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 Welcome to Let's Play Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker! What is this game? This game is the fourth in the Dragon Quest Monsters series, released on the DS in 2006 in Japan and late 2007/early 2008 in the rest of the world. The series is all about collecting monsters and pitting them against other monsters. In this sense it's very comparable to Pokemon, but the way the monsters work is more similar to Shin Megami Tensei - instead of sticking with a group of monsters, you fuse them together to make stronger ones. How familiar are you with this game? I've played a good chunk of this game, but not all of it, so I'll be going in semi-blind. I have played the sequel, however, so I'm familiar with the mechanics enough that I can talk about them in relative depth. Are you planning to 100% the game? I'll attempt to obtain all the monsters in the game. There will be cheating involved due to some monsters being straight-up unavailable outside of special events, and the post-game grind will probably be too much in any case. Will there be thread participation? Yes. I'll be asking for names for important monsters and maybe some other things. What's the policy on spoilers? No spoilers, marked or unmarked. Table of Contents: Part 1: The Adventure Begins (Sort Of) Part 2: The Adventure Begins (For Real This Time) Part 3: The Scout's Pledge Part 4: The Challenge Begins Part 5: Going (Desert) Bowling Part 6: Desert Roundup Part 7: Dungeon Diving Part 8: Gardens Galore Part 9: Palatial Progression (But Not Too Much) Part 10: Polishing Off Palaish Part 11: Dead Island Part 12: Metallic Madness Part 13: Praise The Sun Part 14: Make It Snappy Part 15: Northern Sights Part 16: Here Be Dragons Part 17: A Pirate's Undeath For Me Part 18: Jungle Japes Part 19: Shrine Time Part 20: The Final Battles Part 21: The Beginning of the End Part 22: To CELL And Back Part 23: Mr Euchre's Wildcard Ride Part 24: Loose Ends Part 25: Torturous Tartarus Part 26: Snap Snaps Part 27: Wildcard Postgame Part 1: Solitaire-y Confinement Postgame Part 2: Euchre The Librarian Postgame Part 3: Arena Antics Postgame Part 4: The Other Final Battles Postgame Part 5: The Eternal Grind Postgame Part 6: Dragon Quest Monsters Joker Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love Cheat Codes Bonus: The Longest Synthesis Chain Epicmissingno fucked around with this message at 16:28 on Mar 14, 2018 |
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Jul 4, 2017 11:11
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This post is reserved for potential fanart or something. I don't know.
Epicmissingno fucked around with this message at 12:29 on Aug 19, 2017 |
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Jul 4, 2017 11:11
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Part 1: The Adventure Begins (Sort Of) Music: Title Screen  Welcome to Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker. Shall we begin?  Our protagonist will be called Joker, since it's the closest thing we have to a canon name for the character. I'm sure there will be no jokes about a certain other JRPG with a similarly named protagonist. None whatsoever. Music: None  We start the game with a hooded man walking along a corridor. Who could this strange person be?  As it turns out the guy's name is Black Jacques. In proud Dragon Quest tradition, almost every character has an awful pun for a name. In this game, the theme is card games and their terminology.  ... Joker remains silent, which is understandable. He never says anything, after all.  I was under ze impression zat Warden Trump would detain you for much longer. 'Owever, it would seem zat 'e as 'ad an alteration of ze 'eart on ze matter.Come on, it's like the game's trying to make me talk about Persona 5! Well, it's not happening. But I digest - er, digress... As members of CELL, ze word of ze Warden is absolute. It looks like Joker's dad is pretty high up in this CELL organisation. It's a shame that we don't know anything about it. Anyway, off to see the Warden... Music: CELL Headquarters   Ten days since you attempted to run away and join that 'contest'. You demonstrated an earnest, albeit crude, interest in the event.Trump clearly isn't the best father to Joker. He's probably too busy with CELL work. And so I have made a decision! I will allow you to participate in the Monster Scout Challenge.Maybe he's finally warming up to Joker, though! We might get some father-son bonding done yet.  I will relay further orders to you when the time is right. Keep in mind that your role as a participant is merely a guise. I have no interest in whether you win or lose....Oh. Never mind, then. However, you will follow my instructions - all of them. Now take this - you will need it.  Joker receives a scout ring. As I'm sure you're already aware... This will be Joker's main tool in attracting allies to our cause, whatever our cause happens to be. We don't actually know what CELL wants him to do yet, do we? As I recall, the opening ceremony of the challenge is today. Make your preparations, then head for Domus Isle. ... Indolence is not a virtue. Make haste, boy!Warden Trump further cements his position as worst father ever, and we finally get control of Joker.  The game's controls are pretty standard. The D-pad is used to move, the L and R buttons rotate the camera and the A button checks things in front of Joker. The X button opens the menu, but we don't have any options of interest at the moment. The lower screen has a map, with Joker's position given by the blue arrow. Joker's first order of business is to have a chat to the Black Jacques-looking guy next to him.  The Monster Scout Challenge will soon be held on Domus Isle. At least Joker knows how to get to his destination now. Of course now is an excellent time to go chat to NPCs and learn more about Joker's situation, so this will be ignored entirely. When I formed CELL, I had a specific plan. Unfortunately, I cannot make you privy to further information on that issue. All I can tell you is that the lives of everyone living on these islands are at stake.Trump's not helping much with this information-gathering thing. It's probably to be expected, though, what with his attitude towards Joker so far.  What's that? He's sending you to infiltrate the Monster Scout Challenge!? Things are looking up for you after all! Especially as you were trying to slip out of here to join the contest when you were caught!Sometimes exposition is written flawlessly into dialogue. This is not one of those times. Anyway, Joker walks a little way along the corridor and sees something suspicious on the lower floor.  