Characters / Triangle Strategy - Grand Duchy of Aesfrost

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Grand Duchy of Aesfrost

Gustadolph Aesfrost

Gustadolph Aesfrost, Archduke of Aesfrost

Voiced by: Takanori Yoshino (Japanese), Scott Whyte (English)

Class: Frostruler

The Archduke of Aesfrost who invades Glenbrook shortly after coming to power.

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• A Lighter Shade of Black: Bad as he is, he’s not as vile as his full siblings. This goes extra for Idore Delmira…
• Affably Evil: At times, his courteous overturns are genuine; in Aesfrost’s Chapter III, he allows Serenoa’s party a decent amount of freedom including access to the Archives, even if he doesn’t allow access to the restricted areas (which few are given anyway).
• An Ice Person: All of his combat abilities that do not deal with status ailment resistances all revolve around ice such as being able to silence enemies with an ice-infused sword sweep, attacking enemies with ice and freezing the ground beneath them while lowering their magic defense, and being able to hit all those standing on ice in range while unfreezing the ground in the process; in some instances he can even summon a blizzard storm. Him having Blessing of Ice also naturally increases his defense against ice while simultaneously giving him a weakness against fire.
• Bastardly Speech: At his execution of King Regna, he justifies his invasion of Glenbrook to the crowd by blaming Glenbrook for his cousin Dragan's death and the seizure of the riches of the Grand Norzelian Mines, painting the nation as greedy and power-hungry. The protagonists know that this is a pack of lies, but they're not in any position to reveal this to Glenbrook at large.
• The Bad Guy Wins:
  • In the Liberty ending, Benedict convinces Serenoa to ally with Aesfrost to take down Hyzante, resulting in Gustadolph getting everything he wanted: destroying Hyzante, spreading his freedom ideals throughout Norzelia and getting away scott-free with the murders of Dragan, Regna, and Frani, and the invasion of Glenbrook.
  • In the Morality ending, it is heavily implied he will come on top of the Era of Salt and Blood with Benedict's strategic genius at his side.
• Big Bad: The beginning of the game sets him up as the central villain of the game, where he masterminds the invasion of Glenbrook. In the Liberty endgame however, he can ally with Serenoa’s party to defeat Hyzante.
• Climax Boss: Although he’s the main antagonist for most of the game, he’s never the final obstacle; the two routes in which he is fought, Utility and Conviction, have a different Final Boss.
• Consummate Liar: Gustadolph's been justifying his conquest of Glenbrook with the falsehood that his cousin Dragan, who helped manage the Grand Norzelian mines, was slain at Glenbrook's hands. The protagonists note that knowledge of this would turn everyone in Aesfrost against him, but nobody would believe them because the war has already begun.
• Control Freak: For someone who values freedom so much, he really hates not being in control of things or people. To wit:
  • He only grants Rudolph a pardon on the condition of his exile from Aesfrost, otherwise it’s off to gaol; after he proved himself such a nuisance, Gustadolph doesn’t want him free on the streets of the Grand Duchy.
  • While admitting that Dragan’s proven more capable than he expected, the demand of either being Prime Minister or ambassador to Glenbrook in exchange for secreting away the salt he found incensed Gustadolph enough to have his cousin assassinated for daring to blackmail him.
  • Despite being courteous to him beforehand, when Serenoa "spat in the face of his demands" (as Benedict puts it), Gustadolph was livid enough that having their heads on pikes was equally appealing to him as having them bend the knee.
  • After he’s explained the Deathsknell to her, Avlora angrily demands to know why she as his General wasn’t trusted with this information earlier. He bluntly retorts that as his general, she’s to be used how and when he sees fit.
• Dramatic Irony: In the Liberty route, he recognizes that had he granted Dragan the position of prime minister, he would've had the advantage in the negotiations with Glenbrook due to his cousin's knowledge over the incredible usefulness of salt and possession of the discovered salt crystals from the mines. Then, he wouldn't be forced to compromise to Benedict's terms for their alliance against Hyzante.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: While he doesn't care a whit about most of his family, he has a soft spot for Frederica.
• Even Evil Has Standards: For as brutal as he is, he's no fan of the slavery that the Roselle are put under in Hyzante, and is amenable to letting them be free in the new society that comes about in the Liberty ending. It comes as no surprise that he was the one member of Frederica's siblings that treated her well because of it.
• Evil All Along: Implied. As noted by several members of the Glenbrook royal family and by Frederica, Gustadolph was cooperative with, or at least non-aggressive towards, the other states of Norzelia, and his invasion of Glenbrook is largely a surprise.
• Evil Counterpart: To Frederica. They are both charismatic, brilliant, and willful, but he lacks her compassion. Frederica fights for the liberation of her people; Gustadolph fights for his personal ideals. Appropriate, given they're half-siblings.
• Evil Nephew: Does he let the fact that Svarog is his paternal uncle prevent him from murdering his son or ordering his arrest and imprisonment literal seconds after naming him Prime Minister? No, sir, he does not.
• Evil Virtues: Courage, ingenuity, wildness, respectfulness, meritocratic ideals… He’s got quite a few, actually.
• Enemy Mine: The Liberty endgame route has Benedict arrange an alliance between Gustadolph's forces and Glenbrook in order to take down Hyzante and end their monopoly on salt resources.
• Exact Words: Late in the game, he promise to make Svarog his prime minister once he complete the Deathsknell. Of course, he never said anything about letting him stay in power, as he immediately has Sycras arrest him for smuggling salt.
• Expy: A pretty clear one to Emperor Sauthar. Both are visionaries who believe that if they aren't doing the compassionate thing, they're at least doing the right thing. Both successfully conquer nations and end up as popular rulers of the lands they inhabit - Sauthar in Campbell for unifying the world under one flag and ending warfare while being kind and considerate to the citizenry of his new territories, and Gustadolph for promoting serious class upheval as a result of his meritocratic ideals. Their key differences are their philosophies - for all of Sauthar's power, he's eliminated halfway into his story due to delusions of power, while Gustadolph is a realist who plays his cards well even when the advantage turns against him. While Gustadolph is never the Final Boss, he always makes it to the last four chapters of the story, and can still be the major threat if Roland's route is chosen - in fact, he comes out unambiguously ahead in Benedict and Frederica's routes largely as a result of his political and military acumen and his capacity to realize when it's best to take his winnings and pull out of a protracted war not going his way and settle with his ideals, if not his nation, taking Glenbrook and Hyzante by storm.
• Face Death with Dignity: In the Conviction route, after losing to Roland's party, he accepts his defeat and tells Svarog to go ahead and avenge Dragan. Contrast with the Utility route, where he basically goes through a Villainous Breakdown post-battle after his defeat.
• False Flag Operation: He orchestrated one in order to justify his invasion of Glenbrook. Namely, he led the attack on the Grand Norzelian Mines that killed his cousin Dragan, and blamed Glebrook for the breach of peace to justify his invasion of the country.
• Fatal Flaw: His Control Freak tendancy. As explained in Dramatic Irony above, had he considered or even tried to negotiate Dragan's offer to replace Thalas as Prime Minister instead of assassinating Dragan, he would have gained a competent ally in the person of Dragan, and at the same time likely improved his relations with Svarog, and control over the salt found in the mines, or at the very least Aesfrost would not make an enemy out of Glenbrook, when Hyzante would come knocking asking for the salt.
  • His other fatal flaw is his ruthless pragmatism. While normally considered something of a positive trait if used for heroic ends, Triangle Strategy focuses a lot on the follies of extremism, and Gustadolph is the end result of a man who is very good at using everything at his disposal to see his ends met. While this makes him a brilliant leader and garners him several supporters among the civilian populations, his lack of compassion and his inability to see anyone or anything as anything but an obstacle or a tool to reach his goals means he has no close friends to speak of, and thus scant few people truly loyal to him. Every major Aesfrosti character in the game once the war starts up either lose faith in him and try to flee at the slightest hint of danger when he's not there to look powerful in front of them (Thalas and Erika), abandon him because he fails to ever consider any principles beyond his own (Avlora and Sycras), or betray him because he betrayed the other party first when it was convenient for his own ends (Svarog).
