Crimson Flower is the most unique route of the four. There are a lot of copy/pasta between the other three (even if Azure Moon is admittedly the one revealing the least information by a fair margin).
-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
Fire Emblem: Three Houses |OT2| Greetings, Era! Nothing to Report!
- Thread starter kuroneko0509
- Start date
Yeah, I remember that. I was simply replying that there are a few exceptions to "kill every last of them".
Edit: Sorry for DP, and I agree with PBalfredo, CF is the most unique both in terms of narrative and gameplay. And yes that includes being shorter, as honestly the game overstays its welcome past chapter 18~19 in all routes.
Last edited:
Yeah CF is different from the other routes but not THAT different. There's just one completely original map, I think? All the other ones are the same, just from different perspectives. Narratively, yeah, it's definitely the most unique, though.
"Functionally identical when flipped"? What? No they are not. Even putting aside that these are not symmetrical maps, there are unique units and objectives in each one.
Like the wave of Golem reinforcements that appear in the choke point right when the gates open in the CF version of chapter 12. Having to contend with those and the ballista implacements while fighting up the stairs towards Rhea with the Death Knight by your side is a very different experience than chewing through the initial wave of black beasts then rushing down the avenue to tangle with Edelgard and her retinue.
And I think you're forgetting how different the map objectives are in CF. Bridge of Myrddin map is a rush towards the central citadel as reinforcements come from every angle, versus having to eliminate enemy commanders in each corner of the map in the non-CF version. The non-CF version of Derdriu doesn't even have the ships present in the CF version. In the second battle of Garreg Mach, CF has to deal with enemy reinforcements hidden in the woods, while the non-CF versions have you escort the NPC who starts the fire. The Arianrhod map is thick with Titani not present in Dimitri's paralogue, and you must take out multiple commanders versus rushing Hubert. And Fhirdiad is on fire!
And I think you're forgetting how different the map objectives are in CF. Bridge of Myrddin map is a rush towards the central citadel as reinforcements come from every angle, versus having to eliminate enemy commanders in each corner of the map in the non-CF version. The non-CF version of Derdriu doesn't even have the ships present in the CF version. In the second battle of Garreg Mach, CF has to deal with enemy reinforcements hidden in the woods, while the non-CF versions have you escort the NPC who starts the fire. The Arianrhod map is thick with Titani not present in Dimitri's paralogue, and you must take out multiple commanders versus rushing Hubert. And Fhirdiad is on fire!
And even if you disagree with the above in how much different the CF version of those maps are, it still remains that they are different, while the AM/VW/SS versions of most are exactly the same. Both battles of Garreg Mach and the Bridge of Myrddin play exactly the same on AM/VW/SS.
Last edited:
Just want to confirm this if anyone's still wondering. Yes technically the map layouts are reused, but at least the missions are actually different in both objectives and enemy composition, whereas most of those missions are the EXACT SAME in the other routes.
Crimson Flower has an excellent unique map, and most of its variant maps feel meaningfully distinct from the versions available in other routes. If I was only doing two playthroughs, I'd definitely recommend CF be one of them.
I'd also say that the importance of the lore revelations at the end of Verdant Wind tends to get overstated. There are a few interesting bits of new information, but like 90% of it can be inferred from stuff you learn during CF. Those two short dialogue scenes don't do enough on their own to differentiate Verdant Wind from Azure Moon, so really the main draw of VW is just getting to hang out with Claude.
In my own Maddening CF playthrough, I'm realizing that Vengeance Bernadetta is an absolute beast? All the enemy archers having Poison Strike means that it's trivially easy for her to hit 1 HP and start one-shotting literally everything. Can't believe I never used this skill before now.
I'd also say that the importance of the lore revelations at the end of Verdant Wind tends to get overstated. There are a few interesting bits of new information, but like 90% of it can be inferred from stuff you learn during CF. Those two short dialogue scenes don't do enough on their own to differentiate Verdant Wind from Azure Moon, so really the main draw of VW is just getting to hang out with Claude.
In my own Maddening CF playthrough, I'm realizing that Vengeance Bernadetta is an absolute beast? All the enemy archers having Poison Strike means that it's trivially easy for her to hit 1 HP and start one-shotting literally everything. Can't believe I never used this skill before now.
Disclaimer has it correct.
