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...No matter what, I won't give up on living.
― Millia Rage[src]

Millia Rage is a recurring character in the Guilty Gear series. A former member of the Assassin's Guild, she fights with the skills of her old occupation in search of a better life. Wielding her cursed hair as a weapon, she is able to give it any shape and form that she desires.

Design[]

Millia has long flowing blonde hair and blue eyes with dark eyelashes. Millia's hair in her in-game stance is seen tied in a ponytail, but given its properties, it changes shape frequently, from cut short to very lengthy, and can take any shape, even that of decorative flowers.

Millia's classic outfit consists of a white blouse with light blue hemlines and a collar that covers the whole of her neck; there are also two straps that run across her collar bone right above her chest. She also wears a leotard under her blouse, padded arms, whole length gloves, and a light blue headband across her forehead and her legs are also bare.

In Xrd, Millia's design has drastically changed, as she now wears a yellow blouse with black hemlines and a large circular pin near the top of her blouse depicting a cat with an "X" over its mouth and eyes with "Curiosity killed the cat" written in cursive on the bottom of the ring around the cat, complete with a matching pillbox hat that has a sign saying "zl-28" and "13", black leggings, white fingerless gloves and peach colored ballet shoes.

In Strive, she now wears a short beige trench coat, with a light orange shawl over her shoulders and a beige fur hat with the Xrd sign attached to it. She wears a P.W.A.B. armband on her left arm, black gloves and a new shade of leggings with black knee-highs boots.

Personality[]

Millia is elegant and calm, but does not hesitate to fight when necessary. Cold and somewhat silent,[4] she was molded by years of assassin conditioning,[4] with an upbringing apparently bereft of much affection.[8] Of serene reactions that show little interest in anything, Millia doesn't feel at disadvantage for being a woman, and makes decisions solely on the basis of cost and benefit.[9] Yet under her cold exterior, she has not completely lost her humanity;[9] she is compassionate, especially to children—she cannot bring herself to harm them[10]—, and believes the life of an assassin to be loathsome.[3]

Perhaps because of her complex relationship with Zato—her savior, teacher, lover,[4] and enemy[3]—, Millia seems to hold men in low regard, thinking them to be selfish,[11] and is not afraid to voice her biting opinions of them.[12][13] As for her decision to leave the Guild[14] (which, no matter what, she sees as her home[15]), Millia chose to do so after a greal deal of thinking, as she didn't want to "keep hating what she hated", and the only way out was betraying Zato.[14] No matter her feelings for him, Millia prioritizes her own will above all,[3][10] and wishes to find happiness. Settling her past, however, has led her to obsession at times.[1][16]

After leaving the Guild[3] and living among ordinary people,[4] Millia remains a lonely individual,[8] but she has learned to tap into a wider range of human emotion, making her more considerate of others, and more compassionate.[17] She also makes sure the danger that follows her does not spread to others.[4] When faced with a situations she doesn't know how to handle, she will act more like a child than her usual, detached self.[5]

Story[]

Background[]

Born in Russia, Millia lost both of her parents to the Crusades at an early age.[3] In 2173,[18] she was found in the ruins of a village and taken in by the Assassin's Guild,[3] now under the recently-appointed[18] leader, Zato-ONE.[4] Taken to be trained as an assassin, Millia activated the 6th Forbidden Spell[19] in 2175,[18] although whether she took the curse freely or if it was forced upon her is unknown.[19] She was then trained to use her hair as a lethal weapon, but Millia wanted no part of such a loathsome life, and tried to commit suicide several times.[3] At the same time, her relationship with Zato evolved from savior, to teacher, to lover, even as she questioned her life as an assassin.[4] Venom, ever protective of Zato, knew of their nights together and treated Millia coldly.[20]

The Guild was then hired to assassinate Duke Dorian Scaburi of Castellia. During the party in honor of King Saltelia I, Millia met Slayer, unaware of his status as the Guild's founder. Later that night, Millia killed the duke in his quarters, but Slayer soon appeared before her. He learned from her that the Guild was not following the code, and asked if Millia was happy with the current organization before disappearing. Due to his meddling, Millia was captured by Leon Mining.[20]

Millia Zato illustration

Illustration with Zato.

