|
 Welcome back! It turns out there's two dream sequences available at this point in the game, and going any further will stop them from happening at all. So, we begin our update with a nap to follow up a good night's sleep.   - Ginie, do you know where Eva is?Ginie - Um, the black suits just took Eva. - I wonder where... - Oh, Mariel. Eva is gone. I was just wondering where she went.Ginie - Elc, if they come for Mariel. We have to protect her. - Yeah. There's no way I want her to go away, too.Mariel - Ha, ha, ha. Don't worry! I'm not going anywhere! But, I am a little scared...   - You had another of those terrible dreams, didn't you? - Yes, I hate them, but maybe they're trying to tell me something. We better find that robot so Vilmer can fix the airship.Right. After sleeping in the bed like five more times to make sure there weren't any more truant dream sequences, it's time to head back to the Sea-  Nevermind.   - Doctor good man. Lia good girl. So, save Lia, you good too. Good you, so me teach good thing. - Well, listen. You use Spear? Spear people glad. Sword people glad too. You know Sword great weapon? Sword greater attack ability than Spear. But next to Ax. Ax hard process, but Sword easy become strong. So, Sword very very very good weapon. And Sword can have many ability. Useful. You have strong Sword, you easy battle. You have ability, you easy battle. - You want Sword? You use Spear, but now you use Sword, OK? Man Sword, cool. Find Sword. Find strong Sword. So, you use Sword? My shop have Sword too. - Girl use Whip... is good. Whip, same power Sword. High attack ability. You should use. - Okay, end. Now, what you buy? You know how if you say a word enough times you sort of lose the meaning for it and can't say it anymore? I didn't realize it until now but typing out "Sword" so many times did the same thing. Anyway. The moral of the story is, have some variety in your weapons. Since each weapon skill has its own level and specific techniques, you might find yourself in a pickle if you don't keep some variety on hand. Equipping weapons takes nothing at all in battle besides hitting the menu button; you can still attack and move around and everything else after you change any and all of your equipment around. So, with that in mind, I did end up buying a couple of weapons from this guy to make sure I had some variety available. Oh, his last point is actually the most important one in disguise: Make sure Lieza is good with a whip. It will make a difference later.  Right, so, back to the third floor. Nothing new, same old bats and mummies hanging around.    - Elc, it's too hard. There's no way... ( ) - If it was buried, it can be exhumed. We have to try! Aaahhhh!! - This stuff is harder than rock! How did it get IN there?!!? - Whirrrrrr...  - We are... friends. The doctor sent us..jpg) - It's talking... - Shhh! Are you able to get out of this... stuff?? - I am Diekbeck. I am the leader of the 7 Machine Gods. - Okay. Good to know. Question is, can you get out of this stuff by yourself?Diekbeck - My mission is accomplished. I am in standby mode. - Great. Mission accomplished. I can relate. But, that wasn't the question. How can we get you out of there? Can you do it yourself? We have to get you to the doctor, or he won't repair my ship! - Yes, we are here to help you, but you must tell us how.Diekbeck - Help...? - Yes. You musn't want to remain in this state forever...Diekbeck - I do not need assistance... but... - But?Diekbeck - To gain release, a Power Unit is required. It is on a deeper level of this place. I must equip it. - So, if I get this Power Unit thing, you can get out yourself?Diekbeck - Power Un... it...  - Hmmm. Damned thing died again. - The Power Unit is the only way, Elc. We have to try. - Right. Let's go.  Right. Turns out there's a few more floors to the ruins. Before exiting, notice those chests? They're completely sealed in on this floor. No way to get them, no secret staircase on another floor or anything like that. Put a pin in these chests for a while; we'll be saving them for a rainy day. Maybe one... with a thunderstorm.  The next floor is brief, but sweet.  - It's the "Guardian's Force". - Guardian's Force? - Yes. It is a fountain of crystals that channel power from air and earth. Regardless of how tired you are, touching this recovers vitality completely. Face the fountain and press (X button) to feel the benefit. Toasty! True to form, using the Guardian's Force (How many different ways has that term been used in this series so far now? Three? Four?) fully restores HP and MP for the entire party. Unlimited uses, too. I'm really surprised this hasn't been captured and monetized by a cadre of Evil Fat Men yet, but let's not look a gift Force in the mouth.   It's time to move on, but if you're playing along at home, don't forget that you can come back up here for free heals. It's not bad if you find yourself in a spot of trouble on the next couple of floors.  The next floor features a familiar face... skull... thing.   Chests to the left and right... (Reco's Grass, a defense booster, on the left, and a useless Dagger +0 on the right)  ...And the stairs are straight north of where we start, just past a couple of bony guardsmen.  You know the routine by now.   Don't forget to farm the skeletons for a bit of leveling, both mundane and weapon/equipment. The next couple of floors are excellent for that, especially since you have a free full heal just a short journey away.  Along the way, Paundit gains Elc's "Next attack powerup" ability. I really hope Lieza is keeping that pup hydrated.  Oh, I found out something pretty awesome about that ability: it stacks. See the "Charge 2/7" on the lefthand side? Turns out you can keep using the ability for a magnified effect on your next attack. It's a complete waste right now on monsters that die in one or two hits, but it could be handy down the road.  Lieza leveling that whip. I also neglected to mention that these sometimes mean the weapon skill has leveled up, and sometimes mean the weapon itself has leveled up. Seeing two lines like this means the weapon leveled up, but sometimes it's impossible to tell between the two unless you jump back to the status screen and see which number has increased.  As the skeletons level up from the repeated cycle of death and revival I am subjecting them to for my own personal gain, it turns out they get new abilities right away. Such as self-destruct, a favorite of Electrodes and Bombs everywhere.  Too bad he can't seem to keep his feet long enough to use it.  Anyway, next floor!  More of the same.  A single chest in the southwest intersection (Recover Fruit, an awesome healing item that would be a waste to use right now).  The southeast intersection leads straight on to the stairs. Whee.  If you're getting the impression the Sealed Ruins are kind of boring, you'd be correct. For a bit of fun I tried the Neutrino Blade on a vampire bat, and I didn't see any difference in damage versus any comparable weaponry, so eh. Maybe it wasn't flying mons enough.   If Elc and Lieza are sitting around weapon level 3 or 4 for each of their weapons by the time you leave the Sealed Ruins, that should be about right for now. Weapon skills begin to level super slowly when you hit a certain point of weaker enemies, so eventually you'd just waste some time if you tried to go higher at this point. Granted, you can see I went an extra level with Lieza, but whip is a great skill to keep topped up with her.  The next floor pits us in a bit of an ambush! Paundit runs to the left side of the stairs while Elc and Lieza go to the right. In total, there's about four vampire bats and two skeletons to deal with. Honestly, as long as you prevent your characters from being surrounded on four sides, it's hard to get in much trouble even in this situation. Elc should be tough enough to hold the right side at a bottleneck, and Lieza with Paundit on the left is hardly any trouble.  With that handled, a statue that was blocking the north hallway mysteriously vanishes, taking us through a narrow passage with chests to the left and right.    The game is nice enough to warn you about this and let you turn the statues so that you can grab the items without triggering a battle if you want. But...    I really want to kill stuff.  Ruin Ravens are a step up from the other monsters. What's worse, they move really fast, which means it's extremely easy for them to isolate Elc like this. Paundit could technically have moved in fast enough to cover one side, but that would have left Lieza to fend for herself in a similar pincer attack.  The ravens can also boost their speed, which isn't a good thing.  It's a bit touch and go right at first, but that's what Blood Herbs are for. Elc has to use them on himself since they only work adjacent, but with his counter-attacks he's more than able to manage healing and damage dealing.  Eventually our three heroes close the gap, allowing for  The stairs are straight north after that. Oh, and the trapped chests contain a Magic Apple and a Cure-All.  The next floor contains... a bit of an odd dialogue gimmick.   1 - must not 2 - not 1 - be broken. 2 - broken. - But, Diekbeck sent us to get the Power Unit here.1 - Diekbeck!? 2 - What plans have you 1 - have you 2 - for that fearsome man of metal?! 1 - Confess your intent! - Well... um... 2 - The man of metal must not re-awaken. 1 - It cannot. 2 - The seal must remain intact. 1 - We have been charged with protecting the slumber of Diekbeck. 2 - We cannot allow passage. - But... Diekbeck spoke to us! He was awake!2 - Liar! - No he's not! I was there as well! He had just enough power to speak to us. He asked us to retrieve the Power Unit down here.1 - Only one of the 20 was spoken of? 2 - The 20 sacred units. - 20 parts? There are 20 Power Units?1 - Silence! You know too much already. 2 - We will not let you leave with this knowledge. 1 - To protect the order of Grolgalde... 2 - ...you must surrender your lives!   You know, I was thinking, one of these encounters it would be awesome if the monsters actually listened to reason and went, "Yeah, my bad, you guys can grind us into paste in seconds so just be on your way" or something.  This will not be that type of encounter.  It's pretty awesome that once Searched you can see all of a monster's stats on the Status window alongside your party members. Anyway. Four ruin ravens and two seal guards would be a pretty tall order in some situations.  But, since everyone can run south back into the hallway a bit and the monsters don't really have much in the way of ranged attacks... it becomes a pretty easy battle. Keep up with some healing just to avoid any lucky KOs, and you're free to whittle down the enemies to nothing. The seal guards are undead too, so if you want to grind them out a bit, they are one of the better enemies in the dungeon for EXP. Before we wrap up the final floor of the Sealed Ruins by going north past the seal guards, take note of treasures to be had. Ignore the now-dead monsters.   Full Power Fruit and Revival Dust, for your instant level and character resurrection needs.   And four more sealed-off chests that we will Go  - Yes, I think it must be the Power Unit. Or at least - A - Power Unit, if there are indeed 20. - It seems to be stuck in the same muck as Diekbeck. How do you propose we get it out? - I don't believe this! - The Power Unit is coming out of that stuff on its OWN!      - I dunno, but we got what we came for. - If this works, we can get the ship back from the doctor! - Right. Let's get this back to Diekbeck and see if it works.A quick climb/free heal later... (Oh, by the way, no monsters respawned between floors. Hmm.)  - There doesn't appear to be any obvious place... - Huh?! - Oh, dear! It's automatically... (Magic beret revival GO!)   Diekbeck - I am operational once more. The world must be in peril. I must journey with the one who walks with the Guardians. - Get back! It's self-destructing! ( ) - No... I think it's breaking out! (BOOM)  - Whoa... Diekbeck - Boy... I... will... with...   - It just... stopped. - I bet its power circuits are messed up. - What should we do, Elc? - He'll have to be carried to the doctor's Lab. Hrmph! Quite a Machine God YOU are, robot...  - Maybe I can just... push it. () - This guy better be strong enough to withstand some scratches...Don't worry, it's an instant teleport back to town. For us, anyway. Poor Elc.  - I hope you appreciate how hard it was to get this rusty bucket here. Vilmer, you better keep your promise.  - Yes, yes! I promised to repair the airship, and so I shall. Actually... it's nearly done right now. - Really? - Now why would I say that if it weren't true? It will be ready by tomorrow, no sooner. I would recommend you get some rest. It's been quite an adventure, I'm sure. And so we end the update the same way we began: By going to bed. See you next update!
|
#
?
Oct 27, 2023 00:24
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 29, 2024 13:47 |
|
|
Welcome back! This update will be just a little shorter than usual, both because it's very wordy and because it introduces a game mechanic I wasn't expecting to have available this early. It'll take a bit of explaining, hence more wordiness to add to the word pile, so let's word a word word word. Word to your mother.  So anyway, as promised, we start the update by having yet another dream sequence courtesy of Elc. - I can't believe what we just saw!Mariel - Elc, I'm afraid! I don't want to turn out like that! If they can control our special powers, they can control us. - And change us into monsters like the rest! Mariel, we can't let that happen. We have to escape. If we can just get out of this place, we can get help for the others!Mariel - Oh, Elc... - Shhh! Somebody's coming. Mariel, run!!  Guess it's hard for a scientist who's only fluent in punctuation to raise an alarm, eh?   And now, folks, we come to a staple of any respectable 90's JRPG. The song that plays for this next part is actually pretty nice, but apparently not nice enough to earn being on the soundtrack.   So, about that prerequisite I was talking about a second ago. Elc, in the middle of the night.  Lieza, going up to Elc in the middle of the night.  The moon! At this point, one of three outcomes is guaranteed: A. A fight to the death is about to happen B. A female protagonist is going to have a heartfelt emotional solo song with full English localization C. An early romantic conversation will happen that may or may not actually go anywhere by the end of the game I'll leave it to you to predict which outcome we're facing here. Enjoy! - Elc? What are you doing out here? I heard you get up, and came to find out. What's the matter? Can't you sleep? - ...  - Elc... do you want to hear about my village? - Sure. - My village is called Holn. It's a peaceful place, surrounded by beautiful mountains. People nearby don't like to come there. They're afraid of us. You see, the women in my village have a special ability. We can communicate with birds and animals. A few of us are even able to speak with monsters. - I am one of the women with this ability. I can use this power to control monsters and make them my companions. I was taught that I shouldn't use my power in front of people. For, if they knew what I could do, they would become afraid like the others. And... that fear might turn into hate. - Why are you telling me this? - I don't know. I think it's because... I believe I can trust you, Elc. You saved me, even after you knew I could speak to beasts. - ... - The airship that attacked Prodias is the same one that attacked my village. I was so blinded by my rage that I may have killed my best friend. I keep wondering what would have happened if I had just waited. - Oh, Elc... you couldn't have known. - But that's exactly it! I NEVER know, and somehow those I love end up being hurt. Mariel is another... - Mariel? Did you remember more? - Yes. I had another nightmare, and more memories came back. I remember being taken to a big, white building. There were... children there with special powers. Mariel and I were two of those children. We didn't understand the purpose of that place at first. We simply knew it as our home. Then I noticed that, every day, there were fewer children around us. And so Mariel and I watched, and waited, and eventually, escaped.     - It didn't take them long to realize we'd escaped. They tracked us into the forest around the compound.  - Get up! Come on!Mariel - I... can't. - Yes, you can! - They're just children. They couldn't have gone far! - Find them!Mariel - Please, Elc. Go without me. - No...Mariel - We'll both be caught if you don't leave me behind. Leave now, and return with help! - Mariel... I...Mariel - Hurry up! I'll attract their attention. - That way! Hurry!  - Mariel, no! - Over there! - Did you see that? - She ran into the bushes! - Catch that little runt!  - Oh, Elc... She'll be okay! I'm sure that she's still waiting for you. And I just have a sense that Shu is alive, as well. How can you falter now? It's not the Elc I've come to know. - Lieza... you're right. I can't give up. If there's a chance Shu and Mariel are alive, I have to help them. - And I'll be only too happy to help! - Well, we've got a couple big tasks ahead. We'd better get some more rest. - I completely agree.  - What? - Oh... nothing. Never mind. - What? - The sun will be up soon. Let's get whatever sleep we can. - Right. Congratulations! If you picked the hidden outcome D: Massive character infodump explaining characters' backstory and/or mysterious powers, then you win! What is the prize, you may ask? Anger (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i-iCZUM6ew  Well... erm... sorry. I left it in - What happened? - I don't know, but we have to find Vilmer and Lia! They might be in danger!Now, sure, you could rush right downstairs and continue the story.  But what is kind of hilarious is that you can also do anything you want to do right now except go shopping near the village exit. You can go to the Combine Shop or the Sealed Ruins to grind experience, or talk to random villagers, only some of whom have updated dialogue for wandering around in the middle of the night.  Definitely a bold move, leaving all your wares out overnight for thieves and the elements. Oh well. Based on his third grade reading comprehension level in explaining how weapons work, I don't expect that this merchant has the firmest grasp on good business practices. Anyway, while most things are still available, there's nothing much in the way of new stuff or wayward dream sequences to worry about. So let's continue.      - I know. And I refuse to go back. You can't make me! Get out of here this instant! - Oh, Doc. Yoose will come back. Othawise... we may hafta take more... drastic measures. - No! No! You musn't involve Lia! - AH! You're...! - Hey! It's tha brat from tha  Battle 1 (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nngjJXuUc8o So, the mobsters turned into ninjas and kobolds. Didn't quite expect that, did you?  The kobolds can hit fairly hard, but their agility is poor. They can soak up a few hits, so it takes a few attacks to bring them down. The ninjas you are probably familiar with already: Quick and annoying.  Anyway, I promised a new game mechanic, and this is where it finally comes to the fore. I was so shocked that Lieza actually counter attacked an opponent that I was slow on the action screenshot, and instead just saw her learn her central ability.  Ravish! Which, odd word usage aside, is a very important ability.   In a surprisingly Pokemon move, Lieza can grab a monster from the battle, remove them instantly, and add them to our party roster! It's not a guaranteed success, of course. There seems to be two significant factors that affect Ravish's success: 1. Lieza's level versus the monster's level. Higher for Lieza is better, of course, but apparently even a level difference of like 100 is not a guarantee of success. 2. The monster's Defense and Magic stats. The game mentions that you can lower these with debuffs to increase the success rate of Ravish. However, it's possible that other stats can also be a factor in this. In practice, it can be a prudent idea to slam a monster with as many debuffs as you can, just in case the other stats do impact it somehow. What's interesting, however, is that the monster's current HP does not seem to be one of the factors, so beating them within an inch of their life isn't required. Of course, not every enemy in the game can be Ravished. Bosses are out, and I think Wanted monsters are too. But I think there's somewhere just slightly under 200 different monsters that are fair game, including palette swaps and the like. But, your monster party limit is 12, so you can't just catch 'em all for praise from Professor Oak or anything.  Anyway, first things first. I capture a kobold and give him a stupid name. I probably won't capture a ton of monsters, but I'll be sure to put up the name screen when I do in case anyone wants to toss out some funny names.   While I'm at it, I also get a mob ninja on my roster. I'll bet this will wreak havoc with their HR. You know, as randomly racist as this game has been, it probably doesn't even hold a candle to the damage The Sopranos and Jersey Shore would do to Italian Americans a few short years later. Anyway! The ninja is a bit more rare than most monsters you can capture because they aren't found in random encounters. So it's best to grab one now while it's fairly easy to do so. So, after wrapping up an extremely uneventful and quick battle...  - Yes. We're okay. - What was that all about? Why were those thugs after you?I mean, you just put two of them into the party, couldn't you just ask them...? - Well... - Come on. I have to know so I can help. - They're from the Chimera Research Lab. - Chimera Research Lab? - Yes. I was one of its lead scientists...                           - It seems like such a long time ago... - So, my village was destroyed by... - And you're also a victim of the Chimera Lab... - Please tell me where to find White House! I made a promise. I have to save her! - I'm afraid I don't know exactly where it is. I do know it's somewhere in Aldia, and is managed by Gallarno, one of Romalia's four Generals. - And where is Gallarno? - He's in Aldia, attempting to control the ocuntry with the Cabal. - Hmmm... the Cabal. Well, it's a start. Is my ship operational yet? - Not quite. I'm afraid those Cabal goons interrupted my work. However, I will finish it in short order, and it will be something special. It will be much more powerful than it once was - A Vilmer special, if you will. I promise to have it done tomorrow. - I'll take the doctor at his word. I think we need to rest. - Your ladyfriend is right, you know. You'd better rest up while you can. - I will. Thanks.(Literally a second of black screen later) ? - Elc... Lieza... wake up.  Lia - Morning? It's afternoon, silly! - Wow! It feels as if I just went to sleep. - I know what you mean. We really needed the rest.Exposition is exhausting work, I know. At least you two aren't stuck transcribing every inane thing that comes bouncing out of everyone's mouths. - So, how's the airship? Is it ready? - Good morning, Lia.Lia - Good morning, Lieza. - Enough small talk, Lia! Did you hear me?Lia - Good morning, Elc. Yes, I heard you. Grampa said the ship is in the small Skyport outside the village. - Outside of the village? Great. Let's go, Lieza.We're almost there, people! Just a bit longer and we can move on past Yagos!  At least they made the airship easy to find. Niedel - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yGHUq8Uc2g  - Wow. Impressive. The Doc does great work. - Now we can finally get back to Indigos. - Alright. Let's get moving.(A bit of walking horizontally that gives me flashbacks of getting on the Silver Noah and...) - Oh! - What, Elc? Oh, Doctor... - What's wrong? - Lia.Lia - Grampa! Why'd you leave to say goodbye without me? - I'm sorry, Lia. I didn't know you'd be able to keep up. They were in a hurry to leave, you know!Lia - Well, I did it! Ha, ha! - Yes, well, um... Elc, about the robot you brought to me... - Did you fix it? - Well, no, not yet. It seems to be a battle robot. I'll fix it... and once it's done, you may have it. But you'll have to come back for it later, when it's done. - That's great, but... why? - I decided that I must do everything I can to stop Romalia. Repairing this battle robot is my way of helping the cause. - Great. We'll come back after we save Mariel. - Be careful, Elc. Gallarno is the most sadistic of the four Generals. If he's not stopped, we're all in a world of trouble, and soon. He's no stooge, so I'm sure that he's waiting for you with all manner of vicious traps. It won't be easy, but I believe you can win. - We will. Don't worry. - Um... - I've got to get this thing ready to go. Bye! - It's different, but I guess it'll do. Lia - This is so sad! You're leaving! - I'm sorry I didn't have time to play with you. Lia - It's okay. We can do it if you come back. - Hey, Lieza! Come on! We've got to go! - Wait! - Okay, Lia. See you soon. Lia - Yeah! Come and see me soon!  - Thanks for everything, Vilmer. We'll see you soon!  Area Map - https://youtu.be/-VNhFjgX7Dw  And with that, we are finally done with Yagos Told you it'd be a wordy update. See you next time!
|
|
#
?
