Analysis of FE6's supports.

[ZemZem]

I really like FE6's supports. I don't know why some of the supports in the game are among my favorite in the series, since FE6 is among my least favorite FEs (still great to play), but there's something about a good number of supports in the game that I enjoy reading time and time again.

If you compare some of the more common supports you obtain in FE6 (Alan/Lance and Roy/Lilina come to mind.) to supports from later games in the series, you can tell that they lack some sort of quality. Let's take a look at Roy/Lilina A support:

[spoiler=Roy/Lilina A support]

Lilina: Roy... I'm sorry about the other day.
Roy: The other day?
Lilina: I was on some nostalgia trip, remember? We're in a war... Of course things won't be the same...
Roy: Well, some things will.
Lilina: Like what?
Roy: I'll be at your side, and you'll be at mine.
Lilina: Huh...
Roy: We can't go back to the past, but we can shape the future. Then we should work to make a future the same as, or even better than the past, right?
Lilina: Hahaha...
Roy: ?
Lilina: Roy, you're showing off...
Roy: D-Do you think so? Yeah, I was thinking that didn't sound like me myself...
Lilina: But...
Roy: ?
Lilina: Thanks...
Roy: Lilina...
Lilina: We'll always be together...right?
Roy: ...Of course.

...Not gonna lie. That was...kind of lame for perhaps the most popular pairing in the game (spoiler: these two are cousins becase Eliwood/Fiora and Hector/Farina are awesome). Before I looked into other supports in the game, I thought that the game's supports would be rather boring. But boy, I was wrong, and I'm glad I was. It's amusing how some of the characters almost no one uses have some of the best dialogue in the game, IMO. Let's look at Treck's A support with Juno:

[spoiler=Treck/Juno A support]

Juno: Treck?
Treck: Yes?
Juno: Can you show me that paper with your dreams on it again? It seems I've become interested in it.
Treck: Uhm... Sure.
Juno: Thank you. 'I was praised by General Zealot.' He comes out in your dreams, too?
Treck: Yeah, he does.
Juno: Let's see... 'The war ended.' 'It became peaceful.' 'Spring came to Ilia.' 'Everyone lived and slept happily ever after...' ......
Treck: Huh? Is something wrong, Lady Juno?
Juno: ...No, I'm sorry. ...... Can you show me your dreams sometime again, Treck?
Treck: Well... It's kinda emabarrassing, to tell you the truth. But okay, you can see them. I'll go to sleep now so you can get the latest ones.
Juno: Thank you, Treck.

As short as it is, I was always intrigued by it. Of the Ilian cavs, Treck is definitely the least notable one because Zealot has his whole deal with Juno going on, as well as his survival being crucial due to the Ilia route, and Noah has his whole deal with Fir. But nothing about Treck. I liked this support because it shows how Treck wants to be praised by his commander, and wanting peace to be restored to Ilia, and I believe his dreams represent that fact. Now barely anyone uses Treck ingame and not much is thought about him (which is a shame since he's one of my favorite characters in the game), but he's an interesting and humorous character, and while his supports are short, they're definitely worth looking into.

Moving on, I found that all of Karel's supports (Rutger, Noah, Fir, Bartre, Zeiss) were particularly well-written. They do a nice job expressing how Karel mellowed out over the years (the regret of not being with Karla during her final minutes and, I assume, his duel with Guy making him think otherwise about the path he's chosen), and the way he gives some characters he supports with advice is nice. Let's take a look at all three of his supports with Zeiss:

[spoiler=Karel/Zeiss Support Set]

C Support:

Zeiss: You're the Sword Saint...?
Karel: ...They gave me that name against my will. Just call me Karel.
Zeiss: Master Karel, I am a Dragon Knight of Bern.
Karel: ......
Zeiss: ...You're not going to say anything? My father said you fought against Bern in the past. He saw you in a rain of blood, slicing all those who crossed your path...
Karel: ...I am through with this world. Bern, Etruria... They are meaningless words to me now. I am only here for my family.
Zeiss: ...I see. If only I could think like that... But I can't...not even after Bern has fallen...

