What are the backstories for the other apostles

[LordYAM]

I honestly doubt we're going to get another novel, largely due to how poorly received Flame Dragon Knight Was. Still Aazealh did their own thought exercise on how Grunbeld's story should have played out and that got me wondering about the other members of the Neo Band of the Hawk and what sort of pasts they have. So I decided to post my own guesses, with any criticism or feedback being appreciated.

Grunbeld's backstory is fine in the basic details (he was a freedom fighter protecting his kingdom, one of his friends betrayed him out of jealousy, and that this betrayal is what made Grunbeld willing to sacrifice.) The problem is more execution and Aazealh did their own thought exercise that kept the basic details but changed the more ridiculous elements.

Locus: This one took some thought but I do think that something similar to Grunbeld played out. Locus is a man of honor in a lot of ways, and it was also pointed out elsewhere that he never served a lord before Griffith. Someone made the suggestion that like Grunbeld he too experienced betrayal, in this case from the lord he had sworn himself too. I think that such a thing makes sense for him, and would explain why he didn't want to tie himself to another lord until Griffith.

Irvine: This is admittedly the one I've developed the most but I like to imagine that Irvine was a kind of Robin Hood figure once upon a time. Steal from the rich to give to the poor; he even had his own band of merry men and a love interest a la Maid Marian (not to mention a nemesis akin to the Sheriff of Nottingham). However, things end up going tragically wrong when the Sheriff of Nottingham figure tracks Irvine down and burns down the sanctuary, killing most of the merry men and the love interest. At this point, Irvine sacrificed the surviving members of the band out of a belief that they were all doomed anyway and that someone needed to avenge them. Irvine than used his apostle form and powers to wipe out the attackers and kill the Sheriff of Nottingham figure.

Rakshas: The guy seems somewhat more psychotic and lacking in loyalty, and he was also thrown out of the Bakiraka before becoming an apostle, so I'm entirely sure what drove him to make a sacrifice. The best I can think of is that he might have fallen in love with someone after being exiled; when he faced death he sacrificed the person he loved because he didn't want to die....mainly so he could keep killing.

 

[Aazealh]

Locus: This one took some thought but I do think that something similar to Grunbeld played out.

Well that's not very imaginative now, is it? How about something more romantic, suited for a knight such as he. He was exceptional and undefeated for years, serving no master and bowing to no one. One day he came into the court of a great king, whom he defeated in combat, and instantly fell in love with his queen. He accepted to join the court for her sake and became her protector, indulging in their culpable love in secret. Eventually they were found out, and so he fought off all of the king's valiant knights... but couldn't beat them all. To save himself, he sacrificed the queen. A suitably Arthurian tale, but with a Berserk twist.

Irvine: This is admittedly the one I've developed the most but I like to imagine that Irvine was a kind of Robin Hood figure once upon a time. Steal from the rich to give to the poor; he even had his own band of merry men and a love interest a la Maid Marian (not to mention a nemesis akin to the Sheriff of Nottingham). However, things end up going tragically wrong when the Sheriff of Nottingham figure tracks Irvine down and burns down the sanctuary, killing most of the merry men and the love interest. At this point, Irvine sacrificed the surviving members of the band out of a belief that they were all doomed anyway and that someone needed to avenge them.

This doesn't really factor in the hunter aspect, nor the fact he's blind. Those are Irvine's biggest traits...

Rakshas: The guy seems somewhat more psychotic and lacking in loyalty, and he was also thrown out of the Bakiraka before becoming an apostle

Not sure what makes you say that. We don't know why he was banished from the clan, but it seems likely to me to be related to him becoming an apostle. That aside, he's got some peculiar obsessions that are clearly clues to his past: collects masks, fixated on Griffith's pretty face, prefers to stay unseen... No doubt this relates to what happened to him.

 

[LordYAM]

Fair enough, but I do think a dark take on the Robin Hood Tale would be interesting and he could have easily gotten blinded in an attack or battle of some kind.

I think Irvine might have left out hints of killing someone he cared for from Sonia.

 

[Odysseus]

I remember reading on here once someone speculate that Irvine was some kind of lone hunter who spent all his time tracking some kind of legendary game. He'd spend years in the woods having this back and forth with it until one day the beast gets the better of him, or perhaps he just begins to succumb to fatigue and illness, and in the end he has to sacrifice his hunt in order to become an apostle and survive, knowing he never got the best of the beast.

Not sure I got all the details right, but I was really fond of the idea when I read it. I think I enjoy more non-traditional sacrifices in general.

