Characters / Fire Emblem Heroes: Hel

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Hel, the Realm of the Dead

The Skull of Hel

Hel, the Realm of the Dead, is a grim, desolate land. The antagonistic force in Book III of Fire Emblem Heroes. Ruled by Hel, she seeks to have all those who have fallen join her ranks so that she can rule over all the worlds.

In the "Life & Death" Tempest Trials+ series, the realm of the dead is revealed to have a counterpart: Ymir, the realm of life, before its destruction at the hands of Hel herself.

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Realm of Hel in General

• Back from the Dead: Their main M.O. Hel's army consists mainly of fallen Embla mooks, but two of the biggest examples are the generals Líf and Thrasir, the founders of Askr and Embla, respectively, and the latest addition to their ranks is Gustav.
• Big Boo's Haunt: Hel is the realm of the dead, full of dead trees and murky swamps, and is inhabited by unworthy souls.
• Body Horror: If your skeleton is visible right through you, then it certainly counts. For Líf, it's his abdomen and right shoulder; for Thrasir, it's from her lower body downward, though part of her upper arms are exposed as well; for Hel's lower jaw and ribcage are visible, and for Ganglöt her jaw, ribcage and femurs are visible. Eir is the only named character who is an exception to this, and that's because she's not a native to Hel.
• Bubblegloop Swamp: Hel is full of murky swamps.
• Came Back Wrong: Both Líf and Thrasir were once respected rulers of their nations before passing away, but being risen by Hel has turned them into Omnicidal Maniacs that want to kill as many as possible, even the very people they once ruled over. Though as Hel tells Surtr, her realm of the dead is a place for those who don't deserve better, implying they did something bad enough to go to Hel when they died. But then again, they might have died either from old age or an illness, as Hel in Norse Mythology is the afterlife where people who died of old age or sickness go, as not going to Valhalla is punishment enough.
• Dem Bones: Most of them have translucent skin that shows off their skeletons in certain parts of their bodies. The only exceptions are Eir and Gustav, and Eir has a major reason why she doesn't have her skeleton showing.
• Fan Disservice: Every character from Hel has outfits that exposes certain elements, such as their naval, pelvic, and/or chest areas. However, those areas instead expose their skeleton and transparent colorful skin.
• Leitmotif: All bosses from Hel share a boss theme that's notable for being the first vocal theme in the game.
• Magically-Binding Contract: If one makes a contract with the ruler of Hel, it is unbreakable, even if the ruler the contract was actually made with has died, in which it will simply transfer to whoever takes their place, as the contract states it's with the ruler of Hel.
• No Body Left Behind: The Order of Heroes note that whenever the soldiers of Hel are slain, they vanish afterwards.
• Skeletons in the Coat Closet: The named character from Hel are unusual in that they are showing off their own skeleton, befitting to their risen dead motif. Eir again is an exception to this, and that's because she's not Hel's biological daughter.
• Succession Crisis: The "Life & Death" Tempest Trials+ explore this trope due to the events of Book III; with Hel dead and Eir refusing to take up the throne, the dead now wander around without anyone to follow. Ganglöt wants to be the next Death Sovereign, but has to kill Eir first as there are still some who would prefer Eir to be the ruler.
• The Underworld: Much like the realm it is based on, Hel is one of the afterlife realms; a gloomy, swamp-ridden realm where those who are unworthy of a greater reward go when they die.

Hel

Death Sovereign

"I am Hel. I rule over the dead. Those who are unworthy of a greater reward enter my dark realm. [...] Resign yourself to your fate. You cannot fight it. You cannot best death."

The ruler of the land of the dead, who gets more powerful the more dead people are within her realm and plans on expanding that population. She plans to kill the members of the Order of Heroes and rule over the Nine Realms. In late July 2020, she was released as a Mythic Hero of Dark.

Voiced by: Mami Koyama (Japanese), Barbara Goodson (English)
Artist: Yusuke Kozaki
Class: Axe Flier