  • He's a Horrible Judge of Character, and terrible at predicting what others will do. Besides the Dragan bit above, if Roland fakes his death, he readily assumes house Wolffort killed him to rid themselves of him and the pressure on them, which is astoundingly out of character for them. He assumes Hyzante will be cowed when he sends Erika to threaten them, and is completely unprepared when they immediately mobilize to march on Glenbrook. He utterly fails to account for Cordelia winning Avlora's loyalty. When Orlaea's diary is stolen he assumes it's nothing important despite being told the book was sealed with magic — a clear sign something inside must've been valuable. He generally seems to assume others will remain passive or be cowed by him and tends to falter whenever this turns out to not happen — which is most of the time. His Nepotism is just another aspect of that; he gives Thalas the important role despite Erika and Dragan both being much better suited at the job. This plays into how he sees people as chess pieces and assets to be used, and not people with their own agency and goals.
• Faux Affably Evil: He's always polite when giving orders or talking to the party but this in no way tempers his brutality, even towards his own family.
• A Hero to His Hometown: To his home country of Aesfrost, Gustadolph is The Good King. He apparently is a firm believer of freedom and improved the position of Aesfrost greatly by promoting those with skill rather than noble blood.
• Hidden Depths: Believe it or not, Frederica and Orlea are the very few people he does not openly disparage in any fashion (aside of potentially one line about musing that Orlaea's sealed book could be about her complaining to Frederica about a nation they both despised), he has no battle dialogue towards Frederica (and can never even fight her in the first place) and takes pointed jabs at Serenoa and Geela if they confront him on the Utility route concerning her leaving them, and bits and pieces indicate that he holds a genuine interest in Orlaea and the Roselle outside of Frederica thanks to Orlaea telling him stories when he was a boy (something that surprised Cordelia). Even in the demos, he seems to hold respect for House Wolffort that he wants them on his side, and seems honestly disappointed if Serenoa refuses.
• Hypocrite: For all his touting the virtue of personal freedom, Gustadolph hates when people defy him. His indulgence in blatant Nepotism with Thalas also kneecaps his meritocratic ideals, as Thalas is perhaps the least qualified person in all of Aesfrost to be its Prime Minister. Gustadolph justifies the latter by saying that Thalas is being given a chance to earn his position, but it's clear that under a fair meritocracy, he would never have been given such a high position in the first place.
  • Gustadolph sees himself as being above the likes of Hyzante's ruling class, proudly noting in the Liberty route that he cares not for riches. He may not covet riches, but he does covet power and control, and is thus not nearly as far-removed from Hyzante then he thinks himself to be.
  • Also in the Liberty route, he once again lets slip his disdain for the worthiness of individuals who are not himself, namely the everyday folk. In the face of Benedict's intention to ultimately place salt directly into the hands of the people, an act with the intent of unfettered freedom where one's own merit would be the keys that would see them prosper, Gustadolph dismisses people in general as unintelligent and ill-fit to wield the power and potential of salt. This is yet another example of the undermining of Gustadolph's own ideals of personal freedom above all else and worthiness by way of merit over birth. For Gustadolph, certain freedoms, that is those of his individual self, are worth more than the freedoms of others. And his own circumstance of birth and the privileges afforded to him in turn makes his merits worth more than others in his eyes.
• I Regret Nothing: As he put it when he is finally defeated.
  Roland: Any final words?
  Gustadolph: No. I lived how I deemed fit, and I shall die just so.
  • The same applies in the Liberty ending, where he makes it plain in his take of a reconciling with Frederica that he has no regrets for all that he had done to that point.
• Karma Houdini: In the Morality and Liberty endings. The former sees his country descend into civil war once Svarog turns the Deathsknell on him, but not only does he end up with Benedict and Rufus as valuable allies, Benedict's final dialogue implies Exharme is feeding him information. For the latter, he allies with Serenoa to crush Hyzante, ultimately getting his goal of liberating Norzelia and staying in power while the inequities cause the common folk to suffer.
• Karmic Death: In the Conviction route, Svarog, whose son Gustadolph secretly assassinated, is the one to finish him off after Roland's party defeats him.
• Kneel Before Zod: In Chapter VI, he demands that Roland be surrendered and that House Wolffort swear loyalty to him; Serenoa’s refusal angers him enough that he orders Avlora kill them.
• Lack of Empathy: His subjects note that he sees his own siblings as mere tools, along with the whole of Norzelia.
• Morality Pet: Frederica is this, as she's one of the few people that he genuinely cares about beyond ambition. Even after Serenoa (Frederica's fiancé) becomes his enemy and she sides with House Wolffort, Gustadolph is nothing but gentle to her whenever they meet.
• Murder in the Family: He had Dragan, manager of the Grand Norzelian Mines, assassinated as part of a False Flag Operation to fuel his Pretext for War. Dragan was his cousin. Only Serenoa and his comrades are privy to this information, but Benedict notes that revealing it now would be a pointless endeavor with the war already begun.
• Names to Run Away from Really Fast: In battle, he brandishes a BFS named the "Blade of Mammon", named after one of the 7 princes of Hell who was the Demon of Greed, fitting for a control freak of the highest degree and how he lusts for power.
• Nepotism: Deconstructed; he promoted his brother to the post of Prime Minister, but expects Thalas to actually learn responsibility from having it. This makes his brother's hedonistic tendencies and laziness extra frustrating, as it reflects poorly on him for giving him the opportunity. Worse, it turns out it was for nothing, because the person who wanted the position, Dragan, is revealed to have been a better choice, but by then, he had already killed Dragan.
• Out of Focus: Despite being the reason the game's story even happens, Gustadolph gradually is pushed from the role as a major character in the majority of the endings, most of which focus around Hyzante.
• Pet the Dog:
  • In spite of his cruelty towards the royal family, if he has Roland in his clutches, seeing Cordelia's relief after reuniting with her brother, he will afford the pair a hug.
  • He's orders of magnitude nicer to Frederica than his siblings are and grows to legitimately respect her in the Liberty route upon seeing her growth if that route is chosen. Earlier on he even expresses some measure of guilt in that Frederica would be party to his conquest of Glenbrook and even offered to spare Serenoa for her sake if he joined forces.
• Pre-Final Boss: He's the penultimate opponent of Roland's ending. After his death, Svarog goes off the deep end and becomes the final threat.
• Pretext for War: He goes to war with Glenbrook by claiming that they forcibly seized the riches of the Grand Norzelian Mines, a joint peacekeeping project between the three nations, and killed both his cousin Dragan and the prospect of peace in Norzelia in the process. However, Serenoa and co. claim, and rightly so, it was a False Flag Operation and he committed the murder himself.
• Route Boss: He's the boss of the Utility ending's chapter XIX and the second boss of the Conviction ending's Chapter XVIII.
• So Proud of You: When he reunites with Frederica once Glenbrook and Aesfrost enter into an alliance in the Liberty endgame, Gustadolph tells her how strong she's become and how happy he is for her as her brother.
• The Sociopath: A realistic take on the high-functioning sociopath. Gustadolph’s capable of being charming, generous and persuasive and isn’t incapable of at least feigned warmth; that said he’s also calculating and manipulative, dislikes being challenged on his own beliefs, and only values life so far it pertains to himself and his own desires. His treatment of his family members (beyond Frederica, who he at least treats kindly) is particularly telling.
• The Unfought: In the Morality and Liberty endgame routes.
  • He will always be this to Frederica no matter what the route taken. In the Utility route, she has already left the party due to refusing to give up on the Roselle, while in the Conviction route, she leaves Aesfrost and the subsequent fight to Roland and instead goes to the Source to liberate the Roselle.
• Villain with Good Publicity: Even when Glenbrook is freed, many of its resident miss the Aesfrost occupiers, as Gustadolph had made the state more meritocratic, and abolished the salt tax, leading to most of the capital's residents to see an increase in their standards of living. Benedict notes that the city is rather accepting of Gustadolph's rule as one of the reason House Wolffort can't count on an uprising there to help them. Many resent Roland's taking the crown fearing he'll return to the old ways, where a few old money noble families own the city, or worse that he might be a puppet of the Holy State.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: One of the main aims of his military campaign is to put an end to Hyzante's monopoly on salt and the ensuing tax over it. Being able to spread his meritocracy ideals is an added bonus.
• White and Red and Eerie All Over: His pallid skin, white hair, and royal crimson color scheme highlights his depravity, and the darker shades in his clothing also make this overlap with Red and Black and Evil All Over.

