Literature / The Heroic Legend of Arslan

The original Kadokawa Bunko edition of Volume 1 with art by Yoshitaka Amano.

The Heroic Legend of Arslan (a.k.a. The Heroic Legend of Arislan a.k.a. Arslan Senki) is a series of fantasy novels written by author Yoshiki Tanaka with illustration by Yoshitaka Amano (Kadokawa) and Shinobu Tanno (Kobunsha) and published by Kadokawa Shoten then later Kobunsha.

The story takes place in a fantasy setting reminiscent of Ancient Persia and feature the warring states of Pars and Lusitania. The king of Pars—Andragoras—demotes one of his most loyal generals—Daryun—on the word of a man who proves to be a traitor. During a battle between the Lusitanians and Parsians the Lusitanians achieve victory and Daryun escapes with the crown prince of Pars—Arslan. The story details the ventures of Daryun and Arslan as they attempt to reclaim Pars and gain revenge against the Lusitanians while facing innumerable obstacles between them and their goals.

The series was on hiatus at 13 volumes but three more volumes were published, with the 16th concluding the story; the first having been published in 1986 and the last in 2017.

Adaptations:

Audio Plays

• An audio play series released by Kadokawa Shoten between 1988 and 1994. It covers the first nine volumes of the novels.

Films — Animated

• An anime film duology with character designs by Sachiko Kamimura. It was released between 1991 and 1992.

Anime & Manga

• A manga series by Chisato Nakamura was published by Kadokawa Shoten in the shōjo manga magazine Asuka Fantasy DX. Originally running between November 1991 and September 1996 the manga stands at 13 volumes, adapting the first seven novels.
• A 4-episode OVA series that follows up and continues the numbering of the films. It was released between 1993 and 1995, adapting till the fifth novel.
• A manga series by Hiromu Arakawa began serialization on Kodansha's Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine in 2013.
• A TV series adaptation, based on Arakawa's manga. It was released between 2015 and 2016, adapting the first six novel volumes.

Video Games

• A Strategy RPG for the Sega CD produced by Sega and released in 1993.
• Arslan: The Warriors of Legend, produced by Koei Tecmo Games and released in 2015. It uses their signature Dynasty Warriors play style.

---

Tropes:

