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If Shadow Dragon had Three Houses Styled Gaidens


Jotari
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Gaidens, or Paralogues as we call them now, are pretty sensible in Three Houses. In fact I'm surprised they weren't done this way long ago. They're entirely side character focused and unlocked simply by having a character, or multiple characters alive and unlocked in your army by a certain point in the game (supports might also play a role, not sure). Gaidens in Shadow Dragon on the other hand are highly critisized because they require killing over half your army to access. And the Gaidens themselves aren't all that interesting, just introducing a bunch of new characters of variable quality. If you take the access requirements out, they're not bad so to speak, but I feel like it's wasted potential. Archanea's cast is very underdeveloped compared to other games in the series, so from the start I've always thought it's Gaidens should have been side character focused like we eventually got in Three Houses. Why add more characters to the already large cast when we have a tonne of characters that are already unexplored? I think the worst offender of this is Hardin. He's a major character in the sequel to Shadow Dragon, yet he's barely noteworty in this game at all.

So, if the design of Shadow Dragon were to change so Gaidens were entirely focused on the existing side characters, what Gaidens would you like to see? Which characters do you think would be best to focus on, what would the story be behind the Gaidens and when would they happen?

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mmm....lets see. 

Saving Private Ryan: Gordin and Jeorge. 

This could take place after the liberation of Altea. Some remnant of the former occupying form end up occupying an Altean village. Gordin's Altean village in fact. Marth ends up sending Jeorge to deal with the situation and both out of concern for his village and admiration for Jeorge Gordin tags along. Gordin and Jeorge find Ryan and some npc already trying to fight off the soldiers and need to move quickly to ensure the soldiers don't kill them. If all goes well Ryan awards his big bro with a specially made bow. Gordin gets a confident boost from his villagers seeing him as a hero instead of a kid, and Jeorge decides to teach Gordin after seeing his skill. 

Marth and Hardin:

The relation between these two really needed some fleshing out. New Mystery makes it seem as Hardin was Marth's right hand man and Shadow Dragon states Hardin was a solid alternative to Marth when it came to leading the army and that he'd been doing pretty good for quite some time. It could also involve Camus since with his status he probably deserved more than that single appearance in Shadow Dragon. To hype Camus up we could have him crush the Altean League which prompts a defend mission. Marth and Hardin volunteer to keep Camus in check so the rest of the army can escape. Seeing Camus being so much stronger and more skilled than even him could be part of the feelings of inferiority Hardin apparently struggled with the entire time. 

1 hour ago, Jotari said:

I think the worst offender of this is Hardin. He's a major character in the sequel to Shadow Dragon, yet he's barely noteworty in this game at all.

After his introduction Hardin does turn mute like all the rest but he did have a very solid introduction, if not the best in the entire game. 

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I've thought of ideas to repurpose the existing Gaiden requirements:

Chapter 6x: You get this if Draug and Gordin are alive and Norne hasn't been recruited yet. Norne, sick of being kept on the sidelines, goes to deal with ruffians she hears about in the area. She ends up in over her head but is helped by Athena. Once Marth catches up the group saves them, Draug and Gordin try to lecture Norne but Athena chews them out for being overprotective, and the two ladies join you.

ALSO: If one of Draug or Gordin died prior to 6x Norne auto-joins, albeit at Level 1, whereas she'd be Level 5 in 6x.

Chapter 12x: Have two of Jeorge, Midia, and Boah alive and recruited by the end of Chapter 12 and they will bring up the subject of Horace to Nyna. The chapter is mostly the same but they have the opportunity to talk with him personally.

Chapter 17x: The idea I had in mind was to make this a turn-based objective, but maybe it could involve the other Alteans somehow? Jagen, Cain and Abel want to do a clean sweep of Altea after retaking it? Merric senses Etzel's magic which tips them off to the remnant army? I don't know, you tell me.

