Fire Emblem Fates [Waifu Simulator 2k16]

[Cobalt996]

[stuff on Gameplay reasons]

[stuff on story reasons]

[gtfo Fan-Service Camilla]

[Other stuff]

I don't have a main reason, and truthfully, I'd have chosen Hoshido more from liking Oboro and Kaden as characters, but I chose Nohr Because my brother shafted me with it because I guess it reminds me more of my own life.

My parents are decently strict (along the lines of prolly locking me from a computer if they knew I had an online account outside of email) on things they think go against what they want, and try to have my brother and I mirror their ideals. Meanwhile, my brother is the only relative I have who even remotely agrees with me on anything (see: Corrin, Nohr siblings); the two of us get along about as well as Corrin with Leo or Xander. I like the idea of siding with a person who is so obviously in the wrong, because I could possibly wrest away any support they have, and make everything collapse on them, if only out of spite. Of course, I'd also be the guy who chooses one side, then sucker punches both of them in order to start at a stalemate, rather than, you know... basically going "here I am, shoot me now."

Another factor might be that I'm not 99.999999999% of the members on this site (yes, I know that number is inaccurate), as I don't really care overmuch for anime; it's okay, I'll watch it, but it's basically the same thing from one anime to the next. Anime is from Japan, and Hoshido is based on feudal Japan.

Furthermore, I read many, many, MANY book series in the medieval fantasy genre, with most of it being loosely based on "the dark ages," which matches up with Nohr.

Shipping-wise. gtfo no. I do not. Even. Do that. I'm more the person who thinks "I wonder if character A from FE14 would be friends with character B from FE8 if they met during a peacetime." Making an army between the games, and seeing how they would intermingle interests me, but not the A x B stuff. Think "Zelgius meets Xander." or somesuch. Would they get along, would they be at each-other's throats?

[Chase]

Alright, see, Camilla is worthy of her own discourse first and foremost.

Frankly, I absolutely HATE what Intelligent Systems did to her as a character - especially so in Birthright as a means of shaming the more... base population of the consumer base.

She's a very strong and unique character without the boobs. Her 180 that she employs between being a doting sister and being a merciless warrior is actually incredibly well done. She's even a great character -with- them assuming Intelligent Systems only makes Camilla seem older and doesn't try to cash in on her asset-

"Oh, I guess you missed your big sister- Mmm, you're so cute..."

.... And supposedly the same thing happens when you DO pick Nohr of Hoshido as well. IS deliberately turned Camilla from an excellent character who "happens" to be physically well endowed, to a character that they WANT you to acknowledge is physically well endowed through the use of provocative Live3D cut-scenes with the sole purpose of objectifying her and tantalizing the player.

In Birthright - even when she goes a bit off the reservation when it comes to both caring for you as a longtime family member (Camilla genuinely DOES care about Corrin - often times past the point where Corrin's opinion matters, which is the whole point of the opposing forces.) as well as being the highest known woman of nobility in Nohr. Camilla is an adversary that is supposed to guilt trip you, and the story does a good enough job of doing so sans provocative cutscene. in the first two battles I've had with her, these are her defeat quotes:

"...don't....forget me..." - Chapter 6 - (Plains of Hoshido face-off, where Camilla is an optional opponent for experience.)

"...I still love you, [Avatar]..." - Chapter 13 - (Cheve, where Camilla is partnered with Leo and Hans to fight the Chevois resistance and your Hoshidan army. She serves as the map boss, along with her retainers and Hans.)

Sounds a lot like family to me - even if misguided. That being said, I do understand your grievances with regards to fan-service.

---

If the gameplay where the same across all three routes (let's say it's as it is with Revelation, where the unlimited grinding, support development, and wealth accumulation comes packaged WITH multiple win conditions) It would be a very tough decision.

Obviously storywise, siding with Hoshido feels like it's the "right" thing to do. The decision is being made on a Hoshidan meadow where the Nohrian forces are an invading army - and King Garon is legitimately bad news. However, I'm more of a fan of Nohr's background than I am Hoshido's - and while Camilla isn't my cup of tea, I already know the types of units and characters I would run into along the way on the Nohr path would be more interesting.

However, one of the biggest themes in the game regarding the decision is that you have to choose what matters more - Blood or Presence?

My life narrative features a noteworthy family scenario - my father cheated on my mother, the pair of them argued at least three times a week, and eventually he walked out on our family leading to divorce. To me, the Nohrian siblings hold a lot of value because even though they weren't Corrin's blood relatives, Corrin is supposed to represent to some degree -ME-.

My father walked out on me. My mother was loyal. (Yes, she also is my actual mother, I understand the difference) - but to me - family is seemingly more akin to those who are not absent in your life than it does those who fathered and mothered you into this world. If -I- am supposed to answer the question on that theme alone - I would have strong reason to turn my back on my newly found blood family.

After all - when I needed them, they weren't there for me. (Again, that's Nohr's fault too, and if the Nohrian siblings were anything less than siblings, it would be enough to make Hoshido the "clear cut" better choice.)

....I honestly don't know how to answer that question. I like when things are revealed - or "brought to light", but I prefer the night over the day. I prefer to be moral over immoral - but I also hold respect for those who break the compass as a result.

If I were as strong as Revelation Corrin seems to be - turning down both family's and lone wolfing it is probably the "best" option for me. The two other routes are a very big coin-flip.

---

I don't think you can use King Garon as the standard barrier for Nohr's general demeanor - but I'd advise you to play Conquest to discover why on your own.

---

Also, I like the "new-school" Fire Emblem formula AND Silas too. It sounds like you're a lot like me, Cephus.

[Cepheus]

Oh my god...

Kaden and Felicias supports are about caring for a Kitten??

are you kitten, me?? (pun totally intended)

I guess I found my next ship! KITTEN!!!!!

looks like with that I can cross out Felicia as Corrins S-Support... i guess that leaves me with Azula

since I'm avoiding this whole blood-related sister thing, and I already S-ranked Mozu with Silas, and already ship the other girls with someone else^^

and holy shit... so many supports are about sweets or food in general...

also I wish we could sort our characters in the Unit-selection screen... like "sort by level" instead of having them always be sorted by last units used... would save me a lot of time going thorugh them all to check their levels for grinding^^

Edited May 28, 2016 by Cepheus

[Chase]

Aptitude Sophie. Nice.

