King

To my people, I am a hero...
... to you?
I'M THE BAD GUY!!!

King, Chapter 1

King (JP: キング) is a Darkner, the father of Lancer, and one of Card Kingdom's four kings. Following the Knight's appearance, King usurped the throne from the other three kings and took it upon himself to protect the Eastern Fountain. He is the main antagonist and final boss of Chapter 1 of Deltarune.

Profile

Appearance

King has a tear-drop shaped head that is blue, and is white around his mouth. King has a black spade where his eyes should be, which contorts with his mood. He has large sharp teeth, with his blue tongue often sticking out. King wears a white three-pointed crown atop his head.

King's dialogue portrait often depicts half of his face silhouetted to reflect his stern and malicious personality. It is occasionally absent when he speaks kindly of his son, Lancer.

King's body is broad and portly, and is white colored with dark gray accents on his legs and around his stomach. The front of his stomach has a blue spade with an enormous mouth that has square teeth and a blue tongue, and is capable of emoting. Inside it is a long gray chain with a spaded end, which King uses as a weapon.

He wears blue gloves and boots that are sharp at the end, and has a long black cape (also referred to as a "mantle") with a sharp high collar that often drapes over his right arm. When King is defeated, the cape flies away by flapping akin to a butterfly.

Personality

King is cold-hearted and ruthless in carrying out his own wishes. As a power-hungry tyrant, he desires to gain control over both the Dark and Light Worlds. King strongly resents Lightners, believing them to have abandoned Darkners, and has thus sworn allegiance to the Knight to fulfill his vengeance against them. He is also convinced that the creation of Dark Fountains will help Darkners reclaim their former glory. His bitterness and anger, implied to have been influenced by the Eastern Fountain, have driven him to become more aggressive and deranged than he otherwise would be throughout Chapter 1. This even extends to him treating Lancer and his subjects with callousness.

Following his defeat and imprisonment, King appears to have calmed down and is less hostile, but remains contemptuous towards the party. Despite this, King genuinely cares about the well-beings of his fellow Darkners, especially Lancer as he continues to inquire about his son's happiness even from behind bars. His pride, however, remains largely intact as he refuses Ralsei's offer of release, viewing confinement in a cell less humiliating than life ruled under Lightner rule. Over time, King's more subdued side begins to emerge as he starts to show small, begrudging gestures of amicability with those around him, such as offering Queen sincere parenting advice for Lancer and expressing regret over Jevil being locked away while giving his sympathies to Seam.

Main story

History

Long ago, Card Kingdom was ruled by four kings. However, at some point before Kris and Susie entered Card Kingdom, the Knight appeared. King then allied himself with the Knight, followed by the latter's creation of the Eastern Fountain at Card Castle. With the Knight's appearance, the three other kings were locked away in Card Castle, allowing King to become the kingdom's sole ruler.

As related by Ramb in Chapter 3, Kris used King (likely as a playing card) to play make-believe with Noelle, with him on their side, and Queen at Noelle's. Other than this mention, it is unknown how intimate King and Queen were.

Chapter 1

King battling Kris, Susie, and Ralsei, as Chaos King plays

In the climax of Chapter 1, King is seen guarding the Eastern Fountain. When the party reaches the top of Card Castle, Lancer can be seen attempting to reason with his father. Instead, King decides to use Lancer as a hostage in hopes of forcing the party to surrender. Fortunately, Lancer breaks free from King's grasp, allowing the party to fight back against the latter.

During the fight, King rants about his hatred of Lightners, believing that they abandoned Darkners. However, he insists that Lightners are no longer necessary to give him a purpose, as he now serves the Knight. He explains his end goal is to create a world blanketed in darkness and ruled by Darkners.

King sleeping

The party ultimately defeats King, who then surrenders and "admits" that he never wanted to wage war against Lightners. When Ralsei responds by healing him, said speech turns out to be a ruse as King brutally knocks down the party, only for either one of two interventions to occur:

If the party has not been excessively violent, specifically:

• No enemy, barring Lancer, C. Round, Jevil, or King himself, was defeated violently by party members under the player's control,
• Fewer than 2 enemies, including Lancer and C. Round, have been defeated by Susie attacking on her own,
• If any number of Rudinns are defeated, a Rudinn in Card Castle can be apologized to. This removes all previously violently-defeated Rudinns from being considered for the ending.
• Similarly, a Hathy in Card Castle will remove all previously violently-defeated Hathys from being considered for the ending if talked to with two or fewer previously violently defeated.

