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It's amazing how improved these cutscenes are by the job outfits. Clumsy love pirate Agnes rushing to save the day is adorable.
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Oct 12, 2017 17:24
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| # ? May 10, 2024 13:21 |
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Yes, job costumes in cutscenes are treasures. ...also Airy does kind of have a point. As far as we know we are the last person alive who can wake the Crystals. If Agnes cutscene-dies, there is no hope.
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Oct 14, 2017 19:01
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If Agnes did nothing, everyone would have died. And as we saw at the start of the game, she wouldn't be able to handle the Duchy on her own.
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Oct 14, 2017 19:29
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Entry 59: Where the Fire Sleeps, Buried Following the earthquake, the party manages to climb up out of the newly formed chasm.   You can thank your lucky stars you survived. One wrong step and you all would have been toast! That goes double for you, Agnès. Have you forgotten you are a crystal vestal? Hey, are you even listening to me!? *gasp gasp* ...Are you alright, Egil? Yeah... Thanks for saving me... Heh, you really gave us a scare.  Huh? We all said we'd help Egil, and yet you leapt in alone... Heh... Ha ha ha! It's just...your face is covered in mud, Agnès. What? And where exactly did you think you were going, Agnès? That was a shock! You picked a bad time to show you have no sense of direction! Ah ha ha. The way Agnès caught both of you with those spindly arms of hers is a story I'll pass down to my grandchildren.Thank all that axe-wielding she's been doing. Nowadays she's far buffer than she looks.    It was just the adrenaline... I surprised even myself... So you acted without thinking whether you could pull it off!? Yes... I'm just glad we're all safe and sound. Uh, Tiz... And Edea and Ringabel... Will... Will you still stay at my side? Of course![img]https://lpix.org/2703269/agnes_happy.png[img][/img] Oh, not you, Egil... Ha ha ha! He took my line... Ha ha ha. Ha ha ha! Heh. Heh heh! Enough giggling. We have to hurry to the Temple of Fire! Come on! Time is running out!Was it right for Agnès to risk herself to save Tiz and Egil? Airy may have terrible charisma, but she does have a point -- are the lives of two people worth sacrificing the world? On the other hand, as some people have pointed out, what are the chances of Agnès getting to the last two crystals on her own, or even just without Tiz? Their chances are already slim as things are. And that's not even getting into the idea of watching someone, let alone friends, die "for the sake of the greater good" -- easier said than done if you've got any heart at all. In the end, the choice was up to Agnès alone, despite what Airy or anyone else willed. You could say Agnès's choice was selfish, but for someone who cares so much about those close to her, and who'd already watched one friend die, her decision was hardly a surprise.  Airy, for her part, is traumatized. For a moment, she must've assumed all was lost. Anyway, she's got a point. No telling how long the area will stay stable.  After all that running and climbing, the party ended up on the western side of the chasm.  Luckily, the path to the north connects the two sides.  The earthquake cleared away the boulders! How convenient for gameplay and story purposes.  The passage past the southern boulder is a shortcut back to the Underflow's entrance. Note the boulder blocking the other end of the shortcut also coincidentally rolled away.  But our goal is through this suspicious crevice north of where Agnès had her moment of truth and Tiz his second chance. Going onwards...  Reveals Tiz's temple radar is spot-on.  The temple's in good condition, though there are signs of a recent scuffle.  Aside from the local demons, there are fire-enhanced, hostile, possible former guardians.  Damage cap reached.   The party's on a mission from This piece isn't bad, but better to equip once they're out of the fire area filled with fire mobs.  As with other temples, the party can take a closer look around.  ...... Unlike the Temple of Wind or Water...this travesty was at the hands of man. So this is where the fire vestal met her end... The party decides to check the library to the south.  Looks like the Black Blades had fun.  ...... It was no accident these were destroyed. The ones who attacked the temple...It's telling that they went out of their way to destroy harmless Crystalist materials. Further proof the Eternians aren't only fighting for political/sadistic reasons, but due to a genuine hatred of Crystalism.  Last visit is the reliquary.   