat, it seems like she's actually going to pull a HeelFaceTurn...? Sadly but not surprisingly, it really is too good to be true, as she's promptly killed by Rufus. Her joining the ranks of the heroes would have ''[[StoryBreakerPower disintegrated]]'' any shred of difficulty they previously had due to her overpowered stats and Divine Knight, both in-game and meta-wise. And this is just from the implications of her surviving until the end of the ''Erebonia arc.'' If she was given a second chance like with Crow, being an Anguis would result in invaluable information on Ouroboros being revealed to the Bracer Guild and Septian Church while nullifying the threat of anyone that isn't her fellow Anguis, Mcburn and the Grandmaster.]]
* TurnsRed: In her boss fight in ''Azure'', when her HP reach a certain threshold, her mask will break and she will stop holding back. [[CurbStompBattle By the end of the fight, her mask is probably not the only thing who is broken.]]
* UndyingLoyalty: [[spoiler:To Dreichels. So much so that she even ends up developing feelings towards his reincarnation in Osborne, and later joined Ouroboros out of a sense of duty towards him.]]
* VillainForgotToLevelGrind: When she appears in ''Azure'', she is a juggernaut who deal CurbStompBattle left and right and only left the stage after the SSS passed her SecretTestOfCharacter. By the time of ''Cold Steel III'' two years later, while she still serve as a colossal roadblock, she is now matched by a few characters. [[spoiler:Justified. When you spent 250 years training, you're likely to have no more room to improve.]]
* YouCantFightFate: [[spoiler:Black Records 13 foretold that she would die in the Rivalries before the Tuatha De Danann and the Salt Pales appear, meaning Rean had no chance of saving her.]]
* YouShallNotPass: [[spoiler:She and [=McBurn=] serves as the first opponents guarding the Gral of Erebos.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: Much of the white tropes come from ''Cold Steel III'' and ''IV'' revelations.
* WalkingTheEarth: [[spoiler:After her resurrection she decides to travel around outside of Erebonia for decades until Dreichels' deathbed. Afterwards she then spends the next two centuries looking for his reincarnation out of worry that the curse that haunted him would come back to do so again. It's during this time that she meets the Grandmaster, but it's not until she finds Osborne and believes him to be safe that she decides to join Ouroboros.]]
* WeaponTombstone: [[spoiler:After her death, the Stahlritter used her lance and helmet to make a grave in Crossbell.]]
* WhamShot: [[spoiler:When she summons her own Divine Knight at the Naval Fortress. Even her Stahlritter were shocked and were unaware of its existence.]]
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: [[spoiler:She says as much after she's defeated in ''Cold Steel IV''...]]
-->[[spoiler:It's been a long journey. So long...]]
* WolfpackBoss: In ''Cold Steel III'', you actually fight her and ''all 3 members of the Stahlritter at the same time'' in Chapter 3.
* WorldsBestWarrior: A contender for being the most powerful character in the series. Very few could hope to match her, with Ein Selnate and [=McBurn=] being such people. Lloyd and the SSS were lucky enough to break her helmet when they fought her. [[spoiler:Even after Aurelia Le Guin (a contender for Erebonia's strongest warrior) manages to bring Arianrhod to her knees in battle, it's revealed that she was still holding back to some extent and only fought with the strength she had when she was Lianne Sandlot.]]
* WreckedWeapon: [[spoiler:Her iconic lance finally breaks in ''Cold Steel IV'' while fighting Class VII. [[{{Foreshadowing}} Considering what happens next...]]]]
* XanatosGambit: [[spoiler:What her plans for the Third Rivalry were. If she wins, she take the power of the Ashen, Azure and Palatinate Knight for herself and is almost guaranteed to fight Ishmelga during the Final Rivalry. If she loses, she entrust her power and her life to Rean, giving him a massive boost as he has proven himself strong enough to be able to prevail against Ishmelga. Sadly, Rufus was following the match and intervene to steal the Argent Knight's power but her point still stand, as Rean prove himself able to win the other Rivalries.]]
[[/folder]]
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''Kingdom of Liberl:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEstelleParty Estelle's Party]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesLiberlRoyaltyAndMilitary Liberl Royalty and Military]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesLiberlCivilians Liberl Civilians]]\\
''Crossbell State:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellGovernmentAndInfluentialGroups Crossbell Government and Influential Groups]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellPoliceAndMilitary Crossbell Police and Military]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellSpecialSupportSection Special Support Section]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellCivilians Crossbell Civilians]]\\
''Erebonian Empire:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaNobility Erebonia Imperial Family and Four Great Houses]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaIronblood The Ironbloods]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaMilitary Erebonia Military]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsStaffAndInstructors Thors' Staff and Instructors]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVII Thors Class VII]] ([[Characters/TrailsSeriesReanSchwarzer Rean Schwarzer]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIIOriginal Original Class VII]] ([[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIIOriginalPartOne Part One]], [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIIOriginalPartTwo Part Two]]) | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsClassVIINew New Class VII]]) | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsMainCampusClasses Main Campus Classes]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaThorsBranchCampus Branch Campus]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesEreboniaOthers Erebonian Civilians and Major Groups]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesImperialLiberationFront Imperial Liberation Front]]\\
''Republic of Calvard:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCalvardMiscellaneous Calvard Miscellaneous]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCalvardArkrideSolutionsOffice Arkride Solutions Office]]\\
''Other Nations:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesRemiferiaMiscellaneous Remiferia Miscellaneous]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesElsaimMiscellaneous Elsaim Miscellaneous]]\\
''Notable Groups:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesTheBracerGuild The Bracer Guild]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesOuroboros Ouroboros]] ('''The Seven Anguis''' | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesOuroborosEnforcers Enforcers]]) | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesJaegerCorps Jaeger Corps]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesSeptianChurch Septian Church]]\\
''Others:'' [[Characters/TrailsSeriesAncientZemurianCivilization Ancient Zemurian Civilization]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesSeptTerrionsAndHolyBeasts The Sept-Terrions and the Holy Beasts]] | [[Characters/TrailsSeriesPosthumousCharacters Posthumous Characters]] -] ]]]]
Seven individuals who pledge their loyalty to the Grandmaster and execute her plans.
[[folder:The First Anguis]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/RyoheiArai (Japanese, ''Evolution'' games)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure Azure]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]''
Identity currently [[TheUnseen unknown]]. Has appeared during several scenes across the series at the Celestial Globe.
----
* TheDragon: He's shown to be the member of Ouroboros closest to the Grandmaster, other than [[MouthOfSauron Campanella]].
* TaughtByExperience: In the post-credits scene of ''Cold Steel IV'', he's the one who insists that the Anguis and Campanella not get involved in [[spoiler:Cedric's]] development after joining the Society, reminding the others how that ended for Weissman.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Second Anguis - Vita Clotilde, The Azure Abyss]]
!Vita Clotilde
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vita_clotilde_sen_iii.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Vita as of ''Cold Steel III'']]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Vita as she appeared in ''Cold Steel I'' and ''II'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vita_clotilde_sen_ii.png [[/labelnote]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Misty]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/misty_full_artwork_28sen_i29.png[[/labelnote]]]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grianos_initial_design___concept_art_28sen29.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Grianos]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Grianos-Aura]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grianos_aura.jpg[[/labelnote]]]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/YukariTamura (Japanese), Ayaka Maeda (Japanese, ''The 3rd Evolution'' only), Creator/EricaLindbeck (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel I]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel II]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel III]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie Reverie]]''
A stunning woman who is the top star of the Heimdallr Opera House and known as the Azure Diva. She also has another job at Radio Trista where she goes by the alias "Misty" and serves as the hostess of show Abend Time. She is later revealed to be the Second Anguis of Ouroboros whose title is Azure Abyss.
----
* AffablyEvil: Played with. Perhaps the worst acts that she's done so far is kidnapping Alfin and Elise early on in ''Cold Steel II'', and her role in triggering the Erebonian Civil War, considering the other villains in the game have done even more terrible things that even she sometimes disapproves of. Her earlier BitchInSheepsClothing role as well as her tendency to taunt the protagonists early on in ''II'' make it ambiguous whether her politeness throughout the games is genuine or an act, but by the end she proves to be a GracefulLoser with some very clear scruples of her own, making her a genuine example.
* AmicableExes: [[spoiler:A conversation with Crow in ''Cold Steel IV'' implies that she had some sort of relationship with him that went beyond being simple partners, but by the time of the game, both have seemingly moved on from each other.]]
* AttackAnimal: One of her Crafts has her {{Familiar}} Grianos transform into its OneWingedAngel form to attack the enemy.
* BecomingTheMask: While she initially starts being Misty as a means to safely infiltrate Trista, it's pretty clear she gets a kick out of it.
