Wait, Zephiel's the bad guy? Let's Play Fire Emblem: Sword of Seals!

I'm assuming this flash of light was Wolt landing the blow here. Anyway, Alan does him a favour and finishes off the Soldier...



And gets a pretty decent level up as well.



Oh, and Marcus kills an Archer.



On the enemy's turn, Roy gets attacked and responds by doubling the Soldier back, netting yet another fabulous level up as a reward.



Marcus proves that even he can be useful by finishing off the remaining Soldier to the north.



Shit, it looks like Zephiel's noticed us.

Narshen: Probably what's left of the enemy are trying to put up a fight in their last hope.



Narshen: No, I do not wish to put the Dark Priestess through any trouble. Do not worry, we can handle them by ourselves...

Idoun: ......

Zephiel: Not this time, Idoun. Send the Dragons back to Bern, as we planned.

Idoun: Yes... if his Highness wishes it to be so.

Narshen: ......

Zephiel: I will be off to Bern soon as well. Narshen, I'm going to leave Lycia up to you.

Narshen: ... What shall I do with the remaining forces of the Lycia Army?

Zephiel: Kill all those that stand against us.

Narshen: ...Does that include women and children?

Zephiel: Of course. Anihilate them enough so that they would no longer even think about going against us.

Narshen: Leave that to me, sire. Hehehe...



Narshen: Well, I think I'll be going as well. Slater, I'm trusting this castle with you.

Slater: Are you leaving?

Narshen: Yes. One of the dukes who turned against Lycia has a special gift for me. He says it's a girl from Eturian nobility or something... Hehehe...

Slater: From Etruria? She must be very beautiful, then!

Narshen: Yes, the duke tells me she's still young but very beautiful.

Slater: I would be looking forward to it if I were you, sir. Please be careful on your way there.

Narshen: You be careful too, Slater. Don't you dare get defeated by these remainders of Lycia's army. If you do, I will personally tear you apart.

Slater: ... Have mercy, sir...!

Narshen: Hahahaha...!



We can recruit Lugh from here, of course...

Lugh: Please let me fight with you! I don't have any useful information, but I can use a bit of magic! Please let me help you!

Lugh is our first offensive spellcaster, and he's a fairly decent one at that. He's got good skill and speed, and can double most enemies easily. The big problem is his magic though - it's the lowest of the three mages and he'll need to get a good score in it in order to be of any use to us. He can become a killing machine if he does though, so let's hope he grows well in that area.



Lugh is a pretty cool guy, being cheerful, caring, and adept with magic. He's a likable kid, and his supports make for nice reads as a result. Even tactically, they're not bad - Lugh's element is fire, meaning that whomever he supports with will get a very nice boost in attack and crit%. So... yeah. He's pretty good!

Lugh's mother, Nino, makes an appearance in FE7. Her character ending in that game if you pair her with Jaffar or Erk mentions her disappearing at one point, hence why Lugh and Ray are left at an orphanage. It's a pity, really.



Anyway, back on the southern front, Alan pops by the other village and lifts a Mend staff from them.



Since Lugh is so far away from the others at the moment, Marcus will be rescuing him and bringing him back to the main party. This'll let him get back to our party in three turns instead of five - handy for those times when you need to bring the party back together again.



Roy heads on the warpath for a bit, spending the next two turns growing fat on the approaching Soldiers.



When the spawning cavaliers approach, Roy falls back and gets some much-needed healing from Ellen.

Oh hey, Marcus's back. Figure I might as well add some conversation between Chad and Lugh...

Chad: Lugh? What are you doing here?

Lugh: We all fled to here.

Chad: Oh... Where's everybody else? Are they all right?

Lugh: Yeah. The Elimine Church is going to take care of them for a while.

Chad: What about you?

Lugh: What?

Chad: How come you're still here?

Lugh: ... The same reason as you.

Chad: !? Lugh, you're not thinking of...!

Lugh: I can use some magic! You know, when I borrowed the Fire spell from Father's room?

Chad: Lugh, don't force yourself. You can't hurt people, can you?

Lugh: But...

Chad: I'm going to avenge Father. Lugh, you should stay with the others.

