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CHAPTER 5: THE END OF GEN 1 (PART 2/2)
Aida: Alvis just put the finishing touches on his plan of attack. You’ve nothing to worry about.
Reptor: Hm… Well, I suppose I’ll have to trust him this time.
Aida: Reptor, I have orders to assume Velthomer Castle’s defense. So you’ll excuse me.
"Hrrmm, I'm suspicious of someone. Now watch as I LOUDLY ANNOUNCE MY SUSPICIONS TO THE RIGHT HAND WOMAN OF THE MAN I'M SUSPICIOUS OF!!"
At least, I'm assuming she's fairly high up. She's being very curt with Reptor, and Alvis DID have sex with her about 10 years before all this. Fire Emblem 5 (Thracia 766) takes place about 17 years after this battle, and it introduces their 27 year old son, so...safe to say that Aida's got some clout.
If only that influence could be used for good 
...
Reptor: Don’t budge an inch until the enemy is well within range.
Here that? These guys are just going to stand in one place till we get to this spot here...
This here is RIGHT outside the attack range of the western Meteo Mage, and is directly horizontal to the eastern Mage. Use that as a reference for remembering where I'll be putting Sigurd.
Anyways, Fury's finally returned, but Ardan's got a job to do soon. So...
There is not a single Gen 2 character that inherits axes. Not a one. Lex's children will, therefore, benefit more from him liquidating everything he's got for more Gold. And THAT means Ardan gets the Hero Axe!
Levin then buys all the tomes he can for his son Arthur. But...shoot. That Elfire should be a Fire tome. Arthur can't use B Fire Magic with these parents, so Elfire will only go to waste. I would normally correct this screenshot, but...I'm away with my extended family. I don't HAVE my computer now! Expect this to be edited soon...
But yeah, Tiltyu's daughter gets to use the Warp Staff upon promotion, and her son doesn't. Hence, he needs to inherit some items to sell!
Next enemy phase...
...a whole lot of nothing happens!
Alright. this will be our last pit stop; if Sigurd doesn't have all he needs next turn, he never will.
So after cleaning out the Arena...
Sigurd assembles his final set of items. None of the children will inherit their parent's 7th item, for they will start with their own default weapon/staff. And as for the items in storage, children WILL receive those items in addition to what their parents had in their main inventory; they'll just have to get it out of their own Storage, that's all.
Now then, Sigurd WILL need some assistance for once, and Fury's children are among the least difficult to level up; so I had Claude buy the Warp staff in order to send...
One of the game's BEST units, and one of the game's WORST units; to the rescue!
NEXT!
Oh hai Morgaaan~. Are you hear to ruin my day?
Not if Ardan can help it! For you see, these Thracians have neglected to do one very important thing...
"Always be prepared for ANYTHING!". Don't just prepare for cavalry, don't just prepare for magic users, don't just prepare for staff wielders, don't just prepare for Generals...prepare for EVERYTHING!
Look at these poor fools. They brought their horseslayers, and never thought to bring anything else! They probably attacked Sigurd, expecting his band to be yet another Cavalry only band (as it was when we started the Prologue).
But Sigurd's army has changed. Sigurd isn't just leading Chalphies. He's not just leading Lensterians. He's not even just leading Grandbellians! He's leading warriors from ALL across the continent! Warriors, whose countries specialized in as many different fighting styles as there are grains of sand on a beach. A they have at least one talented person to handle every challenge Sigurd can possibly imagine!
And THAT'S truly what makes Sigurd's army so great. The Thracians are over specialized; the Verdanites were over specialized, the Silesians were over specialized, the Phinorans were over specialized...almost every single one of Sigurd's foes had one answer, and ONLY one answer to all their problems. How else is ARDAN, of all people, doing so well? It's not because he's amazing, it's because there's a huge hole in the Thacian's strategy that Ardan just so happens to be able to exploit.
The only people we've fought so far who have had any kind of mixed team were the groups we fought in Chapter 2; and I don't think it's any coincidence that THAT happens to be one of the most dreaded Chapters in Gen 1. I still consider that one harder than anything we've faced here.
