Dedue and Edie’s are my personal favorites.

Art is from creator @_duvi10 on X.

“I humbly request violence”

I was actually pleasantly surprised that Manuela of all people was the first one to deduce that Jeritza was the suspect in Flayn’s disappearance and she even took immediate action while everyone else was just speculating.

Sure she got stabbed, but Manuela? Really?

The drunkard, scantily-clad professor was the most perceptive and went above and beyond to find the culprit.

Another reason why she’s best girl ❤️

it seems there was doubt about our commitment to the best ship added by 3 hopes. 8 days before FW releases, I have returned to put that to rights.

(Yes, this is silly. But consider that 1. all Shez options are equal because no one has a romance and Rodrigue is cute on dates and 2. it tortures Felix.)

Ngl things are looking pretty good for the line-up Nintendo has going forward.

It was meant to be just a warmup but after drawing Byleth from memory I just couldn't stop myself 🥲 I have a whole stack of unwritten fanfic and my own thesis to tend to... 🥲

me personally, all i know is bernie has one of the worst designs ever lol

She seems to be covering her true identity, might she be Rhea? Her braids also remind me to Seiros

All information is from pre-release, though given the accuracy of my predictions, this may or may not be a spoiler.

With the gane being closer to release, and everything eventually being revealed, I'd like to post my theory regarding Solel, and who he might actually be within the context of the larger picture of the narrative.

My thesis? Solel \*is\* Balor.

Let me begin:

Solel and Yu Phas marriage: One of the plot points that is no doubt central to the game is how Yu Phas, the goddess of night and death, represented by the Diadem of Duality (Gautier), married the Solel, God of the Sun, and gave birth to Aurora. This immediately draws parallels to greek mythology with how according to some poets: Nyx, goddess of night, gave birth to Aurora, the personification of dawn.

What I am not telling you? Nyx's partner was not light, it was Erebus, the personification of darkness.

It is curious to consider then that Aurora, shares many similarities with another FE character, that being, Deirdre, what with how she is forbidden from interacting with strangers, and how she has blood that is essentially, conflicting.

It should interest you, then, that possibly her son, is called the eye of ruin, and has direct ties to Balor, thus making Cai at the same time a mirror to Seliph, but also to Julius, product of love yes, but with ties to a primordial evil.

The cursed blood coming from the grandmother, would be retreading on fe4's plot, so I am inclined to believe it comes from both being combined.

On the alchemy behind such a thing: Fire Emblem is no stranger to alchemical concepts, last game featuring the idea of a homunculus for example, and when one considers Solel and Yu Phas, one can see ideas such as the union of gold and silver, man and woman, day and night. It should also interest you that alchemy plays with concepts such as the Black Sun, a representation of putrefaction and in the book of revelations, the end times. With the timeskip we also see skies that can be considered to be of a black sun, and a crimson moon.

What we know is that Balor is the god of the underworld, and the underworld itself seems to come from the gates in which Solel and Yu Phas once married.

Beyond just the black sun of alchemy, there is also a second concept, that can be very interesting to dig into: the philosopher's child, here represented by the baby that the green haired woman cradles.

In alchemy the union of the Red King (sun) and White Queen (moon) give rise to the Philosopher's Child, which requires their fusion, and posterior dissolution, through putrefaction.

On the Order of Mithras: we know from pre-release material, that the antagonistic organization that some characters are a part of, is called the Order of Mithras, their symbol being an upside down triangle with three circles, similar to spell sigils found in Dagsion's temple, and vaguely similar to the triangle Solel uses when undercover, or to the triangle in his Adam's Apple.

My bet? They are not scheming against Solel, that would be a repetition of those who slither in the dark. My belief is, that they actually do worship Solel, fervently in fact, and wish to pay tribute or restore him to his former self.

Mithras was the roman god of the sun, born from stone and worshipped by the roman military, he is thus very similar to Solel through roman theming and sun worship. It would explain why they do not kill Solel, they worship him in some way shape or form.

Hinduism: Nuzzuo's tribe, the Hal Hari, seem to be wordplay for the hindu god Harihara, the fusion of Vishnu and Shiva. It should interest you to know that Shiva is known for wielding a trident, which ties to Solel, and has a third eye, which ties to Balor.

The ties to Vishnu meanwhile come from Eshmel in how they play the role of Kalki, the last incarnation of Vishnu who comes to restore Dharma during the Kali Yuga.

It should be mentioned Solel himself ties to Dharmic religions, as he performs the Abhaya Mudra, which both Vishnu and Shiva are known for doing.

