SS Chapter 10 Eirika Preparations: No, After You

Next up: Apparently an uninteresting dot. Strange, since the battle takes place next to an important-looking Carcino building.

A quick visit to the shops to get a sample of what new prizes are in stock. I wouldn't bother with the armour-killers or Short Bow, while I don't think I ever knew Chest Keys were buyable. My first All Girls run, I only used Chest Key drops and didn't use male thieves, so I had to choose the best Chests per prize. Whoops. The Unlock Staff was apparently no less disappointing here than it was in FE10, although since you can't hit a door with your weapons in this game, it has legitimate value. Also, one might actually find a door worth opening to use this on.

We don't  have Dark magic users in the party yet, and will not for another three chapters.

Right, we need to do a quick spot of grinding, so in here we go.

The Tower of Valni level 1 will be filled with Revenants, and the occasional Wight. This is randomly generated, so what Wights you get and where they start will differ from run to run.

Of course, RNG is actually the same every time you start a new file, so if entering the Tower of Valni is the first thing you do, you'll see the same pattern.

The two Entombed. One of them is the boss- he starts in the middle position, doesn't move, and will generally give 100 EXP on defeat no matter who kills him. The other one will move towards us and while he'll probably give 100 EXP on defeat to our party, he might be a little more stingy later in the game.

One of the revenants has 50 gold on his person, which you might notice only mostly counts as enough gold to replace the weapon uses you killed him with. I don't get it either. You can find some decent Gems if you play through the Tower longer, and I imagine you can make up your weapon uses fine enough that way.

This guy with a Runesword is, I think, on the default map, meaning you're relatively free to grind as many Runeswords as you like so long as you reset the game between each attempt.

Could the guy use it on you? Maybe, but he may also lack the sword rank to use it. Annoyingly, the green text of "this guy drops this!" overwrites the grey text of "this guy can't use this!"

You cannot Save turing Tower of Valni runs, including for some reason on this screen. What will be, will be.

Different enemies, same crit animation. Amelia has gotten some actual firepower from standing next to Neimi, but she's still playing with danger in this place.

Neimi and Lute picked up levels from that encounter. Tana and Amelia profitted big time, but in the interests of not making this update about grinding, we'll show the end result afterwards.

Right, so back to the plot, we have just been betrayed! Or, well, Carcino has established allegiance to Grado. Klimt did promise we could pass through here, so I guess "betrayal" is apt.

This feels like a situation that was just plain unfair and came about due to dirty play, except Carcino wasn't actually planning it to end this way.

Time to bail out the prince.

...

You know, this battle is many things, but a revolt? I don't think the people of Carcino are that involved.

First off, though, we've gotta check in on what Vigarde is doing!

General Glen is the one being exposited at today.

Glen, one of the more taciturn members of the Imperial Six, kinda gets a little stonewalled by Vigarde, whose sudden and inexplicable taciturn-ness means neither of them are interested in continuing conversation.

Pertinent information: There is a rebel army in Carcino.

More confusing: I don't... think Vigarde is trying to pass off Eirika as the leader of said army? In context, this thought is, or at least ought to be, two separate ideas (ie "capture these two distinct people"), but it doesn't read like it does. At any rate, Eirika and the rebel army meeting means Grado is going to be highly inconvenienced.

...Wait, wasn't it your job to capture her? You're just questioning this now?

Oh yeah. Uh... strictly speaking... uh... well, hard to call it true (we massacred mercenaries, not citizens), but I do not want to be the one to try to disprove it.

...Never mind what I said earlier. Apparently we are just the rebels Vigarde was talking about. I really don't feel like Vigarde understands what a rebel army is.

That makes one of us.

Glen leaves the room and bumps into Cormag.

Vigarde did not say that. He ordered you to capture her and crush the rebel army she apparently has. Although I'm not going to lie, she's probably not going to live long after you get the bracelet off her.

...At least, I hope she doesn't.

Glen decides to leave Cormag behind. Something's telling me one of them is going to die.

...Don't tell me you're OK with this, Cormag!

Glen realises he's got to tell Cormag something about his misgivings.

Cormag doesn't know Eirika. I guess someone in Grado had to have not met her. It was starting to feel like the two countries were so close that everyone in the Grado army knew Eirika.

Even Glen only met her once, though. As opposed to Duessel, who was actually Ephraim's tutor.