* BigBad: She serves as the main antagonist of ''Cold Steel II'' overall.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Downplayed; she initially acts friendly towards Rean and the members of Class VII before her true allegiance is revealed. But even afterwards, it's clear that she's not that bad compared to other villains in ''Cold Steel II'', and by ''III'', she drops the "bitch" part.
* BlowYouAway: Her regular attacks from ''Cold Steel IV'' onwards have her send a small tornado at her opponents.
* BreathWeapon: During her boss fight and when playable, one of her Crafts has her summon [[{{Familiar}} Grianos]] in his OneWingedAngel form, who then breathes a gust of chilling air at the enemy.
* BrokenPedestal: Machias and Elliot were huge fans of hers, but finding out that she's part of Ouroboros put a damper on this. Likewise, Emma had a case of BigSisterWorship towards her, but Vita breaking an unknown taboo of their clan resulted in those feelings becoming very mixed.
* BuxomBeautyStandard: She is quite well-endowed, which her outfits highlight, and several characters have commented on her beauty.
* TheCastShowoff: In-universe, she shows off her singing voice by performing an impromptu rendition of [[CallBack Whereabouts of the Stars]] during a broadcast. Then she gets called out for it. In ''Cold Steel IV'', she casually teleports onto Arc en Ciel's stage during a performance to join the vocal section, and does it so seamlessly that everyone in the audience thinks it was a planned part of the show.
* CelebrityMasquerade: She is a HotWitch and Anguis who moonlights as Erebonia's top opera star and as a popular radio personality during the first two ''Cold Steel'' games.
* ClarkKenting: Her disguise as Misty consists of glasses, a hat, and simpler and more conservative casual clothing. No one could tell who she was, not even people who were fans of both her personas such as Machias and Elliot.
* ColorCodedCharacters: Known as the [[RedBaron Azure Abyss]] as an Anguis and the [[StageName Azure Diva]] as an opera star, and was the one who lead Crow to the Azure Knight Ordine. Fittingly enough, she wears primarily blue outside of her Misty disguise, her weapons were a blue MagicStaff and later a blue CombatHandFan, and has a blue bird as a {{Familiar}}.
* CombatHandFan: Uses one from ''Cold Steel III'' onward as she had returned the staff that she used to Roselia after the events of the Infernal Castle, as the staff originally belonged to the latter in the first place.
* ContraltoOfStrength: Creator/EricaLindbeck gives her a low and regal voice in the English dub, befitting her abilities as an Anguis, mysterious nature as a witch, and former occupation as an opera singer.
* CoolBigSis: Towards Emma when they were younger. Even now, though they're on opposing sides, it's clear that Vita still cares for the former in her own way and is willing to give her advice too. Emma, for her part, still calls Vita "[[UsefulNotes/JapaneseSiblingTerminology Nee-san]]" in the Japanese script.
* DeathGlare: Gives a FRIGHTENING one to Duke Cayenne after he [[SpeakIllOfTheDead insults the recently killed Crow]] while holding Prince Cedric at blade point, complete with glowing BattleAura and [[PowerEchoes booming voice]].
* TheDogWasTheMastermind: One of the biggest reveals in ''Cold Steel I'' was the fact that the friendly radio DJ that Rean would occasionally meet was also a villainous witch who was also a member of Ouroboros.
* DragonWithAnAgenda: Although she's ostensibly subservient to Duke Cayenne for a majority of ''Cold Steel II'', she's not particularly interested in his goals and is merely pursuing her own aims, irrespective of the Noble Alliance's well-being.
* EarlyBirdCameo: In an interview with Creator/{{Falcom}} president Kondo, she was the woman flirting with Kevin at the beginning of ''The 3rd.''
* EasyAmnesia: She has a form of memory-manipulating ability. If you speak to Trista Radio's manager before the final battle, he'll tell you that he honestly doesn't remember ever hiring 'Misty'. She also performs it on the jaegers who were hired by Duke Albarea in the prologue, making them forget about what they saw in addition to having them leave Ymir.
* EnemyMine:
** In ''Cold Steel II'', she and Crow team up with Class VII to defeat the out-of-control Vermillion Apocalypse.
** [[spoiler:And then in ''Cold Steel III'' she lends her assistance to the heroes when they go up against Osborne and the other members of Ouroboros. What prevents it from being a full [[HeelFaceTurn Heel-Face Turn]] is that she's still loyal to the society - she just disapproves of their current operation.]]
** [[spoiler:Carries on in ''Cold Steel IV'' and ''Reverie'' as well. She is even invited to the Imperial Wedding in the former.]]
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Genuinely cared for Crow and was genuinely upset at his death at the end of ''Cold Steel II'', becoming [[TranquilFury noticably enraged]] when [[SpeakIllOfTheDead Duke Cayenne insulted him]]. It's clear she also still cares for Emma deep down.
* EvenEvilHasStandards:
** When the Anguis discuss Weissman's death, she, Arianrhod, and the 1st Anguis consider him an AssholeVictim. And then there's Ymir where she thinks it was too much for Duke Albarea to raze Ymir just to grab Princess Alfin.
** She also displays a disdain for {{Sore Loser}}s in the climax of ''Cold Steel II'', where she's about to concede defeat to Class VII, only for Duke Cayenne to hold prince Cedric hostage and awaken the Vermillion Apocalypse. She's absolutely disgusted that he'd stoop this low, and after Crow sacrifices himself to defeat Vermillion and save Cedric's life, she angrily commands Cayenne to release Cedric, and would have followed through on her threats had Rufus not intervened.
** [[spoiler:Happens in ''Cold Steel III'' as well. The whole reason she teams up with the heroes in its climax is that she finds the Great Twilight plan to be way too dangerous to enact. As the ending shows, she was absolutely right.]]
* EvilKnockoff: [[spoiler:Played with in ''Reverie''; she has a Hollow copy that serves as a boss in the True Reverie Corridor, most notably when it fights [[DualBoss alongside]] Roselia's during Sara, Sharon, Aurelia, and Victor's Trial Door. That being said, Vita herself started out as a villain and remains an Ouroboros agent, even if she's been spending more of her time helping the heroes as of late.]]
* {{Familiar}}: Grianos, a blue-feathered bird capable of transforming into EldritchAbomination to attack enemies. It later died at Rufus' hand during the finale of ''Cold Steel II''.
* FanNickname: In-universe; her fans call her the Azure Diva.
* FireWaterJuxtaposition: She and her adoptive younger sister Emma are near opposites in terms of personality and roles, and fittingly enough, they also have opposite Orbal elements, with Emma having [[PlayingWithFire Fire]] as her secondary element while Vita has [[MakingASplash Water]] as her secondary element (which also happen to be the same secondary elements of the corresponding Awakeners they are [[ShipTease rather close to]]).
* GenkiGirl: Her Misty persona acts quite energetic when hosting Abend Time.
* GrandStaircaseEntrance: Her first appearance during Rean's field study in Heimdallr is this. There are only members of Class VII (and front desk) down there and clearly, two of them are awed by her appearance.
* GreaterScopeVillain: For the first part of the Erebonia arc, when she's pulling the strings behind the scenes to enact the Phantasmal Blaze Plan, but does not get directly involved until her proxy, Crow, is in danger. It's hinted she may also have been heading up operations in Crossbell around the same time, making her this to ''Zero'' and ''Azure'' as well.
* HasAType: If Crow and Loewe are any indication, Vita seems to have a thing for men with silver hair.
* HeadTurningBeauty: Several characters have commented on her beauty with her having a decent amount of fans in both of her personas as Misty and the Azure Diva.
* HighClassFan: Her hand fan from ''Cold Steel III'' onwards only adds to her former diva image.
* HighClassGloves: She wears some in her outfit from ''Cold Steel III'' onward, which is fitting considering her former occupation as a famous opera singer.
* HoldingYourShoulderMeansInjury: She holds her right shoulder throughout the finale of ''Cold Steel II'' due to Rufus slashing her in the back.
* HotWitch: Just like her sister Emma, she's a very beautiful member of a witch clan.
* HumansAreBastards: Her ''Aria of the Abyss'' S-Craft has her reciting a chant declaring this. It's left ambiguous on whether she actually believes so, or if it was done solely for dramatic effect.
-->'''Vita:''' Humankind are evildoers, shackled by emotion. Fury, misery, agony, envy. Behold the Abyss, for it longs to be forever at your side!
* AnIcePerson: One of her Crafts, Eternal Winter, surrounds her targets in ice.
* InstantFanclub: She's a famous opera singer in Erebonia, to the point of being considered the idol of the capital. She also got a second fanclub for her Misty persona.
* LadyOfBlackMagic: An elegant and beautiful woman, whose magical powers are considered second only to Crimson Roselia, the Elder of the Hexen Clan.
* LasciviousBeautyMark: She has a beauty mark below her left eye, and several characters have commented on her beauty and can be quite TheTease at times.
* {{Leitmotif}}: "The Witch of the Abyss" in ''Cold Steel II''.
* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft is Aria of the Abyss.
