Arvis Did Nothing Wrong: An Alternate Perspective

My first ever attempt at doing a Fire Emblem Analysis video. It's very rough, and my editing skills are most definitely not the greatest, but I hope to have made some content worthy of your time.
Note: The game script I was using to write the script for this video varies from the newest translations of the game, so the footage and my quotes may differ, but the general message is the same!
Please make sure to leave me lots of feedback, thoughts, or let me know if you disagree with me below. I'd love to hear all of it, no matter how harsh. We all need criticism to improve.
If you liked the video please share it around and give it a like, a lot of hard work went into this so I'd definitely appreciate the boost! And maybe subscribe if you want to see more of these, I have a few potential ideas for future analysis videos.
And last but not least, I'd like to thank the many people who made this possible in all ways, shapes and forms. They're all amazing people and you should definitely check them out!
Credits:
Part 1-4 Voices: Chaz Aria LLC: / chazbc24
Number 1-6 Voices: Emboar Bof: / theemboar45
Thumbnail by: Chaz Aria LLC (see above)
Arvis did Nothing Wrong Icon made by:
ez_grind: www.roblox.com...
Gameplay from:
MageKnight404: / mageknight404
poledoo: / poledoo
#FireEmblem #Arvis #DidNothingWrong

[@robins7730]

"...but even if he wanted to [kill his own son], due to the damage formula of Genealogy of the Holy War..." this joke killed me

[@LinkKing7]

Glad you liked it :'D

[@SavedAndConfused]

Imo when Arvis tells Seliph "you're just as pathetic as your father," he's being facetious and legitimately just wants to give Seliph the only true closure he can provide for taking both of his parents away from him. Like he's offering himself up to seliph and elevating him with the tyrfing in order to hopefully undo the wrongs he's done since the situation is no longer in his control.

[@NinjaAO42]

I agree. I think Arvis genuinely wished to die, and at the very least, at the hands of Seliph, whom Arvis ironically robbed both parents from him. His fake hate and bravado is there so that Seliph can strike him down without hesitation. Another factor that leads me to believe this would be that Seliph tells Azelle's son afterwards that after killing Arvis, he no longer bore any hatred towards the man. If anything, Seliph is one person who recognises that Arvis really wasn't the bad guy in Genealogy.

[@FranK-tg7ou]

yeah I agree hi I literally just beat the game and arvis specifically wanted selpihs holy weapon to reach him

[@OfficialJugg]

So it all comes down to Alcohol... If only Victor Drank Cranberry Sprite there would be no Barbecue Jokes and Incest is Wincest Jokes. DAMN YOU ALCOHOL!!!

[@KirianBlack]

Alcohol is the real villian of Fe4

[@LinkKing7]

freaking hell, Jugg, now I have to go change my villain rankings!

[@Emboarbof]

Phew, I have to admit I'm impressed. You managed to keep me interested for 28 minutes! I couldn't get my eyes off of the screen! Even as a guy who never played FE4, I enjoyed it a lot. The video is well structured and I was able to follow easily. Moral of the story: *Arvis did little wrong.* Moral of the story #2: *Do your homework before marrying someone.* Moral of the story #3: *Books are dangerous. Play videogames instead.* (May or may not include Loptous as well)

[@LinkKing7]

Hahaha glad you enjoyed it, and I definitely agree with your morals of the story :P. Thank you for letting me borrow your voice for this as well!

[@Emboarbof]

@@LinkKing7 Always glad to lend you my voice for whenever you need something :D

[@Mangs1337]

Arvis did a few things wrong. He was gullible enough to let the Loptyr cult wander freely around his own castle. This was mostly out of fear of his own hide, as he was worried that they would rat him out to the public, which could have gotten him burned at the stake. There might also have been a bit of sympathy from Alvis for the way the Loptyrians were viciously hunted for the actions of their forefathers, but if he knew his history (which I assume Arvis does), he should have been well aware of why they were hunted, they killed like 100 000 people in the great purge. If we look back at our own history and how we treat people who participated in genocide, I think it’s pretty clear how we chose to act in that regard. His hands were sort of tied though, so I don’t fault him for his actions, but saying he did nothing wrong implies there was nothing he could have done, I think there was. He could have thrown the cultists in prison and attempted to stave off the eventual shitstorm, or literally tried to do anything BUT let them walk around freely in his presence. He knew the implications of his Loptyrian blood well enough to keep it hidden from the public, which means he should have been able to put two and two together and realized that they were up to something. All in all, I understand why Arvis did what he did, and I don’t fault him for fucking up given the circumstances, but he definitely did some things wrong.

[@Choops6969]

Arvis was blinded by his own ambitions to do good. He wanted to bestow inalienable rights to everyone Jugdral. It would be pretty hypocritical for him to alienate one group for freely practicing their religious rituals of hunting children and doing whatever dark cultists do to kids. haha I know this is a ridiculous argument, but it parallels pretty well to the problems that come with "freedom of speech" today. You can't pick and choose who gets freedoms and who doesn't- which is what I think Arvis means by "unified jugdral".

[@LinkKing7]

You're absolute right, I whole heartedly agree that he did screw up, and he himself acknowledges that he was a fool, which is why I said that he shouldn't have trusted Manfroy nearer to the end of the video. This was just the title I opted to go for to get people thinking/grab some attention :P The beauty of FE4 is that it has a lot of morally ambiguous characters in general, so I felt like even though Arvis DID do some wrong things, others are also to fault and that would be interesting to cover! Thanks for your comment!

[@Hawkatana]

I think I just saw the impossible: Mangs *actually* said something smart. What timeline have I stumbled into?

[@Mistoltean]

Another thing Arvid did wrong is killing Sigurd out of insecurity and jealousy. It is even clearer in manga adaptation that Arvis killed Sigurd after findind the truth betwen Sigurd and his wife and mental breakdown asking her not to leave him. Killing Sigurd is not to fulfill his ideal but his selfishness and obsession to mother figure since she looks similar to his mother. Even Manfroy saw through his false reasoning and teased him about it.

[@oishicurrypuffus]

@@Hawkatana mangs said something smart, but not his actions tho

[@PuzzlesBlake]

So if Cigyun is most to blame for having children while knowing of her dark blood, then Arvis also shares that blame for committing the same acts. That's just the most obvious hole though, there are a few other points that I take issue with as well. First, Arvis says that he did everything for the people, but given the depth of his obvious mother complex his reasons for trying to liberate the Loptous sect are likely much more personal. Why should the blood of his father, a cruel womanizer, be so highly regarded while the blood of his beloved mother is scorned? This fact seems like it would be more of a driving force behind Arvis's actions than a love for the people, which we only see near the very end of the game after he had to bear witness to a decade of suffering. Second, the Tower of Blagi doesn't prove that Arvis wasn't involved with the events that incite the war with Issach or with the assassination of Kurth. It specifically states that there is something else going on behind the scenes that is being obscured, likely due to Manfroy. You take this to mean that Manfroy is solely responsible when it is unlikely that he would be able to deal with Reptor or Langbalt himself. A more plausible scenario is that Arvis orchestrated the plans with the two dukes while Manfroy acted as an adviser and kept Arvis from being discovered. Third, Arvis was already planning to kill Sigurd before Sigurd and Deirdre reunited. The only reason Arvis had for killing Sigurd was that he was married to Deirdre and would thus become the actual person who was next in line to the throne. Other than that Arvis didn't really have a reason to sacrifice Sigurd. The only other reason I can think of is that Sigurd had a lot of public support and Arvis was scared that Sigurd would take the throne, but that doesn't line up with Sigurd's personality or his actions and Arvis knew (and exploited) that. Fourth, The world was already peaceful (aside from Thracia) before the events of the game. There were pacifists as rulers of Verdane, Agustria and Silesse, Issach, Leonster and Grannvale were all on good terms with each other, and Miletos was a peaceful merchant country. Simply put the only injustice going on in the world were the witch hunts against the Loptous cult, which was caused by a culture of fear that developed around the Loptous empire. While those hunts are certainly awful, the common people were already getting sick of them and it definitely wouldn't have required the unification of the continent to put a stop to those hunts. If Arvis had aspired to become the next Chancellor, which was certainly within his grasp, then he could have easily pushed for the banning of the hunts by working with the other nations. There was absolutely no need for a massive war which led to the loss of countless lives and certainly no need to sacrifice both a prince in Kurth and a hero in Sigurd. Even if Arvis is being blackmailed he doesn't seem to care that he started a war nor does he seem concerned about finding a way to escape Manfroy's influence. Finally, I find it kind of funny that Arvis commits the same faults as every single one of the people on your list the the 'real' villains yet he is truly the good guy. (editted to make it easier to read)

[@LinkKing7]

All valid points for sure, Arvis is definitely to blame for his actions (that's just a title), and I was more focused on drawing attention to the other players in the game aside from Arvis, since it is now most common for him to shoulder all the blame for the events of FE4. But you're absolutely right. Your first point is most definitely also a driving factor in him having a soft spot for the Lopt sect and letting them roam free. Your second points is also very very valid, I honestly didn't know where to stand here since all we can do is speculate. I really wanted some concrete evidence on this one and couldn't find it, but I believe there instances with Manfroy and the Dukes on their own, so it isn't completely out of the question. Your third point is one I always ask myself. All the canon materials of FE4 point to Arvis not knowing definitively that Deirdre was Sigurd's wife previously, otherwise you can bet I would've showed it. I think depending on how you process things you can see it as implied in that conversation that Manfroy has with him in Ch 5 that I showed, but again, it's not concrete and that's beautiful because it leaves it open to interpretation either way. And I totally agree with your fourth point, there was absolutely better ways in which Arvis could have solved the problems of his world. He handled it incorrectly and he DOES acknowledge that he was a fool, and I showed that. I suppose my argument may be slightly skewed towards looking through the limited scope of only the linear FE4 plot, and not on a larger scale of "how could this have been avoided in the first place?" I also didn't put him on the list of villains because everyone kind of already has him there, it was more about showcasing everyone else and what their flaws were. Great comment!

