Best FE post-game?

[Alistair]

I've recently come to the realization that FE, probably owing to being more plot-focused than most other RPG franchises, doesn't have much in the way of post game content. Now, for me, "post-game content" is content only accessible on a save file in which the final boss has already been beaten, so unlocked alternate difficulty levels and DLC aren't included. So, the only post-games to my knowledge are the Trial Maps in Binding Blade and Path of Radiance, the Creature Campaign in Sacred Stones, and the Thabes Labyrinth in Shadowa of Valentia.

 

Full disclosure: I've only touched the Creature Campaign and have only ever beaten Thabes, so I can't speak to the Trial Maps, but Thabes seems the best one both because of the gameplay challenge and because of how it adds much needed backstory to Grima. Where before there was only a vague Loptous expy there's now basically FE's take on Frankenstein's monster, which is interesting thematic grounds for a fantasy franchise to touch upon.

 

Anyways, what are y'all's thoughts? 

[SatsumaFSoysoy]

I think Creature Campaign has the most content to play around with, but some factors (mostly weapon durability imo) hinder the experience.

Thabes is kinda bullshit. It's one dungeon that takes fucking forever.

[Slumber]

Awakening's is nothing. Sacred Stones has a pretty basic, repetitive post-game that gives you no real incentive to do. Echoes has the most substantive post-game, but Thabes is a whole can of worms.

Echoes, I guess? For having something to actually do beyond grinding for what basically amount to generic units.

[Interdimensional Observer]

FEs don't really have postgames, they just aren't structured that way. Trial Maps were eh, Creature Campaign was easy. Awakening sort of had one- but it was all DLC outside of the Spotpass Paralogues, which weren't anything particularly good. Thabes and the Seaway before it is the only decent attempt at one, and Thabes has its issues.

[nosef]

Don't forget that if you want pvp or farming support (easy post game fun) Fate revelation has the most potential. 

[Jotari]

7 hours ago, SatsumaFSoysoy said:

I think Creature Campaign has the most content to play around with, but some factors (mostly weapon durability imo) hinder the experience.

Thabes is kinda bullshit. It's one dungeon that takes fucking forever.

The single thing Creature Campaign offers (Lagdou Ruins) takes way longer and is way more bullshit with like six maps of weak enemies that you can beat using an auto attack command (if it existed in that game) but are purposely designed to suck up your durability. And to unlock Lyon? Do it all a second time, with literally nothing different. What a waste. In fact, I'm not sure you can even call it Post Game content since you can do all that stiff before defeating Fomortiis anyway. The only difference is you don't get the bonus characters.

Comparatively, while Thabes is just as bereft in tangible rewards at the end (Curse Ring? Sounds like fun if I had anyone to actually train by the time you get it), if you avoid encounters it can also easily be done in approximately half an hour, while Lagdou ruins is going to take the guts of four hours at minimum.

People might not count it because it's DLC, but I think Apotheosis is the best post game challenge. It's not the height of strategic intelligence, but it is genuinely challenging even after min maxing the game to bits (would like the map to be just a teeny bit smaller in each direction though).

Edited June 16, 2018 by Jotari

[SatsumaFSoysoy]

25 minutes ago, Jotari said:

The single thing Creature Campaign offers (Lagdou Ruins) takes way longer and is way more bullshit with like six maps of weak enemies that you can beat using an auto attack command (if it existed in that game) but are purposely designed to suck up your durability. And to unlock Lyon? Do it all a second time, with literally nothing different. What a waste. In fact, I'm not sure you can even call it Post Game content since you can do all that stiff before defeating Fomortiis anyway. The only difference is you don't get the bonus characters.

Comparatively, while Thabes is just as bereft in tangible rewards at the end (Curse Ring? Sounds like fun if I had anyone to actually train by the time you get it), if you avoid encounters it can also easily be done in approximately half an hour, while Lagdou ruins is going to take the guts of four hours at minimum.

I kinda considered the Coast to be post-game as well, but I guess it technically isn't since you can access it before Fomortiis. Then it's less content than I remembered/thought.

