How do you play Fire Emblem?

[Topaz Light]

So, I decided because I was curious about how others played the game, I would make a poll about it. Several, in fact. Actually, it's like a little survey, for other players to fill out, and enjoy looking over other people's answers as well. This should be fun for just getting a general idea for how the fanbase, or at least those who are members of this forum, tends to play the game, which difficulty settings and styles of play are popular, and what sorts of characters and classes people tend to use.

It kinda goes without saying, but please try to remain fairly civil and don't talk down to others for their favored play styles.

With that said...

Generally I play casually, in Normal mode, using units on the basis of personality, growth rates and appearance. I have an odd fondness for Archers, and I also like Troubadours, Knights and Shamans/Dark Mages and, where they're present, Soldiers. Usually I forsake prepromotes, because they often feel like cop-outs to me.

I never, ever allow units to stay dead, unless I'm doing a sidequest run on Shadow Dragon or the unit in question is Orson in FE8's Chapter 5x. However, recently I have been considering doing a self-imposed challenge run, forbidding restarting for the deaths of non-Game Over-inducing allies.

Depending on when I'm using them, I either feel pathetic for resorting to them so early in the game or I feel as though I was too lazy to train another member of that class to promotion. Some exceptions are for games wherein the prepromotes are the only recruitable members of their class line (Largo, FE9) or where I simply like the character enough for it to outweigh their prepromotedness. Or it's FE13 where everyone and their mother (in many cases literally) is viable.

Inversely, I like Ests and trainees, probably because they take the satisfaction of having trained my own unit up to eleven. The fact that Ests have a tendency to be cute is also a factor, not gonna lie.

I almost always promote from level 20, and I will frequently arena- and support-grind where available to keep all my units powerful and up-to-speed. Also, there's just something inexplicably... cozy, I guess? About having the characters support and bond with each other. A sort of feeling of security, I guess. Maybe that's just me, though.

So, how do you play? What difficulty level is your cup of tea? Do you ever allow permadeath to actually come into effect? What sorts of characters and classes get you through to the end? Vote here, and see how others play as well!

Edited February 22, 2013 by Starlight36

[Komeiji Koishi]

I'm a casual-ish player, unless I actively challenge myself to try (which is rare).

Normal, because EASY MODO too EASY, and to help me get into it.

My units die? I CAN TURN BACK TIME. *Reset button*

Utility is key.

MYRMIDON, ACCEPT NO SUBSITUTES.

[Thor Odinson]

I don't play full-out efficient but I play a lot faster than what people would normally consider casual. It's more of just "kill the shit out of everything in my path as fast as I can and don't bullshit around being slowasses" and I'm far more likely to do something you'd see in efficient runs like rescue drops than turtle the shit out of things. I also like to do soloruns and themed runs and female (+mainlord) only runs.

Hard mode is basically normal mode to me. Lunatic is fun but not something I want to play 100% the time, so I default to hard. I value bases more than growths and personality more than looks and just useful characters in general. Don't expect me to level some scrub because they have amazing growths or some shit. I'm more forgiving of growth units if they come early enough where everyone else but the Jagen has crap for stats anyway or if they have a joining situation or other boons that is very easy for them to be trained (see FE5 Mareeta and her joining axefest, as well as that crazy-ass prf), but if you join really late and is a growth unit, unless you bring something useful to the table (FE5 Sara and staff utility), don't expect me to use you. If I have to constantly baby a unit to make them useful, they're not worth it. It's also nice that prepromotes tend to have more mature (for a lack of a better word) and less cutesy personalities and that appeals to me more.

I prefer Cavs and Wyverns for decent to good durability with a lot of move, and Mercs for being reliable offensive units that tend to have at least decent bases if not great. I like the premise of the Fighter/assortedaxedudes class, but mostly as prepromotes since outside of FE5 and Garcia, I find them rather tedious to train.

Edited February 22, 2013 by Thor Odinson

[secondworld]

What's your personal favorite play style?

Although I do play with a self-imposed challenge every once in a while, I usually play casually.

What's your favorite difficulty setting?

I prefer hard-mode for the most part.

Do fallen allies stay dead?

I always keep every character alive.

What sort of characters do you prefer? (You can pick more than one answer)

Good bases, personalities/backstories, and appearances are most important to me.