Lugh: I'm not going to hide anymore! Everyone, everyone just disappears when I'm not looking...! Father, you, even Ray... I want to fight to protect the people that I care for. I want to protect and not just be protected!

Chad: Lugh... All right then, let's crush Bern as soon as possible and go meet everyone else!

Lugh: Yeah!



First, a little trading from Merlinus here...



And Lugh joins in his first battle! Too bad it's disastrous, with Thany missing at the worst possible time.



And leave it to Dieck to humiliate all four of them by taking the other one solo...



Things go better when the other Cavaliers approach, thankfully.



Some help from Roy and Wolt help Lugh grab his very first kill.

Alan and Thany take out the other Cavalier, this time thankfully not missing.



Wolt could use a little healing, of course. He's done his job well, and I don't want to risk losing him at this point in the battle.



Now that all of the reinforcements have been beaten down, it's time to begin the push through the castle proper.



Oh Dieck, you lovable, dominating bastard.



Merlinus will pretty much be parked here for the remainder of the battle. With Marcus and the others phalanxing him in, he'll be perfectly defended for the rest of the fight.

Does he need it? No, but a little security doesn't hurt.



Oh, and Dieck crushes yet another approaching Knight...



Thany takes her turn this time to lure an enemy in.



Which she does with gusto, earning a level up that gives her exactly what she needs.



Shit. I forgot about the Fighter nearby with the Hand Axe. She dodges, thankfully, but still.

Roy continues to do me proud.



Ellen... not so much.



At this point, our forces are splitting - our Cavaliers and Chad head south for the treasure, while the rest head East for the boss.



Lance's unit doesn't do to well (the teal man himself missing twice.)



You know, if it wasn't for the amazingly awesome level ups I've been getting, this battle would've just been one bad turn of luck after another. Now... not so much.



Dieck's as awesome as ever...

Lord almighty, I hate dealing with Knights.



Slater: ... Oh... No..!!!

Roy engages the boss with a well-timed doge.



Chad begins looting the chest, netting us a halberd and some gold.



My goal here was for Roy to weaken Slater a bit for Lugh to finish off, but the RNG refused to oblige me and Roy suffered a heavy blow as a result.



Dieck pulls Roy out of there before he's made into mince-meat.



Lugh gives it a shot, but takes a heavy hit early. Hrm...



You know what? Let's call it a wash and let Roy get off this completely unnecessary critical.

Oh Roy, is there no end to your potential?



Time to wrap this up, I suppose.



Merlinus: ...the dungeon level!

Roy: Really? Is he all right?

Merlinus: He's severely wounded...

Well shit.



Roy: Lord Hector! What an awful wound...! We must treat it! Here, lean on my shoulder.

Hector: It's all right... I won't last much longer...

Roy: Lord Hector...

Hector: I was taken by surprise... I never would have guessed that Bern had resurrected the Dragons...!

Roy: Dragons!?

Hector: Yes... The Dragons that we humans fought in the past...

Roy: The Dragon-Human Wars? I have heard of it. A long time ago, two races that each had half of Elibe, the humans and the Dragons, fought over total control of the continent...

Hector: Right... the "Eight Heroes"... defeated the Dragons and led us humans... to... victory...

Roy: How did Bern use the Dragons?

Hector: I... have no idea... But... the Dragons had control of what is now Bern in the past... and Hartmut, one of the Eight Heroes... is the founder of Bern... Perhaps... the reason... lies there... *cough cough*

Roy: Lord Hector!

Hector: Roy... Go to Ostia...! ...You must... lead what is left of the Lycia Alliance Army... instead of me...

Roy: Me...? But...

Hector: Don't worry... in Ostia... are weapons that... are effective against Dragons...

Roy: Weapons?

Hector: I have already told this to Lilina... Please take care of her too... She... may seem strong... But she is still a child... Please... give... her support...

Roy: ... Yes. I will.

Hector: ... Lilina... Just... one... more...... time...!!!

Roy: Lord Hector!

Hector, no!!



Next time: And the shit keeps hitting the fan, it seems...

Those jerks killed Hector! Make them pay!

Chad kind of looks like Tetsuo, except with a different haircut.

And more hair.

