FE4/FE5 (Genealogy/Thracia) recommended play order

[sethowar]

Title

Should I play Thracia after ch6 of Genealogy? Or just finish Genealogy and go back and play it afterwards? 

Also, I hate going into pair up games without a plan so https://www.gamefaqs.com/snes/564404-fire-emblem-seisen-no-keifu/faqs/21303 I was just going to go with the #1 pairings from that guide, if anybody has a couple minutes to have a look and make sure there aren't any glaring mistakes I would really appreciate it

[Shin]

Play all of 4 then go on to 5. The plot to Thracia is more supplementary than anything else, you don't really gain anything from playing it in the middle. The pairings suggested by that guide are fine, you won't really run into trouble using them. They're pretty fool-proof, although it never hurts to experiment a little!

[ChibiToastExplosion]

Skip Genealogy altogether and just play Thracia

Naw, Shin's right, it really doesn't matter. I think the Thracia arc is the best thing about Jugdral, but it's a small part of the overall story of Genealogy.

[Naglfar94]

Play Genealogy of the Holy War first. You will get a feel for how some of Thracia`s mechanics work since they both have a similar build however Thracia is much harder one of the toughest FE games. While FE4 is overall easier than that one.

 

Also if you are playing to see the storylines and care any the two games stories are connected. Thracia takes place between chapters 7-8 of Genealogy. So it`s neat when Thracia`s storyline starts bridging with what is happening in FE4.

[Slumber]

Genealogy first all the way through. As said, Thracia's supplementary to FE4. FE4's about a group of people saving the world from a worldwide threat, while FE5's more of a personal journey for a handful of Genealogy characters. You don't really gain a whole lot from playing Thracia in the middle of Genealogy. You'll probably just like units like Lief, Nanna, and Ced more, but that's about it.

Also, I'd disagree with @Naglfar94, Genealogy and Thracia are quite different. Thracia's a lot more in-line with how FE6-10 were structured. Mid-sized maps, varied objectives(I think this is the only game to put objectives in objectives. At least one chapter is an escape chapter where you have one party across the map trying to reach somewhere that a separate party has to defend.), lots of units to recruit across 30ish chapters, you visit map tiles to go to the shops/arenas, visiting houses gives unique rewards, you can actually trade between units. It has a lot of its own unique features, like capture and fatigue, but it's the game I'd consider the first "modern" Fire Emblem, due to its similarities to the games that come after, and refinement of a lot of core mechanics from FE1 and 3. If you've played any of the GBA or GC FEs, Thracia shouldn't feel like too big of a departure.

Genealogy, on the other hand, is a completely different beast. Massive maps that take hours to beat, relatively small rosters, only about a dozen chapters, ALL party management, including shops and the arena, is done in castles in-game as opposed to pre-chapter prep, simple objectives, and a bunch of other unique things that really only Genealogy has done.

If anything, trying to play them at the same time might be more overwhelming.

Edited April 14, 2017 by Slumber

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

I played 5 first because its gameplay was more interesting for me. Its gameplay reminds me more on the modern parts. However it still features unique mechanics like capturing and fatigue.

FE4 is pretty much unique too with their gameplay and chapter structure.

As for the story you actually don't have to play FE4 first to understand the entire story of Judgral. Sure, some conclusions become more plausible if you played FE4 yet, but it's not like that you get thrown into cold water - referring to the story - if you play 5 first.