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   This… is what Irina’s kidnappers are after Music: Creeping Shadows   - Dungeon Video: Catacombs   Our objective is simple enough. We start at the bottom of the map and have to make our way north to the top. There’s the door leading to where we need to go, but there’s one slight problem. It’s up there and we’re down here. And half the floor is missing. So we’ll need to go the long way around. A door going west is blocked by debris, but there’s an unblocked one going east. There’s a door going to the Eastern Area.   Entering this room makes the door ahead slam shut, with a gate in front for good measure. The door behind Rush closes too. It’s a trap. These are Albic Qsiti. Yes, Qsiti, as in one of the four major races in the world. You find them in the seamy dark underbellies of cities.  Hooray, the morale bar is finally in the middle, which means that we’re at about the expected BR for this area. For fights in this dungeon, I prioritized Battle Commands based on whether Gabriel, Nora, or Violet would get to perform an art (instead of doing a basic attack/standing by). Right now, they’re not really pulling a lot of weight, but fortunately, that’s not a big problem. Did I mention that Qsiti are sentient and an important species? Well, they’re not so important that we can’t CUT THEM UP FOR PARTS. Rush?! What on earth do you think you’re doing?! Er, uh, well, this guy at the customization shop told me that Circular Albic Hide could get me a sweet upgrade for my Katanas… And, uh… ...This… this is appalling! …Sorry, Pagus, I guess I wasn’t thinking about how you’d feel about me cutting up a Qsiti? What? No! I don’t care about that. Huh? gently caress Albics! Those evil little shits should be exterminated! Wait, what? You’re cutting them up all wrong! Here, give me the knife, I’ll show you the proper way to butcher an albic! Sweet, thanks!  How did something that big get into here? And what does it eat? A fork! Except not really. The right-hand tunnel immediately ends into a patch of fog with a treasure chest up above (containing the Catacombs map) and an excavation point below. That contains another Morsel to increase dig count. But I ignored it because digging in the dungeon videos is boring and just something I’d have to cut out anyway. So back to the left-hand tunnel. Treasure… want treasure… Of course. These Butterfly-type enemies can drop Beast Eggs, which Rush wants to upgrade his Katana.     First blood …is yours.   Slap is a small-radius AoE, but it hurt a bit.  I regret having to defeat one such as you. This is the kind of matchup that turns me on! I have Rush attacking, David going to heal Emma’s squad, and Emma’s squad healing herself.   To the rescue!  Watch this. Anyway they get wiped out. I hate these fog patches. Because stepping into them inflicts you with the Slow field status, making Rush move at a painfully slow plot. These fog patches are also infested with Aggressive enemies, so you have no choice but to fight them, because they will always spot you and attack. The walking speed is really annoying. Fortunately, it has no effect in-battle.   Got him! Gabriel saves Rush’s union by blocking two attacks in a row. learned  Spark IV! This ladder is how we get to the treasure chest that’s behind the locked door. The chest has 3200 G in it. Another ladder takes us up farther as we head west towards the Central Area again. Yay. Back in the central room, this time on the upper platform. In the penultimate room there’s the requisite World Map Teleporter. So, what awaits us in the last chamber? - Boss-ish Video: Seven Albic Qsiti  Seven Albic Qsiti. You know what, I think I can take them all on. Let’s do this!Music: Flamedrop  Let’s rock! You’re good as dead! Note the red squares on the edges of the battle map. That means there are reinforcements waiting. Only seven enemy unions can take the field at once, no matter how many you engage on the field. As enemy unions are terminated, reinforcements will come out and join the fight when a turn ends. This is the apparent boss of the Catacombs, so I took them all on at once. It didn’t go great on my first attempt though: - Blooper Video: Seven Albic QsitiAfter my second union went down, it became a death spiral, I kept reviving, and the reviving union gets killed. Once a death spiral starts, you’re better off hitting Ctrl + Shift + Alt + R to reset back to the main menu. But back to the real fight:  Bindbreath is the Albic’s AoE attack. It seems to have a small radius, it can inflict Blacked Out, but is otherwise only remarkable for how little damage it does. Nora uses Spark to take out her group, Rush takes out his. A successful Critical Defense for someone who has a shield can lead to a Shield Bash, as Gabriel demonstrates. It does some damage, but nowhere close to the amount of a Dodge-Counter. Still, any damage you can deal out on defense is welcome. Emma takes out her target.  Reinforcements! And finally, the true fight begins! It’s important to not wear yourself down this early, so I have everyone keep their HP up. Here I go! Better hit harder than that! Rush Dodge-Counters to take out his target, and he was scheduled to heal his union, and No what are you doing?! There are still enemies on the field, hello? Oh! That’s it? I think that the rank of an art determines its power more than your stats. I think that would explain why the new recruit’s damage is so low. 1000 is pretty good for the base Herbs art. Loki finishes the group off, Emma finishes off hers, but… Good work with the Reassessing to standby while in critical health, Rush. That was really helpful.   I tell David to revive Rush’s union. That was the wrong choice, because I forgot Pagus was benched and so David is the only healer. So he can bring Rush’s union back, but both unions will still be at low health. I have Emma keep their HP up. The only good news is that there are no more reinforcements – this is all that’s left of the enemy.  