[@PuzzlesBlake]

@@LinkKing7 FE4 leaves a lot to the imagination in terms of what happens behind the scenes to the point where most discussion involves a lot of speculation. Arvis is definitely the most sympathetic of the antagonists in the story, and a key factor of what makes the first act of Genealogy so compelling. If (when) we get a remake I hope they manage to expand on Arvis's character while leaving his actions in a moral grey area.

[@jlima5509]

If only cigyun had a "one children" policy, everything would been prevented.

[@BluechanXD]

The question is, how aware was Arvis of the prophecy? By all accounts, he wasn't aware that by having children, it would result in a major catastrophe. Manfroy wouldn't outright tell a guy he was trying to manipulate that his actions would lead to Loptyr rising to power and resulting in a massive death toll. You could always make the argument that Arvis should have known his blood was tied to a group that had once caused problems in the past, but remember that he wanted to erase that stigma from them because many of them were just regular people. So unless he was fully aware of the implications of having children with Loptyr blood, he shouldn't be blamed for it like his mother who was aware of the prophecy.

[@PuzzlesBlake]

@@BluechanXD There is a point in the video where it is said that he investigates Deirdre's origins, I assume he would find out about the prophecy then. As a side note I wonder how people didn't realize that Deirdre was his half sister right away. Like it was known that Kurth had an affair with the duchess of velthomer, and here comes a girl who is Kurth's daughter who looks just like the former duchess. You can bet that there were more than a few rumors flying around when they got married.

[@Choops6969]

This is a fantastic video. Very impressed that you pulled this one out. i had no idea what this video was when I made the thumbnail, but i am very proud to be apart of it in some way.

[@panasonicbluray7426]

i really wish deirdre got more development, i hope echoes fixes that, as it stands shes just a walking plot device

[@LinkKing7]

There's a lot of room for improvement on the plot of an already fantastic game. They just need to let the moral ambiguity stay as it is, while fleshing out the main characters more at the same time!

[@Kageryushin]

They can easily take details from the Playing Guide, the Suzuki novelization, and the Mitsuki Oosawa manga to further flesh out and develop the plot, then just do the exact same shit they did with SoV otherwise, except using Three Houses as the basis rather than Awakening. Maybe bring back Sachiko Wada as the art director, since her artwork has improved to the level of masterpieces since FE8.

[@you8630]

Considering all the Norse influence in Genealogy, I wonder if Sigurd and Arvis are supposed to parallel Freyr and Surtr to some extent. Freyr gives up his sacred sword to be with his true love, and later fails to stop Surtr from burning the Earth to cinders during Ragnarok because of it.

[@nillynush4899]

Think moreso Wagnerian operas, the Eddas, and the Nibelungenlied. There are common elements like, a lover losing her memory and having another man's child, familial drama, vengeful women, having powers gifted by Dragon blood, and the general setting (evoking names like Valhalla, Saxon, Cappadocia, Thracia, Austria etc.).

[@matthewcoyle4131]

Next video: "Deirdre enjoyed it"

[@Finnland278]

Next video should be Tailtlu didn't suffer depression.

[@marcosluizteodoro]

Julius did nothing wrong.

[@LinkKing7]

I mean, he really didn't so you're not wrong there!

[@basilofgoodwishes4138]

He only read some evil book, which was the biggest mistake he made in his life.

[@roga5326]

He read a Scalie Smut fanfic and became possessed by it

[@FilthyCasualty]

Roger Stiff I hate it when I read some Dark God’s porn novel and then get possessed by that Dark God.

[@NinjaAO42]

@@FilthyCasualty He can't have anyone knowing his search history

[@LVBentley]

Arvis gets a pretty bad rap from the memes and the fact that he killed Sigurd. Genealogy's deconstruction of the typical FE tropes leading up to the infamous ending of Gen 1 can cause some bias since we play as Sigurd, but Arvis was a man who's ideals were just, he was simply ambitious and not afraid to sacrifice what he felt was necessary to bring peace, but the machinations of Manfroy saw that go to shit

[@LVBentley]

Great video btw!!

[@LinkKing7]

@@LVBentley Pretty much spot on. No one is free from mistakes, there are just others who are also to blame and I felt like that needed to be highlighted.

[@mega-1427]

LV Bentley His ideals were just but the way he went about it was far from it. Sure he was well intentioned but that hardly means anything if it’s obtained through the death of innocents. That’s not to mention the fact even if Julius never had loptyr blood, whose to say that he or any of his descendants would’ve led jugdral as well as Arvis did. It’s quite clear that his plans weren’t really thought out well when it came to long term. The things he did weren’t really necessary anyway as there were better and more just ways of achieving peace that didn’t include getting rid of anybody who might get in his way. I’ll admit Arvis is probably the most sympathetic villain in any fire emblem game but that doesn’t change the crap he’s done to get what he wants and he still quite clearly on the wrong side.

[@peterh2223]

@@mega-1427 His cause is just. He is a ness main.

[@arman_llc624]

LV Bentley lmao yea? His ideals were just sure but the things he did cant and will never be excused. There a lot of plot holes in the whole arvis did nothing wrong argument if you take a closer look at the whole story. One of them is the fact that arvis allready had a wife before deidre and many more. Don’t get me wrong I like him as a villain but saying that he morally grey feels pretty biased if you ask me. I wouldn’t say he is full on evil like manfroy he still has some decency but thats about it

[@aviad61]

What you did is similar to blaming WWII on the winners of WWI because they drove Germany to elect the Nazis as their rulers... does siggun has some blame? sure. but why is it relevant to the game in which she doesn't even appear in? why don't you blame siggun's father because he didn't strangle her to death when she was born? Don't get me wrong, I think it is an interesting video, and I liked it a lot, just think you did some very strange leaps here.

[@naberiusbuster3489]

Your six pack is just terrible. Sigurd and Deirdre don't belong on that list because the Cult already knew the general area where Deirdre was born and raised. Those two falling in love may have pushed back the dark god's revival by a few years (and produced the champion that would save Jugdral). Victor and Cigyun may have engaged in somewhat less ethical activities, but all they did was common failing marriage things, not anything truly villainous. They may have made the kindling for the fire but they didn't soak it in kerosene or provide the spark. Why are Reptor and Lombard not present? Those two are responsible for instigating war with Isaach by assassinating it's king, preventing a peaceful resolution with Agustria, assassinating Kurth, and framing Sigurd and his army.

[@aviad61]

yeah, like I wrote somewhere here, LinkKing7's approach to "those responsible" is very strange. And if we are listing actual things that people are doing wrong, the fact that Arvis is supposedly a good emperor with terrible lords doesn't paint him in a very positive light, and this is actually something he is responsible to.

[@jaeaik]

This was a fantastic video, the 28 minutes flew by, its like Time disappeared like Sigurd when he met his fate at the ends of the triangle flames. This was incredibly well researched, easy to follow, and I had a blast watching it. #ArvisDidNothingWrong

[@LinkKing7]

SAVAGE. Hahaha glad you enjoyed it!

[@NinjaAO42]

The most controversial thing said in this video would be that Arvis giving Sigurd the Silver Sword was a mistake. I mean, come on LinkKing, how am I going to one-round enemies otherwise? The Steel Sword doesn't cut it chief(or chef?)

[@Rhouka]

So we can all say in the end... Julius did nothing wrong.

[@Garchomp47]

He really didn't, since it wasn't actually him

[@infini_ryu9461]

Should have had him bang Julia so we get Genealogy 2: Winter is coming.

