Zelkov is a character from Fire Emblem Engage. He is one of Ivy's retainers.
Profile[]
Zelkov is a royal knight of Elusia, and Ivy's retainer. He hails from a wealthy family in an Elusian forest town, with a mother who worked as a trained physician. When he was young, his family was killed by bandits. A decade before the events of the game, he wiped out the bandits and avenged his parents and twin brother; after this, his life felt meaningless, so he took up various hobbies.
Zelkov found his way into service of the Kingdom of Elusia for the Crown Princess Ivy. Under the Fell Dragon Sombron's machinations, Ivy was forced to act on his behalf for the sake of her kingdom, and as her retainer, Zelkov participated in battles for his liege against the recently reawakened Divine Dragon Alear. However, after Sombron was resurrected and King Hyacinth was killed as a pawn in the Fell Dragon's schemes, Ivy defected to Alear's force, bringing Zelkov with her in their service. Zelkov helped Ivy secure two of the Emblem Rings in possession of Elusia and recovered the Draconic Time Crystal for Alear.
Fell Xenologue[]
"Just a minute! The following section contains spoilers. Viewing it will cost a lot. Are you prepared to pay for it?"
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Personality[]
Zelkov has a quiet and obsessive personality with many hobbies. He is extremely passionate and always searching for something he can sink his time into. He is an adept learner, able to pick up new hobbies with ease. He is also able to intuit Yunaka's hidden past from observing her behavior based on his own experiences.
He has a tendency to emphasize certain words in his speech in a manner that makes what he says sound profound, though this is not his intention. Despite his dark and mysterious appearance, he is actually very friendly, and likes protecting children.
In-Game[]
- Princess Ivy's retainer. An enigmatic man who's always absorbed in intrigues of his own making.
Base Stats[]
| Starting Class | Battle Style | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Thief | Covert | ||||||||
| Level | HP | Str | Mag | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res | Bld |
| 17 | 35 | 15 | 3 | 19 | 19 | 7 | 14 | 5 | 9 |
| Emblem | Skills | Weapon | Starting Items | ||||||
| - |  Not *Quite* |  Knife - S |  Stiletto Steel Dagger Vulnerary | ||||||
As an Enemy[]
Chapter 8: Kingdom of Might[]
| Starting Class | Battle Style | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thief | Covert | ||||||||
| Level | HP | Str | Mag | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res | Bld |
| 11 | 30 | 6 | 2 | 10 | 15 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 6 |
| Emblem | Skills | Weapon | Starting Items | ||||||
| - | Not *Quite* | Knife - S | Steel Dagger | ||||||
Chapter 9: A Clash of Forces[]
| Starting Class | Battle Style | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thief | Covert | ||||||||
| Level | HP | Str | Mag | Skl | Spd | Lck | Def | Res | Bld |
| 12 | 29 | 8 | 1 | 18 | 18 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 7 |
| Emblem | Skills | Weapon | Starting Items | ||||||
| - | Not *Quite* | Knife - S | Steel Dagger | ||||||
Growth Rates[]
| HP | Bld | Str | Mag | Dex | Spd | Def | Res | Lck |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 65% | 10% | 35% | 15% | 40% | 35% | 35% | 15% | 25% |
Supports[]
- See also: Zelkov/Supports
Bonds[]
- See also: Zelkov/Bonds
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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Zelkov is the second starting Thief that the player recruits. His base stats for his join time and level are strong, with his personal base Build surprisingly being the highest of any character in the game, despite wielding the lightest weapon type in Knives. This gives him excellent damage output right from the get-go, able to wield the heaviest throwing knives and consistently Follow-Up Attack with them all throughout the mid-game, especially with their excellent Forging properties. His growth rates however are somewhat on the lower end, with his average Strength and Speed growths making it difficult for him to maintain his ability to execute opponents unassisted in later stages. His Resistance growth is also very poor at just 15%, and leaves him very vulnerable to Mages, particularly those of the Mystic Battle Style who can pierce the cover he frequently will use to dodge attacks.
Zelkov joins the party at level 17, but as Thief is a special class, he does not have any immediate promotions and must level-up another four times to be eligible for reclassing. Despite his excellent initial performance, his damage output can fall off later on due to Thief's low-might weaponry, but thanks in particular to his fantastic Build, he is capable of performing well in a variety of alternate physical roles. Warrior is a solid all-around option that can give him access to Chain Attacks for supporting and he is not slowed by the majority of Axes, maintaining his reasonable Speed. Halberdier is a more offensive option that emphasizes his one-rounding potential, though he cannot access it until at least Chapter 16. Other generic roles such as Hero or Wyvern Knight are also possible and very reasonable on Zelkov.