What are your favorite classes? (You can pick more than one answer)

The classes I always use are the game's lord, a merc/hero, a healer(priest/cleric or troubadour),d a mage/sage, and cavaliers/paladins which are my favorite.

In a typical FE game(as in, every game except Awakening), I plan my team ahead of time, and good prepromotes(particularly paladins) fit nicely.

When I get a character that isn't on my planned team, they're usually benched immediately(pretty much every est ever except Sara).

Edited February 22, 2013 by RayDavid99

[eclipse]

I level whoever cooperates; thus, my efficiency tends to go down the drain. If a character stays dead, it means I'm playing FE11; otherwise, I'm inclined to keep everyone. My difficulty of choice makes me think about my actions, but won't make me agonize over them (thus, Hard). I tend to like growth units, because they rarely turn out the same twice (unless your name is Donnel). I also like utility units, and anyone with an interesting personality/backstory (though I'll make exceptions for really cute guys). My favorite classes, Assassin, Hunter and Ballistician, aren't listed. I'm a horrible snowflake, but Assassins Kill Stuff Immediately, Hunters were what FE11/12 Archers should've been, and Ballisticians in Shadow Dragon were hilarious.

[Topaz Light]

My favorite classes, Assassin, Hunter and Ballistician, aren't listed. I'm a horrible snowflake, but Assassins Kill Stuff Immediately, Hunters were what FE11/12 Archers should've been, and Ballisticians in Shadow Dragon were hilarious.

To remedy a lack of clarity on my part, promoted units are assumed to be counted alongside their unpromoted counterparts for the purposes of the poll; probably should've added that in the info. I'll see if I can do something about adding Hunters to the poll, though. Either way, they're counted with the mounted archers, as that's what they promote into.

EDIT: Poll updated, now with 100% more hunters and I'd say about 85% more clarity.

Edited February 22, 2013 by Starlight36

[Altoclarinet5]

I'm a casual player of Fire Emblem. I go with the flow when I first play it as I'm trying to understand the basics of the mechanics of the game.

I typically start on normal as I feel I'm pretty experienced enough now to where easy is just blah and getting the new fundamentals is great for normal runthroughs.

I'm often fond of characters I can relate to and connect deeply with. Examples would be Lyn from FE7, Ephraim from FE8, and even Kellam from FE13.

Being a loyal, devoted and dedicated servant to others, I normally gravitate toward the cavalier and knight classes as being my favorites. I love the lords, but sometimes I prefer my armored units more and feel I'd probably be considered one as well. Archers are also awesome just because of archery and who doesn't want to be an expert archer, right?

[Loki Laufeyson]

Im more of a casual player. If i end up doing efficient runs, its not exactly intentional and just something that occurs. Im one of those players who lets the flow of the game and what happens to my units determine the remainder of how the entire run goes. If its Sacred Stones or now, Awakening, i will abuse the hell out of extra content to get the most out of my guys. (im also relatively fond of arena abuse. lol)

Going for turn counts just doesnt appeal to me. I like doing things in those games at my own pace.

Modes? Normal. The only time i play easy mode is RD. Sometimes ill play easy mode in PoR just to fuck around though. Hard modes made me go "meh" but Awakening's hard mode may be something i will take a stab at.

I loathe losing any of my guys. Even if its the scrub. I think the one time i left a unit dead was in Sacred Stones. One of my first runs, Lute died in the final chapter and i just kept going. Felt kinda guilty about it. Another time it was in the Lagdou Ruins. I think it was Cormag.

I like using characters that appeal to me in appearance and personality. But having nice growths and/or decent bases helps a lot too. Like, Henry in Awakening's base class growths arent fantastic but i love him anyway and i dont wanna reclass him. Same goes for Cherche. Soren in the Tellius games is one of my favorite characters in the series and in RD, hes a bit nerfed. (doesnt stop me from minmaxing the guy to the seven hells and back though.) I will use Florina in FE7 no matter what. NO MATTER WHAT. But a character like Severa pisses me off and despite her being decent, i dont like using her. Sometimes though, if a unit is pretty amazeballs even if i really dislike that character, i will use them. See Mia in RD for details.

