pikablu

Yay more Ikey and Boydy love! But seriously no love for Geo? Everything about him is so hot; that wispy curly hair, those blue puppy dog eyes, that handsome pretty boy face, that colour palette, that bulky armor piece (makes him look so big and manly) and that attitude - oh I would do anything for you princess...ohh just imagine what he would do for his princess ...

I didn't make it very clear in my post btw but my primary argument is Boyd > Kieran, please remember that (Oscar was just a bonus), Boyd IS reaching enemies in many cases, movement being important to fulfill objectives is different, but for combat purposes Boyd can reach enemies and also seeing as he is probably the 1st one to promote he gains the +1 Move and reduces the movement gap between him and the cavaliers (until they promote of course). Boyd can also see combat with Hand Axe-type weapon up to 8 (or 9) spaces away which is more than enough in nearly every chapter to start gaining exp (on first turn). And because of that high Str + Ice Supports + Axes, he'll likely go through most units 2HKOs (same cannot be said of Oscar or Kieran) which nets much more exp than just hitting a few different units (which is what Kieran will definitely do and Oscar may not but is more than likely to). Regarding durability, Boyd has a substantial HP advantage over Oscar that keeps getting larger and yeah the defense lead is there but gets bigger less so, due to the appearance of Boyd's Ice supports. However, the AS lead over Oscar if anything is non-existent (0.6 at the most in favour of Oscar) and in fact helps Boyd out in the beginning. Concerning movement, yeah sure I see what you're saying BUT like I said in that big post, movement doesn't always help. It doesn't help in Ch 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 11 (well beginning definitely not), 12, 13 (ok beginning granted + saving Astrid, but Boyd becomes possible to play with on Turn 2/3 and which he's better than Kieran for the most part), 15, 17, 19, 20, 22, 24 (only at the beginning, because enemies block the way, Boyd can start contributing Turn 2), 25 (because enemies constantly block the way), 26 (deceiving but Boyd can start contributing immediately and is prob the best person to keep those top units at bay), 28, F. It doesn't help when the enemies are right next to you/compact in a big group/terrain does not allow you/chapter makes it irrelevant/durability does not allow you to (in Kieran's case especially), please consult my post for reasons why each chapter is in favour of one character or the other. And even if it does, Oscar/Kieran will not 2HKO, Boyd will (the AS of all are pretty much the same with Oscar's and Boyd's gradually taking over Kieran's). This option is still not available until Chapter 8 so prior to this chapter, Boyd still has advantages over Oscar in carrying the heavier weapons in Ch 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7. So Boyd carries a substantial advantage over Oscar when it comes to defeating enemies. The hammer/poleaxe being given to him of course as Titania does not need them in the beginning stages. The AS lead by Oscar when they are at the same level is not substantial enough to advantage Oscar over Boyd in doubling at the same level mind you (when you take into account that Boyd in those chapters where movement is irrelevant will be getting Exp like crazy) especially when that their speed difference remains constant(0.6) at each level and Boyd's Str really starts showing in Boyd after promotion, the stronger weapon - ie axes (which he can use sooner than Kieran) and Ice Supports). Oscar's killing no one fast that's for sure whereas Boyd is due to an increasingly higher strength gap (which is already apparent in the early chapters) with less AS cost than with Oscar. Whoops ha sorry about that! Changed it now, I meant to say in Ch 5, he's got the soldiers (literally all over the place) and Ch 8's cavaliers (the ones at the bottom). Agreed, but at the same time, it's not only the knights that I mentioned Boyd can deal with (the fighters/bandits in Ch 1/2, cavaliers in Ch 8 and soldiers everywhere in Ch 5/8 - Oscar's doubling doesn't kill these and he has a real trouble with fighters/bandits in Ch 1/2). Also Knights/Generals do make up the majority of the boss count, so Boyd can effectively take these out in those chapters where movement does not matter which are more than you think check the top of the page again. Bosses (like Ena) for instance are the best way of demonstrating Boyd's combat ability being able to 2HKO nearly all of them at least, he can also OHKO cats w/Laguz Axe. Sure but ferrying in Ch1 with Oscar is difficult, he is not durable enough to help Ike get to the other side, that role is fulfilled by Titania. In Ch 6, he can't do that again because the knights are in the way + his durability is lacking, loads of fighters, and it's just not secure enough to do then either. In Ch 9, he's definitely good here, I don't dispute that. In Ch 11, Oscar's movement makes a difference only after that big group of enemies is defeated next to the middle house which Boyd has enough move to contribute to a lot more effectively than Oscar and Kieran definitely (Boyd can be played straight off at turn 1), being able to double most of those cavaliers and actually kill them in the process, too often with Oscar/Kieran the cavaliers are left with 1 to 5 HP which Boyd's overkill strength would guarantee to eliminate. He can which is what I'm saying, most chapters you actually start off next to enemies and usually it's a matter of going from 1 enemy to the next which is usually a few spaces away. He's also much more effective at 2HKOing these guys than Kieran (and even Oscar) resulting in a substantial level lead to over Kieran. I'll copy my conclusion from the previous page please consult my argument before guys about the level lead and other stuff because I can understand that it may seem like I'm being biased to him but that's not the case, check it (also check Page 165 for chapter by chapter analysis): So, in conclusion: Boyd conveys more utility than both Oscar and Kieran. He has a substantial level lead over Oscar and Kieran (because he'll be killing things with more Atk and lower speed penalties for higher Atk) whereas Oscar and Kieran with similar Atk will find it much harder to at least 2HKO. He is offensive-wise the best and can 2HKO practically anyone post Ch22 this is amplified by high Str growth, Ice Supports and Axes. His durability thanks to Ice supports is also better than Kieran's (higher HP and Res vs a bit more def by Kieran) and the same I would say over Oscar (much higher HP vs higher Def) and out of the three he is the best to take down mages and laguz (he can soak up the big hits). Yes the only thing I can really see Kieran having ahead of Boyd is movement but I've talked through each chapter and assessing how important movement is to each map.That AS too will be much better with Boyd in the beginning because he can afford to use the heavier weapons whereas everyone else will be having a much more difficult time. Over time Oscar = Boyd in AS (though still Boyd's offense takes advantage of it the most) but ALWAYS is better than Kieran's and can take advantage of axes much more substantially than Kieran. He is definitely better and makes more chapters more efficient than Kieran (11 vs 5 chapters). Kieran late arrival does not help the level lead and will not catch up with Boyd. Boyd > Kieran. With Oscar, it boils down to higher Avo vs higher offense and because Boyd has such good Offense that he can 2HKO many guys which Oscar can only dream of, he is definitely more useful in spite of the lower avoid (also Boyd's avoid is good anyway after a point the Avoid lead becomes redundant). Oscar can get to places faster but takes longer taking enemies down, Boyd is more durable and at the same time can OHKO mages and 2HKO others (especially laguz).

Yeah but he won't be 2HKOing them like Boyd will the soldiers in Ch5, knights in Ch7 or knights/cavaliers in 8. Lances < Axes, Boyd's AS > Oscar AS when talking about best weapons for each character at knight smashing time, and Boyd's Atk > Oscar's

Boyd has a level lead because (it's in the post) he does not have the AS penalties (or substantially less than Oscar) to be able to 2HKO guys. Boyd can kill far more easily than Oscar and therefore gets more exp (like the knights in Ch 6 or Ch 7) because of amazing combat prowess. Oscar can take hits but does not 2HKO anything early game (except mages). Yes his defense is lower than Oscar's at the beginning but his durability grows such that = Oscar's because the HP lead is amplified. And Rhys is there and if you assume no incompetence in the part of the player with Boyd, he will be healing Boyd in the early stages (Titania and Oscar being able to live through) - the only other character requiring healing probs Ike. Also durability by Chapter 6 is 6 HP vs 3.5 Def (Oscar winning of course but slightly I would call the HP lead substantial enough to warrant some durability). I think I said in my early post why movement is not necessary in certain chapters. Sometimes it's because the enemies are close together or because the terrain is such, please consult what I've written for each chapter for more in-depth info. Yes, but he can soak the hits well because of his high HP, he's the best of the three for dealing with mages and can OHKO eventually. It's not a turtling strategy, it's more of yes Oscar and Kieran may survive and may kill but Boyd may survive and will kill.

