From Distant Shores (Fire Emblem)

[enthalpy]

From Distant Shores

Once, dragons and men coexisted.

They shared a peace forged in wisdom, a peace that lasted many generations.

All that was lost when mankind disrupted this balance in a sudden onslaught.

Man fought dragon in a savage war that shook the foundations of their world.

This war was called The Scouring.

Defeated and humbled, dragons vanished from the realm.

In time, man rebuilt and spread his dominion across the land and on to the islands beyond.

A millenium has passed since those dark days ended.​

Ten years ago, a sorcerer named Nergal attempted to open the Dragon's Gate, and set the dragons free upon the world once again. It was only through the efforts of three young nobles of Lycia that he was defeated. After the final conflict, they and the rag-tag band of companions that they had gathered over the course of their travels parted and went their separate ways.

Since then, though, much has changed. Great houses have risen and crumbled into dust, and the balance of power on the continent has shifted.

A great darkness bides its time, waiting until the day that it can consume Elibe in the flames of war.

The continent needs a savior once more.

Prologue: Wildfire​

There's a voice calling out to you through your slumber. You can hear it echoing through your dreams, through the sounds and ghostly images conjured up by your imagination. Normally, during your sleep, you find yourself a prisoner within your own body, forced to relive your worst failures again and again. There's something different about this dream, though. It's more tangible, somehow. More real.

Once more, you stand before the Dragon's Gate. The fire of the great dragon that came through the breach burns bright and strong, the flames licking hungrily at the stone walls of the temple. Even as you watch in steadily growing horror, your friends and companions, those few people you have come to know and love in the lifetime that you can remember, turn to you for guidance.

Frantically, you direct everyone to fall back, desperately trying to buy time, to think of a way to kill the wyrm that has appeared before you. And all the while, you hear the panicked screams, smell the sickly odor of seared flesh and charred bone, see the hungry flames steadily creep ever closer.

One by one, your comrades fall, fighting back against the monster even as you fall back, until at long last, only you remain. No, you and one other. The person you first met at the beginning of this long journey. What cruel irony.

She's shouting at you, you think, bit her voice is far too quiet for you to hear, deafened as you are by the pulsing rush of blood in your ears, the panicked thumping of your heart. You turn away to look at the dragon, transfixed, perhaps in fascination or in fear.

She shouts again, with more emphasis, and when her voice fails to elicit a response from you, she dashes to where you stand, frozen, and shouts in your ear. This time, her voice pierces the haze of terror that has dulled your senses. It's your name, you realize dimly. She's shouting your name.

"-rk! Ma-"

You jerk up to a sitting position in bed, almost colliding with... something. "Lyn?"

"Something's happening outside," she says quietly. Her voice is serious and quiet, and there's a hint of something in her tone that you haven't heard in many years. "The Djute are missing, and half of their tents have been torn down."

You frown and peer outside. There's soldiers there, dressed in red and gold livery, methodically looking through the other yurts.

"Zephiel's finally made his move."

Lyn smiles wryly. "It seems," she says, "that I am once again in need of your skills."

"They're coming from the west," you say, after a moment of thought. "We'll have to loop around the lake to the east and try to flee to the north."

You take a moment to survey your surroundings. There's some soldiers to the south blocking your way out, no doubt with more on their way, and a solitary cloaked figure standing atop the cliffs to the north, with a commanding view of the proceedings below. It seems like it's too late to flee without being noticed - you'll have to fight your way out.

Turn 1
Objective: Defeat boss.

Allied Units:
Lyn
Mark

Enemy Units:
Soldier x2
Fighter x1
Archer x1
Brunya (Boss)

[ ] Have Lyn lead the way. Even though neither of you have picked up a sword for many years, she is still by far the stronger fighter than you.
[ ] Take the lead. You're rustier than you'd like to admit, and the sooner you can regain your lost combat skills, the better.
[ ] Battle plan?

=====

This is a Fire Emblem quest. You are Mark, a renowned tactician who, ten years ago, lead Marquess Eliwood of Pherae to victory over the sorcerer Nergal's dark forces.

