Unlock | Description |
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Default | A warrior queen from Celtic Mythology, the Ulster Cycle.
Sister and rival to Scáthach, it is said that, in a competition of sheer might, she is the superior warrior. She is a master of the martial arts of the ancient Celts.
However, because of Aífe's lesser talent in the mystic arts, Scáthach was the one chosen to rule over the Land of Shadows and hold closed the gate that blocked off its countless ghosts. As a result, Aífe lived a different life and died as a mortal woman, taking her place upon the Throne of Heroes.
Much of her legend has been lost to time. However, her tutelary aspects and her fierce nature as a warrior remain, and it might be said that the things of which she was most proud are the things for which she is most remembered. |
Bond 1 | Height/Weight: 165cm ・ 53kg
Source: Celtic Mythology
Region: Ireland
Alignment: Neutral Good
Gender: Female
At the boundary of the possible lies the ultimate expression of the martial arts. Only once you arrive there will you begin to understand my strength. |
Bond 2 | Brutal. Ferocious. A no-nonsense type of woman who puts her all into everything and defeats her opponent without pause or mercy.
The type of ruler who leads from the front, a charismatic tyrant who accepts nothing less than the best effort of those who follow behind her. She is the kind of woman Celtic men loved the most.
Proud and unbowed.
An unstained ruler with a flawless record, undone by a single, humiliating defeat.
Possessing a fierce pride, she can accept any outcome where skill or personal ability were the deciding factor, even if the result is her own defeat. Therefore, naturally, her loss at the hands of Cúchulainn is one that she cannot accept. |
Bond 3 | Discernment of Potential: B
The capacity of the grasping and understanding of "limitations."
It is mostly used for teaching, and in this area, it would see its highest level of efficacy, allowing Aífe to intuit her students' capacity for growth.
However, when used in battle, it allows her to know when the enemy is holding back or preparing a trump card. Even at this level, it is not possible to fully grasp the true nature and power of such a thing, but at least its existence may be understood.
As a warrior who has pushed herself to her own limits and then beyond, it is only natural that she would possess the knowledge of the exact limitations of those who stand before her, even if they are attempting to conceal them. |
Bond 4 | Blood-Stained Queen: EX
Rígan Fuilech. The attribute of a Queen of Warriors.
It's a disposition befitting one who has blended warrior, queen, and teacher together seamlessly, to the extent that one is considered a natural extension of the other.
She is a woman who can switch from regal queen to bloodthirsty warrior from one moment to the next and acts with elegant brutality in all aspects.
Representing her nature as someone who is all of those things at once, it allows her to increase her performance by honing her mind towards the action in front of her. By acting in regards to the appropriate position, the efficacy of her actions is reinforced. Whenever she is one warrior amongst many, anti-army tactics are bolstered. Whenever she is fighting one-on-one in a duel, tactics for use against a single enemy unit are bolstered.
Thus is the nature of a queen who rules the battlefield and her kingdom with the same ruthless smile. |
Bond 5 | An ordinary woman.
She who was blessed with nothing at birth except for her radiant beauty.
Charisma, skill at arms, mystical prowess, tactical acumen, leadership — these were all things which she was not born with, but acquired through supreme effort, honed over the course of years and many hours of backbreaking practice.
It is perhaps because she was born so ordinary that the role of steward of the Land of Shadows went to her sister, who overflowed with talent. Then, was it not a foregone conclusion from the beginning? To Aífe, it doesn't matter. Even if the outcome was never in question, she would have raced after that image in her mind no matter what.
Needless to say, there is a strong rivalry between the two sisters. Although Scáthach at that time acknowledged Aífe as the superior warrior, as far as Aífe is concerned, the issue was never settled, and because she is bound by Cúchulainn's geis not to fight her sister anymore, she has resorted to more indirect methods of coming out ahead.
"One day, I will train a student who surpasses your precious Hound. Then, we will truly know who is the better teacher!" is the sort of thing she promises as much to herself as to Scáthach. |
| Clear "The Resolution of the Final Regret" |
Extra | Aided Óenfhir Aífe (The Death of Aífe's Only Son) is the story of the tragedy of Connla's death by the hands of his father, Cúchulainn. By the fate forced upon him by the fate forced upon Aífe, Connla met his father, fought him, and was slain by the Gáe Bolg.
It is a tragedy of circumstances of Cúchulainn's own making, a completely avoidable fate brought to fruition by the imposition of a curse. There is no mention made of whether or not Aífe ever learned of what misfortune befell her only child.
However, as a woman who undoubtedly understood what it was she was sending Connla out to do, there is no doubt that Aífe knew from the very start exactly how this scenario would end. No matter how much she taught her son, no matter how far she pushed his skills, no matter how much she helped him to reach his potential, there can be no doubt that the end result was a foregone conclusion from the very beginning.
That there was nothing she could do to stop it… What terrible knowledge for a mother to possess. |