General Avlora

Avlora, High General of the Ducal Army

Voiced by: Takako Honda (Japanese), Ashleigh Haddad (English)

Class: Dark General → Great General

The top general of the Aesfrosti forces who leads the invasion of both Whiteholm and the Wolffort demesne.

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• 11th-Hour Ranger: She only joins Serenoa's party if you're on the Golden Ending route.
• Asskicking Leads to Leadership: She trained from an early age after being orphaned and became the highest military official in Aesfrost below Gustadolph himself, being recognized as one of the mightiest warriors alive in Norzelia—if not the mightiest.
• The Atoner: She acknowledges that being forgiven would be nigh impossible and doesn't ask for it, so she instead opts to right her wrongs and succeed in helping remove the threats to Norzelia so that the generation of Cordelia could live in peace when she joins Serenoa's party. As of the recently released additional cutscene, Avlora's atonement at the very least has earned her complete forgiveness by Hughette and even Roland, showing that she's earned a proper place at last among the playable party at least.
• Anti-Villain: Avlora shows signs of questioning Gustadolph's ways as early as Chapter VII's aftermath should Serenoa's party fend off her attack and protect Roland. Especially in regard to Cordelia's treatment as the puppet Queen of Glenbrook, Avlora herself says that there is no place for her on a political battlefield as it is more heartless than one of war. That she also shows particular disgust should Serenoa send the homes of his countrymen up in smoke just to beat her and compromising their lives is very telling of her personality early on.
• Background Music Override: When she first acts against one of your units, or vice-versa, in the battle of Chapter VII, the music shifts from an energetic and heroic tune into a graver and more dramatic Dark Reprise.
• Because You Were Nice to Me: She develops Undying Loyalty to Cordelia because the latter actually respects her honor.
• BFS: Avlora wields the Berserker, a zweihänder about as tall as her according to her sprite, and she demonstrates that can use it very effectively at the expense of anyone who crosses her (as Prince Frani and Ser Maxwell can attest to). Her idle stance shows that she stows it via Weapon Across the Shoulder. It gets even bigger as the player forges it once she becomes playable.
• Cast from Hit Points: With some TP expenditure, she can get her attack power to skyrocket using "Risky Maneuver" in exchange for some of her HP, which is deadly against your units.
• Climax Boss: In Liberty and Morality's Chapter XIV, where defeating her is key to reclaiming Glenbrook from Aesfrost.
• Close-Range Combatant: Compared to Lord Falkes, the other potential boss of the demo's second battle/chapter VII's boss battle, as she wields a massive sword and is deadly within her element but has little means of dealing with foes from afar other than closing the distance.
• Contractual Boss Immunity: She's immune to status effects such as blindness, sleep, or leg traps.
• Contralto of Strength: Has a deep voice among female characters and the physical might to back up the danger such a tone carries.
• Cowardly Boss: One of the things that make her boss fight so infuriating; despite her supposed valor, if you don't pen her in she will go running back to the healers if her health gets low.
• Critical Status Buff: Avlora becomes even more dangerous the lower her health gets, getting a decent physical attack boost on top of a general damage reduction which makes her even harder to take out when she is in danger.
• The Dragon: Avlora is Archduke Gustadoph's top general and leads the Aesfrosti military into Whiteholm and towards the Wolffort demesne.
• Easily Forgiven: Despite killing Prince Frani and Ser Maxwell, Cordelia is able to move past Avlora's past deeds and seeks her aid in helping rebuild Glenbrook. Though Serenoa also cordially welcomes her into the fold in the Golden Route's ending, he makes it clear that this does not apply to everyone else, and in a character episode Hughette makes it painstakingly obvious that forgiveness would not find her easily if at all—something Avlora has made peace with. The townspeople are quick to corroborate Hughette's words upon seeing Avlora despite the fact that she saved a child's life, though they begrudgingly give her a chance to prove herself seeing her sincerity. By the extended epilogue, she's completely earned Hughette and Roland's whole forgiveness.
• Gameplay and Story Integration: Redemption Demotion nonwithstanding (and even then she'll still be a one-woman army, even in hard mode if you play intelligently, just not to the extent of her abilities as a boss), the game makes Avlora out to be the realm's mightiest warrior. During a first playthrough, the fact you can encounter her as early as chapter 7 may make this seem like a bunch of empty praise, but that's the result of levels mattering during an initial and secondary playthrough. Once levels are maxed out, and all bosses have the best stats they possibly can, Avlora does come out ahead as being Norzelia's greatest warrior; only Rufus overcomes her in pure strength, but Avlora still comes out ahead of Rufus in every other category. Only the final bosses typically have better statistics, and there's typically a narrative reason for this having to do with the enemy knowingly fighting to the death, utilizing unheard-of magic, or being a magical construct.
• Gold-Colored Superiority: Avlora's promotion, Great General, sees her decked out in a golden (or at least yellow) suit of armor, fitting as being the sole Golden Ending-exclusive character. It also has the effect of changing her color scheme from that of Aesfrost to that of Glenbrook.
• Guest-Star Party Member: In Chapter VIII’s Utility path, she fights alongside House Wolffort against Hyzante.
• Heel–Face Turn: She starts to show signs of one in the opening moments of Chapter XIII, impressed by Cordelia's conviction and pledging herself to the princess, but is still fought as the Liberty and Morality Chapter XIV boss. Only on the true route does Avlora turn up alive and well, making to fight alongside Serenoa and his company to lead Norzelia into a new age, and she is later seen in the ending CG celebrating Serenoa and Frederica's marriage.
• Hero Killer: Not counting her gameplay stats, she kills Prince Frani and defeats Ser Maxwell relatively easily, the latter of whom killed her entire entourage before Avlora defeats him. Landroi Falkes becomes her next victim, in the aftermath of Chapter VIII’s Utility route.
• Hidden Heart of Gold: While she presents herself as an Ice Queen and unfeeling warrior for Aesfrost, she actually has a kind heart. She first shows it when offering to spare Landroi, and she later becomes entirely devoted to protecting Cordelia. She eventually earns her place as a personal guard for the Glenbrook royal family, as Serenoa, Roland, and Hughette note that she's proven her loyalty and atonement time and time again.
• Honor Before Reason: She takes honor very seriously, which leads to her growing discontent with the Aesfrosti leadership's tendencies to double deal and backstab for their benefit. This is generally treated as a positive trait, but it leads to a few odd instances. Particularly, she genuinely feels betrayed if Serenoa chooses to side with Hyzante in Chapter VIII on the surrender Roland to Aesfrost route. This is despite the fact that Aesfrost conquered House Wolffort's liege, killed the nobility, and proceeded to bully and blackmail House Wolffort into being their lapdog for multiple missions that always left House Wolffort in a worse position than they were in before. One would think she really should have seen it coming. In addition, during the mission to drive her forces off and protect Roland instead, she is particularly aghast that Serenoa would stoop to using the Wolffort Demense's Wildfire traps to take her and her soldiers out at the cost of destroying the homes of his countrymen should he choose to do so, calling him out on it despite the fact that the Wolfforts may have been driven to such desperation and saw no other way out of stopping her much feared elite army.
• Lady and Knight: White Knight to Cordelia's Bright Lady, after her Heel–Face Turn.