[@lorddragonskin3603]

What I learned in this video: Sigurd should've just let Jungby burn to ashes

[@RenuLure]

#1 should be the divine dragons that allowed--hell, guided all of this to happen. Claude said this was all foretold, meant to happen. They could not change destiny no matter what. ps Travant did nothing wrong.

[@LinkKing7]

if we want to go back in history all the way to the root of the problem, then just blame whoever created the humans in the first place, I guess the divine dragons if they were the root, or whoever even created those. I just chose to focus on the specific timeline that we had in the game in this situation :P And I like Travant a lot! I wish he got some more screen time, one chapter of explanation is certainly not enough!

[@helious1818]

@@LinkKing7 so Ashunera is the real villain in all the games

[@frug9236]

I hope this video is trolling, since there is so much hypocrisy, mental gymnastics, and just a bit of victim-blaming to make Arvis not seem like one of the primary contributors when he clearly was. Arvis was ambitious with good intentions, but that doesn’t excuse his outright murder of Sigurd and company, or trusting Manfroy who screams evil, or refusing to control his son. I would say Manfroy is most responsible for the plot, followed by Arvis.

[@jameljenks2584]

I was with you until you blamed Sigurd and Deirdre for the fact this occurred. Arvis had a choice. He choose to betray Sigrud, he choose to erase Dierdre's memories, he choose to let the Loptyr sect run around unchecked. I do get what you mean, but all the mommy issues don't free him from the responsibility. Awesome video thou

[@LinkKing7]

Arvis wasn't the one who erased Deirdre's memories though, that was Manfroy. When Arvis met Deirdre he had no idea who she was and what her past life was, even until AFTER The BAttle of Belhalla. Only then did he, after realizing Sigurd's reaction, go and investigate who she was.

[@jonahj9519]

Are you implying that Arvis has nothing to do with Kurth’s murder? Because that doesn’t make any sense. His whole plan to put himself on top in order to make his ideal plan doesn’t make sense unless he planed the princes murder. Taking that away from him makes him a weaker character. A much simpler explanation for the “figure in the shadows” the Claude saw was that it was Arvis. I don’t think Reptor and Langbalt would really be willing to work with the loptyr, given the strong prejudice. Arvis feels sympathy for the sect, though, so he would. I believe it’s implied that Arvis was even working with the Manfroy from the beginning, as Arvis wanted to rule the whole world, and by having Verdane invade Grannvale, Sigurd would strike back and then take over Verdane, then the loptyr encourage Shagall’s tyranny, forcing a response from Sigurd, causing Sigurd to then take over Augustria. In gen 2, Grandvalle has taken over the whole continent, but what most people tend to forget is that half of that was Sigurd’s doing. Do you really think that was just coincidence and Arvis didn’t plan any of that, despite all of it furthering his goal of conquest? Of course it isn’t. Arvis did a lot of terrible things, but he did them with Noble intentions. He’s one of those “ends justify the means” type of characters, and that’s what makes him cool. Your making it sound like he was all like “oops, guess I’m the emperor of everything now!” Also at 18:44 yes it is explained. The King, before he died in gen 1, said that Arvis’s son was to take over Grandbelle when he became of age, since he was of actual Royal blood, and Deirdre couldn’t rule since, you know, medieval times hated women. That’s why Arvis has so little influence by the time he dies. Also, I hate to keep expanding this comment, but I need to defend Kurth and to a lesser extent Cigyun. I don’t think you can really blame him for having an affair with Cigyun. This is shitty medieval times. It’s not like she could leave her husband. Divorce was a big no no, back then. As for Cigyun, well it’s never stated that she didn’t tell the people of her village that she had a son. The reason she went to the village in the first place was to protect Deirdre from the sect’s influence. But, yeah , she still made a lot of shitty decisions.

[@LinkKing7]

I think what people fail to realize is that this video is less about "Arvis did nothing wrong" (that's just a title), and more about how there are many other morally ambiguous characters in Genealogy that share the blame and responsibility for the plot. For your first point, that's one I actually struggled with finding something concrete to absolutely confirm that Arvis was directly involved. I showed the 3 view points, and I don't really know which one to take as being the "correct" one. The figure in the shadows could very well be Arvis as you suggested, but it could also refer to Manfroy, or even more deeply, Loptous himself. The King did indeed say that Arvis's son would take over, what I meant here was that we were never told that Julius became the Emperor or how all of a sudden he's in charge of everything. We don't know what their "age of inheritance is" and stuff like that.This would be something I'd love to be elaborated on in a remake, more so the transition of power than a hard cut and skip ahead. I can certainly blame Kurth. Even if Cigyun can't leave her husband, he should know better than to have affairs with wives of other royalty. And Cigyun knows her lineage and blood as well as the lore. She made all her decisions consciously with the knowledge that this end was a possibility. I did give her some sympathy for the atrocious relationship she was in with Victor, and it's also why I rank him higher than Kurth. Good points though! This isn't meant to be a definitive list to be taken as gospel, it's just something to get people to think differently!

[@bigtimetimmyjim6486]

Arvis is interesting because if his text is taken at face value, it seems as if he is just pulling strings in a bid to take over Grannvale for nothing more than a lust for power; when he talks about Sigurd, it sounds as if he is spreading propaganda like Reptor and Langobalt in an effort to tarnish his reputation. However, by the time you get to Chapter 5, he really has no reason to see Sigurd as different than those two given our annexation of Verdane and Augustria, invervention in Silesse, and the fact that we are harboring Shanan, who would look like a political pawn to an outsider. Combine this with the fact that Sigurd is from a family with strong ties to Kurth and the previous regime known for hunting down those with Loptyrian ties, and it is extremely logical to see how Arvis can see Sigurd as a villain to overcome. However, I do not believe Sigurd is more villainous that Arvis, but actually equal to him in this regard because they are a perfect example of a character foil. Both of them are manipulated by people who preyed upon their naivety, idealism, and lack of desire to acquire more information.

[@Jotari]

The Lopt Sect already knew where Deirdre was. They were looking for her in the spirit forest already. And it's not like she had a habit of sitting still, he first met her outside of the forest being harassed by a pair of men. Had Sigurd left her there Manfroy very likely would have found her anyway as he fully intended to.

[@madwaltz9812]

I enjoyed the video, and it's certainly an interesting take, but I can't really take seriously the idea that anyone other than Manfroy is the main villain of FE4. Even if I take the word "villain" to mean "person who contributes most to causing the negative events in the story" (which isn't how I'd normally define a villain but it seems to be closer to the definition you are using), Manfroy is just as guilty of anything Sigyn is guilty of. Your only real point for Sigyn being a villain is that she allowed the Dark God Loptyr to be reborn by breaking taboo and having two children, but in order for Loptyr to be reborn, Julius had to receive the Loptyr tome. Having major Loptyr blood on its own means nothing, and Julius is stated to have been a sweet boy prior to being possessed by that tome. And the one who gave him that tome was Manfroy. And in addition to that, Manfroy orchestrated much of the events of FE4, including bringing Deirdre to Arvis, blackmailing Arvis, conspiring to have Arvis ascend the throne, and so on. I'm also confused why Sigurd and Deirdre are on the villain list at all. Sigurd does do a number of things that lead to his downfall, but you seem to be arguing that because Sigurd married Deirdre and brought her out of the Spirit Forest, that allowed the reincarnation of Loptyr to be reborn. But...it didn't. Deirdre was already being hunted by the Lopt sect and could have just as easily had her memory wiped and brought to Arvis whether Sigurd left her alone or not. As far as I remember, there's no indication that Deirdre was any safer in the Spirit Forest than she was with Sigurd, or that bringing her out was what allowed the Lopt sect to find her. I guess theoretically Seliph could have inherited minor Loptyr blood and potentially caused the rebirth of Loptyr in a future generation depending on who he married, but that isn't what happens.

[@LinkKing7]

We can draw a lot of conjecture as to what could or could not have been had events transpired differently for sure. Deirdre could've created another generation, or she could died alone ending the bloodline, we'll never know, but what we can know it what would've prevented the current timeline they were in, which is what I drew my arguments based off. Having said that, am I biased? Sure. But what I was trying to do here, even if I used the word and definition of villain loosely, was show that the plot and blame is more shared than most people think. The beauty of FE4 is that it isn't all black and white, it's many shades of gray that come together to bring us this beautifully complex narrative that everyone, even the protagonists, share the blame in as they aren't perfect. I hope that helps clarify the thought process a little!

[@griffinjones6670]

How’s he have less than 1000 subs geez give this man a medal

[@LinkKing7]

Griffin Slate haven’t started doing these types of vids until this one so idk, maybe its just the start :D

[@joeslickback]

"But Arvis gave us a Silver Sword; that's a good guy" - Bisquick Mix

[@lsrrr3857]

"Lex give me a brave sword, now I want to bear his child"- Ayra, probably.

