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Pffttt, ahahah, really? That's amazing. I know the two extremes in the GBA games wasn't quite working but "attack the first dude we see" in a game where really tanky units are about 1:1 with units that attack at super close range? That was not the solution they were looking for.
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Feb 12, 2015 20:42
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ImpAtom posted:Then I assume you dislike every character because they are literally all like that, except for a few of the Genius-style characters. "Character does something foolish in defiance of orders for a plot point" describes like the entire cast. (Hell, a few SR points are tied to doing it.) Yeah, if you want a game where people follow orders and don't do stupid stuff constantly then Super Robot Wars is not it. OG is actually about as hardcore military as it gets, with most of the cast being officially registered soldiers who more or less follow orders and in theory the EFA wants to protect the Earth. As compared to regular SRW where you have the Getter Team vs the Titans. (not to mention all the other super robots, all of which are piloted by random high school students at best, random elementary school students at worst)
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Feb 12, 2015 21:40
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I don't know, there's a difference between Free Spirited and "so stupidly bloodthirsty that they will throw themselves headlong into the enemy against the recommendation of literally the entire cast and even the player." Even when other characters do the rush into enemies thing, they don't turn into a suicidal NPC.
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Feb 12, 2015 21:50
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Seyser Koze posted:It's not even that, the AI in the remake is almost guaranteed to just attack whoever's closest. Huh, I had just assumed that it was the standard AI routine of 'Shoot whoever you deal the most damage to if you hit, even if your hit rate was 0%' like it normally was. Grunt AI in the various games isn't all that great to be honest. I've seen entire maps full of enemies fling themselves at a Focus'd Excellen unsuccessfully.
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Feb 12, 2015 22:36
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Most of the cast gets the rest in trouble by rushing ahead at some point. Katina is just the worst at it and it happens as part of her introduction if you're playing Ryusei's route. I like Katina and all but she does not make a good first impression.
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Feb 12, 2015 22:51
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Broken Loose posted:I don't know, there's a difference between Free Spirited and "so stupidly bloodthirsty that they will throw themselves headlong into the enemy against the recommendation of literally the entire cast and even the player." Even when other characters do the rush into enemies thing, they don't turn into a suicidal NPC. Many many characters do the 'rush ahead wildly and get into trouble for it' thing. There are tons of stages where they either get converted into yellow NPCs (although rarely as hostile as Katina) or start for 2-3 rounds by themselves until reinforcements arrived or whatever. It's a pretty safe bet any given character will have at least one stage where they do something stupid and risky and against orders. (Well, any character who the plot cares about, looking at you Radha.) They tend to get character development out of it and Katina ends doing so later too, which I can't really say more about without spoiling. GimmickMan posted:I like Katina and all but she does not make a good first impression. I really disliked her in OG1 myself but she pans out a lot better in the sequels. I think OGs softens her writing a little because they realized she was way overly abrasive in OG-classic. ImpAtom fucked around with this message at 23:02 on Feb 12, 2015 |
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Feb 12, 2015 22:57
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ImpAtom posted:Then I assume you dislike every character because they are literally all like that, except for a few of the Genius-style characters. "Character does something foolish in defiance of orders for a plot point" describes like the entire cast. (Hell, a few SR points are tied to doing it.) You assume amazingly incorrectly, then, and now I really have to ask - what the hell color is the sky on your world? I said nothing about "in defiance of orders for a plot point", I said "tactically and strategically, she's a flaming moron". There is a difference. She's hung around Kyosuke, Viletta, Sean, and even Excellen this long, and she still hasn't picked up on the basics of logic. Or even the fact that her dashing ahead the way she tries to leaves everyone else in a bind, because they will either A. try to save her, and take lumps they didn't need to, or B. leave her to to rather-deserved fate at this point, and end up with a hole in the formation, and probably end up with a higher repair bill as a result. I seriously don't like her until OG2, due to how far she's got herself lost in this fantasy of "hot, ace pilot, everything will fall into place perfectly for me, and if it doesn't, I'll just RAAAAAGE at everyone until it does!" Even Ryusei has long since lost that daydream - that's why his characterization actually kind of works, and hers is just grating.
