Byleth

"The glory of progress."

- Byleth upon learning a new skill

Byleth is a playable character and the main protagonist in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. As an Avatar, their name, gender, and birthday are customizable. Byleth serves as a professor at Garreg Mach Monastery. They possess the mysterious Crest of Flames and can wield the Sword of the Creator.

Profile
Born to Jeralt and his wife on the 20th of the Horsebow Moon 1159, Byleth lost their mother shortly after their birth. She was buried at Garreg Mach Monastery. Some time after her death, Jeralt left the Knights of Seiros, taking his newborn child with him to travel Fódlan, becoming a mercenary in the process and starting his own mercenary company.

The reason for Jeralt's departure began with the circumstances behind Byleth's birth. Byleth's mother was the twelfth created vessel intended to host the spirit of Sothis through her Crest of Flames. Like her predecessors, she too was unable to fully merge with Sothis. The vessel eventually fell in love with Jeralt, who had received Seiros's crest when Rhea, Seiros's current alias, gave him her blood after he took a mortal wound in her stead. The union of the vessel and inheritor of Seiros' crest resulted in the birth of Byleth. However, both the mother and child were too feeble, the latter especially having no heartbeat. Dying herself, the mother pleaded to Rhea to transfer the Crest of Flames into her newborn. The transplant was a success and the child was revived, but at the cost of the mother dying. Jeralt, shocked by his wife's death, had a doctor examine his newborn to discover that they had a pulse, but no heartbeat.

Jeralt's existing suspicions of Rhea grew after this event, especially with Byleth's unusual behavior, neither crying nor laughing as a baby. By Wyvern Moon 1159, Jeralt sought a way to leave Garreg Monastery and the Church of Seiros by any means. Starting a blaze, he used the event to claim that his child had perished in the blaze on the 7th day of the month. Supposedly heartbroken by the deaths of his wife and child, he left the Monastery and secretly took Byleth with him. He formed his own band of mercenaries mainly to mask his movement throughout Fódlan so spies of the Church of Seiros could not easily track him or his child.

During Byleth's childhood, Jeralt shared little information about the world, the Church of Seiros and especially his past. Byleth either forgot or never learned their true birthdate, Jeralt claiming they were born years after the fire to a woman who supposedly died of illness. Jeralt trained Byleth in combat, eventually joining his band of mercenaries and gaining a fearsome reputation for their unflinching courage in battle. They would soon be known as the "Ashen Demon" as a result.

Academy Phase
In recent times, Byleth has been having dreams of a young green-haired girl; however, when they inquire with Jeralt, he does not know anyone by the same description. Jeralt reminds Byleth that their next job will bring them to the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, but a sudden uproar occurs when three students from the Officers Academy, Edelgard, Dimitri, and Claude approach the two, asking for their assistance with bandits who are trying to kill and plunder the trio. The three lords, with the aid of Byleth and Jeralt manage to dispatch most of the bandits when their leader Kostas attempts to kill Edelgard, spurring Byleth to take a blow for her. Just as Byleth is about to die, time freezes and Byleth encounters the green-haired girl once more who chastises them for being reckless. Introducing herself as Sothis, a name she just recalled. She and Byleth realize that they can rewind time to prevent Byleth's impending demise. The flow of time reverses, and Byleth is able to push Edelgard out of the way and disarm Kostas, quelling the remaining bandits.

Reinforcements arrive from the Knights of Seiros shortly afterwards and one of its members, Alois, recognizes Jeralt. He invites the two to visit Garreg Mach Monastery and they comply. Before departing, Byleth converses with the trio from earlier, each impressed by their skill. They extend invitations to join the service of their respective kingdoms and Byleth expresses interest in one of them. Given the journey ahead, the trio get to know Byleth in order to sway them over to their side.

The Archbishop of the Church of Seiros, Rhea thanks Byleth for saving the students. Impressed by their skill, she hires them to become a professor of the students as a vacancy had just opened up. Despite Jeralt's wariness, Byleth accepts the position after Jeralt himself is asked to rejoin the Knights of Seiros. One of Byleth's fellow professors Hanneman asks Byleth to use his special device to determine if they hold a crest. To both their astonishment, not only does Byleth have a crest, but also it is a crest never seen before.

After taking time to talk to the three house leaders and learning more about the students in each of their houses, Byleth chooses one of them to serve as professor. This choice does not change much of the Academy Phase's storyline as the events of this phase are shared.

As part of their duties, Officer Academy students are given tasks each month by the Church. The first month, the Great Tree Moon has no formal mission for the students, just an annual house mock battle competition between the three houses. Through Byleth's leadership, their class emerges victorious. The Harpstring Moon marks the first formal mission that Byleth's class receives. Tasked with dispatching bandits at Zanado, the battle serves as the first real taste of combat to the students. This battle would mark the beginning of a long string of events behind a greater conspiracy.

The Garland Moon has Byleth's class tasked with quelling a rebellion staged by members of the Western Church who have begun rebellion against the Church of Seiros. Byleth's class faces off against one of the rebellion's leaders, lord Lonato in a misty forest. The battle ends with Lonato's death.

During the Blue Moon, defectors of the Western Church invade the Holy Mausoleum in order to steal the holy corpse of Seiros. Though the Death Knight, a mysterious yet powerful knight, is among their forces, he does not fight alongside them and retreats when most of them are defeated, leaving the leader to desperately open Seiros's tomb, only to find a sword inside. Byleth disarms him and claims the sword. The sword responds to Byleth, allowing them to kill the leader. In the aftermath, Rhea is astounded that the sword, known as the Sword of the Creator, has reacted to Byleth as the last person to use it was Nemesis, who held the Crest of Flames. Despite not knowing how Byleth inherited his crest, said to have been lost to history since he had no descendants, she entrusts it to Byleth as they are the sole person able to draw out its power.

