Fire Emblem Awakening: Which difficulty should I start on?

[scorptatious]

So I've never played a Fire Emblem game before, but I have played games that are similar to it, such as Valkyria Chronicles and the Disgaea series.

So my question is, what's a good difficulty setting I should start the game on? I've heard Normal mode is kinda easy while Hard is more challenging but not to a ridiculous degree, But I want to see some input from people on this site.

And also, I read something about how characters that you lose in battle are still in the story for some reason despite dying. Is this true? If so, that sounds kinda weird.

 

[tippy2k2]

It is true. If they're a "story" character (except for the main main guys whom I will not name to avoid slight spoilers; if they go down it's Game Over), they get "injured". You can't use them in battle anymore but they don't technically die.

As to difficulty, I played it on Hard mode and I greatly regretted that. I've played all the (American) Fire Emblem games and I found this game's idea of Hard was bullshit difficulty, not actually more difficult. Basically the enemies are just stronger and when they ambush, there's just more of them. I found it to be far more tedious and annoying rather than challenging. So I'd go with Normal.

However, I also recognize that I seem to be one of the few that thought that this game wasn't very good (especially compared to the earlier ones) so take anything I say with that in mind

 

[John Connor M]

The game sometimes has annoying unfair 'difficulty' where units will appear from some edge or some place with no warning so the only way to know is to have already played. Naturally your squishy healer/mage types will be standing next to these that appear and get a free turn to wreck your stuff.

I'd advise normal, but I'd advise not grinding particularly since it makes the later story missions have a really wonky difficulty.

 

[scorptatious]

It is true. If they're a "story" character (except for the main main guys whom I will not name to avoid slight spoilers; if they go down it's Game Over), they get "injured". You can't use them in battle anymore but they don't technically die.

As to difficulty, I played it on Hard mode and I greatly regretted that. I've played all the (American) Fire Emblem games and I found this game's idea of Hard was bullshit difficulty, not actually more difficult. Basically the enemies are just stronger and when they ambush, there's just more of them. I found it to be far more tedious and annoying rather than challenging. So I'd go with Normal.

However, I also recognize that I seem to be one of the few that thought that this game wasn't very good (especially compared to the earlier ones) so take anything I say with that in mind

Well so long as they don't technically die I'm okay with this. Would be a rather weird oversight by the developers.

 

[WhiteFangofWhoa]

It's true. That's why when I got it for Christmas I selected Normal despite being a Fire Emblem veteran, and I think you should too. Although there is a Casual setting too to remove the permadeath if you really don't like it.

I suppose it also depends on how much you care about all of your characters living to the end of the game- you are given far more than the usual cap of 10 in short order. My brother can't stand to see any of his beloved characters die (understandable since relationships are developed between the characters you use the more you use them and you lose all their equipment too), but that means a LOT of resetting since your healers, mages and Pegasus Knights are absurdly fragile even on Normal. I won't mind the occasional casualty of war so long as I have 10 or more remaining and it was an actual hard battle, not just me being careless.

In general, try to keep your formation tight to protect the vulnerable ones, or pair them up with armoured characters so they can gain defence bonuses and switch when injured instead of having to rely on one or two (FRAGILE) healers for your whole group.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

I find Normal to be more enjoyable in the Fire Emblem games that I've played. Putting it on hard is just asking the game to skew the stats of your enemy in the beginning. It's not as bad as X-COM, but there are a few times where I remember that the game just decided to not play fair (I miss with a 90% hit chance, enemy has 56% chance of hitting me and lands a critical). Hard mode means you need to be ready to make the required sacrifice of some of your players if you truly want to press through.

In games past, if a character died, they were done. Dead. Did not come back. If it was a main character, it was game over, but otherwise, that character was done. You never saw them again. Not sure if that's changed since I last visited the series, but I never had that problem to begin with. On the very rare occasion where I screwed up, I just restarted the mission. I refused to let anyone die.

 

[xyrafhoan]

As a Fire Emblem veteran, I found Normal was just too easy. Ambush spawns are annoying but generally speaking you'll have someone announce that reinforcements will be coming in the next turn. If you're really unsure, Normal is okay but not very challenging unless you buy the difficult DLC maps later on to play on that file.

Absolutely don't start on Lunatic as a first playthrough, as it's complete BS if you don't know reinforcement spawn points. In hard mode it's bearable, but in Lunatic you've basically lost if you're in reinforcement range.

 

[Verzin]

You want Normal for your first go. It will not be that easy. I don't suggest casual. Permadeath is much better, though it tends to cause a lot of reloading.

 

[balladbird]

I was in the same boat as you. Aside from a failed attempt to get into Radiant Dawn, I had never played an FE game before awakening.

I played on the normal difficulty, with permadeath on, and the game was challenging, but perfectly enjoyable.

Be warned that the game counts on you trying to maintain a zero casualty playthrough, though. the enemies will go out of their way to try to successfully kill anyone.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

Radiant Dawn, I had never played an FE game before awakening.

Heh Radiant Dawn was probably not the best one to start out with, since you're forced to use the Dawn Brigade and they're just... urg in the early levels.


OT: I recommend playing on normal, not casual (so permadeath is on). The permadeath aspect will give you that little bit of challenge. Make sure to protect squishy characters and keep Pegasus knights far far away from archers.