You're right. They look a lot like your garments, Agnès. These are her clothes! The fire vestal was wearing these when she came to me in my dream! Strange that only her ceremonial garb would escape destruction... She'll never get to wear them again... ......After the reliquary chat, Egil pipes up.   It's just like my dream. All of it... ...... It feels like time's stopped here in the temple. Yeah? Perhaps because time has stopped for the spirit of the fire vestal. Agnès... It's kind of hard to breathe. Is time stopping for me, too? Will we be alright? We're fine. Time moves on... Our time is still moving, Egil. ...... This seems hard on the boy. Then let us awaken the crystal and be quit of this place. Last treasure in the temple. Nullifying two types of elemental damage is nothing to sneeze at.  Before moving on to the crystal chamber, there's one last point of interest: a new curmudgeonly bird-friend.  Why not give this a shot?  The party's pretty tough. They'll be able to handle demon-wrangling at this point, no problem.  Train crossing lights, but on fire and in hell. Good start.  In the distance, a train gleams, approaching.   Interesting detail: the summoning movie will flip depending on whether the enemy or the party is casting the summon. That way the summon's attack is facing the correct direction, such as towards the right when attacking the party.  That's a train, all right.  Like most trains, it can open its locomotive to reveal a gaping, draconic maw.   It collects power, vibrating with intensity...  That's a handy way to get blockage off the tracks.   Yeah, pretty impressive.  Wait.  Whoops.  Anyway, thanks to Hobgoblin2099 for the reminder to let the entire party die for extra dialogue. I'm sure the party would thank you, too, if they weren't all dead.  Let's try again, this time with our new fancy Iceflame Shield equipped.  Better.   Prometheus was a Greek Titan who was super great and helpful to early mankind, even when it pitted him against the gods. He is best known for giving humanity the gift of fire by stealing it from Olympus, whose residents wanted to keep it for themselves. Unfortunately, since then he has been gorily and eternally trapped and punished by the gods, which is a fairly routine fate in old myths.   With that, the Temple of Fire has been thoroughly explored. Next: Lucky crystal number three. -- Event Viewer Main Scenario: A Close Bond Sub-Scenario: Scars of Ruin Torn Scriptures The Fire Vestal's Garb Party Chat: A Place Where Time Lies Still D's Journal: Ringabel posted:The ground fell out from beneath Egil's feet! We could not grab him in time, and though Tiz rushed to save him, they both fell toward the lava below... Then Agnès hurtled out from the cliff and caught them both! We hauled them up, and shared a relieved laugh when it was clear no harm had been done, aside from the mud on our faces. D's Journal: Tiz Arrior posted:Tiz may have been rash to leap in and save Egil, but Agnès was just as reckless to catch them as they fell... We laughed together at Tiz's folly and Agnès's good timing. Things have been tense between us since Florem, but I feel as if the air has now been cleared. D's Journal: Egil posted:In the mythril mines, Egil fell after the ground gave way beneath his feet, and Tiz dove forward to grab him. They were both about to fall into the lava until Agnès's quick action saved them. The tension we had felt since Florem melted away, and we shared a tender moment. D's Journal: Temple of Fire posted:
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Oct 17, 2017 04:39
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Also, a heads up, I'm going to be taking a break. Got some other projects to attend to at the moment and I want to avoid burnout. Rest assured I've already got material for many more entries, so it'll just be a matter of time before the party continues their murderous heroics. Hope you guys are enjoying the adventure so far!
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Oct 17, 2017 04:43
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Promethean Fire is my favorite summon in this series. A powerful and useful ally who I hope was inspired by DOOMTRAIN.
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Oct 17, 2017 04:51
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Greyarc posted:Also, a heads up, I'm going to be taking a break. Got some other projects to attend to at the moment and I want to avoid burnout. Good call. After all you can get easily burned out in the later half of the game.
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Oct 17, 2017 05:36
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Promethean Fire is great for sure. I bet Selphie would have loved it.Greyarc posted:
Hey! Listen!
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Oct 17, 2017 06:09
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Nthing the love for Promethean Fire's design.
