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Ophilia's Route

Guardian of the First Flame

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_guardian_9.png

A golem that tests those that wish to undertake the Kindling.

Eldritch Abomination: Of a kind. It's a golem that lacks a true, expressive face made out of ice, and it's been around since ancient times to protect Aelfric's Flame. This sets it apart from other bosses, as it is actually a benevolent force that protects a sacred flame, rather than someone or something that is actively trying to harm the protagonists.
Hero Antagonist: A mild version. While it provides Ophilia with her first boss fight, it's really just doing its job of making sure the ember doesn't fall into the wrong hands, and it gladly lets her take Aelfric's Lanthorn after the battle.
Logical Weakness: Inverted. It's a giant golem made of ice in an ice cave in the frozen north... and it's weak to Ice. Justified as it is the Sacred Flame that is controlling it.
MacGuffin Guardian: Protects Aelfric's Embers, the source of the Sacred Flames across the world.
Starter Villain: The first boss of Ophilia's story. Though, as it is actually guarding Aelfric's Flame from those with malevolent intent, it is more of a necessary antagonist than a "villain" per se.
Wake-Up Call Boss: Not to the same extent as Primrose's Chapter 1 boss, but the Guardian is among the more difficult bosses in the early game. It has high HP and shields, can summon Dark Wisps that will self-destruct to deal a large amount of damage to Ophilia if not defeated in time, and is not weak to Light magic^note. This encourages you to take advantage of Ophilia's Guide path action to defeat it; in particular, an NPC with "Summon Winds" in the Flamesgrace tavern helps make the fight more manageable.

Hróðvitnir

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_hrodvitnir_6.png

A wolf from The Murkwood that attacks Emil when the boy searches for his friend's lost brooch.

Giant Space Flea from Nowhere: One of the few bosses of the game who has no ties to the story and very little foreshadowing, appearing out of nowhere to give a boss fight to the second chapter of Ophilia's story. To be fair, though, it is foreshadowed if you talk to some of the NPCs in Saintsbridge, and while the reasoning is somewhat lacking, it does at least help a few characters further their development.
Lightning Bruiser: It can take a mountain of punishment and increase its maximum guard points, but can also hit hard to the whole party and can buff its attack. Oh, and it attacks twice per turn.
Meaningful Name: Its name means "fame-wolf", and is an alternate title of Fenrir, the wolf from Norse mythology.
Non-Malicious Monster: Attacks Emil because it saw him as a potential meal.
Savage Wolves: It's a monstrous wolf that attacks Emil, forcing Ophilia to fight it.
Uncertain Doom: After being defeated, Hróðvitnir just disappears. Whether Ophilia killed it or merely fended it off is left ambiguous, though Emil and his friends imply that it's the latter.

Mystery Man and Shady Figure

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Mystery Man (right) and Shady Figure (left)

Two cultists that kidnapped Bishop Donovan's daughter in the hopes that her father would deliver Aelfric's Embers to them.

Black Mage: The man with red on his cloak has access to Scholar skills and will be the main damage dealer.
Character Death: One cultist is killed in battle at the hands of Ophilia, the other injects himself with lethal poison so that Ophilia can't get any more information out of him.
Cyanide Pill: After telling Ophilia that she will tremble before the power of the "Savior", the surviving Mystery Man injects himself with deadly poison, denying her further answers.
Dark Is Evil: They dress in black robes that obscure their identities, and are devout followers of a Cult that worships the local God of Evil. They are the first antagonists of Ophilia's story with clear malicious intent behind their actions.
Dual Boss: The two of them are fought at the same time.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: If one falls in combat, the other will get upset and be empowered by revenge, indicating they probably care for each other to some extent.
Evil Counterpart: The red-cloaked cultist's use of Scholar skills makes him this to Cyrus, while the blue-cloaked one's use of Cleric skills makes him this to Ophilia. The cleric-cultist in particular contrasts with his counterpart with his willingness to murder a child, which infuriates Ophilia, a Friend to All Children.
Fallen Hero: It's implied that the White Mage of the duo was a former cleric in the Order of the Sacred Flame before he defected to the Savior, given his access to healing and light magic.
Hate Sink: What with kidnapping an innocent child, using death threats to pressure her father into stealing the Ember from the Flamebearer, and their dialogue giving away that they were planning to murder Donovan and Lysa whether he gave them the Ember or not, it's very clear that these two are not meant to be likeable in the slightest. It's telling that, along with the Arc Villain of Ophilia's story, Mattias, they are the only ones who succeed in making Ophilia genuinely angry. Unlike Mattias, they have no sympathetic backstory explaining how they came to become so depraved.
I Lied: Were planning on murdering Donovan and his girl after getting the Embers, instead of having a fair exchange.
Knight of Cerebus: In spite of her adoptive father falling seriously ill, Ophilia's pilgrimage begins on a hopeful note as she travels Orsterra in her sister Lianna's place so that the latter can remain at their father's side, renewing the light of the Sacred Flame to the land and its people, and helping others in need such as the three children in Saintsbridge. Then Ophilia reads a threatening letter sent by Mystery Man and Shady Figure to the bishop of Goldshore, Donovan, telling him that they have kidnapped his young daughter, Lysa, and won't return her unless he claims the Ember from the Flamebearer (Ophilia) and gives it to them. Despite their rather silly-sounding titles, Mystery Man and Shady Figure are when Ophilia's story takes a much darker turn. They were planning to kill Donovan and his daughter whether he gave them the Ember or not, Lianna arrives in Goldshore to inform her that their father has died, and then Lianna betrays Ophilia and takes the Ember from her in a desperate (and futile) hope that their father can be brought Back from the Dead, having been visited by the Savior with said (false) promise and allying herself with him.
Light Is Not Good: The man with blue on his cloak uses Cleric spells like Luminescence and Heal Wounds, and is a devout and depraved cultist who Would Hurt a Child, just like his partner.
Never My Fault: They try to convince Lysa that if she wants to hate someone, she should hate her father for abandoning her, right after they reveal their plan to murder them both after getting the Ember. Of course, nobody buys it.
No Name Given: Unusually for the final boss of a character's chapter, their names are never disclosed.
Obviously Evil: They dress in black, hooded robes and connive at the back of a cave.
Turns Red: If the White Mage is shot down first, the Black Mage gets three turns, one of which is always spent on a single-turn Elemental Attack boost, and his spells begin hitting for two times. If the Black Mage goes down first, the other will begin spamming Arcane Blade (heavy physical damage) and Dark Magic (dark magic to the whole party).
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: If the Shady Figure dies before the Mystery Man, the latter will "seethe with rage" and up the offensive ante on his turns.
Starter Villain: Sort of. While not the first of Ophilia's adversaries, they are the first ones she faces that have malicious intent behind their actions.
Undying Loyalty: To the Savior, to the point that the surviving cultist willingly commits suicide just so that Ophilia can't interrogate him further on the Savior's identity, disturbing even Primrose.
Ophilia: Is something troubling you, Primrose?
Primrose: I can't wrap my head around it... Having faith so strong that you'd give up your life for it.
White Mage: The man with blue on his cloak has access to Cleric skills and will be the duo's source of healing, always using one of his two turns to heal them both.
Would Hurt a Child: They were perfectly willing to kill a child whether Bishop Donovan did what they wanted or not.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: As mentioned above, their plan is to kill the bishop and his daughter after getting the ember.

The Savior (SPOILERS)

Mattias

Voiced By: Chris Niosi (English)

The trader associated with the Leoniel Consortium whose job is to aid Ophilia in her pilgrimage. In truth, he is the leader of the Cult of Galdera seeking to take the ember and using it to weaken the bonds on Galdera.

Anti-Magic: A few turns into the fight (never later than recovering from his second break), he uses Infernal Flame to jam your multitarget spells.
Alas, Poor Villain: Ophilia pities him after he dies.
Ophilia: What a sad man you were...
Arc Villain: The primary villain of Ophilia's story.
Bad Boss: He's willing to use his followers as sacrifices in a ritual to weaken the bonds on Galdera without their knowledge. It's even implied that he saved them from the plague that ravaged Wispermill so that he could gain their trust for that very purpose.
Bad Powers, Bad People: Mattias is empowered by Galdera, who bestowed him with a fraction of his power. He tries to take advantage of Lianna's grief at the loss of her father to manipulate her into helping him corrupt the Sacred Flame to weaken Galdera's seal and gain more power, under the pretense that he can resurrect her father.
Bad Powers, Good People: Mattias used to be this. After becoming disillusioned with the twelve gods for doing nothing while those he cared about perished in a fire, he tried using Galdera's power to help others, but the dark god's influence eventually took over.
Bait the Dog: It's implied that he used Galdera's power to stop the plague ravaging Wispermill solely to gain the trust of its people, so that he could sacrifice them to Galdera as part of a ritual to weaken the god's seal.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He appears as a helpful merchant while secretly plotting the failure of the pilgrimage.
Boss Banter: He talks to Ophilia periodically throughout the fight. Unlike in the case of Darius and Therion, his is fully voice acted.
Can't Kill You, Still Need You: He decides to leave Ophilia alive in case he needs her to replace Lianna.
Character Death: He dies shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Ophilia.
Chekhov's Gunman: He initially seems like a fairly unimportant NPC when he first shows up, but then turns out to be the main antagonist of Ophilia's route.
Co-Dragons: He was one of Lyblac's primary agents in her plan, having been around for a long time to ensure her success. Alongside Simeon and Ceraphina, they worked as some of her most loyal helpers.
Create Your Own Hero: While his intention in the poisoning of Archbishop Josef is to have Lianna still take the pilgrimage and lure her into his manipulations, the pain Ophilia sees in her sister makes her take up the mantle of Flamebearer in her sister's place. Ophilia's own personal experience with loss not only allows her not to be swayed by Mattias' false promises of Josef's resurrection but also breaks through to Lianna's heart and helps her step back before it is too late. To rub further salt in Mattias' wound, Ophilia makes it her mission to stop and kill him for his actions.
Dark Is Evil: Mattias is empowered by Galdera and gains power from the Dark Flame, a corrupted form of the Sacred Flame, during his boss fight. He intends to ruin Ophilia's pilgrimage to restore light to the realm so he may gain more power from Galdera.
Dark Messiah: He sees himself as the chosen of Galdera and his followers refer to him as the Savior.
The Dark Side Will Make You Forget: He goes from a Well-Intentioned Extremist trying to use Galdera's power to help people, to a rambling lunatic with delusions of world domination.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: His backstory as explained in the Gate of Finis reveals that he once had loved ones. He was once a high-ranking and devout member of the Order of the Sacred Flame, and he platonically loved the children who attended the church he worked at. When a lightning-strike caused a fire that burned the church to the ground, it was the children's deaths in particular that incited him to reject his faith, as he saw no good reason why they should die. By the time of the present, however, his Rage Against the Heavens has left him so twisted that he willingly sacrifices his own followers to Galdera, without their knowledge and without conscience.
Even Evil Has Standards:
- He knows that releasing Galdera on the world is bad news, so he merely wants to loosen his bonds so he can draw more power from the god.
- Champions of the Continent shows that he held a rather dim view of Simeon and Ceraphina, the former for his sheer sadism and obsession with theatrics, and the latter for her single-minded obsession with revenge and godhood.
Evil All Along: Initially appearing to be a humble, unimportant merchant, he is actually the leader of a dark Cult and aims to draw more power from Gal dera by using the pilgrimage ember to weaken the God's seal. His diary found in the Gate of Finis subverts this, however. Here, it is revealed that there was a time when he really was a good man and devout believer in the Sacred Flame, until those he cared about perished in a fire started by a lightning strike despite his prayers for the Gods to save them, which convinced him to abandon his faith.
Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Mattias believes that love and friendship are superficial connections that will inevitably disappear, and is unable to understand Ophilia's love for Lianna and Josef or why she would go so far to help Lianna out of her despair from Josef's illness and death. Even in his final moments, Mattias dies angry and scornfully laughing at Ophilia for her resolute faith in her adoptive sister and father.
Evil Counterpart: To Cyrus of all people. Like Cyrus, he too believed that power by itself is not evil, but rather how it was wielded. However, he became corrupted with Galdera's power despite trying to use it for good and became a true villain.
Evil Laugh: Bursts into maniacal laughter when the dark ritual Lianna initiates while wishing for her father's resurrection begins draining the lives of his nearby followers. He also laughs at the thought of Ophilia having to kill her own adoptive sister to stop the ritual, as the latter is too grief-stricken to stop wishing for her father's resurrection even after the ritual's true purpose is revealed.
Evil Stole My Faith: He became disillusioned with the twelve gods when they did nothing to save innocent lives from a disaster despite all his prayers.
Fallen Hero: He was once a high-ranking and devout member of the Order of the Sacred Flame. However, when his church was destroyed and many of its members were killed he lost his faith and sought the power of Galdera.
Faux Affably Evil: He's as charismatic as one would expect from a cult leader and speaks politely to Ophilia when she's imprisoned by his followers, but this façade falls apart when Lianna stops the ritual to corrupt the Sacred Flame.
Flaw Exploitation: He takes advantage of Lianna's unwillingness to accept her father's death and poor judge of character to manipulate her into helping him steal the ember and corrupt the Sacred Flame with the local God of Evil's power.
Flunky Boss: In the early going, he summons two Mooks to lock his weaknesses before unleashing the Infernal Flame. In the last leg of his fight, he summons two enemies that protect him from all harm until they are eliminated, provided you give him the opportunity.
Foil:
- His backstory as explained in the Gate of Finis makes him one to Ophilia. Both of them were devastated when they lost everyone they cared about in the past. While Ophilia managed to recover thanks to Lianna's love and support, which led to her becoming a very kind and compassionate person, Mattias didn't have anyone to help him, which led to him falling to Galdera. It is very likely that Ophilia would have ended up like Mattias if she hadn't been adopted by a loving family after her parents' deaths; likewise, if Mattias had had somebody to help him in his time of crisis, he would have likely ended up more like Ophilia.
- He's also one to Ophilia in how they respond to others in pain. While Ophilia tries to help them, Mattias takes advantage of them to further his own ends.
Foreshadowing:
- In Chapter 1 when a fellow cleric announces that Archbishop Josef has collapsed, the screen suspiciously stays focused on Mattias even after Ophilia exits. His journal in The Very Definitely Final Dungeon reveals that he poisoned Josef in his plan to make Lianna fall into despair and fail the pilgrimage.
- When speaking with Ophilia in Chapter 3 he expresses his doubt in having faith in the Sacred Flame and the gods, hinting at his true belief in the Dark Flame of Galdera.
- The biggest one is after Lianna drugs Ophilia with a sleeping draught to steal the ember so she can try to resurrect Josef. A mysterious hooded figure enters the room to reaffirm his (false) promise that he will make her wish come true... and the figure's voice all but gives away that it's Mattias.
- In Chapter 4, Mattias' dismissive admission that he had planned to sacrifice his followers to Galdera all along in exchange for receiving power from the dark god is a clue that Mattias had been preparing his plot to foil the pilgrimage in advance. This is subtle foreshadowing that Archbishop Josef's sickness on the eve of the pilgrimage was no coincidence, but the result of discreet poisoning.
Freudian Excuse: He lost his faith in the Sacred Flame and the twelve gods when his church was destroyed and many of its members were killed, prompting him to seek the power of Galdera. At first, he wanted to use it to help others, but became corrupted by it over time.
Greater-Scope Villain: Of Primrose's route, having helped Simeon co-establish the Obsidians, as explained in Octopath Traveler: The Complete Guide.
He Who Fights Monsters: He was so disgusted with the twelve gods for sitting idly by while his church burned to the ground and its members killed, that he decided that he would use Galdera's power to do the twelve gods' duty for them. By the present, he believes there is nothing wrong with him murdering Archbishop Josef via poison and sacrificing his own loyal followers to the Accurst Flame to accomplish that goal, and even laughs at the idea of using the latter's lives to gain power, a far cry from his past self.
Hell: His journal in Gate of Finis makes the implication that for all his blasphemous crimes against the Gods, he's sent to the equivalent of Hell in Orsterra, where for all his 'services', Galdera put him in a place where there is only absolute darkness. Mattias is reduced into futilely begging for some light, the same light that he rejected in his life.
I Lied: Mattias manipulates Lianna into believing that he will resurrect her deceased father if she steals the ember from Ophilia. After she does so and initiates his ritual wishing for her father's resurrection, the nearby villagers collapse, at which point Mattias cruelly reveals that he had lied all along and took advantage of her grief to sacrifice the villagers to Galdera and gain power from the dark god, breaking Lianna completely.
Magic Staff: His scepter is a candelabra lit with the corrupted Sacred Flame. He drops this weapon upon his defeat.
Manipulative Bastard: He manipulates the devastated Lianna into stealing the ember from Ophilia under the false promise to bring her father Archbishop Josef back. In reality, he is the one responsible for Josef's death in the first place, as he used slow-acting poison to make it look like Josef died from natural causes.
No Body Left Behind: His body disintegrates upon his defeat.
No Name Given: Mattias isn't his real name. It was a fake name he adopted after he outlived everyone who knew him to help conceal his identity. His true name is never revealed.
Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: He claims that he wants to help Lianna by resurrecting her father at the cost of corrupting the Sacred Flame with Galdera's power, but he actually only cares about power and is even willing to sacrifice several of his own followers to the Accurst Flame for his own benefit. He was once a genuine Well-Intentioned Extremist before The Dark Side Made Him Forget.
One Degree of Separation: His diary entry in the Gate of Finis reveals that he is allied with Simeon, the main antagonist of Primrose's route, who supported him in his crusade against the Sacred Flame. The official companion book Octopath Traveler: The Complete Guide goes a step further by revealing that Mattias helped Simeon co-establish the Obsidians, making the former the Greater-Scope Villain of Primrose's route.
Rage Against the Heavens: He became disillusioned and furious with the gods after his loved ones perished in a fire that destroyed the church he worshipped at, and has dedicated his life to weakening the Sacred Flame he once revered ever since. By the time he conducts the ritual in Ophilia's Chapter 4, his hatred for the Sacred Flame has twisted him so much that he has no problem sacrificing his own followers to the dark god Galdera without their knowledge, something his past self would have been horrified by.
Really 700 Years Old: Having gained the forbidden knowledge of the tome From the Far Reaches of Hell from Lyblac has allowed him to live without aging. He's really a former high-ranking member of the Order of the Sacred Flame, who has lived long enough that everyone that could possibly recognize his true identity has died of old age. Octopath Traveler: The Complete Guide confirms that his minimum age is 115 during the current events of the game.
Sadist: When he gives Ophilia the Sadistic Choice of either letting the ritual empowering Galdera to continue, killing Lianna or convincing her to give up wishing for her father's resurrection (which he believes is impossible), he laughs at the thought of Ophilia killing Lianna.
Shadow Archetype: As revealed in his diary in The Very Definitely Final Dungeon, Mattias embodies what Ophilia would have become if she hadn't been Happily Adopted and reached out to by Lianna after losing her loved ones. Ophilia became a very kind and compassionate person because she had Lianna to help her through her pain, whereas nobody was there for Mattias when he lost his loved ones, and as a result he developed a deep hatred for the gods and fell into evil.
The Starscream: Unlike Lyblac, he doesn't intend on fully reviving Galdera but weakening the bonds on the fallen god, which will give Mattias more power in turn.
Start of Darkness: Deciding that the twelve gods of Orsterra couldn't care less about human suffering and renouncing his faith, after his loved ones died in a fire started by a lightning strike, including children. Following this, Mattias took it upon himself to help others, but eventually decided it was a great idea to seek the power of the thirteenth god, Galdera to do so, and the rest is history.
Unwitting Pawn: To Lyblac, who gave him eternal youth knowing he would try to weaken the Sacred Flame and loosen the bonds on Galdera.
Villainous Breakdown: When Ophilia talks Lianna out of wishing for her father's resurrection by reminding her that the memories she made with him remain with her, and dispels the dark flame, he goes berserk and tries to feed Ophilia to it.
Walking Spoiler: He appears in Ophilia's Chapter 1 as a seemingly unimportant NPC, but in her Chapter 4 is revealed to have been plotting to foil the pilgrimage from the start.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: He used to be this. After his loss of faith in the twelve gods, he decided to use Galdera's power to help people. However, he eventually got drunk on his power.
You Meddling Kids: When Ophilia manages to dissuade Lianna from completing the dark ritual, Mattias has a Villainous Breakdown where he laments that "it all would have succeeded if only Lianna had been the one to perform the Kindling".

Cyrus's Route

Russell

A scholar in the same academy as Cyrus who gambles frequently.

