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Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
Skills Guide by Rick Dykes (Rick52)
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There are some slight spoilers sprinkled throughout this guide, particularly
Chapter 27 spoilers. You've been warned.
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Table of Contents
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I. Version History
II. Introduction & Contact Info
III. How this guide works
IV. Skills List
a. Standard Skills
b. Mastery Skills
V. Frequently Asked Questions
VI. Acknowledgements & Closing
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I. Version History
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1.00 (11/05/05) - Woah, I finished this in a day. Anyway, basic guide
completed for submission.
1.01 (11/12/05) - Yep, finishing things in a day does not a perfect
guide make. Fixed several errors, changed Gamble's usefulness rating,
and modified the activation sections (along with an activation question
in the FAQ section).
1.02 (2/11/06) - Added the location of a Shade scroll.
What to Expect on my Next Update (not anytime soon, though):
Possibly a character section including their starting skills and
recommended skill sets, as well as advice as to whether to give
a particular character an Occult or not.
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II. Introduction & Contact Info
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Hello. My name is Rick Dykes, known online as Rick52. This is my
second guide, my first being the Character Comparison Guide that
covers all three Fire Emblems for Game Boy Advance, and I also did
that promotion chart for Sacred Stones.
To contact me, e-mail me at extraguy1@yahoo.com
PLEASE e-mail me with this:
-Corrections and/or omissions
-Comments or thoughts about the guide
-Constructive criticism, if necessary
-Heck, if you want to, you can e-mail me help for this game.
Don't make it a habit, though.
DO NOT e-mail me this:
-Flaming, blatent swearing, hate e-mail with no real cohesion or thought,
stuff like that
-Something that the guide already covers. If it's not explained clearly,
then note that, and I'll improve the explanation in an update, but otherwise
read the whole darn guide first.
-Attachments. No attachments. E-mails with attachments get deleted.
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III. How this guide works
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Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance returns the skill system back to it's full
glory like the days of Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu and Thracia 776. You
might say, "Well, Sacred Stones had skills, too". Not like this.
Unlike Fire Emblems 4 and 5, the amount of skills a character can have
are limited. Each character has a set Capacity, normally 15 or 20 for beorc,
and most skills require 5-20 Capacity to add to a character. Each character
also gains an additional 5 Capacity when they promote. Laguz capacity can
vary, some can have as many as 40 capacity, though most of which is already
filled with prefilled skills.
Skills are broken down into different kinds. 'Soldier' skills are skills
that come with the class, and can not be modified or removed, nor do they
affect a character's Capacity in any way. 'Citizen' skills are the more
common kind, and can affect a variety of things, both in and out of battle.
There are two kinds of citizen skills: Normal and Mastery. Normal skills,
such as Vantage or Miracle, normally use 5-15 Capacity and can be assigned
to anybody, as long as they already don't have the same skill (so, you can't
give Nephenee Wrath because she already comes with it). You can add skills
to a character by collecting skill scrolls found throughout the game.
For example, the Gamble Scroll gives a character the Gamble skills, assuming
he or she has enough Capacity or isn't named Kieran (who already has Gamble).
Mastery Skills are another story. Throughout the game, you'll come across
'Occult' scrolls. These do not teach you some skill named Occult, rather,
they teach promoted or laguz characters mastery skills, which are class
specific (for example, Sol can be learned only by Valkyries and Paladins, so
Zihark will never be able to learn it). There are 4 Occult scrolls found
throughout the game, so you'll need to choose who learns the Mastery skills
carefully.
As for the guide, each skill will be described in the following fashion:
Soldier and Normal Citizen Skills:
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TEST SKILL
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Capacity: How much Capacity the skill uses
Use: What the skill does, coupled sometimes with an example situation
Activation: How you get it to work
Characters w/test skill: If anybody comes with the skill, it's mentioned here.
Available Scroll: If there's a scroll you can pick up for this skill, the
chapter and location will be mentioned here.
Usefulness Rating: */5
I'll give a quick comment here about how useful it is.
Who should I give the test skill scroll to?
If you get a scroll for a skill, I'll give advice as to who might benefit
most from it.
