PAIRINGS The Pairing Thread

[Czar_Yoshi]

There are currently no guides out there that are both current and good.

I don't have a set way of playing, so to speak, I just want to reliably beat Apotheosis without Limit Break.

This might take a bit of grinding..

Challenging Apo in the first place automatically assumes that you have been grinding. A lot. Do you have Aggressor/Rally Heart/All Stats+2?

[Ownagepuffs]

There are currently no guides out there that are both current and good.

This is pretty weird. It would he nice to sort out all the knowledge in this thread into a nice compact guide. Genealogy has one.

Should we start one or something?

[Czar_Yoshi]

This thread is almost a year old. Trying a group effort to condense it would be chaotic and probably involve a lot of outdated stuff getting in.

No, if an updated guide is made it'll probably be done by just a small handful of people (if not one) and written from scratch so nothing outdated slips in. I might just do it myself, post a draft here so people can check my work for errors, revise it, and repost it, though I'm not sure what would happen to it from there. Ideally it would be stickied (or even be put on the mainsite), though I have no idea how to get that to happen.

If I did make one, would people rather have me make it a "how to make a good team" guide, or a "how to make your favorite pairings good" guide?

Edited July 19, 2014 by Czar_Yoshi

[GinRei]

70% of A, 30% of B... give or take.

Basically, A is more attractive than B, since it doesn't just look at each character in a vacuum, but sometimes it's nice to try more niche builds if you especially like a particular character. Not sure if I'm explaining that properly, but hopefully my intent gets through.

[Czar_Yoshi]

No, I get it.

[Ownagepuffs]

It seems the average poster is more concerned with if their pairings are good in the first place as opposed to how they can make the most out of their current pairings, so the former idea for a guide is better than the latter.

For the most part, every kids wants either Luna, Galeforce, Vantage, or Vengeance. Writing a guide with that basic idea in mind shouldn't be too tough.

[Emerald Ink]

If I did make one, would people rather have me make it a "how to make a good team" guide, or a "how to make your favorite pairings good" guide?

[Nang Trong Vuon]

There are currently no guides out there that are both current and good.

Challenging Apo in the first place automatically assumes that you have been grinding. A lot. Do you have Aggressor/Rally Heart/All Stats+2?

I have Aggressor because I like the idea of a Demon Hunter.

Anyways, yes I have been grinding for quite a while. In my new playthrough I haven't married anyone to anyone yet. My MU is still Male because I intend to marry him to Lucina at the end.

Here's my list of pairings after some more thinking:

Chrom x Sumia ( Badass Lucina and Cynthia )

Lissa x Ricken ( Owain the hard hitting sage! No swords for him)

Sully x Donnel ( Kjelle needs more love from me I guess, I've neglected her mother too much in my other playthrough )

Olivia x Libra ( Inigo is cool. Magic for everyone! )

Cherche x Stahl ( Would Vaike be better? I'd like Gerome to become a support )

Maribelle x Lon'qu ( Bradyyyyy. I wonder if I should put him as another mage. Too many front line mages already..? Would any of the other boys make good supports? )

Miriel x Gregor ( The premiere Male V/V Nosferatu Lead of my Apotheosis party. )

Nowi x Vaike ( Makes a good support Nah? )

Tharja x Gaius ( I would prefer Noire as support, is it viable? Or should she be in the front lines? )

Cordelia x Frederick ( Severa with Luna, Galeforce, Tomefaire, the 2nd lead! )

Panne x Kellam ( This makes a support Yarne if I'm not wrong? )

Overall I still need more help with the pairings. I would like Chrom to be a support to any of these kids but I heard S pairing is better? Maybe I could bench some of them. Probably one of the front line mages like Owain or Brady. A game plan for Apotheosis too would be nice.. hmm..

EDIT: I've also realized my pairings are very similar to this guide: http://www.gamefaqs.com/3ds/643003-fire-emblem-awakening/faqs/67085. Should I follow this guide? Is it legit and good?

Edited July 19, 2014 by Nang Trong Vuon

[Shadow Mir]

I have Aggressor because I like the idea of a Demon Hunter.

Anyways, yes I have been grinding for quite a while. In my new playthrough I haven't married anyone to anyone yet. My MU is still Male because I intend to marry him to Lucina at the end.

