Sir Percival (パーシヴァル, Pāshivaru^?) is a character that appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. She is an anthropomorphic cat and the alternate reality doppelganger of Blaze the Cat from the world of Camelot. She is the only female member of the Knights of the Round Table,^[4][5] and is known as the Knight of the Grail.^[1][5] She wields the legendary sacred sword, Laevatein.

Appearance[]

Percival is essentially a doppelganger of her mainstream counterpart. As such, she is a lavender-furred, anthropomorphic cat with gold eyes, a small black nose and a white-furred muzzle. She has triangular ears with peach-colored canals on top of her head, two medium-length eyelashes on each side of her eyes, and a long tail with the end frayed and violet. Her fur is longer on each side of her head and sweeps slightly upwards. She has four plumes of hair with violet tips done up in a high ponytail by a golden hair tie with a piece of silver armor plating attached that runs slightly down the back of her head.

For attire, she wears a silver metal frame on her face with a lavender metal piece that has an adjustable visor covering her eyes, held in place by two golden circles. On the top of the aforementioned visor, around the forehead, there is a sky blue oval gem embedded in it. She also has silver and golden armor plating covering the back of her ears. In terms of regular attire, she wears a violet shirt and white leggings. She also wears a silver torso armor in the shape of a tailcoat over her shirt with a golden hemline at the bottom. This piece of armor has a golden collar, short shoulder plates, and golden edges along its lower flaps. Notably, Percival also wears additional metal bands around her right arm. Also, on her hands she wears metallic bright silver gauntlets with widespread cuffs that narrow in around the middle, a golden stripe on each wrist and sky blue oval gems embedded in the top of said cuffs. Lastly, she wears high-heeled bright silver shoes made of metal with rose toes and heels, and silver armor plating extending up her lower legs.

History[]

Past[]

A member of the Knights of the Round Table in service to King Arthur, Percival once started a quest for the Holy Grail, which became a legend in its own right.^[6]

As Arthur got bewitched by the scabbard of Excalibur and became the tyrannical Black Knight, Percival, being honor bound to serve her king, remained by Arthur's side as his loyal servant.

Sonic and the Black Knight[]

In Sonic and the Black Knight, Percival, along with Sir Lancelot and Sir Gawain, met up with the corrupted King Arthur after Merlina the Wizard and Sonic the Hedgehog escaped him. Ordered by Arthur to go after Sonic and Merlina and slay them on sight, Percival accepted the order she was given. When Gawain expressed reservations about their assignment though, Percival reminded him that they were nothing if they had no loyalty to their king, although she recognized the change in Arthur and his kingdom.

A couple of days later, Percival was in Molten Mine when she found herself confronted by Sonic and Caliburn. Introducing herself formally to Sonic, Percival asked Sonic to state his name and his master. After Sonic told her his name and that he had no master but the wind, Percival dubbed him the "Knight of the Wind" and proceeded to duel him. In the end, Percival lost to Sonic, who forced her to onto a precipice above a lava lake. As Percival admitted defeat, she lost her footing and fell towards the lava lake. However, Sonic managed to catch her and halt their fall by digging Caliburn into the rock wall. Confused, Percival asked Sonic why he saved her, to which Sonic replied that whim was his other master. Blushing slightly when Caliburn told them to "save the hugs and kisses for later", Percival saw Caliburn declare Sonic a true knight in recognition of his act of chivalry. In the aftermath, Sonic claimed Percival's sword Laevatein.

Not long later, Percival, Lancelot and Gawain cornered Merlina in Camelot Castle. As Merlina revealed that Arthur was but an illusion created by Merlin, Percival demanded an explanation. When Sonic then arrived on the scene with the scabbard of Excalibur. Percival had an angry Gawain stand back. She and the others then saw Merlina take the scabbard from Sonic with the intent of using its magic to make the kingdom eternal in spite of the damage it would cause. As Merlina's magic tore the castle apart, Percival and the others fled from the area and retreated to the outskirts. Unable to do anything, Percival and her fellow Knights of the Round Table could only watch as the forces of the Underworld began consuming the kingdom. Sonic and Nimue, however, convinced Percival and the others that being a knight meant more than just serving a king and that there was still time to stop Merlina. With Nimue revealing that they could contain Merlina's influence by creating a barrier around the castle by inserting their sacred swords into barrier stones around the kingdom, Percival took Laevatein back after Sonic relinquished it and vowed to save the kingdom and its people.

Percival herself went to The Cauldron where she inserted Laevatein into the barrier stone, musing that their fate was now in Sonic's hands. Percival soon after regrouped with the others to watch Sonic confront Merlina in the Dark Hollow through Nimue's magic. As Sonic continued to persevere despite being outmatched, Percival and the others tried to convince Sonic to save himself. However, Sonic's undying determination soon awoke the long-lost light of the sacred sword. Following Nimue's advice, Percival and the other knights sent their sacred swords to Sonic, transforming him and Caliburn into Excalibur Sonic and Excalibur. With this power, Sonic defeated Merlina in her Dark Queen state and saved the kingdom. In the aftermath, following Merlina's redemption, as Caliburn revealed that he was the one who decided who was worthy to be the king of England, Percival and the other knights realized that Sonic was the true King Arthur, and bowed before him.

