PAIRINGS The Pairing Thread

[CoolCoolCool]

Donnel x Sully

Gaius x Tharja

Ricken x Lissa

Fred x Olivia

Sumia x Henry

Maribelle x Virion

Miriel x Libra, since you already married off all the vantage passers

Nowi x Kellam (Vaike would be better if you decide to use him though)

Run Kellam or Libra with Olivia if you want magical Inigo.

[Sprout]

Alright so I'm almost done my lunatic playthrough and I'm looking forward to a lunatic+ playthrough and I've been wondering which child unit would want MaMU as a dad. For my lunatic playthrough I just went with MaMU x Cordelia for that god Severa and hair. In my hard playthrough I had a fun time with MaMU x Olivia too, so I've been debating between these 2 pretty much. The more I look into it 3rd gen Aether morgan seems pretty tempting but I find it pretty creepy to marry your best bro's daughter.. Also I did +def -luck for my lunatic and now I'm kind of regretting it since I gave that to my Severa. Anyway God Severa/Inigo or OPaf Morgan? Asset/Flaw for lunatic + is also appreciated to pass to kids. OH also would prefer to have Owain marry Cynthia so Idk if I would do Chrom x Sumia.

Edited April 8, 2014 by Sprout

[lazydoggamer]

So these are my favorite pairings based on their supports but I'm curious about how good or bad they are in gameplay. Avatar is +Magic -Skill.

Avatar X Cordelia

Chrom X Sumia

Lissa X Lon'qu

Sully X Stahl

Mirel X Kellam

Maribelle X Ricken

Panne X Gaius

Nowi X Gregor

Tharja X Libra

Cherche X Vaike

Olivia X Henry

[tuvarkz]

So these are my favorite pairings based on their supports but I'm curious about how good or bad they are in gameplay. Avatar is +Magic -Skill.

Avatar X Cordelia

Chrom X Sumia

Lissa X Lon'qu

Sully X Stahl

Mirel X Kellam

Maribelle X Ricken

Panne X Gaius

Nowi X Gregor

Tharja X Libra

Cherche X Vaike

Olivia X Henry

AvatarxCordelia: Works much better if you go +STR-DEF or +STR-LUK. Also, for magic-based MU's, the best results come from +MAG-DEF or +MAG-STR

ChromxSumia: One of the two best pairings, Henry as alternate choice for Sumia.

MirielxKellam: Kellam is a good filler parent for Laurent, given that he doesnt give -Mag

LissaxLon'qu: Libra, Henry and Ricken are much better parents for Owain. The first two for V/V, the last for Luna and a big +MAG mod

SullyxStahl: Bad. SullyxDonnel is the best pair for the red knight. Stahl is better off marrying Cordelia, Olivia, or Panne

MaribellexRicken: Good to go with this one

PannexGaius: Terrible. Panne should marry someone from the pool of: Frederick, Stahl, Gregor, Vaike, Kellam, depending on who is available. Yarne has a lower priority than Gerome's fatherhood, due to the latter needing Berserker.

NowixGregor: Nah benefits more from Vaike as father than Gerome does (Axefaire Armsthrift Hero support? Yes pls). You could go with Gaius as well.

TharjaxLibra: Gaius is the optimal pairing for Tharja, but Libra is not exactly a bad pair if you decide to go GaiusxNowi.

CherchexVaike: Repeating, Gregor!Gerome and Vaike!Nah provide a better result than the other way around.

OliviaxHenry: Libra makes for a better V/V father (Due to Tomefaire); and if you want to go for physical damage, Stahl and Chrom are two good choices)

[Gaia]

NowixGregor: Nah benefits more from Vaike as father than Gerome does (Axefaire Armsthrift Hero support? Yes pls). You could go with Gaius as well.

CherchexVaike: Repeating, Gregor!Gerome and Vaike!Nah provide a better result than the other way around.

lolNope. Vaike!Gerome nabs a +7 Str mod, Axefaire, 'Zerker, and Aggressor. Nah gets a +5 Str mod, axefaire, no 'Zerker, and no Agg.

