PAIRINGS The Pairing Thread

[Alastor15243]

Reposted at Duke of Dozel's suggestion:

Hey, I'm doing a Lunatic playthrough with brave weapons, Limit Breaker, and the use of children in DLC before the endgame all banned, and I'm trying to find a way to salvage my favorite (in terms of how awesome their children are) 1st gen Avatar pairing (ChromxRobin) without dooming one of the male child characters to being unusable due to not having the avatar as a partner.

Obviously it's not going to be as good as having an S rank support, but I'm thinking I might be able to turn one of the parents of one of the male children into a passable support partner so that the child character isn't forced to be out of the game. What pairing would you guys most recommend for this purpose, keeping in mind the three constraints I've put on myself for this playthrough (again, no limit breaker, no brave weapons, no using children in DLC before unlocking the final chapter)?

[The Geek]

A Vaike!Owain doesn't have any worthwhile offensive procs.

But muh ships.

[Czar_Yoshi]

Reposted at Duke of Dozel's suggestion:

Hey, I'm doing a Lunatic playthrough with brave weapons, Limit Breaker, and the use of children in DLC before the endgame all banned, and I'm trying to find a way to salvage my favorite (in terms of how awesome their children are) 1st gen Avatar pairing (ChromxRobin) without dooming one of the male child characters to being unusable due to not having the avatar as a partner.

Obviously it's not going to be as good as having an S rank support, but I'm thinking I might be able to turn one of the parents of one of the male children into a passable support partner so that the child character isn't forced to be out of the game. What pairing would you guys most recommend for this purpose, keeping in mind the three constraints I've put on myself for this playthrough (again, no limit breaker, no brave weapons, no using children in DLC before unlocking the final chapter)?

Have Avatar lead with someone like Laurent or Yarne supporting depending on your asset/flaw.

But muh ships.

See first post, this thread is about gameplay and not shipping.

[Alastor15243]

Have Avatar lead with someone like Laurent or Yarne supporting depending on your asset/flaw.

Just to clarify, It's +Skill -Def, so my avatar has +2 Str, +4 Skill, and -1 Luck, Def and Res.

Also, are there any other options? This assumes I can afford to either not deploy Chrom or deploy him without a partner, and outside of DLC and skirmishes that isn't possible, so is there another option I could use for the main story?

Thanks for your advice already though.

Edited May 7, 2014 by Alastor15243

[Czar_Yoshi]

Chrom is force deployed on all DLC maps anyway, and he's usually just running around as a Paladin restocking people's weapons. Main story keep him behind Avatar/Lucina and train whoever Avatar will support after you unlock the endgame. With those mods, Yarne is probably best. The best other option I can think of is to put Miriel with Laurent and give her all her Auras, but Avatar performs much better.

[Alastor15243]

Chrom is force deployed on all DLC maps anyway, and he's usually just running around as a Paladin restocking people's weapons. Main story keep him behind Avatar/Lucina and train whoever Avatar will support after you unlock the endgame. With those mods, Yarne is probably best. The best other option I can think of is to put Miriel with Laurent and give her all her Auras, but Avatar performs much better.

Thanks, that sounds sensible. But what do you mean by Miriel's Auras?

[Raftina]

If by LB is banned you purposefully allowed other dlc class/skills, use a Galeforce boy with his father. Aggressor is a decent compensation for 10% DS chance.

[Alastor15243]

If by LB is banned you purposefully allowed other dlc class/skills, use a Galeforce boy with his father. Aggressor is a decent compensation for 10% DS chance.

Yeah, all other DLC classes and skills are allowed, it's just LB that I find ridiculous.

That... IS an interesting alternative, I'll keep that in mind along with Czar_Yoshi's advice.

[Alastor15243]

Also, what are my best options for Inigo's father since Chrom's taken? I tried Virion last playthrough on hard with pretty good results (and I love that hair color) but I did realize that he was missing an offensive proc. What are the generally accepted Olivia pairings?

[BANRYU]

They say Stahl is good for Inigo when Chrom isn't available.

