—Alm to Celica in Shadows of Valentia
Alm is one of the two protagonists from Fire Emblem Gaiden and its remake, Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia. He is 17 years old in Shadows of Valentia.
He appears as DLC in Fire Emblem Awakening, where his map introduces the Dread Fighter class.
Profile
Alm and Celica learning of each other's marks.
Born in the year 384 in the Valentian calendar and year 590 in the Archanean calendar, Alm was raised in Ram Village by his grandfather, Mycen. Alm grew up alongside a group of other Ram Village children, Gray, Tobin, Kliff, and Faye, all of whom were trained in the art of combat by Mycen. Alm also grew up with Celica, a young girl who Mycen was taking care of, whom he was particularly close to. Alm and Celica even had a similar brand on their left and right hands respectively. Their time together was cut short when Slayde, an enforcer to Desaix, wanders into Ram Village and takes interest in Celica due to the special mark on her hand. Mycen enigmatically takes Celica away for her safety, leaving Alm heartbroken. Alm vowed to Celica as she left that they will one day meet again.
Zofia's Deliverance
Until the age of 17, Alm spent his years further honing his skills in combat and war under Mycen's tutelage. Feeling confident that he could now leave the village, he attempts to persuade Mycen, but his grandfather denies his request as he is too green to leave yet. Shortly afterward, Lukas arrives at Ram Village, seeking Mycen to aid with the Deliverance, a Zofian resistance force dedicated to overthrowing Desaix. With Mycen nowhere to be found in the village, Alm steps up and joins the Deliverance in his grandfather's stead with his childhood friends accompanying him on his journey. Alm quickly becomes a huge asset to the Deliverance, quickly gaining the trust and confidence of Lukas and Clair.
Alm greeting the Zofian citizenry after retaking Zofia Castle.
On the way to the Deliverance's base, Alm hears of a Novis cleric who was captured by thieves. Alm immediately heads to the Thieves' Shrine and rescues the captured cleric, Silque. As thanks for her rescue, she entrusts the Mila's Turnwheel she was sent to deliver to Alm. Alm's eventually reaches the Deliverance's base where he meets the leader, Clive who is impressed by Alm's conviction and potential, as well as for rescuing his sister. Knowing that Deliverance would need a person of humble origins to lead them rather than a noble like him, he names Alm as the new leader of the deliverance, causing a falling out between Clive and his lieutenant, Fernand. After routing Desaix's Forces, Alm reclaims Zofia Castle, reuniting with Mycen and greeting the citizens who salute him as a hero.
The schism between Alm and Celica
Shortly after, Alm is reunited with Celica in Zofia castle. As the two attempt to rekindle their relationship, Alm tells Celica that he plans on attacking Rigel to stop Emperor Rudolf's attempt at conquest. Celica asks Alm to consider a peaceful resolution to the conflict, expressing that she does not believe Emperor Rudolf to be as evil as others claim. Alm rebukes that this is irrelevant, since his army had already invaded Zofia, and remains resolute to begin an assault on Rigel in order to drive back the invasion. When he points out that the late king is responsible for provoking the empire, Celica accuses him of vying the throne. Alm is insulted by this, and says he only wishes to protect Zofia, and if the missing Zofian princess took his place, he would return to Ram at a moment's notice alongside her. Celica, who is frustrated that Alm does not wish to negotiate, claims there is no such thing as a lost princess and leaves in order to prepare to head for the Temple of Mila. The two go their separate ways and a sudden rockslide prevents the two from meeting again for the time being.
On the way to the border, Alm arrives at a Forest Village, where Luthier asks him to help save his sister Delthea who's been captured, learning of Rigel's blockage of the sluice in order to flood Zofia. When another villager informs them of Mathilda's impending execution by Desaix, though, they decide to attack his fortress in order to rescue her. Leading the Deliverance to the fortress, Alm brings down the despot and Mathilda is rescued. Inside the Fortress, Alm's group finds the Royal Sword, a powerful blade that is rumored to be wielded only by those of royal lineage. Tobin attempts to pick it, but finds that it is too heavy to lift. Alm, who effortlessly picks it up, believes that Tobin was jesting, though he vehemently denies it. Lukas is shocked by this fact and question the implications of this, but Alm dismisses it as an exaggeration of the myth. Lukas agrees to the possibility, but determines that Alm is the rightful wielder of the blade regardless.
Alm leaving the Zofian borders after opening the Sluice Gate.