Character Death: Averted. Russell is the only antagonist in Cyrus's story to survive the game.
Child Prodigy: After clearing Cyrus's story, Russell's Scrutinize/Inquire data notes that he was lauded as a genius as a child before losing much of it as an adult.
Dark Is Not Evil: He dresses in black, but he's by far the least evil of Cyrus's bosses, only stealing due to his debt and eventually pulling a Heel–Face Turn.
Drowning My Sorrows: Dominic mentioned that Russell reeked of liquor before he took him on as his apprentice.
The Gambling Addict: He has a gambling problem that has put him in a sizable debt.
Heel–Face Turn: After serving his sentence, he wandered around before becoming Dominic's apprentice.
Lone Wolf Boss: He has nothing to do with the theft of From the Far Reaches of Hell, having stolen a different, unrelated tome.
My God, What Have I Done?: Bows his head in shame as Cyrus explains the enormity of his crime.
Playing with Fire: Two of his attacks are fire-based.
Small Role, Big Impact: He only appears in Cyrus's first chapter for stealing a book. However, his theft reveals that From the Far Reaches of Hell is also missing, kicking off Cyrus's quest to find the tome.
Starter Villain: The first boss that Cyrus fights.
Throw the Book at Them: One of his attacks is called Tome Tempest.
You Meddling Kids: After Cyrus catches him in a verbal slip, Russell angrily says "If not for your bloody meddling, I could have had it all!" before beginning their battle.

Gideon

A scholar who kidnaps people in Quarrycrest Sewers and extracts their blood in order to create blood-crystals, a technique learned from a copy of the tome Cyrus searches for.

Arc Villain: The main antagonist for Cyrus's Chapter 2.
Bald of Evil: Concept art shows that he's bald, and he's thoroughly unpleasant.
Blood Magic: His reason for kidnapping people.
Character Death: He dies shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Cyrus.
Dark Is Evil: He dresses in black, and is a sociopathic scholar who doesn't care about the people he kidnaps to use in his unethical experiments.
Dropped a Bridge on Him: Dies instantly and unceremoniously after being defeated in battle by Cyrus.
Flat Character: Due to getting very little screen-time. He's an amoral Mad Scientist, and there's little else to his character beyond that. The results of his experiments are more memorable than he is.
Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Cyrus tells Gideon that he should free the three surviving prisoners at once if he knows what's best for him. Gideon's response?
Gideon: Well, since you asked so nicely... no, I think not.
Knight of Cerebus: Russell is just a thief trying to pay his gambling debts and eventually Heel-Face Turns; Gideon is a sociopathic scientist who kills innocents so that he can extract their blood for use in dark magic, and serves as a transition to more serious threats.
Mad Scientist: He has no problem killing people for his experiments.
Sinister Scythe: He uses a sickle.
Small Role, Big Impact: He gets very little screen-time and we don't see much of his personality before he dies, but his experiments are the first sign that the knowledge within the From the Far Reaches of Hell tome is extremely dangerous when placed in the wrong hands. His use of an abridged copy of the tome also gives Cyrus a big lead to find the original edition.
The Sociopath: He treats innocent lives he kidnaps as nothing more than tools to be used for his Blood Magic experiments, and couldn't care less about them as long as he gets the results he wants.
We Hardly Knew Ye: Gets brief but effective characterization, is defeated in battle by Cyrus and co., and dies unceremoniously.

The Grimoire Scholar (SPOILERS)

Headmaster Yvon

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_yvon.png

"You will taste the power I summoned from the far reaches of hell!"

The headmaster of the academy Cyrus teaches at, who considers knowledge a form of power that only the worthy should have access to. Cyrus's investigations also uncover that he commissioned the translation of From the Far Reaches of Hell, the tome that had gone missing.

Ambition Is Evil: His villainy started when he decided that he was far too smart to remain a lowly teacher, with a little helpful nudging from Lucia. And Lyblac. He even curses the both of them after you defeat his shadow boss form in The Very Definitely Final Dungeon, while also cursing his own lack of foresight.
Character Death: He dies shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Cyrus, with some "assistance" from Lucia giving him an imperfect blood-crystal without his knowledge, having intended to use him to discover the information she wanted and then dispose of him all along.
Chekhov's Gunman: He initially appears to be the stern headmaster of the Royal Academy of Atlasdam, but in Cyrus' Chapter 3 is revealed to be more than just a Jerkass — he is responsible for the theft of From the Far Reaches of Hell.
Dark Is Evil: He dresses in black, and is a cold Dean Bitterman who believes knowledge should only be shared with a select few, and is later revealed to be outright evil.
Dean Bitterman: He's very cold to the other scholars, even calling out Cyrus for believing that knowledge should be shared.
Devil in Plain Sight: Despite the fact that his eyes are red, nobody In-Universe suspects him of being any worse than a selfish Jerkass until Cyrus uncovers the truth in Stonegard.
Didn't See That Coming: He didn't realize that Lucia had planned to invoke You Have Outlived Your Usefulness on him once he uncovered all the secrets within From the Far Reaches of Hell all along until it was too late. He spends the last moments of his life incredulous that his ambition blinded him to Lucia's true colors. He curses both Lucia, Lyblac and his own lack of foresight in his diary found in The Very Definitely Final Dungeon.
The Dragon: The secondary antagonist of Cyrus' story.
Entitled Bastard: He assassinated the previous headmaster to usurp the position after he came to believe that he was more intelligent than the previous headmaster, and therefore more deserving of the privileges that comes with being one. Lucia and Lyblac helped bring out this side of him.
Evil All Along: A little downplayed as he already was a Jerkass before the reveal of his true villainy. However, it turns out that he is more than a mere Dean Bitterman as he's a murderer and the one responsible of the theft of From the Far Reaches of Hell (even though he was Lucia's Unwitting Pawn all along).
Evil Counterpart: To Cyrus. They both have a passion for knowledge, but Yvon pursues knowledge for his own benefit and is strictly selective about the knowledge he shares, whereas Cyrus enjoys teaching and passing knowledge on to future generations.
Evil Genius: He's an Insufferable Genius who's also one of the antagonists of Cyrus' story.
Evil Old Folks: He's in his late fifties, believes that knowledge should only be shared with a select few, and turns out to be a thief and a murderer.
Fatal Flaw:
- Arrogance. Yvon took great pride in his knowledge and intelligence, filling him with the arrogant belief that he is better than others. Even when he was a teacher before he became Headmaster, Yvon believed that his knowledge made him entitled to better things, which would push him to murder the former Headmaster so he could usurp the position for himself. His arrogance left him unable to realize that he was ultimately nothing more than a pawn of Lucia and Lyblac, who used him for their own ambitions before they planned to dispose of him once he had served his purpose.
- Lack of Foresight. Yvon's arrogance and thirst for knowledge made him very ambitious, desiring to gain what he could learn with no regard for how he achieved it. Tragically, his ambition made him very short-sighted which he acknowledges in his diary after Lucia betrays him. He was so focused on gaining knowledge and learning secrets that he never once realized that Lucia planned to betray him, which he learned too late.
Flunky Boss: He has two other scholars assisting him in his battle. And he's the only boss rematch in the Gate of Finis that has others join him from the start.
Foreshadowing: At the end of Cyrus's Chapter 2, Odette tells Cyrus that the previous headmaster died "under mysterious circumstances" the same year From the Far Reaches of Hell was stolen from the archives. Not only does Cyrus uncover Yvon's culpability in the tome's theft, but the latter's diary in The Very Definitely Final Dungeon reveals that he assassinated the then-headmaster to take his position, believing that his higher intelligence meant he was more deserving of the position and its privileges.
Insufferable Genius: He looks down on others that aren't up to his level of intelligence and believes knowledge isn't meant to be shared with those with inferior minds.
Jerkass: He was unpleasant even before he was revealed to be a villain.
Klingon Promotion: He took the position of headmaster by assassinating the previous one.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: His disciplinary action unto Cyrus for Therese's out-of-control rumor ultimately led the erstwhile scholar into following his paper trail and staining it with his blood. Whether Lucia planned on disposing of Yvon or not, she winds up joining him.
No Body Left Behind: After his boss fight, his transformed body disintegrates in a burst of magic.
Obviously Evil: He has red eyes, so it's not exactly surprising when he's revealed to be outright evil and not just a Jerkass Dean Bitterman.
One-Winged Angel: Has obtained a blood-crystal, and uses it to transform into a giant brute for his boss fight.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: He has prominent red eyes, which serves as an obvious hint of his true nature. They're glowing red due to him dabbling with dark magic.
Shadow Archetype: Yvon (and Lucia) embodies what Cyrus would have become if he sought knowledge solely for personal gain, instead of for the benefit of humanity.
This Cannot Be!: He spends his last moments uttering these words. Apparently, Lucia promised Yvon immortality.
Unwitting Pawn: Lucia used him to gain the forbidden knowledges of the blood-crystals, then betrayed him when he was no longer useful to her. In The Very Definitely Final Dungeon, you can find a note from Yvon cursing his own lack of foresight, realizing too late that everything just seemed too good to be true, and he was so blinded by ambition that he fell for it all.
Volcanic Veins: His veins glow red after using a blood-crystal to transform.
Walking Spoiler: He at first appears to be the Jerkass headmaster of the Royal Academy of Atlasdam, but in Cyrus's Chapter 3 is revealed to be responsible for the theft of the From the Far Reaches of Hell tome Cyrus is searching for.

The Grimoire Thief (SPOILERS)

Lucia

Lucia has gained inhuman strength...

Headmaster Yvon's assistant. She briefly fools Cyrus into thinking she's a scholar willing to undermine her boss to find the truth. But she's not only complicit in his acts; she's eager to surpass them.

And Then What?: Cyrus asks this of her on what exactly she plans to actually do with all their knowledge she accumulates, to which he tells her that such knowledge should be passed on, not hoarded.
Arc Villain: The primary villain of Cyrus's story.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: At first, she seems like a friendly assistant, even suggesting Cyrus' sabbatical to keep his and the academy's reputation in tact. However, when Cyrus enters Yvon's Birthplace, she throws him into a trap and reveals she is working with Headmaster Yvon, and is the thief Cyrus has been searching for.
Body Horror: Despite using a perfected blood-crystal, her transformation is actually more monstrous than Yvon's. While Yvon just looked like a bigger, more muscular version of himself with paler skin, Lucia gains Creepily Long Arms, an overly thin waist, and her spine protrudes from her back.
Character Death: She dies shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Cyrus.
Clipped-Wing Angel: She begins the fight with an enormous 30 points of armor, however each time you put her in a broken state she will regenerate fewer armor points (first 15, then 8). The game describes this as being due to her body mutating and breaking down as the fight progresses.
Dark Is Evil: She dresses in purple and black, and is a sociopathic mastermind who has no problem using others to gets what she wants before tossing them aside, having orchestrated Yvon's rise to power and eventual death over the course of fifteen years.
Deceptive Disciple: She used Yvon to obtain as much forbidden knowledge from him as she wants and then got rid of him once he was no longer useful.
The Dog Was the Mastermind: The Arc Villain of Cyrus's story who stole the book From the Far Reaches of Hell is Lucia, Yvon's initially nameless assistant who seemed to have no role beyond suggesting Cyrus's sabbatical in the first place and promptly vanished from the plot until masquerading as an ally of Cyrus when she appears in Chapter 3. Turns out she is a servant of Lyblac who corrupted Headmaster Yvon into doing her bidding.
Dragon Ascendant: After Yvon's defeat, she takes the blood-crystal research in the hopes of gaining immortality, as a mere mortal can only learn so much in their lifetime.
Evil All Along: Briefly passes herself for an ally of Cyrus, but it ultimately turns out that she's Yvon's accomplice. She then becomes this from Yvon's perspective when she deliberately gives him a blood-crystal without telling him it is an imperfect one, intending for Yvon to die from his body mutating.
Evil Counterpart: To Cyrus. They are both motivated by the pursuit of knowledge, but Lucia pursues knowledge for her own benefit and considers mediocre minds unworthy of her time, whereas Cyrus enjoys teaching and passing knowledge on to future generations.
Evil Genius: Her villainous plans which involve blood magic are to make her immortal and the most intelligent being in the world.
Evil Is Petty: She uses Yvon to discover the secrets within a magic tome, allows the conduction of horrific experiments to extract the blood of innocent victims, and voluntarily throws away her own humanity to become a powerful monstrosity… all for the purpose of acquiring all the knowledge in the world and keeping it to herself so that she can feel superior to everybody else. Cyrus's "The Reason You Suck" Speech delivered to her is well-deserved.
Evil Sounds Raspy: Downplayed, as her voice sounds normal most of the time. However, after she transforms herself using a blood crystal, the voice clip she gets upon her defeat sounds quite raspy.
Faux Affably Evil: She continues to act civil even after her true monstrous side is revealed until Cyrus calls her out on her beliefs.
Foil: Like many of the other final chapter bosses, Lucia acts as a foil to the traveler to drive home the themes of that traveler's story. Both Lucia and Cyrus are scholars with a thirst for knowledge, but while Cyrus aims to educate other people and give everyone power through knowledge, Lucia seeks to hoard knowledge and use it to increase her own power.
Foreshadowing: Although Lucia claims the secret library Cyrus finds in his fourth chapter belongs to her, he notes that even the most accomplished and well-connected scholar would take at least decades to collect all those books, implying that someone else gave her access to that library. It's later revealed that Lyblac was the one behind Lucia and Yvon's schemes.
HP to One: After being broken twice, Lucia gains access to her ultimate attack, which reduces the entire party to 1 HP and heals Lucia by the total HP the party lost.
Immortality Seeker: She wishes to become immortal so she can have all the time she needs to obtain all the knowledge in the world.
"It" Is Dehumanizing: While she refers to specific individuals by their gender pronouns, referring to Cyrus and Yvon as "he"/"his", she refers to a nonspecific human as "it" instead of "they"/"their" while explaining her reasons for being an Immortality Seeker, proving her narcissistic contempt for humanity's flaws.
Lucia: A human can only learn so much in its short lifetime. I will gain the time, the power to understand everything.
It's All About Me: In spades. Lucia wants all the knowledge in the world for herself so that she can feel superior to everybody else. Cyrus is not impressed, and he rightly calls her out for her selfishness.
The Man in Front of the Man: Yvon's initially anonymous assistant, always seen with him in Chapter 1, turns out to have been pulling his strings all along and is the reason he even got his position.
Magic Knight: Although she is the main antagonist of Cyrus's story, you want to bring both magical and physical attackers to the battle against her. In fact, during her first phase she is purely a physical attacker and is only weak to weapons, and Staves ain't one of them, making her very anti-Cyrus. During her second phase, she adds magical attacks and is only weak to spells, and during her third phase is weak to a combination of weapons and spells.
Manipulative Bitch: She assists Yvon while he uncovers all the secrets within From the Far Reaches of Hell, then deliberately gives him an incomplete blood-crystal and leads Cyrus to him, having no more use for him.
No Body Left Behind: As with Yvon, she disintegrates upon defeat.
One-Winged Angel: Becomes a monstrosity after trying to transcend humanity by using a blood-crystal on herself.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: Downplayed, as Lucia has blue eyes in her human form. However, after she uses a blood-crystal to turn herself into an abomination, her eyes become red.
Shadow Archetype: Lucia (and Yvon) embodies what Cyrus would have become if he sought knowledge solely for personal gain, instead of for the benefit of humanity.
The Sociopath: Lucia is calm and polite throughout most of her conversations with Cyrus and Yvon, but it's a façade to mask a narcissistic and cold-hearted woman who has no qualms using others to get what she wants, then disposing of them once they've fulfilled their role for her. Specifically, she wants to become immortal so that she can gain all the knowledge in the universe for herself—including knowledge that can be used to benefit humanity—all to fuel her belief in her superiority to everybody else. After Cyrus deconstructs her personal ideology and tells her just how selfish he thinks she is, her polite façade breaks in anger to reveal the twisted monster underneath. While lacking Simeon's sadism, Lucia is still one of the most evil antagonists in the game.
Soft-Spoken Sadist: While "sadist" probably isn't the right word, Lucia otherwise stays true to the spirit of the trope; she's a villain, and she never raises her voice once until her final confrontation with Cyrus, where she becomes excited as she makes her We Can Rule Together offer to Cyrus, and loses it when Cyrus rejects her offer.
The Starscream: She helped Yvon so he could acquire all the forbidden research she wanted, then betrays him and steals it all once she no longer needed him.
Villain Respect: She genuinely respects Cyrus for his passion for discovering new knowledge. Cyrus does not return the favor because she keeps the knowledge she discovers to herself for the sake of her personal ego, while Cyrus believes in and enjoys sharing knowledge with others.
Villainous Breakdown: She makes a We Can Rule Together offer to Cyrus. He refuses on the grounds that Lucia wants to hoard knowledge for the sake of her own ego, instead of sharing knowledge with others. Lucia does not take his rejection and subsequent "The Reason You Suck" Speech at all well.
Lucia: ... Enough. I've given you plenty of opportunities to make a move — any move! — but clearly we are going nowhere fast. If you would rather die without discovering the truth, so be it!
Villainous Crush: Several of her lines are phrased in a way that suggest she has feelings for Cyrus. It takes multiple rejections from him before she finally gets a clue that no, he won't ever join with her.
Lucia: I've given you plenty of opportunities to make a move—any move!—but clearly we are going nowhere fast.
Volcanic Veins: Like Yvon, her veins glow red after using a blood-crystal to transform.
Walking Spoiler: Due to being complicit in Yvon's plot to steal the From the Far Reaches of Hell tome, then for betraying Yvon after he discovered all the secrets in the tome as He Had Outlived His Usefulness, becoming the main antagonist of Cyrus's route.
We Can Rule Together: Offers to let Cyrus join her, seeing him as her only intellectual equal. Cyrus refuses because, while they do both have a passion for knowledge, Lucia wants to claim knowledge for herself whereas Cyrus wants to share knowledge with others, and looks forward to when he can learn from them. Lucia does not take it well.
White Hair, Black Heart: Her hair becomes white after she willingly turns herself into a demonic monstrosity to battle Cyrus, and she is one of the most evil antagonists in the game.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: After Yvon uncovers all the secrets contained within the From the Far Reaches of Hell tome, Lucia betrays and disposes of Yvon by giving him an imperfect blood-crystal without his knowledge and leading Cyrus to him.

Tressa's Route

Mikk and Makk

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_makkandmikk.png

Mikk (right) and Makk (left)

The leaders of a band of pirates that terrorize Tressa's hometown.

The Alcoholic: They love to drink wine.
Borrowed Catch Phrase: They often utter the infamous Captain Leon's motto, "The strong take and the weak quake." Their use of the line celebrates that the strong have the right to take advantage of the weak.
Dirty Coward: They act like a bunch of big shots, but the moment they realize their enemy is stronger than them, they run for their lives.
Dual Boss: Both of them are fought at the same time.
Fat and Skinny: One is Lean and Mean, the other is shorter and more burly.
Heel–Face Turn: By the time Tressa reaches Victors Hollow, they've decided to turn over a new leaf and work for Leon.
Hypocritical Humor: When they re-encounter Tressa in Victors Hollow, they're annoyed when she misrefers to them as "Nick and Knack"... only to misrefer to her hometown as "Drippleslime".
Pirate: Through and through, completely with Dressed to Plunder and Talk Like a Pirate.
Starter Villain: They are the first antagonists in Tressa's route.
Tempting Fate: When Captain Leon Bastralle arrives to save Tressa from three of their subordinates when they gang up on her, Mikk tells their subordinates, "What difference does one more make? Get 'em!" Cue Leon effortlessly curb-stomping all three of their subordinates all on his own.
Undying Loyalty: To Captain Leon once they join his merchant crew.
Vitriolic Best Buds: They often argue with each other over who's the captain of the pirates, but they otherwise work well together.
Wake-Up Call Boss: Surprisingly, they're among the harder first bosses in the game due to being a Dual Boss at a point where you may only have one character. They combo well and have high break bars making them better for after your second or third starter chapter. In particular, Cyrus greatly helps make the fight more manageable.

Morlock and Omar

Omar

The man that owns the mines and all surrounding lands in Quarrycrest, and his strong assistant. Already underpaying their gold miners, when skystones are discovered in the area, they attempt to confiscate Tressa and Ali's supplies. And when Ali tries to argue, they knock him out and apprehend him, giving Tressa motive to fight back.

