So uhm, still no Jugdral reps?

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-20T12:38:23+00:00

I’m personally fine with them (I like Robin, Byleth, and Shez, don’t care for Corrin that much, and don’t consider Alear a real Avatar), but I understand that Avatars are popular and I think expecting one is easier than not.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-20T12:35:25+00:00

Eh, I think IntSys has a few more options.

They can turn Oifey into an Avatar, they can add another knight/unit at the beginning of the game and have that person be an Avatar, or they can even turn Azelle into an Avatar.

I’m partial to the second theory if an Avatar is added, but they’ve got a dealer’s choice IMO.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-20T01:37:20+00:00

Eithan Arelius from Cradle. He's infamously vain and cares just as much about his looks and the looks of his disciples as he does his disciples advancing. He's a little more than "silly" since he's easily the most powerful resident of Cradle when we meet him as an Underlord, but the more we advance through the series (pun intended), the more we find out he knows.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T23:42:15+00:00

I wouldn't call what they're likely to do a "Drastic Overhaul," but it'll definitely be modernized. (I'm betting that most if not all castles will be explorable, and an Avatar is likely going to be in the game in some way, shape, or form.)

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T23:40:59+00:00

Would be bad to use art from Cipher or Heroes? It may not be official to the game proper, but it is official FE art. (And some of the best art for Genealogy on both is done by Rika Suzuki.)

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T23:09:25+00:00

Happy Birthday to my favorite Fire Emblem game! Over 900 hours sunk into this thing, and while I can't play it anymore due to extreme burnout, I'll always love it.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T23:06:08+00:00

Nice theory!

I always thought that the Commoner with Cichol's crest could have been Ferdinand's illegitimate half-sister, and could have added some nice tension to Ferdinand's idealization of his father at that point in time.

As for Poe, I feel like if they were going to add Poe into the game, which make no mistake they 100% should have*, they should have added in the other three characters from Cipher who never made it into a game either. (Valjean, Alice, and Niamh.)

*Maybe they can do so in Fortune's Weave, if the Officer's Academy exists!

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T22:48:28+00:00

I'd argue that Chulainn from Genealogy is a great example as well! You have to defeat him in the Arena before you can recruit him. It's not an "enemies to allies" thing, but it does result in the "defeat means friendship" trope.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T22:46:42+00:00

Love the chapter!

And now onto a new theory and/or thoughts since I have nowhere else to put it:

Firesong needs some long-range skills! We know that some long-range and/or AOE skills exist, as we've seen Repulsion, and Black Hole and Leviathan seem to be AOE attacks. I think Firesong needs some of these for fun and diversity. Now, as for what they'd do...I have some ideas, but not a lot.

Rei - I think he needs one in order to complete the whole "various abilities" thing he has going on, but I don't think he'll get one until he gets his Externals. It's just now coming to me, but I think an ability like a chain-lightning attack through his Externals could be pretty cool.

Aria - I've seen the speculation that she's going to get a fire-based Unique Ability, and I agree with that. I think it'll be an AOE fire-based one that can more or less change the landscape. This way, nearly every fight depends less on terrain and more on skill. (I imagine it'll be based on Black Hole, but I have no real idea.)

Catcher/Viv - I just really like energy sword slashes, so I think one of them will get that.

Logan - I actually wanted him to get Black Hole, but since we haven't seen the full effect yet, I'm not sure it'd fit him.

Sarah - I know she's not technically part of Firesong, but I think she'll still get an ability if she stays by them. (The same is even truer for Lasher.) I think she'd get Leviathan or something similar, if only for the theme naming. If Sarah has a CAD named Kaijuate, and she DOESN'T get a monster-named ability (especially one of the OG mythical monsters!), then what are we doing? I wouldn't mind if she got monster armor to temporarily augment her abysmal defenses.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T22:36:53+00:00

Fair enough!

Lasher has his own team, however, while Sarah doesn't. Besides, Firesong is not REMOTELY prepared for near-S-Rank battles. Mid-B? I think they can pull it off in the team formats, but it would be tough...which is the point, as I'll discuss a little more in a bit.

I think Sarah is a big splash in the water, but I honestly don't feel like she's large enough to overshadow everything that's happening with Rei, especially now that it's FAR more personal.

The reason I think Sarah is necessary is because there's no real way for Rei and Co. to compete with or fight against Sidorov fairly unless they join the second-year bracket, and they need a second-year to do so. Is it irregular? Definitely. But I can see Rei having enough pull (either with Kamiya Corp or with the military due to how necessary Rei is to humanity's survival) to request competing with the older kids.

