[FE8] Hard Mode, Ephraim Route

[FalconVegeta1986]

I was more just amazed that you somehow managed not to crit at a 14% rate in so many opportunities. And/or trying to guess where exactly you were ending the cutscene :/

That's sort of what I was implying, that she usually does get a crit, but this time she wouldn't no matter what I did. Didn't know you could rig the crit though.

I tried it out a few times and found that if you try too hard to be totally safe against the initial enemies, the reinforcements catch up and you're basically unprepared for them. Breguet doesn't OHKO Eirika, so you can have her try on EP and back away if she fails. But the thing is you pretty much have to just go for it anyway, because Gilliam's hit rate is worse and he can barely scratch the guy anyway. If you happen to only hit once on that EP and decide to back off and heal, then you're left needing to hit him again twice anyway. So you might as well try to do it quickly and restart if it doesn't work, because going slowly and thus having to tank the reinforcements really just adds to the risk. (Although I guess it does simplify the question of how to keep Seth and Franz out of the way...)

That's why I used th fort, in anticipation of the reinforcements. Breguet I didn't want to risk killing Eirika though. I guess not wanting to take risks is really what's hurting me more than the team itself.

I was just saying, really. Snark not intended.

No prob. On that note, I wasn't calling you pathetic, I was calling the enemies pathetic for being doubled by 4 SPD Gilliam.

The point was more that a team with a Franz might not have to double back to get the reinforcements (because with careful planning and a strong enough unit, you can finish everything on the EP of the same turn that you would trigger them), and a team with Vanessa could get back there faster, and a team with more than one early-game draft could have someone hang back to handle them. These are all tactical advantages that a team that aren't available to a team with only Gilliam at this point.

I did a quick check of the Mogalls - there are 3 of them; two are right next to each other and have basically perfectly overlapping attack ranges so you'll have to take them at the same time. Gilliam needs 3 or 4 Str procs to OHKO them (since Steel Lances aren't available yet), which probably isn't too realistic, and he's going to be 4HKO'd by them (the other monsters are insignificant). So he needs to have a Javelin ready for the first two on EP, finish one off on the next PP (still using the Javelin), and then heal up before advancing for the third. You'd have to be suicidal/trying really hard to get the third one involved at the same time with a low-mov unit, agreed. So it's not a real problem to clear, but it does still force you to slow down in a few ways.

Anyway, turncounts "blowing" is relative; you might be expecting to get stomped by your draft-mates from the get-go, but you can still try to surpass your own expectations. I'm mostly just trying to teach something here.

Don't forget I do have Ross an Neimi even if they're not gonna do much. I get what you're saying, but there's nothing I can do about it at this point. I'm doing what I have to do for this draft, and that's making my available resources work for me in a way that makes me feel comfortable. Again, my main concern is that I want to be able to complete the draft in the first place. However, I have been listening to what you're saying, so I took a more aggressive approach to chapter 5 and did get a better turncount, which i'll post a synopsis for later.

I have my own reasons for joining this draft. For one, my cartridge decided to erase itself for whatever reason halfway through farming supports. Second, i've actually never beaten FE8HM, so it's a new experience for me. The first and only time I tried before this, I couldn't keep everyone alive in chapter 4, which surprisingly, no one has died yet in this draft (other than my usuable units, hence the attempts counter).

[zahlman]

That's why I used th fort, in anticipation of the reinforcements. Breguet I didn't want to risk killing Eirika though. I guess not wanting to take risks is really what's hurting me more than the team itself.

What I was saying is that there isn't really a way to avoid the risk. Waiting just incurs a different kind of risk.

No prob. On that note, I wasn't calling you pathetic, I was calling the enemies pathetic for being doubled by 4 SPD Gilliam.

No offense was taken.

Don't forget I do have Ross an Neimi even if they're not gonna do much. I get what you're saying, but there's nothing I can do about it at this point. I'm doing what I have to do for this draft, and that's making my available resources work for me in a way that makes me feel comfortable.

That's the spirit. :) (I totally promoted Neimi in the draft I just did, when I already had Franz, Tethys, Saleh and some other decent units, just to show that it wouldn't cost turns. Actually she picked off a couple of things that might have been a bit annoying otherwise, and saved turns in Ch3 by being able to one-round walls in tandem with Franz allowing Eirika to get at the bandits.)

