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At the start of Military Days, there were 8 generics. At the end, there were 6. Tricia and Vallery sat in with you. So presumably this guy got traded with Vallery. Also best part of the game that was my makeshift thread title coming up. I think the only party member in an RPG I've ever legit hated is Jade from Tales of Abyss for being directly responsible for like, half the bad events in the game, but never getting called out for it and using the other party members as scapegoats. And I've played drat near all the RPGs.
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Aug 21, 2021 19:42
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Vallery no longer seems very exciting now that we have cool sword grandpa and a catgirl on the team, but at least i'm glad he's not stupidly dead in a ditch somewhere. 
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Aug 21, 2021 23:01
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MythosDragon posted:I think the only party member in an RPG I've ever legit hated is Jade from Tales of Abyss for being directly responsible for like, half the bad events in the game, but never getting called out for it and using the other party members as scapegoats. And I've played drat near all the RPGs. I think the thing I ended up realizing about Jade is that he is a legit sociopath who only understands the difference between "good" and "bad" in an academic sense, and that the world should be grateful he had a teacher that made him want to to "good", even if he really doesn't really understand it. But yes, he needed to admit and be held accountable for a whole hell of a lot more.
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Aug 22, 2021 00:48
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Psycho Knight posted:Notice: The cutscene in this update is currently age-gated (despite there being no blood, gore, sex, or swearing) because Youtube's AI Content Mod is a piece of hairy dogshit. I had to submit an appeal. Hopefully at some point soon you won't have to login to Youtube to view it. I'm going to theorise the clouds of smoke look vaguely flesh-coloured and suggestive, if you really use your imagination, because nothing else seems the least bit offensive. Psycho Knight posted:[ 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. Got an untranslated "character" "name" here.
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Aug 22, 2021 11:21
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Polsy posted:I'm going to theorise the clouds of smoke look vaguely flesh-coloured and suggestive, if you really use your imagination, because nothing else seems the least bit offensive. That is the only decent explanation as to what an AI would interpret as 18+ in that cutscene. Either that, or it thought Pamela's shirt was all blood because it was red? I honestly don't know. Either way, I saw an email when I woke up that the age-gating has been repealed, so I'll edit the post to take out that stuff now. Polsy posted:Got an untranslated "character" "name" here. He knows what he is.  All he's missing is the tie. MythosDragon posted:I think the only party member in an RPG I've ever legit hated is Jade from Tales of Abyss for being directly responsible for like, half the bad events in the game, but never getting called out for it and using the other party members as scapegoats. And I've played drat near all the RPGs. Melomane Mallet posted:But yes, he needed to admit and be held accountable for a whole hell of a lot more. I have strong opinions about the entire cast of ToA that I've mentioned in some place or another around SA. None of them are kind. vilkacis posted:Vallery no longer seems very exciting now that we have cool sword grandpa and a catgirl on the team, but at least i'm glad he's not stupidly dead in a ditch somewhere. It's like a dog catching its tail situation. Now that Vallery is back, I've lost interest. Obviously I don't dislike Vallery, but I think the fact that the game gave us a party member and then quickly yanked him away was the main motivator for my dogged pursuit of him. Basically, I've accomplished my goal, so you guys are free to vote him onto the party or leave him on the benches. I don't particularly care one way or another. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 12:36 on Aug 22, 2021 |
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Aug 22, 2021 12:29
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Vallery is okay, but he suffers from not being Remus and Psycho Knight's least favorite character is better at being a midrange caster/physical hybrid. There won't be any suffering if he gets voted in, he's just suboptimal.
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Aug 22, 2021 16:29
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Ardeem posted:Vallery is okay, but he suffers from not being Remus and Psycho Knight's least favorite character is better at being a midrange caster/physical hybrid. There won't be any suffering if he gets voted in, he's just suboptimal. I think a little more highly of Vallery than that, but I will agree that he's not overly special other than being a ranged melee unit. Remus' main selling point is range, but there are only a few maps in the game where his extreme attack range can be put to full use. Overall all, though, I won't suffer much regardless of who is voted on the team because Crevanille never stops being an incredibly powerful crutch. If this were a blind playthrough then things might be a little different, but outside of some gimmick missions, Crev can carry me through just about everything since I know what to do/expect. The biggest difficulty for me with the thread voting in Vallery at this point would be finding a build for him that doesn't just copy one I have on another character.
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Aug 23, 2021 22:19
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Psycho Knight posted: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.
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Aug 24, 2021 08:35
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I love how we're giving Sephinot negative respect, and it's still more respect than he deserves.
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Aug 24, 2021 11:16
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Commander Keene posted:Considering the opinions you've expressed so far, I'm pretty sure that means Cynthia and Meline can join the party, presumably after Not-Sephiroth is dead by Crevanille's hand. They were created for the PSP-version and they are underage anime twins with heterochromia. You know we're getting saddled with at least one of them. Omobono posted:I love how we're giving Sephinot negative respect, and it's still more respect than he deserves. He'll get respect when he faces us like a man.
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Aug 24, 2021 16:34
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Update 25: Mood Whiplash Before we head out, there’s two things I want to take care of back in No Angeles. First of all, I take another shot at the Physical Damage competition in the arena. By doubling up on Thorned Power and using Berserk, we can get the damage we need from Crevanille at his current level.  In order to counteract the massive backlash damage from Thorned Power + Thorned Power + Berserk, I equip Crevanille with the Angel’s Sacrament spellstone. Angel’s Sacrament automatically revives a character when their HP hits 0 one time per battle.  This method still counts, so if you want to try it for yourself, the setup is Spellstones: Thorned Power, Thorned Power, Angel’s Sacrament + Buffs: Attack Up Lv. 3 + Knack: Berserk. You may still have to hope for a critical hit, but it’s worth a shot.  Getting 1st in the Physical Damage Competition will unlock Crevanille’s final Limit (assuming he has his second one already unlocked, anyway). Sword Dance will trigger any time that Crevanille acquires ARP in a multiple of 10 during a battle (so 10, 20, 30, etc.). If your familiar has leveled up Point Bonus, then Crevanille can trigger this limit within one or two kills at the start of a battle. Alternatively, you could pop a Star Shard to help him get enough ARP. Sword Dance attacks all enemies on the field for solid damage. It is an amazing move for Crevanille to have, since he is likely to be killing a steady stream of enemies as a melee fighter.  We also turn over Elena’s Report to Kate for some new Joint Spells. *Crevanille explains* [Kate]: I see… So, she’s desperately trying to fight, too… Thank the gods that she’s still all right. If this report is truly filled with Elena’s work, then the research should go quickly. In fact, I’ll be finished so soon… Would you might [sic] waiting a moment for me? With what I come up with, I’m sure new joint spells are in your future.  More AOE Buff spells! High Cycle Up is especially interesting, since a pre-battle Cycle Up tends to wear off quickly.  Your assistance is acknowledged.[Kate]: Please don’t thank me. I could never repay you for getting this report to me. And just knowing about Elena makes me feel better. This time, when we try to leave Kate’s room, she stops us for some reason. [Kate]: Ah! Wait! I just remembered… You guys go into Dulkheim territory sometimes, right? I have a not-so-small favor to ask. If you ever, you know, decide to infiltrate Fort Leinfaltz…  [Kate]: If I had them, I could create a very, very powerful attack… That should convince you to go get them! You’re drat right it will. [Kate]: Of course, getting them is easier said than done. It IS a fort, after all. But if you manage it, what I need will likely be found in their research lab. Something for us to keep in mind for the future. Whenever we decide to return to our old Dulkheim stomping grounds, we’ll need to keep an eye open for a research report. The Blast spell is one that we definitely want to get a hold of.  With that stuff out of the way, we head back to Trockmere. Since Frayne is still stuck with us despite the thread not having voted for her, I swap Hien out in order to give Eliza some time in rotation.  At Trockmere, we have another detour to make. It’s only a small one, though. It also has some backstory details for us, so I think it’s worth checking out. We’re heading south from Trockmere, back to the Ruin Child torture prison.  The guards aren’t too happy to see us, but they are quickly dealt with. One of them will drop the key to the prison doors, so head on in after taking care of them.  Another group waits inside, but is no match for our current party. Deal with them and Frayne will have something to say.  If we can get inside, my memories…*Frayne opens the door and heads in by herself*  2,000 years ago, I lived in this facility… And I… I remember there being other children, too…*Frayne falls to her knees* Ah… Frayne!*The screen fades out for a moment. When we come back, Frayne has been moved to one of the beds*  I… Frayne has regained consciousness. Are you functioning normally? I, uh… This is… I was in the prison, right…? Where is everyone? The rest of the group is currently sleeping in their rooms. They have been taking turns watching over you. How are you going? Have you been able to remember anything? That’s a pretty big detail to remember. The three of us were artificially created to gain the power that could defeat the Angels… We’re… we’re not even people… Just weapons… Ugh! I don’t want these memories! How could this be the truth…? …Frayne. I suggest you calm down and rest for the moment. This stress serves no purpose. You’re right, you’re right… And I’m… okay. More or less. Please, you should go rest, too. And thank you…Frayne goes back to sleep and we’re able to roam the prison. There’s not really anything to find here, though. Frayne mentioned wanting to come here as part of her character substory, but we need to bring her to the prison during a vacation, so we can’t do that while we’re already here.  Leona has found an… interesting place to take a nap. If we hadn’t saved Elena, then that’s about the spot where her corpse would be. I guess the wails of the dead Ruin Children are a nice sleep aid.   After we’re done resting up, let’s get out of here. Let’s do that.  When we rest in the bed, we get another flashback scene. It’s young Crevanille and some other boy. [Little Brother]: Maybe we shouldn’t do this. Frayne’s diary is really important to her… [Older Brother]: You can’t just give it back now. She’ll see the scribbling you’ve done. [Little Brother]: I don’t care.  [Older Brother]: She wouldn’t be mad when we’re all adults! At least… I wouldn’t think so… Anyway, you should remember how to open this door. You just turn this dial and…  You were speaking about Frayne to someone else. A book was also mentioned. What could it mean? Could that diary still be there? If those ruins still exist, it is logical to assume it would be.Well, we know where those ruins are and we’re headed there right now, so it’s worth investigating. Let’s go! In case you forgot, the Ruins of Hope are north from Trockmere.  The Ordinale Soldiers have the border checkpoint locked down for now, so we don’t need to worry about getting into fights with Dulkheim on this screen. Head to the left here and then go straight north on the next screen. Now, then. There’s something that we’ve been waiting to check on just outside these ruins.  None of the graves look like they’ve been disturbed. So, that should mean that Regina’s corpse is still there. Except that we’ve been seeing her walking around for some time now. Curious… Well, nothing we can do about it right now. Let’s just head on into the Ruins of Hope.  At which point we are interrupted by another vision.  Your report?[Ordinale Soldier #1]: A large enemy contingent is on its way that’s composed primarily of a mercenary unit… Colonel Lichtmann is in command. I know that mercenary unit. It’s led by a man named Bauer. This’ll be a tough one. Go get some rest.[Ordinale Soldier #1]: Yes, sir. Excuse me. *The soldier starts to leave, but another one rushes up from behind with a new report* [Ordinale Soldier #2]: Lord Ordinale! What’s the matter? …You could have brought me brighter news than that. All right. Give the order to fall back. We must retreat to the east side of the bridge.[Ordinale Soldier #1]: We’re vacating this area? If our supply line is cut, we’re doomed. We’re leaving. Go! We’ll be moving out at once.[Ordinale Soldier #2]: Yes, sir! Well, there goes our secured border route. We have no choice but to rely on the Transgates now. Not that we weren’t going to be relying on them anyway, but you know what I mean.  It seems so. I wonder what we’ll find.We’ll be finding your diary, at the very least. To get to the spot from Crevanille’s flashback, just take the first Yellow corridor on the right. In the next area, the safe/storage box thing will be down the red path a little bit.  In case you’re wondering, that Jade we picked up doesn’t let us go down the Green pathways. It seems the Ruins of Hope were not the intended spot to use that stone after all. So what is it for? You’ll find out eventually. This is that place we saw in the dream. It was here, after all. We should try to open it.*You succeeded in opening it. Frayne’s Diary obtained* This is… my diary? But why is it here of all places?…Magic? Master had a dream in which he and his older brother hid this in the ruins in the past… So… the younger boy… He was… Uh, aren’t you happy we found it!?All’s well that ends well, am I right!? Master, your actions as a child were highly inappropriate.He was a kid and it was 2,000 years ago, Yuni. Give him a break. Kids always do jerk things like that. Plus, Crevanille was shown to be against the whole idea from the beginning. No, it’s all right. I wouldn’t have the diary back right now if not for him… Despite the game telling us we obtained Frayne’s Diary, it isn’t actually in our inventory. I guess that makes sense, since it’s not ours or the party’s, but Frayne’s personal journal.  Back in the room where we found Yuni’s egg, we discover that the Save Point no longer works. That’s likely for the best, since it would be possible to soft lock yourself if you could save right now. There were two plaques on the wall near the table where Yuni’s egg was. We can’t read the script, but Frayne can, so let’s check them out. This is a description of Familiar Eggs. It says that the Familiar’s abilities are proportional to its master’s.Revelatory. Moving on.  Aren’t you glad you brought me?We didn’t get a choice. “Child who fights Angels, Child who offers holy blood: to gain the tool you will need for the coming battle, press your palms against the emblem and chant ‘Uriel.’”All right, so then where is this emblem? Presumably somewhere nearby.  This green thing up near Crevanille’s stasis pod is the emblem in question. When you examine it, it will repeat the thing that Frayne just read on the plaque.  Here goes nothing. Yes.[Announcement]: Astral reading detected. Commencing analysis. …90… 100. Angelic Child confirmed. *The emblem then opens up to reveal something*  The wall…*Interdiction Rod obtained* There’s something else in here…*Research Report obtained* They’re barely legible, but these seem to be reports. They’re written, of course, in the ancient script. Well, Frayne, do your thing! All right. I’ll read what portions still remain intact. Which subject should I read to you? Let’s go down the list in order. We’ll start with the weird rod thing we just picked up.  This “portable object” must be the rod we found. The captured sample. They captured an Angel… Incredible. “Uriel”… She must be the female Angel that appeared in our vision. The artificial Angel project. This confirms what Regina told us: the replicas can be controlled by the Angels. That’s why the facility was shut down. Oh, there are pages here I can read.A final topic has been added to the list. The Angel augmentation project.  Crevanille… Your name is also here.[???]: So, you’ve finally learned the truth. Bryntir… That memory was accurate, then… That means we have Uriel’s soul within our bodies! That’s right. We hold the abilities of an artificial Angel, in addition to the message Uriel had for humans. Yet we were only weapons… created to destroy the Angels… This must be the secret behind Master’s and Frayne’s wings. I can’t believe it… Let’s vacate the premises before we talk further. It’s dangerous to linger here. Huh? Why? A lot of spell energy was released by moving the device. I’ve no doubt an Angel is already on its way.*Bryntir leaves and we follow*  When you leave that room, head down a Red/Green/Black corridor in order to be booted back to the entrance crossroads. Before you take the Black corridor here to leave the ruins, make sure to buff.  Angels are so powerful because they’re clad in an Astral force field. It nulls most attacks. But we were infused with anti-Astral waves. This lets us neutralize that field. How are you supposed to get near something that can fly? You’ve stumbled onto the true purpose of the Interdiction Rod. When activated, an Angel’s flight ability will be sealed. All this aside, have you seen Professor Steinman’s dream yet?This is the first we’ve heard of any Professor Steinman. Dream? To whom are you referring? Oh… Can’t you just tell us now? I can give you the basics. Angels came to tell us of the dangers of using summoning spells. But--[???]: But you foolish humans chose to ignore our words.  *Akyel lands on the ground in front of our group*  That is why we decided to destroy any technology you have that might lead to them. He’s finally come… I came because I sensed her presence. So, this is what happened to her… Her fate harrows me. But I will not let that stop me. I shall slay you here and now!*Akyel starts charging some poo poo up* We don’t have another choice. Give me that!*Bryntir takes the Interdiction Rod!* He moves to Frayne for this, so I guess she was holding on to it?  Argh! An anti-Astral barrier? No, the Cage of Diabolo!This is a slight translation error that makes this into something unintentionally hilarious. A Diabolo is that yo-yo like spinning toy you use with the two sticks. The one that kind of looks like an hourglass. In Japanese, Akyel says “ディアボロスの檻か” (“A Diabolos Cage!?”). Diabolos, with the “s” sound, is the Greek translation for “the slanderer” and has been used to refer to the Devil in Christianity. Why the localizers dropped an entire mora from the word, I don’t know, but now it sounds like Akyel is freaking out over a toy. His wings are sealed. Now all that’s left is to neutralize his force field. We’ll use our powers to do that? Yes, that’s right. If one of us releases all our power, that’ll do the trick. Then, Master or Frayne will… We can’t use that! Frayne, I’m going to use your Astral Power. Wait, what are you-- Ah! Bryntir… What did you do just now…? Crevanille… I leave the rest to you. Bryntir!? I will null his force field! You must beat him while it’s down!It’s time for a heroic sacrifice! I assume!  Like Bryntir just told us, Akyel will shrug off all of our attacks unless his force field is taken down. Bryntir is the only one who can do that right now, so we need to focus on preparation work instead of damage dealing.  Everyone pops the Dash Knack, except for Frayne. Frayne will be charging up Protect, so that she can cast it on Bryntir. Crevanille, Leona, and Eliza are all manually given a route around Akyel. This is not a difficult mission if you know what’s about to happen. Akyel seems like the type of opponent who should be a major boss, but he’s actually not very strong, possibly as a result of the Interdiction Rod.  The tricky part, and the thing that will most likely cause you fail the mission, is that he will (smartly) attempt to flee right away. You need to get your melee fighters on the other side of him in order to slow down or block his retreat. I won’t let you escape, Akyel! Hwaaah!  Don’t miss your opportunity-- you won’t get another! Bryntir is very sturdy, but you should still throw Protect on him just in case. Akyel has Counter, which could end up dealing solid damage if you are unlucky. After Protect, Frayne should charge and hold a Heal/Cure spell until someone needs it.  Weren’t you listening? Your attacks won’t work while he’s protected with that force field.Shut up, Bryntir. Do you want to catch up with him or not? I’m slowing his rear end down, so stop yapping and keep running.  Bryntir should eventually catch Akyel and hit him. This will drop the barrier and allow you to go all out. Wh-What!? My Astral field! This power… No! It’s Uriel’s! Now! Attack with all you’ve got! Although his barrier is down, Akyel doesn’t take that much more damage. Still, with your entire party and Bryntir all wailing on him at the same time, it won’t be long before he’s worn down. He will recover about 65 HP every so often, but you should be hitting him quick enough to easily overcome that. The important thing is to make sure you’ve boxed him in, because he will continue trying to escape. If he does, then it’s Mission Failure.   *Akyel’s Memory Gem obtained. Right Half obtained* We did it, Master…Yeah, but for some reason it seems hard to feel good about that.  Oh, right. Bryntir’s whole sacrifice thing. He’s not looking too good. *Bryntir’s wings disappear and he collapses onto his back* Bryntir! Seems like this is it for me… Let me say this, since I won’t have another chance. When I awakened, I had memories of my childhood, of how it was my purpose to defeat the Angels. But as a child, I didn’t really understand any of that. And when I looked inward for answers, that was when I found Uriel’s voice. *Crevanille takes Bryntir’s hand*  Crevanille and Bryntir both light up briefly, like when Bryntir took Frayne’s Astral power earlier. *Bryntir’s Pendant obtained* I’m counting on you… little brother…*Dies*  No time for mourning, we’re being taken back to that big scary looking device from earlier. Looks like Valkania is finally ready to use it. [Valkania Soldier #1]: Angle adjustment complete. [Valkania Captain]: Prepare the summoning unit! [Valkania Soldier #2]: Summoners prepared and ready. Beginning casting!  [Valkania Soldier #1]: 97… 98… 99… 100! Charge complete! [Valkania Captain]: Fire the spellcannon!  Check out the cutscene: Valkania’s Weapon Launch the PS2 CG!      Well then. That’s going to be a problem for everyone on the continent.  We’re going to need to do some expansion work on this place soon. Running out of room for graves. He sacrificed himself… for us… Frayne… What do we do now? Our whole goal was to defeat the Angel, but I don’t think we’re done…*A light flashes and the ground rumbles* What was that light? The spellcannon! Hrm. Akyel warned us the use of summoning spells would lead to our destruction… Both Akyel and Bryntir said the world would be destroyed by them. We should head back. I concur. Make sure to grab the Interdiction Rod before leaving. It’s that red sparkly point on the ground near the crater. The Angels are dead, but we may still be able to find a use for the Rod. Head back towards Trockmere (to the south). After transitioning out of the screen where the Dulkheim Soldiers are wandering around, we get another scene.   The spellcannon… That’s why they demanded our immediate surrender.[Dulkheim Soldier]: Th-The s-spell what? I don’t understand you, sir. Not many know of it. It is an ancient spell weapon. But continue your report. What were the damages?