Hello!
I have been working on my first romhack for quite a while, and I thought it was finally time to post it here on FEuniverse! This hack is a work in progress and has 5 chapters ready to be played. All feedback, be it critisism or praise will be greatly appreciated.
Welcome to Fire Emblem: The Dark Path (created with FEBuilderGBA)
I’m not sure about the exact number yet, but when complete, it will be around 19-21 chapters long.
I recommend you play on normal for now, as I have been balancing around that. I have not touched the other modes yet so I’m not sure if those are good.
Let’s get into some details!
About the Creation of this hack
You may have heard of or played a romhack called Fire Emblem The Phantom King. When I did the final play testing of my brother @RandomMercenary ‘s romhack “The Phantom King” it inspired me to make my own romhack. After beating the game, I already had a lot of story and world ideas going around in my head, but I also really liked the intricate world building present in The Phantom King. So I thought it would be a fun idea to connect the story and world of my romhack to that of The Phantom King. So with @RandomMercenary’s permission, I did exactly that.
To be clear, this is a standalone story and is not a sequel or anything to The Phantom King. So while it’s not necessary to play it before you play my hack, I would really appreciate it if you do. I also think it will enhance the experience of this hack at least a little bit. And also, It’ll be a while until this hack is fully complete so you’ll have plenty of time to play The Phantom King if you haven’t already 
. And if you have played it already, well uh… I hope you’ll enjoy this one too!
Extra context:
- Origin of the Marugnatii, seen in Crowns and Thrones and the upcoming Phantom King Sequel.
- Takes place roughly one year after The Phantom King but not in Reglis
It has been about 4 years since I started working on this project. Yeah, I know. It’s a long time for only 5 chapters. But a lot of that time has been spent learning febuilder and everything that comes with making a custom romhack. Even though there’s always things to learn, I feel like at this point I am “fluent” in FEGBA romhacking and have built a foundation from where I can keep working on it. That is to say, I probably won’t take 12 more years to complete this project 
.
I’ve made these 5 chapters as polished as I could, and am already well into developing the next 6. So, no promises, but I hope I can provide the next update within a year from now.
Story
On an Island inhabited by various tribes, generations of peace have been halted by a few tribes who, with unknown motivations, start a seemingly coordinated attack on the Nagang alliance: an alliance formed by the four original tribes. Could their archenemy: the Gagak tribe be behind it? Or is it not that simple?
The story follows Chief of the Beruang tribe’s son, Sabar
A timid boy who is unsure of his abilities to be the next chief of the Beruang. Even so, he is pushed to his limits when his father takes him along to stop the attacking tribes.
Along the way he meets a mysterious traveler from a foreign land.
Holding an ominous looking sword, this righteous young man seems to be looking for someone, and is very determined to do so.
The two end up helping eachother only by chance, and that is where a friendship starts to grow. While they learn more about eachother, they must figure out what’s happening with the hostile tribes and try to bring back peace to the island.
Mechanics
- Capturing enemies like in FE5
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No money. Because of lore reasons (they trade materials and don’t have a currency), so capturing is essential!
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Promoted class branches like standard FE8 (see class chart in “Helpful Information”)
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Every playable unit has a personal skill
- Every base and promoted class has a player-only skill
- Weapon ranks are fixed. They’re class based and don’t grow
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All mounted classes have canto+ (including enemies), but weaker stats and lower weapon ranks than foot-locked classes.
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Different conversations when certain units have died.
- Frequent chapter-based context sensitive conversations between units.
- Support level may go up after one of these chapter-based convos.
Helpful Information
This is the world map:
There will be more to the worldmap than you can see right now, but this is the only part that’s important for the current version of this hack. It’s also not final, but it will roughly look like this
Class Promotion chart:
These are all the (player) classes in the game right now. I will add more classes in future updates. When choosing between promotion branches, the game will tell you which weapons, ranks and skills you will get before choosing.
Known Issues
- If the prologue is suspended and then resumed, it will have various visual glitches and becomes unplayable. Solution is to restart the chapter and finish it in one go. But that shouldn’t be hard because it’s really short (like 5 minutes). Thankfully only happens in the prologue.
- Glitchy portraits when trading with captured enemies. For some enemies (like pirate) it doesn’t happen, but I haven’t figured out how to make it work properly all the time yet. Doesn’t affect gameplay at all, but it still looks ugly.
