Claude (Devotion)

Profile: Early life Claude's birth name is Khalid, and he was born in Imperial Year 1162 as the son of the king of Almyra and Tiana, the daughter of Duke Riegan. As a child, he often found himself discriminated against due to his Fódlan heritage and had to contend with his half-siblings. When he left Almyra and taken to the Leicester Alliance, he was again discriminated against due to his Almyran heritage. This led him to develop a desire to end Fódlan's long-standing isolationism in an effort to bring about a new world where everyone accepts everyone else. These experiences also helped him develop his strong tactical prowess from a young age.

Khalid also tries to keep the complete truth of his heritage from others, especially from the Gloucester clan. To such ends, he changed his name from Khalid to Claude - a name more fitting to Fódlan - and claims to be the son of an "offshoot" from the Alliance, brought into the clan just after his Crest manifested. Only Balthus has realized that he is the son of Tiana, a beautiful woman who once was very beloved by the Leicester noblemen, and he has promised to not let anyone else know.

Claude is the heir to House Riegan, the preeminent house of the Leicester Alliance, and the grandson of its leader through his mother, Tiana. Though he was born in Imperial Year 1162, he was not legitimated as heir until Imperial Year 1179, a year before enrolling at the Officers Academy.

Three Houses Academy Phase As a student at the Officers Academy in Garreg Mach Monastery in Imperial Year 1180, Claude is the house leader of the Golden Deer.

If Byleth chooses to teach the Golden Deer House, Claude becomes increasingly interested in their origins given Rhea's strange fixation on them along with the fact that they bear the Crest of Flames and can wield the Sword of the Creator. He also develops an interest in uncovering Fódlan's true history and the true nature of Crests and the Heroes' Relics after witnessing Miklan's transformation into a Black Beast during the mission of Chapter 5.

After forcing Byleth to lend him Jeralt's diary after his death, Claude learns that Rhea had done something to them as a newborn. At the end of Chapter 10, Claude demands Byleth tell him everything about the circumstances behind their transformation and newfound power, learning that an entity claiming to be the Goddess was living in Byleth's head and surmising that this phenomenon had something to do with what Rhea did to Byleth upon their birth. Claude promises Byleth that he will assist them in learning more about their origins as well as the secrets held by the Church and Rhea.

No matter which route is chosen, Claude teams with Dimitri and the Knights of Seiros, led by Archbishop Rhea, to defend Garreg Mach against the Adrestian Empire. They are crushed by Adrestian forces, and are forced to surrender, also losing Byleth in the process during the battle.

Cindered Shadows Claude is the other Golden Deer beside Hilda to explore Abyss. His heritage is somewhat more explored in this path. The name of his grandfather (Oswald) and his mother (Tiana) are revealed, and there's also a bit more of background on how Tiana left the Leicester lands to go to Almyra.

War Phase With the fall of Garreg Mach Monastery, Claude returns to the Leicester Alliance. The long grueling war instigated by Edelgard quickly spreads across Fódlan. After an undisclosed period of time, Claude's grandfather, Duke Oswald, passes away, naming him as his successor. Despite the impending war, beginning with the Empire's invasion into Gloucester territory, Claude's leadership of the Alliance has created a stalemate against it while maintaining unity within the Alliance's territories.

If Byleth chooses to lead the Black Eagles and then chooses to stay with Rhea and the Church and go against Edelgard, they will lead a Resistance Army to stop the Empire and rescue Rhea. Once the army receives troops from Judith at the Valley of Torment, she gives Byleth a letter from Claude. In the letter, he states that he "doesn't know exactly why, but he feels that he can trust them".

He tells Byleth that in order to invade the Empire, they must go east and take the Great Bridge of Myrddin while he distracts House Gloucester's troops so that the Resistance Army can pass through their territory along the way. By taking the bridge, House Gloucester won't be able to receive the Empire's aid, benefiting Claude's position in the war as well as giving the Resistance Army a foothold to invade the Empire. After the Resistance Army takes the bridge, the Alliance engages in a three-way battle with the Empire and the Kingdom at Gronder Field, resulting in massive casualties on all sides. In the aftermath, Claude is reported as missing; however, some of his former classmates believe him to still be alive. Regardless, Claude is never heard from again.

