Register a SA Forums Account here!
JOINING THE SA FORUMS WILL REMOVE THIS BIG AD, THE ANNOYING UNDERLINED ADS, AND STUPID INTERSTITIAL ADS!!!

You can: log in, read the tech support FAQ, or request your lost password. This dumb message (and those ads) will appear on every screen until you register! Get rid of this crap by registering your own SA Forums Account and joining roughly 150,000 Goons, for the one-time price of $9.95! We charge money because it costs us money per month for bills, and since we don't believe in showing ads to our users, we try to make the money back through forum registrations.
 
  • Locked thread
Haifisch
Nov 13, 2010

Objection! I object! That was... objectionable!



Taco Defender


What's a Rune Factory?
It's a spinoff of Harvest Moon, but it added combat before Stardew Valley made Harvest Moon+Combat cool. The tl;dr for people who don't recognize any of those games is "you farm, you fight things, you date an anime girl or five". Rune Factory adds "saving the world with your amnesiac protagonist at some point" to the list.

So what's this one about?
Rune Factory 3 is the third game in the main Rune Factory series, the last one on the DS, and the first one that's actually pretty fun to play. It and RF4 are the ones I'd recommend playing if you're curious about the series but enjoy things like "quality of life improvements" and "game mechanics that aren't poo poo."

RF3 is notable for taking RF's typical insane villagers and dialing it up to 11. Yes, even worse than the ones in RF4. You've been warned.

Do I need to know the story of past RFs to understand what's going on?
Nope! That said, there's an LP of RF1 here for those curious to see how much better the RF series got since its inception. I don't think there's ever been an LP of RF2(LordHippoman started one here!), but there are two LPs of RF4 as well.

Spoilers?
Tag them, please.

Voting?
Yes, we'll be doing the usual voting on names & bachelorettes when the time comes.


Update List:
Tutorials & Trees
Introductions, Part 1
Introductions, Part 2
Introductions, Part 3
Tutorial Quests R Us
Fishing Fun
Sharance's Mean Bean Machine
Inn Quests
Bath Census
Tea Delivery
Errand Boy
That's So Raven
The Golden Fleece
It's Not Easy Being Green
Stone Cold Sheep Austin
Baa Humbug
Sweet & Sour
A Link to the Past
A Walking Malpractice Suit
...
Summertime Madness
An Apple A Day
City Dreams
The Rose Prince
Your Bath Needs You
I'm Not Lion
Defrost
Ace Detective
Rainbow Tour
Something Fishy
Just Eat It
Flea Market
Lazy Summer Days
Omurice At Last
Love & Colds In The Air
Hit By A Plot Truck
Changing Hearts With Pretty Flowers
It's Fall Or Something
Speed Dating
Iron Chef Sharance
Just Eat It
Labyrinth
Bouquet Complete
Unity Festival
Vicious Lies
Happy Birthday to Link
The Densest Element Known To Mankind
Someone Even Dumber Than Link
Univir Errands
Bakery Quest
Mushroom Mushroom
Stating the Obvious
Insert Fall Pun Here
Getting Hitched
The Road To Ruins
Age of Aquaticus
Playing Cupid
Drifting Along
Pia Bomb
The End

Haifisch fucked around with this message at 02:19 on Jun 21, 2018

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Haifisch
Nov 13, 2010

Objection! I object! That was... objectionable!



Taco Defender
Tutorials & Trees

Intro video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5weD6fKOXSY
(The main character can turn into a sheep monster. I'm not considering this spoilers because the game makes no effort to hide it either.)


Let's get this show on the road.


It's raining.


Specifically, it's raining sheep.



What are you doing all the way out here in town...?
Oh no...it looks like you're hurt...don't worry...I'll take care of you...

Mystery girl drags mystery sheep inside, which doesn't escape the notice of this old guy.



Yes, it is.
What's it doing in my house?!
He's hurt! I need to help him!
Well, you coulda done that somewhere else! What'd you go drag it in here for?!
So I should've just left him outside in the rain? Anyway, I'll take care of him myself. I won't let him bother you.


And so he gets dragged upstairs, because she's apparently never heard of carrying.

There you go. You should be okay for the night.

The night passes, and one flash of light later...



Wait! Where the heck am I?!



Hmm? Who's that?



...