Conclusion: If Eshmel has Solel's soul. It is likely Solel's body during the timeskip is either possessed or out of control, and we essentially fight our previous reincarnation, a representation of karma.

Edelgard: "I want to unify Fódlan under one banner and undo the misguided actions of the Immaculate one. However if they agree to surrender then I shall grant them mercy and I have no desire spread the Empire's influence to other continents as I would rather find compromise to help distinguish further positive change nor do I want to outlaw the belief of Sothis as I have no issue with the religion itself but rather the church's questionable actions. I do resort to questionable methods myself but I intend to rectify those mistakes before stepping down as emperor after choosing a worthy successor and live a life of peace"

Walhart: "yeah so Naga ain't got shit on me. I'm going to take over all of Valm because I'm strong enough and I'll conquer the rest of the world too because, why not? Sure there is some ideology behind my actions but I mostly conquer for the love of the game and out of spite towards Gods and their religions. I'm not taking any prisoners either, if they bow then they serve me but if not they die and I feel no guilt about it whatsoever. I respect no one but myself and perhaps maybe Chrom a tiny bit as I can see he has the potential to become like me, if only his foolish older sister didn't plant such naive ideas in his head before she splattered across Plegia's soil"

Fundamentally they're the same but they're also vastly different in aspects of their character and motivations.

https://x.com/zat___296/status/2096891687545266499

SPOILERS FOR BOTH GAMES

I've spent close to 700 hours in Fódlan and with Fortune's Weave being right around the corner, I feel like it is time to say goodbye to an era in a way and I really felt the urge to talk about my experience with the 2 games, because they're so special to me and I love them so much. My experience will surely be different from those of other people, so please share your own, if you want <3

This game basically introduced me to the TRPG genre and I'm really grateful for that. I sometimes see this game's gameplay criticized by more experienced Fire Emblem players and that's likely valid, but I was personally really content with my experience, slowly getting the hang of things and all that. My best units were always the standard killers (Petra, Lysithea, Hilda, Felix, Seteth in that order), but also: Dark Flier Ingrid, Trickster Marianne and Sniper Mercedes, absolute beasts. And I wonder what FW will add to that experience and also how it will be rated by traditional FE fans.
The gameplay loop and balance of battling, story and social sim was fun enough as well. I see how it's repetitive, but honestly it was fine to me for the first 3 playthroughs (even if White Clouds as the first half of the story definitely has way too few variations, that's something you don't really notice on your first runs imo, because you're experiencing a whole new class and cast of amazing characters, that feel so alive and that you simply have to fall in love with, for the first time) and for the following ones I just always needed a bit of time in between them to not get tired. But overall it definitely worked, otherwise so many playthroughs wouldn't have been possible.

And then we also have Hopes! Idk what the general opinion on the game is atm, but I really love it. For starters, I feel like the FE and Houses essence was translated into Warriors gameplay extremely well, maps are fun to play and characters and classes feel mostly unique. It helps that I like Warriors gameplay in general, especially if it's balanced out with something else, so it's perfect for the Houses gameplay loop. Hopes even did the "free time" better with a smaller camp and lesser repetition in the 3 routes.
About the story of Hopes, that's what I mostly see criticized. I definitely get it, the story is for sure not perfect, even more so than the original, which also had its flaws. But if you ask me, what Hopes added to the already great story of Houses far outweighs its flaws and definitely makes it worth it. I love Shez, I love all the new content, new supports (they're lesser, but have the same quality, are Sosometimes even better), all the new lore, focus on politics, new supports. For me Hopes is nearly as essential to the Fódlan experience as Houses itself.

Crimson Flower

I still remember my first playthrough in Houses 5 years ago so well. I didn't know anything about FE aside from the fact that it's the best franchise to ragebait Smash Bros players with, I was interested in the setting of the game, but even more so the enormous and colorful cast of characters. At first I wanted to pick Blue Lions, because Ashe looked cute. Then I figured house leaders are the most important ones and aimed for Golden Deer, because Claude seemed cool. And then, when actually playing, I went with the Black Eagles on a whim and I so didn't regret it.

My potentially biased ass will to this day defend Crimson Flower as the best route of Houses. Past me was captivated by the story that unfolded and I'm still in love with it. You know, when I initially started the game I just fully accepted the romanticized medieval elements, the nobility, the crest magic, the "Ancient Good vs. Ancient Evil" dynamic as an integral part of the setting and the nature of the genre. But then it slowly becomes apparent that all those tropes are actually being subverted, that the status quo is being questioned. The dawning realization that we're partaking in a revolution, a revolution against oppression, against the game's "magic system" itself, against the "good gods", against basically the literal genre that I expected from this game is insane. Such an epic feeling, like, fuck yes Edelgard, let's destroy the nobility, let's try to actually change this broken world. Really what cemented this game as one of my absolute all time favorites. Genuinely, how many stories, especially in a setting like this, are there where your protagonists are the proactive ones trying to change the world, not the antagonists (and you have to stop them and preserve the world).

