Forte (フォルテ, Forute, Forte[1]) is a bachelorette in Rune Factory 4 and Rune Factory 4 Special.
Forte is a Dragon Knight who protects Selphia and is Kiel's older sister. She inherited the position as Selphia's knight from her father, the previous town knight and the person who taught her everything about swordsmanship. Forte wakes up earlier than other townsfolk in order to complete her daily morning patrol of the town and to train. She thinks her position as a Dragon Knight for Ventuswill is just a job "on paper", as her ability is nothing compared to the powerful Ventuswill.
Profile[]
Personality[]
Forte is a perfect example of a knight, being loyal and disciplined, kind to many, and then extremely hardworking. In her private room, there is some knight equipment, sword stands and even a straw practice dummy near her bed where she performs her daily training, and she follows a rigorous training schedule without rest. She takes everything very seriously, most especially herself, and when she sets herself a goal or initiative, she will stop at nothing to achieve it. She is very protective of Selphia's townspeople and Lest/Frey, as she offered to accompany him/her during the start of the game in investigating the disturbance involving Ambrosia in Yokmir Forest.
Forte's dedication to knighthood has generated a sense of self-consciousness about her public image. She tries to hide certain weaknesses that might conflict with others' expectations of her, such as the fact that she is absolutely terrified of ghosts, or that she has a strong sweet tooth, instead only admitting to enjoying pot dishes or egg dishes. She is very fond of cute things as well, as shown in one mini sub-event where Lest/Frey catch her baby-talking with a Pomme Pomme outside of the town gates.
A further example of her self-consciousness is that she feels uncomfortable with the idea of beauty and her own appearance, often brushing off any of Margaret's compliments or Amber's praises towards her. In general, Forte struggles to understand femininity or anything commonly associated with the notion, having been estranged from the concept since young.
Forte is also a notoriously bad cook, which has left Kiel to handle the cooking around the house. Despite this, Forte is known to be skilled with salad and sashimi-related dishes, as slicing is probably her only specialty in cooking, given her occupation as a knight.
Appearance[]
Forte is the oldest bachelorette in Rune Factory 4.
Forte tells the protagonist that she used to have short hair, but let it grow out when Kiel gave her a hairclip for her birthday, admitting that she needed some excuse to wear it.
She has pajamas similar to Frey's but hers are blue on the bottom and yellow on the top.
Story[]
When Lest exits the town through the South Gate, Forte rushes to him to stop him from blindly going out to places full of monsters. Forte teaches Lest about using a Longsword by giving him a Claymore (if he answered he doesn't own a weapon). She also teaches Lest about Tamitaya, a magic spell bound to either a weapon or farm tool that prevents the weapon/farm tool to actually harm the monster and then sending them back to the Forest of Beginnings upon their defeat.
During the second arc, she is seen engaging with a rogue Sechs soldier at the town's square. When Doug is injured for protecting Blossom, Forte and the player will fight the soldier together after he transforms into a Sechs Dragon.
A Knight's Steed[]
Lest finds Forte lost in thought over the image of an "ideal" knight after she reads one of Kiel's books, though she quickly dismisses the idea. On the next day, she is found speaking with Clorica and Arthur about her plans for a mount. Both quickly and correctly guess that this resulted from finding the "Tales of the Mounted Knight" stories that Kiel had recently been interested in. As there aren't any horses in the area, Arthur suggests using Monsters instead, which could offer some utilities a horse can't. Clorica first suggests a Ghost, but this is immediately shot down.
On the next day, the three return to the airship to discuss potential mounts. Initially, Clorica suggests a Beetle, but Forte comments that the back would be far too slick to ride comfortably. Arthur then asks about a Buffamoo, but Forte believes it too slow. Since Bado was currently collecting monsters for a new business scheme, Arthur suggests visiting his shop to inquire. By the time Lest arrives, Bado is just leaving his shop to advertise, while Kiel arrives and reads one of the Mounted Knight's one-liners, "A knight is no knight unless he rides a horse".
