#xenobron the plot device

[yanderefairyangel]

I am curious. Why do you think Xenobron is bad ? we don't fight him in the DLC and he doesn't seem that different from normal Sombron

Alright this is going to be long.

We indeed don't fight Xenobron, he doesn't matter, he is a minor character which is why he is dead at the begining of the DLC, and we only see him in 3CG with his design not being revealed to signify "hey it's a different Sombron right here". He exist only for the Xenologue to happen because Rafal can't be a villain on his own and to shoehorn 2 Fell dragons without making them related to Alear in anyway (because the writers want to preserve Alear's amnesia) and without any risk of them being plot relevant in anyway.

But the problem with Xenobron not being more fleshed out is that it gets in the way of the Twin's writing.

Nel's whole arc and Rafal's whole arc parallels with the one that Alear has : learning about connection, choosing to become a virtuous person and learning to overcome your past and accept what is lost.

Both Nel and Rafal have a troubled story with connecting with people due to how in their family they were sometimes forced to kill their other siblings and couldn't trust them. Nel's whole arc is about that as well, the trauma leaving her very very anxious with forming a sibling bound with anyone hence the Veyle support being Veyle, someone dreaming of family as an ideal, to share this view with Nel to help her overcome it. And in the Xenologue, Nel needs to accept what she lost. She learns to accept Alear's death, the person she was in love with learning the pain of connection in the same way as Sombron and 0 Emblem. Even more so as it was the first person she ever fell in love with, a connection I am sure she though she could never experience. The Xenologue is about her overcoming this grief and befriending an alternate version of her love and this parallel how long long ago she had accepted Nil, her beloved twin's death and accepted Rafal as her brother, but not as a replacement, but as who he is. She was seeing him as who he is this entire time despite his ressemblance with Nil and accepted to treat him as a sibling, a connection that felt very very painful to her due to the tension with her other sibling that she refused to accept Veyle until the A support, yet it doesn't feel like she didn't accept her twins' death, she accepted it and managed to make a new connection of that kind and showing she has overcome her issues. This is the same thing with Alear : at first, she can't help but seeing them as the Alear she loved, but she eventually manages to accept the loss and to see Alear as who they are, that's why if you S support her, it is pointed out and it is obvious Nel isn't trying to find back what she has lost, but that she accept Alear as who they are while making that new connection that heartbroke her. But the problem is that Xenobron's backstory and lack of character weakens this narrative since he had no reason to teach her or any of his kids that connections is weakness and his edgy stuff so, compared to Alear, it offers a much less savory parallel and it doesn't make her an efficient foil to Xenobron since the whole idea was that Sombron created his own enemy and is whole motivation makes the thing crumble.

And for Rafal, that's worse. And that's a pity because he is an EXCELLENT character. But him learning, like Nel and Alear, that strengh comes from connecting rather then strengh and power and isolation is made less efficient because of Xenobron. And that's a pity. Because if Xenobron had a backstory like Sombron, then him teaching his kids the opposite message would make more sense and therefore makes their narrative works as efficientely as it does for Alear and Veyle since the main point of Sombron doing this to them is that he truly believes in this philosophy which comes from his refusal to heal, to accept the loss and to try making new connection, even those who remind you of the ancient scars. And that's a pity because that's precisely what Rafal learns !! He is trapped in the past, and not only because of his insecurities due to being treated as a good for nothing failure but also because he never accept Nil's death. When he was a child, Nil was his only friend and the one connection that helped him knew what it was like to have a sibling, having lost his very very young and when he lost Nil, he accepted to replace him with Nel to honnor Nil's memory but also because he wanted to keep Nil "alive" in a way, and he did so by accepting to abandon his identity and allow "Nil" to live in his stead but he can't help but feel guilty about it thinking about how the love Nel gave him belonged to Nil and he "stole" his place making him feel even lonelier and undeserving of it, because he too yearns for affection and he hates himself for wanting something he feels he doesn't deserves and that doesn't belong to him but to Nil. And there is also the fact that he is influenced by Sombron and I mean it in every way. The fact that he speaks like Sombron shows he internalized whatever thing Sombron though as true, his convictions and ambitions which makes him realizing that those aren't what would make him happy work but since Xenobron doesn't have the background feating for Rafal to feel that way, it weakens it, as well as the overcoming of what he lost. He finally accepted Nil's death when he realized his actions lead him to lost the only person he loved and who loved him in return and with whom he connected in the same way he did with Nil, he regained his lost identity and learns to connect with people. With Mauvier and Ivy it's through redemption, and with Alfred it's through their common points. He does the same with Gregory by letting him pierce through his facade and obviously Alear, someone he cames to treasure as a friend and he can even romance, a connection that like Nel he never had before and probably never dream of ever experiencing. And this would work soooo freaking well if it was with MG Sombron, but with Xenobron it poils to frustration. He is there just because of plot devicey reasons as a vehicle for their trauma but he doesn't add anything since he has nothing to flesh him out, compared to MG Sombron whose backstory flesh out, adds deeper meaning to the story but makes him the perfect foils for Alear and Veyle as it adds to their character too !!

