Running a recruitment drive in Fire Emblem: Awakening is actually one of the easier parts of the game. Most of the characters join your team automatically, but for those who don’t, protagonist-in-crime Chrom can be very persuasive. Our recruitment guide not only lists what you need to do to get the optional allies, but also when to expect each volunteer to arrive.
Prologue: The Verge Of History
CHROM
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Chrom looks and feels like a main protagonist and is a perfect complement to your avatar. His stats improve steadily with each new level and his sword doesn’t need replacing.
FREDERICK
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
The first ally in the game that you can classify as a tank, though he’s a tank with great mobility. He’s especially useful in wearing down enemies so that lower level fighters can finish off the foes to reap more XP.
LISSA
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
You know how healers in many SRPGs have a hard time leveling up, often because they can’t contribute offensively? That’s something you don’t have to worry about with Lissa and Awakening’s other healers. Using her support and protection spells yields a ton of XP, so much so that she’ll reach Level 20 long before a lot of her teammates do.
Chapter 1: Unwelcome Change
SULLY
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
We ended up making her a frequent supporter of Frederick, which made the pair nearly unstoppable. Giving her a javelin made Sully slightly less powerful compared to her equipping a sword. With a javelin, Sully benefits from having the long range of a mage or archer.
VIRION
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Virion is a superb archer who doesn’t need constant bow upgrades as long as you can level him up regularly. Pairs well with Lissa, even as a potential wife.
Chapter 2: Shepherds
VAIKE
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
He’s a solid axe wielder whose stats level up steadily. Falls behind significantly if you don’t upgrade his axe regularly.
MIRIEL
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
She a welcome addition to the team due to he ranged magic attacks. Her analytical demeanor might be off-putting, but she can quickly develop relationships, especially when supporting melee allies going for a direct kill.
STAHL
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Stahl is a very mobile mounted knight. Not as much of a powerhouse like Fredrick, but is consistently reliable for substantial hits.
Chapter 3: Warrior Realm
KELLEM
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM USING CHROM
Kellam is the first recruit who doesn’t automatically join the party. Simply move Chrom next to him. This will bring up the Talk action option. Talk to Kellam to add him to the roster. Note that most of the optional recruits throughout this game require a chat with Chrom for enlistment.
SUMIA
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
You can learn a lot from just a couple turns with Sumia, namely whether or not she’s the right ally for you. Her ability to traverse an entire map in three turns might be impressive but it’s not of much value when she’s extremely vulnerable to archers and can’t get support from her teammates. The availability of Sully, Frederick, and Stahl do more than enough to fit most player’s mobility needs. If you really want a useful mounted flying ally, wait a few more chapters.
Paralouge 1: Sickle to Sword
DONNEL
RECRUITMENT: LEVEL UP ONCE
As a young villager eager to fight, Donnel is weak in this battle, but in order to recruit him, you have to get him to Level 2 in rank. The classic SRPG technique to level up low characters quickly is to have more skilled characters beat down an opponent until they’re near dead and have the new characters finish them off. For Donnel, he should be able to get kills against enemies who have HP of 3 or lower.
Chapter 4: Two Falchions
LON'QU
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC (AFTER THE BATTLE)
This samurai-inspired swordsman is an asset to the team and introduces many gamers to the power of the Killing Edge. Once you see how often Lon’qu pulls off critical attacks, you’ll want to make sure he always has a Killing Edge handy. He’s great to have in the frontlines when anticipating a wave of enemies. Depending on who’s supporting him, Lon’qu’s counterattacks are often fatal.
Xenologue: Champions of Yore 1 (DLC)
PRINCE MARTH
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC (AFTER THE BATTLE)
Longtime Fire Emblem fans will recognize Prince Marth as the original hero of the series, way back in 1990. He’s an excellent addition to the team and his aptitude ensures that his higher levels are worth earning. Marth does not benefit from support boosts, but his long-term offensive contributions make up for that.
Chapter 5: The Exalt and the King
MARIBELLE
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
If you’re in search of a mobile, horse-mounted healer to help out Lissa, Maribelle is the gal you’ve been waiting for. She can be especially useful if an ally strays too far ahead and needs an HP pick-me-up.
RICKEN
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Ricken is useful in narrow areas simply because he’s mage with ranged attacks. He’s a great complement to most any melee-based ally.