I don't usually see you around here by the tree.
...
Oh! Hello there! I don't believe we've met. What's your name?
Huh? My name...? ...
Is something wrong?
Yes...I can't remember my name.
You can't remember your name? Why not?
I...I can't remember who I am...my name...where I'm from...
Do you mean you have amnesia?!


The game tends to put sweatdrops/anger marks/question marks/etc over the sprites to get away with a smaller number of facial expressions add context. It's usually not a big thing.

Oh no! What should we do?! Wait! I've got an idea! Raven, could I ask you for a favor?
A favor...?
Yes. I'll explain in a bit.



How about...



Micah is the default name. We'll stick with that for now, since there's one other thing to name coming up semi-soon.



Oh! What an intrepid name!

I don't think you know what that word means.

Intrepid...I...I don't know about that...
Now, Raven, about that favor. Could you take Micah to the Sharance Tree?
What? Me?
Yes, you. Could you do that as a favor to me?
...okay...
Tee-hee...thank you very much, Raven. Well then, I'm going to go back to my house to see my grandfather. I'll come by to see you in a bit, Micah.
All right.



This way...
Um, I guess I should follow her...





: Wow, what a huge tree!


The top screen now has a map and some other info on it. Most of it is self-explanatory. The SP is just the season indicator for Spring. In the grand tradition of Harvest Moon-alikes, each season lasts a month, and each month is 30 days.

But enough about that, let's start exploring.


Spoilsport.





This is amazing! I can't believe it!
...



Yes. My work is done.
Why did you bring me here?
I was asked to. Now that I've done so, I'm leaving.
*pant pant* Sorry for making you wait, Micah!
Don't worry about it! I wasn't waiting long!



It's very...unique. I've never seen a house inside of a tree before.
Great! This is where you're going to be staying, so I'm glad you like it!
Yeah, since I'll be staying here, it's a...wait, what?! Staying here? What are you talking about?!
Oh? Didn't I say? You're going to be living here now, Micah!
Wait, when did we decide that?! I don't remember that conversation!

A pretty reasonable reaction to "yeah, I've unilaterally decided you're living here now". We don't know who this girl is, whether we can trust her, or what the mortgage payment is on this literal tree house.

Exactly! There's a lot of things you don't remember! You don't even know who you are, or what you're doing here!
Yeah, I guess you've got a point there...
Also, I think that there must be a reason you ended up in this town, Micah.
A reason?


I kind of doubt that.

A-anyway, are you sure I can really live here?
Of course! I even got permission from my grandpa!
Your grandpa?
Yes! My grandpa is the mayor of this town! So don't worry about it, and make yourself at home!
Thank you very much.
Oh, I'm Shara, by the way. And that's Raven over there. Let me welcome you to the town of Sharance.
Nice to meet you...
Nice to meet you too, Raven!

For the record, I'm cutting out at least half the ellipses the game is throwing at me. I'm leaving in most of Raven's because they fit her :spergin: dialogue.


Nah, let's not, I can do it in a tenth of the time you will. There's a chest we can shove items and tools in, a fridge we can shove edibles in, an empty space where we can install a kitchen counter to cook with, a diary we can save in, a bed we can sleep in, and a calendar to track festival dates & birthdays. (With Shara not-so-subtly telling us about her & Raven's birthdays, Spring 11th and Spring 29th respectively)



Let's go downstairs next.
Hm? What's downstairs?
You'll see.



Please, after you.




So are you guys importing all your food right now? Because it looks like your lazy asses haven't been farming at all.

Only under this tree, huh?
Yes! The fields are a little overgrown, but you can consider cleaning them up as part of your rent!
Uh, it looks like that's going to take a while...


See? This is why you don't trust random girls insisting you should move into a suspiciously empty tree house.



Thanks!
Both of those items should come in handy. Also, since we're here, why don't you try tilling the field some?
Sure.




Eek! It's a monster!
Get back, you two!



Shara! Do you have any weapons?



Please defeat that orc!
Leave it to me!


Orcs are not exactly strong enemies, even outside the tutorial. If I wasn't fumbling around with screenshots I wouldn't have taken much damage at all.



That was incredible!



Yeah, I feel bad too...but what's this "Forest of Beginnings" you're talking about?
Oh! Well, I've only read about it in books, so I don't know the full details, but it's supposed to be a world where only monsters live.
So when you defeat a monster, they return to the Forest of Beginnings?
Yes. The tools and weapons we use are imbued with magic. This magic allows us to send the monsters back to the Forest of Beginnings unharmed.