The monster there is called a Hacksaurus. Joker probably won't be getting one of them for a while.  Very good. Ze more samples we 'ave, ze more fun we 'ave, n'est pas? I wonder if our work is really gonna make a difference though. All we ever do is catch one monster after another, over and over again. So you tell me you no longer trust CELL? Or ze Warden? Listen 'ere, my scout friend. From where you stand, you cannot see ze big picture. But everything we do is part of ze Warden's plan. We are like ze cogs in a machine, n'est pas? Ze time for us to move is close at 'and. We must trust in ze Warden! Um, yeah, okay...You know, Jacques, you're not really helping your case. It sounds awfully cult-ish from where I'm standing. I'm not sure working for CELL is such a good idea. In any case, more NPCs!  That'd be the tourney to decide the roughest and toughest scout around, eh? What!? You was told that it didn't matter if you won or lost? But it's a contest, right? Winning's what it's all about... ain't it?As a JRPG protagonist there's no way Joker will settle for anything short of first place, I can assure you. Losing isn't in his nature.  The door next to the thug leads outside, to a view of another island. Talking to people in the area reveals that it's called Fert Isle.  I've just finished up training and arrived here at headquarters, SIR! And now I'm ready to capture monsters for CELL's glorious research, SIR!This guy's certainly enthusiastic, I'll give him that. That monster behind him is called a Jargon, by the way. We'll also be seeing those later, but probably sooner than the Hacksaurus. Sorry to be impertinent, sir, but is it REALLY true that all we do here is research? But I'm guessing a rookie like me can't ask the Warden about it. Right, SIR!?It seems that more than one person has doubts about CELL's motives. This doesn't bode well for Joker's future, but there's not really anything he can do about it for the moment.  There's no place for you down in the laboratory any more. You must now focus on the mission Warden Trump assigned to you.Every time Joker tries to go downstairs he's stopped by this guy. For now we can't do anything about him, so let's go back to harassing the people around here.  That is why it is necessary to gather as many specimens as possible. I just hope we can come up with some results before we run out of space...Do monsters have a particularly different biology to humans? Surely here can't be enough difference to warrant this amount of testing. Anyway, it looks like Joker's out of people to talk to. Down to the jetty! Joker has to take a lift to get down there, since the only stairs down are blocked.  To the left here is our destination, but to the right is a familiar-looking corridor.  It's because you told the Warden that you wanted to participate in the challenge. As soon as you said that, he ordered us to keep a close eye on you.Maybe it wasn't such a good idea for Joker to tell Trump about his ambitions, though it seems to have worked out in the end.  In any case, this is the place where Joker was imprisoned. There's no more reason to stay here, so let's get this show on the road and go off to Domus Isle. Talking to the thug on the jetty gives us this exchange:  Your mission is to infiltrate the Monster Scout Challenge, right? You can board a sea scooter for Domus Isle here, but... So, what'll it be? Are you leaving?Joker's got to get going eventually. He's delayed enough as it is. Oh! Just a minute! I forgot something.  We have a choice of three monsters to start off with, all at level 1. The first, Dracky, is the fastest of the three starters and also the most magically oriented. It learns dark skills and some support through Dark Knight, and can be made even faster through Agility Boost. It's also got the trait Artful Dodger, letting it avoid more attacks, and is immune to Fizzle, the series' Silence equivalent.  Next we have a Platypunk. This is the most defensive of the choices and it can increase that stat even higher with Defence Boost. Naturalist, meanwhile, gives a very eclectic list of abilities including one of my personal favourites, Hatchet Man. Platypunks don't have any special traits like Drackies do, but they are still immune to Fizzle.  Finally we have a Mischievous Mole. This is the physical powerhouse of the starters, with Attack Boost increasing its damage further if it's invested in. Guerrilla, meanwhile, gives access to lots of skills that do damage and inflict status effects. Mischievous Moles also have the trait Psycho, which lets them "psych up" to do more damage. It's incredibly useful for obtaining new monsters and also dealing big damage outside of those situations. Finally they're immune to Dazzle, which is the Blind equivalent.  Anyway, Joker will be choosing Mischievous Mole, naming it Moley. A mischievous mole, huh? Just as I expected... Now get going to Domus Isle! There's no time to waste. And good luck with the Monster Scout Challenge!I'm sure Joker won't need luck to win. After all, he has pure skill. Music: None  And so Joker sets off on his jetski to Domus Isle. Or rather he would, but getting some training done with Moley is the priority. Off to fight monsters! Music: Island  Ah, Slimes! These are almost always the weakest enemies that you can fight, with the only exception that I can think of being Dragon Quest 6, where they're replaced by Mottle Slimes. Here they can only attack you normally, doing pitiful damage, or do a Desperate Attack, doing slightly less pitiful damage. They're not a threat at all.  Or rather they wouldn't be a threat if Joker wasn't the worst Monster Scout ever. Come on, you have to try to lose to these things!
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Jul 4, 2017 11:12
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By the looks of things we need a new protagonist. I'll leave it up to the thread to decide on the name, the starter and the starter's name - be aware that all the starters are available in the first area, so by choosing one we're not being deprived of the others. Bold all suggestions, please.
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Jul 4, 2017 11:12
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Euchre should get a Platypunk named Digamma-F-Wau fucked around with this message at 22:04 on Jul 4, 2017 |
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Jul 4, 2017 11:33
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Talent scout reporting for duty! nemo, you're the platypunk! We're gonna make you a star, baby! A star!