* MagicStaff: She fights with one in ''Cold Steel II'' though she no longer uses it after the events of the Infernal Castle as she had returned it to its rightful owner Roselia.
* MakingASplash: Her secondary element is Water, contrasting Emma's Fire.
* MasterOfNone: Not as extreme as Emma, Eliot and Alfin but she has rank for all attack type with relatively lower individual rank than most fighters. The difference is that unlike 3 other MagicStaff users, she manages to score B on "thrust" and "pierce" type.
* MsFanservice: She's got a large chest and long, shapely legs, and her default dress in the first two ''Cold Steel'' games is a [[SexyBacklessOutfit Sexy Backless Outfit]] that shows plenty of cleavage. Several characters (both male and female) are even shown commenting on her beauty.
* NotInThisForYourRevolution: Much like the other members of Ouroboros joined with the Noble Alliance, Vita has no interest in their goals and says as much towards Duke Cayenne during the finale of ''Cold Steel II''.
* NoodleIncident: She was apparently banished from the Hexen Clan after breaking an unknown taboo seven years ago. What the taboo was and her motives for doing so and her reasons for joining Ouroboros remain a mystery.
* OptionalPartyMember: You can make her playable in ''Cold Steel II'' using DLC item in Japan. For other territories, she can be unlocked by purchasing a Phantasmal Mirror for 200,000 mira.
* OutGambitted: By Osborne at the end of ''Cold Steel II''.
* PetTheDog: Seems to have genuinely cared for Crow and is clearly upset over his death. She even apologizes to Class VII and asks them to take care of him. Partnering them up at the Reverie Corridor and she refers to him as an ideal knight in their victory quote.
* PimpedOutDress: When not disguising herself as Misty, her main outfit is a flowing blue dress befitting her status as an opera singer. She eventually trades it in for a somewhat more practical, yet still just as fancy outfit in ''Cold Steel III''.
* PreFinalBoss: In ''Cold Steel II'', she and Crow serve as the last bosses fought in the main story before the [[FinalBoss Vermillion Apocalypse]].
* PromotedToPlayable: While ''Cold Steel II'' allows players to use her via Phantasmal Mirrors, she isn't physically present herself. [[spoiler:''Cold Steel IV'' finally allows her to be playable once again alongside a lot of characters.]] She is the first Anguis to become playable.
* PurelyAestheticGlasses: Justified because it's part of her "Misty" identity. Only Rean sees through it because of his powers help him see through her illusion.
* PurpleIsPowerful: Her eyes are purple, denoting her status as a powerful witch.
* PurposelyOverpowered:
** [[spoiler:While she's decently strong on her own, her Brave Order in ''Cold Steel IV'', Secret Art - Azure Peacock, allows all characters a flat 100% increase in damage for eight turns, effectively doubling their attack power. She's only available for her dungeon's boss and the TrueFinalBoss fight. It's balanced by the fact that it costs 5 Brave Points to cast but at that point, players already have ways to regain BP pretty quickly.]]
** In ''Reverie'', [[spoiler:while the turn limit for her Brave Order lasts only for four turns, she's one of the two characters who has access to the Art Boost IV passive link ability where she can bestow whoever's linked with her double the damage when the one linked with her is casting arts. The only drawback is that she and the character linked with her have to be at link level 6.]]
* ReallyGetsAround: Downplayed since the full extent of her personal life is unknown; in ''The 3rd'' she learns of Kevin's ties to Carnelia and is quick to show interest in him. The Fourth Anguis berates her for this, noting that it hasn't even been that long since Leonhardt's passing, whom Vita herself was apparently heavily interested in, and she's already showing interest in another guy. It's also worth noting that around this time she's already well-acquainted with and close to Crow.
* RedBaron: Nicknamed as the "Azure Diva" among her fans. Her title as an Anguis, on the other hand, is the "Azure Abyss."
* SecretIdentity: In addition to being an opera singer she took on the Misty persona and a job at Radio Trista for fun. Rean is the first person to find out about it and she rewards him with a Misty sticker by dropping it off at his mailbox.
* SexyBacklessOutfit: Her default blue outfit from ''Cold Steel II'' leaves her back exposed.
* SexySlitDress: Both the dresses she wore have a decently high slits that expose much of her legs.
* ShipTease: With Crow. [[spoiler:Some of their dialogue makes them come across as exes who still occasionally flirt with each other.]]
* SiblingYinYang: She and her adoptive younger sister Emma are near opposites in terms of personality and roles. Emma is shown to be a reserved ReluctantFanserviceGirl, lacking confidence, and finds herself frequently LockedOutOfTheLoop. Vita, meanwhile, is a very confident Anguis who is comfortable with her looks (to the point of being TheTease at some points) and is very knowledgeable about what goes on behind the scenes in regards to the origins of the Hexen Clan and other parts of the supernatural. Fittingly, the two also have opposite Orbal elements, with Emma having [[PlayingWithFire Fire]] as her secondary element while Vita has [[MakingASplash Water]] as her secondary element, the same as the secondary elements of the corresponding Awakeners they're [[ShipTease rather close too]].
* SignatureScent: She smells of lavender, as noted by Rean and Emma. Emma catching the scent of lavendar on Rean after he ran into her by chance sets her off for a moment.
* SpontaneousWeaponCreation: Her Dancing Blades Craft has her summon numerous floating {{Flaming Sword}}s to slash the enemy apart.
* SuperEmpowering: Near the end of ''Cold Steel II'', she casts a spell to empower Crow's weapon enough that he could stagger the Vermillion Apocalypse with his [[SwordBeam Deadly Cross]], with the latter's comment indicating that she likely used it to help him clear the trials to become Ordine's Awakener. [[spoiler:She and Roselia also cast the same spell on Aurelia, Victor, Matteus, Vandyck, and Wallace so they could deflect the Retributive Tower's WaveMotionGun.]]
* TheTease: Flirted with Kevin briefly during the beginning of ''The 3rd'', was stated to have regularly done so with Loewe as well while he was alive, and also did so briefly with Rean when the latter figured out her identity while she was disguised as Misty.
* TokenGoodTeammate: [[spoiler:In ''Cold Steel III'', all the other Anguis were willing to side with the gnomes in order to reclaim the Phantasmal Blaze Plan. Vita disapproves and goes independent.]]
* TranquilFury: When Cayenne is holding Prince Cedric hostage and calling a dying Crow a worthless wretch from a destroyed country, Vita stands, closes her eyes, and calmly orders him to unhand the prince before she makes him do it by force which is punctuated by her opening her eyes in her extremely creepy, shrunken-iris spell-casting expression.
* TrueBlueFemininity: She is a graceful opera singer and LadyOfBlackMagic who is heavily associated with the color azure.
* VaporWear: Her dress from the first two ''Cold Steel'' games revealed enough of her [[SexyBacklessOutfit back]] and [[CleavageWindow cleavage]] exposed to make it clear that she isn't wearing a bra.
* VillainousFriendship: Despite Crow not being an Ouroboros member, her friendship with him is genuine, as shown by their Combat Link and when she mourns his death.
* TheUnfought: In ''Cold Steel I'', which makes sense, given how her identity is only revealed at the end. Also, in ''Cold Steel III'', [[spoiler:because she and Class VII technically aren't enemies at the moment.]]
* TheUnreveal: It's never revealed what exactly was the taboo she broke throughout the entire Erebonia arc or even in ''Reverie''.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Third Anguis (former) - Georg Weissmann, the Faceless]]
!Georg Weissmann/Professor Alba
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/georg_weissmann_s_craft_sc_evo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The Faceless]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:As Professor Alba]]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/professor_alba_28fc_evo29.png[[/labelnote]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:SPOILERS]]Angel-Weissman https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ed6_win2_2007_07_07_12_16_5_1.jpg[[/labelnote]]]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/HideyukiTanaka (Japanese), Creator/KeithSilverstein (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky FC]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky SC]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' (Replica)
An archaeologist whom Estelle and Joshua meet in the prologue of ''FC'' and appears several times since. He is researching relics of ancient Zemuria. At least, that's what he claims. He is in fact a high-ranking member of the secret society Ouroboros.
----
* AbsentMindedProfessor: He puts on an act as one as Professor Alba.
* AdaptedOut: Despite being briefly shown in the opening credits, he does not appear in the OVA proper.
* AdventurerArchaeologist: Double subverted. In ''FC'', he appears to be a weak archaeologist who explores the Tetracyclic towers regardless of the risks, only to be revealed as the BigBad. Then ''SC'' reveals that despite his false name and persona, he actually is a certified archaeologist.
* AndThereWasMuchRejoicing: [[spoiler:Most of his fellows Anguis are clearly amused by his demise, but it isn't hard to imagine why. Likewise, the Enforcers didn't care one bit for his death, and are more touched by Loewe's.]]
* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler:As cruel as his method of execution was, it's hard to feel the slightest bit of pity for him.]]