[Dulkheim Soldier]: Yes, sir. The blast wiped out most of our army’s summoner unit. What will we do? Without them, our army won’t be able to-- There is no need for this fear. From what I know, a spellcannon’s size is so great that it is difficult to move once set. No matter how powerful it is, if its blasts can’t reach us, we should not be in danger.You are making a lot of assumptions on that thing’s maximum range, my dude. Besides… we’ve developed a summoning spell that will put that cannon to shame.[Dulkheim Soldier]: Truly impressive, Mr. President! How exactly do you plan to use that summoning spell with no summoners? I will send out a statement shortly about my plans. Until then, keep the faith, and stick to the operation.[Dulkheim Soldier]: Yes, sir! *The soldier leaves, but a few seconds later…*   As you’re aware, that was indeed an ancient weapon. They, too, were calling it a spellcannon. It’s just as Vester told me. But then, that means I am not mistaken: it cannot be moved. I have a map here of Mt. Baltrick, where the cannon must be located. It is marked with areas where the attack likely originated. You always were a masterful tactician. Now it is doubly good that you passed that emergency bill, giving you the added powers of a supreme commander. Your foresight on such matters never fails to impress.Oh, God… would the two of you just gently caress already? Seriously. As we’ve discussed before, you can’t conquer a continent without thinking big. And to do that, one needs to come up with a plan for every possible contingency. That includes working with… unknown elements, if need be. You speak of Vester, yes? “Unknown” doesn’t begin to describe him. First he comes with summoning spells, and now the spellcannon. But why? Heh, if even you’re having trouble finding out about his past, then I suspect the job impossible. I take that as a compliment. That said, I believe it is time for you to take a bigger role in my decisions, Cargill. It would be an honor, President Ludwig! Not sure my stomach can handle many more scenes of those two. Anyway, since Ordinale has pulled back, Dulkheim has recaptured the border. We’re going to slip around these guys and head for Trockmere. It’s a lot easier to get back home that way.  After fighting through a bunch of Dulkheim patrols, we arrive back in Trockmere to find that Pamela has turned up again. Strangely, Magnus is no longer with her. Pamela! Oh, Crevanille and the others! I’m glad to see you all. Pamela, we have something to tell you, actually…*You tell Pamela how the Angel was defeated and that there is still the problem related to summoning spells…*  We sacrificed much to do it. Yes… The Angels have caused us much suffering… I’m sorry. We can’t think about the past like that now. There’s still another problem to deal with. The Angels came to us to warn of the dangers of summoning spells, right? You don’t seem surprised. No. I’m afraid I have an idea of what such spells can do. There’s something in Valkania that I would like to look into. I’m actually heading there now. Magnus has gone ahead to Aida Bridge to speak to the Valkania Army about our trip. He said something about knowing someone within the army’s ranks. Said her name was Diana, I think. In any case, I need to wait for his return. Vester’s minions could still be out there.And that’s all Pamela has for us. I head over to the Trockmere Inn in order to rest. I also save, just in case any more graphically messed up visions suddenly happen that I need to remedy.  We have a bunch of new key items now, including that memory gem from Akyel. Maggie will probably know what to do about all that, so let’s go back to No Angeles.  Well, actually, there is one more thing we can do out by Trockmere that MythosDragon was probably panicking about a second ago when it looked like I might have forgotten it. Let’s go back to the border real quick and sort out this permission business that Pamela needs to go investigate whatever the hell she told us about. Sure, we’re at war with Valkania, but I’m sure Diana will listen to us. We were responsible for saving Muntzer, after all (allegedly). She owes us one.   Let’s go save her!The other options are basically “Nah” and “I hope they rip her to pieces.” Kind of a limited range of responses for this one. The thread wants us to be a hero, though, so let’s get this done. Practically speaking, these trolls are in our way, so might as well kill two birds with one stone. Yes, she needs our help! This is technically a mission, but it’s not much of one. We fail if the woman dies, but there are only two Level 38 Trolls here and it won’t take us long to reach them on this small map. The woman is capable of surviving at least that long.  I will say that these things are certainly hefty boys. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a non boss enemy survive an attack from Crevanille. After the trolls are dealt with, we go check on the woman.  What’s wrong? Are you…!? …Right, then.  What’s wrong? Don’t you recognize me? We know each other so very well… *stare in fascination* Why, what big eyes you have! Still taking in the view? I suppose I should tell you I’m not who you might think I am.No, no, you definitely are. I think we’re just taken aback a bit by how well you’re pulling it off.  Well, it’s complicated. No, hear me out… See, Vester was after us. Me and Pamela, he saw our faces. We figured we’d need a disguise. Well, fine! At least Pamela liked it… Magnus, look in a mirror! Nah, I already did. You can only lock eyes with this beauty for so long! Point… conceded. So, you intend to meet with Dame Silverneil in that attire. How do you know about that!? Pamela informed us that you and Dame Silverneil were acquaintances. Is that true?Also I’m pretty sure we overheard Alfonse and you say that back in Trockmere. Well, Silverneil is Master’s niece. She’s kind of like a sister to me. And this is how I’m going to go see her.Speaking of, it’s probably a good thing that we swapped Hien out for this. What should we do, Master? He… might need some help. Oh, you don’t have to worry! But if you want to tag along, feel free!Sure. I could use a laugh.  Now, listen, we’re going to meet Diana, but having too many people will make us stand out. I want to screenshot this because I am infuriated that the game will not allow me to pick the snarkiest option here. I’ll go with you. Yes, I agree. It may be hard for you, but… be strong… All right, Crevanille, let’s go!*Teen Girl Squad remains behind as Crevanille and Lady Mag go to see Diana*  [Valkania Soldier]: A… lady of some sort is asking to see you!  What do you mean “of some sort”? And who would come to see me here?[Valkania Soldier]: I, um, have my suspicions about… her, my Dame, but I don’t know if I should say… But she says she’s a friend of yours, and she has a Valkanian emblem, so I can’t just turn her away… can I? …All right. Let me see this “lady” for myself. Oh, you know… theater. Hold on, Diana. Let’s be peaceful here, for my sake. He came all this way because he was worried about me.I don’t know if I’d say it quite like that. Wha…!? …Is that you, Magnus? I assure you there’s a perfectly good explanation. …On your knees. ??? On your knees! My uncle’s own student, making such a mockery! Whoa, whoa, wait a sec! Dame Silverneil, please calm down.As entertaining as it would be, I would like him to stay alive so that he can hopefully join the party someday. Whoa, easy, easy, easy! Diana, please. Hear me out! …Speak quickly. …Why ARE you here? Ah, glad you asked! I’ll tell you. AFTER you change out of those ridiculous clothes. For what it’s worth, I think Magnus is rocking it pretty well. Maybe a little too heavy on the makeup. You always had a warped sense of beauty.*We fade out for a moment*  Fun time is over now. Back to business. I’ll grant you and the lady safe passage. But you’ll both have to be checked. Perfect! Thanks. You’re the best friend a guy could ever have. …It must be pleasant to be you. Skipping merrily through life with a tune on your lips and a dress on your shoulders… Crevanille, I wonder how you manage with him. I hang out with all kinds of weirdos.Did you know we have a catgirl on the team, now? Like, a girl that has literal cat ears and a tail? You might have spotted her when we were beating Muntzer’s rear end. Hell, we just got back from finding out that Crevanille, Frayne, and Bryntir had pieces of an Angel soul planted in them over 2,000 years ago. What I’m saying is, this is barely a momentary distraction as far as Crevanille’s day is concerned. And our friendship is one for the ages! I’m proud to be your comrade! In any case, we should part now. Our circumstances don’t call for civility, I’m afraid. You’re right. Let’s not be friends. Indeed. The next time we meet… No. I’ll say no more. Goodbye, then. And Magnus? Never wear that again.*Diana leaves* Well, I think Diana likes you! I’ve never seen her so polite and charming. Anyway, let’s get out of here. We can’t keep Pamela waiting. Yep! She… didn’t like the disguise, though. Really? Gee, it’s almost like you’re the only one who did! Hmm. You guys are so weird sometimes. We should deliver the news to Pamela, at Trockmere. Magnus joins us as a guest party member for a very short time. He’s only with us until we get back to Trockmere, which is like 2 screens away (the border checkpoint doesn’t count, in my mind).  You know, I did my best. That’s all I can say. So, that was Pamela’s idea? Oh, I just said it’d be funny. I didn’t think he’d actually do it.I like Pamela. She knows how to have fun. Anyway, I did get us permission to cross the border. Now we can head for the ruins. Yes. Thank you, Magnus! Well, let’s take a little trip to Valkania, then. Please exercise caution. Leave it to me. Well, I know you’ve got my back. Thanks, Crevanille!*Pamela and Magnus leave* That certainly was a thing that happened. Now, then. What were we doing…? Oh, right.  We head back home, where the rest of the party is waiting for us with bated breath. [Levan]: Welcome back, everyone.  Welcome back! Hello. Did you guys find anything helpful in the ruins? What we found wasn’t as interesting as who we met… We fought an Angel named Akyel… Y-You fought an Angel!? What happened?We killed him, because we’re awesome. We were victorious. He left this before disappearing…*Crevanille showed the gem left behind by Akyel* It looks like a memory gem… Afraid of them? Yeah. Everyone who was losing sleep at night because of the Angel threat can sleep easy now. Afraid in general? Not quite. There’s a hell of a lot more for people to be afraid of now. The Angel threat is gone, but… We have another problem. If we can’t stop the use of summoning spells, something bad will occur.Also Valkania has a WMD and Dulkheim might not be far behind them, so prepare for things to get wild. We’re not sure of the specifics, but we know the Angels’ original objective had been to stop humans from using them. They must be dangerous somehow. But even if they are, we can’t go on a mission to stop them all without knowing why. Why not? It didn’t stop us from killing the Angels. If only Akyel told us more… Although… Is there any way for us to see the memories he kept within this gem?Let’s go ask Maggie and find out. She’s the gadget girl, so I’m sure she’ll have some suggestion for us. *We hand over Akyel’s Memory Gem to Maggie*  It is a memory gem left by an Angel. Huh… It’s the same kind of thing left behind by a Familiar in its final moments. Interesting. I’m curious to see what kind of information it holds. Does this mean you have a means of accessing it? What do you mean? Memories are intangible. To be able to actually see them, we’d need a device that can project sounds and pictures. When we found Frayne, did we not also find some sort of Projector? Lumis was enticed by it. Would that work? A projection device, eh? That may be what we need. By all means, bring it to me. I’ll work on getting at the memories through the Dollhouse in the meantime. The device should still be located at Fort Leinfaltz.That’s gonna be a bit of a problem considering Marler, Lumis, and Bauer are all stationed there.  Oh well, some eggs have to be broken, am I right? I guess we’re tearing down Fort Leinfaltz and destroying New Alten Schwart. In the meantime, Frayne’s death grip on a party slot has finally been loosened, so I kick her out and put Hien back in, as the thread voted for. We’re probably due for another party vote, but I want to get at least 1 main update with the full thread-voted party, so we’ll put it off for now. Next time, we do a little bit of side stuff and prep work before pulling a Muntzer and stealing a bunch of poo poo from Fort Lienfaltz. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 19:14 on Aug 24, 2021 |
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Aug 24, 2021 17:28
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Okay, Magnus is now the best character, ever. I will brook no arguments.
