Some beginner questions (Warning: Unmarked spoilers ahead!)

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Hello! I'm a newcomer to the series. I bought Three Houses last week and I just started Chapter 2 on the Black Eagles route (planning on going Crimson Flower). I have a few questions about moving forward.

-What should I be focusing more on right now, building support with the characters I want to recruit? Or building support between my preferred romantic pairings? I'm torn right now cause I want to recruit Ingrid and Felix as soon as I can, which means I need at least B-support with both of them. But I also want to make sure my favorite couples (Byleth & Edelgard and Dorothea & Petra) get together and have their paired endings. I just got Dorothea and Petra's C-support convo, but nothing between Byleth and El yet.

-How exactly do non-Byleth pairings work? I read somewhere that it has to do with the first person a character gets to A-support with. So if Dorothea gets to A-support with Petra before anyone else, I'll get their paired ending? What if another character gets to A-support with Dorothea or Petra later on? Will I lose the Dorothea and Petra ending if that happens?

-What are the best endgame weapons for my planned team?

       -Enlightened One Byleth: Sublime Creator Sword?

       -Emperor Edelgard: Aymr axe?

       -Dancer Dorothea: A sword, I'm guessing. But I have no idea which one.

       -Assassin Petra: I'm guessing Thunderbrand. Or would this be better for Felix? Can I even get Thunderbrand without recruiting Catherine?

       -Falcon Knight Ingrid: Lance of Ruin? If so, can I get it without recruiting Sylvain?

       -Swordmaster Felix: If not Thunderbrand then I don't know.

       -Bow Knight Bernadetta: Everyone says the best bow is Claude's. But can I even get it as a Black Eagle?

 

Any suggestions are much appreciated ^_^  Thanks!

[Shadow Mir]

2 hours ago, RainbowMoon said:

-How exactly do non-Byleth pairings work? I read somewhere that it has to do with the first person a character gets to A-support with. So if Dorothea gets to A-support with Petra before anyone else, I'll get their paired ending? What if another character gets to A-support with Dorothea or Petra later on? Will I lose the Dorothea and Petra ending if that happens?

I'm not sure. All I can say on the matter is that if you have the DLC, you can guarantee that a certain pair gets their paired ending by using the Wayseer in the Abyss. Well, that, and A+ supports override A supports. Incidentally, Byleth doesn't have to deal with this; for Byleth to get an S support, after a spoileriffic event, you must go to the captain's room; you'll see Sothis in there. Talk to her, and you get the ring. On the day that your last mission falls on, you'll be prompted to pick someone to share your life with. (Note that the last Mission in Crimson Flower and Azure Moon is in fact two maps played consecutively, with no opportunity to go to the monastery in between; make sure you have a good amount of Smithing Stones and Black-Sand Steel!!)

2 hours ago, RainbowMoon said:

-What should I be focusing more on right now, building support with the characters I want to recruit? Or building support between my preferred romantic pairings? I'm torn right now cause I want to recruit Ingrid and Felix as soon as I can, which means I need at least B-support with both of them. But I also want to make sure my favorite couples (Byleth & Edelgard and Dorothea & Petra) get together and have their paired endings. I just got Dorothea and Petra's C-support convo, but nothing between Byleth and El yet.

The former. You have the whole game to build supports between your couples, but recruitment is only doable in until part 1. By the by, if you don't know yet, you'll need a C (maybe C+) support between Byleth and Edelgard and to go with her during a free day in chapter 11 (interacting with her in this instance will give you a Wham Line and a prompt). 

2 hours ago, RainbowMoon said:

Can I even get Thunderbrand without recruiting Catherine?

You do...

Spoiler

in the last chapter of Crimson Flower.

 

2 hours ago, RainbowMoon said:

Everyone says the best bow is Claude's. But can I even get it as a Black Eagle?

Nope.

2 hours ago, RainbowMoon said:

       -Falcon Knight Ingrid: Lance of Ruin? If so, can I get it without recruiting Sylvain?