Ok thanks a bunch aku chi! Here I go: Boyd > Kieran (and maybe even Oscar) and deserves to be in the top tier. Boyd has 8 additional chapters of availability and in each one he is useful enough to warrant a place on your team for Chapters 1 and 2 (I think he can double in 2). Also in Chapter 2, the majority of enemies are axe users and Boyd and Ike are more useful than Oscar in this fight. Also Boyd has an advantage in Chapter 5 due to the high amount of lance users and in Chapter 6 he and Titania can go on opposite sides to deal with the knights (you can also let him get the poleaxe, my reasoning to let him have it as that Titania is strong as it is and poleaxe would be overkill with her). In Chapter 7, Ike is restricted by movement (to recruit Mia) and Oscar still has not enough Str and so Boyd and Titania are left to deal with the knights, if we do a comparison of Body and Oscar at this point they should be at the same level (as initially Boyd was one level below, but his advantage against lances in Chapter 5 helps him out here) and if we say they both gained 1 in Ch2, 2 in Ch3, 2 in Ch5 for Oscar and 3 in Ch5 for Boyd, 2 in Ch6 then we have: Lvl HP Str Skl Spd Lck Def Res Boyd 9 35.35 11.2 7.5 9.15 6.45 6.75 1.75 Oscar 9 29.3 8.7 9 9.7 6.8 10.1 1.8 So, as you can see against the knight which will have like 10 Def, Boyd is going to be much more useful (with Axes, +3 more Str than Oscar) so he incontrovertibly also possess an advantage in this map too along with Titania. Now in Chapter 8, he can use the Poleaxe (which Titania does not need because she is strong enough) and go for the cavaliers below or knights to the right, but either way Boyd is incredibly useful this chapter as he and Titania are the sole axe users and there are loads of lance users this level so they should be split up proportionally. He doesn't possess any really useful advantages in Chapter 9 (Oscar actually beats him in this as movement is quite significant this chapter) but in 10 if you are going via the stealth route, you'll want to defeat the boss and again he can do this, along with maybe Soren/Titania. Therefore I have established his use for Ch7 to 10, and his axes are really good, he will be 1 Weapon Level higher than Kieran this means. (We have not even counted BEXP bonuses). So, now in Ch11 (he would have at least a 1 level lead ahead of Oscar). In terms of levels, if we assume Boyd gained 2 in Ch7, 2 in Ch8, 1 in Ch9 and 1 in Ch10 (in total 6) and Oscar gained 1 in Ch7, 1 in Ch8, 2 in Ch9 and 1 in Ch10 (in total 5). Then, if we compare Kieran to Boyd and Oscar: Lvl HP Str Skl Spd Lck Def Res Boyd 15 39.75 14.8 10.5 11.85 8.55 8 3 Oscar 14 32.05 10.95 11.5 11.95 8.3 11.85 3.3 Kieran 12 30 11 10 12 8 10 1 So Boyd's got a 3 Level lead from Kieran (and we haven't counted any BEXP spent from Chap 7 onwards), he also has at least 3.8 Str more than Kieran. But he's also got a B in Axes whereas Kieran does not. Boyd also has an HP lead of 9.75 ahead of Kieran and 2 Res lead but Kieran has a 2 Def lead and Kieran has an AS advantage over both Boyd and Oscar AT THE MOMENT. If we do the calcs, based off the character's best weapons at the time against a generic Lance Knight (so nobody has a disadvantage) with 29 HP, 7 AS 8 Def: Boyd - Steel Axe: 25.8 Atk, 11.65 AS (11.85 - (15 - 14.8)), 32.25 Avo Oscar - Steel Lance: 20.95 Atk, 9.9 AS (11.95 - (13 Wt - 10.95 Str)), 28.1 Avo Kieran - Steel Axe: 22 Atk, 8 AS (12 - (15 - 11)), 24 Avo Now only Boyd is 2HKOing this Lance Knight, the others don't have enough AS to double due to massive weapon weight penalties (also observe how even if they did double Oscar and Kieran will not kill this lance knight whereas Boyd will). Boyd's offense clearly far surpasses Oscar and Kieran at the moment as Kieran has a massive AS penalty associated with any axe other than an Iron Axe and same with Oscar, which restricts their offensive capabilities immensely. So far, only Boyd can handle a steel weapon with no substantial loss in speed (and even that small 0.2 disappears after one more level up). Also, even doubling with an Iron Axe or even a Steel Axe, Kieran would not be able to kill this unit because he has substantially lower Str (the 3.8 Str lead in doubling can really be beneficial to Boyd and give him up to a 7.6 lead in offense over Kieran enough to kill what Kieran could not), Oscar just would not be able to 2HKO any of these cavaliers even if he doubled. In terms of avoid though, Oscar will have an Earth support with Ike right now or actually Kieran at some point but this won't happen for another 2 chapters. Anyways at the moment Boyd is combat-wise the best out of the 3 in terms of getting the job done - their durability being pretty much even as far as HP and Def are concerned (I think the 9 HP lead by Boyd is really the same as a 2 Def lead by Kieran) and Boyd/Oscar being the best to deal with mages. However, Oscar and Kieran due to their movement are much more useful granted for Ch11, BUT they will only be able to take advantage of this at the end with the boss, because the enemies are much closer together at the start (especially those Cavaliers in that middle house on the left. Boyd will have ample time to catch up with them AND do some more combat fighting (with Short Axe even as he will have no penalties) BUT granted the boss fight goes to Oscar/Kieran, thus let's say Boyd, Oscar and Kieran draw for this chapter (with Boyd doing slightly better with his offensive and AS capabilities) and gain the same level ups (1 each I think is enough) And Ch12, Boyd is the better as he no longer suffers from any speed penalties while Oscar and Kieran still do and so can do a lot of damage against the crows without any worries of getting doubled. Oscar and Kieran higher movement does nothing here because movement is restricted anyway (you're waiting for the crows to get on to the boat). Let's give Boyd 2 Lvls and Oscar and Kieran 1 each. Ch13 is another example of Ch10 where Oscar and Kieran sure can go straight ahead while Boyd probably takes 1 more turn to get to the action, but seriously it's a question of one turn as when the units get to the combat, movement become irrelevant for the rest of the chapter (as the enemies keep coming TO you), not to mention Boyd and Kieran have an Axe lead over Oscar against the Halbrediers and no real sword problems coming from either side. Combat-wise Boyd will still be the better of Oscar/Kieran as Oscar will be at around 11.85 Str at Level 16 and still have 11.6AS with Steel (so 12.85 - 1.15 = 11.6AS) and 12.85 AS with Iron while Kieran has either 9.8 AS (Steel) or 12.8 AS (Iron) at level 14. Boyd will be Level 18 at this point and have 13.2 AS (no speed penalty), he's doing the best combat-wise again (I don't even need to talk about the offense because he has 16.6 Str vs. Kieran's 12 Str so now 4.6 more). But I'll give Oscar/Kieran the fact that they got there first and also they've got their Earth Support, so all of them get 2 Levels each. Oh now wait, that means Boyd can now promote while Oscar is still 2 Levels behind and Kieran is 4 Levels behind. I will prioritise giving Boyd the Master Seal at Lvl20 because he will (let's face it) be the first one to get there (with Oscar coming in shortly after), so you might as well give it to him. Oscar and Kieran do well this map because it's one of the only maps where the enemies are spread out and so high movement is extremely useful, in other maps the enemies were gathered together in a few places which Boyd could easily reach and then contribute too. In this chapter, Oscar/Kieran can both use their movement to make a real difference. So Oscar and Kieran can gain 2 levels each here, Boyd gains 1 (because he is a promoted unit now so the movement gap reduces and he can reach places now faster than Ike). Ch15 - And now we come to the dreaded desert map where Oscar (even if he is promoted) and Kieran will not be contributing. Boyd however, has 7 movement now and so can move 3 spaces on the desert sand and so can actually be quite useful (but this chapter is dominated by Soren/Ily, Marcia and Jill). Not to mention that the laguz give more experience so let's say Boyd gains 2 more levels and Oscar and Kieran 0. Ch16 - Oscar is immensely useful, however the gap between Kieran and Boyd is non-existent. Let's do a stat-check: Lvl HP Str Skl Spd Lck Def Res Boyd 20/4 48.25 21.6 16.5 16.45 11.35 12.25 7.25 Oscar 20/1 38.35 15.65 16.5 16.65 10.1 15.95 8.1 Kieran 18 33.6 14 13 14.4 9.5 12.4 2.8 Kieran still has 1AS speed penalty for using a Steel Axe so you are unable to play with him effectively again. Durability-wise too he is lower than both Boyd and Oscar, Boyd having 15 more HP than him and Oscar having over 3 Def more than him, both actually having at least 5 Res over him too. Even with the Knight Ward (which has to be given to someone mind you, I can't just let it be given to both Oscar and Kieran and add it to their stats) so +2 that 15 HP lead Boyd has is substantial. Offense-wise Boyd is the best, Oscar is behind him and in Kieran's case he's last. So, it's up to you waiting for one more turn for Boyd to get there and getting the job done or waiting one more turn in any case for Kieran to finish off the enemy. Personally waiting for Boyd for one more turn is best option as that durability comes into play which Kieran doesn't have. But Kieran does still have the movement in this chapter where enemies are spread out, but because of Boyd's consistent battling reliability: Oscar gains 2 levels, Kieran gains 2 Levels (with feeding him some kills and being a lower level unit) and he gets his promotion and Boyd gains 1 Level. Ch17 - All of the chapters have mud/swamp or whatever it is and so Kieran/Oscar's additional movement won't help here, they're fighting on equal movement as far as I'm concerned with Boyd and thus Boyd's superior combat prowess (axes over Oscar and stats, AS, Str, durability over Kieran) again helps out here. Boyd's superior combat prowess helps with the Wyvern Knights/Cavaliers in Part 2 (the really swampy bit) and the mages in Part 3 (OHKOing them actually but even if he gets hit he'll be fine whereas Kieran wouldn't, movement irrelevant here), and again with the knights and cavaliers, Boyd is the best here but yes Oscar and Kieran's superior movement helps but only till the swamp where Boyd will catch up, again no real benefit to higher move here. I see them all gaining the same levels here, 3 Levels each I reckon so (Boyd at 20/8, Oscar at 20/6, Kieran at 20/3) Ch18 - Yes, fine, movement here DEFINITELY helps because the enemies are spread out immensely. 