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  • Locked thread
mmj
Dec 22, 2006

I've always been a bit confrontational

Stabbey_the_Clown posted:

To help speed things along, Rush needs your help. He has to go look for blank, unbound Remnants. We've seen some in our travels. Where are they located, and as a bonus, what are they called? (P.S. Elysion does not count.)

Do remnants with dead owners become unbound right away? It sounds like most of the remnants owned by dukes are about to become free game again

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Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender

Show me the young man you’ve become.


Previously On:




Chapter XXII: This… is what Irina’s kidnappers are after



What’s that?
This… is what Irina’s kidnappers are after. This tablet can put Remnants into… a deep slumber. It was developed by your mother.




Chapter XXIII: They nearly killed me in the past -OR- A Date with Emma



It's been a long time...
You've been here before?
We have an old family tradition. To carry on the Honeywell name, one must journey to find Remnants when one reaches adulthood. I decided to search here after I heard the Academy had its eye on this place. I thought perhaps I could find one. And then, I met her...






What are they?!

They nearly killed me in the past.








Here. I made it using the tablet.


Chapter XXXVI: I will protect Athlum with my life! -OR- The Nest of Eagles







The… Tablet…


















Bartender: Dr. John Sykes… He’s definitely got the brains, but somehow he’s got this rugged charm that’s irresistible… Eh, Marina Sykes? Who’s that?




Guess I’d better go.
Then, please come this way.




Yeah, what’s up, Mom?
As you know, your Marquis friend has been ordered by the Duke of Ghor to gather Remnants from around the world. Now, it's a bit forward of me, but I've been thinking about how you can do this. and I've hit upon a good idea. You can use the tablet of Marshall.
Wait, doesn’t the Conqueror have that?
He has the tablet I developed, yes. But I based it on the one I found in Marshallton. That one is still there.
With it, you can change unbound Remnants to talismans, and take them with you. If the Remnants are in our possession, it means the Conqueror can't get his hands on them, correct?
Until he walks up and just takes them from us.
Either way, the first matter of business is to retrieve the tablet. It should still be in Marshallton. Rush, you'll come with me to get it, right?
No prob, Mom.
Thank you, honey. Let's head to Marshallton.
Accepted quest: The Tablet of Marshall







I’ve reconfigured the party again. I want to play with more Arcanas. So I want Rush and Pagus to finally upgrade from Spark IV to Spark V. (It’s very impressive that Rush made it to Spark IV even though he’s never used Invocations. This… is the power of Ragna-rock?)

So that’s why Rush, Pagus and Caedmon are in their own special union. I’ve disabled all of their non-mystic arts. Caedmon, as I mentioned before, is a scout, but has the prerequisites to change into a higher-tier class, so I’m having him use his Mystics to try and get them in balance with his item arts in the hopes that’ll trigger the class change.

Glenys is once again leading a union to boost her stats some more. Kate is leading a union because I want her to practice Hexes. I’ve disabled all but her highest Hexes to encourage high-level development.







So to grab Blank Remnants like the Chairman says we have to, we’re gonna need some tablet thing. Luckily, Mom says there’s one in Marshallton.

learned Nimble Smash IV!

The path is the same as it was with Emma and the enemies are just as weak, so let’s just skip to the end.




Sure am!
That’s what I like to hear.


- Boss Video: Namul Sin & Niram Sin


Oh hey there are those flowers on the wall, so that’s where all the petals are coming from. Mystery solved!






In other words, we'll have to defeat them if we're to take the tablet. Rather, you will. I can't interfere this time. This is something you have to do yourself, Rush. Go, Rush. Face this challenge with honor... Show me the young man you've become.




Mission: Defeat Namul Sin & Niram Sin!

Music: Out of Control

This is the “fighting against a Remnant” music, in case you haven’t guessed.




You might think that since the earlier fights were easy, this one would be too. It is not. This one is meant for a full-strength party.








I’m not letting you get away!




Dispirit is a high-level Hex which does damage and lowers enemy morale. It’s pretty great.






I should inform you there’s no way I will lose!






Sometimes Blaster just tickles.




…Didn’t know you had it in you…

Other times it hurts a lot.








I meant to do that!




Keep at it, all right?

My reflexive actions to make sure my unions stay healthy means that we’ll probably rarely get a chance to see Emmy and Irina’s special arts.




Cyclops isn’t great for dealing damage, but the extra union is immensely helpful for allowing flanks and rear assaults.




That was remarkably sucky damage for a Rear Assault.




I want Nora to be revived, but I just don’t get that option. When an entire union is dead, you usually get commands to bring them back, but if a non-leader unit is down, revival options are lower priority.












That stung.






Hey, take care of yourself this time, okay?

Thank you, Blocter.




I’m feeling confident, so I’ll have Rush go all-out. Glenys will be ready to pick him up if he gets flattened.






Oho!




And the Silence effect worked, preventing they from attacking. It’s pretty rare that you manage to line up a well-timed status on a boss.






Finally the silence status effect has been cleared from my Mystic union.




Time to finish it off.






This is a new attack, we didn’t see this in the first fight.








It didn’t hurt much, though.




Double Slash is a 360 degree spin that, well, does two slashes.




And appropriately enough, Emmy finishes them off.




learned Spark V!
learned:
  • Dragon Crush!
  • Eye Cream II!

Good, Rush now has the potential to learn Blackout. That’s the only reason I had him doing nothing but casting Spark IV all dungeon, so now I can shift him elsewhere – probably the bench. Pagus still needs Spark V, and I’ll use him as a lead until he gets it.




Bosses tend to drop very special crafting loot that’s one-time only. Stuff like that is what I used to make the Ragna-Rock cheat stone Rush is wearing.




The screen goes white, and…








Obtained Namul Niram!




Cool!
Of course, you can only use the tablet on a Blank Remnant—one that's unbound. I really didn't want to take the tablet from this place... But with things as they are, there's no other choice. Rush... The future of the world's Remnants—maybe of the whole world—could come down to you and your actions.
Woah. No pressure, huh?
I'll be praying for your success. ...Despite that heavy speech, don't overdo it, alright? Just...be sure to come back to me in one piece, understood?
Yeah, no problem!
Completed quest: The Tablet of Marshall

I kicked the combined asses of Namul Sin and Niram Sin and got myself a tablet. Haha! Now I can get my hands of lots of cool Remnants!

So just like the Conqueror is going around snatching up Remnants, now we can too. I think that’s kinda neat. That’s what we’re going to do next time, because it’s too long to fit in this time without hitting like 90 images.

We can only get a few, and some of them are associated with a quest – meaning that if you pick them up BEFORE you do the quest, you can’t do the quest anymore. But we have been thorough with quests, so there’s only one left still tied to a quest, and we can’t even get to it until a couple more main story beats.

Also next time, there will be a big arcana showcase.







New Arts Summary
learned Nimble Smash IV!
learned Spark V!
learned:
  • Dragon Crush!
  • Eye Cream II!
learned Namul Niram!