This is what annoys me about most RPGs.
You have a perfectly good healer, but as soon as some major character gets hurt, they seem to disappear into thin air.

Ellen looks too much like a nun so I'll happily let you swap her when possible. The collection of kids joining your party reminds me of Suikoden 2, the part with the school. So strange...

I think there's a rule stating any rag-tag army has their odds of success increased to make up for being rag-tag. If they're perfectly competent but still look rag-tag, the modifier doesn't go away so odds of victory are actually very high. This is especially prevalent in the Suikoden games, where a schoolgirl, octopus, and squirrel can team up to save the world.

That's good to hear then - there's another Priest later on with better growths and supports who I was hoping to use.

But let's not get too far ahead of ourselves though. Last we left off, Zephiel's army had smashed the Lycia Alliance forces and severely wounding the army commander, Lord Hector. The Pheraen army had arrived in time to drive off the Bern forces, but only managed to make it in time to hear Hector's last words.



On the way there, Roy passes through the Laus territory, governed by Duke Eric. At a glance, Laus is a peaceful territory with vast meadows and clear streams, but there was great skulduggery going on behind the scenes...

Joins us now as we bear witness to...

Chapter 4: Collapse of the Alliance





Man, take a look at the 'stache Eric grew over the past twenty years. Is growing facial hair one of the prerequisites to becoming a duke, by any chance?

Narshen: I have not praised your wise decision of turning against Lycia to come to our side yet.

Eric: There is no future for us if we are to be chained down by old, moldy traditions, sir.

Oh my, somebody's bitter.

Narshen: [That, my friend, is a wise way of thinking. Now, where is the gift that you promised me? She does not seem to be here?

Eric: Ah, yes! I have prepared her in a separate room. She is a naive girl, you see. When I told her that I would let her meet her brother, she came right along with us. You, over there! Bring her here!



Ah, meet Lady Clarine, the twin daughter of former Magic General Pent and his wife, the Lady Louise. More on her later.

Narshen: Welcome, Lady Clarine.

Clarine: Who might you be?

Narshen: I am Narshen, one of Bern's Three Dragon Lords. My Lady, I shall play with you instead of your brother. Hehehe...

Uh-oh, I don't like the sound of that creepy laugh...

Clarine: Hahahahaha!

Narshen: ? What is so amusing, my lady?

Clarine: You? Instead of my brother? Take a good look in the mirror. Your clothing, your hair, your speech, every aspect of you completely lacks finesse.

Narshen: Lacks finesse?! Me, lacking finesse?!

Clarine: Comparing you and my brother is like comparing a turkey to a peacock!

Oh *snap.*

Narshen: You, you vermin!! Saying that I lack finesse, of all things!

Soldier: Sir Narshen, I have just received a report that Castle Araphen has been retaken by the enemy!

Narshen: What! What happened to Slater?

Soldier: Er... His whereabouts are unknown, sir. The enemy has been reported as Roy, son of the Duke of Pherae.

Whelp, that's our cue.

Clarine: ......

Narshen: Damn! Lord Eric, lock the girl up in some cell. I shall have much 'fun' with her when I return! You, close down the highroad leading to Ostia. This Roy figure might pass by.

Soldier: Yes, sir!



Looks familiar, doesn't it? This chapter's map was borrowed whole-cloth and used in the next game, so you'll probably recognize a lot of what we have to do here.

First off, a lot of the units on this map are of the aggressive type, and will rush our group right from the start, and they'll be spawning for a little while into the battle, so an offensive strategy is mostly out of the question. Since rushing to meet them will only serve to lure the other guys as well, most of our unit will stand tight near the start and hunker down and wait them out - only once they've exhausted themselves will we then begin to move west and take out the guys near the castle.

Like in FE7, pirates will start spawning halfway through the battle, but Marcus and Thany will have visited the villages well before and grabbed the stuff they have, so it's not a big deal so long as things don't go wrong. ...



Our starting formations, thankfully, are very helpful towards this strategy by lumping most of our mounted and armored units near the front, so we'll be able to block off the bridges here right off and wait off the initial rush. Which is handy, since there are a bunch of cavaliers right near the start.



Dieck and Alan prove their muscle by fending off the initial assault, and Dieck even manages to kill off one of them.