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Jul 4, 2017 15:01
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Lets see...Malcov gets a Platypunk named Duwang
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Jul 4, 2017 16:13
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Oh yeah, I forgot to set when voting ends. It'll be at 13:00 GMT on the 8th. If there's a tie, I'll choose whichever I like better.
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Jul 4, 2017 22:11
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Rocket really likes the Platypunk named Ducktor Cid
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Jul 4, 2017 23:54
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IAmTheRad posted:Rocket really likes the Platypunk named Ducktor Cid Since it's come up now, I might as well state that the character limit for both names is 8. I assume shortening it to Cid would be acceptable?
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Jul 5, 2017 00:03
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A Dracky named Count.
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Jul 5, 2017 00:06
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IAmTheRad posted:Rocket really likes the Platypunk named Ducktor Cid Epicmissingno posted:Since it's come up now, I might as well state that the character limit for both names is 8. I assume shortening it to Cid would be acceptable?
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Jul 5, 2017 00:25
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IAmTheRad posted:Rocket really likes the Platypunk named Ducktor Cid Epicmissingno posted:Since it's come up now, I might as well state that the character limit for both names is 8. I assume shortening it to Cid would be acceptable? Alright, Rocket and his Platypunk named DuktrCid.
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Jul 5, 2017 01:48
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I like that platypunk, but I'm totally down for Agent Euchre.
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Jul 5, 2017 02:15
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On a scale of 1 to ohgodwhy, how viable would it be to main Slime at the first opportunity? 
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Jul 5, 2017 05:22
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FredMSloniker posted:On a scale of 1 to ohgodwhy, how viable would it be to main Slime at the first opportunity? Slimes are decent healers in the early game from what I remember, but they run into the same problem that everything else does: they can't cut it for particularly long. That's why you fuse them away to make something better. If you really like them, though, there's a whole monster family comprised of Slime monsters, some of which are actually good. I have some plans for one in particular.
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Jul 5, 2017 10:42
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Oh finally! Finally someone who knows what they're doing can play this game! I certainly had no idea what I was doing when I played this.
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Jul 5, 2017 14:34
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Well, I had a minor freak out when I saw this listed. This game was my introduction to the Dragon Quest Monsters series, and it was love at first sight. I can't quite put my fniger on why, though. It's a shame I ended up losing the cartridge for it. If I remember correctly, I had made it to the final boss. At the very least, I had made it to the final area. It's also a shame I had no clue what I was doing so my team was just a random hodge podge of whatever I made. (Don't worry, I rectified both mistakes when I played the sequel.) I remember one of my favorite things in this game being the Pokedex-esque thing that has information on all the monsters, including short (often kinda funny) entries. Will you be showing those off? And as for the voting, I don't care what happens so long as we get a mole.
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Jul 7, 2017 04:53
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serefin99 posted:I remember one of my favorite things in this game being the Pokedex-esque thing that has information on all the monsters, including short (often kinda funny) entries. Will you be showing those off? I might as well try to be as thorough as possible, so why not? I'll probably put those at the end of updates.
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Jul 7, 2017 15:43
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I quite like Joker actually. On the other hand, for a deep cover operation like this, we should go for a Mole named Matahari. (or maybe Doctopus?)
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Jul 7, 2017 20:56
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Go with Joker. Our Platypunk shall be named Cyclone. I will make as many Kamen Rider Double references as I see fit, dammit!
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Jul 7, 2017 21:27
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Euchre and DuktrCid.
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Jul 8, 2017 03:01
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Okay, voting is over. the votes are: Protagonist name: Euchre: 3 Rocket: 3 Joker: 2 Malcov: 1 Talent: 1 Since there's a tie, I'm deciding that Euchre is the winner. Starter: Platypunk: 7 Mischievous Mole: 2 Dracky: 1 Platypunk wins in a landslide victory. Starter name: DuktrCid: 4 Duwang: 2 Cyclone: 1 Nemo: 1 Matahari: 1 Count: 1 DuktrCid is the winner, so that's what we'll be naming Euchre's Platypunk.
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Jul 8, 2017 13:11
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Oh drat, I missed voting.  I got this game when it came out cause I was a Pokemon-fiend, and I remember enjoying the heck out of it. I don't remember much about its plot but from what I've seen in the first update doesn't make that all that surprising. Also I don't know if you're aware, but if you have a decently-powered computer (I'm assuming you're emulating the game) you can increase the internal rendering resolution if you have the latest development builds of Desmume. Makes 3D games like this look soooo much better.
