Heidern

Heidern (ハイデルン, Haiderun) is a character best known as a fighter in The King of Fighters series though he originated from an older SNK title, Ikari III: The Rescue, appearing during the game's cutscenes. He debuted as a playable character in The King of Fighters '94 in the Brazil Team (later known as the Ikari Team), along with Ralf Jones and Clark Still.

He was conceptualized to be a "cold-blooded killing machine", but his designer grew attached to Heidern and gave him a tragic past. His namesake is a character from the anime, Space Battleship Yamato. His eccentric and uncommon fighting style surprised some of the staff, and they humorously wondered if they should add a supernatural quality in his character history. Toyohisa Tanabe states that Heidern was added to be the "particularly strong" character at the time of his debut.

While he may be intimidating in appearance, Heidern is actually a calm individual who deeply cares for his subordinates. Heidern is the commander of the Ikari Warriors, and issues commands to his adopted daughter Leona Heidern and his best soldiers Clark Still, Whip, and Ralf Jones; and is also known as the "General of the soldiers of Fortune". He is the master of his own brutal self-made martial art, involving cutting with the use of bladed gloves, which seem to conceal explosives and a form of energy generator (used for his signature attack, Storm Bringer, which is a reference to the infamous Stormbringer sword).

He is voiced by Toshimitsu Arai.

Story
In 1986 (eight years prior to The King of Fighters '94 tournament), Rugal Bernstein kidnapped Heidern's wife, Sandra, and daughter, Clara, and challenged him to try and take them back from him. Heidern had no choice but to take the bait, and he and his men directly assaulted Rugal at his Blacknoah. Rugal killed all of Heidern's men by himself, saving Heidern for last. Before Rugal could finish him off, Heidern's family intervened, and sacrificed themselves to save him. The incident left Heidern alone, and missing an eye. After that, Heidern's only mission was to get his revenge.

He found Leona, as the last survivor of a destroyed village, during a mission deep in an unknown jungle. He asked her many questions, but Leona remained unresponsive. Realizing it was useless to try and ask her anything more, Heidern decided to keep her at the base for the time being, until he could send her to an orphanage. However, when Heidern came back from a mission, he saw Leona slash a tree to the ground with her hands. Surprised at this display of power, Heidern thought it would be better for the girl to stay with him and train as a soldier. Immediately, Leona began her training under Heidern's orders. She learned all of Heidern's techniques, due to her incredible ability to cut with her hands. Heidern was surprised at how much Leona progressed; she seemed predisposed towards fighting. After he had re-established his team, the Ikari Warriors, he went after Rugal to get his revenge.

Beginning in The King of Fighters '96, he assigns Leona to take his place in the tournaments while he issues orders from the sidelines. He continues to play a major part in one of the series' story arcs, the NESTS Saga, since the Ikari Warriors are trying to destroy the NESTS group. He continues his job with the group, Those From the Past. When Leona experiences the Riot of the Blood after the 2003 tournament, he decides to pull her out of the following one and stay by her side while she recuperates.

Personality
Very calm and silent, Heidern's personality was built because of the trauma of losing his eye and his family to Rugal. Although he hides his emotions through a veil of professionalism, he cares deeply for all of his subordinates and especially for Leona.

Powers

 * Slashing Hands - Heidern's hands can cut and pierce as if they were knives.
 * Cutting Aura - Aside of his slashing hands power, Heidern can create a cutting aura around his arms.
 * Cutting Projectile - Heidern can send a cutting/piercing projecttile flying with his hands.
 * Absorb Life - By piercing his hands in his enemy's body, Heidern can absorb his life force and fuel his own.

Fighting Style
Some people say his fighting style is MAC, others say its original. His fighting style is a striking martial art with emphasis on his cutting hand strikes.

Music

 * Jungle Bouncer - The King of Fighters '94
 * Desert Requiem - The King of Fighters '95
 * In Spite of One's Age - The King of Fighters '98
 * My Whip - The King of Fighters 2001

Game Appearances



 * Ikari III: The Rescue
 * The King of Fighters '94
 * The King of Fighters '95
 * The King of Fighters '98
 * The King of Fighters 2000 - As a PS2 Maniac Striker for Whip
 * The King of Fighters 2001
 * The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match

Mobile Appearances

 * Days of Memories (first title) - NPC
 * Athena On Stage - band member

Cameo Appearances

 * The King of Fighters '96 - in Chizuru's stage
 * The King of Fighters '99 - during in-game scenarios
 * The King of Fighters 2000 - during in-game scenarios
 * The King of Fighters 2002 - televised in the Mexico and Italy stages
 * The King of Fighters XI - during the Ikari team, Agent team, and K's team's endings
 * The King of Fighters (pachinko)
 * The King of Fighters 2

Anime Appearances

 * The King of Fighters: Another Day

Trivia

 * Heidern has also used the code name Bechstein in the past. Adelheid also gives him the nickname, Heidi, which is a reference to the German novel character.