1 Level to Oscar + Kieran BUT 1 Level to Boyd because he can stay behind and attack the reinforcements. Ch19 - Movement NOT IMPORTANT here. You want to avoid the crows attack range for the Knight's Ring, and so especially in that case Kieran and Oscar must NOT rush out and start killing the enemies. So, again they have no advantage here. All get 1 Level. Ch20 - LOTS of Wyverns here, and so Boyd and also Kieran have a distinct advantage here over Oscar, movement NOT really important here as the top wyverns can be got to by Boyd (or the bottom enemies even) either way Boyd is still contributing in a really useful way. Quick stat check: Lvl HP Str Skl Spd Lck Def Res Boyd 20/10 52.75 25.2 19.5 19.15 13.45 13.75 8.75 Oscar 20/8 42.2 18.8 20 19.8 12.2 18.4 10.2 Kieran 20/3 39 18 17 18 10.5 16 7 Even with Knight Ward, Boyd still > Kieran in stats, Boyd's 13.75 HP vs Kieran's 4.25 Def and 0.25 Res lead means Boyd = Kieran in durability, Oscar narrowly beats Boyd though with more Def + Res with a +10 HP difference from Boyd, I'll give durability to Oscar though. Boyd, however, has a lead in AS by 1.15 (which can be substantial) and 7.2 lead in Atk so Boyd definitely >>>> Kieran in offense, same with Oscar really 7.2 Atk (not counting the A in Axes bit as Silver Axe > Silver Lance anyway and even if you did give Oscar Axes they wouldn't be up to A yet) vs 0.65 (not enough by my reckoning to go against Axes and 7.2 Str lead). In Avoid, Boyd has 51.75 Avo without supports, Oscar has 51.8 Avo without supports, Kieran has 46.5 without supports. If we say Kieran A Oscar and B Marcia (so 22.5 + 5 = 27.5 to Avoid and 1 to Atk) and if we say Boyd B Mist and B Brom (not an A yet with either because enough time has not passed) then Boyd has +4 Atk, +2 Def and if we say that Oscar has A Kieran (Ike has other higher priority people to support and Oscar has not built a high enough support rapport with anyone else to support them like Tanith), then he has +22.5 Avo. So with their best weapons so far: Boyd w/Silver Axe, 45.2 Atk, 19.15 AS, 51.75 Avo and 52.75 HP, 15.75 Def, 10.75 Res (Atk/Def support added) Oscar w/Silver Lance, 33.8 Atk, 19.8 AS, 78.3 Avo and 42.2 HP, 18.4 Def, 10.2 Res (Avo support added) Kieran w/Silver Axe, 33 Atk, 74.5 Avo, 18 AS and 39 HP, 18 Def, 9 Res (KW, Atk/Avo support added). So, Boyd has the best offense incontrovertibly (all of his supports bar Titania are Ice and so he gets a substantial boost to Atk) and he can double just as well as Oscar and Kieran, so basically Boyd can take down ANYTHING Oscar and Kieran will have trouble with. Durability too now with the Ice supports give a nice boost to his defenses and now I think Boyd is effectively the best one to take down Mages (having high HP to soak up big hits too) and his higher HP makes up for the even smaller margin in Def now. Also yeah the supports give Kieran and Oscar the Avoid bonus but still I think Boyd beats them in 2 areas while Kieran beats him none except Avoid which I think does not really matter as Boyd has good avoid anyway and so I don't think it's a massive problem. Chapter goes to Boyd definitely due to his high offense against high def Wyverns, he is definitely capable of 2HKOing them whereas Oscar and Kieran not so much. 2 Levels to Boyd, 1 to both Pallys Ch21 - goes to Oscar/Kieran another map where yes movement is good, but would not discount Boyd from anything at the moment as he can deal lots of damage to Ena and also at the junction Oscar and Kieran would have to go right way (to keep the support bonus) straight up to Kasatai which leaves the other way completely open Titania and Boyd are good for this (you can keep Mist too to support Titania and Boyd) and by the time they come out the other side Boyd and Oscar/Kieran will be in the same place so there is no real battle in this particular chapter between Oscar/Kieran and Boyd as they will have to go different ways and end up at the same point from then on, yes Oscar/Kieran can reach the boss easily after this but in HM Boyd is the only one capable of defeating her in the most efficient way with Laguz Axe, Oscar and Kieran would take another turn anyway...so it doesn't really matter which way you do it. I'll give each 1 level. Ch22 - movement does not matter in this priest chapter. To convey efficiency, the party should be split into 3 groups,each going for one side and then staying there to keep the reinforcements busy, movement is not useful therefore because everyone can reach the enemies to the right and left easily and not to mention Boyd can Shove/Smite (his Smite next to Mordes/Muarim is really good) and can be really useful this chapter. Tbh Oscar/Kieran are not good this chapter because the priests need to be shoved about which they can't do and they actually can get in the way (though we must assume no incompetence from the players so this is irrelevant), still their move advantage is not important in this chapter whereas Boyd's utility is. Also Boyd is really good to have against the beast laguz in this chapter capable of OHKO them (esp cats) with Laguz Axe and supports, something which Oscar and Kieran might be able to do but Boyd does it much better without much threat of counter (because of the OHKO), therefore being probs the only unit capable of this he should be there, he is definitely the most secure character to send there. Boyd gets 2, Oscar/Kieran 1 level each. Also Boyd can survive a crit from the boss, same can definitely not be said of Oscar and Kieran (an example of where that 11HP lead helps). Ch23 - pallys are good this chapter granted because they can manoeuvre around. I'll give them this chapter, but Boyd can still do some damage and they're at a high enough level where more exp is hard to come by. 1 Level to both, 0 Levels to Boyd. Ch24 - arriving so again pallys are best. Also they can manoeuvre around the trees but so can Boyd tbh and they lose more Mov because of this anyway but still they can go around top much more effectively than Boyd but Boyd definitely gets the forest path way which he can get through without substantial move cost. They get 1 level both, Boyd can get those reinforcements, that tiny bit of utility here warrants another level up. 1 Level to Boyd, 1 Level to the pals. Ch25 - there are 2 directions to go in so obviously Boyd's not going to be doing anything in one but he will be in the other unless Jill goes this way, but the Bolt Axe will get her, she needs to remain close by Boyd and so does Titania to keep support advantage, the side you sent the other 2 WILL get done quicker but other units will have to be inevitably sent to other side, and you don't want to split the pals up. Therefore I think neither side has an advantage in this chap, in fact if anything Boyd's higher HP means that he can soak up the rock hits as well (though we must again assume competence from the player to avoid this). Enemies are close together again and effect of the hill gives an impression of a long map but actually it's shorter than you realise. 1 Level to Kieran (as level exp catches up to Boyd and Oscar). Ch26 - move is important but I think it is better to remain compact in this map because otherwise you have all of your fragile mages and stuff defending themselves it is better to keep the units back. Also the enemies in this chapter are actually quite strong and more compact in groups therefore movement is only important TO GET TO THESE GROUPS which Boyd can do, Oscar and Kieran only convey an advantage of getting to the boss while skipping the upper and left groups of enemies which I really think shouldn't be done because...another stat check: Lvl HP Str Skl Spd Lck Def Res Boyd 20/10 52.75 25.2 19.5 19.15 13.45 13.75 8.75 Oscar 20/8 42.2 18.8 20 19.8 12.2 18.4 10.2 Kieran 20/3 39 18 17 18 10.5 16 7 Lvl HP Str Skl Spd Lck Def Res Boyd 20/16 57.25 28.8 22.5 21.85 15.55 15.25 10.25 Oscar 20/13 44.95 21.05 22.5 22.05 13.7 20.15 11.7 Kieran 20/10 43.2 21.5 20.5 20.8 12.25 18.8 9.1 Now with supports (Boyd A Mist now, B Brom, Oscar A Kieran B Tanith now, Kieran A Oscar B Marcia) + best weapons: So with their best weapons so far: Boyd w/Silver Axe, 49.8 Atk, 21.85 AS, 59.25 Avo and 57.75 HP, 17.25 Def, 12.25 Res (Atk/Def support added) Oscar w/Silver Lance, 36.05 Atk, 22.05 AS, 100.3 Avo and 44.95 HP, 20.15 Def, 11.7 Res (Avo support added) Kieran w/Silver Axe, 36.5 Atk, 20.8 AS, 80.35 Avo and 43.2 HP, 20.8 Def, 11.1 Res (KW, Atk/Avo support added). Boyd still has his massive offense advantage with his Ice supports, Axes (over Oscar, Oscar still won't have A I reckon), and inherent str growth. Not to mention a massive level lead still apparent against Kieran and Oscar (why? because he'll be killing his enemies for sure whereas Oscar and Kieran won't). He's also got durability with a 13HP lead now over Kieran and Oscar and with +5 Def and +1.45 Res with Oscar and 3.55 Def with Kieran BUT 1.35 against Kieran too. Durability goes to Oscar = Boyd >>> Kieran (that extra 13 HP + 1.35 Res > 3.55 Def). AS goes to Boyd and Oscar again with Kieran behind them by over 1 (anything over 1 is substantial). But that avoid is still killer and massively in favour of Oscar and less so but still there with Kieran so now it's durability + offense vs avoid and movement and I think that because Boyd is guaranteed to kill people I think that makes thing more efficient than anything. Boyd is still > Kieran in my opinion with Boyd = Oscar. Ch27 - They each get 1 Level here (Oscar gets 2), map makes it that all enemies are spread out Oscar > Kieran = Boyd. Oscar + Kieran good to take out thieves. Map goes to cavaliers (mostly Oscar though due to high durability). Ch28 - One of those chapters where movement DOES NOT MATTER. You have some really dangerous Dragons here so Oscar and Kieran should pace themselves otherwise they will die. They shouldn't be using their full move range. Boyd is the best here again because he can soak up the Dragon attacks as well as use Laguz Axe to 2HKO Dragon something which due to his high offense he can do (I can't remember if they can all double) but either way it's taking Oscar/Kieran 3HKO the Dragon. Chapter goes to Boyd, he definitely gains 2 level ups because of the fact he can 2HKO anything this chapter with Silver Axe alone. 