Arriving at the sluice, Alm and his army confront and slay Tatarrah, freeing Delthea from his mind control. The sluice is opened by him after the corresponding floodgate at the Temple of Mila is opened first, deducing Celica to be the one responsible, as well as her status as the missing princess.
Assault on Rigel
Alm discovering the meaning of his birthmark through Zeke.
Now in Rigel, the Zofian assault begins, with Alm leading the charge. Upon entering, the Deliverance is immediately confronted by Berkut and Fernand. Despite only two and a third cavalry enemy unit against Alm's collective army, the battle goes almost evenly with Alm barely defeating Berkut. In his defeat, Berkut shatters a mirror he was given by Nuibaba, causing a curse to befall upon the Deliverance. However, an intervention by Celica dispels the curse and saves the army.
Before heading to Rigel Castle, Alm hears of a Witch situated on Fear Mountain who has been kidnapping Rigelian women to sacrifice for her god. Alm takes the Deliverance on a detour to end the machinations of Nuibaba who also sought out Alm with the intention of sacrificing him to her god Medusa for everlasting beauty and life. Alm's onslaught on her abode succeeds with him killing the witch. Inside, Alm frees Tatiana, a Rigelian saint who asks to join his army to reunite with her beloved Zeke. Alm leads the Deliverance towards Rigel Castle and eventually encounters Zeke working alongside Jerome. Upon seeing Tatiana among Alm's forces, Zeke immediately turns on Jerome and kills the corrupt knight. After the battle, Alm asks Zeke to join his army. Though thankful for rescuing his beloved, Zeke declines as he remains faithful to Emperor Rudolf for the kindness he gave to him after suffering amnesia. However, Zeke notices Alm's brand and immediately joins his army as Emperor Rudolf himself told him to follow a man who bore that brand on his hand, even if it means fighting against Rudolf himself. He explains that the mark would be a sign of the end of the influences of Duma and Mila on Valentia and that Alm would be one of the heroes who would lead this end.
Alm and Celica reconcile through an astral projection.
As the Deliverance rounds Rigel Castle, Celica suddenly appears before Alm through an astral projection thanks to the Sage Halcyon. The two reconcile for their earlier fight at Castle Zofia. Celica admits to Alm that she is indeed the long lost princess Anthiese. While the two must remain apart for a little while longer, she promises to reunite once her journey is done. As a parting gift, she has Halcyon unlock Alm's true potential, allowing him to become a true Hero when he is ready to use this blessing.
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Alm learning the truth by Rudolf's dying breath.
Eventually, Alm reaches Rigel Castle and the Emperor confronts him. Though the two engage, Rudolf does not attack Alm and is brought down. On his death throes, Rudolf reveals that Alm is Albein Alm Rudolf, Rudolf's only son. Alm is shocked by the sudden revelation and begs Rudolf to explain more, but the king hushes him in order to explain his final request. With his final breaths, he pleads his son to embrace his destiny by claiming the Falchion being stored in the Duma Temple and use its power to end the age of gods. Alm is left in shock as he comes to terms with the fact that he just killed his father.
With the death of the king and named heir apparent, Alm is fully recognized as the prince of Rigel and is lead into the castle. Inside the castle, Mycen appears, and explains the truth behind his past. Duma had begun to fall into madness and Rudolf was among the first to recognize the Divine Dragon's degeneration. Coincidentally, his newborn son bore a Brand that was told in a prophecy to be a key individual who would end the madness of Valentia's gods. In order to forge Alm into the true Hero of legend and prevent his capture by the Duma faithful, Rudolf ordered Mycen, his closest friend, to take Alm away and raise him to become the hero foretold. To all but Rudolf and Mycen, Alm's identity was completely kept secret. In a Memory Prism, prior to sending Alm away with Mycen, he told Mycen that a newborn Zofian princess was also born with a Brand. Rudolf would then spend the next 17 years enacting his plan, becoming a conqueror in order to spur Alm's growth into becoming a hero. With Rudolf's plan ultimately successful and now fully understanding his role in the world, Alm embraces his role as the hero of Valentia and heads down in to the basement of Duma tower to reclaim Falchion and slay Duma.
End of the Age of Gods
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Alm meeting the imprisoned Celica.
In the temple, Alm discovers Celica being imprisoned by Jedah who intends of sacrificing her to Duma. Despite that Alm was instructed by Rudolf's dying words to slay Duma, Celica tries to talk him out of it, fearing that Rigel will be even more barren than it already is, and thinking that nothing can slay Duma due to Falchion being sealed by Mila herself. After Celica confesses to Alm that her only desire in life is to not want Alm or anyone else to be hurt or killed, and tells him that she wishes that things could have turned out different and that she could have gone back with Alm and lived with him at Ram Village, she runs off to accept her demise at the hands of Duma. Despite all of this, Alm decides to still try to take down Duma and save Celica, not wanting to lose anyone else to Duma.
