Sophitia Alexandra (ソフィーティア・アレクサンドル, Sofītia Arekusandoru; Greek: Σοφιτία Αλεξάνδρα) is a character in the Soul series of fighting games. She is a mainstay of the Soulcalibur series and one of most iconic characters in the franchise.
Physical Appearance
For the beginning of Soul Edge, Sophitia was a young girl with pale skin, green eyes, and long, braided blonde hair. Over the years, she grew up from a brave teenager into a caring, protective mother. During her creation, designers focused on maintaining an innocent appearance for her face, to give the character a sense of feeling fresh and young. Freedom of movement between the sword and shield were also emphasized, with the intention to allow for the blade to rotate around the shield for cyclonic attacks. An alternate character called Azola was conceived during the development of Sophitia's secondary outfit in Soul Edge, but was abandoned.
Personality
Sophitia is a benevolent, faithful, valiant, selfless, and strong-willed woman who is devoted to her family and will do anything to protect them by all means, even if it means sacrificing her own life. She is especially fond of her children, and willingly decided to join the forces that serve Soul Edge to protect her daughter Pyrrha, whose life lies in the hands of Soul Edge. She may also be considered as tough as her younger sister Cassandra, because she has taken on a very tough decision that few could bear. Her personality has softened and matured a lot in Soulcalibur III; her voice is more low-pitched and monotonous, for example. In Soulcalibur IV, Sophitia is very melancholic and doubtful, due to the danger her daughter incurs.
Weapons
- Omega Sword & Elk Shield
- Gaea Sword
- Swordbreaker
- Xi Sword & Game Shield
- Owl Shield
- Blue Crystal Rod & Blue Line Shield
- Ice Blade
- Fire Blade
- Aeneas
- Rapier
- Gladius
- Synval
- Apollo Sword
- Soul Edge (Complete)
- Orichalcum
- Valkyrie
- Soul Calibur
- Soul Edge
- Memento
- Love
- The Ancient
- Hyperion
- Digamma Sword & Nemea Shield
- Eastern Sword
- Gladiatrix
- Brave One
- Katzbalger
- The Master (Pyrrha)
- Blade of Angels
- Mechanical Sword & Shield
Stages
- Eurydice Shrine - Arena (SE)
- Shrine Of Eurydice (SC) (Note: known as Shrine in the Air in the Arcade version).
- Eurydice Shrine Gallery (SC2) (Note: Sophitia shares this stage with Cassandra)
- Eurydice Shrine - Gate of the Gods (SC3)
- Thesmophoros' Imperial Garden (SC4)
- Thesmophoros' Imperial Garden - Sunset (SCBD)
- Shrine of Eurydice: Cloud Sanctuary (SC6)
Theme Music
Trivia
General
- In Soul Edge, one of Sophitia's weapons is Valkyrie, which was later given to Cassandra in Soulcalibur II and the later games. The weapon comes from Valkyrie no Bōken: Toki no Kagi Densetsu, in which the main character, Valkyrie, wields this weapon. Also, Sophitia's hairstyle may be based off of Valkyrie's. In Soulcalibur II, Sophitia's 3rd costume is modeled after Ki, the heroine of The Tower of Druaga. Also, one of Sophitia's weapons is the Blue Crystal Rod & Blue Line Shield, which also comes from The Tower of Druaga and its sequels.
- Although Sophitia herself does not make an appearance in Namco X Capcom, the Charades that appear in the game use her moveset and weapons.
- Until Soulcalibur V, she was the only female playable character to have a family of her own.
- Sophitia and Cassandra are different in some ways. Sophitia is, or at least used to be, very loyal to Hephaestus, and relies on his power. However, Cassandra is not loyal at all, and she relies on her own strength. Also, Sophitia is hesitant, unlike her sister, as seen in their Soulcalibur IV endings.
- Sophitia is nicknamed "Renewal of the Vow" in Soul Edge and "Emotional Goddess" in Soulcalibur.
- Since her debut, Sophitia has had at least one costume that gives her brown hair despite being usually blonde. In Soulcalibur III and Soulcalibur IV, she stays blonde in all costumes, but can have her hair changed in Character Creation.
- Ever since her first appearance in Soul Edge, Sophitia has notably had moments of being unbalanced in her mental strength. At some points, she remains persistent in fighting for what she believes in, whilst at others, her confidence remains relatively low or even at the edge of doubting her motives for battle. The most apparent case is from Soulcalibur III, where she not only appeared less hesitant to fight, but also seemingly not caring about the well-being about her opponent as much as she would have, for example, in Soulcalibur.
