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NyoroEevee posted:We like Ike? We like Ike!
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Mar 23, 2024 14:25
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I really like Fire Emblem Engage, warts and all! I haven't been able to finish it due to just being busy with other games but I enjoyed my time with the game and I'd like to play it again. Super excited to see this LP, and everyone's reactions to Engage. Also you should show off the DLC post-game if only because my boy Soren is playable and he has some of the best Bond Convo's in the game.
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Mar 23, 2024 16:49
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Fajita Queen posted:I really, really hate whoever started saying this and spread it throughout the entirety of Fire Emblem discourse, because it's broadly speaking complete bullshit. Mika Pikazo has been a popular artist for a long time, the art style she's known for predates (japanese) vtubers as a concept, she only designed three of them, and based on the timing of when Engage started development she was almost certainly contracted to do the art for it before she ever made a vtuber rig. The issues with Engage's art style (if you even wanna call them issues) are mostly due to bad art direction. There was an interview that basically revealed that they kinda just had her design a whole bunch of characters without much information about them, which leads to the main actual problem, which is that the character designs aren't really cohesive with each other and the setting. There isn't much in the way of thematic design for the royalty and retainers of a given country, etc. I don't say that derisively! Obviously Mika Pikazo's work predates her vtubers, but with Engage coming out well after the boom it's really hard to see them any other way, personally. I'm not even saying the character design is bad, just that you could slot Alear right next to the next wave of Holostar boys and literally no one could tell anything was wrong. He even has his own stupid lore video ready to go! Also re: the writing, I'm very much in the camp of "When it hits, it hits really well, but it misses both far more often and far worse." It's fine to be cheesy, and I don't have any real complaints about the general plot progression aside from a handful of endgame plot points, but most of its big emotional plot points fall flat for me. On the whole though: XainZero posted:Fire Emblem Engage is stupid (positive). (Chapter 1 tomorrow)
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Mar 24, 2024 17:43
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Shei-kun posted:Byleth exists! By's the guy?
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Mar 24, 2024 17:53
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That's Bylass erasure!
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Mar 24, 2024 18:43
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For the purposes of the LP, Byleth is male and Corrin is female (because that's what the game uses). Robin is part of a package with Chrom as a DLC emblem and is male. You get Lucina in the base game.
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Mar 24, 2024 18:51
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Three Hopes proved that you can make Byleth an interesting character. Shame that FE in general doesn't seem to like talking about that game.
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Mar 24, 2024 18:57
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Just curious, is this another challenge run like I have seeing around YouTube, or are you basically going to tell the game, “I am the player! You shall obey me!”? Or perhaps somewhere down the middle?
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Mar 24, 2024 19:27
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You know a game inspires strong feelings when the first page of its LP is entirely filled with takes.  But Engage is pretty comfortably my favorite FE, so I'm looking forward to this.
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Mar 25, 2024 00:02
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Solidly in camp "Engage Good." The plot's not much, but there are some scenes and characters I really adore.
Zulily Zoetrope fucked around with this message at 20:42 on Mar 25, 2024 |
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Mar 25, 2024 20:38
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 Chapter 1: Awake At Last   Where am I?  Whoa. Tell me you're seeing this!  You're awake! Huh? You're really awake, yeah? You're the Divine Dragon! Uh... No way! Well, that's certainly something to wake up to. Our excitable friends run off, leaving Alear to look around the room for a moment before we move on.  Calm down, calm down, you two. What's all of this ruckus about? Meet Vander, ostensibly the adult in the room. We'll see how that plays out.  It's a miracle. An utter miracle. The Divine One, awake at long last... That I might live to see you standing before me. What an honor. Um, not to be rude, but...who are you? Ah! Apologies. I lost myself for a moment there. My name is Vander. I am the 32nd Steward of the Dragon. Hello, Sir Vander. Oh my, Divine One! There is no need to address me as such. Simply "Vander" will do. See! I told you the Divine Dragon was awake! Yeah! We were telling the truth! Oh, sorry! We were so excited we forgot to introduce ourselves. We're the 33rd Stewards of the Dragon! My name's Clanne. Pleased to meet you. And I'm Framme! We're twins. We've been waiting forever for you to wake up! As Stewards of the Dragon, our mission is to protect and provide for you. Generation after generation of our predecessors waited for you to rise from your slumber. I'll admit, I am astonished to see it has finally happened. A thousand years? That's how long I've been asleep? Indeed. Your mother ─ Lumera, the Divine Dragon Monarch ─ has long awaited this day. Finally you, a Divine Dragon yourself, have awakened. This surely signifies great things. Slow down. This monarch you mentioned ─ she's my mother? And I'm a "Divine Dragon," you called it? Oh dear. Is your memory hazy, Divine One? I know my name, but...that's about it. You