Chapter 20x: Have Lorenz and Caeda alive and recruited at the end of Chapter 20, and kill Camus. Lorenz expresses concerns over a less well-behaved sect of the Grustian army and recommends checking it out. He and Caeda have dialogue with Ymir as well as Marth, remarking how he has the heart of a knight or something. You could even give the Sable Order trio a cameo where they remind or tip Lorenz off about it.

I got nothing on 24x, that's the most shoehorned in one.

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47 minutes ago, Etrurian emperor said:

After his introduction Hardin does turn mute like all the rest but he did have a very solid introduction, if not the best in the entire game. 

I see your Hardin intro and raise you Minerva.

fe11-minerva-leaves-the-battlefield.png

Tiki's intro also serves well enough that she doesn't feel shafted having no dialogue afterwards (though in her case it helps being near the end of the game).

fe11-gharnef-hypnotising-tiki.png

Man Hardin also deserved a CG.

 

Edited by Jotari
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40 minutes ago, X-Naut said:

I've thought of ideas to repurpose the existing Gaiden requirements:

Chapter 6x: You get this if Draug and Gordin are alive and Norne hasn't been recruited yet. Norne, sick of being kept on the sidelines, goes to deal with ruffians she hears about in the area. She ends up in over her head but is helped by Athena. Once Marth catches up the group saves them, Draug and Gordin try to lecture Norne but Athena chews them out for being overprotective, and the two ladies join you.

ALSO: If one of Draug or Gordin died prior to 6x Norne auto-joins, albeit at Level 1, whereas she'd be Level 5 in 6x.

Chapter 12x: Have two of Jeorge, Midia, and Boah alive and recruited by the end of Chapter 12 and they will bring up the subject of Horace to Nyna. The chapter is mostly the same but they have the opportunity to talk with him personally.

Chapter 17x: The idea I had in mind was to make this a turn-based objective, but maybe it could involve the other Alteans somehow? Jagen, Cain and Abel want to do a clean sweep of Altea after retaking it? Merric senses Etzel's magic which tips them off to the remnant army? I don't know, you tell me.

Chapter 20x: Have Lorenz and Caeda alive and recruited at the end of Chapter 20, and kill Camus. Lorenz expresses concerns over a less well-behaved sect of the Grustian army and recommends checking it out. He and Caeda have dialogue with Ymir as well as Marth, remarking how he has the heart of a knight or something. You could even give the Sable Order trio a cameo where they remind or tip Lorenz off about it.

I got nothing on 24x, that's the most shoehorned in one.

I particularly like the idea of keeping Horace in the game, as narratively his Gaiden did feel like it fit into the game the best. And as far as characters go, Jeorge, Midia and Boah feel like they should be more significant than they are (Midia and Boah even get more dialogue than a typical Shadow Dragon character with extra conversations yet still feel underwhelming). Although I'd object to having Norne's in Chapter 6 since she's from Altea, I'd rather see her pop up when the party is near Altea, maybe as a prepromote who's been fighting in the resistance the entire time. Although I do get that you're directly repurposing the existing Gaidens rather than making new ones.

EDIT: Whoops. Double post. Had the previous post opened for editing but accidentally went to a new post when copying the quote. My bad.

Edited by Jotari
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13 minutes ago, Jotari said:

I particularly like the idea of keeping Horace in the game, as narratively his Gaiden did feel like it fit into the game the best. And as far as characters go, Jeorge, Midia and Boah feel like they should be more significant than they are (Midia and Boah even get more dialogue than a typical Shadow Dragon character with extra conversations yet still feel underwhelming). Although I'd object to having Norne's in Chapter 6 since she's from Altea, I'd rather see her pop up when the party is near Altea, maybe as a prepromote who's been fighting in the resistance the entire time. Although I do get that you're directly repurposing the existing Gaidens rather than making new ones.

I originally conceived as a way to eliminate the death conditions for character rercuitments aside from Frey and Nagi. This seemed like the best way to integrate Norne into the roster without expanding your starting party. That being said, this could also be given to Hardin and co. since the village is in Aurelian territory.