Except for the various body parts they drop for use in crafting recipes. But other than that, 100% unharmed!

Is that right?



Shara, go somewhere safe!
Okay!




These are all our weapon choices; I'll explain them as I show them off later. For now, I take the hammer.




That doesn't seem very safe. Unless you're trying to break Micah's legs.


You saw that already in one of the hoe screenshots. Spam B, attack faster, yadda yadda.


Again, not super hard other than me wasting time grabbing screenshots. In the future I'll just record video and take battle screenshots from that.



Micah. Thanks for the weapon! Who are you?
I'm Gaius. You're pretty strong.
Thanks!
Heh, you should thank Raven. She came to get me when she saw the monsters.
Oh, is that right? Thank you, Raven!
...
Um, did I do something wrong?
Don't worry about it. That's just the way Raven is. Anyway, I'm going to head back to work. I work at the weapon shop in town. Feel free to stop by. See ya later, then.
Thank you very much, Gaius!



No, I'm fine.
Still, I can't believe those monsters attacked all of a sudden...
Does that happen a lot around here?
No...quite the opposite, in fact. The monsters around here are mostly gentle. But lately, I've heard rumors of violent monsters attacking people. Maybe there's a connection...



You think so?
Yes! I was surprised, actually! Those monsters looked pretty strong!


This decides whether we play normal or hard mode, although it can be changed later. I stick with normal for now.



Thank you very much.
Well, you're good with a weapon, but how about farm tools?


Mercifully, this is one tutorial we can skip. For those unfamiliar with Harvest Moon-alikes: Use hoe on soil. Plant seed in soil. Water seed until full grown crop emerges. Repeat to earn more money.


Seriously, it's fine, I can do this.

: Anyway, these are for you, Micah. Here are some seeds and money.


These are flower seeds. Tradition says you're supposed to give me turnip seeds. Are you even trying, Shara?

Thank you very much!
Open the pause menu to view the seeds you got. Just press Start to open the pause menu.
Press Start to open the pause menu! Got it! I'll try it later!
Oh! I almost forgot!
What?
I forgot to explain RP.
RP?
Yes, it's very important. On the Touch Screen, there are two bars, HP and RP, in the upper left corner.



I don't see anything there.
You just can't see them now! You'll be able to see them once we've finished talking!



When you use tools, you will use up RP. RP is your Rune Points, the energy of your body! If you run out of RP, then your HP will go down. HP is your Hit Points. When your HP runs out, you'll faint. Working hard is good, but don't work so hard that you pass out!
Got it!
Well then, let's choose a name for your farm now.
A name for the farm? You mean I get to name it?
Yes, of course. This is your home now, after all!
Okay, I'll name it...


Sharance is the default name, which coincidentally hits the character limit of 8. But we can do better than that! Probably.


:siren: It's voting time! :siren: Pick a name for our protagonist and our farm.

Haifisch fucked around with this message at 17:58 on Jun 22, 2018

Zanzibar Ham
Mar 17, 2009

You giving me the cold shoulder? How cruel.


Grimey Drawer
Hey, the only Rune Factory I own! I had a surprisingly monetarily successful run going on around when the last LP attempt at this game was made, but that save file lies forgotten now that Stardew Valley's around.

Anywho, call the protagonist Cena for... reasons. And The Lucha Farm.

Dr Pepper
Feb 4, 2012

Don't like it? well...

Hope you do better then I did. (Though I am tempted to go back to it one day if I can get a text dump, I liked my light narrative style LP).

As for a name, Link for Lon Lon Ranch

LordHippoman
May 30, 2013

I, frankly, want this smug Jagen to be my avatar on all forms of social media immediately.
I saw that Tutorial Orc drop a Cloth for you already. This is a good omen, clearly.

I also like Link and Lon Lon Ranch, because Zelda's cool and apparently so is this game, though I haven't played outside the tutorial.

Chimera-gui
Mar 20, 2014

Dr Pepper posted:

As for a name, Link for Lon Lon Ranch

Seconding this.

Zanzibar Ham
Mar 17, 2009

You giving me the cold shoulder? How cruel.


Grimey Drawer
I'd change my vote to Link, except Link doesn't talk. :colbert:

Araxxor
Oct 20, 2012

My disdain for you all knows no bounds.
Now I'm curious as to how janky Rune Factory 2 is.