The Verdant Rain Moon has Byleth visiting their mother's grave with Jeralt for the first time since coming to the Monastery. He shows Byleth a ring he had given to their mother and promises to give it to them one day so they in turn can give it to someone they love. Byleth's class is tasked with recovering a Heroes Relic, a weapon said to have been forged by the Goddess herself like the Sword of the Creator. The relic was stolen from House Gautier by its eldest son Miklan who was disowned for not having a crest. Byleth's class is able to suppress the bandits with help from Knight of Seiros member Gilbert, leaving only Miklan left. Miklan attempts to draw out the power of the Lance of Ruin, but lacking a Crest, the lance rejects him, transforming him into a Demonic Beast. It takes the entire class to take down the beast, leaving behind the lance and corpse of Miklan. The lance is safely returned to House Gautier, though Byleth and the house leader are left to ponder the true nature of the Crests and Hero's Relics.

One free day, Byleth and Sothis spend some time trying to uncover more about her origins in their Paralogue, traveling to Zanado, a place of importance to Sothis, though she does not know why. While lost in thought, they are attacked by Demonic Beasts, though they are saved by their students who had trailed them.

During the Horsebow Moon, Flayn is kidnapped, supposedly by a reaper who appears only at night. At the end of the month, Byleth discovers a hidden passage in Jeritza's room as well as a wounded and unconscious Manuela. While the house leader takes Manuela to the infirmary, the rest of the class dispatches the Death Knight's forces and is able to rescue Flayn after the mysterious Flame Emperor forces him to retreat. Byleth also discovers a Black Eagles student named Monica who had gone missing the previous year.

The Wyvern Moon gives the students a break from their monthly missions for another house mock battle competition, this time with slightly higher stakes and prizes to the winner. Despite the improvements of the others house, they are all ultimately no match for Byleth's. During the month, after a heart-to-heart session, Jeralt tells Byleth to search his office for something important in the event that he dies on a mission.

Near the end of the Guardian Moon, several Academy students go missing when exploring a nearby abandoned chapel. Byleth, their class, and Jeralt investigates the ruins only to find several students attacked by monsters. They are able to defeat the monsters, but it is revealed that the beasts were actually transformed students. Among the students rescued was Monica who thanks Jeralt. However, with his back turned, Monica takes out a dagger and plunges it into his back. Byleth desperately uses Divine Pulse in order to prevent his death, but Thales appears in the rewound time and deflects Byleth's attempt to stop Monica. Unable to stop his assassination, Byleth holds Jeralt as he dies, crying for the first time. In the aftermath, Byleth kept grieving, until the house leader comforts them and implores them to keep moving forward as Jeralt would have wanted.

Honoring their father's late request, Byleth uncovers his diary, recounting his growing distrust in the Church and Rhea as well as Byleth's infancy. He also left behind his wife's ring, which he wanted Byleth to give to their lover when the time came for them to find their own happiness.

After learning the whereabouts of Kronya, their father's killer, Byleth confronts her in the Sealed Forest, bent on revenge, and with the assistance of the class they are instructing, they are able to corner her. However, Solon appears and sacrifices Kronya to activate a ritual, sending Byleth into a dark void. As Byleth and Sothis are left helpless, Sothis remembers that she is, in reality, the progenitor god of Fódlan herself. With no other means to escape, Sothis volunteers to merge with Byleth, granting them the full extent of her powers, but at the cost of her consciousness disappearing from them. Their resulting fusion causes a surge of power to erupt around them, turning their hair light green and unlocking the true power of the Sword of the Creator. The sword is able to cleave a portal back into Fódlan and Byleth uses it to kill Solon.

Upon returning to the monastery, Rhea leads Byleth to the Holy Tomb to sit on the throne to awaken their true power. Suddenly, the Holy Tomb is besieged by the Flame Emperor and some hired bandits determined to steal the Crest Stones stored there. Byleth's class is able to stop most of the bandits and recovers as many Crest Stones as they can. Left with the Flame Emperor, during a great clash, the mask of the Emperor is knocked off, revealing that Edelgard has been the Flame Emperor the entire time.

The events of the story of Three Houses differ greatly from this point. If the Blue Lions were chosen, the Azure Moon plot starts from here. If the Golden Deer were chosen, the Verdant Winds plot starts from here.

If the Black Eagles were chosen, two separate paths occur from this point. If Byleth decided to attend Edelgard's coronation as Emperor of the Adrestian Empire, they are given the option to either continue to fight for the Church of Seiros and Rhea or defect and fight for Edelgard's cause, leading to the Silver Snow or Crimson Flower chapters respectively.

Silver Snow
If Byleth remains true to Rhea and the Church of Seiros, they will attempt to defend Rhea during the Adrestian Empire's surprise assault on the monastery before being knocked into a ravine by a magical blast. Five years later, they lead the rebuilding of the Church Forces at Garreg Mach Monastery into a resistance army capable of standing against the Adrestian Empire and saving Rhea.

Byleth leads the resistance army to Enbarr and defeat the empire with the deaths of Hubert and Edelgard. Edelgard, in her final moments, states that for the war to end, Byleth must kill her, and Byleth personally executes her. They then learn, in a posthumous letter from Hubert, of the location where Rhea has been held in confinement for five years, as well as the existence of Those Who Slither in the Dark, who reside in Shambhala. Hubert's letter states that the land will not know peace as long as Those Who Slither remain a threat, and thus Byleth leads their army to Shambhala. Rhea, still ailing from her years of confinement, insists on seeing the enemy for herself and travels with them.

