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“You stand in the presence of Sanaki, empress of Begnion! I am the apostle, the voice of the goddess!”
—Sanaki

Sanaki, full name Sanaki Kirsch Altina, is a non-playable character in Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, and a playable character in Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn. The empress and Apostle of Begnion, Sanaki is said to be the vessel of the goddess Ashera. She is a descendant of a long line of Begnion empresses, notably Altina, Meshua, Yoram, and Misaha. In Radiant Dawn, Sanaki is revealed to be the younger sister of Micaiah.

Sanaki is 10 years old in Path of Radiance and 13 in Radiant Dawn. The fire tome Cymbeline is unique to her.

Profile[]

After the previous empress' death, Sanaki was backed by the public in the year 640 to become her successor despite being just five years old, with the senate appointing senator Sephiran guardian to the young empress. It is later revealed that Sanaki was installed to be no more than a puppet for the senate in order to quell domestic unrest. However, thanks in part to Sephiran, both he and the young empress not only had the public opinion in their favor, but kept the manipulations of the senate at bay.

Path of Radiance[]

At first, Sanaki treats Ike and Elincia coldly and with disdain, but it is in fact a ruse, as she needs Ike's help in uncovering a Laguz slave-trading ring that other Begnion nobles are participating in.

After being confronted with the truth around Serenes Forest, Sanaki bowed her head to the herons and begged for forgiveness. Her intentions were deemed genuine enough that even Prince Reyson of Serenes felt his cold feelings toward the Beorc lessen.

Radiant Dawn[]

Sanaki escapes Begnion when the Begnion Senate, led by Duke Lekain of Gaddos, seizes control of the Empire; she subsequently forms an alliance with Gallia, Crimea, Phoenicis, and Serenes to reclaim her throne. Lekain later reveals that Sanaki once had an elder sister: only the firstborn daughter of Altina's lineage can hear Ashera's voice, they claim, and so Sanaki is a false Apostle. Sanaki later joins the Silver Army on the march on the Tower of Guidance. Upon defeating Lekain, she discards the title of "Apostle" and rules only as Begnion's Empress. Unlike her older sister (who is later revealed to be Micaiah), Sanaki did not inherit the brand and therefore she cannot hear the voice of the goddess Yune.

Personality[]

Sanaki is very concerned about manners, and is often put off by Ike's lack of respect in his speech. However, she appears to be very respectful to Laguz, unlike most of the Begnion nobility who disrespect the Laguz and call them sub-human, likely due to being raised by Sephiran, whom she has a very close relationship with.

She does occasionally display an attitude that is appropriate for her age, often acting impulsively and sending those under her servitude into a frenzy.

In-Game[]

Radiant Dawn[]

Availability[]

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Endgame
P 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 E P 1 2 3 E P 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 E P 1 2 3 4 5 E A1 A2 A3 A4 A5

◎=Forced ○=Available □=Available for selected △=Reinforcement

Base Stats[]

Starting ClassAffinity
FE10 Sanaki Empress Sprite EmpressFE10Light Light
LevelHPStrMagSklSpdLckDefResConWtMov
1282332223321028446
SkillsWeaponStarting Items
Shove Shove
Flare Flare
FE10 Fire Magic Fire - S
FE10 Thunder Magic Thunder - A
FE10 Wind Magic Wind - A
FE10 Light Magic Light - A
Cymbeline Cymbeline
FE10arcwind Arcwind
FE10arcthunder Arcthunder
FE10elixir Elixir

Growth Rates[]

HP Str Mag Skl Spd Lck Def Res
70% 40% 60% 60% 35% 55% 30% 50%

Biorhythm[]

RD Biorhythm F

Overall[]

Secret Book (Artwork)
Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.

Sanaki is a potent force offensively; rivaling the best of magic users in terms of sheer power. Her personal tome, Cymbeline, is the second most powerful Fire Tome available with an unparalleled Durability of 45 points. Despite this, Sanaki's offensive potential is crippled by her low Strength; though it does not affect the power of her attacks, it causes most Tomes to Weigh her down considerably, preventing her from performing double attacks on all but the slowest of adversaries, and allowing even moderately swift units to double attack her, which is likely to be fatal, considering her low Defense and HP. Sanaki is capable of attaining an SS-Rank in Fire magic, granting her access to the most powerful of Fire Tomes, the SS-ranked Rexflame. However, Rexflame is also a very heavy Fire Tome (second only to Meteor), and even its +3 boost to Sanaki's Speed hardly negates the penalty for her having such low Strength. Unlike most Magic users, Sanaki cannot use Staves, further inhibiting her usability. On the other hand, she can attain an S-Rank in all Magic except for Dark magic, allowing her to use a wide variety of Tomes.