Boss Video: Namul Sin & Niram Sin

Discussion question: Hey, Kids! Rush needs your help! He has to go look for blank, unbound Remnants. We've seen some in our travels. Where are they located, and as a bonus, what are they called? (P.S. Elysion does not count.)


Next Time: May our strengths become one!

Rigged Death Trap
Feb 13, 2012

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

unopened treasure orbs.



and that multi armed statue we keep ignoring

Verant
Oct 20, 2012

Go on an adventure ordained by fate?
-->Okay.
-->Eh.
Well, there is that weird giant robot-looking thing Rush found in Siebenur.

Onmi
Jul 12, 2013

If someone says it one more time I'm having Florina show up as a corpse. I'm not even kidding, I was pissed off with people doing that shit back in 2010, and I'm not dealing with it now in 2016.
There's the one in the Blackdale where we first went after Wagram.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender
Two of four have been identified.

In other news, I've finished recording what I'm pretty sure is the biggest dungeon of the game. I was planning on showing it off in video format, but now I'm not so sure, because it is HUGE. I gain 5 BR from it, and I was trying to avoid most enemies - I was only killing ones which were either in the way or would be obnoxious/dangerous to try avoiding.

Well, to be fair, part of the problem is that this dungeon unlike basically all the others actually has story elements in place - good ones, which pay off a LOT of world-building. But unfortunately, they're in a really obnoxious order to get, and it's impossible to avoid backtracking.

I think I probably can still do a dungeon video if I make good use of fastforwarding and cut out the battles. We'll have to see.

Oh, and Rush has become a Ninja. Hooray! I also found a Ninja Katana +3. Rush currently has two Ninja Katana +1, but can upgrade his weapon past that. Glenys has a single Ninja Katana +1, and arguably needs it better than Rush and his overpowered arts. Should Rush take it, or leave it and see if Glenys will claim it? EDIT: Sure, Glenys it is.

Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 23:33 on Aug 5, 2015

Onmi
Jul 12, 2013

If someone says it one more time I'm having Florina show up as a corpse. I'm not even kidding, I was pissed off with people doing that shit back in 2010, and I'm not dealing with it now in 2016.

Stabbey_the_Clown posted:

Two of four have been identified.

In other news, I've finished recording what I'm pretty sure is the biggest dungeon of the game. I was planning on showing it off in video format, but now I'm not so sure, because it is HUGE. I gain 5 BR from it, and I was trying to avoid most enemies - I was only killing ones which were either in the way or would be obnoxious/dangerous to try avoiding.

Well, to be fair, part of the problem is that this dungeon unlike basically all the others actually has story elements in place - good ones, which pay off a LOT of world-building. But unfortunately, they're in a really obnoxious order to get, and it's impossible to avoid backtracking.

I think I probably can still do a dungeon video if I make good use of fastforwarding and cut out the battles. We'll have to see.

Oh, and Rush has become a Ninja. Hooray! I also found a Ninja Katana +3. Rush currently has two Ninja Katana +1, but can upgrade his weapon past that. Glenys has a single Ninja Katana +1, and arguably needs it better than Rush and his overpowered arts. Should Rush take it, or leave it and see if Glenys will claim it?

Glenys should take it, Rush has the power of two swords, Glenys only has one +3. Meaning that when Rush's Swords become +2s he will have the power of FOUR SWORDS.

That's just math Stabbey I thought you'd be better at it.

SIGSEGV
Nov 4, 2010


Give it to Glenys, Rush needs two of them anyways.

mmj
Dec 22, 2006

I've always been a bit confrontational
Glenys, Rush already does a ton of damage. Let someone else have some fun

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender
So, uh, you know how I said that I recorded the next dungeon? Well, here's the thing... I played ahead a bit for fun, and discovered that the battles were a lot easier than I was expecting. Almost too easy, in fact. I think that has something to do with the 5 BR worth of stats I gained in the dungeon. I went back and tried those battles with a pre-big-huge-dungeon party and they were definitely more challenging.

So I'm thinking that what I should do is save the dungeon until after I finish the next chunk of main plot. That way I keep the battles at a decent level of challenge.



The next update should probably be up tomorrow. It was a LOT bigger than I was expecting in terms of screenshots, considering that not much happens in it (and there aren't even any quests!). I've encoded the videos and the update is written, I just need to batch-convert and upload everything.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender

May our strengths become one!


Previously On:




Chapter XVII: Talk about an epic failure!


- Blooper Video: Rare Monster Gomei


When wandering around I found this guy. Fighting him is a really, really dumb idea. I knew this before I attempted it (and saved).




This is one reason why.








So yeah, do not piss off Dragons because you are crunchy and taste good with barbecue sauce.










Sure, no prob.
So generous! I appreciate it.




Emmy has bound herself to Namul Niram, so now she can summon them in battle. You can only have one summon on the field at a time, but it doesn’t matter much whose it is.







I’m substituting Maddox for Rush because I want Maddox to get the “New Art” prompt that lets him learn Remedies. Those only show up for guys in the active party. This configuration will stay until Pagus learns Spark V.






We’re off to the Ivory Peaks, home of the Liafort.




Seeing the Liafort always brings me a sense of peace.
Violet…
…but these are not peaceful times. I wish I could just leave the Liafort here.
But the Conqueror is going around collecting all the Remnants he can get his hands on.
I know. But whatever happens, he’ll never be able to take my memories of it from me.





I’m ready.


- Video: Claiming the Liafort








We’ve transformed the Liafort into an accessory. I’m sure you won’t be surprised to hear that Violet requests this. It boosts Item Arts growth by +1, HP by 25% (which really helps fill in Violet’s big weak spot), and it has the Morale Control attribute, which increases the amount of morale gained from friendly attacks and decreases the amount of Morale lost from enemy attacks, which is really awesome.

If I say that someone requests an artifact, it typically means that ONLY that person requests the artifact. So unless you really want Rush to have it, let them take it. There are a couple exceptions where someone has first claim and someone else will ask for it if you deny them, but that’s rare.

Anyone who uses a Remnant for an accessory never replaces it. It is their ultimate accessory. There are only a very few party members who can ask for a Remnant, and they tend to be pretty good party members.



Should I learn Remedies? Or continue to refine what I already know? What do you think, Rush?
Try something new!
Ho ho ho… Alright. Let’s see what these old bones can do.

There, getting this prompt was the sole reason I took Maddox off the bench.





- Video: Rare Monster Savage Commander (Feat. Namul Niran)


On my way to the Rubber Soul, I met this guy.

Music: Clash of Opposites





Already our first chance to show off our brand new summon!






May our strengths become one!














Showed those jerks!
Well fought!









Even though Dillmoor is a low-level area, this guy is not a pushover.




Get ‘em next time!

A fortunate block.











Rhagoh…






This guy’s tougher than I expected, so I’ll use my big gun.










Damnit!
Heh!




Watch this!




Just a few more steps to victory!






And Namul Niram finishes it off.

learned Thunderclap!