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Chapter 6x - Hardin hears a report of another slave.  Hardin's subordinates is prepared to go, even if they'd have to temporarily ditch Marth.  Marth, of course, agrees to go with them.  Once they beat up the unscrupulous lord, Athena joins.  Condition: Hardin and all of his underlings are alive.

Chapter 12x - Midia informs Marth of a territory that's still loyal to Nyna, even if it looks like they bent their knee to Grust.  The other prisoners each chime in with their own bits of info they overheard while they were imprisoned.  Horace will join at the end.  The info Marth gets affects which enemies appear, what the villages hand out (for example, one will hand out a Heal or a Physic, depending on whether or not Boah is alive), and Horace's starting stats.  Condition: Midia survives Chapter 12.

Chapter 17x - Jagen notices what looks to be a thief headed into the palace.  Upon further inspection, it's Etzel, who's been searching for Marth to let him know that not all of Altea welcomes him back with open arms - one such pocket of resistance being Gordin's hometown.  Gordin offers his support as Marth reminds them, by force, who their king will be.  Conditions: Jagen and Gordin survive, and the palace is retaken in 15 turns or less (otherwise, the troublemakers flee and restart their resistance elsewhere)

Chapter 20x - News travels slowly in Grust, and Lorenz takes it upon himself to announce Marth's victory.  One village doesn't believe him, so they issue a challenge - beat our strongest, or bow to us.  Marth accepts the challenge, and soundly beats Ymir and the rest of his village.  Ymir realizes that might makes right only when you're the winner, and joins Marth on his conquest.  Conditions: Recruit Lorenz, and finish the map in 15 turns or less (otherwise, the village learns of the defeat on their own)

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Yes. Yes please. Shadow Dragon has some of the best writing in the series, and its biggest problem is that there's barely any of that writing to speak of.Let's see...

If Barst and Darros are alive after Chapter 2

Barst and Darros discuss Darros's life as a pirate, and Darros lets him in on the secret of where the pirates main base is. With Gomer dead, the pirates are weak, but not defeated, and the two of them decide to go and kick out the rest of the pirates. This eventually leads to Barst getting the idea in his head to become a pirate at the end of the game.

If Ogma is alive after Chapter 12

Caeda and Ogma reminisce about their first meeting, when she saw him being beaten in Knorda. With Grust now having left Archanea, they (and possibly Bord, Cord and Barst) go to free the remaining slaves kept in the gladitorial arena. If you want to redo his backstory a little, maybe you could have a cameo from Samuel/Samto in here too. 

If Wendell and Merric are alive after Chapter 15

With Khadein free, Wendell notes that a number of his students are still unaccounted for, and he realizes that Gharnef has had some of the more promising acolytes carted away. Alongside his student Merric, the two follow the captors in order to save the kidnapped mages. Possible cameo from Arlen, and maybe even some much-needed interactions between Gharnef and Wendell. 

If Arran is alive after Chapter 19

Approaching Grust, Arran reveals to Marth his history of knighthood, and how he had previously served a Grustian lord who was tyranical to his own people. On their way to Castle Grust, they pass through the lands of said Lord, and they decide to give the people a better life by removing the Dohlr-supporting, peasant-murdering lord. 

If Lorenz and Ogma are alive after Chapter 20

Lorenz explains to Caeda that part of the reason Ludwik fell so quickly to Dohlr was because his children had been kidnapped early in the war, and were being held hostage. Ogma, alongside any other mercenary-types remaining in the army, agree to go free the children. Cameo from Yuliya and Jubello, as well as establishing the relationship between Ogma, Lorenz and the twins. 

(Yes I really like Ogma shut up)

If Est and Abel are alive after Chapter 21

Honestly, I feel like their relationship is among the least developed in the whole series (at least as far as localized games are concerned), and that needs to be fixed.

The two of them get to know each other over the course of the game, and there's an obvious attraction between them but neither is willing to admit it to the other. While waiting in camp the night before attacking Michalis, Est expresses a desire to visit her home village again. Abel volunteers to join her and her sisters on that visit. There, they find that it's being held under an iron fist by the Macedonian military. They free the village, and at the end Est and Abel confess their feelings for each other. 