Dec 1, 2023 23:03
|
|
|
Wow, the irony is amazing: the old Syrg and Wanton Spoon "Arc the Lad" LP helped me become interested in SA when I discovered it in the archives years ago, and now when I finally joined the forum proper, I discover a new LP planning to go through the entire collection! A surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one! Sadly, I've never played Arc the Lad, and doubt I'll ever have the time/energy to now. So the LP is of great interest to me as my surrogate playthrough.
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2023 01:41
|
|
|
Pretty sure I checked out Syrg/Wanton Spoon's old LP years back. It's cool to get a look at the sequel! I picked up the Omake copy of this a few months back, and I know I'll get around to playing it someday. In the meantime, I hope the updates continue!
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2023 03:53
|
|
|
Honestly, I wish I'd have known about it when it first came out. While the first game seems to have problems, they're not anything I wouldn't have overcome. And the second game is sounding pretty awesome with its "bounty/job" gimmick and weapon leveling system! I could see it becoming one I'd have played back in the day.
|
|
#
?
Dec 18, 2023 22:10
|
|
|
Man, I hope Mike hasn't lost hope in the thread
|
|
#
?
Dec 23, 2023 04:54
|
|
|
Nah, his last post was the beginning of this month, which tracks. I've done some light vide editing before, so know it takes a LOT of effort to review recorded footage and pull good stuff...and that's assuming he didn't have to do re-shoots. All that on top of playing the game itself! So it's gonna take time for him to post the next update. Plus, it IS the holiday season, so we're probably not gonna get another post until next month, at the earliest. Just gotta be patient.
|
|
#
?
Dec 23, 2023 06:49
|
|
|
darkmage0707077 posted:Nah, his last post was the beginning of this month, which tracks. I've done some light vide editing before, so know it takes a LOT of effort to review recorded footage and pull good stuff...and that's assuming he didn't have to do re-shoots. All that on top of playing the game itself! So it's gonna take time for him to post the next update. Sorry guys, yeah, it's just the holiday season. Hoping to update this week coming up, so a little before 2024. After that it should become more regular. Thank you for your posts and discussion, it's awesome to see the activity. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2023 04:38
|
|
|
Dude, please don't rush! As I said, it's the holidays; if you want to push to January, that's perfectly fine. Getting back on topic a bit, a question: As you upgrade weapons, do certain ones unlock special attacks? I know you said that they get upgraded to more powerful variants and that you can attach added effects to their regular attacks, but was wondering if they go whole hog and, say, have an Assassin Dagger give you a "Backstab" special ability when equipped?
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2023 05:23
|
|
|
darkmage0707077 posted:Dude, please don't rush! As I said, it's the holidays; if you want to push to January, that's perfectly fine. Good question! So, I've seen some weapons unlock abilities with levels. But, more commonly, you can use the custom shop to add effects to just about any equipment. Whether or not the added effects are particularly useful, though... Just realized I didn't fully answer your question, too: I haven't seen it add a new ability or attack, but I didn't spend a lot of time on equipment back when I last played it to completion about twenty years ago. It'll be interesting to see what turns up this time around! Miketopus fucked around with this message at 05:42 on Dec 25, 2023 |
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2023 05:39
|
|
|
Miketopus posted:Sorry guys, yeah, it's just the holiday season. Hoping to update this week coming up, so a little before 2024. After that it should become more regular. Oh, yeah, don't mind me. I sometimes forget how time works. But yeah man, awesome job so far! Are you planning on tackling Twilight of the Spirits or End of Darkness?
|
|
#
?
Dec 25, 2023 11:48
|
|
|
Xandor TikRoth posted:Oh, yeah, don't mind me. I sometimes forget how time works. But yeah man, awesome job so far! "Justice shall prevail!" Maybe. I was always curious to finish Twilight of the Spirits at least; tried two or three times over the years. I think my machine is better at recording PCSX2 footage now than it was back in the Wizardry days, but it would be fun to see how it pans out. Guess I'll see how I feel once Arc III pulls out of the station.
|
|
#
?
Dec 27, 2023 06:20
|
|
|
Totally get that. I've tried to play Twilight a few times as well. Each time I get a little further before I get bored and move onto something else.
|
|
#
?
Dec 27, 2023 15:56
|
|
|
Welcome back everyone! This will be a fairly substantial update, as it's going to include lots of side material and some main story advancement. Back we go to East Aldia, which looks like either a catcher's mitt or a giant monster eating a man and his dog. The Four Generals - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1q-Dn46t9U  - Y... yes, sir. Elc and Lieza distracted us. (And now two of us work for them) - You imbecile!! You were afraid of those little brats?! - I... I have no excuse. - That's enough. Get out of here! The sight of you makes me sick!  - I won't accept another failure. - Heh, heh, heh... Elc will come for me now. And it shall be his final misstep. Has anyone actually said "HEH!!" out loud? What would that even sound like? I imagine someone just honking like a goose.  The majority of this update will be centered around Indigos, but Prodias will get a little love too.       The discussion topics around town these days are primarily around Shante's brother, as well as the Slasher that Big G was phoning in about before. I'm sure neither of these will be plot points later.    Good to know some things never change. Our first stop is Shu's apartment for some R&R.  - ... - Shu is fine. I feel it in my heart. - And what of Shante? - I'm sure she's okay, too. We need to rest. All these strange events have worn me out! - I know exactly what you mean...Opening - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3OVeB3-ZZU  It's pretty hard to see, I grant you, but a strange silhouette has slipped into the apartment.   It checks out Elc and Lieza, and then...    Oh! It's just our friend Shante, who snuck in and watched us sleep in a very not suspicious way.  - Elc, you scared me! - I just about bashed you!  - Seems to be... though the sneaking around thing is dangerous. - I have to be careful now. The Cabal are after me. I've been in hiding since they caught onto my game. They're after you too, you know. - Yeah, I know. But what I don't know is this... why did you come back? - Why? Because... well... I knew I had to get in touch with you. Anyway... How did you know about the Cabal? - Someone told me about Gallarno... the leader of the Cabal. - I see. I have to work today. Come see me at the tavern tomorrow morning. I'll talk to you then. - Alright. - ...? - Hmmm...? - Shante is waiting for you at the tavern! Elc! Get UP! - Alright, alright...The Arc 2 crew sure do spend a lot of time oversleeping, don't they? West Ardia - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BbHMONWxAM   Either Lieza or Shante is secretly a serial killer, or this was available a tad bit early.  Not that it's exactly a stellar weapon. It may be the weakest throwing knife at this point. But it has another use.    A quick jaunt back to our Anyway, I mentioned side material. A huge amount of that will be jobs and bounties, unsurprisingly. So, going into the Indigos Guild first-  Chief(?) - I have heard the rumors about the Slasher. What is going on? Clerk - We're working on that right now. Chief(?) - Then, why haven't we been involved? Why is it that you Hunters fail to cooperate with the Indigos police? - Hey there. Simmer down. It's not good for your health to blow your stack!Chief(?) - Huh? Elc! You are part of the problem with this... this GUILD! I bet you're looking for the Slasher, too! - Slasher? Who's that?Chief(?) - Don't play dumb with me. I know all about you Hunters. The Slasher. You know, the serial killer stalking the innocent people of this town. - Hmmm. First I've heard of it. - That's terrible...Chief(?) - Look, we're on to your game. We're not going to let you catch this one. I think my man Lizetti will be the one that nabs him. - Great. Go for it. Chief(?) - You'll see! Just wait!   - Quite a little bag of wind, isn't he?I like how they gave a fairly involved "donning hat" animation to an extremely minor NPC. Anyway, bounties.  Make absolutely sure you check the bounty board first thing. This is extremely missable. Also, good to know a knife-wielding maniac is known for... wind attacks. Definitely getting Jack the Ripper vibes, proclivity for air magic aside.  A quick chat to our resident Guild  This is the only one available in Indigos... for now. While we're at it, let's take a quick jaunt to Prodias and check their bounty/job boards.   By the way, it's kind of cool that even the background of the statue has been updated since Gogen's lightning barrage.      And the citizens of Prodias are talking about it in earnest. Cooger's still in the Guild, but he's just repeating his old lines, so I guess he doesn't get any updates yet.   There's a few more jobs coming down the road, but these three are a start.  Before we get into the jobs, let's take care of a couple of bounties that opened up. Starting with our favorite quasi-haunted ruined city.   This is also the debut of the party selection screen. Five is your party limit. Some fights have mandatory party members slotted in, but otherwise you're free to mix and match how you will.    Right off the bat, a familiar face is our bounty. - You again! I haven't forgotten about the other day. And THIS time, you're going DOWN! "How To Totally Not Take Anyone Down", by Leland. Chapter One.   Chapter Two.    (Seriously, Thunder Storm? You aren't even a magic user.) Chapter Three.   Epilogue.    The End. Seriously, that was a joke of a fight. That might have been a decent challenge right after Leland's first appearance in the game, but at this stage my most dangerous opponent was boredom.  For bounty number two, we're stopping VERY briefly at Yagos. Which looks like either a badly formed Christmas sugar cookie or a tiny person swinging a big axe.  Diekbeck is still getting patched up to the newest OS.  Also, it turns out the good doctor has an actual lab when it isn't 95% full of airship. Anyway, off to the Sealed Ruins.  As I was going through the first floor, I realized I had forgotten to give my new monsters better weapons. Monsters can't use "equipment" in the typical sense, hence why you don't see Paundit wearing Gauze Wrap or Herbs or anything. But you can switch out their weapons, and monsters have weapon proficiency skills like characters do. Frash Lay here, for example, can use throwing knives. And since the GroundKnife is just sitting there collecting dust... boom.  I also gave Dog Man the Force Light Sword, which upped his damage quite a bit from the generic flail weapon he started with.   I also found out something hilarious. See, you can't jump outside of combat, just like in real life, so the game has to make sure you don't get stuck somewhere for eternity. If your party members end a fight in a place they need to jump to get out of, then whoever wasn't stuck in a jump-only area gets to be the leader for a bit. I don't think it's sorted by party order, as I'm pretty sure Frash Lay wasn't in the jump-only area, but either way it's a chance to run around the level in Good Boy mode. So this begs the question, what does the game do when everyone is in a jump-only area?  Simple, Elc and company just noclip through the jump to the nearest walkable area.   Also, it turns out mummies make superb gymnasts. Anyway, that was a tangent!  Big Bad Menan, our bounty, is on the second level of the ruins.  He is, in pretty much every way, just a tougher mummy. With the added bonus of occasionally blinding people he attacks. But unlike Leland, who was useless down to the item he drops, Menan is packing something exceptional.   We won't see the awesome power of the Scale Legs in this update, but soon.  Our business in Yagos mercifully over, we head back to Aldia for those jobs.  And our first stop is... ...  How are there still jobs relating to the sewer here? Ugh.    At least it's a different part of the sewer system this time. You can actually walk around for a little teensy bit, but there's nothing here besides the next fight a little ways to the right. Battle 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-MsYLANsuc   ? - Why have you come? Wait! Don't tell me! I already know your intent! You have come to rob me of my precious experiments! - Uh, no. I've come to shut you up. You're freaking out the townsfolk.? - You don't know who you're dealing with! - Frankly, I don't care. I've got a job to do, and today, you're it.? - You should learn to listen without interrupting! For I am a great necromancer whom everyone will soon fear! - Uh, yeah, right.? - Your impudence is beginning to annoy me! - Well then, let's just have a battle and get this over with. ? - Ha, ha, ha. As you wish! Let me summon some of the undead to assist in your demise!   In a twist that nobody could see coming, those piles of skeleton bones become skeletons.   So, how does this fight compare?  Well, they're closer to the right level, but the skeletons are firmly in the "laughably easy" camp.   And the necromancer, Piers... Beronica... that's a name... is one of the worst mages I've ever seen. He doesn't even have any offensive spells, and spends the combat trying to bonk people with his staff.  Cue the usual attack buff. And hope that Elc has a good laundry detergent.    P.B. - Please don't hurt me! - Why were you singing the strange songs here in the sewers?P.B. - I don't sing! I recite spells. - It doesn't matter. You are frightening the townspeople. They want me to stop you. So quit the chanting and the necromancy and I'll let you walk out of here alive.P.B. - Fair enough.  (This is NOT an improvement, Piers!) P.B. - But, um, is it alright if I keep my doll? - Uh... fine. Just don't use it to cause trouble. P.B. - No problem. Goodbye.   - That was certainly bizarre. Well, at least the job is complete. Lieza's already gone, so I'm out of here, too.A quick nap later, we go back to the Guild to cash in what we have so far. And it turns out there's another job.  ...Why do I have a bad feeling about this?   Right, back to the ruined city, recently de-Lelanded.  And we find... a push puzzle of girl dolls. Great. You can reset if you mess it up, but it's absurdly easy.  Like so.  More dolls on floor 2... along with exactly who you'd expect. Fight 6 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLESA82n0X0  P.B. - If you've come to steal my dolls, you'll be bitterly disappointed! - I don't want your stupid dolls!P.B. - Then leave! I don't have time for you! - Oh... yeah... right. Got to get back to dolly playtime, eh?P.B. - So now you mock me? Perhaps you'd like a demonstration of my power? - I don't have time for this, you middle-aged deviant. P.B. - Well, you'd better make time! Because I've got a party ready just for YOU!  P.B. - My magic flames control the dolls! Ha, ha, ha!  P.B. - Hey! You haven't won yet! - Watch this!...Why does the doll in the upper right look familiar?  Eh. Anyway, Piers has slightly better stats and worse spells this time around. And I don't know why, because he isn't part of the fight. He's standing there, he has HP and all that, but he doesn't do anything. You can't even target him with attacks or spells.   The Soul Flames, on the other hand, are a step up in difficulty. Their stats are pretty good on their own, but their debuff is annoying. And, while it isn't terribly accurate, instant death is always bad for one's blood pressure.    So, let's get one for our team.     And that's that. Dog Man is starting to fall a little behind on usefulness, but Frash Lay is turning into quite the party member between his insane evasion and decent multi-target damage ability.  - You're a disturbing man. With a disturbing fetish... hey, you!P.B. - You again?! - You're the Great Necromancer from the sewer, aren't you?P.B. - I haven't reanimated the dead since we last met, just like I promised! - Yes, but didn't I also tell you not to cause any more trouble?P.B. - Me? Causing trouble? - Don't play innocent with me. You're luring children in here.P.B. - Is that wrong?  - Parents are getting a little... nervous.P.B. - Why? - Because you're an untrustworthy freak.P.B. - Maybe I should give this up and become a monk. - Isn't that a little drastic?P.B. - I'll become a monk, and someday... - You don't have to make a radical change. Just stop being a freak... - Hrmph. He's gone... - I must admit I do feel a bit sorry for him. - Awww... he'll get over it. Freaks always do. Well, mission accomplished. Let's get out of here...Thank god. Ugh.   Oh, you can play with the      As long as she isn't trying to murder me, I guess it's all good.  Anyway, let's get... oh gently caress YOU Piers.  Freak.  After finishing that job, a third... wait... why did this only unlock after I got back? Shu's Theme - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4eQOWnbH4o   ... PIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERS! - Those must be the ones we're looking for. - Let's go. P.B. - You two! Are you new believers?  P.B. - May I take the girl and sacrifice her to the gods?  - Elc! - Heh! Just kidding! I only wanted to find out what they'd think. And they're certainly not thinking clearly. We learned something, you see? If you leave town and disband, I will allow you to live. I don't think your gods are interested in saving you today.  P.B. - We shall not allow any intervention! You are doomed! Get them!  Don't worry, the other choices just skip to the "you were sent by unbelievers" part of the dialogue.   Piers fights for real this time around. And somehow, his stats are actually a bit lower than when he was a decoration.  The fight will end if you just knock out Piers, but his cronies are the same laughably easy enemies Leland was with, just slightly higher level.   Go straight to Hell.  Do not pass Go.  Do not collect $200.  Piers can hit multiple targets now, at least.   Too bad the exchange rate isn't favorable.  - Now then, who are you, really?P.B. - A very sorry man. I once preached the gospel of the gods... but no one listened and no one cared. - And now you thrive on the dark underside of society?P.B. - I know. It's shameful, and I am sorry.  P.B. - Goodbye.  - Let's go, Elc. - Alright.  - If there were truly gods... they should have... they WOULD have... saved my village... - Elc... what's the matter? - Aw, nothing. Let's get out of here.And with that, Piers is done. Good god, I hope he doesn't come back. Prodius - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BvVZGH-g9I  Two jobs to go, let's have a nice and easy one in Prodias for a palette cleanser. Grandpa - My grandson is missing. I'd like you to find him. He looks like this.  Grandpa - I don't think he could have gone far. But then again, I dozed off for a while there... I was told you're the best, so I"m looking forward to seeing him soon! You'd think a kid with that many chromosomes would be easy to spot. And you're right.  In fact, completing this job is as easy as going to Elc's apartment and wandering down the hallway on the right side.       Great, great. Happy family, right? Guess what the silly part is? Go on, guess something.  If your guess was "Somehow there are identical copies of this little freak lurking in several parts of the city" then you win!    Bonus points if you also guessed that picking the wrong kid lowers your pay for the job! I know it was the 90's, Working Designs, but come on. Someone must have felt shame at designing this job.  I know we still have the whiskey delivery job to do, but we can't at the moment. Because Shante is literally preventing the Indigos bar from opening, we can't finish or even properly start the job just yet. So let's go see her so the poor barman doesn't go out of business.  - It's good to BE alive. - You should remain in hiding, Shante. - I can't. I have something to do. - What might that be? - I have a little brother. He's the only family I have left. He means more to me than my own life. - And what happened to him? - He got into trouble... - What kind of trouble? - He took a risky job for me, and... I have to take care of him. I can't believe that I'm talking about my family... Anyway, tell me the story you were telling last night. Why do you know the name of the Cabal's boss? - I recently got into some trouble of my own. I learned that the people pursuing Lieza are my enemies. So, now we have the Cabal in common. Shante, tell me where to find Gallarno. - Gallarno... - You're an informant, Shante. Inform me. - I don't think you want to kn... - I do. I MUST know. - ...Geez. I should have known it would be no use trying to change a Hunter's mind. Alright. I'll do it. But I need some time, Elc. Come back tomorrow.(Tomorrow later...)     - Haay, I'm not takin' orders from no lady! I don' care if it is for your bruddah... - And that's none of your business, brute! - Oh! Dat hurts! Ha, ha, ha! Get in there, boys. This'll be a piece of cake. - ...!? Lieza! Wake up! - Good. Now they can meet our good friend.(Crash!)      Slasher - Grr! Grr! Grr! You will bleed! - Take 'em out! - Watch out for the blade, Lieza!Right, so, the Slasher fight.    The minions are cake. Even the newcomer, the Orc, is a pushover.  Ol' Slasher is in a league of his own, though.   Should've watched out for the blade, Lizzy. That's pretty significant damage, more than most things have done in this update.  Unfortunately most of Slasher's stats are hidden, so we're flying... wait...  WHAT???    Okay game, sure, why not. Elc's childhood friend is now a serial killer. What's the follow-up boss to this? Shante's brother? Previous boss, actually     Ginie the Ripper uses murder powers to teleport back to the window and make a quick exit. Wonder why she didn't just teleport out entirely.  - I bet he's one of the monsters they made in the Chimera Lab! - Oh, Elc! I'm getting frightened again...(Abrupt cut to Gallarno Mansion)  - Alright... that's enough! Shut your trap! I want Elc... Did you hear me?! I said, bring Elc to me! Do you understand, idiot?! - I'm surprised they've grown so strong... it appears I underestimated them. Now I'll have to finish them myself. I'll let them know how foolish it was to make me angry!(Another abrupt cut to Shu's apartment)  - What an awful night... (To have a curse) - Shante is waiting for you. - Alright...(Yet ANOTHER abrupt cut to Indigos pub... getting whiplash over here.)  - The Slasher appeared here yesterday, didn't he? - Huh?! How do you know about that? - It's... not a big deal... I deal in information, remember? Anyway, about Gallarno. - Yes. Where is he? - I found his headquarters... but... - But? - Do you always interrupt? It's quite rude. - Not always, but sometimes. Go on... - It's at the edge of town. I'll take you there, but you need to make sure you have all the battle stuff you need. - Right. I'll stock up. - Good. I'll wait for you here.(Literally a second's delay before I talk to her again so she'll get her double-crossing keister out of the bar) Critical Moment (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60BRHeImRZo  - Let's go. The command center is at the edge of town.(Yet another abrupt shift to OUTSIDE the pub...)  - That's not really your business, is it?Chief(?) - You can't win this fight. It's suicide. They're too strong... too powerful. Even as police, we're powerless. They have connections everywhere. - I don't care. They have to be stopped. And I'll tell you something else. The Slasher is somehow connected with the Cabal.Chief(?) - What?! Look, Elc. I'm not gonna kiss your butt on this one. But if you manage to finish this case, you'll have my utmost admiration. - Awww... that's sweet. Can we GO now? - Uh, yeah... yeah. - Right this way... Right. Well, that's enough story for one update lest my hands fall off, but let's finish the whiskey job really quick now that Shante has finally left the Indigos bar. First, let's got to the bar in Prodias.    Keep in mind, the barkeep wants to make his patrons even more drunk. Okay, look. There's just half a job left and the update is done, but the SA forum has decided I can't italicize anything else. Just this once, let's play pretend and let the game dialogue and my commentary run together a bit. Who knows, maybe it'll be fun!  Barkeep - Oh! Hi, Elc. What's going on? - The Guild says you have a job for me.Barkeep - I do indeed. I need you to receive a shipment from the tavern in Indigos. The owner of the tavern already has the goods crated up and ready to go. Easy money, eh? Good luck! (Quick jump to Indigos bar)  Other Barkeep - The tavern owner in Prodias told me to expect you. Here's the goods. That's a very expensive package. Be careful, alright? (Literally right outside the bar...)   Mighty Flies hit a bit harder and are pretty fast. That's literally all they have going for them in this fight. Can you tell this update is getting a bit long in the tooth?   Even a local house, fed up with these paltry encounters, decides to lend aid by gaining ice breath and using it on nearby foes.    And with that we are DONE WITH JOBS for now. Good lord this update was huge. Job summaries below for your viewing pleasure. See you all next update!     