I usually spam my team with mounted units. Fliers, namely Pegasus Knights, and Cavs/Paladins and whatever mounted unit is available, i will use. I like high move. But i will use the mage. I like mages. I dont usually use a lot of infantry but i do make exceptions for certain myrmidons. Joshua comes to mind. I dig Troubadours because mounted healers rock my smallclothes and im pretty fond of the Valkyrie class. Im not exactly huge on wyvern riders (except in Awakening) because they tend to have rocky starts with low speed at times. Thats another thing, i really like speedy units. Its why that myrmidon may very well make it on my team if they get several good level ups in. If a unit is a super scrub with amazing growths, i may give them a chance in a run or something, but its not exactly common. I dont usually use the Est or the Trainee. (Donnel is an exception because of that skill of his.)

As for the Jeigan, he/she usually gets several chapters of use before hitting the bench when another unit (or a couple) outclass him/her. Its rather rare for me to use the Jeigan not named Titania or Seth for the entire game.

[eclipse]

To remedy a lack of clarity on my part, promoted units are assumed to be counted alongside their unpromoted counterparts for the purposes of the poll; probably should've added that in the info. I'll see if I can do something about adding Hunters to the poll, though. Either way, they're counted with the mounted archers, as that's what they promote into.

EDIT: Poll updated, now with 100% more hunters and I'd say about 85% more clarity.

Heh, thanks, but I think there's gonna be precious little Hunter/Ballistician love. I'm awesome like that.

[Shadow Mir]

I'm more of a casual player, and my difficulty preference is Normal, unless it's FE8. My unit preference mainly has to do with utility and appearance. As for favored classes, I prefer cavalry, healers, mages, and pegasi. Cavalry and pegasi have good mobility, healers are, well, healers, and mages are versatile attackers (Awakening and Sword of Seals in particular come to mind since hand axes and javelins aren't that effective in those games - too weak in the former, and too inaccurate in the latter).

Edited March 21, 2013 by Levant Fortner

[Yoshikage Kira]

I'm a pretty casual player, no need to get too hardcore; the point is to have fun. So yeah, Normal Mode is a thing. Into actual characters, not just their stats (though if they have shit growths they're not getting used). I like infantry types; I have an odd aversion to mounts, which is weird since you guys seem to be all about the mounts. I get that they're always top tier, but that's just like, your opinion, man.

[Sasori]

I guess i'm a more casual player as well. I just go trough the game and don't bother with turn counts or efficiency or anything like that.

When a character dies I usually restart 99% of the time. there are some excpetions like how I don't want to restart a chapter just because I did't bring Lilina with me, which prevents me from getting Gonzo or Garret.

I pick my team based on personality. Don't care much for bases or growths. A character is fine as long as he doesn't drag me down too much.

Favorite class is always the mage/sage class.

Edited February 22, 2013 by Sasori

[ZemZem]

My favorite style of play is drafting, which could also be considered LTC, really. First one for drafting, yeeeeeeah. I just find the game more enjoyable to go through with draft teams, and having OP units at the end of the game is satisfying.

Hard mode all day every day. Though I usually play through FE6 NM and FE7 HNM (since drafts, and all that jazz).

Whether units stay dead really depends on the playthrough. I like recruiting everyone, but it's possible that I'll leave units dead if they're not as useful as my main team/is a character I dislike.

I voted for all choices for character preference, but I mainly prefer units with good growth rates. Well, as long as they appear at a reasonable time. :P Sorry Lewyn!Corple, Miranda, Sophia (who doesn't even have too good of growths), Nino, and Ewan.

My favorite classes in order:

1. Archers/Snipers (Wil, Tomas, Jamke, Faval, Ronan, Innes, Neimi, and Virion FTW)

2. Troubadours/Valkyries (I'm a Priscilla fanboy for a reason)

3. Pegasus Knights/Falcoknights (Palla, Fury, Fee, Tate, Fiora, Vanessa, Marcia, and Sumia are all awesome)

4. Cavaliers/Paladins (Sain is the best, holy shit)

5. Wyvern Riders/Wyvern Lords (Heath, Miledy, and Haar are fucking amazing)

[Firespark Faerie]

I'll open my post with a quote from Karen of Johto's Elite Four.

"Strong Pokémon. Weak Pokémon. That is only the selfish perception of people. Truly skilled trainers should try to win with their favorites.'