Lest then catches up to Bado, who is meeting with Vishnal, Clorica and Forte at the town square trying different monsters. Forte ends up trying a Silver Wolf, which she enjoys for its speed and fluffy fur, a Sky Fish, which has too much slime and is slippery, a Tortas, which is awkward to ride, and a Minotaur, which Forte quickly dismisses. Out of ideas, Bado packs up and heads back home while Forte continues pondering if she'll be able to find a proper mount.
At this time, Volkanon arrives and suggests his Elefun, Patrasche. After a terrible joke, however, Patrasche angrily charges through Volkanon and reaches the town gate, where it seemingly calms down. Before Patrasche can return, Kiel arrives and accidentally startles the monster into charging towards him. Acting instinctively, Forte rushes in to save her brother, blocking Patrasche and saving Kiel.
After his rescue, Kiel thanks Forte and presents her with another one of his book about knights. One of these would have the critical line that "People don't just become knights just because they wear armor and ride on a horse. Anyone can become a true knight when they find the one thing they want to protect more than anything.". Forte becomes greatly inspired by this motto and foregoes having a mount in favor of becoming a true knight.
Once the situation has calmed, Vishnal reports of the incident to Ventuswill after the pair had received a letter inquiring about Forte's competence. The pair are quick to dismiss any claim of inadequacy, and Ventuswill reveals that, coincidentally, one of the Mounted Knight's tales ironically had him save a child from an Elefun while he was without his mount.
If the event triggers in between the second and third arcs, Vishnal will instead monologue at Forte clearly proving her worth to the letter. He also references the Mounted Knight's tale himself.
Mini-Event[]
Lest finds Forte at the town gate, having come across a small Pomme Pomme that had lost its way. After cuddling and being enamored by its cuteness, Forte sends the monster back to its home before realizing Lest had been watching her from the start, causing Forte to basfully escape back to town.
Protecting Selphia[]
Lest finds Forte thinking to herself at a bench. While talking about Ventuswill's security, Forte opens about her insecurities of being protected by Ventuswill instead of the other way around and questions if she is truly serving a purpose as Ventuswill's knight. As Forte resolves to continue her training to quell her doubts and fulfill her duty to protect others, Lest may comment:
- If Lest speaks about everyone in town, she will also refer to Lest specifically when she makes the declaration, much to her embarrassment.
- If Lest asks about himself, Forte is quick to dodge his question.
Regardless, Forte thanks Lest for taking the time to speak with her, and that she feels much better opening about her troubles.
Where the Heart Is[]
As of late, Forte has found herself worrying deeply about something, which is picked up by both Vishnal and Clorica. Once Clorica reports the same thing of Forte being too lost in thought lately, speaking with Forte reveals that she has been making future plans with Lest and hopes in improving her cooking. Once Lest returns to his room, Forte unexpectedly visits and tells Lest that she is leaving town temporarily to train before going abruptly. Still concerned, Lest consults Kiel, who believes that she is training near Obsidian Mansion, where their father used to take them.
Lest later arrives to visit Forte training. Although delighted to see him, Forte asks for Lest to return home as she wishes to focus on her training. When Lest asks why she picked this place specifically to train, Forte talks about her past while her parents were still alive, Forte's mother held her roots in high regard and that she could always return to it in times of inner conflict for guidance. Forte followed this mantra as the spot was where she decided to become a knight. Before they can speak further, a sudden group of monsters arrive, forcing Lest and Forte to fight together.
After dealing with the threat, Lest suggests they go home, but Forte flatly rejects and insists on training, believing she had weakened. When Lest asks why Forte is so obsessed with her strength, she reveals that her father once commented that she wouldn't be able to protect others on the day she became a knight, and that he passed away before she had the chance to prove herself to him. Respecting her decision, Lest returns home alone, but meets Bado at the town gate, who asks him to tell Forte that Kiel had gotten sick.