In Echoes, Alm travels further into the Temple and encounters Berkut, driven into madness by his consecutive defeats and the revelation of Alm as heir apparent. Alm fights his cousin and eventually defeats him. On his death throes, Berkut places his faith in Alm to end the age of gods, but also adding another regret of killing yet another family member he just recently discovered.
Upon reaching the deepest catacombs of the Temple, Alm is forced to brave the final chambers alone in order to claim Falchion. In the final chamber, Alm is greeted by Celica, but is shocked to find out that her soul was already taken by Duma and has become a mindless Witch. As the two fight, Celica tells Alm to kill her before she can do the same thing to Alm, to which Alm is reluctant to do so. After Celica disarms Alm by knocking the Royal Sword out of his hand. Mila calls to Alm to take Falchion and drives the blade into Celica, expelling Duma's influence over her, but also killing her in the process. As Alm mourns for Celica, Mila uses her remaining power in Falchion to restore Celica back to life. Before fading away, Mila's soul instructs Alm to use Falchion to stop Duma and free him from the depths of his pain. Celica apologizes to Alm for the way she had treated him before. The two reconcile and use their respective Mila's Turnwheels to open the gate leading to Duma's domain. Both Alm and Celica's armies join forces and kill Jedah and his daughters Hestia and Marla, allowing them to finally face Duma. With their combined powers, Alm uses Falchion to deliver the final blow to Duma, putting the divine dragon to rest and ending their age over Valentia.
Alm and Celica found the One Kingdom.
With the influence of the gods upon the land gone, Zofia and Rigel are united into the One Kingdom of Valentia, with Alm ascending the throne and becoming its first king. Together alongside Celica, now wed to each other, the two usher an era of peace. Alm became famous throughout the history of Valentia as the man who established the grand empire and used his power to slay the oppressive gods who had ruled the land, later being known as the Saint-King Alm I.
Awakening
Alm's legacy would endure even past the schism of the unified kingdom a thousand years later, as one of Alm's successors would rename both the Kingdom and the continent as a whole Valm in his honor.
Personality
Alm is a kind-hearted yet naïve young man who has a strong sense of justice and subtly idealistic morals. He has a strong sense of obligation, wanting to leave Ram Village to help the people of Zofia when he heard about the outbreak of thieves, famine, and the aggression of the Rigelian Empire for the past few years. His sense of justice is rather black-and-white, as he is quick to blame individuals for a number of follies in situations he does not necessarily have the full context to. He has a vaguely puerile sense of humor, as he loves to make puns, and is a terrible dancer.
Alm is able to acknowledge his own naïveté and unfamiliarity with the world outside of his village, and is very attentive in general to compensate for said naïveté. He wears his heart on his sleeve and is very sensitive and emotionally expressive, often verbally communicating his insecurities and not holding back tears in melancholy situations.
Due in part to his humble background, Alm is better able to appeal to the mass of the Deliverance and later the forces of Zofia during their battle against Rigel, having relatable experiences to many who joined the cause. Alm is initially unsure of his role as leader, especially since his sole credential is being Mycen's grandson in the beginning. However over the course of the war, Alm grows more confident and assured of his abilities to lead and inspire others to his cause.
Possibly as a result of his relationship with Celica, Alm never turns down an opportunity to help others, no matter how extraneous the effort would be. While others such as Lukas or Clive often advise him not to take detours from their cause, Alm firmly believes that if he can help anyone in need, he will do all that he can to do so, leading to several people joining his cause from helping them including Luthier, Delthea, Tatiana, and Zeke.
Alm has a deep longing for a family, as he's said to have grown up lonely in said village, even getting deeply disturbed when an elder said that Mycen had no children. Thus, he ends up projecting his desire onto other party members, often idealizing them as his family by treating them as such in order to counterbalance his loneliness.
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His longing for familial bonds is further emphasized later in the story, as he is shocked and angered over killing his father Rudolf, crying after hearing about his father's plan to become a destroyer to save Valentia, and also getting extremely distraught with his cousin Berkut's death, lamenting that he wanted to hear stories about his father and form a familial bond with Berkut that he has never had, nor even will experience.
