#rhea stuff

Maybe Fodlan 3 will finally give us answers to the questions we had in the first two games but KT eluded because Earl Grey, but we might finally learn what kind of ability each crest has on its carrier, since ludonarration blows in that verse.

Is Karen Hervring able to heal a ruptured lung by clapping in her hands when Bob and Mary would need to learn advanced healing spells, like, is her crest giving her more "power" and "ability" at healing people than a crestless person?

Barbara Charon can summon rain, Kevin Blaiddyd has superstrength... They're legit "superpowers", are we supposed to believe people wouldn't want to get their hands on it?

We know the answer, the devs basically spelled out how Zanado was the answer.

The "Crest system" fanon - supported by lines in canon but canon also designs characters who blow a hole the size of a 22 meters tall skyscrapper in that "system" - is basically something that had to came up at one point, because the verse wants the player so badly to believe "people valuing superpowers" has some source other than, well, just pure greed, that it popped up, which is not helped by Supreme Leader ranting about crusts being the source of irrationality in this world including the existing class system and, the entire cast, more or less, agreeing with her "ideals".

If Rhea stayed holed in her mountain and never interacted with humans after the WoH... would people not seek Blaiddyd's superstrength? Or the ability to use the Lance of Ruin?

She's controlling humanity because people cannot be asses on their own, and when you consider her staunchest detractor is the red emperor Farquaading her way to achieve her goals and ideals, it becomes hilarious : Rhea's certainly not the reason why Ionius Agarthan'd the Ordelias, or why Supreme Leader herself was Agarthan'd... but somehow, she ends up being "somehow" responsible because the Church put value on crusts...

And not because they are superpowers the Agarthans want to use against, well, Rhea and the nabs themselves !

She's the ultimate scapegoat so people have no agency, Rhea BaD somehow explains why Holst's family invited Cyril to their estate and fed him once per week, or why the Gonerils hate the Almyrans who are always raiding their homes in dick measuring contests.

You could make a point about the CoS' softpower and how it might have used to be a thing - the bans were somehow enforced, if not ultimately lifted - and the CoS' influence - through Wilhelm's Adrestia - managed to permeate everywhere in Fodlan, to the point the Calendar is basically something that came from the CoS, or the fact there are churches all around Fodlan, even if regional branches are also a thing.

But that's nowhere the amount of supposed power and influence some part of the fandom, and at times, the game(s) try to sell us, hell, Nopes basically has Judith say that while she's pious, she dgaf about killing Rhea, and the people of Leicester don't bat an eye at killing the CoS's leader.

it reminds me a bit of irl institutions, but let's not get there

In the end, with a verse (for now!) who can't spell out the "humanity can suck on its own people have agency!" traditional FE message, and who cannot seriously challenge Supreme Leader on, well, basically anything she says, we end up with a fandom who buys the Rhea BaD principle : she's sold as such by the games - despite them also pointing out how it's not, well, true - and so the discourse goes on and on and on about Rhea's influence.

@deathbirby made the crossroads meme iirc (it was you friend?) : let her help humanity or ignore it, in the end, Rhea BaD.

All roads lead to Rhea BaD.

Bonus :

When I'm telling you FEH had a lot of fun with B!Supreme Leader - they had her realise water's wet when she lands in Askr, when she could have made the very same "deductions" at home, I mean, it's not like one of her hosta- friends is a "princess" from a land that isn't Fodlan, right?

By the time the game starts, Rhea's been hosting public safety announcements about using seatbelts, but everyone is driving their own vehicles, and has been doing so for the past 1000 years.

Hubbie's remark about Nabateans not being fit to be "Supreme Leaders" of the world because they don't use their power is doubly ironic : you can't blame the nabateans for being tyrants imposing down their values, and at the same time, blame them for things you are doing because "they didn't stop you".

That's why, even if I really dislike Ikey-poo, his last words to Yune are meaningful : people will mess up and maybe start wars and conflicts, but they will always strive for peace too. And he asks Yune'n'Ashera to have faith and trust in humanity once again, which is something Ashunera ultimately does.

In Fodlan? We can't have that because the local goddess is either busy fawning over her meatsuit or locked in a fridge partying all night, thus no one tells the tired guardian how she doesn't need to shoulder everything alone, and how she's right for continuing to trust and have faith in Humanity, even if her worthless Mother will never return.

