Let's Play Fire Emblem: Echoes - Shadows of Valentia: A Tale of Big Hurty Lightning

Put your Let's Plays in here.

Shall we use a Pitchfork for Act 2?

Oh yeah, reclassing here we come!
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No, it's too soon! No... it's... inconceivable!
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Total votes: 14

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Let's Play Fire Emblem: Echoes - Shadows of Valentia: A Tale of Big Hurty Lightning

What is Fire Emblem?:

Fire Emblem is a long standing series of strategy games since the early Famicom era. Originally known for it's then novel ideas of permadeath and characterized units, it's since grown over the years in various iterations. Nowadays, it includes things like getting your favorite animes to kiss, but it holds its roots in being a strategy game with typical swords and dragons nonetheless.

What is Echoes, then?

Valentia, as I'll be referring to it from here on is in a very peculiar state compared to the Fire Emblem games, and we can't talk about it without talking about its origins, Fire Emblem: Gaiden for the Famicom. Most notably, Gaiden is the sequel to the first game of the series, and like so many sequels of its time it is highly different to its predecessor. Featuring random-ish encounters, town and dungeon exploration, two separate armies controlled separately, infinite durability, and even triple class promotions, it is unlike any of the other games in the series. Some of those featres made it into the modern era, but many have since stayed far behind.

Now how good this remake is tends to be rather divisive, and depends primarily on how much one liked Gaiden as at the end of the day, this is happens to be quite the faithful remastering. For the most part, a lot is similar to Gaiden aside from improved graphics, but does take the time to provide supports for characters as well as adding weapon forging and revamping the story some, (especially making far more clear where it wasn't before). Hell, they also gave full voice acting to nearly every scene.

In short, there's enough new stuff here I believe it warrants a playthrough.

If you're interested in FE: Gaiden and a playthrough of the original, check out this LP done here by DKII.


So, how's this going to be done?

This will be done in SSLP format, and don't worry, and given this game's somewhat freeform nature, we'll have room for more than a few choices throughout such as which main character's story we progress, recruitment, and everyone's favorite, naming our weapons.

Also, I'll be comparing changes back and forth between Gaiden and this game to show how faithful a remake it is.

When appropriate, I'll post music links to both YT and KHinsider. The latter tends to have everything reliably, but has been noted to have security flaws while how long anything stays up on YT is a question given copyright law. Sometimes where I list there is no music, there may have been some that is either not on the soundtrack or is easily identified by me. In that case, it will be listed as "None*" with a star at the end, but in most cases I have access to everything.

Oftentimes, we may have sections where we're simply exploring a town and other sessions may be a lot of battles, but I'll be trying to keep updates to approximately the same length.

Oh, and don't talk spoilers, please, even for Gaiden. If we haven't seen it yet, don't talk about it.

You've all done a great job of not talking about them so far without me even asking, but I'm putting this here just in case somebody doesn't pick up on that.



Now with that long intro out of the way, it's time to get this show on the road.


*The image quality is a little artifacted in places for the first update. Part of this is an issue I've already resolved for the next update, the other part is simply .jpeg compression being annoying.

Updates:

Act 1:

Update 1: Prologue- That's Not How You Hug A Friend
Update 2: The Journey Begins, Almost
Update 3: Get Crit (Ram Woods and Fleecer's Forest)
Update 4: Big Update, Big Gains (Thieves' Shrine)
Update 5: Leather Fashions (Ram Valley)
Update 6: The LCK Runs Out (Southern Outpost)
Update 7: Jerk Nobles (Southern Zofia)
Update 8: Battling the Spookaroo (Deliverance Hideout)
Update 9: Update 9: Time To Meet Nearly Every Antagonist (Zofia Gate)
Update 10: In Which We Meet Nearly Every Antagonist, Part 2 (Act 1 Finale)

Update 10.5: A Battle Won, A War Yet to Follow (Early Desaix Takedown)

Act 2:
Update 11: Tale of A Warrior Priestess (Priory)
Update 12: Cats, Cats, Cats (Novis Cemetary & Port)
Update 13: Bad Day to Fly the Jolly Roger (Pirate Raids 1 & 2)
Update 14: The Mighty Parrot of Shanty Pete (Pirate Fort)
Last edited by The Flying Twybil on Sun Jan 03, 2021 12:11 am, edited 21 times in total.

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Update 1: That's Not How You Hug A Friend

The game has an intro movie like many others, but like many others, also spoils a decent bit of the game's content. However, there is one short scene off the front we'll want to see.

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Aww.

Anyways, adorable child/characterization moment done, we'll skip on the intro for now.

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Music: Echoes| Image YT Image KHin

This brings us to the title card which shows those same two kids running through a flower field, with the boy slowing down to hold hands with the girl.

Just a brief reminder that this game will be about war and stuff. It is really, I swear. We'll also put a name to these kids soon enough.

Also, normally in an update I'll be showing off the differences and updates from Gaiden, but this prologue itself is entirely new and made to accomodate the larger story. We'll be talking changes next time around, so for the time being, I might not have all that much to say about what's going on.

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Anyway, for this playthrough, we'll just be going with the normal difficulty. The game's got a decent bit of challenge on its own, and not playing on Hard will let the thread have more fun with its votes given that a non-optimal decision can be made without much trouble on my side.

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As noted in the OP, Fire Emblem has a long standing history for permadeath on its units. In the early days this could easily end runs if you lost too many units while in the modern era its usually designed where you could lose more than a few and be okay.

It's not like anyone typically plays that way anymore, since everyone, presumably even the developers, reset on losing a single unit. This game introduces something to alleviate that greatly, however, which is really quite nice.

Long story short, we'll be playing on Classic, but we're not accepting any character deaths as usual.


With that, it's time to begin. Now its time for some more cutscenes of kids being friends.

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Ah, the dragon skull of plot foreshadowing.

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Uh, hold on a second here, what's this?

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Oh, it's just these two hugging, that's all-

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Oh dear. That's not how you hug a friend.

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Droplets hit the floor.

I don't think blood is supposed to be that color...

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He steps back and she falls down, which isn't a good sign.

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Well, she has a name, but I think we may be a bit late for that.

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Well, that was FE: Echoes- Shadows of Valentia. Maybe next time we'll make the right choices for a no death run.

In all seriousness though, if you played Awakening then you should recognize this plot device readily.


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Well, that was a particularly bad dream. It's back to kid stuff now, where we open the game with an entirely new face.


Music: An Ordinary Day | Image YT Image KHin

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Image *sigh* Where did he go this time?

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Image Oh! Hey, Gray. Say, have you seen Alm? I can’t find him anywhere.

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Image Kliff! …Wait, why not?

Image He and Celica went off for a stroll in the woods. I saw them leave.

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Image Exactly. Again?! I mean, Celica JUST moved to Ram Village, right? *sigh* Nice to know we’re so easily replaced.

Image H-he’s not replacing us. Celica’s his cousin. Of course they’re gonna be close.

Image Uh, I hate to break it to you, Faye…

Image Huh?

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Image Celica is his ward. Mother told me. They’re not related by blood.

Image Kliff’s ma, spoutin’ gossip? *gasp* I don’t believe it! Still, I like where this story is going. Celica and her dark, unspeakable past…

Image Stop that, would you? So does this mean… I mean…

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Image Are we having the same conversation?

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Image Hey, Tobin. Believe what?

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Image Come on, let’s go check it out!

Image What? Why would a knight come here? Big fan of manure or something? I’m not missing this! He could be the last knight we see for months…or years! Kliff, Faye! You coming?

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Footsteps are heard as they run out of the village.

Some of the character names may not be familiar, but its worth noting that Faye is entirely new to this game's plot over the others. I'll cover each character in more detail in the next update when we're finally out of the prologue.

From here we fade out to a different scene.

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Music: Spring Radiance | Image YT Image KHin

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For the time being, we have full control in the field, with the green haired kid finally getting a name: Alm.

We can wander around a bit, but there's really nothing much to see here. As a nifty guiding detail, Celica does wave at us if we wait around enough.

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Get close enough, and...

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Image Wh-what? No!