In-Game
Fire Emblem Gaiden
Base Stats
| Starting Class | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Fighter | ||||||||
| Level | HP | Str | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res | Mov |
| 1 | 28 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 5 |
| Magic | Starting Items | |||||||
| - | - | |||||||
Growth Rates
| HP | Str | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50% | 35% | 40% | 30% | 20% | 30% | 0% |
Overall
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Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.
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As the main Lord character of Gaiden, Alm has very good stats for a Level 1 unit. Though his growths may seem low compared to future games, his growths in Gaiden are considered very strong as Gaiden has brutally low growth rates. He will likely end up with very high HP, Strength and Skill and relatively high Speed and Defense by endgame, so he can be used as a shield or offense type unit as you wish. His lowest growth is Luck, which is merely average.
When he promotes, he gets even more potential as he can use Bows, which are deadly in this game as they have a natural range of 3 that can be increased to a range of 5 with a Bow weapon equipped. The Falchion can only be wielded by Alm in Gaiden and is a necessity to defeat the final boss as he is immune to all damage inflicted on him once he reaches 52 HP (aside from a Nosferatu tome). Alm should be given as much training as possible as not only is he key for the final boss, but his offensive strength for the army can prove to be very rewarding in the long run.
Alm is easily one of the strongest characters in Gaiden. He has strong base stats, some of the best growths in the game, can equip a huge variety of Swords (two of which can only be equipped by him) and Bows, and he is the protagonist in the start of the game (beside Celica). His only real weakness is that he can only Promote once, and his Promotion requires you to find an optional hidden village in the Lost Woods that can be easy to miss.
Fire Emblem Awakening
Base Stats
| Starting Class | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Hero | |||||||||
| Level | HP | Str | Mag | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res | Mov |
| 20 | 73 | 41 | 3 | 38 | 33 | 27 | 34 | 12 | 6 |
| Skills | Weapon | Starting Items | |||||||
 HP +5 Aegis |  Sword - A Axe - C |  Alm's Blade* | |||||||
Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia
Base Stats
Class Sets
| Class Sets | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| First Tier | Second Tier | Third Tier | Overclass |
 Fighter
|
 Hero
|
- |  Conqueror*
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*DLC class; access with the Altar of the King.
Growth Rates
| HP | Atk | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60% | 50% | 55% | 45% | 35% | 50% | 3% |
Max Stats
| HP | Atk | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 52 | 41 | 41 | 39 | 39 | 41 | 40 |
Supports
- See also: Alm/Supports
Passive Supports
Overall
Much like Gaiden, Alm is the strongest member of his team when he first joins, and also possesses some of the highest growth rates in the entire game that will allow his combat performance to remain exceptional even despite his very late promotion. In act 3 he acquires his unique Royal Sword, which has exceptional combat statistics and gives him access to several useful weapon arts, most notable among them being his Double Lions art, which allows him to strike consecutively while increasing the power and accuracy of his attacks. When he promotes in act 4, he also gains access to bows, which he can equip at will using the convoy whenever he requires the extra range. Upon gaining the Falchion in lategame, he gains an effective weapon against terrors and can damage the final boss when he drops below 52 health, which no other physical fighters can do.
Alm's scarce weaknesses do little to hold back his performance. His speed can fall short of double attacking the faster enemies in the game unless he uses his Double Lion skill. His resistance is also quite low, though this is a weakness many others in the game share. His five movement also starts off as above average when the player only has access to villagers and Lukas, but as the player acquires more units, he may find his mobility leaving him behind promoted Cavaliers and Pegasus Knights, as well as dread fighters. Most of all, Alm can only promote during act 4, after Celica has visited the Sage's Hamlet in the lost woods, which means Alm has no stat bonuses to rely on except for his growths rates and whatever statues the player has given him up until then.
Fire Emblem Heroes
- Hero of Prophecy
- A brave but kind, young warrior, raised by the hero Mycen in Ram Village. His left hand is marked with the Brand. Appears in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.
Base Stats
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯
 | Title | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hero of Prophecy | |||||
| Group | |||||
 Infantry | |||||
| Level | HP | Atk | Spd | Def | Res |
| 1 40 | 20/21/22 42/45/48 | 8/9/10 30/33/36 | 5/6/7 27/30/33 | 5/6/7 24/28/31 | 4/5/6 19/22/25 |
| Skills | Weapon | ||||
 Falchion Dragon Gaze |  Sword | ||||
Skills
| Type | Name | Prerequisite | Default | Unlocked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Iron Sword | - | - | - |
| Steel Sword | - | - | - | |
| Silver Sword | - | - | - | |
| Falchion | - | - |  | |
 | Dragon Gaze | - | - | - |
| Draconic Aura | Dragon Gaze | - | | |
| A |  Attack +1 | - | - | |
 Attack +2 | Attack +1 | - | ||
 Attack +3 | Attack +2 | | ||
| B |  Windsweep 1 | - | - | |
 Windsweep 2 | Windsweep 1 | - | ||
 Windsweep 3 | Windsweep 2 | |
Overall
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Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.
