Characters - Origins Scenario:
Party Members
Eiric Istane Guardia:
An Ice Person - Can imbue his arrows with Ice magic in one of his Techs, freezing and inflicting Stop on a single enemy.
Archer Archetype - Wields a bow and arrows.
Badass Family - Considering his family contains the likes of Ayla and Marle, this is no surprise.
Bottomless Magazines - No matter how many arrows he fires, his quiver never empties. Justified, since he replicates his supply with magic.
Handsome Lech - Downplayed. He's not a sleazeball, but he is a shameless flirt.
Healing Hands - His first Tech is Aura, and he ultimately learns Cure All and Arise.
Hero of Another Story - In Chrono Trigger. While Crono's group was infiltrating the Ocean Palace, Eiric was busy trying to evacuate the Kingdom. After Zeal's fall, he was out searching for survivors, explaining why the party never meets him. That there were ANY survivors left in Antiquity were due to his efforts.
Making a Splash - His innate color is blue, and his elemental attack line is Water.
Noodle Incident - Has been involved in more than a few, and no, he will not elaborate.
Only Sane Man - Like Cain, he seems to be the only other person in Zeal to realize something is deeply wrong with society.
Shipper on Deck - For Cain and Schala. In the Normal Path, he's the one who convinces Schala to try and understand Cain's views and mend their strained relationship. That, and he's the only person who catches on to the fact that the two engaged in 'shenanigans' before Cain's arrest and everything goes to hell.
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Zhao:
Blow You Away - His innate color is green, and he's a master of wind magic.
Cool Old Guy - The oldest of Cain's party members and a jovial guy all around.
Doomed by Canon - In the Normal Path, he and the rest of the Alphard Coalition is imprisoned in Mount Woe after Cain's death, and is executed before Crono's party ever learns of his existence.
Dual Wielding - Halberds with rather large axe heads.
It's Personal - When Isaac kidnaps his non-mage workers for the Underground's colosseum, Zhao takes it upon himself to rescue them.
Ultimate Blacksmith - Zhao is close friends with Melchior and taught the latter everything he knows about smithing.
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Eva: A young woman employed by the Alphard Coalition as its Spymaster. Cool-headed and aloof, she's introduced investigating strange happenings in the abandoned Benedict Estate. Able to manipulate stone and metal with her powers, she creates an armored humanoid golem by the name of Benmaru.
Action Girl
Blade Below the Shoulder - Has a baton attached underneath her armband that she can call to her hand with a thought. Said baton also conceals a hidden blade with which she fights reverse-grip.
Deadpan Snarker
Dishing out Dirt - Her innate color is yellow, and she can manipulate earth to create constructs.
Doomed by Canon - In the Normal Path, she and the rest of the Alphard Coalition is imprisoned in Mount Woe after Cain's death, and is executed before Crono's party ever learns of her existence.
Fragile Speedster - She can hit harder than the norm, but Eva is the fastest member of the party.
Ms. Fanservice
Ninja - The closest Zeal has to one.
The Puppet Master - Controls Benmaru with mystical wires when using him to attack.
Samurai - What Benmaru is modeled after, complete with stylized antler-horned helmet.
Secret Test of Character - Has been conducting one on Cain since even before the two meet, under the orders of King Alphard. The test is to confirm Cain's suitability to become the future king of Zeal.
Scarf of Asskicking - Sports a long on appropriate for her role as Spymaster, though it doesn't quite match her outfit.
Ship Tease - Between herself and Eiric.
Shock and Awe - Although she can create earth constructs, the attack spells she has that are governed by her innate are Lightning-based.
Tomboy and Girly-Girl - The Tomboy to Schala's Girly-Girl.
We Have Reserves - No matter how many times Benmaru is destroyed, Eva can just reconstruct him again.
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Tristan:
Blue Blood - He is a noble of quite high standing, and one of the few aligned with the Alphard Coalition.
Casting a Shadow - His innate color is black, and he utilizes the Dark series of attack spells, as well as Dark Bomb.
Doomed by Canon - In the Normal Path, he and the rest of the Alphard Coalition is imprisoned in Mount Woe after Cain's death, and is executed before Crono's party ever learns of his existence.
Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold - He has blonde hair and is one of the few nobles left in Zeal who still considers the Earthbound Ones people.
Royal Rapier - His weapon of choice.
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Important Characters
King Alphard Zeal
Mentor Occupational Hazard
Shipper on Deck - For his daughter and Cain to the point that he drafted up an arranged marriage for them.
We Hardly Knew Ye - He dies only a couple of chapters in.
