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Fire Emblem Engage has had some pretty mixed responses. Many fans of Three Houses have found the reduction in social elements to be a bit of a downgrade. On the other hand, fans of older titles find the increased focus on combat to be a return to form. One thing is certain, however, Fire Emblem Engage certainly feels fresh and this is thanks to a bevy of new mechanics.
Although new is not always needed to make an impact. A feature that was introduced in Three Houses makes a return in Engage, and that is the Draconic Time Crystal. This magical McGuffin is incredibly powerful and can turn impossible situations into something a lot more palatable.
More Fire Emblem Engage content:
Combat Guide | Beginner Tips | Game Balance | Launch Trailer | Expansion Pass
What Is The Draconic Time Crystal
The Draconic Time Crystal is – as the name suggests – a crystal that can control the flow of time. It was probably made by (or for) dragons to boot. A fancy name for a fancy piece of jewellery.
Alear gets his/her mitts on the Draconic Time Crystal after Lythos was attacked by mysterious forces. A hooded figure causes quite the upset, drops an item of near-infinite power, and Vander hands it to you shortly afterwards. It all sounds rather contrived on paper – a smidge convenient – but in practice, it’s pretty awesome.
Controlling time is a powerful mechanic, so let’s dive into how to use it.
How To Use The Draconic Time Crystal
From the moment Vander hands you the Draconic Time Crystal, you can bend time to your will. At any time during your turn, you can use the crystal to rewind time to an earlier event. You can access the Crystal by pressing the ‘+’ button on your controller. It’s the top option on the menu that pops up.
The most obvious use of the Crystal is to correct mistakes. For example, changing the order you move characters, or slightly adjusting your formation. But its power goes beyond that. Death in Fire Emblem is quite catastrophic, but when time and space bend to your will, death is more of a temporary, nebulous concept.
You can use the Draconic Time Crystal to prevent an ally from dying, and in fact, this is probably the most common time you will bring the Crystal out. Nobody wants their friends to die, and you have the power to stop that.
The Draconic Time Crystal is a lot more powerful than just that. You can rewind time to just about any point in a battle. This allows you to experiment with tactical approaches and mess around with the AI. You could play 3 or 4 turns of a battle just to see what will happen, then zip back to an earlier point and try something else. There is a lot of play here, and you can dig deep into Engage to find the best solution to every problem if you so desire.
Limitations Of The Draconic Time Crystal
All that being said, the Draconic Time Crystal has limitations – although they are not immediately obvious. Firstly, if you don’t have the crystal in your possession, then you can’t use it at all. Missions, where you are missing your Crystal, are the tensest because every action matters and every mistake could lead to an irrevocable death.
In addition, if you are playing Fire Emblem Engage on Hard or Maddening, the power of the Draconic Time Crystal is reduced substantially. When on Normal, you have infinite uses of this tool, but on harder difficulties, you are restricted to only 10 uses per battle. This might sound like a lot, but Hard and Maddening are substantially more difficult, meaning you likely want to lean on this feature more often. The kicker is – you can’t.
That’s all we have for Fire Emblem Engage today. Keep an eye out for our other guides for more tips and tricks.
