Vanym Storm

Should I assume you also want some extra caster classes to go with that? Can't really say I'm on-board with this. See, more magic types means more magic users. The issue there is that attack magic is already extremely good in ways that are deeply entrenched in The Way Things Are Done. I mean, I'd expect that's why you're basically asking for more mages, right? Reclassing could alleviate some oversaturation... but let's be honest, it'd probably do exactly the opposite. And then you'd want to include special effects only available to certain types to make them feel more distinct, which again, tomes are plenty useful without. It also complicates the issue of making tomes available to mixed-type classes, which I like the idea of, but I know a lot of folks don't and this is a fairly small gripe anyway. Point is, magic doesn't need to diversify like that; it's already got the advantage of just being magic. Besides, "Dark" and "Light" magic specifically feel like they should be... different somehow. Special. Even more so than magic in general. Access to dark casters was sparse even in the GBA games, right? Remember Canas? Bet you do, since he had literally no competition. And yet, that felt right. But at the same time, it'd be like... ever played a romhack that gave you practically no axe users? It's like that, but with too few lances on top of it. Either that or it doesn't come up often enough to matter, in which case why bother? (What was even the point of Canas besides using Luna? I forgot.)

Pretty much. I mean, it seemed obvious to me; everybody's always said the biggest problem with snipers was that even the best bow user can only be expected to kill one enemy per turn. Fixed. At the end of the day, the problem isn't so much Galeforce itself, as its availability. The problem is that they combined a reclassing system with an inheritance system. Just having one of those two would've kept a much tighter lid on the issue. (In theory, at least. Peg Knight is in like 8-9 class sets, so...) Good thing, too; there's only so much you can do to balance this without dragging the dreaded RNG into it, and this seems like the sort of thing you really want to be able to plan around if you're going to use it.

Personally, I'm imagining one doing the Mr. Ed lip-flap deal, going "i don't want no man ridin' me. das gay." Then I remember that doesn't account for female pegasi, but it's still funny so I'll mention it. But joking aside, I really don't think the rescuing issue is BS so much as a small and perfectly excusable case of gameplay and story segregation. Yes they could give, say, an additional "your mount is being fidgety" penalty when peg-knights carry male units, but why even go to the trouble? If they couldn't be bothered to waive/reduce the rescue penalty for horseback units doing what amounts to just carrying a second rider, something this specific is just not happening, and rightly so. And since you often have riders going on about trust and bonding and whatnot, I always figured there was just a significant difference between carrying a male passenger around because their rider said so versus accepting a male as an actual long-term partner. Dunno, not exactly knowledgeable in the psychology of fictitious victims of domestication, be they misandrist horsebirds or otherwise.

Ugh, no, no third tier promotions please. It's just an excuse for more number inflation, that's all. It was acceptable in Radiant Dawn because of all the returning characters, but even then it wasn't needed. And it's even more of an issue with branching promotions, which I actually sort of like. (Especially Trickster.) Hell, let's go back to capping stats at 30. Three is a good number, any multiple of ten is a good number, clearly 30 is the ideal limit for stat caps. I don't really feel we need a magic triangle either... Wait, correction, I don't feel we need 3-5 separate weapon types for tomes. The fire>wind>thunder>fire triangle can come back I guess, though why you're attacking mages with other mages often enough that it matters is beyond me. As for what I do want: You know that thing where wind magic is effective against flyers? Stop doing that! It's like, why do bows even exist at this point? Book me on the "more variety in objectives" cruise. Sure, these seem like places where IS screws things up more easily, but let's have some backbone. (From us or them?) More personal skills. Class skills are nice, but there's some chaff that needs to be cut there. In fact, let's see some whole new ways to gain skills. Maybe bring back weapon S-ranks and attach a skill to each type, like Renewal for staves? Or maybe tying them to support ranks would be better, though with some limit on how many you can have. Base it on who the support is with, so you have some options: Learn Daunt from the overacting ham, Vantage from the thief chick, Mercy from the player avatar... (Translation: Dragging Galeforce access into shipping wars was entertaining. Do more of that.) Base conversations. Or maybe "world map conversations", if they must. (Rip off TearRing Saga? Sure. Why not?) So help me, sometimes I like my optional character fluff to relate to current plot events and/or include more than two people. Bring back item stealing and "canto". Maybe shove too, I'unno. Well, there's a few other, smaller things I'm less sure are actually good ideas like giving bows a little innate Crit, but I guess that's enough.