Mastery Skills:
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MASTERTEST
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(since all Mastery skills take 20 Capacity, I'll omit it here)
Use: Again, I'll explain the skill here
Activation: How you get it to work
Classes: Which classes can learn the skill
Characters w/Mastertest: Though rare, characters do come with Mastery skills.
So, I'll say who here.
(since there are no scrolls for specific mastery skills, I'll omit this part
as well. Don't worry, I'll list where the Occult scrolls are later).
Usefulness Rating: */5
Again, a quick comment about how useful it is.
Should I use an Occult for this Skill?
A quick explanation here.
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IV. Skills List
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a. Standard Skills
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DISCIPLINE
----------
Capacity: 0
Use: During the prologue, it prevents Ike, Greil, and Boyd from killing
one another, I guess. It supposedbly reduces damage taken as well,
but it doesn't really matter because it's the prologue.
Activation: Always
Characters w/ Discipline: Ike, Greil, Boyd, but only for the Prologue
Available Scroll: None
Usefulness Rating: 0/5
I just want to get this skill out of the way now. Sorry for the lame start.
----------
PROVOKE
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Capacity: 5
Use: if given a choice, enemies will more likely attack the unit with the
Provoke skill than others, even if unit with said skill is guarenteed to
bring death to the attacker. I have found out, though, that if one of
your allies is asleep, enemies will bypass a unit with Provoke and start
killing your sleeping pal. I found this out... the hard way (poor Zihark).
Activation: Always
Character w/ Provoke: Shinon
Available Scroll: Chapter 20, one of the enemies drop it
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
On the right unit, it makes incoming enemies much easier to control and
eliminate with supplemental units. Of course, put it on the wrong unit,
and you've invited death to that unit's door.
Who should I give the Provoke scroll to?
Someone with high Def, HP, and/or Res, but not too much Spd unless you want
the character w/ Provoke to kill everything that attacks him or her.
Someone like Gatrie or Brom seems really good for this skill, though those
late Sages with the long-range magics prove pesky for them.
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SHADE
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Capacity: 5
Use: if given a choice, enemies will most likely leave a unit with Shade
alone, opting to rather attack other units in range, even if the unit
with Shade is guaranteed to die. Of course, if the unit with Shade is
the only unit in attack range, enemies will attack him or her.
Activation: Always
Characters w/ Shade: Ilyana, Volke
Available Scroll: The Bolting Sage in Chapter 18 drops one, but only
in Hard mode. You can't get the scroll in Normal or Easy.
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
It makes using Ilyana a little easier, as enemies won't go after her nearly
as often, and it makes Volke's job that much easier to do as long as he
isn't miles away from everyone else.
Who should I give the Shade scroll to?
Someone who's easily prone to death, someone who you don't want being
attacked often, such as Rhys or Mist.
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TEMPEST
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Capacity: 5
Use: Normally, Biorhythm can up or lower Hit and Avoid by 5%. With
Tempest, Biorhythm ups or lowers Hit and Avoid by 10%.
Activation: When Biorhythm hits it's high or low peaks.
Characters w/ Tempest: Boyd, Makalov
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
I'm not a big fan of Biorhythm. It hinders a lot more than it does help,
and Tempest only makes it that much more of a hinderance. Then again,
Biorhythm itself isn't really that much of a factor as it is.
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SERENITY
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Capacity: 5
Use: With Serenity, Biorhythm's effects are halved. So, now Biorhythm only
ups or lowers Hit and Avoid by 2.5%, very minimal amounts.
Activation: When Biorhythm hits it's high or low peaks.
Characters w/ Serenity: Rhys, Devdan
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
This skill makes Biorhythm much less of a use than it already is. If you're
using Rhys, you might even want to consider removing it to give him better
skills.
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MIRACLE
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Capacity: 5
Use: It reduces a lethal blow to 1/2 damage. So, for example, if Mist has
23 HP and someone deals 24 damage, Mist will only take a 12 HP loss, and
instead of dying, be left with 9 HP. However, if the halved damage is
still enough to kill, there's nothing you can do.
Activation: If one's damage > other's HP
Characters w/ Miracle: Mist, Ena
Available Scroll: In Chapter 7, open the left chest in the left treasure room.
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
If you're a decent tactician, you won't be putting Mist into dangerous
situations as it is, and probably won't use Ena much.
