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Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!

megane posted:

Honestly, the main effect of the fate-change stuff for me is undermining all the drama and making everyone look incompetent, since Crevanille just sort of... averts their dramatic tragedies with no particular effort? Oh, horrors, for she will waste away in despair at the death of her belov- uh, oh, I guess she's fine, because Crevanille chatted with her a bit. Oh, woe, for he has lain down his life in battle against a friend, what a senseless war to- wait, no, he's okay, because Crevanille took his kid shopping.

This is the point I raised back when I talked (and corrected myself) about the Fate system.

For characters like Elena and Mortis, it's fine. They were already part of the Fate system in the original PS2 version. But characters like your Familiar and Muntzer were originally unavoidably killed, and going back 10 years later to add them into the system that lets you save them kind of undermines the emotional impact of them as characters.

Like you said, Muntzer would normally have fought to the death with one of his best friends because they happened to be on the opposite sides of an ideology. They disagreed, but they both understood what was happening and what they would have to do. There were no hard feelings or anything between them (as evident by the fact that they both had a friendly chat in Alfonse's own home despite them about to go to war against each other). As a result of this, Diana would have had to come to terms with Muntzer's death and the fact that he was struck down by her childhood friend. She also would have had to do this while fighting a war on two fronts, since she would have been the last surviving member of the Royal Guard (that we know of).

But all of that emotional turmoil more than likely doesn't happen in Over Reloaded, because you can make it so that Muntzer doesn't die anymore. And the way to do this isn't through Crevanille convincing Muntzer or Alfonse having a lack of killing intent because of Crevanille and the gang helping Eliza. Instead, we just listened to a random girl tell us about her dad and followed her on a shopping trip.

On the other hand, I like Muntzer. I can understand players who can't handle sad endings for characters in their games and wish there was a way to make everything better for them.

Evil Fluffy posted:

I figured Muntzer was going to be 100% dead since it kept showing off his adopted daughter so it's neat to see that you can actually save him and if he doesn't join us as a bonus character then he's a jerk. :colbert:

He does trip all the death flags. Gruff Anime Dad, adopted daughter that he doesn't quite know how to bond with yet, a promise to spend more time with her once he wraps up the war, the daughter's approaching birthday, and a possible(?) romantic interest that believed him to be undefeatable.

Also the fact that he's over 30. That's a big target, right there.

Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 16:47 on Aug 14, 2021

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Ardeem
Sep 16, 2010

There is no problem that cannot be solved through sufficient application of lasers and friendship.
You know... you don't have to save him, and the first time I played this game I didn't have a guide so I missed pretty much all of the changeable fates, so my new game+ run where I could go back and fix a lot of my mistakes had an entirely different impact.

megane posted:

Let's hang out with Hien, Eliza, Yuni, and Maggie.

Also, stick with the bear costume.

JamMasterJim
Mar 27, 2010
Yeah, my first run was pretty disastrous.
Familiar dead, new familiar killing herself to bring old one back, Muntzer dead, and a few others too. And killed a few possible romances before they could even start.
That is a hell of a motivator to start a new playthrough.

marshmallow creep
Dec 10, 2008

I've been sitting here for 5 mins trying to think of a joke to make but I just realised the animators of Mass Effect already did it for me

I low key love games that let you do that. It motivates me to have a "perfect run" and at least one "disaster run." Like the Mass Effect and Dragon Age games, where you can chase off or murder pretty much your entire party at various points.

That's assuming replays are relatively quick. I'm not sure how fast Growlanser IV is compared to II or III, but I remember those games were just too slow for me to keep interested in multiple runs.

Ardeem
Sep 16, 2010

There is no problem that cannot be solved through sufficient application of lasers and friendship.
Going back with endgame rings and stones and stat boosting items lets you rofflestomp most of the game, and is basically the only way to meet the prereqs for the evil ending, because the other option is savescumming the fight against the first monster until Regina misses twice and lets you get the kill.

Melomane Mallet
Oct 11, 2012

I'm bad; I'm just not born that way.
Yuni, Eliza, Leona, and Maggie. Let's give the new costume a spin.

Yeah, when the game was new, there was one guide for it, written by someone playing the JP version, and who clearly did not speak a lick of Japanese. I only qualified for seven character endings, but did manage to alter the fates of all but two characters. And also, real life is frequently lovely and awful for no good reason, so let me give my video game characters the happiest endings I can.

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

Pretty sure everyone gets their 3rd limits as part of their character quests If they've gotten their second. Not sure what happens if you do the events before getting their second.

Yuni new costume duh

CremePudding
Oct 30, 2011
You can tell Muntzer is going to be fine in that CG because his hat is still perfectly glued to his head horizontally :v:

CremePudding fucked around with this message at 12:21 on Aug 15, 2021

Omobono
Feb 19, 2013

That's it! No more hiding in tomato crates! It's time to show that idiota Germany how a real nation fights!

For pasta~! CHARGE!

CremePudding posted:

You can tell Muntzer is going to be fine in that CG because his hat is still perfectly glued to his hat horizontally :v:

That kinda sucked any gravitas from the scene, yeah.

Yuni, Sidney, Eliza, Remus.

Ardeem
Sep 16, 2010

There is no problem that cannot be solved through sufficient application of lasers and friendship.
Ah, so that's the real reason that people doubt that Alph is a real Royal Knight, he hasn't had a hat surgically grafted to his head like the the other two have.

Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!

Ardeem posted:

You know... you don't have to save him, and the first time I played this game I didn't have a guide so I missed pretty much all of the changeable fates, so my new game+ run where I could go back and fix a lot of my mistakes had an entirely different impact.

Yeah, but when stuff like that is made an option, it's real hard to not see it as the canon, and to feel like you screwed something up. It's like saying that you could just not read a page of a book.

But again, I do understand people that like these kinds of changes. It's not like I'm above getting excited for characters being retconned back to life when it's a character I really like.

JamMasterJim posted:

Yeah, my first run was pretty disastrous.
Familiar dead, new familiar killing herself to bring old one back, Muntzer dead, and a few others too. And killed a few possible romances before they could even start.
That is a hell of a motivator to start a new playthrough.

I didn’t screw up any romance options, but that's mainly because I latch on to certain characters right away and then devote no attention at all to the rest. I think the only endings I qualified for were the ones for the characters in my battle party (which I basically never swapped around). I'm boring that way.

marshmallow creep posted:

I low key love games that let you do that. It motivates me to have a "perfect run" and at least one "disaster run." Like the Mass Effect and Dragon Age games, where you can chase off or murder pretty much your entire party at various points.

I do appreciate games with disaster runs, because I am constantly one mild personal offence away from wanting to destroy everything in a game. I am a nominal hero, at best. Any game that has the option for me to throw my hands up when I've had enough bullshit and set fire to everything is all right by me.

Ardeem posted:

Going back with endgame rings and stones and stat boosting items lets you rofflestomp most of the game, and is basically the only way to meet the prereqs for the evil ending, because the other option is savescumming the fight against the first monster until Regina misses twice and lets you get the kill.

This. NG+ runs don't take long at all. Most of the 30 hours I've put in to the LP save file are the result of letting dialog play out and grinding skills/levels/cash. Abusing end game rings, M2 Spellstones, and Blessing Bells can make you untouchable from beginning to end, so playtime comes down mostly to what your goal is on a NG+ run.

Melomane Mallet posted:

And also, real life is frequently lovely and awful for no good reason, so let me give my video game characters the happiest endings I can.

This is the view I understand the most when it comes to retconning previously deathbound characters.

MythosDragon posted:

Pretty sure everyone gets their 3rd limits as part of their character quests If they've gotten their second. Not sure what happens if you do the events before getting their second.

I couldn't recall how that worked for Crevanille though, which is another reason why I didn't try grinding for it. It could be story linked, which would have had me wasting a bunch of time.

CremePudding posted:

You can tell Muntzer is going to be fine in that CG because his hat is still perfectly glued to his head horizontally :v:

Ardeem posted:

Ah, so that's the real reason that people doubt that Alph is a real Royal Knight, he hasn't had a hat surgically grafted to his head like the the other two have.

"I'm sorry Dame Silverneil, the wounds were severe. We've done all we can, but... well, the next 30 minutes are going to be crucial. If that glue doesn't bond... we may have no choice but to amputate. If that happens, Sir Muntzer will never be able to wear hats again." :v:

And then the giant gorilla crashes in through the ceiling with Gorilla Glue and Dame Silverneil goes "Of course." :j:

Omobono posted:

That kinda sucked any gravitas from the scene, yeah.

I think the random sun shower contributed to that as well. The rain starts as soon as Munter is wounded and then stops as soon as the battle ends, as if there was a stage crew just off screen directing it.

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

Crev gets his stuff from the arena.

Evil Fluffy
Jul 13, 2009

Scholars are some of the most pompous and pedantic people I've ever had the joy of meeting.
Muntzer is also over 30 years old? poo poo I'm surprised he has died of natural caused after living to such a ripe old age, to say nothing of Grandfather Time Hien being in his 40s.


Also give Yuni her bear costume again. The angry/sad Bear and Salmon make it better than everything else by a mile.

vilkacis
Feb 16, 2011

So this gruff anime dad didn't die? Impossible! I'm pretty sure you broke reality somehow and it may have horrible consequences further down the line.


New costume isn't bad but bear costume 4lyf

Hang with Yuni regardless of outfit though, as well as Remus, Hien, and Leona.