Credits
Huge thanks to all the amazing and talented people below! None of this would have been possible without any of you!
FEbuilderGBA created by 7743
World and part of the lore by RandomMercenary
Battle Animations:
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[Mage-Custom2] [M] Mage Lord v2 by Eldritch
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[AxeFighter] [F] by Black Mage
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[AxeFighter] [M] by Waleed, Flasuban
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[Berserker] [F] by eCut, Skitty
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[Brigand] [F] by eCut, Skitty
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[Warrior] [F] by Temp, helmfried, Pushwall
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[Pirate-Base] Sword [M] by Pimpstick
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[Warrior-Variant] Tellius Version - Bartre [M] by UltraFenix
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[Ranger-Variant] [F] by Leo_Link, Jey the Count, Ririki
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[Cavalier-Variant] [F] by Leo_Link, Pushwall
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[Custom Lance] Infantry Soldier [M] by MeatofJustice
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[Custom Lance] Lancer [M] by SALVAGED
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[Custom Lance] Lancer [F] by SALVAGED
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[Archer-Reskin] Lynbecca [F] by Jeorge_Reds
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[Myrmidon-Reskin] Long-Haired [F] by Maiser6
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[Nomad Trooper base] [M] Repal by Pikmin1211, Maiser6
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[Nomad Trooper Reskin] [F] Non-Sacaen by Pikmin1211, Maiser6
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[Assassin-Reskin] Leila [F] (Long-Hair) by SHYUTERz
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[Assassin-Base] Hood [M] by JeyTheCount
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[Ranger-Style] [F] Bowmaster by JeyTheCount
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[Ranger-Style] [M] Bowmaster by JeyTheCount
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[Hero-Variant] Echidna [F] Repal by Redbean
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[Mercenary-Variant] Mercenary [F] by SALVAGED
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[Thief-Variant] FEDS Thief [M] by DerTheVaporeon
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[Villager-Custom] Villager [F] by Nuramon
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[FE13-CUstom [F] War Cleric Dress by DerTheVaporeon, 7743, TytheBub
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[Cleric-Reskin] [F] FE13-Style by ???
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[Sage-Custom] [F] Yggdra Lute by Aruka
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[Custom Oracle] [F] Oracle Repal Pants by GabrielKnight
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[Custom Oracle] [M] Oracle by GabrielKnight
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[Valkyrie-Reskin] Non-Religious [F] by DerTheVaporeon
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[Valkyrie-Reskin] Non-Religious [M] by DerTheVaporeon
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[Custom DM] Sophia [F] by Redbean
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[Knight-Variant] [M] Generic by SALVAGED
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[T2 Summoner-Reskin] [F] FEGirls-Style
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[WK Custom] [M] Malig Knight v2 by Pikmin1211, Jj09, 7743, Jey the Count
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[WL Reskin] [F] Helmetless by Flasuban, TBA, Marlon, RiriK
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[WL Reskin] [M] Helmetless by Flasuban, TBA, Marlon, RiriK
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[Peg T2 Reskin] [F] Falcoknight Farina by Greentea
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[Peg T2 Reskin] [F] Black Beauty by TBA
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[WK Base] [U] Vanilla (Bow) by Itranc
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[Skeleton-Base] [U] Bonewalker Vanilla + Weapons by MrNight, RenOokami, Orihara_Saki, Vilkalizer
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[Skeleton-Base] [U] Wight Repal + Weapons by Teraspark