• I Let You Win: During Chapter II, she trades blows with Ser Maxwell during the tourney only to give up after he lands a strong attack on her. Her second fight with Ser Maxwell makes it clear she would have won; her reasons for throwing the match are unknown, but at least partially informed by not seeing a low-stakes bout as worthy of showing off her full might.
• It's Personal with the Dragon: Roland demands that he kill her in order to avenge Prince Frani and Ser Maxwell. She taunts Roland over the idea if he lands a hit on her.
• Leave No Survivors: Gives this order to her troops upon arriving at House Wolffort's doorstep and says as much when using her Risky Maneuver technique in battle.
• Lightning Bruiser: Being in heavy armor, she has a mountain of health and can eat through punishment like nobody's business. On the offensive side, she carries a BFS that can One-Hit Kill your party members under the wrong circumstances. Neither of these factors reduce Avlora's mobility, which is on par with that of her subordinate units, or her decent place in the battle's turn order.
• Limit Break: She unleashes a deadly attack involving lighting magical fire in a cross-shape after slashing down with her sword to defeat Ser Maxwell, but such an attack is never seen if you fight her in Chapter VII.. Once she becomes playable in the golden route, it must be unlocked by forging her Berserker sword to get it. The skill is dubbed "Bloody Cross", and it deals stupid damage to all enemies in range and pushes them back by three squares.
• Mirthless Laughter: After she’s bested on Chapter XIV’s Morality route, Roland finally unmasks to her and Cordelia. Avlora bursts into helpless laughter, wishing she could see Gustadolph’s face at the revelation he was Out-Gambitted.
• Never Found the Body: Her fate in all versions of Chapter XIV. In the Utility route, she's washed away by the flood. In the Morality route, she pulls a Villain: Exit, Stage Left by jumping into the river. And in the Liberty route, Roland duels her, and she falls off the bridge much like Ser Maxwell. However, it's revealed that she survived in the Conviction ending route.
• Noble Demon: Ruthless and powerful warrior she is, Avlora respects those of great strength and may even offer to spare them before she comes for them as seen in one of her pre-battle quotes and with Lord Landroi Falkes — offering to have him join their ranks instead of having to kill him, even when there is no objective to spare him.
• No-Nonsense Nemesis: She spares little time for small talk (outside taunting Roland with the express intent of him letting his guard down to be captured), and when the chips are down enemies drop like flies to her sword.
• Not So Stoic: Avlora is normally calm in most situations, but she can be riled up if angered enough such as being incensed that Gustadolph said nothing to her about the Deathsknell despite being the general of his army, though she says no more when Gustadolph pointedly makes it clear he ultimately sees her being his general as meant to bring him victory as he sees fit. This happens again when in a character episode a very upset Hughette snapped and accused her of trying to justify her killing of others because they were at war, causing Avlora to snap back at her with the unfortunate consequence of scaring off a nearby child, proving Hughette's point about the people of Glenbrook looking at her with hate and fear.
• Only One Name: Her having been an orphan meant she had no family name to begin with; according to Thalas (in one of multiple scenes demeaning her) she doesn’t know what her birth name was or if she even had one. The only prominence she could carve out for herself was her rise in the Aesfrost military by her might and will alone.
• Pre-Asskicking One-Liner: When she takes her turn in battle:
  "I will crush you!"
  "Face me if you dare"
  "Flee while you have the chance!"
• Pre-Mortem One-Liner: When she is about to finish off an enemy:
  "You were no match for me!"
  "Let me put you out of your misery!"
• Recurring Boss: She can be fought on four different maps, and up to two times on a single playthrough.
• Reformed, but Rejected: Aside of Cordelia who managed to earn her trust and loyalty, thus becoming closer to Avlora herself, everyone else is very understandably on edge and not so forgiving, with Hughette in particular voicing her hatred along with her mistrust of her intentions in light of her killing Frani and many others in a character episode. The townspeople very clearly do not want her in Glenbrook save for her helping rebuild Glenbrook and bringing an end to the war, the horrors of the war and her actions burning scars into their minds. It’s zigzagged with Roland though: while they have no dialogue post-recruitment, he indicates that he’s unable to forgive her personally but willing to set his grudge aside for the sake of his people and Norzelia as a whole; the epilogue shows her standing guard in the throne room with him and Cordelia, suggesting that if nothing else he trusts her to have his sister’s protection as her top priority. Finally subverted as of the extended epilogue where, after attempting to leave the wedding, Hughette and Roland at Cordelia's behest, convince Avlora to stay and make plain that they've gotten over her actions in the war, showing her that she has a real place among them from then on.
• Route Boss: She's the boss of Morality's Chapter VII, Utility-Liberty's Chapter VIII, and both Morality and Liberty's Chapter XIV. Notably for how many she has, it’s possible to avoid fighting her altogether and still end up on the Conviction route, where she is recruited.
• Secret Character: It's possible to recruit her, but it requires unlocking the Golden Ending route.
• Self-Made Woman: She started out as a penniless orphan and worked her way up to General.
• Surpassed the Teacher: She was the protégé of General Groma “Ironfist” Jurgina, who was Aesfrost’s greatest war hero during the Saltiron War. Groma retired from service when Avlora surpassed and replaced her.
• Uncertain Doom: If you aren't the Golden Route, Avlora is never seen again after Chapter XIV. Either she gets swept away in the flood created on the Utility path, she dives into the water in full plate mail to avoid capture in the Morality route, or she falls into the water after being defeated in a duel by Roland similar to how she defeated Maxwell in a duel at the start of the game. It is uncertain whether she drowns or survives on all other routes.
• Undying Loyalty: To Cordelia, after she grew a spine and nearly killed herself to stop Roland from killing Avlora. She cites this as the reason she did not let death claim her when it could have.
• The Unfought: One can avoid fighting her altogether by picking Utility in Chapter VII, the subsequent Chapter VIII, and later in Chapter XIII. The lattermost is notable because she's normally the last obstacle to liberating Glenbrook in Chapter XIV, but on the Utility route she’s taken out by the flood with Erika and Thalas taking her place.
• Villain: Exit, Stage Left:
  • In the Liberty version of Chapter VII, after she is defeated, even if she falls victim to one of the Wolfforts' fire traps which would prevent her escape, she retreats back to Whiteholm alongside the surviving remnants of the Aesfrosti army.
  • In the Morality version of Chapter XIV, she is taken captive on her own warship, but Cordelia will block Roland's killing blow with her stomach, stunning the party long enough for her to dive into the river. While she is still wearing heavy armor.
• Weak to Magic: While she can shrug off physical hits easily, magic will cut through her health pool significantly faster due to her lower magical defense.
• World's Best Warrior: At the start of the game, it's an open question whether she or Sir Maxwell is this. They meet in the tournament, but Avlora yields before a decisive blow is struck. It's later revealed that both of them were holding back, and in their rematch, Avlora emerges victorious after withstanding Maxwell's Limit Break.
• Youthful Freckles: It is hard to notice, but Avlora has these across her face despite living in the cold reaches of Aesfrost. Her exact age is unknown, but it is known that she ascended to the spot of general after long and hard work from an early age after being orphaned and taken in so she could be rather young for a general.