Useless for Maddox, who is more of a caster.





- Video: Claiming the Rubber Soul








AP Charge on Damage is a really good effect. It boosts your AP when you hit, meaning you can use more AP-intensive arts sooner. This is requested by Glenys.




Focus on mystic arts!
Alright! Believe it or not, I was an army general! I have utmost confidence in my abilities.

Those were the last of the easy ones to get at. The next couple require dungeon diving.






On my way to the Schiavona, Pagus finally reached Spark V. That’s all I was looking for before we could do the Arcana training. Now I can re-sort my unions. Pagus and Maddox go back to the bench.




I had Gabriel leading a union because I’m trying to get him to upgrade from Scout to Assassin.





Here we are, now we just need to clear the enemies in the middle so we aren’t disturbed.

learned Nimble Double Strike III!


- Video: Claiming the Schiavona










I think this is the first Remnant we get which also doubles as a weapon. Those always have Weapon Arts, and anyone who has them does not replace the weapon, although they can further upgrade it with components. Jager requests this.




Sure, no prob.
I appreciate it.

Rush, may I borrow your Rubber Soul? I’d like to put it to use.
Sure, no prob.
Are you certain? I thank you.

With the Liafort, Violet’s health is no longer sub-par compared to other party members. We’re off now to Robelia Castle for the fourth and final Blank Remnant of any substantial interest which we’ve found.




class changed to Master Cleric!







- Video: Claiming the Flachonelle








This also has Growth Boost of Combat Arts+1, which conflicts with its otherwise Mystic bent. The silence immunity is only for the person who has this, meaning that it’s only niche role is if they were going to cast a spell but the union gets silenced mid-turn. Nora requests this.




While I’m here, I’m reminded that there was a section I never explored when I was last here with Rhagoh. So I explore it. I hit BR 44.

class changed to Legendary Marauder!
class changed to Legendary Paladin!
class changed to Lordly Paladin!




There’s little in the new section except the map and a morsel.




There is this, which I’ve heard can help immensely for certain tough boss battles. I’ll have to keep an eye out for these in stores. Martha’s Items in Athlum sells them, although they’re pricey at 35,000 G each. Certain enemies can rarely drop them as well.




No prob!
You serious? No tradebacks, got it?

So I was thinking of learning Traps… Whadda you think, Rush?
Go for it!
Alright. It’ll definitely be a challenge, but that’s not gonna stop me!

No, but the fact that I’ll disable them immediately will.

Rush Sykes! I know you see me as unreliable… Thus, I ask you – what should I focus my training on?
Combat arts is the way to go.
Ahh… yes, you are right. And now it is time I did what I must do.

Hmm… what should I focus on for my training? I thought maybe being the Cosmos Maiden would help me decide, but no dice!
Definitely mystic arts!
Mmm… The Cosmos Maiden can’t not do mystic arts, right?

What sorts of arts should I focus on next? I know I must be strong to do what I must…
Combat arts is the way to go.
Understood. As captain of the Silver Falcons, and as a member of this group, I shall continue to fight for those who cannot.

Oh, that Schiavona you got? You’re gonna let me borrow it, right?
Sure, no prob.
Props, man. That’s chill.

Hey. If you’ve got time to be standing around, why don’t we go get me some Demon Bone?
Alrighty!
Appreciate it. C’mon, let’s go.

Nope, we’re not going to specifically hunt for components now. Instead we have an old score to settle.






:black101:




This party configuration is specifically intended for triggering Arcanas. First up:

  • Fatal Eclipse: That requires Maladict II, plus one Hex (Violet), one Evocation (Rush) and one Invocation (Gabriel).
  • Blackout requires three Invocations users (Pagus – Spark V), David, Maddox).
  • Rejuvenating Water requires four Remedies users (Pagus – Revitalize II), David, Maddox, Glenys).
  • Animalcule needs four Hex users (Kate – Dispirit), Loki, Nora, Blocter.
  • Whiteout needs four Invocation/Evocation users, but I tried to get four Evocations users. Sheryl - Snare Shot, Torgal, Caedmon, Leshau.

Jager and Gaou are there just because I had two slots free. I’ve disabled all arts on the units that aren’t strictly needed for performing the arcana except those which can revive.

All the units are in the Orb formation, which reduces the AP cost of arts, which helps a lot with the very-high-AP Arcanas. It turns out that having mystic arts on non-mystic units is really helpful for triggering Arcanas.

I picked this monster mostly because as a rare, he would have the HP needed to survive tanking all these Arcanas.



- Video: Rare Monster Gomei – Arcana Spectacular


The first two turns I just stand by to build up AP. For this video, I make use of a lot of fast-forwarding to keep it to a reasonable length.



















That was pretty good considering the rare monster’s damage resistance.





















Whiteout looks pretty similar to Blackout.






The big guy dodged this Animacule.

We should strike at their flank!










I don’t know what it would have been without that Critical hit.

Music: Clash of Opposites







Rejuvenating Water is tricky to get to first trigger. The wiki recommends having one dead union and one critical health union, and send everyone to resurrect the dead union. Step 1: Creating a dead union.




Get ready: I’m about to OWN you!




Look at that damage. That is amazing damage.




I’m not sure this will work, since “Bring them Back” will have Pagus trying to use Vivification Herb.






Step 2: With the dead union back alive again, once Pagus moves, this should force a whole-union Reassessment.




And here it is!






My gratitude.

It heals a huge amount for any union which isn’t dead. Unfortunately, it doesn’t revive dead units or unions.




Oh crud!






25,284 damage




This critted for 44688 damage, putting Gomei into critical health.






Some of the boss and rare healing abilities actually are pretty potent.






Animalcule not only does heavy damage, but it also can inflict Poison, Silence, and Paralyze onto any unit which manages to survive. Yeah, it’s nasty. And YES, some bosses can use this on us. It SUCKS. HARD. Gomei, as a dragon, happens to be immune to poison. As a rare, all statuses wear off at the end of the turn.






This critted for 40,550 damage.






12,250 damage.






This does nothing for Kate’s Pack, which is dead.









I can keep this up all day, Gomei.






I’m not letting you get away! This’ll wipe you out!




Damnit!




12,372 damage.








And it’s dead. 19 turns. Was that efficient? Hell no, I could have taken him out a lot easier the normal way. Was it fun blasting him with a stream of Arcanas? Hell yes.

learned:
  • Blackout!
  • Rejuvenating Water!
class changed to Legendary Mysticknight!
learned Fatal Eclipse!
learned Vivification Herb III!
learned Mystic Missile II!
learned Animalcule!
learned Restorative Herb II!
learned Poison Gas II!
learned Vivification Herb II!
learned Whiteout!
learned Vivification Tincture!
class changed to Legendary Marksman!

I did save after this fight, so yes we keep all these arts. This was a LOT longer than I was expecting it to be, sorry. Over the weekend I’ll update the Arcanas post with more images and videos.