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2023 02:38
|
|
|
Man, finding that lost kid is SUCH bullshit! No indication that you've got the wrong one until you bring him to the old guy. What a crock of poo poo.
|
|
#
?
Jan 8, 2024 04:40
|
|
|
I can just imagine Elc and Co finally catching up to Arc and having a showdown between Old v New. And then, just as Elc moves to deliver the killing blow, Arc rips off his face mask to reveal...! Not-Arc: "Your first wasn't Arc! It was me, P.B.!" Elc/Miketopus: "FFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUU~!"  Xandor TikRoth posted:Man, finding that lost kid is SUCH bullshit! No indication that you've got the wrong one until you bring him to the old guy. What a crock of poo poo. Wow, that REALLY sucks, yeah. No indication at all, you just have to guess at it? darkmage0707077 fucked around with this message at 22:55 on Jan 14, 2024 |
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2024 22:52
|
|
|
Welcome back everyone! It's time to check out Gallarno's house. It's been sitting on the world map the entire game, but now we can actually enter. It's going to be... well... interesting. Gallarno's Mansion (Hey, for real this time!) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0T52lTBYDrw     True to form, Shante distracts the guards by... making them go inside and leaving the front door unlocked? Gee, she sure is good at espionage.      I'll transcribe stuff soon, I'm just showing you guys this verbatim to prove that Elc and Lieza have the collective intuition of a canteloupe.         I'm also not transcribing just yet because about 75% of the encounters in this update consist of this routine: Character says something, disembodied voice pipes in with something ominous, doors seal, and monsters teleport in for a brief fight. It'll make some of the text later on make more sense if you're familiar with this concept, which is hard to do outside of screenshots. Anyway! Battle 1 (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nngjJXuUc8o   Two Necromancers, two Robbers, and a Blood Fiend to start us out. The Blood Fiend makes a return from the first game, but they moved around his stats a bit. He has okay attack, good defense, and his default (club) attack sweeps multiple squares in front of him. I think they weakened his fire breath a bit, but considering the other flunkies he remains our top priority for defeat, and therefore-  Yoink!    Welcome to the winning team, buddy! I'm actually not sure offhand how useful Mister Satan will be, but he has some interesting weapon skills that may get a bit more function once those weapons are readily available later on. He also has a substantially higher level and stat block to start with than Dog Man, who I decided to Release during this dungeon for reasons I will explain soon. For now, my goal is to get everyone in the group to level 20 or higher.      The rest of the battle goes more or less as you would expect.  - I didn't know that was going to happen. - Hey, don't sweat it. You got us this far, and that's amazing! C'mon. Into the lion's den!(Brief fiddling with the way too big door for these fat little character sprites) - drat! It's locked! - Oh, no. What do we do now? - There has to be a key around here somewhere... or another way in. What about that room to the right, over there? - Sounds like as good a plan as any. Let's check it out.With that, we're free to explore for the key. Up to and including being able to leave the mansion, go rest for free and shop, and come back without any repercussions. ...Really not sure how Shante would manage to swing that with a two second discussion to a door mafioso.   Anyway, our not at all suspiciously behaving ally is correct. Which means, in the grand tradition of JRPG logic, we need to explore everything except where we're directed.  The halls themselves are identical in layout: two rooms to the north, one to the south, with a shortcut door in the south room that takes us back to the mansion foyer. Starting with the left hall, of course.   South doesn't give us much except a free copy of some mundane armor.    Far left gives us just about the easiest warm up in ambush history.      While second from the left proves to be a fight so boring that Lieza found time to work on her Admiral Ackbar impression.     I'm posting a bunch of these because I checked back with Shante between each room and came up with completely different dialogue after each. That means they scripted in three separate conversation triggers, all with varying ways of Shante saying, "Go into those rooms to the right Right, so, the eastern hallway and its identical room layout including where treasure can be found.   First, a generic sword to go with the generic armor. I wonder how many RPGs you could think I'm talking about with that sentence.          Then, more free experience.  And waiting behind the far right door, the MacGuffin. - Look at this! It has to be the key! - Great work. Time to head back to Shante. - Ha, ha, ha! It's not nice to take things that don't belong to you! - Who's there?! Show yourselves! 45 seconds later...  - ...Where is Shante? One brief Mode 7 segway into the most dining room looking auditorium I've ever seen... Ark Demon (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nETRALrhNFY    - I don't know what you're talking about.Slasher - I can't imagine that you've forgotten me already. - Should I know you?Slasher - I used to be a friend of yours, but people have now come to call me The Slasher. - Friend? - ...Wait... that... that voice... - You said something to Mariel again, didn't you!?Ginie - Hee hee hee. - Why are you laughing? (Very awkward conk on the head animation)Ginie - Ow! I was just playing! - Well, mind your own business! Ginie - Yes, Elc. I'm glad you haven't forgotten what I used to be. You don't know how much I've looked forward to seeing you again. But now I have to say goodbye again. Taste but a small fraciton of the power you gave up when you ran away! - Wait! Ginie! I don't want to fight you.Ginie - Then it will be easier than I'd hoped to finish you.  Right. So. Ginie the Ripper and her Hobgoblin posse.  Since we can't just become Invincible whenever we feel like it, it's important to note that Ginie hits the hardest of the melee enemies we've encountered so far except maybe that weird Wanted Hemo-ji.     So Elc Charges up. He's got plenty of time since Gallarno decided to build the world's longest table.     Team Fiery Death makes short weak of the forces on the right, with an occasional assist from Frash Lay and a round of cures from Lieza.    Elc tries to make it quick for Ginie's sake, but good god I saw brain.  One-shotting Ginie ends the fight and probably gives the two remaining Hobgoblins nightmares for years. Sorrow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0Ps91tMCOg  Ginie - It's not... I can't lose... Gwaaahh!! My head... it HURTS!! My... HEAD... AAAUGHHH!!   - Hold on, Ginie!Ginie - E... Elc... We waited... for you to return... to save us. But... after you left, they... accelerated the pace of... conversion. Ginie - Please... save Lily... so she... won't be made into... a monster like me... Ahhh... - Ginie?Ginie - Elc... I...    - And so, at death's threshold, two friends part ways. How melodramatic.  - Gallarno. - Mmmm. Very good. So you do know me. Your friend Shante was right. You are a smart one. - Shante?  - Shante... why? - Why did you betray us? - Ha, ha, ha! It was nothing so simple as that. Shante didn't seek to betray you. I had to "persuade" her to befriend you. - Elc... Lieza... I... I'm so sorry. You have to believe that I had no choice! - No choice? No CHOICE? Because of you, Ginie is now DEAD!  - Elc! - You're right. She's not worth the effort. (Boom!)     - Shante is being controlled by them. - Shu, you're alive!- Yes. I took advantage of my unfortunate "death" to research the Cabal. Elc, Shante's brother was taken hostage by the Cabal. - !? - I've discovered that Shante's brother and Lieza were both at White House. - He... - Wahhh, ha, ha, ha, HA! What perfect timing! I have some rather disturbing news to deliver in that regard.  - What? What do you mean? - Your brother was converted... and met his end because of a Hunter at the Aldia Skyport. - No... it can't be! - Ah! But it is, Elc. You killed him. It's quite a streak you're on. First, Shante's brother, and now Ginie. I'm not certain it's a healthy thing to be your friend.     - You're a madman! I can't believe that you're even human! - Oooh. Such cutting words from the friend-killer. But, in fact, they're quite true. For you see... I am not human.  - And soon, you shall perish as well. - You assume too much! - It's time to conduct a little experiment.  - I don't want any part of your pathetic plans! - Nevertheless, you have no choice. The experiment is to see if pathetic humans can outslash five superior C-class monsters!  And with that, Shu triumphantly returns! And Shante joins our party in the bargain! This is where the party level comes into play I mentioned earlier. Shante seems to join at the average group level, putting her at 21. Whereas Shu joins us at level 25 for reasons I am unsure of but will certainly not complain about.  First things first, let's give the Mummy Boots to their rightful master, Shu. Giving him ridiculously good attacks that can blind when they don't kill.    Next, a quick look at Gallarno. Wow, look at those lackluster stats. I wonder what that's about. The fight will end if we knock him out, and he's pretty much the weakest thing on the map.   Shante's stats don't exactly impress, and her abilities make her a backup Lieza without Ravish. But you'll want to keep up with her because of reasons later on. It's easy to write off characters in this game, but a surprising amount of them have sections of gameplay made much easier if they aren't climbing out of a trash pile.    That said, her attack animations are pretty cool. For foot weaponry, she does a jump kick/stomp attack. And, if she chains more hits together, she'll slip off one of her stiletto heels and smash her opponent with it. Gotta say, not every day you see a JRPG character with a moveset like that.  Also, her counter-attack is to kick the enemy in the crotch.   Anyway, not much else remarkable to this fight. Gallarno walked around the busiest part of the melee and decided to commit suicide by waddling up to my strongest ninja and attacking him face-on. A cunning strategy.  - Tell me where White House is located. - I don't know. - You're lying, Gallarno!! I know you are pulling the strings at Chimera Labs! - Hu, hu, hu... ha, ha, ha, ha!! - What's so funny? - I think it's hilarious that you still believe I'm Gallarno! - Huh? - You should know that it's impossible for ANYONE to catch Gallarno! - Oh, Shante...     Chief(?) - What's wrong, Elc? - Shante... I didn't kill your brother at the - ...It doesn't matter... Gallarno's men finished him before I could second guess myself. But, the fact remains that i put him in the position for the Cabal to finish him. I... I just didn't know. I couldn't have! - ... - You must hate me. You must want to kill me. I'll gladly allow you to do so. But could you wait until I save my friend? (Chief(?) - Yyyyyyup... just going to pretend I didn't hear this talk about premeditated murder...)  - I... I killed him when I betrayed him. - Shante...  - Please, Elc. Let me fight with you.And with that, our group leaves the mansion and all of its curiously overlarge furniture behind. Silver Noah Meeting Room - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cDsaAjcNMQ  And, out of nowhere, let's see how Arc and the old gang are doing.   - Yes, there. Kelacks - Kikeeee! - Don't say Kikeee. No Kikeee, right? Well, well. Hemo-ji, what you do? Show Chongara cunning! Show skill!Hemo-ji - Hemoooo! (A sparkly flies out and bonks Chongara on his big ugly stereotype noggin.) - Ouch!! What you did, stupid head?! Heh! It's a Power Fruit! Lucky for Chongara, eh? Chongara will save! - Chongara coming! Chongara hopes plan is biiig, eh? - I'll be right down.  - Heh, heh, heh. We not do anything but hide after statue go boom. - We cannot act against Romalia until we understand their plan fully. - Chongara not like to wait...  - This isn't the first time, merchant! - Chongara not like this side of you.  - Yes, yes. Enough of that nonsense you two. It's time to come to order.  - All right, listen closely. - As you all know, Romalia has initiated a monster research program. - At the Chimera Research Lab, correct? - Right. - That hideous place is just one big, scary monster factory. - And their program has accelerated. They are now kidnapping children with special powers. They use these children to fortify the monsters' inherent abilities... creating super-monsters! - Ooohh... I don't like the sound of THAT... - Their plan has been global domination from the start... but the campaign has entered a sinister new phase with this program's acceleration. We've learned that Andel is behind this new plan. We must do what we can to stop it. - However, I must point out that... if we don't know exactly what their master plan is, we cannot counter it. - Partially correct. We cannot make an assault on their master plan. We can only work to disband the parts we're aware of. I shall take the task of researching Andel's plan myself, at least for now. While I'm investigating that, I'd like you to destroy the Research Labs. - Sounds invigorating. - It has been a long while since we've undertaken such an assignment. I look forward to it. - We haven't much time. Each of you must take responsibility for a Lab. - Uh, we're splitting up? I... I don't like working alone... - Don't worry. I'll make sure your backs are covered. - Okay, then. We know what we have to do. Let's get to work. - To White House. I'm certain Andel is calling the shots from there. - It's time to go!  A few generic lines from the monsters outside and two boxes of dialogue from Chongara that literally flash on the screen too quickly to read or capture later, the Silver Noah has liftoff! Right, let's... ugh... one more scene, hang in there. West Ardia - https://youtu.be/5BbHMONWxAM   - We will get Gallarno. I promise. - There's only one place he could have gone. - White House?- Exactly. It's his favorite haunt. - When I was there, it was loaded with innocent children. It has to be worse by now. We have to save them at any cost! - Shu, do you know where White House is? - Not exactly, no... but I've heard that it's in the Salba Desert of West Aldia. - So all we have to do is... search a sprawling desert. - Should be no problem, right? - I dunno about that. But we'd best get started... And with that last bit of dialogue, we are finally free of another tyranical cutscene! With a new destination, it's looking like the double protag crew may be on a collision course to finally see each other outside of a one-sided airship race. Tune in next time for more... well, honestly probably jobs and bounties. But maybe more than that. See you next time!
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2024 01:13
|
|
|
darkmage0707077 posted:I can just imagine Elc and Co finally catching up to Arc and having a showdown between Old v New. Haha. Piers. What a freak. It's not random who the kid is in that job, but there's no clues within the job itself saying, for example, that Kid #54 in the apartment was seen wandering away from the grandpa or anything like that. At best, you get lucky and go with that kid first. At worst, you either reload an earlier save once you know who it is, or you deal with a lesser reward for something you couldn't possibly intuit beforehand. 
|
|
#
?
Jan 15, 2024 01:17
|
|
|
Miketopus posted:It's not random who the kid is in that job, but there's no clues within the job itself saying, for example, that Kid #54 in the apartment was seen wandering away from the grandpa or anything like that. At best, you get lucky and go with that kid first. At worst, you either reload an earlier save once you know who it is, or you deal with a lesser reward for something you couldn't possibly intuit beforehand. That's just bad game design.
|
|
#
?