Stabbey_the_Clown
Sep 21, 2002

Are... are you quite sure you really want to say that?
Taco Defender
True, being able to prevent deaths can undermine the impact of those deaths. However, a lot of media tends to use the unfortunate trope of "female character dies to further character growth of male character", and Yuni dying to a nameless traitor, after the fighting is already over would fit perfectly in that zone.

Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!

MythosDragon posted:

Crev gets his stuff from the arena.

Right, I forgot. He needs to get first in the Physical Damage competition or something, which basically means I need to create a set up where he will reliably deal 999 damage. I'll leave that for later on, I guess.

Evil Fluffy posted:

Muntzer is also over 30 years old? poo poo I'm surprised he has died of natural caused after living to such a ripe old age, to say nothing of Grandfather Time Hien being in his 40s.

Hien being 45 blows my mind every time I think about it.

Whenever I load up the game to continue the LP, I am expecting to come back to a scene where he dies of old age. Like "The End" in Snake Eater.

vilkacis posted:

So this gruff anime dad didn't die? Impossible! I'm pretty sure you broke reality somehow and it may have horrible consequences further down the line.

Well, the ability to save him was added in Over Reloaded, so I guess you could attribute any number of terrible things happening since 2011 as a consequence of tampering with tropes beyond our control.

Stabbey_the_Clown posted:

True, being able to prevent deaths can undermine the impact of those deaths. However, a lot of media tends to use the unfortunate trope of "female character dies to further character growth of male character", and Yuni dying to a nameless traitor, after the fighting is already over would fit perfectly in that zone.

I mean, that depends on how much character you think Crevanille has as a (mostly) silent protagonist and whether he grows from potentially losing Yuni.

Not that I disagree with that trope being incredibly common, because it certainly is.



Furlough and Costume voting is still open for now. I haven't had a chance to record the next session yet because of other commitments. Hopefully I'll get to it tomorrow or the day after.

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

"Literally anyone dies to further the growth of the main character" is common

His brother, his gf, his dad, his other dad that taught him the hadouken, etc.

JamMasterJim
Mar 27, 2010

MythosDragon posted:

"Literally anyone dies to further the growth of the main character" is common

His brother, his gf, his dad, his other dad that taught him the hadouken, etc.

Not gonna lie, the death of other dad who taught him the hadouken always gets me.

Commander Keene
Dec 21, 2016

Faster than the others



MythosDragon posted:

"Literally anyone dies to further the growth of the main character" is common

His brother, his gf, his dad, his other dad that taught him the hadouken, etc.
Another one is "hero's entire hometown is destroyed to give him a reason to go on his heroic journey instead of staying at home farming dirt".

Ardeem
Sep 16, 2010

There is no problem that cannot be solved through sufficient application of lasers and friendship.

Commander Keene posted:

Another one is "hero's entire hometown is destroyed to give him a reason to go on his heroic journey instead of staying at home farming dirt".

Remus just can't be trusted with parental figures.

Evil Fluffy
Jul 13, 2009

Scholars are some of the most pompous and pedantic people I've ever had the joy of meeting.

Commander Keene posted:

Another one is "hero's entire hometown is destroyed to give him a reason to go on his heroic journey instead of staying at home farming dirt".

I think Heritage of War does both to the MC? It's been awhile since I played it and while it started out a neat game I was happy when it ended.

marshmallow creep
Dec 10, 2008

I've been sitting here for 5 mins trying to think of a joke to make but I just realised the animators of Mass Effect already did it for me

Evil Fluffy posted:

I think Heritage of War does both to the MC? It's been awhile since I played it and while it started out a neat game I was happy when it ended.

Didn't know about this game but I am loving the MC's turtleneck tank top sweater with matching wrist warmers.

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

marshmallow creep posted:

Didn't know about this game but I am loving the MC's turtleneck tank top sweater with matching wrist warmers.



YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH I LOVE HIS PANTS. I CALL THEM PROTAGONIST PANTS, HE FIGHTS WARS IN THEM, VISIBLE FROM SPACE, BUT LIVES.


Also Melvina is just, the gothiest.
And we have a top hat Chad.
Did I mention the main plot features the grittist Power rangers?


I totally plan to replay 5 on my ps2 when this lp ends and the 6 TL is finished since 6 is a sequel.

MythosDragon fucked around with this message at 23:26 on Aug 18, 2021

Evil Fluffy
Jul 13, 2009

Scholars are some of the most pompous and pedantic people I've ever had the joy of meeting.

MythosDragon posted:

YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH I LOVE HIS PANTS. I CALL THEM PROTAGONIST PANTS, HE FIGHTS WARS IN THEM, VISIBLE FROM SPACE, BUT LIVES.


Also Melvina is just, the gothiest.
And we have a top hat Chad.
Did I mention the main plot features the grittist Power rangers?


I totally plan to replay 5 on my ps2 when this lp ends and the 6 TL is finished since 6 is a sequel.

I'm kinda curious about trying 6. While I have zero desire to ever replay 5 it wasn't bad it was just a game that felt pretty ok and not like something I'd ever feel the need to replay. Using the arena to farm stat items was nice for blitzing the last stretch of the game, too.

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

It'll be my 3rd playthrough of 5. I had similar feelings my first time as my first growlanser, but on my 2nd play I respected it a lot more. At the very least its the 2nd best Growlanser we have in the west, and thats not a shabby title considering how good 4 is.

Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!
Furlough Update 5: The Science of Bloodsport



There was some support for Yuni to go back to her Costume I, but there was also a lot of radio silence from people that suggests Costume H still reigns supreme. The new costume got a little love, but not much.

So, because there was some clamour for Costume I, we’ll make that Yuni’s vacation costume. She’ll revert to Costume H once again after the Furlough. There’s only 2 costumes left (that can be worn normally), and honestly, I doubt the thread is going to throw out H in favour of them.



But, who knows? Maybe everyone will get bored of Purple Biker Jacket someday.



In the meantime, we have another furlough. Since we’ve been keeping on top of Eliza’s substory, Levan interrupts us with news of a request for her brand new odd jobs business.

What type of request?


[Levan]: At a certain home, where I am employed as a tutor, the family pet has suddenly vanished. The lady of the house has requested that we search for the pet.


Find a lost pet, huh? Hm. Sounds doable.

Not unlike the work of a detective, I suppose.

Hey, it’s all part of the business. As long as there’s a job, I’ll get it done. On that note… Hey, Crevanille, you want to lend a hand? We could take a furlough in Marquelia, do the job, and then relax. I mean, I’ll do it myself if you don’t want to… But if you do, you know where to plan your next furlough.

Well then, shall I proceed? Then please have a restful two days. First, please tell me where you’d like to go on furlough tomorrow.

The thread voted for Yuni, Maggie, Eliza, and Hien. Because Eliza was selected, we’ll need to start in Marquelia for this furlough. If this event happens and you choose to start in the player’s city on the first day, then Eliza will tell you that she’s disappointed, but will handle the request herself. She won’t be available to spend time with during Day 1 in that case.

On the other hand, agreeing to help her with this request will eat up your entire first day. Luckily for us, we can still fit in Yuni, Maggie, and Hien on Day 2.

Marquelia.

Understood.

You want to lend a hand with the lost pet?

Yes.

Sure, why not? I’m sympathetic to lost pets, since I have a minor anxiety attack any time my cat is outside past 10pm.

Oh, thanks. Honestly, I wasn’t sure where to start with it… Tell you what: let’s head out there tomorrow.

*Everyone heads to their rooms*

Admirable work, everyone.



Since we’re helping Eliza, she’ll barge in on us in the morning and immediately join up with us. Off to Marquelia we go, I suppose.

Do you remember where Levan is tutoring?

Yes.



The house in question is that one we followed Levan to during the previous furlough, near the harbour.




[Madam Vanitti]: With little Splendy gone, the children and I have been ever so distressed…


Uh, “Splendy” is the name of your missing pet, right? Can you give us the details leading up to when she went missing?


[Madam Vanitti]: Yes… This morning, I went to her room to give her breakfast. I found her collar on the floor with the chain still attached… but Splendy was nowhere to be found. Oh, where could she be? I’m certain she must be crying from hunger…


:objection: The pet was reported missing yesterday, but you just said that you discovered she was missing this morning! That’s a contradiction!

I see… For the sake of your children, we will find this wayward dog.



A-A pig…?


[Madam Vanitti]: My, yes. She has a little blue ribbon, and is just the cutest little pig you ever did see.


H-How big is she…?


[Madam Vanitti]: Well, now, let’s see… She’s about my size, I suppose…


Well, I guess it shouldn’t be too tough to find, then.

So, that pi—I mean, Splendy, do you think it’s possible she may have ventured out of town?




[Madam Vanitti]: If I take her out for walkies and she so much as sees the gate, she starts running right back home. Why, I, the kids, and my husband all tried pushing her, and she didn’t budge, no, not one inch.


Yeah, pigs can weigh like 800+ pounds. If those things don’t want to move, you sure as hell aren’t going to make them.


[Madam Vanitti]: Oh, I beg of you, the children are crying their little hearts out…


I, er… I understand. You can count on me.


[Madam Vanitti]: Oh, thank you!




I am soooo tempted to respond with this, but doing so would definitely not ingratiate ourselves to Eliza.

Oh well, next goofiest option it is.

It’s a pignapping!

That’s what I think, too.