After the conflict ended, you thought you could finally escape the life of conflict and bloodshed that you had led. Unfortunately, it was not to be. One by one, the great nations of the world sought your services, and, at long last, sick and tired of the constant requests for aid, you fled into the grassy plains of Sacae.

Since then, you've made a quiet, peaceful life for yourself out here on the steppe, though it seems that you'll need to make use of your old skills once again.

Each turn, you will need to make a decision about the tactics you will employ, giving a general set of guidelines for your allies to follow. If you're interested in a more in-depth calculation of the probabilities involved in combat, the spreadsheet that I'm using for calculations can be found here - just keep in mind that it's still a work in progress, and that a few parts of it are still incomplete.

 

[ReinZero]

[X] Lyn: Move down 5 hexes, attack Soldier with Mani Katte.
[X] Mark: Move down 3 hexes, then left 2 hexes. Finish off the Soldier if Lyn didn't kill it off.

 

[Megaolix]

[X] Take the lead. You're rustier than you'd like to admit, and the sooner you can regain your lost combat skills, the better.

[X] Mark: 1 down, 1 right on building. Equip Iron Sword.
[X] Lyn: Move 2 down, 2 right next to Mark.

Soldier on the left go commit suicide and Mark can get some exp even if it's a bit dangerous. Sword means maximizing odds of dodging the fighter, who does the worst damage anyway. If Mark avoid, Archer won't be a problem. If he doesn't, Mark retreat for vulnerary.

 

[a2znut]

[X] Plan Megaolix cause he actually checked the numbers.

 

[Adyen]

If we want the soldier to go commit suicide... why aren't we putting Lyn on the fortress? And Lyn is using a sword! She's going to be up against a spear, so every little bit counts (btw, she's using an iron sword)

Edit: Wait. Everyone moves 5, which means if we put him on the tent he gets attacked by both the spearman AND the warrior! Ung. FE RNG...

[X] Take the lead. You're rustier than you'd like to admit, and the sooner you can regain your lost combat skills, the better.

[X] Mark: 1 down, 1 right on building. Equip Fire.
[X] Lyn: Move 3 down, 1 left on the ruins - double check that she has Iron Sword equipped.

 

[Megaolix]

Adyen, I asked. That is not a fortress, but a plain too.

 

[enthalpy]

More specifically, those tiles are ruins, which confer no defensive bonuses, and a slight movement penalty.

 

[Adyen]

Cool.

Huh. Just noticed that Mark knows Fire?

And checking the calculations... it kinda evens out since he's being attacked twice this turn. So I'm going to have Fire on instead.

 

[Megaolix]

I would rather focus on dodging one best as possible instead of trying to dodge both with lower odds.

 

[enthalpy]

[X] Take the lead. You're rustier than you'd like to admit, and the sooner you can regain your lost combat skills, the better.

[X] Mark: 1 down, 1 right on building. Equip Iron Sword.
[X] Lyn: Move 2 down, 2 right next to Mark.

"I'll take the lead," you tell Lyn. "I'm in poor form after all these years at peace, and if this is the beginning of something bigger, I'll need the experience."

She nods grimly and claps you on the shoulder. "Stay safe," she says softly.

The two of you run outside, and you take a moment to assess the situation in greater depth. There's too many enemies here for you to just charge in. Instead, you duck around a smaller yurt nearby, using walls for concealment, and Lyn follows closely behind you.

The Bernese soldiers let out a shout as they see the two of you, and the four you can see blocking your path out charge at you. One of the lancers charges at Lyn, but she deftly avoids his strike and returns two of her own - the man collapses with a cry of pain and doesn't get back up.

The other soldiers focus on you. Somehow, you manage to dodge both of their blows, as well, and you manage to get some hits in on them, but when the dust settles, they're still alive and looking for a fight, if just barely.

Spoiler: combat

Hit and critical rate is derived from a combination of unit and weapon stats. Each round of combat, I will roll 2d100, and then 1d100 for both parties. If the average of 2d100 is equal to or lower than the hit rate, that unit as succeeded in striking their target. If the 1d100 roll is equal to or lower than the critical rate, then that hit becomes a critical strike, for three times the normal damage.

