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Fire Emblem: Sacred War
Explopyro's character thoughts/analysis
These are taken from the notes I made as I was playing through the hack for the first time; I think I started writing these when I was most of the way through the main game or in the early postgame, then kept updating them as my thoughts changed, so if I seem to disagree with myself in places it's because I learned something new or changed my mind.
Also, I'm sorry about the formatting. These were literally just notes I made for myself (I briefly toyed with the idea of LPing this and quickly abandoned it), so there are some idiosyncrasies (e.g. I broke down all the "skills" into what they actually do because I couldn't be bothered remembering the hack's names for things) that might be confusing at first glance.
My team was very different from TheMcD's, which I guess is a decent sign (multiple approaches are viable, at least)? I leaned very heavily on flying units and mages.
My final team was:
Ephraim (A Eirika, B L'Arachel)
Eirika (A Ephraim, B L'Arachel)
L'Arachel, Valkyrie (B Eirika, B Ephraim)
Vanessa, Falcoknight (A Syrene, B Moulder)
Syrene, Falcoknight (A Vanessa, B Tana)
Tana, Falcoknight (A Cormag, B Syrene)
Cormag, Wyvern Knight (A Tana, B Artur)
Artur, Sage (A Lute, B Cormag)
Lute, Sage (A Artur, B Knoll)
Knoll, Summoner (B Natasha, B Lute)
Marisa, Assassin (A Gerik, B Tethys)
Gerik, Hero (A Marisa, B Tethys)
Tethys, Oracle (B Gerik, B Tethys)
Neimi, Ranger (A Colm, B Garcia)
Colm, Rogue (A Neimi, B Moulder)
Moulder, Bishop (B Vanessa, B Colm)
Ross, Berserker (A Garcia)
Garcia, Warrior (A Ross, B Neimi)
Natasha, Bishop (A Joshua, B Knoll)
Joshua, Swordmaster (A Natasha)
Myrrh, Manakete (no supports)
Seth, Grand Knight (no supports)
I didn't end up fitting Myrrh or Seth into the support chain (and some of this is definitely suboptimal), they were both trained up in the postgame and substituted in as needed but the main team didn't really include them.
---
Eirika
Level 1 Lord (F)
Promotion: Great Lord (F)
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 16 5(+1) 8 9 5 3 1 5 5 !Thunder!
GROWTH 65(-5) 45(+5) 50(-10) 55(-5) 55(-5) 25(-5) 35(+5)
CAPS 60 25(+1) 30(+1) 30 30 22 25 8(+1) 8(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Swords C, +Noble Rapier
Weapon levels (promoted): Swords S, +Noble Rapier, +Sieglinde
Skills:
Crit +30 (after promotion)
Not vulnerable to horse effective weaponry
My thoughts:
Eirika is still pretty much Eirika right now, and looking at her growths here is not encouraging. She's gotten a bit of help in Strength (which she needs, it's her least reliable important stat in vanilla), but her overall growth total has been lowered. That doesn't tell the full story, though, because her promoted class has been significantly buffed (she gets +30% Crit! and a crit-boosting affinity! she's like a swordmaster on a horse, only better), and her caps are pretty great (30 speed!). So in practice, she's going to be mediocre at best until promotion, at which point she'll quickly become an untouchable crit machine. Crits are only x2 instead of x3 now, but she can still output some pretty good damage.
Sacred War removes the restriction that forces you to deploy your lords, so you don't have to use her if you don't want to. That said, she's honestly pretty good, and after promotion might actually be better than her brother (I might say that in vanilla too, largely because Ephraim's caps are awful, but that's been fixed so it's not the reason here). I gave her one of my first Dragon Tears, thinking I might be forced to use her, and didn't regret it.
The Noble Rapier is also a very solid weapon, but (as in vanilla) is overshadowed a bit by what Ephraim gets. It's still great though. Note you don't get a second one of these until Chapter 19 (Rausten Court defence mission), and can't buy unlimited numbers until the postgame; ration it appropriately.
If nothing else, the fact that nobody else can use Sieglinde (and the legendary weapons in this hack are stupid good) is a strong argument for using her. She's not competing over superweapons with any of your other units. She can't use it unpromoted, though, unlike in vanilla.
Eirika-Ephraim-L'Arachel or Eirika-Ephraim-Tana make very effective support triangles of highly mobile units, and you're probably going to be using all of them anyway.
--
Seth
Level 10 Grand Knight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 30 10(-4) 12(-1) 14(+2) 12(-1) 10(-1) 12(+4) 9(+1) 11 Anima
GROWTH 200+110 100+50 100+60 100+55 100(+75)100+60 100+70
CAPS 60 27 26 28 30 26 28 9 14
Weapon levels: Swords B, Lances B, Axes B, +Shield Sword, +Barrier Sword, +Francisca
Skills:
Crit +5
Saviour (no skill or speed penalty while rescuing; AID=CON-1)
Double weapon might against: "Magic" units, "Magic" monsters, Zombies, Skeletons, Manakete(M), Zombie Dragons, Archers, Snipers, Skeleton Archers and Legion Archers
My thoughts:
So, Seth has been changed dramatically. He's in a completely new class, which has new unique animations and is exclusive to him. His growths are ludicrously good, but he's now level 10 promoted, so he'll gain experience very slowly and doesn't have that much room to grow. His bases are also... bad. They've been remixed a bit from vanilla Seth, but whereas before they were fine (if a little low) for a level 21 unit, at level 30 they just look bad.
That said, Seth is still capable of being one of the best units in the game. That hasn't changed, it's just different (and he can't solo the whole game any more).
Seth's new class is... interesting. It's a sort of combination of Paladin and Great Knight. He has better caps across the board - in fact each of his caps is the better of the Paladin and Great Knight caps for that stat (e.g. Paladins cap strength at 24, Great Knights at 27, so Seth gets 27). He also has a hybrid of the "skills": he doesn't get the global damage -1 of Great Knights, and he doesn't get the "double terrain RES" of Paladins, but he gets everything else, including the class weapons of both classes.
(If you ignore HP/MOV/CON, Seth gets 165 total points of stat caps, Paladins get 160 and Great Knights get 156. I'm not sure how meaningful a metric this is, but it might be worth noting.)
I actually don't like him for story chapters at all, because he grows so slowly and that experience goes much further on anyone else, and once your other units are caught up enough that you could consider using him, his bases will have fallen so far behind that he'll be a liability until he gains at least 5 or 6 levels. Despite those amazing growths and all the other perks, ingame Seth is best treated as a Jeigan. At least with these growths you know exactly what you're going to get, Seth is completely RNG proof and turns out the same every time (well, unless you waste a Dragon Tear on him and get a very lucky +2 or +3). Adding 10 to all his bases isn't as impressive as you'd like, he'll be solid but unexceptional at 20.
In the postgame, you gain access to Rebirth Seals, and that changes everything. Rebirth Seals are a modified version of the Juna Fruit (an unused or event-only item that was in the original game), and they cause a level 10+ character to lose 1-5 levels (but no stats!) when used. You can buy these in a shop (they're 15k gold and have 5 uses), and once you have them, it is trivially easy with just a bit of grinding to get Seth to cap everything, far easier and more cheaply than any other character (stat boosters aren't buyable). This basically means he will obsolete any Paladins and Great Knights, and become one of your most survivable characters (especially since he can get +5 DEF, +5 RES, or +15 max HP from the class weapons, and you can buy these). He also has a ludicrous 9 movement and Saviour, which is great for utility. It's almost certainly a good idea to bench whichever of your characters turned out the worst and slot in Seth for the postgame content, since he's basically a no-effort god unit.
It's a fresh take on the Jeigan/Oifaye archetype that ends up being more interesting than I'd expected.
--
Franz
Level 1 Cavalier
Promotions: Paladin, Great Knight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 20 7 5 7 4(+2) 6 1 7 9 Light
GROWTH 60(-20) 55(+15) 40 55(+5) 50(+10) 30(+5) 35(+15)
P CAPS 60 24(-1) 26 28(+4) 30 24(-1) 28(+3) 9(+1) 11
GK CAPS 60 27(-1) 24 25(+1) 30 26(-3) 24(-1) 7(+1) 14(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Swords C, Lances C
Weapon levels (Paladin): Swords A, Lances A, +Shield Sword, +Barrier Sword
Weapon levels (Great Knight): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B, +Francisca
**note: there's no actual difference between A and B in weapons other than staves, aside from class-specific weapons for which rank is basically irrelevant
Skills:
Paladin:
Crit +5
Terrain RES bonus x2
Double weapon might against: "Magic" units, "Magic" monsters, Zombies, Skeletons, Manakete(M) and Zombie Dragons
Great Knight:
-1 Damage Taken
Saviour (no skill or speed penalty while rescuing; AID=CON-1)
Double weapon might against: Archers, Snipers, Skeleton Archers and Legion Archers
My thoughts:
Franz has a very unfortunate problem: his name isn't Seth. That said, he's not a bad character, and his growths have been improved across the board compared to vanilla (he lost a bit of HP but gained massively everywhere else). He'll make a good Paladin or GK, and in Sacred War he may well be the best one, 55% in both strength and speed is very good. I just don't love either of those classes; I've never liked them much for some reason, and the hack's changes to them didn't do anything about that.
Honestly, Franz is a solid character, I leaned on him a fair bit in the earlygame but as I got more and more interesting people it was harder to justify giving him a slot, and I never missed him. He ended up around level 19 unpromoted when I finally ended up benching him for good.
One thing worth noting is that Great Knights are no longer more vulnerable to effective weapons than Paladins; the effective weapons have been consolidated so there's basically just one "armour or cavalry" category that includes both of them.
I have to say I think Paladin is just the better class, between the 2 points of movement and the higher speed cap (speed is still the best stat in Fire Emblem); any defencive advantage GK might have had falls a bit short in light of the Paladin's swords. If rescue utility bears on this debate, I actually think I prefer 2 move to Saviour, but also you can just use Seth and get both.
