Claude


 * For the similarly named Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War character, see Claud.

"Yet we have the strength to scale the walls between us, to reach out our hands in friendship so we can open our true hearts to one another. That's how we win!"

Claude is a playable character and one of the protagonists in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. He possesses a minor Crest of Riegan, and is the presumptive heir to the noble house of the same name. Claude is the leader of the Golden Deer house at the Officers Academy, and wields bows as his main weapon. He is 17 years old at the start of the game.

Early life
Claude is the heir to House Riegan, the preeminent house of the Leicester Alliance, and the grandson of its leader through his mother. Though he was born in Imperial Year 1162, he was not legitimated as heir until Imperial Year 1179, a year before enrolling at the Officers Academy.

Academy phase
As a student at the Officers Academy in Garreg Mach Monastery in Imperial Year 1180, Claude is the house leader of the Golden Deer.

War phase
No matter which route is chosen, Claude teams with Dimitri and the Knights of Seiros, led by Archbishop Rhea, to defend Garreg Mach against the Adrestian Empire. They are crushed by Adrestian forces, and are forced to surrender, also losing Byleth in the process during the battle.

Over the five years during which Byleth was absent, Claude becomes leader of the Alliance, but is forced to weather in-fighting between the Empire’s supporters and Alliance loyalists. Claude takes advantage of this, using the internal struggle to show neutrality in the impending war between the Empire and the rest of Fódlan. However, depending on the route, this may prove costly, or continue to play into the Alliance’s hands.

Every route and ending allows Claude to survive the war, though he leaves the continent to return to Almyra and ascend the throne as its king. Depending on his ending in the Golden Deer route, he may return to Fódlan, or even visit Brigid or Dagda for a while before becoming King of Almyra.

Crimson Flower
If the Black Eagles route is chosen, Claude will find himself ill-prepared for the Empire to invade the Alliance first. A series of battles eventually lead to Claude being driven back to the Alliance capital, Derdriu. He and the Alliance army are soundly defeated by the Empire, but he attempts to negotiate with Edelgard, stating that he'd be worth more alive than dead due to all of the nobles indebted to him, leaving her with the option to spare or kill him.

If he is spared, thanks Byleth and Edelgard for their mercy, entrusting the people and territories of the Alliance to her, believing that she will be able to rule justly. He also asks her to take care of his former classmates before leaving for Almyra. If he is slain, he gives his sincere hope that Edelgard can create a better world than the one Fódlan currently finds itself in. Edelgard surmises that he accounted for all potential options, as he knew that as long as he lived, parts of the Alliance would continue to fight the Empire in his name, which would only be quelled with his death, real or otherwise.

Azure Moon
If the Blue Lions route is chosen, the Alliance army follows behind Faerghus’s as they march into Imperial territory, where they are intercepted by Edelgard’s own forces. Amidst the flames of war, Claude is forced to lament the brutality of the promised class reunion, before engaging in battle with the other two nations. He has his army stay neutral and wait for the battle to unfold before making a move, unless he is attacked first; regardless of the battle’s result, Claude retreats. While Dimitri and the Blue Lions attack Kingdom of Faerghus to reclaim it from Cornelia, Claude sends a messenger to the Kingdom requesting help in repelling an impending invasion by the Adrestian Empire. Under the belief that they would emerge victorious and heed the call, Claude sets up a defensive formation around Derdriu and waits. As planned, the Blue Lions reclaim the kingdom and answer his request, creating a pincer attack that defeats the Adrestian invasion. After the battle, Claude makes a sudden announcement that he is stepping down as leader of the Leicester Alliance. With the approval of the other Alliance lords, the lands of Leicester integrate back under the control of the Kingdom. With a few parting words to his classmate and former teacher, he departs to deal with business in Almyra.

