Valkyrie rambling.

[myaru]

I wonder how exactly Silmeria recruited her einherjar in the beginning. All three valkyries probably recruit their soldiers in all sorts of ways, but it seems they all have their own style. It was speculated that Hrist would be the type to kill her own einherjar (at least by me...), and we see some evidence of that in the new game - not enough to say definitively that she does this all the time, of course.

We know Lenneth's talent is to hear the voices of people suffering just before death. The way Freya says it in the game, you'd think this is her talent, specifically, and not a shared skill all three valkyries possess. If you look at it the right way, you can say this talent is involved with the present, in that she's called by her einherjar - so to speak - as they're dying, versus before or after. Perhaps Hrist is drawn by an einherjar's reputation (I'm sure you can interpret that metaphysically - their prowess generates a certain kind of astral mark, or something like that), and accompanies each one for a time while they're alive, and only takes them when she considers them ready.

If the scene re: Hrist's einherjar in Valhalla showed us all of her recruits, then she has significantly fewer than either of her sisters. However, it sounds like she spends more time bending them to her will working with them than the others do. She also seems to be active most often, while the others sleep - but that might just be because Silmeria got herself into trouble.

Silmeria seems to recruit her einherjar - sometimes - after their deaths (versus by her own hand, or the instant they die), whether they be natural or earned in battle. I was reading a Wikipedia article concerning VP characters (I know, I know, but I don't have time to replay the game to catch the einherjar I missed!), and several of the profiles noted that characters lived well past the periods of their lives I'd consider heroic. Phyress, for instance, died at 58, but it doesn't sound like she died in battle. Seluvia and Christie just disappear; they could have died at any time, of old age, battle wounds, or whatever - if Silmeria allows one einherjar to materialize at a younger age than she actually died (Phyress again), why not others?

That can't always be true, though, as several of her einherjar died in battle, and there's no indication Silmeria waited to pick them up. And then, Hrist recruits a soul that has been dead quite a while. I don't remember why she did that instead of Silmeria.

(Addendum: the difference could be simple in cases like this, where technique overlaps. Silmeria might recruit only after destiny has run its course - that is, without interfering in any way - while it could be Hrist's habit to mess with them even before they die, to mold their experiences to her satisfaction. This could lead to more satisfactory results when she moulds their souls after death.

Silmeria, as representative of the Future, would be all about the potential, the results she could have, and less interested in the past. She's adamantly against interference of any kind, for sure.)

The more I think about this it's silly, but I like the idea that the valkyries are actually influenced by their roles of past, present, and future. You really don't see much of it in the games, otherwise. I've always thought Tri-Ace combined the Norn and the valkyries so they could get away with having only three.

Comments

[myaru.livejournal.com]

Silmeria's use of artifacts is the most confusing, I think. We've seen Hrist recruit twice, or think we have - there's the chance that einherjar already belonged to her, or was someone she marked before hand, perhaps. That's kind of unlikely, as the implication was that she didn't know where the orb was either (otherwise, why not just wait at the destination? though she might've had another objective in staying close to Alicia). But if she knew it had a connection to the volcano...?

The only time I checked the location vs. einherjar death was with Roland... I think. It was somebody whose sword was hanging around in exactly the area he could have died. I guess with some of them we just don't know - Seluvia and Christie come to mind. I wonder if her use of objects is just a manifestation of her talent; it might influence her tendancies.

I forgot about Falx! That's... that's actually really interesting, what with Silmeria's connection to Brahms...

[barrelgoddess.livejournal.com]

There are definitely those where we don't know where they died; with others, they list a specific location that is not where they are found. A good example would be Lylia - you get her in the Turgen Mines, yet she died by throwing herself from top of the Crell Monferaigne castle. Even more significant, though, was the scene where you get Mithra. Not only is the staff well away from where he died, but after she puts him into the staff, you hear other voices from inside her begging to let out(and you hear some of these voices in the beginning of the prologue movie too). IIRC, she says something about being patient/they'll be let out in time. Something along those lines, anyway.

Falx is the one einherjar I wish they'd given us some sort of scene for, as he actually has ties to Brahms and how he wound up in the service of the valkyrie that later aided the Lord of the Undead must be an interesting story... XD