Dark Paladin X

Either General or Great Knight. If you want a Kunai user for the Nohr route, Maid is viable, but she's better as a General or a Great Knight. As for skills, you might want to consider grabbing Luna, as it does add a lot of damage to Elfie's kit.

Well, if you look into Japan, for males, "bishonen" characters usually tend to be far more popular in Japan than in America (one of the reasons why Leo and Takumi is in the top ten male characters), whereas "manly" characters such as Arthur would receive much better reputation in America. Likewise, "little sister"/loli characters have a tendency to be well-liked in Japan (which can explain Elise's and Sakura's placement in the top ten), but these kind of characters usually hated within the American fanbase, usually because of strong pedophilic and incest implications and is often flatout seen as very sexist (in fact, Nowi from Awakening got a lot of disdain and hatred since she's a viable marriage option. Not to mention that Black Bullet was one of the most hated spring 2014 anime). Apparently, that goes the same for any female character that has "kawaii" appeal (especially the maids like Felicia and Flora where females in maid outfits are quite popular in Japan), but is seen as misogynist in some feminist circles. Personally, I was surprised that Midoriko and Mozume is ranked far lower than I expected (I was expecting both to be ranked around #10-#17) because I thought these two characters would be the characters that the Japanese would see them as "cute" (in addition their "nice girl" personalities, which also adds into the cuteness factor for the Japanese). I also wasn't surprised that most of the children characters ended up ranking lower since they weren't given much personalities in this game (apparently, this is something Nintendo of America need to keep note off when localizing Fates in America). Keep in mind that there are huge pop culture differences between America and Japan, and if Nintendo of America were to pull some similar poll, there probably would be numerous difference in character favorites (for starters, Sakura and Elise probably wouldn't make it into the top 10 females). Also, localization changes play a factor in character popularity differences. For example, if it wasn't for Nintendo of America's clever characterization change on Gregor and Henry, these two characters probably wouldn't gotten some recognition or popularity in America.

Well, from my knowledge in TV Tropes, Arthur is more popular in America than in Japan due to his red and blue armor that resembles to Captain America's outfit. The "justice" theme around Arthur also helps his popularity in America (in fact, if you play League of Legends, he is highly comparable to Garen in retrospects). I will say that if Nintendo of America does something crazy with any of the characters during the localization process (even the choice of voice actors), you might have some unexpected characters becoming more popular in America than in Japan. For example, Gregor wasn't exactly popular in Japan, but some of the localization changes and the decision to have the voice actor pull a Russian accent makes Gregor far more likable in the west. I could see Midoriko being more popular in United States if they added in jokes in support conversations about her (i.e. being a drug dealer, which is a recurring joke in GameFAQs) and/or get someone like Christine Marie Cabanos or Sandy Fox voice her (the voice actor choices I've mentioned are highly unlikely). Across from that, if Nintendo of America did a similar poll, the results probably won't change much.

Sad face that Midoriko and Mozume are at #20 and #22 place, that's pretty low :(. On the other hand, I wasn't surprised that Sakura and Elise are in the top 10 of this poll, considering Japan's popularity on the "siscon" fetish. Also, I wasn't surprised that most of the Fates children characters are ranked lower than the rest of the cast, with the exception of Foleo (ranked #11, mostly because he's a "trap" character, and Éponine ranked #10 for being the "yaoi" fangirl). Either way, I was curious, suppose Nintendo of America did the same poll for North American players, do you think the results will be any different, or a bit similar? I really can't say myself for sure, but I could say that Midoriko would be ranked a LOT higher for the females more or less thanks to GameFAQs taking a shine on her (the community made her popular with stuff like "backpack loli," "drug dealer loli," and "Weedoriko"). Of course, this is coming from GameFAQs, and they are known for their...unorthodox favorites and dislikes (for the record, this is the same board that voted Draven from League of Legends as the best video game character in the Character Battle polls).

I've heard people are saying that Falcon Knights are outclassed by Golden Kite Warrior, can anyone explain to me on this one? I sitll think there are some units that are better as Falcon Knights if the unit is more support/utility oriented (Midoriko, Sakura, and Elise does better as Falcon Knights than Golden Kite Warrior if you want them as utility/support flying units, especially Midoriko, where she beneifts more as a Falcon Knight due to the Falcon Knight's higher Luck cap, which Midoriko benefits mostly from Luck% skill thanks to her personal skill).

And what about the rest, I know Midoriko (if her mother is Felicia, or Azura and Midoriko Buddy Support with female!Kanna!RodKnight) can make a good Maid since she mostly benefit from having high luck caps and if you want Midoriko to use Hidden Weapons, then the Maid is a better option for her (although Basara and Pegasus Knight are usually way better options for Midoriko). Also, what about Charlotte and Elfie reclassed as maids.

I kinda posted this in the wrong thread, but I want to hear your thoughts on this one: How does Mozume, Hana, Azura!Midoriko, Elise, Charlotte, Sakura, Female Kanna (mother is Mozume with Luck+/Skill- from Avatar), and Effie fair as Maids in terms of growth rates and maximum stats? And assume that you level all of them up to level 20 at their starting class, use Buddy/Second/Marriage Seal, then use Master Seal and level them up to 20 (or in Midoriko's case, use the Child Seal after getting her around chapter 20ish or so, then use Eternal Seals and level her up to 30).

True, I do consider Maids/Butler to be underpowered in comparison to Elite Ninjas statwise when it comes to offense power, but Maids can be useful in utility since they can use staves. Across from Felicia and Flora, are there any characters that makes it very practical to reclass into Maids/Butlers. I know Zero, Odin, Sakura, and Saizou can make great maid/butlers due to the hybrid nature of their growth rates and stats.