Verdant Wind
If the Golden Deer route is chosen, Claude will be the first student with whom Byleth reunites, at a chance encounter in Garreg Mach. The Alliance, led by Claude’s tactics, deftly lets the war play out while fiercely protecting their boundaries, before gathering their strength and eventually taking down Edelgard and the Empire after Dimitri and the Kingdom are defeated at Gronder. Claude will then let Byleth finish off Edelgard themselves, before turning his gaze homeward and steeling his troops to take down Those Who Slither in the Dark. He also shares his dream with Byleth about opening Fódlan to the outside world.

After the battle against the revived Nemesis is won, he returns to Almyra to become its ruler and forges an alliance with Fódlan.

Personality
Claude is described as easygoing at the surface, but has a side that forces others to keep their guard around him. His introduction to Byleth at the Officers Academy emphasizes this as he refrains from divulging his potential professor any information about himself to give himself a "sense of mystery" and to entice them to choose his house in order to get to know him better. While appearing lazy and casual, he is far more astute than he lets on and is always a few steps ahead of his peers during conversations.

He tends to get along with those he interacts with, but his nonchalant attitude to his duties as heir to the Leicester Alliance seems at odds with each other and sometimes frustrates his fellow nobility classmates, namely Lorenz. Despite this, he has a wealth of knowledge of the Alliance's current state of affairs and has enough diplomatic sense to understand the ramifications of certain potential actions of Alliance against the neighboring country of Almyra.

He is a cunning strategist and is particularly skilled at mind games to throw his opponents off. He openly converses with Byleth of a ploy to give his house rivals food poisoning to give his house an advantage in the first mock battle. While he does not do so, he simply stated it to rile his rivals. He is not above using dirty tactics, though he does so out of true care for his allies as he would rather his allies be alive through shady ploys than dead by sticking to a higher sense of morals. Aside from the usual casualties of war, his schemes mainly focus on incapacitation as he does not relish in killing unless absolutely necessary. Following the time skip, Claude has built such a reputation for tactics that even doing nothing makes other nations’ strategists, such as Hubert, overly concerned about his next move, as despite his neutrality he remains a threat to their kingdoms.

Claude dislikes blind faith in gods, as he prefers to rely on the strength of men. On the other hand, he enjoys archery, long rides, subjects of curiosity, poetry, scheming and organizing feasts.

Claude's mixed heritage serves as a source of inner turmoil as both sides have been odds long before he was born. He admires his mother who threw away her Leicester noble status to follow her heart in order to be with the man she loved. Having experienced discrimination in both Almyra and Fódlan, Claude is driven to break the cultural barrier and have each nation more accepting of each other as equals, which leads to his dream of opening Fódlan to the outside world. He does, however, remain aware of the diplomatic tension between Fódlan and Almyra and would not try to force the issue unless there is an appropriate opportunity to do so.

War is more of a last resort to Claude as he would rather resolve disputes diplomatically. He is the most socially connected of the three House Leaders, reflected by having the most support conversations of the three, and has a better understanding of his peers than he initially lets on, even if it is simply to tease them. He is not as idealistic of peace as Dimitri, but far less ruthless than Edelgard on achieving it. He would rather avoid brute forcing his way onto the people of Fódlan and is more than satisfied to let others achieve his dreams over him should someone worthy appear.

He has a deep sense of trust in Byleth and exclusively calls them Teach, even if they are not his professor. He expresses faith and trust in Byleth's abilities and wisdom, even believing that they are the ultimate trump card for whomever they have aligned with. In the Azure Moon route, he gambled on the belief that Byleth and Dimitri would win the fight against Cornelia and immediately come to his aid against the impending Empire invasion before they had even began the fight to reclaim the kingdom. That being said, the belief in Byleth can also serve as his own undoing as it is possible for them to give the order to execute Claude in the Crimson Flower route, a choice that he never expected. In the Verdant Wind route where they personally guide Claude, they serve as a motivation to see the war to the end and inspires confidence in his dreams of forming a true diplomatic and cordial relationship between Fódlan and Almyra.

