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Eternal Stairway

Eternal Stairway


Monster Faceless

The Eternal Stairway, rumored to lead straight to hell. Heh, it's too perfect! I wonder how many friends and loved ones our little <prince/princess> will lose there...Prepare to drown in your despair, <Lord/Lady> Corrin.
— Iago

Eternal Stairway (Japanese: 黄泉の階段 Yomi Stairway) is the twenty-first chapter of the Conquest campaign in Fire Emblem Fates. In this chapter, Corrin and his/her army navigate the Eternal Stairway on their approach to the Hoshidan capital, and find their task seemingly simplified by a force that wiped out a sizable number of Hoshidan soldiers. That force is actually a horde of monsters sent by Iago and now turned against Corrin's army, and Corrin's army must now contend with a seemingly never-ending stream of monsters. Later on, a longtime loyal companion of Corrin's makes the ultimate sacrifice.


Main article: Eternal Stairway/Script

In the throne room at Castle Krakenberg, Iago has taken note of Corrin's trial through the Wind Tribe's village without a scratch to any of his/her army, to which Iago states his disappointment and suggests Garon is probably furious; Iago then suggests that it is his duty as Garon's retainer to set things right, then states that Corrin's next destination is a perfect location for Corrin's fall from grace--the Eternal Stairway, rumored to lead straight to hell. Iago ponders how much of Corrin's army will be lost along the Eternal Stairway, then calls out to Corrin to prepare to drown in his/her despair and reveals that he and Garon look forward to feasting on his/her cries of agony.

We cut to the Eternal Stairway, where we witness Corrin, Azura, Camilla, Leo, and Elise are making the climb along the path; Corrin notes that they've traversed many stairs and asks if this area is indeed the Eternal Stairway, to which Azura confirms and reveals that they'll be near the Hoshidan capital once they make it through the area. Azura states that Hoshidan soldiers will undoubtedly be waiting for the arrival of Corrin's army, but that the Eternal Stairway is their only option on their current itinerary and that they'll have to break through the Hoshidan numbers by sheer force of will; Corrin states that the army should make their way through when Felicia and Jakob arrive on the scene. Felicia states that there's an emergency situation, to which Corrin deduces an advance by the Hoshidan army; Felicia starts tripping over her words, to which Jakob states that their scouts did locate a sizable number of Hoshidan soldiers--all dead, the stairs ahead of them are littered with their corpses. As Corrin asks what went on in the area, Felicia stated that the warriors all appeared to be healthy and strong yet not one survived, to which Corrin deduces that Garon sent a number of Nohrian soldiers ahead of them; Jakob states that situation is highly unlikely, as there's no way such Nohrian soldiers could have passed by them unnoticed as the only other route into Hoshido involves crossing the Bottomless Canyon and even then they'd have to circle back and thus Corrin's army would have still reached the Eternal Stairway first. Camilla notes the tragedy that befell the Hoshidan soldiers and deduces that it's a huge boon for Corrin's army, and that they should take advantage of this situation and make it through the area before more Hoshidan soldiers arrive, to which Leo agrees; Leo states that the Hoshidan soldiers would have fallen anyway and thus it's better it wasn't by their hands, and that they should be grateful that they've been spared a tiring battle. Corrin prepares to agree with Leo when a distant growl is heard; Faceless appear in the area, with Felicia noting that they're heading straight for Corrin's group, and Jakob noting that the Faceless are the ones that killed the Hoshidan soldiers and that they must not let the same fate befall them. Felicia and Jakob take out two of a wave of three Faceless, but two reinforcements quickly arrive; Corrin deduces that there are too many Faceless in the area and suggests pulling back to the Wind Tribe Village, only for Elise to state that they can't do so as they've been surrounded, with more Faceless appearing from behind. As Corrin notes that the group is trapped, Camilla asks why Garon would send so many Faceless to the area, to which Leo tells her not to joke about the situation; Xander states that something's not right, Garon wouldn't personally dispatch as many Faceless to a single location as are currently here and deduces that there's more at play than they currently know. Corrin states that the group needs to concentrate on breaking through the Faceless and making it through the area alive, asking the others to watch everyone's backs and vows not to lose a single person in this area; preparations take place at this point. Once preparations are complete, Azura states that they cannot possibly vanquish as many Faceless as there are in the area as there's no end in sight to the Faceless, and states that they have to get past the Faceless as quickly as possible; the battle begins at this point.