See, unfortunately I'm the type who tends to find things funnier in proportion to how uncomfortable the subject matter makes people. So yes, squirm for me, muhahaetc. Hm, need to think of another example now... Well, I probably don't need to, but I'm very neurotic, so I feel like I need to and why am I typing this nobody cares I don't want them to care I just want to stop thinking about it aaaaaargh!!! Well, in non-Telius news, I think we all know this is the best possible way to deal with a jackass shapeshifter: Jagen: Chris, I know it's most sudden, but... I believe I've fallen in love with you. Chris: Why thank you, Sir Xane. Perfect. Just perfect.

That whole recruitment scenario, really. Speaking of him, Even Radiant Dawn's gutted support system has its gems... Micaiah: Duke Tanas… I know everybody thinks you’re horrible because of what you've done in the past. But not me! I think you just need different hobbies! I’d be glad to model for a sculpture when this is all over. Really, Mickey? Not that I can argue with finding him a new hobby, but really? Are you really that much of a sucker for flattery? Heh, she's clearly just jealous that he went and found himself a real role model who makes decisions the hard way like a normal person. (Radiant Dawn makes me say this a lot, but I really wish they'd followed up on that.)

Mechanics: There are things I would have preferred not be removed from recent games; stealing and the "canto" mechanic in particular. Still, some of this stuff needed to go. Weight? Took away more than it added. Having five separate weapon categories for tomes? Why was that ever a thing? And Awakening actually added some nice toys in as well: a sensible reclassing system; new classes like Trickster or Dark Flier; even replacing the rescue mechanic with something vastly more practical. Is it really "dumbed-down", or is the complexity just not where you're looking for it? Level design: Yeah, FE still has a very on-again, off-again relationship with map objectives that aren't rout or seize. Yeah, it's still unfortunate, especially for the less-mobile classes. Then again, IntSys has a spotty history with difficulty balance. Not sure I can be too mad at them for sticking to the stuff they've somewhat figured out. Storytelling: I really don't see having a super-complex overall plot juggling interactions and motives of a dozen major factions as a huge benefit if you're not giving the player any input beyond "win or try again." Sure, twists are nice and all, but having to explain how it all fits together bogs the game down. And let's face it, if Awakening explained stuff like the previous war in much detail, folks would be in here complaining about it being too wordy. It's probably more interesting to speculate and argue over the details ourselves than sit through a full in-game history lesson, most of which is barely even relevant any more. Character writing: I keep seeing people talk about characters being "flat" or lacking "subtlety" like that's something new to the series, and... I don't know where to start. A lot of the complaints just sound like rationalizing a personal bias to me. And of course, that's obviously not an argument anybody is going to win. "Waifu-stuff": Ergh, I can't take that word even a little seriously. You know what? Folks want to act like Awakening created some shipping epidemic? That was inevitable from the moment they decided to borrow its central gimmick from Genealogy of the Holy War. It's seriously too early to be calling this a "new direction" for the series now, any more than it was then.

Thracia 776. Chapter 12x. Pahn. Bugs. (I'm a horrible person, yes, I'm aware.) And for some reason I laughed about "Kempf's selfishness was unsuccessful in securing our victory." (I'm weird, I know.) Oh, and basically any interaction between Clarine and Rutger, especially that recruitment. He doesn't have time for your self-important delusions. Go swoon over your brother some more and leave the poor man to brood in peace.

(Don't ask about the name; just know that it could be worse.) So... I really dislike doing the whole "tell us about yourself" spiel. There, I've told you something about myself. I'm really more interested in Fire Emblem from a design and especially writing perspective than anything else. I probably won't be very chatty on the whole strategy front. (Actually, I probably won't be very chatty at all. Took me days just to get around to making this post.)