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• Abusive Parents: Killing your adoptive daughter over and over again just to power yourself up, and sending her on an implied suicide mission on her last life and expecting complete obedience from her tends to count you as this.
• Achilles' Heel:
  • Magic and Staff users not only strike her abysmal Res, but can also bypass the Miracle effect that her Hel Scythe and Hel's Reaper gives her.
  • Since she is counted as a flying unit, she is also weak to Anti-Air weapons despite her high defense (though they have to contend with the Miracle effect since most Anti-Air weapons are physical). Her playable version's Hel's Reaper however removes her flying weakness, making her take normal damage from Anti-Air weapons instead being weak to them.
• Arc Villain: She's the main antagonist of Book III.
• Armor-Piercing Attack: Her playable version has Luna, where it ignores 50% of the foe's defenses when it activates.
• The Bad Guy Wins: In "Líf's" realm. After all of "Líf's" efforts to form an alliance with Embla and seal Hel with the "forbidden heart", with it taking lives every pulse it takes to maintain the seal to the point that there was no more life in "Líf's" realm, Hel eventually escapes and has already achieved her goal, even if she didn't take those lives herself.
  "Líf": I made a dangerous wager and I lost, we all did. Hel won!
• Balance Buff: Update 7.9.0 in September 2023 gives her a remix, where it refines her Hel's Reaper, which the refined version grants the additional effect of granting her +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and restores 7 HP to her after combat if the foe either initiates combat or is at 50% HP or above at the start of combat, and the unique refine grants her an additional +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat, allows her to deal true damage equal to 20% of her Spd before and during combat and reduces damage taken from the foe's first attack by 30%, all which activates if either she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat or a [Penalty] is active on the foe, gives her Inevitable Death+, which allows her to warp to the nearest adjacent spaces of a foe within 4 spaces of her, inflicts -5 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to all foes within 2 spaces of her during combat, and allows her to ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks and deny any of her follow-up attacks if she is faster than her foe during combat, and gives her Distant Pressure.
• Cast from Hit Points: Her Distant Pressure grants her +5 Spd during combat if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat, but deals 5 damage to her after combat if she attacked.
• Cold Ham: Normally, she speaks in a quiet, sinister tone that paints her as some grand inevitable force of nature. It is fitting however, as her lines are about how no one can escape death and that she is the embodiment of death itself. Occasionally though, Hel does raise her voice or breaks her stoic demeanor, such as cackling wildly when attacking in battle, or shouting at Eir to obey her.
• Counter-Attack: Her playable version has Distant Counter, which allows her to counterattack foes regardless of range, and Distant Pressure, where, in addition to having the same effect as Distant Counter, also grants her +5 Spd during combat if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat, but deals 5 damage to her after combat if she attacked.
• Curse: One of her specialties. After seemingly being defeated by the Order of Heroes in Book III Chapter 3, she curses Alfonse by surprise, leaving him with 9 days to live. The nature of the curse, however, has a loophole in it, as in Book III Chapter 4 reveals at the end, that the person's bloodline is connected to the curse has to die, rather than the person itself.
• Damage-Increasing Debuff: Her playable variant's Secret Art Inevitable Death allows her to inflict -4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to all foes within 2 spaces of her during combat, as well as Inevitable Death+, which allows her to inflict -5 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to all foes within 2 spaces of her during combat.
• Damage Reduction: Her playable version has the unique refine for her Hel's Reaper reduces damage taken from the foe's first attack by 30% if either she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat or a [Penalty] is active on the foe, and Guard Bearing 3, which allows her to reduce damage taken by 50% during the first battle of each enemy phase.
• Dark Is Evil: Hel is a Dark-elemental Mythic Hero, is the evil ruler of the realm of the dead, and has a grim reaper-esque design.
• The Death of Death: Her ultimate fate at the hands of the Order of Heroes in Book III.
• Did You Just Scam Cthulhu?: Alfonse is currently in the Realm of the Dead when Hel tries to curse him a second time, but this time he shows no fear whatsoever. Instead, he calmly points out that his assured death in nine days means that, by extension, he's invincible before that time is up, which would give him leave to turn Hel's realm inside out and find her weakness. Hel panics and relents, which not only frees Alfonse from the curse, but confirms that she does have a weakness.
• The Dreaded: King Gustav spells out in no uncertain terms that Hel can't be stopped in a straight fight; his attempt merely earned him his facial scar. He warns the the Order of Heroes to stay far away if she enters the battlefield. Shame that cursing Alfonse was why Hel personally showed up in the first place.
• Egopolis: The realm of the dead is named after her.
• Even Evil Can Be Loved: At the end of Book III, Eir mourns her death despite all of the crap she put her through. Hel is dumbfounded.
  Hel: Why do you wear... that look upon your face?
  Eir: Because I am sad.
  Hel: To see me perish... makes you sad?
  Eir: Yes. I may not have been a daughter to you, in your mind... But you were my only family. To me... You will always be my mother.
  Hel: ...
• Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: During Gustav's Heroic Sacrifice, she tells him that he is no king. He retorts that she has no idea what being a king entails before leaving his kingdom in the hands of his son. Happens again at the end of her arc—she fails to realize that Eir, having received The Power of Trust from the Order of Heroes by Hel's own orders, has turned on her for that very reason.
• Final Boss: She's the final boss and last opponent of Book III.
• Finishing Move: Has a particularly spectacular one unique from other heroes, as she doesn't even use her weapon to attack for it. Instead, she summons a portal with her weapon, from which an army of skeletons come out and finish her opponent off.
• Flat Character: As the embodiment of death, this is Hel's only personality trait.
• Foil: To Ymir. Both Hel and Ymir are the governors of their respective realms that are named after them, but while Hel has the power to take the lives of mortals, Ymir has the power to grant life anew. Additionally, Hel is abusive and uncaring of her adoptive daughter Eir, while Ymir is a kind and caring motherly figure who cares deeply about Eir.
• Generic Doomsday Villain: Compared to the other villains in every other Book, Hel doesn't have any motivation or personality, other than just wanting to kill everyone to rule over the Nine Realms.
• God Save Us from the Queen!: Hel is the queen of the realm of the dead, and is the incarnation of death. She can kill the living and turn them into her servants, and use them for her own purposes. The living would surely cower in fear by just looking at her.
• Grim Reaper: She resides in the land of the dead, carries a scythe, has a skeletal body, and proclaims that she is death itself. She fits this trope to a tee.
• Hated by All: Gains a lot of contempt from Alfonse and the Order of Heroes - specifically from killing Gustav and deceiving Eir into thinking she was her daughter alongside killing her countless times. Veronica formed an alliance with the Order of Heroes to get rid of Hel, and even her generals don't like her, considering they tried to kill her only to die.
• Heal Thyself: Her refined Hel's Reaper allows her to restore 7 HP after combat if her foe either initiates combat or is at 50% HP or above at the start of combat. Considering that she needs to be at more than 1 HP to get her Last Chance Hit Point against non-Tome and Staff foes and that her Distant Pressure deals 5 damage to her after combat, this helps her survivability immensely.
• Hero Killer: As the embodiment of death, nobody is safe from her. Gustav just happens to be one of her latest victims.
• Killed Off for Real: She gets a taste of her own medicine at the end of Book III Chapter 13.
