Fire Emblem Engage: Skirmish guide & pro tips

Rewards Await!

Fire Emblem Engage has all manner of battles waiting for you, and one of the optional clashes your characters can face is skirmishes. They can deliver amazing rewards, provide a way to grind experience and help you build relationships between the characters in your squad. Here’s what you need to know about the Skirmish battle type and our pro tips on how to use it best.

Before A Fire Emblem Engage Skirmish

Prior to starting a skirmish battle, you’ll want to check for a few factors. When you’re on the map screen and about to select the skirmish, look at the stats the game gives you on the bottom right. You’ll see the various materials you’ll gain like Iron and Steel, in addition to ingredients such as Rice and Nuts. However, the most important part is the Suggested level of your fighters. For this Skirmish on the Grand Crossing in the picture above, it states that your characters should be of an Advanced Class (like the Wolf Knight) and at Level 7.

Make sure the fighters you pick for the skirmish are above, just below, or exactly that level. Otherwise, you may be up for a hard time, especially if you’re using the Classic Mode (which has permadeath). You’ll also want a wide array of classes in your squad; there are weaknesses and strengths you’ll have to keep in mind like the Pokemon series.

In later parts of Fire Emblem Engage, as you further your donation level with fellow nations, there will be grander opportunities to encounter Silver and Gold Corrupted. The Gold Corrupted gives cash, while Silver corrupted provides a bunch of experience and SP. Look out for the money bag with an exclamation mark below the level’s image when looking at the “Begin Skirmish” screen. You’ll gain a hefty amount of cash or experience/SP from each Silver and Gold Corrupted you defeat. Just beware that they are stronger than their counterparts while fighting in a skirmish.

During Battle

Skirmish battles in Fire Emblem Engage play out the same way as regular battles. There are no gimmicks, and the goal is to take out every enemy on screen. Unlike training battles, however, your heroes can die if you have Classic Mode turned on. If you’re running on Casual, fallen allies will simply retreat. Strangely, skirmish battles can be tougher than the story campaigns at points, so make sure you are well stocked on Vulneraries, Elixirs, and healing tomes from the Item Shop.

Once the battle begins and you know there’s a Silver or Golden Corrupted on the field, try to find where it is. It usually lingers around the back of the battlefield. Send your strongest warriors towards that enemy.

Skirmishes in Fire Emblem Engage also are a great way to build stronger relationships between your characters. Make sure they’re next to each other when you’re allocating who’s hitting what. If you have a predominant healing character you want to form a relationship with, make sure they’re in the back of the group.

When the action gets hairy and the other participant is low on health, get that healing character to restore their HP. That will help grow that bond further. You’ll see if there is a connection between the two characters if love hearts appear above their heads.

While in Skirmish battles, you should also pick up whatever yellow and purple items you can see on the ground. The yellow gives experience, while the purple gives new weapons and items that you could sell later on if they’re doubles.

After The Battle in Fire Emblem Engage

After a skirmish battle in Fire Emblem Engage, you’ll be able to assess the area. You can talk to your fellow squadmates around the explorable area to collect Bond Fragments. In addition, you should press ZR to see a bigger overall map of the environment. You’ll see quite a few gold spots in your vicinity. Run up to them and press the A button to collect new resources and items.

The best way to grind is through skirmishes and training sessions. They’ll appear around the world map once a day. If you want to be extremely cheeky, you can move the game’s clock by 24 hours manually. First, save your progress and then close the game. After that, head to your Switch’s system settings (indicated by a gear symbol on the bottom). Once you’ve picked that, go all the way down to “System” and pick “Date and Time.” From there, you can alter the system’s clock by 24 hours. Boot up Fire Emblem Engage again and new skirmishes should appear.