Author Topic: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones  (Read 65172 times)

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Offline noname2200

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #125 on: January 30, 2012, 03:49:02 PM »
...
I made the other choice. On Hard Mode, of course, because I am a man and I declare my manhood by taking on meaningless challenges in obscure videogames. :P: :
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Offline Ceric

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #126 on: January 30, 2012, 03:53:25 PM »
...
I made the other choice. On Hard Mode, of course, because I am a man and I declare my manhood by taking on meaningless challenges in obscure videogames. :P: :
..
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Offline Da Jarvis

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #127 on: January 30, 2012, 09:13:33 PM »

As of now Ch. 15 I am seriously considering doing this chapter with only Ewan and Amelia just to see it happen.  In fact I think I could do it with just Amelia and enough ammo.
 
Though I probably bring Tethys to speed it along.


Chapter 15 is a VERY HARD MAP! It's easily one of the hardest levels in the game, and I can only imagine how Glad0s is going to fair up with that one xD. What does your team consist of? It could be the units you are using that is making it more challenging.
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Offline Da Jarvis

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #128 on: January 30, 2012, 09:21:07 PM »

Quick Question before I go, has everyone how with Erica, cause I swear I haven't seem one person pick her brothers side of the story. I am planning to go with her brother as of now, but I was just seeing if anyone else was going to or has done the same. Of course this depends on how far I get today, but I am sure I can mange to get a few chapter done before tonight xD

I made the other choice. On Hard Mode, of course, because I am a man and I declare my manhood by taking on meaningless challenges in obscure videogames. :P:

Question for you though: you seem like the only person here who's in a position to have tried the Link Arena. Did you ever give it a go back in the day and, if so, how was it? I was always intrigued, but I didn't know anyone else who owned a copy of the game on the GBA, so I never got to try it out.


You know, now that I think about it, I have only played and completeled one Fire Emblem game on Hard, and that was the previous one on GBA, and I did that on Hector Hard Mode xD. For whatever reason, I have never had the drive to want to play Sacred Stones on hard mode, but maybe I will get around to it someday xD.


To answer your question, yes I have played the Link Arena countless times in both this one and the previous game. I actually have two copies of each game, each with 3 teams so that way my friends didn't have an excuss when they said they didn't have the game. I guess I did it cause I hated deleting my saves and teams on the Link Arena when I was younger xD. To me, the Link Arena is alright. You don't really earn anything for winning and the strategy is taken away when you are just forced to pick units to fight. I do like the amount of units you have a choice of, but it usual boils down to teams of Joshua, Ross, Amelia, Ewan, and some random 5th character xD.
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Offline Da Jarvis

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #129 on: January 30, 2012, 09:51:17 PM »
Back again with a quick update on how I have been thus far. I am at about the 3-4 hour mark at this point and there where a few things I wanted to say:


1) Is anyone else finding the game to easy when they grind? During Level 5 (The level you aquire Joshua), I just kept using the Arena until I gained Joshua to level 11, Natasha to level 6, and Neimi to 12 before I finally got sick of the chapter and killed the boss with Ross to gain him to level 10 so he could premote from Journeyman to Pirate. I am really surprised with just how easy it is to get these weak characters up to there prime, but that is the best part of the game I guess. I am currently at Chapter 8 and have 2 units (Neimi and Joshua) who are already at level 15, with Erica and Colm at 10. Also, Ross is at like 6 or so and Vanessa is at level 9. I am just really surprised with my little set of units I guess xD.


2) Coming back to this game, I realize why I love these games so much: The portablity of this game is amazing. It really is the only game I can turn off the system, turn it back on, and be right back to where I was before. Granted, this can screw you over when you need to restart the mission, but for me personally, it does more good then anything. I have always been a really out and about guy, usually not having the luxury of playing a console unless it's the weekend or a day off, but that isn't every weekend either. Most of my gaming is done on the go and this game STILL TODAY has one of, if not, the best portablity of any game. It's one of the few games I can get away with playing at work, and I love the idea of being able to make a couple turns, and turning off the system and get back to what you where doing an hour later. I mean, personally, it reminds me a lot of Words with Friends (The Cell Phone game). I know they are two seprate games, the idea of portablity is identical. WwF is a game where you can make a turn, and then get back to it later without losing your progress. I mean, it's why most of the cell phone games strive today and you can even see this in Virtual Console games (On Wii for sure, but IDK about the 3DS as I don't have one). You only have a few minutes to play Chrono Trigger and you aren't by a save check? No problem. Just end the game on your Wii/iPhone (it's on both now) and you can get back to it when you have the time. Simply put, without Fire Emblem leading the way with this, I don't think we would be where we are with portable gaming. This of course might just be me xD
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Offline doug

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #130 on: January 31, 2012, 07:41:46 AM »
This is my first Fire Emblem game, and I’m loving it so far. There’s no way I would have picked this up if it wasn’t for RetroActive. So glad to be taking part.