- Sophitia's outfits have begun to show off more skin in each of her appearances. To date, her Soulcalibur outfit is the most modest whilst her Soulcalibur IV outfit is the most revealing. This is unusual considering her reputation as a pure and holy warrior, but it also contrasts poorly with her shy and timid nature. The only explanation for her choice of attire is that it facilitates her mobility by weighing her down as little as possible.
- Ever since Soulcalibur, Sophitia has gained a signature attack called Heaven's Arch. This throw causes her to grab the opponent's head and put it between her thighs, she then jumps into the air while in a sitting position, ending by butt slamming their face into the ground. Notably, when used on a male character, she giggles. The females of the Alexandra family have notable butt themed attacks. For example, Pyrrha's Heaven's Rider and Cassandra's critical finisher Final Crush.
- At 168 cm, Sophitia is the third tallest main female character in the series. She has remained this since the first Soulcalibur.
Soul Edge
- The player can receive an alternate costume 'Sophitia!', which is Sophitia with her armor from her bad ending. There is also Sophitia!!' Which is Sophitia wearing her swimsuit from her Good Ending.
- In Soul Edge Ver.II, Sophitia has a different shield that can be chosen in her 2nd outfit.
- Sophitia's name is mispronounced "So-fiht-tee-ah" in the game. This, however was a mistake that was corrected in the following games. Also, the names of her relatives were all poorly translated - the most obvious mistake being Cassandra's name being mis-romanized as Kathandra.
Soulcalibur II
- Sophitia wasn't present in the arcade version of Soulcalibur II. She was added back in for the console version.
Soulcalibur III
- Depending which option the player chooses, after defeating Rock in the Lakeside Coliseum, he offers himself to protect Sophitia's home and family.
Soulcalibur IV
- Azola is the one who talks with Sophitia, telling about the curse that fell over her daughter, Pyrrha, and convinces Sophitia to fight alongside Nightmare's troops [1].
- In the first stage of her Story Mode, Sophitia has Azola as a partner. The two of them work together on defeating Hilde and some of her royal guards, but then Sophitia immediately defeats Azola with her own hands afterwards.
- In the fourth stage of Cassandra's Story Mode, Cassandra faces off against Sophitia, who appears to have become the new host for Soul Edge. She wields the evil sword in the form of a sword and shield. Also, her hair is darker, and her entire outfit is dark red. It's unknown if Sophitia did this to herself, or if Tira manipulated her.
- Sophitia is the only character whose artwork shows her crying. The reason for this is unknown, but some fans speculate that she is crying for her abducted daughter, Pyrrha.
Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny
- In the opening, Sophitia fights Kratos due to their Greek backgrounds and opposing viewpoints, with Sophitia serving the gods and Kratos (former servant) against them.
Soulcalibur V
- Sophitia's 1P hairstyle from Soulcalibur IV is selectable in Character Creation.
- The music in the E3 Trailer is Sophitia's soundtrack from Soulcalibur IV, "Immaculate Pledge". In the TGS 2011 Trailer, the music is "Fearless Eyes", Sophitia's soundtrack from Soulcalibur III.
- Sophitia supposedly died 17 years prior due to an attack by a malfested, hinted to be Tira. This was later proven false, and that Sophitia chose to end her own life for Pyrrha's sake by placing the shard of Soul Edge near her heart into Pyrrha's body to keep her alive. This would later cause her to transform into Pyrrha Ω.
- Although, according to Pyrrha's profile, Sophitia is not dead but instead is in an unknown location.[2]
- However, Cassandra's Soul Chronicle from Soucalibur VI confirms that she is deceased.
- Elysium, the will of Soul Calibur, took on Sophitia's appearance and voice in order to deceive Patroklos.
Soulcalibur: Lost Swords
- Sophitia's return makes her the first character cut from Soulcalibur V to make a return in a subsequent game.
- Sophitia's costume is called "Guardian".
Soulcalibur VI
- Sophitia's dialogue when engaging a battle with Nightmare is the same dialogue said when facing him in the Arcade Mode of SoulcaliburSoulcalibur.
- Her A+G, A+G[2] and 6K have different effect depending if the opponent is a male or female.
- When performing A+G on a male, the sound of a bell can be heard.
- When performing A+G[2] on a male, she says "Are you ok?"
- When performing 6K on a male, the sound of a bell can still be heard and she says "Forgive me".