To the rescue! Don’t be discouraged. It can’t end like this! Welp. This isn’t going well. I have Rush break deadlock to heal himself, while Emma will bring David back. When outnumbered, it is CRITICAL to always bring back your killed unions immediately, because if you don’t, it will probably start a death spiral that you can’t escape. See the blooper video.  Baulson revives David’s union, Emma heals David’s union, and Violet heals her own union. Then Rush heals himself, getting everyone back above 1000 HP. Yay teamwork! Unfortunately, because David’s union was dead, the enemies couldn’t target him, so Emma and Rush get dogpiled. More tricky decisions. Rush will keep his HP up, and I have David decide to break deadlock to try and Intercept Union J, which is deadlocking Emma, so she can break off to do a full heal.That did not work at all, Emma’s union was badly injured, and David didn’t attack J until after it was too late, and he didn’t even kill them.   I guess this is just one of those ugly fights you have to fight through by attrition. That’s what I get for taking on 7 unions at once.  Attrition is working, we’re down to three unions each now. I have Rush prioritize healing David’s union by way of attacking Union J. David will revive Emma’s union.Things muddle along for a couple more turns.  I’m now inputting the commands for turn 11. I have both unions ordered to bring Rush back. Only one will succeed, and the other should finish off the qsiti. Frickin’ finally. It was ugly, but everyone was standing at the end, and that’s what counts. learned  Restore V! learned  Restorative Herb III! learned:
learned Refresh! class changed to Adept Freelancer! learned  Mighty Thunderclap II! - Video: John Torgal can see someone in the room. He nods to the group, who draw their weapons.  Suddenly, Rush and company break into the room!Music: Family    Rush? Dad! It’s good to see you, son! Dad, Irina’s been – Yes, I know. You’re… the Marquis of Athlum! *nods* Tales of your terrible jacket have spread far and wide!  John Sykes puts the box on his desk. He takes off his ring, which is the key to unlocking it. What’s that? This… is what Irina’s kidnappers are after. This tablet can put Remnants into… a deep slumber. It was developed by your mother. Where is she anyway? She’s out there, luring them away from this. What?! You might have the same reaction as Rush, thinking that John is a real jerk for letting his wife act as the bait. But Marina Skyes is more than capable of taking care of herself. Don’t worry. With this, getting Irina back should be a snap. Your mother will be back soon. You’ve done well, Rush. We’re going to be fine. I hope so. You can get caught up later. Let us return to the Embassy. Dad, it’s okay. You’re not alone anymore. I know. Thanks, kiddo. …! Dad? AAAH! OOUAAAHH! Dad?! Stop! Don’t touch it!  You cannot escape that easily, John Sykes.Music: Slipping through your Fingers  What did you do to him?! Hand over the tablet, or he dies. You come and get it! I like this move by Rush. It’s not technically a refusal, but it’s clear that even with the threat to his father’s life, Rush isn’t going to be completely cowed into just obeying.  It turns out that the spell on Rush’s father lets Wagram move him like a puppet. The tablet skitters and slides to a stop at Wagram’s feet.Music: The Ageless Mage  As he turns to escape through his portal, Emma and Blocter charge. Still a puppet!  Too late.  Dad? DAADDD! New Arts Summary learned:
learned Restore V! learned Restorative Herb III! class changed to Adept Freelancer! learned Mighty Thunderclap II! Dungeon: Catacombs Boss-ish: Seven Albic Qsiti Boss-ish Blooper: Seven Albic Qsiti John A reminder that there is an ongoing VOTE on whether to replace one or two people in the Mystic union with potential new party members. The voting will remain open until Chapter 23 is posted. An inconclusive result will default to keeping Loki and Nora in the active party. Next Time: They nearly killed me in the past -OR- A Date with Emma Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 02:35 on Mar 31, 2017 |
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Feb 6, 2015 18:13
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Oh lord there's some fun refusal dialogue coming up.
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Feb 6, 2015 18:24
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I like Rush not just giving in to the hostage taker. He's got some spine in him, unlike some JRPG protagonists.
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Feb 6, 2015 21:30
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Maddox sounds like he could be an interesting replacement for Loki. I'll throw my vote in for him. I also really like Nora, so I'd like her to stay.
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Feb 6, 2015 21:51
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That evil mage is stylish as gently caress, love it. This game has some pretty good antagonists so far.
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Feb 6, 2015 22:15
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I forgot to include the music links again. Sorry. Here's the new one for this update: Music: Family Onmi posted:Oh lord there's some fun refusal dialogue coming up. There is? Not in the next update, unless I missed something. That one is also going to be 88 images long.
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Feb 7, 2015 01:00
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I didn't see anyone mention it, but the game is half off right now on Steam, so you can snag it for 5 bucks.
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Feb 7, 2015 03:04
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Man, we're getting clowned here. But at least it's legitimately clowned. I mean, this guy probably put our dad here and he's kind of got all the cards. loving hell, though. I thought we were at least starting to turn the corner on this whole thing but nope, it gets smacked out of us.