With a regular endgame team on Hard that wasn't grinded additionally, you're fairly likely to be underleveled for at least half of Thabes, so I kinda doubt you can avoid all encounters and expect to beat Grima first try...

[Jotari]

1 hour ago, SatsumaFSoysoy said:

I kinda considered the Coast to be post-game as well, but I guess it technically isn't since you can access it before Fomortiis. Then it's less content than I remembered/thought.

With a regular endgame team on Hard that wasn't grinded additionally, you're fairly likely to be underleveled for at least half of Thabes, so I kinda doubt you can avoid all encounters and expect to beat Grima first try...

That's why your supposed to gradually make your way deeper into Thabes, increasing the level of your party and getting the things like the extra boots and stat boosters. Just jumping straight in with an end game team will get you your ass kicked, but it doesn't mean committing several hours that can be wiped away at one failure. Make your way down, fill out the map, get the items, rest and recuperate and dive deeper next time. Learn the terrain and how to avoid the enemies. Pretend stamina is a thing for once in the game and leave to save your progress when it's depleted (note, I say pretend, because it still totally isn't, even in Thabes). Yeah, I guess if you're taking it on that way, which is probably the intended way, it would take several hours cumulatively. But I still prefer that to the slog that is the Lagdou Ruins where one overlooked shadow shot could waste literal hours. Once you have fleshed out the labyrinth, committed the correct path to memory and leveled your characters,getting to and beating Grima is relatively straight forward. It something the player should have worked towards and earned.

[SatsumaFSoysoy]

12 minutes ago, Jotari said:

That's why your supposed to gradually make your way deeper into Thabes, increasing the level of your party and getting the things like the extra boots and stat boosters. Just jumping straight in with an end game team will get you your ass kicked, but it doesn't mean committing several hours that can be wiped away at one failure. Make your way down, fill out the map, get the items, rest and recuperate and dive deeper next time. Learn the terrain and how to avoid the enemies. Pretend stamina is a thing for once in the game and leave to save your progress when it's depleted (note, I say pretend, because it still totally isn't, even in Thabes). Yeah, I guess if you're taking it on that way, which is probably the intended way, it would take several hours cumulatively. But I still prefer that to the slog that is the Lagdou Ruins where one overlooked shadow shot could waste literal hours. Once you have fleshed out the labyrinth, committed the correct path to memory and leveled your characters,getting to and beating Grima is relatively straight forward. It something the player should have worked towards and earned.

You said Thabes would take about half an hour, so I was just contesting that.

[Jotari]

24 minutes ago, SatsumaFSoysoy said:

You said Thabes would take about half an hour, so I was just contesting that.

I know.

[Interdimensional Observer]

9 hours ago, Jotari said:

And to unlock Lyon? Do it all a second time, with literally nothing different.

Actually it's three runs. (Still better than 15 runs of PoR for Ashnard.)

As for the weapon durability issue, yeah that is very annoying and tedious. Makes glitching some Evil & Crimson Eyes and Dark Surges a great idea, since infinite 1-2 range that targets Res should really really help.

[Jotari]

2 hours ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

Actually it's three runs. (Still better than 15 runs of PoR for Ashnard.)

As for the weapon durability issue, yeah that is very annoying and tedious. Makes glitching some Evil & Crimson Eyes and Dark Surges a great idea, since infinite 1-2 range that targets Res should really really help.

I'm also reminded of that one solo Roy trial map in FE6 which is quite literally a test of wether you had enough spare Iron Swords at the end of the game. There isn't even an armoury available in trial maps to buy more. No matter how could you're strategy or tactics are, it's simply unwinnable if you don't have enough weapons as it's basically Roy Vs like 100 enemies that stand no chance of killing him (in a desert for extra insult).

[SSbardock84]

Awakening and Sacred Stones had the best imo. There was some stuff after Echoes I believe, but it didn't really grab my attention so I didn't bother with it after completing the game. In any case, it bothers me when a FE game doesn't have anything after completing the game. That's one of the few things I dislike in Radiant Dawn.

[Punished Dayni]

On 6/17/2018 at 3:39 AM, Jotari said:

I'm also reminded of that one solo Roy trial map in FE6 which is quite literally a test of wether you had enough spare Iron Swords at the end of the game.

