Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes brings players back to the medieval world of Fodlan for a new adventure starring the colorful cast of Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Developed by Omega Force and Koei Tecmo, Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes takes the series in a new direction by eschewing the traditional, tactical gameplay for Musou-style, action combat.

RELATED: Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes Beginner Tips

There's a ton to do in Three Hopes, from spending time with a favorite character to taking out enemy forces on the battlefield. It can be a little daunting to experience everything the game has to offer, but there are a few, less-obvious activities that players won't want to miss out on during their playthrough.

9 Trade Smithing Stones For Resources

a trading menu screen with a list of resources on the left side of the screen, including name and cost. on the left is a description of the highlighted material "quality building material"

Smithing stones are a returning resource in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, but this time around they're arguably the most vital currency in the entire game. They're required to upgrade many of the weapons in Three Hopes, but they also have a crucial role as a trading commodity with the camp's Supply Master.

Players can swap out smithing stones at the Supply Master for resources to upgrade the various facilities located in their camp. These upgrades can unlock new features like class upgrades, tactical abilities, cooking effectiveness, and even new locations to visit on expeditions. While resources can be found just by engaging in battles and exploring the world, the only way to unlock them is to play into this economy and spend a little time trading some stones.

8 Use Another Character's Unique Trait

a menu screen with three, vertical boxes of abilities. the left most box has two categories: unique abilities and class abilities. the middle box is titled equipped abilities, and the right most box is titled available abilities. above the right box is a description of the highlighted ability "armsthrift" above the left and middle boxes is a description of the characeter, Shamir, and her equipped class

As players make their way through the story of Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, they'll form bonds with their party members that can aid them on the battlefield. These bonds are useful for general combat as well as character and story development, but there's a neat additional feature that only unlocks in the game's second half.

In Part II of Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, players will be given a special item known as the Merc Whistle. Give this item to a character with whom Shez has A-rank support, and they'll receive a special accessory in return. Equip this accessory to copy the other character's unique ability, granting Shez even more versatility in combat.

7 Recruit Enemy Generals

a wooden shack. at the bottom of the screen is an image of a purple haired girl named Bernadetta looking frantic as she says "Why am I suddenly part of the Alliance army?!"

Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes revolves around an escalating war between the various factions that make up the continent of Fodlan. The Leicester Alliance seeks to defend their territory from invading Imperial forces while the Holy Kingdom Of Faerghus seeks to protect the Church of Seiros from the Adrestain Empire.

RELATED: Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes Character Redesign Tier List

During the war, the game introduces strategies, which are special maneuvers that can be activated in the midst of combat. One of these strategies will offer players the opportunity to convince an enemy general to defect once they're defeated, sparing their lives and adding them to the roster for the rest of the game.

6 Unlock Hidden Weapon Potential

a blacksmith menu screen that shows a list of weapons to be reforged on the left and a description of that weapon on the upper right. an armored arm and red sash can be seen below the weapon description near the bottom right of the image

Visiting the blacksmith is a ritual throughout Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, as it's one of the best ways to keep a handy roster of powerful weapons at the ready. Upgrading, repairing, and reforging weapons are all key parts of the game's progression cycle, so players will quickly grow familiar with how the blacksmith works.

That said, there is one ability the blacksmith has that many players might miss: unlocking a weapon's hidden potential. Each of the Heroes Relics (along with a few other weapons) has a locked talent that can only be activated by purchasing a specific upgrade for the blacksmith. Once acquired, players can bring their legendary weapons to him to unlock their full potential.

5 Use Battalions To Cancel Weaknesses

a menu screen with a character profile in the top left, a list of battalion forces on the bottom left, and a comparison of the currently equipped battalion and the highlighted battalion on the right

Each class in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes comes with special abilities, Combat Arts, and strengths against another weapon type. However, they also come saddled with weaknesses of their own, making them less than effective against certain enemy units. Sending a character into a battle at a disadvantage can have disastrous results, especially when playing in Classic mode.

Fortunately, the game has a way to shore up a unit's weaknesses: battalions. Battalions return in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, though they play a slightly different role than in Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Rather than providing a character with an area-of-effect attack, battalions now offer resistance against specific weapons and attack bonuses against others. Matching up the right character with a suitable battalion can make that unit useful in almost any combat scenario.

4 Achieve S Rank To Earn Extra Prizes

a battle result screen with a box in the middle that reads "you obtained the following as an S Rank Reward: Large Bullion." in the background is a yellow banner emblazoned with a stag with large, branching horns. on the left side are the battle results, which are partially covered by the box in the middle of the screen

When completing each mission in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, players will be graded based on their performance within that mission. The three parameters are completion time, enemies defeated, and damage taken. Reaching S-rank for each of these categories awards players with an S-rank for the entire mission.

RELATED: Best And Worst Things in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes

This immediately unlocks a bonus prize along with the standard completion reward, but it might have even greater effects beyond that single item. Each region has special areas players can visit to acquire things like rare items and resources, but some of these are locked unless certain parameters are met, such as achieving an S-rank for the region's battle.

3 Unlock Anna's Shop

a purple haired man in plate armor with a red sash on his left shoulder speaks to a red haired woman in a white outfit with a black cover around her shoulders. The woman, Anna, says "And don't worry about me running out. I can restock lickety-split. So feel free to buy every last thing!"

Anna's shop is another returning feature from Fire Emblem: Three Houses that has seen a few changes here in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes. Instead of unlocking her shop permanently after completing a certain quest, players will need to find Anna out in the world during every chapter in order for her to set up shop at the base camp.

Once there, Anna will offer a wide range of useful items for players to purchase, such as class seals, resources, and even stat-boosting consumables. The class seals are particularly important, especially for unlocking the higher-level classes in the later stages of the game.

2 Eat Food To Gain Battle Bonuses

menu screen with "cook: select unit" in the top left corner. below it is a list of characters to choose from. on the right side is box showing a triangle of bond growth between each of the three selected characters and below that are categories titled "new meal effects" and "active meal effects"

Eating food with different characters was a staple activity in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, as it allowed players to strengthen their bonds with their team members while also maxing out their motivation. Cooking offers similar benefits in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, but it also throws a special bonus in the mix.

Cooking in Three Hopes combines both food-related activities from Three Houses into one by providing special buffs to the player for the remainder of the chapter. Which buffs players get depends on the dishes they eat, and they come in a variety of forms. Some dishes will reduce weapon degradation during combat, while others will boost how quickly special ability meters fill up in the middle of the battle.

1 Upgrade Passive/ Unique Abilities

a purple haired man in plate male with red trim stands in a wooden structure with no walls. behind him is a makeshift classroom with yellow curtains. at the head of the class, in front of a blackboard, is a man with the title "tactics instructor" over his head in green font

Every character in Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes has a set of special abilities that make them effective at specific forms of combat. Some can imbue their attacks with elemental power while others add special effects like explosions on knockback or money generation with each defeated enemy.

The abilities all have a level of their own that can be upgraded as well, but doing so is a little harder than just earning experience. Players will need to acquire the resources necessary to upgrade the Tactics Instructor facility, after which they'll then need to spend gold to upgrade each character individually. It's a pricey process, but the overall benefits are well worth the cost.

Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes is available now for the Nintendo Switch.

MORE: Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes - How Long To Beat And Chapter List