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Feb 9, 2015 15:55
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Onmi posted:One thing that's never... quite explained is why Rush thinks Emma was Irina at first, they don't look alike at all. I guess he just figured "Woman on the battlefield, my sister!" but it does feel like they maybe dropped a plot point.  Note half-jacket and teal belt skirt thing. Here's Irina when she's taken:  Half-jacket, teal beltskirt. It's not much, but they did put them in similar clothes. They also have the same ponytails, albeit blonde vs. light brown. Edit: And now I'm caught up! Another thing to note about Emma/Irina is that from that distance, in the middle of a battlefield, anything that even looks a little bit like his sister would make him panic and run in (as Stabbey's battlefield shot implies). Thank you for your mechanics help, I'm trying to get back into this game (my first attempt was on XBox) and it's good to find out some of the details of how, for example, requests work. A question regarding weapon choice for Rush, though - I know just about any choice can work, but are there any that late-game weapons seem to encourage? Like, the Sword of Seven available for crafting from the beginning seems to imply that going Power Grip with Large swords would be a good long-term idea. gbuchold fucked around with this message at 04:25 on Feb 10, 2015 |
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Feb 9, 2015 23:26
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I'll try to get an update posted soon. It depends on how busy I am tomorrow, really. After that though, we're back to sidequesting. Which order I do things will be dependent on the final vote, which I think is pretty close. If there's no urgent need to pick up new party members, I'll probably do things in an an order that makes some geographical sense. ... I just have to actually figure out what that is, first.Glazius posted:Man, we're getting clowned here. But at least it's legitimately clowned. I mean, this guy probably put our dad here and he's kind of got all the cards. Oh boy... gbuchold posted:This is from way back as I work my way forward catching up, but you guys are being pretty harsh. Here's what Emma was wearing: Welcome to the thread!
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Feb 10, 2015 04:18
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Replace Pagus with Maddox.
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Feb 10, 2015 04:31
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They nearly killed me in the past -OR- A Date with Emma - Video: Emma's Secret Back in the embassy, everyone is waiting for news about Rush's father. A door opens. How's my dad? His life is not in danger, but it looks like he is in a coma. There's no telling when he'll wake.  I'll bet he was cursed! We need to track down that mage post-haste. I believe he's the only one who can save Dr. Sykes. Wagram... If only I knew where Mom was. That reminds me... Do you remember what Dr. Sykes told us earlier? About Ms. Marina luring away the others? What did he mean by that? I'm at a loss. I think... I may have an idea of her whereabouts. Really? A fine time to tell us! I must ask a favour. I wish to seek her out in the company of Rush... and Rush alone. Just the two of you? Yes, my Lord. Would you care to explain why? ... ...I see. Lord David! You have been a faithful servant to Athlum for many years. I place my trust in you. Lord David. Rush. Watch over her. She is not as tough as she appears to be. Gotcha. Let us return to Athlum. There is much to be done. Yes, my Lord! Rush, know that your father is in good hands. I know. Thanks. I will see you back in Athlum. Emma may be going with you, but you should still be very careful. Danger lurks around every corner. Oi, Rush. Don't slow Lady Emma down too much, got it? If you make her angry, it won't be the monsters you'll have to worry about! Gahahaha! ... Don't worry about your pop, alright? I'll take good care of him, no matter what! Thanks, Blocter. Information she is unwilling to reveal to Lord David? It isn't like Emma at all. What could be so important to require only the two of you to go - to an unknown location, at that? No doubt the battles you will face along the way will be harsher than any you've encountered thus far. Prepare yourself accordingly. I suppose that even Emma has things she cannot tell me about. ...Go on, Rush. I'll take care of your father. The above dialogue is what you get if you return to Athlum Castle at this point. Are you ready? 'Course! Alright. Let us leave. Be on your toes - we're going to encounter a lot of monsters.Music: Creeping Shadows - Dungeon Video: Numor Mine  It's been a long time... You've been here before? We have an old family tradition. To carry on the Honeywell name, one must journey to find Remnants when one reaches adulthood. That's cool. My father died in the war, but he dreamed of a new, great Athlumian Remnant. 'The war' implies an event which everyone would know about, but nothing in the game elaborates on what Emma is referring to. It does seem like smaller wars between city-states squabbling over Remnants happen fairly regularly, though. I decided to search here after I heard the Academy had its eye on this place. I thought perhaps I could find one. And then, I met her... You mean my Mom. I'm sorry, I don't mean to bore you. We should get out of here, your mother is waiting. Uh-okay. The party has been disbanded. Emma has joined the party. This was foreshadowed from really early on - the second update, in fact. Emma kept in occasional touch with Marina, which is why she recognized the name Irina when Rush mentioned it in the cave, and why her whole attitude towards Rush changed when he said his last name was Sykes.  So for this dungeon, we're back down to our first ever group: just Rush and Emma. Don't bother changing the union up, there's little point. Definitely don't try and out them into their own unions, neither have enough HP on their own (you'll want to have about 900 health for the combined union). If you've been linking multiple encounters together up to this point, well stop for this dungeon. The enemies are weak enough on their own to take on one at a time, but more than one or two enemy groups and you can get overwhelmed. I am actually going to dodge as much as I can, since only Rush and Emma will get any XP for this section, but it will count towards the party's BR.  Numor is notable for having lots of tunnels that attach and branch off at odd angles, It actually seems rather wide for a mine. This shaft is completely full of rocks, but remember it for later. A wall of rocks blocks the tunnel going straight, but it looks like there is something beyond it. We have to manually operate this platform, one turn of the wheel at a time, to get down to the lower level. These ones take us to a new map.   