Book IV Official Speculation & Discussion Thread

[daisy jane]

4 minutes ago, Hilda said:

I am not talking about AR

I mean in general. When I see 1 unit and 3 dancers stuff in on offense (not defense) in AR or in Abyssal map videos i just roll my eyes

@daisy janeI dont use any Dancers at all in Abyssal (or only 1 depending whicht Team i am running) maps and use 1-0 Dancers in AR.

 

right and that's fair and how you like to play. 
but there are a lot of people who do, and i don't think because they do it dumbs anything down.  Again as much as I would like to obliterate AR into the sun (and to be honest the only reason why i play is that that's where grails live), i know a lot of people like the mode, so i wouldn't change it because i think it's a dumb mode. you feel that having more than one dancer dumbs things down - i personally don't. i think the game is open enough that regardless of how people's play style is they can achieve what they want to do, i wouldn't want to deploy limits on what people should want to do based on my own personal beliefs. that's all. 

[XRay]

13 minutes ago, Hilda said:

I mean in general. When I see 1 unit and 3 dancers stuff in on offense (not defense) in AR or in Abyssal map videos i just roll my eyes

Using tried and true tactics is nothing to be ashamed of, especially in Aether Raids. Grails and other rewards are on the line. It also keeps me and others sane who just want an easier time and coast in Aether Raids most of the time. I could easily argue the reverse and say Enemy Phase combat is dumb cause all you do is just walk right up the edge of Enemy Range and just let enemies suicide on to you.

As for Abyssal maps, 1 nuke with 3 Dancers/Singers is a testament to how strong that team composition is. What is so impressive with other teams who have to change a lot of their skill sets to tackle different maps? What is so special about being creative with a team instead of making a super powerful team where the only change needed is maybe the Special and at most switch the nuke to another color?

[Diovani Bressan]

15 minutes ago, Hilda said:

I mean in general. When I see 1 unit and 3 dancers stuff in on offense (not defense) in AR or in Abyssal map videos i just roll my eyes

I understand what you mean...

I think that is too much to limite the number of dancers in all modes.. but at least they should limite it in competitive modes that have ranks and tiers: Arena, Aether Raids, Arena Assault, Allegiance Battles, Rokkr Sieges, Mjölnir's Strike...

In Grand/Bound/Legendary/Mythic Hero Battles, and Tempest Trials (although TT have a rank system, it's based in how many times you played it and not how good you are or if you have high merged units you have)... I don't see any problem in using 3 dancers.

[DefyingFates]

1 hour ago, PeonyofLeosa Dreamworld said:

I think the guy in the trailer may be Freyr 

 

1 hour ago, silverserpent said:

Actually, I'm pretty sure we do see A new male character. The, quite possibly, Elf King or Druid that looks like Sesshoumaru/Youko Kurama. A little effeminate, maybe, but pretty sure that's a guy.

Chapter 2 spoilers:

Spoiler

The person in the trailer is clearly important and Peony seems to be introducing them to the Askrians, so he's almost definitely the King Freyr she tells them about at the end of Chapter 2.

 

[Heir of Dragons and Beasts]

4 minutes ago, DefyingFates said:

 

Chapter 2 spoilers:

  Reveal hidden contents

The person in the trailer is clearly important and Peony seems to be introducing them to the Askrians, so he's almost definitely the King Freyr she tells them about at the end of Chapter 2.

 

I think  Freyja the woman mentioned by Triandra is Freyr's sister. Is it ever mentioned that Peony is a princess?

[Diovani Bressan]

4 minutes ago, PeonyofLeosa Dreamworld said:

I think  Freyja the woman mentioned by Triandra is Freyr's sister. Is it ever mentioned that Peony is a princess?

No... we still don't know if Peony is a princess or not.

[Etrurian emperor]

5 hours ago, DefyingFates said:

Also, Kiran's been kidnapped, huh? And the person in the trailer was a guy after all, phew!