I’m not very far into the game. Each map tends to take me about an hour if I don’t restart. Is it normal to check what move every enemy can make before pushing forwards each turn, in order to make the best possible moves?

I totally agree with Da Jarvis about how great the auto-saving is. Run out of battery power, or suddenly need to stop playing? No problem: you’ll loose nothing. I wish all games worked like this. As far as I can tell, the suspend command does nothing and is just a user interface trick in case you don’t trust the auto-save.

Offline Da Jarvis

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #131 on: January 31, 2012, 02:45:50 PM »
Each map tends to take me about an hour if I don’t restart. Is it normal to check what move every enemy can make before pushing forwards each turn, in order to make the best possible moves?

I totally agree with Da Jarvis about how great the auto-saving is. Run out of battery power, or suddenly need to stop playing? No problem: you’ll loose nothing. I wish all games worked like this. As far as I can tell, the suspend command does nothing and is just a user interface trick in case you don’t trust the auto-save.


No, that's what your supposed to do xD. I do that all the time, and it really comes in hand during the later levels.


The suspend command is just there for you to get back to the main menu if you don't want to go through the hassle of shuting off your system, but it is pretty much useless xD
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Offline Da Jarvis

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #132 on: January 31, 2012, 03:12:54 PM »
I am at the 6 hour mark now and have found a rough spot where I have already had to reset twice because of me being greedy xD. I am on Chapter 12 of Ephrim's story and I forgot how hard it is to recruit Marisa since you have to do it with Ewen :(. I was about the beat the chapter and recruit her, but an archer came from the corner of the level and killed Vanessa :(. I will probably beat it later tonight, but I do appreciate the game getting harder after Chapter 10. Hopefully at this rate, I will beat the game before RFN talks about it xD
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Offline leahsdad

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #133 on: February 01, 2012, 09:13:26 AM »

I’m not very far into the game. Each map tends to take me about an hour if I don’t restart. Is it normal to check what move every enemy can make before pushing forwards each turn, in order to make the best possible moves?


Only if you want to win.  :-)

I mean, I'm sure I'm only putting into words what everyone else is already doing, but you follow a procedure each time you play a map:  check what move each enemy can make, and plan your moves accordingly.  This is especially true due to the fact that the "AI" is VERY PREDICTABLE.  This is true in all turn-based strategy games, not just FE or Sacred Stones, but basically, the "AI" will always attack the weakest unit within its move/attack range.   Without fail.  For example, if Eirika and Natasha are both within the range of an enemy unit, that enemy will always attack Natasha, even though a smart enemy would probably attack Eirika because that would result in a game over, rather than just a casualty of war.  There also seems to be a "heirarchy of weakness" that the enemy categories all your units in:  attack damaged weak units first (magic users), then weak units, then range-only units, then damaged strong units, and strong units only if there are no other targets in range.  Which is hilarious and can be gamed to great effectiveness:   If one of your stronger units are low on health, move a magic-user at full health within the enemy's attack range.   It seems that the enemy will always go for the magic user, even if one attack on the weakened strong unit will finish it off.  It's a smart way to "save" your weakened unit.

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Offline doug

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #134 on: February 01, 2012, 11:13:26 AM »
I was going to ask whether the AI gets smarter or less predictable later in the game. I guess not.

I don’t remember the Advance Wars AI being so predictable (although it’s a few years since I last played it). Also because Advance Wars doesn’t have permanent death, you can successfully adopt a wider variety of strategies (such as making sacrifices). For these reasons, I remember Advance Wars battles as being more fun and rewarding, compared to a single map in FE.

