Fire Emblem Fates Pairings Guide
Hey everyone! After a VERY long time spent play testing and spreadsheeting and making my girlfriend mad at me for spending so much time on my DS, I think I’m finally at a place where I feel comfortable making this guide. So let’s do this!
PLEASE NOTE: all of these pairings are based on my own personal experience, play style, and vision for the characters. Pairings are very open-ended, so I encourage you to experiment beyond this list and find what works for you. My only hope is that I can help give you some ideas.
Jakob: Charlotte/Kagero/Mozu
Jakob has good STR mods, so capitalizing on that is his best option. Charlotte and Kagero do exactly that, while simultaneously providing strong class options and modifiers/growth rates for Dwyer (especially in Charlotte’s case - Berserker Dwyer may look hilarious, but it’s no joke). Mozu also works, since she gives access to Master of Arms via Villager and provides very balanced bonuses for both Dwyer and Jakob across the board.
Kaze: Selena/Rinkah/Oboro/Mozu
Selena is Kaze’s best option, since she complements his growths and modifiers for Midori, provides solid pair up bonuses, and gives access to Hero via Mercenary for both Kaze and Midori. Rinkah is also pretty great, since she fixes his defensive problems and gives solid strength bonuses on pair-up. Her modifiers are definitely a little worse for Midori, but the littlest weed dealer will have great speed, and Oni Chieftain is nothing to sneeze at. Oboro works just as well, providing really good balance across the board and access to Spear Fighter, which is pretty nice. Mozu works in a pinch, since she has good mods for Midori and enhances Kaze’s skill and speed, as well as evening out his strength modifier.
Azura: Laslow/Takumi/Jakob
Azura has really great strength, skill, and speed growths, with modifiers to match where skill and speed are concerned. She does best with someone who enhances that while also patching up her defensive issues. Laslow and Takumi do exactly that, and benefit from her bonuses in the process. Their modifiers are complementary and they appreciate the speed Azura gives, so it’s a win win all around. Jakob can also work if the aforementioned bachelors are all tied up, since he helps with Shigure’s strength and gives him access to Cavalier, which suits him pretty well.
Silas: Camilla/Selena/Beruka/Hana/Kagero/Oboro/Setsuna/holy shit like everyone
Silas is so versatile. He has balanced mods and solid growths, as well as a great class pool. You can kind of pair him with anyone, so long as they’re physically-biased. His best options are probably Camilla and Hana, since they give him and Sophie even more relevant classes AND provide some of the best pair-up bonuses and modifiers to boot. But those two are definitely priority wives, and since Silas can work with so many people, I usually end up pairing him with someone lower on the priority list. Beruka is great, since she gives Wyvern Rider and high skill mods, and Selena is great since she keeps Sophie balanced and gives Silas good pair-ups. There is some class overlap on Mercenary though, which is not awesome. If you’re in a Birthright playthrough and already have plans for Hana, Kagero and Oboro work very well for a lot of the same reasons the others do, with the former favoring strength and the latter providing great balance. Oh, and Setsuna also works really well, since she’s super speedy and her passing Archer isn’t a problem thanks to Silas’ diverse class pool. Man Silas is good.
OK, so Arthur is pretty solid all around and works well with a handful of different people. But him and Effie were meant for each other in every sense of the word, and I seriously think this pairing is just the best option for either of them, so much so that I can’t in good conscience suggest anything else. Effie enhances Arthur’s strength, he enhances her speed, they give each other and Percy relevant classes and good pair-ups/modifiers, AND their supports are hella cute. It’s just… so good. Do this pairing.
Odin has a mix of stength and magic growths, but his daughter Ophelia is decidedly more magic biased. Since he’s one of the only men who gives a solid magic boost where growths and mods are concerned, I think he’s best served pairing with one of the magic ladies. Elise is his best option, if only because she doesn’t have a better one herself. They complement each other well, providing strong magic pair-ups for each other and magic heavy modifiers for Ophelia, which she likes. Troubador isn’t an awesome thing to pass, but it isn’t terrible either, and Ophelia already has access to Sorcerer, which is all she really needs to be a magic powerhouse. Nyx and Felicia also work really well with Odin for many of the same reasons, but are both compatible with other bachelors in a way Elise really isn’t. That said, if you’ve already got plans for Elise, they’ll work just as well, if not marginally better.
