To Become an Elitist [Playlogs FE1-5] [currently playing: Thracia 776]

[Jotari]

1 hour ago, Saint Rubenio said:

always forget this face is technically the Truman face (or I guess Tolman) because he's the first to get it.

Yeah, see, Zyne may be more iconic because his face is very funny but this guy right here comes close to the septuplets' reign of terror. He loses to Zyne by having only 5 twins instead of 7, but unlike Zyne, only two of those are recolored. There's three dudes that are just, this. They're also the most plot-relevant of the five, which is... very strange, but hey, who am I to judge.

We end up seeing the Eichmann portrait more, six times to his five, but all except Eichmann himself and one Leinster general are cutscene npcs.

1 hour ago, Saint Rubenio said:

It really would be best on Marty, to be honest.

Save it for over half the game and give it to Miranda!

1 hour ago, Saint Rubenio said:

I wouldn't be quite as harsh, but honestly, they really should've kept the Archanea Chronicles artist on for the Jugdral duology.

Look at that delightful artstyle. Even with the very limited portrait space they managed to give each of them a different vibe. I truly appreciate when you can tell a character's personality just by looking at their portraits.

BS Archanea Saga was after Genealogy. And I guess for Teracia they wanted a style that was reminiscent of Genealogy but still somewhat distinct (something the wasn't a priority for BS saga itself where they genuinely could have reused half the portraits).

10 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

I guess you don't want to play a version of FE12 where Bantu is actually good.
 

Big deal. The FE5 artist was also able to draw white Jesus.

I thought that was Richard the first.

Edited July 24 by Jotari

[Saint Rubenio]

56 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

I guess you don't want to play a version of FE12 where Bantu is actually good.

I would love to, but when that's basically the only advantage of the version...

48 minutes ago, Jotari said:

BS Archanea Saga was after Genealogy. And I guess for Teracia they wanted a style that was reminiscent of Genealogy but still somewhat distinct (something the wasn't a priority for BS saga itself where they genuinely could have reused half the portraits).

Unfortunate.

[BrightBow]

27 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

I would love to, but when that's basically the only advantage of the version...

It also doesn't have 90% of the cheap enemy spawns and has much better sprite work.

Only real advantage FE12 has is that you can skip enemy phase. ...which wouldn't be in such high demand if the game didn't cheapshot you all the time.
 

1 hour ago, Jotari said:

I thought that was Richard the first.

No, Richard is this guy.

[ping]

 

2 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Well, his own short fling as a leader ended in spectacular failure, he's in a rather fragile state of mind and Augustus clearly knows his shit. Plus, think of that sweet, sweet leadership star! Gameplay-story integration dictates the star indicates Augustus's strategy chops!

Considering that half of the effect of a leadership star is an avoid bonus, my new headcanon is that Leaf's first leadership star comes from Augusus standing at the sidelines, yelling DOOOODGE! every time somebody gets attacked.

2 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

I mean, I'd argue the magic ring on Asbel is if anything a waste, but hey, this is your run. You couldn't have known, nor should you fret over little things like this. I'm just here to tell you which units you must use to appease me in particular.

Well, now I almost feel bad for not giving it to Karin for all the magic sword memes. Not enough to replay the chapter, though.

2 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

His name is literally Hicks.

But because he shares that accent with virtually everybody, it goes from "character tick" to "part of the problem".

2 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

It's just a corruption of Eisenhower. Just another part of Kaga's whole "name bossmen after figures of the World War II people" shindig that led to there being an irrelevant bossman named Goebbels in Berwick Saga.

The "-hau" is exactly in the right spot to make that name sound silly to me, though. "Eisenhauer" is a genuine German name (I'd guess that some ancestor of Ike anglicised it); "Eisenau", as his portrait is labled on the .org wiki, could be the name of a location; but because Eisenhau is neither, I just can't not read it as Iron-Whack.

1 hour ago, BrightBow said:

Big deal. The FE5 artist was also able to draw white Jesus.

That can't be Jesus - he's wearing a goatee, so it follows that this is an evil character. Is it the antichrist? Or just White Judas?

1 hour ago, Jotari said:

Save it for over half the game and give it to Miranda!

 A character, no less, that I only have a 50% chance of recruiting!

(...I think? I remember dondon mentioning that the worst character in the game is hidden behind a route split, and I think that's who you're talking about. And while I think I'll recognise the route split when it comes up, I have no idea which path was which)

8 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

It also doesn't have 90% of the cheap enemy spawns and has much better sprite work.

Only real advantage FE12 has is that you can skip enemy phase. ...which wouldn't be in such high demand if the game didn't cheapshot you all the time.

DSFE still has the best mid-chapter save system of the series. Accessible enough that you don't have to replay the entire map if (OK, when) you got got by one of the cheapshots, but not so free that you can just constantly brute-force the RNG.

Also, Warrior!Yubello.

[Saint Rubenio]

44 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

It also doesn't have 90% of the cheap enemy spawns and has much better sprite work.

Only real advantage FE12 has is that you can skip enemy phase. ...which wouldn't be in such high demand if the game didn't cheapshot you all the time.
 

Have you considered that FE3 doesn't have Frost, though.

31 minutes ago, ping said:

The "-hau" is exactly in the right spot to make that name sound silly to me, though. "Eisenhauer" is a genuine German name (I'd guess that some ancestor of Ike anglicised it); "Eisenau", as his portrait is labled on the .org wiki, could be the name of a location; but because Eisenhau is neither, I just can't not read it as Iron-Whack.

Sure, I'm fine with that. I mean, I've been making fun of names like Tirado and Ostia for years. Mock away, I say. Too bad there isn't a fist-fighting class in this game, so you can't kill him with an iron fist.

31 minutes ago, ping said:

DSFE still has the best mid-chapter save system of the series. Accessible enough that you don't have to replay the entire map if (OK, when) you got got by one of the cheapshots, but not so free that you can just constantly brute-force the RNG.

Neither's ideal but I'd sooner take the cheapshots than snooze-inducing difficulty. With FE3 I'm working on second-hand information but when I've been told by sources I decently trust that the game is barely less of a snoozefest than book 1 (half of which I breezed through without reading the numbers) on top of knowing the whole story (and don't even like it) and the UI making me want to throw myself out of a window, there's just not much motivating me to do anything with the game.

31 minutes ago, ping said:

Also, Warrior!Yubello.

Also, Warrior!Yubello.

Edited July 24 by Saint Rubenio

[Jotari]

45 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

It also doesn't have 90% of the cheap enemy spawns and has much better sprite work.

Only real advantage FE12 has is that you can skip enemy phase. ...which wouldn't be in such high demand if the game didn't cheapshot you all the time.
 

No, Richard is this guy.