If you want -all- of the child units, Corrin isn't limited to Azura.

• In Birthright, Reina, Scarlet, and Anna (reward from the Anna on the Run DLC) are "corrinsexual" Gen 1 units that only support with Corrin. The upside to wife-ing a Corrinsexual is that you leave the other gentlemen free to marry the other Gen 1 ladies and thus have access to all child units.
• You can also S-support female child units (save for F!Kana) ...and if you think about it, this is perfectly okay as their growth in the Deeprealms actually closes the age gap on many of them. These include Mitama (Azama), Caeldori (Subaki), Rhajat** (Hayato), Sophie (Silas), and Midori (Kaze) - Marrying a child-unit also allows for the rest of the the male cast to marry - and the only "Gen 3" unit would indeed be Kana, so you're not missing out on him/her either.

Rhajat, a child unit, is the only available option available for a female Corrin to S-Support with, if same-sex pairings are your cup of tea.

---

TBH, I didn't think I was going to like Kana as much as I do. I definitely expected the MU's child to be the generic good guy/girl that really likes their parent - and that's exactly what she is. However, I at least feel like some of the things Kana gets knocked for saying are genuine - and as someone who projects self into every game he plays, I appreciate the times when Kana is more like me than Corrin actually is.

Rrrrrgh rarr rawr.

That's dragon...for I love you guys....aight? Deal with it. I like that line.

Don't be bad apples.

[Cepheus]

you know I'm currently trying to figure out the best A+ supports - first I thought that it would be like S-Support that both character receive the A+ - but when I did it with Sakura for A+ Azura, I realized that it really only is for Sakura...

so now I'm grinding Hana and Felicia to get Hana the A+ (I'm amazed by the fact that Felicia as a Maid can become Tactician!)

also I currently just got Ryoma and Scarlet (beat ch.13 - damn you overwatch for using up all my time in the evening after work!)

and I'm already at an A-Rank with Azura... and I really don't like the fact that Reina and Scarlet can ONLY support Corrin... I hated that in Awakening... I mean Ryoma and Scarlet fought together in the Resistance, why can't they support each other?

Reina is in service of the Royal family for a long time, why only Corrin support and not the other Family-members? ugh...

also I don't have DLC-Maps yet, except the first "Awakening"-map, because it was free^^

also I kinda thought about CorrinxAzura as my headcanon - because both are in a similar situation: prince/princess of one country, raised in the other - have that bonding thorugh that Dragon-stone and her song, and generally care for each other - and with two royalties of another country would creating peace so much easier... (also a bit of Romeo and Juliet???)

also since I'm around level 16/17 I'm thinking about class changes with the Heart-Seal(?) to get more abilities until I reach level 20...

[Chase]

That's one run through a Fire Emblem title in the bag.

Stats are as follows.

Fate: Birthright

Difficulty - Normal

Playstyle - Classic (Units die and don't return.)

My Unit (Class) Level: Hunter (Hoshidan Noble) LV20

Wife: Azura

Children: Kana, Shigure

Paralogue/Child Units: Mozu, Kana (HunterXAzura), Shigure (HunterXAzura), Asugi (SaizoXOrochi), Mitama (AzamaXFelicia), Caeldori (SubakiXHinoka), Rhajat (HayatoXSakura), Shiro (RyomaXOboro), Dwyer (JakobXKagero), Selkie (KadenXHana), Kiragi (TakumiXSetsuna), Midori (KazeXMozu), Sophie (SilasXRinkah)

Loveless Male: Hinata (Sorry, Hisame)

Captured Bosses: Daniela (Strategist - Border Walls Map - Nohr)

---

Deaths - It's worth mentioning that I did finish the game losing Mitama in the route's endgame chapter. The reason I didn't restart there was due to the inability to save before the endgame battle and restarting would require doing Garon's chapter over again. If you forgive an endgame death due to that circumstance, then I was nearly flawless.

I was pretty bummed out about it though - and I count it as a death.

---

Favorite Units:

Rhajat - Witch

Rhajat as a character was my first exposure to the 'Tharja' treatment, as I didn't ever play Awakening. Her personality and expertise in dark magic made her the perfect character to use my free Witche's Mark on. From there, she reached S rank in tomes, was able to warp all over the map, solo'd many of the more important units in the latter part of the invasion, and reached astronomical levels whenever she scored a critical hit. With Sakura as a mother and Hayato playing Dad - she picked up Renewal, which made her incredibly resilient as she healed 40 percent of her health at the end of each turn she wasn't at full HP. She also carried Tomefaire - which only increased the annihilation Rhajat wrought.

Kana - Hero

My MU's secondary class was 'Fighter' - which I had to figure out the hard way was a very unflattering class for your kid daughter to dress up as. Luckily, there's a promotion branch in 'Fates', and she was able to dip on over to the Mercenary line for Hero upon promotion. (Mercenary is my favorite non-mount class in Nohr.) She gained access to Sol - a skill that causes half of the damage caused to be returned gained health to the attacker - as well as Gamble, which is a skill that relies completely on luck but paired really nicely with the Killer Axe, which I borrowed from Scarlet. Her stats were comparable to her father's by the end of the run, and while she apparently lost the ability to go Dragon in battle, she instead picked up reliable crit chances and skill activations - which made her very destructive and sustainable on her own.

Silas - Paladin

Silas is my favorite character in 'Fates' so far. He was able to outpace his daughter to the very end, scoring a slot in the final battle against Garon over Sophie as a result. While the Javelin wasn't extremely great, it was a weapon that gave Silas range - which helped him keep up with his lance rank. He maxed out his sword rank. He gained access to Aegis, which ignores the opponents defenses when triggered.

Dwyer - Paladin

Sophie getting burned by her old man doesn't necessarily make Silas the "best" Paladin (unit-wise) in the ranks. Jakob's secondary class is Cavalier, and contrary to his female counterpart Felicia, he has fantastic physical growths to pull the class off nicely. This was boosted by Kagero's own great physical growths for Dwyer. Dwyer not only boasted Aegis, but Luna as well from a stint as a Great Knight. He was a much more serviceable lancer than Silas, while Silas beat him in sword wielding ability.