Lancer and several Darkners arrive in the nick of time to capture King. Lancer declares that "they'd rather have a king that accepts them" as opposed to King. King is then taken away and thrown in jail.

Otherwise, Susie distracts King long enough for Ralsei to cast the Pacify spell on him, putting him to sleep.

Chapter 2

In Chapter 2, King and Card Kingdom's Darkners are brought to Castle Town by Kris. He is relocated and locked in a cell underneath Ralsei's castle. When interacted with, he asks if Kris has come to humiliate him. If Kris chooses to, Susie also agrees, but then questions why King has a giant water bottle in his cell. He immediately taunts Susie by drinking from it. Otherwise, Ralsei updates King on Darkners, and offers to release him. King declines, considering imprisonment less humiliating than residing in a kingdom ruled by "Lightners' little patsy".

As Kris leaves the room, King inquires if Lancer is happy. Susie reminds King about his attempt to throw Lancer off Card Castle. King acknowledges her "prejudice", and admits it was a bluff. He emphasizes that Lancer would bounce back regardless, as he is a "bouncy little pumpkin".

If King is spoken to after recruiting all Darkners from the Cyber World, he and Queen briefly converse with each other. King gets furious at Queen's criticism of the "Royal Water Bottle" and her new role as Lancer's mother. Reluctantly, he tells her to do what she wishes, but also advises her to bounce Lancer for a bit whenever he cries. Before she leaves, King asks her to buy him cashews from the store.

If the party fails to acquire all recruits from the Cyber World, King simply comments that they "left [the denizens of the Cyber World] behind" and refuses to interact with the party, only saying "Begone."

Chapter 4

In Chapter 4, King remains locked underneath Ralsei's castle. If all Darkners from TV World were recruited and Tenna was not yet donated to the nobody, he enters King's cell to try and entertain him, but is only successful when he accidentally trips and falls.

Afterwards, or if Tenna was already donated, King can be spoken to about the Knight and, if Jevil has been defeated, asked about a "Jester". He reveals that he never met the Knight, and that it was Jevil who told him of "the Knight's brilliance", "the fountains' glory", and his future rise to power.

Relationships

Lancer

For Lancer's perspective, see Lancer § King.

King is Lancer's father. Despite this, they do not appear to have a close relationship, as King spends little time with his son and often leaves Rouxls Kaard to take care of him. He is initially shown to be neglectful, or at times abusive to Lancer; he speaks harshly to him, uses him as a hostage to gain the upper hand in the battle against the party and even threatens to kill him if Kris, Susie, and Ralsei do not surrender. He is also quite strict with Lancer, forbidding him from eating Dark Candy - likely because it is bad for his teeth - and from saying "tier-two swear words", having him take a shower every time he so much as reads one. Despite these traits, King seems to care about Lancer's public perception, forcing his subjects to take orders from Lancer despite their dislike of him.

Later on, it is revealed that King does care about his son to an extent. When talking to him in his cell at the start of Chapter 2, King asks the party if Lancer was happy and dismisses his intentions of throwing him off Card Castle's roof as a bluff, confident that Lancer would just bounce off even if he did drop him and calling him a "bouncy little pumpkin". Additionally, he is disgusted by the party's belief that he would harm his son. In Chapter 4, King enjoys watching Tenna perform for himself and Lancer, complimenting his son on his choice of the new court jester.

Kris and Susie

Due to King's hatred of Lightners, he acts aggressively towards Kris and Susie, believing them to have manipulated Lancer and care only about destroying the Dark Fountain. As such, he refuses to listen to them during battle. While imprisoned, King acts coldly towards the Lightners, although he does humorously and exaggeratedly drink from his hamster bottle out of spite if Susie expresses interest in it to make her envious.

Ralsei

Despite Ralsei being a Darkner, King disdains him as much as he does Kris and Susie due to Ralsei's pacifism and love for Lightners, deriding him as "the Lightners' little patsy" and considering staying in the cell less humiliating than living in a kingdom ruled by him.

Queen

For Queen's perspective, see Queen § King.

After returning to Castle Town at the end of Chapter 2 if all Darkners from the Cyber World are recruited, an interaction between King and Queen occurs in front of his cell, where he calls her "Queenie Beanie" and she calls him "Kingy Wingy". These pet names reinforce the possibility of past relations.

