What is your unpopular Fire Emblem opinion?

[Acacia Sgt]

9 minutes ago, Zapp Branniglenn said:

I do NOT think it's dumb that Shadows of Valentia claims there's a drought and yet there's food all over. Because what have armies done throughout human history? Roll into town and avail themselves of the local food stores. Alm isn't some kleptomaniac, he's being offered those oranges. Rationing was a big deal culturally as recently as in WW2. Google Victory Gardens. Food production goes up in war time, and it's going to the troops. The dire situation that Zofia faces isn't the drought, but knocking out the quality of their soil by over-farming. No doubt they practice crop rotation in peacetime but can't right now.

I think the implication is that it's surplus for when Mila was still blessing the land, and that the decline wasn't a sharp drop but going at an incline.

On that subject, if Mila keeps the land healthy and fertile, I doubt the Zofians needed to do crop rotation. Rigel perhaps, but not Zofia.

[lenticular]

4 hours ago, SnowFire said:

This is the unpopular opinions thread, but...  I can't agree here!  At least for games that aren't Three Houses or Awakening (as those games are dominated by skill choices instead, and more generally have Large Numbers that dull the impact of +2 to a stat).  You don't need to have looked up the growths and memorized them, just look at what the stats are Right Now.  If you have a fave unit but with one bad stat, throwing stat boosters in their direction is potent in most FEs.  It's both intuitive to casual players ("Hey, RD Haar needs more Speed" or "FE8 Marisa could use some Str") and effective in older FEs, where +2 Defense can be extremely significant.

The one area that kinda is a casual trap is games where stat caps are relevant, as then it can be easy to "waste" a stat booster if you don't realize you're already close to the maximum cap and the booster is overkill.  But oh well.

I agree with all of this but will also add that power now is usually more valuable than power later. If you use a stat booster on someone who is near their cap, then you're still getting a good advantage from teh stat booster because it's immediately helping you in the next map, and the next map is the most important one. Yeah, it's nice if the value of the stat booster can keep on being felt right throughout the entire duration of the game, but it's far from necessary. Worrying too much about long-term optimisation is in the same family of ideas as "early promoting is always bad", "I won't use my Jagen because it takes experience from everyone else" and "if I send this unit through these four awful classes they'll have an amazing build for the last three maps of the game".

[Jotari]

47 minutes ago, lenticular said:

I agree with all of this but will also add that power now is usually more valuable than power later. If you use a stat booster on someone who is near their cap, then you're still getting a good advantage from teh stat booster because it's immediately helping you in the next map, and the next map is the most important one. Yeah, it's nice if the value of the stat booster can keep on being felt right throughout the entire duration of the game, but it's far from necessary. Worrying too much about long-term optimisation is in the same family of ideas as "early promoting is always bad", "I won't use my Jagen because it takes experience from everyone else" and "if I send this unit through these four awful classes they'll have an amazing build for the last three maps of the game".

It does depend on the game. Due to the esoteric way I played New Mystery (by using every character until a newer unit replaces them) on my most recent run of it, I consequently ended up hoarding all my stat boosters until the end game and I'm glad I did. The middle game was rough but boy oh boy is that end game crazy. You have to hit stat caps, there's no other way around it. So knowing in advance who will do that (don't need speed boosters, give to some else), who won't do that (give them speed boosters ASAP), who needs help doing it and who might get close to it or could be rng screwed (wait and see) is all really important. Nagi in particular is a character that can be turned from "literally getting one shot" to "highly useful" with a speed wing or two that is worth hoarding for her arrival. And I was only playing it on the second highest difficulty, it must be a lot more challenging on Lunatic Reverse.

Edited February 1 by Jotari

[Etrurian emperor]

On 1/29/2024 at 6:00 AM, Jotari said:

Well I wouldn't say that true. The Laguz lose their war even with Ike (or more specifically Soren) guiding them in the right way. Soren is also pretty damn sure they can't win an uncontested victory. I'm also on record saying that the Laguz invasion is not depicted by the game as morally black and white.

''A hero sides with the Laguz and justice, the maiden of Dawn sides with Daein and the Beorc'' 

The narration does kinda suggest it is. As does the senate. 