can't remember anything else? Maybe you're just feeling groggy 'cause of all that sleep? But I don't even know who I am. Fret not. Such lapses in memory are to be expected after sleeping for so long. If I may... You are a Divine Dragon, a member of a royal family of dragons revered as deities. Queen Lumera, the Divine Dragon Monarch, rules over the Holy Land of Lythos. In the war a thousand years ago, she defeated and imprisoned the wicked Fell Dragon. You, Divine One, are her only child. The war, the Fell Dragon... I feel like I can almost remember, but... Please, do not trouble yourself trying to bring it all back at once. Your memories will return in time. You are a being of immense power ─ a deity, no less. I have heard many a tale of your kindness, nobility, and bravery. Your unflinching heroism. That's a lot to live up to. For now, let us head to Lythos Castle. Queen Lumera will be thrilled to see you. Perhaps the reunion will help stir your memories. OK, then! Onward and downward! To Lythos Castle!Phew, that was a lot of words that don't say much of anything. We've got amnesia after sleeping for a thousand years, but now that we're up it's time to go see Mom who is also the Queen. This setup has never once ended in disaster, so we can presumably look forward to an entire game of hanging out and drinking tea in the castle. There's also something to be said for how the game treats Alear himself - characters are deferential and overly polite, sometimes to an obnoxious degree, but it's important to note that for the majority of folks that we meet in the game, they quite literally worship him. God is not only real, he is standing in front of you, and he wants your help to murder that man on the other side of the battlefield.  All this time, I've been sleeping in the sky? You have, yes. The place where you slumbered is known as the Somniel. A fortress built upon an airborne island to ensure your safety. It is perhaps the most secure place in all of Elyos. Only a select few can set foot there. I see. And you three live there with me? Yup! As stewards, we spend our time caring for you and managing things around the Somniel. It's a sacred place, so we work as hard as we can to keep it shipshape! Royal family members visit us all the time! Well, visit you, really. The prince and princess of Firene visit especially often. I see. Thanks for filling me in, Framme. You too, Clanne. Ah! The Divine One said our names! And thanked us! I think I'm going to faint...unless I already did. Am I dreaming? Need I remind you that you are in the presence of the Divine Dragon! How many times must I tell you to behave in a manner befitting your station? Divine One, please forgive this embarrassing breach of decorum. Breach of decorum? Haha, I'm actually enjoying their enthusiasm. Hehe! You're just as kindhearted as I always imagined! Lythos Castle. The...Divine Dragon Monarch is there, you said? Yes. I suppose a thousand years have passed since you've been home. Don't worry. We'll be right there with you. You can hold my hand if you like. Thank you. How long have I been wearing this ring? Since before I fell asleep? That blue stone... It reminds me of something... Anyway, thank god, something we can finally kill. Huh?! Wh-what are those horrible things?! Vander! Are creatures like that common around here? They're not. I've never seen them. Nor have I heard of such monsters appearing in Lythos before. This is a land of peace. Understood. Well... Shall we fight them? As you wish, Divine One! You whose bravery knows no equal. Huh? We haven't the slightest idea who they are. We don't know how they came to be here. And... They worry me for some reason. So, we run! I, er, well... Did the Divine Dragon really command me to retreat? We'll keep them distracted for you! What the ─ Come back! Come back this instant!  Clanne! Framme! Hold on! We shall come to you!Well done, children. The first opportunity to get yourselves killed, and you gladly took it. Let's go bail them out, shall we?  Vander! Divine One! Stay back ─ it's too dangerous! Clanne and Framme were trying to protect me. I have to help them. This is no time to run. Please, let me fight. All right... But stay on your guard.  And with all that, we're finally cut loose for... Well, another tutorial map. But at least this one has some actual gameplay. Let's start with our heroes.  Base Class: Dragon Child Class Type: Dragon Personal Skill: Divinely Inspiring - Adjacent allies deal +3 damage and take -1 damage. Base Stats: HP: 22 (60% + 10%) Str: 6 (35% + 10%) Mag: 0 (20% + 0%) Dex: 5 (45% + 10%) Spd: 7 (50% + 15%) Def: 5 (40% + 10%) Res: 3 (25% + 10%) Luck: 5 (25% + 5%) Build: 4 (5% + 5%) Alear is our lord, very much in the Eliwood-type mold. He's pretty fast and reasonably accurate, but his strength can be a little shaky. Fortunately, none of that really matters, because as a Dragon-type unit, he's going to get most of his utility out of Engaging. Each of the different class types comes with their own set of passive buffs regarding Emblems, but Dragons typically have the best ones and his class skill shortens the recharge timer by a turn for good measure.  Base Class: Paladin Class Type: Cavalry Personal Skill: Alabaster Duty - If Vander is adjacent to Alear, grants Crit +5 during combat to both of them. Base Stats: HP: 40 (60% + 15%) Str: 11 (25% + 15%) Mag: 5 (10% + 0%) Dex: 10 (25% + 10%) Spd: 8 (35% + 15%) Def: 10 (35% + 15%) Res: 8 (20% + 15%) Luck: 6 (10% + 10%) Build: 8 (5% + 0%) As with many early-game paladins, Vander's job is to take hits and soften up enemies for other party members to kill. Unlike most of the recent examples in the franchise, however, that's about the extent of his usefulness. While his growths aren't atrocious (though they are bad by Engage's standards), his bases are terrible and levels are hard to come by given that he's a promoted unit. Can you make it work? Sure! Engage has a lot of tools available to make up for a unit's shortcomings. But you are really going to have to spend that capital to get Vander up to speed.   We'll talk more about Clanne and Framme next chapter once they formally join us. For now, just note that they're here, and we should probably attempt to save them. The fighter closest to Framme will chase the pair of them to the north once the chapter starts, but thankfully he's the only one with any interest in them.  