Though my personal recommendation is to play all the routes, I understand that TH can be quite long. Yikes to anyone that started Blue Lions first. Don't get me wrong, Dimitri's route is very well done for what it is but because like CF it has the case of tunnel vision. You won't learn proper context underneath everything unless you play Silver Snow or Verdant Wind.
Meanwhile I just completed my Silver Snow maddening no NG+ run. Recruiting everyone was an absolute pain and barely managed to do it just before the timeskip.
Abyss in Silver Snow is quite interesting. Will now investigate the other three routes to learn anything new was added that is exclusive to their route. I will share intrigue that I've noticed if any.
Based on all that I know, from all 4 routes and now the dlc. I think Dimitri route now has the best ending overall though I personally prefer Claude route or Byleth's ending with Rhea in SS.
Now to do crimson flower to see any changes in abyss. I dislike the route but Patrick Seitz makes it worthwhile. I hope he remains the voice director for fire emblem English dubs moving forward.
Edit: some abyss intrigue from my silver snow run.
Though my personal recommendation is to play all the routes, I understand that TH can be quite long. Yikes to anyone that started Blue Lions first. Don't get me wrong, Dimitri's route is very well done for what it is but because like CF it has the case of tunnel vision. You won't learn proper context underneath everything unless you play Silver Snow or Verdant Wind.
Meanwhile I just completed my Silver Snow maddening no NG+ run. Recruiting everyone was an absolute pain and barely managed to do it just before the timeskip.
Abyss in Silver Snow is quite interesting. Will now investigate the other three routes to learn anything new was added that is exclusive to their route. I will share intrigue that I've noticed if any.
Based on all that I know, from all 4 routes and now the dlc. I think Dimitri route now has the best ending overall though I personally prefer Claude route or Byleth's ending with Rhea in SS.
Now to do crimson flower to see any changes in abyss. I dislike the route but Patrick Seitz makes it worthwhile. I hope he remains the voice director for fire emblem English dubs moving forward.
Edit: some abyss intrigue from my silver snow run.
Raises more questions than answers.
....who the hell are you hermit? That sort of knowledge shouldn't be possible unless you were around when Sothis was still alive.
Last edited:
Play any house that interest you and once you beat it go to the others.
On higher difficulties gambits are important and vital
If you want to make it easy to recruit students get there support to B
At least have one to two back up saves before you do a big mission
If you plan to purchase the DLC, the point to start it would be right around Chapter 4 as it begins or after
I would save this for a second playthrough, personally, I feel it's long enough that it interrupts the main story and part 1 is long enough as it is that a first time player might not have the patience or skill to stay invested while doing 7 additional chapters. It ends up not being canon anyway and being able to recruit new students can also be a good incentive to jump right into a second playthrough.
The DLC being more difficult than anything in the main game also makes it an awkward fit. The from chapter 4 to Cindered Shadows would be jarring.
Learn to Gambit and make the most of battalions.
Spend your exploration points on sharing meals to increase professor level and supports for easier recruiting. Increase professor level asap. Recon training also recommended.
Root vegetable seeds + mixed herb seeds green house to help make a strong tank.
Don't bother fishing. Only fish when "fists full of fish" is active.
Don't skip anything regarding holidays it's free support and/or faith training.
Try to connect with everyone you encounter. Do not judge anyone based on first impression. But don't be too trusting. Maintain a healthy amount of skepticism.
Otherwise enjoy. Pick whichever house tickles your fancy.
PS: properly train your house. Depending on the route you choose, u will be punished bad if you neglected the class you were initially given. Though that depends on the difficulty you choose.
I've gotten through chapter 5 so far in NG+ Maddening mode, and so far it's pretty fun. It's a stiff challenge, which is a good change up from sleep walking through the academy maps on Hard. Even in the auxiliary battles, which are usually completely brain-dead on Hard, I have to keep an eye on thieves trying to sneak past with Pass. I feel well rewarded for spending my renown and maximizing my students. Dodge tank Ferdinand in particular is paying off in spades. Everything is pretty good so far...
