Shadow Hearts: Covenant - Reach Out and Punch Someone

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Alaan: May 24, 2005

Omobono posted:

Figures, with Automata's success fixing Replicant is probably a slam dunk.

E: Is that number the decimal expansion of something interesting?

The square root of 1.5

# ? Mar 29, 2020 15:49

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# ? May 25, 2024 17:46

ultrafilter: Aug 23, 2007; It's okay if you have any questions.

I definitely appreciate how no one's commenting on Kato's goon squad. I guess we've all just accepted that that's the sort of thing Shadow Hearts does from time to time.

# ? Mar 29, 2020 16:33

Qrr: Aug 14, 2015

Nohman posted:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sdn1B0N4k0
So we're getting a NieR remaster.

Hmm, no Platinum this time. We'll see how the gameplay ends up.

Also, seems like they might be stabilizing on the anime pretty boy protagonist and skipping the dad game this time.

# ? Mar 29, 2020 19:43

DukeofCA: Aug 18, 2011; I am shocked and appalled.

ultrafilter posted:

I definitely appreciate how no one's commenting on Kato's goon squad. I guess we've all just accepted that that's the sort of thing Shadow Hearts does from time to time.

You've seen how many skill points Kato has invested in JRPG Sequel Antagonist. The sentai mooks are complimentary.

# ? Mar 29, 2020 20:01

MachuPikacchu: Oct 15, 2012; Sacre vert! Maman!

ultrafilter posted:

I definitely appreciate how no one's commenting on Kato's goon squad. I guess we've all just accepted that that's the sort of thing Shadow Hearts does from time to time.

I'm not familiar with Japanese military history, so I don't know which two famous generals those two are.

# ? Mar 29, 2020 20:45

Omobono: Feb 19, 2013; That's it! No more hiding in tomato crates! It's time to show that idiota Germany how a real nation fights!

For pasta~! CHARGE!

MachuPikacchu posted:

I'm not familiar with Japanese military history, so I don't know which two famous generals those two are.

As far as I can tell, they're nobodies.
They're also a Sentai antagonist squad, so that's why nobody is commenting, because it's simply par for this game.

# ? Mar 29, 2020 22:56

MechaX: Nov 19, 2011; "Let's be positive! Let's start a fire!"

I like how Kato and the big dude are standing normally, meanwhile the tall lanky dude is trying his hardest to do a JoJo pose for no loving reason

# ? Mar 29, 2020 23:13

The Dark Id: Aug 13, 2005; Why
you
know
I
LOVE
THIS SHIT !!!!
[citation needed]

Episode LXXIX: The Young Swordsman

Well here we are. We've finally made it to Disc 2 of Shadow Hearts II. I wonder how late into putting this out some marketing schlub decided on the whole "Covenant" subtitle and dropping the sequel number because again, literally everything in-game is just "Shadow Hearts 2." Regardless of that, buckle up for the second disc of the game which is... well, kind of actually Shadow Hearts 2. Disc 1 was pretty much just Yuri gathering a new band of weird dinguses and going on some side adventure with very little connection to the original game outside that Albert Simon retcon business toward the back half. Disc 2 is way more about the fallout of events of Shadow Hearts 1. Mostly about the people who died and men coping with grief making the worst decisions possible. As you do.

NEW Music: Grey Memories ~ Map of Japan (New disc, new world map music!)

Three months after Nicolai released the pent-up malice of Apoina Tower...

The war's brutality escalated quickly with the use of chemical weapons.

But the battlefield changed little, with both sides becoming more and more entrenched.

Meanwhile, Yuri and his friends followed Special Agent Kato back to Japan to stop Nicolai, now possessed by Astaroth.

And so, the stage shifts to the East...

Ladies...

So Nicolai Conrad, the secret bastard son of the Czar of Russia, releasing the Catholic Church's supply of Malice into the world triggered the use of chemical weapons in World War 1. That is a sentence I just wrote summarizing the events thus far in a video game. Also, it's taken the party THREE MONTHS to make it to Japan and get back to adventuring? Didn't we have a goddamn jet the last time I checked? And Yuri, put your shirt back on. Stop giving everyone a show.

In any event, we have arrived in the port city of Yokohama, where we will be spending a good portion of the early Disc 2 game. Specifically, we are camping out in the Brick Warehouses. What? You think our band of goofy hobos can afford a proper inn? In this economy?! Surely you jest. We cannot see the full Asia world map yet. But what we can do is check in with our Score thus far starting fresh on the second half of the game.