Again, my main concern is that I want to be able to complete the draft in the first place. However, I have been listening to what you're saying, so I took a more aggressive approach to chapter 5 and did get a better turncount, which i'll post a synopsis for later.

I have my own reasons for joining this draft. For one, my cartridge decided to erase itself for whatever reason halfway through farming supports. Second, i've actually never beaten FE8HM, so it's a new experience for me. The first and only time I tried before this, I couldn't keep everyone alive in chapter 4, which surprisingly, no one has died yet in this draft (other than my usuable units, hence the attempts counter).

I didn't realize I was dealing with that level of inexperience. Again, your determination is pretty cool here. Rise to the challenge! Most people would, you know, just do a normal playthrough and use Seth.

[eclipse]

Eh, my first run of H3 in SD was a draft. I sucked at it, but I made it through (by abusing the Geosphere in Endgame).

Now. . .

Chapter 5 - 5/34

This chapter took a ton of tries, because one of Franz/Moulder/Colm kept dying.

Eirika moved at more-or-less full every turn, and chugged a Vulnerary in front of the boss. Colm took out the two random bandits, and Franz baited Joshua so Natasha could recruit him (with Vanessa nearby to whisk Natasha out of there). I managed to nab the Armorslayer. Kinda wish I could've gotten the Torch staff, but oh well.

Stats after 5x. I think.

Chapter 5x - 9/43

This chapter took a ton of tries, because I managed to kill Orson.

Ephraim got a minor boost to the throne, with Orson doing most of the heavy lifting. Kyle trailed behind, and managed to snag all of Orson's swag before I seized.

Ugh, WTF is up with Franz?

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord      13.07  24  13   13   18   14    6    7
Franz     Cavalier   8.40  27   8    6   11    4    8    3
Moulder   Priest     4.25  21   4    7   10    1    3    5
Colm      Thief      7.16  22   6    6   14   10    4    3

Edited December 16, 2011 by eclipse

[eclipse]

I seem to have forgotten a turn count, but I'll try to fill it in.

Chapter 6 - 6/49

Went 'round north, using Franz as semi-bait. Eirika had enough oomph in her blows to kill Zoldam with a lowly Steel Sword. Moulder got some experience spamming torch, healing, and being bait while standing in a forest. Colm shanked what he could, and Franz did some work here.

No stats, because I forgot to record them.

Chapter 7 - 8/57

All I remember is taking an extra turn to steal the Energy Ring. And a very fast send-off by Eirika.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord      17.61  26  15   14   20   17    7    9
Franz     Cavalier  10.95  27   9    6   13    4    8    3
Moulder   Priest     5.33  22   5    7   10    1    3    6
Colm      Thief      8.68  23   7    6   14   10    4    3

Edited December 17, 2011 by eclipse

[charlie_]

Chapter 4 - 6 turns

I think it was 6. Eirika stayed around the north east, Artur went west and Vanessa took on the south. It took a few attempts to keep Vanessa alive.

Chapter 5 - 4 turns

Standard Vanessa drops Eirika. Artur got the Dracosheild village, which was given to Vanessa.

Chapter 5 x - 8 turns

Hate this chapter. Standard, but trying to give Kyle/Ephraim exp.

Chapter 6 - 4 turns

Vanessa flew over to Novala. Eirika and Artur just fought for exp.

Chapter 7 - 4 turns

Another Eirika drop. Artur broke his Lightning...

Chapter 8 - 8 turns

Ugh... I couldn't even get the robe here. It was a pain keeping Vanessa and Eirika alive here, especially because he kept activating Great Shield and screwing up everything. The Rapier broke on the killing blow. Ephraim and Kyle just got exp.