 

[LordYAM]

Maybe. I do think the idea for Locus that Aazealh put out is pretty good, but I do think that if Locus is a dark arthurian character than Irvine could be a dark robin hood character.

I've also seen a few theories about the Godhand. The one that stood out to me was that Conrad was a renowned doctor.....but also a Typhoid Mary (i.e. he spread the disease without having symptoms). When this got out Conrad was burned at the stake, and that's when he carried out the mass sacrifice. It fits in with him as a plague spreader and adds a sense of tragedy.

 

[Matthias the Wyald]

Just a minor concept for an apostle; Borkoff was once a proud knight during the Hundred Years War and served under a Midland lord during the many conflicts that started the war. He was a mighty, if not gluttonous, individual whom was a master of the saddle despite his own physical shortcomings. However, tragedy struck as his lord's fortress and lands were sacked by Tudor forces that had anti-calvary measures prepared in advance, Borkoff was the first of a hundred men who died in a final charge. Crushed under a fallen horse, shoulder impaled by a broken lance; Borkoff was about to give into defeat as Tudor soldiers charged over the wounded. That is, until a familiar pendant that belonged to a younger lancer, awakened angels to the travesty.

The God Hand arrived to embrace the lancers somber call.

Their leader gave an ultimatum to the fallen warrior, in exchanged for a dire sacrifice, Borkoff would be rejuvenated to a new form more stronger than his fatter human side. Not questioning his options as the Tudor forces started to assault his lords castle, the lancer agreed to the sacrifice and in a split second, the lancer sacrificed his own unit and horse to the God Hand's will. Revived after said sacrifice in a ferocious reptillian frame, Borkoff began a gluttonous rampage that grew beyond the opposing Tudor troops. As of the period, the lancer would serve as a renowned guard for the angels will.

 

[Dark Knight]

With the exception of a few like Grunbeld and the Egg of the Perfect World, this question can’t really be answered for most of them. You can can somewhat infer portions the backstories of some like Wyald, for example, who can likely be assumed to have been a lecherous, power-hungry nobody who did not have the means to achieve such status until becoming an apostle.

 

[Walter]

Wyald, for example, who can likely be assumed to have been a lecherous, power-hungry nobody who did not have the means to achieve such status until becoming an apostle.

Well, Wyald clearly wasn't power-hungry in the sense that he cared about status. He was living out a power fantasy, having fun under his terms, which means doing whatever he wanted. He killed his own men because they were too cautious to cross the bridge. Then there's a pretty telling moment, when he says: "If you start worrying about living and dying you'll end up wasting your life away."

Given that he's revealed to be a frail-looking old man, one could surmise that his child-like dream of "ENJOY AND EXCITING" came from having lived a life of caution, following the rules and not indulging himself at all. Becoming an apostle gave him the power to seize what he thought he'd been missing his whole life.

As for the others, there are way too many missing pieces to tell their backstories without assistance from Miura. You can just get the barest outline of who they were through who they chose to become as an apostle.

 

[Dark Knight]

Well, Wyald clearly wasn't power-hungry in the sense that he cared about status. He was living out a power fantasy, having fun under his terms, which means doing whatever he wanted

Yeah, that’s what I meant. I didn’t articulate that well. “Status” was a poor choice of word. What I meant by that was the ability to live by his own terms without restriction rather than wanting to achieve things like wealth and inter-realm influence like Griffith.

 

[dstn]

It's cringy but I am writing fanfiction about the apostles' human lives as part of my larger Berserk Warband mod project to help me explore the characters.

I was working on Wyald's backstory first.

Spoiler: Outline

The outline boils down to him being an unmarried, anonymous laborer in some barren village.

He spent his life focused on keeping his head down, doing what is expected of him. Just following the rules and doing what is easy.

One day he wakes up, realizing he has grown old and wasted his time being just a passive bystander in his own life.

This leads him to harbor a bitterness to the world in his old age since he feels ignored and unseen, denied what he feels he should be entitled to for following the rules and doing what he was told was right.

He grows jealous of a young, local brigand leader who lives life on his own terms, doing what he wants when he wants.

While cleaning himself up after a work day in a stream he finds his beherit, bad stuff happens involving that bandit, he sacrifices his beloved sister in order to finally live life on his own terms.

I haven't written anything that wasn't purely functional in like 20 years so quality is going to be iffy, but it's a fun exercise. I'll link it in this thread when I start publishing chapters.