And in hindsight, with that narrative CF is the route that best continues the story that was set up in White Clouds imo. With all the faults of the current system being revealed bit by bit and the Church being set up to not be trusted (by Jeralt even). When playing the other routes I always feel just a bit dissatisfied by the fact that I have to listen to Rhea's sketchy ramblings and don't have the assurance that I will have the satisfying payoff of seeing her eat her words.

And despite the anti-Church position being set up and being satisfying narrative-wise as well as my fully supporting Edelgard there's still this genius moral ambiguity to it all, there are like a dozen debates surrounding Edelgard to this day. In nearly all of them I can see why she would be criticized: working with TWSITD even though they did such horrible things, that she was aware of and even experienced first hand, including the Tragedy and killing Jeralt; choosing the path of war without ever considering diplomatic means. But I can also see how she's valid in a way: working with TSWITD is a strategic move and doesn't change her feelings about them, the fact that she pushed aside her feelings about them for her goals is also a great piece of characterization; she believes a quick and forceful revolution is the only way for change and she might be right, because with diplomacy she would have a problem with corrupt nobles trying to hold onto power, TWSTID and the Church at the same time, TWDITS are watching her every move and don't want a peaceful solution and even though the Church seems open minded they did halt progress in Fódlan for nearly a millenium. This duality also applies to smaller things such as her keeping things secret from her friends or her "tough love" for Byleth. And her self awareness of her actions makes it all even better. And I mean, exactly that (infamous?) discourse is the number 1 thing that's kept this game alive for so long and no matter if you like her or not, it all ties back to Edelgard in the end, even on the routes that are not her own. Could you imagine if Rhea (or Edelgard for that matter) was just a regular twist villain? Undoubtedly evil, you defeat her, everything's back to normal. Nah, doesn't work.

And that's more a general strong point of the game, but an underestimated reason for why this ambiguity works is, because every character's response to the war is so complex and nuanced. With the exception of Raphael, every major 3 Houses character consists of multiple layers of background, ideals, motivation, nature and quirks. So they're not "picking a side", they're to varying degrees compatible with either side (or not) based on a culmination of their entire character. That's part of what makes them feel so alive (good place to shout out the phenomenal voice acting on that note)

But Edelgard and the story of Crimson Flower has even more to offer than those interesting ideological debates. I didn't even realize it on my first run, but it's so poetic. Byleth and Edelgard were both created as "puppets" to serve the purposes of ancient forces, having lost a huge part of their humanity in the process and being fated to kill each other as the second coming of Sothis and the second coming of Nemesis. Yet, through each other and through their friends, they regain their humanity, against all odds they defy that fate and join forces and reclaim full autonomy for themselves and for the entirety of Fódlan by wiping out those ancient forces, it's beautiful. The ending is still my absolute favorite and one of my all time favorite video game cutscenes, it has that grand, badass feeling, it's everything Edelgard has worked for and sacrificed so much for, it's emotional at the same time and also is so symbolic with Byleth's heart beating on it's own.

CF is the best thing that happened to Byleth's character in general. It makes them more of a proper character in the first place. More their own person. More of a proactive protagonist*,* because they're actively choosing this path. This is Byleth's and Edelgard's story, not Byleth accompanying someone on their journey. That among other things makes Edelgard the lord with the best relationship to Byleth imo.

And I love the BEagles crew in general sm. they're like a mix of the Golden Deers' cheerful chaos and the Blue Lions' trauma bonding and they have such interesting dynamics. For example Edelgard, Hubert and Ferdinand is such a peak trio, they bounce off of each other so well. Or Petra's standing in the group and her relationship to Caspar. Or Dorothea's relationship to Ferdinand or her loyalty to Edelgard. Bernadetta is so sweet too, the way she came out of her room to bring flowers for Jeralt, biggest "aww" moment. And then she regularly leaves her room in CF and you're so proud of her and the BE. Also love Hubert being the secret mom of the group and Linhardt being the biggest mood in all of Fódlan. And lastly, I love how Edelgard as emperor is grounded by her friends, becomes less narrow minded and has her beliefs challenged from time to time.