New Arts Summary
learned:
  • Restore!
  • Thunderclap!
learned:
  • Spark V!
  • Blackout!
  • Rejuvenating Water!
learned Nimble Double Strike III!
class changed to Legendary Mysticknight!
class changed to Master Cleric!
class changed to Legendary Paladin!
learned Fatal Eclipse!
learned Vivification Herb III!
class changed to Lordly Paladin!
learned Mystic Missile II!
learned Animalcule!
class changed to Legendary Marauder!
learned Restorative Herb II!
learned Poison Gas II!
learned:
  • Land Mine!
  • Vivification Herb II!
learned Whiteout!
learned Vivification Tincture!
class changed to Legendary Marksman!



Claiming the Liafort
Rare Monster Savage Commander (Feat. Namul Niran)
Claiming the Rubber Soul
Claiming the Schiavona
Claiming the Flachonelle
Rare Monster Gomei – Arcana Spectacular

Next Time: There weren’t any floating around in yours

Onmi
Jul 12, 2013

If someone says it one more time I'm having Florina show up as a corpse. I'm not even kidding, I was pissed off with people doing that shit back in 2010, and I'm not dealing with it now in 2016.
I never really understood the system enough to do Arcana spam, so that was a lot of new abilities for me to see.

Verant
Oct 20, 2012

Go on an adventure ordained by fate?
-->Okay.
-->Eh.
Wait a tic, if Remnant requests are supposed to be tied to characters with a relationship to the Remnant, wouldn't Kate or Rhagoh request Flachonelle instead of Nora? Or is that ~Spoiler Territory~?

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender

Onmi posted:

I never really understood the system enough to do Arcana spam, so that was a lot of new abilities for me to see.

Thankfully, the wiki understands the Arcana system pretty well, which is why I could do this. By the way learning an arcana has another benefit - a leader who knows it can sometimes get a command to use the Arcana when at max union morale - even if the union is INCAPABLE of performing it the way I did it.


Verant posted:

Wait a tic, if Remnant requests are supposed to be tied to characters with a relationship to the Remnant, wouldn't Kate or Rhagoh request Flachonelle instead of Nora? Or is that ~Spoiler Territory~?

No, there isn't really any rhyme or reason for who gets what Remnant as far as I can tell. There are a lot more unique party members than there are Remnants.There's one coming up which is for a party member who has no quests at all. Sheryl and Nora each get one, and they're kinda mediocre as far as party members go (although Nora's backstory is pretty special). Sheryl's was just found in a chest in Blackdale.

Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 02:47 on Aug 8, 2015

Onmi
Jul 12, 2013

If someone says it one more time I'm having Florina show up as a corpse. I'm not even kidding, I was pissed off with people doing that shit back in 2010, and I'm not dealing with it now in 2016.

Verant posted:

Wait a tic, if Remnant requests are supposed to be tied to characters with a relationship to the Remnant, wouldn't Kate or Rhagoh request Flachonelle instead of Nora? Or is that ~Spoiler Territory~?

Perhaps they properly determined that Rhagoh was useless?

Glazius
Jul 22, 2007

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

Clapping Larry
Sometimes you just have to do it with style, and Arcana after Arcana is certainly stylish, if nothing else.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender
loving hell, finally.

So you might have noticed that there were no updates last week. That was because I had basically no Internet at all last week. That's because our ISP decided to upgrade its towers and add in new stuff. One of the things it did was to replace the directional antennas which give good signal with omnidirectional directional antennas which first run the signal for a few laps of a demon's bowels before disconnecting it. They call this a change to a "less good" signal.

They of course didn't bother to INFORM any of their paying customers about this bullshit. I first noticed the issue on Monday the 10th, when the download I was doing started to get speeds in the order of < 250 BYTES per second. Not kB, BYTES. As in sub 28k modem. (Luckily the download (the game Ziggurat) did get finished and was able to keep me occupied for the week.)

I called their tech support after a day and after waiting 15 minutes on hold, I spent another 40 minutes on the phone with a guy who couldn't fix the problem and wasn't even sure what the problem was other than "low signal strength". It took someone coming around physically before we could actually learn what the problem was, and it took until Monday to actually get service back.

Frigging hell, that's all I can say. Update is coming as soon as I finish uploading it, and there will be a second one tomorrow.

Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 16:56 on Aug 17, 2015

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender

There weren’t any floating around in yours


Previously On:




Chapter XVII: Talk about an epic failure!

Music: Free and Easy (Baaluk Theme)





What’s this? You, you are an unfamiliar face. Doing a bit of traveling, sport?
Yeah, I guess.
Take a seat, have some tea. At least it doesn’t have any problems with it… I’m the owner here, and you wouldn’t believe the troubles I’ve had. I actually started out in Balterossa. Never have to worry about having too few customers there, eh? It’s pricey, though. I couldn’t turn a profit. So… that’s how I ended up out here on the edge of the world. Sad thing is – and this is where it really adds insult to injury – even this tiny pub out in the boonies couldn’t be run all alone. So… I was desperate. I went to town, found two guys who looked like they didn’t have anything else to do, and hired ‘em. Talk about an epic failure!
What went wrong?
Where do I start? The younger guy’s a lazy dog. I’ve seen corpses that’re more productive, ugh. But you know how mitra can be… no offense. Then the old guy, bless him, he’s enthusiastic enough, but completely incompetent. Can’t remember customer orders for the life of him. The customers themselves are mostly down-and-out mercenaries, so not really the type you wanna get too friendly with, you know?
*sigh*
I always dreamed of having a bustling pub full of attractive patrons having stimulating conversations about adventure and intrigue…
Err…
Ach, sorry, sorry. You come in here for a drink and then I end up talking your ear off. Anyway, next time you come out here, come back and visit, alright? There’ll be a hot pot of tea waiting for you, my treat.




Yeah, kinda hard to miss those.
Town legend says there was some terrible monster running wild, but the Imperator took the Remnant and sealed it in that very spot.
Huh…
‘Course, that was hundreds of years ago… If’n there’s any truth to it, I sure ain’t the one to tell. Only half-believe it myself, actually.


Chapter XXVII: Ice burrn!



Younger Lord Candidate: Some Academy guys came out of nowhere and...
The Brimuslabus was stolen. Baaluk is done for...
Everything's fine! A Collapse was coming. Baaluk has been saved from disaster!
It is true that the Brimuslabus hasn't been bound to anyone since its last keeper passed away...
Elder Lord Candidate: What? That's your reason? I've been telling you all this time, make me the ruler so I could bind the Brimuslabus to myself!
Younger Lord Candidate: N-no way! You just want to use it to expand your domain! I should be the one to...
Elder Lord Candidate: A clown like yourself can't bring prosperity to Baaluk!




That's why I asked the Academy to take the Brimuslabus away. Neither of you are fit to be the lord! And with the Collapse...! The Remnant brings ill fortune to Baaluk. Ridding the town of it was the best move. We don't need a Remnant or a lord for this town to flourish!
Elder Lord Candidate: What did you do...?
Younger Lord Candidate: I think Leshau has a point...
No Remnant. No lord. How can you be certain we'll be fine?
I know we will! We just all have to work together!