Arc Villain: Morlock is the main villain of Tressa's Chapter 2, with Omar fighting as the boss in his stead.
Bad Boss: Morlock uses his position as landowner of Quarrycrest to claim ownership of any and all gold his miners uncover. It initially appears that Morlock generously buys the uncovered gold from his miners with his own money, but Ali has figured out that he only pays them a tenth of the gold's actual value.
Bait the Dog: Morlock's policy of buying any gold that people unearth on his land seems fair at first glance, until Ali reveals that Morlock is only paying the people a fraction of what the gold is actually worth.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Morlock presents himself as a respectable gentleman, but when Ali reveals that he pays his workers only 10% of the value of the gold they find while mining, it's quickly revealed that he's a nasty man.
Dirty Coward: When Omar is defeated by the party, Morlock quickly gives in to all demands before fleeing for his life.
The Dragon: Omar is this big time for his boss Morlock.
Evil Counterpart: Morlock is this to Tressa. Tressa is a friendly, honest working-class merchant who's out to both make money and form connections with her customers. Morlock is a wealthy landowner and businessman who only cares about money and uses his position to actively scam his workers by paying them a fraction of the gold he claims ownership over.
Fat Bastard: Morlock, as a side-effect of his opulence, is quite portly.
Flunky Boss: Omar is seconded by a few guards during his fight.
Hate Sink: Morlock, while not among the most evil characters in the game, is a greedy, immoral man who uses his position as landowner of Quarrycrest to claim ownership over all riches his miners unearth, then pays them only a fraction of their worth without his miners' knowledge. He also becomes downright cruel in his mockery of Ali's father, heartlessly laughing at how he fell into debt. It's pretty evident that Morlock is a character not meant to be liked!
Heel–Face Turn: Sort of. After Tressa's story ends, they can be Guided/Allured as allies.
Hidden Depths: Once Tressa's story is concluded, the pair can be found in Bolderfall. There, scrutinizing/inquiring Omar reveals that he cares about Morlock beyond monetary contract, intending to stay with Morlock until the old man finds somewhere safe.
Hired Guns: Morlock sunk a lot of cash into Omar.
Jerkass Has a Point: Zig-zagged. Morlock dismisses Ali's father as a man who swindled his business connections and fell into debt after being deceived by a friend of his. While Ali admits that the latter is true, he insists that the former is just a lie that his father's competitors spread.
Kick the Dog: While Morlock is right about Ali's father being in debt, he's so excessively cruel in mocking Maruf that Tressa calls him out on it.
Laser-Guided Karma: Morlock falls from Riches to Rags after being sent packing from Quarrycrest. Considering his greed and cruelty, few will feel sorry for him.
Light Is Not Good: Morlock dresses in white and is a cruel person.
Mighty Glacier: While not particularly slow, Omar has considerable offensive prowess, and can actually bolster his defenses in combat; this comes in the form of increasing his maximum guard points, thus requiring more effort to Break him. This is always done the first two times he recovers from a Break.
No Full Name Given: Morlock is the landlord's surname, and his first name is never revealed.
Only One Name: Omar's surname is never revealed.
Optional Party Member: After Tressa's story ends, they can be encountered near the tavern in Lower Bolderfall, and Guided/Allured as allies.
Riches to Rags: After getting run out of town by Tressa, Morlock is rendered completely broke.
Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: Morlock's mindset, having bought out all the Quarrycrest area landowners before.
Stout Strength: Omar's battle sprite makes him seem portly, but he's nevertheless very strong.
The Unfought: Unlike Helgenish or Vanessa, Morlock does not participate at all in the battle.

Venomtooth Tiger (Byakko)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_tiger.png

The beast's fangs and claws drip with lethal poison...

A beast fought in the Forgotten Grotto where Baltazar hid his most valuable gem.

Beyond the Impossible: An antagonistic example. The Poison status in the game universally drains a party member's HP. But the Venomtooth Tiger's venom is so potent that in the last legs of the fight, it starts burning away the party's SP and BP as well (which are equivalent to the physical traits of mana and vitality, respectively).
Character Death: Its appearance as a ghost in The Very Definitely Final Dungeon confirms it died shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Tressa, making it the only antagonist in her story to die.
- This is an abnormal example given that Octopath is very consistent with its rules regarding bosses dying (if you don’t see the body, they ran away). Meaning that either Tressa accidentally killed it (bled out) or it was attacked by other beasts offscreen.
Dub Name Change: From Byakko to Venomtooth Tiger.
Fangs Are Evil: It has a pair of large, purple tusks protruding from the sides of its mouth.
Giant Space Flea from Nowhere: One of the few bosses of the game who has no ties to the story and very little foreshadowing, appearing out of nowhere to give a boss fight to the third chapter of Tressa's story.
Meaningful Name: A white tiger named after Chinese mythology's White Tiger of the West in the Japanese version.
Panthera Awesome: It's a white tiger that possesses a lethal poison.
Poisonous Person: This thing is so poisonous that its regular attacks can inflict poison. When its health gets low enough, its toxicity becomes so severely potent that any poison it inflicts will actually drain SP and BP.

Esmeralda

A thief that steals Tressa's diary. She is a member of the Obsidians, the same group responsible for the death of Primrose's father. Her stealing Tressa's diary is likely due to the group's wanting to track down Graham Crossford, the previous owner of the diary.

Achilles' Heel: While Esmeralda is a Barrier Change Boss, she is consistently weak to Wind.
Arc Villain: For Tressa's Chapter 4, along with, to a lesser extent, her unnamed partner.
Barrier Change Boss: She changes her weaknesses throughout the fight. She's always weak to Wind, however.
The Cameo: She makes a brief appearance in Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent as a antagonist for the Divine Beast sidequest, having been sent by Mattias to defeat the Ringbearer and take the Divine Beasts.
Dark Action Girl: As the Final Boss of Tressa's story, she more than qualifies. She's one of the hardest-hitting Chapter 4 bosses.
Dark Is Evil: She wears black, just like the rest of the Obsidians.
Disproportionate Retribution: She tries to kill Tressa for trying to take back her journal that Esmeralda stole despite the fact that she not only gave it back moments prior, but even admitted was useless to her.
Dual Wield: She wields knives in her sprite, which she can use to prevent certain battle actions or cause death within a certain amount of turns unless all her shield points are broken.
Evil Wears Black: She wears black like the other members of the Obsidians.
Final Boss: Of Tressa's story.
Locked Out of the Loop: It's possible to meet her after Simeon's death, but she and her partner will still try to steal Tressa's diary for the Obsidians, apparently unaware that their leader has already been killed.
Lone Wolf Boss: Most of the protagonists get personal antagonists whose hands have been deeply involved in their journeys for their final confrontations. Tressa's is some random asshole who jumps her for her notebook.
Ms. Fanservice: Her boss sprite emphasizes her breasts and legs.
Power Nullifier: Esmeralda's colored daggers have the unique ability to limit their target's abilities. The Red Blade will prevent the target from using weapon attacks and abilities, and her Violet Blade will prevent the target from using any magic attacks.
Tattooed Crook: In her concept art, she has the telltale crow of the Obsidians, the group that killed Primrose's father, tattooed on her thighs. Her boss sprite, however, had this detail omitted for some reason.
What Happened to the Mouse?: We don't really see what happens to her after Tressa defeats her. She didn't seem to have received a fatal injury, so she was probably arrested, but we don't really learn much about her fate. Either way she won't be stealing notebooks any time soon.
You Are Already Dead: Her Black Blade attack will trigger a countdown for its target — once it hits zero, the victim will be incapacitated unless Esmeralda can be broken first.

Olberic's Route

Erhardt

A former member of the Knights of Hornburg who, for unknown reasons, betrayed them and killed the country's king during a battle with an enemy nation.

The Ace: Only Olberic is his equal when it comes to wielding a blade, and even he wasn't able to stop Erhardt's secret technique.
All There in the Manual: While the game makes it seem like Werner was the one who destroyed Grynd, the official guide book states it was actually the fault of the invading southern clans. Nonetheless Werner used both truths and lies to exacerbate Erhardt's hatred for King Alfred as part of his plan to fall Hornburg.
Anti-Villain: He betrayed and killed King Alfred during his time as a Knight of Hornbug who had pledged to protect him, causing the fall of Hornbug and Olberic's purpose crisis. When Olberic makes the acquaintance of Gustav, Gustav reveals that Erhardt had planned the King's death before he even joined the Knighthood... and then reveals that the King had neglected to save Erhardt's home village Grynd when they were attacked and slaughtered. After slaying the King, Erhardt finds Wellspring and becomes its protector from the Lizardmen there, having found no happiness from avenging the people of his village.
The Atoner: By the time Olberic finds him, Erhardt has become a protector of Wellspring much like Olberic became one for Cobbleston, having found nothing but emptiness from killing King Alfred in the name of vengeance.
Becoming the Mask: Before his duel with Olberic, he admits that he cherishes the memories of training together, even though he had plotted Hornburg's downfall long before infiltrating their knights.
Big Damn Heroes: Saves Olberic and Harald after they're ambushed by Werner's forces when their diversionary attack fails.
Bodyguard Betrayal: Despite being a Knight of Hornburg, pledged to protect his king, he killed King Alfred during battle.
Disc-One Final Boss: He's introduced as the man responsible for Olberic's greatest failure and the big personal antagonist of Olberic's story. You beat him up in Chapter 3, and Olberic buries the hatchet with him and runs off to go fight the man who really instigated the fall of Hornburg, Werner.
Duel Boss: Olberic chooses to duel him, one-on-one.
Easily Forgiven: No matter what his reasons were, his betrayal of King Alfred led to the deaths of other people and the fall of an entire kingdom. Yet, when he finally meets him, Olberic can't bring himself to kill him and forgives him, as he saw that Erhardt became a protector of Wellspring as a form of atonement and that his vengeance left him empty.
Foreshadowing: During Olberic's nightmare of Hornburg's fall at the beginning of his Chapter 1, he and Erhardt clash swords and Erhardt tells him, "I saved one trick — for the day I knew would come!" before defeating Olberic with a secret sword technique. At the end of Olberic's Chapter 2, Gustav tells Olberic that Erhardt had planned to kill the king before he even joined the Knights of Hornburg, having a bitter hatred for the king's perceived Betrayal by Inaction while his home-village and its people burned in flames.
Freudian Excuse: His home village was attacked and slaughtered, while King Alfred did nothing to help them, fueling his desire of revenge against the King who abandoned him and his loved ones when they needed him.
Good Counterpart: To Simeon and Darius. All three of them betrayed a protagonist (Olberic, Primrose, and Therion) in their backstories, leading to their current personal issues (loss of purpose, desire for revenge, and inability to trust), and all three make their first direct appearance in Chapter 3. However, while Simeon and Darius had completely unsympathetic motivations for their betrayals (sadism and greed), are the definitive Big Bads of their storylines, are not forgiven by the protagonists, and end up with daggers in the shriveled lumps they call hearts, Erhardt had at least an understandable motivation for his betrayal (revenge for a perceived Betrayal by Inaction of his burning village by the king), is the Disc-One Final Boss of Olberic's tale, is forgiven by Olberic, and ultimately survives the game.
Heel–Face Turn: Wandering without purpose after causing Hornburg's fall, he eventually became the protector of Wellspring. Solidified when he comes to Olberic's aid in his fourth chapter.
Informed Ability: In the mandatory duel against him, the game rates his danger level a whopping ten out of ten, yet he's fairly easy to defeat compared to the Lizardman Chief fought right before him. In the post game he boasts much higher stats than his chapter 3 duel if you challenge him yet his danger level has dropped from ten to eight.
The Kingslayer: In the middle of a battle, he killed his king as well as all the other knights present.
Master Swordsman: One of the most powerful in the world.
Mirror Boss: He uses several of the Warrior job's skills in his boss fight.
Misplaced Retribution: When his hometown of Grynd was destroyed, Erhardt decided to blame not the invaders from the south but rather his king for failing to protect them. It's made more tragic by the official guidebook revealing that Alfred did try to protect them, but was overwhelmed and forced to call the Church of the Sacred Flame for help. The Church would send an army led by a man named Titus who would become a war hero from the conflict, and later appeared in Champions of the Continent as a major antagonist.
The Mole: Gustav reveals that he was this from the start, as his village of Grynd was razed in war while the king did nothing.
Not Distracted by the Sexy: Implied. When using Primrose's Allure on him, his quotes imply that he is less "seduced" by her and more "hypnotized", and that he's following against his free will.
Erhardt: (Being allured) I feel compelled to follow.
Erhardt: (Parting ways) Finally, I'm free.
Optional Party Member: After Olberic's story ends, he can be encountered at the Wellspring guardhouse, and Guided/Allured as an ally. He also carries the Battle-Tested Blade, which can be Purchased.
Pet the Dog: He tutored Gaston and Gustav in swordsmanship, and gave the former his sword as a goodbye present when their mercenary group disbanded.
Red Baron: Inquiring/Scrutinizing him after completing Olberic's story reveals that as a Knight of Hornburg, he was known as the Blazing Blade.
Secret Art: He secretly created a powerful sword fighting technique which he used to defeat Olberic, who otherwise could have fought job's skills.
Unwitting Pawn: Werner used Erhardt's anger over the destruction of his village to bring him into the conspiracy to destroy Hornburg.
Vengeance Feels Empty: By the time Olberic catches up to him in present, Erhardt reveals that taking vengeance did nothing to help him feel better.
Virtuous Character Copy: As a long-haired ex-mercenary leader who fights with a one-handed sword within a fantasy setting while also having a BFS-wielding rival whom he betrayed, Erhardt may have been a reference to Griffith (differing in hair color). However, he disbands his mercenary group in peace rather than feeding them to demons, has a very strong Freudian Excuse for his betrayal to both Olberic and Hornburg instead of Griffith's purely selfish ambition, and he also earns Olberic's forgiveness. And as opposed to Griffith, who plays everyone like a fiddle, Erhardt is the one being played like a fiddle by Werner.

Gaston

A bandit leader whose gang terrorized the village of Cobblestone.

Affably Evil: He is the only member of his gang to treat Phillip with kindness and show Olberic respect. After he is defeated, he willingly gives Olberic information on how he could find Erhardt.
Anti-Villain: Not so much malevolent as he is a fatalistic idiot.
Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Clearly the best fighter among the mountain bandits, and he would be the first to insist that he wasn't put in charge for his brains.
Blood Knight: He demands that Olberic defeat him in battle before he answers any questions about Erhardt.
Dumb Muscle: He claims to be this, believing himself to only be good at fighting and to have no talent to learn more constructive skills. Even then, he still explicitly looks down on his lackeys for being arrogant, malicious, and short-sighted brutes.
Fatal Flaw: Too fatalistic to realize he had ways out of his predicament, and too stupid to realize there were multiple forms of honest work for his skill set.
Flunky Boss: He fights with some of his underlings helping him.
Forced into Evil: Believes himself to be this, claiming to lack the talent and skill for nonviolent professions and saying that hard times forced him into the life of a brigand.
Graceful Loser: After being defeated by Olberic, he gives him the information he needs and peacefully surrenders to arrest.
Heel–Face Turn: By the end of Olberic's storyline, he turns over a new leaf and becomes a protector of Cobbleston.
Irony: The job Gaston works post Heel–Face Turn was the very profession that was perfect for him, but he was too much of an idiot to figure it out.
Memento Macguffin: Erhardt used to be in the same mercenary group as him and taught him how to use a blade. When the group split up, he gave Gaston his sword as a farewell present.
Noble Demon: He's really Not So Different from Olberic in that neither of them feel like they're good for anything but swinging a sword, and Gaston just wasn't able to turn it into honest work like how Olberic did. When beaten, he's a Graceful Loser who surrenders for the sake of his surviving men and offers Olberic a lead to help him find his rival, Erhardt. The reason their lives turned out differently was difference in intellect.
Starter Villain: He's the first boss in Olberic's route.
Wouldn't Hurt a Child: After his gang kidnapped Phillip, he was the only one not to mock him or threaten him and his mother.

Victorino

A bounty hunter and arena competitor that Olberic provokes in order to earn a spot in the latest tourney.

Graceful Loser: When he is bested, he surrenders his spot in the tourney to Olberic without resistance.
Might Makes Right: Outright states this when he admits defeat to Olberic.
Optional Party Member: After Olberic's story ends, he can be encountered in the Rippletide tavern, and Guided/Allured as an ally.
Red Baron: The Buccaneer's Bane.
Red Herring: His introduction sets him up to be evil, with the "Creeping Dread" track playing and a townsperson saying he's infamous for "collecting coin for the heads of seven ill-famed buccaneers", but he quickly turns out to be an affable fellow, if not fiercely competitive.

Joshua Frostblade

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_joshua.png

An arena competitor that fights for his love, Angela.

Long-Haired Pretty Boy: He is a long-haired man with much more effeminate looks than the other competitors.
Optional Party Member: Once Olberic's story ends, he can be found in Northreach in the Frostlands and Guided/Allured to help the Travelers.
Power of Love: He claims this is what gives strength to him. Olberic defeats him anyway.

Archibold

A multi-time arena champion, who fights to maintain a winning streak that his father couldn't keep before dying in battle.

Family Honor: His reason for fighting is to secure 5 straight championship wins to honor the achievement his father sought before he met an untimely death.
Graceful Loser: He was going to achieve his fifth victory in a row and surpass his father before fighting Olberic; after losing, he assures Olberic that he's fine with starting the streak over.
Red Baron: The Crusher.
Walking Shirtless Scene: His battle attire shows off his imposing physique with minimal armor and a bare chest.
The Worf Effect: He's a 4-time champion of the Victors Hollow tournaments, so everyone is gunning for him to prove themselves. Gustav, Olberic's primary target, is rumored to be stronger than Archibold, as a means of hinting at Gustav's strength. Olberic's victory over Archibold proves his own power.

Gustav, the Black Knight

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_gustav.png

A swordsman that was taught by Erhardt when they were both sellswords. He is now a fighter in the Victors Hollow Arena that Olberic wishes to meet, in order to reignite his passion for fighting in addition to getting a lead on Erhardt's current location.

Anti-Villain: He's not evil, he's just the final tournament fighter Olberic has to defeat to get information about Erhardt.
Black Knight: His title is "The Black Knight" and he's a powerful warrior clad in black armor who Olberic has to fight to find out Erhardt's whereabouts.
Dark Is Not Evil: He wears black armor, and he is a friendly rival to Olberic.
Mr. Exposition: After his boss battle, Gustav provides Olberic with a large portion of Erhardt's backstory.
Red and Black and Evil All Over: Inverted. He wears black armor, and his battle sprite makes it apparent that he also wears a cape with a red underside, but he is an honorable knight.
Red Baron: The Black Knight.
Worthy Opponent: Acknowledges Olberic's skill and becomes a friendly rival during the tourney.

Lizardman Chief

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_lizardman.png

One of the two leaders of the lizardmen attacking Wellspring.

Anti-Villain: A travel banter between Olberic and H'aanit strongly suggests that the reason it and the other lizardmen are attacking Wellspring is because they want the water from the oasis there. In the end, the lizardmen are just trying to survive.
Arc Villain: It and its unseen partner are this for Olberic's Chapter 3.
Character Death: It and its underlings die shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Olberic. Olberic can then have a travel banter with Ophilia where she expresses her desire that they rest in peace.
Lizard Folk: It's a lizardman and much larger and more brutish-looking compared to its underlings.
Reptiles Are Abhorrent: A leader of a band of lizardmen who have been terrorizing the town of Wellspring.
Villainous Valor: Olberic acknowledges that, even for a primitive and savage beast, the Chief is the first to fight and moves forward ahead of its warriors as if to protect them.

The Mercenary Captain (SPOILERS)

Werner

Voiced By: Sean Chiplock (English)

An aura of dread pervades the battlefield...

The leader of the group of mercenaries Erhardt was a part of before he became a knight of Hornburg, and the man responsible for planning the fall of Hornburg. It was under his order that Erhardt acted as The Mole to destroy Hornburg from within. Presently, he has taken control of the town of Riverford, ruling it with an iron fist.