If we really wanted to, we could run Vander right up to the guy threatening Framme and then let the rest of them suicide into him while Alear cleans up the mess. But that's both not very interesting and a little risky since even in the thicket, Alear still has a 40% of getting hit by these guys and will need three hits of his own to kill a single bandit.  For now we'll let the bandits come to us. Alear should be able to comfortably kill both of the guys to the left once Vander takes a swing at them, and Framme can take a hit.  Just one, though! She'll run once she's taken damage and Clanne will block her off, but he's got a whopping 1 HP on her so you'd better be quick.  The rest of the bandits come to us with predictable results.  I intended to have Alear clear the way and send Vander up to get the guy chasing Framme, but astute viewers will notice that there is a rock in the way.  We'll have to settle for busting these guys' heads instead. Vander catches up with him next turn. If we had gone after him immediately, we could have actually killed him here, but unfortunately he gets to escape into the Cutscene Zone after this turn.  Reinforcements! On Chapter 1? Is that even legal? Emblem Marth More enemies! They just keep coming. You're all trying to protect me. I should be protecting you! If only I could... Alear... Huh? You must remember, Alear... Who... Who said that? Know that my strength can be yours. I know that voice. "If ever we cross paths again, I hope you will remember me. Indeed, that you will remember all of us who took up arms to fight by your side." The 12 Emblems... Upon this revelation, Alear starts running away from Vander, directly into the middle of the bandits. Divine One? Divine One! You mustn't do this alone! Don't worry! I'm not alone! Help me. Lend me your strength in this fight!   Oh, Marth, Mr. Fire Emblem himself. The main theme kicks in and we get a couple action shots of Marth and Alear fighting the bandits together.    It's all very exciting, but drink it in while you can, because no one else is going to get an intro like this. That was amazing! We did it! Thanks for your help, Marth, truly! Of course. It is good to see you. I was able to answer your call, because you remembered me. Do my eyes deceive me...or is that an Emblem of legend? Of course, let's not forget that we've still got some stragglers to deal with. With your help, Marth, we might just make it. Will you join us? Of course. I will fight alongside you from here forward ─ your ally, until the very end.So now that we officially have one, let's talk about Emblems. We'll do a deep dive in what Marth specifically brings to the table once we have access to our home base in a couple chapters, but since he's all that we have right now, we'll use him as our example.  First and foremost, you get a chunk of stats for equipping an Emblem. Which stats go up depends on the Emblem and what your bond level is, but they generally correspond to that unit's archetype. Marth gives a roughly even spread of strength, dex, and speed, but later ones will be significantly more specialized. Second, Emblems are the source of the game's skills. Some you get simply for equipping the Emblem in question, others require you to actively be synced up. Each Emblem also has a special attack or skill that can only be used once per engage, usually (but not always) some kind of powerful attack. As we saw in the prologue, Marth's is Lodestar Rush.  Finally, every Emblem comes with a set of three special weapons you can use only while engaged. These are usually themed to the character in question and almost always include whatever legendary weapon that character used. For example, Marth starts with a rapier and adds Mercurius and the Falchion as you raise his bond.  We can already see the benefits of having Marth around, and we haven't even properly engaged with him yet! Compare that to the combat forecast Alear had in the first half of the chapter. Suffice to say that we clean these boys up pretty quickly.  It's only Chapter 1, so it's best not to extrapolate too much on what the game's power curve is going to look like, but it's worth saying it to put it out there: We started this map doing 9 damage once, and we're finishing it by doing enough damage to one-shot these guys from full health, despite not gaining a single level. Emblems are wild in this game.  End of Chapter  Yeah. And, uh...sorry. This all happened because we ran ahead. I'm the one who should apologize. You put yourselves in danger trying to protect me. It's such a relief you're both safe now... Divine One, I hear more enemies approaching. More? I thought we'd gotten them all. Evidently not. These creatures... Will there be no end to them?  Well, that escalated quickly.  Fortunately, it seems to be on our side.   Yes, it's me. Thank you for saving us. What a joy it is to see you, Alear. Oh! When I sensed you had awoken, I flew here as fast as my wings would carry me. I hope you're not hurt. I'm... I'm fine. What a relief! You cannot understand how I've missed you, my dear child. Oh! You're...my mother. What's the matter? Don't tell me... Oh! I see. I'm sorry. I'm sure you weren't expecting this. No, I must apologize. I was so overcome with joy, I hugged you as hard as I could. I take this to mean you've forgotten...everything. I suppose it's to be expected. A thousand years is a very long time. Vander explained that I've been sleeping since... since some war that happened back then. Yes. You suffered a terrible wound. And... and because of that... A wound? I don't remember that. Or this world, or anything. Don't fret, young one. I will speak to you of all you've forgotten. Regardless of what you remember, I'm simply glad to have you back, my dear child. Still...this isn't the reunion you hoped for. Oh, don't worry about me. It's solace enough just to hear that sweet voice of yours! And to gaze once more into your eyes. What lovely colors they are, Alear. After each map, we get dumped on a version of it that we can wander around and either chat with folks or pick up assorted goodies that are lying on the ground. There's nothing to see here (yet), so let's just talk to Mom and get out of here. 