Who should I give the Miracle scroll to?
Probably Ike, so he can take one extra hit against the Black Knight in
Chapter 27. If not, then anybody who takes a lot of damage often
(*coughLargocough*) would be alright for Miracle's use.
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VANTAGE
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Capacity: 10
Use: Allows unit to attack first in all fights, is what it says. What it
means is, when an enemy attacks a unit with Vantage, if the unit can
counterattack, he or she will get first strike.
Activation: When attacked and able to counterattack
Characters w/ Vantage: Mia, Naesala
Available Scroll: In Chapter 14, get up to the northern two houses, and
enter the one to the right.
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Give a unit with Vantage a high-crit weapon, and enemies may never be able
to attack said unit if you're lucky enough. Being able to attack first
makes that much of a difference.
Who should I give the Vantage scroll to?
Someone who can make the most of it, maybe someone with Adept, a Crit boost,
Wrath, something along those lines. Giving it to someone with Provoke is
also a pretty good idea too. You could also give it to someone who gets
attacked a lot (re: someone with Provoke).
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ADEPT
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Capacity: 10
Use: When activated, it allows for 2 consecutive attacks.
Activation: (Skill)%
Characters w/ Adept: Soren, Zihark
Available Scroll: Chapter 17, Part 4. One of the enemies will drop it.
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
You can't go wrong with being able to fit in an additional attack, especially
if said attack kills the enemy. Some people prefer Soren over the other mages
just because of this skill (though, there's other reasons, too).
Who should I give the Adept scroll to?
An offensive character, someone not designed to take hits. I can't really
say much else here.
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WRATH
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Capacity: 10
Use: When a unit's HP is below half his or her max, he or she receives a large
increase in Critical Hit %. 50% to be exact.
Activation: 1/2 HP
Character w/ Wrath: Nephenee
Available Scroll: Chapter 18, it's in one of the two chests midway through
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
It's pretty useful in desperate situations when your unit is close to death,
and coupled with Vantage, it'd make an excellent keep-alive combo. That's
the extent of it's usefulness, though.
Who should I give the Wrath scroll to?
Someone who takes a lot of damage, but also high HP. Tanks like Gatrie
are bad ideas for Wrath.
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COUNTER
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Capacity: 10
Use: When activated, when a unit is damaged, half of that damage is returned
to the opponent.
Activation: (Skill/2)%
Character w/ Counter: Titania
Available Scroll: Chapter 10, the bottom of the four chests where the boss is.
Usefulness Rating: 1/5
Man, this skill is terrible. I've barely seen Titania activate it, and for
it to be of any use, you'd have to hope that your guy or gal takes a ton
of damage. Bad news.
Who should I give the Counter scroll to?
Well, nobody really. If you must, though, someone with high HP and low Def.
Boyd or Largo are ideal here, if you really want to use the scroll.
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GUARD
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Capacity: 10
Use: If your unit connects a hit, when it activates, it prevents the
opponent from counterattacking.
Activation: (Skill)%
Character w/ Guard: Haar
Available Scroll: Chapter 15. Starting from the bottom-left corner of the
map, it's in one of the three spaces to the right of the corner. Use a
thief for easiest collection.
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
It's nice when it works, but sometimes it activates when the opponent
can't counterattack already.
Who should I give the Guard scroll to?
You know, a Guard-Vantage combination would really be nice here. So, maybe
Mia or whoever you gave the Vantage scroll to wouldn't be a bad idea.
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CORROSION
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Capacity: 10
Use: When it activates, it lowers the usage of the opponent's equipped
weapon.
Activation: (Skill)%
Character w/ Corrosion: Bastian
Available Scroll: Chapter 21, in one of the many chests
Usefulness Rating: 1/5
I can only see this being useful against certain bosses, but even then,
you'll probably kill the darn boss first.
Who should I give the Corrosion scroll to?
Nobody. I can't see that much of a use for this at all. You're better
off selling this thing for cash.
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GAMBLE
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Capacity: 10
Use: The command 'Gamble' appears when you are able to attack. If used,
it lowers Hit % by half, and doubles Crit %.
Activation: Command (Gamble)
Character w/ Gamble: Kieran
Available Scroll: Chapter 16, the first mage or so has it on him, and
will drop it when killed.
