Relius Clover

Relius Clover is Carl Clover and Ada Clover's father, and Ignis Clover's husband. He was a colonel in the Engineering Department for the Novus Orbis Librarium, and worked alongside Hazama as one of the main antagonists of the series until BlazBlue: Chronophantasma. He is a playable character starting with BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend.

Information
Relius is a genius alchemist known as the "Puppeteer". At some point before the start of BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger, he disappeared without a trace.

Relius is known and feared by Tsubaki Yayoi and Makoto Nanaya. He also seems to know and dislike Jubei of the Six Heroes. Carl, his son, hates him for taking Ada and his mother away. Carl spends a majority of his travels in pursuit of Relius. During Noel Vermillion's story in BlazBlue: Continuum Shift, Relius attempted to kidnap her in order to 'examine' her, and he seems to have gotten a hold of Arakune at the end of his respective story. He did not hesitate to attack his own son when confronted by him.

His experiments include the resurrection of the Nox Nyctores named Deus Machina: Nirvana, which he harvested his daughter's body to create. He completed this project with help from Kokonoe of Sector Seven. His own puppet, the Fluctus Redactum: Ignis, was created from the body of his wife, Ignis, who is similar in appearance to Nirvana, although she has a red dress, blue, human-like eyes, a more slender head dress, a top hat instead of a bow, and hooked fingers.

Other creations of his include the artificial body of Yūki Terumi: Kazuma Kuvaru; Relius became the tutor of Kazuma and is inadvertently responsible for his fusion with Terumi to become Hazama. He is also rumored to have created the zeroth Boundary Interface Prime Field Device that was used to explore the Boundary.

He also seems to have been involved with the creation of Lambda-11 and Nu-13, as told in Lambda's storyline and the extra story "That Which is Inherited", and by extension, possibly the other Murakumo Units as well.

Relius is seen alongside Phantom and the Imperator of the NOL. He is also working with Hazama to achieve his goals, which at this point are unknown.

In the past, he worked alongside Kokonoe, under a group known as the "Sin Architects". During an experiment with Shūichirō Ayatsuki while using the first Boundary Interface Prime Field Device, they unknowingly unleashed the Black Beast that was sent back through time.

Continuum Shift Extend
In Relius' arcade ending in Continuum Shift Extend, he runs into Hazama following his defeat by Ragna the Bloodedge (possibly in the true ending). The two aren't antagonistic towards each other by their conversation, but Hazama decides to fight him for an unknown reason. After losing, Yūki Terumi tells Relius that the Life Link between him and Noel is secure, along with speaking of "Kushinada's Lynchpin". After hearing from Phantom that Ragna defeated Kusanagi, Relius uses Ignis to rip out Terumi's throat and force his spirit from his body; an opportunity which Terumi uses to infiltrate and disable Takamagahara. Relius stays behind and contemplates on the current situation.

In both his and Valkenhayn R. Hellsing's Continuum Shift Extend story modes, it is revealed that when he was swallowed by the Cauldron during the initial experiment with Terumi and Shūichirō Ayatsuki, he did not die; he was actually sent forward 80 years into the future, to the year 2179. In the process, he lost his memory, but gradually started to regain it over the years, stating that the feeling was as exhilarating as placing books back on shelves (a personal pastime of his). After reuniting with Terumi, he continues working with him in secret, and during the timeskip to the present day meets and marries Ignis, which in turn leads to the birth of Carl and Ada.