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Feb 12, 2015 23:34
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SorataYuy posted:You assume amazingly incorrectly, then, and now I really have to ask - what the hell color is the sky on your world? I said nothing about "in defiance of orders for a plot point", I said "tactically and strategically, she's a flaming moron". There is a difference. She's hung around Kyosuke, Viletta, Sean, and even Excellen this long, and she still hasn't picked up on the basics of logic. Or even the fact that her dashing ahead the way she tries to leaves everyone else in a bind, because they will either A. try to save her, and take lumps they didn't need to, or B. leave her to to rather-deserved fate at this point, and end up with a hole in the formation, and probably end up with a higher repair bill as a result. Except, again, other characters do this too. The OG cast is not strategic and tactical. They pilot super robots and fight by ramming their carrier into the enemy or trying risky dangerous things or trying to befriend someone during a pitched battle or getting super-upset and allowing themselves to be goaded into a disadvantageous position or... basically I can go on. You're basically going "Katina is bad because she ignores tactics and strategy in favor of emotion" which is literally every single character in OG, a series where multiple robots are literally powered by using hot-blooded emotion to overcome logic. I mean how many people have done stupid foolish hot-blooded things that paid off over the course of this LP alone? "Katina is overly-arrogant and hot-blooded and gets into bad situations" is an actual plot point and one that gets addressed, but acting like she's abnormally worse than the rest of the cast at getting into bad situations or disregarding orders is silly. (The yellow NPC thing is annoying as hell though, yeah.) ImpAtom fucked around with this message at 23:51 on Feb 12, 2015 |
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Feb 12, 2015 23:37
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Rorahusky posted:Huh, I had just assumed that it was the standard AI routine of 'Shoot whoever you deal the most damage to if you hit, even if your hit rate was 0%' like it normally was. Grunt AI in the various games isn't all that great to be honest. I've seen entire maps full of enemies fling themselves at a Focus'd Excellen unsuccessfully. Of course they tried to compensate for that in Advance Portable by having your dodge rates decay as more units fired at you in a single turn. And then people complained.
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Feb 13, 2015 00:19
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Seyser Koze posted:Of course they tried to compensate for that in Advance Portable by having your dodge rates decay as more units fired at you in a single turn. And then people complained. Actually dodge-decay became a reoccuring part of the franchise since then. Quattro's ace bonus in Z2 is actually the ability to ignore it for example. ImpAtom fucked around with this message at 00:23 on Feb 13, 2015 |
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Feb 13, 2015 00:21
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ImpAtom posted:Actually dodge-decay became a reoccuring part of the franchise since then. Quattro's ace bonus in Z2 is actually the ability to ignore it for example. I guess that would explain it. I haven't played a new non-OG game since W.
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Feb 13, 2015 00:24
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Seyser Koze posted:I guess that would explain it. I haven't played a new non-OG game since W. It's toned down a whole lot from the AP version, to be fair. It takes a whole lot to get chunked down to sure-hit rates.
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Feb 13, 2015 00:26
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The problem with dodge decay is that there isn't much you can do to avoid the AI ganging up on a single target except for use support defense and take advantage of how stupid it is, which from a gameplay perspective is bad. If the AI were competent, they just don't give you the tools to fight it effectively. It would work better if units had an area of control which the enemy can't shoot through. That way, you could limit how much fire could head towards a single one of your units by flanking it with others. Tactical formations would become a hell of a lot more useful at that point.
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Feb 13, 2015 00:50
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No one would get mad about Katina if that mission didn't make her an NPC. I say this because multiple times now she's pretty much said to Russel "GRRR LET'S gently caress 'EM UP" and gotten the exasperated "Oh Katina, you so crazy" response and no one's really batted an eyelid. Also Bullet straight up apologising because he's really nervous right there and then is one of the few times I've found him remotely endearing.
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Feb 13, 2015 00:53
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If Katina's attitude/behavior is upsetting people, there is a character in OG2 that was somehow worse than her in terms of unlikability. To the point where OGs totally overhauls the character to not be a gigantic douchecunt like in the original GBA adaptation and make the character and their behavior into something more understandable. Plus, as others have mentioned, Katina does get better character-wise as the OG series goes on. They just went overboard with her introduction and initial characterization. And as RoboKy said, making her a NPC for this mission is probably the dumbest decision that got made for this stage. And to be fair, at least Katina HAS a character, unlike say...Bullet.
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Feb 13, 2015 00:59
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The biggest problem I have with Katina, besides the brainless NPC mission, is that until a few missions in the future, she is a one-note, raging, unlikable abrasive rear end in a top hat, on and off the battlefield. They gave her no redemptive qualities whatsoever. Characterization: she treats everyone badly, ally and enemy alike. She just rages and beats on everyone else. This doth not an interesting and endearing character make. Gameplay mechanics: She's best used only as a finisher for a long time, unless you enjoy spending massive amounts of money to repair her mech - which is just kind of looping back into the whole "never actually suffering any real consequences for her thoughtless actions" bit. I dislike this type of character because I A. was once that type of person for a decent stretch of my own life, and B. meet more than enough of them in my own life. That said, I like that she does eventually learn. I just think it's a big shame that it takes the sequence of events that it does. Running headlong into an epiphany is a lot more painful than it sounds.
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Feb 13, 2015 02:12
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AradoBalanga posted:If Katina's attitude/behavior is upsetting people, there is a character in OG2 that was somehow worse than her in terms of unlikability. To the point where OGs totally overhauls the character to not be a gigantic douchecunt like in the original GBA adaptation and make the character and their behavior into something more understandable. It says something about OG2 that there are no fewer than three characters you could be talking about here.