A-C

• Accidental Hand-Hold: In the Arakawa manga/TV anime only: Arslan and Etoile notice they are holding hands after Arslan saves Etoile from falling off a giraffe, Etoile pushes Arslan's hand off him that's strong enough to push Arslan down, making Etoile angry and tells Arslan not to touch him. This entire story doesn't happen in the novel or the first anime.
• Action Girl: Farangis, Etoile/Ester, sometimes Arfrid.
• Adaptation Distillation: The themes and cultural trappings exhibited in adaptations of Arslan Senki (both the OVA and the 2015 TV anime) borrow from the longer epic poem by Firdusi, the Shahnameh (‎ , "The Book of Kings"). One of the main characters of Shahnameh, Kai Khosrow (), was acknowledged In-Universe to be the founder of Pars. His story arc of losing his kingdom and then rightfully regaining it is also basically Arslan's current plotline. Many supporting and side characters borrow their names from some characters inside Shanameh (such as Gieve, Farangis and Queen Tahamine) with varying similarity from the originals.
• Adaptation Personality Change: The Xandes in the anime and the manga have a few differences. Manga!Xandes has more personality, such as being dejected and awkward when he accidentally called Silvermask "Your Highness" and showing intelligence of how to best deploy his men.
• Adults Are Useless: Entirely averted. Arslan would be dead dozens of times over if not for the competent adults who care for him.
• All Love Is Unrequited: Gieve fell head over heels for Farangis who consistently brushed off his advances. Arfid has a one-sided crush on Narsus since he helped save her life. King Innocentius is doing everything he can, including ignoring his subjects' advice, to marry Queen Tahamine who refuses to speak to him.
• All Your Base Are Belong to Us: Lustania captured and claimed the capital city of Pars.
• Alone with the Psycho: Arslan is cornered by Hilmes while walking alone on top of the Peshawar's walls. It's made clear that Hilmes was toying with Arslan when the former could have easily killed him.
• Always Save the Girl: Lampshaded by Merlane who helped escort Irina with little gain to himself and later when he rescued Etoile from being burned alive at Ecbatana.
  Merlane: It seems protecting women is all I do lately.
• Ancient Artifact: The sacred sword Rukhnabad was the sword of the first king of Pars, said to be forged from a shard of the sun and is supposed to have mythical powers, being able to seal the Snake King underground for hundreds of years. The Zahhak sorcerers encourage Hilmes to retrieve it to cement his royal status, while hoping by doing so, it would weaken the seal on the Snake King.
• And the Adventure Continues: The ending of both seasons of the 2015 anime has Arslan ordering his newly assembled army to start the march to liberate Ecbatana. The reason he has to do it twice is because another foreign nation tries to make a land grab on Pars between seasons, forcing him to cancel the original campaign in order to drive them back.
• Animal Motifs: The Zahhak sorcerers are associated with snakes, as they are trying to resurrect the ancient Snake King. The leader at one point expels snakes from his mouth to transform an underling into a snake-like monster.
• Anyone Can Die: In the novel series, several characters die much later in the story after Arslan's coronation, including: Narsus, Arfrid, and Etoile.
• "Arabian Nights" Days: Much of Pars is based on the Middle East and Ancient Persia.
• Arc Words:
  • "And thus, the boy would become king" — also serving as an On The Next Episode Of Catchphrase.
  • The manga has variations of the phrase "On Earth, only one shah" or "one kingdom needs not two kings". It correlates with Arslan's Succession Crisis with Hilmes and later, Arslan's conflict with his own father King Andragoras.
• Aren't You Going to Ravish Me?: A variation occurs where Etoile/Ester upon being captured by Parsian soliders, demands that they torture them, despite Arslan offering to release them. When no one complies, they threw themselves on the ground and continue to yell at the Parsian soldiers to whip them, stab them or throw boiling water on them. This makes the Parsian soldiers think Etoile/Ester is crazy.
• Armor Is Useless: Swords, spears and arrows pierce chain, scale and plate armor so regularly that one has to wonder why anyone bothers wearing armor at all.
• Armor-Piercing Question:
  • After Hodir attempted to slander and get Arslan to abandon Daryun, Narsus and the others because they were "going to use Arslan to further their own ends", Arslan's response was:
    Arslan: If I were to discard Daryun and Narsus and choose you instead, how can you guarantee there shall not come a day when I will be forced to discard you in turn?
  • After Jimsa was almost killed by his king for a perceived betrayal without giving him a chance to explain himself and rescued by the Parsian forces, Narsus asked him to join them. But Jimsa refuses on the basis that Arslan's kindness makes him seem weaker and overshadowed by his retainers. Narsus points out that strength is not the ony qualification for value. After all -
    Narsus: How did King Tokhtamysh treat you?
• Arrows on Fire: Used to light a deep trench spanning an entire plain covered in oil—which served as the opening of the Battle of Atropatene where a bulk of the Parsian army were killed in the flames.
• Attractive Bent-Gender: Elam while disguised as a girl got flirted on by a soldier.
• Back-to-Back Badasses: The second 2015 anime opening displays two instances of this: Arfrid with Narsus and Arslan with Elam.
• Bad Ass Army: The Parsian army, especially their cavalry. There is a good reason why they were well known and widely feared. Even when they were badly injured, abandoned by the main armies and know they cannot win, they continued to charge at their enemies.
• Batman Gambit: Daryun pulled one on Narsus early on. He deliberately took the road near Kharlan's base so the soldiers searching for him and Arslan would investigate Narsus's house and Narsus would have no choice but to help Arslan.
• Barbarous Barbary Bandits: The story is set in Pars, a Fantasy Counterpart Culture of Ancient Persia, and during the story Prince Aslan and his comrades will occasionally encounter scimitar-wielding, turban-wearing Arabic pirates.
• Battle Cry: In various moments, Parsian commanders (particularly King Andragoras, Daryun and finally Arslan himself) have employed the fittingly-laconic Yashasuiin!
• The Beastmaster: Jaswant, apparently. He travels around on a tiger.
• Beast of Battle: Shindrans use elephants in battle.
• Because You Were Nice to Me: The Shindran agent Jaswant (who is loyal to Grand Vizier Mahendra, serving Crown Prince Gadevi) was sent to infiltrate Prince Rajendra's ranks and sabotage his alliance with Arslan. Being exposed to the strategic excellence of Pars's leadership (particularly Narsus) cemented his respect for them, but still remained loyal to Mahendra. Arslan's mercy towards him after being outed as The Mole, however, led him to save Arslan's entourage (when the sacred duel between Gadevi and Rajendra's proxies went downhill). Gadevi losing it and killing Mahendra was just the icing on the cake.
• Berserk Button:
  • Daryun doesn't like it when anyone disrespects his uncle Vahriz, especially after his death. He also really doesn't like it when anyone tries to do harm towards his charge, Arslan.
  • Arslan's button is a bit harder to press but endangering his friends is one way to bring out his anger.
• Better to Die than Be Killed: Kharlan.
• Beware the Nice Ones:
  • Arslan is normally gentle, soft-spoken, patient and doesn't like violence. However, when Rajendra cynically puts Daryun's life in danger, he snaps, draws his sword and tells Rajendra that if Daryun doesn't survive the fight, he, Arslan, will personally have Rajendra's head. This comes as a surprise not only to Rajendra but also to Arslan's own followers.
    • In the novel he says "I swear by the gods of Pars that if that monster kills Daryun its head will decorate the city gate - along with yours!" The novel also informs us that this was the first time Arslan ever threatened anyone.
  • Selima is a classic Nice Girl but she was the one who capture and turned in her husband to Rajendra to be executed.
  • Irina is a kind-hearted lady but she had little hesitation in attempting to assassinate Innocentis for the murder of her family when an opportunity presented itself.
• Big Brother Instinct:
  • Shapur went searching in the winter mountains to find his half-brother Isfan who was abandoned there.
  • Militsa stayed behind to buy time for her little sister Irina to escape when the Templars found their location to kill them both.
  • Despite denying it, Merlane does care for his little sister.
• Big Damn Heroes: Early on, Daryun comes to Arslan's rescue when he was attacked by Kharlan.
• Bishie Sparkle:
  • Gieve often has these when trying to woo Farangis. It doesn't work.
  • Hilarity Ensues in the 2015 anime OVA when Gieve teaches Arslan to do it. It effectively works on Daryun, Elam and Narsus.
• Blood from the Mouth: Hilmes and Daryun suffer this at the end of the duel in episode 24. The former also suffers a Broken Faceplate simultaneous to it, despite their slashes explicitly only hitting each other at the torso.
• Bluff the Eavesdropper: Narsus is aware of a prowling "shadow" at Peshwar looking for Vahriz's secret letter. So he gives Elam a fake letter to hide, knowing the person would be listening and take the bait, hoping they would be able to catch them.
• Boom, Headshot!: Of the arrow variation. While it happens most of the time in many of the sieges and open-field battles, one notable instance was Gieve doing this as a Mercy Kill to Shapur.
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Narsus is a formidable strategist and statesman (think Oberstein) who nevertheless regards himself an artist first and foremost. In the second part of the story he says he's a "Royal Court Artist who happens to be First Minister as well." Daryun's utter and vocal distaste for Narsus's artwork is a running gag throughout the story, but while the first anime adaptation would have the viewers believe that Daryun is too boneheaded to appreciate true art, the novel series and the Arakawa adaptation imply that Narsus's art does actually suck.
• Cain and Abel: Gadevi and Rajendra, the two Shindran princes. Also Hirmes and Arslan, although they're cousins. As it turns out, not even that.
• The Chains of Commanding: Farangis makes a well-crafted observation about kingship in the Season 1 finale:
  "The throne itself does not have a will of its own. This is how I think of it. Depending upon who sits in it, it can be a seat of justice or it can be the seat of inhuman cruelty. As long as it is a man, and not a god, doing the governing, he can never be perfect. But should he neglect to make efforts to reach for perfection, a king will surely tumble down the slippery slope towards evil with no one around to stop him."
• The Champion: Daryun to Arslan. At one point he makes it clear that he doesn't care whether or not Arslan is the rightful heir or even of royal blood, he's loyal to him as a person.
• Chekhov's Gun: Near the start of the duel between Daryun and Bahadur, Daryun's long cape is burnt at the end by the fire surrounding the ring. He later deliberately catches a good portion of the cape on fire to hurl it into Bahadur's face, blinding him.
• Chekhov's Gunman:
  • Arakawa manga/anime only: back in chapter/episode 1, Daryun makes a mention of his friend as someone he would like Arslan to promote. Said character Narsus doesn't appear until a few chapters later (and chronologically three years later).
  • When he first joins Arslan, Narsus originally wanted to send Elam to his friend to Port Gilan to safety. Much later on, we meet Shagad at Port Gilan after Andragoras ordered Arslan to go there.
  • Alfarid mentions she has an older brother when she first joins Narsus, that he will lead the Zot clan after their father died. Much later, we meet Merlain who is looking for Alfarid because their father's will indicated she is to be the chieftain, not him.
• Civil War / Succession Crisis:
  • The straggler Parsian officers in exile are beginning to sense that 1) with Arslan finally making his bid to free Pars from Lusitania and 2) Prince Hilmes/Silvermask finally setting his plan to undermine Lusitania from within in motion, liberating Pars will not actually lead to peace but this, which bodes ill for the people of Pars. Former Marzban Kubard, despite remaining a loyal Parsian subject, seems to find the possibility distasteful, and sits out of it—at least until a contingent sent by Hilmes tried to kill him, which pretty much drove him to side with Arslan's army.
  • In Shindra, two princes are fighting for the throne while their father is bedridden. First prince Gadhevi has the support of the nobility, due to his mother being from a higher station. Rajendra however is popular with the soldiers and general public, as he is the son of one of the king's lower ranked concubines, which makes him unfit for the throne in the eyes of many.
• Combat by Champion / Duel to the Death: Shindra's King Karikala issued one where his two sons would settle their dispute for the throne. However, a proxy for the duel is allowed and Rajendra chose Daryun and Gadevi chose Bahadur.
• Combat Pragmatist: Daryun. Which goes to show that even Knights In Shining Armor need not avoid it.
• Coming of Age Story: For Arslan, at any rate.
• Commonality Connection: Arslan felt a connection with Jaswant as both respect and want to please their adoptive parents and are uncertain with their place in the world.
• Cool and Unusual Punishment:
  • After Karikala passed away, Rajendra hosted a banquet in honor for his disgraced brother Gadevi. Narsus commented that in Shindra, in light of a royal execution, they would ply the condemned with food and wine as a final feast. Gadevi, who knew this tradition, is naturally frightened and jumpy.
  • Played for Laughs when Lusitanian soldiers are causing trouble at Narsus's previous governing land, a citizen shows a Lusitanian soldier one of Narsus's paintings to get him to talk, causing the man to scream.
• Cool Helmet: Arslan's helmet has large horns in the original artwork and the first anime. The 2015 Arakawa anime chose to give him, Daryun, King Andragoras and the other Parsian officers helmets with either leonine or equestrian motifs, which would not be out of place amongst the Rohirrim.
• Cool Mask: Hirmes/Silvermask's mask has large bull horns (one wonders how strong his neck must be). The mask is toned down in Arakawa's adaptation, which looks like an amalgam of a mask a Char Clone would wear (as befits Silvermask's status as The Ace and The Rival) and that of Kurei's initial mask (intending to hide facial burns, as befits being the "Cain" to Arslan's "Abel").
• Crucified Hero Shot: In the Arakawa manga/TV series Andragonas is forced into this position after being captured and chained up by Hilmes, his nephew.
• Cruel to Be Kind: Narsus reveals to Arslan Silvermask's true identity that he is Hilmes, son of previous king Osroes and thus Arslan's cousin. While Daryun feels it only adds a heavier burden to Arslan, Narsus feels it would have been better for Arslan to hear it from an ally than from Silvermask himself later on.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: The confrontation between Arslan and Silvermask in chapter 39 had Silvermask dominating the entire fight, easily breaking Arslan's sword and almost cutting off Arslan's hand.