Still a cartoon skeleton, huh? Well. It could be worse.

One day I'll remember the useless shortcut function and use it once just to see the next rank name. (No I won't.)

Prfct.

It's really odd they still list Nicolai the entire 70-hour game when he's only in playable form for all of two hours.

Before we jump into our first location of Disc 2 we do want to make sure specifically Blanca is tooled up with decent Crest Magic and equipment. He may be the star of the show again in this early segment and we won't have the option to kit him out past this point. But Blanca has been a mainstay support character the whole LP thus far so he's good to go like the good boy he is.

Music: ENDS

I am going to assume this is supposed to be May 1916 because it was already at least spring of 1915 when the game began and it was at least two months later by the adventures in Italy, it was implied to be after Christmas by the time we were in Petrograd and there's been another three month time skip since then. Or they just don't care about maintaining any kind of timeline and it's not like the game just consistently does whatever it feels like. The first use of chemical weapons in World War I was April 22, 1915, when the Germans dumped chlorine gas on a Ypres, Belgium battlefield. So that fits but... not with everything else. It doesn't really matter. Don't worry about it.

What does matter is the party is squatting in a random warehouse in Yokohama because we need to make sure Nicolai umm... well, the guy has been beaten and is now in the custody of the Japanese Empire via Kato and that is a problem because... uhh... Honestly, it's not clear why Kato taking Nicolai is a problem. Yeah, he's the heir to the throne of Russia -- a monarchy that is going to be overthrown and purged in a revolution in a couple of years. Sure, we don't know that but it's not like that's a big deal worthy of pursing all the way to Japan to take him out even if he is a huge dick. And it's not like Kato indicated he had any evil machinations. Well, it's probably fine. I'm sure we'll find a plot thread of villainy if we stick around long enough. It's not like Imperial Japan were portrayed as good dudes in the previous game, outside of Kawashima and Kato being OK.

Well, how is he?

He's sleeping. But I don't think he's getting any better.

He's not ripping his shirt off again is he? That was weird.
Y-yeah... weird...

We've come all the way to Japan and yet there's nothing we can do.

What if... What if he dies on us?! Mmmm?

What if... you shut the hell up, Lucia?

Why do you always have to say things like that?!

Oh c'mon! Show me somebody that's in danger of dying from seasickness?!

I did not add this arrow in post. Also yes, Yuri is scratching his rear end.

He was fine in the airship.

He's an odd one, all right!

He was fine taking the ship back and forth across the English Channel all those times we had to travel back to Wales.
Yeah, he was wasn't he? Weird.

That stupid airship didn't have any "oomph," anyway! It wasn't my fault!

But you were the one who crash-landed the ship!

It's called an "emergency landing"!

And we're all here and fine, aren't we? Besides, if you didn't want that to happen you shouldn't have let me drive the thing.
You threw a tantrum and demanded to commandeer it under royal authority.
You peasants backing down at the slightest bit of blowback is the real problem to me.

Anyway, there was a cute little mother and baby bear. I wanted to see them. Hehe. Hehehehe.

Well, Roger is probably still busy fixing it, surrounded by those bears.

Deep in the woods of Hokkaido...

It's not my fault Yuri decided punching a bear was on his bucket list. That has nothing to do with me.
It wasn't his best decision... But poor Roger...

Yeah, he may already be dead...

Why are you like this?!
What the hell?
Not cool.
Awroo? Awroo? (Why is she still even here with us?)

NEW Music: Rising Sun ~ Japanese Town (New disc, new town music!)

......

We seem to have all gotten kind of down.

Remember that time we beat up Rasputin? That was fun... I heard they finally finished picking all the bodies out of the rubble in Petrograd.
......
...Now I'm feeling down again.

Hmm... You're right.

Anyway, we don't have any reason to think that he's dead.

I heard him throw up at least in the last hour.

Besides, there's nothing we can do. Let's just take it easy until Yuri is back on his feet!

It's not like there is actually any crisis at the moment.

<nods> Mhm!

<looks down> Uh-huh.

<nods>

Since Yuri is out of commission with seasickness after a ship ride from Hokkaido to Yokohama, Blanca is stepping up to take the lead for a bit. We can chat with the rest of the party buuuut... one must have priorities and there is a treasure chest just sitting and waiting to be looted in our hobo pad.

