Greil

"Your voice... I remember you. Think you can defeat me, the man who taught you how to fight? Heh. What a fool. Come on boy, come try me!"

- Greil to the Black Knight, shortly before his defeat

Greil (グレイル Gureiru) is the father of Ike and Mist and the founder of the Greil Mercenaries. He was once known as General Gawain, one of Daein's 'Four Riders'. For a time, he and Elena lived peacefully in Gallia. During this time, they had two children, Ike and Mist. Greil also met Titania, who had been sent by Crimea to study in an officer exchange program. He is voiced by Takashi Nagasako in Japanese and Stephan Wayte in English.

Profile
Originally known as Gawain, he was one of the Four Riders of Daein, once called the "Divine Knight" (神騎将 Shinkishō lit. Divine Cavalry General). He was remembered as the premier swordsman of his generation and his name was famous throughout Tellius. It was during this time he trained Zelgius, who called Gawain "invincible" during this period. However, in the year 626 he fled his homeland with his fiancee, the priestess Elena, after she was entrusted with Lehran's Medallion, and the melody Galdr of Release by the heron Lillia, the elder sister of Prince Reyson. They lived in Gallia with Gawain taking on the name Greil, and it was there that Ike and Mist were born.

One day, tragedy struck when Greil made the mistake of taking hold of the medallion, and immediately went berserk. After engaging in a mindless slaughter, the medallion was eventually pulled from his grasp by Elena. When he returned to his sane mind, he found his wife impaled on his sword. After her death, he hired the assassin, Volke, for the purpose of killing him should he lose his mind again, and slashed the tendons on his dominant sword hand so that he would no longer be able to wield a sword. He entrusted the medallion to Mist, who had the same gentle spirit as her mother, and forbade Ike from ever touching the medallion himself.

Greil eventually founded the Greil Mercenaries and earned a living by performing tasks for various villages in Crimea. Sensing the danger that Daein posed upon news of the invasion, he quickly had Ike take on more responsibility within the company, and eventually fled with the mercenaries to Gallia in order to protect Princess Elincia from Daein during the Mad King's War.

Following Chapter 7, in the midst of the night, Greil engages in a duel with his former pupil from his days as General Gawain, the Black Knight. Ike shows up during the middle of the battle, when The Black Knight throws the sword Ragnell to Greil, saying that he wishes to fight General Gawain at his full strength. Greil tosses the sword aside, saying that he has thrown the name of Gawain away. He instead chooses to fight with his axe, Urvan. Ultimately losing to the Black Knight, Greil is mortally wounded and dies as Ike hauls him back to the mercenary encampment. In an A rank support between Ike and Titania, it is revealed that Titania loved Greil.

Boss Appearance

 * Prologue

Growth Rates (Unused)

 * 70%
 * 50%
 * 20%
 * 80%
 * 40%
 * 35%
 * 40%
 * 25%
 * }

Quotes
"Forget about revenge... Leave that knight alone... Stay away..."

- Greil, to Ike when he was defeated by the Black Knight

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Greil appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as a Sticker.

Sticker Info

Fire Emblem 0 (Cipher)
Greil is illustrated in the trading card game Fire Emblem Cipher with the following cards:

Etymology
'Greil' may refer to the 'Holy Grail' of Arthurian legend which Sir Perceval seeks.

'Gawain' is the name of King Arthur's nephew and most trusted knight. In earlier Arthurian stories he is portrayed as the quintessential knight, but in later versions his portrayals become more negative, especially in regard to his treatment of women. All sources agree that he is killed in Arthur's second-to-last battle against Mordred. Later writers say that his death there was due to a wound he had received from Lancelot (see Alondite). Gawain had challenged Lancelot because Lancelot accidentally killed Gawain's younger brother, Gareth. Interestingly, in legend Sir Gawain fights the Green Knight in a duel, whereas Greil fights the Black Knight.

Trivia

 * Ike's second coloration in the Super Smash Bros. series appears to be based off of Greil's outfit.