—Arval, to Shez
Arval is a character from Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes. They are a mysterious being that only Shez can communicate with.
Profile[]
A mysterious being that appeared in their dreams, Arval rescued Shez before they were killed by the Ashen Demon and speaks to them as if living in their head. While they seem to understand how their powers work, various aspects of society, etc. they have no memory at all of anything from before they met Shez.
"Just a minute! The following section contains spoilers. Viewing it will cost a lot. Are you prepared to pay for it?"
|
It is eventually revealed that Arval was the creation of an Agarthan named Epimenides, who swore to kill Sothis, "the beast which set the earth" and save his people. He was a master mage and scientist as well as a high-ranking commander of the Agarthans in the War of Heroes against the Nabateans, who sought the secret art of rehousing souls, creating Arval to carry his soul and consciousness, only to eventually lose them. He fell in battle against Seiros. Arval helped pass down the consciousness and soul of Epimenides throughout many ages, with Shez the newest body housing them. Arval's true purpose is to guide Shez and keep them alive until such time that they may take revenge on Sothis, who at this point in time lives on within Byleth.
By Arval's own admission, the only thing they could remember was flowing water, perhaps the "flood" Sothis perpetrated when she destroyed Agartha, or (perhaps more likely) the tank of water they are briefly seen in during the opening cutscene (which takes place long after the destruction of most of the Agarthans).
In all story routes, if Byleth is killed by Shez depending on the circumstances, they tell Arval that they feel empty now that they don't have a rival and wonder if things might have gone differently. Arval comforts Shez, telling them that they're going through a lot of emotions but they mostly feel relieved as they feel like they accomplished a mission they weren't aware of and are grateful for what they accomplished.
If Byleth has been recruited, Epimenides will become one with Arval and take over Shez's body before attempting to kill Byleth and by extension Sothis. After being thwarted by Shez's allies, Epimenides attempts to do away with his enemies by sacrificing Solon in order to banish Edelgard, Dimitri, Claude, and Shez to Zahras. In the process, Epimenides separates from Shez, and thus Shez no longer hears Arval in their mind.
Epimenides attempts to destroy both Shez and the royals by unleashing phantoms mimicking them and their allies upon them, but this plan too is thwarted, and Shez ultimately kills Epimenides, and by extension, Arval, freeing them from Zahras. In their final moments, Arval regains control of their body and tells Shez they're amazed by how strong they've become.
Personality[]
Like Sothis, Arval lacks any and all memories of the past prior to meeting Shez. That said, they do have some vague impressions of feelings towards people they've met in the past or feel they are connected to.
They're even sassier than Sothis, and almost always have a snarky quip for every situation, with a particularly sharp tongue toward authority figures. They do have a blatant soft spot for Shez though despite snarking at them all the same. While not overly narcissistic, Arval is quite proud of their abilities and tends to lord them over Shez, often reminding them they're still alive because of Arval's powers.
Arval has a very strategic mind and sometimes comes up with plans which they sometime lend to Shez when they're asked for ideas in the story.
Arval for the longest time didn't quite know why they existed, but after witnessing Shez's defeat at the hands of Byleth in the prologue, they became very fixated on the idea that defeating the Ashen Demon has to be their "destiny". Arval seems to be a firm believer in "fate" or "destiny", and that it's theirs and Shez's destiny to defeat Byleth, the Ashen Demon. Whenever Shez advocates or suggests forgoing their rivalry with Byleth in favor of recruiting them, reasoning that their faction would be unstoppable with them and Jeralt's Mercenaries in their corner, Arval insists they defeat them, but by their own admission, they don't really understand why.
"Just a minute! The following section contains spoilers. Viewing it will cost a lot. Are you prepared to pay for it?"
|
With Those Who Slither in the Dark such as Kronya, Arval experiences a "pure emotion" that they can't tell is love or hate, and heavily dislikes Sothis' presence. Arval also wants to destroy Byleth because they were created to save Agarthans by destroying "the fake Beast" that would threaten them. That being said, Arval does not advocate for Shez to kill Byleth if they choose to recruit them.
Despite being an Agarthan creation, Arval shows little to no animosity towards the Nabateans and non-Agarthans, Sothis being the sole exception. They even develop a friendship with their host Shez. In some cases, Arval can even rebel against their creator's descendants. If Byleth is recruited and spared by Shez, Arval will choose not to show any hostility, instead claiming to fully support Shez's decision out of fondness for the mercenary.