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Base Set
Upon release, Alm was a semi-decent Falchion unit who was easily outclassed by Marth,Lucina, and Masked Marth who utilized the Falchion more effectively with their stat distributions. His balance stats hardly benefited him, preventing him from standing out. However, with the Falchion refinement, Alm quickly cemented himself as the best offensive Falchion infantry user and contends with Exalt Chrom for best Falchion user overall. The Valentian Falchion refinement granted him two bonuses. Even with a bane in Atk at 46, Alm can dish out powerful double attacks thanks to the refine effect. Although he has to be at 100% HP to utilize the skill and takes 5 damage when the effect is used, the Falchion refine also upgrades his regeneration to Renewal 3, healing every two turns, helping to maintain the effect by itself. In combination with Windsweep skill as a Skill B in his base kit to prevent counterattacks if his opponents are slower than he is, Alm is a punishing player turn character who can dispatch all Green units and Dragon units, including Nowi and Corrin. Alm comes with Draconic Aura whose fast cooldown and boost to his attacks by its bonus off of ATK, making him a powerful unit from the get go. He also comes with Attack +3 in his base kit, which is serviceable at best, but ultimately better replaced.
Counters
Alm for the most part can deal with most units, but he is heavily countered by any sort of Blue Bulky unit or Mage. Effie in particularly checks him hard thanks to Wary Fighter which removes his ability to Follow Up and her bulk soaks up any damage he can attempt to deal to her, even if his brave effect is still on. Other units like Tana and Ephraim can also deal with him effectively. Strong Blue mages like Reinhardt and Delthea also dispose of him easily. He can also be dispatched by fast and strong red units like Ayra and Mia, though he can mitigate this with Swordbreaker if willing to run that.
Skill Inheritance Options
To capitalize on Alm's Falchion refinement, Death Blow is the best Skill A as it has strong synergy with it and Threaten Defense his Skill C to further shred enemy defense and give him the means to eliminate more units. Reposition works well with a standard infantry unit like him, however Ardent Sacrifice can be used to let him be a Falchion Healer like he once was, but doing so also takes away his Brave Effect until he recovers. If not concerned with Windsweep taking away an opponent's ability to counterattack, Renewal can be inherited as it will stack on Falchion's effect, healing him 20 HP every other turn for a more Healer focus build an maintaining a strong dueling status. As mentioned above, running Swordbreaker helps to mitigate the threat of common sword units.
Among Alm's more expensive but effective options are Mystic Boost, which completely nullifies the after-damage effect of Falchion's refine, letting him immediately go after another foe without the need of a healer, and Joint Hone Attack, which allows Alm access to a boost in Atk without needing to bring a dedicated holder of skills like Hone Atk or Atk Tactics. Galeforce will let Alm take another action once it has been charged, and though Alm loses potential Special damage his two attacks can usually be enough to take out the enemy by themselves.
Solid Sacred Seal options are Attack+ seals, Sturdy Blow, Renewal, and Threaten Defense. Both Atk+ seals and Sturdy Blow further boost Alm's damage, Renewal offers a third stack of Renewal for healing massive amounts of damage off, and Threaten Def remains useful for the reasons above, while also letting him take a different C Slot skill.
- Saint-King
- The Rigelian prince who defeated Duma and became the first king of the One Kingdom of Valentia. Later generations remember him fondly as a wise ruler. Appears in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.
Base Stats
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯
 | Title | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint-King | |||||
| Group | |||||
| Infantry | |||||
| Level | HP | Atk | Spd | Def | Res |
| 1 40 | 17/18/19 36/40/43 | 10/11/12 34/37/40 | 10/11/12 34/37/40 | 3/4/5 22/26/29 | 2/3/4 19/22/26 |
| Skills | Weapon | ||||
| Luna Arc New Moon |  Bow | ||||
Skills
Overall
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Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.