--
Gilliam
Level 4 Knight
Promotions: Great Knight, General
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 25 9 6 5(+2) 3 10(+1) 3 5 12(-2) Thunder
GROWTH 75(-15) 55(+10) 45(+10) 25(-5) 30 50(-5) 25(+5)
GK CAPS 60 27(-1) 24 25(+1) 30 26(-3) 24(-1) 7(+1) 14(+1)
GN CAPS 60 30(+1) 28(+1) 22(-2) 30 30 20(-5) 5 15
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Lances C, Axes C
Weapon levels (Great Knight): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B, +Francisca
Weapon levels (General): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B
Skills:
Great Knight:
-1 Damage Taken
Saviour (no skill or speed penalty while rescuing; AID=CON-1)
Double weapon might against: Archers, Snipers, Skeleton Archers and Legion Archers
General:
Great Shield (Level% chance to take 0 damage, doesn't block Lethality)
Terrain DEF bonus x2
Forest, Fortress, and Pillar terrain cost only 1 Move
My thoughts:
Ugh, 25 speed growth. That's Knights for you. (At least in vanilla he had 30! and that's still bad). At least he has 5 move unpromoted now, it makes him a bit less painful to use than he used to be.
Gilliam is probably your best choice for a General if you really want one, but that's mainly because his other option is Great Knight (which you get four other potentials for) and every other potential General has better options. 22 Speed cap is awful, but even that is academic because Gilliam won't get anywhere near it anyway. He's going to get doubled, and he's going to die if a magic-user looks at him funny, so in my experience he ends up feeling like a liability. Great Shield is one of those skills that is incredibly annoying when enemies have it and it interrupts your plans, but is hard to actively benefit from since the activation rate is low and you can't plan for it.
He's pretty useful in earlygame chapters (and having axes helps him a lot because lances abound), especially if you need to choke a point, but I think it's worth moving on from him once you have better options.
I don't like Knights or Generals much, to be honest.
--
Vanessa
Level 2 Pegasus Knight
Promotions: Falcoknight, Wyvern Knight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 20(+3) 5 8(+1) 11 6(+2) 6 5 7 5 Anima
GROWTH 50 35 55 65(+5) 55(+5) 20 40(+10)
FK CAPS 60 24(+1) 30(+5) 27 30 20(-4) 30(+4) 8 6
WK CAPS 60 22(-2) 24(-3) 30(+1) 30 24(+1) 25(+2) 9(+1) 8(-2)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Lances C
Weapon levels (Falcoknight): Swords A, Lances A, +Blessed Lance, +Winged Spear
Weapon levels (Wyvern Knight): Lances S, +Storm Spear
**Lances S doesn't actually grant access to anything over Lances A
Skills:
Falcoknight:
Crit +20
Avoid +5
Wyvern Knight:
Pierce (Level% chance to ignore enemy DEF)
My thoughts:
Vanessa is our first flyer and that gives her a lot of inherent utility. Unfortunately, she's probably the worst flying unit in Sacred War (really! Syrene has been heavily buffed and is good now, to the point I think she's better than her sister, and then she's competing with Tana and Cormag) but that still makes her pretty good, and I'd say use every flying unit you can. That 35 strength growth hurts if you miss it too much early on, but at least she's fast and will have great avoid.
Using Vanessa is almost inevitable, since she's the only option for flying utility prior to the route split. I like passing her Eirika's Star Seal for the stat boosts since she can end up spending a lot of time alone in hostile territory.
Falcoknight versus Wyvern Knight can be a tough choice, both classes have been improved and they were good to begin with. I tend to prefer Falcoknight, it's well-rounded and there's the triangle attack to consider (you have the deployment slots for it and Syrene is good now), the crit boost is relevant more often than Pierce (although crits are only x2 now instead of x3), the avoid bonus is nice, and both of the class weapons are awesome (Blessed Lance is a lighter, more accurate Silver Lance with +15 crit and also gives +5 LCK while equipped; Winged Spear is a lighter, more accurate Spear with +30 crit). Wyvern Knights are a bit of a one-trick pony (well, you have to lose the pony to get there but you know what I mean), you get Pierce, a better speed cap (and more CON), and more balanced defences, and +1 move, but you lose out on swords and triangle attack utility, and that 22 strength cap hurts when you aren't getting Pierce. The Storm Spear is crazy good though, it's a Brave Lance with 1-2 range (which also means more chances to roll for Pierce). Seal also claims to have fixed the Pierce bugs so you don't need to worry about it crashing the game.
If you're going to make any of them a Wyvern Knight, I think Vanessa's probably the one to choose, since her growths are the best match for the class caps. If you don't plan to use Tana and Syrene, this is probably the route she should go (but Tana is awesome and Syrene is free, so why wouldn't you use them?).
You need at least 2 Falcoknights if you want to use the triangle attack. If you have 3 Falcoknights, any one of them can initiate it; if any one of them is a Wyvern Knight, only they can do a Triangle Attack. With all three, you have more options for positioning (I've even had the triangle attack happen by accident in Sacred War, I just happened to be using all three to fight off a large group of reinforcements that kept spawning in and the positioning made it happen naturally). I don't regret going with 3 Falcoknights, but there's also a case to be made for all wyverns.
I will also note the Triangle Attack has been surprisingly helpful in the postgame "Rift" content, a lot of the maxed-stat bosses can be very hard to hit and it was one of the more reliable ways to take them down (although this doesn't work against the ones on gates or thrones since they can't be surrounded, so you need a secondary option also).
--
Moulder
Level 3 Priest
Promotions: Sage, Bishop
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 20 5(+1) 4(-2) 9 1 3(+1) 5 5 9 Anima
GROWTH 65(-5) 50(+10) 45(-5) 35(-5) 30(+10) 35(+10) 50(+25)
S CAPS 60 27(-1) 28(-2) 29(+3) 30 20(-1) 24(-1) 6 11
B CAPS 60 23(-2) 30(+4) 25(+1) 30 21(-1) 30 6 12(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Staves C
Weapon levels (Sage): Anima B, Light B, Dark B, Staves C, +Rexfrost
Weapon levels (Bishop): Light S, Staves B
**Light S doesn't actually grant access to anything over Light B
**Staves B gives access to Recover and Fortify
Skills:
Bishop:
Slayer (Weapon Might x3 against monsters)
Crit +25
-5 Damage taken from Magic
Sage:
Hit +5 Dmg +1 when using Anima
Hit +5 Crit +5 when using Light
Dmg +1 Crit +5 when using Dark
My thoughts:
It's Moulder the Boulder! He is distinguished by having by far the most CON for a magic user (nothing short of a siege tome will weigh him down). He's damn good, as usual, though as usual being locked to staves before promotion can make him a pain to level (although that's mitigated a bit by heal staves having 50 uses now and being quite cheap). Do note that most staves' healing has been nerfed in Sacred War (they use MAG/2 instead of MAG) so they will generally recover less than you expect them to.
With how many units you can deploy in Sacred War, and how many enemies you're dealing with on most maps, you definitely want multiple healers because one would be stretched too thin. As such, you're probably going to end up using Moulder whether you like him or not, but he's good so that's not a bad thing.
Bishop and Sage are both excellent classes, so promoting him is a tough decision. You're going to want at least one bishop for dealing with monster bosses (in the last few main game chapters, and Valni), but that Sage speed cap is amazing, and Sages get access to some amazing spells including Arcwind (1-3 range, effective against flyers), Rexfrost (brave magic!), and Nosferatu. Moulder in particular, as a Sage, won't be weighed down by Nosferatu or Arcthunder (which is a renamed Bolting), and that's great. His speed growth is low, though, so he's unlikely to get anywhere near the Sage's cap without help, isn't likely to be doubling anything, and this also means his massive CON is less helpful than it would otherwise be.
I ended up having him go Bishop because I wanted a second one and had already promoted Artur to Sage, but in retrospect I think that may have been the wrong decision. Moulder makes a good Bishop, and you can argue his growths are a better fit for Bishop caps, but Sage just seems better overall (it's one of the best classes, period) and you don't need two Bishops to get through any of the monster content. Natasha should be enough to fill all your Bishop needs.
--
Ross
Level 1 Journeyman
Promotions: Fighter (Warrior, Hero), Pirate (Warrior, Berserker), Journeyman' (Hero, General)
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 15 5 4(+2) 5(+2) 8 3 0 4 8 Fire
GROWTH 65(-5) 45(-5) 50(+15) 45(+15) 50(+10) 30(+5) 25(+5)
W CAPS 60 28(-2) 26(-2) 24(-2) 30 25(-1) 23(+1) 6 15(+2)
B CAPS 60 30 20(-9) 30(+2) 30 22(-1) 22 7(+1) 13
H CAPS 60 26(+1) 28(-2) 26 30 25 25(+3) 6 11
G CAPS 60 30(+1) 28(+1) 22(-2) 30 30 20(-5) 5 15
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Axes D
Weapon levels (Fighter, Pirate, Journeyman+): Axes C
Weapon levels (Warrior): Axes A, Bows B
Weapon levels (Berserker): Axes S, +Devil Axe, +Guillotine
Weapon levels (Hero): Swords B, Axes B
Weapon levels (General): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B
**outside of the class-specific axes, B/A/S don't actually make a difference
Skills:
Warrior:
Double weapon might against Armoured units
Ignore Hoplon Guard effects
Hit +15 with Axes
Berserker:
Crit +25
Hit +5
Damage +5
Hero:
+2 DEF on outdoor maps, +2 RES on indoor maps
2.5x weapon might against Dragon units
1.5x weapon might against Monster units
General:
Great Shield (Level% chance to take 0 damage, doesn't block Lethality)
Terrain DEF bonus x2
Forest, Fortress, and Pillar terrain cost only 1 Move
My thoughts:
Ross is the only trainee I don't hate using, because he comes early enough that it's not hard to baby him while still playing normally. That's still true in Sacred War, which has made the trainee characters an exception to the changes it's made to other characters' bases/levels on joining (the stated intent is they want everyone to be immediately usable). Ross also gains an additional class option now, though why on earth you'd put someone with his growths in General is beyond me.
