In your opinion

[RNG Princess]

the only soloes i tried were ladgou ruins and they were too hard. :/

I like having a big team instead ;) and personally if I can I like to have 1 unit of each class. I usually don't carry more units from same classes unless they're pegasi.

Edited September 16, 2010 by Queen_Elincia

[Thor Odinson]

Glitch dark magic on to one of your bishops and S-rank him/her, preferably Moulder for manly con base. Proceed to buy a ton of Nosferatu tomes. Lagdou should be done.

Well, like I said, to each their own. Just making suggestions of how to make the game harder in its current condition. That's all. :)

Edited September 16, 2010 by Luminescent Blade

[RNG Princess]

I acutally used that glitch before and I loved it :D.

[Loki Laufeyson]

The only thing i can think of right off the bat would be to make story mode longer and remove the Tower and the Ruins during the main story. (Make them only available in post game)

I treat Seth like any other Jeigan character really. Even on my first playthrough because that wasnt my first FE.

[Anouleth]

Make Lyon move in Final

[IntegerZero]

Make Lyon move in Final

Make him teleport across the map! (Actually that would be hilarious, unless his entire guard moved with him)

[eclipse]

Running around on the overworld - interesting.

Running around needlessly on the overworld - kinda makes things trivial.

Perhaps limit the number of places you can visit before the next chapter auto-starts on you (so choose your shopping spots wisely!)

[...]

I would change the final battle really. Either don't make the legendary weapons super effective, or do something else. Maybe only Eirika and Ephraim can hurt him, but give everyone else something else to do. DK could revive the other main bosses of the game and possess them, and your team could face them.

[Byte2222]

I haven't finished Sacred Stones, in fact it's the only Fire Emblem game I own and haven't completed at least once. Why? Not sure. I don't really like Sacred Stones, maybe it's an element in the art, maybe it's the characters, I dunno what it is, but I'm feeling put off. The ironic bit is that I've stopped just before the endgame and have lost the will to play.

Anyway, I think that the overworld roaming and skirmishes are a good idea in theory but I find they've tempted me to try and train too many additional characters outside my main team. It's prompted me to fiddle too much. The branching promotions don't help either, particularly as it's let them have trainees that cover two first tier classes and three or four second tier classes which means they've had fewer units for you to weigh. All in all, I think that some decisions need to be taken out of the player's hands or they'll be tempted to fiddle and some indecisive ones (like me) won't be able to pick a class to promote too ("Why do I have to choose, they're both good").

I also dislike the monsters, probably because they're mostly weak swarming enemies which disagree with my ponderous and defensive playstyle and they make fighting seem monotonous and lethargic. In my opinion, anyway. I think that the story needed to be more developed. Hang on, I think they revived branched promotions and skirmishes to reduce production time and cost. Then again that does sound a bit crackpot, but it does mean they don't have to design as many characters and the skirmishes distract from the story's brevity, or at least they could. I've got to stop, I'm rambling.

[peener weener]

We shared the same experience in our first run of our first FE, QE. 8D

But I didn't really find it hard...(lol, easymode)

I didn't fall for the Jeigan trap, knowing Seth gained low Exp, and that other characters actually had a chance to be better.

Although I did make the mistake of promoting Franz at lvl 10.

The earlygame chapters were the funnest, IMO.

EEEEEEEEEH?! EASY MODE?!

THAT IS SO LAME!!

NOT EVEN PRESCHOLARS PLAY EASY!!

lol, it was the first thing that came to mind. I blame IOSYS.

Anyway, yeah. Everyone usually makes the same mistakes when first playing. It's ok. Although, I didn't promote right off like most. I waited till 20, hahah. And yeah, I didn't use JeiSeth either.

[Smiley Jim]

Yeah, I agree that the game is too easy. I mean, its HARD MODE is only slightly harder than other game's Normal modes. IS really needs to put a little more difficulty into it's games(and I do not mean FE3DS Lunatic/FEDS Merciless difficult. Somewhere around HHM(S-rank edition) should do it.) What I would do to the game:

Note: Any boss stats that I didn't list are unchanged.

Prolog-C8 don't need tinkering, but it would be nice to buff the C4 monsters a bit.

Eir Route Changes:

Ch9: Make Binks not suck. Around 47HP/20Str/16Skl/14Spd should do the trick. Also, give him a Silver axe and a Killer bow(A axe/C bow).

Ch10: I would promote some enemies and buff Pablo's Mag by 5. Also give Pablo a sleep staff and a Fimbulvetr.

Ch11 and 12: Make the monsters not suck. Especially the bosses. The Wight gets a Silver Blade and the Maelduin gets a +4 str/def buff and a +8 HP buff.

