Advice for surviving the earliest Fire Emblem games?

[Thane]

Hello everyone.

So, pissed that you need the New 3DS to play Genealogy of the Holy War, I decided to buy the first game and Gaiden to learn more about the series' roots instead. However, since my Japanese is rather poor and the UI is archaic, I figured I might need to hear a few tips and tricks to make my playthrough smoother, so I would welcome your guidance.

Also, if anyone knows why on Earth Nintendo restricts being able to buy certain games on their e-shop, feel free to share your knowledge of that as well, because I got rather upset when I saw a greyed out button telling me I needed a more modern console to play a 20 year old game.

I hope this is the right place for a thread such as this. If it's not, I apologize and won't complain if the thread is locked.

[Magical Glace]

Only New 3DS's get SNES games because of some sort of Emulation thing.

[Thane]

Only New 3DS's get SNES games because of some sort of Emulation thing.

Apparently there's also an "ambassador program" that allows people to play Sacred Stones on the 3DS as well, and that doesn't require any form of emulation. I'm just perplexed by this.

[Captain Karnage]

gaiden is kind of a clusterfuck in design in my opinion not much help I can offer than watch Ghast's LP of it

geneology, the weapon and magic triangle is most important in this one as it gives +20 hit to advantaged one -20 to disadvantaged

there's a lot more than I can say other than I think it's better to play on an emulator as the maps take way too long to finish and if you screw up majorly it will take a LONG time to get back to where you were

my first time through took me about 1hr and 15 min to beat it

and I've only gotten to ch 2, so others might have better advice

and about that,

it has something to do with the VC save states

Apparently there's also an "ambassador program" that allows people to play Sacred Stones on the 3DS as well, and that doesn't require any form of emulation. I'm just perplexed by this.

those games make the 3DS boot down to ds mode to play

Edited August 28, 2016 by Captain Karnage

[Magical Glace]

Apparently there's also an "ambassador program" that allows people to play Sacred Stones on the 3DS as well, and that doesn't require any form of emulation. I'm just perplexed by this.

I was an ambassador... It was offered to US customers who bought a 3DS prior to a rather large price drop the August after the system's release.

Needless to say getting the 10 GBA games that were offered through that is no longer doable. It was more or less "Thank you for the loyalty"

Then some twat stole my A-3DS.

And I don't know what the specifics of the original 3DS's problems with SNES software is.

Edited August 28, 2016 by Glaceon Mage

[BrightBow]

I suppose I can say a few things on Gaiden.

Promotions are done in the occasional shrines. Unlike other classes, Villagers can promote into a variety of classes. But when you request a promotion for a villager, the game will randomly select on of the available classes. If the game proposes a class that you don't want, simply deny the proposal and ask again. And the protagonists Alm and Cecilia will simply promote through story progression.

In addition to providing promotions, each Shrine contains two lion head statues that give different bonuses. Most of them will raise a certain stat but some of them will even allow you to revive fallen allies. However you can only get three bonuses on either lion head before both of them will shut down forever.

New spells are learned through levelling. However, the available spells and the level at which they are learned are different for every individual mage. There is a page for that of course: http://serenesforest.net/gaiden/characters/magic-levels/

All weapons in this game have a weight, including spells. Unfortunately the weight of spells isn't written down in the actual game, so this page is basically a requirement: http://serenesforest.net/gaiden/inventory/black-magic/

Also, there is no stat that lowers the speed penalty of weight.

Starting with Chapter 3, you get to control two armies at the same time. You might want to make sure that you don't focus too much on one team because the enemy won't actually stay idle. Eventually new enemy forces will spawn at the world map and will move towards your direction. This caused me quite a bit of trouble. I had to deal with an army lead by a freaking Bow Knight, a third tier unit in this game, while my army was still early in first tier. It wasn't fun.

Edited August 28, 2016 by BrightBow

[eclipse]

No need to lock this! However, I think it would be better served in the area dedicated to the early games, so off it goes!

[Thane]

I was an ambassador... It was offered to US customers who bought a 3DS prior to a rather large price drop the August after the system's release.