Crimson Flower If the Black Eagles route is chosen, Claude will find himself ill-prepared for the Empire to invade the Alliance first. A series of battles eventually lead to Claude being driven back to the Alliance capital, Derdriu. He and the Alliance army are soundly defeated by the Empire, but he attempts to negotiate with Edelgard, stating that he'd be worth more alive than dead due to all of the nobles indebted to him, leaving her with the option to spare or kill him.

If he is spared, Claude thanks Byleth and Edelgard for their mercy, entrusting the people and territories of the Alliance to her, believing that she will be able to rule justly. He also asks her to take care of his former classmates before leaving for Almyra. Before leaving, he quickly returns to talk to Byleth. If he is slain, he gives his sincere hope that Edelgard can create a better world than the one Fódlan currently finds itself in. Edelgard surmises that he accounted for all potential options, as he knew that as long as he lived, parts of the Alliance would continue to fight the Empire in his name, which would only be quelled with his death, real or otherwise.

Azure Moon If the Blue Lions route is chosen, the Alliance army follows behind Faerghus' as they march into Imperial territory, where they are intercepted by Edelgard's own forces. Amidst the flames of war, Claude is forced to lament the brutality of the promised class reunion, before engaging in battle with the other two nations. He has his army stay neutral and wait for the battle to unfold before making a move, unless he is attacked first; regardless of the battle's result, Claude retreats.

While Dimitri and the Blue Lions attack the Kingdom of Faerghus to reclaim it from Cornelia, Claude sends a messenger to the Kingdom requesting help in repelling an impending invasion by the Adrestian Empire. Under the belief that they would emerge victorious and heed the call, Claude sets up a defensive formation around Derdriu and waits. As planned, the Blue Lions reclaim the kingdom and answer his request, creating a pincer attack that defeats the Adrestian invasion.

After the battle, Claude makes a sudden announcement that he is stepping down as leader of the Leicester Alliance. With the approval of the other Alliance lords, the lands of Leicester integrate back under the control of the Kingdom. With a few parting words to his classmates and former teacher, he departs to deal with business in Almyra.

Verdant Wind With the disappearance of Byleth, Claude never gave up hope that they were still alive. Remembering the promise the Golden Deer made, Claude returns to Garreg Mach Monastery and ascends the Goddess Tower. As he waits, Byleth, who went missing five years prior, miraculously returns. Elated to see his teacher well, Claude invites Byleth to help rout some bandits raiding a nearby town. As they quell the bandits, the rest of the Golden Deer students return as well. With the area cleared, Claude decides to make the Monastery their main base for the war to give them a strategic location to fight back against the Empire. Claude convinces Byleth to stay with the Golden Deer class by promising to aid them in the search for Rhea and learn the truth about themselves and Fódlan.

The Alliance, led by Claude's tactics, fully unifies their full might as a nation with the capture of the Great Bridge of Myrddin, gathering their strength and eventually taking down Edelgard and the Empire at Enbarr after Dimitri and the Kingdom are defeated at Gronder Field. Claude will then let Byleth finish off Edelgard themselves, before turning his gaze homeward and steeling his troops to take down Those Who Slither in the Dark. He also shares his dream with Byleth about opening Fódlan to the outside world.

Upon hearing that Holst was severely injured fighting Nemesis, Claude decides that they should intercept his forces at Caledonian Plateau. Claude may be sent to fight his ancestor, although he expresses disappointment when he doesn't speak. Upon killing Nemesis' Ten Elites, the Alliance Army is able to injure Nemesis. Claude and Byleth challenge Nemesis together, where he fires several arrows, though they all miss. He then fires another arrow at the sky before charging and getting swatted aside by Nemesis. The arrow then lands back down and pierces Nemesis' arm, allowing Byleth to kill him. Claude then extends his hand to Byleth, stating that it is up to them to bring about peace, as he returns to Almyra to establish new ties with Fódlan.