Alone b4u prevents Seteth and Rhea from interacting as fellow genocide survivors who fought together for at least 90ish years against the maniacs who turned their relatives in shiny daggers, or, share the same secret and traumas, or just, two characters who have known each other for long and are closer to each other than a good chunk of the cast.

Alone b4u means Seteth cannot worry about Rhea and her survival like he does in Golden Trashfire, I already posted a bit about it, but Seteth only looks for Rhea in Fe16, if you do his Billy supports, because she has to tell them the truth about their identity. She's not a person to him in Houses, he acts as an appetizer for SS's exposition dump.

Seteth cannot rush after his sister/relative in SS's final scene because she's not even that to him, he might tell her to rest in peace in their battle lines, he's not even going to check after her or, idk, make sure she doesn't suffer anymore after seeing her fly to crash in the cathedral.

Likewise, alone b4u means Rhea cannot talk to anyone as long as Billy's around about non Billy related things.

Blame the devs for making her a Npc...

But in Nopes she's even less than that and yet talks to her close circle, both in a shared paralogue and story maps. Rhea's allowed to worry about her not brother, her not son and her very devoted knight to the point her "worry" is a game mechanic, and not a generic line thrown away when they're defeated.

And bear in mind even without Nopes the discrepency between what we were told and what we saw made me frown regarding her character : it's made abundently clear Rhea cares and values people in her close circle, like her fellow nabateans, she speaks to Cyril everyday (something even Fraud notices is unusual!), she trusts Yuri with watching over a cardinal she considers her son and works with him to uncover a plot endangering several lives, hell, she and Catherine's bond is so important that she allows her to come to Zanado !

Of course she's not going to tell them the truth about her identity (save for Flayn and Seteth !) or how her plan to bring back Sothis is both to reunite with her mother and have the creator return to repair Fodlan (and even that was something Flayn hinted at and considering Seteth's reaction aka not being surprised, it's not far fetched to assume he might have pulled 2+2 eventually !) but Rhea has bonds, with those characters, and she lets them in to different scales.

Then heroes came and hammered, through the festive lady and the 4 koma beach bullshit, how Seteth and Rhea are effectively closer than "work associates" or "estranged relatives", and then... Nopes came with a cement mixer : Catherine and Rhea often train together (insert armor polishing jokes), Rhea takes Cyril on what is basically a family outing to one of her relative's hamlet, Rhea's interactions with Flayn and Seteth during the paralogue show they're close enough to tease each other (rather Seteth is being teased and is too tired for this bullshit) and Rhea either triggering a game over when Seteth isn't rescued or people worrying about her state if he dies later in the route underlines how important he is to her, something you do not, and cannot see in Houses because of alone b4u.

Compare Seteth worrying and refusing to let her die alone in Golden Trashfire, to his SS interactions with her, especially with his Billy support in mind as how she was only a goal to Billy to reveal her exposition dumps.

And let's not pretend I'm not the moron who wrote about Willy since 2020 lol, but we have CF's "he saved and supported me", her focus on Supreme Leader dishonoring the Hresvelg legacy and his name, Carlo the golem, the fact the oath Adrestian Emperors swear before, well, becoming Emperors immediately being a call back to Seiros' own duty according to her own book, the fact she trusted him enough to show him her lizard form even when she was pretending to be a human with her hair dye, or how, according to Nopes, she gave him Seteth's shield and has him remembered as the only "Great" Emperor ever, misses him and wishes he was still alive.

Add to that how Willy's son was named wolf and the only other wolf themed thing was explicitely named as such by Rhea, after the guardians of the blue sea star which totes means Lycaon was their kid

So in a way you're right Anon, reading her Billy support and alone b4u means she did not let anyone in since Zanado...

But then the verse, the spin-off and the gacha game say the contrary.

Of course, as you pointed out, Rhea reveals everything about her loneliness and feelings of not being an adequate stand in for Sothis to Billy in their S support because she thought Billy was Sothis but doesn’t think so anymore...

And yet, she already told Seteth and Flayn she hopes Sothis can return to bring order to the wayward Fodlan before the timeskip, already revealing she felt she wasn't up to the task and only Sothis could do it.