As for names, I'd say Shaun just got through a close Shave. :v:

Dr Pepper posted:

Hope you do better then I did. (Though I am tempted to go back to it one day if I can get a text dump, I liked my light narrative style LP).

As for a name, Link for Lon Lon Ranch

Unfortunately. there doesn't seem to be one out there yet (and pulling one out from the game itself doesn't seem like it'll be easy, since none of the files in there are labeled.)

hopeandjoy
Nov 28, 2014



Dr. Fetus posted:

As for names, I'd say Shaun just got through a close Shave. :v:

The most obvious choice, but one I second.

KataraniSword
Apr 22, 2008

but at least I don't have
a MLP or MSPA avatar.
I am my own man.

Dr. Fetus posted:

Now I'm curious as to how janky Rune Factory 2 is.

The short answer: Relatively less janky than Rune Factory 1 but far more janky than 3. The generation mechanic in that game makes things really stilted in a lot of ways with regards to crafting and difficulty curve, and they definitely hadn't made enough of a leap in writing quality to have very memorable characters.

The long answer: I mentioned a generation mechanic; in RF2 you play the first half (well, more like half-to-third) of the game as Kyle, the red-headed dork on all the promo materials, and then after you're married and have a kid, plot happens and suddenly you timeskip ten years or so and you're playing as the kid.

This is an interesting way of handling the story, except for one wrinkle: all of your crafting stations are inside the school you attend as the kid protag. In addition, there's no helpful blacksmith character to upgrade your tools like in RF1 or RF3. You literally do not have access to any way to improve your tools or equipment until you've already bum-rushed through the entirety of the first part of the game. The game compensates for this by making all of the dungeons in the first part of the game piss-easy, as in "can beat without trying" levels of easy, since the first part is mostly there to choose your "real" main character's mother and establish tone.

What this leads to is spending approximately forever in the first part of the game grinding monster drops and low-tier ores (you can only get up to silver or rarely gold without upgraded equipment, no matter how hard you try) and having to hoard it like a bad TLC show.

As for the vote, let's go with the boring defaults. Something about the naming in RF3 amuses me for all the wrong reasons. "This town is Sharance, home of the Sharance Tree! In the Sharance Tree is the Sharance Farm, and have you met my neighbor Shara?"

BlazeEmblem
Jun 8, 2013

Uh oh. Do I use Ariadne thread or Goho-M?

KataraniSword posted:

As for the vote, let's go with the boring defaults. Something about the naming in RF3 amuses me for all the wrong reasons. "This town is Sharance, home of the Sharance Tree! In the Sharance Tree is the Sharance Farm, and have you met my neighbor Shara?"

I'm also picking defaults, because this logic is exactly what the people of this town would think of.

CptWedgie
Jul 19, 2015

Dr Pepper posted:

Hope you do better then I did. (Though I am tempted to go back to it one day if I can get a text dump, I liked my light narrative style LP).

As for a name, Link for Lon Lon Ranch

Was considering suggesting stupid names for both until I saw this. Link and Lon Lon Ranch it is! Even better, the name justifies whatever odds and ends you decide to arm yourself with all on its own!

(For the record: Was considering something like Person of the Place Farm...)

Tallgeese
May 11, 2008

MAKE LOVE, NOT WAR


I like the defaults for this crazy game.

Araxxor
Oct 20, 2012

My disdain for you all knows no bounds.
Managed to extract all the text from Rune Factory 3.

Haifisch, If you don't have your hands on a text dump already, it should make transcription a lot easier. (Though there's a lot of special characters in there for denoting stuff like colored text and the like, so that'll have to be changed yourself.)

Should go without saying that there are spoilers in there. So don't click on it if you haven't played the game. Though good luck trying to figure out what's what in there without proper context. :v:

Haifisch
Nov 13, 2010

Objection! I object! That was... objectionable!



Taco Defender

Dr. Fetus posted:

Managed to extract all the text from Rune Factory 3.

Haifisch, If you don't have your hands on a text dump already, it should make transcription a lot easier. (Though there's a lot of special characters in there for denoting stuff like colored text and the like, so that'll have to be changed yourself.)

Should go without saying that there are spoilers in there. So don't click on it if you haven't played the game. Though good luck trying to figure out what's what in there without proper context. :v:
Thanks! This isn't the most text-heavy game I've LPed, but typing everything yourself does get a bit old after a while. :v:

And here's the current vote tally while I'm here:
Link/Lon Lon 4
Defaults(Micah/Sharance) 3
Shaun/Shave 2
Cena/Lucha 1

Voting will end around midnight CST.

idonotlikepeas
May 29, 2010

This reasoning is possible for forums user idonotlikepeas!