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
It really depends on who you give it to. For the most part, though,
you're just better off attacking normally. It's a bad idea to rely
on a critical hit as it is. I've upped the rating by one as there
are plenty of situations where Gamble can be of good use (as suggested
by the fine members of the Path of Radiance boards on Gamefaqs).
Who should I give the Gamble scroll to?
A high Skill Sniper or Swordmaster, as they have a natural Crit boost
that Gamble can take advantage of.
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SMITE
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Capacity: 10
Use: The command 'Smite' appears when you are able to shove. If used,
it shoves a unit two spaces instead of one.
Activation: Command (Smite)
Character w/ Smite: Mordecai
Available Scroll: Chapter 20, the top house
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Tip: You know that one Bishop in Chapter 22? Smite him out of the way, and
it'll make getting past him much easier. Other than that, if you use
shove the way I do, you'll get a lot of use out of Smite.
Who should I give the Smite scroll to?
Someone with high Wgt.
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PARITY
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Capacity: 5
Use: It removes any bonuses any unit would receive from supports and
terrain during battle. It also nullifies skills for BOTH units.
Activation: Always
Character w/ Parity: Lucia
Available Scroll: Chapter 21, in one of the many chests
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
I don't like Parity. It's alright if the character that has it has no
supports or skills, in fact, it's rather good then, but chances are,
a character with Parity does, and those bonuses would be of more
help than Parity is.
Who should I give the Parity scroll to?
Someone that doesn't have any supports or skills.
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NIHIL
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Capacity: 15
Use: It negates the opponent's skills. So, for example, if Calill w/Nihil
were to face a Swordmaster w/Astra, Astra would never be able to activate
thanks to Nihil.
Activation: Whenever the opposing fighter has a skill
Character w/ Nihil: Calill
Available Scroll: Chapter 24, visit the bottom-left house
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
It's pretty good for some of those latter bosses in the game, but that's
it's best use.
Who should I give the Nihil scroll to?
With 15 Capacity, Nihil makes it difficult to hand it to just anyone. Try
to give it to a boss-killer, as that'll be the best way to put Nihil to use.
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RESOLVE
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Capacity: 10
Use: When a unit's HP goes below half his or her max, Strength, Skill, and
Speed are upped 50%. So, if a unit has 28 Str, Resolve would give a unit
14 more, and have 42 Str (!) during battle.
Activation: 1/2 HP
Character w/ Resolve: Tauroneo
Available Scroll: Chapter 27, one of the chests in the upper left room
Usefulness Rating: 5/5
Sure, you have to lose half of your HP to get it to work, but when it does,
and your unit has good stats, there's no stopping you.
Who should I give the Resolve scroll to?
Many people say 'give it to Stefan so he can torch the final boss with the
Vague Katti'. Too bad the Vague Katti can't hurt him. Give the Resolve
scroll to one of your best units, given he or she has 10 leftover Capacity.
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CELERITY
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Capacity: 15
Use: A unit with Celerity can move 2 extra spaces than normal.
Activation: Always
Character w/ Celerity: Tormod
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
It's basically free boots, except by 'free' I mean 'uses 15 Capacity'.
Tormod is the only one who can even use the skill, and though it helps
training him easier, it's a lot of Capacity being used to move the
boy 2 extra spaces.
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RENEWAL
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Capacity: 15
Use: Restores a small amount of HP per turn
Activation: When a unit is not at full HP
Characters w/ Renewal: Elincia, Ena
Available Scroll: Chapter 18. When Reyson asks if he can join you,
decline. He'll give you the Renewal scroll. However, by doing so,
you won't get Reyson, Janaff, nor Ulki, and it'll force you to fight
Naesala in Chapter 19. Not worth it, I think.
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
It makes for an annoying skill when it's on an enemy, especially a tough
boss (*coughBlackKnightcough*). It's not really that great when in
the hands of your allies, though.
Who should I give the Renewal scroll to?
If you really want to lose three bird laguz, and possibly the Knight Ring,
to get this scroll, then I suggest giving it to a tank unit. Renewal
heals only a few HP at a time, and for the most part tanks only lose a few
HP against the stronger enemies. Again, for 15 Capacity, and losing
the bird laguz, it's really not worth it.