...OK, I can't help but be fair. You only met the girl once. Is it really something you want to stake your loyalties on? Vigarde does have other questionable character traits to build on, but...

Cormag points this part out.

But, well, if that wasn't the truth, Glen wouldn't have a problem.

Glen is going to have to make a Decision about which side he really wants to be a part of here.

Honestly, somewhat surprising they never acknowledge Duessel and Selena here, but this is Eirika route, that stuff is Ephraim's domain.

The brotherly conversation is put to a halt when Valter butts in, because Valter has somehow not yet established his quota on being the game's least likable pain in the ass.

Technically a true sentence. The problem is that the measuring stick being used is corrupt and faulty, and also with trying to figure out what the solution looks like here. I mean, what do we want to happen to the original Imperial Three here?

...Both of you talk about killing the girl and yet I don't think this conversation is about that.

If anything, I think Valter's problem is that he's not treacherous enough. Even before Vigarde turned weird, he was doing the things he was supposed to, he was just enjoying it too much.

Have you ever heard the slimiest ball of filth that crawled out of the gutter entangle you in technically correct sentences? I'd expect this out of... actually, on second thought, Valter is the new General who'd be doing this. Caellach doesn't give a crap about ranks and Riev thinks he's reporting to a higher authority than the King. Valter's the dishonourably discharged guy who's glad to be back in.

...OK, on second thought, it's not explicitly clear what exactly Valter Did to get expelled from the Imperial Three. We get a window into the circumstances, but the exact deed is left to our imaginations.

I don't think I like it left there.

So far, you have injured the man babysitting Eirika and failed to capture Ephraim despite possessing every advantage. The fact you think you are still skilled enough to be Glen's equal is a scathing indictment of what Vigarde is using you for.

Valter has to throw this point at Glen's face every chance he gets, or else the conversation starts to drift uncomfortably close to the time he tortured people.

Excuse me, a time.

Also, he may be a little bit of a smug bastard about it. Glen and Valter served side by side in the Imperial Three, but why this topic is so personal to Valter is one of those things that doesn't really come up. After all, he owes more of his downfall to Duessel than he does to Glen.

Cormag shows himself to be reckless. This is an important character trait for his role in Eirika route's story, but it has a limited role in Ephraim route and his Supports.

As it is, it's only really reckless here because Valter, unlikable little snot or not, is protected by technicalities and red tape.

Translation: "Time and a place, Cormag. We'll get him next time."

Meanwhile, in Carcino:

This is Gerik, the leader of a group of mercenaries, and one of the people responsible for padding out the numbers in Innes's battalion. He and his friend pictured above are the only two such people we'll get in our army, and while it's implied everyone Innes hired is dead or otherwise out of the fight, whether they were Gerik's men is less clear. We do know that there is at least one member of his group that never joined Innes.

Innes, of course, has a can-do attitude that means he doesn't know the meaning of the word retreat. And also expresses a distaste of mercenaries that makes me wonder why he even hired these guys in the first place.

Jehanna is a nation that prides itself on mercenary honour (...as much as that exists), and Gerik's number one rule is that he should never turn his back on a job. If a mercenary bails on you when the going gets tough, you're not going to want to hire them the next time.

...Good question.

Not an answer.

That is an answer, but not a particularly helpful one. Say... if he sent a messenger heading to Frelia...

Gerik: "...I said I wanted a plan, not a list of our problems."

That's... OK, I can understand why Gerik would be asking this question, but it's a very interesting turn of phrase to describe the act of surrender I'm not familiar with.

...I didn't realise he actually said that out loud. Like, unironically said that.

He's very dramatic about it. It's true, but something about the attitude betrays a very unhealthy approach.

Gerik's happy to hear that Innes doesn't plan to lose.

This is Tethys, member of Gerik's battalion. We've bumped into her before, back in Serafew (Chapter 5), but here's her plot role. I don't think she's explicitly Gerik's second-in-command, but since there's canonically no one else here, she's more than able to step up to the job.

You were supposed to bring good news. Even if it's comedically impotent.

The phrase that drives daggers of fear into every true Fire Emblem veteran's heart: "We're out of weapons."

Gerik: "How could it get any worse?"

...Somehow that is worse news.

Innes takes very little time to come up with his plan.

And that plan's step 1 is to fire these two. Innes, mate, you're an archer, you're doomed if they pin you down.

Innes decides he doesn't need these two to die for him.

And pretends like that's not at all what he's got in mind.

