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I don't think I could have beaten this game without harmonic combos, storm dragon and white demon made sure pretty much every fight was over in two hits.
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Mar 10, 2017 02:24
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I've beaten this game twice and I didn't know about the combos.  Also I didn't know the newer swords cost more focus to use. Not that I would've used the old one over sweet extra damage, but still.
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Mar 10, 2017 12:36
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Episode 15: Marvelous Dragonfly Last time, we arrived at the pirate lair in search of a new flyer. After fighting our way through a number of pirates, we found some slaves and thought about freeing them, but then a strange man in blue showed up and did just that. When the pirate guards came to investigate, this scoundrel told them we were working with him and now they would be so hosed. This update is going to be a long one because I didn't find a good point to cut it, so prepare your browsers. Fortunately we just got to a new page, so we should be okay.  This is where we left off last time, with several guards with swords approaching in our direction.  Well, let's see if our newfound skill with harmonic combinations will help us here.  The answer, at least for now, is no. Harmonic combos are massively strong, being able to make a man explode in an instant, but you're leaving yourself open while setting it up and there are just too many guys here. The fact one of them uses Hidden Fist to cause the dreaded Disorientation status effect doesn't help.  Hey, you're not supposed to be using Storm Dragon! Thankfully, enemies can't use harmonic combos or this would get very annoying very quickly.  There. These last couple of guys won't be much of a problem now that most of their friends have been eliminated.  This update has a lot of harmonic combos, but after this I won't be overusing them too much. Instagibbing these pirates was just too satisfying. Also, the guy in blue doesn't know what the gently caress he just saw.   My name is Sky. It's good to see there's someone else in this place who can't stand these slaving dogs. We make quite the pair. Honestly, we kinda did save his rear end back there. He most likely couldn't have handled all of those pirates by himself.  It was obvious you weren't with the pirates, why not deal with them quickly? There's bigger game above us. Speaking of which, there's a very secure and equally intimidating gate blocking the way. If we work together, though, it will be simple to crack.Well, that's convenient.    As good an assumption as any.  Yes, I hunt Gao the Greater, though I will not say why. It is a personal matter. I won't be stopped now that I'm this close, and luckily you're here. That will make it easier to reach the upper levels where he hides himself away.Oh, so Gao apparently is here right now. That might prove interesting.   Things like how to reach the upper levels of this place, despite that security door.Can't argue with that. Maybe not the most elegant way to persuade someone to talk and not really our style, but should be quite effective in most cases.   "Kang the Mad" is a perfect name for someone who designs security systems, don't you think?   The door must be operated while that lever is held forward. There used to be a sentry up there who handled that kind of thing, but he had an... accident. I can climb up and pull the lever easily enough. You can open the door when it's unlocked.I was going to say that was a terribly inefficient method of unlocking a door, but if they had a sentry up there at all times (before his unfortunate workplace accident, of course) I guess it might not have been that bad.   Once the door is open, we can go our separate ways. I have my goals. and I'm sure you have yours. Since we both have much to do, why don't I go unlock the door now?Sounds like a plan. Well, time to make some more men explode, I guess. Although, since Sky here is obviously our next party member (massive spoilers, I know), maybe he should just join us right now and get it over with.   I should go now, but... I have to ask in case we never meet again. Where did you study? I see we're not going to mention anything about Master Li being the Glorious Strategist. It's just as well, since nobody believes us about that anyway.   No one I've ever met fights like you do. It's subtle, but your movements bait your foes into seeing an opening that isn't there. It‘s like a clever trap. I'm sorry. I'm wasting time neither of us can spare. I'll get ready and pull the lever when you‘re near the door. Good luck with whatever brought you to this place.Sky heads for the lever, but before we go to that door we've got some stuff to do here.  You. I know you.  Yes. I also seem to remember mentioning several times that the wilderness is crawling with bandits and ghosts, but they just had to leave Tien's Landing because they couldn't wait an hour for us to close the dam.    They... they took Fuyao, my daughter! They took her to the upper levels. I can‘t leave without her. Please... you have to find Fuyao! We were going up anyway, so we'll keep an eye out.  Shouldn't be too difficult to find her somewhere along the way.  Right, let's take a look at this apparently rather sturdy and equally intimidating door, then. Yep, certainly fits the description.    There we go. Being careful is a good idea around here in general.  Not exactly a trap (at least not an intentional one Sky would've set up for us) but still some more pirates for us to do battle with.  The pirates are a lot stronger than any of the enemies we've faced thus far in the game, so if you're overly reckless they can gently caress you up. These guys get a few good hits in, but fortunately there is a spirit font just out of the shot here.  Further up is this important-looking red building. We're not at the top of the fort yet, but this seems like something we should investigate nonetheless.   Oh, this is where they keep their hologram projector. I'm not even going to guess what kind of insane sorcery they used to get that thing to work, but there it is. That lady also seems familiar...  This bald gentleman with the poor complexion and lack of depth perception is obviously a high-ranking Lotus Assassin. Not only that, he looks to be the Lotus Assassin who has our amulet piece.  So yes, in case you didn't guess already, that guy is Inquisitor Lim. We don't know this woman's name yet, but we saw her in the flashback where she was overseeing the Lotus Assassins' destruction of Two Rivers along with Death's Hand.  It's impossible to get screenshots of Inquisitor Lim where his expression isn't creepy as all hell.  And here's Gao the Greater. Looks like he isn't quite getting along with his Lotus Assassin buddies as well as one would hope.  Even without the dialog, you probably could guess this is Kang the Mad.   Gao's henchman silences Kang with the most hilariously limp-wristed slaps I've ever seen. At least I think those are supposed to be slaps and not just him waving his hand in front of Kang's face.  "Also, you're completely out of shot, so thanks for making me look ridiculous."   The "Mistress", clearly not convinced by Inquisitor Lim's insistence he has everything under control, has said what she needed to and the hologram disappears. Looks like they're using some sort of crystal and... really, I won't bother guessing how holographic tech in Jade Empire is supposed to work.  So the Lotus Assassin lady is known as Jia. It obviously doesn't come across in SSLP format, but her voice sounds like an older woman who really hates everything and everyone around her and has absolutely no time for any of your bullshit. Meanwhile, Lim and Gao continue their little argument.   I am well aware of your son's role in all this, Gao. In fact, I suspect I know more about him than you do. What are you talking about? Have you heard something about young Gao? Tell me!Oh dear. This won't be good.  "The perfect time" aka the moment it would cause the most distress possible. Inquisitor Lim is a tremendous dick. You can hear he's barely containing his glee as he's telling Gao the bad news.   I guess we did kind of break his neck.   Gao withdraws to his private quarters and leaves Lim to be an evil dick by himself.  So, obviously, Lim immediately begins monologuing about how he's going to earn Death's Hand's favor by betraying Grand Inquisitor Jia. I love this guy, he doesn't give a poo poo.  If the Marvelous Dragonfly is not ready to launch when I return, those captive demons will have a new playmate. Interruptions... who designed that Dragonfly... build something to make his sandals explode....The Lotus Assassins really are excellent at motivating their employees to perform at maximum efficiency. Of course, Kang mumbled that last line of his when Lim was out of earshot.  Once Lim finally leaves, it's time for us to check out the important-looking building they were holding their little meeting in.   Looks like they left some of the guards to watch over Kang as he works.  I've got the feeling they noticed us. To be fair, our approach was not exactly the stealthiest, not that we had any other options.  Oh no, more guys with swords. How are we getting out of this?   Before we get the chance to wipe the floor with these chumps, Kang throws something at them.    Well, thanks, I guess!  We're actually not done yet even though that looked like it took everyone out. This lady is taking the whole "completely engulfed in flames" thing quite well, she's not reacting in any manner whatsoever. Fire, it seems, isn't particularly dangerous in the world of Jade Empire unless you're Student Si Pat.   There's some more dead pirates. Didn't get the chance to do a harmonic combo on these guys, but it doesn't really matter since they went down easily anyway. Our sword does so much damage so quickly that harmonic combos are more for showing off than anything else at this point.  And the sword, don't forget the sword.   Well, that is definitely a useful skillset for many situations.   My greatest invention is in the launch room upstairs. Light and fast, she has weapons and capacity no other flyer does. The Marvelous Dragonfly!We do like the sound of that, although the fact he's so readily offering his help to a complete stranger is slightly suspect.   He doesn't understand that multiples diminish the glory of any creation, weakening them all. The Marvelous Dragonfly deserves better. I'll take my chances with you. Well, that's the impression he's giving us, yes.  Gao wants to give my machine to the Lotus Assassins. But I stopped him. I hid the Extraneous Dust Inductor where no one will find it. Ha! Try to fly without that! But they *can* make a new inductor. It is extraneous, after all. So a few days ago, I blew up the Inscrutable Power Source. Now the Dragonfly can only make short hops.I believe we picked up one of those power sources at the dam site.  Yes, yes. Of course. What do you think I've been saying? You need to listen more carefully. If you stage a combat-related accident for Gao, like falling down a flight of punches, I'll replace the inductor on the Dragonfly and we can fly away! What do you say?We should be able to arrange something to that effect, yes. Especially if it gets us a new flyer.   Anyway, you go ahead, and once all the kicking is done, I'll come along, and we'll see what's what! For now, let me think! We'll need explosives... that explode.Ah, my favorite kind. Let's go find Gao and see about arranging that unfortunate combat-related accident.   