Thany visits the village near the start and picks up... a door key? Why do we need a door key in a field...?



Anyway, door key aside, the rest of the mounted units near the start take a beating at the hands of our units. I try to allocate most of our kills to our weaker guys this time around to see whether or not they're worth keeping around.

Geez, Paps, you planning on playing through the entire game today?

Chad proves his worth right off by getting a great level up.



Bors and Lance try and take a shot at the remaining cavalier, but manage to miss twice despite the overwhelming odds. Guess everybody's got a bad day, I suppose - good thing Dieck's around to finish things up.



Marcus at the moment is moving West to visit the northwestern village, but this seems to be in error when it ends up luring the enemy to his position...

Meanwhile, back at Castle Laus...

Clarine: They shall pay for locking me up in here...

????: ...Hey.

Clarine: Is someone there?!



Meet Rutger. He's a... well, he's not "nice" per se, but you'll like him once you get to know him.

Rutger: He wants to see you.

Clarine: I refuse. I do not wish to meet with such lower class people.

Rutger: ... Just get over here.

Clarine: Let go! You shall pay! Do you know who I am?!

Rutger: ......

Clarine: Let go, I say!

Oh dear. Better hurry things up, I suppose.



...Yeeaah, I'd say this is roughly the point that I screw things up in the battle. I was hoping to have Marcus make a dash to the village then swoop down and grab something before dropping back, but I miscalculated and ended up bringing the latest swarm to his position. Whoopsie-daisy.



Regardless of the circumstances, Merlinus and the two fighters hole themselves up here for the entirety of the fight - with two layers of manly meat to get through, our Transporter will be guarded from anything and everything for the battle. Not that anything will get up there, but better have him guarded in the corner than slain on the battlefield, right? Right?



Man, why you gotta be like that, nomads?



More mishaps with Lady Clarine, however...

Rutger: Shut up. You won't be able to escape with all the noise you're making.

Clarine: ! Then you're...

Rutger: I've prepared a horse for you over there by that tree. Get on it and leave while you can.

Clarine: ... Why are you helping me?

Rutger: I have hatred against Bern.

Clarine: Hatred?

Rutger: It's none of your business.

Clarine: Putting it that way only makes me more curious.

Rutger: Time's running short. Go!

Clarine: ......

Rutger's got good intentions, but...



...maybe it wasn't the best idea to dump her in the middle of a battle.

Clarine: A proper gentleman should escort the lady to her mansion! Well, putting that aside... I came all the way here on my own to meet my brother, and now look at the state I'm in... What should I do now?

What, indeed?



The good news is that Clarine's first priority is rushing over to the protection of our army, which is helpful... normally. However, with the mounted units to the north breathing down our collective neck, Lance here will have to rescue her, else the other units will tear into her and force us to start all over again.



Roy decides to lend a hand by taking out one of the nomads.

I played through these updates weeks ago - up to chapter 8x, I believe. I'm just that excited to post these after sitting on them for so long. :/



Not wanting to leave anything to chance, I decide to let Marcus have at it for a while to help even the odds. Even though he's technically the shittiest character in the game, you can't deny that there's a benefit to having a safety net in the form of an "overpowered" unit.



Pirate: People and nobility have so much to worry about. Well, we can't complain 'cause we make our living off of turmoil. Hehehe...

Ah, and here comes the pirates. I like how honest they are about their intentions here - some pirates have reservations about looting and pillaging, but these guys? Naw, it's just a way to make a living to them.

Anyway...



Fuck fuckity fuck is the RNG starting to piss me. Why can't anybody land a hit this chapter? Doesn't help that Lance is weighted down by Clarine (and her horse too?) and can't double. Argh.



Marcus fares better, (un)fortunately.



Now that he's free to move again, Lance falls back and dumps Clarine by Roy. We can't quite recruit her just yet, however...



Anywho, Ellen takes care of Lance's battle wounds and Roy finishes off the cavalier that was harrassing him. Go teamwork!



Now that the enemy surge has subsided, I manage to salvage our formations and hunker down again. Patience is key, here, for more reasons than one.



Regardless of formation, Alan swings by north and weakens the archer a bit. Didn't manage to get a good shot of the battle, though.