 

Also, MAJOR shoutouts to Etrurian Emperor for an amazing idea on that Hardin paralogue. 

Edited by TriforceP
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53 minutes ago, TriforceP said:

Yes. Yes please. Shadow Dragon has some of the best writing in the series, and its biggest problem is that there's barely any of that writing to speak of.Let's see...

If Barst and Darros are alive after Chapter 2

Barst and Darros discuss Darros's life as a pirate, and Darros lets him in on the secret of where the pirates main base is. With Gomer dead, the pirates are weak, but not defeated, and the two of them decide to go and kick out the rest of the pirates. This eventually leads to Barst getting the idea in his head to become a pirate at the end of the game.

If Ogma is alive after Chapter 12

Caeda and Ogma reminisce about their first meeting, when she saw him being beaten in Knorda. With Grust now having left Archanea, they (and possibly Bord, Cord and Barst) go to free the remaining slaves kept in the gladitorial arena. If you want to redo his backstory a little, maybe you could have a cameo from Samuel/Samto in here too. 

If Wendell and Merric are alive after Chapter 15

With Khadein free, Wendell notes that a number of his students are still unaccounted for, and he realizes that Gharnef has had some of the more promising acolytes carted away. Alongside his student Merric, the two follow the captors in order to save the kidnapped mages. Possible cameo from Arlen, and maybe even some much-needed interactions between Gharnef and Wendell. 

If Arran is alive after Chapter 19

Approaching Grust, Arran reveals to Marth his history of knighthood, and how he had previously served a Grustian lord who was tyranical to his own people. On their way to Castle Grust, they pass through the lands of said Lord, and they decide to give the people a better life by removing the Dohlr-supporting, peasant-murdering lord. 

If Lorenz and Ogma are alive after Chapter 20

Lorenz explains to Caeda that part of the reason Ludwik fell so quickly to Dohlr was because his children had been kidnapped early in the war, and were being held hostage. Ogma, alongside any other mercenary-types remaining in the army, agree to go free the children. Cameo from Yuliya and Jubello, as well as establishing the relationship between Ogma, Lorenz and the twins. 

(Yes I really like Ogma shut up)

If Est and Abel are alive after Chapter 21

Honestly, I feel like their relationship is among the least developed in the whole series (at least as far as localized games are concerned), and that needs to be fixed.

The two of them get to know each other over the course of the game, and there's an obvious attraction between them but neither is willing to admit it to the other. While waiting in camp the night before attacking Michalis, Est expresses a desire to visit her home village again. Abel volunteers to join her and her sisters on that visit. There, they find that it's being held under an iron fist by the Macedonian military. They free the village, and at the end Est and Abel confess their feelings for each other. 

 

Also, MAJOR shoutouts to Etrurian Emperor for an amazing idea on that Hardin paralogue. 

Oh nice. I like a lot of these, especially the way it integrates later canon like a good remake should. Shadow Dragon really missed a lot of opportunities by focusing on Dark Dragon and the Sword of Light alone. They didn't even have Jiol reference Sheema in his death quote like he does in Book 1 of Mystery. Among these I think I like the Yuliya and Jubello one the most. That's a really major point of context to introduce into the story afterwards.

Although as a point of contention, it doesn't sit with me to give Arran a paralogue without giving one to Samson. That just puts the incentive to choose one over the other far too much in one direction.

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2 hours ago, TriforceP said:

Lorenz explains to Caeda that part of the reason Ludwik fell so quickly to Dohlr was because his children had been kidnapped early in the war, and were being held hostage.

Doesn't one villager in new mystery say the kids weren't as much kidnapped as much as willingly given to Gharnef by their scumbag dad?

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7 minutes ago, Etrurian emperor said:

Doesn't one villager in new mystery say the kids weren't as much kidnapped as much as willingly given to Gharnef by their scumbag dad?

