Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Fire Emblem Three Houses hands you a mercenary turned professor, a class of noble students and a continent sliding toward war. The first half is a school year at Garreg Mach Monastery; the second, five years later, is the war your choice of house drags you into. This hub is the front door to our coverage: a house comparison first, then every class, monastery, battle and story guide we have written, grouped by the question you are likely asking.

Which house should you choose?

The house you lead sets your students, your story and, in one case, a choice you will not see coming. Our routes page explains that Blue Lions and Golden Deer each run straight into a single route, while Black Eagles forks depending on whether you side with Edelgard. The final column draws on our best classes picks for each roster.

Whichever house you pick, most students from the other two can be brought over. The recruitment page lists the stat and skill each one checks, the support shortcut that bypasses those checks, and the five units it rates as worth the chase. Only the three leaders, and a few retainers loyal to them, are off the table.

Build stronger units

• Best classes for every character: a recommended end class for all 43 playable characters, a class tier list from S to C, and the classes worth using on Maddening.
• Classes that can use magic: the full casting line from Monk through Mage, Priest and Dark Mage to Warlock, Bishop, Gremory, Mortal Savant and the Abyss classes, with the seal and skill each needs.
• Certifications: the exams that change class, the level tiers from 5 to 30 and how seals work.
• Budding talents: the three-star hidden skills, who has one and the bonus each unlocks.
• Advanced drills: train Byleth's own skills with the students who outrank you.

Run the monastery

Our mechanics guide walks through a professor's month, from weekday lectures to free days and the end-of-month battle, and links every system below in the order you meet it. The individual pages hold the full answer lists.

• Tea party: unlocking tea time, every character's favorite blend and the conversation topics they enjoy.
• Advice box answers: the correct reply to every anonymous note in the Cathedral, before and after the timeskip.
• Lecture questions: the answers your students want to hear after class.

• Dialogue choices: the support-boosting line in every chapter of every route.
• Gardening: greenhouse cultivation methods by professor level and the seeds that grow stat boosters.
• Birthdays: every student and staff birthday on the Fodlan calendar.

Gifts and lost items get their own items guide, which merges our gifts and favorite flowers page with the lost items locations into one table per house.

Win the battles

• Battalions: where the Captain's Quarters are, how endurance and gambits work, and the five strongest battalions.
• Best shields: Aegis, Ochain, Seiros, Aurora, Kadmos and Lampos compared by protection against weight.
• Weapon repair: what Rusted Weapons are and how the blacksmith forges them, including where Mythril comes from.
• Maddening tips: how the hardest difficulty halves experience and buffs enemies, and the class, recruitment and ranged tactics that get you through it.

Shape the story

• Routes: what Azure Moon, Silver Snow, Crimson Flower and Verdant Wind each offer, how to unlock Crimson Flower, and the order our writer suggests playing them.
• Recruitment: requirements for every student, the support-rank shortcut and who can still be recruited after the timeskip.
• Romance: how S-Support works, the options for a male and a female Byleth, and a ranking of every partner.

Earn and spend Renown

Renown is the currency behind the Saint Statues, Dragon Signs, the Pagan Altar and extra Divine Pulse charges. Our renown farming guide covers the five ways to earn it, from side quests and tournaments to an MVP result in battle, and everything it can buy, including the 10,000 Renown a fully restored statue costs.

Frequently asked questions

Which route should I play first?

Our routes page recommends starting with Crimson Flower, following it with Azure Moon and Verdant Wind, and leaving Silver Snow for last. Crimson Flower is the shortest at 18 chapters and requires siding with Edelgard from the Black Eagles.

Can I recruit Edelgard, Dimitri or Claude?

No. The house leaders stay with their own houses, and our recruitment page notes that a few retainers devoted to them cannot be recruited either.

What changes on Maddening?

Experience is halved and enemies gain extra abilities, such as commanders who leave their healing tiles and quick ambushes. Our Maddening tips guide covers the class upgrades, ranged tactics and priest farming that make it manageable.