That being said, I tend to use the characters whom I've become most attached to their backgrounds and personalities. I do take stats into consideration however, and I will avoid using units whom I know to not be useful. I play more casually, though I'll occasionally challenge myself to a Hard Mode, and I always restart if one of my units is defeated (unless of course it's in Casual Mode).

I also tend to prefer magic users because they're versatile when it comes to range, though they can be hard to raise at first. Bug dang, high leveled Sages and Valkyries sure hit hard and dodge a lot (most of them anyway). I've never tried drafts before, though it looks interesting and I may give one a shot in the future.

[RedStar]

Well, until recently I have not done anything other than Casual Runs (For the most part because I found it challenging enough).

Also until recently, I never though I can touch hard and above modes, thinking I would be creamed.

My game play style is always base on the characters on who I'm attach to and almost always one with great potential.

My style is almost always reckless, being that I focus on characters with good growths a.k.a. with lots of potential

though has the chance of becoming bad.

And I always had a tribute to using a Pegasus knights and fighter now. Always at least one in my team now, almost

everyone else is fair game though.

I'll open my post with a quote from Karen of Johto's Elite Four.

"Strong Pokémon. Weak Pokémon. That is only the selfish perception of people. Truly skilled trainers should try to win with their favorites.'

Still an awesome quote.

[Topaz Light]

"Strong Pokémon. Weak Pokémon. That is only the selfish perception of people. Truly skilled trainers should try to win with their favorites.'

Just popping in to give you props because I freaking love that quote.

[Emeraldfox]

I play however I want.

Difficulty? I prefer Normal.

What do I look for in a unit? I have to like them of course. As in I use my favorites regardless of bases/growths. Like Wendy.

Do I leave them dead? Only if it's Shadow Dragon. I keep everyone alive, even if I'll bench them afterwards luuuul.

Favorite class? Armors, of course. Yeah, I just love the big ol' armor on Knights, Generals and Marshalls. Eeeee~. I also like Clerics/Priests, Wyvern Riders, Mages, Shamans, Mercenaries and Archers. With their promoted classes of course.

[Chiki]

Generally casual with only my favs, and super LTC when I want to make a record.

[Icon of Sin]

Playstyle : I suppose I impose myself some random challenges, mostly towards the usage of certain units or weapons. Speed is of little concern usually.

Difficulty : I'm hard to pin down on this. Usually I try the easier modes first, but I went straight to Lunatic in FE12.

Death : Usually everyone's alive.

Characters : A mix of bases, potential, personality and looks.

Classes : I like a varied mix, but I am fond of thieves and axefighters, less so of archers and pegasus knights.

Edited February 23, 2013 by Doga Blockovich

[MacLovin]

A little faster than casual, but a little slower than LTC.

[Diortem]

I just play casually, because I would find that, unless I specifically want it, challenges that aren't imposed by the game itself hinder my fun.

I generally play what is considered to be the normal mode of the game, so I have a semi-decent challenge.

Also, generally, fallen allies don't stay dead. Unless I'm doing a Gaiden run of Shadow Dragon.

I also prefer growth rates in characters, mainly because that's one of my favorite parts about FE: seeing even the wimpiest characters grow up through harsh training into decent combatants.

Finally, my favorite class is the Dracoknight/Wyvern rider classes, due to the fact that they usually have really bulky and good stats, they have amazing movement, they can FLY, their biggest weakness can usually be negated by an item (which is why I enjoy the Iote's Shield), and there are generally no really BAD Dracoknights in the series. Sure, there are some ones that are below average in terms of quality, but even then, they're usually quite good.

[PKL]

1. Drafts

It's LTC mixed with a self imposed challenge. I love this type of play as I find it very enjoyable and like figuring out new stuff with new teams :D

2. Lunatic/Maniac etc

I find these difficulties pretty challenging and awesome.

3. Dead or no?

Depends. I will let a screwed not-favorite character die without remorse. For favorites, I reset (or for really important units in LTC)

4. Prefer?

All of them. Haha

5. Pegasus Knights (noduh), Archers (bet u didnt know), Myrmidons and Lords

[Ciarre]

1. Drafts - pretty much what PKL said

2. Normal on drafts, but usually I go for the maximum possible difficulty for casual play.

3. For units I drafted, pretty much always unless it's some scrub. Or I sacrifice people for strategies if it helps save turns in drafts.