At Shambhala, Byleth defeats Thales, who in his last moments triggers a last-ditch assault of Pillars of Light. Rhea takes the form of The Immaculate One in an effort to staunch the assault and protect Byleth and the Church forces, and is gravely injured in the process. However, with the Empire and Those Who Slither in the Dark both defeated, the Church is able to begin coalescing the fragments of the former Empire, Kingdom, and Alliance into a singular nation that the Church asks Byleth to lead, as it is feared that the stresses and injuries that Rhea has endured leaves her without much time left. When Byleth has had time to ponder their decision, they approach Rhea, who asks that they first listen to what she has to say.

Rhea apologizes to Byleth personally, and explains that it was her actions that made Byleth who they are. In her desire to see her mother Sothis again, she engaged in experiments, attempting to create a vessel for the goddess. Her twelfth attempt, a failure like those before, was a young woman with the Crest Stone of the progenitor goddess planted in her heart. The woman grew up without any signs that the goddess inhabited her, and eventually fell in love with Jeralt, who by that time had Rhea's blood transfused into him. In their union, the woman grew pregnant with Byleth, but at birth, Byleth was stillborn, and their mother was on the verge of death, as well.

Byleth's mother pleaded for Rhea to save the baby, and Rhea did as she wished. She removed the Crest Stone from the woman's heart, and implanted into Byleth's still heart. Byleth was given life and a pulse, but lacked a heartbeat or the ability to express emotion. Despite this, Rhea kept her deeds a secret from Jeralt, who came to suspect her of ulterior motives and never realized that if Rhea hadn't acted, Byleth would have remained dead at birth.

As Rhea concludes her explanation and her apology, her weakened body gives out, and she is consumed by the power of The Immaculate One. Driven into a violent, uncontrolled frenzy, she becomes a threat to the whole land, and Byleth is forced to lead their forces into battle one more time to stop her. Once they defeat her, she is returned to herself, and she sees her mother in Byleth before she passes. If Byleth has obtained an A-Rank or higher support with Rhea, then she survives the battle. Regardless of her fate, the Church of Seiros forms the United Kingdom of Fodlan and crowns Byleth as it's ruler.

Azure Moon
A month prior, the Pegasus Moon has a grand ball held for the three houses to dance with one another. That night the Blue Lions gather to reminisce their year. They soon realize that their time in the school would only last for a little while longer, they all decided that the would meet again together as a class in five years for the Millennium Festival. Dimitri, alone with Byleth, reveals that he and Edelgard are step-siblings, though they only spent a short time together. Before she left, he gifted her a dagger as a present. Nearby, he catches a glimpse of the Flame Emperor conversing with Thales. When he steps in to confront them, the two teleport away, but Dimitri discovers a dagger on the ground where the Flame Emperor was.

The revelation of the Flame Emperor's identity as Edelgard causes Dimitri to snap as his suspicions were confirmed that the two were one. Having believed to have caused the Tragedy of Duscur which resulted in the death of his father, his step-mother (Edelgard's birth mother), and countless others, Dimitri flies into a berserker's rage that not even Byleth can quell.

Her intentions revealed, Edelgard retreats and her first act as new Emperor of Adrestia is to declare war on the Church of Seiros. Byleth leads the Blue Lions as the first line of defense against the Empire, even facing off against Edelgard herself. Edelgard regrets not having Byleth on her side and the two clash, but Byleth emerges victorious. A sudden second wave of Adrestian soldiers charge the castle and its worn soldiers, forcing Rhea to unleash her true form as a dragon. Seeing her struggle against Demonic Beasts, Byleth goes against her orders and tries to help her. Thales appears on the battlefield and casts an orb of magic, causing Byleth to plummet over a cliff into the valley below the monastery. Eventually the Monastery loses the battle and the students, faculty, and knights are forced to evacuate, especially with Rhea and Byleth both going missing in the aftermath. Many would search for them, but none were able to find Byleth's body.

Byleth survived, being discovered in a river near a village where a villager informs them that five years had passed. Heading back to the Monastery, now in ruins, they find a solitary figure, a battle-worn Dimitri. The five years has changed the once chivalrous prince into a ruthless and cold warrior. Believing Byleth to be yet another specter of an important loved one he failed to protect, Dimitri heads into a local village near the monastery that had been pillaged by bandits, bent on dealing justice to them. Byleth follows him and the two fight off a horde of bandits. As the battle unfolds, Gilbert and the Blue Lion core members join the fray, fulfilling their promise to reunite. The Blue Lions are elated to have found not only Dimitri, but also Byleth who was missing for years. The sole member still missing is Dedue, who was supposedly executed after helping Dimitri escape the Kingdom after he was sentenced to death by the Kingdom's current leader, Cornelia.

With the Monastery back under their control, the use it as their base of operations as they seek assistance from the few Kingdom nobility resisting Cornelia's rule and plot to kill Edelgard to stop her conquest. Dimitri, consumed by his quest for vengeance, leads the army into aggressive battles against Imperial Forces. Their first battle is against an Imperial force tasked with scouting the Monastery after rumors of its reconstruction have begun to spread. The force's leader, Randolph is captured leading to a conversation between Dimitri and him over the sophism of their actions. While Dimitri planned on slowly torturing him, Byleth grants Randolph a mercy kill to spare him of further suffering.

Byleth follows along with Dimitri's initial goals to attack the Empire, but the prince's actions become more and more reckless. Due to both Gilbert's wisdom and Byleth's guidance, Dimitri's choices are mitigated enough that the others are not put entirely at risk. Felix's father, Rodrigue later joins, providing support to Dimitri's cause and becoming another source of guidance for him. If Dedue's paralogue has been completed, it is revealed that he is alive after rescuing Dimitri thanks to the help of the Duscur men he helped to save five years prior. With the full Blue Lions house reunited and the Great Bridge of Myrddin under their army's control, the event forces the Empire and Alliance to meet Byleth and Dimitri's army at Gronder Field in a situation that echoed the mock battle from five years prior. The clash of the three armies leads to many casualties, but the Blue Lions emerge victorious, forcing Claude to retreat and Edelgard severely wounded, but is able to escape. Dimitri vows to chase after her by himself but Byleth, Gilbert, and Rodrigue stop him from going off on his self-imposed suicide mission.

