Siegfried Schtauffen

## Birthplace

Ober-Getzenburg, Holy Roman Empire (current-day Germany)

## Weapon Name

Faust (SB)

Requiem (SC-3, 5)

Soul Calibur (4, BD)

## English Voice Actor

Eric Kelso (SB)

Crispin Freeman (3)

Roger Craig Smith (Legends-5)

## Japanese Voice Actor

Nobuyuki Hiyami

Embarking on a foreign crusade, Frederick promised Margaret that
he would return; unfortunately, without his father's guidance, Siegfried
 began to socialize with an edgy clan of teenagers, and he soon became
the leader of their band of thieves known as "Schwarzwind,"
 meaning "black wind." In a misguided act of national pride, the band
devised a plan to attack the knights who ran away from the crusades, as
they were bound to carry valuable possessions, and were too cowardly to
deserve respect in any case. That night, the "Schwarzwind"
 ambushed a group of war-weary soldiers, too tired to retaliate.
Siegfried even managed to kill the commander himself; but as he held the
 commander's severed head in triumph, the moonlight shone on its face,
and Siegfried screamed as he realized he held the head of his own
father. In mere seconds, Siegfried's mind had broken upon which point he
 ran straight into the forest, becoming more and more insane as he
ruminated over his previous acts, until he came to a point at which he
psychologically convinced himself that his father's murderer was
actually someone other than himself. Hearing rumors of the invincible Soul Edge, Siegfried came to believe his father's killer could only be killed with said weapon.

He traveled first to Ostrheinsburg Castle,
 the refuge of the noble Sir Stefan, who he believed to be the possessor
 of the Soul Edge; and he joined in its forces as a Landsknecht, rising
in its ranks with the hopes of acquiring Stefan's self-proclaimed
legendary blade. During a siege on the castle, Siegfried saw an
opportunity to take Sir Stefan's prized possession, the sword Grimblade,
 and killed him, running off with it into the Black Woods nearby the
castle; but the sword held no power. Frustrated, he continued to search
for weeks for the Soul Edge, growing increasingly more insane for its
power as time passed. He finally managed to come across the legendary
weapon Soul Edge, lying beside the defeated corpse of the dead pirate, Cervantes de Leon.
 But as he reached for it, the corpse lit up in a hellish blaze of fire
and attacked him. Siegfried raised his zweihänder and defeated the fiery
 Inferno, breaking his sword in the process, earning the right to wield the Soul Edge for himself.

At the precise moment that Siegfried obtained the cursed blade, the Evil Seed
 emanated from him in a beam of light that rained across the entire
world, leading only to death and destruction. At that moment Siegfried
heard the voice of the wicked sword, who arranged a deal with him:
Siegfried would help the blade to restore itself by gathering souls, and
 Soul Edge would resurrect his father Frederick. Siegfried accepted and
carried the blade into many slaughters, until he finally succumbed to
the sword's restored powers, transforming him into the Azure Knight,
Nightmare.

### Ending

Siegfried drops to one knee. He looks at the bigger blade of Soul
Edge, which is sticking out of the ground. He inches towards it...

#### Bad Ending

Siegfried grabs the sword and holds it over his head in victory, only to
 have it clamp down on his hand and transform him into Nightmare. The
scene shifts to Siegfried, now Nightmare, standing on a cliff,
overlooking a village.

#### Good Ending

Siegfried hoists Faust
 over his head and shatters Soul Edge. The scene switches to Siegfried
standing on top of a mountain, saddened and unsure about what to do
next. It seems that he had finally come out of denial about killing his
father.

## Soul Calibur

### Backstory

During the following three years he gathered together a group of followers: the golem Astaroth, the lizard man Aeon Calcos, and the alchemist Ivy.
 Each of them aided him in Soul Edge's quest to devour souls for a
rejuvenation ceremony to be performed in his chosen stronghold, Ostrheinsburg Castle.
 But as the ceremony was about to take place, the clan was quickly laid
to waste. Both Aeon Calcos and Astaroth were defeated; and Ivy left the
clan after learning the shocking truth of her horrifying past from the
Fu-Ma ninja, Taki. Two young warriors confronted Nightmare after slaying
 many golems: Kilik, owner of both the sacred staff Kali-Yuga and sacred mirror Dvapara-Yuga; and Xianghua, owner of Krita-Yuga, which revealed itself as Soul Calibur.