Knight

Although not much is known about the Knight itself, it has facilitated King's rule over Card Kingdom. As a result, King holds the Knight in very high esteem, and promises not to fail it at any cost. Despite his admiration toward the Knight, King has seemingly never met it.

King's subjects

King is the ruler of all Card Kingdom Darkners by the time the story takes place. However, everyone seems to either fear King or loathe him, and they are all very eager to have a new ruler replace him. If the party has not been excessively violent, a large crowd of Darkners aids Lancer in overthrowing the tyrant and celebrate over his defeat.

Creation and development

King, along with Lancer, Rudinn, Hathy, Clover, Jevil, and the uncredited Former Kings, was originally designed by kanotynes for her design class, having volunteered to draw 52 unique playing card designs. With the exception of Jevil, all of kanotynes's characters were fully designed by March 2012 — 6 years prior to the release of Deltarune Chapter 1. King's earliest design was first posted on Tumblr on March 27, 2012 as a character on a king of spades playing card.

In battle

Attacks

The king's attacks generally revolve around moving the bullet board where the SOUL appears.

• Spade Attack: King launches a series of spades which inflict damage upon contact. They can appear on either the left or the right side of the screen, and move horizontally to the other side.
• Swing Attack: King grapples the bullet board with his chain, and swings it up and down. A line of spades marches from the center left of the screen horizontally to the right, which deal damage on contact. On later turns, the speed of the swinging will increase and the gaps between spades decrease.
• Chain Attack: King launches a series of chains with a spade symbol on top. Their trails are indicated with red lines. On later turns, the rate of the chains increases and the warning before each chain decreases.
• Spiked Cage Attack: King traps the SOUL in a spiked cage which bounces off a set of walls in the shape of a square. The spikes inflict damage upon contact. On later turns, the size of the walls decrease and the cage speeds up.
• Chained Cage Attack: King traps the SOUL in a spiked cage which is dragged by a chain to random positions indicated by a heart. The spikes inflict damage upon contact. On later turns, spades will appear in a fixed grid and also deal damage.

• 
  Spade Attack
• 
  Swing Attack
• 
  Chain Attack
• 
  Spiked Cage Attack
• 
  Chained Cage Attack
• 
  Advanced Chained Cage Attack

This battle is completely scripted, and attacks always come in the same order:

1. Spade Attack I
2. Swing Attack I
3. Chain Attack I
4. Spiked Cage Attack I
5. Swing Attack II
6. Chained Cage Attack I
7. Chain Attack II
8. Spiked Cage Attack II
9. Spade Attack II
10. Swing Attack III
11. Chained Cage Attack II
12. Chain Attack II
13. Spiked Cage Attack II
14. Swing Attack III
15. Spade Attack II

Available ACTs

Replaced with Courage after selecting this ACT.

Replaced with RedBuster after selecting this ACT.

Replaced with DualHeal after selecting this ACT.

Courage

Defense Boost

Costs 25% TP. Reduces the damage from attacks by 20% for one turn.

RedBuster

Red Damage

Costs 60% TP. Launches a strong attack at the enemy, inflicting damage based on Susie's AT and MAGIC.

DualHeal

Heals everyone

Costs 50% TP. Heals the party based on Ralsei's MAGIC.

Strategy

King cannot be reasoned with, thus sparing him is not an option. There are only two methods to defeat King: endure 15 turns, or FIGHT. Immediately after the 15th attack, the battle ends.

Enduring for 15 turns can be done by being defensive. Doing this causes King to become tired and give up. This can involve a mix of good maneuvering during King's turn and choosing to DEFEND.

Additionally, Kris's Courage ACT and Ralsei's DualHeal spell can be used to help outlast his attacks.

Choosing to FIGHT can end the battle faster if the party's damage output is high enough. King's Defense also drops by 5 after his 12th, 13th, and 14th attacks (for a total of -15 DF on the party's last turn). This does not affect the post-battle sequence aside from a minor textual difference regarding how the battle ended.

Susie's RedBuster can also be used alongside Devilsknife or Jevilstail to deal increased damage to King.