Ambition Is Evil: He was once a lowly mercenary with ambitions far above merely selling his sword to others.
Arc Villain: The primary villain of Olberic's story.
All Crimes Are Equal: When he first took over Riverford, he executed all the serious criminals like murderers. Then he went for more smaller fry like thieves and once he ran out of criminals, he went for anyone that dared criticize him.
Bad Boss: He kills one of his soldiers for showing fear when Erhardt and Olberic start cutting down his men, and threatens to do the same to the rest of them if they don't fight. Olberic even notes that Werner's men only serve him out of fear.
Better to Die than Be Killed: Rather than die at Olberic's hands he stabs himself with his sword.
The Caligula: He holds monthly executions via burning at the stake with one victim for each week. He's even happy that the town finally rebelled against him, because he was running out of potential victims he could execute with the slightest justification.
Character Death: He commits suicide shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Olberic, because he refuses to die at the hands of another.
The Comically Serious: Werner is treated with proper grim and dread as his personality attests. But one of his attacks is bequeathing someone a boot to the head, something that he does without any intentional humor. Said boot to the head will handily knock his target unconscious.
Cool Horse: So cool in fact that it appears out of nowhere, indoors, so that Werner can better glower down at the party from astride it.
Dark Is Evil: He wears black, his attacks inflict Terror, and he is one of the most evil antagonists in the game.
Defiant to the End: When bested by Olberic, rather than reflect on his own myriad sins, he chooses to spit on Olberic's rhetoric one last time before running himself through.
The Dreaded: The people who know him fear him. Even Erhardt warns Olberic to fear Werner's skill with the sword, which is enough for Olberic to take him seriously. This is also reflected in the boss battle against him as he inflicts the Terror status effect on the party with his attacks.
Engineered Heroics: He gained acclaim by hiring bandits to sack border villages and beating them back with his own mercenaries before Hornburg's knights could arrive.
Even Evil Has Standards: As ruthless and brutal as he was, even he was unnerved by Lyblac and cut off ties with her as soon as their plan to destroy Hornburg was completed.
Evil Counterpart: To Olberic. While Olberic is a noble knight dedicated to protecting the weak, Werner is a brutal warlord who exploits and terrorizes the weak.
Evil Is Petty: Once he ran out of serious criminals to execute like murderers, he started going after thieves, and eventually executed anybody who dared critcize his rule.
Fake Aristocrat: Werner claims he has noble blood, but everyone knows it's total bullshit and his titles are actually bought.
From Nobody to Nightmare: He used to be a common sellsword until he met Lyblac. He then managed to bring down the kingdom of Hornburg and took control of Riverford after overthrowing its rightful ruler.
Karmic Death: He was the one who orchestrated Hornburg's downfall, and ultimately it was Hornburg's last knight who tracked him down and then bested him in single combat. Werner notes in his diary with irony that he couldn't outrun karma in the end.
The Man Behind the Man: He's the true man behind Hornburg's fall. Erhardt was working for him.
Master Swordsman: Even Erhardt states that Werner's skill with the sword surpasses his own.
Might Makes Right: His philosophy as he brutally crushes those who oppose him.
The Mob Boss Is Scarier: When Olberic and Erhardt show up and start carving his flunkies apart, Werner gives them a choice: either face the tag team of two of the most legendary swordsmen of the age, or join said knights and face him. Not a single one of his goons even entertains the thought of turning on him.
One-Hit Kill: His "Rule by Fear" attack will instantly kill any character who has the Terror status.
Spiteful Suicide: Kills himself out of pride rather than face what he's done, refusing to die at anyone else's hand but his own.
Turns Red: At low health in his fight, he will increase actions per turn from 2 to 3.
Tyrant Takes the Helm: He overthrew the previous lord of Riverford to install himself as its despotic ruler.
Villain Has a Point: In response to Olberic's incredulous Disappointment at His Motive, Werner says that everyone has different ideas of how important people and nations are. He isn't wrong: Olberic, an honorable knight who uses his sword to protect the weak, is horrified that Werner believes wanting to have the power within the Gate of Finis was a good reason to plot Hornburg's fall, but Werner believes this because he prioritizes power over lives.
Walking Spoiler: It's pretty much impossible to talk about this man without mentioning that he orchestrated the plot to bring Hornburg to ruin, taking advantage of Erhardt's hatred for King Alfred's neglect to save his home-village to convince the soon-to-be-knight to help him do so.
We Can Rule Together: Offers Olberic the opportunity to become the captain of his guard. Olberic's response is a rather blunt "The Flame take you and all you stand for!"

Primrose's Route

Crow Men (in general)

Three high-ranking members of the Obsidians, a powerful criminal organization operating within Orsterra. Ten years prior to the events of Octopath Traveler, these three men bearing crow tattoos broke into Primrose's home and murdered her father. Primrose is on a quest for revenge against them for murdering her father.

Character Death: They all die shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Primrose.
Create Your Own Hero: Their actions push Primrose on her path of vengeance, as she seeks to punish them for their killing of her father. Along her path, she helps others who have been hurt by the Obsidians' villainy.
Dark Is Evil: They dress in black and are deadly assassins. Albus also has black hair to match.
Faux Affably Evil: They act like polite men, but are dangerous criminals.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: They left their Obviously Evil crow tattoos exposed for all to see the night they broke into Primrose's home and murdered her father in front of her eyes. Thus, they gave Primrose a means of identifying them. It is left ambiguous if Simeon deliberately gave Primrose a lead for the sake of fulfilling his twisted ideas of drama, or if they simply didn't realize that leaving their crow tattoos exposed might not be a good idea, but it's heavily implied to be the former.
Tattooed Crook: They each have a tattoo of a crow somewhere on their bodies; Rufus has the tattoo on his left arm, Albus on his right arm, and Simeon on his neck.

The Left Hand of the Crow

Rufus, the Left-hand Man

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_rufus.png

The master of the secret brothel Obsidian Parlor in Stillsnow.

Badass Boast: He gets one before his battle with Primrose, although it doesn't go so well for him. Also doubles as My Name Is Inigo Montoya.
Primrose: Be prepared to meet your fate, crow!
Rufus: You aren't the first to say such words to me. Like as not, you won't be the last. I will bury you... as I've buried all the rest. I am Rufus, the left wing of the crow. Now come, precious daughter of House Azelhart. I will send you to your father's side.
The Don: Rufus is a minor example, being the head of a sex slave business, and has powerful resources and connections to the point where other powerful figures can ask favors of him so long as they pledge their loyalty when needed.
Greater-Scope Villain: Of Primrose's Chapter 1; Helgenish was working for him, and he provides him and other powerful men with women to use as they like.
Hate Sink: While he has some degree of respect for Primrose, he's still a thoroughly despicable individual who's involved in human trafficking and sex slavery.
Human Traffickers: As a part of his brothel's business, he outright sells women to powerful men who want sex slaves.
Kick The Son Of A Bitch: If Father Eschard's story is to be believed, part of Rufus' political scheming to get Father Eschard in his debt would have involved him helping Father Eschard get revenge on the man who raped his daughter.
Lured into a Trap: Primrose allowed Helgenish to enslave her after hearing that one of the Crow Men "often" stops by his tavern. Eight years later, her plan finally paid off, and Rufus walked right into her trap without even realizing there was one.
The Man Behind the Man: He has Helgenish under his thumb.
Meaningful Name: Simultaneously averted and played straight. Rufus means red-haired in Latin when he is blond, but in The Bible, Rufus was the son of Simon of Cyrene. What is an alternate spelling of Simon? Simeon.
Paid Harem: When not selling his sex slaves, he has them on shift as his personal lap decorations.
Recognition Failure: He initially doesn't recognize Primrose when she confronts him in the Obsidian Parlor for murdering her father ten years ago, responding to her passionate hatred with an apathetic "Have we met, milady?" He only takes an interest in her when she tells him her identity.
Villain Respect: Rufus admits that Geoffery was hard to bring down and respected his prowess. He offers the same respect to Primrose, especially after she beats him.

The Right Hand of the Crow

Albus, the Right-hand Man

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_albus.png

Former captain of the city watch in Noblecourt, and Revello's superior. He betrayed Primrose's father in order to gain a rank in the Obsidians.

Ambition Is Evil: He had a secret ambition to make more money and eventually became dissatisfied with the "inadequate" pay he earned from being the captain of the city watch, which led to his Face–Heel Turn.
Broken Pedestal: To Revello Forsythe, his Number Two during his days as captain of the city watch. Forsythe admired him as a just, honorable man who died resisting the Obsidians, so naturally he does not take the revelation that his former friend and mentor had betrayed and murdered his Lord at all well.
The Cynic: He believes that honor is a good ideal in theory, but is impractical for living a financially successful life in reality. He even goes so far as to express mocking contempt for the ideals of his former friend, Geoffrey.
Death by Irony: He explains to Primrose and Revello that he betrayed Primrose's father to the Obsidians because joining a criminal organization would make him more money, but he strongly implies that he also backstabbed her father because he had lost faith in his capabilities as city watch captain to ward off the Obsidians and decided he and his men were fighting a losing battle, so why bother?
Albus, the Right-hand Man: This village was a rotten husk long before Geoffrey Azelhart met his end. Anyone with half their wits knew the Obsidians were pulling all the strings from the shadows. I simply cast my lot with the winning horse. A simple business decision.
- For his betrayal and assistance in the murder of her father, he is eventually killed in battle by Primrose, a woman who strongly believes in having faith in oneself against self-doubt and despair, as did her father.
Defector from Decadence: It's implied that, other than his desire for more money, he came to believe Geoffrey and the city watch were on the losing side, and wanted to be on the winning side.
The Dragon: The secondary antagonist of Primrose's story. It was Albus' betrayal of his friend Geoffrey when the latter found out about the Gate of Finis that let the Obsidians murder him, with Albus participating in the act.
Dropped a Bridge on Him: Unlike Helgenish or the other two Crow Men, Albus dies instantly and unceremoniously after being defeated in battle by Primrose. Then again, he's a lowly traitor with a petty "Money > Honor" motivation, so it's an appropriate end.
Evil Counterpart: To Revello Forsythe. They were both high-ranking guardsmen tasked with protecting Noblecourt from criminals. While Forsythe has Undying Loyalty to his Lord Geoffrey and his Lady Primrose, Albus is eventually revealed to be a greedy and selfish man who was willing to betray Geoffrey to the Obsidians if it meant obtaining more money and power for himself. Needless to say, Forsythe is left broken and furious at Albus' treachery. Years of suffering under Albus' regime in Noblecourt caused Forsythe to forget Geoffrey's unwavering determination and try to persuade Primrose to turn back on her path, but was quick to recognise his mistake and apologized to Primrose after she reminded him of the House's motto "Faith shall be your shield", whereas Albus cruelly mocked Geoffrey for getting killed for refusing to co-operate with the criminal Obsidians for no purpose other than to troll Primrose and Forsythe, which accelerated his own demise.
Evil Former Friend: He was Revello Forsythe and Geoffrey Azelhart's friend, but eventually betrayed Geoffrey to the Obsidians.
Evil Is Petty: He betrayed Geoffrey to the Obsidians and participated in his murder because... money.
- That said, he implies that he also betrayed Geoffrey because he lost faith in his own capabilities and believed the Obsidians had already won.
Evil Pays Better: His motivation boils down to that there's more money to be had in crime than in a just system.
Expy: He's a deadringer for King Bradley, being a supposedly trustworthy authority figure who's secretly in cahoots with a criminal conspiracy. Hell, he even looks identical to him with that slicked back hair, bushy mustache, and left eye with an eyepatch.
Eyepatch of Power: He wears an eyepatch over his left eye.
Face–Heel Turn: He was the former captain of Noblecourt's city watch and right-hand of Primrose's father. He later betrayed Geoffrey to the Obsidians to become one of their highest-ranking members.
Failed a Spot Check: His command to Rufus to "Make sure he's [Geoffrey's] dead, and let us leave this place before we're seen" during Primrose's flashback/nightmare of her father's murder, gives away that he didn't realize that Primrose was right there in the room at that moment, even after she let out a cry of horror upon seeing her father struck down.
Faking the Dead: For years, Albus fooled Revello and the rest of Noblecourt to believe he was killed with Geoffrey Azelhart, only to be alive and pulling the strings in Noblecourt all along.
Fallen Hero: It's implied he really was once an honorable man, but decided to join the Obsidians when he realized his honor wasn't earning him as much money as he wanted.
Albus, the Right-hand Man: Honor's all well and good, but it doesn't buy you much.
Fatal Flaw: If his statement that "This village [Noblecourt] was a rotten husk long before Geoffrey Azelhart met his end" is any indication, cynicism. Albus came to believe that the Obsidians had already conquered Noblecourt before they actually did, resulting in him betraying his friend to them for his own gain. He believes that he was merely accelerating the inevitable, but Primrose and Revello condemn him as a selfish traitor. Albus' decision to mock the ideals of Primrose's deceased father right in front of her leads straight to his own demise.
Flunky Boss: Midway through the fight, he uses "Human Shield" to summon reinforcements and lock up his weaknesses. He only has enough men for one round of this, however.
- Mook Depletion: If he attempts to call his underlings a second time, a message pops out saying that "Albus's men can fight no more". Every subsequent try fails.
Hate Sink: Not to the same extent as Helgenish, but his betrayal of his friend and subsequent Faking the Dead deception, his weak "Money > Honor" motivation, and his trash-talking Primrose's deceased father right after explaining his weak motivation for joining a criminal organisation—especially since his partner-in-crime Rufus admitted to having respect for Geoffrey's prowess—infuriates both Primrose and Revello, and for good reason.
Injured Vulnerability: "Death to the Unseen" inflicts gratuitous amounts of damage only to blind targets.
Ironic Name: Albus means white in Latin, but he has black hair and wears a black cloak.
It's All About Me: Albus eventually joined the Obsidians and betrayed his friend Geoffrey for his own financial and political gain, after he became disillusioned with the abstract concept of honor and dissatisfied with the amount of money he was earning from serving as captain of Noblecourt's city watch. To say that Primrose and Forsythe are Disappointed by the Motive would be a major understatement.
Karmic Death: Is killed by the daughter of the very man he murdered and whose murder he jeers at as proof that his beliefs were those of a fool.
Kick the Dog: There was absolutely no reason for him to slander Geoffrey in front of Primrose and Revello other than to be an asshole.
Mugging the Monster: It is not wise to insult and laugh at Primrose's deceased father within earshot of her, especially if you're one of the three men responsible for his murder.
My Name Is Inigo Montoya: Like Rufus, he properly introduces himself before the boss fight after having a chat with Primrose.
Albus, the Right-hand Man: I am Albus, proud bearer of the mark of the crow. Come at me, Primrose Azelhart! I will see that you meet the same fate as your dear father.
One-Hit Kill: "Death to the Unseen" instantly kills any character who has the Blindness status.
Silly Rabbit, Idealism Is for Kids!: Albus expresses mocking contempt for his former friend Geoffrey's unwavering faith in his beliefs, which likely stems from this trope and a cruel desire to troll the daughter of his former friend. It is implied that Albus was once a sincerely honorable man, but eventually became disillusioned with the concept of honor during his time as captain of the city watch, and is no longer the man he once was.
Sinister Scythe: He wields a sickle in his boss sprite.
Small Role, Big Impact: Gets the least amount of screen-time out of the Crow Men, but it was his betrayal of Primrose's father by informing the Obsidians that he had found out about the Gate of Finis that led to them murdering him.
Speak Ill of the Dead: He proves himself to be irredeemably vile when he slanders Geoffrey in front of Primrose and Revello, claiming that Geoffrey talked about how having faith was enough to protect his people from any harm while taking no action, so his death was a fitting end for a fool. The accounts of Geoffrey by Primrose, Revello, and (ironically) Rufus prove otherwise.
Status Effects: His combat arts involve blinding his foes and using Death to the Unseen to cut them down.
Too Dumb to Live: Sure, Albus, insult a deceased man you betrayed and murdered for petty financial gain in front of his daughter who's on a quest to avenge his death and has already killed one of your accomplices. What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Troll: When confronted by Primrose, Albus scornfully laughs about how her father's murder "goes to show you what the faith of a fool is worth", which goes about as well as you'd expect.
Villain Ball: Insulting his deceased former friend in front of said former friend's vengeful daughter for the sake of trolling her, is probably the most idiotic decision Albus could have possibly made in his situation.

The Head of the Crows (SPOILERS)

Simeon, the Puppet Master

Voiced By: Chris Hackney (English)

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_simeon.png

Simeon flashes a leery smile...

Once a gardener under the employ of Lord Azelhart, he was a childhood sweetheart of Primrose. It is later revealed that he is the leader of the Obsidians, with the mark of the crow on his neck.

