Fire Emblem playthroughs

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

For something a little less frustrating after the solo FFTA challenge, I decided to do a quick run of Sacred Stones with (mostly) solo Seth on Difficult.  Seth is widely regarded as one of the most overpowered characters in the GBA Fire Emblem games.  He's an early game Paladin in the tradition of Jagen, Marcus, and Frederick, but he has better stat growths than most characters of that archetype.

People whose first Fire Emblem game was Awakening may have to have some mechanics explained.  There's no Pair Up, for starters.  The closest equivalent is Rescue, but that decreases Speed and Skill instead of giving stat buffs.  There's also a magic triangle similar to the lance/sword/axe one.  Light beats Dark, Dark beats Anima, and Anima beats Light.  Don't expect to breed super units like Lucina or Morgan either, because that doesn't exist in GBA Fire Emblems. 

Constitution is a fixed stat that determines how heavy your weapons can be without taking a Speed penalty.  Skills don't exist, with the exception of certain classes (i.e. the Assassin's instant-kill that has a 1/2 critical percentage chance to activate, the Bishop's bonus attack against monsters, etc.)  Reclassing isn't available, but branching promotion is.

However, Sacred Stones resembles Awakening more closely than the older FE games released outside of Japan.  You can move around on a map and buy weapons.  It's possible to fight "skirmishes" against monsters, and you can grind levels in the Tower of Valni after the story branching begins.

Seth's base stats:

HP:  30
Strength:  14
Skill:  13
Speed:  12
Defense:  11
Resistance:  8
Luck:  13
Move:  8
Constitution:  11


Growth Percentages

HP:  90
Strength:  50
Skill:  45
Speed:  45
Defense:  40
Resistance:  30
Luck:  25


Franz's growths for the sake of comparison:

HP:  80
Strength:  40
Skill:  40
Speed:  50
Defense:  25
Resistance:  20
Luck:  40

So the pre-promoted Seth not only has better starting stats, he also has growths at least on par with other mounted units for the most part.  You can probably see why Seth is banned from some challenge runs! 


Prologue

-All it took was sitting Seth in place and letting the Brigands try and fail to kill him.  His Steel Sword defeated them easily.


Chapter 1

-The Fighters and Soldiers were easy.  I couldn't stop Franz from getting in one attack with his Iron Lance during Enemy Phase.

Chapter 2

-With no Vanessa the Pegasus Knight to fly him to safety, Ross the trainee died quickly to a Brigand attack.  I hid the other units in the upper-left corner of the map while Seth slashed everything to death.

Chapter 3

-One exception I'm allowing for this "solo" playthrough is using a Thief to open doors and treasure chests.  Colm's still not allowed to fight.  The items available were common weapons, including an Iron Lance and a Javelin.  Seth loved to break down walls, because Lockpicks were for the weak.

Chapter 4

-This was the first map featuring monsters such as Bonewalkers (skeletons with weapons), Revenants, and Mogalls (eyeballs).  I had to restart the fight once because I left Eirika in the upper-left corner, unaware she'd be surrounded by Revenant reinforcements later.  Oops!  At least wasn't like Awakening where reinforcements appear out of nowhere and attack on the same turn.  On Take 2, I didn't want to take any chances.  I rescued Eirika for the whole chapter.  It may have left me unable to double attack, but it got the job done.  Artur was left to rot, and soon died after repeated monster attacks.  I got Lute out of the village for completion's sake.       

Chapter 5

The only treasure I managed to get was the Dragonshield.  No, I didn't know where the items were.  I just happened to pick the right one.  A permanent +2 Defense is always nice.  Most of the chapter was spent lugging Eirika around, which made it a little harder than usual.  Occasional damage from axe wielders forced me to use Vulneraries.  Joshua foolishly attacked Seth.  So much for the guy with the cool hat!

Chapter 5X

-Seth wasn't in this chapter, so I let Orson kill most things to finish it quickly.  Forde was disappointing as always and perished quickly in a treasure room.  To get to the throne quickly, I had Kyle rescue Ephraim and then handed him off to Orson like the Pony Express.