Janus Zeal: Schala's younger brother and Prince of Zeal. Does not seem to have much empathy for others. Has a cat named Alphador that follows him everywhere.
Caustic Critic - Towards Cain, of whom he believes isn't worthy of his sister's time. Half the time, the feeling is mutual.
Cessation of Existence - Heavily implied to be what will happen to him should history go as it has in other timelines, his existence completely replaced by Magus. Saving the kid from such a fate ends up being another reason Cain resolves to kill the Prophet.
Sitcom Arch-Nemesis - He and Cain butt heads constantly to the point where it tests even Schala's patience. Played for laughs
at first.
Took a Level in Kindness - In Another Path, after Schala convinces Eiric, Eva, Zhao, Tristan, and even Cain to enchant the amulet she'll give her brother. It's enough to move even his stubborn heart.
The Unfavorite - The root of his issues with others, especially Cain, as he feels his parents favored the Ward far more than his own son. These feelings get worse after the Queen goes mad.
Abel Lorre:
Badass Normal - Doesn't have a drop of magic in him. Doesn't stop him from doing his duty.
Doomed by Canon - In the story proper, he is the commander of Zeal's security forces. In Chrono Trigger, that role has become Dalton's. Doesn't take much to figure out something terrible happens to him in the interim.
Killed Off for Real - He is killed by Dalton in order to frame Cain for insurrection.
Poor Judge of Character - This man let Dalton of all people join the military. Ultimately subverted, as Abel justifies his decision by stating it would be better for Dalton to be in a place to be monitored as opposed to remaining a vagabond causing who knows what kinds of mischief. Unfortunately, this also serves to give the Chancellor a foothold in the military.
Gaspar, Guru of Time:
I Knew It - He had a feeling that Cain had been caught in some sort of temporal shenanigans for some time. Says this trope word for word when Cain finally gets the nerve to consult with him in Another Path.
Mr. Exposition - In Another Path, he is the one who explains the nature of the Time Loop Cain has been experiencing to the others.
Melchior, Guru of Life
Belthesar, Guru of Reason
Pitch: Proprietor of the Pitch Black tavern in Zeal's Underground, one of Eiric's favorite hangouts.
Viola: One of Melchior's students, who had recently given her a magic sapling to cultivate.
Canon Character All Along - She's the ancestor of Chrono Trigger's Fiona, complete with her magic sapling dilemma.
Small Role, Big Impact
Chief Imeric: The leader of the Earthbound Village Algetty.
Rickett: A young Earthbound hunter of Algetty and one of Cain's former hunting mates.
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Antagonists
Queen Samaela Zeal
Axe-Crazy - She loses it in Another Path when Schala outright refuses to power the Manmon Machine.
Be Careful What You Wish For - For years, she had wondered what drove her father mad enough to try and sacrifice her. She gets her answers in the worst way possible.
Fighting from the Inside - Subverted. We never see such a struggle on-screen. The only proof that she has been fighting (and failing) against Lavos' control is a letter found by the party in Another Path which basically spells out that trying to turn her back to normal is a lost cause and she needs to die to restabilize the kingdom.
Puppet Queen - What she ends up becoming to her Chancellor, Arvis Cray. Justified as she couldn't care less about anything other than Lavos. As long as he's leading the people towards her goal of immortality, she doesn't care how he runs the kingdom.
Warm-Up Boss - She is fought before the Prophet/Magus in the climax of Another Path in the Origin storyline. Justified since she was just stabbed with the Ruby Knife.
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Chancellor Arvis Cray: Cain's estranged father, and the architect of the schism between the Enlightened Ones and the Earthbound.
Compelling Voice - One of his greatest talents in magic, it installs an unnatural sense of charisma that draws all who hear his 'sermons' to listen, instilling a sense of More Than Mind Control. It is ultimately one of the major reasons he is a Villain With Good Publicity.
Hate Sink - This man is ultimately responsible for nearly everything that's gone wrong in Antiquity. He is the mastermind behind the death of King Zeal, inadvertently causing the Queen's madness and dependence on Lavos, and takes advantage of the situation to install himself as Chancellor. He proceeds to mold the masses towards apathy and glory with a platform of complete mage supremacy, all while plotting a Final Solution upon the Earthbound. And that's not getting into the shit he puts his own son through, both as a child and as a young adult. There is absolutely nothing redeemable about this man.
Karma Houdini - Subverted. In the normal ending, he gets away with all of his numerous crimes. However, it's heavily implied in a few alternate endings that he ends up vaporized in the initial salvo when Lavos destroys Zeal. Completely averted in the golden ending path where he meets a violent end at the hands of Cain, the son he had wronged since birth.
