Side Story: Cindered Shadows

Begin Chapter 1 with Byleth, the 3 house leaders, Ashe, Lindhardt, and Hilda. All units start at level 20 with advanced classes.

Assess each unit's stat growths and current skills to choose the best class for them, focusing on stat point gains.

Byleth (Male): Leave as is. His advanced class is Swordmaster.

Edelgard: Change class to Warrior. Avoid Fortress Knight due to a -20 speed growth. Swap out Sword Prowess for Weight -3 or another ability.

Dimitri: Consider Paladin for lance skills and high movement, despite a -10 speed growth. Alternatively, Hero counters the speed issue but has less movement and is not as effective with lances. Swap Resistance +2 for Dexterity +4.

Claude: Keep in the same class, primarily using a bow. Swap Resistance +2 for Dexterity +4. Consider Sniper to master Hunter's Volley before moving to Wyvern Rider.

Ashe: Best used as a Sniper, as he only has bow skills.

Hilda and Lindhardt: No changes are needed as they are in their optimal classes.

Begin the battle. You can buy items, but it's recommended to save money.

Defeat the first general, two fist-using enemies, and an archer ahead, along with two enemies to the south. Use Edelgard's gambit to group enemies.

Have Linhardt heal allies used as bait. Ignore the lever.

Continue to fight two horseback enemies, then the second general who retreats and summons a worm monster.

Use archers to shoot the worm monster's armor from afar, then destroy its armor with a gambit when it moves closer. Defeat both its HP bars in one turn.

Deal with Hapi, a spellcaster. Snipe her with archers (Ashe or Claude) while healing from counterattacks. Have Byleth and other melee units advance.

Beware of two heavily armored enemies and two new axe-wielding enemies that appear from behind.

Defeat a sword wielder and two archers before the next group.

Engage the last two generals. Use terrain with AVO boosts to bait enemies.

Defeat the appearing fliers, including the third general who uses black magic and is extremely dangerous. Byleth can potentially double-attack her from two spaces away with the Sword of Creator.

Use archers to shoot down other fliers.

Deal with the remaining spellcasters, who hit very hard. Heal immediately if you take significant damage.

The last group of enemies, including the final general, will join. Enemies will be gathered in small groups, allowing you to use gambits, especially on the general. Defeat the general last to maximize experience from other enemies.