Suddenly a young girl rushes onto the battlefield and attacks Dimitri, inflicting a heavy wound. Just as she is about to deal the killing blow, Rodrigue steps in and sacrifices himself, allowing Byleth the opportunity to kill Fleche. This moment becomes a turning point for Dimitri as Rodrigue absolves Dimitri of any guilt that he may have imposed on himself by the deceased. As a heavy rain falls, Dimitri is left to wonder about his purpose. Byleth extends their hand to him, offering to continue to guide him on his path as his teacher. With the weight lifted from his shoulders, Dimitri returns to his old self and becomes more objective in his goals. He decides to first restore the rule of Kingdom back into his hands, killing Cornelia and formally claiming his birthright. Though he is nervous to greet the masses, Byleth encourages him to face them and Dimitri finds the people of Faerghus eager to see the return of the true king.

With the Kingdom back in their hands, they receive a call for help by Claude against an impending Imperial invasion of the Alliance territory. Heeding his request, Byleth and Dimitri lead the Blue Lions in quelling the invasion. Grateful for their rescue, Claude announces that the Alliance has formally disbanded with the intention of merging with Faerghus. Dimitri accepts his offer and receives Failnaught to use in his cause as Claude departs Fódlan to take care of personal business in Almyra. With even more forces at his disposal, Dimitri begins the assault on the Adrestian Empire to stop Edelgard, though this time, he is willing to parley with Edelgard. Claiming Fort Merceus by defeating the Death Knight, Dimitri dispatches a messenger to Edelgard, asking her to parley with him in person. Edelgard heeds the request and meets him and Byleth. Edelgard declares her vision for Fódlan and refuses to ally with Dimitri. Heartbroken that the two must cross blades, Dimitri returns the dagger she dropped five years earlier and the two depart ways to prepare for their final battle.

The assault on Enbarr marks the start of the final battle as the Kingdom army overwhelms the Empire's forces, including Hubert who is killed in the battle. Cornered in the castle, Edelgard unleashes her dual crests, transforming her into a Hegemon Husk, granting her incredible power. The combined forces of Byleth, Dimitri, and the Blue Lions eventually take down Edelgard, causing her transformation to dispel. Left mortally wounded, Dimitri offers her hand and another opportunity to help him build a better future for Fódlan. Edelgard instead throws the dagger at Dimitri, striking his shoulder just as he stabs her with Areadbhar, killing her. The duo depart the empire having ended Edelgard's ambitions. With the war over, Rhea, weakened by her time in imprisonment, steps down as Archbishop while Byleth assumes the title, leading the Church of Seiros. Dimitri formally becomes king of Faerghus, now comprised of the entirety of Fódlan. The former teacher and student help to lead Fódlan into a better future.

Verdant Wind
With her intentions revealed, Edelgard becomes the new Emperor of Adrestia and her first act is to declare war on the Church of Seiros. Byleth leads the Golden Deer house as the first line of defense against the Empire, even facing off against Edelgard herself. Edelgard regrets not having Byleth on her side and the two clash, but Byleth emerges victorious. A sudden second wave of Adrestian soldiers charge the castle and its worn soldiers, forcing Rhea to unleash her true form as a dragon. Seeing her struggle against Demonic Beasts, Byleth goes against her orders and tries to help her. Thales appears on the battlefield and casts an orb of magic, causing Byleth to plummet over a cliff into the valley below the monastery. Eventually the Monastery loses the battle and the students, faculty, and knights are forced to evacuate, especially with Rhea and Byleth both going missing in the aftermath. Many would search for them, but none were able to find Byleth's body.

Byleth survived, being discovered in a river near a village where a villager informs them that five years had passed. Heading back to the Monastery, now in ruins, they find Claude, now leader of the Leicester Alliance, waiting for them. Claude informs Byleth what has happened to Garreg Mach during the five years they were gone and the two share a meal together. Waiting for the other students to turn up to the five-year reunion, the two explore the ruins of the monastery and come across a group of bandits pillaging a local village, leading to a fight. As the battle unfolds, the Golden Deer core members join the fray, fulfilling their promise to reunite, and are elated to see that their old professor is alive.

With the Monastery back under their control and the return of the Knights of Seiros, the two parties form an alliance and use it as their base of operations as Claude suggests leading an army capable of standing against the Adrestian Empire and saving Rhea. Despite Byleth's hesitance to join the Alliance's cause, Claude convinces them to stay to protect their students and to find out more about themselves by finding Rhea with their old class. Fighting under the banner of the Crest of Flames, Byleth and Claude's army successfully repels an Imperial incursions into Garreg Mach, meets with Judith at Ailell to bolster their numbers, and capture the Great Bridge of Myrddin to settle internal divisions within the Alliance and unify the nation's full might.

Upon entering the Empire and arriving at Gronder Field, the Alliance army meets the Imperial army led by Edelgard and a Kingdom army led by Dimitri, presumed dead after the coup in Fhirdiad, and emerges victorious after a gruesome three-way battle, with Edelgard wounded and forced to retreat to Enbarr and Dimitri meeting his end in pursuit of Edelgard. The Alliance army then pushes their momentum and captures Fort Merceus, the greatest obstacle on the way to the Imperial capital, but javelins of light fall and destroy the fortress, forcing the Alliance to regroup elsewhere.