Tethys gets very offended about Innes's brusqueness, since, you know, he directly insulted her. Gerik's got a bit more of a head screwed on than you'd think.

Careful, Innes, you're starting to sound like Ephraim there.

Innes maintains that his course of action is motivated by the twin vices of greed and self-interest on both party's parts.

Gerik punches through Innes's shell.

Innes realises he can't hide from these two, and explains his plan a little more truthfully.

...It may be just me, but "running away and hiding in the mountains alone" doesn't sound like a noble's duty. Or really, like something a noble should be doing. You do know your way back to civilisation, right? (Either friendly or hostile).

Gerik has a dramatic pause, and seems to be making no effort to depart.

Gerik is unconvinced by Innes's display, and decides he's staying right where he is.

Innes is flabbergasted. Considering how he treats his friends, you'd think he's got no idea what comradeship is, but it is implied he is capable of forming bonds like these with people other than Tana and the Renais twins.

He just hasn't formed one with these guys yet. Keyword: yet.

Gerik tells Tethys that she's got people to live for. Ewan is Tethys's younger brother, while Marisa is another member of Gerik's group- the one member we know for sure didn't join up with Innes.

Tethys will do no such thing any sooner than Gerik will.

Although she's not particularly pleased with the chivalric display of ritual self-sacrifice either of these two boys is planning on.

Apparently Faerghus wasn't the first time knightly chivalry was a gendered behaviour in Fire Emblem history.

Tethys wins a point in the battle of wits with Innes, and manages to score a smug blink frame while she's at it.

Innes wonders why the hell he got stuck with the two mercenaries that wouldn't have jumped at the chance to not die surrounded by a hopeless situation.

Gerik lampshades it and moves on. As a victim of permadeath, Gerik is not going to be used later as a parellel between his strong loyalty and Caellach's raw mercenary values.

Every time I mention things the story is not going to do, I suddenly wish it was doing those things.

Gerik notices that at no point have we actually formed a plan beyond "hide in the woods and hope we don't get spotted."

But no pressure! No pressure at all.

There are surprisingly few archers heading this way. Enough to be annoying, but not enough that this is how I expect these three to die. For one thing, we've seen the enemy mages.

Tethys thinks she's got an idea.

This is one of those relatively simple answers to the question that could turn the tides. Innes has long since discounted the possibility of reinforcements, but he still keeps in mind that, if this does come up, they'll come from the north.

Tethys is sure to temper expectations, but it does start to sound like Innes has indeed struck a miracle.

...I love how Amelia is the second character in the army, so Eirika is being followed by a little girl who can't lift her lance. Way to sell the miracle rescue.

Yeah, he won't last much longer on his own.

If a trainee character is brought to level 10, they will be capped on EXP and be unable to gain any more. The next time you enter a battle, they will have a short conversation here and become spontaneously eligible for promotion. It is impossible to trigger a recruit promotion sooner or later than this.

For some reason, every single text box in this is kind of it's own thing, and instead of scrolling like most dialogue in the game, it kinda feels like the textbox is redrawing itself every line.

At any rate, our newly self-confident Recruit Amelia is ready to become a real class.

Recruits may promote into Knights or Cavaliers, a decision more interesting than the Journeyman's promotion into Fighter/Pirate. However, there is still a correct answer.

...You know, this is also our first on-screen promotion. In this game, the unit starts standing on the right, there's thunder scattered around, and then they disappear in a light, before their new promoted sprite is beamed onto the left in a brilliant flash of light and more lightning, set to a track called, of all things... "To a Higher Place."

You have two choices for Amelia's promotion: She is the only Knight in the game other than Gilliam, and she has the actual stats to put in work, but she doesn't exactly play to the strengths of the Knight class. As a cavalier, she is able to actually get to fights and otherwise has the same stats- promoting into a Knight instead of a Cavalier doesn't change her growths any in this game, unlike how it would in almost any other FE.

Knights can only use Lances, while Cavaliers get Swords. It's rough being a Knight. It's worth it if you promote Amelia to General, though, to see a General slaughter enemies. That's just because the General design and animations are cool, though, not because Generals are a good class.

Tana's stats. Almost hit her Speed cap, some matching decent Luck and Str/Def stats worth bragging to Innes about when we save his sorry butt. You raise a Tana, you raise the best beauty on wings on the GBA.