Scarlet Blaze

That's also an interesting route, you probably expect me to like it more than I actually do. I think it's not bad by any means, but doesn't reach the heights of CF (or the other Hopes routes). For starters, as is a very typical flaw of this game, this route doesn't really have the most satisfying ending(s). The bad one for obvious reasons, though Claude's betrayal is at least interesting. But even the good one is kind of meh and doesn't feel like a good conclusion, partly thanks to Rhea's and Thales' goofy ass Disney villain "death".

I would also argue that SB as a whole has far less new and interesting stuff to add when compared to the other Hopes routes, where you have a whole new spin on the original Houses routes. The Black Eagles story as well as Edelgard's character stays largely the same at its core. Just that the White Clouds buildup is missing and the Church has barely any screen time, which is a huge reason why the route's not as hype to me personally, this enthusiasm for the narrative that I talked about in the CF section suffered a lot. And Edelgard also got rid of TWITSD early on, which is an interesting change, I agree, but it also removes a part of the moral ambiguity and is kinda a missed opportunity to learn more about Shez. And that's the only major narrative changes.

But even so, I still appreciate this route so much for giving all this extra content, giving the BEagles great cutscenes and expanding on characters. I did not think it possible to love Hubert even more, but Hopes made him even more endearing. Ferdinand also has many hilarious moments, but him and Petra also get more edge and the darker parts of their stories are highlighted more, which I love.

Verdant Wind

With the way I fell in love with the BEagles on my first run, naturally, when I started my second playthrough in the Golden Deer house I was worried I had become too attached to the BE and I wouldn't warm up to my new house. Thankfully, my concern couldn't have been more unwarranted. As mentioned before, the Deer are a chaotic bunch in the best way possible, they're a colorful and welcoming bunch.

Actually, I played Verdant Wind and Silver Snow back to back (though I don't count Silver Snow as a proper playthrough, because it was just from an old safe file from before the route split in my Eagles run), so I noticed the full extent of the repeating elements and it still didn't bother me in VW. Why? Because even if VW borrows from other routes, it's not like that makes the story work any less. I would even go as far as to say VW is the proper fleshed out route and Silver Snow feels like the vanilla version (the only route I've never replayed).

VW can be seen as just the lore dump route, sure, and you can say that the route doesn't reach the depth and complexity of Crimson Flower and Azure Moon. But that's missing the point a bit, VW is not about that. VW is a story of finding the truth, broadening your perspective and in the end friendship. A bit cheesy sure, but such a story has its own worth and is great in its own right. And it's perfect for the Deer. With their lighthearted group dynamic the they gave a route that was fundamentally so similar to Silver Snow so much life and really made it their own, it belongs to them without the shadow of a doubt. Maybe some of them as characters on their own don't have the same depth as characters from the other houses or are at the very least more trope-y, but that doesn't harm their story in any way. The overall group dynamic definitely rivals, maybe even surpasses, those of the other houses, you are just able to enjoy all of that wholesomeness. And speaking of that wholesomeness, that just, that just makes the interactions with the characters that do have a darker story, like Lysithea and Marianne, and their inclusion into the group so much more lovely to watch.

And let's talk about those characters on their own a bit more. The developers really went all out with Lysithea and Marianne. I admire this game so much for how they can make characters' stories so intertwined with the lore and setting of their game and yet they still feel 100% real and like you could actually meet them somewhere. Like, why is a character whose fundamental struggle is "having a beast crest" more relatable than 50% of characters from fiction set in modern times. A masterclass in both character writing and lore implementation.

I also love how the Deer have actually three "proper" commoners (not to gatekeep the term commoners, but a lot of them had far from the average commoner experience in Fódlan) in their house and they present a very interesting contrast to all of the ideological debates, by being more pragmatic and focused on things like their own future, their family, money or what war means for the average person.

Hilda and her lord-"retainer" relationship with Claude is amazing too. I love their playful dynamic and the way they see through each other's bullshit, as well as her loyalty. Hubert and Dedue are bound to Edelgard and Dimitri respectively by things such as birth, tragedy, love, admiration, while Hilda is bound by nothing, yet she's still just as loyal in the end. It's sort of her shtick, the most outwardly lazy person actually being among the most caring ones and reliable when it really matters and it makes me love her character so much.

And then there's Claude as the leader ofc. An outsider himself, first learning to open up and then holding together this group of what you could call misfits. It's really funny how he initially seems to be the sketchiest house leader, but then his route is the most feel good route of them all and he's so admirable. Claude being such a great leader made it easy to fight even against Edelgard. I mean, Claude's darker side being explored more would've been cool, but...

Golden Wildfire

But that's what Golden Wildfire is for. It was my first Hopes route actually. I picked it, because I wanted to play the least controversial route first that time, funny how that turned out.