As an Enemy
Capturing Derdriu

Growth Rates

 * 35%
 * 40%
 * 25%
 * 60%
 * 55%
 * 45%
 * 30%
 * 25%
 * 55%
 * }

Maximum Stats

 * 71
 * 61
 * 40
 * 89
 * 76
 * 63
 * 50
 * 42
 * 76
 * }

Learnt Magic

 * D
 * Wind
 * Heal
 * D+
 * Nosferatu
 * C
 * Sagittae
 * Recover
 * C+
 * B
 * Cutting Gale
 * B+
 * A
 * Excalibur
 * Silence
 * A+
 * }
 * Cutting Gale
 * B+
 * A
 * Excalibur
 * Silence
 * A+
 * }
 * A
 * Excalibur
 * Silence
 * A+
 * }
 * }
 * }
 * }

Overall
Claude is the primary Lord for the Golden Deer, meaning that he will be one of the most used members of the Verdant Wind path for most chapters. He has the best Speed and Dexterity of the Lord trio, allowing him to easily double and launch critical hits, but has the lowest Strength and overall bulk growths, leaving him more fragile than the other two. He also naturally has a high Charm growth allowing him to effectively use Battalions. Overall, he is generally geared towards ranged combat, namely through Bows, of which is his highest starting subject affinity and primary choice of weapon. His Magic growth is low and his Reason mostly comprises of Wind magic and his Faith list is also fairly standard though he notably learns Silence. While this may be a quirky option, it is not particularly optimal especially those playing Hard and Maddening where battles and tutoring is limited.

Claude bears the Crest of Riegan, occasionally restoring 30% of his HP when he uses Combat Arts. Bows heavily utilize them to increase range through Arts like Curved Shot and Claude is no exception, thus he can use its effects whenever he is injured. He has a Heroes' Relic and a Sacred Weapon at his disposal. His Heroes Relic is Failnaught, a powerful bow that grants him the ability to use Fallen Star. By consuming three uses, Fallen Star not only deals effective damage against Dragon foes, but also allows him to completely avoid all attacks the next turn, giving Claude an excellent means of softening an opponent and then protecting himself. His sacred weapon is the Sword of Begalta, giving him a Renewal effect whose effect is increased in his hands.

Claude's subject strengths are in Swords, Bows, Authority, Riding, and Flying and has a Budding Talent for Axes, which grants him the Combat Art Diamond Axe when unlocked. His Subject Weaknesses are Lances and Faith. Claude shines best in the Myrmidon and Fighter lines due to his inherent strengths, but he also has his exclusive Lord line of classes with the aforementioned class plus his timeskip Wyvern Master and Barbarossa classes, the latter two turns him into a mobile attacker with superior movement due to being a flying class, though it does make him vulnerable to Bows and Excalibur as a result. Mastering the Barbarossa grants him the Wind God skill, a huge range Combat Art that far exceeds Curved Shot with a massive 2-5 range.

His normal class options for Claude to go through are the Mercenary lines for skills like Vantage and later Defiant Strength as a Hero and Archer lines for Hit Rate +20 if his hit rates are somehow shaky. While his lances are a bit of a weakness, he can go into the Cavalier lines for Desperation and Aegis as a Paladin. With his unlocked mastery in Axes, the Brigand's Death Blow is available as well as the Warrior classes Wrath. The Wyvern Rider class is also available as a near identical option to his Lord Classes, thus will give him an early start, especially when considering mastering it teaches him Seal Defense to help with his semi-low Strength growths while the Wyvern Lord is an excellent Master Class for Defiant Crit. Bow Knight can also be a viable option, but again, his Lance weakness does hinder him somewhat in unlocking the class, but he only requires a C mastery of Lances unlike the Paladin which requires a B.

Claude overall is an excellent offensive unit if only slightly held back by his low bulk, but otherwise has plenty of options available for skills to learn in order to maximize his damage output.