Zelkov synergizes with a handful of Emblem Rings - as a Covert unit, he makes fantastic use of the Ring of the Crux of Fate to abuse his Covert bonus with Dragon Vein's generation of fog tiles, producing extremely low hit-rates for opponent units especially when combined with his Personal Skill, Not *Quite*, though this can backfire on Maddening difficulty if his dodge rate is too high so should be used sparingly on that difficulty. The Ring of the Instructor is a reasonable ring to let him abuse Instruct and its highly coveted speed buffs, while the Ring of the Lady of the Plains largely resolves his Speed issues and maintains his consistency for the remainder of the game, if he keeps it.
Overall, Zelkov is a solid unit who has a strong start and can contribute well regardless of the player's army up to that point, especially if Yunaka, his direct competition as a Thief, has not been trained. If he is reclassed he will continue to scale reasonably well and with moderate investment will remain a solid unit right up until the end of the game.
Gift List[]
| Gift Name | Type of Gift | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Tea Leaves | Favorite | A well-aged dried meat popular as a portable snack. Favored by fans of meat and folk food. |
| Sharp Chisel | Favorite | A tool used to carve intricate designs on wood. Favored by fans of crafting and weapons. |
| Poetry Book | Favorite | A diverse book of poetry including submissions from the public. Favored by fans of reading and daydreaming. |
| Elyos History | Favorite | A thick book detailing the history of Elyos and its regions. Favored by fans of reading and studying. |
| White Clover | Favorite | Used for cooking. With luck, one can be found with four leaves. Favored by fans of cooking and herbs. |
| Utility Knife | Favorite | A handy tool that includes a knife, scissors, etc. Favored by fans of crafting, weapons, and cool things. |
| Sewing Kit | Favorite | This compact, well-organized sewing kit is handy in a pinch. Favored by fans of sewing and knitting. |
| Sheep Wool | Favorite | A soft ball of yarn spun from the fresh wool of young sheep. Favored by fans of sewing and knitting. |
| Landscape Art | Favorite | A postcard depicting a beautiful landscape. There's space to write a note. Favored by fans of nature. |
| Large Plate | Favorite | A large and practical plate that holds food for multiple people. Favored by fans of cooking and parties. |
| Spirit Gem | Favorite | A gem that shines with many colors. Found only in the Somniel, especially near Sommie. Favored by all. |
| Strong Perfume | Disliked | A small bottle of perfume made from the essence of fruit and flowers. Favored by fans of fashion. |
| Playing Cards | Disliked | Picture cards used for various group games. Favored by children and fans of parties and games. |
| Lovely Candle | Disliked | An exclusive candle etched by hand with an elaborate design. Favored by fans of fashion, luxury, and parties. |
| Horse Manure | Disliked | Ordinary horse manure. That's it. You could technically give it to someone, but why would you? |
Quotes[]
Possible Endings[]
- Mystery Man Zelkov
- After completing his work as Princess Ivy's retainer, Zelkov's next pursuit was to create a shelter for the children in Elusia who were orphaned by the war.
- He and his new family were very happy. It is said that the children all learned to speak in quite a profound and *meaningful* way.
- Zelkov and Alear
- Alear became the new Divine Dragon Monarch. His/Her bonds with the rulers of each nation resulted in a lasting peace.
- Zelkov helped the new monarch from the shadows. While he is absent from historical records, it is said that they embarked on many new *pursuits* together.
Choose Your Legends Placement History[]
| Round | Placement | Character Version | Votes |
|---|
| CYL9 | 112 ↑2 |
 Engage |
508 ↓124 |
Etymology[]
Zelkova is a genus of deciduous trees of the elm family.
Trivia[]
- Zelkov shares his English voice actor, David Matranga, with Knoll from The Sacred Stones as he appears in Heroes.
- Zelkov's ring size, according to the Ally Notebook, is 7.5 (P).
- In his Ally Notebook profile in the Japanese version, Zelkov's deceased brother is specified to be his younger twin. He's only referred to as "younger brother" in the English version.
"Just a minute! The following section contains spoilers. Viewing it will cost a lot. Are you prepared to pay for it?"
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- In the Japanese version of Clash of Queens, if Zelkov battles against alternate Ivy, she brings up that she was in a relationship with the alternate Zelkov.[1] This was changed in the English version, where alternate Ivy claims alternate Zelkov as her favorite retainer."End of spoilers. It's a pleasure doing business with you!"
Gallery[]
- See main article: Zelkov/Gallery.