When we exit the building, there's two paths we can take. One of them takes us to this lever, which opens the most pointless shortcut in the world. This leads back to the building via another door, but who cares when the main exit is right there?  Obligatory scenery shot. Maybe not the most interesting view, but I always thought those cliffs looked kinda neat.  Of course, there's better things to do, such as fighting more pirates.  oh god this didn't go well at all  Yeah, the swordsmen attack really fast and it doesn't take many swings from them to drain your health. Dawn Star's support skill really saved our asses here, although in a real pinch we could've also used Spirit Thief.  Screw you entirely. I didn't need to do a harmonic combo here, but I was so frustrated with these guys that I wanted to at least finish things off in style.  That is the closest we've come to dying thus far, but we managed to handle things eventually. Let's go see what's in this cave.  Oh hey, it's Fuyao. One of those important-looking people must be the slave breaker Yifong mentioned.    I'm not exactly an expert on this kind of thing, but these guys seem really bad at what they do.  The slave breaker also has a very unfortunate face.   Well, let's get on with it then.  There's one...  ..err. Right, maybe we should take out the Ice Shard jerk first.  Two...   And three. Apparently the enemies don't even need to be low on health to explode horribly when you land a harmonic combo. I'm pretty sure some stronger enemies can survive it, but these guys certainly didn't.     Quiet, girl! A slave doesn't speak unless spoken to! What? Why not? A slave has to know her place. If I'm going to have to train these slaves myself, I should get a discount.You're lucky you haven't exploded like your friends back there. Yet, anyway.    Yes, I know, very tragic. I'm history's greatest monster. If you choose to have Fuyao fight for her freedom, she stabs this idiot and afterwards she seems like she kinda enjoyed doing that kind of thing.  Of course, you can just sell her to slavery for maximum Closed Fist points, once again showing that BioWare doesn't understand the morality system they themselves created. For whatever reason, Zu totally approves of selling Fuyao as a slave, which is... I don't even know what the hell they were thinking. Zu doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would be down with that. Anyway, we tell the slave buyer to go gently caress himself. Fuyao's mom shows up shortly afterwards.  The guards are dead, Lun. The slaves are free, and more than a few of them are looking for you. You don't want them to find you. No, this can't be! I... I have to get out of here!The buyer just leaves. Hopefully he runs into Sky on the way out.  We will return to Tien's Landing and tell the entire town of your great deeds. I'm sure Minister Sheng will reward you for helping us. Come, Fuyao, let's go. The others are waiting for us. I'm glad you're safe, mother. By not selling Fuyao to slavery, we've locked ourselves out of the Viper style and will have to make do with Iron Palm. This is the second Iron Palm scroll we got, so we only need to find one more to learn the style.  "Doctines."  I kinda like how they explain having to find all three scrolls for both of these styles. If you don't study all of them, you'll just injure yourself and/or leave yourself open to attacks. The workshop where they're keeping the Dragonfly should be just past here. Before we go check that out, though, let's do a scientific experiment.  This experiment is called "How does Jade Empire look without the bloom lighting?" Also, I was playing the game at 720p to make the text a bit larger than it was at 1080p, but the difference is barely noticeable unless you compare them side by side. The text size also seems to be identical between 1080p and my screen's native 2160p, so expect  GLORIOUS TRUE 4K RENDERING after we get out of the pirate lair (not that you can really tell, when I've recorded the footage at 1080p and then resized my screenshots to 900px wide). But I digress. Where was I? Oh yes, turning off the bloom. Eh. I don't know about this.  It's clear Jade Empire was never designed to be seen without bloom lighting, so this just looks wrong to me. Maybe some of you out there like it this way, but I really don't.  I'm not a fan of excessive bloom lighting in any way, shape or form, but for a 2005 release Jade Empire uses the effect in a rather tasteful manner instead of just coating the entire screen with it and removing all the colors because realism. Bloom is used to accentuate the fantastical atmosphere of this world, and I think it works well. Anyway, that's enough tech bullshit for now, let's get back to the game.    Yeah, but this time it was worse. Better stay out of his way for the next little while. Something really set him off. Wait a minute... you there! Who are you? You can't be up here!   Chumps. Yes, like I said, I'm overusing harmonic combos in this update. I'll stop it soon enough.  These stairs lead to the Dragonfly workshop, so let's go see the magnificent flying machine Kang is so proud of.  That must be it. It's most likely guarded by another group of scrub pirates, nothing out of the ordinary there.   OH GODRat demons are our old friends so we know them very well, but they've brought some of their other friends to the party.  I don't think this is what Sky meant when he said there was bigger game above us. Rhino demons are slow but hit hard and have high damage resistance, as you might expect from such a creature. Our sword makes relatively short work of this guy, so let's move on to the other one of our new acquaintances.  This monstrosity is a horse demon. I don't know why they look so much creepier than the other demons we've seen, but I do know they're a pain in the rear end.  Simply touching one of these things will light your hands on fire, causing damage over time. It's not a huge amount of damage, mind you, but still an annoyance you need to deal with when fighting a horse demon.  That's not all, though. When you deal enough damage to a horse demon, it explodes. Not in that cool harmonic combo way either, but in a fiery manner that kinda hurts.  Well, now that we've dealt with Buttercup here, let's just see what else we can find lying around the workshop before we take a look at the Marvelous Dragonfly.  Hm. That's new. Instructions for making your own horse demon? Configuration of the Horse posted:You found this strange excerpt from a diary; the pages were torn from the book but kept together as if they were an important secret. "In his raving, my husband talked of madmen with eyes of metal and of a strange island in the skies. His words frightened me, but none more that when he clutched my arm, suddenly lucid. "It's the tiger", he said, fever burning in his eyes. "The Tiger feeds on the stone of the cow, torn from the bovine's innards. All but the cogs and watching... waiting and active... waiting for the tiger to feed" after his recovery, my husband remembered nothing of his journey or of his ravings except one..." Guess not. No horse buddy for us. In fact, this just looks like someone's crazed ramblings.  The scrollstand on the opposite side has this useful information. Well, it actually is kind of useful, since it tells you what attacks work on demons and what don't.   Some pirates show up to interrupt our reading. Guys, if we managed to take down your rhino and horse demons, I'm pretty sure we can handle you as well. I don't care how much you've practiced your theatrical poses.  Oh. Well, that might complicate things a little.  The pirates, especially the spear guys, are honestly more of a threat to us than the ogre, but having him stomping around doesn't exactly help us either.  The ogre guard is a tougher version of the regular ogres we fought way back when, and the same tactics apply. Basically, he just has more health and probably hits harder if he ever manages to land a strike.  He's just as weak to magic styles as his lesser brethren, so defeating him isn't too big of a deal.   Oh yeah, the thing we came here to look at. Certainly does look a lot more sophisticated than the crappy Mosquito we crashed earlier. Before we do anything with it, though, there's one more book we must read.  They're getting there!  Okay, now let's see what this button does.  It, well, drops the Dragonfly down to the floor quite violently. Might be a good thing Kang wasn't here to see that.   The jolt activated the Dragonfly's weapon systems, and it proceeds to blow up that door with missiles.  This looks like the pirates' treasure stash. I bet we can find something good if we take a look around.  Or we could find an elephant demon. I was wondering why the door wasn't locked.   Err... I don't suppose we can talk about this?    The penalty for all who enter is death. I, Xianshi the great elephant demon, must crush you!Aw, this is kind of sad. He can't control his actions because Gao has bound him to guard all this treasure, so he has to try to kill us.  Elephant demons are even stronger than rhino demons. They can stomp the ground and make these rocks shoot up, which is the area attack for the Stone Immortal magic style and makes it quite annoying to get close to this guy.  Of course, once you do get close, there's a good chance he'll punch you in the face.  I'm sorry, friend.    At least we get some decent gems for our troubles. The Gem of Gentle Mind (+2 to Intuition and Mind) is the Open Palm counterpart of the Gem of Evil Thought, and just like that gem it's always found in some random location. The Gem of the Frail Scholar increases the EXP we get from reading books and adds +1 to Mind, but since scholars are pencil-neck geeks it also comes with a -3 hit to Body. As for the Aura of Calm Gem (+2 to Intimidation and Body), I'm a bit confused because according to the wiki it's not supposed to be anywhere near this place.  We're almost at the top, and you know what that means. Gao the Greater is near.  In fact, we can see him right there with some of his bodyguards. Well, here we go.  You are one of Master Li's students! You... you are the one who killed my son, Gao!Can't really argue with that, I suppose.  And yeah, he kinda did, didn't he? We didn't exactly mean to kill him in that fight, but he did have it coming.  drat you and that school! My Gao was never good enough for Master Li; you were always his prize pupil. And now my son is... Gao may be gone, but I will avenge him! I know the styles your broken old master taught you, and I know how to beat them! I promise your death will be both slow and painful!I'm sure it's terrible for him to have lost his son, but it's not as if Gao the Greater has never killed anyone who was important to someone else.  VIDEO: Boss: Gao the Greater  Things get a bit crowded at the start because Gao has several of his bodyguards bothering us, but once they're done away with this fight is quite straightforward. Unfortunately, harmonic combos don't seem to work on bosses (or at least this particular variation doesn't). I tried several times to hit him with the Storm Dragon area attack and he just dodged it every time.  Trading fireballs. Of course, Gao likes using Dire Flame, having taught it to his son as well.  He tries to keep you at a distance by using lots of area attacks, giving himself an opportunity to heal. Unfortunately for him, once we really manage to get in his face we're able to do a ton of damage.  That is the end of Gao the Greater.  