Once the battle ends, Corrin, Azura, and Xander continue to fight their way through further hordes of Faceless, with Corrin noting no end in sight; as Corrin states that he/she isn't sure they'll make it back up the stairs, Azura states that the Faceless seem to be concentrating their attacks on Corrin, with Xander asking Corrin to rush on ahead while the others fend off the Faceless, to which Corrin refuses. Xander asks Corrin to think with his/her head rather than his/her heart, and states that he/she must not fall at this time as all of Nohr is counting on him/her; Xander reiterates his order for Corrin to rush on ahead, with Azura stating that Corrin can't die at this point if they're to end the war and bring peace to the world--as the Yato chose Corrin, this makes Corrin the fated hero, and also asks Corrin to rush on ahead. As the Faceless continue their attack, Corrin finally agrees to rush on ahead, leaving Azura and Xander to fend off the Faceless as he/she rushes to the top of the stairway; as Corrin reaches the top of the stairs to rest, he/she notes that Hoshido is just ahead and hopes everyone else is alright.

A Faceless catches up to Corrin, to his/her shock; Lilith arrives on the scene and takes the Faceless's blow, prompting a shocked reaction from Corrin followed by him/her killing the Faceless. As Corrin asks Lilith why she'd risk her life for him/her, he/she asks Lilith to hang on as Lilith returns to her human form; after a surprised reaction from Corrin, Lilith states that Moro has taken pity on her and let her resume her human form for her last few moments, with Corrin stopping Lilith from completing her sentence and telling her she can't die and needs to live. Lilith apologizes for having to disobey Corrin's orders for the only time, then asks him/her to not cry as she's grateful to have protected him/her and recounts Corrin having not only saved her life years back, but also gave her a home and a family; Lilith states that she'll never forget their happy memories together and that she'll die without regrets, only for Corrin to again beg for Lilith to not die, stating that they've come very far and revealing that the war's nearly been won, and that he/she doesn't want to say goodbye at this point. Lilith again begs Corrin not to cry, and asks to see his/her smile one last time and states that she's always adored Corrin and that he/she has meant so much to her; she then asks Corrin to keep her in his/her heart and, with her dying breath, states that she'll always be with him/her.

As Corrin cries out over Lilith's death and wondering how he/she can go on knowing she's dead because of him/her, another Faceless arrives and runs toward Corrin, but gets stopped by an attack from Xander, who with Azura rushes onto the scene; as Corrin expresses relief that Xander and Azura are still alive, Azura states that Xander's skill dealt with the Faceless and apologize to Corrin for having kept him/her waiting. Corrin states that he/she is happy to see Xander and Azura, then tearfully break the new of Lilith's death to them, prompting Xander to ask Corrin to pull himself/herself together as Lilith would not have wanted Corrin to cry; Xander explains that Lilith sacrificed herself because she believes in Corrin, and asks him/her to not tarnish the beauty of her sacrifice by letting it cloud his/her judgement, then stating that they'll not win the war if a single death keeps Corrin from fighting with all of his/her heart. Xander explains that the final showdown is yet to come, and there's a good chance that even more people could die in the ensuing battles, but Corrin has to keep fighting through to the bitter end--if Corrin wavers, the army wavers along with him/her, and Xander states Corrin cannot let that happen; Xander has to talk Corrin into being able to continue fighting without fear or hesitation, that Lilith would want Corrin to fight on, with Corrin finally realizing what Lilith would have wanted him/her to do, finally cracking the smile Lilith wanted to see. Xander states that the army needs to keep pressing on, to which Corrin states that they'll do so after laying Lilith to rest; Corrin then proceeds to bid Lilith a tearful goodbye.

We cut to Iago, who, having caught word of Lilith's death for himself, states that he always despised her and is annoyed at how she sacrificed herself; Iago then states that, had Lilith not intervened, he could have made Corrin suffer even more, then states that Corrin has one less shield to hide behind. Iago then states that he's only just begun digging Corrin's pit of despair and states that he/she will soon find himself/herself lost in its darkness for eternity; he then states that Corrin's time is nearly up, and asks him/her to enjoy his/her last moments of joy.


Corrin's army approaches the Eternal Stairway. They expect to meet Hoshidan forces, but something else awaits them.

Chapter data

Normal Hard Lunatic

Chapter Data
Unit Data
Victory: Escape with all units. Player Enemy
Defeat: Corrin dies* or the player's army is routed*. 14 27+∞
Cm fe14c 21.png

This chapter's map is 17 columns by 30 rows.

Character data

New Units
Returning Characters



Item data

Name Obtainment Method
Is 3ds02 stat booster.png Arms Scroll Dropped by boss Faceless

Dragon Vein data

The Dragon Vein in this chapter is stated to have the effect "Freeze all enemies in place for one turn". They are located as follows:

  • Column 6, row 24: Two squares north of the southwesternmost player deployment position
  • Column 4, row 18: One square south, one square west of a Faceless (Normal only)
  • Column 10, row 18: Within two squares of a Faceless and a Rock Stoneborn
  • Column 7, row 12: Adjacent to a Faceless and a Rock Stoneborn
  • Column 15, row 12: Within four spaces of two Faceless and a Rock Stoneborn (Normal/Hard only)
  • Column 10, row 6: Four squares south of the boss's initial starting position (Normal only)
  • Column 5, row 4: Adjacent to a a Faceless
  • Column 11, row 2: Adjacent to the boss's initial starting position