EXCEPT I ran into the first instance of same-turn movement for reinforcements. Fuck that shit! Same turn reinforcements has always been bullshit and especially so on Maddening. Having a pair of mercenaries jump out in the middle of my crew and double team someone means instant death. So then I have to divine pulse back, pull everyone out of their stupid large range, tiptoe El and Ferdie up to the trigger and just tank the hits when they arrive. It's such an obnoxious speedbump the really threw off the enjoyment of the mission.
Everything else is fine, I just hope the dumb reinforcements don't completely ruin this difficulty mode, since otherwise I'm liking it way better than Hard.
EXCEPT I ran into the first instance of same-turn movement for reinforcements. Fuck that shit! Same turn reinforcements has always been bullshit and especially so on Maddening. Having a pair of mercenaries jump out in the middle of my crew and double team someone means instant death. So then I have to divine pulse back, pull everyone out of their stupid large range, tiptoe El and Ferdie up to the trigger and just tank the hits when they arrive. It's such an obnoxious speedbump the really threw off the enjoyment of the mission.
Everything else is fine, I just hope the dumb reinforcements don't completely ruin this difficulty mode, since otherwise I'm liking it way better than Hard.
Difficulty?
Everyone can be good in any class on Normal/Hard.
I'm running Dorothea as a Dark Flier and the result is similarly busted, she KOs everything and cantos away to safety.
Honestly Dorothea is kinda busted in general, even with Hapi and Constance in the mix I think she's probably the best mage in the game. High enemy Speed on Maddening means that there are very few kills she misses out on compared to Lysithea. And the combination of Physic, a three-range spell, ranged Linked Attacks through Meteor, AND Rally Charm to force Gambits to hit gives her pretty much unrivaled utility.
I've only finished Blue Lions on Maddening so far, but the same turn reinforcements there are mostly limited to Paralogues until the final few chapters, which abandon all restraint and flood you with nonsense ambushes left and right. Maddening's difficulty curve falls off a cliff once you've got access to canto/flying and built up your team the way you like, and it feels like all the STRs are meant to counterbalance that, but they mostly just end up being annoying rather than actually challenging.
Is that how Stealth works? They can only be targeted if they are the only possible target? I've never gone out of my way to experiment with that skill, since if I guess wrong that probably means a dead thief.
Dorothea is earning her keep with Rally Charm turning gambits from 30% possibilities to surefire hits, which can be pretty clutch. Tier lists like to dunk on her because she doesn't have the pure growths of Lysithea, but Dory is able to do just about everything you need.
Oh god I just remembered the Seiros reinforcements on Taltean. Anyone caught anywhere near that is super dead.
Yep as long as an enemy unit has another viable target they won't target a unit with stealth even if they would do 0 damage to the non stealthed unit. Also rally charm alone makes me consider Dorothea to be one of the best units in the black eagles especially early game when only Edelgard or Byleth can be relied on to hit gambits. Also her magic sword combat arts combined with her excellent black magic spell list actually makes her one of the units least handicapped by less magic uses. Imo Dorothea is the best mixed attack and support unit in the game.
Has anyone done the Hapi/Balthus paralogue?
Getting really annoyed with it. It suggests level 17, tried it and it was impossible. Now I'm level 20 and some units are in Advanced classes, but I'm still getting fucked up by reinforcements because when I try to bring everyone together I have to go past spots that trigger them.
On top of that I looked at a few hint pages and apparently the boss transforms into a monster after you kill him?? Wtf even is this? Is this unbalanced af or am I crazy?
I'm on Maddening NG+.
On top of that I looked at a few hint pages and apparently the boss transforms into a monster after you kill him?? Wtf even is this? Is this unbalanced af or am I crazy?
I'm on Maddening NG+.
Yeah, it's in the running for the hardest map in the game for sure. Given the month it becomes available on the calendar, it's just not likely that your team has enough mobility to get away from the reinforcements unless you know when and where they're coming in advance. What I did was
rush everyone to the central defense tile in the middle of the square as quickly as possible, except for Byleth's group across the river and the two units stuck in the corner by the boss.
For Byleth and friends, I had to line them up just shy of the trigger point for reinforcements on the bridge, and then sprint them their full movement towards the town center on the next turn so they could escape. For the units in the corner, I used gambits and canto to keep the reinforcements stranded out by their spawn until I'd dealt with everyone else.
Once the enemy starts bunching up around the defense tile you can set up a chokepoint between there and the bridge and hit groups of 'em with gambits, leaving Leonie or someone else with good defense on the tile to take hits and chip enemies into kill range for your other units. But it's just really tough, honestly.