So, there’s no doubt she’s been kidnapped. But why a pig…? Ransom, perhaps?

Nah. If ransom was the goal then bagging one of the kids would have been easier and more fruitful.

In any case, we should talk to the townsfolk and gather some eyewitness accounts on this. It’s a rather large pig, after all. No matter where you go with it, people are sure to see. We need to hurry. Who knows when the kidnapper will escape. Why don’t we try the town entrance, first?



We’d better get an explanation, since this is going to involve a mission timer (albeit a very generous one).

Yes.

First, keep in mind that there’s a time restriction. If we waste too much time, we’ll never find her. You should go talk to lots of people! That should put pressure on the suspect. The deciding factor in our investigation will be swift action, so let’s get to it!



And we’re off! We have a mission timer of 50 that drains at about 4-5 seconds per number. That means we have between 3:15 and 4:09 to get this done. The timer pauses whenever we are talking to someone or transitioning to another part of Marquelia, so 3 or 4 minutes should be more than enough time to hit up everyone we can find.



Including the guy that is 100% the pignapper because we’ve never seen him standing here until today. Unfortunately we can’t exactly accuse him without a single shred of hard evidence.



You don’t have to talk to every single person to succeed. There are only a few people in town that will say anything about the pig. Everyone else just repeats their usual generic lines.

Could it be…? …Nah.


[Vendor Girl]: What’s the matter?


Do you know anything about Splendy?


[Vendor Girl]: The pig…? I haven’t seen it around lately. …No, I’m not selling it here! I wouldn’t do that to somebody’s pet!


Don’t be upset. I wasn’t accusing you of that.

Part of me thought it was plausible, not going to lie.




[Fisherman]: Pigs? Sure, I love ‘em.




You… you didn’t eat Splendy, did you?


[Fisherman]: Haha, ha… I see where this is going. Splendy’s that pig with the blue ribbon, right? Boy, let me tell you, that there’s a pig worth eating! But I wouldn’t go committing crimes just for a change of diet. Besides, I just got back from fishing. I didn’t hear the pig was stolen until just now. If you don’t believe me, ask that old man over there. He knows all the boats that come and go from this harbor.




Thanks, Leona. You know, you could easily give us a hand by using your amazing sense of smell to track down the pig, but whatever, motivational speech is just as good… I guess.




[Old Man McBoatface]: Yes, indeed. He works very hard.


All right, looks like the Fisherman’s story checks out. Who’s left?




[Marquelay Soldier #1]: It’s been stolen, huh? That’s a shame… I’ll keep an eye out for anybody acting oddly.


I’ve just about figured out who the culprit is. Have you?

We get a choice between: The Fisherman, The Old Man, The Man outside the Inn, and “Hell if I know.”

It’s the man outside the inn.

Yes, he’s who I was thinking. He said he’s always here, but that he never saw a pig. That doesn’t make any sense! If he was telling the truth, he’d have seen Splendy being taken for a walk at least once. I think he’s lying, and there’s only one reason he’d do that.



We may have a suspect, but if he escapes or denies the crime, we’ll end up with nothing.

We should check the inn.

Good idea. He doesn’t look to be from around here, so he may be staying there. You can be pretty sharp when it comes to these things.



Let’s go check out the inn. Take note that the timer is still running during this. It’s possible to fail this mission right up to the moment you confront that guy, so don’t dawdle.




[Innkeeper]: He’s been staying here for a while now, though lately he’s been raising a bit of a ruckus.


A ruckus, you say?


[Innkeeper]: Oh, yeah. At least three times a day, a lot of noise comes from his room…


”Kind of sounds like a pig squealing, but uh… you know, you quickly learn not to ask questions in this line of work.” :v:

Sir, I have a reason to believe that is the sound of a rampaging pig being kept in your inn!


[Innkeeper]: A pig?! Wait, do you mean Madam Vanitti’s pig, Splendy? I thought it ran away…


I’m certain that your lodger has stolen her. Sir, can you please check the room for me?


[Innkeeper]: Uh… Sure.


*We fade out for a moment as the Innkeeper goes to check things out*




[Innkeeper]: That definitely was the pig in there!


Just as I thought. Sir, by no means are you to open that door, okay?


[Innkeeper]: G-Got it…


All right. This should be enough evidence. Let’s go and apprehend the criminal.




[Obviously the Pignapper]: What? Didn’t I already tell you I didn’t see any pigs?


You’re lying and we know it! We know you have that pig! She’s locked up in your room at the inn, isn’t she?


[Obviously the Pignapper]: What, you already know that!?




:unsmigghh: Make a move. We dare you.


[Obviously the Pignapper]: Ugh… All right. With the inn locked down, there’s nothing I can really do…


Laaaame. I was hoping you’d at least try and fight us.

Why did you do it?


[Obviously the Pignapper]: I figured if I pickled the meat, the fishermen would buy it…


So, that’s why… How you kept it from the innkeeper is beyond me… No matter what amount of luck you have, evil deeds will always be uncovered.




[Obviously the Pignapper]: Th-This is all the war’s fault! If I hadn’t lost my job, I wouldn’t have done this…


…Blaming the war won’t change anything. You yourself have to put forth effort to earn back what you’ve lost. While it’s true war takes away a lot, your heart won’t fill itself with sin unless you let it.


[Obviously the Pignapper]: Y-You’re right… I… I don’t know what came over me. I’ll never do anything this foolish again.


It’s okay, my man. You seem like you’ve learned your lesson, so we’ll only sentence you to 5 fights in the gladiator pit for this.

We can overlook this, I think…

Yes… As long as you repent, there’s always a chance to start over. But please keep to your promise.

Boooo!

Let’s go and report back to the client, Crevanille.



She’s waiting for you at the inn.


[Madam Vanitti]: Oh, thank you every so much! The children will be pleased as punch by this news.


That’s great. You can leave the payment with Levan.


[Madam Vanitti]: I understand. Oh, I must go tell the children! Thank you! Thank you again!


Thanks for helping, Crevanille.



Debatable.

This really hits home. After all, just a short while back, I was stressed out over finances. I wouldn’t be able to work like this without everyone’s advice. And I thank you, too, of course. I can only imagine the pain this has been to you. You’ve helped me all this time, after all. You deserve a reward for all that you’ve done.

:woop: Yay! Reward!

But that money’s for…





Hee hee… That’s all for now. One day, I’ll pay you back properly when I’ve saved up enough money.

Okay, good. I mean, the kiss was nice and all, but for a second there I was real worried we weren’t going to get paid.

This is more than enough.

I’m glad you think so! Makes me want to do even better next time!



That does it for Day 1. Sometimes a character’s substory event can take up an entire day of a furlough, so it’s important to make sure you save before starting any vacations. You never know when you may have to change your hang out plans to account for loss of time.



Eliza’s friendship rating has taken a drastic turn as a result of the time we’ve been spending with her. She’s gone from “Eh, he might be a reliable person” to “WE ARE BOUND BY THE RED STRING OF FATE!”



Day 2 will take place in No Angeles. The thread wants us to also spend time with Hien, Maggie, and Yuni, so this day will be devoted entirely to them.



We start by going to Maggie’s lab. Maggie moving into the villa is the trigger for Yuni’s substory. If you have one of the other familiar types, then their substories may already be underway by this point. I know for sure that D-PT’s substory is available as soon as the theater is opened, for example.

No problem.

Acknowledged. Thank you, Master.

*Yuni goes floating around the lab for a bit until Maggie notices her*

What are you looking for? Or are you just interested in the machinery?

Affirmative. What is the intended use of this equipment?

Well, that, in particular, is a device for measuring mana. I built it using the information I gathered from books on ancient technology.

You constructed this from ancient records? Most impressive, Maggie.

It’s really not a big deal. It’s just following a recipe. It’s the ancients who did the real work, coming up with this technology for the first time.

Negative. Your abilities have been of great assistance to Master. Is this an incorrect premise?

Yuni’s right. You’re irreplaceable.

Master has confirmed my supposition.



And these tools will improve the overall condition of the world. I submit that your accomplishments are unquestionably magnificent.

Well, gee… Thanks.

I would like nothing more than to be able to equal your contribution and be an incomparable tool. When Master needs me for something, he should not hesitate to use me.

A tool, huh? What do you think, Crevanille? Do you think of Yuni as nothing more than a tool?

While I do not know the thread’s exact feeling on this, I can at least assume by the fact that they voted for her in two Furloughs that the answer is “No.”

Don’t be ridiculous.

I do not understand. Is that not what a Familiar is? Am I not a being specifically created to be of use to Master?



Understood.

*Frayne then wanders into the lab*



Negative. Master is at this location because I requested his presence. There are many devices gathered here that have helped in our travels, so I thought it would be good to understand them more thoroughly.

You’re very enthusiastist, [sic] aren’t you? It’s admirable, always thinking of Crevanille as you do.

That is my duty.

Your master is lucky to have so talented and reliable a Familiar.

Mmm…..





You’ve been making that face more and more, recently. You’re beginning to resemble Crevanille…

I’ve heard that before.

Affirmative. Tricia has stated something like that previously.

See? So there are other people who think the same thing.

And you’re all wrong. :colbert:

The facts in evidence support your statement.

Two things can originate from different circumstances and locations and still end up resembling one another. Maybe this is just a sign that you and Crevanille are closer emotionally than you want to believe.

I… do not understand how that could be possible…

Do you hate being like Crevanille that much?