Unit	Class	Level	Exp	HP	Str	Skl	Sp	Luck	Def	Res	Weapon
Ephraim	Lord	8	21	24	12	12	11	10	10	3	Lance - C
Vanessa Pegasus	15	1	24	13	14	20	11	10	11	Lance - B
Artur	Monk	6	37	21	7	9	11	2	2	7	Light - D
Kyle	Cav.	9	72	28	11	7	8	8	11	3	Sword - D, Lance - C

Edited December 24, 2011 by Bolting

[zahlman]

Went 'round north, using Franz as semi-bait. Eirika had enough oomph in her blows to kill Zoldam with a lowly Steel Sword. Moulder got some experience spamming torch, healing, and being bait while standing in a forest. Colm shanked what he could, and Franz did some work here.

Novala. Zoldam = FE7 pirate ship.

[eclipse]

Eh, sorry. Dude with a cloak. Who is irritating.

[eclipse]

Chapter 8 - 9/66

Dammit. This. Took. Forever.

Franz nommed the Energy Ring, because he wasn't ORKOing at a good rate. I'm pretty sure the usual strategy involves an Eirika rescue, but Franz was having problems aiming without her on board (the sequence of numbers were such that there were several 75-80% misses).

Wound up promoting Franz halfway through the chapter at level 12. It allowed him to gain enough movement to clear the throne room, so Eirika could do Tirado in. Colm got quite a few kills in. Ephraim survived, somehow, even though the RNG was dead-set on killing him. Moulder was used as bait. Again.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord      20.00  27  15   16   20   20    8    9
Ephraim   Lord       9.73  27  10   12   15   13    8    2
Franz     Paladin    1.81  31  12*   7   15    5   11    4
Moulder   Priest     6.01  23   5    8   11    1    3    6
Colm      Thief     11.08  25   7    6   17   11    4    5

[zahlman]

Colm got quite a few kills in.

Colm Thief 11.08

O_O

[eclipse]

Chapter 9

Franz was 3 off Strength (before the Energy Ring), 4 off Skill, 1 point Speed blessed, 1 off Luck, 1 point Defense blessed and 2 off of Res.

This is gonna take a while.

[eclipse]

Chapter 9 - 19/85

Could've done this in 18, but Colm needed to get his Ocean Seal, and I couldn't risk the reinforcements. Plus, everyone survived.

I started this map off by burning two RNs, because Colm missed his opening Armroslayer shot of 76% if I didn't (and that stupid knight NEVER missed at 59%). Moulder couldn't heal Colm in time, so Franz had to trigger the southern reinforcements so nothing could target Colm. Ephraim and Franz both used a Pure Water on the first turn (two vials remaining, huzzah~!) Franz murdered the lolaxeguys with an Iron Sword then moved south, so he could whiff the southern archer with a Steel Lance. Eph and Colm cleaned up the norther one (who I had to kill), then ran south to clean up everything Franz missed. Moulder kept everyone healthy. Had Colm open the door, while holding an Armorslayer, so that the Horseslayer knight would suicide into him (thank goodness Colm dodged). Franz and Ephraim worked through the place, with Colm getting some action in (and swapping out the Armorslayer for Joshua's Killing Edge a bit late, which caused the extra turn). Recruited Amelia and got her out of there, because Franz might want that Speedwing during endgame. After that, parked Franz just outside of the second Sleep guy's rage, so he could lure him to the wall, and his doom. Colm ninja'd his way to the Ocean Seal, while Franz and Ephraim took care of Gheb via stupid potshots (24% Javelin pokes by Franz, and two of them hit), and Axereaver.

I DON'T CARE, I'M DONE WITH THAT STUPID CHAPTER, AND I GOT TANA. NEXT!

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord      20.00  27  15   16   20   20    8    9
Ephraim   Lord      15.60  32  14   13   18   16   10    3
Franz     Paladin    3.37  33  13*   8   16    5   12    4
Moulder   Priest     7.76  24   6    8   12    1    3    7
Colm      Thief     13.64  27   8    7   18   13    4    5
Tana      Peggy     Base everything~!

[eclipse]

Chapter 10 - 5?/90

Tana dropped Eph near the boss, then stuck around to recruit Cormag. I remember that I recruited Cormag and killed Bearn on the same turn, because Ephraim got a Reginleaf crit. Didn't get the Hero Crest, but IIRC, Gerik comes with one, and I'm in no hurry to promote Marisa.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord      20.00  27  15   16   20   20    8    9
Ephraim   Lord      17.65  34  14   14   19   17   10    4
Franz     Paladin    3.73  33  13*   8   16    5   12    4
Moulder   Priest     8.10  24   6    8   13    2    3    7
Colm      Thief     15.12  29   8    7   20   15    5    6
Tana      Peggy     Base everything~!