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Base Set
Legendary Alm storms the battlefield with some of the best offensive stats for any ranged unit out there, reaching a minimum 48 Atk and 37 Spd with a bane in either when using his personal weapon, thus reducing the sting of taking a bane if either if such an event occurs as he will still be offensively potent otherwise. He trades his defensive stats as result, but these are inconsequential if he is able to fell his opponent before they can hit him.
Luna Arc grants the standard Bow effect of destroying flying units and innately boosts his Spd by 3 to reach his 37 Spd bane minimum. It also innately ignores 25% of foe's Def, further reducing his enemy's ability to survive his onslaught. Alm's exclusive skill is Lunar Flash, which ignores 20% of his enemy's Def, though this effect is more for Alm when he is wielding any weapon aside from Lunar Arc. It's most beneficial effect is the bonus damage based on 20% of his spd, leading to a minimum 7 added damage or potentially as much as 11 if Alm receives buffs.
Legendary Alm enjoys spd buffs of any sort as a result of his special and his Skill A of Darting Blow 4 perfectly embodies this as it grants his a massive +9 to spd when initiating, not only pushing his Spd to 46 minimum, but further increasing Lunar Flash's damage. Null Follow-Up stops enemies from using follow-up related skills including Desperation, Quick Riposte, Wary Fighter, and Bowbreaker in the case of Alm, destroying any wall or reducing the impact on enemies who rely on follow-ups, though only the few that can reach over Alm's massive Spd stat. His final skill is Odd Attack Wave as a self buff skill for a Skill C, just to makes sure Alm has as much Atk as possible.
Counters
Alm's high spd needs to be maintained to keep him a looming threat for his enemies. This makes any sort of skill that reduces that hamper his performance. His HP is low enough for most Panic Ploy skills to hamper any sort of buffs he receives and his low Res leaves him vulnerable to Ploys. His high spd also makes him likely the recipient of the debuff from a Chill Speed wielding enemy. Though Alm has the means to conquer most units, he is not able to smash through particularly high Def units without his special and some middling ones can survive maybe one hit and retaliate strongly if they run Distant Counter. Alm works best when initiating, but some enemies can circumvent this with Vantage to simply kill him before he can even start his attack. Otherwise, any enemy that can get to him before he can reach them will likely destroy him.
Skill Inheritance Options
Legendary Alm is already fine with his base kit and taking either Reposition or Draw Back will give him an assist skill since that is the only skill slot missing.
Some choose to further his capabilities, taking Attack Speed Solo, granting him in particular the speed during the enemy phase and Guard to reduce enemy follow ups. Alm could potentially run Desperation simply outpacing his opponent by launching his powerful double attack before they can counterattack him.
For the particularly adventurous, Brave Bow can be considered for the guaranteed double and with a minimum 41 atk, it still deals significant damage and with Darting Blow 4, he can reach a 38 Spd stat when initiating.
- Imperial Ascent
- Son of Rudolf, the Rigelian Emperor. Dons special armor that has been passed down for generations. Appears in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.
Base Stats
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯
 | Title | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imperial Ascent | |||||
| Group | |||||
| Infantry | |||||
| Level | HP | Atk | Spd | Def | Res |
| 1 40 | 17/18/19 39/42/45 | 7/8/9 35/38/42 | 8/9/10 32/35/38 | 10/11/12 34/37/40 | 4/5/6 17/20/23 |
| Skills | Weapon | ||||
| Dracofalchion Dragon Gaze | Sword | ||||
Skills
| Type | Name | Prerequisite | Default | Unlocked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iron Sword | - | - | - |
| Steel Sword | - | - | - | |
| Silver Sword | - | - | - | |
| Dracofalchion | - | - | | |
| Dragon Gaze | - | - | - |
| Draconic Aura | Dragon Gaze | - | | |
| A |  Scendscale | - | | |
| B |  Chill Def 1 | - |  | |
 Chill Def 2 | Chill Def 1 |  | ||
 Chill Def 3 | Chill Def 2 | | ||
| C |  Threaten Atk 1 | - | | |
 Threat Atk/Spd 1 | Threaten Atk 1 | | ||
 Threat Atk/Spd 2 | Threat Atk/Spd 1 | | ||
 Threat Atk/Spd 3 | Threat Atk/Spd 2 | |
Overall
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Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.
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Base Set
As the male winner of the Choose Your Legends 3 event, Brave Alm comes ready to impress an make an impact in the already saturated Sword Infantry pool. Fantastic Atk and Spd for powerful offense and great physical bulk allows him to charge forward as a potent frontline attacker. Unfortunately, all this comes at the cost of his Res at an abysmal 20 neutral. While a minor hinderance in the grand scheme of his abilities, it still must be taken into consideration when sending him forward into battle.