[@newmetaknight874]

I do agree with your points about Arvis, but my problem lies with part 3, who are the real villains. I disagree with the term villains used there to describe some of those characters. Villain usually implies that the person in question has motive to do evil. Sigyn, Sigurd, Dierdre, and Kurth had no motive to do evil, but their carelessness affected the plot all the same. To wrap this up, while I do agree that these characters were major causes of Loptyr rising again, I don't think that they can be considered villains. I hope this all made sense, and I loved the video

[@LinkKing7]

That is an interesting take I suppose if you want to define it that way. Who WOULD be the villains? I suppose you could make an argument for Manfroy through that too no?

[@newmetaknight874]

@@LinkKing7 In the case of Manfroy, he knew exactly what he was doing and where it would lead. His goal was to revive Loptyr, and all of his decisions were intentional. I think what clarifies a villain in a story is not just who negatively impacts the plot, but who does it intentionally.

[@LinkKing7]

@@newmetaknight874 I was more referring to "perspective". Since clearly Deirdre, Sigurd, Cigyun all knew about the prophecy and went against that intentionally too. So I suppose the word villain might not be right for ANY of them in this case and that could very well be a valid take too. aaaah the genius of Genealogy...

[@hadoukenfighter]

thats a pretty interesting theory, i can see where your comming from. i might not fully agree, but arvis is a pretty great character and will always be the cooler flame emperor.

[@LinkKing7]

it's not really a theory, more like a different point of view analysis if anything, since it's all based off canon facts. Arvis is a cool dude, I'd totally side with him during the battle of Belhalla tbh :P

[@joshuabrant3487]

False Arvis is the bad guy. He is red and Sigurd is blue, learn color theory ofc.

[@touchscreenhater9413]

Good video! Only thing I would say I disagree with is Sigurd making a mistake in taking Deirde away from the Spirit Forest. The Cult of Loptyr already knew she was there, and would likely return after Sigurd's departure from Verdane to fight in Augustria. If anything, he made the best of a series of worst decisions, seeing as their union created the man who would go on to liberate the continent.

[@vaporox3533]

I had ruled Arvis as suicidal by the time Gen 2 started, but I like how you framed it. Interesting.

[@ness6099]

“Villain” ranking is kind of misleading. Sigurd, Deirdre, and the others aren’t villains because they did nothing with inherent malicious intent(at least story-wise). More like “Antagonist” ranking, since that term basically means the one to initiate change, in which the six you listed line up perfectly

[@rapidriver]

I get you're saying Cigyun is sympathetic for being treated poorly by her husband, but you can't be blaming Cigyun entirely for this when it was Victor's fault for being a shitty husband in the first place. If he never did that Cigyun would have lived a nice life with him, and so she wouldn't try to get away from him. Victor is more to blame. In the end, she did teach Deirdre to not leave the forest, even if she failed, so she wasn't completely irresponsible. Really, I don't see how her making a mistake is worse than Manfroy actively orchestrating everything and making Arvis fall in love with Deirdre. That's way more villainous, even if he was only able to do it because of Cigyun's love life. Honestly at this point you may as well just blame Maera for reproducing. :P Anyway, I also disagree on Arvis not being a bad ruler because the other houses of Jugdral (Freege, Dozel) are the ones doing evil shit. I know Grannvale is fine, but it's obvious every other country in Jugdral is a shit show. That's still his fault, for allowing bad people to be in power (he KNOWS they suck, too). If he's willing to kill Sigurd, he should've killed more of the Freege and Dozel families, and put more people he trust in charge. I know there wasn't much stopping the Lopt sect, especially with Julius, but he still had time to manage that before it completely went down the shitter. Inherently, he did a terrible job by allowing the leaders of other countries to die. He ruined those countries due to that. It was apart of the grand scheme of allowing lopt sect acceptance, I get that, but it was still stupid and gives me the impression he never cared for what would happen to those countries he took over. We can't know for certain how much he tried to fix that obviously, but he really fucked that up, imo. That's one of the glaring flaws that I don't see addressed often. Arvis comes off as sympathetic in a lot of ways, though I mostly only feel bad for his old man version, since he realized the ways he fucked up more. I don't hate Arvis and think he's a fantastic character, but I wouldn't call him a hero.

[@LinkKing7]

Rapididous I said he was a good guy in the end, not throughout. Sure his motives were good, but I’d be stupid to try and advocate for him being a hero from start to finish. He knows he screwed up and he admits it. But he actively opposes the child hunts even after he’s powerless to stop Julius, and he sends the Tyrfing off to Seliph as well as gives Julia the Circlet which is the key to the treasury where the Naga tome was kept. Cigyun vs Victor being at the top is one I can agree may flip flop accordingly. At the end of the day I saw the fact that cigyun having knowledge and still going against it being more to blame over an asshole like victor who’s just scum of the earth in general. But yes you’re right, if I want to look at it that way, I should be blaming Maera if I want to go full big picture. I was just zoned in on this particular clip of Jugdral’s history, since we don’t really know much about the past. You do make a valid point about him punishing the other houses though. And I agree, there were many other ways in which Arvis could have handled creating his ideal world differently, he’s a flawed character, I’m not disagreeing on that. But that’s not really the purpose of the video, it’s mostly to show that he’s not the ONLY one to shoulder the blame, rather it’s a multifactorial group of people who deserve to share it, and some more than others. In terms of the heroism, I was really only specifically referring to his Ch 10 actions, not the entire game lol.

[@rapidriver]

@@LinkKing7 I get what you mean, sorry for coming off in a way that implied that you are saying Arvis is always right. I think he makes up for it all in the end definitely, and has a pretty heroic death in giving Seliph Tyrfing in order to kill Arvis. I also think he's a nice father to Julia, which is good bonus points in my book. As for Cigyun... I don't know, we never know HOW Victor was before and after marriage. It's not like Cigyun was automatically an absolute dumbass who married the lowest of low men. Cigyun is obviously at fault in some way, but some things are out of control and we don't know if Deirdre was an accident or not. Of course, there's no excuse for being irresponsible and bad choices, even if they're spur of the moment and make sense given the crazy life she has, especially when they end up indirectly causing the revival of the worst dragon to ever EXIST... but I still argue Manfroy and Victor are more at fault, in the end. Heck, what if Victor cheated with Cigyun because she was worried about having another child? That's just an idea, but we don't have much to go on, here. If Maera can have 1 child, then Cigyun can consciously have 1 child and then, presumably accidentally, have 1 more. (How good was birth control, anyway...?) I get what you mean in how you're trying to show Arvis is not the only one to blame, which is good for people to know, especially if they only know about fe4 from a limited perspective. I just take issue with where the blame is being directed, and how he can still be responsible for some things that you are saying he isn't, in some way, responsible for.

[@arman_llc624]

Rapididous pretty sure the reason arvis gave seliph the tyrfing is so he can defeat jullius rather then him feeling sorry for his past actions. To me the only thing he feels sorry for is the death of deidre but when it comes to sigurd and seliph he still has his grudges against them and that shows in his dialog with seliph

[@blackbird7781]

Arvis ftw. He is the best villain in my opinion.

[@blackbird7781]

He is a very unique antagonist indeed. He doesnt act like anything I had ever seen up to that point. My first experience was him in the lost bloodlines 2 dlc with how he asked Chrom and the rest to be careful and work alongside him but then hearing from Chrom he was a villain was bizarre, and I ate it all up lol. Eventually i would look him up and loved everything about him and how unique he was and how he is hated by so many people with the only reason being "he killed sigurd" and no other reason.

[@lemonapple6819]

I came in expecting memes. After 28 minutes I came out enlightened.

[@maltheopia]

Hear me out: an alternate route for FE4 where in addition to saving Julia Seliph sspares Arvis, rescues Julius's soul from Loptyr, and of course recruits Cyas/Saias -- thus rebuilding Deidre's family. Of course since the people of Judgral will never accept either Julius or Arvis as anything other than corpses, this forces Seliph to abdicate the throne and someone else takes charge. Preferably Finn or Eyvel, because they deserve it, but it'll probably be fucking Lewyn.

[@TheGraveyardWatchdog]

How appropriate ancestors before the game set the stage for the problems in a game called 'genealogy' of the holy war.

[@davidgoldammer348]

20:44 Nah it would do one damage, so he's just gotta hit him 80 times and not die. Easy win for Arvis.

[@SweaterPuppys]

Arvis wasn’t 100% in the wrong. He just was gullible enough to let the cult run rampant. What a great video!