Niles: Nyx/Beruka/Setsuna/Oboro
Niles is kind of an interesting dude where pairings are concerned. He can go one of two ways. Either you commit to the magic angle that his secondary class Dark Mage and his poor strength modifiers support, or you feed into his high speed and solid skill and go for a speedy unit. For the former, look no further than Nyx, especially in a Conquest playthrough. Since their class sets are identical, Nyx provides access to her hidden class: Diviner. This is invaluable in Conquest, where the only other potential Onmyojis are your Avatar and his/her family. She also provides stellar magic for Niles and Nina, and enhances their naturally high speed. If you want to go for the second option, Setsuna and Oboro are great. Setsuna is super fast and Oboro is really well balanced, and both help Nina a lot via complementary mods and, in Oboro’s case, access to Spearmaster. If you’re on Conquest (or already have plans for Oboro and Setsuna), then Beruka is good too, since Niles evens out her poor speed and they enhance each other’s skill. Plus, Wyvern Rider is a pretty awesome class to have kicking around.
Laslow: Camilla/Peri/Charlotte/Hana/Azura
Laslow is a pretty balanced dude who likes bonuses to strength, skill, and speed, as well as defenses if he can get it. All of the listed options do this with varying degrees of success. I think Camilla, Peri, and Charlotte are his most successful options, since they give relevant classes, good pair ups, and solid strength and speed modifiers. They also help with Soleil’s strength growth AND patch up her terrible HP growth, which is nice. Hana is super high priority, and tends to be a little bit better with her other options, but if you want Soleil to be a super effective Swordmaster, she’s your gal. Or I guess, your gal for Laslow. Laslow’s gal. Whatever. All that said, I find that my most common pairing for Laslow is Azura, since she appreciates him more than most, and Soleil loves the high speed she gets from Azura. No relevant classes are passed for Soleil, but that’s OK because she already has Mercenary and Ninja. Shigure, on the other hand, gets access to Mercenary, which is awesome for him. The only big problem this pairing has is Soleil’s HP growth, which Azura does nothing for. So save those Seraph Robes.
Benny: Camilla/Beruka/Oboro/Mozu
Benny has very low speed and very high defense. Camilla helps patch up the former while augmenting the latter, and provides some strength pair ups and modifiers to boot. She also gives Wyvern Rider, which is super awesome. Beruka worsens Benny’s speed ailment, but enhances his skill and defense, and still passes Wyvern Rider. This pairing works really well for a Wary Fighter build on Ignacius, especially in conjunction with the General class and a bunch of active skills, like Astra and Aegis. Grab Hoshidan Unity from Spotpass to make an insane tank unit who never has to worry about getting doubled on and triggers all the powerful skills. In Revelation, Oboro fulfills a similar roll to Camilla, balancing out Benny’s speed weakness while enhancing his stength and defense. And Spear Fighter is pretty cool beans too. Mozu can work too, but she’s definitely the worst of these options. She’s not actually bad for him, since she does something similar to Camilla and Oboro, just to a lesser degree and without a relevant class. I’d only pair with her if you’ve exhausted all the other options.
Leo is a magic man whose only real weakness is his speed. If you’re playing on Revelation, Sakura helps with that while enhancing his magic, and also provides monk and a big magic boost for pair ups, mods, and growths. Plus, you get to have the royalty intermingle, and who doesn’t want that? Outside of Revelation, Felicia is the clear winner where marriage options are concerned. She does everything Sakura does just as well, and blows the other magic option (Nyx) out of the water in the process, since she hurts Forrest’s potential skill and defense.
Keaton: Camilla/Peri/Hana
Keaton is strong and has good defense, and appreciates someone who can play to those strengths while also helping with his lackluster skill and speed. Camilla and Hana do that best, and give access to Wyvern Rider and Samurai respectively, which is fantastic. If Camilla is taken, Peri is great too. Keaton’s high defense evens out her poor defense, and she evens out his speed while boosting his strength. She also gives access to Cavalier, which is always appreciated.
Xander: Charlotte/Selena/Hinoka
Xander has really solid offensive mods and growths, as well as two very powerful class options in Cavalier and Wyvern Rider. Charlotte takes his strength to the next level, and boosts his speed quite a bit. She doesn’t help with his less than stellar defenses, but that can be fixed through class changing and, for Siegbert, pairing off with a more defensively oriented kid unit. Selena provides a little more balance than Charlotte at the cost of higher strength and access to Berserker. In Revelation, Hinoka finds the perfect middle ground between the two, providing very solid balance AND a decent strength bonus. She doesn’t bring an especially powerful class to the table, but her pair ups, modifiers, and growths are boon enough for Siegbert, who already has two excellent class chains to choose from.