Ah. This part. We need to manually lower the cart to reach the bottom. The twist though, is that the shaft is full of Ameoba-type enemies constantly on a patrol. You have to time your movements to get past them. I am not good at it. There is a special combat arena set on the elevator. The elevator is suddenly really huge. Also, that 624 damage was from Emma's regular attack. The enemies here are weak because you only have two units. learned  Nimble Bladedancer III! There are two little galleries partway down the shaft that have dig sites or treasure chests. This chest just has the Avalanche formation, which is an upgrade to Cascade. We're almost at the end. This section is all narrow corridors, though. Here we are, now we just need to ...backtrack to find the key. Thankfully, it's nearby, and we don't have to go up the gauntlet. Stone of Marshall: A key Remnant that unlocks the seal of the door to Marshallton. This seems important. Of course! Mom's in there! - Boss Video: Namul Sin & Niram Sin I don't think we're in the mine anymore...     What are they?!   They nearly killed me in the past. Seriously?! But not THIS TIME! Look at that grin on her face. I have to think that one reason why she wanted to go alone was to test herself against this enemy again, to prove to herself that she's stronger than before. Music: Out of Control New music for this boss! Mission: Defeat Namul Sin & Niram Sin Having only one union makes combat decisions really simple! Come on, let's kick some A! I won't let bullies like you get in my way! Nice! I decide to prudently order Rush to heal.      Heavensflight is Namul Niram's unique special. It is used every three turns, so be ready. They spin around each other hitting you with spear and shield, and then the shield one flips into the air, spins the shield around and sends it crashing into a union. Getting them into critical health by only the end of Turn 4 is pretty good. But it's important to be cautious, because they can deal heavy damage in return. I order Rush and Emma to break deadlock to heal, just to ensure that the healing happens first.  Lucky for me, even the raidlocked Heavensflight wasn't that bad.  Oh-ho! learned  Talisman's Gift! And Rush learns his second unique art after completing this battle. Well... after completing this part of the story anyway. - Video: Marina's Secret  Uh-oh. What? No way! Hmm.  Thought you would never show! ...It's been a long time.  We've seen that effect before... Mom! Rush! Mom... I couldn't save Dad... Huh?  Rush explains as the screen fades out. It seems that Marina has a little refuge back from where she came. It's very homey. I suspect that she's been keeping this place well maintained in case she ever needed it.  This is just like back then. You coming from nowhere, and somehow stopping those monsters... and saving my life. ... I need some fresh air. Emma discreetly exits to give Rush and his mother some privacy. Your father... He won't wake up. Dave said that only Wagram has the power to bring him out of it. ... Mom... me and Irina - we've both got the power to call out to Remnants. All of this is happening because of our powers, right? I need to know: what are we? And what does that make you?Music: The Marshalls  I was... an orphan.  The directory of the Academy took me in when I was a child. To return the favour, I joined the Academy, and dedicated my life to their research. That's where I learned the truth about who I was. You might have heard of Marion Marshall. She was the one who bound the Remnant Elysion to herself and wed the God Emperor. The power she held was extraordinary - the power to erase the bindings of the Remnants and replace them with her own. Inside me rests that same, terrible power. For I... I possess Marion's Blessing. As does Irina. I didn't know about it until after Irina was born. Oh, if only I'd known! To think such terrible things are happening to her! All because of me!  Mom... you met Dad, I came along, and with Irina, the four of us became a family. Were you... were you happy with that? I have never regretted having a family, and I never will. The three of you are what makes up my happiness! Then there's only one thing we can do. We can get that back and be a family again! They want Marion's Blessing for themselves, right? Then they're not gonna hurt Irina! We still got a chance to save her! Rush... thank you. I know what I have to do now. Here. I made it using the tablet. When you find Irina, I want you to give her this for me. What are you gonna do, Mom? For now, you should just concentrate on finding Irina. ... Rush, please. Do as I say. Mom? Where has she run off to now? Her actions make no sense! Instead of acting on her own, she should have come with us to Athlum, and explained everything to Lord David. I don't get it either, but don't talk bad about my Mom. I'm sure she knows what she's doing. Fair enough. But you can do the explaining to Lord David.“Academy Visistone 35-36” posted:
New Arts Summary learned:
Emma's Secret Dungeon: Numor Mine Boss: Namul Sin & Niram Sin Marina's Secret The outcome of the vote on whether or not to substuite Maddox and/or Leschau for someone was inconclusive, so by default, I won't substitute anyone at this time. I'm also probably going to out an end to thread votes due to lack of interest. We're back to side-questing starting next update. My butt-pulled estimate is that it'll be about 5 updates of sidequests before we get to the main plot again. Flowers Count: 5 “Irina” Count: 9 “Rush” count: 4 Next Time: So it's come to war... Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 13:54 on Apr 5, 2017 |
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Feb 11, 2015 00:13
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It's not that I don't want to vote, it's just that I'm not good at understanding this game and don't know what to vote for. Anyway, does this mean Rush and his family are related to royalty?
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Feb 11, 2015 03:07
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Mraagvpeine posted:It's not that I don't want to vote, it's just that I'm not good at understanding this game and don't know what to vote for. Anyway, does this mean Rush and his family are related to royalty? like centuries ago basically. It's not important to them except Irina and Marina having access to Marshall's blessing. Which is a big rule-breaker power in the world, Also as an aside, I do love the Deny-Dialog for the door. Just not in the mood.
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Feb 11, 2015 03:14
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Ah. This was the dungeon where I quit playing on the 360 version. For some reason the 1st monster you see kept 1 shoting the two of us. I think I even tried going to an earlier save and try grinding for a bit, then ended up reevaluating that decision and deciding not playing the game was a better option. I was in the regular rpg mindset, so dodging monsters wasn't something I was used to do. I didn't even realize you could dodge then once they saw you. Not sure if I was under leveled, over leveled, or just had terrible formations. Glad I'm giving it another try. But the same things still bug me. Mainly that monsters seem to go first a lot, even when you use your time stop to initiate combat.