- Regarding the background of Sophitia's artwork, according to the official Soulcalibur twitter account: "The acanthus in the background of Sophitia is the national flower of Greece and is often used in temple decorations as a sacred plant. The initial idea was to depict the flame of Hephaestus, but it gave an aggressive impression, so the current form was chosen."[3]
Etymology
"Sophitia" is most likely derived from the Greek name "Sophia" meaning "wisdom". Her last name, Alexandra, means "Protector of Mankind".
Series' Appearances
- Soul Edge
- Soulcalibur
- Soulcalibur: Spirit Sword
- Soulcalibur (Chinese Manhua)
- Soulcalibur II (Home version only)
- Soulcalibur III
- Soulcalibur III: Arcade Edition
- Soulcalibur Legends
- Soulcalibur IV
- Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny
- Soulcalibur Mobile
- Soulcalibur V (Cameo in story mode)
- Soulcalibur: Lost Swords
- Soulcalibur: Unbreakable Soul
- Soulcalibur VI
Appearances in Other Media
Musou Orochi 2 Ultimate
It was revealed that Sophitia will be guest staring in Koei's latest re-release of Warriors Orochi 3 (Musou Orochi 2 in Japan) as a playable guest character. She will be joining the series, alongside other guest characters such as Ryu Hayabusa of Ninja Gaiden fame, Kasumi of Dead or Alive fame, and Sterkenburg of the Atelier series. Along with characters from other various Koei games.
Her story is that after the events of Soulcalibur IV, on her way home, she is pulled into the dimensional vortex against her will.
Outcast Odyssey
Sophitia appears as a playable card in Outcast Odyssey. She is a part of the second wave of Soul series characters. Available for a limited time. Her cards are based on her appearances from Soul Edge, Soulcalibur II, Soulcalibur III and Soulcalibur IV with the latter being the strongest.
References
- ^ http://www.soularchive.jp/SCBD/blog/soulchain.pdf taken on July 23, 2011. The relationship chart says that the one who appeared out of nowhere and made Sophitia trail the path of darkness was Azola.
- ^ http://www.soulcalibur.com/en_GB.html#/characters/soulcalibur5/pyrrha Pyrrha's profile clearly states that Sophitia's location is unknown, not that she is deceased.
- ^ @soulcalibur (March 12, 2021). "The acanthus in the background of Sophitia is the national flower of Greece and is often used in temple decorations as a sacred plant. The initial idea was to depict the flame of Hephaestus, but it gave an aggressive impression, so the current form was chosen." (Tweet). Retrieved October 24, 2023 – via Twitter.
External links
Soulcalibur |
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Soulcalibur • Legend of Soulcalibur • Soulcalibur: Spirit Sword • Soulcalibur (Chinese Manhua) • Soulcalibur Original Soundtrack |
Characters |
Arthur • Astaroth • Cervantes • Edge Master • Hwang • Inferno • Ivy • Kilik • Lizardman • Maxi • Mitsurugi • Nightmare • Rock • Seong Mi-na • Siegfried • Sophitia • Taki • Voldo • Xianghua • Yoshimitsu |
Stages |
The Colosseum • Chaos • City of Water • Emperor's Garden • Harbor of Souls • Hoko Temple • Kunpaetku Shrine • Maze of the Dead • Money Pit • Ostrheinsburg Castle • Palgaea Shrine • Proving Grounds • Shrine of Eurydice • Silk Road Ruin • Takamatsu Castle • The Adrian and The Fortress • Valentine Mansion • Water Labyrinth |
Soulcalibur II |
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Soulcalibur II (HD Online) • The Art of Soulcalibur II • Unlockables • Soulcalibur II Original Soundtrack • Weapon Master |
Characters |
Assassin • Astaroth • Berserker • Cassandra • Cervantes • Charade • Heihachi • Inferno • Ivy • Kilik • Link • Lizardman • Maxi • Mitsurugi • Nightmare • Necrid • Raphael • Seong Mi-na • Siegfried • Sophitia • Spawn • Taki • Talim • Voldo • Xianghua • Yoshimitsu • Yun-seong |
Stages |
Chaos • Egyptian Crypt • Egyptian Ruins • Eurydice Shrine Gallery • Hwangseo Palace - Phoenix Court • Imperial Capital Ayutthaya • Kaminoi Castle - Sakura-Dai Gate • Labyrinth • Lakeside Coliseum • Money Pit - Top Tier • Ostrheinsburg Chapel • Palgaea Shrine - Lowest Level • Pirate's Alcove • South France Mansion - Library • Village of the Wind • Xiwei Siege Ruins |