Brad Evans is one of the protagonists in Wild Arms 2. He is a former Slayheim Liberation Army soldier, who was framed as a war criminal and imprisoned in the Illsveil Prison.
Story
Wild Arms 2
Brad Evans is probably the most complex character in the Wild Arms 2 game. Before the events of the game, he was a soldier serving the Slayheim Liberation Army and was involved in the legendary firefight at the end of that war. His success, however, placed in him jeopardy as Slayheim's new government had little use for the warriors that had given them their freedom. Brad Evans was persecuted as a war criminal, and, at the beginning of the game's story, is being chased through the Green Hell forest.
Brad is eventually arrested and taken to Illsveil Prison to live out the rest of his days. Fortunately for him, Ashley Winchester and Lilka Eleniak sneak into prison in order to recruit him to join ARMs. Brad spends most of the early part of the game as a reluctant and untrusted member of the group, but comes to appreciate the camaraderie and friendship of the other ARMs members.
It's heavily hinted that Brad's name is an assumed one, with the purpose of perpetuating a 'hero myth' for people to believe in. Unfortunately, the game's bad translation at many points (particularly when it comes to Brad's backstory) make this somewhat unclear. No other name is given for Brad, however.
Wild Arms 2 Biography
Brad was a hero, a soldier in the Slayheim Liberation Army. Certain circumstances drove him out of the army until he was arrested and locked up in a high-security prison filled with the hardest of criminals. An expert in firearms, he also has much experience in handling explosives. He is a brilliant warrior who faces difficulties with cold, calculating judgment.
Art of Wild Arms Bio
"Rugged Train Workman"
A former hero, now treated as a criminal. His experience with firearms helps him serve as the heavy gunner of the party.
Wild Arms 5
Brad appears in Meisis station and gives the party information on the Puzzle Box quests.
As Party Member
In-Game Status
Brad In the Beginning of Gameplay
Main Status
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Equipment
Force Abilities
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Original Commands
Through the course of the game, Brad gains a number of heavy ARMs to attack with.
- Bazooka- Brad starts game with this. Powerful blast attack on an enemy.
- Pineapple- powerful heavy ARM attack on group of enemies.
- AM Cluster- random missile attack on random amount of enemies.
- Lawnmower- powerful blast attack on all enemies.
- Mini Scud- powerful missile attack on an enemy.
- Sky Eye- extremely powerful ARM attack on all enemies.
- EZ Missile- anti-monster missile.
- Rail Gun- insanely powerful ARM attack.
Trivia
Within some circles of fandom, Brad Evans has become a gay character icon. Unfortunately this is based heavily on a combanation of the game's poorly-translated dialog and its penchant for excessively-flowered prose, rather than any actual declaration of romantic affection within the game.
In the game's narrative, Billy Pilder and Brad developed a deep friendship as brothers-in-arms during their time in the Slayheim Liberation Army, and there is no question that their relationship is close. However, this is simply keeping with the fraternal closeness commonly found between fellow soldiers in wartime. Indeed, in the scene often cited as proof of a romantic relationship, Billy merely declares Brad his new "hero" after Brad confessions his feelings about being a martyr. In essence, this is the scene where Billy and Brad exchange their roles, and Brad recieves the courage medium as a result.
Finally, "Word of God" (that is, Sony of Japan) has declared that the above scene was not meant to imply a romantic relationship. This is made only slighly problematic because the other two similar scenes (with Tim Rhymeless and Colette Mapleleaf, and Ashley Winchester and Marina Irington) are explicitly romantic in nature.
References
[YouTube Video of the Courage Medium]