Its the second time Kiran got kidnapped and the second time I'm wondering....who exactly is doing the summoning now? Who's commanding the troops and who's playing the game when I'm ''kidnapped'. At least Kiran isn't having conversations with people despite being kidnapped this time. 

He's probably the least interesting choice aside from the meta perspective. If Sharena got kidnapped it would be interesting to see Alfonse's reaction and vice versa since they care about each other a lot. They care for Kiran too but more in the player pandering way which makes it a less ''wholesome'' worry they'd have for him. 

 

[Punished Dayni]

>Chapter 2 is full of Thracia units.

>Peony calls them nightmares

Book IV is trash, burn it to the ground.

It's interesting seeing some of the theories about this one. Mainly what Peony actually is to the Askrtrio, the possibilities with Freyr and Freyja. Also, that Gustav line being a dead end was a bit annoying.

Also, Bruno and Veronica got buffed, let's hope the Askrtrio are next.

[silverserpent]

3 hours ago, PeonyofLeosa Dreamworld said:

I think the guy in the trailer may be Freyr 

I had this thought after seeing talk of Freyr. After all, fertility is sometimes used in conjunction with farming/trees and as someone who can apparently grow an entire tree from nothing...yeah.

Also, on dancers/singers in competitive modes, it should be restricted to one. They put a limit on how many can be in GC/RD, there should be a limit on Arena and AR. I can't tell how many times I've lost because of the enemy team having two long-range powerhouses and two dancers. It kinda sucks the fun out of the game.

[Diovani Bressan]

28 minutes ago, Dayni said:

Also, Bruno and Veronica got buffed, let's hope the Askrtrio are next.

Hm... I am still not sure about it.

Book 2's Veronica (Ch 2-1) has 41/49/22/29/21, while Book 4's Veronica (Ch 1-5) has 44/52/24/32/23, but in Book 2 she is Lv 40, and in Book 4 she is Lv40+.

What changed was her skills

Book 1: Reprisal, Renewal, Savage Blow.
Book 2: Bonfire, Mirror Strike, Drive Def.
Book 4: Reprisal, Mirror Strike, Savage Blow

[Arcanite]

3 hours ago, Hilda said:

Imho they should have limited the amount of Dancers per map on all modes to 1. It dumbs the game down.

Why use two broken units when you can make one broken unit move 4 times 

[wheelsonfire]

Still find the tone change a bit jarring, but I will be used to it… The characters knowing Peony is definitely interesting, but I've played a bit too much Bravely Default to trust her immediately… I cannot don't like all innocence equates to childish, thing… It's been done way too much, and it's perfectly possible for a serious assault to have an innocent moment, have something that takes them back to the days of innocence or makes them feel innocent, or even just remember the days of innocence, probably in greater detail than a child ever would… I get that it's Shanrea’s defining trait, but we've already had three books with her, I feel like her character should at least be expanded upon… I'm hoping that's what we get, to be honest… I feel like it's odd that the male figure is seemingly on the characters side and the female is not… I'm used to various having a fairy queen… I guess with elves, it can go either way, even though they look like fairies…

 

I've just had a thought… If this is Norse mythology, then the end of it is Ragnorok… Are all parties moving towards that with their fighting? It would make sense if they were, considering war seems to be raging in all the realms, and every realms the heroes leave after they're done either has a lot of people dead, with a ruler left with a world in shambles, or no ruler at all… And considering Askr lost its king with the prince and princess being away, and we have no idea what state Embla’s in other than having a pacifist on the throne, the mortal world doesn't seem too stable either… I hope Ragnorok won't be the final outcome, considering other stories that have had it turn out bittersweet at best, and even the ones with more positive endings still have a lot of casualties…

Edited December 6, 2019 by wheelsonfire

[Stroud]

13 minutes ago, wheelsonfire said:

I've just had a thought… If this is Norse mythology, then the end of it is Ragnorok… Are all parties moving towards that with their fighting? It would make sense if they were, considering war seems to be raging in all the realms, and every realms the heroes leave after they're done either has a lot of people dead, with a ruler left with a world in shambles, or no ruler at all… And considering Askr lost its king with the prince and princess being away, and we have no idea what state Embla’s in other than having a pacifist on the throne, the mortal world doesn't seem too stable either… I hope Ragnorok won't be the final outcome, considering other stories that have had it turn out bittersweet at best, and even the ones with more positive endings still have a lot of casualties…

The funny thing is that Freyr, should have been killed by Surtr in Ragnarök. So much on the Askr trio bringing everything into disorder. He should be thankful and now he wants to take Alfheim. (Which has been gifted to him in the lore). Well lets see who we also will have. 

Edited December 6, 2019 by Stroud

[Hilda]

19 minutes ago, wheelsonfire said:

Still find the tone change a bit jarring, but I will be used to it… The characters knowing Peony is definitely interesting, but I've played a bit too much Bravely Default to trust her immediately… I cannot don't like all innocence equates to childish, thing… It's been done way too much, and it's perfectly possible for a serious assault to have an innocent moment, have something that takes them back to the days of innocence or makes them feel innocent, or even just remember the days of innocence, probably in greater detail than a child ever would… I get that it's Shanrea’s defining trait, but we've already had three books with her, I feel like her character should at least be expanded upon… I'm hoping that's what we get, to be honest… I feel like it's odd that the male figure is seemingly on the characters side and the female is not… I'm used to various having a fairy queen… I guess with elves, it can go either way, even though they look like fairies…

 

I've just had a thought… If this is Norse mythology, then the end of it is Ragnorok… Are all parties moving towards that with their fighting? It would make sense if they were, considering war seems to be raging in all the realms, and every realms the heroes leave after they're done either has a lot of people dead, with a ruler left with a world in shambles, or no ruler at all… And considering Askr lost its king with the prince and princess being away, and we have no idea what state Embla’s in other than having a pacifist on the throne, the mortal world doesn't seem too stable either… I hope Ragnorok won't be the final outcome, considering other stories that have had it turn out bittersweet at best, and even the ones with more positive endings still have a lot of casualties…

The tone change is something to get used to yes, but i am having a difficult time with it. Its like its not fiting Fire emblem heroes at all: i mean i get it its a Dreamworld soo it has to be different.

I am usually very fond of OC chars, but the new fairies just dont click with me at all from a Design point of view. Usually the OCs shared some kind of design similarity with the ornaments but here its kinda missing, Aside from the that one big thing on Peony chest. So yeah this is a first in FEH where i am really not digging the OC at all and the world behind it.

[DefyingFates]

Re. the tone of the book so far: there's nothing to say things can't get worse later on, especially considering we're being attacked by embodiments of nightmares. As Peony says in Chapter 2: "Anything can happen in a dream!" We're probably not getting a drawn out Scarecrow/ Mysterio-tier nightmare sequence, but we could still get something pretty harrowing by the end, especially once more antagonists join the party.

[Mercakete]

@DefyingFates

Yeah, I may have miss-seen it, sadly.

@silverserpent

Yeah, he's a dude, but his face is really feminine. Grats, Freyjr (or whoever you spell his name.) You're the 2nd FE dude I confused for a woman. The first was Sephiran.

[Mercakete]

2 hours ago, DefyingFates said:

Re. the tone of the book so far: there's nothing to say things can't get worse later on, especially considering we're being attacked by embodiments of nightmares. As Peony says in Chapter 2: "Anything can happen in a dream!" We're probably not getting a drawn out Scarecrow/ Mysterio-tier nightmare sequence, but we could still get something pretty harrowing by the end, especially once more antagonists join the party.

Huh, pulling up a theory I made earlier in the thread, eh?