4. Bases and utility for gameplay, but when I'm playing casual I go by personality/character/appearance.

5. Prepromo snipers.

[Delicious Yogurt]

What's your personal favorite play style?

- I play the games to play them. Drafts intrigue me, but I'm not hardcore enough to try them. I once took a team somebody drafted and tried to LTC and it was a nightmare, while the comments made it sound so simple. Definitely not for me. In SS and Awakening, I prefer to play straight through, rather than skirmish, as I feel it breaks up the story too much ("We're on the run from Plegians! Let's freeze time to go to the other side of the map to kill some risen!")

What's your favorite difficulty setting?

- If it's my first run of the game, I start on normal to get a feel for the story and new mechanics. I switch to hard for all subsequent play-throughs, as I feel they usually hit the sweet spot on challenge and fairness. I usually leave easy and lunatic modes alone.

Do fallen allies stay dead?

- Originally I would hit the reset button like most people. Recently thought I've found though that not only is it a pain to reset chapters, but I personally feel it kind of kills the point of the mechanic. Now I have certain circumstances where I restart: If the game mode is so challenging (like a lunatic run) that i can't afford to lose somebody. In Awakening's case, I decided to make my first file the file that will be used for streetpass teams and all that, so I want everything unlocked, meaning everyone will stay alive on that file. If it doesn't fit these two criteria, then I take responsibility for my fallen unit, even if Anna screwed them over and not me.

What sort of characters do you prefer?

- If I can use them, they have a place in my party. The Ninos, the Marcus, all of them. If they have awesome personality and backstory, that's just icing on the cake.

What are your favorite classes?

-I typically enjoy using the lords, with the exception of Marth, Micaiah and Roy, becuse you're forced to use them most of the time and therefore just get used to their typically reliable natures.

As for other classes:

• Cavaliers - Reliable, but kind of boring
• (Armor) Knights - I always like them, but recently their movement has really become glaring to me
• Archers - I always want to use them but mages always steal their job, especially ever since wind magic became a primary magic type. Snipers should gain 1 range like Marsmen
• Pegasus Knights - Hate this class so much. Not only are they often my least favorite characters, but the class is so darn fragile. It doesn't help that you usually get one early, where Axe-swingers are everywhere
• Clerics, Priests/Curates and Monks - Gotta have a healer on my team
• Mercenaries - One of my favorite classes, for their sheer reliability. Plus hero is badass as hell
• Fighters, Pirates, Brigands, Bandits and Barbarians - I think the only ones I consistently use are Boyd and Nolan, and I guess the FE11 ones are ok. Otherwise I find them unreliable
• Soldiers - Neph and Aran are two of my favorite characters in the series, stat-wise. I really wish FE10 had more supports...
• Thieves - Almost always likable, and their class skills are handy, especially in Awakening
• Myrmidons -Fragile like the Peg, BUT! They use swords, making the early going easier against all those bandits.
• Mages - The better version of archer. Atacks Res, 1 or 2 range, usually pretty quick. Why use archers again?
• Hunters, Horseman, Nomads, Rangers and Bow Knights - Oh right. Archers get horses more often. A handy class
• Troubadours - Gotta have healers
• Shamans/Dark Mages - I love the special effects dark tomes get
• Wyvern Riders/Dracoknights - Typically a fairly solid class.
• Trainees (Villager, Journeyman, Recruit and Pupil) - Kind of dislike them for the ridiculous babying they need. But seeing them dominate 10 chapters later always feels good
• Dancers, Bards and Herons - I can live without them, not that they aren't appreciated
• Manaketes, Laguz and Taguel - With buyable gemstones I think they're pretty good. Otherwise they fall under the "Too awesome to use" trope

Sorry for the longer post. I just had a lot of things I wanted to say about the classes.

Edited February 26, 2013 by Delicious Yogurt

[Gone2Ground]

I'm a casual player who turtles like a mothafucka and goes entirely by personality, except for this one run of Awakening where my goal is to build the most broken Streetpass team possible, purely to out-meta most of the anime club at my college.

So far 7 out of 10 members have Galeforce and either Aether or Lethality. It's going well.