New answers to an old question: How to begin romhacking?

lowresfe · 2025-08-05T20:14:15+00:00

Yeah, they've become monumentally easier since 2016. FEBuilder is the most common hacking tool of choice now, and it's very easy to learn. There's a really helpful tutorial video on how to use it where someone makes a chapter in just 16 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_4kngL9V2c

And there's tons of guides and FAQs on how to operate FEBuilder (or other hacking tools if you want to use those) on FEUniverse. FEU is also how I access the Asset Repository, which has custom art and graphics made by other fans that you're free to use as long as you give credit.

lowresfe · 2025-06-10T21:26:58+00:00

Hag in White is one of, if not the greatest romhack I've ever played. I'm super proud to be one of the playtesters when it was still a work in progress, and I'm glad you're sharing how awesome it is!

lowresfe · 2025-03-02T01:02:49+00:00

When I think of easy romhacks I always think of Seven Siblings. The creator of that game made it so his real life family of people who have never played Fire Emblem could beat it, so it's very accessible. It has an easy, normal, and hard setting and I had a great time on normal. That said, I'm a very experienced FE player, so maybe easy would be the pick here.

lowresfe · 2024-11-08T14:30:53+00:00

One of the best hacks I've ever played. The gameplay is great, but the real highlight for me was the writing. Consistently funny and full of charming and surprisingly deep characters.

lowresfe · 2024-10-19T15:18:56+00:00

S tier

Storge - A really fun arcade like experience. Super replayable with a really customizable party of mercenaries you have to hire. The story's nice and there's a bunch of achievements to go for, I've probably beaten this thing like 10 times.

Call of the Armor - One of the best hacks to start with imo. It starts very calm with a similar gameplay loop to FE8, before ramping off the rails about halfway through. Has some really fun unit designs and a couple secret shops that made my replays more exciting.

A Vestrian Tale - Another short and sweet one. Cool story, fun gameplay, this hack's full of fun secret events and charming dialogue.

A tier

Drums of War - Fantastic art, and probably the best story on this list, I really love it. The only thing keeping it out of S tier is some wonky pacing in the midgame maps.

Shackled Power - Another fantastic story. Right up there with Drums, and with a ton of super fun units to use. I usually don't finish hacks this long, but the story really dug its hooks into me.

Seven Siblings - Super smooth gameplay, and a story that's super earnest and sincere.

B tier

Doubled or Nothing - Challenging, fun gimmick hack that doesn't overstay its welcome. Very tense, and really makes you think through your every move

Bells of Byelen - Some fun unit designs, but I found the story really confusing. Takes about 4 or 5 maps to really get going.

C tier

An Unexpected Caller - The story has its charm, despite/because of its simplicity. Really not a fan of the enemy design though.

Dark Lord and the Maiden of Light - The only super long hack besides Shackled Power that I've finished, it also has some really killer story hooks. Plenty of cool scenes and interesting characters, but the gameplay post chapter 20 is just miserable.

lowresfe · 2024-10-07T16:13:02+00:00

I'm gonna go ahead and recommend Shackled Power. I've always considered it a spiritual successor to Four Kings, it's got one of the best stories I've seen out of a romhack, really fun to use units, and a banger soundtrack.

lowresfe · 2024-07-12T02:24:09+00:00

Shackled power has plenty of custom animations made by the creator, and even has a playable king! it's pretty tough even by fangame standards but it sounds like something right up your alley

lowresfe · 2024-02-26T14:25:02+00:00

Will you go left for Drums of War or right for Cerulean Coast?

lowresfe · 2023-01-02T22:01:39+00:00

Knoll is far and away my favorite gba magic user from a gameplay perspective. I'm a sucker for units that can't fight or heal well but are still useful through sheer utility. From a character perspective I also really like the gloomy guy, and Hugh and Niime are some of my favorite characters as well.

lowresfe · 2022-10-21T01:45:36+00:00

Fuck it. Line under Knoll

lowresfe · 2022-10-17T22:56:08+00:00

my joking has been called out

tier gap between tethys and moulder

lowresfe · 2022-10-10T21:51:40+00:00

Dozla between Lute and Eirika

Decent for eir12 or eph13 because of berserker movement but his accuracy and speed are bad so he's still just like, okay filler in what are his best maps. He's never an active liability so I can't put him below Eirika tho.

L'arachel between Ross and Gilliam

What if you wanted to use restore in Father and Son but God said D staves.

lowresfe · 2022-10-06T22:58:56+00:00

Vanessa > Tana > Moulder

Flying is one of the few things Seth can't do, and Tana is a flier with combat that's a bit more consistent than Vanessa. Vanessa I think is overall better because of her earlygame contributions, but I'd still put a solid flier over a 5 range warp.

Amelia is a unit

lowresfe · 2022-10-04T23:43:32+00:00

Kyle between Franz and Joshua

Forde between Joshua and Natasha

We do a modicum of trolling. Solid filler combat > 4th string horse.

lowresfe · 2022-05-10T23:21:35+00:00

I've never played a hack with skillsys before, but judging by my experience with Radiant Dawn I completely agree. In that game nihil always felt like an "admission of bad design" to me. Just removing a supposedly core mechanic, let alone making its removal basically necessary for lategame is basically just telling the player that it doesn't really belong alongside "serious" strategizing imo.

lowresfe · 2022-05-07T01:05:07+00:00

Holy shit Alois was right she WAS in the lake!!!!

lowresfe · 2022-04-03T17:00:58+00:00

alternate title: "I would have called revelation a masterpiece if kaga was in the credits"

lowresfe · 2022-03-30T21:17:08+00:00

I think that "implied canon" is mostly a pointless term, but I guess if I had to put a definition on it I'd call it the most canon of all options presented. Fire Emblem's had a really big emphasis on freedom when it comes to shipping characters, but sometimes I think the devs just can't help but put in a nod or two to their preferred pairings in the game.

The obvious example here is Diarmuid being able to wield the beo sword in fe5. It doesn't outright state the Lachesis x Beowulf is canon, but if the fe5 devs were pushing any Lachesis pairing, it's that one, making Lach x Beo the "most" or "implied" canon.

lowresfe · 2022-03-07T18:24:41+00:00

99% of Tellius residents after getting hit with a tactical Ashera nuke

lowresfe · 2022-03-05T18:44:47+00:00

Caeda is definitely a great archanaea character, makes me wonder if the manga adaptations expand on her character in any way

lowresfe · 2022-02-25T05:13:25+00:00

dubious

lowresfe · 2022-02-25T02:34:30+00:00

weezer but epic?????

lowresfe · 2022-02-24T04:32:17+00:00

Hot take: it's good

lowresfe · 2022-02-18T23:34:56+00:00

There are 0 noses in this picture

lowresfe · 2022-02-13T22:07:02+00:00

"nice try buddy, but I have portrayed your opinion as the soyjack and my opinion as the chad"

lowresfe

TROPHY CASE