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Feb 11, 2015 03:20
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Mraagvpeine posted:It's not that I don't want to vote, it's just that I'm not good at understanding this game and don't know what to vote for. Same here. I suspect that the only people who really understand the mechanics of the game are the ones who've played it before. I'm just following along for the story.
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Feb 11, 2015 03:44
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quote:I don't get it either, but don't talk bad about my Mom. I'm sure she knows what she's doing. Uh oh. When has that ever actually worked out in a game?
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Feb 11, 2015 04:10
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Rush was actually pretty on-point talking to his mom. I guess all this time alone has toughened him up a little.
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Feb 11, 2015 07:42
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You seem pretty knowledgeable at this game so mainly I'd just like to see all of the characters etc. or maybe just see you use the less-used ones.Mraagvpeine posted:It's not that I don't want to vote, it's just that I'm not good at understanding this game and don't know what to vote for. Pretty much this also. So from that conversation I'm guessing Mr. Conqueror is a Marshall from somewhere as well? Victis fucked around with this message at 17:59 on Feb 11, 2015 |
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Feb 11, 2015 17:56
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Mraagvpeine posted:It's not that I don't want to vote, it's just that I'm not good at understanding this game and don't know what to vote for. This for me as well. Doesn't help that this was about when I gave up on the 360 version due to a combo of that boss and that one army battle in the desert with the dragon.
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Feb 12, 2015 05:04
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Verant posted:This for me as well. Doesn't help that this was about when I gave up on the 360 version due to a combo of that boss and that one army battle in the desert with the dragon. You don't really need to understand the game to vote though, especially with regards to substituting characters. This boss gave me a lot of trouble when I restarted my playthrough the combo of not having a lot of health and being slightly unlucky with what he decided to do frustrated me to no end.
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Feb 12, 2015 23:20
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My vote is to show them off a bit but bench them in the end. EDIT: I also agree with the people saying that sometimes it isn't easy to vote but I still think it's nice to have that little bit of reader participation.
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Feb 13, 2015 00:27
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Renzyal posted:You don't really need to understand the game to vote though, especially with regards to substituting characters. I'm loving the LP, but I didnt vote because I don't want to create a horribly crippled team that Stabbey has to use. If that's not a concern I have a standing vote for giving every new character at least one update's worth of screen time just so we can see everyone in action.
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Feb 13, 2015 23:39
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Stabbey_the_Clown posted:
Stabbey_the_Clown posted:
Interesting word choice there. Only Irina, instead of both Irina and Rush. This is more or less were I stopped playing, a couple sidequests further. The battle system is a bit too random for my taste.
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Feb 14, 2015 00:42
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I recorded all the bits I'll need for Chapter 24, and I (belatedly) realized that the Last Remnant wiki is actually a pretty good source for a script dump, although it is scattered all over the wiki, so that'll save me a buttload of typing over the next 5 or so updates. I'll try and put as much as I can together over the weekend, but it probably won't be done until Tuesday or so. I can certainly have bonus videos showing off the characters, and maybe use some lesser-known guys as leaders for some minor stuff like component-hunting. Next video, I pick up my first dedicated bench-warmer! Glazius posted:Rush was actually pretty on-point talking to his mom. I guess all this time alone has toughened him up a little. Yeah, Rush's character development is showing now. He's more thoughtful and careful. Omobono posted:Interesting word choice there. Only Irina, instead of both Irina and Rush. The battle system does take some effort to get used to, but once you learn it and how to build your unions, you can get fairly reliable results. Not perfectly reliable, but fairly. The trick in Numor Mine and versus the boss is to know when you can afford to do a full-on attack and when it's better to heal. In Chapter 24 I encountered a nasty boss fight, where the trickiest part was against an enemy who doesn't charge to attack you, but lets you come to it. I'll probably give the big desert dragon boss another go on my next pass through Balterossa, but it may still be too early to take it on.
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Feb 14, 2015 04:27
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Omobono posted:Interesting word choice there. Only Irina, instead of both Irina and Rush. Didn't Wagram say earlier that Rush was useless to him?