If you're just looking at growths and caps, Hero might actually be the best fit for Ross, especially with these changes. That said, Berserker is by far the best class he has access to, and the only other one you can get is Dozla (although the 20 skill cap actually hurts him, especially considering the low hit rates of Axes in the hack). Berserker is more mobile and has the best caps in strength and speed, not to mention access to exclusive weapons, so it feels like a no-brainer.
Guillotine is a renamed Swordslayer, and the Devil Axe is not what you think it is. It has only 45 hit, but 60 crit and it hits damn hard. As far as I know it doesn't have the Devil Axe backfire effect, but I can't be sure, because I didn't try using it until my Ross had 31 Luck (he capped it at 30 naturally and I gave him an accessory with +1 Luck). Ross as a Berserker desperately wants a support that helps him hit things, though.
With how many levels Ross gets, he's a good candidate for a Dragon Tear, although he's decently likely to cap a few stats even without one.
--
Garcia
Level 4 Fighter
Promotions: Warrior, Hero
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 28 9(+1) 8(+1) 7 3 5 1 5 12(-2) Fire
GROWTH 75(-10) 60(-5) 40 30(+10) 40 40(+15) 20(+5)
W CAPS 60 28(-2) 26(-2) 24(-2) 30 25(-1) 23(+1) 6 15(+2)
H CAPS 60 26(+1) 28(-2) 26 30 25 25(+3) 6 12
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Axes C
Weapon levels (Warrior): Axes A, Bows B
Weapon levels (Hero): Swords B, Axes B
**there's no difference between Axes A and Axes B
Skills:
Warrior:
Double weapon might against Armoured units
Ignore Hoplon Guard effects
Hit +15 with Axes
Hero:
+2 DEF on outdoor maps, +2 RES on indoor maps
2.5x weapon might against Dragon units
1.5x weapon might against Monster units
My thoughts:
Garcia is quite useful when you get him because you don't have a lot by way of early-game axe users; he's faster than Gilliam, and he's more ready to go than Ross when they join. Fire/Fire is a great support for both of them too, although I'm not sure it's the best idea in the long run (Ross might be better off supported with someone else if you end up having to bench his dad).
He's very likely to cap HP and strength, but Garcia has speed problems (even with the growth boost he got) and his defences could be better. This means that late-game he's likely to be doubled, and he's not quite tanky or dodgy enough to shrug that off. This can make him a liability, and despite my best efforts he always felt like one of my more vulnerable units; I was much more likely to position him as a support-bot for Ross than have him do actual fighting. Still, I ended up using him more than Gilliam.
Warrior and Hero are honestly very similar in terms of caps, and both have pretty situational skills that don't tilt things much one way or the other. I lean Warrior because there are so few bow users in this game, so it gives him more of a niche than Hero does (bows are effective against fliers, Longbows exist, and swords can be kind of disappointing as a secondary weapon type given their lack of ranged options and the prevalence of lances).
He's fine ingame but his usefulness starts to taper off in the endgame and postgame; that lack of speed can just be insurmountable. If you really want to use him, an early Dragon Tear is probably a good idea.
Garcia really redeemed himself for me in the final postgame challenge, though. His strength cap with a Nidhogg was one of the few ways I found to get in decent damage against the (final) final boss, though he needed some stat boosting accessories to help his speed and durability problems (that's true of everyone in the postgame, though). I wasn't sorry I used him in the end.
--
Neimi
Level 1 Archer
Promotions: Sniper, Ranger
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 20(+3) 5(+1) 5 6 5(+1) 3 2 5 5 Fire
GROWTH 50(-5) 45 50 60 55(+5) 20(+5) 40(+5)
S CAPS 60 27(+3) 30 25(-4) 30 24 23(-3) 6 8(+2)
R CAPS 60 23 26(-2) 30 30 22(-2) 26(+1) 7 11(+3)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Bows C
Weapon levels (Sniper): Bows S, +Icarus Bow, +Ballista
Weapon levels (Ranger): Bows A, Swords B
**outside of class weapons there's no difference between Bows A and Bows B
Skills:
Sniper:
Hit +15
Crit +10
Sure Shot (Level% to bypass hit check)
Ranger:
Damage +2 when using bows
Ambush/Vantage (attack first in all fights)
My thoughts:
Neimi is still Neimi, and has all the problems you'd expect from an archer. That said, you have enough deployment slots that bringing an archer isn't as much of a liability as it usually is (at least proportionally). The instant C support with Colm is nice early on also (though their support growth is weirdly slow at higher levels).
Her growths are quite good, she usually turns out quite fast and dodgy, albeit rather squishy. Her defencive growths have been improved but it came at the expense of her HP growth, and she still has only 20% defence, so you have to be careful with her even after she promotes. Also, if she's a Ranger, it's probably worth giving her a Hoplon Guard because anti-cavalry weaponry show up when you don't expect them and will ruin her.
Longbows have been strengthened considerably, and are one of the more attractive reasons to use archers. That said, Arcwind exists, so mages still put archers to shame in their own niche (and druids get Hel, which also has 1-3 range).
Ranger is usually considered the superior promotion, and I think it still is (also she's better suited to it than Gerik is, if you want one). That said, Sniper has been buffed significantly and has some perks (although that speed cap hurts compared to a possible 30, especially when you factor in the CON difference also): the Icarus Bow has 1-2 range, so going Sniper does not mean sacrificing all enemy-phase utility, and Ballistae are a portable item now so they're effectively siege magic (they have animations again too, like FE6!). And Vantage, despite how cool it seems, rarely makes an actual difference to the outcome of battles; maybe if you give her Brave weapons, but the earliest source I know of for those is post Chapter 19.
Ironically, Snipers now arguably have better enemy-phase ability than Rangers. Icarus Bow is 1-2 range so they can counter melee and ranged attackers with it, while Rangers still have to choose between swords (1 range only) and bows (2 or 2-3 only). Swords have even less range utility than they used to, since magic swords (e.g. Light Brand) are now Mage Knight only, so literally the only ranged swords are Audhulma and Sieglinde.
Neimi does get new sprites if she goes Sniper (now matching her short hairstyle).
The biggest reason to use Neimi is probably that Colm is practically required, so you may as well support them. If you're supporting them, Neimi should probably promote to Ranger; with the movement boosts Colm has been given, she'll need the horse to keep up with him. Give her a Hoplon Guard in the postgame, though, before I did that I had a few resets due to her getting oneshot by an effective weapon out of nowhere.
--
Colm
Level 2 Thief
Promotions: Rogue, Assassin
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 20(+2) 4 4 10 8 3 1 6 6 Light
GROWTH 60(-15) 40 40 60(-5) 55(+10) 25 20
A CAPS 60 20 30 27(-3) 30 20 20 7(+1) 8
R CAPS 60 20 26(-4) 30 30 22(+2) 22(+2) 8(+2) 7
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Swords C
Weapon levels (Assassin): Swords A, +Lethal Edge
Weapon levels (Rogue): Swords A
Skills:
Thief:
Steal
Lockpick
Assassin:
Crit +5
Lethality (Crit/2% to instantly kill)
Lockpick
Rogue:
Steal
Pick (open doors and chests without keys)
Avoid +5
My thoughts:
It doesn't matter what you think of Colm, he's practically mandatory. He's the only thief you get, and there are lots of important items that can be obtained only by stealing. And despite the nerfs to his growths, he's still a pretty good thief. (Rennac will be a great thief when he joins, and if your Colm's turning out badly he can definitely replace him, but you don't want to miss out on the stealable items before Rennac joins.)
No matter how much you hate grinding, you may want to get Colm a few levels in the Tower of Valni as soon as it becomes available, because there are stat boosters to be stolen immediately following the route split. (Chapter 9 Ephraim had a Hero with 15 speed holding an Energy Ring, for instance. On Eirika route it's a Sniper with 12 speed, but the point still stands.) Check the next map to make sure you can steal everything and if you can't, do some grinding first.
Items you can only obtain by stealing include stat boosters (which, unlike vanilla, never seem to be available in shops even in postgame), accessories like Hoplon Guards (which now give +1 LCK/DEF/RES and negate cavalry/armour weakness in addition to preventing criticals) and Fili Shields (which grant +1 STR/SKL/SPD and negate flying weaknesses), and gold/gems. This game will make you appreciate a good thief. You can also steal the money bags practically every enemy carries, and they'll immediately be converted to money; you don't get any more money this way, but it's free EXP for your thief if you don't need them to be doing something else.
That's not even getting into the usual chests and doors. You can get keys if you have to, but inventory space is at a premium and it's just easier to bring a thief.
Rogue is really a no-brainer choice for Colm, it has better caps in speed and defences, and gives him more movement. And, again, Colm is here to steal, not to fight. If you want an assassin, for some reason it's the only class that retains gender differences in caps: female assassins get 2 more strength, so just go with Marisa instead.
--
Artur
Level 3 Monk
Promotions: Bishop, Sage
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 21(+2) 6 7(+1) 8 5(+3) 3(+1) 7(+1) 5 6 Ice
GROWTH 60(+5) 40(-10) 50 50(+10) 25 20(+5) 50(-5)
S CAPS 60 27(-1) 28(-2) 29(+3) 30 20(-1) 24(-1) 6 7
B CAPS 60 23(-2) 30(+4) 25(+1) 30 21(-1) 30 6 8(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Light C
Weapon levels (Sage): Anima B, Light B, Dark B, Staves C, +Rexfrost
Weapon levels (Bishop): Light S, Staves B
**Light S doesn't actually grant access to anything over Light B
**Staves B gives access to Recover and Fortify
Skills:
Bishop:
Slayer (Weapon Might x3 against monsters)
Crit +25
-5 Damage taken from Magic
Sage:
Hit +5 Dmg +1 when using Anima
Hit +5 Crit +5 when using Light
Dmg +1 Crit +5 when using Dark
My thoughts:
I often end up overlooking Artur in vanilla FE8 (some combination of Lute joining at the same time and female Sage caps being better, and Natasha/Moulder/L'Arachel ending up filling the light magic niche since you have fewer deployment slots), but that's a shame because he's pretty great. His bases are good enough for his level and he's got good growths across the board (although his luck and defence will probably end up abysmal, he should have enough avoid from speed to work past that). Honestly he's been nerfed a bit here but the boost to his speed growth is nice and he'll still turn out good as long as you don't miss magic too often.