Vaike!Gerome as a 'Zerker support is far better than a Vaike!Nah in support. 'Zerker is the best support class, he has a higher strength mod, and, of course, aggressor. Even looking only at the skillsets you can tell a huge difference. Vaike!Gerome can run LB, Agg, Axefaire, DS+, and All+2. Best Vaike!Nah can do is LB, Axefaire, Str+2, All+2, and a filler skill.

[TheBattyOne]

So these are my favorite pairings based on their supports but I'm curious about how good or bad they are in gameplay. Avatar is +Magic -Skill.

Avatar X Cordelia

Chrom X Sumia

Lissa X Lon'qu

Sully X Stahl

Mirel X Kellam

Maribelle X Ricken

Panne X Gaius

Nowi X Gregor

Tharja X Libra

Cherche X Vaike

Olivia X Henry

Well, this is pretty good. Honestly, the Gen 2 units will be better than most of the Gen 1 units without even trying. Having said that, I wouldn't pair Miriel x Kellam for gameplay purposes. After all, Laurent has Mage build written all over him. I always go Miriel x Lon'qu for the awesome skill set and Skl/Spd boosts.

I'd also put Kellam x Panne and Gaius x Cordelia for this set. (Or Kellam x Nowi, Gregor x Panne.)

People tend to recommend you have Avatar marry a Gen 2 to maximize Morgan's potential, so with your +Mag, I'd go with Noire. Even without her father's help, her Mag mod is awesome. But Morgan kicks butt no matter who you marry because Morgan can access almost all of the classes and skills available. Just play to her assets and you're good.

[Czar_Yoshi]

Sprout, are you going to be doing postgame? Most Lunatic+ optimization is done for ingame, because a) it's incredibly difficult/random to drag a non-+Def Avatar all the way to the Outrealm gate, b) super low exp growths and all that, and c) Lunatic+ only makes a difference over Lunatic on one map (FoD3).

lolNope. Vaike!Gerome nabs a +7 Str mod, Axefaire, 'Zerker, and Aggressor. Nah gets a +5 Str mod, axefaire, no 'Zerker, and no Agg.
Vaike!Gerome as a 'Zerker support is far better than a Vaike!Nah in support. 'Zerker is the best support class, he has a higher strength mod, and, of course, aggressor. Even looking only at the skillsets you can tell a huge difference. Vaike!Gerome can run LB, Agg, Axefaire, DS+, and All+2. Best Vaike!Nah can do is LB, Axefaire, Str+2, All+2, and a filler skill.

There's no contest that Gerome is a better physical support than Nah, he's saying Gregor!Gerome and Vaike!Nah work out better than Vaike!Gerome and Gregor!Nah in the long run.

Here's the thing, though: Nah is a female hard support, and that means she needs to be married to a Galeboy, of which there are Morgan, Owain, Brady and Inigo. When Morgan is male, he gets priority for Lucina and will be busy there, and Owain and Brady are definitely magical, meaning physical Nah has to go with Inigo.

Aesthetics aside, Inigo can go physical or magical, and it just so happens that Nah can too (Virion!Nah makes a great dedicated magical support). Libra!Inigo gives the coveted Tomefaire+VV combo along with GF and positive Mag mods, while Ricken gives him Tomefaire+Luna, and it turns out that either of those two maxed out will outdamage Stahl!Inigo with a physical Nah.

[Sprout]

Sprout, are you going to be doing postgame? Most Lunatic+ optimization is done for ingame, because a) it's incredibly difficult/random to drag a non-+Def Avatar all the way to the Outrealm gate, b) super low exp growths and all that, and c) Lunatic+ only makes a difference over Lunatic on one map (FoD3).

I'm looking for mostly postgame but there shouldn't be much difference if the optimizations are for in game either right? I actually finished my lunatic file just now so I can focus more on the lunatic + pairings.

Edited April 8, 2014 by Sprout

[Gaia]

I'm looking for mostly postgame but there shouldn't be much difference if the optimizations are for in game either right?

There is a huge difference. There are some skills that are great ingame, but trash postgame, or vice versa.

