X-Naut

Critical hits now OHKO unconditionally and there is no Dodge stat. Gates and thrones have their FE5 terrain bonuses. Bosses can now move but are rubber band warped back to the throne at the end of their turn. All units have a grand total of three support partners, which are determined by RNG at the start of the playthrough. Support conversations are generic a la FE10, there is no Augury to help you figure out who supports who, paired endings are fixed and independent of supports.

I don't consider this a true sigh of relief until we get confirmation that they are counted as a single character each instead of two. This is merely a cause for hope.

It's a joke if you couldn't tell That said it's be a real curveball to see one of them get in.

Cecilia/Camus for being my Horse Emblem core and Tharja/Julia for being two thirds of my Tempest Trials core.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9RsTMLIGaw They're doing fine with original screams as it is. I don't think it's necessary.

If Dart had a decent base Speed at his join time I would consider using him more, but between his lacking base and Pirate Con holding him back until promotion it's hard to justify keeping him aboard. That and as other people have said the Ocean Seal nonsense.

If art cards are heroes side exclusive then we won't have to worry about them taking up precious slots. Also you're forgetting Rowan and Lianne. What I'm more worried about is more Fates/Awakening heroes being revealed and doing that instead...

No support conversations is less of an issue than toning up the notions of your characters being disposable with gaiden requirements and generic replacements.

Thracia 776 can become unwinnable if by the final chapter you've exhausted all means of getting past the chamber doors (having no door keys, lockpicks, unlock staffs, and warp/rewarp staffs) since the only door keys on the map are all behind the doors.

The Dark-type leaders would cheat like crazy and have some of the worst gym puzzles in the series.

Branching promotions. A lot of the time third tiers feel superfluous and just pad out the character progression rather than add anything interesting.

All of this speculating is getting on my nerves, so I'll give my own thoughts and be done with it. I will be operating under the assumption that we're chronologically post-Shadow Dragon, pre-Mystery and will cover them by country. Also, I'm mainly focusing on playable characters. Character names will be bolded. Altea and Talys: I opted to lump these together because Talys is an insignificant little island beyond being where it all began. We already have Marth and I'm certain we'll have at least one other, if not more. Caeda immediately comes to mind on account of being Marth's betrothed and her dedication to fighting by his side. Her presence would also give us a third Pegasus Knight in case they want to add a three-game Triangle Attack, which would be swell. I would not be surprised if she uses swords here, we already have two lance PKs and with Heroes I get the feeling Intelligent Systems is trying to unperson the Wing Spear, but who knows. To represent the Altean Knights, I would expect Cain, Jagen, or Draug in that order. Cain is by far the most representative of the Knights of his generation; Jagen only has a few years left and Cain assumes his mantle eventually. Still, those old bones might have enough of a fight left in them for one more go. Draug is kind of in the middle but as an Armor Knight he has a lot of weapon flexibility and could be given swords (please no), lances or even axes. Gordin is probably the least representative of the Knights and I cannot see him appearing alone, but with another Altean Knight or his mentor Jeorge I wouldn't count him out. Abel retired after the war and is not showing up without Cain. Merric would be a solid choice for magic representation given that he's a close friend of Marth and has Excalibur in his arsenal. One might argue this gives him too much overlap with archers but we've seen Takumi in action and it's a beat 'em up game, so he won't encroach on them too badly. I cannot see anyone from Talys besides Caeda showing up. Ogma was probably passed over for how many swords the mandatories already bring, Barst is the only axe bro worth mentioning and seems like a real stretch, and Wrys has "cannot fight" written on his business card. Castor is another bow and potentially one on a horse but I expect him less than Barst. Wherever Navarre would fit, see Ogma. Minerva: Is the only character I can see from Macedon getting in, but is a very strong choice. She adds another Dracoknight, Hauteclere gives us another axe, and she's a minor-major character as the princess (so a female to boot!) of her country. Palla, Catria and Est are likely having adventures in Valentia right now, though if one shows up it'll probably be Palla or Catria. Maria is 2smol4war as much as she protests and uses staffs anyway. I suppose they could give her tomes... if she's even in. Michalis is going to be a villain if he's in, and I wager he's the second likeliest Macedonian. Lena is a staff user, Julian is another sword user, and Matthis would want nothing to do with the conflict. And it's either Julian AND Lena or bust. Archanea: It's the cornerstone nation of the continent, and while the choices number fewer than Altea they're worth covering. I can see why Jeorge is being thrown around as a hopeful: he brings a unique bow in Parthia and is recognized as the continent's finest archer. Most of the characters shown seem to be either major characters or experienced (see Cordelia), and he falls squarely into the latter. Plus he's the only notable bow representation Archanea offers alongside Gordin, so unless Virion or Niles gets revealed we can expect one of the two. Maybe both since they're student and teacher. His friends Astram and Midia don't get as much representation and chances are they could only make it if all three get in. Speaking of "only two notable options", Linde is the only other tome option unless we get a promoted healer. She also brings a unique spell in Aura, but to be honest she probably falls under the "lack of experience" trap and I cannot see her getting in without either Merric or Jeorge (another Archanean noble who could keep an eye on her). Female representation true but Caeda and Minerva do that solid enough. If Nyna entered combat, the Millennium Court would have a meltdown trying to bring her back. I don't think we're forgetting anyone else... What? Don't give me that look! Aurelis: Almost as forgettable as Talys but I may as well throw two more cents in Hardin and Wolf simply because the former is (supposed to be) a minor-major character and the latter is a cavalry bowman. Or maybe it'll be Sedgar, but my money is on the Wolfman. Highly unlikely but it would be sick if they were acknowledged. Don't hold your breath on Roshea or meme man Vyland. Khadein has only one member with a name (Wendell) and while he's held in high regard by efficiency players... that's about it. Grust has Jake who might work as a bow user but would probably be an NPC and Roger (laughs). Tiki is soft-confirmed, and if she's absent then I have several questions about what Int Sys is planning to do with the Archanea saga in the future. Lastly, it's worth mentioning that for all those who don't get in, I expect some to receive mention in support conversations. I find the Shadow Dragon characters' support prospects to be the most intriguing due to how limited those games' characterizations are compared to Awakening and Fates. In any case, let's hope the developers don't disappoint even more than they are now.

