Beorc

Rhys, a beorc priest.

“	People are probably the dumbest creatures alive.	”	— Ike

Beorc (Japanese: ベオク beorc), also known as "humans", are one of the two sentient races who inhabit the continent of Tellius in Template:FEPR and Radiant Dawn. They are the Tellius equivalent of the humans of both real-life and in other Fire Emblem games, and for all intents and purposes, they are almost exactly alike to humans.

In Tellius society, beorc co-exist with the laguz, and like the laguz they are descended from the ancient Zunanma race. Beorc are commonly known as the "children of wisdom", compared to how the laguz are called the "children of strength", and make up for their weaker physical stature with their ability to craft and use weaponry, tools, and magic. Relations between the beorc and laguz have been strained for millennia, owing to years of racial conflict and abuses of the laguz by the beorc. Even the very word "human" is deeply tied to these conflicts: beorc call themselves humans, meaning "the chosen", as a sign of their belief in their own superiority, while the laguz use the word "human" as an insult toward the beorc. On rare occasions, beorc can interbreed with the laguz, often resulting in the Branded.

Characteristics

Differences to humans

Beorc only exist on one continent in the Fire Emblem series. Beorc are native to Tellius. Like humans in the rest of the series, beorc are mostly the dominant race on the continent. The only known race that comes anywhere close to the beorc are the laguz. Beorc, like laguz, are descended from the Zunanma.

Beorc can produce children with laguz, however, unlike unions between manakete and humans, or taguel and humans, the child from a laguz-beorc union looks like a completely normal beorc. Sometimes these pairs will produce a branded. However, this is not always the case, and the brand may not show up until generations down the line. Regardless, a child of this union will possess no laguz powers, but will have a lifespan longer than that of a beorc, as a beorc's average lifespan is about 60 years.

When a beorc has a child with a laguz, the beorc is relatively unaffected. However, the laguz parent will lose their powers. This is a driving motive behind such unions being incredibly taboo.

Combat abilities

“	Weapons of steel are a human weakness. Without them, you cannot fight properly.	”	— Lethe

Main article: Human § Combat abilities

While laguz fight using their own bodies as their weapons and need nothing else beyond that, a beorc body by itself is poorly equipped to fight. Instead, beorc forge and fight with weapons in place of any natural defenses. Beorc primarily fight with five types of weapon: swords, lances, axes, bows, and knives. Unlike the natural weapons of the laguz, beorc weapons wear out over time so a beorc army needs a consistent supply of weapons to use.

Some beorc are also capable of the use of magic, harnessing the powers of spirits and other entities for both offensive and defensive purposes.

Gallery

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  Elincia, a beorc noble.

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  Heather, another beorc.

Etymology and other languages

Names, etymology, and in other regions
Language	Name	Definition, etymology, and notes
English	Beorc	Beorc is Old English for "birch" and was also the name of the rune ᛒ, which represented the "B" sound prior to the adoption of the Latin alphabet.
Spanish	Beorc	As above.
French	Beorc	As above.
German	Beorc	As above.
Italian	Beorc	As above.

See also

• Human
• Taguel
• Manakete
• Laguz