Good job missing the whole fight, fellas.  I wanted nothing more than to watch this man die.Should've come with us, buddy.   Let me explain why I'm here; that should clarify things. You saw with your own eyes that these pirates were collecting slaves, right?Yeah, we may have noticed some of them here and there.   Gao's slaving operation found its way to my home several years ago. I was away at the time, but my daughter was there. Those black-hearted bastards took my daughter, Pinmei. They killed her for resisting them. She was my only child. I lost her mother when Pinrnei was born, but my daughter was something precious in return. The slavers offered no such consolation.  My search led me here, to the lair of Gao the Greater. His men took my daughter, and I meant to even the score. On my way up here, I stumbled across records that show that this goes beyond Gao. The Lotus Assassins are his primary buyers.  This goes beyond Gao the Greater. I have my vengeance, but how many others have suffered as I have because of the Lotus Assassins? Do you mean to go further with this? I would join you. Only a fool would oppose the Lotus Assassins, but two fools working together stand a better chance than one.You know what a wise man once said about a fool and the fool who follows them.   Well, since they didn't bother to model whatever that is... please don't keep us in suspense.   Next time I hide something, I'm packing explosives around it. Explosives shaped like silver bananas! Stops thieves, monkeys, and monkey thieves in one fell swoop. In my mind, you stand the best chance of facing down Gao's masters. We also have a far greater chance of succeeding together rather than apart.Sure. What does Dawn Star think?   Ah, I see Sky has moved from "my daughter was murdered by slavers and I'm constantly tormented by it" mode to "  " mode. Even though the latter probably is largely an act, he switches between the two so frequently that it's a bit jarring. Just... just keep your pants on, all right? I assure you, I will be as devoted and capable as any of your other companions. Ha! If I could harness all that hot air, I could make a furnace to power the whole of the Imperial City! If you're done with all the talking, I have to go make the Dragonfly ready for some flying. We walked past this lever earlier but couldn't do anything with it.  Turns out it opens up the roof of the Dragonfly workshop, so now we can fly out.  The Zither of Discord update is coming soon.   Reading this book in Gao's quarters completes a set and gives us another stat-boosting technique (Health +2).  That's all we can do up there, so let's head back to the Marvelous Dragonfly.  I replaced the dust inductor. The Marvelous Dragonfly will cross the sky at your whim... for a short way. The heavens welcome my machines, but not without considerable cajoling. If you want to fly more than a short distance, I will need an Inscrutable Power Source.What, this thing we just happened to be carrying with us?   The other was with the Lotus Assassins, but the fools only used it for demolition. Now here you stand with it. I will put it in the Dragonfly, and it will be ready to go. Hm... not the ideal placement. If it shook more, the heavens might think we were afraid and take pity. This is more stable... but not as fun. Okay, she's ready to go! Hop on. I know a nice safe landing place just outside Tien's Landing. Very unlikely we'll crash.Well, I hope this goes better than the last time we flew one of these machines. Also, we do actually have a ride back to town already.   Your friend will see us take off, and he'll head back to town on his own. Ha ha! Everybody on board! The Marvelous Dragonfly is about to take flight! Normally I'd avoid the enemy ships in these situations, but might as well see what this thing can do.    VIDEO: The Marvelous Dragonfly takes flight    I'm surprised those Mosquitoes are even keeping up. Well, let's see how long they'll last against the Dragonfly's firepower.  Not very long, as the Dragonfly comes with homing missiles.  Picking up focus powerups upgrades the main gun. Once you get the spread shot seen here, don't pick up any more focus powerups because that'll downgrade it back to the double shot.    With that, we are safely back in Tien's Landing, with a shiny new flyer. Of course, before we can actually fly this thing any further, we'll need that wind map from Lord Yun. So, next time we shall brave the Great Southern Forest, unless I decide to show the Zither of Discord quest first. ----- DMorbid fucked around with this message at 00:00 on Mar 11, 2017 |
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Mar 10, 2017 17:16
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And this is one of the very few Closed Fist choices that aligns with the "higher slopes " of it. Even Zu's like "did you really just do that".
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Mar 10, 2017 18:21
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Yeah, it's... disappointing that Bioware would think up a "dark" philosophy that kinda-sorta rooted in real-world thought, and then abandon it so quickly in favor of the same old  puppy kicking. At the very least, they could stop rewarding people for cleaving to extreme or the other and start adding things like branching consequences so as to encourage actual role-playing... but in the halcyon day of '05, we have two years yet before someone attempts that. And it wasn't Bioware.But yes, I'm with you that the bloom lighting of this game is implemented much better here, than in other games, even if it does make cutscenes look supremely silly... at least the bloom here is preferable to the bloom in, say, Oblivion, which needed extensive tweaking to look good, usually through mods. God, that was painful to look at...
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Mar 10, 2017 18:42
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Kang.  Never stop blowing things up. (Also, Doc Morbid, never stop blowing people up)
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Mar 10, 2017 18:50
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my dad posted:Kang. Same to both. Stop using combos? Never. There is a CF path for Fuyao which is possibly the closest they get to the description of CF. You can pretty much step back and say "if you want your freedom, fight for it yourself" and as Doc mentioned, she stabs the dude. But there's also the sell-into-slavery CF option which is, y'know, traditional evil. Almost, Bioware. Almost! quote:An evil man ignores a plea for help because he does not care, but a man on the "low path" ignores the plea because that person will survive on their own if they are strong enough. I feel like they wrote this text and then someone wrote the Fuyao scenario as an example of CF and here we are, because it's basically the exact example. And then someone else missed the point and added Literal Evil. Psion fucked around with this message at 19:20 on Mar 10, 2017 |
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Mar 10, 2017 19:17
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Yeah, Kang the Mad absolutely has some of the best lines in the game and I love his crazy rear end.
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Mar 10, 2017 19:52
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The "convince Fuyao to stab the bad guy, then convince her mother that this is for the best" path is satisfying in its way, since it's the only way all the villains in the room end up dead. It also gives you the Iron Palm scroll for some reason, as the game doesn't let you take the Viper scroll off his corpse. When following the real Closed Fist philosophy doesn't give you the real Closed Fist reward, it shows just how much thought they put into things.
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Mar 10, 2017 20:20
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Lemniscate Blue posted:Yeah, Kang the Mad absolutely has some of the best lines in the game and I love his crazy rear end. Sky and Kang both have some decent lines in this update. I've always liked Kang's 'falling down a flight of punches' line especially.
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Mar 10, 2017 20:28
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What would have happened if you talked to the elephant demon after killing Gao? I would think he would give you something for freeing him.
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Mar 10, 2017 23:00
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Tallgeese posted:What would have happened if you talked to the elephant demon after killing Gao?
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Mar 10, 2017 23:08
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Doc Morbid posted:Episode 15: Marvelous Dragonfly Best line right there
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Mar 10, 2017 23:36
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Combat-related accident.Doc Morbid posted:According to the wiki, you still have to fight Xianshi even if you kill Gao beforehand. I guess Gao's death doesn't undo the binding spell.
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Mar 10, 2017 23:52
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If they ever do some sort of Bioware crossover event, I want Kang the Mad to be the Jade Empire representative. No one else. Just Kang. Him and his explosives. Also, is his hair built into his hat or is it supposed to mimic some sort of mushroom cloud? Or am I looking too deep into this?
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Mar 11, 2017 00:51
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So apparently madness leads to flight in this timeline?
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Mar 11, 2017 01:58
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Glazius posted:So apparently madness leads to flight in this timeline? Also in our timeline, to be fair. Kang is just mad enough to try flight and genius enough to succeed, before long some sort of magic chinese Boeing will be along to monetize his success, though he seems to be aware of this given how opposed he is to mass production as a concept
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Mar 11, 2017 02:03
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I believe the pirates are basically the last time we'll face female enemies until the Xander77 fucked around with this message at 03:36 on Mar 29, 2017 |
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Mar 11, 2017 11:39
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The real reason why storm dragon is the most powerful support style is not the damage over time stun (though that also helps), but because: A) It's harmonic combo power-up drop is a focus orb. B) It's harmonic combo is initiated with an area attack. Which means that in any mook fight you can just activate focus mode right at the start, blow up everyone with a harmonic combos while in bullet time, and finish the fight with your focus topped up right back to full.
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Mar 11, 2017 12:38
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Oo Koo posted:The real reason why storm dragon is the most powerful support style is not the damage over time stun (though that also helps), but because: I'm not exactly abusing these because it'd make the fights very boring. Speaking of abusing mechanics, I'm not going to stop using harmonic combos but I just do them less often. Even stuff like blowing people up with your kung fu will get old if you do it in every fight.
