Ryoma

Ryoma (リョウマ Ryōma) is a main and playable character in the Birthright and Revelation Routes of Fire Emblem Fates. He is the eldest child of the Hoshido royal family. He is voiced by Yuichi Nakamura in the Japanese version and Matthew Mercer in the English version.

Profile
Ryoma is the eldest child of four in the Hoshidan royal family. When Sumeragi married his second wife Mikoto, Ryoma helped the nation to warm up to the new queen and Ryoma had a close relationship with his new step-mother. Ryoma also gained another sibling from Mikoto, the Avatar. However, Ryoma lost this sibling when they were kidnapped as an infant and raised in Nohr. He has the services of Saizo and Kagero. If he achieves an S-Support, he will have a son named Shiro.

At the end of Chapter 6, depending on the side the Avatar chooses, a different scene will unfold.

Prologue
Ryoma appears several times prior to the Avatar's decision during Chapter 6. He appears in Chapter 4 where he, along with the Avatar, Kaze and Rinkah, lead a rescue attempt to save Hinoka and Sakura who were attacked by a horde of Faceless. Later at the Hoshidan capital, the Avatar's Ganglari explodes, killing a great number of people including Mikoto. A Hooded Man appears with invisible soldiers. Ryoma attacks the Hooded Man but is forced to retreat after he is quickly defeated by him. After the battle, he watches Azura revert the dragon-crazed Avatar back human.

Birthright
If the player sides with Hoshido, Ryoma is pleased with their actions and will join them later on with his siblings to repel the Nohr invasion. During Chapter 6, Ryoma protects the Avatar from getting killed by Xander, and threatens to cut him down if he tries to attack the Avatar again.

Sometime after the battle, Ryoma was traveling with Takumi when they were attacked by Nohrian forces. They were quickly separated during the battle. It is shown during Chapter 13 that Ryoma traveled to Cheve to aid the rebel forces there. Due to his status as a Hoshidan royal, Ryoma disguised himself as a General and attacked Leo before the latter could attack the Avatar. The general later reveals his identity to the Avatar after Leo and Hans fled the area.

After using the secret path that the Rainbow Sage gave the Avatar, Ryoma and the others arrive at Windmire. He is surprised to find that the Nohrian capital is deserted until Silas tells him that because of the conditions in Nohr, many citizens stay inside their homes or underground. Ryoma vows to help Nohr after the war is over. After Shura attempts to rob the party of their equipment, they defeat him and his gang. Ryoma tells Shura that he will give all the money the thief wants in return for information, saying that he is the crown prince of Hoshido. Shura is shocked and pledges allegiance to Ryoma after the former tells him his house worked for him.

When Xander challenges the Avatar into a duel, both Ryoma and Azura only watch them fight him, to no avail. After Xander dies of his wounds in his duel against the Avatar, the Hoshidans meet Garon. The Avatar attacks Garon, but is unable to dent his armor with the Noble Yato. Ryoma tells the Avatar that they should try negotiating first, even though Garon had just said that his family were his pawns. Garon tells the group that he will only accept total, unconditional surrender of Hoshido and have its lands incorporated into Nohr, before quickly adding that he also wants his death also, firing fire magic on him. Ryoma is wounded and says that they need more power, when suddenly, his Rajinto reacts with the Avatar's Noble Yato, creating the Blazing Yato.

Afterwards, Ryoma, along with his siblings, successfully help the Avatar slay Garon, and the family returns to Hoshido. Back at Shirasagi Castle, he then is crowned as Hoshido's new king in a ceremony also attended by the surviving Nohrian royals - Camilla and Leo - and gives an inspiring speech upon accepting the throne. A while later at the lake, he calls the Avatar back after they have a vision of Azura there, and the Birthright storyline ends with him and his siblings meditating, praying and convening at the rebuilt Shirasagi Castle Town square, where a new statue of Mikoto has been placed in her honor.

Ryoma becomes the new king of Hoshido after the war is over.

Conquest
If the player sides with Nohr, Ryoma shows heavy disappointment in the Avatar's decision, and duels with Xander, angry at "brainwashing" the Avatar into siding with Nohr.

Later in the story, Elise gets ill and requires medicine. While a location for the medicine had been found, it turns out that it was under Ryoma's possession. Ryoma claims he will only give the medicine if the Avatar returns to Hoshido. The Avatar declines, and retrieves the medicine with the help of Peri and Laslow.