Mitama - Strategist

Mitama has a funny support with virtually everyone it seemed. She also benefit from Tomebreaker, a skill she picked up from her Nohrian mother. Also due to Felicia, I was able to re-class Mitama into the Nohrian stave user from her base Hoshidan one. Troubadors don't get the very nice Priestess access to bows upon promotion, but they make up for it with tome access and a free horse to boost movement. Since Felicia's magic growths were great, Mitama ended up being a anti-mage tank that eventually was able to dish it back out with magic of her own. Her own flaw was that she didn't get much in HP and I didn't invest in it enough to make her durable in other situations.

This resulted in her death at the very end of the game.

Fallen Mitama / You were quite skilled and sound / remembrance will last ......I tried.

Anna - Bow Knight

Anna was a reward from the 'Anna on the Run' DLC map - and was oddly the only character I knew about from the previous game in the Fire Emblem franchise (outside of the Smash roster) - She brought with her a godsend - the Nohrian archer class branch - as well as what will be a SUPER helpful skill (in Conquest) that at the end of some turns she will find gold coins.

She may be a gold-digger, but in terms of options when it comes to female Corrinsexuals...she's passable too. Just saying.

Ryoma - Swordmaster

There had to be at least ONE Hoshidan class represented in this list because I was playing Birthright. Ryoma snared it fairly easily though, being reliable enough to get me out of a jam or just plow through a paralogue if I really wanted to get a child unit in the least amount of time possible. Astra is a super fun ability to turn your animations on for, and the Raijinto is pretty cool.

[Ikaru]

>letting Mitama of all people die


she's my favorite </3

>Rhajat - Witch

I only was able to use the Witch class closer to the end of Revelation since that was when it was added as a free thing (and it went straight to Ophelia), but MAN, it's way cooler than pretty much all the other magic classes. I'm not a huge fan of Rhajat and will not ever be, but we'll get over it because Witch is awesome.

>"He gained access to Aegis, which ignores the opponents defenses when triggered."

I, uh, think you need to try this one again

>"This was boosted by Kagero's own great physical growths for Dwyer."
Kagero is SO WEIRD why does she have so much strength as a ninja????? Dwyer though, he's one of my favorites and his supports with Mitama and Ophelia are probably the best things I've read so far.

Mitama is precious and I'm mad you didn't protect her but now she can sleep forever I guess. Death comes for us all, she knew that.

>"She may be a gold-digger, but in terms of options when it comes to female Corrinsexuals...she's passable too. Just saying."

If I had to choose Anna or Charlotte there's really just no hesitation. bye felicia charlotte. man, i don't like her.

That said, what did you think of that one path as a whole?

Unrelated:

I'm starting over Conquest - as opposed to Revelation, since it seems like everyone who didn't play the game immediately on release is getting around to it now - in order to marry Flora both so that I don't mess with first-gen pairings, and because I thought that it would be interesting and it stuck the more I considered it. She's really pretty and I haven't used her at all before this, surprisingly. (that's sarcasm. it's not surprising with THAT availability. it's like the time I married Tiki in Awakening.)

give me your strength, everyone. it begins as soon as i can figure out what secondary class i want. *stares at Mercenary, Cavalier and Samurai*

EDIT: man I can't make up my mind on wording so tl;dr
1) decided I wanted to play again to marry Flora

2) chose conquest because Edge is playing it too, among others

3) I'm going to die please send aid

4) I need a secondary class for myself and Kana

[Chase]

What did I think about the chapter as a whole, you ask.

As a whole - Birthright is the right game to delve into the story first-time in - even story-wise.

Not only because hearing 'Thorn in You' in Chapter 6 during the following Conquest run makes you feel like a evil traitorous dirtbag - but because it sets the groundwork for Revelation while giving you the moral right-of-way and establishing the characters for the entire 'Fates' experience. It felt like reading a story first time, where Conquest is designed to be the second reading where the story changes and is built upon previously known information.

---

Corrin seems to be a bit contradictory at times in Birthright. Choosing Hoshido seemed to come off as a naturally agreeable moral decision for him - to the point where he seemed to be a little more relaxed (definitely not too comfortable mind you) on the topic of death (Having recently started Conquest, for example, Nohr Corrin is suprisingly a STICKLER for keeping as many people alive as possible.)

In other words, Hoshidan Corrin seems to at times justify the Hoshidan army's destruction under his moral decision - while Nohrian Corrin - perhaps knowing their decision was made perhaps less on moral premise and more on personal care for his adoptive family - seems to be trying to clean up Nohr's act by not letting anyone - even the common enemy unit - die if it's avoidable.

Of course, Corrin's favorite food changes depending on the route (Birthright - Surf and Turf/ Conquest - Vegetarian Chowder) - so maybe they aren't the same Corrin at all.

---

I felt like Hoshido was smaller than I had originally anticipated as well. Yukimura is the only known non-royal tactician for the kingdom - and was the only one we knew was in charge of Hoshido's defense while Corrin's army delivered it's long counteroffensive. Before getting to the Burning Falls - you learn that he's in trouble and apparently handled the situation enough to decide to join my army afterwards. Good work, sir... and that Hoshido's defensive troops are really counting on you killing Garon because they're on the brink of collapsing.

I don't have a problem with this however. It made the end result feel good. The little peace loving kingdom toppling the big imperialized bully hell-bent on annexing them.

---

The death that got to me most in the story was Lilith's. Flora killing herself wasn't very fun at all - but Jakob kinda sums up my thoughts on suicide with his "Gods, what a horrible waste of life...I think I'm going to be sick." one-liner. It might have been Elise's suicide mission if I hadn't predicted something bad happening to her after she decided to be a guide for us through the castle. Xander...seemed necessary only because of his position being unmovable. Mikoto's was weakened because Hoshido NEEDED a reason (after having you return) to engage Nohr formally.

And despite having married her in this run - Azura's death was spoiled to me. so. I've already dealt with it. was still said

Lilith's came genuinely out of left field.