I’m worried – real worried. Sure hope the town legend is nothing more than a fancy bedtime story.


Chapter XLI: He stayed true to his beliefs to the end.



Maybe all of us have. And I think it's all my fault... Yanno, the one who told me that the Brismulabus was about to Collapse was that guy Wyngale. He's always been calm and serious, always acting with the town's best interests at heart. But ever since they took the Brimuslabus, it's like he totally changed... Or maybe he's just showing his true colors. Maybe he never cared about Baaluk at all in the first place... And what's more, you know those guys we gave the Remnant to? I have this really, really bad feeling about them...
Yeah, I do too.
Oh man, what if all this time I've been acting high and mighty, thinking I was the town's hero, when really I've just been playing right into the bad guys's hands? Augh, we don't even have a Remnant anymore! What's going to happen to Baaluk now? ...I don't know what I'll do if something awful happens...








Try something new!
Ho ho ho… Alright. Let’s see what these old bones can do.

They can sit back on the bench after disabling Herbs. We’ve got enough Herbs + Mystics users by now.

I wonder what I should focus on for my training… What do you think, Rush?
Definitely mystic arts!
Spells, huh……… …Uhh, I’ll give it a try!






For this next battle, I feel that Leshau should participate, even though he sucks. It’ll probably be the last time he gets use, though. I can’t wait to replace Allan with someone better, but that will have to wait a little while.

I’ve moved Glenys and Violet out of Rush’s Troop because I think Rush’s overpowered arts have been depriving them of experience. Plus, with all the girls in Irina’s union, the hope is to get her to learn Rejuvenating Water.





Music: Life Without Remnants





Err… yeah, I can.
The Brimuslabus's stood here for hundreds of years, sealin' away an evil god. Without the Remnant, that god'll be back... and all the madder for it, I'll tell you what. Our poor village, this's gonna be the end...
*groan*

In order to trigger Leshau’s next bonus talk, we have to go to Elysion and talk with someone.




Hey Leshau? I know you were wondering what happens to towns without Remnants, so I talked to this guy, and…







As far as I know, the land returns to its natural state. Harsh winds dry out the earth and vegetation just withers away. Sometimes volcanoes erupt and burn down entire towns. Or rivers overflow and flood the lands.
That sounds pretty bad.
But not all bad things will happen to every town. After all, there are towns that don't have Remnants. Like Eulam Island. I hear it's not supposed to be that bad of a place to live, even though it doesn't have a Remnant.
Okay, thanks, dude.
Say, why the question?
Well, Athlum lost the Valeria Heart to the Conqueror, and the Academy took Baaluk’s Remnant, the Brimslaubus.
Pardon me? The Academy doesn’t have the Brimslaubus.
It doesn’t? Are you sure?
Well, we’re still sorting out all the webs Hermeien had been weaving, but if we had that Remnant, we should have found it or at least news about it by now.
…That’s not good.
Indeed.








Then maybe Baaluk will be okay too! Just maybe… Thanks, Rush! Thanks for telling me and giving me hope! I said some awful things about Wyngale... I don't know why I doubted him. I need to have more faith in people and what they can do.
Good idea!
But now's not the time to dwell on the past. It's time to turn Baaluk into a town everyone wants to live in!
Parameter Bonus! You have become chummy with Leshau, thus awakening his true powers!
Leshau’s HP has increased by 20%! AP has increased by 15%! STR, INT, SPD have increased by 8%!

Those are some pretty substantial increases for a mediocre character.




What’s going on?
Departing Man: Didn't you know? The legendary beast what was sealed around here's woken up! There ain't nothin' left for this town, sure as I'm standin' here - so I'm hoofing it out. Dunno where I'm headin', but it can't be worse.

Staring Child: Mister, what're we gonna do? The Brimuslabus is gone, and Mama says some real scary monster's come out! Mr. Wyngale'll be able to do somethin' about it... right?

I'll be a monkey's uncle. That story 'bout the demon and the Imperator was the honest truth after all. Damnation, 'til now we been able to drive of everyone tryin' to get their hands on the Brimuslabus. How in blazes did this happen? Welp, ain't nothin' to be done about it now. I was raised here by my pappy and him by his pappy before that. I'm stayin' here 'til the end.




The Brimuslabus is gone... I pray that things will change for the better. It's hard to believe it's come to this... But I was born and raised in this town. Reckon I'll stay with it to the end. It's like all the stories said... The Brimuslabus was the guardian angel to us all...
Elder Lord Candidate: The next leader of Baaluk is gonna be me! But so long as the Brimuslabus's gone, I gotta figure something out to take care of this fix we're in...
Younger Lord Candidate: I can hardly believe this is happening...

It’s safe to say that the atmosphere in Baaluk is pessimistic these days.




…That’s the scuttlebutt, anyhoo!
Bartender: Izzat so. And?
I’ll take care of this! …Right after finishing the dishes, that is! Gahahahaha!

Oh man... So apparently, this legendary god-demon thing - no one here can decide which - has been awakened. People are going bananas. Geez, I guess it's up to me to take care of everyone... I mean, I am a mercenary, after all. Fighting's what I do. And I'll fight to protect this town!

You again?
What’s up?!
I’m on break, alright? Leave me alone.




Why?
Here’s a cup of Melphina’s finest tea on the house.
*slurrrrrp*
So as I was saying, business is in the dumps… See all these bugs flying around? Annoying little buggers.
*slurrrrp*
By the time I bring the customers back their drinks, a few are already floating belly-up in their coffee cops.
*slurr-*
Oh, don’t worry. There weren’t any floating around in yours.
Oh, good. *slurrrrp*
I picked them all out…
Huh?
Er, I mean, I saw some, so I poured you a new cup, that’s it. A bunch spawned in the Salamander’s Tail area of the Great Sand Sea, and they’re all drifting this way for some reason.

You can hear the sound of insects buzzing through this whole conversation.




Extermination, I can do.
Really!? Thanks! You’re a savior.
Yesss… this seems to be a MUCH better use of our time than the massive buildup of dangerous Remnant energy.
And FYI, the bugs in the Salamander’s Tail are big enough to swallow you whole. Stay safe out there!
Accepted quest: Infestation!
Mission: Defeat the queen!

Music: Struggle Eternal



- Battlefield Video: Salamander’s Tail


:black101: I’m from Buenos Aires and I say kill ‘em all!












This isn’t even worth my time!


The main gimmick of this fight is not that the enemies are tough, but that there are a LOT of them. The first wave of Workers has been taken out, now we move on to the Hunters.




Yeah! This is our big chance!









Now some Soldiers come mixed in with fresh Hunters.




Set ‘em up, I’ll knock ‘em down!

Music: Turn the Tide





Finally ready to fight?






Hexes can be cast at long range. Everyone else has to close in.








Reinforcements appear immediately after we confirm our orders, but before anyone acts.




I’ll grind your bones to make my bread!