Needless to say getting the 10 GBA games that were offered through that is no longer doable. It was more or less "Thank you for the loyalty"

Then some twat stole my A-3DS.

And I don't know what the specifics of the original 3DS's problems with SNES software is.

Right but...why? Wouldn't it be better to let everyone be able to buy those games now, or is there a technical issue with that as well that I'm not aware of?

Sorry to hear about your 3DS, that sucks, man.

I suppose I can say a few things on Gaiden.

Promotions are done in the occasional shrines. Unlike other classes, Villagers can promote into a variety of classes. But when you request a promotion for a villager, the game will randomly select on of the available classes. If the game proposes a class that you don't want, simply deny the proposal and ask again. And the protagonists Alm and Cecilia will simply promote through story progression.

In addition to providing promotions, each Shrine contains two lion head statues that give different bonuses. Most of them will raise a certain stat but some of them will even allow you to revive fallen allies. However you can only get three bonuses on either lion head before both of them will shut down forever.

New spells are learned through levelling. However, the available spells and the level at which they are learned are different for every individual mage. There is a page for that of course: http://serenesforest.net/gaiden/characters/magic-levels/

All weapons in this game have a weight, including spells. Unfortunately the weight of spells isn't written down in the actual game, so this page is basically a requirement: http://serenesforest.net/gaiden/inventory/black-magic/

Starting with Chapter 3, you get to control two armies at the same time. You might want to make sure that you don't focus too much on one team because the enemy won't actually stay idle. Eventually new enemy forces will spawn at the world map and will move towards your direction. This caused me quite a bit of trouble. I had to deal with an army lead by a freaking Bow Knight, a third tier unit in this game, while my army was still early in first tier. It wasn't fun.

Huh, it sure sounds very different. Thank you for all of this, I'll definitely have a look later.

What do you mean by "won't remain idle" though? Also, I take it it's essential to distribute the EXP evenly between the two armies?

No need to lock this! However, I think it would be better served in the area dedicated to the early games, so off it goes!

Ah, this is the second thread I've made in a few weeks that you've had to move. I apologize for the trouble.

[Lantairu]

geneology, the weapon and magic triangle is most important in this one as it gives +20 hit to advantaged one -20 to disadvantaged

there's a lot more than I can say other than I think it's better to play on an emulator as the maps take way too long to finish and if you screw up majorly it will take a LONG time to get back to where you were

my first time through took me about 1hr and 15 min to beat it

and I've only gotten to ch 2, so others might have better advice

You realize you can save at the beginning of every turn, right?

[The DanMan]

Right but...why? Wouldn't it be better to let everyone be able to buy those games now, or is there a technical issue with that as well that I'm not aware of?

Seems like a dash of perfectionism on Nintendo's part. The GBA emulation wasn't technically virtual console- it didn't support sleep mode or anything VC releases do. They probably just don't consider it a priority.

And since the SNES is a bit beefier than the GBA, it makes sense that the better processor and higher RAM of the Nu3DS would be needed to run it to Ninty's standard.

Yeah, homebrew SNES/GBA emulation on the 3DS (heck, homebrew has done Windows 95 emulation) has happened, but it's not exactly smooth.

TL;DR Nintendo thinks it would be more trouble than it's worth.

[BrightBow]

What do you mean by "won't remain idle" though? Also, I take it it's essential to distribute the EXP evenly between the two armies?

Your two armies are operating in different areas of the world map, so they can't actually meet each other or fight each other's foes. So in that regard, EXP distribution is a non-issue.

What I mean is that after a while new groups of enemies will appear on the world map. And they actually move and will try to track you down. So while you for example keep focusing on Cecilla and her progress, the enemy might spawn reinforcements on Alm's side of the map which are too strong for his group. So it's important to make sure that both groups make progress and grow stronger at an relatively even pace.