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SAVIOR
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Capacity: 10
Use: When rescuing, Skill and Speed penalties no longer apply.
Activation: Command (Savior replaces the Rescue command)
Character w/ Savior: Tibarn
Available Scroll: Chapter 24, visit the top-right house.
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
I don't use Rescue much. If you do, however, you'll love Savior.
Who should I give the Savior scroll to?
Somebody with high Wgt (as in, someone who rescues a lot). If
possible, give it to someone with high Skill and Speed, to really
take advantage of the lack of the rescue penalties.
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PARAGON
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Capacity: 15
Use: Doubles Exp. gain. Also halves the amount of Bonus Exp. required
to level up between chapters.
Activation: Always
Characters w/ Paragon: Astrid, Geoffrey
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Paragon makes training Astrid much, much easier. A bit wasted on Geoffrey,
though. Of course, once you get both of them to Level 20 Paladins, you
can go ahead and dump the skill.
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BLOSSOM
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Capacity: 15
Use: Halves Exp. gain in exchange for high stat growths on level up. Also
increases the amount of Bonus Exp. needed to level up between chapters.
Activation: Always
Character w/ Blossom: Sothe
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Sothe can't promote. However, with Blossom, he can have a good chance of
maxing out a lot of his stats, albeit at 20. It's because of Blossom that
Sothe is even usable, without it, there'd be no reason to take Sothe over
Volke. Of course, once (if?) Sothe reaches Level 20, you can dump the
skill and give him another skill to make him a decent fighter.
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REINFORCE
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Capacity: 15
Use: Using the command 'Reinforce', brings in 3 Partner units (2 Pegasus
Knights, 1 Falconknight) to help in battle. Can be done twice per chapter.
Activation: Command (Reinforce)
Character w/ Reinforce: Tanith
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Well, it depends on how effectively you put those flying pawns to use. It's
best to use them as lures, they have high evade, and enemies will go attack
them quite often (possibly even bypass a unit with Provoke). Normally, only
the Falconknight has the potential to actually kill an enemy, and even then,
as long as you keep them from Roaming, they won't be doing much harm.
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CANTO
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Capacity: 20
Use: In human form, can restore movement to one adjacent ally. In Heron
form, can restore movement for up to four adjacent units at once.
Activation: Command (Chant)
Character w/ Canto: Reyson
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 5/5
In the GBA games, the biggest argument against using dancers or bards is that,
although you could get a great unit to attack twice, you could just bring a
second great unit instead. As a Heron, Reyson can let four great units
attack again. You can't deny how useful that is.
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INSIGHT
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Capacity: 0
Use: Boosts Accuracy
Activation: Always
Character w/ Insight: Janaff
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
I don't use either Janaff or Ulki much. Janaff, being Tibarn's legendary
'eyes', puts it to use in battle, but it's not that big of a difference.
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VIGILANCE
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Capacity: 0
Use: Boosts Avoid
Activation: Always
Character w/ Vigilance: Ulki
Available Scroll: No
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
Ulki, being Tibarn's legendary 'ears', puts it to use in battle like
Janaff does, and the avoid boost is more useful than a hit boost is,
but not by much.
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MANTLE
----------
Capacity: 0
Use: It greatly reduces damage taken, down to 1/9 of original might,
before subtracting Def/Res.
Activation: When attacked
Character w/ Mantle: Nobody
Available Scroll: No
So, that means: Nobody on your team can use Mantle
Usefulness Rating: n/a
The only character in this game with the skill officially in their
profile is Sephiran (which you can see in Chapter 10). Since
the guy doesn't move, you'd have to shove him around to see if
he takes any damage from normal attacks, and I'm too lazy to try that.
Supposedbly, the Black Knight and the final boss also have this
skill embedded in their armor. Laguz attacks and the Ragnell are
the only things that can bypass Mantle's effects.
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DAUNT
----------
Capacity: 10
Use: Any unit within 3 spaces will take a Hit and Crit drop of 15% or so.
Activation: Always
Character w/ Daunt: Nobody
Available Scroll: No
You mean: that's right, nobody on your team can use Daunt.
Usefulness Rating: n/a
Several enemies in the game have Daunt in their skill set (such as the
Four Riders), making them tougher to fight without Parity or Nihil.