• Kill the Parent, Raise the Child: Hel killed Eir's parents then wiped her memories to make her believe she was her mother.
• Knight of Cerebus: While Heroes wasn't without serious and/or sad moments before Hel's debuts, things go down to Hel once she arrives... literally! Hel turns out to be more abusive than Veronica and Surtr to the point were the latter two are actually on the heroes side this time. She also curses Alfonse, kills his dad and revives said dad so Alfonse has to kill him again in only a couple of chapters, setting the darker tone of the rest of story.
• Kryptonite-Proof Suit: Her playable version's Hel's Reaper removes her flying weakness, unlike her Hel Scythe.
• Large and in Charge: The ruler of the dead has an imposing stature indeed, she's One Head Taller than everyone else in the game. ^note The only exception is the previous boss, Surtr who is roughly the same height as Hel; however, he is bulkier and wears a suit of armor making him appear larger. The official height chart shows that she stands at 205cm (or 6'9").
• Last Chance Hit Point: Her Hel Scythe and her playable version's Hel's Reaper allows her to survive a lethal non-magic attack with 1 HP remaining if she has more than that beforehand, but only once per combat. Even death can cheat death.
• Lightning Bruiser: She may have average HP and very low Res, but she has fantastic Atk, Def, and outstanding Spd. Her playable version has fantastic Spd of 41, great Atk of 38, and average HP and Def of 40 and 30, respectively, but poor Res of 18, but with her default Guard Bearing 3 making her be able to reduce damage from enemy hits during the first battle in each enemy phase, as well as her Hel's Reaper removing her flying weakness, it alleviates her defenses, especially her Res.
• Mythology Gag: This is not the first Fire Emblem game to show Hel alongside skeletons.◊
• Names to Run Away from Really Fast: When modern Hell is named after you, your enemies better run really fast.
• No-Sell: Her playable version's Inevitable Death+ allows her to ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks and deny any of her follow-up attacks if she is faster than her foe during combat.
• Not Quite Dead: If Hel is summoned, one of her quotes cites Breidablik as the weapon that destroyed her, meaning she did in fact die, but she has somehow been resurrected. Hel seems to return in Book IV to fight the Order of Heroes once more, although it turns out to have been an actualized nightmare brought on by Triandra.
• One Head Taller: In the intro video for Book III, she stands a head taller than Eir; also, her in-game sprite is the same size as a cavalry unit, making her taller than everyone else in the game.
• Orcus On Her Throne: Despite being able to easily kill the Order of Heroes with one fell swoop and having claimed the lives of many, she spends the majority of Book III doing nothing, content on having Eir and her generals do all of her work.
• Pet the Dog: Implied. She was a horrifically abusive mother to Eir, but as she is dying her daughter says she recalls Hel warmly embracing her when she was a small child. Hel denies this and claims this was just an imitation of Eir's biological mother but that does not stop Eir from grieving.
• Pre-Mortem One-Liner:
  "Accept your death."
  "Death comes for all."
  "Death is absolute."
  "I am death itself."
• Power Floats: She is seen floating in her animations, and as such she is classified as a flying unit.
• The Problem with Fighting Death: Although she's annoyed that you defeated her, Hel doesn't fight you after being summoned. Hel's level 40 quote points out that she doesn't need to fight you, she just needs to wait.
• Promoted to Playable: She was released as a Mythic Hero of Dark in late July 2020, more than half a year after the end of Book III.
• Redemption Promotion: Her playable version's weapon, Hel's Reaper, has the same effects as her boss version's weapon but it also allows her to nullify flier effective damage, removing her weakness to archers. In addition, she also gets a unique skill in Inevitable Death, which inflicts -4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to all foes within 2 spaces of her during combat, and Inevitable Death+, where it allows her to warp to the nearest adjacent spaces of a foe within 4 spaces of her, inflicts -5 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to all foes within 2 spaces of her during combat, and allows her to ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks and deny any of her follow-up attacks if she is faster than her foe during combat.
• Removed Achilles' Heel: The playable version of Hel has her flying weakness nullified thanks to Hel's Reaper.
• Secret Art: She has Inevitable Death, which allows her to inflict -4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to all foes within 2 spaces of the user during combat. She also learns Inevitable Death+, where it allows her to warp to the nearest adjacent spaces of a foe within 4 spaces of her, inflicts -5 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to all foes within 2 spaces of her during combat, and allows her to ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks and deny any of her follow-up attacks if she is faster than her foe during combat.
• Sinister Scythe: Fitting for a Grim Reaper archetype, she wields the Hel Scythe, which gives her -1 special cooldown, allows her to target the Res of non-Tome and Staff enemies, and allows her to survive with 1 HP if she would be hit with a lethal non-magic attack. Her playable version's Hel's Reaper has the same effect as Hel Scythe, except that it also removes her flying weakness as well as being refinable.
• Situational Damage Attack: The unique refine for her Hel's Reaper allows her to deal true damage equal to 20% of her Spd before and during combat, so the more Spd she has the more true damage she will deal.
• Sore Loser: A quote from her playable version indicates that she did not take her defeat well. She's especially unhappy seeing Breidablik again.
  Hel: How tasteless... That, in your hand. Is that the weapon that undid me?
• Spell Blade: With her Hel Scythe and Hel's Reaper, enemies without tomes or staves have their Res targeted instead of their Def. While this usually allows her to strike significantly harder than it would initially seem (most non-magic users have more Def than Res, and vice versa for magic users), it's not as useful if she fights a unit with lopsided defenses like the regular variants of Merric, Fir, Felicia, or even her own daughter.
• Status Buff:
  • Her playable variant's Hel's Reaper has the refined version grants +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if the foe either initiates combat or is at 50% HP or above at the start of combat, and the unique refine grants an additional +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if either she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat or the foe has a [Penalty] active on them. She also has Distant Pressure, where it grants her +5 Spd during combat if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
  • As a Mythic Hero of Dark, if an ally has a Dark Blessing during Dark season in Aether Raids, she gives them +5 HP/Def if they're on the battlefield, which can be stacked with other Mythic Heroes of Dark, including copies of herself.
• The Stoic: Displays very little emotion, with a few exceptions. The only thing she talks about is how all mortals will eventually die. Her handmaiden puts it best.
  Ganglöt: Lady Hel was free of all passion... Completely.
• Theme Naming: Hel is the daughter of Loki and is the ruler of the land of the dead (mainly those who died of old age or sickness), which is named after her and occasionally called Helheim.
• Walking Wasteland: The Book III Intro movie shows Eir dancing in a field holding a flower; when Hel shows up, the flower and everything around them wilt away and eventually disintegrates.
• You Can't Fight Fate: She consistently holds that death is the one true absolute and that you can't escape either it or her (since she is the living personification of death). More specifically, she tells Alfonse this after cursing him to die within 9 days in Book III Chapter 3. Alfonse comes to realize this can actually be Exploited: since you really can't avoid dying in 9 days, that also means you can't die before those 9 days are up either. That means the cursed is completely immortal until fate takes its toll.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: After Eir seemingly completes her last mission, Hel plans on doing this to her.
  Hel: Excellent. Now there is none left capable of resisting me. Your services are no longer required, Eir. I will now claim what remains of your life.

