Valentine War

The Valentine War was a major conflict occurring before the beginning of the game Odin Sphere. It began when the Valentinians came to Erion from flying ships and began to conquer nearby lands, culminating in their control of a third of Erion's landmass before the kingdom was destroyed by Ingway.

Northern Front

The Valentines seemed to be locked in a state of warfare with the Northern Kingdom of Ragnanival for some time. They eventually gained the advantage against the Aesir due to their technological and magical prowess, and eventually whittled down the great army that was once the strongest in Erion. During this time Demon Lord Odin infiltrated Valentine and met the princess Ariel. The two fell in love, though when Ariel became pregnant Odin was forced to leave the princess and his illegitimate children.

She later gave birth to Velvet and Ingway. After discovering this, her father King Valentine went mad with rage and strangled the princess to death, and then coerced her children to obey him. Valentine's actions spread distrust throughout the kingdom, and many believed he had gone insane, which he most likely did. From there he changed, from a once wise and benevolent king to a ruthless dictator.

Eastern Front

The forces of Titania also were having difficulty repelling the Valentine invaders, and in a desperate bid to save his lands King Gallon used the secret magic of Darkova to become a demon beast and destroy the armies of Valentine. His plan worked and he managed to hold off the invasion forces, but he soon lost his mind and his son Edmund was forced to kill him, wielding the Psypher Sword gifted to Titania by Odin. Following this, Edmund bluffed Valentine, claiming he also knew the secret power of Darkova to convince the king not to attempt another invasion of Titania. His bluff worked, and Titania was spared for the duration of the War.

The Fire Kingdom was apparently not involved in the Valentine War. It could be explained that King Valentine saw no purpose in invading the Volkenon Lava Pits or he feared the Vulcan's military power, which was evidently strong enough to easily conquer Ringford. It is also likely he just did not want to engage in a three-front war.

Other Fronts

The War did not reach the Southern Ringford forests or the Western Winterhorn Ridge, though the Valentines did have relations with the Dragons living on Winterhorn's peaks. The Fairies and other races of Ringford at this time were still living in disconnected tribes, and were not yet a military power sufficient of posing interest to Valentine.

Fall of Valentine

The War ended when Ingway attempted to self-detonate the Crystallization Cauldron in an effort to save his father Odin, who he knew would lose the war. Ingway's actions destroyed the kingdom and cursed nearly all of it's occupants into the nearly-harmless form of the Pooka Race, effectively ending the war. The Aesir were the first to arrive at the ruins of Valentine, where Odin gloated to Ingway that he now possessed the Crystallization Cauldron. In actuality, he was only acting to protect his image in front of his troops, but the damage was done.

The Aesir were later driven from the region by the Fairies under Fairy Queen Elfaria, who used the Cauldron to gather Phozons from the world to Ringford, creating a time of prosperity for the Fairies and resulting in their becoming a military power equal to Ragnanival and Titania. The Cauldron War, the next major conflict in Erion's history, likely began shortly after this.