Jan 16, 2024 08:01
|
|
|
 Prodius - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BvVZGH-g9I Welcome back, everyone! Not much in the way of plot this update, just some preparations before we go searching for White House. We've got some jobs, a bounty, and a new friend coming our way, so let's get to it!  First things first, though. Let's collect a bounty for murdering our childhood friend!     There's a few jobs available, one in Indigos and a few more in Prodias. No new bounties on the board, though. Even Slasher's was replaced with the previous slain monster whose spot got bogarted. I know one solitary job doesn't sound like "a few" to most people, but don't worry, it'll make sense in a bit.  Before we get into the jobs, let's pick up that new friend I mentioned.  - Good news. I've fixed the robot. Have a peek in the lab to see the robot in action!Lia - Yaaay! Mr. Robot is talking again! A brief screen transition later...    - Ha, ha! It's cute!  - You laughed at me! - S... sorry. Don't be mad. She just thought you were cute. - Understand. Apology processed. Doctor has programmed me to accompany you.  Power Unit 01 received! Power Unit 02 received! Power Unit 03 received! Power Unit 04 received! - These are Power Units that can strengthen Diek. - Diekbeck is a Machine, so he cannot gain strength from battles. Instead, you must equip him with Power Units. - These will make him much stronger. The Units I gave you have five attributes: None, Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind. You should change the attribute depending on the situation. Diek can equip a maximum of two units at a time. However, he cannot equip opposite attributes at the same time, such as Water and Fire. - Quite a marvel, eh? >Yes - You see? Leave these things to me and I can work wonders!>No - Perhaps you're disappointed that it looks different than in the Ruins? Well, you see, part of the casing had been corroded, and the core program was corrupt. I repaired it, but it looks a little different, now.Lia - Please bring Mr. Robot to see me sometime. So, per the surprisingly accurate explanation from the good Doctor (Must resist urge to post Doctor Who screenshot!), Diekbeck's stats are based entirely on his equipment. Without any power units, he has a 1 in everything, including HP and MP, and no skills.      It makes sense to give him Power Unit 00, as it's a non-elemental with overall better stats than the other starting units. Beyond that, the biggest difference comes from what spells/abilities he has when he equips the other units. I decided to leave the wind unit on, since it had an extra ability. You're going to see our new robo friend in action in a minute, but in summary: Diekbeck is pretty good. The starting units already make him an above average party member, and the right spells in the right encounters can absolutely wreck your enemies. I don't typically use him fights, however, because the whole "doesn't gain EXP" thing feels like a bit of a dealbreaker to me. Other party members who need EXP could be using that to get stronger, especially this early on in the game. I seem to remember there's a bunch more to Diekbeck's power unit quest later on in the game. Since I don't think I bothered with it much before, perhaps I'll change my stance after giving it a try this time around. West Ardia - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BbHMONWxAM  Anyway, back to East First up, let's get the Indigos piano job out of the way.  Barman - I heard a rumor that people near the tavern... are hearing piano music in the dead of night. I'd like you to check it out for me.  >No Barman - Let me know when you ARE ready. >Yes  (Hey! Who turned out the lights?)  - Someone's in front of the piano!  - It's a little kid! What are you doing here in the middle of the night?!Kid - I'm practicing the piano... because I want to join the band. Suddenly   - Graah! What are you doing here? - Investigating. But it looks like you're robbing the joint. - But, you're not getting out of here alive to tell anyone, punk! Battle 6 (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_A2TgRBRvtQ  Well, that was random. Anyway, I promised you some Diekbeck, and this is where I gave it a test drive.  One other thing I forgot to mention is that Diek has incredible range. I think only Shu can outpace him in movement at the moment.    His magic is pretty good, too. This is good damage this early in the game.    Here's Elc for comparison.    Anyway, the Barbarian is an upgraded Robber in the sense that a Dragon Quest 1 Red Slime is an upgraded Slime. It's by the narrowest of degrees. The Demi Monk hiding behind the plant isn't much better, either.     Diek has some hilarious attack animations, though. In this one, he made a mini Diek that blew up on the monk and basically wiped it out in one hit. Anyway, it's an easy fight and it's quickly over. I think Shante finished the last Barbarian by kicking him in the dick.  Kid - I'm sorry. - So, you want to join the band, do you? I'll let the barkeeper know about you.Kid - Really? Oh! Thank you!! Remember, you promised to tell the barkeeper about me! - Hmmm? It's daybreak already...After leaving the bar and immediately going back in. AND switching to Shante with the L1/R1 buttons...  Barman - What? - I know a person who wants to join the band.Barman - Okay. I'll talk to him sometime. - Good! Kid - Here... take this.  Kid - I'll do my best so I can join the band!  You can actually miss the Rapier entirely if you don't go back into the bar and switch to Shante to refer the kid. It's a decent weapon, and has the ability to match the EarthLong sword for power in case you want something non-elemental.   For the other job, we need to go back to Gallarno's mansion, which has apparently been abandoned due to too much plot. This is where the majority of the rest of the update will take place, so settle in. Statue of a Goddess (Plays whenever you aren't actively in a battle or cutscene in the mansion, now) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okk-Z5_w1hI  - I suddenly don't think this job pays enough...? - Are you calling us cheap? That's quite an affront! - Um, what?(I swear this house has more disembodied interjecting voices than all parts of the games combined up to this point.) Iga's Theme (Arc 1)... for some reason - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adoyCAQBDVQ  - Well... uh, yeah.  - The one you just implied was cheap. I do believe that was the implication of the lad's comment. - I really didn't... - Oh, tut tut! No need to stammer out an apology. I am somewhat of a cheap bastard. Even my friends say so. - Uh... so... you're not mad? - Heavens no! the name is Dex - Habersham Dex. - Well, Mr. Dex, why did you request a Hunter? - Ha, ha, ha. Why spend my money to stop creepy sounds bothering townspeople, eh? I shouldn't care less about what those simpletons think. But, well, the wife here has been nagging me to be more sensitive. And I figured, "What the hell?" I've got a mountain of cash. I suppose I can employ a bit of philanthropy and make this little problem go away. - Well, I certainly admire your change of heart. - Hrmph! Change of heart... Pfft! - Huh?! - He's not doing this out of the kindness of his heart. - But, I thought... - Pipe down. You're going to spoil it all! - Spoil? - Erm... I suppose there's nothing to do but confess the truth now. My wife is right. I'm not doing this for the townsfolk. I bought this place at an unbelievably cheap price intending to resell it for a tidy profit. But, I didn't know this damned place was haunted. So, I have to get it cleaned out before the buyer comes to look at it. - I'm beginning to understand. - There isn't much time, Hunter. This place has to be clean of monsters, and soon! - Right. I'm on it.  This job isn't hard, per se, but it is rather involved. You need to go through the house and fight a total of six battles. That's four for the small rooms, one for the main hall just beyond the foyer, and one for the dining room-shaped main auditorium where we fought Ginie and the fake Gallarno.  I decide to give Fry Guy some love on this one.    You can't leave the mansion until the job is done, but at least the lady of the house will let you rest as often as you want. No reason not to, it doesn't lower your reward or anything like that. The encounters aren't really difficult, but I did rest once about halfway through just so I could keep pumping out spells and abilities.  Speaking of the encounters, it's entirely Ghouls and Vampire Bats. So, just about nothing new in terms of fight content.   But, as I mentioned previously, the zombie type monster can't be found in random encounters later. So I snag a Ghoul just in case it turns out to be useful later on.   ...I have my doubts on that front, but time will tell.  Pictured: Elc showing more emotion at ending a random encounter than he does in about 90% of his dialogue.     Look, I'm not going to show you every single encounter on this job, it's an absolutely boring series of fights. Let me just give you a couple funny highlights and we'll call this one a wrap.  Shante's little got an item/leveled up animation is kind of cool, I guess. She has a whole "gone clubbing" vibe to her fight and animation style.  Meanwhile, Fry Guy's nightmare happy face is just too precious to not laugh at. Out of all the monsters, the only ones I've gotten more use out of are Paundit and Frash Lay. Fry's all around good stats make it a useful party member, even if its basic claw doesn't give it any huge advantages.   - You've mopped up the monsters in record time! I can't tell you how happy this has made me! Now I can sell this place and command a hefty premium on my purchase price! You shall be well-compensated for your efforts, Hunter. - I don't believe it. - No, I'm serious. - Yes. A seriously cheap bastard running on at the mouth. ( ) - That was uncalled for. - I'm sorry, pookie. I got carried away. - Yes... yes, you did. But let's not forget that we have a buyer coming soon. We have to prepare for his arrival. So then, thank you again, Hunter. - I shan't hesitate to call on you again if necessary! - Take care of yourselves! And with that job done, we're free to go back to Prodias for job... number... two...  These guys had better not follow the Piers trend of never leaving me the hell alone.  Pretty nice attention to detail, updating the location name like that.  - I don't know why anyone would buy such a cursed house... Oh well, not my problem. I just do the jobs.  Guard 2 - Identify yourself! - Huh? Oh! I'm the Hunter that was summoned from the Guild.Guard 1 - Hunter?! Guard 2 - Excuse us. Guard 1 - The Master is waiting for you in the Dining Hall. He's quite impatient. You'd best hurry. - Right.More brief Mode 7 door openings later...    - Oh. It's you again. Let's see what you can do to help me this time. I hear robbers are targeting my property, so I called for a Hunter. As you may know...    - The Robbery is supposed to take place this evening. And, that's why I've summoned you. - What is going on?!Guard 1 - We are under attack, sir! Guard 2 - Monsters are overrunning the mansion!  Victorious Fanfare (Arc 1)... for some reason, whenever she's on screen - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGsLhJ4IIj4 Guard 2 - You!  - Oh, this is so annoying! Nighty night!    - That's better. Doll Master Flunky - Ms.! - What are you doing talking when you should be ransacking?! Do you know where the treasure is?Kobold Flunky - Yah! We found it. Doll Master Flunky - We did, we did! Kobold Flunky - There are four treasure boxes... Doll Master Flunky - ...in four different rooms, Ms. Rouge. - And they'll be ours, soon enough. Go get them.Kobold Flunky - I thought you might wanna. Doll Master Flunky - Yeah! Let's go, guys! A way too fast animation of bunches of alternate colored kobolds and doll masters running up to the stairs later...  - Go to it. - Right. Voice From On High - Select party members... Right. In case that went by a little fast for you, and I see no reason why it would, the mansion is now being robbed by a monster tamer/hooker who keeps a knockout gas rod inside of her cleavage. And her cadre of doll masters and kobolds/werewolves. I was going to wonder how Dex got wind of this before it happened, but I guess that kind of group stands out.  This time around, I'm going to dust off poor Paundit and give him some play.     Fascinating dialogue as usual, guys.  This job has fewer encounters in it, which is nice. We just have to go into each of the four little rooms that have a chest in them and smack around the doll masters and werewolves that we find. And yes, re-skinned kobolds are apparently werewolves. They have higher attack power, but are lower in most other stats compared to their green-clad cousins.    Remember how I said before certain weapons have skills tied to them? Lieza can use her whip skills Spinster and Ravish regardless of her weapon, so I may have just been talking crazy. Anyway, let's gloss over that. We haven't really seen spinster in action yet, but it's a pretty sweet attack that lets Lieza hit any enemy directly adjacent to her in one of the four cardinal directions. You normally don't want to put Lieza in the middle of enemy groups like this, but I admit it really wrecked the monsters in these encounters. Especially with Shante to move right after and cure Lieza of any injuries accrued pulling this stunt.  Speaking of: Shante kicking a werewolf in the balls.   Also pictured: Good Boy winning vs Bad Boy.   After each fight, Rouge says this line and vanishes. It's easy to miss, but Rouge is actually hanging out in each of these rooms from the moment we enter. Go ahead, go back to one of the first screenshots of this fight if you don't believe me. I bet you missed spotting her until I pointed it out. Anyway, similar to other seemingly random NPCs and antagonists during battles, you can't attack Rouge and she doesn't attack you. For that matter, the treasure chests are just placeholders too. The enemies won't attempt to smash and grab the treasures like that jewelry store gig from near the beginning of the game. You literally just wander into each room and kill everything with stats. Oh, and I'm sure somebody will wonder this: No, you can't take the treasures yourself. You can't even open or interact with them. Guess you'll have to try the money shop glitch if you want to see what apparently unlimited wealth is like in this game.    Four fights later, Rouge calls it quits on this job.  - Time to go.Kobold Flunky - Ms. Rouge! Don't leave me here... please. - You're still here?Kobold Flunky - You'll take us with you, right? Doll Master Flunky - Please? - You two are pathetic. No treasure and dead henchmen. This is not going as I had hoped. It's no wonder we failed. The thing that frustrates me is that I can smell treasure here. Kobold Flunky - I think you're right, Ms. Rouge. Doll Master Flunky - Yeah! Yeah... - Well then... We can't leave all that booty here, unattended, can we? It shall be mine... I swear it. But for now, we had best regroup and form a new plan. Ready to go?Kobold Flunky - Yes! Doll Master Flunky - Ooh! Ooh! Yes!  A brief foray into cleavage, followed by a teleportation spell later...  - I had no idea the ringleader would be a woman. And one that commands monsters, to boot! What a smashing job you've done here. Those parasites didn't get an ounce of my valuables! And, I owe it all to you! You were far better than I had imagined you'd be. I can finally sleep without worrying. You deserve every bit of your bounty! - We'll recommend you to our friends! Well thank goodness that's over. Third job is... seriously?  Deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeex!  - The guards are missing... - Something's up in the back of the house!A brief Mode 7 later...   - But you came just in time to see us off!  Kobold Flunky - We couldn't find any treasure. Doll Master Flunky - It wasn't where it was supposta be! Kobold Flunky - What're we gonna do now, Ms. Rouge!? Doll Master Flunky - Yeah, what?! - Shut up, both of you! We have no choice but to retreat for the time being. But... not before we take care of this meddling Hunter and his pesky friends!Kobold Flunky - Good plan, boss! Doll Master Flunky - Yeah, good! - Come forth, creatures of the night!  There's only one fight in this job, but it's a little more packed than the others have been. Rouge still isn't participating, but her flunkies are. That makes a total of seven opponents.  Your turn, Mister Satan.  I wish I could cap off this final job for the update with an exciting tale of a close battle.  But honestly, you've seen me fight all of these monsters previously.  Add to this the fact that the unconscious/dead guards take up a tile, and you have an easy fight made easier with bottleneck points.  And that's a wrap!  - What an embarrassing showing. I assure you... it won't be like this next time, Hunter! Farewell. A screenshot in case you thought I was joking about her literally reaching between her breasts later...  - You really showed those thieves, didn't you? When they attacked before you arrived, I feared I might perish. - It was quite frightening... I can't bear to think of it! - Well, it's over now, my sweet. We've been saved by the Hunter. As a matter of fact, I think this is the fastest job he's done! I'm sure he's looking for a big, fat reward. And, of course, he'll get it. But, I'm fairly certain this will be his last job for us. Ever since I bought this house and failed to sell it for a quick profit, it's been one disaster after another here. I believe this wretched place is cursed, and it's time for us to leave. - If we don't see you again, I want to wish you well. - Yes, yes! Be certain to take care! And with the third and final job in the series, Dex's house changes its name back to Vacant House. Let's wrap things up with the single bounty we can pick up. Guess where it's lurking!   When you go back to the now re-vacant house, the four small rooms that have contained faux treasure and weak monsters and hot monster tamers are now random encounter rooms. How fast you find the bounty here depends on luck, since as far as I can tell he has a chance of appearing in any of the four rooms.  Don't worry, though. You don't have to finish the fight before leaving the room. You can actually stake out the room with the easiest encounters and just move Elc back to the doorway if the bounty doesn't show up. It'll reset the encounter when you come back, including the chance of the bounty being there.  Once Tianus teleports into the room and you get the bounty notification, you're all set!   It's easy to be intimidated by Tianus. Not only is he level 45, but he has cure magic and he stole Kukuru's angel laser spell. If it hits, it will inflict hefty damage on just about any party member. You may get lucky and Tianus will waste his time with weak physical attacks. But you may also have weapons that inflict silence. If you don't, Shante can cast it too. Either method will take the venom out of Tianus' fangs.    It's overall an easy fight, but you really want Shu to steal the Meow Sword from Tianus.  Sure, its attack power is on the average end, but check out that defense boost! Since monsters can't equip armor, giving this to Frash proves a good move. Don't worry about the attack drop, it'll even out as the sword gets stronger. Anyway, the fight.        Fin.  And with an extra nice serving of job/bounty rewards, we're all done for this update. Expect more plot with the next one, but for now here's the completed job summaries. See you next update!    
|
|
#
?
Jan 22, 2024 00:44
|
|
|
Sickness and work can suck my balls through a straw, drat it. Oh, good, Dex is getting in on the nagging action. I can't wait for the inevitable mismatched buddy cop movie with P.B. He was a poor street wizard; and he was a snobbish millionaire! Together, they are: The Bounty Naggers!   Elc: "Every where I go, these guys follow! They won't stop nagging me! It's driving me insane! CURSE YOU, BOUNTY NAGGERS! "...On a more serious note, props to the game for actually giving the heroes proper motivation for joining on as a rag-tag group of misfits beyond just "Adventure FUN!" or "Gotta save the world for the millionth time in JRPGs!" I like that the writers actually tried to give motivations to these people for once.
|
|
#
?