And I am sorry, but I am no "Sombron is still Sombron" kind of person. While the final boos fight is liberating for both Alear and Veyle, enabling them to recover their agency and finally overcome their ultimate trial, for the twins it is much less effective because at the end of the day, the Sombron they fight isn't their abuser, it's just their dad from another world and in a world may I add where they might not have existed, might not have been his children but that at any rate didn't mistreated them the way Xenobron did because they might have died as kids. So the whole bit about them finally fuffiling themselves falls flat. They are only defeating someone who looked like their abusers, there it FEELS like it's a substitute compared to the genuine link they can have with each other and our cast. That's why their dialogue ends up reading differently as them defeating their abusive dad since he isn't. And you can argue that Sombron would have did the same to them, but I disagree. At the risk of sounding petty, Sombron calling his kids defect and Xenobron calling them failure changes completely the relationship status. To you it might seems like it's the same thing but to me, not, because there is a reason if out of all things, even though the 2 Sombron are so similar, the writers felt the need to change THAT very word.

Unlike for Veyle and Alear whose connection with Sombron is essential, the one that Nel and Rafal have with Xenobron is just due to plot devicey reason that caused their narrative to be weaken even though it's already excellent character arc which is why if Xenobron had a backstory allowing him to have the same motivations as Sombron to explain why he believes in strengh and seeks something he lost like Sombron does rather then accepting the loss, and making new connections to become a better person, then the Twin's narrative would be just as powerful, if not more then Alear and Veyle's

[yanderefairyangel]

that's the thing, we won't know and never will because "it doesn't matter" Xenobron just exist for Nel and Rafal to be traumatized

Most fans had the theory that Xenobron was doing this seeking for an heir unlike MG one but there isn't much evidence, we don't even know if Xenobron wanted to have revenge on someone of something

And we will never because he is just a plot device

HAS ANYBODY EVER CONSIDERED WHY THE SOMBRON OF THE WORLD OF THE FELL XENOLOGUE SET OUT FOR WORLD VENGEANCE WHEN THE MAIN CAMPAIGN'S SOMBRON WAS MOTIVATED BY THE LOSS OF ZERO EMBLEM OR AM I GOING INSANE

[yanderefairyangel]

If you dislike Xenobron then how did you felt with Aelfric ?

That's it !! Xenobron is Aelfric but even MORE boring.

I am sorry ? Is that all they could come up with ? Someone who is yandere for Byleth's mother ? and of course, Sitri was the most important mystery to answer, not like there were others things in 3H worth that DLC...

While not as bad as the Fell Xenologue, Cindered Shadows's story is still bad imo. It's boring, it doesn't bring much to the main plot other then more information on Byleth, but why would I care ? About that whole vessels stuff when Sothis has as much plot relevance as Kellam past chapter 10

But at least, he had a motive to be evul. So not as bad as Xenobron since he really his just a plot device. Aelfric is too to some extent, but with a better make up

[yanderefairyangel]

Yep. Engage has a more light hearted and simple story compared to Three Houses that is also Pg 12 in my country but seems to expect a bit more of maturity from it’s audience. 

Though Intys could have put some effort to disguise the plot device.

"Why does Alear have Lumera as a biological mom ?" you can play the dlc before the twist, by that point they believe Alear is Lumera's biological child

"What were Xenobron's motivations ?" they are left ambiguous because you can play the DLC before the final chapter were he reveals being from another world and seeking Emblem 0 and this avoid a plot hole as to : which universe would alt!Sombron come from and why would he seeks for Emblem 0 when the Fell Xenologue showed that the Emblem don't have parralel self.

At any rate, it feeds people on headcanon.

"That's also why we don't fight Parallel Sombron, because you can tackle the Xenologue at any time, it would've spoiled the final boss fight."

Also keep in mind that while Sombron and his analogue looks similar, we never see him and even the recollections CG doesn't depict his figure precisely

That's because as you pointed out you can beat the DLC at any moments, so even before Alear meet Sombron for the first time in the Elusia chapter.

However, if kind of wish they had locked the DLC before some chapter as Alear's reaction while meeting Zelestia means they have already meet Zephia and the other hounds, however in the game they meet with them in the same chapter where the meet Sombron for the 1st time. The DLC timeline is not though well let's say, but there is chance it's canon so... good job Intys

Yup. They should've limited it to only be accessible by chapter 10 or 11. That way, new players would understand Alear's reactions and his grief towards all their friends they fight.

[yanderefairyangel]

Thanks for your additions !

Well, while Zephia is shown to sorta have a sense of deja vu when she first meet Alear in Firene she doesn't properly recognize them until Veyle speaks of her surviving siblings, rising her suspicions. As for Sombron, he claims that Alear is the only child whose face and namehe actually recall since he killed them personally...(still the dad of the year I see) but I forgot to add that since only in the Fell Xenologue are Fell dragon born as pair of twins, this means Xenobron had more children then our Sombron and that Nel and Nil and Rafal and his twin shared a mother as well as their father. This isn't the case of the Main game, and from what we know there was at least 4 more siblings. In the Xenologue, since Nil was pretty much considered a failure, no one noticed save for Nel and Xenobron as he state at the end of chapter 5 of Xenologue.

