Shanty Pete's 1st Mate

Hm... if we want the bells of Notre Dame, then maybe a regional variant of Chingling? I realized after the fact that "Kalosian Phantump" wouldn't make any sense, because Phantump is already from Kalos. But I couldn't resist the pun. As for a potential evolution, I'm imagining Phantump, but taller. Maybe flip the trunk around, so the branches point down. Give it arms and legs, and a silken cape. Or one made of leaves? I'm not sure of the typing - it shouldn't stay Ghost/Grass, but I'm not sure what to switch to.

I'm gonna say Three Houses. I know they're controversial in their simplicity, but I like that, and here's why. In most games, with supports, I say "I don't really know what boost they give, but I'll take it!" I broadly get the vibe that my crit is going up, or enemy hit rates are going down, but not in a way that I can directly trace to a specific support. In 3H, though, each support gives small boosts, but they're blatant ones. It's apparent which boosts are active at a given time, based on the Linked Attack window. Sidebar - I like the "linked attack" and "gambit boost" much more than the "existing within 3 spaces", as it makes you really think about which weapon to equip, even if you're not attacking. Anyway, the few attack-boosting supports are reminiscent of the "bond" supports from previous games. They tell you about the existing connection between the characters who get them, and how it can become stronger over time.

This particularly soldier portrait is really funny to me, due to the exposed shoulders. Like... dude, are you naked under that breastplate? That seems really ill-prepared... and maybe a little kinky. Briggid would be way more fun if Kaga just... let her be bad. Maybe she actually leads her Pirates down to Augustria, and the only way to recruit her is having Edain give her the Yewfelle. Imagine that, your healer recruiting an enemy archer. Alternatively, her crew turns on her - but because she's too greedy! She's been lining her britches with gold, to the detriment of her crew, and they've had enough. So she'd become a playable "ally of convenience", until Edain restores her memories. Gonna second Lester. Deimne is awesome because he has Pursuit, and gets a +5 Strength conversation in chapter 6. A Lester who is fathered by a Midir with the Strength Ring gets all the Deimne benefits, alongside actually good bows. And a far superior sister. Voiced by Kyle McCarley in the remake or else I, personally, riot. RIP "You the man, Shannan." - 1996-WheneverProjectNagaCameOut If Chagall had just put Eldigan on the Madino Gate - and cast Silence on Lachesis, so she couldn't talk to him - this map would be unwinnable. Bad strategist! Holy crow. Azelle gaming. The earliest I've gotten him to promotion is, like, the middle of chapter 4. So well done! If I recall, his name is "Mario" in the original Japanese. Strict improvement.

Maybe a "Phantump of the Opera", with a little mask? Vines covering one of the eyes, for instance. Oh, and how about a "Munchlax of Notre Dame"? Give it a swollen back, and maybe a lantern to carry.

While I have a fondness for Kraftbier, in all their funky flavors, I do think there's value to keeping up the classics as well. With a motlre refined palate, perhaps I could distinguish a Kölsch from a Weißbier. Especially if you're like me, and realize "huh, this General has 38 Hit, and does exactly 22 damage, to my Dancer with 29 HP and Miracle. Who, in turn, deals 1 damage out of 59 using an Iron Sword. Time to set the game down and fold laundry for 5 minutes!" It'd be cool to see tile-targeting in tandem with "aggression". Options like "never attack", "attack only if they can't damage you back", "attack as long as they can't kill you in return", and "attack recklessly". TBH this is why I hate the term "Munster District". When I hear it, I assume "Munster and its immediate surroundings". Just like "Leinster District" would be "Leinster and its immediate surroundings". To refer to the four houses of northern Thracia - Munster, Leinster, Ulster, and Connaught - and their holdings, the game should call them "Northern Thracia". ...Or else a clumsy acronym, like... the CLUMs. Assuming that Kaga, at the time of FE4, had really intended for Azmur, and his immediate descendants, to be the only remaining Naga lineage in Jugdral, that would actually make Linoan a retcon. Damn you, Saint Rubenio! You've gotten my hopes up, and I will hold you personally responsible if the game fails to deliver on them. Interesting... I wonder how widespread that power is? I was thinking that - first getting out the way that adding an Avatar to a remake of a game that didn't have one is unnecessary and cringe - I wouldn't be averse to such a character having the ability to distinguish Holy Blood. Since that knowledge is also directly available to the player. Knowing that at least some other characters can do this, to some extent, is encouraging - it means Newguy McGee wouldn't have a "super secret exclusive Mary Sue power", but an aptitude at something that already exists in-universe.