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Mar 25, 2024 21:43
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Artix posted:There's also something to be said for how the game treats Alear himself - characters are deferential and overly polite, sometimes to an obnoxious degree, but it's important to note that for the majority of folks that we meet in the game, they quite literally worship him. God is not only real, he is standing in front of you, and he wants your help to murder that man on the other side of the battlefield. It's an interesting evolution. These kinds of characters have always hung around Fire Emblem, starting with Tiki, and Three Houses went so far as to make the protagonist an unwitting reincarnation of a goddess, but Engage is where they flat out made the PC into the setting's Sword Dragon Jesus and made it a major plot point that most of the cast literally pray to them.
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Mar 25, 2024 22:06
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Cythereal posted:It's an interesting evolution. These kinds of characters have always hung around Fire Emblem, starting with Tiki, and Three Houses went so far as to make the protagonist an unwitting reincarnation of a goddess, but Engage is where they flat out made the PC into the setting's Sword Dragon Jesus and made it a major plot point that most of the cast literally pray to them. I've heard worse excuses for Fire Emblem game overs than letting God die on your watch.
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Mar 25, 2024 22:16
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I've got to love how everyone is gung ho to go fight some monsters with their god, and then Alear has a shocking moment of comment sense and says to leg it.
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Mar 25, 2024 22:28
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drat, dragon mom is shame we're not allowed to have living parents in this jrpg
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Mar 25, 2024 23:17
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This beginning segment is what made me sure I was going to hate the story of this game. The cutscene with the Christmas twins charging into melee range just so that they could get into trouble is incredibly contrived. Like, you have a tome, why are you going into melee? The thought process was obviously 'they must be in trouble so we can save them', but they just kind of threw away their brains so blatantly to cause that situation.
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Mar 26, 2024 00:20
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i think it's fine that the kids are very dumb and get in way over their heads. you can definitely nitpick the tactical realism of the scenario, and the fact that the main character's mother is a giant flying dragon begs the question of 'why didnt they just stay there until their giant flying dragon mom came to meet them', but that would defeat the purpose of the scene, which is to have one random zombie mook get into a cool swordfight. the part where this is a very obvious riff on chrom and 'marth' teaming up to defend lissa from a risen in fire emblem awakening, which established how and why such a thing should happen with less contrivances, is what stands out more to me.
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Mar 26, 2024 00:27
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"A somewhat ridiculous thing happens to set up a cool setpiece or story moment" describes a lot of Engage's story. Whether or not you like the story probably mostly rests on your ability to just roll with it, versus letting the moment get stuck in your teeth.
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Mar 26, 2024 00:36
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FoolyCharged posted:I've got to love how everyone is gung ho to go fight some monsters with their god, and then Alear has a shocking moment of comment sense and says to leg it. That was definitely the moment when I actually became interested in Alear as a character.
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Mar 26, 2024 00:48
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Fond memories of people catastrophizing after early trailers based on the size and complexity of this obvious extremely early game map.
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Mar 26, 2024 00:59
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Emblem Marth is cool and all but call me when we get Emblem Marf.
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Mar 26, 2024 03:22
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FPzero posted:Emblem Marth is cool and all but call me when we get Emblem Marf. Emblem Marf Santangelo, the Emblem of DIFFERENT DIMENSION?!
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Mar 26, 2024 03:56
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I see we get to have a beautiful mother who looks to be in her mid-to-late twenties, who can turn into a terrifying dragon. My question is, how many chapters are we allowed to keep her?