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[Skeleton-Reskin] [U] Legion by Seal
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[WK Custom] [M] Malig Knight by Leo_Link
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[Brigand-Reskin] FE13-Style [M] by Iscaneus
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[Axe-Custom] Oni Chieftain [M] by Dora Drago
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[T2 Summoner-Reskin] Plague Doctor ver 2 [F] by DATonDemand
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[T2 Summoner-Reskin] Warlock [U] by Teelvade
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[Custom Magi] [F] Miko Repal by RedBean, Lisandra_brave
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[Sword Custom] Ninja - Hooded [U] by Pikmin and DerTheVaporeon
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[Rogue-Variant] Samurai - Iaijutsu Rogue [F] by GabrielKnight
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[Rogue-Variant] Samurai - Iaijutsu Rogue [M] by GabrielKnight
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[Sword FE16 Custom] Dread Fighter [M] by Nuramon
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[Sword FE16 Custom] Dread Fighter [F] by Nuramon
Map Sprites:
- Sage (M) Battle Sage by Topazlight
- Fighter (F) Axe by Alusq
- Berserker (F) Hawkzerker Axe by Pikmin1211, DerTheVaporeon
- Brigand (F) Axe by Skitty
- Warrior (F) Axe by FEGirls
- Cavalier (F) Revision Lance by flasuban, Tordo45
- Cavalier (F) Alt Hair Axe by SALVAGED, Flasuban
- Cavalier (F) Sword by SALVAGED, Pikmin1211
- Cavalier (M) Sword by SALVAGED
- Amelia (F) T1 (Spud’s Infantry) by Blood
- Militia (M) Deserter Lance by Alusq
- Lancer (F) Brown Hair by SALVAGED
- Lancer (M) Brown Hair by SALVAGED
- Archer (F) Improved by DerTheVaporeon
- Ranger (F) Improved Bow by Flasuban
- Assassin (M) Hood by Jey the Count
- Mercenary (F) Long-Hair Sword by Rasdel
- Villager (F) Sword by HyperGammaSpaces
- Hero (F) Brown Shield Sword by Pikmin1211, Pushwall
- War Cleric (F) Axe by DerTheVaporeon
- Cleric (F) Awakening-Style by BatimaTheBat
- Monk (F) Aerith by N426
- Valkyrie (F) Non-Religious Staff by DerTheVaporeon
- Valkyrie (M) Non-Religious Staff by DerTheVaporeon
- Sage (F) Better by Shtick, L95
- Shaman (F) Staff by CanDy
- Lord (M) Sword Generic (Leif) by ???
- Knight (U) FE10-Style Lance by ???
- Necromancer (F) by ???
- Warrior (M) Tellius by Rasdel
- Cleric (F) Trainee by Tdim
- Wyvern Lord (F) Lance by SHYUTERz
- Wyvern Lord (M) Helmless Lance by Flasuban
- Pegasi (F) T1 Lance by Flasuban
- Pegasi (F) T1 Black Beauty Lance by L95
- Pegasi (F) T1 Lance by Flasuban
- Wyvern Rider (U) Bow by Knabepicer
- Summoner (F) Plague Doctor by DATonDemand
- Malig Knight (M) Lance by Pikmin1211
- Berserker (M) Oni Chieftain by Dora Drago
- Brigand (M) FE13-Style Axe by Glaceo
- Bonewalker (U) Legion Bow by Seal
- Bonewalker (U) Legion Sword by Seal
- Shaman (U) Skeleton by d_h
Item Icons:
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Hand Axe by Beansy
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Axe 3 by Celice
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Axe 8 by Celice
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Axe 12 by Celice
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Extra 29 by Ereshkigal
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(Br,Ir,St,Slvr,Gld) Axe 2 by GabrielKnight
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Slim Axe by Kyrads
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Axe 1 by SaintRubenio
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(SacredWar) Axe 2 by Seal
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Axe 24 by Zane
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icon 090 by Zane
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PoisonAxe by Zelix
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Double Bow (FFEA OLD) by Batima
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[Short Bow] by Celice
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Gold Bow by Ereshkigal
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Lughnasadh by SacredStones
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IronBow by Zelix
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LongBow by Zelix
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Wolt’s Bow by Zelix
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Elfire (No Tome) [F2E] by Norikins
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Snowflake (No Tome) [F2E] by Norikins
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Thunder (No Tome) [F2E] by Norikins
