Quick question...

Actually, each Weapon Type is assigned 2 buttons based on their main slot. Shields and Critical Defense is completely random. It's only 1 if you're on the X360. Don't even think about trying if you've got Turbo enabled. You're better off just setting it to Auto if that's the case, although it does carry a base 80% success rate.

There's no EXP penalty or reward for hitting the triggers themselves, although the last unit in the chain, assuming that you've already had 2 successful Critical Offenses, will reassess to an art if there's one available. That art usage does earn that unit EXP.


Oh, and the CTs can be of variable speed. Sometimes they're really fast, sometimes they're quite manageable. Ever play rhythm games with a controller? Kinda like that, only without the x2 battle speed option. Unless you're playing those crazy songs...
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Now playing: Fire Emblem Kakusei, Borderlands
Hoyt GMX 23", Hoyt Epic 32lbs, 8125, Carbon One 900

Alright. Just don't set it on Turbo if you value your sanity.

That's quite a loaded question. The explanations are kinda scattered all over place because they're actually a few of separate systems working in tandem. Here's something brief:

Battle Rank: Representation of what and how you've fought. Each enemy union (group) you terminate is equal to a set amount of EXP (20). Enemies have their own levels, which vary based on passing specific BR thresholds. There are usually 3 ranges, although some have less and some don't scale at all. Rare monsters scale on a linear path. The level difference between you and the enemy determines the EXP multiplier for BR EXP (and other things). After you get enough EXP (500), you go up a BR.

There are internal levels for each stat, but you can ignore them since there's another thing working in the background. For the internal levels, which is governed by each unit's growth type (Balance, Combat, Mystic), you gain EXP based on what the unit does in battle:
Get hit/healed: HP
Use CA/MA: AP
Use CA: STR
Use MA: INT
Do anything: SPD + UP
You also get EXP for winning a battle. If the unit's alive. Those EXP gains are also dependednt on the level difference. The larger the difference in the enemy's favour, the bigger the gains. But you also have a chance to randomly proc stat gains. The percentage is based on the level difference, and you can skew towards certain stats.

So really, the game rewards you for taking on fights where you're at a disadvantage. That's really all there is to it. There might be a few finer details, but you don't really need to worry about that. Just keep BR reasonable in relation to your stats and you should be fine. Just don't think you can grind on weak enemies all the time. You'll more than likely regret it~
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Now playing: Fire Emblem Kakusei, Borderlands
Hoyt GMX 23", Hoyt Epic 32lbs, 8125, Carbon One 900