Dr Pepper posted:

Hope you do better then I did. (Though I am tempted to go back to it one day if I can get a text dump, I liked my light narrative style LP).

As for a name, Link for Lon Lon Ranch

Sure, Link and Lon Lon seem good.

I've only played 4 in this series. Which was pretty good, actually. I kept meaning to go back to the earlier ones; guess I'll see from this LP whether it's worth it!

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

AHHHHHHHHHHH! I love this game, its so much better than 4, entirely because of pretty much the only mechanic that 4 dropped. I wont let you live it down if you dont max every single villager's affection for said mechanic I'm avoiding because maybe its a spoiler? Idk, I'm bad at dealing with this stuff because it doesnt bother me at all, so warn me kindly if I say something I shouldnt have.
Go with Defaults since the names I use wont be voted on.

TooMuchAbstraction
Oct 14, 2012

I spent four years making
Waves of Steel
Hell yes I'm going to turn my avatar into an ad for it.
Fun Shoe
Toss another vote on the Link pile.

Rawkking
Sep 4, 2011
Shaun and Shave

Glazius
Jul 22, 2007

Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.

Clapping Larry
I don't know why it bugs me so much, but the whole "nope, no farms anywhere" thing, explicitly stated, is kind of weird. I mean... what do they eat?

LordHippoman
May 30, 2013

I, frankly, want this smug Jagen to be my avatar on all forms of social media immediately.

Glazius posted:

I don't know why it bugs me so much, but the whole "nope, no farms anywhere" thing, explicitly stated, is kind of weird. I mean... what do they eat?

Why do you think they took in the mysterious free sheep? They're probably pretty disappointed it turned out to be an anime man.

LordHippoman fucked around with this message at 04:55 on Mar 23, 2017

CptWedgie
Jul 19, 2015

Glazius posted:

I don't know why it bugs me so much, but the whole "nope, no farms anywhere" thing, explicitly stated, is kind of weird. I mean... what do they eat?

Cheese. Lots and lots of cheese. Probably fish and foraged plants and such, too.

Well, either that or eating is optional in this setting; that works too.

Haifisch
Nov 13, 2010

Objection! I object! That was... objectionable!



Taco Defender
Link/Lon Lon 6
Defaults(Micah/Sharance) 4
Shaun/Shave 3
Cena/Lucha 1

I'm calling it here. Looks like we're Link of the Lon Lon Farm.


Glazius posted:

I don't know why it bugs me so much, but the whole "nope, no farms anywhere" thing, explicitly stated, is kind of weird. I mean... what do they eat?
Don't Think Too Hard About It is practically the Rune Factory motto.

BlackPersona
Oct 21, 2012


Tossing in a vote for Defaults because I am boring.
e: Never mind, apparently :v:

This game was pretty fun, especially after the last two games. It found its niche pretty drat well with it here.

theshim
May 1, 2012

You think you can defeat ME, Ephraimcopter?!?

You couldn't even beat Assassincopter!!!
I recall the old LP of this. It left a few, let's say...colorful memories. Following with interest!

MightyPretenders
Feb 21, 2014

Glazius posted:

I don't know why it bugs me so much, but the whole "nope, no farms anywhere" thing, explicitly stated, is kind of weird. I mean... what do they eat?

They import things from the previous towns, is what we're probably meant to assume.

Haifisch
Nov 13, 2010

Objection! I object! That was... objectionable!



Taco Defender
Introductions, Part 1

Music: Spring


Link it is!


And what kind of Link would we be without a sword? Long Swords have high reach & relatively high damage, but attack slowly.


If you say so.

You think so?
Yes, I do! Anyway, please come by my house later, Link. I have more to tell you, but I need to set up my shop first.
Okay! I'll come see you later! Um, where is your house, by the way?
Well, if you go down from here, there will be three stores. The middle store is where I live, the flower shop. There are flowers all around it, so you should be able to tell which house is mine right away.
Okay!
By the way, I'm not being too overbearing, am I?

Yes, you are. Please go away and never talk to us again.

No! Of course not!
That's good to hear. Well, I'll be going then.
Okay! Thanks so much for everything!
It was my pleasure. Well, if you'll excuse me then.


