This article contains spoilers for Fire Emblem Engage’s Fell Xenologue DLC and Fire Emblem: Three Houses.Fire Emblem Engage’s fourth-wave expansion pass came in the form of Fell Xenologue, a narrative-driven DLC that explores an alternate world’s fate. The downfall of this Elyos comes at the cost of itsDivine Dragon’s death, pointing toward their role as the cornerstone of society.
Fell Xenologue sees Alear in an alternate version of Elyos, one where the life of its inhabitants is hanging on by a thread. After an arduous war that left both Sombron and the Divine Dragon dead by each other’s hands, the narrow victory was one that felt inconsequential to society’s survival; instead of being able to move on and build after the war, the people of this alternate Elyos continue to suffer from the loss of their monarch, as is the case with the ‘evil’ royals who bear a likeness to their allied counterparts inFire Emblem Engage’s base game. The Fell Xenologue DLC demonstrates that the Divine Dragon was such a factor in the prosperity of Elyos that a world without them cannot function as intended, even without Sombron in the picture.
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Fire Emblem Engage’s Fell Xenologue DLC Shows the Divine Dragon as the Cornerstone of Society
Later reveals in the DLC complicate matters a bit, as the central villain emerges and discoveries are made surrounding the true nature of each region’s royals, accelerating society’s downfall. However, the death of the alternate world’s Divine Dragon is emphasized throughout the majority of Fell Xenologue’s narrative as the turning point in the world’s prosperity. Humans still exist within the world at the time of Fell Xenologue’s events, showing that there is some semblance of life; the alternate versions ofFirene’s Princess Celineand King Alfred confirm this through their argument over invading Brodia, demonstrating a will to keep their people safe amidst the toil of their world. Despite this, their days are seen as numbered, as the end of the alternate Elyos is considered an inevitability by the DLC’s final chapter.
While the reveal surrounding alternateElyos' royaltymay have played a part in the downfall of their people, it’s still unclear how different their living personalities were from their corrupted selves, or how much their villainous sides were spurred on by the loss of the Divine Dragon and their retainers. Whatever the case, it’s apparent that the Divine Dragon’s loss had such a reverberating effect on Elyos that the world cannot recover. It’s a pattern in Divine Dragons that shows they perhaps have too much reign over their societies, whether they intend to or not.
Fire Emblem: Three Housesexplored similar sentiments through its central conflict; Edelgard felt that theChurch of Seirosand its Crest System had too much sway over society, an influence that was heralded by Rhea. While Rhea isn’t technically deemed as a ‘Divine Dragon’ inThree Housesand keeps her Nabatean identity hidden, her existence as Saint Seiros allows her to keep an influence over Fodlan from a less conspicuous view.Three Housesfollows Edelgard’s controversial igniting of a war to put an end to Rhea’s reign, falling in line with the belief that her upholding of an archaic system inhibits the people of the world from rising on their own merits.
WhileQueen Lumeraand Alear aren’t portrayed in as questionable of a light, Fell Xenologue’s DLC seems to imply that the existence of a Divine Dragon is so pivotal to society that humans are unable to survive without one. Alear is revered in this way throughout bothFire Emblem Engage’s base game and its DLC, suggesting that peace can only be sustained through their assistance. It’s an interesting depiction when considering the rest of alternate Elyos' human population, who are deemed as lost causes in the world’s destruction.
Fire Emblem Engageis available now for the Nintendo Switch.
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