Jan 28, 2024 01:54
|
|
|
Welcome back, everyone. This is going to be a pretty big update, and it's going to be about 90% story related. The other 10% is a mix of monster bounties and lame jokes. Have fun! Oh, and hope you're feeling better darkmage0707077! Getting sick around flu season is never any fun. And it doesn't excuse the nightmare image you put in my head of a coop between Piers and Dex, either. Haha.  With all our side stuff done for now, it's time to hit the skies.  Hey, there's a New Mexico...  Welcome to West Rorschach. I'll let you guys decide what this one looks like. Battle 8 (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeqWNnQg1uo   - There are a lot of monsters around here. Are you ready to leave? - We don't have much choice. Let's get moving. Hey! You'd better stay here, Diek. - (Off-camera) If you leave me, you will regret it.  If the arena lobby music didn't clue you in, we're in for a bit of fighting here in Wild West Aldia. There's not much to look at currently, but there's no fewer than three big zones waiting for us in this update. I'll try and keep the pace going, but sorry in advance if it gets a little bogged down in places.  To start with, I know we just left the desert but it's actually our first zone.  It's about as scenic as you'd expect. There's going to be a few screen transitions here, but otherwise just assume there's a lot of this going on right now.  - Will there be monsters that way? - Unfortunately, we can't avoid them completely. We'll have to fight our way through them. But, it shouldn't be too much trouble. - ...And speaking of trouble... here comes out first batch now! Select party members... Battle 6 (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_A2TgRBRvtQ  I hope you guys are fans of that ever-shifting fifth slot, because almost everyone is getting some action in this update!  I should probably explain a gimmick about the next couple of zones. You see, unlike in the first game, you can actually leave some battlefields early, before a fight is finished. Turning around here will put us back on the area map. However, obviously we need to move forward to progress the game. One ability that Elc gets a lot of use out of starting around this part of the game is his expand range spell. This is because it adds a couple of squares of movement to anybody that gets it, and it lasts at least three or four moves. If you're not the type to grind out enemy encounters and just want to get the desert out of the way as soon as possible, you can actually run past the monsters and get to the other side of the zone. The desert itself is just one long hallway, going from west to east for three full screens, so the only thing you have to be careful of is getting smacked by too many monsters on the way past.   Unfortunately for the desert dwellers, I'm in the mood for shish kebabs. Or is it kabobs? ... I am getting the strangest feeling of dijon mustard. We've seen Rocs before, nothing new there. Fast, can fly over and sit on obstacles, have annoyingly good agility. But this is the first time I think we've run into Treants in this game. They've seemingly lost the ability from the first game to reproduce, but they can move around now.  They actually can grab some pretty mad air from those jumps. I know who I'm picking for B-Ball during gym class. (Ignore Fry Guy, he didn't do much remarkable this update) Suddenly, a lightning bolt flashes on the screen so fast I can't capture it in time!   - I'm not scared by common thieves. - You're quite defiant for one just struck by lightning! - That's not showing off, is it? - A smart mouth is not such a good idea in your situation. - Heh, heh, heh. I'll take the girl with longer hair. - You sicko! - It's not what you think. I merely have a preference for untainted flesh. - That's it. You're finished!   And then they were dead. The end.  I fibbed just a little about the desert hallway, by the way. In the southeast corner of this middle section, there's actually a way to skirt some cacti, move to the right, and down into a secret area.   There's only a treasure chest here, and it contains a slight upgrade for Paundit. Well, once it levels a bit it'll be an upgrade anyway.    There's one more fight to get to the exit unless you book it, but it somehow manages to be the least interesting fight out of the three in the desert. So let's move on already.  Oh, but one of the enemies dropped a Wind Knife, which is an okay dagger that for some reason can only be equipped by Frash Lay. Even Lieza can't equip it like she normally can with these weapon types. Shu's Theme - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4eQOWnbH4o  - Yes, but the forest still remains to be conquered. - Alas, we have much ground yet to cover. - Then, I believe it would be wise if we rested here a while. - Good idea.  Inside this random house is a free inn and save point. Trust me, you can never have too many of those. I don't think I've even been able to pay for an inn yet in this game.   The "chest" is actually a shop, but it's full of mediocre equipment and items we've seen before. And unlike some games where I've been slaughtered by angry demons, you can't rip off anything for free. Apparently Elc adheres strongly to the honor system.  A little north, and we go into the second zone, the forest.  - Local folklore says that if you enter, you never return. - This place... I... - Have you been here before, Elc? - Yes... I... I think I have. - This Forest is more confusing than the Desert we just went through. The visibility is very poor, and the Forest itself is like a maze. If we get lost, we'll never find our way out. - We have to get through it to find the lab, though. - We don't really have a choice except to try. - Elc... - All I could do was run away... But this time, it's gonna be different. I'm ready to fight! For myself, and for Ginie! I'm not going to let Mariel end up like the others, either! - Save!! - What did he say?Select party members...  Yeahhhhh, about that, Elc. I hate to steal your thunder, but our next step is literally running away from the forest. Why, you ask?  Because leaving the area...  ...And going back into the desert for absolutely no reason...  ...Has a random chance of spawning one of our bounties, Hoysler, on the easternmost screen. Don't worry, you can just move back and forth between the second and third screens until he spawns, you don't have to clear the enemies first or anything.   Also, Hoysler himself is so laughably weak that there's nothing to really talk about in his battle. He tried to kick Shu. Shu kicked him. He died. End of story. Not even a fun item to steal or loot.  Anyway, back to the Lost Forest. Make sure to follow the paths where Saria's ocarina plays loudest.  In truth, the Lost Forest is more complicated than any dungeon or zone we've been in up to this point, but that isn't saying much. There's a couple of treasures and a point or two of interest inside. Generally, to get around you want to take pathways going north when you can. If they lead to a dead end, just backtrack a little and keep going east until you can go north again. If you can't go east after going north, go west a little bit until you can go north.  The only thing that kind of sucks is that monsters respawn pretty actively here when you change screens. So on the few occasions where you need to backtrack after getting an item or something, you need to either fight your way back through, or run to the next path. Treants are hanging around here again, and Red Skeletons have replaced the Rocs.     I decide to grab one on my way through since undead seem to be pretty strong. (By the way, if you know the indie RPG protagonist I named this one after, I am so happy I could just squee.)   The Crush Boots may not do more damage than what Shante has now, but a defense debuff for attacks is a pretty kickass addition.      The Lost Forest itself is a little repetitive, I gotta say. Although it's nice to see Elc's emotional range when it comes to surprise and/or frustration. He's usually so that it's hard to read him. Anyway. That's the Lost Forest. Let's not get bogged down overly much on specifics. Biotechnology Research Institute (Arc 1) (Hey, they used it this time!) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haUBZ4wH3iE  And of course the villain is watching our every move... sheesh. - We estimate that they will arrive within five minutes. - Such a feeble-minded Hunter... - Are you still toying with these idiots? - The enhanced monsters you've grown so fond of are MY handiwork. - And yet... your grand ambition seems to have failed to account for one thing. A small boy and his gullible friends. Tell me, Gallarno, why is that? I shall pay rapt attention to your response. - Do not mock me, Minister. Remember, it is only by means of my enhanced monster-guards your towers yet stand. - Hmmm, well, yes. I suppose I do owe your monsters a debt of gratitude. Becuase once those towers are complete and the Martyr Plan is enacted... I shall gain sovereignty over the world! At that time, The Dark One shall be revived, and a new order will be established. An order that does not rely on undead and freakish children, I might add. - I find it somewhat ironic that your childish plan would be foiled by... CHILDREN! It's almost too delicious to bear. Ahhhh, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! - Oh, really? I seem to recall that you were outwitted by Arc not so long ago. - Hah! I can finish that brat at whatever moment I choose. - Ha! You're an amateur. Shut your mouth and watch. I'll show you how to play a trump card! Prepare... Sample M. - Yes, sir!Well, that's quite the mashup! It's about time Andel waddled his way out of Seirya and into the game.   Of course, knowing that the villains are watching the group through some sort of secret cameras and/or flying drones takes some of the suspense out of the stealth and espionage aspect of the game, but eh.  - What do you think, Elc? - We should be able to take them easily, but... it could attract unnecessary attention. - I don't know what choice we have. It's the only entrance I see. - Psst! Shu! This way!(A screen transition later...)  - It's the duct I used as a child. It's not the easiest way in... but it'll get us into the building with the least attention. - So, these lead to the basement? - They must.    Select party members... Cave (Not sewer) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Siek8ci5SWI  Tag in, Mister Satan! So, the White House Sewer is part of zone 3, the biggest zone of the update. It's full of corridors and switches and actually looks a lot more complicated when in fact it's more linear than the Lost Forest.   Going south first thing takes us past a closed red door, and a ladder leading up into another heal/save room.  And, because it's this game, the first thing we do after resting is backtrack!  You see, near the exit to White House is actually a southern path in the forest.  Taking this path and heading east leads us to... this guy!   Selecting "Where is the Exit" first...    ...Gives us an indication that this guy is kind of a dick. However, if we select "Who are you?" it leads to...    Holy crap! He summoned the bounty targeter!     Well that's... kind of underwhelming, actually. Don't get me wrong, if he decides to cast spells, they hurt, but...  ... He's all by himself in this fight. He didn't summon minions or anything. And he just ran up and attacked.     And then, when all was said and done, Shante finished Balzack with a kick to the ball sack. And claimed his sword as a trophy. ...Yeahhhhh... Oh, you can steal a more useful Spirit Seed from him for equipment making later. I didn't Probably. I think. I may have been a little high when I went through this part of the update.  Anyway, that was the last bounty for the update, so let's go back into the sewers.  Upon reentry I decide to give Good Boy another go, as his levels needed some catching up.   So yeah, red doors and switches. One opens the other. I'm sure it only takes a couple of guesses to figure out how that works. I mentioned before that this place looks more complicated than it is, and that's because if you aren't somehow making a beeline for the direct way through the sewers, then you're finding an area with a treasure and/or a switch you need to flip to keep moving forward. It's actually way simpler than it seems. Battle 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-MsYLANsuc     Down here are a few combinations of Skeletons, Freezies (The blue slimes), and Giant/Vampire Bats. Yeah, both kinds in different fights.   Freezies come equipped with a surprisingly dangerous breath attack that damages and then puts allies to sleep. It's kind of a pain even if the ally is usually woken right after by the next enemy coming up and smacking them. Try to keep Lieza and Shante available for heals just in case.   Pretty early into the sewers, a Power Nut is guarded by Freezies and Bats.  Be with you in a minute.  It may not be apparent with the fact we're reusing enemies, but they have leveled up so this zone is actually more difficult than the others so far. It can be easy to get swarmed by bunches of enemies you don't feel threatened by, so try and keep the splitting down to two groups at most.  I can't overstate how boring and linear the sewer actually is otherwise. The next part of the zone will be better.   Oh, here's one tricky/fun/dickish part.  When you get to a big open area with an isolated ladder in the upper right corner, you actually want to get someone up that ladder before the fight is over. Remember, we can only jump in combat, so if you finish the monsters here then you're missing out on a treasure. It's possible they might respawn if you leave White House and come back, but why take the chance?  Go ninja, go ninja, go!  It's a ladder, Shu, but you get a pass because you are awesome.  An okay treasure? Check.  A pointless doorway? Check.  A completely different set of monsters than when we were down here a second ago? Double check.  Oh god that is adorable.   Anyway, just to the southeast is our exit.    Oh hey not-Tianus So, this is probably the most challenging fight of the update so far. Not so much because there's anything new, but because it's a lot of things to fight in a small amount of space. The Freezies especially can cause you some grief if they start sleep-blasting. The ringleader has to work his way around the perimeter of the room, so you at least have some time before he starts throwing spells out.  Blind as a bat! Ha! ...Sorry.   Healing enemies is kind of annoying, bad guy. It's the heroes' job to have cure magic, not yours.  Eat foot.   So, that's the sewers mostly done.   Our third heal/save room of the update waits behind the open left door. Suspicion Place - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjgFrtmR74M   And the labs wait behind the right door. The labs are, all told, pretty similar to the sewers in layout. Linear, with switches easy to find to move onward. But they have quite a bit more atmosphere, and the monsters are completely different.  - Yeah. This is the outer part of the lab. I think there are stairs somewhere on this floor. - Well, what are we waiting for? Let's find them.Change Battle Characters? Yes >No Paundit's doing fine, let's keep him in the party. Battle 4 (Arc 1) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Jaalioinfo    Each hallway as we progress through the labs has a set of three doors. The nearest door in the first hallway leads to monsters guarding some treasure, so let's-  Wait, WHAT? They have PAUNDITS? How... I don't... why...  THIS HURTS ME MORE THAN IT HURTS YOU BOY  So yeah, Rabid Dogs. They can do everything that Paundit can do, but their AI means they'll only bite you, use ice breath on one or two people, or cast Ice Shield despite no one in my party having water attack magic.  Oh yeah?!  SHOW THEM HOW IT'S DONE PAUNDIT  SHOW NO MERCY  Good Boy wins. Flawless Victory.  Oh, the treasure in here is our first decent club, the Studded Club.  And I know just who needs it.  Shante, of course! She's dressed to go clubbing.     The second doorway was shut, so we go into the far right doorway with the adjacent switch, to find... an empty room with a switch that opens up the second doorway that was shut.  Welcome to busy work, the dungeon.  The next room has more Paund Not-Its, as well as our typical Voodoo Men and Poison Clouds.    We haven't seen them in this game yet, but you know what you're getting with Poison Clouds. Annoying enemies who like to poison you.  Clubbing them is surprisingly effective.  The way out is in the upper right corner. You can probably just run up here, but honestly the experience is pretty fantastic in the labs. I'm trying to get everyone to level 30 before the end of it.   The next set of three doors is preceded by a small dead end with a switch. Make sure to activate it. Then, ignore any other doors and find the open one on the far right.   Besides looking really interesting and having a Full Power Fruit, this room is otherwise a dead end. There's only one other door back in the hallway we can hit a switch to enter, so...   Yeah. More enemies. Guarding a switch to the third and final door in the hallway. I bet you're surprised.    Somewhere, a deviant is writing erotic fanfiction about this scene.  Anyway, moving on.   The third room is mercifully empty, and has a staircase leading up.    This is technically another three-door hallway, but the first two rooms are completely empty.   The third leads to a big room with no monsters, which we traverse-  Oh  gently caress  Don't worry, there's no point in falling down trapdoors here unless you just really like the labs and want to fight your way back up to the staircase. The trapdoors are just smooth brown tiles without rivets, like the ones to Elc's left and down.   Easy to avoid, easy to pass.  The final door hallway of the labs is to the right, but there's a separate hallway to the left that is worth exploring.   Mostly because it bends the laws of physics over its knee and somehow leads directly back into the sewers. A switch nearby opens the red door right next to the ladder leading to the first heal/save room in the sewer, so it's best to freshen up while you can. Anyway, about the only open doorway we can explore at the moment...              Hahahahahaha, okay I was not expecting that reaction from Elc  A robot fight demands a robot that fights.  So, "Gunhed" here is the first of a special gimmicky type of boss: There's actually five different parts to it. The hands, shoulders, and chest are all different entities with their own HP/MP and stats.  Characters with good jumping ability, like Shu, can hop right over the hands and work on the shoulders. Or you can focus all your attacks on the chest and kill it outright by depleting that part to zero HP. Still, killing the parts is good experience and a bit of extra cash. No items as far as I can tell.   The different parts all show up in the Status window, but with these bosses the only things you ever really see are HP and MP.  As for the Ectoplasm buddies hanging out on either side, they are an interesting combination of undead that can use holy magic.    Yoink.   The hands and shoulders are all capable of using Final Slayer, a badass sounding attack that really does underwhelming damage to everything it hits. Still, Lieza and Shante should be ready to heal, since the damage will add up over time while you're chipping away at the parts.   Once your resident badasses kick hard enough, they explode money out of Gunhed's parts like some weird metal pinata.   Sooner or later, though, you're going to need to get to work on Gunhed's chest to finish the fight. And it's the most dangerous part of the boss, too.  Not only does the chest have a high counter rate, it can also bust up MP or do a wide area damage attack. It's considerably stronger than Final Slayer, so make sure you have healers ready.   Once all is said and done, however, Gunhed goes down from a combined melee/magic barrage.  And somehow makes a bridge upon death. Makes you wonder how Elc managed this as a kid.  Oh, and upon a quick trip back to the heal/save room, I found out our new ghost friend can use throwing knives. Neat, huh?  Anyway, time to save Mariel!     - Who the hell are you? - We're here to save Mariel! - Then you're nothing but a pack of fools! Behold! It's Morphin' Time!  The Illusion Flames are new. And mediocre. Accept no imitations when it comes to Fry Guy. About three turns later    - E... Elc? - Yes, Mariel. I've finally come for you! - I knew that you wouldn't forget. - Even when they were strapping me into that horrible machine... I refused to believe that you wouldn't come to save me. - Oh, Mariel... - Elc, I know this is emotional, but we have to get out of here. - Mariel, she's right. It's dangerous, we have to go. Show us the way to the others. - Yes, yes. Of course! Follow me.   At long last reunited, Mariel proceeds to zoom at about 100 MPH through the Gunhed hall and back to the final door hallway.  Huh. It's kind of weird seeing this place in non-yellow-monochrome.  Wander past some identical triplets...  - We've come to get you out of here! - Elc... There's something wrong with them. - They don't seem to even know we're here. - What's going on here? - Mariel? Do you know... What's that?*Clank*  The Four Generals - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1q-Dn46t9U - That would be game, set, AND match. - Gallarno! - I'm happy to note that your powers have grown substantially. I shudder to think of the powerful monster I can create with you. It's been your destiny all along. It's time you stopped denying it. - You're mad, Gallarno! I have no intention of helping your warped plan! - Shu. Lieza. Shante. Take Mariel and the children. I have a job to do here. - Oh, Elc! No! Don't try to do this alone! - There's no time to debate this. Go! Shu, see that they get out okay. - Done. - Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! - Why do you laugh? - Do you really think I would let the children escape? You lived here. You now know the purpose of this Laboratory. The fate of these children was written the day they arrived here. You cannot hope to change that now. - Begin the exercise. - Yes, sir.     Well that's moderately horrifying. Let's kill children that turned into monsters.  New guy, tag in!  His holy breath attack did pretty good damage, but it silenced the Blood Knights rather than put them to sleep. And then they ganged up on him and killed him in three hits. Somehow that feels incredibly ironic.  You want to be careful around the Blood Knights. They're tough and they can both dish it out and take it when it comes to melee.  The Wraiths on the other hand are pushovers.    Shu wanders over to take care of them by unleashing a flurry of machine gun and shotgun blasts. Wait, WHAT?!    Shu, Shu! Calm down! Lieza's on our side! Shu!  It's a really good thing the Holodeck had friendly fire turned off.  Although it looks like Elc is loving this poo poo.  - How can you sleep at night? You're a monster! - Mmmm. No. I am much more. A "Monster Master", if you will. You have the one thing I must possess next, Elc. - The power of a Flame Master. - Your Flame Power surpasses even the Water Power Mariel possesses. I must have it! - What?! And so, in yet another animation too quick to be screenshotted, Elc and Mariel fall to Vito Corleone's trapdoor, and out of this update. See you next time!
|
|
#
?
Feb 2, 2024 07:55
|
|
|
 warning at the very bottom of the update. "Viower Excretion" advised.Hey everyone! Sorry for yet another bit of a delay for an update. Valentine's Day is tough some years. That being said, it could always be worse. In case you don't feel like watching the video or you just really love my sparkling commentary, enjoy today's update below! Biotechnology Research Institute (Arc 1)  - Elc and Mariel have been deposited in the room. - Switch on the surveillance to the main monitors. I want to see this. - Yes, sir. - You are indeed strong, Elc... but you're not invincible. Soon, you shall discover your fatal weakness. Is the girl ready? - Yes, sir. - Don't do this too fast. I want you to allow Elc to recover first. - What?! Why? - I want complete data. - But... - Are you disobeying my orders?! - ...No, sir. Mariel's energy is being transferred to Elc. Level D... C... A. Elc's abilities have been raised to their maximum. - Excellent. Begin! - Start the control check of Sample M.Other - Mind Control System verified.Yet Another - Start the recording of the battle data. Set the target to Elc. - Sample M is now activated.Gal - What do you think, Andel? Isn't it beautiful? Two people who love each other, soon to be locked in a fight to the death. What could possibly be better than that? Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!  - You never wanted to come back here. You promised to come back, but you never intended to. - No! I was... - All this time I've waited... and now I can finally take my revenge! - Of course, I can't let that happen. I'll have to finish you first! - Stop it, Mariel! What's wrong with you? - Wrong? There's nothing wrong. - For the first time in a very long time, everything is RIGHT! - So let's get this over with. I promise to kill you quickly. - Mariel!!  - drat... drat!!Fight 5  Hoo boy. So, "Sample M" has two attacks. A regular melee attack with a claw, and a water element offensive spell. Both do a bit of extra damage against Elc, him being Fire element and all.    That being said, Gallarno is basically a stupid lying stupidhead and I decide to prove it with a move I haven't talked about much. Invincible will, believe it or not, make Elc completely immune to damage for a turn. It doesn't reduce it, it doesn't delay it, damage just won't happen to Elc when he uses this ability. You could drop a meteor on him and you won't even see a number pop up on the screen. Its duration is limited to the beginning of his next turn... For now. It really makes you wonder how his village ever lost a fight.    Anyway, Mariel doesn't have an answer for Elc being able to turn invincible at will. So, Elc tears through her 120-ish HP pretty fast.  - I won't kill Elc... - Help! Elc, help me!! - Mariel! Are you alright? - Has she regained her senses? - Her blocked memories have been reawakened, sir. She is acting on her own... suppressing the mind control. - Dammit! We're so close! There's no choice! Destroy the mind of Sample M! - Sir! If we do that, we will lose control of- - Do it! - But Sample M is sure to perish- - I don't care! We have many other samples! I said DO IT! - Yes... yes, sir. Set mind control to maximum! Set target to Elc.Other - Sample M is no longer under our control!Yet Another - Experiment termination initiated.  - Mariel... Mariel... are you in there? You have to remember!! Guess what? It's time to fight Mariel again, only she's a level higher!  No, she doesn't gain any new abilities.  No, she doesn't have a way around Invincible.  No, it isn't any different and there's no super secret way around ending the fight. - No! - I... I won't... do what they're trying to...(Insert random explosions throughout the next bit of dialogue)  - The sync controller doesn't work!Other - We've lost control of Sample M's mind! - Switch to the emergency circuit! - No, sir! The machine can't take any more! - drat! How can their force of will be THIS strong?! - Don't speak. Be still. - I want to be free, too... - You're alright. You will be free soon. - Elc...(Now insert some alarm noises and flashing red light)    - Arc?! Arc is coming here?(Now insert a brief FMV of the Silver Noah flying over a forest... or heck, just watch the video)  - ...We must begin a full evacuation. - ...That brat is a constant thorn in my side! - But I thought you could finish him whenever you wished? The lad does seem to be quite resourceful... but the length of time it's taking you to finish him is becoming embarrassing. - Only slight less than your failure with Elc, eh? - Ah, but you speak too hastily. I'm afraid it's time for the tragic end to our quaint love story. - Yes, Mariel... draw your lover closer... - Elc! Run!! - What?! (BOOM)  - Gallarno!! Show yourself, pig! - However, you won't have long to shed tears at their demise. This lab will soon be a pile of rubble, selaing your fate as well! Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! - The ground is beginning to shake again! This building won't take much more... - I won't believe Elc is gone! - Gaaa!(Suddenly, Arc the Late Lad comes rushing in)  - Are you... Arc? He IS! - There is no time for discussion! You have to evacuate immediately! This building will collapse in seconds! - Elc? Was he captured by Gallarno or Andel? - He... he tried to save the children imprisoned here, and... - Enough said. Stand back.   (And so, after Arc Burn Grounds through the floor... an ability that would have made certain parts of the previous game way more convenient...)  (...Everyone piles in)  - Elc... Elc!! - No... I don't believe... - ...He's dead...  (Now insert some falling rubble and a constantly shaking screen that may give one some motion sickness...)  (...AND the Silver Noah, somehow...)  - Get on. Hurry up!!(They do.)  - Be safe, Arc.  And so, with Mariel's self-destruction, we are down a main character. See you next update in... Lieza the Lass II, I guess? Brief Throwback to Arc the Anime Lad: Mariel (Also, ick warning) So, last time I went through this LP I didn't get far enough to talk about the part of the anime that made me the most uncomfortable... and that is Mariel, and really the White House monster lab as a whole. You see, the anime didn't leave it to your imagination on this topic. It told you how the chimera monsters came to be. And that source was Mariel.  Or rather, that source was Mariel the Breeding Machine. See, basically they stuck Mariel into a giant liquid-filled tube. And they messed up her DNA so much that she becomes rooted by the arms and legs to the sides of it. And, she has these barnacle-like eggs under her, from which she produces and gives birth to monster embryos that grow into monsters. I don't think I ever finished the anime because I was so disgusted by this. It really felt like a bizarre hentai at this point. And who knows, maybe that was the goal of the anime director? Regardless, of all the moments in the anime, this was far and away the most . Oh, and as one more bit of flavor background: Romalia captures Lieza to try and do the same thing to her, but somehow her body is immune to monster embryo DNA and it doesn't take. So... yeah. On that highly uncomfortable note, see you next update!
|
|
#
?
