Red Arremer

Red Arremer (or Firebrand (レッドアリーマー, Red Ariimaa in Japan)), sometimes translated as Red Reamer, is a gargoyle created by Capcom in 1985 originally for the arcade game Ghosts n' Goblins as one of the first strong enemies encountered by the player. He is also the mascot of the Ghouls n' Ghosts series, usually in the logo engulfed in blue flames. He also stars his own series that consists of Gargoyle's Quest, Gargoyle's Quest II and Demon's Crest.

Appearance

In common, he has red skin and only wearing blue bracers, with gray/blue wings. His face is a distinct evil grin, and often has a spike-shaped bump on his head. There are actually three different incarnations of Red Arremer in the Ghosts 'n Goblins series. The one described above is the original Red Arremer or Red Arremer Ace (as he is known in Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts). Red Arremer King, the second incarnation of the character appearing in Ghouls 'n Ghosts, wears an armor and has a horn over his forehead. Red Arremer Joker is a larger version of King who serves as the leader of the other Red Arremers and produces other Arremers. Joker appears as a boss in the Game Boy Advance of Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts and in Namco x Capcom. Note that the names of the Red Arremer family follows a playing card motif.

Story (Gargoyle's Quest series)

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

The narrative arc of the few games in which Red Arremer/Firebrand has starred are not well linked. Perhaps Firebrand exists in different incarnations, explaining differential appearances. Perhaps he ages and changes over time (the below story is an attempt at combining the slightly distinct Game Boy and NES version).

Firebrand began as a gargoyle among other demons conducting an invasion of what is said to be Earth (or as an apprentice gargoyle of sorts in the NES version, before his town was annihilated.) As the Demon Realm (Ghoul Realm in the English NES version) began to see the mounting forces of war from an unknown source, Firebrand defeated demons, freed kings from baleful influences and finally discovered his true identity: the Red Blaze, a creature who freed the Demon Realms from King Breager, the Lord of Destruction. Firebrand had to test himself against Rushifell (Lucifer in the Japanese version) to become the Red Blaze. He then destroyed Goza, the king who summoned Breager, and finally sieged Breager's castle and defeated the evil beast with his Darkfire breath. Lord Drakoan (possibly the same Lord, named Satan in the Japanese version, who stole Arthur's bride) gave him the right to conquer Earth. It remains unexplained why he did not, but it is speculated that since gargoyles are basically of benevolent nature, this also applied to Firebrand as well.

Firebrand reappeared when the Demon Realms erupted into war over Crests that granted incredible power. The Earth Crest gave power over earth and boosted one's strength, the Fire Crest granted one offensive abilities using flame, the Water Crest the ability to explore and control the oceans, the Air Crest the ability to fly unhindered and master the wind, the Time Crest the ability to move through time (when Firebrand gained it, he was able to restore part of an earlier form, possibly a Red Blaze form), and the Heaven Crest unknown power. Firebrand captured all six Crests, but his battle for the Heaven Crest left him vulnerable and tired to a brutal assault from behind by the beast Phalanx. Firebrand was apparently able to hold onto one part of the Fire Crest despite Phalanx's best efforts, and Phalanx lost the Crests.

Firebrand recaptured each Crest after having escaped from the Colosseum's dragon, Somulo. Yet the Heaven Crest eluded him. Having prepared as well as he could, he sieged Phalanx's castle, killing numerous powerful demons and finally stepping into Phalanx's skull-columned lair. He battled Phalanx through successive stages of power until finally Phalanx unveiled the Heaven Crest and his true form. In a battle on floating platforms over molten earth, Firebrand finally defeated Phalanx and discovered the true power of the Crests: when combined, they formed the Infinity Crest, an artifact that gave unimaginable (possibly infinite) power.

Yet Phalanx was still not defeated. Apparently, Phalanx was simply the exposed part of an entity named the Dark Demon. Firebrand discovered the Dark Demon's previously concealed lair and destroyed it. Finally, he had captured unlimited power. Yet because he wished to discover the power lying inside of him and continue to satisfy his urge to engage in worthy combat, he disposed of the Crests entirely.

