Branded

Overview

The Branded are a shunned race of people seen in the Tellius Fire Emblem universe of Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance and Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn. They are the mixed-blood offspring of beorc/ laguz parentage and are so named due to bearing a brand on their bodies that marks them as neither fully beorc nor laguz.

Branded are otherwise physically indistinct from a pure-blood beorc, as they lack the bestial traits of their laguz parents. However, once they reach a certain age, their aging process slows down dramatically, giving them a laguz's life expectancy. Due to this trait of their aging, it is impossible for them to remain hidden in a beorc society for more than a few years.

Laguz are able to sense the presence of Branded as a sort of sixth sense. Though they are not outwardly hostile to Branded, their common behavior when one is in their midst is to treat the Branded as if he or she does not exist. Laguz that either father or give birth to a Branded child lose their powers, and thus Branded are seen as abominations that the laguz refer to as the Parentless.

Branded vs. Spirit Charmers

Branded are sometimes confused for spirit charmers, or beorc that make pacts with powerful spirits in return for great magical power. This is due to the fact that spirit charmers also bear brands on their bodies as a sign of the pacts that they have made. Pelleas is one such spirit charmer, and it is because of the brand on his body that Izuka is able to trick the people of Daein into believing that the young man is in fact the lost son of King Ashnard and his laguz lover, Almedha.

Conversely, the character Soren was an orphan raised at one point by an old man under the mistaken belief that he was a spirit charmer due to the mark on his forehead. In fact, Soren is a Branded, and if the proper prerequisites are met at the end of Radiant Dawn, it is revealed that he is in fact the true son of Ashnard and Almedha.

Ashera's Judgment

In Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, Ashera judges the beorc and laguz both unworthy for their continued acts of warfare and uses her powers to turn all to stone. At first, it is believed that only those powerful enough to resist her judgment survived. However, when Amy, the adopted child of Largo and Calill is brought to the camp safe and sound, it is revealed that the judgment had no effect on the Branded.