Chapter 6: Foreseer
GAIUS
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM USING CHROM
Once you get Gaius, you can stop searching enemies if they have door and chest keys. As a thief, Gaius is no need of such tools. He can also hold his own in a battle if you were so bold to send him directly to enemy-guarded treasure chests.
PANNE
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING CHROM
Just when you think you might have all the close quarters fighters you could need, in comes Panne and her werewolf-like transformation abilities. If you feel Vaike has plateaued, Panne is a worthy alternative.
Chapter 7: Incursion
CORDELIA
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Like Sumia, Cordelia is a mounted knight on a pegasus. She’s slightly tougher than Sumia at the start but can be very vulnerable if enemies isolate her. She can be leveled up efficiently with little risk in non-story battles. Otherwise, stick with Frederick, Stahl, and Sully for your mobility needs.
Chapter 8: The Grimleal
NOWI
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Nowi’s petite childlike appear might make her look like a traditional SRPG healer, but she could not be further from that class. Like Panne, she packs a punch after she transforms into a mystical creature, great for both direct attacks and support roles.
GREGOR
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
A solid fighter though lacks any standout qualities. If you’re only focusing on the story missions, you’d might as well skip him so that you can focus on improving your regulars.
Chapter 9: Emmeryn
LIBRA
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Libra comes from a very long line of Japanese developed SRPG monks. They often don’t rely on weapons outside of their fists, but Libra isn’t shy about wield an axe. She might not have the fortitude to be a regular on the frontlines but she can be relied on to finish off enemies whose HP have been reduced to at least half.
THARJA
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING CHROM
Tharja is a dark mage who help out with Miriel with offensive spells. Don’t let dark personality scare you; she’s relationship material if you give her support opportunities. Don’t be in a hurry to recruit Tharja since there’s quite a few enemies in between you team her.
Paralogue 4: Anna the Merchant
ANNA
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING CHROM
Need someone to help hold the line alongside Lon’qu? Anna is the queen of the counterattack which makes her ideal enemy bait. With her lockpicking skills and the ability to use healing staffs, she seems almost too good to be true, as if she might backstab you later in the game.....
Chapter 11: Mad King Gangrel
OLIVIA
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Olivia might not be able to survive two straight attacks or kill many enemies on her own, but she significantly makes up for that with the gift of Dance! If you have an ally who has finished their turn, Olivia’s Dance abilities grants that ally an additional turn. You can imagine the creative possibilities in giving a powerful warrior like Fredrick an extra go at another foe. Just stay smart in keeping Olivia in the back rows.
Chapter 12: The Seacomers
CHERCHE
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
If the flying mounted fighters up to this point have been disappointing, Cherche and her trusty axe makes up for it. This particular chapter’s map offers some opportunities to take advantage of Cherche’s mobility to sneak up on enemies from behind.
Chapter 13: Of Sacred Blood
HENRY
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
Has a bit of a twisted dark streak, not to mention a thirst for bloodshed. Even as a Plegian, he managed to win over Chrom and the team. Maybe it’s because he’s a well-rounded dark mage.
LUCINA
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
The mysterious ally NPC finally joins the team! To say more about her would spoil the story, but know that she’s a valued addition to the team, especially considering her melee skills. She learned from the best.....
Paralogue 5: Scion of Legend
OWAIN
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM USING CHROM
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Lissa a Support relationship of ‘S’. Like Henry, Owain has a unique with words, though he’s much less morbid about it. A bold and competent swordsman, moving Owain around the battlefield takes some finesse as he starts off with notably low Defense. If there are free missions open, build up his levels before sending him to the story mission frontlines.
Chapter 15: Smoldering Resistance
SAY'RI
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING CHROM
Say’ri is very much a female version of Lon’qu. In other words, she’s skilled and out-of-the-box ready to participate in story missions. It’s too bad that even though she looks like she can wield two swords, she can only equip one like everyone else.
Chapter 23: Invisible Ties
BASILION
RECRUITMENT: HAVE CHROM AND YOUR AVATAR DEFEAT THE BOSS
Finally! After several chapters of Basilion and Flavia appearing in the cutscenes but never in battle, they finally join your team. If you’ve chosen the permadeath route, you most likely have lost a couple melee-based allies. Both Basilion and Flavia make up for that, especially since they start off with good levels.
FLAVIA
RECRUITMENT: HAVE CHROM AND YOUR AVATAR DEFEAT THE BOSS
Flavia is slightly more skilled than Basilion and should be the frontline choice, if you had to choose between the two. Basilion is better for hanging back and protecting mages and healers.