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Feb 14, 2015 04:30
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 So it’s come to war… - Video: The Congress Splits  Guard the gates! Yes, sir! Come on, get a move on! What’s going on? Lady Emma! Rush! Thank the Emperor you’re back safe! Like there was any doubt! Things have gotten worse, haven’t they… Yes. The Congress has been slow to grant that Conqueror fellow a Remnant, and all the Lords are in a flurry over it.  And the Conqueror keeps rattling his saber about taking over countries and seizing their Remnants. You’d expect that from the sort of person who would bind the Ark… He’s made an enemy out of every Lord with a Remnant. What’s he plotting? For starters, he’s building an army. The game finally gives us a map! Funny enough, only two places on it are known to us: Elysion and Athlum. There’s also a location for Veyriel. I’ve helpfully labeled the cities. So it’s come to war… Where’s Dave? He’s meeting with an envoy from Duke Hermeien. What’s Hermeien want? Our cooperation, apparently.Music: The Young Marquis   Torgal? You see, the Congress has split into two factions… One sides with the Chairman against the Conqueror. The other supports the Conqueror, fearing the God Emperor’s wrath. Duke Hermeien wishes to ally with us and end the rift as quickly as possible. He’s asked to speak with me directly, in Nagapur. What will you do? Take advantage of the opportunity, of course. Lord David…? In exchange for supporting Duke Hermeien, I’ll have him support Athlum’s bid for independence. Think of it. We could finally be free of Celapaleis! We’re hardly in a position to negotiate after what happened with the Academy… Perhaps not, but it makes little difference. We can barely touch the Gae Bolg without the Duke of Qubine’s blessing. Why must it be so difficult for Athlum to protect herself? Our country deserves more than this. This is a chance we have to take! Thinking about it, this seems a little odd. A big deal has been made about how Athlum is just a subject state of Celapaleis, and can’t do much without their permission. So Athlum making a deal for supporting Hermeien politically (and likely militarily as well) seems like something they might not be able to do. But then again, Celapaleis is probably already on the side supporting Hermeien, given their distance from Undelwalt, the home of the God Emperor, but have made a point of not committing Athlum to that either. I suspect that it’s the southern cities, Melphina, Balterossa, and Royotia who might be on the Conqueror’s side, but I don’t think the game spells it out.Also, despite what David says, we can touch the Gae Bolg in gameplay as much as we want. We can waste it nuking a few little beetles if we want.  Emma. It’s good to see you back safely. I continue to ask your aid, for the glory of Athlum. My life is yours. We leave for Nagapur shortly! Make haste in your preparations! Yes, my Lord!  Is there really gonna be a war? It seems unavoidable at this point. Huhhh… Once war breaks out, the Remnants will be played against each other… And all that will remain is scorched earth, littered with corpses and Blank Remnants that have lost those they were bound to.  These are dark days we live in… Forgive me, I had something to ask you… Did you finally meet with your mother? Yeah… Well? Dave… promise me something. I’ll fight for you… for Athlum. But please, don’t get Irina or my mom mixed up in this, okay? … You have my word. Thanks, Dave. That’s all you had to say? Uhhh…yeah? You’d better hurry and get ready, then. David seems a little miffed at Rush. He clearly knows Rush is hiding something, that’s obvious from the complete lack of detail about the meeting and why it was so secretive. But he’s not going to press Rush on it. For his part, Rush does trust David a lot… but in a war of Remnant versus Remnant, someone with Marion’s Blessing is the ultimate trump card, so I can’t blame Rush for keeping this to himself. The maximum unit capacity per battle is now 12. The maximum number of units in your party is now 30. The party has regrouped.  Now that we’ve completed the Numor Mine, we get another party size increase to 12 units in-battle, so we can get everyone back off the bench and into the party. We now have 3 groups of 4. The Duke of Nagapur, Wilfred Hermeien, is a youthful and extremely capable ruler. However, he is rumored to be as cruel as he is clever... If there is any hope for these negotiations to succeed, we will have to be at least fractionally as shrewd as he is. Sounds like it’ll be tricky. Any concession we attempt to get from Duke Hermeien will likely be paid for by Athlum being sent to fight the Conqueror. I wish Lord David success in his negotiations, yet... Lord David seems to be getting stronger by the day. I had no idea he'd thought so deeply on Athlum's independence. He's come quite a long way from the little boy who clung to my skirts after his mother passed. If Athlum could get its independence, then... oh man. It'd be like a dream or something... I sure hope these talks with Duke Hermeien go well! The dragon castle of Nagapur is to the northeast of Elysion, past the Heroic Ramparts. Hurry and get ready. I'd like to head to Nagapur as soon as possible. Pleasant Young Man: …That’s the story, anyway. Bartender: He’s the one with the magnificent mustache, right? Any man that takes such incredible care of his facial hair has got to know a secret or two. Pleasant Young Man: Huh, never figured you for a bear chaser. Oh yeah, Royotia. Maybe we should look into doing something about that, huh, Dave? Perhaps. Okay, time to get out of Athlum. Gabriel borrows my Commander’s Rapier, Emma wants some Colossus Rawhide, Baulson some Beast Juices, and Violet some Spiny Landworm Leg. … I think Baulson and Violet are out of Sync and she’ll eventually want some Beast Juices as well… but not yet, drat it.  Two new places have opened up on the world map. Well, one new place, but we can now re-visit Numor with our full party. There’s no real point yet, though, the monsters are just as weak as they were with just Rush and Emma. We’re off somewhere else anyway. I’ve decided to do the sidequests in geographical order, starting with Celapaleis.   Gossipy Girl: That’s the latest scoop, anyway!  I hope they catch him as soon as possible…Gossipy Girl: Me too. Ooh, scary… I actually can’t remember what side-quest this is referring to. Hello, person with unique character model! Who’s late? Oh, hello there. Sorry. I'm a little out of it... Why? You see, it's almost the anniversary of my sister's death... … Every year, I like to bring flowers to her grave to mark the occasion. But those flowers, animaquies, only grow in the farthest depths of Darken Forest. I'm not very strong and barely can get through the forest alive. But a few years ago, this guy offered to pick them for me, and he's been doing me the favor ever since. It's taking him an awfully long time to come back with the flowers this year, though. I'm getting worried that something happened. I'm running out of time... We've just met, but can I ask you a favor? Can you find him for me? … Sure, I’ve got some time. You’ll go? Thank you! I’m Rhagoh, by the way. Accepted quest: A Single Soul Rhagoh is another unique leader, as his appearance and portrait should give away. But the fact that he had to hire someone to get the flowers, and that he is not coming with us is another sign: A sign that he’s not actually a very useful character.Quest Rejection Dialogue: Just go buy her a bouquet. What are you, some kind of idiot!? As glorious as that is, Dead Sister talk is something Rush would probably pay attention to.Music: Through the Tulgey Wood - Dungeon Video: Darken Forest (A Single Soul) Darken Forest - Large trees with thick trunks make up this dense forest. Many who wander in are never seen again. Despite its name, it is a place filled with much color.  