I like promoting him to Sage and supporting him with Lute, they make a great battle couple and both end up very difficult to hit (and having identical movement makes it easy to keep them together). It's fun to give them Nosferatu also, they'll just be impossible to kill and you can choke points with them (this wasn't quite as effective as I hoped later on, Nosferatu is too heavy for them and speed's one of Sage's main advantages).
There's an argument for making him a Bishop, but I think Sages are better in the long run and you don't need a whole squad of Bishops.
--
Lute
Level 5 Mage
Promotions: Sage, Mage Knight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 20(+3) 9(+3) 8(+2) 8(+1) 8 2 8(+3) 5 6(+3) Anima
GROWTH 50(+5) 55(-10) 30 45 45 25(+15) 35(-5)
S CAPS 60 27(-3) 28 29(+3) 30 20(-1) 24(-1) 6 7(+2)
MK CAPS 60 24(-1) 25 25 30 24 25(-2) 7 9(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Anima C
Weapon levels (Sage): Anima B, Light B, Dark B, Staves C, +Rexfrost
Weapon levels (Mage Knight): Anima A, Staves B, +Light Brand, +Soul Brand, +Peacemaker
**Staves B gives access to Recover and Fortify
Skills:
Sage:
Hit +5 Dmg +1 when using Anima
Hit +5 Crit +5 when using Light
Dmg +1 Crit +5 when using Dark
Mage Knight:
1.5x avoid bonuses from terrain
-3 damage taken when equipped with Light Brand or Soul Brand
-5 damage taken when equipped with Peacemaker
My thoughts:
Lute has been nerfed a bit compared to her original incarnation, both in growths and caps, but that's not going to stop her (although she got some more CON and that definitely helps). She's still a very good character, although instead of being the standout she and Artur end up being "those two good mages who joined together". (Supporting them is a good idea.) A lot of her growths are kind of borderline though (particularly by FE8 standards), so she could be vulnerable to RNG screw.
Unlike Artur and Moulder who have a legitimate alternative to Sage, Lute really doesn't. Mage Knight is an utter waste of her growths, and on top of that, it's a class that's heavily reliant on expensive niche weapons that don't become available until pretty late (and even there, only Light Brand is really relevant since it's effective against monsters, Soul Brand is a renamed Runesword and isn't that relevant since Sages can just use Nosferatu; Soul Brand may be lighter but if both classes are at their respective speed caps they'll have the same AS). But that's fine, because Sage is a great class.
(I later learned Soul Brands are effective against magic users, which gives it a niche although I still think it's one of those things that's aggravating in enemy hands but nigh useless in yours, and isn't much incentive to get a Mage Knight.)
Lute is also one of a handful of characters who get custom battle sprites in the hack, but only if you promote her to Sage, so that's possibly worth taking into account.
--
Natasha
Level 3 Cleric
Promotions: Bishop, Valkyrie
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 21(+3) 3(+1) 5(+1) 8 7(+1) 3(+1) 8(+2) 5 4 Ice
GROWTH 50 60 25 45(+5) 60 20(+5) 50(-5)
B CAPS 60 23(-2) 30(+5) 25(-1) 30 21 30 6 8(+3)
V CAPS 60 22(-3) 26(+2) 30(+5) 30 20(-4) 28 7 7(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Staves C
Weapon levels (Bishop): Light S, Staves B
Weapon levels (Valkyrie): Light A, Staves S
**Staves B gives access to Recover and Fortify
**Staves A gives access to Charm (Berserk)
**Staves S gives access to Rescue, Warp, Salvation (Physic+)
Skills:
Bishop:
Slayer (Weapon Might x3 against monsters)
Crit +25
-5 Damage taken from Magic
Valkyrie:
Heal +15 (affects all healing staves)
Avoid +5
My thoughts:
Natasha's growths are very lopsided but that usually works out just fine for her once she gets to promotion (and it's not hard to level healers in this, it's worth using as many as you can). She's practically guaranteed to cap magic, it's a bit sad that that growth is stuck with at best a 23 cap.
Choosing her promotion path really depends more on what you want to do with your other magic users (especially L'Arachel) than herself. It's well worth having at least one Valkyrie for the healing utility; Fortify heals 20+MAG/2 and with the Valkyrie's healing bonus it's effectively a full heal to everyone in range. Likewise, you want at least one Bishop for monster-fighting purposes. Natasha is the only Bishop candidate who doesn't have Sage as an option, so it's more appealing for her than for them.
L'Arachel has the options of Valkyrie (and gets new unique sprites in it) and a new class called Oracle (which she shares with Tethys). If you want two Oracles, I think you probably want Natasha in Valkyrie, but that seems like a specific niche thing, L'Arachel seems better suited to Valkyrie otherwise and then I don't think you need two of them.
The Oracle class replaces Dancer. It has Anima A, Staves A, and gets access to special buff staves that nobody else can use. These are: Wrath (+10 Crit for 2 turns), Mirage (+10 Avoid for 2 turns), Sanctuary (+10 DEF, +10 RES for 2 turns), and Holy Decree (+10 STR/MAG for 2 turns). I don't much care for Wrath or Mirage honestly, but the others are very good, if quite expensive. There's also a "staff" called Second Wind that you can buy in the postgame, which has unlimited uses and is effectively the Dancer ability (only Oracles can use it, but it's used from the items menu rather than as a staff for some reason). These are all very situational, and normally I wouldn't think it's worth having two Oracles, except that this path gives the opportunity to have two Dancers in the postgame, and no official Fire Emblem title has let you do that.
--
Joshua
Level 7 Myrmidon
Promotions: Swordmaster, Assassin
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 25(+1) 8 14(+1) 14 7 6(+1) 4(+2) 5 7(-1) Wind
GROWTH 65(-15) 45(+10) 50(-5) 55 30 25(+5) 25(+5)
SM CAPS 60 23(-1) 26(-3) 30 30 22 24(+1) 7(+1) 9
A CAPS 60 20 30 27(-3) 30 20 20 7(+1) 8
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Swords C
Weapon levels (Swordmaster): Swords S, +Astra Blade
Weapon levels (Assassin): Swords A, +Lethal Edge
Skills:
Swordmaster:
Crit +30
Assassin:
Crit +5
Lethality (Crit/2% to instantly kill)
Lockpick
My thoughts:
Sigh. Joshua. I want to like him but he always seems to disappoint me (despite that I still use him and give him Audhulma every time I play FE8, it doesn't feel right having someone else use his heirloom), for all that people love to talk him up as one of the best myrmidons in the series. And, for better or worse, I'm coming to the opinion that the balance changes in Sacred War end up making Swordmaster one of the worst classes.
It comes down to a couple of things, really. First: swords have the lowest MT of all weapons, and enemies have a lot more defence on average than they did before, so combined with the low STR cap they really don't do a lot of damage. Second: lances seem to be the most common weapon type among enemies, which means the SM is doing even less damage and the avoid they usually rely on to survive is often punished, unless you go out of your way to get Lancereavers (which, in fairness, you can absolutely do). Third: crits are now only 2x damage rather than 3x, so their gimmick is less effective (especially against high defence enemies). Fourth: weapons with high Crit have low MT. And fifth: swords are the only weapon class without non-legendary ranged options. It's a lot of little disadvantages that add up in myriad ways.
Lances being everywhere also meant it was a huge pain to get him levels (low movement and a lack of range don't help him here either, he got left behind a lot); Marisa ended up being easier to use since she joined with better bases at a time when the flood of lances started letting up a little.
Swordmasters do get access to the Astra Blade, a Brave Sword (but with 8 MT instead of 12) that has +45 Crit. It's okay, but taking defence into account and the x2 crits instead of x3, it's unfortunately less impressive than you'd think (but very good in the right situations). Assassins get the Lethal Edge instead, which has 45 Crit and also causes poison but doesn't have the brave effect; when all you want is to roll the dice until you assassinate something, this thing gets the job done.
Joshua's defences aren't quite good enough for him to be taking hits regularly, but thanks to his low luck he's often not as dodgy as I'd be comfortable with either. He just didn't work out very well for me. I supported him with Natasha and he basically ended up functioning as a support-bot for her while she did the fighting. Then again, this could just be him not meshing with my play style, I tend to favour magic and flyers given the option to.
At least Eirika is on a horse and has better caps across the board, not to mention rapiers and Sieglinde. (In the postgame, with an Audhulma, Joshua is... fine, I guess. But he was definitely one of my worst characters.)
Assassin Joshua would have worse speed and defencive caps, but on the plus side, would no longer need to care about damage to kill things. Marisa makes a much better assassin though, and Joshua with Assassin sprites just looks wrong to me.
On the plus side, he's one of the characters who gets new battle sprites if you make him a Swordmaster. He has his hat in battle now. This is good.
--
Ephraim
Level 8 Lord (M)
Promotion: Great Lord (M)
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 25(+2) 10(+2) 11(+2) 12(+1) 9(+1) 8(+1) 5(+3) 5 8 Fire
GROWTH 65(-15) 55 50(-5) 45 55(+5) 35 25
CAPS 60 30(+3) 30(+4) 25(+1) 30 25(+2) 22(-1) 8(+1) 11(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Lances C, +Noble Lance
Weapon levels (promoted): Lances S, +Noble Lance, +Siegmund
Skills:
ATK + Weapon MT/2
Not vulnerable to horse effective weaponry
My thoughts:
Ephraim's growths have been nerfed a little, but he's still really good. He also has a tendency to hit level 20 well in advance of promotion and then become useless for a while. (Which is a bit worse in this hack since for some reason the unpromoted caps have been changed to 18 in each stat instead of 20.)
The Noble Lance is just a renamed Reginleif, and it's just as crazy good as it used to be. Ephraim barely even needs it, he can hold his own with ordinary weaponry just fine, but in an emergency this thing has 10 MT x3 and destroys things. You don't get a second one until Chapter 19 though (and you can buy them in the postgame).