Edited December 20, 2011 by eclipse

[charlie_]

Chapter 9 - 14 turns

Promoted Kyle here I think. Meh. This map is stupid. Just charged, trying to keep alive. Kept getting screwed over by reinforcements.

Chapter 10 - 3 turns

Standard Ephraim drop to kill the boss with a crit. Vanessa killed Cormag for his Whip, as waiting for him to charge to where I could get Tana to recruit him without penalty would take too long. Vanessa was promoted afterwards.

Chapter 11 - 11 turns

HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE People kept dying, I needed to recruit Dozla but couldn't because L'Arachel had to keep healing. Stupid fog of war. Stupid flying enemies. This chapter can go to hell. Artur was benched for this map.

Unit	Class	Level	Exp	HP	Str	Skl	Spd	Luck	Def	Res	Weapon
Ephraim	Lord	15	71	30	16	15	13	15	13	5	Lance - B
Vanessa	Wyvern	3	70	30	16	15	22	14	11	12	Lance - A
Artur	Monk	9	50	23	9	11	12	3	2	8	Light - D
Kyle	Paladin	2	68	35	14	10	12	8	15	5	Sword - C, Lance - B

[eclipse]

asdf.

I just realized I missed something really important in the last chapter (called the Lancereaver, a.k.a. "that thing I was counting on to keep Colm alive against the boss").

RESTARTING!

Prologue - 2/2

Same old, same old.

Chapter 1 - 5/7

This time, Franz killed the loldier, another soldier, and a reinforcement fighter. Eirika's Strength is much lower.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord       4.46  18   5    9   12    7    4    2
Franz     Cavalier   2.07  21   8    5    8    2    6    1

Chapter 2 - 6/13

Same strategy as last time. Still got all the villages.

Franz's stats look much better.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord       6.29  19   7   11   14    8    5    3
Franz     Cavalier   3.17  21   8    6    9    2    6    2
Moulder   Priest     3.01  Healers make good bait

Chapter 3 - 8/21

Same turn count, drastically different strategy. This time, Franz got the boss kill, and Colm had enough time to gain two levels. Stole the Pure Water and Chest Key.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord       7.71  20   8   12   14    9    5    4
Franz     Cavalier   5.02  23   9    7    9    2    7    2
Moulder   Priest     3.57  Healers make good bait
Colm      Thief      4.03  19   5    5   12    9    3    1

Chapter 4 - 8/29

This is just so much less painful now that Franz is cooperating. Eirika and Colm ran back and forth, killing stuff the other didn't quite finish. Franz could finally ORKO, which meant he finished the zombie reinforcements a touch sooner. As a result, took one less turn.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Eirika    Lord      10.26  23  10   15   15   11    6    4
Franz     Cavalier   7.97  25  10    8   10    4    8    2
Moulder   Priest     4.34  21   4    7   10    1    2    5
Colm      Thief      6.53  19   6    5   14   10    3    1

Chapter 5 - 6/35

And back to my original turn count.

I took the extra turn so I could grab the Torch, Secret Book, and Armorslayer. If I had finished on turn 5, I would've missed all of that.

Chapter 5x - 9/44

For this to work, Ephraim had to dodge two attacks. . .and he did. Otherwise, it was an Orsonstomp.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Ephraim   Lord       6.08  25   9   10   11   10    7    3
Eirika    Lord      11.79  23  11   16   16   12    7    4
Franz     Cavalier  10.62  27  13   10   11    4    8    2
Moulder   Priest     4.57  21   4    7   10    1    2    5
Colm      Thief      8.25  20   6    6   14   11    4    2

Chapter 6 - 5/49

Wasted something like 8 RNs before starting because screw Colm getting hit by a 26% Iron Blade shot. Everyone went north, with Franz moving one less than his full move so Eirika could kill the enemy that he couldn't. Colm baited the archer, then put him at low health so he'd run away. Eirika downed a Pure Water, then got a Rapier crit to make my life easier (and I didn't abuse for this).