1 Level Up to Oscar and Kieran. ChF - Again no real utility bonus to either side here, Boyd is good against the laguz, Oscar and Kieran can go around the sides. So, in conclusion: Boyd conveys more utility than both Oscar and Kieran. He has a substantial level lead over Oscar and Kieran (because he'll be killing things with more Atk and lower speed penalties for higher Atk) whereas Oscar and Kieran with similar Atk will find it much harder to at least 2HKO. He is offensive-wise the best and can 2HKO practically anyone post Ch22 this is amplified by high Str growth, Ice Supports and Axes. His durability thanks to Ice supports is also better than Kieran's (higher HP and Res vs a bit more def by Kieran) and the same I would say over Oscar (much higher HP vs higher Def) and out of the three he is the best to take down mages and laguz (he can soak up the big hits). Yes the only thing I can really see Kieran having ahead of Boyd is movement but I've talked through each chapter and assessing how important movement is to each map.That AS too will be much better with Boyd in the beginning because he can afford to use the heavier weapons whereas everyone else will be having a much more difficult time. Over time Oscar = Boyd in AS (though still Boyd's offense takes advantage of it the most) but ALWAYS is better than Kieran's and can take advantage of axes much more substantially than Kieran. He is definitely better and makes more chapters more efficient than Kieran (11 vs 5 chapters). Kieran late arrival does not help the level lead and will not catch up with Boyd. Boyd > Kieran With Oscar, it boils down to higher Avo vs higher offense and because Boyd has such good Offense that he can 2HKO many guys which Oscar can only dream of, he is definitely more useful in spite of the lower avoid (also Boyd's avoid is good anyway after a point the Avoid lead becomes redundant). Oscar can get to places faster but takes longer taking enemies down, Boyd is more durable and at the same time can OHKO mages and 2HKO others (especially laguz). Who is the most efficient for each chapter: Boyd (=11) Ch 2 Ch 5 Ch 7 Ch 8 Ch 12 Ch 15 Ch 17 (P2 and P3) Ch 20 Ch 22 Ch 26 Ch 28 Oscar (=10) Ch 9 Ch 10 Ch 13 Ch 14 Ch 16 Ch 18 Ch 23 Ch 25 Ch 26 Ch 27 Kieran (=5) Ch 14 Ch 18 Ch 23 Ch 25 Ch 27 Equal (=7) Ch 6 Ch 11 Ch 17 (P1 and P4) Ch 19 Ch 21 Ch 24 Ch F Boyd > Oscar > Kieran is how I see it.

Explain please how she goes about doing that? And if you're going to talk about flying, how about explain how Tanith/Sigrun/Jill/Haar/Janaff/Ulki are all not good enough to do the same (Tanith + Sigrun being forced this chapter also). It's not strange because I just made an analysis describing how Boyd can OHKO Dracomasters which other guys (even Titania in certain cases) couldn't due to highest crit coming from bond supports, Killer Axe and average skill. Really, can you please read what I've said before calling my argument 'strange'. I don't dispute his combat prowess over Titania or Haar for the moment but he definitely gets the most out of the Killer Axe. Mia and Nephenee really don't do it for him with low Str and even with the Wo Dao Mia is not 2HKOing Dracomasters and Generals. Please look at what I've said in my analysis. And tbh you haven't said HOW they are better, you've just stated that they are better without substantiating it with any proof. And what? Ulki and Janaff do not come until 3-7, I was talking about his utility in Chap 3-P, 3-1, 3-2 and 3-3 and maybe 3-4 (where is the argument here?). I hadn't got to the other chapters but seriously? Ulki and Janaff come at Turn 8 in Chap 3-7 by that time everyone should be on the other side of the map. So not going to beat Boyd in utility then. That leaves Chap 3-8, 3-10, 3-11 and 3-F. I'll conduct an analysis on this later but you still haven't defeated the arguments pre Chap 3-5 in favour of Boyd. True but also that means she won't be getting anywhere in Chapter 3-11 (full of archers) if she gets out of the range of snipers she is going to be in the back lines with the other pegi wheras Boyd can (albeit one turn after) defeat the snipers as well as staying alive. You have forgotten also to take into account Marcia's durability at this stage which is not better than Boyd's, Boyd is a tank and will stay alive, Marcia carries more risk (forget arrows, she can't afford to be hit more than 3 times). And what places are faster for Marcia to get to? Give me an example please. Movement isn't everything in these games. I did not say that. I said that efficiency is not just the speed at which you clear the map but how effective the unit is in combat (which lends itself to completing the map faster, as stronger units will help you clear the map faster). BEXP is important to however as it lends itself into increasing the unit's combat prowess. especially when combat exp is lacking in HM. BEXP is needed and should really be maximised to maximise combat prowess. And this is the most important chapter for getting BEXP, killing 5 or 10 enemies means a difference of 500 BEXP which could make the difference between getting that extra level in especially in HM where combat exp is lacking (this is probably the most important chapter). And also Marcia cannot kill by herself at that point she needs to be fed kills which Geo and Kieran can do but then arises the question why can't I feed kills to Astrid and Makalov. She needs to survive too and she won't with all of those beginning enemies. Oscar gets +10 Crit from being next to Boyd. On top of that Ch3-P and 3-1 you will not be using Oscar's FULL MOVEMENT. Why? Because the enemies are situated literally right next to you, Oscar can't just be doing his own thing with Titania, so it gives you ample time for you to have Boyd next to Oscar. Titania does well with Mist because of the +2 Def. Mist also needs Titania to help her heal and she benefits from the additional defense too. Oscar needs Boyd because unlike Titania his durability will not be that good at the start and movement is restricted in 3-P (due to bushes and enemies right in front of you), 3-1 (due to enemies again right in front of you), you want Oscar to be right with the group giving enough time for Boyd C Oscar. Oscar also has a high support compatibility with Boyd whereas he doesn't with Titania - thus Oscar will benefit much more quickly from supporting with Boyd than with Titania. Seriously I think I was biased enough TO Marcia but this just takes the cake. I let her gain loads of levels in 2-P, 2-3 and 2-F because even in spite of that she is not going to be better than Boyd (and I proved it in my 3-11 analysis, again please consult it). Again you have not read what I said previously about WHY she shouldn't be doing anything in 2-P or 2-3. Also WHY on earth would you plow bonus exp into her? BEXP should be distributed evenly based off the requirements of this tier list, something which you have not taken into account at all! You can't be favouring Marcia over anyone else. Also plowing it into her is even more of a reason why her stats will end up being worse than they are (seeing as only 3 will go up) and it won't be strength either will it. Going by what you've said: Marcia will get to 20/7 at the end of 2-P, 20/8 at the end of 2-3 and then getting her to 20/12. So 4 levels worth of BEXP, 1450 from 20/8 to 20/9 (x2 for HM so 2900), 1500 from 20/9 to 20/10 (x2 for HM so 3000), 1550 from 20/10 to 20/11 (x2 for HM so 3100), and 1600 from 20/11 to 20/12 (x2 for HM so 3200). That's in total 2900 + 3000 + 3100 + 3200 = 12200 BEXP. Then BEXP from that point (assuming you haven't spent it + cleared in most turns + done all optional bits): 500 for 2-P, 1925 for 2-1, 1500 for 2-2, 6725 for 2-3 (assuming you've killed at least 4 units, 3 for Marcia's level up again favouring her and 1 for Boss), 1500 for 2-F = 12150 BEXP. Oh and lookie this 50 exp missing to make it to Level 20/12. Anyways we will continue...promote her when she has 20 Str so that will be Level 20/12. Then promote to Seraph Knight, but wait! We have done it the BEXP way and at 20/8 she isn't even close to maxing speed (the only stat which she does) and only the top 3 stats are upgraded so Marcia's top stats in order are HP, Speed, Skill, Def, Res THEN Str. She's not getting the strength even from the level ups (no more level ups either as 20/12 to 13 requires 3300 and we only have 350 remember), and she cannot promote then by your logic so 3-9 no promotion. Also by this time, Geo and Kieran would have maxed some stats (therefore who gets BEXP priority the people who make the most of it - i.e. the people who have maxed stats so Geo + Kieran). But let's say she somehow gets the strength so she gets the promotion in 3-9 (let's use the averages then which she isn't getting with BEXP but anyways...) AND let's throw in another level up. Let's promote her to Seraph (again you're prioritizing Master Seal over Kieran and Geo but I'll let you get away with this too), she gets +4 HP, +3 Str, +2 Skl, +2 Spd, +3 Def +4 Res. being mean to Boyd again (by restricting level ups + no BEXP) CHAP 3-11: Level HP Str Skl Spd Lck Def Res Marcia 20/12/2 43.6 24.4*(T) 25.2*(T) 29.2*(T) 16 21.7 21.7 Boyd 20/19 53(Max) 29.15 24.95 22.95 17.8 21 9.2 So, Boyd still beats her in Def Durability (9.4 HP lead vs 0.7 Def c'mon!) and Offense (4.75 Str + Axes). Marcia still has AS + Avd lead over him though yeah sure fair enough. But Marcia's Avoid is 74.4 and Boyd's is 63.7, a +10 Avd (it's a lead but unlike durability and offense, a +10 Avd lead does not convey much of an advantage especially considering Boyd will have a support to A even without Earth support, he's got Rolf with Wind and that way he keeps the crit bonus). Also Marcia's Crit will only be 12.6 whereas Boyd will still have 32.5 or whatever with his bud supports (62.5 when he gets a Killer Axe back). 