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Oct 17, 2017 06:31
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Blademaster_Aio posted:Good call. That's what happened to me. I'd try and continue, but I have no idea where my cartridge vanished to.
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Oct 17, 2017 06:57
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Blademaster_Aio posted:Good call. Yep. The latter part is going to be a lot of "I'm playing this so you guys don't have to." But hearing (or imagining) people's reactions to what happens makes it well worthwhile. 
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Oct 17, 2017 12:54
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Godspeed.
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Oct 17, 2017 13:51
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It's totally fair for you to take some time off. It's a bit disappointing that it's this close to the end of Chapter 3, but if you need to recharge, that's what matters.
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Oct 17, 2017 16:07
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Greyarc posted:Yep. The latter part is going to be a lot of "I'm playing this so you guys don't have to." Yeah, I have a save file for this game pretty much where you'd expect someone to say "gently caress this, I'm out."
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Oct 17, 2017 18:01
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Echoing the sentiment of "the latter half of this game suuuuuuuuucks". The MurderTrain saw me through a lot though.
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Oct 17, 2017 19:13
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Enjoy your break, my dude. Burning yourself out is unacceptable.
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Oct 17, 2017 21:39
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Greyarc posted:Also, a heads up, I'm going to be taking a break. Got some other projects to attend to at the moment and I want to avoid burnout. Yeah, this has been a good read. I have to wonder how these summon guys managed to survive the anti-Crystalist purge. I suppose they'd find it easier than most to fly to safety.
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Oct 18, 2017 03:35
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Glazius posted:Yeah, this has been a good read. They're probably not affiliated with the Crystalists (or anybody else, really), just taking shelter in the ruins because they suit their purposes.
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Oct 18, 2017 03:56
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MightyPretenders posted:They're probably not affiliated with the Crystalists (or anybody else, really), just taking shelter in the ruins because they suit their purposes. The summon monsters may even be more closely related to the activities of the monsters like Orthrus and Rusalka than the actual Crystalists.
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Oct 18, 2017 04:20
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We never get any lore on the Anchorites, sadly, so they're just random owl guys who just decide to teach you Summons as far as the games are concerned. It's another one of those things I'm really curious about and wish they'd expand on.
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Oct 18, 2017 04:55
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They are all heralds of the glory that is chompcraft. Dehumanize yourself and face to chomp
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Oct 21, 2017 06:39
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Entry 60: The Fire, Awakened Time to get this done.  With its vestal dead for some time, what condition will this crystal be in?  *ROAR* A creature lurks at the Fire Crystal! The game so far has shown the 'of doom' bosses as this black cloud. A shame they aren't shown out of battle. What is that thing? Egil nods and runs off. That's Chaugmar! Chaugmar, the Mark of Doom. It appears in the teachings of Crystalism. I had a feeling that might be the case. I'm all ready to go. We can't begin the Rite of Awakening until we defeat it, right? I'm afraid not. Let's go, Agnès! The four of us are more than a match for that thing! The myth behind the Chaugmar name was a bit tricky to uncover. In the end, the only remotely close reference I could find was for Chaugnar Faugn, an Old One from the Cthulu Mythos. To summarize, Chaugnar is a giant bad elephant demonic thing that sucks life force out of its victims with its trunk.  The contributors at the Final Fantasy wiki apparently reached the same conclusion about the boss's origin, and it seems reasonable based on the boss's attacks.  Chaugmar begins the battle within a chaotic purple barrier. It will spend most of the fight like this.  While its barrier is up, Chaugmar's physical and magical defenses are at 9999.  During this phase, Chaugmar's attacks will absorb HP (Blood Suck), MP (Soul Suck), or BP (Heart Suck) from his target.  Since attacking it's mostly a no-go, this is a good time to heal, buff up, and default up to 3 BP.  If you insist on attacking during this phase, items deal a set amount of damage, bypassing defense. Chaugmar never expects to face determined salve-makers.  In a few turns, Chaugmar will drop the barrier. We all know video games. What better indicator to attack, right?  