Achilles' Heel: While a Barrier Change Boss during the second phase of his fight, Simeon is consistently weak to Dark. However, he seals all but his Dagger weakness when the fight begins, and the player has to Break him several times before he unseals his Dark weakness.
All There in the Manual: The official companion book Octopath Traveler: The Complete Guide gives him a much larger backstory than presented in game. He was once a member of the Ventus Dynasty, and defeated his bastard half-brother to inherit the throne after a civil war. He quickly disappeared and met Lyblac, ultimately gaining the ability to cheat death like Mattias, who himself would help Simeon establish the Obsidians.
Arc Villain: The primary villain of Primrose's story.
Barrier Change Boss: He changes his weaknesses throughout the second phase of his fight.
Battle in the Center of the Mind: Primrose has a mental fight with Simeon and two puppets of her father and Yusufa before actually fighting him in his boss fight.
Beta Test Baddie: Some of Simeon's dialogue implies that, like Primrose, he feels hollow inside which motivates his sadism, much like how Primrose's quest for revenge is motivated by her loneliness at losing her father.
Simeon, the Puppet Master: How many times in your life have you felt blessed to be here? When has life ever seemed a gift? This world is nothing but pain nigh beyond the point of bearing... Constant, inescapable darkness. I will tell you the only joy I have found in life... Watching the lives of others fall apart. The sweet fantasies that people imagine their existences to be inevitably crack, then shatter to pieces. And I savor the tragedy of each and every downfall, because, oh, it is delicious. That one moment—that glorious instant when I see a man, a woman lose all hope. That is the only time I truly feel alive.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He's introduced as a kind childhood friend of Primrose and the latter is heavily implied to have feelings for him, but when he meets Primrose again in the Obsidian Manse, it's revealed that he's pure evil.
Break Them by Talking: Attempts this on Primrose, pointing out that avenging her father's murder will not make him happy. He also points out that Primrose's quest for revenge was really desperation to find happiness all along, and that killing him (Simeon) will not bring her any. The scary part is that he's right, and nearly succeeds in breaking Primrose. It's only by envisioning herself confessing to her father that she hates how lonely she is and feeling his reassuring presence that Primrose is able to pull through, and even then, it is implied that she battles Simeon not for revenge, but for faith in a happier future.
Broken Pedestal: To Primrose, after he reveals his true colours. It is strongly implied that Simeon's betrayal reduces Primrose to tears.
Card-Carrying Villain: Due to the theatrical aspect of his personality. He refers to himself as a villain while mocking Primrose after stabbing her and showing his true colours, and has no problem admitting to Primrose during their final confrontation that he takes pleasure in seeing others lose all hope.
Simeon, the Puppet Master: The audience gasps! At long last, she tracks down the villain she's been hunting all these years, only to find out it is her one true love. Look at the tears she weeps, the blood she spills, and pity her.
Childhood Friend Romance: Subverted. When Primrose first meets Simeon again for the first time in years since she was young it seems it can lead to this. Then he's revealed to be one of the Crow Men who killed Primrose's father, and relishes the emotional pain he inflicted on Primrose for doing so. His play about Primrose's life even has his and her character declaring their love for each other and going on to live Happily Ever After in a twisted display of affection and sadism.
Co-Dragons: He was one of Lyblac's primary agents in her plan, having been around for a long time to ensure her success. Alongside Mattias and Ceraphina, they worked as some of her most loyal helpers.
Decapitated Army: Averted. Even if he's killed before starting Tressa's chapter 4, Obsidian members will still antagonize her. If the player returns to Everhold Amphitheatre after he's killed, they can still run into Obsidian Mooks as random encounters.
Dub Personality Change: A minor one, but his final moments play out differently in the Japanese version. In the English version, he's a Mad Artist to the end who is fine with either killing or being killed by Primrose because he sees it as a Grand Finale to her tragedy. In the Japanese version, his two battles against Primrose make him realise the full extent of the pain he's caused her, whereupon he asks her to kill him for both their sakes. This indicates that Japanese Simeon does have a conscience, albeit an extremely limited one.
Evil All Along: Octopath Traveler: The Complete Guide says that Simeon had co-established the Obsidians with Mattias (Arc Villain of Ophilia's story) over a century before he murdered Primrose's father, having gained eternal youth from Lyblac, meaning he was already the leader of the Obsidians when he took the job of gardener under House Azelhart and became Primrose's childhood sweetheart. The diary entry by Geoffrey Azelhart found in the Gate of Finis implies that Simeon became House Azelhart's gardener so that he could spy on him, as the Obsidians had already had several hostile confrontations with Geoffrey for refusing their offers before he undertook the fatal investigation on them that led to his murder.
Evil Former Friend: He was a gardener under House Azelhart and Primrose's childhood sweetheart, and was secretly the leader of the Obsidians who later killed her father, taking a sadistic pleasure in Primrose's pain.
Evil Laugh: Bursts into maniacal laughter after he stabs Primrose in the Obsidian Manse and reveals he is the one who fatally stabbed her father.
Evil Counterpart:
- Alongside Darius, Simeon is this to Erhardt of all people. All three of them betrayed a protagonist (Primrose, Therion and Olberic) which caused their individual issues (desire for revenge, unwillingness to trust and loss of purpose, respectively), and first appear in person in Chapter 3 of their respective protagonists' stories. However, Erhardt had an understandable Freudian Excuse for his betrayal (his home-village was laid to ruin while his King did nothing to save the people living there), is the Disc-One Final Boss of Olberic's story with the mercenary leader who recruited him, Werner, being the real Arc Villain, is eventually forgiven by Olberic, and ultimately survives the game's events, whereas Simeon and Darius were primarily motivated by sadism and greed respectively, are the definitive Arc Villains of their protagonists' respective stories, are never forgiven by their respective protagonists, and ultimately meet their end with daggers in their shriveled excuses for hearts.
- Simeon's attempt to break Primrose by talking makes him this to Therion. Several banters between Primrose and Therion has the latter caution her in her quest for revenge, question her motives and whether her actions are dangerous to her; but while Therion has a Hidden Heart of Gold and secretly worries about Primrose's well-being, Simeon is a heartless Sadist who tries to induce doubt in Primrose only so that he can psychologically torment her.
Evil Is Hammy: Simeon himself proudly acknowledges that he feels most happiness when he sees others lose all hope, and it really shows over the course of Primrose's final confrontation with him. Simeon's polite façade collapses completely in his sheer joy in psychologically tormenting her, questioning her motives for revenge and pressuring her to resign herself to a life of never-ending sadness, sounding increasingly unhinged as he does so, which is fitting for a sociopathic artist such as himself.
False Friend: He deliberately became close to Primrose in her childhood so that he could later inflict deep emotional pain on her, because he is a heartless Sadist who enjoys others' pain.
Flunky Boss: In the first battle against him, he's supported by puppets of Yusufa and Primrose's father.
Foil: To Primrose, in a clash between a Dark Is Not Evil Determinator vs. a Light Is Not Good Hope Crusher. They both have a passion for the arts (Primrose for music and dancing, Simeon for poetry and theatre), are Master Actors who put up a façade to mask their true personalities^note, and Simeon's Motive Rant implies that both of them feel empty inside, which motivates their sadism and desire for revenge, respectively.
Foreshadowing: There's a considerable amount for his true allegiance as one of the Crow Men.
- He's dressed in black, just like the other two.
- He mentions that he's a "playwright, of sorts" and "stages dramas and tragedy", hinting at his sadistic nature and that he thinks of Primrose's life as a beautiful tragedy he'd written.
- He and Primrose reminisce on her childhood, where Simeon expresses signs that he was in love with her even back then, and Simeon was already a grown man in those days. Implicitly, this is a very good sign that something is wrong.
- Albus mentions to his lackey that their boss has a huge flair for the dramatic.
From Nobody to Nightmare: Starting out as a mere gardener's apprentice in his youth, he was secretly the leader of a powerful crime syndicate who later orchestrated the murder of Primrose's father, causing her a great deal of pain. Subverted in that he was once a Ventus royal who received power from Lyblac.
Gameplay and Story Integration: His gimmick of inflicting the Silence status on the party is reminiscent of how he and the other two assassins "silenced" Primrose's father for finding out classified information about the Obsidians i.e. their goal to assist Lyblac in resurrecting Gal dera.
Graceful Loser: He's not at all upset at being killed by Primrose, as he considers it the perfect end to her tragedy.
Greater-Scope Villain: Of Ophilia's route, since he provides financial support to Mattias. The organization he leads also provides Mattias with the delayed poison used to discreetly murder Archbishop Josef.
Hidden Depths: As a writer and tragedy specialist, Simeon is chillingly knowledgeable on the subject of the futility of revenge and knows how to use this to psychologically weaken those who oppose him. He accurately deconstructs Primrose's psyche, exposing her loneliness at not having her father by her side as the real root of her crusade against him and his men for murdering her father, before asking her "How did it feel when you killed my men? Did that fill the hole in your heart even a tiny little bit?" It's even implied that in the end, Primrose battles Simeon for faith in a happier future instead of for revenge; so Simeon succeeded in convincing Primrose to "abandon this madness", but it didn't go the way he'd planned.
Hope Crusher: One of his defining traits. He likes to ruin the hopes of others so that he can take pleasure in the pain he causes them, and as his final confrontation with Primrose shows, he's chillingly good at it to the point of achieving a Near-Villain Victory with words alone.
Interface Screw: In the last leg of his fight, he'll obscure the icons at the top of the screen that indicate which order everyone moves. As a small bit of mercy, his own icon (fitting for a Mad Artist so full of himself) will not be obscured, so you at least know when he's about to make his move.
Irony: One of Simeon's aliases is "The Puppet Master", but in the post-game it is revealed that he himself was a pawn to Lyblac. Given Simeon's sheer love for drama and tragedy—both in art and in real life—it's likely he couldn't care less if he was a pawn or not.
It Amused Me: While his practical motive for killing Geoffrey is because he found out about the Gate of Finis, his personal motive is solely to torture Primrose to see the hope die from her eyes and relish in what despair he can inflict on her. His interactions with Primrose make it clear that his practical motive takes backstage to his personal one.
Jerkass: The man likes to watch others suffer and has no redeeming qualities to him, being one of the cruellest Arc Villains in the game.
Lack of Empathy: He shows no remorse in his actions at all and enjoys making people suffer just for his own amusement.
Light Is Not Good: His silvery-white hair and formal dress hide a dangerous sociopath.
Loony Fan: He's still unhealthily smitten with Primrose even after revealing himself to be a sadistic sociopath incapable of any genuine affection. His satirical play about Primrose's life that he has publicly performed disgusts her and her companions, only serving to give her more of an incentive to end his life.
Mad Artist: A playwright who specializes in tragedies, and also gets sadistic pleasure from putting people through tragedy in real life.
The Man Behind the Man: As the leader of the Obsidians, he indirectly plays a role in Tressa's route, because Esmeralda is also a member of the Obsidians.
Manipulative Bastard: He tries to convince Primrose that her father wouldn't be happy to see his daughter pursue violent revenge and she should find her own happiness. He also deduces that Primrose didn't feel any happier after taking vengeance on Rufus and Albus, and won't feel any happier from taking vengeance on him. He's right, but Primrose realizes that Simeon isn't telling her this out of concern for her well-being, but rather to give himself a psychological advantage over her, which lets her stay by her beliefs and fight him.
Meaningful Name: In The Bible, Simeon, son of Jacob^note was one of Joseph's brothers who later betrayed and tried to kill him, though here he was motivated by jealously of his brother's prophetic dreams.
The Mole: Geoffrey Azelhart's diary entry found in the Gate of Finis implies that Simeon was this from the start, taking the job of gardener at House Azelhart so that he could spy on its Lord's investigation into the criminal organization he leads, as the Obsidians were growing frustrated with Geoffrey's refusal of their offers (because he knew they were nothing but lies).
One Degree of Separation: He is allied with Mattias, the main antagonist of Ophilia's route, and supported the latter in his crusade against the Sacred Flame, making himself the Greater-Scope Villain of Ophilia's route, as the latter's diary entry in the Gate of Finis reveals. The official companion book Octopath Traveler: The Complete Guide goes a step further by revealing that Simeon and Mattias co-established the Obsidians together.
Practically Joker: Between his sociopathy, love for drama, pleasure in causing chaos, and Straw Nihilist philosophy, Simeon is essentially Orsterra's equivalent of the Joker.
Psychopathic Manchild: He uses other humans as playthings and uses theatre as a way to act out his twisted fantasies similiar to a manner of a violent child abusing their toys for fun.
Really 700 Years Old: The official companion book Octopath Traveler: The Complete Guide reveals that Simeon gained the forbidden knowledge of the tome From the Far Reaches of Hell from Lyblac, which has allowed him to live without aging. His minimum age is 126 by the time of his death.
Red Baron: The Puppet Master, befitting his manipulating Primrose and events in her life for years.
Sadist: He takes special joy in ruining the hopes of others and seeing them despair.
The Sociopath: While capable of acting like a polite man, in reality he is a heartless Sadist who feels no guilt for anything he does, only enjoyment of other peoples' pain. His "love" for Primrose is less affection and more of a special enjoyment in making her suffer. His own death doesn't even distress him, as he sees it as the perfect ending to Primrose's tragedy.
Stalker with a Crush: Simeon makes a play about Primrose's entire life, including her childhood and intimate moments with her family, puts it on for all to see, and has it end with his and Primrose's characters proclaiming their love and living Happily Ever After.
Status Effects: Several of his attacks inflict Silence.
Straw Nihilist: He believes that pain is the only thing that truly matters in life, and feels alive only when he sees others succumb to despair. Not even his own death distresses him!
Thinks Like a Romance Novel: He frames Primrose's life as a great tragedy that he wrote for the sake of telling a good story, and because he's a sadist who enjoys watching other people suffer. The boss fight against him takes place in a theater, with Expies of Simeon and Primrose telling the story of her life onstage. The difference is that in the play, the Simeon and Primrose Expies fall in love and live Happily Ever After. In the real world, Primrose kills Simeon.
Trick Boss: The first fight with him is very easy once the puppets are gone, while the second fight is more difficult.
Villain Has a Point: After the first fight with him, Simeon asks Primrose how it felt killing his men and if it filled the hole in her heart. Primrose becomes very upset, yells at him to stop, and admits to her father that what she hated most was the loneliness. The end of her story shows he's right—getting revenge didn't heal her wounds.
Villains Out Shopping: He adores theatre and is found chilling on his private balcony at Everhold Amphitheatre, overseeing the satirical play of Primrose's life that he'd written.
Villainous Crush: He's still violently in love with Primrose even into their adult days. Emphasis on "violent".
Walking Spoiler: He initially appears to be a kind, considerate gentleman and a potential Love Interest for Primrose, but at the end of her Chapter 3 is revealed to be the man with the mark of the crow on his neck who murdered her father, having deliberately become close to Primrose in her childhood so as to inflict maximum emotional pain on her.
White Hair, Black Heart: He has white hair, and is the sadistic leader of a group of criminals who finds enjoyment in inflicting emotional pain on Primrose.
Yandere: He is obsessed with Primrose because he sees her as a strong-willed protagonist who is ideal for his tragic plays. He's fine with either killing her or getting killed by her because he considers both outcomes to be stageworthy.

Helgenish

"You haven't forgotten your debts now, have you? You haven't forgotten who owns you."

An abusive tavern-owner in Sunshade, who figuratively enslaved Primrose before the story began.

0% Approval Rating: None of the dancers working for Helgenish enjoy doing so, but they are in poverty and have nowhere else to go. Yusufa in particular tells Primrose that she wants to vomit every time she has to call him "Master". After his death, even his remaining goons in Sunshade feel nothing more than curiosity about what happened to him. Some of his customers at the tavern have also heard of how he's a savage brute, which he is.
Asshole Victim: There isn't a single person that misses him after he gets killed by Primrose. If anything, the dancers are happy he's gone after all the abuse they went through.
Bad Boss: He's abusive to the dancers he employs in every way, even treating them like slaves.
The Brute: He's physically strong for an overweight old man, has a Hair-Trigger Temper, is quick to resort to violence to "resolve" matters, bullies the dancers working for him at every opportunity he can, and thinks of himself as far more intelligent than he really is.
The Bully: He's a narcissistic asshole who has no empathy, and routinely abuses his dancers so as to exert control and to feel better about himself.
Casting a Shadow: When his health gets low, Helgenish starts using "Oppressive Shadow", casting dark magic on the entire party and lowering their physical attack.
Character Death: Primrose slits his throat shortly after defeating him in battle.
Dark Is Evil: He wears a black jacket and boots, uses dark magic in battle, and is one of the most unpleasant antagonists in the entire game despite being a mere Starter Villain.
Depending on the Artist: He wears dark green trousers in his overworld sprite, but white trousers in his battle sprite.
Devilish Hair Horns: He has tufts of hair shaped like demon horns, as if his name and choice of clothing weren't Obviously Evil enough.
Devious Daggers: As a sign of his underhanded personality, his battle sprite depicts him leisurely brandishing a knife, concealed behind his back.
Didn't See That Coming: Over the course of several years, Helgenish never caught on that Primrose's empty-headed persona was a façade until she releases her fury at him for killing Yusufa, which comes as a complete shock to him.
Primrose: I saw you for the foul swine you are the first time I laid eyes on you.
Didn't Think This Through: Somehow thought it was a good idea to fatally stab Primrose's Only Friend in front of her and mock her friend's tearful last words after Primrose had just exited the Sunshade Catacombs that is infested with Random Encounters. You'd think he would register that this means Primrose has combat capabilities and might not be as empty-headed as she pretends to be, but he doesn't. Overlaps with Too Dumb to Live.
Dirty Old Man: While his exact age is unclear, he's definitely on the older side, and it's stated that his tavern dancers (Primrose in particular) are expected to entertain him just as much as they do the tavern's clientele.
Disproportionate Retribution: His idea of an appropriate punishment for Yusufa covering for Primrose while the latter escapes his tavern, is to murder her.
Entitled Bastard: Expects the women he's forced into slavery to be grateful to him for giving them a "job" no matter how badly he treats them, and often flies into rants about how they don't appreciate him.
Evil Counterpart:
- To Archbishop Josef and Z'aanta, from Ophilia and H'aanit's routes respectively. They are all men who took in girls who would become one of the eight protagonists, but Helgenish only cares about how useful Primrose is to him and demands her gratitude and obedience while treating her like a sex object instead of an actual person, while Josef raises Ophilia lovingly as if she were his own blood daughter, and H'aanit admits to herself and to Natalia that she sees Z'aanta as a father figure.
- To the Village Headman from the beginning of Olberic's route, where he's the Bad Boss to the latter's Reasonable Authority Figure.
Evil Is Petty: The main reason why he is such a loathsome scumbag is because he flies into rages and inflicts Disproportionate Retribution on the women under his "care" for the most trivial of offenses. He once slaps Primrose across the face for not expressing immediate gratitude that he would "teach a completely useless girl everything she knows" (his words). Things go From Bad to Worse when Yusufa covers for Primrose when she leaves to pursue Rufus of the Crows; he beats Yusufa severely, catches up to Primrose, and stabs her in front of Primrose. It's very obvious that this "man" is sick in the head!
Evil Old Folks: He's an old man, and has the mentality of an entitled teenager and is one of the most unpleasant antagonists in the entire game.
Fat Bastard: He's overweight, and to say he is a thoroughly unpleasant person would be an understatement.
Fatal Flaw: Impulsiveness. As a low-functioning sociopath, Helgenish is quick to resort to physical violence to "resolve" matters, which induces resentment amongst his dancers. This comes to a head when he decides to stab Yusufa to death after beating her for information regarding where Primrose went, instead of using her as leverage to convince Primrose to return to his tavern. This pushes Primrose to her Rage Breaking Point, which results in his own death.
Faux Affably Evil: Unlike the other dancers, Helgenish speaks sweetly to Primrose, like a master speaking to his pet... just before he physically abuses and berates her.
Flunky Boss: Helgenish has some goons help him during battle.
A Glass of Chianti: His sprite shows him holding a wine glass, although it's more to show how hedonistic he is rather than any hint of good breeding or class.
Gonk: Even by the dramatized standards of other boss battle sprites, Helgenish appears particularly ugly and cartoony with a pudgy nose and wide grin.
Hate Sink: He's a strong candidate for the most loathsome Starter Villain in the game, as well as one of the most loathsome villains in the game as a whole. He has more screentime than any of the other early-game villains and his scenes really take the time to emphasize his cruel, perverted nature. Heck, Rufus, despite being Helgenish's superior and one of the three men who murdered Primrose's father, is much more tolerable.
The Hedonist: He is obsessed with pleasure and puts his own desires above all else, including the well-being of the women who work for him. From his perspective, if a woman won't give him the pleasure he deserves, then they are worthless.
Hidden Depths: Helgenish was already a perverted, thoroughly unpleasant person from the start, but by the end of Primrose's Chapter 1 is revealed to have no problem committing murder to get what he wants. It's implied that this is exceptionally cruel even by Helgenish's twisted standards.
Human Traffickers: Purchasing and raising children as his own private dancers already qualifies him as this, but a particularly vile detail revealed later on is that Helgenish also sells off women to Rufus.
Hypocrite: Due to his narcissism, he believes there is nothing wrong with his abusing the dancers at every opportunity he can and takes pleasure in doing so, but the moment he's on the receiving end of the slightest criticism, he immediately flies into a rage about how unfair it is for him to be disrespected.
I Surrender, Suckers: After being defeated, he asks Primrose if she would perform one last dance for him, only to try to stab her In the Back. However, Primrose sees this coming, turns around and slits his throat. Doesn't help that Helgenish sinisterly chuckled to himself after asking the question, all but giving away his "plan".
In the Back: Attempts this on Primrose after she defeats him in an I Surrender, Suckers gambit, but she saw it coming and he fails miserably.
It's All About Me: In spades. He treats the dancers he employs like slaves and abuses them regularly, yet expects them to be grateful to him for giving them a "job" and obey his every command, even going so far as to explicitly tell Primrose that he "owns" her. He has an exchange with Primrose where he almost says "It's all about me!" word-for-word, summing up his belief that the dancers' only purpose for existence is to please him.
Helgenish: (to Primrose) What happened to your sweet little smile? Who puts a roof over your head and food on your plate? Who bought the jewels that adorn your pretty neck? Who made you the most sought-after dancer in this dusty old town? It was me — all me!
Jerkass: He's a perverted old man who will gleefully abuse the dancers he has under his wing.
Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: He was already immoral for his horrendous treatment of women who work at his tavern, treating them like Sex Slaves, but he becomes truly evil when he murders Yusufa in a petty and idiotic attempt to intimidate Primrose when she escapes in pursuit of one of the Crow Men.
Karmic Death: Dies at the hands of Primrose, his favorite dancer and the one who bore the most of his perverted attention and abuse.
Kick the Dog: He heartlessly mocks Yusufa's last words right after her death.
Know-Nothing Know-It-All: He is not nearly as intelligent as he thinks he is. He may claim to see every thought in Primrose's head, but he eventually makes several serious mistakes that cost him his life.
Lack of Empathy: He's a disgustingly cruel and entitled excuse for a man who genuinely believes the dancers he "employs" (read: enslaves) have no purpose for existence other than to satisfy his own pleasures. He treats them horrendously and takes pleasure in doing so to exert control.
Meaningful Name: One could say that working for Helgenish is a living hell.
Mugging the Monster: When Helgenish finally goes too far in his cruelty, it comes as a complete shock to him when Primrose reveals that her "submissive slave-girl" personality was a fake one all along and that she has always despised him. Primrose then proceeds to defeat him in battle and kill him.
Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Would you really expect someone called "Hell-genish" to be a Nice Guy?
Narcissist: He constantly makes derogatory remarks and belittles the girls he's forced into slavery while thinking himself an amazing person whom nobody else has any right to criticize or disagree with.
Never My Fault: Is too arrogant to admit that anything he does could ever be wrong.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: A subtle one: After being defeated by Primrose, Helgenish pretends to surrender and asks her to perform one final dance, but quietly chuckles to himself immediately afterwards, all but giving away that he has no good intentions. Sure enough, he tries to stab Primrose while her back is turned, and sure enough, Primrose saw this coming from a mile away and runs past him while slitting his throat.
Not-So-Harmless Villain: Downplayed. He's a thoroughly unpleasant person all around, his cruel personality is never Played for Laughs, and Yusufa says that he beats those who displease him half to death before tossing them out into the street to die; but her choice of words imply that it is possible for them to survive^note, and she was sold to Helgenish as a child and worked there for years without suffering that fate. However, when Primrose, his favourite dancer, leaves his tavern to pursue Rufus, Helgenish goes a step further by not only beating Yusufa for helping cover up her escape, but fatally and intentionally stabbing her with a knife and kicking her off a cliff, letting her bleed to death. Then he mocks her last words after her death. At this moment, Helgenish goes from a primitive brute to an irredeemable monster, incentivizing Primrose to kill him.
Obliviously Evil: As is par for the course for a narcissistic abuser. Despite his abhorrent treatment of the dancers under his eye including murdering Primrose's Only Friend Yusufa, Helgenish never once considers the possibility that he could be doing anything objectionable and seems to genuinely believe that he's a kind and generous man, that his treatment of the dancers is acceptable, and that the dancers dislike him because they "don't appreciate" him and not because of anything he's done, so he has the right to demean and threaten them. His obliviousness to the unnecessary cruelty of his actions does not make him any less despicable — if anything, it makes him worse, because he expects the dancers he mistreats to praise him and ignore his cruelty, and refuses to admit to any wrongdoing.
Obviously Evil: Lampshaded by Primrose when she reaches her Rage Breaking Point. Despite Helgenish's narcissistic belief that there's nothing wrong with the way he treats his employees and that they deserve it for not loving him, he's a bad-tempered man who dresses in red and black, has tufts of hair shaped like demon horns, and his Establishing Character Moment is him barging into his employees' dormitory to yell at them for being a few minutes late to their stage performance; and it just gets worse from there. With a name like "Hell-genish", even his name sounds evil.
Precision F-Strike: He calls Primrose a whore before their battle. Twice.
Psychopathic Manchild: Type B. While he is in his older years, Helgenish ultimately comes across as utterly immature, selfish and entitled, believing that the entire world should revolve around him and throwing temper tantrums the moment things don't go his way, much like how a toddler thinks and behaves.
Red and Black and Evil All Over: He wears a red shirt, and a black jacket and boots. For a mere Starter Villain, he manages to be one of the nastiest characters in the entire game.
Riddle for the Ages: He works for Rufus of the Obsidians, the master of a sex slave business, wears a black jacket, and eventually murders Yusufa in an attempt to intimidate Primrose when she leaves his tavern to pursue Rufus; but it's left ambiguous if he is an official member of the Obsidians or is merely allied with them.
Slashed Throat: This is how he dies. After attempting a backstab on Primrose, she runs past Helgenish and cuts his throat, letting him die by choking on his own blood.
Slasher Smile: His battle sprite depicts him with one, giving the player even more of a desire to take him down after what he did to Yusufa.
Smug Snake: He has an exaggerated sense of self-importance and is condescending to everyone he views as inferior to him. When in the prescence of his superior, Rufus, he speaks nervously.
The Sociopath: A very low-functioning example. Narcissistic to the point where he believes the entire world should revolve around him, Helgenish has zero empathy for anybody else, and has convinced himself that he's doing his dancers a great service even as he routinely abuses them. He is a cruel and pleasure-obsessed man, and will bring the pain if anyone dares impede him.
Starter Villain: The first boss in Primrose's route.
Stronger Than They Look: Overlaps with Wake-Up Call Boss. At first glance, he appears to be a fat blowhard, and in battle his sprite shows him lazily sitting on a chair and drinking wine. However, he's one of the most difficult bosses in the early game, with high HP, powerful attacks that can knock Primrose out quickly, and resistance to Dark magic. It doesn't help that Primrose is not built for defense, so it's recommended to take advantage of her Allure path action and/or pick up some of the other Travelers before beginning her route.
Too Dumb to Live:
- His decision to murder Yusufa in front of Primrose and then mock her dying words is almost as idiotic as it is vile. Primrose had just exited the Sunshade Catacombs—a dungeon with Random Encounters—alive, indicating that she has combat capabilities. Primrose and Yusufa reaffirming their friendship should have given Helgenish further evidence that mocking Yusufa after her death would be a bad idea, but he thinks it's a good idea and is rewarded with a fight to the death.
- It was also a really stupid idea of Helgenish to sinisterly chuckle to himself after asking Primrose for one last dance, all but giving away that he planned to stab her while her back was turned. As a result, he fails miserably.
Villain Ball: When Primrose leaves his tavern to pursue one of the Crow Men, Helgenish takes her friend Yusufa hostage for covering for her friend, ambushes Primrose, and murders Yusufa in front of her... except that Primrose had just exited the Sunshade Catacombs, a dungeon infested with Random Encounters, indicating that she knows how to fight. Predictable results ensue.
Villainous Breakdown: When Primrose unleashes her fury on Helgenish for murdering Yusufa, revealing that she has always hated him and only began working for him in the first place because of his connections to the Crow Men, Helgenish does not take it at all well, resulting in a boss fight against him. However, while he starts by ranting and raving, he calms down enough to fight soon after (not that it helps).
Helgenish: You would take that tone with me!? You're nothing but a stupid whore! You would have died on the street if not for me!
Wants a Prize for Basic Decency: He believes that he is allowed to do whatever he likes to the destitute women he's essentially enslaved because he gives them a means to survive, and often complains about how ungrateful they are to him. The fact that he only cares about how useful the women are to him, or that he both physically and verbally abuses them at every opportunity he can, means nothing to him.
Would Hit a Girl: He regularly abuses his dancers and assaults them for any slight, real or imagined. He often beats the women who displease him half to death and leaves them to die in the street. He tortured Yusufa to find out where Primrose went before stabbing her and throwing her off a cliff.
Would Hurt a Child: Going by what Yusufa told Primrose in her dying moments, Helgenish's ill treatment extends to children sold to him.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Downplayed, at first. Women who get on his bad side are beaten half to death and thrown out onto the street, but he doesn't directly kill them... until Yusufa helps Primrose escape his tavern to pursue Rufus, where he directly and fatally stabs her as punishment.