D-E

• Darker and Edgier: Arakawa's version compared to the previous anime and manga adaptations (not the novel, though).
• Dark Is Not Evil: Daryun dresses in all black, and in the novel he's known in-universe as the Black Knight.
• Death of a Child: In one panel Bodin tosses a young child into the fire and later on, a Lusitanian soldier mentions that three million heretics, including children, have been killed.
• Decoy Getaway: How Queen Tahamine tried to escape from Ecbatana. (It didn't work.)
• Defector from Decadence:
  • In a story quite morally-ambiguous as this, the defection of men such as Kharlan, Xandes and Sam to serving Lusitania under Silvermask's command is treated as such. Their justification is that Silvermask is Hilmes, the original heir to the throne of King Osroes V (up until his brother Andragoras III seized kingship after killing him). To them, their aiding Lusitania to destroy Andragoras's rule is less being The Quisling and more engineering Rightful King Returns. Of course, Arslan and his faction has other ideas.
  • Jaswant's departure from the Shindran court to serve under Arslan himself can also qualify as such, considering Gadevi's and Rajendra's appalling track record on keeping their word—at least as long as Pars and Shindra are not at war.
• Deliberate Values Dissonance: (1) Lusitania's religious war against other nations is the main source conflict within the continent of the story; (2) Arslan struggles against his own country's tradition of slavery; (3) Etoile is a good person despite the religious bigotry; and (4) Gieve hates mindless servitude, while Elam actually wants to work for Narsus. Narsus sums it all up rather nicely in a speech suggesting how morals are like the multitude of stars within the universe, numerous and trying to outshine each other.
• Disney Death: After exiling Arslan, Andragoras wanted to kill Jimsa as a blood sacrifice. Zaravant, who already disapproved of Andragoras's treatment of Arslan, decided to leave with Jimsa. But when Andragoras was about to catch up to them, Zaravant stays behind. Andragoras furiously decides to kill Zaravant who falls off the cliff. It is quickly revealed using their wits and environment, Zaravant managed to avoid death.
• Distressed Dude: Arslan occasionally finds himself in trouble and needs someone, usually Daryun, to come to the rescue. Justified in that he is young and inexperienced and while he can hold his own in a fight, he is frequently targeted because he is the prince with a price on his head.
• Dramatic Irony:
  • When arriving at Peshwar, majority of Arslan's group suspect or know that there is another person claiming to be royalty to challenge Arslan. All except Arslan himself.
  • Narsus and Daryun are pondering why the Lusitanian army have been slow to act when Arslan's army was forced to turn back to Peshwar and did not take the chance to attack their rearguard. The audience knows at this point Andragoras had escaped from his confinement and is causing trouble within Ecbatana's walls.
• The Dreaded: The mere mention of Daryun is enough to send soldiers quivering and running away in fear.
• The Drifter: Gieve. A Wandering Minstrel with a Gray-and-Grey Morality who hates nobility and initially only joins Arslan's group because of Farangis and his own hatred against Lusitanians.
• Driven to Suicide: The Lusitanian women and Barcacion commit suicide as a sign of their faith when they see that the fortress of Saint Emmanuel was overrun by the Parsian soldiers.
• Dual Wielding: Kishward uses two swords.
• Dude Looks Like a Lady: Arslan has a rather effeminate face in Hiromu Arakawa's rendition of the story.
• Due to the Dead: Whenever time permits, Arslan makes a point of holding funeral rites for all those who fall in battle, friend and enemy alike, according to their own respective religions.
• Dumbass Has a Point: Zandeh is not the brightest person but even he recognizes that Hilmes taking the sacred sword Rukhnabard at that moment from King Kaykhusraw's tomb is causing unnatural earthquakes. So when Hilmes would rather fight with Gieve, Zandeh chooses to throw the sword back down into the tomb, reasoning that after restoring the country, Hilmes can always return for the sword and that Hilmes doesn't need this particular sword to defeat his enemies. Gieve is somewhat impressed with his reasoning.
• Easily Forgiven: Played with. Arslan forgave Jaswant and Rajendra after several betrayals from both and spared their lives repeatedly. Jaswant would return the favour and would later join Arslan's group. For Rajendra, however, certain restrictions after the latest betrayal were put in place.
• Eek, a Mouse!!: Played straight with Rajendra's battle elephants.
• Establishing Character Moment:
  • Arslan is first introduced as someone who dislikes fighting, ponders what it means to be a good king and is a Friend to All Living Things.
  • Gieve performs a Mercy Kill on a captured general who begged to be killed by an ally, firing an arrow from a near impossible distance.
  • Daryun deliberately misses his shot to kill Etoile at Arslan's pleading.
  • Farangis calmly walks right through a group of Lusitanians, before serenely ending them.
  • Andragoras furiously demotes Daryun at his suggestion that the army could be walking into a trap. He then harshly calls out his own son Arslan for arriving on the scene without being summoned.
• Et Tu, Brute?: Kharlan's betrayal stunned his comrades and when confronting him, Arslan asked why he as an honoured knight of Pars would choose to betray his own country. Kharlan would die refusing to explain his actions, though it was implied he did so because he found out Andragoras attempted to murder his nephew sixteen years ago and Hilmes had returned to reclaim the throne.
  • Later in the series, one of the Marzban waylaid by Kharlan's betrayal, Sam, already having done his own Face–Heel Turn out of respect to Hilmes, exposes himself publicly in order to destabilize the morale of Arslan's army. Arslan's army holds nevertheless—sincee he holds more of the remaining Marzban in his ranks, and all of them profess Undying Loyalty to him right now.
• Even Evil Has Standards:
  • The high-ranking Lusitanian officer Montferrat is seen disgusted by Bodin's extreme murders of innocent Parsians and disapproves of senseless killing. Other Lusitanian soldiers also voice their objection about Bodin's torture of Shapur.
  • Even Guiscard expresses disdain for Bodin's fanaticism, while Innocentis — as barely evil as he is — is visibly distressed when Bodin burns a bunch of Parsian texts.
  • When finding out Innocentis coated his sword with poison during his challenge against Andragoras for Tahamine's hand, the Lusitanian soldiers lose what little respect they had for their king. They did not realize that the Zahhak sorcerers poisoned the sword to turn Innocentis' men against him.
• Exact Words:
  • Daryun's uncle requested Daryun to pledge loyalty specifically to Arslan, not the royal family. By doing this, Daryun could defy any order from Hilmes or Andragoras, as he is not sworn to them, but to Arslan.
  • Narsus, despite serving as Arslan's de facto adviser and chancellor since the beginning, would hand over (for now) the role of chancellor to the newcomer but most senior Lord Lucian. After all, his "official commission" from Arslan when he joined is "court painter".
  • Rajendra promised his dying father that he would pardon Gadhevi if Gadhevi willingly turned himself in. Because his wife Selima drugged him to bring him in, Rajendra wouldn't have to keep to his promise and could freely order his brother to be executed.
  • To mess with Hilmes while at Mount Demavant, Gieve allows Hilmes to believe that Arslan had sent Gieve to spy on him by using choice words, when in reality, he had came to the mountain by chance.
  • Andragoras banishes Arslan from the war by decreeing that his is not to return to the royal presence until he has raised an army of at least 50,000 men. Arslan and Narsus later decide that these orders do not prevent them from riding to war with a smaller force so long as they operate independently and avoid the Shah's presence.
• Expecting Someone Taller: Alfarid has a moment when she first meets Arslan where she is taken back by his youthful appearance, having expected a tall, muscular man who is physically impressive like King Andragoras.
• Expy: The Lusitanian commander Guiscard, being a relatively more martial and competent commander than his brother (King Innocentius VII), coupled with his revealed desire to depose his brother and become King himself, is textbook Richard III. His being a more ruthless commander with a very pragmatic (sometimes even disdainful) approach to the political uses of his faith also makes him similar to Cesare Borgia, the man who inspired Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince.
• Extremely Protective Child: Selima adores her father and he returns the same affection. So when her husband Gadhevi killed her father, she was the one to capture and turn in Gadhevi to be executed.
• Eye Scream: Azrael's main method of attacking anyone who means harm to Arslan. Gadevi experiences this when he tries to kill Arslan.