For Byleth and friends, I had to line them up just shy of the trigger point for reinforcements on the bridge, and then sprint them their full movement towards the town center on the next turn so they could escape. For the units in the corner, I used gambits and canto to keep the reinforcements stranded out by their spawn until I'd dealt with everyone else.
Once the enemy starts bunching up around the defense tile you can set up a chokepoint between there and the bridge and hit groups of 'em with gambits, leaving Leonie or someone else with good defense on the tile to take hits and chip enemies into kill range for your other units. But it's just really tough, honestly.
Last edited:
It was a decent challenge on Hard NG+ with level 20 units. I can't imagine how brutal it can be on Maddening (even NG+).
I'm sure this question has been asked several times over, but I'll going to ask it anyway.
I'm planning on getting three houses soon, and while I was planning on going Eagles, Lions and the Deer in that order, I wanted to ask to see if there should be a specific order to play the houses. At this point, I know I'm late to the party and already got more than a handful of spoilers, but I still want to play the game and enjoy it.
I'm planning on getting three houses soon, and while I was planning on going Eagles, Lions and the Deer in that order, I wanted to ask to see if there should be a specific order to play the houses. At this point, I know I'm late to the party and already got more than a handful of spoilers, but I still want to play the game and enjoy it.
And feel free to mention if the black eagle's story should be done twice. Apparently the ending let's you pick who you side with at the end, but again, I'm not entirely sure how that one plays out.
No, the order doesn't matter in the slightest. Just pick the faction you are interested in.
Oh wow, Dark Flier's Transmute ability doesn't actually require the enemy's attack to hit you, so you can pair it up with Alert Stance no problem. Fielding six Dark Fliers on my team was the right choice.
The order doesn't really matter, go with your gut for your first house. After that, depending on what aspects of the story you want to learn more about, we may be able to recommend a second house, but all of them are solid experiences.
About your spoiler question, I'll answer it as spoiler free as possible but hide it for others, just in case.
Black Eagles has two routes that branch off at about the halfway point. To get the option to make the choice you have to speak to Edelgard in the monastery on a certain month, accept her invitation, and the actual choice will happen after a story chapter. The best way to make sure you don't miss the chance is to speak to Edelgard every month.
Edit: forgot this, I believe you also need a C+ support with Edelgard which should come naturally since she's your house leader.
The two routes are completely different from each other. One is similar to the Golden Deer in story and themes but with Black Eagles characters. The other is entirely unique.
Edit: forgot this, I believe you also need a C+ support with Edelgard which should come naturally since she's your house leader.
The two routes are completely different from each other. One is similar to the Golden Deer in story and themes but with Black Eagles characters. The other is entirely unique.
There's only one magic flying battalion in the game though.
They're supposed to have their bow weaknesses but in practice they're pretty OP 🤷♀️
well the biggest problem with that is most bow enemies in the game can't close distance on a flier without you letting them then there's dismounting taking away the weakness, and there are barely any bow knights in the game as it is, if they release another harder difficulty they should add deadeye or something to archer class enemies so that fliers have to be careful where they go even with canto
Dismounting is uniquely overpowered in 3H since it has no opportunity cost, which is a big part of the problem. Then there's the fact that fliers -- even the usually more DEF-focused Wyvern Lords -- get +10% avoid via class skill, making them some of the most avoidant units. All on top of their naturally ludicrous mobility, and Three Houses' lack of weapon restrictions/triangle.
How much does the side story DLC spoil , I wanna play it to get the new classes but i haven't finished the game yet.
Finish at least one route.
It implies things about Byleth and Rhea.
You only have to clear the first chapter of the DLC to unlock the classes, which has zero spoilers beyond the main game's Chapter 4 (which the DLC takes place just after).
On paper this is a negative, yeah. But flying canto is so ludicrously overpowered that it ends up not mattering in practice, I'm having a much easier time going through Maddening with six Dark Fliers than I did with five Gremories.
This is the main issue, yep. Flying canto means that your fliers will basically never end their turn within threat range unless you want them to. You can decide exactly how many attacks your units will take every turn and force the enemy to waste their turn moving towards you. It's extremely safe and it gets dull quickly.