Feb 23, 2024 03:05
|
|
|
First of all, I want to thank you for this LP: I legit went and go through the current process of making funds available on my PS3 to buy Arc 1&2 because it made me remember how much I loved those games. Also: re: Arc the anime: I would concur with your feelings on it. I wasn't expecting a 1/1 representation of a extremely long jRPG in a 26 episode anime, but the Mariel thing plus yeeting all the canon villains offscreen in favor of some gary stu named Clive did not sit well with me and I ended my watch of it at this point as well. I did like they made Shu/Shante official but that's all the credit I'll give it.
|
|
#
?
Feb 23, 2024 06:17
|
|
|
Melomane Mallet posted:First of all, I want to thank you for this LP: I legit went and go through the current process of making funds available on my PS3 to buy Arc 1&2 because it made me remember how much I loved those games. Thank you for the thank you! Somehow I completely forgot about Clive in the anime. I guess he was truly unforgettable. They also shipped Elc and Lieza more closely than the game did, I think, but mostly because Elc had more emotions than or in the anime. That might be another thing I did like better: in general Elc felt a bit more like a believable character.I've found the PS3 is actually a pretty good way of running semi-legit Playstation 1 and 2 games when I don't feel like being spoiled by Duckstation. I have the Resident Evils on there, as well as the Fatal Frames and a few RPGs like Xenogears and such. It's good when you want something pretty close to the original with better load times, but you don't want to tempt yourself with save states and such. I'm also of the possibly unpopular opinion that most of the best Tales Of games came out for PS3.
|
|
#
?
Feb 24, 2024 05:23
|
|
|
Miketopus posted:Thank you for the thank you! I mean, the thing about Clive in the anime is, what he is doing could literally be filled by existing canon villains. Have "Clive" be Gallarno (or Andel) and, BAM, you (Elc) and Arc both have a reason to confront him, leading to the inevitable team up. BUT NO, we gotta have this gary stu for reasons??
|
|
#
?
Feb 24, 2024 06:35
|
|
|
And work doubles my hours so I barely have time for anything anymore! Holy gently caress, poor Mariel! At least she had dignity in the game, though. Even got a bit of a heroic sendoff, too. And it'll be rather interesting to see Elc's reaction to being saved by his supposed nemesis. Hopefully the game doesn't give that plot point up TOO quickly.
|
|
#
?
Feb 28, 2024 02:26
|
|
|
darkmage0707077 posted:And work doubles my hours so I barely have time for anything anymore! Be careful what you wish for.
|
|
#
?
Feb 29, 2024 01:31
|
|
|
Kinda nervous to see it now.
|
|
#
?
Mar 10, 2024 07:29
|
|
|
Welcome back everyone! I know I don't need any excuses to take forever with updates, but I had to replace my gamepad. It turns out the Yakuza/Like a Dragon games really wear through the buttons quickly. This will be a shorter update story-wise than the previous ones have been. Partially this is because I didn't want to delay any longer, but we're also visiting one of my favorite locations in the game this update, so I thought it'd be nice to spend a bit more time on the scenery and background. There's more plot right at the beginning and end, but way less than the past few updates have been piling on. Hope you guys enjoy. Let's get to it! Right, so... we left the party in a bit of a pickle. Because of White House (And Mariel, I guess) exploding, we're down a main character and unsure of where to go next.  In order to advance the plot, we need to talk to Shante and Shu a couple of times. Shante's blocking the exit, so we can't go anywhere. - Elc isn't moving... he might be critically injured. - If you die, I... - Who are those guys? - ... After that we're met by... ugh... someone who thankfully isn't a required party member anymore. - Don't let the worries in your head. Chongara thinks Kukuru fix up friend, eh? - Kukuru? - Yes, Kukuru! She have big healing power, and Chongara call her friend! Chongara and Kukuru go back long time. Much deep friends! - Where are we headed? - Seirya. - Isn't that the country that has a bounty on your head for killing the King? - Oh! Oh! Those bad words! Chongara not kill anyone. Much bad man called Andel make it LOOK like we get King dead. We not do! - Andel? - Bad man with shiny head. He with Gallarno in lab, eh? - I believe I know who you're talking about, but who is he? - He Minister of Seirya. Big traitor. Bad man. Arc find his plan to take over biiig world with Romalia! Gallarno and Andel work together on biiig plan. It not so good, eh? - No, it's not. If Arc has indeed gone after Andel, we must seek out Gallarno. He must be stopped. Do you have any idea where he's headed? - Um... Chongara guess Romalia. Main Chimera Lab there. Bad place. - Then, you must take us there. - Please. We can stop him, but you have to us TO him. - Okay, okay! You make biiig hurt in Chongara's head. Chongara show you way... after Kukuru fix this poor man.Right. So, now we know where we're going.     Shut up, Chongara. Anyway, let's explore the Silver Noah.   Just kidding! The Silver Noah is two screens connected by a staircase, and you can't go down the left hallway or explore rooms or anything like that.  Hey Chopin! - We're going to visit Kukuru in Seirya. Kukuru has special healing powers. I believe she will help your companion. Meanwhile, in an abrupt scene change... - I think I can still catch Andel. That traitor's not getting away this time!  Right. Even though this is going to be a fairly brief section, it's the first time we've gotten to take a good look at Arc's stats in this game. As you can see, he's pretty much a powerhouse. And his equipment to start with is pretty good, too. Technically you can change his equipment with anything you have obtained (His sword isn't as strong as the EarthLong Sword, for example), but having a level 60 character at this point in the game is already pretty powerful. I could probably throw all his equipment in the trash and he'd still power through this area.   Also, a tidbit I just learned in this update. On a character's status window, if you press up instead of down, you can see a legend that contains every status icon in the game! Super cool, since the game likes to use a lot of different icons, oftentimes in a sequence.    That being said, it wouldn't be an Arc the Lad feature without a weird bug. If you scroll through the icons enough, the legend gives you item shop options that do nothing.     Boring, moving on.   After the next hallway, we... well, I guess we find Andel! I hope you enjoyed playing as Arc again for a single laughably easy fight. Andel Gets Away Again - Andel! You won't get away again! - There you are, my brave boy. - What are you plotting? - Something you are powerless to stop.  - This time, fortune is with me. Goodbye, brave boy. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!! Right, so, after that fancy FMV...  - Yes, and thanks to your failure to stop Arc earlier, we've lost an entire lab! It doesn't reflect well on you, Minister. - Regardless, your tone is sounding surprisingly defeatist. I don't care for it. Remember, we still have an incredible advantage of which they are unaware. And, at this point, it will be best to take the illusion-maker to Romalia. But... - Say no more. The Towers will be safe. We're now mass-producing guard monsters to protect them. - Excellent. I'm certain we can put it to good use. Place it in the battleship dock.  One cool map transition later...   The party is suddenly scrambling to get Elc to some healing.  Also Diekbeck. Towvil Temple Music  - Kukuru, you use magic to make this man better, eh? - Bring him in here at once! - So then, Elc... is all right now? - Well, in a manner of speaking. He won't die, but... - What do you mean? You must tell me! - Do you understand that living and not dying are not the same thing? That it is possible to heal the body, but fail to recover the mind. Simply breathing does not mean that one is truly alive. - That's right... but does that mean... - I have never seen such a strange case. What happened to put him in this condition? - I'll explain that...(Fade to black and then back again) - ...And once the trap was sprung, Elc couldn't get away in time. His mind was damaged by the control device at the lab... and his body was damaged by Mariel.(Technically by Mariel exploding ) - Chongara saw the big hurt and think of Kukuru! - But, can his mind be healed now? - ... - The task you all now face is not small. You have become a part of a conflict that pits humans against monsters, and good against evil. It is easy to deny the scope of what you've stumbled into... it's only natural. However... - I am not blind to the events that are unfolding. I know what must be done.  - Wait, I'll go with you! - But... - The airship is a great asset. I shall start with that.    So, now we're down to Shu and Shante. If you haven't been keeping up with Shante's stats, this is where you'll start to feel the pinch.    Touvil, as you may recall, was sacked in the first game. Hence there isn't much of anything to do or see.   We're meant to go pay Chopin a quick visit to see if we can borrow some wings. - Is Elc all right? - We're not sure. At least he's still breathing. - We've decided to go to Romalia. While Elc hovers between life and death, I must stop the one that did this. Gallarno musn't be allowed to live. - I admire your commitment, but the attack on White House damaged the ship. Until I finish the repairs, the Silver Noah cannot fly. - It's very risky to even attempt to fly it at the moment. But you MUST! Please! - I wish I had better news to impart. My best suggestion would be to find a ship to Romalia at Seirya - That sounds fine, but it doesn't solve the problem of getting out of HERE. - Perhaps Kukuru can help you in that regard. Why not ask her? - Okay, let's go.   And so, Shu is forced to undo his badass antihero exit from the temple by going right back in and asking Kukuru for help.   Other than one long hallway, the only other thing in the temple are two rooms, one of which contains a save point. There's not even an overworld map yet, but we'll fix that shortly. I do like the music for Touvil Temple and the next area, though.  I didn't realize Diekbeck had excuses built into his programming. You don't even HAVE cure magic Diek, what could you possibly do here that is more useful? Keep the torches charged up?     Lieza's excuse holds a bit more water, what with her actually having healing magic and the whole implied romance thing. Huh. Maybe Diek has a crush on Elc?  Meanwhile, Elc is getting the Goku treatment in order to come back much later in the story with a power boost. I'm not going to mince words, Elc is going to be out of action for a while. It's kind of hilarious how much he misses while he's out.   At least his personality remains intact. I think the ellipse market was about to run out of supplies. They needed him to take a break for a bit. - The confrontation you seek is dangerous, indeed. Are you still certain you wish to find Gallarno?Yes >Uh, no. - Perhaps you just need time to meditate on the choices before you.(You mean either advancing the game or living in Touvil for all eternity? No thanks.) >Yes - Are you absolutely positive?>Absolutely! Well... (Seriously game, what do you think I'm going to do? Quit trying to psych me out.) - Hmmm. I see. There's no sense in blocking your advance. - I shall transport you to Palencia. Now then, close your eyes.  - I believe they shall prevail. - They must.Palencia Music (Sorry, it wasn't in the soundtrack I have. Let's hope this link stays open forever.)   - Now what will we do? - Let's learn some information about the airship, and go to Romalia. - Sounds like a plan. Let's get to work! Right, so here we are in Seirya proper. Palencia is a rather pretty city, despite having some issues of its own.   There's an item shop without a clerk...   ANOTHER item shop without any items...    And an inn that... actually charges us money? Come on game, I was just kidding about that a couple of updates ago! Don't make me put my money where my mouth is!  So maybe Palencia doesn't really have much useful right now, but it does have a Guild. And it's in a new region. You know what that means: Check for bounties and jobs.  It's worth checking for bounties right now. We're only going to cover one new bounty in this update, but there's no substitute for good habits. Or is that good manners? I forget.     See you in a little bit, Ragi.   Besides the remarkable anomaly of having the only Guild clerk who isn't a jackass, there aren't any new jobs available at the moment. Still, we did collect a couple of bounties en route to White House, so best cash those in. Anyway. I don't usually linger overly long on scenery, but I found Palencia to be a pretty entertaining area, so I'm going to go through some spots of interest and local gossip. If you want to skip some of that, either look for "Ragi" to find out more about that bounty hunt, or "Pepe" if you want to go to our next plot point, with quotes. Yes, you read that correctly. Search for "Pepe" to find the plot.  Since we just talked about the Guild, let's start by chatting up the three people wandering around inside of it. Including our old pal Cooger!  Baldy - ...But you look like you can handle yourself. You should still be careful, of course.  Loser - At least, that's what I want to say. The truth is that I can't find a job. I might have to give up being a Hunter. If you hear about a good job, please tell me!   - The monsters have suddenly grown much stronger. They're scary... and I'm scared. I need to give up this high-risk, high-reward lifestyle. Perhaps I can move into the private-security business. Next, while it's freshest in our mind, let's zip back to the hotel. The hotel has three rooms you can wander through freely. One is empty and just feels like it has nice scenery. The other two are... different.  Brat - I think he's the coolest one in the whole wide world!  Brat - Mommy! Don't talk to strangers! Mother - Shhh! You're being rude! Brat - But Mommy! They didn't even knock before breaking in! (A quick inspection of the water pitcher on the floor, of all things, leads to...)  Mother - They ask that the water pots be kept on the floor in this Inn. Brat - It sounds dumb to me, too, but Mommy does it. Mother - It's not our place to dictate policy. We're guests, honey. Brat - But we pay 'em with OUR Goz! I think the rule's STUPID! (Next room...)  Elder - Or are you from the "Meals on Carts" program? It is almost lunchtime... so it's hard to tell... (An inspection of the telephone reveals)  Elder - I need to get it fixed some day, but I'm on such a tight pension... (Why not, let's check the water pitcher on the floor here too)  (And the teacup why not!)  Elder - Yes, that's Royal Palencia special blend. My grandson used to smuggle that out of the castle for me. I only have a few bags left. - Perhaps you should just enjoy it, then. So, thanks to wandering into two completely optional rooms in an Inn it's entirely possible you would skip normally, we learned the following: - The official currency in Arc the Lad is called Goz. - Water pots/pitchers go on the floor in Palencia. - The country of Seirya has both Meals on If you think this is an insanely high level of detail compared to the other cities we've visited so far, you'd be right. I've looked around. So, how about that item-less item shop?  Clerk - You get one turn each visit. Get a special colored marble and win! Clerk - ... Clerk - Unfortunately, it's broken.  Girl - I hear the shopkeeper is some kinda moody freak...  White Knight Leo reference aside, this sounds like a normal thing to say, until you realize what I was checking that prompted him to say it.     After lowering our collective IQ a bit, we learned the following: - The clerk-less item shop keeps strange hours possibly due to an insane owner. - Everything mechanical in Palencia is broken all the time (The Inn already suggested this theory, now it's verified). - The item-less item shop has baffling business practices that include putting items on display despite not selling said items. The clerk also has really selective eyesight and supports spear-related murder and/or suicide. Before we check out some other buildings, let's get some news from the locals.  Girl - Where did you get such comfortable yet practical clothing? - Huh?Girl - ...Uh, never mind.  Vladimir - I'll chat if you want... I might be waiting for a while. (Someone at Working Designs was a fan of Samuel Beckett, I guess.)  - Uh, buck up, kid. It could be worse.(I guess Elc won the lottery by being the only child Shu gives a drat about.)  Old Man - You know what flowers have? I'll tell you what: POLLEN! I've been sneezing for weeks! Feels like my nose is gonna fall plumb off!   Well, the taverns in this game have all been pretty goofy so far. Let's see if the trend continues.  Old Man - As if my arthritis ain't bad enough, I got allergies, too. The doc says it runs in my family. My twin's got it, too.  Drunk - Hey! Where's my order?! Waitress - Coming right up! Sorry... I'd better tend to my customers...  Drunk - A sensible rule, wouldn't you say? - ... Drunker Drunk - Thad souns lik'a def wish ta me! Budd if yer dead-sed on geddin' on id, her's whad I think...  Meaner Drunk - I'm not in a social mood.  Girl - I had a suspicion he'd stand me up when he told me to meet him here. He's a recovering alcoholic. (Wow, that hits differently at this time in my life. Haha)  Not Drunk - We're shorthanded, so I'm stuck doing all the odd jobs.  Bartender - Comin' right up, sir. Rude Drunk - I tell ya, the service in this place is gettin' slower an' slower!    Yup, goofy to a tee. No bullet point list for what we learned in this one, but I will say that threatening to beat people who want to buy your product, and putting a guard in front of the bathroom, are not common business practices. Well, except in Palencia, the wackiest place on earth. Just as well, the toilets are probably broken.  Right, I promised a world map earlier in the update. Let's have a look.  Yes, there's a separate Downtown area to Palencia. No, it isn't bigger than the place we were just exploring. Don't worry, we'll get to that soon. Also worthy of note are that the ruins of Palencia Castle and the build site for Palencia Tower are both accessible areas in this portion of the map. You can also kind of see the Silver Noah parked up north where Touvil is, since that area was cut off with the discovery and theft of the Ark at the end of the previous game.  In the western part of Seirya, all of your favorite encounter zones from Arc 1 are available for your grinding pleasure. If you need, that is; we don't. However, we do have a bounty to grab from Quina Hill. Time to give "Ragi" his time to shine.  The game does take it a bit easier on you at this point. Wyverns haven't shown up in this game until now, but there's only two of them on the Quina Hill battle map and they're far weaker than they were in Arc 1.  If Ragi isn't there, you can just turn around and leave, then come back in.  Don't know if it was my luck or what, but it took four or five tries for me to get him to show up.  The Wyverns can fly, so they get around this map fairly easily. But for some reason, the designers of Arc 2 decided to make Quina Hill about four times as big in this version of the game. In fact, Ragi is so far away that he completely gives up on trying to get to you after one move. This means you have all the time in the world to clean up the Wyverns, heal up, and then go pay him a   Despite keeping up in levels, neither the Wyverns nor Ravi are much of a challenge. Probably to give careless players a chance to level and catch up if they fell behind with Shante and Shu, which is admittedly very easy to do if you aren't expecting to have them solo a portion of the game.    Between Shu's insane evasion/damage, and the fact that Shante's club has the same range as Mister Satan's pillar attack, it's not much trouble to put away the Wyverns.   Despite being completely forgettable as an encounter, Ragi's got some pretty good loot. The Spirit Seed is a unique steal, though whether or not it proves useful remains to be seen.    Upon being eliminated, Ragi also drops the unique prayer bead weapon Miranda. Again, time will tell whether it comes in handy.   And that's it for Ragi!  Let's check out the ruins next. Separation (Arc the Lad I)   As you can see, there's only so far we can go before there's a dead end blocking our path. Still, it's kind of sad to see such a nice castle brought down low by Andel's assholery. Let's see what those two perfectly normal chaps have to talk about.  Righty - When Arc killed the King, he destroyed the castle as well. Lefty - But Andel gained an advantage after the King died. Righty - Correct. Lefty - The Minister of Foreign Countries is also the dictator of this country. Arc is evil, but so is Andel... Righty - Hey, you talk too much! Lefty - Oops. I'll get into trouble if I keep talking... Please don't tell anyone what I said...  Lefty - Right. Righty - We're just resting here to sober up. Lefty - Right. Righty - We don't drink every day, though. Lefty - Right. Righty - We do drink a little more than usual. Lefty - Right. Righty - But it's the awful world that drives us to drink. Lefty - Right. Righty - Which is hard for me, because I'm a teetotaler. Lefty - Liar.    Right. Now that- dammit! Why does some stupid NPC have to keep repeating a word I commonly say until I type it so much to transcribe it that it doesn't even make any sense to me anymore?  RIP brain cells. Let's check out the tower briefly.    Told you it'd be brief. Let's finish up the update with downtown Palencia. First, let's chat up the locals one more time.  Man - What's worse is that Andel is acting like he's the new King. He's put our Downtown Area under martial law. Man - I wonder if it's really true that Arc killed the King. My money's on Andel, truth be told. He's a horrible man.  Woman - This country is no longer a good place to live. I hope they catch Arc as soon as possible. The sooner these soldiers leave, the better.  Old Man - What kind of half-cocked idea have you cooked up? Those battleships are for one purpose only: war. As such, they carry soldiers. That's it. I tell ya, don't try it!  Girl - The Minister named Andel who leads them is a cruel, heartless man! Arc and Andel have decimated our once-happy town.  Little Girl - I don't know what to think, actually. Hunters are the real heroes around here. But they never seem to get any respect...  Boy - My dad gets mad when I talk to them, but I still do. I can't wait to talk to more soldiers. They're so cool! One of 'em gave me this cool yo-yo! I think Dad's wrong. How could they be bad?  Old Woman - The people here are kind, but we all seem sicker lately. In fact, I have this cought that won't go away. I wonder why? Most of the people here are good at heart. Unfortunately, we're also very depressed about the turn of events lately. Andel is a tyrant!  - If you play your cards right, "Pepe" could help you. He's usually drunk, but he knows his stuff. Try finding him at the tavern. If you see Pepe at the Bar, buy him a drink. He might help your cause to get onboard a battleship. (And now, it's time to go see Pepe in a tavern lol)   Drunk - They search our town and our homes for no good reason. It's really a miserable time. We need help. I wish Romalia's ships would fall from the sky! Then we could at least drink in peace again!  Other Drunk - Ya know, this is my favorite seat in the bar... because I can drink without seeing that cheap bastard's face.  Third Identical Drunk in the Same Room - Yeah, I know him. He's over there, on the couch.  Third Identical Drunk in the Same Room - The guy has less of a life than I do. He's always in here. I wouldn't get mixed up with him if I were you. (Enough playing around, let's get   - Who are you and why should I care? - Are you Pepe? - Yeah. What of it? - I heard around that you're a handy guy to know. - Common knowledge. I can do jobs cheapa, fasta, and betta than any Hunta! Ya got a job for me or what? - Wait! Don't answer that yet. Howsabout you buy me a drink to start this? >Walk away - I knew you were too cheap to be legit! I can smell it! I might not look busy, but I am. Stop wastin' my time!>Buy the drink - Heh, heh! It's a deal. Bartender - Uh, uh. Let's see your money first, Pepe. - Hey, that's no way ta treat ya best customah! Them over there's treated me this time out! Now shut yer yap an' pour! - Oh, yeah. Ya got a business proposition, eh? So, spill it... - I know it sounds strange, but we need... - What?! You ARE nuts! You want to get on a Romalian battleship? That's impossible! - But, I heard there's nothing Pepe can't do. - Okay, so maybe not impossible for ME, but it's pretty damned haaad (sic), I'm tellin' ya. - Look, I'll help ya out as much as I can, but I need a favor first. There's dis group uh monstahs on Quina Hill. - So, kill tha monstahs, an' bring me tha stones, get it? - Shimmer Stone? Why do you want the stones? - Look, is this uh deal (sic), or an interrogation? Just get the stones and I fix up your ship problem. Non-negotiable! Bring me 4 Shimmer Stones, an' I get ya on the battleship. You're bright folks. I bet you can do it. I'll be waitin' right here 'til ya come back.Well then. It took me almost an entire game, but I finally found an accent that is more annoying to transcribe than Chongara's: A strange pidgin accent that's half-Italian, half-Boston. Anyway, that's our new mission, grabbing stones for Pepe. Will we succeed? Find out next time. See you next update!