Image Why not? I think it’d make you look very handsome.

Image I think you mean “very stupid.” Boys don’t wear wreaths.

Image Don’t call it stupid! It took me a long time to make this.

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Image You’re kidding, right?

Image Grandpapa knows a manly wreath when he sees one…unlike SOME boys. Ha ha.

Image Har har. Very funny.

Image You’re picturing him wearing it. Ha ha! Admit it!

Image …Heh heh.

Image There’s the smile I was looking for. …Huh? What, is something wrong?

Image No, I just… I’m glad you’ve cheered up, is all.

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Image Plus, you never spoke a word! Grandpapa told me to be nice, but I wasn’t sure how to make things better.

Image Well, I think you did just fine. Each story that you told me, each flower you picked for me, each walk you took with me here in the woods— that all made a difference, Alm.

Image Come on, I didn’t do anything special.

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Image Are you talking about when you called me a “boor,” or a “clod”?

Image Hey, I said I’m sorry! I’ve just never had any friends my age. So I guess I wasn’t used to boys like you.

Image Well, I’d never met a girl like you, either. Don’t let it get to you.

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Image …Why? Do I need a reason? I mean, I guess it’s because I never knew my parents, I have no siblings… and Grandpapa has always forbid me from setting foot outside the village.

Image You’re like a window to a world that I’ve never had the chance to know. Is that a good enough reason, or…
Image …Oh, hey!

Image What is it?

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Image Um, yes? Except yours is on your left hand and mine is on my right…

Image Well, that makes us close! Er, doesn’t it?

Image Ha ha! I suppose it does, in a strange sort of way. I wonder why the marks are so similar.

Nothing could be plot important about that at all, nope, not a bit.

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Image They prove that the two of us belong together. Always. That is, if you’re not already tired of a clod like me making you laugh.

Image Of course not! So…do you mean it? We’ll always be together?

Image Yes. I promise. Isn’t that what you want?

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Music cuts out.

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Image Is she in trouble?

Image It came from beyond those trees. Come on!

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Music: Treason | Image YT Image KHin

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Image Heh… Looks like our luck’s picked up, eh, Sir Slayde? After days of the same old trees, such cherubic faces are welcome indeed! After all, where little brats play… we’ll find a village, I say.

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Image -may the powers bless him and his name until the end of days-

He says this in the most sarcastic manner possible. He has the perfect slimy official voice, really.

Image -hereby command you to lead us to your miserable line of hovels, where you shall have the honor of dining us and otherwise providing all comforts. It shall be an evening to remember. So lead on! And make haste, now.

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Image We’ll get the scolding of our lives if we bring strangers to the village!

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Image Our home is but a small village—to call it a line of hovels is too generous. We do not wish to offend you when you are clearly deserving of so much more. So please, we humbly implore your great mightiness to—

Image You. Boy. Have you an older sister?

Image Er, me? I have two, actually. What about ’em?

Image Ha ha ha! That’ll suffice! We’ll take all the food and drink you can muster—and your sisters can serve it! I wager we’ll get naught but pig feed and horse piss, but so be it. I shall force it down if I must.

Image Grrr…

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Image Gods, Kliff, shut your hole! Don’t cry in front of ’em!

Image B-but Gray…

Image We should ALL be crying, Gray! We’re not really gonna take ’em to the village, are we?!

Image Hey, I don’t like it either! If I knew the royal knights were such royal turds, I never would’ve—

Image Enough chittering, little squirrels. I am not a patient man. If you do not wish to entertain us the one way, you can entertain us the other.

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Slayde has effectively no morals, as you'll come to see. His VA is spot on for a minor character.

Image Aaaaah!

Image You first, filly. Don’t worry, lass— I’ll make a nice, clean cut…

Image No!

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Image Ugh. How many whelps does this blasted village contain?!

Image Get away from my friends! You’re not going to set one foot in our village!

Image Is that so? Someone neglected to teach this mangy pup any manners… Hmm?

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Image You there! Girl! Show me your face.

Image No…

Image By the gods… It really IS her! Heh heh. How you came to walk among these animals is beyond me. Regardless, you shall make a fine prize to take back to General Desaix. Seize her!

Evidently, if the mysterious backstory and funky birthmark didn't clue you in, Celica's plot important.

Image No… L-let me go!

Image Get your hands off her!

A loud smack is heard...

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...and Slayde falls off the screen with a loud clatter of metal.

Yep, this guy presumably just gets completely decked by a 9 year old.

Image Alm, you did NOT just punch a knight!

Image Urgh! You dare raise a hand to me?! You baseborn…barn-bred… So be it. You will stave off your death sentences no longer—especially you!

Image Ah!

Image Ha ha ha! The Mother can’t save you now, brat!

Image Alm! Look out!

*Metal clashes*

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Music: Courage in Numbers | Image YT Image KHin

Image *gasp* Grandpapa?

Image What? Mycen?! What are you doing in a backwater wasteland like— …Ah. But I think I know.

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Plot Grandpa is also mysterious.

Image Now, this…this is indeed good fortune. We never finished what we started in the flames that night, old man. I have much to repay you for. …I mustn’t forget ALL my virtues, after all.

Image …Children. Run to the cemetery up ahead. Go on now.

Image What? Why? What are you gonna do?

Image Now, Alm! All of you! RUN!

Image A-all right. Come on, guys!

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The children run onto the map, followed by Mycen. Apparently children can run faster than horses.

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Slayde moves in as well, and waits on the other side of the cemetary. He sends his four cronies in front of him- the coward.

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Image We will drive these ruffians away, but you must follow my every command.

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Image Half a dozen children can’t win against mounted knights!

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Image Enough!

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Image Alm! Celica!

Image Uh, sir!

Image I trust you two remember some of what I’ve taught you of the sword. Now clear the mind, steady the hand, and show me what you’ve learned. Only you can get yourselves through this!

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Player Turn Music: Courage in Numbers | Image YT Image KHin

Enemy Turn Music: The Approaching Menace | Image YT Image KHin

We're officially playing the real game now, though this is still nothing more than a tutorial. At the bottom you can see the overall estimation of the battle and the turn count. Apparently our army of children and single knight is far better than their five.

Before we get off to actually doing anything, let's show off our current units. I'll describe them in detail the next update, but for now this will be a quick tutorial on Fire Emblem's combat mechanics. Spoiler, not spoiler, we won't be using these specific characters for that long.

If you're already familiar with the mechanics this will be pretty basic stuff. The one major change worth noting will be completely bolded in the below tutorial.

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Here's Alm, Celica, and Mycen for instance. The kids' stats are okay, but aren't too exceptional. Mycen blows both of them out of the water because while Alm and Celica are level 1, he's effectively level 20 or so thanks to his high level class. (I'll cover classes and such later when they become pertinent.)

HP is pretty simple it's just how much damage you can take before your unit dies. Getting points in this is always welcome.

ATK is quite plainly how much damage we'll deal with an attack, not counting the enemy's defense. Unlike other Fire Emblem games, both physical and magical attacks use this stat.

SKILL is a stat that exists. More specifically, it boosts our chance to hit the enemy, which given this game's changes to accuracy, doesn't amount to too much. It's really only notable in large quantities, or if you don't have any.

SPD/SPEED is a very important stat in Fire Emblem games. If you are faster than your opponent by a certain amount, then you can attack them twice in one action, colliquially known as "doubling". In Valentia, you only have to be ahead of the opponent by ONE point of speed to double them.

That's highly irregular given other games in the series usually required 4-5 points over your enemy. Needless to say, SPD has become incredibly important in this game.

LCK/LUCK is a funny stat. It sometimes adds a bit to your avoid based on the game, but it always serves its purpose as the critical damage stat. Every point of Lck is 1% more chance to land a critical attack on an enemy (3x damage) while it's also 1% less chance the enemy will crit you. Just like Skill, it's mostly only noticeably in either large numbers or total absence.

DEF/DEFENSE is exactly what it sounds like for the most part. When an enemy hits us with a physical attack, their ATK minus our DEF is how much damage they deal to our HP and vice versa. Notably, all damage taken in this game has a minimum damage of one, which means we can't be completely invincible.

