Tips for optimizing my units? [Conquest]

[Aristo]

Hi, folks!

Conquest is my first FE in a long time; since FE7 and Sacred Stones. I've gotten my head around the new features and have been enjoying Conquest's challenge, even if I'm only on Normal/Classic. I've just finished Ch.17 and trying to get past the second castle invasion.

Things have been pretty smooth until recently. I'm not sure if my units are on the par they should be, considering the stage of the game I'm in. It's no surprise that the Nohrian royals are consistent MVPs, but I'm worried about the rest of the roster. I've bumped my Avatar to Nohr Noble after hitting 20; Niles is one battle away from 20 and the only other unit that's past the 18-19 level range. Most of my non-royal hard hitters are 15-17, but there are also a handful of units that haven't gotten the same amount of attention.

The problem is there are characters I want to like and use (Charlotte, Nyx, Odin, Peri, Benny, etc.) but have ended up not seeing much action since they can be replaced with units that can do the same jobs better by the time they're introduced. This is an issue more-so considering I'd intended to S-rank and get as many children as possible, but I'm not sure that can be done in one play through without feeling like pulling teeth.

Since I'm at Ch.17, what levels are ideal and how low can I go before benching chars permanently? Odin is only 9, Selena 10, and other middle-ground chars range from 13 to 16.

I'd also like some ideas for promotions; I intended to wait till everyone hit 20, but since things are seeming to heat up, I'm considering jumping early. I haven't given anybody a seal besides my Avatar yet.

Any advice is appreciated!

Edited February 29, 2016 by Aristo

[Ronman5]

Yeah at this point Odin and Selena are almost next to nothing... So no Ophelia.... I would start promoting soon though as the chapters get increasingly tougher