|
|
#
?
Mar 16, 2024 04:21
|
|
|
I'm enjoying this LP just fine, but reading the first page of this thread took me forever. The update density is off the charts!
|
|
#
?
Mar 20, 2024 21:39
|
|
|
Meanwhile in Elc's/Miketopus's dreams... Chongara: "You make mistakes of big time when you disrespecting Chongara! So finding the new party I have! And much respecting of powers of mine you shall gain from new friends of beatings!" Elc/Miketopus: "What do you me-...oh no...NO!" P.B: "That's right-" Dex: "-it menas-" Three Amigos: "-WE'RE BACK IN THE SADDLE, BABY!" Elc/Miketopus: "NOOOOOOOOOooooo~!"  Seriously, though, that kinda sucks that Elc's out of action for a while. It makes sense for him to be comatose from the trauma of what he experienced, but him being out of the story loop for too long might screw with the narrative flow a bit. Also, starting to get a little confused on the antagonist side. Sure, yeah, their goal is "take over the world", but who is ultimately in charge of who and what? Is it Gallarno? Andel? Some third antagonist we haven't seen yet? Arc's father? Usually, one villain is ultimately the BBEG with the others being "mere pawns" in the end, but I'm having a hard time figuring out which role is which, here.
|
|
#
?
Mar 24, 2024 17:24
|
|
|
Kanthulhu posted:I'm enjoying this LP just fine, but reading the first page of this thread took me forever. The update density is off the charts! Yeah, that first page is enormous, sorry about that. I'm hoping once it hits the archives it'll be easier to digest. Which, based on my post speed lately, might be a little while yet. I would have quoted darkmage's post too, but I think the idea of some nightmarish trifecta of Chongara, Piers, and Dex is too destructive to my sanity to acknowledge. Actual update coming today, hoping to be more frequent once tax season is over!
|
|
#
?
Mar 29, 2024 18:56
|
|
|
Welcome back everyone! Before I get into the update proper, just going to include this little blurb as a candid moment in the LP Archive someday:darkmage0707077 posted:Meanwhile in Elc's/Miketopus's dreams... I will say, with the utmost sincerity, one bit of spoilerific material: We have already met the BBEG. But the answer may surprise you. Or it may not. Guess we'll see when the time comes! Now then, on to the update proper!  So, we're off to Quina Hill to collect four shiny rocks for a strange drunk who promises he can get us on a military battle ship. What could go wrong?  We saw Quina Hill last update, so I won't bore you with much here.  Just hit the Wyverns with your foot/stick of choice   And one of the two is guaranteed to drop a Shimmer Stone. What's that, you ask? No, only one Wyvern drops a Shimmer Stone per battle. Yes, that means you have to do this battle four times. Yes, you can technically whack one, get the stone, then leave and come right back. But the Wyverns are useful experience fodder even with our amazing duo being pretty powerful already. Take the easy practice points.   Besides learning the fact that you can apparently throw Shimmer Stones at enemies if you feel so inclined to waste time, I also ran into a full inventory this update. Inventory management will become a bit more complicated later on as we get more potent equipment and items, but for now I have so many plain Herbs laying around that I will never use that it's a no-brainer to get rid of some of them to make room. Anyway, four Shimmer Stones takes all of a few minutes, easy peasy.  Turns out I missed a zone in the last update, though. Let's check out the port really quick! It'll be somewhat relevant soon anyway.      I'm cutting a bunch of dialogue here, but it's all various combinations of "Get out of our skyport, you non-soldier loser!"  kay  hi pepe (lol) >Yes Not yet - Good. I'll take dem. - 1... - 2... - 3...(He really counts them out ) - And 4... - Okay, now it's my turn ta make good. Let me know when ya ready, an' I'll take ya ta tha battleship. But take ya time, I ain't in any hurry.(I would say now is a good time to check the shops but none of them are open or stocked, so...)  Yes >Not yet  (I swear to god I can't wait to stop transcribing this guy) >Yes Not yet - Okay, then. Folla me. - I done said: FOLLA ME! - Look, if ya don' folla directions, we ain't gonna get far. Got it?Pepe's master plan, step 1:  Put Shu and Shante in a crate and haul it into the skyport.  Step 2: Bluff the guards.   - Go ahead an' call 'em up if you ya wanna make 'em real mad. - There's no need for that. You can go in, but drop that off in a hurry and get back out here! - Hay, no problem guys. See ya soon.  Step 3: Wheel past them and hope Seirya's technology is anachronistic enough that they don't have X-rays or K-9s or other hyphenated things that have been in modern society for decades.   - Geez, fellas, calm down. I got it!  - Get out of here! - See if I evah delivah to dis joint again!     SOMEHOW SUCCESS!   - Shante, all clear. Come out.   - It seems safe, but we should wait here for a while. - Besides we should rest. We've got a tough road ahead. By my calculations, we should almost be there. - We'd best take a look around, then. Right, so, free bed and a save journal. Those inns and their silly "charging for sleep" policy can go suck an egg. Still no shop, though. No merchant traveling with the fleet, or a corrupt soldier skimming supplies for a quick profit. That'd be too interesting. Instead...  ...We get a dungeon. The Romalian Airship is pretty big, about the same size as the White House sewers. And with a similar penchant for door switches and wall to wall encounters. You'll want to make sure you keep the cargo room in mind as you progress, because this is a challenging dungeon for Shu and Shante. Even if they can kill an enemy in one or two hits, they'll get worn down, and Shante's MP isn't unlimited. So, make good use of the free bed. ...That really didn't sound right, did it.     Well that didn't last long.  First fight's easy, at least, just a Demi Monk in soldier's clothes.    Give him a kick  - They've been alerted to our presence. - They must have small combat planes in the hangar. That's what these ships are for, after all. If we can get one of those, we can get off this and land in Romalia. - Great. Now all we need to do is find the hangar. Easy, right? Outside, we come to a hallway with four rooms, one in each diagonal from the central cargo area. Two of them have treasure, two of them have switches we'll need to flip. Let's start by going left to the southwest door. Oh, and it's fine to ignore that switch next to the cargo door. All it does is close that door, and there's no point in doing that.  This time the Demi Monk is joined by an Evil Eye. It has agility comparable to Shu, hits fairly hard and accurately, and has a fun status ailment ability.  Also, there's a chest on the other side of the fence that of course you can only access while you're fighting the enemies. Pretty silly, right Shante? ...Shante?  ...Shu?  Ah, it's art. So, petrification. Every Final Fantasy fan's worst nightmare. In a dungeon with only two people in your party. In a dungeon, no less, that you cannot buy the items that will cure a petrified party member. Sounds fun, right? Thankfully, the good people at Arc studios actually made a design choice that I am extremely thankful for: they cut down the severity of petrification. The game won't end if both of your party members get turned to stone. In fact, all it seems to do is take away their next turn, because every time they got turned to stone Shu and Shante snapped out of it two turns later. Don't get me wrong, it's still pretty dangerous. You can't defend when petrified, and you still take damage, so a party member petrified amidst a group of monsters is in for some very serious hurt. Try to keep Shante away from Evil Eyes, as her Cure is essential for surviving combat in this place. As long as you're careful, though, you should be fine.  Oh, the other chest is a defense booster. Cool.  Circling up to the northwest room next.  Annoying Evil Eyes and a necessary switch.  Give him the stick  Northeast room next.   Free stuff! Neat!  Southeast room last.   Our second switch, and nothing else whatsoever. Whee.  Going back into the hub hallway, a passageway on the eastern wall takes us to two doors that used to be closed, but we fixed that.  Let's start with the upper doorway.   Down a hallway...   Around another hallway... passing by a door that will be relevant in a sec in favor of the door on the southern end of the room.  Two enemy soldiers on a smoke break are guarding a switch.   And, that switch now officially makes the previously skipped door relevant.   New shoes! They're not as good as what Shu has, and Shante is still out clubbing, so they're going into the inventory for a bit. Anyway, time to backtrack.   Back down to hub hallway, taking the southern doorway now.    We can see bits of a larger hallway as we go, but first we have to make a detour.   Things need killing (A minute or two later)   This is actually a magic trick. You see, right after getting out of the last encounter room, the hallway turns north, and a doorway to the east ultimately leads to a switch we need to flip. But, if you just go north right in the middle of that doorway, you come up in this hallway instead.  Cut through some passages...   Bumble around in a black void for a bit...  And voila! Free fruit!   Anyway, backtracking and taking the intended passage leads to the switch I mentioned.  From here, things get a bit nutty and hard to describe as we go through more identical hallways. Just assume it's White House Sewer in the sky, and that we're going down passageways that have either treasure or switches to unlock other passageways.   Another big open hallway leads to an open doorway.    The amazing sentient switch isn't very enthusiastic about the details, but it's kind enough to tell us what it did.  In this case "somewhere" is just down the hall to the right. But there's another sealed door beyond the first, which can be resolved by going into the room to the right.  Into the... barracks?  Because Romalia is run by dickheads, they don't label the two switches in the rooms when one controls a door outside and one controls the lights in the room itself. So let's guess and see what happens!   Ye have chosen... poorly.      Yay, another fight!   Lull them back to sleep with soothing melodies  The door reopens by itself when soldiers are killed. A dubious power source, but it IS Romalia. And although many guards are apparently tired and/or callous enough to sleep through a pitched battle in their bedroom, this is the only one that says anything. Yes I checked. Yes I'm weird. You're welcome.  More helpful switches. Let's move on.  Oh, but turn the light off on your way out. No gameplay reason, it's just the nice thing to do.  At last, we are able to continue on to the next area of the airship.   There's an obvious doorway and switch to the right as soon as we get up here, but let's go left first.   No, I didn't mix up my screenshots. This is another hallway that wraps around a single room.  But it's well worth going through, because the best treasure in the ship is in here!  Only a Hunter can wear a Ranger Suit, so Shu gets a nice upgrade from gauze wrap. Alignment notwithstanding, it's just not as good as a decent suit of armor.   Back to the doorway and switch we skipped. When flipped, the switch helpfully pans the camera down the hallway a little to show us that the only other door in the room is in fact now open.   More hallways. God, it would suck to be a crewman on this ship.   Oh hey, it's the engine room from the smuggling cutscene! And half the engineers don't have hands or feet!   Apply modern troubleshooting to the engine troubles  Once you're all done, the exit is just to the south.   Up some stairs, down some hallways...    Hoo boy. This is probably the hardest fight in the airship yet. All of the enemies in one condensed spot, and the Evil Eyes are fast enough to move before Shante.  There's not a lot you can do to avoid being surrounded.     Try reasoning with them   Once the negotiations are complete, we're at the final area of the airship! This is a good time to head back down to the cargo bed if you're low on HP/HP. Saving might be a good idea too.    - It is! It has to be the hangar! - Shu! Look! Over there! - It's the Hien! - What is it doing here? - Who cares? Let's take it back! - If it were only that easy. - Uh, pretty please? - I don't think my good manners impresed anyone. We're going to have to duke our way out of this one. Oh boy. This time it's two Assassins and four Poison Clouds (One's off-screen). If you thought the previous fights were a challenge, this one is going to step things up a notch.  There's only two of them, but the Assassins are a good first priority target. They have higher all around stats than the Poison Clouds, and you have to work through a lot of HP to take them out.    It was around this point that Shante learned Diamond Dust, and it turns out she's a halfway decent mage. Go nuts on abilities and spells in this fight, because you need to take down targets before they overwhelm the duo.  NINJA FIGHT! Anyway, victory! Kudos on getting through a fairly difficult part of the game.  - Where have the soldiers gone... and the fugitives? - Keep your mouth shut and we won't harm you. - O... okay! - We're taking that airship, with or without your help. But it might go a bit... easier for you if you were to tell us a thing or two. - Like, for example, how do we control the lift to move the ship out of the hangar? - Uh... - Remember, we don't want this to get ugly, but... - Use the lever next to the ladder to control the lift. - That's better. - The lift will move the airship to the launch deck. - Sounds easy enough. - I'll start the lift. You get ready to fly the Hien, Shu. - Are you certain? - Well, I certainly can't fly it, so we don't have any choice. - You have a point. All right. Good Luck (sic)! - Back at ya!  (  )  (You can hit No like an idiot but you can't go anywhere and it won't advance the game until you say Yes.) - Shu, are you ready? - Start the lift. - It seems to be... jammed. Wait! There it goes!  - Get away from the lever! (Atrophy Horn bombs out of literally nowhere) - Shante, it's okay. Get moving up the ladder!           (Okay, admittedly that was a pretty badass moment)   - I have to use this lever to move the ship on the deck. Let's see here... the right lever moves the lift up and... the left lever moves the lift down.     (A suitable reward for loving up left and right. Don't gently caress up left and right.) - Shante, come on! Hurry up!! - Be right there!Anger  - The wind's... too... strong! - Shante! You have to get in! The guards are almost here! - Nonsense! You have to try! The guards won't walk out because they can't stand in the wind, either. - But they have... bombs!    - Shu...! - Shante!! - Sorry to disappoint you, but I've gotta run. - Over my dead body! And with that abrupt bit of action, another party member is quite literally thrown into another almost-certain death situation!  Which, in grand JRPG fashion, means she's going to be just fine. Where and what is Clenia Isle? Find out next time! See you next update!
|
|
#
?
Mar 30, 2024 03:23
|
|
|
The best way to take a trip to some tropical island is to just fall off an airship anywhere. That's a known fact. This game has a lot of itens called herb or different kinds of grass. I wonder what this says about the dev team 
|
|
#
?