F-G

• Face Your Fears: Motivated by Arslan being able to hold him at bay with a burning torch when he confronted him at Peshawar Fortress, escaping the encounter relatively unharmed thanks to Hilmes' fear of fire, he deliberately forces himself to face his fear of fire when setting the canals under Zabul Fortress aflame in order to drive Bodin and the Knights templar from the stronghold.
• Fantasy Counterpart Culture:
  • Pars is Persia (especially under the Achaemenid Empire, further supported by the emblem of Pars◊ looking very similar to a relief of the Achaemenid king Darius I, who ruled it at its peak), Lusitania is a mix of Macedonia and the Kingdom of Jerusalem, Maryam is the Byzantine Empire, and Shindra is India.
  • As for religion, Pars and Shindra are polytheist while Lusitania and Maryam worship one god, Yaldabord. Lusitania is a lot more militant about it: they torture "heathens" and destroy art and scriptures that depict and mention other gods. To drive the point home, the current king of Lusitania is called Innocentius VII, an obvious reference to Pope Innocent III. Lusitania, for all intents and purposes, is pretty much a mishmash of most stereotypes regarding medieval Catholicism.
• Fatal Flaw:
  • King Andragoras's overconfidence. He believed that his powerful army could overcome any enemy with little regard for tactics or planning, despite warnings from one of his generals. That pride would cost him the battle of Atropatene where he not only lost a huge portion of his soldiers, the rest of his followers scattered, the capital city becoming overrun and he himself would be imprisoned.
  • Silvermask/ Hilmes is obsessed with retaking the throne at any cost. He also easily flies off the handle any time anyone challenges him that he might not be the rightful king or if they acknowledge Arslan is the current prince. He doesn't realize that his temper and violent tendencies is isolating him from potential allies or that it might be the reason why people prefer to join Arslan instead of him. Though in his defence, it's implied that the Zahhak Sorcerers that lend him their aid and magic have been stocking the fires of his rage since a young age precisely to result in this outcome, in order to better turn Hilmes into their Unwitting Pawn to sow death and destruction throughout Pars and eventually resurrect their master.
  • Rajendra's is Chronic Backstabbing Disorder. He is a sly snake who wouldn't hesitate to backstab his allies, even if there is no benefit to do so.
• A Father to His Men:
  • A budding one despite his youth, but Arslan cares deeply for his friends and the men who fight for him. This drives him to work hard to become a leader worthy of their respect.
  • Surprisingly, Rajendra shows some signs of this. He's shown to care about his troops and blames himself when they're led into defeat, and wants to earn glory for them as well as himself.
• Father Neptune: The mercantile ship captain Graze who serves as Arslan's major ally during his stay in Gilan hits most of the tropes—despite being mostly on the young side and his beard really more like mutton chops.
• Faux Symbolism: In-universe. After being captured by Parsian soldiers, Jaswant sees a dead rat that the hawk Azrael dropped for him and sees it as symbolic of himself being a rat, slinking around in the shadows and will die without knowing who he is. In reality, Azrael likes Jaswant and was simply bringing him food.
• Feel No Pain: Part of Daryun's challenge of fighting Bahadur is that Bahadur cannot feel any pain. He endured multiple cuts, is bitten by a jackal, had his jaw broken, face bashed with a shield and stabbed through the mouth and he barely reacted to any of it. He is finally taken down when Daryun cuts half of his neck and he bleeds to death.
• Fiery Redhead: Alfarid
• Fire-Forged Friends: Jimsa and Zaravant met as enemies during the Turan siege at Peshwar, with Jimsa poisoning Zaravant in their encounter. But after Arslan is exiled by Andragoras and Andragoras wants to kill Jimsa as a blood sacrifice to boost morale, Zaravant decides to help Jimsa escape, both bonding over their loyalty towards Arslan.
• Foe-Tossing Charge: The inevitable result of Daryun fighting, unless Silver Mask or Zandeh gets in his way, then the fight will be a tad more even.
• Foil:
  • Arslan and Hilmes. Both are royalty and are seeking to reclaim their throne but where Arslan genuinely cares for all civilians and even those from other countries, Hilmes would fight and sacrifice anyone who went against his ideals. Narsus points out the difference between Arslan and Hilmes to the latter in their encounter. Hilmes quickly ordered Narsus to serve him when Arslan asked Narsus to help him as a favor.
  • Arslan and Gadhevi. Highlighted especially in chapter 47 where it is seen how they treat their subordinates. While Arslan kindly offered warm food and wine to the soldiers, Gadhevi harshly ordered his soldiers to feed drugs to their elephants to provoke them into a frenzy for the upcoming battle, even killing one when they protested.
  • Arslan and Andragoras. Many notice how strict and business-like Andragoras is with his subjects, refusing to listen to any different perspective and giving orders that are expected to obeyed without question. Arslan in comparison is much more friendly, approachable and willing to listen, interacting with even the lowest soldiers with ease.
• Foregone Conclusion: Arslan becomes king. His journey to the throne, however, is an epic worthy to be told.
• Foreshadowing: Early on, Daryun's uncle Vahriz asked Daryun to swear loyalty to Arslan, not the royal family. It's later revealed that he knew or at least suspected Hilmes was alive, seeking to claim the throne, and Arslan isn't of royal blood.
• Frame-Up: The second season sees Guiscard trying to remove his brother King Innocentius VII from the picture (having been nothing but a hindrance so far)—first by imprisoning him, then trying to assassinate him. He manipulates events in order to frame both Etoile and the Maryami princess Irina for the assassination (which failed anyway)—leading to Hilmes breaking ranks with Guiscard and Etoile choosing to appeal to Arslan to dislodge Guiscard and Lusitania once and for all.
• Framing Device: The anime is narrated by someone, most likely a historian, noting important dates in the history of Arslan's attempts to retake his kingdom.
• Friend to All Living Things: Hawks Azrael and Surush are very fond of Arslan, as well as horses and a giraffe. Kishward lampshades this and comments how the hawks know the goodness of Arslan's heart.
• The Fundamentalist: Jon Bodin, High Priest of Lusitania.
• General Ripper: Just to highlight the show's Grey-and-Gray Morality, it shows that despite Lusitania having a bunch of fundamentalist nutjobs among its officers, it also shows that even the Marzban of Pars have elitist and We Have Reserves tendencies. One tragic example is the hot-headed Garshaph, who killed slaves planning on bringing in Lusitania after the latter promised freeing them. His high-handedness eventually drove more slaves to revolt against Pars—and when Ecbatana fell, we get a good lingering shot of him becoming a Human Pincushion after Lusitanian soldiers were done with him.
• Genre Savvy: In chapter 39, after Silvermask is knocked over the castle wall and into the moat, despite not seeing the body, Daryun was quick to assume he had escaped.
• The Glomp: After winning a decisive battle against Gadhevi, Rajendra proceeds to grab Arslan into a tight embrace.
• Glory Hound: Zaravant and Esfan were this immediately after joining Arslan, and undertaking a foolhardy attack gets their armies suckered into an enemy trap (taking Tus and his men down with them). Fortunately, Arslan and Narsus were able to devise a strategy to rescue them immediately. Thankfully, Zaravant and Esfan learn their lesson and never stray from their orders hereon.
• Good Scars, Evil Scars: Hirmes's mask hides a rather nasty burn scar.
• Good Is Not Soft: Don't mistaken Arslan's All-Loving Hero status as weak.
• Green-Eyed Monster:
  • Hilmes is jealous that Arslan is easily able to bring officers and people to his banner when he isn't able to. Guiscard also believes since he frequently refers to Arslan as "Andragoras's brat" that he cannot stand that Arslan, a supposed son of a usurper, is equal to him in rank.
  • Though Zaravant dislikes Jaswant because of his Shindurian background, he is also jealous that Jaswant is able to hold such a high position of trust in Arslan's group.
  • Andragoras is not pleased to hear the many accomplishments of Arslan. Those loyal to Arslan realize there is a deep resentment from father to son because Andragoras sees that Arslan is becoming more popular and loved among the officers and soldiers than him.