[Jotari]

1 hour ago, Etrurian emperor said:

''A hero sides with the Laguz and justice, the maiden of Dawn sides with Daein and the Beorc'' 

The narration does kinda suggest it is. As does the senate. 

Justice is certainly what they want to get, but they don't have the foggiest idea how to actually achieve it. That's the issue.

Edited February 1 by Jotari

[Acacia Sgt]

Which is ultimately separate from the whole "Is this morally good or bad?" aspect. The game portrays it as good, since they're seeking justice against genocide, and resorting to war was only a last resort since Begnion was refusing to talk in good faith, if the messenger killing isn't enough indication. So the problem the game presents isn't about that. It's about whether they can do it, and have the culprits answer for their crimes.

[Jotari]

31 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Which is ultimately separate from the whole "Is this morally good or bad?" aspect. The game portrays it as good, since they're seeking justice against genocide, and resorting to war was only a last resort since Begnion was refusing to talk in good faith, if the messenger killing isn't enough indication. So the problem the game presents isn't about that. It's about whether they can do it, and have the culprits answer for their crimes.

The game openly portrays a peace settlement as the correct course of action once enough territory has been gained, and the laguz dismissing that idea because they just can't stop their rampage once they'd started it. It's probably coincidental, but the whole thing is a shockingly accurate parallel to the US and Afghan situation that was going on when it was written. A big tragedy happened organized by a small cabal of evil dudes and people were understandably pissed. So they went to war to find some kind of justice and satisfy bloodlust with no clue how that could actually be achieved. The only difference is the US managed to win and continue to bundle things up for a further decade, which I think would be a very likely scenario if the Laguz did win. I doubt they would have just been satisfied with executing the senate and going home. It was, after all, the actual Begnion people that carried out the Genocidal dirty work against the Herons. But even if they hypothetically would stop there, it's still killing every soldier between them and the capital, devastating the entire nation just for the sake of killing half a dozen guys. None of which would bring a single Heron back from the dead.

Edited February 1 by Jotari

[Acacia Sgt]

1 hour ago, Jotari said:

The game openly portrays a peace settlement as the correct course of action once enough territory has been gained, and the laguz dismissing that idea because they just can't stop their rampage once they'd started it. It's probably coincidental, but the whole thing is a shockingly accurate parallel to the US and Afghan situation that was going on when it was written. A big tragedy happened organized by a small cabal of evil dudes and people were understandably pissed. So they went to war to find some kind of justice and satisfy bloodlust with no clue how that could actually be achieved. The only difference is the US managed to win and continue to bundle things up for a further decade, which I think would be a very likely scenario if the Laguz did win. I doubt they would have just been satisfied with executing the senate and going home. It was, after all, the actual Begnion people that carried out the Genocidal dirty work against the Herons. But even if they hypothetically would stop there, it's still killing every soldier between them and the capital, devastating the entire nation just for the sake of killing half a dozen guys. None of which would bring a single Heron back from the dead.

The word used is wise, not correct. And Soren's reasoning is that for all their advance, they haven't even dented the Begnion Central Army. He's basically calling it quits. Also, he is even quick to discard the idea once the Laguz refuse it, anyway.

Also, I do wonder... would it truly be the correct one? From what Soren says, they don't really have much to bring to the negotiation table. The occupied land? Is that enough to force Begnion to punish the Senate? Begnion is still in a position of strength even after the river crossing, and even if the Senate didn't had their trump cards to turn the tide of the war and were forced to negotiate, they no doubt could easily weasel their way out of any true punishment. Specially since they had Sanaki under house arrest and Sephiran was imprisoned around this time too. Any legally binding document (and we know how the Senate loves to use those) would be dictated on their terms. And there is the fact that officially the Laguz were the ones who declared war, so they can play the "we're only victims who were defending ourselves from aggression, please don't mind the atrocity we committed first" card. Historic trends would indicate this would only embolden them to commit more atrocities, since they've seen they can escape punishment and the cost is at most just a slap on the wrist (relatively speaking and in regards to their own assets).