Not sure how obvious it is (especially for people who haven't played the game), but I was riffing on how White Jesus' name is Lionheart.

34 minutes ago, ping said:

(I think? I remember dondon mentioning that the worst character in the game is hidden behind a route split, and I think that's who you're talking about. And while I think I'll recognise the route split when it comes up, I have no idea which path was which)

I vote we all say nothing about the route split and what each route offers to let Ping make a choice as Kaga intended, based off the diagetic info the game actually gives.

 

 

[Saint Rubenio]

9 minutes ago, Jotari said:

I vote we all say nothing about the route split and what each route offers to let Ping make a choice as Kaga intended, based off the diagetic info the game actually gives.

Yeah, this is the correct option. When it comes to these route splits people get so hung up on which one is the "best" one. The game can be finished both ways, let's just allow the new players to follow their hearts.

Also you need to use the units I tell you to use.

Edited July 24 by Saint Rubenio

[BrightBow]

37 minutes ago, ping said:

But because he shares that accent with virtually everybody, it goes from "character tick" to "part of the problem".

I wonder what's the deal with that anyway. Guy isn't exactly living in the countryside. So why give him a rural accent? Just because he is a commoner?
 

9 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Have you considered that FE3 doesn't have Frost, though.

Reclassing is a thing. You can turn every male unit into Frost.
 

8 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Neither's ideal but I'd sooner take the cheapshots than snooze-inducing difficulty. With FE3 I'm working on second-hand information but when I've been told by sources I decently trust that the game is barely less of a snoozefest than book 1 (half of which I breezed through without reading the numbers) on top of knowing the whole story (and don't even like it) and the UI making me want to throw myself out of a window, there's just not much motivating me to do anything with the game.

I suppose the difference is that FE3 is at it's worst boring. While FE12 is at it's best boring.

At least FE3's dragons are fun. FE12 has nothing that is fun.
 

11 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Also, Warrior!Yubello.

Warrior Yubello is interchangeable from everyone else reclassed into Warrior. Doesn't even get a unique hair color or anything.
Besides, Yubello does not actually have Fighter or Warrior in his reclass set. They are only combined once you beat the game once.
And playing the game a second time is really too much to ask.

[Saint Rubenio]

21 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

Reclassing is a thing. You can turn every male unit into Frost.

But I can't have Frost in FE3.

[BrightBow]

3 minutes ago, Saint Rubenio said:

But I can't have Frost in FE3.

You might not be able to turn every male unit into Frost, but you can turn Yubello and Wendell into him, since FE3 doesn't have unique color palettes either.
Although at least they gave Merric a whole unique animation set as a Bishop.

[Saint Rubenio]

12 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

You might not be able to turn every male unit into Frost, but you can turn Yubello and Wendell into him, since FE3 doesn't have unique color palettes either.
Although at least they gave Merric a whole unique animation set as a Bishop.

I'm so happy for Merric.

[ping]

__

Love you too, Kaga

Very odd AI on this next map, I find. Passive in some situations that I don't quite understand. The Warrior at the top of the enemy formation refused to attack Asbel, for example, while two or three Myrms didn't move in to attack Finn which left room for Shiva (who moves last) to do so instead.

[Dayni]

On 7/20/2024 at 6:26 PM, ping said:

Fun Fact: Welkenrosen is German for "withered roses", although contrary to our reputation, we'd normally not turn that into a compound word (which really should've been "compoundword", if English speakers weren't cowards) in normal conversation.

Fair accusation.

What else would you call English cowardly over?

On 7/20/2024 at 6:26 PM, ping said:

[HP 50% | Str 25% | Mag 10% | Skl 40% | Spd 35% | Lck 55% | Def 15% | Con 10% | Mov 1%]
Weapon Levels: Swords (C), Staves (E+30)
Skill: Charm

Nanna's growths are obviously better than Eyvel's, but still impossibly bad - literally, since her minor Hezul blood should guarantee her at least 55% Str growth even if her dad is one of the mage boys.

Although, to be honest, her low base rank in staves feels much more limiting. She's pretty far away from even just Physic usage, so I have to hope that she gets some extra WEXP from promoting. Still, she seems like a good utility unit, between basic heals, some Earth Sword chip (and self-heal), and her Charm skill, which like in Genealogy provies +10 hit/avoid in a 3-tile radius.

And with that, I will stop typing for now and restart the chapter...

The pain is the +Str scroll is very annoyingly late, if she had it she would have a Str growth that could be possible. Guess the can take Hezul and Neir to be at a more decent 45%, but that's still sub 50%.

Least it's not E base, but yeah, unlucky.

On 7/20/2024 at 6:26 PM, ping said:

: "The memories of her mother make her falter and hesitate. Her emotions dull the sword's strength the same as running its edge across stone. She's like a caged animal, desperately throwing herself against her binds. Or have you not even noticed her tears, you imbecile?"

Veld sure has a very pictorial way of talking.

Veld is loquacious and verbose, has an eye for detail, can see how people might feel while feeling distant from it and is focused mainly on getting on with his work and finds Raydrik's games unneeded

Is Veld autistc and has people as a special interest? /s

On 7/20/2024 at 6:26 PM, ping said:

Unfortunately, from this point on, the map becomes a bit stupid, as with the exception of a single mage, every remaining enemy will politely stay in place until you move into his range. It's not quite as dumb as 5x in SacSto, since at least there's the occasional overlapping range, but it's still dumb and rather tedious.

Hooray, tedium.

On 7/23/2024 at 8:13 PM, ping said:

If Thracia had used GBAFE's rescue formula for mounted characters, do you think Karin would've used the male variant?

Yes if they aren't cowards.

On 7/23/2024 at 8:13 PM, ping said:

We also finally (re-)gain access to the convoy, confirming that Eyvel did manage to send her equipment there before the events of chapters 4-5.

Well that's good to know.

(Though I will admit I'd consider bringing the Flame Sword to Munster, considering Fergus is 20 combats away from B and Leif might be near it at some point then if you've been abusing him)

On 7/23/2024 at 8:13 PM, ping said:

Why do you know about any brands on Mareeta's back, Raydrik?

Informed by someone who would be more appropriately there in that scenario? If he already knew about Galzus's brand, it can be assumed someone could describe the brand and he could probably conclude about the relation. Don't know how he's surprised about Galzus breaking her out beyond it being all of a sudden then.

(despite calls for privacy, you just know there'd be a "keep an eye on them, they might try to escape" as justification.)

On 7/24/2024 at 7:40 AM, ping said:

As in, the colour palette looks different when playing on an actual GBA and GBAFE looks a fair bit better on emulator when applying a filter to emulate that?