You spend too much time worrying about that kind of stuff. I might try a simpler approach to your relationship with Crevanille. Now, Frayne. What’s on your mind? Did you have some business with me?

*Frayne goes over to talk with Maggie*

Ah, yes, I did. It’s not a big deal…

It appears that this conversation will be lengthy. I suggest we leave them to it, Master. Thank you for giving me this time. It will undoubtedly aid us in our future efforts.

That’s it for Yuni’s first event. Now, in order to get Maggie’s we need to reset Frayne’s position. We need to leave the villa (or at least this screen of the villa) and return.



Want to go out sometime?

Haha, you really took me at my word, didn’t you? All right, sure. If you have some free time, I’d love to go out with you. Where were you thinking?

Maggie is now tagging along with us. Her substory is a little unclear at first, since there are no obvious hints as to what we’re supposed to do. For now, we just take her around town to the various attractions. We’ll start from square one, with the museum.



Also, there’s a new chef in town. He’s looking to open a restaurant with a focus on Marquelian cuisine, so we hire him. Now we have Iglesian and Marquelian food.



Back to what we were doing.

This is an impressive display of fine art. The displays show amazing attention to detail. It’s clear that the people who run this exhibition know what they’re doing.



I’ll see you later. Thanks for giving me the change of pace.

Maggie then leaves. Not much to that first event, but that seems to be the case with a lot of them outside of Frayne’s.



Hien is next, and I think this might be the second-to-last question he wants to ask us.

They’re useful.

They can be. But it is important not to lose sight of their true nature. For the nonce, I walk the path of the sword. But I understand that that is not for everybody. I am not saying that I am better than anyone else, only that certain paths are better suited to certain people.



In such a scenario, it is not actually necessary to put oneself in harm’s way. One can simply hide in a barrel, cast, and be done with it. This eliminates much of the strategy typically involved in battle. The usual deliberation needed in an opening move is negated.



What is most troubling is what would happen if spells were to fall into the hands of common folk. They would be used most unscrupulously, I fear.

Hien coming down firmly on one side of the gun spell control debate, I see.

We spend our remaining time chatting with Hien, then call it a day. Before the furlough is fully over with, however, there is one final scene once we’ve gone back to bed.



*pouts* Grrr. Huh.

*Crevanille gets up*

What are you doing?

Master!? Y-You have awoken…



However, after contemplating it further, I have become concerned. Master, do I resemble you? Actually, let me make a small correction: If I were to resemble you, would you be happy?

You look good just as you are.

The world isn’t ready for two Crevanilles.

This is what I believed. There is no logical merit in having a tool like myself look a certain way. Yet… I still find that I am bothered by this.



I seem to not be able to stop practicing my smile, however. It was this expression that made Frayne state I resembled you. It stands to reason, then, that if Frayne can see Master in my smile, then I can, as well.



Thank you for listening to my concerns at this late hour. Please return to your rest so that you may be prepared for the day ahead. Good night, Master.



And that’s all for Furlough #5. Before I wrap this update, I want to go into a bit more detail on the arena. This seems like the best place for it, since it’s mostly boring explanation that would distract from a main update.



I covered the different types of matches available in the arena, but I never really explained what kind of rewards you could get from each type. This is kind of important, because there is an entry fee for every match type that starts getting very expensive once you reach the ones that pay out actual good items. These entry fees can eventually clear 30,000 Ril per attempt, so you could quickly find yourself going broke if you fail one too many times.



If you plan to tackle any matches that involve you selecting a partner or fighting solo (such as 1v1, 2v2, Creature Conquest, Bronze/Silver/Gold/Platinum, and the Damage Competitions), then make sure you apply your pre-battle buffs before you register for the battle.

Once you register, the rest of your party will leave you to go up to the stands. If any of them have a buff spell that Crevanille and/or the partner doesn’t, then you won’t have access to it once the group splits up.



If you are fighting in a match where your entire party participates, then this spot right here is where you should do your pre-battle buffing. This is the last chance you have before the battle begins on the next screen.



1v1, 2v2, 4v4, and the Bronze/Silver/Gold/Platinum Classes all have the same objective. Just kill everything that comes at you. As I stated previously, these fights are all easily doable up until around the Master B/AA ranks or the Platinum Class. The enemies at these ranks are all standard enemy types and get up to about Level 40-50.



After that, things change. The higher ranks have you fighting named characters from the game. They all have generic names like “Dulkheim Soldier” or “Mercenary Captain” (Bauer), but they have the sprites and fighting styles of the main characters they are modeled after.

In this case, you’re seeing Lumis and that scrub tactician guy from all the way back in Update 2. These two are the second match of the 2v2 Master AA Rank. The last fight in this rank is against General Baker and Major Abrams.



The matches will get increasingly ridiculous from there, such as in the 4v4 Master S Rank where you fight Match 1: Simmons, Cargill, Norman, and Marler; Match 2: Bauer, Diana, Muntzer, and Bryntir; and Match 3: Chris, Alphonse, Vester, and the Death Wing Captain.

Unless you are on NG+, then it’s unlikely you will be able to clear the battles against named characters (except possibly the lower ones against Lumis/Alec, for example). The enemies in the higher ranked matches almost always have Double Strike spellstones, which let them hit you 2 or 3 times per attack.

They also have a very high stun rate, so it’s entirely possible for them to stunlock you to death before you can do anything to them. Of course, that also means that they cough up the best rewards:


-4v4-

Master S: M2 Amulet (an amazing spellstone that jacks a character’s stats up)
Master AAA: Sound Test (apparently I missed this in my playthrough, since this is how you get it)

-2v2-

Master S: A choice of a bunch of different items (or cash), but the 2 Bells of Blessing (absurdly broken item. I will explain it in a bit) are what you should grab first.
Master AAA: Same as Master S. You want to grab the 1x Bell of Blessing first.



These are the choice items from the higher ranks of 2v2 and 4v4. Bells of Blessing are the coveted prize. Bell of Blessing reduces a character’s level by 10 when used on them.

Why is that so amazing? Because their stats don’t change from the level reduction. That means you can get a Level 1 Crevanille with the stats of a Level 45 Crevanille, except then he’s going to start leveling up again like crazy because the experience curve has been reset, so the stat bumps will pile up fast.

The arena is not the only place where you can get Blessing Bells, but it is the earliest place where you can obtain them. Of course, you’ll need to be capable of beating power teams like Vester/Chris/Al/DWC first, which is a tall order at this stage of the game. The only help I can give you here (which I still doubt will help you win) is to equip your melee fighters with Stun Guard. They will tear through you otherwise, since Stun stops all movement and the ATW gauge for a good length of combat time.



As for the 1v1 fights, the prizes for all of those battles are Rings. The higher the class you win, the better the Ring will be. Master AAA/S Rank Rings can be incredibly good.

The Bronze/Silver/Gold/Platinum fights will reward you with random Spellstones. Gold and Platinum give you Level 7-8 and Level 8-9 spellstones, respectively.



The damage competitions are simply about hitting a Guardian enemy with the single strongest attack you can manage within the time limit.

For Spell Damage, the number to beat for 1st is 622, apparently held by Vester. I guess he enjoys taking a break from being shifty by hitting up our arena while we’re not around.

The 1st place prize for Spell Damage is Crevanille’s best armour. It’s going to be a little bit longer before we can manage this, though. There is one spell in particular that makes it fairly easy, but we don’t have access to it yet.



Physical Damage is similarly possible, but requires a little luck at this point in the game. If you combine multiple Thorned Powers with a lucky Critical Hit and Berserk, then Crevanille should be able to hit the damage limit. Just be cautious of the backlash damage from Berserk and Thorned Power, since it could kill Crevanille in one shot.

If you plan to use Berserk, then hold off on popping it until the timer has almost drained. You don’t want Crevanille to have a chance at attacking a second time, since it will almost certainly kill him (and you can’t stop him from attacking while he is in the Berserk state).

The prize for taking 1st in Physical Damage is Crevanille’s third Limit Ability: Swords Dance. We’ll cover that skill once I’ve managed to get it.





Lastly, there’s Creature Conquest. Creature Conquest has Crevanille and a partner face off against three other teams of 2 to see who can defeat the most enemies.

The other teams are made up of: 2x Swordsmen, 2x Archers, and 2x Mages. The enemies are a mix of Level 12 Imps and Gels that have maxed out Physical Defence.

The Archers and Spellcasters will be your worst enemy for this match type. They are able to snipe enemies that you are aiming for without having to move. Joint Spells are worth a shot at the start of the match, but the enemies tend to spread out very quickly, so you might not be able to catch many of them in a single AOE. Not yet, anyway.

The Gels are the frustrating part. They only take 1 damage from physical attacks and they Nullify most spells. Fire, Ice, and Holy can sometimes break through, but it could easily take upwards of 4 or 5 casts before you get lucky enough for that. Something I haven’t tried is using Armor Killer (higher damage against enemies with higher DEF), but I don’t know if that will actually make much difference against the little bastards.



The prize for Creature Conquest is stones. You get to pick a number of stones equal to the number of enemies you defeated, so there is no losing this battle (unless you somehow fail to kill a single enemy, which would be a feat). The Gels can cause Venom and Petrification, but you shouldn’t be fighting those things in melee combat anyway.

These stones are the ones from the Familiar Creation process. Blue Stones are the most important, since you can use those to increase the Dollhouse’s energy and get training sessions. Red and Green just provide bumps to stats like Friendliness and Outgoingness.