Ch13: Aias should get 50HP/22Str/25Def/18Res and a Spear/Tomahawk/Silver Blade. Cormag appears earlier(Turn 2 should be sufficient). Pablo shows up with +5 to every stat as well as Fimbulvetr/Fortify/Purge.

Ch14: Fill the map with myrmidons and swordmasters(and give ALL of them Killing edges). Carlyle's new stats: 45HP/16Str/23Skl/25Spd. He also gets a Shamshir.

Eph Route Changes:

Ch9: Make the mage near Tana's cell a Killer bow sniper. Also put a 'keep me alive' diamond on Tana. Gheb has a Killer axe, a tomahawk, and a swordslayer(he starts equipped with the tomahawk). Also his new stats: 53HP/23Str/14Skl/12Spd/16Def. Also, make a quarter of the enemies promoted.

Ch10: You still have to protect Duracell, but now you must kill Beran. His stats: 42HP/17Str/20Skl/20Spd. He has a Longbow, a Silver bow, and a Killing edge.

Ch11: Same as Ch11A and 12A

Ch12: Cyclops gets a +8 buff to str and def. Also every enemy except Marisa near him is promoted.

Ch13: Selena needs her mag/res capped(let's see how much you like eating 37 atk Boltings)and give her a fortify staff(replace Elfire with Fimbulvetr). Also, promote every armor knight plugging a chokepoint(and give them spears and 25+ Def) and put a crapload of Killer bow rangers on the map(to discourage any flying).

Ch14: Needs moar promoted dudes and 20Mag Druids with Luna/Berserk staffs. Vigarde has the following stats: 75HP/25Str/24Skl/30Def/18Res and has a Silver Blade/Spear/Tomahawk(S Sword/A Lance/A Axe).

Reunited Changes:

Ch15: Caellach and AIDS face need to not suck. Caelly has these stats: 54HP/25Str/24Skl/21Spd/18Def. Valta: 49HP/20Str/24Skl/24Spd/16Def/14Res. Also, half the dragon knights around Valta are Spear!Wyvern Knights. Also, most of the enemies near Caelly are tomahawk!Warriors and silver sword!heroes. Most of the enemies in the middle are Elfire mages and Nosferatu shamans.

Ch16: Needs moar promoted enemies. Orson gets 50HP/22Str/20Skl/22Spd/25Def.

Ch17: More things need to be promoted and wielding silver/brave weapons. Lyon's speed needs to not suck(21 Spd and 15 Con should suffice). His other stats get a +4 buff except Mag which is 25 and HP, which is 60.

Ch18: Lol. Buff some stats.

Ch19: Riev needs to move. His mag/res also needs to be buffed by 8. Also give him a Purge and a Sleep. Mansel's knights are all promoted and have 56HP/27Def/20Res(and have silver swords). Also you can't end the chapter unless you beat Riev.

Ch20: Riev has his mag/def/res capped. Morva has a Filli shield.

Endgame: Lyon has a Berserk staff and an unlimited use Warp staff. Oh, and the Goat Demon ONLY summons Dracozombies.

[Parrhesia]

Ch9: Make the mage near Tana's cell a Killer bow sniper. Also put a 'keep me alive' diamond on Tana. Gheb has a Killer axe, a tomahawk, and a swordslayer(he starts equipped with the tomahawk). Also his new stats: 53HP/23Str/14Skl/12Spd/16Def. Also, make a quarter of the enemies promoted.

DUDE, IT'S CHAPTER NINE

[Thor Odinson]

@DA: I think that might be a bit overboard.

Just checked boss stats in FE12 Lunatic and they aren't that bad until later in the game. The ones you changed, that is.

...Plus, if we go from 1-8 LOLing then suddenly C9 comes in, I have a sense that if you don't use Seth, you're screwed, due to the difficulty jump... Unless some unit miraculously gets insanely high levels and is blessed at the same time.

And practically everyone in FE12 has insane growths to accomodate for this Lunatic mode.

Edited September 27, 2010 by Luminescent Blade

[Smiley Jim]

@DA: I think that might be a bit overboard.

Just checked boss stats in FE12 Lunatic and they aren't that bad until later in the game. The ones you changed, that is.

...Plus, if we go from 1-8 LOLing then suddenly C9 comes in, I have a sense that if you don't use Seth, you're screwed, due to the difficulty jump... Unless some unit miraculously gets insanely high levels and is blessed at the same time.

And practically everyone in FE12 has insane growths to accomodate for this Lunatic mode.

Well, aside from buffing Tirado, and making the generic enemies not suck as much, the first 8 chapters would be pretty lol worthy. I also forgot to mention that in my masochistic version enemy reinforcements, appear at the beginning on an enemy phase rather than the end of it.

