Bors

Bors (Japanese: ボールス Bors) is a playable character appearing in Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade. He first appears in Chapter 1. He is an Armor Knight of Ostia and Gwendolyn's brother. He joins Roy's army by Lilina's wishes.

Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade

Role

Bors is the boss of the Tutorial.

At the beginning of the game, Bors is the only Ostian knight in Roy's escorting group; he has been entrusted with bringing Lilina safely to her home. Therefore, when seeing how Pherae is being attacked by bandits and learning that his lady is in danger, he joins the battle and helps defeat the brigands. Once Roy's group reaches the castle and Lord Eliwood sends his son to lead Pherae's troops in his stead, Lilina asks Bors to watch for Roy. Swearing to protect him with his life, Bors follows Roy during the whole campaign against Bern.

After Bern is defeated and the war is over, he goes back to Ostia and works to bring prosperity and harmony to it.

Starting stats and growth rates

Knight Level 1 Affinity

Recruitment: Chapter 1, automatically on Turn 1 Stats Growth Rates Max HP 20 Luck 4 Strength 7 Defense 11 Skill 4 Resistance 0 Speed 3 Constitution 14 Movement 4 Aid 13 Max HP 90% Luck 50% Strength 30% Defense 35% Skill 30% Resistance 10% Speed 40% {{{content3}}} {{{content4}}} {{{content5}}} {{{content6}}} {{{content7}}} {{{content8}}} {{{content9}}} {{{content10}}} {{{content11}}} {{{content12}}} {{{content13}}} {{{content14}}} {{{content15}}} Inventory Iron Lance Vulnerary Weapon Levels -- C -- -- -- -- -- --

Promotion stat gains

Class	HP	Str	Skill	Spd	Lck	Def	Res	Con	Mov	Weapon level
General	+4	+3	+2	+3	+0	+4	+3	+2	+1	+50, E (+1)

Analysis

Bors is among the worst units in The Binding Blade. He is available early in the game but has issues present from the start. His defense may be good, but his speed is so low he gets doubled in the first chapter, and it takes a lot of growth and lucky speed level-ups to prevent him from getting doubled. Bors's best way to contribute is to deal chip damage to an enemy, but even that can be difficult, as lances have low accuracy in The Binding Blade and Bors suffers from weapon triangle disadvantage against axe users, as well as mediocre skill and a lock to lances, which are only moderately more accurate than axes. The combination of low speed and frequent weapon triangle disadvantage makes Bors much worse at tanking enemies than it would seem, especially visible when playing Hard Mode. Bors also suffers from low movement, which makes him fall behind if he is not rescued and carried around. This is a long-term problem, as most of the maps in The Binding Blade are large and favor high movement, and Bors's statistical issues make it hard to justify slowing down or going through the effort of rescue-dropping him forwards.

One of the few plus points is that Bors can perform a triangle attack with Barthe and Gwendolyn once they join the army. While it can work well against many units, including bosses, all three units have poor movement, making pulling it off without slowing the army down considerably very difficult. Additionally, Barthe and Gwendolyn are also very flawed units and directly compete with him for a promotion item, making it hard to dedicate three deployment slots to the trio.

Bors needs a Knight Crest to promote, which is a very competitive promotion item. Many better units require the Knight Crest to promote, including all Cavaliers in the game such as Alen, Lance, Noah, or even Trec. Additionally, Bors's promotion does not fix his low movement—he has only 5 movement as a General, making his promotion lackluster. Furthermore, he will be locked to Lances and Axes, two weapon types with hit issues, and poor 1-2 range options. He receives significant statistical bonuses, but the movement deficiency will continue to hurt him; by comparison, promoting a Cavalier to Paladin strengthens a unit that can keep up with the rest of the army, or support units with low movement with rescue-dropping.