5 complaints with your logic: 1) Favouring BEXP to Marcia, 2) Going by the Marcia gains a level in 3-3, not enough BEXP, 3) BEXP only favouring top growths, and Str is far down the list, 4) Prioritizing Master Seal away from Geo and Kieran who would make more use of it too, 5) Boyd still stat-wise > Marcia in 3-11 (except in AS + Mv yes Marcia does beat him). Oh really? Interesting, so Boyd's critical again completely ignored? His use against Dracomasters + Generals in 3-3 and 3-5 completely forgotten too (clearly again you haven't read what I've said about this). I'm interested to hear about her increased reliability in 2-3 and how she reduces turn counts in 2-3 and 3-9. And what I said about the swamp not coming in here at all - guys seriously READ WHAT I SAY. The desert stuff also being completely ignored. Again you have not supplied reasons for why not using Boyd 'feels like you've not missed anything' and you have been blindly supporting Marcia (T).

Hehe and I'm not a guy either!

Ike, Boydiepoo and Geo!!! The sexy almighty trio.

Can I ask some questions about positions in this list before I start? 1) Why is Oscar > Kieran? 2) Why are Oscar + Kieran > Boyd? 3) Why is Zihark > Mia?

You've missed the point completely, when it comes to Marcia (T) vs Boyd, yeah Marcia has the flying over Boyd and I'm saying the flying doesn't help her this chapter because Tanith and Sigrun are already forced (so you might as well use them for the flying bits ANYWAY) and the fact that if you use Marcia's flying abilities here because of her seriously low durability (which the transfers don't help mind you) she is likely to die on this chapter from the snipers. I'm saying her flying does not score any points against Boyd in this chapter because her flying can be preformed better by other people (I have dismissed a point in her favour you see). And you've missed the point also that I have stated why Boyd is better for this chapter than Marcia (because he is at a much higher level + has more support options + amazing crit due bud supports). When looking at how a unit can contribute to efficiency it is necessary to see if the role they fulfill in the party is being done better by someone else and with Marcia the role of a flier is being done better by 4 other people atm, so why bring a liability along? Efficiency is not just 'Oh I completed the map in 1 turn' - it's about how effective the unit is in combat which for some reason you are not seeing because that in itself lends to the completion of the map in as less turns as possible. Marcia cannot contribute in combat because they're better units in 2-P, 2-3, 2-E because they carry less risk and can get the job done more effectively than Marcia (T) whereas Boyd can get the job more effectively done with that awesome crit defeating many more units which other units are incapable of defeating as I thought I showed in 3-2 with the Dracomaster and making life easier. What? You don't need any of the BEXP for 2-F (I think you meant?) or even 3-F as you've written here? Efficiency includes getting as much BEXP as possible because you then use this experience to make your units get even stronger in combat (which actually is quite important for efficiency) which you can then distribute to units not just in 2-F but in 3-11 and 3-F. I'm not saying spend as many turns as you can on this chapter, but sending Marcia anywhere this chapter is tantamount to suicide. There is the dreaded crossbow reinforcement on the left side the longbow users (who ok cannot actually hit anyone) and a load of generals on her right. Hammer Haar is great for this chapter but seriously you've basically proved my point about how useless Marcia is then this chapter. Everything she does therefore is performed much better by the other fliers (Haar, Elinicia and even transformed Nealuchi) and why bring her down from her spot when there is a high risk of her dying (she is the weakest of the the three with Nea and Elincia dodging all of the attacks while Haar has enough defense for them). Seriously just have Elincia ferry Heather down (who can actually dodge and at least survive if hit). I thought I had also made it clear that Titania does not need Oscar's Earth support because she is more durable than Oscar and should be supporting with Haar instead (which leaves you with no other 9 movement units until chap 3-9) yes they move together but hordes of enemies in Chaps 3-P, 3-1, 3-2 (maybe), 3-4, 3-5, 3-7, 3-11 means you won't be sending Oscar out with Titania in their full movement range (because they're enemies everywhere and Titania is a tank and needs to stay back and protect anyway). And also Oscar and Boyd can take advantage of +10 to Crit which is really useful in Oscar's case (Short Spear). Uhh? Yeah but if Marcia hasn't been promoted (which she will not do now because of her lack of assistance in 2-F which you've pointed out yourself even if you did go all out with her in 2-3), she is at least 5 levels behind Boyd. And if we go by your philosophy of not getting any BEXP (so no BEXP from 2-3) we can safely say that in HM where experience is null, Marcia is going NOWHERE. She'll be at most level 20/12 due to this. Have fun trying to squeeze levels out of her and feeding her kills to get her promoted by the desert chapter which is not efficient at all. Also in Izuka's map you're saying she would be useful? How exactly? Movement you're saying is really good to have in this chapter? That's a big no from me. You need to be on the defensive in this chapter because if any unit is in the path of 1 or 2 HM Tigers and 1 HM Dragon then they're gone and that would not be very efficient having not even defeated the Dragon in the first place. Also let's face it, in terms of combat Marcia has no utility here, low durability (her higher resistance will not help here at all since none of the laguz this chapter use magic) and low offense will make sure that if she goes anywhere else other than right next to her team mates she will die, her movement therefore will not help. The Dragons have good Hit too here so Marcia's Avo is not much help except against the Tigers (and seriously Boyd vs Marcia (T) in terms of Avoid I said their Avo will be close). Whereas Boyd has the durability (seriously high HP + higher Def) than Marcia and enough offense to actually be helping out this chapter. Not to mention that Boyd will be far ahead in terms of levels and well into promotion compared to Marcia. Not to mention she should be with Sothe and Micaiah in the desert (because that's where she'll be doing the best). And she IS good in the desert chapter, but seriously while Jill, Sigrun and Haar are well into promotion and maybe even Tanith, Marcia will not be anywhere near their level. Now tell me, is it efficient for a lower level Marcia (with bonuses) to double but not kill (due to her low Str even if she got bonuses?). While Jill/Haar/Sigrun/Tanith are well into their promotion and can probably double and get the job done at the same time because they are at a much higher level. Boyd has no wings granted but at least he is reliable and he shouldn't be going into the desert into the first place. A high durability unit like Boyd should go to Izuka's map and help there. Seriously never said/implied this. Flying is useful - and I thought I had emphasised that enough as being one of Marcia's only qualities - I actually even said that you should bring her along to Chap 3-9 because she is the only one capable of getting rid of the fire on the top house to max BEXP but why is she the only person who can get there because she can fly, seriously I had emphasised enough that Marcia has only 1 chapter of quality play before Chap 3-11, whereas Boyd has at least 4-5 (I haven't even analysed like 5 of them too). You are bigging up Marcia's flying as if one should ONLY have fliers in their team because she can go up to the enemies faster, yes but that means she also dies faster. If movement was such a godly thing then why don't players just send Haar across to the boss? Forget the other enemies...You need to keep in mind that efficiency is mostly combat related, flying for rescuing/seizing/arriving is useful definitely but when other units can perform that role better it doesn't count in Marcia's favour. Also movement seriously doesn't count when you're against strong enemies and you need to be on the defensive and make sure your units are together. Also you have not said anything about Boyd's utility. So far the argument Boyd > Marcia (T) pre-Chap 3-11 still stands and I think I've also made myself clear why Boyd > Marcia (T) Chap 3-11 and beyond. (not to mention you can buy the Killer Axe again from the store at 3-F making him even more useful from that point on.