Statwise, Sanaki is very powerful but also very fragile when recruited, being capable of dying to a single hit due to her paltry HP and defense, though her HP will develop quickly due to her 70% growth rate in the stat. Assigning her the Shade skill is recommended to offset her low durability, as it gives her much greater chances of avoiding being targeted by enemies during their Phase. Sanaki will also be very slow when recruited due to her paltry base strength causing her to lose Weapon speed from her already low speed; giving her an Energy Drop will lessen the penalties from her powerful personal tome, Cymbeline to just a loss of a single point of attack speed, though this can also be remedied by assigning her Bonus Experience the moment she is available in Part 4 Prologue.

Fire Emblem Awakening[]

SpotPass[]

Starting Class
FE13 NPC Generic Sage (F) Map SpriteSage
LevelHPStrMagSklSpdLckDefResMov
533125+218202810236
SkillsWeaponStarting Items
Magic +2Magic +2
ConcentrationFocus
MagiccryiconRally Magic
Luna (FE13)Luna
TomeIconFE13Tome - C
StaffIconFE13Staff - D 
Arcfire FE13Arcfire*

*Enemy only; joins unequipped

Fire Emblem Engage[]

Bond Ring[]

Empress of Begnion on Tellius, a continent in another world. The 37th empress and apostle was said to hear the voice of the goddess. She is young, but strong-willed and virtuous in her leadership.
Bond Ring Sanaki
FE17 C Rank Bond RingC Rank Mag +1
FE17 B Rank Bond RingB Rank Mag +1 Lck +1
World FE17 A Rank Bond RingA Rank Mag +1 Lck +1 Res +1
Micaiah Emblem Ring Dawn Maiden FE17 S Rank Bond RingS Rank Mag +2 Lck +1 Res +1

Fire Emblem Heroes[]

Begnion's Apostle
Empress of Begnion. Known as the Apostle, voice of the goddess. Young but dutiful ruler. Appears in Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn.

Base Stats[]

Rarity:
✯✯✯✯✯
Sanaki SpriteTitle
Begnion's Apostle
Group
Heroes Infantry Infantry
LevelHPAtkSpdDefRes
1
40
15/16/17
30/33/36
8/9/10
34/37/40
6/7/8
23/26/30
3/4/5
13/17/20
7/8/9
31/34/37
SkillsWeapon
FEH skill offense Cymbeline
FEH skill support Harsh Command
FEH Fire Tome Tome
Resplendent ✯✯✯✯✯
Resplendent Sanaki Heroes spriteTitle
Begnion's Apostle
Group
Heroes Infantry Infantry
LevelHPAtkSpdDefRes
1
40
17/18/19
32/35/38
10/11/12
36/39/42
8/9/10
25/28/32
5/6/7
15/19/22
9/10/11
33/36/39
SkillsWeapon
FEH skill offense Cymbeline
FEH skill support Harsh Command
FEH Fire Tome Tome

Skills[]

TypeNamePrerequisiteDefaultUnlocked
FEH skill offenseFire---
Elfire---
Bolganone---
Cymbeline-FEH Star Rarity 5-
FEH skill supportHarsh Command-FEH Star Rarity 5-
AFEH Triangle Adept 1 Triangle Adept 1--
FEH Triangle Adept 2 Triangle Adept 2FEH Triangle Adept 1 Triangle Adept 1-
FEH Triangle Adept 3 Triangle Adept 3FEH Triangle Adept 2 Triangle Adept 2FEH Star Rarity 5
CFEH Hone Atk 1 Hone Atk 1--
FEH Hone Atk 2 Hone Atk 2FEH Hone Atk 1 Hone Atk 1-
FEH Hone Atk 3 Hone Atk 3FEH Hone Atk 2 Hone Atk 2FEH Star Rarity 5

Overall[]

Secret Book (Artwork)
Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.
Base Set[]

Sanaki is an extremely powerful Red Infantry Mage boasting one of the highest Atks for the class type for a period of time. Her Res was also among the highest at the time, making her an excellent check for Green mages. Her low Spd was a bit of a heavy downside as she could not dish out as much damage as many later units could and her physical bulk is absolutely horrendous. For the most part, Sanaki has been able to co-exist in the growing unit pool of Heroes. Still, her relevance diminishes due to the sheer increase of powerful abilities available to these newer units. Luckily, she was blessed enough to receive a Resplendent form, giving her +2 to her all of her base stats, helping to catch her up with the increased base stat totals of units introduced long after her.