Blue Stones are not 1 for 1, by the way. I believe it’s a 2:1 rate. That means you need to use about 2 Blue Stones in order to get enough energy for 1 training session.



Oh, right. I forgot to mention that there is an “Inn” at the front counter. You can rest up and save by talking to this lady. It costs 3 Ril per person (so 12 for a full party, basically) after our “special owner’s discount.”

As for the lady in the middle; she handles arena records. You can go to her to see your ranking in the various match types.


And we’re done! Once we are strong enough to stand a solid chance in the toughest matches, I’ll do another short update to show off the prizes in detail (like Blessing Bells and Swords Dance).

Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 16:35 on Aug 20, 2021

Space Kablooey
May 6, 2009


Psycho Knight posted:

Furlough Update 5: The Science of Bloodsport

They can be. But it is important not to lose sight of their true nature. For the nonce, I walk the path of the sword. But I understand that that is not for everybody. I am not saying that I am better than anyone else, only that certain paths are better suited to certain people.


... Does nonce has other uses I'm not aware of...?



So this is why she lets us put her in this costume :v:

Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!

Space Kablooey posted:

... Does nonce has other uses I'm not aware of...?

So this is why she lets us put her in this costume :v:

He's saying "For the time being," which you can use "nonce" for. The other meaning is basically "just this once."

Given how she thinks of herself, she'd probably wear a full clown costume if Crevanille asked her.

That said, a lot of her outfits are awful stylish for someone that pays no mind to their outer appearance.

Evil Fluffy
Jul 13, 2009

Scholars are some of the most pompous and pedantic people I've ever had the joy of meeting.
Are the arena setups largely the same between games? I think 5 also had the various solo/team fights and creature conquest was how you farmed +stat items since you got something like 1 +str item per gel killed and you could wipe out a dozen or so with the right setup.


:allears:

vilkacis
Feb 16, 2011

It's a pignapping!

...it would make for a pretty good thread title.


I wonder if it's better to be an "admirable" person or a "wonderful" one. Probably the latter?



Same. Bear costume best costume.

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

Gotta catch up, been difficult to get the time and quiet the past few days.

McTimmy
Feb 29, 2008
Ha, dead guys being on the arena ranking list is funny.

Ardeem
Sep 16, 2010

There is no problem that cannot be solved through sufficient application of lasers and friendship.
The spellstone that breaks any pretense that the arena fights without race conditions have difficulty is level 6 and can be farmed in Silver by beating up some level 21 bears.

Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!

Ardeem posted:

The spellstone that breaks any pretense that the arena fights without race conditions have difficulty is level 6 and can be farmed in Silver by beating up some level 21 bears.

Which one in particular are you talking about? I know of a few ways that you can overcome the arena early on (Invisible spam, abusing EXP Up stones), but I'm not seeing a Level 6 in my inventory at the moment that's jumping out.

I'm just curious as to what cheese method I'm forgetting.

McTimmy posted:

Ha, dead guys being on the arena ranking list is funny.

And yet there's no Dixon, which is shameful. If you're going to let dead characters rank in the arena, then at least give a call out to Gruff Anime Dad. Unless he's supposed to be the "Furtive Man."

MythosDragon posted:

Gotta catch up, been difficult to get the time and quiet the past few days.

This should be a good opportunity. Lot of stuff happened this week that has slowed me down somewhat.

Granted, I am starting work on the next main update in a few minutes.

vilkacis posted:

I wonder if it's better to be an "admirable" person or a "wonderful" one. Probably the latter?

Admirable is what bros say to other bros. Wonderful is clearly too girly for manly man Remus.

Evil Fluffy posted:

Are the arena setups largely the same between games? I think 5 also had the various solo/team fights and creature conquest was how you farmed +stat items since you got something like 1 +str item per gel killed and you could wipe out a dozen or so with the right setup.

Generations was even longer ago than Wayfarer for me, so I can't recall exactly. I think Growlanser II had a very basic arena with only Easy, Normal, Hard classes and a few unlockable Bonus battles. Growlanser III's I think was more in line with what we see in IV, with basically everything except Creature Conquest. I would imagine that V and VI stuck with the setup that III established and maybe added to it a little.

Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 17:01 on Aug 20, 2021

Ardeem
Sep 16, 2010

There is no problem that cannot be solved through sufficient application of lasers and friendship.
Mirage is a level 6 green and lets you learn Invisible and Magic Shell.

MythosDragon
Jan 3, 2016

Bit uh, bit late in mentioning this, but If I remember correctly you get forced into the furloughs eventually and if you wait till you get more party members before the 5th furlough, you get 3 days instead of two.

Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!

Ardeem posted:

Mirage is a level 6 green and lets you learn Invisible and Magic Shell.

Okay, so Invisible spam is what you were talking about. Yeah, using that sucks a lot of the difficulty out of the arena. You actually don't need to grind in the arena for that stone. Payton just sells it at his shop on the other side of town for like 2,800 Ril, which I think is roughly the amount you have to pay as an entry fee to Silver Class anyway.

The arena only has any semblance of difficulty for a brief period of time. By the time it opens, your characters are already scaled to the point that any matches below Master B or Gold Class will be a complete cakewalk. From there, you only need to be strong (or cheesy) enough to get your hands on the Bells of Blessing. Once you get those, the difficulty curve of the entire game goes out the window (with the exception of gimmick missions where you can't brute force your way through it).

Of course, first time players won't have any idea about how utterly broken Blessing Bells are.

MythosDragon posted:

Bit uh, bit late in mentioning this, but If I remember correctly you get forced into the furloughs eventually and if you wait till you get more party members before the 5th furlough, you get 3 days instead of two.

That's something I have never tested, for the obvious reason of it would require me to replay upwards of 2 or 3 hours of game.

As far as I know, there's no downside to taking the furloughs as soon as they are available, since the characters that join later have fewer steps in their substories. Granted, I'm sure there's some kind of strategy that uses it in a perfect Social Link run or something.

Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!
Update 24: Too Many Missions



We’re off to a quick start. These scenes kick in as soon as Furlough 5 finishes up. Strangely, you don’t get these scenes if you don’t take a Furlough. Weird.

Anyway, the graphics are all hosed up again and I can’t fix them like I usually do, so be prepared for some ghostly apparitions.

I saw this coming, but curse him all the same! And that Cargill!

To be fair, you were a complete moron for trusting Cargill. A blind man could still see Cargill’s untrustworthiness from the next town over.


[Aide]: I didn’t think he’d won Cargill over.


…Hmph! “President Ludwig” or not, I still have my grip on the senate. He won’t get his way! Of course, now that it’s come to this, I do have another plan…

I’m sure it will go just as well as the last one.



This next scene doesn’t kick in until we leave No Angeles. Thankfully, I was able to fix the graphics on this one.

I see… Well, it can’t be helped, then. I suppose he’ll have to meet with an unfortunate accident.

I understand. By the way, there was a rumor that caught my ear…

What?

As it happens, Deringer has contacted Colonel Lichtmann.

Hm. I see. I was no good, so he set his sights there?

What will you do?



Understood. The arrangements for the emergency voting powers will be completed soon.

Fantastic. Once those pass, I won’t need Parliament’s annoying approval to pass new law.

I see we’ve gone from zero to fascist, just as expected.

Also, I guess Dulkheim is modeled after France? There’s a President, Senate, and Parliament, so it’s not modeled after Germany, England, or the USA.

The world will soon revolve around you, Your Excellency…



Anyway, at least we’re done with that for the time being. I really hate any scene with Cargill in it, because he’s just such a massive rear end kisser.



Our target is Dulkheim… again. We tried to get there once already and ended up getting distracted for an entire update plus a furlough. To get there, we need to head north from Sunsail, back to where we helped save Alfonse’s rear end.

He’s still holding down the fort, so we’ll have to make the push through the Valkanian forces by ourselves.



Just like the last time we came up this way, there are a bunch of Valkanians roaming around. You may be able to dodge the first group, but this group here is unavoidable since they hang around the narrow little path that heads further north.



The next area is much more open, so you shouldn’t have any trouble avoiding the patrols. Normally I would erase every enemy standing in our way, but this next leg of the journey is going to be very draining on our resources. We are about to fight another gauntlet of missions, and while it is possible to heal up in between, it is a pain in the rear end to do so.

Make sure you do your buffing here before heading to the next screen. Also, it would be very wise to have Magic Shell on. At the very least, you should have Resist.




[Captain Marler]: Not quite yet. We should have time to wait for reinforcements. When they get here, we’ll go.


[Dulkheim Soldier #1]: Understood, sir.





[Dulkheim Soldier #2]: Captain! Incoming enemies!


[Captain Marler]: What!?




Which generic nobody were you, again? I don’t recall.


[Captain Marler]: You know him?


[Dulkheim Soldier #1]: He was in that experimental spell unit. He’s a Ruin Child like us. But we were immediately transferred to a different base, so I don’t know him all that well.


Wait, how come this loser wasn’t subjected to the torture prison? That’s not fair. I thought all the Ruin Children were forced into that.


[Captain Marler]: All right, prepare for a fight! And fight defensively until our reinforcements can get here!


[Dulkheim Soldier #3]: Yes, sir!




All right, Mission 1 time. As Frayne just said, we need to defeat the Dulkheim force on the other side of the bridge before their reinforcements can arrive (represented by a mission timer). There are four archers positioned along the bridge, a healer and a Mage on the far right cliff, and then that big mass of enemies we just saw around Marler.





