How to play the Cindered Shadows DLC in Fire Emblem: Three Houses

With the release of Cindered Shadows for Fire Emblem: Three Houses, questions have cropped up asking how to get and play the DLC. Not only is the DLC exciting in that it offers its own standalone campaign, it also brings with it a new House and new characters. To help get you started, we’ve put together a guide that breaks down how to play the Cindered Shadows DLC in Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

How to play the Cindered Shadows DLC in Fire Emblem: Three Houses

You'll need to purchase the Expansion Pass for Fire Emblem: Three Houses in order to play the Cindered Shadows DLC.
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Buy the Expansion Pass for Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
Download any recommended updates for Fire Emblem: Three Houses.
Launch the game, then look for the "Side Story" option in the main menu.
Select this, choose your gameplay settings, and enjoy your time with the Cindered Shadows DLC for Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

To play the Cindered Shadows DLC in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, you’ll first need to purchase the game’s Expansion Pass. Not only do you get the Cindered Shadows DLC when you purchase the Expansion Pass for $24.99 (USD), but all future waves of DLC for Fire Emblem: Three Houses as it’s released.

With the Expansion Pass purchased, you may need to download an update for Fire Emblem: Three Houses. Once you’ve done that, open Fire Emblem: Three Houses and take a look at the main menu options. There, you should spot a new menu option called “Side Story” and if you’re wondering, yes, this is where you access the new Cindered Shadows DLC.

The campaign for Cindered Shadows is pretty meaty (approximately 8-10 hours in length) which is perfect for those who’ve already beaten Fire Emblem: Three Houses. If you’ve yet to dig into the main story, we recommend doing so before playing Cindered Shadows. It’s not that Cindered Shadows contains spoilers (it doesn’t), but it’s somewhat difficult in contrast to the main campaign in Fire Emblem: Three Houses.

By playing and practicing strategies in the main game, you’ll be better prepared for what’s thrown at you in Cindered Shadows.

Another thing to keep in mind is that when you launch Cindered Shadows, you’re given the same game setting options as the main campaign. You can pick either Normal or Hard combat difficulty, and Casual or Classic mode. We recommend Casual unless you’re extremely confident in your gameplay skills as Classic means you play with permadeath on rather than off.

When you’ve selected how you want to play the game, you’re free to dive in and experience the fun story behind the Cindered Shadows DLC in Fire Emblem: Three Houses!