Rhagoh from Celapaleis wants me to find the man who's out getting flowers for his sister's grave. I should head to Darken Forest. Darken Forest is pretty foggy, but the sunny-day kind of fog. The place isn’t big at the moment.  We’re also a little low-levelled for this place, apparently.   This must be him. - Boss Video: A Single Soul  These flowers are for a young fellow in Celapaleis named Rhagoh. Take them to him... please... Obtained Animaquies! Dude, you don’t look so good, why are you worrying about flowers? Hey… can you hear me? Look sharp kid, we ain’t alone!   Music: Sliver of Hope Mission: Defeat the Enemy! With every dungeon comes the Obligatory Boss Battle. And here this one is. We’re facing a group of Skull Scavenger vultures, Some Abaddon Leap Frogs, and some Feralwood Treants. This one took me a couple tries, because I am underleveled, and the Feralwoods have a nasty trick to them. Because of that, there’s a very specific strategy I’m going to use here.  Everyone is going to pile onto the Abaddon’s, as they are the fastest enemy here. The Skull Scavengers are just muscle, not much to worry about. The Feralwoods don’t actually take the initiative to attack you.  We want to finish off the Skull Scavengers next, we want all our concentration on the Feralwoods. They get taken out by the one-two punch of David and Emma’s unions. This is the big problem with the Feralwoods: When attacked, they will each cast Natural Gas, and two casts of that will kill us even if we weren’t already injured.  Don’t be discouraged. I am ready to fight! (Image from Blooper run) If you break off to heal yourself, they’ll do the same, bringing themselves back up to almost-full health. That’s why you want to get these guys down as fast as you can. And down it goes. learned Resonance Edge II! class changed to Expert Monk! learned Cascade Strike! Cascade Strike is the first of the really powerful 2H arts. Even at level 1 it did 5000 damage. Before we go, there’s one more thing to show you, also from the Blooper run: - Bonus Video: Talisman’s Gift This is the special we learned after the boss battle in Numor Mine. I’m not sure if Rush learned that naturally, or if it’s something his mother taught him. It’s only usable when Rush is leading the union, and when his union is under 30% HP. You may also remember that this is the thing which protected him against the Gae Bolg's blast in the first update. It seems he instinctively knew how to call this power out of the talisman then, but it wasn't until after Numor Mine that it becomes something we can use in gameplay.  This applies the Protection status to all members of Rush’s union. Other units in Rush’s union can do whatever they want. Sometimes that’s healing, sometimes it’s attacking, maybe even reviving a nearby union, I think? Talisman’s Gift is pretty good, but it’s one of those things you’d rather not HAVE to need.  Protection makes each unit completely resist one physical attack. Unfortunately, it does nothing for Mystics, so Rush’s union here is dead anyway. Back to the actual game: Hello, what’s this?The Letter: As death creeps close, I write my last thoughts in this journal in hope that someone finds it. Every year, I come to Darken Forest to pick flowers for a young man. I must atone for my sins - for letting curiosity get the best of me and using ancient powers to play with people's souls. However, my biggest sin is hiding that fact - that truth - from him, from his eyes. Rhagoh, I'm sorry. That accident was... Your sister is now... If only I had the courage to tell him the truth. The only way for me to rid myself of guilt may be death. Should I have told him about the goddess statue? I hope my choice does not cause him and his sister further suffering... (The words are faded and cannot be made out).   My brother sent you, didn't he? Go back and tell him to forget about me. Hey, wait! So, did you find...? You were right about the forest being dangerous. By the time I got to him, he… ... Oh, I see... He was attacked by a monster... Who was he to you? I actually didn't know him very well. I never knew why he was willing to bring me those flowers from such a dangerous place. I wish I had gotten to know him better. He seemed like a good man. Well, I should be off. I should visit her grave before the day...  Hey wait a minute. Just after getting the flowers, I saw someone in the forest. It was a young woman with dark skin and short black hair, with a single braid at the back. She kinda reminded me of you, actually. She ran off, though.[/i] What!? You saw a woman who fits Kate's description in the depths of Darken Forest? That's ridiculous... How is that possible? Thank you for the tip. I'll look into it right away. Come around to the guild if you ever need some help. I'm not the best fighter, but I'll do whatever I can. Goodbye! I gave Rhagoh the flowers and told him about the girl I met in the woods. He's decided he wants to see if it's his sister. So...she's a ghost? Or a zombie!? Reward: 5000 G Completed quest: A Single Soul I had been hoping to get in another sidequest, but that doesn’t seem possible. On the other hand, completing the quest and returning here counts as a visit to Celapaleis, so now Gabriel and Violet have their first bonus conversations unlocked! Where’s Melphina? So, “no”, then. What about her, anyway? I hear she is quite unlike the stodgy old commander- instead, a beauty in the flower of youth, blazing with a passion for justice…and perhaps for other things as well. Ahh, I should like to be the one to tame such a tigress. I wonder, is it difficult to join this Order of Melphina? Beats me. Celapaleis’s Union of the Golden Chalice is where you can recruit Rhagoh for your party. You will want to do this, because he is needed for another sidequest later on, but… Rhagoh A frail youth mourning his dead twin sister, Kate. Perhaps there is a way he can find happiness... Class: Healer Initial BR: BR 25 HP: (361) Str / Int: (21 / 37) Current Arts