Naturally, I'm going to avoid Shara as long as possible. This here is the shipping bin. Stuff gets tossed in it, money appears later.


Here's the inventory & status screen. Link's not much to look at now, but that'll change.


We start with two rune abilities. One is teleport, a convenience spell that instantly sends us back to a dungeon entrance, our home, or our room(depending on where we are when we cast it). The other is Transform, which does what it says here. The game is really, really not trying to hide the YOU CAN BECOME A SHEEP plot twist.


This is all that happens if we try to use it right now, though. We'll see it in action relatively soon.


This is the skill screen. There are skills for everything. We only have the walking skill right now, but as we do things we'll get skills for everything from farming to sleeping. Each skill raises a few stats, and skills directly applicable to an action tend to make you better at that action - combat skills increase damage and reduce RP consumption when you attack, cooking skill raises success rate in recipes, etc.


A listing of the various townspeople and their affection towards us. Each one has a blurb that I'll be listing along with their introduction. As for the ones we already have:

Raven: Likes to keep to herself, and doesn't interact much with other people. Has a warm side to her. Family: None.
Gaius: The town blacksmith. Loves forging weapons and items. A dwarf. Family: None.


Tilling, planting, and skilling happens.


I get a head start on clearing the field, and conveniently get actual vegetable seeds out of it. Pink Turnips are a basic spring crop - they grow quickly, but aren't worth a whole lot.


One handy feature of RF3 is the ability to stack like items as you pick them up. I get a couple more Pink Turnip seeds for my trouble.


Watering my plots may have been a waste of time - weather can change throughout the day, and it started raining. On the other hand, I got that sweet sweet xp for it, so I shouldn't complain too much.

Enough loving around. Let's explore the town.


Generic NPCs pop up & generally provide game mechanic tips or useless flavor text. They're also not what I'm out here for.


This interesting-looking place is directly to the right of the farm.


I warned you about the characters.

The bath's over there! C'mon in! The water's fine!
Whoa.



I'm really sorry about that. Here, come this way!
Wait, what?! Not you too!
Sakuya! Don't you DARE steal him! He's MINE!
What are you talking about? He clearly came to stay at my place!
*sob sob*
Oh, come on now, Pia...don't cry...hey, let's do this, then! He can stay at my place, and then he can take a bath later on! How does that sound?
That works!
Great!
Uh...don't I get a say in all this?



It's great that the two of you are so enthusiastic about your jobs, but you shouldn't put so much pressure on the customer like that.
Sorry for fighting over the customer.
Dang! And I'd concocted the perfect plan, too!
Sakuya...
Um, never mind. Forget I said anything.
I'm very sorry about that, sir. Let me take this time to formally welcome you to the Miyako Inn. We have fantastic food and a wonderful bath. Please, do not hesitate to use any of our facilities.
My bath's open from to 10AM to 10PM! I better see ya there later! 10AM to 10PM! Ya better not forget!
Oh, my daughter also sells some odd things at her shop. Please, take a look.
Hey! What do you mean, "odd things"?!
I sell things I find on my trips. The products change daily, so be sure to stop by every day!
Um, okay...I'll be sure to check it out.


Well that sure was a thing. Now, although we've gotten this cutscene, we have to talk to each of them again to be properly introduced. I'm getting this out of the way now instead of having to chase them down again later. And the game will make you chase them down later if you miss this step.



Oh, are you the guy who moved into the Sharance Tree?
That'd be me.
Ah, my intuition was right! My name's Sakuya. Nice to meet you!
I'm Link. Nice to meet you!
Anyway, that was so mean of Shara...
Huh? What was?
We could've had an extra customer if she'd had you stay here instead of in that tree.
I...I guess that's true.
Well, I'll just have to talk to Shara later.
Huh? Talk to her about what?
To make sure she recommends our inn from now on!
Ah...gotcha.
Well, I hope you stop by our inn soon! See you later!


Sakuya is the mandatory Vaguely Chinese Bachelorette. She's relatively sane, especially compared to Pia. Not that it's hard to be saner than Pia.



Word must get around fast! Yeah, my name's--
It doesn't matter what your name is! But I'm Pia! I own the fantabulous Paradise Bathhouse! It's strange though, isn't it? There aren't any dice anywhere!
I don't think it's a pair of---
Oh, never you mind that! Time to get you in the bath!
This second?!
Duh, this second! You look, uh, haggard or something!
It's okay. I'm doing fine, really!
Really? You sure you don't need even a TINY little scrubbing?
Yes. VERY sure.
Just you wait. You can't evade our scrubbings forever!
Uh, if you say so.

