Clarent Saga: Tactics
is a Strategy RPG created by David Nguyen, made with Srpg Studio. Though originally released commercially in 2017, it became a Freeware Game in May 2020. It is set in the same world as Crimson Sword Saga: The Peloran Wars, a Role-Playing Game made with RPG Maker, but one does not need to play it to understand this game.
The story follows two factions: Pherrelios, as they fight to unify the land of Valeria; and the army of Prince Abel of Meyr, as they battle to repel Pherrelios invasion.
This game uses the following Tropes:
- And Now for Someone Completely Different: The first seven battles of the game have you control the Pherrelios Empire's army, while the eighth on switches over to Prince Abel as he fights to reclaim his throne and stop the Empire's tyranny.
- Back from the Dead: Aaron, a friend of Abel's father, is revived by a one-time-use staff after the Pherrelios Empire kills him before Abel's eyes.
- Battle Couple: Siegfried and Abigail, as well as Abel and Ami.
- Brother–Sister Incest: In the story, it's revealed that one of the leaders of the Cult of Brax, Ishkur, has a half-sister named Ishtar and together they gave birth to Sin and Blossom.
- Brother–Sister Team: The Pherrelios Empire features two, consisting of Sigurd & Brynhildr, and Gawain & Nanna.
- Cute Mute: Sin, the Dark Priest of the Liberation Army, is a man of a few words and don't like to speak.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Zeke, Siegfried's foster brother and a talented mage, despises his birth father because he pimped out his mother, and could no longer pay his debts.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: The game's story was updated and greatly altered between its original and current release; for example, the titular "Clarent" was originally a sword instead of an axe.
- Final Death Mode: The game has a variety of difficulty levels, and picking "Normal+" or higher means that any units that fall in battle are gone forever.
- Gambit Pileup: King Siegfried of the Pherrelios Empire plans to use the power of darkness that the Cult of Brax is tempting him with to eventually wipe them out, while the cultists are planning to revive their Dark Messiah Baal the fallen angel.
- Happily Adopted: Zeke idolizes his foster father Friedrich.
- Long-Lost Relative: Abel and Siegfried share the same mother, making them half-brothers.
- Kissing Cousins: This make Cain -Abel's son- and Awan -Siegfried's daughter- cousins. Despite that, they still are attracted to each other.
- Pervert Dad: Azrael looks at his beautiful daughter Sarah with hungry eyes.
- Pregnant Badass: In the sixteenth map, should she be defeated in battle, Siegfried's wife Abigail reveals she's carrying his child.
- Previous Player-Character Cameo: Pascal, John, and many other all originate from The Peloran Wars.
- Recurring Boss: Azrael of the Cult of Brax is encountered three times throughout the story, the last is as a corpse resurrected by the Cult of Brax.
- Stock Weapon Names: The Clarent shares its name with the original Sword in the Stone.
- Superboss: Your reward at the end of the story is a battle against your own army, at the maximum level.
- Tactical Rock–Paper–Scissors: As with Fire Emblem, a series this game was inspired by, there is a Weapon Triangle of swords, lances, and axes, and a Magic Triangle of elemental, dark, and light.
- Title Drop: "Clarent" is the name of the dark axe that's connected to the revival of Baal.
- Tragic Hero: Towards the halfway point of the game, the Cult of Brax traps and kills Abel and his army.
- Utopia Justifies the Means: Siegfried's ultimate goal is to bring peace and unite the land, by crushing all of his potential opposition.
- Villain Protagonist: King/Emperor Siegfried, for the first seven maps of the game.
- We Cannot Go On Without You: The majority of battles have the defeat of the main character as an instant-lose condition.
- "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue: The ending features a bit of text describing what happened to the playable characters after the war.