Ironically, Ranulf comments about only focusing on the enemy in front of them could indicate they could truly stop with the Senate. Rafiel's testimony said it was the Senate who caused the whole thing. It's the Senate who was refusing to talk and killed the messenger. In fact, it is brought up how they haven't heard of what Sanaki and Sephiran thought about the whole ting. So the Senate have painted themselves the target in the Laguz eyesight. It's true the Senate would put countless soldiers in-between, but then that's true for any war.

It's true the Herons would remain dead... but that's not really a good argument. Otherwise, that's like saying a murderer can't be punished since the victim won't come back to life. Which goes back to the whole "if not punished, they'll just do it again" issue.

At the end of the day, the actual original point is that the game bends things for Ike's benefit. So you pointing out the flaws on the Laguz side, which the game either dismisses or ignores, only proves the point right.

Edited February 1 by Acacia Sgt

[Alastor15243]

1 hour ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Also, he is even quick to discard the idea once the Laguz refuse it, anyway.

They don't refuse it so much as say it's politically and biologically impossible. He has to be told it literally is not an option before he adapts his plans.

[Jotari]

6 hours ago, Acacia Sgt said:

At the end of the day, the actual original point is that the game bends things for Ike's benefit. So you pointing out the flaws on the Laguz side, which the game either dismisses or ignores, only proves the point right.

Honestly Ike himself is barely involved with Part 3 as it is. Soren is more the representative of the Beorc while Ike's the guy Soren vents to about the impossibility of the situation he's been put in. I don't think the story ever really goes out of its way to force Ike into the protagonist role, in fact his complete absence in Part 2 purely so he can show up and be the hero is bending itself a bit to not have him there. Don't get me wrong, I don't like how Ike overshadows Micaiah (and Yune makes it even worse when she shows up to steal Micaiah's body), but it's fairly reasonable and logical course of events in universe for Ike to be as prominent a commander as he is.

Edited February 1 by Jotari

[Samz707]

On 2/1/2024 at 6:41 AM, Acacia Sgt said:

I think the implication is that it's surplus for when Mila was still blessing the land, and that the decline wasn't a sharp drop but going at an incline.

On that subject, if Mila keeps the land healthy and fertile, I doubt the Zofians needed to do crop rotation. Rigel perhaps, but not Zofia.

Yeah I assumed they still had food in reserve but had either little or no actual overall increase in their surplus.

AKA: They would run out or have to ration food if it kept up.

Since otherwise they'd be kinda screwed at the end of the game if they were about to all die from famine. (Even with Alm saying how he'll toil the fields myself, which brings to mind the glorious mental image of Alm forcing all the nobles who were sitting on their asses and eating alot to actually help farm.) 

And of course, trading with Archanea may have helped. (Why didn't we see that you had one job IS.) 

 

You can honestly see this lack of thought in IRL situations, where people will see people having food or a food cart and then proclaim that "X country having food issues isn't real" on social media.

[Acacia Sgt]

4 minutes ago, Samz707 said:

Yeah I assumed they still had food in reserve but had either little or no actual overall increase in their surplus.

AKA: They would run out or have to ration food if it kept up.

Since otherwise they'd be kinda screwed at the end of the game if they were about to all die from famine. (Even with Alm saying how he'll toil the fields myself, which brings to mind the glorious mental image of Alm forcing all the nobles who were sitting on their asses and eating alot to actually help farm.) 

And of course, trading with Archanea may have helped. (Why didn't we see that you had one job IS.) 

You can honestly see this lack of thought in IRL situations, where people will see people having food or a food cart and then proclaim that "X country having food issues isn't real" on social media.

Well, there are still other sources in the meantime at least. Silque does mention that after the land began to decline, they resorted to eating more fish.

That said, I do wonder. There's mention about how the desert in eastern Zofia is expanding. Did it used to be bigger before Mila blessed the land, or it simply began expanding as a byproduct of the blessing suddenly being cut off? That would also be a concern to tackle short-term.

Of course, we must also consider the opposite happening in Rigel. How many of those swamps, mires, and other harsh terrain existed only because of Duma? It's possible that with him gone, Rigel may actually start to become more fertile. So it could pick up the slack somewhat.