The battle between the swordsmen took place in a vortex of
hellfire and evil energy summoned by Soul Edge. After a raging battle,
the evil sword shattered, and Nightmare and Soul Edge fell into the
collapsing void. With Soul Edge severely weakened, Siegfried regained
some of his humanity. Along with lucidity came the horrifying memories
of the sins he committed, as well as the fear and anger of those who
were slaughtered by him. Moreover, he realized that he had been the one
who murdered his father, and that his "resurrection" was only an
illusion brought by his mind.

Expelled from the void into an unfamiliar place, Siegfried
disappeared into the night-the evil sword still in his grip. But Soul
Edge was weaker now, and splinters of itself were left in Siegfried's
footsteps. Siegfried meditated on all he had done and eventually learned
 to accept responsibility for his sin. He planned to return to his
mother, who had no knowledge of anything that occurred during or after
that night three years ago; but just as he was about to knock on the
door, he could hear his mother praying, and concluded that if he was to
be successful in his new resolve, he must distance himself from society
so that he never kills again. He could not see his mother until he was
fully redeemed; but he knew he was not yet atoned for, for every time he
 awoke from a night's rest, he found his new zweihänder Requiem covered
in blood, and he was surrounded by the corpses of victims he had
presumably murdered in his sleep.

### Ending

There was nothing that stand in the way of the wind that cut through
this valley. The evil within him had been exercised, and now the warrior
 cast his eyes upon the windblown valley.

His childhood memories, the valiant figure of his father, the beginning of his madness, and the Schwarzwind.

Man: Siegfried, where have you been for the last three years?

Siegfried: I shall tell you about it someday.

Familiar faces, new faces, it seems the Schwarzwind was alive and well.

Siegfried: Demons are on the attack! Prepare to fight, men!

And thus a new wind began to blow...

## Soul Calibur 2

### Backstory

Siegfried was aware that although he had regained his sanity and
learned to accept his past sins from three years ago, he was not yet
fully redeemed. He knew that Soul Edge still held power over him, but
now it used its strength in his sleep, and no matter how hard he tried
not to fall asleep again, he would always eventually give in, and the
darkness would continue to operate at night in his subconscious. He
tried to forsake civilization as far as he could go, so that no person
could be corrupted by the dark energy of the Soul Edge, but to no avail.

Four years passed, and he had eventually assumed the azure armor
for a second time, becoming Nightmare all over again, desperately
pursuing fragments of the Soul Edge that he might fully restore it. As
Nightmare plundered powerful souls and recovered shattered fragments of
the sword, the cracks in Soul Edge healed one by one. His goal of
reviving the evil sword edged toward completion. After some time, the
Azure Knight returned to his old stronghold, Ostrheinsburg, as its
bloodied land was a fitting stage for the restoration of the evil
sword's true power.

In the ruins of the chapel, a lone fencer, Raphael Sorel
 appeared in search of Soul Edge. The two of them faced off, but at the
end of the fierce battle, Nightmare stood victorious. As he stepped
forward to finish Raphael off, he muttered something incoherently.

Deep within Nightmare's eyes a faint light dwelled. It was the
will of Siegfried. As he struggled to free his mind from the influence
of evil, the spirit of the sword sneered at him. The two held a formless
 fight, as Siegfried struggled to take his body back while Inferno
mocked him and his father. (Sometime during this, Raphael made a
desperate last strike and damaged Soul Edge, a contributing factor to
Siegfried's final escape.)

## Soul Calibur 3

### Backstory

The battle raging deep within his mind caused the Azure Knight to
stand motionless. Beside him, the wounded body of Raphael trembled. Only
 Raphael's great will enabled his gravely injured body to move. Drawing
on his last strength, Raphael unleashed a desperate final blow upon his
enemy. The strike pierced the center of Soul Edge.

Nightmare let out an inhuman cry. Inside him, the crazed, wounded
 mind of the evil sword clawed at his consciousness. Siegfried stood
with an iron will against the raging storm, and finally restored
control. He who had been lost to the cursed sword for so long had
reclaimed his body as his own. In response to the rapidly weakening
evil, light poured out like the coming of the dawn...

When it was all over, Siegfried thought back in a daze over what
he had done. As he looked around, he sighted a sword that appeared along
 with the light. As if guided by something, he took the sword in his
hand and drove it into the evil eye that was the core of Soul Edge. That
 sword was the holy sword Soul Calibur, which had been trapped by the
power of the evil sword.

The blow, however, was not enough to destroy the evil sword. The
evil energy of Soul Edge had quieted, but the holy sword, still piercing
 cursed sword, had gone silent, as if it too, had lost its power.