Tirado's new stats:

Name 	Class   	MHP STR SKL SPD LCK DEF RES WRANK   		CUBE
Tirado  General      	45  18  15  10  05  21  15  A swd/A lnc/A axe	Spear, Knightkiller

.

Also, I would promote the armor guarding the NW chest room(a handaxe should suffice for him)as well as the longbow archer.

Oh, and Ephraim route is harder for a reason. It's still not that bad if you use Seth and a promoted Gilliam(preferably at ~20/0).

Some other tidbits:

-Arena abuse is a good deal harder since each unit only gets 7 fights before they aren't allowed back in. By this, they can lose as much as they want, but after their seventh win, they are kicked out.

-Promoted enemies in earlier chapters have +4 stats in everything over the non-promoted versions.

-To prevent Tower abuse, you only have access to the first three floors, and may only use it once per chapter(in order to use it again, you have to clear the next story chapter).

-(Debatable)In order to make the trainees more useable, I buffed them a bit.

Name 	Class   	LVL MHP STR SKL SPD LCK DEF RES CON WRANK
Ross  	Pirate    	01  20  07  05  06  05  04  00  12  D axe
Amelia	Knight 		07  28  10  09  07  09  13  04  10  C lnc 
Ewan	Mage   		06  25  10  09  11  07  03  07  08  D anm

.

Also, their new growths:

Name 	Class   	MHP STR SKL SPD LCK DEF RES
Ross  	Pirate    	75  60  35  40  50  30  25
Amelia	Knight 		60  40  50  45  50  55  20 
Ewan	Mage   		55  50  45  55  50  15  45

.

Edited September 27, 2010 by DA125

[Thor Odinson]

I suppose Valni would also be taken out, then?

[Parrhesia]

promoted Gilliam

-Arena abuse is a good deal harder since each unit only gets 7 fights before they aren't allowed back in. By this, they can lose as much as they want, but after their seventh win, they are kicked out.

Death. First.

Just throw out the arenas altogether.

[Anouleth]

Yeah, I agree that the game is too easy. I mean, its HARD MODE is only slightly harder than other game's Normal modes. IS really needs to put a little more difficulty into it's games(and I do not mean FE3DS Lunatic/FEDS Merciless difficult. Somewhere around HHM(S-rank edition) should do it.) What I would do to the game:

Note: Any boss stats that I didn't list are unchanged.

Prolog-C8 don't need tinkering, but it would be nice to buff the C4 monsters a bit.

Eir Route Changes:

Ch9: Make Binks not suck. Around 47HP/20Str/16Skl/14Spd should do the trick. Also, give him a Silver axe and a Killer bow(A axe/C bow).

Ch10: I would promote some enemies and buff Pablo's Mag by 5. Also give Pablo a sleep staff and a Fimbulvetr.

Ch11 and 12: Make the monsters not suck. Especially the bosses. The Wight gets a Silver Blade and the Maelduin gets a +4 str/def buff and a +8 HP buff.

Ch13: Aias should get 50HP/22Str/25Def/18Res and a Spear/Tomahawk/Silver Blade. Cormag appears earlier(Turn 2 should be sufficient). Pablo shows up with +5 to every stat as well as Fimbulvetr/Fortify/Purge.

Ch14: Fill the map with myrmidons and swordmasters(and give ALL of them Killing edges). Carlyle's new stats: 45HP/16Str/23Skl/25Spd. He also gets a Shamshir.

Eph Route Changes:

Ch9: Make the mage near Tana's cell a Killer bow sniper. Also put a 'keep me alive' diamond on Tana. Gheb has a Killer axe, a tomahawk, and a swordslayer(he starts equipped with the tomahawk). Also his new stats: 53HP/23Str/14Skl/12Spd/16Def. Also, make a quarter of the enemies promoted.

Ch10: You still have to protect Duracell, but now you must kill Beran. His stats: 42HP/17Str/20Skl/20Spd. He has a Longbow, a Silver bow, and a Killing edge.

Ch11: Same as Ch11A and 12A

Ch12: Cyclops gets a +8 buff to str and def. Also every enemy except Marisa near him is promoted.

Ch13: Selena needs her mag/res capped(let's see how much you like eating 37 atk Boltings)and give her a fortify staff(replace Elfire with Fimbulvetr). Also, promote every armor knight plugging a chokepoint(and give them spears and 25+ Def) and put a crapload of Killer bow rangers on the map(to discourage any flying).

Ch14: Needs moar promoted dudes and 20Mag Druids with Luna/Berserk staffs. Vigarde has the following stats: 75HP/25Str/24Skl/30Def/18Res and has a Silver Blade/Spear/Tomahawk(S Sword/A Lance/A Axe).

