Ike

Ike is markedly very different from the Lord characters prior to him due to him being the first main character to not be of royal lineage. As such, Ike is the first to be of truly humble, commoner origin and thus is reflected in how his interactions are with most individuals. Having been raised in the company of a mercenary group and having been practically raised on the battlefield, Ike carries a noteworthy adult-view of the world. Hating to say more than what needs to be said, he is always stouthearted, leading some to perceive this as him acting above his actual ability. While true to the mercenary code of being loyal to coin for his employment, Ike genuinely has bonded with his employers and eventual allies. As such, Ike has a strong work ethic and sees all conflicts he has participated to the very end.

Ike has a rather plain view on matters and speaks bluntly, yet honestly. He sees beyond the immediate first impression of an individual, preferring to judge based on actions rather than status. This leads him to be one of the Beorc to almost indiscriminately gain approval by the Laguz after witnessing his honest disposition and open acceptance of all he comes across, even the likes of the originally Beorc hating Reyson. Partially influenced by Elincia, Ike genuinely hopes that the Beorc and Laguz can foster genuinely friendly relations with each other, especially finding camaraderie in Ranulf. According to his Emblem form in Engage, once he trusts someone, he never questions their motives, even if they lie to him, as he figures that person has a reason for their subterfuge. Though he doubted his capabilities as a leader, especially since he was thrust into the position of leader of the Greil Mercenaries, many have attested to his abilities early on in Path of Radiance and was solidified by the events of Radiant Dawn.

Ike's humble background as essentially common folk gave him a strong distaste for the nobility for their generally pompous nature. Unlike many commoners who seek prestige to elevate their status, Ike seeks no personal glory nor does he view such a life as rewarding. In fact, the only reason he became a Lord was a formality out of respect for Elincia, the first noble to challenge the stereotypical mold of nobility. Even after the events of the The Mad King's War, despite being given a formal lordship and land, Ike willingly gave it up at the first opportunity as he found the life too stifling to what he was used to and immediately returned to his mercenary duties. However, he remained a close associate with Elincia and readily took the request to help her during the attempted coup of her reign.

By the time of Radiant Dawn, Ike has matured significantly from his fledgling days as a mostly inexperienced fighter. Physically, he adopted many of his father's traits and, coupled with his cool personality, has enthralled many women including Aimee. Despite this, Ike has never openly stated anything in regards to romance with all of his closest female associates remaining platonic and has notably no romantic pairings or endings in his epilogues unlike nearly all main series Lord characters save perhaps Alear. However, the existence of Priam in Awakening hints that Ike may have found a romantic partner, though the name of said partner has never been revealed.

His deeds during the Mad King's war brought notice to his prowess across Tellius, earning him respect from many notable Beorc and Laguz warriors such as Zelgius and Caineghis, with many seeking to duel him, a proposition that excites him more often than not. He is a serious fighter, even when sparring or training, which unfortunately alienates most of his allies due to his sheer physical superiority. In fact, only Mia earnestly spars with him amongst his company due to the fact that she loves fighting almost as much as he does and thus is his preferred sparring partner. Though he was able to exact revenge against the Black Knight during the events of Path of Radiance, Ike never shook the feeling that the Black Knight survived the collapsing temple as his body was never found. His sudden reappearance in Radiant Dawn reignited Ike's desire to duel him to a close and by the end of the Endgame, Ike was able to finally gain closure over their feud. Even after he vanished after the events of Radiant Dawn, legends would continue to tout Ike as one of the mightiest heroes to have descended onto Tellius. His legend became so profound, in almost all of his future cameo appearances in other Fire Emblem titles, Ike is often touted as one of the physically strongest heroes in the franchise such as in Awakening, Engage, and Heroes.

Appearance: Ike, in this "Vanguard Legend" appearance from Fire Emblem Heroes, looks every bit the seasoned warrior he is. His build is broad and muscular, clearly reflecting his years of battle experience. He wears a striking suit of blue and silver armor with turquoise accents—especially prominent on his shoulder guard and greaves. His white pants contrast sharply against the darker, armored portions of his outfit.

A thick maroon cloak, tattered at the edges and secured over his shoulder, flows behind him and adds a sense of rugged nobility. He also sports a brown leather belt and chest straps that help hold his armor together and carry gear. His left arm is covered in a heavy silver gauntlet, while the right has more flexible armor and a leather glove.

His hair is a vivid blue, messy but iconic, and his expression is stoic, determined, and always battle-ready. He holds Ragnell, his signature two-handed golden sword, with confidence, showing that he's prepared for anything. Ike gives off a powerful, heroic presence—someone hardened by war but still driven by honor and justice.