Non-Essential Character Casualty Count

Ross
Artur
Joshua
Forde


Seth's stats pre-Dragonshield at Level 7

HP:  36
Strength:  17
Skill:  16
Speed:  13
Defense:  14
Resistance:  10
Luck:  15

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Sacred Stones Solo Seth:  Lugging Around Eirika

Chapter 6

-Victims of War was the most interesting map yet.  It was the first fog of war mission, and one enemy had a Horseslayer.  This was another mission where rescuing Eirika was the best option.  Most of the foes were easy, especially with Seth parked on a healing fort.  When one axe user poisoned him, I learned that autohealing had priority over poison damage.  The Horseslayer unit was a Knight, and luckily tried using a Javelin against me first.  I then made sure to kill them during player phase.  A Troubadour sometimes healed the units I couldn't double with the rescue speed penalty, but dropping an Elixir made up for that delay.  The spider ate all three civilians because I took too many turns.  Seth doesn't care about "collateral damage".

Chapter 7

-Waterside Renvall was yet another mission where Seth was carrying Eirika.  The only threats were Mages who could take advantage of Seth's comparatively low Resistance.  The boss fight against some random Cavalier had so many misses that I dropped Eirika near the castle just to get rid of the Skill penalty.  The boss couldn't damage me, but missing so many times was a farce.

Chapter 8

-Forde resurrected for this mission even though he "died" in 5x.  Seth wasn't hauling Eirika most of the time for a change because the reinforcements were more predictable.  Colm came along specifically to open the Angelic Robe treasure chest.  Who can pass up +7 max HP?     Forde and Franz surrounded Ephraim to prevent him from taking too much damage until Seth could reach him.  Once the two parties were safe, the mission was easy.

Chapter 9 Eirika

-This is where the game branches off.  You can either choose the Ephraim or Eirika route.  I went with Eirika just because.  Distant Blade forced Tana the Pegasus Knight into my party, so she was on rescue duty.  The Pirates got to the villages before Seth did, so no treasures for him.  I used up a Javelin or two fighting all those Archers and Mages.  Not much of note happened, but there was a close call where Tana only had one safe spot to move to when several Hand Axe wielders were nearby.

Seth's stats at Level 14 (+7 from Angelic Robe, +2 from Dragonshield)

HP:  50
Strength:  20
Skill:  21
Speed:  16
Defense:  19
Resistance:  11
Luck:  18

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Chapter 10 Eirika

-Revolt at Carcino was an easy map, though it took a while with the rescue penalty.  Seth charged down to kill Marisa along with the other generic enemies such as Myrmidons and Archers.  The guest characters' AI was decent, so Innes, Gerik, and Tethys managed to survive the battle.  This paid off because Tethys carried a Goddess Icon to boost Seth's Luck by 2.  The only threat to Seth was the boss who used Light magic.  Magic is always the main danger for my Seth.

Chapter 11 Eirika

-Creeping Darkness was another fog of war map, and all the enemies were monsters.  Monsters are usually weak in this game, unlike the higher difficulties of Awakening.  The only real risks to Seth from monsters are the magic-using eyeballs and ones that carry anti-cavalry weapons.  To stay on the safe side, Seth carried Eirika the whole time.  I didn't need to bring Colm because there was only one treasure I wanted.  One of the monsters dropped a Chest Key, which gave me a Secret Book.  +2 Skill is good when you have to deal with a rescue penalty for most of the game.  L'Arachel was defeated after being surrounded by monsters.  But Dozla lived even after his axe broke thanks to his supply of healing items.     


Chapter 12 Eirika

-Saleh was mandatory in Village of Silence, so I stripped him of all his spell books and had him carry Eirika for a while.  Right before being surrounded by gargoyles, he had to hand Eirika over to Seth and was impaled on their lances shortly afterwards.  The eyeballs caused a few problems, but the scariest part was the boss.  After having such an easy time with Sacred Stones, I just charged up there and tried to kill the centaur with my Steel Lance.  Big mistake!  The boss had a Halberd, and took Seth to less than 20 HP.     It was time to withdraw an Elixir from Eirika's "Supply" and use it!  (Eirika is basically the Merlinus of this game.)  I also raised her Support with Seth to A level for the ending rather than combat.  Throwing Javelins at the boss was a much safer option.  At least I know the game still has some nasty surprises for Seth even with his high stats!