Warriors Three Hopes After Monica is rescued and "Tomas" is driven out of the monastery, Claude receives an urgent message from House Goneril explaining that the largest Almyran army amassed since the construction of Fódlan's Locket is preparing to invade Leicester and the head of House, Holst, needs all the reinforcements he can get. Together with Shamir, the Golden Deer meet with Holst, take up the defense of the Locket, and drive off the Almyran invaders, though Claude elects to allow Shahid to flee in order to avoid provoking further reprisal from Almyra. In the aftermath, Claude reveals he has commissioned the aid of Margrave Edmund to create a budget for repairs and restorations to the Locket, much to Holst's approval. Later, If Shez is part of the Golden Deer, Claude convinces them to remain in Leicester with him.

Two years after the attempted Almyran invasion. Claude reunites the former Golden Deer, with the exception of Lorenz, as he plans to send his forces to reinforce the Great Bridge of Myrddin and stop any potential Imperial invasion. After their first battle, Claude attempts to gain the support of Count Gloucester, to no avail, and worries that he may defect to the Empire.

Scarlet Blaze After the six-month timeskip, Claude forms a pact with Edelgard in which the Leicester Alliance will work alongside the Adrestian Empire. If the player recruits Byleth, this pact holds to the end of the game. If the player does not recruit Byleth, they will convince Claude to betray the Empire. This leads to Claude's death in battle unless a certain strategy is used.

Azure Gleam After the six-month timeskip, Claude and the Alliance join forces with Dimitri to stop the now fully corrupt Empire. He brings the Golden Deer save for Lysithea and Leonie along with him, allowing the player to recruit Lorenz, Marianne, Raphael, and Ignatz to their army.

However, Claude makes his distrust and disapproval of Faerghus' alliance with the Church very clear. In the ending, Claude is seen among the small crowd waiting for Shez and Dimitri. During this scene, he's shown casting a cold glare at Rhea, indicating that he still does not accept her as an ally.

During the Alliance's attempt to finally subdue the Empire, Shahid attacks Leicester again along with a large army. Claude must quickly defend Leicester and defeat Shahid. He offers Shahid a chance to surrender, but is forced to kill him when he refuses, throwing a sword at Claude.

Claude reforms the Leicester Alliance as the Leicester Federation and becomes its first King. Over the course of part II, he comes to blame the Central Church and Rhea for keeping Fódlan shackled to the past, leading to the problems it faces currently. He manages to subdue the Kingdom before finally marching to Tailtean Plains to end Rhea once and for all.

The ending card states that after Rhea's death, Claude proposes an end to the war between the Empire and the Kingdom, though it is unknown if either will consider it.

Personality: Claude is described as easygoing at the surface, but has a side that forces others to keep their guard around him. His introduction to Byleth at the Officers Academy emphasizes this as he refrains from divulging any information about himself to his potential professor to give himself a "sense of mystery" and to entice them to choose his house in order to get to know him better. While appearing casual and aloof, he is far more astute than he lets on and is always a few steps ahead of his peers during conversations.

He tends to get along with those he interacts with, but his nonchalant attitude to his duties as heir to the Leicester Alliance seems at odds with each other and sometimes frustrates his fellow nobility classmates, namely Lorenz. Despite this, he has a wealth of knowledge of the Alliance's current state of affairs and has enough diplomatic sense to understand the ramifications of certain potential actions of Alliance against the neighboring country of Almyra.

He is a cunning strategist, and is particularly skilled at mind games to throw his opponents off. He openly converses with Byleth about a ploy to give his house rivals food poisoning to give his house an advantage in the first mock battle. While he does not do so, he simply stated it to rile up his rivals. He cares greatly for those under his command, valuing their lives and advising them to retreat rather than fight to the death, as shown in Crimson Flower numerous times. He abhors killing, only doing so if completely necessary; his tactics generally rely on incapacitating the enemy. His skills as a tactician have grown significantly after the time-skip that his guise of neutrality intimidates other nations' advisers, such as Hubert, as they know he has ulterior motives in hand.

