After nearly a year after its Japanese release, Rune Factory 5 is finally coming to the west, along with its dating system with anime marriage candidates. The series mixing farming, crafting, action RPG, monster raising, and dating simulation was resurrected with a brand-new entry on Nintendo Switch. But who are the bachelors and bachelorettes of this new installment?
This time in Rune Factory 5, there are 6 male and 6 female characters you can date and marry. They each have their own quirks and personalities, and each plays a certain role in the story. Moreover, unlike past Rune Factory games, Rune Factory lets you marry any character regardless of your protagonist's gender. Read on to find out who you can marry, and be introduced to each bachelor and bachelorette.
Updated by Nathan Round on 7th November 2022: We have updated this article with useful and relevant links whilst also incorporating updated images to provide a greater aesthetic.
Who Can You Date & Marry?
You can marry any of the bachelor and bachelorette characters, regardless of who you picked at the beginning between Ares and Alice. This is one of the major changes introduced in Rune Factory 5 when compared to the 6 previous games in the series. Rune Factory is now just like its original series Story of Seasons (Bokujou Monogatari) which include same-sex marriage in most games since the Game Boy Advance era. This same-sex marriage feature is one of the features that was still in development when Rune Factory 5 was first released in Japan in May 2021 and was added a few months later via an update. It's present in the western version from the start.
An easy way to recognize the bachelors and bachelorettes of Rune Factory 5 is the fact that each one of them has a special short anime cutscene the first time you meet them for real. If a character is introduced with an anime cutscene, it means you can marry them. Below you will be introduced to each of the bachelors and bachelorettes below, with different details than the official site. Of course, everything you will read is free from spoilers.
The Bachelors
Martin
Whether you want to woo him or not, Martin is one of the characters you'll interact with the most in Rune Factory 5. He's the apprentice of Darroch, the blacksmith in Rigbarth, and you'll regularly go there in your playthrough for crafting-related activities. Martin is also the one explaining to you how to forge items at the beginning of the game. Martin is the cool and blunt type who always focuses on his work. He's the older brother of Cecil, though it seems they might be distant from each other, with Martin spending all his time trying to improve his blacksmithing skills.
Murakumo
Rune Factory always had elves and other fantasy-themed races, and Murakumo is a were-animal, a species who most notably played a big role in the story of Rune Factory 3. As the owner of the inn and the baths, Murakumo is another character you'll meet fairly often, as it's important, especially in the early game, to use the baths to restore your HP and RP. Murakumo has a very noisy and carefree personality, and is also the younger brother of Misasagi, making Hina his niece.
Cecil
Cecil is also one of the first bachelors you'll meet and is the younger brother of Martin. He wants to become a detective to find out what happened to their parents and pretty much forces Terry to take him under his wing. Cecil is one of the funniest characters for some, and his gimmick of considering everything as a detective case is pretty enjoyable to follow. Though some might find it repetitive and annoying.
Ryker
Ryker is the apprentice of Palmo Creacie de Sainte-Coquille, the carpenter in Rigbarth. As yet another shop NPC, he's also one of the characters you'll interact with the most. Personally speaking, Ryker is eerily similar to Karina (Karin) from Rune Factory 3 as they both appear to be incredibly lazy and unmotivated, and both have white hair. However, they're actually pretty different characters, and Ryker isn't a male version of Karin.
Reinhard
Reinhard is a typical knight with a strong sense of honor and justice. He's also Beatrice's bodyguard. He opens up and shares a different side of himself with the protagonist after they meet. Reinhard is basically the coolest bachelor in the game. It's important to note that Reinhard is initially not in the village, and he will only move to Rigbarth together with Beatrice after a certain point, early in the main story. If you want to woo him, you should focus on the main story to reach the point until they move to Rigbarth and trigger his appearance as soon as possible.
Lucas
Lucas is a well-versed, incredibly respectful gentleman, as seen in the opening anime cutscene with his cool bowing gesture. Lucas is also pretty interesting because he's an amnesiac, a trait that is usually reserved for the protagonists of the Rune Factory series, who slowly explore and rediscover their own backgrounds. Saying anything would be spoilers, so you should play the game to find out about Luacs' deal.
Just like Reinhard, Lucas will only appear in the game after you reach a later point in the main story. It can be hard with all the side activities you can do, but you should focus on advancing the main story first if you want to meet him as fast as possible.
The Bachelorettes
Priscilla
Priscilla is what you could call the "Main Heroine" in dating simulators, as in the bachelorette who's either the poster girl of the game (like Shiori in Tokimeki Memorial) or has a high amount of screen time or relevance in the main story. Priscilla is the choice that some fans would consider to be "canon" for the male protagonist Ares, like Mist for Raguna in Rune Factory 1. She's one of the first characters you'll meet and is available from the start.
Priscilla helps out at the Rigbarth Outpost, working under Livia, and can often be found on the building's first floor. She's one of the characters you'll interact with the most in the story and is the typical type of character who seems weak-willed at first but is actually driven by strong determination. Priscilla is most notably trying to get over her trauma that makes her unable to leave the village.
Lucy
Just like Priscilla, Lucy works at the Rigbarth Outpost and can often be found there. Priscilla and Lucy are childhood friends and among the very first characters you'll meet. She's one of the funniest characters for in the game for some, together with her whole family: her big sister Elsje and her little brother Julian. Their mother Simone, the town mayor and doctor, has some really hilarious moments too.
Fuuka
Fuuka is a were-animal and one of the characters with the most cheerful personality in Rune Factory 5. You often find characters with speech gimmicks in Rune Factory, like Sofia in Rune Factory 3 who would speak the opposite of her thoughts. Fuuka is one of these characters, as she actually doesn't speak the human language much. However, the meaning behind her words and sounds is always specified under parenthesis, making her a pretty fun character. Fuuka works at the town restaurant together with Elsje, and can almost always be found there.
Beatrice
Beatrice is the aristocratic bachelorette of Rune Factory 5 but isn't haughty like Bianca from RF 1 as she has a sweet personality. Though she lacks some common knowledge as someone who always lived in high society. Beatrice is an incredibly important figure from a certain country who travels incognito with her bodyguard Reinhard. They will only appear in the game and move in Rigbarth after a certain main story event. It happens pretty early though, so don't worry about it.
Scarlett
Scarlett is a half-elf and a member of SEED like the protagonist. She's an elite, work-over-everything ranger. Scarlett is one of the most interesting characters in the game as unlike pretty much everyone else, she distrusts the protagonist at first, and even challenges them to a certain competition. Scarlett will only appear in Rigbarth after a certain event in the main story, a bit after Beatrice and Reinhard's introduction. She'll move to the empty room on the first floor of the Rigbarth Outpost.
Ludmila
Ludmila is a unique character completely different from any other bachelorette in Rune Factory or even all the Story of Seasons series so far. She's a succubus who immediately falls in love with the protagonist and regularly makes dirty jokes. This is only one aspect of her personality though, and she's a great character, as much as the rest of the cast.
Ludmila will only join Rigbarth a bit later in the main story, after Beatrice, and after Scarlett as well. Ludmila is one of the most popular characters among Japanese fans and for good reason. Back when Rune Factory 5 characters were first getting revealed with the game's Japanese promotion, when Ludmila got revealed on November 24, 2020, "Succubus" was trending all day on Japanese Twitter.
That's all for the Rune Factory 5 marriage candidates. Who are you planning to go for? Did you already decide on someone from the beginning and plan to stick to the plan? Or will you decide after playing the game for a few hours? Leave your thoughts in the comments!