Deconstructing Luc: From Friend to Foe

by by Gabriel Ang

If there was one character from the Suikoden series that wasn't given much of a background, it would have to be Luc. Of course most of the characters in the series never had much background, but few players would have known the big impact Luc would have, now that we have played the third game in the series. For those of you who haven't played the series, Luc is the bearer of the True Wind Rune, one of the 27 True Runes. He and the High priest Sasarai, bearer of the True Earth Rune, were both supposedly made by Hikusaak to hold the True Runes they bear. Luc was said to have been kidnapped from the capital of Harmonia by the great seer Leknaat and has been her student ever since. During his life, he has been questioning his existence has a bearer of a True Rune. In Suikoden 1 and 2 he gets forced by Leknaat to fight on the side of the 108 stars of destiny, albeit grudgingly. During these times of war he slowly learns of the outside world and the constant wars that occur within its lands. During the 15 years between the major upheavals of the world, he comes to realize, what he believes, is the true reason for the existence of the True Runes.

The True Runes are the runes that control the world, and the stability of the world depends on the existence and usage of these runes. Luc believes that there are no such things as free will, and that every aspect of this world are controlled by these runes. He thinks that free will is merely an illusion of the True Runes, and that all races on the planet cannot escape the destiny they are given by these runes. He, however, does believe in a way that he can go against the plans of the Runes though he himself bears one. This leads him on a path to try and destroy the True Runes, and to see if it is truly possible for the inhabitants of the planet to live beyond and without the runes. He tries to achieve it even at the cost of the Grasslands destruction. In Suikoden 3 he even says how he put his ideals on people before (these being the heroes of 1 and 2), and they have let him down.

Here is a classic case of a man who chooses to go against destiny. The game itself is based on a concept of destiny that is absolute and cannot be avoided. He is a rebel trying to go against the will of the Runes. During the course of the game, Luc speaks of how he wishes to find a future not controlled by these Runes, and he believes he can achieve this through their destruction. Through the years he has seen how many wars in the land centered on the true runes, and is thoroughly convinced that the runes will continue to control people into war as long as there are those who have the desire for blood. He believes that people will continue to fight and kill each other as the powers of the True Runes are continually abused. In a way, his dreams are for the good, as he is convinced that the only way for the races to escape their vicious cycle of war was to destroy the power behind them: the True Runes. The True Runes however see things differently.

The act of destroying the runes however would cause great destruction and loss of life, and naturally the inhabitants of the Grasslands try to fight back. This comes in the form of other True Rune bearers who go against him. While some would simply dismiss this as heroes versus psycho, I see this in a different light. Take note that those are heroes bearing True Runes fighting a man who defies his Rune and seeks their destruction. In a way, these aren't just heroes fighting for their lives, but these are heroes almost subconsciously following the will of the Runes. The Runes, being controllers of destiny, desire to bring down this rebel who wants to go against the dictates of the True Runes. He would be unsuccessful, as the True Rune bearers would ultimately defeat him. His destiny was to lose, and he is unable to change it.

Some information here is based on Suikosource.com