Supports

 * Byleth (S-Support with female Byleth)
 * Petra
 * Annette
 * Ingrid
 * Lorenz
 * Raphael
 * Ignatz
 * Lysithea
 * Marianne
 * Hilda
 * Leonie
 * Flayn
 * Shamir
 * Cyril

Fire Emblem Heroes

 * -|Original=
 * The Schemer
 * Heir to House Riegan, the leading house of the Leicester Alliance. Employs both an easygoing attitude and an effortless skill for scheming. Appears in Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

Base Stats
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯

Base Set
Claude is comparable to the infamous Brave Lyn, having exceptional range due to being a Colorless Bow Cavalry unit. While he matches her in Atk, he is actually faster than her though has lower magical bulk, but overall this is not too much of a detriment to him. He exists in a relatively unoccupied unit pool, giving him some breathing room to shine over them in his own unique way.

His Cunning Bow turns him into a terrifying offensive unit as he thrives on teams who can both buff him and debuff enemies. If the total difference in visible stat bonuses on himself and penalties on his opponent equals 10 or more, Claude inflicts a further -5 to his foe's four core stats during combat, which can outright decimate his opponent's ability to counterattack him depending on the extent of the visible bonuses/penalties between the two.

Because Claude wants buffs to use his bow's effect, Glimmer is a natural fit on him to push his damage output by 50% with them applied. Lull Speed Defense removes enemy buffs, thus assisting in his Cunning Bow's effect, and also inflicts his -3 to his foe's Spd/Def when in combat. Finally Defense Smoke inflicts -7 Def onto opponents within two spaces of himself at the start of his turn. With this, all Claude needs is a 3 stat buff to one of his stats in order to activate his Bow's effect.

Counters
Claude needs to avoid getting hit by debuffs himself as he is vulnerable to Ploy and Panic users who can immediately shut off his bow's effect if he cannot turn it around with skills like Harsh Command on an ally. He is weak up close, thus any unit who can get to him first will likely take him down easily. Units like both genders of Robin, Lyon, and Sophia can inflict a color disadvantage through their tomes. Lastly, as a cavalry units, he is weak to Zanbatos and Ridersbane while Micaiah solidly kills him with all three of her variations.

Skill Inheritance
As a Cavalry unit, Reposition is a must for team synergy. Swift Sparrow gives him an initiated Atk/Spd boost for solid player turn offense,w here he is likely at his strongest while either Fury or Life and Death will enhance his stats mainly for his offense. Desperation is a better Skill B to ensure that he fires off his likely double attack over his opponent and finish off before they have an opportunity to retaliate.

Three Houses

 * Claude/Quotes

Heroes

 * Claude/Heroes Quotes

Possible Endings
Claude - King of Unification
 * Claude returned to his homeland of Almyra and assumed the role of a politically active prince. After inheriting the throne, he worked to improve relations with Fódlan. In addition to establishing new trade routes, he fostered trust by sending reinforcements into Fódlan to help quell revolts by the remnants of the Imperial loyalists. Under his guidance, the peoples of Fódlan and Almyra were finally able to set aside age-old prejudices, and over time, the fallacies of old were all but forgotten.

Claude and Byleth
 * After ascending the throne as the first leader of the United Kingdom of Fódlan, Byleth sought to rebuild the war-torn towns and villages and to help guide the reformation of the Church of Seiros. After a few months of peace, remnants of the Imperial Army joined with those who slither in the dark and marched upon the capital city of Derdriu. The new kingdom lacked the power to repel the invaders, but when defeat seemed imminent, a battle cry rang out from the east. Claude, the newly-crowned King of Almyra, led a mighty army that broke through the rebel forces with ease. This show of solidarity forever altered the course of history, heralding a new age of unity.

Claude and Petra
 * Claude left Fódlan, entrusting its future to his friends. He intended to travel to his homeland of Almyra, but his love for Petra instead drew him west, to Brigid. He won her affection, and after receiving the blessing of her grandfather, the king of Brigid, the two were wed. Some years later, each inherited their respective thrones. As the monarchs of Brigid and Almyra, Petra and Claude fostered friendly diplomatic relations between the two regions and Fódlan.