Sanaki wields her Cymbeline tome which grants a visible +4 Atk buff to allies she is adjacent to when she initiates combat. While a decent buffing tome, the specific requirements needed to activate it made it a bit cumbersome to user, especially when Hone Attack exists and merely requires her to be adjacent to an ally at the start of a turn rather than having to initiate combat next to them. With the Weapon Refinery, she gains a much better tome effect as now she has a Drive Attack effect, giving +3 Atk to allies who are within two spaces of her. Its unique bonus effect gives her +5 Atk/Res if she is within two spaces of a flying ally, making her extremely powerful with flying units, especially notable strong Flier units like Legendary Azura, Peony, and Bridal Fjorm for example.

Harsh Command allows Sanaki to invert any visible debuff forced onto an ally she uses the skill on, useful for counteracting Res stat relying Ploy skills and Panic Ploy. Triangle Adept further increases her effective damage against Green units, but drastically reduces it against Blue. Finally, Hone Attack grants adjacent allies +4 Atk at the start of the player's turn.

Counters[]

Sanaki's physical bulk will lead to her demise whenever she is forced to combat a physical unit, including Dragons that have adaptive damage. Ideally, she should avoid combat against units who cannot counterattack her at range or whom she cannot kill in a single hit. High Res blue units like Selkie and Mathilda can easily absorb a hit from her. Fjorm is a strong counter given that she can counterattack from a distance, has the color advantage, and has Ice Mirror, which benefits from taking Sanaki's attack to bolster hers.

Skill Inheritance[]

Sanaki can either go for a one-hit kill unit who focuses on launching a singular, powerful attack or be a magic tank unit. She's better off taking Draw Back or Reposition for her Support skill to move allies out of danger. Glimmer allows her to use her raw damage to further boost itself (especially when allies can buff her) or just use Iceberg for consistent damage off of her excellent Res. Her Skill C is flexible as she can maintain her Hone skill, use Odd/Even Attack Wave to self boost herself on certain turns, or use Ploy skills as she has excellent Res

Sanaki is a prime nuke unit as trying to salvage her Spd is a pointless endeavor, so she should focus on obliterating her foe in a single hit. Death Blow ensures that she launches a powerful neutral 57 Atk (59 with Death Blow 4) for regular Sanaki and 59/61 for a Resplendent Sanaki. Special Spiral accelerates her cooldown so she can constantly have it charged to pummel her opponent.

If seeking the Magic tank, Attack Resistance Bond increases her two key stats for this build so long as she is adjacent to an ally. Chill Attack or Chill Resistance either cripples high damage units on the enemy team so she or her ally can take the hits better with the former or softens higher Res enemies so she can better deal with them with the latter.

Meet Some of the Heroes[]

Begnion's Apostle Sanaki
Sanaki begnions apostle pop01 Sanaki is one of the most important people in all of Begnion. Not only is she the empress, and the 37th of her line, but she's also the nation's Apostle—they say that she and she alone can hear the words of their goddess!
Sanaki begnions apostle pop02 And yet, while she's supposed to be the most powerful figure in the empire, there's a faction of nobles within the Begnion Senate who want to see her deposed. It seems that some of them don't appreciate a ruler with talent and integrity.
Sanaki begnions apostle pop03 But while some oppose her, Sanaki has many friends and allies as well. Prime Minister Sephiran, Commander Sigrun of the Holy Guard, and others work day and night to support her.
Sanaki begnions apostle pop04 There's no doubt that a great deal of trouble and conflict awaits Sanaki. But the people of Begnion have her back, and so do I!
Closely Associated Characters
Sigrun Commander of Begnion's Holy Guard, and charged with the protection of Empress Sanaki. She is kind but strong.
Sephiran Senior Statesman of Begnion and Prime Minister who serves Sanaki. Wields his abilities with great skill.
Tanith Deputy commander of Begnion's Holy Guard, charged with the protection of Empress Sanaki.

Apostle in White
Empress of Begnion. Known as the Apostle, voice of the goddess. Curiosity led her to participate in a festival about brides. Appears in Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance.