Sounds about right, far from the only case (see: Circle of the Moon is hard to play on console because it kept to a darker palette)

[Jotari]

1 hour ago, Dayni said:

Sounds about right, far from the only case (see: Circle of the Moon is hard to play on console because it kept to a darker palette)

There's a section of Metroid Fusion where you're supposed to be in a dark room with a spotlight illuminating about 50% of the screen centred on Samus with the rest being obscured, but even on a Game Boy Advance SP with the backlight on it makes hilariously little difference and you can very easily see the full screen unimpeded. Games back then were very much designed with the hardware in mind.

[ping]

FE5 Chapter 7: The Shield of Thracia

Spoiler

His mind consumed by regret, Leif managed to escape Munster. He was joined by several members of the Magi, who pledged themselves to his service.  Yet there was no time to celebrate: an enormous price had been placed on Leif's head, and countless bounty hunters were determined to claim it. What's more, the Knights of Munster had doggedly pursued Leif, and their forces weer growing dangerously close...

: "There are two options: first, you could flee through the mountain range to the west, and lose the knights in the rocky terrain. Second, you could continue south and seek refuge in Castle Meath. In either case, it will be necessary to petition Thracia for aid immediately."
: "A-Ask Thracia for aid?! That's absurd! Those damnable cowards took everything from me: my kingdom, my mother, my father... I'll not come crawling to them with cup in hand!"
: "Do you expect to fight off the Knights of Munster with the strength of your pride alone? We are not fighing to satisfy your own sense of vengeance, my prince - we fight to liberate North Thracia from the tyranny of the Empire. You yourself said that there was 'no hardship you would be unwilling to endure' to accomplish this. Did you think the only kind of hardship in this war would be from battle?"

Augustus already keeping book of anything Leaf says that could be used against him. Leaf should probably consider divorce.

: "...Even supposing I did agree, what makes you think we can trust Thracia? They're allies of the Empire!"
: "And if foreign invaders amass at their borders, they'll respond with force all the same. I imagine the retaliation from General Hannibal of Meath would be especially great. He's a famed military leader that the people revere as the 'Shield of Thracia.' Between us and Raydrik's men, who do you think he would help?"
: "...I understand. We'll take refuge in Castle Meath, and head for Tahra afterward."
: "You want to make for Tahra...? As in, the city refusing to take part in child hunts? The same city being besieged by the Imperial Army for their rebellion? Going there with the small force we have now is certain death. Does my prince wish an early grave?"
: "Tahra is... my home away from home, you could say. The Duke of Tahra sheltered me for years and was killed by the Empire for it. I have many friends there, Augustus. I won't abandon them now!"
: "...Very well, but let's discuss this later. Right now, focus on our escape!"

: "I hear the ringleader is a young'un named Leif, a Leonster prince with a price on 'is head to match. The boy's got stones, all right. Almost seems like a shame to kill 'im, but coin is coin. He's comin' our way already - haven't had a bounty this convenient in a long while."
: "Hmm..."

I was a bit surprised that I never prepared Shiva's portrait, but checking ch.2x, he only has a single line to tell Lifis "don't fuck staffi". Glad to see he's getting so much more characterisation here.

The other portrait belongs to a "Jabal", but the .org wiki categorises it as unused assets. It's certainly unused in that Shiva is the only unique character in this Myrm squad.

The map! 'Tis long.

To be honest, the easiest way to beat it clearly seems to be to just rush down south, murder Shiva (since we don't quite have access to his recruiter just yet) and ignore the rabble on the western, forested, mountainous path.

Not sure what the best way to beat the map while also recruiting Shiva is, though. Spoiler warning - Finn and Safi will appear on the western path, south of the Brigands, which is a bit of an uncomfortable position...

...especially with this fine gentleman being the southernmost of those ruffians.

For reference - this is the other promoted enemy on the map. Three levels higher and worse in virtually every way. I suppose he's better at tanking low-powered magic attacks?

The Myrmidons are... honestly not that weak either, with a number of different weapons.

__

Now, into the fight. First thing, Asbel grabs the Master Seal from last chapter and gets a Lv.10 promotion. GameFAQs in shambles.

In addition to the stat boosts (including +1 Movement), Asbel also gains a full weapon rank in all three Anima types, as well as an immediate (C) rank in Light magic and Staves (D). We'll see how useful these will be.

Lana gets a movement star, allowing her to grab one of the villages. Karin would've been able to, as well, but I decided to send her straight towards Finn and Safi's spawining point, in case they'll be sandwiched by Myrmidons and Brigands.

: "Yer headed fer Tahra? Best take this Antitoxin with you, then. If you get stuck with one o' them Venin weapons, just pour that over yer wound and it'll clear right up. I hear lotsa those bandits to the west like usin' poisons... One dose o' the stuff an' you'll be in fer a bad time, so keep that Antitoxin handy."

And waste all that potential healing XP? Madness!

On enemy phase, only the Myrmidons move, all northwards, for now. Before turn 2 begins...:

: "A group of suspicious characters were making their way down the mountains near here, so we saw fit to arrest them. I reckon they're bandits from the eastern frontier."
: "Hmm... What have they to say for themselves?"
: "'We're just villagers!' and other obvious tripe. What kind of villagers trek through the Thracian mountains? They must be up to something - otherwise, why lie? What's more, we saw what looked like a knight among them, but the man escaped. We've assembled search parties to find him."
: "Understood. I'll go have a word with the prisoners myself. In the meantime, there's some sort of commotion over in Munster. Raydrik may be up to something... Let's not give that fiend any openings, eh?"
: "Hah! Of course, milord."

Speaking with Hannibal is the fabled "Wolf", a recolour of the no less famous Speer (there's Kaga kagaing again...), List (or Liszt, probably), and, of course, Leonster Knight 4.

: "I cannot allow myself to be delayed any longer. Sister, please make your way back to Tahra."
: "Am I that much of a burden to you, Sir Finn?"
: "Not at all. Your presence has been most heartening - but where I go, I'm not certain I could protect you."
: "When I left Tahra, I swore to Saint Heim that, for those willing to defend the city, there was nothing I wouldn't do. If I can help Lord Leif - and in so doing, help Tahra - then I must. We are both bound by duty, Sir Finn. Allow me to uphold my own oath."
: "...I understand, Sister. Let's get moving before we lose any more daylight."

To keep a bit more space between them and the Myrmidons' path around the southern edge of the mountains, Finn moves towards the Brigands, ready to duel the Berserker, while Safi keeps two tiles below him. Why two tiles you ask? (or not, this is just a rhetorical question)

__

Well, she didn't keep her distance in my second attempt. Finn's epic duel had three wildly different outcomes - first time (where it was Lana who was sniped from 2-range), he still hadn't beaten him until I had to reset because his hitrate is imperfect, I didn't attack on player phase (Wrath, yo), and the Berserker got into healing AI... and stayed there even though Finn didn't get him back below half health on the following turns. Second time, he just crit-killed him on the first enemy phase, which made room for this HA Brigand to go after Safi.