Claude and Annette
 * Entrusting the future of Fódlan to his friends, Claude left for Almyra with Annette, whom he intended to marry. He announced this fact to his father, the king of Almyra, who approved of Claude's growth and Annette's wisdom and resolved to entrust the monarchy to them. Once he became king, Claude established a school of sorcery with the intent to use it as a bridge between Almyra and Fódlan. Annette took on a role as headmaster, supporting Claude's dream by opening the doors to students from every corner of the world. Relations between Almyra and Fódlan improved drastically as a result.

Claude and Ingrid
 * Entrusting the future of Fódlan to his friends, Claude left for Almyra with Ingrid, whom he intended to marry. He announced this fact to his father, the king of Almyra, who approved of Claude's strength and Ingrid's virtue and resolved to entrust the monarchy to them. Even after they ascended the throne, Claude and Ingrid argued frequently. But while the queen chasing the fleeing king through the palace was a common occurrence, the couple must have loved one another deeply, for they happily raised many children together.

Claude and Lorenz
 * Claude disappeared from Fódlan after the war, leaving the new head of House Gloucester, Lorenz, to support the new United Kingdom of Fódlan in his stead. He proposed revolutionary policies to restore the war-torn region at a rapid rate. When the rebuilding effort was complete, Lorenz turned his eye toward diplomacy, seeking to establish treaties of friendship with foreign nations. Almyra was no exception, and when the two parties met for a summit at Fódlan's Locket, it was none other than Claude, the new king of Almyra, who arrived to negotiate. Some speculated that this meeting had been Claude's scheme all along, but Lorenz and Claude both denied it.

Claude and Lysithea
 * Entrusting the future of Fódlan to his friends, Claude left for Almyra to reclaim his place as heir to the throne. When he became king, he asked Lysithea to be his queen with a heart full of love, and with the hope of fostering friendly diplomatic relations with Fódlan. Due to her shortened lifespan, Lysithea declined. Claude, unable to abandon his love for her, gave up the throne to go on a quest for a means to save her. Years later, he appeared suddenly before her, claiming to have found a cure. With her trust and love to guide him, he whisked her away, across the sea. It is unknown where they went.

Claude and Marianne
 * Entrusting the future of Fódlan to his friends, Claude left for Almyra to reclaim his place as heir to the throne. Several years later, when he became king, he took initial steps to open trade routes with Fódlan, and entered into negotiations with Margrave Edmund. During this time, he was reunited with Marianne, who had grown under her adoptive father's guidance into a wise and talented woman. She offered him her aid, and as they worked together to secure friendly relations between their respective nations, they fell deeply in love.

Claude and Hilda
 * Entrusting the future of Fódlan to his friends, Claude left for Almyra to take his place as heir to the throne. His family saw that he had grown strong and allowed him to claim his birthright. When he became king several years later, he made the surprise announcement that he would make Hilda his queen. Having studied with her brother to prepare for this moment, Hilda demonstrated an uncanny talent for diplomacy, and greatly contributed to establishing friendly relations between Fódlan and Almyra. The presence of a Fódlan-born queen for two consecutive generations did much to alter Almyran values.

Claude and Leonie
 * Leonie returned to Sauin Village to repay her debts and mysteriously vanished afterwards. Some years later, when trade between Fódlan and Almyra began in earnest, the village received notice that the Almyran king would be passing through on his way to Garreg Mach. The village rushed to prepare themselves. When the anticipated day arrived, they were shocked to find Leonie at the king's side. She had gone to visit Claude in Almyra, and had ended up staying to become his queen. Faced with the sight of Leonie in the resplendent clothing of a monarch, her father and the other villagers could do nothing but stand in mute amazement.

Claude and Flayn
 * Entrusting the future of Fódlan to his friends, Claude left for Almyra to reclaim his place as heir to the throne. Several years later, when he became king, he took initial steps to open diplomatic relations with Fódlan, and asked Garreg Mach for aid. During this time, he was reunited with Flayn, who had been helping Seteth run the church. She agreed to help, and as they worked together to secure friendly relations between their respective regions, they fell deeply in love. It is said that Seteth never learned of their relationship.