So here's a lesson that hasn't come up yet, but will be much more evident later on: Bravely Default hates the player.  The turn after the barrier goes down, Chaugmar does an attack that will likely wipe your party unless you Default.  It's simple once you know what to expect, but is bound to catch first-time folk. So in return for all the rage Chaugmar's caused players, let's show off a feature!  Way, waaaay back near the start of the game, our friend the Adventurer (or their green cousin) gave Tiz a strange hourglass. With that item, pressing Start during combat causes you to enter Bravely Second, freezing time to allow a single character to take action at any point during battle.   Bravely Second costs 1 SP. You can only ever have 3 SP max, and SP regenerates 1 every eight real life hours, so it's not easily abusable. You can/could also pay real life money to buy SP drinks which would restore SP without the time limitation, if you want to support the game's single controversial microtransaction. Doing so isn't necessary at all.  Whichever character you choose to take an action will start off by saying one of several preset phrases. Someone posted a video of the phrases earlier in the thread. And that's that for Bravely Second: useful when you need it, does neato visual effects, but due to its cost it's an easy feature to forget.  To clarify, the Bravely Second phrases are preset and voiced, while the special attack phrases are not voiced but player set, so you can be as stupid as you want. Note the background and stance difference as well.  Anyway, after doing his big attack, Chaugmar will spend a turn with no barrier, then put the barrier back up and repeat the proce-- what's that?  Oh, he's dead. Once you know Chaugmar's routine, he's easy to take down, provided your healer can keep up.   We've no time to pat ourselves on the back. Let's begin the Rite of Awakening. I'll help you get changed, Agnès. Would you?Agnès and Edea leave the room, returning a minute later with Agnès dressed. It's nice that Agnès has a friend to help her out with things like this.  Let us begin, Airy. Wow, you look beautiful... Are you blushing, Egil? Of course not! Don't be silly! No need to be shy. Any man would be hard pressed to pull his gaze from Agnès now. H-hey, what are you looking at me for? No reason. Come on, let's hurry this up! Everyone but Agnès, stay back! Doot doot doot, it's the press X song~ Let's begin~  XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  What did one Bravely Default player say to the other about the crystal prayer sequences?  They're 'X'-tra long!  These sequences do help get across the painfully exhausting process Agnès is going through.  Not yet! Just a little longer! Rgh...!XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Stop! That's it! The awakened fire crystal is significantly more threatening looking than the water and wind crystals. Appropriate for the heart of a volcano.  Thank goodness... Are you alright, Agnès? Yes... I'll be fine. I just need to rest. ...... Oh... I was just amazed at how different she looks... Thank you for watching over me, Egil. The fire vestal would be very pleased with you. No problem! So I kept my promise to the fire vestal, right? Of course. Thanks to you, we were able to awaken the crystal. *nods* That's good... Third crystal, third support slot upgrade. One more to go.  Chaugmar's gimmick takes patience, but at least we only have to fight it once.  Chaugmar dropped this lovely piece of jewelry with a genre-relevant description.  Hopefully the weather around the last crystal is nicer than the center of a volcano. No, I'm never going to normalize how unliveable the center of a volcano is for a temple, even a fire temple. Even the Hero of Time had to scrounge up a set of fire-resistance clothes.  The party exits the Underflow. It's impossible to warp past this scene; the temple, the Underflow, and the mythril mines each only warp to the beginning of their respective areas. Huh? What's this? Something looks different. Egil crouches down and rifles around in the rocks.  What is it, Egil? All the ore... It's disappeared. Any idea, Airy? With the death of the fire vestal, it was no longer possible to control the magma that represents fire. The mythril ore used to create powerful weapons and armor... Perhaps it's another symbol of fire, subject to the crystal's control. What!? Well, we don't know that for sure yet. Anyhow, we'd better go report to Commander Goodman.The fire crystal controlling magma wouldn't explain the decomposition of rocks in the non-magma-filled mine, but as with the rest of this world's environment, presumably it's *handwave* crystal magic.  A new sidequest has shown up at Starkfort. We've revived the local crystal, but there are still some other loose ends to clean up. Let's take a quick look before heading back to the Shieldbearers.  Back in Starkfort, the party once again comes to the two passages which once held Qada and Egil -- west and east, respectively. Except now there's one noticeable difference.  The north way has opened. Next: The virtues and flaws of the patient. -- Event Viewer Main Scenario: The Mark of Doom The Fire Crystal The Fire Crystal Awakened The Vanishing Ore 
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Nov 7, 2017 03:21
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I think it's weird they designed all sorts of weapons sticking out of Chaugmar and then just never had it use them.
