D'arce

*Proceed at your own risk!*

* Portrait
* Combat (Party)
* Combat (Enemy)
* Overworld
* New God
* Dungeon Nights

> **"I'm here to protect a special someone. I won't let anyone stand in my way!"**— D'arce when fighting the player.
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**D'arce Cataliss** is a playable character and a potential party member in *Fear & Hunger*. A knight with pure and righteous ways of the warrior, she has being trained in combat since childhood and excels in close combat with different weaponry.

## Lore

> **"The trusted knight of the propheticed one. She seems awfully dim standing next to the blinding shimmer of the one... But it might be wrong to misjudge her potential..."**— The New Gods of the Grand Hall on D'arce
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A daughter of a wealthy family of nobles in the Kingdom of Rondon, D'arce was born with a Domination soul, an essence that compelled her to assert control over those in her midst. This innate quality rendered her a natural leader, yet it also made her reluctant to engage in self-reflection. In her youth, it was decided that D'arce would become a holy knight, a decision that set her on the path of squireship and rigorous training. Intensive drills and frequent sparring sessions sculpted D'arce into a skilled and tenacious warrior.

D'arce became a full-fledged knight and an invaluable asset to Rondon's military. However, the passage of time wore away D'arce's allegiance to the holy knights. She recognized the dissonance between Rondon's professed divine mission and the reality that only the privileged elite reaped the rewards of battle. Disgusted by the incessant pursuit of self-serving conquest and bloodshed, a disillusioned D'arce contemplated renouncing her knighthood. Such considerations were met with stern opposition from her family, who threatened to disinherit her for daring to entertain such notions.

Amid her disillusionment, D'arce encountered the Knights of the Midnight Sun, a small band of mercenaries led by the charismatic Le'garde. Holding the same disdain for Rondon's corruption and hypocrisy, Le'garde easily persuaded D'arce to join his cause. Because of her prior training and experience, she was granted a prominent position within the group. The Knights of the Midnight Sun burgeoned in both number and influence as recruits flocked to Le'garde's banner.

Despite the Kingdom of Rondon initially employing the Knights' services, Le'garde's increasing power made him a liability to Rondon's rule. As tensions escalated, Le'garde withdrew into isolation, immersing himself in the study of occult texts and ancient artifacts. He suddenly ordered his army to raid the Kingdom of Oldegård and retrieve a specific artifact. D'arce cautioned against the order, failing to see the benefit and concerned about the damage such an action could do to Le'garde's reputation, but Le'garde was adamant.

The ensuing raid was successful, but it also incurred the wrath of Rondon, who seized the opportunity to turn the common folk against Le'garde and order his arrest. Surrounded by Rondon's armies, D'arce and her comrades fought bravely, but were outmatched. Le'garde was captured, and the Knights were killed nearly to a man. Narrowly escaping the battlefield, D'arce resolved to personally rescue Le'garde and save him from execution at any cost. She set off for the foreboding fortress where Le'garde was being held: the Dungeons of Fear & Hunger.

## Recruitment

When not playing as D'arce, she can be found at the Cavedwellers' village. Upon entering the area, the player will find D'arce being attacked by a Cavedweller and will be given the choice to either fight her assailant and save her or ignore the situation and allow her to die. If the player intervenes, all Cavedwellers will become hostile. Afterward, D'arce will join the player's party if asked. D'arce comes equipped with a long sword, an eagle crest shield and plate mail and knows the skills *Fast Attack* and *Defence Stance*.

## Unique Interactions

If D'arce is in the party and the player finds Le'garde alive but refuses or is unable to let him join the party, D'arce will stay behind with him until both are recruited.

While playing as the Outlander, the player has the option to immediately kill Le'garde upon finding him alive in his cell. If D'arce is in the party, doing so will enrage her and cause her to attack. She can be convinced to stop the fight with *Talk*, but she will then leave the party and cannot be interacted with for the rest of the game.

If Ragnvaldr and Le'garde are in the same party in Ma'habre, Ragnvaldr will attack Le'garde shortly after the dialogue at the gates. The player will be given the option to intervene and help Le'garde fight Ragnvaldr; if this is not taken, Ragnvaldr will kill Le'garde. If D'arce is in the party, letting Le'garde die will enrage her and she will attack.

## Attributes

 Defense
 M.Attack
 M.Defense
 Agility
 Luck

## Gameplay

If chosen as the protagonist, D'arce has the **Domination** soul. She can later learn *Leg sweep* and *Counter*. Using a Book of memories will teach her *Counter*.

If the player opts to play the intro when starting a new game, the options are as follows:

* ***"When you saw the sword coming your way, you..."***
	1. "*Quickly stepped aside and dodged it.*"  D'arce learns Fast stance.
	2. "*Raised your buckler in defence.*"  D'arce learns Defence stance.

* ***"... your family insisted - no, demanded you to stay as a holy knight, or else you'd bring great shame to their noble family."***
	1. "*Break ties with your family and run away.*"  Nothing. But this option enables the Dash skill if the player later chooses to "*Rush straight after him.*" when departing.
	2. "*Listen to your family and stay as a holy knight.*"  D'arce gets 20 Silver coins.

D'arce can start with different equipment depending on which option the player chooses during the intro, when the Rondon army attacks the army D'arce is with.

* ***"... you had to choose which position to take in the oncoming encounter."***
	1. "*Spearhead the coming assault.*"  Gives D'arce
		+ *Iron spear* (+45 Attack, 2h)
		+ *Iron cuirass* (+30 Defense)
		+ *Arm guards* (+10 Defense, cannot lose arms)
	2. "*Take the rear and manage defences.*"  Gives D'arce
		+ *Long sword* (+35 Attack)
		+ *Eagle crest shield* (+20 Defense)
		+ *Plate mail* (+40 Defense)
		+ *Leg guards* (+10 Defense)

* **"Before leaving on your desperate journey, you decided to stock up on equipment and items..."**
	1. "*Stock up on equipment.*"  You get 7 Tinderboxes, a Quill, and a Blue vial.
	2. "*Stock up on food.*"  You get 3 Dried meat, a Moldy bread, and Cheese.
	3. "*Rush straight after him.*"  D'arce learns Dash. However, this option is disabled if the player chooses to "*Stay as a holy knight.*" and instead is rewarded the 20 Silver coins.

## Endings

This character is needed or has special interactions in the following endings:

* Ending C
* Ending C-II
* Ending E
* Ending S - "The true god of Fear and Hunger"

## Trivia

* D'arce's design seems to be based on popular depictions of Joan of Arc, the French historical figure - more specifically from the movie *The Messenger* (1999).
	+ Her name is taken from Joan of Arc's French name, Jeanne **d'Arc**. "Jeanne" is also the name of one of the knights accompanying Buckman.
* D'arce's character strongly resembles that of Casca from *Berserk*. Both characters are female knights who serve mercenary leaders - Le'garde and Griffith - whom they are intensely loyal to. Such loyalty drives them into conflict with scarred, gruff warriors - Ragnvaldr and Guts.
* When asking to perform a Marriage, D'arce will reveal that she is a virgin.
* Early concept art suggests that D'arce was intended at one point in development to be a a closeted lesbian.
* As a New God, D'arce's armor strongly resembles that of Francóis. This is fitting as both individuals possess Domination souls.