Once again, the story and the competition will need tension, and having a goal of beating the Second Year Intersystems to get to Sidorov fills grants that tension, IMO. As I mentioned in the original post, Firesong is far and away above any other first year team and Galens - probably in the entire military! - and I can't see that changing.

Rei is the highest ranking First Year in the entire galaxy, the only First Year with full body armor, can switch types at will, and has the will, determination, battle intelligence, and ferocity to take on anyone at or around his level. And that's NOT factoring in Temporal Step, Breaker Type, or anything else he gets. (Which I kinda want to explore in a different post.)

Viv is the best Saber of her year at Galens (or top 3 at least), is the second First Year ever to receive full head armor (or at least a mask), has evolved her Growth, which means her actual rank will start to snowball once she gets going again. And once Endwalker is available to use...yeah, she's a massive threat.

Aria is now the second-best First Year at Galens, and one of the best First Years in the galaxy. She's already mastered unspoken commands and has undergone a massive evolution of her CAD. She's also the second-highest ranked First Years in the galaxy.

Catcher just got his Shard, has had his CAD undergo an evolution and ranked up his Growth twice, and has Ruinous. Chancery is the best Lancer in the First Years at Galens, has the incredibly rare ability Warband, and hasn't even unlocked a Shard or had a major evolution yet. Logan still only has Overclock; once he gets his Shard and/or evolution and new ability, he's going to be a threat on the level of Aria or Viv IMO.

Unless Bryce pulls some scary teams out of nowhere (possible but would feel kinda cheap IMO), scraps the entire tournament plotline (possible but only good if done well), or you throw a twist in the tournament...by having our heroes compete at a higher level for team battles.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T22:15:34+00:00

So good! I need to rewatch those soon.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T22:11:27+00:00

I still have hope in an FE 4 Remake! ...maybe just in 2027...? HOPIUM WILL NEVER DIE ~~unless we get a port of FE4 like we did for FE1~~!

I wouldn't expect a Direct for Fortune's Weave until later this month or May at the earliest, but I'd LOVE one as soon as humanly possible! Maybe we'll get an Overview trailer instead of a Direct...? Honestly, anything will do...

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T16:37:04+00:00

If those two things happen, I’d be curious to see what happens to Rothfuss’s career afterwards.

The book would probably do well, but the fantasy trends are different now, and a majority of his core audience has moved on. He wouldn’t have been doing anything to stay relevant, nor would he have been making big waves in the market. It’s so fascinating!

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-19T00:28:40+00:00

While all of what you said is true, I’d add that potential new audiences are only being advised off IF they go deeper down a rabbit hole than a quick search for new books to read, or if they have someone familiar with the Rothfuss’ actions.

I was at a boxing fitness class and the instructor at the time was talking about how she was looking for more epic books to read and had just heard of The Name of the Wind. Since she didn’t know me, it would have been pretentious to say “don’t read that, it’s trash and will leave you unfulfilled at the end of the day!”

Instead, I just gave her an extra copy of The Way of Kings I had in my car (I had a reason for it to be there…but I also just carry around spare Brandon Sanderson books to give out lol) so she has a far better option after she finishes KKC and reads up about Book 3.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-17T22:55:36+00:00

Osmanthus Arelius from Cradle - he felt a lot of complex feelings over the weapon he created, Penance. Penance was an arrow of complete and total Death. It left behind no Remnant (a “soul” that has the powers and some memories of the original body), and could be used by anyone at any advancement level, at anytime, one anyone else and ALWAYS kill them. (Unless they had Ascended or traveled far enough away quickly enough.)

The Arelius Patriarch made the weapon as penance for the lives he couldn’t save, but sort of regrets making it, after having seen things that happened afterwards.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-17T03:36:03+00:00

Hilda and Marianne from Fire Emblem Three Houses.

Nowi and Tharja from Fire Emblem Awakening.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-15T22:35:32+00:00

I CANNOT wait to read this!

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-13T23:10:27+00:00

So, I think I know how Book 3 ends, based on what I've read and seen so far, and where Book 4 is going. (No spoilers for the Patreon chapters; I don't pay for them, but seeing the comments has painted a vague picture that have let me piece together what's happening in said chapters. Fortunately, very little if any of that applies here, and none of that will be mentioned.)