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Nov 7, 2017 03:42
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I just cheesed it using items. Salve maker wins.
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Nov 7, 2017 04:02
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Pureauthor posted:I think it's weird they designed all sorts of weapons sticking out of Chaugmar and then just never had it use them. Well, of course not! He could poke someone's eye out with them!
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Nov 7, 2017 04:10
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...huh. Previously the Crystals had provided people with what they needed. It's odd that all the mythril is gone.
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Nov 7, 2017 07:43
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Glazius posted:...huh. Previously the Crystals had provided people with what they needed. It's odd that all the mythril is gone. It kind of makes sense that the Mythril is gone then. This place certainly doesn't need more weapons  As to the actual how though... Probably the same reason that the Fire Crystal was able to muck about with the volcano. The fire vestals also likely figured out a way to use it to psuedo-lava dredge up all of the Mythril to bring prosperity to the otherwise bleak area (much like how the wind crystal helps Anacheim out.)
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Nov 7, 2017 08:19
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I hate Chaugmar. Specifically because of that Energy Burst fake out that wiped me the first time.  Chapter 3 is where the game really starts trying to hurt you. Blueberry Pancakes fucked around with this message at 08:32 on Nov 7, 2017 |
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Nov 7, 2017 08:29
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Oh hey its a ripoff of Kracko
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Nov 7, 2017 16:41
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Entry 61: Nothing Gained So, what's in the north section of Starkfort?   First, the Swordbearer's treasury.  More floors mean more treasure. No new mobs or scenery, so we can cut to the cutscenes. As the party makes their way upstairs, our view switches to another section of the fort...   We staged an uprising because you said we could win. Four years later, what have we got to show for it!? It was a harebrained scheme from the start! You lot were behind this, so you can clean up the mess.  You'd leave your compatriots behind? Well look, it can't be helped, can it!? The Swordbearers need their commander alive, so we can make a comeback! It can't be helped, you say? Yes, you may be right... I'll have to use your airship, of course. Well, good luck! The man jogs away. Impressive what fear can do for a guy wearing full plate armor. ......That was Yewmire Astrae, by the way: leader of the Swordbearers and otherwise so far only mentioned in D's Journal. Kamiizumi is not having a good day.  Up another floor...   We come to the penultimate floor and the Adventurer, who of course has been hanging out here with no issues from the Swordbearers.  At the top floor, we find Kamiizumi, still brooding. Did he not hear us come in? Maybe we can get the jump on him.  Is he... talking to himself? A great battle against a powerful nation, outnumbered one hundred-to-one. Such a thrilling opportunity. But I was not able to keep my subordinates in check, leading to the scourge of the toxic mist, and the death of the fire vestal... The toxic mist decimated the main forces of the Shieldbearers, but the Black Blades did not escape unscathed. The death of the fire vestal caused Mount Karka to erupt, sealing the way into the temple. And then...you arrived... No, not talking to himself. Talking to us. Dramatically.  About values, standards, and good and evil... It's fair to say you had a great influence on me. My father was always concerned about his work and his ideals. He found little time to spend with me... Tell me, Master. Were the things you told me about righteousness, strength, and bravery all lies...? That we should help the helpless, and face strong foes without flinching... I cannot fathom why you have lit the fires of war in this realm, causing strife to so many innocents... I still find it hard to believe. This is not the man I know. He would never do this! You let sentiment cloud your mind, Edea. You are still as earnest as you were when you were a youth. You never waver in your disgust for recreant behavior. You condemn all that runs counter to your beliefs without fail... In a way, you remind me of your father. Yes, very much so. But you are still a child...unsullied by the world. There are no certainties in life. Righteousness and truth have a different meaning to each and every one of us. If you try to see the world as merely black or white, you'll lose sight of its true nature. Many are quick to treat us as children... But they simply use that as an excuse for their own corruption! A warrior's pride is not always compatible with the responsibilities of a commander, Edea. Kamiizumi's at least admitted to the party he's unhappy with having done terrible things. Though it's not the exact angle they're going for here, his attitude has a parallel with a samurai's traditional duties, where if the samurai's lord tells him to act, his honor dictates he do so, no matter what his personal opinion may be. The same goes for your father. And someday, for the wind vestal you accompany. ......Of course, there's a difference between being forced into morally grey decisions and leading a terribly managed war that kills at least hundreds of thousands essentially due to incompetence and cruelty.  