After promotion, Ephraim is a lot better off than he was in vanilla, his caps have been improved dramatically across the board (in vanilla he tends to ram his caps very quickly, which is fine because the game is easy but would be problematic here). He's probably still going to hit a lot of caps, but that's a good thing now. Unfortunately his speed cap is still on the low side, but there are ways around that (and if nothing else, Siegmund fixes that problem while he's using it, but that's not often enough to be relied on). His skill is workmanlike but fine, it'll give him some extra damage (but weirdly I've found Eirika tends to output more damage against middling-defence enemies since she can get close to 100 crit after supports) and on top of his 30 strength cap he can be a good choice against enemies with high defence.
Lances are just an excellent all-around weapon type, if you have to be locked to a single type of martial weapon lances are the way to go.
Is he worth using -- hahaha no I'm not even going to pretend this is a question (although the hack does allow you to leave him out of any mission if you really want; like Eirika, he has an uncontested legendary weapon and that's reason enough on its own). The only real question is what to do about supports. I'm quite fond of the triangle with Eirika and L'Arachel (the twins A with each other and each B with her), since you're going to want her around anyway for the healing and they all have similar movement to make staying together easy, or you could also do this with Tana (who is absurdly good) although she might be better off with Cormag. I like these kind of triangles in a hack like this because you very often have to split your army, and these groups are better at working independently than a long interlocking support chain would be.
Arguably, supporting him with Myrrh might be a better choice for the postgame content, she's one of the easier ways to deal with the capped-stat bosses, but has trouble hitting without supports and few possible partners.
--
Forde
Level 8 Cavalier
Promotions: Paladin, Great Knight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 26(+2) 8(+1) 9(+1) 11(+3) 7 9(+1) 5(+3) 7 9 Wind
GROWTH 70(-10) 40 50(+5) 55(+10) 40(+5) 25(+5) 40(+15)
P CAPS 60 24(-1) 26 28(+4) 30 24(-1) 28(+3) 9(+1) 11
GK CAPS 60 27(-1) 24 25(+1) 30 26(-3) 24(-1) 7(+1) 14(+1)
Kyle
Level 8 Cavalier
Promotions: Paladin, Great Knight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 28(+3) 10(+2) 7(+1) 9(+2) 6 11(+2) 2(+1) 7 9(-1) Ice
GROWTH 80(-10) 55(+5) 50(+10) 40 25(+5) 40(+15) 20
P CAPS 60 24(-1) 26 28(+4) 30 24(-1) 28(+3) 9(+1) 11
GK CAPS 60 27(-1) 24 25(+1) 30 26(-3) 24(-1) 7(+1) 14(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Swords C, Lances C
Weapon levels (Paladin): Swords A, Lances A, +Shield Sword, +Barrier Sword
Weapon levels (Great Knight): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B, +Francisca
**note: there's no actual difference between A and B in weapons other than staves, aside from class-specific weapons for which rank is basically irrelevant
Skills:
Paladin:
Crit +5
Terrain RES bonus x2
Double weapon might against: "Magic" units, "Magic" monsters, Zombies, Skeletons, Manakete(M) and Zombie Dragons
Great Knight:
-1 Damage Taken
Saviour (no skill or speed penalty while rescuing; AID=CON-1)
Double weapon might against: Archers, Snipers, Skeleton Archers and Legion Archers
My thoughts:
Oh, it's those two guys. A red knight with green knight growths, and a green knight with red knight growths. I've never found them terribly appealing, mostly just because I tend to think Cavalier/Paladin/Great Knight are boring classes, and by the time they come along you've probably been raising Franz already if you want one. The sad thing is, looking at their growths, Franz kind of outclasses both of them now too (Franz has 55 in both strength and speed, a better luck growth and more balanced defences, he's only at a disadvantage in skill).
Also, Seth exists.
I use these guys on 5x and 8 out of necessity and then bench them unless I need to fill slots (which does happen in this hack for a while, you can bring 18-20 people on most maps and not using all the deployment slots is probably a bad idea given how big the maps get and how many enemies there are).
That said, I'm not saying they're bad. Just overshadowed and uninteresting.
Conventional wisdom, I think, is that Forde is better suited to Paladin and Kyle to Great Knight, considering how their growths line up with the class caps. That seems reasonable here too (although as I noted earlier, Paladins get 4 total points of stat caps more than Great Knights).
--
Tana
Level 10 Pegasus Knight
Promotions: Falcoknight, Wyvern Knight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 27(+7) 10(+3) 12(+3) 15(+2) 12(+4) 9(+3) 7 7 5 Wind
GROWTH 55(-10) 45 45(+5) 55(-10) 50(-10) 30(+10) 30(+5)
FK CAPS 60 24(+1) 30(+5) 27 30 20(-4) 30(+4) 8 6
WK CAPS 60 22(-2) 24(-3) 30(+1) 30 24(+1) 25(+2) 9(+1) 8(-2)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Lances C
Weapon levels (Falcoknight): Swords A, Lances A, +Blessed Lance, +Winged Spear
Weapon levels (Wyvern Knight): Lances S, +Storm Spear
**Lances S doesn't actually grant access to anything over Lances A
Skills:
Falcoknight:
Crit +20
Avoid +5
Wyvern Knight:
Pierce (Level% chance to ignore enemy DEF)
My thoughts:
The Death Goddess of the Skies. Seriously, Tana is almost certainly the best flying unit in the game, and with these boosts to her bases she's ready to go immediately without needing any effort to train (she's level 4 in the base game, though admittedly if she gained 6 levels naturally she might have been slightly better off than here). Her growths have been balanced out a bit, which could hurt her in the long run, but it's hard to see how, she usually still turns out amazing.
Falcoknight is probably better at dodge tanking and has a slightly higher strength cap (which she's likely to still ram into), as well as loads of crit, but Wyvern Knight has the advantage in SPD/CON/MOV which might outweigh that (also, the Falcoknight's RES cap is wasted on her). The Triangle Attack might be a consideration if you like it. If you only want a single Falcoknight, and don't mind waiting, you might actually prefer Syrene (yes, really!) since she has 2 more CON than Tana would as a Falcoknight.
Tana also gets new exclusive sprites as a Falcoknight but not as a Wyvern Knight, which might be of interest.
The honest truth is that she's probably slightly better in Wyvern Knight, in a vacuum, but promoting Pegasus Knights to that class always feels wrong to me, and both options are solid. You can't really go wrong with her.
--
Amelia
Level 1 Recruit
Promotions: Cavalier (Paladin, Great Knight), Knight (Great Knight, General), Recruit+ (Paladin, Wyvern Lord)
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 18(+2) 4 3 4 6 3(+1) 3 4 6 Thunder
GROWTH 60 45(+10) 45(+5) 45(+5) 55(+5) 35(+5) 30(+15)
P CAPS 60 24(+1) 26(-1) 28(+3) 30 24 28(+2) 9(+1) 11(+1)
GK CAPS 60 27(+1) 24(-1) 25 30 26(-2) 24(-1) 7(+1) 14(-1)
GN CAPS 60 30(+3) 28 22(-3) 30 30(+1) 20(-6) 5 15(+4)
WL CAPS 60 28(+3) 27(+1) 23(-1) 30 28(+1) 22(-1) 7(-1) 13(+2)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Lances D
Weapon levels (Cavalier): Swords C, Lances C
Weapon levels (Knight): Lances C, Axes C
Weapon levels (Recruit+): Lances C
Weapon levels (Paladin): Swords A, Lances A, +Shield Sword, +Barrier Sword
Weapon levels (Great Knight): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B, +Francisca
Weapon levels (General): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B
Weapon levels (Wyvern Lord): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B
Skills:
Paladin:
Crit +5
Terrain RES bonus x2
Double weapon might against: "Magic" units, "Magic" monsters, Zombies, Skeletons, Manakete(M) and Zombie Dragons
Great Knight:
-1 Damage Taken
Saviour (no skill or speed penalty while rescuing; AID=CON-1)
Double weapon might against: Archers, Snipers, Skeleton Archers and Legion Archers
General:
Great Shield (Level% chance to take 0 damage, doesn't block Lethality)
Terrain DEF bonus x2
Forest, Fortress, and Pillar terrain cost only 1 Move
Wyvern Lord:
Not vulnerable to effective damage from bows or wind magic
Receive terrain bonuses despite flying
My thoughts:
I've never really used Amelia much. I tend to have enough of a team I like by the time she comes along that I don't need her, and she takes a lot more work to raise than other characters given what you eventually get (especially here where non-trainee characters join with higher levels and bases). That said, her growths are pretty good (and have been strictly improved compared to vanilla) and she has lots of levels to grow. The hack's version of Valni 1 has immobile enemies so raising her is just a matter of time and javelins.
On the other hand, look at her growths and compare them to Franz; she'll be better than him at level 1 if you promote her to Cavalier, but she's not that much better and you've already had a third of the game to be training him. I don't think I'd consider Amelia if all I wanted is a Cavalier or Paladin, especially when there's Seth also, and the twin lords are also mounted.
Also new to Sacred War is the option of making her a Wyvern Lord, which is interesting. It gives her a niche she didn't have before, and if you look at the caps, is very comparable to General, trading out Great Shield for better movement and flying utility.
There are a few problems with making her a General or Wyvern Lord, though. There's the low speed cap, of course, but there's also the fact that this is supposed to be balanced out by the classes' heavy defences - and look at Amelia's defence growths. She's always been more of a dodge tank than a "shrug off hits" tank, and she's going to have trouble with that when her speed caps so low (at least as consolation she gets decent CON? and her luck growth is as ludicrous as ever).
I don't know. With varied promotion options and balanced growths, she should be a sort of jack-of-all-trades character who can play whatever role the team needs, but none of the roles quite fit right so she ends up just looking poorly specialised to me.
Also worth noting is that as a Wyvern Lord, she uses a generic green palette, it looks a bit weird (couldn't Seal have at least made her red?). She looks the same as always in the rest of her classes; she's still the only character with access to the female Cavalier and Paladin sprites (with the long hair) although these haven't been changed any in the hack.