H-M

• Happily Adopted:
  • Averted with Arslan who adores their parents but said parents don't reciprocate.
  • Played straight with Jaswant and the Shindran Grand Vizier.
• Helmets Are Hardly Heroic: Played with. Arslan and Daryun would wear helmets during battle/combat and it has saved their lives a few times. Others like Narsus, Gieve or Farangis don't.
• Helping Would Be Killstealing: Averted. During Daryun and Zande's fight, Farangis stepped in, firing arrows at him and his horse, as well as using her dagger. Daryun did not mind. After all, they were surrounded by the enemy and their priority was to regroup with Arslan and the others quickly.
• Heroic Bastard: Arslan. Only alluded to in the anime, expanded upon in the novels and the manga. In fact, he's not even of royal blood, he's the son of a cavalry soldier and a serving girl, whom he thought to be his nanny. He quickly proves that he is charismatic, kind, and intelligent enough to deserve his followers' loyalty and grow up into a great ruler regardless.
• Heroic BSoD: Arslan goes into numbed shock in the 2015 anime/manga when he witnesses firsthand the bloody destruction and carnage of the Battle of Atropatene, weakly calling out for a familiar face. It gets From Bad to Worse when he sees Kharlan and his men arriving, only for him to realize they are going to kill him.
• Hitchhiker Heroes: Arslan and his supporters who wander around Pars looking for supporters and allies. It starts out with only Daryun, then gains Narsus (and Elam), Farangis and Gieve who make up the core of Arslan's growing group of allies. Originally none of them were very enthusiastic about it and supported Arslan only because they opposed the Lusitanian invasion, but eventually Arslan's personality won them over.
  • At first Daryun was only following his uncle Vahriz's orders, Narsus joined because he found Arslan interesting, Farangis because she hated Lustianian religious fanaticism and Gieve because Farangis joined, and because he hated oppression of all kind.
• Holding Hands:
  • Arslan has greeted his companions like this, especially when they were reunited after being split up on the journey to Peshwar and again after he was exiled by his father, indicating he sees them as friends than as servants.
  • One instance is Daryun doing this to Arslan as he reassures Arslan that regardless of who he is, he is Daryun's beloved lord. It's particularly noticeable that Daryun removes his gloves when he does this to convey his sincerity more.
• Hopeless Suitor: Gieve to Farangis, Arfrid to Narsus. Subverted a little in that both Farangis and Narsus are very much aware of their respective suitors' feelings, and they find the situation annoying.
• Hypocrite: A good part of the justification for Lusitania's invasion of Pars is that their religion holds all men equal, which makes the Parsian institution of slavery anathema to them. But once they have control of Pars, they make no effort to free the slaves or improve their lot in life, nor do they extend their notion of equality to the Parsians, claiming that heathens don't count. Most of them don't even make an effort to extend equal treatment to Parsians who convert.
• Hypocrite Has a Point: Etoile calls out a young Arslan for claiming Pars is a culturally enlightened country when the kingdom's foundation is built on using slaves and treats them unequally, despite the fact that Lusitania also doesn't treat people equally and discriminates and kills anyone who doesn't share their faith. Regardless, Etoile's words makes Arslan realize that slavery is wrong and this motivates him to abolish slavery and improve the kingdom for the better.
• I Die Free: Early in the Arakawa manga, Etoile's fellow captured Lusitanian friends went berserk and fought to the death against their captors rather than become slaves.
• Ice Queen: Arslan's mother Queen Tahamine is very cold towards her husband, who dotes on her, and her son, who only wants to make her proud.
• Improvised Weapon:
  • When cornered by Silvermask alone at Peshwar and with his sword broken, Arslan grabs for the next closest thing to use as a weapon, a torch. This actually works in Arslan's favour better than an actual weapon would have, since Silvermask has a crippling fear of flames from Andragoras nearly burning him alive as a child, rendering him physically unable to approach Arslan and allowing the weaker and less-skilled boy to hold him at bay long enough for Daryun and the others to arrive.
  • Gadhevi uses a broken shard of a wine jug in an attempt to kill Arslan when he was in no position to do so. Arslan was quick enough to use a plate as a shield.
• Inferiority Superiority Complex: Some characters suspect the reason why Hilmes is so quick to proclaim himself as His Highness or the rightful king of Pars to others is because he is jealous and resentful that Arslan can freely call himself "prince" and people easily flock to Arslan instead of him.
• Informed Wrongness: In-Universe. The Lusitanians conquered the nation of Maryam in the name of their god despite the fact that the Maryams also worshipped Yaldabaoth. Some Lusitanians make excuses that the Maryam's church was a heretical variant of the true worship, but given that nobody ever specifies what the differences between the two churches actually were and why they are so heinous, it's likely that this was just an excuse Bodin and Guiscard made up to justify pillaging for the sake of wealth and power.
• Inter-Service Rivalry: The Lusitanian military and the clergymen/Temple Knights do not get along, since the military does all the fighting but the clergymen take all the credit while not being on the front lines. The rivalry is fueled by the mutual dislike between their leaders, Lord Guiscarl and Archbishop Bodin.
• Interclass Friendship: While no one forgets Arslan's rank, his original group all remain close and devoted to each other despite the varying differences in class. There is Arslan (crowned prince), Narsus (former lord), Daryun (high ranking military officer), Elam (freed slave), Farangis (priestess) and Gieve, Jaswant and Alfarid (commoner).
• Irony:
  • The only reason Hilmes kept Andragoras alive and imprisoned is to make him suffer, particularly wanting Andragoras to see the severed head of his son Arslan to drive him to despair. It's later shown that Andragoras doesn't care for Arslan at all and it's strongly implied that Andragoras would have been happy if Arslan was killed as he sees Arslan as nothing more than a public distraction to placate the citizens about continuing the royal line.
  • Earlier chapters showed that many characters, including Arslan himself, feel that Arslan is a Sketchy Successor to his mighty father and the reason why Andragoras is so cold and disapproving of Arslan. However, Arslan soon rose to the challenge afforded to him during the crisis, recruiting many powerful and talented allies and assembling an army to retake the kingdom, proving he is indeed worthy and competent as a future king. But Andragoras became even more antagonistic and hostile towards Arslan, even exiling him after taking command of his army after Andragoras's escape, confusing both ally and enemy as to why Andragoras is more unwilling to accept Arslan despite Arslan demonstrating his worth. It's all but stated that Andragoras never intended Arslan to be his heir in the first place and he felt threatened by Arslan's popularity and the loyalty of his officers to him.
• Jerkass Has a Point:
  • After Barcacion committed suicide, Etoile/Ester hysterically proclaimed that they will avenge their lord and kill the Parsian soldier who did it. One Parsian soldier pointed that Barcacion died by falling off the tower, thus it would be the ground they would need to kill. It is a cruel thing to say to a grieving person, but he was right.
  • Andragoras was never a nice person but he was completely right when he criticized King Innocentis for being a weak king, something that the high-ranking Lusitanian military officers like Montferrat cannot disagree with.
  • When Etoile/Estelle goes to Arslan for help to rescue the imprisoned Innocentis, Narsus coldly but accurately points out that as a disgraced Squire, she does not have the authority to make any sort of promise that her superiors would consider binding in exchange for their help.
  • At one point Andragoras declares that Hilmes is just an imposter using a dead man's name to try to steal a kingdom for himself. While this may or may not be true, the Shah does correctly point out that Hilmes hasn't exactly presented any proof of his identity and lineage beyond his own word, which, as an officer of an enemy kingdom who stands to gain quite a lot from his story being believed, has to be considered suspect.
• Joke and Receive: When Narsus and Daryun are wondering why the Lusitanian army hasn't attacked them yet, Daryun jokes it's because Andragoras freed himself from his prison and lopped off the head of the Lusitanian king. The first part is in fact true.
• Just a Kid: Downplayed but Daryun expressed concern for Arslan when Narsus revealed that his cousin Prince Hilmes is alive and wanting to reclaim the throne, as he is still a fourteen year boy dealing with a heavy burden despite his many achievements.
• Kick the Dog: Bodin strikes one Lusitanian soldier who openly questions the burning of the historical books and scrolls of Pars and hits him hard enough to push him into the bonfire.