Erika and Thalas Aesfrost

Erika Aesfrost, Sister of the Archduke, and Thalas Aesfrost, Chancellor of The Duchy

Voiced by: Yoko Fujita (Erika, Japanese), Shou Okumura (Thalas, Japanese), Jennifer Roberts (Erika, English), Eric Sigmundsson (Thalas, English)

Erika

Thalas

Classes:

Erika: Bomber

Thalas: Windcaster

A pair of Gustadolph's siblings who make fun of the situation in Glenbrook and enjoy their positions of power, often mocking those below them.

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• Animal Motifs: As shown by their weapons of choice—Fang of the Serpent and Tome of the Peafowl—Erika is venomous and biting in almost all her interactions much like a serpent (helped by how her eyes slant very much like a snake's), and Thalas is a foul and pompous sort who preens about like a grandoise dick (rather like a stereotypical peacock/peafowl if you will).
• Annoying Younger Sibling: Erika constantly puts down Frederica whenever they interact, such as in Chapter II, over their split heritage. Thalas treats Frederica no better than Erika does, being just as verbally and emotionally abusive towards their younger half-sister all the same. For his part, Gustadolph finds them (Thalas at the least) as nuisances who should be kept an eye on unlike the dynamic he has with Frederica.
• "Ass" in Ambassador: In the start of Chapter III, when presented with wine and victuals as a parting gift by Glenbrook's royal family, Thalas spits at the opportunity and insults the wine, saying he'll have to bring himself to drink it.
• Blow You Away: Thalas specializes in wind magic, having two distinct wind spells at his disposal and coming with the Blessing of Wind to give him a resistance to his own element at the cost of taking extra damage from lightning element attacks.
• Character Development: Very small subtle bit of it, but Thalas actually takes Gustadolph's critisms to heart and begins behaving in a more controlled and thought-out manner. Fast-forward to when Erika spoiled his careless and licentious fun back in Whiteholm Castle's gardens to when he worries for their defenses and leads the defense against Wolffort in the occupied Glenbrook, and it is clear that Thalas has grown up some margin.
• Climax Boss: On the Utility route's Chapter XIV, they're the final obstacles in the way of Glenbrook's liberation. They're still roughly this in Morality's Chapter XIII, as while Avlora proceeds them, her defeat is of personal importance to Roland; the siblings still serve to act as a defining moment in Frederica's personal growth as a character, and are the only real obstacle to liberating Glenbrook on that specific route.
• Dual Boss: Of Liberty and Morality's Chapter XIII and Utility's Chapter XIV; regardless of Serenoa's path, they'll end up getting in the party's way.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Despite having no love for nary another person outside of his own family and even criticizing Gustadolph on occasion despite looking up to him, Thalas seems to genuinely care for Erika as he never has anything remotely negative to say about her. However, when she is killed before him during their dual boss fight in Chapter XIII, he appears more concerned about who would protect him rather than mourn over her.
• Evil Is Petty: Once they set foot in Glenbrook, they're quick to exploit the people of Glenbrook for petty reasons and gossip about and mock them from within the palace walls. For example, Erika immediately has Patriatte deliver some fresh fruit and the fine wine in the kingdom to her quarters. Thalas, in one cutscene, is all but stated to be having trysts with local women of occupied Whiteholm. They also spend much of their early screentime picking on Frederica and Dragan just because they can.
• Guys Smash, Girls Shoot: Inverted. While both of them possess elemental spells to attack at a distance, Erika only has one such spell, and her main weapon is a dagger. Meanwhile, Thalas uses a weaker magical tome, much like Frederica and Corentin, and possesses two elemental spells at his disposal.
• Hate Sink: Whereas Gustadolph could be said to be a Visionary Villain with some Evil Virtues, even treating Frederica with courtesy, his full siblings are simply cruel, spiteful people with no regard for anyone or anything outside each other. Their cousin Dragan, whom they disparage as much as their sister, passionately declares that "they have not a shred of compassion between them," and at every turn he’s proven correct.
• The Hedonist: From what we see of them after Aesfrost seizes Whiteholm: see Evil Is Petty. Erika delights in fine food and drink, while Thalas's tastes are more inclined to pleasures of the flesh, and both are willing to use the invasion of Glenbrook to seek their desires.
• Hypocrite: Despite taking a jab at Patriatte for being subservient to them, Thalas and Erika are eager to shower their brother Gustadolph with praises and delight at his plots.
• Jerkass: They're a pair of obnoxious, cruel, and spoiled assholes.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Despite sharing a compliment or two with him, Erika is shown in a few instances to not give one shit about Thalas—ranging from casually telling Gustadolph that he can do whatever he wants with Thalas after the former implicitly threatened to strip the latter of his position of prime minister without a shred of concern for him and heartlessly mocking Thalas if he is killed before her during their boss fight in Chapter XIII.
• Kick the Dog: Both of them, Thalas slightly more aggressively, will offer cruel words and abuse whenever they can get away with it. In particular, in Chapter IV he orders that the miners and assassins be buried...but explicitly has Dragan’s body left alone to rot and/or be consumed by carrion, just to spite him one last time.
• Lack of Empathy: Both of them, but Erika moreso. If Erika dies before him, Thalas takes a moment to mourn her passing. If the opposite happens, Erika takes a moment to mock his passing.
• My Friends... and Zoidberg: If you choose to go to Aesfrost in Chapter III, Svarog warmly welcomes Avlora and even Erika back from their trip from Glenbrook before greeting Serenoa's party, but noticeably pauses a bit when referring to Thalas, indicating some disdain towards his nephew—most likely due to Thalas's particularly unapologetic hostility towards Svarog's son Dragan.
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: If you choose Frederica's plan to liberate Glenbrook in Chapter XIII, you'll learn that Thalas once called out Frederica for just suffering in silence. While it's clear he only did so because he felt a bully victim trying to snap back and rising to the taunts and torments of their bullies would be more fun than an Extreme Doormat who does little in protest, in a case of Dramatic Irony, this ultimately becomes the focal point from which Frederica musters her newfound growth and courage. She later retorts to her tormenters right before the battle that she will suffer in silence no longer.
• Playing with Fire: Erika specializes in fire magic, having one such spell at her disposal and coming with the Blessing of Fire to give her a resistance to her own element at the cost of taking extra damage from ice element attacks. Unlike most other examples, Erika also loves to toss oil jugs about the field and light them up with her fire magic, earning her the class title of "Bomber".
• Route Boss: Subverted. No matter what happens, they will be fought and killed in Glenbrook's liberation.
• Socialite: Erika herself seems to be a trusted advisor to her older brother Gustadolph, but unlike Thalas, who is Prime Minister of Aesfrost, Erika herself lacks a job title and is merely the Sister of the Archduke. When she isn't sent off on an errand, she's shown mostly indulging in lavish things like being delivered Glenbrook's finest wine and fruit.
• Sour Outside, Sad Inside: Frederica surmises that deep down, both of them became cruel bullies to her because of their own insecurities; she was just there as an easy target.
• Smug Snake: Both are utterly sure of themselves, and not as clever as they think they are.
• Sleazy Politician: Thalas lazily enjoys his position as a minister of the Duchy, and he looks down on those who rose to their stations through merit instead of through Nepotism like he did, according to his description. At the end of Chapter III, Gustadolph calls him out on his laziness, saying that he gave Thalas an opportunity to earn his position.
• Spoiled Brat: Milo outright calls Thalas a spoiled brat at a battle confrontation in Chapter XIII, stating her reason for refusing his invitation to join his side is that she doesn't like children, or at least those like Thalas and Erika.
• This Cannot Be!: Both of them react this way upon defeat, if in different veins; Erika is outright in denial at her impending death, while Thalas tries to will himself to not fail his brother.
• Villainous Breakdown: In Chapter XIII on the Morality path, Milo disparages Erika as being ugly both inside and out; the vain and dispassionately cruel noblewoman snaps in frothing rage at the audacious jab.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Thalas is strongly implied to want his brother, his most prominent male role model (their father Zigmunt having implicitly died not long after the Saltiron War), to approve of him. He notably takes Gustadolph’s criticisms to heart and pulls his weight more when the war begins. Because the archduke is a sociopath who only values his family as tools, Thalas feels small and pathetic, which he took out on Frederica as an easy target for his frustrations. It’s also implied that Erika to some degree wants to please their brother, at least insofar as she doesn’t appreciate not being trusted with tasks and that he’s the one person she defers to.
• Women Are Wiser: Normally, Erika is the one to take matters more seriously, such as alerting Gustadolph to the possibility that Dragan was scheming against him and spelling out to Thalas how much of a threat that the Falkes demesne would be with Roland having been surrendered wherein they would need to be dealt with. Despite this, Gustadolph tends to give Thalas the more important tasks when running Glenbrook.
• White Hair, Black Heart: Like Gustadolph, their brother. With the exception of Frederica, it appears to run in the family. Unlike their brother's grand political schemes and warmongering, their sinisterness is more of the Evil Is Petty variety.