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LUMINA
----------
Capacity: Soldier Skill. Meaning, 0.
Use: Gives a unit (Bishops) the ability to use Light Magic.
Activation: Be a Bishop
Character w/ Lumina: Rhys after promotion
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Thanks to this skill, Rhys can fight! Light weapon level is based off
of Staff level, so by the time Rhys gets Lumina, he'll probably have a
C or B, and use some pretty good spells. Too bad he's the only one
on your team that can use it.
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KNIVES
----------
Capacity: Again, a Soldier Skill.
Use: Allows units to wield knives.
Activation: Always
Characters w/ Knives: Volke, Sothe, Calill, Bastian
Usefulness Rating: 5/5
Knives are not powerful. Stilleto's are pretty good, but those come later
in the game. Thieves can't attack without knives, so they're essential in
that case. Sages with high Strength (Calill) can also use them with
great results. Of course, using knives against high-Def non-armors isn't
a good idea.
----------
STEAL
----------
Capacity: Soldier skill
Use: Allows a unit to steal weapons and items from enemies.
You can steal only under the following conditions:
1) The weapon/item CAN'T be equipped.
2) The unit must be faster than the opponent he's trying to steal from
3) For weapons, the unit's strength must be higher than the weapon's weight.
4) Your thief's inventory (whether it be weapon or item) can't be full.
Activation: Command (Steal)
Characters w/ Steal: Volke, Sothe
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
I don't steal things often, if at all. Others are all over it, and love
the fact that weapons can also be stolen as well (as long as those weapons
aren't equipped).
--------------------
b. Mastery Skills
--------------------
Locations of the four Occult Scrolls:
1) Chapter 13, the top-left chest on the top ship. Chances are, a
raven will pick it up first. Kill it before it gets a chance to escape.
2) Chapter 16. Recruit Stefan in Ch. 15, then talk to him in the Info
menu between battles, and he'll give you an Occult.
3) Chapter 21. Tauroneo has one. You can either steal it from him,
or just recruit him with Ike, and the scroll will come with.
4) Chapter 27, the boss in that chapter will drop it
Remember, all Mastery Skills use 20 Capacity.
----------
AETHER
----------
Use: A combination two-hit attack. The first is a Sol, which restores
HP equal to the amount of damage dealt, the second hit is a Luna, which
reduces enemy Def by half.
Activation: (Skill)%.
Classes: Lord (Ike)
Usefulness Rating: 5/5
You're not beating the Black Knight without this skill. You're going to
have a rough time beating the final boss without this skill (though much
more possible than the Black Knight). In general, this skill is too good
to miss.
Should I use an Occult to learn Aether?
In a word: yes.
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STUN
----------
Use: When activated, it stuns the enemy after a successful attack,
preventing it from moving during it's turn.
Activation: (Skill/2)%
Classes: Falconknight (Marcia, Tanith), Wyvern Lord (Jill, Harr), and
Princess Crimea (yes, Elincia can learn Stun too).
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
All Stun does is prevent movement. Enemies can still attack, but
just can't move. Because it can only be used by mounted units,
I guess stun-and-runs can prove useful, but it'd still be limited.
Should I use an Occult to learn Stun?
In a word: no.
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FLARE
----------
Use: When activated, it reduces enemy's Res by 1/2. So, if an enemy
has 20 Res, it gets lowered to 10 when Flare activates.
Activation: (Skill)%.
Classes: Sage (Soren, Ilyana, Tormod, Calill, Bastian) and Bishop (Rhys)
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
It's usefulness rises if you're taking on high Res Sages or bosses,
but against most cannon-fodder, Flare isn't much of a difference maker.
Should I use an Occult to learn Flare?
If you really want to. There's better options out there, though.
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SOL
----------
Use: When activated, a successful hit restores HP equal to the
amount of damage dealt.
Activation: (Skill)%
Classes: Paladin (Oscar, Titania, Kieran, Astrid, Makalov, Geoffrey)
and Valkyrie (Mist)
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
I like Sol. Doesn't deal any additional damage, but since the Pallys and
Valkies can get hurt easily, Sol can get them back right up to full HP
with the right amount of Luck.
Should I use an Occult to learn Sol?