When reaching Hoshido once again, Ryoma asks the whereabouts of his siblings. Though Sakura and Hinoka were taken captive, he discovers all that was left of Takumi was a single arrow. Angry, he attacks the Avatar and duels with them in a private chamber. Upon being defeated in a duel at his castle, Garon orders the Avatar to execute him, which they refuse. Ryoma thanks the Avatar for keeping his siblings safe, although he is unaware of Takumi's fate. To prevent them from receiving the burden of making a choice, he kills himself by performing seppuku, much to the Avatar's horror.

Ryoma is later seen in the Avatar's dream, alongside his deceased mother and a newly deceased Takumi. They support and assist the Avatar in defeating the infested Takumi.

Revelation
Ryoma appears in Chapter 13, where he and the Hoshidan army arrive at a ruined Cyrkensia, accusing the Nohrians of attacking and destroying the neutral nation. Like Xander and the Nohrian army, he is unaware that Vallites were responsible for destroying the town.

After the battle, Ryoma and Xander continue to keep fighting even though the battle is over. Azura steps in and uses her powers to stop them from fighting each other. He is later notified of the Avatar's actions by Azura and the others. Although hesitant with the Avatar's claims of the true enemy, he believes them after some convincing by Scarlet. The Avatar later asks Ryoma if he knows anything about the "dragon". Ryoma is confused but tells the Avatar to seek out the Rainbow Sage to help solve their question before returning to Castle Shirasagi.

After Anankos is killed, Ryoma and Xander create a new bond between their countries and forge new ties with the new Valla, led by the Avatar.

Personality
In line with his position as the direct successor to the helm of Hoshido, Ryoma cuts a figure of calm collectedness, keenly scrupulous as he rigorously analyses the innumerable situations that he finds himself mired in before finalizing any decisions. This greatly contributes to this aura of charisma and wisdom that he is known to exude, one that sees many turning to him for his sagely advice in his support conversations.

Adept in the art of war, this, combined with his shrewd sense of insight and intelligence, has helped Ryoma to lead the Hoshidan army to victory in the campaigns that they have participated in. Further complementing his astute skill as a battle tactician is that of his skill with the sword, one that is regarded to be unparalleled throughout the kingdom of Hoshido. He often serves as a comforting voice to the Avatar's insecurities during the war in both the Birthright and Revelation routes, usually reminding them that he has put his full trust in them as well as the rest of the army.

Consequently, due to Ryoma seemingly appearing to be perfection incarnate, both his brother and son feel insecure and inferior to him. His undying will makes him the last one to give up out of everyone in the army. His birthday is May 1.

Base Stats

 * -|Birthright Chapter 6=


 * -|Birthright Chapter 13/Revelation Chapter 16=

Conquest Chapter 6 - Embrace the Dark

 * -|All Difficulties=

Conquest Chapter 12 - Bitter Intrigue

 * -|Normal=


 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=

Conquest Chapter 25 - Ryoma

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 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=

Revelation Chapter 6 - Into The Ground

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 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=

Revelation Chapter 13 - Lost Paradise

 * -|Normal=


 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=

Xenologue 20 - Memories of Foam 6: Unfinished Dawn

 * -|Normal=


 * -|Hard=


 * -|Lunatic=

Growth Rates
◾ Note: Growth Rates are based on the character in their starting class
 * 60%
 * 55%
 * 5%
 * 65%
 * 65%
 * 55%
 * 35%
 * 35%
 * }

Max Stat Modifiers

 * +1
 * 0
 * +2
 * +1
 * +1
 * -2
 * -2
 * }

Standard Sets

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Friendship Sets

 * -|All Routes=


 * }
 * -|Birthright/Revelation=


 * }
 * -|Revelation=


 * }

Partner Sets

 * -|All Routes=


 * }
 * -|Birthright/Revelation=


 * }
 * -|Revelation=


 * }

Special Classes

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Supports
Romantic Supports Other Supports
 * The Avatar (Female)
 * Orochi
 * Kagero
 * Oboro
 * Rinkah
 * Hana
 * Setsuna
 * Felicia
 * Azura
 * Mozu
 * Elise (Revelation)
 * Camilla (Revelation)
 * The Avatar (Male)
 * Xander (Revelation)
 * Silas
 * Hinoka
 * Takumi
 * Sakura
 * Saizo
 * Shiro
 * Shigure (If Ryoma is his father)
 * Kana (If Ryoma is his father)