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Mar 26, 2024 10:33
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Shei-kun posted:I see we get to have a beautiful mother who looks to be in her mid-to-late twenties, who can turn into a terrifying dragon. As someone unfamiliar with Engage, I'm putting my money on two, maybe three max.
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Mar 26, 2024 11:30
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FPzero posted:Emblem Marth is cool and all but call me when we get Emblem Marf. StAngelo was what I called my Alear, it sounds pretty good when she introduces herself as "the Divine Dragon StAngelo". Marf is her dog
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Mar 26, 2024 14:23
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Alear at their best feels like a pastiche of Corrin, where their informed rightness is simultaneously justified and also riffed on. It's kind of funny, though most of the better content is in supports. I think Vander is like, 15/0 internally, so his EXP gain is atrocious even by Jagen standards; you can feed Seth bosses, but Vander basically requires specialized care to make work.
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Mar 26, 2024 21:47
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Faillen Angel posted:Alear at their best feels like a pastiche of Corrin, where their informed rightness is simultaneously justified and also riffed on. It's kind of funny, though most of the better content is in supports. That is actually because of Engage's bosses not rewarding exp the same way as they do in other games in the series. Seth, Titania, etc. gained exp as level 21 characters in their games, so they'd be even worse off than Vander for leveling if it weren't for bosses in the previous games giving gobs of bonus exp.
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Mar 27, 2024 05:16
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Seth and Titania, and fe7 Marcus, also have way better stats than Vander.
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Mar 27, 2024 09:57
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Never had time to pick up Engage, so I'm very interested in seeing where this goes. It's refreshing for Alear to say "No, we should run away," but given all the other comments I'm guessing that 'protagonist makes smart decisions' isn't something that sticks around. Also, god drat they really did just make "Rhea but blue" the mom, huh? Exact same body type and dress, though her accessories are different.
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Mar 27, 2024 11:10
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I unfortunately gave up on engage about half way through. It wasn't the story which I mostly just skipped through, I was more bothered by the whole emblem ring mechanics. I felt the rings completely dominated to the point where developing characters and using specific classes felt way less important than in other games. I also really didn't like the gatcha ring mechanic. Which is a pity because I really liked some of the other game mechanics, like the class type system. I think if you removed emblem rings from the game entirely, maybe adding a more basic skill system in its place or just giving classes more skills, I'd have enjoyed the game way more.
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Mar 27, 2024 12:07
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That bit with "No, we're running" is still a great bit of writing.
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Mar 27, 2024 13:32
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Dance Officer posted:Seth and Titania, and fe7 Marcus, also have way better stats than Vander. They absolutely do, but even with worse stats Vander could at least still theoretically have a longer lasting impact than he currently does if they'd let him level up a couple times off the first few bosses if you choose to do that, like you can with those better characters. As-is you can't even level him until you're far enough in that he's so far behind as to be not even slightly worth it unless you're doing a gimmick run, which is sad as I kind of like him as a character and it would be nice for more of his support convos to show up organically.
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Mar 27, 2024 14:04
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Man, I am getting such hard "babby's first fanfic" vibes out of the plot. We have our self-insert character who is literally worshipped by everyone else, and on top of being the incarnation of the world's divine savior what makes them special is that they can get astral-married to their husbando(s)/waifu(s) of choice and summon them back into the world a la Servants from Fate Stay Night.  I don't say any of this to knock on the writing, by the way. It's all very charming despite (or even because of) embarrassingly familiar plot beats and I keep finding myself with a great big grin plastered on my face.
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Mar 27, 2024 19:51
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wait where are you seeing marital imagery in the Engage mechanic?
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Mar 27, 2024 20:05
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It's a ring, and the summons are strengthened by your bond with the person involved.
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Mar 27, 2024 20:12
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dotchan posted:Man, I am getting such hard "babby's first fanfic" vibes out of the plot. We have our self-insert character who is literally worshipped by everyone else, and on top of being the incarnation of the world's divine savior what makes them special is that they can get astral-married to their husbando(s)/waifu(s) of choice and summon them back into the world a la Servants from Fate Stay Night. The story works for me because it tells the story in a very sincere kind of way. It never does any kind of winking at the audience "haha, we know this is stupid" thing. It knows that it's a Saturday morning cartoon story and it tells that story very earnestly and that earns a lot of points from me.
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Mar 27, 2024 21:11
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Having come straight from Three Houses, with its more cynical plot and characters lying to the protagonist to achieve their own ends, my immediate reaction to all this outpouring of praise was, "Oh yeah, we're obviously getting Truman Show'd." So here I am for several chapters being like, "Yup, the other shoe's going to drop any second now. Any second now..." Then it dawned on me that the story was being 100% serious.
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Mar 27, 2024 21:35
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I'm just here to enjoy the ride. Reading an Artix Fire Emblem lp is like a warm cup of tea on a cold rainy day.