Enemy data

Normal Hard Lunatic

Enemy Units
Name Class Lv # Inventory and Skills Notes
Ma 3ds02 stoneborn enemy.gif
Monster Stoneborn 28 6 Rock
Wary Fighter
Ma 3ds02 faceless enemy.gif
Monster Faceless 28 19 Gauntlet
Savage Blow
Ma 3ds02 faceless enemy.gif
Monster Faceless 28 1 Gauntlet
Savage Blow
Supporting unit of pair up with the boss Faceless.
Ma 3ds02 faceless enemy.gif
Monster Faceless 30 1 Gauntlet Arms ScrollThis item is dropped upon this unit's defeat.
Heartseeker Savage Blow
Lead unit of pair up with another Faceless.
Name Class Lv # Inventory and Skills Notes
Ma 3ds02 faceless enemy.gif
Monster Faceless 28 Gauntlet
Savage Blow Void Curse
Ma 3ds02 faceless enemy.gif
Monster Faceless 28 Gauntlet
Grisly Wound Void Curse


  • Reinforcements will spawn endlessly each turn, and they will all have the skill Void Curse.
    • On odd-numbered turns, two/three Faceless with Savage Blow will appear from the northern border of the map.
    • On even-numbered turns, two Faceless with Grisly Wound will appear from the southern border of the map.

Boss data

Normal Hard/Lunatic

Generic small portrait faceless fe14.png
Level 30
Movement 5
Max HP 45 Speed 22+2
Strength 25+2 Luck 0
Magic 5 Defense 25+2
Skill 23 Resistance 20+2
Inventory Skills
Arms ScrollThis item is dropped upon this unit's defeat.
Savage Blow
Weapon Levels
FE14RankSword.png -- FE14RankLance.png -- FE14RankAxe.png -- FE14RankBow.png --
FE14RankTome.png -- FE14RankStaff.png -- FE14RankDagger.png -- Fist B





  • Despite Corrin's statement that they must not lose anybody in this battle, the normal death rules apply, with only Corrin himself/herself dying triggering a Game Over.

Etymology and other languages


Names, etymology and in other regions
Language Name Definition, etymology and notes
English Eternal Stairway
Japanese 黄泉の階段 Yomi Stairway; yomi is the land of the dead in Japanese mythology, comparable to the Greek underworld/Hades.




Winds of Change Eternal Stairway Sakura

Fire Emblem Fates
Playable characters Birthright AsugiAzamaAzuraCaeldoriCorrinDwyerFeliciaHanaHayatoHinataHinokaHisameIzanaJakobKadenKageroKanaKazeKiragiMidoriMitamaMozuOboroOrochiReinaRhajatRinkahRyomaSaizoSakuraScarletSelkieSetsunaShigureShiroShuraSilasSophieSubakiTakumiYukimura
Conquest ArthurAzuraBennyBerukaCamillaCharlotteCorrinDwyerEffieEliseFeliciaFloraForrestGunterIgnatiusIzanaJakobKanaKazeKeatonLaslowLeoMidoriMozuNilesNinaNyxOdinOpheliaPercyPeriSelenaShigureShuraSiegbertSilasSoleilSophieVelouriaXander
Revelation ArthurAsugiAzamaAzuraBennyBerukaCaeldoriCamillaCharlotteCorrinDwyerEffieEliseFeliciaFloraForrestFugaGunterHanaHayatoHinataHinokaHisameIgnatiusJakobKadenKageroKanaKazeKeatonKiragiLaslowLeoMidoriMitamaMozuNilesNinaNyxOboroOdinOpheliaOrochiPercyPeriReinaRhajatRinkahRyomaSaizoSakuraScarletSelenaSelkieSetsunaShigureShiroShuraSiegbertSilasSoleilSophieSubakiTakumiVelouriaXander
DLC Anna
Non-playable characters CadrosCassitaIkonaKaterinaLaylaLilithMoroRainbow Sage
Bosses ???AnankosAnthonyAreteCandaceDaichiDanielaFunkeGaronGazakHaitakaHansIagoKilmaKotaroKumageraLlewelynLloydMikotoNicholOmozuSennoSumeragiTakumiTarbaZharaZola
amiibo characters IkeLucinaMarthRobin
Regalia and personal weapons Astral BlessingAurgelmirBifröstBölverkBrynhildrChakramExcaliburFujin YumiGanglariHagakure BladeMissiletainnPursuerRaijintoSiegfriedSkadiWaterwheelYato
Hero Battles Hero-King MarthRadiant Hero IkePrincess LucinaGrandmaster Robin
Groups, objects, and concepts Curse of VallaDragon VeinMy Castle