The bath recovers our HP and RP to full, so we'll probably end up here eventually. Unlike RF4, there's no separate Bathing skill to incentivize baths beyond that.

I know so! Oh, and I guess it does matter what your name is! After all, I'm gonna need to log your visit later!
Heh! I'm Link.
Gotcha! Nice to meet you, Link!
Nice to meet you too. And I'll let you know when I'm ready for a bath!

Pia's...Pia. I really have no better way to describe her.

Get your mind out of the gutter.


That's right.
My name is Shino. Shinonome, actually, but I go by Shino for short. It's nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you too. By the way, how did you know my name?
Oh, it's a small town. Word of a new resident spreads fast.
That makes sense.
I run the inn here in town. If you ever feel tired, please come by and have a rest.
Sounds good. I'll be sure to do that.
We'll be waiting!


Shino rules, but is sadly not datable.


Now that we're properly introduced, I can get regular conversations out of everyone here.

Don't hesitate to ask me any questions you have, Link. For example, how to use your weapon properly.
Uh...Wh-Why would you know anything about using weapons...?



Ah, that raccoon! He ripped up the tour guide plans I worked all night on! I was so close!

Raccoon problems? Hmm.



Man, I love fish SO much!


Link may not remember who he is, but he remembers how much he likes fish!

Mmm...Nothing beats fishsticks!
You sick freak! Fish aren't food!
Uh...what's the matter with fishsticks?

Uh...okay, let's pretend we just think fish are cute this time.


Just...don't question her, okay.


This diner is right next door to the bathhouse/inn.


Is the High Orc Rice made with high orc meat, or

Great, but I STILL don't think that'll be enough!
My compliments to the chef! This is truly an abomination!
That means a lot coming from you, Sherman. Enjoy your meal! Oh, and Collette? Might help to actually chew this time.
Oh, that's such a waste! But I'll try. Now gimme gimme gimme!


I heard that, Rusk! And it's like I keep telling you! It's called having a lightning-fast metabolism! I can't help it! I need to EAT!
(Hmph. I prefer quality over quantity.)

At least the food is good? Or an abomination? Maybe both? Let's talk to the chef and see what's going on here.



Wow! Word spreads fast. Yeah, I'm Link. Nice to meet you!
Heh. I got my ear to the ground in town. The name's Blaise. I'm the head chef here at Blaise's Diner. If you want some home cookin', you're always welcome here.
Good to hear! I'll definitely be stopping by later!
See ya around, kid!


Blaise is a pretty alright dude, although he has nothing interesting to say right now.



Uh, down? Down where?
Down in an eating contest, duh!
Uh...with you? You really think that's a good idea?
Don't look at me like that, buddy! It's called a fast metabolism!
Don't look at you how? I don't even know what you're talking about!
Liar! I see you giving me the evil eye! You're just jealous of my metabolism!
Uh, no, I can honestly say I've never been jealous of anyone's metab--
I can see it in your eyes! I can see it in everyone's eyes! They all want my metabolism! Well, I'm not sharing!
Uh, OK. I won't ask for your metabolism, then. You can feel secure with that knowledge.
Good! You better not look at my metabolism that way again, buddy! So, you a traveler or something, or are you new around here?
I just moved into that big tree. I'm Link!
I'm Collette. I'm usually here at Blaise's Diner working...or EATING!
Heh. Sounds like I should stop by here when I'm hungry, then!
Sounds good! Just don't think you can outeat me!
Heh. I won't even try, if that helps! ...Wow...Did she really finish off 10 more plates?!


Guys, I'm getting the impression she might like food.


I'm also getting the impression this raccoon is a plot point.



What?! Um...have we met somewhere before?.
Yes. I'm Sherman. What's your name?
Umm...Link.
Oh, Link. Well, starting today, we aren't acquaintances.
What?!
It's not nice to meet you, Link.
Um, m-me, too...?


Sherman is another once-a-game RF character, in this case, a member of the Sainte-Coquille family. They all look suspiciously similar. Sherman's gimmick will definitely not be annoying to deal with, and it never gets old.