Edited February 3 by Acacia Sgt

[Etrurian emperor]

1 hour ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Of course, we must also consider the opposite happening in Rigel. How many of those swamps, mires, and other harsh terrain existed only because of Duma? It's possible that with him gone, Rigel may actually start to become more fertile. So it could pick up the slack somewhat.

That's possible though its also possible that Duma moved himself and his followers into a domain that was already cold and swamp infested to toughen them up.

In either case the area seems much more livable during Awakenig's timeline.

[Samz707]

14 minutes ago, Etrurian emperor said:

That's possible though its also possible that Duma moved himself and his followers into a domain that was already cold and swamp infested to toughen them up.

In either case the area seems much more livable during Awakenig's timeline.

Now I'm just imagining the Swamps as the word's worst boy scouts field trip.

You will learn how to swim in filthy swamp water and you will like it.

Alternatively it's intended as some sort of defensive area, like building a castle or fort but more poisonous. 

[Acacia Sgt]

53 minutes ago, Etrurian emperor said:

That's possible though its also possible that Duma moved himself and his followers into a domain that was already cold and swamp infested to toughen them up.

In either case the area seems much more livable during Awakenig's timeline.

Well, I do recall at least one mention in-game on how the mires really were because Duma was degenerating, so he was corrupting the land too as a result.

Edited February 4 by Acacia Sgt

[Jotari]

2 hours ago, Samz707 said:

Yeah I assumed they still had food in reserve but had either little or no actual overall increase in their surplus.

AKA: They would run out or have to ration food if it kept up.

Since otherwise they'd be kinda screwed at the end of the game if they were about to all die from famine. (Even with Alm saying how he'll toil the fields myself, which brings to mind the glorious mental image of Alm forcing all the nobles who were sitting on their asses and eating alot to actually help farm.) 

And of course, trading with Archanea may have helped. (Why didn't we see that you had one job IS.) 

 

You can honestly see this lack of thought in IRL situations, where people will see people having food or a food cart and then proclaim that "X country having food issues isn't real" on social media.

I think the issue is show don't tell, or rather show one side tell the other. When we see food rations everywhere and are only told of food problems it does summon the idea of "famine, what famine". There's a reason UNICEF shows those starving kids and not the ones who are only beginning to lose weight. Yes people on social media ought to know better and not fall into propaganda traps (we all ought to, as propaganda is getting you somewhere), but a game isn't the same as social media. There isn't a vast quantity of information out there that we get filtered access to or know we exists but don't know the full story. A game, or a book, exists with the information we are given. If we don't see the starving people then how do we k ow they are there? We can't travel to Valentia ourselves or read a different news outlet. The text of the story is all that there is.

Tl;Dr Even if it's logically and rationally sensible that there are food problems and all the food we pick off the ground is rationed, they still should have showed and not just told us about the food shortages. Like have focus on a scene where someone is begging Alm for food, or worse, a scene where Alm is forced to confiscate food from commoners for the army.

[Samz707]

I guess this is unpopular as I seem to be the only person whoever brings it up:

Faye really should have had a boss convo with Slayde.

Him nearly killing her as a kid and Alm punching him seems like something that'd turn her crush into full on obsession but the fact Slayde was going to kill her specifically never comes up again.

It would have been great if she had a special boss convo with him and it's one of my biggest dissapointments with Echoes that she doesn't. 

[Acacia Sgt]

Why am I suddenly hearing M. Bison...

"For you, the day Slayde graced your village was the most important day of your life. But for me, it was Tuesday."

EDIT: Wait, I think I can do better.

---

Faye: It was ten years ago. Desaix hadn't promoted you to captain yet. You were just a petty knight. Huh! You and your gang of murderers gathered your small ounce of courage to raid across the village for food... Hmph. Sir Mycen was the village protector. An honorable man with an honorable code: justice. He gathered us children to stand against you.

[laughs]

Faye: You and your bullies were driven back by children with toy swords! My friend saved the village at the cost of her stay. You had her leave as you ran away!

Slayde: I'm sorry. I don't remember any of it.