[@valiantparagonvideos2383]

Arvis is an evil wifestealer who gets better than he deserves. The attempts to spin this are little more than that. It is, of course, possible that, based on the guide, Arvis didn't know who Dierdre was to begin with. But Manfloy's line makes it clear he knows who she is by that time. And the fact he brings her out before betraying and murdering Sigurd only re-emphasizes that fact. Who brings their beloved out to watch an execution? And then yes, there is that whole murdering of Sigurd thing. Because there''s only one reason to kill Sigurd, and that's to keep Dierdre. Again, the line about him fearing her memories returning is spot on. There's no other reason to kill Sigurd at that point. Alvis had successfully pinned the blame on another, and Sigurd clearly believed that Alvis was not his enemy, or else he wouldn't have walked into the trap so willingly. But if Sigurd survives that he can't keep Dierdre, and most likely his plots are revealed as a result of taking her. I hate Alvis. But yes, that makes him a great villain. Few evil men fully embrace the darkness. They make excuses and justify why they have to act in ways they know are wrong because it's necessary for the greater good. The fact that he was a fool and Manfloy played him doesn't wash away all the rest of his sins.

[@evilmurlock]

20:00 Not to mention there is a conversation with Julius were Julius says to his father "Surely you will not try to exile me again... ". Showing that Arvis tried robing julius of his authority, but that was after he got possesed by Loptyr, so he was too weak to do anything about it at that point. So sad.

[@Quaelandys]

It's impossible to do 0 damage in FE 4 though, so Arvis would do 1 damage to his son

[@graymagicgamma7247]

Clearly Hilda deserved to be #1.

[@Saad-vw6ge]

When arvis appeared in the first map, I though he was a recruitable sage in future

[@IAlwaysThrowItBack]

Loptous did nothing wrong

[@hillnor6812]

I find it unfair that "Cigyun knew the prophecy, and she didn't care", "Deirdre knew the prophecy and she still let herself be blinded by emotion" and "Sigurd was told thrice about the prophecy and still didn't let Deirdre be" but Arvis, who also knew the prophecy and let himself be blinded by emotion. Even worse, he knew he had the blood of Lopotus, that Deirdre also had it and therefore their children were likely to have it too. So, however you look at it, Arvis is more responsible than Sigurd at least, meaning he cannot rank under him in that top 6. It's arguable if he ranks above that, but it doesn't make any sense to say that Sigurd is more to blame than Arvis when he both had less information and wasn't working with a cult that was trying to revive an evil god.

[@mysmallnoman]

Did you even pay attention He didn't know who Deirdre is when he found her, he thought she's just a lost woman, then he fell in love with her and married her Unlike Sigurd who was literally warned by the old dude

[@ChillstoneBlakeBlast]

I can't believe I have not left a comment on this Amazing video after all the times I have re-watched since it was uploaded. I agree: Arvis (Objectively) did nothing wrong, but his wrongdoings were from committing immoral/unjustly actions for "the greater good". If he had never sentenced Sigurd to death, he would have unironically had his Peaceful Jugdral; but he left Manfroy cloud his mind that only he can bring justice and peace even to the Loptyrians, who have committed awful sins such as child hunts and keep continuing to do so after they took over Jugdral. It's the reason I believe Arvis let Seliph strike him down in the end, because deep down, he feels remorse for being outplayed and that his vision was not able to be realized because he was just a tool for another man's game. I only assume Arvis fought Tooth and Nail in Chalphy (Chapter 10) because if Seliph were to fail striking him down, how could anyone else in Jugdral compete? It's the reason he trusted Palmark with the Tyrfing, as it was his way to tell Seliph to stand up to Julius and to stand up to him without telling him that he was sorry for killing Sigurd. his dying words were Dierdre and Julia because he was still proud of what he made of them, and he is not proud of the Jugdral he made, which is in a worse position than it was before him (not great, but atleast there were no kids being harmed).

[@GRK_2024]

Tbf manfroy was a better garnef than garnef himself. Also arvis had kids with both dierdre and aida which means like father like son although i assume he wasnt alcoholic in this case

[@LinkKing7]

Saias is older than Julius and Julia, so pretty sure Aida was pre-deirdre, not someone he had an affair with during the process. My memory might be hazy, but I think Manfroy tried to kill her and Saias off at some point as well?

[@GRK_2024]

@@LinkKing7 if it was pre deirdre arvis could have just said to manfroy "i have a son" unfortunately bro forgot yea manfroy tried to kill saias cause of his major(?) Fala blood but Aida died protecting him

[@Basaraassassin]

your villain top 5 is just ridicolous, blaming a girl for trying to live her life?? , or for trying to get in love...just because she has some curse that she did not wanted in the first place.... your opinion is that of a rightwinger,disgusting.

[@LinkKing7]

Lol? I don’t see how modern politics has anything to do with analyzing a fantasy setting, considering I never once reference any modern day philosophy and only keep things in the context theyre in, but good job on casting assumptions of what my political ideology is, how very mature of you, you are in fact, incorrect! Anyways I’ll actually answer seriously regardless. Yes, she IS to blame. She can choose to live her life however she chooses but her actions had consequences, as did all the other people’s actions too, and you can’t run away from that. Disagreeing with me is fine, but being disrespectful and disregarding facts is just stupid.

[@Basaraassassin]

@@LinkKing7 You cant blame a Girl or a human being or a living being , for trying to replicate her dna (reproduction), it is the whole purpose of life itself, is the nature of humans and living beings, trying to reproduce, is a first priority neccesity, is on the same level as eating,breathing and defecating. Is just stupid to blame and call a villain someone just for doing normal and natural things that human beings do , if she had a curse of a demon or whatever, she still was a human and that is more strong that a stupid curse .

[@LinkKing7]

@@Basaraassassin Yeah I can, fair is fair. Victor only wanted to fulfill his primal sexual urges for "replicating his DNA" and I blamed him and you had no problem with that. I blamed Kurth too when he knowingly slept with Cigyun who was a married woman and helped her cheat on her husband as well, I don't see you having an issue with that either! These things have consequences that they are all responsible for as adults. And as adults they are also responsible for what the product of said DNA is. If you have a 5 year old kid, and that kid murders your neighbor's cat, are you just gonna throw the kid out and go "yeah not my problem?" I don't think so.

[@ElvenRaptor]

@@LinkKing7 The cult would have found Deirdre no matter what. If anything, Deirdre saved the world by giving birth to Seliph.

[@magnusprime962]

I’m late, but I had to comment that while this is a really great video, there’s one thing I think could’ve been clearer. How much did Arvis know about Sigurd’s innocence? Because if he knew Sigurd wasn’t a traitor, then killing him was absolutely a villainous act. If he didn’t know, then it was lamentable, but understandable. It still shows Arvis as a poor judge of character, but that’s hardly a flaw isolated to him.

[@edfmed1080]

I can't blame people like Cygun or Deirdre for not tying themselves to a prophecy, imagine that you get told you can't enjoy a fullfilling life (for the times standards at least) because someone predicted something about you ending in a tragedy so massive you can't begin to concive it, the idea feels totally foreign to you and it's just making you suffer for reasons you don't clearly understand, because you can't. Thats fucked up and mostly everyone would give in and try to be happy instead, because thats what humans do. Either way, Cygun belongs to the streets and Deirdre deserved happiness.

[@madeleineevelinaguekguezia550]

The things that FE4’s characters do wrong are, for the most part, deeply human and really interesting because of that. Even Manfroy’s mustache-twirling evil-for-evil’s sake villainy has an understandable motivation that prefigures his more cartoonish ambitions. Even characters who I find completely loathsome and unfun to spend any time with like Duke Lombard and Duke Reptor have the recognizable qualities of naked self-interest, greed, acquisition of power, and complete disregard for human life behind everything they do.

[@Agent719]

Hmm... I can agree that Arvis did...little wrong and tried to do more right, but your "the real villains" section is suspect. Being the cause for certain pieces being on the board is, I think, a far cry from actually manipulating those pieces into conflict, causing strife and warfare. I now need to go check FEH and see which of these I have...cause I swear I have a least one. P.S. Why does this look like the Mt. Dew logo?

[@cheeseman0125]

How is Arvis committing mass, cold blooded murder on Sigurd's army not "Things Arvis did wrong" lmao. But Sigurd is so bad for favoring love over some superstitious prophecy. How about instead of blaming the characters victimized by their blood, circumstances, and the ambitions of others, we blame those we acted against them? Manfroy was the one acting and doing evil acts. So was Arvis. Kurth, Cigyun, Sigurd, and Dierdre wittingly (and unwittingly) created the opportunity.

[@dyrr836]

Would you not consider Arvis a victim of his own blood and circumstances? He was basically made a father at age 7 and spent his whole life being told that he deserves to die because of his heritage. If anything I think it's a miracle that his worldview developed into "I can make this better" and not "fuck all of these people." Also I don't see many people mention just how badly the whole conception of his kids would mess you up once you learn the truth. And by the time he does, he's already been in love with Deirdre and can't just flip a switch in his brain to undo that. He was basically manipulated into committing mutual sexual abuse with his own sister to resurrect Satan, pile that on top of his existing history of familial drama and you know that must have wrecked him.