I would've been much more inclined to give flying Amelia a go if she'd had the option of Wyvern Knight or Falcoknight, I really don't like all these classes with 22 or 23 speed caps. That's just not enough.
After playing against some enemy Wyvern Lords, I may have underrated the ability to get terrain bonuses - having full movement over Peaks and still getting all that avoid is quite nice. I'm not sure it's worth going out of your way to have (how many maps have Peak terrain to take advantage of and enemies in the vicinity?), but I think I'd prefer Wyvern Lord to General for her. I'd rather just use Cormag though.
--
Innes
Level 1 Sniper
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 38(+7) 15(+1) 16(+3) 15 14 12(+2) 11(+2) 6 9 Ice
GROWTH 65(-10) 50(+10) 40 45 50(+5) 35(+15) 25
CAPS 60 27(+2) 30 25(-3) 30 24(-1) 23 6 9
Weapon levels: Bows S, +Icarus Bow, +Ballista
Skills:
Hit +15
Crit +10
Sure Shot (Level% to bypass hit check)
My thoughts:
If you want a Sniper, here you go. He's been improved a bit since vanilla, too, and his bases are better all-around (although mostly in terms of survivability, which is odd since he shouldn't be on the front lines that much).
I would probably love Snipers in this hack if not for the lowered speed cap, which is just frustrating. Otherwise, they have access to the 1-2 range Icarus Bow and portable Ballistae (which have animations now!), so they could fill a similar role as mages. Except still worse, because they don't have staff utility, but it would still be fun. I don't think they're awful, they're just one-trick ponies.
I wanted to like Innes, I like the character, but I just couldn't fit him in.
It's probably worth having at least one bow user so Nidhogg doesn't go to waste, and Innes can easily slot in if you're not using Neimi or Garcia (or Gerik, I guess, but I like him better in Hero). Those four are the only potential bow users you get.
Innes does get new battle sprites with his long coat (in fact I think they're the same sprites vilkacis made for the Restoration Queen LP?), so that's neat.
--
Gerik
Level 14 Mercenary
Promotions: Hero, Ranger
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 38(+6) 16(+2) 15(+2) 14(+1) 9(+1) 13(+3) 5(+1) 5 10(-3) Thunder
GROWTH 70(-20) 45 50(+10) 35(+5) 30 35 25
H CAPS 60 26(+1) 28(-2) 26 30 25 25(+3) 6 12
R CAPS 60 23(-2) 26(-2) 30 30 22(-2) 26(+3) 8(+1) 11(+2)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Swords C
Weapon levels (Hero): Swords B, Axes B
Weapon levels (Ranger): Swords B, Bows A
Skills:
Hero:
+2 DEF on outdoor maps, +2 RES on indoor maps
2.5x weapon might against Dragon units
1.5x weapon might against Monster units
Ranger:
Damage +2 when using bows
Ambush/Vantage (attack first in all fights)
My thoughts:
Gerik in Sacred War isn't nearly as amazing as I remember him being from vanilla. This is weird, among other things, because his growths have been improved slightly. The changes to his bases are a bit of a mixed bag - he does have better stats, but his level has been increased by 4 and he'd probably be better off if he'd gained those levels naturally, and his CON has been reduced substantially. Gerik is a character who was noteworthy for having excellent bases for his level and being able to coast on them, which he can't really do now with the stronger enemies. He's iffy on speed and luck, which is going to give him avoid problems, and his defences aren't that solid either. Also, with the lower CON, it's no longer as obvious a choice to have him use axes.
Also, he joins at the same time as Tethys, but with the changes to her stats and her new class, she tends to overshadow him.
Ranger as a promotion still doesn't really help him, though. He's not going to get anywhere near that speed cap, and Hero caps otherwise are better (Neimi makes a much better Ranger). The extra damage against dragons and monsters can also help give him a bit of a niche, though it's not that relevant (although he doesn't really have the stats to go against Manaketes in the postgame, only Bishops can manage that without legendary weapons).
He does have a very strong support triangle with Tethys and Marisa (which makes them a self-sufficient group that can work independently), but unlike in vanilla he's probably the weakest of the three.
--
Tethys
Level 1 Oracle (new class)
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 30(+12) 14(+13) 17(+15) 16(+4) 10 7(+2) 12(+8) 6(+1) 7(+2) Fire
GROWTH 60(-25) 40(+35) 55(+45) 45(-25) 60(-20) 30 40(-35)
CAPS 60 22(+12) 30(+20) 27(-3) 30 20(-4) 24(-2) 6(+1) 7
Weapon levels: Anima A, Staves A, +Wrath, +Mirage, +Sanctuary, +Holy Decree, +Second Wind
**Staves A gives access to: Charm (Berserk), Recover, Fortify
Skills:
none aside from class staves
My thoughts:
Tethys has been completely revamped, she is in an entirely new class (with custom sprites) that plays a different role than before. She no longer has the dancer ability (at least until postgame), but is now an effective mage and healer with access to a variety of unique buff/utility staves. Her caps are also pretty solid, although the 22 in magic is a bit low and can hold her back at times.
One other benefit is that, for some reason, Oracle seems to use the same experience gain formula as trainees (for non-staff EXP anyway), so if you have her fight she will rocket up in levels until slowing down a bit after level 10. Her base stats don't tell the full story of how effective she is because she levels up so fast. It's not out of the question to get her to level 10-15 on the map she joins alone. She's a solid character that takes zero effort to get going, which is nice.
The exclusive staves are interesting. They each apply a buff that lasts for 2 turns. She comes with Mirage, which gives +10 avoid; I've never really seen cause to use this, though if you're holding a chokepoint with an already dodgy unit it might be worth it. There is also Wrath (+10 crit), which I see even less call for given the elevated crit rates a lot of units already get. Both of those have 25 uses and are therefore not that pricey. Sanctuary and Holy Decree are insane, giving +10 DEF/RES or +10 STR/MAG respectively, though they're quite expensive (10k per staff and they only have 5 uses, so that's 2k gold per use) so I don't see them being used outside of postgame bosses. Second Wind is very expensive (65k) and functions as the Dancer ability, with unlimited uses. Weirdly, the opportunity cost feels higher, because this costs Tethys an inventory slot and she needs to carry so many things (spellbooks, staves, buffs), but it's still very worth it (her 22 magic cap starts to feel lacklustre in postgame content, but with Second Wind that doesn't matter, and I really needed that utility in some of the later Rift maps).
How they actually work is a bit weird. They go into Anima rather than Staves in the convoy (which I always forget and wonder why I can't find them), and you use them from the Items menu rather than Staff. The buff is applied as a status condition (e.g. Poison, Sleep etc), and you can't use it on someone who already has a condition. You do not see the stat changes reflected on the character's stat screen, but you may see it in the derived stats (e.g. Holy Decree changes ATK but not STR). This also means these buffs can stack with the Pure Water/Barrier effect, and of course with stat-boosting accessories. One downside is that you cannot use Second Wind on a unit suffering a status condition; this might be a bug, or just lazy coding (Seal, would it really have been gamebreaking if these buff staves obsoleted Restore? They're still more expensive and only Oracles can use them.).
Outside of the gimmicky staves, Oracle is like a weaker Sage which sacrifices Light and Dark magic (and Rexfrost) for access to Berserk, Recover and Fortify. (Recover might actually be relevant, also, thanks to the staff healing nerf that uses MAG/2. Fortify is better used by a Valkyrie for the same reason.)
--
Marisa
Level 13 Myrmidon
Promotions: Swordmaster, Assassin
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 27(+4) 10(+3) 15(+3) 16(+3) 14(+5) 6(+2) 6(+3) 5 8(+3) Ice
GROWTH 55(-15) 30 60(+5) 60 55(+5) 20(+5) 35(+10)
SM CAPS 60 23(+1) 26(-4) 30 30 22 24(-1) 7(+1) 9(+2)
A CAPS 60 22(+2) 30 27(-3) 30 20 20 7(+1) 8(+1)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Swords C
Weapon levels (Swordmaster): Swords S, +Astra Blade
Weapon levels (Assassin): Swords A, +Lethal Edge
Skills:
Swordmaster:
Crit +30
Assassin:
Crit +5
Lethality (Crit/2% to instantly kill)
Lockpick
My thoughts:
I liked Marisa a lot better here than in vanilla FE8, and I think that's mostly down to her improved bases. She had more strength than my Joshua and he was around level 17 when I got her, and while not incredible her bases were enough to work with.
Weirdly, Marisa gets new sprites in both of her promoted class options. The Assassin ones are a set I think I've seen floating around the FE romhacking community for years, while the Swordmaster ones look new and basically have a large ponytail instead of flowing hair. I don't really know what to make of them; the new swordmaster sprites look a bit clunky to me, honestly, and I think I preferred the normal female swordmaster.
Also of note is that, for some reason, Marisa as a female assassin gets 2 more points of strength cap than male assassins do. This is the only class which retains a gendered difference in stat caps, and tends to mean that if you want an Assassin it should probably be Marisa. Also, compare her caps in Assassin to Swordmaster, it's not a huge difference. Especially with supports, you can get her crit rate very high so triggering Lethality isn't out of the question.
As an Assassin, she also has Lockpick utility, which is nice given how big the maps are and how far apart chests can be (and, sometimes, you need to open doors for map triggers). I really appreciated having her around so I wasn't relying solely on Colm.
--
L'Arachel
Level 13 Troubadour
Promotions: Valkyrie, Oracle
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 28(+10) 9(+3) 10(+4) 14(+4) 15(+3) 7(+2) 13(+5) 6 5 Light
GROWTH 50(+5) 40(-10) 50(+5) 50(+5) 65 25(+10) 40(-10)
V CAPS 60 22(-3) 26(+2) 30(+5) 30 20(-4) 28 7 7(+1)
O CAPS 60 22(+12) 30(+20) 27(-3) 30 20(-4) 24(-2) 6(+1) 7
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Staves C
Weapon levels (Valkyrie): Staves S, Light A, +Salvation, +Rescue, +Warp
Weapon levels (Oracle): Anima A, Staves A, +Wrath, +Mirage, +Sanctuary, +Holy Decree, +Second Wind
**Staves A will encompass Charm (Berserk), Recover, Fortify
Skills:
Valkyrie:
Heal +15 (affects all healing staves)
Avoid +5
Oracle:
none aside from class staves
My thoughts:
L'Arachel is clearly intended to be a staff specialist in this hack, though she still works fine as a combat unit. Her avoid goes through the roof and, while she's unfortunately stuck with a 22 Magic cap in both her classes, she'll get there pretty quickly. She's also a bit easier to get going since she's closer to promotion than she would have been in vanilla. She's really strong.