It doesn't appear the Harunyudo gang is a real thing, which is par for the course for Shadow Hearts item descriptions, but it does provide +99 Physical and +90 Special Defense and yes, Blanca can equip it. The mental image of which I enjoy immensely. Blanca going full weeb immediately. How many more will follow this dark path?

We can now speak with the rest of the gang. Yuri is still decommissioned due to his seasickness flaring up again after about two years.

Awroo... (Meh...)

Or else... you know... stuff... could happen...

It's true. This is the first time we've seen a muted grey and brown structure... on Disc 2.

It is cold up there. My nipples could cut glass in that climate!
Awroo. (Too much information.)

Child, you have no dominion over Blanca's will! Blanca will do as Blanca pleases.

And Blanca wants to leave this stuffy hobo squat warehouse and get some fresh air. No amount of Lucia's perfume is going to mask the musk of that band of misfits that definitely haven't bathed in a vague 6-8 month period.

Music: ENDS

Unfortunately, Blanca only manages to make it to the end of the first warehouse before being interrupted by rowdy interlopers.

We come upon a young apparently displaced from time swordsman being surrounded by the loving Kerberos Panzer Cops. Yep, we're in anime Japan, alright... Established!

Once again I have to cut a worthless object.

NEW Music: Deep in Coma ~ Battle in Japan (New disc, new battle music!)

So this is an introduction to the final party member of the game -- Young Swordsman. I'm sure he will receive a more fitting title in the future. But for now, he is just Young Swordsman. As you can see he is equipped with Hanzo Steel and not much else. Indeed, he has no abilities other than attacking with a three-hit physical combo and a meager array of generic consumable items.

Our opponents are ~~Kerberos Panzer Cops~~ Akagi Soldiers which are Earth elemental foes with a trifling 82 HP.

Young Swordsman can take down any single Akagi Soldier in like two out of the three hits from his physical strikes. So not a problem at all. He seems to be fairly strong.

Likewise, Akagi Soldiers just dump their entire magazine into Young Swordsman for a rather minuscule amount of damage. The only way you can make bullets work correctly in this universe is if you're a French spy that is terrible at their job or are historically bound to be shot to death.

Better luck next time.

Our new samurai friend only managed to take out three of the near platoon strength soldiers riding his rear end and is in for another fight. At this point, Blanca is given the option to intervene. If he just decides to hold back and watch, Young Samurai will have to do the next battle by himself. There is zero point in doing that, so...

I would really like a group reaction from the Young Samurai and the enemy soldiers at a white wolf jumping in and setting everyone ablaze with pyromancy out of nowhere. That's got to warrant an advanced level "NANI?!"

Unfortunately, there is one last crowd of exceedingly brave soldiers who after seeing a samurai effortlessly cut down one group and a dog set another group on fire still see fit to carry out their mission. I can respect their dedication.

May they rest well in the afterlife.

Tune in next time as we kick off something resembling a plot and see why the hell Young Swordsman is being attacked by random army stormtroopers in the dead of night in a warehouse district as Disc 2 of Shadow Hearts 2 gets underway.

Video: Episode 79 Highlight Reel (You should watch the disc opening.)

Yokohama Brick Warehouse Concept Art - Much nicer than that trash wood warehouse district.

The Dark Id fucked around with this message at 16:39 on Jan 27, 2021

# ? Mar 29, 2020 23:28

Shitenshi: Mar 12, 2013

Move over Lassie, Blanca is truly the best boy.

# ? Mar 29, 2020 23:56

Schwartzcough: Aug 12, 2009; Don't tease the Octopus, kids!

You know, Blanca was a little short on information to decide that he should help this guy murder a bunch of soldiers. This guy could be a Sephiroth, burning down towns, for all he knows.

# ? Mar 30, 2020 00:36

DukeofCA: Aug 18, 2011; I am shocked and appalled.

Blanca would never make such a grievous error in character judgement.

Edit: I'm going to go ahead and toot my own horn for that post/avatar combo.

# ? Mar 30, 2020 00:39

achtungnight: Oct 5, 2014; I get my fun here. Enjoy!

I was just thinking it�s a real pity Shadow Hearts never got to WW2. I would love to see what they�d do with Japan of that era. Never mind the Nazis.

# ? Mar 30, 2020 00:56

Mokinokaro: Sep 11, 2001; At the end of everything, hold onto anything; Fun Shoe

achtungnight posted:

I was just thinking it�s a real pity Shadow Hearts never got to WW2. I would love to see what they�d do with Japan of that era. Never mind the Nazis.

