Awakening Lunatic. Need to know some stuff.

[Spectraman]

Hey guys, so I started Awakening Lunatic and I am on Chapter 2. I just wanted to ask some questions. For this game, I will not use DLC, but I will use everything at my disposal, even grinding. So does anyone know which Chapter I should stop using Frederick so I can grind? I am just that type of person that wants to beat a chapter with my own units. Can anyone tell me when I can start grinding in this game early on? I would appreciate the help because I don't feel like no-grinding this game since I don't have a lot of time on my hands to strategize in this game after Conquest took all of that away from me when I beat Lunatic

Edited September 10, 2017 by Spectraman

[SoulWeaver]

Since you're not using DLC, more or less the second Reeking Boxes become available is the earliest you can get started grinding.

[Spectraman]

how much do they cost and on which map should i use it on just in case the risen arent too strong

[Azzara]

Reeking boxes cost 4800 G. The best map to use them on is the North Road (the chapter you are currently on) because the forts give you extra defense and heal you. The level of the risen does not depend on the location. They are always as strong as your best units.

Unfortunately, the monsters summoned by the reeking box carry less than 4800 gold, so you might eventually run out of money and weapons. After chapter 3 risen will start appearing automatically on the map.

[Spectraman]

Okay, and last question. When should I stop using Frederick?

[Kuroi Tsubasa Tenshi]

If you're going to grind Risen, fight them as early as possible. There seems to be some sort of counter that goes up with every battle and it causes Risen to scale. After a certain amount of battles, you're not going to be able to kill them without builds specialized toward it. Also, a way to get around the gold issue is to run either Despoil or Leif's Blade in order to hopefully proc Bullion (S) drops.

As for Fred, I wouldn't recommend benching him until C8 at the earliest. Typically, what happens with most Lunatic armies is that Robin matches his strength around C3, then exponentially outruns him, but this has the double-edge of Robin easily murdering anything that gets in the way. Fred can still hit really hard and (with proper pair-up bonuses) survive attacks from enemies up to and including those in C18 (granted, practically speaking, anyone undergoing training should be ready to hold their own by C14). This means that Fred can keep softening targets for new trainees to feast on while Robin (and anyone else who successfully makes it through Fred's training regimen) keeps them safe.

[Spectraman]

wait, I am at chapter 2 right now. What level should robin be at. Also is Chapter 3 moslty a grind chapters for robin?

[Moblin Major General]

Another tip, don't even attempt to recruit Donnel, especially if you aren't DLC grinding. I bought EXPonential Growth just so I could potentially one day get through Lunatic Mode.

[Kuroi Tsubasa Tenshi]

14 hours ago, Spectraman said:

wait, I am at chapter 2 right now. What level should robin be at. Also is Chapter 3 moslty a grind chapters for robin?

If you used the water trick, around level 9. If you didn't use the water trick, about 7. C3 can be a grind chapter for Robin, though I think even playing normally you'll find that it favours Robin because the enemy army comp is pretty vulnerable to being taken down by speedy mages and Robin is pretty much the only one who can reasonably fit that bill at this point. The inevitable extra bulk from Veteran's mega leveling also means that Robin can engage rather aggressively and live to tell the tale (unlike Miriel or Virion).

2 hours ago, Hylian Air Force said:

Another tip, don't even attempt to recruit Donnel, especially if you aren't DLC grinding. I bought EXPonential Growth just so I could potentially one day get through Lunatic Mode.

Donnel actually isn't all that hard to get. That Archer in the top-left corner of his stage is pretty much ripe for abuse (easily pinned by melee) and if Donnel kills it by himself (no allied DSs), he'll gain a level. However, trying to train him beyond that is ill advised.

[Moblin Major General]

4 minutes ago, Kuroi Tsubasa Tenshi said:

Donnel actually isn't all that hard to get. That Archer in the top-left corner of his stage is pretty much ripe for abuse (easily pinned by melee) and if Donnel kills it by himself (no allied DSs), he'll gain a level. However, trying to train him beyond that is ill advised.

Well, if I can get past the fact he requires taking 4 units out of the fight for Paralogue 1, I at least have him as marriage fodder to either Sully, Tharja, or Nowi (if any of them weren't already married to Gaius or M!Robin). Granted, he doesn't do their bases any favors either, but he gives PegKnight as as reclass option, meaning GF access to any of the female 2nd gen units not named Cynthia, Lucina, or Severa.

[Kuroi Tsubasa Tenshi]

2 hours ago, Hylian Air Force said:

Well, if I can get past the fact he requires taking 4 units out of the fight for Paralogue 1, I at least have him as marriage fodder to either Sully, Tharja, or Nowi (if any of them weren't already married to Gaius or M!Robin). Granted, he doesn't do their bases any favors either, but he gives PegKnight as as reclass option, meaning GF access to any of the female 2nd gen units not named Cynthia, Lucina, or Severa.

But he doesn't. He only requires the treasure Archer in the top-left corner. Just have Donnel trap the guy in and kill him entirely through his own damage (spoilers: it's a pitiful 3 per hit). The chip EXP is worth around 82 cumulatively before the anti-abuse system reduces chip gain to 0, but then the kill still gives full EXP, pushing him over. Just make sure he doesn't have any pair partner, as that can possibly deny him EXP (if not because of a Dual Strike, because a +Str pair will make it take less hits for the kill).

[Moblin Major General]

6 minutes ago, Kuroi Tsubasa Tenshi said:

But he doesn't. He only requires the treasure Archer in the top-left corner. Just have Donnel trap the guy in and kill him entirely through his own damage (spoilers: it's a pitiful 3 per hit). The chip EXP is worth around 82 cumulatively before the anti-abuse system reduces chip gain to 0, but then the kill still gives full EXP, pushing him over. Just make sure he doesn't have any pair partner, as that can possibly deny him EXP (if not because of a Dual Strike, because a +Str pair will make it take less hits for the kill).

Oh. I thought you were talking about the archer near the starting position. Still, you would have to blitz and then cover bases so he doesn't die before you get to the archer.

[Kuroi Tsubasa Tenshi]

Well, he can just hide behind someone else until then. The party still needs to be strong enough to fight their way out of that initial wave, but they need to be that regardless of whether or not Donnel's getting recruited.