RES/RESISTANCE is the same as Defense, but only for magic damage instead of physical. Just like the older games in the series, Resistance growths in this game are all below 10% which means every point is a blessing.

MOV/MOVEMENT is how many spaces we can move when controlling a unit. Unlike the other stats, this is only ever increased by changing class

Got it? If not, you should catch on sooner or later.

On another note, the other kids' stats aren't much worth mentioning, but here they are anyways.

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Now then, onto some actual gameplay.

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A newer quality of life feature of the Fire Emblem games is the ability to mark enemy movement ranges and to view their collective danger range at the press of a button. It's really quite nice. Let's get to moving.

Image First, get yourselves to a safer position!

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Plot Grandpa may be pushy, but this is sound advice. The avoid bonuses from terrain, (the number in the upper left,) is a straight reduction from the enemy's hit chance and it's pretty hefty as you can see.

For now, I've moved Celica to the forest in the attack range. Whatever happens here doesn't really matter in the long run, but let's at least pretend it does. (She'll be fine.)

I follow up by sending Mycen straight up the middle to clown on these guys. I follow up by moving Alm into the forest on the other side while evenly divide the kids behind him and Celica..

Mycen spouts out more advice as I'm doing so.

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Image Keep your distance from the enemy. Don’t try to pursue them!

Image Take shelter in the trees there. They can provide cover. Remember, always use the surrounding terrain to your advantage!
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Thanks, Mysterious Plot Grandpa. There's some good advice there, if slightly redundant. Staying away from the enemies is a very good idea because sending a nine year old to fight a mounted, halberd wielding knight in plate armor not the greatest of ideas.

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As I move the last unit, Mycen gives me this line to let me know I can't move any more units for this turn and that I have to let the enemies have a go at me.

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Almost immediately, one of the soldiers up front charges Mycen.

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If you turn your attention to the lower screen there, you can see some bars with new stats. These are the resulting calculations of your units overall stats in the term of this combat.

Hit is quite literally hit chance out of 100%. Mycen here only has 4% chance to miss, which is exceptional. Earlier FE games had something called "True Hit" where the hit roll was done twice to skew the rolls a bit, but it is not present in this game as far as I am aware.

Atk and Def are the same from earlier. An attack is simply calculated as Attacker's ATK - Defender's DEF/RES = HP damage taken (to a minimum of 1).

Crit is the chance to perform a critical hit, provided the attack would hit. Thanks to Mycen's high luck and his enemy's lack of luck, he's got a 7% chance of completely obliterating the guy.

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The guy gets himself dead rather fast anyways. Nobody gains experience in this intro, thus why none of it matters.

Oh, and as a small translation detail, if you note the soldier's faction, "Sofia" has now been translated to Zofia. I'm not sure why- it sounds more foreign, I guess?

Oh, and here's a gif if you want to see the ass-kicking in live action:

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Cavaliers have the goofiest finishing attack in this game.

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So here's a funny thing. The AI of the enemy in this game prioritizes hit chance very highly, sometimes over defense.

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Because the kids are in the forest and have a far higher chance of dodging, most of them go to fight Mycen.

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Now, only single cavalier and Slayde are left, because the enemy AI has zero regard for its unit's lives, mostof the time. I'll cover why when we get to some real combat They're all cowards..

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In the meantime, I do absolutely nothing but move Alm up. As much as Plot Grandpa wants the kids to help out, it's a bit unsafe in my opinion.

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One fool takes the bait...

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...and it doesn't end well for him either.

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Slayde doesn't do anything on his turn either, so I move both Alm and Celica up to take cover while Mycen also takes cover so I can demonstrate the AI's priorities.

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Yep, that's why I leave Mycen in the open. Celica's got so much avoid (+60) from the gravestone that Slayde misses her both times, but she's not doing much to a guy wearing full platemail.

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It's theoretically possible to kill Slayde with one of the kids, but the chances aren't great. Keep in mind that Celica even has a real weapon giving her a small boost to damage, her Golden Dagger, and she still doesn't have enough to get past these jerks' defenses.

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Because I've been letting the enemies hurt themselves on me so much, I haven't even had a chance to show off the combat forecast. You can see here that attacking this jerk with Alm, our strongest kid unit, is an incredibly bad idea. It's even worse for the other kids.

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So I send Grandpa to kick his ass instead.

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Real men wear wreaths.

Image But not today. I must return to the castle. General Desaix will be eager to learn that we have found…her.

Image The princess who refuses to die. Heh heh heh…

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Well, that was that. Now let's go back to talking and stuff.

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Music: An Ordinary Day | Image YT Image KHin

Image Look at ’em run, Grandpapa!

Image So, wait. HOW did we do that, exactly?

Image Ha ha! It’s all in the wrist.

Tobin seems to have forgotten that them nearly getting killed was his fault in the first place. Though, the knights were headed for the town anyways, so something was bound to happen eventually.

Image You wish. We only survived because we did exactly as Sir Mycen commanded.

Image Oh yeah? Does that mean Sir Mycen commanded you to sob like a baby?

Image How can you guys joke about this?

Image Grandpapa, Celica, that was great!

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Music: None

Image ……

Image What? You’re not happy? We saved the village from those despicable knaves! We’re heroes! I mean, if nothing else, we’re not dead. You could at least crack a smile.

Image Alm, you don’t understand.

Music: Parting | Image YT Image KHin

Image Now that they know Celica is here, they will stop at nothing. It’s no longer safe for her to stay in the village.

Image …What? But…why? It doesn’t have to be like that. Tell him, Celica!

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Image I know that you would have kept your promise.

Evidently, she just got a lot more plot important.

Image Don’t apologize, Celica. Just… Just tell me that this is a mistake! That you don’t have to go!

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Image Get back to the village and pack your things, Celica. Hurry.

Image Yes, sir…

Image Hold on a second! Explain this to me, Grandpapa. Why are you making her leave? I want to know!

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Image …Not yet, at any rate.

Plot Grandpa's holding out on us now, having fallen to the JRPG plague of not telling us pertinent info. As to whether we could actually do anything about it, that's a matter of opinion.

Image Oh, great. Now you’re talking in riddles? I won’t let you do this to her!

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Alm is very attached to the girl he's only known for a few months at most. It's a nice sentiment, but also kinda odd to me personally. They sure became BFFs fast, I guess.

Image You? A foolish boy who won’t listen to reason? Celica has proven she has the strength to make hard choices. Yet what of you?

Image Please… Don’t take her away…

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Image This is your good-luck charm. You never take this off! It’s…special.

Image Yes, it is. And now it’s yours. I want you to keep it close always. As close as you would have kept me.

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Another thing that'll come up again is that Celica doesn't really remember much of her family. She stands as the more mature figure of the two, she evidently knows her plot importantce, whereas you've already probably seen that Alm is the kind for blind heroics, at least for now.

Image Celica, I can’t take this from you.

Image You’re not taking it, I’m giving it. I pray that it keeps you safe. Take care, Alm.

Image Wait… Celica!

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Image We don’t know why she’s leaving, or even where she’s going. And whatever Sir Mycen knows, he isn’t telling the likes of us.

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It's nice to see that the other kids do care about her.

Image She and Alm are different from us.

Image Different? In what way?

Image In every way.

Ah, yes, foreshadowing. More of it.

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Image Yes. If I try to say good-bye to him, I’ll just end up crying. Grandp— Er, Sir Mycen? Where will I go next?

Image Hmm… I have a place in mind. Perhaps it’s time to call on an old friend. Under his care, I am certain your enemies will never find you.

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Image Had the Mother willed it… I would have stayed by your side and protected you to my dying days. But I cannot leave Ram Village. Not yet.

Image You don’t need to apologize, Sir Mycen. I regret nothing. The days I spent here with you and Alm were wonderful. The experiences I had and the friends I made all mean the world to me. You don’t have to be my shining knight, Sir Mycen—

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Image CELICA!

*Footsteps*

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Image Alm! You came for me.

Image I want to make a new promise.

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Image It doesn’t matter where the world hides you or how long it takes. I promise to find you. So please…don’t forget me, okay?