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Mar 28, 2024 01:00
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loving love Fiona Apple posted:I'm just here to enjoy the ride. Reading an Artix Fire Emblem lp is like a warm cup of tea on a cold rainy day.
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Mar 28, 2024 02:02
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| # ? Apr 28, 2024 02:41 |
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Chapter 2: Queen Lumera  This opens on a big overview of the world, so bear me for a second. Admittedly, it is one of the coolest-looking versions of the map, so it's got that going for it, but the subtitles are kinda hard to read over it so I've transcribed them alongside the images.  Firene, Kingdom of Abundance. Brodia, Kingdom of Might. Elusia, Kingdom of Knowledge. Solm, Queendom of Freedom. The Land of Lythos, home of Divine Dragons. And Gradlon, domain of the Fell Dragon. Fallen to ruin. A thousand years ago, our lands endured a vicious war with the Fell Dragon. We called upon heroes from other worlds to aid us. Heroes known as Emblems. With them, the warriors of our nations fought as one. In the end, we were victorious in defeating and imprisoning the Fell Dragon. In the years since, our world has been safe. If his shadow stretches across the land again, then we must fight him anew, as we did in ages past. Fell Dragon Sombron must be stopped.Lotta suprises here, it's understandable if you need a second to process it. "Purple dragon bad, Divine dragon good" isn't going to blow any minds as far as Fire Emblem plots go, and it's not going to get much wilder as we go.  So this is Lythos Castle. It's beautiful. I'm glad you think so, Alear. Though you may not remember this place, I've long waited to welcome you back here. Welcome home, Alear. ...I'm home? Yes, you are. Ah, I feel overwhelmed with joy! I may cry. Queen Lumera... Vander. Clanne. Framme. Thank you for all you've done. You are worthy stewards indeed. You and your predecessors, watching over my child all these years... I am ever so grateful. You are too kind. Yeah, it's awful nice of you to say that! I'm starting to feel woozy... Aw yeah! Go us! We just got praised by Queen Lumera herself! The Corrupted? Those enemies you were fighting out on the grasslands. Oh, I didn't like those things one bit. Just the sight of them made my blood run cold. Understandably so. The Corrupted are corpses revived by an evil power. The Fell Dragon used them as his soldiers in the war. Before the start of that bitter conflict, Elyos had known peace for eons.  Despite tireless searching, we could not determine where he'd come from. But seeing the destruction he wrought, there was no doubt of his evil intentions. Now the Corrupted are spreading once more. This may be a sign of his return. No... I wonder if it is mere coincidence that you awakened as all this unfolds... If the Fell Dragon has been released, then we must prepare for battle. I can't imagine fighting someone like that. Worry not. I doubt he will attack anytime soon. This castle is filled with the spirits of Divine Dragons ─ the Corrupted cannot enter it easily. Let us devise a plan now, while we have the opportunity. Emblem Marth. That it has. Thank you for lending your aid against the Corrupted. You're welcome. But of course, I could help only because Alear remembered me. You know, it is possible the others are awake now, just as I am. Perhaps you are right. Sorry, but... What do you mean? Who's awake? There is something I should show you. Follow me. This is the Ring Vault. It is where the Emblem Rings are enshrined. Those of the Holy Knight, of the Sage Lord, and of the Azure Twins rest here. As well as the Ring of the Princess Exalt and finally, the Ring of the Instructor. Each dwells within an Emblem Ring, as Marth resides in the Ring of the Hero-King. So, counting Marth, there are six Emblem Rings. Wow. In fact, there are twelve ─ six here, and six entrusted to the other countries as a precautionary measure. What do you mean? The Emblems grant world-altering power to whoever has all 12 rings. For generations, the Divine Dragons used this power to ensure peace and prosperity in Elyos. Indeed, that was how we locked away the Fell Dragon. But many have sought to steal the rings and use them for their own nefarious purposes. Which is why they're scattered all over the continent, not just stored here. Precisely. The rings offer their power but once every thousand years, at which time the Divine Dragon travels across Elyos to collect them from each nation's ruler. With a thousand years having passed since last time, I was planning to carry out this ritual soon. "Summoned"? It is how one calls for an Emblem from a ring, just as you did earlier with Marth. Only those with royal dragon blood are capable of summoning. That includes you, my child. Oh... You must be talking about the phrase that popped into my head. An invocation, you mean? What was it? "Shine on, Emblem of Beginnings." I wasn't even thinking about it. The words just...fell from my mouth. That was how you summoned Marth. ...What was your focus ─ your intention ─ when you spoke those words? I wanted to help Clanne and Framme. I didn't want to lose them. I wanted to protect them. Your focus was on helping others. Remember that intention whenever you summon Emblems. Not to keep the power for yourself, understand? To borrow so you may protect others. I understand. I will say, I like this little twist. Tea time with mother in the castle? No. Battle to the death with mother? Now you're talking my language.  