You'd need to recruit Sylvain to get it, as it's tied to his paralogue*. However, if she's in your house before doing her paralogue, you can get Luin and Galatea Pegasus Co. (Note that flying units can only use flying battalions, of which this is one).

*Technically, it isn't, but if you had elected to give the lance back to House Gautier after chapter 5, you'll get it after clearing Sylvain's paralogue.

 

Edited May 10, 2020 by Shadow Mir

[eclipse]

16 minutes ago, RainbowMoon said:

-What should I be focusing more on right now, building support with the characters I want to recruit? Or building support between my preferred romantic pairings? I'm torn right now cause I want to recruit Ingrid and Felix as soon as I can, which means I need at least B-support with both of them. But I also want to make sure my favorite couples (Byleth & Edelgard and Dorothea & Petra) get together and have their paired endings. I just got Dorothea and Petra's C-support convo, but nothing between Byleth and El yet.

You'll have the entire game to get to A-rank for your preferred supports.  Recruitment is far more limited.

17 minutes ago, RainbowMoon said:

-How exactly do non-Byleth pairings work? I read somewhere that it has to do with the first person a character gets to A-support with. So if Dorothea gets to A-support with Petra before anyone else, I'll get their paired ending? What if another character gets to A-support with Dorothea or Petra later on? Will I lose the Dorothea and Petra ending if that happens?

It's something like support points, which are hidden.  But if you're worried, have 'em share a meal when possible, and it should work out.

18 minutes ago, RainbowMoon said:

       -Enlightened One Byleth: Sublime Creator Sword?

       -Emperor Edelgard: Aymr axe?

       -Dancer Dorothea: A sword, I'm guessing. But I have no idea which one.

       -Assassin Petra: I'm guessing Thunderbrand. Or would this be better for Felix? Can I even get Thunderbrand without recruiting Catherine?

       -Falcon Knight Ingrid: Lance of Ruin? If so, can I get it without recruiting Sylvain?

       -Swordmaster Felix: If not Thunderbrand then I don't know.

       -Bow Knight Bernadetta: Everyone says the best bow is Claude's. But can I even get it as a Black Eagle?

For the most part, you can get away with forged Iron/Steel on lower difficulties (forged Silver/magical for later things), and hack out the good stuff only for those particularly tough battles.  You'll generally want to use combat arts with weapons that are easier to repair.

If your Byleth is female, you'll automatically recruit Sylvain.  If Byleth is male, it'll take a bit more, but IMO he's well worth it.  If anything, you'll see some amusing supports between Felix, Ingrid, and Sylvain.  Ingrid should have her own beatstick, but I'm not sure when she gets it (and IMO it suits her a lot better than Sylvain's).

[paladin21]

1 hour ago, RainbowMoon said:

       -Dancer Dorothea: A sword, I'm guessing. But I have no idea which one.

Levin sword+ (a magic 1-3 range weapon) and steel sword+ (in case you want to use Hexblade art). She's way better using Black magic though, and she can as a dancer.

1 hour ago, RainbowMoon said:

       -Falcon Knight Ingrid: Lance of Ruin? If so, can I get it without recruiting Sylvain?

You can use her personal relic, Luin, after the paralogue she shares with Dorothea. Just make sure to have her recruited before doing it or you'll lose it forever.

1 hour ago, RainbowMoon said:

  Assassin Petra: I'm guessing Thunderbrand. Or would this be better for Felix? Can I even get Thunderbrand without recruiting Catherine?

  Swordmaster Felix: If not Thunderbrand then I don't know.

  Bow Knight Bernadetta: Everyone says the best bow is Claude's. But can I even get it as a Black Eagle?

You don't need everyone to be using legendary weapons or relics. Silver+ or Brave+ might work just as fine, and if you use arts a lot, high durability ones, like Steel+ are a good option as well. As a matter of fact, you won't even get sword or bow relics/legendary with your listed characters. The only sword relic you can get soon enough is the Blutgang, and you require Marianne during part two.