Edited August 28, 2016 by BrightBow

[maybe]

Also, if anyone knows why on Earth Nintendo restricts being able to buy certain games on their e-shop, feel free to share your knowledge of that as well, because I got rather upset when I saw a greyed out button telling me I needed a more modern console to play a 20 year old game.

presumably for the sake of having more selling points for an updated version of a system

while the public reason is that the old 3DS couldn't handle it or something homebrew emulation has reached the point that like 80% of SNES games can run at full speed on the original 3DS

considering nintendo would have more access to the hardware and would be able to utilize its capabilities better, they'd definitely be able to get SNES games running on it if they tried, even if it meant having a separate version for the original 3DS that has less extra features or something (hell, the sega genesis games on the eShop have been hacked to allow almost any game to be played at full speed even with all the enhancements and stuff they come with)

but as it stands i suppose they just want people to buy a newer console

[MCProductions]

Gaiden gameplay wise can best be summed up as Fates Birthright x RD x NESisms. I find it quite enjoyable experience from beginning to end, but the stuff Brightbow mentioned are quite helpful for beginners. If your willing to emulate, Gaiden actually has one of the better translation patches for Japan only FEs, so if you decide your Japanese isn't up to it, you still have an option.

[Captain Karnage]

You realize you can save at the beginning of every turn, right?

savestates my friend

[Thane]

Playing through the first game and I got some rare items, so I wanted to ask for some advice.

I just got a Talisman, and given how magic works in this game (and how it seems like a few bad choices might punish you harshly later on), I wanted to ask if it's a good idea to give it to Marth.

I also got a Power Ring, and my team has been RNG screwed in terms of strength aside from Kain, so I was wondering who I should give it to - Navarre, my third promoted unit alongside Kain and Minerva, only has 10 strength; should I give it to him? I heard something about a boss later on that's immune to magic and has an absurd defense, so I'd like to somehow be able to damage him with more than a handful of units.

I should point out that I gave the last Power Ring to Marth, and he's now sitting at a steady 16 strength.

Edited September 4, 2016 by Thane

[Refa]

The RNG in the first few games is...dubious, so honestly most of your characters are probably average.

Talisman is good on Marth, and I'd recommend not giving statboosters to unpromoted units. What's the Str of the units you listed?

[Thane]

The RNG in the first few games is...dubious, so honestly most of your characters are probably average.

Talisman is good on Marth, and I'd recommend not giving statboosters to unpromoted units. What's the Str of the units you listed?

Yeah I noticed. I know someone like Shiida (Sheeda? Caeda? Jesus, I know a few names through the Awakening DLC and references through Serenes and a few only through the game itself; I'm mixing them up like crazy) has horrible strength grows, but I was under the impression Navarre was supposed to be a beast. Unfortunately I just closed the game due to my 3DS running out of battery, so I can't check the strength of my units. I believe Kain, my most valuable character aside from Marth by far, has around 15-16 as a level four Paladin, while Navarre has 10, Shiida five and Barts at ~14. Thankfully I can always deal some safe damage with Merric and Linda, the latter of whom I gave my first Speed Ring.

I gave Marth the Talisman; he's also got the Boots and the first Power Ring, so he's a really stable unit, but I know you can't promote him in this game, so he needs those items to stay viable - I can only assume we'll get the Falchion since they keep talking about it, so I imagine he'll be vital later.

I don't want to know too much since I do want to try and beat this game on my own, but I was wondering just how many promotion items there are; I've only got three promoted ones so far, and I've got an Orion Bolt but I don't have any Snipers (I use Kashim though). I feel like Shiida should be getting a promotion soon to make up for that awful strength since she's running out of Thunder Sword uses - reaaaally wish I had bought a few more but you've only got 40 spaces in the inventory, so yeah.

[Refa]

Navarre is a safe choice, then. With all 20 caps, no one else you're using that I know of needs it (well, Caeda does, but wait until promotion for her if you're going that route).

FYI (TBH, you might already know), magic doesn't use the Str stat and fighters (in addition to most classes) can't promote. EDIT That's why there's not very many promo items. For reference, the first Dragon Whip and Bishop Ring you get is around Chapter 18.

Edited September 4, 2016 by Refa

[Thane]

Navarre is a safe choice, then. With all 20 caps, no one else you're using that I know of needs it (well, Caeda does, but wait until promotion for her if you're going that route).