Father Eschard

A corrupt bishop in the Order of the Sacred Flame who is a patron and friend of Rufus, the Left Hand of the Crow. His daughter is deceased after committing suicide in shame of being sullied by the son of a lordling, and he comes to Rufus to receive one of his sex slaves as compensation for his loneliness.

Evil Counterpart: To Archbishop Josef. Archbishop Josef is kind, devout, and a loving father to his two daughters, Lianna and Ophilia. Meanwhile, Father Eschard is vengeful, deviant, and while he does love his deceased daughter, he is disturbingly implied to have feelings of incestuous sexual lust towards her as well.
Flat Character: His main purpose in the story is to provide insight into how Rufus' human trafficking business works and create a sense of danger for Arianna, after which he is never seen or heard from again.
Light Is Not Good: He's a bishop in the Order of the Sacred Flame and is garbed in a white robe, and is in cahoots with a man within a criminal organization to have one of his sex slaves.
Parental Incest: His dialogue disturbingly implies that he has sexual feelings for his deceased daughter.
Sinister Minister: He's a bishop in the Order of the Sacred Flame, and is more immoral than his status would have you believe.
The Unfought: It is likely that Primrose never learns of his existence, but Arianna would have been in grave danger if Primrose hadn't killed his patron, Rufus.
What Happened to the Mouse?: He's a very minor, indirect antagonist, appearing in one cutscene during Primrose's Chapter 2 discussing his daughter's suicide and hatred towards the House whose lordling's son sullied her. Rufus offers him Arianna as compensation for his loneliness, but Primrose later corners and kills Rufus as punishment for murdering her father over a decade ago, and Eschard is never seen or heard from again.

Alfyn's Route

Blotted Viper

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_viper.png

A giant snake who possesses a deadly venom.

Non-Lethal K.O.: The Blotted Viper is just rendered unconscious after Alfyn defeats it, allowing him to collect its venom to develop a cure.
Non-Malicious Monster: While the Blotted Viper is very aggressive, it's acting out of instinct and only attacks the people who disturb it in its lair.
Poisonous Person: Its venom made Nina sick, and several of its attacks induce the poison status.
Reptiles Are Abhorrent: It's a giant, aggressive snake with a lethal venom.
Starter Villain: The first boss Alfyn faces.

The Glowmoss Harvester (SPOILERS)

Vanessa Hysel

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_vanessa.png

Another apothecary whom Alfyn comes across in Goldshore. Initially appearing to be a selfless healer of the sick, she is revealed to be a fraud who deliberately gives medicine with negative side-effects so she can sell the remedy at an exorbitant price once those side-effects kick in.

Anything but That!: Vanessa panics when Alfyn reveals that he brought along slumberthorn to make sure that she can't escape the guards. As an experienced apothecary, Vanessa likely knows about slumberthorn's more obscure properties.
Arc Villain: The antagonist of Alfyn's second chapter.
Bad People Abuse Animals: Before the boss fight, she reveals that she tests her deadly tonic on kittens.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She maintains the appearance of a caring healer, only to exhort money from the sick by using a tonic with deadly side-effects.
Butt-Monkey: After her Heel–Face Turn, you can perform any rogue Path Actions (Scrutinize, Allure, Steal or Provoke) without suffering any reputation penalty in case you fail. Which means, in case you think that being pricked with a slumberthorn is not heavy enough punishment for her, you can constantly pester her for information until she gives in or seduce her or rob her or fetch a wild animal at her, and no one will be mad at you.
Evil Counterpart: She's Alfyn's. Alfyn is a genuinely kind and selfless apothecary who heals the sick no matter their background, believing himself to not have the right to act as a jury. Vanessa pretends to be as kind and selfless, but in reality cares only about the money and gives her patients a remedy that actually makes them sick to extort more money from them.
Foreshadowing: When Alfyn asks her if he can take a look at her pharmaceutics, she says that she "can't share trade secrets with those in the business". It's later revealed that the real reason she refused Alfyn's request is because her "medicine" contains an ingredient that induces severe coughing, and showing Alfyn her pharmaceutics would expose her Poison and Cure Gambit.
Flunky Boss: She has a few mercenaries helping her during her fight with the heroes.
Heel–Face Turn: Sort of. After Alfyn's story ends, she can be found at the end of the Undertow Cove and Inquiring or Scrutinizing her will reveal that she left her criminal life behind and now sells genuine medicines of very good quality, albeit still at high prices. She can also be Guided/Allured as an ally.
Hired Guns: Due to the wealth she has accumulated she has paid mercenaries to fight on her behalf, as seen in her boss fight.
I Surrender, Suckers: After being defeated, she feigns repentance, only to try to sneak away while Alfyn's back is turned. However, Alfyn notices and drugs her with slumberthorn, incapacitating her until the guards come to take her away.
It's All About Me: She wants to be rich and she doesn't care who she has to step on or even kill to get there.
Lack of Empathy: She's disturbingly nonchalant about the fact that people may die because of her scheme.
Meaningful Name: She "high-sells" remedies for the ailments she inflicts.
Mook Depletion: She will use the move Concoct Restorative once the Sellswords she fights with die, but the move fails if it's used more than once.
But Vanessa was out of ingredients...
Ms. Fanservice: Her battle sprite makes it apparent that she's quite attractive and buxom. There's even some subtle bounce in her chest.
Optional Party Member: After Alfyn's story ends, she can be encountered at the end of the Undertow Cove near Rippletide, and Guided/Allured as an ally. She also carries the Battle-Tested Dagger, which can be Purchased or Stolen^note.
Poison and Cure Gambit: Her scam is to deliberately poison the townspeople of Goldshore and sell the cure for exorbitant prices.
Reformed, but Not Tamed: She more or less performed a Heel–Face Turn by the time Alfyn's story ends, only selling genuine remedies, but she still charges high prices for them.
Reformed, but Rejected: Implied. Despite leaving behind her criminal life, she can no longer operate in towns where her crime has become known, so she holes herself inside a cavern, where nobody gives a damn if she somehow gets robbed (therefore, if you fail to do any rogue Path Actions on her, you get no reputation penalty).
Smug Snake: Her attitude once her true colors are revealed makes her this. She's shown to be quite full of herself and condescending towards Alfyn.
The Sociopath: She is a manipulative con artist who has no regrets about giving people toxic "medicine"—even children—so that she can sell the solution for exorbitant prices, seeing others as mere objects to be used for her own benefit. Even after leaving her criminal life behind her after Alfyn's story is completed, she acts all Never My Fault and her Inquire/Scrutinize info reveals that she still charges high prices for her medicine, suggesting that she still doesn't actually feel sorry for what she did and is merely trying to stay within the boundaries of the law.
Would Hurt a Child: She gives a small girl "medicine" that she knows will kill her and sells the cure for more money than her mother can possibly afford.

The Mercenary (SPOILERS)

Miguel "Twinspears"

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_miguel.png

'Fraid you picked a fight with the wrong man...

A wounded man whom Alfyn helps recover in Saintsbridge, after Ogen deemed him not worth saving. In reality, Ogen refused to treat him because he realized that he is a liar, a thief... and a murderer.

Arc Villain: Ends up as this for Alfyn's Chapter 3, and is only able to be this because of Alfyn. This puts the latter in a major personal crisis for most of Chapter 4, making him the posthumous main antagonist of Alfyn's route.
Badass Boast: When Alfyn declares that he'll make things right, Miguel is unimpressed.
Miguel: Sure that's smart, Alfyn? I stretch the truth from time to time, but I wasn't lyin' about bein' a mercenary. Miguel Twinspears has killed a hundred men if he's killed a dozen. Soldiers, mind you, not mollycoddles totin' a bag full o' weeds. None of your potions or bandages will patch ye up when I'm done with ye! Gaaaaaahh!!!
Barrier Change Boss: He changes his weaknesses throughout the fight.
Beyond Redemption: He betrays Alfyn's trust after the apothecary treats his wounds, and later wounds a child because he was annoyed by his crying. Notably, he's the only chapter boss that Alfyn kills.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He lies to Alfyn about his past in order to get Alfyn to treat his wounds. As soon as he recovers, he wastes no time in going back to his bandit ways. This convinces Alfyn that Miguel is Beyond Redemption.
Card-Carrying Villain: He doesn't bother to conceal his true colors from those who have already seen them, boasting to Alfyn about stabbing an innocent child and having killed countless soldiers back when he was a mercenary.
Character Death: Miguel is the only antagonist in Alfyn's story to be killed, because he took advantage of Alfyn's compassionate personality, betrayed him, and then stabbed an innocent child because "the brat wouldn't shut up" after Miguel kidnapped him to hold for ransom. This convinces Alfyn that Miguel is Beyond Redemption.
Consummate Liar: Tried lying to Ogen by saying he was a mere farmer, and lied to Alfyn by saying he only killed because he had a family to feed.
Devious Daggers: His primary weapon is the spear, but Ogen mentions that he conceals a dagger beneath his cloak, which indicates to Ogen that he is a criminal. He's also The Sociopath and an Ungrateful Bastard.
Did You Actually Believe...?: After accidentally saying he has four mouths to feed, not three, he asks Alfyn "Ye actually believed I had a bloody family?"
Disproportionate Retribution: While waiting for his ransom after kidnapping an innocent child, Miguel becomes annoyed by the child's crying, so he stabs him, seemingly ignoring that if he dies, the ransom is useless.
Dual Wielding: As his name implies, his battle sprite has two polearms.
Dying Alone: His wound re-opens following his loss to Alfyn in battle. Alfyn rescues the child he kidnapped and stabbed, and leaves him to die in the Rivira Woods, having decided that he is Beyond Redemption for "repaying" his care with betrayal and attempted murder.
Evil All Along: He's a friendly man at first, and Ogen is made out to be a cold-hearted Jerkass for refusing to treat his wound. Then Alfyn hears about how he's a thief and a murderer, prompting Miguel to "explain" that he has a family back home he needs to feed, which convinces Alfyn to heal him. Once he's recovered enough, Miguel casts his friendly façade aside, showing his true colors as The Sociopath who does what he does For the Evulz, and confirming that Ogen had a point all along.
Evil Laugh: Bursts into maniacal laughter right before mocking Alfyn for believing he has a family.
Evil Redhead: He has spiky red hair, and wounds an innocent child and tries to kill Alfyn after he healed him. He has a notorious reputation within Saintsbridge as a criminal.
The Farmer and the Viper: Rather than repaying Alfyn's kindness, he kidnaps and wounds a local child for profit upon his health being restored, leading Alfyn to have a crisis of faith.
Flaw Exploitation: Miguel very pointedly attacks and exploits Alfyn's inherent altruism. When they finally fight, Miguel will even feign begging for mercy before unleashing his charged attack.
For the Evulz: He uses a Freudian Excuse of needing to feed his hungry family to explain his notorious reputation as a criminal and persuade Alfyn to treat his wounds, but later reveals he lied about having a family, too. Miguel lies, steals and murders because… it's fun.
Hate Sink: He's easily one of the most despicable antagonists in the game, what with his willingness to exploit Alfyn's kindness and nearly murder an innocent child. It's also worth noting that out of all the chapter bosses, he is the only one who is killed by Alfyn, since Alfyn decides even his altruism has its limits.
Hired Guns: He's a mercenary, one of the few things he wasn't lying about to Alfyn. He boasts about having killed countless soldiers.
I Surrender, Suckers: Towards the end of his battle he pleads for mercy... during his charge up sequence where he'll unleash a powerful attack next turn, making it clear-cut trickery.
It's All About Me: He lies to Alfyn about his reputation as a murderous thief to save himself, claiming he steals to feed his family back at home. In truth, Miguel has no family, and lies, steals and murders simply because he enjoys the criminal life. When Alfyn later calls him out for wounding a child he's kidnapped and holding for ransom, Miguel's response is essentially "Who cares?"
Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: When Alfyn finds out that's he's a mercenary for hire, Miguel claims it's to feed his three children. When Alfyn confronts him for kidnapping a child and Miguel accidentally reiterates that he has four children, not three, he gleefully admits that he never had any children and that he does it all for fun, making him nothing but a remorseless asshole who will gleefully take advantage of other people's compassion for his own benefit.
Karmic Death: He gets killed by the same guy he took advantage of and whose kindness saved Miguel from death.
Knight of Cerebus: Alfyn's story starts off fairly light-hearted with him travelling to heal the sick and suffering. Miguel (and by extension, Ogen) is when Alfyn's story takes a darker turn when he takes advantage of Alfyn's compassion and betrays his trust, leading to serious questions as to whether "some lives are not worth saving".
Lack of Empathy: He feels no remorse for any of his actions at all. This exchange between him and Alfyn says it all.
Alfyn: (realises that Miguel has stabbed the little boy he's kidnapped and holding for ransom) ...!
Miguel: Heh heh. The brat wouldn't shut up, so I stuck him one to give him somethin' to really cry about.
Alfyn: You low-down pile of filth...! Move aside and let me see the boy's wound!
Miguel: Not another bleedin' step! As pleased as I'd be to see you fix up me golden goose... Somethin' tells me yer just going t' up and sneak away with him.
Alfyn: The boy could die!
Miguel: And what of it if he does!? I've got four mouths to feed back at home!
Alfyn: ...I thought it was three.
Miguel: Heh, whoops. I should learn to keep me stories straight.
Lightning Bruiser: He attacks twice per round for heavy damage with multi-hit party-wide moves, and later ups his turns to five actions per round.
Meaningful Name: He wields two spears in his battle sprite, though it's more likely that "Twinspears" is a title he earned back when he was a mercenary, rather than his actual last name.
Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: Passes himself off as a desperate family man who has fallen on hard times, then gleefully admits that he doesn't have a family and does what he does just for the fun of it.
The Sociopath: What with being a Bitch in Sheep's Clothing, a Consummate Liar, and having a need for stimulation as well as no regard for the rights of anybody except himself, Miguel ticks all the boxes for a dangerous sociopath.
Too Dumb to Live: He really should have waited for his wound to fully heal before continuing his life of crime. This allows Alfyn to overpower him and eventually, this leads to his death.
Undignified Death: For a professed mercenary who has killed dozens to hundreds of trained soldiers in combat... going down to a "Molly-coddles" apothecary and a few of his friends and being left to bleed out alone in a forest is a pretty embarrassing way to go. Granted, he was out of practice and his wound hadn't fully healed yet, but you have to wonder why he didn't wait until he had fully recovered before resuming the criminal life.
Ungrateful Bastard: He does not hesitate to try and kill Alfyn once Alfyn attempts to stop him, despite the fact that Alfyn is the only reason why he is still alive.
Villain Ball: While he had recovered enough to walk by the time he betrayed Alfyn's trust, he hadn't fully recovered, so kidnapping and trying to murder a child in the very town where he was treated was pretty idiotic. This leads to his own death when Alfyn hears word of what happened and hunts him down to save the child's life.
Villain Has a Point: After mocking Alfyn for believing he has a family, Miguel points out that it's because of Alfyn's naïvety in his belief that an apothecary has a duty to treat anyone who needs them, that allowed Miguel to recover enough to continue his criminal ways.
Miguel: But I owe ye one, Alfyn. Thanks to ye, I'm able to get back to "honest" work! Ahahaha!
Alfyn: (Sighs) ...I give. [For Succor plays] This is my fault for fixing you. But that's why I'm gonna set things right... by my own hand! Step aside, Miguel!
Would Hurt a Child: He wounds a child just because he found his crying annoying.