Every unit type can be easily swept aside with one tactic or another. Axefighters are helpless against sword fighters, sword fighters are walked by generals, generals can be roasted in their armor by mages, mages can be easily swept aside by Pegasus riders, Pegasus riders can be annihilated by archers, archers can be bum rushed by horse riders, and horse riders...
...
Well, we all just saw what happened to Cuan, didn't we? Even the game's most useful unit type can be trivialized under the right circumstances.
So even if our enemies do well against a fraction of our units, it doesn't matter.
Our "style" is no style. Our "strategy" is "all strategies". Our ethnic makeup includes a bit of everything. Hence...
Nothing can stand against us for long; ESPECIALLY not a country that's USED to only fighting one kind of foe. Trabant's only ever had to fight soldiers in the Manster district, and it shows.
...Though, even that doesn't explain this random bit of doofiness. I'd have thought they'd target the guy that's locked to 2-Range, but...I guess not?
Anyways, this is all getting into fan fiction territory, but; I like to imagine that that's the REAL reason Sigurd's army is so strong. Their strength doesn't come from easily measurable factors like numbers and equipment. Instead, it comes from having highly determined, highly capable people who all believe in what Sigurd is doing, and bring a wide variety of tool sets and military experience that aren't typically found in just ONE army.
"Ephraim225" mentioned that Sigurd's army seemed to "pose a much more massive threat that they realistically would", and I think that's probably why.
Sigurd's enemies probably look at him, and see the same thing that poster saw; a puny group that is outnumbered, outgunned, and at a home field disadvantage in every land they invade. That's why they keep underestimating him and Oifaye; under MOST circumstances, such a group would be easily swept aside by an army that's bigger, stronger, better supplied, and knows the land much better than Sigurd.
Heck, Reptor HIMSELF already one-shots almost everyone in our army! But his SERVANTS can all tank a hit from him! Enemy HP growth is set at 100% for all enemies in the game, and that's starting to show. But none of that matters; because we have a plan even now.
Claude wrapped Aideen to Phinora just a little while ago, and now he's repairing the Warp Staff before selling it to her.
And there she is, with the Warp Staff for her children, and the Physic Libro Staff for Levin.
It doesn't matter if Reptor can do 42 Damage to Levin. Aideen restores 35 via Libro, Levin is as prepared to kill a Thunder Mage as a man can possibly be, and I know exactly how to manipulate the A.I.
Reptor: Now let’s crush the enemy!
It doesn't matter if Reptor has all the men the Earth can produce, and all the Holy Weapons the Heavens can bless him with.
Nothing will save a man from his own folly; not unless they have someone they're willing to listen to.
The winds of fate have changed. And what goes around...
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...comes around.
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And with Reptor dead...
His troops are a problem no more. Sigurd's troops are strong. They are intelligent. They are as diverse as the colors of the rainbow. But most importantly, they have given Sigurd their hearts. Where Reptor's troops will surrender the moment their leader falls, Sigurd's troops would just fight THAT much harder. Sigurd's death would make the fire of their will burn that much brighter, not snuff it out.
But, even were that not the case...
Aida: Kill every one of them. No one is to be spared!
Reptor would still be doomed.
There's no helping him, and even his supposed "allies" know this.
Reptor is simply too dangerous. His ALLIES know that he will ALWAYS be grasping for power. He'll always feel entitled to get more power, and will ALWAYS be willing to kill and steal in order to get it...
Aida: You might as well just give up.
But most important is this. He will never, ever...EVER "give up". He will die before he will ever admit that he has a problem.
REPTOR VS. TILTYU
Reptor: Ti, Tiltyu… It’s you… I knew that you were with the rebel army, but I never expected to face you like this…
Tiltyu: Father… I’m so sorry…
Reptor: Grr… Claude!! You decieved my daughter… In any case… House Freege’s reputation must be defended. Tiltyu, you have to die.
Tiltyu: ! …father...