Fire Emblem Heroes

Role

There is one variation of Bors in Fire Emblem Heroes. The normal variation of Bors was added on November 15, 2024

Bors: Ostia's Bastion

Starting stats

★★★ ★★★★ ★★★★★

Rarity ★★★ Weapon type Movement type

Initial Stats Level 40 Stats Maximum HP 19/20/21 Attack 15/16/17 Speed 6/7/8 Defense 7/8/9 Resistance 4/5/6 Maximum HP 44/47/50 Attack 40/43/46 Speed 27/30/33 Defense 40/43/46 Resistance 19/22/25 {{{content3}}} {{{content4}}} {{{content5}}} {{{content6}}} {{{content7}}} {{{content8}}} {{{content9}}} {{{content10}}} {{{content11}}} {{{content12}}} {{{content13}}} {{{content14}}} {{{content15}}}

Skills Steel Lance -- --

Rarity ★★★★ Weapon type Movement type

Initial Stats Level 40 Stats Maximum HP 19/20/21 Attack 16/17/18 Speed 6/7/8 Defense 8/9/10 Resistance 4/5/6 Maximum HP 45/48/52 Attack 42/45/49 Speed 28/31/34 Defense 43/46/49 Resistance 20/23/26 {{{content3}}} {{{content4}}} {{{content5}}} {{{content6}}} {{{content7}}} {{{content8}}} {{{content9}}} {{{content10}}} {{{content11}}} {{{content12}}} {{{content13}}} {{{content14}}} {{{content15}}}

Skills Doubler Lance -- Glowing Ember

Rarity ★★★★★ Weapon type Movement type

Initial Stats Level 40 Stats Maximum HP 20/21/22 Attack 16/17/18 Speed 7/8/9 Defense 8/9/10 Resistance 5/6/7 Maximum HP 48/51/55 Attack 44/47/51 Speed 31/34/37 Defense 45/48/52 Resistance 22/25/29 {{{content3}}} {{{content4}}} {{{content5}}} {{{content6}}} {{{content7}}} {{{content8}}} {{{content9}}} {{{content10}}} {{{content11}}} {{{content12}}} {{{content13}}} {{{content14}}} {{{content15}}}

Skills Doubler Lance+ -- Glowing Ember

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Skill set

Skill set
Skill		Unlock	Auto-unlock	SP cost
	Iron Lance	★★★	★★★	50
	Steel Lance	★★★	★★★	100
	Doubler Lance	★★★	★★★★	200
	Doubler Lance+	★★★★★	★★★★★	400
	Glowing Ember	★★★	★★★★	100
	Ignis	★★★★	—	200
A	Atk/Def Form 1	★★★	—	60
A	Atk/Def Form 2	★★★	—	120
A	Atk/Def Form 3	★★★★	—	240
B	Vengeful Fighter 1	★★★	—	60
B	Vengeful Fighter 2	★★★★	—	120
B	Vengeful Fighter 3	★★★★★	—	240

Personality

A loyal knight of Ostia, Bors cares about all members of the Ostian army in a gentle and quiet way. The only exception to this is his sister, Gwendolyn, whom he tends to fuss over. He finally comprehends she has grown up in their final support, but before, he showers her with nervous questions.^[2] This contrast strongly with his behavior towards Lilina, whom he can reassure with little problem.^[3]

He is very understanding and does not judge on appearance, even considering Astolfo, who feels guilty of Hector's demise, to be part of Ostia's knights.^[4] But norms and honor codes are very important to him, as he disapproves of Barthe training in arenas, stating that such things are not becoming of a knight.^[5]

When it comes to fighting, Bors says he prefers the role of a shield.^[6] He discusses this with his fellow knights Barthe and Ogier. Barthe seems to think the opposite, prompting Bors to suggest that they should become the strongest knights of Ostia, with Barthe being the lance and Bors acting as the shield.^[7] In the case of Ogier, Bors acts more like a mentor; he firmly believes that there must always be a reason behind the fighting.^[8]