As for characters that have died in battle, if they aren't story significant, they die, gone for good. If they are important, they're just crippled, so they still exist to play out their roles. If it's a main character, game over.

 

[scorptatious]

Reading these responses, I guess I'll start on Normal with permadeath on so I can ease into the game's mechanics.

Thanks for your input guys!

 

[Scarim Coral]

Since you're new to the franchise, start of normal mode and it's casual mode to keep your character alived afted being killed in battle.

While I am accustomed to the permadeath since I've played some of the previous series but I'm so glad I went to the casual route. Don't judge me! A couple of optional missions were way too hard to be done normally (wellspring of truth) and I'm no longer got the time to keep redoing the missions over and mission to complete it without any of my characters dying!

 

[sextus the crazy]

So I've never played a Fire Emblem game before, but I have played games that are similar to it, such as Valkyria Chronicles and the Disgaea series.

So my question is, what's a good difficulty setting I should start the game on? I've heard Normal mode is kinda easy while Hard is more challenging but not to a ridiculous degree, But I want to see some input from people on this site.

And also, I read something about how characters that you lose in battle are still in the story for some reason despite dying. Is this true? If so, that sounds kinda weird.

Normal with permadeath is good. Hard mode adds in the ambush spawning bullshit that plagues all of the JP versions. Normal is just hard enough for new comers. Hard can get pretty hairy mid-way through and Lunatic is just stupid unfair.

 

[DeltaEdge]

I know you already said that you were going to try the game on normal/classic, but as a fellow Fire Emblem Newcommer(this is my first as well), I'd have to advise against classic. If you're looking for a challenge, then I guess, but I'm playing on casual mode, and I think the game is already challenging enough.

If you're like me, playing on classic would just mean resetting constantly until I get lucky and win without sacrificing any troupes or over-grinding to win, both of which don't require any actual skill to win, and kind of defeat the purpose of the higher challenge. I've found that I've saved myself a lot of frustration by playing as casual, as permadeath (and if what I've learned from this thread is true, then mid battle saving) is the only real difference between the modes, but it doesn't actually affect the strength/strategy of the enemies. If you want a greater challenge, then I'd probably just go with Hard/Casual for the increased difficulty without the constant resetting.

 

[MoeMints]

I really don't get why people are so mad over ambush troops or even find them cheap.

The game warns you plenty of times, and they're clearly marked or hinted in many maps.
Then again, I liked Days of Ruin and Super Robot Wars who intend for you to do mostly clean runs with little damages and causalities as possible.

There's so many ways to break the game on your lonesome too.
Five optional recruitables and the main two are enough to get you by everything in the story-game.

If anything I'd say to straight to Hard/Classic, grit your teeth, and reset when you lose a character you like.
You start to think more about the weakness of your members and how you do your formations.
Bottleneck on foot when your knights supporting thieves and healers. Build relationships fast and often for better support. Don't be afraid to let your heavier characters take a few blows, but make it so they only will lose 1/2 or 3/5. A critical can kill your courageousness flat.

Well to be honest, no one should really talk about "luck" until Lunatic. Then, you gotta worry about figuring out even the first three stages.

 

[MoeMints]

The game warns you plenty of times, and they're clearly marked or hinted in many maps.

Not on certain maps, it tells you reinforcements are coming, but not from where or how many there are, I remember carefully positioning my units and doing very well, but suddenly, riders from the west came outta nowhere and I lost 2 units through no real fault of my own, strategy is frustrating when you are told enemies are coming, but not from where *has flashbacks to that Desert mission where you recruit Laurent*

I can't say there's "no real fault" when you give no context or background of your characters.
Losing Donnel and Nowi in a 15 man gauntlet that turned into a 20 is way different than forgetting to put res backup on your knight or not using pair up on a pegasus knight against a arcane bog of spell and sorcery.

Had way more rage about Severa diving into numerous upgraded troops with an obvious bottleneck tactic myself, and even then, you just need to remember that you have a teleporting spell.

 

[MoeMints]

The game warns you plenty of times, and they're clearly marked or hinted in many maps.

Not on certain maps, it tells you reinforcements are coming, but not from where or how many there are, I remember carefully positioning my units and doing very well, but suddenly, riders from the west came outta nowhere and I lost 2 units through no real fault of my own, strategy is frustrating when you are told enemies are coming, but not from where *has flashbacks to that Desert mission where you recruit Laurent*

I can't say there's "no real fault" when you give no context or background of your characters.
Losing Donnel and Nowi in a 15 man gauntlet that turned into a 20 is way different than forgetting to put res backup on your knight or not using pair up on a pegasus knight against a arcane bog of spell and sorcery.

Had way more rage about Severa diving into numerous upgraded troops with an obvious bottleneck tactic myself, and even then, you just need to remember that you have a teleporting spell.

It was more I was sweeping a map and sometimes the game simply will not tell you whether or not enemies will spawn, like chapter 11, I never knew the enemies would spawn in all the forts and my mage was away from my healer, I had everyone covered and sweeped the field, but then they came out of nowhere, no "reinforcements" prompt and it was bloody annoying because I was being very careful, but they came out of nowhere, completely botching my strategy.

I know they alert you sometimes, but there were many times when I wasn't aware enemies would suddenly appear out of nowhere and my careful strategy was busted.

I find it more frustrating than strategic, since it feels like trial and error.

Ahh. I usually just cover all the forts for that exact reason.