* BarrierChangeBoss: The first half of fight with him[[spoiler: at his [[OneWingedAngel second transformed form]] after merging with Aureole]], thanks to the mooks around him. The vulnerability exist even after the mooks were defeated and he can summon those indefinitely.
* BigBad: He's the main villain of ''FC'' and ''SC''.
* CardCarryingVillain: [[spoiler:Zigzagged. He's a proud {{Sadist}}, yet he still views himself as the savior of humanity.]]
* TheChessmaster: Combined with ManipulativeBastard. [[spoiler:He was playing Cassius, Joshua, and the Bracer Guild since the opening cutscene of the first game by making Joshua a ManchurianAgent. Years later, he manipulates Richard into starting a coup that allows Ouroboros to further undo the seals on the Aureole.]]
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler:Very ''very'' cruel. He is shot with a Salt Bolt, a 'cursed' weapon that slowly transforms the victim into salt from the inside out. Weissmann is fully aware what is happening to him as his body succumbs to the effect, cursing his killer with his last breath. After his whole body was turned into salt, Campanella ''shattered'' his salt body to pieces.]]
* CutscenePowerToTheMax: His True Evil Eye outright traps the party in cutscenes. In battle, it simply deals AOE damage while inflicting confusion and AT Delay.
* DarkMessiah: This is essentially how he sees himself. [[spoiler:Not for nothing is the final battle BGM of ''SC'' called "The Merciless Savior." However, when it comes to his own standing in Ouroboros, he seems to be the only one who believes he's doing any "saving." The Enforcers working under him all have their own agendas and consider their teamwork with him to be a matter of convenience.]]
* DeaderThanDead: [[spoiler:As a consequence of being killed with a Salt Bolt]]
* DeathGlare: His Evil Eye craft is far stronger than Joshua's.
* DeceptivelyHumanRobots: ''SC'' shows that he made puppet copies of Joshua that initially seem convincing, but are quickly proven to be anything but.
* DidntThinkThisThrough: [[spoiler:For all his planning, he completely underestimates Loewe when he became Angel Weissmann, not taking Loewe's Divergent Weapon into the equation, despite this same weapon being necessary to his plan mere days before.[[note]]Later games establish that the only way to harm a Divine Beast is to use a Divergent Weapon, which is why you only see Loewe and Weissmann taking on Ragnard.[[/note]] ]]
* DyingDeclarationOfHate: His last words before dying are used to insult his killer.
* EternalRecurrence: His view of human nature is such that he is convinced that humanity can't be trusted to not make disastrous decisions over and over. The fact that about half of the known issues with the modern world are Weissmann's fault or are otherwise attributable to Ouroboros seems to have passed him by.
* EvilSoundsDeep: [[spoiler:In the ''Evolution'' remakes, when his voice sounds basically really deep, especially when he is gloating about his plans]].
* FaithHeelTurn: He used to be an academic priest after being taken in by the Septian Church, but his fascination with the Aureole and meeting with the Grandmaster led to him discarding the path of faith, in his own words.
* FalseFriend: [[spoiler:For most of ''FC'', he poses as Professor Alba, a friendly archaeologist who just happens to cross paths with Estelle and Joshua on multiple occasions, and even offers his assistance at a few points, such as helping them get past a security checkpoint when they get held up, or providing them a lead on a jaeger assault. He continues his chummy act right until the very moment of TheReveal when Joshua finally figures him out, and after [[BreakThemByTalking emotionally breaking the poor guy]], ''he continues the act when he encounters Estelle'', who doesn't discover his true colors until well into ''SC'''s storyline.]]
* FatalFlaw: [[{{Sadist}} Sadism]], as it contributed to his downfall when [[spoiler:[[MagnificentBastard Cassius]] and [[ManipulativeBastard Kevin]] [[FlawExploitation exploited it]] near the end of ''SC''. Even before that, though, his cruelty causes him to make enemies out of his fellow Ouroboros members and allies, who let him die.]]
* FauxAffablyEvil: [[spoiler:After his cover is revealed in ''FC'', he tries to come off as an affable ex-boss to Joshua, while still planning on making his life miserable and turning him into a puppet again. At the end of ''SC'', he even gives the party a historical lecture before trying to force Joshua to kill Estelle in order to break him.]]
* FinalBoss: [[spoiler:Of ''SC'', as "Angel Weissman."]]
* FlawExploitation: He pulls this on Estelle, knowing that if some of her comrades are put in danger she'll [[LeeroyJenkins charge in to rescue them]]. [[spoiler:[[MagnificentBastard Cassius]] and [[ManipulativeBastard Kevin]] pull this on ''him'' at the end of the game, knowing that he won't possibly be able to resist the temptation to be a completely sadistic asshole once he regains control over Joshua. [[BatmanGambit They're right.]]]]
* ForTheEvulz: Subverted for the most part. [[spoiler:While he's a card-carrying sadist, his acts of cruelty are usually related to advancing his agenda in some way, with everyone's suffering being treated as the cherry-on-top. Even the trauma he puts Joshua through is supposedly part of an experiment for brainwashing humanity.]] Not that it doesn't come back to bite him.
* ForScience: His stated motive for most of his actions, when he isn't claiming to be a savior who can deliver mankind from doom. Even his most cruel and sadistic actions are mere experiments in his eyes.
* FourEyesZeroSoul: He wears glasses before and after the reveal. He's also the most evil character in the trilogy.
* TheFriendNobodyLikes: No one in Ouroboros likes him, but they are forced to put up with him, as he is the only one who knows how to find the Aureole. His successor as Third Anguis, [[spoiler:Mariabell]], even remarks how much every other Enforcer and Anguis seemed to hate him.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: A series of coincidences turned an ordinary young man into one of the most dangerous people in Zemuria. [[spoiler:First, the [[CataclysmBackstory Salt Pillar Incident]] devastated his homeland and led to him being taken in by the Church. Then, his curiosity led to his desire to study [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow the Sept-Terion and the Stigma phenomenon, which is forbidden.]] His desire caught the attention of [[TheAce Rufina Argent]], who [[AllThereInTheManual informed higher authorities about it.]] Weissmann was eventually excommunicated, but not before making a great deal of progress studying Stigmas... and not before he was approached by [[AncientConspiracy Ouroboros]].]]
* GoodEyesEvilEyes: His eyes are [[EyesAlwaysShut mostly shut]] as Professor Alba. As Weissmann, however...
* GreaterScopeVillain: Probably more so than any other member of Ouroboros as a lot of tragic events can be traced back to him. [[spoiler:He was a key player in the Tragedy of Hamel, an event changed the lives of Joshua, Loewe, [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Rean, Osborne, Lechter and Ash]], which then spiraled with Osborne becoming the chancellor and conquering other countries, Joshua and Loewe becoming Enforcers, Rean having a SuperpoweredEvilSide because Osborne had to transplant his heart to Rean, Lechter joining the Ironbloods to atone for his father's sins, and Ash carrying Erebonia's curse with the activation that he has "shoot the ones responsible for the incident", culminating with Ash shooting the emperor (who was innocent but offered his life to cure Ash of the curse) with a gun from Calvard and allow Osborne to declare war on Calvard.]] In short, ''the entire series'' can be blamed on him for pulling the metaphorical trigger!
* HateSink: He has absolutely ''no'' redeeming qualities. Not even his fellow Ouroboros members seem to like him all that much: his treatment of Joshua earned scorn [[EvenEvilHasStandards even from the other Anguis]], such as [[spoiler:Vita]] and Arianrhod. To top it all off, [[spoiler:after Kevin shoots him with a salt arrow, Campanella makes sure he'll ''stay'' dead, by smashing him to pieces.]]
* HolierThanThou: Estelle calls him out for acting this, complete with outright telling the trope name. [[spoiler:Made [[{{Irony}} ironic]] and somehow an [[InvertedTrope inversion]] since he was excommunicated from Septian Church due to his heresy act.]]
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Anytime he seems to have a nobler side, he'll subvert it by having sinister motives behind his actions.
** He "cured" [[spoiler:Joshua]] of his catatonic state, but only because he wanted to use the boy as a brainwashed pawn. Not to mention he was behind the tragedy that caused the latter's trauma in the first place.
** He seems oddly concerned about ending humanity's cycle of apathy and violence and isn't entirely wrong about Liberl Ark's self-destructive culture, but this is undermined by his hypocrisy. [[spoiler:He started the Hamel massacre and the 100 Days War in order to destabilize Liberl, all to make it easier to claim the power of the Aureole, making him just as warlike and greedy as the people he looks down on. His plan to make everyone "perfect" via brainwashing is also presented as the "easy way out," which is exactly the mindset people had when abusing the Aureole's gifts.]]
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: [[spoiler:At the start of ''The 3rd'', most of the party thinks Weissmann escaped and became a KarmaHoudini for all his atrocities. They have no idea that Kevin delivered karma in the form of a Salt Bolt.]]