[MelonGx]

Stahl!Inigo = Chrom!Inigo without RFK.

Ricken!Inigo is good but it takes Owain's best option.

Libra!Inigo is good too. But by the Vengeance's inconvenience, Libra!Inigo is usually used as in-game Nostank or Apo VV tank rather than Hit & Away attacker.

[Raftina]

Also, what are my best options for Inigo's father since Chrom's taken? I tried Virion last playthrough on hard with pretty good results (and I love that hair color) but I did realize that he was missing an offensive proc. What are the generally accepted Olivia pairings?

Stahl is best, but Stahl is useful for a lot of things besides just giving Luna. Frederick, Kellam, and Libra are decent alternatives.

[Sorin]

So after having a successful Chrom x Olivia run, I'm trying to get my Chrom x Sumia file in check. This will be a Lunatic grinding run and I will be doing post game. Could somebody possibly give ratings on a few specific pairings? As for the one girl left open, it's probably gonna be Nah. Skill sets(Mostly because headcanon took over here and I'm somewhat bad at planning them.) and some pairings(Pairings not in bold) are open to change. All characters will have LB.

Edit: Oh and the less repeated pairings from my last run, the better.(Ricken x Lissa, Gregor x Cherche, etc.)

Chrom x Sumia

Sumia!Great Lord!Lucina: LB, Aether, Galeforce, Luna, *filler* (Probably Lancefaire)

Chrom!Dark Flier!Cynthia: LB, Aether, Pavise, Tomefaire, Bowbreaker or Aegis

Sorin(MU, Res+ Lck-) x Cordelia

Sorin!Hero!Severa: LB, Renewal, Axefaire, Ignis or Luna, Galeforce

Cordelia!Dark Flier!Morgan: LB, Tomefaire, Ignis, Galeforce, Renewal

Henry x Lissa

Henry!Sage or DF!Owain: LB, Vantage, Vengeance, Tomefaire, Galeforce

Stahl x Olivia

Stahl!Paladin!Inigo: LB, Luna, Galeforce, Swordfaire, Aegis

Lon'qu x Maribelle

Lon'qu!Sage!Brady: LB, Luna, Galeforce, Lifetaker(Don't remember if he can get this but if not, Renewal), Vantage or Tomefaire

Donnel x Sully

Donnel!Paladin!Kjelle: LB, umm...

Vaike x Cherche

Vaike!Wyvern Lord(Mineverykins~~~...Never doing that again...)!Gerome: LB, once again... umm...

Frederick x Panne

Frederick!*insert*!Yarne: No clue

Gregor x Miriel

Gregor!Sage!Laurent: ...

Gaius x Tharja(Don't need to worry about this one. I gots dis.)

Libra x Nowi (For a magical Nah. If this one is too terrible to keep, we can change it.)

Libra!Sage(?)!Nah: ...

Edited May 8, 2014 by Sorin

[Czar_Yoshi]

Inigo works with Chrom, Stahl, Ricken, Libra and Kellam.

Chrom x Sumia

Sumia!Great Lord!Lucina: LB, Aether, Galeforce, Luna, *filler* (Probably Lancefaire) DS+, DS+, DS+, DS+ and DS+. It's why Lucina is good. Also consider Sage.

Chrom!Dark Flier!Cynthia: LB, Aether, Pavise, Tomefaire, Bowbreaker or Aegis Swap the defensive skills for Luna and Galeforce, Cynthia isn't a tank.

Sorin(MU, Res+ Lck-) x Cordelia

Sorin!Hero!Severa: LB, Renewal, Axefaire, Ignis or Luna, Galeforce Renewal isn't that great for postgame, use both Ignis and Luna instead.

Cordelia!Dark Flier!Morgan: LB, Tomefaire, Ignis, Galeforce, Renewal Same as Severa, swap Renewal for Luna.

Henry x Lissa

Henry!Sage or DF!Owain: LB, Vantage, Vengeance, Tomefaire, Galeforce Swap Henry with Libra so Nah is better, otherwise good.