Al's Sword, BB (for taking out warriors at range, you'd be surprised how useful it is in this map) and three other weapons (I'd have to check which) can do it, as I can say from experience getting the S rank. Honestly only iron swords could take too long.

As for my opinion, Kaga era can be ignored, nothing whatsoever. BB has the arena which kind of exists and Trial Maps, which aren't too bad though they are limited barring the pirate and defence one imo. BS only has an arena mode, so nothing much there. SS has the arena mode and CC, which is just more ruins diving, with the only real difference with Valni being more grinding. Unlocking units without replaying the campaign 8/9 times isn't the worst thing in the world though. I can say nothing on if Tellius has anything. DS era has arena and that's about it honestly, though it is far more robust than the GBA era. Awakening has more skirmishes and streetpassing allies. As for the DLC, it has the Spotpass paralogues, which can be a bit harder that Vs Grima imo and the actual DLC has Apotheosis in particular. Fates has more castle fighting, skirmishes and castle invading. Aside from DLC or course but it has scaling levels so it doesn't really have anything that can't be played from early on. SoV is the entire reason Thabes is not a boring generic place anymore so it gets my vote from a story perspective (When the others had 0 :P), much as Thabes can be draining to move through in gameplay without considering how tough the enemies get (it would be nice to have a save at the 5th floor). As for DLC, I can't say much but it mostly adds more to caps and getting more stuff for your convoy and exp from what I can tell as I don't have it yet.

[Jotari]

3 hours ago, Dayni said:

Al's Sword, BB (for taking out warriors at range, you'd be surprised how useful it is in this map) and three other weapons (I'd have to check which) can do it, as I can say from experience getting the S rank. Honestly only iron swords could take too long.

As for my opinion, Kaga era can be ignored, nothing whatsoever. BB has the arena which kind of exists and Trial Maps, which aren't too bad though they are limited barring the pirate and defence one imo. BS only has an arena mode, so nothing much there. SS has the arena mode and CC, which is just more ruins diving, with the only real difference with Valni being more grinding. Unlocking units without replaying the campaign 8/9 times isn't the worst thing in the world though. I can say nothing on if Tellius has anything. DS era has arena and that's about it honestly, though it is far more robust than the GBA era. Awakening has more skirmishes and streetpassing allies. As for the DLC, it has the Spotpass paralogues, which can be a bit harder that Vs Grima imo and the actual DLC has Apotheosis in particular. Fates has more castle fighting, skirmishes and castle invading. Aside from DLC or course but it has scaling levels so it doesn't really have anything that can't be played from early on. SoV is the entire reason Thabes is not a boring generic place anymore so it gets my vote from a story perspective (When the others had 0 :P), much as Thabes can be draining to move through in gameplay without considering how tough the enemies get (it would be nice to have a save at the 5th floor). As for DLC, I can't say much but it mostly adds more to caps and getting more stuff for your convoy and exp from what I can tell as I don't have it yet.

Well maybe I shouldn't have said iron swords. Point is, the enemies stand very little chance of killing Roy in that trial map, it's a test as to whether you have enough weapons left to finish after endgame, which there's a big chance the player won't.

[Punished Dayni]

5 hours ago, Jotari said:

Well maybe I shouldn't have said iron swords. Point is, the enemies stand very little chance of killing Roy in that trial map, it's a test as to whether you have enough weapons left to finish after endgame, which there's a big chance the player won't.

You're still right that it's more do you have enough equipment sadly.

[Azz]

Really, all the FE post games are rather meh. Trail Maps are fine, until you realise how many playthroughs it takes to unlock all the bonus units, which are always bullshit. Creature Campaign is boring because of how easy yet long it is. Awakening has one, but it's locked behind DLC. Fates has multiplayer, but that became unfun because of the amount of hacking and sameness among teams that after one battle, you pretty much did them all. Then we have Echoes which probably has the most substantial post game with Thabes, but it had a lot of problems in that it had a massive difficulty spike from EG.

So I'm gonna say Warriors, which has the entirety of History Mode after it's story.