FYI (TBH, you might already know), magic doesn't use the Str stat and fighters (in addition to most classes) can't promote.

Alright, thanks a lot, I think I'll give it to him, then. I hope 16 strength on Marth is enough for him to kill the boss in whatever chapter he needs to use the Falchion.

Ah, yeah I know that. It's odd to say the least, but from my limited research, they seem to fix it already in Gaiden, which is my next challenge.

Again, thanks for the help!

[Refa]

I'd recommend looking up Secret Shop locations. There's one or two that sell an infinite amount of boosters.

Yeah, FE2 fixed how magic worked. Also it's no problem at all, it's always a pleasure watching people play through the older FE games, especially if it's a blind run. What do you think about the game so far? Hopefully the UI isn't giving you too many problems haha.

[Thane]

I'd recommend looking up Secret Shop locations. There's one or two that sell an infinite amount of boosters.

Yeah, FE2 fixed how magic worked. Also it's no problem at all, it's always a pleasure watching people play through the older FE games, especially if it's a blind run. What do you think about the game so far? Hopefully the UI isn't giving you too many problems haha.

Yeah, sadly I managed to spoil the location of the first one for myself while looking up a few basic things (I'm playing the Japanese version, and my Japanese is not good enough to understand everything, so I wanted to give myself a little edge before starting).

I'm having a lot of fun honestly, but the problems I have with the game are the ones you'd expect: the UI is a bit frustrating, you can carry almost nothing and the maps take a LONG time, especially those with almost infinite reinforcements. Just moving the units takes a long time, and I think that's the worst part.

Overall though, I'm having fun - I wouldn't have thought of buying these two games unless I hadn't seen the announcement of Genealogy of the Holy War being released on the E-shop and consequently getting upset it was only for the New 3DS. Oh well, I might be able to borrow a friend's for that game.

How would you compare the first game to Gaiden by the way?

[The Draco Knight]

How would you compare the first game to Gaiden by the way?

Personally, Gaiden is a totally different game compared to FE1 or any other title in the series because with things like dungeons, Weapons and items that improves your stats if they are equipped, explorable town and magic being no more some kind of weapon, but something that the characters learns by leveling up and that costs HP(which is considerable as MP in this game), the game feels more like a traditional RPG than a real strategy game.

In a certain way, you could say that Gaiden is to FE what Zelda 2 is to the TLOZ series

Anyway, since you are having fun with FE1, you should give Gaiden a chance because, while they are both very different as games, they still suffers of the same problems(the unique mechanics of Gaiden are something that you need to try yourself since you may or may not like them)

I hope I answered your question well!

[Thane]

Personally, Gaiden is a totally different game compared to FE1 or any other title in the series because with things like dungeons, Weapons and items that improves your stats if they are equipped, explorable town and magic being no more some kind of weapon, but something that the characters learns by leveling up and that costs HP(which is considerable as MP in this game), the game feels more like a traditional RPG than a real strategy game.

In a certain way, you could say that Gaiden is to FE what Zelda 2 is to the TLOZ series

Anyway, since you are having fun with FE1, you should give Gaiden a chance because, while they are both very different as games, they still suffers of the same problems(the unique mechanics of Gaiden are something that you need to try yourself since you may or may not like them)

I hope I answered your question well!

Absolutely, thanks for that. I've heard that Gaiden is very different, and I'm excited to try it after I'm done with the first game. Honestly I'm just glad they'll fix the magic system.

Oh yeah, is there more story to Gaiden? The first game (as you can tell I tend to forget the title) has a very generic one. Understandable, but it would be nice to have a bit more of a context to what I'm doing.

I also bloody well hope the UI improves if only a little bit.

[Pixelman]

Oh yeah, is there more story to Gaiden?

Nope

Gaiden's story is pretty much nonexistent

Edited September 5, 2016 by Pixelman

[Thane]

Nope

Gaiden's story is pretty much nonexistent

Welp, I'm sure I'll have fun anyway. I'm interested in checking out the more unorthodox Fire Emblem gameplay.