The Grobe Basin ｢グローブ
Overview[]
The Grobe Basin is located in the Kühl Region in the Northern Lands. It is a low-lying area of land surrounded by higher-elevation mountains on all sides. It features hills with caves. Water collects in the central lake from creeks and rivers that flow from the hills and mountains. The basin is densely forested and populated by various monsters and other fauna.
Synopsis[]
First-Class Mage Exam (First Stage)[]
- Main article: First-Class Mage Exam
Ehre points out the Stille in a tree.
Twenty-nine years after Hero Himmel's passing, 75 examinees of the First-Class Mage Exam including Frieren and Fern get grouped into groups of three.[1] In Frieren's group II are Kanne and Lawine.[2] Fern in group IV is together with Übel and Land.[3] Genau, the first-class mage proctoring the test, chooses the Grobe Basin as the location for the first stage.[1]
The goal of the exam is to capture a Stille, a meteoric iron bird that can fly faster than the speed of sound, in a cage at the next day's sunset without losing any party members. Because the Stille is sensitive to mana and cannot be detected by mana, many participants are forced into battles with each other in order to try to secure a bird. Participants must take into account the geographical features of the basin,[2] including the barrier placed by Serie that prevents rain and river water from entering the basin, as well as the ecology of the basin, especially the Geisel.
Because the young mages in Frieren's group bicker she is forced to take the lead. They introduce each other and Frieren says she has some knowledge of the Stille but has never seen one herself. The group investigates the area for bird signs. When they have a break, Lawine declares herself stronger than Kanne and goes scouting ahead to find a Stille at the central lake. Frieren makes Kanne in a roundabout way aware to be wary of the sky. Lawine leads the rest to the lake. Kanne uses her water-bending magic assisted by Lawine with her freezing magic to immobilize a Stille. They trap the Stille in ice, but it breaks free and elopes with supersonic speed. The rest of the day they observe the habits of the bird.[2]
Late at night Kanne wakes up at the camp and notices Frieren is gone. She gets surprise attacked by an aerial monster the Geisel. Frieren rescues Kanne while also trying out her folk-magic spell to bind birds. Kanne calms down in a conversation with Frieren where she looks back in kind how Lawine helps her improve. Around the same time Fern caught a Stille and comes back to her group members.[2] The next day Frieren's group strategizes how to catch a Stille with the information gathered. Frieren has an idea. They will infuse bodies of water with mana. This drives thirsty Stille to a location without mana.[3]
Übel in Fern's group gets thirsty and proposes to gather water.[3] While on the walk they get ambushed by the 8th group of Wirbel, Ehre and Scharf.[4] Facing off, the two groups are surprised by the mana release that happens when Lawine freezes the central lake over as part of Frieren's strategy. They scatter into one on one matches.[3]
Fern has a match with Ehre who uses her spell: Doragate to change rocks into bullets. Ehre remarks that Fern's technique is like fighting her grandfather Lernen. Frieren's student only uses basic ordinary offensive and defensive magic. They converse about the individuals and their strengths. Fern sees Fern sees Ehre as the strongest of her group, while Ehre thinks Wirbel is. They engage in an exchange of attacks. Fern uses a barrage of offensive magic pressing down Ehres defense and defeating her.[4]
At the same time, Scharf and Land stand off at a clearing. Scharf uses his spell creation conjuring a field of flowers and turning the petals into metal: Jubelade. Land makes Scharf aware that he observes opponents first and that Scharf lacks fundamentals such as mana detection. Scharf attacks. When Scharf feels the most confident Land appears behind him to take him out of action with a shock spell. Land reveals that Scharf did not fight him, but only a clone.[5]
Übel attacks Wirbel with her spell: Reelseiden, which slashes almost anything. Wirbel becomes aware it is short-ranged. At an opportunity, he uses his binding spell: Sorganeil, declaring he can easily kill her. Removing the binding he gives Übel the chance to walk off leaving the cage with the Stille behind. Übel concludes the binding spell has a condition, that the opponent has to be in full view. She throws the cage as a distraction into the air and charges Wirbel. He binds her again. They have a conversation about how there are people who enjoy killing. Übel's personal belief is, that magic someone specializes in, is connected to their life and character. She deduces Wirbel's binding spell gives him time to prepare to kill somebody. Wirbel agrees. As he charges a spell to kill Übel, Fern appears beside him and prompts him to stop.[4]
Asked if Fern killed Ehre, she confirms it. He concludes they have lost. Wirbel walks away releasing Übel from the binding. He searches for Ehre and finds her out of mana at the location where she fought Fern. Wirbel carries her on his back to find Scharf. They come across him incapacitated. Wirbel floats the mage with a spell and the three move on searching for a Stille. During a conversation about Wirbel's intention to become a first-class mage, a lucky opportunity presents itself. The group catches a Stille which they hold on to till they pass the exam.[5]
While groups IV and VIII fight, others try to melt the ice. Some groups around the lake reorientate their effort catching a Stille to other places, noticing that the lake with mana infusion will repel the birds.[3] Denken member of the 13th group with Richter and Laufen sees that Frieren's group has a plan and proposes to take away their Stille. Denken's group, waiting for Frieren to catch the bird, comes across another group that has fallen victim to the aerial monster Geisel. When Laufen suggests taking the bodies out of the trees Denken explains the monster's hunting trick, by luring prey with the corps of victims. The group lays in wait for Frieren's move.[6]