While she's there, Thany takes the time to stock up on a few Heal staves for our healers before she visits the village. You can see the pirates in the corner, but they're not a big deal at this point.



And here's more of el mustachio, too.

Rutger: What do you want?

Eric: Our forces are having trouble out there. Take some more troops and assist them.

Rutger: ......

Eric: Didn't you hear? I said to go help them!

Rutger: I heard you. I'll leave as soon as I'm ready.

Uh-oh.

Eric: Hmph, not the friendliest of people. Well, he's supposed to be one of the best swordsmen out there.

Man, not even the screenshots are complying with me this chapter. At least the level ups are still doing well.



*Whiff*!



When Clarine's turn comes around, she'll rush to Roy and strike up a conversation. ...Odd that they wouldn't simply let you do it yourself though, but hey! New recruits.

Roy: Me?

Clarine: Who else? You are the leader of this group, are you not?

Roy: Yes.

Clarine: That is most convenient. All right then, you are to protect me.

Roy: Excuse me?

Clarine: Are you deaf? I said that you are going to protect me from harm.

Merlinus: Mind your mouth, young lady!

Clarine: Please step back. I was not addressing you.

Merlinus: What?! Who do you think...

Roy: Now, now, Merlinus. It looks like she's being persued by the castle's soldiers. That's why she wants us to guard her. Right?

Way to take her side, Roy. I thought I could trust you, man.

Clarine: Um, yes! That is correct...

Merlinus: What... what impudence! Our army isn't so lenient that we are going to take along some girl who would be of absolutely no use!

Yeah, you tell her, Merlinus!

Clarine: My name is Clarine, not 'girl'. And I am not of no use! I can use these staves to heal wounded allies.

Roy: So you will fight alongside us?

Clarine: ...Yes! Of course... I would certainly not ask to be protected without doing anything in return!

Roy: Thank you for joining! We're going up against Bern, so we need all the people we can recruit.

Pherae wants YOU to join the army. Contact your local Lycian Lord at the following address...

Roy: I'm Roy. Please to meet you, Clarine.

Clarine: I am also pleased... Hmph! I will not be friendly with you...



Clarine's not bad by any margin - having another healer is always handy, and she's got reasonably good speed and luck to boot so she can dodge pretty much most of what's thrown at her. However, her magic is pretty awful and won't get much better any time soon, so odds are she'll probably be overshadowed by the other healers. Still, she can make for a handy magic wall if you do use her, so she at least has that - make her a full-time healer, and you may very well get around her low magic stat.



Man, I don't know what her parents thought they were doing, but Clarine here is spoiled rotten to the core. It's pretty funny watching her berate the other characters though, and even moreso when they start to sass back, so if you want a good laugh you can always give her supports a shot. Her support with her brother is a little icky though, I don't really recommend it save for the squick factor.

Her parents, as you'll hear later on, are the former Mage General Pent Reglay and his wife, Louise, who take on a more active role in FE7.



Anyway, Thany makes her rounds at the village to the south, netting us our first Angel Robe. You may remember that this item raises HP by 7 points, so odds are this will be going to our more fragile fighters. Like Thany here, for instance, if we decide to use her.



I know low speed normally isn't a good thing, but sometimes it can come in handy when you're trying to raise another character - like Lugh here, for example. Pairing slow characters with underleveled ones is usually key in helping them get the kills you need, so try and aim for an arrangement like this when you can.

In any case, Lugh finally gains a level here, and it's a good one.



The tango with the cavaliers continues, with Clarine using her staves for the first time.



Meanwhile, back in the rear, Lance and Wolt take care of the pirates that have been oh-so-stealthfully sneaking up on us.



Wolt gains a level here, but unlike Lugh's it's none too hot.



And, one turn later from his orders from Eric, Rutger here joins the fight. He's got a killing edge though, and he can kill any of our characters pretty easily, so it's best that you wait for him to come to you instead of the other way around.



The fighters and the archer immediately swarm Alan to try and get a few hits in.



Rutger can only be recruited by Clarine, but her wide range of movement makes waltzing up to him pretty easy.

Rutger: What, you're still here?

Clarine: "Still here"? You just abandon me in the middle of a battlefield, and you still have the nerve to say that?! I could have been killed!

