Stefan

"You can learn the dance of blades from me without knowing my history, can you not? What say you? Let your heart decide."-Stefan to Ike

Stefan (ソーンバルケ, Sōnbaruke?) is a skilled swordsman who resides in a colony of Branded in the Grann Desert. It is strongly implied that he is descended from Soan, one of Ashera's three heroes: his Japanese name is very similar to Soan's, and his character ending describes him as "Lion-Blooded". After the events of the game, he establishes a settlement of Branded, which eventually grows into an independent nation. If Soren and Stefan have an A support at the game's end they will live together in the new colony. He is recruited in Path of Radiance by going two square left and 1 square down from the top right square in the chapter 15: The Feral Frontier. In Radiant Dawn, he is recruited by heading to the square 11 squares up and 1 square left from the lower right with Micaiah, Lethe, or Mordecai in Part 4, Chapter 3.

Personality
"I've always been a loner...never really cared for anyone. Life is a mysterious thing. Prince Kurthnaga, my friend. You can't die on me now. You are a friend, and I need you." - Stefan to Kurth with an A support

Stefan is a loner, and his life as branded has shapped his personality. The Branded often have capabilities far exceding that of any beorc. In Stefan's case it is his prowess with the blade. He knows much about swordsmanship and can judge anothers prowess very well, as in Path of Radiance he offers to teach Ike some, as he can tell by watching that Ike's style is powerful, but incomplete (the result being getting an occult scroll). In a special conversation in the battle with Homasa, Stefan reveals that he is very confident in his abilities and has respect for the lives of other fighters, in the conversation Homassa recognizes Stefan's skill as a fencer, but when Stefan suggests that Homassa steps down and not fight because his skill level is much lower then Stefan.

In supports with Soren it is revealed that Stefan dislikes both beorc and laguz because they shun the branded. He believes this to be the fate of all branded, and he believes they should become independent(although orginally he believed it might of been possible to live with Crimea and Gallia), hence he and other branded reside in the Grann Desert and Stefan acts as a hermit.

Because of this distate for most of the people of Tellius, the guise of the hermit was perfect as it allowed him to be a loner. He never made true connections with others in PoR, only acting as a teacher for Ike, a guide for Soren, and an exhanger of ideas with Mordecai, the one he becomes closest with. In Radiant Dawn, he can become friends with another character, something he finds odd as he never truly cared for another as his life was full of hate.

The isolation that being Branded caused him to understand things much better, and question normal thought. In his conversation with Mordecai in PoR, he questions if the goddess' laws are really what they interpert them to be. He interacts with Yune who doesn't understand what he is, as being Branded is not something the goddesses predicted, and Yune thought at first Micaiah was the only one, but then caught on that there were more. Stefan then laughs when Yune says there are no 'Goddess' Laws' saying that Beorc and Laguz cannot have children, which Stefan takes as a sign that all the pain and suffering was for nothing. This shows his humor is sadistic, and that he cares little for the goddesses.

Path Of Radiance
|Swordmaster |8 |38 |19 |8 |27 |25 |5 |12 |9 |7 |Sword

Radiant Dawn
|Trueblade |8 |53 |27 |7 |37 |36 |20 |21 |16 |7 |Sword