Saul: Difference between revisions

'''Saul''' (Japanese: {{hl|サウル|Sauru}} ''Saul'') is a playable character in {{FE6}}. He first appears in [[Fire Emblem (The Binding Blade chapter)|Chapter 5]]. Saul is a priest and member of the clergy of the [[Elimine Church]]. He tends to flirt with women, and as a result, he is constantly nagged by his own bodyguard, [[Dorothy]]. Under Bishop [[Yoder]]'s request, he and Dorothy join [[Roy]]'s army.

|recruit=[[Ensnared|Chapter 6]], automatically on turn 1

Saul joins in [[Ensnared|Chapter 6]] of ''The Binding Blade'' and is automatically recruited along with [[Dorothy]] from turn 1. It may be useful to trade him a [[Heal]] staff since [[Mend]] staves are still relatively rare at that point in the game. Upon joining, Saul has the best bases and the highest [[Staff]] rank out of all the unpromoted healers, and because of this, he will most likely be the first unit to reach B and A-rank in staves. This means that Saul will be your premiere user of higher ranked staffs such as [[Physic]], [[Rescue (staff)|Rescue]], [[Sleep (staff)|Sleep]], and most importantly [[Warp]]. As [[Elen]], [[Clarine]] and other staff users before [[Niime]] and [[Yoder]] will never reach A-rank staffs on any moderately fast playthrough, as well as him having a high [[Magic (stat)|Magic]] base and growth, he will usually be your best warp user after promotion in the midgame. He also has a very high [[Resistance]] growth ensuring that he will almost never get hit by enemy status staves, so it is recommended to usually deploy him at the bottom of your unit deployment order, as enemy staff users are more likely to target characters who are lower on your unit deployment order.

Upon promotion, Saul gains an additional staff rank, and a D-rank in [[Light (magic)|Light magic]]. This is especially helpful considering that [[Bishop]]s have an EXP bonus from combat in ''The Binding Blade'', meaning that he gain experience faster (as staves give little experience when used), further improving his warp range. He also has a strong [[Speed]] base and growth, allowing him to double reliably (especially on Normal mode) and even occasionally secure kills, despite the low might of light tomes.

Despite being a useful unit, Saul has his fair share of weaknesses. He has a low base [[Defense]] and a low growth as well. This combined with his equally low [[Luck]] ensures that he will usually die in 1 or 2 hits against physical units and be susceptible to low percent crits against enemy magic users. He also might not reach level 10 by the time you get the first [[Guiding Ring]] in [[Reunion (The_Binding_Blade)|Chapter 8]], not to mention that other magic users such as [[Lugh]] could also make great use of said promotion item and some might even be at the level necessary to promote. Guiding Rings are fairly scarce in ''The Binding Blade'' (only 2 before the [[Storming the Capital|Chapter 16]] [[secret shop]]). He may also be outclassed by Clarine and [[Cecilia]] in utility thanks to their mounts (though they likely will not have the staff rank), while Niime and Yoder will usually have higher magic than Saul when they join, making both of them better warp users. Even so, Saul will be useful even during the lategame chapters and can still be deployed alongside your other magic users.