Here's my list of pairings after some more thinking:

Chrom x Sumia ( Badass Lucina and Cynthia )

Lissa x Ricken ( Owain the hard hitting sage! No swords for him)

Sully x Donnel ( Kjelle needs more love from me I guess, I've neglected her mother too much in my other playthrough )

Olivia x Libra ( Inigo is cool. Magic for everyone! )

Cherche x Stahl ( Would Vaike be better? I'd like Gerome to become a support )

Maribelle x Lon'qu ( Bradyyyyy. I wonder if I should put him as another mage. Too many front line mages already..? Would any of the other boys make good supports? )

Miriel x Gregor ( The premiere Male V/V Nosferatu Lead of my Apotheosis party. )

Nowi x Vaike ( Makes a good support Nah? )

Tharja x Gaius ( I would prefer Noire as support, is it viable? Or should she be in the front lines? )

Cordelia x Frederick ( Severa with Luna, Galeforce, Tomefaire, the 2nd lead! )

Panne x Kellam ( This makes a support Yarne if I'm not wrong? )

Overall I still need more help with the pairings. I would like Chrom to be a support to any of these kids but I heard S pairing is better? Maybe I could bench some of them. Probably one of the front line mages like Owain or Brady. A game plan for Apotheosis too would be nice.. hmm..

EDIT: I've also realized my pairings are very similar to this guide: http://www.gamefaqs.com/3ds/643003-fire-emblem-awakening/faqs/67085. Should I follow this guide? Is it legit and good?

Bold: Not possible with that pairing - Severa doesn't get Tomefaire.

I can't help you on this, so I'll let someone else take over.

[GinRei]

Looks like the only way to get both Luna and Tomefaire on Severa are with either a Kellam or Ricken father. If you don't pull one of them away from their current pairings, you'll have to decide which skill you'd rather have and adjust accordingly.

[Nang Trong Vuon]

Well I guess I can have Severa be a physical lead ( Is that viable? ) or something. If not, I'll just give her Ricken father and bench Owain.

[lazydoggamer]

I have Aggressor because I like the idea of a Demon Hunter.

Anyways, yes I have been grinding for quite a while. In my new playthrough I haven't married anyone to anyone yet. My MU is still Male because I intend to marry him to Lucina at the end.

Here's my list of pairings after some more thinking:

Chrom x Sumia ( Badass Lucina and Cynthia )

Lissa x Ricken ( Owain the hard hitting sage! No swords for him)

Sully x Donnel ( Kjelle needs more love from me I guess, I've neglected her mother too much in my other playthrough )

Olivia x Libra ( Inigo is cool. Magic for everyone! )

Cherche x Stahl ( Would Vaike be better? I'd like Gerome to become a support ) Gerome doesn't get berserker from Stahl which is his best support class. Vaike is a better choice

Maribelle x Lon'qu ( Bradyyyyy. I wonder if I should put him as another mage. Too many front line mages already..? Would any of the other boys make good supports? )

Miriel x Gregor ( The premiere Male V/V Nosferatu Lead of my Apotheosis party. )

Nowi x Vaike ( Makes a good support Nah? ) I usually avoid using Nah but I hear Virion is a great father for her.

Tharja x Gaius ( I would prefer Noire as support, is it viable? Or should she be in the front lines? )

Cordelia x Frederick ( Severa with Luna, Galeforce, Tomefaire, the 2nd lead! ) Stahl gives Severa Luna without giving clashing speed mods.

Panne x Kellam ( This makes a support Yarne if I'm not wrong? ) Yarne already gets berserker so he just needs strength and skill mods for support which Freddy provides

Overall I still need more help with the pairings. I would like Chrom to be a support to any of these kids but I heard S pairing is better? Maybe I could bench some of them. Probably one of the front line mages like Owain or Brady. A game plan for Apotheosis too would be nice.. hmm..

EDIT: I've also realized my pairings are very similar to this guide: http://www.gamefaqs.com/3ds/643003-fire-emblem-awakening/faqs/67085. Should I follow this guide? Is it legit and good?

Edited July 19, 2014 by lazydoggamer

[Nang Trong Vuon]

I see. I'll adjust my pairings accordingly. Thank you for all the inputs!

[Czar_Yoshi]

No, Gerome does quite well with Stahl. Stahl allows him to be a Bowfaire Warrior, which hits -almost- as hard as a Berserker, but has none of the massive hitrate issues.