Ooh, I like the concept! So, would Creidne have minor Neir holy blood? That could be a great way to distinguish an otherwise wholly unremarkable unit. For once, an actually bulky FeMyrm. Even better if Hero could use Axes, but... Oh, as for Dalvin, maybe he's Creidne's half-brother? Like, they share the same Mom, but Dalvin is the son of their Mom's husband, rather than Danann. If the Mom was already married, it adds extra bite - Creidne loathes Danann for forcing himself upon her mother. And the House of Dozel, for forcing itself upon Isaach writ large. Anyway, if they're half-siblings, then they still couldn't get married (hopefully). I'm not opposed to giving Edda more relevance, but this introduces a problem. Namely, Deimne's "secret event" in chapter 6, where he reunites with an old friend at Isaach Castle and gains +5 Strength. This is kind of rooted in him being... well, Isaachian. Even if his brown hair suggests otherwise. As for Muirne, I'd prefer she stay Isaachian as well. Both because she looks the part, with her black hair, and because she's the only magic user from the whole country. Not everyone from Isaach needs to be a swordie, dammit! If she's a nun (thry do NOT mix eith warfare, after all), perhaps she could offer insight on the Isaachian religion? Uh, how about Tristan is now from Edda? To give him some lore, let's say his father was a messenger, sent by Claud, to inform the people of Edda of Reptor and Lombard's betrayal - and moreover, Sigurd's innocence. But when he got back and delivered the news to a younger Rodan, he was betrayed and suddenly imprisoned. Maybe executed, IDK. Point is, Rodan was in league with the traitors. Either way, Tristan had to grow up without a father, with only himself and his mother knowing the truth. So when he came of age, he set out to aid Seliph's Liberation Army. As for why this doesn't happen if Claud survives... uh... let's say a paranoid Rodan has the whole family killed instead, before Claud can make it back. And regarding Jeanne, in this model, there'd be no obstacle to pairing them up. If we wanted to create an obstacle, uh... we could make Tristan racist? "Sorry, but I don't date Augustrians!" Haha, this is pretty funny. I like how you give more "edge" to some of the substitutes. And I'll take "femme fatale" over "damsel in distress" any night. It's not Hannibal's fault, he has a narrow urethra! Er, I mean... that boy ain't right. Yep. On-board with Charlot being Hannibal's non-boneless son. Maybe his mother, and Hannibal's late wife, was some sort of sorceress, who had owned the Berserk staff? That would make it a family heirloom, and Charlot's birthright. Ooh, maybe she gets a special conversation with the Yied boss? That no one will ever see, because it's a suicide mission. Good deal. This "buy my loyalty" mechanic feels sorely underutilized. I also like the idea of him being an enemy, if Febail is around. Mechanically speaking, it'd be cool to see Asaello get the Longbow - either by default, or via his secret event. He's such a "nothing" character in the base game, essentially always worse than Febail. But this would let him bring something unique to the table.