Supports

Main article: Bors/Supports

Bors Knight Lilina Mage Initial: 30 Per turn:+2 Gwendolyn Knight Initial: 35 Per turn:+3 Ogier Mercenary Initial: 1 Per turn:+2 [[{{{support7}}}]] [[]] [[File:Is gba {{{affin7}}}affin.png|link={{{affin7}}} (affinity)]] Initial: {{{initialpoints7}}} Per turn:+ [[{{{support9}}}]] [[]] [[File:Is gba {{{affin9}}}affin.png|link={{{affin9}}} (affinity)]] Initial: {{{initialpoints9}}} Per turn:+ Barthe Knight Initial: 20 Per turn:+2 Astolfo Thief Initial: 1 Per turn:+2 [[{{{support6}}}]] [[]] [[File:Is gba {{{affin6}}}affin.png|link={{{affin6}}} (affinity)]] Initial: {{{initialpoints6}}} Per turn:+ [[{{{support8}}}]] [[]] [[File:Is gba {{{affin8}}}affin.png|link={{{affin8}}} (affinity)]] Initial: {{{initialpoints8}}} Per turn:+ [[{{{support10}}}]] [[]] [[File:Is gba {{{affin10}}}affin.png|link={{{affin10}}} (affinity)]] Initial: {{{initialpoints10}}} Per turn:+

Endings

The Binding Blade

Bors, Iron Knight
Short: Worked to rebuild Ostia.

Long: Bors returned to Ostia to help rebuild his ravaged home. His kind-hearted nature allowed him to reunite the people once again and bring harmony and prosperity back to Ostia.

Quotes

Battle quotes

Death quotes

Heroes quotes

Main article: Bors/Quotes (Heroes)

Other appearances

Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance

Bors's official artwork from The Binding Blade can be viewed in Path of Radiance's extras menu if a copy of The Binding Blade is connected to a Japanese copy of Path of Radiance. This illustration, along with all other The Binding Blade-related artwork, is inaccessible in the international versions of the game, owing to the fact that The Binding Blade was not released in those regions.

Fire Emblem Cipher

Bors is featured on three cards in Fire Emblem Cipher.

Fire Emblem Cipher data for Bors
	Wall of Ostia, Bors
		"I'm a knight. Count my staunch loyalty as that of Lilina's."
		Attack: 50	Support: 10	Range: 1	Deploy Cost: 3
		Class: General		Tier: Advanced	Class Change Cost: 2
		Impregnable Wall: [Trigger] [] When another ally is attacked while this unit is in the Front Line, you may pay the cost, and if you do: This unit becomes the target of the attack instead of that ally. Armor Expertise: [Always] If this unit is attacked by a non- unit, this unit gains +20 attack.
	Card #B05-013HN • Artist: Nekohayashi
	Impregnable Knight, Bors
		"In Lady Lilina's stead, I will definitely protect Lord Roy!"
		Attack: 30	Support: 10	Range: 1	Deploy Cost: 1
		Class: Knight		Tier: Base	Class Change Cost: --
		Armor Expertise: [Always] If this unit is attacked by a non- unit, this unit gains +20 attack. Defense Emblem: [Support] Until the end of this battle, your defending unit gains +20 attack.
	Card #B05-014N, B05-014ST • Artist: Nekohayashi
	Burgeoning Sturdy Shield, Bors
		"Ready? Charge! Triangle Attack!!"
		Attack: 50	Support: 10	Range: 1	Deploy Cost: 3
		Class: General		Tier: Advanced	Class Change Cost: 2
		Armored Lance Triangle Attack: [Always] If you have allied "Barthe" and "Gwendolyn", this unit gains +30 attack. Amber-Armored Command: [Activate] [Once per turn] [] Choose 1 "Barthe" or "Gwendolyn" from your Retreat Area, and deploy it. Armor Expertise: [Always] If this unit is being attacked by a non-, this unit gains +20 attack.
	Card #B16-006HN • Artist: Homakura
Some card information translation provided by Serenes Forest. For more detailed strategic information on these cards, see their TCG wiki article on Bors .