Stahl x Olivia

Stahl!Paladin!Inigo: LB, Luna, Galeforce, Swordfaire, Aegis Swap Aegis for Aggressor.

Lon'qu x Maribelle

Lon'qu!Sage!Brady: LB, Luna, Galeforce, Lifetaker(Don't remember if he can get this but if not, Renewal), Vantage or Tomefaire Swap Lifetaker for Agg and use Tomefaire.

Donnel x Sully

Donnel!Paladin!Kjelle: LB, umm... LB, Lancefaire, Galeforce, Luna, Astra. Also works well as a Bride if supporting a magic user.

Vaike x Cherche

Vaike!Wyvern Lord(Mineverykins~~~...Never doing that again...)!Gerome: LB, once again... umm... LB, Agg, Axefaire, All+2, Str+2/Swordbreaker. Use Berserker.

Frederick x Panne

Frederick!*insert*!Yarne: No clue Exact same thing as Gerome.

Gregor x Miriel

Gregor!Sage!Laurent: ... LB, Vantage, Vengeance, Tomefaire, All+2.

Gaius x Tharja(Don't need to worry about this one. I gots dis.) LB, GF, Luna, Astra, a Faire/Anathema/All+2.

Libra x Nowi (For a magical Nah. If this one is too terrible to keep, we can change it.)

Libra!Sage(?)!Nah: ... Swap with Henry, Owain won't care. Or Virion, he's free. LB, Tomefaire, All+2, Mag+2, Anathema(Henry/Libra)/Skl+2(Virion).

Edited May 8, 2014 by Czar_Yoshi

[Raftina]

Chrom!Dark Flier!Cynthia: LB, Aether, Pavise, Tomefaire, Bowbreaker or Aegis

1. Aether by itself is bad because of the low proc chance. Give her Luna as well.

2. Galeforce?

Donnel!Paladin!Kjelle: LB, umm...

LB, GF, Swordfaire, Luna, Speed+2 (or AS+2)

+2 spd lets Paladin Kjelle hit 69 (2x against berserkers) while paired with a +0 spd class and 75 spd (2x against Anna and snipers) while paired with an assassin or swordmaster. If you do not plan to 2x these with Kjelle, then you are likely better with wyvern lord (paladin does give spd to the husband).

Vaike!Wyvern Lord(Mineverykins~~~...Never doing that again...)!Gerome: LB, once again... umm...

LB, Axefaire, Aggressor, AS+2, Str+2, Deliverer, Move+1, Wrath, in order of decreasing priority.

Frederick!*insert*!Yarne: No clue

Same as Gerome.

Gregor!Sage!Laurent: ...

LB, Vantage, Vengeance, Tomefaire, Armthrift/Aggressor

Last one depends on whether you want full commit to VV or only want him to mop up a few weaker enemies during enemy phase.

Libra x Nowi

Libra and Henry are very similar for a magic child. Since you want to bench Nah, it's not important who her father is. If you are considering taking a hit to your power and using Nah, switch Libra and Henry to give Nah, so you have the option of going physical with her.

Edited May 8, 2014 by Raftina

[Gaia]

Chrom x Sumia

Sumia!Great Lord!Lucina: LB, Aether, Galeforce, Luna, *filler* (Probably Lancefaire) As stated before, DS+ is why you use Lucina. Otherwise, she'd be no different from Chrom!Cynthia. Sage is also the preferred class, as she has a +0 Str mod vs. a +1 Mag mod, and considering Sage already has the highest damage output, IIRC, then it's probably your best option.

Chrom!Dark Flier!Cynthia: LB, Aether, Pavise, Tomefaire, Bowbreaker or Aegis Extreme lack of Luna/Galeforce.

Sorin(MU, Res+ Lck-) x Cordelia

Sorin!Hero!Severa: LB, Renewal, Axefaire, Ignis or Luna, Galeforce Procstacking is far better than Renewal. You've also got the wrong -Faire on there; Heroes are using swords most of the time.