Ogre Eagle

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_eagle.png

A beast whose feathers can be brewed to create the cure for a life-threatening ailment.

Blow You Away: It can use wind attacks, one of which can forcibly banish a party member from battle for several turns, similar to the Dragon that acts as the boss of H'aanit's third chapter.
Final Boss: Of Alfyn's route. It's also the only Chapter 4 boss that isn't the main antagonist of a playable character's route, with Chapter 3's Miguel filling that role.
Lone Wolf Boss: It turns out that the key ingredient to the potion that saved Alfyn's life as a child is an Ogre Eagle feather, but that information was only revealed just prior to Alfyn going after the beast itself. Unlike many other final bosses, the Ogre Eagle does not serve as a personal antagonist to Alfyn and just happens to be a beast that he needs something from in the moment.
Non-Malicious Monster: Attacks Alfyn out of natural instinct to hunt.
Our Gryphons Are Different: It resembles the typical depiction of a griffin, being a creature with the body of a lion and the wings and head of an eagle. Despite this, its English name references the "Tengu" portion of its Japanese name with the term "Ogre", and emphasizes its avian traits by referring to it as an eagle rather than a griffon.
Riding into the Sunset: Done by the Eagle itself. The final battle against the Ogre Eagle is fought in a perpetual sunset, and it survives its defeat to fly off into the sunset and bring a close to Alfyn's story.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: It flies away after being defeated.
Status Effects: It can inflict Confusion, Blindness, and Poison.
Time-Limit Boss: In the last leg of the fight, it uses Toxic Rainbow to create a field effect that gradually lowers the party's max HP, meaning that even if the players fully heal their HP every turn, their maximum will gradually be reduced to nothing.
Victory by Endurance: Its Toxic Rainbow is an attempt at this; when the Eagle's HP gets too low, it creates an environmental effect that gradually drains the party's maximum HP each turn, in the hope that it can outlast their assault until the rainbow eventually does them in.

Therion's Route

The Bandit Leader (SPOILERS)

Darius

Voiced By: Sean Chiplock (English)

A childhood friend and former partner-in-crime of Therion's. It was his betrayal of Therion that caused Therion to distrust others.

0% Approval Rating: With the possible exception of Gareth, not one of the thieves working for Darius actually care about him and resent his unempathetic leadership, seizing the opportunity to betray their boss when he's weakened by his battle against Therion and steal all his money without a second thought.
Arc Villain: The primary villain of Therion's story, stealing the Dragonstones to gain immense power.
Asshole Victim: He gets killed by his own minions after how poorly he treated them, and no-one except for maybe Gareth liked him. The "Sorrow" track that plays when he's dying doesn't even make his death sympathetic, but rather shows that Darius is Beyond Redemption and doesn't deserve to be in this world.
Bad Boss: He is not nice to his henchmen at all. This ends up backfiring for him — as his men have no loyalty to Darius, they rob him when they have the chance after he's weakened from his fight with Therion.
Boss Banter: Throughout his final battle with Therion, Darius repeatedly talks to him about the worthlessness of trust. Therion responds that although it may cause him to be hurt again, he still wants to trust others. Unlike in the case of Ophilia's last boss, this one has no attached voice acting.
Break the Haughty: After Therion bests him and takes his Dragonstones, his henchmen rob him and leave him, having had no loyalty to him beyond his money. Darius is last seen alone, dying, and calling out for help to Therion, who has long since left with the Dragonstones.
Cockney Rhyming Slang: Uses this dialect, such as saying "tea leaves" for "thieves".
Card-Carrying Villain: He gloats about how he rises to the top by betraying others and mocks the idea of trust.
Character Death: Is killed by his own men shortly after being defeated and weakened from his battle against Therion.
Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: Besides betraying Therion, Darius boasts that he's betrayed many other people in his climb to the top. This bites him back in the end when his own henchmen mortally wound him and steal all his gold.
Disproportionate Retribution:
- One reason for his betraying and trying to murder Therion is because he had become sick of Therion having independent ideas and disagreeing with him.
- He once threatens to kill his loyal right-hand Gareth just because the latter had expressed curiosity about Darius's past partnership with Therion.
Dying Alone: After the boss battle with him, Darius attempts to flee with the gold he's collected. However, his men promptly turn on Darius, stabbing him repeatedly and leaving him for dead. In his final moments, Darius is slumped against the wall of his hideout, all of his gold stolen and no one around to help him. His last words are pitifully calling out to a long-gone Therion for help, right before Darius slumps against the wall and expires.
Enfant Terrible: Even as a child, Darius was selfish and manipulative beyond the standards of most children. He "befriended" Therion so that he could reap the benefits of Therion's thieving skills, which he reluctantly recognized as superior to his own.
Entitled Bastard: Darius expects his followers to be loyal to and obey him, except he himself couldn't care less about them and will gladly throw them away if it means he can get what he wants. It makes his Karmic Death at the hand of his own men feel all the more deserving!
Evil All Along: During Therion's flashback of Darius betraying and throwing him off a cliff, Darius reveals that the only reason he "befriended" Therion when they first met was that he reluctantly recognized him as a more talented thief than himself, and wanted to reap the benefits of Therion's skills. He had never cared for Therion himself in the first place!
Evil Counterpart:
- Alongside Simeon, Darius is this to Erhardt of all people. All three of them betrayed a protagonist (Therion, Primrose and Olberic) which caused their individual issues (unwillingness to trust, desire for revenge and loss of purpose, respectively), and first appear in person in Chapter 3 of their respective protagonists' stories. However, Erhardt had an understandable Freudian Excuse for his betrayal (his home-village was laid to ruin while his King did nothing to save the people living there), is the Disc-One Final Boss of Olberic's story with the mercenary leader who recruited him, Werner, being the real Arc Villain, is eventually forgiven by Olberic, and ultimately survives the game's events, whereas Darius and Simeon were primarily motivated by greed and sadism respectively, are the definitive Arc Villains of their protagonists' respective stories, are never forgiven by their respective protagonists, and ultimately meet their end with daggers in their shriveled excuses for hearts.
- To Lianna, from Ophilia's route. They are both an important person in their respective traveler's life (Therion and Ophilia), and eventually betray their respective allies. However, Darius betrayed Therion for completely unsympathetic desires for more money and power, attempted to murder him, feels no remorse for what he did to the extent that he actively gloats about it, and as such is considered Beyond Redemption by Therion, ultimately meeting a Karmic Death after being weakened from his battle against Therion, when his own henchmen betray and stab him for his money. Lianna, on the other hand, had a sympathetic reason to betray Ophilia, as she was devastated by her father's sickness and death and was being manipulated by the Savior under the false promise that he could bring her father back to life if she stole the ember, was apologetic to and freed Ophilia from her cell to let her escape, ultimately came back to her senses (with a reminder from Ophilia of a lesson her father once taught them) after the Savior callously revealed He Lied, is forgiven by Ophilia, and later tries to atone for her sins.
Evil Former Friend: Therion's childhood friend and former partner, who later tried to kill him to gain entry into the very group they once stole from.
Evil Gloating: When he finally crosses paths with Therion again, Darius brags about how easily he betrayed his former friend.
Evil Is Petty: He betrayed Therion to the Ciannos and tried to murder him by kicking him off a cliff because... money, and Therion beginning to develop independent ideas that lead to the two disagreeing, which Darius couldn't tolerate.
Evil Laugh: After kicking Therion off a cliff to his supposed death, Darius burst into maniacal laughter.
Evil Redhead: He has bright red hair, and has betrayed many people and abused his henchmen in his climb for power.
False Friend: He "befriended" Therion only to reap the benefits of his thieving skills.
Foil: Like many of the other final chapter bosses, Darius acts as a foil to the traveler to drive home the themes of that traveler's story. Therion's chapters center around trust and forming bonds. Unlike Therion, Darius never trusted anyone from the start, simply using them before tossing them aside, and so when at his lowest and in need of help there was no one there for Darius.
From Nobody to Nightmare: Therion first met Darius in a dingy gaol, when they were both still children. In the present, he owns the city of Northreach, rules over its people, and has turned the place into a Wretched Hive where thieves can run rampant with no retribution.
Green-Eyed Monster: It is heavily implied that Therion's being a better thief than him is one of the reasons for his betrayal.
Hate Sink: Between his greed, treachery, and Lack of Empathy for anyone including his own minions, it's very clear that Darius doesn't have a single likable bone in his body. The "Sorrow" track that plays from after his battle against Therion to his final moments, is less about eliciting sympathy for his Karmic Death and more about Therion's bitter acceptance that Darius is Beyond Redemption.
Hypocrite: Decries his men as traitors when they turn on him after he's weakened following his battle against Therion, even though he himself has no regrets using and betraying others to get what he wants.
I Control My Minions Through...: Threats of violence. He has a preference for the blindly loyal and stupid, since his previous partnership with Therion fell apart because the latter was too talented and sharp. Of course, there's nothing stopping his minions from backstabbing and robbing him blind once they see him weakened.
I Don't Pay You to Think: Darius outright threatens to kill his only loyal lackey just for asking the wrong question.
I Work Alone: In his boss battle, he betrays Therion by saying that he "could have done it Jack Jones"^noteCockney slang meaning "On my own", and never needed Therion in the first place.
Inferiority Superiority Complex: Darius's hatred of Therion stems from his own jealousy of Therion's gifts as a thief slowly outshining his own.
It's All About Me: Darius is very selfish, to say the least. He not only betrayed and attempted to murder Therion just to become a high-ranking member of a criminal gang, but he reveals that he had only befriended Therion when they were children because he wanted to reap the rewards from having a skilled thief on his side, never caring for Therion himself in the first place.
Jerkass: He's nothing more than a cowardly, greedy asshole who treats everyone, including his own lackeys like garbage.
Karmic Death: Darius is always eager to use and betray people if it gets him more wealth and power. In turn, his death comes from being betrayed by his own lackeys after he's been weakened.
Lack of Empathy: Darius takes great pride in his actions regardless of how much they hurt others, and is completely without remorse for any of them.
Life Drain: He can use HP Thief to damage someone while restoring his health.
Lonely at the Top: Therion theorises in a Kirk Summation that Darius, for all his wealth and power, is a sad man inside, trusting and being trusted by no-one save Gareth, who he abandoned to die in battle. Therion is proven right when Darius' remaining lackeys backstab him and steal all his money, resulting in his death.
Narcissist: Besides money, this asshat attempted to murder his partner of several years for disagreeing with him in their profession. In the present, he treats his own brigands as nothing more than pawns and threatens to kill the one genuinely loyal man of the brigands for asking a question he didn't want to answer. In short, he has no tolerance for anything other than unwavering obedience from his henchmen.
Never My Fault: He blames Therion for his own attempt to murder him.
Darius: So when we met, I knew I needed you on me side. And you were so easily manipulated by cheap words! But then you started to doubt me, to question me... Why couldn't you stay a naif!? Everything woulda be fine if you just did what I said!
No Honor Among Thieves: It goes both ways; he betrayed Therion for personal gain, and after his defeat at the end of Therion's story, his remaining lackeys all turn against him and steal his wealth.
Offended by an Inferior's Success: He thinks that Therion's success is undeserved because of his trusting nature, in contrast to Darius who'll backstab anyone to get ahead.
Offing the Annoyance: He couldn't tolerate Therion having independent ideas, so he gladly accepted the Ciannos' offer to murder him in order to acquire a high-ranking position in their group.
Redhead In Green: He has red hair and wears a green cape and clothing.
Riddle for the Ages: Darius tells Therion at the beginning of their final encounter that the Dragonstones will "grant me an even greater power than I have now", implying that he (Darius) has figured out that the Dragonstones' true purpose is to unlock The Very Definitely Final Dungeon, and that he plans to gain immense power by making a deal with the local God of Evil sealed behind it; but it's never fully confirmed if this is indeed the case.
A Sinister Clue: He's left-handed, according to his battle sprite. He's also a Bad Boss with Chronic Backstabbing Disorder.
Street Urchin: Was this alongside Therion when they were children.
Too Dumb to Live: Darius should have realised that treating his lackeys the way he did would induce resentment amongst them. Instead, he is blindsighted when they seize the opportunity to literally backstab him and steal all his money, resulting in his Karmic Death.
Ungrateful Bastard: To Therion, whom he used to be partners with, and to Gareth, the one brigand who genuinely respected and was loyal to him.
Video Game Stealing: He can steal all of your items during battle, but breaking him will return all of them to you. His ultimate attack has him steal your allies.
Villain Has a Point: Subverted. Darius tells Therion that betrayal is the result of trust. Therion, having listened to Cordelia's experience of betrayal, acknowledges that trust can indeed lead to being betrayed—having experienced it himself by Darius' own hand—but counters that, while betrayal is a potential result of trust, it is not a guaranteed one.
Walking Spoiler: His betraying and attempting to murder Therion is single-handedly responsible for the latter's cynical, distrustful personality.
We Used to Be Friends: He and Therion used to be friends, before Darius betrayed him.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Deconstructed. Darius never trusted anyone, preferring to simply use them for his own gain before disposing of them. However, as Therion points out before their battle, Darius' Chronic Backstabbing Disorder leaves him with no-one truly loyal to him except for Horrible Judges of Character like Gareth, which leads to his Karmic Death at the hands of his own lackeys.

Orlick

A reclusive scholar living on the outskirts of Noblecourt. Therion infiltrates his mansion in pursuit of the Ruby Dragonstone.

Arc Villain: Of Therion's second chapter, isolating himself from everyone including his former research partner and friend, Barham, after becoming obsessed with studying the Ruby Dragonstone.
Fat Bastard: Portly and unpleasant.
Flunky Boss: Starts his boss battle with two bodyguards who protect his shield points, so he can't be put into a Break state as long as they're alive. Later, he'll summon a construct to aid him, but only one; break it, and the skill fails every time it's used henceforth.
For Science!: Claims that the Dragonstone should only be in the hands of someone who will study its unique properties to justify his ownership of it.
Heel–Face Turn: After Therion defeats him, Orlick makes up with Barham and goes back to doing more normal research.
Starter Villain: While not Therion's first boss, Orlick is still the first actual antagonist he encounters and has no connection with the group the later two bosses belong to.
Stronger Than They Look: It turns out that the short-tempered podgy scholar can put up a good fight against a team of four people.
We Used to Be Friends: With Barham, until his obsession with studying the Ruby Dragonstone drove him to cut ties with his former friend. By the end of Therion's story, they make up, becoming friends/research partners again.

Gareth

You can't keep up with me...

A member of Darius's bandits that stole the Emerald Dragonstone from the Wellspring black market, and the only one truly loyal to their leader.

The Dragon: Darius's right-hand man and the only member of his bandit group that is truly loyal to him.
Character Death: He dies shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of Therion.
Dual Wielding: He wields two daggers in his sprite.
Evil Counterpart: To Therion, both being thieves dressed mostly in purple who were Darius's right-hand men at some point, only to be betrayed by him. Therion immediately shut himself away from everyone as a result, while Gareth continued fighting for Darius even after being left for dead while Darius escaped with the Dragonstones. He also has his own version of Therion's moveset, including a Mana Drain and Playing with Fire. It's implied that Darius purposely chose someone unlike Therion to be his new right-hand man, since Darius hates being questioned by his followers.
Extreme Doormat: Therion calls him this as he remains loyal to Darius despite how poorly he treated him.
Horrible Judge of Character: He's loyal to a man who obviously doesn't give a crap about any of his followers and admits in front of everyone that he betrayed his previous right-hand man. Therion sees this and calls Gareth a spineless idiot.
In the Hood: He wears a purple hood, fitting for a thief.
Mana Drain: He can use use an attack that drains the target's SP in addition to damaging them.
Mirror Boss: Is set up to be one to Therion to show how far he's come since his days with Darius. Gareth has similar clothing, weaponry, and even uses some of Therion's own skills against the party, meaning that in terms of gameplay, this is as close as they might get to actually facing Therion himself as a boss.
Undying Loyalty: Deconstructed. He's deeply loyal to a man who obviously doesn't care about him, to the point that he would fight to the death for him even after Darius abandoned him. Therion points out that he's an idiot.
Yes-Man: He's the only member of Darius's bandit group that is truly loyal to him.

H'aanit's Route

Redeye

An ill foreboding pervades the battlefield...

A monster that H'aanit's mentor was tasked to hunt. He went missing, and H'aanit sets out to both rescue her master and finish the job.

Achilles' Heel: While Redeye is a Barrier Change Boss, it is consistently weak to Light.
And I Must Scream: Returning to the area you fought him reveals Redeye/Graham Crossford occasionally had moments of lucidity while trapped in that form. He's only capable of writing his regrets and that he wishes someone kill him.
Arc Villain: The primary villain of H'aanit's story.
Barrier Change Boss: Its weaknesses change every turn due to how unstable its body is. It's always weak to Light, however.
Character Death: It dies shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of H'aanit, who unknowingly put Graham Crossford's soul to rest.
Dark Is Evil: It has the appearance of a living mass of darkness, and is a monster that many have been tasked to hunt down due to attacking civilians.
Deadly Gaze: What makes it so deadly is that can turn anyone that looks into its eyes to stone. It manages to petrify several soldiers at once without moving just by staring at them.
The Dreaded: Entire armies and nests filled with monsters would rather flee the area than deal with this thing. It's also worth noting that it is so fearsome that even when H'aanit has to fight a Dragon, it is only the boss of the third chapter. This is a testament to how dangerous the Redeye is — even a mythical beast pales in comparison.
Eldritch Abomination: A demonic monstrosity not of this world that has the power to turn anyone who looks into its eyes to stone. Even H'aanit is unable to sense its feelings, much to her bewilderment. It Was Once a Man who was subjected to a ritual of black magic in an attempt to turn him into a vessel for the local God of Evil, resisted enough to interrupt the ritual and escape, but succumbed to the magic soon after and turned into Redeye.
Fate Worse than Death: Examining a fallen pillar after H'aanit defeats Redeye reveals that Redeye/Graham Crossford had fleeting moments of lucidity after being turned into that monstrosity as a side-effect of Lyblac's attempt to use him as a vessel for Gal dera. In these fleeting moments, he considers what he has become to be this and begs somebody to kill him, while simultaneously apologizing to his son, Kit.
Foreshadowing:
- During its fight it can use a skill "Unholy Elixir" that heals one of your party members for 100 HP. Redeye is later revealed to have been Graham Crossford, an apothecary.
- Before the battle, H'aanit notes she is unable to understand the monster, unlike every other beast she has encountered. That's because this thing wasn't always a beast.
- The boss sprite has a scrap of fabric hanging off its rear leg — the final remnant of Graham Crossford's outfit.
- Z'aanta states that he loses most of his wagers at Victors Hollow because he's much better at reading beasts than men. This is why he has so much trouble with Redeye; it isn't a regular beast.
Humanoid Abomination: When finally confronted at the end of H'aanit's story, it looks and sounds disturbingly human. That's because it used to be one.
Meaningful Name: True to its name, its eyes are red.
No Body Left Behind: When finally defeated, its body disintegrates.
No Name Given: It's only called Redeye because that's its most distinguishing trait.
No Ontological Inertia: The only way to reverse the petrification of its victims is to kill the beast.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: It's right there in his name. These eyes do more than look dangerous though; they can petrify anyone as well.
Smarter Than You Look: Z'aanta notes that the monster dodges every trap he sets for it, and believes it might have intelligence on par with humans. He's partially right; it's actually a leftover from when Redeye was Graham Crossford.
Taken for Granite: One of its deadliest powers. Z'aanta fell victim to it, forcing H'aanit to find the way to counter it.
Tragic Monster: The Redeye Was Once a Man and was turned against his will into a monster. He managed to escape before the transformation was complete, but lost his mind soon after. Returning to the area in which he was fought reveals that he still had occasional moments of lucidity while trapped in this form, but all he could do was write his regrets and hope that someone would kill him.
Was Once a Man: One of the logs found in Very Definitely Final Dungeon reveals that Redeye was originally Graham Crossford, who was Kit's father, Alfyn's role-model, and the previous owner of the journal Tressa obtains from Leon at the beginning of her story. Lyblac tried to turn him into the host body for Galdera, but Graham had enough Heroic Willpower left to escape before the transformation could go all the way, sadly losing his human mind soon after.

Ghisarma

A vicious beast that has been killing everything in the forest.