What you say about Xenobron is true. Zephia mentions Sombron tasked her with turning Veyle into a proper "successor" but it was more with the idea of Veyle doing the chores since Sombron showed no remorse with trying to kill her in chapter 21 something that Xenobron didn't do with Nel and Rafal even though they betrayed him since he cast a spell on Rafal to use him later in case something happened to him. Which reminds me that if in the Somniel Rafal is next to the emplacement of the tent, he will say he used to sleep outside and that he and Nil used to watch stars together...so maybe they weren't all living in Gradlon's temple ? At least they seemed to have stayed with their mother waiting for the time to be old enough to fight and out of all Fell children Veyle is the one closest to her mother. Alear's mother died by the time of chapter 24, Veyle's mother spend time with her before dying tortured by humans while Nel and Rafal nevers mentions anything about their mother.

Also Veyle is the only fell dragon to openly defy Sombron. Alear was too broken to do it until they meet Lumera. In Nel and Diamant's support, she mentions how defying Xenobron meant death and she risked everything to save Rafal from this hell (who though she betrayed Sombron for Nil).

And yes when we meet Past Alear they never mentions anything about having had to kill their siblings, which makes sense since at that time they were the sole survivor along with Veyle and while they meet with Veyle only once, seeing how the death of 4 of their siblings seems to have particularly affected them it's possible that Alear was actually close to said siblings.

Which makes me think that I reaaaaally am an idiot because I completely forgot to talk about it even though I literaly made two matching fanarts for them but Alear and Rafal had a different pressure on their shoulders : Sombron labels his kids as defect/欠陥品/defective/kekkan-hi. Xenobron labels them as 出来損ない/dekisokonai which is translated as failure but would rather mean "good for nothing" and while as you pointed out we have no idea what were Xenobron's goal (because he is just a plot device) it seems that while Sombron was critizing the nature of his kids, Xenobron judged them on their performance. I really think about it too much for my own good but out of all things in how Sombron and Xenobron treated their kids, it's the biggest difference and it genuinely makes me wonder as to why Sombron refers to them as defect when Xenobron calls them failures ?

this makes me curious as to how much different where alear veyle rafal and nel's childhood

Alright so :

1/ All of Sombron's children are half siblings. Alear and Veyle are half siblings and Rafal and Nel are also half siblings. While Veyle and presumably Alear's mother both belonged to the tribe of Mage Dragon, it wasn't the case of Nel and Rafal and of the other Veyle since Xenbron killed them all safe for Zelestia and since there other fell dragons, it's possible Xenobron mated with them.

2/ Compared to the MG where the only surviving children in the war of 1 000 ago were Alear and Veyle (when we meet past Alear, all their siblings but Veyle were dead), a lot more of the fell children in XenElyos survived. We know from Rafal that his twin died when he was too young to remember and that Nil died in a battle during the war of 1000 ago when he looked about 10 physically. When we see the CG in the recollection, Nel is in her adult form and is shown to have killed at least 4 siblings of hers : 2 brother and 2 sister. However even by the time they betrayed Xenobron many of their others siblings were still alive : Rafal killed all of them before the events of the Fell Xenologue. So while in the MG Alear and Veyle lost all their siblings due to war, Sombron and Corrupted, Nel and Rafal lost theirs due to similar reason but also to them having had to kill them at some point.

3/ Alear and Veyle never got to spend much time together. According to Veyle they meet but once and when we fought past Alear it is likely it happened a while after Alear gave their dragonstone to Veyle. In comparison Nel and Rafal got to stick together much longer and support each other. Alear and Veyle met only once and weren't reunited until 1 000 spend, which Veyle will echoes in her pact ring support by a promise to stay with Alear for the following 1 000 years.

4/ Being the oldest sibling, Alear got to experience thing that Veyle didn't such as seeing their siblings die all one by one. Nel and Rafal experienced the same thing, sometimes causing death of said siblings.

5/ Past Alear is the only Fell children speaking purely hiragana. Veyle uses hiragana and kanji. Nel and Rafal speaks mainly in kanji even if they can sometimes use hiragana for some words. This is likely to convey Past Alear's emotional immaturity and how they got broken at a young age.

6/ Alear is the only fell child that fears the Corrupted. As they pointed out Veyle perfectly handles them. Rafal has no problem making them and Nel even made some of them her dinner.

and that's about all I can tell from what I gathered. Other then that they all have the common point of having being hated and feared for no other reason then their unfortunate connection to their respective Sombron and to therefore know little of the human world or having a lack of social skills... Nel in particular. Rafal is cold and distant but he does takes things at face value while Alear and Veyle are more open socially which makes sense since Alear is amnesiac and Veyle craves for friendship