Faye: You don't remember?

Slayde: For you, the day Slayde graced your village was the most important day of your life. But for me, it was Tuesday.

---

Hmm... not fully satisfied with it, but it works, I guess.

Edited February 4 by Acacia Sgt

[Shanty Pete's 1st Mate]

2 hours ago, Jotari said:

Tl;Dr Even if it's logically and rationally sensible that there are food problems and all the food we pick off the ground is rationed, they still should have showed and not just told us about the food shortages. Like have focus on a scene where someone is begging Alm for food, or worse, a scene where Alm is forced to confiscate food from commoners for the army.

I was just thinking about this, and how there should be mini-quests where you have to give someone food. Now, a few of those do exist, like the Cheesemonger in Zofia Palace, or the "starving" man who demands meat. Land meat. But the latter seems to be played for laughs, and the former isn't starving, but seeking out luxury. Likewise for the woman who wants ingredients to bake cookies for her daughter - a modest luxury, but not a matter of life-and-death.

There aren't any cases, far as I can see, where someone is actually starving and makes the request. Maybe they didn't do this because it would increase the moral gravity of the situation? Most of the quests are "wants", so throwing in a "need" quest creates a situation where Alm or Celica would be, arguably, a bad person to refuse. And they aren't avatars, so while you control them, the designers probably don't want their functional characterization left to the player's whims.

Having said that, it would've helped sell the scene if there were some "my family is starving, please give me any food" subquests. Maybe a playable character could be locked behind one? Like, you can feed Jesse a Bread Piece and bring him along, or leave him to die because you've got enough Mercs already. ...Still not sure which one would be more valuable in gameplay.

39 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Slayde: For you, the day Slayde graced your village was the most important day of your life. But for me, it was Tuesday.

I know it's referencing a scene, but Slayde is way too unhinged to stick to a script this tame. Twenty words in, and he still hasn't threatened to impale anyone yet.

4 hours ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Well, there are still other sources in the meantime at least. Silque does mention that after the land began to decline, they resorted to eating more fish.

Interesting - this suggests that Mila's blessing doesn't extend to the oceans. I wonder, is there a separate dragon-god who had dominion over these areas? I'm thinking of Greek sailors praying to Poseidon, but I don't know of any analogue in Valentia - or any FE setting, come to think of it.

On 2/1/2024 at 10:56 AM, Acacia Sgt said:

It's true the Herons would remain dead... but that's not really a good argument. Otherwise, that's like saying a murderer can't be punished since the victim won't come back to life. Which goes back to the whole "if not punished, they'll just do it again" issue.

Murder should be punished with a fine of 30000 Gold, which is just enough to restore one use to the Valkyrie staff. Plus inflation, cost of labor, and emotional damages... it can add up!

On 2/1/2024 at 12:36 PM, Alastor15243 said:

They don't refuse it so much as say it's politically and biologically impossible. He has to be told it literally is not an option before he adapts his plans.

"I can't believe Lions would continue eating people's faces!", said the commander of the "Lions-eating-people's-faces" army.

On 2/1/2024 at 3:11 AM, lenticular said:

"if I send this unit through these four awful classes they'll have an amazing build for the last three maps of the game".

How dare you speak ill of my Fighter->Thief->Mercenary->Warrior->Hero->War Master Balthus build. He totally had enough time to master two crappy Advanced classes without me playing heavy favorites. It definitely paid off in terms of performance, and was by no means an overcooked gimmick that never really got off the ground. No ma'am.

[Acacia Sgt]

21 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

I was just thinking about this, and how there should be mini-quests where you have to give someone food. Now, a few of those do exist, like the Cheesemonger in Zofia Palace, or the "starving" man who demands meat. Land meat. But the latter seems to be played for laughs, and the former isn't starving, but seeking out luxury. Likewise for the woman who wants ingredients to bake cookies for her daughter - a modest luxury, but not a matter of life-and-death.

There aren't any cases, far as I can see, where someone is actually starving and makes the request. Maybe they didn't do this because it would increase the moral gravity of the situation? Most of the quests are "wants", so throwing in a "need" quest creates a situation where Alm or Celica would be, arguably, a bad person to refuse. And they aren't avatars, so while you control them, the designers probably don't want their functional characterization left to the player's whims.