For legendary weapons, you could get the Inexhaustible bow by recruiting Leonie (and doing her shared paralogue soon), or the Archanean Regalia by defeating monsters (you'll have to forge them with Mithril, though).

Other powerful weapons include those of Zoltan, that you may come across here and there during your playthrough.

However, like they say above, just use the regular iron/steel weapons if you see they're enough to secure a kill. They are easy to repair and, when using some arts, more than enough.

[Shadow Mir]

18 hours ago, RainbowMoon said:

-What are the best endgame weapons for my planned team?

       -Enlightened One Byleth: Sublime Creator Sword?

       -Emperor Edelgard: Aymr axe?

       -Dancer Dorothea: A sword, I'm guessing. But I have no idea which one.

       -Assassin Petra: I'm guessing Thunderbrand. Or would this be better for Felix? Can I even get Thunderbrand without recruiting Catherine?

       -Falcon Knight Ingrid: Lance of Ruin? If so, can I get it without recruiting Sylvain?

       -Swordmaster Felix: If not Thunderbrand then I don't know.

       -Bow Knight Bernadetta: Everyone says the best bow is Claude's. But can I even get it as a Black Eagle?

Like stated earlier, you can get by with iron and steel mostly. Other weapons you might want to consider getting are the Spear of Assal (from Seteth and Flayn's paralogue, which is in part 1; also comes with a staff that increases magic attack range) and The Inexhaustible, which comes from a paralogue with Linhardt and Leonie (you'll have to recruit the latter; also, you'll have to spare Seteth and Flayn by having Byleth defeat one of them to keep it open). And honestly, most of the relics aren't that great. Including Aymr, which has it even worse than most relics because it needs Agarthium, which is one of the rarest materials in the game, to repair, as opposed to Umbral Steel, which repairs most relic weapons. 

EDIT: Incidentally, if a relic is used by a crestless unit (e.g. Petra), they take damage after combat.

Edited May 11, 2020 by Shadow Mir

[Blackstarskywalker]

What I can recommend is that you only make supports A for the characters you want to keep together. For example with Dorothea and Petra, with them you can make support A with Byleth and Edelgard, since it will not affect your decision at the end of the game. But with Dorothea and Petra do not support A with Ferdinand, Caspar or Felix, for example. Dorothea actually has A + Felix support, so if you take it to that level, they'll probably end up paired

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Thanks everyone for the helpful info!

17 hours ago, Shadow Mir said:

The former. You have the whole game to build supports between your couples, but recruitment is only doable in until part 1. By the by, if you don't know yet, you'll need a C (maybe C+) support between Byleth and Edelgard and to go with her during a free day in chapter 11 (interacting with her in this instance will give you a Wham Line and a prompt).

Thanks! I really wasn't sure on this one :P I'll make sure I get Ingrid and Felix first then. I know I'll need El's C-support to get the Crimson Flower route. I'm sure it'll happen pretty though soon since I always keep Byleth and El together on the battlefield and I've still got a ways to go before chapter 11.

17 hours ago, Shadow Mir said:

I'm not sure. All I can say on the matter is that if you have the DLC, you can guarantee that a certain pair gets their paired ending by using the Wayseer in the Abyss. Well, that, and A+ supports override A supports. Incidentally, Byleth doesn't have to deal with this; for Byleth to get an S support, after a spoileriffic event, you must go to the captain's room; you'll see Sothis in there. Talk to her, and you get the ring. On the day that your last mission falls on, you'll be prompted to pick someone to share your life with. (Note that the last Mission in Crimson Flower and Azure Moon is in fact two maps played consecutively, with no opportunity to go to the monastery in between; make sure you have a good amount of Smithing Stones and Black-Sand Steel!!)

