Character deaths - Reset - Yes or No?

[Eunie]

Character deaths always belong to the most unpleasant moments in Fire Emblem.

Though how to deal with them?

Resetting or continuing, as if nothing happened.


From my point of view I usually don't restart a chapter, because it's part of the challenge in Fire Emblem. If I did a mistake, I have to suffer the consequences.

The exceptions are:

• if I need the unit later for an important recruitment or a special conversation
• if I couldn't prevent the death, because the RNG screwed me (f. e. I can't recruit a character in time)
• if I play on very high difficulties (FE6 HM or FE11and FE12 in H3 or higher), because I need as many good units as possible

I'd even sacrifice an unit, if I have no other choice to prevent a death. If someone is in acute danger, I put a weaker unit in an attacking range of the enemy to "rescue" the better unit.

Edited October 23, 2014 by The Taninator

[Topazd]

I used to be more lenient about this, but nowadays I almost always reset. The exceptions include some instances where I'm either on Lunatic difficulties or if I'm doing an ironman run (duh).

I almost never let Matthis live, though.

Edited October 22, 2014 by Topazd255

[Dragoncat]

Most of the time I'll reset. Sometimes I get sick and tired of losing on that chapter and let them go...

[Julius Nepos]

Whether I reset or not depends on how well I am able to restrain myself from resetting. I try not to reset because I feel like I have to accept the consequences of my mistakes / the RNG, but I often can't restrain myself.

I almost never let Matthis live, though.

: Why do you hate me?

[BrightBow]

Usually I don't reset these days. There are usually enough new recruits to fill the slot, so this keeps things more interesting. Of course there might always be special reasons while someone's death isn't acceptable.

There are some general exceptions, though. For one, there are for one the DS games because the new recruits simply can't keep up with the difficulty scaled enemies, so they might as well not exist. And in Awakenings I reset because there are almost no new units after the halfway point in the first place (at least the few that exist have their stats adjusted to the difficulty). The game seems to have permadeath simply out of tradition and not because the game is actually designed with it in mind.

The last one is Gaiden because while the game does provide opportunities for revives on shrines, I would prefer to keep shrine visits to a minimum because it's just a pain getting there since you have to fight a meaningless random encounter... or maybe even several depending on what's on your way. It's no fun to fight a random group of random enemies in a open field (and it doesn't help that the monsters lack the interesting qualities that they have in TRS) so just having to go there to get my promotions strains my patience as far as it goes.

: Why do you hate me?

Maybe because he is just inferior to the other cavaliers in any way.

Maybe because of his tendency to kill his own sister.

Maybe because of his habit of insulting the guy who actually risks his neck to protect said sister.

Or maybe because keeping this guy alive in Mystery of the Emblem is a massive pain because you have to lead the entire army around the island to recruit Julian before approaching him or use some other approach which is probably just as much of a pain since it will probably involve him stabbing your guys for 8 turns or so. Really, I prefer to recruit Xavier over this guy.

Edited October 22, 2014 by BrightBow

[Wuchtbrumme Flavia]

I always reset because I feel bad if I let them stay dead yes I'm ridiculous like that. And since I normally don't have to reset more than two to three times it doesn't matter much.

[Shinehollow]

Sometimes.Only if I plan on using the units.But,if they keep dying on one chapter and they're the reason I'm stuck on it,I'll let them die.But,I still fuck myself over the fact I let Legualt die when I was so close to getting a fell contract...

[X-Naut]

I have done Nuzlocke-style runs where a unit that dies stays dead (if a Lord dies someone is voted/RNG'd off in their stead), but outside of that I try to recruit everyone and keep them alive most of the time. Generally the exceptions are characters that are not worth it.

[deleted35362]

well i play the games on emulator, so...if someone dies i can just hack the game real quick to make the enemy's weapon do chump damage <w<

of course i can't do that in fe2 though, but oddly enough i don't really die in that game.

[Ishi]

I normally reset upon death but lately enemy recruitable units that jump to their death like darros in FE 12 I just think "I just saved a crap ton of training" and continue with the chapter

[EricaofRenais]

I always reset because I just like having all my characters alive at the end of the game, the only time I actually left people dead was when I had to buy a new Wii because my old one broke and had to start Radiant Dawn all over again and let Sothe die on the last battle.

[Thor Odinson]

I always do because i feel my strategy is imperfect if someone dies

[Alex95]

I only press forward regardless if someone died if it was, like, the 50th time on the level. I usually lose weaker units at first (mostly the Priests of Pegasus Knights), but when I decided to just press onward, THAT'S when a strong or main unit falls...

R.I.P. Soren and Kyle

[Wuchtbrumme Flavia]

Oh, the only time I didn't reset was during one Creature Campaign in FE 8. I was so annoyed by the ruins and the zombie dragons that I sacrifice Seth to get Fado. Because Fado is awesome and I wanted him in my team with Hayden (Still disappointed that you can't also get Viggy).

[Xator Nova]

sometimes I deliberately sacrifice some units

but generally I reset

[Dijon Mustard]

I only reset if they die as a result of me pressing the wrong button ("I didn't mean to move her there," etc.) or some dumb non-tactics thing like that.

[momogeek2141]

It depends. If I just passed an extremely tight spot, the unit is a core member of my team, or I can't seem to beat the level without leaving the unit, I don't reset. Otherwise, I do.

[HF Makalov Fanboy Kai]

if i don't need the unit later i keep them dead.

not that i try to kill them off

[Vestige]

Always. It's the unspoken rule of FE. No man/woman/manakete/mamkute/laguz/etc left behind.

[fengaridotdll]

I reset when I lose a unit I care about and are among my best (Ross, Innes, Ewan, etc.). I did not reset when I lost Garcia (Now poor Ross is without his parents, though he is a pretty godly unit)

[Kirie]

I've only ever allowed 2 deaths: The first time I ever played an FE game was FE7 and I I let Erk die in the very last chapter because I didn't feel like restarting. I also let Fiona die in one chapter of FE10 because it was really annoying and I was sick of restarting and I thought she was forced in that level for some reason (even though she wasn't) so I "couldn't" just swap her out for a better character and didn't plan on using her anyway. Otherwise, I've always restarted. I guess it says something that I remember the 2 deaths that I've allowed even though my memory is terrible and I can't even remember what I had for dinner yesterday.

[Topaz Light]

I think the only time I've allowed a death was when Athos fell in the final chapter of FE7. I figured that it'd be acceptable not to restart, since he dies after the chapter anyway and I'd be able to finish it without him.

Aside from that, the only times I've let people stay dead were on purpose, in sidequest runs of Shadow Dragon.

I always try to go for 100% survival wherever possible.

[Junkhead]

I used to give a pegasus' dong about it, unless I needed them. It was especially a case when my characters got good level-ups. Now? I re-start. Always. It just feels kind of mediocre to let it happen...

[Captain Wesker]

I usually reset, unless the unit dies a lot.

Like getting Ewan in Erika's route.

And Ephraim's...

[Loki Laufeyson]

I always do because i feel my strategy is imperfect if someone dies

This more or less.