Offline noname2200

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #135 on: February 01, 2012, 12:34:07 PM »

To answer your question, yes I have played the Link Arena countless times in both this one and the previous game. I actually have two copies of each game, each with 3 teams so that way my friends didn't have an excuss when they said they didn't have the game. I guess I did it cause I hated deleting my saves and teams on the Link Arena when I was younger xD. To me, the Link Arena is alright. You don't really earn anything for winning and the strategy is taken away when you are just forced to pick units to fight. I do like the amount of units you have a choice of, but it usual boils down to teams of Joshua, Ross, Amelia, Ewan, and some random 5th character xD.

Thanks for the response, I'd always been curious to know the details. I kind of figured it would be something like you described, although I like the fact that the developers put in something to reward those players who want to maximize their characters' potential. I'm surprised Myrrh isn't more popular though! Granted, a beefed-up Joshua or Ewan could probably pound her without getting scratched...


1) Is anyone else finding the game to easy when they grind?

 I find Sacred Stones to generally be easy even without grinding. I think it's because the majority of the enemies you fight tend to be the type that only attacks when you get in range, in contrast to the other titles where more enemies tend to swarm you. My memory could be playing tricks on me there, though.
 

I’m not very far into the game. Each map tends to take me about an hour if I don’t restart. Is it normal to check what move every enemy can make before pushing forwards each turn, in order to make the best possible moves?

This is especially true due to the fact that the "AI" is VERY PREDICTABLE.  This is true in all turn-based strategy games, not just FE or Sacred Stones, but basically, the "AI" will always attack the weakest unit within its move/attack range.   Without fail.  For example, if Eirika and Natasha are both within the range of an enemy unit, that enemy will always attack Natasha, even though a smart enemy would probably attack Eirika because that would result in a game over, rather than just a casualty of war.  There also seems to be a "heirarchy of weakness" that the enemy categories all your units in:  attack damaged weak units first (magic users), then weak units, then range-only units, then damaged strong units, and strong units only if there are no other targets in range.  Which is hilarious and can be gamed to great effectiveness:   If one of your stronger units are low on health, move a magic-user at full health within the enemy's attack range.   It seems that the enemy will always go for the magic user, even if one attack on the weakened strong unit will finish it off.  It's a smart way to "save" your weakened unit.

 Good observation! You're generally right, although there are a few wrinkles added in. Generally, the AI will prefer to attack any unit that can't fight back, i.e. clerics and disarmed characters, then ranged attacks on units without a ranged weapon. I have occasionally been surprised by an exception to the latter rule though: once, Neimi died because two magic users ignored a axe-armed Ross to double-team her. I was quite stunned, actually...

I was going to ask whether the AI gets smarter or less predictable later in the game. I guess not.

I don’t remember the Advance Wars AI being so predictable (although it’s a few years since I last played it). Also because Advance Wars doesn’t have permanent death, you can successfully adopt a wider variety of strategies (such as making sacrifices). For these reasons, I remember Advance Wars battles as being more fun and rewarding, compared to a single map in FE.

 Regarding the AI, you are misremembering. The first GBA title in particular was incredibly predictable: transports (full or not) always get hit first, then ranged units, then down the line. I'd complain, but exploiting those tendencies was basically the only way to beat the Advanced Campaign, especially that hellish bonus mission.
 
 As for whether FE or AW is better, I think that's quite subjective, so I'm not going to judge anyone for picking one over the other. You're definitely right that they offer very different experiences, in spite of both being turn-based strategy titles from the same developer. I personally lean towards FE, since I like the feeling of completing a battle without losing anybody, but Advance Wars is better for the feeling that you're in a large, sprawling battle. This is doubly so since AW can have up to four armies duking it out at once, for maximum chaos!
 
 

Offline Ceric

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #136 on: February 01, 2012, 12:41:33 PM »
The AI in this type of game needs to be predictable at some level or it would be Rape time all the time.

Though in some interpretations of this genre the AI is Unit Dependent.
 
I put AW in a different sub-Genre then FE.  For a very clear reason.  Resource management and unit building.
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Offline Da Jarvis

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #137 on: February 01, 2012, 02:57:03 PM »
I am now at the 12 hour mark and I am just barely about to start Chapter 15. I know I should be further, but two things happend that just screamed, "EXPLOIT GAME HERE!!!"


1) During Chapter 12 (I am playing Ephriam's Route), I noticed there was a Arena there that I could train my guys in, and on top of it, if it looked like I was going to lose, I could just back out at the price of 700 gold or something. I ended up coming out with 3 characters promoted after level 20 (Joshua to Swordmaster, Forde to Paladin, and Kyle to Great Knight), Marisa at level 12, Ewan to Level 10 so he could promote at the begining of the next level to Shaman, and a spare 30,000 Gold in my pocket. That level alone took me about an hour and a half without the animations on and if I didn't grind, probably would of only took me 20 minutes. For me, that was the hardest level thus far, then again, I have heard 15 is exactly very fun either xD.


