Sacae (サカ Saka) is the most easterly nation of Elibe and appears in both Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade and Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade. Its capital city is Bulgar. Founded by Hanon, the Divine Trooper, the nation does not have a formal centralized government, but is instead populated by nomadic tribes.

Geography

Situated north of Bern and south of Ilia, Sacae is generally a wide expanse of prairie, with its northern and southern borders lined with mountains. These mountains are commonly home to bandits that cause trouble for Sacaen inhabitants.

Politics

Though Sacae holds the status of a nation, there is no central government. Instead, Sacae is under the rule of a number of nomadic tribes, with Bulgar serving as capital city. Said city is a major trade hub that connects Sacae to Etruria, Bern and Ilia. As a result, people from other nations also brought their influence with them, as evidenced by the large foreign manor occupied by Advisor Roartz located on the outskirts of the city.

The number of nomadic tribes within Sacae is never precisely given. Tribes that are either spoken of or directly interacted with include the Bulgar, Kutolah, and Djute tribes, as well as the Lorca. Dialogue across The Binding Blade and The Blazing Blade infer that the Bulgar, Kutolah, and Djute are the three largest tribes in Sacae, with an unknown number of other, potentially smaller tribes also contributing to Sacae's nomadic culture. It is also not unheard of for individual tribes to openly fight one another, or for individual tribes to fall. The Lorca tribe, the tribe of Lyn's birth, is wiped out prior to the events of The Blazing Blade by a bandit plot.

During the events of The Binding Blade, the Bulgar, Kutolah, and Djute suffer massive casualties. The Kutolah loses in its fight against Bern, and its survivors are hunted to near-extinction by the Djute. The Bulgar (or at least Rutger's people) are slaughtered by Bern when it takes the city, and the Djute are decimated twice while opposing the Etrurian army.

Besides those aforementioned tribes, there existed an unnamed clan which remained isolated from the rest of Sacae, giving them a distinct culture that put more emphasis on sword arts over mounted combat or the worship of nature. They carry a type of sword known as the Wo Dao, which is exclusive to their clansmen. Their ancestors were theorized to hail from another landmass from beyond the seas.

Culture

The nomadic tribes typically dwell in round, portable hunts called ger; which can be dismantled and reassembled quickly. While many nomads travel constantly on the plains, there are some, such as those in Bulgar, who live in permanent settlements.

The Sacaens worship the Father Sky and Mother Earth and honor nature in their beliefs. Before starting a long journey, they would first stop by a shrine to pray for their safety.

Sacaens are said to never lie, and to always keep to their word. This makes common people trust Sacaens, as Lyn trusts the word of Uhai, her enemy. They are also known to be persistent with their generosity, claiming it is against their nature to take back what has already been offered to someone, as shown by Rath when he insisted Lyn to accept his monetary assistance.

Some Lycian nobles exhibit racist behavior towards Sacaens. Examples include Lundgren, who believes Lyn to be unfit of claiming the throne of Caelin due to being half-Sacaen, or the Marquess of Araphen who openly belittles Lyn's heritage and loses Rath's trust because of such behavior.

Military

The fighting styles and tactics of Sacaen warriors favor strengths born from their nomadic culture. Sacae is predominantly known for horseback-mounted archers such those of the Nomad or Nomadic Trooper classes. In hand-to-hand combat, they tend to favor swordsmanship that favors speed and agility, lending to those that fight with swords to become Myrmidons and Swordmasters. In addition, a large number of Shamans and Druids are part of the Djute clan's forces.

The only standout exception to the above is Glass, an enemy Mercenary fought in Lyn's story in The Blazing Blade,

Notable Sacaens

Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade

• Lyn - A woman who grew up on the plains before learning she is a noble of Caelin from her mother's side.
• Hassar - Lyn's father and chief of the Lorca tribe.
• Rath - The son of the Kutolah tribe's chieftain, Dayan, who lives as a proud Sacaen warrior.
• Guy - A swordsman and a member of the Kutolah tribe.
• Uhai - One of the original members of the Black Fang. He is known as the Soaring Hawk.
• Karel - A vicious Swordmaster known as the Sword Demon who seeks worthy opponents.
• Karla - A traveling swordswoman in search of her brother whose impressive skills and good looks have enlivened many arenas.
• Glass - Prideful swordsman fought as a boss in Lyn's Story.

Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade

• Rutger - A swordsman from Bulgar who swore vengeance against Bern after they killed his people.
• Sue - The daughter of Rath and granddaughter of Dayan, who hears the voices of the sky and earth and lives in harmony with nature.
• Sin - Member of the Kutolah tribe.
• Fir - A swordswoman and daughter of Karla and Bartre who travels in search of the best swordplay opponents anywhere.
• Dayan - The Silver Wolf, chief of the Kutolah tribe and Rath's father.
• Karel - A renowned swordmaster known as the Sword Saint. He has greatly changed from his days as the Sword Demon.
• Monke - Chief of the Djute tribe who sided with Bern.
• Thoril - Member of the Djute tribe.
• Maral - Member of the Djute tribe.
• Brakul - Member of the Djute tribe.
• Kudoka - Member of the Djute tribe.
• Kabul - Member of the Djute tribe.
• Chan - Member of the Djute tribe.
• Gel - A swordmaster defending Bulgar from the Etrurian Army.

Etymology

Sacae is the Latinized version of Saka (the pronunciation which is kept in the Japanese version). It refers to the Persian name of an ancient Iranian people who founded the Indo-Scythian kingdom in modern-day India and Pakistan. In a broader usage from several nearby civilizations, the Saka (commonly known as "Scythians") were also a horse-riding people of the Central Asian steppes, similar to the in-game nomads of Sacae.

Trivia

• Green hair is common among Saceans, as five of the Sacaeans shown have green hair.
• The Sacaen tribes and their people take a large amount of influence and inspiration from the ancient nomadic tribes of central Asia known as the Mongols. Some of the Sacaen characters, particularly in The Binding Blade, also have names derived either from Mongol words or the names of historical Mongols.
• They also have political functions similar to what was common in feudal-era Mongolia. Sacae lacks a central ruler of any sort, but is divided into various clans and tribes, each led by a chieftain. The Sacaens also tend to favor horse-mounted archery over other forms of combat, similar to how Mongol tribes favored cavalry. Sacaen swords such as the Wo Dao or the Mani Katti take inspiration from various East-Asian blade styles, as well.