Wow!







Even more reinforcements appear mid-turn. This fight does a really good job of making it seem endless.






We can do this!

In long battles, it’s hard to NOT find a turn where Rush can do an Omnistrike.






We’re gonna win!












Finally, the queen appears.






He ye ye ye yuh!




Jager’s new weapon is really strong.




They’ve circled us?!




Rush! Stand with me!








Weakling!






Kate don’t care about that.




Everyone except Rush will pile onto the other enemy to make sure it does before the Queen.






Try again tomorrow.






A strong one, huh?




And we’re done. I reach BR 45.


learned Dragon’s Flight!
class changed to Adept Druid!




Of course things being smooth sailing from there would be too good to be true. When it rains it pours, right? You wouldn’t believe what’s happened to me now…
Woah, is that the time? I’ve got a… a thing.
…What? You don’t want to hear any more of my problems? Oh… okay…
Reward: Empty Aerial Insecta Shell x1, 10,000 G.
Obtained Flail! You’ve obtained a more powerful version of an existing formation!
Completed quest: Infestation

Baaluk's barkeep sent me to the Salamander's Belly to exterminate some bugs. ...Some!? There were billions! I got the job done, though.




Go for it!
Heh. Of course.

Hi, Rush. So I was wondering if I should learn Potions
Try something new!
You think? Okay, I’ll give it a go… Hopefully it’ll make me stronger!

Hey, Rush. I’ve been thinking about learning Hexes… What do you think?
Go for it!
You think? I don’t know how useful it’ll be, but you never know until you try, right?

Hey Rush… Should I learn this new type of arts, Remedies? I mean, what if I’m bad at it – er, I mean, it sucks?
Try something new!
Yeah? I guess I am a natural. Great idea!

Psionics stays on, because Psionics is good (and Bluff is definitely good for an entry-level spell). Everything else gets turned off. I want Darien to heal using Eye Cream so he can learn higher level Lotions.

Rush, may I ask you something? Do you think I’m following the right path in my training? Where should I have my focus?
You should go for balance.
Certainly attempting everything leaves no deficiency.

What sorts of arts should I focus on? I mean, one does need to worry about becoming too powerful.
Combat arts, for sure.
Heh. Obviously.

Oh, that Metallic Stud you got? You’re gonna let me borrow it, right?
Sure, no prob.
Props, man. That’s chill.

And he just threw away the Wishing Coin. There’s only the one and you can’t make another.
:negative:

Paris is a solid fighter, but a better caster, so balance works for him. Allan is a poo poo caster so he goes combat. We’re off to Nagapur again for one last sidequest before we start to take on the Six Bases.






New Arts Summary
learned Restorative Herb!
learned Dragon’s Flight!
class changed to Adept Druid!
learned Bluff!
learned Red Potion!
learned Poison Gas!
learned Restore!



Battlefield Video: Salamander’s Tail

Next Time: So, there're still a couple idiots with balls in this town after all

Seraphic Neoman
Jul 19, 2011


quote:

And he just threw away the Wishing Coin. There’s only the one and you can’t make another.

Seriously? That's incredibly dickish.

booksnake
May 4, 2009

we who are crowned with the crest of wisdom
Not sure if this is heading towards everything crumbling down because gently caress you Leshau or if there's actually some sort of optimism here.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender
New update will be tomorrow morning. I've already recorded the update after that, and will try to have it on Friday, but it'll be pretty big.

SSNeoman posted:

Seriously? That's incredibly dickish.

Yep, once an NPC gets a new accessory, the old one is gone forever. So much for "borrowing".


booksnake posted:

Not sure if this is heading towards everything crumbling down because gently caress you Leshau or if there's actually some sort of optimism here.

Destination: ARMAGEDDON.

Onmi
Jul 12, 2013

If someone says it one more time I'm having Florina show up as a corpse. I'm not even kidding, I was pissed off with people doing that shit back in 2010, and I'm not dealing with it now in 2016.

Stabbey_the_Clown posted:


Yep, once an NPC gets a new accessory, the old one is gone forever. So much for "borrowing".


This is where I would have no problem enabling the ability to take items from your party so they could request it.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender

Onmi posted:

This is where I would have no problem enabling the ability to take items from your party so they could request it.

I think I read that if you enable full party inventory management in the INI, it specifically disables their ability to request things.

Onmi
Jul 12, 2013

If someone says it one more time I'm having Florina show up as a corpse. I'm not even kidding, I was pissed off with people doing that shit back in 2010, and I'm not dealing with it now in 2016.

Stabbey_the_Clown posted:

I think I read that if you enable full party inventory management in the INI, it specifically disables their ability to request things.

HA! I loving WISH! No, they'll endlessly request stuff from you. You forged the ultimate god sword of ultimate power and gave it to them? too loving bad they're going to request a Tuck. The best way is to follow their upgrade routes, forge the weapon they want, and sit and wait for them to request it. That checks off their list and makes them susceptible. In short, they wont request something worse than what they have or that they have previously requested.

http://lastremnant.wikia.com/wiki/PC_Tweaking

Read from the "Change NPC Equipment" section onwards.

EDIT: IF YOU HAVE NOT PLAYED THE GAME DO NOT GO THERE THEY SPOIL poo poo WITHOUT REGARD.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender

So, there're still a couple idiots with balls in this town after all




Music: Life Without Remnants


Begun to hate this music yet? If we hadn’t solved a bunch of quests a lot more cities would have this as their music.




I wonder what that kid wants.




Maybe she just wandered off somewhere?
Brother of Kidnapped Girl: But I been all over town... I dunno what else to do. An' I sure can't trust some stupid adult to help! But you, you ain't so old... Please, you gotta help me find my sister! She's all I got left!
Don’t worry – I’ll find her!
Brother of Kidnapped Girl: Thanks a million! So there's this Oswald geezer, an' he knows, like, everythin' about Nagapur! I bet he could help! I'll stay here in case she comes back...

The only place he could be in the much-smaller Nagapur is in the pub.




And I’ll continue to work hard… as long as you keep paying me.




A kid asked me to find his missing sister.
Recently a group of slavers has made its way into the city. They may be familiar... Seems the group used to operate outside of Athlum.
What, there are still some of those punks left?
The slavers hide in the Aqueducts. Yet while I know their hideout's location, I haven't strength enough to dispose of the fiends. But now, a virile youth with a strong sense of justice has come straight to my door. Can I entrust you with this task? Would you go to the Aqueducts?
You don't have to ask!
Excellent. I will take you to the entrance.
Accepted quest: The Slave Traders

Music: Everflow







According to the old man, there’s some shady business going on with some sleazy dudes into human trafficking. They’re in the Aqueducts.





We’re back here again. The central area looks familiar, but this time we’re starting from a different location, south of the central room. But before that, there’s an optional area to the side.




This game doesn’t have puzzle dungeons, except for the little you get here. In this case, to get at the treasure, we’ll need to reach the control panels and move two movable bridges. One is just to the left of Rush’s foot.