B Support:

Zeiss: Before coming here...I fought against my older brother.
Karel: ......
Zeiss: Well, he's not my real brother... His name was Gale. He was a Dragon Knight with equal power as the Three Dragon Lords.
Karel: ......
Zeiss: I always looked up to him. My sister was also very fond of him... ...I never thought that the three of us would end up as enemies. I never thought that we would have to fight Gale...
Karel: ......
Zeiss: I'm sorry... Have I bored you?
Karel: No, not at all. A life story can never be boring.

A Support:

Karel: Zeiss.
Zeiss: Yes?
Karel: Why... Why did you tell me that story?
Zeiss: ...I thought that maybe you would be able to guide me... Perhaps you would be able to help me get rid of my hesitation...
Karel: ...Unfortunately, I don't have any words of guidance for you. But...I can say this. It is you who must carve your own path.
Zeiss: ......
Karel: Zeiss... I think you already have an answer.
Zeiss: ...Maybe. Perhaps...I just wanted someone to tell me that the path I chose wasn't a mistake.
Karel: Then...
Zeiss: Yes, I understand now. I chose to turn against my country... And I won't regret that decision.

Why do I like that support so much? XD I think it also helps Zeiss develop as a character more, and considering what went on before (fighting Gale in Chapter 21), it's a really well-done support. I wish that we could learn more about Miledy and Zeiss's father, but we can't have everything.

My final point is now Garret/Gonzales. Here's the whole support set:

[spoiler=Garret/Gonzales Support Set]

C Support:

Garret: Whoa!?
Gonzales: Uh? What?
Garret: What the hell!? Are you an enemy?
Gonzales: I, I... I Gonzales.
Garret: I wasn't asking your name. Well, I guess you ain't an enemy.
Gonzales: I Gonzales.
Garret: ...How were you ever let in to this army? You're almost a complete opposite of me.
Gonzales: ......
Garret: I mean, look at what you're wearing! You look like a total brigand. People'll be running away from you.
Gonzales: ......
Garret: Well anyway, you should learn from me.
Gonzales: Learn? You?
Garret: ...What? You got a problem with that?
Gonzales: N-No... Okay. I learn from you.
Garret: Not 'you.' I'm Master Garret. Got that?
Gonzales: G... G...? Strange name...
Garret: Look at yours!

B Support:

Garret: Hey. You want something?
Gonzales: You... G...g... G...?
Garret: Master Garret.
Gonzales: Yeah... You that. Here. I give you.
Garret: Hey! Guess you aren't so useless.
Gonzales: You like this?
Garret: Yeah, my mom used to pick these in the mountains when I was a kid. The bittersweet seeds are the best part!
Gonzales: Mom... You have parents. I not have...
Garret: I don't have any parents now, either. She was killed in a bandit attack when I was a kid.
Gonzales: ......
Garret: But I survived. I found every single one of those bandits and put them through what they did to us.
Gonzales: ......
Garret: It took eight years. But...now I have nothing. I just...don't have anything to live for any more.
Gonzales: ......
Garret: Damn... Why am I telling you this.

A Support:
Garret: Hey, Gonzales.
Gonzales: You... G...
Garret: Master Garret.
Gonzales: Yeah... You that. Here. I give you.
Garret: Whoa whoa... You didn't have to bring the whole tree with you.
Gonzales: You like this.
Garret: Well, yeah, I do, but this is going a little overboard... Ah well, who cares. Thanks. You want some?
Gonzales: No. I don't eat strange things.
Garret: ...And what's that supposed to mean? Hm? ...Looks like I better get going. Come on, Gonzales. Let's go.
Gonzales: Yeah.