Rutger: Then you're lucky that you're still alive. Is there anything else you need to say to me?

Clarine: Just a minute! You are just going to walk away after abandoning me? I do not think so. A proper gentleman should take responsibility for his actions.

Rutger: Responsibility? What responsibility?

Clarine: If a gentleman rescues a lady, he must also escort her to her mansion! I've never heard any story from any barf of a man just abandoning the lady.

Rutger: ...What in the world are you talking about?

Clarine: Besides, do you not have a grudge against Bern? Then you shouldn't be trying to fight us, who are going up against Bern.

Rutger: What? Wait! Is that true?

Clarine: ? Is what true?

Rutger: Is the army that you're in really fighting against Bern?

Clarine: Yes... the leader named Roy or something said so.

Rutger: ... All right.

Clarine: ?

Rutger: I'm going to join your army. Happy now?

Clarine: Ah... I guess so. Wait! The most important thing is not to fight Bern, but to protect me!

Rutger is almost too good not to use. He's got good strength, great speed, and his high skill and whopping 30% crit boost after promotion means that he'll be hitting enemies very hard nearly all the time. He'll need a Killing Edge before then in order to really make use of his skill, and his low luck means that his dodging and crit evasion aren't as good as the other myrmidon, but once he starts killing you'll have trouble getting him to stop. Rutger's going to be on our team for a long while to come.



Rutger's not the talkative type, but he's got a bit of an interesting past if you're into that sort of thing. A lot of his story revolves around his connection with Bern, so if you want to learn more you'll have to get a few of his supports up first. They're all quite good, well-told - lots of juicy backstory for a character teeming with it.



First battle in, and Rutger's kicking ass and taking names.



Thany makes a stop by the local weapons shop and stocks up on an Iron Sword for Rutger - as amazing as his Killing Edge is, we don't want to go wasting all of its usages up before we need to. She also grabs a spare Javelin to give to Alan as well for him to use.



And now for more pirates! This guy here's a bit of a pain - since he's got a hand axe, you'll have to lure him onto land to take him out at close range, which isn't too easy to do when you're being beset upon by other pirates and can't really afford to let them move onland and start attacking your squishier units.



Interesting seeing Thany and Clarine together like this - you don't get to see the female-only classes together that often.

Anyway...



Dieck takes out another pirate and gets one of the first truly mediocre level ups in this run. He's still doing great, though, so no worries (yet).

Lance and Wolt finish off the remaining pirate with gusto.



Roy and Lugh, not to be outdone, finish off a cavalier as well.



The village that caused the huge mix-up at the beginning of this chapter is finally visited by Alan, picking up the Steel Blade as his reward.



Chad doesn't take to being shot at well, and carves himself up a nice piece of archer steak.



Lugh seems to like his steak well-done and offers to fry it up for him.



More pirate fun. The hand axe guy manages to live another day...



Standing on the water like that makes him a pain in the ass to hit.

Wolt offers to take him out and eats hand axe to the face by accident.



The other, last pirate goes after Dieck and meets an untimely end. Still gotta find a way to deal with that last pirate, though...



Finally, something goes right and he catches wind of Ellen, who successfully lures him ashore.



Eric: I shall teach you the ways of the world!

I was hoping for Alan to lure the archer in the northwest corner instead, but he runs afoul of Eric by mistake by the castle.



Ah, there he is.



Thany and Lance set things up with a little long-range action...



...For Wolt to finish up. I want to give him a few more levels before I decide to keep or drop, as he's gotten a few good levels so far and I'd like to use him if I can. But if there's no helping it, then... well, yeah.



Anyway, Alan sets up the assist for Lugh, who slam dunks the archer to oblivion.



Yech.

It's go time.



Swing batta batta, swing batta - MISS!



The Armor Slayer goes snicker-snack, and...



Eric: There is no future for those... who try and oppose absolute power...

Eric, being the pissant he is, skips a line in his dialogue here automatically, making it a pain in the ass to catch it. Seems like even in death he's a jerk.



Man, at this point there's no stopping him, is there?



Guess it's time to finish things up, I guess.

Merlinus: Master Roy! The Laus soldiers are retreating.