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Aug 24, 2021 18:35
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We killed an Angel, yay?
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Aug 24, 2021 19:22
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Psycho Knight posted:
So is this kind of thing a recurring theme in the series or just coincidence?
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Aug 24, 2021 20:54
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AltaBrown posted:Okay, Magnus is now the best character, ever. I will brook no arguments. Those sideburns! 
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Aug 24, 2021 21:01
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Wait so beefcake angel is just dead, like that? That came out of nowhere. I really hope it's just banishment or something and he'll be back later, because it'd be super lame to just kill an angel off like that with zero fanfare.
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Aug 24, 2021 21:12
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We wiped an angel and it was by far the least interesting thing in the update. Top notch Magnus content, here.
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Aug 24, 2021 21:21
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Also, looking at our party, our return to Fort Lienfaltz is going to be: BEHOLD THE POWER OF OUR NEW SUMMONING SPELLSTONES! TLDR, get sworded. But... magic?
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Aug 24, 2021 21:55
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AltaBrown posted:Okay, Magnus is now the best character, ever. I will brook no arguments.  Entirely agree. He was having so much fun! It's tragic no one else understood the beauty of it.
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Aug 24, 2021 22:43
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I've been waiting for a while to suggest this. Now that we know Frayne and Crevanille are in fact half angel, I propose we change No Angeles to TwoAngeles Also yes, That magnus scene is why I told PK to flirt all game, and one of the line's PK couldnt take would have been my thread title if I wasn't horrified to learn LPs are done 95% manually like 4 years ago lol. Gods I hope I can get the good lines. I'll straight up replay the entire game and commit to nothing but the correct lines if necessary. MythosDragon fucked around with this message at 23:00 on Aug 24, 2021 |
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Aug 24, 2021 22:56
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Shouldn't it be (i know the plural isnt correct please bear with me)
Space Kablooey fucked around with this message at 01:30 on Aug 25, 2021 |
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Aug 24, 2021 23:09
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AltaBrown posted:Okay, Magnus is now the best character, ever. I will brook no arguments. Yeah, this was the moment Magnus became my favorite character and I have been waiting with baited breath for the thread's reactions.
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Aug 24, 2021 23:23
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MythosDragon posted:I've been waiting for a while to suggest this. DosAngeles?
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Aug 25, 2021 00:27
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AltaBrown posted:Okay, Magnus is now the best character, ever. I will brook no arguments. He is pretty awesome. He's one of the few characters in this game that is fun, along with Eliza. Everyone else is normally either serious or doe-eyed most of the time. Which, fine, the world is in danger and the continent is at war and all that, but would it kill everyone to at least recognize a joke every now and then? Space Kablooey posted:We killed an Angel, yay? It did feel a little hollow, much like the Replica one we took down. At least with the Replica, though, Remus had some actual vengeance to enact. Akyel blew up Lamplast and attacked Vester while we were in the blast zone, but beyond that he never really did anything to us directly. Granted, you could make the argument that he did it by proxy, depending on how much control he has over Replicas. Red John posted:Wait so beefcake angel is just dead, like that? That came out of nowhere. I really hope it's just banishment or something and he'll be back later, because it'd be super lame to just kill an angel off like that with zero fanfare. To be fair, we've spent basically the entire game looking for a way to kill him. It was going to happen eventually. As far as I remember, he's straight dead. His memory gem was left behind, after all. As far as future Angel involvement, we don't know for sure that there are no more Replicas. If any of those are left behind, then that's going to cause some near-term problems since Akyel is no longer around to control them. Evil Fluffy posted:So is this kind of thing a recurring theme in the series or just coincidence? I think the Angel/Astral force stuff is limited to Growlanser IV. GL4 is supposed to be a self-contained entry in the series (we'll discuss why I say "supposed to be" near the end of the LP). It has some references to older GL titles, but it mostly uses it's own terminology and locations and so forth. GL1 and GL2 are directly linked, because the main character of 1 appears as a side character in 2. GL3 takes place at a different time from 1 and 2, but I'm pretty sure it's still within the same world. I think the closest thing to Angel stuff in the other GL games is that there is a race of bird people in 3. Ardeem posted:Those sideburns! They are and always have been mag-nificent.  wodenspoon posted:We wiped an angel and it was by far the least interesting thing in the update. Top notch Magnus content, here. Like I said, Crevanille's day isn't even over yet. Fighting an Angel is like the least interesting thing on his schedule. Ardeem posted:Also, looking at our party, our return to Fort Lienfaltz is going to be: I could just abuse Sword Dance straight to hell. Star Shards aren't even expensive for this place in the game. If we wanted to completely cheese everything from now on then we could simply turn all the other party members into Star Shard throwers and be done with it. vilkacis posted:
This is what I loved about this scene. Magnus was rocking it and he loving knew it, regardless of how everyone else was acting. All we were missing was a scene where Magnus says to Diana "Bitch, please. You just mad because you don't have the rear end to pull off this dress." MythosDragon posted:Gods I hope I can get the good lines. I'll straight up replay the entire game and commit to nothing but the correct lines if necessary. You could always hit up the Hotel before this event for some  .Melomane Mallet posted:Yeah, this was the moment Magnus became my favorite character and I have been waiting with baited breath for the thread's reactions. It is one of the best scenes in this game. The fact that they made character portrait work just for this brief moment is even better. Captain Marler? The guy we've been repeatedly fighting since arriving in Marquelay? Nah, he doesn't need a character portrait. Abrams? He dies early on, don't bother with him. Levan? The butler that we constantly talk to and has a subevent in Eliza's route? Whatever, who cares about that guy. But Lady Magnus, who is only in this game for a 1 minute sequence? FULL CHARACTER ART!
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Aug 25, 2021 11:39
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Magnus By the way, NoAngeles still works. We're allowed one (even if split between two people).
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Aug 25, 2021 13:23
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Psycho Knight posted:I think the Angel/Astral force stuff is limited to Growlanser IV. GL4 is supposed to be a self-contained entry in the series (we'll discuss why I say "supposed to be" near the end of the LP). It has some references to older GL titles, but it mostly uses it's own terminology and locations and so forth. No I meant the "MC just happens to emit an anti-BadGuy aura" since that is exactly what makes you special in Heritage of War, complete with it being the result of someone bioengineering humans as a weapon against said entities.
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Aug 25, 2021 19:52
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Following along with the thread has been really enjoyable, and also the game just seems rad? You've convinced me to give it a play!
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Aug 25, 2021 21:20
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I already knew this, but drat there are a lot of things in this game that seem optional but arn't. I wanted to switch my party for Magnus' cutscene.... and the game doesnt let you go back. Edit: Nevermind, let me go after talking to Pamela. But the rest of the comment is still true since the game forces me into the 5th Furlough the moment I get back to the manor. There's my hypothetical thread title at the bottom! 
MythosDragon fucked around with this message at 23:32 on Aug 26, 2021 |
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Aug 26, 2021 10:22
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Update 26: Pulling a "Reverse Muntzer" Now that we’ve got the party that the thread actually voted for, we’re going to head back to Trockmere. We’re supposed to invade Fort Leinfaltz and snag that projector that Lumis took way back when.  Of course, as soon as we head north from Trockmere, we get interrupted by another vision or something.  Good work. That figures. The time for introductions will have to come later. Please, tell me what you have to say. Of course. I am capable of teaching you and yours “summoning spells.” Dulkheim has already used my knowledge to reap many rewards on the battlefield. Meanwhile, Valkania has started using the spellcannon they excavated recently. This leaves Marquelay woefully unprepared for the spellcentric battles to come. Oh, yes. My summoning spells are used to call forth monsters from another realm. With a mere ten summoners, you could turn the tide in any battle. My god! You make a convincing argument. Very well, then. I request your instruction. I humbly accept. Only people like they will have a chance to master the summoning spell…We must have some kind of Sphere of Intelligence that radiates from Crevanille. It seems like everyone else gets significantly more stupid whenever he leaves the area.  [Dulkheim Soldier #1]: Tricia, what are you doing here? We’re about to get going.  Oh, yes. I understand. I’ll be there right away! Probably not. But I can hope! It would be nice if he did…[Dulkheim Soldier #1]: Tricia! Okay, I’m coming! Make sure to remember that scene. Well, assuming you like Tricia.  Anyway, back to our little road trip. The Dulkheim area has seen a significant decrease in the number of soldiers roaming around. The roads will now be littered with monsters. There’s the weird jellyfish things, the Valbugs, goat-legged dudes, and also some werecats.  Which trigger a little scene if Leona is in the party.  Oh, what, you think we all know each other? I’m a Pesac! That’s a cat! Look at the paws! See? Oh. …Oh, that is different. I see it now. …My mistake.#catgirlracism  The border checkpoint is still manned by Dulkheim soldiers, however. Make sure you stick to the left side of the screen to get around them. If you clear this group and try to go through to Valkania, then an infinite number of Dulkheim reinforcements will keep spawning. In other words, it’s useless to fight these guys unless you want some skill EXP.  When we finally reach the crossroads outside Leinfaltz, we make a detour to the south. We haven’t been back to Saudrick in a long time and the journey there is normally pretty free from encounters, so let’s pop over real quick.  New fast travel point! Yay! This makes the detour worth it.  Not much has changed since we were last here. We can hire a new chef at the Inn who specializes in Dulkheim cuisine, so we might as well do that. There are a few spellstones here that Payton doesn’t carry yet. MP Cost Down EX is a good one to get for people that can’t learn MP Up or MP Cost Down (as a passive). You can also get more Thorned Power here, although I’ve already duplicated the one that Crevanille has had for ages. Meditation +3 can teach MP Regenerate, which is worth it for anyone that can pick up that skill naturally.  Other than that, the escort mission side quest is also still here. The guy’s dialog is a little different, which means that he’s got a new reward for us.  Now, here’s the thing. The first time we did this mission, it was a cakewalk. It was back near the very start of the game and none of the enemies were all that special or dangerous. That’s not the case anymore. The side quest itself is still the same, as in we need to protect this guy as he waddles over to Trockmere. The enemies, on the other hand…  Well, they’ve been scaled up a little. For the most part, this shouldn’t pose too much of a problem for your party. You can run ahead of the merchant and his chicken mule things and quickly deal with the scattered groups of enemies. The problems start when you transition from one screen to another.  Because you have to let the merchant go first, he will start in front of your party on the next screen. There are some screens where groups of enemies can spawn right near the transition zone, meaning that a battle will automatically be triggered as soon as you show up. Unless you have Remus or Vallery, then you’re going to have a rough time in such instances.  During this mission, all enemies on the screen can be aggroed when a battle gets started. Do you see that little bit of purple over on the right side of the screen, for example? Guess what that is.   Little bastards… I have to reload 2 times before I manage to deal with the Valbugs before they can kill off any of the animals (or the merchant himself). I was getting very frustrated. Even Eliza, with her insane speed, could barely reach those two on the right before they could pop off a Death spell of some kind (likely because the drat merchant and his chickens kept getting in her way).  Thankfully, the game is merciful enough to clear the border checkpoint of Dulkheim soldiers. As long as you don’t approach them, this screen will provide safe passage.  Our reward for pulling that off without any losses is another gemstone. This mission is a pain, but I still recommend trying it. We can’t do anything with the Ruby right now (just like the Jade we got from the armour guy), but it will be useful eventually.  Since our network of Transgates now covers basically all of the southern half of the continent, we drop in on Sunsail. There’s something there that we can pick up.  *We obtained Uriel’s Memory Gem and Angel’s Letter* I was going to ask why we couldn’t just have acquired that stuff back when we kicked Valkania out, but I suppose it would have taken some time for the villagers to route through the goods that the soldiers left behind. Anyway, now we have everything we need for when we get our hands on the Projector. No more distractions, let’s get to it.  Fort Leinfaltz… We have returned.I was kind of expecting a little more excitement. Where are the guards?  Doesn’t look like anyone is around. I guess we can use this moment to check out what Tricia was doing over by the tree we saw in our vision. I see no message, however, other than this pattern of short and long markings. It’s Tricia’s code. Analyzing… Understood, this is the knocking code in written form. Deciphering… “Wherever you may be, I hope you are well. – Tricia.” …That is the message. *leave a reply*We get three choices. We can tell her that we’ll always be friends, that we hope she’s safe, or that she shouldn’t forget we are enemies. For the sake of being nice to Tricia, we go with option #1. “We’ll always be friends.” Our paths may differ at present, but that remains true.That takes care of that little optional objective. Now, what’s going on with the Fort?  Hmm…  Nothing suspicious about all this. No, sir.  Oh well. Not like we can do anything about it anyway. Let’s just go ahead and spring this obvious trap.  There are three important things for us to collect in here. One of them is story mandated, but I’m pretty sure the other two are lost forever if we don’t grab them now. I could be wrong, but it’s better if I don’t chance that. Before grabbing the projector, inspect the bookshelf on the right, near the boxes. *We obtained Blast Research!* This appears to be the data that Kate was after. I believe it was related to the Blast spell. We should now go retrieve the projection device.Hold your horses, Yuni.  If we check the bulletin boards here, we get a hint about another item that can be obtained in the lab.  If we check these lab coats in the back, we get… *We obtain Familiar Costume E!* This is the last Familiar Costume that can be obtained (normally). The final costume is only available under certain conditions that I won’t be able to explain until the end game. We’ll have a look at Costume E once we get back to No Angeles.  For now, we’ve stolen what we were after, so let’s GTFO.  I believe this is it. Too late, apparently. Yuni gives us a warning as soon as we try and leave the lab that some friends are waiting for us just outside. Make sure to do your buffing.   We’re surrounded… It doesn’t look like we’re going anywhere without a fight. Grrrrrr!![Captain Marler]: A man with a Familiar. I thought it might be you. I don’t know why you’re here, but you’ll regret it! Everyone, attack!  This shouldn’t be too hard of a mission, unless you are unlucky enough to get stunlocked by all of the swordsman that start out near the party. There are also a few archers around, plus the group of spellcasters in the south. Normally, what you want to do is send your melee units out to fight the swordsman while your ranged/spellcasters pick off the enemy mages before they can go spamming any Joint Spells on you. Marler can be left for last. But “normal” is not how I’m going to do this. Remember at the start of the last update when I talked about getting Crevanille’s final limit ability? Remember the times I mentioned that Sword Dance is broken?  Check out the video: Crevanille is busted Demonstration time... Sword Dance will activate whenever Crevanille’s ARP hits a multiple of 10. With Yuni’s current Point Bonus skill, he automatically starts the fight with 3 ARP. The Star Shard item will add 4 ARP to Crevanille per use. So by having Leona and Hien each throw a Star Shard at Crevanille…   Yes, Crevanille just hit every enemy on the field for about 230 damage each. But he’s not finished!  You see how Sword Dance killed the four enemy spellcasters? It also killed a Healer just outside the southwest gate. Each of them adds 2 ARP to Crevanille. So 2x5=10, plus the 8 he got from the two Star Shards, plus the 3 he started with because of Point Bonus… Why, I do believe that adds up to over 20.   Yes, Sword Dance can be chained. If the first Sword Dance kills enough enemies to push Crevanille’s ARP to/over a multiple of 10, then Sword Dance will automatically trigger again. It is a laughably broken limit break. Crevanille just vaporized 13 Dulkheim soldiers without moving a step. [Captain Marler]: I’m well aware that you’re the trump card of the Marquelay-Ordinale alliance. Your deaths are necessary in order for the war to go the way it should.  Suck on Berserk Crevanille. [Captain Marler]: Augh! There’s… no way… that I’ll be defeated here… *Marler runs away*  Crevanille is a perfectly balanced and normal character. Superlative, everyone. I would propose retreating before reinforcements arrive.Awww, but if reinforcements show up then we can do more Sword Dance!  Fiiiine… I guess we’ll leave the Fort and watch these stupid geopolitical visions…  I’ve said so numerous times: I have zero interest in politics. *sigh* I will not give up on this. I’m leaving for now, but I’ll be back. You’ll change your mind some day.*Deringer leaves and Bauer enters*  He still-- perhaps rightfully-- feels betrayed by Ludwig. So, he wants me to oppose Ludwig politically. Ah, so that’s it. Gotta love politics. But that’s not why I’m here. I found someone doing a little spying on you. I tried to catch him, but he got away. I don’t know what this person was up to, but you better be careful. Ai, there’s always something… Hey! I recognize this screen! Get away from No Angeles!   It can’t be helped, Meline. This was Vester’s order. But… No “buts.” Vester won’t stand for disobedience, even from us. Are you serious, Cynth…? Do you truly not understand, Meline? Ugh, I’ve had it with this! I already know all of it. You’re more talented than me. I got it. …As long as you understand, then that’s fine. Meline, you cannot forget this. Hrm…*Cynthia walks away, but stops briefly before leaving the screen* Our lives are in his hands. Great. Looking forward to dealing with that when we get home. Well, there’s no avoiding it. She’s standing right outside our city, after all. Head back to Saudrick and rest up.  This time, do your buffing before you use the Transgate. A battle is going to start as soon as we touch down outside No Angeles. More importantly, make sure you save and possibly make a backup save before doing this. This next mission is very important.   You are already unnecessary, as my presence here indicates. Be quiet and this won’t hurt.Hey! It’s Skeletor! I thought you died. …Wait, why does everyone except Gruff Anime Dad and Ivan get to come back to life? No! I won’t be quiet! Master, it appears Meline is being chased.Good for her. Let’s head to the restaurant and check out that new chef we hired. Crevanille! Heeelp! You have to save me! Guess skull-face here is another Vester lacky. Yaaay… But that’s weird… Why would he attack Meline? She was with Vester, too, wasn’t she? Anyone who dares defy the sweet release of Death is to be punished! Master, we must save Meline from this strange Death man. Let us enter the fray!But I don’t want to! Ugggghhhh!  …we have to save Meline… I guess. The priority targets at the start of the mission are these two assholes up here. The Lich enemies love to cast Joint Spells and Death. Neither of those things is conducive to keeping Meline alive.  Meline will also need to be constantly healed, because Skeletor and the Undead Knight near him are out for blood and will absolutely wreck her poo poo. She will likely be near death before you’ve had a chance to do anything. As expensive as they might be, you will probably have to use Sacred Elixirs on her to keep her healthy.  Have your spellcasters deal with the two Lich. Meanwhile, your melee units should be popping Dash and trying to get to Meline as quickly as possible. She will try and flee through the trees to the north, but there’s a dead end up there, so it won’t actually provide her much safety. You may want to use manual movement to have your fastest character avoid those trolls and dragons. This might let you get to Meline in time to block Skeletor from chasing her through the trees. Beyond that, this mission is simply about killing everything. As long as you can prevent Skeletor from pursuing Meline, you should be okay. If she gets the opportunity, Meline will help you with some buffs.  Weirdly enough, Skeletor has an actual HP bar. Boss/Minor Boss enemies almost always have ??? listed. Strange. I don’t think I’ve made any changes to Analyze or Enemy Scan.   I accept defeat so long as it is for Lord Vester’s sake. Everyone, fall back!*Skeletor then teleports away, but leaves the Undead Knights behind… so, I’m not really sure who he was giving the retreat order to*  If you're wondering why I didn't just Sword Dance everything into oblivion, it's because I'm trying to show some restraint by not abusing it. I'd like to offer up some tips for anyone playing along that doesn't just amount to "Use Sword Dance." Hey, all right! You guys did great! What the hell just happened? Why were you being attacked? Weren’t you working WITH Vester? Yeah, about that… I was, but I’m not so much anymore. I screwed up the last operation. He decided my usefulness was at an end. Someone who can’t carry out a simple task is unfit to work for him. Even Cynthia said so. Really? I think that sounds like a thing he would do. This is what we saw in the foresight, Master. I don’t know anyone else.We get a choice here between “How could I say no to you?” and “No. I don’t trust you.” Despite how innocuous this may seem, this choice actually determines whether or not you go on to the Modified Route or the Original Route. If you turn Meline away, or if she dies during that mission, then you are stuck on the Original Route. That means you can’t recruit any of the Modified Route characters or get the modified endings (as far as I know, anyway). How could I say no to you?So, despite every fiber of my being fighting me to click on “No”… we have to take her in. Oh, Crevanille! Thank you! Well, if Crevanille says so, then I suppose I’m okay with it. I’ll have my butler prepare a room for you at my villa. I feel like Hien is giving us a backhanded compliment here. Listen, old man. I know it’s a terrible idea, but the game is forcing us to suffer if we want to get any of the good stuff. Mmm… Now that I feel more at ease… I’m also feeling kinda dizzy…*Meline gets the Stun effect over her sprite, then faceplants into the ground* She’s too little to be carrying such a burden. Tch, Vester… Crevanille, could you carry her to her room? Master, I wish to inform you that Meline has awoken. Crevanille…? Muh. Hey. Why am I in bed? Do you not recall, Meline? You fell unconscious after the man with the skull mask left. Sk-Skull…? Uhhh… What’s…? My head keeps…Great, another amnesiac. Are you okay? If I… weren’t okay… then this… Owww… Wh-What is it? I’m getting a bad vibe from Crevanille… I fail to understand. You do not appear to be carrying any unusual items. There’s something I don’t quite get… For now, I don’t want you coming any closer. Ugh, everything’s spinning…Oh, hey. Something we can agree on. All right then, we’ll leave you to it.  *groan*My thoughts exactly. Crevanille, I have something to report. Maggie is currently out. Understood. In that case, we will give Maggie the Projector upon her return.Why is she out now of all times? …Ugh. It should not be long. Maggie, please take care. We should be going, as well, Master. I swear to God, if you try and loving stab us in the back by stealing that thing I will grind you into dust.  So, Maggie has decided to take a very poorly timed vacation. That is going to force us into a vacation of our own. Before we get to the voting, however, we have something to dump off with Kate and a new costume to show.  *We hand Kate the Blast Research* [Kate]: This… isn’t what I think it is… is it? By the gods, this is the Blast report. How did you…? Hien and Leona threw Crevanille some Red Bulls and he wiped out the entire Fort by lifting his hand. No big deal. [Kate]: Wait, no, never mind. I’m sure the tale is worthy of song, but you can tell me later. Hmmm… It looks like they got further along in their research while I was gone. They probably made use of their discoveries, too. But that’s okay, I can duplicate their success.  Looks like we’ll have to wait a little bit for this spell. That’s okay, we’ve got some time to kill anyway. Moving on. What’s the deal with Yuni’s penultimate costume? Let’s just swap her into it and—  That’s to be expected. Honestly, I’m sort of surprised that this is the only costume for Yuni that’s heavy on fanservice. I mean, there’s a Maid costume and a schoolgirl costume, but both of those are still pretty conservative styles of dress. This is part of the joke that didn’t translate fully from Japanese. The researcher we talked to after Yuni was born gave us the H costume, but told us that just because it’s H doesn’t mean it’s hot. In Japanese, he says it more in the context of the costume not being “naughty” (he refers to it as “ecchi”). You can probably figure out that this is a joke about H being shorthand for hentai, which can mean “perverted” in Japanese.  The follow-up joke he makes is the one that doesn’t translate well to English. In Japanese, the researcher says about the E Costume: おすすめは、Eタイプのコスチュームだ！Eタイプだけに、イイッ！ (“I recommend the E-type Costume! It’s only good for E-types!”) Besides the obvious connection between E and “erotic” for a swimsuit costume, the researcher is also making a joke that the English letter “E” sounds like the Japanese for “good”, which can be spelled in Japanese as イイッ. The text for this uses Katakana instead of Hiragana (いい = good) because the vowel “i” in Katakana resembles the English vowel “i”, that the Japanese pronounce as “ee”.  Ah, lame puns that make absolutely no sense in other languages. Welcome to the joys of localization. Anyway, we’re forced to take a Furlough now because Maggie has disappeared on us. So, get to voting. --Furlough #6--    A few things to note: -We are being given 3 days of vacation this time. -Maggie has vanished, so she’s obviously not available for hanging out with. -Levan tells us that another job is available for Eliza. The only details are that the client will drop by during the night to fill us in. -Vallery, Mell, and Meline have joined the list of people we can hang out with. -I will allow up to 5 choices, seeing as how we’ve picked up 3 more members and an extra vacation day. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 01:02 on Aug 28, 2021 |
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Aug 28, 2021 00:10
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Okay, so let's solve another case with Great Detective Eliza, Increment Sydney until the thing stops us, try out some food with Hien, talk to Remus about his sister, and ... I don't remember what Vallery's story is.