---

My favorite chapter in the entire route was 'Hidden Capital' - or the battle that takes place with the thief Shura in the middle of Windmire. The opening dialogue between Silas and Ryoma regarding Windmire's ghost-town vibe despite being Nohr's capital city is the perfect validation for someone who is looking to understand why fighting for Nohr in the opposite route would make sense - as there are people who are trying to make a solid living in perhaps the worst conditions known to man. Ryoma vowing to share his country's resources with his enemy nation after that conversation also was pretty cool. Finally, the ending dialogue (finding the underground markets where you bump into a disguised Elise) was really neat too, providing that even in darkness, people can live strong lives without resorting to criminal activity. I think Cephus would enjoy the enlightenment in that chapter.

---

Camilla is the perfect royal for a kingdom that is under such strife - because in Birthright, she seems to have a healthy amount of it on her own. She doesn't quite make sense, and her impulsive motherly "actions" paired with her Nohrian acceptance and even enjoyment of killing overriding Corrin's opinion was a bit heavy-handed, but I think the story wanted you to think her questionable decision making had an underlying reason as opposed to being iffy-writing. It seemed like she was mentally tortured at the very least - as seen by the fainting after your second fight with her.

Leo on the other hand - went from being a total snob to a very, VERY intriguing character who was incredibly important - although off-handedly - to the Hoshidan cause. I was with Odin and Niles at the end there - what did Azura's crystal reveal to him? Will the other routes tell me?

...and I thought it was fitting after having that realization (eventually after making fun of him for a bit) that took Garon's place as King over Camilla for that reason.

---

Gameplay-wise. I would have said I might hate myself for playing Conquest, except I'm having an absolute blast. That being said, I can't wait to have the 'scout' option back for Revelation. Most of my time in Birthright was spent in Skirmishes, and while that's just mindless grinding, I still thought it was fun - and it rewarded me with some great support conversations, units, and lots of resources.

---

I went with Samurai for my conquest run - although Cav and Merc are my favorite classes to work with. I don't know if you pick up a Samurai later on - but if you don't and you want a dodge-tank Ikaru/Kana go for it due to uniqueness. Otherwise, pick Cavalier because horses are cool.

[Tempo17]

I don't have a main reason, and truthfully, I'd have chosen Hoshido more from liking Oboro and Kaden as characters, but I chose Nohr Because my brother shafted me with it because I guess it reminds me more of my own life.

My parents are decently strict (along the lines of prolly locking me from a computer if they knew I had an online account outside of email) on things they think go against what they want, and try to have my brother and I mirror their ideals. Meanwhile, my brother is the only relative I have who even remotely agrees with me on anything (see: Corrin, Nohr siblings); the two of us get along about as well as Corrin with Leo or Xander. I like the idea of siding with a person who is so obviously in the wrong, because I could possibly wrest away any support they have, and make everything collapse on them, if only out of spite. Of course, I'd also be the guy who chooses one side, then sucker punches both of them in order to start at a stalemate, rather than, you know... basically going "here I am, shoot me now."

Another factor might be that I'm not 99.999999999% of the members on this site (yes, I know that number is inaccurate), as I don't really care overmuch for anime; it's okay, I'll watch it, but it's basically the same thing from one anime to the next. Anime is from Japan, and Hoshido is based on feudal Japan.

Furthermore, I read many, many, MANY book series in the medieval fantasy genre, with most of it being loosely based on "the dark ages," which matches up with Nohr.

Shipping-wise. gtfo no. I do not. Even. Do that. I'm more the person who thinks "I wonder if character A from FE14 would be friends with character B from FE8 if they met during a peacetime." Making an army between the games, and seeing how they would intermingle interests me, but not the A x B stuff. Think "Zelgius meets Xander." or somesuch. Would they get along, would they be at each-other's throats?

While I do like my shipping it is really only exclusive to certain characters. For example I will always do AzuraxSilas since I both like the general synergy, child potential, and support conversations between them. I can also really like to do what you do with the character from other games and seeing how they would react to one another. Except instead of fire emblem games, I do it with smash bros characters. I find it interesting to think how each of the characters would react to one another from such different games. What kind of weapons do they use, what do they look like etc. I would like to imagine a 4th route where you recruit Sm4sh characters instead of all the characters from Nohr and Hosido. I think that would be interesting and fun if only to have fun making up stories.

[Chase]

Sweet, I can go with a tentative favorite Conquest character list. (Not every character is going to be a unit in his route - FYI)

10. Laslow - Mercenary

While not a character I am using in my run, Laslow is a character that is shrouded by mystery to me as a newer player to the franchise. He's certainly the most tame of the Nohrian retainers character-wise, but his suave demeanor (that he actually passes down to his daughter Soleil - hilarious in my opinion) and cheery attitude definitely helps make him a like-able mascot around the castle.

Yes, I'm aware, that this is Inigo from Awakening. The effect his being-in-the-game has is lessened because Fates is my first FE experience.

9. Hinoka - Falcon Knight (at the point I've encountered her so far)

Yep, the older Hoshidan princess is an enemy in this route - and if it weren't for Camilla starting a seemingly needless family-feud the encounter would have been totally gut-wrenching. Instead it was just a sham where she was bested after getting mildly dissed by her Nohrian counterpart. However - Camilla's tackiness actually raised the intrigue Hinoka has a character. Does she get spared like Camilla was in Birthright? or does Camilla (or worse, Corrin himself) pour salt in the wounds this route causes to those who played Birthright first?

Hinoka is my favorite Hoshidan royal in terms of "the eye test." - She's a strong woman who -does- rival Camilla for caring over Corrin - although because she was deprived of Corrin's attendance in her life, she demonstrates her care by devoting her life to bringing them back home. Good stuff.

8. Silas - Paladin

Still my favorite character in the game overall, but when talking about strictly Conquest, your best friend certainly sees his fair share of competition for experience gain and roster position with Xander, Peri, his daughter Sophie, Xander's son Siegbert, and even optimal reclass units like Dwyer around.

That being said, Silas is a godsend character in the early-game - coming to you and your servant's aid first. As a Cavalier, he's still a unit that won't be extremely fantastic, but can hold his own in many situations. He was a valuable unit in Chapter 10, which is my personal favorite level of the game - for being able to handle the western side of Dia all by himself. He serves as the much needed support for Corrin in their early Norhian exploits and it further made him an endearing character overall. In my run, he still finds service, although with Siegbert around and Sophie still yet to have been born, he might not make it all the way to the end as a starting unit.