Petition to get Eric Stuart to voice Zane, and all the Zanelings, in the inevitable remake with full voice acting: Remember this for chapter 5! In certain cases, they could figure it out experimentally. Like, if a Mage Knight can wield Bolganone, then they must have at least Minor Fjalar blood. Meanwhile, if a generic Mage (not a "Fire Mage") can wield Bolganone, then they necessarily have Major Fjalar Blood. This wouldn't work for all classes. An Archer has A Bows by default, so you couldn't test for Ullr holy blood. ...Or any other holy blood, since they only use Bows. Likewise, you could never distinguish between Minor Baldr/Hezul/Odo, nor Dainn/Njorun, as they provide identical rank boosts. Yes... hahaha... YES! Lewyn!Arthur's main issue is one of reliability. But with the Pursuit Ring, he'll leave no survivors. And he won't even have to burn through Forseti - an Elwind tome, or Wind Tome plus Magic Ring, should be a reliable kill. ...Admittedly, there'll still be the argument to swap it over to Leif, before he promotes. Up to you. I think buying Paragon and a Brave Sword is higher priority than Pursuit, but that's still 20 years away. Damn, I need to actually finish that game! I remember thinking that Benedict had everything I wanted out of a Jagen. Whether or not that's how he actually plays out, I dunno. IMO it's at least plausible that A) Beowulf, as a mercenary, was at one time hired by House Nordion; and B) While doing so, he heard gossip about the Princess' obsession with her elder brother. My guess is that Beowulf's talk about his direct interactions with Eldigan are boastful bluster. But there could be a colonel of truth there. I have a really dumb way of dealing with him - send Dierdre all the way around. Up onto the plateau. That's the only spot where she can cast Silence on Clement, without being in ballista range. But its suuuper tedious to do so. Silver lining, though - afterwards, she can drop Auras on some of the cavalry. Assuming there are no ranged enemies in... well, range. Also, Linoan exists. I'm not sure if she's been born by this point in time, but at least one of her parents has Naga holy blood. Manfroy's information gathering skills are... inadequate, to say the least. Ich habe Deutschebier getrunken. Dein Radler schmeckt gut. Aber in Amerika, wir haben Bier mit Kürbis, Kaffee, Kakao, etc.. Mehr Vielfahlt! Thinking on it, it would've been really meat for Sylvia's "special dance" to give Alec a permanent stat boost. Since the "special dance" skill in later games had a similar effect, albeit temporary. As did Nini's Grace, amd the other rings. And of course, this game is no stranger to stat boosts from even conversations.

Hear me out - a regional variant of Duraludon, based on the Eiffel Tower. Make it pure Steel, or maybe Steel/Fairy. With an orange-and-white shiny variant, based on Tokyo Tower!

Yeah I know, haha. It was a good thread! Was neat to see how many disparate characters shared a portrait, often without rhyme or reason. I never commented because... I didn't really have anything to add or contribute. I generally don't mind the "pallette swaps" in older games. But I also don't mind that, in a potential remake, they'll almost certainly give the character portraits more variation. The first time I played, the translation I was using called her "Ferry". Which would be great for a Pegasus Knight - in amy game with the Rescue command. Anyway, I think it's amusing that she's had, like, four different names.

Boomer Sigurd leaves his castle because Gandalf kidnapped not just Edain, but all the Coors Light as well. Actually, the true "Boomer" in Gen 1 is Arvis. Everyone is like "invasion this", and "ressurecting the dark god that" - but ...Am I still allowed to make these jokes? Isn't Wolf supposed to be leading Hardin's forces? Or protecting the Desert Stronghold? Or... um... existing in Hatari? Busy man, that Wolffe. Hey, somebody ought to make a thread addressing that very topic! A brilliant idea, if I do say so myself. Macbeth, with his dying breaths, leaves Beowulf a 1-star review on Mercr. Well, two-night stand. Since Silvia gives birth to Leen and Coirpre, and I don't believe they're ever described as twins. Incidentally, this means that a good portion of the kids must've been conceived after Belhalla - which means, their fathers must've survived. Really puts a damper on making any of the deaths explicit. Truthfully, I've never read Clement's design as "Lopt Cultist", but rather "generic magic user". It's not like Sandima, whose face is shrouded in darkness. That said, I do think they should swap out the design for Bramsel, since he's a General. While Azelle can use Elwind after promotion (and should IMO - it's the best tome available to him, and Lewyn gets Forseti, so why would he need it anymore?), it's worth remembering that he cannot pass it down. The one exception is if Ced is his son, but that's a rare pairing. If not passed down, it can be bought in chapter 9. The only way to get Elwind back earlier is if Lewyn hooks up with Tailtiu. Then Arthur can inherit the tome, as can Tinne (assuming you got Tailtiu to promotion).