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Mar 11, 2017 12:58
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Episode 16: A Forest Last time, we blew up several pirates with our harmonic combos. We also freed some slaves, killed Gao the Greater, and took the special flyer our new scientist friend Kang the Mad had been forced to build for him. That, of course, means we now technically have the means to leave Tien's Landing, but there is still the matter of that wind map. Silk Fox pointed us in the direction of Lord Yun in the Great Southern Forest, so that's where we'll be going today.  (that's Dawn Star speaking, by the way)   Well, it's much like the dilemma of the centipede. If he relaxes and lets things happen, he can walk naturally all day long, his hundred legs not missing a step. But, if he thinks too hard about the complexity of what he's doing, those legs might crash into the teahouse and kill everyone. A valuable lesson.Yes, that would be bad, so let's just let Kang do what he does and not question things too much. We just returned the teahouse to its proper owner, so smashing it now would be something of a shame. But let's not think about that, and talk to Dawn Star instead.   We went looking for our Master and perhaps another flyer. What we found... I was not prepared for how cruel people could be. Seeing those people with no control over their fates... it is similar to a pain in my past that l have not thought about for a long time. You don't speak much about your life before the school. I would not dream of saying my experience is similar to those poor people in Gao's fortress. but that lack of control... I know that well. One of the only things I know about myself is that on the morning I was born the sky was red, like distant mountains were on fire. Perhaps it was Dirge burning, as Zu said. I believe it was an ill omen, and that stigma is why my abilities became a burden. That's why I must have been left at the school. To be subject to the whims of someone else just because of what you are, be you slave or outsider... yes, I know that well. Yes, you are an outsider too, albeit one with power to change your world. I think the slaves in the pirate lair would greatly appreciate your skill in defense. And I would make great use of your confidence. You inspire me to think of the possibilities, not just the problems. I think she's doing the same "sultry" pose Silk Fox tends to do fairly often. Not sure why she is doing that, but I think it might be a case of this line of dialog and her animation during it being the same ones from the romance path.  Let's see what our party's designated scoundrel is up to.  MUSIC: Sky Theme   Three years. Three long years of tracing these slavers to their master, only to find that there were more above him. I also found a strong ally, but I'm not sure if the greater consolation lies in your ability, determination, or beauty. I look forward to finding out. For us to be allies, you have to accept the whole package. Of course. I wouldn't dream of breaking you down into components. Treating people like commodities was Gao's business. not mine. How did you track Gao? Gao's slavers took my daughter, Pinmei, and I was able to follow them. Fortunately, they didn't cover their tracks. I chased them down, trying to reach her. I was too late. Pinmei was spirited, and I'm sure she fought them. I believe they decided she was too much trouble and killed her. Five years old... and they ran her through.I'm suddenly very glad we killed Gao and his pirates extremely violently.   There are ways to track men who don't want to be found. It's all a matter of time and dedication. Why dwell on this? Gao is dead, and perhaps Pinmei has found some peace. That's what really matters. That and what we still have to accomplish. You still haven't told me how you found Gao. Well, that was depressing. I don't think talking to Wild Flower will raise our spirits, but we should that anyway.   How many demons are there inside this poor girl?   I... I shouldn't say. Just by naming him... thinking of him, it draws him closer to the surface... gives him more power. The Guardian said that in all things there is balance, and for light there is dark within each of us. The Other is his darkness, for the good he has to do. That‘s what he says. Why are they in you in the first place? The Guardian is here because of you and the amulet you hold. He is here because there is a debt to be paid. But balance must always be maintained, and so... the Other. We're obviously making things worse for her by bringing up this subject, but I swear we're just trying to help.  I had to laugh at the "Deal with it" option because it's so incredibly dickish.    Sure thing  That was not particularly uplifting, but what can you do? Since we are done with all the party member dialog for now (Zu still has nothing important for us), it is time to enter the Great Southern Forest and see what the business in there is all about.  Ghosts are apparently involved, so we most likely shouldn't expect anything good.  I'm not an arborist, but even I can tell this is not how a healthy forest is supposed to look. Or sound, for that matter. The BGM for this area is super creepy, give it a listen. MUSIC: Lost in the Wilds/The Hunt   If you can't feel it, then this feeling is as magical as it is foul. We should be on our guard.Indeed. If Dawn Star can feel something in the air and we can't sense anything, that is usually not a sign of anything positive coming our way. Most often, it means...  ...that we are about to be attacked by ghosts any second. The ghosts in the Great Southern Forest are a bit different to the ones we've seen thus far, they look much more hosed up. What happened to this guy's right arm and left hand?  Never mind that, what happened to the top of this lady's head?   Oh poo poo. Oh no. Not these things.  The ghost in black is a Lost Spirit, and they are among the most hated enemies in this entire game. They fire these green projectiles that home in on you and zap your health and chi. They can be blocked like any normal attack from any fighting style, but Lost Spirits are usually accompanied by other spirit enemies (or simply other Lost Spirits) and you absolutely want to prioritize these floaty bastards at all times.  Lost Spirits also have a blue projectile, which hits hard but is easy to avoid if you see it coming. It doesn't home in, either.  Magic still works fine against them, and they don't have huge amounts of health. Apparently Lost Spirits are particularly weak to the Stone Immortal style, which we could've learned from Mistress Vo by this point (I actually did, but when I started recording this session I accidentally loaded the wrong save so I'll have to go learn it again).  Spirit enemies are immune to support styles, so no Storm Dragon shenanigans for us today.  If all else fails, use fire. Sound advice for any situation, really, but especially for fighting ghosts.  Once the ghosts are dispatched, these people run down the stairs and towards us.  Lord Yun, I presume?    My manners desert me. I am Lord Yun, owner of this land and charged by the Emperor himself to keep it safe. You should turn back south to Tien's Landing. This is the safest part of the Great Southern Forest, and even it is polluted with these strange ghosts. Perhaps I can help you. Help me? That's certainly a kind offer, but I'm not sure that anyone... Wait a moment. You don't look like a pilgrim or one of the poor folk trying to escape Tien's Landing. Would it be out of line to inquire as to what brought you here?   Where did you acquire a wind map that would cover the distance? Acquiring that chart was a hard fought battle, I can assure you. The Lotus Assassins keep a tight rein on those precious documents. It seems I need your wind map to travel north. From your questions, I'd say you have a flyer at your disposal, which seems unusual. It would take a resourceful person to acquire a device like that, and I believe that resourceful people know how to get things done. Especially when properly motivated. Perhaps you could get something done for me. If so, I might be persuaded to foolishly risk the Lotus Assassins' wrath by making a copy of one of their precious maps. The deal is simple. Find out why my land sickens--why it is home to so many ghosts--and you will have your map. You have a deal. I'll find out what's wrong with your land. Two things threaten the entire length and breadth of this forest: The trees blacken with disease, and ghosts flock to this place like no other in the Empire.Ah, great.   She is a powerful being, one my father considered the guardian of this forest. If this place is filled with ghosts, then I suspect that it is either because of or in spite of her. I've heard enough about this fox spirit. What do I need to do? I think something is wrong with the Forest Shadow, and I want you to find her and figure out what is happening. Once we know that, we'll have a clear idea of what we face.  Make your way up this ancient trail, and when you come to a fork, take the left path. That will lead you to a temple built long ago in the Forest Shadow‘s honor. Once there, find my hunter Spear Catches Leaf, if he still lives. He claimed to remember some sort of ritual that my forebears used to contact the Forest Shadow. You might also want to keep an eye out for some small shrines that are scattered about the forest. Some of them are said to react to magic or charges of chi. I need that wind map, so I have work to do. I was beginning to think there may be no cure for this place. Your arrival has given me some small measure of hope. We definitely have work to do. Something is seriously wrong with this place.  Of course, that includes more ghosts and Lost Spirits.  That is one of the shrines mentioned by Lord Yun, so let's go take a look once we destroy this ghost.   Getting close to the shrine makes these yellow magic force fields (or whatever they're supposed to be) appear. They don't seem to do anything at the moment, though.  The path leading to the south only has a spirit font.  So, only way we can go is to the west.  The path takes through a tunnel and up the hill until we reach the bridge here.   Oh, good. Two Lost Spirits. Can't blame that guy for running away.  Using focus mode makes it a bit easier to deal with multiple Lost Spirits, since you don't get bombarded with their projectiles quite so quickly. It's also rather easy to drain your focus meter big time while doing this.   He seems... simple, as well. I wonder if the horrors of this place have touched his mind.Come on, Dawn Star, he's right there. He can hear you. I think.     Things are very bad. We starve! The ghosts cut us off from everything, but we are still up there. Tien's Landing must send people to help! Many people should come to the inn to help us. They can't let us starve!Uh, okay then. Seems like a simple enough task.  You would be welcome there. They would have you for a most fun stay! The inn lies above, on the path to the right. I'm looking for a temple on the path above. Can you direct me? The temple? No! The temple is where the ghosts are worst. It is a bad place. You should not go there. You should go to the inn.It seems this guy really wants us to go to the inn. Weren't we supposed to take a message to Tien's Landing, though?   