This bridge lets us get access to the first treasure chest which has an amazing score of 7200 G.




Moving the bridges again lets us nab the second chest, which has a Mermaid’s Barrel, used for crafting accessories. It’s used to make a Mermaid’s Favour necklace, which reduces a lot of mystic status effects. No one will request it because it’s Mystic type and that is bugged.

It’s also used to upgrade a Daimyo Otachi katana to a Mermaid’s Malice Katana. There’s a guild task to do that, which is why I used up the one from the previous game. You can also buy Mermaid’s Barrel’s at a store in Athlum for about 250,000G a piece.

Of course, with the bridges like this, we can’t get back out.





So move one bridge for a third time to let us get at the ladder which will let us out.




Some Glasya Labolys (Spiritlord) enemies patrol the central room. There’s also a thing which is NOT here because we are on a quest. I’ll get to that later. Much later. (When I won’t be horribly outmatched.)




The way to Wyrmskeep has collapsed.




We should head for the Sudenalm entrance.


- Video: Rare Monster Snowtoad


This guy is a prick.









Like most rare monsters, Snowtoad only really spams one attack over and over. The difference is that this attack has bullshit attached.






:stare: Well, I didn’t need to sleep tonight anyway. It turns out that the actual eyes of these enemies are inside their “mouth”, which is more of a sharp-toothed maw. This is amazing detail on a creature that can only really be seen if you go frame-by-frame.




Death Dive, as the name implies, has a chance of causing Instant Death. That is annoying.




Torgal!

Oh, and it can inflict it on any union on the field, not just ones deadlocked with it. Yay.




Mixed Message is Bluff 2.0. It does no damage, but moves the Morale bar a lot.






Th-those guys l-look pretty strong!
Nooo!

Irina and Kate will be bringing people back, Jager rested in the first turn and will engage Snowtoad.






Three more units down. That’s six in total.




Seven, as Violet goes down. At this point, I’m resigned to some units being dead at the end of battle.




Don’t push yourself!
Wait, somebody took me out?!




Finally, no deaths this time.






Last turn no options to clear the KO status came up. This turn I did get some – Jager revived the KO’ed members of Kate’s Pack.









Rush brings Irina’s union back to full strength, and she returns the favor with Rush.






Son of a -

Jager doesn’t manage to finish it off…




..but Gaou does, and amazingly, everyone is alive at the end.

learned Caustic Blast!
learned:
  • Nimble Fleche!
  • Nimble Fleche II!




We find our objectives just inside the entrance to the Third Channel. We can’t get out to (the ruins of) Sudenalm, because either the control to move the bridge is on the Sudenalm side, or the stairs are blocked.


- Boss Video: Slave Traders








Hand over the girl!
*snort* So, there're still a couple idiots with balls in this town after all. but you picked the wrong time to get all high and mighty! Boys! Grab these little punks--they're gonna be the latest additions to our inventory!




Mission: Defeat the Slavers!




This shouldn’t be much of a fight.






This encounter is a little tougher than normal and Kate wasn’t able to finish it off in one turn.




Nor could Glenys, although it didn’t help that Allan’s attack was outright blocked.




Spot the trend?




I won’t let bullies like you get in my way!
Niiice, this one looks loaded!






Do it like that every time!








You nailed him!






Here we go!






This guy absorbed a full critical round from Irina’s union before this.




Come on, let’s run ‘em down!




I meant to do that!

No sweat.




Well done, Rush Sykes. Here's a little something to show my appreciation.




This should bring Nagapur back into balance. Hmm, it seems that even this old man can still be of use to someone...
Completed quest: The Slave Traders

I destroyed the slave-trading group hiding in the Aqueducts. The kid’s sister was returned safely. The old man gave me a reward. Life is good!


That concludes the last of the major sidequesting. Most of that is done now. There will be more sidequests, but there won’t be any more long major stretches of sidequesting. Now, prepare your body for a very long stretch of main quest stuff.





New Arts Summary
learned Caustic Blast!
learned:
  • Nimble Fleche!
  • Nimble Fleche II!



Rare Monster Snowtoad
Boss: Slave Traders

Discussion: Who do you think will be waiting for us at Base 1?

EDIT: Fixed video link.

Next Time: You destroyed them so beautifully, all for my pleasure.

Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 19:10 on Apr 11, 2017

Seraphic Neoman
Jul 19, 2011


That was pretty filler as far as quests in this game go. They kinda gave the game away by calling him "Brother of Kidnapped Girl"

gimme the GOD DAMN candy
Jul 1, 2007
I rushed through all 6 of those points without stopping. That was a mistake!

Rigged Death Trap
Feb 13, 2012

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

I think one of those anti-Rush's Troop guys (those sidequest folk dressed mostly in white) will be there.
Or all of them. Either or.

It's time for a Mirror-esque match methinks.

Onmi
Jul 12, 2013

If someone says it one more time I'm having Florina show up as a corpse. I'm not even kidding, I was pissed off with people doing that shit back in 2010, and I'm not dealing with it now in 2016.

Serious Frolicking posted:

I rushed through all 6 of those points without stopping. That was a mistake!

This I would consider one of the more insidious moments of the games design. Usually it's very forthcoming and straight forward. But a lot of people would miss what you're talking about on a first playthrough.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender
I was using the no-spoilers walkthrough to make sure I didn't miss any quests. But I still screwed up that part.

Kibayasu
Mar 28, 2010

It looks like you uploaded the slaver fight twice, for both the toad and where it should be. Or linked to the slaver fight twice.

Rabidredneck
Oct 30, 2010

Not pleasant when angered.
The Snow Toad video was the slaver video, might want to check your link.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender

Kibayasu posted:

It looks like you uploaded the slaver fight twice, for both the toad and where it should be. Or linked to the slaver fight twice.

Oops. Fixed now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvZ0-xFvSLw

Glazius
Jul 22, 2007

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

Clapping Larry
A rare monster who spams instant death. Are there, like, accessories that ward off instant death, or anything?

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender
Sorry, I've been pretty busy for the last week or so and haven't had time to do much work on an update.


Glazius posted:

A rare monster who spams instant death. Are there, like, accessories that ward off instant death, or anything?

There might be, but since you can't directly equip party members, there's not a lot of point getting them. Rush's Ninja class - which he's very close to unlocking as a matter of fact - has "Immunity to Instant Death" as one of it's features. It'll only apply to Rush himself, but as the leader of a group, that'll prevent the group from getting botched.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender
I've been too busy this week to get much done too. If it's any consolation, the next update will be fairly long.

wdarkk
Oct 26, 2007

Friends: Protected
World: Saved
Crablettes: Eaten

Stabbey_the_Clown posted:

I've been too busy this week to get much done too. If it's any consolation, the next update will be fairly long.

Haha I feel your pain there.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender

You destroyed them so beautifully, all for my pleasure




While I’m around, I might as well pick up Zolean.