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Ephraim   Lord       6.08  25   9   10   11   10    7    3
Eirika    Lord      12.81  24  12   17   17   12    8    5
Franz     Cavalier  12.43  28  13   11   11    5    9    3
Moulder   Priest     5.24  22   4    7   10    2    2    5
Colm      Thief      9.31  21   7    7   14   12    4    2

Chapter 7 - 5/54

Only a team with Colm and someone else that can rescue Eirika can pull this off. Eirika runs one square away from the river, Someone Else Rescues Eirika next to the river, Colm runs into the river to drop Eirika on sorta the other side. After that, he nabbed the Energy Ring, and Eirika walked up to the boss and slaughtered him. Franz snagged the Pure Water. Moulder had fun keeping Franz alive.

Franz has enough sword rank to use the Armorslayer. That's why I delayed a turn in Chapter 5. Tee-hee~!

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Ephraim   Lord       6.08  25   9   10   11   10    7    3
Eirika    Lord      14.20  26  13   18   19   12    9    6
Franz     Cavalier  13.86  29  13   12   12    6    9    3
Moulder   Priest     5.57  22   4    7   10    2    2    5
Colm      Thief      9.59  21   7    7   14   12    4    2

Chapter 8 - 10/64

Welp, that's as good as I can get it (the attempt before this one was redone because I accidentally hit "Wait" instead of "Seize"). At one point, I burn 3 RNs, or Ephraim misses a 83% and gets hit by a 58%. Totally fair. Franz can't quite charge the treasure room, because he's a little too frail (he's 3HKO'd by the armor knights). I guess I could've promoted him early, but I wanted to squeeze as much stats out of him as possible. I'm fairly happy with his level, and will promote him after I get past these story scenes.

Eirika could kick Ephraim's ass right now.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Ephraim   Lord       9.37  27   9   11   12   11    8    4
Eirika    Lord      17.33  29  14   19   20   13   10    6
Franz     Cavalier  16.81  30  14   13   14    6   10    4
Moulder   Priest     6.48  22   5    7   11    2    2    6
Colm      Thief     11.35  22   7    8   16   12    5    3

Edited December 22, 2011 by eclipse

[eclipse]

Chapter 9 - 18/82

Well, THAT was interesting. I was all set to go, and then I forgot to buy a Restore staff, which slowed things down. Otherwise, I would've been way more reckless with Colm.

I didn't feel like resetting. See Colm's stats.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Ephraim   Lord      12.33  29  11   12   13   13    9    5
Eirika    Lord      17.33  29  14   19   20   13   10    6
Franz     Paladin    3.01  34  16   16   16    7   12    6
Moulder   Priest     7.96  22   6    7   11    2    2    6
Colm      Thief     16.09  26  11   11   20   14    8    4
Tana      Peggy     Base everything

Chapter 10 - 10/92

See those stats? Notice how Eph can't double, Franz isn't particularly accurate, Colm's made of paper, and lolTana? Yeah. I chose to do something about all that.

I got my Lancereaver, so I think I should do a hell of a lot better on the next chapter. Colm is turning out to be very manly. Eirika can still kick the crap out of her brother, if she so chose.

Ephraim is currently 2 off Strength, and 1 off of Skill and Speed. This is important, because Franz can double some of the mercs.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Ephraim   Lord      15.27  31  12   14   14   14   11    5
Eirika    Lord      17.33  29  14   19   20   13   10    6
Franz     Paladin    3.71  34  16   16   16    7   12    6
Moulder   Priest     8.73  23   6    7   12    2    2    6
Colm      Thief     18.95  27  12   12   20   16    8    4
Tana      Peggy      5.80  21   7    9   13    8    6    7

EDIT: To give you an idea of how much this sucks, if Eph was at his average Strength right now, he'd ORKO a lot of stuff on the Phantom Ship.

Edited December 23, 2011 by eclipse

[charlie_]

Good luck on that stupid boat. At least you don't need to recruit anyone.