Flavor text

Meet some of the Heroes entries

Bors: Ostia's Bastion
Bors is a knight of Ostia, the house that leads the Lycian League of Elibe. Clad in heavy armor, his duty is to serve Lilina, daughter of the marquess.	When the kingdom of Bern suddenly attacked the Lycian League, Bors was commanded by Lilina to accompany Roy, son of the marquess of Pherae, and join his army.	He's the picture of knightly gallantry, but when he found out that his younger sister, Gwendolyn, also wanted to become a knight, he was absolutely against it. I guess that was his way of trying to protect her!	After all, Bors became a knight to protect the people he loves. I'm sure his resolve will be a great source of strength for the Order of Heroes!
Closely Associated Characters
Lilina Gwendolyn {{{Related_name3}}} {{{Related_name4}}} {{{Related_name5}}} A noble of Ostia with a natural gift for magic. Roy's friend since childhood. Served by Bors. Armored knight of Ostia. Intent on mastering defense, despite feeling awkward in armor. Younger sister of Bors. {{{Related_blurb3}}} {{{Related_blurb4}}} {{{Related_blurb5}}}

Choose Your Legends placement history

Round	Placement	Character	Votes

CYL 1 (2017)

521

Bors The Binding Blade

205

CYL 2 (2018)

610 (+89)

Bors The Binding Blade

123 (−82)

CYL 3 (2019)

581 (+29)

Bors The Binding Blade

111 (−12)

CYL 4 (2020)

710 (+45)

Bors The Binding Blade

44 (−67)

CYL 5 (2021)

582 (−128)

Bors The Binding Blade

90 (+46)

CYL 6 (2022)

404 (−180)

Bors The Binding Blade

196 (+106)

CYL 7 (2023)

482 (+78)

Bors The Binding Blade

101 (−95)

CYL 8 (2024)

515 (+33)

Bors The Binding Blade

90 (−11)

CYL 9 (2025)

803 (+288)

Bors The Binding Blade

18 (−72)

Total results		This character has 9 entries across all Choose Your Legends polls.	978

Trivia

• Every single one of Bors's support partners join in Chapter 8.
• A character with the same name as Bors was planned to be included in Fire Emblem 64 before its conversion into The Binding Blade.
• Outside of characters unlocked for use in trial maps, Bors is the only character in The Binding Blade who is both the boss of a chapter and a playable unit.

Etymology and other languages

Gallery

Sprite Gallery
Knight General Lance Lance Basic Axe Ranged Axe

Official artwork

• 

  Artwork of Bors from The Binding Blade.

• 

  CG image of Bors in Path of Radiance.

Battle animations

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  Bors attacking with a lance as a Knight in The Binding Blade.

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  Bors performing a critical hit with a lance as a Knight in The Binding Blade.

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  Bors attacking with a lance as a General in The Binding Blade.

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  Bors performing a critical hit with a lance as a General in The Binding Blade.

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  Bors attacking with an axe as a General in The Binding Blade.

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  Bors performing a critical hit with an axe as a General in The Binding Blade.

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  Bors attacking with a ranged axe as a General in The Binding Blade.

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  Bors performing a critical hit with a ranged axe as a General in The Binding Blade.

Heroes artwork

Character artwork

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  Artwork of Bors: Ostia's Bastion.

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  Artwork of Bors: Ostia's Bastion.

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  Artwork of Bors: Ostia's Bastion.

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  Artwork of Bors: Ostia's Bastion.

Meet some of the Heroes artwork

• 

  Artwork of Bors: Ostia's Bastion.

• 

  Artwork of Bors: Ostia's Bastion.

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  Artwork of Bors: Ostia's Bastion.

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  Artwork of Bors: Ostia's Bastion.

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  Bors in artwork of Gwendolyn: Adorable Knight.

Other artwork

• 

  Artwork featuring Bors for Heroes's eighth anniversary.

Cipher artwork

• 

  Artwork of Bors.

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  Artwork of Bors.

• 

  Artwork of Bors, Barthe and Gwendolyn.

References

This article is part of Project Characters, a project focused on writing articles for every character present in the Fire Emblem series.