Base Stats[]

Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯

Bride Sanaki SpriteTitle
Apostle in White
Group
Heroes Flying Flying
LevelHPAtkSpdDefRes
1
40
15/16/17
32/35/39
9/10/11
33/36/39
7/8/9
26/30/33
2/3/4
12/16/19
6/7/8
30/33/36
SkillsWeapon
FEH skill offense Nifl Frostflowers
FEH skill support Draw Back
FEH Wind Tome Tome

Skills[]

TypeNamePrerequisiteDefaultUnlocked
FEH skill offenseWind---
Elwind---
Rexcalibur---
Nifl Frostflowers-FEH Star Rarity 5-
FEH skill supportDraw Back-FEH Star Rarity 5-
AFEH Atk Res Bond 1 Atk/Res Bond 1--
FEH Atk Res Bond 2 Atk/Res Bond 2FEH Atk Res Bond 1 Atk/Res Bond 1-
FEH Atk Res Bond 3 Atk/Res Bond 3FEH Atk Res Bond 2 Atk/Res Bond 2FEH Star Rarity 5
BFEH Def Res Link 1 Def/Res Link 1--
FEH Def Res Link 2 Def/Res Link 2FEH Def Res Link 1 Def/Res Link 1-
FEH Def Res Link 3 Def/Res Link 3FEH Def Res Link 2 Def/Res Link 2FEH Star Rarity 5

Overall[]

Secret Book (Artwork)
Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.
Base Set[]

Bridal Sanaki is a green flier tome unit and the first of her kind. She is only marginally different than her base form, so she retains her high Atk and Res at the cost of mediocre Spd that is slightly better than her non-resplendent base form and low Def. She does have the security of having incredible mobility and access to Flier specific buffs, though in most regards, Pegasus Nino is her superior in nearly every option, including the fact that she is always available in the summoning pool as a pity breaker while Bridal Sanaki is stuck as a seasonal, limited time unit. Nonetheless, if seeking to destroy opponents in a single powerful hit, Bridal Sanaki is an excellent option.

Nifl Frostflowers gives her an innate +3 bonus Atk on top of its 14 Mt. In a manner similar to her base form's Cymbeline, she gains +2 Atk/Spd for every ally within two spaces of her, maximizing at +6 for each stat. Due to this, Bridal Sanaki, can surprisingly reach incredible damage output and even score follow-up attacks on enemies, albeit needing to have her allies positioned correctly to fully reap the rewards of the effect.

Draw Back allows her to pull allies one space in the opposite direction she interacts with them for an excellent unit positioning support skill. Attack Resistance Bond grants her +5 Atk/Res if she is adjacent to an ally. Defense Resistance Link grants herself and the ally she uses her Support skill on +6 Def/Res.

Counters[]

Bridal Sanaki's counters remain the same as her base form as any sort of physical unit will easily destroy her. Bows are essentially a death sentence. Being green also leaves her vulnerable to the host of powerful Red units who have color advantage over her plus the numerous Red units who pack the ability to counterattack at range.

Skill Inheritance[]
Bridal Sanaki is best suited for offensive builds as she can utilize her access to Flier buffs for Gronnblade builds or just stick with Nifl Frostflowers. Death Blow or Swift Sparrow pushes her offensive stats for either raw damaging nukes or potential double attacks. Desperation ensures that she can immediately perform her double attack in case she has to engage an range-countering enemy while her health is low or use Chill Resistance to weaken problematic high res units. Skill C can be filled with Wave and Ploy skills for buffing or debuffing respectively, especially since he Res is decent enough to inflict it on a number of units. Alternatively, if used on a flier skill, she can use skills like Goad Fliers or Hone Fliers to buff her fellow fliers.

Dawnsworn Ninja
Sisters, free from the fate of the apostle, using their ninja garb to conceal their worldly roles. They appear in Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn.

Base Stats[]

Rarity: ✯✯✯✯✯

Sanaki Dawnsworn Ninja Heroes spriteTitle
Dawnsworn Ninja
Group
Heroes Cavalry Cavalry
LevelHPAtkSpdDefRes
1
40
17/18/19
36/40/43
7/8/9
44/47/51
4/5/6
21/24/28
2/3/4
12/16/19
13/14/15
43/47/50
SkillsWeapon
FEH skill offense Radiant Scrolls
FEH skill special Chilling Wind
FEH Fire Tome Tome

Skills[]

TypeNamePrerequisiteDefaultUnlocked
FEH skill offenseFire---
Elfire---
Bolganone---
Radiant Scrolls-FEH Star Rarity 5-
FEH skill specialChilling Wind---
Iceberg---
AFEH Warding Blow 1 Warding Blow 1--
FEH Mirror Strike 1 Mirror Strike 1FEH Warding Blow 1 Warding Blow 1-
FEH Mirror Strike 2 Mirror Strike 2FEH Mirror Strike 1 Mirror Strike 1-
File:FEH Flared Mirror.png Flared MirrorFEH Mirror Strike 2 Mirror Strike 2FEH Star Rarity 5
BFEH Sabotage Res 1 Sabotage Res 1--
FEH Sabotage Res 2 Sabotage Res 2FEH Sabotage Res 1 Sabotage Res 1-
FEH Sabotage A R 3 Sabotage A R 3FEH Sabotage Res 3 Sabotage Res 3FEH Star Rarity 5
CFEH Def Ploy 1 Def Ploy 1--
FEH Def Ploy 2 Def Ploy 2FEH Def Ploy 1 Def Ploy 1-
FEH Def Ploy 3 Def Ploy 3FEH Def Ploy 2 Def Ploy 2-
FEH Def Res Ploy 3 Def Res Ploy 3FEH Def Ploy 3 Def Ploy 3FEH Star Rarity 5