Image I could never forget you, Alm.

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:unsmith:

ImageI’ll be waiting for the day we can meet again. But for now, I have to go. …Grandpapa?

Image Yes, child?

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Image I do. So long as destiny wills it.

Image Destiny… So be it.

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And that was that, ending with a promise that neither of them could ever expect to be kept.

But hey it's a JRPG probably destiny wills it, so who knows?

Next Time: We actually play the game... sort of. There will be voting, though, I promise. Oh, and actual character summaries and stats- we'll have those too.
Last edited by The Flying Twybil on Wed Jul 01, 2020 5:07 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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As a last note, if you have any comments or concerns regarding the format, do please tell before I get to work on the next update. (Or if there's any errors. I swear I've been fixing errors for the last 24 hours, so there shouldn't be any, but tell me if there are.)

As noted in the OP, I've already resolved most of the image quality issues, but it's taken a hell of a lot of hassle to get this one done while figuring out a new workflow.

(Bad image quality in the first update is practically a LP tradition for me at this point.)

User avatar
The Flying Twybil wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 4:09 pm
As noted in the OP, I've already resolved most of the image quality issues, but it's taken a hell of a lot of hassle to get this one done while figuring out a new workflow.

(Bad image quality in the first update is practically a LP tradition for me at this point.)
With the tiny format in mind, the scaled up images look quite good. What really impressed me is the short loading time for all the pics, they just zipped in, so you must have done something right about the format.

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Combined with BPix's hotlinking and keeping each image under 100kb tends to make it go pretty fast. Nothing's more annoying than a page loading in pieces after all.

I'll get around to migrating Thea eventually as well.

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Ground floor on an FE LP! And one of the few I've never played, at that. The writing seems very good for a remake of an NES FE game.

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I belong to the camp that loves this game, questionable map design decisions and all. Glad to see it covered!
The Flying Twybil wrote:As noted in the OP, Fire Emblem has a long standing history for permadeath on its units. In the early days this could easily end runs if you lost too many units while in the modern era its usually designed where you could lose more than a few and be okay.
I'm under the impression that the opposite is the case. In older games you constantly got new recruits at appropriate levels to fill out your roster, while newer games frontload recruitments, making it more difficult to find suitable replacements later in the game.

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Aw good to see this game, it's a great one! To watch... not really play, it is VERY faithful, but coming from modern FE games, it has some interesting differences that make it a pretty cool game.

Also Normal means we better see some wacky promotions later!

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Put me in the camp that likes this game as well. It might have to do with SoV being my proper introduction to this game, rather than the original game. Yes, there is some very noticeable jank due to the faithful recreation, but it still manages to be fun. For what is the swan song of the franchise on the 3DS, there was some definitely love put into this game, and I absolutely appreciate it.

Oh, Echoes. It's interesting and wants to be great, too bad about doubling down on the original's more questionable gameplay design decisions. Also for all the effort they put into making the original's writing into something good, well... we'll cross that bridge as we come to it. Still the best FE remake by far though.

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Tanegashima wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 5:40 pm
Ground floor on an FE LP! And one of the few I've never played, at that. The writing seems very good for a remake of an NES FE game.
This prologue's wholly new, but it's mostly to stick in some background detail that went unexplained in the NES game. Story-wise. The story's not perfect by any means, but it does some interesting development on the original content at least.
Night Zap wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 5:43 pm
I'm under the impression that the opposite is the case. In older games you constantly got new recruits at appropriate levels to fill out your roster, while newer games frontload recruitments, making it more difficult to find suitable replacements later in the game.


Those are some good points. I wrote that on the evaluation of the more recent games where its far easier to create brokenly strong units who can solo the majority if not the entirety of a map. The point being that they can be beaten with only a few units. Some of the older games were less prone to units getting very strong, and thus leaving you with a need for a wide selection of units if at least to hold back the waves of enemies for your stronger ones.

As an odd note, Gaiden/Valentia front loads its units, actually. The trickle of new units really starts declining, especially since there's no limit on deployment outside of dungeons.
Crosspeice wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 5:49 pm
Aw good to see this game, it's a great one! To watch... not really play, it is VERY faithful, but coming from modern FE games, it has some interesting differences that make it a pretty cool game.

Also Normal means we better see some wacky promotions later!
I've found it particularly fun to play... well, outside a few moments it has. I still feel the faithful mechanical design gives this game a sense of novelty for me, especially just coming off an Awakening Lunatic playthrough. It's nice to sit back and see some familiar mechanics mixed into a new format after being so deep into numbers and RNG.

I can get the extra pitchforks later if the thread wants. That will maximize promotion shenanigans, though most units are rather well suited to what they do. With five villagers at base, there will be quite a few shenanigans even without them.
AradoBalanga wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 6:54 pm
Put me in the camp that likes this game as well. It might have to do with SoV being my proper introduction to this game, rather than the original game. Yes, there is some very noticeable jank due to the faithful recreation, but it still manages to be fun. For what is the swan song of the franchise on the 3DS, there was some definitely love put into this game, and I absolutely appreciate it.
I think what captured me the most regarding this came is the amount of care they took in recreating it. Unlike a lot of remakes and remasters, this one had its eyes set on keeping with the original game's plans, instead of using it solely as an attempt to bring in more cash. As you said, that comes with a good bit of jank in the long run, but its the visible effort that makes up for it, personally.
RandomKesaranPasaran wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 7:55 pm
Oh, Echoes. It's interesting and wants to be great, too bad about doubling down on the original's more questionable gameplay design decisions. Also for all the effort they put into making the original's writing into something good, well... we'll cross that bridge as we come to it. Still the best FE remake by far though.
There's definitely some unusual choices, a lot of which are carried over from FE's roots in being for more "hardcore", but a lot of it I consider part of the novelty of this game. Not all of it works too well, but it experiments with the base FE formulas a lot more than others in the series. The best estimation I can give is that it errs more on the side of wargame than it does JRPG.

On its own, I find it quite interesting, though as you've alluded to the updated writing isn't perfect by any means.

Still I'd love it if they'd make more of these faithful remakes.To get a modern touch up to Genealogy and Thracia in the same vein as this would be great.
Last edited by The Flying Twybil on Wed Jul 01, 2020 4:14 am, edited 1 time in total.

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The Flying Twybil wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 8:55 pm
I think what captured me the most regarding this came is the amount of care they took in recreating it. Unlike a lot of remakes and remasters, this one had its eyes set on keeping with the original game's plans, instead using it solely as an attempt to bring in more cash. As you said, that comes with a good bit of jank in the long run, but its the visible effort that makes up for it, personally.
Indeed. SoV has way more effort put into it than what Marth's games got, which was to slap a couple of modern elements (supports, reclassing, weapon triangle) onto the existing base game and call it a day. Turns out, trying to brute-force in mechanics that were not designed for really old games does in fact, horribly backfire and nearly kill a franchise.

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God. There's a lot, a LOT, to be said about Echoes, but I really love how well this opening chapter sells the core of the game.

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This is a game with notable flaws and extremely strong good points and on the whole I like it a great deal.

One thing that's super good about it is the music. Hell, the title screen alone sucked me in super hard. Give every track a listen if you're reading this and you haven't played the game, they're well worth the time.

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AradoBalanga wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 11:33 pm
Indeed. SoV has way more effort put into it than what Marth's games got, which was to slap a couple of modern elements (supports, reclassing, weapon triangle) onto the existing base game and call it a day. Turns out, trying to brute-force in mechanics that were not designed for really old games does in fact, horribly backfire and nearly kill a franchise.
As we'll see soon enough, that even though they did add supports, they're rather quite light mechanically and only serve to stand as a modest boost. It's fit in quite nicely, and fits with the game's more story oriented feel, especially since it helps to flesh out the characters more.