Anyway, while we're looking at stats and promotions and such matters, I consider it time for Neimi to accept her promotion. Making it all the way to level 20 is more trouble than it's worth, with the EXP demands you need to match, although any partial EXP to your next level is wasted on promotion. It can be tough to figure out the balance on when to cut your losses on that.

Archers may promote into Snipers or Rangers- oh yeah, all promotions are branched in this game, making this the first major experiment with reclassing since Gaiden's Villagers. Promotions determine the things you have (like movement types, weapons and skills), promotion gains, and final stat caps: no futzing around with growths. Also, the choice you make is permanent.

I find the female Sniper sprite cute as heck, although it does look a little better on Rebecca and Louise than it does Neimi. Not listed on this screen: Rangers can't ride Ballistae.

Rangers are just flat out better than Snipers, though. Sure, 100% accurate attacks on a Level% chance are nice- and also Zethla's legacy- but Neimi has stopped being worried about missing a long time ago.

Incidentally, Rangers are the culturally-neutral equivalent to Nomad Troopers I mentioned a while back. The class has a few fundamental and mechanical similarities, but unfortunately, some of the best spritework of the Nomad Trooper class didn't survive into Ranger. The sword crit where the horse jumps into the air and the nomad jumps even higher before both slam down on the enemy will be missed.

At least we still get the swords.

...I think Colm is just here so I have a foolproof plan to get past the door, there aren't any chests here. Really not sure why I let him get away with that.

Amelia will be taking most of the heat from the south/south-east, with Neimi and Lute supporting her, while Tana is going to rush down to Innes's fortress and bail them out.

Our boss of the day, sitting on a throne up here near where we start, is Pablo. Our goal is to Seize his square.

Pablo is the Count Gloucester to Klimt's Duke Riegan*, although unlike Gloucester, Pablo seems motivated purely by greed. He's a Sage that decided to use Light magic for some reason, and that makes him both competent and crittier than perhaps one might like. His high resistance discourages hitting him with your own mages, so it's a matter of finding the right physical weapon- he shouldn't be too hard, but it might play on your nerves.

*I initially wrote this sentence before Three Hopes released and recharacterised Count Gloucester into someone far more sympathetic and less ambitious. Pablo gets none of that.

This guy- who's standing in front of Pablo and behind the door- has a Red Gem, if you're using thieves for stealing. The hard part is not killing him as soon as the door opens.

Down here, we can see the "hopeless situation" Innes and the mercs are in. Left to their own devices, it'll take a few turns for those mercs to get in. I think Innes can shoot over the walls, though. Tethys, and indeed, most non-player Dancers, doesn't seem interested in dancing, though.

The forces from the south. Most of these people will head Innes's way rather than Amelia's, so Tana will be eating well assuming we can handle those two archers.

A Fighter with a Killer Axe! He'll probably prefer to throw the Hand Axe, though.

Ooh, this one has a Sleep staff. Also a droppable Torch, but even if this map was Fog of War, the AI doesn't need that anyway.

One of the units in that bottom formation was non-regulation, and here she is: Marisa, the Crimson Flash, is a member of Gerik's mercenary troop, although for some reason, she's joined the wrong army. I'm sure that's something we can clear up with her later.

Innes is a pre-promoted Sniper, and he's brought some cash for us to splurge with later. He doesn't know we're here to rescue him, so he will use up that Silver Bow on anything that looks dangerous, but honestly, it's not like Neimi's going to want it later. Innes is the first of the two characters Eirika route gets that just didn't fit into Ephraim route.

Gerik has a Steel Blade, to really sell how few weapon uses they had to hit the enemy with, and also to show off that Gerik is a bonkers big boy. Gerik is an easy pick for casual runs because his high, well-rounded stats- owing to his excellent Mercenary class- are backed up by a Con stat that will allow him to wield some exceptionally heavy weapons with little-to-no speed penalty. He even has a Hero Crest on his person, as if to tell the player "promote me, I'm really good!" Promote him, he's really good.

Tethys is the game's Dancer, and her job is to dance for units to give them an extra turn. That's all she can do. There are no special Dance rings or fancy galdrs or even weapons for her to wield. With that said, it's not like you ever used a dancer for things that weren't giving extra turns to people. I like having her in every party, and she'll appear in both my Eirika and Ephraim runs, but there's an argument for not bringing her. Mostly because you only get 12 spaces in the final party moreso than her being bad at filling those spaces.

Right, rescue mission.