In-Game[]
Warriors: Three Hopes[]
Recruitment[]
Arval can be unlocked for play from the Renown Exchange in Shez's journal during a postgame or New Game+ run at a cost of sixty Renown. However, Byleth has to have been recruited either during a previous playthrough or the current playthrough.
As a Renown unit, Arval is restricted from play in the main story aside from their specific Paralogue, Cycles of Nostalgia. Otherwise, they can only be used in auxiliary battles.
Base Stats[]
Fire Emblem Heroes[]
- Cycle Keeper
- A mysterious being who exists on the edge of dreams and reality. Fond of offering advice and intent on providing guidance. Appears in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes.
Base Stats[]
Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯
 | Title | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cycle Keeper | |||||
| Group | |||||
 Infantry | |||||
| Level | HP | Atk | Spd | Def | Res |
| 1 40 | 17/18/19 36/40/43 | 10/11/12 40/44/47 | 4/5/6 23/27/30 | 3/4/5 20/23/27 | 12/13/14 40/43/47 |
| Skills | Weapon | ||||
 Rite of Souls Chilling Wind |  Tome | ||||
Skills[]
| Type | Name | Prerequisite | Default | Unlocked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Stone | - | - | - |
| Elstone | - | - | - | |
| Atlas | - | - | - | |
| Rite of Souls | - |  | - | |
 | Chilling Wind | - | - | - |
| Glacies | Chilling Wind | - | - | |
| A |  Duality | - | | |
| B |  Atk/Res Tempo 1 | - | - | |
 Atk/Res Tempo 2 | Atk/Res Tempo 1 | - | ||
 Atk/Res Tempo 3 | Atk/Res Tempo 2 | - | ||
| C |  Atk/Res Oath 1 | - | - | |
 Atk/Res Oath 2 | Atk/Res Oath 1 | - | ||
 Atk/Res Oath 3 | Atk/Res Oath 2 | - | ||
 Atk/Res Oath 4 | Atk/Res Oath 3 | |
Overall[]
|
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.
|
Base Kit[]
Counters[]
Skill Inheritance[]
Meet Some of the Heroes[]
| Cycle Keeper Arval | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Arval is one of the most mysterious Heroes I've encountered so far! As far as I know, they were summoned here from Fódlan, but I can't tell you much else... Just who are they, really? | ||
|
It seems they appeared in Fódlan in Imperial Year 1179...and that was within the mind of Shez, who had sustained grievous wounds in a battle with another mercenary. | ||
|
Arval granted Shez new power, and together they plunged into the conflict brewing in Fódlan. With Arval's strength and wisdom, Shez managed to make it through all kinds of perilous situations. | ||
|
As nervous as I might be about Arval's true identity and goals, it seems they can't remember much either! If they ever do get their memories back, I hope they can clue me in! | ||
| Closely Associated Characters | |||
| Shez | A mercenary who wandered Fódlan. Though ordinarily rational, a burning desire sleeps within them. | ||
Quotes[]
Warriors: Three Hopes[]
Heroes[]
Choose Your Legends Placement History[]
| Round | Placement | Character Version | Votes |
|---|
| CYL1-CYL6 | N/A | ||||
| CYL7 | 55 |  Warriors: Three Hopes |
1,247 | ||
| CYL8 | 131 ↓76 |
Warriors: Three Hopes |
564 ↓683 |
Etymology[]
In Roman religion, the Arval Brothers or Arval Brethren are a group of priests who perform annual sacrifices to both Lares and the gods to guarantee good harvests.
The kana for their name can also be read as "larva".
Trivia[]
- Unique amongst the renown units unlocked in New Game+, Arval's access to classes depends on the gender the player chose for Shez.
- If Shez is male, Arval has access to male classes like the Brawler line within the Fighter tree and starts as an otherwise male-exclusive Dark Bishop.
- If Shez is female, Arval has access to female classes like the Pegasus Knight and Falcon Knight within the Soldier tree and starts as an otherwise female-exclusive Gremory.
- This gender-locking is dependent on the Shez of the current save file, meaning if the Shez in the completed save file was male yet the Shez in the New Game+ file is female, Arval will be a Gremory.
- Do note that if Arval was unlocked by Female Shez and the NG+ file switches to Male Shez, Arval won't have Dark Mage or Dark Bishop automatically unlocked, with the vice versa being Arval not having Warlock and Gremory unlocked when switching from Male Shez to Female Shez.
- Before their appearance in Heroes, Arval is seen in a few images for Shez in the Heroes Beginner's Guide.
- Arval shares their English voice actress, Melissa Hutchison, with Panette from Engage.
Gallery[]
- See main article: Arval/Gallery.