And this time, he just killed him on PP2, Wrath be damned. But there's some stuff happening further north at the same time:

Can't believe Stahldresch is getting away with such a sloppy shave in the military.

: "Don't allow them to set even one foot on Castle Meath's soil."
: "Aye, milord, but... Thracia is our sworn ally. Why would the rebels head to Castle Meath?"
: "Oh, please... Thracia and the Empire can mix no better than oil and water. We may be allies, but we're certainly not friends. If the rebels have any sense, they'll use that to their advantage."
: "Ah... I see."
: "Perhaps I'm overestimating them, but I'll not be made a fool of twice. Still, we can't overplay our hand: Hannibal's elite knights, the Panzerritter, lie in wait inside the castle. Attacking them would be tantamount to a declaration of war. If they take the field, you must not lay a hand on them, no matter what!"
: "Aye, milord!"

Raydrik out, three Cavs in.

This cutscene triggers what seems to be an endless stream of reinforcements every turn, starting with 4x3 Cavs, then some magic enemies (two waves, both including a Meteor Bishop), more Cavs, a few Armours...

And meanwhile, Finn and Safi's arrival splits up Shiva's group of Myrmidons. Three of them go north, five (luckily including Shiva) south.

Here's an example of the Brigands not being consistently aggressive - the Berserker did immediately go after Finn, but the Warrior doesn't seem to care about anyone entering his range.

Oh well.

__

Shoving everybody through the western path is a pretty slow endeavour. Not much of a problem right away, since the Cavs aren't terribly dangerous... Well, they do all have Rapiers in addition to some lance weapon, but their stats aren't very threatening.

____

So, the next few turns are fairly straightforward, slow punching through the enemies. I do take some unnecessary risk with Karin here to get a bit of Lance WEXP, but hitrates against her are fairly low and she'd have to crit-kill an enemy to risk death.

Sad about Hicks's first level-up, by the way, since he got Str/Spd/Def in the attempt that ended with Lara dying.

__

But, actually, the Brigands separating Leif and Finn fall rather quickly.

__

Unfortunately, I have to report zero captured Myrmidons because this set-up allowing Finn to kill the remaining three non-Shiva Myrms on enemy phase was just too tempting.

DOGALSIN WILL CHOKE THIS POINT

...but with the arrival of the first Meteor Bishop, we obviously have to get a move on.

But first, fetch the blue paint!

: "Hm? Oh, you're..."
: "Ah, Sister... It's been a while."
: "Why are you doing this? I know you're not a bad person."
: "This is the job. I'm a sellsword - and frankly, the details are no business of yours. ...Time for you to leave, Sister. I'm trouble to be around."
: "I'm not going anywhere."
: "...You really willing to risk everything for that little boy?"
: "If it came to that, I would give my life to protect Prince Leif, yes."
: "....."
: "Losing Prince Leif, losing what he represents, would be an irreplaceable loss to the entire Thracia Peninsula. If I needed to give my life to save his, it would only be right to do so."
: "Hmph... You're quite the fool, Sister. ...Well, all the better. I can appreciate that kind of naive innocence."
: "Hm? Will you... agree to aid the prince, then?"
: "Ah, this is getting absurd... But yes, I suppose I will. Just one thing: don't talk so lightly about throwing your life away. There's nothing more loathsome than people rushing towards their own death."
: "I apologize... I'll be mindful of that."
: "Can I ask you something, though? What is it that YOU want? What is it that brightens your day, that brings you laughter?"
: "I suppose that I want to see everyone around me be happy. When they laugh, when they feel joy, I share in it."
: "I see... Well, I already said you were quite the fool. ...You know, I don't think I even know your name. I'm Shiva of Saban, by the way. What do you go by?"
: "Safy. I'm Safy of Tahra."

Kudos for Shiva for demonstrating that Safy really isn't much of a character, and more like the distilled essence of the "selfless pious woman" archetype with every other aspect of her thrown into the bin.

[HP 70% | Str 45% | Mag 5% | Skl 50% | Spd 35% | Lck 60% | Def 30% | Con 20% | Mov 2%]
Weapon Level: Swords (B)
Skill: Sol
 
Shiva as a unit doesn't seem terribly impressive. Probably a better long-term project than Machua, but there's nothing about him that really stands out. His growths are more reminiscent of Deke and Gerik than Nabarl and Rutger - probably a good thing, since his base Spd is high enough that he should still cap it or at least get very close, but his raw HP/Def is fairly low for this point. Heck, it's the same Def and only +2 HP compared to what my Nanna has right now. FCM 4 is nice, of course, and might allow for some guaranteed crit follow-ups without the Killing Edge. I'd assume that he gets a support bonus from Safi.

__

Now that Finn and Safi are perfectly safe, Karin returns north. There's a big metal unit that needs to be heaved over some mountain tiles.

In the end, only a single Meteor is thrown at us, and Brighton smartly side-steps it.

With Dalsin getting carried over the first mountain tile, the enemy Cavs have to turn around and take the main road to close in on us. It seems the AI doesn't know how to mount and dismount. I'm sure that won't change anytime soon, either.

(I might have taken a peek at the upcoming map already)

__

However, all combat against these cavs from this point only consists of this rather one-sided exchange, because...

...Lifis, scoundrel that he is, already gets out of here.

To be honest, I didn't remember that the following would happen - I just thought it would be very in-character for Lifis to run while the fight is still ongoing, and didn't think that he'd be able to contribute much anyway.

: "Men of the Panzerritter, sortie and engage the knights! We'll show them the wrath of Meath!"

__

: "H-Hannibal himself has taken the field? Of all the times for that doddering fool to show his face... All knights, fall back! Retreat to Munster!"

So yeah, once your first character reaches Meath, all reinforcements will stop fighting and escape from where they came from. You can probably use that to make this chapter easier, or even just less tedious (because shoving through the western path is a bit annoying)... Like, send Karin straight to Meath, make sure that Shiva goes towards Finn and Safi, but otherwise go south as fast as that's possible without drawing Shiva north.

____

And although the Myrmidons don't run away with Munster's regular troops, you can probably imagine that the rest of the map is just cleaning up. But before continuing, a few convos that I skipped previously:

: "You folks are just so brave, with a body to match... Hm? Beg pardon? You're not with the Panzerritter? ...Oh, c'mon! I had this whole spiel prepared an' everything! Ugh, there go my plans... Look, one of the knights in the Panzerritter was by earlier, and he left this here. I thought it was the classic 'pretend to forget something so you have an excuse to come back' play, but I guess not... Well, see that this gets back to him, will you?"

First, the second village to the north, where somebody needs to go to the well because she is thirsty. Also not very smart, because she'd have an excuse to go visit the Panzerritter in order to bring back...