Soldier 1: 81 to hit, 8 to crit: MISS. Lyn: 65 to hit, 42 to crit: HIT. Lyn: 42.5 to hit, 49 to crit: HIT. Exp +24.
Soldier 2: 76 to hit, 70 to crit: MISS. Mark: 23.5 to hit, 52 to crit: HIT. Mark: 57 to hit, 48 to crit: HIT. Exp +15.
Fighter 1: 77 to hit, 89 to crit: MISS. Mark: 31 to hit, 42 to crit: HIT. Mark: 36.5 to hit, 99 to crit: HIT. Exp +25.

It seems, though that the commotion as caught the attention of the other soldiers in the camp. There's more soldiers coming from the west, and from the sounds of it, at least a few of them are mounted. You spare a moment to look behind you, and sure enough, there's three more enemies charging into the fray. Two cavaliers, both armed with lances, and another axeman.

You grimace. Both you and Lyn are at a severe disadvantage when fighting lancers, mainly because swords don't have the reach to match up against them - not without a great gap in the wielders' skill, at least.

As if to add insult to injury, both cavaliers are mounted, as well - if you linger too long, they'll be sure to run you down.

Turn 2
Objective: Defeat boss.

Ally Units:
Lyn
Mark

Enemy Units:
Soldier 1
Fighter 1
Soldier 2
Archer 1
Cavalier 1 (reinforcements)
Cavalier 2 (reinforcements)
Fighter 2 (reinforcements)
Brunya (Boss)

[ ] Plans?

 

[Adyen]

Edit: Should probably move more.

[X] Lyn: Move down 1 and attack the fighter
[X] Mark: Equip Fire and move down 2, 1 right. Grill the soldier with Fire.

 

[Larekko12]

Well we need the Exp and there are forrest towards our objectives...

So how about moving Mark Down below the soldier to kill him with fire nad moving Lyn to kill the Archer.

Then heading to the forrests to Stage the cavaliers murders so we aren't pinned between them adn the mage.

WE have good odds on counter killing the fighter without dying.

 

[Adyen]

Well we need the Exp and there are forrest towards our objectives...

So how about moving Mark Down below the soldier to kill him with fire nad moving Lyn to kill the Archer.

Then heading to the forrests to Stage the cavaliers murders so we aren't pinned between them adn the mage.

WE have good odds on counter killing the fighter without dying.

Click to shrink...

ZOC. I don't think we can move through enemy units, though I guess we can move around the fighter?

I'd rather not risk the soldier getting a good hit since we would either be using a sword or Fire, neither of which has an advantage vs the spear.

 

[Larekko12]

WIth move Five we can get to the Archer with Mark then shoot the Soldier with Fire. Lyn can then come down and Kill the Archer. Then it's just dodging the warrior.

And we move away from the Horsemen.

 

[Megaolix]

Well, that first turn went better than expected.

Lyn can kill the Archer in one turn, but it's the one doing the lowest damage. We may as well finish the fighter and soldier first.

Edit: Or Lyn kill the archer and Mark ends the soldier. Fighter kill himself on either on his turn.

Edit2: I really should ask Enthalpy if objective say we want to run or if we need to kill them anyway... Because if so, we may as well stand our grounds where there are defensible locations that favor us. But how that last post ended...

 

[Adyen]

Honestly, as long as no ranged units appear, Lyn could probably take all of them on the Throne herself with MK equipped. But we might as well get moving since we don't know what kind of reinforcement is arriving.

 

[Larekko12]

She does have good odds killing them all on the throne. The Cavs only have a 50/50 or so chance of hitting her and she'll murder them all in on confrontation.

Of course if they get lucky twice that's it cause we lost all our levels.

 

[Adyen]

What I'm worried about is that they get some high level reinforcement or a mage-type reinforcement. Either of which would kill Lyn pretty fast, especially if everything else was still on the field.

 

[Megaolix]

[X] Mark: Left, 2 down, 2 right. Attack Soldier 2 with Fire.
[X] Lyn: 3 down, 1 left. Attack Archer.

The fighter will kill himself on either. But the archer has to go now before he decide to just snipe the one who can't counter and we have to waste a turn dealing with him.

If the Fighter attack Mark, that would be a level up too.

