Byleth (Fire Emblem)

Byleth Eisner is a character from Nintendo's Fire Emblem series, first introduced as the player character and lead protagonist in the 2019 game Fire Emblem: Three Houses. They later became a playable addition to the crossover titles Fire Emblem Heroes (2017) and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018), via downloadable content released in 2019 and 2020 respectively. In the 2022 spin-off Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, Byleth serves as the secondary antagonist. Players can select either a male or female version of the character in each game. The male version also appears as an Emblem in the 2023 title Fire Emblem Engage, alongside other series protagonists. In Three Houses, Byleth is a wandering mercenary who carries the rare Crest of Flames and can use the ancient Sword of the Creator. At age 21, they are hired as a professor at Garreg Mach Monastery’s military academy, leading one of its three classes. In Three Hopes, set in an alternate timeline, Byleth never becomes a professor and instead acts as the arch-rival to the mercenary Shez, who seeks revenge for Byleth killing their comrades. Although Byleth is the main character of Three Houses, they become the deuteragonist in three of the game’s four routes if they support one of the three house leaders. The Silver Snow route is the only one where they remain the primary protagonist. Byleth’s debut in Three Houses received mixed critical responses, with some critics finding their personality lacking. Their addition to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate also drew backlash from Western fans, who felt the roster already included too many Fire Emblem characters. Despite this, Byleth became one of the most successful fighters in the game’s competitive scene after being adopted as the main character by MkLeo, the world’s top Ultimate player. In Fire Emblem: Three Houses Byleth is the customizable protagonist; players choose their name, gender, and birthday. The male version stands 175 cm tall, the female 164 cm. They serve as a professor at Garreg Mach Monastery, wielding the Crest of Flames and the Sword of the Creator. Their only known relative is their father, Jeralt Reus Eisner, a former Knight of Seiros who fled the monastery. It is later revealed that Byleth carries the goddess Sothis within them due to experiments by Archbishop Rhea to resurrect her mother. Byleth was born to Sitri, an artificial vessel created to hold the Crest of Flames. Sitri could not unlock its power but fell in love with Jeralt and conceived a child. Because of Sitri’s unnatural nature, Byleth was stillborn with no heartbeat. Sitri sacrificed her own life by giving the child her crest stone, allowing Byleth to live. Jeralt, suspecting Rhea caused Sitri’s death, started a fire to escape the monastery, raising Byleth without a pulse or emotions—kept alive only by the crest stone. Eventually, Sothis appears to Byleth as a young girl. When Byleth tries to sacrifice themselves to save Edelgard from bandits, Sothis grants them the Divine Pulse, the ability to briefly rewind time. Rhea’s plan to resurrect Sothis fails. When the mage Solon traps Byleth in a void, Sothis merges her consciousness with theirs, making them the Enlightened One and retreating into their subconscious. In most endings, Byleth retains this power and becomes the leader of the Church of Seiros. In the Crimson Flower route, where Byleth allies with Edelgard against the Church, Sothis’s crest stone is destroyed, making Byleth mortal. In all endings, Sothis remains permanently merged with Byleth as a shared consciousness. In Fire Emblem Heroes Both male and female versions of Byleth appear as playable characters. In WarioWare: Move It! Male Byleth appears in the Fire Emblem Engage microgame, one of four Emblem characters shown when the player wins. In Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes Byleth returns as the secondary antagonist in this parallel-universe spin-off. The player can choose Byleth’s name and gender; if save data from Three Houses is detected, the default name is the last one used. Byleth and Jeralt’s mercenary band are hired by one of the three warring factions, while the protagonist Shez attends Garreg Mach and allies with a lord. Shez carries a being named Arval, created by Epimenides to destroy Sothis. If Shez kills Jeralt, Byleth lets Sothis take control to seek revenge, but both Byleth and Sothis are killed; Shez later regrets this. If Shez spares Jeralt and Byleth, they eventually recruit them. This leads to an extra chapter where Epimenides takes control of Arval, forcing Shez to try to assassinate Byleth. The lord Shez is allied with stops the attempt, and Epimenides transports Shez and the three lords to a void. Byleth and Shez work together to destroy Epimenides and escape.