You should come with me. I can take the message down later, and you will be safe from the Forest Shadow and her ghosts! Tell me more about the Forest Shadow. She is a wicked fox spirit! They are tricksters, all of them. The tricks she plays kill now! You should stay away from her. She hurts us when we leave the inn. Others I've talked to seemed to think the Forest Shadow might be able to help. That can't be right. She is dangerous. You should go to the inn to be kept safe. That's the only way.He really, really wants us to go to the inn. I get that the forest is dangerous and the Forest Shadow apparently even more so, but his insistence that we go to the inn is getting somewhat uncomfortable.   She's dangerous like these ghosts. We're all afraid of her. I should keep moving. Will you be all right in this forest? I will go back the way I came. Knowing that there are others here, I will be all right. I must go back to the inn to tell them. You should follow! The path to the right, not the left. Left goes to the temple, and the Forest Shadow will kill you!Okay, we get it already. The Forest Shadow will kill us if we don't go to the inn right this second.    Before the strange man is able to go anywhere, a tree root emerges from the ground and traps him by wrapping itself around his leg. Weird things are happening in this forest.    And we're obviously not done with the weirdness yet. It seems this fox spirit is controlling the forest itself, with the way she has this guy trapped by the roots. Is she the Forest Shadow?   Having taken care of that poor guy, the fox spirit turns her attention to us. Not exactly what we need at this moment in time, turning to stone and being shattered would make things considerably more difficult for us.   The fox spirit overpowers Wu with relative ease, and we probably know what's coming next.   We don't know why this fox is trying to kill us, but she's doing a pretty decent job of it so far.  Wu struggles as long as she can, but the fox spirit finally overpowers her and turns her to stone.  This wasn't the way our quest was supposed to end. What happened to Dawn Star, by the way?    Turns out we're not quite done yet.  As Wu breaks out of the stone, she knocks the fox spirit back. Let's do this.  The last of the Spirit Monks. Nice to meet you, Forest Shadow. Or possibly servant of the Forest Shadow, who can tell around here.  The fox clearly didn't expect that to happen, so she beats a hasty retreat.  These must be the two paths that man talked about before the fox killed him. He wanted us to go right, where the Pilgrim's Rest Inn is supposed to be. To the left is the Forest Shadow's temple, where death apparently awaits us. Well, we already have some ghosts expecting us right here, so let's go introduce ourselves.  We have a couple of ghosts, two Lost Spirits and what the hell is that blue and green thing?  It turns out to be a Ghost Lord, the Lost Spirits' big brother. Ghost Lords have a shitton of health and are generally stronger than Lost Spirits, but they don't have annoying projectile attacks which means they're far less of a hassle to fight.  Well, that did almost nothing. Like I said, shitton of health.  Time for a tactical retreat towards the shrine on top of the hill.  If you lure enemies to these yellow force fields, they get set on fire and take a decent chunk of damage.  Now, where were we? I suppose we could go right and see what's going on at that inn.  And fight more ghosts, but that goes without saying by this point.  The force fields helping us out once again. If you actually kill something with those, you don't get any EXP or pickups, but that doesn't happen too often.  Now that they're dead we can... what the christ, more ghosts?  And stay dead this time!  You have got to be kidding. Okay fine, let's beat up these jerks as well so we can get somewhere today.  Oh for gently caress's sake. Thankfully, this is only one ghost, so he's not a problem at all unless you've exhausted your health and chi fighting the first three waves.  I would like to take this moment to state that I strongly dislike this forest. We did quite well against these ghosts this time, but in the past they've been a huge pain in the rear end.  Well, the inn should be safer, if our dearly departed friend from the bridge is to be believed.  Dawn Star isn't exactly filling us with confidence here, although we don't need her to tell us that this is just about the least inviting inn you could imagine. Maybe the exterior just needs some work and everything's fine once we get inside.  "Don't go to the temple, the ghosts are worst there," he said. "Go to the inn, it's safe," he said. If you ask me, three Lost Spirits are pretty much the opposite of safe.  You know, the Forest Shadow doesn't seem so bad at this point.  Ah. Finally. I hate these guys.  Now let's get in there and see what's up with the folks at the inn.  Before we get there, the viewpoint shifts to... whatever the hell this is.     I'm sure that was nothing important. Probably just a rat demon or something. What's a couple of vermin when the whole forest is infested with ghosts?  Hey innkeeper, I noticed you have a bit of a spirit problem so you probably should invest in a door or something.    Yes, the ghosts are most dangerous. We are fortunate that they have not yet ventured inside the inn. It offers us some refuge. But I've forgotten myself. Welcome to the Pilgrim's Rest, traveler. I am the Keeper, as they call me. Tell me, did you happen to come across one of us on your way up here? We sent him not long ago to search for help. The man you sent to bring aid from Tien's Landing was killed. It was the Forest Shadow! She has taken another from us! We hoped we had found a way to deal with the fox, but we were wrong. Why has she been attacking people from the inn?I mean, she does seem to be attacking people in general for some reason.  Perhaps the ghosts have driven her mad, or maybe it is her rage that changed the trees. The only way to be sure is to stop her.Right. I do wonder how these guys are planning to take on a fox spirit who seems to control the forest itself and is able to turn a person to stone with a single touch.  Well, that is quite the thing to ask, isn't it? Quite the thing, indeed. How are we to know we could trust you? No, I do not entirely trust you with such plans. You must know fox spirits can assume the forms of... humans? How can I trust you to not be one of her servants or the spirit herself? For now, simply accept what little hospitality we can offer. These are hard times, but we would not dare treat a guest poorly. Tell me more about this inn. Many travelers know the name of the Pilgrim's Rest, and before long, so will many more. With the forest in this state, how have you been surviving? Surviving? Simple. You can still find meat if you know where to look, and is meat not the heart of any good dish?Err... sure, but the forest is a bit ghost-y at the moment and going hunting out there seems like a surefire way to get yourself killed.   We have supplies. It always pays to be prepared. Is there any way we could lead these people to safety? No! I mean, there is safety of a sort here. We have had refuge here so far, and the paths below are far from safe. It is best that we stay here. Surely you will find a way to destroy the murderous fox. Is this inn the property of Lord Yun? Of course. This whole forest belongs to Lord Yun, does it not? He expects this place to pay him a "tribute." He doesn't call it that, but we know the truth. Mark me. Lord Yun will have his share of the proceeds from this place before long. His fair share. How did this place earn its name? It is an old name. The route you climbed used to be called the Pilgrim's Path, thanks largely to the temple near here, and other small shrines. Here, at the hill's summit, the pilgrims would stay and contemplate what they had seen during their climb. This place was known as the Pilgrim's Rest long before the inn was constructed.Sounds like that might have been a nice way to relax after a long climb up the hill. Anyhow, it doesn't seem like these folks are going to be any help with the Forest Shadow, so let's just get out of here.  I wish you all the best. Travel safely and return here soon. We would welcome you for our evening meal.Okay then. Let's just quickly look around the place and see if we can find anything helpful.  Patron: The forest is closed. None will come, except from Tien's Landing, and that path is closing.  Doesn't seem to be much of interest in here, but let's go talk to this gentleman who looks like a cook.   I am Hou, your humble cook. I'm also in charge of the few supplies the inn actually stocks, if you have need of them. Though I am weary and worked to the bone, I'm here to help you. What can I do for you today? Show me what you have for sale. I'd be happy to. I'm sure you understand that my stocks are limited. In fact, if you think about it, with the ghosts filling the forest, I shouldn't have *any* supplies at all.Well yeah, that does sound a bit curious.   Hou doesn't have anything interesting for sale, since his supplies are limited and all that.   Over here we can find some lore on fox spirits.  Nothing much of note here in the kitchen, either, aside from a bit of silver we'll... borrow.  Huh, that looks like a door. Can't do anything with it, though, so let's get out of this dump and go check out that path to the temple.  It seems we need to find the Forest Shadow in order to do anything for the Great Southern Forest, so it might be a good idea to check this place out.  Well, we're not the only ones here.  VIDEO: The Black Whirlwind  There's a very large man beating the hell out of some ghosts with his axes. At least I think it's a man, it may also be a bear wearing clothes. Kind of hard to tell. Whoever this is, he's really tearing those ghosts apart.    His companion seems to be in a spot of trouble with the red spirit.   That's easily handled as well, as are the two other ghosts trying to sneak up from behind.    Wait, what? Oh, hell.    Well, look on the bright side; at least it's not another Lost Spirit.  Black Whirlwind, as you could probably already tell, is all brute force and no finesse. We do want to stay away from those axes, that's for sure. This isn't really a difficult fight at all, our longsword does so much damage so fast that Whirlwind doesn't have much of a chance against us.     I finally rounded 'em up, but the farmer said the milkings were unbearable for a week after that. Milk and wine... that's bad mix. Anyway, I'm guessing you must be here on Lord Yun's business. Can't imagine why anyone would come here otherwise. You'll want to talk to Spear Catches Leaf, he's Lord Yun's man. I'm just the hired mercenary.Ah, so that's Spear Catches Leaf. Lord Yun mentioned we should find him, and looks like we managed to do so. Mr. Leaf is supposed to know something about a ritual that might help us contact the Forest Shadow, but Lord Yun didn't tell us much more than that.    Would one of you please explain why I was attacked? I thought you were a ghost. Wasn't that clear? Ha! And people say I'm slow. Does she look at all like she's dead? No! No mask, not floating, clearly not a ghost. You simply wanted a challenge. You are an idiot. A deadly, drunken idiot. What's wrong with being deadly... or drunk? You may be a lead hunter for some lord, but I'm the deadliest mercenary in the world. You do your job, and I'll do mine.Speaking of which...   