Overall[]

Secret Book (Artwork)
Subjective: The following part of this article is based upon the editor's personal experiences and opinions, and therefore may not be applicable for all readers.
Base Set[]
Counters[]
Skill Inheritance[]

Meet Some of the Heroes[]

Dawnsworn Ninja Sanaki
Sanaki dawnsworn ninja pop01 Sanaki, empress of Begnion, and Micaiah, queen of Daein, are two sisters who steered the fate of Tellius. And now, they’re stirring up the ninja festival in special new outfits!
Sanaki dawnsworn ninja pop02 Sanaki’s ninja outfit features the same rich red color as her apostle’s garb. The fur lining around her neck adds a mix of cute charm and regal bearing that suits her perfectly!
Sanaki dawnsworn ninja pop03 Meanwhile, Micaiah’s ninja outfit features the colors of the clothing she wore when she was a member of the Dawn Brigade. The scarf she’s wearing features a water-surface pattern that brings out her mystical vibe!
Sanaki dawnsworn ninja pop04 Both Sanaki and Micaiah bear the burden of heavy duties, and it’s rare for them to get a chance to be free to act as they please. In fact, I hear they’re secretly attending the festival—just like a real ninja mission!
Closely Associated Characters
Altina Under the divine protection of Ashera, the goddess of order, she battled Yune as one of the Three Heroes. Ancestor of Sanaki and Micaiah.

Quotes[]

Radiant Dawn[]

Death Quote[]

  • Sanaki: I'm sorry that... I let everyone down...
  • Sigrun: Don't talk such nonsense... I've failed you when you needed me. My life is...meaningless...

Heroes[]

Sanaki/Heroes Quotes

Ending[]

Holy Empress (聖帝 Seitei)
Sanaki elected to guide her people in a world without the goddess, and made treaties uniting the continent.

Non-Canon Appearances[]

Fire Emblem 0 (Cipher)[]

Sanaki is illustrated in the trading card game Fire Emblem Cipher with the following cards:

Choose Your Legends Placement History[]

Round Placement Character Version Votes

CYL1 198 CYL Sanaki RD Portrait
Radiant Dawn
1,308
346 CYL Sanaki POR Portrait
Path of Radiance
520
CYL2 186
↑12
CYL Sanaki RD Portrait
Radiant Dawn
1,371
↑63
337
↑9
CYL Sanaki POR Portrait
Path of Radiance
584
↑64
CYL3 169
↑64
(From highest)
CYL Sanaki POR Portrait
Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn
1,555
↓400
(From combined)
CYL4 162
↑7
CYL Sanaki RD Portrait
Radiant Dawn/Path of Radiance
961
↓594
CYL5 178
↓16
CYL Sanaki RD Portrait
Radiant Dawn/Path of Radiance
544
↓417
CYL6 164
↑14
CYL Sanaki RD Portrait
Radiant Dawn/Path of Radiance
602
↑58

CYL7 159
↑5
CYL Sanaki RD Portrait
Radiant Dawn/Path of Radiance
383
↓219

Etymology[]

Sanaki's middle name, Kirsch, is the German word for "cherry", and the name of a type of German alcohol.

Trivia[]

  • In the American version of the game, there is a notable typo in the Unit Profile referring to Sanaki's class as Emperor. It should be noted, though, that in the original Japanese version, Sanaki is likewise known as (皇帝 Koutei) which usually translates to the male "Emperor". Female forms of the word such as (女帝 jotei or 皇后 kougou) are not used in the game.
  • The Falcon Knights in Sanaki's SpotPass team in Awakening represent the Holy Guard.
  • One of her quotes in Heroes implies that she has already met Micaiah and has a strong bond with her, but still refers to herself as the Apostle. This is a contradiction due to the sequence of events in the Tellius series. Additionally, her Heroes quote "The truth is... I cannot hear the goddess's voice" also supports this claim. Most likely, it's an oversight.
  • There exists unused concept art of an adult Sanaki for Path of Radiance.
  • In internal files of Path of Radiance, Sanaki is known as Black Sanaki.

Gallery[]

See main article: Sanaki/Gallery.
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