No, they were in the game. On top of the Stones existing, various NPCs used them - Wally used Mega Gallade, for instance, while Steven used Mega Metagross. I don't believe they were coded into X & Y, but rather, were ORAS exclusives within Gen VI.

Unironically, yeah. At least, in a potential remake. Then balance it out so the Arena is only 5 rounds, instead of 7. I broadly like the FE4 Arena model, but its tedium is hard to deny. Hey now, you haven't forgotten about the countless one-star no-portrait "Commander" units, now, have you? ...Actually, that could be a neat way to do it. Rather than a flat "bosskill bonus", you'd get extra EXP for each Authority star that the boss had. So, +20 for *, +40 for **, and so on. Since EXP from any combat caps at 100, killing a ***** general would become a guaranteed full level, on any unit. Not sure if I'm misreading this, but - you can't use the Rescue staff on Falcoknights or Troubadours in this game. It's an A-rank Staff, and they're stuck at C-rank. You can raise Nanna or Fee's rank, if Claud is their father, but only up to B-rank. The only mounted units who can use Rescue are your Master Knights. Tired: Charlot using the Berserk Staff to make Arion kill his own troops. Hired: Charlot pawning the Berserk Staff to gain 15K Gold, and then buying Recover. Wired: Ced buying the Berserk Staff for 30K to do what Charlot didn't have the guts to. Inspired: What I just said, but it's Hawke instead. Also, the "Barrier Blade" is essentially a mini-Mystletainn. With all the siege tomes and status staves in the last two maps, getting a passive resistance boost is kind of a big deal, actually. And of all people, the one Chagall winds up sharing a portrait with is Muhammad (pbuh). Affording the Paragon Ring? With 20K gold? ...Boy, have I got some bad news for you- Hmph. You'd be wise to keep an eye on your Jacks of Diamonds. That's all I'll say. ...Oh, alright. I guess all is forgiven, after all. Actually a pretty solid plan, I would say. She starts 14 levels away from promotion, but if she's gaining 5 or 6 levels each in this chapter amd the next, then she can close the gap just by Arena'ing in chapter 4. Speaking of the "plateau", it's a great place for Erinys to be, once the final phase starts. There will be a ton of cavalry coming from the northeast corner. But Erinys can use hit-and-run tactics to damage them, then flee back behind the safety of the ledge. She's probably not one-rounding (except Troubadours, maybe?), but hey, it's free damage and EXP.

Oof, sorry to hear all that. Well, the "difficult stuff" part. Not the "overcoming difficult stuff" part. Glad to hear that the Forest was able to help you in hard times. I like it! Although, I think we all start as saplings. Exactly! Know who asked me to rank every potential pairing in Genealogy? Or rate every single battalion in Three Houses? Nobody, that's who! But I plunged ahead regardless, and found a few people who shared my interests. I appreciate their input to this day. But either way, I'm proud of the hours of ink I've spilled over anime waifu chess.

Yeah, the "Mega Flygon" bit has been done to death, admittedly. Like, did we really need a second Dragon/Ground Mega? In my opinion, no we did not. I'm quite a fan of Mega Altaria as well! I remember running a D-Dancing set, with Earthquake and Pixilated Return. Fairy plus Ground has almost perfect coverage. And it was great to see Altaria get a Mega, alongside other Hoenn Mons, like Sharpedo, Camerupt, and Sableye. That said, there were still plenty of underwhelming Hoenn species who would've loved a Mega. Mons like Zangoose, Seviper, and Grumpig. Honestly, who even rememvers that Grumpig exists? That's how much of a bum steer it got.