Zolean has no quests or prerequsites other than ‘18 party members unlocked’. He’s a Yama caster who is highly skilled in Invocations and Hexes. He’s a good addition to a mystic-heavy party. Speaking of parties, I’ve re-arranged my team.






Rush’s Troop is now in the Casket II formation, which significantly reduces the capabilities of the union leader, which is fine because Rush is overpowered right now. Even if it doesn’t stop Rush from being an XP sponge, Blocter and Torgal should be able to handle it better.

Irina and friends are the healer squad. Sort-of. Violet and Glenys are pretty good muscle. They’re in the Chariot formation, which improves the attack and defense of the group and enhances traps.

Kate’s Pack is in the Crossbow formation. It greatly improves the Mystic attack of the union leader, and increases the number of hits for Mystic arts. Because this is a main plot-sequence, I’m using all the mandatory characters. I also want Caedmon to try and get better at Mystics so he can change classes. That means someone has to be benched, and I chose Nora this time.

Jager’s Sect is in the Snakebite formation. It improves defense and mobility of the lead ranks, but reduces their attack. The idea is to make his union fast.

Emmy’s Squad is in the Hawk-eye formation, which improves the attack of the lead ranks and enhances physical evasion.



- Battlefield Video: Base 1


We need to get rid of each one to enter Koenigsdorf!
Alright, men! Get ready to charge!




So this is the place…




We’ll crush them in one fell swoop!
Everyone: *cheers*


Music: Clash of Opposites


Mission: Defeat the command squad and assault their base!




So this is one of the story battlefields. We can see the enemy reinforcements in the distance, which is kinda neat. We start out one turn away from the enemy and have to march.






You’d better recognize!




That fancy swordwork missed this time.


Come on - from the side!










As main plot battles, these battlefields are more dynamic than usual.




So close…




Good job!




Don’t let ‘em take you out!

Other than Kate getting silenced, that was a good first turn.






Oho! Did you see that?
Nice hit!




Even normal attacks can be brutal when they crit.






Are you okay?

Irina clears the silence and Violet provides some minor healing.




Strike now!
Yeah! Everybody’s getting hyped!
I… tire of this fighting!








Boom!
Finish him!

No Omnistrike today, I guess.








I won’t let bullies like you get in my way!

You know you’re approaching the final wave when the boss squads with hidden HP bars show up on the field. To maximize XP, no one is targeting the boss leader, because the battle ends once the boss union is down.






This is the only union which goes down this turn.




Emmy’s union is pretty beat up, so I order healing for her, but as soon as the turn starts…








Gabriel wasn’t able to finish this union off.




You’re not going to perish from that scratch, are you?

Uh, I might, Allan.






Seriously, Revitalize is amazing.






Brilliant!




Only the boss left now.




The boss union is tougher than a regular union, but probably not 5-on-1-with-special-attacks tough.






How’s that!

That was a really strong Maledict.






learned Mighty Switchback III!
learned Double Strike III!
learned Restore II!

The army is wiped out. Now let’s head inside the base itself and see what we have.


- BOSS Video: Snievan the Aesthete




You’re given control here, even though you can’t leave. This gives you time to save, change your equipment, party and formation. The game does warn you when saving that if you are unable to defeat the boss you could become stuck. So use different save slots.




The tracking Remnant says something’s here?
Yes, I can feel it.
Who’s there?


Music: Slipping Through your Fingers





How beautiful! You destroyed them so beautifully, all for my pleasure! Oh, my poor, poor subordinates!




Certainly they were far too incompetent to stop you, but at least they showed me a magnificent death!




Yes! Death is the peak of perfection, the only thing that comes close to rivalling me! But now I must deal with you swine.




You come in covered in dirt and grime! Reeking of sweat! Crashing in here like some rabid beast! Trampling in here with your shoes on! And what’s more, you’ve done all that with the intent of disrupting the Conqueror’s glorious goals! Oh, you are the embodiment of all things hideous!




Dirty, tainted beings like you can only benefit from a cleansing by Snievan the Aesthete!




You’ll bathe in a river of your own blood!


Music: Press to Victory


Mission: Defeat Snievan!

The battles versus the Seven have their own special music.





The bosses do come with their own set of minions to clean up, it’s best to do so quickly to avoid providing free flanks to the enemy.






The other unions weren’t able to finish their foes off.




Their flank is weak! Go for it!




What is this?
















Young… master…

Ouch. Lugh’s Revenge is Snievan’s special attack. It’s a barrage of shots from his gun-like Remnant (the Brionac) which does massive damage to a single union.




On the agenda for this turn is reviving Rush and finishing off the minions. I assign Jager’s union to that job.






Violet and Glenys just barely miss killing this guy.






Marvelous!

But Emmy picks up the slack.




Get up, we gotta win this!




You’re not going to perish from that scratch, are you?




Heh.




Only Snievan remains.








As a boss, Snievan’s got a lot of HP to whittle through.






But not so much that he can withstand us pounding him full-on with major attacks.






When a boss uses a bonus action on a buff like this, you know that they’re on the ropes.






Paris finishes things.




Ha ha, ha ha, ha… Thus, my resplendence finally reaches the sublime beauty of death… Truly, I have reached the pinnacle of beauty…




learned Dispirit II!
learned Caustic Blast!

I reached BR 46 from this fight.




Obtained Brionac!

Natually, the bosses drop some great stuff, and special components that are only used for some very special items. Torgal claims the Brionac, which lets him use Lugh’s Revenge (yadda yadda he has to be the leader, his union morale must be maxed).






They’re with the Conqueror?! And with Hermeien as well?
The flow of Remnant power doesn’t feel so strong anymore.
Are you sure?




I’m positive. The barrier around Koenigsdorf seems weaker than before.
Then… that was one of those lights. That fiend we just defeated was sapping power from other Remnants and sending it to Koenigsdorf?
…Yes, I think so.
That can’t be! Are you saying that was a Remnant?
I don’t know about that…




There’s a moment of silence as people ponder this mystery.




Guys, who cares what they are? We know we’ve got to beat them all to get into Koenigsdorf, right? Let’s deal with the questions later!
You’re quite right. Thank you, Rush.




Let’s go, we’ve got more fighting ahead.




Definitely mystic arts!
Eh? That’s more Rhagoh’s bag, but eh, I’ll give it a shot.





New Arts Summary
learned Mighty Switchback III!
learned Double Strike III!
learned Restore II!
learned Dispirit II!
learned Caustic Blast!



Battlefield: Base 1
BOSS Video: Snievan the Aesthete


Discussion: Who’s next?

Next Time: Scary, here is too scary!

Stabbey_the_Clown fucked around with this message at 19:34 on Apr 11, 2017

Seraphic Neoman
Jul 19, 2011


Does Torgal also hold the guns gangsta-style?

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Zurai
Feb 13, 2012


Wait -- I haven't even voted in this game yet!

You mis-spelled Snievan as Sneivan through most of that post, for the record. I before E except after C applies even to random made up fantasy names, I guess!

Also whenever I read Snievan I can't help but read it in Snarf's voice.

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