Parvati

Parvati has her first encounter with Princess Leah and company as they escape an ambush from Celyste's invasion. Her fixation on snooping around House Origin left her with no knowledge of the Celyste-Ametona War until Leah provided her with the details, which eventually became a direct problem for her travels. Ultimately, Parvati teams up with Leah and her companions because they offer the safest way to cross Celyste's borders and continue her search for rare runes and relics. It is through these events that she becomes acquainted with the White Lions.

Once the war ended, Parvati went her separate ways from her previous companions and continued her travels to Burga in search of more runes and relics. It was there that she reached another standstill due to the new Queen's coronation and the Proclaimers' involvement. After crossing paths with the White Lions once again, Parvati once again sees an opportunity to further her own expedition by traveling alongside them. Parvati's nature makes her loyal to no one except herself. Always on her feet, she is clever, resourceful, and manipulative, rarely hesitating to bend the truth or use others if it helps further her own agenda.

Recruitment

Part 1: Parvati has two possible recruitment methods depending on the chosen route. Both require Leah to first speak with Parvati in Chapter 2. On Route A, Parvati is recruited by visiting the northern village in Chapter 4: A Path Between. On Route B, Leah must instead speak with Parvati after she appears in Chapter 6. 

Part 2: If recruited and kept alive during Part 1, Parvati rejoins in Chapter 16 by visiting a village or house, depending on the chosen route.

*Rune Location Guide*

Unit Data

Unit Analysis

Parvati is the only playable Runeseeker in the game, making her one of the most unique units in The Lonely Mirror. Rather than wielding conventional tomes, Parvati attacks using runes, powerful but low-durability magical artifacts that she discovers throughout the game by exploring chapter maps. This gives her access to a wide variety of magical effects and elemental coverage that no other character can naturally replicate. Although managing her rune supply requires planning, players willing to invest in exploration will be rewarded with one of the game's most versatile magic users.

Parvati's stat growths are heavily focused on Luck and Resistance, with respectable Speed and Dexterity allowing her to remain accurate and evasive throughout the game. HP, Power, and Defense are her weaker areas, though her overall growth spread is relatively balanced outside of her low HP growth. As a result, Parvati is less of a snowball unit and more of a consistent performer whose effectiveness depends largely on how well the player utilizes her rune arsenal. An early Angelic Robe can significantly improve her survivability if planning to use her long-term.

Runes allow Parvati to wield every major magical element, giving her access to effective damage against a wide variety of enemy types. For example, she can exploit elemental weaknesses against enemy mages, use Bolt Runes to threaten Wyvern units, and wield Bright Runes to deal effective damage against monsters. Unlike traditional mages, Parvati herself has no elemental weakness, which allows her to freely swap between magical elements as the situation demands. However, this flexibility comes at a cost. Runes typically have very limited durability, meaning Parvati must carefully manage her inventory or risk finding herself without strong offensive options. Fortunately, Parvati possesses an unbreakable personal rune, Porcelain, ensuring she is never completely without a means of attack. While its power is fairly low, it serves as a reliable fallback whenever her stronger runes have been exhausted. 

A major downside to Parvati is that she can be cumbersome to level effectively. Because players often conserve their strongest runes, Parvati may see fewer combat opportunities than other mages, which makes it more difficult for her to keep pace in experience. Even so, she remains useful throughout the campaign thanks to her strong availability, her ability to collect additional runes during exploration, and the utility her unique arsenal provides.

Parvati has two excellent promotion options: Trickster and Scholar. Trickster focuses on versatility, granting access to swords and staves while continuing to utilize runes for offense. Scholar greatly improves her magical consistency by granting access to Fire, Wind, Thunder, and Light tomes in addition to runes, which ultimately reduces her reliance on limited-use equipment. Neither promotion is strictly superior, with Trickster favoring utility and mobility while Scholar emphasizes sustained magical offense.

Overall, Parvati excels through adaptability rather than specialization. She may never surpass dedicated mages at their own roles, but few characters can answer as many different situations as she can.  She can be a jack-of-all-trades, but a master of none depending on how she levels. Parvati is a fun unit to use, and with work, she can function as a main mage, secondary mage, or a support unit on any team. Players willing to explore maps, collect runes, and carefully manage her resources will find one of the game's most rewarding and enjoyable utility units.