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Jul 8, 2017 17:32
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Part 2: The Adventure Begins (For Real This Time) After Joker's disastrous adventure, it's time for a real protagonist to take the stage.  Euchre here is exactly the same as Joker in every way except competence, so we'll be skipping everything up to picking a starter.  Instead of taking a Mischievous Mole, Euchre will be taking a Platypunk named Ducktor Cid, or DuktrCid for short. It's worth noting that starters actually have slightly higher stats than their wild counterparts, to carry you through the early game more easily.  Off to Domus Isle! First, though, we have to learn about the setting. The Green Bays archipelago consists of seven diverse islands. They are home to an extraordinary abundance of monster life. The most talented monster scouts congregate here for one special event... Music: Appearance of the Town  This is Domus Isle, featuring the largest settlement in the Green Bays archipelago. It's also the site of the Monster Scout HQ. The first thing to do, as with anywhere else, is ask around to find where to go.  Welcome to Domus Isle. Try not to let all the big buildings overwhelm you. I don't suppose you have towns where you come from.That was surprisingly condescending. Hopefully nobody else is like that.  Unfortunately, yes. I knew it! Mine too! The first time doing anything is always tough, huh? I'm thinking of going over to Infant Isle to practice scouting and battling.Infant Isle was where Joker went at the end of the last update. It's populated by low-strength monsters.  The challenge hasn't even started yet, and you're already way behind. If you want to have any hope of competing, you'll need at least three monsters!We need that many because that's the size of a team. You can actually carry six with you, though, and swap them around outside of battle. You still have time before the opening ceremony. Why not go and scout more monsters on another island? The top five finishers go on to the finals and battle it out for the championship! It's the seventh scout challenge, and this time I'm gonna make it to the finals!Somehow I don't think so. You tend to need a name to do that. Anyway, contrary to what he's saying, it's not a race against time to qualify. The game doesn't progress its plot until you choose to.  Wait... don't tell me you're here to enter the challenge! The Monster Scout Challenge is a serious competition, for REAL scouts. It's not a children's game!What is it with people outside that makes them act so horribly towards Euchre? Maybe there's something in the air.  Warden Trump told me everything. Now listen to me, kid... Don't mention CELL to anyone, ever! You hear me? This mission is top secret. Now, get outta here before someone spots us.CELL's the least of Euchre's concerns right now. The Monster Scout Challenge takes precedence, after all, and he doesn't have any orders yet other than to enter.  I wonder what the problem is. The MSO's not usually this disorganised. You know, I've got a funny feeling about this challenge...Euchre's eventual mission will have nothing to do with this guy's funny feeling, though, that's for sure.  But your "team" doesn't look like it could fight its way out of a paper bag. Are you SURE you want to enter the challenge like this? Well, you're either specially gifted... ...or especially stupid.It'll all work itself out in the end. Probably.  It looks like we can go into the sewer based on the map, but these boxes are in the way. There's no moving them either, so our only solution is to come back later. If we try to go up the stairs to the square...  So the main square at the top of the steps is currently closed. We apologise for any inconvenience caused....We can't go there yet either. Our only solution is to go to Infant Isle and kill time until the opening ceremony starts.  Perhaps you should take this opportunity to visit while you're waiting for the challenge to begin. I'm afraid the opening ceremony has been delayed. While you're waiting, you're free to go and visit Infant Isle. Perhaps you could go up to the Scout's Stone and take the Monster Scout's Pledge? It's an old custom, you see. Most contestants take the pledge before they begin the challenge. Just ask at the scoutpost on Infant Isle for directions to the stone. You might find the scoutpost a little... primitive, but you can still save your progress there.It's certainly something to do while waiting. Why not?  "An island inhabitated (sic) by weak monsters. It's perfect for beginners." Travel to the island?Of course. Music: None  This is the world map. As you can see there aren't actually seven islands - there are nine, not counting the smaller coloured islands. The two in the middle of the top are considered to be a single island, and the one on the very top right is CELL Headquarters. It's not counted as an island for some reason. Maybe it's too small. Music: Island  Here Euchre is on Infant Isle. Up ahead is the scoutpost for the island, signified by the Slime symbol above the door. Music: Scoutpost  At the counter is this guy, who tells us all about the island and scoutposts in general. The scoutpost is the support centre for all your scouting needs. Are you here to take the Monster Scout's Pledge? In that case, you'll want to go inside the little temple at the top of the mountain. You're going to have to fight through monsters on your way. If your own monsters get hurt, run back here and heal them. Don't take any chances, and come back in one piece, okay? So, can the scoutpost information desk help you with anything?Answering yes here brings us into the scoutpost menu, so let's go over that now.  Saving is obvious. It lets you save your current position in the game and start again should you turn the game off. If Euchre's team is wiped out, he will also return to his last save point but with no progress lost. He will, however, be stripped of half his on-hand money.  This is the save screen. The stars there aren't important right now, but they do fill in as you progress through the game. It also tells you Euchre's current team, his location, and the amount of time you've been playing for. The next option on the menu, Rest, lets Euchre swap between day and night. Different monsters come out at different times, but night monsters here are more difficult that the day monsters. It's best to leave it as daytime for now. Chance Encounter is a function that's similar to Streetpass on the 3DS - you put the game into Chance Encounter mode and it swaps data with other games in the mode. If you somehow managed to find someone else with the game, you could obtain copies of their monsters. The Help tab gives information on the Monster Scout Challenge, but it's all stuff that we'll see soon enough anyway. In fact, some of it is a minor spoiler for the opening ceremony, so we'll definitely be ignoring it. Now that Euchre's here, why not speak to some of the people standing around?  There you'll find the Scout's Stone. That's where you take the pledge. Around the back of the scoutpost are some other services, but the only one we're concerned with right now is the item shop.  Since this is still early on in Euchre's adventure the goods here are decidedly unimpressive. Medicinal herbs heal 30 HP, Antidotal herbs cure poison and the rest are weapons. Simple enough. Euchre isn't going to buy anything right now, though.  There's also a locked door back here, which will be open to us soon enough. Music: Monster Battle  Back outside, Euchre runs into his first encounter: a single Slime. He needs more monsters for his team, so he's going to try to scout it.  Joker raises his hand in the air, giving power to Ducktor Cid.  Cid attacks the Slime...  ...which raises its scout meter to 27%! This is the chance that the Slime will join Euchre.  