Chronophantasma
It was shown that he and Terumi were working for Izanami to call Amaterasu. To do so, Relius traveled across Ikaruga, opening all the Cauldrons so that seithr could flow more freely throughout the world. At some point he encounters Jin Kisaragi who confronts him regarding the Cauldron. They fight and although Jin is victorious, Relius escapes after successfully opening the Cauldron. Afterwards, he is confronted by Carl who demands answers including a way to restore Ada. Relius reveals that although he cannot bring her original body back, he can just "create Ada again", possibly referring to a replacement body for her soul. Carl is astonished at this revelation and finds it hard to believe, but Relius reminds Carl that, despite his villainous reputation, he has always been honest with his son. Later, he appears at Kushinada's Lynchpin in Wadatsumi to open the final Cauldron and encounters Ragna, Bang, Noel, and Celica. Ragna demands to know exactly what he's up to and so Relius reveals his ultimate goal: to recreate the world as he envisions as it's "architect" and make all gods, such as Amaterasu and even Izanami, obsolete. After Ragna chases after Nu when she heads for Hazama, Relius then engages Bang in combat while Litchi and Carl fight Tsubaki and Makoto, both of which were sent by Kagura. Just when it appears that Bang will miss his timing to activate Rettenjō, Valkenhayn appears to fight Relius and allows Bang enough time to fulfill his role.

After the Lynchpin activates, Relius, Litchi, and Carl retreat. With his plan ruined, Relius is then at the mercy of Carl and Litchi as the former demands that Relius begin working on a new body for Ada to which he submits, remarking on how Carl's ambition is interesting.

Personality
Relius is the twisted, evil mirror image of his son Carl. While he is calculating and courteous like his son, he is cold and utterly devoid of empathy. His only true care in the world is his research. Relius is even willing to go so far as to kill gods for the sake of science – a curiosity which Terumi just so happened to pique.

It is revealed through  Continuum Shift Extend' s Story Mode that part of Relius' lack of empathy stems from his prior experiments, as well as his experience in the Boundary. During the process of creating Nirvana, as well as the time he fell into the Cauldron, he saw what he believed to be a person's "true form": a ball of bluish-green light which Relius refers to as a person's soul. From this "revelation", Relius began seeing humans as nothing more than "things", rather than living beings and therefore their existence is meaningless (excluding himself).

In BlazBlue: Chronophantasma, he reveals that his allegiance with Izanami is merely a means to an end. In truth, Relius finds the world repulsive and doomed to repeat the same mistakes over and over again. To rectify this, he intends to recreate the world as he envisions, becoming its "ultimate architect", a world where beings such as Amaterasu and Izanami will no longer be necessary. However, Bang foils his plans and Izanami betrays him leaving him to his fate, causing him to have a massive breakdown that lets him get beaten to near death by Valkenhayn. Now an empty shell of his former self, he goes so far as to being manipulated by his son and Litchi until he fixes Ada.

Appearance
Relius is similar in appearance to his son Carl. He shares his son's light blond hair and an affinity for the color purple, although the shade of purple he wears is magenta instead of violet. He also wears a golden opera mask, but the reason for this has not been made clear as of yet.

On his younger years, his appearance is not too different; key differences, however, include shoulder-length hair, a white chemise collar shirt with maroon cuffs, a white scarf with a purple gem, a purple vest, and black trousers.

Powers and Abilities
Relius possesses a vast knowledge of both science and magic, and has created several weapons utilizing his intellect, such as the Murakumo Units, the Nox Nyctores named Nirvana, and his own puppet Ignis, using his own wife's body and soul as a catalyst. He has also survived numerous brushes with death.

Armed with his immense knowledge in magic, mechanics, ars magus and his puppet Ignis, Relius has been shown to be one of the most powerful and dangerous beings in the BlazBlue universe, having fought and defeated the likes of Valkenhayn of the Six Heroes in some of their encounters and rarely showing any effort in any of his fights seen thus far.

Etymology
Relius is a fictional name in the BlazBlue universe. The name seems to be derived from the Latin name Aurelius which means Golden; it is typically a name given to males since Anglo-Saxon times but it has greatly declined in popularity.

Clover is much simpler in origin and merely a species of grass of which the leaf is split is divided into three or four different leaves.