Tweedle-dumbass immediately paints a target on his and his brother’s backs. The two of them can cast a powered up special version of Lightning that travels the entire length of the bridge. Magic Shell will nullify this of course, but you should aim to kill at least one of the brothers before they can get a second or third cast off.

Lightning does hurt quite a bit, even with Resist applied (it dealt about 180 damage to both Crevanille and Leona at one point, despite both of them having Resist on). On top of all the archer fire you’ll be dealing with, it can really put you in a tough spot if you aren’t careful.



Have your caster or ranged units deal with one of the twins before shifting focus to these two on the far right of the cliff. They love to cast High Buff spells and, while you can’t really stop them before they get them off, you can at least make sure that they won’t be healing anyone for the rest of the fight.

Your melee units should be running up the bridge, taking out the archers as they advance.



Once you get close enough, Marler will stop hiding his forces behind the Pikachu Twins and start advancing on you. Be careful about this, because if you wade too far into the group, then you could get stunlocked from all the attacks. There are a lot of melee units here in a tight space.


[Captain Marler]: Gah! Th-They’re so strong… Their prior victory wasn’t luck, after all…


Make sure to kill all the other soldiers before taking down Marler. You need to defeat every enemy in order to get a Mission Complete, and the next segment tends to kick in as soon as Marler is finished off.




[Captain Marler]: What!? Lord Ordinale of the Royal Guard!?


Marler then says “gently caress that noise” and bails. That’s one mission down.

Superlative, everyone.

Lord Ordinale, it is a pleasure, but why are you here?

I heard about an imminent operation by Dulkheim, so I came here to make the first move. But we’ll talk later! Let’s give pursuit for now. You go, and once I handle my men, I’ll be right behind.

Sure, leave the heavy lifting to us, I guess. Thanks, Al.

Ah, I’m only kidding around with you. I don’t mind single-handedly crushing an entire country. Besides, you’re still cool.



Damnit… not again… This scene triggers as soon as we move off of Aida Bridge (in either direction), so I can’t fix the graphics issue here, either. Sorry.

Oh, and I guess this is the super awesome weapon that King Valkania was alluding to.



Get out of my way…


[Valkania Soldier #1]: Our military is occupying this area. We cannot let you pass!


I have no time for this. You get one more warning: get out of my way!


[Valkania Soldier #1]: Ngh…


*The Valkania soldier starts backing off, but a familiar face appears from out of frame*




[Valkania Soldier #1]: Miss Regina…


You’re that woman from before…

Long time no see, handsome. I bet you’re here to destroy this, but you’ll have to get past me.

*Regina attacks Bryntir twice, but he blocks both hits*

Not bad…

You too, but we’re the ones who’ll win. Get him!

*The archer, soldier, and Regina all attack at once, which breaks through Bryntir’s guard*

Tch!

*Bryntir retreats*


[Valkania Soldier #1]: H-Hold it!


Don’t go after him! You’ll just end up getting killed. Besides… I’ve been given orders not to mess with him too much.



There’s a lot of conflicting forces shifting around behind the scenes, it seems.

We’ll deal with them once we cross them, though. For now, let’s keep looking ahead. We’re on the map that leads to Aida Ruins. This is going to be your closest recovery point, as much of a pain as it will be to get to.



There are groups of Dulkheim Soldiers crawling around all over this area, which makes it a hassle to get around. Straight north from this screen is where the Aida Ruins are. If you recall, there was a bed in there next to the boss chamber (the room where we found the small spellcannon).

If you need a full heal and Knack uses restored, then that’s your best option. The nearest transgate is all the way back near Sunsail, which would require you to hike back through multiple screens of Valkanian Soldiers.



When you’ve healed (or smugly assumed you are fine and don’t need it), head south to the next screen and then south again until you get to the spot in the screenshot above.

You know the deal. Buff up again before continuing.




[Captain Marler]: Forget about me. Prepare for a defensive battle. The unit after us will be here soon.


[Dulkheim Captain]: Understood. Sir, you should leave the rest to us and get your wounds treated back to [sic] the fort.


[Captain Marler]: No. I will not retreat from the battlefield.




Please, you’re going to wish you were facing off against Alfonse. You have no idea what’s headed your way right now.


[Captain Marler]: You think I’ll just be in the way, then, huh? Okay, I’ll leave the operation to you. Buy as much time as you can. But if you think it’s getting too rough, you pull out, understand?


[Dulkheim Captain]: I-Isn’t this place of strategic significance?


[Captain Marler]: Yes, but you still have to know when you’re beat. It’s better to regroup and win than die in a lost cause.


[Dulkheim Captain]: Yes, sir!


*Marler starts slowly moving off screen, but our heroes arrive before he gets too far*



That man seems to be quite popular.

This kitten has claws! …Metaphorrrically!

…Was that second part supposed to be a cat pun?

Also, welcome to the party, Leona. About time you said something.

Be careful, everyone.




[Dulkheim Captain]: But we must buy time for the captain to retreat. Okay, there’s nothing to fear, people. There are only four!


You poor, dumb, naïve, ignorant child.



If this is your first playthrough, then don’t worry about Marler. He’s not the goal of this mission and will more than likely escape before you can reach him. You should turn your attention towards the onslaught of enemy units that immediately try and dogpile you at the start of the mission.

Knacks like Pierce or Circle Strike work really well here. There are also a lot of target opportunities for Joint Spells, since everyone is grouped so close together. There are a few casters on the left and in the south, but overall the enemy is mainly melee focused.



As for me, I will be adhering to the “Kill ‘em all” philosophy. I send Crevanille and Leona to tear through the soldiers on the left and catch up to Marler so that we can kick his rear end again. He still escapes, but at least it was a story mandated one and not a leisurely stroll kind. He coughs up a decent ring if you manage to kick him out of the map instead of letting him slip away.


[Dulkheim Captain]: Yes, sir! Listen, everyone. Captain Marler will be in danger if they break through, so stand strong.


[Dulkheim Archer #1]: Let’s do our best for the captain!




After Marler has escaped, the battle will continue for a while as normal. Eventually, Alfonse will arrive and help you out.

Lord Ordinale!

I will take part in the battle, too. I’d guess that taking out 35 of them should force them to retreat!

The mission goal now becomes “Kill 35 enemies.” The enemies you’ve defeated before Alfonse shows up are still counted, so chances are you will already be about a third of the way towards that goal by the time he arrives.



The game tells you how many you have defeated, as well as how many Alfonse has defeated. I’m not sure if there is some practical reason for this, or if it’s just meant to put pressure on you by having Al roam around trying to kill steal.



Despite my best efforts, Alfonse manages to snag two kills. I really wanted a clean sweep, but Leona couldn’t keep up with the number of reinforcements arriving from the north and Alfonse eventually wandered into striking distance. Crevanille had the south on full lockdown, as you would expect from him.



Hey, it’s Bauer! How have you been, buddy?


[Dulkheim Soldier #4]: You’re Colonel Lichtmann’s…


Never mind that. Your captain has reached the fort, there’s no need to continue this!

After killing 35 enemies, Bauer will arrive and force any remaining units to retreat to the north.

If I recall correctly, he’s who defeated the Death Wing Brigade.

Look, I don’t want to fight you guys. If you let us go, we’ll leave without any trouble.

Hm, to do battle with the warrior who vanquished the Death Wing Brigade…



I say let them go.

Yeah. Despite the philosophy I just said I followed, Bauer is still our pal and hasn’t done anything to cross us (at least not yet). We can look the other way for him.

Thanks. I doubt either of us wants to fight pointlessly. In any case, it’s time to go. But I’m sure we’ll meet again.

*Bauer leaves and we get a Mission Complete*

I like this mission. There’s no bullshit. It’s just a small area with a ton of enemies and the game lets you go hog wild on them in whatever way you want.

We did it. That should stop any Dulkheim incursions for the time being.

Superlative, everyone.



We just had a furlough, Yuni. We can’t justify taking another one so soon after. I will not be making a third attempt at getting to those blasted ruins.

If resting is desired, Trockmere is located directly to the south.

It’s all enemy territory from this point on. Be careful.

It’s been enemy territory since we left the fort near Sunsail. So nothing has changed.

Before we continue, we can talk to Al again for a juicy little motivator.

I recommend heading to Trockmere to prepare. It’s close by, to the south. Hm, speaking of travel, you all have some kind of teleportation spell, correct?

You mean the Transgate?

Yes. If you set one up near Trockmere, it should let you avoid a lot of combat.

Please, God, yes. Let’s get our asses to Trockmere and get that gate set up.



We leave the screen to the south, but curiously, we don’t transition right away. Instead, the camera pans back up to Alfonse as he walks towards the border gate.



But I can’t… let…

*Alfonse then collapses onto his back*



Luckily Chris was apparently in the area for some reason or another.

You moron. What are you doing, lazing about in enemy territory like this?

Brother…

You’re the lord of the Ordinale family, you know. You shouldn’t let others see you like this.

Sorry. You’re right. For pride’s sake, I must stand tall at all times.



Okay, brother.

That was a little strange, but at least Chris was there to help Alfonse. Having him pass out on the ground, alone, in the middle of Dulkheim territory probably would have ended badly for him otherwise.