* KnightOfCerebus: His reveal as the BigBad establishes that the lighthearted mood of ''FC'' isn't going to last.
* KnightTemplar: A completely unsympathetic example. [[spoiler:He insists that humanity is hopelessly flawed and is doomed to either constant warfare or complacent hedonism, so he wants to use the Aureole to brainwash them via Stigmas like he did to Joshua. He also likes to conveniently ignore his own role in actively causing conflict between Liberl and Erebonia and insists that the fact that he easily manipulated these conflicts is proof that humans are sinful. He sees himself so far above humanity that he thinks his sadism is justified.]]
* {{Leitmotif}}: He has no less than ''3'' exclusive themes in ''SC'': [[spoiler:"A Gravestone Struck by Lightning" for his on-foot battle, "Outskirts of Evolution" for the first form of Angel Weissman, and "The Merciless Savior" for the final form of Angel Weissman.]]
* LightIsNotGood: His name certainly indicates this [[spoiler:and even his OneWingedAngel form actually looks angelic in a way.]]
* LimitBreak: His S-Craft is Another Dimension.
* MagicStaff: Uses one in combat, one given by the Grandmaster along with Loewe's Kernviter.
* MeaningfulName: His fake and real name mean "white" and "white man" respectively, which is the [[LightIsNotGood color he dresses in]] after TheReveal. His real name could also be considered a pun on "wise man", which fits as he is a scientist.
* NeverMyFault: [[spoiler:Even when Loewe gets him to admit to starting the 100 Days War, Weissmann has the audacity to claim that it was humanity's fault for being so easy to manipulate.]]
* NietzscheWannabe: [[spoiler:The ultimate explanation for his Gospel Plan and why his final battle BGM is called "The Merciless Savior": he believes humanity is doomed to continually repeat the mistakes of the past and that everything will be pointless unless he forces the species into a new direction. Other characters (namely Estelle) are only too happy to point out that part of the problems are ones ''he'' caused and get a few points for thinking more like Nietzsche when they tell him that ''they'' don't think humanity is hopeless and are working to overcome their flaws.]]
* NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist: [[spoiler:He claims to be fixing humanity's flaws by using the Stigma to make them perfect, thus preventing their ViciousCycle of complacency, regression, and violence. Given that he constantly instigates human conflict and enjoys the suffering caused by his schemes, it becomes obvious he's a misanthrope who cares more about [[ControlFreak controlling]] and toying with humanity than actually saving them. This is further shown in his interactions with Joshua and Kevin. He claims the Stigma can save them from their tragic pasts, but is angered when their friends help them overcome their issues with their own free will, since that robs him of the opportunity to experiment on them and mold them to his liking.]]
* ObfuscatingStupidity: Downplayed. He actually does own his archeology credentials, but he pretends to be ditzy in order to hide his role as the BigBad.
* OneWingedAngel: [[spoiler:Twice, and almost literally, as a result of his merging with the Aureole. His first transformation is into a gigantic white monster with what look like wings folded over the front of his body, no legs and [[EyesDoNotBelongThere too many eyes.]] When the Aureole forcibly transforms him further, the 'wings' unfold to reveal enormous arms, a serpent-like tail attaches to his lower body and actual glowing wings sprout from his back with a halo completing the angelic imagery. It's even called ''Angel'' Weissman.]]
* PeoplePuppets: [[spoiler:His specialty, and it's implied his plan for "evolving" humanity is going to involve brainwashing.]]
* PerpetualPoverty: Professor Alba's excuse for never hiring Bracers.
* PsychoticSmirk: [[spoiler: His default expression after TheReveal.]]
* RedBaron: "Weissmann the Faceless."
* RedEyesTakeWarning: [[spoiler:His eyes glow bright red when he finds opportunities to engage in sadism.]]
* {{Sadist}}: [[spoiler:Ragnard accuses him of being unable to feel joy unless he's making his fellow humans suffer, which Weissmann takes as a compliment.]]
* SequentialBoss: [[spoiler:The final battle of ''SC'' consists of 3 phases: one battle against him as a human, followed by battles against both forms of Angel Weissman.]]
* SinisterMinister: [[spoiler:SC reveals that Weissmann was once a member of the Septian Church who was excommunicated for unspecified reasons. He certainly dresses the part. Outside material explains in more detail that he wanted to conduct research the church considered to be [[BrideOfTheMonster tampering in the Goddess' domain]], particularly concerning the Sept-Terrion and the Stigma phenomenon.]]
* TheSociopath: He feels no guilt for the lives he ruined, acts charming to manipulate others, can only feel joy from tormenting others, and believes he's superior to the rest of humanity.
-->'''Loewe:''' Forget bad taste. The only word for you at this point is sick.
* SquishyWizard: His human form has less HP than all the Axis Pillar Enforcers while having the highest ATS, though he still has high DEF thanks to being about 5 levels higher than all of them except Loewe.
* TakenForGranite: [[spoiler:His death at the hands of Kevin is essentially this.]]
* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: [[spoiler:Being shot by a Salt Bolt is definitely this. Though it also carry a fair bit of DeathByIrony because he was killed by the incident that essentially changed his life.]]
* {{Ubermensch}}: [[spoiler:He sees himself as this. The fact that his ideal is a new kind of human who will always make the 'right' decisions (as determined by Weissmann) should let you know how far off the mark he is.]]
* UnderestimatingBadassery: [[spoiler:Even after Kevin tells him he is the Fifth Dominion, he still smugly tells him he is no match. One bolt and an OhCrap moment later...]]
* VileVillainSaccharineShow: [[spoiler:Especially notable in ''FC'', which was a mostly lighthearted tale of adventure until he revealed his true colors and showed himself to be far more calculating and dangerous than anyone else in the storyline. Almost all of the CerebusSyndrome that ensues in ''SC'' [[KnightOfCerebus can be traced back to his actions.]]]]
* WeCanRuleTogether:
** [[spoiler:He tries to convince Estelle to join Ouroboros under the rationale that she can reunite with Joshua this way. Though this is a ruse because he only kidnapped her to lure Joshua out of hiding.]]
** [[spoiler:He tries this again shortly before the final battle after brainwashing Joshua again. Once Estelle shoots down his grandiose plan to "save" humanity, he tries to force Joshua to kill her, only to be OutGambitted as Joshua had anticipated this all along.]]
** [[spoiler:In Phantasma, a copy of him tries to convince Kevin to throw away his humanity to control the Stigma and be free from his grief. When Kevin refuses, the professor sics two devils, Rostrum and Astarte, on him to force him to change his mind.]]
* XanatosGambit: [[spoiler:During ''FC'', he manipulates Alan Richard into instigating a coup and directs Loewe to assist him, but otherwise stays out of the action and just observes how everything plays out under the guise of "Professor Alba." If Richard succeeds, Weissman gains a useful pawn and considerable political leverage over Liberl. If Richard fails (which he does), Weissman still unearths a path to the Aureole and can use the resources of Ouroboros to finish the job.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Third Anguis (current) - The Wellspring Alchemist ('''Spoilers for the Crossbell Duology''')]]
!Mariabell Crois
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/anguis_bell_9.jpg]]
Daughter of former Crossbell mayor Dieter Crois and an alchemist of the Crois clan, she accepted an invitation to join Ouroboros as Georg Weissmann's replacement following his demise. See [[Characters/TrailsSeriesCrossbellGovernmentAndInfluentialGroups International Bank of Crossbell]].
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Fourth Anguis - Ellroy Harwood, The Thousand Oathbreaker]]
!Ellroy Harwood
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ellroy_harwood_kuro.png]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/TakayaKuroda (Japanese), Keisuke Baba (Japanese, ''The 3rd Evolution'' only), Creator/KeytheFarley (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsThroughDaybreak Daybreak]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsThroughDaybreak Kuro II]]''
A former member of the Order of the Moonlight Horse who, alongside Sharon and Lucrezia, joined Ouroboros after it destroyed the Order. He is now the Society's Fourth Anguis, otherwise known as the "Thousand Oathbreaker."
----
* AscendedExtra: After being excluded from gameplay during the first ''Daybreak'' game, the sequel has him participate in battle.
* BadassFingersnap: During ''Daybreak'', he snaps his fingers to [[spoiler:summon pools of poison beneath his enemies.]]
* CigarFuseLighting: His Hazard Cigar Craft sees him toss his cigar at some purple smoke he blew towards his opponents, triggering an explosion.
* CombatPragmatist: During ''Daybreak'' Chapter 5, [[spoiler:he intends to use chemical weapons to kill all of the other teams in one fell swoop during Almata's BattleRoyale.]]
* DevilInPlainSight: All of the Anguis usually disguise themselves or don't appear in public when they are carrying their plans. He don't either [[spoiler:as a result of the pact between Gramheart and the Grandmaster]] or simply to live up to his name.