[@ElvenRaptor]

@@dyrr836He loses my sympathy after committing mass murder. I couldn't give less a damn about his plight for being a murdering, wife-stealing bitch.

[@dyrr836]

@@ElvenRaptor Well yes, he's a villain. He's not a good person nor is he interested in being one. Also Kaga himself said that Arvis was unaware Deirdre was Sigurd's wife/his own sister until well after they were married. He flexes her at Belhalla to try and confirm for himself.

[@ElvenRaptor]

@@dyrr836Then, Arvis comes across as a dumbass. He never thought it was suspicious that a girl suddenly dropped into castle grounds and then the robed cult members who don't even try to hide how evil and manipulative they are just as suddenly get really, really gung-ho about getting him hitched to her? All of the alarm bells in Grannvale should have been going off in his head at that point.

[@DrewPicklesTheDark]

He brought peace, justice, and security to his new empire.

[@LinkKing7]

DrewPicklesTheDark I see what you did there

[@DoctorLightning66]

Too bad about freedom

[@DangitronepasVI9]

Proud to say I was the 776th person to like this video

[@swanprincess3396]

I'd personally like it if Deirdre's mother was playable in heroes l always found her so pretty

[@trytoo5167]

Not sure how but my Ulster basically one shotted Julius. I think luna and astra proc'd at the same time.

[@Ushaeeixth]

18:56 Travant also did nothing wrong He essentially did the same as Arvis and wanted to make life for his people better He was just on the wrong side of history

[@flygonkerel781]

Srry you haven’t convinced me of Arvis’ innocence. you’re giving him too much of the benefit of the doubt

[@arcaflame9456]

A very good analysis. It would be good if you do more General FE videos.

[@LinkKing7]

I shall do! I have a few ideas already to follow this up with!

[@sincromelon2912]

We need Cigyun in heroes as a top tier villain that don't care about anything

[@LinkKing7]

Hell yeah, I'm down for that

[@fuse197]

I get no man is free from sin but considering the ending of the game........its gonna take a while before i can agree with his ideals😅

[@MatteusYM]

I'm not that sure you really got (imho) the point of the game: trying to find the villain in Fe4 is no less than denying its own message. Lewyn says it pretty directly to Seliph: "If you must hate, hate the evil which lurks in us all, not the individual. Never forget this." This phrase also appears in this video! Anyway, claiming Cigyun as the most responsible is bad rhetoric too: it doesn't change at all the fact that Manfroy is the direct executor of the whole plot; she may have her fault as she could prevent it, but she actually could not expect so easy of the consequences of her choices (questionable choices, but not totally unreasonable by some human psyche). Granted Manfroy as the man behind all of the plot (as your placing of Kurth and Victor strongly depend upon Cigyun's role) even then you can find his own, but twisted reasons: the Loptyrian cult was being harshly persecuted after the Miracle of Darna and this caused a spiral of hate, evil and violence. These are the whole "antagonists" of the game, they cause the whole plot to happen and the second part of the game states it costantly.

[@kevindepuy5390]

Exactly. The real evil was the fact that there is prejudice in the world, and it indirectly cause the entire plot. Not the dark god.

[@arman_llc624]

Matteus I like arvis as a character but If arvis existed in real life I really you won’t consider him to be morally grey cause he is not

[@kedharswaminathan7571]

I think your being a little unfair to both Sigurd and Deirdre here. Yes, their actions were illogical and definitely doomed the world in the long run but let me spell out the simple truth here: BOTH SIGURD AND DEIRDRE WERE IN LOVE! Love is supposed to defy logic and reasoning. Also you say Arvis isn’t aware of the plot but may I direct you to the FE4 manga by Mitsuki Oosawa in which shows Arvis clearly interacting with the anti-prince faction and doing nothing to stop their greedy and jealous plan, in fact he allies with them in directly overthrowing the king. And let’s not forget that Arvis is clearly in control of his actions while Sigurd is not. He as a knight of Grannvale is forced to action that he knows he morally doesn’t agree with. Also while Arvis might be a great ruler but he wasn’t the most responsible parent (No seriously, who lets there six year son hang out with a creepy cult leader who wants to resurrect Satan!?) In conclusion, Arvis might be a great and complex villain but he is far from innocent and clearly did wrongs in his life. In fact he might of fucked Judgral more than Julius or the Lopto Cult ever did.

[@LinkKing7]

The manga isn’t canon, and so I can’t reference it in an analysis like this, it would be disingenuous and misinformed. Especially since there are two different versions of FE4 manga as well. Sigurd and Deirdre May have been in love, but actions have consequences. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, regardless of which side they are on. I think the title of the video sparks a knee jerk reaction, which is intended because otherwise no one will watch it, but I DO have an entire slide at the end that says “things Arvis did wrong”. I’m not pointing the finger at any one person, it’s more of a critical thinking process to show how many moving pieces there are that contribute to this beautiful plot. Arvis isn’t a perfect being, but that’s what makes him a great character. The same applies to Sigurd. Had we flipped the roles and allowed the player to play from Arvis’ perspective, I could write this same essay for Sigurd as well.

[@kedharswaminathan7571]

LinkKing7 Even if the manga isn’t canon I still think you should have at least mentioned it since it does add more dept to the characters of FE4 and greatly expands on the character’s personalities.

[@ElvenRaptor]

@@LinkKing7"The road to hell is paved with good intentions," You should apply that to Arvis, instead of trying to absolve him. Your critical thinking is flawed. Sigurd had little choice in the actions he took, because it was out of self-defense or in defense of his country. What was he supposed to do when hostile armies were on his border in the first two chapters? Nothing? Arvis was actually part of the plotting that got these conflicts started, set up innocent men and women to fail, and then murdered them. Oh, and he stole another man's wife. In the flipped perspective version of "Genealogy," Arvis is still a villain, no matter what. Oh, and Seliph, aresult of Sigurd and Deirdre's actions, saves the world.

[@tmonster1852]

Arvis probably knew if one of the people who listened to the villagers was Azel, he would have told him, also since Azel was in Sigurds army, he could have told them everything, and there was no way Azel didn’t know about the massacre happening.

[@evilmurlock]

I always liked Arvis, he wanted the best for the people, unfortunutely the Loptyr cult got too strong and he lost actual power in the empire. Such a tragic story.

[@lsrrr3857]

Similiar to Travant I would say, that's why Travant is able to become the only ally of Arvis and not just a subject

[@Karma_896]

If you really think of it If Deidre and sigurd never meant then loptous would control Judgral cause the loptyr church would eventually find Deidre and erase her memories and have her and arvis would have Julius and Julia would have born and seliph would never be born

[@listless280]

As an Arvis stan: Yes.

[@Nate-ms4be]

I think the manga does a good job at portraying Arvis because he more or less wants the same thing Sigurd wants, which is a peaceful world free of prejudice. He said something in his fight Sigurd that really stuck with me: "You're the ignorant one, Sigurd... of how that irrational fear of the darkness is warping this world. You selfishly assume it's going to hurt you... So you hate it... persecute it... and for that purpose you even try to take the lives of people who have done no wrong"

[@Chairman_Miao]

Would love to see you do a similar video on Edelgard. She was obviously inspired by Arvis but also quite different.

[@LinkKing7]

Rest assured, I will be doing the EXACT same video for Edelgard actually. I just need to finish all the routes so that I can really dive deep into all the elements of the game. It might take a while, but I can guarantee it will be made with the same level of care as this one (but better editing I promise, I've learned since I made this)

[@Chairman_Miao]

@@LinkKing7 Awesome! The way they handled Edelgard's character gives me hope for a good FE4 remake in the future.

[@LinkKing7]

El Contusion this entire game felt kind of like an FE4 simulator of sorts so... hopefully!

[@0axis771]

The thing that annoys me a lot about Arvis is how Kaga himself confirms that Arvis learned that Deirdre was his sister following the Battle of Belhalla. And this... makes Arvis so stupid in my eyes. Arvis had to have known that Manfroy was possibly responsible for his meeting with Deirdre, and the fact that Manfroy wants the Loptous Empire back. And Manfroy even made a comment about how Arvis and Deirdre should get busy and have kids. How did none of this ring any red flags when Arvis discovered that Deirdre was his half-sister? How did he spend the next decade or so ruling the lands and never realize that he was inadvertently about to create the Anti-Christ? The idea that Arvis knew that Deirdre was his sister after the Battle of Belhalla, but never managed to put 2 and 2 together just meant that Arvis is an idiot that couldn't see the plot despite how obvious it was. And if he did know, then he let his son get taken, because Julia mentioned that Manfroy was the Archbishop and approached Julius and handed him the Loptous book, meaning that Arvis granted Manfroy this position that let him get close to Julius. So the story of the end, where Seliph pities Arvis for being a victim of fate... is completely wrong when you get down to it. He was either too stupid to realize the plot, or allowed it to happen despite knowing.