Having said that, it would've helped sell the scene if there were some "my family is starving, please give me any food" subquests. Maybe a playable character could be locked behind one? Like, you can feed Jesse a Bread Piece and bring him along, or leave him to die because you've got enough Mercs already. ...Still not sure which one would be more valuable in gameplay.

Personally, I think that the whole talks of famine is just what the Zofians feel is like now that Mila's blessing was cut off. To them, who lived in bountiful luxury for so long, it would feel like it's a famine because the food supply plummeted, even if it could still be plentiful enough from an outside perspective. It is stated the Zofians grew spoiled because Mila was providing for them without much effort. That's probably why you have the famine talks, despite every map being filled with crates and crates of oranges to the point the healing tiles from Gaiden were converted to be filled with those crates to recover HP.

21 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

I know it's referencing a scene, but Slayde is way too unhinged to stick to a script this tame. Twenty words in, and he still hasn't threatened to impale anyone yet.

It's from the live-action Street Fighter movie.

The context was too similar to resist making a parody of it. XD

21 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

Interesting - this suggests that Mila's blessing doesn't extend to the oceans. I wonder, is there a separate dragon-god who had dominion over these areas? I'm thinking of Greek sailors praying to Poseidon, but I don't know of any analogue in Valentia - or any FE setting, come to think of it.

Well, back in Gaiden she was referred to as an Earth Goddess. So yes, her domain always seemed to be only the land. I guess this is also why the revival springs are also part of her powers. The dead get buried underground and all that.

A few games mention a Shanty Pete that sailors/pirates/at-least-one-Anna swear to, but it's worth pointing out he's a localization invention.

Concept ideas for the first game had a clan of Sea Dragons with their leader being named Neptune. Mystery has a scrapped Sea Dragon class. SoV itself added them as the dagons... which their meat is eaten by humans, despite being degenerated dragons... yep.

21 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

Murder should be punished with a fine of 30000 Gold, which is just enough to restore one use to the Valkyrie staff. Plus inflation, cost of labor, and emotional damages... it can add up!

It's actually 50K... but yes.

Edited February 4 by Acacia Sgt

[Shanty Pete's 1st Mate]

27 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

A few games mention a Shanty Pete that sailors/pirates/at-least-one-Anna swear to, but it's worth pointing out he's a localization invention.

Yo-ho-ho, I see Shanty Pete's tale has spread far and wide! Me captain be truly a figure o' legend. But between you and me, he's no god. It'd do ye just as much good to pray to a passing pelican!

29 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Concept ideas for the first game had a clan of Sea Dragons with their leader being named Neptune. Mystery has a scrapped Sea Dragon class. SoV itself added them as the dagons... which their meat is eaten by humans, despite being degenerated dragons... yep.

Interesting. I wonder if Fates' original overly-long-script might have included a "dragon over the seas"? We know there are like a dozen "First Dragons", but over half of them remain completely unexplored. It wouldn't surprise me to see them associated with particular elements, or environs.

A bit weird of a thing to eat, maybe, but that's the circle of life, baybee! One day, a dagon eats your friend, and the next, you fish her up for a tasty revenge.

35 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

Personally, I think that the whole talks of famine is just what the Zofians feel is like now that Mila's blessing was cut off. To them, who lived in bountiful luxury for so long, it would feel like it's a famine because the food supply plummeted, even if it could still be plentiful enough from an outside perspective. It is stated the Zofians grew spoiled because Mila was providing for them without much effort. That's probably why you have the famine talks, despite every map being filled with crates and crates of oranges to the point the healing tiles from Gaiden were converted to be filled with those crates to recover HP.

Ooh, I like this. It would explain away the discrepancy, and make internal lore-sense. I don't think this is what the writers had in mind, but I'm honestly here for a "phony famine".