Cordelia!Dark Flier!Morgan: LB, Tomefaire, Ignis, Galeforce, Renewal Again, Procstacking>Renewal. Consider switching to Sage, as it has more overall damage output.

Henry x Lissa

Henry!Sage or DF!Owain: LB, Vantage, Vengeance, Tomefaire, Galeforce Good

Stahl x Olivia

Stahl!Paladin!Inigo: LB, Luna, Galeforce, Swordfaire, Aegis Switch out Aegis with Agg.

Lon'qu x Maribelle

Lon'qu!Sage!Brady: LB, Luna, Galeforce, Lifetaker(Don't remember if he can get this but if not, Renewal), Vantage or Tomefaire LB, Luna, Galeforce, Tomefaire, and Agg. Brady is arguably one of the best children because his skillset is unscrewable, so consider switching out parents for more Mag-based mods.

Donnel x Sully

Donnel!Paladin!Kjelle: LB, umm... LB, Luna, Galeforce, Sword/Lancefaire. I'm not sure about the last one, myself. You could throw in Astra there, for a procstack.

Vaike x Cherche

Vaike!Wyvern Lord(Mineverykins~~~...Never doing that again...)!Gerome: LB, once again... umm... LB, Agg, DS+, Axefaire, Str/All+2. 'Zerker is also a better option for Vaike.

Frederick x Panne

Frederick!*insert*!Yarne: No clue LB, Axefaire, Agg, Str+2, All+2. 'Zerker is the class for Yarne.

Gregor x Miriel

Gregor!Sage!Laurent: ... LB, Vantage, Vengeance, Tomefaire, Aggressor.

Gaius x Tharja(Don't need to worry about this one. I gots dis.)

Libra x Nowi (For a magical Nah. If this one is too terrible to keep, we can change it.)

Libra!Sage(?)!Nah: ... Yeah, uh... Not sure how a magical Nah would turn out, but that doesn't mean I won't make a magical girl joke. So uh, yeah. Good luck with that.

Edited May 8, 2014 by Gaia

[BANRYU]

Is packing 2 Faires a bad idea if you have a filler slot to spare? I get that the idea is that you pack 1 faire and as many Braves of that weapon as you can carry, and packing 2 faires can take up a skill slot that might be better allocated to something else... So I guess the question is basically, is it worth taking an extra skill slot (if you can spare it) for a little extra hit/avo in terms of weapon triangle matchups?

I think I know the answer to this question, but perhaps not why that's the answer.

Also, why not run Dual Guard+ on Yarne?

Edited May 8, 2014 by BANRYU

[Czar_Yoshi]

Better one Faire and All+2 than two Faires if you truly have nothing better to put there. See axes, if you're at a WTD you lose 1 atk from no WRB and 1 atk from WTD, which is perfectly made up by All+2 (you also lose 25 Hit but if you know in advance that will be an issue you can use Swordbreaker, all the characters who it could cause problems for can equip SB without disrupting their optimal skillset too much). Not to mention all the other nice boosts from All+2 (especially Spd on non-dedicated supports, I frequently use it just for the Spd boost). Of course, the optimal strategy would just be to avoid encounters with WTD, with 7 attacking pairs you should have ample room to maneuver around it.

Yarne's skillset is already full with LB/Agg/AF/All+2/Str+2 or SB, he doesn't have room for DG+.

[MelonGx]

Is packing 2 Faires a bad idea if you have a filler slot to spare? I get that the idea is that you pack 1 faire and as many Braves of that weapon as you can carry, and packing 2 faires can take up a skill slot that might be better allocated to something else... So I guess the question is basically, is it worth taking an extra skill slot (if you can spare it) for a little extra hit/avo in terms of weapon triangle matchups?

I think I know the answer to this question, but perhaps not why that's the answer.

Also, why not run Dual Guard+ on Yarne?

Only physical leading girls have a sight of 2nd weaponfaire because only leading girls have a free slot - LB, Luna, 1st weaponfaire, Galeforce, filler.