XCOM had this same problem and they papered over it in XCOM 2 by putting a time limit on every map. I can't see Fire Emblem ever doing that, and I doubt they'll be willing to remove canto, but I don't know how else they could manage to balance fliers. Maybe they could limit canto to a certain number of casts per map, like a spell?
Not so much as spoil but recommended to finish one route all the same. Though imo it gives Silver Snow final spoilers more context and depth. Information from Silver Snow more or less completes what you learn in cindered shadows.
I just blasted through crimson flower for the nth time and I am quickly reminded why I dislike it so much.
i wasn't even gonna touch this route again due to how garbage it is but the final dlc might have added some bits of info that might be exclusive to the route so that was my reasoning when I decided to embark on this cursed timeline hopefully for the last time.
Yeeesh abysskeeper gets a much happier ending in silver snow.
I was shocked... Apart from empire dissenters, deserters, and a suspicious guy who disappears and is never seen again, there's barely anything new to learn in part 2 crimson flower abyss. Some npcs were reused while others didn't show up at all. Warlock girl was nonexistent, no hermit, and I think I got more dissent about the empire in crimson flower than I had in silver fucking snow. Wtf? I was hoping to see mysterious woman again but she was a no show so it doesn't matter who you side with. She's gone regardless of choosing Rhea or Edelgard which I found disappointing.
Ashen wolves motivations were just about what i expected, Yuri didn't trust Edelgard but he saw the writing on the wall when you side with her. Constance is an imperial noble so nothing too surprising, balthus actually had good motivations regarding his mom. The one I was surprised the most was hapi.
You know, you think for one who hates the church, she would be.... Much more enthusiastic about the empire? but all I got was indifference and her feelings about facing familiar faces. Think IS missed the boat with hapi here. Just one chapter with her shitting on the church in part 2 is... Even I chuckled.
Also, quality control is as sterling as ever. Balthus quest from Holst before you subjugate the alliance.... Good God IS yet another inconsistency. Well it's the worst route so I guess at this point they don't care?
Forgot that Lysithea more or less dies (didn't get her recruit) if you just go straight for Claude as I just warped and strided the whole route while looking for unique battle dialogues. Guess that means it don't matter if I didn't go after the others, they die by default. Shit.
Thank God for wayseer. Spent all my renown paying for supports. Made this run very quick. Best part? Now I never have to play this joke of a route again.
Constance actually having battle dialogues with Edelgard pleased me greatly. Not a single black eagle/empire related student had a backbone to speak but Constance? She made sure her feelings were known and didn't hold back. Out of all the Ashen wolves, I think I like her the most or Yuri. Her double personality is mad comical yet tragic. Though I really like the Ashen wolf house in general. Balthus is a riot. Hapi could use more attitude though but she's cool for part one and two.
Yeeesh abysskeeper gets a much happier ending in silver snow.
I was shocked... Apart from empire dissenters, deserters, and a suspicious guy who disappears and is never seen again, there's barely anything new to learn in part 2 crimson flower abyss. Some npcs were reused while others didn't show up at all. Warlock girl was nonexistent, no hermit, and I think I got more dissent about the empire in crimson flower than I had in silver fucking snow. Wtf? I was hoping to see mysterious woman again but she was a no show so it doesn't matter who you side with. She's gone regardless of choosing Rhea or Edelgard which I found disappointing.
Ashen wolves motivations were just about what i expected, Yuri didn't trust Edelgard but he saw the writing on the wall when you side with her. Constance is an imperial noble so nothing too surprising, balthus actually had good motivations regarding his mom. The one I was surprised the most was hapi.
You know, you think for one who hates the church, she would be.... Much more enthusiastic about the empire? but all I got was indifference and her feelings about facing familiar faces. Think IS missed the boat with hapi here. Just one chapter with her shitting on the church in part 2 is... Even I chuckled.
Also, quality control is as sterling as ever. Balthus quest from Holst before you subjugate the alliance.... Good God IS yet another inconsistency. Well it's the worst route so I guess at this point they don't care?
Forgot that Lysithea more or less dies (didn't get her recruit) if you just go straight for Claude as I just warped and strided the whole route while looking for unique battle dialogues. Guess that means it don't matter if I didn't go after the others, they die by default. Shit.