Ike's Attacks:

Regular Special: Eruption: A chargeable Earth-smashing move that sends flames bursting from the ground where Ike stabs the ground to cause a geyser of flame to erupt, hence its name. If held too long, it will automatically release and cause an explosion, damaging Ike as well as any enemies in range. It has launch resistance frames at the moment Ike is about to stab the sword into the ground, and similar to Roy's Flare Blade, it causes recoil damage to Ike at full charge. The flames are red in Brawl and blue for 3DS and Wii U. In Ultimate, charging the attack to full power results in three pillars of flame rather than one.

Custom Regular Special 1: Tempest: Ike stabs the ground, creating a small gust of wind around it. It will only damage an enemy if they come into contact with the move. If they are near Ike, but not touching the blade, they will be pushed away from him. The distance the wind pushes the enemy is dependent on how long the move is charged. Using it in the air will allow Ike to gain a little bit of vertical height with the first hit, but it will lose that property and will instead cause Ike to stall in place with every usage after the first if Ike does not touch the ground or a ledge.

Custom Regular Special 2: Furious Eruption: Ike creates a larger explosion with higher vertical height for the blast. At full charge, it will deal 15% of recoil damage

Side Special: Quick Draw: Another chargeable move in which Ike lunges straight forward and strikes his enemy (based on his critical hit animation in Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance before he promotes to a Lord). It can also be used and charged in midair and Ike will still move forward at the same height in which he released this move, but will descend once the move ends. However, Ike will be in a helpless state if the move connects onto an enemy in midair (in Brawl, he is not left helpless if the hit connects in SSB4) or if he falls short from a ledge or does not land on the ground. This move is an optional recovery move and is good for horizontal off stage recovery.

Custom Side Special 1: Close Combat: Ike tackles the opponent and will move through them rather than stopping once he makes contact like the base form. The longer the move is held, the father he will travel and the enemies are launched vertically rather than horizontally. It can also neutralize most weak projectiles.

Custom Side Special 2: Unyielding Blade: Ike's Quick Draw gains armor that lasts until Ike makes contact with an enemy or the move animation ends. It has higher knock back and deals more damage. However, Ike will still take damage if he is hit and the move has less range than the base form.

Up Special: Aether: Based on his mastery skill. Ike performs the standard Sol animation from his Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn Aether move. He throws Ragnell into the air and jumps to catch it. Ike front-flips three times then slams the sword along with any enemy he connected with into the ground. This move has little horizontal recovery but is an effective recovery from the bottom of the stage as the vertical leap has great height. Like the Eruption move, Aether has launch resistance frames before Ike throws Ragnell in the air and can even take Marth's Final Smash without flinching during that period. However, he will still sustain any damage he would have received from the hit.

Custom Up Special 1: Aether Dive: Ike throws Ragnell at a diagonal trajectory then leaps and catches it before doing the same front flip and blade slam moves as the base form. He will land approximately three character lengths in front of where he executed the move. The blade throw portion and front flips have more knockback.

Custom Up Special 2: Aether Wave: Ike's Aether activates faster. When Ike slams onto the ground, he creates a small shockwave similar to Kirby's Final Cutter.

Down Special: Counter: Ike takes a defensive stance, holding Ragnell with two hands and pointing the blade down. Any physical hit dealt on Ike during this move will be dealt back as an attack multiplied by 1.2. with a minimum of 10% damage (slashes at the foe with a right-handed inward slash in reverse grip). Ike shares this special move with Marth but there are key differences. Ike's Counter has a longer start up but shorter cooldown compared to Marth. However their Counter time window is the same.

Custom Down Special 1: Paralyzing Counter: Ike's counter deals no counter damage, however it applies a small electrical effect that stuns the enemy for a second, allowing Ike to execute a free combo immediately after the Counter activates.

Custom Down Special 2: Smash Counter: Ike's counter starts up slower and the execution of the counter hit is much slower. However, it can soak multiple hits and deals more damage and knockback. However, the enemy can shield before the counter hits if they are fast enough.

Final Smash: Great Aether: Ike coats Ragnell with fire and performs a much more powerful version of his in-game Aether move. Ike must connect with an enemy within one to about two character lengths away from him with the initial blow of this move. Ike can connect with multiple enemies with the initial hit. If the move connects, Ike will launch all enemies he hit into the air and perform a series of kicks and slashes before performing the standard Aether flip-slashes. After, Ike will then drive the enemies into the ground, resulting in a large explosion. Any enemy caught in the explosion will be launched vertically. In Brawl this move deals roughly 64%-74% damage to any enemies caught by this move, but only 12% from anyone hit only by the ending explosion. Since Ike has never used Great Aether in any of the Fire Emblem games in which he has appeared in, some interpret that it may be a manifestation or variation of Ike's final blow against Ashera, when Yune lends him her power in Radiant Dawn.