Putting the triangle in the DS remakes was a really bad decision though. It doesn't work when your entire game is drastically overpopulated with lances.
CmdrKing wrote:
Wed Jul 01, 2020 12:12 am
God. There's a lot, a LOT, to be said about Echoes, but I really love how well this opening chapter sells the core of the game.
I know I mostly poked fun at it during it, but I really do quite love this intro. It directly shows off much of the following themes and paves the way for a lot of foreshadowing and characterization in the future. It definitely builds more interest in its 15 minutes than what Gaiden could muster with its technical limitations.
theshim wrote:
Wed Jul 01, 2020 2:07 am
This is a game with notable flaws and extremely strong good points and on the whole I like it a great deal.

One thing that's super good about it is the music. Hell, the title screen alone sucked me in super hard. Give every track a listen if you're reading this and you haven't played the game, they're well worth the time.


I'll second this, and not because I happen to put a lot of effort into putting all the links together for it. The music in this game really is truly excellent- the new tracks are very well done and fit in perfectly next to the remixes of the old tracks. (When we have a remix, I'll actually be linking to the NES version of the track as well.)

And oh, dear, are the remixes good. We'll start seeing them when we finally reach real combat for the first time, and while the whole list is good, there's some really great ones hiding in there.

Speaking of which, I'll be starting on the next update after I get some sleep. I don't presently have an update schedule yet, what with the new systems and figuring out a new workflow, but I do want to get us to the main part of the game.

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Despite this game's noticeable flaws, it is one of my absolute favourites. Looking forward to following the LP!

Despite some issues I love this game and look forward to seeing an lp for it.

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Putting this one out a little earlier than planned, because I can, because I'm cool like that.

(it's actually because I can't make a backlog when there's voting to be had, but shh)

Update 2: The Journey Begins, Almost

Music: Opening | Image KHin Image NES
(I could not locate a version of the modern Opening on YT. Apologies.)

We start off right where we left last update...
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Well, hey, that sounds good.

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Well, that sure isn't going to cause any problems.

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Yikes. I guess there are some problems with that approach.

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Pictured: King Lima the IV. As you can imagine, Zofia's not presently under the best of rulers.

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You know what I said about this not causing problems? Yeah, that's a severe mis-estimation.

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Music: Serenity | Image YT Image KHin

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We enter with a nice and fancy flyover camera that shows off how good this game is graphically.

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Mycen and this other figure step back from each other.

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Oh, hey, it's Alm! Eight years older and now in fancy blue plate armor, he looks a good bit different now.

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Alm charges in, and kicks up a major dust cloud.

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...And generates a lot of sparks on that blow! He really has become an anime protagonist now. Also, he happens to be left handed, which is a neat minor detail.

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Pushed back, he goes for another quick swing, but the old man here gives him the slip.


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They manage to quickly circle around one another, Alm drawing his sword up high...

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Only for Alm to miss, but quickly follow up with another attack that has him lock swords with Mycen.

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After a brief struggle, he gets thrown back a bit, but doesn't lose balance. He's actually not even breathing that hard.

The sparring here is actually where Gaiden originally starts, though the "combat" is little more than moving back and forth.

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Image Your swordsmanship has come a long way. I’ve always known you had talent.

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Image You’re not just saying that, are you, Grandfather?

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That's him smiling, by the way.

Image Ha! Well, good. Then that means you’re ready to let me travel outside the village.

Image Hmph. Don’t misconstrue my words, boy. The rule still stands.

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Image You just said I can fend for myself! If I meet with any dangers, I’ll have my sword and my wits.

"But, Grandpa, I'm JRPG protagonist age now! "

Image Alm, that’s not what this is about.

Image Then what IS it about?

Image Alm…

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Image People are starving, and many have turned to thievery and plunder. Brigands loot villages for a mere sack of grain, and soon they’ll be at OUR door!

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Image They’ve been crossing the border for years in violation of the Divine Accord. And with that sacred bond broken, now the Terrors have resurfaced as well…

Image …All true.

Image Zofia is full of innocent people who are looking for help. Please, Grandfather...

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Image I want to see all the amazing places you’ve told me about— that Celica told me about!

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Image ……

Image Will the grand story of your life be how you met the end of a brigand’s axe? Before you dream of changing the world, learn your damned place in it. And no more talk of leaving.

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The door shuts as Mycen presumably goes back inside to continue his role in being stern and mysterious.

This plays out a lot differently than Gaiden. Originally Mycen tells Alm to "run off and play." That and to not leave because there's bandits beyond the gates. As you can see, they've opted for a somewhat different dynamic between the two now.

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Image Why teach me to use a sword if you’re not going to let me fight? Every day in this place is exactly the same as the next. I know I’m meant for more than this! But you have to let me find it!

*A horse lets loose a whinny in the distance.*

Image Huh? What’s all the commotion? It’s coming from the gates. Hmm…

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With that, welcome to Ram Village, (renamed from Rahm).

The dialogue GUI fades away to finally give us active control again. For the most part, towns will be in a sort of point and click adventure perspective, similar to how you could walk around towns in Gaiden. We'll get to actively run free at a later point, but as a rule peaceful areas are usually handled like this.

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We can however, examine the surrounding environment to pick up on some more worldbuilding and characterization. It's a neat detail.

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That's one old ewe. Also I've been in a similar situation, before, so I know how you feel, Alm.

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We can also pick certain stuff up as well. I wasn't lying when I said it was like a point-and-click adventure.

This orange here is one of the newer mechanics to the game, Provisions. Basically, the FE-standard vulneraries and such have been replaced with food items while also partially bringing back fatigue from Thracia 776. I'll cover it more when it becomes more pertinent, but that's almost all there is to it.

Anyway, back to examining.

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Image Grandfather used to get so mad when Celica and I would climb this...

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Image Our home lies on a little patch of land near the edge of the village. It's nice.

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There also so happens to be a splitting axe here. It has a power of 1 and a weight of 1, and a hit of 80. However, nobody you can play in this game can actually use axes. Weird, right?

I'm just going to leave it here, for reasons.

After that, we may as well move onto the square.

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A lot of people here to talk to, though thankfully there's not that many things to examine.

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Image The water level in this well is very low as of late. Hope it rains soon!

As noted before, there is a major drought going on.

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More food items.

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Alright, let's partake in the gift of gab.

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Image I still remember when you were only THIS tall, and now look at you. Sir Mycen has certainly made a strong young man out of you.

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Image General Mycen! Ha! I always wondered why such a fellow would end up here. Then again, the woods around Ram have become dangerous as of late. Perhaps it’s for the best that we have him—and YOU—to keep us safe!

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Image It’s been years since we’ve had a proper harvest. Can’t grow much without rain… Why has Mila forsaken us? What’s happened to the Earth Mother?

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Image The Rigelian Empire will seize our lands and we’ll be too weak to resist… You’ve heard how well trained their soldiers are, havent you?

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Image King Lima dances at the end of Chancellor Desaix’s puppet strings. The king would rather eat grapes and frolic in a seraglio than actually rule. It’s no wonder the kingdom’s being torn apart by rebellion after rebellion. I wish someone would come along and save us from ourselves already. …What’s that? The Mother Mila?

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So much complaining! I mean, it's partly justified, but it also kinda just isn't. Needless to say, things aren't so great around here right now. Also, Lima's evidently a useless fuck, and also quite the creep given he runs a harem.

Before we head off, there's one more thing to pick up- our first side-quest!

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Greedy Old Man: ... but alas, it’s been ages since anyone made a new batch. Valentia’s fanciest nobles would send orders for Ram wine from far and wide. If there are any bottles left, they’re like to be aged to perfection by now. A wine that mature would taste absolutely incredible!

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Greedy Old Man: What I wouldn’t give for a bottle— no, even just a GLASS of Ram wine!

Well, we don't have any of that yet, but I guess we'll keep an eye out.

Uh, right, there was a commotion at the entrance. Let's go check on that instead of hearing more complaining.

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Image This fellow’s here to see Sir Mycen. He was just about to tell us more.

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Everyone's here and all grown up! How neat. There's also the new guy in the center. Let's get to talkin' and lookin'.

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Image Keep one hand on your hilt while you talk to this guy, yeah?

Gray's evidently still a bit traumatized, and who wouldn't be?

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Image You’d have to practically ride off the edge of the map to find this place!

Tobin's enthusiasm for knights hasn't died in the slightest, despite nearly getting killed by some in his youth.