Vaike!Nah is fine, but has to support physical Inigo which you don't have, so I'd do someone else.

Physical Severa is fine, she can be a good Hero with Stahl and a good Wyvern with Lon'qu. With Virion, she can switch between physical (Wyvern) and magical (Dark Flier) effortlessly. Personally I prefer Virion. No Luna on Severa is fine because she has natural Vengeance.

If Yarne's to be a Berserker he benefits from mods and Hit+20. Fred gives just mods, Stahl and Virion give Hit+20. Kellam works, but is basically a worse Fred.

As a general rule, -never- bench a male Galeforce user. Having a pair that can kill three foes per turn is great, especially with Agg. Most setups (Male Avatar) have two- Owain and Brady as Sages (usually married to Cynthia and Morgan, but sometimes Kjelle or Noire) (Inigo is usually paired with Nah because he's the best candidate for taking her). If Nah is magical though, she can go with any of the three.

Typical teams have 4 magical pairings and 3 physical pairings, though it's not too hard to change it a pairing or two in either direction.

[Nang Trong Vuon]

What do I do to have a physical Inigo? And if I don't use physical Inigo, who should Nah's father be?

[Czar_Yoshi]

Physical Inigos are usually fathered by Stahl, Chrom or Frederick, with the occasional rare Kellam- basically anyone who gives Luna and has a positive Str mod. Libra!Inigo can actually be physical (Libra's Str isn't negative and Inigo still has several good physical classes) but that's very rare.

Magical Nah can be fathered by Henry, Libra, Ricken, Virion, Lon'qu, and pretty much anyone else who doesn't have negative Mag (and preferably has a lot of Skl). She already has Sage/Tomefaire, so she's basically set to go. Be warned that if you lack DLC she often will have very few skills to choose from, so if that's the case definitely go with Henry (he'll give her a ton of stuff like Anathema and Dual Support+ that she can use as filler).

Actually, I don't see Henry on your pairing list anywhere. He's probably the the highest-in-demand father in the game, so definitely make the most of the opportunity and give him to Nah (Henry!Nah can also choose between physical and Magical support, so if you put her on Libra!Inigo they'll be a whole pair who can perform well either way!). Make sure to have him pass her Axefaire. She can also choose to be a Valkyrie if you want a magical +Spd support.

Edited July 19, 2014 by Czar_Yoshi

[Nang Trong Vuon]

Hmmm. More adjustments:

Chrom x Sumia ( I like the canon pairing, Lucina as main phys lead + MU, Cynthia to support Laurent )

Lissa x Ricken ( Owain as 2nd magic lead, Owain + Kjelle )

Sully x Donnel ( Kjelle as magic support..? Does this work? Or maybe she could be my 3rd physical lead. )

Olivia x Libra ( Inigo as the 3rd magic lead with Nah as his support )

Nowi x Henry ( as you said! Want her to be a support for someone. )

Miriel x Gregor ( The premiere V/V Nosferatu Sorcerer to destroy everything, Laurent is coming with Cynthia as his support )

Maribelle x Lon'qu ( The 4th magic lead, he has Noire at his back to support him? Does this work as well? Or would Morgan support be better? )

Cherche x Stahl ( Gerome to support Severa, probably. )

Tharja x Gaius ( No idea how to use Noire, possibly as the 3rd physical lead? Girl power ftw! )

Cordelia x Frederick ( I want to make Severa as the 2nd physical lead with Gerome to support her. How does Vengeance help physical Severa? )

Panne x Virion ( I want a support Yarne with good hit I guess. Damage doesn't matter if you can't dish it out. So probably Virion. )

Battle pairs:

Magical:

Laurent x Cynthia

Owain x Kjelle

Inigo x Nah

Brady x Morgan

Physical:

Lucina x MU

Severa x Gerome

Noire x Yarne

Does this work out? Though I heard Noire is much better at magical offense.

Edited July 19, 2014 by Nang Trong Vuon

[Czar_Yoshi]

Don't put Fred on Severa. Severa's Spd is her strongest asset and he'll wreck it. Give Severa either Lon'qu, Virion, Stahl, Ricken or Vaike. Noire has higher Mag than Str, but she lacks Tomefaire and can be either magical or physical (though she usually winds up being physical).