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Aug 28, 2021 00:38
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Eliza, Frayne and Yuni I guess? Also A+ ambush in the fort, they let us in and boxed us in (very good), and then let us get where we wanted to go and pick up what we wanted and only got in our way once we had stolen what we wanted to steal. What if we had broken it instead?
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Aug 28, 2021 01:55
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Hein, Yuni, Sydney, and Eliza And burn Yuni's bikini costume.
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Aug 28, 2021 03:27
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If you approach the dulkheim soldiers, you get to talk to them. They give you the stink eye and say "I thought I felt death*" *not really, but thats what it translates to. I'm ahead on Hien, Frayne, Remus, Vallery, and Leona so them, so I can prune my screenshots a bit
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Aug 28, 2021 03:28
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Frayne, Eliza, Vallery, Hien, Meline Yes, I am voting for Meline, I didn't qualify for her ending, and want to see that chain.
Melomane Mallet fucked around with this message at 08:02 on Aug 28, 2021 |
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Aug 28, 2021 07:55
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I'll tell y'all now i will not stand for no catgirl racism  That was some fine dancing! I can understand the desire to hold off on it so as to not make every battle "nuke, move on"... though i can also understand the desire to just nuke and move on if they're going to give you the opportunity.  "strange Death man". "Skeletor" is more succinct though.Beach Yuni is honestly tamer than i was expecting from outfit H. Anyway, not worth considering over the almighty bear. Do Eliza's thing and also here is my standard Hien and Remus vote. And i guess Leona and Mell for the last two?
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Aug 28, 2021 12:36
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Ardeem posted:Okay, so let's solve another case with Great Detective Eliza, Increment Sydney until the thing stops us, try out some food with Hien, talk to Remus about his sister, and ... I don't remember what Vallery's story is. Not surprising, seeing as how he disappears for like 50% of the game. The only thing we really know about him is that he really likes to train. SIGSEGV posted:Also A+ ambush in the fort, they let us in and boxed us in (very good), and then let us get where we wanted to go and pick up what we wanted and only got in our way once we had stolen what we wanted to steal. What if we had broken it instead? Credit where it's due, they did plan it well, even if it was incredibly obvious. Shutting off the power to the training dummies was also a good call. Granted, it would have been a better ambush if they had emptied the lab of everything valuable in advance. Letting us go in and take everything we wanted was a bad call. AltaBrown posted:And burn Yuni's bikini costume. Fair enough. Honestly, and this might just be me, the swimsuit doesn't even look that good. It's mismatched and the pus yellow is not a great colour. MythosDragon posted:If you approach the dulkheim soldiers, you get to talk to them. They give you the stink eye and say "I thought I felt death*" I kind of suspected, since it would be weird for the Dulkheim soldiers to try and attack a merchant for no reason, but I didn't want to chance it after managing to get through the previous area full of Valbugs. Melomane Mallet posted:Yes, I am voting for Meline, I didn't qualify for her ending, and want to see that chain. Curse you. vilkacis posted:That was some fine dancing! I can understand the desire to hold off on it so as to not make every battle "nuke, move on"... though i can also understand the desire to just nuke and move on if they're going to give you the opportunity. It's really tempting to just use it all the time. It's not a super obscure setup, even for a first time player (as long as they discover where to get Sword Dance). But it also removes a lot of the tactics from missions, which wouldn't make for a very fun playthrough or LP. It's more the kind of thing you abuse to speed run through a second playthrough.
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Aug 28, 2021 21:59
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vilkacis posted:Do Eliza's thing and also here is my standard Hien and Remus vote. And i guess Leona and Mell for the last two?  Psycho Knight posted:Honestly, and this might just be me, the swimsuit doesn't even look that good. It's mismatched and the pus yellow is not a great colour. Agreed. I wouldn't've voted for it anyway, but it's just poorly executed.
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Aug 28, 2021 22:14
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Leona, Vallery, Eliza, Hien.
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Aug 29, 2021 08:55
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Furlough Update 6: Right in the Feels Time for another Furlough, because Maggie ran off somewhere and we can’t do anything until she turns back up again. I mean, we could probably go look for her or something, but that would take effort.  When we start this Furlough, Levan will wander over to inform Odd-Job Eliza about her next employment opportunity. As easy as the last one? Let’s hear it.[Levan]: The client has yet to provide the details, but he is scheduled to arrive tonight, and requests that you ask him directly. Understood. Thank you, Levan.*Eliza turns to Crevanille* …That’s the situation so far. Would you mind coming with me to hear the details? It might be the only chance you get to hear them, if the job takes me away for a while. Well then, shall I proceed? With your comrades growing in numbers, I recommend three days off in order to foster stronger bonds with them and boost morale. First, please tell me where you’d like to go on furlough tomorrow.So, we’ve been given an extra vacation day to accommodate our ballooning cast of allies. Based on that, I let the thread choose 5 people to hang out with this time. We’re going to spend Days 1 and 3 in Marquelia. The thread voted for Hien, Eliza, Leona, Remus, and Vallery. Hien’s substory can be moved forward no matter where we are, but Remus and Vallery’s can only be moved ahead in Marquelia. Leona’s, meanwhile, can only be moved ahead in No Angeles. Marquelia. Understood.*Everyone else heads to their rooms*  Admirable work, everyone. Please enjoy yourself tomorrow.We head to our room and hit the bed. A scene interrupts our rest, however.  *Eliza enters* Eliza, thank you for your patience. The client’s waiting down below. I appreciate the help, Crevanille.*Eliza joins the team and we head downstairs to meet our client*  [Conrad]: Yes… I’ve come from Trockmere. My name is Conrad. Trockmere? You’re coming from Dulkheim?[Conrad]: Trockmere is a Dulkheim city in name only. The city wants nothing to do with the war. It’s a policy I find myself in agreement with. I understand. Well, then, Mr. Conrad, what brings you out so far from home?[Conrad]: Were you aware of the recent disaster that’s hit Trockmere? If you’re talking about the crazy lizard creature attack that flooded the residential district, then wasn’t that like a year ago? Not sure I’d call that recent. Yes, of course. You want us to look for her, then?[Conrad]: I know I might be wrong. She might truly be… gone… But I need to know for sure, or else I’ll never be able to move on. I would like nothing more than to look into this for you. Unfortunately, being in Trockmere would be problematic. That said, if Crevanille here is able to assist me…Personally I think this is a tall order to try and fill, but the people voted, so… Take the job. We’ll find her. Oh, thank you. Mr. Conrad, I shall do all within my power to find your fiancé. What can you tell me about her? Blonde hair…[Conrad]: Yes. Back in Trockmere, a journalist named Sworv was helping me look for her. I haven’t talked to him in a while. He might know more. Sworv, the journalist… Hm. This may take a bit of time.[Conrad]: Not a problem. I’m staying at the inn in Marquelia. I appreciate your help. *Conrad leaves*  We should probably check the scene of the incident first. To Trockmere! Eventually! Occasionally you will get a part of a character’s substory that tasks you to do something outside of Marquelia/No Angeles. In these cases, you need to go to the location while not on a Furlough. Taking Frayne to the prison for painting or whatever is another such instance of this. So, Eliza’s substory is on hold until the Furlough is over. We’ll do it at the end of this update. For now, we’ll spend our vacation days chatting with Remus, Hien, Leona, and Vallery.  A few things to note here: Ignore Yuni’s costume and the fact that it’s currently evening. I had to do a second recording for this one because my footage for the first time was screwed up. What’s happened?In case you’ve forgotten, since it has been some time since we did anything with Remus, we confronted the Princess about her possibly being Remus’ sister. She wanted us to find out the name of Remus’ father, though, in order to make absolutely certain of their relation. I’m curious to know more about Master’s companions. Hmph… Well, whatever. And, yes… I had been traveling with my father. He was rather easy-going. I rarely saw him open up to anyone, but for some reason his stoicism earned him the trust of other people. There was always someone depending on him, any my youthful heart was filled with respect for him. But, in the end… We were attacked by bandits, and… He was a good father, wasn’t he? You know, you never mentioned his name… Huh? It was Renish. Everyone called him Reny, though. Renish, is it? I see. Thank you.Well, we’ve got what we need. Later, Remus! Odd… Now that we have the name of his father, we can progress with Remus’ character substory by… talking to Chris and the Princess again. It’s kind of weird how Remus is absent for like half his character quest. Affirmative. Let’s go see Alicia, then.*We follow Chris all the way to the throne room in the castle*  This concerns our previous discussion. Make with the clearing, and hurry up. …..Baker doesn’t appear to be happy with Chris’ tone, but he vacates the throne room with everyone else all the same. We were told that Remus’s father was called Reny. That was just a nickname, as his full name was Renish. The vanished king of Marquelay…Hey! Looks like Remus is royalty! How about that. Then he is my younger brother. Well, that’s good. I’d like you to explain why you’ve been avoiding Remus. Because…*Alicia goes down the steps and hands something to Chris, then returns to the throne*  Mercuous is the mermaid who helped establish Marquelay. It’s said she had been told the future by the God of Fate. She predicted disasters so that Marquelay could prepare for them or avoid them entirely. Her prophecies are here, in “The Oracle of Mercuous.” Prophecies… More like a pack of lies, if you ask me… It may be hard to believe, but the predictions in this book are correct more often than not.Are these prophecies anything like Nostradamus’? Where they were written a long time ago in super vague terms that following generations of writers and weirdos have molded or mistranslated so as to make Nostradamus’ “predictions” look totally accurate?  