* EarlyBirdCameo: He doesn't physically appear, or even get his name revealed, until the first ''Daybreak'' game, but he does technically makes a brief cameo, via his shadow, in a [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sharon_kreuger___visual_28sen_iii29.jpg flashback sequence]] during Chapter 2 of ''Cold Steel III''.
* GratuitousEnglish: When using his S-Craft, he'll announce that "It's Showtime!"
* GreaterScopeVillain: As he admits during his and Lucrezia's formal introduction, he's the one behind the creation of Garden, combining the remnants of the Order of the Moonlight Horse with those of the [[spoiler:"D∴G Cult".]] Every negative action committed by said organization only happened because he couldn't be bothered to keep an eye on them.
* GuestStarPartyMember: [[spoiler:He serves as a non-playable ally during the "Cross-Renne," Walter, and Lucrezia fight in ''Kuro II'''s Intermission.]]
* HeroKiller: Shows off what he can really do in the Intermission chapter of ''Kuro II'' when he [[spoiler:kills off ''the entire cast'' which includes Kasim, Shizuna, Walter, and Lucrezia ''without lifting his finger'' via his nerve toxins. They only get saved due to the Genesis' power to perform Time Leaps, a power he was apparently ''counting on them using''.]]
* InsultBackfire: People often call him "the worst," a label he considers to be the highest of complements.
* ItAmusedMe: Van questions his reason for hiring the Solution's Office during Chapter 5 of ''Daybreak''. His response?
-->'''Ellroy:''' Because it'd be more fun that way.
* ItsWhatIDo: He has a name to live up to after all, so count on him to break rules whethever they are minor (like smoking in an office) or major ([[spoiler:using internationally prohibited chemical weapons]]).
* LimitBreak: ''Kuro II'' gives him Umbra Nordens as his S-Craft.
* MeaningfulName: Being called the Thousand Oathbreaker is pretty fitting for a man who take delight in breaking any rules he can.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Somebody with a nickname like Thousand Oathbreaker sounds like the least trust-worthy person you can meet, [[spoiler:though it didn't stop him from being a reliable ally during the battle against Almata.]]
* PersonOfMassDestruction: By virtue of [[spoiler:using WeaponOfMassDestruction.]]
* PhlebotinumPills: His DROP-00 Z Craft has him bite into a spherical pill, restoring some of his HP and boosting all of his stats.
* PoisonousPerson: ''Kuro II'' shows that his main method of fighting is using poison, summoning pools of it beneath the target in his regular attacks, and flinging some from his hands in his "Void Snape" Craft.
* PreFinalBoss: [[spoiler:In ''Kuro II'', he, alongside Ixs and Jolda, serve as the last bosses fought in the main story before [[FinalBoss Grendel-Zolga]].]]
* RedBaron: Aside from his "Thousand Oathbreaker" title, Renne notes that he is also in the criminal underworld as the "Maven Lawbreaker," due to the fact that any organization that he's dealt with ends up self-destructing.
* ShapingYourAttacks: His "Void Snape" Craft has him fling poison in the form of snakes.
* SmokingIsCool: Usually smokes a cigar anytime he appears.
* SuperSerum: His Demon Brute Craft has him drink a red liquid from a vile, giving him the "[[NoSell Reflect]]" buff.
* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: During ''Kuro II'',[[spoiler:more precisely, during his Intermission Bad End, he is confronted by what can reasonably be called a small army composed of two A-Rank Bracers, two Dominions, the number two of Iscariot, multiple jaegers including two of the strongest alive, two Enforcers, Heiyue, and Arkride Solutions Office. What is his response? [[DeadlyGas Release a chemical gas on the island.]] What is their response? Dropping dead. Despite RuleOfCool being fairly prominent in Zemuria and as mundane and anticlimactic as it may be, this IS the usual outcome to a weapon of mass destruction.]]
* TheUnfought: [[spoiler:Surprisingly enough, he doesn't fight the heroes in ''Daybreak'', going as far as to surrender his team's card after Walter and Lucrezia lose.]]
* UnseenNoMore: He was briefly mentioned during Chapter 3 of ''Azure'', where Arianrhod says that she'll "leave the rest to Oathbreaker" while she heads to Crossbell. He's also alluded to in ''Cold Steel III,'' having gone to Alteria alongside [[spoiler:Mariabell.]] ''Daybreak'' is when he officially makes his in-person appearance.
* WildCard: As the "Oathbreaker," he generally can't be trusted to follow rules or keep promises, yet he'll sometimes do those very things just to shatter the expectations associated with his title, making him extremely unpredictable. This is later PlayedForLaughs in the first ''Daybreak'' game; when Van mentions that the Solutions Office is a no-smoking zone, Ellroy retorts that he's simply living up to his name by breaking the oath of smoking in a non-smoking area.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Fifth Anguis]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/HiroshiOkamoto (''The 3rd Evolution'')
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]''
Currently [[TheUnseen unrevealed]]. The most mysterious of the Anguis at this point - he has not appeared or has had any information about him confirmed since his first and only appearance during Star Door 14, in contrast to the First Anguis, who has made multiple appearances since then.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Sixth Anguis - Dr. F. Novartis]]
!Professor F. Novartis
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_legend_of_heroes_hajimari_no_kiseki_2020_04_23_20_019.jpg]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/MitsuakiMadono (Japanese), Creator/DaveBMitchell (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' (Voice only) | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure Azure]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie Reverie]]''
->''"But now that we have all of our subjects--ah, my manners have escaped me yet again--all of our ''participants'' assembled, let us begin."''
Sixth Anguis of Ouroboros and leader of the Thirteen Factories, appearing in ''Azure''. Not especially popular with Enforcers due to his ForScience tendencies, but still less hated than the Faceless.
----
* BigWhat: [[spoiler:After Roy proposes to the Grandmaster that he and Ouroboros would not interfere with each other for at least two and a half years, this is his reaction.]]
* EarlyBirdCameo: Namedropped as early as ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky Second Chapter]]'', and had spoken lines in ''The 3rd'''s Star Door 14.
* EvilHasABadSenseOfHumor: [[spoiler:In ''Reverie'', his idea of a joke is to threaten Renne's parents.]]
* ForScience: His motivation for doing just about anything is to satisfy his scientific curiosity.
* {{Gonk}}: A creepy-looking man with ScaryShinyGlasses, a bowl-cut and a hunched back. His hair colour and wrinkly face make his age quite cryptic.
* GracefulLoser: [[spoiler:Accepts that he cannot reproduce Simulacrum as well as the Elysium System.]]
* MadScientist: Novartis is both clever and evil.
* NotMeThisTime: [[spoiler:He's accused by both Vita and Renne to be behind the events in ''Reverie''. He admits that he's only helping out the Elysium system but flat out tells them he's only there as an observer though Vita quips that he's involved himself a little too much.]]
* OhCrap: [[spoiler:Seeing [=McBurn=] at the Celestial Globe since the latter's fake self warned him not to tell his real self that he made a clone of him. He also expresses surprise at the new president of Calvard, Roy Gramhardt's appearance considering it's supposed to be a secret meeting place.]]
* OutOfFocus: Despite appearing in a few games, Novartis is mainly interested in his pursuit of science and even as he partakes in most of Ouroboros' plots, is more than happy to remain on the background and work on his own devices, leaving most of his character and personal history unknown.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:The Seventh Anguis - Arianrhod, The Steel Maiden]]
!Arianrhod/[[spoiler:Lianne Sandlot]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/arianrhod_cs3_portrait.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Arianrhod unmasked, as depicted in the ''Cold Steel'' series]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[labelnote:Arianrhod masked, as depicted in ''Azure'']]https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/arianrhod___bust_helmet_28ao29.png[[/labelnote]]]]
-->'''Voiced by:''' Creator/AyaHisakawa (Japanese), Creator/CheramiLeigh (English)
-->'''Appearances''': ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsInTheSky The 3rd]]'' (Voice only) | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsFromZeroAndTrailsToAzure Azure]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel I]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel III]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsOfColdSteel Cold Steel IV]]'' | ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfHeroesTrailsIntoReverie Reverie]]'' (Replica)
Seventh Anguis of Ouroboros known as the "Steel Maiden". First appearing in ''Azure'', she makes a cameo appearance in ''Cold Steel I'' and later makes a full return as an antagonist in ''Cold Steel III'' and ''IV''. Due to the sheer number similarities between her and the legendary "Lance Maiden" of Erebonian history, many assume her true identity to be Lianne Sandlot herself. It's later confirmed in ''Cold Steel III'' that she [[spoiler:truly is Lianne Sandlot, having survived her historical death through mysterious means.]]
Arianrhod is the leader of the Stahlritter, a unit of loyal female knights who are not Enforcers, but rival them in power.
----
* TwentyFourHourArmor: She's never seen without her incredibly bulky armor on, except for certain flashbacks.
