Write what you want to happen in Book IV?

[EricaofRenais]

I don't expect much from the story so nothing I really want there.  About the only thing I want is the new OC to be a Duo hero so everyone get one of those to play with, or a green wolf beast unit.  Either of those and I will be OK with what comes.

[Mercakete]

Oh dang. In that xenologue Loki mentioned the Dokkalfar, who are apparently creatures of nightmares... Could this be something she was subtly hinting at with the Adrift stuff last year, when she was talking to little Azura? She talked about very similar themes: dreams, what is truly reality, wishes... The are 9 realms were also referenced (which Loki referenced back then, too.) And the Dokkalfar are certainly going to be the next batch of antagonists, I think. I'm curious about what they'll look like... They have the potential to loom really alien if they're the stuff of nightmares.

Also seems like IS is trying to increase the game's story's longevity, so we can expect that there won't be resolutions to the long-standing plotlines for quite some time. After all, if they got resolved, the story could be over. That is, Alfathor (I hope I'm spelling that right) is basically watching things progress for Askr like a favorite TV show, and having Thor and Loki keep things in order so it continues. And now, at least Lif is one of the generals in Alfathor's service, watching the Alfonse of who defeated Hel for what he and the others will face and do next. (Thrasir wasn't shown making the pact, so she could have chosen not to go through with it. That particular bit was left ambiguous.)

[Sentinel07]

16 minutes ago, Mercakete said:

Oh dang. In that xenologue Loki mentioned the Dokkalfar, who are apparently creatures of nightmares... Could this be something she was subtly hinting at with the Adrift stuff last year, when she was talking to little Azura? She talked about very similar themes: dreams, what is truly reality, wishes... The are 9 realms were also referenced (which Loki referenced back then, too.) And the Dokkalfar are certainly going to be the next batch of antagonists, I think. I'm curious about what they'll look like... They have the potential to loom really alien if they're the stuff of nightmares.

Also seems like IS is trying to increase the game's story's longevity, so we can expect that there won't be resolutions to the long-standing plotlines for quite some time. After all, if they got resolved, the story could be over. That is, Alfathor (I hope I'm spelling that right) is basically watching things progress for Askr like a favorite TV show, and having Thor and Loki keep things in order so it continues. And now, at least Lif is one of the generals in Alfathor's service, watching the Alfonse of who defeated Hel for what he and the others will face and do next. (Thrasir wasn't shown making the pact, so she could have chosen not to go through with it. That particular bit was left ambiguous.)

That term literally means Dark Elves, so I doubt they'll look like aliens.

But yes, dreams appear to be the central theme for Book 4, and perhaps that was their intention with Adrift.

[Mercakete]

3 minutes ago, Sentinel07 said:

That term literally means Dark Elves, so I doubt they'll look like aliens.

But yes, dreams appear to be the central theme for Book 4, and perhaps that was their intention with Adrift.

To clarify, I never said they'd look like aliens. I said they have the opportunity to look alien (as in the adjective.) That is, "strange/not at all like what one usually experiences."

[Hilda]

The return of Bruno. It has to happen ¬.¬

[Zeo]

I wonder if the book will start next month or if they'll wait until the new year.

[Sentinel07]

15 minutes ago, Zeo said:

I wonder if the book will start next month or if they'll wait until the new year.

Next month most likely. Achievements for Book 4 are already in Google, and I doubt they would wait close to 2 months for those to come, especially since they've been averaging a New Story chapter every month for a while now.

Plus, Book 4 may not be tied to a banner either, just like Book 3 was.

[DefyingFates]

Story-wise I just want Sharena and/ or Anna to get the development Alfonse got in Book 3. Also Book 3 ended with a big question mark over Eir, which surprised me. I wonder if we'll get an answer to that in Book 4 or 5, or if it's just never going to be brought up again...

Mechanically, my wishlist would be:

• I hope we don't get any more elements.
• It'd be nice to get a free Pair Up/ Duo Hero.
• An ability to trade Arena Medals/ Badges for the currencies that actually mean something and/ or Skill Manuals.
• A Naglfar refine! And more refines in general, I guess. The CYL 1 refines opened the door to some crazy upgrades and, while I get that the CYL Heroes' aren't going to be beat any time soon, I hope we get more impressive refines in the future.

By the way, @Ice Dragon, apparently you predicted FEH has a 5-yr life span? Would you mind elaborating on this, please?

Edit: @Sentinel07: wait, really? Wow! I hope we'll get an official reveal soon then!

Edited November 22, 2019 by DefyingFates

[Sentinel07]

4 hours ago, DefyingFates said:

Story-wise I just want Sharena and/ or Anna to get the development Alfonse got in Book 3. Also Book 3 ended with a big question mark over Eir, which surprised me. I wonder if we'll get an answer to that in Book 4 or 5, or if it's just never going to be brought up again...

Mechanically, my wishlist would be:

• I hope we don't get any more elements.
• It'd be nice to get a free Pair Up/ Duo Hero.
• An ability to trade Arena Medals/ Badges for the currencies that actually mean something and/ or Skill Manuals.
• A Naglfar refine! And more refines in general, I guess. The CYL 1 refines opened the door to some crazy upgrades and, while I get that the CYL Heroes' aren't going to be beat any time soon, I hope we get more impressive refines in the future.

By the way, @Ice Dragon, apparently you predicted FEH has a 5-yr life span? Would you mind elaborating on this, please?

Edit: @Sentinel07: wait, really? Wow! I hope we'll get an official reveal soon then!

Honestly, I'm not sure what can be done with Anna, given she's basically the same Anna we've always known just with a different title. She's basically just a mascot like she's always been hence her lack of big story moments.