7. Elise - Strategist

I very much preferred Mitama to Elise in this role...but Elise still is serviceable as a magic tank. This is probably because Elise is relying purely on good resistance and doesn't have Tomebreaker.

Once again though, Elise is super brave and willing to subvert the wishes of her father to assist you - which is something that frustrates me about her sister, whose LONE EXCEPTION to siding with someone over Corrin seems to be King Garon himself. She is the most welcoming to Azura when she joins the cause and completely erases the bad taste Nohr left in the former princess' mouth. Her supports are funny and in this route she does a good job of helping me remember the good things of experiencing "sisterhood" in my life.

6. Shura - Adventurer

Unit-wise, Shura is trash. Let's just throw that out there. Unless you're a female that wants ALL of the children and you don't see yourself going for Gunter instead - Shura is trash.

Story-wise, Shura is a character that Conquest does a good job of building on what Birthright establishes. In other words, the two fates come together to beautifully enhance a character from being "just a trash Corrin-sexual" "a Corrin-sexual with relevance".

In Birthright, after defeating him and his gang of thieves in Windmire, Azura is able to extrapolate that Shura knows about the underground tunnel the Hoshidan forces need to make use of in order to reach King Garon. She's right - while also causing Shura to stumble on his words as if he was to reveal something as to why. He also seems to know Azura from somewhere - which is feasible because she is a former Nohrian princess.

Conquest fills in the blanks. Shura is the "hoshidan ninja" responsible for kidnapping her and taking her to Hoshido in retaliation for Corrin's kidnapping. His ninja backstory is revealed, letting us know that he's from a know destroyed ninja clan and that he fled to Nohr following it's destruction. Well done, game. Well. Done.

5. Leo - Dark Knight

The master manipulator himself makes it into the top five because of his ability of deception. As a unit, he's ....he's alright I suppose - but at this point (having not fathered Forrest for those who dislike him due to supposed "bad dad" stuff) he's a pretty good character who knows full well what his actions could bring upon them, and instead finds a way to mask them rather than avoid doing the right thing at all. The "Middle Child Syndrome" is only a character enhancer for him in this route, whereas it's a flimsy excuse in the other route, because it shows his personal motives alongside his genuine grasp on morality.

4. Velouria - Wolfssegner(?)

What? Hunter actually appreciating a BEAST unit? WHAT? WHAT??

Velouria is probably my favorite kid so far. The details are really cool - to the red hood and "Goody Basket" allusions to the tale "Little Red Riding Hood", to her supports with her mother (Camilla) being overtly protective of perhaps the most capable unit in my army, to being an absolute savage in her own right.

I don't like wolves OR foxes, but Velouria's personality, traits, quirks, and sheer power make her absolutely worth using.

3. Effie - General

Effie.....is the best unit in the route. As a general, she's able to clear chokepoints and give me some needed respite due to her great defense - and because she's friggin' EFFIE she's able to dish out absolute pain in return.

You either like the "meathead" character or you don't, but Effie's obsession with raw strength is endearing - she's easily the most devoted retainer Nohr has to offer - even turning down would be suitors (Arthur and I believe even Corrin) at first because "she's basically already married to Elise."..... She's also hungry virtually all the time, which is something I can relate to.

2. Camilla - Malig Knight

Have you ever gone through enough MyCastle battles to have created a ridiculously overpowered unit through skills...? -MY- Camilla has Savage Blow from her class, Bowbreaker, decent resistance, and LIFETAKER. There's uh...........There's no stopping Camilla. As she told Keaton in their supports. "I don't run afoul of ruffians - Ruffians run afoul of me."

Story-wise, you have to know a lot about Camilla to really appreciate her *cough* AS SHE IS SUPPOSED TO BE APPRECIATED.....pervs ... She was used as a pawn by her mother - a concubine who ordered her to kill the other concubines and their children in what resulted in a mini conflict the Nohrian royal family had to endure to reach the four children we know and love. Her obsession over Corrin is because she understands his or her loneliness due to such time-period. It's also where she gets her bloodthirst and acceptance for murder in the nonchalance she presents.

The best thing about Camilla for me though - is that she didn't just turn over easily and without personal conflict for me. First - Intelligent Systems disservices her due to industry oversexualization....on purpose through cutscenes. Then, Camilla picks a fight with Hinoka that isn't called for and is below the belt knowing Hinoka's back story, and finally, when you NEED Camilla to be the Momma Bear big sister and stand up for you in Cheve, she allows Hans to do his worst and instructs Corrin to turn the other cheek. As a player, I WANT to like Camilla, and the game fighting me over this desire was actually annoying for a long time. I felt the same way when playing Birthright though - so Camilla's high standing for now is a little predicated on how the story unfolds from here.

1. WHO KNOWS? - There's so many great allies, neutral characters, AND enemies in this route. I have an idea of who my number one is, but I have a bunch of child units left to birth, and a little bit of story left to play to verify. Stay tuned.

[Sheep]

This. Game. What. The. Frig. After losing chapters 10, 11, and 12 prior to beating them I turn up at chapter 13 (Birthright) and start getting tons of great level ups. +Skl, Def, and Res on Kagerou, stuff like that. Then my army gets nuked by a lightning strike and I lose my main man Azama as well as Kaden. That's not fair, it's just not fair. It's way harder than Awakening that's for sure, and I love it for it. But I want my level ups back. Seriously, it's like the game knew I was gonna walk right into that.

Seriously though, Azama's horrendously broken. He's my only promoted unit, and he's doubling people while dealing enough damage with each hit to kill them WITH A DAMN BRONZE NAGINATA, and he's got more Def than Rinkah. He also heals people, where is the downside?

[Chase]

Hmm - what did you promote him to - Great Master? I've heard good things about GM Azama. I didn't give him a shot in my BR run.

Did you use the lightning on your own units? I wasn't aware Camilla would be DVing in __that chapter__ too. At least, I didn't have any problems.

---

I've captured Sakura, Takumi is missing/dead, and I've "killed" (spared) Hinoka no problems....and then I remember both of Ryoma's retainers are bloody Ninjas....Fudge.