...our second Master Seal. This one I haven't used before the end of the chapter. There's a few candidates - Fergus and Finn are both at Lv.11, but this could also go to Karin (Lv. 9.29) or even Nanna (7.73). Those latter two might get something out of it in addition to the usual stat-ups - Karin would appreciate any WEXP for either swords or lances, and Nanna might appreciate some staff rank.

Next, the third village on the map, near Meath Castle:

: "If you compete there an' win, you'll make out with a pouch o' coin an' a fair bit of experience! Oh, but all fights are to the death, so don't hesitate to yield by [pressing the B Button] if things start goin' south! An' don't feel like you gotta clear out everybody inside, either! Pacing yerself is more important than winnin' first place! Oh, an' if yer magic needs an extra edge, whether yer usin' it or defendin' against it, use this afore you go inside."

[Pure Water received]

And finally, Leif obviously has a convo with Finn:

: "Worried? Of... Of course not! I never doubted you'd be able to keep yourself safe. I just... didn't expect we'd meet again so soon."
: "You can thank the Magi for that."
: "Is that the name your new retinue goes by? There appear to be former knights and common sellswords among them... Who are they, then?"
: "They're a group of rebels from up north. They've pledged to serve me until the day that Munster stands free."
: "Their loyalty to you is most important above all. If they've promised you as much, their personal details are none of my concern. Though now that I get a look at everyone... I don't see Eyvel among them. Milord, is she...?"
: "The Commander is still in Munster... She... She was turned to stone by the fell magic of a Loptrian bishop. There's... nothing I can do for her now..."
: "God's breath! Th-That can't be...! Lord Leif... I'm sorry. I... I don't know what to say..."
: "You've nothing to apologize for, Finn. As for the Commander... Nothing will stop me from getting her back. Between the two of us, we're sure to find a way to reverse what's been done to her! So, Finn... I'm giving you an order: don't die. I want you there with me, head held high, on the day we take back Munster!"
: "Gladly, milord! On my honor, never again shall you and I be parted! I'll be at your side, Brave Lance in hand, until the very end!"
: "Thank you, Finn. ...Ahem, Now, where has the rest of our former group gone?"
: "They were captured by General Hannibal's Panzerritter, and imprisoned in Castle Meath. I... considered rescuing them, but my duty to you comes first, so I set out without them."
: "Then our road leads to Meath regardless. Very well... Finn, let's head for the castle and see to their release. With our forces bolstered, we can make our way to Tahra. ...You've missed the city as well, haven't you? I can tell."
: "Ah... I have, milord."

That last part very much sounds like an implied "Lachesis might be in Tahra", but I don't remember her being in the game. ...well, and I didn't see her on the list of Thracia portraits, so there's that.

__

No conversation between Leif and Hannibal, though, but there will be plenty after ending the chapter:

This rather seems like we're starting in the middle of a conversation, but I checked the chapter's script on the wiki (seems I missed a convo between Nanna and Finn - whoops) and this is how Hannibal opens his interrogation.

: "The Magi, the local resistance, later rescued me, and we fled the province together."
: "Hmm... For one so young, you don't seem to bend easily. What's your name, lad?"
: "Lugh Faris, at your service, General Hannibal."
: "Hmm... You share... quite the resemblance..."

"You must have met my twin brother Ray. I mean, Raigh. Or maybe Rey."

: "Resemblance? What do you mean, General...?"
: "It's... nothing you need concern yourself with. More importantly, what do you plan to do now that you're free of Munster?"
: "We'll head to Tahra to fend off the Empire's siege. I've many friends there in need of help."
: "Are you planning a route through the central mountains?"
: "That was my intent, yes. As rebels, we obviously can't risk crossing through Imperial territory."
: "Is that so? Then be warned: many bandits make their home there. Don't let your guard down."
: "Thank you, General. Now, would you release the men you captured earlier? They're good friends of mine."
: "Ah, of course."

: "Prince Leif! Sheesh, some help I turned out to be, huh? Might as well have stayed in Fiana, for all the good I did..."
: "Damned Thracians! Next time I see them, they'll pay for what they've done!"
: "I'm awful sorry, Prince Leif... I guess I'm just not very strong..."

A rousing round of "Who Can Say The Most Inappropriate Thing": Ronan and Halvan going for the classic "Call the incognito guy by his real name", while Osian is spicing things up with "Threaten to kill the guys that just released you out of goodwill". Who's your winner?

: "Ah, my apologies for intruding. There is something else."

: "There are many perils in the central mountains - not the least of which is a massive hunt for bandits around Mount Violdrake. If you're mistaken for these bandits, you could very well lose your lives over it. Callion here will see that you cross the mountains safely."
: "Of course, sire. They can count on me!"
: "General, there is no need to reassign your man. We don't need to go as far into the mountains as Mount Violdrake. I'm sure there's a detour we can find-"
: "Nonsense! I'd be honored to join you!"
: "...If you insist, I certainly would appreciate your help."
: "Think nothing of it!"

Glad his name isn't Carrion anymore, honestly.

: "Oh, you were one of the children imprisoned at Kerberos' Gate... What are you doing here?"
: "General Hannibal is my lord father, you see. On the off chance we met again, I prepared you a token of my gratitude. here you are. It's a very powerful staff imbued with Warp magic."
: "Thank you! This is most generous...!"
: "Sir Lugh, you'd best be setting out. It'll be dark before long."
: "Of course. Many thanks for your help, General Hannibal. I won't forget the kindness you've done us!"

"Even though I'd never bring it up to my cousin Sel... I mean... Sue if he... she had to face you in battle. But that would never happen, right? Hahaha..."

And there we go. Next time: Party time.

The Team:

	  Lv.	    Fat/HP Str Mag Skl Spd Lck Def Con  XP
Leif	  13.14	    --  37   7   0   5   9  12   6   9  +29	[+7 HP]
Finn	  11.07	     9/ 30  11   1   9  12   7   8  10  
Fergus	  11.92	    43/ 34   8   0  10  11   8   7   9  --
Karin	  9.29	    29/ 20   6   9  10  20  19   4   4  +82

Hicks	  7.56	     9/ 31   8   0   6   5   6   8  15  +90
Brighton  10.25	    38/ 32   7   0   7   7   3   8  13  +96
Macha	  7.91	    30/ 27   5   1  12  12  10   5   6  +16
Dalsin	  8.42	    22/ 32  10   0   3   2   1  12  15  +48

Shiva	  4.00	     0/ 24   6   0   9  12   5   4   7  --	[base]
Lifis	  7.17	    18/ 22   5   1   4  12   2   2   6  --
Lara	  2.82	     7/ 14   0   0   1  10   6   0   3  --

Asbel	  10/2.08   37/ 35   0  14  15  20   7   6   6  +108*	[+7 HP, +2 Mag]
Nanna	  7.73	    36/ 22   5   7  10  10  12   4   4  +57
Safy	  3.90	     0/ 14   0   6   6   7   9   0   3  --

Osian	  3.28	     0/ 29   7   0   7  10   4   4  11  +56
Halvan	  4.68	     0/ 30   9   0   7   7   4   6  14  +67
Ronan	  2.99	     0/ 20   4   0   3   7   3   2   7  +98

• The XP gain for the three returnees is what they got back in Ch.3.
• Next chapter is when fatigue starts to be a mechanic, so I'm starting to put that in the table, as well. Because I don't know any follow-up chapters beforehand, I obviously can't plan with that very well... Well, actually, I know that ch.8x is the one with the communist memes. As well as indoors, Thracia Fog, and an overpowered boss. Might be prudent to keep Lifis at the barracks to make sure I have a thief available that doesn't just die to a stiff breeze.