Trivia

 * His birthday, June 1, is International Children's Day.
 * Most of Relius' special moves are in Latin while most of Carl's are in Italian. This could be a comparison likening Relius to Rome, which was the predecessor of modern Italy, represented by Carl.
 * When electrocuted, Relius' skeleton reveals various mechanical parts, such as gears and a prosthetic arm. This could imply that Relius had begun experimenting on himself at some point in the past.
 * His Astral Heat uses different binding methods for each character:
 * Ragna: Arms bound to an X-shaped stake with an irritated expression on his face.
 * Jin: Arms are chained spread-eagle, while legs are chained at the ankles.
 * Noel, Lambda, Nu, Mu: Placed inside a Murakumo unit test tube. The Japanese text on the right of each device has different readings for each Murakumo. Naturally, Noel and Mu have the same readings, but with different character sprites, while Lambda and Nu use the same sprite but with palettes swapped. During this time, dry ice-like fog can be seen on the floor.
 * Rachel: Tied via rose vines to a cross. Gii is morphed into a tabernacle and Nago, still an umbrella, is being constricted by a vine.
 * Taokaka: Locked inside a pet cage.
 * Tager: Limbs magnetized by 2 giant U-magnets. This one actually uses various different sprites for Tager.
 * Litchi: Kneeling on the ground with her hands tied to her enlarged staff. Lao Jiu is tied above her, unable to help. A magic circle on the floor is used to trap the character.
 * Arakune: Poured inside a huge lab beaker/flask while being burned alive by a bunsen burner. Strangely, his mask appears to be sweating.
 * Bang: Hands are tied behind his back as cinderblocks are placed on his knees to break his legs. A large row of cinderblocks yet to be placed are seen behind him. A magic circle on the floor is used to trap the character.
 * Carl: He and Ada are suspended by puppet strings in a marionette fashion.
 * Hakumen: Chained to the seal Kokonoe used on him in his Story Mode in Continuum Shift.
 * Tsubaki:
 * Continuum Shift Extend: Sits on the floor praying, facing the wrong way (back turned to Relius) as her blindness has overcome her. Strangely, some of Izayoi's feathers are seen around her. A magic circle on the floor is used to trap the character.
 * Chronophantasma: Stands with hands chained above her head, back still turned to Relius although she is trying to face him. A magic circle on the floor is used to trap the character.
 * Hazama : Sits in a chair looking bored. The way he sits is a reference to Phase Shift 1. A magic circle on the floor is used to trap the character.
 * Makoto: Panicking while trapped inside a giant hamster ball. A magic circle on the floor is used to trap the character.
 * Valkenhayn: Strapped via leather belts to an iron maiden and gagged so he cannot bite back.
 * Platinum: Inside a barrel with swords slotted in, crying a fountain of tears.
 * Mirror-Relius: Lies asleep in a different chair opposite of the winning Relius while the losing Ignis is disabled.
 * Amane: Locked inside an ancient Japanese brothel cage used for displaying prostitutes, sitting down and facing away from Relius while hiding his face with his sleeve.
 * Bullet: Put in crawling position, hands bound behind her back with red tape.
 * Azrael: Crucified on a cross made from a long board and stocks, then hung upside-down from a magic circle on the ceiling.
 * Izayoi: Arms held above her head by a giant puppet arm, which sprouts smaller arms that grab the rest of her body.
 * Kagura Mutsuki: Suspended in the air with his hands tied behind his back with rope from a gallows stand. His Zweihander is on the ground and out of his reach.
 * Yūki Terumi: Sitting in a chair with his arms tied behind it. Behind him is a mirror that reflects his ghost form, effectively creating a looping paradox.
 * Kokonoe: Strapped into a chair with a cat-shaped helmet on her head with several tubes connecting it to a mind-reading machine.
 * Also, in his Astral Heat, if one looks closely at the lighting on the walls, several shadows of dangling corpses can be seen as well as what appears to be their blood. They are possibly previous test subjects who died during procedures.
 * In the console version of Chronophantasma, characters now say specific lines when hit by Relius' Astral Heat.