You know what I feel the exact same way, I can't believe I never got around to signing up for this website when I visited it for everything...weird huh? Anyways nice to virtually meet you!

Hey Guys! I used to be a mod like AGES ago at some FE website I can't remember but it was with people like Arch, FlyingAce and Blazer, so if any of you remember me from that hi again! Anyways I just got back into these games again, and I was like I always go on to the website why not become a member then? So yeah like hi! And hope we have a load of fun hehe! -Piks

I'm arguing Boyd (N) > Marcia (T - Str, Skl, Spd) Let's see how useful Marcia (T) is in the chapters she's in. Chapter 2-Prologue - she is next to useless because she cannot inflict decent enough damage in Hard Mode where draco defenses shoot up (and anyways the dracos have good def - base 19). Yes even if she does get the +2 base str, she still won't have much of an advantage against the Dracomasters. With the Steel Lance, she'll have 28 Str and with the Draco, she'll be hitting them at most for 10 damage (with a damage and hit penalty due to the axes they use). She is actually more useful staying in the corner away from the axe wielders otherwise they will attack her. She won't be hitting them too often either seeing as most of them use axes, but yeah that extra speed does help her, but she's doing better in the corner. Haar, Nealuchi and Elincia are going to be the most helpful here and most importantly DO SOME DAMAGE. Chapter 2-3 - again really why would you want to bring her along? Along with Devdan, Astrid and maybe Makalov, she's a bit of liability. If you used her at all in Chap 2-P, she'll be at most level 7 and that's just not good enough to bring in when you've already got Brave Lanced Geoffrey and Silver Axe Kieran. The goal of Chap 2-3 is not to gain exp either but to maximise Bonus Exp. She won't be helping out with that here, with the lack of healers (especially if you direct your partner units to the bottom of the screen to prevent them from reducing your BEXP and with her bad durability - at level 7 she'll have 18.6 Str and 16.6 Def, while Kieran would have 21 Str and 18 Def and Geoffrey would have 24 Str and 18 Def. With their respective best weapons at the time: Geoffrey - Brave Lance: 34 Atk, 20 AS, 18 Def, 37 HP Kieran - Steel Poleax: 36 Atk, 20 AS, 18 Def, 41 HP Marcia - Steel Greatlance: 32.6 Atk, 21.3 AS (and fine yeah no speed penalty), 16.6 Def 35.4 HP Atk and AS are NOT more important than Def and HP in Chap 2-3 because of the BEXP. In this chapter it does not matter about killing or damaging the enemies, but you will inevitably get attacked because of where your units have to go and so durability IS important and seeing as Marcia's clearly the weakest the Enemy AI will go for her, therefore she's going to be really bad for this chapter as she won't survive to the other end and kill the boss. That lower Def + HP is going to be risky to take along and cost you the most therefore and so it just isn't worth bringing her along. Another chapter where her low durability will cost her utility. Seriously this chapter should just be done with Geo and Kieran to maximise BEXP. Chapter 2-F, she can be used in this chapter actually but with the fact that you've given her no exp in the previous 2 chapters (and that too for good reasons), that her durability is still bad and loads of archers is not much help. This chapter is another defensive chapters where durability is the most important thing to have to defend the chokepoints in comparison to AS or Atk. And if you did use her in the previous chapter against the norm, at Lvl 9 (there is no chance you would get her above this level btw unless maybe you've been babying her = not being very efficient then right) her defense and HP in comparison to the other tanks/people you would be using this chapter would be significantly lower, not to mention you have LOADS of snipers, and crossbow users: Lvl HP Spd Luck Def Res Avoid (without bud supports) Marcia 20/9 36.8 24.6*(T) 14 17.4 16.4 63.2 Brom 20/6 38.4 16.9 14.4 22.8 9.75 47.8 Nephenee 20/7 34.7 23.9 14.4 17.1 16.7 62.2 Mordecai 17 57.9 18.3 15.8 32.9 8.3 52.4 Geo 20/17 38.2 20.7 19.6 18.6 16 61 Kieran 20/13 42.5 20.6 16.6 19.2 11.5 57.8 Elincia 20/20/3 36.9 23.4 30.2 18.4 24.7 77 So, everyone (bar Neph by 0.3 Def) beats Marcia in Defense next highest being Elincia with 1 Def more. Also they all beat her in HP stat too (bar Neph again by 2.1 HP). Tbh I've exaggerated here slightly (no transfer bonuses to any of the others or supports when Neph/Brom would obviously have one) but just to show that Marcia even transferred is inferior durability-wise to all of them except Nephenee in terms of Def (the more important of the two) and yes to give credit to her, she has the Res but again not significant enough as Elincia and Neph are much better mage killers. And everything that can be preformed by a flier can be done better with Elincia in the chapter and with much less risk (more avoid against arrows) and Haar (durability god). The risk of arrows is too great in this chapter with a reinforcement coming from the bottom left at least with a crossbow which can OHKO Marcia. So, 3 chapters in total, Marcia is not good to use in any of them, with the last one at most being used as a mage killer. In Chap 3-9, she will be around 20/11 if you were being super nice to her, and probably finally gain the advantage of having a support bonus. So she becomes a bit more useful and she also gets rid of the fire in the top houses too to max BEXP, which nobody else can do effectively (except maybe Calill and Devdan with some climbing up). So yeah she's a good person to have this time but really 1 chapter out of 4 so far. Also the top units (some being snipers if I can recall) also threaten her, not to mention low HP and Def do not help and the fact that she will be too far away for the support bonus, so no. But actually this is the only chapter out of the 4 where I actually say use her for the top houses but it is risky again (with those top units). Now onto Boyd: Comes at 20/8 in Chap 3-P and has 9 chapters before Marcia comes along (so that's 5 more than Marcia) and he's actually useful in EACH one. He comes with a Killer Axe and Steel Axe and Hand Axe straight off the bat. He's forced in Chap 3-P and 3-1 but no worries because he WON'T die. Let's do a comparison between him and the other frontliners in the group. Lvl HP Str Skl Spd Luck Def Res Boyd 20/8 45 22 20 18 13 15 8 Ike 20/11 44 24 28 23 14 21 7 Mia 20/7 34 17 26 28 18 13 8 Titania 20/16 36 25 22 21 19 20 14 Oscar 20/12 38 20 22 21 18 17 13 Gatrie 20/10 44 25 18 20 15 24 11 And also he has a bond support with Oscar, so we can add more Crit to that Killer Axe Crit, Oscar should not be going too far ahead anyway in both Chap 3-P and 3-1 because he is not that durable at only 17 Def (still more than Boyd though), Titania and Gatrie, however, should be using the full extent of their movement range. Also we can make Rolf tag along behind Boyd even if he isn't doing anything (because he may as well contribute to the battle by adding Crit and this isn't a hinderance as they both have the same movement). Therefore Boyd with Killer Axe will have 20 bond Crit + 30 weapon Crit + 10 Skl Crit = 60 Crit which is really good to say the least and will help immensely with this chapter, also compared to Ike and Mia in this chapter he has more durability against the fire mages (1 HP and 1 Res against Ike and 9 HP over Mia). Ike however has more durability over Boyd in terms of general combat, however, in this chapter with Ike's Ettard vs Boyd's Killer Axe vs Mia's Steel Sword vs Oscar's Steel Lance vs Gatrie's Steel Greatlance vs Titania's Steel Poleaxe: Ike: Ettard - 36 Atk, 23 AS, 60 Avd and 24 Crit (with Soren and Titania but this is inconvenient as I mentioned) Boyd: Killer Axe - 32 Atk, 18 AS, 49 Avd and 60 Crit (with Rolf incontrovertibly so and Oscar maybe) Mia: Steel Sword - 26 Atk, 28 AS, 72 Avd and 23 Crit (no Bonds available but has +10 Crit from being a Swordmaster) Titania: Steel Poleaxe - 40 Atk, 21 AS, 61 Avd and 16 Crit (with Ike) Oscar: Steel Lance - 30 Atk, 21 AS, 60 Avd and 21 Crit (with Boyd) Gatrie: Steel Greatlance - 39 Atk, 20 AS, 55 Avd and 19 Crit (with Shinnon) Against an Axe General in this chapter with 35 HP, 20 Def and 15 AS. Yes, all except Boyd double him, so 34 with Ike (Ike will have the inability to completely defeat him too unless he Crits (which he still has a really low chance of doing even if you have his