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Image Sir Mycen is far too hard on you… I hope you don’t have any new bruises!

Faye cares far more about Alm than whatever else is going on presently.

(On another note, in Medieval times squires were intended to get very bruised by training. The idea was to strengthen the body for when you met real combat. In this sense, not having new bruises would be a problem.)

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Image Whatever he’s here for, I hope he hasn’t brought any trouble with him.

You can hope that, but we both know the answer to that already from past experience. Nobody in armor rides to Ram without probably bringing some trouble along with them.

Also, just where IS this horse of his? I mean we heard it earlier, so...

Eh, before that, let's take a look at this gate and it's surroundings. Maybe we can find it.

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Image The road leads straight on to Zofia Castle.

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Image This tower is so guards can look out for anything suspicious coming our way.

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Image Honestly, this doesn't see much use, but it's better than no defense at all.

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There was also some Hard Bread and Flour on the ground that I took.

Now let's talk to the knight guy and hope he isn't planning on running us through like Slayde was.

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Image My name is Lukas. I fight for the Deliverance.

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Image Aren’t you one of the Knights of Zofia? The king’s knights?

Image Oh, I see. I suppose that means word hasn’t yet reached your village. In that case, please forgive me for heralding such dark news, but…

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Music: Disquiet | Image YT Image KHin

Image He met his end some days ago at the hands of Chancellor Desaix.

Image What? You’re saying it was regicide?!

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Image No doubt they promised him lands. Perhaps even a title. Upon Lima’s death, the chancellor and the Rigelian army seized Zofia Castle and began to visit unspeakable injustices upon the king’s people.

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Image He formed an army to free us from Rigel and named it the Deliverance. However, we are outmatched and fast losing this war. We need a hero’s aid. And so I have come to the home of one of Zofia’s greatest heroes: Sir Mycen.

Image Do you see, Alm? Sir Clive would not have sent me were it not urgent.

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Image Y-yes, of course.

Music: Serenity | Image YT Image KHin

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Image I knew Zofia was in hot water, but is this guy serious?

Image So there’s going to be a war?

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Image If Sir Mycen rides off to war, what’ll happen to Alm?

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Image Lukas! Were you able to speak with my grandfather? What did he say?

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Image Sir Mycen made it clear he has no intention of joining the Deliverance.

Image What? But he’s ridiculously strong! He could defeat some stuffy chancellor with his eyes closed!

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Image I cannot speak to Sir Mycen’s thinking, but it seems we misplaced our hopes. I’ll have to return to our hideout and bring Sir Clive the ill news.

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Image ……!

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Image Thank you again for your assistance.

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Honestly, Lukas? Your first mistake was trying to recruit a Jeigan :v

In all seriousness, this conversation is a bit different in Gaiden. Alm goes by himself to talk Mycen into it, he says no very angrily, and then Lukas rather more rudely calls Mycen a coward. That triggers what's coming up next. That and Lima's death is never mentioned, instead focusing on how much Desaix (original name Dozer, hah) is evil.

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Music: None

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Music: Uprising | Image YT Image KHin Image NES

(The NES version of this song played the entire time in Ram Village before, but gets a more appropriate use now.)

Image You?

Image Alm, what the hell?! You can’t do that! …Wait. CAN he do that?

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Image ...but this isn’t sparring with your gramps, Alm. You’re volunteering to go to war!

Image I know what it is. And if Grandfather won’t do it, then I’ll do it for him. Consider my sword as his.

Image Alm, I understand how you feel, but—

Image Sir Mycen has been teaching me to use a blade since I was a boy.

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Image I know as much about war as any man who has never seen one can. Let me fight for you with my grandfather’s gifts. I’ll prove he’s no cowardly old man. He’s a warrior who trains warriors.

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Music: None

Image Huh? Then you mean…!

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Music: Serenity | Image YT Image KHin

Image Why not? Alm presents a good case. He has a hero’s blood in him. …And clearly a hero’s fire. His presence is sure to raise the troops’ morale. And for my part, I’m curious to see what a self-proclaimed warrior can do.

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Image Thank you, Lukas… You won’t regret this!

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Image If anything were to happen to you, I'd... I mean... Just don't do it, okay?!

Image I’m sorry, Faye, but I’ve made up my mind.

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Image Er, what?

Image Splendid idea. Maybe we could all get impaled on the same lance.

Image I’m just saying we could do it together. …Fighting, I mean. Not the lance. Grandfather trained all of us, right? Not just me.

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(Actually, nobody here knows how to use bows.)

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Image We were sparring with wooden fences and tree trunks! They don’t hit back!

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Image Gray! Not you too?!

Image Me too, Tobi-poo. It’s better than waiting for Rigel to reach Ram and kill/enslave us. Might as well bring the fight to them.

Yes, he says that. And yes, he also pronounces the "/".

Image But you’re gonna— I mean, once they— …Ugggh!

Faye and Tobin's voiced reactions in are priceless here, by the way.

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Image In the end, we need every able fighter we can get. There will be much to learn, but I can teach you a great deal in battle. And you’ll be given a proper wage, of course.

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Image Of course. Our soldiers work hard and sacrifice much. We would be remiss not to offer compensation.

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Image Ma and Pa struggle to make ends meet, but if there’s a way to help… Hmm…

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Image Why don’t you all take a little time to think about it? Let’s split up for now and meet back here later. I need to go thank my grandfather and say good-bye.

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Welp, we done walked right into a war. Lukas is still here, and unlike Gaiden, we can't just ditch the place immediately and leave our friends behind if we wanted to. If we talk to him we get:

Image Take all the time you need, Alm. You should pay your respects to Sir Mycen.

Well, let's go find our mysterious plot grandpa and get chewed out for joining a war.

Eh, might as well stop by the square on the way there.

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Image Everyone knows it’s Zofia’s fault that Rigel invaded in the first place. King Lima refused to help the Rigelian Empire during their famine, remember? And we all know the emperor didn’t take too kindly to THAT little slight.

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Image The king may be dead, but his choices live on. Ain’t that always the way of it?

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Image What do you suppose happens now? He has no heirs, you know. Not anymore, I mean. They say Chancellor Desaix himself murdered all of ’em in cold blood! Anyway, hope this “Deliverance” knows who they’ll be delivering to that throne.

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Image Just be careful, hear? The woods outside Ram are dangerous enough… but once you’re through them, you’ll hit Fleecer’s Forest.

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The villagers were a lot more animated about this in Gaiden, many of which proclaiming they wanted to take up arms as well. They have more realistic concerns this time around.

Anyways, time to go get yelled at.

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Image Do you have a minute? There’s something I need to speak with you about… …Grandfather? Hmm, where is he? Grandfather…? Grandfather!

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He's not here. This is a bit odd.

He didn't originally leave until after you had left the town already. Now he's just completely ditched us.

Well, back to the gate, I guess.

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Image Tobin! Does this mean you’re coming with us?

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Image Listen, everyone, try not to be amazed when I show Alm up on the battlefield.

Image You know they don’t pay extra for that, right, moneybags?

Image There’s nothing wrong with fighting for coin. Many people do. We don’t have any rule stating one’s reasons must be noble.

Ouch, that's a subtle, yet cold burn.

Image Now then, Alm. Were you able to say good-bye to your grandfather?

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Image Well, that IS vexing. I suppose we could tarry here a bit longer if you—

Image It’s all right. Let’s go.

Image Oh? Are you certain?

Image I can write him a letter. Come on, we can’t wait forever.

Image So be it. I’ll defer to your judgment.

(As a reminder, Celica did the same thing when she was leaving. It's not important, but it's an interesting paralell that they both try to leave without saying goodbye.)

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Well, that's it. We can leave now, but these two are still standing around. What have they got to say?

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Image I’m staying with you no matter what! End! Of! Discussion!

I, uh, don't know about that. That's up to the thread.

Image You…don’t want me? Oh. I…I see.

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Image But you’d better come back safe, you hear me?!

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Image The Deliverance is fighting all across Zofia, right? Well, I’ve always wanted to see the world, and now’s my chance. …All I have to do is not get killed. Easy, right?