 

5 hours ago, Dayni said:

Fair accusation.

What else would you call English cowardly over?

Well, it's a common cliché that the English way of waging war is to hide on their island behind their Wooden Wall and let whoever they're currently allied with on the continent do the fighing and dying, so... 😇

5 hours ago, Dayni said:

Yes if they aren't cowards.

I can't fault Kaga for cowardice. I can, however, fault him for sexism, so I think the jury is still out on Karin's hypothetical BinBla rescue formula.

5 hours ago, Dayni said:

Well that's good to know.

(Though I will admit I'd consider bringing the Flame Sword to Munster, considering Fergus is 20 combats away from B and Leif might be near it at some point then if you've been abusing him)

Yeahh, I basically didn't prepare for the prison arc at all. Very full inventories on Leif and Lifis for maximal annoyance in Ch.4, but not even the most useful items. Heck, Ronan has been carrying Hoðr's scroll for all this time.

Leif does have (B) Swords. Still useful for Brave Sword access from time to time, although Fergus was the one carrying it most of the time.

[BrightBow]

You're not gonna have Finn and Nanna talk?

Anyway, there isn't actually anything stopping you from just spawn camping the reinforcements. Also a good opportunity to have Lifis grab some Rapiers, given how light they are.

From now on Fatigue will be a concern. So it's very convenient that the Ronan gang is back, seeing how the Manster guys are probably worn out at this point.
A unit gains 1 point of fatigue for each round of combat and if that value goes above the unit's max HP, that unit cannot be deployed for the next map. If a unit sits out a map, their fatigue will be set back to 0.

You probably knew this already, but just like with weapon exp, staffs are handled differently. Fatigue cost is higher the higher a staff's rank is. 1 for E. 2 for D. 3 for C. 4 for B. 5 for A. Personal staffs also cost 5.
Considering they generally have low HP, fatigue is a big concern for staffers.

There are of course also Stamina Drinks. Now you cannot use items during battle preps, sadly. But if you place a bottle into the inventory of a fatigued unit, you can select that unit for the map. The potion will then automatically be used up once the map starts.
Of course you can also just use them like a normal item during the map.

[Jotari]

1 hour ago, ping said:

: "I hear the ringleader is a young'un named Leif, a Leonster prince with a price on 'is head to match. The boy's got stones, all right. Almost seems like a shame to kill 'im, but coin is coin. He's comin' our way already - haven't had a bounty this convenient in a long while."
: "Hmm..."

I was a bit surprised that I never prepared Shiva's portrait, but checking ch.2x, he only has a single line to tell Lifis "don't fuck staffi". Glad to see he's getting so much more characterisation here.

The other portrait belongs to a "Jabal", but the .org wiki categorises it as unused assets. It's certainly unused in that Shiva is the only unique character in this Myrm squad.

Yeah, I'm honestly a bit surprised they didn't actually make this guy a boss alongside Shiva, considering he even appears in the chapter opening. Not accurate to say he's unused though, since it clearly is used, it's just never assigned to an actual enemy. According to my notes of portraits reuse, he does show up again in Chapter 15 aka the route split chapter, but again, as a cutscene NPC with no unit using the face in gameplay.

1 hour ago, ping said:

: "Hah! Of course, milord."

Speaking with Hannibal is the fabled "Wolf", a recolour of the no less famous Speer (there's Kaga kagaing again...), List (or Liszt, probably), and, of course, Leonster Knight 4.

It's particularly baffling that they needed Hannibal to speak to one of his underlings and they chose to use this portrait instead of Carrion, the actual playable character you get at the end of this chapter. It's really minor, but such a missed opportunity. In a game where playable characters have such small amounts of dialogue to characterize themselves, why not put them in a cutscene where someone needs to speak? It's better than a generic face we see a whole bunch of times. Instead Carrion kind of just shows up at the end of the chapter out of nowhere.

1 hour ago, ping said:

: "I cannot allow myself to be delayed any longer. Sister, please make your way back to Tahra."
: "Am I that much of a burden to you, Sir Finn?"

I'm only wondering this now, but, what happens if you didn't recruit Safy in 2x here? Does Finn exposit his situation to himself?

1 hour ago, ping said:

So yeah, once your first character reaches Meath, all reinforcements will stop fighting and escape from where they came from. You can probably use that to make this chapter easier, or even just less tedious (because shoving through the western path is a bit annoying)... Like, send Karin straight to Meath, make sure that Shiva goes towards Finn and Safi, but otherwise go south as fast as that's possible without drawing Shiva north.

Triggering them too early actually makes it very likely they'll swarm the field and kill Shiva on you. At least if you take the centre path and are creating a choke point there (I personally stole Shiva's sword to render him impudent while Safy got to him). On this subject, this is a bit of a weakness in the gameplay and story narrative integration here. You need Safy to talk to Shiva, but you can't capture Shiva and have her do that. You also can't capture Shiva bring him to Safy and then release him. Instead, capture+release=death, in terms of gameplay, despite it explicitly not being that in the narrative. Maybe it'd make it too easy to cheese such sections like this, but I think I would like it more just for how it works in terms of actual logic if you could capture Shiva and then have Safy talk to the person holding Shiva to trigger the talk command with Shiva. Maybe that would cause some issues if a unit can use the talk command on both an ally and the unit an ally is rescuing, but even if there is a scenario like that, I'm sure it could be worked around with a simple left or right trigger like with trading.

1 hour ago, ping said:

: "Prince Leif! Sheesh, some help I turned out to be, huh? Might as well have stayed in Fiana, for all the good I did..."
: "Damned Thracians! Next time I see them, they'll pay for what they've done!"
: "I'm awful sorry, Prince Leif... I guess I'm just not very strong..."