In captivity, Millia realized that she didn't want to die, associating that fate with Zato's path. Slayer then reappeared, and freed her as an "apology". Millia returned to find that Zato—unaware of Slayer's actions—agreed to kill Saltelia I to save her from Mining. When she and Zato reached the infant king's room, Millia struck Zato and fled, snatching the baby away,[10] and informed Venom of his death. Yet, upon hearing that Zato was still alive but surrounded by Mining's forces, they both went to his (and Slayer's) rescue. After Mining's defeat, Millia was forgiven by Zato. Taking responsibility for the baby, she found him a foster home with Johnny's help.[21]

Millia, Zato and Slayer would later cooperate again in the Mount Rosa Operation,[22][23] but Millia ultimately decided to cut her ties, and leave the Guild.[4] In 2178,[18] secretly working with the IPF to dismantle the Guild and capture Zato in exchange for her acquittal,[16] Millia took part in a high-risk[18] operation led by Zato, during which she was to act alone. She took the opportunity to flee. Her escape threw the assassin into chaos, allowing them to be caught red-handed, and Zato was arrested and imprisoned. Since then, Millia lived on as a fugitive and resorted to killing her pursuers when backed into a corner.[3]

Guilty Gear[]

In 2180, Millia hears from one of her unlucky pursuers that Zato has escaped from his dimensional prison and is entering the Second Holy Order Selection Tournament. Millia decides to enter as well. Feeling she will never be free until he is dead, Millia is determined to end his life once and for all, and as the tournament's winner, she could use her wish to end the organization forever.[3] During the tournament, Millia defeats Zato,[24] but is unable to kill him. The blood shed during the tournament releases Justice from her seal,[8] but she is promptly destroyed by Sol Badguy.[25] Millia, for her part, remains a fugitive but from her insistent admirer, who has been following her for six months.[8]

Guilty Gear X[]

Given the complex feelings—both guilt and dread[9]—she experiences as a result of her battle with Zato in the last tournament, Millia feels it is time to settle the score once and for all.[24] Prior to October 2181,[note 1] Millia informs Venom that his mission regarding Faust's recruitment is meant to keep him away while certain members try to assassinate Zato in a bid for power. She thus convinces Venom to help her find the missing Zato, even as she openly vows to kill him herself.[26]

Unbeknownst to them, Zato has been possessed by Eddie, who is following the scent of a newly-discovered Gear called Dizzy.[24] In one path, Millia finds and fights Eddie, but isn't able to finish him off and he flees. Zato then regains control of his body, asking for forgiveness as he dies, even as Millia implores him not to. In another path, Millia kills Eddie and Zato; Millia's admirer then appears to cheer her up and assures that she will find meaning in life.[27] With Zato's death,[note 2] Eddie remains in control of his host's corpse.

Guilty Gear XX[]

Ggxplus mm 08

Illustration.

Weeks later, Millia is attacked by I-No, who claims that she "panicked" due to a black beast attacking her. Millia then sets out to find Eddie.[1] In one path, Slayer prevents her from reaching Eddie, and warns that she might end like the dying shadow if she doesn't change the path upon which she treads.[30] In her second path, she bests Slayer and subsequently kills Eddie; fatigued and relieved, Millia returns to her new life.[31] In her third path, I-No is disappointed to see that Millia and the defeated Eddie couldn't kill each other; after defeating the musician, she buries Zato's body, leaving her hair and his blindfold as a memento; despite everything, she thanks him and leaves.[32]

While her revenge against Zato is complete, the Guild is still intact, and Millia is determined to live no matter what. On her way to the Guild's headquarters to settle the matter, Slayer appears to warn her that her hair's forbidden magic might soon corrupt her.[33] In one path, she arrives and attacks Venom; she defeats him but spares his life, making Venom promise that he won't bother her again. Her naivety reminding him of Zato, Venom lets Millia go, making peace with each other. Millia then comes across Eddie, who asks that Millia remember him as he, too, finally dies.[34] Despite finally being free of the guild, a sense of emptiness lingers within Millia as she feels she hasn't had a proper closure.[5]

In her other path, she loses control of her hair and ends up accidentally killing Bridget. Millia's admirer then stabs her, saying it is Millia's fault for never looking at him, and Millia feels content as she dies as herself, not a monster.[11]

Guilty Gear Xrd[]

Having spent the past few years leading a "normal" life—peaceful days without a care in the world, with smiling neighbors full of joy—,[15] in September 29, 2187, Millia is informed by Venom that Zato has been resurrected by the Conclave. Millia investigates their laboratory, the Opera House, guarded by Venom.[35][36] They are reunited with Zato, who vows to protect Millia and warns that war is coming.[35] While surprised by his change in personality, Millia is relieved to see him.[4] After they are joined by Slayer,[37] Zato leaves for Japan to investigate,[38] while Millia, Venom and Slayer agree to deliver such information to an appropiate party, King Ky Kiske of Illyria.[12]