Subaki: Oboro/Rinkah/Selena
Subaki has very polarized modifiers and growth rates. His HP, skill, and defense are all great, but he falls short elsewhere. Oboro helps even him out since she’s so balanced, creating a Caeldori that excels as a high skill class and provides great pair ups for Subaki at the same time. Rinkah enhances his natural defense boon, and they both benefit from covering each other’s skill/speed weaknesses. Selena is similar to Rinkah in her effects on Subaki and Caeldori, but does a better job of patching up Caeldori’s resistance growth. She also provides the ever-relevant Hero, which works well with Subaki and Caeldori’s modifiers and growths.
Saizo: Oboro/Setsuna/Orochi
Saizo has some interesting pairing options. Oboro and Setsuna are classic balance options, patching up Saizo’s speed and boosting his other stats across the board for a well-balanced, physically biased Asugi with solid class options. However, Asugi actually has an excellent base magic growth, and Orochi helps bring out his magic potential. Pairing Saizo with her results in a great balance for Asugi, as well as access to Basara, which is a great class for his mods and growths. I find myself going with this option more often than not, for what that’s worth.
Azama: Beruka/Rinkah/Felicia
OK so Azama has the weirdest stuff going on. His modifiers and growths SCREAM “make me a Berserker!” but his class options say “I have made poor life decisions and now you have to make me a Great Master!” For that reason, Beruka and Rinkah are really good for him. They give him and Mitama access to Wyvern Rider and Oni Savage respectively, and their growths and modifiers complement Azama’s. However, Mitama does actually have very evenly balanced offensive growths and, unlike her dear ole dad, CAN work as a mixed unit. For that reason, Felicia is also a viable option for Azama, since she provides magic pair ups that make Azama a passable Great Master if you need one, and does really well for a mixed Mitama.
Hayato: Nyx/Sakura/Felicia
Hayato is all magic all the time, and so the magic ladies are his best options. They’re pretty even across the board, since all of them enhance his magic in pair ups, and boost Rhajat’s modifiers and growths very effectively. It’s honestly so close I think it comes down to personal preference and/or who you don’t have plans for.
Hinata: Peri/Oboro/Setsuna/Hinoka
Hinata is super versatile. He works really well with a lot of people, but struggles with skill and speed (kinda weird for a Samurai). Hisame is fine with skill and speed growths, however, so it’s more about patching up modifiers for him and providing relevant pair ups for Hinata. For this reason, Setsuna is really good, since she provides lots of speed and a solid skill bonus as a Sniper. Peri and Oboro provide less in the way of skill and speed, but give Hisame and Hinata relevant classes and a nice bonus to strength. Their growths are also super complementary, which is nice. Hinoka once again finds herself in the middle of it all, providing good speed and strength in addition to a nice boost to resistance. I think these options are very viable across the board.
Takumi: Camilla/Setsuna/Azura
At last we come to pineapple brother. Takumi is, without a doubt, one of the better units in the game, just on his own. Making Kiragi live up to his dad’s potential without access to Fujin Yumi is pretty tough, but these options help get there. Camilla helps with Takumi’s low resistance modifier and growth for Kiragi while also giving him new potential as a flier thanks to Wyvern Rider. She also helps with Takumi’s speed problem, which is much appreciated. Setsuna totally negates said speed problem and avoids passing the lackluster archer thanks to class overlap, instead providing Ninja. Which is cool beans. Azura fixes Takumi’s speed completely, gives a skill boost, and helps with Kiragi’s growths. Her class pool is lackluster and defenses remain problematic, but those problems can be fixed with appropriate kid pairings for class access and pair up bonuses. Also their supports are kind of the best so.
Kaden has nice speed and resistance, but struggles with skill and defense. Mozu helps with those problems, and has the added bonus of benefitting greatly from Kaden’s strengths. Their good for each other, and for Selkie, who also appreciates having access to Aptitude and Man at Arms. On the other hand, Sakura has a few problems similar to Kaden’s, but opens up a new role for Selkie. Her magic modifiers and growths work well for a mixed Selkie and make use of Kaden’s secondary class, Diviner. She makes a pretty excellent Basara. Also, nap buddies. Do it, you’ll see what I mean.
Lobster Lord has some defensive problems that Camilla helps out with. She also boosts strength, skill, and speed. And gives access to Wyvern Rider. She’s real good, and my favorite option for Ryoma on a Revelation playthrough. That said, Kagero is also awesome for Ryoma and Shiro. She boosts strength like crazy, benefits from Ryoma’s skill and speed, and helps Shiro with resistance. Plus, she gives access to Ninja.
OK! Wow this is like six pages long. Feel free to send me any questions you have! I hope this helps! :)
P.S. I know I don’t talk much about skill inheritance here, and that’s because Spotpass skill inheritance has more or less made it possible to get whatever skills you want for your characters without worrying about who is passing what. If you have any specific questions on skill builds, just shoot me a message and I’ll do my best to help out.
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