Which Edea, for all her faults, picks up on. This conversation is the true Master vs Student fight. She fights to carry out her mission, no? Blood and tears are shed in its name... It is no different for your father or me. Mission!? No different!? You and your soldiers plunged the world into turmoil... You started a war, and took the lives of so many... How can you say Agnès is like you!? If you cannot see beyond the surface, then perhaps you will never understand. Do not be so blind! You must not lose sight of what is most important! I thought I had taught you that. Enough sophistry! It is underhanded! That does it! I shall go to help Agnès awaken the Earth Crystal! ...... If that is your decision, I hope you are prepared to live with it. I am. I'm ready to fight any who get in our way, even you or my father! Very well, then. I see you have made up your mind. This fight is a bit different.  Kamiizumi's gimmick is that at first, he spends very little time outright attacking.  Instead, he spends his turn setting up one of various types of powerful counterattacks. One will counter physical attacks, another counters magic attacks, and the third counters attacks from a randomly selected opponent.  Using this method, Kamiizumi can decimate an overly aggressive party in short order without ever striking first. So, what's the trick? You can just whale away on him in big strikes, reviving anyone who gets hit by his counter. High Jump is a good choice, as he can't select a midair opponent for the specified target counter. Or...  You beat him at his own game. Despite his preaching about keeping a level head, Kamiizumi will eventually get impatient and Brave into negative BP -- long enough to leave himself completely open for one or two turns.  Take advantage of his openings, keep striking with big attacks, and the Master becomes helpless as a newborn babe. As Kamiizumi's health wears down, his actions grow more desperate, going from defensive counters to constantly attacking and putting himself into negative BP.  It may make for a slightly longer battle, but it's a more satisfying win, in my opinion. This fight does a great job of showing Kamiizumi's true character.  *flop* Edea runs over to Kamiizumi's side, lifting up his head.  Will you hear your master out one last time, Edea...? Of course... Take the time...to speak...with your father...properly.... If you do not, I see nothing but tragedy for you both... End this petty dissent between father and child... Master... You two were always...so difficult... ......*sob*Is this a sad death? Yes. But at this point it's also frustrating. RIP, yet another chance to get a straight answer from an Eternian. The strategy of calling Edea a child over and over while dodging questions continues to be strangely ineffective.  Oh well, new job. Edea will take up her teacher's mantle. Agnès also nabbed this during the battle. It will come in handy immediately.  cont: attack, and Know Thy Enemy, a powerful counter to an attack from the foe he selects. There's an error on Kamiizumi's bestiary page: the magic counterattack used by Kamiizumi in battle and Swordmasters is called "Before Swine", not "Cold Shoulder".   Now the party's pretty much single-handedly decimated the Black Blades, so go team! Before moving on, however, let's take a look at some alternate paths for the Black Blades' deaths. First, rewind to Barbarossa.  If Kamiizumi is killed before confronting Barbarossa, there is a single changed line of dialogue during the chat before battle.  Welcome to our pirate ship, the SS Funky Francisca! I am Captain Barbarossa, leader of the Black Blades' naval force! The Black Blades!? You must be the wind vestal and her companions. A pleasure to meet you! What!? How do you know of us? This alteration doesn't show up in the Event Viewer, and doesn't otherwise change Barbarossa's banter with the party. He's an easygoing guy, after all. If Kamiizumi is killed before confronting Qada, however...  This is the dialogue the party stumbles upon when approaching Qada in Starkfort.  