As you begin your adventure with Fire Emblem Engage, you are introduced to a variety of characters with varying attributes, classes, and skills. Vander, the Paladin, is one of the first characters to join your army. Vander has much higher stats than the rest of your party members and will be invaluable in the first half of the game. He’s strong, agile, and wields axes, the game’s most potent physical weapons. But why is it that he levels up so slowly?

Why is Vander not progressing in Fire Emblem Engage?

Vander is a Jagen archetype in the Fire Emblem community. This Fire Emblem archetype is a pre-promoted/advanced class unit that you obtain at the start of the game with much greater stats than the rest of your army. They are nearly always of the Paladin/Great Knight class and have little experience. The usefulness of these characters changes depending on the game in the franchise you play.

Vander is a Paladin, a higher-level class that troops can graduate to after reaching level 10 in their basic class. Vander is more stronger than everyone else in your army at the start of the game since advanced classes are substantially stronger than basic classes. Vander is gaining nearly little experience since he is battling opponents of a far lower level than himself. He will get more experience as you go in Fire Emblem Engage’s second half.

Jagen is a character from Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light who gives Marth advice and fights alongside him on his adventure. He’s a Paladin with high basic stats but low growth rates, similar to Vander in Engage.

Many players dislike Jagen characters because they waste experience points that may otherwise be used by other party members while grinding levels. Because your other heroes will get far more experience from slaying foes, they will swiftly overshadow Vander within a few chapters.