Dracofalchion retains its ability to deal effective damage against Dragon units and also boosts his already high Atk by an additional 3 for good measure. If the number of enemies within two spaces exceed the number of allies within two spaces, Alm gains an additional +5 boost to his four core stats, further increasing his potency. His Brave skill, Scendscale adds 25% of his Atk as true damage, thus about 15 additional damage at the cost of seven damage if he attacks. Alm can easily achieve an impressive damage ceiling with the proper allies and buffs, allowing him to utterly decimate his foes with a single powerful strike, and that is before considering that his special that he can equip has not been taken into account yet.
Draconic Aura tacks on an additional 30% of his Atk as extra true damage to his enemies, thus an additional 20 for good measure. With 35 base true damage without accounting for his actual damage from his attack, Brave Alm easily can destroy all of his enemies under the right conditions. To ensure maximum damage, Chill Defense inflicts a -7 Def debuff to the enemy with the highest Def and Threaten Attack Speed inflicts Atk/Spd -5 on enemies within two spaces of himself while boosting his own Atk/Spd by 5.
Counters
Brave Alm is at his strongest during his turn and needs to be baited to deal with. It is unwise to allow an ally to wall him as they can risk being destroyed. Nonetheless, Brave Alm needs be deal with best with mages, particularly blue mages or red mages who can carry Swordbreaker. It can take a single hit from one of these units to easily dispatch him and the likes of most hyper desperation mages like Ophelia, Delthea, and Linde can achieve this while Reinhardt can easily take care of him with Dire Thunder. Dazzling Staff units can safely poke him and use Wrathful Staff to ensure damage. It is extremely rare for Brave Alm to run Distant Counter so this is a safe option.
Skill Inheritance
Reposition is a must for Brave Alm to give him superior ally positioning abilities as a support skill. His base kit otherwise is already solid enough to work as is, though option for replacements for his Skill B is Special Spiral to keep his Special charged so he can continue to smash his enemies.
- Lovebird Duo
- Prince of Rigel and princess of Zofia. Ended the strife between their countries and founded the One Kingdom of Valentia. Appears in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.
Base Stats
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯
 | Title | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lovebird Duo | |||||
| Group | |||||
| Infantry | |||||
| Level | HP | Atk | Spd | Def | Res |
| 1 40 | 17/18/19 36/40/43 | 10/11/12 32/35/38 | 9/10/11 37/40/44 | 5/6/7 29/32/35 | 5/6/7 22/25/29 |
| Skills | Weapon | ||||
| Scepter of Love New Moon |  Axe | ||||
Skills
Overall
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Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.
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Base Set
Valentine Alm tags along with Celica and provides one of the most potent Duo Heroes to date with fantastic offensive stats and workable defensive bulk. As usual, he is vulnerable to magic attacks thanks to mediocre Res, but that does not detract from his overall performance. As a duo unit, his unique skill grants himself and all allies within five spaces of himself an additional +6 Atk/Spd, heals 30 HP, and neutralizes any existing penalties. This overall provides a pinch heal and buff for himself and his allies while also helping to activate his weapon.
Scepter of Love grants an additional +3 Spd to solidify his offensive stats. It also has an additional effect that activates either if he has a visible buff on himself, such as through a Hone skill or his own Duo skill, or if he is at least over 70. With these conditions met, he will buff his Atk by 25% of his foes Def while penalizing his enemy's Atk by 25% of their Res. This leads to rather awkward results that are interchangeable depending on the enemy, but the overall boost and penalty benefits him and helps him to better duel enemies.
Valentines Alm keeps his Legendary special skill Lunar Flash, ignoring 20% of his opponent's Def and deals 20% of his Spd as extra damage. Bonus Doubler will double the current buffs he has on him. Lull Attack Speed neutralizes his enemy's Atk/Spd buffs and then inflict -3 to both stats during combat. Finally Rouse Speed Resistance grants Spd/Res +4 if he is not starting his turn next to an ally.
Counters
As a duo unit, the threat of Valentines Alm is partially due to his Duo skill, which an enemy AI cannot activate. He is vulnerable to Ploy skills and such units, especially Katarina, ensures that he does not get his scepters abilities if she is running her quad ploy skill set. His magical bulk makes an excellent target for countering him thus having red mages or strong green mages can easily dispatch him. Dazzling Staff/Wrathful Staff units can also poke him out easily, especially since Distant Counter is an option for his Skill A and may show up on occasion when facing him in the Arenas/Aether Raids.