Food, odious food! Clammy sausage and custard!
A catchy tune, yes? It is my magnum opus, young squire.

That's nice, Sherman. Let's go talk to a less crazy person.



Link. I just moved into the Sharance Tree. I hope we can be friends.
Oh, I see. I'm Rusk. It looks like we're around the same age. So let's keep it casual.
Alright, well, it's nice to meet you, Rusk.
Yeah, same here. I'm usually here at the diner, so come by to see me sometime.
Yeah, I'll do that.


Eat your loving vegetables, Rusk.


Eat. Your. Vegetables.

Next time: More villagers.

Let me know how you feel about the pace - future days will be less packed with stuff, but I don't want to overwhelm people right off the bat.

Ratoslov
Feb 15, 2012

Now prepare yourselves! You're the guests of honor at the Greatest Kung Fu Cannibal BBQ Ever!

So is there something in the water making people this way?

TooMuchAbstraction
Oct 14, 2012

I spent four years making
Waves of Steel
Hell yes I'm going to turn my avatar into an ad for it.
Fun Shoe
My god, you weren't kidding about the characters. :magical:

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

He really wasnt kidding. Honestly its a bit offputting at first, but later on its actually endearing.


About the reverse gimmick, I HATED it at first, but somehow or another by the end of my first playthrough, I loved it. Now to hope no one else in anything ever trys to do this so it stays unique.


Considering this is 3, yes it is something in the water.

CptWedgie
Jul 19, 2015
I mentioned this in ThornBrain's thread, but it's arguable that, while Shara is the first townsperson the PLAYER sees, RAVEN is the first one the PROTAGONIST sees. My logic: You just fell out of the sky, and you're visibly injured, so you probably aren't even conscious until you're shown waking up the next day.

On a tangentially related note, how are you going to be choosing which bachelorette to pursue?

dancingbears
May 10, 2011

You're an idiot,
so start acting
like one.

I played the poo poo out of this game, and I completely forgot Collette even existed. :psyduck:

Haifisch
Nov 13, 2010

Objection! I object! That was... objectionable!



Taco Defender

CptWedgie posted:

On a tangentially related note, how are you going to be choosing which bachelorette to pursue?
Thread voting, once we're far enough that I can expect people(who haven't already played this) to have opinions on them.

Although we'll be seeing quite a bit of each of them, thanks to the way the request system works.

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

Haifisch posted:

Thread voting, once we're far enough that I can expect people(who haven't already played this) to have opinions on them.

Although we'll be seeing quite a bit of each of them, thanks to the way the request system works.

Oh right, people that have never played before. Welp now that the votes arnt just up to the people that have already played and want to see what other girls are like, I think I know who the wife will be.


I request you go into as much detail as possible about character requests as possible, and to max everyone.

BlazeEmblem
Jun 8, 2013

Uh oh. Do I use Ariadne thread or Goho-M?

TooMuchAbstraction posted:

My god, you weren't kidding about the characters. :magical:

We're not done yet.


Although I think Pia is the craziest, some of the other characters are almost at her level.

LordHippoman
May 30, 2013

I, frankly, want this smug Jagen to be my avatar on all forms of social media immediately.
This Jasper knockoff does not seem nearly as good as the man himself. Not once did he reference eating a tank, and he doesn't even have a nice hat.

Commander Keene
Dec 21, 2016

Faster than the others



My God, the characters in this game are not making a good showing, and right out of the gate, too. I played a small amount of this game years ago, and decided I didn't like it for reasons I can't quite remember. Maybe the characters are what put me off the game.

I mean, Pia seems like she might be endearing, but who thought Sherman or Colette sounded like anyone anybody would like to know?

Zanzibar Ham
Mar 17, 2009

You giving me the cold shoulder? How cruel.


Grimey Drawer
Yeah, I'd say the characters (especially most of the bachelorettes) are the weak point of this game. I think in my last run I decided to try wooing Sakuya because her gimmick is one of the less grating ones IMO.

Delacroix
Dec 7, 2010

:munch:
RF3 was a giant step up from the GBA HMs for me, the characters may be hit or miss but the gameplay is undeniably better.

It's a shame you can't date Shino or Gaius. :(

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Zanzibar Ham
Mar 17, 2009

You giving me the cold shoulder? How cruel.


Grimey Drawer
There's another character that I thought was funny (especially considering one of the game mechanics), but unfortunately isn't a bachelor/ette. :(

  • Locked thread