It's a shame Garret's a character that gets barely any attention, but I suppose it makes sense since FE6's cast is pretty fucking huge, and the vast majority of players either bench him because of his base stats or don't give a damn about supports, haha. Anyway, I like the fact that Garret seems to be an honorable bandit, as shown in the C support, and man...that B support. Wasn't expecting that character development when I read the supports for the first time. Gonzales, despite his odd speech pattern, meant well and tried to cheer Garret up, which was both amusing and touching.

But yeah, I could list more supports and how I feel about them, but that would take a while since there's more supports I enjoy reading (Alan/Tate, Garret/Lalum, Oujay/Lalum, Astol/Igrene, Hugh with Chad, Lugh, and Raigh, Roy/Sophia, Lance/Clarine, Shin/Fir, etc.). Still...it was nice to see people appreciating some of the supports in the game in Nobody's topic, and it felt nice to make this topic. Haha, now I'm being weird. :P But yeah.

Edited September 28, 2013 by Z the M

[JSND Alter Dragon Boner]

A support analysis of FE6 and no mention on how fucking amazing Noah is bro?

And no, the reason why Noah is awesome is totally unrelated to Fir, nope

Edited September 28, 2013 by JSND

[ZemZem]

*shrugs* There a problem? If you want I could make some mention of some of Noah's supports, since I particularly liked Noah/Treck supports.

[RJWalker]

Treck's supports are amazingly bizzare.

[Jedi]

Good job with these I could also mention many others but I am on my phone so I cant really link stuff ^^;

Karel and Bartre have really good supports as does Geese and Douglas, Cath and Bartre, I find Dorothy and Perceval sweet enough that I ship it, I like Roys chats with Marcus and Sue, Fir and Noah, Zealot and Juno. Echidna and Gonzo, Igrene and Ashtol, Oujay and Wendy

Thats just to name a few

Edited September 28, 2013 by Jedi

[Soledai]

Man, I completely agree with the Karel/Zeiss support being really good, I really kind of like all of Karel's supports though

I liked Roy's with Sue, but that's partly due to me liking the tribal types

[PKL]

Supports exist in FE6? You learn something new every day.

[JSND Alter Dragon Boner]

Lets take a look into his Yuno support

http://www.serenesforest.net/fe6/support/079.html

you seem uncaring, but on the inside, you have a kind heart. Are you all right? You've gone through many battles coming here, right?

Sigune always tried to act bad, but she was really a kindhearted person. If only we weren't in times like this, we could have... War is a painful thing.

Yuno: You seem to avoid developing close relationships. Is that because you don't want to suffer from losing that person?
Noah: ...I wonder. It is easier to just avoid getting close with anyone. The tighter the bond, the greater the suffering when that bond is broken. ...I think you know that better than any of us.
Yuno: Yes... Perhaps it's better to live like you do in Ilia. But there will come a time when you will realize that close relationships aren't all bad. Maybe you'll understand when you find yourself in love with someone.

- all of them are extremely short, but each provides an outlook at the Illian Mercenary, and an insight on Noah's character. Best seen when we recruited him:

Zealot: That Noah, a coach? Talk about unusual...

Whether this is because he took a liking to Fir or not is an entirely different matter that can be discussed

What make it interesting is that despite the description, Noah is not an edgy guy, shown here

Noah:
"Looks like they've started attacking the rebels. Well then, Fir, I need to get going now."

Fir:
"Thank you for coaching me, Sir Noah."

Noah:
"No problem. But I must say, you surprised me. You just suddenly rushed up to me and shouted, 'I want to fight a match with you!'"

Fir:
"I-I'm sorry, Sir Noah. It was my first time in the arena..."

Noah:
"If you'd gone up to someone else, you would have been killed. You need to look your opponent over very carefully before deciding to fight."

Fir:
"And you must not hesitate to surrender if it looks like you're going to lose. Right?"

Noah:
"Exactly. You can always win back your money, but not your life."

Fir:
"Yes!"

Noah:
"What are your plans now? Are you going to stay here and work on your skills?"

