Ishtar

"I mean no disrespect... but do understand I take great pride in being a warlock of Freege. With the murder of my parents and my brother... it pains me to sit here doing nothing. Please allow me to fight!"

- Ishtar to Julius in the Final Chapter of Genealogy of the Holy War

Ishtar (イシュタル Ishutaru) is an enemy character from Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War. She is the daughter of Bloom and Hilda, as well as the sister of Ishtore. She is also the cousin of Arthur, Tine, Amid, and Linda, the niece of Tailtiu and Ethnia, and a granddaughter of Reptor.

Through her father, she is a descendant of Tordo who has inherited the ability to use the Mjölnir. From her mother's side, she is a descendant of Fala. As a result of her immense power, Ishtar is known as the Goddess of Thunder.

Profile
During her childhood, Reinhardt was assigned to be Ishtar's personal guard. While he became the first in command under her to the Gelben Ritter, she became a very powerful mage who is widely known for her skill with thunder magic.

Despite her mother's cruel treatment of Tine/Linda, Ishtar did not treat her with disdain, and instead did her best to comfort her in her times of need.

Some time before the Liberation War, Ishtar and the Imperial Prince Julius of Grannvale fell in love with each other. Her mother was very pleased with this relationship, as she wished to benefit from their union. After Julius received the book of Loptyr, he murdered his mother and tried to kill his sister, but his love for Ishtar never changed. Despite knowing what happened to him, she remained loyal to him and continued to love him. However, once he began performing the child hunts, she became shocked and attempted to convince him to stop. After Julius ignored her protests, Ishtar began to work with Emperor Arvis to secretly free the captured children.

Soon afterwards, while she and Julius are in Conote, he comes down with a high fever. She becomes very worried about him and travels to Leonster Castle to ask Bishop Saias to cure Julius of his illness. Around this point in time, Julius begins to notice Reinhardt's romantic feelings for Ishtar, which makes him extremely jealous and furious. He orders Ishtar to remove Reinhardt from his status, which she reluctantly agrees to, although she also begs Julius not to kill him. Afterwards, Ishtar and Julius travels to Miletos, where Hilda is currently residing.

Around this time, Ishtore and his lover, Liza, are killed by the Liberation Army led by Seliph, who soon recruits Tine/Linda into his army. While Bloom is saddened by both his son's death and his niece's betrayal, he summons Ishtar to Conote and begs her to protect him. Surprised by her father's panicking, Ishtar agrees to his pleas, but asks him to give her the Mjölnir before she leaves to fight the Liberation Army.

Despite her immense magical power, Ishtar is defeated by the Liberation Army, but before she could die, Julius suddenly appears and rescues her. This ultimately leaves Bloom with no one to protect him, and he is soon slain by the Liberation Army.

After recovering from her wounds, Ishtar is ordered by Julius to send the captured children to Belhalla Castle so that he could sacrifice them. She reluctantly obeys, and after his departure, Hilda reminds Ishtar that she is the best candidate for Julius's affections, urging her to marry him as soon as possible. Following this, she is commanded to travel to Miletos Castle and prepare the children to be sent to the capital.

In Miletos, Emperor Arvis asks Ishtar to free the children. However, Julius soon appears and informs him that she serves only him while also commanding him to leave. After this, Julius informs Ishtar that the Liberation Army had come to Miletos and proposes for them to play a game in which the victor is the first person to successfully kill an enemy soldier. After either of them are defeated or kill someone, they leave the battlefield together and travel to Belhalla.

In the Final Chapter, Ishtar learns that Hilda has been slain in battle against the Liberation Army, and as a result, she asks Julius for permission to lead the Weissen Ritter into battle. While he is reluctant at first, he agrees to it once she declares her love for him. Along with her, she takes the Falcon Knight sisters, Meng, Bleg, and Maybell. Ingnoring Tine's pleas for her to stop fighting, Ishtar ultimately dies fighting against the Liberation Army.

Personality
Ishtar has a complex personality and appears to be torn between duty and desire. Although she is a major antagonist, she is a kind and caring woman who is not cruel or ruthless in the least. Because of this, she is viewed positively by the people of the Friege region. Despite her undying loyalty to Julius, she is willing to defy his will behind his back, as seen when she helps the children who were captured in the child hunts.

Despite her lack of personal disdain towards them, Ishtar remains persistent in fighting against Seliph. Her love for Julius and her family are major factors that prevent her from defecting to the Liberation Army, despite Tine's efforts to convince her.

Stats

 * [[File:Minor Holy Blood Indicator.gif]] - Minor Holy Blood
 * [[File:Major Holy Blood Indicator.gif]] - Major Holy Blood
 * -|Chapter 8=


 * -|Chapter 10=


 * -|Final Chapter=

Overview
Ishtar appears to engage the player in battle three different times, specifically in Chapters 8, 10, and the Final Chapter. She is a force to be reckoned with in all three instances.

- In the first two encounters, Febail with the Yewfelle should be able to take her out in one hit. Additionally, if a staff user has a high enough magic stat, the Silence Staff can be used to cripple her. This allows you to attack her without fear of retaliation.

- In the final encounter, it is recommended to use the Forseti user to defeat her, or have Ced with at least 28 magic or more and a Magic Ring to silence her with the Silence Staff.

SpotPass
*Enemy only, joins unequipped

Battle Quotes
"I'm sorry about this... But you're gonna die! MJÖLNIR!!"

- Ishtar's battle quote in Chapter 8

"It seems I’ve won, Lord Julius."

- Ishtar's battle quote in Chapter 10

"No words from you… Just witness the wrath of the Goddess of Thunder!!"

- Ishtar's battle quote in the Final Chapter

Death/Defeat Quotes
"Ahh... Lord Julius..."

- Defeat quote in Chapter 8

"Eh? Why...?"

- Defeat quote in Chapter 10

"My Lord Julius...I..."

- Death quote in the Final Chapter

Etymology
Ishtar was the name of the Assyrian and Babylonian goddess of fertility, love, and war. She had many lovers, but because of her love for them, most of them met some form of misfortune. For example, her love for the god Tammuz led to his death.

It makes sense for Ishtar to be named after the goddess of love and war because of her love for Julius and her prowess on the battlefield. It should also be taken into account that Ishtar is called a goddess by the other people in the game. However, the role of the deity Ishtar and her lovers seem to be reversed in the game because it is Julius’ love for her that leads to her downfall instead of the other way around.

Trivia

 * The three Falcon Knights in Ishtar's SpotPass team in Fire Emblem Awakening represent Meng, Bleg, and Maybell.