Hm... on some level, though, I would've expected obesity to be an issue for Zofians. If they can get a ton of food with minimal physical effort, they'd be just like... your average American. But the only obese Zofian we meet is Desaix, and he's a villain. From what little we see of King Lima the last, he's incredibly gaunt. Perhaps his vice was drugs, instead? ...Wait, was Mila his dealer? If she saw how happy they made her people, would she give them away freely?

...This is getting into the weeds, so I'm gonna stop idly speculating now.

44 minutes ago, Acacia Sgt said:

It's actually 50K... but yes.

In FE4, it costs 30K. Most players might expect it to be 50K, since that's how much other legendary weapons cost to repair. But I guess Kaga didn't value an individual human life quite that much.

Funnily enough, this means that the Valkyrie Staff has the same cost-per-use as the Berserk and Sleep Staves. Apparently, making an enemy spend a few turns napping requires equal effort to ressurecting the dead.

[Acacia Sgt]

12 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

Yo-ho-ho, I see Shanty Pete's tale has spread far and wide! Me captain be truly a figure o' legend. But between you and me, he's no god. It'd do ye just as much good to pray to a passing pelican!

Haha, yeah, but it was funny to bring it up, considering things.

12 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

Interesting. I wonder if Fates' original overly-long-script might have included a "dragon over the seas"? We know there are like a dozen "First Dragons", but over half of them remain completely unexplored. It wouldn't surprise me to see them associated with particular elements, or environs.

I think there is a mention (in the artkbook? Somewhere at least) of a planned Lightning Tribe on Nohr's side of the canyon. Likely to balance the fact Hoshido's side has two, but Nohr only one. Since the tribes also descend each from one of the First Dragons... then yeah, Lightning could be another of the twelve.

Though yes, it is true how we don't know all of them. We have:

Astral
Dusk/Dark
Dawn/Light
Silent/Water
Fire
Wind
Ice
Whatever element the Rainbow Sage is supposed to be

Even if we count the scrapped Lightning, that still leaves a few unaccounted for.

12 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

A bit weird of a thing to eat, maybe, but that's the circle of life, baybee! One day, a dagon eats your friend, and the next, you fish her up for a tasty revenge.

Well... yeah, I guess. After all, degenerated dragons are no more different to animals. So meat is meat, I suppose.

12 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

Ooh, I like this. It would explain away the discrepancy, and make internal lore-sense. I don't think this is what the writers had in mind, but I'm honestly here for a "phony famine".

Hm... on some level, though, I would've expected obesity to be an issue for Zofians. If they can get a ton of food with minimal physical effort, they'd be just like... your average American. But the only obese Zofian we meet is Desaix, and he's a villain. From what little we see of King Lima the last, he's incredibly gaunt. Perhaps his vice was drugs, instead? ...Wait, was Mila his dealer? If she saw how happy they made her people, would she give them away freely?

...This is getting into the weeds, so I'm gonna stop idly speculating now.

Well, being spoiled like that doesn't necessarily mean they'd become gluttonous. Not all of them at least. Or since we are dealing with dragon-blessed food, maybe it was also blessed to not be fattening? Hmm... yeah, maybe a little far fetched... who knows.

12 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

In FE4, it costs 30K. Most players might expect it to be 50K, since that's how much other legendary weapons cost to repair. But I guess Kaga didn't value an individual human life quite that much.

Funnily enough, this means that the Valkyrie Staff has the same cost-per-use as the Berserk and Sleep Staves. Apparently, making an enemy spend a few turns napping requires equal effort to ressurecting the dead.

Oh, I see.

Edited February 4 by Acacia Sgt

[Jotari]

2 hours ago, Samz707 said:

I guess this is unpopular as I seem to be the only person whoever brings it up:

Faye really should have had a boss convo with Slayde.

Him nearly killing her as a kid and Alm punching him seems like something that'd turn her crush into full on obsession but the fact Slayde was going to kill her specifically never comes up again.

It would have been great if she had a special boss convo with him and it's one of my biggest dissapointments with Echoes that she doesn't. 