Claude and Shamir
 * After the war, Claude returned home to Almyra and took his place in the royal family. Some years later he became king, and during his reign, promoted policies to improve relations with Fódlan and protect children who had been orphaned by the war. After he achieved his goals, he left the throne to a family member and left Almyra. During his travels, he encountered Shamir, who had been wandering the world as a mercenary. It is known that they traveled together from that day forward, but where they journeyed to remains a mystery.

Fire Emblem 0 (Cipher)
Claude is illustrated in the trading card game Fire Emblem Cipher with the following cards:

Etymology
Claude is a French given name derived from the Roman emperor Claudius. In view of the evident reference to Shakespearean King Lear of a majority of the Golden Deer (including him), his name may also have derived from King Claudius in Hamlet, the primary antagonist of the tragedy. It may also be a reference to Claudio Ranieri, who was the manager of Leicester City during their improbable 2016 Premier League-winning campaign. Regan is a name likely derived from ancient Gaelic and means "little king." Furthermore, Regan is also the name of King Lear's second daughter, continuing the references to Shakespeare.

Trivia

 * Claude shares his English voice actor, Joe Zieja, with Jamke and Canas in Heroes.
 * Joe Zieja stated in an interview that in his audition for Three Houses, he did readings for other characters such as Dimitri, Dedue, and Ferdinand before being chosen as Claude.
 * Claude is one of the few Lords in the Fire Emblem series to not feature the color blue either in his hair or his clothes along with Celica from Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia/Fire Emblem Gaiden.
 * Due to House Riegan being a cadet branch of the Blaiddyd royal family, Claude is distantly related to Dimitri.
 * Claude is the only Lord in Three Houses that can survive in the majority of the routes, as he can be spared in the Crimson Flower route, and lives by default in the Azure Moon and Verdant Wind route. His fate in Silver Snow however is left ambiguous and is reported to be missing. Edelgard only survives in the Crimson Flower route, while Dimitri only survives in the Azure Moon route.
 * Claude's design is heavily based off the Persian Achaemenid archers who were depicted as wearing yellow, having a singular earring, and wielding a composite bow.
 * In Claude's C support with Annette, Claude states he celebrates an Almyran ritual in reference to the real-life "Chaharshanbe Suri", a Zoroastrian fire festival originating in ancient Persia.
 * In Claude's C support with Ingrid, he also states that he practices meditation, which is another practice of Zoroastrianism.
 * Claude's timeskip design possesses what is based off a Kontush Sash: an ornate band worn around the waist which originated in Persia. At the end of this sash, Claude possesses a garland of Turkish püskül which wards off bad luck.
 * Claude’s last battalion is titled the "Immortal Corps" in reference to the Persian Immortals—the name given by Herodotus to an elite heavily-armed infantry queued unit of 10,000 soldiers within the grand army of the Achaemenid Empire.
 * Claude has the most supports with students outside of the Golden Deer compared to the other two Lords, which are Annette, Ingrid, and Petra. Dimitri has Marianne and Raphael while Edelgard only has Lysithea.
 * Claude has the most skill proficiency in the game with 6, after unlocking his budding talent in axes.
 * Claude stands at 175cm (or about 5’9”).
 * In a survey conducted by Nintendo DREAM Magazine, Claude placed 2nd in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The male-female vote ratio was 1:2. He ranked 2nd with 19.8% of the vote among those who completed the game and 22.9% overall.
 * In the second survey conducted by Nintendo DREAM Magazine, Claude placed 2nd in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The male-female vote ratio was 1:3. He ranked 2nd among those who completed the game with 286 points.
 * In a survey conducted by Famitsu Magazine, Claude placed 2nd in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses. He ranked 2nd for males and 2nd overall with 1,249 votes. He also placed 3rd among S-Supports chosen in the first playthrough with 339 votes.