Character Death: It dies shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of H'aanit.
Lone Wolf Boss: It gets some build-up prior to H'aanit's battle against it and is primarily used to provide further insight into her personality—particularly her strong belief in the cycle of life and anger towards those who hunt for pleasure rather than for survival—but it still has no real impact on the plot, being a random vicious beast for H'aanit to deal with while she's looking after S'warkii and its people, before Hägen returns alone to let her know that Z'aanta is in trouble, beginning her search for him.
Maniac Monkeys: Its battle sprite resembles a gigantic, mangy aye-aye.
Misplaced Retribution: It takes out the pain and anger it feels over losing its old home by killing everything around it.
Non-Malicious Monster: Subverted. The Ghisarma isn't acting out of instinct. On the contrary, it's knowingly and actively killing everything around it out of anger and a desire to show its power. This is the reason why H'aanit declares it must be killed.
Starter Villain: The first boss H'aanit faces.

Lord of the Forest

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_forestlord.png

The animal guardian of the forest that Z'aanta was last seen in.

Achilles' Heel: While it is a Barrier Change Boss, it is consistently weak to Fire.
Barrier Change Boss: It can change its vulnerabilities, with the exception of a constant weakness to Fire.
Cannibalism Superpower: One of its moves causes the forest life to flourish and create plant-like beasts to assist it. Should they remain for too many turns, the Lord of the Forest will actually devour them to heal itself using their life energy, despite being life-like plants that it produced from itself.
Giant Space Flea from Nowhere: One of the few bosses of the game who has no ties to the story and very little foreshadowing, appearing out of nowhere to give a boss fight to the second chapter of H'aanit's story.
In-Universe Factoid Failure: One resident of Stonegard Heights foreshadows this creature's existence, but says it lives in a cave. The Spectrewood is, well, a wood, and has no cave.
The Marvelous Deer: Its appearance resembles a stag, and it's the powerful guardian of a forest.
Nature Spirit: It being made out of weaved wood suggests that it is an immortal guardian spirit that will watch over the Spectrewood for all of time.
What Happened to the Mouse?: After being defeated, the Lord of the Forest just disappears. It appears to be a spirit guardian, so it likely can't be killed and allowed H'aanit passage after sensing she possessed no threat to the forest.

The White Dragon

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_dragon.png

The dragon stands majestically before you...

The beast that guards a grove of herb-of-grace, a plant that protects against petrification.

Blow You Away: It can blow a single character off the battlefield, and it will take several rounds before they can return. Later in the fight, it charges up the ability to blow away two at once.
Breath Weapon: Despite its environment, it breathes fire upon the party frequently.
Character Death: Its appearance as a ghost in The Very Definitely Final Dungeon confirms it died shortly after being defeated in battle at the hands of H'aanit.
Lone Wolf Boss: It guards a grove of herb-of-grace, which helps people recover from being turned to stone and therefore helpful against Redeye; but the boss still comes completely out of nowhere. Susanna later explains that she knew the creature was there all along, and deliberately withheld the information from H'aanit with the rationalization that if she couldn't slay it, then she wouldn't stand a chance against Redeye.
Mighty Glacier: The creature is plenty tough and powerful, but its most notable feature is that it locks out its vulnerability to swords, arrows and Ice magic at the start of the fight. Breaking it causes its guard point limit to increase, but makes it more vulnerable to swords first, then arrows and Ice magic later.
Non-Indicative Name: Downplayed; the dragon's scales are of alabaster hue, but you'd think it wouldn't be vulnerable to Ice by the land it inhabits, or to Light from the typical association of the color and element.
Shrouded in Myth: H'aanit had never seen a dragon prior to encountering it, and almost thought they were a myth, as she had only heard of them from Z'aanta, who has a tendency to embellish his stories. Following the battle, even Olberic notes that he grew up hearing tales of knights facing dragons as their ultimate opponent.

Other Villains

WARNING: Due to the nature of the characters in this folder, all spoilers will be unmarked.

The Mastermind

Lyblac

Overworld sprite
^{Click here to see her during the final battle}

Initially appearing as an unusual woman whom Alphas is in love with in one sidequest, she is later revealed to be the true villain of the overall story, manipulating most individual story villains in her bid to take control of the Gate of Finis and awaken her father Galdera, who had created her for that sole purpose.

Adaptational Curves: Her attractiveness is ambiguous in the original game, but during the boss fight against her in Champions of the Continent, she is shown to be very buxom and curvacious.
Batman Gambit: Her specialty. She gives each of the villains a little bit of aid then lets them do the rest of the dirty work on their own.
Big Bad: She becomes the main villain whom the heroes ultimately band together to defeat after completing their individual stories.
Chekhov's Gunwoman: She's introduced in a sidequest as some random lady that a guard is crushing on. She turns out to be much, much more important than that.
The Chessmaster: She's been working for at least 100 years to bring back Galdera, carefully maneuvering people and events behind the scenes without any hints leading back to her.
The Collector: It's implied that the hidden library that Cyrus finds in his fourth chapter belongs to Lyblac, given his deduction that gathering all the books (which are all about Galdera) must have taken at the very least decades, if not centuries. Her reason for doing so seems to be hiding away all information about Galdera so no one can use it against her.
The Corrupter: It is thanks to her that Werner jumped up from a common sellsword to the tyrannical lord of Riverford, Yvon and Lucia became so unhinged in the pursuit of knowledge and immortality, and Mattias was gifted with the fell power of Galdera. She also tempted Graham Crossford in the past, which led to him being corrupted into the abomination Redeye.
Create Your Own Hero: Directly or indirectly, she is responsible for all of the eight heroes rising to become a thorn in her final plans.
- Her time with Graham Crossford causes three of the main characters to setout on a journey that leads to her defeat:
  - The corruption of Graham Crossford into the Redeye resulted in Z'aanta's petrification, which pushes H'aanit to becoming strong enough to kill the Redeye.
  - On a less direct route, her corrupting Graham led to his Journal finding its way into Tressa's possession which set her off on her journey of self-discovery.
  - Her manipulation of Graham also led to him passing through Clearbrook and using the elixir he had intended for his wife on a young Alfyn, which inspired him to become an apothecary and go on a journey to treat the sick.
- She worked with Mattias and helped him on his dark path against the Twelve Gods, which results in Ophilia's eventual rise which ends up stopping him.
- She worked with Werner and helped him manipulate Erhardt into slaying King Alfred, which results in Hornburg's ruin, which eventually pushes Olberic into finding his purpose in life, seeking out his friend Erhardt, learning the truth about why he betrayed him, and ending Werner's tyrannical rule over Riverford.
- She worked with Simeon and helped him and Mattias co-establish the Obsidians, which leads to them killing Geoffery Azelhart, which pushes his daughter Primrose to seek out vengeance and kill the Obsidians.
- Her alliance with Yvon and Lucia to obtain From the Far Reaches of Hell to gain knowledge and means to make a suitable vessel to bring back her father, allows for Yvon to become headmaster of Atlasdam Academy. Cyrus ends up investigating the book's vanishing from the Academy's inventory, which leads him to uncover the ancient history involving Lyblac's plan.
- She stole the dragonstones from House Ravus and used them to unlock the Gate of Finis, which leads to Heathcote recovering the sapphire stone and using it as bait to recruit Therion to steal the other three stones, stopping his Evil Former Friend Darius in the process.
Daddy's Little Villain: Everything she does is for the sake of bringing back and reuniting with her father. The player has to kill her first before they can even start damaging Galdera.
Dark Is Evil: She dresses in black, and is the "Daughter of the Dark God" and the Big Bad of the game overall. Naturally, she is one of the most evil characters in the game.
Devil in Plain Sight: She does little to hide her evil nature. Somehow it works, since no one other than Werner realizes just how evil she is until it's too late.
The Dog Was the Mastermind: Lyblac is the force behind most of the individual storylines and the finale ^note, and yet the player's only direct contact with her prior to the finale are a pair of sidequests where they assist a guard who has a crush on her. Now to be fair the sidequests do have an ominous name that emphasizes her role ("Daughter of the Dark God"), and some of the dialogue she has serves as foreshadowing for her motivations when viewed with the benefit of hindsight, but the actual content of the two sidequests is so minor and unrelated to the game's story (to say nothing of being very brief) it's entirely likely most players have long forgotten about her by the time she comes up again.
Expy: Of the Evil One/Airy the fairy from Bravely Default, and her sister Anne of Bravely Second, as the female true Big Bad who initially appears in an innocuous role before The Reveal and is doing everything for the sake of her God of Evil father.
Faux Affably Evil: She tells people what they want to hear in order to manipulate them into pursuing the Gate of Finis. When the party confronts her, she never drops her polite tone when telling them that they'll be eaten by Galdera.
Have a Nice Death: After awakening Galdera, she tells the party that they will have the honor of being devoured by Galdera: "You, too, have an important role to play on this historic day. Your flesh, your blood, your very soul will feed the Dark God and give him strength".
Informed Attractiveness: She's made out to be a strong case of Beauty Is Bad by Werner, but considering the game's art style, there's not a lot to look at. Champions of the Continent shows she's very curvy and buxom during her boss fight in the Bestower of Fame arc.
The Man Behind the Man: The true ringleader behind the fall of Hornburg (where the Gate of Finis is located), the theft of the Dragonstones (which are required to unlock the Gate), the cult of Galdera (which the Obsidians assisted), the theft of the tome From the Far Reaches of Hell (which led to the creation and experimentation of the blood-crystals), the murder of Geoffrey Azelhart (the Obsidians were her personal group of mercenaries), and the creation of Redeye.
Manipulative Bitch: Lures Kit to the Gate of Finis to awaken Galdera under the false promise that his father is waiting on the other side. She did the same to his father following the death of his wife years prior.
Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Her corrupting Graham Crossford into Redeye in a failed attempt to resurrect Galdera had one positive outcome: if she hadn't manipulated him into accompanying her to the Gate of Finis, Graham would never have passed through Clearbrook and used the concoction intended for his deceased wife to treat Alfyn, who would become one of the eight protagonists.
Obviously Evil: She has red eyes, dresses in black, and monologues about how finding "her perfect man" will change the entire world. How Werner was the only one who foresaw the sheer depths of her evil (In-Universe) is anybody's guess.
One-Winged Angel: She fuses with Galdera for the final battle against the party, becoming a part of him.
Really 700 Years Old: She's at least 100 years old, but likely much older than that. Champions of the Continent reveals that she emerged from the Gate of Finis 217 years prior to the main game's current events.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: She has red eyes, and is a demi-goddess witch cultist and the daughter of the local God of Evil himself.
Undisclosed Funds: Lyblac is filthy rich. Werner's diary reveals she first approached him with a Briefcase Full of Money and whenever he needed more, she'd whip out the leaves with no strings attached.
Walking Spoiler: The moment you see "Daughter of the Dark God" appear on your screen for what is ostensibly a sidequest, you know you've stumbled upon something sinister behind the scenes. Sure enough, she turns out to be the mastermind behind the whole game.

The Darkness

Galdera, the Fallen

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_galdera.png

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/octopath_omniscienteye.png

Top: Galdera's main body. Bottom: Galdera's lower half.

"Brave souls... You too have earned the same reward... So come... let us consume all life on this world... let us consume the gods themselves... For now and eternity... there is only us... There is only Galdera!"

The god of infernal magic who has power over life and death. 1,600 years ago, he refused to give up his creations out of greed and was defeated by his siblings, the twelve other gods, and sealed behind the Gate of Finis. It is Lyblac's attempt to bring him back to the world that sets off many conflicts in the heroes' stories. He appears as the True Final Boss once you beat all eight characters' arcs and finish several sidequests involving Kit and Lyblac.

13 Is Unlucky: Is technically the thirteenth God of Orsterra, and the one sealed away centuries prior to the events of the game, plus being evil.
All Your Powers Combined: In addition to all of the recurring gimmicks being present in the fight, many of Galdera's moves are based on moves used by previous bosses:
- Guardian of the First Flame - The Souls in the first form can self destruct for massive damage, much like the Guardian's minions.
- Mattias - The Abyssal Maw can seal magic until broken. The Blade of the Fallen can do the same with physical moves if either the Maw or Lyblac are killed.
- Lucia - Once the Blade, Maw and Lyblac are defeated, Galdera, the Fallen will use Banish Soul at the first opportunity to reduce the entire party's HP to One, unless he is broken first. Unlike Lucia's Almighty Curse, Banish Soul's secondary effect doesn't heal Galdera by the reduced HP, but rather, reduces the entire party's BP to 0.
- Venomtooth Tiger - One of the auras in the first form makes poison drain SP and BP.
- Esmeralda - Late in the first form, the Souls will put death timers on three party members. Galdera himself can put a one turn timer on a party member towards the end of the second form.
- Werner - Lyblac can enchant the Blade of the Fallen so that its attack can inflict Terror.
- Miguel - The Screaming Soul's Delayed Incantation sets up an attack to activate next turn, much like Miguel's Hurl Spear.
- Ogre Eagle - If the Blade of the Fallen and Lyblac are killed first, the Abyssal Maw can reduce the party's maximum HP for the rest of the fight every turn it isn't broken.
- Gareth and Darius - The Abyssal Maw's Consume Aether is a buff of Gareth and Darius' version of Steal SP.
- Lord of the Forest - The Omniscient Eye will absorb the Souls late in the fight to recover its HP.
- Redeye - The Omniscient Eye can rarely petrify a party member, requiring the Herb-of-Grace to cure.
The Assimilator: What he plans on doing to the whole world once he is freed, starting with the party. Judging by the screaming souls that make up his lower body, the end result is rather unpleasant.
Blade Below the Shoulder: His left arm is a bone blade; as one of Galdera's Cognizant Limbs it is even named "Blade of the Fallen".
Cain and Abel: Champions of the Continent reveals that the thirteen gods are all siblings, making him the Cain to the other twelve gods.
Card-Carrying Villain: Downplayed because Galdera doesn't boast about how evil he is, but for Orsterra's equivalent of Satan, he's surprisingly transparent about his intent to devour all other life in existence.
Chekhov's Gunman: He's mentioned at the beginning of Ophilia's story, but he isn't brought to attention again until late in the story.
Cognizant Limbs: His second phase has him protected by his sword-arm the Blade of the Fallen, his helmeted outer head the Abyssal Maw, and his daughter Lyblac. All three have to go before you can deal with the main body.
Complete Immortality: It's impossible to fully kill Galdera. The gods had to resort to sealing him away, and destroying his physical form doesn't do much more than knock him out for another long and unwanted nap. Thankfully due to absorbing Lyblac, he won't be able to escape again.
Death or Glory Attack: His ultimate move Banish Soul. If he hits you with it, your entire party will have their health reduced to one and their BP to zero. However, he has to lower his guard and expose all his weaknesses in preparation, and if you manage to break him before he can use it, your entire party's BP gets filled to maximum capacity and you can spam all your most powerful moves for maximum damage.
Eldritch Abomination: His physical form can be best described as a demonic beast composed of hundreds of partially digested bodies/souls.
Everybody Hates Hades: All but outright stated to be the god of life and death, and he's the only evil god. His status as the thirteenth god even invokes the Trope Namer, who's on the level of the Twelve Olympians, but excluded because he has his own domain.
Evil Wears Black: Galdera wears a giant black suit of plate armor in his second form.
Expy:
- Of Ouroboros from Bravely Default, and Providence from Bravely Second, as the male God of Evil, Greater-Scope Villain, and True Final Boss who is essentially the father of the direct Big Bad, who is Daddy's Little Villain.
- He also bears more than a passing resemblance to the Fire Bringer from SaGa Scarlet Grace, who's also a 13th evil god that betrayed his pantheon, was defeated by the other 12 deities resulting in being sealed away until the event of the game where someone seeks his release from his prison. Not to mention that both Galdera and the Fire Bringer are the True Final Bosses of their respective games.
Fallen Angel: The 13th god of Orsterra before he betrayed the others, becoming the local Satanic Archetype.
Grand Theft Me: Ends up using Kit as his vessel for his revival. After his defeat he is exorcised from Kit, freeing him.
Greater-Scope Villain: While he is the one in charge, it is Lyblac who does all the planning to restore him.
God of Evil: Played with. Galdera himself seemingly has malevolent intentions for Orsterra, but Cyrus and Mattias believe that as dreadful as his power is, it can be used for good.
Hoist by His Own Petard: Due to absorbing his daughter Lyblac before the final battle, he has no one willing to put in the effort to free him again upon defeat. In fact, the journal outright states that he has been sealed away for good.
HP to One: His second form has two variants. Blade of the Fallen can use Vorpal Strike on one person, while the main body immediately uses a very nasty version called Banish Soul as his ultimate attack once all his Cognizant Limbs are gone. If he uses it before you can break him, it'll hit the entire party and reduce both their HP and BP to one, then use his next move to use the stolen BP to boost his break meter by how much he stole. Thankfully, Galdera doesn't usually make any follow-up attacks once the party is reduced to one, as the attack is generally unavoidable.
Marathon Boss: His first form the Omniscient Eye alone has a whopping 500,000 HP, considerably more than any other boss you've faced before. Galdera then makes it even worse by frequently summoning souls, each with 50,000 HP and barely sharing any common weaknesses to aid him in battle by making it so the Eye is immune to all damage as long as even one soul survives (at least when the main body has most of his health remaining). The souls also can resurrect each other within a turn or two if you don't kill them off quickly in succession, eating up even more time and resources. The second form is slightly better since the Cognizant Limbs can't be resurrected and the main body has less health, but the lack of common weaknesses and the main body's invincibility are still present; plus, each of the Cognizant Limbs gets a unique buff when the other two go down, so if you kill off the wrong two first, you're in for a world of hurt. Combine that with a mandatory Boss Rush with eight bosses you have to go through first, and you got one hell of a time eating boss. Also, you can't save between the Boss Rush and Galdera, so make the fight count.
Nested Mouths: His main body actually has two heads, one located inside the other. Destroying the Abyssal Maw reveals another head that looks like a Big Red Devil.
Obviously Evil: Galdera is Orsterra's equivalent of Satan, with numerous human souls trapped in his lower section writhing in agony. Interestingly, while Lyblac and Mattias use Galdera's power over life and death to tempt others into becoming Unwitting Pawns in their Evil Plans, Galdera himself doesn't bother to hide his intent to devour all other life in existence.
Physical God: He is one of the creator deities, and had to be sealed away by his fellow gods. As the Final Boss of the game, he manages to show off his godly power.
Rage Against the Heavens: He's not happy about his defeat at the hands of Aelfric and the other gods, and desires to consume them after he's finished with the party.
Sealed Evil in a Can: The true entity sealed inside the Gate of Finis that Lyblac tries to unleash on the world. It's also his ultimate fate after his defeat, but this time unable to escape due to having absorbed his daughter, leaving him without anyone that will try to release him.
Soul Power: His first form frequently summons souls to aid him in battle. How many he summons, what weaknesses they have, their battle strategies, and whether they fully protect him as long as they survive depend on how much health the main body has left. The second form uses souls to fuel his ultimate attack, Banish Soul.
Sequential Boss: Has two phases with each phase requiring four heroes to defeat it.
Superboss: A rare case where the true final boss also counts as the superboss: technically, you don't have to fight him at all to beat the game - to even unlock the opportunity to fight him you have to clear all 8 stories and do a really long, cryptic sidequest that you would have no way of knowing is connected to the overall plot. He's by far the hardest boss in the game, and is preceeded by an utterly brutal marathon of bosses from which you can't save - meaning you have to beat all of them AND Galdera in one full run, which is easier said than done.
True Final Boss: Of the overall story.

Characters / Octopath Traveler Antagonists

Ophilia's Route

Mattias

Voiced By: Chris Niosi (English)

Cyrus's Route

Headmaster Yvon

Lucia

Tressa's Route

Olberic's Route

Werner

Voiced By: Sean Chiplock (English)

Primrose's Route

Rufus, the Left-hand Man

Albus, the Right-hand Man

Simeon, the Puppet Master

Voiced By: Chris Hackney (English)

Alfyn's Route

Vanessa Hysel

Miguel "Twinspears"

Therion's Route

Darius

Voiced By: Sean Chiplock (English)

H'aanit's Route

Other Villains

Lyblac

Galdera, the Fallen

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Index

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Characters / Octopath Traveler Antagonists

Edit Locked

Ophilia's Route

Mattias

Voiced By: Chris Niosi (English)

Cyrus's Route

Headmaster Yvon

Lucia

Tressa's Route

Olberic's Route

Werner

Voiced By: Sean Chiplock (English)

Primrose's Route

Rufus, the Left-hand Man

Albus, the Right-hand Man

Simeon, the Puppet Master

Voiced By: Chris Hackney (English)

Alfyn's Route

Vanessa Hysel

Miguel "Twinspears"

Therion's Route

Darius

Voiced By: Sean Chiplock (English)

H'aanit's Route

Other Villains

Lyblac

Galdera, the Fallen

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Index

Next