But actually I never use even a 1st weaponfaire on physical girls because most enemies don't require it to be OHKOed when the girl is switched back.

Dual Guard+ is acceptable. But your units never need it until their HP getting damaged, which is 2*(1-DS%)+(1-DS%)^2 chance per battle (the failure of double Dual Strike activation before enemy's counterattack).

Edited May 8, 2014 by MelonGx

[Sorin]

Don't know why I forgot to give Cynthia GF. My bad. But the general thing is tanking isn't good for post game, correct?

Thank you, I'll keep all your advice in mind and come back if I have any questions.

[tuvarkz]

Actually, tanking can sometimes be good. I've had Ricken!Owain and Libra!Brady each take one side of the Invisorcs in SR 5 Turn 1 EP without either losing more than half their hp(allowing me to send the rest of the team to sweep the Snipers); and had SolPavise Helswath Gerome wipe out the Great Knights in SR 2 (0 dmg taken overall) and the Falcos in SR3 (Lost about 10-20 hp or so)

[Alastor15243]

So is the general consensus that Nah is the one of the three that should go without Gaius/Donnel as a father? I always chose Kjelle since she's already got PavGis going for her and figured it would be better to focus on a build that can work with that, and then compensate for a lack of galeforce with a switchblade boyfriend (switchblade is my term for a back unit with galeforce designed with high offense, low defense in mind and to do the galeforce work for their tankier partner). A Galeforce Kjelle would be interesting though... I'm guessing it's Donnel who's supposed to be her father?

[Czar_Yoshi]

No, Nah shouldn't get one of those. Gaius!Noire has Vantage, Vengeance, and Luna (and Astra if you like procstack), perfect tools for killing stuff reliably with Galeforce. Donnel!Kjelle has Luna and Astra to go with her Galeforce. Donnel!Nah has nothing and Gaius!Nah has just Astra. If your primary focus is on killing stuff with your Galeforce units, Nah is the best one to leave out (she also has much worse Spd than the other two).

Her best role is generally as a hard support, she can support physical Inigo as a Hero with Vaike/Gregor as her father (or a General in Vaike's case, but I prefer Hero) and can magically support Owain, Brady or magical Inigo with a ton of different fathers (Henry and Virion being the best).

You'll always get better efficiency out of a single Galeforce pair if the Galeforce unit is purely for leading and the support is purely for Dual Strikes because you don't waste procs on the rear. If you don't want to take an EP, pull out after one kill with Galeforce or use Rescue.

Edited May 8, 2014 by Czar_Yoshi

[Alastor15243]

No, Nah shouldn't get one of those. Gaius!Noire has Vantage, Vengeance, and Luna (and Astra if you like procstack), perfect tools for killing stuff reliably with Galeforce. Donnel!Kjelle has Luna and Astra to go with her Galeforce. Donnel!Nah has nothing and Gaius!Nah has just Astra. If your primary focus is on killing stuff with your Galeforce units, Nah is the best one to leave out (she also has much worse Spd than the other two).

Her best role is generally as a hard support, she can support physical Inigo as a Hero with Vaike/Gregor as her father (or a General in Vaike's case, but I prefer Hero) and can magically support Owain, Brady or magical Inigo with a ton of different fathers (Henry and Virion being the best).

You'll always get better efficiency out of a single Galeforce pair if the Galeforce unit is purely for leading and the support is purely for Dual Strikes because you don't waste procs on the rear. If you don't want to take an EP, pull out after one kill with Galeforce or use Rescue.

Thanks. Another thing, how does my banning of brave weapons affect how I should plan my support units? Without brave weapons, the damage output of the support unit is now inferior to the main unit rather than usually superior, so are there any normally-recommended support skills that are now a waste, or do the same rules apply and I've just made my support units weaker all-around?

[MelonGx]

Not using Braves just unlocks Manakete and Taguel. But all Manaketes and Taguels need MU to get both Luna and Galeforce, which doesn't change anything from those suggestions above.

Edited May 9, 2014 by MelonGx