Willingly given under the condition of do it or I'll invade your kingdom. Ludwik was generally referred to as weak willed than genuinely scummy. Though looking at their wiki (because I thought it was Doluna that had them instead of Gharnef)

2 hours ago, TriforceP said:

Yes. Yes please. Shadow Dragon has some of the best writing in the series, and its biggest problem is that there's barely any of that writing to speak of.Let's see...

If Barst and Darros are alive after Chapter 2

Barst and Darros discuss Darros's life as a pirate, and Darros lets him in on the secret of where the pirates main base is. With Gomer dead, the pirates are weak, but not defeated, and the two of them decide to go and kick out the rest of the pirates. This eventually leads to Barst getting the idea in his head to become a pirate at the end of the game.

If Ogma is alive after Chapter 12

Caeda and Ogma reminisce about their first meeting, when she saw him being beaten in Knorda. With Grust now having left Archanea, they (and possibly Bord, Cord and Barst) go to free the remaining slaves kept in the gladitorial arena. If you want to redo his backstory a little, maybe you could have a cameo from Samuel/Samto in here too. 

If Wendell and Merric are alive after Chapter 15

With Khadein free, Wendell notes that a number of his students are still unaccounted for, and he realizes that Gharnef has had some of the more promising acolytes carted away. Alongside his student Merric, the two follow the captors in order to save the kidnapped mages. Possible cameo from Arlen, and maybe even some much-needed interactions between Gharnef and Wendell. 

If Arran is alive after Chapter 19

Approaching Grust, Arran reveals to Marth his history of knighthood, and how he had previously served a Grustian lord who was tyranical to his own people. On their way to Castle Grust, they pass through the lands of said Lord, and they decide to give the people a better life by removing the Dohlr-supporting, peasant-murdering lord. 

If Lorenz and Ogma are alive after Chapter 20

Lorenz explains to Caeda that part of the reason Ludwik fell so quickly to Dohlr was because his children had been kidnapped early in the war, and were being held hostage. Ogma, alongside any other mercenary-types remaining in the army, agree to go free the children. Cameo from Yuliya and Jubello, as well as establishing the relationship between Ogma, Lorenz and the twins. 

(Yes I really like Ogma shut up)

If Est and Abel are alive after Chapter 21

Honestly, I feel like their relationship is among the least developed in the whole series (at least as far as localized games are concerned), and that needs to be fixed.

The two of them get to know each other over the course of the game, and there's an obvious attraction between them but neither is willing to admit it to the other. While waiting in camp the night before attacking Michalis, Est expresses a desire to visit her home village again. Abel volunteers to join her and her sisters on that visit. There, they find that it's being held under an iron fist by the Macedonian military. They free the village, and at the end Est and Abel confess their feelings for each other. 

 

Also, MAJOR shoutouts to Etrurian Emperor for an amazing idea on that Hardin paralogue. 

Wendell rescues the children from Khaden, so they'd be better served appearing in a Chapter 15 Gaiden than Chapter 20. Though I guess that would give rise to some plot holes of Altea now having the children, so perhaps after Thabes (Chapter 23?) would make the most sense. A Gaiden after Chapter 20 like in the original game would still be good, especially if it can include the canon Sable Knights from Archanea saga. Rather expand on them than add new characters (I've no issue with Athena, Yimr etc, I just think they're superfluous and would have been better served shelved until a later game).

44 minutes ago, Parrhesia said:

I don't think they were ever even called 'gaidens' within the games themselves, just 'sidestories' until 'Paralogue' took over.

You're probably right, but I'm sure the term came from somewhere official. I doubt the English speaking audience would have plucked a (rather fitting) Japanese word from thin air. Doubly so when there's an actual game in the series under that title which just lends itself to confusion. Then again a lot of the early fans were probably the people doing the fan translations in the first place, so maybe.

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17 hours ago, Jotari said:

Oh nice. I like a lot of these, especially the way it integrates later canon like a good remake should. Shadow Dragon really missed a lot of opportunities by focusing on Dark Dragon and the Sword of Light alone. They didn't even have Jiol reference Sheema in his death quote like he does in Book 1 of Mystery. Among these I think I like the Yuliya and Jubello one the most. That's a really major point of context to introduce into the story afterwards.