Even before that, they could've done some interesting stuff with the great depression and malice, but FtNW takes place in the roaring twenties.

# ? Mar 30, 2020 01:13

Junpei: Oct 4, 2015; Can't post for 11 years!

Holy crap, Young Swordsman holds his sword like Tanjiro! I was on the money! (<-- has played the game and is joking)

# ? Mar 30, 2020 02:01

CmdrKing: Oct 14, 2012; Maybe if I called it 'Interpretive Stabbing'...

Mokinokaro posted:

Even before that, they could've done some interesting stuff with the great depression and malice, but FtNW takes place in the roaring twenties.

If I'm not mistaken it's specifically set in 1929 so I would not be surprised if a hypothetical 1930s game made that connection.

# ? Mar 30, 2020 02:05

Zereth: Jul 9, 2003

Schwartzcough posted:

You know, Blanca was a little short on information to decide that he should help this guy murder a bunch of soldiers. This guy could be a Sephiroth, burning down towns, for all he knows.

Yes, but they're Imperial Japan towns.

# ? Mar 30, 2020 02:31

Crowetron: Apr 29, 2009

# ? Mar 30, 2020 05:08

BioMe: Aug 9, 2012

Good thing the redhead actually cares about his well-being, otherwise it'd be just his dog and he'd be some kind of loser.

# ? Mar 30, 2020 10:07

kw0134: Apr 19, 2003; I buy feet pics🍆

Crowetron posted:

You give a wolf a kimono and now he thinks he's a native, typical weeb

# ? Mar 30, 2020 14:15

Hwurmp: May 20, 2005

If he gets any worse he'll try to wear it with his three-human-moon shirts.

# ? Mar 30, 2020 15:23

Supersonic Shine: Oct 13, 2012

Oh, drat, I missed out on a lot, and by a lot I mean whatever the gently caress Rasputin turned into. Not even imperialist regimes should mess with a Wolf Bout champion.

# ? Apr 1, 2020 00:35

Zagglezig: Oct 16, 2012

I can't remember, is Roger just immune to dying from old age or would he be fine if one of the bears got to him?
Granted, this is Shadow Hearts, it would be a demon ghost bear that ate too many lost hikers and would hold him for information/ritual.

The Dark Id posted:

not like that's a big deal worthy of pursing all the way to Japan

"pursuing" I assume?

# ? Apr 1, 2020 01:27

Tylana: May 5, 2011; Pillbug

Zagglezig posted:

I can't remember, is Roger just immune to dying from old age or would he be fine if one of the bears got to him?
Granted, this is Shadow Hearts, it would be a demon ghost bear that ate too many lost hikers and would hold him for information/ritual.

Whichever is funnier at the time.

# ? Apr 1, 2020 01:34

OminousEdge: Apr 4, 2013

Zagglezig posted:

I can't remember, is Roger just immune to dying from old age or would he be fine if one of the bears got to him?
Granted, this is Shadow Hearts, it would be a demon ghost bear that ate too many lost hikers and would hold him for information/ritual.

"pursuing" I assume?

Considering Roger got teleported to the moon, survived the vaccuum of space and reentry to the Earth, I think he is full on Immorta;

# ? Apr 1, 2020 04:46

Commander Keene: Dec 21, 2016; Faster than the others

I agree that Shadow Hearts seems to run entirely on cartoon logic at this point, and the answer to the question of "how immortal is Roger?" is "depends on how funny/cool the choices are".

# ? Apr 1, 2020 07:29

The Dark Id: Aug 13, 2005; Why
you
know
I
LOVE
THIS SHIT !!!!
[citation needed]

Episode LXXX: Wrong Neighborhood

Music: Crisis

There's no time to explain why Young Swordsman is being attacked by a platoon of random stormtroopers. Besides, it's unlikely he can speak Awroo for Blanca to even ask.

Young Swordsman has taken the party leader duty from Blanca. Before we proceed, let's take a look at his profile and kit.

So this is our Light elemental character apparently. Interestingly he has zero MP and cannot even equip Crest Magic, much like Yuri. Well, at least he is auto-leveled to be comparable to our mainline team when he's inevitably a mandatory party member beyond this introduction.

His weapons of choice are, of course, katanas.

And he's wearing his big boy tunic.

Accessory wise he comes with the current best in headgear in the form of the +8 Physical and +3 Special Defense Kendo Mask.

