Here's a thread that I don't think has been created before but here's the Fire Emblem thread.

Q: What is Fire Emblem?

A: Fire Emblem was originally released in Japan on April 20, 1990 for the Famicom (Family Computer). You guide Marth and his allies through over 20 maps of enemies, as he deals against the corrupt Bishop Gharnef. It has spawned fifteen games, three and a half are remakes, one mobile phone game and two characters, Marth and Roy, famously appeared in Super Smash Bros. Melee*. Over time, the games introduced new mechanics to the games. It is famous for being difficult because originally, if a unit ran out of HP, they usually stayed dead, except if it was a Lord or an escorting unit, the game over. 

Starting with New Mystery of the Emblem, you can choose between Normal (units stay dead), and Casual (units come back after the next chapter).

(*as a matter of fact, Super Smash Bros. Melee was Roy's first ever appearance) 

Q: What mechanics are you talking about?

A: In the first two games, you had to guess how many units could move before you couldn't anymore. Mystery of the Emblem introduced the arrows to show where a unit could move to. Genealogy of the Holy War introduced the modern support system, which gives bonuses to a linked unit in some games, usually better stats. It also introduced the weapon triangle (Sword beats Axe, Axe beats Lance, and Lance bests Sword). Some games even have the magic triangle, which is different between games.

Q: Are there any advantages/disadvantages to classes?

A: Of course there are. Some characters are locked to a certain weapon, like I'll bring up Eliwood from the seventh game for example. He can only use swords, and not axes, lances or bows. This can be a bad thing because he can end up disadvantaged against certain units. Bow units usually are defenseless against melee attackers, and Pegasus/Wyvern units fall to bow users. These disadvantages can be used against your enemies as well!

Q: Which game should I start with?

A: That's a good question. I'd probably say Awakening or Sacred Stones.

Q: Wait a minute, am I really fighting monsters in Fire Emblem?

A: Yep, you are. In Gaiden/Echoes and Sacred Stones, monsters show up as enemies in some maps. They can be especially dangerous in Sacred Stones because of their unpredictability.

Happy discussing!

Sacred Stones is my favorite Fire Emblem. I think I lost track of the cart though

I play Awakening on Casual mode lol, I paid my dues resetting after having someoen die after a stupid move hundreds of times.

I bought Sacred Stones off the Wii U's VC, though I didn't get too far in it. I do like what I've seen though, and many of my friends love Fire Emblem.

(Also, 2000th post!!! Hallelujah!!!)

I'd like to play Awakenig at some point. The main reason is because of Lucina's appearance in Super Smash Bros. 4. I remember unlocking her and reading the "hero from a doomed future" tagline and thinking, "Oooh, that's interesting and cool! Time travel!" (I'm a big sucker for time travel stories.) Of course, from my understanding her appearance in Smash 4 is kind of a huge spoiler, but I don't care that much. I just think the Fire Emblem series sounds interesting and would like to see where one of my favorite Smash characters comes from.

I have Awakening and I like it so far, although I haven't played it in a long time now. I'm actually very addicted to the mobile game Heroes. I think that game is definitely a good introduction to the series albeit a watered down version of the game.

Heroes gets everyone hooked. I try to stay away from gacha games though D:

I wonder if there will be any new FE news at E3. I don't imagine we'll see anything until Tokyo Game Show, though.

Well, I was wrong :p They showed off a new game at E3. New artist too.

I'm very very obsessed with Fire Emblem. My friends got me Awakening for my birthday one year and I had so much fun I got all of the Fates versions and the newest one. I'm actually spearheading a group cosplay photo shoot at Zenkaikon this year. I'm going to be making an Azura costume.