Other game appearances[]

Sonic Dash[]

In Sonic Dash, Percival is one of the playable characters. In this game, she can be unlocked after obtaining 100 of her Character Cards.

Image	Rarity	Affinity Bonus	Upgrade Profile
			Power-Up	Max Duration
	Rare	N/A	Dash Boost	9s
			x2 Multiplier	14.1s
			Magnet	12.6s
			Shield	15.7s
			Headstart	7.3s

Sonic Forces: Speed Battle[]

In Sonic Forces: Speed Battle, Percival is one of the playable characters, who was added to the game's roster in the version 3.8.0 update. She has the following gameplay characteristics:

Image	Rarity	Stats	Items
			Projectile	Boost	Trap
	Special	Speed: 8/10 Acceleration: 10/10 Strength: 8/10	Laevatein Lunge	Blazing Aura	Lava Bomb

Sonic Dash+ / Sonic Prime Dash[]

In Sonic Dash+ and Sonic Prime Dash, Percival appears as one of the playable characters. In these games, she can be unlocked by obtaining 500 of her Character Tokens.

Image	Affinity Bonus	Unlock Requirement	Upgrade Profile
			Power-Up	Highest level
		Obtain 500	Dash Boost	11
			x2 Multiplier	10
			Magnet	9
			Shield	11
			Headstart	9

Personality[]

Like her mainstream counterpart, Percival is elegant,^[5] level-headed and noble.^[1] She possesses a refined and very formal behavior and a similar manner of speaking, having introduced herself to Sonic when they first met by telling him her name, status and master while maintaining a respectful demeanor towards Sonic despite him being her enemy at the time. While she holds a strong belief in her own swordsmanship, she is never outright arrogant or dismissive of others' skills with a sword, even offer commendations of her opponents' swordsmanship when it is due. She is also quite humble and respectful, as she would accept her defeat to Sonic with humility and grace while praising him for his performance.

While nowhere near malicious, as a knight, Percival has no qualms about taking a life in the line of her duty as a servant to her king. She was also foreign to acts of random kindness, especially from her perceived enemies, since she would question the benevolent Sonic of why he would safe her after they just fought for their lives in a duel. She also has a slightly bashful side to herself, as she would blush after witnessing Sonic's kindness towards her while Caliburn told Sonic to "save the hugs and kisses for later."

As one of the Knights of the Round Table, Percival strongly follows the code of chivalry. As such, she is a noble, dutiful and honorable knight. She is similarly endlessly loyal towards her appointed king, whom she will show the utmost respect for; to Percival, fealty to the king is the one and true way of chivalry. In fact, even after King Arthur's corruption, Percival followed his orders without question despite having concerns about the change in his nature and would note that without loyalty to their king, the Knights of the Round Table were nothing. However, Percival's focus on her devotion to King Arthur made her forget that being a knight not only meant serving her king, but also helping those in need and standing up for what is right. It was first after Merlina's rise to power and Sonic's words of encouragement that Percival regained her full understanding of being a knight and began serving the kingdom of England and its people as a whole.

Befitting her formal personality, Percival tends to speak old English, such as "Fare thee well" and "Surely you jest!?"

Powers and abilities[]

Described as being "as strong as she is noble",^[1] Percival is one of Sonic's mightiest allies;^[5] even after Sonic had proven himself by defeating Sir Lancelot (though Lancelot was careless when facing Sonic) and Sir Gawain, Caliburn doubted that he could defeat her.

Like the other Knights of the Round Table, Percival is able to move at amazing speeds, being able to keep up with even Sir Lancelot,^[7] who is said to be as quick as Sonic; even Sonic has acknowledged her speed.^[8] She is also very acrobatic and agile, being able to perform both swordplay and tricks while in midair, and run along vertical surfaces and up walls. She also possesses sharp reflexes, enough to react precisely to incoming obstacles while running at high speed.^[7]

Like her counterpart, Percival possesses the power of pyrokinesis (which is referred to as her royal powers) which lets her create and control fire in any way she wishes.^[5] With this ability, Percival can conjure up intense flames anywhere on her body, allowing her burn her opponents with her strikes or when they touch her, or even surround herself in flames to become a twirling tornado of fire. Additionally, she is able to channel her flames through her weapon of choice.

As a member of the Knights of the Round Table, Percival is a master of swordsmanship. In battle, she specializes in fast-paced and swift swordplay, using fast and elegant swipes and direct jabs, along with forward thrusts. Additionally, Sonic has noted her defensive swordplay is surprisingly good as well.^[9] By using her royal powers over fire in conjunction with her swordsmanship, Percival can create a befuddling style of swordplay^[4] that combines her graceful strikes with her destructive flames.