Seth's stats at level 18 (+7 from Angelic Robe, +2 from Dragonshield, +2 from Secret Book, +2 from Goddess Icon)



HP:  53
Strength:  23
Speed:  16
Defense:  19
Resistance:  11
Luck:  20

Non-Essential Character Casualty Count

Ross
Artur
Joshua
Forde (Resurrected afterwards, because 5X doesn't count?)
Marisa
L'Arachel
Saleh

(No, Amelia didn't die.  Chapter 9 took long enough that she left the battlefield before Seth could reach her.)

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Chapter 13 Eirika

-All I had to do was "Survive" for 11 turns.  That was easy to do when I rescued Eirika and sat on a fort.  I killed Amelia hoping to get her stat booster (Speedwing?), but she didn't drop it.  Then Seth killed Cormag just because he could.  None of Carcino or Grado's troops could do much against Seth's Defense.

Chapter 14 Eirika

-Queen of White Dunes was another easy chapter.  Without having to worry much about the treasures, Seth charged ahead and impaled everyone.  I made sure to drop Eirika before fighting the boss to avoid the rescue penalty.


Chapter 15 Eirika

-This was the longest mission yet.  It required me to destroy all the enemies, and that took a while with the rescue penalty preventing most double attacks.  I failed on the first attempt because I didn't realize Ephraim would recklessly join the battle.  His tactics haven't improved since Chapter 5X.     What I did on the next try was strip Duessel of all his weapons, give him an Elixir and a Vulnerary, and park him on a fort.  This was very effective!  Duessel even gained a level from all the times he was taking or dodging hits. 

Valter was one of the biggest threats, and had the potential to kill Seth.  I took no chances and used a Killing Edge to get a critical hit.  After that was Caellach, who dropped the Hoplon Guard.  Any character with the Hoplon Guard in their inventory becomes immune to critical hits.  Critical hits do triple the net damage in Fire Emblem, and cause many unlucky deaths.  Guess what Seth would have for the rest of the game.  


Seth's stats at level 20 (with all stat boosters mentioned earlier.  There was a +2 movement item too.)

HP:  55
Strength:  25 (CAP)
Skill:  25
Speed:  16
Luck:  21
Defense:  20
Resistance:  11

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Chapter 16

-Taking back Renais Castle was a lot of fun.  The enemies were tough enough that I had to use some tactics to win.  Going onto a fortified position in the southwest part of the map helped a lot once the Knights and Great Knights charged in.  After defeating most of them, I dropped Eirika and withdrew some items from the Supply, especially Elixirs.  The two Sages near the throne knew long-distance magic, and that hurt considering Seth's low Resistance.  I waited for the one on the left to use up all 5 charges on his tome, and then charged up and attacked them both.  A Horseslayer was useful for fighting Orson on his throne. 

Chapter 17

-The objective was to defeat Lyon, and I could get to him quickly thanks to Seth's high movement stat.  He charged through the map and threw Javelins at the Druids.  Luna was a potential threat due to its Resistance-negating property, but its accuracy was in the low 20s at most.  Lyon went down in about two rounds.  Grado should learn that Dark magic spell books are way too heavy to be practical!

Chapter 18

-If 17 was easy, 18 may be the chapter that ends this playthrough.  The map is filled with eggs that hatch into Gorgons if they're not destroyed fast enough.  Gorgons have a magical attack that deals over 20 damage, but that's not the real danger.  Like in Greek mythology, Gorgons have the ability to turn characters to stone.  Its accuracy is about 39% the last time I checked, and there's no way my Paladin can dodge all of them without RNG abuse or something.

Chances are I'll have to break the rules for this chapter and send in the Pegasus Knights with Steel Lances.  They'll try to destroy as many eggs as possible before they die, so Seth might have a chance to win.  This is a "Destroy All Enemies" map, not a "Defeat the Boss" mission, so I can't just rush to the northeast and win.  Grinding isn't an option because Seth is level 20.  You can buy stat boosters. . .but only in the postgame.