Ganglöt

Death Anew

"You should know the answer to that question by now. I have come to ruin you, just like you ruined Hel."

Hel's handmaid who served the Death Sovereign until the incident with the Order of Heroes, and is now on a quest to return the Realm of the Dead back to working order.

Voiced by: Yo Taichi (Japanese), Shara Kirby (English)
Artist: Asatami Tomoyo
Class: Axe Fighter

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• Action Initiative: Her Arcane Downfall allows her to prevent the foe from making a follow-up attack if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat. She also has Quick Riposte 4, which allows her to perform a guaranteed follow-up attack if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat and the foe initiates combat.
• Arc Villain: She is the villain of the "Life & Death" Tempest Trials series.
• Assimilation Backfire: In "Life & Death Finale", she kills Eir again and absorbs her soul. Unfortunately for her, this was exactly what she and Ymir planned, since Ymir resided with Eir's soul. Ymir proceeds to kill both of the Ganglöt and herself, freeing the Realm of the Dead once more.
• Avenging the Villain: Ganglöt wants Eir dead not only so her ascension as ruler of Hel is unopposed by those who would prefer Eir on the throne, but also to get revenge on the one who killed her mistress.
• Classy Cravat: She wears one and is a powerful ruler after Hel's passing. She loses it in her damage art, exposing more of her chest and the ribcage inside it.
• Cooldown Manipulation: Her Arcane Downfall gives her +1 special buildup per attack performed if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
• Counter-Attack: She has Distant Stance, which allows her to counterattack regardless of the foe's range and gives her +5 Res during combat if the foe initiates combat.
• Damage Reduction: Her Quick Riposte 4 reduces damage from the foe's first attack by 25% if the foe initiates combat, in addition to granting her a guaranteed follow-up attack.
• The Faceless: Initially, Ganglöt appears as a silhouette of her surrounded by darkness, before being revealed in Life & Death 5.
• Final Boss: Of the "Life & Death 5" and "Life & Death Finale" Tempest Trials+ events.
• Jack of All Stats: Ganglöt has well-rounded stats, with average HP of 40, fantastic Atk at 44, great Def at 38 and good Res at 35, and average Spd at 30.
• Life Drain: Her Arcane Downfall allows her to restore 7 HP with each attack she performs if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
• Lost in Translation: The name of her weapon Arcane Downfall in Japanese is "魔器・絶死ヘル", which can be translated to "Magic Weapon - Absolute Death Hel", meaning that it is a variant of Hel's weapons Hel Scythe and Hel's Reaper.^note Hel Scythe's Japanese name is "ヘル", translated as "Hel", and Hel's Reaper's Japanese name is "死鎌ヘル", translated as "Death Scythe Hel"
• Meaningful Name: "Ganglöt" was said to have been one of Hel's servants in Prose Edda alongside Ganglati.
• Pre-Mortem One-Liner:
  "Death is upon you."
  "Die and serve."
  "In Hel's name!"
  "Traitorous!"
• Sinister Scythe: She carries Hel Scythe with her now that its original wielder is no longer with her. Said scythe has been repurposed into the Arcane Downfall, which gives -1 maximum special cooldown, and gives +5 Atk/Spd/Def/Res, prevents her foe from making a follow-up attack, +1 special buildup per attack and restores 7 HP per attack she performs, all which activates if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
• Status Buff: Her Arcane Downfall gives her +5 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat. She also has Distant Stance, which gives her +5 Res if the foe initiates combat, and Joint Dist. Guard, which gives herself and all allies within 2 spaces of her +4 Def/Res during combat if the foe wields a ranged weapon and she is within 2 spaces of an ally.
• Super-Empowering: After claiming the throne of Hel, Ganglöt grants Líf new power to kill Eir with, by turning him into his Rearmed form.

Líf

^{Click here to see Rearmed Líf}

^{Click here to see Love of a King Líf & Thrasir}

Lethal Swordsman / Arcane Blade / Undying Ties Duo

"My name is Líf. [...] Tremble before Sökkvabekkr, the sword of ruin...as I destroy this world."

A general of Hel. In life, he was the founder of Askr and was well respected by his people. He has now risen again to kill as many to expand Hel's army, including his own people. He is the one issuing the Contracts in Book III's Heroes. In late January 2020, he was released as a Mythic Hero of Anima.

Voiced by: Tomoaki Maeno (Japanese), Edward Bosco (English)
Artist: Yusuke Kozaki (regular, Rearmed), Azuza (Love of a King)
Class: Sword Fighter (Heroes, regular), Red Cavalier (Love of a King), Sword Cavalier (Rearmed), Myrmidon (Cipher)

