SOULCALIBUR VI

Heishiro Mitsurugi relied on his sword to see him through the turbulence of the warring states period in his homeland, Japan. However, with the revolutionary introduction of  the rifle (known as "Tanegashima") from abroad, he felt his blade was no longer up to scratch, and so departed for foreign lands in search of Soul Edge.

Seong Mi-na could cope with being called a "fake boy," but this was a step too far: Han-myeong, her father and the master of the dojang where she trained, was searching for a marriage suitor for her... "You don't give a damn about how I feel!" she raged. As for Hwang, who was like a brother to her, well... It wouldn't have killed him to be more understanding, either. Though he'd only just arrived to meet his master, Han-myeong, Hwang decided not to stick around. To Seong Mi-na, running away from home was starting to seem more and more like an attractive idea...

The existence of the Fu-Ma clan—a group of monster-fighting ninjas—has been kept hidden in the darkest depths of history. Its most skilled member was Taki, who crossed the seas in search of the cursed sword, Soul Edge. Her travels led her to Cervantes, its owner. They engaged in a fight to the death, in which Taki emerged victor. However, she had more to contend with on her return home.

Maxi's father had worked in the Ryukyu Kingdom as a merchant. Though fortunate enough to be able to experience different cultures on his trade route, he nevertheless felt tied down by his job, and would complain bitterly to his son. On his deathbed, he told Maxi to go out and see the world. Obeying his father's dying wishes, Maxi gathered friends from his hometown and some sailors he knew, and formed a pirate crew.

The Money Pit was an expansive, deep hole in the middle of an island in the Mediterranean. It was created as a place to horde the magnificent treasures collected by Vercci, a weapons dealer. Naturally such fortune attracted the attention of more than a handful of thieves, but the Money Pit was not without its protection. In addition to numerous traps, it was guarded by a character wielding strange weapons: Vercci's former right-hand man, Voldo.

Sophitia was a simple baker's daughter when Hephaestus, the god of forging and masonry, transformed her into a holy warrior, and bestowed upon her a mission to destroy Soul Edge. When she confronted the owner of the weapon, Cervantes, she was able to destroy one of the sword's two halves. However, her success came at a price. As she destroyed the sword, its shards pierced her body, causing near-fatal wounds.

After losing to Kilik and his comrades in the form of Nightmare, Siegfried awoke in an unfamiliar place. Though slowly clawing back control of his consciousness from Soul Edge's grasp, he was unable to free himself from the unforgiving memories of his time spent as the cursed sword's puppet. Before long he was confronted with a memory he'd kept repressed deep inside: the memory of having killed his own father...

Daughter of the English aristocratic family the Valentines, Ivy was raised in a loving environment. Unfortunately, it was not to last. Her father's insanity and excessive spending drove him to an early grave, followed shortly afterwards by her mother. While mourning, Ivy discovered her father was an alchemist obsessed with finding Soul Edge, which he believed was the key to immortality. She understood why Soul Edge was referred to as the cursed sword, and vowed to destroy the blade that had driven her father to madness.

Ling-Sheng Su was a temple famous for its martial arts practices. The monks there took in Kilik, who was abandoned as a child, and raised him to be a proficient fighter. Although he never knew his true family, he looked up to Xianglian like a sister. Both orphans, they were rarely seen apart, and would train together constantly to the point where the bond between them was stronger than even that of siblings.

Xianghua would not recognize her own father if he were to pass her in the street, because her mother had never really spoken of him. Xianghua's mother was from the prestigious Chai family in Beijing, and taught Xianghua swordsmanship from a young age, treating her with a firm but loving hand. Xianghua sensed these moments held some deeper significance than her mother was letting on...

In Japan's warring states period, the ninja Manji Clan's name stood out, despite—or perhaps because of—their impartiality. However, in times of such violence, it was dangerous not to pick a side, and the Manji Clan would suffer for their stance... One lord wished to recruit the clan, but when they refused, he torched their village to the ground, killing all but one: their most skilled warrior, Yoshimitsu.