2) During the last chapter (Chapter 14), I recruited Rennac and gained access to the Secret Shop. With about 40,000 or so in my hand, I knew I could buy about 4 extra promotion items to get some of my units up to there next respective classes. All I had left was the Boss (Which was a big General with a huge sume of health), and after looking at the stats, I realized I could us Ewan to hit the boss and as long as I got him out of there before his turn (By rescuing him with another character), I could just gain experince endlessly since Ewan didn't even do enough Damage to even phase the guy. He would just recover that damaga on the next turn and while doing this with Ewan (I think he was at level 19 or something at that point), I realized the Boss hadn't even attacked me back. I checked the Boss's Stats and it turns out I had broken his only weapon because he had hit Ewan so many times xD. After having a good laught and a few double takes just to be sure, was only left with a smile. 2 hours later, Ewan is a Druid, Marisa is a Assassin, Ross is a Berserker, Cormag is a Wyvern Lord, Tana is a FalcoKnight, and everyone else on my team who is unpromoted is at level 16 or higher. I would of kept going, but Gerik pulled a 1% chance Critical Hit out of nowhere and killed the boss. I guess it's what I get for trying to exploit the game. It got to the point where the game wanted me to just stop xD.


I know the next level is supposed to be challanging, but I am worried it might be to easy most of my units are way stronger then they should be at this point. I didn't even struggle with Chapter 14 (Beat it on my First Try), and a lot of people said they really didn't like that chapter at all.
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Offline Da Jarvis

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #138 on: February 01, 2012, 03:01:29 PM »
I also agree with everyone about the AI, but Ceric has a point. The game would be really frustrating if there wasn't some kind of patern to fallow to help you out. I mean, could you imagine how many restarts there would be if the game only went for Lords and if say Bosses could move? That would be beyond evil. IDK if anyone has played Fire Emblem 6 (The one with Roy and the GBA game that only came out in Japan), but that game is brutal simply because the game targets the lord first before anyone and bosses aren't afraid to leave there spots to kill off your units.
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Offline Da Jarvis

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #139 on: February 01, 2012, 03:06:01 PM »

To answer your question, yes I have played the Link Arena countless times in both this one and the previous game. I actually have two copies of each game, each with 3 teams so that way my friends didn't have an excuss when they said they didn't have the game. I guess I did it cause I hated deleting my saves and teams on the Link Arena when I was younger xD. To me, the Link Arena is alright. You don't really earn anything for winning and the strategy is taken away when you are just forced to pick units to fight. I do like the amount of units you have a choice of, but it usual boils down to teams of Joshua, Ross, Amelia, Ewan, and some random 5th character xD.

Thanks for the response, I'd always been curious to know the details. I kind of figured it would be something like you described, although I like the fact that the developers put in something to reward those players who want to maximize their characters' potential. I'm surprised Myrrh isn't more popular though! Granted, a beefed-up Joshua or Ewan could probably pound her without getting scratched...



Yeah, I had one team with her, but the problem is she is weak to the same thing as the dragons are. So Bows, Magic, and Anti-Dragon weapons like Dragon Spear and Dragon Axe are her huge downside, and normally people bring those to Link Arena xD.
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Offline Ceric

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #140 on: February 01, 2012, 04:03:42 PM »
Alright according to my timer I'm at 62 hours with this game on Chapter 16.

So I'm going way slower then I should.  Though I think a good chunk of that is were I forgot to back out of the game.

The flipside I'm pretty sure Ewan and Amelia could have soloed every Chapter since 13, (Yes the means Ewan would be soloing the mission you get Amelia.)

I'm tempted for kicks to buy a lot of Fire, since its the cheapest most use spell, and Iron Swords, same reason, and see how far up the tower I can get with just those two.

Right now though I'm trying to grind Knoll and Rennac.  I want to see a summoner.  I always forget about the Arena... I could use the gold.

Tethys is level 20.  I'm actually using her to tank for Knoll...
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Offline Glad0s

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #141 on: February 01, 2012, 04:05:08 PM »

As of now Ch. 15 I am seriously considering doing this chapter with only Ewan and Amelia just to see it happen.  In fact I think I could do it with just Amelia and enough ammo.
 