No, I'm planning on an all-Maid team on my Invisible Kingdom run for My Castle battles, but a Nohr Lunatic run using Maids will be...interesting.

How does Mozume, Hana, Azura!Midoriko, Elise, Charlotte, Sakura, Female Kanna (mother is Mozume with Luck+/Skill- from Avatar), and Effie fair as Maids in terms of growth rates and maximum stats? And assume that you level all of them up to level 20 at their starting class, use Buddy/Second/Marriage Seal, then use Master Seal and level them up to 20 (or in Midoriko's case, use the Child Seal after getting her around chapter 20ish or so, then use Eternal Seals and level her up to 30).

Finally, managed to preorder mine at Gamestop.

Mozume is pretty much glass cannon, at least with her class options.

I sent an email to Nintendo this morning about the Special Edition preorder restock. Hopefully, I get a response from a representative soon about it.

Both download and the Special Edition have their pros and cons. Currently, Fates Special Edition preorder has been sold out in various websites and it's unknown if Nintendo will have plans to restock them or not (but considering how the Fire Emblem games popularity has rivaled Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts, it's very likely that they will). You can also physically visit a nearby Gamestop to reserve a preorder as well. And it's also nice to have all three routes in a single cartilage. Downloading Fire Emblem Fates will require you to replace your SD card since it will require a lot of space (36 blocks, or at least a 16GB SD card formatted) and you don't need to worry about the physical cartilage. However, getting all three of the routes will take a LONG time (trust me, I've downloaded Lord of Magna in my 3DS and it took about 30-45 minutes) and requires a lot of patience.

Same, there is a Gamestop nearby where I live. I'm wondering if I can ask them to mail the game over to my home, or should I go to their store to get the game once it's released. The problem with Limited Editions for video games is they have a tendency to sell out too easily (as opposed anime Limited Editions).

Hopefully Amazon will restock the Special Edition. If there is a too much demand, Nintendo will need to restock.

Damn, there goes my chance of buying the special edition with all three paths in a cartilage. Oh well, at least upgraded my SD Card to hold 36k blocks, although I'll have to wait a long time for the game :(

Voted Midoriko.

Damn, I was planning to preorder the Special Edition online at Amazon. Hopefully, they'll restock it soon. I've seen many Collector's Edition anime boxsets got sold out quickly and then got a restock later on.

Now with the Fates release dated announced, what are some your goals and plans when you grab this game? Make a "to-do" list of goals, plans, and objectives on what you are planning to do once you grab this game. For me, here is my "to-do" list: Play all three routes Create an All Maid My Castle team for My Castle team Train Mozume...HARD Get the essential DLCs like the EXP, Gold, and Weapons map Get the Witch, Vanguard, and Ballistician DLCs Maximize Midoriko's potential Attempt to play this on Nohr Lunatic.

The release is much earlier than I expected, but I'm very looking forward to it :).

Want to add this in:

Mozume is not meant to appeal for newer players. Usually when newer players play this game, they may often use the "Jeigan" character where he starts out with high base stats but lower growth rates. The reason more experienced players use Mozume (who starts out with lower base stats, but higher growth rates) is because they have better lategame payoff when compared to Gunther. Think of it like a high risk-high reward kind of thing, it's going to be pain in the ass to train Mozume, but she'll be one of your best lategame units providing RNG doesn't fuck you over one way or another. I've played many Fire Emblem games in the past (especially Awakening and the GBA). I've always funnelled resources to Nino because I know she's going to be more useful than a Marcus. I funnell resource to Ewan, Ross, and Amelia over Seth because I know their lategame potential. And I always give the EXP to Lilina over Marcus for the same reason with Nino. Units that have really poor starting stats but better growth rates does way better in the long run than units with higher base stats but lower growth rates. I want you mathematically compare a 20/20 Mozume!Holy Bowman to a 20/20 Zero!Adventurer and compare 20/20 Mozume!Great Knight to a level 20 Great Knight Gunther and give me reasons why you think a Jeigan character like Gunther is better than an Est like Mozume. You'll notice that a Zero!Adventurer will end up sucking when compare to a Mozume!Holy Bowman.

Actually, having high Strength/Magic and Speed does WAY more than just Defense. A fully leveled and maxed out Trueblade Hana in the Strength, Speed, and Skill department does WAY more than someone say a tanky Hinata or Benolt with barely any speed and all HP and Defense. You need to remember that players put a lot of emphasis in Speed and Strength/Magic over something like Defense. Defense means nothing if someone can double strike you and deals a lot of damage to you. Bonus points if one of the attacks actually crit. You also need to realize that Speed is a better defense mechanic than simply HP and Defence/Resistance stats. Note that it's incredibly rare to find a "bruiser" type character where they can do deal damage AND be tanky (Asama and Effie being notable examples), but in situations where I have to choose between Strength/Magic/Speed and Defense/Resistance, I'll choose the former over the later. There is a good reason why the Swordmaster and Berserker classes are OP in the previous Fire Emblem games.

Also, note that "tier list" =/= "efficiency" I could do a tier list consisting of lategame game value units and still have other factors to consider with my tier list, but even so, I don't want to go through the hassle arguing with people here. Even games like League of Legends and Age of Empires II don't really have official tier lists and are based out different gameplay styles. And using Mozume as an example, GameFAQS folks actually put a lot of high value into Mozume than here than say...Charlotte (I still think Charlotte is a good unit to use as your main axe user over Arthur, but kind falls off in other areas like making her a Maid). And I personally find Zero to be better as a utility unit like a Butler rather than your main bow user (if I have choice between Zero, Takumi, Setsuna, Mozume when it comes to main bow users, it'll be more in the lines of Takumi > Setsuna > Mozume > Zero). But I do find Hinata, Tsubaki, Odin and Benolt to be crappy in every retrospects.