Anyway, yeah, the tone is just...weird... In some ways, I'm glad since the one thing it fits is Sharena. But it's pretty obvious to me that Alfonse and Sharena were friends with Peony when they were younger. They'd go to sleep, wake up in the land of dreams, and play with Peony. Then, they grew up. Sharena's trying to remember her time with Peony, but since she's still childlike, she has some vague memories of it. What I don't get is why Peony seems so nervous/flustered when talking to Sharena about whatever it is Sharena's forgetting.

...

I want kid Alfonse/Sharena/Veronica/Bruno/Nifl siblings/Muspell sisters/Eir alts. I'm sure they all played together in the world of dreams when they were kids.

Back on the tone topic, it's nice that modern fairy lore is coming up (it rarely does, except as an aside) but...yeah, it's too whimsical for FE's more serious tones, imo.

[Sentinel07]

Honestly, I kind of like the idea of something whimsical after how grim dark the last one was. I could go for something a little more straightforward to unwind after that.

[Mercakete]

1 hour ago, Sentinel07 said:

Honestly, I kind of like the idea of something whimsical after how grim dark the last one was. I could go for something a little more straightforward to unwind after that.

Not sure if this is directed at my comment specifically or not, but the wordage makes it sound like it is.

Anyway, not saying there's anything wrong with whimsy. I'm just saying that it doesn't really fit FE. You can get it from other sources, sure, but FE tends to be much more serious, so it's kind of like treating a funeral like a birthday party. While book 3 was also a little weird in FE, I thought it fit better than...this. At the very least, it was serious and dealt with the themes of throne-ascension, rulership, death, and war like most (perhaps all) FE stories.

Edit:

I guess the most basic way of putting it is that you don't want your product to have multiple personality disorder. Consistency is important.

Edited December 7, 2019 by Mercakete

[Othin]

1 hour ago, Sentinel07 said:

Honestly, I kind of like the idea of something whimsical after how grim dark the last one was. I could go for something a little more straightforward to unwind after that.

Agreed. The past two books took the dark tone to the point of it just feeling meaningless and boring, I'm much more interested in this "bright but screwy and unnerving" approach.

Peony also makes a nice contrast with Fjorm and Eir in being upbeat and having actual stuff to do on her own terms rather than just being a fugitive from the all-destroying villain of the week.

[DefyingFates]

21 hours ago, Mercakete said:

Huh, pulling up a theory I made earlier in the thread, eh?

I forgot about that, oops 😛 My bad!

21 hours ago, Mercakete said:

They'd go to sleep, wake up in the land of dreams, and play with Peony. Then, they grew up. Sharena's trying to remember her time with Peony, but since she's still childlike, she has some vague memories of it. What I don't get is why Peony seems so nervous/flustered when talking to Sharena about whatever it is Sharena's forgetting.

It's the "Peony being nervous" part that makes me suspicious too, unless it's unnatural for adults to remember her.

21 hours ago, Mercakete said:

I want kid Alfonse/Sharena/Veronica/Bruno/Nifl siblings/Muspell sisters/Eir alts. I'm sure they all played together in the world of dreams when they were kids.

You know, that would be adorable :3

19 hours ago, Othin said:

Peony also makes a nice contrast with Fjorm and Eir in being upbeat and having actual stuff to do on her own terms rather than just being a fugitive from the all-destroying villain of the week.

Good point! I didn't think about it at first, but she's the one guiding the Askrians this time around; usually it's Alfonse and co. who call the shots. Neat!

Speaking of Peony, she's really grown on me. I like how positive she is and that she wishes the best for everyone, even those who forget about her. It's pretty sad actually 😢

Edit: A theory I have after listening to Peony's voice lines:

Spoiler

She says she feels like crying whenever she hears the word "sister" ("older sister" in Japanese). I know one interpretation is that Triandra's her sister, but what if it's Sharena?