 

[Adyen]

Uh... The Fighter deals more damage than both the soldier AND the archer. Why would you not kill him first, especially considering the fear of HP loss mentioned before?

 

[Megaolix]

Because at this point, 6 or 9 damage won't change much and any hit done by the fighter will mean that character can only endure one cavalry attack.

So if we're going to use a vulnerary anyway, I would rather have all foes dead now instead of having the archer stay alive.

 

[Adyen]

But don't we kill the archer in 1 turn anyways? And he's not going to come closer, so we could just kill him on the next turn, AND potentially take less damage this turn.

 

[Megaolix]

Only Lyn can kill him in one turn. And we need to get moving before more reinforcements arrive.

 

[a2znut]

[X] Plan Megaolix

 

[enthalpy]

[X] Mark: Left, 2 down, 2 right. Attack Soldier 2 with Fire.
[X] Lyn: 3 down, 1 left. Attack Archer.

Spoiler: combat

Mark: 46.5 to hit, 45 to crit: MISS. Exp +34.
Lyn: 25 to hit, 79 to crit: HIT. 48 to hit, 17 to crit: CRIT. Exp +25

You dash around the two soldiers in front of you, making sure you've slipped out of range before pulling out your trusty Fire tome. The lancer falls to the fireball you cast out, and Lyn dashes forward and cuts down the archer, as well.

Spoiler: combat

Fighter 1: 34 to hit, 69 to crit: HIT. Mark: 83 to hit, 98 to crit: HIT. Exp +35
Level Up! +1 HP, +1 MAG. +1 SKL, +1 SPD

The axeman follows closely behind her and manages hit you with his strike, and is rewarded with a faceful of fire for his efforts.

Meanwhile, the reinforcements from the northeast rush towards where you are. While they haven't caught up to you just yet, it's only a matter of time before they do.

There's more soldiers rushing in from the south, as well. While they're not in range to engage you just yet, they'll be here very soon. Now's a good time to cover some distance.

Turn 3
Objective: Defeat boss.

Ally Units:
Lyn
Mark

Enemy Units:
Soldier 1
Fighter 1
Soldier 2
Archer 1
Cavalier 1 (reinforcements)
Cavalier 2 (reinforcements)
Fighter 2 (reinforcements)
Brunya (Boss)

[ ] Plans?

 

[Megaolix]

[X] Mark: 3 down, 2 right. Drink vulnerary.
[X] Lyn: 2 down, 2 right.

Better run before we're trapped in a pincer.

 

[Larekko12]

Okaaay Can lyn reach that forest? If we go straight down we should lure one of the Cavs into kill range from fire and Mani Kati.

But that would be risky for the second. And If we keep running ahead the only place we'd be able to do a one as a time would be too close to the boss.

But we head deep into the forrest and don't attack with Lyn Mark can get a strike from the forest next turn when the mooks move towards us to the maximum degree.

And the Cav have terrible odds hitting him from the forrest. And I we Walk lyn in deep enough She'd be able to come back and revenge strike the other one who starts a fight after we kill of the First one.


[X]Lyn three Down Two Left., Mark Four Down One Left Use Vulnary.

 

[Megaolix]

Forget the forest. Did you forget the end? More reinforcements are coming and we don,t know for how long they'll keep coming. We get on the right, we can bottleneck them. We don't want to be caught in a pincer here. We have no healers with us either.

Edit: And last I checked, forests need 2 move to go in. Your plan is invalid.

 

[Larekko12]

But the Bottleneck is Pincer bait if the boss starts to move as we close.

 

[Megaolix]

But the Bottleneck is Pincer bait if the boss starts to move as we close.

Click to shrink...

Considering the objective and what the boss is, it's obviously an event waiting for us there and we're not going to actually fight Brunya.

And getting surrounded is worse. Cavalry only get bigger movement penalty in forests. We have very limited healing, so it's frankly not the time to test our luck against every blow coming our way. And as end of last update pointed, we're supposed to be fleeing. We got a warning mroe are coming and if those are lance soldiers, that's problematic for us.

Edit: And your plan is still invalid, by the way. Lyn need 6 Move if you want her in that forest now (need 2 Move, 3 for cavalry) and she has 5.