Mar 30, 2024 14:25
|
|
|
Kanthulhu posted:This game has a lot of itens called herb or different kinds of grass. I wonder what this says about the dev team Considering how half-baked some of the encounter difficulties seem to have been in this series, I don't think the state of the dev team is really in question! ...Obviously joking. As a die-hard Xenogears fan, I'm a sucker for "quirky" RPGs. The story so far has been shockingly good, even if the combat balance seems to need a bit of fine tuning. Though I'm not above throwing SOME shade. After all, it's such a drat shame that there wasn't anything at all that Shu could've tried to do to help her. Like, I dunno, looking around for a spare rope or mooring line on the freakin' airship he's very familiar with somewhere so she could pull herself across?? Sure, she'd still be bombed off, but at least it'd be something to throw besides High School Gym Teacher words of encouragement. No worries, I get why not - wasn't in the art/animation budget to show him throwing a rope to her, her grabbing it, etc. Still makes him look like an impotent rear end there, though.
|
|
#
?
Apr 1, 2024 00:58
|
|
|
Welcome back everyone! With tax season finally over, I'm hoping I'll have more free time so I can update more frequently than so far in 2024. Gotta finish the trilogy before I die of old age, after all. On that cheerful note, let's continue! No jobs or bounties this update, just straight up story.   Sounds like somebody doesn't realize they're frolicking near a Shante soup!   Holy poo poo that is one swole dad.   - Ouch! Oh my god It... it's... it's a... Daaaaaaaaad!! - What's the matter, Elena? - Someone's hurt here on the beach! - Hmmm. She must have washed ashore. Elena, move aside so I can get a better look. - Okay. - She's still alive... that's a good start. We should get her to the Inn, though. - Okay. - She can finish resting there and we can have her wounds tended. - W... will she be alright? - I believe so. It appears you found her just in time.  (Quick scene change later...)  - Ungh... umm... - W... who are you? Where am I? - Well, my name is Elena. This place is the Inn on Clenia Isle. I found you washed up on the beach near here. - The beach? All I remember was... falling... Oh! I remember now! I fell from the Romalian battleship! - Wow. That sounds scary enough. My dad was surprised to find you alive. He's the one that carried you here. - Oh, well, I must take the time to thank him. I'll thank you now, however. My name is Shante. It's nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you, too! Wait a moment, I'll help you. - Are you alright? - Elena... are you blind? - Oh... yeah. That. Yes, I'm blind. But my hearing is top-notch! Dad says I can sense what's going on around me better than most people. But that doesn't stop me from tripping every now and again. - Oh, I see... Well, Elena, where is your father now? - I'm afraid he's out. He won't be back for a while. The owner of the Inn might be able to help you. - Okay, thanks. I have to go out and give a nice "thank you" to your father. - But... the doctor said you needed to rest in bed. - Thanks for worrying about me. But, I'm alright now. - I sure hope so. If you pass out again, the doctor'll be mad at ME!I have to admit, of all the JRPG tropes out there, "falling to your almost certain death from a flying aircraft and then being found on a beach by a man-giant and his blind daughter" is a fairly uncommon one. Points for originality on that. Anyway, we have more dialogue to  - Um, well, I don't know about the "angel" part, but yes, I'm up.Innkeeper - Ohh, you're altogether too modest! I must admit that I was very worried when Gruga brought you in. - I certainly had endured a rough journey. By the way, my name is Shante.Innkeeper - Well then Shante, what's on the agenda this bright day? - Well, I would like to find Gruga... so I can thank him properly. Would you happen to know where he is?Innkeeper - Of course! He's most assuredly at Training Rock. He's training as much as possible before the big day tomorrow. - Big day?Innkeeper - Oh, yes, of course... you wouldn't know!  So now we have a destination, but first let's explore Clenia a bit. I like this town quite a bit, as it offers a few advantages over Palencia.  Cats.     Seafood all day every day.   And most importantly, a shop that has both a shopkeeper and salable inventory! It's a miracle!   As if that weren't already awesome enough, the inventory is substantially more updated here than in any other shop to date. Blood Herbs are now the regular herb for sale, and there's a host of new weapons and armor that is better than what we've had available up until now. Now, don't go crazy and buy every new thing on the shop menu. We can afford to if we want, since that Hunter money has just been piling up and the most expensive item on here is the Splash Cymbals at 8000 Goz, but not every single thing is an upgrade or even a necessary weapon type. Since inventory space is starting to become a premium (And this will get way worse really quickly in the future), you want to consider what's useful versus what's only potentially useful. So, while a bunch of weapon types are now available, and some will be useful for party members and/or monsters down the road, you don't need to go hog wild right this second.  Still, after saying all that, I did sell almost all the regular Herbs in my inventory to free up room, then bought the Splash Cymbals, Light Ax, Sub Machine Gun, Beat Attacker, and two copies of the new Cloth Wrap and Shoulder Grd armor that I didn't capture on the previous shop menu.         I'm not going to bore you with every single dialogue in Clenia the way I did in Seirya, but the gist is that the tournament is basically the greatest event ever, and is a valid excuse to both abandon your children and create pointless multi-choice dialogue trees.    For those of you into references of the previous game, there are people who also mention the Niedel tournament from Arc 1. Apparently the nameless champion (Poco) is both confirmed as a wanted criminal and exposed the fact that the fights were all rigged. At least, they were rigged until our previous team rolled into town, broke the grand prize trophy, and killed 1000 knights and/or ninjas to deplete the tournament committee of every possible resource. Twice. It sounds weird looking back on it.          The lobby of the tournament arena is very similar to Niedel's, with a similar penchant for having cool one-use character sprites that turn out to be incredibly wimpy people.   Okay, okay, enough! Let's get on with the game.  Training Rock is right next to Clenia. You can also go to, but not enter, the Vacant House on the east end of the island, or go into, but not buy tickets for, the Skyport to the north.   In case you're curious, these are about the only two dialogues at the latter location that aren't some variation of "You can't leave until the tournament is over". To the Training Rock! Fight 1    - Hehe... people are talking about your incredible strength. So, we came to beat it out of you before the tournament. We can't have you winning and embarrassing us. - Oh, no! There are too many! He'll never win! He needs help!  Yeah, about that, Shante... It would probably take Arc or Tosh to beat Gruga. He has gobs of HP and hits like a truck.  That being said, he enters the fight naked, so we kit him out with armor (And swap out his Warpick for the Light Ax too, but a little later on).     Thanks for the healing during the fight, Shante! Much appreciated.  - The Innkeeper told me you might be here. I had no idea you'd be in such trouble, nor that you were so strong. - I came here for solitude so I could prepare for the tournament. Why did you come? - Well, I came to thank you for taking me in when I was unconscious. And to, um... ask you a favor. I need to get to Romalia, but I have no idea how to proceed. - No ship will leave here until the tournament concludes. - When will that be? - The day after tomorrow. Once the ships are moving again, you can easily get to Romalia. - That's just the information I was looking for. Thank you. Oh, by the way, I hear you're a favorite in the tournament. Good luck! - I must win... for Elena. - For Elena? What do you mean? - ... - I'm sorry. I've obviously intruded into your personal affairs. - No... no... it... it is my shame. I am not Elena's real father. I lied... I told her that I was. And yet, I only said that because it is my fault that she lost her parents... and her sight. - ... - I have said too much. Goodbye.And with that... somewhat awkward exchange... we're back in control of Shante. Not that there's anything to do but go back to the inn and drill down into Gruga's past, of course.  - Please don't tell Elena what I told you. - Your secret is safe with me until you choose to tell her. - Thank you. - Well, I had at least a little help from you and your father. - I was just so worried when I found you on the beach. I thought you were... dead. - Well, I'm glad I wasn't dead! I should get you something nice for all you've done for me. - You don't have to... but that would be great! - Yes. Innkeeper - So, you heard about Elena, didn't you? - Yeah... he told me a little, but then ran off.Innkeeper - Gruga came from Brakia, after the war for independence 5 years ago. The inhabitants fought tooth and nail for freedom from Niedel. Many lives were lost on both sides. Gruga, especially, is torn, because he was one of the leaders of the uprising. He's bearing an immense load of guilt, and can't seem to find any relief. Maybe you can find a way to ease his mind? - I don't know how, but I'll try. It's the least I can do after what he did for me.(One 100 GP investment in sleep later)  - I don't know what it is about this place, but I slept great! Innkeeper - Why don't you go and cheer for Gruga? Maybe it'll help him win!  - Really? Why not? - Because he says it's too dangerous. - Well, he must know what he's talking about. - He does. That's why I don't worry about him. Dad's so strong, he can take care of himself. - You love him very much, don't you?I wish I could provide better commentary, but now we have to head to the arena for the tournament proper. It's going to be decidedly less interactive than Niedel.    Speaking of, I'm pretty sure this exact same guy lost the first round of the Niedel tournament too. Nice throwback.       And this guy is just pathetic.  - Thank you. I must win this tournament, so any advantage is good. - Wow, you're putting a lot of pressure on yourself there. Is that necessary? - I'm sorry there is no time to talk. The next battle is about to begin. - Well then, good luck!    - We're down to the last warriors. Is your favorite still in this thing? Leeeet's seeeeee! Everyone's favorite announcer, yours truly, Catch Mamaman, is ready to rev this thing up again! And... here come our combatants for the next round now! - On my right (and that's your left for those of you that are a little slow)... it's the terror that put the hurt on Bagus of Zariban... the bruiser that's all heart, Gruga of Brakia!! (Insert cheering sounds) - And on my left... is the killer who bashed Rapecia with his great sword... all the way form that rathole Niedel... Gester the Molester! (Insert cheering... wait a minute... there are fans for a fighter named Gester the Molester? I wonder if Chris Hansen exists in this universe.) - Who will emerge victorious from this scramble for victory? Geeeet ready for the first battle of the semifinal!(Sorry guys, screenshot fight incoming. At least the announcer doesn't transform into a monster this time!)                     - What a battle! It was closer than I ever imagined it would be.   - How can you take the pain that opponent dished out? - It is simple. I must win this tournament. - You haven't entertained the possibility of losing? - No. I must win this tournament... for Elena. If I win this, I can take Elena to a doctor that can restore her sight. - But... once she can see, it will be obvious that you are not her father. - That is true, but... perhaps that will be the time to face the truth. I must first get us both to that point. - Are you sure that's what you want? - I am not. But, it is what Elena needs.        Another weirdo moment, just in case you were worried that Working Designs could have serious dialogue for more than a couple of minutes at a time.  Also, it turns out Shante has the strange power to understand what cats are thinking. I wonder what the original Japanese dialogue was for talking to a random cat and having a thought bubble pop out of the cat.  Right, so, I hate this Innkeeper now. I'm not even going to finish his inane dialogue here because I spent a good ten minutes wandering around and talking to people all because it turns out you have to talk to him TWICE IN A ROW to get the chance to pay him for another night's sleep and to advance the story. If you talk to him, then go check on Gruga and Elena, or talk to him and wander over to the arena and come back, you won't trigger his Inn dialogue. gently caress this guy. I hope his inn gets wrecked.   Innkeeper - You should probably go to the arena to cheer Gruga on.  - Yes, it does seem as if Gruga will win.  - Right (Geez, Shante, did someone slip blue pills into your morning coffee?) - I must win at any cost... for Elena. Please leave me alone so I can concentrate on my strategy. - ...   - Welcome back all to the bloodiest... most exciting... richest tournament around! Nothing else even comes close, as you all know. This has become the event everyone has to see at least once before they die! Let's hear it for the contestants this year!(Brief cheers and applause) - I'm your announcer, Catch Mamaman, for those of you with short-term memory loss. I'll be giving the blow-by-blow commentary as this final match unfolds. I can say that I am looking for a battle to end all battles this time out. I know, because I've had a look in the holding pen. We've got two really ripped rivals waiting to go at it. And only one battle is left! This is it, folks! The final battle of the tournament. Let's invite our two conquerors into the arena!  - In the semifinals, our first finalist beat the stuffing out of Gester (the Molester) in a surprise upset. Let's give it up for Gruga of Brakia!! - Our taciturn finalist has a rather colorful history. Previously, Gruga was the leader of Brakia's push for independence. If I were facing him down, there'd be poo in my pantaloons. But, fortunately, I'm not facing him down. This unfortunate finalist IS. But don't cry him a river just yet, because he's decimated all opponents so far.(That's a lot of reducing by a tenth of its original number!)  - In his life as a Hunter, he's defeated a record number of criminals. If Gruga is Brakia's hero, then surely Galburn is our hero.(But Clenia doesn't even HAVE a Hunter's Guild...) - This is going to be one interesting match, and I can't WAIT! Let's get this paaaaartty STARTED!(Right, you know what's coming, sorry.)                                     - This is the greatest battle Catch has ever witnessed! I can't believe what just unfolded before us, ladies and gentlemen! Gruga pulled up strength from somewhere deep inside and pulled down the victory! - Gruga's earned his 100,000G prize! Ohhh yeah!   - Yes. I have achieved my goal to win the prize money. Now I can use that to take Elena to the doctor. I must take her to the doctor immediately. - Gruga... Are you sure you really want that? You know the consequences... - We must overcome whatever difficulties lie before us together. But regardless, Elena must have her sight. - But... - I cannot deny any longer that I have used Elena to soothe my guilt. Now, I must face what has been done and move forward. We both must.  It's hard to capture in these scenes, but almost every dialogue with Gruga ends in him lumbering away from Shante. It's a really awkward way to end conversations with people. Sorry again about all the screenshots. At least I took fewer than I did of the Niedel tournament, right?  Anyway, back to the... oh. Good. - What happened?Innkeeper - U... unghhh...  Innkeeper - Y... yes. I can... can hear you. (Then while you're listening: Next time advance the plot in one conversation, dickhead.) - What happened here? This place is in shambles! Innkeeper - Men in black swarmed in suddenly and took Elena. I tried to stop them, but it happened so fast... - This is not good. Innkeeper - Gruga, I'm so sorry... I was just too weak and there were too many of them. - I do not blame you. I shall get Elena back at any cost! - Ah! Gruga, wait...Innkeeper - I... I'll be okay. Help Gruga rescue Elena!    - Oh, Gruga... - Don't try to understand the sick minds that did this. - I only want Elena back. But where do I start?  - Gruga, look what was pinned to the bed! - A ransom note? If you want to save your girl, come to the vacant house outside town. So it's true. She's been kidnapped. - If they want a ransom of some sort, at least she's still alive. Gruga, I feel I must help you. - Thank you, Shante. We must hurry to save Elena!And so, the vacant house on the island map is our next destination.   Ha! gently caress no.  He's saying what we're all thinking. Nothing much changes in town, just the occasional "I can't wait three years for the next tournament" blurb that everyone is obsessed with.   I sense a future sidequest looming. Also, I don't know why suddenly I'm getting a lot of dialogue about blue pills. I guess the Matrix was pretty popular around the time this trilogy came out in the US.  Enough tomfoolery. Let's go rescue Elena.   - I do not care, Shante. - Gruga, this feels like a trap. - If they have taken Elena as a hostage, I do not have a choice. - But, if you both lose your lives, what have you gained? - Shante, this is not really your concern. You are correct that this will be dangerous. Perhaps you should return. - I'm concerned, Gruga, but I would never abandon you! - I appreciate your help, Shante. I am certain Elena does as well. - Yes, well, first we have to rescue her. - Right.   (...I am getting the strangest feeling of daijoubu.)  Guy Who Will Be Dead In 30 Seconds - Why don't you show me your lauded skills? - Where is Elena?GWWBDI30S - I don't know. But I might be able to remember if you defeat me.   Be careful what you wish for. Oh, there were a couple dragonflies too. They also died in one hit.  Don't worry, they didn't re-use a dungeon or anything here. The vacant house is exactly three rooms, one of which is completely empty.  Feels weird being in here without some ominous narration and a few monsters teleporting in to get wrecked by me.    - Ya did good in dat last fight. It looks like ya got tha skills tha boss wants. - Who the hell are you, and why did you kidnap Elena? - We don't want yer gimpy kid. We are afta ya strength. For da research. - The Chimera Lab! - You know what he is talking about? - Yes! That lab killed my brother! I was going to Romalia to avenge his death! - Dat's not too smart, lady. But hey. Dat don' matta anyway. It's curtains for youse, den Gruga's comin' wif us. - I'm warnin' ya not to resist. It wouldn't exactly be healthy for ya daughta. - I do not like the sound of that. - Why are you tormenting him, anyway? Elena isn't even his daughter! - What tha?! - I thought you goons would have figured it out just by looking at them. They don't even look the same! - Well den it looks like ya both are outta luck! Now we got no reason to save eitha of da girls. An' da boss is gonna be happy we bagged tha champion heah! - Gruga... I'm sorry... I seem to have really messed this up. - It is not your fault. It was the truth. You could not have known the outcome of telling them.        Well, time to own that outcome, Shante. I hope you're ready to take responsibility. Seriously though, this was a pretty tough fight. Not because any of the enemies are powerhouses, but because that drat wizard loves healing the knights. So you have to either take him out first then work on the knights, or expect a bit of a drag-out fight where Shante mostly heals and Gruga mostly powers up and hits things harder than usual.    - Elena! Are you all right? Did they hurt you? - Oh, Dad... I... I knew you'd come. - We're just glad to have found you. Your father was so worried. - I'm sorry you had to worry, Dad. I... - Shh. Don't talk anymore, Elena. Save your strength. We need to get Elena to bed. She needs rest. - Yes... rest. D... Dad... don't leave me alone, okay? - I shall never be far. And dear... I did not have a chance to tell you... but I won the tournament. Tomorrow, we can go to the doctor to begin the process of restoring your sight. - That sounds nice, Daddy. I just need to sleep a little now. - Good night, Elena... - Good night, Daddy. - Rest well, Elena. Innkeeper - I shall look after Elena in his absence. I don't think it's the best course of action, but I'm willing to help. - Gruga has to do what he feels is best. Innkeeper - He told me he has thought about the options for some time. - You're a kind man. In fact, I wanted to thank you for your kindness while I've been here. Innkeeper - It's not necessary to mention it. I live to serve others. Besides, your coin helped repair my Inn. - I hardly think it was enough to make a difference. Innkeeper - Ha, ha, ha. You may be right, but thanks anyway. If you have a chance to visit again, please do. - I'll take you up on that someday, thanks! - Yes. She's very tired. It was quite an ordeal. - Yes... - Gruga... what's wrong? - I... I've made arrangements for Elena to see the doctor. - Made arrangements? - Yes. I arranged for the Innkeeper to take Elena to the doctor's. He can use my prize money to pay the doctor. Elena can then live on the money that remains. - But... Gruga... Elena needs you! What will she do? - She will be fine under the Innkeeper's care. I have a task to carry out. - Task? - Yes. I must stop the Chimera Labs I have learned of. I cannot ignore barbarians who use innocent children for experiments. - But, Gruga... - I have decided. You cannot change my mind. It is best for everyone. I will join you on the journey to Romalia. - I see... aren't you going to say goodbye to Elena? - It is best that I do not. - I understand... I think. Let's go.   Welp. Gruga may have won the tournament, but I doubt he'll be winning any Father of the Year awards anytime soon.  Okay, look, this has been a lot of plot. I think I'm going to put a pin in it here before we get into a whole new thing with Lieza the Lass and her Ravishing adventure. See you next update!
|
|
#
?
Apr 20, 2024 02:45
|
|
|
I think the "blue pill" theme of this town might be a reference to viagra, instead of a Matrix thing? Matrix's blue pill is the bad one, right? Viagra was called the blue pill for a while after it became popular.
|
|
#
?
Apr 20, 2024 12:13
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 29, 2024 13:47 |
|
|
> I'm sorry. I've obviously intruded into your personal affairs. ...Wait...hold on...hol' up JUST a sec. Are you telling me that there's an RPG where the protagonist prying into people's lives is acknowledged as potentially being *rude?*  IMPOSSIBLE I SAY!
|
|
#
?
Apr 27, 2024 12:58
|
|