[Sprout]

There is a huge difference. There are some skills that are great ingame, but trash postgame, or vice versa.

Hmm would it be too much of a change to have both skills for in game and post game? I'm thinking about having my lunatic + file be my main file so I don't really mind puting in the time for it even if it'll be slow.

[MelonGx]

Vaike!Gerome's Str+7 has been always rounded down to +6 in Apotheosis.

Hmm would it be too much of a change to have both skills for in game and post game? I'm thinking about having my lunatic + file be my main file so I don't really mind puting in the time for it even if it'll be slow.

Could you beat the scenario final boss without defensive skills/weapons like Sol, Aegis, Aversa's Night?

If you could, then follow this way to make skillsets for postgame.

Edited April 8, 2014 by MelonGx

[CoolCoolCool]

Optimise kids for postgame. You can do everything in-game with Sorceror Mu x Chrom (they don't need s-rank) even on luna+.

If you want to truly optimise though you will want -def which, as mentioned, is terrible for the earlygame. Unless you want to spend ages resetting for good growths, you can just Frederick solo through to DLC (he also loves speed and defence level ups, but he has a 28% chance of this rather than 17% for -def avatar as well as only levelling up 4 times until Ch. 3). It makes Chapter 3 a lot harder than with an avatar solo (counter on anything melee on the bottom half = reset) but is still very doable.

On the topic of magical fathers for Inigo, Kellam is only a slightly worse Ricken who gives the same skillset and +1 skill at the cost of 2 magic and 2 speed while keeping Ricken free.

[Czar_Yoshi]

Hmm would it be too much of a change to have both skills for in game and post game? I'm thinking about having my lunatic + file be my main file so I don't really mind puting in the time for it even if it'll be slow.

It's not skillsets that matter, it's your pairings, and more importantly your Avatar's asset/flaw. There's a very very major strat for Secret Apo that only works when your Avatar has a Def flaw (Def is also the best postgame flaw in general because it doesn't harm any of your offensive stats), but that makes the chapters up to the Outrealm Gate (excluding Cht.4) almost unbearable. I consider myself above average at Lunatic+ and it still took me around 7 hours of resets to clear those four with -Def, with save data backup. That's longer than it takes to grind to max Renown. If you have the patience for that, be my guest, but I don't advise it.

You'll also have to grind early on on DLC or just go without Children maingame because many postgame pairings are very awkward to execute without it.

Edited April 8, 2014 by Czar_Yoshi

[Hammerne]

So I decided on my pairings. only thing im not convinced is 2 pairings. could someone be so kind to tell me pros and cons of these pairings

Libra X Miriel and Ricken XLissa

or

Ricken x Miriel and Libra x Lissa

(also kellam is free so if those 2 would want him over ricken/libra do tell)

[tuvarkz]

So I decided on my pairings. only thing im not convinced is 2 pairings. could someone be so kind to tell me pros and cons of these pairings

Libra X Miriel and Ricken XLissa

or

Ricken x Miriel and Libra x Lissa

(also kellam is free so if those 2 would want him over ricken/libra do tell)

For Miriel, the only difference is pretty much whether Laurent gets more of less mag, and whether he gets Hit+20 or not. Libra means V/V Owain, Ricken means Luna/Aggro Owain.

[Airship Canon]

Laurent doesn't use magic fathers [those lock him to hard support by taking away the tools he needs for leading], he wants a Vantage access [so he can V/V on EP instead of just supporting].

[Sprout]

Hmm I'm thinking either Cordelia/Olivia for MaMU and I probably would want Henry!Cynthia maybe not? Thing is if I do this Chrom doesn't really have a good choice for a wife and good Lucina.. Hair color is tempting for MU's kids as well... The more I think about 3rd gen Morgan the more of a waste it seems so I'm probably going with 2 good children.

[Airship Canon]

Hmm I'm thinking either Cordelia/Olivia for MaMU and I probably would want Henry!Cynthia maybe not? Thing is if I do this Chrom doesn't really have a good choice for a wife and good Lucina.. Hair color is tempting for MU's kids as well... The more I think about 3rd gen Morgan the more of a waste it seems so I'm probably going with 2 good children.

