Egil

Egil (, Egil), is a primary antagonist of Xenoblade Chronicles. He is the leader of Mechonis and wants to destroy all life on Bionis. He is Miqol's son and Vanea's brother.

Appearance and personality
Egil is a Machina with yellow-orange accents. While it is difficult to distinguish between body and clothes, he possesses an m-shaped headpiece, pauldrons with needle-like protrusions, conical sleeves, a regal-like skirt, and sharp high heels.

Egil is a tragic villain who has brought himself to doing the wrong thing for the right reason in blind revenge. He is stubborn and resolute, thinking little about the consequences of his actions beyond his primary goal: avenging his fellow Machina who were killed by the Bionis, and does not care for the opinions of others that do not align with his own. He does however respect those that he views as worthy opponents, and will explain himself to them with the intent of recruiting them to his cause.

Story arc
While Yaldabaoth is glimpsed beforehand as he gives orders to move against the Bionis, Egil is first introduced by name at Valak Mountain, when he arrives to return the misbehaving Face Nemesis and Metal Face to Mechonis. Shulk demands answers to why he's doing what he is, but he simply ignores the questions and invites Shulk to Mechonis. With Metal Face killed not long after, Egil becomes the new primary antagonist.

Once Shulk's party gets deep into Galahad Fortress, they find Face Nemesis, and are intent on saving the Fiora within. But Egil has realized that the pilot is acting outside his orders, and so forces the Face to act directly and attack. Egil himself joins the fight not long after in Yaldabaoth, and activates the Apocrypha Generator to neutralize the Monado. Face Nemesis's pilot breaks free of Egil's control and unleashes a new power that partially destroys the fortress and deposits itself and the party across the Fallen Arm; Egil escapes with ease, and recognizes the power as a "Monado", but is in disbelief over it.

Egil now realizes that he must erase the memories of the Face pilots if he wants them to still have any use, so he begins with Jade Face. Meanwhile, Shulk's group has joined at the Hidden Village and met Miqol, Egil's father. He explains that all the other Machina have given up trying to get Egil to see sense and stop his one-man crusade against the Bionis, and asks Shulk to kill him. Shulk thinks there could be another way, but agrees.

As Shulk's party climbs the Mechonis, Jade Face attacks. He demonstrates Egil's new total control over the Faces and leaves. The group then meets Vanea, Egil's sister, who has been helping Egil but only to remain close in order to find a way to make him stop. As the group continues to move on, she slowly guides them to learn that Egil is trying to get revenge on Zanza and the Bionis for striking first and wiping out many Machina.

Reaching Agniratha, Shulk meets Egil face-to-face. Shulk doesn't want to fight or surrender; he wants to understand. Confused at this attitude, Egil nevertheless explains: he is taking it upon himself to wipe out life on the Bionis, because otherwise, Zanza will consume it in order to reawaken the Bionis and continue destroying the Machina. Unable to make Egil back down, Shulk fights him. Egil comes off worse, and gains an appreciation for Shulk, but remains stolid and calls for Yaldabaoth. The gold Face makes easy work of the party but is halted by Meyneth, the goddess of Mechonis hidden from Egil in Fiora's body up until now. Egil is disgusted that the one person he was doing all this in the name of has also betrayed him. He leaves for the Mechonis Core and places Yaldabaoth within, allowing him direct control of the Mechonis itself.

As Egil has the Mechonis take full hold of its sword, ending the battle in Sword Valley, Shulk's group escapes and is preparing to meet him again. They destroy the Apocrypha Generator while on their way, opening the Monado's full strength once more. By the time the arrive, the Mechonis is fully adapted to its new soul, and Egil demonstrates for them how easily he can apply devastating strikes to the Bionis. They fight once more.

In the end, Egil is defeated, Shulk holding the Monado over his head ready to kill. But he chooses not to, and sits down. He explains that he's realized they both share the pain and desire for revenge of being attacked by the other's titan, and will not kill him, but rather stop him from killing any more until they understand each other. Egil is moved by not only Shulk's stance, but how Shulk was able to resist the influence of Zanza and the Monado, which is what took his friend Arglas many years ago. He realizes that Shulk may be capable of ending the Zanza problem - which is really what he was aiming for in the end. He agrees to peace.

Dickson does not agree. He shoots Shulk, allowing Zanza to take the Monado and assume a new body. Egil tries to attack Zanza, but he is too much to handle; he uses the Bionis' Monado to cut through the Mechonis' sword, its head, and Yaldabaoth in one swipe. Zanza then kills Meyneth and takes her Monado before leaving. Egil knows he is beaten, but also that there is still hope for Shulk, so he refuses rescue in order to use the Mechonis to buy time. He successfully gives the party enough distraction to escape the Mechonis before it is destroyed, and the damage he inflicts on Bionis is enough to allow them access to the interior and pursue Zanza.

Egil is seen in a flashback in Future Redeemed during Shulk and Rex's narration on the origin of the world.

Lore

 * According to his father Miqol, Egil was a kind man prior to the Great Battle. However, as of the events of Xenoblade Chronicles, Egil is thoroughly bitter and resentful towards all life of Bionis. However, he still seems to have a soft spot for his sister, Vanea.
 * Much of this stems from Zanza, the soul of the Bionis, who not only murdered countless Machina by attacking Mechonis, but effectively murdered the Giant Arglas, a close friend of his, and stole his body.
 * He commonly uses belittling and diminutive language towards Shulk and the others, both being from Bionis and opposing his plan of the titan's ultimate destruction. He uses such language as "worms", "bugs", "insects", even referring to Meyneth as "that thing".
 * Egil is generally presented as a foil to Shulk, being that both come from a similar background of having their home destroyed and loved ones killed. Moreover, they both inherited a deep resentment toward the forces responsible for this suffering, a cycle started by Zanza, which Egil inflicted upon Shulk. As well, Egil shows a complete mastery of Machina technology, having invented the Faces, built one for his personal use, and built a new arm for the Mechonis through currently unknown means. Shulk is a talented engineer in his own right, and would conceive notable inventions after the events of Xenoblade Chronicles, such as Power Frames, the Regeneration Chamber used to heal surviving Face Pilots, and the Ether Slide.

As a boss
Egil is fought multiple times throughout the game, but only once outside of Yaldabaoth:
 * Egil (boss)
 * Gold Face
 * Yaldabaoth (Agniratha)
 * Yaldabaoth (Mechonis Core)

Screenshots
Egil