Although as a point of contention, it doesn't sit with me to give Arran a paralogue without giving one to Samson. That just puts the incentive to choose one over the other far too much in one direction.

That's fair. I mostly did Arran because New Mystery implies him to be the "canon" choice... and I honestly know less about Samson anyways, so it was a little harder for me to write one for him. Though I assume that, if he had one, it would probably go in the same place. Maybe it would be something to do with Sheena? I need to look into their history together a little more.

15 hours ago, Etrurian emperor said:

Doesn't one villager in new mystery say the kids weren't as much kidnapped as much as willingly given to Gharnef by their scumbag dad?

Possibly. I haven't played New Mystery in a few years. I could see it though. 

15 hours ago, Jotari said:

Willingly given under the condition of do it or I'll invade your kingdom. Ludwik was generally referred to as weak willed than genuinely scummy. Though looking at their wiki (because I thought it was Doluna that had them instead of Gharnef)

Wendell rescues the children from Khaden, so they'd be better served appearing in a Chapter 15 Gaiden than Chapter 20. Though I guess that would give rise to some plot holes of Altea now having the children, so perhaps after Thabes (Chapter 23?) would make the most sense. A Gaiden after Chapter 20 like in the original game would still be good, especially if it can include the canon Sable Knights from Archanea saga. Rather expand on them than add new characters (I've no issue with Athena, Yimr etc, I just think they're superfluous and would have been better served shelved until a later game).

You're probably right, but I'm sure the term came from somewhere official. I doubt the English speaking audience would have plucked a (rather fitting) Japanese word from thin air. Doubly so when there's an actual game in the series under that title which just lends itself to confusion. Then again a lot of the early fans were probably the people doing the fan translations in the first place, so maybe.

This thread is reminding me that I really need to replay the Archanea games. Thanks to everyone for the corrections!

The idea of using the Sable Knights would be great. As stated previously in this thread, Camus needs a lot more work in this game, and outside Nyna, they are the best characters to do that. I was disappointed they weren't retroactively added into Shadow Dragon. 

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On 8/31/2019 at 5:04 PM, Jotari said:

I see your Hardin intro and raise you Minerva.

Oh yes. IS definitely seems to prefer Minerva over Hardin. In fact my only problem with Minerva is that I feel she gets undue favoritism that should have gone to Hardin instead. Which is definitely somewhat petty on my part since the attention Minerva gets is far from undeserved. 

On 9/1/2019 at 11:38 AM, Jotari said:

Willingly given under the condition of do it or I'll invade your kingdom. Ludwik was generally referred to as weak willed than genuinely scummy. Though looking at their wiki (because I thought it was Doluna that had them instead of Gharnef)

Its a bit vague on whether Gharnef actually made the demand to have the twin. The villager just says the king was scared and that's why he send his kids to Khadein in order to live with uncle Gharnef for a while. Its definitely possible Gharnef forced the issue but given what we know of the guy its also possible the king just freaked out on his own and decided handing over his kids was what he should do. 

That's what the Mystery of the Emblem villager says though. Interestingly the New Mystery villager says that Gharnef did kidnap the twins. If one game says one thing and another says something different I wonder which we should consider canon. 

Edited by Etrurian emperor
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34 minutes ago, Etrurian emperor said:

Oh yes. IS definitely seems to prefer Minerva over Hardin. In fact my only problem with Minerva is that I feel she gets undue favoritism that should have gone to Hardin instead. Which is definitely somewhat petty on my part since the attention Minerva gets is far from undeserved. 

Minerva's favoritism isn't undue, Hardin's lack of favoritism is undue. It's not a zero sum system. If IS cared they could promote both of them.

34 minutes ago, Etrurian emperor said:

Its a bit vague on whether Gharnef actually made the demand to have the twin. The villager just says the king was scared and that's why he send his kids to Khadein in order to live with uncle Gharnef for a while. Its definitely possible Gharnef forced the issue but given what we know of the guy its also possible the king just freaked out on his own and decided handing over his kids was what he should do. 

