Sorry if this is too wordy, TLDR at bottom of post. Links are to YouTube videos of my strategies for HM and MM stealth runs of Ch 10 Prisoner Release
Chapter 10 Hard Mode Stealth in 12 turns for 1080 bexp
I’ve seen a few other strategies for stealthing this chapter but I wanted to try to make one that a) retained the turncount bonus and b) didn’t require a promoted Oscar. I managed to complete this chapter with all treasure, all recruits, and 1080 bexp in 12 turns on hard mode. I used lots of rescuing, trading, and shoving to get as many units as I could to escape by the 12th turn.
This strategy requires Ike, Volke, all mounted units, both laguz, and 2 other units (X and Y). X must be light enough for Ike to rescue and Y must be a 6-move unit. I used Soren and Boyd. You also need one chest key from chapter 7.
I killed the enemies in the upper left chamber with a combo of Mordecai, Lethe, Titania, Ike, and Soren. I’m not sure how replicable killing the enemies would be with different units and stats. I’d use save states if playing on an emulator to try out slightly different unit placement or weapons if you’re struggling. If you just need more rounds to defeat the boss, you can use units on the 12th turn and just lose out on 10 bexp/unit left behind.
Chapter 10 Maniac Mode Stealth in 15 turns for 865 bexp
The first method can be used on easy, normal, and hard, but NOT maniac mode. The strategy for MM is mostly the same at the beginning, but then you need to direct around allied units to the escape points. The fastest I could manage to get Kieran out was 15 turns so I based my strategy around that timeframe. While the boss room is filled with armor knights, you have a few extra turns to fight them so I actually think defeating all the enemies has a little more leeway on maniac than on hard.
You can see me load save states a couple times in the video. That was me forgetting to direct Kieran around the map before ending Ike’s turn. If y’all are attempting a stealth run and using an emulator with save states, I’d recommend using the save states. It’s really annoying to be almost done and having one little misclick make you need to start over
Was the bexp worth the effort to stealth in the end? On hard mode, I ended up getting only slightly less cexp when playing this chapter the non-stealth way. Considering that 1 bexp<1cexp the higher leveled your units are, it might not be worth it in a pure numbers game. If you’re doing a transfer run or training characters like Nephenee, Marcia, or Jill who might struggle most right when you get them, the bexp is probably worth it.
I don’t have much experience on Maniac Mode. This was my first time playing it and I only started it so I could figure out how to stealth this map. From what I can tell, the bexp is worth it because you hardly get any and it helps units that struggle at combat initially. Also, the normal version of this map is swarmed with enemies (like in all maniac maps), so I found the stealth method way less tedious once I had a strategy figured out.
TL;DR: 1080 bexp on HM or 865 on MM. Use rescues and shoves to get as many units as you can to the escape point quickly. USE SAVESTATES! Worth it if training units with bad initial combat or for transfer runs.