Not my choice, compadre.

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Image Not like I was itching to leave anyway.

So passive-agressive, the both of you. Anyhow, these two are our first optional recruits in the whole game, though they're actually both a reference to an oversight and it's combined exploit in Gaiden.

Normally, in Gaiden, you could just leave town without recruiting Tobin or Kliff, leaving the only forced recruits for Act 1 as Lukas and Gray. However, if you save and reset the game while in the town, Gray would spawn out of your way, also making him skippable.

There's an unusual thing you could do with this effect. Our second main character (no guesses who) will have a chance to come to this half the continent during their first Act and then they could recruit everyone that Alm left behind.

This little secret still exists in this game, but only for Faye and Kliff. As result, I'm leaving it up to the thread to vote on whether or not we take Faye and/or Kliff.

For now, we're just going to pretend we're leaving without them.

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Image Am I sure about what?

Image Not saying good-bye to your grandfather. My ma and pa have all my brothers and sisters to look after them.

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Image -but family will help them get by, you know? But all Sir Mycen has for kin is you, and all you have is him.

Image I know. But considering he’s never let me take one step outside the village, I doubt I could have talked him into letting me join an army.

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Image Not just to prove him as a teacher, but to prove myself to me.

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Image This is your big chance! Your first adventure writ large! We’ll call it Alm’s Epoch! Or maybe… The Tale of Gray! …Plus That One Guy.

Image Heh. I don’t think so. Although I admit there might be a little something to what you’re saying.

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Image …So you really have gone crazy then. Welp, it’s been nice knowin’ ya!

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Image What? Celica? Where the heck did THAT come from?

Look at Alm trying to pretend he's not still thinking of her after eight years.

Image Oh, please. You two were inseparable while she was here. You barely made any time for us!

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Music: Fate | Image YT Image KHin

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Image I know that you’re out there… I just don’t know where. But I can feel it.

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Music: Act 1 - Where the Wind Rustles | Image YT Image KHin Image NES

Next Time: The game begins, for real.

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Voting-wise, as a reminder, vote for whether or not you want me to take Faye and/or Kliff, or to leave them for the other main character.

Their profiles are below, alongside their stats, just in case you want to make the decision based on that.

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Alm - Age 17:

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Growths:
HP:60 ATK:50 SKL:55 SPD:45 LCK:35 DEF:50 RES:3

Just a normal boy with a weird birthmark expertly trained for war by his badass, reclusive war hero grandfather, Alm is the main character for our first act of the game. He's been told to never leave Ram Village his whole life, but here he goes off to war because he wants to make a difference. As you can tell from his stats, growths, and special class, he probably will. Alm is undeniably a "lord" character, and unlike others in the series, he's not prone to letting you down mechanically.

Yes, Alm actually did have green hair in the original, but only in the external artwork. They could've fit a green color in instead of the blue they used to make that Budget Marth portrait.

Loves meaty food, likes rich and refined food, and hates anything sweet or bitter.


Lukas - Age 24:
(Original: Luka)

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Growths-
HP:50 ATK:30 SKL:40 SPD:25 LCK:30 DEF:45 RES:2

Our first Soldier and technically our first party member, Lukas is in general a passable character mechanically. In the long term, he'll mostly just be a defensive wall, but that's it. Given his role as our guide through this section of the game, he's the closest we're getting to a Jeigan. Seriously. What, you thought Mycen would be playable this early?

Anyways, his design really isn't much different, nor is his role and character. He's still just a very polite noble soldier guy. Though, you'd figure this being FE and him being a noble that he'd have better growths...

Loves sweet food, surprisingly, and otherwise likes rich, bitter, and meaty foods. Only hates rough foods.


Gray - Age 18

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Growths-
HP:45 ATK:40 SKL:30 SPD:30 LCK:25 DEF:25 RES:0

Notable Spells- Sagittae (Very Early)

Gray, much like all the original Villagers, is completely unrecognizable compared to his original appearance. I'm not complaining though, as Gray and Kliff's original sprites are just edits of each other. He reprises his role as the first one to stand up to follow Alm, and as mentioned before, is the only intentionally unskippable villager in Gaiden. Compared for the other characters, he's mostly around for the journey and is for the most part laid-back about anything that happens.

Mechanically, Gray's growths are pretty damn lackluster but that 40 ATK is more than serviceable in the long run. His main advantage is his overall better bases and already starting high enough level to promote.

Another interesting quirk of Gaiden/SoV is that instead of spell tomes, magic is innate, and thus characters who can be mages/clerics all have unique spell lists. Gray's here is the worst off of all of them in most regards, but early Sagittae could be quite hilarious.

Loves meaty food, likes anything plain, sweet, and refined, but can't stand rough food.


Tobin - Age 17
(Original: Robin)

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Growths-
HP:40 ATK:30 SKL:50 SPD:25 LCK:30 DEF:30 RES:0

Notable Spells- Excalibur, Physic

Tobin's the show-off type, and as much as it seems like he's going to support his family, he's also going so he can continue to be a show-off. He's still Alm's friend regardless, and in general doesn't have much else in common with his original self. Mechanically, he'll probably never do so since most of his growths went towards SKL. He's passable, better than Lukas, but that speed is going to be a bit of a pain as well. His spell list isn't half bad given he gets Physic, but his SKL stat goes to waste if he does become a mage.

Visually, he's nearly as big a change as Gray's was, though he did keep the center parted hair, in a sense. That being said, wow, what a goofy sprite.


Kliff - Age 15, apparently

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Growths-
HP:35 ATK:30 SKL:45 SPD:60 LCK:20 DEF:40 RES:0

Notable Spells- Thunder, Excalibur, Sagittae, Aura

Kliff, joining the ever-lengthening list of characters unrecognizable from their previous forms, is somehow only 15 despite not sounding or looking it. I guess we've got a Baten Kaitos Sagi issue going on here. Regardless, Kliff's personality is described as mature, but realistically is mostly similar to Grey's albeit with a slightly more serious tone.

Mechanically, he's going to be hurting for ATK and HP, but that speed is the second highest growth in the game, and that defense score is also really quite great. His high luck base can also help him become a crit monster later, which is also hilarious. He has the most extreme spell list available out of the villagers, but his stats lend him to whatever class he wants.

Kliff's favorite foods are refined, while he likes anything sweet or bitter. He hates anything rich or rough, though.


Faye - Age 18

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Growths-
HP:40 ATK:40 SKL:30 SPD:30 LCK:30 DEF:40 RES:3

Notable Spells (Mage)- Seraphim, Sagittae, Freeze
Notable Spells (Cleric)- Anew (Unique to her)

Our first entirely new character.

Faye's personality is rather strange, being based entirely around an obsession for Alm, (something you may have gathered from the prologue), though it boils down to "notice me" more than anything. It's at least not at the Camilla creepy level, and at least through her supports she gets a bit more of a personality than just that.

Mechanically, her stats growths are quite good, though her starting SPD and SKL are terrible. Her base RES is very good, and given her ATK base, she can get goddamn ripped with some good luck. If the mercenary class was available for her, she'd probably destroy everything.

Food-wise, she loves rich foods, likes anything sweet, meat based, or rough. She hates bitter and refined foods, though.


Mycen - Early
(Original: Maison)

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Including this one here because I might as well.

Plot Grandpa here happens to be a fake-out Jeigan, even down to his original sprite using the same palette as Jeigan's. Internally, yes, his growths are terrible just as a Jeigan's usually are, but it'll be a long time before we see him again after he so impolitely extricated himself from the plot.

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Oh hey, it's that game that Tae gave up on before he even beat Chapter 1, and had his topic eventually derailed into talking about horrible game scenarios like "I want a speed chess format with a hard time limit on decisions" or "I want the player and characters to be rushed about with almost no context and have zero plot or characterization until they accidentally beat the game".
Sometimes it feels like Fire Emblem fans don't even like Fire Emblem, and would rather be playing something else. At the very least, I am really grateful to EclecticTastes for explaining why and how localization can go wrong.

Anyway, I'm glad you're willing to take up the torch to LP this game, Twybil. I'l be watching this pretty fervently, if only so I can complain later on about what they changed from FE2...and also how much I despise the new characters and/or what they represent.