bonds)), 12 with Mia (so even with Wo Dao, her critical will not be enough either) and Oscar getting 20 (so still not enough). Titania and Gatrie would be able to defeat him but with Gatrie's movement that won't be happening for another turn, Titania no complaints. HOWEVER, Boyd with a 60 Crit has a high chance of getting the crit and getting the job done with a high chance of completely defeating the enemy (this is also in favour of Ike's and Mia's considering the enemy is using Axes). So, Titania and Boyd are really the most capable of taking care of the Generals in the chapter. Also a quick note about Ike's bond Crit: Mist's priority is healing and so shouldn't necessarily be restricted to moving next to Ike. Actually getting more crit with both Soren and Titania is also quite restrictiv e as Soren has less move and so Ike would have to wait back a space - and Titania who needs to be using her full move extent as she can do that unlike Oscar who's durability is not the better than Titania as 3 Def and 1 Res is better than a 2 HP lead. Also you may ask why Oscar does not get the extra Crit by standing next to Rolf (because even at Oscar's 31 Crit you are still fairly sure that in Hard Mode that will not be enough for a crit whereas with Boyd's 61 Crit it is much more significant than 51 Crit and it becomes much more likely to be a crit). Also why would Titania not get the Killer Axe because she can't take advantage of Bond supports like Boyd (who's movement fits in with Rolf's and Oscar's restricted movement because he has fairly low durability) whereas Titania has to be restricted by Ike and Mist and Rhy's movements - also Mist and Rhys should not be restricted at where they are positioned due to their position as healers and therefore Titania would have substantially less Crit (at most 46) and therefore there is the worry that she would waste it. Priority should go to the person who can critical the most and Boyd does that. So I have at least proven that Boyd's Crit plays such a significant role in the defeat of many enemies with his bond supports and Killer Axe so I have proven his worth in Chap 3-P and 3-1 both requiring quick kills of enemies which he can do with his critical and his close proximity to Rolf and Oscar. Also, I am not saying he is better than Mia, Ike, Titania, Oscar or Gatrie - just that he can get the job done as early as possible along with Titania whereas Ike may not and Mia and Oscar will more than likely not, and actually get to the enemy unlike Gatrie (1 move less is significant in 3-P and 3-1 as the enemies are close together). SO HE HAS USE. Also I will prioritize that Boyd support with Oscar, mainly because only front-liners need the Earth support (wasted on Mist, Rhys, Rolf and Shinon - he can't deal with direct damage therefore atm - and Soren has Shade). Also Gatrie has Defense so there is no point and Oscar has already been next to Boyd and taking advantage of the +10 to Crit, even without taking advantage of it (as their movement bonuses are different) thus they are the most likely combination to have got enough support bonuses to go on to the next level, giving even more reason to use him (Mia gets the Earth support from Ike I should think as Mist, Rhys and Soren should remain in the back lines). Now in 3-2, you get Neph, Brom and Ily back, but really Soren/Rhys > Ily as mages even if you have been raising her and Neph and esp Heather are still more fragile than all of the GMs. This is a long chapter too so Gatrie's and Brom's restricted movement is not handy. Anyway so at this point in time Boyd's stats will be compared with the other frontliners: Lvl HP Str Skl Spd Luck Def Res Boyd 20/11 47.4 23.95 21.35 19.35 14.2 16.5 8.3 Ike 20/14 45.95 25.65 29.8 24.05 14.9 22.2 7.45 Mia 20/10 36.1 18.35 27.8 29.95 19.05 14.2 8.75 Titania 20/17 36.6 25.6 22.55 21.5 19.4 20.2 14.3 Oscar 20/14 39 20.7 23.3 22.2 19.1 17.6 13.4 Gatrie 20/12 45 27 19.8 22.4 16.2 26.4 12.4 Brom 20/9 41.6 21.8 19.8 18.1 17.9 25.2 10.75 Nephenee 20/9 35.6 17.8 24.6 25.2 15.2 17.8 17.6 Haar 20/15 47.2 25.8 26 21.2 14.8 25.6 7.8 Boyd has the highest HP out of any of them (even beating Haar). And he has the 4th highest strength out of any of them (beating Neph, Brom, Oscar, Mia) but yes he does have significantly lower AS than the rest except Brom and lower Def and Res than most so at the moment he's not that useful granted but he gets the Earth support (but I think I have proved that Boyd is the most worthy) so that will at least help with Avd. Because he will still have the Killer Axe (Haar and Titania will kill enemies fine without it and Brom lacks movement to be able to use it effectively + Boyd's got 2 at least really good bond supports) and the C Earth Support from Oscar he's done enough to warrant himself a place in this chapter and more often than not critical most, he is useful also against the high defense Dracomasters in the next chapter as I will now prove: Dracomaster (lvl 9 - 41 HP, 19 AS and 20 Def) with Ike's Ettard vs Boyd's Killer Axe/Steel Poleaxe vs Mia's Steel Blade vs Oscar's Steel Greatlance vs Gatrie's Steel Greatlance vs Titania's Steel Poleaxe vs Brom's Steel Poleaxe vs Neph's Iron Greatlance vs Haar's Steel Poleax (supports aside otherwise Boyd gets the Avoid boost): Boyd: Killer Axe/Steel Poleax - 33.95/38.95 Atk, 19.35 AS, 52.9 Avd and 60.6/24.88 Crit (with Rolf and Oscar) Ike: Ettard - 37.65 Atk, 24.05 AS, 63 Avd and 24.9 Crit (with Soren and Titania but this is inconvenient as I mentioned before) Mia: Steel Blade/Wo Dao - 31.35/25.35 Atk, 29.95 AS, 78.95 Avd and 23.9/43.9 Crit (no Bonds available but has +10 Crit Swordmaster bonus) Titania: Steel Poleaxe - 40.6 Atk, 21.5 AS, 62.4 Avd and 16.2 Crit (with Ike) Oscar: Steel Greatlance - 34.7 Atk, 22.2 AS, 63.5 Avd and 21.15 Crit (with Boyd) Gatrie: Steel Greatlance - 41 Atk, 22.4 AS, 61 Avd and 19.4 Crit (with Shinnon) Brom: Steel Poleaxe - 36.8 Atk, 18.1 AS, 54.1 Avd and 9.9 Crit (none) Neph: Iron Greatlance - 28.8 Atk, 25.2 AS, 65.6 Avd and 22.3 Crit (none) Haar: Steel Poleaxe - 40.2 Atk, 21.2 AS, 57.2 Avd and 13 Crit (none) So, Boyd's Killer Axe combo still retains the best critical in this part so far and we will still have enough uses to carry on. Against this dracomaster, Ike will double and give 35.3 not enough to kill, Mia will double and give 22.7 w/Steel Blade or 10.7 w/Wo Dao at the least and 32.1 even if she crits twice, not enough to take it down, Titania will give 20.6 (and observe even if Titania had 1 more AS, doubling would kill it), Oscar would double and give 29.4, Gatrie would give 21, Brom would give 16.8 (even if he doubled he still would not kill it), Neph would double but would give only 16.2 Atk, Haar would give only 20.2. So none of them can defeat it in one go unless they critical in which case all of them would kill it but who has the highest chance of doing that? It's Boyd with his Killer Axe, which would normally do 13.95 but criticaling damage would give 41.85 enough to kill it. And Boyd on Hard mode with his Killer Axe is probably the only one capable of doing this (Mia has too low Str and Wo Dao has really low Atk and Titania/Brom would not have the bond support adv). So, in conclusion Boyd's at least good for the next 2 chaps until we get to Chap 3-4 where it will break at some point. But actually he's got enough strength by this point to go on. I've gone on long enough I think but I've established that Boyd is really good in at least 4 chapters so far I've proven with his Killer Axe he has efficiency all over even without counting the Earth support and transfer bonuses. In 3-5, Titania is split between the south paladins and south east generals to defend against and as the south-east generals have lances, Boyd is the only other good contender to go down there and get them (Gatrie and/or Brom should remain on the frontlines as their movement won't allow them to slow down the generals themselves), another chapter where he is also useful to be in (efficiency-wise) - so that's at least 5 now. I haven't even touched on the next chapters because I don't think I need to: Boyd's AS catches up before Chap 3-4 (so before the Killer Axe breaks) and will be enough so that he can double people, he'll be 20/15 by then and have an AS of 21. He's also a worthy Speedwing contender (along with Haar, Mordes and Titania as the rest will probably max their speed out really quickly. So he can be a really good unit. Now ONE FINAL POINT - THE MOST IMPORTANT: Chapter 3-11 When Boyd and Marcia (T) meet. We must ask ourselves, what advantages