Vengeance is an offensive proc and isn't restricted to magic or VV. The main idea behind using it offensively is to attack something that will be able to retaliate against you while your HP is full. If you fail to KO it before it strikes, then Vengeance will get a boost so you'll almost definitely kill it afterword. Against bosses, you can engage them on enemy phase with full HP to get a massive Vengeance boost (particularly useful for the boss of Waves 3 and 4) before striking 2-4 times in retaliation- this is generally the way bosses are killed on challenge runs, and without LB it will be very hard to kill them any other way.

Unless your asset is Spd, it's generally better to have Avatar and Morgan both be the same physical/magical orientation. Lucina has more Mag than Str, so Avatar and her may want to switch to Magical (Inigo and Nah can go physical instead without a parent swap, or you can just have a 5/2 balance).

[Nang Trong Vuon]

I see. My MU is +Spd/-Lck. I'll make Lucina and MU magical then.

Should I just keep Libra for Phys Inigo or should I swap his father with something else? And how does Noire physical work? What does she run?

[Czar_Yoshi]

Inigo can keep Libra or take someone like Stahl, Chrom or Frederick- I think only Fred is free though. I'd recommend keeping Libra because Nah can switch, so he might as well be able to do it too.

Physical Noire is usually either an Assassin/Sniper/Bride (Bowfaire is the norm, but Swordfaire and Lancefaire work on some of them as well). With no LB I'd give her GF/Faire/Luna/Astra/Mov+1.

[ssj4gohan]

Hello all.

I've been a lurker for a ahile but after a long break from FE:A I've decided to return and attempt a new run (probably on Lunatic+). At this stage, left over from my pairings I have Nowi and Panne left unaccountable for females and as for males I have as follows:

- Stahl

- Frederick

- Virion

- Kellam

I have all the DLC so completion of the postgame is my goal and grinding will be available. What are my best options as far as classes and skill potential go that will be able to assist me in Apotheosis? What would be the optimal pairings for each? I'm tossing up the idea of Nowi x Virion and maybe Stahl x Panne but I'm a bit rusty so I'm hoping to get some advice from the good folk here.

[Coreyographed]

I have Virion!Inigo, and I can't figure what would be the best skill to pass down. Any ideas?

[GinRei]

I've decided to trash my current file after reading Ownagepuffs' recent breakdown of why Sumia > Olivia for Chrom's wife. I really hope an updated pairing guide gets compiled so I don't end up trashing my file again. In the mean time, I think I'll do a FeMU run to get all those supports before moving back to a MaMu final file.

Gotta love when one pairing being changed causes a massive domino effect whereby I've now had to change multiple other pairings, as well as try to figure out which kids benefit the most from Henry due to never having paired him with anyone but Sumia before.

^To the above about Virion!Inigo, always pass Galeforce from Olivia. Unless the father has a gender specific skill (in this case he doesn't), it doesn't really matter what he passes if you aren't doing a no-grind run. Just pass whatever from a class you don't want to level up again if it's the only worthwhile skill in that tree (ex: Swordbreaker, Skill +2, Tomefaire)

[MelonGx]

I have Virion!Inigo, and I can't figure what would be the best skill to pass down. Any ideas?

Virion: Any

Olivia: Galeforce

Inigo: AT, LB, Astra, Bowfaire, Galeforce @ Sniper

I've decided to trash my current file after reading Ownagepuffs' recent breakdown of why Sumia > Olivia for Chrom's wife. I really hope an updated pairing guide gets compiled so I don't end up trashing my file again. In the mean time, I think I'll do a FeMU run to get all those supports before moving back to a MaMu final file.

Gotta love when one pairing being changed causes a massive domino effect whereby I've now had to change multiple other pairings, as well as try to figure out which kids benefit the most from Henry due to never having paired him with anyone but Sumia before.

Chrom x Olivia needs Vaike!Gerome!Morgan or Ricken!Owain/Laurent!Morgan to be special.

If you have either of them, don't change your mind.

RNG-Low-Mag!Olivia!Lucina/Max-Str/Mag!Morgan is the entire best tank of FE:A which tanks everything & immunes Counterbomb.

Edited July 19, 2014 by Starman

[Coreyographed]

Thanks MelonGx! What about Stahl!Kjelle?