And the Slime takes the offer. Now to name it.  That should do it. Rocket is now a member of the team. Music: Island Leaving the beach, Euchre heads to the left.  After crossing a few bridges and beating some more slimes, a treasure chest comes on screen. Brown treasure chests refill every so often and contain random items.  Chimera Wings warp Euchre to the last used scoutpost, but only when he's outdoors. They're generally very useful if you want to heal in a hurry.  That treasure chest was at a dead end due to boxes blocking the ladder, though, so Euchre heads back the other way. The ladder here doesn't lead to anything in particular, despite going up the mountain - it's only useful as a one-way shortcut to get back down.  Continuing on further, Euchre starts to encounter monsters beyond Slimes - Platypunks! Sadly he already has one, so it's much more difficult to get a second. He'll have to find a different monster to fill out his team. Wild Platypunks can do the same things as Slimes in battle.  And here one is! Mischievous Moles pop out of their holes to attack. This one is hopefully going to join up. Music: Monster Battle  Upon attempting to scout, the percentage is much higher than with the Slime. This is because when scouting all your monsters attack the target - having two monsters is much better than having one for this, obviously. They've also both gained a couple of levels, so that's contributing too.  Despite the higher chance, the mole doesn't want to join up. When failing to scout, monsters can either ignore the attempt or take offence. Both make your monsters skip their turns, but the latter raises all enemy monsters' tension and locks the Scout option for the rest of the fight. In this case the Mischievous Mole does the former.  Speaking of increasing tension, Mischievous Moles can raise their own on their turn. There are five stages of tension - 0, 5, 20, 50 and 100 - and each increases the damage or healing that a monster can output. Each time a monster raises its tension it goes up a single stage, and if it does damage or heals its tension drops to zero.  On the second try, the mole decides to join up.  It's named Moley, after Joker's failed monster. Hopefully this one will get some more use. Music: Island  Continuing on further, Euchre passes a blocked-off bridge. There's a blue chest and a jetty on the other side, so maybe he'll be able to get at it by coming from a different island.  This tent looks like a good rest stop.   I'm the man who runs this island's famous Monster Scout Proficiency Test.This should be very helpful! Euchre will be able to find out whether he's proper Monster Scout material. It's a simple little test - you just have to bring me some monsters. Of course, they have to be the right KIND of monsters... ...and sometimes, finding them isn't so easy. It takes brains as well as brawn. And IF you bring the right ones, I'll even reward you with a little prize. It'll cost you five gold coins to play. What do you say?Euchre hasn't got much use for money at the moment, so why not? I'm sure there will be good prizes.   Now, go!That's it for the first question? This seems heavily weighted in Euchre's favour. He'll be recognised as a high-ranking Monster Scout in no time.  We've already scouted Rocket and Moley, so the answer is an emphatic yes. ...Bravo, young man! You've solved problem number 1! Remember - scouting monsters is the most basic skill you must master. This is your prize - a medicinal herb. Hooray? Those are easily bought at the local scoutpost, so that's not particularly helpful. Maybe the next challenge will give something worthwhile. Now, the Monster Scout Proficiency Test consists of ten problems. The next problem will cost 10 gold coins. Do you want to hear it?It costs more, so the reward must be better, right? Let's do it. Good, let's begin! Listen carefully to problem number 2 of the Monster Scout Proficiency Test! You might think that this one is a little harder than the last one, but it's actually easier. The way to check what weapons your monster can equip is to go into the Library in the menu and press R on the monster you want to look at.  The yellow crook-looking icon on the far right of the "able to equip" section is a staff, which a cypress stick is one of. In fact, all our monsters can equip it. The dialogue for completing this request is the same for the most part, but our reward is different:  Antimagic powder attempts to inflict Fizzle on a single enemy. It's useful for shutting down healers, and we can't buy it yet, so it's a good reward. Now, problem number three... Oh, hang on. It's too soon for that. We can't continue until after the opening ceremony of the challenge has taken place on Domus Isle.No more easy rewards for Euchre yet. At least he knows to come back here later.  Euchre is painfully aware. They made him take the long way around. Well, they were in the way, so I took it upon myself to clear them up. If you're heading for the scoutpost, use the ladder. It's much quicker.He's right, you know. If Euchre heads behind the tent...  ...he'll find that the ladder next to the chest from before is climbable now. That makes an entire circuit around the island. That just leaves the mountain, which Euchre will tackle next time. Extra: The Monster Library This will be a regular feature of the LP. Whenever Euchre obtains a new monster, I'll be giving it an overview here. Slime   Slimes are the most basic of the basic in terms of monsters. They have the skills Slimer and Attack Boost when scouted, and the skill Slimer when fused from other monsters. They also have the Trait Critical Massacre, which gives them a higher chance of doing a critical hit. They aren't immune to any status effects like the starters are. In summary, Slimes have very little going for them and aren't all that good to keep around. Slimer is an okay skill, since it gives them some healing capability, but it's obsoleted when better healers come along. They've also got some utility in there with Sag, the attack debuff, and Dazzleflash, which inflicts Dazzle on the entire enemy party. The skill is very eclectic, though, and has no place on a well-focused monster. Platypunk   I already went over Platypunks in the first update, and the same goes for them here. Skills are Naturalist and Defence Boost when scouted and just Naturalist when fused, no Traits, immune to Fizzle. They're probably the worst of the starters due to not getting any particularly useful skills early on and not being much good at scouting. Naturalist does get some very good skills later on, though, like Hatchet Man (good for grinding), Tongue Lashing (drops enemy defence to 1) and Mercurial Thrust (always attacks first). Mischievous Mole   Again, I already went over these. Skills are Guerrilla and Attack Boost when scouted and just Guerrilla when fused, Trait is Psycho, immune to Dazzle. Mischievous Moles are, in my opinion, the best starter because it has Psycho. Psycho allows the monster with it to "psych up" and increase its tension. This can increase damage and scout rates dramatically, so it's incredibly useful. In the early game, when you're scouting lots of monsters for your team, Psycho is your best friend. Other than that, Guerrilla gives lots of skills that lower stats and inflict ailments. It also has Brake Wind, which stops breath attacks from working, but it doesn't really fit in with the rest of the skills. Epicmissingno fucked around with this message at 01:41 on Jul 26, 2017 |
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Jul 8, 2017 22:04
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Scouting is definitely one of the more fun things in this game when you're just faffing about, much like capturing pokemon is in Pokemon. Unlike in Pokemon, though, scouting is actually a lot easier to game in your favor.