DEFINITELY a man's garment which provides +8 Physical and +3 Special Attack power. Everyone knows you hit harder when your junk is guarded. That's just science.

We are now given the free rein of exploring the Brick Warehouses. There are active random battles but it's just those Akagi Soldier mooks that we've already dispatched a dozen with ease. To progress, we have to head to the southwestern tip of the district. But we can pop into a couple of warehouses to do some light looting.

Not even in Disc 2 can we escape the looming threat of the lottery.

We also can pilfer a returning accessory from the previous title. The Small Jug boosts both Physical and Special Attack AND Defense by +10 but it doubles the SP loss per round. That could maybe be useful taking on random battles but beyond that... ehh...

Doubling back the way we came and looting a chest on the opposite side of the warehouse where the party is still squatting for the night we can uncover our first Magic Crest of Disc 2. I think Gale Spike is a new attack. So that already makes it more impressive than the last dozen crests we've obtained.

Heading to the southwestern end of the warehouses leads us to a save point and one last chest we can pillage.

That's quite the process for a nail file creation. This is a new weapon for Blanca which yields +104 Physical and +106 Special Attack. We'll equip that on our good boy straight away. A free weapon upgrade is always a welcome sight. Anyway, let's head south of this save point where we find...

Music: Deep in Coma ~ Battle in Japan

It's just another set of the same exact enemies we've been fighting this entire sequence. Guns are no match against a teenager with a sword and a wolf that can shoot fireballs and ghosts.

Music: ENDS

Obligatory post-battle pose.

So, is it over?

Yes.

They all do appear to be quite dead.
That was my aim.

It's all right. Kurando has removed the threat of the bandits.

They're just sleeping now, dear. Even the ones without an intact head.

<nods> Uh-huh.

The girl runs over to ~~Young Swordsman~~ Kurando.

Are you hurt?

I'm fine, Princess.

Nothing a Thera Leaf won't patch up.

<nods>

Kurando, who is this?

I don't know. He just appeared out of nowhere to help me out.

They just jumped in and immolated a whole group of those attacks. I admit I was somewhat startled.

An unusual benefactor, I'd say. He certainly does look like a smart one!

Yes.

Thank you.

Grrr! Awroo, awroo! (Don't worry. It was nothing.)

Awroo, awroo... (It was either this or enduring the stench of the humans I'm traveling with.)

What's your name, boy?

Awroo, awroo! (Just call me Blanca the Whirlwind.)

Awroo, awroo. (Everyone back west calls me that.)

Okay... You're white, so I'll call you Snowball!

<whimpers and shakes head> Awroo!! (What are you saying?!)

I think he likes it.

<nods> Yeah!

Awroo! (Wrong!)

My enemies must be impatient if they send their assassins here, don't you think so?

In my day you would at least have the courtesy to wait until morning to do an attempted hit. The state of things today...

You should be careful. Our enemies will try to strike at you while you're away from the capital you'll be vulnerable.

I think we're safe enough, after all. We've got you. Isn't that right?

<nods> Yeah!

Do try not to wander several blocks away again.
Even I cannot resist the call of nature and its toll.

Still! How very rude of them! They could at least let a man visit a graveyard in peace. Hehehe.

Hehehe.

Sir, you do know we are in the middle of the warehouse district...
I like to take the scenic route. And go for walks at midnight.
...Indeed.

Well, shall we go? The inn is just over there.

Just another three kilometers or so in that direction.

Yes.

The old man and the girl walk off.

You have my gratitude for saving us. <stands up and follows the others>

Grrr! Awroo! (Well, instead of that...)

Awroo... Awroo... (Directions to an inn would be nice. My friends and I are squatting on the floor in an abandoned warehouse...)

Well, I'm sure we'll never seen this group again after this chance meeting. It's just Blanca having a weird evening stroll where he bumps into a politician and his young daughter wandering through the seedy warehouse district in the dead of night with their samurai bodyguard. This poo poo just happens in Shadow Hearts. Don't worry about it.

Blanca goes to leave and notices the girl dropped her comb.

This is a Blanca only accessory that grants +2 to Physical/Special Power and defense. It also basically auto-casts Gale on Blanca if he dips to critical health. It is also maybe an excuse to seek out Kurando and his employers at a later date to return the comb.

But that's a task for another day. Let's head back to our squatter's base and see if Yuri has died next time on Shadow Hearts: Covenant.

