Fire Emblem Engage has arrived, offering a new tactical experience for fans of the series. While not every game in the series is connected to the previous entries from a story perspective, Engage features a number of iconic characters from previous games as the Divine Emblems, which are attached to your own units, providing powerful bonuses. In the context of the story, these Emblems are heroes of the past, although Engage doesn't spend too much time explaining their origins. Here's the background of every legacy character that appears in Fire Emblem Engage as a Divine Emblem.
Marth, the Emblem of Beginnings, is the main character from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light and its direct sequel, Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem. Neither game was released outside of Japan at the time of their original releases, although Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light was eventually released worldwide on the Nintendo Switch in 2020. Marth is exiled from his home, forced to gather both the Fire Emblem and the Falchion sword to reclaim his kingdom, eventually earning the nickname "Hero-King." Marth is also one of the many Fire Emblem characters to be featured in Super Smash Bros.
Lucina is a sword fighter and royal heir originally featured in Fire Emblem Awakening on the 3DS. Lucina is the daughter of Chrom and travels back in time from the future in an attempt to stop the Fell Dragon from destroying the land. When she travels back in time, she goes by the name Marth, attempting to channel the courage her ancestor used to save the land in his time. Lucina is also featured in Super Smash Bros.
Roy is the protagonist and playable character in Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade, which was released on Game Boy Advance in 2002, exclusively in Japan. However, that was not Roy's first appearance in a video game. Roy appeared on the Super Smash Bros. Melee roster about a year before his game was released. While The Binding Blade was not released outside of Japan, Roy's appearance in Super Smash Bros. Melee is credited with creating interest in Fire Emblem in the west, resulting in later games being released internationally. Roy is the heir to the throne in Pherae and another sword user.
Celica is one of the two protagonists in Fire Emblem Gaiden, the second entry in the series, which would later be remade as Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia for the 3DS. Celica is one of two protagonists in the game and the heir to the throne of Zofia. While she also wields a sword, her starting class is Priestess, which focuses more on using magic attacks.
Sigurd is one of the protagonists from Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War, another Japan exclusive entry in the series. Sigurd is the first protagonist to be on horseback and wield a lance. He is also the only one of the Divine Emblems in Fire Emblem Engage to be on horseback. Sigurd is also only the protagonist for the first half of Genealogy of the Holy War, which is separated into two sections featuring different protagonists.
Leif first appears in Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War as a child character, who is playable but not the main protagonist. Leif is the protagonist of the sequel, Fire Emblem: Thracia 776, which was released on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System exclusively in Japan. Like many of the early Fire Emblem titles, this game was never released outside of Japan. Leif is another sword wielder and starts as the Lord class.
Lyn, who's full name is Lyndis, is one of the main protagonists from Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade, which was the first Fire Emblem game to release in the West. Lyn, like many Fire Emblem protagonists, starts as the Lord class, wielding a sword. However, when she becomes the Blade Lord class, she gains an affinity for bow weapons, which can be seen by her weapon of choice in Fire Emblem Engage. Lyn is also one of the few Lord characters that does not have a cape.
Erika is one of the protagonists of Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones, alongside her twin brother Ephraim. Erika is the only Divine Emblem to have another character with her, as her brother Ephraim can be swapped in, changing her potential weapons and attacks. Partway through The Sacred Stones, players are asked to follow one of the two characters down a split path, with Erika being considered the canon choice between the two players.
Ike is the main character in Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance and one of the main characters in Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn both of which are later entries in the series. Ike also appears in Super Smash Bros. and is the first main character to not be of noble birth, instead being the leader of the Greil Mercenaries. Ike starts as the Ranger class, although he does eventually become a Lord class.
Micaiah is one of the other main characters in Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn. Micaiah is the first protagonist to exclusively wield magic and even has a special ability that allows her to give some of her own HP to her allies. Her starting class is a Light Mage and her strong focus on magic usage makes her one of the strongest main characters, although she cannot take as much damage as the others.
Corrin first appears in Fire Emblem Fates and is treated as a customizable avatar for the player, with the option to play as male or female and rename them. The Corrin that appears in Fire Emblem Engage is the female version. Corrin is a member of both Nohr and Hoshido royalty, the two warring nations in Fire Emblem Fates. Instead of using the generic Lord class, Corrin starts as the Nohr Prince/Princess class. Corrin also appears in Super Smash Bros.
Byleth is the main character of Fire Emblem: Three Houses and has one of the more unique backgrounds. Byleth starts the game as a mercenary, but is recruited to be a professor at the Garreg Mach Monastery, where the children of important figures attend school. Byleth once again can appear as male or female in Three Houses, but the version present in Engage is the male version of Byleth. Byleth starts as the Commoner Class, but has the flexibility to spec into pretty much any class in the game. Byleth is also the most recent Fire Emblem character to join the Super Smash Bros. roster.