Crest

"[They] are power incarnate. They are said to be bestowed upon humans by the goddess countless ages ago."

- Hanneman explaining Crests to Byleth.

Crests (紋章 Monshō, Crest) are a game mechanic introduced in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Similar to the Holy Blood from Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War, many of the nobility, who are descended from Fódlan's Ten Elites and Four Saints who fought during the War of Heroes, hail from families that bear Crests.

Overview
Believed to be blessings bestowed by the Goddess, Crests grant special powers to those who hold them such as high aptitude for magic, enhanced strength, and other boons that give them an edge over others. Crests are inherited by blood and thus recipients of Crests come from an ancestor who likewise had the same crest. That being said, not all descendants of a Crest holder will inherit their Crest and sometimes, Crests may skip generations, not appearing in one individual, but their children may inherit a Crest. Hanneman, an avid scholar of Crests, developed a device that can show an individual their Crest.

In Fódlan, Crests have had a significant impact on society. They are often seen as a sign of prestige and respect. Many noble houses value crests and are desperate to obtain one as a sign of their nobility. Some have been known to marry or adopt individuals of lesser houses or even commoners who have spontaneously inherited a Crest just to obtain one should their own heirs by birthright lack a Crest. The children of a Crest holder may not inherit a Crest, leading to power struggles within houses. Some houses are even known to completely disown all children who lack a Crest, even those older than the ones who did inherit one.

Crests are classified as either Major Crests that contain immense power, or Minor Crests that contain weaker power. Generally, it is believed that the stronger that a hero's blood runs within an heir, the higher the chance of that heir possessing a Major Crest. It is still possible for a child from a distant branch of a bloodline to be born with a Major Crest unexpectedly and it is unknown why this occurs.

In extremely rare instances, an individual may have two crests, though usually one is a Major Crest, while the other is a Minor Crest. Lysithea is one such individual, and she holds a Major Crest of Gloucester and a Minor Crest of Charon. However, these are not natural occurrences, but rather the results of inhumane experimentation to empower individuals with more crests. Such a procedure has a high failure rate as most attempts in the past wound up killing the test subject. In the rare instances where they are successful, there are various harmful side effects, including turning the individual's hair white and shortening their lifespan.

Several Crests appear prominently in the coat of arms and insignia throughout Fódlan: the Crest of Seiros for the Adrestian Empire and the Church of Seiros, the Crest of Blaiddyd for the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, and the Crests of Riegan, Goneril, Daphnel, and Gloucester for the Leicester Alliance. The Crests of Seiros, Blaiddyd, and Riegan are also used on the map of Fódlan to mark the domains of each country's ruling family.

Crests of the Ten Elites
&dagger; Indicates the holder of a Minor Crest. &Dagger; Indicates the holder of a Major Crest.

Crests of the Four Saints
&dagger; Indicates the holder of a Minor Crest. &Dagger; Indicates the holder of a Major Crest.

Crests of the Divine
&dagger; Indicates the holder of a Minor Crest. &Dagger; Indicates the holder of a Major Crest.

Crests Lost to History
&dagger; Indicates the holder of a Minor Crest. &Dagger; Indicates the holder of a Major Crest.