If one of your Paladins turned out excellent, Sol wouldn't hurt 'em. Mist
would probably need the skill more than any of the Paladins, though.
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LUNA
----------
Use: Similarly to Flare, when activated, it reduces an enemy's Def by half.
Activation: (Skill)%
Classes: General (Gatrie, Brom, Tauroneo) and Halberdier (Nephenee, Devdan)
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Black Knight gives this skill a 5/5 because of how badly he can torch Ike
with the skill. For you, however, it's still a solid skill, especially
with all the high-Def cannon-fodder you come across.
Should I use an Occult to learn Luna?
Yes. Nephenee would benefit most, but she'd have to lose Wrath to
get enough room for it. One of the Generals would be okay with it
as well.
----------
ASTRA
----------
Use: When activated, the units strikes FIVE consecutive times. Each attack
only does half the normal damage, but each attack CAN CRITICAL. So, if
an attack normally does 10 damage, each half attack can deal 5 dmg for a
total of 25 damage. However, say somehow you got each of those 5 attacks
to critical, that'd be 75 damage. Wow. Of note, a normal critical of a 10
dmg hit is 30 damage, so Astra can minimally deal 83% the damage a normal
critical can make.
Activation: (Skill/2)%
Classes: Swordmaster (Mia, Zihark, Stefan, Lucia)
Character w/ Astra: Stefan does come with Astra
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
For those of you that loved the skill in FE4/5 (then known as Starlight
Hit), you might be disappointed that each of the five hits only do
half-damage now, even though each hit can critical. Also, the low
activation rate doesn't help much either.
Should I use an Occult to learn Astra?
You'd have to have Mia and Zihark drop their respective skills, and though
having Lucia drop Parity to learn Astra isn't that bad of a plan, the
scroll can be put to better use. Stefan coming with the skill should be
good enough.
----------
COLOSSUS
----------
Use: If the unit's Wgt is greater than the opponents, then the unit's
attacks will deal more damage than normal if activated.
Activation: (Skill)% in addition to the Wgt requirement
Classes: Warrior (Boyd) and Berserker (Largo)
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
It's not a bad skill, that extra damage added to already impressive
Strength values for Boyd and Largo means a lot, but...
Should I use an Occult to learn Colossus?
...it's not worth using an Occult over. Boyd and Largo deal good
enough damage as is.
----------
DEADEYE
----------
Use: When activated, it increases hit%, and there's also a chance of
putting the enemy to sleep. I'm almost positive there's a damage
increase as well, but I can't confirm it just yet.
Activation: (Skill)% for the initial attack, (Skill/2)% chance to put
the enemy to sleep
Classes: Sniper (Shinon, Rolf)
Usefulness Rating: 3/5
It may rise if I can confirm it deals more damage than normal. The
sleep bonus rarely occurs for it to be of any real use, so if for
some reason your Rolf and Shinon have bad Hit%, then it would be of
use.
Should I use an Occult to learn Deadeye?
I wouldn't.
----------
LETHALITY
----------
Use: When activated, it instantly kills the enemy, regardless of
damage dealt. Doesn't work against some bosses, though.
Activation: (Skill)%. Some say that Crit% is involved in it's
activation, but no confirmation on that end yet.
Classes: Assassin (Volke)
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
It makes Volke a pretty good fighter just like that if you can get
Lethality to activate often.
Should I use an Occult to learn Lethality?
If you like use Volke a lot, and I mean a lot, then go ahead.
----------
ROAR
----------
Use: Like Stun, except without the attack. If it works, it'll stun
an enemy for a turn. Ineffective against certain enemies.
Activation: Command (Roar)
Classes: Beast Tribe (Lethe, Mordecai, Muarim, Ranulf, Giffca)
Character w/ Roar: Giffca comes with it
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
Boo. I didn't like Stun, and I don't like a lesser form of Stun.
Should I-
No.
----------
CANCEL
----------
Use: Similar to Guard, it negates an enemy attack.
Activation: (Skill)%
Classes: Hawks (Janaff, Ulki, Tibarn)
Character w/ Cancel: Tibarn comes with it
Usefulness Rating: 2/5
The hawks would normally kill their foes before Cancel has any
real chance of being a factor of anykind.