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Feb 13, 2015 02:17
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ImpAtom posted:It says something about OG2 that there are no fewer than three characters you could be talking about here.  There are plenty of reasons why OG2 received the most reworking for the remake. And a good amount does boil down to the original GBA writing being...less than favorable.
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Feb 13, 2015 02:46
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Rio and Katina had a pretty commanding lead in the Wildschwein voting, so I'm just going to go ahead and record the next mission.
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Feb 13, 2015 04:03
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Bullet, did you think getting a date would somehow get Excellen off your back? YOU CANNOT ESCAPE SHENANIGANS.
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Feb 13, 2015 16:34
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Glazius posted:Bullet, did you think getting a date would somehow get Excellen off your back? I am pretty sure Excellen is just jealous that Bullet of all people is getting some while she still isn't.
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Feb 13, 2015 21:05
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Iunno, I kind of like Katina, even when she's being a dick to everybody. It's nice to have a character who isn't all aboard the happy giant robot family train, and a lot of her random snapping at people is actually funny. I definitely wouldn't hang out with her in real life, but as a fictional character in a video game, I enjoy her being there. That said making her an NPC in this mission is weird and dumb, yeah.
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Feb 13, 2015 21:31
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Well, either my PS2 or my Swap Magic disc is on the way out. Looks like the LP curse is poised to strike...
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Feb 16, 2015 14:48
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Seyser Koze posted:Well, either my PS2 or my Swap Magic disc is on the way out. Looks like the LP curse is poised to strike... Yeah, it seems to fancy striking at SRW LPs. My computer crapped out during W and my PS2 died around Z's twenties...the worst thing is that, even after you recover from it, it still makes you incredibly paranoid. I keep backups of pretty much everything that's so much as tangentially related to the LP and I'm still haunted by the looming threat of the curse. 
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Feb 16, 2015 15:37
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Mission 24  The whole crew's together for real this time. I haven't actually bought any upgrades since we fought Bian and Maier, so I have a bit of a nest egg built up to spend getting newcomers up to speed; however, considering that we also just got the R-2 and Grungust Type-2 in addition to inheriting the Alt, Weiss, Giganscudo, Huckebein Mk. II, and R-GUN, we're going to be short on cash and behind on upgrades for a while. In particular, I want to make sure the Revolver Stake is upgraded so that Kyosuke can contribute as much on Ryusei's route as he did on his own---  ...Huh. That's new.  Excellen has a new attack too.    Aya reports to her father for the first time since before the Hagane departed. He's read the report on the T-LINK tests conducted aboard the ship; the R-3's calibrations are well behind schedule. She apologizes, but promises to work harder from now on.   Kenzo stresses the importance of the R-3's T-LINK system; unlike that of the R-1, it was designed to interface with Aya specifically. Aya doesn't know if she'll be able to do so, however. When she uses the system, she's always reminded of her mother, and of Mai, and of the accident... Her father reassures her that the accident wasn't her fault - it was Mai's powers run amok that destroyed the Institute.   In any case, there's no choice in the matter. The enemy fortress has appeared, and SRX will be needed to destroy it. They'll start by calibrating the system with the data from one of the Institute's first subjects, from before Aya was born - a woman named Yukiko Date.   "Date? You don't mean... Ryusei's...!?" "....."   The Hagane is away, and will soon be leaving the atmosphere. It looks like both it and the Hiryu Kai are on schedule for their rendezvous. Sakae brings Laker an encrypted message from the Federation chiefs of staff, for his eyes only. Watching him read it, Hans notes his surprised reaction with interest.   Laker announces that he'll need an escort prepared, as he needs to head to Geneva at once; the federation brass are holding a sudden conference regarding the new threat. The Far East Base, and the care of Princess Shine, are in his subordinates' hands for the time being.  (The Commander and Hagane are both gone... this may be my chance.) If Hans just said all this stuff out loud he'd be the perfect Starscream analog.   Mission 24: Lune, and Valsione   The Hagane is at the rendezvous point, and the crew takes the opportunity to get a better look at the White Star. At 40 kilometers in diameter, it's twice the size of a space colony.   "How did they keep something like that hidden?" "What, you've never heard of the hidden ball trick?" "Ha! Good one!" "Can it be...? At last, a kindred spirit!"   