Base Class
Ryoma, unlike most pre-promoted late game units, is an incredible unit in Fates. Compared to his other Samurai brethren, Hana and Hinata, Ryoma far exceeds both of them, having solid strength, speed, and skill without needing to trade off one or the other stats. His only main concern is his defenses which are somewhere between the other two's defensive stats, but given that his balanced growths all around, Ryoma should not need much concern. His starting offensive presence makes him a solid frontline attacker thanks to a combination of his Personal Skill Bushido, which increases his crit chance by 10, increases the damage dealt by two, and reduces damage taken by 2. If given a slightly weaker partner in his Guard Stance, Ryoma can fully exercise his personal skill to its maximum. Ryoma also has a personal weapon, Raijinto, which innately increase his strength by 4. Given its 11 might, can double when attacking in its 1-2 range, and use skills in that way too, Raijinto is essentially the only weapon Ryoma should need. When recruited in Birthright and Revelation, Ryoma starts of with the Samurai skills Duelist's Blow to avoid damage when initiating and Vantage.

If Ryoma is hurt badly for some reason, Vantage can allow him to pick them off (provided that they aren't using Spy weapons), which can intimidate other players in a PvP fight especially if he has a reasonable hit rate on them and has an skill he can use in battle.

Ryoma has is just a few levels away from learning Astra, a solid attacking skill and, when used in conjunction with his Raijinto, can lead to incredibly high damage. Further down the line, is Swordfaire for even more might in his attacks. He can also reclass into his base class' other option, Master of Arms. With Seal Strength, he can reduce damage of harder hitting enemies, though that is assuming he does not kill them outright. Life and Death is good for players looking to capitalize on Ryoma's attack, as his impressive attack can allow him to easily take out dangerous opponents with ease.

If the player puts Ryoma through several different classes to obtain the skills in those classes, ensure that he has Rajinto on him so he can take advantage of its +4 strength bonus. Ryoma should be kept in a sword-using class so that he can use it in battle.

Secondary Class
Ryoma's secondary class is the Sky Knight class. From this base class, he can learn Darting Blow, which will help him double opponents more often because of his excellent speed growths. He can also learn Camaraderie, although he will not need healing and should be suited to more offense due to his Rajinto.

From the Sky Knight class, it's promotions are the Falcon Knight and Kinshi Knight classes. From the Falcon Knight class, he can learn Rally Speed and Warding Blow. Rally skills are not needed for Ryoma due to his offense build (there are other characters who can fill this in). Warding Blow makes him a more effective anti-magic unit when he initiates a fight with them. The Kinshi Knight class offers Air Superiority and Amaterasu. Air Superiority makes Ryoma fare better against flying classes, especially against Swordbreaker-using fliers who can take advantage of his defense with Swordcatchers.

Buddy Class

 * Silas/Xander - Silas and Xander offers Ryoma the Cavalier class, along with the Paladin and Great Knight promotions. The Cavalier class does not provide any useful skills for Ryoma; instead, the second tier class promotions do. From the Paladin class, Ryoma can grab Defender to boost his stats, although this will wear out as he levels up. Aegis helps him shave damage, especially from Master Ninjas and Snipers who will most likely hit him with their accurate weapons. His high skill stat will ensure that he activates this skill often. From the Great Knight class, Ryoma can learn Armored Blow to help him endure damage from physical attacks and offers him another offensive skill, Luna, which will help him against high defense builds.
 * Takumi - Takumi offers Ryoma the Archer class, along with the Sniper and Kinshi Knight promotions. From the Archer class, Ryoma can learn Skill +2 to increase his chances of activating a skill, although as he levels up it will lose effectiveness. He can also learn Quick Draw to further boost his offense when he initiates a battle. From the Sniper class, Certain Blow will help ensure that he will hit more often. Bowfaire is almost useless as unless he marries the Avatar with a Mercenary or Outlaw secondary class (which is only available on Revelation), none of his classes can use both bows and swords.
 * Saizo - Saizo offers Ryoma the Ninja class, along with the Master Ninja and Mechanist promotions. The only useful skill from the Ninja class is Poison Strike, which can help soften up an enemy should he not be able to kill the opponent in battle. From the Master Ninja class, he can learn Lethality to kill opponents in one hit and Shurikenfaire to boost his damage with shruikens, although he will need to stay in that class if he is to use his Rajinto in battle. From the Mechanist class, Ryoma can learn Golembane and Replicate. Golembane is almost useless as there are very few puppet-related enemies encountered in the game. Replicate allows him to further increase his offensive abilities.