[@LinkKing7]

I'll answer these 1 at a time I guess: 1- Arvis had no idea who Deirdre was until was after the Battle of Belhalla, and the only place it's stated is that game guideI showed, even in the games it's not shown. He does admit he was a fool for trusting Manfroy, he knows that. 2- His son didn't get "taken", he was give the Loptous book when he came of age and the holy blood manifested and was immediately possessed. There was no process for Arvis to be able to take action against, and once he was possessed it was too late. 3- They're all victims of fate, but they're also all to blame for different parts of the plot, which is what I'm getting at in the video. I don't think he's "stupid", but he definitely let Manfroy walk free in exchange for trying to create his ideal world, and by the time he realized it, it was too late.

[@0axis771]

@@LinkKing7 1) I know. Kaga explained it himself. It's something that I legit thing Kaga should not have done. If you stick to the game contents, then Arvis literally had no idea that Deirdre was his sister. It's the act of Kaga saying that Arvis did know, thus making it canon, that ruined it for me. 2) You are misunderstanding. If Arvis knew that Deirdre was his sister, and therefore should be able to realize that she has Loptous Blood, he should have been aware that his children could have Major Loptous Blood. Meaning that they could have been in danger from Manfroy, or Manfroy could have been a threat. He did not try to protect either of them at all. Hell, as I mentioned, Arvis gave Manfroy the position of Archbishop apparently from what Julia says, meaning that Manfroy could walk right up to Julius and give him the tome. No protection for his children and an easy walk in for Manfroy? No, Arvis's son wasn't taken. Arvis literally handed his son on a platter for Manfroy. 3) No, it wasn't too late. That's my issue. He had almost an entire decade of absolute power as the Emperor of Jugdral. No efforts to actually stop Manfroy. So it wasn't a victim of fate, it was Arvis not even trying to stop it, which stops being fate because then it's blaming a meta force when it's really just Arvis being an idiot.

[@BluechanXD]

@@0axis771 The thing is we don't really know what "following the Battle of Belhalla" means. It could mean right after or it could mean after the children were already conceived since we never actually see it happen outright. And is it really suspicious if someone was trying to coerce him into having children? He knew that Deirdre had major Naga blood which meant his child would inherit the blood to become the next heir to the throne. Also IIRC, it was apparently Azmur's dying wish that their child would take over the throne when they came of age, so having children was always going to be in the plan.

[@0axis771]

@@BluechanXD I have reason to believe it was immediately after. Kaga expressed that Arvis's desire to check was due to the paranoia that Deirdre would leave him like his mother and that he has heard word that Sigurd's wife was missing. It was why he made Deirdre meet Sigurd in the Battle of Belhalla. So since Arvis saw for himself how Sigurd reacted, that paranoia was only increased several folds. This would definitely prompt him to investigate immediately after the battle. Yes. Because: 1) Arvis knows for a fact that Manfroy wants the Loptous Empire restored since he called Manfroy out on that. 2) Based on how Manfroy talks about Deirdre's memory loss, Arvis must know that Manfroy must have had a hand in his meeting with Deirdre. The problem is that even if Arvis fully intended to have children with Deirdre, the fact that he made no efforts to actually prevent Manfroy from being close to his children just proves that Arvis either was not that bright to put 2 and 2 together, or he knew and didn't bother trying to stop it, the latter makes him even worse in my eyes.

[@Lugiaskr]

@@0axis771 Even if it were right after the battle of belhalla, which I doubt given how much time it may take for him to find the information of Deirdre's background, they were already married at this point for an unspecified period of time. It's likely that she may have already been pregnant. I do agree that he should have made more precautions to keep his children away from Manfroy, but at the same time, Manfroy was still holding the truth of Arvis' lineage over his head, and that means it can be held against his children as well.

[@firetotheemblem877]

Finn is the reason the second part happened

[@orvaldurgumundson1809]

We. Are. In. LOVE

[@harrykinomoto]

I agree with your points on Arvis, especially the idea that when seen from a different perspective, he really isn't that much of a villain. However, I think the idea of a list of people who then should then take the blame, and indeed the notion that there can be one true villain, is not right. Especially with Cigyun: I mean, to be told that you couldn't ever fall in love because of some prophecy? You argue that she should have known better before getting in to those relationships, and while that is true, I also don't think anyone can ever be convinced to NOT fall in love! It is human nature to try and break away from the shackles that constrain us, also seen when Sigurd disregarded the prophecy when he got together with Deirdre. In the face of a force as strong as love, I think it's easy to see how some ancient prophecy can be seen as "just superstition". And in regards to why she didn't tell anyone she had a relationship and sons, I am sure she had her reasons. The way the prophecy was taken, it sounds like she feared the consequences-scared the slightest hint that she had broken it would lead to her being burnt at the stake. tl;dr: as you correctly state, it's about perspective. For every wrong action I think it is important to think about not just the individual choices that led them to it, but also the wider society that enabled those choices to be made. It's the reason why some companies have a "no blame policy" when it comes to looking at mistakes - so the focus is less on who's at fault, and more on what can be done to make sure the mistake isn't repeated again.

[@joaomesquita3069]

So... People unable to keep it in their pants was the reason satan was reborn, is that it? In all seriousness, i take some issue with ranking cigyun as the most responsible due to how little information there is about how she met victor and under what circumstances. Given the setting of the game, there are a few very reasonable speculations to be made about their relationship that at least doesn't make her look like she was consciously careless and bashful about the implications of her leaving the forest, or bearing a child. Assuming she wasn't concerned in the least about it upon leaving is a speculation in itself.

[@KamiDesu7]

All this vid accomplished was to get me to play this game again. The story i didnt grasp that deeply. I understood their was incest =)

[@DrewPicklesTheDark]

Need to do "Ashnard Did nothing Wrong"

[@LinkKing7]

Once the 3H dust settles, I might pick these back up and make it a series. Ashnard and Nergal definitely high on the list

[@DrewPicklesTheDark]

@@LinkKing7 I imagine Nergal might be more difficult to argue for since he did everything for himself, at the least Ashnard's ideals could be beneficial to others, it they were the strong. I look forward to them if you ever have the chance to make them.

[@kliffalibur3497]

@@LinkKing7 Are you still planning on making this into a series?

[@LinkKing7]

@@kliffalibur3497 I have about 7 pages of research on Edelgard, I've just been distracted by other things as time has gone on. Atm I don't have a timeline for it, but yes, I do want to continue to talk about FE villains at some point!

[@kliffalibur3497]

@@LinkKing7 Ok thank you

[@chompyumyum4615]

Sigurd is good because his hair is blue, duh

[@Dexter037S4]

Well neither did Belka I guess this man literally has the power of 7 Nuclear Bombs

[@basilofgoodwishes4138]