[eclipse]

I gave Eph the Energy Ring, and it was a little less painful, but now I have to do something about the fact that one of Eph/Franz keeps dying to the last hit. Really. If it didn't happen, I'd be staring at a wide-open boat.

[charlie_]

My problem was the fact L'Arachel died in 2 hits, and Ephraim/Vanessa weren't too durable either. And 8 enemies at once threw themselves at Kyle in one attempt.

[charlie_]

Chapter 12 - 4 turns

Vanessa flew over to the boss and killed him with the Axereaver, which broke upon killing him. The rest just trained.

Chapter 13 - 9 turns

Divide and conquer. Gerik joins and is instantly promoted.

Chapter 14 - 6 turns

Artur and Dozla went for the Ring, everyone else charged, with Pure Waters applied. The map ended with both Gerik and Kyle berserked. And now I have Knoll. Who is doubled by generic Mercs.

Unit		Class		Level	Exp	HP	Str	Skl	Spd	Luck	Def	Res	Weapon
Ephraim		Lord    	17	7    	32    	16	16	13	15	13	6	Lance - A
Vanessa		Wyvern		9	69	32	17	23	25	17	14	12	Lance - S
Artur   	Bishop		1	0	28	14	13	13	4	5	12	Light - B, Staff - C
Kyle		Paladin		5	20	38	16	11	14	8	15	6	Sword - B, Lance - A
L'Arachel	Troubadour	3	76	18	6	6	10	12	5	8	Staff - D
Dozla		Beserker	2	68	44	17	12	9	4	11	7	Axe - B
Gerik		Hero		3	11	38	16	16	16    	8	14	7	Sword - A, Axe - D
Knoll		Shaman		Base everything

Edited December 23, 2011 by Bolting

[eclipse]

I am fresh out of Elixirs, but it was totally worth it.

Chapter 11 - 9/101

Eph got the Energy Ring so he could ORKO stuff, Franz got the Angelic Robe so he wouldn't die.

Had Tana go north to do some Mogall hunting, while Eph, Franz, and Colm kept it as real as possible on the deck. Eventually, I was able to have Franz rescue Moulder and make a dash for the green ship, with Eph and Colm hot on his heels. Tana met there, and helped to drop Moulder so Franz could go back to kicking ass. I ended this map with Franz at 3 HP, after a massive killing spree. Colm promoted on the last turn, when I'd run out of things for him to kill.

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Ephraim   Lord      17.31  31  15*  14   16   14   12    6
Eirika    Lord      17.33  29  14   19   20   13   10    6
Franz     Paladin    5.34  42* 17   16   18    8   12    6
Moulder   Priest     9.74  24   6    8   13    3    2    6
Colm      Rogue      1.00  31  13   14   20   16   10    6
Tana      Peggy      9.31  23   9   10   17   10    6    7

[zahlman]

How the hell are you getting that much combat out of Colm.

I love it.

[eclipse]

I make him kill stuff. . .here's what I remember:

Chapter 3: Stole a couple of things, finished a Hand Axe bandit, the Steel Sword one, might've gotten the archer.

Chapter 4: Used as a dodgetank, and those zombies are made of paper. Basically killing whatever Eirika couldn't finish. I don't think he got the boss kill this time.

Chapter 5: The two bandits that spawn near the Dragonshield village.

Chapter 6: Finished a couple things so Franz could use his time better, and killed the Troubadour, after stealing her Elixir.

Chapter 7: Stole the Energy Ring, punched a mage but didn't quite finish.

Chapter 8: Killed one of the starting soldiers, chipped a Knight, killed off the merc that Franz had weakened the turn before, might've had him kill a knight via Armorslayer, punched out a mage.

Chapter 9: Finished the first archer, a couple other things Franz didn't kill outright, and killed the merc guarding his promotion item.

Chapter 10: Helped kill the starting fighters, then moved south and gave Ephraim a hand against the mercs.

Chapter 11: Dodgetanked the starting flying nuisances, then went on the enemy ship and gave them hell. On the final turn, he wasn't in range of anything, so I promoted him.

Chapter 12: Punched a lot of things out.

He's currently at 100 battles and 55 wins.

Now, time to blow away any sort of turn advantage I had, because the RNG was a complete and utter jerk this time (Colm ate three 35% attacks in a row).

