Frey

"Count this knight honored to die in the service of his prince. Live, sire, and grow strong…"

- Frey, if chosen to be the decoy, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon

Frey (フレイ Furei) is a playable Cavalier who is one of the exclusive characters in Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon. He did not appear in the original, Fire Emblem: Ankoku Ryū to Hikari no Tsurugi, or its sequel, Fire Emblem: Monshō no Nazo.

Frey is a knight of Altea under Jagen’s command. He accompanies Marth during the prologue with Cain and Abel. During the final stage of the prologue, it is required for the player to sacrifice a character as the decoy. Due to Frey being absent on the game’s Hard Mode (which skips the prologue), it is likely that he is the canonical sacrifice. Despite this Frey can be a useful unit.

He reappears as a playable unit in Fire Emblem: Shin Monshō no Nazo ~Hikari to Kage no Eiyū~, joining Marth’s army alongside Norne during Chapter 6.

The War of Darkness
When Altea was invaded by their former ally Gra at the onset of the War of Darkness, Frey had been one of the remaining knights that guarded the Altean Castle when King Cornelius left to battle Medeus. Subsequently, Frey was bidden by Princess Elice to protect Marth, along with Abel, when it was discovered that Cornelius had been killed in action due to the treachery of the Gra forces, who had struck the Altean army from the rear. After joining up with Jagen and Cain at the gates of the castle, they aided in the prince’s escape and fled to the country’s borders to seek refuge in the kingdom of Talys. En route to the harbor that would let them escape, they needed to first cut through a prison to the north where an Altean archer was being kept captive. Upon learning that Marth and a group of his knights were approaching, the captain of the prison devised a plan to kill the prince before the main force of Gra arrived. He ordered for a gagged prisoner to be brought forth, disguised as a Gra soldier, which he thought would be enough to deceive the prince into killing him. Afterward, they would open the north door of the prison and lure them out for striking down.

Nonetheless, his plan can be foiled if Marth recognized Gordin’s face and spared him from an untimely death. Soon after that, the main force of Gra, accompanied by the Sable Order of Knights, arrived in pursuit of the prince. Realizing that they would not be able to escape in time or defeat these powerful foes, Malledus suggested to Marth that one of his men leave for the southern fortress and dress himself to look like the prince to lure them away, giving the others enough time to escape. Although Marth was opposed to this gambit after learning that the decoy may not make it back alive, one of his men left regardless and sacrificed himself for Marth’s sake. Depending on the player’s actions, Frey could either be chosen as the decoy or be allowed to accompany Marth to Talys, where they stayed for several years, protected by its people. If he was not chosen as the decoy, Frey assisted Marth in the ensuing war against the Doluna empire and its allies, Gra, Grust and Medon, after enough soldiers were gathered to form the Akaneian League from Altea, Aurelis and Akaneia. Once the war had been brought to an end with the Shadow Dragon Medeus’s demise, Frey stayed in Altea and contributed to its reconstruction according to his ending.

The War of Heroes
In Fire Emblem: Shin Monshō no Nazo ~Hikari to Kage no Eiyū~, it was revealed that Frey was indeed the canon sacrifice of the prologue of Shadow Dragon. In his support conversations with My Unit, it was explained that the enemy had wounded him severely and left him for dead when they discovered he was not the prince, but he had miraculously survived his injuries. After laying on the brink of death for many days, he eventually recovered, although he was left with a particular scar that caused him recurrent pain. Also, as a result of the trauma, Frey had lost his memories and for a long time he lived as another person. When he finally regained his memories though, he was able to return to Marth’s side and continue to serve him. He became an instructor for new recruits in the Altean army, along with Cain, and provided lectures for members of the seventh platoon. Subsequently, when Altea was invaded by Akaneia under the orders of Hardin, Frey and Norne were some of the few soldiers who had managed to escape from the castle and reach Marth at Olbern Castle in Grust. Frey then joined in the war efforts against Akaneia and later, the Shadow Dragon, whom was ultimately defeated once more before he could be fully resurrected by Gharnef. Afterward, Frey returned to Altea and continued dutifully teaching the future generation of Altean knights as an instructor.

Appearance and personality
Physically, Frey appears to be around his late twenties or early thirties. Since he has blue hair, it is possible that the soldiers of Gra were better fooled by his appearance, when he disguised himself as the prince, due to his hair being the same color as Marth despite the visible age difference. He wears blue armor, similar to how Cain and Abel wear armor that matches their own hair colors. He appears to be the oldest of the first generation of Altean knights, but still younger than Jagen. Also, he is one of the few characters who has a beard amongst the playable characters.

As with many of the other knights of Altea, Frey is characterized by his dedicated loyalty to his homeland and his prince. His willingness to sacrifice himself in order to let Marth escape to Talys can be seen as an indication of the depths of his fealty, since in doing so, he placed his own life in great jeopardy by luring the enemies away by himself. Frey seems to have a brave, compassionate and self-denying personality, as he considers the well-being of others before his own, which became evident when he was the only knight who felt compelled enough to sacrifice himself. Although the other knights were also prepared to die for their prince, it was Frey who voluntarily left in the end so that they wouldn’t have to suffer. In his support conversations with My Unit, he admits that he took it upon himself to become the decoy for the sake of everyone else because he felt compassionate toward them and responsible for bearing the burden alone. His selfless nature caused him to later become an instructor for the Altean army as well, when it was apparent that no one else could do it.

