The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC

Lore & Background

The game's story directly follows the events of Trails in the Sky, immediately picking up after its ending. Set in the nation of Liberl, the plot begins with Joshua having disappeared. After completing training with the Bracer Guild, Estelle sets out to find him. Along the way, she encounters agents of Ouroboros known as Enforcers, who are assisting Weissmann with the search for the Aureole, and receives aid from Kevin Graham, a priest of the Septian Church. Estelle is kidnapped during a raid on an Ouroboros facility and taken prisoner on the airship Glorious, where she meets Loewe, a former Enforcer associate of Joshua. Loewe recounts how he and Joshua lived in an Erebonian village called Hamel, and ended up as the only survivors of a false flag operation used by Erebonia as an excuse to go to war with Liberl. In the aftermath, the two were discovered by Weissmann and taken into Ouroboros, while the Hamel incident was covered up as part of a ceasefire agreement. Estelle is eventually rescued by Joshua, and the two reconcile. Weissmann and the Enforcers then raise the Liber Ark, an ancient floating city where the Aureole is housed, causing a country-wide power outage due to the Aureole absorbing orbal energy and almost leading to another Erebonian invasion. After travelling to the city by airship and fighting through the Enforcers, including Loewe, the party reach Weissmann, who fuses with the Aureole and creates a magical barrier around himself. Loewe appears and confronts Weissmann about his involvement in the Hamel incident, then sacrifices himself to shatter the barrier. Weissmann is defeated and flees, while the Aureole disappears, causing the Liber Ark to begin collapsing. As the party evacuates the city, Kevin corners Weissmann and executes him, revealing that he is a high-ranking knight of the church. After the incident, Estelle and Joshua set out on a journey across the continent to continue their growth as Bracers.

Reader's Guide

The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky SC is notable for its lengthy and detailed localization process. Xseed Games acquired the English localization rights to all three Trails in the Sky games in 2010, but the first game's massive script—over 1.5 million Japanese characters—made it a huge undertaking that did not meet sales goals. The unfavorable cost-to-return ratio threatened Xseed's business, and technical issues with a two-disc release and the declining PSP market further complicated matters. Xseed stated they were not cancelling the English release of Second Chapter but could not keep it a main focus. In September 2013, Xseed reconfirmed their intentions, with assistance from Carpe Fulgur, who had previously localized Recettear and Chantelise. The English script came to 716,401 words, roughly the size of 10 novels, longer than The Lord of the Rings trilogy and War and Peace. The game received generally favorable reviews. RPGFan praised the gameplay, writing, and characters, calling it 'robustly realized' and saying it 'approaches the pinnacle of traditional JRPG design'. Other reviewers noted the epic story, superb localization, and compelling combat system. The game's significance lies in its role as a key entry in a series known for deep world-building and character development, and its eventual English release helped introduce the Trails series to a wider audience.

Did You Know?

• The English script of Trails in the Sky SC contains 716,401 words, longer than the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy and War and Peace.
• The game's English localization was assisted by Carpe Fulgur, known for localizing Recettear: An Item Shop's Tale.
• Kevin Graham, a priest of the Septian Church, is revealed to be a high-ranking knight of the church who executes Weissmann.