Chapter 12 - 15/116

I recruited Marisa, and this cost me dearly. Part of it was getting to her (as everyone on my team could murder her, except for maybe Tana and Moulder), and the other part was keeping Ewan out of combat. If I hadn't bothered recruiting her, reduce that turn count by 4.

Franz downed a Pure Water (final charge, BTW), and was dropped between the archers. He survived by the skin of his teeth, while everyone else walked north, with much less resistance. Once I got Marisa, I had her lure the zombie next to the boss, then used her to kill it. I positioned everyone carefully, then used Colm (Silver Sword), Franz (Steel Sword), and Ephraim (Axereaver) to take it down. Also got Moulder's Ring, which means I can promote him when I feel like it.

Ephraim is still screwed in everything except Strength (remedied by my Energy Ring), Defense (+2), and lolRes. WTF? Colm, on the other hand, is a bit frail (-4 HP), but is kicking the crap out of his Strength and Skill averages (+3 and +4, respectively). Franz is also above average, and this helps greatly. Moulder is really fast for a boulder (+3 Speed), Eirika is awesome (+2 HP, +4 Strength, +2 Skill and Speed, +3 Defense), and Tana is a bit above average (+1 Speed). I might pull this off yet!

Name      Class     Level  HP  Str  Skl  Spd  Lck  Def  Res
Ephraim   Lord      19.19  33  16*  16   16   15   14    6
Eirika    Lord      17.33  29  14   19   20   13   10    6
Franz     Paladin    7.45  44* 19   17   19    9   12    7
Moulder   Priest    10.73  25   6    9   14    3    2    6
Colm      Rogue      2.02  31  14   15   21   17   10    7
Tana      Peggy     10.92  24  10   10   18   11    6    7
Marisa    Myrmidon   6.68  24   8   12   14    9    4    4

Edited December 24, 2011 by eclipse

[charlie_]

And now the home stretch. Someone actually died in the end, but the RNG was being so screwy I ended up keeping it.

Chapter 15 - 13 turns

Deserts are irritating. Knoll went for the Heaven Seal right away, and promoted to Summoner. It was tricky keeping Eirika alive when she was weighed down by the only weapon she had (a Steel Sword) while keeping both Saleh and Innes out of combat. Vanessa went north to help Eirika, especially against the Peggy reinforcements. Ephraim escorted Knoll (who was ORKOed by the Merc north of the starting position), Artur staff buffed and the rest headed east. I only managed to get the Warp/Swiftsole but that's all I needed. They went to Ephraim, meaning overkill movement once promoted.

Chapter 16 - 9 turns

Kyle, Vanessa and Ephraim charged the throne while the rest held off reinforcements. Knoll made Phantoms to bait the sage with Bolting. Upon promotion, Eirika was level 18 and Ephraim was level 20.

Chapter 17 - 3 turns

Easiest chapter in the game. I began training Myrrh here, while Vanessa flew over to Lyon, and ORKOed him due to Pierce. I swear, that thing is so broken, I wouldn't be surprised if they nerfed it in the 3DS remake. I got the Rescue staff. Cool beans I guess, but I only used it once to raise staff level.

Chapter 18 - 8 turns

Vanessa went for the boss, Ephraim headed north and Kyle went to the South east corner. The rest just picked up the scraps, and Knoll's phantom was used to save a few people from Shadowshots. Knoll could've been OHKOed by one of the Spiders actually.

Chapter 19 - 2 turns

Artur got A in staves on turn one, just in time to Warp Ephraim as far as he could towards Reiv, and on enemy phase ORKOed with Seigmund. I got the Light Brand too, even though I forgot it existed.

Chapter 20 - 3 turns

Myrrh charged the Skeletons towards Movra, while Vanessa carried Ephraim and was warped closer. Reiv got in the way so Myrrh killed him, and Vanessa Peirce/Vidofnir comboed and took out Movra, and Ephraim seized. Everyone else just sat there like idiots.