Video: Episode 80 Cutscene

Kurando Inugami Concept Art - At some point, we're gonna need to inquire why there are so many red-eyed Japanese people running around.

# ? Apr 2, 2020 21:00

achtungnight: Oct 5, 2014; I get my fun here. Enjoy!

Hmm, Kurando seems like an interesting character, as do his master and that master�s daughter. Too bad we�re never going to see them again.

# ? Apr 2, 2020 23:58

Tuxedo Ted: Apr 24, 2007

It sure is weird when games waste so much art assets on randos you only meet once.

That small jug, though? It never leaves Joachim's side once I find it. May as well use that bloated vampire SP total for something.

# ? Apr 3, 2020 00:35

Zagglezig: Oct 16, 2012

I could be wrong, but seeing the art made me realize it's a bit odd to see a samurai character doing the kimono and pants look while not having bare arms and hands. Feels like usually it's the full kit or nothing when it comes to armor on samurai.

The Dark Id posted:

jumped in and immolated a whole group of those attacks.

Our enemies will try to strike at you while you're away from the capital you'll be vulnerable.

First I assume is "attackers".
Second is an odd duck. The text you've got fits the spoken dialogue with the added bit at the end, but the punctuation of the subtitles. Keeping mostly as is, I think it's "Our enemies will try to strike at you. While you're away from the capital you'll be vulnerable."

# ? Apr 3, 2020 02:10

Shitenshi: Mar 12, 2013

The real question here is not how Kurando can beat armed gunmen with only a blade, but whether in the inevitable weeb contest with Karin, will it be the European sword or the Japanese katana that will prove superior?

Shitenshi fucked around with this message at 07:37 on Apr 3, 2020

# ? Apr 3, 2020 07:17

Ratoslov: Feb 15, 2012; Now prepare yourselves! You're the guests of honor at the Greatest Kung Fu Cannibal BBQ Ever!

Shitenshi posted:

The real question here is not how Kurando can beat armed gunmen with only a blade, but whether in the inevitable weeb contest with Karin, will it be the European sword or the Japanese katana that will prove superior?

They kiss. Sorry, Yuri.

# ? Apr 3, 2020 08:56

kw0134: Apr 19, 2003; I buy feet pics🍆

Is this even a question? It's a Japanese RPG made in the early 2000s. Both weapons will be identical and they'll be beaten by Joachim's latest find, a length of deck railing from the sunken Titanic.

# ? Apr 3, 2020 17:31

Shei-kun: Dec 2, 2011; Screw you, physics!

kw0134 posted:

Is this even a question? It's a Japanese RPG made in the early 2000s. Both weapons will be identical and they'll be beaten by Joachim's latest find, a length of deck railing from the sunken Titanic.

Silly, it'll be the actual Titanic. Joachim won't settle for a mere railing.

# ? Apr 4, 2020 08:28

Sterski: Jun 30, 2014

Kurando sounds like engrish but... not

# ? Apr 4, 2020 10:13

ultrafilter: Aug 23, 2007; It's okay if you have any questions.

Shei-kun posted:

Silly, it'll be the actual Titanic. Joachim won't settle for a mere railing.

Actual spoiler: You're not as far off as you might think.

# ? Apr 4, 2020 16:16

Shei-kun: Dec 2, 2011; Screw you, physics!

ultrafilter posted:

Actual spoiler: You're not as far off as you might think.

I knew poo poo got ridiculous but goddrat

# ? Apr 6, 2020 06:16

Slowflake: Aug 18, 2010

The Dark Id posted:

We also can pilfer a returning accessory from the previous title. The Small Jug boosts both Physical and Special Attack AND Defense by +10 but it doubles the SP loss per round. That could maybe be useful taking on random battles but beyond that... ehh...

"I remember how my great-uncle Jerry would sit on the porch and ~~whittle~~ blow glass all day long. Once he ~~whittled~~ made me a ~~toy boat~~ Small Jug out of a larger ~~toy boat~~ jug I had. It was almost as good as the first one, except now it had bumpy ~~whittle~~ marks all over it. And no paint, because he had ~~whittled~~ burned off the paint. No paint." -- Deep Thoughts by Jack Handy

# ? Apr 6, 2020 17:41

Zereth: Jul 9, 2003

I think that's ceramic.