• Kick Them While They Are Down: A metaphorical one. Andragoras has just exiled Arslan and even refused Arslan's request to see his mother one last time. The final "kick" so to speak is taking away all of Arslan's close companions from him. Andragoras even takes Jaswant as his retainer despite insulting Jaswant a minute earlier.
• Kicked Upstairs: Farangis is assigned the noble task of guarding Arslan, so that her fellow sisters at the convent who were jealous of her could find a convenient excuse to kick her out.
• King Bob the Nth: Innocentius VII. Before him, side materials indicate Andragoras's regnal number as "III", while his brother Osroes is "V".
• Kinslaying Is a Special Kind of Evil: Gadhevi was never a good person to begin with but what finally caused his remaining supporters to turn against him is him raising a sword against his father and succeeding in killing his father-in-law.
• Klingon Promotion: After the Turan army is forced to retreat and King Tokhtamysh is completely demoralized, one of his generals Ilterish murders him for being weak-willed and swears that as the new king, he will achieve what Tokhtamysh wasn't able to.
• Kneel Before Zod: In the TV series, Silvermask and his men surrounded Narsus and would let Narsus live if he kneel before him and serve him.
• Lady Looks Like a Dude: Invoked by Etoile, who dresses as a boy so she can fight in the army.
• Lady of War: Farangis is this trope personified. Incidentally, she's very much aware of her own skills and beauty. She can also drink her Hopeless Suitor Gieve under the table without losing her poise and dignity.
• Ladykiller in Love: Gieve, the smooth talker, falls head over heels for Farangis the moment he meets her.
• The Last DJ: The series has some instances where the idea actually becomes a plot point:
  • Narsus had this reputation at Andragoras's court, being the first (and so far, only) Parsian noble to free all his slaves—whose labor serves as the economic backbone of Pars. Thus, he is a source of unease to the traditional Parsian nobles who flocked to Arslan's standard. Hence, despite having served for almost the entire season as Arslan's de facto chancellor/satruyp, he eventually chose to hand over the position of satruyp (for now) to the newcomer-but-most senior Lord Lucian. (After all, his "official commission" from Arslan is "Court Painter".)
  • This is also arguably the cause of Gieve's "exile" With Arslan's army slowly becoming more "formalized" and staffed with the traditional Parsian nobility, the loose nature of his in-exile inner circle, despite having proven themselves as True Companions, needed to be integrated in this formal command.^note As is, Daryun's position as general is a given; Narsus remains an in-house strategist, just not the most prominent (with Elam and Arfrid, despite her being from a bandit clan, functioning as his lieutenants), Farangis's position as a priestess of Mithra grants his army religious legitimacy, and Jaswant, being a representative of the Shindran alliance, gives him diplomatic immunity. Gieve, as it is, is too much of a loose cannon which does not fit into the chain of command. Of course, it eventually appeared that Gieve was sent on a secret mission to secure the sword Rukhnabad, which will legitimize Arslan's claim to a throne—which is virtually intelligence work.
• Laser-Guided Karma: Since Shagad was so willing to engage in slavery to the point of betraying their country and commiting other acts of murder and corruption, Arslan sentences them to one year of slavery so they could see what it feels like to be a slave.
• Laughing Mad: Since being captured, Andragoras has a habit of doing this.
• The Legend of X
• Let's Split Up, Gang!: Happens during the journey to Peshawar due to the efforts of the Lusitanian soldiers and the fire and smoke set by Hodir's men. Daryun stayed behind to give the group more time to escape. Gieve ran into Arslan and Elam while trying to find Farangis. Farangis managed to find Daryun. Meanwhile, Narsus alone confronts Silvermask and meets Arfrid.
• Licked by the Dog: Or in this case, by a hawk. One indication to Arslan that Jaswant is not as bad as he appears to be is that Asrael liked him, having offered Jaswant food twice.
• Living MacGuffin: Arslan is targeted due to the price on his head and his status as the prince of Pars.
• Living Shadow: The mysterious horde of warlocks aiding Hirmes (who claim to have been on familiar terms with the late Parsian king Gotarzes II) fight like this most of the time.
• Long-Haired Pretty Boy: Narsus, Gieve
• Love at First Sight: Men have a way of falling for Queen Tahamine at first sight. It happened with Andragoras, Osroes and Innocentius, and at least one other man before she married Andragoras.
  • Love Ruins the Realm: A large part of the problems Pars goes through can be traced back to Andragoras and Osroes falling in love with the same woman.
• Lured into a Trap: Narsus' favorite strategy.
• Magnetic Hero: One of Arslan's main traits is his compassion and empathy, able to win over even the most unlikely people to his side. Even his enemies treat him with respect and courtesy. The Arakawa manga and the 2015 anime emphasize these traits to the detriment to his other traits such as his natural insight and being a very good judge of character which are his prevalent in the original story.
• The Magnificent: It is claimed that Arslan is about to gain the historical epithet Arslan the Liberator: after re-establishing his power base and command, he finally set forth public declarations for his bid to 1) recapturing Ecbatana, driving away Lusitania and freeing Pars, as well as 2) making good on his claim in finally setting the slaves of Pars free.
• Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: In episode 24 of the 2015 anime, arrows strangely miss Farangis despite her standing out in the open. Whether it's her claim that the Djinn were protecting her or just good luck, it's left ambiguous.
• Mercy Kill: Shapur, captured and facing Cold-Blooded Torture, asks to be shot by his allies. However, none of the Parsian soldiers are capable of covering such a distance. He is shot instead by a soon-to-be introduced new character, Gieve.
• Mistaken for Betrayal: Due to Narsus's plots and planning, this happens often to the unfortunate enemy.
  • Gadhevi wanted to behead Jaswant for seemingly selling out his country to the Parsian forces when in reality, Narsus had planted false information to him. It was only by Mahendra's intervention that Jaswant was spared.
  • Jimsa was likewise fed incorrect military strategies when he escaped from being captured at Peshwar, leading the Turan forces into a trap. The Turan king would have killed him right then for his "betrayal" but Jimsa refused to die when he knows he would never willingly betray his country and was forced to flee.
• The Mole: Jaswant is sent by Grand Vizier Mahendra to infiltrate Rajendra's forces.
• Moment of Weakness:
  • Bahman stopped Kishward, Daryun and the others from killing Hilmes and blurted out to everyone that if they did, they would end the royal line, stunning everyone and it caused some serious emotional harm to poor Arslan.
  • Downplayed with Barcacion panicking when seeing Parsian soldiers charging on Saint Emmanuel and him being slow to order to shut the gate when hearing Lusitanian soldiers calling for help outside, though he did eventually give the order but it was too late by then. Later, both Daryun and Guiscard commented that it was hardly Barcacion's fault as he was not a leader or had any battle experience.
• Mood Whiplash: Arslan and Daryun finally hear of Vahriz's death. Narsus then chucks a plate at a soldier attempting to escape Narsus's pit and Elam quickly scolds him for wasting dishware.
• Mook Horror Show: This occurs whenever Daryun enters in battle where he easily kills anyone in his way, most notably to the invading Lusitanians and Shindrians.
• Moral Myopia: Etoile tells Arslan that his god Yaldabord teaches that all people are equal but if you identify with another religion, then you are a pagan and must be marked off and killed. Arslan naturally lampshades this.
  • She also fails to see the hypocrisy of her doctrine when the army doesn't want women in their ranks and has to disguise herself as a man to even join.
• Morality Pet: Arguably, Arslan for Etoile and Gieve. He is the only Parsian that Etoile respects and he is able to bring out a softer side of the latter. Gieve initially only cared for himself but Arslan's compassion wins him over and Gieve eventually would proceed to do unselfish acts for Arslan's sake.
• My Master, Right or Wrong: This comes up quite often, as there are decent people serving those in power who do not deserve their loyalty.
  • Mahendra does not hide the fact that he knows Gadhevi is an unworthy successor to the Sindhurian throne but continues to serve him. His daughter Selima being married to Gadhevi adds further pressure to obey Gadhevi.
  • Similarly, Jaswant does not wish to serve Gadhevi or Rajendra as he knows neither are good people but continues to stay because he is devoted to Mahendra.
  • Kishward genuinely likes Arslan as a person and commander but when Andragoras returns and kicks Arslan out, Kishward has to obey the king's command to not follow Arslan and stop anyone else from doing so, forcing him to fight Daryun.