Seth's stats at level 20 (updated after finding a Talisman in Chapter 16)

HP:  55
Strength:  25 (CAP)
Skill:  25
Speed:  16
Luck:  21
Defense:  20
Resistance:  13

EDIT:  I tried the Pegasus Knight strategy a couple of times.  It didn't work.  Large portions of the Chapter 18 map turned out to be impassable even for flying units.  Next time, I'll try Myrrh.  Myrrh is a Manakete, like Nowi from Awakening.  Unlike Nowi, Myrrh can't buy Dragonstones, so you can only use her for 50 attacks.  This is a (mostly) solo Seth run, so I don't really care about preserving her weapon.  Hopefully Myrrh can beat this chapter.  If not, I'll have to level grind with the Pegasus Knights in the Tower of Valni until they're usable.

[Cheater Hater]

If you have to break the solo rule, why not just use the mine glitch? Or RNG manipulate the misses?

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

If you have to break the solo rule, why not just use the mine glitch?  Or RNG manipulate the misses?

You're not someone who hates cheaters, but rather a cheater who's a hater!  

Anyway, I thought your suggestion was a good idea, so I looked up where to find mines.  Turns out they don't exist in Magvel.  Intelligent Systems probably removed the item after learning about the glitch in FE7.  There is, however, a similar enemy control glitch involving flame tiles according to Serenes Forest.  Guess what kind of terrain is common in Chapter 18.  

I'll give it a try and see what happens.  All the enemies are monsters, so their "weapons" might have different mechanics.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Sacred Stones Solo Seth:  The Cheater of Haters

Chapter 18

-This special episode of "Stupid Challenge Playthroughs" was brought to you by Realms Beyond's own Cheater Hater!    

After learning I couldn't beat the Gorgons and their petrifying attack, Cheater Hater suggested using the "mine glitch".  In case you haven't played Blazing Sword (i.e. the one on the GBA just called "Fire Emblem"), there's a bug in that game that allows you to control enemies and trade/discard their weapons if you reset right as a Mine explodes and then "Resume Chapter".  Mines don't exist in Sacred Stones, but the glitch still lives on.  If an enemy attacks you while standing on a flame tile, and you reset immediately between its attack and the next enemy moving, it has the same effect as a Mine in Blazing Sword.

Yes, this is cheating, but you have to cheat on Chapter 18 if you're doing a solo on the highest difficulty.  Think of it like reviving your characters for the Atomos fight in Final Fantasy 5.  Stone had about a 39% accuracy on Seth last time I checked, and there was no way he could dodge them all as well as the Demon Surges that could deal around 20 damage.  After performing the glitch, I discarded all the enemies' weapons and moved some of them to flame tiles.  I had to do it again after all the Gorgon eggs hatched. 

Seth rescued Eirika late in the mission due to my paranoia about reinforcements.  It was well-founded.  Several spiders and gargoyles appeared, and I danced around them to make them take damage from the fire tiles.  After a while, I finally killed all the enemies and beat the worst chapter of Sacred Stones.

No Stats and Equipment this time because Seth is the same as before.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Solo Seth Sacred Stones:  Rushing the Boss

Chapter 19

-This was a fog of war "survive" map in Rausten's castle.  The problem was keeping Eirika and the king alive.  I had her rescue him and sit on the throne, while Seth tried to hold off the enemies for 13 turns.  Despite Seth's strength, the horde of enemies overwhelmed him multiple times.  Then I looked up YouTube videos and found out that killing Riev would end the chapter early.  The first try was a failure because I wasted too much time trying to get the Brave Lance.  (It's hard to resist getting two attacks per hit, but then again it only has about 30 uses.)  Rushing directly towards Riev and impaling him on the Silver Lance worked, especially because Riev was stupid enough to attack before his minions on the enemy phase.  I guess he figured out he could come back for Chapter 20.

[Cheater Hater]

Yeah, the "mine glitch" is the name for the "non-combat damage to gain control of the enemy's turn" exploit in general. Fun fact: since you can trade with enemy units on the mine glitch turn, you can get the stone ability on your units that anyone can use, and since it actually adds dark magic XP, it lets anyone use it (notably Myrrh).