I think this is as simple as "they show up in the same place, so people ship 'em". Like Tailtiu and Claud, or Edain and Dew. There's nothing really deeper to it. Ah yeah, that's true. I remember, in a recent playthrough, Tinne going off to run House Friege. This was because Arthur was Lewyn's son, so he inherited Silesse. But it meant Seliph and Tinne, whom I paired together, wound up seperated after the war. Go get that bread, sister. I feel like there's so much untapped potential to Merlinus's immortality. Like, he's a free "lure" to draw in powerful enemies. Kind of like how people eventually learned to use Phantom summons in Sacred Stones. Maybe it's the fact that he can only function this way once-per-map that turns people away? Or that a unit who can only gain 1 EXP at a time has an inherently bad "unit feel"? Who knows... Thanks for the thought! Grannvale seems to exist in a space that's not overtly patriarchal, per se - we know that women can, and in several cases do, exercise political power - but rather, one that "just so happens" to have a lot of men in power (and boys poised to succeed them). Sigurd and Eldigan "happening" to be the elder brother to Ethlyn and Lachesis, and thus inheriting Chalphy and Nordion, respectively. Seliph, Ares, and Shannan all "happen" to be boys. On top of that, the game throws dozens of "Ugly Barons" at the player, to the extent that the only female enemies I can think of (who also wield political power) are Hilda and Ishtar. Granted, it's great that we have them, along with women like Aida and Liza - and that characters like Brigid and Julia get their legendary weapons. But it's definitely a different picture from the more "egalitarian" style the series has tried to push since Awakening. Not saying worse, just different.

Isn't that the "right" way to do it, at least in GBAFE? Since bosses give a fixed EXP bonus, regardless of which unit is killing them. Getting 35 EXP on Seth (when a normal kill would be 5 EXP) is a bigger deal than 100 EXP on Franz (when a normal kill would be 30 EXP). Not sure how exactly it works in FE4, to be fair. Yeah, I generally think the Return Band is best on your Return Staff user. Since self-Returning is a terminal action, but using the Return Staff is not, a unit can "double down" and return another unit, and themself, on the same turn. Another Return candidate is Erinys - in my experience, it's easier to get her to level 20 than Lachesis. So you can have not just a mounted Return staffer, but one who flies over the rivers and forests of Silesse as well. IMO it's not the best on Sigurd, since Seizing is also a terminal action. He can't Seize and self-return on the same turn. As for Azelle, it's fine on him, for the time being. I'd view it, though, as a source of an additional 10K gold. If that lets him afford the Magic Ring, or the Speed Ring - maybe the Paragon Bamd for a round of Arena'ing - all the better. Not the worst idea. The neighboring castle almost certainly has toilet paper, and they're a shorter drive away from the supermarket. Hey, I just met you, And this is crazy, But we've talked four times now, So have my baby! "Thief Sword" is too confusing, since it doesn't belong on a Thief. Since it grants the Steal skill, it really ought to be called the "Steal Sword". No way that could be confusing! Honestly, I don't get a lot of use out of the Thief Sword on Lachesis. She can't do anything this map, since approaching any enemies triggers her knights to run off and get themselves killed. In chapter 3, you could use her as a "secondary Thief", but IMO it's better on a mounted unit, since they can reach the Bandits more quickly. As for the latter phase of chapter 3, I really like it on Erinys. She can travel to the Orgahill peninsula to help fight all the Pirates, each of whom drops 5K. You wouldn't want all that pirate booty to go to waste, now, would you?