* TheAce: Easily one of the strongest fighters on Zemuria.
* AllLoveIsUnrequited: Averted with Dreichels himself, as her feelings were reciprocated, but circumstances prevented them from getting together. [[spoiler:Once Dreichels had reincarnated as Osborne, a part of her had hoped that this time she would have been able to get together with him. Unfortunately for her, by the time that she found him, Osborne had already fallen in love with Kasia and started a family with her that resulted in Rean. Lianne, for her part, muses that, so long as he was happy, then it was alright.]]
* AlwaysAccurateAttack: In ''Cold Steel III'', all of her regular crafts are undodgeable, which can be a rude awakening to those relying on evade tank builds.
* AntiVillain: Easily one of the least villainous members of Ouroboros.
* AmazonBrigade: The Stahlritter are Arianrhod's bodyguards ([[BodyguardingABadass not like she needs them]]) and they are exclusively female.
* {{Archenemy}}: [[spoiler: Ever since she learned about Ishmelga from Dreichels, she has made her number 1 goal to destroy him.]]
* ArmoredVillainsUnarmoredHeroes: Guess which side of the spectrum she's on.
* BackFromTheDead: [[spoiler:''Cold Steel III'' reveals that she did die as Lianne Sandlot, but she mysteriously came back to life. It's because as an Awakener, her life is tethered to her Divine Knight.]]
* BadassBoast: In ''Cold Steel III'' she delivers one towards [=McBurn=] when he asks for a fight.
--> "I, too, shall enjoy the night breeze if you break my helm."
** She delivers another one while performing her [[LimitBreak S-Craft]].
---> "I am Steel, she who cuts through all!"
* BigDamnHeroes: In ''Cold Steel I'' she appears in time to rescue Rean's field study group in Lohengrin Castle. It's revealed retroactively in ''Cold Steel IV'' that the reason she rescued him and his group is because [[spoiler:he's the son of the reincarnation of the man who she once loved.]]
* BlueBlood: As Lianne Sandlot, she was a Countess who ruled Lohengrin Castle and Legram, which were then taken over by her retainers of the Arseid Family.
* BootstrappedLeitmotif: "Unfathomed Force," a late-game boss theme for ''Azure'', is heavily associated with her, to the point of it being reused wholesale for her boss battle in Chapter 3 of ''Cold Steel III''.
* CharlesAtlasSuperpower: She is able to crush a truck engine simply by throwing her spear from faraway.
* ContraltoOfStrength: In the English dub, Creator/CheramiLeigh gives her with a low voice befitting her as one of the most powerful women in all of Zemuria
* DualBoss: [[spoiler:In the final chapter of ''Cold Steel III'', you have to fight against her and '''Demon [=McBurn=]'''. Then in ''Cold Steel IV'', she ends up fighting alongside Osborne and this time, [[{{Foreshadowing}} they're ARCUS linked.]]]]
* EarlyBirdCameo: Along with the other Anguis, she made a voiced appearance in ''The 3rd''.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: She steps in to prevent a swindler from fleeing to Calvard with stolen medicals goods following Crossbell's raid by the Red Constellation because she won't stand such a distasteful behavior towards civilians. Duvalie also mentions that she would have been just as outraged as the Crimson Wings and herself had she been around to witness Duke Albarea's attack on Celdic.
* EvilKnockoff: [[spoiler:In ''Reverie'', she has a Hollow copy that serves as a boss in the True Reverie Corridor, most notably during Laura, Agate, and Roselia's Trial Door. Granted, Arianrhod spent all of her screentime on the villain's side, but she herself was never very evil.]]
* FallenHero: Once she was Lianne Sandlot, a heroic legend of Erebonian history who joined forces with Dreichels the Lionheart to put an end to the War of the Lions. Over 250 years later however, she joined Ouroboros (a terrorist organization) and becomes one of the highest ranking members of the Society in addition to being one of its two strongest fighters. [[spoiler:Subverted, however, as she joined for the sake of destroying the curse of Erebonia.]]
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Unlike her DualBoss fight with [[spoiler:[=McBurn=] in ''Cold Steel III'', she's ARCUS linked with Osborne in ''Cold Steel IV'' despite having no known relationship with him at the time. [[spoiler:It's a sign that she trusts and loves Dreichels and his reincarnation.]]
* FreudianExcuse: [[spoiler:The reason for her being an antagonist throughout the series? All done out of loyalty towards Dreichels, who in current times has now been reincarnated as Giliath Osborne. She feels responsible for not being there to aid him when he needed it most, aka the death of his wife and near death of Rean, which resulted in Osborne making a literal DealWithTheDevil. She decided to join Ouroboros as a means to an end, and later sides with Osborne himself directly, in order to help put a stop to the curse of Erebonia once and for all.]]
* GrowOldWithMe: [[spoiler:She made such a promise with Dreichels 250 years ago. However, reviving as an [[TheAgeless Immortal]] and losing the ability to bear children led her to break her promise.]]
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: One of the nicest member of Ouroboros, and has blonde hair.
* HeelFaceDoorSlam: [[spoiler:After her defeat, it seems like she's going to accept Rean's offer to save her life and join the heroes' side. Then Rufus shows up...]]
* HistoryRepeats: [[spoiler:Her final fate directly parallels that of her student, Loewe.]]
* HonorBeforeReason: [[spoiler:She tells Roselia the reason why Dreichels never told Rose about the curse is because it would have been a terrible and feeble life for someone who is nearly at the end of his life and the problems of man still linger on.]]
* HumongousMecha: In ''Cold Steel III'', she appears alongside the Aion Type Alpha II. [[spoiler:Said game also reveals that she's been the Awakener of Argreion the Silver Knight since before the War of the Lions.]]
* IAmNotLeftHanded: She is so strong that she was holding back '''every time''' we see her fighting. [[spoiler:Not even Aurelia, the strongest woman in Erebonia was enough to make her fight at full power.]]
* ILetYouWin: [[spoiler:It's revealed after the fight that despite her kneeling against Rean and Crow, they both note that she threw the fight in order for Rean to absorb Argreion's essence. Subverted in that she claims to have used her full power, though [[XanatosGambit she's fine with them winning as long as they can beat Ishmelga]]. [[DidntSeeThatComing Unfortunately, she didn't expect Rufus to back stab her at her weakest moment.]]]]
* {{Immortality}} : [[spoiler:A trait common to all Awakeners as they cannot die so long as their Divine Knights remain. This is how she was able to survive her historic death.]]
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: [[spoiler:Rufus fatally wounds her by running her through with the Gold Knight's sword.]]
* IronicName: The Arianrhod of Celtic mythology was a goddess of fertility. [[spoiler:This Arianrhod is implied to have become infertile after her resurrection.]]
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: [[spoiler:After finding Osborne and discovering him married with a child, she finds herself content enough that he is living an happy life.]]
* JeanneDArchetype: As Lianne Sandlot, she was an inspirational warrior and general who lead the Eisenritter to help Dreichels put an end to the War of the Lions and was canonized as a Saint after her purported death.
* JoustingLance: Her weapon of choice. [[spoiler:Even her Divine Knight has one.]]
* LadyOfWar: One of the most beautiful, graceful, and powerful women in the entire series.
* LawOfInverseFertility: [[spoiler:As it turns out, this is the reason why she left Dreichels as she was left unable to bear any children after coming back to life.]]
* {{Leitmotif}}: Unfathomable Force and Aria of the Saint.
* LightningBruiser: She's more heavily armored than the Stahlritter and wields a large lance, but she's still [[FasterThanTheyLook one of the fastest characters]], in both her boss fights and cutscenes. When she makes her first appearance in ''Azure'', she defeats the party with a flurry of lance strikes that are too strong and fast for them to defend against, and this is just her ''normal attack'' animation.
* LikeASonToMe: [[spoiler:How she views Rean after spending years looking out for him from afar, imagining him to be the son that she could have had with Dreichels. She also refers to the Stahlritter as her daughters shortly before her death.]]
* LimitBreak: Her S-Craft in both ''Azure'' and the later ''Cold Steel'' games is Grand Cross. [[spoiler:Also her finishing move when piloting Argreion.]]
* LivingLegend: As Lianne Sandlot, the Lance Maiden.
* MeaningfulName:
** Arianrhod was a goddess of Celtic/Welsh Mythology with dominion over time, fate, fertility and rebirth. All three of which symbolize reveals of her origins and true motivation. Both also were rulers of a castle of great renown and significance (Caer Arianrhod and Lohengrin Castle.) The name itself means 'Silver Wheel' in Welsh. [[spoiler:She's the Awakener of the Silver Knight, and is motivated by breaking the cycle of misfortune caused by the Curse of Erebonia.]]