Marriage Options

 * Female Avatar - Depending on the player's secondary class, this can allow Ryoma to add more offense or defense into his roster. Such examples include the Knight class, where he can learn Pavise from the General class to help him protect him from Swordcatcher using units (especially those with offensive skills). It is advised for the player to pick a secondary class that Ryoma cannot normally access so that he can benefit off the class' skills, such as weaponbreaker skills to further increase his hit/avoid rates even further.
 * Rinkah - Rinkah provides Ryoma with the Oni Savage class and its promotions the Blacksmith and Oni Chieftain. From the Oni Savage class, Ryoma can learn Seal Resistance and Shove, neither of which can provide much benefit for him. From the Blacksmith class, Ryoma will learn one of the class' important skills; Lancebreaker, which helps him against Swordcatcher users who will deal heavy damage to him. From the Oni Chieftain class, Death Blow will further increase his critical rates (which will be decent due to the Swordmaster's +15% built-in critical bonus) and Counter to punish melee attackers.
 * Oboro - Oboro provides Ryoma with the Spear Fighter class and the promotions Basara and Spear Master. From the Spear Fighter class, Ryoma can learn Swap to exchange locations with a nearby ally, although this is completely useless if he is not near anyone. He can also learn Seal Defense which will help others defeat a target, although Ryoma should be more then capable of dealing with them by his own. From the Basara class, Ryoma can learn Rend Heaven which has a good activation rate if kept in a skill-proficient class and Quixotic to further boost his skill activation rates. From the Spear Master class, Ryoma can learn Seal Speed and Lancefaire, which will not help him as much to due to his excellent offense and the inability to use Rajinto in any of his lance-using classes.

Quotes
Refer to Ryoma/Quotes.

Possible Endings

 * Ryoma - Peerless Samurai
 * Upon ascending the throne, Ryoma ushered in a new era of peace and prosperity throughout the world. Generations later, scholars would praise him for surpassing even King Sumeragi's great legacy.


 * Ryoma and Kagero
 * Ryoma was crowned King of Hoshido, and his rule lead to an era of unprecedented prosperity. Kagero remained a ninja. It is said that the couple got along, but didn't have much time together.


 * Ryoma and Oboro
 * Ryoma was crowned King of Hoshido, and his rule led to an era of unprecedented prosperity. His wife, Oboro, worked hard and eventually was able to reopen her late parents' tailor shop.


 * Ryoma and Orochi
 * Ryoma was crowned King of Hoshido, and his rule lead to an era of unprecedented prosperity. His wife, Orochi, was completely indispensable, both through her intelligence and her future sight.


 * Ryoma and Setsuna
 * Ryoma was crowned King of Hoshido, and his rule lead to an era of unprecedented prosperity. Records show his wife, Setsuna, stayed by his side and was a great source of support and joy.

Smash Bros. Series
Ryoma appears in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS as a collectable Trophy and was released on February 3, 2016 alongside the release of Corrin. His trophy features him wielding Raijinto

Etymology
Ryōma is a Japanese given name. It can be written with several kanji, including 龍馬 (which directly translate to "dragon" and "horse").

Trivia

 * Ryoma's artwork depicts him wielding the Raijinto.
 * Ryoma is the only one of the Hoshidan Royalty Siblings to start out in a promoted class.
 * Ryoma placed as the 6th most popular male in the official character popularity poll held on the game's official site.
 * Ryoma placed 9th in the character popularity poll issued by Famitsu.
 * Ryoma placed 8th in the character popularity poll issued by Nintendo Dream, he was tied in this spot with Niles.
 * Ryoma shares his English voice actor, Matthew Mercer, with Azama, Shigure, and Chrom from Awakening.
 * Ryoma shares his Japanese voice actor, Yuichi Nakamura, with Barry Goodman from Tokyo Mirage Sessions ♯FE.
 * According to the Making of Fire Emblem 25th Anniversary Book Ryoma’s "mane" is apparently inspired by the headpiece worn by Takeda Shingen in a TV Drama Kozaki had watched before. In Ryoma’s case it’s his real hair, which then the interviewer commented over how some players were actually surprised to find out that it is actually his real hair when they met Ryoma in the bath house.
 * Ryoma shares his critical quote "You've breathed your last!" with his retainers Kagero and Saizo.
 * During Ryoma's english support conversation with Xander, there is a typo with Ryoma saying "Afer..." instead of "After".