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• Action Initiative:
  • His regular variant has Sökkvabekkr, where in addition to giving him +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat unrefined, guarantee him a follow-up attack if he is within 3 spaces of an ally (4 spaces with the refined version).
  • Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir has Þjálfi, where in addition to giving them +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and halving the foe's Damage Reduction, they gain a guaranteed follow-up attack if they are within 3 spaces of an ally.
  • His Rearmed variant's Arcane Éljúðnir allows him to perform a guaranteed follow-up attack and prevent the foe from performing a follow-up attack if he is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
• All for Nothing: Book III Chapter 8 reveals that in the past, "Líf" tried to stop his version of Hel from killing everyone and gaining power, which eventually leads him to join forces with Embla and create a "forbidden heart", but while both Askr and Embla eventually defeated Hel, the "forbidden heart" had an unexpected side effect of taking away one life per pulse, until there was no life left in "Líf's" world. By the end of it, what "Líf" tried to protect by creating the "forbidden heart" ended up being the price of defeating Hel, and with Hel escaping as a result of having the "forbidden heart" unable to take anymore lives, "Líf" claims that It's All My Fault after all what he has done.
• Alternate Self: Book III Chapter 8 reveals that "Líf" is actually another Alfonse, being older and more willing to take many lives.
• Apologetic Attacker: In the "Life & Death" Tempest Trials+ Series, he doesn't actually want to kill Eir, but since Ganglöt wants her dead, and as the new ruler of Hel, he has no choice but to obey her due to his contract stating he works for the ruler of dead, he must if he wants to not disappear.
• Ascended Extra: Líf is first mentioned in the opening cutscene of Aether Raids, explaining that he was the original king that left behind the Aether Keep, which he used to do battle with other realms. This cutscene existed before his appearance in the story proper. Subverted when Book III Chapter 8 reveals that the "Líf" you face is not actually the real Líf, but an older Alfonse taking on his name.
• Back from the Dead: The ending of Book III has him be alive alongside "Thrasir" in a cutscene after the defeat of Hel. Xenologue 5 confirmed that they came back to life.
• Badass Longcoat: His Rearmed variant wears a long black longcoat alongside his fur cape.
• Balance Buff: In update 7.5.0, his regular version's Sökkvabekkr received a refine, where it now gives him +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat, a guaranteed follow-up attack, and deals 5 damage and restores 7 HP per attack if he either triggers his special before or during that combat, all which activates if he is within 4 spaces of an ally but deals 20 damage to the nearest ally if he attacked, and the unique refine gives him -1 maximum special cooldown, gives him -2 special cooldown at the start of turn 1, and gains +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and reduces damage taken from the foe's first attack by 30% if he is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat, as well as Deadly Balance+, where it inflicts -5 Atk/Spd/Def on the foe during combat and -1 special buildup per attack on the foe, grants him +1 special buildup per foe's attack, and ignores non-Special Damage Reduction skills when he triggers his special, all which activates if he either is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat or a [Penalty] is active on him, and he gets -2 special cooldown after combat if he triggered his special before or during combat, and he received Even Tempest 3.
• Balancing Death's Books: He made a contract with Hel that would allow him to balance the cohort of the dead in a way that if someone from another realm is killed, someone from his own realm would be saved.
• Big "SHUT UP!": He yells "Silence!" to Alfonse when Alfonse is about to tell everyone what "Líf's" true name is Book III Chapter 8 and in the "Cohort of the Dead" cinematic.
• The Cameo: He reappears alongside "Thrasir" in the Book IV ending movie, offering Triandra and Plumeria to join Alfaðör in order to bring Freyja back to life and cryptically warning Alfonse about the threat of Niðavellir.
• Cooldown Manipulation:
  • His playable regular and Rearmed versions has Deadly Balance, which gives him +1 special buildup for every foe's attack if either he has at least 50% HP or a [Penalty] inflicted on him. His regular version also has Deadly Balance+ has the above effect as well as the Inverted version where he inflicts -1 special buildup per attack on the foe per attack if he either is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat or if a [Penalty] is active on him, and he gets -2 special cooldown after combat if he triggered his special before or during combat.
  • His playable regular version has Time's Pulse 3, where if the user is at maximum special cooldown at the start of the user's turn, they gain -1 special cooldown.
  • The unique refine for his regular version's Sökkvabekkr gives him -1 maximum special cooldown, as well as -2 special cooldown at the start of turn 1. Combined with his Open the Future, it allows him to charge it fully from the word go.
• Cool Sword:
  • His regular variant wields Sökkvabekkr, which grants him +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and guarantees him a follow-up attack if he has an ally within 3 spaces of him, but deals 20 damage to the nearest one after combat, the refined version gives him +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat, a guaranteed follow-up attack, and deals 5 damage and restores 7 HP per attack if he either triggers his special before or during that combat, all which activates if he is within 4 spaces of an ally but deals 20 damage to the nearest ally if he attacked, and the unique refine gives him -1 maximum special cooldown, gives him -2 special cooldown at the start of turn 1, and gains +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and reduces damage taken from the foe's first attack by 30% if he is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
  • His Rearmed variant wields Arcane Éljúðnir, which gives -1 maximum special cooldown, and grants him a guaranteed follow-up attack, prevents the foe from performing a follow-up attack, and inflicts -1 special buildup on the foe per attack, all which activates if he is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
• Cool Mask: His regular and Rearmed versions has one that resembles a dragon's mouth. Given how it seems to glow like the skeletal parts of his body, it can be inferred that his entire mouth has become skeletal.
• Counter-Attack: His playable version has Distant Counter in his default skill kit, which allows him counter attack enemies wielding a ranged weapon.
• Creepy Shadowed Undereyes: As part of his undeathly pale demeanor, he has darkened eyebags.
• Cynicism Catalyst: Sharena's murder, and his unintentional sacrifice of everyone in Askr drove him into becoming a Well-Intentioned Extremist hellbent on righting those wrongs by killing everyone in our Alfonse's world to resurrect his own.
• Damage-Increasing Debuff:
  • His regular and Rearmed variants have Deadly Balance, which can inflict -5 Atk/Def on his foe during combat if he has either at 50% HP or above at the start of combat or a [Penalty] active on him, while Deadly Balance+ inflicts -5 Atk/Spd/Def on the foe during combat if he is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat or a [Penalty] active on him.
  • Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir has Atk/Res Lull 3, where they inflict -3 Atk/Res on the foe during combat, as well as negate any field stat buff the foe has on those stats during combat.
  • His Rearmed version has Arcane Éljúðnir, which inflict -6 Atk/Def on the foe during combat if he is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat. He also has the above Deadly Balance and Atk/Def Menace, which inflicts -6 Atk/Def on the nearest foe at the start of his turn if there is a foe within 4 spaces of him.
• Damage Reduction: The unique refine of his regular version's Sökkvabekkr reduces damage taken from the foe's first attack by 30% if he is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
• Dead Person Impersonation: "Líf" is actually an older Alfonse impersonating the first king of Askr.
• Deal with the Devil: Book III Chapter 9, as well in the "Cohort of the Dead" cinematic, reveals that after everyone in his Askr died, "Líf" made a deal with Hel to kill everyone in Alfonse's Askr so that everyone in Askr in his version will be revived.
• Despair Event Horizon: While everyone in his Askr died, the breaking point for "Líf" was when his sister Sharena died, as shown in the intro of Book III.
• Difficult, but Awesome: Sökkvabekkr and Þjálfi has very strong and potent effects, and can even enable Brazen/Vantage/Desperation strategies easily, but outside of that, it requires proper positioning of your other units to avoid unnecessary recoil damage, as improper positioning can and will result in unexpected casualties.
• The Dragon: The main commander of Hel and the secondary antagonist of Book III. After the events of Book III, he and Thrasir are Thorr's Co-Dragons.
• Dragon with an Agenda: He only works for Hel and later Thórr because they promise to resurrect the people of his and Thrasir's homeworld, in exchange for their services. Also he plans to backstab Thórr.
• Dull Eyes of Unhappiness: Líf is shown with his eyes lacking the reflection of light compared to the other characters, most evident in the intro of Book III and the "Cohort of the Dead" cinematic. His eyes get the reflections back with his Rearmed version, though.
• Evil Counterpart: Not just to Alfonse, but to Lucina. An alternate version of a present day character that hails from a possible future, who lost many people important to them, and took on the namesake of an ancestor to hide their identity. They both also wear masks that hide their face.
• Evil Only Has to Win Once: A variant in Book III Chapter 11: Alfonse needs to find the weapon created from the "forbidden heart" to kill Hel, find and fight her and all her forces in the way to win, while "Líf" only needs to kill Alfonse to win. Since the latter is much easier to achieve, "Líf" only needed to be a Load-Bearing Boss to his version of the Order of Heroes castle to take down Alfonse and his Order of Heroes.
• Expendable Alternate Universe: He considers the playable Alfonse's Askr to be a price worth paying to bring back his own Askr.
  (To Alfonse) Hel bade me balance the cohort of the dead. When someone from another realm dies... someone here is saved. It would be like no one ever died... Even Sharena... On those terms, I forged a contract with Hel. To save our world... I will decimate yours.
• Face–Heel Turn: After all his efforts to stop Hel from killing everyone in his realm, the deaths of everyone around him from the cost of maintaining the "forbidden heart" to seal Hel, which eventually runs out of lives to take and as a result made Hel escape, eventually made him strike a deal with of Hel, changing his name from "Alfonse" to "Líf" in the process.
• Fallen Hero: When the normally heroic Alfonse is more than willing to take lives for Hel, he counts as one.
• Final Boss: His Rearmed variant in the "Life & Death 3" Tempest Trials+ event.
• Finishing Move: Has one where he'll twirl his blade before leaping into the air and striking a lethal blow on his foe.
• Fire-Forged Friends: With Thrasir, as they're really Alternate Universe versions of Alfonse and Veronica who were enemies until they became allies against Hel and later still generals under her. "Líf" reciprocates "Thrasir's" admittance that she's glad after all the hell they've gone through they were at least able to become friends, and like her expressed a desire to continue being so once their realm is restored. They even get a Ship Tease together.
• Foil:
  • In terms of design and gameplay-wise with his playable version, to New Year Duo Alfonse & Sharena, his descendants. While both Regular Líf and Duo Alfonse & Sharena are Mighty Glaciers, have weapons that give them boost to their stats and change how many attacks that occur during combat, access to Open the Future as their special, Counter skills as their A skill, B skills that decrease their Special cooldown, self-buffing C Skills, and having exclusive mechanics that benefit other units:
    • Líf's Sökkvabekkr is a physical melee weapon that actively harms anyone that is within 3 spaces of the user if he attacks in order to give him +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res and a guaranteed follow-up attack during combat, while Duo Alfonse & Sharena's Imbued Koma is a magical ranged weapon that gives them -1 special cooldown allows them to gain +5 Atk/Spd/Def/Res and deny any enemy follow-up attacks during combat if they have their Special ready at the start of combat, not hurting their allies in the process.
    • Líf has Distant Counter to counterattack ranged foes, while Duo Alfonse & Sharena has Close Counter to counterattack melee foes.
    • Duo Alfonse & Sharena's Special Spiral allows them to gain -2 special cooldown if they activated their special before or during combat, while Líf's Deadly Balance allows him to inflict -5 Atk/Def on the foe and gain +1 special buildup for every foe's attack during combat if he either has at least 50% HP at the start of combat or a [Penalty] inflicted on him, requiring him to enter combat more to charge up his special.
    • Duo Alfonse & Sharena have Def/Res Oath 3, which gives them +5 Def/Res at the start of their turn if they are adjacent to an ally, while Líf's Time's Pulse 3 grants him -1 special cooldown at the start of his turn if his special cooldown is at maximum, making him buff himself regardless of his allies.
    • Líf's Anima effect allows him to passively give +5 HP and +4 Spd to anyone with the Anima Blessing if they are in the same team in Aether Raids, while Duo Alfonse & Sharena's Duo Skill has them needed to be activated in order to have them and any Infantry allies within 3 columns and 3 rows with them in the center -2 Special cooldown.
    • Finally, Alfonse has Sharena with him to help him out, while "Líf" lost his Sharena after Hel killed her, with his motivation serving Hel mainly being able to revive her after he snapped.
  • In terms of backstory, To Masked Marth/Lucina. While "Líf"/Alfonse and Masked Marth/Lucina are both blue-haired infantry sword units who wear masks and travel to another version of their home after nearly everyone dies in theirs and is in ruins, with them even impersonating a famous ancestor of theirs, Lucina did so to save another world in the past from falling into the same ruin as hers, while "Líf" wants to brings ruin and death to another Askr in order to save his.
• Foreshadowing: There are a lot of clues that show that "Líf" is actually another Alfonse, who lost his sister Sharena and is now the servant of Hel:
  • Both "Líf" and Alfonse resemble each other a little too much, with even both of them shown in official art opposite of each other, and their attack pose being the same stance.
  • Both of them have identical weapon and movement types, and a similar statline, being Mighty Glaciers. "Líf" also commonly has Death Blow as a skill, which is a skill Alfonse is capable of learning without skill inheritance.
  • At the beginning of Paralogue 19-3, after meeting their Spring counterparts, Alfonse explains to Sharena that there are alternative universes, each with their own Alfonse and Sharena.
  • In the Book III intro, Alfonse's clothes, armor, and part of his face are stained black when he falls and wades through the black liquid.
  • In the Book III intro, look carefully at Alfonse when he's in the black liquid where he witnessed Sharena die: his hair tips are not blond, but gray.
  • In Book III Chapter 3, when Gustav talks with Alfonse about Hel and his encounter with her 20 years ago, he never mentions anything about meeting Líf, Gustav and Alfonse's ancestor, at all, meaning he's a recent addition to the forces of Hel.
  • In Book III Chapter 7, the Order of Heroes finds a shrine covered in flowers in the ruined Askr, with the conclusion that "Líf" placed them there to honor the dead. Sharena notes that they were her favorite, something that Alfonse knows.
  • In the beginning of Book III Chapter 8, Alfonse notes that "Líf" hesitates to point his weapon at Sharena.
  • "Líf" is the one issuing the contracts with Heroes for Hel. Only a few people are known to issue contracts, including Alfonse.
  • During Book III Chapter 3, Reyson mentions that "Líf's" heart is "completely clouded". Additionally, in the Japanese version, he mentions "that man's heart, it's like everything..." foreshadowing something really tragic happened to him.
  • Despite claiming to be the resurrected corpse of Askr's founder, "Líf" has a completely different appearance than Gustav when he was resurrected as Hel's minion.
• Futile Hand Reach: Watching the intro of Book III knowing that "Líf" is actually another Alfonse, shows him doing this to Sharena when she is about to be killed by Hel, rather than the Alfonse on your side. The Writhe cinematic does this again, scene by scene only this time as "Líf" instead of Alfonse.
• Gender-Blender Name: Líf in Norse Mythology is the human woman who survived Ragnarok.
• Glass Cannon: His Rearmed variant in the "Life & Death 3" Tempest Trials+ has fantastic HP and Spd and great Atk, but low Def and Res.
• Graceful Loser: The end of Book III Chapter 12 has "Líf" be defeated by the Order of Heroes once and for all, but before he dies he tells Alfonse to never allow Alfonse's Askr to fall into death and ruin like his, and knowing that at least another Askr didn't fall like his.
• The Heavy: While Hel is the main threat, most of the later parts of Book III details Líf's struggle against the Order of Heroes, and Book III's theme song is actually his Villain Song. The final fight with Hel almost seems like an afterthought in comparison.
• Hellish Horse: He gains an undead mount with his Rearmed variant, similar looking to Eir's pegasus.
• Human Resources: In order to gain +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and a guaranteed follow-up attack from the unrefined Sökkvabekkr and the +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat, a guaranteed follow-up attack, and deals 5 damage and restores 7 HP per attack if he either triggers his special before or during that combat with the refined version, he needs at least an ally within 3 spaces of him (4 spaces with the refined version) while also dealing 20 damage to the closest one after combat if he attacked, implying that he's extracting their life essence to boost his strength. Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir's Þjálfi has a similar effect, where they gain +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat, halving the foe's Damage Reduction, and gain a guaranteed follow-up attack if the user is within 3 space of an ally, but still inflicts 20 damage to the nearest ally after combat.
• Identical Grandson: He looks almost exactly like an older, grizzled Alfonse. Subverted when it turns out he is Alfonse, or at least another version of him from an alternate universe.
• I Hate Past Me: "Líf" and Alfonse go against each other a lot, examples shown in the game startup splash screen and in the intro of Book III, and with knowledge that "Líf" is actually an older Alfonse, shows that he is more willing to take down his younger self without hesitation.
• I Know You Know I Know: Book III Chapter 11 has Alfonse figure out that "Líf" will be at his version of the Order of Heroes castle with the weapon the "forbidden heart" created, stating that he would do this if he was in "Lífs" position. However, "Líf" was counting on Alfonse to confront him in the castle, with the castle collapsing as a trap should he fail to take down Alfonse by combat, taking Alfonse by surprise. Book III Chapter 12 reveals that Alfonse did escape knowing where it would be safe and chases "Líf" down.
• Improbable Weapon User: Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir wield Þjálfi, which is a flower vase, as a tome.
• It's All My Fault: Book III Chapter 9, as well as the "Cohort of the Dead" cinematic, reveals that in the past, after using the "forbidden heart" to defeat Hel, and the consequence of everyone dying as a result, "Líf" admits to this, and would do anything to set things right, even if it means that another world dies like his.
• Irony: In an ironic twist, considering he's an alternate Alfonse and he's the one issuing contracts to the other heroes in this book. Veronica temporarily joins sides with the Order of Heroes, and considering she's the one who issued the contracts in Books I and II, it's strange that Alfonse is the one sending the heroes against Veronica and others.
• Jack of All Stats:
  • His regular variant has great Atk at 37, good Def at 34, and above average HP at 42, but average Spd at 30 and Res at 28.
  • His Valentine's Duo version with Thrasir have fantastic Atk at 39, and average HP and Def at 39 and 30, respectively, but have below average Spd and average Res at 25 each.
  • His Rearmed variant has fantastic Atk at 43 and Def at 41, and average HP at 41, but below average Spd at 29 and average Res at 26.
• Killed Off for Real: "Líf" dies at the end of Book III Chapter 12, after encouraging the main Alfonse to not allow his Askr to end up like "Líf's" own.
• Late-Arrival Spoiler: Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir reveals that "Líf" is actually Alfonse, with "Thrasir" namedropping him in their quotes, which the Duo Hero was released more than a year after the end of Book III.
• Life Drain:
  • His regular and Rearmed versions learn Open the Future, which, in addition to boosting his damage by 50% of his Def during combat, heals him for 25% of the damage he deals once it activates.
  • His refined Sökkvabekkr allows him to restores 7 HP per attack if he either triggers his special before or during the current combat and is within 4 spaces of an ally.
• Load-Bearing Boss: At the end of Book III Chapter 11, "Líf" intentionally sets himself as one for his version of the Order of Heroes Castle as a back-up plan in order to guarantee that he at least takes down Alfonse, if killing him outright has failed.
• Meaningful Rename: After becoming a servant of Hel, this older Alfonse changed his name to "Líf", after the first king of Askr, due to being the last one technically alive from his version of Askr.
• Morality Chain: As Book III Chapter 8 reveals, "Líf" cares a lot for Sharena, but as he lost his own Sharena in his ruined Askr, her death broke him and caused him to perform a Face–Heel Turn and now serve Hel.
• Morality Chain Beyond the Grave: Even in death, "Líf's" Sharena is this for him. Book III Chapter 12 has the main Sharena try to talk some sense into him, with Sharena not knowing exactly what "Líf's" Sharena would tell him at this time, but this brief talk has him realize what his Sharena would tell him in that situation and finally gain some of his sanity back.
• My Greatest Failure: Book III Chapter 8, as well as the "Cohort of the Dead" movie, reveals that resorting to the "forbidden heart" to defeat Hel was "Líf" greatest mistake, and everyone around him paid for it.
• My Greatest Second Chance: A dark example. "Líf" sided with Hel and started killing everyone in Alfonse's Askr because Hel offered to revive those who lost their lives in "Líf's" Askr if he destroyed the other Askrs, an opportunity he did not hesitate to take.
• No-Sell:
  • His Rearmed variant has Atk/Def Clash 4, where, in addition to granting him +6 Atk/Def during combat if either him or his foe initiated combat and moved to a different space, and +1 additional Atk/Def during combat for each space the initiator moved, up to +4 Atk/Def during combat, has him ignore any field stat debuffs on his Atk/Def during combat if the initiator moved at least 2 spaces before combat.
  • His regular version also has Deadly Balance+, where it allows him to ignores non-Special Damage Reduction skills when he triggers his special if he either is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat or a [Penalty] is active on him.
• Not Quite Dead: Chapter 13-3 has him and "Thrasir's" bodies be controlled like mindless puppets in order to slow down the Order of Heroes.
• The Paragon: When he was alive, he was blessed by the Divine Dragon Askr and united and led his people to prosperity, being respected as a true hero and king to the people of Askr. His revenant version, however... That is, the Alfonse who named himself "Líf".
• Power at a Price: Sökkvabekkr and Þjálfi grants the user significant stat buffs and a guaranteed double if an ally is within 3 spaces (4 spaces with the refined Sökkvabekkr), but it also deals 20 damage to the user's nearest ally afterwards, which is guaranteed to heavily injure them or outright leave them on the brink of death.
• Pre-Mortem One-Liner:
  "I must be ruthless!" (regular)
  "Do not stand in my way." (regular)
  "I will get what I want!" (regular)
  "And now, it is your turn." (regular)
  "A gift." (Love of a King, with Thrasir)
  "Let us go." (Love of a King)