Fir:
"No. I was thinking I might travel to the Western Isles."

Noah:
"The Western Isles? Why?"

Fir:
"I heard that a lot of people are heading there looking for work at the new mine that being built. I thought it would be the ideal place to look for strong people to spar with. And..."

Noah:
"And?"

Fir:
"The Western Isles was where my mother first met my father. She's dead now, but when she was my age, she was also traveling around the world training her sword skills."

Noah:
"I see. ...You surprise me again."

Fir:
"?"

Noah:
"All you were saying at first was, 'I want to become strong, strong, strong,' right? So I thought swordplay was all you were interested in. But you were training because you wanted to be like your mother? I'm happy to see that you do have a cute side!"

Fir:
"What? ...Sir Noah! Please don't tease me!"

Noah:
"Hahaha!"

And to add more to the complexity:

Noah:
"Yes... She was a little naive, so I couldn't help it."

Zealot:
"Is she not with you?"

Noah:
"She said she was headed for the Western Isles."

Zealot:
"I see. Pity, I thought she might have been of some help if she were still here. But you, a coach? Now that is unusual. You're known for keeping your distance with people."

Noah:
"Do you think so, sir?"

Zealot:
"Yes. Treck and I were joking around saying that you might have fancied the girl. But knowing you, that probably wasn't the case."

Another one which I can add is his Roy recruitment, but the site did not have it so.....

Now, granted most of the Chrismas Cavaliers has a relationship where X and Y have a contrasting personality, Sain and Kent, Kyle and Forde(albeit their support might suggest otherwise), Kieran and Oscar, Luke and Rody, and maybe even Cain and Abel if Cain's sense of duty vs Abel's ability to get laid after the war is a hint.

We have also seen Wolf and Sedgar, which is a dull version of this relationship(one being depressed after Hardin's death, the other staying on duty IIRC) and Vyland and Roshea(Not sure. Vyland's position on the Wolfguard is a bit hard to point out)

So how about these two....

Zealot:
"Treck, we are now going under the Lycia Alliance Army's command."

Treck:
"Uh-huh."

Zealot:
"Hm, not the most enthusiastic response. You don't like the idea?"

Treck:
"Eh? No, I have no problem with it."

Zealot:
"Oh, all right. Just thought I'd ask."

Treck:
"Lycia... Nah, we shouldn't have much trouble."

Treck is IMO a brilliant take on the outgoing flirt/unserious guy. As a solid contrast to Noah, Treck is a simple minded guy. You can see how simple he is when you read their support. However, what make this interesting is the fact that their contrasting attitudes covers each other nicely.

As a sidenote, a case can be made that some players might be turned off by how ignorant Treck can be, such as this gem

Treck: Thinking things over? Don't bother. We're not made to be thinking deeply like that.

Ouch. This is pretty notable because they are a bunch of Mercenaries

And finally, his Zealot support

Noah: ...General Zealot.
Zealot: Is it about the letter? Have you changed your mind?
Noah: Yes. I suppose even I have someone I want to send a letter to when I die. If I die, I want you to read my letter.
Zealot: Me?
Noah: Treck and I... And also Grant and Sieks... We all made it here thanks to you. I'd like to express my gratitude to you when I die.
Zealot: ...I see.
Noah: Speaking of the others... I wonder where they are now?
Zealot: I've no idea. But they were once under my command. They won't die so easily.
Noah: I heard that some were hired by Bern...
Zealot: Yes... But that can't be helped. We give our blood and get money in return.
Noah: ...General Zealot, what do you think of that?
Zealot: Of what?
Noah: Nobles from other nations say that Ilia sells death for a living. They say that we are vultures attracted to blood and decaying meat.
Zealot: That doesn't bother me. It's a fact that Ilia couldn't survive without war. We are giving our own blood as well to survive.
Noah: Yes.

adding in the Treck support, it become VERY apparent that Noah is the part of the group that look forward to a change to the status quo the most.