Though I probably bring Tethys to speed it along.


Chapter 15 is a VERY HARD MAP! It's easily one of the hardest levels in the game, and I can only imagine how Glad0s is going to fair up with that one xD. What does your team consist of? It could be the units you are using that is making it more challenging.


Oh no, if 15's harder than 14......Well, anyway, my party consists of Ephraim, Seth, Gilliam, Dozla, Duessel, Joshua, Gerik, and then by the time I get to the boss, Rennac.
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Offline leahsdad

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #142 on: February 01, 2012, 04:07:57 PM »
I mean, could you imagine how many restarts there would be if the game only went for Lords and if say Bosses could move? That would be beyond evil. IDK if anyone has played Fire Emblem 6 (The one with Roy and the GBA game that only came out in Japan), but that game is brutal simply because the game targets the lord first before anyone and bosses aren't afraid to leave there spots to kill off your units.

Yeah, Ghost Recon had a screwed up set of procedures like that for the "AI" where it would always go for the Russian girl, because that was a fail condition for the mission, which makes no sense, since losing any of your team was also a fail condition.


The AI in this type of game needs to be predictable at some level or it would be Rape time all the time.

HA HA HA HA!  I'm sorry, but that sentence just keeps making me laugh!   So funny and so true. 



 Regarding the AI, you are misremembering. The first GBA title in particular was incredibly predictable: transports (full or not) always get hit first, then ranged units, then down the line. I'd complain, but exploiting those tendencies was basically the only way to beat the Advanced Campaign, especially that hellish bonus mission.
 
 As for whether FE or AW is better, I think that's quite subjective, so I'm not going to judge anyone for picking one over the other.
 


Yeah, using transports as bait/bullet-magnets was a tactic that I relied on, because those suckers were fast and cheap.   But I would say AW was a different kind of game, much more chess-like than FE.  While there was no permanent death, there were situations where if you didn't do a certain thing early in the mission (capture a certain building, produce a certain unit, etc.) then you might as well restart the whole thing.  I would say I restarted missions and wasted time playing doomed battles just as much in AW as in FE.


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Offline leahsdad

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #143 on: February 01, 2012, 04:17:49 PM »

I think it's because the majority of the enemies you fight tend to be the type that only attacks when you get in range, in contrast to the other titles where more enemies tend to swarm you. My memory could be playing tricks on me there, though.
 


That's generally true, except for 2 exceptions (which I do not understand the reasoning for): 

1.  Spiders and Gargoyles- Those darn spiders seem to come after you and close range, though not necessarily all the time.  I don't understand exactly why.  I first noticed it in Chap 12 on Eirika's path, the one in the mountains where there's a bunch of them in the middle of huge mountain ranges.  But I think I've seen spiders stay still too.  It's weird.

2.  Fog of War maps - Generally (though not 100%) all enemies come after you and will close range on fog of war maps.  obviously, the boss doesn't move.  But I've also played fog of war maps where all the enemies will come after you except for a handful that stay in place, waiting for you.  I wonder if this is some scripting done by the level designer.  If so, why?
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Offline doug

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #144 on: February 01, 2012, 05:37:49 PM »

 As for whether FE or AW is better, I think that's quite subjective, so I'm not going to judge anyone for picking one over the other.


I wasn’t even suggesting that I liked one over the other, just that so far I’ve enjoyed AW battles more. You could say that in order to be competitive AW battles must be better, because it doesn’t have any other legs to stand on. FE is enjoyable at another level with its team building mechanics.

Regarding the AI, it’s purpose is to make the game fun and rewarding, not to attempt to make you lose. Of course as players we should be under the illusion that the enemy is trying to beat us. So I’m not saying the bosses should run in and slaughter weaker characters, but I think battles would be more interesting if the enemy employed more diverse strategies and wasn’t so predictable

I’m looking for more situations like noname2200’s having Neimi double-teamed, and the things leahsdad mentioned with spiders, gargoyles and fog: things I have to adapt to by revising my strategy.

Offline Ceric

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #145 on: February 01, 2012, 05:58:03 PM »
I like when these games give the illusion that everyone is playing by the same rules.  Some games go as far as showing the Victory Condition for the AI so, you know what they are going to try to do to some degree.
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Offline leahsdad

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #146 on: February 01, 2012, 07:22:00 PM »
I like when these games give the illusion that everyone is playing by the same rules.