Hm... my take is, rather than each unit representing a bunch of people, there are instead a bunch of "invisible soldiers" in your army. Like, when Quan and Ethlyn appear in chapter 5, they have a contingent of NPC Lance Knights with them. Maybe some of them came along on his earlier mission to aid Sigurd, but weren't shown, because it would make the game even more tedious? On the flip side, we have cases like Lewyn and Silvia. I'm not buying for a second that Silvia is actually leading a troupe of like a dozen dancers, while Lewyn is joined by other spell-slingers. ...Although it's funny to imagine that this random Bard, traveling incognito, has his bodyguards with him. Love how Nergal teleports away in time, and Ephidel just... doesn't. Even though he's already demonstrated the ability - at the beginning of the same chapter! - to Rewarp at will. Just a "guess I'll die" moment. Lover system in a nutshell.

That's actually incorrect. Mega Diancie was introduced in Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire, as you can see by the fact that it has Gen VI data. Likewise for Mega Pidgeot, Beedrill, Swampert, Metagross, etc. ...Side note: it's really funny that ORAS added new Megas for Pidgeot and Beedrill, among others, when those Mons don't normally exist in the games at all. But no Mega Flygon for us!

Hm, maybe Edelgard though? She's probably the strongest or second-strongest unit in 3H. At least, assuming you plop her onto a Wyvern. Broke: Making Seliph a girl would totally change her romantic relationships, and connections with other units. Woke: Girl Seliph can keep all her relationships, because she's actually a charismatic lesbian. Not sure how we got here, but I would've been very cool with a female Seliph. The other "truly great" units of Gen II - Leif, Ares, and Oifey - are all male. As are most legendary weapon users - Shannan, Febail, and Lewyn's son. Having a woman be the main Lord in Gen II - and a great combat unit, with the Tyrfing later on - would be pretty cool. On top of that, in the endings, the women don't get as many political opportunities. Ares goes on to rule Augustria, while Shannan takes over Isaach. Altenna would make perfect sense as a ruler of a unified Thracia - daughter of the north, raised in the south - but of course, that title goes to Leif. And otherwise, it's usually "<insert character's> son" taking over a country or house. I.e. Jamke's son ruling Verdane, or Claud's son running Edda. There are a few exceptions, but usually, the women just follow their husbands. Having the "paramount leader" of Grannvale, at Belhalla, being a woman, would be a neat counterbalancing force.

I'm gonna say New Mystery of the Emblem. It only released in Japan, and doesn't have the "nostalgia" or "history" of the Kaga-era games. And FE6 has Roy, who is indeed our boy. Its gameplay and aesthetic are inherited from Shadow Dragon, which already wasn't the most popular. And its story is just FE3's story, but needlessly bloated with fluff.

Can't wait to use Pinsir's Guillotine against Robespierre's whole team! Man... I'll believe it when I see it. The symbol is great and all, but I'm worried that "Megas are back!" is just going to turn into "(pre-existing) Megas are back!". That's what Sun & Moon did, after all. I'm still happy to theorycraft new Megas, but don't have a ton of hope that they'll show up. The original X and Y were uniqurle, in that the player got two starters: one from Kalos, and another from Kanto. I wonder if they'll do something similar here? Like, maybe your proposed "Snivy/Scorbunny/Piplup with regional evos" as the original starters, but then "Chespin/Fennekin/Froakie" that the Professor offers you later on. I wonder, if it's all in Lumiose City, will we have the encountering and catching system that Legends Arceus offered? Would we only be able to catch species that live in, or visit, the city? I worry that would be somewhat limiting, even though I do like the idea of a Pokemon game portraying a city moreso "to scale", as opposed to "six houses, one hospital, a gym and a shop".