She gets unique sprites if promoted to Valkyrie, also. As an Oracle she'll look like a green palette swap of Tethys.
The Heal +15 that Valkyries get makes them much more efficient at healing than other classes (using e.g. Heal or Mend with a Valkyrie feels more like those did in vanilla, versus the nerfed numbers they get from everyone else), and can easily turn Fortify into "fully heal your entire group". Salvation is overkill, it's an upgraded Physic but that's probably close to a full heal already (Physic is 20+MAG/2, Salvation is 40+MAG/2, but add 15 to both). Valkyries are also the sole potential users of Rescue and Warp (though note Warp isn't available until postgame, and Rescue is limited availability until then).
My thoughts on her promotion path are basically this: you want at least one Valkyrie for the healing utility and Warp/Rescue, and L'Arachel is perfect for that. If you really want two Oracles (I guess they can technically dance each other across the map with Second Wind), you can do that, but you should definitely make Natasha a Valkyrie then. I think two Oracles is needlessly gimmicky and not worth it, honestly (not to mention L'Arachel with the Oracle sprites looks weird), but it's certainly A Thing You Can Do.
I really liked the support triangle with Eirika and Ephraim, though I will note that all three of them are in demand as support partners for other people, and that doing this made it much harder to get the rest of my group fully supported.
--
Dozla
Level 1 Berserker
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 43 17(+1) 12(+1) 15(+6) 8(+4) 11 6 7 14(-2) Thunder
GROWTH 75(-10) 55(+5) 35 55(+15) 40(+10) 30 25
CAPS 60 30 20(-9) 30(+2) 30 22(-1) 22 7(+1) 14
Weapon levels: Axes S, +Guillotine, +Devil Axe
Skills:
Crit +25
Hit +5
Damage +5
My thoughts:
Dozla would be utter garbage in vanilla Sacred Stones if the game itself weren't so easy it doesn't matter. He's the only Berserker aside from Ross, so if you want one and either don't like Ross or want Ross to be something else (or want two Berserkers), he's what you have to work with. I find him a bit unsatisfying because he's never quite as good as I want him to be, but he can certainly get by.
Dozla's bases have been much improved, mainly his atrocious speed has been fixed, and that makes a huge difference. His speed growth is also quite good now. He still doesn't have much else going for him though, he has good strength and good speed but rubbish everywhere else, and will have worse avoid than Ross due to low luck. He does have 1 more CON than Ross, which could be relevant with one or two specific weapons.
Berserkers tend to have hit issues no matter what you do, between the low skill cap and low hit rates on axes (especially their exclusive ones). These hit issues have me frustrated even with Ross in the lategame/postgame content, and I worry they'd be even worse with Dozla. (It's not a problem when using a Slim Axe or Iron Axe, but those have low enough might you're basically sacrificing all the advantages of axes to use them.)
--
Saleh
Level 1 Sage
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 35(+5) 17(+1) 18 18(+4) 11 10(+2) 13 6 8 Wind
GROWTH 60(+10) 35(+5) 40(+15) 50(+10) 40 30 35
CAPS 60 27(-1) 28(-2) 29(+3) 30 20(-1) 24(-1) 6 8
Weapon levels: Anima B, Light B, Dark B, Staves C, +Rexfrost
Skills:
Hit +5 Dmg +1 when using Anima
Hit +5 Crit +5 when using Light
Dmg +1 Crit +5 when using Dark
My thoughts:
Saleh is... fine. Sages are great in Sacred War and while the other potential Sages are all better than him, he'll get the job done well enough. He's slightly worse than Artur, Lute, or Moulder would be at promotion, and his growths are worse than theirs (ugh, 35 magic, but the rest is fine). He does have 1 more CON than Artur and Lute get as Sages, which might matter, since they've all got a decent shot at capping speed.
I've always found Saleh disappointing for the simple reason that he isn't Pent. FE7 set some unfortunate expectations for me of what a prepromoted Sage should look like, and subsequent games never measured up.
He can heal and like all Sages has access to an absurd variety of weapons, so if you have a slot in your team he's not a bad choice. I already had two Sages, two Bishops, and Tethys, so I didn't see any reason to bother.
--
Ewan
Level 1 Pupil
Promotions: Mage (Sage, Mage Knight), Shaman (Druid, Summoner), Pupil+ (Sage, Summoner)
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 15 4(+1) 3(+1) 6(+1) 7(+2) 2(+2) 5(+2) 4 5 Light
GROWTH 55(+5) 45 45(+5) 50(+5) 50 25(+10) 35(-5)
SG CAPS 60 27(-1) 28(-2) 29(+3) 30 20(-1) 24(-1) 6 7
MK CAPS 60 24 25(-1) 25 30 24 25(-1) 7 9(+1)
DR CAPS 60 30(+1) 24(-2) 23(-3) 30 22(+1) 27(-2) 6 10(+2)
SU CAPS 60 26(-1) 27 26 30 23(+3) 24(-4) 6 8
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Anima D
Weapon levels (Mage, Pupil+): Anima C
Weapon levels (Shaman): Dark C
Weapon levels (Sage): Anima B, Light B, Dark B, Staves C, +Rexfrost
Weapon levels (Mage Knight): Anima A, Staves A, +Light Brand, +Soul Brand, +Peacemaker
Weapon levels (Druid): Dark S, Staves C, +Extinction, +Hel
Weapon levels (Summoner): Anima A, Dark A, Staves C
Skills:
Sage:
Hit +5 Dmg +1 when using Anima
Hit +5 Crit +5 when using Light
Dmg +1 Crit +5 when using Dark
Mage Knight:
1.5x avoid bonuses from terrain
-3 damage taken when equipped with Light Brand or Soul Brand
-5 damage taken when equipped with Peacemaker
Druid:
Hit +5
Crit +15
Damage +2
Summoner:
Summon (note Phantoms now have 30 max HP at level 1, increasing with levels)
My thoughts:
I've never really liked Ewan, he joins very late and takes so much babying (and grinding) to get going, and the reward isn't that great considering he's not even better than the mages you already have. In Sacred War the level disparity is even more pronounced since only trainees didn't get their levels and bases adjusted upward, but also he can be a lot more rewarding because he has access to several good classes, some of which are rare. Knoll is the only other character with access to either Druid or Summoner, and Lute is the only other potential Mage Knight (barring Selena).
Sages are great, as always, though you have many other potentials (Lute, Artur, Moulder, Saleh) who are as good if not better (if you were looking at him in a vacuum and ignoring concerns of team composition, I think Sage would be his best option). Mage Knight is hard to justify. Druid and Summoner both have quite strong points in their favour.
First, Summoner. Summoners now have Anima A in addition to Dark and Staves, so they can be quite versatile (if nothing else, this also gives access to Arcwind). They also have a better Speed cap than Druids. Phantoms have been buffed in Sacred War: they now have 30 max HP at level 1, which increases with the summoner's level, so they can survive a hit or two and can be used as meat shields. Phantoms are fun. Ewan's phantom does have (IMO) worse growths than Knoll's (and Lyon's), though, so it might be better to have him take a different route unless you want as many phantoms as possible. (Ewan's phantom has the highest strength at 60 but an atrocious 30 speed.)
Which leads us to Druid. I think what this hack did with Druids is very weird. They've given their Anima rank to Summoners, instead becoming pure Dark specialists (which in practice just means access to Extinction and Hel). They are also the only class with a 30 magic cap, though they have 23 speed, which means they're likely to hit hard but not double. That 30 magic and Hit +5 might make it worth trying a Sleep or Silence staff with them (although at C rank they can't use Charm/Berserk). Extinction is reaver magic, which sounds interesting until you realise that every other class with Dark access can use Anima, and stat-wise it's no better than Fenrir or Nosferatu (or Arcfire). The main selling point of Druids is Hel. Hel is basically FE7 Luna, without the +15 critical (but notice Druids get that from their skill), with 1-3 range but only 5 uses per tome. This is insane. But at 5 uses, this is impractical to use against anything but bosses; that said, the postgame has a lot of bosses with maxed-out stats that are difficult to damage, so that's where Druids can shine. They're a specialised boss-killing class and not much else. If it were me I'd at least have given them Staves B, they feel overspecialised.
Ewan looks very goofy as a Druid or Summoner, though, his colour palette just doesn't fit.
I ended up making Knoll a Summoner. After making that decision, I decided to keep Ewan in reserve in case I come up against a boss I can't beat without Hel, in which case I can grind him up to Druid so as not to be stuck. If I can unlock Lyon without him, then all bets are off, because Lyon can also use Hel. (I was able to unlock Lyon without using a Druid, so I never bothered promoting him in the end.)
--
Cormag
Level 14 Wyvern Rider
Promotions: Wyvern Knight, Wyvern Lord
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 35(+5) 16(+2) 14(+5) 12(+2) 7(+3) 15(+3) 4(+2) 7 9 Fire
GROWTH 70(-15) 60(+5) 50(+10) 40(-5) 35 45(+20) 20(+5)
WK CAPS 60 22(-3) 24(-2) 30(+2) 30 24 25(+3) 9(+1) 9(-1)
WL CAPS 60 28(+1) 27(+2) 23 30 28 22 7(-1) 13(+2)
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Lances C
Weapon levels (Wyvern Knight): Lances S, +Storm Spear
Weapon levels (Wyvern Lord): Swords B, Lances B, Axes B
Skills:
Wyvern Knight:
Pierce (level% chance to ignore enemy's defence)
Wyvern Lord:
Not vulnerable to effective damage from bows or wind magic
Receive terrain bonuses despite flying
My thoughts:
Cormag is pretty good. He joins with solid stats for an unpromoted unit, and he can fly.