Aah, but in this game, we know we aren't.  The "AI" outnumbers your party at least 2 to 1, and to balance that, your units are more powerful (on a 1 to 1 basis).   The "AI" doesn't seem to be affected by Fog of War (they know exactly where you are).  Conversely, the "AI" doesn't seem to use support units well (like healers) or they don't get them at all (like dancers).  [or at least, not yet where I am in the game].  And how wickedly awesome is dancing in terms of strategy?

In Advance Wars, you ARE playing by the same rules, (except for CO powers) and that's why it's such a different game than FE.  And that's why that game is really freakin' hard sometimes.
[Showing off game collection]

Oh yeah, I know I have 2 sealed copies of that game.   1 is for trading.  But people who collect Amiibos?  They really have a problem!

Offline noname2200

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #147 on: February 01, 2012, 07:54:25 PM »

Oh no, if 15's harder than 14......Well, anyway, my party consists of Ephraim, Seth, Gilliam, Dozla, Duessel, Joshua, Gerik, and then by the time I get to the boss, Rennac.

You'll be fine. Load up your Supply area with plenty of healing items and a Mend staff or two before the map. When the battle starts, you'll automatically gain control of three new units, one of whom can heal, and one who's a ranged attacker.

The key will be to focus all your energy on one boss, then shift towards the other. With so few units, expect a long battle. I suggest taking out the boss in the northwest first, since he's weaker and he has a sweet item in his possession that makes taking out the second boss easier. Just be advised that he's immune to critical hits, so in spite of the poetic justice of taking him down with Joshua, you might want to let someone who's less fragile do the fighting. Oh, and Seth and Gilliam will take forever to reach this boss, and then a second eternity to get to the other boss.

Good luck!



That's generally true, except for 2 exceptions (which I do not understand the reasoning for): 

1.  Spiders and Gargoyles- Those darn spiders seem to come after you and close range, though not necessarily all the time.  I don't understand exactly why.  I first noticed it in Chap 12 on Eirika's path, the one in the mountains where there's a bunch of them in the middle of huge mountain ranges.  But I think I've seen spiders stay still too.  It's weird.

2.  Fog of War maps - Generally (though not 100%) all enemies come after you and will close range on fog of war maps.  obviously, the boss doesn't move.  But I've also played fog of war maps where all the enemies will come after you except for a handful that stay in place, waiting for you.  I wonder if this is some scripting done by the level designer.  If so, why?

 Every enemy is scripted to do one or the other. Sometimes an enemy is scripted to remain stationary until a set number of turns have passed, although that's rare in this title. I gather that this is done for balancing purposes, but my personal favorite maps in the series are where you have to fend off hordes of aggressive units (see: Mission 19 in this game).
 
 Just to throw a monkey wrench into things, a handful of bosses in this game DO move to attack you, most notably in the tower and ruins. Just a little something to keep us on our toes, I guess?
 
I wasn’t even suggesting that I liked one over the other, just that so far I’ve enjoyed AW battles more.

 Sorry, I was trying to limit myself to that segment of the games as well, but I guess I didn't express that very well. What I was attempting to say is that the two series' battles play out pretty differently in my opinion, with Fire Emblem generally being more "intimate" and the Wars games being more sprawling affairs, and that while I favor the former I think the latter is very fun too. Different, but still generally high quality.
 

Offline Ceric

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #148 on: February 01, 2012, 10:05:24 PM »
I like when these games give the illusion that everyone is playing by the same rules.

Aah, but in this game, we know we aren't.  The "AI" outnumbers your party at least 2 to 1, and to balance that, your units are more powerful (on a 1 to 1 basis).   The "AI" doesn't seem to be affected by Fog of War (they know exactly where you are).  Conversely, the "AI" doesn't seem to use support units well (like healers) or they don't get them at all (like dancers).  [or at least, not yet where I am in the game].  And how wickedly awesome is dancing in terms of strategy?

In Advance Wars, you ARE playing by the same rules, (except for CO powers) and that's why it's such a different game than FE.  And that's why that game is really freakin' hard sometimes.
There was a map where there where 2 of the horsie healers were on the enemy side, but they didn't move them the whole map.
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Offline Glad0s

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Re: RetroActive #21: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
« Reply #149 on: February 02, 2012, 08:52:13 AM »
Thanks to noname's strategy, I was finally able to beat chapter 14! Yes!
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