Sire

1. There is a "Training Grounds" option for "Mock Battles" that allows for the freedom of testing out movesets. It should unlock at the start of Chapter 4. -- The potential "good news" is that Three Hopes has class-based movesets, so if you are playing as a Mercenary, any character in that class will have the same core moveset. It's just the details that change (personal skill, support skill, and tactical skill). -- Movesets also tend to stay the same as one gets into more advanced classes, as most get expanded combos. There are exceptions to this, but that applies more for the retail game than the demo. == For a quick rundown, here's how I see most movesets in Warriors games, with this info mostly applying for Three Hopes. === Strong Attack 1 - Launcher (knock enemies into the air) === Strong Attack 2 - Single Target (Best for fighting enemy officers) === Strong Attack 3 - Multi-Target (Best when clearing out regular mobs) === Regular Attacks Chains (When trying to deplete a Stun Gauge, or need the safety of being able to dodge/block as strong attacks may have a wind-up) 2. You technically don't have to give orders to your allies and keep constantly changing between your characters. While it is true one may not get S-Ranks for everything this way (mostly due to the timer), its possible to just main Shez and run around the map manually. Your allies can handle themselves well enough. -- Shezs "ZR" personal skill allows him to "dash" short distances quickly, which can later be upgraded for longer distances. -- In addition, Shez gets a unique skill that greatly helps with mobility during the main chapter 4 mission, so getting from point A to point B is easy for Shez. However, as this chapter is locked in the demo, one won't get to see it. == Of course, you could also manage all your forces by giving them orders and making use of their Tactical Skill, which rewards players for giving that character relevant orders (attacking an enemy, guarding an ally, seizing a stronghold, defending a stronghold). There's also swapping between characters, so you can finish an objective on run character, tell them to go somewhere else, and swap to someone who needs to finish their objective. This way one doesn't have to walk everywhere and is constantly fighting something.

Learning about Hilda's circumstances is interesting, as I did see her outfit as an enemy. Shame it can't be used as a player. -- I wonder if Petra somehow keeps her outfit as a Wyvern Rider/Lord, as she did in Three Houses. As for Dedue, I was hoping it would work as it is in his preferred line, but I guess not.

Regarding the Great Knight outfit, does changing outfits from Standard-Issue to Unique not work for Great Knight?

This is indeed an amazing discovery! But yeah, the sad truth is that there's no real reason to go back to the lower tiers due to Class Skills, improved Adjutant Effects and potentially higher Growth Rates for the more advanced classes. -- That being said, the only one that really gets screwed is the Mercenary due to the lack of Swordfaire. Paladin and Warlock could potentially work if one doesn't mind being slightly weaker, while Bishops at least have some good class skills that is unique to them. I guess this ties in with my Unique Special Attack discovery in the main thread, as Ferdinand and Jeralt only seem to have theirs as Cavalier/Paladin. (Holy Knight and Jeritza's Death Knight have unique movesets. I have not tried Dark Knight yet.) -- Personally, I still think there should've been Master-Class equivalents for these movesets, and characters should always be able to use their unique special attack if they are in their preferred class. -- Guess I'll just hope for Updates/DLC that remedy this (as well as removing gender-locked classes).