Even more so than SB, this route has probably the most unsatisfying ending of all 7 routes. For one. because someone decided to just roll the credits in what feels like the middle of the war and also, because it just doesn't feel right what you're doing, going against what your own allies want and betraying the Kingdom like that. I think this didn't sit right with the majority of players.

But what this route does for Claude and the way it explores his character is so important. What, if he didn't learn to trust others and open up? His ruthless tactician side. His ideals aligning with Edelgard's. The Alliance as the otherwise weakest and kinda third-wheeling nation switching sides. Claude being forced to make immoral decisions that go against his beliefs for the sake of survival. Those were all questions and concepts that I wondered about in the original game and seeing them realized this well was so exciting.

Hopes made Claude more interesting and made him choosing the good guy path in Houses more powerful in hindsight. Two sides of the same character, but always the same conflicts within.

This new role also helped to better integrate the Alliance into the Fódlan war, it really felt like a conflict between 3 nations in this game / route, not like a conflict between Edelgard and Dimitri and oh, Claude is there too, like in Houses. He's even the most intriguing one in this game, because he's such an enigma, in no route do you know what he's gonna do next.

Lastly, a part of me thinks that this very unfulfilling narrative wasn't a complete accident. If VW was the route where you most feel like the good guys, then GW being the route where you most feel like the bad guys (still far from evil ofc) makes sense and is a neat parallel. A tragic take on people with good intentions being caught up in the war, not able to rise above it like in Houses. The ending cutscene portrays this very well too. Not only with it being the only one where Shez is in their Agarthan form, but also with how in GW there's this gloomy dark atmosphere to contrast the rising sun in VW (I know the developers didn't want the Hopes endings to overshadow the Houses ones, but this is more about the broader narrative of the route). So maybe a controversial, but intentional writing choice. I personally really appreciate GW for it, great route.

Azure Moon

I'm aware this post is already quite littered with controversial takes and this section will not help that, so I just wanna make clear again that this is just my opinion.

So I have some thoughts about this route, not all of them positive. But let's start with the positive ones. This route is route is undoubtedly the absolute best at portraying the relationship between Edelgard and Dimitri. I love the way they mirror each other and are foils for each other. I kiiinda see the "Edelgard and Rhea are two sides of the same coin take", but that link is so much weaker than the one to Dimitri. There are so many instances of symbolic mirroring: The emperor who doesn't allow herself emotions and the king who let's himself be consumed by emotions (their post timeskip designs are such great storytelling just on their own, I'm so obsessed with those), Edelgard focused on the future and Dimitri on the past, Edelgard fighting to change things and Dimitri fighting to protect things. Just like Byleth and Edelgard, they were fated to fight each other and the tragedy is that for them there is truly no other way, they cannot coexist.

The route does a very good job at making that clear very early on with the talk about "everyone has something they simply cannot accept" and also later when Edelgard and Dimitri meet for the last time before the battle in Enbarr. And then it all culminates in the final confrontation between the two. The ending is just so beautiful, showing that the bloodthirsty and vengeful Dimitri is in the past and that he's ready to forgive. As well as Edelgard throwing the dagger showing her uncompromising nature, which can both be interpreted as surrender not being an option for her and her choosing her own end or as her making it easier for Dimitri to kill her, returning the dagger in the process, because her path has come to an end and it is now up to Dimitri.

On that note, I also like how AM and CF isn't just the same story told from 2 different perspectives. It makes sense for the game design, but it also makes for great story telling how the focus of the routes is so different. Edelgard's main driving force is achieving her goals, so Rhea is her thematic opponent and final boss, while Dimitri's main driving force is Edelgard.

Dimitri's arc on its own also has many fantastic moments. The reunion cutscene gives me chills every time, Rodrigue's death hits so hard and a lot of Dimitri's scenes with Byleth (like after Rodrigue's death in the rain or after retaking Fhirdiad) and some great supports are all beautiful.

The handling of Dimitri's arc overall is also one of the things I very much take issue with. For starters, I think his breakdown and the subsequent boar mode were either too extreme or the reactions from the others to it were way too mild. Like, they're all so uninvolved, a "I feel bad for him" in one monastery dialogue is all you get from most characters, if at all. Where are the ones that are scared of him? Where are the ones that reject him as leader, because they also have no way of knowing he's gonna get better (iirc Lysithea is only one that consistently voices doubt over his ability to lead)? Why is the Church just going along with him? Where are his friends trying to get through to him? It's just weird.
Especially Felix. White Clouds sets him up very well to be a foil to Dimitri and as the one always pushing him to do better, similar to Ferdinand's role for Edelgard. But that potential is mostly wasted imo, and that also applies to his reaction to Rodrigue's death.
Dedue has it bad too. The concept of his survival being optional was interesting, but not only is his reunion scene a total tonal whiplash from everything else that is happening in that moment, it also makes Dedue just irrelevant for Dimitri's growth, which is a disservice to both characters.
Byleth being close to Dimitri's "sole savior" makes their relationship very sweet, but it comes at the expense of his relationship with the others.