 

1 hour ago, Blackstarskywalker said:

What I can recommend is that you only make supports A for the characters you want to keep together. For example with Dorothea and Petra, with them you can make support A with Byleth and Edelgard, since it will not affect your decision at the end of the game. But with Dorothea and Petra do not support A with Ferdinand, Caspar or Felix, for example. Dorothea actually has A + Felix support, so if you take it to that level, they'll probably end up paired

I haven't touched the DLC story yet and likely won't until my second playthrough since I hear it's a challenge even for experienced players (which I'd hardly call myself at this point lol). But yeah I'll just make sure Dorothea and Petra don't A-support anyone but each other. About Byleth's ring, though... what chapter does she get it in? I know there's a lot of permanently missable stuff and I don't wanna screw up and miss out on her ending with El.

17 hours ago, eclipse said:

For the most part, you can get away with forged Iron/Steel on lower difficulties (forged Silver/magical for later things), and hack out the good stuff only for those particularly tough battles.  You'll generally want to use combat arts with weapons that are easier to repair.

If your Byleth is female, you'll automatically recruit Sylvain.  If Byleth is male, it'll take a bit more, but IMO he's well worth it.  If anything, you'll see some amusing supports between Felix, Ingrid, and Sylvain.  Ingrid should have her own beatstick, but I'm not sure when she gets it (and IMO it suits her a lot better than Sylvain's).

Ah, that makes sense. I take it that weapons in this game are more of a "whatever gets the job done" sorta deal and less about fussing over which one's the best? So if someone gets their own "legendary" weapon through the story (Byleth's Creator Sword, El's Aymr, etc.) then great but otherwise just stick to the generic stuff and don't bother stealing other characters' relics?

Tbh not wanting to recruit Sylvain was less about difficulty and more cause I don't particularly care for him lol

Thanks again for all your help!

[Blackstarskywalker]

36 minutes ago, RainbowMoon said:

Thanks everyone for the helpful info!

Thanks! I really wasn't sure on this one 😛 I'll make sure I get Ingrid and Felix first then. I know I'll need El's C-support to get the Crimson Flower route. I'm sure it'll happen pretty though soon since I always keep Byleth and El together on the battlefield and I've still got a ways to go before chapter 11.

 

I haven't touched the DLC story yet and likely won't until my second playthrough since I hear it's a challenge even for experienced players (which I'd hardly call myself at this point lol). But yeah I'll just make sure Dorothea and Petra don't A-support anyone but each other. About Byleth's ring, though... what chapter does she get it in? I know there's a lot of permanently missable stuff and I don't wanna screw up and miss out on her ending with El.

Ah, that makes sense. I take it that weapons in this game are more of a "whatever gets the job done" sorta deal and less about fussing over which one's the best? So if someone gets their own "legendary" weapon through the story (Byleth's Creator Sword, El's Aymr, etc.) then great but otherwise just stick to the generic stuff and don't bother stealing other characters' relics?

Tbh not wanting to recruit Sylvain was less about difficulty and more cause I don't particularly care for him lol

Thanks again for all your help!

If you go the Crimson Flower route, it is in chapter 17. And the scene for decision-making to whom to give the ring appears automatically, so don't worry.
 
 

[ciphertul]

If you are playing on a easier difficulty, I would suggest getting Marianne. She can do multiple roles, and if you don’t recruit her 

Spoiler

She won’t be in part 2 at all

Also feel free to experiment a bit some characters do well outside of their standard line

[Shadow Mir]

58 minutes ago, RainbowMoon said:

About Byleth's ring, though... what chapter does she get it in? I know there's a lot of permanently missable stuff and I don't wanna screw up and miss out on her ending with El.

Chapter 10. After

Spoiler

Jeralt dies

you go to his room and interact with Sothis. You get the ring (which, by the way, you get to see shown to you if you clear a quest about finding Jeralt earlier in the game) from this.

The scene for decision making is automatic, so don't worry about missing that.