Recruitment

 * Normal Mode

Not available
 * Hard Mode

Base stats
|Cavalier |1 |18 |7 |0 |6 |6 |2 |7 |0 |9 |Lance - D Sword - E |Iron Sword Iron Lance Vulnerary

Growth rates (default)

 * Cavalier/Paladin


 * 80%
 * 35%
 * 0%
 * 55%
 * 55%
 * 45%
 * 20%
 * 0%

Reclassing options

 * Dracoknight


 * 70%
 * 30%
 * 0%
 * 50%
 * 70%
 * 45%
 * 15%
 * 5%


 * Archer/Sniper


 * 80%
 * 30%
 * 0%
 * 50%
 * 75%
 * 45%
 * 15%
 * 0%

Myrmidon/Swordmaster


 * 90%
 * 30%
 * 0%
 * 50%
 * 70%
 * 45%
 * 10%
 * 0%


 * Mage


 * 60%
 * 10%
 * 35%
 * 50%
 * 60%
 * 45%
 * 0%
 * 15%


 * Sage/Bishop


 * 60%
 * 10%
 * 25%
 * 50%
 * 65%
 * 45%
 * 0%
 * 25%


 * Curate


 * 30%
 * 5%
 * 15%
 * 45%
 * 65%
 * 45%
 * 0%
 * 35%

Support bonus
Supports

Supported by

Base stats
|Cavalier |8 |26 |11 |0 |8 |10 |6 |10 |0 |9 |Sword - D Lance - C |Killer Lance Javelin

Growth rates (default)
|90% |45% |0% |65% |65% |55% |40% |5%
 * Cavalier/Paladin

Default classes
|80% |40% |0% |60% |80% |55% |35% |10%
 * Dracoknight

|90% |40% |0% |60% |85% |55% |35% |0%
 * Archer/Sniper

|90% |40% |0% |60% |85% |55% |30% |5%
 * Myrmidon/Swordmaster

|70% |20% |35% |60% |70% |55% |10% |20%
 * Mage

|70% |15% |25% |60% |75% |55% |10% |30%
 * Sage/Bishop

|70% |15% |10% |55% |75% |55% |15% |40%
 * Curate

Alternate classes
Note: Unlocked after completing a playthrough on Hard Mode or above

|110% |45% |0% |60% |55% |55% |55% |0%
 * Knight/General

|100% |50% |0% |65% |75% |55% |35% |0%
 * Mercenary/Hero

|120% |70% |0% |65% |65% |55% |30% |0%
 * Fighter/Warrior

|90% |50% |0% |55% |80% |55% |30% |0%
 * Hunter/Horseman

|120% |60% |0% |55% |85% |55% |25% |0%
 * Pirate/Berserker

|70% |15% |25% |60% |75% |55% |10% |30%
 * Dark Mage/Sorcerer

Support bonus
Supports

Supported by

Overview
Although he is only available in Normal Mode of Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon, Frey is generally well-regarded for his early availability and balanced growth rates, making him comparable to the likes of either Abel or Cain. He has slightly better statistical growths in HP, Skill, Speed and Luck than them, and will usually become a solid combatant despite his somewhat low starting stats and mediocre Strength growth. Similar to Abel, he specializes in lances, letting him wield Javelins from the start. Since he joins in the prologue chapters, it is easy for him to earn experience and gain level ups, giving him an advantage over late-joining characters, including other cavaliers such as Matthis or Roshea, who join with weak base stats and poor growth rates.

Additionally, Frey has versatility in his reclassing options, since he maintains a good growth spread in most other powerful classes, including the Sniper or Dracoknight, which also allows his growth rate for Speed to increase sharply. He has mutual supports with Catria and Palla of the Whitewings, which can be useful if the player is planning to use either of them in battle.

In Shin Monshō no Nazo ~Hikari to Kage no Eiyū~, Frey’s improved growth rates and base stats are adequate enough to keep him usable for the rest of the game after he joins. He can be a viable replacement for any of the earlier cavaliers, including Ruke or Rody if they are not up to par, or he can supplement them during battle. His supports with the two Whitewings are considerably more desirable in Shin Monshō no Nazo than in Shadow Dragon since both characters have better stats and utility, although their support bonuses can only reach to a maximum of B.

Death quote
"Luck be…with you, sire…"

- Frey’s death quote in Shadow Dragon

Shadow Dragon
Frey stayed in Altea to help rebuild his ravaged kingdom.
 * Brave Knight

Trivia

 * Frey’s death quote may be a reference to Ankoku Ryū to Hikari no Tsurugi, as it is nearly identical to the death quotes of the Altean Knights, such as Jagen, Cain, or Draug, in that title.
 * During Frey’s support conversations with My Unit, it was revealed that he survived the wounds inflicted to him by the main forces of Gra and the Sable Order of Knights. Since he had not been killed by them, it can be inferred that the Aum Staff could not revive the decoy unit in Shadow Dragon because Frey, the canon sacrifice, had lived.

Etymology
Frey is a Scandinavian name that means “lord” or “master.” In Norse mythology, Frey is the name of the god of peace, fertility, and prosperity, who was commonly associated with weather and dispensed both rain and sunshine.

Gallery
Frey