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Jul 9, 2017 00:23
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Scouting is so much better than the awful meat system from the prior Dragon Warrior Monster series. Does make getting metal slime a pain in the rear end, however. They're slightly easier to get in 2, as there's a nerfed version defensively. I'll leave getting metals in this just as it stands - an annoyance. There's other things that make it a pain in the rear end, but I'll let you get to that when were there.
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Jul 9, 2017 01:30
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I once challenged myself to beat this game without ever using fusion. It took a dozen attempts to recruit a certain non-respawning monster in the early-mid game, and several dozen to beat the final boss.
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Jul 9, 2017 01:51
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Do scout chances add up as a monster refuses to join you, or do you always start from zero?
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Jul 9, 2017 02:50
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You start from zero every single time you try to recruit a monster, regardless of the success or failure of previous attempts. Better make sure you get that 90% on the first try!
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Jul 9, 2017 03:00
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Chronische posted:Scouting is so much better than the awful meat system from the prior Dragon Warrior Monster series. Does make getting metal slime a pain in the rear end, however. They're slightly easier to get in 2, as there's a nerfed version defensively. I'll leave getting metals in this just as it stands - an annoyance. There's other things that make it a pain in the rear end, but I'll let you get to that when were there. I believe you can actually out-damage the Metal Slime family's defence. Doing triple-figure damage without Hatchet Man to the post-game Metal King Slimes in 2 was immensely satisfying. Of course, it takes until the post-game to even consider scratching a Metal Slime, so the point still stands - it's stupidly hard to get them. Oh yes, and something I forgot to mention in the update - the percentage added to the scout gauge is dependant on the monster you're attempting to scout and the damage your monsters do with their normal attacks. As such, lowering the target's defence and raising your monsters' attack is immensely helpful for scouting.
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Jul 10, 2017 23:07
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Man it's been a while since I've seen this game. I'm looking forward to it but I wonder how hard are you gonna cheese this early game?
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Jul 11, 2017 00:34
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I'm sad we aren't going for a spy theme with names, seeing as we're an infiltrator
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Jul 11, 2017 01:03
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Now seems as good a time as any to admit that I once tried to write a novelization of this game. It never really got off the ground. Characterization for our protagonist would have gone as follows: * Total Edgelord. Basically a self-aware Gladion. * Sure that CELL are the bad guys. * Pretty sure he's supposed to be the main character's rival. Keeps an eye out for whoever that is. * Has planned out his own Heel-Face turn speech in his head. If he ever said it aloud, he'd realize it's pretty bad. * Read the Zenithian Trilogy (out of order) when younger. Wants to become a monster scout because he idolizes Madason "Five" Gotha. * Actually very well read. What else is there to do on a secret island base?
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Jul 11, 2017 01:45
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MightyPretenders posted:Now seems as good a time as any to admit that I once tried to write a novelization of this game. It never really got off the ground. That sounds completely amazing.
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Jul 11, 2017 06:49
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From what little I've seen of this and reading past DQ:Monters LPs, the comedy is only begun. The utter nonsense that is fusion will be great.
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Jul 12, 2017 21:43
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Part 3: The Scout's Pledge Music: Island Last time, Euchre made it around the entirety of Infant Isle, leaving only the mountain unexplored. This time, he won't be exploring the mountain immediately.  The reason for this is because I want to scout another Slime for monster synthesis fodder.  It's going to be called Slash after the starter Slime in Dragon Warrior Monsters.  Since Euchre can't fit more than three monsters in his active team, Slash is going into his substitutes. You can have up to three substitute monsters, and can switch them around with your active party. You can only do this outside of battles, though - there's no getting out your fresh monsters in the middle of a boss fight! In any case, if Euchre heads up the mountain via the slope near the tent he'll find a cave. Music: Seeking Treasure  This cave is the only way up the mountain, and has slightly more difficult encounters than outside. The first thing Euchre does is turn left... Music: Monster Battle  ...right into a fight with two Drackies. Drackies don't have any special skills to their names, but they do have the trait Artful Dodger which improves their chance to dodge attacks slightly. It's nothing special, but it can be a little annoying if one dodges one of your stronger attacks. After beating this encounter, Rocket does something that will be very helpful in the future.  He reaches level 5. This is important because...  ...that's the first level monsters get skill points at. Skill points are how you unlock abilities for your monsters to use in battle. I've mentioned that monsters have skills like Slimer, Naturalist and Guerrilla, among others, but these are actually sets of abilities. At set levels, monsters get set amounts of skill points. These can be invested into their skills, with abilities unlocked at set point values. The maximum number of points that can be put into a given skill is 100, although some require less. Music: Seeking Treasure Shot.png) As you can see, Rocket requires 2 skill points to learn Frizz, the tier 1 fire spell. It's not very good, but it's nice to have some form of magic for now. All 5 points from this level are spent of Slimer, since it's a good idea to prioritise abilities over stat increases early on.  