Crack theory time: when they were playing in Sharena's childhood, the two decided they would call each other sisters. Maybe kid!Sharena demanded she be the older one or Peony was as or more immature herself at the time, I don't know, but that would explain the Japanese dialogue. Peony's trying to forget it because she wrote it off as a childish fancy - especially after Sharena forgot about her - and is trying to deny that she really wanted such a familial relationship (maybe she doesn't have any real family in Ljosalfheimr), which is why she's surprised that she feels like crying and also why she gets flustered when Sharena tries to remember her childhood.

What do you think?

Also, has anyone else noticed that they've kept the -heimr suffix for the realm names after dropping them for Books 2 and 3? Maybe something in their design philosophy changed or these two realms just function differently. You know, due to being dreams and all. Saying that makes me realise that of Zenith's "nine realms," two are immaterial. Spoopy.

Edited December 8, 2019 by DefyingFates

[Sentinel07]

12 hours ago, DefyingFates said:

I forgot about that, oops 😛 My bad!

It's the "Peony being nervous" part that makes me suspicious too, unless it's unnatural for adults to remember her.

You know, that would be adorable :3

Good point! I didn't think about it at first, but she's the one guiding the Askrians this time around; usually it's Alfonse and co. who call the shots. Neat!

Speaking of Peony, she's really grown on me. I like how positive she is and that she wishes the best for everyone, even those who forget about her. It's pretty sad actually 😢

Edit: A theory I have after listening to Peony's voice lines:

  Reveal hidden contents

She says she feels like crying whenever she hears the word "sister" ("older sister" in Japanese). I know one interpretation is that Triandra's her sister, but what if it's Sharena?

Crack theory time: when they were playing in Sharena's childhood, the two decided they would call each other sisters. Maybe kid!Sharena demanded she be the older one or Peony was as or more immature herself at the time, I don't know, but that would explain the Japanese dialogue. Peony's trying to forget it because she wrote it off as a childish fancy - especially after Sharena forgot about her - and is trying to deny that she really wanted such a familial relationship (maybe she doesn't have any real family in Ljosalfheimr), which is why she's surprised that she feels like crying and also why she gets flustered when Sharena tries to remember her childhood.

What do you think?

Also, has anyone else noticed that they've kept the -heimr suffix for the realm names after dropping them for Books 2 and 3? Maybe something in their design philosophy changed or these two realms just function differently. You know, due to being dreams and all. Saying that makes me realise that of Zenith's "nine realms," two are immaterial. Spoopy.

It is indeed possible that the -heimr was kept in a way to illustrate how different these worlds are as they seem to have an unnatural element to them unlike previous realms.

[Mercakete]

@DefyingFates

Hahah! No worries, friend. I'm used to what I say being forgotten/ignored/only remembered well enough for someone to think he or she came up with it and taking all the credit. ='D ... Though, honestly, I can tell your case is only the first bit. That is, you honestly forgot. So, as I said, no prob. 🙂

As for your theory, it's a good one, and I agree with most of it. Only bit I personally would tweak is that Peony may not be trying to wave it off or forget it, but has realistic expectations that that part of her life is over. Still, one cannot help but feel heartache at being left behind by someone so close... So, when Sharena returns, so too does the pain of having been separate for so long. Her mind just hasn't caught up to her heart yet, if that's the case.

And honestly, (I haven't listened to Peony's voice lines yet except for moving her around on maps) if this theory proves true, it would very much endear me to Peony. That would be some good writing right there.

[Sentinel07]

You know, there's something really funny about how this book started off with it's first 2 chapters, and that's how few OC's there were. Compared to previous Books in their opening batch of chapters:

1. Book 2 introduced Fjorm, Laevatein, Loki (true form), and Surtr. All of which were characters shown off in the opening video.

2. Book 3 introduced the entire Hel gang: Eir, Lif, Thrasir, and Hel. Again, all of them were in the opening video.

3. Book 4 only introduces Peony and Triandria. Freyr and Plumeria are in the opening video but make no appearance. Freyja (likely main antagonist) is also absent.