Must be short for "Evan". A shame these guys all just disappear after this chapter. It'd be neat to see them among Eldigan's Cross Knights in chapter 3. Maybe Lachesis could convince one of them to join your army? A spot just opened up, after all! Crazy how everyone seems to live on a plateau in the forest, with no roads connecting them. You'd think there'd be at least a coastal fishing village or two. ...You know what? I ship it. Chulex for life! (I say, as someone who may or may not have tried to pair Lex with Dew on my first playthrough). What bugs me is, his design. Chulainn looks like "generic Augustrian mercenary", with his armor and blonde hair. Whuch is fine... except that he's not. He's an Isaachian noble. You know, Isaach? The country where everyone has black hair? Yet, there's no real hint to this, outside of him having minor Od blood. It doesn't even come up in his Brave Sword conversation with Ayra. Wow, congrats on Lex winning this one! It was far from a given. If I recall, on my latest playthrough (subs only), I had Sigurd beat Chulainn on the second-to-last castle, so he would spawn up there instead. Also, by getting him later, there was less chance of him romancing Ayra. For full disclosure, I actually haven't done this one before. I've done Lachesis x Alec, which makes basically the same kids, but requires a bit more effort. What can I say, I love my turban'd lad. That said, since Beowulf provides a conversation that boosts Lachesis' stats (and gives love points), safe to say that he's the best pick. If I recall, most Swords are C-rank, even the weirdly specialized ones. Only the Steel Sword, Brave Sword, and effective swords (Armorslayer, Wingclipper) are B-rank, while the Silver Sword and the Blades are A-rank. Every other non-legendary sword can be used by your lowliest Thief or Dancer. Avast ye, mateys! There be a fine blade for us to plunder! Ahem! In Ethlyn's limited defense, the reasons for letting her keep the Light Brand are A) it's expensive, so it's hard for anyone else to obtain it; B) her relatively high Magic, and low Strength, means she's comparatively hard-hitting with it; and C) the Critical skill, alongside access to lover Crits via Quan, can boost her damage further. The main reason not to let her keep it, though, is... she's a Troubadour. 9 times out of 10, on player phase, she's going to be healing. It'll be rare that she gets a chance to see any combat. And on enemy phase, her frailty, plus the "only magical at range" aspect, makes for a losing proposition. Again, my suggestion (once it becomes possible) is Dew, so that he can rob more suckers, from a safe distance. It also increases his damage output, if barely. But I've heard of players putting it onto the likes of Sigurd, Alec, or Beowulf. Characters who can make up for their non-existent Magic stat, with the mere ability to double. If you want to achieve a "50 kill Light Brand", or something goofy like that, this might be the way to go. I broadly agree with the "one-to-one" interpretation here. It's worth keeping in mind that we're not in an "all-out war", like the sort that is going on in Isaach. Moreso a series of small-scale operations. ...That destabilize multiple countries. In any case, the "fly everyone to Silesse" operation, at the end of chapter 3, wouldn't work for an entire army. And Sigurd never seems to mourn his lost troops. So either he's cold and heartless, or it really was just a couple dozen of them. I was just making the Darin connection, too! I can't believe those dastards at IS plagiarized IS. "That wasn't very clever mode of you, bro."