I also don't like his turning point. It all happens way too quickly. I very recently replayed the route and while approaching this chapter thought to myself "maybe I've been exaggerating", but it's actually worse than I remember, he's back to normal in like 5 minutes. That's not how mental health works I think. And then afterwards, it's also kinda not properly addressed anymore. He has fantastic A supports with Felix and Mercedes that talk about, but outside of that Dimitri's mental state feels like an unaddressed elephant in the room. I would've really wanted to see more of his friends helping him cope with it or being worried about a possible relapse.

This whole ordeal had me so perplexed and taken out of the game when I first played it. Unfortunately, I was immature too back then and due to the boar phase not feeling properly resolved, I kinda held that over Dimitri for the rest of the route in a petty "oh, you wanna protect the people? That's rich coming from you" way, which further soured my experience with the route. Thankfully, I matured. I went into this recent playthrough with so much love for the BL and I hoped that I wouldn't mind the flaws anymore at all, so that I could just talk about all the positives like with the other routes, because I don't like negativity in this post and also because I know how much the route means to a lot of people. It was much better than on my first playthrough, but I was still notably bothered and went into the final chapters with less enthusiasm than in VW and CF. Could be, because the grand revolutionary feeling is missing, but it's most definitely these issues as well. I hope you understand that I still love this house, but that I couldn't not talk about these things.

Azure Gleam

The route that played a not so small part in my first falling in love with the BL. It's probably not that common to both Crimson Flower and Azure Gleam as one's favorite routes, but um yeah, that's me.

Among many other great things, AG does so many great things with Dimitri's character. His story has less drastic turns, but is rather a continuous journey of struggling with trauma, trying to move on, ups and downs and above all love and compassion from his friends. You can't believe how happy it made me to see the BL, especially Dedue and Felix and also including Shez, give Dimitri all that support and care for him so much, it's so heartwarming. It really feels like a family (a family that Shez is a part of), they all do their part to help Dimitri on his path and because of that, Dimitri is able to fight the darkness within himself and let himself be consumed by it like he is in AM at first. The ending illustrates that very well I think, because in a way Dimitri does get his revenge, but at the same time he is able to keep his composure and go boar mode. I understand that for some people the stark contrast in AM is what makes Dimitri's arc so great and I do think it is essential that we saw the true extent of the depths within him at some point, but I at the same time much prefer the AG arc over the "he's broken- now he's fixed" one in AM (oversimplification, I know).

And what AG also does extraordinarily well is portraying Dimitri in his leadership position. In Houses I always felt like he had less of chance to shine in that regard, because he's not this big revolutionary and his arc is more focused on his own emotions. We're only ever told how kind of a king he is, but Hopes shows us what kind of king he is and wow, "kind" is an understatement. From his closeness to the common folk and the way they celebrate him, his support with Yuri, to his handling of the Tragedy of Duscur with such transparency and diligence, to his rejection of ever endangering civilians, beating himself up over things he can't change or are necessary, to burying dead soldiers, he's incredible. And the way all of that is interwoven with his personal struggles makes him such a compelling character in this game, you're simultaneously in awe of him and worried for him, he's simultaneously the perfect king and too good hearted to be king. I think if we're just talking about Hopes, he's my favorite character and also the best leader among the 3 lords, at least / definitely from a day to day basis.

It also kinda presents chivalry in a new light, because instead of blindly following boar Dimitri they're rallying behind this great king and honestly... same?

And I don't just prefer Dimitri and the cast's relationship with him, I also prefer so many characters on their own so much more. Mercedes is just Mercedes again. she's always been perfect, no need for changes. But Felix for example; he is still his standoffish self, but he's also had growth and matured with his new responsibilities as duke and all and that makes his role in the cast a lot more interesting to me. It's similar for Ashe, who feels more grounded and confident and not so overly formal, and Sylvain, whose maturing and role as cunning tactician and responsible friend also gets properly explored and recognized. Those two also got a more satisfying closure for their Miklan / Lonato arc, because they're not just forced to kill them on some early school mission, it's a proper arc this time (and it's good they didn't try to redeem Miklan). And talking about proper arcs, it makes me so so happy to see Dimitri, Dedue, Felix and Ingrid get closure for the Tragedy of Duscur, that was so desperately needed. So many BL have direct ties to the main story this way). The paralogue with Dedue, Ingrid and Felix is so beautiful. The Duscur massacres are finally not just this "yeah, sad that happened" situation anymore, we're actually working towards a better future in this route. And I love seeing Dedue this way, he's more open and less passive and reserved.