Byleth leads the Alliance army to Enbarr and defeat the Empire with the deaths of Hubert and Edelgard. In her final moments, Edelgard states that for the war to end, Byleth must kill her, and Byleth personally executes her. They and Claude then learn, in a posthumous letter from Hubert, of the location where Rhea has been held in confinement for five years, as well as the existence of Those Who Slither in the Dark, who reside in Shambhala. Hubert's letter states that the land will not know peace as long as Those Who Slither remain a threat, and thus Byleth leads their army to Shambhala. Rhea, still ailing from her years of confinement, insists on seeing the enemy for herself and travels with them.

At Shambhala, Byleth defeats Thales, who in his last moments triggers a last-ditch assault of Pillars of Light. Rhea takes the form of The Immaculate One in an effort to staunch the assault and protect Byleth and the Alliance forces, and is gravely injured in the process. However, with the Empire and Those Who Slither in the Dark both defeated, the Leicester Alliance forms into a singular nation. With the stresses and injuries that Rhea has endured leaves her without much time left, Byleth and Claude approach her when the situation has calmed down, determined to find out the truth about everything.

Rhea apologizes to Byleth personally, and tells Byleth and Claude the truth about herself, the goddess, Agarthans, Nemesis, the Ten Elites, and the origins of Crests and the Heroes' Relics.

As Rhea concludes her explanation and her apology, a soldier arrives and informs them of an unidentified military force is attacking from the east and approaching Garreg Mach, with the leader wielding the Sword of the Creator and flying a banner bearing the Crest of Flames. Rhea quickly puts together that the leader is Nemesis himself and tells Byleth to put an end to Fódlan's blood-stained history. After a fierce battle against the resurrected Nemesis and the Ten Elites, Byleth deals the final blow and slays Nemesis, causing the ancient army to disappear like ash. Whether Rhea passed away or is simply too injuried to rule is left ambiguous and the Church of Seiros forms the United Kingdom of Fódlan, crowning Byleth as its ruler.

Crimson Flower
Byleth grows close to the Black Eagles house, particularly to house leader Edelgard. Should they forge a strong enough bond with her, she asks them to accompany her on a week trip to the Empire where she formally ascends the Adrestian Empire's throne as its new Emperor.

After being unmasked in the Holy Tomb, Edelgard is shocked, but elated when Byleth chooses to ally with her. Incurring Rhea's fury, they retreat to the empire, where they launch an attack on the monastery. Though they defeat the Church's soldiers, Rhea transforms into The Immaculate One and launches a fireball at Byleth, sending them into a coma and their students are unable to find them, but still hope they are still alive.

Five years later, Byleth is woken by a villager who found them drifting along a river, and they immediately head back to the monastery despite his warnings the monastery is occupied by Imperial forces. They make their way to the Goddess Tower and find Edelgard, who is shocked and elated to see they are alive and well. Edelgard brings them up to date with all the events they have missed since then, before bringing them to the rest of Black Eagle Strike Force, all of whom are happy to see their professor safe and sound. Byleth's presence allows Edelgard to end the three-way stalemate between the warring factions, and they make numerous gains over their enemies.

In the final battle, Rhea transforms into her dragon form in hopes of killing Byleth and reclaiming the Crest of Flames that they bear. A brutal battle ensues, but Byleth and Edelgard are able to kill Rhea. Suddenly, Byleth collapses and when Edelgard checks their heart, she hears no pulse. As she weeps for her teacher, the Crest of Flames dissolves from their heart and for the first time, their heart begins to beat as Sothis's power vanishes. With the Church of Seiros formally dissolved and control of Fódlan in Adrestian hands, the continent begins to see huge reforms under Edelgard's rule. Though they have lost the power of Sothis, Byleth spends the rest of their life to end Those Who Slither in the Dark and become a lifelong confidant to Edelgard.

Personality
Byleth has a very subdued personality and has difficulty expressing emotion. Even as a newborn, they neither laughed nor cried. People they are especially close to, such as Jeralt, are able to tell how they are feeling despite their limited emotional visualizations. A handful of their students note that their outward expressions hardly vary. Some express surprise whenever they simply smile. According to Alois, this trait of theirs may in part come from their father, as Jeralt does not show his emotions easily either and can also be difficult to read. Due to Jeralt concealing a lot of information about the world, they are curious about the influence of the Church of Seiros, the mystery of the Crests, and the dynamic of the three nations.

Their stoic demeanor slowly changes over the course of the Academy phase. Jeralt notices that they have become more expressive over the first few months, likely a result of the bonds they have formed with their students. Despite appearing indifferent, Byleth can be perceptive of their students and fellow faculty's problems and serve as a great source of emotional support for their issues. As the story unfolds, their emotions become more dynamic including feeling true sorrow, vengeance, and happiness.

Byleth has somewhat of a reputation from their earlier years in their father's mercenary corps for being a fearless and skilled warrior, gaining the moniker of 'Ashen Demon', due to their ruthless nature in combat. The three house leaders of the Officer's Academy attest to their martial prowess and have deep, profound respect for their abilities and guidance in battle and in the classroom. They alongside the other students continue to refer to them as teacher or professor even after the time-skip. The three house leaders also deeply regret that Byleth had not chosen their house if they are not teaching theirs, seeing the value in their strengths.

According to Female Byleth in Heroes, she does not actually know the distinction between a friend and an ally due to their unusual childhood. Nevertheless, they are well liked by the student body, even those not in in their initial house. Their wisdom ultimately shapes the outcome of the events of Three Houses providing council and guidance to the house leader they chose to teach, helping to shape them into better warriors and leaders. Several students can develop an interest in them and eventually switch over to their house if not already in them. This results in them also joining their faction during the War, even those from enemy nations defecting to their cause, thus changing their fate. Those who do not join will often express regret facing them in battle. However, some students and faculty members, especially in the Crimson Flower route, will instead express outrage at them, vowing to kill them by their own hands.