Should I use an Occult to learn Cancel?
No.
----------
VORTEX
----------
Use: Using the Vortex command unleashes a powerful wind-based
attack that can be used from a distance.
Activation: Command (Vortex)
Classes: Ravens (Naesala)
Character w/ Vortex: Naesala
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Vortex is an excellent attack, giving Naesala an extra edge
against those that dare to thwart King Kilvas. If you didn't
know how to make Chapter 19 easier, you probably already know
how great Vortex can be.
Should I use an Occult to learn Vortex?
Naesala is the only Raven you get, and he already knows Vortex.
So, the question this time is unnecessary.
----------
BLESSING
----------
Use: Any unit next to someone with Blessing can restore some
HP every turn. Up to four units can be healed at once.
Activation: Have another unit not at Max HP stand next to the
unit with Blessing.
Classes: Herons (Reyson)
Character w/ Blessing: Reyson
Usefulness Rating: 4/5
Some people love what Reyson can do with his healing ability,
namely, being able to heal 4 people at once, transformed or
not. And unlike Renewal, the HP restoration isn't nearly
as bad.
Should I use an Occult to learn Blessing?
Reyson already has it, and you don't get any more Herons.
----------
BOON
----------
Use: Any unit next to someone with Boon will restore their status.
Up to four units can have their status restored at once.
Activation: Have another unit with a status condition stand next
to the unit with Boon.
Classes: Dragon Tribe (Nasir, Ena)
Characters w/ Boon: Nasir, Ena
Usefulness: 2/5
Status effects aren't that detrimental, and by the time you get
either Nasir or Ena, you'll rarely come across situations where
Boon is needed. In theory, though, a useful skill.
Should I-
Both Nasir and Ena come with Boon.
----------------------------------------
V. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
----------------------------------------
Q: I don't get some of the things in the 'Activation' section.
A: Activation methods are as follows;
1) Always: it'll work no matter what you do (short of removing
the skill, at least)
2) 1/2 HP: unit must lose at least half his or her HP before
skill can activate.
3) (Skill)%: skill has a chance of activating equal to a unit's
skill. For example, if Soren has 17 Skill, Adept has a 17%
chance of activating.
4) (Skill/2)%: skill has a chance of activating equal to half
of a unit's skill. For example, if Stefan has 28 Skill,
Astra has a 14% chance of activating.
5) Command: skill can be used by using a command on the unit
menu.
?) Other skills have conditions specific to it that are already
explained there.
Q: Are you going to add an obligitory 'Marth and Roy' question
here, and then reply either yelling out 'no' or be sarcastic
about it?
A: Uh... does this count?
Q: I disagree with your assertion of [insert skill here]'s
usefulness. I'm going to hate mail you now.
A: Well, you could do that. Or, you could just normally
e-mail me with your opinion on said skill, and I might add
it in future updates.
Q: I'm going to send in scores for the skills, because you're
going to do this like the Character Comparison Guide, right?
A: Actually, no I'm not.
Q: Is there any way to increase Capacity?
A: When units promote, they gain 5 extra Capacity. However,
that is the only way.
Q: You know, you completely overlooked some of the secret
characters in terms of Skill acquisition, like Petrine,
Bryce-
A: I'm... uh, not including Trial Map characters. Boy, this
sounds familiar...
Q: This is a really short FAQ section, isn't it?
A: Yeah. I'll add more, depending on what I get through
the e-mails.
----------------------------------------
VI. Acknowledgements & Closing
----------------------------------------
I thank:
-GameFAQs, and CJayC, for hosting this guide.
-Ken Van Baardwyk for adding the 4th condition to 'Steal'.
-Kirby Master Eoje for finding out about the Renewal scroll.
-Nintendo and Intelligent Systems, for the entire Fire Emblem series
and this game in particular.
-Manuel De Jesus for info on Wrath and Astra.
-My dear loving sparksmf, for no reason involving the guide. Eat it,
everyone else.
-And you, the reader, for reading and/or contributing toward the guide.
Copyright 2005. Rick Dykes.
This guide shall stay only in Gamefaqs and it's affiliates. I better
not see it anywhere else.
All names, places, and game names used in this FAQ belong to their
respective owners.
<<END DOCUMENT>>