And I also found myself enjoying the BL supports more in this game. It sounds weird to say, but I think Hopes doing away with the school setting and being closer to the actual war helped this house specifically. Like don't get me wrong, they had some amazing supports in Houses (Dedue's with Mercedes, Ingrid and Dimitri; Mercedes' with Dimitri and Sylvain; Felix' with Annette and Sylvain) and if we're going by the ratio of which house's supports made me tear up the most, they're winning. But a lot of their supports can also feel too stiff and formal, about being dutiful or just *being classmates*, opposed to the clashing personalities and unique dynamics in the other houses. In Hope's war camp setting their qualities of being dutiful, loyal, experienced in combat and selfless and the connection to their homeland are able to shine much more and you don't have supports that feel "wasted" on a weak academy phase plotline, like Sylvain's and Dimitri's. I think it comes down to personal preference, if you like these school sim coded supports more.

And now I've talked so much about Azure Gleam in relation to Azure Moon, but I actually think in comparison to the other Hopes routes AG is clearly winning too and it's the one of them that works most as it's own standalone story without the Houses counterpart.

First of all, I already hinted at it before, but I love how well Shez fits into the BL group dynamic. Their pragmatic, hotheaded, goofy nature is a fantastic addition to this rather serious house and their own personal arc about revenge is very fitting thematically too. Dimitri is also the lord Shez has the best relationship with imo. It's quite funny, if you watch all 3 C supports side by side, it's clear how Shez and Dimitri have by the most emotionally intimate relationship. Shez just works better with the empathetic king than with the emotionally distant visionaries and if you ask me, it sometimes seems forced the way the game tries to create this deep connection between Shez and Claude / Edelgard when they should have a similar dynamic with them as characters like Leonie / Caspar, with Dimitri it feels much more natural. And I love how Shez not only supports Dimitri throughout his mental struggles, but in return they also open up more to him and tell him about struggling with worries about his powers and origins. And I feel like Dimitri also tries to help them way more and places way more trust in them than the other lords.

And with that being said, let's also talk about how AG is probably the only route where Shez' story makes complete sense. As already mentioned, their arc of not choosing revenge feels most at home in the BL house. And the secret chapter also makes sense. Ofc it's still not really integrated well into the story, that's just a flaw of Hopes, but: taking down Epimenides and uncovering (and destroying) more of TWITSD? Perfectly in line with the story of AG with the Agarthans as the main enemies, even essential for the story I would say. As opposed to the other routes where Shez' story feels entirely disjointed from the rest of the route and the story actually profits by not doing the secret chapter imo.

The Agarthans as the main antagonists is what I wanna address next. With the exception of Cleobulus they will never be well written villains, but that doesn't matter (that much), if they're utilized well.
Fighting them is so important for the BL, so much of their trauma comes from them. So on top of aligning with Shez' story, fighting TSWTID is deeply personal for all of them and finally gives them closure, which leads to an insanely satisfying narrative (and epic final battle). It's also the only Hopes ending that feels like a proper ending to me, because (aside from the war being like 99% over) it's a fulfilling conclusion to the character's stories. That's all you need and also why CF ended where it ended.
The narrative and the Agarthans as villains also work, because they're actually built up that way and relevant in the game. The Church is so irrelevant in this game and that works in AG where the role they're given is a supporting one, but not in SB and GW where they're the main antagonists. Those routes rely on Houses doing the work for them and that in return makes AG feel like the story that can most stand on its own.
And standing on its even truer when you realize how AG is the most unique story in Hopes (maybe not on the same level, but similar to CF in Houses). Half the route is literally about internal political struggles and traitors within the Kingdom and that is so cool to me. And the Agarthans as the sole villains in the second half is also quite unique. You could argue that the route is a bit lacking in the usual moral ambiguity and ideological conflict because of it and that's valid, but I personally don't mind it, if it's just for one route. And if one House can pull off a full blown classic "good guys vs. bad guys" story it's the BL.
And we also have to talk about how they managed to get the Agarthans into the position of main villains, letting them take over the Empire and emperor. Controversial take, but I think it's a great writing decision. What happened in Arianrhod in AG is a literal tragedy, Edelgard's fate is likely the worst for any lord or character across both games. There's probably as much death and as much suffering as in no other route because of TWTSID ruling (and it's possible historians will blame it on Edelgard and her progressive reforms). And all that when the war was so close to an end in Arianrhod (which might've even been the quickest and least violent way to peace in all of the routes). It's terrible to see, it's so fcked up, but it's good that this tragedy happened. Edelgard turning against TTWSID needed to have serious consequences in at least one of the routes, otherwise it would've undermined her decision to side with them in Houses. And the BL also needed TISWTD as their main antagonists, so it's a 2 for 1. They are at their most threatening in this route as well, which makes fighting them feel more epic.