Dragan Aesfrost

Dragan Aesfrost

Voiced by: Yohei Matsuoka (Japanese), Caleb Yen (English)

Class: Flame Wielder

A cousin to the primary Aesfrost ducal family and son of Svarog Aesfrost, to be appointed to manage the newly opened Grand Norzelian mines.

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• Big Brother Instinct: He tells Serenoa that he wouldn't allow Frederica to marry into an unworthy household and would've outright vetoed her engagement to Serenoa had he and House Wolffort not have proven themselves worthy of her hand. He's also disgusted with how Thalas and especially Erika both mistreat Frederica for being half-Roselle despite being her half-siblings.
• Brutal Honesty: He wastes no time mincing his words as shown when he points out that Hyzante and its hold on salt is and always has been the biggest issue plaguing Norzelia and how much of a worthless prime minister Thalas is in that he only got the position through his bloodline (it's telling when Gustadolph, Thalas's elder brother who made him prime minister in the first place, corroborates this when he chews Thalas out himself).
• Clashing Cousins: He dislikes and often clashes with his cousins, the ruling Aesfrosti ducal siblings, both due to political and personal reasons. Frederica is the only cousin he actually gets along with and cares for.
• Commonality Connection: He gets along with Frederica infinitely better than with his other cousins by virtue of having suffered the same hardships from their family.
• Face of a Thug: His palid skin, thin lips, slender build, and black hair and clothing make him appear quite sinister, but he proves himself to be a genuinely goodhearted (if pragmatic and ambitious) person in his limited screentime.
• Fatal Flaw: His intense drive and ambition to surpass his much maligned family — outside of Frederica and his father — which causes him to jump on any opportunity that he believes will let him finally upshow them once and for all and to do so with as little other people catching on to derail him such as his discovery of a large salt deposit in the Grand Norzelian Mines. Unfortunately for him, this flaw of his is proven fatal very literally.
• Foregone Conclusion: In the initial demo showcasing the sixth and seventh chapters of the game, Gustadolph's murder of Dragan is a plot point, but Dragan is seen alive and well in the first three chapters.
• Gadgeteer Genius: According to his description, he recently invented explosives, which he intends to put to good use when he's in charge of the Grand Norzelian mines.
• Glory Hound: A justified case, as he’s determined to prove his worth in a society that looks down on him; despite his father being the uncle of Grand Duke Gustadolph, the fact Svarog is himself a half-sibling (implicitly another Royal Bastard like Frederica) makes Aesfrost dismissive of his inherent worth despite Dragan being quite brilliant.
• Guest-Star Party Member: In Chapter IV, which doubles as an Escort Mission.
• He Knows Too Much: He and his entire mining team is assassinated so that nobody else can learn they unearthed the first salt to be found outside the Source.
• Impoverished Patrician: He’s only one generation removed from the ruling Aesfrosts, but because of his father’s illegitimacy, their branch of the family is disgraced and considered below even lesser nobility.
• Informed Attractiveness: He's one of two male characters explicitly described as "handsome," when there are plenty of other good-looking guys in the game.
• In the Back: An Aesfrosti archer kills him while his and the party are caught off guard after routing the rest of the forces invading the mine.
• In Vino Veritas: He’s already forthright concerning his opinions but becomes even more so when he’s intoxicated in Chapter II.
• Looks Like Cesare: He's a pale and sickly-looking young man dressed in all black, giving him a rather ghoulish appearance. Despite this, he is firmly portrayed as being one of the most morally upstanding members of Aesfrost's noble families.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: When he unearths large deposits of salt in the Grand Norzellian Mines, he decides to keep it a secret from their allies and intends to keep it for Aesfrost alone; both for self-gain, as an attempt to leverage himself over Gustadolph, but also because he wants to help his own people who struggle in poverty and suffer quite severely under Hyzante’s salt tax, which makes the price of affording even a handful of salt extortionist for commoners. This error of judgement costs not just him but the realm as a whole, and because he dies before he can tell even Serenoa of his discovery it gives Aesfrost a massive early advantage in the conflict ahead.
• Nice to the Waiter: Besides his desires to show up those who disdained him, Dragan shows love for the hard-working common folk, especially in his own nation where he’s witnessed their hardships firsthand. Part of why he hides the salt deposits in Chapter IV is that he knows the Consortium is rife with corruption and Hyzante will (at best) try to claim the bulk of it for themselves using their teachings as justification; in exchange for their silence, he promises his miners that he’ll reward them handsomely.
• Playing with Fire: Much like Frederica, he uses fire magic in combat.
• Plot-Triggering Death: A variation; the assassins sent to kill him by Thalas actually coincide with Gustadolph’s invasion of the capital, as the messenger to Roland arrived soon after Dragan died of his wounds… However, had the Wolffort forces successfully prevented his death, they would have immediately undermined Gustadolph’s Pretext for War and likely stirred immediate dissent in Aesfrost’s invading force (many of whom were convinced they were avenging a betrayal by Glenbrook); thus, there’s no easy way to prove who really caused his death, forcing the conflict to play out in full.
• Red Herring: With his sinister looks, unquenchable ambition, and deep-seated resentment of the nobility, it's easy to assume that he will eventually end up becoming a villain despite being introduced as a kind and well-meaning person. In reality, he is the game's Sacrificial Lamb whose early death is used to establish the actual villains of the game.
• Sacrificial Lamb: He receives a fair degree of screentime in the first few chapters, only to die in Chapter IV.