Alternatively: Marquelay has been very fortunate and the book thing looking like the words of a prophet is just the result of retroactive clairvoyance. I mean, are there any prophecies in there about Crevanille and the city of No Angeles? Didn’t think so. So, what’s that got to do with your brother? Please read the final page. That is the last of the prophecies. Okay… Let’s see what we’ve got here… …Okay, I will concede that that is very accurate to the current situation. “Ancient lore”… Spells. And the “wings of light” must mean the Angels. It could be a coincidence, but it does match up with what’s happening right now. I’d like to believe that it’s just coincidental, but… Well, keep reading. The paper’s torn down the middle here. I can’t read the whole thing. If the people ever learned of this, there would be chaos. But then, even though the King… my father… left the country with my brother… Your brother then returned to Marquelay. It seems he was unable to escape this prophecy… I won’t let Remus die. We’re not losing any more party members as long as I have anything to say about it. This is because I’ve told you the truth. I must trust you with the life of my brother. *Baker then returns to the room and the other aides/soldiers follow* You must forgive me. It will soon be time for my next appointment. Busy as always. I’ll get you out of here sometime soon. Thank you. It’s the same for Alfonse and me. We look exactly the same, but we’ve taken different paths in life.That’s usually what twins do. They don’t tend to stay attached to each other and living the exact same lives. But, even when we are apart, we have strong feelings of concern for each other… Christopher, do you worry about Alfonse? Does that seem strange? I think I understand how much Alicia worries about Remus more than you. Well, that sure was a Remus event if I ever saw one. Good stuff. Let’s see who else we can find around here.  Vallery? Uh… Hey… What’s the matter? You don’t seem like yourself. I’m just wondering about what I should do. It’s not like I’ll always be together with you guys.What are you talking about? No Angeles will last for eternity. Eternity! You’re our friend. A friend, huh? I’m not particularly concerned about that. Nobody here has any hope of standing against Crevanille in a 1v1 fight. I wouldn’t trust me if I were you… All I know is battle, after all. I’ll just have to find another battlefield.Also, we just (reluctantly) welcomed Meline into the group and she was actively trying to kill all of us a few days ago. There’s also a good chance she’s actively planning on betraying us as we speak. *Vallery leaves* Should we become enemies, would it really be impossible for us to revert to our previous state of friendship? Is fighting truly all that he knows?My usual response would be “No.” I’m typically the person that will burn a bridge when someone else crosses it. But I can forgive Vallery, because he’s cool. …To a certain degree, anyway. I’ve still got limits.  That technically brings us to the end of Day 1, since we did two things with Remus and one with Vallery. For the next vacation day, we’ll stay in No Angeles.  But before that, there’s a night scene. You may enter.*Vallery comes in* So, it is Vallery… There was something I forgot to ask you. I was thinking about what I would do from this point on… Tell me: what are you fighting for? I’m protecting others.Gotta go with the classic hero answer.  I guess talking about it didn’t really give me a clear decision… Sorry. I guess you guys will just have to put up with me a bit longer until I find my true purpose…You and everyone else in this ragtag bunch of misfits. *Vallery leaves*  On Day 2, we swerve around the corner to visit Leona in her room.  That figures. Leona, you know there’s a bed through that door, right? For the love of God, at least tell me you know there’s a bathroom back there… I’m so happy I have my own room. I’m just like everybody else now!*There’s a knock, and then Eliza enters*  Look, Leona. I brought you this. Muh? For me? …Do you smell something? Perhaps it’s what’s in the bag. Catnip! It’s for cats. Cats!? What did I tell you about me not being a cat!? Er, I mean… Look…  *Leona goes up to Eliza and gets weirdly close* Hee hee! Mrow… I’m not a cat… Eliza, I cannot condone such behavior. That isn’t what Leona wants. *sigh* All right, I get it. Let’s meet up again later.*Eliza leaves* Are you all right, Leona? Last night, Frayne kept coming by to pat me on the head. Then Remus did, too…Frayne I can understand, but Remus doing it sounds a bit off. So, everyone else does this, too… Do you all think I’m some sort of pet? No.Of course not! Everyone knows that “Team Pet” is Yuni’s position. …We dress her up in adorable little outfits, including the bear/dog costume that she’s currently wearing, and she has unconditional love for Crevanille to the point that she will happily die for him. Just try and tell me I’m wrong. I agree. Leona provides us with superior strength in battle.Not sure that’s quite what Crevanille wanted to conv— Really? Do you think so? Thank you! I’ll give it my all and fight for you!Whatever. She’s happy about that, so I guess it’s fine. *Leona leaves*  Yes. I will go and gather everyone.It’s time for some finger wagging and tut-tutting.  *Leona then enters the dining hall and Frayne gets out of her chair to face her* Oh, Leona? Come here, Leona! Heeere, Leona! ….. Don’t treat her like that.*Crevanille moves between Frayne and Leona* …..*Little question marks pop up over Frayne’s head* Let me explain…*Explaining happens during a fade transition*  I see why treating her like a pet is not fair. ….. I-I didn’t mean to… Of course that was not your intention. But it still hurt Leona. It’s important to consider the feelings of others whenever you say something. I… I’m sorry. I was mean to her, too… I also treated her badly…Meanwhile, Vallery is sitting over there going “Why the hell was I called in for this? I’m missing out on my spiritual journey of self discovery. I don't even know what this is about.” Leona is one of us. You’re right… She’s one of us. Leona’s saying that she wants to be a real member of the team, not a mascot or pet.*Frayne gets a little “…” bubble over her head for a moment* Leona… do you want to go shopping with us? That’s right. She’s one of us. Can I go, too? Oh, everyone… Yeah! Why don’t we all go shopping together?*Everyone starts to leave the room* Don’t touch the party war chest! I need that for Star Shards and absurdly expensive armour!  *Leona then runs back in* Come on, Hien! Hurry up! As you wish.*Hien leaves, but Leona stays* If it’s you… maybe I can call you my master one day… I was going to make a joke about Leona trying to encroach on Yuni’s turf, but Yuni is legit territorial about that. I really like this moment. That said, do you intend to remain here after the war, Leona? I might have to if I can’t find a way home… Anyway, I’m calling you my master now! And that’s that!Change of topic: Failed. *Leona leaves* If would appear that Leona has many different things to consider.”Like whether or not she wants me to cut off that little tail of hers. Crevanille is my master.”  Anyway, after that little Family Channel moment, we head out and have a generic chat with Leona. Finally, we hit up Hien. We have reached the end of his Q&A sessions, so now he’s got something new for us.  Is something on your mind, Hien? Hmm? Oh. I had a haunting dream last night. Within it, there was a beautiful woman. Though I recognized her, I could not determine how I knew her… Ugh, if that is the case, then this is a most lamentable situation. It is one thing to lose one’s path, but another to forget those who were your friends and family. It does seem as though she is someone I love, be it a lover, a wife, a daughter… It could even be an older sister…Well, you do know that you had a sister, since your niece told you that.  That’s all for this part of the Hien’s event. The game asks me if I want to invite him along, so I decide to take him out to eat again. We’ve got new cuisine to sample, after all. Let’s try Dulkheim, this time.  So Iglesian Cuisine is warm and heavy on cheeses, which suggests Dutch or Canadian (maybe?), but the background art appears to be Japanese. Dulkheim Cuisine is big on spices, which would suggest Indian, but the background appears to be Chinese. I’ve always said that the secret to good health and longevity is to eat well and exercise. Your methodology is sound. This is likely why you have so much energy. I believe that to be the case, yes. That’s good.That might sound a little dismissive, but the other option was “You’re not so young anymore.” I refuse to play along with the idea that this 45-year old is the loving Crypt keeper. Thank you. You know, you should be a little more mindful of you [sic] own health.Listen man, pandemic life has been rough on us all. Once that routine was broken, stuff like exercise and diet went straight into a tailspin. A sword that is not maintained properly will begin to rust and grow dull. But, if you are diligent in caring for your blade, it will hold its edge. And so ends Day 2. After parting ways with Hien, we head to bed. The next morning, we set off for Marquelia.  After watching Sydney leave. Sorry, Sydney. We still can’t advance your substory beyond a little baby step, so there’s not much thread interest in you at the moment.  Remus can be advanced a little more, so let’s do that while we have the opportunity. Then we’ll hit up Hien and Vallery since they also have actual events to show. We can’t advance Leona in Marquelia. Talking to her here would only result in generic chat. ….. Sure we have, she’s right over there. That saves us from an awkward question dodge. *Alice and Remus see each other, at which point Alice turns around and tries to leave* Wait! You’re my… ….. You’re my sister, aren’t you? …And if I am? I cannot tell you my name, nor can I even confirm whether or not we are related. …Is that so. I mean, look at this. How do you hide a resemblance like that? Even with a face covering. You can call me Alice. …If we ever meet again.*Alice runs off back towards the castle* Alice… She… Yeah… that wasn’t a very clear answer, but she could be my sister. You seem quite reserved. Honestly, I’m excited to have finally found her. But, when I looked into her eyes, I understood that she had a reason why she could not talk about herself. That’s very kind of you. Yeah, who knows? Isnt [sic] it natural to want to help someone? Even moreso when it’s a relative.Depends on the relative.  You’ll find out someday… maybe… Kinda depends on how the thread feels. Anyway, let’s go chat with Hien.  Are you still thinking about that woman from your dream, Hien? I cannot help it. Not being able to identify her is rather troubling. All the more disconcerting is that I feel as though my help was being requested. The secret concentration camp is certainly a popular spot. I am desperate to do something about this. Meeting her may also allow me to remember more of what I’ve lost. If you’re thinking about this that much, then you should not ignore it. At this point, it seems clear that this is more than a simple dream. In such a case, she would be alive and held somewhere…Like Eliza, Hien’s next part of substory will have to be advanced outside of a Furlough. Both his and Eliza’s are in the same area, so we’ll do both after we finish talking to Vallery.  I chased after it like it was my own, but with him gone, my goal is gone, as well…Well he’s not gone gone, Vallery… not in our timeline, anyway. Granted, he’s definitely sidelined. In the end, I didn’t have my own goal.