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Magic Lance [F2E] by Beansy
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[Iron Lance] by LordGlenn
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Iron Lance by XVI
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Short Spear by XVI
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[Javelin] [F2E] by Zane
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Ranged Lance 1 [Javelin] [F2E] by Zarg
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FE14 Naginata by Zelix
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IronLance by Zelix
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Shortspear by Zelix
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Steel Katana by Ereshkigal
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Katana 4 by Ereshkigal
Magic Animations:
- [Earth] Ground Dasher by Bonzai, Blazer
Portraits:
- Skin Tones by Blade
- Hair Color Reference by Blade
- Skeleton (Full Smile) [F2E] by L95, Nokitrix
Background CGs:
- FGO CG’s by WAve, ZoramineFae
- Japanese BG 01 by Fenrier
- Japanese BG 02 by Fenrier
- Tear Ring Saga BG’s by Donlot
Tilesets:
- Updated village by N426, ZoramineFae, Venno
Music:
- New Super Mario Bros. - Castle by RandomWizard
- FE5 - Searching the Enemy by SurfingKyogre
- FE3 - Battle by Sme
- Zelda Phantom Hourglass - Battle by RSflame
Patches:
- 16 tracks 12 sounds by Agro, Brendor
- 246 Color Title Background by Leonarth
- Allow 254 generic minimugs by Gryz, 7743
- Allows to record 255 sound room by 7743
- AnimNumbers Damage pop-up in battle anime by Huichelaar
- AoE Area of Effect by Vesly
- AutoGenLeftOAM Reduce capacity by dynamically creating LeftToRightOAM by 7743
- Fix CG Fade Glitch by 7743
- Dynamically Change the Dragon Stone’s Fire Breath palette by 7743
- Dynamically Change the Sealed Sword’s Fire palette by 7743
- Convert Chapter Titles to Text_ver2 by Circleseverywhere, 7743
- Continue Battle BGM Between Map and Combat by 7743
- CritCap. Fixed critical from appearing in excess of 100% by Contro
- Map Danger Zone (Select: Toggle) by Circleseverywhere
- DismountEx Enable to Rade and Exit (Installer) by 7743
- Draw attack effect on map animation when battle animation off by Vesly
- drumfix by Circleseverywhere
- Remove Enemy Control Glitch by Brendor, 7743
- Display Escape menu by 7743
- Even if no support conversation, make sure to only show “Support Lv. increased” popup dialog by 7743
- Add Event: Character Retreat by Aera
- Add Event: GetSupportLevel, SetSupportLevel, ClearSupportLevel by 7743
- Add Event: Simple Escape event that can be easily created by 7743, Aera
- ExModularSave with Supply 200 by Stan
- FE8-Battle Stats with Anims Off ver 2 by Tequila, Vesly
- Attack and capture enemies with reduced speed like FE5(Tequila Version) by Tequila
- Rogue Robbery by Tequila
- FE8 Text Engine Rework by Tequila, Zahlman, Stan, Black Mage, Eliwan, The Awful Emblem team
- Using 256, 224 color BG(256ColCG) by Huichelaar
- 01Command_hack by Hextator, 7743
- 48Command_hack by Hextator, 7743
- Anti-Huffman by Hextator, 7743
- FEditorMagicCSASystem_FE8U by Hextator
- FillAIDangerMap Efficiency Fix by HyperGammaSpaces, 7743
- Fix dodge to front glitch by Snakey1
- fix lz77decompress by Tequila
- Use HandAx motion as generic motion for throwing axes by 7743
- HPBars_with_warnings Cache by Circles, Tequila
- HPBars_simple by Circles and Zane
- Even in fog, it ensures visibility at specific coordinates. ver2 by 7743
- Lose Weapon Ranks on Promotion by Venno
- m4a hq mixer by ipatix, 7743
- Magic Sword Rework by Sme
- MeleeAndMagicFix by Hextator, Tequila, 7743
- Skip World Map Fix (For World Map Users) by Stan
- Setting battle BGM of a many dancer in battle animetion by 7743
- NarrowFont by Scrazia
- Switch the death Quote for each unit who is killer by 7743
- Make NPC (ally) as the third power. by 7743
- Prevent Rescue by Pikmin1211
- DurabilityBasedItemEvent by ???
- Skill SkillSystems by Circleseverywhere, Monkeybard, Black Mage, Blaze, Tequila, Rossendale, StanH, Leonarth, Teraspark, sd9k, Kao, blademaster, Snakey1, Primefusion
- SOUND_NIMAP2(Native Instrument Map) by Circleseverywhere, Alusq
- Stairs by Snakey1
- Change support conversation to 5 people instead of 5 times by Aera
- TorchWeapons by 7743, boy
- Allow 3 or more trainee to be regist by 7743
- UnitActionRework by Stan
- WeaponType TextIDArray by SME
Some things I couldn’t find the creator of, so I marked them with “???”. If anyone knows who made them, please let me know so I can credit them.