He will always, ALWAYS have an excuse for everything he does. It doesn't matter if his own daughter is on his chopping block; he'll just tell himself all about how he's "defending House Freege's reputation". He'll tell his family all about how Claude "deceived" his daughter, without acknowledging the personal failures that DROVE her into Claude's arms to start with.
Nothing is ever his fault. All of his problems are because of other people. That's probably why he STARTED this whole conspiracy to start with: "It's Prince Kurth's fault that I'm not happy with my life. It's Prince Kurth's fault that King Azmur doesn't listen to absolutely EVERYTHING I have to say. If ONLY I could get him out of the way. I'm not murdering people because I have stuff I need to change! I'm doing it because it's the only way to get the power and influence that I DESERVE!!"
REPTOR VS. SIGURD
Sigurd: Entrapping my father and Prince Kurth… You know what actually happened!
Reptor: Hmph, you idiot! Politics is all about power! Your father had no power, which is why he died. You’re a knight, that much should be obvious to you.
Sigurd: Knights respect honour and justice, and what you’ve done isn’t just. I’ve returned to restore Grandbell’s reputation!
Reptor: You’ve gone to a lot of trouble, but this is as far as you’ll get. You’ll die a traitor, just like Byron. Your strength is nothing compared to my Torhammer. Soon you’ll see how powerless you really are… Mwahaha...
Even at the end of his rope, with his back pressed against the weight of the world...Reptor will never bleed. He'll never surrender, never admit that he needs help. He will always wear his pride, like a noose around his neck.
I don't believe that "being a 'bad' person" is what truly dooms a man. "Being 'intelligent'" isn't what helps a man change his attitude. "Getting his 'just deserts'" won't automatically turn a person's life around. I believe that even the stupidest, most spoiled, downright EVIL people can be helped. Everyone in the world can change, if they truly want to...
But there's no helping a person who won't admit that they have a problem. There's no helping someone who would rather convince themselves that "up" is "down" rather than ever accept correction. Improvement is only possible for those who can handle criticism, regardless of how hurtful it may be. And so...
Reptor: Gah...
Reptor's time in the sun has come to an end; like it was always meant to. As for Sigurd and his men...
They breath a collective sigh of relief as they enjoy the fruits of their blood, sweat, and tears.
Their children can only prosper from all they will inherit from their parent's countless sacrifices. Of course...there is one another thing on my heart...
I wish I could wrap this update up in a neat little bow. I wish I could moralize to you all, and say "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night". But, there's one more ever present reality in our world. Something else, besides the fact that diversity is better than conformity, and the fact that pride always precedes a fall.
The reality is this:
There is yet one more enemy that has not been slain. There is one more enemy, one that will NOT be stopped as easily as the one Levin just defeated. As long as he exists...death will always have the last word on Earth. The Heavens will always be fine of course; life will not end along with one's earthly form. But...nothing in the world can ever make up for someone's absence; not in our world, and not in Sigurd's.
Aida: Alvis has been aware all along of your innocence. This has all been a conspiracy by Duke Reptor and Duke Langbart. Their influence was just too much for Alvis to be able to do anything.
Sigurd: Is that right? Well, good. This has all turned out for the best then. I can finally clear my father’s name.
Aida: …Yes. His Majesty and Alvis are anxiously awaiting your arrival in the capital. Please, see to it that you make your way there.
Sigurd: Really? Alright. Well, we should get going then.
Aida: Apparently, Alvis has arranged for Barhara’s Royal Guard to receive you and your troops. It sounds like they’ve planned quite a celebration for your triumphant return.
Sigurd: Wonderful! That should make for a nice closing for all we’ve been through. And I can finally get some compensation to all those who have fought with me.
Aida: Indeed...
Never neglect your family; not now, not ever. Do not ever let envy, close-mindedness, bitterness, disaster, or pride ever stop you from enjoying the people who really matter. Things can always be replaced...but people cannot. Merry Christmas everyone...and God bless you.
FE4 Gen 1 End - Death of a Hero