You need to train your body and mind to unleash an Emblem's full power. Vander, Clanne, Framme. You will be aiding my child in this battle...against me. Queen Lumera, even in a practice battle, I could not turn my weapon on you. Good writing in this game can be hard to come by, but I love Lumera's poo poo-eating grin here. "Oh you don't want to fight? Well that's too loving bad, because I do, and I'm coming for blood."  No, dear. Not at all. How could you think so? I made these opponents from plants and rocks. Nevertheless, their abilities are the same. Drop your guard and you could be hurt. They're really unsettling. Can we train with something else? They give me the chills. Listen. You must push through your fear and face whatever opponent stands against you. Never run away. You are my child, the protector of all ─ the Divine Dragon Alear. Don't worry, Divine One! We'll back you up every step of the way. Yeah! What Framme said! As loath as I am to battle against Queen Lumera...orders are orders. I pledge to bring us victory. Thank you, everyone. Now, let's begin. Since defeating Lumera is the goal, we might as well start with her.  Lumera is a significant step up from the pseudo-boss bandit we had last chapter, but she's content to stand here and let you get the first swing in before she starts moving; rest assured that later bosses will not be this understanding. She is standing on a thicket though, so she can be a bit slippery before you lure her out onto neutral ground.  Base Class: Mage Class Type: Mystical Personal Skill: Verdant Faith - If Clanne is adjacent to Alear, grants +10 hit to both of them. Base Stats: HP: 19 (40% + 0%) Str: 1 (35% + 0%) Mag: 8 (10% + 25%) Dex: 11 (40% + 5%) Spd: 9 (50% + 0%) Def: 4 (30% + 0%) Res: 7 (25% + 25%) Luck: 4 (20% + 5%) Build: 4 (5% + 0%) In the blue corner, we'll start with Clanne who has a very...interesting set of growths. His bases aren't terrible and the mage class bonuses are doing a lot of work to keep him afloat for now, but Clanne really wants to switch to a physical class, or at least a mixed attacker that lets him stretch that strength growth like Mage Knight (tomes and one of swords/lances/axes) or High Priest (tomes/staves/fists). For now, his primary utility is taking advantage of being a Mystical unit; on-foot mages have the benefit of ignoring terrain bonuses when they attack.  Base Class: Martial Monk Class Type: Qi Adept Personal Skill: Crimson Cheer - If Framme is adjacent to Alear, grants +10 avoid to both of them. Base Stats: HP: 18 (55% + 0%) Str: 3 (30% + 10%) Mag: 5 (25% + 25%) Dex: 8 (35% + 0%) Spd: 7 (55% + 0%) Def: 4 (25% + 10%) Res: 8 (30% + 20%) Luck: 5 (25% + 10%) Build: 3 (0% + 0%) Framme, on the other hand isn't going to be doing much fighting at all, ideally. As a monk, she'll be our primary healer for the first few chapters, but it also means that she's stuck with fist weaponry - they have a Brave effect if you initiate the attack, but they do damage based on an average of Str and Mag and broadly have very low Mt to begin with. And when I say low, I mean an Iron Sword has 5 Mt; Iron-Body Art? 2. Thankfully, staff exp will do a lot of the heavy lifting for getting Framme levels, and both of her offensive growths are passable if you really want to commit to her, but she's probably not anyone's long-term choice as an endgame healer.   We'll deal with that archer in just a second. For now, let's let the kids get a taste of fighting.  Alear can't quite reach him, but Vander can, and combined with Alear's damage bonus we knock him out before he starts harassing our squishier units.  As mentioned, Lumera will stay put until you've engaged with her at least once. The thicket's annoying, but it doesn't matter for Clanne who can also slide up right next to Alear for a damage bonus.  Alear's forecast is a lot less rosy, so we'll get in position and let her attack us.  A good call! That would have killed us if we had attacked first and gotten hit.  After we patch up Alear, Clanne does the needful. Now, let's start the map for real. Fantastic work. You fought together splendidly. Let's move on. Wait over there a moment. This time, I will be more hands-on. I intend to fight as if in an actual battle. Furthermore, I will be using this. Indeed it is. I'm inviting an old friend to join us.  Emblem Sigurd. He looks like a strong opponent. Each Emblem has their own abilities. When allied with them, you can call upon their unique powers and skills. Whatever Sigurd's power is, it won't be the same as Marth's. We'd better keep our eyes open.Oh Alear, you have no idea. Before we begin the second half of the map, we should quickly turn our attention to something new that's popped up.  This blue circle is Emblem Energy, and any unit that ends their turn standing on it will instantly have their engage meter fully charged.  To the left, we have an archer and soldier. To the north, a pair of sword cavaliers, and Lumera herself with a shiny new toy.  She's faster, tougher, and has picked up an extra point of movement from Sigurd. Put a pin in that last one, we'll come back to that pretty soon.  For now, we'll start the march forward. Clanne and Alear take out the fighter to the right, while Vander holds the line on the left.  