Firebrand is known to have visited the Human Realms once. Yet whether he has visited again is up to some debate. For one, the exact location and time of the events in Demon's Crest are not certain. For another, though the Red Arremer character was inspired by the gargoyles that harangued the player in the various Ghouls n' Ghosts, it doesn't seem that Firebrand was in fact one of those gargoyles.

The SNK vs. series implies that Firebrand is among the strongest fighters in the Demon or Nether Realms. Considering his success in the Crest Wars and against Breager, this is highly plausible.

Abilities

Flight: Early on in his career, Firebrand could only fly for limited periods, although near the end of the Game Boy and NES game he was capable of infinite flight. In Demon's Crest, he could jump then maintain the same altitude indefinitely but could not go any higher, essentially hovering. With his Aerial and Ultimate forms, he could fly incredibly swiftly, ascending upwards rapidly. This is likely a game contrivance, as Firebrand flew across the world map in Demon's Crest at incredible speeds. It seems likely that he has a cruising or gliding speed in his normal form suitable for relatively close quarters and a fast travel speed.

Headbutt: Also unveiled in Demon's Crest, Firebrand had the ability to break rocks, skulls, and other hard entrances simply by delivering a powerful headbutt. He could not use this ability against enemies in the games, however, as it only worked on objects in the background.

Fire Breath: Strangely enough, there seems to be an element of contradiction in the games regarding Firebrand's patented firebreath. Gargoyle's Quest implies that it is an innate power, but Demon's Crest has him able to launch the small orbs of flame only thanks to a part of the Crest of Fire. Perhaps this is reverse causal: he held onto that bit of the Fire Crest thanks to his affinity with flame.

Adhesion: Firebrand's claws were powerful enough to let him stick onto any solid wall, though not ceiling surfaces. Players in both Gargoyle's Quest and Demon's Crest would use this ability combined with flight to scale high towers.

Buster: A fire attack capable of shattering blocks and other smallish objects that would impede Firebrand's way. It also seems to do more damage than the normal Firebreath.

Claw: A specialized firebreathing technique, this strange goo-like flame (as pictured in Demon's Crest) allowed Firebrand to adhere to spiky or otherwise dangerous surfaces as well. Its effect is temporary, the adhesive dissolving after a few seconds. Not as necessary in Demon's Crest as it is in the other games.

Tornado: Strangely enough, this breath weapon is not only scarcely a weapon at all, but is in fact of an aerial and not a pyrokinetic persuasion. The Tornado has a short range and can do damage, except to some spectral monsters, but its primary function is as a stepping stone for Firebrand. Using them wisely, players could scale entire levels simply by creating a new aerial stepping stone and jumping. Again, the created platforms are temporary and dissolve after a short while.

Demon's Fire/Magic Darkfire: The ultimate firebreath, Firebrand used this to defeat Breager and gained it again when he found the last piece of the Fire Crest after defeating a demonic wolf called a Grewon in the ice level of Demon's Crest. The Ultimate Gargoyle form Firebrand gains upon forming the Infinity Crest has power graphically similar to the Magic Darkfire, except it is also capable of charging much like Mega Man's Buster weapons.

Games

In chronological order

Ghosts 'n Goblins (multiple, 1985)
Ghouls 'n Ghosts (multiple, 1988)
Gargoyle's Quest (Game Boy, 1990)
Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts (SNES, 1991)
Gargoyle's Quest II (multiple, 1992)
Demon's Crest (SNES, 1994)
Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins (PlayStation Portable, 2006)

Notable crossover appearances:

SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium (Neo Geo Pocket Color, 1999)
SVC Chaos: SNK vs. Capcom (Neo Geo, 2003)
Namco x Capcom (PlayStation 2, 2005)

External links

fr:Firebrand ja:レッドアリーマー