scarletmorning | In which I wonder about Hayden and Innes and post-game Frelia

Why is it that most writers make Innes king after the end of the war?

I can see a few reasons for making him king; they rather want to write about Innes than Hayden, after the war Innes is a hero and Frelia might like to have a war hero as king, etc.

But.

Innes was not the one who stayed in Frelia and tried to keep the order, protected the country from invading forces and even helped his neighbouring country to keep Grado at bay. That was all Hayden. Yes, Innes helped defeating the Demon King, but how much do the Frelians care about that? Wouldn't they rather have a king who fights for them in their land to keep their property safe than a king who wasn't in the country when it suffered? I'm not saying that Innes deserves to be viewed that way, because he did a mighty good thing, but... In the eyes of the population Hayden would be placed above him, wouldn't he? It's natural for a people to care more about their immediate safety rather than the future safety of Magvel (especially since they didn't know about the Demon King). And even if they later heard about the Demon King situation I still think they would want to keep Hayden, because he was there for them. It's a matter of distance. Their focus is on "what happens to me here at home" and not on "something happens at the other end of Magvel that concerns us as well".

Also, wouldn't it be an advantage if Innes stayed prince for a few more years? As a prince he would have more freedom and could leave the country more often on diplomatic missions. As king he couldn't just leave Frelia to have a diplomatic discussion with Ephraim in Renais. Not when Frelia needs rebuilding as well (it's not comparable to the destruction in other countries, of course, but from the viewpoint of the people, they'd rather see a king who cares about them first). In my opinion the best solution would be Hayden stayed king and looks after Frelia while Innes is an ambassador and concentrates on the other countries. It just seems more economic to me.

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(This would totally be an awesome discussion for

magvel. I'm just saying~)

In my own work, at least, Hayden fell ill and abdicated. But I considered it to be not the norm. Hayden's still fairly young, right? And his wife is alive. So in a normal situation, Innes wouldn't be king for at least a few years. Ambassador might be too risky, especially in the political climate post-game, for the heir to the throne, though, so I'm not sure about that.

True. I'll post it over there as well.

Nh, I think Innes would be the right choice for an ambassador. Mostly because he knows the other royals intimately and he is not so stupid that he wouldn't watch out for his safety.

I think he'd make a great ambassador, no doubt, but it would probably be seen as pretty unusual. Would make for interesting plotline, though.

I don't see the unusualness. Plz elaborate?

Aside from the danger of sending the sole male heir to the throne out into Magvel, there's also the fact that if Innes were to say, offend some dignitary by accident, you couldn't fire him or claim it was unintentional. It would be from a royal himself, thus carrying immense authority with it. There would be a lot of potential for trouble there. Not that Innes would slip up, but it would just be iffy. I can see him corresponding with the other royals, and probably visiting, but I don't see being the one to travel there and do the actual face-to-face talking and negotiating, as an ambassador would have to be, being entirely viable. Maaaaybe just to Renais. But certainly not to Grado, or even Carcino.

There is of course precedent, historically, of princes being warlords and the like, but that doesn't seem to be the norm for Magvel. Ephraim's work, for example, is shown as being really unusual and worry-provoking even in the chaotic state of things.

I agree that the chance that Innes says something very stupid is not high, but I see what you mean. Then of course I can see Hayden having that much confidence in Innes so that he would allow it.
OTOH, him as the prince not travelling to the other countries could be seen as bad form as well. Like, "You don't trust us, why should we trust you then?", that kinda thing. Of course Innes should look out for his safety as the oldest heir, but still... it does sound a bit... let's say, cowardly? I wouldn't think that Innes would let that keep him from doing what he has to do and that is rebuilding Magvel. I don't feel that it fits with his characterization, you know.

It definitely seems like an Innes-ly thing to do, I agree. Which is why if it were to play out that way, I think it would be unusual, but that Innes wouldn't really care XD

You know, I really like the idea of Innes as an ambassador to the other Magvel nations--specifically to Grado--after the entire shenanigan with the Demon King. Even though he's among the oldest of the Magvel royalty in that generation (he is, right? I'm out shopping with my mom now--yay for Blackberries!--so I have no way of double checking) I think a few more years as prince with that sort of responsibility would better prepare him for his role of king after Hayden dies/abdicates (I go with the latter, personally). And King Innes, in my mind, is a formidable force indeed.

Joshua says somethin about leaving Jehanna ten years ago so I put him about 25 in-game. Innes is 22 in my mind. But that's just my opinion.

Yeah. I actually peg Joshua and Innes a little bit older--26-27 and 23 respectively, so even though Innes is of an age where he'd be mature enough to take the throne, he still doesn't have that experience. (You could argue that Joshua doesn't either, I suppose, but that circumstance is a bit different.)

I think that Innes would be more ready to take the throne, actually, but it's not like Joshie has much of a choice. I do think that Innes wouldn't want to be king yet, because he has more freedom (of movement) as a prince and he seems to have a good relationship to his father as well so I don't think there would be an issue about Hayden not trusting Innes´ abilities. They would probably rule together, more or less.

They would probably rule together, more or less.

And since Magvel-canon doesn't spell it out, it raises the possibility of co-rulership in various ways. Not just Ephraim and Eirika ruling together, but Innes perhaps becoming a "junior king" (maybe once he gets married) during his father's lifetime, sharing the work. That sort of thing used to be done to guarantee there was no struggle over the throne when a king did die.

And we already know that Fire Emblem worlds are a little different from the straight-out primogeniture practiced in post-1066 England and post-Capetian France. Having your father kick the bucket is not enough to make a prince an actual king.

I don't see Innes being so much an actual ambassador for the reasons Raphi mentioned, but it's likely he's the one doing goodwill tours and such-- a normal job for a royal heir in many countries.

I'm kinda always thinking of Germany and the HRE empire, where it was not that unusual that the emperor made his heir his co-regent. We had other issues regarding the throne ascension, but that is still the first I think of. ('Course the HRE is a bit different than just a kingdom, but it seems to be my focus in these things. The history is just so interesting.)

In which I wonder about Hayden and Innes and post-game Frelia

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