Paralogue 6: A Man for Flowers
INIGO
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM USING CHROM OR OLIVIA
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Olivia a Support relationship of ‘S’. Inigo’s a solid mercenary and swordfighter who starts off at Level 10. Equipped with Killing Edge at the start, he can be as effective as Lon’qu in managing enemy waves coming from multiple directions.
Paralogue 7: Noble Lineage
BRADY
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM USING CHROM OR MARIBELLE
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Maribelle a Support relationship of ‘S’.
Brady can be a reliable monk, but you’re best off keeping him off story missions until he levels up significantly in the optional missions.
Paralogue 8: Noble Lineage
KJELLE
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING CHROM OR SULLY
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Sully a Support relationship of ‘S’.
If your party is lacking in class diversity, be sure to work on improving Kjelle. She has a lot of base class options and promotion options.
Paralogue 9: Noble Lineage
CYNTHIA
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING CHROM OR SUMIA
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Sumia a Support relationship of ‘S’.
She’s as energetic and talkative as Owain, though prefers the spear over the sword. As a pegasus knight, she has ample speed to complement other active mounted knights or replace fallen ones.
Paralogue 10: Ambivalence
SEVERA
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING CHROM OR CORDELIA. THEN SEVERA NEEDS TO SPEAK TO THE ENEMY HOLLAND.
Be sure to escort her using a small contingent of allies.
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Cordelia a Support relationship of ‘S’. Often speaking her mind, Severa is a welcome addition to the team, especially due to her mercenary talents. Her Armsthrift skill is especially useful since it does not consume weapon use.
Paralogue 11: Ambivalence
GEROME
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM USING CHROM OR CHERCHE
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Cherche a Support relationship of ‘S’. Gerome is quite the masked axe wielder but you couldn’t tell from his build, a slim contrast to Vaike. Both allies can be unusually deadly when they support each other.
Paralogue 12: Disowned by Time
MORGAN
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM OR HER USING CHROM OR THE AVATAR
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give the avatar a Support relationship of ‘S’. Morgan is a bit a of wild card since his or her class is determined by different parental combinations. Morgan will take the base case of the avatar’s mate unless the avatar marries Olivia, Chrom or Lucina, in which Morgan is a tactician.
Paralogue 13: Rival Bands
YARNE
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM USING CHROM OR PANNE.
This is easier said than done since he will see you as the enemy until you talk to him, so you have to get your timing right and not accidentally kill him with a counterattack.
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Panne a Support relationship of ‘S’. Most would agree that this Fire Emblem doesn’t have enough beast and dragon allies. Thankfully, Yarne has the same transformative abilities as Panne and is just as talented.
Paralogue 14: Shadow in the Sands
LAURENT
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HIM IN THE LOWER LEFT VILLAGE USING CHROM OR MIRIEL
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Miriel a Support relationship of ‘S’. Laurent not only takes after his mother in looks, he’s also as cold and verbose. At least he also has his mother’s aptitude for being a fast learner and a skilled mage.
Paralogue 15: A Shot from the Dark
NOIRE
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING CHROM OR THARJA
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Tharja a Support relationship of ‘S’. Noire isn’t as positively mysterious her name implies or as dark as her mother, Tharja. At least Noire’s endearing split personality makes you want to keep her in your party. We recommend grinding her levels up in optional missions before involving her in the story battles.
Paralogue 16: Daughter to Dragons
NAH
RECRUITMENT: TALK TO HER USING NOWI
To unlock this optional mission, you need to give Nowi a Support relationship of ‘S’.
Nah might have the childlike appearance of her mother, Nowi, but Nah often acts like the adult in the relationship. Like Yarne, Nah adds another potentially powerful creature to the party.
Paralogue 17: The Threat of Silence
TIKI
RECRUITMENT: AUTOMATIC
To unlock this optional mission, complete Chapter 18 in the story. Starting as an NPC ally, Tiki is initially weak, so we recommend forming a wall of allies around her and let the enemies come to you.
It just wouldn’t be a Fire Emblem game without a Tiki character! As the final recruit (not counting upcoming DLC), Tiki is a superb addition to the team. Her Luck, Speed, and Skill will go up quickly and her other stats can get temporary boosts from tonics.
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Be sure to check out our Fire Emblem: Awakening Review if you haven't already.
