Zephyrus

Zephyrus is a character from TearRing Saga: Berwick Saga. He is one of the strongest generals in the Raze Empire.

Profile
Zephyrus was originally known as Friedrich, the younger brother to Prince Bernard and the son of Arless. During the Berwick Civil War, he, his sister Anastasia, and his mother Artemia had hidden in Leia's royal palace for protection. Though Leia's second princess Ferianne was able to resist Mordias IV's army for some time, the palace eventually fell under the combined might of the armies of Raze and the Berwick League. Artemia was killed, and both Friedrich and Anastasia were captured and sold into slavery, though their captors were unaware of their true identities. As such, Anastasia claimed that she and Friedrich were Spica and Zephyrus, two commoners from the Kingdom of Pesil.

While Anastasia was sold to a merchant, Zephyrus was placed in the Raze Empire's janissary program to be instructed in the arts of war until he was of age. During this period, he met another slave who was the son of one of Pope Urbanus's and Prince Pfeizal's political opponents. Fortunately, Anastasia's master was kind-hearted and helped her meet with her brother and his friend (who she named Arcturus) in secret. Together, the three of them vowed to escape from the Empire.

Anastasia's true identity was discovered when she accompanied her master to the Temple of Raze. Though imprisoned for a short period, she was freed by Emperor Cleiman himself, who had fallen in love with her. The two of them married, and Anastasia would give birth to a son, Manaris. However, with Manaris's birth, Cleiman's nephew, Prince Pfeizal, was no longer the heir to the throne, earning her his enmity.

Upon learning the news, Zephyrus and Arcturus abandoned their plan of escape and instead devoted themselves to helping Anastasia and Manaris. Not only did they earn their freedom, but they were even made generals in the army. Zephyrus would take on a leadership role during the invasion of Veria and would eventually slay Mordias IV, avenging his mother's death.

During the events of the game, Zephyrus's forces are held back by Prince Bernard and Margave Bernstol. However, Bernard is eventually recalled back to Veria by Volcens, who arrests him on charges of treason, and banishes him to Berwick Isle. With Bernard's absence, the morale of the Berwick League plummets, and Zephyrus is able to rout them with ease. He eventually confronts and kills Bernstol in battle.

Late in the game, he, Arcturus, and a squadron of Dragon Knights accompany the forces sent to invade Narvia through the Ogre Mountains. Because of his opposition to Pope Urbanus, he orders his forces to hold their position unless they are engaged, confident that Reese is smart enough to attack him.

Zephyrus later learns that Volcens plans on having Bernard executed on Berwick Isle, and hurries to rescue him. Unbeknownst to him, Reese and the Sinon Knights had arrived on the isle with the exact same goal in mind, with Reese engaging the guards outside the fortress and Zephyrus engaging the guards within. After the battle, Reese encounters Zephyrus and the two of them have a duel. Though Reese is initially at a disadvantage, he learns through Zephyrus's taunts that he was the one who killed his father, and quickly turns the tables. Before Reese delivers the killing blow, his path is blocked by Larentia, who distracts him long enough for Zephyrus to make his escape.

Near the end of the game, Emperor Cleiman finally passes away from illness. This prompts Prince Pfeizal to launch a coup against the newly crowned Emperor Manaris, but he and his forces are met by Zephyrus at the Battle of Thiedlitz. Despite being outnumbered 2 to 1, the battle is an overwhelming victory for Zephyrus, and Pfeizal is trampled to death by his fleeing men. Not long after, he forces Pope Urabanus and his faction out of the Raze Empire, just as Reese takes back Narvia and slays the last of the archbishops, ending the war.

Overview
Zephyrus spawns on Chapter 11's map alongside Arcturus and a squadron of Dragon Knights on the second turn, and will leave on turn 20. He will mostly remain stationary, and will only become aggressive if a unit is within the attack range of one of his men. Because he is a flier, he cannot be targeted by melee attacks from non-fliers. Even if he is, his maxed out M Shield skill ensures a 100% activation rate of his Dracoshield, meaning he takes little damage to no damage from physical attacks, and his weakness to magic is negated through Dodge Magic. Offensively, Zephyrus is incredibly potent. His Caelum Spear grants him an extra attack and with his high attack power, along with Pursuit and Adept, very few units will be able to survive a round of battle with him. Furthermore, Zephyrus cannot be killed in a similar manner as Kempf and Eyvel, which the game will inform you as soon as he spawns. As such, the player should not attempt to fight him, which is fortunately easy to do.

Despite his invincibility, there is one reason to engage him in battle, and that is to steal his items using Czene. To do this, she needs to have eaten the Honey Hare beforehand to acquire Vantage and must be promoted to get the upgraded version of her Mug skill. She should also be equipped with the Thief Knife and the Thief Amulet to maximize her chances of activating Mug. The strategy is for her to lure Zephyrus into attacking her; because Mug II can steal equipped weapons, Czene has a chance of taking his weapons before she can be killed.