[eclipse]

13 hours ago, RainbowMoon said:

Ah, that makes sense. I take it that weapons in this game are more of a "whatever gets the job done" sorta deal and less about fussing over which one's the best? So if someone gets their own "legendary" weapon through the story (Byleth's Creator Sword, El's Aymr, etc.) then great but otherwise just stick to the generic stuff and don't bother stealing other characters' relics?

Tbh not wanting to recruit Sylvain was less about difficulty and more cause I don't particularly care for him lol

Basically.  Repairing common stuff is way easier than repairing relics.

As for Sylvain, you'd do it just so that you can have an emergency beatstick.  Ruined Sky is amusing on its own merits, as it's effective against flying units.

[paladin21]

You should pay attention to some supports that rise damage as well, like Byleth Edelgard and Flayn (the one from the route split you'll be missing can support Byleth for one extra damage if you want), and a few more (like Ingrid-Sylvain, if you leave them at B, it'll be two extra damage for the deployed unit). It doesn't happen with every support, but some of them has that extra boon.

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20 hours ago, ciphertul said:

If you are playing on a easier difficulty, I would suggest getting Marianne. She can do multiple roles, and if you don’t recruit her 

  Reveal hidden contents

She won’t be in part 2 at all

Also feel free to experiment a bit some characters do well outside of their standard line

I'm playing casual mode on hard difficulty, figuring I can bump down to normal if I have to but not the other way around. I'll definitely look into getting Marianne though. Thanks for the suggestion!

19 hours ago, Shadow Mir said:

Chapter 10. After

  Reveal hidden contents

Jeralt dies

you go to his room and interact with Sothis. You get the ring (which, by the way, you get to see shown to you if you clear a quest about finding Jeralt earlier in the game) from this.

The scene for decision making is automatic, so don't worry about missing that.

Oh, good! This seems like the kinda game that has a lot of permanent missables that it doesn't warn you about. Just don't wanna screw anything up by mistake haha

7 hours ago, eclipse said:

Basically.  Repairing common stuff is way easier than repairing relics.

As for Sylvain, you'd do it just so that you can have an emergency beatstick.  Ruined Sky is amusing on its own merits, as it's effective against flying units.

Excellent! That makes managing weapons a lot easier than swinging relics all the time lol

I really appreciate everyone's advice! I have to say I'm enjoying this game so far (just got to chapter 3!) and loving the story and characters (especially El, Dorothea and Petra as you probably guessed lol). Thanks again! :)

[Shadow Mir]

On 5/11/2020 at 10:29 AM, RainbowMoon said:

Ah, that makes sense. I take it that weapons in this game are more of a "whatever gets the job done" sorta deal and less about fussing over which one's the best? So if someone gets their own "legendary" weapon through the story (Byleth's Creator Sword, El's Aymr, etc.) then great but otherwise just stick to the generic stuff and don't bother stealing other characters' relics?

It's more because if the common stuff gets the job done, there's no need to bother with relics. Anyway, I'd consider playing the paralogues, because a lot of the better battalions are given out in those. (Special mention to Sothis's paralogue, which has a Knowledge Gem in a chest and expires sooner than other paralogues do, and Alois and Shamir's paralogue, which you MUST do in chapter 11 if you want a good battalion, as said battalion is tied to having Alois recruited, as well as Manuela and Hanneman's paralogue, which gives two A rank battalions if you have both of them; also of note, you can't buy the battalions in question if you're on Crimson Flower).

On 5/12/2020 at 7:40 AM, RainbowMoon said:

Oh, good! This seems like the kinda game that has a lot of permanent missables that it doesn't warn you about. Just don't wanna screw anything up by mistake haha

As an avid gamer, I think most games are like that. Especially Tales games. One standout case is Vesperia, where one character's ultimate weapon is tied to a sidequest that starts loooooooong before you even meet the character in question AND spans the entire game.

[vikingsfan92]

Honestly I think this is the best Training,  Iron and steel weapons have been.  Mainly because on higher difficulties the enemies are really fast and higher than steel weapons tend to get you doubled. That and they tend to have more uses so it means you can use more combat arts.