  Thrasir: "Yes." (Love of a King)
  "This too, is my duty." (Love of a King)

  Thrasir: "Take this." (Love of a King)
  "Be silenced." (Rearmed)
  "The strong triumph." (Rearmed)
  "Abandon hope." (Rearmed)
  "That which I desire…" (Rearmed)
• Promoted to Playable: He was released as a Mythic Hero of Anima in late January 2020, after Book III ended.
• Punny Name: In addition to his names Norse origins, his name befits a man that wielded a flying castle.
• Rapid-Fire "No!": His regular variant's English defeat quote.
• Recurring Boss: In Book III, he is fought 10 times. And one more in Book III Chapter 13 after his supposed death in Book III Chapter 12 as a mindless puppet.
• Redemption Promotion: Unlike most Original Generation villain characters that are made playable, the playable Regular Líf is more powerful than his enemy variant, having 1 more stat in his Atk and Res, as well as access to the Secret Arts Open the Future and Deadly Balance(+).
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: He has red eyes, which sometimes glow, but it is unknown if he was born with them or gained them when he was recruited by Hel. Since he is actually an older Alfonse, he gained them when he was recruited by Hel.
• The Reveal: The end of Book III Chapter 8 and the "Cohort of the Dead" movie reveals that "Líf" is not the undead first king of Askr, but actually an undead Alfonse from another Askr, ruined and devoid of life.
• Rewatch Bonus: Looking at the intro of Book III knowing that "Líf" is another Alfonse is a lot more interesting if you're observant on which Alfonse is shown on certain scenes, especially showing what color hairtips he has at that moment.
• Sanity Slippage: In Book III Chapter 9, as well as in the "Cohort of the Dead" cinematic, after "Líf" It's All My Fault moment due to everyone dying around him, including his Sharena, he admits that his sanity "died with them". It was until he properly interacted with the main Sharena in Book III Chapter 12 that he gained some sanity back.
• Secret Art:
  • His playable and Rearmed version has Open the Future, which boosts his damage by 50% of his Def and recovers HP equal to 25% of the damage dealt when it activates. He shares this skill with his descendants, namely Duo Alfonse & Sharena. Although in truth, Líf and Alfonse are one and the same.
  • His playable and Rearmed versions has Deadly Balance, which if the user is either at 50% HP or over at the start combat or a [Penalty] is active on the user, the user inflicts -5 Atk/Def on the foe and grants the user +1 special buildup for each of the foe's attacks. His regular version also has Deadly Balance+, where it inflicts -5 Atk/Spd/Def on the foe during combat and -1 special buildup per attack on the foe, grants him +1 special buildup per foe's attack, and ignores non-Special Damage Reduction skills when he triggers his special, all which activates if he either is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat or a [Penalty] is active on him, and he gets -2 special cooldown after combat if he triggered his special before or during combat.
  • Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir's have their Duo Skill exclusive to them, where it allows them to inflict damage equal to 10 + 50% of the total HP missing of all allies within 3 spaces of them, up to 40 damage dealt, and inflict -7 Atk/Spd to all foes within 3 spaces of them.
• Serrated Blade of Pain: His Rearmed variant's Arcane Éljúðnir has the metal part have a few large curved points on the sharp side of the blade, and is more powerful compared to his regular variant's unrefined Sökkvabekkr.
• Ship Tease: With Thrasir. They're paired up together as one hero for Valentine's, their quotes include lines about never being parted, and they mutually admit that while they have nothing else, they at least have each other. Thrasir even says if their bond is to be called love, then she wants that love from Líf to carry her forward.
• Significant Double Casting: Only in the English version, but Edward Bosco voices both Gustav, Alfonse's father, and Líf. However, the generation gap is much closer between Gustav and "Líf", as it is revealed during Book III that "Líf" is actually an older, omnicidal Alfonse from a ruined Askr.
• Sole Survivor: "Líf" is this in his version of Askr, on a technicality of being "alive".
• The Starscream: Valentine Duo "Líf" & "Thrasir" has the both of them together intending to be this to the gods, namely Thórr, in their voicelines with "Líf" trying to find out their weaknesses.
• Status Buff:
  • His regular variant wields Sökkvabekkr, which the unrefined version grants him +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if there is an ally within 3 spaces of him, the refined version gives him +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if he is within 4 spaces of an ally, and the unique refine gives +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if he is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat. He also has Even Tempest 3, which gives him +1 movement at the start of even turns.
  • As a Mythic Hero of Anima, if an ally has an Anima Blessing during Anima season in Aether Raids, he gives them +5 HP and +4 Spd if they're on the battlefield, which can be stacked with other Mythic Heroes of Anima, including copies of himself.
  • Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir have Þjálfi, which gives him +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if there is an ally within 3 spaces of them during combat. They also have Atk/Def Push 4, where they gain +7 Atk/Def during combat if they have at least 25% HP at the start of combat, but costing 5 HP after combat if they attacked.
  • His Rearmed variant has Atk/Def Clash 4, where it gives him +6 Atk/Def during combat if he or his foe initiated combat and moved from a different space, and additional +1 Atk/Def during combat for each space moved, up to +4 additional Atk/Def during combat. He also gets Atk/Def Menace, where it grants him +6 Atk/Def at the start of his turn if there is a foe within 4 spaces of him.
• Super Mode: His Rearmed variant, as he has been empowered by Ganglöt after claiming the throne of Hel.
• Taking You with Me: "Líf" attempts this to Alfonse at the end of Book III Chapter 11 by intentionally collapsing his version of the Order of Heroes castle, with the both them still inside it when it started. Both live the collapsing castle at the start of Book III Chapter 12.
• Theme Naming:
  • Just like Askr and Embla are the names of the first humans in Norse Mythology; Líf and Lifthrasir are the two human survivors of Ragnarok. Doubles as a Meaningful Name, as he is technically the last survivor of his Askr, changing from "Alfonse" to "Líf" when he became Hel's servant.
  • Sökkvabekkr^*Sunken Bank in Norse is wisdom that Sága is associated with, in which Odin is known to drink from.
  • Þjálfi is the brother of Röskva, who the former once sucked the marrow out of a leg bone of one of the goats of Thor during their dinner, which did not heal the next day, enraging Thor and demands his parents to have him and his sister be his servants as compensation.
  • Éljúðnir is the name of the hall of Hel in Nifl.
• Theme Song Reveal: In his release trailer, it uses the Book III boss theme for the majority of the trailer, connecting "Líf" with that music, and by extension, the lyrics connecting to his motivation in Book III.
• Tragic Keepsake: Book III Chapter 12 reveals that the Breidablik of the Summoner from "Líf's" realm is this, and also the key to defeating Hel, as it was enchanted in the "forbidden heart" ritual and has defeated Hel once before.
• Tragic Villain: Revelations in Book III show "Líf" to be a broken, insane version of Alfonse who witnessed the deaths of his entire nation, his family, and the Summoner, because of his own actions. His servitude to Hel is out of desperate hope that by killing Alfonse's Askr, he can restore his own. It's very hard not to pity him after learning all this.
• Uncanny Family Resemblance: He looks a lot like an older Alfonse wearing a mask. He even shares both his class and attack◊ pose◊. It's all foreshadowing that "Líf" is an Alfonse from an alternate future.
• Undeathly Pallor: Since he has been risen from the dead, he has this by default.
• Villain Song: It's implied (and later confirmed with the "Cohort of the Dead" cinematic) that the second part of Fallen, which is used in the intro of Book III and is also the boss theme for the leaders of Hel, is actually a song about "Líf" and his motivations, with the lyrics "sacrifice another self", and the fact that the vocals of the Japanese version song is sung by Tatsuhisa Suzuki, Alfonse's Japanese voice actor, are the major factors bridging the connection with the song and him.
  Throw away everything... To bring a dead world back to life... Sacrifice another self...
• Walking Spoiler: Book III Chapter 8 and the "Cohort of the Dead" movie reveals a lot on who he really is.
• Wound That Will Not Heal: Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir have Fatal Smoke 3, where they negate any skills and weapons that allow the foe to recover HP during and after combat, as well as inflict the [Deep Wounds] status effect to the target and all foes within 2 spaces of the target, which the status effect have the user be unable to recover HP during their next turn.