# ? Apr 7, 2020 16:05

The Dark Id: Aug 13, 2005; Why
you
know
I
LOVE
THIS SHIT !!!!
[citation needed]

Episode LXXXI: A Rough Morning

Music: Rising Sun ~ Japanese Town

It seems while Blanca was having his nighttime adventures befriending random samurai and taking on Japanese stormtroopers, Yuri has recovered from his chronic case of seasickness and is back in action. We can now chat up everyone, outside of Blanca, who is still out hitting the town early.

I only threw up in my mouth a little bit recently.
That is... still not great.

So is Yokohama the capital of Japan? You know me and geography.
Nope. That's Tokyo.
Then what information are we possibly going to get here? Kato said he was going back to the capital.
Ehh... you know how these things usually work themselves out.
...That's fair.

Darn. I owe Gepetto 20 Cash after I bet you would die.
...Thanks for the vote of confidence.

Yeah, heaven forbid we're stuck in another brown building for an extended length of time. That'd really be a morale dampener here.

I like that we just took the twelve-year-old with us to Japan without ever going back to her parents to confirm Rasputin is dead and she's and her family are fine. That's a responsible thing to do. Anyhow, if Yuri tries to leave the warehouse...

Yeah... He came back late last night carrying something...

Yeah, that's right. A comb or something.

What does a wolf need with a comb?

I know he's furry and all but I don't think his paws can work something like that very well.

Good point.

Maybe it was for his girlfriend!

What?! No way!

......

How long was I out that Blanca already hooked up with some Japanese wolf?
How do you know it's a wolf?
...I am not going to entertain that question.

Yokohama Brick Warehouses are no longer a hostile area and is now populated with NPCs we can chat up and a handful of side diversions we can investigate before moving on to Yokohama proper.

In the middle of a run-down warehouse district?
I think it has a certain charming aesthetic to it.
Yeah, if I wanted a coffee and to get mugged.
Some people like that kind of thing.
I was hoping Japan would be less eccentric... I should have known better.

We can return to the warehouses from earlier and chat with some more vagabonds. They just let people hang out in them at their leisure like rent-free flophouses, apparently.

Some people hate war, and some people make money from it...

I mostly make Cash from punching monsters, so that checks out.

I suppose we are going to have to make new arrangements for sales as we left Pierre and Gerald behind in Europe. Secret Dealer Kensuke is running the shop DANGEROUS TOYS and is offering us his wares in their place. He is selling new weapons and armor for the entire party and we are going to upgrade everyone. Yes, even Lucia and Gepetto. Well, Karin isn't getting anything since she just stole Nicolai's sword at the end of the previous disc, Blanca just got a free upgrade and Joachim will acquire something shortly by... other means. But we do need everyone up to snuff for a change.

The claw of a tiger-like creature that pretends to be a cat? Doesn't that just make it a tiny tiger...? Whatever. It has +111 Physical and +98 Special Attack.

I'm afraid I will have to shoot the Easter Bunny if he wanders onto my property this year. I am very serious about social distancing. But aside from that, this has +99 Physical and +110 Special Attack power. Despite the description, there is no Fire elemental affinity.

Festoon. Verb. Adorn (a place) with ribbons, garlands, or other decorations. OK, then. That was not a word I was familiar with... But it does give +98 Physical and +111 Special Attack. Though the only one shot, one kill she'll ever do with this is if she screws up another Tarot Card session.

Oh boy, Cornelia can become a real girl... and get completely skeeved out by the whole dress-up thing she has going on. +96 Physical and +113 Special Attack Power.

This is the male character only newest version of armor with +99 Physical and +90 Special Defense.

And this is the female-only version with +92 Physical and +97 Special Defense.

At the bottom of the Dangerous Toys shop list we have two unique items we'll also be picking up.

Another Crest added to the pile. At least this one has some new defensive abilities.

Secondly, we have a Raccoon Friend. A black market Raccoon Friend. We'll have a use for this shortly but not quite yet.

There's a second warehouse south of the first one which also holds a few items of interest.

There ain't nothing wrong with day drinking nowadays, friend.

It's not all imports, you know! Don't forget all the mountains of silk being exported!

Maybe the people in here aren't the most interesting lot. But you know what is? That's oddly out of place pillar discarded in the back of the warehouse. This wasn't here last night... Hmm.

Music: Gathering God ~ Thrill

<folds arms> Hmm. Nice pillar...

Yup, it's a big pillar. A great big, huge pillar. Not something you usually see lying around...

Maybe they renovated the place recently? Ehh... Nah, this joint looks pretty run dow�
......
...You're just going to steal this pillar and start hitting people with it, aren't you?