"This isn't enough..." Forcing his exhausted mind into motion, as
 he began to think. He threw off his detestable armor and smashed it
into pieces. Then, picking up both swords, he left that cursed land. "I
will seal away Soul Edge for all eternity and atone for my sins. This I
swear!" His bloody fate would not release him so easily, however. From
time to time, the feeling of that grotesque arm rose from the depths of
his memory. The residue of the nightmare tormented him. Those seeking
revenge on Nightmare would occasionally appear in his path. Each time he
 was forced to fight them, his mind was wracked with guilt. Moreover,
Siegfried did not realize that another dark omen was on the horizon.
Indeed, there was no way for him to know that the azure knight would
soon be revived and a man who wanted to end an ever-lasting curse wanted the two swords in order to do it.

Eventually, Siegfried and the resurrected Azure Knight would meet again at Lost Cathedral. Zasalamel used his dark arts to break Soul Embrace in order to become Abyss,
 Siegfried and Nightmare defeated Abyss and both the Spirit Sword and
the Cursed Sword were freed. Both Siegfried and Nightmare took their
respective swords and clashed one more time, causing an explosion that
destroyed the entire cathedral and nearly destroyed them both...

### Ending

As Siegfried faces Soul Edge, he begins to hallucinate, because he
notices for a split second that his hand is the hand of Nightmare's. A
weak Nightmare stumbles towards Siegfried from behind him and tells him
that he will pay for what he has done. Clones of Nightmare suddenly
begin to appear, and as they surround Siegfried, Nightmare's voice can
be heard saying "You will never run away from your sin! You have no
right to live! It is a sin for you to be alive!". Siegfried then hears a
 piercing noise that brings him to his knees, and when he turns around,
he sees Nightmare with Soul Edge in his hand. The Nightmares raise their
 swords into the air, ready to strike Siegfried.

#### Input Ending

Siegfried grabs his sword and slashes through
all 3 Nightmare clones before they are able to harm him. The screen
fades, and then shows Siegfried kneeling on the ground thinking about
what Nightmare has said. "To live... that is my redemption." Siegfried
states.

#### No Input Ending

Lightning strikes down on all 3 Nightmare's, destroying them. Siegfried
knows that his father has just saved him. "Father, I will live on... no
matter what happens" he says.

## Soul Calibur 4

### Backstory

Someone was calling him, but he could not clearly hear it. He
strained to see, but could see nothing. Then the voice came again, and
this time he could hear every word.

"So you would forsake our friendship?"

"Yes. No one will ever again be a part of my life. Every man or
woman who has known me has ultimately fallen to death's touch. So go.
Leave me. Forget you ever knew me."

The voice that had replied was his own. He began to lose his
consciousness, his focus wavered, and then another voice came to him
from behind.

"I have seen what you have done. Now you devote your life to
atoning for your sins and redeeming your soul. Are you not as much a
victim of that sword as the others?"

"No, no! No matter what beguiling words you whisper, my sins
cannot be forgiven. I-I slew my father with my own bloodied hands. No
cursed sword forced me to do that!"

As Siegfried spoke his answer, the man who questioned him faded
from his vision, to be replaced once more by the memories of that night.
 The wind blew the clouds from the face of the moon, and suddenly the
head that he held triumphantly aloft was brilliantly revealed. He saw
the face, and there was no denying the truth. It was his father. His
heart was in agony as if it had been pierced by a white-hot blade.

Siegfried jerked upright, as if yanked by a puppeteer's string.
The full moon bathed his face in light. It had been a dream. He was
alone.

He pressed his hand against the armor that covered his heart. A
terrible scar marked him there. The maelstrom of power unleashed by Soul
 Calibur and Soul Edge clashed at the Lost Cathedral had torn his body
apart. His long quest to destroy the cursed sword had been so nearly
completed; redemption had been within his grasp, yet, in that moment, he
 had died, the scream of frustration at his failure silenced on his
lips. Perhaps the spirit sword responded to that outpouring of emotion,
for the sword whose destiny it was to destroy the cursed sword resonated
 with Siegfried's soul. It chose Siegfried for its master, and doing so
saved his life.

Siegfried thought again of the dream he had just seen. He thought
 of the people who had once stood by him and the people he had left
despite knowing that Siegfried was none other than Nightmare.

Bathed in the moonlight, Siegfried looked up into the night sky.
He knew now what he must do. He would brush aside the outstretched hands
 that tried to help him. Once, not so long ago, he had stood at the
center of the terror that Nightmare wrought. The enemy he now faced was
the cursed devourer of souls, Soul Edge. Awaiting him was the maelstrom
of destruction unleashed at the cathedral.

Soul Calibur shone with a cold light in his hand. Siegfried made
up his mind to become like the sword. No one would touch his heart, no
man or woman would sway him from his path, until the cursed sword was
destroyed for all time. Images of his brothers-in-arms, comrades, even
friends that might have been - and, of course, his father - flashed one
by one through his mind. He was alone, and he had no choice but to be
alone, for he would never again hurt those he loved.