Skill Inheritance
Reposition offers excellent position abilities for Alm to get his allies out of danger when needed. Distant Counter is an excellent Skill A option to ensure that he can duel all allies when needed and makes engaging him with mages a little more unsafe if the enemy is not careful. Skill B is flexible, but most considerations are premium at best with skills like Close Call, Repel, or Null Follow-Up. Skill C is also flexible, but with far more budget options like Smoke skills and Wave skills.Quotes
Gaiden
—Alm's death quote
Echoes: Shadows of Valentia
- See Main Article: Alm/Echoes: Shadows of Valentia Quotes.
Heroes
- See Main Article: Alm/Heroes Quotes.
Endings
Gaiden
- "In ages to come, this is what was passed down:
- He who sundered the evil chains of the gods
- And established this thousand-year reign
- Must never be forgotten: Our Exalted King, Alm the First!"
Echoes: Shadows of Valentia
- "As first king of the One Kingdom of Valentia, Alm spent his life restoring the land to glory. He would be remembered fondly by later generations as Saint-King Alm I, who cast off the gods' oppressive yoke and founded a dynasty that would last a thousand years."
Non-Canon Appearances
Fire Emblem 0 (Cipher)
Alm is illustrated in the trading card game with the following cards:
Etymology
Alm's name has many possible origins. Alm takes its reference from the alpine pasture of the same name; this is further supported in his full name in the Japanese version, Alpine Alm Rudolf. Alm is ostensibly derived from the Old Norse word "álmr", meaning "elm tree". In modern Swedish, Alm still means "elm tree". Alm could also be a reference to giving alms, or an act of charity.
Alm's first name in the English versions, Albein, is possibly derived from the name Albin.
The pronunciation of Alm's Japanese name Arumu also vaguely sounds like aurum, the Latin word for "gold."
Trivia
- As with many characters in Gaiden, Alm's hair color differs in various art assets. It is green in the manual and cover art, but blue in game. In the manga adaptation of Fire Emblem Gaiden, Alm has green hair as well. In Fire Emblem Awakening, Alm has green hair but the very tips are blue, effectively combining both hair colors. In Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, his hair is consistently green in both official art and in the game itself.
- He is one of the few main characters to have a specified last name, the others being Sigurd, Seliph, Leif, Elincia, Jill, and Sanaki, as well as the vast majority of the playable cast in Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
- Alm's artwork for both the original Gaiden and Shadows of Valentia depicts him wielding the Royal Sword. His Awakening artwork depicts him wielding Alm's Blade, which is visually based on the Royal Sword, while his Heroes artwork depicts him with the Valentian Falchion.
- His artwork in Gaiden, Shadows of Valentia and Heroes depicts him in the Fighter Class, while his DLC artwork in Awakening depicts him in the Dread Fighter Class.
- Alm was originally right-handed in Gaiden and all subsequent materials. However, Shadows of Valentia depicts Alm as left-handed, both in his promotional art and in-game appearances. This is further shown in Fire Emblem Heroes where he has different animations compared to most sword users.
- This makes him the first known character and Lord character who is left-handed.
- The reasons for the change, according to the developers, were that the motion team said that many new poses and patterns can be made if the character was simply left handed, as well as to make Alm better resemble a hero with the strength to overcome any enemy, such as Alexander the Great, who was also said to be left handed, while also serving as a contrast to Celica’s brand.
- Alm's Brave Hero Fire Emblem Heroes variant is based on his appearance on the box art for Fire Emblem Gaiden as redrawn by Shadows of Valentia character artist Hidari. Hidari similarly based Celica's Brave Hero variant design on her Gaiden box art appearance when he drew her the previous year.
- In Shadows of Valentia, Alm is the only playable character without a spell list, as he does not learn magic naturally and cannot use a Pitchfork.
- In Shadows of Valentia, Alm has a special animation whenever player phase starts; however, as a Hero, this animation depicts him holding his sword in his right hand.
- In the raw Japanese script of Gaiden, aside from his use of "boku" as a personal pronoun, Alm tends to use rather feminine speech mannerisms.
- As implied from the flavor text in Shadows of Valentia, Alm has a taste for landscape paintings and, like Celica, is quite fond of cats.
- Alm's English voice actor also voices Soren in Heroes and the Gatekeeper in Three Houses.
- As a Hero, Alm was the first main character to being able to naturally use bows.
Gallery
- See main article: Alm/Gallery.