Neither Kyosuke nor Rai play along with this, and Ryusei and Excellen commiserate over being stuck with these two as their straight men.   There's no sign of activity from the White Star, which has Tetsuya concerned. With intruders massing on their doorstep, one would expect them to respond in force. Until now the Aerogaters have limited themselves to reconnaissance, meaning the bugs and spiders were enough; finding out what else they're capable of will be the Hagane's duty while they're here.   The Hiryu arrives. Former comrades Daitetsu and Sean greet one another (Sean says they've both been blessed with a number of beauties aboard their ship, but has to walk it back when Lefina asks what he's talking about). Ryusei and Eita are surprised to see that Cybuster is here as well.   "Yo! Long time no see, Ryusei!" "Wh... what are you doing here? Don't tell me you got lost again." "What the... why do you assume I'm lost?" "You're not?" "Oh, for..."   The banter is cut off by the alarm. There's an incoming contact detected, but not the Aerogaters - it's a DC unit, and only one of them. Daitetsu and Lefina order their units to launch. As I said, I'm trying to give Ryusei's entire cast a fair shake for the LP's purposes. Since you voted to have Rio in the Wildschwein, I'm moving Garnet into the Lion. Kyosuke, Excellen, and Bullet get to go as well.   Kuro: "Still, coming at us head-on, with one unit..." Shiro: "He's just like Masaki!" Masaki: "Going in full-force from the get-go... not bad. I didn't think the DCs had anybody with guts." Rai: (Could it be... Elzam?) Eun: "DC mech, contact!"    Yes. YES.   Irm: "...What the hell is that thing!?" Bullet: "L-Lieutenant Kyosuke! Th-that mech looks like a girl!" Kyosuke: "I can see that. It doesn't look like any PT or AM that we know of." Excellen: "Wow! Do you think Weissy would look like that if you took off its armor?" Rai: "There's something wrong with your brain." Irm: "If it wasn't so big, I'd say this was somebody's hobby." Tasuku: "Hmm... if it was an action figure, you could probably make a few bucks."   Ryusei: "It's... it's..." Garnet: "What? Did something happen?" Ryusei: "It's so cute!" Garnet: "Oh god, you're one of those, aren't you?"   "Captain, we're being hailed by the DC pilot!" "Patch it through."   Lune: "At last we meet, Hagane!" Rio: "A girl's voice?" Masaki: "Who are you?" Lune: "This is Lune Zoldark! Daughter of Bian Zoldark, the man you killed!" Ryoto: "Commander Bian?!" Masaki: "Now I remember. He did say he had a daughter..."   Lune: "He might have been your enemy... but he was my dad! The only one I ever had!" Masaki: "!" Lune: "Can't say he was the best father... but I've got to see this through, all the same!" Ryoto: "Wait a minute! This is just revenge! It's not going to fix anything!" Lune: "I know that!!"   Masaki: "When Bian said he had a daughter, I pictured somebody all hard and rugged-looking, like him. But you're pretty cute." Lune: "Wh... what are you saying?!" Masaki: (Huh. She's more innocent than I expected.) Oh, gently caress you, Masaki. Leave her alone.    "By the way... I've got to ask you something." "Yeah, what?!" "Are you a member of the DCs?" "These Divine Crusaders are nothing like the group my dad started! I've got nothing to do with them!" "Um, you say that, but... they're sort of right behind you." "Huh!?"   The newcomers appear to be the remaining holdouts from the colonies' forces. Katina immediately assumes that Lune's been trying to spring a trap on us. Kyosuke is reserving judgement, but it doesn't look good...   Wait a minute. Aren't... aren't you dead?  Everything seems to be coming up Siebel's way. If he sinks the Hagane and the Hiryu Kai here, his status will be absolute! Not even Sanger Zonvolt will be able to do anything about it! Excellen is surprised to see that he's still alive, and fills Garnet in on this man and his issues with women.   "Lune Zoldark... as Commander Bian's daughter, you should join with us against our common foe. Destroy the Hagane and Hiryu Kai, cast down the Federation... and unify the world beneath the Divine Crusaders and the colonies!"   "...Are you sure you're not actually with them?" "God, just shut up. Here, I'll prove it to you!"      Siebel is furious at the betrayal, but Lune yells back that he's the traitor. Her father and Maier would never have permitted the use of poison gas in battle! Team Kyosuke fills in the rest on his attempt at gassing Columna, which gets appropriately disgusted and horrified reactions.   Siebel laughs. This is precisely why Bian died in the end: he was too soft to do what was necessary to win! The group has just about had it with his stock-villain routine, but Lune says to keep our hands off; she's going to kill him herself, and then deal with the rest of us.  This is more or less a straight reenactment of Lune's original appearance in Super Robot Wars 3. Following Bian's death at the end of SRW2, SRW3 begins with Ghiren Zabi (from Mobile Suit Gundam) taking the DCs' reins in order to try and take over the world for his own benefit, like Adler does in OG. I think the SRW3 mission has Baron Ashura (from Mazinger Z) in Siebel's role here. SRW3 was translated by Aeon Genesis, so you can try it out   Battle begins, and Siebel orders Leona, who's kept her silence all this time, to defend his ship. Tasuku and Excellen recognize her as the Treue captain's second-in-command; she wasn't at the final battle with Maier's fleet. Rai wonders why she's still fighting, now that she's no longer answering to his father.   (Supreme Commander Maier... this isn't the army you built any more. Captain Julia... Major Elzam... should I go through with this...?)  Objectives. Take out everybody, destroy Siebel's ship (which flees at 45%) for the mastery. Lune can and will make good on her threat and mess up your chances of getting this mastery, though it's not hard to beat her to him.  So, after all that, we're finally ready to go. We have a bunch of Cosmolions, some Rangzen fighters, two Peregrines (one with Siebel), and Leona's Guarlion.  We've also got this, um...  It's... it's beautiful. Doctor Zoldark, truly it was within you that the soul of  burned its brightest.So. Here's the Valsione. On top of having a bunch of health (this mission), it (she?) has the same After-Image ability that the 009 has.   For spirits, Lune has Guts (a full heal), Alert, Gain, and Focus; on the skills front she has the support skills, Gunfight, and also has Attacker out of the box, which is nice.  Thankfully she's a green NPC unit at the moment, and she's actually indestructible; if her health gets too low, she'll just heal herself back up again. You could technically let her do the entire mission. If you were dumb.  Anyway, let's get to business. Aside from just generally getting a bunch of people leveled up and made into aces, I have a couple of secrets to keep in mind. Kyosuke needs 55 kills in a few missions, both of the battleship captains need to level up, and Ingram...  ...Ingram? Great. So Ingram was in the Wildschwein, and when I put Rio into it he got swapped out. Then I neglected to put him in the R-GUN afterward like I'd intended. I'm so good at this.  This may end up biting me in the rear end, or it may not; we'll see. He's level 23 now, and needs to be 32 by the end of Mission 29 to get a secret (the same one Viletta missed out on for Kyosuke's route.) If I somehow can't make it I have a save from before this mission, so I'll go back and try again between updates.  Anyway, some competence. I made sure to max out the Weissritter's mobility, so the plan is for Excellen to take the lead on the right, which she should be able to do without trouble. I hope.  In the middle we have Latooni leading the way, and over on the left we have Rio backing up Kyosuke. Turn 1, enemy phase...   "What are you fools doing! Move out and crush them!" (...If I must protect this man... I would rather die in battle, like the Captain.)   "Lieutenant Leona, where are you going!? I ordered you to defend me!" "I swore to protect one commander: Maier V. Branstein." "What? Are you refusing to obey a superior's order?!" "I am. I've shamed myself enough. I would rather die here than defile the Treue Squadron's legacy!" "W-wretched woman...!" "Hiryu Kai, Hagane, watch me... I will keep my pride to the end!"   "!" "Leona... you've chosen death...!?"   Leona rushed to the front and went straight for Rai. Her Guarlion isn't one of the command units she's been piloting, but a basic 7000-HP model. I don't let Rai attack her because there's a risk that Lune will take her out if I give her half a chance.   Ow.  Speaking of Lune, a couple Rangzens decide it's time to go for her. Since Bian built the Valsione, it shouldn't be too surprising that he gave it the Valsion's Cross Smasher attack.                  There is no kill like overkill.  Kyosuke gets plinked away at for negligible damage (and sometimes no damage), which is good because I have plans for him that require morale.     As I expected, at the beginning of Turn 2 Lune Cross Smashers Leona hard. It makes her easy pickings for Rai, at least.   "Hmph... so you're my final opponent. How ironic." "I'm not going to kill you." "...! I didn't ask for your mercy!" "My father is dead. That's no reason for you to die as well." "What concern is it of yours!? Let me follow my commander!"   "If you want to die, then die fighting the Aerogaters. This... this is a dog's death." "!" "I'm ejecting your cockpit block."  Rai learns Valor from this. Most of my pilots are learning Valor right about now, actually, so dishing out damage isn't much of a problem any longer.    Anyway, we keep slogging forward, and the enemies definitely seem tougher now than they were before. Still, there's no time limit, so we can gradually inch forward more or less at our leisure. My main concern is really just not letting Lune steal too many kills.   Lune's mech even has the Valsion's sword.  This is Kusuha's first real outing. The Grungust Type-2 is sort of like the original; it has a flight form (the G-Hawk) but no tank form. It has wimpy lasers, it can shoot its fists at people...      ...and it has a ALL beam weapon with a huge range.    Thanks to Kusuha's TK abilities it also has a barrier. Due to the barrier and the Type-2's armor, she can just shrug off a lot of attacks without even needing to cast Guard. This is actually a bit of a double-edged sword if you let too many people shoot at her, since the barrier drains her energy every time she's hit; your turn will roll around and Kusuha won't have a scratch on her, but she'll have no energy left to attack anybody.   Excellen's new attack is Oxtongue D (Oxtongue W in the Japanese version, "W" being shorthand for "double" in Japan).      "Take that! And that! Aaand..."       "Taaamaayaaaaa!" "Tamaya" is sometimes yelled by viewers during fireworks displays, a reference to the Tamaya fireworks guild, which was at one point the premier producer of fireworks in Japan. (At least until they accidentally set half the city on fire. People sort of went off on them after that for some reason, and I'm assuming they packed up and moved to Wisconsin to set up roadside stands.) Giado learns Faith. I'm going to use you for things if it kills me, Giado!   Eventually we're close enough to whittle down Siebel's health. Thankfully Darkness Blade is up to the task.  Now I'll just have to figure out how to do nearly 17000 damage in a single hit---  Wait a minute, what's this?   That's... that's new. Now that Kyosuke and Excellen have their new attacks (we'll see Kyosuke's at some point), we've also unlocked the first combination attack in the game: Rampage Ghost. If both pilots have 120 morale and are adjacent to each other, even diagonally, you can use it.    "Let's go, Excellen." "Huh? Oh, you mean the love-love attack!"      "Match my timing!" "Hey, Kyosuke! Aw, geez..."      "Trap him between us!" "You're such a slavedriver."      "Excellen!" "Now!"   "This is our..." "...trump card! ...Right?"  Actually, this was from Kyosuke's route. With fewer upgrades, and without the pilots knowing Attacker yet, they needed Irm to support them on Ryusei's. This is probably the best attack in the game; its damage is a function of Revolver Stake and Oxtongue D, both of which you'll want to upgrade anyway on account of being good attacks. Even without the raw power, there's one reason that we won't see on full display for a while yet.  "F-Fall back! Cover my retreat!!"    Also, Kyosuke's last spirit is Grit.  With that minor nuisance out of the way, Lune casts a full heal and is ready to get down to business. Masaki tries to remind her that Bian entrusted the Hagane's crew with fighting off the aliens, but she isn't listening.   Lune has enough morale to activate After-Image now, so we use Strike or Sense when possible to guarantee a hit. Thankfully, 15000 health doesn't take long to wear down.   Let's show off another new move. Like its big brother, the Grungust Type-2 can use a sword at higher morale, which means that now Kusuha can use the Keitoshugokuken - or Doom Blade, in the Atlus translation.              Careful with the posing, Kusuha. Ryusei might get jealous.   "...Hahaha. Guess I lost after all. Well, can't complain. My dad did his thing, and I'll do mine. I like you guys!" "Lune..." "Especially you, Masaki. You're a pretty cool guy. Nobody ever told me I was cute before." "Wh... what are you talking about?"   "Hey, wait a minute. I said it first." "You were talking about her mech." "Man, nothing gets past you, does it..."   Anyway, given that Lune came back from Jupiter to fight the aliens, she figures she might as well join up. Masaki can't believe she's just inviting herself onto the team, but Ingram is willing to hear her out and tells her to speak with the captain. Kyosuke edition:   Kyosuke has about 150000 more credits than Ryusei, and it still only makes a dent in our shopping list of upgrades. We don't need to worry about leveling Ingram up, but Ryusei needs to load up on kills for a secret.   Also, the game took the liberty of giving us a few mech suggestions. Latooni is in the Raubtier, Ryoto is in the 009, and Giado gets a Schutzwald (not that I'm using him).   Katina's doing just fine in the Wildschwein, though. I made sure to throw it a few mobility upgrades, so she can finally dodge things.  Also, Russell is level 29.  If Tasuku finishes Leona off, you get a different set of post-defeat dialogue.   "It's over. Now, finish it." "Sorry, I've never been one to kick people when they're down." "...! I didn't ask for your mercy!" "I'm not giving it. Why do you want to die so badly?" "What are you talking about?!" "You've got some good luck. If you'd been in that battle, you wouldn't be here today." "I was the only one who didn't fight the Hiryu Kai at the end!" "Like I said. You're lucky. It'd be a shame to waste it like this." "What... what are you..." "Easy, easy... I'm just going to eject your cockpit block, okay?" If the final blow came from anybody but Tasuku or Rai: quote:"This is enough. Commander Maier, Captain Julia... I'm coming..."   Back aboard their ships, everyone seems more interested in talking about that enemy pilot who was captured than about Lune. Tasuku says that he wanted to invite her to have some tea, but couldn't get a chance to see her. Irm is interested and figures he'll give his junior a few tips; Bullet is put off by the borderline-inappropriate behavior, but that just earns him some ribbing from the others about how he's hardly one to talk, seeing as how he's been off wooing that cutie on the Hagane. Excellen told on him, of course, and Irm tries to adjust to learning about the relationship between Bullet and "Miss Excellen."   It sounds like the captured pilot is related to the Branstein family. This catches Irm's attention, since that would make her Rai's cousin. Interesting... Excellen says he shouldn't show so much interest, since Ring might not be too pleased about it. Realizing that Excellen met his (ex-?) girlfriend on the Moon, he asks if Ring said anything about him - but she just responds with a "Hmm, maybe I shouldn't say..." and walks off.  Meanwhile, Tasuku is mulling over what he just heard. This enemy pilot is sounding more and more interesting...   