Am i late? if not, I give my Opinion on him: The God emperor Alvis( I call him Alvis ) can't do wrong, he is the God Emperor of Mankind, he is light and Humanity in one, he will purge the heretics and clean the unclean, Ad Victoriam Alvis..... Ok now to an serious comment: I think that Arvis is a good villian for what he is trying to be and certianly one of the best "villians" in the series, but even he had a lot of flaws that got the better of him and in the end, ruining his goal of a world free of Prejudice and the sort. It all started with his hubris of his own invulnability that nothing could topple him, which was stupid to think, considering the fact that he had obviously a lot of knowledge about the Loptyr sect's plans for thier World Domination goal, like the way the presented him Diadora to him and thier measly threats. This alone should have him convinced to plot to kill the sect, which shouldn't be difficutl to pull of, even if they would spread the rumour that he had Loptyr blood in him. No one would have believed a foul sect like them, who worshipped a being as cruel and evil as Loptyr that ACTUALLY does command them to commit atrocities on Humans, so they aren't hated simply for existing like the jews for no good reason, but a faction that is actually dangerous as we saw it in the game, yeah FE needs to stop making everyone sympathetic. So i can consider Alvis idiotic for letting his arrogance and greed getting the upper hand in spite of the visible threat of Jugdral, but it wasn't due to a hidden malevolent desire to see the dark cult succeed, but due to his own failings of humanity he fell victim to. now to you Analysis: 1.His upbringing in this rather bleak royal house might have some influence in his behavior, likely his asocial behavoir his Brother Azel mentioned, like his violent tendecies we see in the battle of Balhalla. People like Alvis, that grow up very fast and had to take up roles as father figure very fast, tend to be very bossy and mostly needly of control due to having to make hard decisions very early on....that doesn't make them terribly human beings, some guy i know off comes from similiar upbringings like alvis in the sense of having no one to lead the Family and this guy is amazing and very responsible, but with Alvis, it made him believe for valid reasons( i do agree with the need of the many thing actually) to believe that he has to take power to make the lives of everyone better. Sigurd had most things managed by his sister for him and did not need to make tough decisions just yet, even counting the death of innocent people during the fight in chapter 2. He was more social and much more likable to people than Alvis, more evident with the way Azel saw Sigurd as diffrent and more pleasing than his Brother. Animosity between the two is more akin with Rivalry at first since he and a lot other people compare the two due to being so competent, yet diffrent. Alvis might have either envied Sigurd for his reputation or just saw him as a nuisiance later on, albiet one he respects to some degree. 2. While yes, the love between both Sigurd and Diadora was dangerous and frankly with the rise of someone like Loptyr justified to be fearful off, it was ultimately through this relationship that the one, who defeated the dark Lord, was born, this one is Seliph, the prince and later king of Grandell and a badass. Ok now to the point: He is very much responsible for the events of the plot, mainly for killing most of Sigurd's army, thus damagin many Kingdoms and threatening the secound Generation, he wasn't alone with the fall of the Naga dynasty, Langobard and Reptor helped too, but his part is not something to underexaggerate here, still guilty as charged. The problem wasn't here that he is a awful ruler or father, he was just blind to the dangers the Loptyr sect posed like i alreaady mentioned, so regarding this, he isn't blameless, even if he tried to atome for his crime. 3: To the six people hold into account: 6-5 That's unfair, thier relationship was ultimately crucial to defeat Loptyr and if we are here to blame the two for the mess in the secound gen, then Alvis would still be much higher on the list, since he brought full knowinlgy the reincarnation of Loptyr to this world, on top of killing almost everyone, who knew of his secrets. 4. Yeah, he is the bigger villian and holds more blame than Alvis, i like him even more than A-money. 3. Still ultimately this relationship was the one that layed the foundation to the one, that ended the dark lord's reign, mainly Sigurd x Diadora. 2-1: Many people can turn out pretty good from awful parents (in the case of Cigyun she suffered from fear) because the childhood of a person isn't the ultimate deciding factor of how a person would turn out, there are things like school, romance and career that can prove to be more impactful for character change, Childhood alone isn't the most crucial deciding factor. Victor and Ciygun might have been irresponsible, but they aren't the ones directly responsible for the events of the game, Alvis did a lot of his own as well. The Main villian of the game was Loptyr, for it's legacy and power is the sole reason for everything that happened in the game, he is even the last boss you face in the game. All in all, a good video that however was too apologetic towards Alvis and blames in the end the problems of 2 individuals that were only guilty of bad Parenting or with Victor, being depraved. I think it would be better in future videos to acknowledge the crimes a person comitted as an individual desire of thier own rather than using Childhood drama to make them look more innocent. Imagine me doing it with Shay Cormac from AC Rogue SPOILERS where I could boil it down to his father's absence being the main trigger for his betrayal of the Assassins due to them not accepting Shay for who he is and never giving him the feeling of acceptance he longed for after his father's death....it does not work and reduces him to a victim, which he is not, since the Assassins had unlike Alvis no idea what they were doing. A good video though.

[@helious1818]

Well… I mean… Loptyr? He’s the very evil brought about…

[@DarkJ1425]

If only we could kick his ass instead of : “RAAAWWWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAR ..bye…roll the credits”

[@mr1sign925]

Actually, you cant do 0 damage in fe4. However, Arvis gets 4 shot while Julius gets 80 shot. Take a guess at who would die first.

[@mystergamer0750]

i we look above what gameplay shows in the end loptous is the cause of the conflict in FE4 tho if he didn't exist thing would be quit different because the other dragons didn't come to Jugdral too. Gale (1st) or Maera could've stopped loptous if they had wanted, Gale by not taking Loptous' powers and Maera by ending loptous lineage by not having children. but even whit out Loptous there is no doubt that Jugdral would've had many wars and bloodshed. If ignoring then yeah Cigyun is main villain of the game

[@S.I.L.]

I think the one most responsible was Loptr. If he wasn't such an asshole, nothing bad would have happened. Just kidding he did nothing wrong.

[@Marlon-LouisFE]

When Edelgard did nothing wrong and the paralels with Arvis?? Great video by the way

[@LinkKing7]

I’m working on it don’t worry ;) Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!

[@GeneralForster]

She did everything wrong Dimitri is the innocent one

[@PumpkinTheFool]

The road to hell is paved with good intentions

[@Scorpion404100]

Great video! It is always important to view things from different perspectives. Sigurd is one of my favourite lords but even he has his faults. If Fe4 ever gets remade id love if they make more content for Arvis so that he isnt painted to be a complete Villian because he is far from it especially since he actually did make a relatively peaceful world.

[@yukithesnowman314]

All Arvis wanted was to see people not be oppressed for who they are so he was in the right; even if he had to get his hands dirty. All is fair in the name of justice.

[@ElvenRaptor]

But in doing so, he opened up those same people to oppression far worse than anything they had suffered before.

[@froncho975]

Oh my god I just got the thumbnails reference

[@LinkKing7]

I figured someone would ;)

[@brightcolorsarecool279]

I don't see why he (tried to) kill the rest of Sigurd's team. What the hell does killing Dew have to with ending prejudice? He could have just killed people relevant to his plan.

[@LinkKing7]

I think it was to remove witnesses/people who could rally a rebellion force

[@nillynush4899]

I would argue that the "show off" moment with Dierdre was definitely true evil sh*t, also like petty too. It's like the Eclipse in Berserk, when an extra ill is done to the protag in the most brutal way possible. Arvis is basically doing an NTR moment there...

[@dyrr836]

Kaga himself confirmed that Arvis didn't know she was Sigurd's wife, and that he only pulled that stunt to confirm for himself.

[@UnlimitedMrX]

This was a very entertaining and we'll put together video. It really shows that you done your research here and also shows your knowledge and appreciation of the character. It also got me thinking on how messed up the previous generation of Victor and Cigyun was. Arvis was one of my favorite antagonists (villain doesn't feel right to say) in the series, along with Ashnard and Walmart, so this video also reinforced why he's such a good character. Anyways that's all I got to say, anything more would just be regurgitating other people's comments.

[@LinkKing7]

Glad you enjoyed the video! Ashnard is one of my favorites as well, so I may actually do one of these for him because I'm fairly certain I can make a good case for it!

[@derail7493]

Who would've thought, I'd listen to all 28 minutes with out needing to pause

[@rundas485]

Really enjoyed the video, your passion for the topic really shone through! Your video did help me to understand Arvis a little bit better and appreciate him more, but I think Travant pulls the "sympathetic villain" card a little bit better off, seeing as we get to see more world-building of the Thracian peninsula than Arvis' empire, even if we disregard FE5. We see the lush, green fields of Northern Thracia in chapter 8, which are able to support agriculture versus the desolate mountainscape that is Southern Thracia, forcing them to import food from other parts of Jugdral, most notably the Manster district which doesn't really support the idea. As such, Travant's back is turned against the wall and he is forced to act for his people's sake. While Arvis' ambitions are admirable in their own right and seeing them to crumble away really makes me feel bad for Arvis, witnessing Travant's desperate struggle beats that event for me, since Travant realizes that he doesn't stand a chance against Seliph's liberation army and basically goes on a suicide mission to stop them, entrusting Thracia's rule to his son and even suggesting a truce with the liberation army to him. But that's just my view, I can easily see why many people consider Arvis (one of the) best villains and this video helps to support this opinion within the fandom even more, nicely done!

[@LinkKing7]

Oh I totally agree with you there on Travant! As I was reading through the script multiple times to create this video, I definitely started getting a larger appreciation for him in this game! Who knows, he might appear in one of my future analysis videos ;)

[@DS4__]

Arvis remains my favourite character of the series and this just solidifies it! Great video, I'm subbed. Fingers crossed for Armored Arvis in Heroes one day!

[@LinkKing7]

Yay! Glad you enjoyed the video and man... been waiting for armored Arvis for ages. Now that I have the normal one at +10, one can only pray...

[@phyzyks]

Play Thracia 776

[@LinkKing7]

Sir Kempf, I have! Thracia is pretty good too!

[@king_pigeon]

Every few months I come back to this video because its so amazing. It may be my favorite on KZbin. Now, am I incredibly biased because Arvis is my favorite character of all time? Yeah. But does that make this video any less funny or well argued or just flat out entertaining? No, not at all

[@crawfy48]

I found this video only because Chaz recommended your channel. Consider adding "[FE4]" to the title, so it's easier to find