As for us, we have another screen of Dulkheim soldiers to fight through. That Transgate is so tantalizingly close, but don’t let that make you reckless. You are probably beaten up from the last mission and it is possible for the sheer number of Dulkheim soldiers to overwhelm you if you aren’t careful.



Did something happen?

When you get the near bottom of this screen, everyone will stop and Yuni will mention that there’s some kind of commotion up ahead. This is your cue to buff and heal again.


Check out the cutscene: Forest escape

Oh, hey. We’re back in anime land for this one. Must be a PSP-exclusive character involved.







That’s a mean looking bastard.



*panting* Are you all right, Miss Pamela?!

*panting*



*panting* We’re almost to Trockmere! Hang in there a little longer!

*panting* I’m so sorry… for dragging you into this!

*panting* Don’t mention it! After all… you saved my life!

Aah!



Look out!





Here’s another one of the intro shots.

My, my, what do we have here?



Are you what they call “love birds”?

Just when did they…?

Ah…!



These vermin who interfere with Master Vester… I simply cannot stand them.

All right. Looks like we finally know who those two are working for. Not that it’s that surprising, I suppose.



A little excitement can be just the spice one needs to add flavour to life.



But, on the other hand, too much spice spoils the dish. I think, that the two of you could use some watering down.

Ah, yes. Cooking metaphors. Second only to chess in terms of stupid poo poo that villains say to make themselves sound sophisticated.

It seems that someone thinks that he’s a chef.

Ugh… that woman’s attitude is pissing me off!

Meline’s whiny voice is pissing me off. Meline is voiced in English by Cristina Valenzuela, who also voices D-RM, Frayne, and Leona. She’s doing a very spoiled-brat type of voice for Meline, though.

Cynthia is voiced by Michelle Ruff, who also does Regina and D-YN. Vester is David Vincent, which I don’t think I mentioned before, who is also the voice of Vallery.

Pamela is voiced by Karen Strassman, who also voices Eliza. Magnus is voiced by Patrick Seitz, who doesn’t have any other roles in this game.

Meline… we are in Master Vester’s presence. Don’t be so crude.

But, Cynthia!





It seems you’re safe. Though the current situation does not bode well.

Who are these people? Wait. Isn’t that girl Meline…?

What a troublesome group…

They won’t be a problem if we kill them all.

My thoughts exactly, jerkwads.

Wh-What!?



We need to save Magnus and Pamela from the anime twins and Sephinot.



The Summoned Beasts are everywhere, but they do have a weakness to Holy and Wind, so try and stick with those as far as magic attacks are concerned.

Unfortunately, they also have a natural chance of nullifying spells, so don’t be surprised if your spells completely fail against them sometimes.



If we can reach Trockmere, I have a plan… We can’t give up!

Leave this to us.

Thank you, Crevanille. We’re counting on you.

Thanks. We’ll try and endure them!

Magnus and Pamela will start the battle trapped in a circle of Summoned Beasts. They won’t be able to start their escape until we give them an opening by eliminating the monsters to the north or south.

Pamela is defenceless, but Magnus will usually draw most of the aggro. At the start of the battle, you want to focus on killing as many summoned beasts as you can, because you will eventually need to put Frayne on full-time healing duty. Magnus is pretty tough, but he won’t survive his current situation for long, and Pamela is very vulnerable.



The summoned beasts can also use Joint Spells, like Earthquake and Tornado, by themselves. These spells will hit everyone on the field. Your party will likely be unaffected because of Magic Shell, but Pamela and Magnus will be wide open.

I have Hien and Frayne launch Flare to deal some damage to the beasts near Magnus and Pamela. After that, Hien pops a Dash and runs off to help clear an escape route. Leona deals with the summoned beast that starts close to our party, then joins Hien on escape route detail.

I immediately send Crevanille after Vester, because loving duh. I’ve been waiting for—



You’re right. I’m going to have to leave this to you.

Understood, Vester.

Do not fail me.



*Vester teleports away in a cloud of darkness*

What IS he…?

:argh: He’s a drat pansy is what he is! Get back here and face us, you coward!



Since Vester decided to turn tail and run away like a little baby man, I have Crevanille fix his sights on Meline, instead.

We only need to defeat one of the sisters to end the mission. Cynthia is positioned further in the back, so it doesn’t make much sense to go after her. The only thing she has to offer that Meline doesn’t is something to steal. Even then, spellstones are not really something to fret over anymore. We have access to the arena for those now.



Despite the fact that Meline uses a scythe, she is still a ranged unit. She throws the drat thing a good distance. Cynthia is also a ranged unit, using throwing daggers like Cargill. Both of them can hit Magnus and Pamela from their starting positions once the two start fleeing towards Trockmere.

Make sure you keep Magnus and Pamela’s HP up as they move. Meline and Cynthia can sometimes attack multiple times per turn, so you can never be sure how much damage they will do in a single turn.

Meline is also capable of attacking immediately after using a Knack, so don’t be surprised if she uses Fierce Strike and then follows it with a normal attack afterward. This is another way that the computer cheats in Growlanser IV, since player Knacks like Circle, Pierce, and Fierce Strike result in ATW gauge being added and do not work with Double Strike.





Once you’ve dealt with the summoned beasts, and Magnus and Pamela start closing in on Trockmere, Meline will summon another beast to block their path. She also has some dialog for Crevanille if he gets within striking distance.

Crevanille? Didn’t expect to see you here! Hmmm… What should I do…? I need to get rid of that woman, but… Oh, I know! Hey, if you just kinda sorta leave that woman, I’ll let you go, Crevanille!

Excuse me? You’ll let us go? That’s not how this works.

Uh, no, thanks.

Tch, I don’t remember you being this uptight before. Fine! Any enemy of Vester is my enemy!

I’m okay with that! I do not like you.



Owies!

As soon as Cynthia or Meline is defeated, the summoned beasts will disappear. Magnus and Pamela will then see their chance for a quick story escape.

All right, now’s our chance! Let’s break on through!

Yes. Thank you, Crevanille!

*Magnus and Pamela flee*

Meline… you must retreat.

NO! I’m going to smash them!

*sigh* Calm down… I will retreat with you.

But I can still--

You can’t fight with wounds like that. You will listen to me or I will consider you more hindrance than help.

Hrrrgh… Fine. All right.

*Cynthia then casts Level 2 Teleport and the two sisters disappear from the field*



As far as I know, you just need a positive bonus gauge for a Mission Complete on this one. Magnus and Pamela have to survive regardless, so there’s no optional objectives.

Superlative, everyone.



Before you enter Trockmere, Yuni will set up the Transgate we’ve been so desperate for.

We’ll pop in to town before we go back home, though. We need to see how Magnus and Pamela are doing.



Thank goodness you two made it here safely. Are you all right, Pamela?

Yes.

What’s the matter? *sigh* She’s been like this since we got here.

I just… I feel like I’m forgetting something. Those people who came after us… I feel like I know them somehow.



He killed Dixon.

He killed the boss!?

That’s not all. He’s also the one spreading summoning spells.

Oh, right. Hey, everyone! Just FYI, he’s doing that. We probably didn’t tell you, since we apparently never talk about our future vision despite it being incredibly useful.

I don’t understand why he chose to attack me and the boss, though. The only thing we had in common is that we’re opposing the Angels. Ugh, what is this? I still feel like I’m about to remember… something dangerous… Oh… that’s right… Why did I forget this?

Are you okay, Pamela? You look a little pale.

Yes, don’t worry. I’m fine.



The same one that Crevanille lived in? Because we already knew that, too. Future sight… or, well, I guess that was just a normal flashback. Still, we saw it happen.

How could that be!?

But he looks exactly the same as he did fifteen years ago… I can’t believe I didn’t see it. And like I said, something about those girls seems familiar, too…

Pamela…?

No, really… I’m all right. Heading to the next ruin is more important than thinking about the past right now.

You two should remain vigilant. Vester could attack again.

I understand, and I’ll watch out. Thank you.

Man, though… what could this Vester want?

Don’t really care. I just want vengeance for Gruff Anime Dad and Pierre. Vengeance for Regina is currently on hold until we find out what the deal is with her possible status as a zombie.



Before leaving this screen, we have some Cryptic Documents to turn over to Pamela. None of the other smart people we know will take them, so that only leaves her.

Ah… This material may be of use. Thanks, Crevanille. If you find anything else like this, please let me take a look.

We have to give the documents to her one at a time, which is annoying. At least we only have three, so it doesn’t take too long.



With that done, we once again enter Trockmere. There’s no greater hive of scum and villainy.



So much scum...

Anyway, we’ve got a few things to take care of here outside of simply resting. The armour shop has new stuff for sale, although it’s incredibly expensive as per usual. Normally we would have the cash to cover a full upgrade for the party, but my time in the arena has drained the wallet a little bit.

We also need a good chunk of change for some new items that are sold here.



The item shop in Trockmere now carries Sacred Elixirs (full HP heal), Ambrosia (small MP Heal), Lethe Drops, and Star Shards. Star Shards simply add 4 ARP to a character’s gauge during a battle. They are useful for skill grinding, but their true purpose lies in triggering Crevanille’s third Limit Ability. We’ll touch on that another time, though.



Next, we toss one of Mel’s fliers at the lady outside of the inn. There’s another girl down next to the armour shop that can be given one, as well.

I also stopped in to Ordinale at one point and handed a flier to the girl standing near the armour shop there. I missed her the first time, because she’s up the stairs. I happened to spot her while I was visiting the Niche Shop.