Leona flatly tells the captains that they'd better just go ahead and do their worst, because she isn't telling them anything. Lefina and Daitetsu had no intention of doing so, of course, and they just come right out and ask her to join up; with the aliens here, this is the time for humanity to stand united. Leona is well aware that the Divine Crusaders have no such intention; aside from Lily and Elzam and Sanger, they show little interest in their founders' mission.   "If I am to die, then do so fighting the aliens... yes?" "If you would prefer to view it that way." "Can you trust your enemy?" "Lieutenant Raidiese has already vouched for you." (Did he, now...) "...Understood. I've given up my life. Use it as you see fit."   In the hangar, Ryusei is pretty much beside himself checking out the Valsione. Ryoto's been looking over it as well, and he notes the similarity to Dr. Zoldark's Valsion; it's much smaller, but has largely the same weapon systems. Lune confirms this; it's basically supposed to be the Valsion Mk. II, more or less. As for its appearance... well, she asked her father to build it that way for her - otherwise, he probably would've made it as big and ugly as the first one!  Note: The "E" on the end of the Valsione's name is not silent, so it's completely different from the Valsion.  Ryusei: "Your dad built a robot just for you." Lune: "Yep. Well, now it's also something to remember him by." Masaki: "Lune..." Lune: "Oh, don't give me that look. I said my dad chose his path... in a way, I guess I should be grateful to you." Ryoto: "Why?"   Lune: "Well, the path he chose... I think in the end, having that much power would've changed him." Ryoto: "....." Lune: "Sorry, sorry. Didn't mean to get all gloomy on you. Say, Masaki... mind showing me around?"   (That much power... it's the same kind of thing we said to Bian.) "Umm, Ryusei. Are you sure it's okay to let those two walk around?" "Huh?" "I mean... it's Masaki we're talking about." "...Oh, crap! If they get lost, we're never gonna find them again! Quick, after them!"   Katina's pestering Ingram to let her be an R-Series test pilot, figuring that if they'll let a couple of greenhorns pilot the R-1 and R-3, she sure as well ought to make the cut. When Ingram tells her that those machines are specially designed for their assigned pilots, she says to at least let her use the R-GUN. Unexpectedly, Ingram agrees - if she thinks she can handle it, he'll give her a chance.   After she leaves, Radha asks if Ingram's okay with this. He doesn't seem concerned; he didn't have the R-GUN built to be his personal unit. Radha is more concerned about Katina. She's not a bad person underneath, but is still uncooperative and given to recklessness - not ideal material for a test pilot.   "You have a sense for people's qualities." "Perhaps, but... they still run away whenever I try to teach them yoga." "You probably chose some ridiculous pose to teach. Viletta warned me about you." "Oh, no such thing. I always start out with the simple asanas. Here, like this one, Major. Why don't you try?" Ingram, no! Remember the health drink!   "Sorry, but I'll pass." "Really? Viletta didn't have any problem with it." "Viletta did this? Very well..."    "That's right, just bend your legs... like... so..." "Ngh... can't go any farther..." "Oh my, Major. You're surprisingly stiff." And on that day, Ingram experienced sensations entirely new to him.   "...Anyway, Viletta went back to the moon?" "That's right. She said she had a special assignment." "I see..."  (In that case, I need to step up the timetable as well.)   Orders have arrived recalling the ships to the Far East Base. With Commander Laker now in Geneva for an emergency conference, things are coming to a head.  Meanwhile, about as far away from the action as you can get...   One of the Kurogane's crew greets Elzam on his return from his latest outing. He's picked up some fine ingredients, and tells the crewman to have them prepare the kitchen - the men are in for a treat tonight.   On the bridge, the ship's captain fills him on on the latest developments. The Hiryu and Hagane are returning to Izu, while the Earth Cradle so far seems unaware of their location. They've also received a voice transmission:   "Earthlings, my name is Levi Tolar. You have thirty days to give us your unconditional surrender. After that time, we will unleash our full might upon you..."   Elzam notes that the alien representative is a woman - and that she seems quite certain of her ability to make good on her threat. According to all surveys thus far, the Aerogaters are physically similar to humanity; this probably explains Karl Schtleseman's decision to negotiate a surrender in secret. The captain is disgusted to hear this, but Elzam has to admit that surrender may at least ensure humanity's survival.   The captain asks if they will return to the Earth Cradle to rejoin the other troops; Elzam has no intention of doing so, given the difference between the current DC leadership and that of Bian and Maier. He intends to fight alone, if need be. Recognizing that this may not be a popular decision, he says that any crewmen who object may leave the ship; however, the captain is certain that everyone on the Kurogane is willing to support him to the end.  If you shot Leona down with either Rai or Tasuku, you get a Guarlion when the mission is over. It's pretty good, although not nearly as welcome as the Lion was on Ryusei's route (given that we're not fielding a team half composed of Gespensts any longer).
