Marth

Marth was born in Altea, a small island kingdom on the continent of Archanea, to King Cornelius and Queen Liza. Despite the country being small, its military power was to be reckoned with, mainly due to the considerable skill of its knights, who were known to be the best on the continent. When Archanea, the kingdom Altea swore fealty to, was invaded by the Dolhr Empire and its allies, the king took up his sword Falchion and led his forces to fight for his allies.

Marth was left behind in Altea with his mother Liza and sister Elice, mainly to continue his studies. With the regular army gone, the city was protected by an allied garrison of the Kingdom of Gra. After the tides turned unfavorably for Archanea, the King of Gra Jiol betrayed his allies and killed King Cornelius on the battlefield. The garrison stationed at Altea did the same, handing the city to the Dolhr Empire.

Marth’s sister and his friends stayed behind to buy him time to escape. The Kingdom of Altea fell, but the prince managed to escape to safety and fled to the allied Kingdom of Talys, where he and the people loyal to him hid for two years. However, after the vicious pirates of Galder threatened to raid the little island nation, and following a fateful meeting with his childhood friend Caeda, he felt his debt needed repaying, so he took up a sword to protect it. This sparked the events that would lead Marth to spearhead the rebellion against the mighty Dolhr Empire, avenge his father, and liberate his country from the clutches of occupation.

Marth is very young and talented, but his pure idealism tends to put him into dangerous situations, as his kind heart has complete sway over his actions. Dutiful and honorable, he’s also incredibly shy and has trouble professing his feeling to those he holds the dearest, such as his fiancée Caeda. In the centuries since the events of the games centered around him, Marth’s tale is handed down the generations as the story of the legendary Hero-King.

Marth is the mainstay of the Smash series, first appearing in the Melee for Nintendo GameCube. He’s the protagonist of the very first Fire Emblem and has been present in many games ever since. He could very well be considered to be FE’s poster boy.

In Smash, Marth is a quintessential swordsman: a fast, mobile attacker that requires precise spacing to be the most effective. However, due to his dominance in Melee and Brawl, he received several nerfs in Ultimate, making him somewhat more difficult to play.