So, I discovered that the "Essence of (Element)" does not give you elemental attacks like the House Leaders. It does exactly what it says, augmenting attacks, combat arts, and magic that use said element. If you want to add elemental attacks, you have to use "(Element) Assist" which requires Pair-Up. -- Looks like my mass Warlock training will go back to Bandit/Warrior for Death Blow/Heavy Hitter. I know Death Blow is good as making the Stun Gauge last longer is amazing, but I'm not sure about the rate of Heavy Hitter. I'll keep it on for now, but I'm starting to have so many skills I don't know what to do with them all, and I have the max 10 Slots. -- The House Leaders will likely appreciate the skill though, and I use Shez's Dark Essence when he's in his personal class. Shez's usage is a bit more limited, but it helps thematically when I give him Dark Combat Arts/Magic. Now, as I'm now playing with Master Classes, there is something that bothers me. -- The Unique Special Attacks are more limited than expected. For example, Ferdinand only gets his unique as a Cavalier/Paladin, as Holy Knight has a different moveset and special. -- Gremory also has a unique moveset different from Mage/Warlock and Monk/Priest/Bishop. Maybe this is why some characters only get their special as a Gremory. -- While I love the variety of movesets, if one enjoyed a previous moveset (say Mercenary, Warlock, Bishop, or Paladin), then one has to play in a lower tier class. -- I still think the Master Classes are the superior option due to the class skills and "better movesets," but its a shame to lose out on existing movesets. As an aside, I'm starting to get weapons that damage the user when they are above 50% Health, but are really powerful. I imagine they have great synergy with the "HP Threshhold" skills, but as I'm playing on Classic, I'm not sure if I'm going to experiment with such builds. -- I probably should invest more in the Blacksmith and Forged Weapons, but I've been busy upgrading the camp and trying to learn as many skills as possible. I imagine once the Camp is maxed out, I can then focus on forged weapons and start unlocking some of these special effects. I played a bit more and managed to recruit Byleth.

Got to Part II in the Scarlet Blaze route. Hard Difficulty is rather challenging! I had Hubert die in one map when I was trying to channel the Dark Mage class action (got an arrow to the face). I reset and learned how squishy spellcasters are. -- Then, on a main chapter map, Balthus got combo'd by Catherine and Shamir in another. I reset, and then proceeded to bring out "Try-Hard Shez" with a +20 Rapier. I S-Ranked that chapter, having exactly the amount of damage taken and not a single percent over. // As an aside, enemy Armor Knights are actually pretty resistant to physical attacks when one does not have effectiveness. Who knew. -- Also, screw Snipers and their "Tornado Spin" ability. It messes up my melee combos and can easily lead to being juggled. As a special item one obtains at the start of Part II... As for a surprise MVP, Balthus has carrying me against Tomes as I don't have a Gauntlet user. The Gauntlet playstyle is rather fun too. -- Otherwise, my main lineup of 8 are Shez, Edelgard, Hubert, Petra, Balthus, Ferdinand, Jeritza, and Lysithea. I am maxing out different classes and make sure to field those who are Energized for the EXP Bonus, so my composition does shift a bit. // I do wish I could use more characters, like Monica and Hapi, but I just don't have the space... == As an aside, the Dark Mage moveset is really fun. At first I wasn't really using Hubert as he was yet another magic user, but when I got to Dark Mage, everything changed.

Now that I've played the game a bit (still on chapter 8 of Scarlet Blaze) and knowing a bit more, here's my hopes/thoughts for Three Hopes. 1. Free Update - Forgotten Characters -- Alois, Hanneman, Cyril, & Gilbert are in the base game, but are not playable for whatever reason. -- I was really looking forward for playing as Hanneman and Alois, as well as seeing their supports. Hopefully an update will make them all playable. 2. DLC Bonus - Anna -- While I would prefer if Anna was part of the free update, she could also be used as the "DLC Bonus" character. -- Bonus points if Anna somehow got her own class. 3. DLC Pass - Roster Expansion -- A bonus playable character pack, adding in other characters that appear in the game but where not innately playable (The two Imperial Generals, Judith, TWSITD, etc.) -- Of course, I would prefer if this was a free update, but making these characters playable requires a fair amount of work (voice lines, modeling, personal skills, etc.). Also, it adds some incentive to purchase the DLC if TWSITD were playable, for example. -- Honestly, this is more of a bonus. It is something I would like to see, but if resources are limited, I would prefer a Byleth Route. 4. DLC Pass - Byleth/Ashen Wolves Route, "Golden Ending?" -- I still would love a Byleth route as well as a Golden Ending, but considering that the design philosophy seems to be "No Golden Endings" and "Do not Invalidate Three Houses," I am unsure if this will happen. -- It would be great if Byleth, Jeralt, and Alois teamed up with the Ashen Wolves, as the Ashen Wolves don't have a route of their own in Three Hopes. They serves as the "DLC Route" in Three Houses, so why not do so again in Three Hopes? -- Heck, add in Nemesis as a boss for this route too. There is a severe lack of God Shattering Star in Three Hopes. (Also, we need Shacked Wolves and At What Cost tracks in Three Hopes as well.) 5. Expanded Supports -- I was surprised that some of the chemistry between characters in Three Houses did not carry over to Three Hopes in terms of supports. For example, Lysithea and Edelgard have affinity, but in Three Hopes their support rank is only C and there's no support conversation. -- While I would love support conversations, I wouldn't mind if there was at least higher support ranks between these characters, even if there are no convos for them. 6. Removal of Gender-Locked Classes -- Please make this happen. Perhaps tie it in with the lore and make it a special seal to do so ("Male Pegasus Riders are rare, but in the land of [x], they exist." // "In Morfis, the land of magic, females study the Dark Arts [Dark Mage/Dark Bishop] while males become masters of magic [Gremory]). -- I want my build options! 7. New/Returning Classes -- Ranger, Sword Cavalry -- Griffon Rider, Sword Flier -- Valkyrie, Tome Cavalry -- Dark Flier, Tome Flier -- War Monk/Cleric, Gauntlet with Magic -- Sword Armor? -- Lance Armor?