That's what the Mystery of the Emblem villager says though. Interestingly the New Mystery villager says that Gharnef did kidnap the twins. If one game says one thing and another says something different I wonder which we should consider canon. 

Accepting original mystery of canon means accepting Wyrs not existing, which is too blasphemous to be considered.

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8 minutes ago, Jotari said:

Minerva's favoritism isn't undue, Hardin's lack of favoritism is undue. It's not a zero sum system. If IS cared they could promote both of them.

Um....yeah that's what I said at the end. But in some cases I would say its a zero sum games. Warriors for instance only had so many slots available and only so little attention it wanted to give Shadow Dragon.  

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  • 2 weeks later...

I'll put in my ideas for gaidens, assuming none of the new content that actually got into Shadow Dragon exists (trying hard not to rip off @TriforceP's ideas because I really like all of them). They've mostly all ended up being in the same place as the actual gaidens in the game, but that's because those generally are the best opportunities to have a Gaiden chapter in the story. Like in Three Houses, the player will be given the option if they actually want to embark on these quests, as all the necessary units are forced deployment and some of them would be rather difficult if you haven't trained the right units. These chapters can also be undertaken without Marth, as all of them have victory conditions other than route (with the exception of one where Hardin has the rout ability instead). 

Chapter 6x: Cleaning Up The Teeth (Nabarl, Julian and Lena are all alive)

Marth passes back this way after chapter 6. They discover that Marth's actions eliminating the Soothsires has thrown the region into instability, and the bandit clans are now warring against each other. They decide to try and clean up the mess by arming a local village that swears fealty to Aurelis. This means getting control of a stash of arms from one of the bandits however. There's no particular reason these three characters need be featured, but I would like to know what Nabarl, Julian and Lena were even doing there in the first place. There will be a subtle reference to Samuel in the form of some villager saying how Nabarl has joined a different clan and everyone is completely unaware he's actually working for Marth. For his troubles Marth gains a Brave Sword. The chapter ends with an unfortunate implication that despite allegedly being part of Aurelis, the newly armed villagers don't intend to act all that differently to the bandits they're fighting, highlighting the chaos war brings. Rather than being a seize map, the weapon stash must be taken by Nabarl, Julian or Lena and delivered back to the village near the deployment area.

 

Chapter 9x: Homecoming (Shiida and Wyrs are alive)

After accidentally taking control of Pyrathi, Marth notices they're quite close to Tayls and encourages Shiida to take a trip home. She says she only will if Marth accompanies her. At Tayls they discover that the king is worried about Doluna attacking Tayls from occupied Archenea. Wyrs pops up and mentions he's heard legends of a guardian beast defending Tayls that they could possibly release. They go to an ancient dragon shrine and fight against a Dagon living there. The Dagon is the only enemy in the chapter, the chapter goal is defeat the boss. Primary reasons for this chapter are to introduce the concept of degenerated dragons a bit earlier (even though this is the only one in the game) and to have some scenes developing Shiida and Marth's relationship.

 

Chapter 12x: A Traitor's Worth (all the Archenian prisoners survived)

Keeping A Traitor's worth because I like it as a chapter. However, to contrast Horace (who would still be recuirtable), I would have Lang be featured in this chapter. Highlighting the two different types of collaborators you might encounter during war. Lang is thrown in a dungeon at the end of the chapter instead of being killed, to maintain canon with Mystery. The Archineain characters like Boa and Midia etc would be more heavily involved and characterized. Instead of a seize map, this is a defeat the boss map.

 

Chapter 14x: Something Original to do with Gra (any characters you can think of that would have reason to be highlighted and aren't in any of my Gaidens already)

I don't know exactly what to do here, but let's face it, compared to the other nations, Gra is seriously underdeveloped. Maybe mopping up some Doluna forces overseeing it like in A Traitor's worth. Or perhaps @Etrurian emperor suggestion of a defense map with Camus on the offensive. In either case, give us some new original characters that can be associated with Gra and a Sheema cameo, or at least reference. I guess maybe the Altean knights would be some of the most appropriate characters to highlight here. Gra and Altea are right beside each other and have a shared history, yet we no surprisingly little about both all things considered. Would also be a good opportunity to give us more info on Cornelius, Marth's father.