Saul's main characteristic is his shameless flirting with women, using the pretense of sermons. This usually backfires on him, as the women are either uncomfortable with him<ref>{{Cite|'''Girl:''' Er... Brother Saul, I appreciate the offer, but not tonight..<br>'''Saul:''' Come now, don't be like that. We can sit by the fire in the dark of night as I soothe you with my calming sermons...|[[Fire Emblem (The Binding Blade chapter)|Chapter 5]]|The Binding Blade}}</ref> or unaware of his true intentions.<ref>{{Cite|'''Elen:''' Um... Brother Saul?<br>'''Saul:''' Truly, being able to meet such a beautiful lady is a blessing from the gods! And you are a follower of the St. Elimine Church, no less! This meeting must have been part of some divine plan. Please, let us meet this evening so that we can discuss the love of the gods.<br>'''Elen:''' Yes, I would love to. What time can you meet? I am free all night...<br>'''Saul:''' ...... Are you serious?<br>'''Elen:''' I am always serious about the gods. Why would I refuse?|Saul and [[Elen]]'s C support|The Binding Blade}}</ref> [[Elen]] even interprets his actions as Saul's way to show how accepting the Elimine Church is. The only woman he has not attempted to woo is his bodyguard, Dorothy, who is very aware of his behavior. Yet he is a true priest at heart; he offers some advice to [[Igrene]], explaining to her why the gods had not answered her prayers,<ref>{{Cite|'''Igrene:''' Those who pray to the gods expect something in return. But when they receive nothing, they cease to believe they exist. I think it's less trouble to never believe in the first place.<br>'''Saul:''' ......Yes... You may be right.<br>'''Igrene:''' ...Should a priest like you really be saying that?<br>'''Saul:''' Yes, it's fine. I am an open-minded person. However, Saint Elimine did say this: 'When the gods don't help us, it is because they believe in us.'<br>'''Igrene:''' They...believe in us?<br>'''Saul:''' Yes, I think they do.|Saul and [[Igrene]]'s B support|The Binding Blade}}</ref> and decides to stay by Roy's side to protect him, after [[Yoder]] frees him of his job.<ref>{{Cite|'''Yoder:''' I believe I know Lord Roy well enough to trust him. The Fire Emblem is safe in his hands. What we feared will surely not come to pass. Do you agree?<br>'''Saul:''' You are probably right. ...However, I wish to continue my mission a little longer.<br>'''Yoder:''' I see...<br>'''Saul:''' Of course I understand what you are saying, Father Yoder. Lord Roy is certainly a trustworthy person. Still...I think that Lord Roy has yet to learn the ugliness of the world. I think that I know that ugliness more than other priests...|Saul and [[Yoder]]'s A support|The Binding Blade}}</ref>

Saul is a clever man, able of seeing through traps and people's actions.<ref>{{Cite|'''Saul:''' Oh... And you must be Princess Guinivere! You are as beautiful as the rumors say!<br>'''Guinivere:''' Pardon me...?<br>'''Saul:''' Ahem... Forgive me. Your Highness, I wish to know the location of the Fire Emblem. You have it with you, do you not?<br>'''Guinivere:''' How did you know that?!|[[Fire Emblem (The Binding Blade chapter)|Chapter 5]]|The Binding Blade}}</ref> This is also seen in his very unorthodox tactics, such as giving discounts for people who go to church, or clinging to a man to scare him off.<ref>{{Cite|'''Saul:''' Please, Dorothy, have some faith in me. Anyway, I drove the man off and rescued the maiden. I acted exactly as a holy man ought to.<br>'''Dorothy:''' Really? You're not exactly very strong. How did you do it?<br>'''Saul:''' I went to the man and clung to him, crying, 'I thought we loved each other! Why do you reject me?!{{'}}|Saul and [[Dorothy]]'s C support|The Binding Blade}}</ref>

===''Heroes'' artwork===

FEH Saul Minister of Love 01.png|Artwork of Saul: Minister of Love from {{title|Heroes}}.

FEH Saul Minister of Love 02.png|Artwork of Saul: Minister of Love from {{title|Heroes}}.

FEH Saul Minister of Love 02a.png|Artwork of Saul: Minister of Love from {{title|Heroes}}.

FEH Saul Minister of Love 03.png|Artwork of Saul: Minister of Love from {{title|Heroes}}.

FEH Saul Loving Shepherd 01.png|Artwork of Saul: Loving Shepherd from {{title|Heroes}}.

FEH Saul Loving Shepherd 02.png|Artwork of Saul: Loving Shepherd from {{title|Heroes}}.

FEH Saul Loving Shepherd 02a.png|Artwork of Saul: Loving Shepherd from {{title|Heroes}}.

FEH Saul Loving Shepherd 03.png|Artwork of Saul: Loving Shepherd from {{title|Heroes}}.