Thank God for wayseer. Spent all my renown paying for supports. Made this run very quick. Best part? Now I never have to play this joke of a route again.
Married Jeritza again because this route reminds me exactly why I hate Edelgard. Jeritza made this route bearable. Can't stand the projection, the obvious waifubait bs that only Dimitri shares (which is why I like VW and SS more because there's barely any waifu/husbando shit going on), and Edelgard being well... So stupid. So disingenuous. So hypocritical to the point wheres it's not even funny anymore. Ugh...
Worst, Byleth becomes an idiot in this route. Double ugh. Really didn't like how Byleth becomes an enabler in azure moon so y'all can imagine how I felt about Byleth enabling Edelgard with her bull. But this is not the first time I posted about this. I could go on and on but I posted this before so I'll stop here.
Worst, Byleth becomes an idiot in this route. Double ugh. Really didn't like how Byleth becomes an enabler in azure moon so y'all can imagine how I felt about Byleth enabling Edelgard with her bull. But this is not the first time I posted about this. I could go on and on but I posted this before so I'll stop here.
Constance actually having battle dialogues with Edelgard pleased me greatly. Not a single black eagle/empire related student had a backbone to speak but Constance? She made sure her feelings were known and didn't hold back. Out of all the Ashen wolves, I think I like her the most or Yuri. Her double personality is mad comical yet tragic. Though I really like the Ashen wolf house in general. Balthus is a riot. Hapi could use more attitude though but she's cool for part one and two.
Now unto Azure Moon as I've heard Hapi has very interesting supports with Dimitri. Can't wait to turn Catherine into a trickster as I didn't have the opportunity my last two runs. Hopefully there will be more lore to learn this time around.
Welp, just beat my 2nd playthrough, now with the blue lions. (First was golden deer) Besides Dimitri, Slyvain and Felix (to some extent) found all the others to be a complete bore.
Story was kind cool though, a lot more dramatic than GD but also answers a hell lot less questions,
Final boss was so much worse though, theme song was also very inferior.
Well break time then Black Eagle Route
Story was kind cool though, a lot more dramatic than GD but also answers a hell lot less questions,
though watching Dmitri descent to madness than redemption arc was really enjoyable, he's a baddass
Final boss was so much worse though, theme song was also very inferior.
Well break time then Black Eagle Route
Go ahead. Disagree.
Not like it changes anything.
Nor does it change what the game presents to you or me. How you process information, truth, lies, or context is on you. I'm not here to convince anyone. I'm only here to share thoughts and intrigue.
And on that note...
I sincerely despise treehouse for messing with the translation for fire emblem three houses.
Having to double check the tree house translation vs the original script is painful. Because context is changed if translated wrong or censored.
Thank God this game is dual audio but having to check every little thing is tiring.
Edit:
Abysskeeper is amusing. I wonder if it will play at out different in Azure Moon? It should I think:
Last edited:
Whoa, Crimson Flower's Bridge of Myrddin is great on Maddening. It's really neat how it starts out as a scramble for the ballista, then becomes a defense map for a couple turns, and then finally ends with a chase. Plus there's fun side objectives in grabbing the southern chest and mopping up enemies before they can escape, and all the many grapplers getting tomebreaker forces you to put some thought into how you advance. Just an entertaining map all-around.
I just started a Blue Lions run and I feel kinda similar. Whenever there's a gathering of characters and they all say their line, the Blue Lions just seem to have more characters without a gimmick. Sylvain and Felix stand out because they're always talking about their specific thing but there's a lot of Blue Lions that are generically "we should try our hardest" style of character that make them less standout.
Not that I'm praising that style of characterization, just that compared to Black Eagles from my first playthrough where everyone had a gimmick that immediately made clear who was talking even without voice acting, Blue Lions is a lot more low key. Especially since I'm recruiting Ashen Wolves this run and those guys aren't low key.
Its neat that Blue Lions seem more involved in the early plot though. Ashe and Sylvain weighing in on their Chapter maps gave it nice context. Think that might be the extent of it though.
...
So I've found out that Lost Items displays which house the student belongs to. It's still a mystery and I end up still having to check a spreadsheet sometimes for a pretty minor benefit but it helps narrow it down. Finding an Ashen Wolf item is fun though since the choices are pretty clear cut. Only four students to pick from.