Weapons[]

Percival exclusively wields long, double-edged rapiers, which are well suited to her battle style.^[10] When using them, she can channel her flames through her weapon of choice, allowing her to launch fire bullets from the tip of her sword or create streaks of flames by swinging her sword around. Her favored weapon of choice, however, is Laevatein, one of the legendary sacred swords.

Relationships[]

King Arthur[]

King Arthur was Percival's original king. Being honor bound to serve Arthur, Percival was fully committed to be of service to Arthur. As far as trust went, Percival put a lot of weight in her trust in him, having noted that her destiny was "inseparately linked" with her trust in her liege.

Following Arthur's fall from grace after being bewitched by the scabbard of Excalibur, Percival continued to never lever his side and serve him to the fullest of her abilities. However, while she never question the absoluteness of his orders, it did not keep her from having personal concerns about the chance in his demeanor and how it impacted his kingdom. Nonetheless, Percival would proudly state her allegiance to Arthur when she was confronted by Sonic.

Sonic the Hedgehog[]

Initially, Percival's relation with Sonic was only her given mission to slay him on the orders of King Arthur, but it was not until Sonic came after Laevatein when they met. In comparison to the other Knights of the Round Table Sonic had encountered, Percival was the only one among them that talked to Sonic with respect from the beginning. She even acknowledged Sonic, who was still considered an apprentice knight by Caliburn at the time, as a true knight, having challenged him under the name "Sir Sonic, Knight of the Wind" to battle. Even after she lost to Sonic, Percival gracefully accepted her defeat and even went as far as praise Sonic for his performance. Her impression of Sonic further improved when he saved her life, and she would even blush when Caliburn told her and Sonic to "save the hugs and kisses for later" while he held her.

Percival would later repay Sonic's kindness by being the first member of the Knights of the Round Table to show faith in him when he showed up with Arthur's scabbard of Excalibur. Following then Merlina's rise to power, Sonic became Percival's ally after he restored her resolve to stop Merlina and gave back her sword. By the time of Sonic's confrontation with Merlina, Percival had come to care about Sonic's well-being, urging him to stop resisting as he got pummeled by Merlina. When later learning that Sonic was the one true King Arthur, Percival quickly accepted him as her new king and bowed before him.

Friends/allies[]

• Caliburn
• King Arthur's horse
• Knights of the Round Table
  • King Arthur
  • Sir Galahad
  • Sir Gawain
  • Sir Lamorak
  • Sir Lancelot
• Nimue
• Sonic the Hedgehog

Enemies[]

• Knights of the Underworld
• Merlina the Wizard

In other media[]

Books and comics[]

Archie Comics[]

Main article: Sir Percival (Archie)

Sir Percival appears in the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series published by Archie Comics. She is the counterpart of Blaze the Cat and makes her sole appearance in the adaptation of Sonic and the Black Knight 's opening cinematic.^[11]

In this continuity, she is a being from another Zone connected to the ‘In Another Time, In Another Place’ reality in the multiverse.

Percival was given the mission to find and slay Sonic the Hedgehog and Merlina the Wizard by King Arthur. With but a moment of hesitation, Percival's loyalty unwavered and set out after them.

Real world background[]

In the Arthurian legends, Sir Percival was a male Knight of the Round Table, most famous for his involvement in the quest for the Holy Grail. He was tied to the Grail legend in the earliest Arthur stories, before later legends made Sir Galahad's role more prominent. He was the son of King Pellinore, and thus the brother of Sir Lamorak. It is also mentioned in legends that Sir Percival did not wield a sword, but an unnamed lance.

Quotes[]

Theme songs[]

Percival's theme song is a Spanish-guitar riff titled: "Sir Percival... The Knight Of The Grail"

Trivia[]

• Percival is the only playable character in Adventure Mode to not use a sword when Wall Climbing; instead, she runs along the walls, only stabbing her sword into a wall to change direction or stay in place. To go down the wall, she simply falls within stabbing distance next to it.
• While in the air, Percival cannot strike directly below her.
• Percival is the only playable character in Adventure Mode to double-jump (only if there are no enemies present).
• Despite "Vela Nova" being Blaze's theme song, it does not play during her encounter with Sonic, whereas Knuckles' and Shadow's theme songs do in their respective encounters.
• Percival being female is a nod to in some versions of the tale that Percival may have possibly spent some time hiding as a girl at younger ages. This may refer to old stories, where girls disguised themselves as men to join as a member of knights.
• It is possible she may have grown some affection toward on Sonic after he saved her, even blushing as Caliburn teases them.
• Unlike the other characters in Camelot, Sonic does not note Percival's resemblance or similarities to Blaze, likely either because he had grown accustomed to seeing alternate versions of his friends or the solemnity of their confrontation and Merlina's coup did not allow him to voice this.

Notes[]

References[]