Much like Supreme Leader, I feel like Rhea was partly written to be a character who only opens up to the avatar to be romanced (tfw bridal carry isn't subtle), and yet, for the plot to hold, she had to be written as a character who had a past, has people around her and who works and lives with them, a character who has her own network of relationships that work and paint an already solid picture.

However, I guess similarly to Dimitri, her network disappears, or is artifically set aside, to make place for the avatar and thus, the player to be her most important person to get her S support.

Hopefully for Seteth, he doesn't need to go to Dedue's fridge, it's Rhea who's fridged and can only get out of it if the player wants to marry her, or she dies or ends up offscreen.

Smthg very feminist game amirite

When there's no S support to be reached, both Dimitri, and to a lesser extent Rhea, are allowed to interact and grow with their network in more, imo, well written and coherent ways than just, Dedue/Seteth eating poptarts and forgetting Dimitri/Rhea exist during their direst moment of need to have Billy instead take their space and role and pull the hand holding/bridal carry scene.

Take Unicorn Overlord, it has a similar S support system where everyone can accept to become MC's significant other...

And yet, who rushes to Eltolinde first when she's free from possession ? Her sister, not Alain.

Who's the one to persuade Virginia from reconsidering leaving the army after her blunder that nearly cost her own knights' lives ? It's Leah, not Alain.

Travis is the one who has the final conversation with Berengeria where she finally accepts to be part of the army and to stop leaving people behind to fight alone, not Alain.

I know it's a different game and it has its own share of pandering (tfw Alain can break Virginia and Gilbert's plot backed ending if he marries her lol) but the crux is different from Houses at least in plot mandated scenes : Alain is important, but the characters are written in a way that it makes more sense for them to talk with people they're already close to, and we see those existing bonds.

In Houses and in Rhea's case... We don't see those bonds, we hear about it, they weave a story but then... We see something different on screen because Houses' writing isn't UO's, so Leah has to go to the fridge for Alain to be the one to talk some sense to his cousin. Rosalinde has to eat a sorbet for Alain to be the one to rescue Railanor.

And I don't only think it's because Billy's a mute character with TV static options as a support partner, Billy is important to Rhea - both because of who they aren't, and who they are, and ultimately what choices they pick - but to say she's not lonely after realising her shit mom isn't returning anymore because Billy's by her side ?

What about Seteth and Flayn who, unlike 1100 years ago, are still there ? Or Cat and the other humans from the monastery (including the students) who saw her lizard form and yet wanted to help her, accepting her for what she was despite not being human, meaning Billy and their human students/group's acceptance is the one thing that doesn't make her lonely anymore? No?

I can't buy it - or the game did a shit work for me to buy it.

And even without tackling this S-support, with have those tea lines :

I do not have a friend whom I can fully trust. Such is the burden of my position...

and

You are the only person I can talk to as myself, rather than as the archbishop.

:/

Tldr : that's why I really don't like the alone b4u. Unlike Supreme Leader who was written as someone who has no bonds nor ties to anyone else in her inner circle - rip hubbie - so Billy sweeping in would make some sort of "sense" for her to defrost, Rhea... is written with those ties and bonds. And even if we're supposed to understand Billy's above everyone else because they might be Sothis, but actually isn't... it doesn't, imo, justifies throwing all those ties and bonds away for the infamous alone b4u.

Granted, Fodlan is so convoluted that we cannot have Rhea textually say "my mother might be gone, but I still have friends and family who walk by my side and support me so I'm not lonely anymore!" because they would require the game to, honestly, do something with Sothis and acknowledge her besides being a plot mechanic, even if Billy would get S-support rights for being the one who made her realise this or whatever, nope.

Seteth asks if she's okay with that, and she tells him no.

But with the context (Fraud asking her to please die and even preventing her from returning to her rock), we get that Rhea believes her life, and duty, is to protect Fodlan as Sothis' proxy. She cannot save her life and run away - something she asks Seteth to do - because she feels like her duty to Fodlan (the land, her mother, the future and humanity!) is more important than saving herself.

Also Fraud isn't asking her to step down, he's asking her to die.