Reunited Changes:

Ch15: Caellach and AIDS face need to not suck. Caelly has these stats: 54HP/25Str/24Skl/21Spd/18Def. Valta: 49HP/20Str/24Skl/24Spd/16Def/14Res. Also, half the dragon knights around Valta are Spear!Wyvern Knights. Also, most of the enemies near Caelly are tomahawk!Warriors and silver sword!heroes. Most of the enemies in the middle are Elfire mages and Nosferatu shamans.

Ch16: Needs moar promoted enemies. Orson gets 50HP/22Str/20Skl/22Spd/25Def.

Ch17: More things need to be promoted and wielding silver/brave weapons. Lyon's speed needs to not suck(21 Spd and 15 Con should suffice). His other stats get a +4 buff except Mag which is 25 and HP, which is 60.

Ch18: Lol. Buff some stats.

Ch19: Riev needs to move. His mag/res also needs to be buffed by 8. Also give him a Purge and a Sleep. Mansel's knights are all promoted and have 56HP/27Def/20Res(and have silver swords). Also you can't end the chapter unless you beat Riev.

Ch20: Riev has his mag/def/res capped. Morva has a Filli shield.

Endgame: Lyon has a Berserk staff and an unlimited use Warp staff. Oh, and the Goat Demon ONLY summons Dracozombies.

So you want to put the bosses on par with FE6HM bosses, except that instead of fighting Monke in the 22nd Chapter, by which point we will have promoted units, we fight Beran in the 11th Chapter, by which point we are unlikely to have any promoted units? I mean, compare your Orson (17th chapter) to Alucard (21st chapter). Or your Vigarde to FE6's Murdoch.

The fact is, this 'mode' actually sounds more difficult than FEDS Merciless. There are many powerful weapons and units that can trivialise FEDS Merciless mode, and even FE3DS has characters that can hold their own against the enemies. You are making the mistake of acting as if this game is like other Fire Emblems, when it's not - it's the shortest Fire Emblem ever, with only 22 chapters if you ignore Prologue and Creature Campaign. You are unlikely to have characters reaching 20/20 or even 20/10 in efficient play, and expecting them to go up against these insane enemies is just going to encourage Tower and Arena abuse.

[Thor Odinson]

Oh, and Ephraim route is harder for a reason. It's still not that bad if you use Seth and a promoted Gilliam(preferably at ~20/0).

Gilliam. With his glorious 4 move and lack of doubling ever and WTD against axemen.

HOW.

Getting him to 20/0 would take as many turns in each chapter as Seth routing the entire Ch20 by himself WHILE rescuing Eirika and can't double crap due to severely lowered SPD.

... Not that I've done that.

[Integrity]

Getting him to 20/0 would take as many turns in each chapter as Seth routing the entire Ch20 by himself WHILE rescuing Eirika and can't double crap due to severely lowered SPD.

... Not that I've done that.

Don't lie, Lumi. It's unbecoming.

[Smiley Jim]

Getting Gil to 20/0 would take as many turns in each chapter as Seth routing the entire Ch20 by himself WHILE rescuing Eirika and can't double crap due to severely lowered SPD.

This may be a case of PEMN, but I was able to get Gil promoted to General at 18/0 by Chapter 8, and for the record, I was playing efficiently. Here were his stats:

Before promotion:

Name 	Class   	LVL MHP STR SKL SPD LCK DEF RES
Gill  	Knight      	18  38  16  12  08  08  20  06

And after:

Name 	Class   	LVL MHP STR SKL SPD LCK DEF RES
Gill  	General   	01  42  18  14  11  08  22  09

And I did all this without boss or arena abuse.

Once I get to Ch20, I should have Gil solo that chapter while carrying Ephraim...let's see how long that takes me(for the record, I used the swiftsoles on him).

Edited September 27, 2010 by DA125

[Anouleth]

This may be a case of PEMN, but I was able to get Gil promoted to General at 18/0 by Chapter 8, and for the record, I was playing efficiently. Here were his stats:

... you weren't playing efficiently. He was also lucky with his stats, not that it means much.

I don't see why you made him a General either.

Edited September 27, 2010 by Mr. Know-it-all-Anouleth

[Thor Odinson]

Don't lie, Lumi. It's unbecoming.

No. I had Seth rout only half the map and only carry Eirika half the time. Didn't bother with the other half.

...Because I gotta access that convoy somehow.

[Parrhesia]

...In my GK Playthrough, Gilliam was promoted at the start of Chapter Nine.

AFTER SOLOING THE FOG CHAPTER.

IT WAS NOT EFFICIENT IN THE SLIGHTEST.

No, Gilliam is...not exactly an efficient character by any means.

[Psephis]

I have never used Gilliam properly whenever I play FE8. I just end up training and promoting him at the tower/ruins. I don't really like knights but their promotions are very much worth it.

Edited September 29, 2010 by Psephis