Quotes

Pre-battle

• [Susie] Hey, there's Lancer...!
• [Lancer] Father!
• Lancer, my son.
• Have you dispatched the Lightners, as I commanded?
• [Lancer] N... No, b-but...
• [Lancer] I did even better!
• [Lancer] It turns out we don't actually have to fight them!
• [Lancer] They said they could just talk to you, and...
• They're ALIVE?
• [Lancer] Yes, and I think you'll like them a lot!
• [Lancer] There's Susie, she's very purple and strong, and...
• WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
• [Lancer] Ummm...
• [Susie] Hey.
• [Ralsei] It's nice to meet you!
• ... Lancer. Lancer, my son.
• [Lancer] Y... Yes, father?
• Do you remember what I told you?
• [Lancer] D... Don't... get too attached?
• You have failed.
• They have poisoned you with their sentimentality.
• Free yourself, Lancer. They care NOT for you.
• Their only goal is to destroy our glorious Fountain.
• They. Are. Scum.
• [Lancer] N... no they aren't...
• WHAT DID YOU SAY!?
• [Susie] Let him go.
• Ha ha ha ha...
• You want me to LET HIM GO!?
• Then how about this...?
• I'll drop him off the edge and let him splatter...
• Unless you all KNEEL and learn your place!
• What will it be, Lightners!?
• [Lancer] D-don't listen to him Susie, he'll... he'll...
• Now WATCH, Lancer...!
• SEE what happens when you befriend Lightners!
• Wh... What the!?
• YOU... YOU TRAITOR...! COME BACK HERE...!
• [Susie] Alright, enough already.
• [Susie] Who the hell do you think you are?
• Heheh... Heheheheh...
• To my people, I am a hero...
• ... to you?
• I'M THE BAD GUY!!!

Battle

• How dare you come here, Lightners...? [Turn 1]
• You, that left us in the shadows, stripped of meaning... [Turn 2]
• You DARE return to torment us once again? [Turn 3]
• Begone! We have found fresh purpose. [Turn 4]
• For the KNIGHT has appeared. [Turn 5]
• The KNIGHT that pulls the Fountains from the Earth. [Turn 6]
• [Turn 7]
  • Holy Fountains, whose shadows are creating a new world...
  • OUR world.
• Hahaha... Do you see now our NEW purpose...? [Turn 8]
• [Turn 9]
  • Soon, this world shall be blanketed in darkness...
  • And DARKNERS shall RULE it!
• Then, you may see what it is like to live in DESPAIR! [Turn 10]
• [Turn 11]
  • Now, enough talk!
  • Fall before the chain of justice!
• ... ha, you're quite strong, aren't you!? [Turn 12]
• If I keep fighting you like this, then... [Turn 13]
• It seems... that... [Turn 14]
• My KNIGHT... I shall not fail you... [Turn 15]