Recontextualising everything, Rhea's "my duty to finally come to an end" isn't her saying she'll lose her job, but her saying she will die, explaining why she can't run away with Seteth and Flayn. Seteth asks her if she's going to accept it - aka accept dying - and she refuses.

She will fight, and if she dies then so be it (maybe it's her trash mother's will, if Fraud recruits Billy), but she still is going to fight for a future where she's still around to perform her duty and prevent people from making the same mistake as their forefathers.

And to prove her claims, we have those ultimate lunar battlequotes between her and Fraud (where he borrowed page from the Supreme handbook, saying he doesn't want to kill her, after parroting even earlier in this same chapter how she needs to die) :

In a way it's not surprising how "die plz" "no" was twisted in another "Rhea BaD she doesn't want to stand down by dying" lol

but I still find it hilarious how the two main leads who end up facing her in their routes are made to look either incompetent or completely out of their minds : in SB Rhea is the one who takes out Thales with Barney's assist, as she realises who is the real threat between Supreme Leader and the Agarthans while Supreme Leader was busy both sides'ing the Church and the Death Cult, and Rhea goes down in a shonen explosion with clear heroic framing (the light and the heroic BGM!)

And here, we have her refuse to die and fight to her last breath against someone who wants her dead but unable to give a clear reason why she has to die - making Fraud look like he's throwing a tantrum and going for the kill, while she braces herself but still gives a heroic last stand - framed, both by the BGM borrowing notes from Nemesis' theme and the "flower being crushed" thing redux from the opening sequence, as Rhea ultimately being right -> Fraud and Barney are repeating history so no Fraud, the world isn't changing, you're back in a new cycle again.

Even if the story shits on her - but then Houses also did - I think she has better endings in Nopes : sure she dies in 66% of them but at least she's not completely broken and despairing like she is in CF (even if this was an interesting angle to show, don't get me wrong) or suddenly cray-cray because SS needs a final boss and to be able to put Billy in charge of everything for the power fantasy.

Instead we get Rhea - Seiros the Warrior - going out like champ, sacrificing herself to save Fodlan in SB and having a heroic last stand (even if I still think Fraud's plot armor sucks) in GW.

It makes you think about how both games treated her, she has less screentime and lines in Nopes (especially GW lol) and yet her endings are, imo, better in this game than in Houses where she either dies screaming for her mother while said mother cleaves her skull in two, or off screen, or suddenly because she went cray-cray and the power fantasy doesn't want to marry her, or she lives as a footnote.

Maybe Rhea and the CoS could have told Adrestians to stop bloodsports, and maybe they could have gave her the middle finger, or maybe she didn't even try at all and believed her Book of Seiros was "enough" from her part to tell humans to stop acting like asses, which obviously didn't work.

Nopes doesn't tell us a lot about Rhea's involvment in Adrestian politics, but we know Willy, her bestie, give them three figs and left the Empire he created after Lycaon died.

And around 2 years after his son's death, an Aegir dueled a Hresvelg for the Imperial throne, lost, married the Hresvelg who remained Emperor (empress?).

Aka, after killing Nemesis, his "might makes right" philosophy permeated Adrestia. IDK if this is why Wilhelm left Adrestia, or what was Rhea's thoughts about it all, but as you point out, I don't think she was that concerned with whatever Adrestia was cooking at that time if the "greatest" emperor ever gave them the middle finger and fucked away.

Her plans, after the WoH, are all about resurrecting Sothis and trying to mediate or intervene when a war is breaking up, but she's not the one ruling Adrestia or telling them what to do or not.

She indeed doesn't intervene when the regional branches are either destroyed/disbanded or are completely warping her message which, at some point, is partly on her fault for not "correcting" them earlier, but at the same time, for a game (and a fandom) who thrives on earl grey, it's kind of fascinating to see how ignored is the actual intermingling between the CoS and each nation's personal stuff.

Take the Southern Church : the Adrestian Emperor disbanded the organisation, if Rhea (the CoS) argued against it, would they argue against the Emperor ? Would they "dare" intervene in something that is pretty much "adrestian politics"?

The Eastern Church more or less agreed not to have any army because they are supposed to rely on some noble house for protection (and we laugh about it in Houses). If Rhea told them to stop relying on that noble and have their own army instead, would it create bad relations with the Alliance, or at least, this noble?