N-R

• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: In chapter 39, in a moment of panic, Bahman stopped Kishward and the others from killing Hermes by declaring if they did, they would extinguish the rightful line of Pars while in front of Arslan, shattering the poor boy's world. This also allowed Silvermask to escape in the confusion. Narsus was rightfully furious, thinking to himself that he should have cut Bahman down.
• Nice to the Waiter: This is one of Arslan's defining traits as he is kind, friendly and polite to everyone around him, whether it's to another prince of a foreign country or when interacting with the lowliest soldiers. His attitude takes many people back when meeting him for the first time and some people don't believe he is a prince.
• Ninja: Oddly, Tus's design in the 2015 Arakawa adaptation gives him a mesh undershirt, a forehead protector and kunai amongst his kit—making him look like more an exile from the Naruto universe than anything.
• No Escape but Down: In chapter 26 where Arslan, Gieve and Elam were trapped between a cliff and the pursuing Lusitanian soldiers. Gieve grabbed the two and jumped down, causing the soldiers to believe that No One Could Survive That!. Subverted in that they actually didn't jump off the cliff but held onto the edge to deceive the soldiers.
• No One Gets Left Behind:
  • Arslan refuses to leave Elam whose horse was shot when surrounded by Lusitatian soldiers. The fact that Arslan risks his life for not an important subordinate but for a servant cements Gieve's respect for Arslan.
  • Arslan also takes this option when Zaravant, Esfan and Tus were entrapped (as mentioned above). This subsequently cements the three's absolute respect for his orders.
• Not So Above It All: When Arslan's group first arrived in Port Gilan, Farangis spotted Elam and Arfrid shopping and lectured them about forgetting the reason they were there ... while buying something herself.
• Not What It Looks Like: Alfarid introduces herself to Daryun and Elam as Narsus's "wife" before correcting herself that they aren't officially married but she is his "mistress", making it sound like they slept together. Narsus starts stammering and (truthfully) says they did nothing, which Daryun comments that Narsus acting nervous seems suspicious.
• Nothing Personal: Kharlan attempts to kill Arslan, not out of malice, but pragmatism to eliminate any adversary for Hilmes to regain the throne. Kharlan even tells Arslan that he didn't do anything wrong but he must die regardless.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business:
  • The normally reserved and kind Arslan threatened someone for the first time in his life when that person caused Daryun to be in danger.
  • Queen Tahamine breaks her stoic visage for the first time when pleading with Andragoras to return her child to her, on the brink of tears. Whoever the child is, it's strongly implied that it's not Arslan.
  • Daryun is very firm on never striking an opponent who was unhorsed or a bound prisoner. But when Shagad swears to get revenge on Arslan, Daryun punches Shagad and threatens them instead, showing how furious he was.
• Off with His Head!: Happens to Daryun's uncle Vahriz and other Marzban whose heads are on display, used as an intimidation tactic against the garrison of Pars's capital.^note Such a tactic is not unheard of in pre-modern warfare, having been utilized both by the Mongols and Japanese warlords, notably Takeda Shingen Considering Ecbatana is sieged on all sides at this point, it unsurprisingly works. It was also done to Gadevi after he attempts to kill Arslan.
• One-Man Army: Daryun
• Papa Wolf: All the male members of Arslan's group are fiercely protective of him. Come near him with any ill intent and you die.
• Parental Favoritism: Alfarid and Merlain. Merlain stated their father hated him, despite him being the older one and wrote in his will that Alfarid is to become chieftain and if their father got drunk and knocked both of them around, their father would only apologize to Alfarid after.
• Parents as People:
  • Andragoras and Tahamine both show Parental Neglect towards Arslan and treat him very coldly and harshly despite all Arslan wanting to do is to make them proud. It's strongly implied that Andragoras had never intended for Arslan to be his heir, as he wanted to sire a son with Tahamine. Tahamine's indifference towards Arslan is also implied to be the result of Andragoras taking away a previous child of hers, though the details about what happened are left vague.
  • Despite appearing to be a wise, well-loved leader, King Karikala admits he is not all-knowing and even he cannot tell which of his two sons started their feuding.
• Pet the Dog:
  • Hirmes's romance with Princess Irina.
  • He is also willing to compensate Kharlan's family after the latter's death.
  • He saved a blind village girl from being raped by a Lusitanian soldier as she reminded him of Irina.
• Pirate Booty: During the Gilan arc, Arslan's party is told of the location of the treasure of a legendary pirate. It's a trick to draw his people out of the city so his enemies can take it. Narsus sees it as a trap and reverses it purely because of how ridiculously huge the treasure supposedly is — how could anyone even count a treasure of a hundred million gold coins to know how much there was?
• Please Wake Up: A variation with Kishward's young son whose grandfather was one of the Marzban travelling with the king. Despite Gieve reporting to the boy and his mother that his head was on display during the Ecbatana siege, the boy kept asking where his grandfather was and that he wouldn't lose in a fight.
• Port Town: Gilan serves this purpose to Pars, as the source of most of its maritime and international trade. The growing isolation and corruption of the city was an issue Arslan's party had to settle to build up the 50,000 men army ordered by Andragoras.
• The Queen's Latin: The first four episodes of the OVA were dubbed by Manga Entertainment's UK branch. The voice actors didn't fake American accents like in other Manga UK dubs.
• Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: At first glance, Arslan's original group is a strange bunch but they work together very well, despite coming from different backgrounds. Arslan is a prince on the run and Daryun is a demoted general. Narsus is a disgraced tactician, Elam is a former slave and Alfarid is the daughter of the bandit Zot clan. Farangis is a priestess who was Kicked Upstairs and Gieve is a wandering musician.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech:
  • Narsus calls out Hilmes for allying himself with Lusitania to allow them to pillage the country and kill thousands of innocent civilians. When Hilmes insists he has the right as a descendant of Pars royal line, Narsus points out there have been kings prior that aren't royal blood, infuriating him into a murderous rage.
  • Farangis tells Bahman that while Arslan is bravely trying to carry out his duties regardless if he isn't of royal blood, he, a veteran general, has been hesitant and indecisive to the point of being a coward.
  • King Karikala gave a short but effective one to Gadhevi after the latter mocked Arslan for losing his temper when Daryun's life was in danger. He told Gadhevi if he cared about his men half as much as Arslan did, he would have Gadhevi his heir a long time ago.
  • After Hilmes takes the sacred sword Rukhnabard, unnatural earthquakes start occurring. Gieve remarks to Hilmes that if the mythical Snake King arises again and destroys the kingdom and its people because of Hilmes removing the sword from the tomb, Hilmes cares more about his royal authority than the realm he serves. Gieve tops it off by mockingly calling Hilmes a "fine" king.
• Reassigned to Antarctica: Andragoras orders Arslan to go to the coastal regions in the south to gather 50,000 men and not to return until he has that number. Many characters realize Andragoras is exiling and banishing Arslan in all but name.
• Red Baron: Daryun is called Sher Senani (Great Tiger General) by the awestruck Shindran soldiers at the end of the duel before the gods. Even prior to this, he also enjoyed the title of Mardān fu Mardān even amongst the Marzban of Pars.
• Rescue Romance:
  • Subverted. Gieve, finding Farangis surrounded by assailants, intends to sweep in, rescue her, and bask in her gratitude... but by the time he reaches her, she's handled the situation herself, leaving him stunned with admiration.
  • Played more straight in Arfrid's introduction scene, though also with a twist. She's trying to avenge his father on Hirmes but he easily disarms her. When Narsus shows up, she demands he give her his sword so she can continue fighting. Narsus rescues her instead, and eventually she decides she's in love with him.
• The Reveal:
  • Silvermask does this to Andragoras revealing to him that he is Hilmes, his nephew, and by extension, Arslan's cousin.
  • It's much later revealed that Arslan isn't related to Andragoras and Tahamine at all. In reality, he was instead adopted into their family; so he has no blood relation to the royal family, or Hilmes.
• Reused Character Design: In Hiromu Arakawa's manga, the characters bear strong resemblances to characters of her other work Fullmetal Alchemist; Arslan looks like Edward with Alphonse's expressions and white hair, Daryun resembles Kimblee, Etoile has Alphonse's appearance and Edward's expressions and his personality and after the time skip, she looks more like Hawkeye, Farangis' looks and demeanor resembles Lust and her facial structure resembles Lan Fan, etc.
• Revenge Before Reason: Hilmes is obsessed with getting revenge on Andragoras, and Arslan by proxy, and reclaiming the throne he believes that rightfully belongs to him that he would ally himself with Lusitanians and lead them to attack his homeland and allow the deaths of thousands of innocent people that he sees as fitting because these people had the nerve to support a usurper.
• Revenge by Proxy: Silvermask wants to torture and kill Arslan so Andragoras would see his son's severed head because Andragoras is actually Silvermask/Hilmes' uncle, who killed Hilmes' father and tried to assassinate Hilmes sixteen years ago.
• Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: A major factor for the Lusitanian victory during the siege of Ectabana was that they were able to persuade the slaves to turn against their masters and let them inside the castle walls with the promise of freeing them. But once the deed was done, the Lusitanian soldiers had no intent to keep their promise and the slaves were treated even worse than their previous masters.
• Right in Front of Me: In episode 9, Etoile told the "spoiled rich boy" he reunited with from three years ago that he heard King Andragoras and Prince Arslan have two twisted horns, abnormally wide mouths and black tails. Said rich boy looked nervous/appalled because he is Arslan.
• Rightful King Returns: Once again, played more realistically than most. What happens when there are two arguably-rightful claimants to the throne? As it is, Arslan and Hilmes are on a race to make the stronger claim to their "righteousness", set in the backdrop of liberating Pars from the Lusitanian foreign invasion.
• Royally Screwed Up: Seems to happen a lot here.
  • Much of Pars' internal problems started because brothers Osroes and Andragoras fell in love with the same woman. It's strongly implied that Andragoras poisoned his own brother and tried to kill his nephew to get the throne and her as his wife.
  • Hilmes was once a nice and cheerful boy but after his uncle Andragoras killed his father and left him to be burned alive, all form of sweetness died and currently, he is an unhinged and violent man.
  • Sindhuran princes Rajendra and Gadhevi are both scheming and backstabbing snakes whose desire to become king and kill the other brother are only causing chaos to the country.
  • Averted with Arslan who is so far the only decent person of royal blood, and he isn't even Andragoras or Tahamine's son.
• Royals Who Actually Do Something: Parsian royalty is expected to be war heroes. The King serves as the main commander and is on the front lines, while the prince is expected to go to battle at a young age. Prince Arslan had his first campaign at age 14 and basically, he is trying to reclaim his throne at age 14.
  • Andragoras III, every inch the Warrior King, himself supposedly was performing feats of arms and enjoyed a Memetic Badass reputation amongst his subjects even as a young boy.
  • Similarly, his nephew Hilmes/Silvermask has not spent his years of exile idly, having prepared for years to retake the throne of Pars through any scheme and means necessary. Interestingly, he was actually shown as doing a better job in his studies as a Crown Prince in his youth than Arslan was at the same age.
  • Mostly in the Arakawa version, it comes as a surprise to many characters that Arslan is very kind and humble for someone who is the king's son. In the novels he's still kind, but not particularly sweet, and there's a lot more emphasis on his empathy, people skills and observant nature which are a large part of his charisma that draws people to him.