On the way back to heal Euchre runs into this big guy. This is a Gigantes, and it can only spawn around the burnt-out campfire near the beach. It's on Infant Isle, so it must be easy, right? Music: Monster Battle  Wrong. Gigantes will mess you up and there's really nothing you can do to it at this point - remember, your monsters probably have less than 30 HP at maximum right now. Gigantes is actually a Rank A monster, while everything available so far is Rank F. There's quite a difference in power here. And don't even think about trying to scout it. The team can't get the chance above 0% with their current power. With that diversion over with, back to the cave!  Shadows also appear here. They actually have something interesting, though - Crack, the tier 1 ice spell, is in their moveset. It does slightly better damage than Frizz, although that's not saying much.  Speaking of Frizz, this is what casting spells looks like in this game. Regardless of what spell it is, the monster is surrounded by these circles of runes.  After that, the individual spell's animation goes off. In this case it's just a small fire hitting the target.  After defeating the Shadow in this fight, Euchre attempts to scout the Dracky and succeeds! The team's really coming together now. Music: Seeking Treasure  The Dracky is named Count. I'm sure Euchre will be able to count on it for some time, since he's replacing Rocket with it. Slimes get outclassed really fast, sadly.  Ducktor Cid manages to hit level 5 after some more battling, putting all his skill points into Naturalist and learning Heart Breaker in the process. Heart Breaker attacks a single enemy with a chance to make it miss its next turn. It's not particularly useful if you're fighting teams of enemies, but in boss fights with only one opponent it really shines. Of course, the turn-skipping effect doesn't come up all the time, so sometimes you just waste 2 MP to do a normal attack. Music: Monster Battle  I manage to catch a Shadow using Crack while trying to scout it. An ice crystal forms on the ground beneath a monster and shatters, doing damage.  With the power of all three starter monsters on Euchre's side, he easily scouts the Shadow, though.  Of course, anything involving Shadow will have lots of Edge. It's going straight to Euchre's substitutes.  The final monster that can be found in this cave is Lips. They have the standard monster actions, but they also have the ability Tongue Lashing. This is an incredibly annoying ability, since whoever is targeted loses their next turn and has their defence dropped to 1. Mercifully it doesn't deal damage and there's a chance for the move to fail. Something else that should be noted is that the Lips started the fight with the Confused ailment. This causes the monster afflicted to attack random targets, even in their own team, and sometimes skip their turn entirely. In other games in the series it can even randomly replace itself with Paralysis, which makes the monster afflicted unable to do anything, but I've never seen it happen here. Confusion can wear off either naturally or when the monster is hit, but the latter doesn't always remove it. It's worth noting that not all monsters can enter battle with status ailments, though. Only specific monsters do that, and even then they're restricted to one and most of the time they start the fight without the ailment.  Since the Lips was confused, it basically did nothing for the whole fight and allowed Euchre to set up and scout it easily. Music: Seeking Treasure  It's named Smooch and put in storage immediately.  During the following grinding session, Count gets to level 5 and learns Zam from the Dark Knight skill. Zam is the tier 1 darkness spell, and it does surprisingly good damage at this point. It's a shame that Count only has the MP to cast it once before running out. PointsForStyle.png) Moley also gets his 5th level. He also gets Heart Breaker.  Heading straight on at the first fork in the cave gets Euchre to this treasure chest, which contains a Cypress Staff. Remember that task he got to obtain a monster who could equip this? This is probably how you're supposed to find the answer to that. Incidentally, literally every monster in the game can equip the Cypress Staff. That was the worst question ever. Music: Monster Battle  Going along the other path at the fork leads to the exit, but before leaving, here's what Tongue Lashing looks like. Music: Island  The exit of the cave leads to the temple at the top of Infant Isle's mountain. As it turns out, the cave was actually underneath a well, which Euchre just climbed out of.  Euchre runs around the temple to get to the Scout's Stone, but... Music: None  ...somebody's in his way! Music: Boss Battle    You are a fool. I bow to no one. Cease this futility. I'LL decide when to cease this fut- Grrrr! This is SO not futile! I'll show you! Try THIS on for size!The screen zooms in as if a battle was starting, but...  ...it's interrupted by Euchre. .png) This monster's mine, kiddo! Bug off and go play with your friends, okay!?The monster suddenly jumps at the scout! WAAARGH! Can it be that the scouts' accursed contest is about to begin? The monster jumps past Euchre and off the cliff, disappearing from sight. Hey, come back here, you mangy poodle!Music: Solitaire  You made it run away, you spiky-headed numbskull!Wow, people are incredibly rude to Euchre even outside of Domus Isle! The problem is spreading! I'd never seen one of those before. And I was JUST about to scout it too! (sigh) I'm surrounded by idiots... Hey, I've got an idea! Hey, all of Euchre's monsters are far too valuable to do that! Except maybe Smooch. That thing's just weird. ...So, you're the stupid, silent type, eh? But I was just joking, you know! Er, can you PLEASE stop looking at me like that. Didn't your mother tell you that it was rude to frown at people?Maybe that's why everyone's rude to Euchre - he just rubs them up the wrong way by constantly staring in disapproval.  So...I guess we're going to be rivals.No, you're going to follow Euchre around while never actually fighting him. That's not a very good rivalry. ...Oh, didn't I introduce myself yet? Euchre tels Solitaire his name. Euchre, huh? Wait. She's heard of Euchre? Could that mean that she's heard of CELL? Abort mission! Now where would I have heard that name before...?Or she could have conveniently forgotten where she's heard the name. That works too. Ah, whatever. I'm sure it's not important. And with that, Solitaire leaves. There's only one thing left to do here: make the Scout's Pledge. Music: Island  Of course! It would be silly to leave without doing that, right? Euchre pledges to do his best in the Monster Scout Challenge.And that's it for the Scout's Pledge. Simple enough. But what's this on the stone? When Euchre examines the stone, he can just make out some writing carved upon it. 'To honour he that did protect these islands seven, upon the Mount we set this Stone. The writing is almost all worn away. It's hard to make much sense of it.An ancient stone tablet with worn lettering? That's sure to never come up again.  