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Feb 17, 2015 06:18
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it's a fun thing to think about really. Given her age, Bian was probably designing the Valsion when Lune was like 10 or something, so you can see her walking in, running away scared from the thing, and Bian going "it's okay sweetie we can make a cute one" and it's all adorable.
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Feb 17, 2015 06:43
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Tasuku defeating Leona is the more hilarious of the two options to get the Guarlion. If only for the size difference. Behold, the Gigan side-by-side with Leona's Guarlion from Divine Wars (Divine Wars made it the commander colors she'll ultimately switch over to in OG2):  Yeah, the Gigan really is that loving huge. Don't ask me how it managed to eject the Guarlion's cockpit block with those ham hands. Anyhew, the actual star of the day: Lune. She is a wonderful addition to the team, with both a post-move MAP attack and After-Image. A definite end-game unit to use. Also, her Valsione demonstrates that while Bian was a bad guy, he might have been as crazy as some of his subordinates. Just crazy for very different reasons, that is.
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Feb 17, 2015 07:01
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I don't know what you nerds were talking about. The star of the day is obviously Rampage Ghost.  I've been waiting four months to see that attack, and it was worth every second.
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Feb 17, 2015 07:17
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I somehow completely forgot about Lune and Valsione. This was. an experience.
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Feb 17, 2015 07:42
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It's really a drat shame that we never get to see Bian and Ryuusei interact in a meaningful way. God, could you even imagine? 
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Feb 17, 2015 07:46
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So now we have all the Alpha 1 main characters we're going to get in this game. Alpha 1 basically had a simple Character Creation. You picked a character's portrait, personality, and set a birthday, doing the same with an opposite gender love interest. There were default packages and the OG characters are based off those. Kusuha is the Female Super Robot Protagonist, with Bullet as her love interest. Leonora's the Female Real Robot, Tasuku as the love interest, and Ryoto's the Male Real Robot, Rio the love interest. The default Male Super and his love interest isn't in OG1.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:03
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Dr Pepper posted:So now we have all the Alpha 1 main characters we're going to get in this game. For the personalities there are 4 'Shy' Or 'Emotional' depending on how you want to take it, 'Cool headed' 'Hot Blooded' and 'Weird' Kusuha and Ryoto are the 'Emotional' archetype, Tasuku is the 'Weird', Leona is the 'Cool Headed' and Bullet and Rio are the 'Hotblooded' I think the reason they tried to make Bullet the protagonist in OG is because traditionally he would be due to his archetype, but he really, really can't carry a plot on his own. Kusuha actually can do that fairly well.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:10
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And finally we get Leona, who represents one of the pinnacles of Overpowered German Last Name Technology. She doesn't truly come into her own until OG2, but I just couldn't help giving her the R-Gun and having her dodge tank the remaining 50% of the game.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:12
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So are we going to keep Katina in her current mech or give her the R Gun?
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Feb 17, 2015 08:13
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MonsterEnvy posted:So are we going to keep Katina in her current mech or give her the R Gun? She does good in either. vibratingsheep posted:And finally we get Leona, who represents one of the pinnacles of Overpowered German Last Name Technology. My only problem with Leona is her inability to boost her will with Spirits, which is more a problem with my play style than her.
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Feb 17, 2015 08:21
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Oh boy, the Valsione. Interesting thing, a double image system is not actually built into the mech. It's seriously all Lune's reflexes. I guess having a mo-cap system helps.
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Feb 17, 2015 12:28
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The Valsione is in fact proof that Ryusei was right when he assumed that maybe Bian just wanted to show off the Valsion.
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Feb 17, 2015 12:31
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Valsione is absolutely the best. And you think Rampage Ghost is great, the combination attacks only get more amazing as the game goes on. Not saying Rampage Ghost is bad by any means of course, it's awesome. Do combination attacks ignore barriers int his game? Or was that a feature that was added to a later one?
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Feb 17, 2015 12:39
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Hunter Noventa posted:Valsione is absolutely the best. Pretty sure they ignored barriers in the original as well. That's the extra feature of them that I was going to mention later, since we're not encountering any barriers worth mentioning at the moment.
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Feb 17, 2015 12:43
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Alacron posted:It's really a drat shame that we never get to see Bian and Ryuusei interact in a meaningful way. Isn't Bian alive in the alpha continuity, since the Macross crash-landing made the world's population suddenly exclaim "Bian was right all along, give him a budget of yes"? vibratingsheep posted:And finally we get Leona, who represents one of the pinnacles of Overpowered German Last Name Technology. The -steins are really something else. Rai is probably the worst one, mostly because he's stuck as second fiddle to Ryusei, thus he doesn't get first pick on OP mechs.
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Feb 17, 2015 14:23
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