Seems like the mice of Laus really are no challenge to the mighty Pheraen army.

Roy: Okay, good. Take everyone to get some rest.

Merlinus: Yes.



Roy: I would have never guessed that Lord Eric would turn to Bern's side.

Wait, hold up here. I mean, really? You never suspected that the Duke who helped his father commit open rebellion against the alliance and once tried to kill your father wouldn't switch sides to save his own hide?

Man, it's weird playing this game backwards sometimes.

Roy: I thought the members of the Lycia Alliance had a strong bonding to each other.

Oh, okay then. Suit yourself, I guess.

Roy: Damn Bern! Playing dirty like this!

Guinevere: ... I apologize.

Roy: Oh... I'm sorry! I wasn't even thinking about your feelings...

Guinevere: No... you are right.

Roy: We will now proceed west towards Ostia. But we can no longer trust the other dukes, and now that Lord Hector has passed away, there may no longer be a peaceful way to end this war. My lady, do you plan on returning to Bern? If you need anything...

Guinevere: No, please allow me to stay if it would not be a burden.

Roy: It would never be a burden! But why do you wish to stay?

Guinevere: My brother is wrong. He is dragging the Dragons into a human war. If he thinks that is the way to liberate the world, I must stop him.

Roy: To liberate the world?

Guinevere: Yes, he has always been talking about liberating the world. He is saying that this war is to do so.

Roy: What does he mean?

Guinevere: I do not know... But my brother is not the kind of person that would think about taking over the world. So he must have a very important reason for conquering Elibe. Still, that is no excuse to cause war, killing innocent people...

Roy: Princess Guinevere...

Well, war or not, we've got our own problems to deal with. So, with that...



Next time: A MacGuffin approaches! Command?

I guess you're all sick of me posting so quickly, so... yeah. Updates will resume M-W-F!

Yeah, it's hard to keep up and messes with the "ooh use him!" mentality (even if you have played through the next four chapters already).

So... Clarine is our Serra 2.0? But, like, with a horse?

Gotcha, I'll slow it down. I've gotten the excitement out of my system though, so things will probably even out from now on.

Though if it's character choices you're wondering about, don't fret - where I'm at in the game, we've still got quite a few good character choices we can use, so feel free to try and sway me to personal favourites if you want.

Well, anyway. Serra and Clarine do share a bit in common, but I found the former to be more friendlier about her bitchiness, if that makes sense. Serra was overbearing, but she seemed to actively enjoy the company of those around her (Erk, Matthew, Hector, Florina) or wanted to impress them (Oswin, Lyn?). Clarine? ...Not so much.

I never thought I'd say this, but Clarine lacks Serra's charm.

If we get a Matthew-equivalent out of the deal, though, that'll do nicely.

Yeah, I agree she's a couple pegs lower on the charm ladder but I was gonna give her some more time before passing judgment. I can't see this girl acting like Serra did in her Matthew and Priscilla supports at all.

I imagine this is a consequence of the amateur localization. They've done a good job but Nintendo of America sets an extremely high standard.

For that matter, is it just me, or is Rutger a sort of Raven prototype with his angsty "I hate Bern" thing? He sort of reminds me of Raven.

No incestuous sister thing, right?

For Rutger? Nah, he's an only child, as far as the game's concerned. Clarine, though, has a rather squicky relationship with her older brother...

Anyway, welcome back. Last we left off, we had been intercepted by enemy forces at Laus, the end effect teaching Roy that not everyone's to be trusted.



...with Bern against his allies of Lycia. This gave Roy further shock. Lycia, where Roy had grown up is, was no longer a safe to be either. Heading for OStia, Roy decided to move through the mountains, where people seldom want to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Join us now as we learn about the titular...

Chapter 5: Fire Emblem





Man, look at the teeth on that guy.

Bandit: Our guys that went down to the village just got back.

Dory: All right, then let's go on our usual visit to the village and gather up all the loot.

Bandit: Yeah, but boss, something's different today. There's an army stationed real close to us! They look like Lycia's troops.

Dory: Lycia? Then that ain't a problem... They gotta be the remainders of the army that got their ass kicked by Bern. Then we can beat them.