Millia, Venom and Slayer are immediately attacked by Bedman,[12] who teleports himself and their unconscious bodies to near Uighur where Faust, Chipp Zanuff and the Jellyfish Pirates are gathered to attack them as well. Bedman backs off, recalled by his ally, when Zato comes to their aid.[39] The Guild's information ultimately reaches Ky on November 1 when Zato manages to meets with him, Sol and President Gabriel at Zepp.[40]

Around November 7,[15] King Daryl hires the Guild as "soldiers",[41] and Millia convenes with the others at Slayer's mansion—all four working to rebuild the Guild. Although she doesn't quite agree with eliminating Bedman for humiliating them, she plays along,[13] trying to find an answer to why she keeps on fighting herself.[15] Before leaving, Venom asks Millia to look after Zato after what is to come.[42] Millia then helps Slayer train; he questions if she really wants to lead a so-called "normal" life,[43] and Millia admits that she doesn't want to be left behind. Privately, Millia acknowledges that normal for her is life in the Guild, but she won't return to a dark void; she will create a place for others to return, and vows to become the next leader of the Guild.[15]

Ggxrdr Slayer Millia Zato

New future.

Thanks to Zato's abilities, they locate Bedman, and Slayer engages him in a fight, but Millia stops him before long as they are just testing Zato's accuracy.[44] It is Venom and Robo-Ky who take down Bedman[22] at the same time that Millia, Zato, Slayer and the other assassins participate in the defense of the capitol against the Universal Will's forces.[45] During the fight, Millia and Zato are reminded by Slayer of an old man they met during the Mount Rosa Operation, and Millia orders their men to hold the line, after which tomorrow will have a much different meaning.[22] The battle comes to an end when Ariels is defeated and Jack-O' Valentine merges with Justice.[46]

Guilty Gear -Strive-[]

In the following weeks, King Daryl reinstitutes the Post-War Administration Bureau, hiring the assassins due to their skill at informational warfare.[6] Millia, inheriting the guild's philosophy and beliefs, gathers the guild's former members and reforms the Bureau, becoming its director, to support the Illyrian government.[5] Upon the U.S. agreeing to That Man's involvement at the G4 Summit, they request that all nations involved help with security.[47] Daryl thus calls Millia and Zato as "specialists" for their assistance to investigate the White House's security. At the Illyrian War Room, they inform Daryl and Leo Whitefang of the "black box" they found, and Daryl departs for the summit. Unbeknownst to them, Happy Chaos hacks into their files.[6]

After the summit starts, Leo decides to leave the box be, but then Zato realizes they have been hacked. Meanwhile, Chaos takes Daryl and the other representatives hostage and launches all missiles in the world. Zato manually deactivates the castle's weapons, while the other missiles are deactivated by the dignitaries themselves.[48] Sol then rescues Vernon, who contacts Zepp, and Gabriel establishes a link with the Pentagon and Illyria Castle. After Chaos activates the White House's Tír na nÓg mode, Millia advises everyone on how to approach the aircraft,[49] and oversees its analysis by the Illyrian operators.[50]

Thanks to Leo buying time, Sol and Vernon reach the White House's escape pod, and That Man tricks Chaos into seemingly being ejected. Leo realizes that he is still onboard and tries to alert them,[51] but Chaos uses That Man's Tome of Origin to restore I-No to godhood. As with the rest of the world, Millia witnesses I-No starting a process to grant humanity her same powers, but she is soon defeated by those aboard the White House. In the aftermath, Millia, Zato, Leo and Ky reflect upon the future I-No wanted. Sometime afterward, Zato takes Millia to see Robo-Ky and Venom at his bakery.[52]

Abilities[]

Taken by the Assassin's Guild at young age, Millia has received extensive training that has molded her into a deadly weapon.[14] Having activated the experimental[16] 6th Forbidden Magic Spell "Angra", for which she paid a steep, but unknown price,[53] Millia is able to freely manipulate and control her hair[19] and use it as a lethal weapon.[3] It is alive,[31] even becoming restless in the presence of someone like Slayer,[30] and can be thought of as an equivalent to a Gear or a Forbidden Beast.[16] As a forbidden magic, there is a possibility that she could be corrupted by it,[33] and lose herself to the magic that gave her her power, as it happened with Zato.[4][30] As it is much more stable than Eddie,[14] this has yet to occur.