Our first level! It's...okay. You really want to see some strength on Alear sooner rather than later, but speed and defense are nothing to sneeze at in the early game.  We also get out first bond level with Marth. I won't be calling these out unless we get anything really important from them, which Sword Agility is...not. 10 crit is a steep price to pay for avoid, especially since so many of Marth's other skills boost avoid without the weird drawback.  The archer snuck into a bush, which is a little bit annoying, but that's a problem for next turn when Clanne can deal with him. We kill the soldier, and Vander rolls the dice on a 33% chance.   I don't know what version of RNG Engage uses, but I think it's the same one as Fates where stuff below 50% is a single RN and anything over 50% is an average of 2 RNs. Either way, we'll take that.  Come, Sigurd. So yeah, let's talk about Sigurd briefly. Equipping him gets you +1 Move - engaging with him gets you +5...plus 1 more for being a Dragon, giving her a cool 12 Move. In a game where even mounted units only have 5-6 movement, this gives you an absurdly abusable range, as Lumera is swiftly demonstrating. To rub salt in the wound, his first engage weapon is a horseslayer, which is surely an intentional decision to punish this exact strategy. She's less dangerous on your turn, but you still have to pick and choose your spots against her very carefully. You can't set up lines against a foe that can run circles around your units. That was incredible. Lord Sigurd is remarkably swift. Perhaps we should be grateful this is a mock battle... I would agree with that assessment, Vander.   So let's take stock. Vander is dead, Lumera is on the loose, and we have a mostly-dead archer and a pair of cavs bearing down on us to the north. lmao it's not looking good chat  If we can get her over here without losing anyone else, Clanne can take a big chunk of her remaining HP off. Bit of a big if, with everything else going on our side of the map.  Time to take advantage of Framme's class skill. Chain Guard makes it so that if a unit adjacent to her gets attacked, the damage is negated and she takes 20% of her max HP in damage instead of the intended target. It only works at full HP so we only get one shot at this, but since the boss AI should move first, we should be okay.  Your enemies will not hold back, and neither will I. That is why you must defeat me. Relax, Alear. What a delight it is to see you in battle after all these years. Well that's...not what I expected her to do, but it solves the problem of her potentially just attacking Framme outright. I don't know how much damage she would have done if not for chain guard, but she missed anyway so it doesn't matter. We get some chip damage in, but miss the follow-up on a 93%.   Meanwhile, the cavaliers run face-first into our rapier. It doesn't go well for them.  Two can play this game, mother.  End of Chapter  There is much to improve upon, but this is a wonderful start. Great work, Alear. Thank you. I can't believe we had to fight against Queen Lumera. Yeah, well, I can't believe we won. Though you have only just awoken, your power seems to be growing already, Divine One. I'd like for you to have this, Alear. Yes ─ an ancient blade that can be wielded only by Divine Dragons. It served me well for many years, but now it is yours. Consider it a prize for your victory today. Thank you. Someday I'll prove that I'm worthy of this sword. I have no doubt. Is this another Emblem Ring? No, it is purely ornamental. You see, before your slumber, I made you a promise. What was it? I said I'd give you a birthday present that suited you perfectly. I was working on it in private, but I was unable to finish it in time... That birthday has long since passed, but I would quite like to give you this gift now. I'm sorry... I can't accept. Why not? That ring fulfills a promise you made me, right? But I don't remember that promise. It'd feel wrong accepting it ─ like I was taking a present meant for someone else. Please offer me this gift again once I've remembered everything. Everything, you say...? Did facing me in battle stir any recollections, Alear? It didn't. I'm sorry. You need not apologize. It doesn't matter what you can remember right now. I only hope that one day, you will think of me as your mother. As you did a thousand years ago. ... Forgive me. I was so thrilled to spend time with you again. I suppose I got a little carried away, didn't I? Oh, no. It's all right. Haha, I don't mean to put you on the spot. Perhaps we should call it a day, hm? But let's agree to chat again in the morning. What do you say? Pinky promise? Haha, all right. There still isn't much to see on this post-finish map, but if we wander around a little, we can find three different cats in the plaza. No other animals, just cats. Queen Lumera: crazy cat lady? You decide. Elsewhere in the castle...  There is so much to catch up on. So much to see and do together! We can chat for hours, take long walks, share meals. And then... If my child's memories are truly lost, I wonder... Emblem Sigurd. I am here. There's something I'd like to discuss with you.
Artix fucked around with this message at 14:58 on Mar 29, 2024 |
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Mar 29, 2024 00:10
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