[Sheep]

Nah she did it herself. What difficulty were you playing on? Also I tried the level again, was stupid, and got Orochi killed. Now with lessons learned I tried the level a third time, and it was going really well until my main character got crit on an 11% chance by that Berserker dude. Screw this level, it's kicking my ass harder than the ninja one.

Yeah he's promoted to Great Master and he's a total beast. Growths like HP: 65%, Str: 65%, Skl: 45%, Spd: 60%, Lck: 55%, Def: 50%. Because of the first 20 levels spent as a Monk his Res is pretty great too so his only weak stat is Mag. That's honestly not even important though because the HP stats in this game are so low he can still function as a perfectly effective healer by using a sun festival. Added to that his hilarious personality and he's easily my favorite character from either side.

[Chase]

This is apparently what happens when Ikaru gives me a bunch of accessories - I give him the miracle of childbirth. This is Amber -a bond unit who's apparently "our daughter."....at least in Ikaru's game.

I think she's kinda neat.Starting with her personal she's got 'Rose's Thorns' - a personal skill normally carried by Camilla that gives adjacent allies +3 damage output and -1 damage taken, making Amber here a good supportive front-line unit. She also inherits 'Duelists Blow' from....Ikaru I think.....which enables her to get +40 avoid when initiating an attack, making her dodge ability as a samurai even better. From me (I think) she picks up a handy boost in Swordfaire, the skill that gives +5 damage when using a sword - a weapon Samurai go to by default. Finally, Ikaru also hands down Shelter - a skill normally held by Cavaliers (as Ikaru is in this Conquest run of his) that gives access to the Shelter command, which is essentially pairing up with a unit and switching at the same time to protect a unit from danger.

So, she's essentially a dodge reliant front-line attacker that already knows how to use a sword and has multiple ways to support other units. Pretty cool.

Both Ikaru and I have Samurai as a talent - so she inherits Samurai 100% of the time.

---

Normal, Tom....... Goodness, that's not going to be fun when I kick it up a notch. If Hans is the beserker in question, you can always use the lightning to take his HP down to 1.

[Sheep]

Normal, Tom....... Goodness, that's not going to be fun when I kick it up a notch. If Hans is the beserker in question, you can always use the lightning to take his HP down to 1.

Sick bond unit. I think that concept is actually really cool, though I doubt I'll actually be able to use it because Ikaru said that castles are region locked.

Oh and I did do that. But because of his 6 space movement it was difficult to approach him, so I baited him out and he crit me. Next time I'm going in there with Azama paired up with Kagerou, then Hans can eat my 7 space movement!

[Chase]

Alright, so, I'm gonna go over what I feel is a pretty underrated child unit due to the fact that all of them are fantastic in their own right - and it comes down to character appeal and appreciation of a particular class.

This is Ignatius, the cowardly Knight who inherits his class, timid nature, and love for charms from his father Benny, a Knight who serves in Nohr's border guard.

-my- choice in Mother: Beruka - the Wyvern Rider and monotone assassin who also serves as one of Camilla's retainers. (Man, he can't even not be afraid at home, because his mom might get a contract to kill him one day...)

Ignatius' class - a foot-soldier defensive class that is typically very slow and thus doesn't score much doubles anyway - may be the biggest deterrent from using him to the end of the game. However, given a mother like Camilla, Beruka, or Rinkah in Revelation, Ignatius has solid defensive presence and access to Wary Fighter to prevent opponents for doubling him in return.

His personal skill can be good -or- bad depending on the situation you place him in. Guarded Bravery allows Ignatius to take -2 damage if he's a supported unit. Unsupported however, he ends up taking +2 damage instead. This can hurt his viability in situations where you might expect Ignatius to hold down a chokepoint by himself, but if you're willing to spare a pair-up partner that problem becomes an advantage.

In terms of inheritance - Benny gave my Ignatius Counter, a skill that is very entertaining to watch as physical units run up and take the damage they deal to him as well. Beruka passed down the seemingly odd Axefaire, but if you want Ignatius to roll with General -or- Great Knight, he gets access to axes alongside his usual lance. This gave my Ignatius some major boost of firepower when he got access to the Killer Axe, which he uses to secure KOs through criticals - a bit more crucial because Wary Fighter and his speed stat prevent him from doubling other opponents.

Upon reaching level 15 as a General, Ignatius picks up Pavise, one of the defensive skills that, when triggered through Ignatius' skill stat (mine's decent) halves the damage of attacks from certain weapons. Through MyCastle battles, I picked up Aegis, the other defensive skill, to essentially round out the damage reduction and make Ignatius a very dependable tank.

Finally, No tank is complete without some way of recovery. Because Iganatius isn't a popular child unit, it was difficult finding anything - but then I encountered an Ignatius with Sol - the attack that gives half of it's damage output back to the attacker in the form of recovered HP.

Current Skill Layout:

Guarded Bravery (Personal)

Counter

Axefaire

Pavise

Aegis

Sol

Flex skill: Wary Fighter

Any Ignatius with Wary Fighter will be able to at least do two things - be the best child to accept Beruka's crippling speed growths, and hang tough himself against faster enemies. If the opponent can't double up, his viability seemingly is much higher than what meets the eye.

[DiLimiter]

I finally got around to picking up Birthright (planning on getting Conquest sometimes later on) and the game is fun insofar. I've already spent around 12 hours or so on my save file despite just picking up the game yesterday. There's a few observations that I have made being this far into the game. And keep in mind this is on a Casual playthrough just because it is my own little tradition that I started with Fire Emblem games when Awakening came out that I run through the game one time without having to worry about losing characters or things like that just so I can get a feel for it and let the story unfold accordingly. Also, I enjoy seeing character interactions that I may miss out on when I play a Lunatic run of the game and start losing characters.