Upon being told, Forte rushes to the clinic, and the two siblings have a small argument before Kiel thanks his sister for the concern and asks his sister to go back to her training. Lest later reports back to Bado over what happened, and Bado reveals that while he was technically their adoptive parent after their parents suddenly died, the pair were greatly independent from others and needed only each other. He then asks Lest if he would still be fine with being only second in Forte's heart, though Bado insists that he will not need the answer any time soon.
After Kiel recovers a few days later, Forte, Kiel, and Vishnal begin acting suspiciously, with Forte and Kiel making a large and serious fight as Kiel confirms that he and Vishnal are hiding a secret specifically from Forte. Hoping for a change of pace to calm herself down, she asks Lest to join her in returning to her training spot. On the way, the couple run into Bado, who teases Forte before immediately fleeing back to his shop to escape punishment.
Once they reach the spot, Forte first vents out her anger over Kiel hiding something from her, before finally recomposing herself and thanking Lest. She tells him that when they were younger, Kiel had always acted as her motivator, who always cheered her on as she continued training for her dreams. Unexpectedly, Bado arrives to inform them that Kiel has collapsed a second time. Forte is told to immediately rush back to town, while Bado and Lest stay behind to fight monsters that had invaded Forte's training spot again. Once the two return to town, Forte is found outside the clinic, where Kiel is still asleep. Forte immediately apologizes to Lest for instantly leaving his side, and asks him to visit Kiel once he's awake before she returns to her duties.
When Lest enters the clinic, however, he finds Vishnal, who quickly leaves after being seen. At the same time, Kiel wakes up and reveals that his sister always gushes about Lest at home. He also tells Lest that even in their childhood, he had always felt like a burden as the weaker younger brother that was dependent on his sister, and how she pushed herself particularly hard when their parents died one by one. It was also on their mother's deathbed that Forte resolved to become a knight.
Upon visiting Forte to report Kiel's condition, Vishnal arrives, revealing that the letter he had was from the capital, which was pestering the town about Forte's competence. Forte then tells Lest that her father was her predecessor, but another knight was meant to take his post as Dragon Knight after his passing. She and the townsfolk resisted the idea, and it was decided that though she was disqualified from the post as a woman, Forte would become the interim Dragon Knight until Kiel grew old enough to succeed their father. Vishnal reveals that the recent cause of stress from Kiel was that the Capital was now demanding a sanctioned duel between the siblings to see who was worthy of their father's title.
The next day, Forte returns back to her training spot with Lest chasing after her once again. Forte gives more details, as her father intended to make Kiel his successor, but her mother pleaded for Forte continue her duties dreams as a knight in order to protect her younger brother. Forte brought these aspirations to her father which acted as the "beginning" as she became a knight. Still deeply conflicted by having to fight Kiel to keep her post as a knight, Forte returns home. In response, Lest speaks with Bado, who passes a letter from Forte and Kiel's father that was intended for the person closest to the two. The letter asks for Lest to free the pair of the "curse" their mother placed onto them before giving a key.
When asked about the key, Kiel and Forte recognize it as the key to their old hideout, which their father had sealed after their mother passed. In it, Lest would find the journal of Forte and Kiel's mother, and would take this back to Forte immediately. Upon reading it, Forte and Kiel's mother recounted how she and her husband had hidden her illness for as much as they could from the children. Eventually, Forte's mother would ash her father regarding the issue of having Kiel as his successor, something that her husband was also unsure to give a response to. The journal's final entry, on Summer 15th, concluded with her asking Forte to become a knight to Kiel. Realizing her father knew the promise she made with her mother the entire time, and that his harsh statement was actually meant to refer to the time she could no longer protect Kiel for herself, and to find her own path by her own hands. Choosing to waver no longer, Forte accepts the capital's request and challenges Kiel the next day for the duel. Fittingly, their mother's final journal entry reads with a dream of seeing her children all grown up.
Ultimately, Forte prevails over her brother, allowing her to continue as a Dragon Knight. Upon getting back up, Kiel gives a secret letter from their mother meant for the occasion. In it, the pair's mother states that should Forte hold her promise to be Kiel's knight like a curse, the pair would always have their mother's love regardless.