Siegfried turned his gaze away from the heavens. Before him a
black shadow lay heavy over the cursed city of Ostrheinsburg. His
journey was coming to an end.

### Ending

Siegfried defeats Nightmare, as the two collide in a single
slash. Both are left standing silently, until Nightmare holds Soul Edge's
handle so tightly then groans in agony from Siegfried's apparent connected blow
he gave him.

Siegfried, still with his back
facing Nightmare, utters these words: "With this... it ends."
Nightmare collapses onto the floor, seemingly dead. Siegfried turns to look at
the body and stabs Soul Calibur into the ground, saying: "Our kind must
not exist in this world; not ever again." With those words, he then
unleashes Soul Calibur's power, crystallizing Soul Edge and Nightmare's body,
but it also crystallizes Siegfried as well and then everything around them.

The screen goes black and the
epilogue tells us the world will soon be "covered in crystals, where a
utopia without war or suffering lay waiting."

## Soul Calibur 5

### Backstory

Siegfried had played host to Soul Calibur and, ultimately, destroyed
Soul Edge. After that epic battle, the knight returned home and enjoyed a
 brief period of peace. But deep down he knew his work was not over; the
 cursed sword's minions—the malfested—remained a serious threat.
Realizing he couldn't stop them alone, Siegfried gathered his staunchest
 allies from his old clan known as Schwarzwind, he reformed the clan of thieves into a clan of mercenaries.

One day, after more than a decade of service protecting humanity
from the malfested, Siegfried discovered that Soul Calibur had
transformed into a new one-handed sword—a clear harbinger of Soul Edge's
 return. A new champion to wield Soul Calibur would need to be found;
Siegfried assigned the task to Z.W.E.I., a wandering swordsman who had joined his mercenary group.

"So... The time has come..."

Soul Calibur, like Soul Edge, possessed dangerous power. Siegfried quietly awaited the one who would be worthy to wield it...

## Critical Finish

**Soul Conviction**: He shouts "Get ready!", then uses his sword to knock the opponent in the air and brings them down. He then powers up Soul Calibur
 by raising it into the sky, yelling "Prepare to die!". As the foe
stands up, he slashes his blade through them vertically, sending
crystals everywhere as the opponent drops dead, consumed by blue flames.

## Critical Edge

**Legacy Testament**: Siegfried raises his sword above his head
and stabs it into the ground. This causes a trail of crystal spikes to
appear in the direction of his opponent.

## Weapon Arts

**Ashen Blitz:** That's a hardly recognizable inverse version of
SC4 move called Terror Slap. If Siegfried succeeds in delivering the
blow, time freezes for a while. This long-range horizontal high attack
is always followed with a blue-white trace, resembling that of Hilde's
charge attacks. As the character steps forward in the strike, the attack
 can be performed at a distance. It has an absolutely safe start, you
can't be stopped by the opponent in any case. Although, it's hard to
continue a combo with it, because it's high and doesn't hit the opponent
 immediately after pressing. After the Weapon Art is performed, the
enemy is thrown forward, so there is a chance of a wall hit, but there
aren't any guaranteed combos after it. It won't hit the lying or
crouching opponent, and if it hits in mid-air, the opponent won't hit
the wall. In case it's blocked, you won't be punished.

**Soul Conviction:** This is a mid-range vertical Break
Attack, that is very similar to Nightmare's Crimson Vortex. It has a
short animation, in which Siegfried turns back saying "Taste... My
blade!", and then he releases a single launcher. There's a blue shining
sphere at the end of his sword during the attack, it disappears
immediately after the Weapon Art's performed. Even if the attack fails,
the sphere will still emerge. The attack always causes a Guard Burst in
case the opponent guards against it. However, it has an unsafe start.
There's a time gap between the activation of the Weapon Art and the
animation, during which you're likely to be stopped by any types of the
opponent's attacks. And the fact, that there's a chance to be
interrupted even after the animation only makes it worse. It doesn't
stun the opponent, and doesn't make him hit the wall, but it seems to be
 a challenge for him to side-step it. After the opponent is tossed in
the air by this attack, you won't have time to create any significant
combos, though some additional hits can be done. It'll work the same on
the opponent on the ground or in mid-air, but the time gap may allow the
 enemy to land and start guarding or to recover from the stun. In that
case you'll still have a chance to do some damage after a Guard Burst.
Sometimes it can miss when the opponent's in the air.