Yes. There are more characters that are route-specific this time instead of just the House Lord and their Retainer. -- This is from information through the datamine, although by now there people who have finished a route already. -- Also, some characters are recruitable on one route, but not another. For Example...

Regarding recruitment, it is limited per route. You cannot recruit nearly everyone like in Three Houses. Recent information that I have learned about NG+ is troubling if true. It seems like Renown Character Unlocks are for bonus characters only and not route-specific characters, so if you wanted to play a House Lord on a different route, it looks like you can't. // This is in regards to the main story maps, paralogues, and the side maps. -- However, I get the feeling that Records is the "Free Play" mode, although it only allows you to replay the main story chapters and paralogues. Perhaps it may be possible to play with whoever on whatever map (even if its a different route) in Records, but I do not know. == Edit: Definitely feeling that Records is the free mode. When going into Records, you open up what chapter first, and then decide what map you want to play (Main Chapter, Side Maps). This is also where you can S-Rank maps you missed in previous chapters. // As an aside, grinding out the main chapter battles is likely better than grinding out the side ones, since the main battles allows up to 8 units instead of 4. == So, with this in mind, you can probably play as anyone in Free Mode regardless of route (once you recruited them). They just won't be available for the main "Story Campaign" playthroughs. In Three Houses, recruitment was done normally as a game mechanic and not through Renown (although one could buy the support levels to make sure they join your class). While there were special cases of recruitment during the 2nd phase of the game, most of it was done during the 1st phase. -- I was hoping to play with my favorites regardless of route in Three Hopes and not have to worry about the Persuade option in future playthroughs, but it looks like this is not the case. -- This also means that characters who are available on all routes are excellent candidates to level, as their stats carry over in NG+.