At this point, we’ve given fliers to pretty much every lady we can find, but Mel’s quest still isn’t done. We’ll need to think outside the box a little, but more on that later.



We go to check in on the Trockmere Water Park, formerly known as the residential district. Looks like there hasn’t been much work done on this place in the time we’ve been gone.

More importantly, there’s a friendly face standing here.

Elena!


[Elena]: Well, if it isn’t Crevanille! What brings you to Trockmere? How have things been for you?


Not bad. And for you?


[Elena]: Well, I’m doing all right for now. I gave those soldiers the slip, and I’ve been traveling all around Dulkheim ever since. They’re too busy with the wars to come chasing after me, but I know they’ll come for me eventually. What have you been up to?


We own a city, now! It’s got an arena, and a restaurant, and a theater, and a museum, and a villa, and a doctor’s office, and--


We’re fighting for peace.

Also that.


[Elena]: Ah, you’re fighting… That’s brave of you.





[Elena]: I can still hear Raoul’s voice. It’s like he’s still calling for me…


Elena…


[Elena]: But you survived the prison, too, didn’t you? You went through everything I did, and look at you. Still standing tall… What Raoul would think of me now…? [sic] …I need to be strong. I’ll fight again, just as well as you! Better than you!


You want to come with us?

The more the merrier. We could use more spell researchers.


[Elena]: Thanks for offering. But when I say “fight,” there’s a battle I have to win on the inside first. If I can do that, then please, let me come with you once I’m ready. And until then, here, accept this.


*Elena’s Report obtained*

We'll pass this on to Kate at some point for more Joint Spells.


[Elena]: This is all the spell research I recorded in my time back at Leinfaltz. I think you might have more use for it than I. I should go soon. I can’t stay in one place for too long right now. Goodbye, Crevanille. I’m sure we’ll meet again.


*Elena leaves*

Well, at least she’s still alive and kicking. Maybe one day she’ll join the cool kids over in No Angeles.

Next up on the “stuff to do” tour, we’re going to stay the night at the inn in Trockmere. It doesn’t have to be Trockmere, but that one is the closest to us right now.




[ 茶色のシャツ ]: And you’d think it a problem for our military to lose its hero, right? But that’s why a bill is being passed to grant him full control over it! That way, we won’t lose a step. We’re sure to keep developing like this. Dulkheim is the place to be.


Moron.



Anyway, the inn. Let’s catch a quick nap so that we can recharge our spent batteries and wash off all that blood.



If only I’d stopped Crevanille when I had the chance…

Don’t say that. You did well. But be more concerned for yourself. It’s going to be hard for you to stay here.

Wh-What are you saying?

If only I could stand by you as I did before. But no longer… You’ll do well to leave Valkania now.

…Sir Muntzer, wherever YOU are, that’s Valkania. Don’t ask me to leave.

That’s exactly what I’m asking you to do.

S-Sir Muntzer, why?

You just told me why.



Not this man, at least. Not in my condition. I had hoped to support you until you learned to love this country, and found a home with the people here. But that… that may never be. So, do not stay for my sake. Leave for yours. Do you understand?

But where am I supposed to go?

I cannot decide that for you.



Please, leave before it’s too late.



…Norman.

You’re still here? I thought Sir Muntzer told you to go.

…..

Look, people here are calling you a traitor. They want you dead. You’re not safe here. I know. I’m not one to talk.



So I don’t think I can help you.

It’s all right. I’m a fugitive now. I know that.

Then what are you still doing here? Sir Muntzer said “go,” not “stick around and die.”

…..

I’ll throw people off your trail, buy you some time. But that’s all I’m going to do for you. Now, move!

*Norman leaves*



Where am I supposed to go!? There’s no place else in the world for me!



:stare: PARTY MEMBER! Must (re)acquire party member!



Using our new Transgate, we pop back to No Angeles and then teleport to Ordinale. The spot where we just saw Vallery and Norman is near the Ruined Village, which is north of Ordinale.

You don’t need to see that vision in order to go help Vallery. I’m pretty sure that vision doesn’t happen at all if Muntzer is dead. That said, Vallery CAN BE MISSED. You can enter the Ruins of Hope and still turn around to go save him, but I’m pretty sure if you complete the Ruins of Hope segment, then he’s gone forever.



…I’m such an idiot. I should have bolted earlier.



You have a moment to do buffing before the mission starts, so be sure to do it. This isn’t a difficult rescue op, since Vallery is able to put up a fight and can nullify at least some magic, but you should still be safe.



You guys…


[Valkania Captain]: Hey, those guys are from Marquelay! So, this is what’s been going on! Your acts of treason are unforgivable!


I don’t want to hear anything about treason from a country that leased soldiers to an allied nation and then had those soldiers attempt to steal everything not nailed down before using the allied nation’s retaliation as a pretext for war. You slimy fuckers.



There’s a bunch of archers and melee units positioned at the mouth of the clearing. Further north is where you will find all of Valkania’s magic support. Have Frayne and anyone else capable of magic deal with those while your melee fighters rush over to help Vallery.



Vallery has HP steal, so he will be able to fend for himself for a good deal of time. The group of soldiers that start closest to your party will also likely turn and go after you instead of Vallery, so he’ll only have to face an archer and a few melee units.



I have Crevanille break through one side of the first group and go off to help Vallery. Leona finishes cleaning up the remainder while Hien and Frayne deal with the spellcasters.



If you’re using Joint Spells, then it may be better to go with Flare. Even with the Magic Range Up passive, Blizzard doesn’t quite reach the whole way. Having the Magic Range Up EX spellstone equipped would obviously change that.



I believe that Vallery has a Magic Shield spellstone equipped, so you shouldn’t have much to worry about from the enemy mages other than a possible High Attack Up, which would make things more dangerous for Vallery if they pull it off early in the fight.



What are you planning to do now, Vallery?

That’s a good question. I don’t want to return to Dulkheim, and you can see that I didn’t want to stay in Valkania. There isn’t anywhere else for me to go…

Join with us.

You want me to join up with all of you? …Would that really be all right?

Dude, I’ve been trying to get you to rejoin since you were kidnapped.

…If that’s what you suggest, then I accept your offer! I’ll start heading toward Marquelay. Thanks!

*Success! Vallery’s fate has been changed!*



Yay! Vallery is back! And he’s actually an appropriate level! We already talked about Vallery back when he joined us in our Dulkheim Military days. He’s a ranged unit with a half-decent magic attack and MP. His main weakness (right now) is crappy ATW.

I’m not going to bother covering his alternate fate, since it’s nothing worth noting. If you don’t rescue him, then the Valkanian Soldiers kill him in that forest clearing. That’s it.

To finish the update, there’s one last little task that we can complete that will reward us with two new things.



A few updates ago, we took on a sidequest for Mel where she gave us a bunch of fliers and asked us to hand them out to girls who are interested in accessories.

Well, we’ve done that, and 10 people have stopped by Mel’s shop so far. There were 3 girls in Marquelia, 2 in Ordinale, 1 in Sunsail, and 2 in Trockmere. Presumably some of them brought friends, which is how we ended up at 10 despite only handing out 8 fliers.

The problem we face now is, we have no more ladies left who will take a flier from us. There’s an elderly lady wandering around Ordinale, but let’s be real, grandma ain’t making a trip through the Ordinale Cave to go accessory shopping.

So what can we do to score the last two customers that Mel’s after?



We ignore what she told us and think outside the box. There are a handful of men in the towns we can access that are open to the idea of accessorizing. I don’t know exactly which guys will add to the customer total, but this one…



and this one seem pretty keen on the idea.

You can only carry 9 fliers at a time, but if you use them all up then you can go back to Mel and she’ll hand you another stack. Worst case scenario if these two guys don’t work for you, just run around and spam the flier at any guy you see in Marquelia, Trockmere, Sunsail, and Ordinale.



This is all because of Crevanille and company, and I appreciate it! Here’s the reward I promised you!

*You obtain Familiar Costume D!*

Yay! New costume for Yuni!

In addition to the costume, Mel’s character substory is now available, so we can hang out with her during future furloughs.



And here is Yuni’s Costume D. Figures there would be a school uniform in here somewhere.

That’s all for this update. Next time we will finally enter the Ruins of Hope.

Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 16:01 on Aug 22, 2021

Red John
Jul 12, 2018

Psycho Knight posted:


:stare: PARTY MEMBER! Must (re)acquire party member!



General Crevanille, re-acquiring Vallery.

Anyway really cool lets play, I enjoy your writing and sense of humor! Binged it all over a few days. Can't believe the cat-girl was voted in, though.

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Psycho Knight
Jan 19, 2017

"Being a fangame and not bound to a rating, Pokemon Reborn is able to expand more on topics such as death and the extreme dangers Pokemon could pose. These topics...are treated with the respect such a subject deserves."

Let's throw a Medicham into a volcano and make it give the T2 thumbs up!

Red John posted:



General Crevanille, re-acquiring Vallery.

Anyway really cool lets play, I enjoy your writing and sense of humor! Binged it all over a few days. Can't believe the cat-girl was voted in, though.

There are still four more to obtain. We will have them all, whether they want to join or not. Also whether I want them to join or not, since I know I hate at least 1 of them.

I'm glad you're enjoying it! The only thing that surprises me about Leona is that the thread stuck her in the party, but then didn't vote for her during the Furlough.

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