Thrasir

Omnicidal Witch

"I am Thrasir, general of the realm of the dead. I am feared as the Omnicidal Witch. Everyone will perish. That is why I have come..."

A general of Hel. In life, she was the founder of Embla and was known for her powerful magic. She has risen again to use that magic to expand Hel's army by taking the lives of many. In late September 2019, she was released as a Mythic Hero of Anima.

Voiced by: Yui Ogura (Japanese), Lizzie Freeman (English)
Artist: Yusuke Kozaki (regular), Azuza (Love of a King)
Class: Green Mage (Heroes), Dark Mage (Cipher)

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• Action Initiative:
  • Her unrefined Ífingr, in addition to giving her +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat, allows her to ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks if she is within 3 spaces of an ally, while the refined version also allows her to ignore skills that deny any of her follow-up attacks under the same condition.
  • Her playable variant's Killing Intent(+), in addition to inflicting -5 Spd/Res on the foe during combat, allows her to have any of her follow-up attacks go before the foe can counterattack if she initiates combat and the foe either is not at full HP at the start of combat or has a [Penalty] inflicted on them, such as a stat debuff or the [Panic] status.
• Alternate Self: Book III Chapter 10 reveals that, just like "Líf", "Thrasir" is actually the Veronica of the ruined Embla.
• Armor-Piercing Attack: Her playable variant has by default Moonbow, where when it activates, ignores 30% of the foe's defenses.
• Back from the Dead: The ending of Book III has her be alive alongside "Líf" in a cutscene after the defeat of Hel. Xenologue 5 confirmed that they came back to life.
• Balance Buff: In update 7.2.0, she received a refine for her Ífingr, which upgrades to giving her +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res and ignore skills that deny any of her follow-up attacks and guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks, and the unique refine gives her -1 maximum special cooldown, and gives +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and ignore any field stat buffs the foe has on their Spd and Res if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat, She also received Killing Intent+, where, in addition to having the same effect as Killing Intent, also inflicts [Exposure] to the nearest foes within 5 spaces of her and all foes within 2 spaces of that foe at the start of her turn, where [Exposure] has the one inflicted with it receive +10 damage from attacks during combat, as well as receive Atk/Spd Ideal 4.
• Balancing Death's Books: Much like "Líf" is sent to another version of his world revive his Askr, "Thrasir" is sent to revive her brother Bruno.
• Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Despite the Fan Disservice, notice that Líf, Hel and Ganglöt are missing skin on the lower halves of their faces. Thrasir is not.
• Big Brother Worship: Much like the original Veronica, "Thrasir" cares about her brother Bruno a lot, so much that she would kill her younger self and bring ruin to Veronica's Embla to revive him.
• The Cameo: She reappears alongside "Líf" in the Book IV ending movie, offering Triandra and Plumeria to join Alfaðör in order to bring Freyja back to life. Unlike "Líf", "Thrasir" remains silent during this appearance.
• Co-Dragons: She and Líf are the two main generals Hel. They are later this to Thórr.
• Cooldown Manipulation:
  • Her playable variant has Flashing Blade 4, where if she has more Spd than the enemy during combat, in addition to dealing +5 damage, gives the user +1 special buildup for every attack they perform. The unique refine for her Ífingr gives -1 maximum special cooldown.
• Cool Mask: Her regular variant has one that goes around her eyes and has protruding horns on the top of her head.
• Damage-Increasing Debuff: Her playable variant's Killing Intent, in addition to having any of her follow-up attacks go before the foe can counterattack if she initiates combat, allows her to inflict -5 Spd/Res on them during combat if the foe either is not at full HP at the start of combat or has a [Penalty] inflicted on them, such as a stat debuff or the [Panic] status. Killing Intent+ also inflicts [Exposure] to the nearest foes within 5 spaces of her and all foes within 2 spaces of that foe at the start of her turn, where [Exposure] has the one inflicted with it receive +10 damage from attacks during combat.
• Do Not Call Me "Paul": She doesn't like being called "Veronica" and insists to be called "Thrasir", since she is not like the main Veronica and tries to distance away from identifying with her. The only one who get a pass is "Líf".
• The Dreaded: Alfonse notes that while she was alive, she was feared for her powerful magic, and had the potential to raze a realm if she chose to. Not this "Thrasir" however, as she's really an alternate universe Veronica and nowhere near as powerful. She is taken down rather easily by the Order of Heroes in Book III Chapter 10.
• Dragon with an Agenda: She works for Hel and later Thórr, but only because they promise to resurrect the people of her and "Líf's" homeworld, in exchange for their services. She plans to backstab Thórr and tries to figure out her weakness to boot.
• Enemy Mine: She was willing to co-operate with her once mortal enemy Alfonse in order to revive the ones they love, changing their names into "Líf" and "Thrasir" in the process.
• Energy Ball: The animation for her weapon of choice Ífingr is a giant purple energy sphere that tears apart the ground on its way to its target.
• The Evil Genius: The witch and Trapmaster of Hel.
• Finishing Move: Has one where she charges up for a moment before firing a magic blast.
• Fire-Forged Friends: With Líf, as they're really Alternate Universe versions of Alfonse and Veronica who were enemies until they became allies against Hel and later still generals under her. Thrasir admits to Líf that if there was a silver lining in the hell they've gone through, it's that she was able to become friends with him, and she expressed a desire to maintain that friendship if they managed to restore their realm. They even get Ship Tease together.
• Foreshadowing: There are some clues that "Thrasir" is actually another Veronica from a ruined Embla.
  • Both "Thrasir" and Veronica resemble each other a little too much, with even sharing a special attack pose.
  • Both of them share the same weapon and movement type, being Green Tome Infantry. The playable Thrasir also has Panic Smoke, which also inflicts Panic on foes just like Veronica's tome does.
  • Considering that "Líf" was revealed to be another Alfonse two chapters earlier in Book III, it isn't a stretch of an imagination that "Thrasir" is another Veronica.
  • Alfonse and Veronica co-operated in the past through Teeth Clench Teamwork in order to achieve a larger goal.
• Gender-Blender Name: Lifthrasir in Norse Mythology is the human man who survived Ragnarok.
• Human Resources: In order to gain the +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res boost during combat and ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks from Ífingr unrefined and +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks and deny any of of her follow-up attacks refined, she needs at least an ally within 3 spaces of her while also reducing their stats by -4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to the closest after combat, implying that she's draining her ally's strength to boost her own.
• I Hate Past Me: The playable "Thrasir" outright calls her past self, Veronica, foolish and beyond help.
• If We Get Through This…: A flashback in Book III Chapter 11 shows that before the events of Book III Chapter 10, "Thrasir"/Veronica made a promise to "Líf"/Alfonse that after Balancing Death's Books and reviving everyone in their realm, she wants to have both of them talk together again as allies and not as enemies, which "Líf" agrees to. However, this promise is cut short with "Thrasir" being Killed Off for Real at the end of Book III Chapter 10.
• Killed Off for Real: "Thrasir" goes down in Book III Chapter 10 by the efforts of the Order of Heroes.
• Lady of Black Magic: A general of the realm of the dead feared as the Omnicidal Witch with an eerie, calm demeanor.
• Late-Arrival Spoiler: Valentine Duo Líf & Thrasir reveals that "Thrasir" is actually Veronica, with "Líf" namedropping her in their quotes, which the Duo Hero was released more than a year after the end of Book III.
• Meaningful Rename: She named herself after the first Emperor of Embla due to being the last one alive from her Embla.
• No-Sell: Her Ífingr allows her to ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks if she is within 3 spaces of an ally. The refined version also allows her to ignore skills that deny any of her follow-up attacks, and the unique refine allows her to ignore any field stat buffs the foe has on their Spd/Res during combat if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat.
• Not Quite Dead: Chapter 13-3 has her and "Líf's" bodies be controlled like mindless puppets in order to slow down the Order of Heroes.
• Out-Gambitted: "Thrasir" in Book III intentionally left a book about the weapon the "forbidden heart" created in her version of Embla so she could lure Veronica to the Temple of Blood and kill her counterpart in order to revive her brother. However, she didn't count on Alfonse intentionally springing the trap and defeating her there and then.
• Power at a Price: Ífingr unrefined grants her +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res and ignore skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks and refined gives +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and ignores skills that guarantee the foe's follow-up attacks and denies any of her follow-up attacks if an ally is within 3 spaces, but heavily cripples her nearest ally with -4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res right afterwards.
• Pre-Mortem One-Liner:
  "All will perish.")
  "Weak."
  "Don't get in my way.")
  "Won't you just die?"
• Promoted to Playable: She was released as a Mythic Hero of Anima in late September 2019, before the end of Book III, but after being Killed Off for Real.
• Red and Black and Evil All Over: Like her distant descendant Veronica, she primarily dresses in black and red and is an antagonist.
• Redemption Promotion: Unlike most Original Generation villain characters that are made playable, the playable Thrasir is stronger than her enemy variant, as she has 2 more Spd, as well as access to Ífingr's refine and the Secret Art Killing Intent(+).
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: She has red eyes, but it is unknown if she was born with them or gained them when she was recruited by Hel. However, considering that her descendant Veronica has them as well, it is very likely that she was born with them, as she actually is Veronica from another realm.
• The Reveal: Book III Chapter 10 reveals that "Thrasir" is actually another Veronica who served Hel in order to revive her brother Bruno.
• Rhetorical Question Blunder: The conclusion to Book III has Thórr offering her and "Líf" a place in their army, to which she (understandably) snarks back if Thórr can give back their world in exchange. She is not prepared for the Blunt "Yes" she gets in reply, as apparently Alfaðör can do that.
• Secret Art: Her playable variant has Killing Intent, where if the foe either is not at full HP at the start of combat or has a [Penalty], she inflicts -5 Spd/Res on them during combat, and if she initiates combat, any follow-up attack she makes will occur consecutively, allowing her to strike twice before the enemy can counterattack, and Killing Intent+, which, while having the same effect as Killing Intent, also inflicts [Exposure] to the nearest foes within 5 spaces of her and all foes within 2 spaces of that foe at the start of her turn.
• She Is the King: Unlike Veronica, she's called an Emperor instead of an Empress.
• Ship Tease: With Líf. They're paired up together as one hero for Valentine's, their quotes include lines about never being parted, and they mutually admit that while they have nothing else, they at least have each other. Thrasir even says if their bond is to be called love, then she wants that love from Líf to carry her forward.
• Spell Book: Ífingr deals effective damage against dragons and grants her +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat and prevents enemy skills that guarantee their follow-up attacks if she has a ally within 3 spaces of her, but inflicts -4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res to the nearest ally after combat.
• Squishy Wizard: She has high Spd and Atk, decent HP and Res, but low Def. Her playable version on the otherhand has fantastic Spd at 39, average HP, Atk and Res of 40, 33, and 27, respectively, but a low Def of 23.
• Status Effects:
  • Her playable version has Panic Smoke 3, where after combat she inflict the target and any enemies within 2 spaces of them [Panic], converting field stat bonuses into penalties.
  • Her Killing Intent+ inflicts [Exposure] to the nearest foes within 5 spaces of her and all foes within 2 spaces of that foe at the start of her turn, where [Exposure] has the one inflicted with it receive +10 damage from attacks during combat.
• The Starscream: Valentine Duo "Líf" & "Thrasir" has the both of them together intending to be this to the gods, namely Thórr, in their voicelines with "Líf" trying to find out their weaknesses.
• Status Buff:
  • She has Ífingr, which unrefined grants +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if she is within 3 spaces of an ally, refine gives +6 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat, and the unique refine gives her an additional +4 Atk/Spd/Def/Res during combat if she is at 25% HP or above at the start of combat. She also has Atk/Spd Ideal 4, where if she either is at full HP or has a [Bonus] active on her during combat she gets +7 Atk/Spd during combat, and is at full HP and has a [Bonus] active on her during combat she gets an additional +2 Atk/Spd during combat.
  • As a Mythic Hero of Anima, if an ally has an Anima Blessing during Anima season in Aether Raids, she gives them +5 HP/Def if they're on the battlefield, which can be stacked with other Mythic Heroes of Anima, including copies of herself.
• Stripperiffic: When appearing as general of Hel's army, her entire stomach, crotch and thighs are almost totally exposed, with the little armor around those areas failing to cover anything. The only reason she can get away with this is that these parts of her body are also transparent, showing off her skeleton beneath her skin more than her skin itself.
• Theme Naming:
  • Just like Askr and Embla are the names of the first humans in Norse Mythology; Líf and Lifthrasir are the two human survivors of Ragnarok. Also a Meaningful Name, since she is the last survivor of her Embla.
  • Ífingr is the river that separates Asgard from Jotunheim.
• Theme Song Reveal: When the trailer of her playable version was released, it used Veronica's Leitmotif "Veronica" as her theme, but Downplayed since her real identity was revealed over a month earlier, only being a real surprise for those who didn't play Book III Chapter 10 yet.
• Tragic Keepsake: In one of her castle lines, Ífingr is revealed to be from "Thrasir's" brother Bruno, which, while worn out, she treasures the most.
• Uncanny Family Resemblance: A distant ancestor of Veronica who looks just like an older version of her. She even shares both her class and her attack pose (albeit being Thrasir's special attack◊ to Veronica's regular one◊). Another piece of foreshadowing to her true identity as Veronica from an alternate future.