Zealot: Neither of us will be able to meet our deaths peacefully in bed. The letters are essential to us. Noah, don't you have anyone you want to send a letter to?
Noah: Well... Not really. I do recall that my comrades were writing letters, though. They were addressing them to their parents...or lovers.
Zealot: You should do the same. Why don't you get a girlfriend yourself?
Noah: Well, I'll think about it.

I love the irony of this part. On one hand, Zealot and Noah IS able to meet their deaths peacefully in bed, not to mention Fir exist

The worst part of their support, sadly is the short ending

Noah: General Zealot? Is something wrong?
Zealot: Ah, Noah. No...nothing's wrong. Did I seem to be troubled?
Noah: No. I just thought that something had happened.
Zealot: I see... ...A letter arrived today. It was your comrade's...Grant's will.
Noah: ...I see.
Zealot: Would you like to read it?
Noah: ...No.
Zealot: All right. Then let's go.
Noah: Yes.

I don't know if this is meant to say that the letter is for Noah or not. One thing that bothers me about FE6 is how we are not shown these guys on the background at all, which makes convo like these a little harder to take seriously, but I think that fits the theme of the war. After all, only the higher ups are important

Overall, I must say Noah support has everything a good support should have. It reveals his character, it offers a sense of development quite well that takes off after his recruitment scene until the end, and it also gives an insight on the world building aspect of the game

"Supports exist in FE6? You learn something new every day."

Support does not exist in FE7, get ur facts straizo

Edited September 28, 2013 by JSND

[Irysa]

http://serenesforest.net/fe6/support/143.html

This isn't a particularly special support (I might talk about some I like later), but I did think it was neat that it actually talks about affinities, supports, and their roots as a thing in Fire Emblem, not just mechanically, but canonically! I don't believe any other game in the series does this.

Edited September 28, 2013 by Irysa

[Refa]

Juno: Thank you. 'I was praised by General Zealot.' He comes out in your dreams, too?

Nice Freudian slip, Juno.

Also once I was bored in class and wrote like a whole page overanalyzing Thany's supports, maybe I'll try to recall it later.

Edited September 30, 2013 by Refa

[General Banzai]

analysis moar liek banalysis amirite or amirite

I once analyzed Zealot's supports looking for homosexual undertones as part of my claim that the Ogma archetype is homosex (I was also claiming Zealot was an Ogma)

[Refa]

analysis moar liek banalysis amirite or amirite

I once analyzed Zealot's supports looking for homosexual undertones as part of my claim that the Ogma archetype is homosex (I was also claiming Zealot was an Ogma)

urrite who even plays fe for the story CHUMPS that's who

also Dieck is more gay because his name can be shortened to Dick, even though that's a legit name

[General Banzai]

urrite who even plays fe for the story CHUMPS that's who

also Dieck is more gay because his name can be shortened to Dick, even though that's a legit name

Raigh was obviously a mistranslation of his real name, 'Gay', which is a better approximation of the kana if we take contextual clues into account

[ZemZem]

analysis moar liek banalysis amirite or amirite

Maybe that's why I didn't get as much feedback as I thought I would. *shrugs*

[Refa]

I think it's more because people are way too lazy to provide detailed analysis...es. Speaking for myself, I enjoyed reading what you said about FE6 supports and thought you brought up some good posts, but I was too lazy to reply with anything resembling something more constructive than a battering ram, so all you got was my snarky post about Juno.

Also I'd argue that Lilina's support with Roy isn't bad if you like reading too deep into things, but for such an important support that's actually supported somewhat by ingame conversations, it's not nearly as good as it should be. Also too lazy to proclaim how Thany is 2deep4u.

[ZemZem]

Haha, thanks Refa. About Roy/Lilina, for such a pairing that was so supported in-game and in the fandom, it's a rather lackluster support.

[Sasori]

I think your analysises are enjoyable as well, but I only saw this topic today since this board is usually quite dead.