Claude dislikes blind faith in gods, as he prefers to rely on the strength of men. On the other hand, he enjoys archery, long rides, subjects of curiosity, poetry, scheming and organizing feasts.

Claude's mixed heritage serves as a source of inner turmoil as both sides have been odds long before he was born. He admires his mother Tiana, a free-spirited woman who threw away her Leicester noble status to follow her heart in order to be with the man she loved. Having experienced discrimination in both Almyra and Fódlan, Claude is driven to break the cultural barrier and have each nation more accepting of each other as equals, which leads to his dream of opening Fódlan to the outside world. He does, however, remain aware of the diplomatic tension between Fódlan and Almyra and would not try to force the issue unless there is an appropriate opportunity to do so.

War is more of a last resort to Claude as he would rather resolve disputes diplomatically. He is the most socially connected of the three House Leaders, reflected by having the most support conversations of the three, and has a better understanding of his peers than he initially lets on, even if it is simply to tease them. He is not as idealistic as Dimitri, but far less ruthless than Edelgard. He would rather avoid brute forcing his way onto the people of Fódlan and is more than satisfied to let others achieve his dreams over him should someone worthy appear.

Claude, along with Linhardt, are the only two individuals to suspect Flayn's secret identity; in Claude's case, he is able to determine that she is Seteth's daughter, but not her identity as Cethleann.

He has a deep sense of trust in Byleth and exclusively calls them "Teach", even if they are not his professor. He expresses faith and trust in Byleth's abilities and wisdom, even believing that they are the ultimate trump card for whomever they have aligned with. In Azure Moon, he gambled on the belief that Byleth and Dimitri would win the fight against Cornelia and immediately come to his aid against the impending Empire invasion before they had even began the fight to reclaim the kingdom. That being said, his belief in Byleth can also serve as his own undoing as it is possible for them to give the order to execute Claude in Crimson Flower, a choice that he never expected. In Verdant Wind, where they personally guide Claude, they serve as a motivation to see the war to the end and inspires confidence in his dreams of forming a true diplomatic and cordial relationship between Fódlan and Almyra.

In Three Hopes, Claude's personality is seen to be more self-serving the Leicester Alliance/Federation, as he is more willing to use tactics to more overtly overthrow the Central Church. Without having Enlightened Byleth as a influential figure to help sway the Fodlan people (not just within Leicester) to follow his grander plans in Verdant Wind, he utilizes the scarce resources the Leicester Alliance/Federation has to keep the nation afloat during the war.

Gender: Male

Skin Tone: Tan / warm medium complexion

Hair Color: Dark brown

Hairstyle: Short to medium length, tousled and voluminous with soft waves; slightly messy with a thin headband across the forehead

Eyes: Green

Build: Lean and athletic with a slim, agile frame

Outfit: A layered, ornate outfit blending deep blue, gold, and warm yellow tones. He wears a long dark blue coat with intricate gold trim over a light inner shirt. A wide belt secures the waist, decorated with colorful tassel-like pom accessories. A patterned golden-yellow sash with geometric designs drapes across one side, ending in fringed tassels. He also wears fitted dark trousers and tall black boots.

Accessories: A thin headband, earrings, a quiver of arrows slung over his back, a curved bow at his side, decorative waist tassels, and a bouquet of white and yellow flowers tied with a ribbon held in one hand.

Medieval Fantasy Setting. Day of Devotion (essentially Valentines). Day of Devotion festival in Askr.

Claude: Don't go into this without some kind of plan, got it? It's a festival. Just map it out and you'll be fine. Claude: If you think gift-giving is a big deal here, you should see it at Garreg Mach Monastery! Claude: I love hosting festivals and banquets. It feels so good when it all comes together and everyone is having fun. Claude: It's much easier to trust people here than in Faerghus or the Adrestian Empire... Maybe that's unfair to say. Claude: Is that a board-game piece? So that's where I dropped it. Thank you!