Start with Dietrich: Bring a Cleansing Blade and healing, and schedule Paralogues by dateMinor spoilers

Original video: “Essential for beginners! Which of the four routes to start with, who to train, and recommended class changes! Includes missable Paralogues and recruitment gift preferences! Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave” · Bilibili creator Yingming Xinzhao

Route order and persistent bonuses#

The recommended starting order is Dietrich, Leda, Theodora, then Cai. Dietrich has outstanding growth and can handle much of the fighting by the middle of the game. He also fills the core sword-user role every route needs, making him a good choice for your first clear.

Completing a route unlocks persistent benefits such as experience bonuses, skill growth bonuses, and shopping discounts, making subsequent routes easier. Leda can support the whole team. Theodora benefits from going later, while Cai also needs to capture and raise mounts, adding more development to manage.

Choose Hard if you want some challenge. If you do not want to risk permanently losing teammates, choose Casual. In Classic mode, characters defeated in battle leave your party.

Note paralogue dates ahead of time#

The date for Bertrand’s Paralogue

Missing Paralogues is the main risk when using a single save. Note their opening dates and pay particular attention in later chapters. On Dietrich’s route, watch September 17 for Bertrand’s Paralogue.

After completing Part 1 with one protagonist, you can replay earlier chapters to recover missed content. Still, scheduling Paralogues correctly on your first pass saves more time. If the main-story destination is outside the city, visit it in advance instead of waiting until the last moment to set out.

Train a core sword user early to counter Underworld Boon#

Early fixed recruits have longer to train and grow. Develop the first five controllable units well. Mikaela on Dietrich's route is a lesson: abandoning her halfway through training can suddenly leave you short on both damage and deployable units later.

Whichever route you choose, develop someone who can use swords. Dietrich’s route can use its protagonist; Leda’s can use Sirocco, Theodora’s can use Bonaventure, and Cai’s can use Guzran. Zombies and skeletons take reduced damage through Underworld Boon, and Cleansing Blade removes that obstacle. The white magic spell Seraphim is useful too, and its user can also provide healing.

Prepare white-magic users by route: Yang Jie and Ultand for Dietrich; Olympia and Fianna for Leda; Tialla and Ultand for Cai; Sofia for Theodora.

Sofia has good healing amounts and range. Train her from her early arrival on Theodora's route; she is also worth recruiting when other routes need healing. Next, consider Brigand to patch Strength and black-magic attackers. Flying units in the midgame also make support across difficult terrain easier.

Raise Support with gifts and meals, then recruit promptly#

For repeated gift giving, choose a chapter that lets you act freely after skipping the story, without a long opening tutorial. Speak to all the other characters in the city once so you can then warp to them.

Buy gifts from the gift shop and tavern first. Find your target, give them gifts they like, then restart the chapter and keep giving gifts. Shared meals also raise Support between characters. If money is tight on your first route, buy inexpensive gifts that suit the recipient. You can also stock up on rare gifts you find while exploring.

Distinguish between liking a category and especially liking a particular item. Two vegetables do not necessarily get the same reaction. Even ordinary gifts can be especially effective for a specific character, and gift giving is particularly worthwhile on birthdays.

Recruit as soon as your Renown meets the threshold so new teammates can start training earlier. Complete Paralogues promptly too. Some recruitment conditions are tied to them, so raising Renown alone will not meet every requirement.