Bandit: Oh yeah, boss!

Dory: Well, we still gotta take our precautions. Maybe we can rake up some loot from them too! All right boys, let's take them on!

Meanwhile, on the other side of the mountains...

Merlinus: A villager is here to see you, Master Roy. Hey, you wait just a second...



Roy: Yes. How may I help you?

Villager: Sir! We wish for you to defeat the bandits here!

Cuts right to the chase, doesn't he?

Roy: Bandits?

Villager: There's a pack of bandits that have made their base in an old castle near the cliffs.

Roy: Where are the castle guards?

Villager: They fled once they heard that Lycia lost to Bern... We villagers were left behind. We spend our days in fear of bandit attacks.

Roy: ......

Villager: We have no one else to ask. Please, help us!

Merlinus: Master Roy, we must keep up our pace towards Ostia...

Roy: Yes, I know. But we can't ignore people in need of help!

Merlinus: Master Roy!?

What were you expecting, Merlinus? Random acts of do-goodery is our modus operandi.

Villager: You will help us?! Thank you! Please make use of the gate. It will take you right next to the castle.

Roy: Okay.

Villager: Then I will go and make arrangements for the gate to be opened.

Roy: Merlinus! We're going to the castle to drive off the bandits!

Merlinus: Sigh... So full of energy when you're young.



Though the villager outright stated that the western gate between the mountains is the quickest route, he failed to mention that it's also the most dangerous - opening it will not only resort in us quickly being swamped by enemy units but will also trigger reinforcements in the northwest and southwest fortresses. Also, heading that way will also force us to bypass the village and shop, which is a sacrifice I'm not willing to make.

So, our goal then is to work our way around the mountain in the middle, swinging by the village to pick up the item before making our way to just north of the castle. Then we'll plug the north fortress (cutting off reinforcements there) and then head south to smash the boss and take the castle. Got all that? Okay, let's go.



After moving further north, we cut back to the village up for a second...

Dorothy: Yes, Bishop Yodel. But where did Father Saul go? How am I supposed to guard him if he keeps disappearing?

Where indeed?



Saul: Come now, please don't be so cold. We can sit comfortably tonight and you can listen to my preaching...

Dorothy: There you are! Father Saul!

Saul: Oops. Dorothy...

Looks like he's been caught in the act.

Villager: Well then, good day.

Saul: Please wait! ...tsk tsk... Now look at what you've done, Dorothy. She fled because you advanced upon us with such a scary look on your face.

Dorothy: This is the face I was born with! Father Saul, you were hitting on another girl.

Saul: You make it sound so evil! I was simply offering a helping hand to those poor souls in need.

Dorothy: Why does that have to be tonight?

Saul: ...Well, putting that aside... Did you not have something to tell me?

Dorothy: Oh, right. The Lycia Alliance Army is supposed to be somewhere around here.

Saul: What! Princess Guinevere is still with them, is she not?

Dorothy: Yes, if the reports from the Elimine Supreme Church are accurate.

Saul: Let's hurry! We must go and join that army.

Dorothy: ......

You know, I know and Dorothy knows the real reason why Saul wants to join the party.

Saul: What's the matter, Dorothy?

Dorothy: You want to join because Princess Guinevere is sooo beautiful, right?

Saul: Don't be ridiculous... Come now, we must hurry.

Dorothy: Yes, sir!



Anyway, first order of business is for Merlinus to take an Iron Sword in the inventory and hand it over to Rutger here, so that his Killing Edge doesn't get wasted too soon.



Moving North, Rutger and Chad take out a nearby Fighter on their approach.



We're just starting to round the mountains here - as you can see, there are a few fighters and mercenaries nearby our position, so we'll just be luring them in closer...



...And taking them out with our party.

Some more bandit killing antics.



In the middle of it, Roy gets his first bad level up in a long time.



Rutger struts his stuff some more with his new sword, doubling this Fighter down to nearly nothing.



Lugh, seeing an opportunity, jumps in and takes the kill for himself.



Alan likes his fighter on the go, ordering it for take-out. He gets a so-so level up out of the experience.



Lance decides to have a helping for himself as well.



Eh, could be worse.



Thany shows the two Cavaliers what a real level up looks like.