Charming.  I thought that last part was obvious.  There's dozens of them, but if you didn't recognize me right away, you must not have heard them. Now really isn't the time to share them. I'd need about five bowls of wine and a soft patch of ground to even get started. Which part of your naked, drunk, and screaming attack works best? Forget about the attack. If you're Spear Catches Leaf, we need to talk. Tell me more about this ritual. I've set the fires, and the furnaces are ready, but one of the key crystals is missing. Without it, we can't even see what these furnaces are supposed to do.Of course it couldn't have been that simple.  I examined the area when I realized that the crystal was gone, and I stumbled across some strange tracks that lead in the direction of the inn. Some sort of animal took the crystal?Rat demons at it again, perhaps?  When I was at the inn, they talked about some plan they had to "deal" with the fox. It sounds like they were being cautious. Perhaps if you go ask them more specifically about the crystal, they'll realize that we're just here to help.We could've just persuaded the innkeeper to tell us about the crystal to save a bit of time, but somehow it escaped my mind when I was talking to him. Oh well, it's not like we're doing a speedrun here.  I don't think so. He'd have to be quite strong to pull the crystal loose. It doesn't make any sense to me, but then, what in this place does? I'll go back to the inn and ask them about the missing crystal. All signs point to the inn, and even if they didn't mention this missing crystal before, they will have to explain themselves if you confront them about it directly. Make your way there. I will stay behind to tend the furnaces. If you need more information, supplies, or even training, you know where to find me.Got it. We buy a few techniques (Hunter's Spirit: Chi +15, Focus +3; Boar's Strength: Health +7, Focus -3; Tracking Eye: Focus +7, Charm -1) and a Slick Gem (reduces focus cost for avoiding traps by 10%).  That statue obviously depicts the Forest Shadow. In addition to the focus shrine next to the statue, there's a couple of scrollstands for us to check out inside the temple:  The first one is some lore about the Storm Dragon style, pretty interesting but not important right now.  This, on the other hand, is actually relevant to our current quest and gives us a major hint for the ritual.  Here's the pedestal for the ritual. Obviously, we can't do anything with it until we get that crystal. Let's just timeskip our way to the inn.  I'm in search of a missing crystal from the temple. A crystal? Ah, you know about it, do you? I suppose there is no point in keeping it from you any longer. We hoped to keep it a secret, but it seems we will be tracked down no matter what we try. Yes, we have the missing crystal from the temple. We have kept it here, safe and away from the hunter.Well, why didn't you say so in the first place?  Because we could not trust anyone else to have it! One of us here in the inn overheard the hunter and the big man, who are now at the Forest Shadow's temple. The hunter spoke of a ritual that would let him reach the Forest Shadow, but he is a fool! He thinks to find the fox and seek out her help. Her help! She will not help anyone, least of all us at the inn. To save the hunter from his own folly we took the crystal before he could reach the temple. You stole the crystal to stop the ritual from being performed? That is it exactly! Whatever the ritual does, if it reaches the Forest Shadow then we must take the opportunity to destroy her once and for all. He would not have taken that chance. I must know that you will use it for the right reasons. You must kill the Forest Shadow. Do so, and I will give you a half year's worth of taxes in silver. Why are you so positive that she has to die? This so-called guardian of the forest must be behind what is happening here. She sickens the trees and summons the ghosts. There can be no other way. The Forest Shadow must die... to save us and cure this forest.It kinda feels like there is more to this than the Keeper is letting on. The Forest Shadow may have something to do with the situation and she (or another fox spirit) did try to kill us, but Spear Catches Leaf seems to think she can help us.  We don't trust these weirdos.  I have been carefully collecting this silver for years, but the death of the murderous fox is more important to me. If you have those resources, why not do this yourself? I have silver, but that money does not grant skill, not skills like yours. We need your help! I think it's obvious what I have to do. You will aid us. You must.Kiiiinda creeping me out now.   Since you possess such skill in combat, we will take a chance that you will do what is right. Our offer of silver stands firm. The crystal is yours, but remember our deal.We'll remember it. Whether or not we'll honor it remains to be seen.   There we go.  With the crystal in hand, we can return to the temple and start the ritual.  I have the missing crystal here. You have it? Excellent! I should return and report this to Lord Yun. He will want to hear this news.We can ask Spear Catches Leaf about the ritual in quite a bit of detail, but it's really very simple so we'll just skip that. Well okay, let's keep this bit in:  [...]  Like the scroll inside the temple said, summer and winter are important, as is the color purple. More importantly, Spear Catches Leaf decides he's had enough of looking after Black Whirlwind and foists the big lug on us.   Lord Yun paid you very well to safeguard his men, and now you're being paid to safeguard his new agent. Surely you didn't mean to go back on your word? My word isn't worth a drat thing. That said, I'm still reeling from actually losing to anyone short of an army. Ha! That's a good one, and probably true. All I know is that travelling with you seems a drat sight more interesting than rotting in this forest. Let me level with you. I don't lose fights, and I drat well didn‘t expect to lose one in this forest. Then you come along and beat me handily. You could be useful. Glad to have you along. My only rules are: don't touch my axes, don't touch my wine, and don't get between me and my enemies. if you can live with that, we'll get along just fine.Simple enough.    ...I hope we won't regret this.  Let's go find something and make its day a lot worse.Let's take him with us. Dawn Star's support ability is useful for sure, but we can't have her hogging the spotlight all the time.    The Black Whirlwind doesn't have a support skill at all, because he doesn't care about that boring poo poo that wastes time better spent on hitting things with axes. Fortunately he's also more useful in a fight than the rest of our band of misfits.  Right, let's do this. Shove this crystal into the pedestal...  ...which activates the two furnaces nearby...  ...which we can now operate...     ...and that gives us access to these other two furnaces.  These two have a pair of colored orbs each. We know that the cold of winter and the heat of summer are important, so you can probably guess what our next course of action is.    That beam of light looks yellowish, but it's supposed to be red. Just in case you're still confused, the temple has giant purple banners  The pedestal rises back up...  ...the light hits the orb in the statue's hands...  ...opening the way ahead.  Next time, we'll go to heaven. ----- DMorbid fucked around with this message at 02:16 on Mar 13, 2017 |
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Mar 12, 2017 00:42
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drat those ghosts. They're the reason my first attempt at this game stalled here. With their abilities nicely laid out like that, maybe it's time for another try.
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Mar 12, 2017 01:22
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Man, I'd forgotten how quickly you get characters here, but it seems that each area around Tiens Landing gives you at least one. Black Whirlwind  If you couldn't tell, he's the standard Bioware "tough guy" archetype, the same as HK-47 in KOTOR and Wrex in Mass Effect*- much like essential plot design, it's generally archetypes all the way down when it comes to characterization in Bioware Land... some of them are good archetypes, though, or at least entertaining.And yes, Lost Spirits and Ghost Lords can die in a fire. Again (You know what I mean!  )*Both of which are kinda better, but I'll take it 
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Mar 12, 2017 01:28
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Ughhhh, Black Whirlwind. If it were possible to shoot that guy into a volcano, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Also, gently caress the ghosts. I loving hate having to grind through a billion of them while walking between the areas.
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Mar 12, 2017 01:34
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Whirlwind is drunk HK-47, with all that entails. I don't mind him but I don't use him that much. He's probably the single most competent fighter you can have as a teammate, which is nice, but recovery support styles tend to be overall superior, so. also by nature of being an SSLP it's hard to convey this but the VA for everyone in/from the inn is ...odd. Watch a video for that part, it's worthwhile. I don't mean bad VA, I mean they were directed to speak in a particular way (and did so) and it's not something that might be obvious from reading the text.
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Mar 12, 2017 03:26
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I thought the tough guy in KotOR was Canderous? HK-47 was the amoral psychopath, similar to... I dunno, Morinth from ME is the only parallel that comes to mind.
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Mar 12, 2017 04:35
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Suffice to say, we'll get to see why people like/hate that guy in the following updates. I don't think we should spoil anything. 
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Mar 12, 2017 04:40
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Oh hey, it's a thinly-veiled version of Li Kui from The Water Margin/水浒传. And he looks to be juuust as charming as his original was.
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Mar 12, 2017 06:20
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Okay so the dudes at the inn are obviously cannibals. They're cannibals, right? They're totally cannibals.
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Mar 12, 2017 07:35
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PopeCrunch posted:Okay so the dudes at the inn are obviously cannibals. They're cannibals, right? Having the protagonist over for dinner and meat being easy to find in the forest, uh-huh. I'm surprised you didn't find a scroll stand entitled To Serve Man.
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Mar 12, 2017 08:06
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PopeCrunch posted:Okay so the dudes at the inn are obviously cannibals. They're cannibals, right? They're only cannibals if they're also human. I doubt they're actually human.