Actually, Erinys has Pursuit as a personal skill. So she passes it down to Fee and Ced, who are in classes that don't inherently have Pursuit. Interestingly, Hawke also has Pursuit, while Hermina does not. Definitely don't give up the Brave Sword early. In my opinion, Ayra's Brave Sword is the single-best weapon in the game, cross-considering such factors as cost, stats, and availability. With particularly aggressive play, you can get it to 50 kills by the timeskip, or shortly thereafter. The Pursuit Band on Leif is a pretty alright pick, IMO. After chapter 3, the only units who really want it in Gen I are Lewyn and Naoise. Obviously, it can be really good on someone like Lewyn!Arthur, or Jamke!Lester. But depending on how you set up your pairings, you may have no use for it. My personal preference is to just have Leif buy it, but letting him inherit it might just save you a step. One weapon I like having Leif inherit? The Thief Sword! When he starts chapter 7, there are a ton of Bandits attacking the villages nearby. With the Thief Sword, he can get a juicy 5K from each of them. Then Finn or Nanna can follow it up with a kill. Plus, the Armor Knights each give 2K. He won't gain a ton of EXP right away, but the extra money will put the Paragon Band and Brave Sword in reach much sooner. Granted, doing so means missing out on the Thief Sword in chapters 4, 5, and 6. But those chapters don't have a ton of Bandits, and in chapters 4 and 5, Dew can deal with them. In 6... yeah, you just kinda have to accept the money loss. But letting Leif (or Nanna) inherit it is the only way to make sure the chapter 7 Bandits' gold isn't lost forever. Those are all good picks! I like the Light Brand on Seliph, since he's thematically the "Scion of Light". And don't forget about Dew's secret event at the Tower of Bragi in chapter 3. It's easy to miss, since it's so far out of the way, but it's the only way to get the Wind Sword. Yep. One approach is, in chapter 2, Jamke kill some of Erinys' troops as they approach the home castle. In chapter 3, he can take on the Thracian Wyverns. In chapter 4, there are plenty of Pegasus Knights to fight (and Forests that slow Midir down). And in chapter 5, those Thracian Wyverns come back (with Horseslayers this time). Jamke certainly has his uses. Gae Bolg moment The single-best weapon to fight Eldigan with, and Ethlyn won't give it up until the Lionheart is already dead. In Sigurd's very limited defense, their union didn't produce a child with the blood of Loptyr. It could have. But it didn't. In fact, only one of Dierdre's three children inherits her Loptous blood.

Lex is an interesting spot, where he's not the "best" partner for any potential mother, but he's also among the better picks for any of them. The Paragon skill is one of the best in the game, while the Defense boost from Neir holy blood is very welcome. That's why I gave him an A rank for every mother, except Edain and Lachesis (where he gets a B). Note, too, that I was considering them based on "ranked run" considerations. Ergo, if a pairing demands a bunch of excess turns, I consider it less viable. But if you don't care about turncount, then that aspect may not matter. Like, you could definitely argue that Lewyn!Arthur is better than Azelle!Arthur. But I ranked Azelle as a better partner to Tailtiu, because it's a much easier pairing to set up (and it grants her an HP boost). Yeah, this is broadly catching what I was thinking. The reason I prefer Chulainn > Lex with Ayra is moreso one of convenience, as the two swordfighters are easier to keep adjacent. Also, Chulainn passing Swords down really helps Scathach. Of course, Paragon and Neir blood are great on both kids. I also really like Dew, as Bargain allows for a "free" Paragon Band, while Sol can bolster their survivability. My favorite Lex pairing, in a ranked context, might actually be with Silvia. Aa weird as it sounds, the two kids don't really care about Pursuit. They're also very difficult to train, so Paragon makes them have a much easier road to level 30 (and helps Coirpre promote in the first place). The defense boost might be counter-intuitive with Miracle, but I think it provides flexibility (i.e. what was a 2HKO may instead put them into Miracle range). Not passing any Staves down to Coirpre is a bummer, but Lex tends to accumulate Gold, so he can at least pass down a "nest egg", like the Shield Ring or Return Band. Oh God Speaking of narratively correct Please don't let Ethlyn take the Light Brand with her. I know it's Leif's "canonically", but it also ranks among the best weapons in the game, and is definitely the best magical sword. I actually like to give it to Dew, so that he can rob enemies at range. This will substantially increase his ability to acquire, and distribute, Gold. While he can do this with any magical sword, the Light Brand shows up first. Yeah, I've not used this pairing yet, but would like to someday. Warp directly on your mounted healer can "cut out the middleman" of a Return-Warp volley. As for status staves, yeah I haven't used them a ton, since they're super expensive. Still, I like how FE4 handles them - if your Magic beats their Resistance, it's a guaranteed hit. You never have to worry about a Silence missing, nor do you have to fear your high-Res units getting put to sleep due to a bad roll.

You referred to Maria's rebellion. I never knew the plucky Princess of Macedon had it in her!