Her hair is capable of assuming a myriad of odd shapes such as a sword, a harp, a unicorn, or even wings (which allow her to briefly fly), or to control it even after the strands are no longer attached to her head, as seen in her Iron Maiden technique. Millia's hair shines with golden lights when attacking, and appears able to use magic to create orbs, discs, or spikes to attack her enemy.

Gameplay-wise, Millia's playstyle focuses completely on melee and speed. She has simple attack controls for her special moves, yet due to her low defense, she must make up for it with continuous attacks. She is able to easily build meter, and has a lot of mobility to create combos on the ground or in the air.

Music[]

Rivalry themes

Quotes[]

Allusions[]

  • Millia's name comes from Meliah Rage, a American thrash-metal band from the 1980s. It was named after the Meliah tribe, who used opium before battles to fall in a battle rage. Rage is also a German metal band, which had a solid success in Japan.
  • Millia's Iron Maiden is named after the famous English metal band.
  • Several of Millia's specials are named after German power-metal bands, those being Iron Savior, Silent Force, and her Overdrive Chroming Rose.
  • Winger, one of her Overdrives, is the name of an American hard-rock band, while Emerald Rain is a Canadian melodic-rock band.
  • Her Overdrive Septem Voices shares its name with a Russian symphonic/gothic metal band.
  • The name of her Forbidden Spell, Angra, is a reference to a Brazilian power-metal band of the same name.
    • Coincidentally, her Secret Garden move shares its name with one of their albums, but the album was released over a decade after the move's debut in Guilty Gear X.
  • Millia's hair pin in Xrd has a "Lady Sun" inscription, which is a song by the band Earth, Wind & Fire.
  • Longinus is the name given to the unnamed Roman soldier who pierced the side of Jesus with a lance, and is considered to be the first Christian according to some circles.
  • “Lust Shaker” is probably a reference to the song “Heart Shaker” by the 1982 all-girls band “Leather Angel” in their album “We Came to Kill”.
  • “The Spear of Longinus” is another band.—“Iron Saber” gets its name from the band “Iron Savior”.
  • “Secret Garden” is a dual reference to the bands “Secret Garden” and “Secret Sphere”.
  • “Emerald Rain”, “Winger”, and “Iron Maiden” are all famous rock and metal bands.
  • “Bad Moon” comes from the song “Bad Moon Rising” by John Fogerty/Rory Gallagher/Creedence Clearwater Revival, it’s also a reference to the band “Silent Moon” and also the song “Silent Moon” by Bruce Springsteen.
  • “Pretty Maze” comes from the lyrics of the song “By My Side” by 3 Doors Down. It’s also a reference to the song “The Maze” by Dokken.
  • “Particularly the song “Nothing to Say” has a similar music style to Millia’s Theme.
  • “Condemned” is a pretty common band name, so it’s hard to know which one it’s referring to. Though it might refer to the Japanese Thrash Metal Band, it’s more likely referring to the 1992 split-up Swedish Thrash Metal Band…but it could also be referring to the Doom Metal Band “Condemned Cell” out of Moscow/Russia.
  • “Living Lancer” comes from the Spanish Death Metal Band “Living Pain”.—“Bug Bite” comes from the Band Soulstorm’s 1988 album “Dirge”.
  • On an assassination mission in the Drama CD Night of Knives, Millia Rage takes the alias “Millia Carrie”. This is a double-reference: the first reference comes from the 1976 Supernatural Horror Film and novel by Stephen King “Carrie” (and its 2010 and 2013 remakes), and its sequel “The Rage: Carrie 2”; the second reference comes from the sad Power Ballad “Carrie”, a 1987 hit single by the Swedish hard rock band “Europe”.

Trivia[]

GG dengeki 3

Pre-release profile.