Faerghus receives the most spotlight on this question, with both Houses, but most likely Nopes, highlighting how important is the Church to them : they apparently intervened after Lambert's regicide, and in a further past, acknowledged their existance if it meant stopping the war against Adrestia.

And yet, for all of the purported "importance" the CoS has, the Western Church exists - preaching everything contrary to what the CoS is, when they're not routinely trying to execute the Archbishop - and has several followers, Lonato and gfdi Rufus, aka the Regent, himself.

Is the CoS important to people as in, they are the ones to tell them what is right or what is wrong, or are they "merely" important as some sort of tradition or thing/people you respect, but still do your own stuff? The game tells us Dimitri will receive backlash from his people if he abandons Rhea and the CoS, and yet, the very same game(s) don't offer us some sort of civil rebellion or anything of the sort when the lords siding with the Western Church are calling for Rhea's head.

You rightfully pointed it out anon, her involvement is either artificial or non-existent, at least in the Fodlan that is presented to us in the games -

we can rave and rage and throw spaghettis at walls all day long about the soft power the CoS has and if the bans it enforced were effective before being lifted -

Rhea asks Flayn, maybe her niece will be able to to determine what is this new thing humanity came up with, since she hangs out with "young" humans.

Cethleann ends up frustrated , reporting many students were surprised with her question, as if "sequins" were something very common.

Monks told her they have no place in a place of holy worship.

Asking Catherine and Shamir proved unproductive, since they squinted and told her whatever Manuela is coming up with, she must know they played no part in her madness.

Rhea then asks Billy, if they have any idea about what are sequins.

Billy shrugs, they don't know. But they can ask Jeralt!

Jeralt looks at Billy, and sighs, saying it's something not pratical and usually used for shows. And before they ask, no, his mercenary company will not hire anyone wearing sequins.

Billy frowns - as much as they can - they saw once a rival mercenary company wearing flashy clothes and poofy pants, and thought they looked really cool, and no one called them names like "ashen demons". Maybe they too, were wearing sequins? If they did then... it makes people look cool.

Jeralt immediately makes the link when they see Billy going to Rhea's audience chamber and hears their kid saying "sequins make people look awesome".

Remembering how Rhea - rather her pretending to be someone else 260 years ago - was the one who insisted to add a feather to the headgears of infantry knights who specialised in axes and swords, he barges in and interrupts their conversation : no, sequins are ridiculous, and if she adds some to the uniforms of the knights of Seiros, he will immediately leave the Monastery.

Also, no poofy sleeves or pants, and no flashy colors.

"But are they festive?"

Jeralt replies by dragging a frowning Billy away from the audience room.

Saint Seiros day happens as usual, and while Rhea nods and acts as she usually does during previous Saint Seiros days, she wonders if Manuela's celebrations were somehow cancelled at the last minute.

However, comes the night - when students are supposed to be asleep and all - and Billy knocks at her door, telling her something very important is happening and she has to join.

Rhea is surprised to see Billy wear an unusual costume, with mismatched colors, poofy sleeves and pants and frills everywhere.

To her, it seems as if Billy is truly happy to wear this costume, so she smiles proudly when they tell her they used their first allowance to buy it. Even if it meant not listening to Jeralt.

Rhea nods, and tells them they look really festive.

Billy smiles.

Then they lead Rhea to the reception hall, where some knights, some monks and members of the officer's academy are reunited, wearing odd costumes, but some have large hats with colorful feathers.

Also, now in the light, she spots some of them faintly glittering or something, but maybe it's just her mind playing tricks?

Everyone, bar Seteth, Catherine and Shamir, is chatting happily and Rhea is afraid her sudden apparition will put a damper on the mood, but Manuela excitedly gives her a ridiculous hat with large coloured feathers on it. Possibly a Giant Bird's.

Cyril looks ready to protest, but Catherine does, telling Manuela she can't expect the Archbishop to play along with her idiot idea.

Seteth, wearing the same kind of ridiculous outfit as Billy, knows better, and Rhea puts the feathered hat on.