3rd has more benefits than 2nd.

The fact that it balances marriages outweighs the benefit of extra skills. The only character who truly benefits from MU inheritance over anything else is Nah, but the same time you're not really gaining anything because the only thing that does is open Leading for Nah, at the cost of benching some other kid-- a 1st Gen Pair will outperform a 2nd Gen non-pair.

[Czar_Yoshi]

Hmm I'm thinking either Cordelia/Olivia for MaMU and I probably would want Henry!Cynthia maybe not? Thing is if I do this Chrom doesn't really have a good choice for a wife and good Lucina.. Hair color is tempting for MU's kids as well... The more I think about 3rd gen Morgan the more of a waste it seems so I'm probably going with 2 good children.

Maribelle is still a strong option for Chrom, Brady doesn't care but Lucina benefits quite a bit.

3rd has more benefits than 2nd.

The fact that it balances marriages outweighs the benefit of extra skills. The only character who truly benefits from MU inheritance over anything else is Nah, but the same time you're not really gaining anything because the only thing that does is open Leading for Nah, at the cost of benching some other kid-- a 1st Gen Pair will outperform a 2nd Gen non-pair.

It also somewhat benches Avatar because Nowi can't lead or support well.

[terff]

So! These are my current pairings, ones marked with x are official, those without the fancy x are available to change. So if you have any suggestions please tell :D

Nowi + Avatar (MU)

Olivia + Chrom (x)

Maribelle + Henry

Cherche + Stahl (x)

Sully + Kellam

Tharja + Gaius

Lissa + Ricken (x)

Panne + Gregor

Miriel + Libra

Cordelia + Lon'Qu

Sumia + Frederick

[Czar_Yoshi]

What's your Asset/Flaw, and are you intending to bench Cynthia?

[Sprout]

3rd has more benefits than 2nd.

The fact that it balances marriages outweighs the benefit of extra skills. The only character who truly benefits from MU inheritance over anything else is Nah, but the same time you're not really gaining anything because the only thing that does is open Leading for Nah, at the cost of benching some other kid-- a 1st Gen Pair will outperform a 2nd Gen non-pair.

So just go ahead and make a godlier morgan I guess? I heard female morgan is only good for Mag and Def too so that'd probably limit the classes for her.

[Duke of Dozel]

So! These are my current pairings, ones marked with x are official, those without the fancy x are available to change. So if you have any suggestions please tell :D

Nowi + Avatar (MU)

Olivia + Chrom (x)

Maribelle + Henry

Cherche + Stahl (x)

Sully + Kellam

Tharja + Gaius

Lissa + Ricken (x)

Panne + Gregor

Miriel + Libra

Cordelia + Lon'Qu

Sumia + Frederick

Change Fred and Sumia with Henry. He's better towards Cynthia than Brady, who doesn't need a great father.

Change Sully with Donnel. Probably her best pair. Although my personal fav is with Vaike, but with that one, you lose Galeforce.

Otherwise, all of your non-perma pairs are decent enough.

[Czar_Yoshi]

So just go ahead and make a godlier morgan I guess? I heard female morgan is only good for Mag and Def too so that'd probably limit the classes for her.

It's less about getting a better Morgan and more about getting more 2nd gen pairs. Morgan-F works best with +Mag/-Def, though +Str/Spd/Skl also work well depending on who her mother is.

Change Fred and Sumia with Henry. He's better towards Cynthia than Brady, who doesn't need a great father.

Brady needs a father who doesn't negate his Mag/Spd, and Fred wrecks both of those.

[terff]

What's your Asset/Flaw, and are you intending to bench Cynthia?

My Avatar's Asset/Flaw was kind of random this time around so I did probably what most people wouldn't do and made it a +Luck/-HP, but... I may reconsider his pairing because I was thinking his 2 kids would make pretty good armsthrifters, but their low speed from nowi kind of makes it less appealing. But Nah + Morgan have a perfect 50 luck, but If I put limit breaker on it really doesn't matter >_>

And yeah, I'll either bench Cynthia or make her a Aegis/Pavise tank.