  • In pre-release concept art for Guilty Gear, Millia is stated to be 21 years old and from Brazil instead of Russia, wearing a very different outfit and using knives as her weapons instead of her hair.
  • Millia's favorite flower is the Easter Lily, which to Millia means "Do what you will."[35]
  • Millia's clothing are seemingly designed by Lady Ivy Traditional, as labeled in her Xrd outfit.
  • Since Millia's birth date is unknown (due to her being an orphan), Arc System Works's global twitter account proposed April 20 as Millia's non-official birthday.[54]
    • However, with the trend of characters sharing birthdays with their original voice actors, it could also be July 11, Yuko Sumitomo's birthday. Interestingly, the back of Zato's belt reads "M-711-X", which would match Millia's "Z128" hat, if it is indeed her initial and birthday.
  • In Strive, Millia will sometimes perform a Post-War Administration Bureau Risk Rating assessment of her defeated opponent as a win pose.
  • Costumes based on Millia's Xrd look appears in Border Break X Zero, and based on her Strive look in Tales of the Rays, for Muzét.
  • Millia has made guest appearances in the following games: Lord of Vermilion III, Crusaders Quest, Brave Frontier, Mabinogi Duel, #COMPASS, Code Shifter, Counter:Side, Elemental Story, and Destiny Child.

Gallery[]

External links[]

Notes[]

  1. Endings of Guilty Gear X and May's backstory involve Johnny's birthday, which falls on October 24.
  2. Library Mode/GG World posits that Zato's death was a result of his own physical and mental weaknesses,[28] and/or the overuse of his own shadow, which erodes the host's life force.[29]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Guilty Gear XX script § "Crimson bait"
  2. 2.0 2.1 Guilty Gear Complete Bible, pg.60-61
  3. 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 Guilty Gear manual, pg.23-24
  4. 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 [GGWorld - "Millia Rage"]
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 [GGWorld2 - "Millia Rage"]
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Guilty Gear -Strive- script § "Omen"
  7. MILLIA | CHARACTER | GUILTY GEAR -STRIVE- | ARC SYSTEM WORKS
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Guilty Gear script § "Millia"
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 GuiltyGearX.com
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 Guilty Gear XX Drama CD Night of Knives Vol.2 script § "Kiss of the Blood"
  11. 11.0 11.1 Guilty Gear XX Λ Core Plus script § "I'm sorry path"
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- script § "Devastation B"
  13. 13.0 13.1 Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Contact A"
  14. 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Guilty Gear Codex, pg.13,51,55,57,60
  15. 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Millia"
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 Guilty Gear XX Λ Core Plus script § "Record ♯8127"
  17. Guilty Gear Xrd Visual Book, pg.20-21
  18. 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 [GGWorld - Chronology]
  19. 19.0 19.1 19.2 [GGWorld - "Angra"]
  20. 20.0 20.1 Guilty Gear XX Drama CD Night of Knives Vol.1 script § "Dance Like a Devil"
  21. Guilty Gear XX Drama CD Night of Knives Vol.3 script § "Duel of the Wolves"
  22. 22.0 22.1 22.2 Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Wall A"
  23. [GGWorld - "Mount Rosa"]
  24. 24.0 24.1 24.2 Guilty Gear X manual, pg.4,27,29
  25. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- manual, pg.3-4
  26. Guilty Gear X Drama CD Vol.2 script § "???"
  27. Guilty Gear X Plus script § "Millia"
  28. [GGWorld - "Eddie"]
  29. [GGWorld - "Pact of the Shadows"]
  30. 30.0 30.1 30.2 Guilty Gear XX script § "Millia Path 1"
  31. 31.0 31.1 Guilty Gear XX script § "Millia Path 2"
  32. Guilty Gear XX script § "Millia Path 3"
  33. 33.0 33.1 Guilty Gear XX Λ Core Plus script § "Final freedom"
  34. Guilty Gear XX Λ Core Plus script § "Just a little path"
  35. 35.0 35.1 35.2 Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- script § "Millia"
  36. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- script § "Venom"
  37. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- script § "Slayer"
  38. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- script § "Zato"
  39. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- script § "Threat B"
  40. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- script § "Sign A"
  41. Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Revelator B"
  42. Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Venom"
  43. Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Slayer"
  44. Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Sense B"
  45. Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Thesis B"
  46. Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- script § "Fireworks"
  47. Guilty Gear -Strive- script § "Encounter"
  48. Guilty Gear -Strive- script § "Intruder"
  49. Guilty Gear -Strive- script § "Myth"
  50. Guilty Gear -Strive- script § "Confrontation"
  51. Guilty Gear -Strive- script § "Conclusion"
  52. Guilty Gear -Strive- script § "Strive"
  53. [GGWorld - "Covenant of the Condemned"]
  54. @ArcSystemWorksU. (April 20, 2020). "Happy Birthday Millia! Have a great hairday, I mean birthday!👱🏻‍♀️ #GuiltyGear"


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