Anyways, without further ado:

• Right off the bat Rinkah is just freakin' terrible. I love her as a character and try to use her whenever I can, but holy crap she is just awful. I'm basically playing what would probably be considered "baby difficulty" of the Fire Emblem series and I'm barely able to make her work. I saw, when she was leveling up, that she gained some points in her Magic. So I turned her into an Oni Chieftain, thinking that it might make her at least slightly better. This made her OK at best, but I definitely won't be really using her during my Lunatic run of the game except for something like cannon fodder.
• The Hoshido branch of the game doesn't really have any middle-ground units. Most of the time, from what I've personally witnessed, a unit is either ridiculously strong or ridiculously weak. The exceptions for this rule might be with Oboro and Hinata (who I swore when I first met him I thought he was gonna be the Lon'qu of this game), but that's honestly it. That being said, you could just chalk it up to me not putting in enough time with the characters to properly level them up yet. I'm taking a shot in the dark that Takumi is an early game monster for archers because of his ridiculously good royal-exclusive bow, but Setsuna is possibly better if she scales well enough.
• Nintendo ain't afraid to market towards horny teens and young adults anymore, huh? Lookin' at you Camilla.
• The Donnel (villager) character this time around kinda sucks in comparison. I think her name's Mozu...? Not important. Anyways, she doesn't feel as impactful as Donnel was once he started gaining levels, but that's probably a good thing. Donnel was the freakin' Hulk in armor after you got to upgrade him into a different class (I chose Mercenary or something like that and he was completely destroying with a bronze sword for most of my playthrough) and he could probably take on an entire battlefield by himself. Mozu, even after leveling her up and getting her to Master of Arms, feels weak(er) at this point in the game than Donnel was when he was only a level 14 villager. I kind of like it this way just because of how broken Donnel got to be as he progressed and I don't really like characters that'll just wreck shop and be a one-man-carry for the entirety of the game...except for Lon'qu, who was just awesome.

There's not a whole lot else that I've discovered about the game yet (I'm only on Chapter 14 or 15 being 12 hours in). I've done a few of the Paralogues. I still haven't gotten Corrin to love someone yet. I was going to put him with Hinoka, but then I met Kaden and was just like "well this seems kinda adorable" and am working on getting those two to be S rank with each other. The obvious one should've been Azuru, but I decided not to and I put her with Saizo. Also, I love how Saizo's son is basically just Gaius.

Enough rambling for now though. I have the day off and, after doing some work around the house, I'll probably just dive back into it and try to get as close as I can to finishing this playthrough of the game up so I can start a Lunatic run. Just thought I would share my thoughts as someone who hadn't gotten a chance to experience the game for himself yet.

[Chase]

You know, I had to do a lot of thinking as to why Rinkah isn't that great of a unit, and then I realized something. Oni Savage isn't the Hoshido equivalent of Fighter (as most people seem to believe and draw comparisons to Charlotte for)....but Knight.

Rinkah's a very ...unique unit in that her best growths come in defense as opposed to strength, and SPEED. This means that - at least in theory - Rinkah should be able to double Nohrian armor classes and compete with them in terms of defensive capability.

This would explain why she died often in my run - I used her as an offensive unit rather than a defensive one.

---

So, again in theory, Rinkah can be "fixable" with this knowledge in mind. The great thing about the Oni class line is the skills, particularly for Chieftain.

Oni Chieftains pick up Death Blow - which boosts your Critical Rate by 20% naturally and makes a unit like Rinkah a fantastic Killer Axe user (which you DO pick up in Hoshido if you're willing to borrow it from Scarlet) -AND- Counter, which reciprocates physical damage dealt to the Oni Chieftain back to the attacker.

Blacksmith picks up Salvage Blow, which is a decent skill if you like to forge +7 weapons, and Lancebreaker (giving lots of avoid against units like Paladins, opposing Knights, Lancers,some Wyvern Riders, Most Falcon Knights, Spear Masters, some Basara, and so on and so forth.)

I'm thinking going Blacksmith Rinkah with Salvage, Death Blow, Lancebreaker, and Counter next time.

[DiLimiter]

That actually sounds like a decent idea. My biggest problem would just be to get the ball rolling with Rinkah, especially on Classic/Lunatic difficulty.

Right now, I'm just trying to see if I can get Sakura to a serviceable point (kinda dropped her after Corrin and Hinoka's Master Seal upgrades giving them heal usage). Also, I've heard that Azama is a really good unit, but I've completely ignored him since he joined. He never really interested me as a character, but if he's as good as people are claiming he is, then I might just give him a shot.

[Commander]

Rinkah isn't that bad of a unit, but her weapons of choice are straight up terrible to the point Scarlett outclasses her. Rinkah would be better if she could hit stuff, but I swear she couldn't hit anything unless her hit ratio was above and 80% which is bad given axes already get terrible accuracy. She did ok with the Bolt Axe, but man does she start to drag behind after not being able to kill anything. She just doesn't have that much use.

As for Setsuna, she doesn't get any better than Takumi. Takumi is a good unit with great growths combined with a broken bow. If he didn't have that bow, both Setsuna and Takumi would still be very useful units and you could pick between the two. Royal > retainer which is a shame since most characters kind of get the boot at that point. For example, Hanna does become better than Ryoma if you level her up, but she doesn't carry a dual ranged weapon WITH A HIGH CRIT CHANCE. She's also very frail which is why I recommend Hinata over her since he can survive an attack...since dodging is nearly impossible in this game.

I think the only unit who isn't salvageable or usable, bar most characters in revelations (which all require grinding), is Arthur. Charlotte is a promote then pair-up unit saving her some usefulness, but Arthur is a crit machine who is asking to be crit killed. He's still above some of the previous game units. Anyways, Fates's cast is actually above what to expect in a fire emblem game due to reclassing and all that jazz. I just feel how the units are presented is horribly done. I mean in conquest you get the only Wyvern Knight right next to a promoted Malig Knight. Yeah...

[Sheep]

I came into this game knowing full well what every character could and couldn't do, their growths, who was likely to be good, and their respective roles because I've been waiting for this game like for ever and I had a good year and a half to go over information on Serenes Forest before getting it myself. Therefore I already knew that for instance, Rinkah is the Hoshidan knight unit, and I've found her to be really good. One of my better units for sure on Classic Hard. I use her first and foremost as a wall, but get a bit of chip damage on her somewhere and you'll find that suddenly she's doing something like 20x2 with a steel club because her personal skill is so damn good. I dunno what anyone's saying about her being underwhelming.

If anything I find Kaze to be kind of underwhelming at this point, he was good for the start of the game but Kagerou's just better in every way.

[DiLimiter]

Kaze has gone downhill drastically as the game has progressed, I will agree. That being said, I'm a sucker for cool characters like him and can't find myself getting rid of him anytime soon.