In the meantime, Frieren's group prepares bodies of water. They come together at a waterhole without mana infusion. Frieren suppresses her mana aura to a minimum and the other two hide nearby. Before a Stille lands on Frieren's shoulder which she spellbinds with the folkmagic, other creatures a dog-dear-like beast and a Geisel quench their thirst without paying attention to Frieren's presence. Frieren catches the bird but releases mana in the process that alerts Denken's team.[6] Laufen uses her high speed movement spell: Jilwer to close the distance and take away the cage with the Stille. Denken and Richter approach Frieren and reveal themself because Laufen left mana traces that Frieren could follow to take the Stille back.[5]
Denken recognizes Frieren as the mage of the Hero Party. Frieren has noticed that her group was followed and is surprised that Denken challenges her. Richter at first wants to kill Frieren's other two group members, to secure the privilege granted by Serie. Denken holds him back and makes him babysit the girls. For that, Richter separates with his earth control spell: Bargland Lawine, Kanne and himself raising a land out of the ground like a mesa. Denken thinks he can defeat Frieren, but his reason to fight isn't the privilege. It is the pursuit of magic itself as the greatest joy which Frieren agrees.[7]
Richter puts down the attempts of Lawine and Kanne to defeat him. He gives them a lesson about the latest developments of duel magic declaring that his earth manipulation is superior to Lawines spell: Nephtear and freezing technique and Kanne who is a water mage without water. The three stop the hostility for the moment and wait for the conclusion of the fight between Frieren and Denken. They fight in air combat until Denken realizes that he can not sustain it with his mana. Denken lands and creates a fire tornado combining the wind spell: Walgose and the fire spell: Daosdorg which Frieren effortlessly resists with a sphere of defensive magic. Denken attempts to whittle Frieren with his Lights of Judgment spell: Catastrophia down. He gets surprise attacked by Frieren during the cast and she closes the distance to blast him with offensive magic. Defeated he has no mana left.[8]
To get back the Stille, Frieren prompts Laufen to rescue Denken by acting like she would harm the old man. Laufen uses Jilwer to get Denken out of harm's way but is caught by Frieren. She then takes back the Stille and binds Laufen and Denken to a tree with magic. With the defeat of Denken, Richter takes action to kill Frieren's group members. But Frieren finished her analysis of the barrier.[8] She casts a spell to dispel it. Serie notices the barrier break from a distance and comments it with the words: "This is why I can't retire. In the world of magic, even heaven and earth could turn upside down." Rain drops inside the testing ground and Kanne is free to manipulate the water. She casts her spell: Reamstroha. This creates a sphere of water, that she drops on Richter who gets spilled off the mesa. Frieren regroups with her teammates and congratulates them on defeating Richter. They pass the test without another incident.[9]
Richter gets washed to Denken and Laufen. Denken won't give up. He suggests Laufen should cut the tree to free them from the binding. All three of them are now out of mana. The group searches for other teams that are in the same boat. They come across a group that already has lost a member but caught a Stille. Denken and Richter secure the bird with a fistfight. At last, their group passes the exam. While all this was happening Fern's group had taken shelter in a cave. Fern and Übel talk about spells. Land urges Fern not to give away all her abilities since they could end up as enemies at a later stage. They stay till evening and pass the exam.[9]
While this was ongoing, the proctor Genau is visited by second exam proctor Sense. Sense describes Genau's test as a battle between examinees disguised as a lucky hunting competition. Genau disagrees and takes Frieren's group as an example of a party that didn't need luck, but had a strategy.[7] When the fight between Denken and Frieren happens, Sense asks Genau, if the barrier will hold while it is torched by the fire-tornado. Genau is sure it does. Sense then remarks that since the last night someone is analyzing the barrier, which Genau deems to be a pointless endeavor.[8] When Frieren finally breaks the barrier, Genau demands to know who she is. Sense informs him that she is Frieren, the mage of the Hero Party and a holder of a Holy Wand Emblem signifying the elf as a great mage.[9]
In the evening Genau declares the exam is over. Out of 57, 18 mages pass the first stage of the exam. Besides the four groups around Frieren, Fern, Wirbel, and Denken two other groups make it. The team of Methode with the other mages Länge and Ton and the members of Edel with Blei and Dünste.[9]
Inhabitants & Visitors[]
Visitors[]
- Serie
- Genau
- Sense
- 57 First-Class Mage Exam examinees
Events[]
- Serie sets up a barrier for the test area.
- Frieren and Fern successfully pass the first test of the First-Class Mage Exam proctored by Genau.
Ecology[]
The Grobe Basin in the Kühl Region in the Northern Lands is a lower plane surrounded by hills and mountains, with creeks and rivers irrigating a central lake. It is densely forested with deciduous trees and much undergrowth. The basin features rich wildlife such as a dog-dear-like beast and most notably inhabits natively the extraordinary Stille birds. Dangerous creatures are also present with the aerial monsters Geisel as outstanding predators.
Gallery[]
Anime[]
Manga[]
Concept Art[]
Trivia[]
- The Grobe Basin was localized as the "Größe Basin" by Viz Media, whereas "Größe" would be German for "size / extent / bigness", same as in the name of Größe Forest. However, official media for the anime call the basin the "Grobe Basin." The German term "grob" would mean "rough / rude / tough".
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 37.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 38.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 39.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 41.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 42.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 40.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 43.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 44.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Manga: Chapter 45.