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Mar 12, 2017 08:53
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I've always loved the cook's comment. "In fact, if you think about it, with the ghosts filling the forest, I shouldn't have *any* supplies at all.". He couldn't be more obvious without having a giant sign saying "RUN, SAVE YOURSELF".
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Mar 12, 2017 12:13
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my dad posted:Ughhhh, Black Whirlwind. If it were possible to shoot that guy into a volcano, I'd do it in a heartbeat.
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Mar 12, 2017 14:45
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Episode 17: The Forest Shadow Last time, we went to the Great Southern Forest and fought about eight hundred ghosts (rough estimation). Lord Yun, the owner of these lands, has offered to make a copy of his wind map for us if we find out why the forest is so messed up, and the signs seem to point at an ancient fox spirit known as the Forest Shadow. The proprietor of the local inn has offered us a hefty reward for killing the Forest Shadow, but more importantly they gave us the crystal needed to complete the ritual that opens the path to the Forest Shadow. Now that the path is open, what we'll do with the fox spirit depends entirely on what happens when we meet her. Oh yeah, I should probably point out that this update is potentially  , depending on your employer's tolerance for fox boobs (of the barbie doll variety, but still). This... doesn't look like the realm inhabited by something that sickens the forest and makes ghosts appear all over the place. It also has some rather lovely music. MUSIC: Sanctuary  Never mind, looks like we've got another restless spirit incoming.   For so long, it appeared you'd be one of the easy ones. Then that whole bandit attack happened, and I haven't rested since.Or maybe it's just whoever this happens to be. I wonder which fight this person is talking about, we've had a few of those recently.   No easy task, I might add, especially since you embarked on this wild quest to find your master. Our calculations keep the universe in balance. Without us, chaos... anarchy... utter ruination. If Whirlwind isn't with you, Zin Bu still says something to this effect except it's obviously not addressed directly to the big man.  You can't just guess at it! You must have records. Itemized records, in triplicate, signed by the Overseer of Carnal Destruction and Disorder herself!The Celestial Bureaucracy? Turns out it's not just a fancy name for Jade Empire's pantheon of gods, but an actual bureaucracy full of paperwork and all that red tape bullshit we know and love.   Gao the Lesser? If that report was already so massive, I can't wait until they get to the part where we meet Gao's dad.  Uh, sorry about those harmonic combos and that kind of thing, I guess.  I'm being relegated to a much lower role, in trade and commerce. My only consolation is that I will no longer have to track your exploits. I'll be lucky if I ever attain the rank I had before you came along, but I have a plan that just might get me there. Cool. Let's hear it.   I need you to buy from me and sell to me, if you wish. I already have a supplier, a friend of mine from the Untimely Deaths department, who was also demoted recently. By getting rid of the other suppliers and buyers, I can save time and be more efficient. Perhaps then I can regain some of the honor I lost through this demotion.I just love the idea that we, as the protagonist of an RPG, are causing so much death and destruction that the guys in heaven keeping score are basically flipping over their office desks due to all the extra work, and then getting demoted because they can't handle the workload. That's fantastic.  You gain the envious ability to buy and sell at your whim. And I... I can prove my worth in my new role. Perhaps I will even do well enough to get promoted.Yes, we now have a vendor we can access at any time except during a fight. That's kind of great, although due to the way items work in Jade Empire (no health potions or anything like that to worry about) we don't exactly need to access his wares that often.  Still, that is a useful perk to have and Zin Bu sells some very nice stuff if you can afford it. He does sell his items at a 25% premium compared to other merchants and also buys items for 50% less than you'd get in most other places.  Simply call upon me as you would any of your followers, and I'll be there. In the meantime, I have much to do. I'm afraid my supplies are a little low at the moment. But fear not, I will acquire new items as quickly as I can. I should go and see what I can dig up for you. Don't worry, I'll be around. Just call on me if you need something. Good day! Right. Let's take a look at what Zin Bu has for us at the moment. As he said, you can access the store by choosing him in the Followers tab like you'd choose any party member.  Not much in stock yet, just like he said, but there is one thing we most definitely want. Unfortunately we can't quite afford it yet even if we sell some of our surplus gems (shouldn't have spent all that money on Spear Catches Leaf's techniques, I guess) but that shouldn't be a problem for much longer.  Your followers have their own comments about this place. The Black Whirlwind, of course, mainly thinks about drinking and gratuitous violence, so there isn't that much for him to enjoy here.  This monkey's gone to heaven.  Up the hill, we find some fox spirits who don't seem to care for our presence very much. At least they haven't attacked us, so that is something. Being ancient spirits, they obviously speak Tho Fan. (I haven't really bothered to point out the Tho Fan speakers most of the time, because it's not all that important)   We will take you... The demons come again! Human, if you value your life, help us against these fiends! That toad demon to our left is ready to rock.   The fox spirits are actually very strong in a fight, even more so than you might expect. Toad demons barely last seconds against them, and having Black Whirlwind going to town with his axes helps things along even more.  Beware of more demons. They grow more aggressive as our mistress weakens from the disease in the trees. The Mother, the demon they serve, is now strong enough to send her minions to attack us directly, breaching the sanctity of this place with her magic.There we have it. The Forest Shadow is not the cause of the disease in the forest, and it seems a demon called the Mother may be the culprit instead.  This is the realm of the Forest Shadow, my mistress. It is her piece of heaven. She will tell you more. You must go speak with her as quickly as they can. Why did your mistress attack me? She spoke of your... encounter. She regrets attacking you and considers it a mistake. She said you would seek to confront her. Go to the upper islands and do so, but know that not all in the forest is as it seems.Ah, so it apparently was the Forest Shadow who attacked us and that man on the bridge. Makes sense, considering her powers. Why are these demons attacking this place? This is the home of our mistress, the Forest Shadow. For lack of a better metaphor, she is at war with a foul demon known as the Mother. These demons serve the Mother, and as the Forest Shadow weakens they grow more bold. Even attacking this sacred place. They will attack you, as well. My sisters will try to protect you, but we need your help as much as you need ours. You must reach my mistress quickly. I will go speak with the Forest Shadow. Climb the bridges between the islands. Her home lies above us on the highest of the islands. Go carefully. More demons are coming. I can smell it. The Mother will not win this day, no matter how many demons she sends! More demons are indeed on the way, but as we saw earlier this toad is not a match for the fox spirits.  The Mother has also sent in some horse demons, who remain annoying as ever.  I was sure we were out of the explosion's radius. Oh well. We can now turn into a horse demon, but as is the case with most transformation styles I've never really found any reason to do so since we can do plenty of damage as it is.   Attacking horse demons will hurt you. Yes, thank you for that, we kind of noticed already. As we can do the Tien's Landing main quests in any order, this can be your first encounter with horse demons and was possibly meant to be, considering the presence of this bookstand and the fact we got the transformation style here instead of when we fought our first horse demon at the pirate lair.  That must be the Forest Shadow's place up there, so let's finally go and find out what's going on with the Great Southern Forest.  I see the Mother brought in some heavy hitters as well. That fox spirit isn't dead, just knocked down from an attack. I don't think they even can die, to be honest.  The Black Whirlwind, as mentioned before, is the only party member worth half a drat in combat. He'd better be, since he doesn't have a support ability. It's still not really worth using him instead of Dawn Star or Sky (whose support skill restores your focus), but at least he doesn't get completely chumped by every useless mook you run into.  Apparently, the horse demon's dying explosion can hurt other enemies. It actually seemed to kill this toad demon.  Once we've dealt with that terrible trio, it's time to go see the Forest Shadow. She also seems to be having some problems with demons, but at least she isn't alone.  She has an elephant demon guardian, something very useful to have when your home is frequently invaded by flaming horse monsters.  Not that the Forest Shadow herself is a slouch either, of course. We've already seen what she can do. Now, with the gritty reboot of Petz: Horsez taken care of, we can finally talk to the Forest Shadow.     You are too quick to turn away potential allies, Shining Tusk. We know our enemy, this one may yet prove to be a friend. A friend who reeks of those beasts at the inn? Hmmph. Do what you wish, Mistress, but I will be watching. You have just met my guardian, Shining Tusk. He is slow to trust, and quick to anger, but he will not harm you. Not without cause.That's good. I don't really feel like fighting another elephant demon right now.   You were attacked at the bridge by a mad fox spirit. The spirit tried to kill you, yet you fought her off. You survived because I had no intention of harming you."A mad fox spirit"? That was obviously Forest Shadow herself, as she is the only one of these spirits who has the decency to wear clothes. The fox we saw definitely had the same outfit as Shadow here, albeit without the giant halo behind her head. Is that attached to the collar, or does it just float? Hard to tell from this angle.  If the intention was to confuse us, that certainly worked.  They hate me because I oppose the creature they serve. All of the people in the inn are... corrupt. They cloak themselves in spells to conceal the horrors they have become. Why did you kill the man I met on the bridge? The man on the bridge was from the inn. He was no longer human, despite the illusion that concealed him. I couldn't risk that he would find a way out of the forest. Why didn't you attack Spear Catches Leaf? Why me? Ah, the hunter. He is a true soul. But while he may suspect, he knows nothing of the corruption in the inn. He knows nothing of the real reason my forest suffers. I have no doubt he would be an ally if I called, but he does not possess your skills. He cannot deal with creatures that cloak themselves in human guises in the Pilgrim's Rest. Enough mysterious hints. What's really happening in the inn?I mean, we could probably piece it together from that but...  