*Some rando kid walks up to us*  How the hell do you know about the Angels, kid? Also, that problem is already solved. That’s right… Crevanille, you were able to defeat that Angel.Not as hard as you might have though, actually. Although, I guess we did technically kill Bryntir in order to do it. [Boy]: My papa was killed by a bad person. I wanna get them back. I like this kid. He’s already got the vengeance in him. Man, I hate people like that so much. What kind of person goes around killing peoples’ fathers!? Do you know anything more about the guy that killed your father? Maybe I can help you out.[Boy]: My papa was a soldier in the Ordinale Army.  Who could have seen that twist coming? ….. A-Are you sure you’re not mistaken? After all, how could he tell you if he’s dead…?[Boy]: One of my father’s friends in battle told me! Vallery killed a lot of people! So, please, please beat that bad man! ….. W-Well, it’s just that…*A woman walks up*  [Boy]: No! Don’t listen to her! It’s all Vallery’s fault! [Mother]: Hush! Can’t you see that you’re bothering these nice people? I apologize for my son… [Boy]: My house is the one on the right once you enter Marquelia, so come back and tell me when you kill that evil Vallery for me! *The mother and son leave* Vallery… I can’t think of any other way to repay that child for what I took from him. There’s got to be another way. Another way? …No, the only way to pay for taking a life is giving your own. Come by whenever you’re ready to do the deed. This is the only way that boy will get satisfaction.*Vallery leaves* Master, I believe that you should talk with that child before you decide how to proceed. It is dangerous to let his hatred go unattended.What? Nah. Crevanille’s hatred for Dulkheim and Remus’ hatred for Angels went unattended and they’ve— Crevanille just vaporized 13 Dulkheim soldiers without moving a step. The Angel threat is gone, but… We have another problem. If we can’t stop the use of summoning spells, something bad will occur. We’re not sure of the specifics, but we know the Angels’ original objective had been to stop humans from using them.…Okay. Point conceded, Yuni. We’ll have a talk with that kid the next time Vallery gets voted for during Furlough. Well, if he gets voted for again.  That does it for our vacation days, but we still have some things to wrap up from it. We need to head to Trockmere for Eliza and Hien’s events. We’ll start with Eliza’s.  On that note, do you mind if I go first? I took the job, so I ought to be the one to get it done, right?We swap the formation around so that Eliza is the party leader, then go looking for Sworv.  Sworv is this generic NPC standing up on the wall. You have to take the alley to the right of the inn to get to him. [Sworv]: Yeah, that’s right. Might I have a moment of your time?[Sworv]: Sure, what do you need? Well, we’re looking for someone. You see…*Eliza explains during a fade transition*  [Sworv]: Far as I know, only two of the missing have actually been found so far. Both were men, and.. they both washed up dead. Washed up?[Sworv]: The flood must have swept them away. We found them both… right about here, actually. One died from blood loss, and the other drowned. Could anyone have survived being swept away like that?[Sworv]: Anything’s possible, I guess. The one who drowned had sunburns. He must’ve been drifting alive for a while. If only there’d been a ship passing by, he might be back here with his family today. But it’s a very slim chance out there at sea, even if everything does break your way.  The war between Dulkheim and Valkania broke out soon after, though, right? Maybe she’s been stranded somewhere, unable to return.[Sworv]: I like your optimism, kid. You know, tell you what. If this does have a happy ending, it’ll make a great story. I’ll keep looking into it. Well aren’t you just the sweetest thing. How? Where else can you look?[Sworv]: Well, someone must know which ships were around at the time. I think I’ll start there. *Sworv leaves* Someone who knows which ships were around… I might be able to find someone like that myself! All right. Got to keep on working…It might sound as though this part of Eliza’s substory has been put on hold again, but the guy we’re looking for is actually visible from where we talked to Sworv.  We’re just looking for someone hanging around the docks that knows the shipping schedule. This guy is as good as any. [Man]: What do you want to know? Before the disaster and the war, where were ships normally bound?[Man]: Well, that’d be Marquelia and Lamplast Island. Although they called off all shipments to Lamplast almost a year ago. Yeah, there’s a good reason for that. [Man]: So, if you’re asking about right before the disaster, the ships were only headed for Marquelia. Marquelia![Man]: Is something wrong? Not at all! Thank you! You would know, seeing as how you dragged our corpses from the water. The ocean currents must be moving in that direction. If she were lucky, a ship going that way might’ve rescued her! Have there been any confirmed reports of rescue at sea in that time frame? Well, I was going back and forth to Ordinale at the time, so it might’ve happened while I was gone. Levan might know something.Back to No Angeles!  [Levan]: Hmmm… Now that you mention it, during your stay in Ordinale, I do recall hearing something like that. What became of this person? Do you know?[Levan]: Indeed. The last I heard, she was staying in Marquelia-- in the house to the left of its entrance. Ah, excellent. It seems that we will need to see this person. I wonder why she is still there, though…Maybe she wanted to get away from her fiancé and this was the perfect excuse?  Hi… do you have any girls you fished out of the ocean? We heard one was being cared for here.[Woman]: If you’re here to gawk, just go away. We’re not gawkers! Look, if the girl’s name is Catalina, there’s somebody looking for her.[Woman]: I… don’t know her name. And she’s not in any condition to tell you, either. What do you mean?[Woman]: She’s in a state of shock.  [Woman]: She’s still so young, too, the poor thing. I see… A man named Conrad hired us to find his fiancé, Catalina. We think this girl might be she. Might it be possible to have him meet her?[Woman]: Well, if she is who you think she is, maybe seeing him would do her good. Yeah. Why don’t you ask him to come down here? Will do. Thank you very much.*The woman closes the door* All right! Back to Conrad.We’re automatically taken to Conrad’s room at the inn.  [Conrad]: Did you find anything? As a matter of fact, here in town…*Eliza explains* [Conrad]: I see… So, only you can tell whether or not it is she.[Conrad]: …I understand. All right. I’ll go back to the house and talk to her about it.*Eliza leaves*  [Conrad]: I almost wonder if it’s not the right thing for me to see her… If it really is her, though, and she’s alive… I’d be overjoyed. But what if she’s not the same person I remember? You want to chime in here, Hien? Kinda feels like this matches up with your situation.  [Conrad]: Sworv… [Sworv]: Conrad. I thought you wanted to see her. That’s why I gave the detectives all that info instead of writing an article. Maybe I was wrong… [Conrad]: N-No, I still want to see her… [Sworv]: Then don’t run away from her. You’re the only one who can help her now. [Conrad]: … You love her, don’t you?[Conrad]: Yes! Of course I love her. No matter what state she’s in, I want to be with her. [Sworv]: That’s the spirit! *Eliza returns* Thanks for waiting. Here she is… [Conrad]: C-Catalina… [Catalina]: …… [Conrad]: It’s me. It’s Conrad! I’m here! I looked everywhere to find you! [Catalina]: Con…rad…? [Conrad]: Yes, Conrad Eames, your fiancé. [Catalina]: C-C-Conrad…!  [Conrad]: Trockmere, remember? You were swept out to sea, and it carried you all the way here, to Marquelay. [Catalina]: I… I remember holding onto a plank… I didn’t think I’d ever see you again… Thank goodness, Conrad!  [Catalina]: Y-You saved me… You’ve taken care of me all this time. I owe you everything… [Woman]: Think nothing of it. I’m just glad you’re all right. Well, Sworv? Got your headline ready?[Sworv]: Hey, I think about more than what’ll sell papers. I’m glad this worked out for the best. But you have to understand, it’s been a long time since anyone has heard good news. This kind of story is exactly what people need.  [Sworv]: I won’t cause you any trouble. [Conrad]: Catalina? [Catalina]: I don’t mind at all. We SHOULD tell everyone. War’s torn us all apart, but there’s still some good in the world. And there always will be. [Sworv]: Thank you! I’ll start on the article right away. Till next time! *Sworv leaves* [Catalina]: Everyone, thank you so much… [Conrad]: I don’t know what else to say. Thank you. Payment, please. And there we have it! Job well done.*Conrad and Catalina leave* Thanks for your help. It’s good to have you with me on this. Seriously. It must be great, having somebody like they do. I mean… did you see those two? They were radiant together. Affirmative. I wonder if I’d look the same if I had someone like that… You’ve always got me.  Though, you know… I might really consider that. You’d need to be a little more dependable, of course! Well, we’d best be off.Hey, LP Crevanille is very dependable. Psycho Knight Crevanille… well, I prefer to use the term “nominal hero” to refer to him, but he has his moments of dependability… when the mood strikes… and stuff happens to align with personal desires.  Eh, I’m sure I’ll remember.And that wraps up another case for the Mayfield Mysteries team. Now, let’s go get Hien’s thing done so we can finish this furlough update.  On the way to the prison, I discover to my horror that those werecat enemies can also apparently steal armour. It’s always been spellstones up until now. Needless to say, I had Crevanille immediately Sword Dance to make sure that this bastard didn’t escape with my precious Aura Plate. That poo poo was expensive and I’ll be damned if some random enemy is going to make off with it.  When we get to the prison, Yuni will ask us if we want to take a break. Doing so will split the party up and allow us to wander around to talk with them.  Hien doesn’t have anything to say when we talk to him, but if we head up to the beds in the guardroom and choose to sleep, then…  Is there anything troubling you, Hien? Well, in the cell I was resting in, I found a familiar pendant. Looking at it seems to call forth something from my past… If it is causing old memories to resurface, then it may be worth holding on to. I agree. I will keep it close. As you suggested, it may aid me in the future…And that’s all. Probably not a good sign for Hien that the pendant was found in one of the cells here, considering… you know. That does it for Furlough #6. It’s been a while since we had a party vote, so I guess now is a good time for it. —Party Vote #2— We have a single new party member option. Meline is with us, but she hasn’t joined, so Vallery is our only new member since last time. At the moment, the game is not locking in any particular members, so hopefully this time I will be able to use the party thread right from the start. Vote for up to 3. Psycho Knight fucked around with this message at 22:47 on Sep 1, 2021 |
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Sep 1, 2021 15:07
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Hien, Vallery, Frayne
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Sep 1, 2021 15:33
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