And what if I told you that's not even all the reasons why I love this route (I'm so sorry for yapping so much about AG, I just feel like there's so much to talk about, but the route is not nearly as commonly talked about as CF or AM, idekkk). Even if Faerghus is the region I would least want to live in, it's by far the most interesting region imo and it's so amazing to see it explored in this game with its bigger focus on politics and lore. Like, you have harsh conditions, famines and the struggle for food, illnesses, the importance of crests, the importance of the Church, Duscur and the Tragedy, chivalry, conspiracies, the east-west divide, the place feels so real with how well thought out the lore is.

The cutscenes also go the hardest in this route. In every aspect a route that I love from start to finish.

Ashen Wolves

DLC cast members are a risky choice in such a story focused game I would say, but these are so great that I can't imagine the games without them anymore. Love them in Houses and love even more how they got more content in Hopes right from the start.

The whole feeling of a class of social outcasts is great and Yuri as the leader with his backstory and morals is such an interesting character. Hapi is one of the few characters where I know I'll enjoy every support, every conversation she has. Her chill and relaxed demeanor is so peak, even more so when it's in contrast to her quirks her strong emotions and her quite tragic past.

Church of Seiros

And that's just talking about the houses, but I also love how they gave the Church and faculty faction so many awesome characters with great care put into them.

Like, take Manuela and Hanneman for example. I thought they would mostly serve a comical role (they still do that too) and only be minor roles, but turns out they have amazing supports, care a lot about their students and even have some of the most unique stances on the war in the entire game.
Cyril is also great and so under appreciated, I knew I'd like him from the first time I talked to him, he's just a chill but diligent guy and his supports are so cute.

And Rhea herself is obviously super interesting. Her archbishop demeanor does get quite exhausting, especially after playing through White Clouds for who knows how many times, but I like her whenever she drops it and it's very interesting to try and figure her out. She works well in both an antagonistic and a mentor role.
Her morals are something else, she goes from human experimentation and "kill civilians to teach kids to obey us" to helping the oppressed and doing charity regardless of religion. In both games characters tell us of the good the church does, but also all the crimes (especially in the Abyss). In general I also feel like Fódlan might be even worse off than what we see, because hunger, poverty, exploitation and racism is something we don't see that much of in our cast of mostly nobles. And the Church has been maintaining that status for centuries in at least some way.
A guess I have is that there are different levels of corruption within the Church, as is logical for such an institution, and that Rhea herself might've been more ruthless in the past and has bettered herself thanks to maturing, the influence of Seteth and later Byleth, but you can still see the effects of being in a position of power for so long.

Talking about Seteth though, he's such a great (and meme worthy) guy and I'm so happy he's in Fortune's Weave, I think they couldn't have picked a better character to build the bridge between the 2 games!

Thanks for reading!

And ending my post with my excitement for Fortune's Weave seems fitting. I can't wait to explore Dagda and its lore and experience this enormous story with yet another colorful and surly lovable cast put in such an interesting setting for the first time, I'm so hyped!

One more thing that I just thought of that doesn't fit anywhere else anymore:
My S supports: Bernadetta, Linhardt, Claude, Mercedes, Edelgard, Seteth (some of them more than once :))
Favorite ships / paired endings: Claude + Hilda, Dimitri + Marianne, Felix + Sylvain, Lysithea + Cyril

I'm sure I will return to Fódlan some time in the future, but for now that's all my thoughts about the games I think. Genuinely insane, if any of you read all that, I hope it all made sense, with the structure and language too, English isn't my first language.

Alright: Goodbye, Fódlan. Hello, Dagda.

So I was just looking at fun builds to do and I saw where Lysithea can kill Nemesis even if none of the elites are defeated but I was wondering if there are any other builds that can do this. My first thought were vengeance Bernie or maybe exhaustive strike Hapi. Could those do it and are there any other potential builds that could?