**Geist Destroyer:** That's a combination of Geist Strike from
 SC3 and Flying Edge performed one after another. If the second strike
 is landed successfully on the opponent, it creates a tremor, the camera
 changes it's angle and time slows down a little. However, this tremor
doesn't have any actual effect, as it can only be seen when the enemy is
 physically hit by the attack. Both of the strikes have a good medium
range. Although, its isn't very safe, as its first attack can be easily
interrupted and if it is blocked, the opponent can prevent you from
making the second one by attacking you or side-stepping it. But
fortunately, it's rather easy to continue a combo with it. If the enemy
is standing still, the first attack will stun him and the second will
slam him to the ground. If he's caught in the air, the first strike will
 land him on the ground without being stunned and the second will come
next. In both ways, the last move will put the opponent in the stunned
state, but there aren't any guaranteed combos after it. However, if the
enemy doesn't use Ukemi, you'll be able to add some more hits. If you've
 landed only the last one, the opponent won't be stunned and you'll be
able to proceed with guaranteed additional hits. If the enemy is
guarding, or the first attack misses, the second one will always be
performed. In case the he's on the ground, the first attack will
certainly miss, while the second can hit anyway. When the opponent is
standing stunned and going to fall down (for example, after Siegfried's
Piercing Strike), if you're close to him, the first attack will miss,
whereas at a distance it will hit. When the Weapon Art is activated with
 the opponent standing or being in mid-air, the second attack can cause a
 wall hit. By the way, if the last strike is being guarded against, you
won't be punished, but it's better to get up from the ground as soon as
possible.

**Mail Vortex:** This is a combo of his Maelstrom and a quick
version of Rampart Buster. There are three hits in this Weapon Art. The
first two horizontal middle and low attacks knocks the opponent to the
ground and the third vertical Break Attack smashes him down. It is very
efficient in combat due to its comfortable medium range, pretty safe
quick start, easy chaining and heavy damage. As Siegfried steps forward
during the attack, the range of the last two strikes is definitely long.
 There's a small chance of being interrupted by some of the opponent's
attacks, but when the enemy is far from you, and your first strike
misses, he can stop you from making the other two without trouble. Even
if the first attack is blocked, the opponent is very unlikely to guard
against the second low one. If the whole thing misses or the enemy holds
 the guard, all three attacks will be made. Now, a few words about its
chaining qualities. The first attack stuns the standing opponent, though
 in mid-air it doesn't and just makes him spin opened for the next
attack. When he's lying, it misses. The second one doesn't stun him, but
 knocks him off his feet. If the enemy is lying idly it won't hit too,
and in the air it tends to miss sometimes after the first one, but
usually it knocks the enemy down. The last strike always stuns the
opponent, except when the first two strikes were delivered in the air or
 it is the only attack landed on the opponent on the ground. If he is
caught in mid-air, you won't be able to continue a combo after the
Weapon Art, as the opponent can stand up right after it, but in case
he's standing still, the third strike will stun him, enabling you to
create a guaranteed combo after it. If everything is blocked, you won't
be punished. With the opponent on his feet, you can hit him against the
wall with the second strike (only if the first one had caught him off
guard). In mid-air when you're close to the wall only the first strike
can cause a wall hit, but at a distance from the wall the second one may
 also lead to it. In case it's used to continue a wall combo, it'll have
 the same effect as it has as on the standing opponent.

**Legacy Testament**: This is Siegfried's Critical Edge
without any new features really. It provides a long distance, however
it's more useful to use it, when the enemy's close to you, as in this
case is has an additional hit at the beginning, which accounts for a
forth of the attack's total damage. In contrast to the most of Weapon
Arts which take origin from Critical Edge attacks, it can easily be
interrupted (only before the animation), it's still rather hard to make a
 guaranteed combo with and it's impossible to add anything, besides the
least damaging Grief Low Kick, after it as well, even if its second
strike makes the enemy hit the wall. Moreover, it isn't a completely
safe move to be used randomly, since there's a slight possibility a
being punished after it, which increases if the wall or the edge of the
arena shortens the distance between you and the guarding enemy. It
doesn't cause stun and works both on the ground and not high in the air.

## Stages

Ostrheinsburg Castle (SB)

City of Water (SC)

Ostrheinsburg Chapel (2)

Lost Cathedral (3)

Tower of Remembrance: Encounter (4)

TOR: Ancient Gate (BD)

Ancient Citadel: Under Siege (5)

## Themes

Soul and Sword (SB)

Darkness of Fate (SB)

Worth Dying For (SC)

Forsaken Sanctuary (3)

Destiny Will Tell (4, BD)

Till Fate Writes My Epitaph (5)