He puts me out to pasture here, and gets himself killed by the wind vestal. Hah! Serves him right! Hmph. "Show respect for the enemy"!? "The goal is not simply to kill"!? Bah! They say there's no salve to cure the foolish, and right that is. He'll have plenty of time to regret his actions in the afterlife. Now then, there's no rest for the wicked. I must create as much toxic ammunition as I can to rain down upon the Shieldbearers and slaughter them all. Then I can kiss this place goodbye. After this, the party confronts Qada, and the battle continues as before. Without Kamiizumi alive, however, what happens to Qada afterwards? That mystery may be solved eventually, but for now, let's return to our normal party.  Before leaving Starkfort, there are a few final items to purchase from the traveling merchant.  Nothing like depriving valuable weapons from our opponents!  Not that the party hasn't already completely debilitated the Black Blades.  This merchant's got a lot of guts selling shields in these parts.  This is probably a standard witch's hat, same as the women have with the black mage asterisk equipped. How do they equip their hat slot along with the hats from their asterisk outfits? Do they stack hats on top of each other?  The Shieldbearers are waiting for word about the fire crystal. Let's go bring them the good news.  Yes. We have awakened the Fire Crystal. That should quell Mount Karka's fury. That is excellent news. Thank you, Wind Vestal. We owe you and your companions our thanks. One thing... After we awakened the Fire Crystal, all the veins of ore in the mine disappeared.Mythril must have many great uses outside of wartime. Stronger materials for craftsmanship and building, an export to help rebuild the local economy--  Oh. After all, the mythril warheads the Swordbearers fired upon us were a source of great concern. This should change the course of the war. If we are lucky, it may end soon. Once the eruption of Mount Karka subsides, we will also work to restore the Temple of Fire as quickly as we can. I would appreciate that. The fire vestal should be given a proper funeral without delay. After all, we were only able to awaken the Fire Crystal through the help of Egil here and the fire vestal. Is that so? Fine work, Egil. You have my thanks, too. Heh heh.All right, but now that this is over, I've got a few questions. Did mythril only appear once the fire crystal was out of control? It's been used as an export from Eisenberg long enough to gain an international reputation. Speaking of, the mythril in the mine disappeared, but not our mythril weapons. What was the range on the crystal's 'destroy all mythril' thing? We're lucky the mine tunnels didn't collapse on us with the composition change. Come to think, how did Egil know all the mythril was gone just by staring at a pile of rocks for a second? Maybe he saw mythril there earlier, but who's to say stuff didn't just move out of sight in that earlier earthquake? And to get back to Goodman, he may be patient, but this is one underreaction. Could you imagine if, without warning, we were no longer able to mine any platinum? 'Sorry, we know you've just gotten used to having this material available, but the only stuff left is what's already been mined, most of which got exported.' ... Plot holes and handwaviness is the standard in video games, but there's no reason the writers couldn't have slipped in dialogue somewhere explaining things. As with Kamiizumi, there's a difference between a couple unexplained plot threads and a consistent inattention to detail. Not even getting into the way Yewmire exits the war in the first scene where we see him. The story's focus may have been on the Black Blades, but as it was, the Swordbearers end up coming across as nothing more than not very smart pawns motivated by petty jealousy and simultaneously death-seeking and cowardly. It makes for good comic relief, but it also makes the whole thing feel like a joke. Which isn't necessarily unrealistic, but it's debateable whether it's intentional.  They were all without homes to go back to, so we will harbor them here in Hartschild. The townspeople will see that they are cared for. I'm glad to hear that. You'll be seeing your friends again soon, Egil. Yeah... Well, you are all tired, I dare say. Please get some rest while you sojourn in Hartschild.With the turnabout in the war, Goodman's got a new field report to give us.  ->How is the war going?  The threat of toxic mist has been removed, so we no longer need worry about its unseen evils. The enemy will soon run out of mythril arms as well. We are more than able to weather their attacks. Now we just need to end this war as soon as we can. I know we can accomplish this.->The nation's future  Once the war is over, we must focus on restoring the livelihoods of our citizens. It is our duty to build a nation that will bring a smile to the faces of the canary boys you rescued. I pledge to do just that by the time they are old enough to have families of their own!->Why did they come here?  