do both units have when they are at this point to continue warranting their use?: One we cannot use the argument that 3-11 has lots of holes in it and therefore Marcia is really good to use, because we must assume prior knowledge to this chapter that we already know where the potholes are. And okay fine we know where they are but then one may say Marcia is good in crossing them so that you can defeat the 1st sniper on the ballista early, BUT we already have Tanith/Sigrun (forced) and Haar and even potentially Jill in the party at this time, why should we use Marcia in particular (especially considering her durability vs Haar and Jill is not improved by transfers and late availability) to defeat the ballista snipers, especially considering falcon knights are fragile against arrows (Haar and Jill are actually therefore WAY MORE useful to use against the snipers than Marcia or even Tanith/Sigrun in this case). Also let's do a stat check, being really nice to Marcia (T) and allowing her to gain 3 levels from Chap 3-9 (somehow) and being mean to Boyd and allowing him to only gain 4 levels from 4 chapters (3-5, 3-7, 3-8, 3-10) just to illustrate how much more overlevelled Boyd is compared to Marica (T): Lvl HP Str Mag Skl Spd Luck Def Res Marcia (T) 20/14 40(Max) 20.7*(T) 7.8 22.6*(T) 27(Max) 19.15 19.15 18.15 Boyd 20/19 53(Max) 29.15 1.55 24.95 22.95 17.8 21 9.2 Ok so we have an unfair comparison here (with Marcia somehow gaining 2 levels from each 2-P, 2-3, 2-F) and giving Boyd not much exp at all (but really he would be promoted by now because there is no way you would get 1 lvl from 1 chap). But still we go on and Boyd crushes Marcia in 1) Durability (by 13 HP, 1.85 Def and ok he loses in Res by around 9), 2) Offense (Mag is so irrelevant) in spite of Marcia's transfer bonuses (Boyd has a whopping 8.45 over her AND uses Axes and can take advantage of really good bond supports for Crit) and 3) Avoid (if we got A Earth from Oscar like I said before, Boyd was the best contender) in spite of Marcia's bonuses again. Skill is irrelevant at this stage but if we want to bring it along Boyd wins at this stage AGAIN (seriously though not important until we get to the next tier). If equip best weapons at this stage: Marcia (T) - Steel Greatlance: 34.7 Atk 27 AS 73.15 Avoid (without support) 22.3 Crit Boyd - Steel Poleaxe: 44.15 Atk 22.95 AS 63.7 Avoid (see even without Earth support) 32.5 Crit To be honest looking at the AS, but if had a General with 42 HP, 25 Def and 19 AS (again being super mean to Boyd) and let the Draco guy use Lances (otherwise massive penalty to Marcia but now we've got ). Marcia would double but only inflicting 9.7 x 2 = 19.4 and Boyd would dish out 20.15 (with 10 more Crit too). Also, with Ch3-11 and Ch3-F, Boyd is much more useful, promoting much earlier and dishing out damage therefore more rapidly whereas Marcia will not get to 20/20 by 4-Prog, it's as simple as that Boyd > Marcia (T) Seriously In Conclusion: 1) Marcia (T) has 1 Chapter of utility (Chap 3-9) and that's it, Boyd has 5 Chapters at least of usage (3-P, 3-1 definitely, 3-2, 3-3, 3-5 definitely) 2) Marcia is available for 6 chapters before Part 4 while Boyd is available for 11 chapters before Part 4 3) Boyd getting to 3rd tier by Part 4 is conceivable (in fact if you use him normally he will most definitely even without BEXP) whereas Marcia getting to 3rd tier is possible but still much less likely (I've been nice to her in my analysis) 4) She starts off really unhelpful in both 2-3 and 2-P, using her actually makes it all so much more inefficient 5) The extra strength makes no difference in 2-3 (you do not want to kill the units), in 2-P the Dracomasters are too strong and in 3-5 it does make a difference but on the left side (the Generals on the right have far too much Def for Marcia and Neph to be fair to make any difference) and on the left side is the dreaded Warrior Crossbow reinforcement so it's useless too, Haar and Elincia do the job much more effectively. 6) The extra speed is useless (should not be engaging in battle at all in 2-P and 2-3) and in 2-5 it helps but only with thunder mage killing (which is the only thing she should be doing the entire chapter otherwise she will die from arrows). 7) Boyd's durability is consistently good whereas Marcia's is next to none (except mage killing which Boyd can do OHKO tbh) 8) Boyd has lots of time to be able to support and take advantage of it, Marcia has next to none until 3-9. 9) When they finally meet, Boyd beats Marcia in overall utility (more durability, more offense, axes, promotion vs ability to double, avoid), even with Marcia's strength bonus. 10) If Boyd gets the Oscar support (which he should) then Marcia does not even have avoid over Boyd (as Boyd is only 10 Avoid below her) even with her speed bonus. 11) Boyd can take great advantage of Bond supports while Marcia cannot (Makalov but she won't be next to him unless you deployed both of them in 2-3 which I can't emphasise enough is the WRONG thing to do). 12) Boyd CAN compete with other GM members and has advantages + disadvantages over them (esp with his Crit + Killer Axe which can be sure to kill some enemies which nobody else can) in none of Marcia's chapters can she demonstrate this except Chap3-9 (with the towns on fire but seriously this is the only time) 13) Boyd has even more utility after 3-11 when he should have promoted (as he will gain promotion bonuses etc.) making him so much more effective to use rather than Marcia (T). I think I've proved my point now let Boydiepoo go up one.

Sorry to bump this topic but I have three issues with this tier list keeping in mind that this is a ranked playthrough: 1) My number one complaint is Nino being in low, she needs to be put up above Isadora. She is essential to HHM and EHM: a) Because she comes so late underleveled, she helps get that experience rank up (as she'll be gaining like 80 exp per kill) b) Incontrovertibly, the best candidate for afa drops (considering she comes so late) c) Babying the late underleveled characters may be undesirable in other FE's but considering we have ranks to keep in mind here I think that's irrelevant, and she keeps the experience rank up d) Great growths (her growths > Erk's growths) so with babying (which I'm saying is a good thing on a ranked playthrough because of the boost to the experience rank) AND the afa drops which agreed is going to do best on a unpromoted level 5 mage. 2) Athos in mid, sure he comes late game but he is invaluable in the last two chapters: a) The two magics he comes with and being the only other candidate besides Canas for the Gespenst make him invaluable as a low resistance boss killer (effective on Lloyd and Linus) b) Effective Nergal killer (Eliwood and Hector being too slow for the job and Lyn being too nondurable against Nergal's insane magic stat) c) Effective Dragon killer for the same reasons specified above 3) Oswin is too high and should be below Pent at least a) He's a knight and so has really poor movement in chapter 15 and 16 for example he isn't going to get anywhere and keeping next to Serra or Hector for supports is going to be a real struggle and also if you want him to do any good then it's going to harm your tactics ranking b) Yeah sure he is a tank for damage but can't Marcus do that just as well with +3 movement c) Lowen and Hector are better tanks, not only because of their defensive stat which let's face it isn't ever going to be as good as Oswin's but they will inarguably make more use of it with more movement d) My complaints aren't just about low movement but also the fact that he comes high leveled at an early level in the game, that's going to bruise your experience ranking when you've already got Marcus doing his work e) Sain and Kent may be less durable than Oswin but they will definitely help out more with the rankings (tactics especially) f) Erk has more utility than Oswin simply due to the fact that he uses magic which can help a lot with the early general bosses (who probably won't be able to take even a hit from Oswin) although Oswin could use the Heavy Spear but that damages funds, potential doubling and would take too long with Oswin's speed) g) Pent has more utility than Oswin because of the high B rank in staves so he can help out with your experience ranking as well as with combat because of his elfire and at the same time (yes coming back to movement) he can use the +2 movement to finish off bosses Right that's it for my first ever serenes forest post (please don't get angry)