• Self-Made Man: It’s a point of pride to him that his own accomplishments have made him a rising star in Aesfrost.
• Too Clever by Half: What results in his assassination. Asking Gustadolph for the position of Prime Minster with the salt he discovered in Grand Norzelian mine isn't a bad idea, but he severely underestimates Gustadolph's Control Freak tendencies and presses the latter's Berserk Button when he says he will hand the salt over to Glenbrook if Gustadolph doesn't capitulate.
• White Sheep: Dragan is notably more egalitarian in nature than his cousins Erika and Thalas, as illustrated when they meet at Whiteholm castle, and benefits from the Aesfrosti promotion of merit over birth. He's more openly ambitious than his cousin Frederica, but compared to the warmongering Gustadolph and the petty and spiteful Erika and Thalas, it's easy to see his more beneficial ambitions as virtuous.

Svarog Aesfrost

Svarog Aesfrost

Voiced by: Naomi Kusumi (Japanese), Andy Barnett (English)

Class: Iron Fighter → Iron Master

Dragan's father, the brother to the former Archduke, and Frederica’s uncle.

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• Anti-Villain: On the Utility endgame, where he’s a borderline Hero Antagonist.
• Chekhov's Gunman: He gets a brief introduction in Chapter III’s Morality path and can be revisited if Chapter IX’s vote leans to Utility, but aside from these most of his role in the game is (often optional) cutscenes and he’s not a major player in the war. Come the endgame and while the Liberty route sees him arrested by Sycras on Gustadolph’s orders, he can come back in a big way, leading the last of Aesfrost’s forces on the Utility route, turning on Gustadolph on the Morality route or becoming a crucial ally in subduing Aesfrost and defeating Hyzante on the Conviction route.
• Cool Old Guy: If visited in Chapter III, he is very polite and amiable towards Serenoa's party, giving a warm welcome to the party and especially to Frederica, all the while aware that Roland is visiting in secret and still giving him a gracious greeting as well.
• Cool Uncle: To Frederica, who he is somewhat doting towards in their interactions together.
• The Dog Bites Back: On the Morality and Conviction routes, he enacts his vengeance against Gustadolph, either by turning the Deathsknell against him and forcing him into a civil war (Morality) or allying with Serenoa and having him executed after exposing his crimes (Conviction).
• Enemy Mine: On Chapter X Utility, the party notes that he could be a valuable ally if they can earn his trust as they share a common enemy in Gustadolph; the route split is based in whether they confide Roland’s survival (which does work) or choose to try another way (which doesn’t). In the Conviction route, this trust enables them to team up against Gustadolph and kill him while obtaining control of the Deathsknell, letting them break through the Goddess’s Shield and defeat Hyzante, effectively siding with Aesfrost without alienating Roland.
• Evil Uncle: Inverted; while the main Aesfrost family are leery of him and Svarog is disgruntled by his inability to rise in a supposed meritocracy, he’s loyal to and has genuine fondness for his family given the accrued traumas can send him spiraling. It’s only knowing that Gustadolph had his son assassinated that drives him, in the Conviction route, to kill him and become de-facto ruler of his nation.
• Final Boss: Of the Utility Ending. He snaps from the combined deaths of his son Dragan, his niece Erika, and his nephews Thalas and Gustadolph, going off the deep end and attacking Serenoa's party for their role in the deaths of his family even though Dragan's death was not their fault and the other three had it coming.
• Guest-Star Party Member: In Chapter X’s Utility-Liberty battle, he helps the party fight off Sycras. Also in the Conviction route against Gustadolph.
• Misplaced Retribution: In the Utility ending, his grief and the cumulative losses of family — coupled with uncertainty of who to believe even if the Wolfforts told him the truth — leads to his attempted vengeance on Serenoa’s group over his many losses.
• Outliving One's Offspring: Tragically due to Dragan’s death in Chapter IV. Trying to uncover the exact truth, due to his distrust of Gustadolph, drives him for most of the story.
• Parental Substitute: He sees Frederica as a daughter, and the familial affection from her is mutual. It's no surprise that he's the one who all but explicitly gives her away to Serenoa in the Conviction Route ending, and is seen weeping in joy from seeing her in her wedding dress like any parent would.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: While he unfortunately is second to Gustadolph in Aesfrosti hierarchy, he does have considerable clout and, if certain choices are taken by the player, wields them to help Serenoa and Frederica. In the good ending, he helps Roland kill Gustadolph and immediately takes his place as the archduke of Aesfrost to rally the country behind Serenoa's cause.
• Reassigned to Antarctica: Gustadolph had him assigned as stewart of the border town of Twinsgate, away from the capital, to limit his influence.
• Route Boss: Only fought as the Final Boss of the Utility route.
• "Shaggy Dog" Story: Despite the tremendous suffering caused by his son's murder and his subsequent efforts to exact vengeance and bring his killer to justice (which spans nearly the whole game), things never go his way outside of the Conviction ending. He's either imprisoned by Gustadolph (Liberty), driven to madness (Utility) or locked into civil war with Gustadolph (Morality) on what is strongly implied to be the losing side.
• Sympathy for the Devil: During his "The Reason You Suck" Speech to Gustadolph in the Conviction route, he spares some for Erika and Thalas for being ultimately sacrificed for his ambitions.
• Throw the Dog a Bone: The narrative puts him through the wringer with his son’s murder and his subsequent navigating the political field through dubious means in search of the truth. Even hearing the truth of Dragan’s death only leads to Gustadolph undercutting it with Plausible Deniability and the fact that Dragan did initially try to blackmail the archduke… However, if all lines up just right, the Conviction ending sees him and Roland defeat Gustadolph, who accepts his death as recompense for Dragan; Svarog’s aid ends Hyzante’s salt monopoly, enabling a new era of peace and prosperity for Norzelia.