One thing I realized recently, is that those serving in the upper echelons of the Swordbearers were hardly the pious kind. And the Black Blades are scoundrels who did not hesitate to use deadly force against the fire vestal... Perhaps their alliance is through a shared devotion to Anticrystalism. ......A lot of bad things happened over the course of the war, but it's basically finished!  Time for the party to take a well-deserved rest. They head back to the town of Hartschild...  What's the matter, Egil? I don't want to live in this town. What? Why not!? I want to go with you! Huh!? That's simply not... So you wish to fight by our side, hm? Oh, I can't do that. I don't know how to fight. But I still want to go with you. Please take me with you! I'll do anything you ask! That just won't work... Even if you say no, I'm still going! Then we have a problem... Let's go to Commander Goodman's residence.Next: Not enough room in this party for two tiny sidekicks! -- Event Viewer Main Scenario: Commander Goodman's Praise Egil's Tantrum Sub-Scenario: Flight of the Swordbearers Kamiizumi's Soliloquy Swordmaster Kamiizumi - A The Swordmaster's Fate - A Qada's Displeasure - B Ending the Civil War D's Journal: Swordbearer Cdr Yewmire Astrae posted:(Swordbearer Commander) D's Journal: Shieldbearer Cdr Daniel Goodman posted:We told Goodman how we had reached the Temple of Fire through the mythril mine and awakened the Fire Crystal, and that all the mythril was gone as a result. He was not concerned, as this would now hinder the weapon-making of his enemy. He promised to rebuild the temple once the eruptions died down and take in Egil and the boys. His benevolence knows no end.
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Nov 14, 2017 06:36
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Kamiizumi seems like he's committing suicide-by-cop in this scene, which might be one reason he's not interested in trying to negotiate with the party or justify the Eternian stance on the issues: he wants to die in combat to a pupil who has surpassed him as a guilt-free way of getting out of dealing with the fact that he's just lost this war. It's the only rationale for why he could possibly not at least try to explain to his student why he wants to prevent the Crystals from awakening.
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Nov 14, 2017 07:55
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There is actually another reason, but you never find out if Kamiizumi knows that detail, firstly, and secondly the game never explains it to you outright. You have to infer it from the information that 'this is probably why they didn't' but that's lazy. There are some very glaring holes in the story which come from "we won't explain this to you". The entire story just hinges on that. This was a perfect chance for Kamiizumi to explain why Eternia is anti-crystalist, but he didn't. They're all a pack of stubborn blockheads.
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Nov 15, 2017 09:53
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Perhaps he was preparing to... Well, do what a samurai would be considered honor-bound to do for such a series of massive failures in his campaign, and decided to use the party as his proxy?
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Nov 15, 2017 10:16
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Perhaps he's a dingus, like the rest of the Eternians.
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Nov 15, 2017 17:23
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Or maybe it was included in the introductory textbook at military academy and it never occurred to him that Edea had neglected to read it before tossing it into her locker.
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Nov 15, 2017 17:42
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Pureauthor posted:Or maybe it was included in the introductory textbook at military academy and it never occurred to him that Edea had neglected to read it before tossing it into her locker. .... Oh dear I could actually see that.
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Nov 15, 2017 18:40
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I wasn't sure how to respond to these comments, so I made a dumb comic instead: In any case, Kamiizumi's handling of the situation has been less than ideal. The suicide-by-Edea thing is pretty likely. In other news, provided things go okay, I should be tackling the salve-maker job entry soon.
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Nov 16, 2017 13:04
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I could buy that comic as canon.
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Nov 16, 2017 15:17
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One, that comic is REALLY well drawn. Was that digital or actual colored pencils? Two...Yeah, I can see Edea doing that.
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Nov 16, 2017 15:57
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Nice, the comic was great. "Enigma-sensei" XD
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Nov 16, 2017 16:03
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