Growth Rates

 * 45%
 * 45%
 * 35%
 * 45%
 * 45%
 * 45%
 * 35%
 * 30%
 * 45%
 * }

Maximum Stats

 * 88
 * 77
 * 55
 * 66
 * 66
 * 66
 * 55
 * 55
 * 99
 * }

Learnt Magic

 * D
 * Fire
 * Heal
 * D+
 * Thunder
 * Nosferatu
 * C
 * Bolganone
 * Recover
 * C+
 * B
 * B+
 * A
 * Ragnarok
 * Aura
 * A+
 * }
 * B+
 * A
 * Ragnarok
 * Aura
 * A+
 * }
 * A
 * Ragnarok
 * Aura
 * A+
 * }
 * A+
 * }
 * }
 * }

Overall
Byleth has flat stats across the board with no particularly abysmal growths save for the low 30% growth in Resistance and slightly higher 35% growths in Magic and Defense. With every other stat having a 45% growth, Byleth is a flexible unit and a potent fighter regardless of whatever class they are put in, though they have an emphasis on physical classes due to the stronger Strength growths. Their personal skill Teacher's Guidance initially gives Byleth and any adjacent ally a 20% Exp boost during combat, giving them perfect utility in strengthening their allies. After the timeskip, Byleth and their adjacent allies also gains a +2 damage boost to their attacks. Byleth's role as the main character does mean that while they are potent, they still need some level of caution used as when they fall, it instantly causes Divine Pulse to activate, thus using one of the charges.

Byleth is one of the best Battalion users as their Charm growth is the easiest to improve. By using Tea Times and choosing the correct topics, they can gain 1 Charm point at the end. Byleth also can easily make usage of Faculty Tutoring to improve specific subjects. With proper planning, this makes recruiting students from other houses much easier without having to use any of the subjects during battles.

Byleth's spell pool is fairly average with a mixture of damage from their Reason list consisting mainly of Fire based spells and a both offensive and utility Faith spells, which gives them option if using magic based classes.

Byleth's subject strengths are in Sword, Brawl, and Authority, the three of which syncs naturally with their exclusive story promotion Enlightened One. They also have a Budding Talent in Faith, granting White Magic Avoid +20 giving them extra avoid when equipped with a Faith spell. With no Subject Weakness, Byleth can apply themselves into any class possible, depending on player preference and gender.

Intially, Byleth should master the Commoner class for more early game survival via HP+5. Physically oriented Byleths should then master the Soldier class and then Brigand, as the former has the best positioning combat art that will likely stay useful through out the playthrough, and the latter grants the ubiquious Death Blow.

Magically oriented Byleths should go through the Monk class and master Mage for Fiendish Blow subsequently.

Physical Byleths can then choose to master Mercenary and Warrior for Vantage and Wrath respectively, which when combined with the male only class War Master's passives and master ability, will make him a force to be reconded with on both player and enemy turns. War Master is also the arguably best physical master tier class in the game so it is defiently worth considering as M!Byleths final class. Another option on Maddening difficulty is Grappler for its unique combat art which hits 3 times, which makes it possible to curcumvent the skyhigh speed stats enemies have on that diffuculty.

Female Byleths will have access to the Vantage Wrath combo above, but lack access to War Master and thus need to contend with other classes. If a penchant for flying is desired by the player she can fit easily into Pegasus Knight, Wyvern Rider and eventually either Wyvern Lord or Falcon Knight. Alternatively she can combine the Aegis and Pavise skills as well as Darting Blow and Desperation to make for a speedy tank type character, where Darting Blow and potentially Weigth -3 or 5 offset the malus the armour and cavalry glasses impose on her speed growth.

Female Byleth will also make for the more effective mage of the two, as she can eventually promote into the Gremory class, doubling he spell uses of any kind. Attaining the S and S+ ranks in both schools of magic will afford her both Tomefaires, as well as range extending skills, so the use of a Knowledge Gem is advised. Darting Blow and Weight -3 or 5 can also be used here effectivly in order to offset the weight penalties of her spells.

Supports
Like previous Avatars, Byleth is able to form supports with every character in game, including both Rhea and Sothis who are only able to support with them. They are also the only character in-game that is able to form an S-Support with their partner. Each gender of Byleth is able to S-Support with all characters of the opposite gender. Male Byleth can form a same-sex S-Support with Linhardt, Jeritza, Yuri , Gilbert, and Alois. Female Byleth can do the same with Edelgard, Dorothea, Mercedes, Sothis, and Rhea.

Fire Emblem Heroes

 * -|Male=
 * Tested Professor
 * Child of the former captain of the Knights of Seiros, Jeralt. A stoic, capable professor at the Officers Academy. Appears in Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

Base Stats
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯

Base Set
For those who owned Three Houses within the first year of its release quickly obtained a useful sword unit as a free gift. While he may face stiff competition among an already extensive existing pool of sword units, Male Byleth is a worthy contender off the gate. His stats are mainly well balanced with particularly strong offensive stats and workable physical bulk. While he may lack resistance, it hardly affects his overall performance.

What sets Male Byleth out from the rest is mainly his weapon, the Creator Sword. It packs three powerful effects starting with a special cooldown acceleration which is a fairly standard skill on many weapons already, but it works to his advantage nonetheless. Next is essentially Null Follow-Up, preventing the opponent skills that grant follow-ups like Quick Riposte or those that stop Byleth's follow up like Wary Fighter, stopping many hyper offense characters and most stalwart walls. Last is the negation of enemy special cooldown acceleration skills or skills that slows down Byleth's. The weapon alone grants huge benefits to Byleth and makes him a terrifying offensive unit.