A rousing round of "Who Can Say The Most Inappropriate Thing": Ronan and Halvan going for the classic "Call the incognito guy by his real name", while Osian is spicing things up with "Threaten to kill the guys that just released you out of goodwill". Who's your winner?

Halvan, not only does he use Leif's real name, but he also identifies where they're from.

1 hour ago, ping said:

Glad his name isn't Carrion anymore, honestly.

It actually still is from official sources. This is like Agustus, a fan who tried to construct a more accurate translation probably about a week before the first CYL gave all these characters actual English names.

1 hour ago, ping said:

"Even though I'd never bring it up to my cousin Sel... I mean... Sue if he... she had to face you in battle. But that would never happen, right? Hahaha..."

And there we go. Next time: Party time.

It is quite clearly a retcon, but I have to say I do like this cameo. Absolutely fanserivce at its finest, it even moves Hannibal from the castle he was in in Genealogy (this is Maykov's castle in Genealogy, whom I can headcanon is the generic guy Hannibal spoke to since they didn't utilize Carrion in that role and Coulter proves generic faces aren't consistent between the two games). The chapter also is a wonderful recreation of the path between Munster and Meathe in Genealogy. It's very recognizeably meant to be the exact same area Seliph traipses down later in the game. We do later see this again with the other Munster exterior map very late in the game, but, somewhat disappointingly, the same cannot be said about the exterior of Leinster....three different times.

 

Edited July 25 by Jotari

[ping]

14 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

You're not gonna have Finn and Nanna talk?

Well, this is a blind-ish run. And while playing, possible Talks just aren't at the top of my mind - case in point, me not remembering Karin and Ced's connection, so I had to replay the map in order to get the Forseti scroll.

18 minutes ago, BrightBow said:

From now on Fatigue will be a concern. So it's very convenient that the Ronan gang is back, seeing how the Manster guys are probably worn out at this point.

Finn is probably the most important returnee for the upcoming chapter, since I'll have to capture the boss and Fergus won't be there to throw the Brave Sword at him. Although, I assume that I'll need Halvan or Osian to recruit Marty, so that'd make them even more crucial than getting the Gaiden chapter (and Dagdar and Tanja)

18 minutes ago, Jotari said:

It's particularly baffling that they needed Hannibal to speak to one of his underlings and they chose to use this portrait instead of Carrion, the actual playable character you get at the end of this chapter. It's really minor, but such a missed opportunity. In a game where playable characters have such small amounts of dialogue to characterize themselves, why not put them in a cutscene where someone needs to speak? It's better than a generic face we see a whole bunch of times. Instead Carrion kind of just shows up at the end of the chapter out of nowhere.

I didn't even think of that, but... yeah, absolutely. Since Hannibal is going to tell Callion about Lugh Faris's true identity (I already read next chapter's intro), it would've been especially nice to set him up as somebody that Hannibal trusts a lot.

21 minutes ago, Jotari said:

Triggering them too early actually makes it very likely they'll swarm the field and kill Shiva on you. At least if you take the centre path and are creating a choke point there (I personally stole Shiva's sword to render him impudent while Safy got to him). On this subject, this is a bit of a weakness in the gameplay and story narrative integration here. You need Safy to talk to Shiva, but you can't capture Shiva and have her do that. You also can't capture Shiva bring him to Safy and then release him. Instead, capture+release=death, in terms of gameplay, despite it explicitly not being that in the narrative. Maybe it'd make it too easy to cheese such sections like this, but I think I would like it more just for how it works in terms of actual logic if you could capture Shiva and then have Safy talk to the person holding Shiva to trigger the talk command with Shiva. Maybe that would cause some issues if a unit can use the talk command on both an ally and the unit an ally is rescuing, but even if there is a scenario like that, I'm sure it could be worked around with a simple left or right trigger like with trading.

I'm honestly curious how an optimised (full recruitment) clear looks, so I might rewatch dondon playing it. I really wonder how one would balance out luring Shiva towards Safi vs. moving everybody towards Meath quickly. Stealing Shiva's KE sounds great, but unfortunately, my Lifis is still at 6 Con (and KEs weigh 7) 😕

Agreed that capturing Shiva should be an option one way or the other. Considering that Lifis's recruitment already checks if he's captured and not released, it probably would've been possible to do the same for Shiva's, plus maybe see if Safi's still alive. Would be a fun little parallel between the two Safi Simps, too. Poetry and all that.

28 minutes ago, Jotari said:

Halvan, not only does he use Leif's real name, but he also identifies where they're from.

And he's supposed to be the thoughtful, intelligent axe bro. Very disappointing.

29 minutes ago, Jotari said:

It actually still is from official sources. This is like Agustus, a fan who tried to construct a more accurate translation probably about a week before the first CYL gave all these characters actual English names.

I wonder if we'll ever meet his dad, Rottinkorsp, or his sister Dethan-Deekae.

32 minutes ago, Jotari said:

It is quite clearly a retcon, but I have to say I do like this cameo. Absolutely fanserivce at its finest, it even moves Hannibal from the castle he was in in Genealogy (this is Maykov's castle in Genealogy, whom I can headcanon is the generic guy Hannibal spoke to since they didn't utilize Carrion in that role and Coulter proves generic faces aren't consistent between the two games). The chapter also is a wonderful recreation of the path between Munster and Meathe in Genealogy. It's very recognizeably meant to be the exact same area Seliph traipses down later in the game. We do later see this again with the other Munster exterior map very late in the game, but, somewhat disappointingly, the same cannot be said about the exterior of Leinster....three different times.

I'm definitely not complaining about Hannibal's appearance here. It's just too easy to poke fun at, until an eventual Genealogy remake will hopefully allow Hannibal to pompously greet his old friend Sir Lugh and tell him how good it is to see him safe and sound.

[Jotari]

11 minutes ago, ping said:

I wonder if we'll ever meet his dad, Rottinkorsp, or his sister Dethan-Deekae.

Wait until you see Uncle Fester.

[Saint Rubenio]

4 hours ago, ping said:

His mind consumed by regret, Leif managed to escape Munster. He was joined by several members of the Magi, who pledged themselves to his service.  Yet there was no time to celebrate: an enormous price had been placed on Leif's head, and countless bounty hunters were determined to claim it. What's more, the Knights of Munster had doggedly pursued Leif, and their forces weer growing dangerously close...

Gee, I wonder which one of these is the throwaway bossman.

...It's none of them. That guy's portrait is never used for a unit ingame. Jumpstarting another of Kaga's proud traditions: Having a whole bunch of unused portraits but resorting to recolors and reuses for reasons beyond all but himself.

4 hours ago, ping said:

Not sure what the best way to beat the map while also recruiting Shiva is, though. Spoiler warning - Finn and Safi will appear on the western path, south of the Brigands, which is a bit of an uncomfortable position...