Post-battle

• [If King's HP was depleted]
  • I... I see...
  • You are much stronger... than I envisioned...
• [If King's HP was not depleted]
  • Enough... is enough...
  • I see... I see that I cannot defeat you.
  • I have grown exhausted from our long battle.
• Lightners... I...
• Perhaps I... I have been too cruel.
• The truth is... I was not always this way.
• There once was a time...
• ... where Darkners and Lightners lived in harmony.
• A time where Darkners could fulfill their purpose in peace...
• It would be a lie to say that I, too...
• ... do not yearn for those days.
• ... Perhaps... Perhaps you young ones are right.
• Please... let us put away our weapons.
• There must be a peaceful solution to all this.
• [Susie] ...
• [Ralsei] (Come now, Susie!)
• [Ralsei] I'm glad you're starting to realize, Mr. King...
• [Ralsei] None of us really want to fight.
• [Ralsei] If you can just tell us about your worries...
• [Ralsei] I'm sure we can all be friends, Mr. King!
• Y-yes... "Friends..."
• That sounds... lovely...
• (C... cough) My apologies, I am...
• I am not used to... fighting like that...
• My body is... getting weak...
• [Ralsei] Oh, don't say another word!
• [Ralsei] There, you should be all healed up!
• [Ralsei] How do you feel...?
• L... Let's see...
• Never better.
• [Susie] Y... You...
• Did I say you could get up?
• [Susie] Kris...!?
• Oh, spare me the heroics.
• You... You're the leader, aren't you?
• So, what's your plan?
• To laugh, as you cast us all back into obscurity?
• ...
• You can't even say...?
• Young one...
• Let me tell you a secret.
• Quiet people PISS ME OFF.
• [Susie] Hey.
• [Susie] Get away. From my. Friend.
• Heh heh heh heh...
• OR WHAT?
• [If an enemy was defeated violently]
  • Surely you must realize...
  • How exhausted I am, Lightner.
  • Any hit from you would kill me.
  • Why not do it, Lightner?
  • Kill me and show my son how much you REALLY care.
• You'll KILL me? [If no enemy was defeated violently]
• [Susie] Nah.
• So what's your plan, then...?
• To TALK me to death...?
• You stupid, stupid Lightner.
• You honestly think you have any way...
• [If an enemy was defeated violently]
  • To convince me NOT to kill you?
  • [Susie] Just wait a second.
  • Wait for WHAT?
  • H... Huh?
  • Why am I suddenly... so sleepy...?
  • Why you... you little...
  • You sweet...
  • ... little...
  • ... pumpkin...
• [If no enemy was defeated violently]
  • ... to convince me NOT to kill you?
  • [Susie] Nah.
  • [Susie] But THEY might.
  • L... Lancer!? E... Everyone!?
  • WHAT is the meaning of this!?
  • [Lancer] Sorry, Dad! You're being overthrown!
  • [Lancer] When I told everyone you were fighting the Lightners...
  • [Lancer] Everyone remembered how kind they were!
  • [Lancer] They decided they'd rather have a king...
  • [Lancer] That accepts them!
  • [Lancer] Me!!!
  • [Lancer] Now I'm the dad!!!
  • You IDIOTS! The Lightners are your ENEMIES!
  • FOOLS! I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU!
  • [Lancer] Yikes! I think someone needs a time out!
  • [Lancer] Go to your room, Dad!!!
  • NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Flavor text

• [Check]
  • Abandoned by the Lightners, his heart became cracked with hatred.
  • He cannot be reasoned with, but don't give up...!
• King blocked the way! [Encounter]
• Darkness pours from the fountain. [Neutral]
• KING's mouths gave a berserk smile. [Neutral]
• The battlefield is rumbling. [Neutral]
• KING's mouths babble indecipherably. [Neutral]
• [Talk as Kris]
  • You tried to reason with the King...
  • [King] Silence, Lightbringer!
  • [King] Your very existence goes against our own...
  • [King] By the Knight's will, I shall shatter your heart to pieces!
  • Your will is changing... TALK became COURAGE!
• [Talk as Susie]
  • Susie tried to reason with the King...
  • [Susie] Arright, listen up.
  • [Susie] Lancer's my friend.
  • [Susie] So if we can get by without hurting you, then...
  • [King] If I perish, so be it!
  • [King] Show my son the monster you REALLY are!
  • [Susie] ...
  • [Susie] Arright, you wanna see what I can do, huh?
  • Susie's will is changing... TALK became RED BUSTER!
• [Talk as Ralsei]
  • Ralsei tried to reason with the King...
  • [Ralsei] You might not realize it, but...
  • [Ralsei] This is a world where you don't have to fight.
  • [Ralsei] I know if we try, we can all find another way...
  • [King] Such simple-minded platitudes...
  • [King] A shame you will not live to realize your naivety.
  • [King] Now, perish with the pathetic LIGHTNERs you worship!
  • [Ralsei] Sorry, my friends and I aren't going anywhere!
  • Ralsei's will is changing... TALK became DUAL HEAL!
• You encouraged the party! The party's DEFENSE raised for this turn! [Courage]
• Your SOUL shined its power on Susie/RALSEI! [RedBuster/DualHeal]
• KING's cape flutters weakly. [Low HP]

Gallery

• 
  King cloaked in shadow before battle
• 
  King revealing himself before battle
• 
  King roaring with laughter before battle
• 
  King's hurt sprite
• 
  King using his Chain Throw attack
• 
  King tired post-battle
• 
  King sulking in his prison cell in Castle Town
• 
  King's original design as the king of spades in kanotynes's custom deck

Trivia

The unused King sprite

• King's laughter is a deeper version of Lancer's.
• An unused version of King's battle sprite can be found in the game's files. The only difference is that King's shade of blue is different from the one used in battle, his legs are more bent, and the end of his spade chain is colored blue instead of gray.
• King's prison cell resembles a hamster cage, featuring a large water bottle and corresponding hamster wheel.