Male Byleth's other unique skill is Ruptured Heaven, boosting his Atk by 20% of his foe's Attack. This allows him to turn the enemy's high Atk against them to power up his own assaults. This bonus is further boosted to a 40% boost if he is battling a Dragon unit such as Tiki or either Grima Robin. Byleth's damage output can be inconsistent against some enemies as a result of borrowing their Atk, but against most Arena and Aether Raid enemies, he can unleash terrifying damage on top of his already solid offense.

Male Byleth packs Distant Counter, preventing most mages from engaging him safely without taking some powerful, sometimes fatal, damage in return. Chill Speed weakens the enemy with the highest Spd on the enemy team, thus can let him double them when applied properly. Odd Speed Wave gives him a +6 Spd boost, granting him a 44 neutral Spd stat on even turns, much faster than most of the unmerged meta.

Counters
Male Byleth has very few counters as mostly bulky blues can wall him like Fallen Hardin or Brave Hector, though he does negate any of their follow-up skills. With their high Atk, they still can take notable damage despite their bulk if he manages to activate Ruptured Heaven, but they are among the most solid options to counter him. Mages with enough buffs can simply nuke him in a single cast before he can retaliate. In particular, Ophelia can do this with her AoE special charged as can Lilina if she also runs an AoE special. Staff users with Dazzling Staff/Wrathful Staff can also safely engage him without worry of retaliation, applying the usual chip damage expected of them. He also lacks HP and Res to overcome most Panic and Ploy users as well, making him vulnerable to debuffs.

Skill Inheritance
Male Byleth is already good to go from the start but the standard Reposition is highly recommended to give him a positioning ability should he not be in range to initiate an attack and instead set up a bait.

While he is vulnerable to staff users as mentioned above, he can inherit Null C-Disrupt to stop such enemies from getting free hits on him and shores up one of the main weakness in his base kit. Otherwise, improving his offense is a good option such as Wrath.


 * -|Female=
 * Proven Professor
 * Child of the former captain of the Knights of Seiros, Jeralt. A stoic, capable professor at the Officers Academy. Appears in Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

Base Stats
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯

Base Set
Female Byleth is near identical to her male counterpart as they both hold solid offensive stats and physical bulk, but are low in Res. The differences between the two are minimal at best, but she does have slightly better Spd and Res than him while Male Byleth has slightly better Atk and Def. On a technical level, the performance differences mainly come down to Female Byleth stopping follow-up attacks from some of the fastest units in the game and naturally doubling over more uwhile Male Byleth hits slightly harder and can take a few more physical hits. While some may choose to ignore her since Male Byleth already exists in their roster without having to summon him, she is simply too powerful of an asset to not try to acquire and train.

She has the Creator Sword like her male counterpart. It packs three powerful effects starting with a special cooldown acceleration which is a fairly standard skill on many weapons already, but it works to her advantage nonetheless. Next is essentially Null Follow-Up, preventing the opponent skills that grant follow-ups like Quick Riposte or those that stop Byleth's follow up like Wary Fighter, stopping many hyper offense characters and most stalwart walls. Last is the negation of enemy special cooldown acceleration skills or skills that slows down Byleth's. The weapon alone grants huge benefits to Byleth and makes her a terrifying offensive unit.

Female Byleth's other unique skill is Ruptured Heaven, boosting their Atk by 20% of their foe's Attack. This allows her to turn the enemy's high Atk against them to power up her own assaults. This bonus is further boosted to a 40% boost if she is battling a Dragon unit such as Tiki or either Grima Robin. Byleth's damage output can be inconsistent against some enemies as a result of borrowing their Atk, but against most Arena and Aether Raid enemies, she can unleash terrifying damage on top of her already solid offense.

Female Byleth's base heavily deviates from her male counterpart as she packs Fury 4, boosting her already impressive stats with a flat +4 stat boost at the cost of 8 recoil damage after every fight. This plays greatly into her Wrath skill, further accelerating her special and adding a vicious +10 damage when it activates. Even Attack Wave boosts her Atk by 6 on even turns, bringing her neutral Atk to 56 for outstanding damage output.

Counters
Female Byleth has very few counters as mostly bulky blues can wall her like Fallen Hardin or Brave Hector, though she does negate any of their follow-up skills. With their high Atk, they still can take notable damage despite their bulk if she manages to activate Ruptured Heaven with her Wrath activated, but they are among the most solid options to counter her. Mages with enough buffs can simply nuke her in a single cast, especially if she does not have Distant Counter Inherited. In particular, Ophelia can do this with her AoE special charged as can Lilina if she also runs an AoE special. Staff users with Dazzling Staff/Wrathful Staff can also safely engage her without worry of retaliation, applying the usual chip damage expected of them. She also lacks HP and Res to overcome most Panic and Ploy users as well, making her vulnerable to debuffs.

Skill Inheritance
Female Byleth is already good to go from the start but the standard Reposition is highly recommended to give her a positioning ability should she not be in range to initiate an attack.

She more or less can emulate her male counterpart by inheriting Distant Counter to allow her to counterattack mages and Null C-Disrupt to stop staff users from chipping at her even with Distant Counter equipped.

Three Houses

 * See Main Article: Byleth/Quotes.

Heroes

 * See Main Article: Byleth/Heroes Quotes.

Silver Snow / Verdant Wind
Byleth - Wandering Flame (Silver Snow)
 * "Byleth defeated those who slither in the dark and put down the crazed Immaculate One. In the aftermath of the loss of Fódlan's great leading figures, he/she ascended the throne as the first leader of the United Kingdom of Fódlan. In his/her heart lived the indelible hope that their efforts would one day yield an era in which the people knew true peace and the horrors of war were a hazy memory of the past."