** Her original name, Lianne Sandlot, is also basically a reference to [[Myth/ArthurianLegend Lancelot, one of the Knights of the Round Table and considered King Arthur's greatest knight]]. Fittingly enough, Lianne is also considered one of the Erebonian Empire's greatest warriors who also served its greatest emperor, Dreichels the Lionheart, who himself is basically a King Arthur analogue within the series. Her hometown, Legram, is also situated at a lake which coicincides with Lancelot's epithet "du Lac" which means "of the lake".
* MetallicMotifs: Lead a group of knights as Lianne and Arianrhod respectively named the Eisenritter (Iron Knights) and Stahlritter (Steel Knights), is known as The 'Steel' Maiden, [[spoiler:and pilots the Argent (Silver) Knight.]]
* MultiMeleeMaster: Implied; while she's only ever shown wielding her trademark [[JoustingLance lance]], Duvalie and Loewe owe their MasterSwordsman credentials to her tutelage, indicating she's well-versed in swordsmanship as well, possibly as a result of her long life. In Loewe's manga, Arianrhod easily defeats him with a sword and states that the next time they duel, she'll use her lance.
* MysteriousProtector: Briefly plays this role in ''Cold Steel I'' during Class VII's field study in Legram for reasons unknown. [[spoiler:''Cold Steel IV'' reveals that this was because ''Rean'' was there. It's also revealed that she had been secretly watching over him as he grew up, to the point that Osborne actually refers to her as one of Rean's mothers alongside Kasia and Lucia.]]
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler:By not telling Rose all about the curse that's stalking Dreichels, Osborne ends up making a deal with Ishmelga that nearly starts a global conflict all over the world.]]
* OldFriend: To Roselia. [[spoiler:She's the one who guided her to Argreion, her Divine Knight, a few years before the War of the Lions happened.]]
* OnlyTheWorthyMayPass: She serves as this in ''Azure'' where she tests the SSS's conviction and strength under [=KeA=]'s demands. This is under the logic that if they couldn't last long enough against her, there is no way they can take on Sigmund and [[spoiler:Arios.]]
* PaperThinDisguise: It's quite obvious she didn't even bother to try and disguise her identity as Lianne Sandlot. Everyone who's ever heard about Arianrhod are quick to assume that she has something to do with her past self.
* ParentalSubstitute: She is one for the youngest members of the society and the Stahlritter. She explicitly calls Duvalie her child in ''Cold Steel IV''.
* PoorCommunicationKills: [[spoiler:Because she never told Roselia about the curse and Ishmelga stalking Dreichels for 250 years, the issues with Erebonia continued on.]]
* RedBaron: "The Steel Maiden." And formerly, "The Lance Maiden" when she was still Lianne Sandlot.
* ReligiousBruiser: Technically, since she was canonized as a Saint for her role in the War of the Lions.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: From a chronological standpoint, she's well over 250 years old despite looking like a young woman in her early twenties.
* TheReveal: ''Cold Steel IV'' reveals the reason why she joined with Ouroboros without saying anything to Roselia for twenty years: [[spoiler:she's been looking out for Osborne ever since she found Dreichels' reincarnation. Then tragedy struck towards Osborne's life which she then takes it upon herself to help out Osborne get rid of the curse for good. Roselia did not take it well when she finds out about it.]]
* ShouldersOfDoom: She wears an armor with large and spiky pauldrons.
* SingleTargetSexuality: In all of her centuries-long life, she never loved anyone but Dreichels. [[spoiler:To the point that her feelings even extend to his reincarnation in Osborne.]]
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: [[spoiler:The only female Awakener of the seven Awakeners. She's also the oldest of them all.]]
* StarCrossedLovers: With Dreichels. Both fell in love and had sworn to live with each other after the "War of the Lions" ended, but circumstances such as her "death" prevented that from ever happening. [[spoiler:It turns out that she left him due to her inability to have children after coming back to life. She clearly regrets this however as by the time Dreichels reincarnates as Osborne she once again has a desire to be with him. Unfortunately for her she missed her chance since Osborne had already married Kasia and had a son with her (Rean) by the time Lianne finds him.]]
* StrongAndSkilled: She's one of the most physically powerful combatants and has unparalleled skill in wielding a lance. This is reflected in gameplay in ''Cold Steel III'', where her normal crafts are always accurate even against characters with high evasion.
* TakeUpMySword: [[spoiler:Or rather her name, as Lianne asks Laura to continue the tradition of having the initial letter "S." in the Arseid line as one of her last wishes before she dies.]]
* ThatManIsDead: When Laura calls her Lianne Sandlot, she describes that name as an "illusion of the past".
* TheStoic: She is a little bit short on the emotions scale.
* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler:With Dreichels[=/=]Osborne and Rutger at the end of ''Cold Steel IV''.]]
* TooPowerfulToLive: [[spoiler: She's one of the strongest characters in the series and a legendary nigh-immortal warrior who has lived for over 250 years, and every time she is fought she will either [[CurbStompBattle utterly curb-stomp]] the party, turn out to be [[IAmNotLeftHanded holding back]], or even both. And then, after her final defeat, it seems like she's actually going to pull a HeelFaceTurn...? Sadly but not surprisingly, it really is too good to be true, as she's promptly killed by Rufus. Her joining the ranks of the heroes would have ''[[StoryBreakerPower disintegrated]]'' any shred of difficulty they previously had due to her overpowered stats and Divine Knight, both in-game and meta-wise. And this is just from the implications of her surviving until the end of the ''Erebonia arc.'' If she was given a second chance like with Crow, being an Anguis would result in invaluable information on Ouroboros being revealed to the Bracer Guild and Septian Church while nullifying the threat of anyone that isn't her fellow Anguis, Mcburn and the Grandmaster.]]
* TurnsRed: In her boss fight in ''Azure'', when her HP reach a certain threshold, her mask will break and she will stop holding back. [[CurbStompBattle By the end of the fight, her mask is probably not the only thing who is broken.]]
* UndyingLoyalty: [[spoiler:To Dreichels. So much so that she even ends up developing feelings towards his reincarnation in Osborne, and later joined Ouroboros out of a sense of duty towards him.]]
* VillainForgotToLevelGrind: When she appears in ''Azure'', she is a juggernaut who deal CurbStompBattle left and right and only left the stage after the SSS passed her SecretTestOfCharacter. By the time of ''Cold Steel III'' two years later, while she still serve as a colossal roadblock, she is now matched by a few characters. [[spoiler:Justified. When you spent 250 years training, you're likely to have no more room to improve.]]
* YouCantFightFate: [[spoiler:Black Records 13 foretold that she would die in the Rivalries before the Tuatha De Danann and the Salt Pales appear, meaning Rean had no chance of saving her.]]
* YouShallNotPass: [[spoiler:She and [=McBurn=] serves as the first opponents guarding the Gral of Erebos.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: Much of the white tropes come from ''Cold Steel III'' and ''IV'' revelations.
* WalkingTheEarth: [[spoiler:After her resurrection she decides to travel around outside of Erebonia for decades until Dreichels' deathbed. Afterwards she then spends the next two centuries looking for his reincarnation out of worry that the curse that haunted him would come back to do so again. It's during this time that she meets the Grandmaster, but it's not until she finds Osborne and believes him to be safe that she decides to join Ouroboros.]]
* WeaponTombstone: [[spoiler:After her death, the Stahlritter used her lance and helmet to make a grave in Crossbell.]]
* WhamShot: [[spoiler:When she summons her own Divine Knight at the Naval Fortress. Even her Stahlritter were shocked and were unaware of its existence.]]
* WhoWantsToLiveForever: [[spoiler:She says as much after she's defeated in ''Cold Steel IV''...]]
-->[[spoiler:It's been a long journey. So long...]]
* WolfpackBoss: In ''Cold Steel III'', you actually fight her and ''all 3 members of the Stahlritter at the same time'' in Chapter 3.
* WorldsBestWarrior: A contender for being the most powerful character in the series. Very few could hope to match her, with Ein Selnate and [=McBurn=] being such people. Lloyd and the SSS were lucky enough to break her helmet when they fought her. [[spoiler:Even after Aurelia Le Guin (a contender for Erebonia's strongest warrior) manages to bring Arianrhod to her knees in battle, it's revealed that she was still holding back to some extent and only fought with the strength she had when she was Lianne Sandlot.]]
* WreckedWeapon: [[spoiler:Her iconic lance finally breaks in ''Cold Steel IV'' while fighting Class VII. [[{{Foreshadowing}} Considering what happens next...]]]]
* XanatosGambit: [[spoiler:What her plans for the Third Rivalry were. If she wins, she take the power of the Ashen, Azure and Palatinate Knight for herself and is almost guaranteed to fight Ishmelga during the Final Rivalry. If she loses, she entrust her power and her life to Rean, giving him a massive boost as he has proven himself strong enough to be able to prevail against Ishmelga. Sadly, Rufus was following the match and intervene to steal the Argent Knight's power but her point still stand, as Rean prove himself able to win the other Rivalries.]]
[[/folder]]
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