Kind of funny honestly.

Edited December 8, 2019 by Sentinel07

[DefyingFates]

11 hours ago, Sentinel07 said:

It is indeed possible that the -heimr was kept in a way to illustrate how different these worlds are as they seem to have an unnatural element to them unlike previous realms.

This too. Thanks!

8 hours ago, Mercakete said:

@DefyingFates

Hahah! No worries, friend. I'm used to what I say being forgotten/ignored/only remembered well enough for someone to think he or she came up with it and taking all the credit. ='D ... Though, honestly, I can tell your case is only the first bit. That is, you honestly forgot. So, as I said, no prob. 🙂

As for your theory, it's a good one, and I agree with most of it. Only bit I personally would tweak is that Peony may not be trying to wave it off or forget it, but has realistic expectations that that part of her life is over. Still, one cannot help but feel heartache at being left behind by someone so close... So, when Sharena returns, so too does the pain of having been separate for so long. Her mind just hasn't caught up to her heart yet, if that's the case.

And honestly, (I haven't listened to Peony's voice lines yet except for moving her around on maps) if this theory proves true, it would very much endear me to Peony. That would be some good writing right there.

Thank you for understanding! I think your idea is interesting and would be really neat to see, though of course some would complain that it reduces those chapters to pointless filler or somesuch.

As for the bolded part, that's another way of looking at it and I like that. It is pretty sad, isn't it? And I've said this before, but Peony's childlike optimism is really endearing to me already, like how she seems to simply not understand why Triandra is creating nightmares for people (though Triandra isn't much more enlightened herself in that regard). That's quite sad too, actually.

8 hours ago, Sentinel07 said:

You know, there's something really funny about how this book started off with it's first 2 chapters, and that's how few OC's there were. Compared to previous Books in their opening batch of chapters:

1. Book 2 introduced Fjorm, Laevatein, Loki (true form), and Surtr. All of which were characters shown off in the opening video.

2. Book 3 introduced the entire Hel gang: Eir, Lif, Thrasir, and Hel. Again, all of them were in the opening video.

3. Book 4 only introduces Peony and Triandria. Freyr and Plumeria are in the opening video but make no appearance. Freyja (likely main antagonist) is also absent.

Kind of funny honestly.

Yeah. We also already have six known characters this time despite only two of them making physical appearances. It gives me the impression that the story's aiming for a more slow burn this time and I find that interesting! Also having a ton of characters makes me hopeful that most of them will be released in regular banners as with Book 2 so we don't have to endure B8% banners to get them.

Edit: I just checked the FEH website (which has been updated for Book 4 so you can get an official version of the promo image if you want) and noticed how Peony and Triandra's bios are exact opposites of each other:

Peony: Sweet Dream

• A ljósálfar from Ljósálfheimr, the realm of dreams.
• Delivers pleasant dreams to mortals.
• Both sincere and positive,
• she enjoys playing with children.
• A new character for Fire Emblem Heroes.

Triandra: Nightmare

• A dökkálfar from Dökkálfheimr, the realm of nightmares.
• Delivers terrible dreams to mortals.
• Cold and distant,
• she lives on without hope.
• A new character for Fire Emblem Heroes.

And the same goes for their animations.

It just makes me more confident in my theory that Peony and Triandra will be the only ones with "Dream" assists, and possibly the only dancers (i.e. dream inducers) overall, among the Book 4 cast.

P.S. Triandra has a "I am Triandra" line on the website, but we all know she'll be playable eventually, it's just a question of when.

P.P.S. Visiting the characters page reminded me how neat a Warriors game based on Heroes would be since we have a pretty diverse cast here: just take the OCs and Brave Heroes and you're golden. After Eirika wins CYL 4, of course.

Edited December 8, 2019 by DefyingFates