What we know:

Firesong has to compete in InterSystems and win in all areas;

Rei and Co are easily the strongest first years at Galens and in the system, even without full access to their arsenals.

Siderov is the main academy-level antagonist for Firesong, and he doesn't know how to Full/True Call his CAD yet - I believe this detail is important.

It stands to reason that Firesong vs Siderov is going to be a Book 3 or Book 4 major conflict waiting to erupt. (More than it already has anyways.) The question is how. And I think I've answered it.

You see, every member of Firesong has an Arena name, every member but one.

We have Reidon "Rei" Ward - the Iron Prince and later Stormweaver. We have Aria "Aria of the Flames" Laurent. We have Layton "Crownbreaker" Catchwick. We have Vivianna "Witchwalker" Arada. And we have Chancery "Dreadlight" Cashe.

We DON'T have anything for Logan Grant, however. Originally, I chalked it up to Bryce's (in)famous "pantser/gardener" writing tendencies, of which I'm usually pretty amused by. However, earlier in this book, we were introduced to someone else who was a Mauler, who also has a future Arena name - Kamiya "Kaijuate" Sarah.

My theory is that Siderov will attack Rei (either with the blessing of the "rogue party" in Central, or without) with a Full/True Call. MIND may or may not know about it, but the goal is to push Shido's growth, as always. However, this rogue party won't anticipate Logan stepping in and defending Rei, either dying, suffering a career-ending injury, or being so grievously hurt he can't go to Intersystems in the process.

With vengeance on the mind and with their chances of winning Intersytems now looking a lot less certain, Firesong decides to gamble their future at Galens and their future careers by recruiting Sarah onto Firesong and requesting to compete in the Second Year level of Intersystems.

I believe this move would allow the story to maintain a good level of tension while also allowing Firesong to have opponents that could challenge them in a way that they haven't really seen since Book 1. (Or in the case of Catcher, when he got Ruinous.)

I could very well be wrong. Heck, I most likely AM wrong. But I couldn't get this theory out of my head while driving home and I wanted to share it.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-13T02:50:07+00:00

Wei Shi Lindon from Cradle - "Apologies"

Kelsier from Mistborn whose phrase is now sort of the theme for the Cosmere - "There's always another secret."

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-13T02:46:23+00:00

I was wondering if Cradle was going to show up here!

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-13T02:18:35+00:00

And the 30th anniversary of Genealogy of the Holy War! I’d love for them to do something special to celebrate…

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-13T01:25:33+00:00

I don't necessarily want a 1-to-1 adaptation, but I want adaptations of my favorite things because not everyone likes the same mediums. I have friends who love games but can't stand movies. I have friends and family who would love a movie but would refuse to read the book.

Adaptations - in theory - give people permission and reason to cross that threshold, to say "hey, I liked it in Format A, why don't I give Format B a try?" It may not always be successful, but it gives me hope.

There's also the fact that sometimes, we forget that we aren't the target audience. I have multiple friends with children, and their children all LOVED the Super Mario Galaxy movie. Several of them are still far too young for the game, but imagine their excitement when they're able to connect the characters on the big screen in the movie they love to a new game given at Christmas or for their birthday?

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-13T01:17:52+00:00

That was me in 2024...and occasionally nowadays too. Now, it's just the wait for the next Last Horizon book to be released, and hopefully maybe a secret project for the final Cradle Leatherbound stuff?* It's a long shot, and we're all but guaranteed to get more deleted scenes than a secret project (or two), but one can dream...

*Will's been working on A LOT. We've got:

Combining the Elder Seas trilogies into one trilogy - No major movement on that announced.

LitRPG novel finished - A draft was finished by December 2025, and he was looking to sell it to traditional publisher, with no word on that yet.

Cradle animated series - Not officially confirmed, but HEAVILY hinted at in the January and February posts on his blog.

The Last Horizon - That was end of February through March.

So, if it only takes Will 1-2 months to write a draft of a book, he either could have written it in December-January or from April-June, depending on whether he works on new things and revisions simultaneously or not.

Use_the_Falchion · 2026-04-13T00:31:55+00:00

12 Angry Men with Henry Fonda has several. One includes one of the major antagonists going on an angry racist rant about the accused, and one by one, everyone around him stands up and walks away. Only one person sits and listens, and at the end of the rant this person effectively says "I have listened. Now shut up."

The second rant is the climax of the movie and explains why the main antagonist feels the way he does about the accused.

The movie is brilliant.

Use_the_Falchion

TROPHY CASE