Also, after these last few posts, I really believe Rinkah to be a "results may vary" character. Some people have reported her to be really good; some, like myself, have found her to be pretty bad. I believe what it really comes down to is how you play the game and who you want doing what. I'm just so used to fighters that can tank a hit and give it back in full. Rinkah just isn't really that kind of fighter.

[Tempo17]

Man i swear Kaze for me is a really polarizing character. I have had run-throughs where he sets up so many kills or just straight up kills with lethality but he has def in the single digits and maxed speed and resistance by level 6 or 7 as a master ninja

[Chase]

Alright, so I did it. I beat Conquest. I beat it. I saw the ending cutscene where

Elise drags you headfirst into Camilla's cleavage and Xander monologues about changing Nohr's political approach with your hand to guide him.

...it didn't come without fatalities. Keaton lost his wife Camilla and his daughter Velouria to return to lone-wolf status. Ophelia also fell in the final push.

but you can't take it away from me. Check my card.

---

My favorite thing about Conquest was the score. Every level had an intense European background track that made me feel good. Some of my favorites were "Dark Wastes", "A Dark Fall", and "No Justice" - and I would highly recommend checking those out on YouTube even if you have yet to play the Conquest route. Unless you don't want to be spoiled. That's why I didn't link the tracks here.

Favorite part of the story was Hinoka's chapter, following besting your older sister.

The scene starts with the Avatar and Camilla standing over a crouched Hinoka and her retainers, Azama and Setsuna. The Avatar and Hinoka share an exchange about how Hinoka is to be executed as a reward for her defeat - and it's followed by a disagreement between her and her retainers (Hinoka wanting them conditionally spared in exchange for her head, while the retainers flip the script dutifully.) The Avatar then sighs and swings the Yato.....above Hinoka's head in a clean miss. They then announce that Hinoka is "effectively dead to the world" and orders the conquered tactician and her retainers to flee after dropping their weapons. Hinoka is originally frantic and dismissive about running away, offering to lead Corrin's army to the throne room herself to foster peace talks with Ryoma - but she is shut down first by Corrin and then by Camilla.

Camilla goes about her silencing darkly, calling Hinoka spoiled and then holding whatever axe she has wielded at the end of the chapter right up to Hinoka's throat. (For me, it was her own axe - entitled Camilla's Axe, or hilariously in Japan - Camilla's Sexy-Axe.....ah, puns.) She then begins to threaten Hinoka and explain again that Corrin is attempting to spare her life - but only if she complies with their orders. Hinoka returns a fierce glare and stammers in protest, causing Camilla first to comment on the expression and then to unexpectedly 180 and offer encouraging news to Hinoka instead - that Princess Sakura, who was defeated two chapters prior - is also still alive and that if Hinoka follows the terms of surrender she will get to see her again. Hinoka is shocked, and bows to Camilla's whim in reluctance. This is followed by Camilla commenting that, up close, Hinoka is beautiful and (despite her repeated insistence that there is no relation between Corrin and Hinoka) is similar to the Avatar. This causes Hinoka to blush, Camilla to further taunt her by calling out the similarity to her apparent-not-sibling, and Corrin to clear their throat in order to gain Camilla's attention.

It's the moment Camilla's seemingly needless family feud led up to - the thing that causes many people to ship her and Hinoka together, as well as her acceptance of Corrin's reform attempts for their country. Camilla is the weakest sibling in terms of rebelling against Garon - but this is perhaps where she finally lends her axe to the cause, uniting the Nohrian siblings behind Corrin.

My favorite maps were Chapter 10's port town of Dia where

Takumi invades the port with Hoshidan forces and you, the Nohrian tactician, are suprisingly forced into defending the port from invasion - despite Nohr being credited for being invasion happy more often. The struggle last 11 turns before Takumi decides he's suffered too many casualties to press onward. He, and his retainers Hinata and Oboro, command various waves of reinforcements that whittle down your troops for three turns before Selena, Beruka, and their liege Lady Camilla arrive to provide support. Takumi activates a dragon vein on turn 7 or something to dry the coast of water, allowing his forces to beeline for the objective and making your job harder toward the end of the struggle.

and Hinoka's chapter where

Hinoka's army is the only thing standing between Corrin's forces and Castle Shirasagi. She doesn't notice your approach until the middle of Turn 1's enemy phase, triggering her "vs." cutscene with the infamous "Hinokopter" schtick. She uses the dragon veins consistantly to change the movement range of all mounted forces on the map, causing immediate terror as Yumi-weilding Kinshi Knights suddenly can fly over to Wyvern units such as Camilla, Beruka, or Percy and send them to oblivion from clear across the map. This fight seems almost like a human-vs-human tactician struggle.

---

Least favorite chapters where

Chapter 12, where the objective is to rush Corrin either to defeat Ryoma or escape through the tiles behind him in 16 or something odd turns. It's a mad dash through a map with pots for obstacles - some of which can poison you (lowering various stats and your HP, and potentially leaving a bleed effect.)

and the Mokushu Cavern chapter - where you are running through a chokepoint littered map in momentary assistance to the Hoshidan cause in order to free Kagero from a deceitful daimyo named Kotaro. Saizo, who is looking for revenge for not only Kagero's kidnapping but also his fathers death - encounters you and Kaze originally helping Mokushu out (because they are aligned with Nohr at the start because reasons...) The chapter is littered with Ninjas, Mechanists, and Automatons - so everyone's defense is in peril if placed incorrectly. Saizo's help can be appreciated in clearing the various traps along the way to Kotaro...but he also steals what may be some much needed experience from your army.

[Cepheus]

argh... the pain of power-grinding all characters to about the same levels... I'm out of master-seals and all non promoted characters are level 20 xD

I found like two of them in random grinding battles, my shop is empty and doesn't have any kind of seals anymore [it's still silver-rank] and now I never get droppable items in battles...

Will seals eventually become unlimited to be bought in the shop?? - or are they getting re-stocked after certain story-chapters?

(and then I have to start getting the child characters... argh!!! why do these games have so much characters???)

also... will there be a way to trade Food-Items into other types? (like with the Gems for crafting) - I have like 40+ fish but only like 5 of all the other stuff... and I can't get rid of them! I bought these Tiara-accessories for everyone with Fish... and I still have that many!