Following these words, Forte and Kiel resolve to return back to their start in order to find the things that they wish to protect. After the duel, Forte speaks with Lest and tells him that she wishes to revise her final statement, and that she will be unable to protect anything should she lose Lest.
Forte's Marriage Cut-scene:[]
"Finally, I now know what it is that I meant to protect..."
Requests[]
Make Lumber![]
- Request: Chop Lumber.
- Reward: Lumber/Stone Box (Cheap Axe, Eliza allows 2 requests per day.)
Relationships[]
Forte goes to Bado's weapon shop every day in order to help him with work. In some instances, Forte has scolded Bado for trying to scam Kiel into buying overpriced weapons which were made with cheap materials. Despite this, Forte and Kiel are very close to Bado, and even though they both agree he is rather incompetent adult, he is treated as a trusted friend to the family. In other instances, Bado has given life advice to both Forte and Kiel.
Forte loves Kiel dearly, but she can come off as very overprotective towards him, especially because she sees him as still a naïve young boy. She worries about how he is only interested in books and rumours and won't pick up a sword—a concern inherited from her father's teachings. She is known around town to dote on him a lot, though, something she tries hiding in front of Lest/Frey.
Forte shares a relatively familiar relationship with all of the bachelorettes. Margaret is Forte's closest friend, who visits her house when she finds the time. Meg is also one of the very few people in Selphia who is capable of bringing out Forte's softest reactions besides Kiel and Bado.
Gifts[]
| Loved | "Oh my... It's [item]! Oh, that looks very tasty. Hmm? a present for me you say? Why, thank you! I will very gladly accept it! Yes, very gladly!" |
| Chocolate Cake, Omelet Rice, Union Stew | |
| Liked | "How did you know I find egg dishes to be very tasty? You have my thanks!" "What...? A flower for me? Why, thank you! It smells lovely." |
| Eggs, Egg dishes, Flowers, Pot dishes, Western sweets | |
| Neutral | "Hmm? Is this for me? Thank you. It is a well-crafted [item] indeed." |
| Anything not in any other categories | |
| Disliked | "'I-is that... [item]? Erm, thank you." "'... Erm, what am I to do with it?" |
| Curry dishes, Scrap Metal, Trash |
Battle[]
| Lv | HP | ATK | DEF | M.ATK | M.DEF | STR | VIT | INT |
| 12 | 692 | 72 | 27 | 12 | 23 | 30 | 46 | 12 |
| Weapon Type | Default | Shield | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Long Sword | Zweihaender | Iron Shield | ||||||
Schedule[]
Gallery[]
.jpg "ZlCfzSxLh0k3nUsQvt (1).jpg (163 KB)")
Sprites[]
Trivia[]
- "Forte", in Italian means "strong", "robust", "tough", "brawny" and anything that is related to toughness and endurance. In French, it simply means "strong" and "hard". In classical Latin, Forte means "brave". It's not a feminine name, but a common surname instead.
- Forte is the oldest bachelorette in Rune Factory 4.
- Unlike the other townspeople, she will usually accompany you, whether your Love/Friendship level is lower or higher than 3 points.
- Like Kuruna, she hides the fact that she actually likes sweets.
- Like Raven, she doesn't like ghost-related things or stories.
- Forte insists that Pico is not an actual ghost since she's only "half-transparent".
- Although she tries to hide her fear of ghosts and love for sweets, she will admit to them if you talk to her in a non-public area when your friendship level is high enough.
- Like Sakuya and Vishnal, most of her cooking attempts become failures.
- Forte can't swim. This is meant to be a secret, but Kiel lets it slip.
- While battling the dragon-soldier hybrid, talking to Forte will yield a Sea Cutter.
- If Forte accompanies the player during their first visit to Obsidian Mansion, the cutscene where the first ghost will appear will be extended as Forte, unlike the other characters that remain with the player, will actually teleport out of the mansion. She will later return and apologize to the player before they can move on as usual.
References[]
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