Good enemy placement typically gives the player some sense of urgency when engaged and/or requires good planning to engage in the first place. This can be done with well-spaced enemies, enemies that aggro as a group or groups requiring you to face multiple enemies at a time to aggro them. Bad enemy placement lets you fish them out one-by-one and turtle to eliminate the threat entirely. Sometimes enemies can also be used as indicators. One idea I've had to make same-turn reinforcements more bearable is to have a single "scout" appear at the start of player phase only to be joined by the whole pack on the following enemy phase. This would be introduced early and with a proper warning to teach unfamiliar players not to go after single reinforcements. It removes the need to warn about STRs every single time while properly cluing you in to groups from unpredictable areas, such as the edges of the map. (I also think STRs placed directly under previous player phase spawns from forts or stairways is completely fair to deter spawncamping.)

The first thing I did was zoom in to see if the poster contained any leaks. Damn, I was hoping they'd slip up on that one.

My thoughts exactly. I was thinking a percent-based damage reduction from physical hits (like 20-25%) or a Defense bonus when being attacked.

With enough grinding, Bow Knight is the best class due to insane attack range, solid movement range and the Killer Bow's busted combination of innate crit and Hunter's Volley. Dread Fighter followed by Gold Knight or Falcon Knight probably round out the top 3.

How's Everyone/Barracks/My Castle bonuses are more casual than no permadeath and should be locked to Casual mode.

Wonder Trade or bust Outside of completely random trading bracketed by rarity I cannot see them allowing Hero trading, and even then it would probably only be once a day to prevent you from brute-force recirculating to get who you want.

The GBA games probably have a more simplistic combat system due to the lack of weapon rank things, but you have additional tools in the Rescue command and a refresher unit that can give an ally a second move that turn. Thieves can also steal items (but not weapons) from the enemy. There's no skills outside of FE8's very simple class skill system, and reclassing does not exist prior to Shadow Dragon.

I'm going to put this all under spoilers because I have a lot to say on the matter: Boy that was a mouthful...

I'm in the camp that hops from one thief/assassin to the next as I get them since there's little incentive to train thieves extensively and the Fell Contract's rarity is a strong disincentive.

This so much. Archanea is a world that has been held back by archaic characterization limits, and Shadows of Valentia taking place on its sister continent to the west has me fascinated by what they could do with the game. And for what it's worth, MoTE Book 2 has never been released outside of Japan, and since Mystery of the Emblem was next in line after Gaiden... While other continuities want more attention to, Shadow Dragon is one of the Big Three alongside Awakening and Fates. If anything, giving Marth's saga a proper closure would be a fine way to move on to other things.

-Item storage can be accessed mid-map through storage houses, and this is necessary if you plan to buy in bulk because there is no "send to convoy" function for shopping. Fortunately, they're quite common. -It costs 10 Gold to place an item in storage, FWIW. -Due to a glitch, you can "promote" your Manaketes with a Hero Proof to grant them a permanent +12 Defense per promotion. This is not constrained by the usual 20 stat cap. Good thing Medeus didn't know about this...

I've heard louder from the two dogs in the outdoor kennel from our neighbors up the hill.

Arts are basically an improved offensive skill system that fixes the broken aspects, so they should definitely come back.