Some of you scouts still haven't taken the pledge.But what is this mysterious voice?  It's just one of the Monster Scout Organisation officials. That was a let-down. You're planning on entering the Monster Scout Challenge, aren't you? Well, we've just heard that preparations for the opening ceremony are complete. The ceremony will begin soon. You should hurry to Domus Isle. I'm going to stay here and look for more stragglers.What great timing! There's nothing else for Euchre to do here on Infant Isle for the time being, so he might as well go back to Domus Isle. He could go back through the cave, or...  ...he could take the handy shortcut that leads down the mountain. It leads to the top of the ladder near the burnt-out campfire. This is only one-way, though, so any time Euchre wants to come back up he'll have to go through the cave again. Before Euchre goes back, though, why not stop off at the scoutpost? They might have some new information. Music: Scoutpost  It's due to take place on Domus Isle, in the main square in front of HQ.That's nothing new, though. Maybe someone else will have something interesting to say.  Speaking of which, did you hear what the prize is going to be this year? Something called the Scout's Mark. Very old and valuable, apparently.That's definitely more useful than anything else that's been said! Now Euchre knows what he's entering the tournament for, at the very least. That's really all there is to do on Infant Isle, though. Now would be an opportune time to check out monster storage, though, so let's do that before heading off.  This is a counter that's at the back of every scoutpost, and it allows you to take monsters in and out of storage.  Here's the menu you're greeted with when you go to monster storage. Switch Monsters allows you to swap your active team with stored monsters, whereas Substitute allows you to swap your substitutes with stored monsters. View allows you to look at all your monsters, in storage or otherwise. Release allows you to delete a monster you own from your list. Help gives some useful information. Of note is the fact that experience points filter through from your active party to all your other monsters. Substitutes gain less than your active party but more than your stored monsters, so if you're trying to level something up put it in your substitutes or active party. That's pretty much everything that hasn't been gone over already. Now that that's done with, it's time for Euchre to head back to Domus Isle in order to attend the Monster Scout Challenge opening ceremony. Music: None  We'll be doing that next time, so see you then! Extra: The Monster Library Welcome back to the Monster Library! Today, we've got three new monsters to showcase. Shadow   First off, we have the Shadow. These guys get the skills Reaper and Defence Boost when scouted, and just Reaper when fused. They have the trait Zammeister, which increases the power of Zam (darkness) spells and lowers their MP cost. They have some elemental and status resistances to go with that, being vulnerable to Zap (light) spells, absorbing Zam spells, and being immune to Whack (instant death) spells. Their skill, Reaper, is pretty good. It starts off with Helm Splitter, which has a chance to lower the target's defence while doing damage. It also costs 0 MP. Suffice to say that having Helm Splitter this early is incredibly good and you should probably invest in or pass on the skill just for that. As well as this, Reaper gives tier 1 and 2 Zam spells, tier 1 and 2 Whack spells, and tier 1 and 2 ice breath, as well as a couple of status effect moves. Really, Helm Splitter at 3 Skill Points is the main event here, but the rest isn't bad either, especially the Whack spells. Dracky   Drackies are one of the three starters, and are by far the fastest. I've already gone over their skills, trait and resistances in the first update, so I'll skip straight to Dark Knight. Dark Knight focuses clearly on Zam abilities and not much else. It gives the tier 1 and 2 Zam spells, the two Zam-elemental physical attacks, a couple of support abilities (Tap Dance, which drains MP, and War Cry, which attempts to deprive the enemy party of their next turn), Weakening Wallop (which does damage and lowers attack) and Zam Guard (which lowers damage from Zam-elemental attacks). Tap Dance is pretty awful, and War Cry doesn't really fit with the rest of the set, but the rest of the abilities are pretty solid. Lips   Lips get the skills Hypnotist and Wisdom Boost when scouted, and just Hypnotist when fused. They don't have any trait, and they are immune to Drain Magic. Hypnotist gives access to Snooze (sleep), Dazzle and Fuddle (confuse) skills and not much else. It does give Tongue Lashing, which we've already seen, and it also gives Confusion Guard and Sleep Guard. These lower the chance of being inflicted with the corresponding ailment, as their names suggest. It's a good skill if you want to lock down an enemy, but the effects won't always hit and some of the nastier enemies may be immune to the effects anyway. Tongue Lashing is always good, though - lowering defence to 1 is incredible. Epicmissingno fucked around with this message at 01:43 on Jul 26, 2017 |
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Jul 13, 2017 13:31
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I'm confused. It looks like fusing monsters is actually worse than
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Jul 13, 2017 17:45
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FredMSloniker posted:I'm confused. It looks like fusing monsters is actually worse than I'm sure Epicmissingno will go into more detail on it once we start actually fusing stuff, but the general gist is it follows Persona/SMT logic: you can actually choose the skills on the stuff you get from fusion, plus some of the best things cannot be scouted.
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Jul 13, 2017 18:56
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FredMSloniker posted:I'm confused. It looks like fusing monsters is actually worse than Serefin99 has already said something about this, but I feel that I should elaborate. Basically when you fuse two monsters together you can pick three skills for them. The list of skills you can choose consists of everything that the component monsters have, plus the resultant monster's skill, plus any skills that the components' skills form the prerequisites for. Yes, there are skills that you can only get by having specific skills on your components. There are others that require a certain number of points in another skill. It's also worth noting that stat-boosting skills can only be obtained from scouting. Basically fusing gives you more and better skills on your monsters, among other benefits.
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Jul 13, 2017 21:28
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