Because one was not made yet. There may be a desire for a separate spoiler thread to discuss more things in-depth, but for now I guess this topic may suffice. * * * * * So, how's everyone experience with Three Hopes so far? I've been playing the Scarlet Blaze (Black Eagles) route, continuing off of my demo file where I grinded up a fair bit. -- Thing is, all that gold I farmed? It's gone (this includes the bonus gold for Three Houses and Warriors). Of course, this is likely due to my completionist tendencies of buying practically everything, but yeah... -- Also, I'm finding that as much as I love recruiting everybody I can, it is difficult to keep everyone outfitted and properly leveled without grinding. Also, the "Motivation Bonus" that increases EXP gained gets more people to choose from, lessening the chance of landing on somebody one regularly uses. (Granted, the same could be said of Three Houses. It's just the motivation bonus in Three Hopes encourages players to field a variety of units instead of the same core.) -- Hard Difficulty is fairly challenging. While I haven't had to reset yet, there were some very close calls where the enemy suddenly dealt a lot of damage. My current nemesis are Mages , Archers, and Cavalry. The ranged classes can easily hit you while the Cavalry has a charge attack that hurts a lot. // Note this is after I farmed a bit in the demo. I wonder how difficult Hard would be if I didn't farm... -- I love the Strategy system for the main chapters and definitely foresee it being the core focus on replayability. Depending on how NG+ works, I may skip the Persuade option and get something that actually helps more on repeat playthroughs. // Also, the "Shez Teleport" is the best thing ever, even if it is limited. It definitely allows for rapid response to situations. As for Battalions, I find their inclusion rather interesting. They give a tier advantage against a single type while also defending against their attacks. -- So, you can double down with a Mercenary with a Sword Battalion, making them extra effective against Axe Users. -- Alternatively, you can use the Mercenary with an Axe Battalion, canceling out the "disadvantage" they normally carry against Lance Users. -- Or perhaps one wants more coverage or adaptability to whatever one is fighting. So, if you are a Mercenary and are on a map full of Mages, get a Brawler battalion to get an advantage. --- As a tip, make sure you use a Lance Battalion when facing the Ashen Demon. They should not be engaged unless you are me who decided to fight them anyway and somehow "win." Not sure if that actually did anything though. Story-wise, I'm enjoying Scarlet Blaze. I'm currently on Chapter 6 and look forward to comparing/contrasting the routes when I get around to playing them all. -- Three Hopes is definitely more enjoyable if one liked the world and setting of Three Houses, as Three Hopes builds upon that. Seeing how this are the same yet different in this alternatively timeline is great. Overall, I'm loving the game. It is superior to the original Fire Emblem Warriors in my mind and I can't wait to get back to playing it.

Managed to get in, being in US Central Time. -- I did change the time on my switch to EST after some failures to get in, not sure if that had any effect or not. I'll change it back later. Now to disappear for a bit and marathon Three Hopes. Have fun to those playing!

As tempting as it is for me to pick this up Day One, I may end up waiting a bit for the DLC to come out. -- I don't want to get burned out by the main game, only to find out that over time the game received good QoL updates and other things. -- Also, I'm likely to be playing Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes for a while instead... Also, I have yet to get Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition. While I've seen bits and pieces of Future Connected, I haven't experienced that storyline and would like to before I delve into XC3. (Heck, I want to replay the first Xenoblade before delving into Future Connected, so things will take a while...) -- As for XC2, I still need to complete all the side quests, max out all the Blades, and take on the Challenge Battles more. The downside is that I haven't played it properly in ages, so the strategies I used and knowing what I need for optimal setups are forgotten. I am on NG+ which helps a bit, but trying to figure everything out again sorta sucks.

Delved a little into the Text Files, specifically looking for instances of Jeralt and Byleth. Some findings in the spoiler below. -- EDIT: Updated with some more findings

Welp, couldn't help myself and looked at retail spoilers. The notes in the below spoiler is from what I've gleamed from the FMVs and CGs with regards to each route. While I won't spoil new/major plot points, I'll leave the warning here anyways. For some playable characters... As for other stuff, I'll leave that to those dataminers and those who have early access. -- Personally, I want to know more about the support options. Do the bonus characters have supports, and if NG+ can potentially bring other characters to different routes, do new "non-canon" support options show up? -- I also want to know how in-depth the strategy system is for the main chapters, as from what I glimpsed from reviews, it seems rather interesting.

I got monastery fatigue on my second playthrough of Three Houses, but this is due to my completionist tendencies and the desire to talk to absolutely everyone to hear every single piece of dialogue. -- It didn't help that Part One was similar on multiple playthroughs, and that Verdant Wind and Silver Snow routes were also practically identical. (It didn't help I did SS and VW back to back.) -- I still have yet to go back properly and replay all four routes to hear the Ashen Wolves and the Abyss' perspective on the main storyline... At any rate, guess its time to delve for some more info by checking around the Internet. I already got the game pre-ordered digitally, so I'm also wondering when the unlock happens (been hearing either midnight or noon depending on the title).