Then the party starts, a band not affiliated at all to the Mittelfrank Opera starts to play and Rhea is a bit surprised at how everyone doesn't seem to mind her presence, too busy pestering and ranting about Manuela's ridiculous "opera clothes" - save for Billy who really likes their costume, and says to everyone how they asked Manuela's friends if they could buy it instead of just borrowing it for the evening.

Then Manuela makes a speech about Saint Seiros' day being a day of devotion and gratitude to the peaceful times they're living in but also to celebrate and remember there's light ahead.

Manuela ends by giving several very ostentious winks in Flayn's general direction, who finally catches them when Catherine points them out, and she uses an "old spell to strengthen the moon's radiance in the room" - which suspiciously sounds, to Rhea, like she's using Nabatean magic to do so! - and yet, before she can gently remind her niece they are supposed to be hiding and pretend they are totally regular humans, she's suddenly blinded by glittering lights everywhere.

When she finally can see again - ignoring Shamir's threats to make Manuela eat her damn feathers if she ends up blinded by all of her party tricks - everyone is sparkling thanks to the small flat beads like things sewed in the costumes!

Manuela then asks Rhea if she believes, as the Archbishop of the Church of Seiros if the saints would approve of such a luminous and festive display for Saint Seiros' day : Seteth replies they would never have approved of such a ridiculous thing, Rhea ignores him and nods to Manuela saying Saint Seiros would have loved it, she's sure of it.

Flayn adds they would definitely have been enthusiastic about it, glaring at her "brother" for some reason.

Then the party resumes, with more music, people surrendering to the ridiculous setting and enjoying themselves. Billy wonders why the students couldn't be invited though, maybe they would have liked it? But maybe they didn't have enough costumes.

Anyways, since it's Rhea's birthday, they pull of a Zanado fruit from one of their poofy pants' pocket, and offers it to her while everyone looks, a bit dumbfounded - why is the new professor giving inedible trash to the Archbishop?

Rhea's overjoyed and thanks them a lot, telling Billy they were right about sequins, they really make people look pretty bright and awesome.

Cyril gives Rhea fresh flowers he grew specially for the occasion, saying it's not much but next time he promises he'll give her something ever more special and more awesome - but Rhea cuts him with a hug, thanking him dearly, and pretends not to hear Shamir call her out for "spoiling the kid".

Manuela is a bit surprised though, she never knew today was the Archbishop's birthday, what a coincidence it happens on Saint Seiros' day!

Everyone goes silent when Alois asks her how old is she anyways - trying to make light conversation while the cooks panick because a birthday means a cake, and they haven't prepared one ! - Jeralt chuckles while Seteth panicks and tries to come up with some roundabout explanation.

Rhea smiles, and replies she's 17.

Everyone laughs a bit, relieved the Archbishop has a sense of humour, and the party goes on, even if Flayn pesters Manuela about making an even grander party like this for Cethleann's Day, because Cethleann would surely appreciate to have everyone shine and enjoy themselves, also, she would like if fish was served, and if they could still dance and listen to the music all night long.

Seteth takes her away, though, or at least intended to when he hears Rhea talk to a monk how sequins could be integrated in ceremonial outfits for everyone, because it makes "life shine brighter" and how the Goddess would surely appreciate the effort.

Billy still think the students lost an occasion to look "awesome" since they couldn't be invited, and ask Rhea to teach them how to sew to add sequins to the student's uniforms, if they start now, they should be ready for next year.

"My mother taught me this song, whenever I hum it I think about her and the good times we spent together strolling through flower fields."

"I don't know any songs, but I made this flower crown for you ! So you'll always think about happy things when you'll look at it !"

"I also made one for you ! Those crowns will remind us of the delightful time we spent here, together !"

"Thank you so much Lady Rhea, I promise I'll take care of it forever !"

And thus the journey ended and they returned to the barracks...

Or not ?

"Are you alright Lady Rhea ?"

"My head is spinning and I feel nauseous. This is just seasickness, no need to worry yourself."

"Manuela said she always feels better after eating fresh fruits when she has the same sickness you have !"

"Cyril I am not drunk."

"Don't worry Lady Rhea, I won't tell a thing to Seteth !"

"I knew I should have transformed and flown over this stupid sea instead of boarding this silly boat !"