 

Chapter 17x: The Coyote's Counter (if Hardin and his subordinates are all alive)

Doluna and Macedonia launch a counter attack against Aurleans. Hardin says he wants to ignore it and trust the king can defend Aurleans, but Marth can see Hardin is clearly distracted and points out they'll soon be heading farther west into Grust. It's now or never if they want to ensure Aurelans is safe. After saving Aurelans, Hardin gets his own star and savior moment showing how he and Marth could easily swap roles if need be. This chapter is also done to make it seem like the enemy nations are less passive. As they basically just sit there the entire game letting you conquer the continent. Frost also appears as an enemy in this chapter and can be recruited by Minerva or Hardin. The chapter will also give more characterization to Hardin's subordinates. Instead of Marth, Hardin possess the ability to seize on this map.

 

Chapter 20x: The Sable's Last Stand (if Minerva and the White Wings are all alive)

Ludwig, the King of Grust escaped before the previous battle, giving some explanation as to what happens to him. The remains of the Stable Order shows their undying loyalty to the cause and willingness to fight even though they can't possibly defend against an attack from Marth. Marth is reluctant to fight them, but is also uncomfortable leaving Grust unsubdued and able to regroup. In the end, Minerva steps forth and, as a well known traitor to her nation, she can explain the situation to the Sables and convince them to lay down their arms. The three Sable order members from Archena saga are the bosses on this map. Instead of a sieze map, Minerva must be escorted and speak to all three of them to finish the map. Different rewards are given during this map depending on how many enemy soldiers you kill. The fewer you kill, the better the reward. If any of the three bosses are killed, speaking to the other two becomes fruitless and the map changes to a rout. Map takes place in a volcanic area per what is now semitradition in Fire Emblem. The ash from the volcano also provides a semi decent explanation as to why the King of Grust ends up dying not long after the end of the game.

 

Chapter 23x: Children of War (if Ogma, Merric, Wendell, Lorenz and Elice are all alive (although Elice will always be alive at this point))

Previous intel reveals that the Grust royal children were captured by Gharnef. But after routing Gharnef's forces, they're nowhere to be seen. Arlen appears as a cameo pointing them to where they need to go. The children are being held at a ruin out in the desert by Doluna forces. The boss is a manakete send by Medeus to watch over Gharnef (let's make it a female manakete just for flavor, there aren't many female manakete enemies, if any at all discounting Idoun), she's pretty pissed about how Gharnef worked to subverts Medeus's authority and is glad he's dead. Though now with no contact from Medeus and Grust being destroyed, she feels abandoned with her whole reason for holding the hostages seeming unnecessary. She commands her subordinates to eat the young royals prompting the unlikely band of characters to race to save them (Yuliya and Jubello are green allied units, the only two in the game). Chapter ends when the two royals are escorted to safety. Aside from setting up the Lorenz, Ogma, Wendell resistance plot for the next game, it also serves this develop Elice and Merric's relationship. The reward for this chapter is the Life Sphere, which is the boss is holding. Like the Geo Sphere, it's not commented on as plot important, but can be used as a regular item to give a renewal effect to one of your units.

 

I think that covers just about every major character I reckon needs more developing aside from Tiki and Linde. Tiki's presence is pretty strong in the game as is though and there's nothing really substantional I can think of using without dominating the plot (I also have a lot of Gaidens after the point she joins as is). Linde on the other hand could probably be fitted in somewhere. Maybe in the Traitor's worth chapter. A few people have suggested addressing slavery in a Gaiden with Ogma or Hardin, that could work with Linde too, though for this particular list it's probably too bloated with Gaidens as is, so she has to loose out.

Edited by Jotari
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