Karmic Death - As someone who used their Compelling Voice to sway the masses towards apathy and complacency, he's stabbed unceremoniously in the throat by Cain and chokes to death on his own blood.
Maternal Death? Blame The Child - Arvis was livid when his wife died giving birth to Cain, enough so that he would go on to gaslight the boy and make his life a living hell.
- The worst part is that he didn't do so out of love for his wife; she was an influential scholar and thus a major stepping stool for his political ambitions, and he saw her death by childbirth as Cain being a Spanner in the Works.
Villains Want Mercy - After everything he had done to destroy Alphard's legacy, when he is finally confronted and defeated in Another Path, he drops all pretenses of superiority and 'might makes right' philosophy and begs to be spared, all while unironically spouting why he deserves to rule and Alphard 'deserved' to die. To the son he abused. To the allies of Alphard. All of whose lives he personally made a living hell. Evil Cannot Comprehend Good, it seems.
The Prophet
Hero Killer - He kills Cain in the first ending, leading into the timeline of Chrono Cross.
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Dalton
Hero Killer - Although Chancellor Cray was indeed the mastermind, Dalton was the one who actually killed King Alphard.
Obfuscating Stupidity - Acts the fool to throw off suspicions of treachery. When confronted by Cain in the Ocean Palace however, he drops the mask entirely and shows his true competence.
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Sigmund: An assassin under Chancellor Cray's employ. He hounds Cain throughout the story.
Absurdly Sharp Blade
Ax-Crazy - During the final confrontation with him in Another Path, Sigmund drops all pretenses of sanity and goes nuts.
Birds of a Feather - He comes to believe that Cain is the same as he, desiring to see the world burn. To Cain's frustration, he isn't entirely wrong.
Blood Knight - Even before the reveal, it's clear he has a thirst for violence.
The Dragon - To Chancellor Cray. Is usurped by Dalton after he decides to break his leash in Another Path.
Dragon with an Agenda
Dual-Wielding - Twin katanas he imbues with destructive magics.
Duel Boss - Every fight with him is with Cain alone.
Four Eyes, Zero Soul
Godzilla Threshold - Once he decides to act on his own, he manages to kidnap Schala under everyone's nose. Since Arvis needs Schala alive to satisfy the Queen's quest for immortality (as well as keep his position and/or his head), Sigmund's defection forces him to team up with the Coalition to help find her.
Hard Truth Aesop - Delivers one to Schala during his Dying Speech in Another Path about the uselessness of pacifism in the face of monstrous cruelty. Due to earlier events in Another Path, Schala ultimately takes this advice to heart.
Katanas Are Just Better
Recurring Boss - Is fought no less than four times during the story.
Suicide by Cop - How he meets his end in Another Path, specifically to prevent a peaceful solution to the problems he caused.
Super Mode - To Cain's horror, Sigmund is also capable of opening the Sixth Gate, though this reveal doesn't happen until Another Path.
Victory is Boring - More along the lines of Peace is Boring, but the idea is the same. Sigmund is a fighter at heart and is not satisfied unless he's trying to kill someone. With Chancellor Arvis constantly one step ahead of the Alphard Coalition in Another Path, he decides to slip his leash and cause chaos.
Your Days Are Numbered - He is revealed to be receptive to the Black Wind, and taunts Cain with his impending death after his own in the Normal Path.
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Pavlov: A key person of note in the Regicide Conspiracy. Was appointed Minister of Finance by Chancellor Cray.
Villain With Good Publicity - The masses see him as a philanthropist. When Cain and Eiric investigate him, he's revealed to be an unrepentant demon summoner.
Isaac: A person of note in the Regicide Conspiracy, and the official 'governor' of Zeal's Underground. A sadist who owns a colosseum where he pits unsuspecting Earthbound Ones for blood sport.
Bread and Circuses - Basically his role in Chancellor Cray's schemes, desensitizing Enlightened Ones to the brutalization of the Earthbound.
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Benedict: A noble considered one of King Alphard's allies. However, he ultimately lures the king into a trap where the latter perishes. He is killed by an enraged Cain shortly after.
Cruel and Unusual Death - Cain literally cooks him alive inside the cockpit of his robot.
Fat Bastard
Karmic Death
Meaningful Name
Olivia: Key person of note in the Regicide Conspiracy, and leader of the Church of Lavos.
Lavos
Other Characters
King Victor Zeal
The Six Founders
(To be continued)