I think that can be wrapped up in the overall general complaint of "Echoes should have actually had boss convos". Because, it's not just Slayde and Faye, there is only one (Sonia-Jedah) boss convo in the game entirely. Two if you count the Alm, Celica convo death quote with Duma, but even that's a stretch given it still plays if you use Nosferatu or an Amiibo. No one else talks to each other. Not Luther and Delthea. Not Nuibaba and Alm. Not Kamui and the Necro Dungeon. Not Deen and Grieth. Not any of the dozens of pairings that make perfect sense to say something and would be expected in any other game.

25 minutes ago, Shanty Pete's 1st Mate said:

Hm... on some level, though, I would've expected obesity to be an issue for Zofians. If they can get a ton of food with minimal physical effort, they'd be just like... your average American. But the only obese Zofian we meet is Desaix, and he's a villain. From what little we see of King Lima the last, he's incredibly gaunt. Perhaps his vice was drugs, instead? ...Wait, was Mila his dealer? If she saw how happy they made her people, would she give them away freely?

...This is getting into the weeds, so I'm gonna stop idly speculating now.

There is the Great Merchant Alessio, whom neither wiki has an article for. Though the good wiki does have portraits for all the NPCs even it they don't use it for anything.

Edited February 4 by Jotari

[Hrothgar777]

Despite the old memes lionizing Claude as the "CEO of (anti) Racism", his plan to solve bigotry by dismantling the garrison at Fodlan's Locket and opening the borders between the two continents seems incredibly foolish more than anything.

Granted, I'm only on Chapter 15 of Verdant Wind so maybe I don't know the full context, but it's worth mentioning that Almyra is still under the rule of a hostile government. From doing Hilda's paralogue, which I couldn't beat until post-timeskip, it seems clear enough that the Almyran army is dangerous even in small numbers. Claude being the Almyran prince's half-brother is likewise a very poor guarantee that they could be trusted not to invade, as Edelgard grew up in a more "civilized" culture than Almyra but still went on to spend 5 years killing her former classmates and her stepbrother. Power craves more power, and the whims of geopolitics can make wars inevitable.

Here's what he could've done: strike a deal with the Almyran prince saying that both sides will exchange 10,000 immigrants each, namely married men and their families, to be dispersed across a very wide area. A huge number of foreigners living in one place tends to inspire fear and create more racial animus instead of less, but exposure to a handful of friendly immigrants can have the desired effect. The two cultures could gradually acclimate themselves to the presence of outsiders, over, say, 30 or 40 years. Then a marriage agreement between the royal families of both sides (Byleth instead of Claude?), with the royal heir being raised in both countries and standing to inherit both.

Edited February 14 by Hrothgar777

[Jotari]

3 hours ago, Hrothgar777 said:

Despite the old memes lionizing Claude as the "CEO of (anti) Racism", his plan to solve bigotry by dismantling the garrison at Fodlan's Locket and opening the borders between the two continents seems incredibly foolish more than anything.

Granted, I'm only on Chapter 15 of Verdant Wind so maybe I don't know the full context, but it's worth mentioning that Almyra is still under the rule of a hostile government. From doing Hilda's paralogue, which I couldn't beat until post-timeskip, it seems clear enough that the Almyran army is dangerous even in small numbers. Claude being the Almyran prince's half-brother is likewise a very poor guarantee that they could be trusted not to invade, as Edelgard grew up in a more "civilized" culture than Almyra but still went on to spend 5 years killing her former classmates and her stepbrother. Power craves more power, and the whims of geopolitics can make wars inevitable.

Here's what he could've done: strike a deal with the Almyran prince saying that both sides will exchange 10,000 immigrants each, namely married men and their families, to be dispersed across a very wide area. A huge number of foreigners living in one place tends to inspire fear and create more racial animus instead of less, but exposure to a handful of friendly immigrants can have the desired effect. The two cultures could gradually acclimate themselves to the presence of outsiders, over, say, 30 or 40 years. Then a marriage agreement between the royal families of both sides (Byleth instead of Claude?), with the royal heir being raised in both countries and standing to inherit both.

Does Claude specifically say the garrison is to be disbanded? I kind of took his whole breaking open Fodlan's locked spiel to mean just normalizing relations and trade in general. Granted I do still find the whole thing a bit vague. But I think that's part of the meme people make out of Claude. That he basically solved racism over night.