This pillar supported the structure of a house for generations, and now its role as a support is over... It bears the notches the children made over the years to record their height, like badges of honor...

Looks like he wants that pillar, huh?

Looks like it...

What will become of the fish trapped in frozen stasis? Eh. I'm sure a random vendor will take it off our hands for a price. Anyhow, Joachim's next bludgeon upgrade grants him +113 Physical and +96 Special Power.

What ever happened to that young daughter who left home that day so long ago, hoping to become a singer...?

Oh the young lad who fell into an illicit underground cage fighting circuit? Or the wayward father who fell to the temptation of the Satsui no Hado?

Who is he talking about?

Just let him ramble. It's fine... At least he's not stealing anything that might get us heat this time.

Joachim walks off with the Giant Pillar.

I think he's a lot of things.
Where did you find that guy...?
He was pretending to be a neighborhood superhero back in France and the local mob hired us to beat him up. And things just kind of fell into place...
......

Music: Rising Sun ~ Japanese Town

There are only a few more characters wandering around the area and they don't have the most interesting business to discuss. But just cover everything, let's jabber with the last of them. Perhaps one has something we need...

My friends and I stowed away into town on a ship.
Yeah, immigration is not my department. Carry on.

Why did they build number one last?

Japan is a mysterious land.

<reveals himself to be Lottery Member 9> And I've got the lottery to worry about, as well! Looks like that's why you're here, right?

Well, I wasn't before. But now...

What else?!

It's our first Lottery Member of Disc 2. As long as you don't count that ghost fella back in the Fort of Regrets we did way the hell early. There are no gimmicks with this guy. It's just a straight forward Lottery Ring spin.

Nice job! Here, take your prize! Okay, I've gotta get back to work. See ya again sometime!

The top prize is the Huge Jug which is the opposite of the Small Jug we obtained back with Kurando and Blanca's brief adventure. This halves Sanity Point loss but at the cost of -10 Physical/Special Attack and Defense. Which... I cannot think of a single use for... Unless you really want to get crunked with sake every morning and save some Cash in the process. But for our purposes, that is not really going to help. I also went and grabbed that Mirror Bracelet too. That's a useful accessory and it's not like we're wanting for more Lottery Tickets.

With that, our time in the Brick Warehouses is at a close. We're now free to travel to the south and exit the area.

Music: Grey Memories ~ Map of Japan

This opens up the second region of Yokohama -- Yokohama Streets. I see no reason to delay entering the city proper.

Music: ENDS

Oh, he's here! He's here!

What's he doing?

Can't anyone in this party just be normal for a change?
You were out of commission with seasickness three days after we got off the boat.
Hey, that's a medical condition and cannot be helped, alright?
Citation needed.
Shuddup!

<waves arms> Blanca!!

Awroo.

<turns the other way> ??

<waves> Snowball!

Awroo! (Good morning!)

Awroo... Awroo... (Oh, crud... They're going to hear her call me Snowball...)

Music: Flame of Strain to Blaze ~ Tension

The morning meeting of assorted parties is interrupted by a black car peeling to a stop in front of the young princess. I'm sure they're just in a hurry.

<runs toward the scene> Awroo!! (What the...?!)

<runs in to help> Princess!!

Or it's an abduction, with the guy riding shotgun unloading deadly cutscene bullets in Kurando's direction. That's a way to get your morning started with a jolt.

Huh?!

<looks at Karin> Look out!

Blanca attempts to attack but is warded off by gunfire while Yuri dives in to push Karin out of the way of stray bullets. Hell of a way to start the day after nearly dying from seasickness.

S-stop...

Tune in next time as Yuri and the gang figure out what the flying hell they just got themselves into and maybe the beginning of a Disc 2's plot begins to manifest beyond random soldiers attacking a teenage samurai and a child as Shadow Hearts 2 continues!

Video: Episode 81 Cutscene (Aim as good as Star Wars Stormtroopers.)

# ? Apr 9, 2020 01:16

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# ? May 25, 2024 17:46

Junpei: Oct 4, 2015; Can't post for 11 years!

Randomly kidnapping a preteen girl?

We really are dealing with a Taisho-era version of Shocker.

# ? Apr 9, 2020 01:59

The Something Awful Forums > Archives > Comedy Goldmine > The Goodmine > Shadow Hearts: Covenant - Reach Out and Punch Someone

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