The Mother was awoken by the rage of the spirits of the dead. Those denied passage to the underworld with the death of the Water Dragon. She feeds on their anger. Her dark power has twisted the innfolk into monsters that crave the flesh of humans. Cannibals.Yes, as someone in the thread already figured out from the highly subtle hints, the weirdos in the inn are cannibals (even though they're technically not human anymore). If you keep talking to Hou, who keeps dropping more hints things aren't right, you actually can get the cannibals to reveal themselves pretty much immediately. I chose not to do that because I wanted to keep their true form hidden for the time being. It also seems the Mother isn't causing the ghosts to appear and was in fact awakened by their anger.  She has been here longer than your Empire, human. This forest has held two spirits for longer than history can remember. It is the way of my kind. When we are tied to your world, as I am to the forest, there is a dark side to match the light. Usually one side will be dominant, but even in broad daylight there are shadows. So why am *I* so important? You know the Water Dragon is missing, and that your world fills with the spirits of the dead, but this forest has illustrated what that really *means.* The Mother's awakening and her spreading corruption is just a beginning. One of many that happen all over your empire. You do not want to see the end. So if the Water Dragon isn't restored, the whole world will be like this horrible forest or even worse. Let's try to avoid getting to that point, shall we?   A woman in blue? She would often appear in such a guise, yes. The form of a celestial dragon can be intimidating, especially...We've finally discovered the identity of the blue spirit that has been talking to us. You've probably figured out by now that she is the Water Dragon (the scales and the water motif were kind of a giveaway) but now we actually know.   Ah, here we go again.  The best part of this reveal is the fact I can now finally post the music track that plays during the Water Dragon spirit's appearances. It's possibly my favorite track in the game. MUSIC: The Waterdragon  She is.   What remains after that is beyond you. Or is meant to be. Not everything can be owned. Not without price. You will pay a debt earned by another. I lack the strength to help you. You cannot avoid your fate. When someone steps beyond their station, others must fall to fill the gap. That would be Emperor Sun Hai, I assume.  If you fail in your destiny, your true enemy falls with you. And if he falls... so do we all. You must win... but in doing so, you will lose. It is a painful circle that must be allowed to close. You do not truly have a choice until you confront what comes after. You will be free to act, but there is a cost.Well, that's a lot of cryptic and vaguely ominous words.   Now that I am sure of your role in things, it is all the more vital you choose which fork in the road you will take. My guess is no, but it's worth a shot.  You need to make your way to the Imperial City, and I know Lord Yun holds a wind map you must have. He will only be satisfied if you "cure" the forest, as he understands it. And so, the choice: will you attempt to destroy me and tell Yun that I was behind the corruption of his land? Or will you brave the more dangerous road and face the Mother? Do we try to kill this clearly benevolent ancient protector of the forest and side with a demon who turns people into cannibal monsters? Hmm. I wonder. I'm all ears, human.Very pointy ones, too.   There are caves beneath the Pilgrim's Rest. They are infested with cannibals, and the creatures work tirelessly to free their mistress. For all their diggings they will not completely free her until I am destroyed... or until I release her. And that is exactly what I plan to do. You must go to the Pilgrim's Rest. I will release the seal on the door beneath the inn so that you may enter her lair. What will I face there? The people of the inn are her followers now, and they are nothing more than cannibalistic monsters. They will know that we have allied, and you will have to face them. Individually, these cannibals are not exceptionally strong or skilled, but they are fast, and they attack in groups. Where is the entrance to the Mother's lair? Inside that place, at the back, you will find a lift descends to what was once a storage area. Once I release the seal on the Mother's trap, many more caves will open.That's the obvious secret door we saw earlier but couldn't interact with.  That's all I need to know to face her. Once the seal is broken, I will not be able to close it again. You must not fail. You will find a way to defeat the Mother, and you will survive. You must. I will find you after she is dead.  Since we're here, we might as well learn more about the Forest Shadow, the Mother and the fox spirits.  If you're thinking to learn our tricks, you will be disappointed. I'll happily tell you more of my kind if you wish. though. Are most of your kind tied to nature in some way?"And is that why everyone except you is running around with no clothes on?"  The Mother is the dark balance to my lighter influence. You will find that most anchors are like that; the heavens maintain balance in all things. I keep hearing about the foxes' tricks. Can you give me an example? Suppose you were a young noble who has just inherited a fortune. One of my kind might approach you as a wizened sage and ask for aid in studying an ancient artifact. Your response would determine the reaction. Let's see... which one of these has us acting least like a moron?  Your response was proper, as you balanced your wealth with the "sage's" need, but did not do so foolishly. The fox has a nose for people's character, and we judge by their intentions as much as their actions.Maybe the fox spirits should've written the moral choices in this game.  A most ancient tale, and one long forgotten by your kind. The Mother tried to corrupt this forest once before and failed, leaving herself weakened. How did you become involved? As you may know, when a spirit is anchored to a place or person, there is often a... balance. The highest powers of heaven enjoy nothing more than the struggle that ensues. The Mother is my counterpart. As a fox, I test the spirit of humanity, and what I would test, the Mother corrupts. How did the Mother first try to corrupt the forest? It was much the same as now. Dark promises of power were whispered in the minds of impressionable men who eventually became her cannibal servitors. As her power grew and more of your kind fell under her sway, the forest twisted and blackened. I fought her by destroying her followers and closing the paths into the forest. It was not enough. As the trees twisted, I grew weaker, and I realized that I could not win the day. The forest could not be saved. How did you eventually trap her? The only way to regain control of the forest was to lose control. I had been fighting the Mother's magic with my own, but I realized almost too late that I could not defeat her that way. Instead, words became my weapon. Many kingdoms claimed portions of this forest for their own, and I visited each under the guise of a mysterious crone. To each king I spoke of the plans of the others to destroy the blighted forest with fire; that fire, said I, would spread to any kingdom that was not prepared. Were any of the kings actually planning such a thing? None of the kings ever intended to destroy the forest, thinking that somehow the disease would pass and the resources could be salvaged. Hearing that their peers were prepared to unleash a firestorm upon them, however, made each king prepare a similar retaliation. It was only a matter of days before each king enacted what they thought was a pre-emptive strike. With fire breaks dug and their kingdoms safe, fire broke out on every border of the woods. The forest burned?Of course it did! Have you not been paying attention? (the other choice that continues this dialog tree is "What happened to the forest?" and that's even worse)  I too was diminished, but like the easily fooled kings, I was prepared for the flames. Weakened, the Mother fell into a torpor, and I worked tirelessly to help the forest regrow. It was a victory through sacrifice, but the forest regrew stronger than even before. I should go deal with the inn. Of course. Breathe deeply. You will find yourself in other places where the air is less pure soon enough.We could also have asked about Shining Tusk, but the only interesting thing about him is that he's apparently "one of the most light-hearted of his kind". Elephant demons don't have time for your poo poo. The Forest Shadow can teleport you straight back to the forest or you can just walk back to the portal (I skipped that bit of dialog). We'll walk, because there's stuff to be found.   Yeah, as tends to be the case, perfect order turned out to be kind of boring, so the Great Dragon decided to spice things up a bit. There isn't much else here in Forest Shadow's heaven, so let's just head back on over to the portal so we can go deal with the cannibal freaks.   There are more demon fights along the way, but nothing we didn't see on the way up. I kept this in because I wanted to show off how strong the fox spirits are in combat. Yes, they took out nearly the entire health bar from that toad demon in an instant. And since we should have about 10,000 silver now...   Not that this will do much good until we have some skill points, of course. Next time, we'll return the Pilgrim's Rest inn and deal with the Mother and her followers. ----- DMorbid fucked around with this message at 21:08 on Mar 12, 2017 |
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Mar 12, 2017 16:59
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I can't really remember much of a difference between what the different styles do. Any chance of an overview post? Also, as obvious as the whole "WE'RE EVIL CANNIBALS"-thing is, I still remember thinking that it was done well.
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Mar 12, 2017 19:17
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I'll do some sort of an effortpost about styles at some point but as far as Leaping Tiger goes, it's the Wolverine claws style with really fast attacks. I could've picked it at the beginning, but didn't because I'm an idiot and wanted to start with all the default stuff for my character. I really wish you could reallocate your skill points without save editing, because now I've wasted a bunch of points on Legendary Strike and won't be getting those back.
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Mar 12, 2017 19:47
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Actually, lemme amend my earlier remark. Forest Shadow AND Kang the Mad need to be representatives of Jade Empire in the inevitable Bioware crossover.
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Mar 12, 2017 20:04
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I'm sure Forest Shadow would be very popular among... a certain subset of the fanbase.
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Mar 12, 2017 20:08
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If you die in demon horse form do you explode and damage enemies around you?
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Mar 12, 2017 22:01
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Doc Morbid posted:I really wish you could reallocate your skill points without save editing, because now I've wasted a bunch of points on Legendary Strike and won't be getting those back. Honestly, I'd support you doing some save editing if it meant you got to show off more styles.
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Mar 12, 2017 22:19
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