Final Chapter, Part 1 - 2 turns

Here lies Kyle, dead by Gorgons. Yeah, I got annoyed at the RNG, he died but next turn Ephraim critted and KOed and I just went "screw it" and went with it. It didn't make a difference (Vanessa had Vidofnir). Not now that the only chapter I have left can be 1 turned. Basically first turn Artur warped Kyle who critted the first Skeleton and then got owned by the Gorgons. L'Arachel used Barrier so that Ephraim could like one hit, and then Artur warped him in next turn to finish Lyon with a crit. RIP Kyle.

Final Chapter Part 2 - 1 turn

Artur warped Myrrh to attack from the top, Ephraim hit him from the left, and Vanessa hit from the bottom, and killed with Peirce, although it was unneeded as Eirika was ready to finish the job.

And here are individual turn counts:

[spoiler=Individual Turn Counts]

Prologue – 2 turns

Chapter 1 – 5 turns

Chapter 2 – 6 turns

Chapter 3 – 7 turns

Chapter 4 – 5 turns

Chapter 5 – 4 turns

Chapter 5x – 8 turns

Chapter 6 – 4 turns

Chapter 7 – 4 turns

Chapter 8 – 8 turns

Chapter 9 – 14 turns

Chapter 10 – 3 turns

Chapter 11 – 11 turns

Chapter 12 – 4 turns

Chapter 13 – 9 turns

Chapter 14 – 6 turns

Chapter 15 – 13 turns

Chapter 16 – 9 turns

Chapter 17 – 3 turns

Chapter 18 – 8 turns

Chapter 19 – 2 turns

Chapter 20 – 3 turns

Final 1 – 2 turns

Final 2 - 1 turn

Overall - 141 turns

Final Turn Count - 141 turns

[spoiler=And now what I thought of my characters:]

Ephraim - Once Ephraim got going he wrecked, only suffering due to low mobility, which was remedied by the Swiftsoles, and even moreso by his promotion in the next chapter.

Eirika - I'm not gonna lie, after the Rapier broke she was really lack luster, especially due to Swords being locked to 1 range (forgot the Light Brand) and even with her promotion she stayed behind due to the lack of Javelins. It's a shame she stays sword locked even after promotion.

Vanessa - Vanessa is my savior. She was my flyer for the whole game, and my only other combat unit until Artur in chapter 4. Once she became a Wyvern Knight she wrecked with pierce too.

Artur - He was decent early game, a burden midgame and then at the end shaved off many many turns with Warp. Shame he was so frail I couldn't deploy him on the boat...

Kyle - Kyle was what you would expect from a Cavalier, or maybe a little less. eventually he became less necessary after Chapter 18, as Warp and Vanessa did his job better. He was decent though, shame he died.

L'Arachel - She was actually useful thanks too healing with Mend (Heal did almost nothing) and Barrier for lategame chapters. She wasn't amazing but she worked. She was still level 5 at the end though.

Dozla - He was okay. He had a decent crit and was instrumental in taking down a few key enemies blocking my path, although he was nothing exceptional.

Gerik - A really useful combat unit. I had him use Swords maybe 5 times after promotion, that just shows how good Axes are.

Knoll - His combat abilities are terrible, but his Phantoms were good lures. That's really all he did...

Myrrh - Training her paid off, as she was a huge help against the Demon King, and ORKOed Riev. Also she flies, so she was able to support Vanessa in Chapter 20.

[spoiler=Kill Count:]

10.) L'Arachel - 0

9.) Knoll - 7

8.) Myrhh - 14

7.) Artur - 25

6.) Dozla - 29

5.) Gerik - 44

4.) Eirika - 49

3.) Ephraim - 70

2.) Kyle - 75

1.) Vanessa - 268

Oh my god Vanessa.

I'll post stats eventually, but after writing all that I'm too lazy.

Edited December 24, 2011 by Bolting

[General Horace]

Clipsey, you know that Marisa auto recruits if you recruit Ewan, right?

[zahlman]

Chapter 6 - 4 turns

Vanessa flew over to Novala. Eirika and Artur just fought for exp.

I'm impressed, it took me 5 with Franz in the other draft. Of course, he had to plow through a bunch of stuff, which meant waiting on a fort for a little bit because it was otherwise overwhelming. I guess Vanessa can fly north to start and only has a couple of cavs to deal with... ? Isn't there an archer though >_<