Sycras Diutte

Sycras Diutte

Voiced by: Takaki Otomari (Japanese), Josh Cowdery (English)

Class: Cudgel Fighter

Head of the constabulary in Aesfrost’s capital, a just man who does his utmost to keep the city and people safe within the confines of the law.

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• Action Dad: As revealed in a battle dialogue should Rudolph and Sycras come to blows, Sycras has his own wife and child to look after which Rudolph tries to bring up to persuade him into standing down to no avail.
• Anti-Villain: During the war, every potential encounter House Wolffort has with Sycras frames him as a sympathetic antagonist who arguably has the moral high ground: in Chapter X he’s trying to investigate Svarog’s illegal dealings, which while under Gustadolph’s orders is all about the stability of his country; in Chapter XIII he’s guarding the Telliore demesne dam, which the party is trying to blow up, and in Utility ending’s Chapter XVIII he’s defending his nation from Hyzante. The one exception to these is the Conviction ending, where he’s given ample reason to oppose Gustadolph within his moral framework.
• By-the-Book Cop: One who isn’t blind to the flaws in the system. That said, as Rudolph observes in the Chapter X battle, Sycras is so devoted to the system that it can be hard for him understand the reasons good people feel backed into positions where they break the law for self-preservation. He’s utterly incorruptible, which Gustadolph holds him in high regard for although it also leads him to turn on the archduke when he’s given reason to believe he’s broken the law that Sycras upholds.
• Disappointed in You: He can interact with Rudolph in Chapter X, expressing disappointment that the former smuggler hasn’t become an honest man like he hoped and that they’re on opposing sides.
• Good Is Not Soft: Much as he clearly values all life, he’s aware he needs to dirty his own hands to keep Aesfrost’s people safe. Serenoa notes that his compassion for the smugglers won’t stop him killing them to protect his or others’ lives, to which he firmly agrees.
• Guest-Star Party Member: Should you visit Aesfrost in Chapter III, you help him and Rudolph apprehend the salt smugglers.
• Lantern Jaw of Justice: His jaw is squared and firm to give off the image of an imposing enforcer of the law, and outside of being the consabulary's head he is a decent fellow.
• Lawman Baton: He wields one in battle.
• Nice Guy: A warm-hearted man who does his best to protect the citizens of Aesfrost. He even recognises that most organized crime is likely a result of desperation, and can’t help feeling for them (that said, see Good Is Not Soft).
• Noble Top Enforcer: As Head of the Constabulary, he’s subservient to Gustadolph’s but not blindly obedient and is always as just as he possibly can be.
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: In the Conviction route, he refuses Gustadolph's order to kill Svarog and Roland's party, stating they deserve to be judged based on the truth. This gets him slashed at by Gustadolph, and he falls to his supposed death, though he somehow still manages to return for the wedding ceremony later on.
• Reasonable Authority Figure: He’s sympathetic to Rudolph, apologetic about Serenoa’s party getting tangled in their mess, and wishes he could do more to improve the streets of Aesfrost. His desire to judge everyone fairly gets him seemingly killed by Gustadolph on the Conviction route.
• Recurring Boss: Can be fought up to three times on a playthrough, which is a tied number with Travis, Trish, Rufus and Exharme on the Conviction route.
• Route Boss: He's the boss of Chapter X's Utility-Liberty route, Chapter XIII's Utility route, and Chapter XVIII on the Utility ending.
• Slave to PR: He can’t allow the illicit salt trade to continue under his watch, but because the salt tax is suffocating the populace they also need to feel safe and not oppressed by their own lawmakers. As such he can’t come down hard on the trade, and tries only to stamp out the worst of the organized crime for the peoples’ benefit within these limitations.
• Skippable Boss: Chapter XIII's Utility route is a Stealth-Based Mission where the only unit who has to be killed is one on a tower right next to him. It's entirely possible kill the unit on the tower without even hurting Sycras. Heck, it's even possible to win without battling and killing a single unit, with a well-timed and well-placed use of Quahaug's Distorted Space. And if you're patient (and bring Jens), you can do so without ever alerting the enemy.
• Sympathetic Inspector Antagonist: On the Utility-Liberty branch of Chapter X, he’s really just doing his job by investigating Svarog’s affairs as he (correctly) suspects he’s accruing power and influence to oppose Gustadolph. Then his insider is killed by Hughette after accidentally discovering Roland’s Dead Person Impersonation; House Wolffort are wracked with guilt over a man’s death but still have to fight Sycras off for their own survival.
• Taught by Experience: He attributes his many years of arrests as giving him a good sense for the character of the criminals he puts away. This is why he believes in Rudolph, and why he’s reluctant to be matched against House Wolffort should the occasion arise.
• Unexplained Recovery: Appears to be killed by Gustadolph in the Conviction route but is later shown attending Serenoa and Frederica's wedding in the epilogue.
• Vocal Dissonance: For such a chiseled man with a squared jaw and imposing look to match, his voice is surprisingly youthful and gentle for his figure.

Zigmunt Aesfrost

The previous Archduke of Aesfrost. He fathered Gustadolph, Frederica, Thalas and Erika, and was older half-brother to Svarog.

He’s stated by Symon Wolffort to have made the initial pact for a marriage to strengthen ties with Glenbrook, which eventually formulated into Serenoa and Frederica’s betrothal.

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• Ambiguous Situation: In Chapter VI King Regna, questioning Gustadolph’s motive for betraying the peace treaty, implies that his death was a result of the Saltiron War… except the war ended 30 years ago, before all his children save perhaps Gustadolph were born. He was also the one to assign Geela as Frederica’s attendant and tutor, and is elsewhere noted to have died relatively recently. It’s likely the war and its aftermath may have impacted his health, but little is given in the way of clear answers.
• Posthumous Character: He’s been dead for some time when the story starts.

Orlaea Roselle

Voiced by: Marie Miyake (Japanese), Meaghan Martin (English)

Frederica's mother, of Rosellan heritage.

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• Cavalry Refusal: She originally fled to Aesfrost after her role in a Rosellan rebellion in order to seek sanctuary. However, despite becoming a beloved concubine and bearing the Archduke's child, she was ultimately surrendered to Hyzante by Aesfrosti nobles, who didn't want to go to war with Hyzante because of harboring their fugitives, and died in Hyzante captivity.
• Posthumous Character: She perished before the events of the game take place.