Prologue (Shadow Dragon)

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Prologue I
Game	Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon
Objective	Seize
Units Allowed	1 (I) 3 (II) 5 (III) 6 (IV)
Units Gained	Prologue I: Marth Prologue II: Frey, Abel Prologue III: Jagen, Cain Prologue IV: Gordin (talk with Marth) Draug (end of chapter) Norne (joins at the end if two or more allies are gone by the end of the prologue)
Boss	Soldier (I, II) Mage (III) Captain (Cavalier, IV)
Script	Chapter script
Next	Marth Embarks
[view]

“I will not yield to you or any other nation, here on my own land, under my own castle roof!”
—Marth to Gra soldiers

A prologue consisting of four parts has been added in Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon. It chronicles the fall of the kingdom of Altea, prior to Prince Marth's departure to the island of Talys where he appears to be in Chapter 1: Marth Embarks (and the beginning of Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light and Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem). This set of scenarios is only available in Normal Mode, however, and will automatically be skipped should the player choose to play the Hard Mode, automatically selecting the canon course of events (Not killing Gordin, using Frey as the decoy and not recruiting Norne) in that case.

The basics of combat are explained throughout the prologue if the player opts to enable the in-game tutorial. Also, two of the Shadow Dragon exclusive characters, Frey and Norne, can only be recruited in the prologue chapter, although the former is not canonically present in the main game.

Synopsis

At the dead of night, Prince Marth is shocked to find himself surrounded by Gra soldiers in his own castle's corridor. He soon learns of his father's defeat at the hands of Gra, his own allies, and is implored by his sister, Princess Elice, to flee the fallen castle ahead of her. Marth is joined by two Altean cavaliers, Frey and Abel. Together, they head towards the gate to meet up with Sir Jagen, and the cavalier Cain who had accompanied the fallen king's entourage on that fateful day. Meanwhile, Elice orders Malledus to catch up with the young prince and accompany him as his advisor. Cain delivers to Marth the king's final request: Marth must rise as Falchion's remaining heir and restore peace to the continent of Archanea. After a brief skirmish with Gra soldiers, Malledus arrives to join Marth (as a NPC) and explains to him Elice's decision to stay behind to ensure the boy's safety. She, too, believes that only Marth can save the land. Malledus tells Marth that Elice wanted him to seek refuge in the island of Talys, and so they must pass by a prison in order to reach the docks. At the prison, Marth meets the Altean archer, Gordin, who was being held captive and forced to dress up as one of Gra's soldiers. Before the group manages to make it to the docks, however, they find themselves surrounded by Gra forces from all sides, one of them led by King Jiol of Gra himself. At this point, Malledus suggests sending out one of Marth's knights as a decoy to mislead Jiol's troops, if Marth is to have any chance of survival. Despite Marth's protests, one of the five Altean units volunteers to carry out Malledus's plan and thus supposedly perishes after fulfilling the task. (Canonically, Frey sacrifices himself but ultimately survives.)

Battlefield Data

• Prologue I
• Prologue II
• Prologue III
• Prologue IV

• Enemy number: 4 (Gra)
• Enemy types: 2 Fighters and 2 Soldiers (one of them occupying the yellow tile).

Enemy number: 6 (Gra)

Enemy types: 1 Fighter, 2 Archers and 3 Soldiers (one of whom occupies the yellow tile).

Enemy number: 10 (Gra)

Enemy types: 4 Soldiers, 2 Archers, 2 Fighters and 2 Mages (one of them occupying the yellow tile).

Residence: 5 houses. (Each with a resident offering gameplay advice.)

Enemy number: Several (Gra) enemies from the start. Two sets of Pegasus Knights will appear as reinforcement at the forts on the west side of the battlefield. Somewhere in between (if the player does not kill Gordin as an enemy), Jiol's troops will emerge from the south, but at this point in the game, they appear to be impossible to defeat.

Residence: 2 houses and 1 village (no thieves).

Items: Iron Bow (dropped), Steel Bow (village)

Trivia

• The Door Key that Malledus gives to Marth in the opening cutscene of Prologue IV cannot be discarded, or traded to another character, presumably to prevent an unwinnable situation.
• The map of Prologue II and Prologue IV are both contained within the maps of Star and Savior and The Battle for Altea respectively.
  • Despite this, The map for Prologue I does not appear inside Star and Savior, despite both taking place in Castle Altea, and more specifically featuring the castle's throne.
  • The map for Prologue III also does not appear as part of either map. This is explainable, however, as it exists somewhere between the 2 chapters' locations.
• If Marth rushes to the marked fortress instead of sending a decoy, the northern door will not be opened unless all of his allies are killed.
• An alternative scenario occurs if Marth actually mistakes Gordin for an enemy and kills him off. In that case, Jiol's troops will not show up, and instead, the enemy Captain will have the door opened to lure Marth out and finish him off himself.