Byleth - Ruler of Dawn (Verdant Wind)
 * "Together, Byleth and Claude sent the Fell King, Nemesis, a foe from a bygone age, back to the flames of eternity from whence he came. Afterward, Claude left Fódlan, leaving Byleth to ascend the throne as the first leader of the United Kingdom of Fódlan. As he took his schemes and dreams and efforts to a far-off land, he hoped dearly that their joint efforts would one day allow for a world where all of humanity can co exist in peace and harmony, regardless of borders or bloodlines."

Azure Moon
Byleth - Guardian of Order
 * "Byleth helped Dimitri to finally crush the ambitions of the Empire. After the war, Rhea stepped down from her role as archbishop, and Byleth swore to lead the Church of Seiros in her stead. He/She helped to guide the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus as it brought leadership to the newly unified Fódlan and worked tirelessly to create a peaceful world free from the shackles of oppression."

Crimson Flower
Byleth - Wings of the Hegemon
 * "Byleth fought alongside Edelgard to bring an end to the tyranny of a godlike being. Though he/she was wounded in the battle and lost the power of the progenitor god, he/she remained determined to walk his/her destined path. With his/her legendary blade in hand, he/she will never stop standing against those who slither in the dark until Fódlan at last knows everlasting peace."

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
"Byleth chooses Smash house!"

- Byleth's introduction blurb.

Byleth in their default appearance made their first appearance in the Smash series as the final fighter pass DLC characters in Smash Ultimate. Zach Aguilar and Yūsuke Kobayashi reprise their roles as Male Byleth, while Jeannie Tirado and Shizuka Ito reprise their role as Female Byleth.

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

Etymology
Byleth is a variation of Beleth, a king of Hell. According to Pseudomonarchia Daemonum, Ham, Noah's son, was the first in invoking him after the flood, and wrote a book on mathematics with his help.

Eisner, Byleth's surname, is a German name related to various iron-working occupations such as smithing.

Trivia

 * Byleth's default name in Japanese differs slightly between genders, as a male Byleth is spelled "ベレト" (Bereto), while the female is "ベレス" (Beresu).
 * Byleth's name shares this difference in the Chinese localization. (ZH: "貝雷特" (Bylet) / "貝雷絲" (Byleth))
 * Three Houses updated on September 10th 2019 to change Male Byleth's voice actor from Chris Niosi to Zach Aguilar. This is the only instance where a character's voice actor was changed post release in a main series Fire Emblem title.
 * While the player chooses Byleth's birthday, the default birthdate is 20th of the Horsebow Moon 1159 (September 20th), a significant date in the story and reinforced by information from Jeralt's journal.
 * If, during a New Game+, the Holy Tomb is visited via the amiibo Gazebo at any point after Chapter 10, the opposite gender version of Byleth will be found there. Byleth can be talked to, but they only speak in ellipses.
 * Male Byleth stands at 175cm (about 5’9”), while Female Byleth stands at 164cm (about 5’5”).
 * Byleth is the first Avatar character to have an defined difference in height between genders.
 * Female Byleth is the only unit to be capable of S-Supporting all three Lord characters and has 24 S-Supports compared to Male Byleth's 21.
 * Byleth shares some similarities with Ike.
 * Both are not of royal blood but mercenaries guided by their father, a famous former knight, who is then murdered, spurring them toward action against the killers.
 * Both have become inactive for an amount of time but return in order to stop a war as the commander of an army.
 * They have to face former allies and receive divine powers.
 * Both are big eaters.
 * Byleth is the first character in Heroes to become available through recognition of another game's data. At the launch of Three Houses, Heroes players that play both games on the same Nintendo Account will receive a free Byleth unit if they register their copy of Three Houses for gold points.
 * Byleth is the first avatar to fully appear in animated cutscenes without being obscured in some manner. This is due to Byleth's lack of customizable physical features.
 * Byleth is the first avatar to have dialogue options in conversations.
 * Byleth is the first and only Avatar character to be referred with neutral pronouns in the game. Because the game is fully voiced, the use of titles and neutral pronouns allows the same dialogue to be used for both genders of Byleth without the need to record separate lines. Gendered pronouns are used in the game's epilogue and some tutorial text, which are not voiced.
 * Byleth is the first Avatar character since Mark to not feature a customizable appearance. Their male and female designs are fixed and cannot be edited by the player.
 * In a survey conducted by Nintendo DREAM Magazine, Female Byleth placed 3rd with 17.7% of the vote overall and ranked 4th with 16.6% among those who completed the game in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
 * In the same poll, Male Byleth placed 6th with 14.3% of the vote overall and ranked 8th with 13.0% among those who completed the game.
 * In the second survey conducted by Nintendo DREAM Magazine, Female Byleth placed 3rd in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The male-female vote ratio was 1:3. She ranked 3rd among those who completed the game with 246 points.
 * In the same poll, Male Byleth placed 8th among those who completed the game with 133 points.
 * In a survey conducted by Famitsu Magazine, Female Byleth placed 7th for females and 11th overall with 709 votes in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
 * In the same poll, Male Byleth placed 6th for males and 14th overall with 572 votes.
 * In the third survey conducted by Nintendo DREAM Magazine, Female Byleth placed 3rd in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The male-female vote ratio was 1:3. She ranked 3rd among those who completed the game with 209 points.
 * In the same poll, Male Byleth placed 7th among those who completed the game with 124 points.
 * In the fourth survey conducted by Nintendo DREAM Magazine, Female Byleth placed 3rd in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The male-female vote ratio was 1:4. She ranked 3rd among those who completed the game with 137 points.
 * In the same poll, Male Byleth placed 9th among those who completed the game with 67 points.
 * In the fifth survey conducted by Nintendo DREAM Magazine, Female Byleth placed 2nd in the character popularity poll for Fire Emblem: Three Houses. The male-female vote ratio was 1:4. She ranked 2nd among those who completed the game with 25.9% of the vote.
 * In the same poll, Male Byleth placed 8th among those who completed the game with 11.7% of the vote.