But for the moment, take both Cliff (sic) and CordeliaFaye. I want to see a Chapter 1 beat with the optional boss killed.
Last edited by Greener223224 on Mon Jul 06, 2020 6:37 am, edited 2 times in total.

Oh Faye. Somehow not the worst of the new characters despite having bad Fates character decisions written all over her.

Anyways as amusing as it'd be to break up the band they're a bit wasted on the other route IMO, so take Faye and Kliff along

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We must recruit everyone!

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King Lima looks pretty sickly despite being a king living a life of decadence. Either the royal family is horribly inbred, or he's suffering from something like lead poisoning, I've heard real world nobles used lead powder in pursuit of beauty.

The other party is already pretty saturated with good units, and Kliff and Faye would be seperated from their support partners there, so let them join Alm's party.

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Let's take Kliff along, we need a mage.

But we'll leave Faye for later because maybe clinging to Alm isn't healthy for her in the long run.
Last edited by Tanegashima on Mon Jul 06, 2020 10:15 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Yeah, bring em along!

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Greener223224 wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 5:58 am
Sometimes it feels like Fire Emblem fans don't even like Fire Emblem, and would rather be playing something else. At the very least, I am really grateful to EclecticTastes for explaining why and how localization can go wrong.

Anyway, I'm glad you're willing to take up the torch to LP this game, Twybil. I'l be watching this pretty fervently, if only so I can complain later on about what they changed from FE2...and also how much I despise the new characters and/or what they represent.

I want to see a Chapter 1 beat with the optional boss killed.
Huh, I didn't even know there was a previous attempt at this before mine. I mean, I should've guessed that there was, but nobody said I'm smart. That chat regarding Tellius is rather fascinating, I knew it was based on something- I just never knew what, specifically. Anyway, I find it's almost usual for some people (me included) to complain the most about the things they love. I'm no psychologist, but I think it's rooted in seeing something that could be perfect, but is just a little bit off of that by the slightest.

I'll admit this game is somewhat hit and miss with its characters. We'll see them as time goes on, but the first bunch isn't half bad, if a little predictable.

As for the Act 1 optional boss, that's the other reason I picked Normal. I was hoping to show that off regardless, but it will kinda matter what the thread votes for regarding classes later.
RandomKesaranPasaran wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 6:20 am
Oh Faye. Somehow not the worst of the new characters despite having bad Fates character decisions written all over her.
Again, I won't lie, there's more than a few hit and miss situations regarding the characters. Faye's still pretty creepy at times (and never does stop fully), but at least her overall design and relationship to Alm are in a far different state than what we got for Fates. She's not even prominent in the main story, so we won't really have to see that much of her.
Night Zap wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 9:44 am
King Lima looks pretty sickly despite being a king living a life of decadence. Either the royal family is horribly inbred, or he's suffering from something like lead poisoning, I've heard real world nobles used lead powder in pursuit of beauty.
Roman cosmetics were known to use antimony as well- cosmetics have a long history of being dangerous. Still do, really. Personally, I think it's either an STD or it's a case of Desaix trying to poison him and eventually giving up when he continues to hold on for too long. Probably the latter, as much as FE's had some iffy stuff in it's history, I don't know if they'd actually do the former.

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The other protagonist gets more than enough characters to round out their party, so recruit both Kliff and Faye to Alm's party.

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Yeah, I agree, let's recruit both Kliff and Faye.

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Let's bring Kliff and Faye along for the ride.

That said, I'd argue that SoV does not have one sole Jeigan character, but rather the role of "early pre-promote crutch character" has been split up across different characters. For Alm's party, Lukas is the obvious candidate, but at the same time, the observant will note that not only does Alm have a unique spin on a familiar class (Fighter, which will not be wielding axes in this game as mentioned), but Gray is much higher leveled compared to the rest of the villagers. So yes, the early crutch characters for this party are: Lukas and Gray, with Alm as a third wheel thanks to Protagonist Powers.

And that's not even including our other party, which is going to have an even stranger distribution.

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AradoBalanga wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 8:09 pm
That said, I'd argue that SoV does not have one sole Jeigan character, but rather the role of "early pre-promote crutch character" has been split up across different characters. For Alm's party, Lukas is the obvious candidate, but at the same time, the observant will note that not only does Alm have a unique spin on a familiar class (Fighter, which will not be wielding axes in this game as mentioned), but Gray is much higher leveled compared to the rest of the villagers. So yes, the early crutch characters for this party are: Lukas and Gray, with Alm as a third wheel thanks to Protagonist Powers.
Mycen's basically a fake-out, which is something I kinda like. Alm notably only ever gets one promotion (as does our other main character), so his power levels tend to stay very high throughout. Gray and Lukas are both good enough to eat some hits and deal out nice damage, but not as much to delete everything they touch. That makes getting levels on other characters a lot easier than with a normal Jeigan-type character.

It's also worth noting these aren't even the only early pre-promote characters we'll technically be getting throughout the game, because there's practically a second small wave of them later. The power balancing is interesting in this game, to say the least. Especially in regards to that spoilered information.

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AradoBalanga wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 8:09 pm

That said, I'd argue that SoV does not have one sole Jeigan character, but rather the role of "early pre-promote crutch character" has been split up across different characters. For Alm's party, Lukas is the obvious candidate, but at the same time, the observant will note that not only does Alm have a unique spin on a familiar class (Fighter, which will not be wielding axes in this game as mentioned), but Gray is much higher leveled compared to the rest of the villagers. So yes, the early crutch characters for this party are: Lukas and Gray, with Alm as a third wheel thanks to Protagonist Powers.

And that's not even including our other party, which is going to have an even stranger distribution.
It's almost like archetypes are more associated with classes, characterization and appearance than they are with strict gameplay roles! Because in that sense, Mycen is still a Jeigan.
Though speaking of archetypes, there's also an annoying thing this game does to retroactively shoehorn Luka into an archetype.

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Clearly going this direction anyway, but let's add one to the Send Faye and Kliff with Alm pile.

For something that only came out like 3 years ago I weirdly forgot some of the details of the backstory here. The bit about Lima ignoring a famine in Rigel surprised me a bit, even though thinking on it that does in fact sound familiar. But yeah, the entire setup of the game is pretty basic, as you'd expect given this is a direct remake of an NES game, but I do love how much effort SoV puts into really selling its ideas, especially at this stage of the game.

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I'm gonna go against the flow and suggest both optionals stay home. Learn to use a bow while they stay!

Also Kliff isn't at nearly strange of an age as "looks like a shaved Bartre who doubled their time at the gym and mess hall" Raphael at 17 at FE3H game start.

Bring Kliff, leave Faye. The other party needs her more.

I quite like this game, but compared to Awakening and Fates, I felt no desire to replay it. I remember someone on the Heroes subreddit going on about how Faye is a "dangerous psychopath" and that made me laugh but also made me concerned for reading comprehension of the average Fire Emblem fan.

I say send them with Alm.

Keep them with Alm

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The Flying Twybil wrote:
Mon Jul 06, 2020 5:25 am
Image Alm, what the hell?! You can’t do that! …Wait. CAN he do that?
8-4 did such a good job with the localization for this game and the voice acting is superb. This line is one of my favorites.

Yup, keep Faye and Kliff with Alm. Getting the extra Peg Knight or Cleric with Faye is crucial for survivability

Keep both.

And faye has a very notable cleric spell related to movement not listed there. As cool as the dance spell is, it comes so late you wont see much of it.

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Foolycharged wrote:
Sun Jul 12, 2020 3:34 am
And faye has a very notable cleric spell related to movement not listed there. As cool as the dance spell is, it comes so late you wont see much of it.
True enough, it is actually pretty notable. She's not the only one who gets it, and it also comes pretty late as well, so I actually forgot about it until now.

Votes are closed now, as I'll be starting on the next update soon enough. Haven't tallied them up yet, but it seems like keep both probably won, though leaving Faye did get quite a substantial amount of votes. Said update should be out within the next few days or so, provided nothing comes up.

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