| Soul Edge (Nauplius) | |
|---|---|
 Soul Edge (Original) | |
| Wielder | Nightmare |
| Weapon type | Soul Edge |
| Price | 9,000 Gold |
| Attack | 210 |
| Defense | 40 |
| HP | 25 |
| Power | 40 |
| Impact | 30 |
| Boost | 30 |
| Gauge | 0 |
| Special | 0 |
| Native skill | Slow Feet |
Soul Edge (Nauplius) (ソウルエッジ（ノープリウス）?) is one of Nightmare's weapons in Soulcalibur IV and Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny. As was shown in Soulcalibur IV, this is the original form of Soul Edge.
In the beginning, the weapon that became Soul Edge was once an ornate greatsword. As it slowly evolved into a living demonic weapon, its trademark fleshy growths and eyeballs appeared on the hilt of the blade. The hero king Algol's impossibly powerful unyielding will allowed him to safely use the power of Soul Edge for good intents (and was the source of much of his power). His son, Arcturus, however, jealously tried to take the power of Soul Edge for himself. Naturally, Soul Edge was far too powerful for Arcturus's inexperienced mind, and the sword possessed the youth and tried to make him murder his father. Algol was forced to kill Arcturus in self-defense, something he deeply regrets, even thousands of years later. Algol eschewed the demon sword, keeping only a few fragments to use in creation of Soul Calibur.
This form has shown up only two other times. In Soulcalibur IV, it appears as one of Nightmare's weapons, known as "Soul Edge (Nauplius)", and an illusion of Arcturus made by Zasalamel to fight Algol in his story mode wields it as well.
Nomenclature[]
The naupliar stage is the first larval form of all crustaceans. A creature in such a stage is called a "nauplius" (plural nauplii). Nauplii consist of only a head and a tail, and have only one eye. The rest of the creature forms as it continues to grow. This is notably similar to the way this early incarnation of Soul Edge has a fleshy "head" growth with a single one of its trademark eyes, and a "tail" made by a then-uncorrupted metal blade.
Trivia[]
- As the traditional "fleshy" Soul Edge design seen from Soulcalibur through Soulcalibur III is absent from Soulcalibur IV, this form of Soul Edge bears the closest resemblence to its older form. The sword also bears a slight visible likeness to Soul Edge (Male) during its time under Cervantes, though considerably larger in size.
- Unlike older Soul Edge designs, the eye seen in Soul Edge (Nauplius) does not blink.
Gallery[]