His dark, azure armor invokes the night; his helmet covers all but his red, glowing eyes; his trunk-like right arm holds a great sword with a cursed eye glaring from its center... Could such a monstrous being really exist? Appearing from out of shadows like the advent of nightfall, this barbaric knight reaps the souls of the living as if they were mere stalks of corn. His name came to represent fear and desperation to all who heard it.

Kunpaetku, leader of the evil cult Fygul Cestemus, oversaw the creation of a golem by the name of Astaroth in accordance with the absolute rule of their god—none other than Ares, the God of War himself. Imbued with the strength of the agent of death Ker as well as the martial experience of highly skilled warriors, the merciless golem was the perfect warrior to serve the cult, who lived according to a doctrine of destruction and rebirth.

Inferno is the embodiment of Soul Edge's will, an amalgam of all the warriors' souls it has claimed. Nobody know what it is he wants exactly. Some say he just obeys his desire to fight, maim, and gather souls. The eerie fire that surrounds him is the result of all the souls the sword has reaped being burned for fuel.

Soul Edge was clawed back from the depths of history by the great pirate Captain Cervantes, who used it to usher in a reign of carnage around him as it manipulated his mind. Then, for twenty years, the sword lay dormant. It desired to be as strong as it had once been, but its plans were thwarted by a ninja and a warrior.

Born to France's aristocratic Sorel family, Raphael was taught the ways of the upper classes from a young age. When he was older he learned medical practices, and was rigorously trained in the art of swordsmanship. He used his knowledge and talent with the rapier to keep his family on top during the political wars that were common in those times. His cold nature, though, gained him many enemies.

The West's attempt at colonizing the islands of Southeast Asia brought with it conflict. In the mountainous region of one particular island was a small village called the Village of the Wind Deity. Talim was born into the family of a shaman, and was raised as the Last Priestess of the Winds in accordance with their family's beliefs. One day, a foreigner brought to the village a fragment of metal—a fragment of Soul Edge itself.

Europe is home to a group of assassins called the Bird of Passage, who operate in the shadows. One of its members was Tira, who was raised from a baby in the art of murder. Not many could match her skill. However, when the Evil Seed event occurred while she was on a mission, the group's leader was driven insane, which led to the organization's dissolution. As a result, Tira was left without anywhere to go, and lacking direction.

Zasalamel was born into a clan called the Guardians of the Spirit Sword. Though an excellent warrior, he was arrogant, and broke his clan's rule never to use the sword after which they were named. As a consequence of his disobedience, both his arms were fractured, and he was cast out. Still he remained defiant, and began gathering knowledge of the ancient arts in the hope of discovering the secret of reincarnation.

The mysterious Aval Organization was a secret group with origins rooted in ancient times. They say the group came to be when a king used the spirit sword to defeat its cursed counterpart, and with his dying breath, entrusted them with both the blade and his unfinished mission. Each new generation has taken on the group's mission to rid the world of "Outsiders"—those connected with the cursed sword.

Self-appointed "Studier of the Human Race," Azwel's love for mankind bordered on the fanatical. Blessed with an almost unworldly intelligence, he was a scholar in numerous fields, including history, medicine, war, and art. His research into human history in particular led him to conclude that people would eventually destroy themselves through war or some other catastrophe. In response, he decided to become the savior of humanity.

Witchers, warriors blessed with unusual abilities, were created to hunt monsters and other strange creatures. Geralt, perhaps the ablest and most famous of witchers, was asked one day to look into a sorceress suspected of summoning demons. His contract called on him to learn if there was any truth to the claims, and if so, to kill any demons he encountered and the sorceress herself. The sorceress dwelled midst the ruins of a citadel surrounded by marshland. Shortly after Geralt arrived there, she used her magic to open a gate that whisked the witcher into another dimension.