Comments Benchwarming material if there ever was any. You have to complete a quest to recruit him, and there’s another quest that he’s required for later on, but I mean, come on: He starts out with only Remedies learned – that’s basically the most common Mystic art. At least most other leaders start with two schools learned. He doesn’t get anything special either. Hire him, then bench him. By the time he can even start learning Hexes, you should have better casters who know the same or higher, and the same goes for Lotions. Tags: Healer, Mystic, Arcana, Worthless You won’t really want to use him in your active party, because he is loving terrible. Most unique leaders start out with two learned Arts, he only has one – the super-common Remedies, which many of your other starting characters should have already learned to a higher degree than Rhagoh does. You CAN train him to use combat arts, but his strength is crap. I know I said that I would be using side-quest characters in the active party for their quests, but this guy may be the exception, since I have no intention of using him at all. He’s truly earned that big fat Worthless tag. He hangs out in the alley beside Celapaleis’s Amber Tavern. Combat Arts, for sure! Oh yeah. That’s definitely my style, huh? Am I properly focusing my training? In times like this, my lack of discipline could be the difference between success and failure for Athlum… Combat Arts, for sure! Becoming a specialist in man-to-man combat, then? Certainly not a bad thing… Rush, what do you think I should focus on to better myself? Recently I’ve been worried about my progress… Combat Arts, for sure! Ahh… Then I shall work hard to perfect my combat arts. Your Quadrashield is impressive… yet it would be even more so in my possession. What do you think? …Sure, you can borrow it. You have my eternal gratitude. It shall be used spectacularly. If you get Torgal to focus on Combat twice, he should switch his weapons to Axes, which are pretty good for quad-wielding. The country of Gilles-Barre felt like this, once. Sounds like a nice place. ‘Course, I grew up on Eulam Island, it was pretty quiet and peaceful. In fact, there aren’t even any Remnants on the island at all! I was hoping to get more done today, but not with the screenshot budget I have left. So that’s all for this time.New Arts Summary learned Resonance Edge II! class changed to Expert Monk! learned Cascade Strike!The Congress Splits Dungeon: Darken Forest (A Single Soul) Boss: A Single Soul Bonus Video: Talisman’s Gift Next Time: You owe me a corpse, rear end in a top hat! Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 14:20 on Apr 5, 2017 |
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Feb 18, 2015 20:47
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Hexes @ BR 37
Lotions @ BR 44
Arcana:
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Some of your links are off, the boss battle links are private or link to the talisman video.
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Feb 18, 2015 22:29
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xelada posted:Some of your links are off, the boss battle links are private or link to the talisman video. "No, I don't need to check the links, I checked them when they uploaded." But of course this time there was an issue and that automatically sets the video to private first. Links are fixed now, thanks. wdarkk posted:Didn't Wagram say earlier that Rush was useless to him? Yes, but as I should note, first, the Sykes' have been very careful to hide their secret powers. Also, Rush has never yet been seen to exercise the same flashy control that we've seen his mother and sister exercise. Instead, Rush's abilities seem more like an instinctive ability to use Remnants and Talismans with ease. I'll note that he tried to bind the Ark after the Conqueror did, and it didn't work.
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Feb 18, 2015 23:22
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By the way, was the Sykes family living on an island with no remnants an attempt to hide their powers?
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Feb 19, 2015 02:54
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wdarkk posted:By the way, was the Sykes family living on an island with no remnants an attempt to hide their powers? Maybe, they were kept pretty far from civilization to begin with. Rush probably just to protect Irina, and Irina because of her blessing.
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Feb 19, 2015 03:11
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"My little sis is Conqueror Junior" is probably not something Dave is going to react well to hearing, no.
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Feb 19, 2015 18:54
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So we appear to be going after the God-Emperor given that he "backs" Mister Conqueror (who is probably also family). This is interesting because i remember one of our leaders going "for the God-Emperor" during combat.
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Feb 19, 2015 19:15
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Glazius posted:"My little sis is Conqueror Junior" is probably not something Dave is going to react well to hearing, no. Wasn't Marion the first God-Empress or am I making that tidbit up? Because, yeah, "we're Marion's blood descendants and we can demonstrate it" is something that cannot end well.
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Feb 20, 2015 09:35
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wdarkk posted:By the way, was the Sykes family living on an island with no remnants an attempt to hide their powers? Something like that, yeah. Omobono posted:Wasn't Marion the first God-Empress or am I making that tidbit up?  *** Anyway, I've gotten the text and screenshots for Chapter 25 done, and I've just recorded Chapter 26. Here's a preview image for you (Party Battle Rank: 19): 
Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 16:21 on Feb 24, 2015 |
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Feb 24, 2015 07:31
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Okay the videos are uploading now. Once that's done, and once we have a fresh page (in 5-6 replies), I'll post the next update. After that, I'll do a bonus update showing off what happens when you activate two sidequests which have a boss in the same place. Following that, we'll have the longest battle so far. Like, really long. In fact, you may as well guess how long in minutes and/or turns it is.
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Feb 24, 2015 17:37
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24 minutes. And like 5 waves of miniboss level reinforcements
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Feb 24, 2015 17:42
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Sounds rough to go from one battle to the next in a short period of time. Overall I'll give it 30 minutes. I hope for your sake there won't be any fights that take more than an hour.
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Feb 24, 2015 18:17
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I'm trying to think of which fight it is but I'll give it 35 minutes
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Feb 24, 2015 20:34
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I give it 20 minutes and about as many reinforcement waves. Which is hardly possible but i honestly am just doing this for the new page.
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Feb 24, 2015 21:13
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