Sharena on the other hand definitely needs something. Unlike Alfonse, she has no current path in life other than being a cheerleader.

[GrandeRampel]

I want the plot to be less Alfonse-centric. If they do that I'll be happy.

[DefyingFates]

40 minutes ago, Sentinel07 said:

Honestly, I'm not sure what can be done with Anna, given she's basically the same Anna we've always known just with a different title. She's basically just a mascot like she's always been hence her lack of big story moments.

Fair, but we got a few hints of brilliance from her early on in Book 2 where she tried to hide our army's tracks through Nifl though admittedly Laegjarn saw through that immediately. It's not much, but I'd like to see more of that, if nothing else. I mean, she must have some talent to become a Commander, right?

4 minutes ago, GrandeRampel said:

I want the plot to be less Alfonse-centric. If they do that I'll be happy.

Hopefully Book 3 was Alfonse's big breakout story and future Books will look at the others, but it's also possible that all Book 3 did was solidify Alfonse as the main character of FEH...

[Interdimensional Observer]

36 minutes ago, DefyingFates said:

I mean, she must have some talent to become a Commander, right?

You've never heard of sinecures or simony and benefices?

What do these mean? Give 💰, get easy job, easy job usually equals 💰💰💰 in the long term. Or you can opt for favors in kind over money bribes. 

Pull a few family strings for a new gilded designer massage chair for the King of Aching Backs of Zenith, and you can get a no-show job in the bureaucracy or military that pays dividends for the nothing work. Don't worry, your job won't be purged from officialdom as long as the wheels of government stay greasy. If you have to though, add some more lard to the system to keep it going. You can increase your net income if you invest in putting a few more family members into the system. Did you know another Anna is Supreme Architect of Review of Zenithian Public Works?

Edited November 23, 2019 by Interdimensional Observer

[Ice Dragon]

5 hours ago, DefyingFates said:

By the way, @Ice Dragon, apparently you predicted FEH has a 5-yr life span? Would you mind elaborating on this, please?

Live-update games are typically designed for a 5-year life span. This doesn't mean it will suddenly end at 5 years. It means that when the game is proposed and under development, it needs to have a roadmap, concrete or abstract, that will ensure that it doesn't run out of content or players before then.

In the case of Heroes, this means things like pacing the release of characters so that they don't run out, pacing power creep so that old content isn't made obsolete too quickly, etc. Story isn't actually too important in this regard because you can pretty much always set up a new conflict whenever you bring closure to an existing story arc.

Edited November 23, 2019 by Ice Dragon

[DefyingFates]

On 11/23/2019 at 12:00 AM, Interdimensional Observer said:

*snip*

That's...pretty harsh xD

On 11/23/2019 at 12:03 AM, Ice Dragon said:

Live-update games are typically designed for a 5-year life span. This doesn't mean it will suddenly end at 5 years. It means that when the game is proposed and under development, it needs to have a roadmap, concrete or abstract, that will ensure that it doesn't run out of content or players before then.

In the case of Heroes, this means things like pacing the release of characters so that they don't run out, pacing power creep so that old content isn't made obsolete too quickly, etc. Story isn't actually too important in this regard because you can pretty much always set up a new conflict whenever you bring closure to an existing story arc.

TIL, thank you!

P.S. I had a dream that the Book 4 trailer came out and was scored to the first Death Note OP. I don't recall what was in the trailer, just the music...which is weird since I haven't heard it in years...

Edit: I just checked and it appears we've already passed the one year anniversary of the Book 3 teaser (Nov 7th). I wouldn't be surprised if this means Book 4 is launching in January...

Edited November 24, 2019 by DefyingFates

[Mercakete]

Oh. Here's an idea: what with the new mythic, what if the next book focuses on heroes of yore? (At least regarding the sorts of heroes we can expect to be able to summon.) They inspire dreams (or nightmares) of sorts, after all, so there's a "dream" connection, there. It'd explain the gods' taking a special interest in this next set of events, too, since these ancient heroes played a role in history worthy of remembrance.

[DefyingFates]

20 hours ago, Mercakete said:

Oh. Here's an idea: what with the new mythic, what if the next book focuses on heroes of yore? (At least regarding the sorts of heroes we can expect to be able to summon.) They inspire dreams (or nightmares) of sorts, after all, so there's a "dream" connection, there. It'd explain the gods' taking a special interest in this next set of events, too, since these ancient heroes played a role in history worthy of remembrance.

Ooh, that would be pretty neat!

[Sentinel07]

Think we should make this the official Book 4 thread or make a new one?

[DefyingFates]

1 hour ago, Sentinel07 said:

Think we should make this the official Book 4 thread or make a new one?

I decided to make one so newcomers wouldn't have to skip through four pages of speculation. I hope that's okay with everyone!

[Etrurian emperor]

I would like a Forging Bonds where team Embla takes the lead for a change. Rather than Team Askr speaking with the new Heroes its Veronica, Bruno, Loki and Xander who do the talking and show how much different Heroes have it in Embla. 

Xander and Bruno would have serious discussions with the new Heroes while the girls very much don't. With Veronica it could focus on her childishness or naivety with the younger Heroes or her tendency to be a terrible employer for the older Heroes. In particular it would be funny if she'd be paired with Rennac who's glad to be free of L'arachel only to find out that Veronica is worse. Loki would of course give the Heroes paired with her hellish assignments because she finds it funny. 

Additionally swapping up the roster could be fun too. Maybe replace Alfonse with Henriette and have the plot be that he's sick and that his mommy takes charges getting the rare medicine required.