In my experience? Mostly just stall a bit until Finn can get Safy overthere.

4 hours ago, ping said:

Dere he is. Beardman once more. Sadly just an NPC in this game, but that's okay, because we got another beardman coming that you are most certainly going to recruit.

4 hours ago, ping said:

Can't believe Stahldresch is getting away with such a sloppy shave in the military.

Raydrik has a very flexible facial hair policy. His only demand is that nobody surpasses his own.

4 hours ago, ping said:

Raydrik out

You can say that again. We won't see the guy again for a long, long time.

4 hours ago, ping said:

Kudos for Shiva for demonstrating that Safy really isn't much of a character, and more like the distilled essence of the "selfless pious woman" archetype with every other aspect of her thrown into the bin.

I mean, even down to her design she's literally just a colorswapped Lena.

4 hours ago, ping said:

[HP 70% | Str 45% | Mag 5% | Skl 50% | Spd 35% | Lck 60% | Def 30% | Con 20% | Mov 2%]
Weapon Level: Swords (B)
Skill: Sol
 
Shiva as a unit doesn't seem terribly impressive. Probably a better long-term project than Machua, but there's nothing about him that really stands out. His growths are more reminiscent of Deke and Gerik than Nabarl and Rutger - probably a good thing, since his base Spd is high enough that he should still cap it or at least get very close, but his raw HP/Def is fairly low for this point. Heck, it's the same Def and only +2 HP compared to what my Nanna has right now. FCM 4 is nice, of course, and might allow for some guaranteed crit follow-ups without the Killing Edge. I'd assume that he gets a support bonus from Safi.

Shiva is one of the most boring members of his archetype ever. Just stick with Macha, she's cooler.

4 hours ago, ping said:

 

"You must have met my twin brother Ray. I mean, Raigh. Or maybe Rey."

Clearly Lleu.

4 hours ago, ping said:

: "Prince Leif! Sheesh, some help I turned out to be, huh? Might as well have stayed in Fiana, for all the good I did..."
: "Damned Thracians! Next time I see them, they'll pay for what they've done!"
: "I'm awful sorry, Prince Leif... I guess I'm just not very strong..."

A rousing round of "Who Can Say The Most Inappropriate Thing": Ronan and Halvan going for the classic "Call the incognito guy by his real name", while Osian is spicing things up with "Threaten to kill the guys that just released you out of goodwill". Who's your winner?

All jokes aside, the implication is that Leif left the room and went to wherever the three amigos were waiting (hence Hannibal's "bring them to the prisoners") and Hannibal didn't join them until afterwards when he appears again.

Of course, this is all played out so clunkily that it genuinely does look like the morons just instantly blew ol' Lugh's cover.

4 hours ago, ping said:

: "Oh, you were one of the children imprisoned at Kerberos' Gate... What are you doing here?"
: "General Hannibal is my lord father, you see. On the off chance we met again, I prepared you a token of my gratitude. here you are. It's a very powerful staff imbued with Warp magic."
: "Thank you! This is most generous...!"

Remember when I said Coirpre is possibly better in this game than the one where he's actually playable? That warp staff does more than Coirpre himself does in FE4 lol

3 hours ago, Jotari said:

It actually still is from official sources. This is like Agustus, a fan who tried to construct a more accurate translation probably about a week before the first CYL gave all these characters actual English names.

Let us not forget that CyL also mistranslated Murdock and Niime despite FE7 giving them official names. I'd take the underpaid intern's name list with a grain of salt, at least until the characters were officially added to Heroes. And the names confirmed, because why would they bother doing any more research? There's money to be made from selling scantly-clad JPEGs!

3 hours ago, ping said:

I wonder if we'll ever meet his dad, Rottinkorsp, or his sister Dethan-Deekae.

D E I D

M A N N

[Jotari]

6 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Let us not forget that CyL also mistranslated Murdock and Niime despite FE7 giving them official names. I'd take the underpaid intern's name list with a grain of salt, at least until the characters were officially added to Heroes. And the names confirmed, because why would they bother doing any more research? There's money to be made from selling scantly-clad JPEGs!

I wish I could take it with more grains of salt because I think Yulia and Jubello is just asanine, but it seems like they've really settled in the list as official. There were some growing pains, like they changed their mind about Ulster (who was actually first named in Awakening) and Thea had the technically more accurate but silly sounding Thite for a while. But all of that was brushed off in the first two years. The list has been consistently adhered to since then.

[Revier]

And so begins the long retreat.

Fun little chapter, loved the clever callbacks to Genealogy.

[ping]

10 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Dere he is. Beardman once more. Sadly just an NPC in this game, but that's okay, because we got another beardman coming that you are most certainly going to recruit.

I'm sure I will blindly do the 5235 necessary steps without mistake and in the correct order.

10 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

I mean, even down to her design she's literally just a colorswapped Lena.

Lena at least gets a last-second piece of selfishness by deciding to break her vows and get in an official relationship with Julian. That's a lot, compared to the average amount of characterisation that Akaneia folks get. But to be fair, Safi still has all the time in the world to break her vows, try to murder Leif (just because), and become a pirate queen.

10 hours ago, Saint Rubenio said:

Remember when I said Coirpre is possibly better in this game than the one where he's actually playable? That warp staff does more than Coirpre himself does in FE4 lol

I didn't remember that you said it, but the joke (good jokes always have some truth in them) must've stuck to my subconscious because I almost accidently stole it.

 

[Jotari]

31 minutes ago, ping said:

I'm sure I will blindly do the 5235 necessary steps without mistake and in the correct order.

Lena at least gets a last-second piece of selfishness by deciding to break her vows and get in an official relationship with Julian. That's a lot, compared to the average amount of characterisation that Akaneia folks get. But to be fair, Safi still has all the time in the world to break her vows, try to murder Leif (just because), and become a pirate queen.

I didn't remember that you said it, but the joke (good jokes always have some truth in them) must've stuck to my subconscious because I almost accidently stole it.

 

Is it against the rules for clerics to marry in the Fire Emblem verse? The Genealogy clerics get hitched with no apparent anxed.

[ping]

It is implied that at least Lena in particular took a chastity vow:

On 2/18/2024 at 12:15 AM, ping said:

: "From now on, just call me Lena. It seems so impersonal when you call me Miss Lena. Because we're going to return to Macedon, to live together."
: "Huh? ...Miss Lena... Oh... No... I meant Le... na... Do you really mean that..."
: "Mmm... I believe the deities will forgive me. Because of my... love for you."

That said, Mallishicithea is all about marrying Marth and Nyna is a Bishop, so it's clearly not obligatory for the ingame Cleric class. Lena just happens to be an actual nun instead of a Woman Who Is Playable But Doesn't Fight So I Guess She's A Healer.