The only thing I don't like about Cormag is that his stats and growths align very well with Wyvern Lord, while they're very awkward in Wyvern Knight. This ends up making the choice of promotion route a bit awkward, because Wyvern Lord can be a disappointing class (I always harp on these low speed caps but it's nevertheless a thing) but he will be disappointing in Wyvern Knight (his best growths will ram caps and the stats he'd have good caps in line up with his weaker growths, so look forward to those empty levels).
I'm pretty sure it's just optimal to promote him to Wyvern Lord. I consciously chose to ignore this, because I promoted all the pegs to Falcoknight for the triangle attack and I wanted a Wyvern Knight. It's worked out fine (Storm Spear is so good it makes up for a lot), although his speed is a bit disappointing.
After fighting some Wyvern Lords in postgame content, I have to say the skill is better than I gave it credit for; being able to fly over Peak terrain and get the avoid bonus is situational but strong when it happens, and rough terrain is more common than I expected (e.g. at least half of the maps that replace Lagdou Ruins are now outdoors).
Supporting him with Tana works out pretty well for both of them, I think, since they have similar movement ranges.
--
Rennac
Level 1 Rogue
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 35(+7) 12(+2) 16 22(+5) 10(+5) 9 14(+3) 8(+2) 7 Dark
GROWTH 65 45(+20) 45 55(-5) 25 35(+10) 25(-5)
CAPS 60 20 26(-4) 30 30 22(+2) 22(+2) 8(+2) 7
Weapon levels: Swords A
Skills:
Steal
Pick (open doors and chests without keys)
Avoid +5
My thoughts:
Rennac has been seriously improved. Look at that speed! He's gotten significant boosts to his bases across the board, but no increase in level. He can fend for himself immediately upon joining and probably compete with Colm even if he's turned out decently (22 speed is what Colm would have if it was capped at promotion). He has the speed he needs for stealing, and that's what matters. Colm has much better luck and therefore avoid, though Rennac is probably better at taking hits.
The problem is that you don't really need two thieves past the point where he joins (ironically, the map I most wanted a second thief was the map he joins in Ephraim's route, but my need for thieves was mostly over before getting him), and if you have Assassin Marisa that's also lessened a bit since she can use Lockpicks. The stealable items also seem to have dried up in the postgame, as far as I can tell, and Rogues aren't likely to be very effective as combat units at that point.
Deploy him if you need more thieves, that's basically all there is to it. If there weren't so many items to steal before you have access to him, I'd probably use him over Colm, but because there are he ends up being redundant.
--
Duessel
Level 5 Great Knight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 50(+9) 18(+1) 15(+3) 13(+1) 8 19(+2) 15(+6) 7(+1) 15 Anima
GROWTH 75(-10) 50(-5) 40 35(+5) 20 45 35(+5)
CAPS 60 27(-1) 24 25(+1) 30 26(-3) 24(-1) 7(+1) 15
Weapon levels: Swords B, Lances B, Axes B, +Francisca
Skills:
-1 Damage Taken
Saviour (no skill or speed penalty while rescuing; AID=CON-1)
Double weapon might against: Archers, Snipers, Skeleton Archers and Legion Archers
My thoughts:
I've always thought of Duessel as a Jeigan-type character and therefore never really used him, but he's perfectly fine. More so here when he's been reduced to level 5 and also gotten significant boosts to his bases across the board. He might have some speed issues, but he's probably going to cap HP and defence, and has decent odds to cap strength. He's very solid and can fill a slot immediately if you need him, but I never used him.
I don't really like Great Knights, and in the long term Seth is still an unfortunate point of comparison, but he's fine. He does have better CON than the other potential Great Knights, if that matters (he can use a Great Axe without penalty).
Francisca is a solid weapon, a 1-2 range axe which grants +15 maximum HP.
--
Knoll
Level 16 Shaman
Promotions: Druid, Summoner
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 32(+10) 16(+3) 14(+5) 12(+4) 5(+5) 8(+6) 14(+4) 5 8(+1) Dark
GROWTH 65(-5) 60(+10) 40 35 20 35(+25) 45
DR CAPS 60 30(+1) 24(-2) 23(-3) 30 22(+1) 27(-2) 6 10(+2)
SU CAPS 60 26(-1) 27 26 30 23(+3) 24(-4) 6 8
Weapon levels (unpromoted): Dark C
Weapon levels (Druid): Dark S, Staves C, +Extinction, +Hel
Weapon levels (Summoner): Anima A, Dark A, Staves C
Skills:
Druid:
Hit +5
Crit +15
Damage +2
Summoner:
Summon (note Phantoms now have 30 max HP at level 1, increasing with levels)
My thoughts:
While Knoll is no longer our sole dark user (aside from possibly Ewan) thanks to Sages' access to the full magic trinity, both of his potential classes offer him interesting niches. I think it's almost a shame that he no longer has 0 base Luck though, that was a nice story integration touch. That said, I'm not going to complain his bases are this heavily improved, he's a lot easier to use and get up to speed now.
Luck and defence are always going to be something of a problem for him, and his speed is iffy. Look at that magic, though!
Looking just at his growths and caps, he might want to lean Druid. That isn't a bad choice for him, although it relegates him to a niche role; the lack of speed means he's tricky to use as a frontline fighter and is more likely to be taking potshots and healing the rest of the time (until it's time for him to break out Hel against bosses, anyway). Of course, this sideline role is probably what he'll take as a Summoner also, but there he'll have longer-range magic and can send Phantoms to the front lines in his place.
Knoll's Phantom has the best speed growth of all phantoms, with a slightly lower strength to compensate (40 strength, 60 speed). This still works out pretty well, it has the best avoid as phantoms go so might last longer. If you want a Summoner, Knoll is the best candidate.
The real question is whether Summoners are worthwhile. It's a bit gimmicky and while an expendable unit is a novel luxury in a game like Fire Emblem, phantoms are fragile enough they don't work well in chokepoints, their damage is weak against meaningful enemies, and you get no experience for combats they participate in. On the other hand, they make great lures to throw into an enemy's range to pull them out of position, and they're dodgy enough they can sometimes last longer than you expect. My experience has been that you can get through defences with legendary weapons and/or stat-boosting accessories, but the phantom's ability to attract and distract is irreplaceable; I didn't regret having him take this route.
Knoll is a good character on either path, but since both of his classes are exclusive to him and Ewan, whatever choice he makes might consign Ewan to the other.
--
Myrrh
Level 1 Manakete
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 30(+15) 3 3(+2) 5 5(+2) 2 7 6 9(+4) !Dark!
GROWTH 150(+20)80(-10) 80(-5) 80(+15) 35(+5) 80(-60) 80(+50)
CAPS 60 20 20 25(+5) 30 20 20 6 9(+4)
Weapon levels: Light A, Dark A, +Dragonstone, +Divinestone
Skills:
Receive terrain bonuses despite flying
Unaffected by effective damage and damage-multiplying skills
My thoughts:
Myrrh has been given quite a few extra capabilities but I'm not sure how much they matter. In the end, she's still a limited-use nuke (although you can buy Dragonstones and Divinestones at a high price in the postgame, so you don't have to be quite as sparing with her). Dragonstones are 1-2 range now, though, which makes her a lot more versatile.
Notably, there's no need to waste Dragonstone uses to level her up since she can now cast magic, just buy some Lightning or Flux books and grind her on the first floor of Valni. The existence of Rebirth Seals in the postgame means that, like Seth, she is a relatively easy character to max out (only her luck is unlikely to cap). That said, her stat caps are very low, I'd say unpromoted-class low except that unpromoted classes cap at 18 in Sacred War (and she does at least get 25 speed), so despite her new magic ranks she can't be used effectively as a mage.
She is one of the best characters for taking out maxed-stat bosses and enemy manaketes, thanks to the Dragonstone stat boosts. Even if you don't deploy her on the majority of maps, it is a very bad idea to not train Myrrh.
Do note that Hammerne staves still don't work on Dragonstones, so you need to buy extras if you want more uses. Selena does come with a free one in the postgame, though, as well as a Divinestone - which is ludicrously powerful but only gets one shot. These are also purchasable, but only in a few specific locations, extremely expensive, and should obviously be reserved for emergencies (or very specific bosses). Do note that Divinestones don't work on the final boss of the New Tower in v1.50, the game just won't let you attack with it.
Replaceable dragonstones does mean that it's no longer wasteful to give her supports, at least (and she probably wants them, there are a lot of capped-everything bosses in the postgame that she'll have shaky hit against otherwise). She can be a full member of your team for as long as you want her to, although her weaponry is more expensive to maintain than other characters', and she's worth every penny of it against the ludicrous bosses this hack starts throwing at you.
--
Syrene
Level 5 Falcoknight
code:
HP S/M Skl Spd Lck Def Res Mov Con Affin
BASE 40(+13) 17(+5) 19(+6) 19(+4) 17(+5) 15(+5) 16(+4) 8 8(+1) Thunder
GROWTH 60(-10) 55(+15) 45(-5) 45(-15) 40(+10) 40(+20) 20(-30)
CAPS 60 24(+1) 30(+5) 27 30 20(-4) 30(+4) 8 8
Weapon levels: Swords A, Lances A, +Blessed Lance, +Winged Spear
Skills:
Crit +20
Avoid +5
My thoughts:
Holy shit, Syrene is... good? She used to be widely considered the worst character in FE8, and with good reason, her bases were just too low for her level and she would never catch up, not to mention her join time (the only reason she wasn't a Jeigan is that she joins very late). That said, vanilla FE8 was so easy she could get by if you really wanted to. Here... well, take a look at those stats. She's solid across the board and has actual growths! (Look at that strength!) She also has two more points of CON than Vanessa and Tana will as Falcoknights, which are actually a point in her favour.
The fact that Syrene is this good influences my thoughts on what should be done with Vanessa and Tana, also. Why not use the Triangle Attack when all three characters involved are good enough to be using already? (That said, individually the other two might be better off as Wyvern Knights, I just like looking for excuses not to.)