The Dark Dragon (暗黒竜 Ankokuryū, translated as Shadow Dragon in some fan translations) is both a type of Dragon and an enemy-only class that debuts in Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem. Acting as the personal class of Medeus in Book 2 of Mystery of the Emblem and its remake, Fire Emblem: New Mystery of the Emblem and Gerxel in TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga, the Dark Dragon breathes Dark Breath, foul fetid fumes of noxious air, in order to damage its foes. They are the ultimate dragon-based class in all appearances.
History in the Series
The Dark Dragon is the class Medeus assumes after his resurrection was sped up by Gharnef at the end of Mystery of the Emblem and its remake. Like Earth Dragons, the Dark Dragon uses Dark Breath and halves all damage received. Additionally the Dark Dragon is immune to all magic damage. The Dark Dragon boosts maximum Strength and HP with high Defense and Resistance. However the class has low Speed and Skill. Through hacking, it can be seen the class has flying type movement.
In the remake, New Mystery of the Emblem, the Dark Dragon no longer nullifies magic damage or halves damage received. However, the class now has extremely high Skill and Speed. In harder difficulties, the Dark Dragon will have 99 HP, additionally all of its stats, barring Speed, will be 40, significantly higher then the 30 cap used by other classes. This makes the Dark Dragon a truly formidable opponent.
While not an actual unit, the spirit of Loptyr that is summoned by the Loptyr tome in Genealogy of the Holy War appears to be a Dark Dragon as well, in line with the concept of dragons being worshiped as deities in the game's lore.
In TearRing Saga: Utna Heroes Saga, the Dark Dragon class is also the personal class of Gerxel, the final boss of the game. Rather than starting as a member of the Earth Dragon tribe or even a dragon at all, the Dark Dragon in this title is the result of a human drinking the blood of a dragon goddess,
Miradona, and gaining god-like power with the initial intention of using it to avenge his slaughtered people.
In-Game
Base Stats
| HP | Str | Mag | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res | Mov | Con | Wt | Wlv | Cha | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FE3 | 52 | 20 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 15 | 5 | - | - | Breath 16 | |
| TS | 60 | 10 | 30 | 30 | 25 | 0 | 30 | - | 0 | - | - | Breath 15 | |
| FE12 | 18 | 10 | 0 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 16 | 12 | 6 | - | - | Breath - |
Maximum Stats
| HP | Str | Mag | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res | Mov | Con | Wt | Wlv | Cha | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FE3 | 52 | 20 | - | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 5 | - | - | Breath 20 | |
| TS | 60 | 25 | 45 | 45 | 40 | 30 | 45 | - | 0 | - | - | Breath 30 | |
| FE12 | 99 | 40 | 30 | 40 | 30 | 30 | 40 | 30 | 6 | - | - | Breath - |
Growth Rates
| HP | Str | Mag | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res | Mov | Con | Wt | Wlv | Cha | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FE3 | 50% | 10% | - | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 10% | - | - | - | - | |
| FE12 | 100% | 75% | 0% | 75% | 25% | 0% | 50% | 20% | - | - | - | - |
Trivia
- It is unclear if Dark Dragons are a form unique to Earth Dragons or a state that all powerful Dragons can eventually achieve. TearRing Saga appears to suggest the latter interpretation, if it is to be considered canon to the Fire Emblem series.
- The Dark Dragon has no moving animations in the original Mystery of the Emblem.
- Interestingly, the artwork of the Dark Dragon class in the TCG depicts it as a serpent, while Medeus' appearance in both versions of Mystery of the Emblem is that of a more traditional dragon with six appendages, two wings and four legs. It is possible that the TCG artwork for the Dark Dragon class is moreover a reference to Loptyr's serpentine appearance.
- The artwork for the Darksphere in the TCG depicts it adorned it with a figurehead in the image of a Shadow Dragon.
Gallery
.png "Shadow Dragon Medeus (FE12).png (123 KB)")