S-Y

• Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: Arslan's original group^note  Daryun, Narsus, Elam, Gieve, Farangis, Arfrid and Jaswant blatantly disobey Andragoras's royal mandate not to follow Arslan in his banishment because they are loyal to Arslan first, not the king.
• Secondary Adaptation: The TV anime series is based on the second manga adaptation of the novels by Hiromu Arakawa.
• Secret Test of Character: Narsus did one to Arslan. He told Arslan that if he was Kharlan attempting to find Arslan, he would set a village on fire and continue to kill innocent villagers to provoke Arslan out in the open, which Arslan immediately said they had to stop Kharlan before that happened. Daryun later commented that if Arslan didn't responded as such, Narsus would have seen him unfit as king and abandoned him.
• Shared Family Quirks: Despite his hatred for his uncle, Hilmes and Andragoras both can be volatile with bad tempers.
• Shirtless Scene: Gieve in episode 2, though technically he's full naked (as he's swimming in a pool).
• Shrouded in Myth: Apparently Daryun has begun gaining a reputation for this by Season 2 (probably due to his growing list of Red Baron titles above). It's come to a point that it's possible to intimidate or defuse a fight just by announcing that Daryun is in front of you.
• Sidequest Sidestory: The arc of Hirmes's faction for Season 2 was securing the treasured sword Rukhnabad (owned by the Parsian founder Kai Khosrow) in order to symbolically assert Hirmes's rightful lineage. At best, it does not advance the plot any further other than a) digging into the circumstances leading to Hirmes's current vengeful nature, and b) causing further problems for Lusitania through allowing Hirmes to dismantle the Temple Knights and achieve homebase in Maryam through rescuing Princess Irina.
• Skewed Priorities:
  • A mild one when Hodir gave Arslan two conditions to gain his support (marry his daughter and refrain from any revolutionary reforms such as abolishing slavery), Arslan was more upset that he hasn't even met Hodir's daughter yet.
  • Narsus is more indignant that Silvermask called him a "third rate painter" than the fact Silvermask escaped.
• Sleeves Are for Wimps: In many scenes, Daryun gets to show off his well-toned arms.
• Sneeze Cut: A variation. After Guiscard finds out Arslan turned over the entire command to Andragoras and was exiled without any protest, thus ruining Guiscard's plans to further divide the wedge between Andragoras and Arslan, he curses that Arslan was a weak prince. Cut to Arslan shivering and Jaswant thinking he was catching a chill from the ocean breeze.
• Soft Water: In the Arakawa manga/TV anime: Arslan and Etoile fell from the castle wall into the moat. Both were perfectly fine and Etoile managed to steal a horse afterwards.
• Speak Ill of the Dead: Silvermask is fond of doing this. And some of Kharlan's men mocked Vahriz after his death.
• Spell My Name With An S: And how. To start with, originally the names of characters and places either came from Persian legends (Arslan, Farangis, Giv, etc.) or are native to various languages like Farsi, Hindi, Urdu (Daryun, Elam, Etwar, etc. Many places mentioned in the story, such as Ecbatana or Atropatene, actually exist or existed in real life). The person who translated the anime to English treated the names as if they were random fantasy names, hence Arislan, Pharangese, Daryoon, Gieve and so on. The most jarring decision was turning Etwar/Ester into Etoile/Estelle, despite the very obvious ancient Middle-Eastern type setting. And then for the last two episodes of the OVA Executive Meddling happened on the Japanese side, and the spelling and pronunciation of the names were changed for all major characters, turning Arislan, Daryoon, Narsus, Pharangese, and Gieve into Arslan, Daryun, Narcasse, Farangis, and Guibu.
• Spoiler Opening: The 2nd Opening of the 2015 anime spoils the fact that Jaswant joins the party.
• Surprisingly Realistic Outcome:
  • Andragoras believed his mighty army could overpower any other army with little thought to tactics or strategy. This would cost him dearly as he faced off against an enemy who skillfully utilized the environment (as well as a traitor within the ranks) to trap and kill a significant portion of his soldiers.
  • Arslan freed Hodir's slaves after his group killed him, believing the slaves would be delighted at their new freedom but was shocked when the slaves immediately attacked him instead. Narsus believes that Hodir must have treated his slaves kindly and them killing their benevolent master was seen as an act of evil in their eyes.
  • Similarly, Narsus had previously freed slaves under him, only for the slaves to return back to him as they did not have the necessary skills and direction to live independently and used up the money given to them quickly since they did not know to save their finances.
  • While on the road to Peshwar, both Elam and Gieve run out of arrows and Arslan's weapons are badly notched, not having a chance to replenish their supplies while on the run. And due to being chased constantly by enemies, their horses are exhausted, being pushed to their limit, leaving them easy target for archers. They are only able to gather more arrows and change horses after they kill some Lusitanians.
  • The Lusitanians destroyed the closest bridge to Peshwar, forcing Arslan's group to find another route to safely cross the river. But the Lusitanians was counting on that and laid an ambush for them downstream of the river where there were shallow waters.
  • Silvermask/ Hilmes is a formidable opponent but even he could not win against Daryun, Narsus, Kishward, Gieve and Farangis all at the same time. If he hadn't fallen into the moat, it was very unlikely he would have lasted any longer in that fight.
• Surrounded by Idiots: Guiscarl of Lusitania, who actually runs the kingdom in place of his utterly incompetent brother.
• The Strategist: Narsus
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Daryun
• Tampering with Food and Drink: In chapter 28, Arslan tells Gieve and Elam that his nurse and her husband died of drinking too much nabeed (wine) when he was younger. However since they both died at the same time in a suspicious manner, Gieve quietly suspects that they were poisoned instead.
• Tempting Fate: Early on, there had been many mentions how Pars' armies were undefeatable and that no country could hope to challenge them. Cue the Battle of Atropatene.
• They Just Dont Get It: Ever since Arfrid joined up with Narsus, she always introduces herself as Narsus's "wife"—and even if Narsus continues to deny it, nobody really buy it. Season 2 sees Narsus virtually giving up after even the Zot Clan (who sees Arfrid as their de facto absentee chief) insists on acknowledging him as their boss too. He then finally weaponizes it by commandeering the Zot Clan (who follow him as Arfrid's "husband") in dismantling Shagad's operations and clearing Gilan once and for all.
• Time Skip: After Arslan's coronation the novel jumps four years ahead.
• To the Pain: Silvermask/Hilmes tells Arslan when he corners Arslan alone in episode 13 that he will cut off Arslan's right hand now. Then when they meet next time, he will take the left hand. And after that, if Arslan is still alive, he will take his right foot.
• Trouble Entendre: After Arslan is exiled, Daryun and Narsus have a friendly conversation, while being watched by soldiers ordered by Andragoras to execute them for treason if they defy Andragoras's orders and follow after Arslan. The soldiers did not realize the real conversation and planning to rejoin Arslan was all written using their hands on Narsus's desk.
• Undying Loyalty: Daryun to Arslan. And eventually, Arslan wins the respect and admiration of the rest of his followers. In fact, due to Arslan's growing popularity and affinity amongst the remaining Parsian generals and officials, King Andragoras is beginning to be (understandably) paranoid that they probably are becoming more loyal to Arslan than him. Indeed, most of the generals are dissatisfied when Arslan is sent out to rebuild the army away from the central court.
• Ungrateful Bastard: Both the Shindran princes have this to a certain extent:
  • Gadevi, after having been feted by Rajendra before finally exiling him (albeit very likely to be killed en route) tries to assassinate Arslan when he is in no position to do so. This gets his head axed.
  • Rajendra, despite owing his success and throne to Arslan's intervention, tries to backstab his army and take him hostage once again (although he justifies it within the context of 1) making ruthless decisions to protect Shindra's security and 2) supposedly trying to teach Arslan the harsh choices between war and diplomacy). This would have worked if Narsus did not foresee it, which ends with Rajendra forced to a non-aggression treaty after losing soldiers yet again.
  • The biggest so far would be perhaps King Andragoras III himself: despite Arslan doing everything he can to keep the forces of Pars from disintegrating and virtually holding the fort for the kingdom during his ignominious imprisonment, he had the gall to call Arslan's actions ambitious posturing bordering on treason—and sends him out just so he can take center stage again.
• Unknown Rival: Zaravant apparently resents Jaswant's position of proximity to Arslan, and tried as much as he can to provoke and undermine him. Jaswant, being The Stoic and the better man, treats Zaravant with indifference. Their relationship eventually graduates to Vitriolic Best Buds after saving each other on the battlefield.
• The Un-Reveal: Sam finally confronts Andragoras to find out some truths, such as if Andragoras really did kill his own brother, but Andragoras did not reveal much and instead brought more questions. He tells Sam that there is more to Hilmes's birth and circumstances than one expects (the audience does not hear the rest of the conversation) and that he and Tahamine had a child to prevent the end of the Pars royal line, but that child is implied to not be Arslan. Andragoras also flat out tells Sam that he could be lying or being deceived himself.
• Villain Respect:
  • Some Lusitanian soldiers openly admired the captured Shapur for being Defiant to the End even if he was a "heretic" in their eyes.
  • Silvermask has some admiration for Narsus and wanted Narsus to serve him.
  • One Turan general was impressed with Farangis's archery.
• Villainous Breakdown: Gadevi goes through this when his proxy Bahadur lost the duel and consequently, he lost the throne to his younger brother. He furiously tried to attack his own father and ordered his men to attack Arslan's group as well. And later, he tried to assassinate Arslan when he was in no position to do so. This would eventually result in his own execution.
• Vitriolic Best Buds: Daryun and Narsus, especially when it comes to Narsus's artwork.
  Daryun: (to a prisoner) Start talking or I'll have [Narsus] paint your portrait. And nobody wants that.
• Wandering Minstrel: Gieve, though he's more of a wandering warrior and thief who also happens to be a bard.
• Walking Shirtless Scene: Graze is almost always seen topless while at sea and at work—although he does wear shirts and robes in formal occassions.
• We Used to Be Friends: One of the major conflicts of Season 2 was Narsus discovering that the Gilanese magnate Shagad, a former Academy classmate who he hoped to tap in building up Arslan's army, has not only a) discarded their youthful ideal of dismantling slavery, but b) also engaged in corruption and piracy to enrich himself. The fallout between them near the season finale was inevitable, but he still feels melancholic about it.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Arslan wants to become a good king worthy of his father's expectations and works hard to please his parents who both act rather harsh and cold towards him.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Played for Laughs in chapter 93 when Farangis calls out Narsus for not taking Alfarid's affections towards him seriously.
• What You Are in the Dark:
  • When the group was separated and chased by Lusitanians, Gieve spotted Arslan and Elam being attacked. At that point in the manga, Gieve was Not in This for Your Revolution and could have pretended he didn't see them. Instead, he chose to come to their rescue and repeatedly protected them throughout the rest of the journey.
  • The manga expands on Bahman's death compared to the anime. Seeing a spear pointed at Arslan's back, Bahman ponders that if Arslan was dead, Pars will be united under Hilmes and there will be no need for a civil war. In the end, he chooses to get between Arslan and the spear.
• Wholesome Crossdresser:
  • Etoile/Ester dresses as a boy and goes by a male name so she can fight with the other knights.
  • Elam disguised himself to sneak into the captured city of Ecbatana to get information.
• Wounded Gazelle Gambit: During the duel between Daryun and Bahadur, Daryun pretended that his only weapon had broken and he was helpless against Bahadur. Once Bahadur let his guard down, Daryun revealed he had a hidden dagger on him the whole time and used it to kill Bahadur.
• Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: Hirmes is deathly afraid of fire, as a result of having survived Andragoras' attempt to burn him alive.
• You Are a Credit to Your Race: Etoile thinks all Parsians are heathens that need to be killed off but once she gets to know Arslan, his kindness and desire to improve the kingdom makes Etoile acknowledge that Pars has at least one decent person.
• You Are in Command Now: Narsus advises Arslan to invoke this regarding Graze's invaluable service—after dismissing the corrupt governor of Gilan, they think he should become acting governor after Arslan leaves.
• You Killed My Father:
  • Subverted in that it's the villains who tend to do this. Hirmes when he reveals himself to Andragoras, while Zande, Kahran's son does the whole My Name Is Inigo Montoya You Killed My Father Prepare to Die routine with Daryun. Arfrid, however, also has a moment of this with Hirmes after the latter kills her father.
  • A variation where Shapur's younger brother Isfan initially wants Gieve dead, who had shot and killed his brother, though for a good reason.
• Young Future Famous People: Arslan is noted to become known as "Arslan the Liberator" in the 19th episode. In fact, it can be argued that Arslan's group will be this, as they make their mark in history.

---